Lane Diamond's Blog, page 7

“Noah Zarc: Mammoth Trouble” by D. Robert Pease is Perfect for Your Pre-Teens

Yes, if your kids love the Percy Jackson adventure “The Lightning Thief,” they’re sure to love the adventure “Noah Zarc: Mammoth Trouble.”

Noah is a space ship pilot, a voyager to distant worlds, a time traveler, and at twelve years old, quite possibly the last, best hope for Earth.

There’s a reason this book has won multiple awards:

Critics love it —-
“Pease’s strength as a storyteller lies in his ability to connect multiple time periods imaginatively, as well as Noah’s excited, fast-paced narration.” – Publishers Weekly
—- and so will your kids. And to make it even better, it’s on sale for the next few days only, at just $0.99 at both Amazon and at Barnes and Noble.

I had the great pleasure of editing this series, and I know your kids are going to love it.

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Book Awards Are Just Plain Fun

As authors, we all hope to win the occasional award. I haven’t really submitted Forgive Me, Alex to many – just a couple – but I’ve managed to get a little recognition, and the kind reviews my book has received have been pretty good stand-ins.

Well, I have the added pleasure of sharing in the glow of awards won by books I’ve edited. Over at the Evolved Publishing blog recently (linked at bottom), under the heading of “Quality Matters,” they listed as evidence of that commitment a number of books and the awards they’ve won.

Well, of the 16 books listed there, which have combined for over 35 awards, I wrote 1 and edited or co-edited (meaning I did the final polishing pass) 14 of those.

I often gnash my teeth about the all the editing I must do, and how that keeps me from working on my own writing, but I have to say, all these awards do bring a smile to my face. I still wish I had more time for writing, but whenever I get down and moody about that, I’ll just refer to that blog post at Evolved Publishing.

Maybe that will lift my spirits.

Here’s that blog post listing all the awards:

At Evolved Publishing, Quality Matters!

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This Review of “Forgive Me, Alex” Brought a Smile to My Face

As authors, we must take the bad with the good when it comes to book reviews, and to the way readers respond to our work. When it comes to Forgive Me, Alex, I’ve been fairly blessed, as most reviews have been quite kind.

This one in the U.K. (linked below), however, is just plain AWESOME!

A Review by “Daydreaming Star”

Yep, this is me right now – ear to ear.

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The New Face of Lane Diamond’s “Forgive Me, Alex” – New Book Cover

As I get closer to releasing The Devil’s Bane, book two in the Tony Hooper saga, I felt it was time to give the cover of Forgive Me, Alex a makeover, in order to bring the two covers closer together, thematically.

Thus, I enlisted the help of Mallory Rock, a designer with Evolved Publishing and a freelancer at Mallory Rock’s Art, to create the new cover.

The idea was to make not just the first two covers, but all future covers in the Tony Hooper series, consistent in basic color scheme, font style, etc. It made sense to help readers connect the dots visually.

The new cover for Forgive Me, Alex is already up at Amazon, Apple iTunes-Books, and Smashwords.

The new cover will soon be up at Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Sony, and BookieJar. Additionally, the new print versions will be available by mid-August.

I hope you like it.

Free Short Story eBooks from Author Lane Diamond

What’s that? You want a little sample, and you want it for free?

Well, all-righty then….

You can now get 3 of my short stories for FREE as eBooks at most online retailers.

PARADOX – A Short Science Fiction Adventure
FREE at Amazon , Barnes and Noble , Apple iTunes , Kobo , and everywhere eBooks are sold.

DESCRIPTION: Ted volunteered for the mission because, after all, it was just a routine trip to Mars. What could possibly go wrong?

In the deepest, darkest reaches of space, one must fill the vacuum, the void, the emptiness. Yet do we humans have the “psychological stuff” for deep space travel? If not, we may end up like Ted.

DEVANE’S REALITY – A Short Psychological Thriller
FREE at Barnes and Noble , Apple iTunes , Kobo , Smashwords , and most places eBooks are sold (still $0.99 at Amazon, though I hope it will be free there soon).

DESCRIPTION: We humans do not suffer solitude well. I long for contact—any contact. I yearn to meet a one-legged, one-armed, one-eyed, elderly gypsy woman who spends every waking minute singing show tunes with a voice like a howler monkey undergoing torture.

How does one cope with complete and utter loneliness? Imagine living in a world occupied by one – not another living creature. How could such a thing be possible? Doesn’t matter. What matters is how Lawrence Steven Devane reacts when plunged into precisely this situation.

WELL-SUITED SENTRY – A Short Horror Story
FREE at Barnes and Noble , Apple iTunes , Kobo , Smashwords , and most places eBooks are sold (still $0.99 at Amazon, though I hope it will be free there soon).

DESCRIPTION: The prison rose out of the cornfields, a concrete and steel monstrosity about as likely in this serene setting as an elephant in an igloo. The sentry couldn’t help but smile at the thought. With no one else to amuse him, to distract him, to help push his days contentedly forward, he often amused himself in such ways.

‘I’ve done my work too well,’ he thought. ‘Opportunities to spill blood are so rare these days.’

This prison sentry is unlike any other. You don’t want to cross him. Better that you should remain in your cell, follow the rules, and never get on his bad side. Transgression comes at far too high a price.

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PLEASE ENJOY! (And please leave an honest review wherever you picked up your copy. Thank you.

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Raffling-Off a Signed Hardcover of “Forgive Me, Alex” by Lane Diamond

This one is just for all you Goodreads members out there!

If you’re not a member, fear not! It’s simple to join, and it’s free.

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Goodreads Book Giveaway








Forgive Me, Alex


by Lane Diamond

Giveaway ends June 10, 2013.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

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Blogger Susan Finlay Interviews Lane Diamond of Evolved Publishing

Susan Finlay, blogger and author, interviews me at her blog today. We talk about several subjects – publishing, editing, writing – so be sure to stop by and check it out.

And don’t forget to leave a comment while you’re there.

Just click this link: Susan Finlay Writes.

Are You A Writer Looking for Helpful Writing Tips?

If so, I may have a few articles that you’ll find helpful. Just scroll down a bit and look to the middle column of this page, where it says “CATEGORIES” and has a dropdown box.

In the dropdown, select “Editor’s Desk.” Then just scroll down the list to find articles of interest to you.

As an alternative, you can simply drop a little farther down the center column, where it says “2) WRITE BETTER (ALSO SEARCH “EDITOR’S DESK” CATEGORY).” The titles of the articles there will speak for themselves.

I hope you find plenty of helpful material here. Write on!

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It’s Time To Pay More Attention To Me

Well, I have been woefully neglectful of this, my blog and website, for the past few months. In the grand scheme of priorities, it somehow found its way to the bottom of the list. I decided late last night – or perhaps I should say early this morning – that this must change.

One of things I needed to do first was ramp up my motivation, my drive, my sheer enthusiasm for my own work. So I decided to visit my Goodreads page for Forgive Me, Alex and read all those reviews. Yep, that got me pretty well fired up.

Life in general has offered a few distractions as of late, and my work at Evolved Publishing has swallowed up the rest of my time, but I’ve resolved that it’s okay to say to folks, on occasion, “Sorry, I can’t do that.” Scheduling work a little further in advance has become not just okay, it’s become a necessity if ever I’m to write my own books.

Of course, some pretty great things have happened at Evolved Publishing, including an ever-expanding team of talented individuals, a constantly-growing catalog of fine books, a Facebook Street Team that’s both supportive and great fun, and even that terrific new website we have.

Still, my second novel, The Devil’s Bane, simply refuses to write itself. The nerve! And this blog? Fuggedaboutit!

Well… until now. Yep, I’m back, and I mean to stay back if it kills me. It won’t, of course.

March Madness! Author Lane Diamond is giving away signed copies and other prizes!

Well, I’m a big fan of March Madness for the college basketball season, the arrival of spring (my birthday is the first full day of spring, the 21st), and the optimism that naturally comes from better weather. Plus, I’ll be able to hop on my bicycle and start riding again soon!

So I decided to offer up some goodies in honor of all these things.

What can you win?

1) Signed Hardcover of Forgive Me, Alex, my debut psychological thriller

2) Advance Reading Copy (electronic ARC, when it’s ready) of The Devil’s Bane, my upcoming sequel (you can even provide feedback prior to publication if you would like)

3) Have a character named for you in The Devil’s Bane, described similarly to you, sharing whatever history and traits you care to share, etc. It will be YOU… almost.

And there will be TWO WINNERS!

Participation is easy: just follow the simple instructions in the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Thank you for your participation.

a Rafflecopter giveaway