Publishing News 8/24/13

It's Saturday and time for updates on agents:

Amy Tannenbaum has joined the Jane Rotrosen Agency as a literary agent. She was previously an editor at Atria, and will represent new adult, romance, and commercial women's fiction authors.

Writers House announced that Geri Thoma and Lisa DiMona have joined the agency. We are delighted that Geri and Lisa are joining our growing team of agents. Their expertise in nonfiction will complement our list and enlarge the scope of the agency," said Writers House chairman Amy Berkower in a statement. In addition, Stephen Barr was recently promoted to senior agent, while Brianne Johnson moves up to agent.

Agent Laurie McLean has left Larsen Pomada after 8 years and formed Foreword Literary, in partnership with former Larsen Pomada colleague Pam van Hylckama Vlieg and Gordon Warnock, who was an agent at Andrea Hurst & Associates. They are joined by assistant agents Danielle Smith and Jen Karsbaek. Foreword Literary will be a "virtual agency," with professionals in the San Francisco Bay area, Sacramento, Chicago and the central coast of California to start.

Paul Bresnick reports that he has finalized terms for assuming control of the Wendy Weil Agency. He will now conduct all business under a new banner, the Bresnick Weil Literary Agency.

MacKenzie Fraser-Bub is joining Trident Media Group as a women's fiction agent.

(Excerpted from Publishers Lunch)

Christine Verstraete

Hi Helen, thanks for hosting me during my Book Launch Blog Tour for Girl Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie, which just released! Yay!

You're welcome, Christine! For those of you who don't yet know Christine, here's a bit about her:

Christine Verstraete is a big Halloween fan who enjoys a good scare or two. Her short fiction has appeared online and in anthologies including Timeshares and Steampunk'd from DAW Books. Her new YA book, GIRL Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie released August 1. Stop by her website at http://cverstraete.com or blogs, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com and http://candidcanine.blogspot.com.

Before you link over to her website or blogs, stick around here a little longer. I'm grilling Christine with questions about her books and writing.

Q: Zombies, romance, and humor -- how do you fit all these in one story?

Christine: Carefully… ha!

Well Becca, the 16-year-old protagonist is only a part-Z  (Zombie), so a teenager still has to have some kind of life, (or un-life?) right? Other than fighting off full Zs, she has this good-looking guy she's getting to know… And when you're in the worst of times, a little humor can't hurt, though she's not too fond of her would-be boyfriend's penchant for bad zombie jokes…

Q: You've also written a children's mystery, which has a sweet and definitely not scary storyline. Did you write it before you started writing zombies?

A: My kid's mystery was out originally in 2009 (how times flies!) and as a longtime horror fan, I've gradually been letting my stories get a little darker, but they still usually have some weird quirk or a touch of humor. I can't help myself.

 Q: The cover for My Life as a Teenage Zombie is scary looking. The dark eyes, which actually are looking in different directions, totally say "zombie"! (I love it.) Did you do the cover or have input on it?

A: I did make suggestions on the cover, but the eye wasn't my idea and I have to admit I wasn't sure about it at first… but it grew on me. Since one of Becca's "quirks" after turning part Z is a sometimes "twirly" eye, it makes sense. And it's memorable, right?

Q: You do both long and short fiction. Which is easier, book length or short story and why?

A: I don't know if I can call either one "easier."  I like writing short stories, but I noticed I tended to be starting them slower, as if I were writing a longer story. You have more leisure to explore things in a book or longer story that shorter formats often don't allow, but I do love both.

 Q: Tell us one thing about yourself that you've never talked about before, be it scary, funny, or happy.

A: I used to be afraid of the dark. Really. Must've been all those monster movies I watched or scary books I read. Had to be. I mean, that thing in the closet isn't real, right?

Q: Now, in one paragraph tell us what GIRL Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie is about.

Sixteen-year-old Rebecca Herrera Hayes' life changes forever when her cousin comes home with a deadly secret—he's becoming a zombie, a fate he shares with her through an accidental scratch. Becca becomes a part-Z (zombie), with all the weird quirks and habits no girl wants to be noticed for. But time is running out… she needs to find something, anything, to stop this deadly transformation before it is forever too late...

Click here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

* Be sure to comment to win assorted prizes. Leave an email or website to contact you. Readers can see pix of the prizes on day 1 of the tour at GirlZombieAuthors. 

Links:

Website: www.cverstraete.com

Blog: GirlZombieAuthors, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com

BUY:
Amazon:  *Canada - China - France - Germany - India - Italy - Japan -Spain - US - UK

* Books-A-Million   *Barnes & Noble   *IndieBound   * Powell's

*** Don't forget to follow along the rest of the tour! ***

GIRL Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie Book Launch Blog Tour - August 5-17

Monday, 8/5 - Marian Allen asks Why Zombies?

Tuesday, 8/6 - Armand Rosamilia, http://armandrosamilia.com/

Wednesday, 8/7 - GirlZombieAuthors, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com

Thursday, 8/8 - StraightFromHel, Helen Ginger, http://straightfromhel.blogspot.com/

Friday, 8/9 - Dana Wright, ZombieGirlShambling, http://zombiegirlshambling.blogspot.com/

Saturday, 8/10 - GirlZombieAuthors, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com

Monday, 8/12 - AR Von, Dreamz of Dragons, http://dreamzofdragons.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, 8/13 - B. Swangin Webster, Books, Shoes, Writing, http://booksshoeswriting.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, 8/14 - DB Corey, http://dbcorey.blogspot.com/

Thursday, 8/15 - Wrap-up - GirlZombieAuthors, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com

Friday, 8/16 – Austin Camacho, Another Writer’s Life, http://ascamacho.blogspot.com

Saturday, 8/17 – Winners announced after 12 noon Central – GirlZombieAuthors, http://girlzombieauthors.blogspot.com

Book Review: A Suitable Husband

 A Suitable Husband was written by S.B.Lerner. Not sure what category this would fall in. Definitely historical since it's set in the 1930s. It's a coming of age book since Bianca grows into herself and becomes a woman surviving difficult and horrific times. It's also a bit of a romance since she learns what love really is.

I guess the category I would put it in is: Good.

It's set in Poland during a time dangerous for the Jewish.  Everything's falling apart - the government, Poland's economy, society, and Bianca's life. Bianca's been sheltered most of her life. Opening her eyes to the situation, her family's plight, and her own circumstances is a shock for her. She doesn't want to give up the way her life had been, but there's no turning back. She must decide what path her life will take and what she will do to survive.

I liked A Suitable Husband because it took me to places I've never been. It set me amidst lives and people I came to like and respect. S.B. Lerner puts you in the middle of a haunting time period with characters you care for and worry about.

Amazon  

Barnes and Noble  

I give A Suitable Husband a rating of Hel-of-a-Time
****************
FTC Disclaimer: If I remember right, the author sent this book to me. That did not influence my review. I was influenced by the setting, the time period and the subject matter. I don't believe Lerner ever used the word "persecution," yet Bianca's story and the story of her family plops you right down in the middle of the persecution. You can feel the fear, understand the hopes, and taste the pain. That did influence my review.

Morgan Mandel on Life Altering Events

 Our guest today is Morgan Mandel. Morgan is a past president of Chicago-North RWA, was Library Liaison for Midwest RWA, belongs to EPIC and Sisters in Crime. She enjoys the diversity of writing mysteries, thrillers, and romances. Her current release is the thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse. Her others include the romantic suspense, Killer Career, the romantic comedy, Girl of My Dreams, and her debut mystery, Two Wrongs. As you might guess from the title of today's post, Morgan has offered to talk about life altering events.

Please welcome Morgan Mandel.

Life Altering Events

Both of my stories in The Corner Café: A Tasty Collection of Short Stories deal with life altering events.

In What Nice Blessings, Suze’s Dad finds a new job and her family must move from their home town. This happens right before her first day at high school. She’s stressed by the thought of leaving her best friend behind and entering a new environment amongst strangers. In the process of relocating, a more drastic event takes place, dwarfing Suze’s prior fears, and testing her mettle.

In The Closing of the Corner Café, a couple takes a huge step by starting their own business, a corner café. With no guaranty their venture will succeed; they, like many entrepreneurs, are still plucky enough to give it a try. It takes courage to invest time and money in such an enterprise.

 Each of us face countless life altering events. Ranking number one has to be being born in the first place.

On the upside, some might be: Starting school, graduating, getting or changing a job, making friends, moving to a new town, new house or apartment, meeting a life partner, getting married, having children, grandchildren, or even adopting an animal. I was born in Chicago, moved to a suburb, lived in several different apartments, before finally buying a house. I was introduced to my husband in the cafeteria at college and we’ve been married for over 39 years. Though we were never blessed with children, we’ve always shared our home with an adopted dog, the current one being Rascal.

On the downside, it’s hard to avoid any of these sad events: Death of a family member or friend, illness, unemployment, estrangement in the family or of a friend, foreclosure, unsettled weather. I’ve suffered the loss of both parents, and some good friends, have dealt with my share of illnesses, some minor, and others chronic, such as high blood pressure and thyroid issues. I lost my job, which turned into a blessing in disguise, and have since retired. Last July’s flood left seven inches of water in the basement and it was no picnic cleaning up the mess. I’m hoping that will never happen again. 

It may not be easy to deal with whatever comes our way. How we relate to the good and bad not only tests our character, but is also what life is all about.

Do you have a particular life altering event you’d like to share -- One that’s either happened to you, or someone you know, either real or fictional?
***
Thank you Morgan. You're so right when you said that some of our most trying experiences can turn out to be blessings. (Giving birth came first to my mind.)

Here are some places you can click to find out more about Morgan and her books, as well as to connect with her online:
Amazon Author Central Page
Blog  
Excerpts & All Buy Links to Morgan’s novels 
Facebook
Twitter 

Remember, leave a comment about your own life altering events - or even ones that happened to someone you know or to one of your characters, if you're a writer.

Book Review: Going Home

 Going Home by Evelyn Palfrey is a romance, but probably not your typical romance. Yes, there's a man and a woman leading the story. But as Evelyn Palfrey says on the cover, she writes romance novels for the marvelously mature.

Thalia Allen has recently retired after 30 years on the job. She dreams of traveling, but then Hurricane Katrina invades New Orleans. Thalia doesn't live in New Orleans, though. She lives in Austin, Texas.  But as the refugees begin to escape to the shelter in her home town, she steps up to help. She works at the shelter, taking her granddaughter along. Eventually, she takes Joe Lambert and his nephew Kyobe into her home.

I enjoyed reading Going Home. Katrina wasn't that long ago -- just long enough to see that time for what it was  … chaos and tragedy for those involved. Joe wants to go back to New Orleans, back to his home and the crew who work for him, but he doesn't even have a car. He works hard to put together some money. And yet he's torn since he's starting to have feelings for Thalia.

Reading Going Home brought back that time, the shock, the fear, the helplessness. Even if you live far away from New Orleans, Evelyn Palfrey gives you a taste of that time.  Despite the growing feelings between Thalia and Joe, he's determined to go home. Kyobe is just as determined, but the reason for his resolve is something neither Joe nor Thalia know anything about.



Evelyn Palfrey has quite a few books out in her Mavelously Mature series.

Kindle 

Paperback from Moon Child Books 

Going Home has lots of twists and turns and is set against a compelling backdrop. I give Going Home a rating of Hel-of-a-Character(s).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTC Disclaimer: I bought Going Home. This did not influence my review. Nor was my review influenced by the fact that I know Evelyn from back in the days when I was Executive Director of the Writers' League of Texas. I hadn't seen her in ages. I went to hear her speak and discovered she's really, really funny. I remember the Katrina time. I wasn't in Austin. I lived here then, but I was out of state at a conference. Can't even remember where. But I do remember staring in disbelief at the TV in the hotel's lobby. Even now, it's hard to understand what happened during and after the hurricane ripped New Orleans apart. Evelyn's book will take you beyond what you saw on TV. She takes you into the heart of survivors. So, if you'd like a book starring "marvelously mature" characters, give Evelyn Palfrey a try. I did. Even though I'm neither marvelous nor mature. Ask my kids. They'll tell you I'm neither.

Book Review: Immortal Desires

Immortal Desires is a paranormal romantic suspense by Laura Eno. Deanna Cameron is a modern 20th century woman. After being dumped at the altar, she takes a job at Light Street Corporation. The company, however, is not what it seems. Before long, she finds herself in a castle with a man named Ian Mackay. Sounds rather like a typical Romance. Not really, because now it's the year 1505, not 2012. And her very presence there could cause the end of Mackay clan and the end of Deanna's life.

Deanna Cameron may be hurt after being dumped at the altar, but she's a strong woman - stronger than she would have thought when her world fell apart. I liked that Laura Eno wrote her as someone who could stand up for herself even while trapped in time. And when she finds love, she fights for it. I know nothing about the 16th century, but the people, places and emotions felt believable. It was interesting to learn about that time and place as Deanna Cameron did.

There are a lot of questions in the book. Will she ever get back to 2012? Can she adjust to this new time and place? Will there be a war partly because of her mysterious appearance at the castle? What will Ian MacKay do to her? She is, afterall, a Cameron and the Cameron clan are his enemies.

Immortal Desires is, I believe, the first book in Laura Eno's Well of Souls series. I like meeting new characters and going to places I've never been. Immortal Desires not only took me to a new place, it took me into a new, to me, time period. Deanna Cameron went from a woman losing herself after being dumped to a woman able to stand up for herself and change history.

KindleUS 

KindleUK 

Nook 

Smashwords 

 Print

I give Immortal Desires a rating of Hel-of-a-Character. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

FTC Disclaimer: The author, Laura Eno sent me this book. That surprised me, but it did not influence my review. I was influenced by Deanna Cameron's ability to adjust to time travel. One minute she's in the modern world and the next she's in a world without cars, microwaves, television, air conditioning or flushing toilets. I could get by without the microwaves, television and air conditioning. Flushing toilets…I'd have to figure out how to invent those. Cars would be useless since there's no gas in that century. They had horses, though. Problem is, the last time I rode a horse was with a friend in Los Angeles. We rode horses up a trail to the Hollywood sign and back. By the time we got back, my legs were numb. I had to slide off the horse, then I couldn't get up. It's hard to get up, let alone stand when you can't feel your legs. If I get sent back in time, I'd have to have a solar-powered car. And air conditioning. And a solar-powered computer. That's it. Just the essentials.

Book Review: The Brevity of Roses

The Brevity of Roses by Linda Cassidy Lewis is a love story. What makes it different is that it’s told primarily from the man’s POV. Jalal leaves his life in New York and heads to California to see his family and to start anew. He encounters Meredith. Jalal and Meredith both have lost loves in their past. They meet up in a restaurant and Jalal pursues her, even though she is fifty and he is much younger. Their life, their love is complicated and complex. And despite their age difference, it is deep, but not without tragedy.

It’s easy to get lost in Jalal’s story and the twists and turns his life takes. Lewis does a good job of letting us feel his emotions, whether they are love, loss, anger or fear. By the end you will have questions. Is it possible to find your one true love? If you find it once, can you find it again? What if love finds you?

Amazon
Kindle
Nook
Smashwords

I give The Brevity of Roses a rating of Hel-of-a-Love-Story.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FTC Disclaimer: I had expected to review this book back in August 2010, but then my computer went face down in the dirt and died. I wonder if the FTC could do something about that. Then when my tech guy got me a new computer three months later, I forgot to do the review. Perhaps the FTC could do something about my memory. One thing I did not forget is that The Brevity of Roses only cost me $2.99. Woo-woo! The Brevity of Roses is worth all two hundred and ninety-nine pennies. As part of this disclaimer, I should tell you that part of the delay was stuffing all those pennies into the pay slot on the side of this new fangled laptop. I should have used the slide out money drawer on the other side, but I only have rectangular bills, not big round ones.

Guest: Author Enid Wilson

Thank you Helen for hosting me today.

 I’m delighted to announce the release of Every Savage Can Reproduce, a Pride and Prejudice-inspired science fiction. This is my seventh novel since I started the self-publishing journey in 2009.

With the help of lulu, createspace, lightning source and smashwords, and lovely blog hosts like Helen, I’ve been able to promote my novels as authors from traditional publishing houses do. I’m still amazed that I’ve sold over 5000 copies of my books so far and some of them have reached top 50 best-selling lists on Amazon.

It’s a big learning curve for me and I want to share with you one of the great tools for self-publishing authors, especially those in USA: Amazon Author Central

If you have books published by createspace and Amazon’s digital publishing arm, Kindle, you can register with them. Author Central offers media contacts in different areas in USA, analysis of your sales data in USA, an easy dashboard to update your profile, books, upload video, link blog and join Search Inside, all free.

In fact, you can join Author Central from Amazon UK, Amazon Germany, Amazon Italy etc. I’ve joined all of them and set up profile and blog feed, with the help of Google translate, to maximise the exposure of my novels.

Good luck and I hope this is useful info for you!

To celebrate the release of Every Savage Can Reproduce, I am delighted to give out a pdf version of the book and an Aussie apron. Just comment below and share with use some of the useful tools you have discovered in your writing or publishing journey. The contest ends this Saturday, September 10th, and is open to worldwide readers.

Here is the back cover blurb:

In the futuristic society on Planet Earth, Elizabeth Bennet is accused of luring Fitzwilliam Darcy to an illegal establishment, which leads to their exile deep in the centre of a rebel planet. The subsequent galactic war exposes dark secrets regarding the autocratic Queen Immortal. Will Elizabeth and Darcy discover their love for one another and find their way back to Earth?

Set in the 39th Century, this novel is a tale of Pride and Prejudice-inspired science fiction, where Jane Austen’s characters take on new lives but still face the barrier of class distinction and seek to overcome their faults, as in the original classic.

Thank you Enid!

If you’d like to check out Every Savage Can Reproduce or learn more about Enid’s other books, visit her site at: http://steamydarcy.com/joomla/
You’ll also find purchase detail there.

Leave a comment or question for Enid. Remember, there will be a giveaway!

Book Review: Tempest Child

[For the sake of readability, I’m capitalizing the title of this book. In reality, it is all in lower case (tempest child).]

Tempest Child is the sixth book by Laura Eno. My guess is that the genre of this book is fantasy, but I would label it paranormal-romance-fantasy-kick butt. (Got your attention with the “kick butt,” didn’t I?)

Here’s the back cover blurb:

As future Queen and Guardian of the Elements, Princess Skylather’cha’eab thought her worst nightmare was the impending find-a-husband party until events take an ominous turn. Now she must put her life at risk to save her Kingdom.

Armed with only a staff, a bow, and her wits, Skyla’s world is turned upside-down when she enters the Crossroads and encounters the beast she’s destined to kill. Does she have the courage to sort truth from lie, or will she die not knowing who betrayed her?

Skyla is no shrinking violet. She’s been training all her life to fight for her kingdom. She’s been training to become Queen. At 17, she’s at the age when her father is about to marry her off. His idea of a husband is different from hers, but it’s not like she’s had time to find love on her own. All that goes by the wayside when the Kingdom is suddenly in danger and it’s up to Skyla to save it.

And that is where the kicking butt comes in.

It used to be that I read primarily mystery and thriller, not fantasy. Laura Eno has turned me into a fantasy reader. Her characters are multi-dimensional and different from each other (you won’t get them confused!) and her worlds are complex and well thought out. In Tempest Child there are five worlds, counting Skyla’s home. Each is totally different. Each is dangerous. Each could kill her.

I’ve read and reviewed two other books by Laura Eno: Don’t Fall Asleep and Prophecy Moon. I recommended both. And I recommend this one. I wouldn’t mind reading more adventures with Skyla.

Tempest Child - Amazon
Tempest Child - Barnes and Noble

I give Tempest Child by Laura Eno a rating of Hel-of-a-World because she’s created not one, but five, unique and interesting worlds.

~~~~~~~~~~

FTC Disclaimer: Tempest Child was sent to me by the author. This did not influence my review. I was influenced, though, by Eno’s mind. She takes us to five completely different worlds. To my way of thinking, creating one world would be difficult. Eno also created a perfectly imperfect character, who was not modeled after me. If she had been, Skyla would have missed her chance to go to the Crossroads because she would have been napping in her office. I mean … planning what weapons and supplies to take on the journey.

Guest Post: Enid Wilson

My obsession for Mr. Darcy

I am obsessed with Mr. Darcy. Guilty as charged!

 According to the Longman dictionary, obsession is defined as a fixed idea from which the mind cannot be freed. From the Internet, there are some alarming definitions. From the Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders, an obsession is an unwelcome, uncontrollable, and persistent idea, thought, image, or emotion that a person cannot help thinking even though it creates significant distress or anxiety.

When Helen agreed to host my latest book tour, she wanted to know how I came up with so many what if Pride and Prejudice stories. I can assure you that Jane Austen’s beloved characters do not cause me any distress. Far from it. In fact, I’ve found a new world of fellow writers and fans who share my love of JA’s works.

I’ve written what-if stories in many different genres. For example,
Sci-Fi:
• Mars vs. Earth – A Martian Mr. Darcy who found love with an earthling Elizabeth Bennet
• Every Savage Can Reproduce – Pride and Prejudice set in 3919 under the oppressive rule of Queen Immortal Catherine de Bourgh

Fantasy:
• Sketching His Character – With the help of a crystal, Elizabeth could see into the future
• Leather Kilt and Red Coat – A cross-over of Pride and Prejudice and Mulan

Modern:
• Under Duress – Mr. Darcy is an industrial designer, inventing naughty products for women
• Chemical Reaction – Mr. Darcy as a nutty professor

I post my stories in serialized format on my website and readers’ comments often help me develop the stories further.

 For example, my new book Fire and Cross: Pride and Prejudice with a mysterious twist was originally a short story of 3000 words. But after I posted it online, with the lovely feedbacks from readers, I developed the plot further. After six long months and many comments, Fire and Cross became my first mystery novel of about 70,000 words.

I declare that my obsession for Mr. Darcy only comes in small dose, and usually fed by readers from around the world! I hope you will share my fascination. To encourage you down this path of enjoyment, I’m giving out a pdf version of Fire and Cross and a lovely key ring with Aboriginal design to a lucky reader here.

Please comment below, head over to http://www.enidwilson.com and register for news. Be warned, the book contains explicit adult content so the competition is for people over 18 years of age.

About Fire and Cross
The combination of a lethal blaze and a garnet cross have ensured that ever since he was a boy, Fitzwilliam Darcy’s future is promised to an unknown lady. With danger looming from a suspected spy, and with murder close at hand, will Mr. Darcy cross paths with Elizabeth Bennet and win her affections?

Mr. Darcy’s journey to overcome his pride and find eternal love in Pride and Prejudice takes on a mysterious twist. This sexy what-if story, told from Darcy’s viewpoint, explores the demands of family members and other involved parties.

Fire and Cross takes this perennial favorite in another direction, bursting with overpowering emotion and surprising plot twists. Warning: The book contains explicit adult content.

Fire and Cross Details:
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Steamy D Publishing (December 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0980610575
ISBN-13: 978-0980610574
Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.5 ounces
Available on Amazon

Thank you, Enid!

Leave a question or comment for Enid. She’ll be stopping by over the day. If you like, tell us about your own obsession.

After you say hi to Enid, zip over to The Blood-Red Pencil where I’m talking about establishing mood in your story.

Fire and Cross

Ever had an obsession? Maybe chocolate is something you can’t refuse or you have a growing collection of acorn people. Or perhaps, like the author Enid Wilson, you are obsessed with Mr. Darcy.

 You may remember that Enid came to visit us a little over a year ago. Her topic? Yeah, it was Mr. Darcy, specifically, The Hunt of Steamy Darcy. When I heard that she had written another escapade with Mr. Darcy in the lead, I asked her if she’d tell us about her obsession with the man and maybe a bit about her latest book, Fire and Cross.

Enid Wilson hails from Australia, but is known world-wide for her cross-genre stories and books involving Mr. Darcy and Ms. Bennett. On her website, she serializes stories and lets her readers help her with plots and twists – sort of interactive writing.

So come back tomorrow to learn about her obsession with Mr. Darcy – and to find out how to throw your name in the hat for a gift AND a pdf of Fire and Cross!

Author Cherish D'Angelo

 Multi-published author Cherish D’Angelo, AKA Cheryl Kaye Tardif, is here today to talk about her road to publication and what she learned that you might benefit from.

Her latest book, written as Cherish D’Angelo, is called Lancelot’s Lady. It’s a contemporary romantic suspense. Lancelot’s Lady is so new, it’s release date is TODAY. It’s not her only new book, though. Skeletons in the Closet and Other Creepy Stories released last month.

Please welcome Cherish D’Angelo.

To Hel and Back: A Writer's Journey

The journey to become a published author has been filled with bumps and detours, but along the way I've learned so much about the book industry, writing, editing, publishing and marketing. I've had some definite stalls and setbacks, plus some real "Made It Moments".

The stalls and setbacks include all the rejections I've received from publishers and agents―so many that I could wallpaper my office probably twice over with them, the necessity to find an outside job so I could make money and afford to pay bills, and dealing with a less than professional traditional publisher who really only held me back―until I finally got smart and left (only months before they shut down).

Yes, you could say I've been to Hel and back with my publishing journey. But I haven't given up and I'm pushing forward. Persistence really does pay off and I don't really have a choice anyway. There is nothing else I'd rather do than write and promote my work. This is the "heavenly" part of what I do and I measure my success in all the small "Made It Moments" in my life.

These include when: my first novel Whale Song was published, I got my first review from a fan, I got my first newspaper interview, I appeared in a TV interview the first time, I got a review blurb from New York Times bestselling author Luanne Rice, I was on Celebrity Chefs (a local TV show), Booklist gave me a rave review, Whale Song was picked up and re-published by a traditional publisher, and I signed with my wonderful literary agent, Jack Scovil.

Some "Almost Made It Moments" consist of the numerous times I've been contacted by producers and directors who were interested in my novels. I have one now who is very interested in filming Whale Song. I feel I'll truly have "Made It" when that movie is on the big screen. I feel so close I can envision watching it in a theatre. When I think of this I literally smell popcorn.

Lancelot's Lady ~ A Bahamas holiday from dying billionaire JT Lance, a man with a dark secret, leads palliative nurse Rhianna McLeod to Jonathan, a man with his own troubled past, and Rhianna finds herself drawn to the handsome recluse, while unbeknownst to her, someone with a horrific plan is hunting her down.

Lancelot's Lady is available in ebook edition at KoboBooks, Amazon's Kindle Store, Smashwords and other ebook retailers. Help me celebrate by picking up a copy today and "Cherish the romance..."

 You can learn more about Lancelot's Lady and Cherish D'Angelo (aka Cheryl Kaye Tardif) at http://www.cherishdangelo.com and http://www.cherylktardif.blogspot.com. Follow Cherish from September 27 to October 10 on her Cherish the Romance Virtual Book Tour and win prizes.

Leave a comment here, with email address, to be entered into the prize draws. You're guaranteed to receive at least 1 free ebook just for doing so. Plus you'll be entered to win a Kobo ereader. Winners will be announced after October 10th.

Thank you Cherish!

Have a question for Cherish? Ask away.

Book Review: Shut Up and Kiss Me

 Shut Up and Kiss Me is a Romance by award winning author Christie Craig. Three things immediately appealed to me:
1. The cover is pink and white. Can’t say “romance” more clearly than that.
2. It’s set in Texas. Gotta read a book set in Texas, although I’ve never heard of Precious, Texas.
3. Christie Craig signed it.

So, I started reading. It starts off with an immediate attraction/dislike between the two lead characters. I think that’s pretty standard for a Romance. What pulled me in was the setting. Precious, Texas, is a town that’s primarily inhabited by people of the Chitiwa tribe. Economically, the town is in trouble and photojournalist Shala Winters has been hired to promote the town. Not everyone is happy about having an outsider come in, including Sky Gomez. Things immediately get off on the wrong foot between the two. And that tug and push continues throughout the book.

There’s lots of action, near murder and mayhem. Even though you know Shala and Sky will end up together, you keep reading to find out who’s behind all the chaos and, of course, for that scene where Shala and Sky eventually end up together. And Christie Craig doesn’t disappoint.

The characters are interesting, including the side characters. I especially liked Redfoot, Sky’s foster father. He’s the wise one who anchors the characters and the town, but even he is not above danger.

Craig keeps the action moving and the push and pull between Sky and Shala constant.

I enjoyed Shut Up and Kiss Me and would read another book by Christie Craig.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FTC Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author, but that’s not why I’m recommending it, nor did it influence my review. I was, however, influenced by the interesting characters, the action, the humor, and the sex. There was only one vivid, hot sex scene, but the main characters weren’t the only ones having sex. Wait! Get your minds out of the gutter! I meant in that one scene -- they were the only two in that particular scene. I meant they weren’t the only ones in the book having sex. The others just did it off-camera and we heard rumors. Jeez, people, this is an official disclaimer, quit thinking about sex. You’re gonna get me audited or traded or whatever the FTC does.

Book Review: Bride of the Living Dead

Peggy Elam of Pearlson Press sent me a copy of Bride of the Living Dead by Lynne Murray. Now, before you peg this, based on the title, as a mystery suspense or horror, I’ll tell you that it’s neither. It’s a romantic comedy. On the front of the pink cover is the phrase: “Jane Austen meets the Marx Brothers.”

Here’s the back cover blurb:

Big, beautiful and rebellious, film critic Daria MacClellan is most comfortable in a monster movie poster T-shirt and blue jeans. Yet when family drama hijacks her engagement, she’s trapped into a formal wedding with her perfectionist, anorexic sister planning the whole thing. Daria adores her fiancé, but her wedding seems to be spiraling into a horror film. Will the spectre of a picture perfect wedding turn her into the Bride of the Living Dead?

Author Lynne Murray has a fresh voice that will draw you into Daria’s life. Daria’s family and friends are unique and different, yet at the same time you’ll swear they could be your family, extended family and crazy college pals. You’ll be happy you don’t have Daria’s life, even as you envy her spunk, self-confidence, friends, and love of life (and her family, extended family and crazy pals).

It doesn’t matter whether you’re young, old, skinny or not-so-skinny, out-going or shy, you’ll get along with Daria and she’ll put you on the wedding invitation list. If they can pull off this wedding, it’ll make a great video, maybe even a movie. Luckily or maybe not so luckily, Daria’s friend is a videographer and is taping every little detail, the bad, the good and the relatives.

If you’re a fan of romantic comedies, you’ll probably like Bride of the Living Dead by Lynne Murray. In fact, you might want to pick up a copy and read it, then come back here to talk to Lynne. She’ll be on Straight From Hel on June 17th.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTC Disclaimer: Peggy Elam sent this book without a request for a review, although I’m sure she hoped for one. I, however, felt no obligation to write one, but write one I did. She did include a note to let me know this was an ARC and therefore had a few errors which had been corrected in the final version. ARC errors don’t bother me. I skim right over them when I read for pleasure, and this was a novel I read with pleasure.

Author Karen van der Zee

Tomorrow, author and world traveler Karen van der Zee will be here to talk about a new venture in publishing that she and others authors have started. If you’d like to see your books out in e-format, you’ll want to come back tomorrow to read her post and ask questions.

Karen is the author of 34 romance novels published by Harlequin Books. Since she’s traveled and lived around the world, it’s not surprising that many of her books are set in exotic locations. She also has a blog, Life in the Expat Lane, where she writes about her adventures, or in some cases, misadventures.

I love this quote from Karen’s blog profile:

I'm an expat writer not living in paradise (like Peter Mayle or Frances Mayes). I do not drink wine from my own grapes or tend my own olive groves. I have, however, visited my butcher's bedroom in Palestine, eaten fertility sausage in Kenya, and almost landed in prison in Uganda.

Makes me want to know more! And also makes me want to rethink my own profile information.

If you’d like to know more, come back tomorrow to read her post and ask questions or offer your own stories about e-publishing.

The Cougar Club

As I was reading The Cougar Club, my son happened by. He stopped, backed up, and asked, “What in the world are you reading?” Clearly, he knew what a “cougar club” is. For anyone out there who doesn’t, here’s my definition of a “cougar”: an older woman who prefers younger men.

Susan McBride, author of The Cougar Club, introduces the reader to three women, friends from childhood who have drifted apart but are brought back together when one loses her job and moves back to her hometown.

Kat, the one who loses her high-powered job also discovers her younger live-in lover with someone else - on the computer. She decides it’s time to go back to her roots and re-group. She reconnects with her friends.

Carla is a sexy TV news anchor who’s having to fight off younger competition vying for her job. She knows the competition’s tricks because she used them to get the job in the first place. She’s not about to disappear without a fight, though.

Elise is the only friend in the group who’s married. She knows the flames in her marriage have lowered and she’s worried her husband is interested in someone else. She has no idea she’s about to be blind-sided, though.

The Cougar Club is a light-hearted, sometimes funny look at three women, their friendship, their hearts, and how having friends you can trust can save you even in the hardest of life’s trials. It’s listed as a Romance, but I thought of it as more of a book about lasting friendships, and would recommend it if it sounds like your cup of tea.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTC Disclaimer: I won this book over on Mason Canyon’s blog, Thoughts in Progress. A Marketing Associate with Harper Paperback/Avon sent it to me on behalf of the author, Susan McBride. Neither asked for a review. I won’t be passing it on to my sister, who I discovered reads this blog, but never comments, and has a porous memory, because the author signed the book. So, I will keep it on my shelf. I may take it down and re-read it, holding the cover so my DH will see it and wonder why I’m reading about a cougar club. I’ll tell him it’s a how-to manual.

Put Romance in Your Mystery

If you live in the central Texas area, you’re invited to today’s meeting of the Heart of Texas Sisters in Crime. HoT SinC is hosting a panel of mystery authors and one editor (moi) to talk about the rising trend of putting romance in your mystery book.

The meeting will be today at the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Westlake (an inner suburb of Austin) at the southeast corner of Loop 360 and Bee Cave Road, in The Village at Westlake shopping center. This Valentine’s Day topic is called: “Love Them to Death with Romance.” We’ll be talking about mystery writing with a romance angle. The meeting not only is free and open to the public, Starbucks will give you a free cup of coffee (real coffee, not the jazzed up, sugary concoctions).

The panelists will be myself, Russ Hall, Sylvia Dickey Smith, Dave Ciambrone, and moderator Joan Upton Hall.

So come on over and ask these mystery authors about adding romance to your book or any other question.

See you there. (And Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all.)

Enid Wilson

Enid Wilson is stopping by here today. Enid is the author of In Quest of Theta Magic, Bargain with the Devil and her latest, Really Angelic. She writes sexy and erotic, romance - be it modern, historical, paranormal, or science fiction. She lives in Sydney and works in advertising. The expertise at advertising might be why she’s an expert at guest blogging around the world and promoting her books. She’s here today to share some of her promotion tips with us.

Welcome, Enid!

How to maintain a web presence

Thanks Helen for having me back again. I love visiting Straight from Hel because Helen always provides very useful and interesting tips for new authors and writers, especially for self-published authors like myself.

I’ve three books released from January last year. My last book Bargain with the Devil reached top 50 best-selling historical romances in Amazon USA. It was a Pride and Prejudice retelling so JA’s name helped the sales. But I’m still amazed with the result since I self published it and didn’t manage to get any physical bookshops to stock the book. All the marketing was done online.

Today, I’d like to share my experience in promoting my books on the Internet with you.

1. Join forums

If you write romance, join some romance fan fiction forums and post some of your short stories for free there. If you write mystery, join the mystery ones. You will get readers to notice your work.

I actually did the reverse. I started out as a fan fiction writer before I turned into self-publishing. The forum I frequent, http://meryton.com/aha is a Jane Austen fan fiction site. It has over 5000 members and I post my short stories there. Each story will get around 1500 hits. So I have a circle of fans from there who love my stories and I’m thrilled that they are willing to buy my books.

But be active! Don’t just visit the forums only when you have a book release. Join and visit the forums as often as you can and with a supporting attitude.

2. Create a blog

You can create a blog within minutes by joining Google blog or Wordpress. It’s a bit better than having a website because your daily or weekly update can be fed to your author page on Amazon, Goodreads, Shelfari, etc.

Google search engine will rank your blog higher when there is update. From experience, the update on my website didn’t get picked up that easily by Google search than from my blog.

I’m happy that I joined the Blog Book Tour yahoo group last May. Dani, Helen and other buddies provided heaps of tips to improve my blog. Here are a few tricks I learned:

• Post at least two or three times a week. If you can post daily, that’s even better.

• Write short posts; say around 300 to 500 words. It’s about getting noticed on the Internet. If you tend to write long, break it up into several posts.

• Have a focus with your blog. For example, mine is about spicy stories. Or if you choose not to have a focus, show readers you’re a “human”, by writing your likes and dislikes, your hobbies and interests. Readers like to buy books from authors whom they know more personally, not from a publicist or a marketing machine.

• Have photos (make sure you cite the source) and internal links.

• A good heading will get more search (e.g. Mr. Darcy is A Single Man or Colin Firth is A Single Man, are headings I used to talk about Colin Firth’s latest movies).

• Put a site meter there. Make sure it shows you where the referrals come from. For example, I check my referral at http://sitemeter.com every week and note down some of the key words used by readers who searched and reached my blog. They include steamy stories, quotes about love, vibrators (shocking?!), etc. Then I will write more posts about them in future.

• Don’t be discouraged by low traffic or response. As long as you have visitors, even one or two per week, they still help your sales.

• Comment on other blogs as often as you can and make sure you put your blog address as your siggie. I comment on Jane Austen sites very often (because that’s my interest) and I got a lot of people clicking back to my blog from my siggie.

3. Organise a Blog Book Tour

I had no clue what a BBT was before I joined the yahoo group. With my first book, I searched for book reviewer websites and begged for a review. The result was tiring, time consuming and unsuccessful.

But I learned many tricks from the yahoo group:

• It’s easier to get blog hosts to agree to guest posts and giveaways than getting them to review a book, because blog hosts are snowed in with book review requests too.

• Aim high and get blogs with higher traffic, like 100 visitors a day. Writing guest posts take time and you should aim high so that your time is best rewarded. I managed to get 10 high traffic stops on my last book tour. This time with my latest novel Really Angelic, it’s easier to get the BBT organised because I’ve established rapports with the previous 10 hosts (just one hasn’t replied and another on maternity leave). I had time to approach others and secured three more hosts.

• Look for blog hosts outside of your genre. For example, I managed to secure a stop at a high traffic relationship advice blog for Really Angelic BBT.

• Write relevant guest posts for your hosts. It’s about appealing to the readers of your blog hosts, not just about promoting your books. So for Helen, I write about tips useful for writers. For Julie Lomoe’s Musings Mysterioso, Julie writes psychological mystery so my guest post in her blog is about the psychological relationship of mother and daughter

I can definitely tell you that BBT helps my book sales because sales for Really Angelic only picked up after the BBT started.

4. Join Twitter and Facebook

I’m less eloquent with these two social networking tools but there are still visits from people who visit my Twitter and Facebook pages.

I hope the above information helps your next book promotion. Last time when I had my stop here with Helen, I was overseas. But this time, I’ll glue to the computer and reply to your comments sooner (just allow me time for my beauty sleep as I’m from Australia!)

Please share your experience on promoting your books or yourself online here. I’ll give out a copy of Really Angelic: Pride and Prejudice with a paranormal twist to one of the commenters. Thanks Helen for having me here again. You can visit my blog at http://steamydarcy.blogspot.com

Thank you, Enid!

Super information. The panel I was on this past weekend at the Story Circle Network national conference was called Getting Published and it was the definite consensus of the panel that today writers have to get out on the Internet and promote themselves and their book - and they need to set up their platform before the book is published. Enid has given us all some really valuable tips on how to do that.

Visit the comment section and leave her a note or ask a question. And don’t forget the book giveaway.

Really Angelic - Recommended

Enid Wilson has done it again - retold the story of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. This time the tale is not only sexy but has a bit of a paranormal twist. You can guess that twist by looking at the book cover. This is not the Pride and Prejudice you read in high school or saw on PBS.

Elizabeth tries to not give in to Darcy, but even an angel can only hold out so long, especially when she has responsibilities. All the usual Pride and Prejudice characters are in the Wilson’s book, but Elizabeth and Darcy are so different, they could have been new characters. It was nice that Wilson kept them anchored by other characters familiar from the original.

The story will keep you wondering how it will end. After all, Mr. Darcy has a bit of the devil in him. And Elizabeth has a bit of an angel in her. Is this a match that will last?

If you’re a fan of Pride and Prejudice and Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth - and you think it’d be fun to see the story steamified - then come back tomorrow for Enid’s post (and possibly a book giveaway).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTC Disclaimer: The author sent me the book. I read it. I recommended it. I’m hosting the author tomorrow. She’s giving me nothing for that, except a really interesting post. Which I have no doubt people will enjoy reading. Just like I enjoyed reading her book. If you’re from the FTC and would like to read her book, come back tomorrow.

Under the Covers

Today’s guest author is Enid Wilson. Her latest book is Bargain with the Devil. Enid takes Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, twists it by asking, What If?, and comes up with a saucy short book you can read while sipping a glass of wine. And one of you can win a copy just by leaving a comment here today. I’ll tell you more about that and other ways and things to win later. First, let me tell you a bit about Enid.

You can visit her website to find out more about her blog tour, as well as snippets from Bargain with the Devil. She has a PG room and a NC-17 room, take your pick. Plus, she, of course, blogs (when she’s not off globe-trotting!). In addition to Bargain with the Devil, Enid is the author of In Quest of Theta Magic. She writes sexy and erotic romance, both modern, historical, paranormal or science fiction. And today, she’s here to talk about creating the cover of her latest, Bargain with the Devil.

Welcome Enid!

The Hunt of Steamy Darcy

One of the perks of self-publishing is you get to decide on the book cover design yourself.

When I published my first sexy paranormal romance In Quest of Theta Magic which was originally written as a Pride and Prejudice fantasy, I made the mistake of trying to design the cover myself.

I used a picture I took myself. It came out mystical enough to symbolize the fantasy world I created for the novel but didn’t represent the story at all.

Unhappy with it two weeks after its release, I talked to other self published authors and they told me they sourced photographs from online stock photo libraries such as istockphoto, fotolia, shutterstock, 123RF, bigstockphoto. The fee is reasonable, around US$30 for a high resolution photo, if your book is sold for less than 250,000 copies. (haha, I wish it could sell for more than that!)

I then talked to my readers in chat rooms. They, both men and women, all agreed that for a sexy romance about love, it must feature Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet together on the cover. Here is the final book cover of Theta Magic. The sales after the change of book cover were unbelievable. Seven months after its publication, I still have sales every month. Of course, several four to five stars reviews of the book help too.

When I decided to publish my second novel Bargain with the Devil: A spicy retelling of Pride and Prejudice, I was aware that the search for a lovely Darcy and Lizzy was very important.

But to get an ancient painting for the cover was very expensive. One online site which stocks ancient paintings charges US$3,000 for a five year copyright. Of course it was way beyond my budget.

I talked to an illustrator, Zuki, and she suggested I found a modern stock photograph and she could turn it into an ancient illustration for me.

So I asked the readers again. The scene they most remembered from my story which had been published for free in serial format before was with a drunken Mr. Darcy at a fisherman hut.

Elizabeth and he disguised as labourers to search for Lydia. Mr. Darcy got drunk and did some funny and naughty things to Lizzy. Readers still remember that scene even if they read it nearly a year ago.

Zuki suggested this photo as it was taken far enough to include some background detail and the bed. However during the illustration process, it was apparent that by changing it into a fisherman hut, the colour would not be as striking as turning it into a rich setting with elegant patterns on the bed sheet and rich drapes in the bedroom.

It suited another scene in my story very well: Lizzy was under the influence of witchcraft and spent a night of steamy encounter with Mr. Darcy at Pemberley.

The illustration was then turned into the present book cover by Susan.

I absolutely love the cover. Susan and Zuki’s fees were affordable.

Most readers love the cover too, except one. She told me she wanted her Mr. Darcy OLDER!

Well, the search for a steamy Mr. Darcy is never complete and that’s the fun of it.

***

Thank you Enid! I swear, I am totally amazed by what you accomplished in creating such a beautiful cover.

Okay, I said I’d tell you more about Enid’s wonderful giveaways. I have an extra copy (surely you didn’t think I’d give up mine) of Bargain with the Devil. Leave a comment here to have your name put in the drawing (be sure there’s a link back so I can let you know that you won). On Saturday, I’ll put all names on the floor atop a doggie treat and let my miniature Schnauzer, Ruffles, choose the winner (the winner is whoever's name doesn't get torn to pieces).

To have your name put in the drawing for one of two prizes Enid is giving away on her blog, just go there and leave her a comment today. She’s giving away a necklace and some really nice coasters. (I may arm wrestle you for the coasters.)

Again, thank you Enid for stopping by to talk about how you designed the cover for Bargain with the Devil. And thank all of you in advance for commenting or asking Enid questions. And remember to enter for all the giveaways. She’s going to be suspicious if all the entries link back to me.