Brenda Pandos's Blog, page 23

Stylish Blogger Award

J. Rose Allister, romance author, nominated me with a very cool award and I'm finally getting around to posting the post.

Here are the rules for this award:

1) Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award.
http://jroseallister.blogspot.com/

2) Share 7 things about yourself.

3) Award recently discovered great bloggers, up to 15.

4) Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!

SEVEN THINGS ABOUT ME:

1. I never aspired to be a writer. Only after my oldest's Autism Spectrum disorder diagnosis did I search for something to do to preoccupy my mind during the following depressing.

2. I sniff my kids' neck and heads everyday, several times a day.

3. I always wanted to be a mermaid.

4. I am a geek and like geeky things.

5. Sometimes my birthday lands on Thanksgiving which is my favorite holiday.

6. I won't swim alone in a pool. I'm terrified of Jaws and have an overactive imagination.

7. I met my husband on a cruise. We've been married 9 years. He's my soul-mate.

I stalk these blogs:

http://extremereaderbookreviews.blogspot.com/ - because Jennifer's site is so awesome and informative. She's a wonderful promoter and blogger!


http://lafemmereaders.blogspot.com/ - because Eleni has a million followers and writes eloquently! She's also an excellent tour organizer, friend and great person to lean on, not to mention a tremendous supporter of my work.

http://www.totalbookaholic.com/ - because Jessica has always been so sweet and wonderful to me and her new site is gorgeous!!!


http://www.onceuponatwilight.com/ - because Yara's site is gorgeous too and super informative! Her support and promotion is priceless!


http://www.lisasanchezromanceauthor.com/- because Lisa's site is just shmexy! And so are her books! Go buy them NOW!

Thanks girls!

Hugs, Brenda

A little help & fan girl moments

Rhonda, my dear friend and most enthusiastic fan surprised me AGAIN! Look at the shirts she had made from the team buttons. I'm absolutely stunned and can't wait to wear mine!

The artist did an amazing job. I didn't know people could airbrush like this.


These types of moments make being an author so much fun!

On another note, I need a little help. I've had over 50 written reviews on GoodReads, but only 15 on Amazon. Reviews help with my ranking so others can find my books when searching. BOOKBLOGGERS: If you could take a moment to put your review on B&N and Amazon, I'd be ETERNALLY grateful! It is because of YOU that I've succeeded thus far and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart!

Okay, back to writing... :)

Hugs, Brenda

I heart Kindle

[image error] Hello! Is it already *gasp* February? Here's where I was just a few short days ago for my brothers wedding... sigh. So lovely.

But, I am home now, writing feverishly (and buried in taxes)! I want your fulfillment in Nicholas and Julia and *cough* others story's with the third installment, The Onyx Talisman come late 2011.

Few announcements:
My ebooks have DROPPED massively in price!
The Emerald Talisman is now $.99 and The Sapphire Talisman is $3.99 for Nook/Kindle.
Also, it's going to be available on iBooks shortly.

Also, to celebrate, I'm doing a goodreads giveaway!  

Retweeters with #sapphiretalisman hash and comment givers (with email) will be put in a special drawing for swag!

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Goodreads Book Giveaway





The Sapphire Talisman
by Brenda Pandos

Giveaway ends March 15, 2011.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
Enter to win

Announcement. Come join the Street Team

It's HERE!
I know you clicked this page cause you saw "Street Team" and thought, "What's that?". Well, if you love The Talisman Series and told your friends about it, then... I want to reward you and invite you to be part of my peeps, my closest fans, my TEAM!

A Street Team is my special group of folks who have and continue to spread the word about The Talisman Series! And as a member, you get special benefits and I won't kill off your favorite characters. *wink*

Ideas of things you can do to get membership:Snag a banner below and post it on your blog, website, twitter, myspace, etc.Pick a team: Nicholas, Julia, Phil, Enigma and post the graphic.Tell 10 people OFFLINE about the Talisman Series who have never heard of my books before.Tell 10 people ONLINE about the Talisman Series who have never heard of The Talisman Series before.Refer 10 people to join The Emerald Talisman Facebook Page. Recommend the books to 10 people on GOODREADS who haven't shelved the books yet. Share the Emerald Talisman trailer with everyone you know. Host it on Facebook, your blog, forums, Tweet the link, etc.WRITE me asking for bookmarks so you can hand some out or include in contests! Ask me to do an interview, character interview, blog day, give-away, etc on your site!Add my Browse the Book widget to your blog, MySpace, Facebook, website, etc.Blog about The Talisman Series.Request a copy of The Emerald Talisman & review it! (Honest reviews, please) and share it at Amazon, B&N, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc. Tag your friends!Recruit peeps to SUBSCRIBE on my blog so they never miss a post or contest.Spread the word and place links to content, trailers etc in other paranormal romance reader message boards, comment sections of articles about similar authors, as well as the comments sections of friends and social networking sites.Send a message or e-mail to friends and family members you think would enjoy The Talisman Series (don't be a spammer though)Tell everyone you know about the books. Link them to purchase books on Amazon, B&N, etc.Tweet about the books, the characters, include a buy link. Do the same on your other social networking sites. Don't forget to Tweet @brendapandosMake a fan trailer and post on YouTube.Grab a countdown to The Onyx Talisman (coming soon) Think up some new ideas and I'll add and credit you on this list! **** Just doing one thing on the list makes you an automatic member!****

What's in it for you?
All Street Team members will get a special, exclusive, autographed Street Team bookplate for their copy of The Emerald Talisman and/or The Sapphire Talisman and a special bookmark with charm. Check out FREEBIES on how to request this. NOTE - these bookplates are special and only for Street Team members.
That's not all...

Talisman Team Members will have their names listed in the acknowledgment section of The Onyx Talisman! Hurry up - you don't want to miss out on this!Team Members will also have exclusive contest, story excerpts, deleted scenes and contests not available anywhere else.There will also be ARC (advanced reader copies) giveaways and T-Shirts or other special items.

If you'd like to join this exclusive club, just sign up in the box at the top of the page to join the Talisman Yahoo Group.

If you have posts, blogs, pictures, video, whatever beyond these listed, please send links to brendapandos@gmail.com or tweet me the link @brendapandos so I can thank you and RT.

Hugs, Brenda

CODE:<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-Talism..." imageanchor="1" target="_blank"><img alt="The Sapphire Talisman" border="0" src="http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j22..." /></a>
Other banners HERE

Where am I?

Sorry followers. With the new year, and my new writing goals, I've been trying to make every moment count and write! I'm working on the last installment of The Talisman Series, The Onyx Talisman and my new work in progress which is a secret. :) heh heh. You can bookshelf TOT on GoodReads now if you want.

I happy to announce that, The Sapphire Talisman is flying off the internet shelves everywhere and I'm so thrilled, and it's cheaper too. $11.51 on Amazon folks! Thanks for all the support and great reviews out there. My hard work is finally paying off, literally. I am working to put together a Street Team so you can be involved in the final process with Nicholas, Julia and *cough* others, and be rewarded for letting others know about it. Keep your eyes peeled for that one.

For those wondering, The Onyx Talisman should be available sometime beginning of fall. I am not going to have a book come out in December ever again... Was I crazy? YES! My family is just now recouping as Mommy comes back into their lives again. Well... kind of. With my hefty writing goals, I can be found buried in a Word document or drifting off into my dream world as my characters speak to me, and I forget which step I am in ... conditioner? or shampoo? Only writers are allowed such luxuries of being so nutty.

If you want to send words of encouragement and push me along, I'm all for it!

Hugs, Brenda

Tick tock

Wow, is it really going to be 2011 in a day and a half? And I missed wishing you all a Merry Christmas (though I did it on Twitter and Facebook). Shame on me. This month has been a whirlwind.

This year, in reflection has been one of the growingest (is that a word?) years for me. On a whim during a dark time in my life, I wrote a novel in 2008 to give me light. With the help of my dear friend Dori, it was edited in 2009 and entered into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest January 2010. To my shock, it placed it in the top 250 out of 5,000 Young Adult novels. On a wing and a prayer, Obsidian Mountain Publishing was born and birthed The Emerald Talisman into the world on 3/23/10.

Then, in the midst of taking care of two wonderful (and busy) preschooler boys (ages 2 and 5), I wrote its sequel, The Sapphire Talisman, birthed 12/15/10. I designed, promoted, marketed, networked, begged, borrowed and stole to get my work in front of as many readers as possible. I'm very proud of The Talisman Series' success. To date, both books hold a strong 4 star rating on GoodReads and TET has been shelved by over 1,000 readers.

In the process, I've made some incredible book blogger friends: Eleni from LafemmeReaders, Jessica from Bookaholic, Jen from Extreme Reader Book Reviews, Julie from 5 Monkeys, Yara from Once Upon a Twilight and Kari from A Good Addiction (to name a few). They all have been a tremendous source of encouragement and support in promotion and feedback for me. I can't even begin to thank them enough.

Little did I imagine in my journey I would be introduced to some incredibly talented authors: Abra Ebner- Knight Angels, Book of Revenge; Estevan Vega, Arson; Laura Kreitzer - Shadow of the Sun, Soul Stalker; Lisa Sanchez - Eve of Samhain;  Robin DeJarnett - Whirlwind; Kristie Cook - Promise; Killian McRae- 12.21.12, Kristin Miller, debuting Dark Tide Rising. They've been a huge source of encouragement and so gifted. I'm devouring their works as quickly as possible.

My beta reader and Wonder Woman, Lisa aka Lucy Wolfe, who was sent from God by a random click of the mouse. Without her, my sequel wouldn't have been on time. A million hugs to you my dear friend. And I'd be lost without the folks who surround me at home (Donna, Lori, Michele, Corinne, Samantha, Savannah, AnneMarie, MOPS... gosh, I know I'm forgetting someone) and my dear husband makes all of it possible by being my helpmate and support. I love you dearly!

I am happy. Blessed. Loved. Lucky. What an amazing year.

Thank you, everyone, for your support and enthusiasm. In 2011, I have a few goals: finish up the Talisman Series with The Onyx Talisman and start a new series. I'm excited to grow again and share it with you all. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Hugs always, Brenda

Winners of Remake Contest!

Thank YOU all for your participation! I had a very hard time picking my favorites since all the entries were phenomenally done. Below are the three winners, if you haven't contacted me already, please do. As for Kathleen Brown's Cover please e-mail Eleni at lafemmereaders@yahoo.com.  Thank you all!
Here we go...
First Place Winner:
JL's Cover!
This embodies the book exactly. I love how on the cover, Alora (the bad girl) is holding the talisman and not wearing it. Without revealing what happens, it's very symbolic. And her walking on the bridge looking into the oncoming storm on the horizon... Oh and does a storm come. And you included a back page with Julia and possibly Nicholas... possibly someone else. I wonder... Wonderfully done!
What he won:
Finished copy of The Sapphire TalismanA Sapphire Talisman necklaceA shout-out in Brenda's acknowledgment's section in the third installment
Second Place Winner:
Bere @ Sueños en la Luna!
This girl makes a perfect Alora: "sweet looking" but has a devious look in her eye like she's up to no good. Also, it's shot at night with the moon up in the corner. My vampires can't go in the sun, so this is perfect!
What you won:
Finished copy of The Sapphire Talisman(donated by Kim from The Book Butterfly -- thank you hun!)Bookmark and a shout-out in the acknowledgments section in the third installment
Third Place Winner:
Kathleen Brown's Cover!
This is also a great dipiction of Alora (my bad girl). She's smug with her head lifted high like she knows something we don't. And with the flame just going out, it's almost a foreshadowing of the light going out for our hero/heroine. And she's wearing the talisman... Hmmmm.... Interesting.
What you won:
Bookmark and a shout-out in the acknowledgments section in the third installment A 50% discount on The Sapphire Talisman if wanted.

BIG DAY! 12/15

Wednesday is the big day! Book release for The Sapphire Talisman (though you can already purchase today at Amazon and Kindle early if you want).


For the celebration, Eleni and Jessica have a big TWITTER party planned. Never been to a twitter party? It's easy!

To join, follow these steps:
Step 1: Use tweetgrid to join the party at http://tweetgrid.com/party

Step 2: You should see this page.
 
Step 3: You want to enter in the party hashtag which is: #sapphiretalisman
Step 4: Enter in the hosts: @lafemmereaders, @brendapandos, @totalbookaholic
Step 5: Enter in YOUR ID
Step 6: Press JOIN THE PARTY

What you see is the party on the left, hosts in the middle, your tweets on the right.




Step 7: Enter in your id and password (it's secure)

Then you are ready to PARTYYYYY! :) There will be fun trivia, prizes and cyber food! Hope to see you there!!!!

BIG DAY!

Tomorrow is the big day! Book release for The Sapphire Talisman (though you can already purchase today at Amazon and Kindle early if you want).


For the celebration, Eleni and Jessica have a big TWITTER party planned. Never been to a twitter party? It's easy!

To join, follow these steps:
Step 1: Use tweetgrid to join the party at http://tweetgrid.com/party

Step 2: You should see this page.
 
Step 3: You want to enter in the party hashtag which is: #sapphiretalisman
Step 4: Enter in the hosts: @lafemmereaders, @brendapandos, @totalbookaholic
Step 5: Enter in YOUR ID
Step 6: Press JOIN THE PARTY

What you see is the party on the left, hosts in the middle, your tweets on the right.




Step 7: Enter in your id and password (it's secure)

Then you are ready to PARTYYYYY! :) There will be fun trivia, prizes and cyber food! Hope to see you there!!!!

Praise for The Sapphire Talisman

I'm happy to announce, from the early reviewers from the recent book tour on Teen Book Scene, a few were selected to be published in The Sapphire Talisman .

Congrats! Thank you ladies! Feel free to post button on your blogs!

". . . an enticing and compelling follow up to The Emerald Talisman. The unexpected plot twists and defined characters helped me once again get lost."
– Eleni, La Femme Readers
"The Sapphire Talisman forever left me on the tips of my toes with all the twist and turns it managed to pack in between the characters and their relationships. It's definitely one of the best sequels I've read in a long time. . ."
– Lauren, Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf
". . . a well written and unique series that will appeal to all kinds of readers. Whenever I thought I might know what was going to happen, Brenda threw a curve ball and completely took me by surprise."
– Kelsey, The Book Scout
"By the time I got to the end of the book I was biting my fingernails and hoping for the best."
– Katie, Katie's Book Blog
". . . a roller coaster ride from the beginning to the end."
– Yara, Once Upon a Twilight
"I am still reeling from just recently finishing the last page."
– Jessica, A Fanatics Book Blog
". . . an outstanding, and worthy, successor to The Emerald Talisman . . . engaging and deliciously vampiric read."
–Corrine, Lost For Words