Ella James's Blog, page 8
September 13, 2012
Enthralled with Fall
It might be a Southern thing, but when the mornings grow cooler and the leaves start to fall, I get a blast of creative energy. Even last year, when I had a newborn with health problems and was basically a walking zombie, I managed to get Stained uploaded in time to make a September 14 debut on Amazon. (Oh yeah... That's tomorrow, baby. One year Stained-o-versary and I am so excited!)
Down here in my neck of the woods (in Alabama), we got our first cool morning four or five days ago, and since then my fingertips have been glued to the keyboard. Now that editubby has recovered from his bug and has been editing Exalted, I had a few scenes to tweak, and I've been full steam ahead on the second Here book, which will either be called Trapped or Ensnared unless a title fairy whispers something more creative into my ear.
After burning the midnight oil a few nights in a row, I took a ten minute cat nap yesterday and awoke with a killer new idea for the adult romance release currently titled Over the Moon. It's going to be the same book, but tweaked in ways that I think strengthen the story line immensely. Ever since then, I've been grinning. I really think you guys are going to love that book. It's sweet and exciting, and it kicks off a series I've been working on since 2007. The characters in that series have had my heart for years, and I'm willing to be they'll steal yours, too. I'm toying around with new titles for Over the Moon, including the current frontrunner, All That Sky. Hopefully I'll find the willpower to sit down and blurb it soon, so you can get a taste of what you're in for.
The OTM/ATS surge has me wondering about my release schedule. I have a title called Hot Shot scheduled for release in December, and I've considered switching that with ATS... but ultimately I don't think I will. I'd like a little more time to make ATS the best it can be.
October and November releases, in case you weren't aware, are Here 2 and Here 3.
At the start of 2013, I'll be bringing you the amazing zombie series I'm co-authoring, as well as ATS, a YA contemporary called January's Wilderness, and my futuristic YA romance, Azalea & the Makers of Zen (as well as its sequel).
I'm so excited!
Have I mentioned Stained is FREE and rockin' the downloads? Go grab your copy, if you haven't already!
Happy fall, y'all!
P.S. - Come back tomorrow for a Stained-o-versary giveaway!
Down here in my neck of the woods (in Alabama), we got our first cool morning four or five days ago, and since then my fingertips have been glued to the keyboard. Now that editubby has recovered from his bug and has been editing Exalted, I had a few scenes to tweak, and I've been full steam ahead on the second Here book, which will either be called Trapped or Ensnared unless a title fairy whispers something more creative into my ear.
After burning the midnight oil a few nights in a row, I took a ten minute cat nap yesterday and awoke with a killer new idea for the adult romance release currently titled Over the Moon. It's going to be the same book, but tweaked in ways that I think strengthen the story line immensely. Ever since then, I've been grinning. I really think you guys are going to love that book. It's sweet and exciting, and it kicks off a series I've been working on since 2007. The characters in that series have had my heart for years, and I'm willing to be they'll steal yours, too. I'm toying around with new titles for Over the Moon, including the current frontrunner, All That Sky. Hopefully I'll find the willpower to sit down and blurb it soon, so you can get a taste of what you're in for.
The OTM/ATS surge has me wondering about my release schedule. I have a title called Hot Shot scheduled for release in December, and I've considered switching that with ATS... but ultimately I don't think I will. I'd like a little more time to make ATS the best it can be.
October and November releases, in case you weren't aware, are Here 2 and Here 3.
At the start of 2013, I'll be bringing you the amazing zombie series I'm co-authoring, as well as ATS, a YA contemporary called January's Wilderness, and my futuristic YA romance, Azalea & the Makers of Zen (as well as its sequel).
I'm so excited!
Have I mentioned Stained is FREE and rockin' the downloads? Go grab your copy, if you haven't already!
Happy fall, y'all!
P.S. - Come back tomorrow for a Stained-o-versary giveaway!
September 11, 2012
Giveaways
I'm having so much fun with Stained's free status. :) It's #88 free overall at Amazon, which means it's in the Top 100 Free. Woohoo!
Yesterday I gave away two bookmarks and a signed copy of Stained to three winners who'd shared or RT'd about Stained being free.
Today I'm giving away a signed print copy of Stained and a beautiful signed HERE poster. All you have to do is share or tweet that Stained is free! Here's a tiny url for ya: http://tinyurl.com/bqm853e
Happy sharing! And thanks to everyone who's read my books!
Yesterday I gave away two bookmarks and a signed copy of Stained to three winners who'd shared or RT'd about Stained being free.
Today I'm giving away a signed print copy of Stained and a beautiful signed HERE poster. All you have to do is share or tweet that Stained is free! Here's a tiny url for ya: http://tinyurl.com/bqm853e
Happy sharing! And thanks to everyone who's read my books!
September 10, 2012
Big Surprise
I have a surprise for you...
Stained is now FREE on Amazon!
I'm not sure how long it will be free, so if you haven't already grabbed a copy, I suggest you do so now. It's also free at Smashwords, the Apple iBookstore, Kobo.com, and will soon be free at BN.com. I'm not sure how long BN.com will take to post the book, but it should be soon.
Amazon price-matches free books selectively, and although I tried hard to figure out the whys and hows of this, my sense is that Amazon keeps it mysterious so they don't have to be accountable to anyone. And that's fair I guess. Annoying, but fair.
I'm just so excited to announce that the free book gods have chosen Stained to be free!
So for an undetermined time period, but hopefully permanently, you can try the first book in the Stained Series at absolutely no cost. As a reader, free books are one of my very favorite things, so I'm thrilled Amazon has decided to offer this to you. I hope you guys enjoy it!
Stained is now FREE on Amazon!
I'm not sure how long it will be free, so if you haven't already grabbed a copy, I suggest you do so now. It's also free at Smashwords, the Apple iBookstore, Kobo.com, and will soon be free at BN.com. I'm not sure how long BN.com will take to post the book, but it should be soon.
Amazon price-matches free books selectively, and although I tried hard to figure out the whys and hows of this, my sense is that Amazon keeps it mysterious so they don't have to be accountable to anyone. And that's fair I guess. Annoying, but fair.
I'm just so excited to announce that the free book gods have chosen Stained to be free!
So for an undetermined time period, but hopefully permanently, you can try the first book in the Stained Series at absolutely no cost. As a reader, free books are one of my very favorite things, so I'm thrilled Amazon has decided to offer this to you. I hope you guys enjoy it!
Release Dates and Tours
I intended to update the blog every day of the Exalted Tour. See how well that went? ;) Sorry, guys. I stink at updates. Now the tour's over, but I think a lot of you follow me on Facebook and stayed updated that way. For the record, following me on Facebook is a great idea if you want to stay current on giveaways and release dates. I'm on FB and Twitter daily!
A schedule of stops on the Exalted Tour is located here, which can also be accessed by clicking the EVENTS and GIVEAWAYS button at the top of the page. I think a few of the giveaways might still be open, which is why I'm mentioning it. :)
I also have a HERE Trilogy tour coming up, Monday, September 24-Sunday, September 30. Keep checking the EVENTS and GIVEAWAYS button for a schedule. I'll have it posted at least a week in advance of the tour. There will be swag and giveaways every day of that tour, just like the Exalted Tour.
So if the Exalted tour has come and gone, where is Exalted?! This author pulled three all-nighters to get it to her editor in time, and said editor, who also happens to be said author's hubby, went and got sick. Can you believe that? My editubby lost about four and a half days of editing time during a nasty bout with the flu, so we're about five days behind on the release.
I have tentatively changed the Exalted (Stained Series Book Four) release date to Saturday, September 22, but the book may come out sooner. The extra-padded date is just in case editubby relapses or I get sick and editubby has to take care of our 1-year-old son, or something funky like that.
I'm proud to report neither my son nor I seems to be catching what editubby had - which is a mini miracle. :)
While editubby polishes Exalted, I'm working on two new projects - a new adult contemporary romance called Hot Shot, due out in September, and a YA contemporary romance called January's Wilderness, due out in January. I'm also playing around with the second HERE Trilogy book, which is already mostly written.
The second HERE book, which I cannot seem to name, is due for release in October. I originally thought it would be early October, but editubby and I have the release dates strung together pretty tightly, and since we got bumped back on the Exalted release, HERE 2 may be out closer to late October.
A schedule of stops on the Exalted Tour is located here, which can also be accessed by clicking the EVENTS and GIVEAWAYS button at the top of the page. I think a few of the giveaways might still be open, which is why I'm mentioning it. :)
I also have a HERE Trilogy tour coming up, Monday, September 24-Sunday, September 30. Keep checking the EVENTS and GIVEAWAYS button for a schedule. I'll have it posted at least a week in advance of the tour. There will be swag and giveaways every day of that tour, just like the Exalted Tour.
So if the Exalted tour has come and gone, where is Exalted?! This author pulled three all-nighters to get it to her editor in time, and said editor, who also happens to be said author's hubby, went and got sick. Can you believe that? My editubby lost about four and a half days of editing time during a nasty bout with the flu, so we're about five days behind on the release.
I have tentatively changed the Exalted (Stained Series Book Four) release date to Saturday, September 22, but the book may come out sooner. The extra-padded date is just in case editubby relapses or I get sick and editubby has to take care of our 1-year-old son, or something funky like that.
I'm proud to report neither my son nor I seems to be catching what editubby had - which is a mini miracle. :)
While editubby polishes Exalted, I'm working on two new projects - a new adult contemporary romance called Hot Shot, due out in September, and a YA contemporary romance called January's Wilderness, due out in January. I'm also playing around with the second HERE Trilogy book, which is already mostly written.
The second HERE book, which I cannot seem to name, is due for release in October. I originally thought it would be early October, but editubby and I have the release dates strung together pretty tightly, and since we got bumped back on the Exalted release, HERE 2 may be out closer to late October.
September 8, 2012
Decatur Book Festival and More
Let's do the "more" first. ;) I wanted to let you know that the Stained Series is now available at Kobo.com and Smashwords, and will be available at BN.com and the Apple iBookstore very soon. Actually, Stained is already free at the Apple iBookstore, but Stolen and Chosen are not yet. And for the record, HERE is free at BN.com, although the Stained Series isn't up quite yet. This is just the beginning of what I hope will be lots of expanded distribution for all my books.
In case you wonder which books those are, check out the Upcoming Releases button at the top of the page. I hope to have blurbs about each book posted soon. :)
I also had to tell you what an amazing time I had at the Decatur Book Festival, my first official book festival as an author/seller. It was my second event as an author; the first was the awesome utopYA, which you should plan to attend with me next year.
Anyway... the Decatur Book Festival is in Decatur, Georgia, outside Atlanta, and this year it was the place to be for indie authors. Amy Bartol, Georgia Cates, Heather Self, K.A. Tucker, Shelly Crane, and I shared one huge booth, along with Heather from SupaGurl Books and Gloria from Globug & Hootie Need a Book.
To say that these people are all made of awesome is really an understatement. They're good people - and I don't mean that in a networking, business kind of way. I mean it in a you need to know 'em kind of way. Even if you can only know 'em online at the moment, look 'em up! I mean that. Get to it. ;)
Some of us did a book-signing in downtown Decatur the night before, where I was thrilled to meet JL Bryan, the author of Jenny Pox. I've loved that book for a while now, and it was so neat to meet the author. Very nice guy. You definitely would not know he's one of the first uber-cool Amazon authors, from back before most of us had ever heard of Kindle.
I rode to the signing with Nicole Chase and Sarah M. Ross, who were both so nice, and whose books you also must read. I met some great new people there, and I was excited to see mother/son author duo C.A. (Carol and Adam) Kunz again.
I shared an elevator with Colleen Hoover and met Abbi Glines for the second time. Abbi is an Alabama girl, like me. :) I also met Fischer Amelie, who was one of the sweetest people ever. Michelle Leighton and I shared breathing space for the second time even though we didn't get to talk much; it was still totally cool and turned me into a silly fangirl.
Oh, and to top it off, I got to chat with Heather Hildenbrand, author of the Dirty Blood series and one of my favorite authors out right now. Her books are awesome and so is she.
Because of Baby James, who is really now Tiny Toddler James, I didn't get to go out Saturday night (he was a big, sad, teething mess and needed mommy), but I had so much fun sweating to death with my booth crew, fanning myself with my I am a Georgia Cates Fan, and just being an author.
Being an ebook author is the bee's knees - it REALLY is - and I wouldn't have it any other way, but sometimes you just need a little face time. If it can be with a bunch of your favorite authors, all the better, right?
In case you wonder which books those are, check out the Upcoming Releases button at the top of the page. I hope to have blurbs about each book posted soon. :)
I also had to tell you what an amazing time I had at the Decatur Book Festival, my first official book festival as an author/seller. It was my second event as an author; the first was the awesome utopYA, which you should plan to attend with me next year.
Anyway... the Decatur Book Festival is in Decatur, Georgia, outside Atlanta, and this year it was the place to be for indie authors. Amy Bartol, Georgia Cates, Heather Self, K.A. Tucker, Shelly Crane, and I shared one huge booth, along with Heather from SupaGurl Books and Gloria from Globug & Hootie Need a Book.
To say that these people are all made of awesome is really an understatement. They're good people - and I don't mean that in a networking, business kind of way. I mean it in a you need to know 'em kind of way. Even if you can only know 'em online at the moment, look 'em up! I mean that. Get to it. ;)
Some of us did a book-signing in downtown Decatur the night before, where I was thrilled to meet JL Bryan, the author of Jenny Pox. I've loved that book for a while now, and it was so neat to meet the author. Very nice guy. You definitely would not know he's one of the first uber-cool Amazon authors, from back before most of us had ever heard of Kindle.
I rode to the signing with Nicole Chase and Sarah M. Ross, who were both so nice, and whose books you also must read. I met some great new people there, and I was excited to see mother/son author duo C.A. (Carol and Adam) Kunz again.
I shared an elevator with Colleen Hoover and met Abbi Glines for the second time. Abbi is an Alabama girl, like me. :) I also met Fischer Amelie, who was one of the sweetest people ever. Michelle Leighton and I shared breathing space for the second time even though we didn't get to talk much; it was still totally cool and turned me into a silly fangirl.
Oh, and to top it off, I got to chat with Heather Hildenbrand, author of the Dirty Blood series and one of my favorite authors out right now. Her books are awesome and so is she.
Because of Baby James, who is really now Tiny Toddler James, I didn't get to go out Saturday night (he was a big, sad, teething mess and needed mommy), but I had so much fun sweating to death with my booth crew, fanning myself with my I am a Georgia Cates Fan, and just being an author.
Being an ebook author is the bee's knees - it REALLY is - and I wouldn't have it any other way, but sometimes you just need a little face time. If it can be with a bunch of your favorite authors, all the better, right?
August 27, 2012
Exalted Tour, Day 4 - Win Big Today
It's day four of the Exalted Tour. Today The Cover Contessa reviewed Stained and also is hosting a giveaway of Julia's cereal box watch. In case you need a refresher, Julia was wearing a cereal box watch when she walked over to Dirk and Dwight's house the night Samyaza burned her home. She lost it somewhere along her journey, but I felt that it should make another appearance...on your wrist! (Poor Julia. She's the loser here).
Anyway, I couldn't snag an image of the watch, but it looks a lot like this. C'mon, you know you want it! The giveaway ends 18 whole days from August 27, so you've got plenty of time to show The Cover Contessa some love and enter the cereal box watch giveaway!
The best thing about this Monday is I have a double-booking on my tour! Sassy Book Lovers is also hosting for me today, and there I am giving away a Stained bookmark and a 24-hours-early copy of Exalted. This means that if you win, you'll get Exalted 24 hours before the rest of the world! I think some of you might be interested in this, right? ;)
Anyway, go show both of these blogs some love, and win some swag while you're at it!
Anyway, I couldn't snag an image of the watch, but it looks a lot like this. C'mon, you know you want it! The giveaway ends 18 whole days from August 27, so you've got plenty of time to show The Cover Contessa some love and enter the cereal box watch giveaway!
The best thing about this Monday is I have a double-booking on my tour! Sassy Book Lovers is also hosting for me today, and there I am giving away a Stained bookmark and a 24-hours-early copy of Exalted. This means that if you win, you'll get Exalted 24 hours before the rest of the world! I think some of you might be interested in this, right? ;)
Anyway, go show both of these blogs some love, and win some swag while you're at it!
Exalted Tour, Day 3 - Chosen ebook Giveaway
Day three was over at the lovely Books 4 Tomorrow blog, where I did a Q&A in which I talked about high school, lying, and hanging out with other amazing authors. I am also giving away an ebook copy of Chosen, Stained Book Three. So if you've read Stained and Stolen, but haven't gotten around to reading Chosen yet, run over to Books 4 Tomorrow and enter the giveaway. It ends on Wednesday. :) 
Exalted Tour, Day 2 - Print Book Giveaway
Okay, guys. I've missed a few days, but this is your chance to catch up on all the giveaways. Because I am Type A, every day will have its own post.
Day two, Friday, was a character interview with Julia and Cayne over at Sweet Southern Home, in which they talked about their first impressions of each other. We also did a giveaway of a signed print copy of Stained. Yeah, that's right. First-ever giveaway of a print copy of Stained! :)
As of right now, 8:30 a.m. central time on August 27, the giveaway will be up for two more weeks, so go enter!
Day two, Friday, was a character interview with Julia and Cayne over at Sweet Southern Home, in which they talked about their first impressions of each other. We also did a giveaway of a signed print copy of Stained. Yeah, that's right. First-ever giveaway of a print copy of Stained! :)
As of right now, 8:30 a.m. central time on August 27, the giveaway will be up for two more weeks, so go enter!
August 24, 2012
Exalted Tour, Day 1 - Swag and Teasers
It's day one of the Exalted Tour, and I have some swag for you! But first... I'm the Indie Author of the Month at YA Reads, one of my favorite blogs. I did a Q&A over there on Thursday, in which I mention my favorite fictional character and give some teasers for the second HERE book. So go check that out first!
THEN we'll move on to the official Exalted Tour. My first stop is at the fabulous Young Readers blog, where I'm giving away ebook copies of Stained and Stolen, and where I give a very BIG, very DRAMATIC teaser about Exalted. I also talk about what book I'm digging right now and what I would do if I could rewind time. Pretty exciting, right? ;) Go check it out!
August 19, 2012
Exalted Release Date + swaggy Exalted Tour lineup! :)
I've decided, after much debate, to release Exalted Friday, September 14 - the same day that, one year ago, I uploaded Stained.
It was a hard decision because I think Exalted may be finished sooner than that. I know, I know... If I think that, why not set the release date earlier? Well, besides the enjoyment I get out of releasing the last Stained book on the same day I released the first (really, what are the odds?), I'm trying to avoid the kind of very high stress that usually accompanies a release. By setting the release date later, I'm giving myself some padding in case something comes up. And believe me, something always does. ;) I usually stay up all night at least one night on release weeks - but hopefully not this time. This deadline gives Editubby and me a little breathing room.
I'm still working on Exalted now, trying to get it to the Editubby (editor/hubby). He usually takes about two weeks on it, but we're also going to the Decatur Book Festival during that time, so I think the wiggle room will be a good thing.
I've also shuffled my to-be-released lineup a little, and I've updated the tab at the top of this page so you can see. I have so many upcoming projects to look forward to... :) Hopefully soon I'll get a chance to tell you more about them.
Between now and then, check out my Events & Giveaways tab and check out the really rad swag I'm giving away in the upcoming Exalted Tour. (Why yes, I did say rad.) ;) It's at least $100 of swag... all for you!
xx
It was a hard decision because I think Exalted may be finished sooner than that. I know, I know... If I think that, why not set the release date earlier? Well, besides the enjoyment I get out of releasing the last Stained book on the same day I released the first (really, what are the odds?), I'm trying to avoid the kind of very high stress that usually accompanies a release. By setting the release date later, I'm giving myself some padding in case something comes up. And believe me, something always does. ;) I usually stay up all night at least one night on release weeks - but hopefully not this time. This deadline gives Editubby and me a little breathing room.
I'm still working on Exalted now, trying to get it to the Editubby (editor/hubby). He usually takes about two weeks on it, but we're also going to the Decatur Book Festival during that time, so I think the wiggle room will be a good thing.
I've also shuffled my to-be-released lineup a little, and I've updated the tab at the top of this page so you can see. I have so many upcoming projects to look forward to... :) Hopefully soon I'll get a chance to tell you more about them.
Between now and then, check out my Events & Giveaways tab and check out the really rad swag I'm giving away in the upcoming Exalted Tour. (Why yes, I did say rad.) ;) It's at least $100 of swag... all for you!
xx
