Rebecca Goings's Blog, page 4
October 27, 2010
The Scarab Prince, Book II of My Desert Princes, Has Released!
Did you fall in love with Viper? Then I invite you to fall for Scarab, one of my favorite princes from the entire series! This book is now available for purchase. Get your copy NOW!!! Qadir will NOT let you down… 
http://www.carnalpassions.com/store/product.php?id_product=61
His punishment is her pleasure…
Trianna Pramtash must be punished for her assault on the Viper Prince's intended bride. Not wishing to do so himself, the Viper gives her to his best friend, the Scarab Prince, to mete out her sentence–the one man who's held Trianna's heart since childhood.
Qadir Hadmas is overjoyed Trianna no longer belongs to the Viper. His heart broke years ago when she left Suridesh engaged to his best friend–but she never married Tariq. She belongs to him now, and he's not about to let her go.
Neither of them is prepared for the sensual delights Trianna's punishments turn out to be. Their fragile childhood bond turns into a raging inferno–one they cannot deny. But when Trianna is taken from him in a spectacular sandstorm, it is up to the Scarab Prince to claim the woman he has always wanted, and make her his in truth.
BOOK II OF DESERT PRINCES OF JIKKAR
http://www.carnalpassions.com/store/product.php?id_product=61
I hope you absolutely LOVE IT!!!
~~Becka
October 24, 2010
Random Contest for Signed Copy of CURSED HEARTS
One brother, cursed as a ghost…
Doomed to eternally walk the earth, Laith Moreland is searching for the reincarnation of his shelmir, his soul mate, in order to break his curse. He'd once loved her long ago, before she was killed in a senseless accident. But Laith's immortal twin brother has vowed to find the woman first, before Laith can claim her as his own.
One brother, cursed as a vampire…
Fueled by a jealous rage, Jareth Moreland can't think much beyond the woman he's obsessed about for centuries. That is, until he's pulled back in time to the very day he became immortal. He's been given a second chance at life, but will he redeem himself for another woman's love, or jeopardize it all by choosing the curse once more?
(This book contains both novellas HEARTS ETERNAL and HEARTS UNBOUND in print.)
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Who wants to win a FREE PRINT book of signed by Yours Truly?! YOU DO OF COURSE!! I'm holding a random contest for CURSED HEARTS, one of my older books from Samhain Publishing. It is two novellas published in an anthology, but the novellas read more like one book rather than two separate stories. You'd be lost in the second novella if you read it before the first.
Anyway, what do you have to do to be entered? REPLY TO THIS THREAD and tell me why YOU deserve to win it. BE CREATIVE! I would love to read some good reasons why I should pick you. I will announce the winner on Friday, October 29th, and I will sign it personally to the winner.
So hurry up and enter, folks! This is a great book and I just so happen to have a copy I wanna give ya. It's random! It's awesome! So enter by replying to this thread! You will only be entered once, so it doesn't matter how many times you reply. Good luck!
~~Becka
October 20, 2010
Jennifer Mathis Interviews Rebecca Goings
Jennifer Mathis won the pleasure of interviewing me in a contest held by my friend Evie Balos on her author loop. Congrats, Jennifer! Below, you'll find her questions and my answers!
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Please tell us about Black Angel, and I would usually ask what sets it apart, but when I read the blurb I was simply blown away. I have never read anything like it before 
Well thank you. It is a fantasy novella on another world, involving a hero from yet another world. He was banished from his own planet for a crime he didn't commit and hides on the heroine's world. Everyone on the heroine's world of Tegras sees him as a demon. He has obsidian black skin and leathery wings. Whenever he is discovered, he moves on before the "villagers with pitchforks" comes for his soul. LOL Only his heroine sees him as anything other than a demon–in fact, she sees him as an angel, and their love story blossoms from there.
Where did the inspiration for this book come from?
I don't really know. I've seen books with alien heroes–different than humans, and they intrigued me. I think I was first intrigued by a series with pegasus heroes, and I don't think they were shifters… I actually never read that series, but it stuck in my mind. Then I saw a book with a lizard-man alien hero. I thought whoa… and it was a best seller. Were these authors on to something?
I wanted my Alric to be just enough human to relate to him, but just enough alien to make the reader wonder if they could fall for a Genessa, too. I came across a picture of a Drow, which is an elf of the Underdark (you'd know this if you were a D&D geek). Their skin is coal black and they have white hair. Well, I didn't want the white hair, and I've always kinda loved the look of gargoyles, so that's the look I settled upon for Alric. I think it works quite well, and I was VERY pleased to see my cover artist was able to get my hero on the cover.
Can you tell us a bit about the next 3 books in your Desert Princes series?
Only the next THREE books?? It's a FIVE book series, so there's FOUR more coming down the pipeline after VIPER. We have the Scarab, who is Viper's best friend. He's been in love with Trianna since he was a boy. Unfortunately, she was engaged to the Viper for the past seven years. When the Viper marries another, Scarab sees his chance and pounces.
Falcon is in love with a blind woman, and he's not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, since his entire body is scarred due to a vicious attack in his youth. He doesn't know if he should tell her or not, since she is the only woman who isn't jaded by them. As they agree to become lovers, the Falcon learns that love is more than skin-deep, and will do what it takes to keep Zara by his side.
Spider's wife died two years ago in a horrible, senseless attack on his caravan. She'd been heavily pregnant with his heir, but now, that future is not to be. He accepts the daughter of the governor as his bride, to bear him heirs, but he will not recognize her as his princess. Only his first wife has that honor. But as the days go by, he finds himself falling in love with Amani, and he fights that longing tooth and nail out of respect for his passed wife. But then the same people who killed his princess threaten to do so again with Amani, he's got to face the fact he's in love with her, or risk losing it all again.
Jackal is the book I'm currently writing. He's been searching for the woman he wants as his princess for the past ten years. He finally finds her, but she's being pursued by an evil spirit. It rocks his caravan and destroys a few of his caravs, but he will not be moved. In a desperate bid to keep her under his god's protection, he suggests marriage, but fate has much more in store for them than a mere demon from Kaldaeron. When truths are faced head-on, the Jackal must decide if faith in his god will be enough to save the woman he loves.
Cast your characters: Who do you envision as your princes?
Heh, well, that's a hard one. Tariq is Oded Fehr from his Mummy movie days. With a full beard, however. 
Scarab would probably Robert Downey, Jr. with his Tony Stark vibe. Scarab has thick hair and a goatee, and RDJ is smokinhotsexy in the Ironman movies, so why not? Heheh
I've always pictured Falcon as Coby Bell, the guy who played Jesse Porter in Burn Notice.
Spider is harder. He has a soulpatch, however, it's not a wimpy one. Imagine… a goatee without the mustache. It's hard for me to picture an actor with his look. He's gotta be hotsexy with a side of emo. Ooo ooo, I KNOW!! Jared Padalecki from Supernatural. With a soulpatch.
Jackal is Zachary Levi from Chuck. That boy is just so cute! And seen as how the Jackal is considerably younger than the others, he fits with that "younger brother" vibe he has with the rest of the princes.
Tell us a little about you: You have written so many books and at the same time you home school five kids! How? What is your schedule like? Do you have a cape under your clothes that says Wonder Woman?
No, I don't have a cape, I pretty much just write non-stop. Well, I do stop for chores and school. But if the family isn't demanding my time, I'm in front of my computer. There's no such thing as "work hours" for me with regards to my writing. It's more of a need than a job for me. And even when I'm at my computer, most of the time is spent answering emails, promoting, or just yakking on various Yahoo loops, which is in itself a form of promotion. (Because readers tire of you pimping your books right quick). Sometimes I have a window to write in the morning, usually between 7:ooam and 9:ooam I can write. If I'm not writing, then I'm answering emails, and making the rounds. After school and chores, there's another window, between 3pm and 5:30pm I can write before the evening chores and dinner must be done. If my hubby has things to do on his computer, I might have another window from maybe 8pm until 10pm.
I rarely write THAT much, usually I'm playing online, tweeting and plotting with my crit partner. But that is my ME time, and I try to write in those windows as much as I can.
Some fantasy: Any hero from one of your books is going to come and sweep you away (hubby of course doesn't mind at all). Who is coming and where are you going with him?
It would be either the Scarab Prince or the Spider Prince. I love them both equally. Scarab would take me to his oasis and show me where his gandarang fruit grows, and Spider would enchant me with the luscious scent of his rahala blossoms at his oasis. I think… I'd probably go with the Spider Prince. I love his caravan colors of black and silver, and assuming I was taking the place of his heroine, he'd love me to distraction and only show me his tender side. The rest of the desert only sees his gruff outer exterior, but I would secretly know he's got the heart of a romantic within him. He'd take me to a feast at the governor's tent in Suridesh, then we'd make love under the light of the moons and bathe Jikkar in our colors.
And in the spirit of Halloween, what is your:
Favorite Scary movie-
The movie that freaked me out the most recently is Paranormal Activity. I prefer the toy with the mind kind of horror rather than the gory or cheap and dirty BURSTING OUT OF THE BUSHES TO DRAMATIC MUSIC! type horror.
Oh, and the best mind f–k movie of all time is The Mist. Watch it ONLY in black and white on the director's cut DVD. NO COLOR. You'll ruin the b-movie effect, and that, in essence, ruins the movie.
Favorite Halloween-ish book-
Pet Sematary by Stephen King. I remember reading that book as a teen, alone in my house, totally engrossed. Like the book didn't exist, my house didn't exist, I was IN the story, I was so engrossed. My dog came up to me and nudged my arm to tell me she had to go out and I screamed and jumped off the chair, scaring the shite outta that dog. (And myself) LOL!
Favorite Halloween Song-
Grim Grinning Ghosts by Bare Naked Ladies. I realize the song is older and they only covered it–it's the main song played in Disneyland's Haunted Mansion–but I just LOVE their version, and we've blasted it out our front windows on many a Halloween.
Favorite Halloween Cartoon-
Not really a cartoon, as much as a made for HBO kids movie called The Worst Witch. I used to love that show, with Tim Curry as the Grand Wizard, and I believe Fairuza Balk as the worst witch. I used to watch it every time it was on during October. It was cheesy, but we all need a little cheese!
I want to thank you for letting me interview you and of course I enjoyed learning more about your fabulous books!
Thank you for the interview, and congrats on winning the opportunity! I'm glad you had fun. I sure did!
~~Becka
Awesome Review for VIPER and a Wrist Update
I have been given, quite possibly, the most amazing and epic book review for THE VIPER PRINCE…well, ever. For ANY of my books, for that matter. It comes from Kiki of Two Lips Reviews. She gives VIPER five kisses and here's a few snippets of what she had to say:
"To say that I loved The Viper Prince by Rebecca Goings is an understatement. I adored this book. It had all of the components desired for a great fantasy love story: strong characters, action, adventure, a beautiful backdrop and the "Love Conquers All" theme. The imagery and descriptions Ms. Goings uses to describe the dry, desert planet of Jikkar, as well as the ensemble of characters she has assembled in The Viper Prince is amazing."
and…
"The Viper Prince is the first book in The Desert Princes of Jikkar series by Rebecca Goings. If this book is any indication of what we can expect from the others in the series, we are in for a great ride. It is definitely one of those books that you run across every once in a while that make you want to read it over and over again and recommend to all of your friends. If you love the fantasy romance genre, and it's been awhile since you have come across a book like that, you definitely will want to pick up The Viper Prince."
And that's not even half of what she said. If you'd like to read the Most Epic Book Review Ever, click here:
http://www.twolipsreviews.com/content/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5577&Itemid=36
If you're interested in TVP, click here:
http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-theviperprince-449175-143.html
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In other news, I have called my hand surgeon and scheduled a new appointment with him in two weeks. Why? Well, the pain of my arthroscopy in July is completely gone, and yet my wrist still hurts. I don't have to wear my brace 24/7 anymore, and I would TOTALLY do the arthroscopy again. It took away a lot of my wrist pain. But I've always known my wrist hurt in two places. My doctor wanted me to wait until my surgery pain was completely gone before seeing him again, IF I was hurting. I didn't need to follow up unless I had pain.
Well, now, my pain is still on the outside of my wrist, right over my ulna bone. The pain goes up into my hand near my pinky, and when it really hurts, radiates down to my elbow. My doctor believes I have Extensor Carpi Ulnaris Tenosynovitis. The treatments are rest, splinting, anti-inflammatory meds, and if those fail, cortisone. But since all those options were already exhausted with my TFCC treatment (and the cortisone didn't work), he mentioned at my last visit that if it doesn't go away that he would need to take "more aggressive measures".
In looking online, the next step after all of the above is… surgery. Of course, my doc didn't come out and SAY surgery and I should have called him on it. For all I know, I just need some PT to get things right as rain in there.
Then again, I've already SEEN a physical therapist back in February for about 4 weeks. And that didn't help either.
So, where does that leave me? I dunno. I made an appointment today, and I see him in two weeks, on November 3rd. Like many of you who've emailed me privately, I'm torn between wanting my hand to feel better, and feeling like my pain isn't "bad" enough to rationalize surgery. But I think my pain is lessened by a few facts.
First, I'm used to it. It's almost been a year. If I was fine yesterday and then suddenly had this pain, would I call it "not bad enough"? I don't know.
Second, I've altered my habits to lessen my pain. I carry my laundry differently. My pots and pans. The milk. I've learned how not to tweak myself.
And third, my hand only hurts when I use it. This might sound kind of funny, but I do sit a lot. I type on my computer and I homeschool my kids and watch TV with the family at night. But any "use" of my hand, chores, errands, driving…flares it up. So sure, I'm at rest a lot, and that might give the illusion of "not bad enough", but it doesn't count.
What does it feel like? Burning at times. Tightness at others. Fatigue definitely. Weakness. Diffuse pain radiating into my hand and up to my elbow, but not a nerve pain. My hand doesn't fall asleep, there's no sharp pain. Mostly my wrist tweaks during supination (palm toward the ceiling). And wearing my brace doesn't really help it anymore. Neither does taking drugs, really.
What is the surgery if I need it? Tendon release. They'll go in and cut the inflamed sheath of my tendon, releasing it to glide without pain. Kind of like the surgery for Carpal Tunnel, but on the outside of your wrist/arm. What is the recovery? Four weeks in a full arm cast (or full arm splint) and physical therapy afterward to regain strength.
Joy of effing joys. I'll keep you updated after my doctor visit.
~~Becka
October 17, 2010
Champagne Books & Carnal Passions Submission Call
Permission to Forward Granted
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Carnal Passions – we are in need of m/m and m/f novellas and BDSM at the moment. We are also accepting other genres for our erotic imprint.
Champagne Books – we are in need of Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Western Historical, Contemporary Romance, Paranormal and Steampunk at the moment. We are also accepting other genres for this imprint.
For both imprints, we are looking for something unique in the vampire sub genre. We are not looking for manuscripts that closely resemble the Twilight series.
Judy Gill is our Acquisitions Manager. Please put in your cover letter that you are responding to the submissions call put out by me.
Champagne Books and Carnal Passions are e-book publishers. Please check out our submission guidelines. www.champagnebooks.com www.carnalpassions.com
From the Desk of
Kat Hall
Executive Assistant to Ms. Smith (Publisher)
Review Coordinator
Author Liaison
www.champagnebooks.com
www.carnalpassions.com
www.thewritersvineyard.com
October 16, 2010
Somebody Stop Me!
I don't know what's wrong with me, folks, but ever since my birthday, I've had an obsession with nail polish. I got a couple of gift certificates to Amazon, and I thought I would use them to buy some eBooks. And I did. But the rest of the cards were used to buy nail polish.
I love painting my toenails. I can't stand my naked toes, but I usually hate painting them because it's such a chore, and I hate going to the salon because it's money I could spend elsewhere. I do get mani's and pedi's every now and again, but most of the time, I don't like the colors they have on the wall.
And I don't paint my fingernails because I work so much with my hands typing and doing housework that they chip all the time, usually within 24 hours of painting them, and let's not even TALK about drying time. Color on my toes would stay on until the cows came home, but keeping paint on my nails? Fuggettaboudit!
Well, that's all changed. I've found that the nicer a nail polish is, the longer it will stay on your nails. And yes, by "nicer", I mean more expensive than the cheap $1 – $2 polishes we're wooed into buying. And a lot of the time, if you have a great topcoat, your manicure will stay on longer as well.
I haven't been in the "polish" business long, I've always had about 7 colors I really liked. A few glitters, a nice lavender, a black, and a couple of pinks. Maybe a red. Now, I have over 30. It's boomed in under a MONTH. Already, I have favorite nail polish lines. I LOVE Orly and O.P.I. They go on my nail and they STAY on my nail without chipping. I currently have Orly's Fantasea on my fingers for the past 48 hours. No chipping. I have Orly's Flagstone Rush on my toes. It's gorgeous!
Recently, I bought almost all of the creme polishes in OPI's Burlesque line. There is a glitter from that line I still want to get. Here are a nail polish reviewer's swatches on this line:
I also just bought China Glaze's Halloween collection called "Awakenings":
http://beautopia.onsugar.com/China-Glaze-Awakening-Collection-Halloween-2010-10702555
I've also bought Space Cadet from Orly's Cosmic FX line:
http://www.alllacqueredup.com/2010/08/orly-cosmic-fx-fall-2010-collection-swatches-review.html
I'm also getting Galaxy Girl and Out of This World.
I keep telling myself I only have ten fingers and ten toes. When am I going to wear all of this polish? Then again, I don't wear make-up unless it's a special occasion, so nail polish makes me feel pretty. Besides, I just ordered Orly's Sec N'Dry top coat and I have my hair dryer at the ready to make drying a … forgive me … BREEZE!
I need to get off of these nail polish review sites. Now, I want OPI's Extra-Va-Vaganza and Orly's Rage. And does SOMEBODY have a MAC Bad Fairy that doesn't cost $30?!?
GACK! SOMEBODY STOP ME! lol
~~Becka
October 14, 2010
My Author Loop has Moved!
Where? Back to Yahoo!
If you'd like to come yak with me and my readers, please come and join me in the new and improved The Magic of Romance Yahoo Group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/themagicofromance
Google's deleting their files and pages section, as well as their custom welcome messages, essentially trimming their groups to nothing more than a mailing list. Since I want more customization, a move back to Yahoo was the right thing to do. Now, we can post in the files section, have photo albums, hold polls, and mark appearances on our calendar – with reminder emails to the whole group!
Come and play with me, my readers, and my fellow author friends on my new shiny author loop!
~~Becka
October 12, 2010
Would You Like the Chance to Interview Me?
My friend Evie Balos is holding a contest on her loop for you to enter and win a chance to interview either of us! I've never been the prize to a contest before. LOL
If you'd like to enter for a chance to ask me some questions you've always wanted to know, join her loop here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eviebalos/
The contest officially begins October 14th. Good luck to you!
~~Becka
October 10, 2010
Highlights of Becka's Birthday Bash – B3 2010
This year was my 6th annual Becka's Birthday Bash, or as I like to call it, B3 (for the 3 B's. lol) It was the BEST one yet. I want to thank all the authors and readers who took part. Not only did you read some awesome guest blogs right here on my website, but we were partying on Twitter and Facebook, and also on my author loop.
We learned about a LOT of new books, new authors, and I gave away two copies of BLACK ANGEL, a copy of MARK OF THE B*E*A*S*T*, a copy of THE VIPER PRINCE, and a promise of a copy of THE SCARAB PRINCE when it's released later this month.
I partied at my own chat at Champagne Books in their chat room, I had fun at The Romance Studio's party blog, I partied with my Cobblestone buddies at the Talking Two Lips Yahoo Group, and I even partied with my book heroes on Twitter. In short, it pretty much ruled. Needless to say, if you missed it…. :'(
However, after doing six B3′s, I have come to the conclusion that next year's Bash will be different. It will be a Big Blog Block party. For the first time, B3 will be focused on author blogs, bringing traffic to each other's website instead of making people sign up for a Google Group or Facebook or Twitter. Any wandering reader or author, with or without a blog, can play with us that way, and I have a few great ideas.
A free read (or maybe more than one), broken into chapters that are scattered among the participating authors' blogs. If a reader wants to read chapter two, they go to the next author's blog. Chapter three is on another blog and so on. Interview questions will be the same way, we can each interview each other, and write guest blogs on each other's sites. We can do a scavenger hunt and hold our own contests.
AND, B3 will only be THREE days in 2011, instead of an entire week. As much fun as this year's party was, there was definite lags here and there, as some people had posted all their excerpts, others didn't have anything to talk about, some of them were busy at work, others had obligations or real life intruded. Which is totally fine! But I think having a short and sweet party is better than a long one, as it keeps people's attention better. AND, I think if we have scheduled author days, there shouldn't be any lag at all.
B3 2011 will be held October 4th, 5th, and 6th, a Tues-Wed-Thurs, 24 hours a day, whenever you can post. If you'd like to sign up now, you can, or pencil it onto next year's calendar. But I just wanted to give you a head's up as to the change of plans for the 7th Annual B3 shindig next year.
Thank you, everyone, for an awesome birthday party!
~~Becka
October 8, 2010
B3 Day Five – FINAL GUEST BLOG #7 – Michael Davis
Fictional Heart strings
I was having a cup a coffee the other day when a female friend ventured by, tapped me on the shoulder, and continued to the counter to get her own mug of brew. For simplicity, let's call her Joy. On her return passage by my table, Joy seat down across from me, and began to chat. I love it when my local friends and acquaintances offer idle chit chat. Joy is a sweet but mysterious young lady. She coveys a unique reflection about life and all its complexities. Behind those green eyes resides a spark and compassion that is missing in many of today's lost souls. Finally she came to a topic we often discuss, my books. You see, she loves to read my stories. I'm not sure whether it's because she really likes them or because I'm the only author she knows.
Anyway, she began to ask about a character in a particular story (TAINTED HERO) and discuss how touched she was at what happened to this particular person. Then she caught me off guard with the question, "Isn't it hard to do that?" I smiled with pride, "A little." Joy continued. "I thought so. I'm not sure I could do that. I thing I'd be crying over the keyboard." Then I realized the insight of this young women's inquiry. She wasn't asking about the creativity process; she was probing into the nature of people to empathize with the plight of others, even if they were some fictional character that was conjured from their own mind. And she was right. I remembered back to when I struggled with that particular scene. I was moved, not to tears, but my throat actually tightened and I wanted to reach through the screen and help the character, and especially to strangle the villain. I was so moved, I actually changed the outcome. In my original outline the female character died, but I was so struck by her and all she had gone through, I couldn't deal with losing her. She still suffered, but she survived.
Then I realized I had experienced this same heartstring relationship with fictional characters in all my stories. I guess they became so real I empathized with their plight. I know it sounds weird to be moved by a scene evolving out of your own head, but I really do. Some stories more then others, but always to some degree. Maybe that's why I enjoy that first breath of the story when I initially create the scenes, and see it happening for the first time. I remember in one story (Shadow of Guilt) I was moved to such a degree, I literally had to stop and go outside to split some wood and relieve my anguish. The character was suffering so deeply, her path in life so sad, I couldn't stand it.
I know that's strange, especially for a big guy, and I'm not a wussy, but don't most of us choke up when we see another human suffering. In this case I hated the outcome of the story, but I couldn't change it. It was what the novel was all about. Without her history, what this poor girl experienced, you had no Shadow of Guilt.
I'm curious if other authors encounter this same heartstring response when their fictional characters undergo pain and sorrow. Or maybe it's just me. Perhaps I need to get some testosterone injections to reaffirm my guyhood. My wife always did say I was too emotional (g).
