Christine Rains's Blog, page 96

W4WS Facebook Page Now Open To The Public

[image error]
W4WS Now Open To The General Public! W4WS has been very successful. So much so that many people have asked if they can post links to their books on the W4WS Facebook Page. So we’ve decided to open it up for anyone and everyone the first ten days of March and see what happens. If it works out, then we can repeat this every month moving forward. No sense letting the W4WS FB page lay idle for all but a few days each month. But please, no spamming!

Back From the Future Blogfest and The Bloghop of Joy

Two great blogfests happening today. The first is hosted by the fabulous Mary Pax, Nicki Elson, and Suze from Subliminal Coffeet. The instructions are simple:

You're up before dawn on a Saturday when the doorbell rings. You haven't brewed your coffee so you wonder if you imagined the sound. Plonking the half-filled carafe in the sink, you go to the front door and cautiously swing it open. No one there. As you cast your eyes to the ground, you see a parcel addressed to you ... from you. 

You scoop it up and haul it inside, sensing something legitimate despite the extreme oddness of the situation. Carefully, you pry it open. Inside is a shoebox -- sent from ten years in the future -- and it's filled with items you have sent yourself. 

What's in it? 

I'd like to say I sent myself a newspaper so I know which stocks to buy, but I'd probably be more sentimental and just send one thing.

It would be a photo of my son so I could see what a fine boy he's grown to be. It would give me some hope I'm doing something right as a parent. It's the hardest thing I've ever done, but the most rewarding. I know I'm one of the most important influences in his entire life, and I hope I will be one of the best too.

I wouldn't want to see anything else from the future. I want it to be a surprise.

Visit the other participants and find out what they sent themselves!

The second great bloghop is such a fun idea. The wonderful Kyra Lennon and Clare Dugmore would like to know your "List of Joy." These are small, sometimes unusual things that always cheer you up. Not life-changing moments, but little things that make you smile. Love it!
My List of Joy:1) Walking down an aisle in the library just to touch and smell the books.2) Jumping around corners and scaring people. I don't do it so often any more, but I love seeing people's expressions!3) Interpreting the conversations between the birds and squirrels outside. They say the funniest things!4) When my son dances. You can't help but smile when you see little kids dance.5) Watching how different people use their tongues while eating ice cream cones. Do it one day. You'll see what I mean!
Go find some more smiles and laughter as you read the lists of other participants!

Ocean of Dust is 99 cents!

Blurb:  Fourteen-year old Lissa is snatched from her home and finds herself a slave on a trading ship traveling on a waterless ocean of nothing but gray dust. A feisty, curious and intelligent girl, her desire to explore the ship earns her the hatred of the cruel first officer, Farq.
Fascinated by the ocean of dust, Lissa becomes embroiled in its mysteries, sensing things that the crew cannot, while cryptic whispers in her head are leading her toward a destiny linked to the dust itself. Only one man aboard can help her make sense of her new talent, but can she trust him? All is not as it seems, and she must unravel the clues before it’s too late.
When a sinister plot casts her adrift on the barren ocean, her best friend is left in the hands of the treacherous crew. Everything hinges upon her courage, quick wits, and her ability to master her new talent.
Where to Buy:
Amazon Kindle: USA | UK  | France | Germany | Spain | Italy | Japan B&N Nook | Apple iBook | Kobo | WHSmith | Smashwords
Paperback: USA | UK
Author Bio: Graeme Ing is a writer of fantasy and SF novels, both adult and YA. His first novel, Ocean of Dust is a YA fantasy. Graeme is currently working on his second book, a horror fantasy hybrid, starring a cocky, sarcastic necromancer in a world of vicious undead and political machinations.

Born in England in 1965, Graeme lives in San Diego, California. His career as a software engineer and development manager spans 25 years, including the development of a dozen computer games for consoles, home computers and online. He is also an avid D&D nerd, armchair mountaineer, astronomer, mapmaker, pilot and general geek. He and his wife, Tamara, share their house with six crazy cats.

Find Graeme on his website. He's also a fellow member of Untethered Realms.

Wicked Wednesday - breaking free of the usual formula

I've been reading a lot of Jeaniene Frost's books lately. She's one of the best selling paranormal romance authors. I love her books. (And Bones. Especially Bones!) Yet her books have a definite formula. In fact, a lot of books in this genre have the same formula. Here's the basic plot:
Girl meets boy. There is instant attraction even if neither act on it. One or both of them are supernatural creatures and/or have paranormal abilities. The villain enters. Bad stuff happens. Girl and boy can't resist each other. Something causes them to break apart and/or push one another away. More bad stuff. Big final battle. Evil is thwarted. The happily ever after ending.
With a market that is overflowing with paranormal romances of the usual formula, as a writer, you need to find a way to break out of it to get yourself noticed. Readers still love the classics like vampires and werewolves, but they want new twists.
As I've been writing my 13th Floor series, I've been experimenting on breaking free of the old formula. I still have the key ingredients, but I'm trying out some new twists.
The Marquis - I featured an older couple. Usually in romance, the lovers are young. Or, in the case with some supernatural beings, they look and act young even if they're centuries old. Did the readers like it? I've gotten some compliments about using an older couple, but it is the book that sells the least in the series.
The Alpha - It's common for paranormal romances to features an Alpha male. I twisted that trope and used an Alpha female. Her love interest is a geek. This still remains the most popular of my books. Readers do love strong women and superhero wannabe geeks.
The Dragonslayer - A modern day dragonslayer who is a complete gentleman instead of the typical bad boy. Xan's an Alpha male, but not in an overbearing way. His strength shows through in honor, chivalry, and his morals. And fighting dragons! It's still a bit early to tell, but Xan has many fans.
The Harbinger - Another story where the lead male character is a gentleman rather than a bad boy. The protagonist is a powerful woman. Feminine and a fighter. She's also a harpy. I'm curious to see how a creature usually not featured in this genre goes over with readers.
What are some of your favorite books that break from the usual formula?

Teaser Tuesday for Polterheist

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!If you haven't read any of Laura Resnick's Esther Diamond novels, I recommend them for a fast read and a big laugh. They're hilarious. Just the title alone is priceless: Polterheist. Hehehe! Esther is an out of work actor who has the bad luck of stumbling on to supernatural mysteries. The cast is just as colorful as the title.
Here's your teaser:
I became convinced that something strange was going on at Fenster & Co. when a singing tree tried to strangle me.
Prior to that, I'd had my suspicions, of course. (page 1) 

Jewel of Shaylar cover reveal

Blurb: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. About the author: Laura Eno lives in Florida with a very tolerant husband, three skulking cats and two absurdly happy dogs. After spending years immersed in English literature courses, she now writes novels late at night with the help of muses from the underworld. Laura is a fellow member of Untethered Realms. Seven great speculative fiction authors. Check us out on Facebook!  Find Laura Eno on: Website - Blog - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads

Winners of The Dragonslayer blog tour giveaway

Thank you to everyone who entered The Dragonslayer blog tour giveaway!The tour was a big success because of your support.
Here are the lucky winners!Congratulations! Emails have already been sent out.  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Anyone who would like to be part of The Harbinger blog tour March 13th - 17th, please leave a comment with your email address or send me an email.

CassaStorm cover reveal

CassaStorm by Alex J. Cavanaughhttp://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/
A storm gathers across the galaxy…
Byron thought he’d put the days of battle behind him. Commanding the Cassan base on Tgren, his only struggles are occasional rogue pirate raids and endless government bureaucracies. As a galaxy-wide war encroaches upon the desert planet, Byron’s ideal life is threatened and he’s caught between the Tgrens and the Cassans.
After enemy ships attack the desert planet, Byron discovers another battle within his own family. The declaration of war between all ten races triggers nightmares in his son, shaking Bassan to the core and threatening to destroy the boy’s mind.
Meanwhile the ancient alien ship is transmitting a code that might signal the end of all life in the galaxy. And the mysterious probe that almost destroyed Tgren twenty years ago could be on its way back. As his world begins to crumble, Byron suspects a connection. The storm is about to break, and Byron is caught in the middle…
Release date: September 17, 2013Science Fiction - Space Opera/AdventurePrint ISBN 9781939844002E-book ISBN 9781939844019

A few quick updates with an Angry Bird face

Angry Bird Face!He does pretty good at getting the beak look with his mouth.Can you believe he'll be three in two months?!
I haven't managed to get to many blogs or do emails this week. Please forgive me. It's been incredibly busy. The boy isn't napping and I'm trying to finish off the fourth book in the 13th Floor series. It's going longer than I expected and twisting in all sorts of ways. I hope to have it done by the end of the week. *knock on wood*
Thank you to everyone who participated in this month's Writers4Writers event. We rocked! And we now have 100 people signed up on the linky list. If each person has about 1000 people on Twitter, that's 100,000 people reached. Mind blowing.
Don't forget tomorrow is Alex J. Cavanaugh's big cover reveal.
On Monday, Laura Eno is revealing her awesome new cover too.
On March 1st, we have two fantastic bloghops: Back From the Future Blogfest and The Bloghop of Joy.
Finally, you have a few hours left to enter to win the first ebooks in the 13th Floor series including an ARC of the fourth book, The Harbinger!

Level Up! Blogfest

A geeky blogfest! I love it. Our awesome hosts are Allison at Geek Banter and Jamie at Mithril Wisdom. They want to know what's your favorite game. It can be a video game, a board game, a party game, a card game, a childhood playground game--you name it. Let them know how it works and why you love it. Click on the badge to see the linky list and discover some new games!

This is a hard one. I have so many favorite games. I haven't had much of a chance to play any video games in the past few years, but I'm a huge Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior fan. For party games, I love Apples to Apples, and the adult version of it, Cards Against Humanity. I love card games like Munchkin and Killer Bunnies. What I'm going to tell you about is one of my favorite boardgames.

Arkham Horror is "the classic game of Lovecraftian adventure." You play an investigator in Arkham trying to keep the gates to other planes closed before too many open and a powerful being known as an Ancient One slips through. You must either avoid or fight aliens, go through gates into other realms, and try to survive to close the gates. You have Sanity tokens in the game, and if you lose them all, you go insane! It's a game of high tension and strategy. Will you try to fight only for yourself, or will you help the other investigators? It's not a fast-paced game. You could spend hours playing through one game, but it's one of those things you don't realize how many hours of your time it's eating. We've never managed to beat an Ancient One, but what an amazing journey.

Yes, one of the Ancient Ones is Cthulhu!

Don't forget to enter to win the first ebooks in the 13th Floor series including an ARC of the fourth book, The Harbinger!