Jennifer Apodaca's Blog, page 188

Wednesday Worthy

I’m fighting a sinus headache that will be significantly better by the time you all read this. It’s humid today and mostly weather related so I’m thinking positive that it will go away.

I wanted to share with you all that POSSESSION hit the Barnes and Noble Self Published bestseller list at #5. (link here  http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/abbi-glines-rockets-to-top-of-self-published-bestsellers-list_b71993 ) This is the second week on the list, the week before it was at #10. I’m thrilled and stunned by it. It’s so great that people are connecting with the characters!

So then emailed exactly one friend–Laura Wright. Normally I text her, but I know she’s frantically trying ot finish a book and din’t want to interrupt her flow. But she she emails right back:

Not surprised! Seriously, it was a great book. The 3rd better live up to it.
 No pressure.

What me feeling pressure? LOLOL!! Seriously I  should get some new friends. You know, the kind that don’t PRESSURE me!  Sigh.

I had some other things I wanted to talk about but my headache isn’t cooperating. So I’ll just put up another picture, this is the one Angela from Under the Covers Blogs used as Sloane for the Bad Boys of Romance Blog Hop


So what do you all think?

 

Weekend Roundup

Conversations overheard in our house this weekend:

Conversation 1

Wizard sits at the computer and complains. “I can’t see the keys on the keyboard.”

Me. “What do you need to see them for?”

“To type.”

“Really? People look at the keyboard when they are typing?”

He narrows his eyes on me. “This keyboard is only a few months old. You typed off the letters in record type.”

“You’re keeping track? Maybe you should spend that time learning to type without looking instead.” I might have been taunting him just a little bit.

“Don’t you have a book to write? How’s that first chapter going?”

I stomped off to pout because I wasn’t having fun anymore.

Conversation #2

I bounce into the family room to interrupt some dumbass thing Wizard was watching on TV. “Sloane is one of the Bad Boys of romance on a blog.”

“Right. Super happy to hear it. Can you move?”

I roll my eyes and drop onto the couch, moving out of his line of vision. “Thing is the blogger used the one line I buried late in the book. It’s kind of dirty.” I paused. “Really dirty.”

Wizard’s head snapped around, the TV forgotten. “What line?”

I swear I feel myself start to blush. “I’m not telling you.” Which is odd because I can tell him anything. Anything but that.

His eyes gleam with interest. “Oh you’re telling me.”

“Am not.” I am NOT saying that line. I’m not!

“You totally are.  If you don’t, I’m not putting gas in your car. You’ll have to do it yourself.”

Damn it. I told him because he’s a total cheater.

But I had the last laugh on Wizard, I went and out bought a dog!

What do you think of my new dog?

So how was your weekend?

 

Happy Friday!

I don’t know what my weekend plans are at this moment.  I’m a little tangled up in my head right now and not making progress on the book.  But I need to get over it and get started.  Also I need to tame a sinus headache. So lets not talk about me–let’s talk about YOU. Tell me what you’re reading and what your weekend plans are!

Oh and I’m planning to start reading BEAUTY FROM SURRENDER by Georgia Cates. I had planned to start it days ago but then a friend asked me to read her book (pre-published) and I did–loved it! I’ll tell you guys about it when it comes out.

Back to you all! What are you reading?

And just an FYI –these are the last stops for the POSSESSION Blog Tour:

6/07- Night Owl Reviews ( guest post )

06/07 = Hesperia Loves Books (series spotlight & reviews)

6/08 – Scorching Book Reviews (interview)

6/09 – Reading Between The Wines (guest post)

Wednesday Worthy

Why is starting a new book so hard? Never mind, this is the same merry-go-round of nuttiness I always to through. We all know I ‘m only pretending I can write.

And in that vein, yesterday morning Carla sent me a kick ass review from Romance Junkies. I’m reading it and getting choked up (I don’t think it’s posted yet–it takes a while) then I emailed Carla back:

“What an awesome review! I’m stunned!! And you’re laughing at me for all my stress and worry, aren’t you?” Even though Carla’s on the east coast, I swear I heard her laughing at me all the way on the west coast. I mean she had to deal with my absolute certainty that POSSESSION was horrible. So much so that I didn’t want to send it out for reviews. This is the crap Carla has to deal with from me.

In about five seconds I got this response: “LOL!  I told you that you were worrying for nothing!”

Then she went onto to say nice things. But come on, can’t you just read the “I should get paid a lot more for dealing with your  brand of pure CRAZY”  in there???  But in my defense, she hadn’t read the book so how would she know? No one read the book except my editor. I hid it from everyone was else because I was terrified it sucked.

Carla really is awesomely patient with my, umm, slight tendency to worry She deserves to laugh at me every chance she gets.

And moving on, Angela at Under the Covers blog messaged me asking who I think should play Sloane in a movie. So we talked about it and she found the perfect picture. But I’m not going show that picture as I think she’s using it for something she’s doing (even though I want to so bad I’m dying over here!), so I’ll show you guys some other pics of who we choose: Joe Manganiello

So what do you guys think, is he worthy?

 

Weekend Roundup

I took the weekend off from actively writing which, but I must get back to it today after the gym. But I enjoyed some time off! I did some shopping, including buying 2 bathing suits and a pair of board shorts.  Now let’s talk about the concept of board shorts. They are supposed to cover the flaws. Okay, not for the kids, but you know, for ME. The problem with that?

They are FREAKING TINY!

So I tried them on and told Wizard, “I better look for longer ones.”

“No those are perfect.  Keep them. ”

“But–”

“I don’t lie to  you, do I?”

“No, and I appreciate it.” I  kept the board shorts. What I didn’t say was that while Wizard doesn’t lie, he’s very forgiving of my flaws.  And I’m grateful for that, so I shut up and decided to be happy.

I spent some time out back which was nice!  And I worked on doing invitations for the graduation pool party for Middle Son and his cousin who have both earning their B.As.. Due to everyone’s crazy schedules the party won’t be until the end of June but I’m so looking forward to it. We’re very proud of both kids! Plus my sister-in-law is so easy to work with, so this party is a cakewalk.  I’m debating if I should send Bailey Dog his own invitation

Not for the promotional part of this blog

Here is the POSSESSION Blog Tour for Monday and Tuesday. Stop by and enter the contest for the $50.00 gift card!

6/03- Cocktails and Books (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/03 - Books-n-Kisses (interview)

6/04- Flirting with Romance (Interview)

6/04- Books, Books and More Books (series spotlight & reviews)

Okay now tell me how your weekend went!

Happy Friday!

I’m writing this Thursday night. BLB (my son) came over, great to see him. We’re seeing more of him right now as his college semester ended but next week he starts summer classes.  Anyway I was watching BLB out back playing with Bailey, and yeah, BLB has a slight limp but he’s come so far in a year and a half (since the accident that severely injured his leg).  It’s quite amazing if I look at the whole picture. BLB lost the career he was working so hard for, but he has thrown himself 100% in a new career path. He’s doing really well in school and has about three semesters left ( he lost a full semester and a half with his leg). That’s all the good news.

The bad news is BLB took Bailey with him when he left. Wizard and I both miss Bailey But he was happy as can be driving off with BLB, who will deliver him to middle son whenever the two of them work it out.

Some pics: Here I tried to sneak up on Bailey from the kitchen as he was laying out on the patio:

 

Obviously, Bailey caught me

Here’s Bailey “helping” me cook:

See those eyes? That’s what he does when I’m working. He puts his front legs on my lap and looks at me with those big eyes so I stop working and play with him. It’s very effective!

Here’s Bailey playing in the front yard:

 

Okay enough of Bailey–it’s not like I love him or miss him or anything!

Here is where I’ll be today and over on the weekend for the POSSESSION blog tour:

5/31- Mimmi’s Musings (series spotlight)

6/01- Underworld Love Addiction (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/01- Riverina Romantics (series spotlight)

6/02- Page Flipperz (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/02- Toot’s Book Reviews (interview)

Stop by and enter for the $50.00 gift card!

Now that I’ve gotten the blogs and interviews all done and sent off, I have a book…or three (Insert Standard Issue Panic here) to write.

What are you all doing this weekend?

 

 

I Took A Chance

I took a chance on Kat and Sloane in The Plus One Chronicles Trilogy.

A HUGE chance that involved months and months of hard work. But I believed in these two characters almost as much as I believe in me and Wizard.

Kat, so broken and afraid, yet longing to be whole and strong. In spite of the attack she endured, she refuses to be bitter or hard. Instead, she’s my beautiful survivor with a victorious heart.  I love her with all my writer’s passion.  She grows from a pretty timid mouse to a capable woman over the trilogy…

But can she save Sloane from his obsession?

And then there’s Sloane.  Ex UFC fighter and self-made billionaire. A true alpha man, strong and powerful, yet not a jerk. He sees Kat and he’s can’t walk away. But Sloane has a dark, agenda and a tortured soul that is visible to only a very select few. Sloane’s emotional scars run as deep as Kat’s physical ones (on her leg).  What captured my writer’s passion about him is the way he sees Kat, treats her and eventually, loves her. The mark of any man is how he treats those more vulnerable than him.  He treats Kat with respect and attraction that grows into something more powerful than either of them imagined.

Powerful enough to kill for her.

Sloane  hold her tight…

 

Even knowing he’ll have let her go…

I took a chance. I knew it was unlikely a publisher would take the chance on these two unless I watered them down. But I couldn’t do that. So I decided to go Indie (self publishing) the series of books. Writing them in a trilogy as it’d be too big for one book.   The I wrote and rewrote and laid awake nights worrying.

As POSSESSION, book 2 in Kat and Sloane’s story released, the feedback has been truly amazing and touching. Readers are connecting with Kat and Sloane and that means everything to me.  These two came to me in a very tough time when I was exhausted and so worried about BLB’s (my son who suffered an injury nearly as severe as Kat’s in the books)  recovery and future.

Sloane whispered that I should take a chance and tell their story. Just go for it.

Kat asked me, “Hasn’t BLB’s freak accident taught you anything? Embrace today and live because no one knows what will happen tomorrow.”

So despite the bills, the brutal writing schedule, the doubters badgering me, I dove into their story. And you all on this blog were right there with me for which I’m very grateful.  But now I’m so happy I did. I still have Kat and Sloane’s last book, Obsession, to write. The second half of this year will be even more stressful. But I’m excited to finish their story and wouldn’t change a thing.

Sometimes we just have to go for it.

I took a chance. What about you? Are you taking chances?

Possession Blog Tour!

Enter For A Chance To Win A $50.00 Gift Card!

5/27 – Book Monster Reviews (Guest Post, series spotlight)

5/ 27- Wicked Readings by Tawania (series spotlight)

5/28- United by Books (series spotlight)

5/29- Romance Junkies (interview & review bk 2)

5/29- Buffy’s Ramblings (series spotlight & review bk 1)

5/30- Salacious Reads (series spotlight & reviews)

5/30- The Reading Cafe (guest post, series spotlight & review bk 2)

5/31- Mimmi’s Musings (series spotlight)

6/01- Underworld Love Addiction (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/01- Riverina Romantics (series spotlight)

6/02- Page Flipperz (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/02- Toot’s Book Reviews (interview)

6/03- Cocktails and Books (series spotlight & review bk 2)

6/03 - Books-n-Kisses (interview)

6/04- Flirting with Romance (Interview)

6/04- Books, Books and More Books (series spotlight & reviews)

6/05- Book Lovin’ Mamas (guest post and review bk 2)

6/05- Under the Covers (guest post & reviews)

6/06- Vampires, Werewolves & Fairies Oh My! (Interview and reviews)

6/06- Offbeat Vagabond (series spotlight & review bk 1)

6/07- Night Owl Reviews ( guest post )

 

Happy Memorial Day

Today we should all (in the states) take a moment to remember those who have  served to keep us safe. And also think about those who have paid the ultimate price, injury and death, to keep us free.

Now for my promise to get a picture of Bailey. I tried!  I have pictures, but they aren’t good ones. All my outside shots, he turned away or looks odd.  However, I’ll keep trying. I was only supposed to have Bailey for about four days, but now that’s turned into a week. Middle Son will be lucky to get him back! Anyway, here is Bailey waiting for me to finish writing this blog. He closed his eyes when I tried to get a pic

Speaking of Bailey, last night I was in the kitchen making tacos, and I hear Wizard, ROARING. Not yelling, but roaring, like RAWR. He and Bailey were playing tug of war.  I cracked up. When Bailey first came into our lives, Wizard didn’t want to touch Bailey’s toys, now they are buddies.

In other news, POSSESSION has release on Kindle, Nook and Smashwords. It’s up for pre-order on Kobo and will deliver tomorrow the 28th.  iTunes/iBooks should go live any day now. I’m very excited about the early reviews, especially after the weeks of utter agony as I finished the book.  So THANK YOU to the readers! I love, love LOVE Kat and Sloane  but these aren’t easy stories to write.  But I love doing it, and the reader response makes every anxious gut-churning moment worth it!  I do want to remind everyone that this is a serialized trilogy, and readers should start with The Proposition 

Lastly, I’m starting the Possession Blog Tour today.

I’ll be at (I’m pretty sure–it’s a holiday so things could go wrong):

5/27 – Book Monster Reviews (Guest Post, series spotlight)

5/ 27- Wicked Readings by Tawania (series spotlight)

So how was your weekend?

Happy Friday!

I complete forgot to set up a blog yesterday! I spent last night working on the “publishing” end of Possession, getting it set up on the sites, etc. I still more to do today. Plus BLB is coming by and I’m meeting my sister in law for lunch to plan a graduation party.

Bailey’s coming Saturday! I can’t wait to play with him.  I’ll have more to post on Monday! Right now I’m heading out to the gym

So what’s everyone else’s plans for the long weekend? Are you reading any books books? I just finished ROCK WITH ME by Kristen Proby. I liked it a lot, although that last third seemed to slow down.