Elyse Salpeter's Blog, page 18

THE HUNT FOR XANADU is now live – come check it out!

Hi Everyone! My Contemporary Fantasy Thriller, THE HUNT FOR XANADU has launched. It’s about “a girl, the Buddhist devil and a mystical world…. all tied together in ways unimaginable…” I made a little video for you to check it out!

Here’s a recap of the novel:

Twenty-two year old Kelsey Porter has dedicated her life to avenging the death of her parents, murdered in their quest to find the mystical land of Xanadu. Before she can locate the murderers, she has to discover their motives for the brutal crime and finds herself at the epicenter of a Buddhist mystery as old as time. With the help of her companion, Detective Desmond Gisborne, she hunts the killers across the globe and discovers a darkness in her spiritual past that tests the very limits of her soul. Soon she realizes that it is not she who is doing the hunting, but the one being hunted. Kelsey must find a way to survive, while ancient demons attempt to destroy her.

To purchase the novel on Amazon please use this link. http://amzn.to/1esu69u

Book Trailer for THE HUNT FOR XANADU … launching Dec 20th!

We are nearing the December 20th launch for THE HUNT FOR XANADU. So excited to present my book trailer, made for me by the very talented Laura LaRoche from LLPix Photography/BZ Hercules.

“A girl, the Buddhist devil and a mystical world, tying them all together in ways unimaginable…”

Want to chat about THE HUNT FOR XANADU on Twitter? Include this hashtag in your tweet and I’ll respond: #huntforxanadu

You can also reach me on twitter at @elysesalpeter

Lastly, feel free to come on over to my newly revamped web page at http://www.elysesalpeter.com (still a work in progress but I’m learning) and follow me on FB at http://www.facebook.com/elysesalpeterauthor for updates.

Love to hear what you think of the trailer… exciting? Spooky? First impressions? Thanks so much!

Book Launch for THE HUNT FOR XANADU Coming December 20th!

The Hunt for Xanadu

This is it! I’m so excited to announce that my adult contemporary fantasy thriller, THE HUNT FOR XANADU, is ready for release on December 20th. It will be available in print and ebook versions. This is the first book in the Kelsey Porter series. Book #2 is halfway done and I’ve a working outline already for book #3.

A girl, the Buddhist devil and a mystical world, tying them all together in ways unimaginable…

Twenty-two year old Kelsey Porter has dedicated her life to avenging the death of her parents, murdered in their quest to find the mystical land of Xanadu. Before she can locate the murderers, she has to discover their motives for the brutal crime and finds herself at the epicenter of a Buddhist mystery as old as time. With the help of her companion, Detective Desmond Gisborne, she hunts the killers across the globe and discovers a darkness in her spiritual past that tests the very limits of her soul. Soon she realizes that it is not she who is doing the hunting, but the one being hunted. Kelsey must find a way to survive, while ancient demons attempt to destroy her.

This morning I woke up to this awesome email from one of XANADU’s ARC readers: “About 3/4 of the way done… please continue writing books like this…” (SQUEE!)

If you’d like to learn more about me and my other works, Clive Eaton conducts amazing author interviews. Here is one he just did for me. Writers, please inquire about your own! http://www.cliveeaton.com/elysesalpeter.html

What I’m Thankful For….

This Thanksgiving someone tried to get folks to go around the table and say what they were thankful for. It fell rather flat. Someone said “my good looks,” another person said, “my health,” and then it simply morphed into an eating frenzy that left everyone in a deliciously happy food coma.

I have been thinking about this. If you say you’re thankful for personal things, some think you’re being selfish, but if you say you’re thankful for the typical things, you’re copping out. So I decided to say what I’m thankful for, by category, because I really am thankful for so many things. Life is tough, but when you break it down, it’s a wonderful thing.

#1) “I’m thankful I’m 46.” So many times I’ve been frustrated about aging. But then I read a quote that changed my thinking. It said, “Don’t fret about aging… it’s a gift denied to many.” How true. I’m alive and healthy and on this earth, so I am thankful I’ve been given the gift of time.

#2) “I’m thankful my family is healthy.” It’s true. Is life hard at times? Sure. But I’m thankful my son, who has Asperger’s, is as high functioning as he is. I’m thankful he tells me he loves me and hugs me and is back in the middle school with his twin sister. I’m thankful my daughter is a great athlete. She loves it and her passion is something that is wonderful to see. I’m thankful my husband is healthy and takes care of himself so he can be there for all of us.

#3) I’m thankful I got the guts to put my fiction novels out in market. So many times I believe we stunt our spiritual, emotional and professional growth because we’re scared of how we’ll be perceived by others. I’m thankful for the maturity I’ve finally developed that has allowed me to overlook my fears (or at least ignore them for the moment) to try this dream.

#4, #5, #6 and #7) I’m thankful for budding flowers in the spring, for Facebook, that my ferret is litterbox trained, and I’m thankful for lactaid pills so I can eat all the yummy foods out there.

So, when times are tough, make a list about what you’re thankful for. I think you’ll be surprised that there are so many things you can put down that you didn’t realize. And, hopefully, they’ll make you happy and fulfill you through tough times.

How about you? Give me one thing you’re thankful for – would love to hear it.

Can You Make Up Words in Your Novel? Yes… and No.

I’m deep in the edits of THE HUNT FOR XANADU. My action adventure thriller about a girl on a mission to avenge her parent’s murder… and I’m finding that I’ve taken quite a bit of literary license with the English language that my editor is “calling me out on.”

What do I mean? Well, one of my characters has a cute affectation. His mouth quirks up at the corner so I made a comment that “his mouth is quirking.” In the edits my editor, Denise Vitola, replied “that’s not a word, delete.” I asked “why?” Her response? “Quirk–a person is quirky or he has quirks. Quirking is not a word and quirk doesn’t have anything to do with expressions unless you say, “He had a quirky expression.” Although, that doesn’t tell the reader anything so I wouldn’t use it.” (twerking is also not a word, by the way! )

Another time I had my character “scootching” up next to a boy. To “scootch” is a word I’ve used nearly forever in my family – it means to “sidle up next to someone.” Again, I was told: “scootching is not a word, delete.” Apparently “connectiveness” is not a word either (what am I thinking and where did I learn to speak?)

Now, this doesn’t mean you can’t make up words in your stories. In fantasy, every other description seems to be a fantastical word. In my dark fantasy series I use the word “Semptor” for Wizards, “Manogs” for these wild dog-like beasts, etc… you get the idea. In XANADU I also have fantastical animals and had named all of them. My editor balked at this. “Why do you need a name for every single animal and insect? Just describe it.” I couldn’t understand why naming this one cute little creature a Timblit was a problem… but it actually was. I’m asking my readers to remember all these crazy names that might only be mentioned one time in the book. My editor said, “Describe the “cute little ferret-like creature with eight legs” rather than just give it a fantasy name.” She’s right – the reader will remember this description a lot better than a throw-a-way name.

So back to making up words. As writers, we need to be buttoned up. We need to use correct English. It’s one thing to talk about a vicuña coat (like my favorite authors have done) and not know what this is and need to look it up and discover “vicuña is a relative of a llama.” It’s another to make up words that are slang in the first place and will confuse our readers if they don’t understand what we’re trying to say. It’s all about credibility.

My two cents for the day.

Why You Should Publish a Short Story In-Between Novels

The winning cover on FB

I was in a quandary. Book #1 in my fantasy series came out last year. Book #2 came out earlier this month and I’m deep in the edits for an adult thriller that I’m hopefully going to launch in January or February. But what do I do in the meantime?

Besides social media and promoting the heck out of the books, I was advised to publish a short story to Amazon. The results would do many things. It would boost the amount of titles I have on Amazon and boost my search statistics. In addition, I could use the short stories to promote the other books by including excerpts and links in the back of the file.

I hadn’t thought of that idea and jumped at the chance to try it out. I had a YA science fiction tale, THE SUN AND THE STAR, that had been published in an anthology that is now out of print and rights had been returned to me. So, that book had already been professionally edited. I simply updated the dates and changed some character names.Then I was going to pay for a professional cover, but I decided to try my hand at making one myself on Amazon’s Cover Creator. I made two and then appealed to Facebook by doing a poll, asking my followers which one they liked better. (thus increasing my activity on FB analytics, as well as engaging my readers). Then, rather than paying someone to format the short story for me, I learned to do it myself, uploaded it myself and priced it at $0.99. Lastly, since this is a YA tale about young love, I included an excerpt from THE WORLD OF KAROV, specifically highlighting a scene about two teenagers in love–and then included the link to buy the book.

This endeavor cost me nothing but time and now I have a great little short story up on Amazon with a very cool cover. Only advice? Make the short story meaty. I’ve heard readers feel short-changed if you give them a flash fiction piece and make them pay for it. I’d recommend a story over 4K at the least. (just my two cents) If you’d like to grab your copy to see how it came out, please see below:

THE SUN AND THE STAR:

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/172kooL

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1bDY9Ff

I’d like to thank Dana Beth Weinberg for the great idea! She’s a social scientist whose newest project is exploring the experiences and careers of writers during this incredible digital revolution. She can be reached at http://www.danabethweinberg.com (don’t think I won’t be hitting her up for more awesome ideas! )

Putting Things Into Perspective…

Outside the skating rink at Bryant Park

I was going to do a writing post this week about how important it is to be in the right place at the right time. Imagine if you wrote a great book, sent it to an agent who just happened to be looking for that genre and wanted something fresh and new. Imagine if he picked it up, read it and got excited, then had lunch with an editor at a big house that day who happened to be looking for a new voice… and it morphed from there.

Imagine you tweet and post to Facebook and all your thousands of followers actually see it, not the small amount that ekes through. I imagine all sorts of things about my writing and then something happens that takes all this and reduces it to mere folly. Why? Because real life can crash through this dream-world and put all of it into perspective.

Fountain at Bryant Park

Last night I was in NYC with my husband and friends. We saw a show, had dinner and then walked around Bryant Park. It’s this beautiful park right behind the NYC Library. In the summer people lay out on the green lawn, musicians play and it’s just so nice. In the winter they set up vendor stalls and a huge skating rink. I sat out with my friends near the rink and the fountain and we had hot chocolate and hot apple cider. (Trivia: That is the same fountain in the opening credits of the TV Show Friends where they’re playing on a couch in the water)

At 10:30pm we left the park to get our car and then at 11:00pm someone opened fire on the skating rink. People got hurt. WHAT? It had been the most idyllic, lovely evening. Cops were everywhere. You felt safe. For us: Right place at the right time.

Then, we got our car and were trying to leave the lot when the crowds from the Broadway Shows converged to get their cars, too. It became absolute pandemonium in this very tight garage – there were hundreds of people, angry people, and no one could get out. But we already had our car and were in the queue to leave (if the people would just move, which most selfishly didn’t.) If we can’t get our cars out of the lot, there’s no room to bring their cars UP from the lower garage. Reason is lost on mob mentality. Still, we were ahead of the game. Had we been on that line trying to get our vehicle, we would have been waiting hours. Again: Right place at the right time.

We were very lucky last night. Fortunate we didn’t get involved in the sadness in Bryant Park, fortunate we didn’t get into the numerous fights I’m sure happened in that garage. Fortunate that while it still took us an additional nearly forty minutes to cross town (2 miles) to get on the bridge, we got home safely.

I need to remember things like this if I ever get frustrated in other areas of my life. I have to remember that life is fragile and while I want my writing career to explode, I’m a very lucky person. I’m healthy, my family is healthy, and I have another day to look forward to. Other people are not given that gift, simply because they are not on this earth any longer.

My perspective for the day.

THE RUBY AMULET is now Available on Amazon

I know it’s not Monday, but I have great news! I was able to launch THE RUBY AMULET nearly three weeks early. Maybe this should be a blog post about patience, since I had scheduled the release for November 25th, but the edits were done, the cover was completed, the upload went seamlessly, so… why wait? So without further ado, if you’ve had the chance to read THE WORLD OF KAROV, Book #1 in the series, please feel free to check out THE RUBY AMULET, Book #2 in the Children of Demilee series.

Now, I do quite a recap in Book #2 for folks who haven’t read Book #1, so you shouldn’t get lost, but, I’m a purist. I’m one who always believes in reading a series in the order presented, but either way, you should be fine.

Links to THE RUBY AMULET

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/16H9rZl

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1hmlOB4

The World of Karov

Links to THE WORLD OF KAROV (Book #1 is living at $0.99 on Amazon)

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1aa2VuC

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1hPLZhb

And if anyone has time, a review would be most appreciated. Thank you so much for all your support and Happy Reading!

Book Trailer for THE RUBY AMULET, coming November 25th!

Later this month I’m releasing THE RUBY AMULET, Book #2 in my Dark Fantasy Series. I had a lot of great reviews for THE WORLD OF KAROV, Book #1 in the series, and I’m really excited to get the second book in market.

If you’d like to take a peek at what the novel is about, here’s the book trailer. It was created by the very talented Laura Wright LaRoche and I’d recommend her to anyone. She’s incredibly reasonable, friendly, fast and delightful to work with. I met her through BZhercules.com, who is having a special right now on book trailers for only $35.99. (yes, that’s what I said – I wasn’t kidding when I said reasonable). Here’s the link to check out their special: http://www.bzhercules.com/catalog/item/8475156/9382505.htm

So without further ado, please see the amazing job they did for me for THE RUBY AMULET:

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone… and not just by writing in a different genre….

Lamb testicle and deep fried beef genitalia

I attended a Gastronaut dinner the other night. What is a Gastronaut you might ask? Well, it’s a person that likes to try unique foods that normally you wouldn’t eat on a day to day basis.

I would like nothing more than to travel the continents and eat street food. I firmly believe that a people’s culture is learned and experienced through their food. What is weird and uncomfortable to us Americans is very well the norm in other parts of the world. Cow’s feet, Goat’s and Lamb’s heads, brains, sweetbreads, land snails, tripe, fried genitals (the pictures in this post are from that particular dinner where innards and genitalia were the focus of the meal) – these are all things that are eaten regularly in other cultures. When people are poor, it’s not like you have a great Kobi steak lying around or a stack of gluten-free pancakes – you eat what you have – if it’s a lamb, you eat the entire thing. And I’m talking about the ENTIRE thing.

The other night the dinner was at a fantastic greek restaurant called Loukoumi in Astoria and besides great salads, and dips and octopus/calamari and other foods, they made us roasted baby lamb’s head. I posted a photo of it on Facebook to shock everyone, and I got the response I was expecting. I actually didn’t post it on this page because it was so disturbing to some folks they actually hid the photo. Out of respect for my readers who’d like to “keep their lunches intact” I decided to show some other photos instead. But we must remember, to 82 million Greeks, this is not a crazy thing to eat – it’s peasant food. Since I am not going to be able to go to Greece or Nigeria or other places soon, these special dinners are the closest thing to me finding authenticity in a people and to learn about them. I just don’t want to go through life scared and afraid just because my American senses have programmed me to be leery of certain things. That’s not to say I loved this dish. The tongue had a weird texture, the eyeball was chewy, and the entire head was fatty, but I tried it. And, the Greek kid across from me said his mother makes it every single lent.

Cold Platter, Beef Tendon, Chicken Heart, Beef Tripe, Tofu Skin, Quick Pickle, Headcheese

I want to open myself to different things and new experiences and I believe everything I do will help me grow and become a better writer. If I can’t physically travel to exotic locales, why not try it right here in the United States where there is a melting pot of amazing restaurants and cultures?

So I implore everyone – be adventurous, get out of your comfort zone. I’m not saying go jump out of a plane (but, by all means do if you really want to), but go find an authentic new restaurant nearby. Go eat octopus, try a chicken foot, eat a grasshopper, go eat Peruvian food, Greek food, Turkish Food – go LEARN something new. I guarantee you – everything you do and try will make you a stronger person and hopefully our experiences will make us stronger writers.

What do YOU do to get out of your comfort zone? I’d love to hear.