Terra Harmony's Blog, page 10

Cover Reveal!

I've been holding on to this one for a while, and I am soooo excited to finally be doing my cover reveal.  Props to the cover designer, Keary Taylor. You can see my interview with her here.

And now, bask in the glory that is 'Air' *imagine choir music here*

And, if you are not sufficiently basked – you may continue to bask in the glory that is 'Water' *more choir music*:

 

 

Now a mixed symphony:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, yes.  They're very similar.  It's called branding.  When you see one of my book covers, I want you to know it's from me!  For a fun, quick read on how 'Water' came to be, see my blog post titled Mormons, Vagina's and Cover Art.

'Air' will be available for purchase within one month on Amazon, B&N and Smashwords.  If you have read 'Water', and are interested in an ARC of 'Air' to review, let me know!  In 'Air', while Kaitlyn continues to carry her secret, Micah must work to prove himself to her and Shawn turns his depopulation theory into a plan.

Stay tuned for my book trailer to 'Water', where I totally exploit the cover!  You'll see how – follow my blog via e-mail so you don't miss a thing!

See?! Dreams Can Come True!

Tomorrow is the cover reveal of the next book in the Akasha Series, 'Air'.  But for today, an interview with Air's cover designer, Keary Taylor.  I am so excited to be interviewing Keary, she is a very talented graphic artist and indie author.  She created the button on the right, by the way – feel free to grab it! Keary recently released some exciting news that more than trumps my cover reveal – and I couldn't be happier for her!  Keary is an indie author of the paranormal romance 'Fall of Angels' trilogy and the post-apocalyptic thriller 'Eden'.  Now on to the news:

Q: Ok, I'll just come out with it.  The film and TV rights to 'Eden' were just negotiated.  Wha- what?!  Talk about every author's dream – or many author's dreams, anyway.  How are you not bouncing off the walls right now?  Tell us how this whole thing came about!

Haha, it certainly is beyond exciting!  I was contacted by KK&P on November 1st so I had to keep everything a secret for over a month!  But yeah, Kami Garcia (co-author of Beautiful Creatures/producer) read Eden, loved it, passed it to Mark Morgan (producer of Twilight and Percy Jackson) and he loved it too.  So they contacted me, said they wanted to represent Eden for film.  We went through some contract stuff and here we are!  And amazingly enough, KK&P wasn't the only production company to contact me about Eden!

Q: When did you first self-publish Eden?

In June of this year.

Q:  For us author types, what marketing strategies worked best?

You have to be pretty smart about your advertising.  Whenever I have a new book come out, I send ARC's to book bloggers and do a bunch of interviews and giveaways.  I also promote on Goodreads.com as well as Facebook ads.  Sometimes, you just get lucky I think and things take off.

Q: For us reader types, what can we look for from you next?

I just finished the first draft of a YA contemporary I'm hoping to release in the spring (I'll be doing an announcement of the title and cover on my blog probably around the same time this interview goes up).  After that I have a science fiction I plan on working on.

Q: Will you send me an autograph movie poster of 'Eden', you know – when you have hit it big?

Haha, we'll talk when it gets to that point

Q: Ok – on to your graphic talents.  You've done an amazing job with your covers, my covers, and many other indie author covers.  Here are a few (more can be seen on Keary's design page):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've gotta say, 'Awakening' is my favorite out of the bunch – after 'Water', of course! Does design come naturally to you?  Do you have professional training in graphic design?  How did you learn the trade?  Is this a part of the 'job' you really enjoy?

I guess you could say it comes naturally to me.  When I started reading so much, I really started paying attention to covers, picking out things I really liked about certain ones.  I have to admit, I don't have any professional training.  When I started self-publishing I just started playing around in Photoshop and watching different tutorials and just picked it up!  I loved it!  And so I started offering other authors to do it for them and soon I had people coming to me!  I don't know if I'd call the graphic design a "job".  While I do make a bit of money from it, I mostly do it for fun and to help other authors out.

Q: Tell us your thoughts on the importance of book covers.

Oh man, I can't stress enough how important a good cover is.  Being an independent author is hard enough without a bad cover working against you too.  A cover is what people see first and even though they say "don't judge a book by its cover" people always do.

Q: Have you ever won any awards for your graphic work?

None that I know of, lol.  But I do get a lot of compliments and the cover for my book Eden was listed on a TON of best of 2011 covers.

Q: And back to the film rights for 'Eden' (because I just can't stop thinking about it).  What are the next steps?  Is there a timeline?  What info can you give us?

I really can't say too much right now.  There should be some more news to share in the next six months or so.  As of right now it's about getting a screenplay done, looking for actors, and studios.  It is certainly exciting though!  A total dream come true.

A big thanks to Keary for doing the interview and an even bigger thanks for all my great covers!  Please check back in tomorrow to see her masterpiece!

About Keary:

Keary Taylor grew up in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains where she started creating imaginary worlds and daring characters who always fell in love. She now resides on a tiny island in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and their two young children. She continues to have an overactive imagination that frequently keeps her up at night. She is the author of BRANDED, FORSAKEN, VINDICATED, AFTERLIFE (Fall of Angels series), and EDEN. To learn more about Keary and her writing process, please visit http://kearytaylor.com.

Flash Fiction – One Less

This week's flash fiction is a snippet from 'Air, Book Two of the Akasha Series' to be released next month.  Kaitlyn, the main character, and Vayu, a wind elemental I introduce at the beginning of the book, are sent to battle a manmade fire:

 

A thick wall of flame came into view. Vayu stopped. "Here. This is the front of the fire."

He turned to me and I realized how wildly unprepared I actually was. Wind was the most unpredictable of elements, the most difficult to control. I hadn't had much practice with it.

Vayu was able to read my face. "I don't have time to teach you, but we can do this one of two ways. You can either feed me energy or you can try to copy what I do as best as you can."

It didn't take me long to choose, remembering what happened to Micah last time he willingly gave me his energy. "I'll try it on my own."

Vayu scrutinized me for a moment, trying to judge my abilities as if he could by just looking at my face.

I frowned. He hadn't seen any of what I could do. "Vayu – Micah wouldn't have left me if he didn't think I could handle it."

Vayu accepted my reasoning. In a weird sort of circle pattern, that in turn gave me more confidence. Amazing how Micah could change things without even being there. Vayu took a deep breath in, and flows of energy left his body as he exhaled. It was an all-encompassing net that went out from his body. The net expanded, retracted, and grew thicker or thinner at Vayu's will. I felt it letting air through in some places and blocking it in others. The net quickly grew to the left and right of us, expanding beyond my sight. Somehow Vayu knew what to do in the places he couldn't see.

Following his lead, I took a deep breath in and immediately sputtered on the smoke. Vayu spared a sideways glance at me but kept most of his focus on the job at hand.

I thought back to all the other times I had used my powers. I had either drawn energy from within myself, drawn energy from another element, or used raw emotion to conjure weather. I decided I couldn't draw energy from within and risk my baby; it was the least I could do as a mother. I also lacked any significant emotion, barring the fear building up in the pit of my stomach. I had never really operated on fear before. It was anyone's guess how the elements would react.

I closed my eyes and concentrated on the elements around me. Water was obviously in short supply, the air was tainted and I didn't want to interfere with Vayu's element. That left fire and earth. Could I possibly draw energy from the very element I was trying to defeat? I shrugged my shoulders.

"Why the hell not?" The fire was far too loud for Vayu to hear me. Good – the less crazy he thought I was the better.

I began, this time without taking a deep breath, and started to draw energy from the fire. I worked gingerly through Vayu's net. Before the energy returned through the net to me, I shifted its direction and in the process it simply converted itself to wind. Perhaps it was following my will or even Vayu's example. I directed the wind more over the fire than around it, quelling what flame I could and cooling the entire area.

"Good," Vayu called over the noise. "That is helping – very good."

He looked surprised, and I smiled. I liked surprising people, as long as it was with my skill and not the lack thereof. I continued to concentrate on my wind, cooling down the fire and occasionally letting a gust blow over the top of Vayu's net to cool us down.

We were making progress. The evidence was in the blackened landscape left behind as the fire was pushed back. We moved constantly, to the sides, and forward, following the fire. Suddenly, several loud bursts to our left shocked us from our concentration. A small grove of trees had succumbed to the fire and were literally exploding into flames, one right after another.

"Move your wind to only that area," Vayu yelled.

I refocused my efforts as Vayu's net grew more intense. I worked for what seemed like hours, no longer sparing wind to cool us down. I was drained. Hopefully the fire was experiencing the same effect.

A strong wind on our right caught me off guard and nearly blew me over with such a force that it could only be described as malicious.

"What are you doing?" I yelled at Vayu.

"Not me – when a fire gets too hot it creates weather of its own."

Despite the heat, chills crawled up my back. We were no longer fighting just a fire; it was a living, breathing monster. A crafty one, at that. The fire's weather pushed quickly through Vayu's net on our right and we angled our bodies to combat it. We had to move backwards to avoid being singed ourselves. Now we were on the losing side of the battle.

We were pushed backwards into burnt terrain.

Something caught us from behind and we both ended up on the ground.

Vayu recovered faster. "Damn log." He got up quickly and rebuilt his net.

"Vayu." I swallowed hard, not moving. "It's not a log."

"What?" He shouted down at me without looking.

"It's a person." I sat, frozen for a moment, then finally shuffled around the charred body and looked for signs of life. The hair was mostly burned off leaving only sporadic patches of fuzz, but judging by the size of the body and width of the shoulders, it was a man. He was lying on his stomach, his head turned toward me. Finally his back rose slightly, a shallow, somewhat regular breathing pattern.

"Is it Shawn?" Vayu asked, not able to spare a glance down at the body.

I looked at his face, and shook my head. "No."

The man's eyes, probably the only unscathed part of his body, were a light brown, not Shawn's icy blue stare. Strange as the stare was. There was too much white. His eyelids were almost completely burned off. Bile rose in my throat.

He began to gurgle in an effort to say something.

I whispered back though he probably couldn't hear me, "Shhh…..don't say anything. I'll get you help." I touched his shoulder gently and bits of something flaked off. I couldn't tell if it was skin or clothing. The entire body was either black or red; he wasn't going to make it no matter what I did. I felt physically ill. I looked at him again and mouthed the words 'I'm sorry'.

Recognition flashed in his eyes. I believe I had just been so kind as to help him realize his own death was close at hand. I lay down next to him, oblivious of the fire around us. The least I could do was stay with him until the end. Vayu was yelling something, but my priorities were clear. I wasn't a Gaia right then, nor was I Kaitlyn. I was simply the last connection this man would have in his life, or this life, anyway.

Vayu, still yelling, rustled around in the pack on my back for something. My body jerked as his search became more frantic.

The man resumed his attempts to speak, despite my insistence he lay still. I leaned in closer, trying to interpret a phrase he said over and over. Only two words in the garbling were comprehensible, and they were enough to freeze me in place. "One less, one less."

He began shifting his body and grunting; I couldn't subdue him with my hands for fear of causing more damage. Finally he leaned away from me, pulling out a bag from underneath the blanket. It was shiny; possibly fireproof. Inside the bag was a thick, neatly bound document. He must have been protecting the document while sacrificing his own body. The white pages were a stark contrast to the blackened earth below and his charred hand. He pushed the document feebly toward me. He left streaks of ash behind on the pristine paper as he pulled his hand away. On the cover was one simple symbol, the same symbol worn on my shoulder as a permanent scar of Shawn's doing.Suspicions confirmed, my body went numb. The charred man smiled. "I was chosen to be one less." Triumph and self-importance emanated from him. His smile, no matter how much it anguished him to do so, was the last thing I saw.

 

So there you have it. Now is your chance to let me know what you think; before I release 'Air'! Please leave a comment!

Flash Fiction – Out of Their Element

I'm taking a break this week from the Akasha Series characters, and delving into something that has been in my head for a while.  I have to get it out for sanity's sake.  This is a possible first chapter for a new series I will undertake after completing the Akasha Series.  Let me know what you think!

 

Serena turned the corner of the thin, rocky path.  Her shoes slid along the pebbles almost sending her head first into the trees.  "Damn things!  Why would humans wear these?"

She looked behind her.  There was time, the beast wasn't yet in her sight.  She quickly slipped the shoes off, and began running again.  The beast took the corner too fast as well.  As soon as she heard skidding, she turned and threw one of her shoes.  Miss.  The beast scrambled to get his legs under him and lunged for her.  She threw the other shoe.  Nailed him in the nose.  Serena laughed out loud, and resumed her steady running pace.  "I thought werewolves were faster than this!"

She had no idea if he could understand speech in his animal form, but he was no doubt enraged.  His growls told her so.  The noise scared off any other animals close by, plunging the forest into silence.  Besides the beast, the repetitive waves in the distant ocean was the only other sound.

Her legs brushed past the sharp, thick shrubbery outlining the path.  Shallow cuts crisscrossed over her otherwise smooth, white skin.  She looked down at the trickles of blood.  Good, she thought, at least I'll get a few battle scars out of it.

Next to come off was her shirt.  She threw it behind her, only stopping to watch the beast tear madly at his own face, where the shirt landed.  She quickly stepped out of her jeans, but had to throw them backwards over her head as she ran.  The beast was on the move again.  He dodged the pair of pants, finally learning what to expect.  Stupid mutt.

She breathed in deeply, putting her lungs to work, and smiled.  Never had she felt so free, so reckless as tonight.  Pursued by werewolf in unknown territory in nothing but her own skin.  How was she going to top this adventure?

No matter.  She would find a way.  Serena always did.  She broke the tree line at her fastest pace yet, soft sand greeting her feet and slowing her down.  The wolf was close, she could smell his foul breath.  The thing snapped at her, almost reaching the tresses of her long, curly, brown and gold hair.  Some of the werewolves' spit flung forward onto her shoulder.  "Ew!"

The beast was faster on the sand.  Serena did not expect that.  The greedy thing didn't even wait until he had a sure kill.  He swiped at her as soon as the long reach of his paw was close enough.  The gash caused Serena to falter, and she stumbled in the sand.  Taking care to avoid the yellow razor-like gnashing teeth, Serena rolled.  The beast rolled with her, unwilling to let go of his prey.  In the split second he was on top, Serena pushed up and out with her powerful legs.  The werewolf yelped as he spun, head over tail, into the waves.

Rough waves toppled over the beast as he struggled to get on his feet.  The water pushed and pulled, becoming stronger and stronger, as if it were working against the werewolf.  Sabrina laughed again, delighted to see the mighty creature out of his element.  He dragged himself out of the water, weighed down by his thick, matted fur and gasping for breath.  Sabrina walked by, keeping a wary eye on him.  Welcoming waves reached out to her, drawing her into their frothy grip.

Having recovered, the werewolf shook his fur, ridding himself of the salty sea water.  He looked out into the ocean, and spotted his prey bobbing up and down with the waves, well beyond his reach.  He turned his head toward the moon and howled in mourning.

It was an ear-piercing noise.  Serena couldn't understand why the lot of them hadn't been put down centuries ago.  She flicked her freshly formed fins, spraying water onto the hound, effectively cutting off his pathetic cry.

She smiled, but was already longing for more adventure.  Serena said goodbye to the world and turned, flinging her body up then down again, diving into the cold, dark water.  Gills took over for her lungs as she dove deeper and deeper, returning to familiarity and routine, to her home…to her prison.

So there you have it – I am sane once again.  Comments always welcome!

Twitterview-ing and Resolute-ing; Talk about Multitasking!

(INSERT NEW YEAR'S BOOK-ISH PHOTO HERE)

Yes, blogs should be pretty and eye-catching, but I haven't the patience for internet image hunting to find just the right picture for this post.  So insert your own, damn you.

A quick note to announce a few things – then next week I'll be back to more author interviews, book blogger guest posts and free flash fiction.

Note #1: Catch my first 'twitter-view' on Monday 10 AM EST with Claudia Hall Christian, author of the Alex the Fey series and organizer of  #bookmarketchat.  As I was recently educated, a twitterview is a twitter interview (hmm, clever) consisting of 3 – 5 questions.  Don't expect too much as I am not known for being a quick thinker – which is why I am a writer.

Note #2:  Air, the second book to The Akasha Series is in editing and due for release in February!  Or later, depending on how the edits come back.

Note #3: Speaking of pretty pictures, the book cover for 'Air' is already done, and I can't be more excited!  There is nothing more motivating to finish up the book than seeing a final cover copy, as if the thing were already published.  I'll be doing the big cover reveal later in January after a ramp-up consisting of an interview with Keary Taylor, the cover designer, and a few other 'cover' fanatic guest posts.

Ok, so that was three quick notes.  Happy New Year's to all – hopefully 2012 brings you the best life has to offer – or better!  At least that is what I'm shooting for.  I've already resoluted it…

Flash Fiction – Depopulation

Merry Christmas – and a big welcome to all of my new followers!  In addition to book review blogger interviews and fantasy author guest posts, my blog features once a week (ish) short stories based on characters from my books.  This week's short story includes Shawn, the antagonist of The Akasha Series, as a younger boy.  I try to keep the short stories at flash fiction length (1,000 words or less).  Please feel free to comment or e-mail me directly – I could always use the feedback!

 

At first, they had been plentiful.  Tiny specks of concentrated energy – each one of them so dense they could be seen with the naked eye, like specks of dust visible in the sun's rays.  Shawn collected them, willing them to group together, building a wall around the old man standing across from him.  But now they were fewer, and so transparent they could only be felt, not seen.

They were also no longer cooperating, many floated away from the mass, compromising the strength of the wall.  The purpose was to block Cato, the old man, from being able wield magic.

"Pay attention, son.  Your creation comes from synching yourself with nature.  Shields are not built by sheer willpower."  Cato lectured the 10 year-old boy, who had been at the exercise for the better part of an hour.  Sweat poured down the boy's forehead as he furrowed his eyebrows in concentration.  If walls were built with willpower, Cato wouldn't have a chance.

Cato smiled, forcing air into the flimsy block Shawn had constructed.  Once the air tunnels had penetrated even the smallest pores, he pushed bits of earth through the tunnels with a burst of speed, effectively blowing apart everything Shawn had constructed.

Shawn's frustrated growl made Cato laugh out loud.  "How did you do that?"  Shawn asked.

"Think of it like overpopulation.  Just as the Earth cannot handle a limitless amount of humans, neither can your wall handle a limitless amount of force.  Now – try again.  This time, concentrate on the purity of your energy."

Shawn took a sip from his water bottle and threw it aside.  He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his shirt, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes – centering himself just as Cato had taught him.  He drew energy again, attempting to build a wall around Cato's magical abilities, molecule by molecule.  This time he packed them in tighter, giving his structure a sturdy base.

"Good, good," Cato commented.  "Soon you will be able to practice with the Gaia herself.  Your manipulation of her magical abilities will include strengthening it, altering it or even blocking it when necessary."

Shawn fell into a rhythm.  Slowly but surely, the wall was beginning to rise.  It soon became boring, monotonous work.  His thoughts fell to the overpopulation comment Cato made.  "If humans are destroying the planet, because of how many of us there are – why don't we just make it so there are less of us?"  Shawn asked.

Cato turned a wary eye to the 10 year-old boy, "What do you mean, son?"

"I mean, maybe there should just be less people."  Shawn continued constructing his wall, brick by brick.

Cato wasn't sure he should pursue the subject, but he had felt guilty – having spent all his time with the two new children he adopted three weeks ago.  He at least owed it to the boy to treat his ideas with respect; owed him a serious conversation.  "How would you propose we go about doing that?"

Shawn took his time answering.  In the past when he had brought up the subject, he had been either brushed off or rebuked.  "Well, population control, for one.  Like China does.  One kid per family."

Cato nodded his head, "A valid point."  Shawn's wall had completely enclosed Cato from the ground up to his knees.  He could still knock it down, but the boy needed to practice.  "Religion poses a problem.  Many religions preach that faith equals fertility.  Going against such a fundamental belief is not a good idea – even if your original intentions are to save the planet.  Not many will be on your side.  You would alienate our organization from the majority of the population."

"Religion isn't all bad – I mean, look at all the wars started because of religious differences.  That got rid of some of the population," said Shawn.

"You've been paying attention in your history lessons!  Good boy!"  Cato ruffled Shawn's hair, choosing to ignore the darker implications of Shawn's thought.  Shawn had suddenly picked up speed with his wall – it was now closing over Cato's chest.

Encouraged, Shawn continued.  "Governments spend so much money on disaster efforts, sick people, old people.  Why don't they just, you know, stop doing that?  Might help with population numbers."

"Most certainly.  But then you are telling people to ignore one of the very traits that define humanity – compassion."  Cato uttered the last word with uncertainty.  He pushed a small amount of energy into the wall.  Impenetrable.  The boy learned quickly.  Slowly, the wall began closing in; squeezing Cato like a sinister hug.

"But it is compassion, because you are saving the Earth – making it a better place for humans and in the end even saving people," Shawn said.

Cato tried taking a deep breath, but the squeezing was too intense.  Even though Shawn's wall was invisible to the naked eye, it was as solid, and as real – as steal.  They boy's magic, as well as the conversation, were treading dangerous ground.  It was true that many considered this course of action, but they also understood the implications – and why such a practice could not be pursued.

"Shawn – I think you are missing the point."  Cato was having more and more difficulty talking as the wall snaked around him.  "The Seven exists to protect and help the Earth.  Those of us that have been blessed with the ability to manipulate elements and energy must do our best to counter the harmful effects of the human population.  We are not here to counter the human population itself."

"Well, maybe we should."  Shawn completed the wall; it surrounded Cato like a claustrophobic igloo.  The two stood there, still as ice – one by choice, the other not so much.

Cato was taking in short, constricted breaths, "To what end?  Why then, would we be saving the Earth?  Who would be here to enjoy it?"

Suddenly, the wall disintegrated.  Shawn released his adoptive father and said, "You know – the rest of us.  Whoever is left."

Cato resisted the urge to brush off of the non-existent wall debris.  "No.  The answer is no.  We will all abide by the mission of the organization – and the mission is not depopulation."

Completely unnerved by the entire experience, Cato picked up his gym bag and walked away, mumbling excuses of the work awaiting him.

Shawn watched him go.  "Then maybe we need a new organization."

 

What did you think?  Contact me or comment and let me know! 

Want to read more?  Check out my contemporary eco-fantasy, Water: Book One of the Akasha Series.

Celebrate Who You Are – Guest Post by A.F. Stewart

A.F. Stewart is a fantasy author and blogger.  From Nova Scotia, Canada, she has  several published books including Chronicles of the Undead, a horror novella, as well as short fiction collections, Killers and Demons, Once Upon a Dark and Eerie…, Passing Fancies and Inside Realms.  Her interests include history, painting, and sword replicas.  Stewart writes about loving the fantasy and sci-fi genres:

 

I'm a fantasy/sci-fi geek and have been for most of my life.  I can quote the original Star Wars, my favourite show is Supernatural, I think Batman is the best superhero, I've been a admirer of Neil Gaiman since he wrote the Sandman series and my bookshelves are lined with pages of fictional fantasy worlds.  To me, fantasy and its sibling genres of sci-fi and horror are about ideas that could be, questions hiding beyond your sight and wondrous possibilities.

I've always loved reading fantasy in any form, so when I decided to pursue writing seriously those tales came naturally to my pen.  I suppose somewhere in the back of my head I wanted to be a part of that community because those were the stories that showed me what magic exists in the written word.  Any honour roll listing the authors that inspired me would include such extraordinary writers as Guy Gavriel Kay, Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller, Harlan Ellison, and Ray Bradbury.  Their words showed me the way to a whole new and remarkable universe.

Therefore, once I started blogging it's no wonder I plastered both my blogs with genre specific book reviews, author interviews and general geeky commentary.  I learned early how to chatter on regarding the intricacies and luminary brilliance of the fantasy/sci-fi genres and I put that talent to good use for my posts.  What began as a hesitant experiment in my own book promotion expanded into a minor showcase center for indie speculative fiction and a second side blog for me to occasionally rant about my preferred TV shows and movies.

And I think that is the best part of having these platforms to spotlight my passions.  I love finding a gem of a fantasy book (like my recent read of On Dark Shores by JA Clement) or expounding giddy about my fave show, Supernatural.  Sometimes it's almost a compulsion, such as what happened after watching the Neil Gaiman penned (I bet you can tell by now I'm a big fan of Neil Gaiman) episode of Dr. Who.   I enjoyed that particular episode so much I immediately had to write a review; it took me about twenty minutes to finish.  Sometimes you have to go with the flow.

I guess the moral to this tale (if there is a moral and I haven't just been rambling again) is to celebrate who you are and, oh, that Geeks Rule!

 

Cheers to that!  : )  Visit Stewart's blogs at: http://afstewartblog.blogspot.com/ and  http://afstewartpromotion.blogspot.com/

  

Jennifer is a Junkie

Jennifer is a junkie – a book junkie.  She runs a book review blog called 'Can't Put it Down' with close to 1,000 followers.  I love this lady – although I may be a little bias considering the glowing review she gave for both 'Water' and 'Gleaming White'.  Find out for yourself what all the hoopla is about:

Q:  To start off, would you mind regaling us with the story of how your blog came to be?

Back in June, I had sent a message to author Tim O'Rourke on Goodreads regarding one of his books. After I had written a review he sent me a message that he had been following my reviews and that I should start a review blog. I was a little hesitant at first because I had tried keeping a blog for my family life but had a hard time coming up with anything to write about that family didn't already know from my Facebook posts! I gave it a try and with almost 8,000 page views I haven't looked back since!

Q:  Tell us more!  What's in it for your blog followers?

Blog followers get sneak peaks into upcoming books.  I run lots of giveaways, and of course the scoop on the best books out there!  I also try to make things easy-peasy for my followers so I include the purchase links to the top three e-book vendors (Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Smashwords) and have just started including the purchase price!  There are also come cool events I will be apart of coming in 2012, but I'm not saying anything more about that

Q: Give us a little insight as to what it is like to be a book review blogger.

Being a review blogger is hard work, to be honest. It is like having a second job but instead of earning a check, I get paid in free books! You have to keep up with your reviews and events. I have so many books on my TBR list that I feel bad because I can't get to them quick enough! I also receive requests daily from authors to review for them. I have met some amazing and talented people, some who have become great friends!

Q: Coffee or tea?

Eh… coffee if I have a choice between the two but you better have lots and lots of sugar and creamer, and none of that sugar in the pink packets either, give me the good stuff!  What I would rather have is a Vanilla Bean Frappe from Starbucks or a Mocha Frappe from McDonalds! I am a total junk food junkie. Take me to the fanciest restaurant in the world and I'm scouring the menu for a well-done burger and fries!

Q: What are some of your all time favorite reads?

When I was younger I was all about the Baby Sitters Club books. I have almost all of them still, most the covers are barely hanging on from being read so many times. Ramona the Pest is still a fav. Right now, my favs would have to be the Kiera Hudson vampire series by Tim O'Rourke, Forsaken by Andrew Van Wey (if you want to be scared read Forsaken!), Believe Like a Child by Paige Dearth (this author has a touching personal story), and of course Water (tapping my foot impatiently for book two btw!) and Gleaming White! I'm a big fan of Amanda Hocking's My Blood Approves series too!

Q: Tell us more about indie authors – where to find them, how they have changed the industry, and the pros and cons to buying indie.

Before starting my review blog, I didn't even know what an indie author was. I was more into reading the Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz, Simon Holt's The Devouring series, and anything I could get my hands on by Karin Slaughter. Then I start this blog and there is a whole world of unknowns out there just waiting to be discovered! How lucky can a girl get??  One of the best places to find indie authors is on Goodreads.com. If an author is NOT on Goodreads I suggest they join right away! I support indie authors 100%. All but one of my top 10 books read this year would be by unknown authors, with the exception of Gregg Olsen. Indie books are generally cheaper than best-selling author books. You can usually find them for free or from 99 cents to five bucks. I highly suggest Indie authors keep their prices low. Once readers get to know and love their work, they won't have a problem paying a little more.

I'm a stickler for grammar and punctuation when I read so you sometimes find quite a few reads with some errors. Unfortunately, I'm the kind of person that once I find one I am looking for the next. I've started a sister site to help solve that problem. It's called Extra Set of Eyes and I offer basic editing services.

I love finding that person who has written a great story and helping to get their name out there! Indie authors are changing the way readers read one book at a time. They are depending on bloggers to spread the word because a lot of them don't have the money to spend on pricey advertising.

Q:  What's next for you and your blog?

As I mentioned before, there will be lots of great events (giveaways, hops, book tours) coming in 2012. WordPress is a hard blog to get followers with because it doesn't have the GFC like Blogspot does but I would love to get my follower number up! I'm also a Facebook junkie and can't wait to reach that 1,000 'like' mark (I'm almost at 700 now) on my blogs page. I'm excited for the new year to bring more book reviews and introduce more great authors to the blogosphere. I'm always open to suggestions and comments from my readers and authors!

Burning Down the House – Guest Post by Stephen Hise

Please welcome Stephen Hise, author of Upgrade, described as a bodice ripper with a Twilight Zone twist.  He also runs the website Indies Unlimited; a great resource for authors that is both fun and entertaining!  If you haven't signed up to follow him yet…do it.  Do it – I dare you.  Stephen is here to talk about Indie publishing and it's future:

We are at the beginning of a technological revolution in how books are written, published, marketed, purchased, and read. The hallmark of the technological revolution is that the changes in technology occur faster than society on the whole can adapt to them.

Everyone wants change. No one wants the change that actually happens. Remember all the tumult and furor generated when humankind moved from cave paintings to stone tablets, and again to scrolls before settling comfortably on bound-paper books? No? Well, I'm sure there was quite an uproar.

Technology has put on her running shoes. You can stay behind, faking a cramp, or run along and try to keep up. It may be that the big six publishing houses will somehow adapt and survive. Maybe they won't. Maybe the big chain bookstores will adapt and survive. Maybe they won't. The systemic changes will come gradually. It is not that print is dead, but there is little doubt that it is on the way out. It may take a generation before a child hoists a paper book up from some trunk he was exploring in the attic and asks Grandpa what this thing is.

The vaunted gatekeepers of publishing are in disarray. Now writers who could not navigate the labyrinth of agents, publishers, and publicists can get their work directly to readers without any intermediaries. The readers will now decide if this is "what they're looking for."

Some of the writing now available is excellent. Some is crap. Know what? The same thing was true when the gatekeepers controlled things. I've bought some titles from well-known traditionally published authors that made me wonder how such a thing ever got published. In truth, all the same sins that the traditional publishing houses so easily see in indie-published books are the same sins of which they themselves are guilty.

So the big traditional publishers can cry, whine, and point fingers all they want. The fact is that now readers have more choice and they can buy more books with less money than ever before. That is a good thing.

Indie authors are also accessible to their readers. Most have websites, blogs, and Facebook pages where a reader can communicate directly with an author, get to know them, and ask them questions. I see that as a very positive change. I think readers appreciate that as well.

I wouldn't hold forth for a minute that everything coming down the pike will be all sunshine and roses – It never is. On the whole, I think we are witnessing some very interesting creative destruction that will change the landscape of writing, publishing and reading for many years to come.

 

Stephen Hise is the author of the novel, UPGRADE. You can learn more about him at his website, http://stephenhise.com/ and check out his blog celebrating independent authors at: http://www.indiesunlimited.com/ His book is available as an e-book at Amazon and Smashwords, or in print from Wordclay.  Also be sure to visit him on Facebook!

 

Weekly Short – Raining Mud

Another short for you.  This one features Alex and Susan, two characters in my novel 'Water', and shows how Alex was introduced to the Seven:

Somehow when I thought of Afghanistan, I imagined desert, men in turbans, and camels.  I was so wrong.  Instead, there were treacherous, ice-covered mountains.  The men who shot at me didn't wear turbans; they mostly wore their knitted pokal hats.  And the only camel I saw was dead, bones picked clean by a starving village.

It was a horrible place, made more so by constant war.  I shrugged off the misery of Afghanistan; wherever I ended up was probably better than going to foster parents.  My mom signed the parental release forms on her death bed; we had no surviving kin.

"Henson!  Do you have them yet?"

"Working on it."  I grunted back.  I was supposed to be behind the lines in a warm tent, playing with high-tech, cryptologic receivers trying to intercept enemy communications.  But our small detachment got attacked, and the commander decided to integrate the radio guys with infantry.  Apparently, in Afghanistan, there was no such thing as 'behind the lines'.

"Hurry up, Marine!  We need some intel."  The platoon sergeant kept pressuring me.  He had no idea how difficult it was to operate a receiver with bullets flying so close I could feel the wind off of them.

"I swear to – "  The sergeant was cut off by a bullet to the throat.  I watched, his body falling in slow motion while bullets continued to zip by at their normal speed.  Dust billowed up around him as he hit the ground.  I crawled over to him, putting pressure on his throat.  He started to gurgle so I let go immediately, afraid I was choking him.  I didn't know what the hell to do.  I looked around helplessly, just in time to see the first truck in our convoy out of there get blown up.  By the time I looked back down at the sergeant, he was gone – eyes wide open and lifeless.

I stared in shock, from my bloody hands to the whites of his eyes, and back again.  His body jumped slightly as a bullet zipped into his side; like kicking him while he was down.

"Fuck a whole lot of this."  I immediately backed away; that bullet was probably meant for me.  Another deafening blast; the convoy was not done getting blown up either.  Where the hell were the reinforcements?  I had called for them myself over three hours ago.  These shooters weren't exactly accurate, but they were coming out of the woodworks.  Word of our position spread faster than disease out here, except to our allies.

I grabbed my rifle and radio and slithered over to a ravine.  Two grunts took position on either side of me; keeping enemy bullets at bay.  I switched channels back and forth on HF, trying to remember the frequency for the battalion.  I didn't bother going secure; there was no time for it.

Finally, something came in.  It wasn't the battalion intercepting my distress call.  It was a woman.  "Say again, I do not read you.  I repeat…say again."

"This is Corporal Henson, 3rd Platoon located three clicks northwest of Korengal Valley.  We are under fire; we need air support and evacuation of casualties.  Transportation is out."

"Where is your battalion, Corporal?  I will relay the message."

I gave the woman my battalion's information and our grid coordinates, praying this wasn't some sort of trap.  Five minutes later the radio crackled back to life, "Helo went down in route to evac you.  They are doing recovery efforts there.  Will be some time before they can get to you."

I exchanged a despaired look with one of the Marines beside me.  I put the handset up to my mouth when her voice came back on, "We are coming in from the south.  Look for two vehicles with the number seven on the side.  And do not effin' shoot us."

"Who are you?"

There was a short pause before she answered, "A friend."

"Seals?"  One of the Marines offered.

"What, they're sending GI Jane to save us?"  I rolled my eyes at him.  Maybe CIA?  Whatever – if she had vehicles that weren't currently on fire, it'll do.

No less than ten minutes later, the sound of idling vehicles reached us.  They stayed well back from the battlefield, hidden to the enemy in the shadows.  We had all take up positions behind our rifles, but couldn't let up.  A break in fire could mean an enemy through our lines; another Marine dead.

I slight tap at the shoulder and my reaction was to immediately let my elbow fly back.  Thankfully, she was expecting that, and ducked.

"I suppose I should've made it clear not to elbow us, either."  The woman was almost as tall as Alex, an unusual trait.  She was in tennis shoes and what looked like a running outfit.  It wasn't camouflage but at least it was dark.  She had her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail at the nape of her neck.  Add an iPod at her arm and she could have passed for a jogger.

"Who are you; why are you here?"

"I am Susan.  We are going to get you out of here – alive."  She peeked around me at the raging battle; we weren't even in the thick of it.  We were on the outskirts.  She put up a hand-held walkie-talkie to her mouth and began issuing instructions.

"But why are you in the area?"

"We're here to help the environment."

I laughed – as did several others.  Susan glowered at me.

"Seriously, now."

"I am being serious."

"Oh, for Christ's sake, woman."  The crazy episodes of Whale Wars came to mind.  "My hands are stained with the blood of my sergeant, and you're here to keep them from cutting down trees?!"  I shot off my last couple of rounds and changed out magazines.  "There are no trees out here!"

She shrugged, "Not anymore."

I looked at her, mouth open, "You are serious."

"They cut down most of their trees for war.  Add that to the fact that much of the land is depleted and not conducive for agriculture.  Help the land, help the economy.  A stable economy makes for a stable country.  See – it's this whole domino effect that I don't have time to explain, because your Marines are dying."

Another explosion, closer this time, sent us all flying.  We picked ourselves up.  One of the Marines beside me went running into the thick of it, relaying orders for a retreat.  He never came back.  13 others did.

"We can all fit, I think – let's get going before they realize what's up." Susan said.

"No," I stopped her, grabbing her at the wrist.  "We have to get the fallen."

Her mouth pressed into a tight line, "I'm sorry, we just don't have enough room."  There must have been twice as many Marines dead than those that still stood.  I shook my head, "Non-negotiable."

Susan stopped, turned to face our group, and scanned their faces slowly.  They were tired, dirty, bloody, hurt and scared.  But they were as resolute as I was.  We all go, or no one goes.

She dropped her head in consent, "Fine.  But we'll need at least one other vehicle."

There was one other, sitting untouched amongst the smoldering scraps of its brothers.  I could see face of the enemy just beyond it.  They hadn't approached yet, but it wouldn't be long now.  "We'll need a diversion."

"Done," Susan said, "When the storm hits, get someone to back that vehicle out of there, and get everyone on board – quick."  Susan held the walkie-talkie up to her mouth again, "I need you here."

Susan placed the walkie-talkie in her back pocket, closer her eyes, and began slowly raising her arms into the sky.

"What are you doing?"

"Please don't distract me."

A large, native-American man, with dark, black hair in a thick braid that went down to the middle of his back, walked up to join Susan.  Despite the cold, he was in a sleeveless shirt.  His thick arms were adorned with tattoos of the planet Earth, various trees and of course eagles.

"You people are crazy."

"About as crazy as you, Marine."

Great, compatible by insanity.  Susan's arms were all the way above her head now, and the wind had begun to pick up.  How had she known a storm was coming?

I looked back at her face and her eyes were striking, glowing a bright green against the dark sky.  Her hair was coming lose, and wild strands whipped around her face.  The man next to her was now kneeling, with one hand on the ground, chanting.

The Marine standing next to me suddenly lurched forward, then fell to the ground.  Blood gushed out from under his not-so-bulletproof helmet.  That was the last Sergeant; meaning now I was in charge.

Susan yelled at me over the increasing wind, now infused with dirt and sand, "The storm will temporarily disorient them; slow them down.  But it won't stop bullets."

Got it.  "As soon as the storm moves into that group there, run for the vehicle.  We'll lay down cover fire."  I barked out orders to the nearest Marine.  "The rest of you – get your brothers.  We're bringing them home."

I had to cover my mouth.  Where had all the sand come from?  I had seen nothing but ice and rock on the ground for almost a month.  The sky cracked open with a bolt of lightning, and rain like I had never even seen stateside poured down.  It was literally raining mud.  The storm's intensity moved from directly overhead toward the enemy line.  We were still getting rain and wind, but now they were bearing the brunt of it.  My platoon stood stock still, staring at the freak storm with nervous glances at Susan and the native American.  "Move it!"

My bark shocked them into action.  The whirlwind of rain and mud tightened in on itself, sounding almost like a freight train.  Susan's vehicles pulled forward, and two more men got out to help load the wounded and the dead.

Our vehicle came up beside them.  A quick head count – everyone was accounted for and loaded up.  "We're good!"  I shouted to Susan.

Her arms began to sink back down to her sides, and she lay a hand on her companions shoulder.  He broke out of his trance and stood up.  The storm had already started to diminish.

"We have about five minutes before they come charging through what's left of the sandstorm."  Susan said as she hopped into the passenger side of one car.  "You coming?"

"Yeah."  I narrowed my eyes at the storm, then her.  It couldn't be.  But then again, I did just see it for myself.

I was the last one to the vehicles.  With so little room left, I crowded Susan over so we could share the seat.

"I want to join."

Susan looked at me with a half-smile, she exchanged glances with the native-American, then handed me a clean rag from the glove box.  "Haven't you done enough joining for one lifetime?"

I used it to wipe the blood from my hands, "Apparently not."

I leaned back in my seat, and put my arm around Susan.  This was one lady who offered adventure I could not pass up.