Christine Rains's Blog, page 102

The Alpha blog tour and the 13th Floor tours in 2013

A great big thank you to everyone who participated in The Alpha's cover reveal. And I'm blushing at all the wonderful comments too. Thank you so much.

A few of you asked if I made my own covers. Yes, I did. I bought the model images from Dreamstime, and I played around in Photoshop with them until I had exactly what I wanted. I wanted something simple yet intense. I have the first four covers of the series done. The fifth one is giving me trouble. I have a definite image of Harriet (the banshee) in my head, and I can't seem to find any models that suit her. It's a case of wishing I could've had the cover done first and then come up with the character.

The Alpha's blog tour is scheduled for January 13th - 17th. If you'd like to host me on the tour or any of the tours next year, please send me an email at christinerains [dot] writer @ gmail [dot] com. All the dates for the tours and cover reveals are listed on my 13th Floor series page.

Please add 1302 - The Alpha "to read" on Goodreads.

Another huge thank you to everyone who hosted me on the 1301 - The Marquis blog tour. You guys are awesome. The final giveaway is still going on until the 27th. Check out The Warrior Muse's blog for details.

One final bit of exciting news: Fearless got a massive boost during my blog tour. It's still sitting in Amazon's top 100 free ebooks for paranormal under fantasy. It made it as far as #27. My brilliant editor added the first chapter of The Marquis after the end of Fearless. Hopefully this will help push up sales for it. So if you don't have your copy of Fearless yet, grab one, and get a preview of The Marquis too!

1302 - The Alpha cover reveal

Title: 1302 - The Alpha, (The 13th Floor series, #2)
Author: Christine Rains
Genre: paranormal romance
Release date: January 13th, 2013

Having been cooped up in her apartment for months, Stefanie Porter didn't think one run in the woods would matter. The wolf within her needed to stretch her legs, but obviously she didn't have very good instincts. Her former pack found her, and they almost catch her too, but a mysterious lone wolf jumps in to help Stefanie escape.
The pack is driven by their cruel Alpha, Wyatt. He refuses to give Stefanie her freedom even after she lost the challenge to lead them and left their territory. She can hide in her apartment, or the lone wolf can teach her some of his unusual urban survival tricks. James Roberts might be a bit geeky, but he's smart and looks hot when the argyle sweater comes off. He has a ridiculous ambition to become a superhero, and it might be admirable if Wyatt couldn't rip him limb from limb.
With the pack scouring the city for her, Stefanie must convince James to teach her, or fight not only for her life, but his as well.

Final Day of The Marquis blog tour

It's the last day of the tour. Wow!What a fantastic time I've had.Thank you to all the wonderful hosts andto all the people who commented.

A big congratulations to Heather Holden
who won a digital copy of The Marquis
from Aubrie Dionne's blog!
Check out Heather's site.
She's an awesome artist.  
  But wait! The fun isn't over yet.
I have a guest post on choosing the perfect title for your book at Livia Peterson's blog.This is always difficult for me, but there are some tricks to finding the best name.
On the 13th Floor, there are some noisy and fearsome tenants. But I'm sure you've experienced worse neighbors than them. We want to hear about your experiences.I've listed 13 types of bad neighbors onShannon Lawrence's blog.There's also one final big giveaway!
Three AWESOME prizes!
International entries are welcome.
1st prize: one digital copy of The Marquis, an ARC of The Alpha, and a signed copy of Fearless
2nd prize: one digital copy of The Marquis and an ARC of The Alpha
3rd prize: one digital copy of The Marquis  
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Today's tidbit: When I wrote The Marquis, my favorite parts involved Vetis. He's one of my favorite types of villains. When I wrote The Alpha, I loved writing about the heroine. Strong and feisty woman falling for a geeky guy. Now I'm writing The Dragonslayer, and I'm falling in love with the hero.
Come back tomorrow for The Alpha cover reveal!

Day 7 of The Marquis blog tour

Two more guest posts on the tour.I'm talking about being a writer mom onJackie Felger's blog.How she manages to write with four boys amazes me. I only have one and I'm lucky to find a few minutes to myself!
Come on over to Kyra Lennon's blogto learn a little about the romance between the hero and heroine of The Marquis, Marc and Mae. Love is in the air!
Today's tidbit: I originally had a different name for my heroine. I was going to call her Innes. She refused the name, told me to sit down and listen instead of spending so much time on baby name sites. Her name was Mae, and though it looked a little too much like Marc, she refused to let me change it.

Day 6 of The Marquis blog tour

I have two great stops today on the tour.First I'm sitting down to chat with my new and very brave beta reader, Clare Dugmore.We talk about the story and her experience being a beta reader for me.
Next I'm popping over to the lovelyGwen Gardner's blog. I have a guest post on the need for balance in writing paranormal romance.
Today's tidbit: I was worried that the romance in The Marquis would be overshadowed by the conflict between Marc and Vetis. It turned out that the romance was the most powerful aspect of the story.

In other story news: the paranormal crime anthology, Mortis Operandi is now available. My short story, "Immaculate" is featured within. It was one of the stories I wrote and submitted this year as part of my 2012 goals. I'm happy to be part of this great collection of stories.

Day 5 of The Marquis blog tour

The blog tour continues with another great excerpt and giveaway today on Aubrie Dionne's blog.

Congratulations to Hilary Melton-Butcher who won a copy of the novella from the first giveaway on Cherie Reich's blog. Enjoy!
Do you have your copy of The Marquis yet?AmazonB&NSmashwordsKobo 
Today's tidbit: I dedicated The Marquis to my father. He passed away in 2007. I originally had a longer dedication than what's in the book now. It read: "For my dad who battled against his demons and lost, but he always believed in me." Even five years later when I go back to visit family in my hometown, people will mention how my father talked about me being a talented writer and ask if I'm still writing.

Day 4 of The Marquis blog tour

Today I'm being interviewed byM. Pepper Langlinais. She asks some deep and clever questions about the series and the 13th floor itself.I love this isn't your standard author interview.
Today's tidbit: I've been in buildings that have a 13th floor. They were sadly mundane. Years ago, I worked as a security guard in a building that did not mark it had a 13th floor. It did have one, but it was left unfinished and used as a storage area. I don't know why it was left that way. It was a new building in a big city, but it seems even today people still hold on to those old superstitions.

Day 3 of The Marquis blog tour

I'm over at my other  fabulous CP's blog today,Tania Walsh.She has an awesome weekly series on mythological creatures. In honor of her love of beings of lore, I wrote a post on the central ones in The Marquis: demons.
Today's tidbit: There are several BIG mythological beings in the 13th Floor series such as giants, dragons, and Zeus.

Day 2 of The Marquis blog tour

Today I'm over at Nick Wilford's blogwith a character post.Usually writers profile their heroes and heroines, but I gave it a little twist. I wrote about the villain, a trickster demon called Vetis. Today's tidbit: I love writing villains. Years ago when I played online RPGs, I would always get requests to take on the role of one of the big bad guys. Sometimes I felt a bit typecasted, but I enjoyed it too much to protest.

The Marquis is here!

The first novella in my 13th Floor series,1301 - The Marquis is now available!AmazonB&NSmashwordsKobo
The first stop on my blog tour will be over atCherie Reich's blog.My talented CP and editor.None of this would've been possible without her.She's sharing an excerpt andgiving away one digital copy of The Marquis!

Today's tidbit: My protagonist, Marc gave me a lot of trouble because he isn't the chatty type. Usually my characters won't shut up. He just stands around and glares. Give me words! At least he gave me a lot of action.

Life after Hell isn't more exciting than watching football and fixing a busted pipe. Once a powerful demon, Marc enjoys his quiet existence and a good cup of coffee. With big ambitions to gain his master's favor, a trickster demon named Vetis shatters Marc's peace and vows to deliver Marc's head to the fires of Hell. Not before he destroys everything Marc cares about, of course.
Marc's power has diminished over the years. Heaven will never grant him absolution, and he refuses to return to Hell. Running isn't an option. The city of Carmine is his territory. It's also home to his favorite cafe owner, Mae Hopkins. The dame has a lovely smile, but it's her heart and soul that shine bright.
While his city burns and his love is captured, Marc must decide to surrender or let hate and anger fuel him to become the fearsome beast he so loathes: The Marquis. If the Marquis rises, Vetis can be defeated and Mae saved, but Marc would be lost to his demon forever.