Debra L. Martin's Blog, page 277
May 2, 2013
Review: HUNGRY HUNGRY HOODOO by Liz Schulte
5 of 5 starsThis is the second book in the Easy Bake Coven series and it doesn't disappoint. Selene Warren has found love in the arms of her elf husband, Cheney, but the problem is she doesn't remember her former life with him. Who was she and why won't anyone tell her anything? When she tries to force the memories, she is assaulted with unimaginable head pain. Throw in a sexy former lover, a murder and kidnapping and this book is full of exciting twists and turns.
The more I read about Selene, the more I liked her. The author has done a great job letting the reader into the mind of Selene as she tries to figure out who is friend or enemy. Cheney is stoic, but underneath that cool exterior, is a smoldering love for Selene. He's one sexy elf. The action is this book never stops and just when you think you've got the mystery figured out, there's another twist in the story. This is a quick and easy read and it wraps up most of the problems, but there is a cliff hanger that will have you clamoring for book 3. Recommended.
I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
May 1, 2013
New #YA Release: BEYOND: TWO SUNS by Maureen A Miller
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">BOOK BLURB:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">They were coming.
It wasn't so much the sound that revealed them. It was the subtle
vibration of the ground beneath his feet, like the percussion of a distant
explosion. It was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">their </i>march.
The dead tread of stone against sand. A ghostly gait of menace.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Alone in a desert
world...a world he once called home, Zak is now a damaged man. Reckless in his
battle against the creatures that destroyed his family, he roams under the
glare of the two suns, seeing phantoms--seeing Aimee. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five years had passed
since Aimee Patterson left the man she loved. For five long years she traveled
the path of life, always waiting--always looking to the stars, knowing, hoping,
that one day he would return for her.</span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And today was that day...</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Buy Links:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Amazon - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/BEYOND-TWO-SUNS... style="color: blue;">http://www.amazon.com/BEYOND-TWO-SUNS...
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Barnes and Noble - <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beyon... style="color: blue;">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beyon...
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Smashwords - <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view... style="color: blue;">https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Author
bio:</span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oeR2U8C_WOU..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oeR2U8C_WOU..." /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Maureen's illustrious
writing career began in the fourth grade with the blockbuster hit, Super
Watermelon Man. Many years later, she evolved into a full-fledged Romantic
Suspense author with her first novel, WIDOW'S TALE, which was nominated for a
Golden Heart by the Romance Writers of America. A fan of the old Gothic
romances, Maureen enjoys the formula of danger, romance, dark cliffs, and
sinister houses. All these elements can be found in her romantic thriller,
ENDLESS NIGHT.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Recently, Maureen
broadened her horizons, literally, by venturing into young adult science
fiction with the BEYOND series, featuring BEYOND and the soon to be released,
BEYOND: TWO SUNS.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Find Maureen at
<a href="http://www.maureenamiller.com/"&... style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">EXCERPT:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">PROLOGUE</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Less than two days after her high school graduation, Aimee
Patterson walked her Cocker Spaniel along the pond on her parent’s farm. When
Ziggy charged into the woods on the other side, Aimee was paralyzed with
indecision. The forest was scary, a dark lair she had avoided since childhood.
But she was not a child anymore, and something had caught the dog’s attention.
Trailing after him into that bleak stockade...Aimee disappeared from this
planet.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">She woke up on a spaceship so grand and so far from Earth,
never imagining that her adventure in space would last five years. In that time
she learned new technology, visited a foreign planet, battled aliens,
encountered disease—and cured it. Most importantly, though, she fell in love.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When the adventure was over, Aimee was twenty-two years old
and confronted with a monumental decision. Should she remain in the stars with
Zak and start their life together, or should she return to Earth to lead a
normal existence and comfort the parents who never knew the fate of their
missing daughter?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Aimee’s heart yearned for one future, but the burden of
responsibility argued for another. The truth was that in order for her and Zak
to spend a life together without regrets, they both needed to evolve—to mature.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For half a decade, Aimee walked the routine journey of life—always
waiting—always looking to the stars—knowing, hoping, that one day he would
return for her. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Today was that day…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">***</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five long years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Aimee stared through her hands at the pine needles
blanketing the ground below. Beneath her loafers, the packed earth altered,
transitioning from brown, to gray, to obsidian−until finally the turf was gone
and her leather shoes reformed atop a marble floor. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For a moment she was afraid to look up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five years.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five years ago today she had stood in this exact same spot,
saying goodbye to the man she loved. It was a moment filled with anguish barely
diminished over time. In that period, doubt grew into a behemoth monster that
warned daily that she would never see him again. To protect her heart she had
tried to move on, but no man could connect with her as he did. And, every night
the pendant around her neck burned his memory into her dreams…</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five years.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Only moments ago, she stood in the woods behind her pond as
her heart drilled with the fear that he would not come back for her—and yet,
the beam had appeared from above. A sign of faith. A sign of love. He was back.
He wanted her. She bled happiness at the thought of being with him.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Zak.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, time had passed, but in space the hands of the clock
grew fuzzy. Here she was, once again aboard the Guardian Ship, Horus, about to
be reunited with the man of her dreams.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">At last, Aimee lifted her head.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=twoen-20..." style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe> <iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=twoen-20..." style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>
April 29, 2013
April 26, 2013
Interview with Ryan Schneider
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x6cpkR22vXE..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x6cpkR22vXE..." width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can you
give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?</span></b></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Eye Candy</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> is a
science fiction novel set in Los Angeles 2047. <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I feel it will be accessible by male and
female readers alike. Please note that it does contain some adult content.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
The beauty of the SF genre is its ability to take us to new places where
serious matters can be discussed and explored.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
We can explore themes such as humanity and technology and how the two
intertwine.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
We can discuss philosophy and the nature of our own existence while discovering
a vision of a possible future, one in which air pollution is a thing of the
past, cheap renewable energy is commonplace, and robotics is a daily reality as
ubiquitous as mobile phones are to us today.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
Against such a backdrop, Los Angeles in 2047, people still go to work and to
the gym and to the sports bar to watch Monday Night Football. They still take
the kids to school and pick them up in the afternoon and have to figure out
what's for dinner. And they still fall in love and dream of living happily ever
after.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Eye Candy</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> was conceived as a stand-alone novel. But… I
have already had an idea about what could happen next. And it’s intriguing…</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
have a favorite character?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Tough question. This book has an ensemble cast, and it was
challenging at times to not only keep track of who said what, but to also be
certain that all the characters had equal opportunity with their dialogue and
involvement in the story. It’s quite a colorful bunch, and I had a ball
spending time with and getting to know each of them.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If I had to choose, I might say Les Grossman or Poo Raw.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Back in 2009, when my SciFi series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Go-Kids</i> was ready, I began researching agents, crafting about a
dozen different query letters, and querying agents I thought would enjoy my
manuscript. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This went on for almost a year, with a handful of rejection
emails.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Shortly thereafter, the self-publishing engine was really
getting warmed up, and I began to investigate. In a very short time, I decided
I wanted to retain the rights to my books and publish them myself. I wanted to
retain control of them and bring them into the world on my terms. I wrote <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Pillow Book</i> as a project with a
relatively short length (180pp), and began figuring out the self-publishing
ropes. That’s how it all began.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If you
used a graphic designer, how involved were you during the creative process for
your cover?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I decided that for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eye
Candy</i> I wanted a really, really great cover. Something that was an original
piece of art, which was beyond my capabilities. I wanted something more than
simply a collection of stock images and a loud font.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I placed an ad on Elance and had more than 50 responses.
Many from people who were clearly quite talented. I ultimately chose to work
with an artist named Scott who goes by the name Rahzzah. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott had just finished a three-year long collaborative
project on a comic book titled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Moon Girl</i>.
And it just so happened he was actively seeking new projects. We chatted a bit
via the Elance interface and decided to work together.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We tossed some ideas around after I gave him a rundown of
the plot and characters.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott whipped up about 5 sketches so I could visualize the
concept. The fifth concept was Scott’s original idea based on a small story
detail I had mentioned. It was a digital electronic newspaper which emits
holographic 3D imagery. Scott was most intrigued by that idea, and I liked his
interpretation of it. He roughed it up to about 80% completion and showed it to
me to make sure I approved.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I was astounded.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott went ahead and completed the design and sent it to me
and I was blown away. Honestly. I think the cover speaks for itself. It was so
good that I was able to go back and fine-tune the scene in the book,
incorporating the many details of the artwork. I hope readers will reach that
scene in the book and will turn back to the cover to study it and enjoy it all
over again with a new understanding of the context. Plus, there are some Easter
eggs in there. I get a kick out of doing stuff like that. I hope readers do as
well.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What is
your writing process? Do you listen to music or do you like silence?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I typically write in silence. Years ago, I used to listen to
music, back when CDs were mainstream. I found that I would press Play and 45
minutes later I would hear the CD player’s laser head tracking back to the
beginning, and the music had ended. I hadn’t heard a thing. So somewhere along
the line I stopped listening to music.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Instrumental music can be nice sometimes. But the language
centers of the brain can really only focus on one source of verbal input at a
time. So music lyrics can distract from the words on the screen.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I’ve known many writers who listen to movie soundtracks
while they write. I’ve tried that a few times, but the music typically reminds
me of the scene in the movie, which distracts me from my own story.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I typically outline because I have to. When I decide to
write a story, my mind seems to automatically race to the end, trying to piece
it all together, and it comes at me so fast that an outline is the only way I
can get it all down on paper.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But when the actual in-scene writing begins, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">real</i> stuff, I follow the outline insofar
as it makes sense. Things develop and sometimes the story takes a turn and what
I had outlined no longer works.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
So it’s okay to let the muse take over.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
When I was writing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eye Candy</i>, I got
to chapter 12, and the story began going in a strange direction. As I was
writing, I was questioning what I was doing. This went on for a few days. I
considered deleting it all and trying again. But ultimately I decided to forge
ahead and see if perhaps there was a reason why I had written that chapter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As it turned out, the events of that chapter came full
circle to inform the climax of the story. I only had to wait about two months
to get there so I could see it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I truly have no clue where ideas come from. The whole writing
process often feels ethereal and magical. I usually feel like a translator.
Like C.S. Lewis once said, ‘I never made a book. I was given things to say.’</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
That’s how I feel.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and
writing your next book?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes. The marketing can get a little overwhelming sometimes
because it involves a lot of time-intensive research online, trying to learn
about new websites and promotional opportunities. If you’re not careful, it can
turn into a time suck and the next thing you know, you’ve not written anything
that day. Today, for example, I only managed about two hours of writing because
of this very issue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
The marketing is fun, too, though. It’s its own thing. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sometimes I’ll feel myself getting a bit too worked up over
it all, and I have to remind myself to take a step back and focus on the
creative aspects of the business, which is the writing and the storytelling,
entertaining readers with a good book that hopefully makes them think and makes
them feel, whatever thoughts and emotions it may be.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing
arena?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Write a lot. Because we only learn to write through
practice. And because ultimately you will succeed or fail based upon the
quality of your work, and nothing else.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Know that it’s a long journey, and be prepared to look at it
like a marathon. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
But if you’re doing it for the right reasons, namely because you love to write,
this shouldn’t be an issue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Try to be as professional as you possibly can. Make sure your book has a good
cover, a good description, and is properly edited and proofread. Self
publishing is fighting the uphill battle known as amateurism. A lot of readers,
myself included, don’t want to read a book with typos on every few pages. I’m
reading such a book now, by the way, written by a VERY established science
fiction writer. Whoever made the conversion to the ebook was a freakin’ idiot.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had a college English and film professor from West Berlin
named Reinhardt Lutz. He explained it this way: It is a matter of form versus
content. If your form is bad, sloppy, amateurish, I can’t even get to your
content (what you’re trying to say).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But also remember that this whole process should be a joy. I
love going to work every day. There’s nothing else I’d rather do. And believe
me, I’ve tried not writing. I tried really hard. Several times. Couldn’t do it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For me, the creative process is simply too much fun.
Conceiving an idea, researching it to get the details right, writing it
(putting fingers to keyboard), designing the cover, and seeing it all come to
fruition with a book for sale in places like Amazon is simply wonderful.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then, when people buy, read, enjoy, and comment on the book,
it’s astounding. The feeling of getting lost in a good book is a feeling I
believe we all seek. We long for it each time we click ‘Buy Now’ on Amazon. So
when I hear that I was able to deliver that experience to a person I’ve never
met but who decided to take a chance on my book… it’s all worth it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Besides
writing, do you have any other passions?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I am a fitness buff. I love exercise, working out, running.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I also love airplanes and aviation. I have a pilot’s license,
too, and very nearly became an airline pilot. Alas, the calling to simply write
was too powerful to resist.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I love movies. Though I don’t seem to watch nearly as many
as I would like.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I would be remiss if I didn’t mention being with my wife Taliya. We
have great fun together, traveling, going out to dinner, to a movie, whatever.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What’s
next for you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m in the beginning stages of a new science fiction novel
titled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hard Space</i>. It’s about a
luxurious space liner that gets hijacked on its voyage from Earth to Mars. I’m
doing research (I love research) and plotting it out.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The goal with this book is to see if I can write it and
publish it in a couple of months. One of the fundamental tenets of publishing
is to have a deep backlist, with plenty of titles. Also, once you’ve managed to
garner some readers and establish a fan base, it’s important to continue to
produce books on a regular basis, in order to keep those fans reading. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Unless you’re a huge brand-name author like Stephen King or
James Patterson, you can’t afford to wait a year or two between books. And
perhaps not even then.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So, somewhat akin to the NaNoWriMo challenge in which every
November people try to write a rough draft in 30 days, I’m trying to write a
book in about 60 days. I think I can do it. I’m looking forward to the
challenge. And now that I’ve blabbed about the book, its title, and its plot, I
simply must do it. Right? But it’s okay. It’s a labor of love.</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x6cpkR22vXE..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x6cpkR22vXE..." width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can you
give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Eye Candy</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> is a
science fiction novel set in Los Angeles 2047. <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I feel it will be accessible by male and
female readers alike. Please note that it does contain some adult content.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
The beauty of the SF genre is its ability to take us to new places where
serious matters can be discussed and explored.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
We can explore themes such as humanity and technology and how the two
intertwine.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
We can discuss philosophy and the nature of our own existence while discovering
a vision of a possible future, one in which air pollution is a thing of the
past, cheap renewable energy is commonplace, and robotics is a daily reality as
ubiquitous as mobile phones are to us today.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
Against such a backdrop, Los Angeles in 2047, people still go to work and to
the gym and to the sports bar to watch Monday Night Football. They still take
the kids to school and pick them up in the afternoon and have to figure out
what's for dinner. And they still fall in love and dream of living happily ever
after.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Eye Candy</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> was conceived as a stand-alone novel. But… I
have already had an idea about what could happen next. And it’s intriguing…</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
have a favorite character?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Tough question. This book has an ensemble cast, and it was
challenging at times to not only keep track of who said what, but to also be
certain that all the characters had equal opportunity with their dialogue and
involvement in the story. It’s quite a colorful bunch, and I had a ball
spending time with and getting to know each of them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If I had to choose, I might say Les Grossman or Poo Raw.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Back in 2009, when my SciFi series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Go-Kids</i> was ready, I began researching agents, crafting about a
dozen different query letters, and querying agents I thought would enjoy my
manuscript. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This went on for almost a year, with a handful of rejection
emails.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Shortly thereafter, the self-publishing engine was really
getting warmed up, and I began to investigate. In a very short time, I decided
I wanted to retain the rights to my books and publish them myself. I wanted to
retain control of them and bring them into the world on my terms. I wrote <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Pillow Book</i> as a project with a
relatively short length (180pp), and began figuring out the self-publishing
ropes. That’s how it all began.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If you
used a graphic designer, how involved were you during the creative process for
your cover?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I decided that for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eye
Candy</i> I wanted a really, really great cover. Something that was an original
piece of art, which was beyond my capabilities. I wanted something more than
simply a collection of stock images and a loud font.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I placed an ad on Elance and had more than 50 responses.
Many from people who were clearly quite talented. I ultimately chose to work
with an artist named Scott who goes by the name Rahzzah. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott had just finished a three-year long collaborative
project on a comic book titled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Moon Girl</i>.
And it just so happened he was actively seeking new projects. We chatted a bit
via the Elance interface and decided to work together.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We tossed some ideas around after I gave him a rundown of
the plot and characters.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott whipped up about 5 sketches so I could visualize the
concept. The fifth concept was Scott’s original idea based on a small story
detail I had mentioned. It was a digital electronic newspaper which emits
holographic 3D imagery. Scott was most intrigued by that idea, and I liked his
interpretation of it. He roughed it up to about 80% completion and showed it to
me to make sure I approved.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I was astounded.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scott went ahead and completed the design and sent it to me
and I was blown away. Honestly. I think the cover speaks for itself. It was so
good that I was able to go back and fine-tune the scene in the book,
incorporating the many details of the artwork. I hope readers will reach that
scene in the book and will turn back to the cover to study it and enjoy it all
over again with a new understanding of the context. Plus, there are some Easter
eggs in there. I get a kick out of doing stuff like that. I hope readers do as
well.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What is
your writing process? Do you listen to music or do you like silence?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I typically write in silence. Years ago, I used to listen to
music, back when CDs were mainstream. I found that I would press Play and 45
minutes later I would hear the CD player’s laser head tracking back to the
beginning, and the music had ended. I hadn’t heard a thing. So somewhere along
the line I stopped listening to music.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Instrumental music can be nice sometimes. But the language
centers of the brain can really only focus on one source of verbal input at a
time. So music lyrics can distract from the words on the screen.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I’ve known many writers who listen to movie soundtracks
while they write. I’ve tried that a few times, but the music typically reminds
me of the scene in the movie, which distracts me from my own story.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I typically outline because I have to. When I decide to
write a story, my mind seems to automatically race to the end, trying to piece
it all together, and it comes at me so fast that an outline is the only way I
can get it all down on paper.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But when the actual in-scene writing begins, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">real</i> stuff, I follow the outline insofar
as it makes sense. Things develop and sometimes the story takes a turn and what
I had outlined no longer works.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
So it’s okay to let the muse take over.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
When I was writing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eye Candy</i>, I got
to chapter 12, and the story began going in a strange direction. As I was
writing, I was questioning what I was doing. This went on for a few days. I
considered deleting it all and trying again. But ultimately I decided to forge
ahead and see if perhaps there was a reason why I had written that chapter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As it turned out, the events of that chapter came full
circle to inform the climax of the story. I only had to wait about two months
to get there so I could see it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I truly have no clue where ideas come from. The whole writing
process often feels ethereal and magical. I usually feel like a translator.
Like C.S. Lewis once said, ‘I never made a book. I was given things to say.’</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
That’s how I feel.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and
writing your next book?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes. The marketing can get a little overwhelming sometimes
because it involves a lot of time-intensive research online, trying to learn
about new websites and promotional opportunities. If you’re not careful, it can
turn into a time suck and the next thing you know, you’ve not written anything
that day. Today, for example, I only managed about two hours of writing because
of this very issue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
The marketing is fun, too, though. It’s its own thing. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sometimes I’ll feel myself getting a bit too worked up over
it all, and I have to remind myself to take a step back and focus on the
creative aspects of the business, which is the writing and the storytelling,
entertaining readers with a good book that hopefully makes them think and makes
them feel, whatever thoughts and emotions it may be.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing
arena?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Write a lot. Because we only learn to write through
practice. And because ultimately you will succeed or fail based upon the
quality of your work, and nothing else.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Know that it’s a long journey, and be prepared to look at it
like a marathon. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
But if you’re doing it for the right reasons, namely because you love to write,
this shouldn’t be an issue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Try to be as professional as you possibly can. Make sure your book has a good
cover, a good description, and is properly edited and proofread. Self
publishing is fighting the uphill battle known as amateurism. A lot of readers,
myself included, don’t want to read a book with typos on every few pages. I’m
reading such a book now, by the way, written by a VERY established science
fiction writer. Whoever made the conversion to the ebook was a freakin’ idiot.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had a college English and film professor from West Berlin
named Reinhardt Lutz. He explained it this way: It is a matter of form versus
content. If your form is bad, sloppy, amateurish, I can’t even get to your
content (what you’re trying to say).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But also remember that this whole process should be a joy. I
love going to work every day. There’s nothing else I’d rather do. And believe
me, I’ve tried not writing. I tried really hard. Several times. Couldn’t do it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For me, the creative process is simply too much fun.
Conceiving an idea, researching it to get the details right, writing it
(putting fingers to keyboard), designing the cover, and seeing it all come to
fruition with a book for sale in places like Amazon is simply wonderful.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then, when people buy, read, enjoy, and comment on the book,
it’s astounding. The feeling of getting lost in a good book is a feeling I
believe we all seek. We long for it each time we click ‘Buy Now’ on Amazon. So
when I hear that I was able to deliver that experience to a person I’ve never
met but who decided to take a chance on my book… it’s all worth it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Besides
writing, do you have any other passions?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I am a fitness buff. I love exercise, working out, running.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I also love airplanes and aviation. I have a pilot’s license,
too, and very nearly became an airline pilot. Alas, the calling to simply write
was too powerful to resist.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I love movies. Though I don’t seem to watch nearly as many
as I would like.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I would be remiss if I didn’t mention being with my wife Taliya. We
have great fun together, traveling, going out to dinner, to a movie, whatever.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What’s
next for you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m in the beginning stages of a new science fiction novel
titled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hard Space</i>. It’s about a
luxurious space liner that gets hijacked on its voyage from Earth to Mars. I’m
doing research (I love research) and plotting it out.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The goal with this book is to see if I can write it and
publish it in a couple of months. One of the fundamental tenets of publishing
is to have a deep backlist, with plenty of titles. Also, once you’ve managed to
garner some readers and establish a fan base, it’s important to continue to
produce books on a regular basis, in order to keep those fans reading. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Unless you’re a huge brand-name author like Stephen King or
James Patterson, you can’t afford to wait a year or two between books. And
perhaps not even then.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So, somewhat akin to the NaNoWriMo challenge in which every
November people try to write a rough draft in 30 days, I’m trying to write a
book in about 60 days. I think I can do it. I’m looking forward to the
challenge. And now that I’ve blabbed about the book, its title, and its plot, I
simply must do it. Right? But it’s okay. It’s a labor of love.</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>
April 25, 2013
Spotlight: #Contemporary #Romance LOVE ON THE BEACH
Caroline Fleming had a perfect life -- a loving husband, 2 great kids, a lovely home -- or so she thought. When her husband of 23 years announces he wants a divorce, Caroline's perfect world crumbles in an instant.
She retreats to the beach house to clear her head and heal her broken heart. She swears off men, that is, until she meets a sexy stranger running on the beach with his 2 dogs. Will Matt Sylvan be her second chance at love?
LOVE ON THE BEACH is a novella of ~21,000 words (95 pages)
Buy links:
BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-by-moonlight-debra-elizabeth/1109518044
Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Love-Beach-Contemporary-Romance-Novella/book-Sr61yELudkq-lSHJUO9gVA/page1.html?s=MDzTcbyIHkefylrR-VCxPw&r=2
Amazon:
April 24, 2013
Interview with Stacy Green
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jVlHxzpVi4c..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jVlHxzpVi4c..." width="206" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can you
give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">TIN GOD is about a woman (Jaymee) who believes she and her
child were victims of an illegal adoption. When Jaymee connects the recent
murder of her employer to the slaying of her best friend four years earlier,
she realizes that she herself is the connection between the two. She believes
the killings are related to the cover up of a black market adoption ring.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
have a favorite character?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In this book, it’s got to be Jaymee. She has had a very hard
life and is bitter at times, but also vulnerable and loyal to those she loves.
She tries hard to do the right thing, and I am really proud of her character
arc in TIN GOD.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Have you
ever had a minor character evolve into a major one? Did that change the
direction of the novel at all?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes. Cage is a secondary character in TIN GOD, but I liked
him so much he is the hero for the second book in the series, SKELETON’S KEY (October).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">How long
before you got your offer of representation/your first contract? Was it for
your first novel? </span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had decided to query small presses because I knew breaking
into the big houses was next to impossible. I queried with my first novel, INTO
THE DARK, and had four offers within a few months. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I decided to self publish TIN GOD because I realized I
wanted control of my work, and that I was capable of putting together a team
who would help me put out a quality product. I hired a freelance editor
(formerly) from Penguin NAL and learned an immense amount from working with
her. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I was able to have final say over the cover design, price,
marketing–everything. With the state of traditional publishing and the vast
opportunities for indie authors, deciding to self-publish was easy for me. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">That said, I didn’t cut corners. I look at my books as a
business I have to invest in to see any real success. My main goal is putting
out a quality product that can stand up against a traditionally published
novel, and I think I’ve done that with TIN GOD.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I used to be a panster, but as I’ve learned craft, I have
become a pretty strong outliner. I don’t have to have my outline complete
before I start, but I like to have the first act, midpoint, and turning points
all figured out. Once I write the first act, I have a better feel for the story
and where it needs to go. Then I’ll go back over my plans and make adjustments
accordingly. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I also have a fantastic critique partner to bounce ideas off
of, and I can’t tell you how much that helps. We are very like-minded, but she
is the first one to tell me if something isn’t working.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Did you hire
an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, yes, yes! I honestly believe we can’t chinze out on
this. I have a developmental editor, a line editor, and a proofer, as well as
two beta readers. The development and line editors were investments but well
worth it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What have
you’ve learned during your self-publishing journey?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Patience is a virtue I need to work on. I’ve done everything
I can in terms of putting out the best book possible. But I have to remember it’s
only my second novel, and very few writers are discovered overnight. I have to
keep my nose to the grindstone (to use a terrible cliché) and keep writing and
not chase sales. That’s something I have to tell myself every single day.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What advice would you give a new author just entering into
the self-publishing arena?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do your research. Figure out what your strengths are, set a
budget, and stick to it. Make sure your budget has a good amount set aside for
editing and cover art, because they are vital. Join indie publishing groups on
Facebook, network with other authors. And realize that there is a lot to learn,
and most of the time, there is no right answer. You have to figure out what
work best for YOU.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What’s
next for you?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Skeleton’s Key, the second book in the Delta Crossroads Series,
is with the editor right now and is due out in October. I’ve just started
plotting the third book (as yet untitled) and hope for a spring 2014 release.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Thank you so much for having me today!</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jVlHxzpVi4c..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jVlHxzpVi4c..." width="206" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can you
give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">TIN GOD is about a woman (Jaymee) who believes she and her
child were victims of an illegal adoption. When Jaymee connects the recent
murder of her employer to the slaying of her best friend four years earlier,
she realizes that she herself is the connection between the two. She believes
the killings are related to the cover up of a black market adoption ring.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
have a favorite character?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In this book, it’s got to be Jaymee. She has had a very hard
life and is bitter at times, but also vulnerable and loyal to those she loves.
She tries hard to do the right thing, and I am really proud of her character
arc in TIN GOD.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Have you
ever had a minor character evolve into a major one? Did that change the
direction of the novel at all?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes. Cage is a secondary character in TIN GOD, but I liked
him so much he is the hero for the second book in the series, SKELETON’S KEY (October).</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">How long
before you got your offer of representation/your first contract? Was it for
your first novel? </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had decided to query small presses because I knew breaking
into the big houses was next to impossible. I queried with my first novel, INTO
THE DARK, and had four offers within a few months. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I decided to self publish TIN GOD because I realized I
wanted control of my work, and that I was capable of putting together a team
who would help me put out a quality product. I hired a freelance editor
(formerly) from Penguin NAL and learned an immense amount from working with
her. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I was able to have final say over the cover design, price,
marketing–everything. With the state of traditional publishing and the vast
opportunities for indie authors, deciding to self-publish was easy for me. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">That said, I didn’t cut corners. I look at my books as a
business I have to invest in to see any real success. My main goal is putting
out a quality product that can stand up against a traditionally published
novel, and I think I’ve done that with TIN GOD.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I used to be a panster, but as I’ve learned craft, I have
become a pretty strong outliner. I don’t have to have my outline complete
before I start, but I like to have the first act, midpoint, and turning points
all figured out. Once I write the first act, I have a better feel for the story
and where it needs to go. Then I’ll go back over my plans and make adjustments
accordingly. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I also have a fantastic critique partner to bounce ideas off
of, and I can’t tell you how much that helps. We are very like-minded, but she
is the first one to tell me if something isn’t working.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Did you hire
an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, yes, yes! I honestly believe we can’t chinze out on
this. I have a developmental editor, a line editor, and a proofer, as well as
two beta readers. The development and line editors were investments but well
worth it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What have
you’ve learned during your self-publishing journey?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Patience is a virtue I need to work on. I’ve done everything
I can in terms of putting out the best book possible. But I have to remember it’s
only my second novel, and very few writers are discovered overnight. I have to
keep my nose to the grindstone (to use a terrible cliché) and keep writing and
not chase sales. That’s something I have to tell myself every single day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What advice would you give a new author just entering into
the self-publishing arena?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do your research. Figure out what your strengths are, set a
budget, and stick to it. Make sure your budget has a good amount set aside for
editing and cover art, because they are vital. Join indie publishing groups on
Facebook, network with other authors. And realize that there is a lot to learn,
and most of the time, there is no right answer. You have to figure out what
work best for YOU.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What’s
next for you?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Skeleton’s Key, the second book in the Delta Crossroads Series,
is with the editor right now and is due out in October. I’ve just started
plotting the third book (as yet untitled) and hope for a spring 2014 release.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Thank you so much for having me today!</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>
April 23, 2013
Review: KEEP ME GHOSTED by Karen Cantwell
5 of 5 starsI'm a fan Ms. Cantwell and absolutely love her Barbara Marr series so I was excited to read this book. What a treat! KEEP ME GHOSTED is a delightful ghost story. Sophie is desperate for a job so when she is hired by Dr. Callahan, an Developmental Optometry & Vision Therapy doctor, she is thrilled. It seemed like a great fit until she finds out that Cal has an unhappy ghost shadowing him. Moonflower has attached herself to the good doctor and doesn't like other women. Ghosts don't bother Sophie because her best friend is Marmaduke Dodsworth, a British ghost who is hilarious. I loved his British sayings. Things seem perfect, that is, until a jealous Moonflower wreaks havoc in the office scaring away the patients.
If you love ghost stories, you'll not go wrong with this one. This book is such an entertaining read. The author has a great flair for storytelling, letting the reader understand and feel the character's emotions. I couldn't stop laughing while I read this story. Sophie and Cal were adorable, but for me, it was Marmi who stole the spotlight. I want more of this British ghost and can't wait to see what adventures await in the next book! If you're looking to escape everything for a bit, rush out and buy this book. You won't be disappointed. Highly Recommended.
April 22, 2013
Book Tour Blast: TIN GOD by Stacy Green
Tin God
Getting pregnant as a teenager and being coerced into giving her baby up for adoption left a festering scar on Jaymee Ballard’s life. Trapped by poverty and without many allies, Jaymee nearly gives up hope of getting her daughter back after her best friend is murdered. Now, four years later, a wealthy woman with legal connections hires her as a housekeeper, and Jaymee gathers the courage to seek her help. But Jaymee’s last chance ends up in a puddle of blood in one of the historic antebellum mansions in Roselea, Mississippi.
I just murdered your wife…again.
An unsigned letter consisting of six horrifying words turns Nick Samuels stagnant life upside down. Stuck in emotional purgatory since his wife’s unsolved murder four years ago, Nick is about to self-destruct. The arrival of the letter claiming credit for his wife’s murder and boasting of a new kill sends Nick to Roselea, where he and Jaymee’s worlds collide.
Jaymee and Nick realize exposing the truth about her daughter’s adoption is the only way to solve the murders. Up against years of deception, they rush to identify the killer before the evidence–and Jaymee’s daughter–are lost.
But the truth doesn’t always set the guilt-ridden free. Sometimes, it destroys them.
About the author
Born in Indiana and raised in Iowa, Stacy Green earned degrees in journalism and sociology from Drake University. After a successful advertising career, Stacy became a proud stay-at-home mom to her miracle child. Now a full-time author, Stacy juggles her time between her demanding characters and supportive family. She loves reading, cooking, and the occasional gardening excursion. Stacy lives in Marion, Iowa with her husband Rob, their daughter Grace, and the family’s three obnoxious but lovable canine children.You can find her debut novel, INTO THE DARK as well as TIN GOD in both digital and print.
Website / Amazon Author Page / Facebook / Twitter / Literary Addicts
Purchase Tin God on Amazon
Purchase Stacy Green's other books Welcome to Las Vegas and Into the Dark
Follow the Tour
Stacy Green is giving away a swag pack for her tour. Open to US Addresses. 2 Winners
Fill out the Form Below to Enter.
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April 19, 2013
New #SF Release: EYE CANDY by Ryan Schneider
Book Description:
In a near-future Los Angeles of 2047, roboticist Danny Olivaw finds himself on a blind date with a beautiful robopsychologist named Candy. But the next day, strange things begin to happen.
Confronted with an unbearable truth, Danny soon begins a downward spiral in search for the woman he loves. Little does he know what fate has in store for them. Brilliantly conceived and executed with delicate precision, Eye Candy is a complex, endearing tale for mature readers that’s as fast-paced and uplifting as it is fun.
BONUS: BOOK WILL BE FREE 4/20 & 4/21
Buy Link:
http://www.amazon.com/Eye-Candy-ebook/dp/B00C1O8CE4
April 18, 2013
Review: FEARLESS by Cornelia Funke
4 of 5 starsThis is the second book in the Mirrorworld series and the stakes are higher than ever. Jacob Reckless has saved his brother from the harsh life as the Jade Goyl, but at a terrible cost, his life for his brother's. The Dark Fairy has released a black moth that has settled in Jacob's chest and little by little steals Jacob's life force. He is in a race against time to find the cure from the Dark Fairy's curse. As Jacob and his ever present companion Fox search for the only magical item he hasn't tried to lift the curse, the Crossbow, purported to lift a fairy curse with a bolt through his heart, he finds himself in stiff competition with another treasure hunter, Nerron, the "Bastard" Goyl.
The story is full of anguish, fear, heartache and love as Jacob and Fox realize how important they are to each other. Their feelings and undying support propel the story forward through one crisis after another. The magical world that Ms. Funke has created is inventive and exciting. There are so many twists and turns in the story that you'll be holding your breath to see if Jacob can find the crossbow before the Dark Fairy curse finally kills him. There is a cliff hanger at the end and I'll be eagerly awaiting the next volume to find out what happens to Jacob and Fox.
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.
