Suzanne Johnson's Blog, page 34

Review & C*ntest: Seven Kinds of Hell, by Dana Cameron

Woohoo for me—I finally finished a book! Reading time has been a challenge lately, what with Susannah and her crazy deadlines. Suzanne’s reading has gone in the crapper. But I was interested in this new urban fantasy because of a) the heroine’s an archaeologist, which has to have all kinds of cool, and b) the worldbuilding looked really unusual. So, here goes. 
ABOUT Seven Kinds of Hell:Archaeologist Zoe Miller has been running from a haunting secret her whole life. But when...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Theresa Meyers's Favorite #Steampunk Gadgets (& W*n The Chosen)

Today, help me welcome author Theresa Meyers, who is here to talk about her most recent release, The Chosen, the third book in The Legend Chronicles series, published by Kensington Zebra. Theresa is the daughter of a slightly mad (NASA) scientist and a tea-drinking bibliophile who turned the family dining room into a library. She learned early the value of a questioning mind, books and a good china teapot. A former journalist and public relations officer, she found far more enjoy...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Shop Talk: Write Faster! From Manuscript to Market

There was a bit of a dustup a week or so ago when an author took exception to an email from a reader telling her to write faster. Personally, I love emails like that. It says to me that a reader has enjoyed my work and is anxious to read more. I mean, what’s not to like about that?
Her point was that, most of the time, the long months it takes a new book to be available to readers has little to do with the author, or how long it takes to write a book.
So I thought it might be inte...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Redemption and Surviving the Apocalypse with Erica Hayes (& Kindle Fire G*veaway)

Today, I’m pleased to welcome author (and my agent-mate) Erica Hayes to Preternatura! Erica dropped by today to talk about her recent release, Redemption, the second in her Seven Signs series published by Berkley Sensation, and to offer tips on surviving the apocalypse, Seven Signs-style.  Erica was a law student, an air force officer, an editorial assistant and a musician before finally landing her dream job: fantasy and romance writer. She writes dark paranormal...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

New Releases March 8-14 and Readers Choice C*ontest

The second week of March gives us a bit of a break and allows us to catch our breath (and replenish our wallets) after last week’s glut of new releases.  But never fear, there are many more to come in the third and fourth week of this month. (And, btw, I will have a review coming this week of Seven Kinds of Hell.)

Now….What do you want to read? As always, leave a comment telling me the book you’d most like to win, and maybe random.org will make your wishes come true. You...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Behind the Scenes: Deleted Passages from River Road

Novels take a lot of twists and turns on the way to publication, especially early novels by newbie authors. Royal Street was the first novel, I'd written, back in 2009, followed almost immediately by River Road. I was learning as I wrote. (And still am.)

Not surprisingly, both novels underwent epic changes between sale and publication. (Have I ever mentioned my brilliant editor at Tor? She comes up with these gentle suggestions that have me going "Duh. Why didn't I think of that?")

For example,...

Readers Write: Review & G*veaway: Amanda Bonilla's Crave the Darkness

Today for “Readers Write,” I’m welcoming guest reviewer Melliane of the French blog Between Dreams and Reality review site, who’s sharing a review of Crave the Darkness, the third book in Amanda Bonilla’s Shaede Assassin series. It was released this past Tuesday. I've been wanting to read Amanda's work for a while now, so if you've read any, put in your two cents' worth int he comments!
Read on for Melliane’s review and a chance to win this book (or a any one in the series) or you...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Q&A with Author Karen Heuler (& W*n Choice of Book)

Today, help me welcome author Karen Heuler, who is here to talk about her recent  release with ChiZine Publications, The Inner City, a collection of what sounds like really interesting short stories. I've been trying to read more shorts lately, studying the form, because it's a length I have trouble with. I'd rather write a 90,000-word novel than a short story! Karen Heuler's stories have appeared in over sixty literary and speculative journals and anthologies, includin...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

SHOP TALK: Words That Hurt: The Sticky Issue of Reviews

So, here’s what’s going on in my life. I work at University A, which has a fierce rivalry with University B. I graduated, however, from university B. An alumnus of university A plundered some information in an online profile—I think from LinkedIn—and decided I shouldn’t have the right to work there since I went to the rival school. 
On Friday, I received a snarky email, and ignored it. 
On Saturday, I received an email from the same dude containing a very personal attack...<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Stalking Suzanne....

Sorry for no new updates today. I'm dealing with a real-life issue of a person who's sending threatening emails and Tweets (nothing about the books--it's a day job issue), so I'm talking with risk-assessment people today to look at my options.

Which is ironic, given that Sentinels heroine DJ's mainstreaming fake job is risk-management!

I feel there will be a story in this eventually.