Christine Rains's Blog, page 75

Realms Faire 2013 - Drench-a-Wench

Ho there, my merry revelers!It's day three of Realms Faire 2013. Huzzah!
It's time to Drench-a-Wench!
The rules of this event are simple:
1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.
2) I'll direct you to their blog.
3) You drench her with comments.
4) Everyone who comments is entered in the daily giveaway to win an ebook of their choosing by M. Pax and my ebook, The 13th Floor Complete Collection. There will be a grand prize drawing for everyone who participates all five days of this event.


Who's the wench in the box today?
 Ready those comments and throw!The talented Heather Holden is our lucky dunkee.
Good things do happen on the 13th!

Yesterday's lucky winner is Sherry Ellis!
Congratulations! An email is on its way.

Don't forget to visit the other Realms Faire events!
Joust ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Dueling Bards ~ Phasers ~ Masquerade Parade ~ Collective Performance ~ Castle Jumble ~ Dragon Hunt

Don't forget to cheer for my magnificent champion of the Joust, Sir Xanthus Ehrensvard. Must I provide some motivation?

 
Remember to cheer using the three key words:Xanthus Ehrensvard, 13th, and cutpurse.
You can cheer up to 3 times a day.Please give Xan your support.

Realms Faire 2013 - Soak-a-bloke

Welcome to day two of Realms Faire 2013!
HUZZAH!

The rules of this event are simple:
1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.
2) I'll direct you to their blog.
3) You drench him with comments.
4) Everyone who comments is entered in the daily giveaway to win an ebook of your choosing by M. Pax and my ebook, The 13th Floor Complete Collection.
Everyone who comments all five days will be entered into the grand prize drawing to win a 50 page critique by me, and ebooks from M. Pax, Julie Flanders, Ellie Garratt, and me.

Yesterday's winner: Chris Fries
Congratulations! An email is coming your way.

Are you ready to soak an unsuspecting bloke with blog love?


Click on over to Mark Knight's site and drench him!
A Knight as our dunkee? Be sure to acquit yourself honorably, my fine lords and ladies.

Make sure to check out all the events happening this week and enter to win more prizes!
Joust ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Dueling Bards ~ Phasers ~ Masquerade Parade ~ Collective Performance ~ Castle Jumble ~ Dragon Hunt

Today Xan is featured over at the Joust. Hop on over to see what he has to say and then cheer for my champion.
Remember, to score points as you cheer, you need to use at least one of the following words:
Xanthus Ehrensvard, 13th, and cutpurse.

 
To help Xan's wonderful fans, here are some sample cheers you can copy and paste:
Three cheers for Xanthus Ehrensvard! The other knights are but brides of trolls!
See brave and shirtless Xanthus Ehrensvard. Not even the most craven cutpurse would dare tangle with him!
Huzzah! Xanthus Ehrensvard is the one true knight. He has killed his 13th dragon and captured a cutpurse as the villain tried to take his lady's purse.

W4WS for November 2013

Welcome to the November 2013 W4WS event! I'm honored to co-host this event with three talented writers, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Stephen Tremp.  The mission of this group is simple: we have a spotlighted author(s) that we strive to help bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people, increase the sales of their book(s), drive new traffic to their blogs and increase followers, and create verbal and viral buzz.
 
We've made this simple and fast. It's as easy as a tweet or a RT, and sharing a status on Facebook. Go to the writer's blog and copy a tweet or RT from the posts with the tag #W4WS. The W4WS Facebook page will have all the updates and links for you.
 
To join the W4WS event, click here for the linky list. It will only take a minute of your time, and you'll have talented writers take a step closer to their dreams.

Michael Offutt writes speculative fiction books that have science fiction, LGBT, and paranormal elements. His first book, Slipstream has received some critical acclaim and was published by Double Dragon in 2012. You can find Michael on his blog, Twitter, and Facebook.

On A More Somber Note: Nick Wilford at Scattergun Scribblings superstar boy Andrew sadly passed away in his sleep a few days ago. Kyra Lennon is coordinating flowers/donation from authors for Nick and his family. Kyra is one of Nick's crit partners. If you want to donate and/or pass on the info, feel free. You can send money through Paypal to Kyra. Her Paypal address is kyralennon@gmail.com
 Although it's early days, and we're not sure what Nick's family need right now (not that there's anything that can REALLY help), if anyone would like to donate some money to send them some flowers to let them know we're thinking of them, and any remaining money can be donated to a charity of their choice.  You can send money through Paypal - because that's the easiest way for it to be collected and sent on. Any donations are welcome - if you can only afford £1/$1, then great! If you can't afford anything, don't feel bad. What we're doing here is trying to let Nick and his family know that - as a group - us writers are there for him.

Realms Faire 2013 - Drench-a-Wench

Welcome to the Realms Faire!We're so happy to see you here. There's good food, strong drink, fun games, great prizes, and sexy knights.HURRAH!

I'm proud to host the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-Bloke event. This event is simple and gives you a chance to dunk someone with blog love.

Each day, one lucky person is chosen by committee. I'll direct you to their blog, and you leave them a supportive, encouraging, helpful, or silly comment. None of the people chosen will know they're about to get soaked with blog love. Go on and make someone's day!

At the end of each day, there will be a drawing from those who commented on the dunkee's blog. You have 24 hours from when I put up my post to leave a comment and be included in the giveaway. You could win a digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection and and ebook by M. Pax of your choice! Winners will be chosen by Random.org.

At the end of the week, those people who have commented on ALL five dunkees' blogs will be entered into a grand giveaway. This giveaway has one big prize:
A 50 page critique by me.
PLUS ebooks from M. Pax, Julie Flanders, Ellie Garratt, Laura Eno, and me.

Let's start with our first lucky wench!  Throw some blog love at Mina Lobo and check out her new book, THAT FATAL KISS.
Don't forget to check out all the terrific games happening during the Realms Faire this week.
Joust ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Dueling Bards ~ Phasers ~ Masquerade Parade ~ Collective Performance ~ Castle Jumble ~ Dragon Hunt

And most especially don't forget to head on over to the Joust to cheer for my champion, Sir Xanthus Ehrensvard.
Remember to use at least one of the three key words:
Xanthus Ehrensvard, 13th, and cutpurse.

Two days away from Realms Faire 2013

Tighten your corsets and fluff those beards, Realms Faire 2013 is only two days away!
We have 9 amazing events with 9 chances to win prizes every day. Then there are grand giveaways at the end of the week. You can win fabulous ebooks and a Kindle. Woot!
THE EVENTS:The Joust - M. Pax Masquerade Parade - Angela BrownCollective Stage Performance - Samantha GearyDragon Hunt - River FairchildThe Stockade Brigade - Gwen GardnerCastle Jumble - Laura EnoPhasers - Untethered RealmsDueling Bards - Cas WebbSoak-a-Bloke / Drench-a-Wench - Me!
My event is a quick and fun one. Each day a person is selected to be soaked with blog love. You click on the link provided and leave a blog comment for the lucky dunkee. Everyone who comments is entered into a drawing - one for each of the five days - and winner is chosen. For those people who participate all five days, they will be entered into a grand giveaway.

I'm also participating in the Joust this year. Please come cheer my champion, Sir Xanthus Ehrensvard. He'll be riding shirtless!

To cheer for Xan, you'll have to to use at least one of the following key words to score a point:
Xanthus Ehrensvard, 13th, and cutpurse.
 

Diamonds and Dust cover reveal

Magic is real. So is betrayal.

Two heirs. A Kingdom of dust on a troubled world. One might resurrect it. One might destroy it all.

Archaeologist David Alexander investigates the cave where his father disappeared and hurtles into another world, one filled with magic and bizarre creatures. The mad ravings in his father's journals of icemen and dragons may not be fantasies after all.

Convinced his father may still be alive, David begins a treacherous journey to find him and discover a way home. Along the way, he encounters a few unlikely friends. A Dreean warrior, a beautiful thief and a satyr join him as he searches.

David's arrival into this new world sets off an explosive chain reaction of events. Faced with powerful adversaries and few clues, he may not get the chance to rescue his father before disaster strikes, condemning both of them to death. Or worse.
Release date: December 9th, 2013
Pre-order here:Apple * Kobo * B&N

* * * * *

Now for the winners of the final giveaway of the 13th Floor Complete Collection blog tour!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congratulations to the winners!Emails have been sent.

Dragonfly Warrior Cover Reveal

Blurb:
The Mechanica Wars: Savage Machines Are Afoot...
At the age of twenty, Kanze Zenjiro's bloody footprints mark the bodies of those who stood in his way to protect the throne of Nihon. Now, the tyrannical Iberian Empire is bent on destroying his kingdom, and they send their steam-powered giants and iron spiders against him.

Zen embarks on a quest that takes him on the most dangerous journey of his life. To succeed, Zen must live up to his nickname, the Dragonfly Warrior, and kill all his enemies with only a sword and a pair of six-guns. He is called upon to somehow survive a test of faith and loyalty in a world so cruel and merciless, it borders on madness.
Book Information: Dragonfly Warrior is a steampunk adventure like no other. It's a dynamic mix of Asian and European mythology, the Wild West, martial arts, traditional fantasy, and high powered steam action that will keep you turning the pages.
Dragonfly Warrior is the first book of The Mechanica Wars, and will debut on January 6, 2014.
Author Bio:After doing some freelance writing and editing for more than a dozen years, Jay decided to stop procrastinating and pursue his dream of being a novelist. He's been blogging for over eight years, and even had a comedy podcast syndicated all over the internet. All of that was fun, but all the steampunk-inspired stories in his head just wouldn't leave him alone. Jay spends his days working in medical sales, but he can be found toiling over his laptop late at night when all is quiet.

He draws inspiration from all over: H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Shakespeare, Ray Bradbury, Douglas Adams, and Isaac Asimov.

And Jay loves cookies.
Stalk Jay here: www.jaynoel.com * Facebook * Twitter

IWSG for November 2013, Interview, & Realms Faire reminder

The Insecure Writer's Support Group (IWSG) is the brilliant idea of Alex J. Cavanaugh. The purpose of the group is to share doubts and insecurities and to encourage one another. Please visit the other participants and share your support. A kind word goes a long way.

Take a nap.

That's right. Get comfy, curl up under your favorite blanket, and snore.

Sleeping will help your insecurities. It will chase away your blues, increase your mind power, and boost your metabolism. We function better on all levels when we have enough sleep.

Plus, dreams are terrific inspiration for stories. That's where most of my story ideas originate.

Researchers at Harvard University have found that sleep does increase your creativity. (Make sure to use this article as proof when your family wonders why you need to snooze more often.)

As writers, sometimes we get up extra early in the mornings or stay up late to find the time to write. While that gives us our quiet time, it takes away from our sleep time. Lack of sleep will eventually catch up to you, and the price will be steep.

So take a nap.

You'll be less stressed, have more energy, and find your muse equally refreshed.

* * * * *Join me at the the awesome TB Markinson's today for a great interview. We talk about the 13th Floor series, self-publishing, and what book do I wish I had written.
* * * * *  Don't forget the Realms Faire is next week!9 events with 9 chances to win prizes every day.Plus Untethered Realms is giving away a Kindle!HUZZAH!

Teaser Tuesday with Affliction

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: Grab your current read Open to a random page Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that pageBE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!AFFLICTION is the newest in the Anita Blake series by L.K. Hamilton. I loved the series right from the start, but these last books have been hit or miss. I like it when Anita is out there fighting monsters, especially fulfilling her duties as a Marshal. This one has promise, but it could be another political and relationship maneuvering one. A little of that is fine, but with the immense cast of characters in this series, it can get convoluted.
Here's your teaser:
"It's an old wives' tale that all shapeshifters need fresh meat after they shift," I said.
"Was that 'old wives' comment aimed at me?" she asked, her voice belligerent.

Review for That Fatal Kiss

Blurb:
When it comes to love, sometimes you have to cross the line...

Feared by mortals for his inexorable power, and loathed by his fellow Greek gods for the same, Hades rules the Underworld alone. A stark eternity looms before him until he discovers Persephone. Struck by the youthful goddess’ beauty, kindness, and spirit, he must have her. But Hades believes Persephone could never love him, and so he conspires with his powerful brother, Zeus, to take her by force.

Persephone too seeks a mate but her possessive mother, the goddess Demeter, frustrates her husband hunting. Then Hades abducts Persephone, tearing her away from the Upperworld she loves to reign with him in the dank depths below. Though outraged, Persephone cannot deny the desire ignited within her by the dark lord’s touch. And even as she hopes that Demeter will unearth her, Persephone aches to surrender to the heat in Hades’ immortal soul.

My review:
Hades rules the Underworld alone in the darkness. Only one light has ever attracted him. For years, he has watched Persephone and fallen in love from afar. He must have her as his wife. Conspiring with her father Zeus, Hades abducts the beautiful goddess and whisks her away the Underworld. Persephone is a creature of the light. She's goodness and compassion with a hidden wildness and streak of willfulness. She won't submit to Hades so easily even though she feels a powerful pull toward him. Hades struggles to show her how much he loves her, and she doesn't make it any easier on him. Will Persephone fall for the dark lord's charms or be one of the few to escape from the Underworld?

I'm already a fan of Greek mythology, and I love this telling of Hades and Persephone's tale. Even though I knew how it was going to end, the journey was amazing. I was sucked into the story right from the beginning and found it hard to put down my Kindle until the end.

What made this book so great is the characterization. The reader gets to see the gods as they've never been seen before. Hades isn't the cold and forbidding dark demon as some portray him. He's isolated yet yearns for companionship, demanding yet compassionate, and totally hot! I became enchanted by him. He's an Alpha male, but unlike many others in the genre. Persephone can be young and rash, but she's smart, strong, and sympathetic. The perfect complement to Hades. I especially liked her relationships with the other goddesses, particularly Hecate and Athena.

THAT FATAL KISS is a phenomenal debut for Mina Lobo. Her romance sizzles and her worlds are vivid with life. This is a love story I highly recommend.

You can purchase the book here:Amazon * B&N * Smashwords * Paperback at CreateSpace
Stalk Mina here:Blog * Twitter * Facebook * Tumblr * Goodreads E-book available for purchase at:
Amazon | B & N | Smashwords
Trade Paperback: Createspace - See more at: http://www.minalobo.com/p/my-writing.... available for purchase at:
Amazon | B & N | Smashwords
Trade Paperback: Createspace - See more at: http://www.minalobo.com/p/my-writing....