Jen Naumann's Blog, page 4

I'm Here to Convert You

My view from the front row!No really, I am. Not into a certain religious belief or anything like that, but into becoming a fan of Jack Johnson's (and those of you who know I went to his concert last night totally saw this post coming today). I'm always astonished by how many people still have no idea who the man is. I swear to you almost every time I make someone listen to his songs, they become instant fans. Admittedly, I still may be experiencing a bit of euphoria from last night's concert, but that's not the point. How can you not like him? He's the f'n mellow man (see video below).

To give you a better understanding of why I'm such a ginormous fan, here are some facts you may not know about Jack Johnson, and reasons why you should become a fan if you're not already:

With my big brother and sisterThe man's a total charity junkie. He's giving 100% of the proceeds from his All at Once tour to charity. You read that right, every last cent. The money will go to 75 different charities in the U.S. and Europe. Plus he matches donations to the non-profit vendors that tour with him. And he and his wife created the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation, a non-profit public charity supporting environmental, art, and music education worldwide. They also founded the Kokua Hawai'i Foundation, which supports environmental education in the schools and communities of Hawaii. He donated $50,000 to GlobalGiving's Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund, and another $50,000 for Hurricane Sandy relief. The guy has generated enough good karma to last him a thousand lifetimes.

He writes love songs "so his wife will fall in love with him all over again." Those are his exact words, people. He met his wife when they were just starting college, and they've been together 20 years. Just about every other song includes lyrics that have something to do with his marriage or his three children. As if he wasn't already swoon-worthy just by looking at him.

He actively helps to preserve our environment. He uses all bio-diesel for his tour buses (yes, he got the idea from Willie Nelson, but who cares?). He grows/raises most of the food his family eats in their backyard. On his tour, he educates people on plastic free initiatives, and sustainable local food projects. All the t-shirts on his website are 100% organic.

Not only does he live on the beautiful island of Oahu, but he's a surfer—a really, really good one. He was a pro until a bad accident at age 17 that caused him to lose teeth, have 150 stitches in his forehead. I once saw him say in an interview that he only tours a few months at a time because he gets uncomfortable being too far away from the ocean. He hangs out with Kelly Slater. He looks amazing in a pair of swim trunks. Need I say more?
Jack's funny, down to earth, and extremely easy-going. The video for his newest release I've Got You was filmed on location around Oahu with a buddy. His wife took the picture of him sitting by the ocean for the cover of his new album. At his concerts he wears t-shirts and flip-flops. I'm telling you, watch the video above. You can thank me later.

I could literally go on and on, but I'm totally exhausted after only a few hours of sleep, and need to go back to bed. Or drink a butt load of caffeine. Or both. Just listen to the man's albums, support his causes, and make your day a little brighter in the process. If we all had hearts as big as Jack Johnson's, world peace would've been realized by now.

Top 5 Reasons Why I Love Twitter

Before I published my first book in April 2012, I decided to take the plunge and join Twitter. I seriously had no idea how it worked, and found the hashtag thing rather strange. Fast forward to 16k tweets later, and I'm definitely considered an addict. While there are times I know I spend way too much perusing what's known to be The Drainer of All Time, there are so many benefits to being active in this social media phenomenon.

Reason #5: World news! Okay, this is probably not something to brag about, but I don't watch news anymore, and I steer clear of the newspapers, so I get most of my news through Twitter and Facebook. There's something satisfying about talking to other people around the world when tragedy strikes, as if we can find comfort in knowing there are others experiencing the same kind of reaction.

Reason #4: Human interaction! Let me explain—I went from an extremely social job in which I helped (usually angry) people all day long to sitting in my little writing den out on our farm. My daily communication with people while my family is gone for the day becomes limited to whomever I chat with online, or the friends I text. There are days this is the small string that holds my sanity together.

Reason #3: The fandom! Its no secret I'm crazy about shows like The Walking Dead, and I love that I can rehash each episodes with other fans from around the world. I love that I can connect with others who are into the same musicians, and carry passions for the same books and authors. It's like being a member of several fan clubs without having to pay any dues.

Reason #2: The celebrities! Getting followed by Norman Reedus (Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead) made me scream so loud my husband thought someone had died, and shamelessly, having my tweet read by Chris Hardwick (host of Talking Dead, show that reviews episodes of The Walking Dead) on live TV was like winning a Grammy. I save each and every tweet I receive directly from a celebrity because it feels just as satisfying as an autograph. Being a fangirl of amazing authors, these are just a few of the tweets I've received that just about sent me over the edge:

@naumannbooks thank you so much! And darn, I would have loved to meet you! Next time I hope :-)
— Kendare Blake (@KendareBlake) September 27, 2013

@naumannbooks Check my profile, girl. Check that check!
— Isaac Marion (@isaacinspace) September 27, 2013

#1: The friendships! I've made so many friends through Twitter—some started out as fans of my writing and became my friends, some I've started blogs and businesses with, some have become my beta readers and critique partners, some I've spent hours virtually chatting with while partaking in adult beverages, others I have met in person or have plans to meet in the near future. It blows my mind to think how ten years ago, meeting strangers from across the country (or even the world) online was inconceivable.

Maybe this is just me trying to justify to myself why I spend so much time on social networks, or maybe it's just proving what a pathetic life I have. Either way, I don't really care. Twitter has been life-changing, and extremely resourceful. I plan to tweet until someone physically removes my phone from my hands.

Supernatural Author

Fall is the busiest time of the year for my family, so I apologize for the lack of posts! Between football, volleyball, dance, tae kwon do, confirmation, harvest, homecoming, and a million other things I won't bore you with, I've been crazy busy working on getting the sequel to The Day Zombies Ruined My Perfectly Boring Life out. The cover is ALMOST officially ready to be released (stay tuned!), first draft is off to the editor, and the trailer is done. As soon as winter arrives, I'll be ready to take a day or two off. And by that I mean a girls' trip to New York City in which I'm sure we'll walk a few hundred miles and get very little sleep. Did I mention I have ADD and seriously don't know how to sit still?

Meanwhile, I'm still trying to get through the Supernatural series with my daily workouts (sometimes seeing Sam shirtless is all the motivation a girl needs). Yesterday I watched episode 18 of season 4 (how many freaking episodes can they pack into a season???) in which the Winchester brothers meet an author who just happens to be chronicling their lives, word for word. I especially enjoyed this one as the poor author was freaked out, thinking everything he was writing was coming to life. At one point he stated something like, "I'm like a god. A really sick one." Okay so that wasn't an exact quote, but you get the idea.

It was pretty amusing to consider the possibility as an author, then it suddenly started to freak me out a little. If my books were to come to life, I would also be considered a bit sick, sadistic even. I would be responsible for hundreds of deaths! Then I remembered it's fiction, and told myself to chillax. Still, there were some amusing stereotypes of authors involved (guy in his robe, drinking all day long), and even a slam to M. Night Shyamalan that irritated me a bit as I happen to be a big fan. But this was probably my favorite episode to date, mostly because it hit home. If you're into anything paranormal and haven't watched Supernatural, I suggest you jump on Netflix and give it a try. If nothing else, Sam and Dean are certainly easy on the eyes.

Looking forward to a month filled with horror movie marathons, Halloween parties and best of all, NEW EPISODES OF THE WALKING DEAD!

Book Review: Antigoddess by Kendare Blake

Old Gods never die…

Or so Athena thought. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and Hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health.

Desperately seeking the cause of their slow, miserable deaths, Athena and Hermes travel the world, gathering allies and discovering enemies both new and old. Their search leads them to Cassandra—an ordinary girl who was once an extraordinary prophetess, protected and loved by a god. 

These days, Cassandra doesn’t involve herself in the business of gods—in fact, she doesn’t even know they exist. But she could be the key in a war that is only just beginning. 

Because Hera, the queen of the gods, has aligned herself with other of the ancient Olympians, who are killing off rivals in an attempt to prolong their own lives. But these anti-gods have become corrupted in their desperation to survive, horrific caricatures of their former glory. Athena will need every advantage she can get, because immortals don’t just flicker out. 

Every one of them dies in their own way. Some choke on feathers. Others become monsters. All of them rage against their last breath.

The Goddess War is about to begin.
As a newly formed Kendare Blake "groupie" (check out my review for Anna Dressed in Blood), I could not wait to get my hands on Antigoddess, her newest release. And I was even more excited when the hardcover version came to my door as I've developed a renewed love in reading paper vs digital. The cover is not only beautiful, but it does an excellent job of capturing the story.

I devoured Antigoddess in just a few days. For a good portion of the book there are two stories being told, one of Cassandra, a high school girl who has premonitions into the future; and the other of Athena and Hermes, two dying gods trying to figure out a way to live. I loved the paranormal aspect that accompanied the gods, like a woman stretched out across the desert so they were standing near her eye, a god who could get owls to do her bidding suddenly choking to death on their feathers, and Nereids (Poseidon's minions) who are able to clone humans. I also loved the relationship between Cassandra (the telepath) and her boyfriend Aidan, although it didn't go the way I was hoping.

But I found myself more drawn to the story of the high school girl as at times I got lost when the gods were referencing so many different names. If you're up on Greek mythology, you probably won't have as hard of a time. I was vaguely able to keep up because of my love for Percy Jackson. Regardless, Kendare's prose was just as spot on as it was in the Anna series, and did not disappoint. While I didn't like this one as much as Anna Dressed in Blood, I still enjoyed it immensely, and look forward to the sequel. Honestly, I would like to give 4.5 stars to Antigoddess, but I set my ratings at solid numbers, so I'm stuck with giving it four. Just picture another head lying at their feet...
Rather tragically, I will not be able to attend her book signing taking place tonight only a couple of hours from where I live. It about killed me as I was really looking forward to meeting one of my newest favorite authors in person. But since Kendra once lived in Minnesota, I'm hoping there will be another chance down the road for me to shake her hand, and most likely gush about what a big fan I've become of her writing.

Kendare Blake is an import from South Korea who was raised in the United States by caucasian parents. You know, that old chestnut. She received a Bachelor's degree in Business from Ithaca College and a Master's degree in Writing from Middlesex University in London. She brakes for animals, the largest of which was a deer, which sadly didn't make it, and the smallest of which was a mouse, which did, but it took forever. Amongst her likes are Greek Mythology, rare red meat and veganism. She also enjoys girls who can think with the boys like Ayn Rand, and boys who scare the morality into people, like Bret Easton Ellis.

Follow Kendare Blake:TwitterHer website

Dexter Finale...*sigh*

CAUTION: MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD! 

IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FINAL EPISODE OF DEXTER, TURN YOUR HEAD NOW, AND GET OFF THE COMPUTER! YOU'RE BOUND TO RUN INTO OTHER SPOILERS SOMEWHERE ONLINE!

I began watching Dexter from the very first episode. I mean c'mon—the premise of a serial killer that you're actually rooting for...are you kidding me? I knew it would be original, and the writing soon proved to be top-notch.
 For weeks I've been dreading the end of Dexter almost as much as Breaking Bad. As I watched the very last episode, just seeing the opening made me sad when I realized I would it again followed by a brand new story. Unfortunately, it was rather anti-climatic for the most part. Hannah is confronted by Elway, and we think it's over, but she pulls a needle out of Dexter's "emergency" kit, and slips away. Saxton and Dexter run into each other in the hospital, but instead of a big fight scene, the detectives arrest him. It was a string of "huh" moments that didn't do much for me.

Then THE ENDING came, and Deb's surgery had complications. I knew Dexter would come back to put her out of her misery, but the way he just scooped her up and wheeled her outside, then carried her into his boat? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I realize they were in the middle of an evacuation because of the storm, but c'mon. Not only was I pissed that Deb died, but this scene was so far fetched I actually rolled my eyes. The only saving factor was seeing her float down in the water like some kind of angel. I also foresaw Dexter faking his death to save those he loves from his "curse". But how in the hell would someone swim away from a hurricane? I mean really. As someone on Twitter stated, with swimming skills like that, he would put Phelps to shame.

At first I was numb when they faded out from Harrison and Hannah going for ice cream, and figured that was the end. Then they cut into one of the dumbest endings of all time: Dexter becomes a lumberjack, sporting an out-of-place beard that looks like pasted-on pubes. In the end I was just livid. This great series ended by killing off one of our beloved characters, splitting up the two people we've been dying to see have a happily ever after, and making a child essentially an orphan with a lady, who by the way is also a serial killer like his father. What exactly did he accomplish by having Hannah raise Harrison?

I've been saying this ever since Sunday, and I'll say it again: it feels like the writers of the show gave their fans the middle finger. Just to make it clear, I don't blame the actors. They delivered the parts they were given with the talent and skill they've had since the very beginning of the series. But after all those years of dedication we've given the show, it would've been nice to see Deb and Dexter find some kind of happily ever after that we can actually live with.

Shooting Zombies (It's Not What You Think)

Three words describe the millionth reason why I love my job(s):

Zombie photo shoot.

If you know me at all, you'll understand just how exciting this was. I've had the idea for the second book in my head for nearly a year, and couldn't wait to actually make it happen. Whenever there's anything involving zombies that I can sink my creative hands into, I'm all over it!

As many of you know, the cover for The Day Zombies Ruined My Perfectly Boring Life was done with a friend's fifteen-year-old daughter who used to babysit my kids. Somehow I talked her into taking the tags off her brand new prom dress and stepping into the woods behind my house. We paid to have her hair done, then went crazy and messed it up to make her look like she had been living in the wild a few days. She was a total trooper.

Today I used one of my very first babysitters turned good friend who was a total champ. I feel kind of guilty as each of the zombie models I've used are gorgeous girls, and would've been better used for covers of some romantic love story. But we all know my novels involve paranormal love stories, so that may never happen.

The first step was to make my friend look like the undead using Halloween makeup, homespun honey, oatmeal, fake blood, and toilet paper (yep, you read that last ingredient correctly, and yes we used clean toilet paper). I was fortunate enough to have an extremely talented professional makeup artist transform me into a terrifying zombie last year, and picked up a couple of tricks. The best part about doing these photo shoots is that the makeup doesn't have to be perfect since it's a far away shot, and I can later add techniques to give the picture a cartoonish effect. But honestly, I think I did a pretty decent job on her wound for an amateur (seriously, this was way too much fun).

The second step was to wait for just the right outdoor conditions. Since it's mentioned in the second story that there are many fields left unharvested, I wanted to catch the corn right before it was ready to go this fall (which will be way later than usual with all the crazy weather we had this summer). And as a photographer, I knew I had to wait until the sun was just at the right place in the sky so my subject wouldn't get washed out. Turns out 10:00 a.m. this morning was nearly the perfect time. And we had blue skies—another bonus!

The last step was to find the right pose. I didn't want her just standing there as that's basically what I had the model do for my first book. But the trickiest part is for neither of us to laugh, and take the fact seriously that we're two adults standing in the middle of a corn field, one of us dressed like a crazy person and the other dressed like a zombie (hey, I didn't want to get any fake blood on me). My friend was worried she didn't do a serious enough face, so I had her yelling, and it turned out amazing. The final result? You'll just have to wait for the final cover reveal to find out!

Giveaway for KINETIC by S.K. Anthony

I previously participated in the stunning cover reveal of S.K. Anthony's new release, Kinetic. Be sure to swing over to The Writer Diaries to catch my review of this book, as well as enter for a chance to win your own copy!

Preview of MIND STATIC!

Happy Friday, peeps!
As a special treat to all my amazing readers, I'm posting the first chapter of my newest YA paranormal release, Mind Static! The best part? It's absolutely free!!!! I want to share it with all of you as it's getting great feedback, and I'm told it's my best book to date. I had a blast writing this crazy adventure full of twists and good humor.

The story is told by a witty, rather bold senior girl named Keyanna who's getting ready to celebrate her 18th birthday quietly with her friends Dallas and Nora. But Nora, who's a bit of a more social creature, plans the party of all parties that spirals out of control. And when Keyanna discovers she can make things happen by wishing for them, she soon finds herself in the middle of a really strange whirlwind of events that make her question who she is, and who she can trust. It's a lot of fun, and I'm told you can read the whole thing in just a few sittings.

Click on the link below to start reading now!

Mind Control - Chapter One
Official book trailer:


Links to purchase Mind Static:
Amazon (Kindle and paperback)Nook
Happy reading!

Movie Review: This Is the End

While attending a party at James Franco's house, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel and many other celebrities are faced with the apocalypse. (Rated R)

Once again, I'm a little late to the party since this movie will be out on DVD this coming Tuesday, but I've been really looking forward to it with the promise of apocalyptic humor (two of my favorite elements in a movie). I'm just going to say up front that I really don't get into the drug themed movies most of these guys have starred in like "Your Highness", "Pineapple Express", and "Knocked Up". Although I guessed drugs would be a theme in this movie as well, I consider most of these comedians to be pretty funny, and figured they could pull off a hilarious story together.

As a huge fangirl, it was kind of fun to at least pretend we were glimpsing into the personal lives of celebrities. While there were some stellar cameos (Emma Watson, Rihanna, Michael Cera), there were some that fell short (Paul Rudd, Back Street Boys), and one that really didn't do any favors for the actor (Channing Tatum...he must really be proud). When the guys weren't prattling on about drugs or sexually crude acts, there were some pretty funny moments. I got a kick out of the actors trying to redeem themselves as being worthy of saving (James Franco: "We're actors! We bring joy to people's lives!"), Michael Cera playing an out-of-control character, the scene where the men are trying to decide how to lay in close proximity to each other, and the misunderstanding that happened with Emma Watson. I especially loved the development of Jonah Hill's character toward the end.

Overall it was a pretty decent movie. The premise of the apocalypse was fun, having a feel like a 1990s Adam Sandler film. The special effects were campy, like when the partygoers fell into a flaming hole, and the "big bad" at the very end, but it can be expected from a lower budgeted movie. If you can get past all the drug usage, and take this movie for what it is—a goofy comedy—you might actually enjoy the folly Seth Rogan, Jonah Hill, and Jay Baruchel most definitely deliver.

More Zombies Are Coming!

Agghh! I'm so very excited to tell you that I have finally completed the first draft of the sequel to The Day Zombies Ruined My Perfect Life! This was such a huge accomplishment for me as I've been totally dreading starting on the sequels I know I have to complete. Did I mention that I won't leave a book open-ended ever again?

I first started this book right after finishing the first, but then shelved it when other shiny new ideas came along. Right now it's in the hand of some very competent beta readers, then it will be off to my editor for round #1. I'd love to say it will be out by Halloween, but that's probably getting a bit cocky. I will at least have the cover done by then, and can't wait to see my idea for it come to life!

Next project is one of my favorites to date, Paranormal Keepers. And yes, to all the awesome fans who have been begging for the sequel to Shymers, that will be coming as well. In the meantime, I'm feeling the need to celebrate. Is it Friday yet?