Clarissa Johal's Blog, page 65

Shameless Self-Promotion

...which I cringe at, but am going to do anyways.

Some very nice 5-star reviews for BETWEEN have shown up on Amazon.com. Reviews are crucial to a writer's success. Authors live for reviews, we want to please our readers and make them happy. Bad reviews? Well, bad reviews are unavoidable because you can't please everyone. It's amazing how a good review can recharge you, however. Like a battery.
I'm extremely thankful for these nice reviews. My battery has been recharged and off I go to work on STRUCK, my paranormal horror in progress....

Have a great New Years everyone! See you in 2013.

Vote for Between on the Preditors and Editors Reader's Poll Contest

I would LOVE to have your vote!! BETWEEN is up on the Preditors & Editors™ Readers' Poll contest. The winner gets a bit of publicity and kudos, which is always nice.
They won't spam your email either, I checked.

You can vote for BETWEEN right here on Preditors and Editors 

The Holidays Are Coming...

Yes, they are. In six more days,Yule will be here and everyone can calm down and enjoy it.

I caught myself this week spending far too much time promoting BETWEEN and missing out on all the pre-holiday fun. I've been blogging my fingers off, setting up book tours, sending out press releases, and making sure all my free and review ecopies of BETWEEN are sent off to whomever they were promised.

This morning, however, I didn't feel like doing any of these things...and I didn't feel very festive.
Most of my shopping was done, the tree was up and decorated, the fireplace lights were twinkling, the stockings (all 14 of them, which included the dogs, cats, gerbils, rats, turtles and fish) were hung on the stairwell banister. Everything that screamed "Yule is coming!!" had been done.
But, I still woke feeling kind of burned out and empty.

So today, I took a day off from what it takes to make a book successful--the promoting craziness.
And you know what?
I had fun.
I'm starting to feel the growing excitement that Yule is only six...days...away!

Tomorrow, I shall take off another day. I'm going to do some baking, stop by World Market for last minute stocking stuffers, and then, I'm picking my daughters up from school and taking them out for a Starbucks. It's their last day before they track-out for the holidays. They both have a penchant for Peppermint Mochas and I have every intention of leading them down a tawdry path of caffeinated, chocolate bliss.

To all my friends who take the time to stop by and read this post, enjoy your holidays.

Unless I have something really exciting to share, I'll see you on 1/04/13 on Laura Hardgrave's blog; Stars Dive Into Sunlight

BETWEEN
Available from Amazon.com
and Musa Publishing

It's Release Day!

Today is release day for BETWEEN and I'm very excited!

I'll be running around (in Virtual-Land and for real) and having a family celebration at the end of the day.

You can purchase BETWEEN through Musa Publishing
and Amazon.com 
Barnes & Noble and other purchase links to follow.



Tagline:
How far would you go to redeem yourself?
Blurb:
As a young girl, Lucinda was able to see spirits, a gift that didn't come without its problems. Now, a dedicated young veterinarian, she is committed to the idea that every life can be saved.  After a devastating accident, Lucinda tries to escape her past by moving to a small town. There, she meets a newcomer and feels an immediate connection with him. But there is another mysterious stranger to the small town, one that stirs within her a mixture of unease and desire.  As Lucinda is drawn into a bitter tug-a-war from the forces around her, she is likewise pulled into a dangerous twist of past and present events. Forced to make difficult choices, she finds that the two men are locked in not only a battle for her life...but a battle for their salvation.

In Virtual-Land 

I'm here, in Southern Writers Magazine, Suite T blog:










Here at Samantha Combs Writes

And here, with Sara Daniel, Romance Author










and with  Liz DeJesus, Author and Poet


Have a great weekend, everyone!

Blog Tours, Guest Blogging, and other Promotion Stuff

In the following months, I'll be guest posting and taking BETWEEN on a virtual book tour.

I'll also be in the 2013 Jan/Feb Issue of Southern Writer's Magazine, Magnolia Corner

Please check back as I will be updating my blog appearances as they come! 






Blog Tour Schedule

12/11/12 Musa Publishing's Blog
12/12/12 Patricia Yager Delagrange's Blog
12/13/12 What's Cookin' in Lizzie's World
 
12/14/12 Release Day for BETWEEN!
Southern Writer's Magazine's Blog
Samantha Combs Writes
 
12/15/12
Eleni's Taverna
Musa Publishing's Blog
12/16/12 Child of Yden
12/18/12 Musa Publishing's Blog
12/19/12 Sharon Ledwith: I came. I saw. I wrote

1/04/13 Stars Dive Into Sunlight
1/07/13 Eleni's Taverna 

2/2013 Morgen Bailey Author Spotlight


BETWEEN is available at Musa Publishing for pre-order.
Amazon.com and more buy links to come...

Musa Publishing Guest Post

Musa Publishing: Cronan and Lucas Are into Soup: with Clarissa Johal Please welcome Cronan and Lucas, both from my paranormal novel BETWEEN as they share favorite recipes from their resp...

Roger Rabbit, you say?

  My publisher just made a deal with author Gary K. Wolf for his third Roger Rabbit novel, Who Wacked Roger Rabbit?. This is big news for Musa Publishing and the authors currently signed with them. Why? Because Musa is an independent e-publishing company and Roger Rabbit is iconic! Musa has already accepted and published two of Gary Wolf's novels, The Late Great Show! and Typical Day but never expected him to submit his long awaited third installment to the Roger Rabbit series. You can read details on the Musa Publishing Blog and on Gary K. Wolf's website.

So, what does this mean for myself as an author? A bit more exposure, for one! Musa Publishing is a small publishing company with a stellar reputation. It's one of the reasons I was happy to join their family. But because of Gary's reputation and willingness to jump into e-publishing, it's a nice boost for Musa and the ground breaking business of e-publishing both. And the collaboration between Musa and Wolf is coming at a significant time. The 25th anniversary of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is coming up in 2013 along with the confirmation of a completed Roger Rabbit 2 script by director Robert Zemeckis. It's definitely stirring up excitement among Roger Rabbit fans.

I was initially surprised to see that Gary Wolf joined the Musa family. Musa is constantly growing and adding new genres (another reason I sought them out with my paranormal/horror novels) but Roger Rabbit?  That just makes me smile. Plus, it proves that Musa Publishing has a little something for everyone.

BETWEEN will be released on December 14th, folks!

If you, or someone you know, like the paranormal genre, it would make a great holiday gift.

Tagline:
How far would you go to redeem yourself?
Blurb:As a young girl, Lucinda was able to see spirits, a gift that didn't come without its problems. Now, a dedicated young veterinarian, she is committed to the idea that every life can be saved.
After a devastating accident, Lucinda tries to escape her past by moving to a small town. There, she meets a newcomer and feels an immediate connection with him. But there is another mysterious stranger to the small town, one that stirs within her a mixture of unease and desire.
As Lucinda is drawn into a bitter tug-a-war from the forces around her, she is likewise pulled into a dangerous twist of past and present events. Forced to make difficult choices, she finds that the two men are locked in not only a battle for her life...but a battle for their salvation.
Here's my Musa Publishing buy link
Once BETWEEN is released on December 14th, Amazon and barnesandnoble links will follow.

Have a great weekend!

Writer's Block Ballet

Writer's block. There, I've spoken the dirty words. Forgive me.
A month ago, I thought I finished the complete draft of Struck, the paranormal horror novel I've been working on. In spite of my initial happy dance however, my characters tell me that the ending just...isn't...right.
So into the Otherworld it goes. One chapter, weeks of writing, deleted with the click of a button.
I trust my characters. Yes, yes, I'll rewrite their stupid ending, but I'm at a loss right now. I know my epiphany will come while cleaning my fish tanks, practicing my ballet, or brushing my teeth. Doing something mundane. But for now, I'm quite mad at them.
Weeks of writing, deleted.

Do any of you have moments like this?

*insistent tap on your writerly shoulder*
"Yes, hello. The other characters and I have decided to inform you that we don't like the ending you wrote. At all. Oh, and that thing you made us do in Chapter 5? Yeah, that's garbage as well. What were you thinking?"  

I can't be the only author who gets bossed around by their characters.

Anyways. My lead antagonist isn't speaking to me, and the ending is kind of up to him. As much as I threaten and cajole, he mocks me with his silence. I've considered baking him cookies, but he'd probably see right through that.
So, writer's block it is.
What to do in a situation like this? I've known some writers that let it roll off their backs like water. I've known others who are thrown into a fit of despair.
For me, it means more time spent on my ballet. I figure if I manage several hundred relevés, I will be in so much pain, that the ending won't matter. Or my paranormal demon will take pity and tell me what I need to do with him.

But for now, I'm still waiting. Excuse me while I work on my pliés. A couple hundred or so should do it.

Musa Publishing: Musa Publishing Announces Deal With Author Gary K....

Musa Publishing: Musa Publishing Announces Deal With Author Gary K....:  Musa Publishing, an independent digital-first publisher, has announced today that they will publish Who Wacked Roger Rabbit? by author ...

A Shift in Perspective.

It's been awhile and time for a post here. I've decided to make posts a bit more casual. The reason why I've found blogging such a challenge, is that I've looked upon each post as something to be researched, edited, and re-edited. To death.
No more, I just don't have the time.
I've been working on finishing my next novel while tying up Between, which is due to come out on December 14th. I've just received my cover art and it's finally hit me, "Oh my god, I have a novel coming out!"  I have no idea why this hadn't occurred to me before: the writing, the editing...the re-editing with a professional editor. Hmm, that should have been my first clue. As I go into line edits here pretty soon, the "not so fun" part of writing will be at the top of my check list.
The promoting. Yep, that bad boy.
I know few writers who like promoting. Gone are the days where we could sit in our writerly cave, write what the voices in our heads tell us to, and have somebody else publish and promote our drivel. With the onset of self-publishing, small presses, ebooks and the like, it's a dog-eat-dog world out there. Short of stripping down naked and running through the nearest mall waving my book over my head, I have no idea how to garner the attention I need to make Between a hit. I've been told to blog my fingers off, set up local interviews, join reader/writer groups, and discuss that I have a book coming out with anybody who will listen. And a plethora of other things I can't even imagine doing. You know, generally be a pain in the butt.
My favorite.
Not.
Anyways, onto the next leg of my journey. If you see me making a fool of myself blogging, interviewing, or bothering some stranger on the street who has merely asked for directions, forgive me, for I am new at this.

Between
Coming December 14th from Musa Publishing.
Mark it on your calenders. 

Genre: adult paranormal fiction.

Tagline:    How far would you go to redeem yourself?

Blurb:  As a young girl, Lucinda was able to see spirits, a gift that didn't come without its problems. Now, a dedicated young veterinarian, she is committed to the idea that every life can be saved. After a devastating accident, Lucinda tries to escape her past by moving to a small town. There, she meets a newcomer and feels an immediate connection with him. But there is another mysterious stranger to the small town, one that stirs within her a mixture of unease and desire. As Lucinda is drawn into a bitter tug-a-war from the forces around her, she is likewise pulled into a dangerous twist of past and present events. Forced to make difficult choices, she finds that the two men are locked in not only a battle for her life...but a battle for their salvation.
Lip service for Between will be appreciated. I will send anyone that chooses to give me lip service a puppy. Your puppy is in the mail.

(Please no hate comments about sending puppies via postal mail. That was a joke. I realize that puppies don't fit into envelopes. They pee way too much and it would just get messy.)