Tonya Renee Callihan's Blog, page 2

Monday's Tease

Contest

Another awesome contest going on through raffelcopter!



Help promote Tawny Weber and win!!



All you have to do is log in using your Facebook account or email and follow the directions on how to enter each option! The contest runs until June 16th! Be sure to come back daily, there are a few options you can enter daily through the contest!



http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/c2e4750/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

Contests!

I have 3 Awesome Contests going on!




CONTEST #1 500 Likes on Facebook







Once I reach 500 likes on Facebook I will have a drawing for the following prize:
3 books: Better Than Chocolate by Sheila Roberts
The Fireman Who Loved Me by Jennifer Bernard
My Lord Vampire by Alexandra Ivy
Artistry Make-up Bag
Eye Shadow
Lip Gloss



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Tonya-Callihan/155567004477447?ref=hl


Contest #2 Twitter







Once I reach 1,000 followers on Twitter I will have a drawing for the following prize:
The Taker by Alma Katsu
The Secret Bride by Cheryl Ann Smith
Unbuttoning Miss Hardwick by Deb MarLowe
Dark Kiss Body Spray from Bath and Body Works
Satin Hands Lotion from Mary Kay



Twitter @tonyacallihan


Contest #3: Blog Feature

This contest is 2 contests in 1. You can win two on two different blogs. Lisa
Renee Jones is hosting a Blog Feature Month all of May. Each day a new blog, I
was lucky to be asked to participate in this! On Lisa's Blog you by commenting
on my blog feature you could win a $10 Bath and Body gift card and Team
Mark/Team Chris bracelets. On my blog, by commenting on the post announcing my
blog feature you can win a free download, Kindle, Nook, etc of any of Lisa's
books. In order to win on my blog you have to also comment on my blog feature on
Lisa's blog as well. You can win something awesome every day so be sure to check
it out. You have the entire month of May to comment. June 1st the winners will
be drawn and shortly announced. My blog
announcement



Lisa's Blog

Monday Tease

Hope this helps you through the week!!

I feel a cowboy novel coming soon ;)

Monday Tease

A little late...hope you enjoy!

Blog Feature

Bestselling New York Times Author Lisa Renee Jones is celebrating bloggers the month of May. You can stop by everyday and comment for your chance to win gift cards and more. If you miss a day...that's ok you have all month to stop by and comment. Winners will be chosen the first of June.



Today's blog feature is yours truly!! I'm super excited that Lisa would want to feature my blog on her site.



For all the newcomers thanks for stopping by. I hope you will look around and stop by again!!



And for those stopping by from Lisa's blog be sure to follow my blog and leave a comment. On June 1st I will draw a winner, the winner will get a free download of any of Lisa's books!



Be sure to comment on my feature for a chance to win a $10 Bath & Body Works gift card and Team Chris/Team Mark bracelets!!



http://www.lisareneejones.com/blogger...

C is for Craft Creek

Craft Creek was first established in 2012 by Ashley Archer, who decided to take a well-loved hobby and turn it into a business. Right now it's mainly homemade crochet items, if she plans to venture out with anything else we will have to wait and see.



Here is a recent item she added, a securtiy blanket, can be made in any color to fit a boy or girl.



Item #AS01

Baby Security Blanket

Dimensions: 24" across from point to point

Message for Color Options

$35

Pattern By: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/9-pointed-star-round-ripple





She does such beautiful work. One of her specialities, in my personal opinions would be hats. Who doesn't want a picture of their little one wearing a cute hat these days. I will share a couple of options below.



Hats Item #HU01

UK Hat

Sizes: Newborn Through Adult

$22.00

Pattern Base By: http://repeatcrafterme.com/



 This is my little man, Mason, wearing a UK hat!  Item #HMC01

Cow Hat

Sizes: 0-3m Through 3T

$25.00

Pattern By: http://justbehappycrochet.com/   This is her beautiful niece, Bristol, wearing her cow hat! Isn't she a doll? Check out many more hats, scarves, and other cute designs at her Facebook page, Craft Creek. Be sure to visit her Etsy shop as well.  Oh and FYI she makes things for our four legged babies as well :)   

B is for Bayou

Researching the Bayous

by Elle James







 


My sister, Delilah Devlin and I took a trip last August to Louisiana. We drove all the way down to Grand Isle then back up to Thibodeaux, LA and then over to New Orleans for the Authors After Dark conference. We were determined to get a feel for what it's like to be live in bayou country. So we stopped along the way. Stayed on Grand Isle for a night where houses are built on stilts and fishing is for fun and a livelihood. In Thibodeaux, we took an airboat ride touring the swamps, took great pictures and I pet a 12ft long alligator. Yikes! There are people who actually rob alligator nests. We stopped by one and the mamma alligator was pretty adamant we didn't get close to her eggs! It was fun, beautiful and creepy all in one. And the driver was insane! Talk about great fodder for the air boat chase scene in DEJA VOODOO! Then we drank mint juleps at Oak Alley, a sugar plantation house that made you want to put on a hoop skirt. We wrapped up our research trip in New Orleans where we explored some of the Voodoo shops in the French Quarter, had our palms read and experienced the charm and smells of the city. All these forays were great research for my Cajun Magic series which combines Voodoo, romance and suspense in an exciting group of books coming out this year from Entangled Publishing.









VOODOO ON THE BAYOU (Feb 2013), VOODOO FOR TWO (April 2013) and DEJA VOODOO ( Jun 2013)


Voodoo on the Bayou

Book #1 of the Cajun Magic Series

by Elle James (aka Myla Jackson)




Blurb

“By day a frog, by night a man, ‘til de next full moon...”

At first, lawyer and ladies’ man Craig Thibodeaux thought Madame LeBieu’s chant was a strange bayou joke. But the voodoo worked and Craig is spending his days as...well, a small green frog. Now he has only two weeks to find love, or his new froggy transformation becomes permanent.

When she receives the anonymous toxic water sample from Bayou Miste, research scientist Elaine Smith decides a trip to the bayou is the perfect excuse to escape the lab, and forget about her cheating ex-fiancé. Then she accidentally stumbles upon Craig’s oh-so-fine naked form, and her science-nerd brain is overrun with naughty thoughts about her new gorgeous night-time bayou guide.

But there’s more to Bayou Miste than voodoo curses and sexy late-night trysts. Dark secrets threaten the delicate ecosystem, and there are those who would do anything to keep those secrets hidden. Even murder...
















Elle James Bio




Elle James aka Myla Jackson spent twenty years livin' and lovin' in South Texas, ranching horses, cattle, goats, ostriches and emus. A former IT professional, Elle is proud to be writing full-time, penning, sassy western romances, intrigue

s and paranormal adventures that keep her readers on the edge of their seats. She has 34 works with Harlequin, self published works under pen name Elle James, over many works with other publishers including Samhain, Ellora's Cave, Kensington and Avon and 19 works self-published under pen name Myla Jackson. Now living in northwest Arkansas, she isn't wrangling cattle, she's wrangling her muses, a malti-poo and yorkie. When she's not at her computer, she's traveling, snow-skiing, boating, or riding her ATV, dreaming up new stories.





Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter







Please leave a comment for your chance to win a free download of BILLIONAIRE HUSBAND TEST

A is for Alpha!

Welcome to my blog!




During the month of April you will see several posts, all
beginning with letters from the alphabet for the annual A-Z Blog Challenge.

This is my first year to participate and I’m excited to see
what topics I come up with and other topics from other blogs.




I am running behind so today, April 4th, I will post A and B, tomorrow, April 5th, I will post C and D to catch up some! Thanks for stopping by and if you have any suggestions for future posts please comment!! 




I’m a writer, more to the point a romance and erotic writer.
So A is for Alpha. In every romance/erotic novel you need an alpha male! 




A is for Alpha




What is an Alpha
Male?

An alpha always knows what is best. He’s a protector,
confident, sexy and importantly sexual and confident in his abilities in and
out of the bedroom. And he’s always stubborn! To the point he makes your knees
weak while you want to bang his head in for being ridiculously overbearing! He
takes control, all the men and women around him lean on him and follow in his
footsteps. He stands out, but can blend in if needed. He’s dreamy and sexy.
Says the right thing, only after putting his foot in his mouth.

At least that’s what I think of when I think of an alpha.

In my opinion he is the hardest character to write…90% of
the time. He’s easy to get wrong. I’ve finished a book only to realize my alpha
is all wrong, by the end of the book it comes together for me, but that means
going back to the beginning of the book and rewriting the alpha the way he should  be and not how I thought he should be. And in
most cases that can mean rewriting several scenes and/or the entire book!




In my opinion there are two authors I know when I pick up
one of their books, I am going to find the perfect alpha! He’s going to add up
to everything I defined plus more…a whole lot more!




First is Sylvia Day, I love her style of writing, especially
when it comes to the alpha. They add up to everything I explained and oh so
much more!






One of my fave alpha’s has to be the scandalous Alistair
Caulfield, from Seven
Years to Sin by Sylvia Day.

Oh Alistair is near perfect. He’s gorgeous, flawed, very
intense and sexual. He’s the guy that makes good girls go bad!




To learn more about the book and/or order it visit Sylvia’s
website for this book and many other great reads!
























My all time favorite author is Lisa Renee Jones, she has
some serious hot alpha’s. They are flawed, but there flaws make them perfect
and memorable.




The Walker Brothers! Oh, how I love these boys! They are bad
boys that protect the women they love and the family that always has their
back!




In Secrets Exposed we
meet Lindsey, she’s strong and beautiful and stubborn. Then we meet Mark…oh
Mark!! Mark Reeves is one of the sexiest men alive! He is ruthless, in the courtroom.
Romantic and oh so dreamy!  You have to
check out The Walker Brothers!




Be sure to check out Lisa's site for more about this book and the other books in this Tall, Dark and Deadly Series, which you can get as a boxset at AMAZON for only $2.99!




Thanks for stopping by Check out the other bloggers particpating in the A-Z Blog Challenge Here:




http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/2012...

Christine Donovan's View on Indie Publishing

Have you been asking yourself lately, “Should I jump into
Indie Publishing?” I asked myself that for many months before I did indeed take
the plunge in October 2012. In case you’re wondering, there’s no right or wrong
answer. Each author’s decision will be their own. I thought I’d share my
reasons why with you today.





I’ve been writing for ten years. I have nine books in various
stages of completion. I love to write, submitting to editors and agents, not so
much. When I first started writing, I’d submit all the time. As the years went
on, I submitted once or twice a year after querying at a conference. I also
used to do contests. I don’t anymore, although I would like to get back into
entering contests. I think you get great feedback and it can open doors.





For several years I listened to my Indie Published friends
talk about the pros and cons of self-publishing. I knew some on them were
making big money, and others were not. All would admit the promoting of their
books took up a large chunk of their time. So I asked myself, “was I up to the
task?”





“Yes.” And part of the reason I did, is because three years
ago I got laid off from my job and I’ve not been able to find another one.  I began writing full-time and slowly stopped
looking for a job. I don’t want to say money was my motivator, because that is
only part of it.  But I will admit
getting checks each month from my royalties is a great feeling.  I’m not getting rich, but I am contributing to
my household. Another reason I decided to Indie Pub is I felt the bandwagon was
leaving without me. I watched the transformation of the whole E-Book industry
evolve and I wanted to be part of it. I also believed I had good stories to
tell and I wanted people to read them. Of course I‘d be lying if I did not say
I still have dreams of being published in the traditional sense. I still want
to see my books in Barnes and Nobles. But, who knows what the future holds for
any of us. 





I won’t lie; being Indie Published is hard work.  There are a few keys things you must do.  Having BETA readers is essential; I only
recently started realizing this.  Hire a
GREAT editor, one who not only edits punctuation and grammar, but also story
content. I will admit my first book went up with spelling and grammar mistakes.
I pulled it, corrected the mistakes and put it back up. Unfortunately you can’t
erase bad reviews. My next book, “The Lady and the Earl,” will be perfect
before I put it up.  Hire a cover artist.
The costs vary, but you can find good designers out there who charge between
$40 and $100. Remember, a cover is the first thing a potential buyer sees. It
must catch the eye in a good way. FYI, my book, “The Reluctant Duke,” did hit
No. 77 on Amazon-Regency Romance, Kindle Books for a short time.





As far as promoting goes, you do not have to spend money to
do this. Creating a website is free at most places, and they have templates. Blogs,
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads, LinkedIn, all free. Time consuming,
but free. Facebook is full of groups geared toward writers and promotion. I’m
computer challenged, yet I created all of the above myself. (My website, etc,
is simple, but affective) I also learned how to format my books for
e-publication. A challenge to be sure, but a great writer friend at Rhode
Island Romance Writers gave a workshop on formatting and it is my go-to
resource.  I still have yet to format for
print. That is next for me.





I hoped I helped anyone who is still on the fence when it
comes to Indie Publishing. Please feel free to ask questions. Thank you for
taking time out of your busy day to visit.





Christine





 

 





As a life-long avid reader, Christine always dreamed about
becoming a writer. She realized her dream ten years ago when she began penning
her first romance novel. Now she has nine novels in various stages of
completion. The genres include, Regency, Contemporary and Paranormal Romance.





Christine is married, has four sons, one granddaughter and
four cats.





When she is not writing she can be found reading, painting
or gardening. She loves DIY projects.





http://christinedonovanorg.weebly.com/





https://www.facebook.com/christine.donovanauthor





 





Here are the links to Christine’s first book, “The Reluctant
Duke.”





Amazon - http://tinyurl.com/d5gxgqn





Nook - http://tinyurl.com/d8suc8w





Smashwords - http://tinyurl.com/d3kgqg5





 

 



























THE LADY AND THE EARL – COMING MAY 2013





 





EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER ONE





ENGLAND 1818





 





     “Please, do not be afraid.”





Was he serious? Not be
afraid?





Lady Amelia Seabrook struggled with her
skirts as she waded through the shin-deep water to retrieve her boots and
stockings from a nearby rock. Her muslin skirts were soaked to above her knees
and clinging most embarrassingly to her legs; her stockings and shoes were
drenched as she had splashed them in her hurry to exit the water. The mile walk
back to her home, one she normally enjoyed, would be uncomfortable because of
the dampness of her clothing and her haste to remove herself from this
intruder.





How
dare this stranger ruin the time she spent daydreaming about Captain Rycroft,
her beloved. How dare he interrupt? It was only during these lonely, quiet
times that Amelia allowed herself to think of him. To dream he still lived. But today, when she needed this time
to remember and to reflect, this stranger had destroyed it.





Amelia
turned, her chin held high, because she would not cower before anyone. “Who are
you, sir?”





“Lord
Bridgeton. My land abuts this creek.”





By
the narrowing of Lord Bridgeton’s eyes, Amelia knew she failed to hide her
shock to meeting him here. She’d long known the earl lived as a recluse because
of a scandal involving his older brother and his brother’s pregnant wife. She’d
found out about all this from servants’ gossip.





Looking
at him now, he did not look dangerous. Frightening perhaps, the way he sat on
his fine stallion, towering over her, but not dangerous.