Tall, Dark, and Alpha: Boxed Set Release and Giveaway!
Book Title: Tall, Dark and Alpha
Author: Collection
Genre: Romance
Release Date: March 10, 2014
Hosted by: Book Enthusiast Promotions
Afton Locke is a multi-published erotic romance author who prefers romantic fantasies to everyday reality. Fantasies take her everywhere–from other worlds and races to the top of a corporate desk. She lives with her husband, dog, several unnamed dust bunnies, and a black cat that can be scary or cuddly, depending on the current book. When she’s not writing, Afton enjoys hiking, cooking, crafts, and reading. Visit her at Ellora’s Cave and http://www.aftonlocke.com.
Dawn Montgomery loves to write almost as much as she loves to read. She has traveled the world twice over. While her days were filled with long hours and hard work, her nights were left for dark, lustful fantasies in and out of strange hotels and cities.
Alaska and Texas are the places she calls home. She recently moved from the frigid North to Texas with her family and neurotic dog. It was tragic to leave behind the moose and bear for wide open plains and sexy cowboys.
Delaney Diamond writes sweet and sensual romance novels and is the site manager of Romance Novels in Color, where diversity in romance is celebrated. Originally from the U.S. Virgin Islands, she now lives in Atlanta, Georgia. In her spare time she reads romance novels, mysteries, thrillers, and a fair amount of non-fiction. When she’s not reading or writing she’s trying out new recipes or traveling to an interesting locale. Find free reads and the first chapter of all her books at www.delaneydiamond.com.
Eve Langlais Hello, my name is Eve, a Canadian mom who works full time as an author. In between juggling my three kids, hubby, and housework, I pen steamy romance–usually with shifters, cyborgs or aliens lol. I love to write, and while I don’t always know what my mind is going to come up with next, I can promise it will be fun, probably humorous and most of all romantic, because I love a HEA.
Eve Vaughn has always enjoyed creating characters and stories from an early age. As a child she was always getting into mischief, so when she lost her television privileges (which was often), writing served as her outlet. Her stories have gotten quite a bit spicier since then! When she’s not writing or spending time with her family, Eve is reading, baking, traveling or kicking butt in 80’s trivia. She lives in the Philadelphia area where the love is brotherly and the cheese steaks are plenty.
Farrah Rochon, award-winning author of the popular Holmes Brothers series, hails from a small town just west of New Orleans. She has garnered much acclaim for her New York Sabers football series for Harlequin’s Kimani Romance imprint. She has been nominated for the prestigious RITA Award from Romance Writers of America and an RT BOOKReviews Reviewer’s Choice Award. She spends way too much money on chocolate and Broadway shows.
Koko Brown is a quintessential erotic romance junkie. Koko’s writing career began at the tender age of nine when she self-published and distributed a newspaper to her fellow classmates. Unfortunately, her principal put her out of business after one best-selling issue. Undaunted, she continued to write and read everything she could get her hands on until she published her first erotic novel in 2007. When not writing or reading, Koko loves to travel, shop in thrift stores, ride motorcycles, and serving as a volunteer.
PAIGE TYLER is a USA TODAY bestselling author of sexy, romantic fiction. She and her very own military hero (also known as her husband) live on the beautiful Florida coast with their adorable fur baby (also known as their dog). Paige graduated with a degree in education, but decided to pursue her passion and write books about hunky alpha males and the kick-butt heroines who fall in love with them. Find her books at Ellora’s Cave, Blushing Books, and Sourcebooks. She is represented by Bob Mecoy.
Randi Alexander USA Today Bestselling Author Randi Alexander knows a modern woman dreams of an alpha cowboy who takes the reins, and guarantees they’re rode hard and put up satisfied.
Published with Cleis Press, Wild Rose Press, and self-published, Randi writes smokin’ hot romance with heroes who’ll have you begging to ride off into the sunset with them. When she’s not dreaming of, or writing about, rugged cowboys, Randi is biking trails along remote rivers, snorkeling the Gulf of Mexico, or practicing her drumming in hopes of someday forming a tropical rock-band.
Forever an adventurous spirit with a naughty imagination, Randi is also family oriented and married to the best guy in the world, her own cowboy, Kick. Give in to the allure of erotic passion, strong but vulnerable heroines, and irresistibly seductive cowboys, as Randi’s emotional love stories sweep you off your feet and leave you breathless with passion.
Saddle up! And prepare yourself for the sexier side of happily ever after.
Randi Alexander loves to connect with her readers! Say “Howdy” at https://twitter.com/Randi_Alexander, sign up for her newsletter at http://RandiAlexander.com/, and fall head over spurs for her cowboys at https://www.facebook.com/RandiAlexanderBooks
Sam Cheever An award-winning author of 50+ books of romantic suspense and fantasy/paranormal, Sam’s books have won the Dream Realm Award for fantasy and The Swirl (interracial romance) Award; have been nominated and/or won several CAPAs; were nominated for “Best of” with LRC and The Romance Reviews; and have won eCataromance’s Reviewer’s Choice award. She’s published with Ellora’s Cave, both Romantica and Blush; Changeling Press; and Musa Publishing. Sam also publishes as Declan Sands, writing m/m fiction, and under her own imprint, Electric Prose Publications.
Bookblast and Giveaway: The Brotherhood of Dwarves
The Brotherhood of Dwarves
The dwarven saga begins…
Roskin, heir to the throne of a remote, peaceful kingdom of dwarves, craves excitement and adventure. Outside his own kingdom, in search of fortune and glory, he finds a much different world, one divided by racial strife and overrun by war. The orcs to the south want to conquer all dwarves and sell them as slaves. The humans to the east want to control the world’s resources.
Caught in the middle, Roskin finds himself chased by slave traders and soldiers alike as he discovers that friendship is the best fortune of all. Just when he thinks he has triumphed, an act of betrayal sends him into bondage. His only hope of escape is the faltering courage of a disgraced warrior whose best days are behind him…
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Praise for The Brotherhood of the Dwarves
“D.A. Adams puts together a story that I found myself reading from start to finish in less than a day”- Watch Play Read
“This story of self discovery is a fine read and I very much appreciate that the character focus is on dwarves. No cookie cutter, young, perfect characters. Real, genuine and unique.” – Jess Resides Here
“If you love intricate world-building, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this book. If you like action and adventure, swords and arrows and more, you’ll love it too. And if you’re eager to see those working-class dwarves take a stand, this has to be the series for you.” – Sheila Deeth Blog
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Excerpt from The Brotherhood of Dwarves
On his twenty second birthday, Roskin was summoned to his father’s private study, a room high in the palace where the king would spend his evening hours with a book or a pen. Roskin had rarely been inside the study, but he had always been fond of the dark mahogany desk that faced the Hall of Gronwheil and the gray marble bookshelves that were lined with volumes of history, lore, and poetry. Roskin’sfavorite was the oil canvas of his mother that hung with the other family portraits.
He had a similar painting in his bedroom but preferred this one because the artist had more fiercely captured the wildness of her eyes. As he entered the study, Roskin stopped beside the painting and stared.
“She was magnificent,” his father said, standing from behind the desk and moving toward his son. “But she wasn’t happy here.”
“I know,” Roskin said, looking away from the painting. He often wondered why she had never attempted to visit him, and each year on his birthday he would hope all day that she would remember him and arrive at the palace.
“You also have trouble with our ways.”
“I’m sorry, sir. I try to do better.”
King Kraganere laughed and hugged his son. “Do not apologize for who you are. You can’t help your feelings. A person should be measured by their actions.”
“Yes sir.”
The two sat by the window, staring into the perpetual night of the underground city, darkness bbroken only by torches and the faint glow on the fields outside of town. As they watched people move towards the bentrance to the symphony hall, on their way for the evening concert, Roskin wanted to reassure his father that he loved the city and the people, subjects who would one day bind themselves to him without question.
He did love them, but the love was drowning in a fear he could not place.
“I want you to update the maps of our kingdom,” the king spoke after a long silence. “They are old and missing information.”
“I will start tomorrow morning at the Hall, beforelecture.”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“Sir?”
“To be accurate, you must see what you are mapping.”
“We have good maps of Dorkhun.”
“Yes, we do, but the rest of the kingdom is poorly recorded. I think you can do better.”
“But I’m supposed to study the Fifth Kingdom from Master Hinkroh this session and finish my songs for the festival.”
“You need a change, something to help you relax. A little travel helps me.”
“I have never complained about my duty, sir,” Roskin said, suddenly afraid that this was a test.
“This is your assignment. Map the whole kingdom from the River of Fire to Erycke’s Tomb to the Kireghegon Halls of the great peak. There is no argument. The maps must be complete before you take your place on the council.”
“I cannot join the council until I finish school, at least five more years.”
“Do not question my orders. You have your duty. I expect not to see you in the morning.”
After that, the king returned to business, and Roskin went to his room, packed for the journey, and then said goodbye to his friends, siblings, and stepmother.
Author D.A. Adams
D.A. Adams was born in Florida but was raised in East Tennessee. He received a Master of Arts in Writing from the University of Memphis in 1999 and has taught college English for over a decade. His first novel, The Brotherhood of Dwarves, was released in 2005 and has been described as a solid, honest work about camaraderie, bravery, and sacrifice, a very personal journey, more interested in the ways that a person is changed by life’s events than in epic battles and high magic. In 2008, the sequel, Red Sky at Dawn, was released to the exaltation that this novel thunders along, at times with dizzying speed. The action is visceral and imaginative without being gratuitous. Book three, The Fall of Dorkhun, came out in 2011, followed by book four, Between Dark and Light, in 2012.
In terms of writing style, Adams exhibits an effortless narrative voice and a masterful balance between richly detailed descriptions and tightly worded minimalism. The pacing of his stories is breathtaking, with relentless action and captivating plot twists that keep readers riveted page after page. But his true talent as a writer lies in character development. Readers find themselves empathizing with, fearing for, and cheering on the characters as they overcome their personal shortcomings and grow as fully rendered individuals.
Adams is also the father of two wonderful sons and, despite his professional accomplishments, maintains that they are his greatest achievement in life. He resides in East Tennessee.
Blast Giveaway
$100 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 3/31/14
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
Blog Stop, Guestpost, and Giveaway: Making Out with Blowfish
Making Out With Blowfish
By
Brian Sweany
Available from Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, and TWCS PH
Summary:
When we last saw Hank Fitzpatrick in Exotic Music of the Belly Dancer, he seemed to be finally figuring things out. He had a girlfriend. He had a life. But his secrets were yet to be discovered, his demons yet to be exorcised, and soon he would have no choice but to face them both. Gone is the boy we came to love, replaced by a man we struggle to like. Welcome back to Empire Ridge. Making Out with Blowfish is fear and loathing in the suburbs as told in Brian Sweany’s uniquely uninhibited voice.
An interview with Brian Sweany:
1. MAKING OUT WITH BLOWFISH is about midlife crisis and tragedy. Did you use your own experiences to inspire your writing?
Much of my first book, EXOTIC MUSIC OF THE BELLY DANCER, was inspired and informed by my own teen hijinks. There was a shameless precociousness to my cast of characters. They were vain, self-absorbed, and melodramatic. In other words, they were teenagers. In the second book, we see these characters not as prom royalty or captains of their sports teams, but as mothers and wives, husbands and fathers. Their mistakes matter more. Their impulsiveness hurts people. Curfews are replaced by accountability. I tried to take cues from the book LITTLE CHILDREN by Tom Perotta, which in turn was inspired by Gustave Flaubert’s MADAME BOVARY. Suburbia rendered as art, as a familiar but uncomfortable canvas for humanity. Not that my protagonist, Hank Fitzpatrick, doesn’t do his best to rage against the dying of the light. Rest assured he continues to struggle with a serious case of arrested development. But then again, if our 30s and 40s were so awesome, we wouldn’t call it a midlife crisis.
Much like the first book, I tried to take cues from my own experiences. I’m in my early 40s now, married almost 19 years, with a beautiful wife and three great kids. That being said, my wife and I don’t spend our days drinking champagne, popping bonbons in each other’s mouths, and toasting to our evolved awesomeness. Couplehood, parenthood and adulthood can all be just as frustrating as childhood, if not more so. Only now, we don’t have any excuses. We have all the tools, and yet we still screw up. That’s what really sucks. But it’s the struggle and the occasional ugliness that makes the joy and the beauty so much more fulfilling. If you can filter out all the white noise on any given day and tell yourself that there’s no place you’d rather be than where you are, you and hopefully everyone around you are going to be okay.
2. You have worked in publishing for quite some time, what is your publishing world like? How has working in the publishing world helped you to be an author?
For the last 15 years, I’ve worked as Director of Acquisitions for Recorded Books, one of the world’s largest audiobooks publishers, and before that as a book editor right out of college. It’s been an interesting business, especially more recently with the evolution of digital technology. E-books and e-audio have changed the game, changed the rules. Gone is the bookstore on every corner, and in its place is the “Buy Now” button. It’s the golden age of the impulse buyer. Five years ago, your average reader would never walk out of a Barnes & Noble or Borders (RIP) with 10 books under her arm. Last month, I looked at my credit card bill and saw ten Kindle purchases I don’t even remember making. It’s a double-edged sword; at no point in the history of publishing have more readers had more access to more books, and yet you could argue that because of this accessibility, at no point in the history of publishing has it been harder for an author to make a living wage.
My work has allowed me to gauge reading tastes in the general public and given me access to the eyes and ears of editors, agents and authors at the highest level, but the most fundamental way it’s helped me is through reading. For me, it’s a compulsory activity. I don’t have the option not to read books. In any given week, I review maybe 15-20 manuscripts for recordability and commercial appeal. I’ve heard some writers say that they don’t like to read other people’s work because they feel it taints their voice or unduly influences their writing style. I’m here to tell you that those writers are idiots. To quote Stephen King, “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
3. MAKING OUT WITH BLOWFISH reference music and pop-culture, discuss the music and pop-culture form your teens-thirties. What influenced you the most?
I will say the music and pop culture references are not quite as pervasive in the second book as they are the first book, and that was by design. When you’re in your teens, seemingly everything you do is some kind of milestone, some kind of best-ever or worst-ever moment that raises you up or knocks you down. And invariably, there’s a song or pop culture event you associate with those moments. To this day, when I hear a certain song, I get a little lightheaded and swear I can smell my high school sweetheart’s perfume. While these moments still exist as you get older, they’re fewer and farther between. If being young is about emotionally investing yourself too much in even the most mundane of moments, getting older is about chronically taking what matters most for granted. As for what influenced me, I’m like any Generation X’er. My influences changed as society changed. When the optimism and debauchery of the 80s faded into the rearview mirror, our rockers put away their hairspray and spandex and replaced it with facial hair and flannel. The Sunset Strip deferred to Seattle. The unbridled cockiness of “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall” became the fearful, post-AIDs acclamation, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” This transformation spoke to me, and I think we see the characters in Making Out with Blowfish acting as microcosms of these changes. Beth, Hank’s wife, is more serious and somber in this new book. And much of the time it’s not by choice, it’s because Hank is too afraid to take the wheel. Too afraid to be the patriarch the world has wanted him to be since midway through the first book, and way too excited whenever he hears an 80s hairband song come on the radio.
Enter here to be apart of the three prize giveaway!
Author Bio: Brian has spent most of his life in the Midwest and now lives near Indianapolis with his wife, three kids, and two rescue dogs. For more details, check out the author’s website at: www.briansweany.com.
Stalk Connect with Brian Sweany on:
Bookblast and Giveaway: The Leland Dragon Series
Redheart
Enter the lands of Leland Province, where dragon and human societies have long dwelled side by side. Superstitions rise sharply, as a severe drought strips the land of its bounty, providing fertile ground for the darker ambitions of Fordon Blackclaw, Dragon Council Leader, who seeks to subdue humans or wipe them off the face of the land.
As the shadow of danger creeps across Leland Province, a young dragon named Kallon Redheart, who has turned his back on dragons and humans alike, comes into an unexpected friendship. Riza Diantus is a young woman whose dreams can no longer be contained by the narrow confines of her village, and when she finds herself in peril, Kallon is the only one with the power to save her. Yet to do so means he must confront his past, and embrace a future he stopped believing in.
A tale of friendship, courage, and ultimate destiny, Redheart invites readers to a wondrous journey through the Leland Dragon Series.
Praise for Redheart
“Redheart is a captivating and enthralling book.”- Evie Bookish
“Gamber has written a hypnotic tale that lulls you into a dreamy state of ethereal bliss, as you enter into the world of the Leland Dragons!” – Jorie Loves a Story
“I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a great fantasy novel.” – Jess Resides Here
“The story itself is very beautifully told, and Gamber does a phenomenal job creating personable characters and down to earth themes, all dealing with different aspects, such as social, psychological, feministic, archetypal, and philosophical issues.” – A Book Vacation
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Excerpt from Redheart
Kallon soared. He thrust his crimson wings to chase the clouds, tethered to the earth by only his massive shadow. He flew faster, but his shadow could not be outrun. He felt it below him, dragging across the dusty field like an anchor, pulling him downward. With a defiant twist of his wings, he veered straight up into the cobalt sky.
The sky was where dragons were meant to thrive, and it was the place they returned to when they died. At least, according to his father. Kallon had believed it once. He had believed the stories of dragon valor in a world where humans and dragons worked together toward a common future. But that was long ago. Kallon didn’t believe in anything anymore.
It became harder to breathe, and Kallon’s eyes burned and watered. His wings resisted moving. He’d gone as high as he could go. He paused.
As far as he could see, the sky was the same unlimited blue. There was no rail, no net. There seemed nothing to keep him from going forward, yet there he was forced to stop, as every dragon before him stopped. With a groan of regret, Kallon hung his head and descended.
He followed his shadow across a field of withered meadow grass. The field gave way to sand, and the sand to stones, then bulging fists of granite welcomed him home to the foothills of the Leland Mountains.
Then he heard something. Instead of disappearing into his cave, he swooped above a high cliff and circled back. He dropped down to his feet, curled in his wings, and stood still as the mountains to listen.
A scream. From somewhere beyond the next peak came a human scream. He snorted. Too bad it wasn’t something more interesting. His ears had long since grown deaf to the cries of humans.
Then the scream came again. It was the sound of terror; the kind he used to hear from children as his shadow passed over the ground near them. He shuddered, and found himself turning toward the sound. He hadn’t wanted to go home yet, anyway. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt just to look.
He flew low over the meadow until he caught the human scent. No, not one human—several. He landed quietly and loped toward a grove of ancient firs, some of which were taller than his head. Careful not to rustle any branches, he poked his face through the trees. There he saw the humans and discovered the source of the scream.
Three men stood around a female, who crouched in the center of them. There was a leader, it seemed, who cackled an evil laugh and was goading the two younger men toward her. His voice was louder than the others, and his stringy hair was the color of dung.
“Go on,” he said, and shoved his friend toward her. The woman shrieked and lunged, stabbing a knife at the air. The man jumped away, but the leader darted behind the woman and grabbed her wrist, then wedged the inside of his elbow against her throat.
“Give me that little toy,” he snarled.
The woman struggled. The leader yanked away the knife and pushed her to the ground. He slapped her face. Kallon could see her shoulders heave as she whispered in a hoarse voice,
“Please. Don’t do this.”
Kallon was still considering what he ought to do, when there was a sudden shout.
“Dragon!” cried one of the men.
“Bloody ‘ell!” yelped another.
The leader just stood gaping, his bottom lip flopping up and down like a beached carp.
“Run!” The man near the female jumped to his feet, and hollered again.
“Run!”
The leader finally moved. He flung up the knife, and it tumbled through the air to bump Kallon harmlessly on the nose. Kallon growled, anyway. The leader stumbled back. Kallon sucked in a deep breath and bellowed like thunder. The man wailed, and bolted after the others.
The men collided with trees and smacked into each other in their panic. Kallon stopped bellowing to smile. Cowards. Then he swung his face to the woman. He found her gaze locked on him, and his smile dissolved, taken aback by the look in her eyes.
He had grown accustomed to screams, shouts of fear, and the look of terror in the eyes of humans. But this woman reacted to him with none of these. Her face seemed to register… relief. Then her eyes closed and she fell backward onto the ground.
Kallon inched forward through the trees. He bumped her shoulder with his snout. She didn’t respond.
“You dead?” he asked. He nudged her again.
She was breathing. Blood trickled from her nose and mouth. She smelled more pleasant than he thought a human could smell, like the musky forest path drenched in sunshine. He sniffed her again.
He knew he should leave her right where she laid. She was no business of his, and he didn’t know the first thing about tending to her anyway. But she’d looked at him differently than most humans, and it stirred something within him he couldn’t explain. He lifted a claw to his cheek and rubbed, unsure of what to do.
Then he mumbled, “Going to regret this.”
He grasped her with his forelegs and soared off toward home.
Sela
Peace was fleeting. Vorham Riddess, Venur of Esra Province, covets the crystal ore buried deep in Leland’s mountains. His latest device to obtain it: land by marriage to a Leland maiden. But that’s not all.
Among Dragonkind, old threats haunt Mount Gore, and shadows loom in the thoughts of the Red who restored life to land and love. A dragon hunter, scarred from countless battles, discovers he can yet suffer more wounds.
In the midst of it all, Sela Redheart is lost, driven from her home with only her old uncle to watch over her. As the dragon-born child of Kallon, the leader of Leland’s Dragon Council, she is trapped in human form with no understanding of how she transformed, or how to turn back.
Wanderers seek a home, schemes begin to unfurl, and all is at risk as magic and murder, marriage and mystery strangle the heart of Esra. A struggle for power far older and deeper than anyone realizes will leave no human or dragon unaffected.
In a world where magic is born of feeling, where the love between a girl and a dragon was once transformative, what power dwells in the heart of young Sela?
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Reclamation
The exciting conclusion of the Leland Dragon Series!
Leland Province remains in danger. The sinister Fordon Blackclaw has returned from the shadows to strike at the heart of neighboring Esra, killing its Venur and making clear his intentions to retake what was once his: Mount Gore, seat of the Leland Dragon Council.
All around, the land grows weaker and weaker. Leland, once thought saved by Kallon Redheart, is without purpose, and within its borders, Murk Forest, a place of mystery and danger, has driven its inhabitants to seek aid. Esra is in flames, and the Rage Desert grows. Dragon and human alike struggle to find their way, and the wizard Orman can sense that there may be more at stake than the affairs of dragons.
Hope remains, yet it is not without obstacles. In Esra, Sela, the daughter of Kallon and Riza, found the well, a source of life, and made herself whole again. But her homecoming is not what she had imagined.
Old wounds buried deep must reopen if life is to continue. Dragons, humans, wizards, and shape shifters are all at risk as the peace between dragon and human has finally been broken.
War is here.
The stakes?
Perhaps the whole world.
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Author Jackie Gamber
As an award winning author, Jackie writes stories ranging from ultra-short to novel-length, varieties of which have appeared in anthologies such as Tales of Fantasy and Dragons Composed, as well as numerous periodical publications, including Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show, The Binnacle, Mindflights Magazine, Necrotic Tissue, and Shroud. She is the author of the fantasy novel Redheart and Sela, and writing an alternate history time travel novel. She blogs professionally for English Tea Store.com, where she reviews classic science fiction and fantasy novels and pairs them with the ideal tea-sipping companion.
Jackie is a member of the professional organizations Science Fiction Writers of America and Horror Writers Association. She was named honorable mention in L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Award, and received a 2008 Darrell Award for best short story by a Mid-South author. She is the winner of the 2009 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award for Imaginative Fiction for her story The Freak Museum, a post-apocalyptic tale that looks closely at perceptions and outward appearances and how they affect the way we see ourselves. Jackie Gamber was co-founder and Executive Editor of Meadowhawk Press, a speculative fiction publisher based in Memphis. One of their novels, Terminal Mind by David Walton, won the Philip K. Dick Memorial Award in 2009. Jackie also edited the award winning benefit anthology, Touched By Wonder. She has been a guest lecturer at Memphis Options High Schools, and is a speaker at writers’ conferences from Michigan to Florida. Jackie is also the visionary behind the MidSouthCon Writers’ Conference, helping writers connect since 2008.
Blast Giveaway
$100 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 3/24/14
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
Blog Stop, Review, and Giveaway: Sapphire Blue by G. Doucette
Blog Stop and Review: Counting to D by Kate Scott
Today I have the talented Kate Scott here talking dyslexia, which happens to be what her debut novel, Counting to D, is about. Ms. Scott has overcome severe dyslexia herself. That’s the subject of our intriguing guest post, in fact: How Bad Can It Be?
If you’re anything like me, you’ve been under the misconception that dyslexia consists of transposing letters and numbers or seeing words and symbols backward. Not so. Enjoy the guest post, and be sure to read my review of Counting to D before you go!
From the blurb:
The kids at Sam’s school never knew if they should make fun of her for being too smart or too dumb. That’s what it means to be dyslexic, smart, and illiterate. Sam is sick of it. So when her mom gets a job in a faraway city, Sam decides not to tell anyone about her little illiteracy problem. Without her paradox of a reputation, she falls in with a new group of highly competitive friends who call themselves the Brain Trust. When she meets Nate, her charming valedictorian lab partner, she declares her new reality perfect. But in order to keep it that way, she has to keep her learning disability a secret. The books are stacked against her and so are the lies. Sam’s got to get the grades, get the guy, and get it straight—without being able to read.
Dyslexia—How bad can it be?
By Kate Scott
After reading Counting to D, Sarah commented to me, “I wasn’t aware how serious dyslexia could be.” And Sarah, trust me, you aren’t alone. Very few people fully understand what dyslexia is, let alone how serious it can be.
In Counting to D, the main character, Sam, describes her condition like this: “Dyslexia is an inability to comprehend the symbolic representation of sound. Basically, that means my ears work fine and my eyes work fine, but there is something messed up in my brain that makes it hard for my ears and my eyes to communicate. I can see the letter c on a paper, and I can hear the sound ka, but I can’t understand that they’re the same thing.”
Some people falsely believe dyslexics see things backwards or have another visual problem. This isn’t true. Many early readers (dyslexic and non-dyslexic alike) transpose letters as a natural part of the process of learning to read. However, dyslexics stay at the early stages of letter recognition for a very long time, and this makes them more likely to transpose their letters for far longer than non-dyslexics. The problem isn’t with what they are seeing, though—the problem is with how the dyslexic brain processes what it’s seeing.
Dyslexia affects the part of the brain that decodes the symbolic representation of sound. It is actually a form of phoneme blindness, a condition that makes it virtually impossible to sound words out. In this case, “blindness” is a misnomer. As I said, dyslexia occurs in the brain, not the eyes. But even though dyslexia isn’t a visual condition, I’m going to use visual blindness as a comparison for how bad it can be.
About 75% of the adult American population wears glasses or contact lenses. Some people need glasses only for reading, others only for driving. Personally, I’m faced with a very blurry world every time I take off my glasses. At my last eye doctor’s appointment, my vision was tested at about 20/60. To be classified as blind, a person needs a vision of 20/200 or worse, but even within the legally blind population, there are variations in visual ability. Some people can see color and light, while others live in complete darkness.
Recent studies have indicated that as much as 10% of the population could have dyslexia. While 10% isn’t as high as 75%, it is still a lot. Like visual impairment, the severity of a person’s dyslexia can vary greatly. With proper support, most dyslexics are able to catch up to their peers’ reading abilities relatively quickly. To extend the visual blindness metaphor, these dyslexics aren’t “blind.” They just need some glasses.
But then, there are those like me. I have a very severe case of dyslexia. While Counting to D is fiction, Sam’s academic experiences closely mirror my own. I was born with almost complete phoneme blindness. It took me nearly 500 hours of private tutoring to learn the most basic principles of phonics. Even now, decades later, my spelling is still crap.
So how bad can dyslexia be? Bad. It can be bad. My visions is 20/60, and I can see fine with my glasses on. But when I was in junior high, I seriously considered teaching myself brail because I thought it might be easier than learning to read the traditional way. I still think I was probably right about that. However, I stuck with the squiggly lines on paper, and in the end, my hard work paid off. I can read now, and I can write. I’m even an author.
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Website: http://www.katescottwrites.
About the author:
Kate Scott lives in the suburbs outside Portland, Oregon with her husband Warren. Kate was diagnosed with dyslexia as a young child but somehow managed to fall in love with stories anyway. Counting to D is her first novel. When Kate isn’t writing, she enjoys listening to audiobooks, camping, and spending time with her friends and family. Kate also spends a lot of time doing math and sciency things and is a licensed professional engineer.
Blog Stop: Yes to Everything by Shayne McClendon
better when she’s asked to join a country band. In a single moment, her
struggle to care for her younger siblings is a thing of the past.
Fame and fortune have a price. Brooke embraces
the realization of her dreams only to have happiness ripped away in one act of
brutal violence. Starting again takes courage but love has a way of finding its
way home.
Start reading Yes to Everything right
now! Jump on the roller coaster and hang on…the ride can get a little
bumpy. Another hot, emotional read from Always the Good Girl, Shayne
McClendon.
NOTE: This story contains explicit
sexual scenes and language and is intended for mature audiences
only. Do not read this novel if intense sexual situations offend you.
Shayne McClendon is anindie author who has received rave reviews for her premiere novel “The
Barter System.” Other projects include “In the Service of Women,” “Yes
to Everything,” “Damaged,” “Being
Delightful,” “The Hermit,” the second
story set in “The Barter System” world – “Hudson,” and many more.
hermit…Shayne listens to the voices in her head because their ideas are
awesome. Those around her have learned not to question the crazy.
Coffee consumption is too high, amount of sleep is too low, but the words
always feel just right.
Oklahoma wrangling teenagers, opening doors for her pets, and running her
content writing company. She dreams of peace, quiet, travel, and always having
a viable internet connection.
her fans. You can contact her by email at shayne@alwaysthegoodgirl.com or stop by
her Author Page or Good Girl Facebook pages. Visit her
web page Always the Good Girl and subscribe for
your free story!
is available at all major e-book retailers.
Print editions of her work are available on her website.
Spotlight & Interview: Andromeda Rising by James Ramsey
About Andromeda Rising:
I should have been paying attention. Growing up on the run from religious fanatics gave me more than a few good reasons to be careful, but I was just too tired to be as vigilant as I should have been. My mind was occupied with my latest case—a missing nine year old girl. I was usually good at my job, but sometimes I needed a little extra help from magick. I always managed to track down a cheating spouse or the occasional runaway, but now it seemed more children were missing from the streets of Seattle and nothing I did worked.
A cat jumped on my shoulder and jerked me from my exhaustion induced stupor. I spun into a defensive crouch only to see the cat had landed on the sidewalk behind me.
Time seemed to stop for a moment when the cat spoke.
“RUN!”
My name is Jocelyn Matthews and if I live through tonight, I’ll tell you all about my life as a witch.
For the past ten years, Jocelyn has been living as a closet witch in Seattle. When the Inquisitors that have been after her from the time she was nine finally manage to find her, Jocelyn is thrust into a world she never guessed existed. From talking cats to Dark Elves, she’ll have to do something she’s never done before: trust someone other than herself. If she wants to find the children that have been going missing all over the city, she’ll have to open her eyes to the bigger picture and find her place, not only for her safety but for the city as well.
An Interview with James Ramsey
How long have you been writing?
I have been writing in one form or another since I was a child. I often ran out of books to read, so I would entertain myself with my own made up stories. As I got older college, work, and life meant that my random scribbles dwindled off and stopped entirely. It wasn’t until I discovered fanfiction a few years ago that I felt the urge to write again. I found it to be a great way to sharpen my very rusty skills and develop the confidence I needed to put my own story out there.
Do you like writing your characters into trouble or out of it?
Definitely writing them into trouble. The conflict is often the most interesting part, and I love to write scenes with a lot of action. Once I have the scene visualized in my head I can sit down and let the words flow.
Do you do a lot of research and plotting or do you just start writing?
I don’t do a huge amount of plotting; I like to let the story develop on its own. I always have a general idea of the storyline and how the story is going to end, but the journey to get there is often just as surprising to me as it is to the readers.
But research is another thing entirely. I spend hours looking up information and details to better flesh out my characters and plot. The smallest detail can give me the biggest idea, so I generally don’t stop until I feel I have a pretty good feel for a topic.
Do you have any writing rituals?
I am a bit of a coffee junky. I have a local coffee shop that is very used to me taking up space in their chairs for hours at a time. I always have my iPod and my iPhone with me. I can’t write without music. After that it’s up to the effects of too much caffeine and the writing gods.
Can you share a favorite sentence or scene from your novel?
One of my favorite scenes has very little to do with the plot. It involves Joss being hit on in a bar. I admit the inspiration was taken from my own life and experience with a rather aggressive attempt to pick me up. The character is vulgar, aggressive, and vomit inducing, but at the same time the whole situation is so ridiculous as to make you laugh.
What are a few of your favorite books?
I am and always have been a voracious reader. My grandpa owned a book store for most of my life and books were a regular gift. Some of the ones that stand out the most though are the Clan of the Cave Bear series by Jean M Auel, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, The Mayfair Witches by Anne Rice and Kim Harrison’s The Hollows series.
What’s the last book you read and what did you think of it?
Honestly, the only thing I am reading these days revolves around research for upcoming books. Some of them are very dry like, The Dictionary of Mythology and the Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. Some are more interesting like Through the Faerie Glass which is Gaelic and Irish myths surrounding fairy lore, and One Percent: the Legend of the Outlaw Biker. I know that one doesn’t seem to fit, but that’s for me to know and my readers to find out about in the future. It’s actually a pretty interesting read.
If you could be any fictional character, who would you be?
I kind of fell in love with Hermione Granger. She was a little bit of an outcast, nerdy in her love of books, and was always better friends with the guys than the girls around her. As an adult my inner teenager identified with her inability to fit in. And despite her terrible taste in men, she was a strong woman, loyal to her friends, and could work well under pressure. She rode on the back of a dragon after robbing a bank! And who wouldn’t like to spend a few years at Hogwarts?
If you could have any supernatural power, which would you choose?
I would love to have the ability to talk to animals. Need to send a message or have something picked up? All you would have to do is ask. And you would never need a ride anywhere again. Think of all the information you could find out. No one ever sensors their words or actions around the family pet.
Buy the Book:
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BARNES & NOBLE
Stalk James Ramsey:
Website: james-ramsey.com
Twitter: @jamesramsey09
About the Author:
Often accused of being lost in her own world, James spends most of her time at home with her husband and a menagerie of animals.
She blames her love of the written word entirely on her Grandfather who owned a bookstore, feeding her addiction regularly. Cutting her teeth on illustrated fairy tales she quickly moved on to Farley Mowatt and Lucy Maude Montgomery.
Proudly standing in line till after midnight for five of the seven Harry Potter books she was the only one there without a child.
Kim Harrison, Charlaine Harris, Anne Rice, Keri Arthur, Jean M. Auel, Dan Brown, Stephanie Laurens, Christopher Paolini, Stephenie Meyer, and Jane Austen represent just a fraction of the titles found in her personal library.
She is rarely found without a bag full of notebooks, iPods, and her Kindle.
Beyond the Binding: Now Available!
In December, a global campaign was launched to support the relief effort in regions of the Philippines devastated by Typhoon Yolanda. The collaboration began with Peter Ebbinghaus and the brilliant music of over 30 composers hailing from 16 countries, giving rise to the inspiring Composers for Relief album. An amazing cast of 29 authors added their voice to the music, breathing life into words woven with hope for humanity.
The collaboration has captured the creative minds of film students at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology in Malaysia, whose GLOBAL VISUAL HARMONIES project, under the direction of Ray Kril, adds a stunning element of hope in the form of short films inspired by the album. A documentary of the relief efforts is also underway. Watch the magic unfold, HERE.
Embark on an exciting journey Beyond the Binding of the imagination with 29 authors from across the globe in a groundbreaking collaboration where music meets fiction. Surrender to soaring compositions as they surge through the veins of every story, capturing the triumphant pulse of the notes in heart pounding sci fi, enchanting fantasy and gripping slices of realism.
It was an honor to participate in this awe inspiring project. You can read my short story, Akren the Redeemer, here on my blog.
Beyond the Binding
Ebook Available NOW on Amazon & Smashwords
Coming Soon to iTunes, B&N, Kobo, Sony & Diesel
Cover designed by Jennifer Redstreake Geary
All proceeds of the Composers for Relief album and Beyond the Binding will go to Gawad Kalinga (“give care”) and GVSP (Gualandi Volunteer Service Program), to support the relief efforts for victims of the deadliest natural disaster in Philippines’ history, Super Typhoon Yolanda.
Blog Stop, Review, and Giveaway: Broken by Vanessa Skye
Broken
Book Two in The Edge of Darkness series
By
Vanessa Skye
I loved Vanessa Skye’s debut novel, The Enemy Inside, so I was stoked to have the opportunity to participate in the blog tour for the second book in the series, Broken. You can read my review here, and don’t forget to enter the giveaway before you go!
Available from Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, and TWCS
As Berg fights to prevent another murder, she crosses the line between hero and villain—and there’s no turning back.
Author Bio:
Vanessa now works as a freelance writer, lives in Sydney’s northern beaches, and tries to immerse herself in salt water at least once a day.
Praise For Broken:
I have been diagnosed with clinical depression/situational depression years ago. It is very important that I mention this prior to reviewing “Broken” by Vanessa Skye. . . as it is very pertinent to where my mind was just prior to starting this novel. I had a depression breakdown about a week before starting this book. Little did I know, when requesting this book for review from Net Galley, that I’d be reading a book that reflects my soul at current state.
Biggest plus of this book was the creative use of song lyrics before the start of each chapter. So poignant, so stark, so dead on. The way the author writes about depression the lives within the main character is so gut twisting, I too found myself hard to breathe.
“Berg”, the main character, is a detective who is so deeply whittled with wounds from childhood it literally incapacitates her every aspect of life: Living, Breathing, Loving and accepting Love, Communicating, Sleeping. She’s a wreck of a woman… She’s BROKEN. However, the pain and abuse from childhood makes her ONE HELL OF A DETECTIVE. Her senses are sharp. She sees things her male counterparts cannot. She has the highest closure rate on cases.
However, your detective skills become questionable when she tries to juggle love and her heart, her past, a new partner that is relentless about sleeping with her, and an ADA who’s a total narcissistic bitch. The characters in the book are so well written you either hurt for them, hate them, or love them.
Vanessa Skye is a strong, poetic, articulate author. Broken is a second part novel, from the “Edge of Darkness” series. I have not read the first novel, “The Enemy Inside.” The author did a fine job of creating a second book that reading the first one is not required. This is a great stand alone book, which has areas of reflection into the first novel. I would love to read this book, as I’m highly attracted to the main character, her flaws and the author’s ability to bring it all to life.
I am so very impressed with this book. It gripped my innards and ripped them out, little by little, each time Vanessa wrote about the deep, sinking, killing feeling depression has on a person.
*** Goodreads review
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