Eleni Konstantine's Blog: Eleni's Taverna, page 9

Release Day: Enchanted

My third story for the year (others were Minion and Sealed With a Kiss) has now been published.

ENCHANTED, is a story I had written way back in 1999 when it come second in the KSP Fantasy/Science Fiction Award. It finally found a home with Alfie Dog Fiction and is now available. It's been a lesson in patience, I tell you.

It's what I call a modern fantasy (has paranormal/supernatural elements but paranormal stories have a certain connotation) and is 1700 words.

I do love this story as it's one of the first ones I really loved writing during my writing correspondence course many many years ago.

You can find Enchanted here.

Wenchy (Musa) Monday: Sara Daniel's Captivating the CEO

Welcome to another Musa (Wenchy) Monday. While Sara Daniel is a Musa author, her latest book Captivating the CEO is not by Musa. She's a wench and so Wenchy Monday is here....

Over to Sara and her characters...

~~~

Phone Interview with Willow Jefferies and Colin Vanderhayden from Captivating the CEOBy Sara Daniel



Let’s start with an easy question. What’s your favorite color?Willow: I didn’t have one until I met Colin. Now I’m partial to blue. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the Colin wearing a blue tie every day.
A blue tie every day. Hmm, so that must be your favorite color, Colin.Colin: Actually, I like hazel.
The exact shade of Willow’s eyes. Interesting coincidence.  So, I’m curious. What do you each do?Willow: I’m a massage therapist.Colin: My massage therapist. I’m a CEO. I don’t have time to leave the office. In fact, I really don’t have time for this interview. I’m expecting another call any second.Willow: He’s always on a call or doing some sort of work. Life is passing him by while he works himself to death in that office. Sometimes, I just want to disconnect the phone and show him the fun he’s missing.Colin: I’m planning for the future.
What do you think he should be doing instead, Willow?Willow: Living in the moment, obviously.
Those seem to be seriously opposing philosophies. What do you think of each other’s sayings?Colin: She’ll be sorry when she wants to retire and has no money to do so.Willow: Retire? Seriously, Colin. Yawn. You seem a little uptight. Is your neck bothering you again? Let me give you a neck rub.Colin: We’re in the middle of an interv— Oh yeah, that feels gooood.
Wait, I still have more questions. Willow, why do you wear blue lip gloss? Colin, how do you stay in good shape when you sit behind a desk all day?
*click*
Hello? All right, then, I guess we’ve been disconnected…


Captivating the CEO By Sara DanielGenres: contemporary romance, office romance, medical romance, new adult Decadent Publishing
Amazon
All Romance eBooks
Smashwords

He only plans for the future. She might not have a future.
When live-for-the-moment massage therapist Willow Jeffries bursts into Colin Vanderhayden's office, she makes it her mission to loosen up the future-focused CEO, knowing each moment of the present is too precious to waste. Despite her immediate attraction, the only future she can offer is one full of heartache.
The last thing Colin needs is a flighty woman messing up his carefully-constructed plans, but her heavenly massages and addictive personality prove hard to resist. But he has no idea how sick she is.
No longer able to ignore her life-threatening medical condition, Willow slips away to spare Colin a miserable future with her. Is Colin willing to sacrifice his well-laid future plans to get Willow back?
Author Bio: Sara Daniel writes irresistible romance, from sweet to erotic and everything in between. On the personal side, she's a frazzled maid, chef, chauffeur, tutor, and personal assistant. She battles a serious NASCAR addiction and was once a landlord of two uninvited squirrels. She follows research and new developments concerning tricuspid atresia and other congenital heart defects, and she holds a special place in her heart for “heart kids” and their families.
Website   Blog   Facebook   Twitter   Pinterest

~~~
Thanks Willow and Colin, and of course their creator, Sara Daniel.

Super Sunday: Sagan and masters...

This came up on my Goodreads Quote of the day and I thought I'd share....


"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."~ Carl Sagan
And now for the funnies...


haha...
Have a wonderful week.
~yia~

Writerly Wednesday - short fiction & edits

Another week has rolled by. Oh, my!


This week I was busy on working on more edits for SNOOP with my wonderful editor, Lori.


And good news - my short story 'Enchanted' was picked up by 'Alfie Dog Fiction' and will be published on the 4th December!

It's a story I wrote a long time ago and got 2nd in a competition but I  had difficulty finding a place for it. It's a modern fantasy (aka has a paranormal element). I'm so glad it's found a home at last.


That means I will have two stories out within two days of each other!

Little dance.


Over on the SARA SASSY in the South blog, I have taken over the SARA News column, swapping with the wonderful Emmeline Lock, who is now doing Reading Adventures column.


It's the last day to enter the DarkSiders Halloween-Blogiversary Mega giveaway! Enter for your chance to win some great prizes, including my Enchanted Realms and Gateway to Hell.


I'm also very thrilled that my CP, Fiona Greene , has had her novella accepted by Escape Publishing. Can't wait to see 'Home for Christmas' hit the e-shelves!  Go, Fi!!!!


~yia~

Musa Monday: Sharon Ledwith on Six Sales Points for Authors

We're back with Musa Monday and today Wench Sharon Ledwith talks about the 

Six Sales Points for Authors

There are a lot of authors out there today competing for readers’ attention—readers that you’ve worked so hard to obtain. Some do a very good job, make a lot of money, and stick around. They build satisfying publishing careers that last for decades. Other authors try to wing it and burn out. What’s the difference between a successful author and a wannabe author who just dawdles on the borders of success? Owning a great website? Having a damn good marketing plan? Creating a social media plan for each book release? Good luck? Whatever the answer, often the key to a successful career in the publishing field can be attributed to one or all of these time-tested sales points:


1. If it doesn’t work, fix it. Let’s face it—some sales strategies work better than others. The trick is to reassess what you’ve been doing. If you’re not producing the sales you’d like to see for a certain book, then chances are you need to correct and fine-tune your methods. For some authors this may mean retooling their blurb or tagline or change the cover. For others, it could be giving their website or blog a fresh new look.



2. Listen and learn. A number of things factor into book sales. One of the most important is your target audience—who you are writing for. Ask yourself, how are you fulfilling your readers’ needs? What must you do to continually hook their attention? For starters, you have to be willing to walk that extra mile by getting to know and understand your readers. You do this through social networks (Facebook, Twitter), workshops, book signings, school and library visits, book clubs, and online communities such as Goodreads or LibraryThing.



3. Show enthusiasm. Enthusiasm builds bridges. Panic tears them down. One thing an author has going for them is their unique voice. You use it in your books, so use it to sell them. Readers know when an author resonates with them. Be invested enough in yourself, as an author, to give your readers a fantastic story they’ll never want to end. Then write another one.


4. Sell yourself, on yourself. The power of positive thinking works wonders. Motivation builders such as podcasts, CDs or self-help books can help reinforce the super salesperson in you. Be specific with your goals and rewards, such as if you send out ten review requests in a day, book a pedicure or lunch with a friend. Write notes reminding yourself that you are a ‘Bestselling Author’ and ‘You can do it’, then leave them around your desk. After all, seeing is believing.


5. Create a sales plan to suit each book. Every book you write is one of a kind. Sales tactics for one book may not work for the second book. That’s when you get creative and take chances. Giveaways are always a fan favorite. Experiment with each book until you get a sales formula that works for you. Sometimes a fresh pair of eyes helps, so if you can afford it, hire a publicist or a marketing consultant. The bigger the investment, the bigger the payoff.



6. You give, you receive. “What goes around, comes around” is a hard adage for a lot of authors to relate to, but it is nevertheless a vitally important point. And it’s a no-brainer. I tend to share a lot of useful information that could help my author peeps with their sales or marketing strategies. This comes naturally to me. Pass along opportunity when you can. It’s a wise investment—one that any author will never regret making.





There is no moving forward without first going back.

Lilith was a young girl with dreams and a family before the final destruction of Atlantis shattered those dreams and tore her family apart. Now refugees, Lilith and her father make their home in the Black Land. This strange, new country has no place in Lilith’s heart until a beloved high priestess introduces Lilith to her life purpose—to be a Timekeeper and keep time safe.

Summoned through the seventh arch of Atlantis by the Children of the Law of One, Lilith and her newfound friends are sent into Atlantis’s past, and given a task that will ultimately test their courage and try their faith in each other. Can the Timekeepers stop the dark magus Belial before he changes the seers’ prophecy? If they fail, then their future and the earth’s fate will be altered forever.

To read an excerpt of  Legend of the Timekeepers , please click HERE .
Check out The Last Timekeepers series Facebook Page.
BUY LINKSMusaPublishing AmazonLink Barnes & Noble  Kobo


Sharon Ledwith is the author of the middle-grade/YA time travel series, The Last Timekeepers, available through Musa Publishing. When not writing, researching, or revising, she enjoys reading, yoga, kayaking, time with family and friends, and single malt scotch. Sharon lives in the wilds of Muskoka in Central Ontario, Canada, with her hubby, a water-logged yellow Labrador and moody calico cat.
Learn more about Sharon Ledwith on her website and blog .  Stay connected on Facebook and Twitter .

DarkSiders Great Halloween (Blogiversary) Mega Pack giveaway...

It's Halloween! Grrrrr.....arrrrggggg....rrrrr.......

and of course that means we are right at home over at the DarkSide DownUnder blog. Not to mention it's our blogiversary.

We have a great mega pack - check out the books on offer here, including my Gateway to Hell and Enchanted Realms .

But you can enter the comp from this post...



a Rafflecopter giveaway




Good luck!


~yia~

Writerly Wednesday

Wow, I can't believe it's already Wednesday. I'm madly rushing to try and finish an assignment and needed a five minute break.

This past weekend I went to see The Body in The Garden: South Australian Crime and Garden Writers' Festival . It really was a unique idea of mixing the two genres and there was a mixture of people who enjoy both. I leaned more on the side of the crime stream and found new-to-me authors to start reading.

Yep, my book budget was blown out. I'm looking forward to reading books by Ann Cleeves, Swiss author Hakan Nesser, Gabrielle Lord, Poppy Gee, Barry Maitland, Tony Cavanaugh, and Michael Robotham.

Phew... my TBR bookcases and boxes (yep, that's right I have more than shelves) are groaning.

The setting was in the Adelaide Botanic Garden and what a gorgeous setting. Very inspiring. I caught up with fellow SARA, and DarkSider Lilliana Rose on the Saturday. Always good to catch up with fellow writers.

I was glad I took the time out to do this but I'm behind with everything else. Ah, well it helped fill the well.


Further news on SNOOP - I have just received my second round edits and so need to get that done in the next few days. I may enjoy doing my graphic design course but it is making me tired and crowding in on other aspects of my life. I have to rethink the direction I'm going to take with it even if it's to take off a semester. We'll see.

Back to the grindstone.

~yia~

Writerly Wednesday: SNOOP cover!

Got this just in time for Writerly Wednesday - how about that.

I'm excited at my latest cover from Musa Publishing! Kelly Shorten, cover artist extraordinaire had done it again.





SNOOP is due for release on the 6th December.

SNOOP's rule of investigating: Never take the paranormal at face value.

Daisy Luck is a SNOOP - Sanctioned Nationalized Officer Of the Paranormal. Her latest case involving a vampire and a gremlin has her private eye senses in a spin. Throw in yummy Detective Maroney and her life couldn't get more complicated - or could it?

~yia~

Eleni's Library: Book Review posts

Eleni's Library: Book Review posts: Both my groups the DarkSiders and the SARAs have book reviews on their blogs. The latest for both has gone up this week.


Check out the links in the above post....


~yia~

Writerly Wednesday

I haven't gotten organised with featuring my Writing Buddies lately, but I will try and get that sorted soon.

In the meantime, here's Writerly Wednesday.

I have been chatting to my Paraloopies regarding my muse and her lack of fire. From this I've realised that health, tafe, and scheduling have all affected my writing (I knew this but it really hit home) and having the creativity and inspiration to write. I'm thinking about ways to help her along.

One thing that will help is getting my first round of edits from my editor for SNOOP. I hope this helps the muse kickstart along.

I also hope having less time at the computer at night and getting some downtime will help. I've been watching some tv shows that I had never got to see when they first aired  - Bones, The West Wing (seasons 5-7 especially), The Inspector Linley Series. It's really giving my brain some food and refilling the well.

While at my local library today,  I saw a great program for ‘The Body In the Garden’: South Australian Crime & Garden Writers’ Festival. They have an opening event that looks really cool. Check it out here.

I'm busy with my groups still - though not in full force on social media - DarkSiders, Wenches, and SARAs. Speaking of SARA, I'm over at the SARA Sassy in the South blog today with Reading Adventures: a compilation of members book reviews, including my own. Come and say hi!


~yia~