Kim Cormack's Blog, page 18

Children of Ankh series

Cool book marketing stuff on a budget and places to sign up

Read Sweet Sleep for free by signing up for http:// onlinebookclub.org/ #booktubelove #BookBoost @TwBookClub  Cool author groups and discussions, book reviews and more. I'm loving this one.


Kim Cormack is in the TOP10 AUTHOR LIST #author @kimcormack 12/06/2015 AUTHORSdb Pls RT http://authorsdb.com/authors-directory/696-kim-cormack @AUTHORSdB
Make book trailers https://studio.stupeflix.com This one is the most budget friendly. 
To my fellow Authors trying to create book trailers on a budget or to anyone trying to make the easiest family gift ever. https://animoto.com/go/refer-a-friend



Check out my book - 'Sweet Sleep (The Children of Ankh Book 1)' - on #BookBuzzr - http://bit.ly/1LXXAIj  See what you can do for yourself. Book Buzzr has awesome flip books for marketing and very cool landing pages for facebook.

Just a few little helpful marketing places for Authors.

The Hot Summer Reads Sign up page

A little teaser as I'm writing book three, Let There Be Dragons

They appeared together as a group in the center of the deserted coliseum. An explosion of dust rose around their feet. Kayn noticed for the first time how massive the coliseum was. She’d still been a little bit out of it while the stands had been full to capacity with people. An extremely buffed gorgeous guy strode towards them and he began to shamelessly flirt with Lexy. Kayn glanced at Grey. He looked annoyed.
     Kayn asked, “Who is that?”
     Grey answered, “That’s Silas, and he’s Ankh. He won the Summit one year and chose to stay here. He also appears to have a giant crush on Lexy. She’s the star of the show this Summit and Silas is a bit of a fame whore.”
     “You sound jealous,” Kayn teased.
     Grey winked and said, “She’s my friend. I’m just looking out for her. She’s made a few questionable choices as of late.”
      Kayn smiled at Grey, she hip chucked him and teased, “Right, just friends.”
 He wasn’t expecting it and began to laugh as he almost toppled over. Lexy had fought everyone quite recently, and all by herself. She appeared unaffected by the whole thing. Dragons could tuck their traumatic emotions down so deep that they could appear undamaged in the aftermath of a storm. They could bring them back up as fuel for their inner fire when the dragon inside was required of them. The wind picked up and blew Lexy’s scarlet hair around and had the appearance of fire. Her crimson flames flickered in the wind. The wind blew Kayn’s hair around and a blonde mass of curls ended up in her mouth. She tucked her hair behind her ears. She glanced at her wrist and its lack of always present elastic bands. She glanced over and Silas was grinning at her plight.       
     Silas spoke to her, “It’s a pleasure to meet you Kayn. I have heard a few impressive things about you.”
  Kayn took his hand and he gallantly turned it over, kissed the palm and closed it. She felt sick to her stomach. How could he possibly know about something that Kevin used to do? Something out of a children’s book. She was being silly, there’s no possible way he could have known about that. She was being seriously paranoid. She gave him an uncomfortable smile and took the hand he’d kissed and held it in the other one. Kevin...She was going to be forced to see him again. She would never be prepared to do that. What difference did the timing make in the long term? What was done was done. They were done. Her best friend had now taken on a new role as her enemy. They followed an overly exuberant Silas from the center of the coliseum and through another intricately etched gold archway. Maybe this bathing thing would not be that bad? She could use some pampering it felt as though she hadn’t had the opportunity to have a nice hot bath in what seemed like forever. Kayn smiled as Silas yammered on about how amazing it was that the two had survived twenty years in the testing. The group joked around and laughed. Kayn quietly followed them. It felt like she was walking slowly to the end of a plank. She kept trying to meet Frost’s gaze and he appeared to be deep in thought. She had finally stopped looking for his approval in every move she made. This was more than that. She felt queasy. She felt like something was off in some way and she knew what that meant. She felt like something was coming. Something was wrong. Did everyone else feel this way? They walked through another spectacular gold carved intricate archway into a white room full of round steaming pools with flower petals. They floated on the surface of the warm water. There was an intoxicating scent in the air. On the left side of the enormous room, there was a rich burgundy curtained off area.  A change room? Silas gestured the five of them into the curtained area. Behind the curtains there were six small pools of water full of flower petals. Standing around the pools were dozens of scantily clad people, both men and women. No, this was definitely going to be uncomfortable. Kayn could only assume were royal servants. The five of them stood together as a confused group until the strangers walked up and skillfully removed their sarongs. Kayn glanced at Zach. He was in seventh heaven. He stripped down in front of his pool full of giggling women. He did not appear to be the least bit concerned. He grinned and stepped into the pool while women climbed right in and began to bath him. Melody and Haley were next and then Astrid. Kayn endeavoured to take off her sarong by herself, but soon there were half a dozen people scurrying around her to help. She crossed her arms across her chest and stepped into the steaming pool. She noticed Zach staring at her. She glared at him.
      He winked and mouthed the words, “Just try to relax. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”
She began to laugh a little bit out of sheer nervous energy. He’d seen her nude on many occasions, because he’d walked in on her while she was changing countless times. The three of them had shared a room for a long time. Eventually Zach began to share a room with the guys, but for the longest time they’d shared a room as though they were partially immortal siblings. Her train of thought was interrupted. She was passed a glass of red wine and instead of declining it, she decided if there was ever a time to take the glass of wine without a second thought it was probably right now. She drank the entire glass without coming up for air and her pool was full of grinning faces. Kayn felt like she should at least be carrying on a conversation with the people who were submerged in the pool soaping her down. She felt like shrinking under the water so nobody could touch her. It felt like an invasion of her privacy. She wasn’t accustomed to having anyone’s hands, but her own on her body. She had never had anyone’s hands on her while naked before. What do you say? Were you supposed to talk? How were you supposed to react? She had backed into the corner of the pool and squeezed her eyes closed. She felt like a cat being scrubbed down against its will. She was attempting to look like she wasn’t absolutely mortified at the experience as a whole. She didn’t want to offend anybody. When she opened her eyes the male servants had disappeared from the water. She had no idea what to do so she kept silent. She took a deep breath and began to relax in the absence of strange male hands.
     The wine had begun to work its magic. Leaves were placed over her eyes and a mud of some kind was plastered on her face. She couldn’t open her eyes under the leaves. She was afraid the mask would sting her eyes. She laid her head back and attempted to enjoy the pampering. She was left alone to soak in the bath with a strange mint scented concoction on her face. Someone began washing her feet without warning her, and it tickled to the point that she couldn’t help it. She kicked and began to giggle. Her face was then washed off. She opened her eyes and realized that there was an audience. Two men stood above her. They appeared to be some kind of royalty. She crossed her arms over her chest. The younger man appeared to be entertained by her attempt to hide her body from him.
      The younger one spoke, “You are the Conduit?”
      Kayn cleared her throat and responded quietly, “My name’s Kayn.”
He grinned in a manner to suggest she had spoken out of turn. He’d asked her a question and she had given him a different answer. He hadn’t asked her for her name. He had asked if she was the Conduit. She still didn’t really understand what that meant.  He was waiting for her to answer the correct question. She felt as though he was not answering on purpose to make her feel uncomfortable. He was attempting to train her to behave. After a glass of wine, she was in a moderately unfiltered state. Kayn would have to choose the words she spoke aloud, wisely.
     She smiled pleasantly and answered, “Yes, I guess I am.”
     He replied, “You guess you are... What?”
     She actually had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. She raised her eyebrows reigned in her sarcastic wit. She had a feeling it would be completely lost in this situation.
     She responded, “I am.”
     He gave her a frustrated look and questioned, “You are what?”
     She gave her very best fake Chloe pageant smile and replied, “I am the Conduit.”
This guy was anal retentive douche. What a pompous ass.
     He glared at her and said, “I understand what pompous ass means, but what do you mean by I am anal retentive douche?”
Zach began to choke on his glass of wine.
Her thoughts were not private...whoops. She’d have to rein them in too.
     Kayn harnessed her inner Chloe and coolly responded, “It means you are overly concerned with small details.”
     He teased, “Yes, I guess I am. It’s a pleasure to meet you Kayn.”
He was on purposely toying with her. He extended his hand to a naked Kayn who wasn’t sure what he wanted her to do? Was she supposed to shake it? Was she supposed to kiss his ring? He was openly grinning at her now. She knew he could read her mind. He could help her out here.    
      He whispered, “I’m an oracle. I need to touch your forehead.”
Kayn moved forward and knit her brow out of confusion as he placed his hand on her head and smiled. She noticed the symbol of Trinity on his hand as he pulled it away.
     He whispered, “An unbroken Dragon after the Testing. Thank you. That was all I needed to know.”
Yes, I’m unbroken.  Was he checking to see if she was still sane? That would depend on what level of sanity you were looking for, and who you spoke to.  Am I going to wear you as a skin coat? Well, probably not. She only made skin coats out of people on Tuesday. Kayn smiled at her own off kilter sense of humor. Sometimes she could entertain herself for hours with her own messed up thoughts. She submerged herself except for her eyes under water and watched him walk away. Why hadn’t that man come to talk to anyone else?
    She heard Zach tease from the pool next to her, “You look like you’re imitating a Rhino in the water at the zoo.”
She realized she was still submerged except for her eyes. She almost giggled underwater because she was lurking under the surface making messed up jokes in her mind. This was why nobody ever asked her what she was thinking about. She sucked in a mouthful of water and spat it at Zach, in the next pool. The servants appeared to be mortified at her barbaric behaviour. She had done it without thinking about it. There had been lots of people in this water, and she became instantly grossed out. She sunk back under the surface as he shot a mouthful back, opting out of retaliation.
     She took her face out of the water and said, “What do you think that was that about?”
    Zach teased, “Maybe he was trying to decide whether or not he should have you executed for calling him an anal retentive douche.”
    Kayn replied, “He wasn’t royalty or anything. He’s Trinity. I saw his symbol.”
     Zach scolded, “You are still supposed to behave yourself Miss Brighton.”

Let There Be Dragons

The girl that looked to fields of bees for solace was gone. She couldn’t be the girl that saw purple flowers and reminisced about her best friend slipping one of them into her shoe as a child. He was gone. She wanted to burn this whole field to ash and kick it into the air. She wanted to do that to every memory she had of him. He’d slit her throat during the testing and left her to bleed out into the sand. When she’d retaliated, she’d become a dragon. She wanted to destroy everything beautiful and right for it was all a lie...

Do not poke the dragon

The Awesome Elle Klass

Get to know the Awesome Author Elle Klass. Let's start with a few wacky questions. 

1.       Have you ever gone out in public with your shirt on backward, or your slippers on, and when realizing it, just said, screw it?
Worse, I went to work in my slippers one day. They were comfy and I was in a hurry, forgot I was wearing them until I got to work. Lucky for me they have shoe-like soles so nobody noticed or said anything. A couple weeks later I wore them out with my boyfriend. We met up with a few friends, one asked, “Why are you wearing house shoes?”I responded, “They’re comfortable.”
2.        Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point?
I sleep better and love my bed messy; pillows and blankets everywhere! Sometimes I fall asleep with my tablet or the remote control in my bed too. My bed is a comfy place filled with mystery items.
3.       What household items do you kill spiders with?
A shoe. It’s a very effective way of killing them. I once killed a wolf spider in my kitchen. Wolf spiders carry their young on their backs. I didn’t it that until I killed the spider and bunches of babies scattered across my kitchen floor!
4.       Are you someone with complaints or someone that goes with the flow?
Neither, if I don’t like something I change it for myself. I’ve quit multitudes of jobs, gotten divorced and made the brave decision to self-publish. My path in life is mine to forge.
5.       Any strange talents the world should know about?
I’m not sure if it’s a talent, but I tell it like I see it. If a booger is teetering on the edge of your nostril waiting for you to laugh hard enough it flies across the room, I’ll tell you. I’ve been accused of not filtering my words, but that’s not true. I filter and say it anyways sometimes, but only when asked my opinion or if someone has done something to offend or hurt someone I care about.
Now, let's be deep and serious for a minute. 

1.       Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m a free spirited person who may take off on a whim and travel. I love horror and thrillers and rarely watch a movie that isn’t deemed scary or at least suspenseful. One of my goals in life is to visit as many beaches as possible. I love the beach! I’m the middle child and have an older and younger sister. I grew up entertaining both of them to keep the peace and I still love entertaining.
2.        What genre do you write?
I write various genres. My first release As Snow Falls is a woman’s contemporary romance. Baby Girl is a YA/NA adventure series with a touch of romance and suspense. For my last release, I dug into my horror/ thriller roots and created a paranormal suspense novel Eye of the Storm Eilida’s Tragedy. It’s the first in the Ruthless Storm Trilogy. Most of my drafts are thrillers and paranormal so readers should expect more edge of the seat fiction with unfathomable twists and turns from future publications.
3.       What kind of readers will it appeal to?
My books appeal to various groups. Eye of the Storm Eilida’s Tragedy is my latest release so I’ll stick with that in this answer. The audience so far is internationally diverse, love that, and mostly early twenties and up. It seems most readers love suspense and the unexpected in a book. One reader told me she had to quit reading it before bed and started reading in the mornings because it scared her. She loved the story!
4.        Do you ever experience writer’s block?
Writer’s block means one of three things to me. 1. I’m tired and need sleep. 2. Get off the computer and take a walk or watch a scary movie because my brain needs a mental break. 3. I’m not listening to my characters (happens when I’m sleepy) and need to erase and go back. Occasionally I cut the parts I erase. They come in handy later. In Baby Girl series City by the Bay I wrote an entire chapter, it flowed then I realized it wasn’t the right spot for it. Later it became part of Baby Girl Bite the Big Apple.
5.       Do you work with an outline, or just write?
I free write after months, years of contemplating a story. I say I free write but the outline is in my head. I hate to be too structured as my characters have ideas different than mine. No story goes as my brain plans. Eye of the Storm had a completely different ending than the one Eilida, Sunshine, and Evan decided on. A novel meant as a stand-alone book is now a trilogy.
6.       Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?
I first set out to publish traditionally. I sent my book out to a few literary agents who did get back to me even though they turned me down. I get that they want the next best seller so they get their cut. I did get one offer but didn’t like it and decided I’d do it on my own. And so I did. Today if a publisher offered me a deal it’d have to be real sweet and not impinge on my creativity or rights for me to accept.
7.       Can you tell us about your upcoming book?
I’m currently working on a surprise. But the time is drawing near so I’ll give a hint. It’s the Baby Girl book its readers have been asking for, to be released in June or July. Then my attention will take a 180 as I finish Calm Before the Storm Evan’s Sins Volume 2 Ruthless Storm Trilogy. It’s a prequel so hold on tight to your hats and be prepared to linger on the edge of insanity and fear.
8.        What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?
That’s a tough question. I enjoyed writing all my books. Baby Girl City by the Bay was maybe the most fun as I placed her in the land of my impressionable childhood and teen years. Through Cleo I relived learning to drive. La Tige made her drive through hilly San Francisco and over the Bay Bridge in his beast-vehicle. As a teen I drove a stick shift and remember clearly my first stoplight on a hill. Sweat dripped from my forehead as I planned exactly how I’d get the vehicle going without rolling backward into the car behind me. In no time, I was a stick shift pro.
9.        What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?
Depends on the criticism. Good criticism I respect. Bad criticism I shrug and move on. My first book As Snow Falls I didn’t have any connections so I muddled my way through publishing and marketing. I’m thankful for the criticism and support I received. If I had to choose one negative criticism about any of my books is most people miss the character’s name in ASF. It’s mentioned only once. I accept that as it was meant to be that way. The best compliment is Eye of the Storm being compared three times by three unique individuals as Hitchcockian. Wow! Huge compliment as Hitchcock was a master at suspense.
10.    Do you have any advice to give to aspiring writers?
Don’t give up! Seems simple but I’ve met authors who were ready to throw in the towel because of slow going book sales. It takes time to build an audience and learn the business. My first year I had no plan other than observe and experiment. This year started with a strong marketing plan and more and more readers are discovering my books. I’m not a billionaire yet but my books have a growing following and I make steady sales.
11.    Is there anything that you would like to say to your readers and fans?
I have big surprises coming soon to the Baby Girl series. I want to spill everything right her, right now. However I will stay tight-lipped. I’m excited!
12.    Do you have a website or blog where we can keep up with your work?
I sure do. My website is http://elleklass.weebly.com and my blog is http://thetroubledoyster.blogspot.com. And you can get to know my characters through their Pinterest boards, Cleo, Eilida, and Sunshine have boards here https://www.pinterest.com/elleklass/.



A childhood overcome with unimaginable tragedy. The scars that linger after the storm. I've been sitting here trying to figure out how I'm going to write this review without giving away any of the incredibly cool plot twists in this book. Elle Klass has a gift. She can set up a spine-tingling scene.  I become absolutely giddy when a storyline surprises me I always try to guess what's going to happen next. I'm proud to say...Elle Klass totally got me. I finished this book feeling both disturbed and excited to find what happens next. Bravo!!! I'm giving Elle a cheer followed by a long gratuitous slow clap. Eye of the Storm is, an intense, twisted awesome read!!!" Love the surprise plot twists. I want to go on about each one, but it'll let the cat out of the bag. I want my blog readers to get the full experience. So cool....  Great Work Elle Klass.   5 Stars for this twisty intense read. I can't wait to read your next book!!! 






An example of this author's descriptive ability to keep you with her... in the moment….
An unnatural, eerie silence fell upon the garage creating a vacuum; the only sound that she could hear was the thumping of her heartbeat. A creepy feeling swept over her while fear mixed with familiarity wrenched at her internal organs, causing shallow breaths to escape her mouth, and a quickening of her pulse. She cautiously lifted her eyes upwards to see the mysterious stranger; to her surprise, not a soul was standing there, and the muddy shoes had disappeared. She twirled herself around, but nobody was in sight. She plucked her lipstick off the garage floor and beeped her car. Her heart beat wildly in her chest, knocking to get free of her body, thump, thump, thump. Wasting no time, she ran the few feet left to her car, jumped inside, and locked the doors. Her deep blue eyes scanned the garage, looking for the perpetrator. She gathered herself together, taking a deep breath, knowing she still had to check the seat behind her. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and gradually turned her head to peer at the seat behind her. She fully expected to see a maniacal killer raising his arms with a plastic bag in his hands to suffocate her. Finding the back seat empty, Sunshine placed her palm over her heart, and a flood of air emerged from her lips as she released her breath. She cranked the engine, and the tires chirped as her vehicle leapt from its parking spot. An isolated rumble of thunder let loose as she made a right turn out of the garage, a single dark cloud,
hung in the sky, following her home.



Elle Klass Bio:Elle was born into this world in Redwood City, California and spent her childhood growing in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. She graduated from the University of North Florida with a bachelor’s degree in education. For fun she reads, spends time at the beach, travels, and enjoys time with her favorite friends, and family. She is a night-owl known to be a hermit during rainy days, as she has a love for sun, and is mostly found poolside over the hot, humid summer months.
Eye of The Storm: Eilida’s Tragedy (Book 1 in the Ruthless Storm Trilogy) BlurbA disturbance at her neighbor's house piques Eilida’s curiosity. What she discovers is so shocking it sends her running through the mountainous woods during a thunderstorm. She slips on the wet ground, plummets down Mount Wilde, and slams into a large boulder beside River Freedom. Eilida is transported to Lyden, where Sunshine, a receptionist at the local paper becomes engrossed in her story. The further Sunshine delves into Eilida’s life the more entangled their lives become. Paranormal events, frightening dreams, and terror filled memories draw the women together into an unthinkable web of horror.Youtube Review:https://youtu.be/nEKTKJHMwQI

“It is a well written and compelling tale with an amazing concept that is worth the read. Great for young adults and adults as well.”Michelle Randall for Readers' Favoritehttps://readersfavorite.com/book-revi...



Here is some more info on this Awesome Author!
Elle Klass Bio:Elle was born into this world in Redwood City, California and spent her childhood growing in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. She graduated from the University of North Florida with a bachelor’s degree in education. For fun she reads, spends time at the beach, travels, and enjoys time with her favorite friends, and family. She is a night-owl known to be a hermit during rainy days, as she has a love for sun, and is mostly found poolside over the hot, humid summer months.
Eye of The Storm: Eilida’s Tragedy (Book 1 in the Ruthless Storm Trilogy) BlurbA disturbance at her neighbor's house piques Eilida’s curiosity. What she discovers is so shocking it sends her running through the mountainous woods during a thunderstorm. She slips on the wet ground, plummets down Mount Wilde, and slams into a large boulder beside River Freedom. Eilida is transported to Lyden, where Sunshine, a receptionist at the local paper becomes engrossed in her story. The further Sunshine delves into Eilida’s life the more entangled their lives become. Paranormal events, frightening dreams, and terror filled memories draw the women together into an unthinkable web of horror.Youtube Review:https://youtu.be/nEKTKJHMwQI“It is a well written and compelling tale with an amazing concept that is worth the read. Great for young adults and adults as well.”Michelle Randall for Readers' Favoritehttps://readersfavorite.com/book-revi...

The Troubled Oyster: Sweet Sleep by Kim Cormack

The Troubled Oyster: Sweet Sleep by Kim Cormack: Every so often a really fantastic book comes along that I absolutely can't put down. Sweet Sleep is one of those books.  My Review:...

Sweet Sleep in March and April Book Haul

WILD THING

I thought I'd add a quick post about what I'm writing now. "WILD THING," is a side series about Lexy of Ankh.  I'm editing and hoping to have this one out by the end of summer.