Sutton Shields's Blog, page 3

Roundup: Racing, Writing, Random, & Contest Peek!

Well, I finally did the thing I dread doing: changing my blogger background from Christmas to something non-Christmas. I know, it's pathetic, but I hate seeing all the Christmas goodness disappear for another year. You should see me with the tree and decorations--most depressed self-professed elf EVER. 

On the plus side...RACING IS BACK! Yeehaw! I geaux ('geaux' is an LSU thing for those who haven't witnessed the circus sideshow that is me on Twitter during football season) kinda blah between the end of football & holidays until now, when NASCAR returns. Dale Jr. finished 3rd. Great race. Very glad Kyle Busch is safe after that horrific accident yesterday. Scary, scary thing to see. I felt so bad for his wife--she must have been absolutely terrified. Safer barriers should be everywhere. Just my less-than-two-cents opinion. 





The writing cave has been a busy place. Book 4 of The Merworld Waters Wars is coming along steadily. I'll be kicking it into high gear here soon. I'm still looking at a summer 2015 release date. And...we have a cover!!! It definitely sets the tone for the fourth book, especially since the story really leads to the fifth and final book in the series. I'm a crazy mix of excited, nervous, and sad to be so close to the end of this series. Oooh, can't even think about how finishing the last book will feel! Nope, can't think about that right now. No, no, no, just no.

Anyway...on top of that, I've been working like mad on my first New Adult Contemporary Romance/Suspense trilogy. There will be danger, love, deadly secrets, betrayal, and some, um, steamy-sexy grown-up fun. It's been really fun to write. I've had these characters nagging me for a looong time--kept notebooks in an attempt to keep them at bay while writing Merworld Water Wars, but they finally lost their patience and came bursting out of my brain. I'm not absolutely sure about a release date for the first book, but I'm aiming for the end of summer, maybe sooner.


Oh, and Mother Nature can take the cold away any dang time now. Seriously. Getting just a little tired of having to leave the faucets on a drip and shivering and brrr and blah! Elsa, I most definitely am not, despite 'Let It Go' being a theme song and my love of snow for the holidays. Pre-Christmas snow & Christmas snow...yeah, totally different from after-Christmas snow. This made a lot more sense in my head than it does now, staring back at me. :/ 

Lots of things coming up, including a big contest taking place in False Key...details coming this week! 

Author Spotlight: Susan Fodor Brings the Mermaid-Merry!

It's a mer-Merry Christmas today! I'm thrilled to have one of my very favorite mer-authors on the blog: Susan Fodor! She was one of the very first authors I met when starting this journey & I'm truly blessed to call her my friend. <3


What Christmas carol could you not live without? 



If you could be in a Christmas movie, which would it be and who would you play?


Finish this sentence: It's not Christmas without...



Susan's Biography
Susan is the author of The Silver Tides Series.A dreamer. Wife. Mother. Friend. Dessert enthusiast. Theologian. Australian. Bi-lingual. Passionate. Overly involved with fictional characters. Avid supporter of International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Has eclectic taste in music, food, and clothing. Enjoys taking random photos of Tuvok her cat.
And always has time to look for the best in people.



Connect with Susan & discover her novels: 
Amazon Page TwitterWebsite/Blog FacebookGoodreads
*Giveaway: For a complete list of prizes and terms & conditions, click here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

Author Spotlight: Marijon Braden Brings Festive Fun!

The elves are ready for some festive fun with the amazing Marijon Braden! 



What Christmas Carol could you live without? 




If you could be in a Christmas movie, which would it be and who would you be?



Finish this sentence: It's not Christmas without....






Connect with Marijon & discover her novels: 
Amazon Page TwitterWebsite/Blog FacebookGoodreads
*Giveaway: For a complete list of prizes and terms & conditions, click here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

Author Spotlight: Jamie Campbell Brings the Jolly!

Frosty, Rudolph, & even the busiest elf in Santa's village have gathered around to welcome the wonderful Jamie Campbell to the blog!


If you could be in a Christmas movie, which would it be and what character would you play?




Finish this sentence: It's not Christmas without....



What's your favorite holiday tradition or food? Why?








Connect with Jamie & discover her novels: 
Amazon Page TwitterWebsite/Blog FacebookGoodreads
*Giveaway: For a complete list of prizes and terms & conditions, click here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

Author Spotlight: Zoe Cannon Brings the Cheer!

Today Santa's reindeer are giving three cheers for the incredible Zoe Cannon! 




What Christmas carol could you not live without? 



What's your favorite holiday tradition or food? Why?



What's your funniest holiday memory or gift?








Connect with Zoe & discover her novels: 
Amazon Page TwitterWebsite/Blog FacebookGoodreads
*Giveaway: For a complete list of prizes and terms & conditions, click here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

Author Spotlight: Anya Allyn Brings Holiday Fun!

Today we welcome the tremendously talented Anya Allyn to the blog!




If you could be in a Christmas movie, which would it be and what character would you play?




Finish this sentence: It's not Christmas without....




What's your favorite holiday tradition or food? Why?





Connect with Anya & discover her novels: 
Amazon Page TwitterWebsite/Blog FacebookGoodreads
*Giveaway: For a complete list of prizes and terms & conditions, click here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

2014 Holly Hootenanny Christmas Giveaway!

It's a Christmas written in the stars for the 3rd Annual Holly Hootenanny Christmas Giveaway as the ten authors of Celestial come together to help Santa bring you a book lover's dream: Over 15 Books & Swag! 





One lucky winner will receive the following: 

E-books : 



* My Daylight Monsters by Sarah Dalton* Mary Hades by Sarah Dalton            * Clocked Winked by Ariele Sieling* The Torturer’s Daughter by Zoe Cannon * Smoke, Wings, and Stone by Marijon Braden
* Unite by Jamie Campbell 
* Untethered by Katie Hayoz
* Keep Your Enemies Close by H.S. Stone
* Gifted by H.S. Stone
* The Dark Carousel series, Books 1, 2, 3, & 4 by Anya Allyn

Paperback Books :


* Signed paperback of My Daylight Monsters by Sarah Dalton* Signed copy of Wounded World by Ariele Sieling* Signed copy of Smoke, Wings, and Stone by Marijon Braden* Signed copy of Finned by Sutton Shields* Signed copy of Overfalls by Sutton Shields* Signed copy of Rifted by Sutton Shields* Signed copy of Silver Tides by Susan Fodor* Copy of Celestial         

And awesome swag like bookmarks, bracelets, and postcards! 




Pick up a copy of Celestial on Amazon & Add to your Goodreads shelf.

a Rafflecopter giveaway  Terms & Conditions of the Giveaway (also stated on the Rafflecopter Giveaway Terms & Conditions section):

*U.S. & International residents 18 years of age and older
*Not suitable for children. Please keep out of the reach of children. 
*Shipping from me within the United States will be Priority Mail, Insured, with Delivery Confirmation and tracking will be provided to the winner via e-mail; International Shipping will either be via First Class International or Priority Mail International.
*Authors are not responsible/liable for prizes lost in the mail*Mailing times may vary. 
*Delivery times may vary.
*Open to Residents of the US and Internationally. Winner will be notified by email. Winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is selected. I will contact participating authors regarding your prize(s). The authors, in most cases, are shipping or e-mailing their items to you directly. I will make every effort to assist you in obtaining your prize. If there is an issue, please notify the author within 30 days for assistance. 
*The products offered for the giveaway are free of charge, no purchase necessary. Facebook, Twitter and Google+ are in no way associated with this giveaway. By providing your information in this form, you are providing your information to me and me alone. I do not share or sell information and will use any information only for the purpose of contacting the winner.

Candy Cane Kisses Anthology Blog Blast Sign Up!

What better time than Christmas to curl up and escape into a book full to the brim with love? From sweet to funny to steamy-sexy to magical, we've got every type of romance covered. 

Nine authors spin their tinsel in this anthology: 

Adrianne James
Angi Black
Amber Garr
Rachel Bateman
Jaycee DeLorenzo
Monica Sanz
Nicki DeStasi
Nicole Zoltack
and me!

If you'd like to help spread the holiday love, please click on the link below and sign up for the Candy Cane Kisses: A Christmas Short Story Anthology blog blast! 

Blog Blast Sign Up

Life is But a Dream: HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Pick up a copy of Somewhere South of Normal :Amazon  Add to your Goodreads Shelf :Goodreads: Somewhere South of Normal Check out the website : False Key   

Meet Granny! Halloween Short Story by Serena Schreiber

Today, we welcome Serena back for a special Halloween short story featuring one of my very favorite characters in Somewhere South of Normal: Granny! 

To set the mood...


And now...



Trick-or-Treating False Key
by Serena Schreiber  


We younger children, I gripping my plastic samurai sword and Bella tripping on her too-long kimono hem, crept closer to the dark house while our older siblings lit cigarettes and loitered outside the garden wall. Lumbering after us in a masked turtle costume, Nick complained, "Wait up, Tyler!" Bella and I both shushed him. I heard my brother Xander laugh from the sidewalk. "Later, losers." Already bored, he and his friends would move on to their teenager party, leaving us to our fate. It was a dare, the annual one, to trick-or-treat the Rockefeller house, and we were the dumb fish who had taken the bait. Proof we'd been inside the decaying mansion could buy us entry to the older kids' party and games like Spin-the-Bottle. Reaching the front door was our first challenge, so we made our way over the coquina pavers, slick with moss, past the sculptures lining the pathway--nightmare figures screaming, cowering, and kneeling. I checked my back jeans pocket to be sure my penny whistle was there. At the first rustle in the underbrush, Nick cried out. "Oh!" "It's just a cat," Bella said calmly. "The witch's cat!" His cape fluttered out as he ran for it. "What a baby," Bella muttered, shaking her head. Privately, I agreed with Nick. Several freakish cats emerged, meowing in strangled harmony. So, the stories were true. Three, four, five cats--all had six toes on their forepaws. What other stories were true about the old lady? I shuddered. "Come on," I said. "Let's get this over with." We climbed the porch steps. A plastic jack o'lantern flickered in the window.  Next to the door, the shell-shaped name plate read "Rockefeller." With a jolt, I remembered the family from class--something to do with oil? Supposed to be stinking rich, weren't they? Couldn't be. The place was a dump. I knocked. "She's not a witch, you know," Bella said. "Of course not." I said, my voice edgy. "Don't believe everything you hear."  "She's a mermaid," she whispered. I laughed. "Don't be stupid." I knocked again, louder this time, and rang the bell, but heard no sound. "No, really. Trapped on land. She sings and carves people." She hugged her bulging candy bag to her chest. I liked the freckles that danced across her nose from one cheek to the other and the shiny, red ponytail which bounced when she talked. I grinned. "You mean with a great, big knife?" I held up my make-believe sword. "No, like an artist. With a hammer and chisel." I stared at her, uncomprehending. Impatiently, she huffed. "We just walked past her artwork." "Whatever." I shrugged. "She's not home." "Maybe she's in her workshop. Let's go see." I shook my head. "No way." I'd seen plenty of scary movies, and I knew this was the deciding moment. "Let's go the party." Maybe play Truth or Dare. Bella smirked. "Baby." Apparently, Truth or Dare was happening now. Fine. "Where's the workshop?" "Around back." "How do you know?" "I've been here before." Admiration battled unease as we followed the wraparound porch to the back of the house. Maybe this would turn out okay. We'd get some candy and have an excellent story to tell. "Okay. And then we go to the party." I'd attempted a devil-may-care attitude, but her words nagged at me as we picked our way around the house. "What do you mean, trapped?" "Crimes against her kind. Using her powers for evil." The property appeared small from the front, but in fact, stretched way back into the distance. Between us and the far end, a vast expanse of underbrush flowed around dozens more weathered, pearlescent sculptures glinting dully in the moon wash. Beyond these, a long, low shed crouched under live oak trees. Light streamed from an open door. "So she is a witch!" "She's an artist. You know, misunderstood." She stepped off the back porch and waded through ferns, avoiding the crowns-of-thorn on her way to the shed. As we neared, I heard silvery singing over a rhythmic tap-tap like metal on stone--tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap. A cat pushed past me, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I'd never hated cats before, but I kicked out at it. It hissed. Bella whirled around, her pretty face pale against her pink lipstick. "Tyler, no! Don't touch the cats!" From afar her came an elderly voice. "Bella, is that you?" A lady stood outside the shed--white-haired and squinting behind owlish glasses. She held a mallet and a sharp tool, reminding me of blunt force and stabbing. Clearly, I play too much GTA. "What are you doing here so late?" she called out. "Who's your friend?" "Hi, Granny. It's Halloween. Did you forget?" I whispered, "She's your grandmother?" The woman smiled. "Everyone calls me that. Pleased to meet you, Tyler. Come on in." Granny retreated into the shed and I followed her and a couple of the creepy cats inside. Granny gestured at open bags of candy on a stool near the door. "Take plenty, I don't get many trick-or-treaters." Bella said, "Well, maybe you would, if you'd answer the door." I helped myself to gummy spiders. "Too much work to do." Granny set to work again, resuming that rhythmic tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap. Her tools moved in millimeter increments between each pair of taps, chipping along a charcoal line drawn on the vaguely human-shaped hunk of stone which rested on the ground before her. I plopped into a lawn chair near the door to watch, working my way through the bag of candy. The gummies were the best I'd ever had--soft and fruity. I couldn't stop eating them. Bella peered into the eyes of a seated sculpture. "Is that the pizza guy?" she asked. Granny nodded. "Jeffrey. The cats got overambitious. He'll need a fair amount of work." "So, Clara is finished?" "Completely roughed out. Should be ready for Christmas."  I felt a drowsy and content, watching Bella and the old lady moving around the shop, discussing the artwork in varying stages of readiness, and which tools would be used next. Granny returned to her chiseling, and the tapping sound filled the shop like a gentle rain. My eyes felt heavy, each blink longer than the previous one. When I opened my eyes, Bella stood at the sculpture called Clara, running her hands over it. Its arms extended over head as if reaching. The entire figure leaned forward, as if taking a step toward me. Bella murmured something--another language? I saw tears welling in the statue's haunted eyes and running in pearly streams down her face. The statue met my gaze, and I swear she was begging forgiveness. I blinked, Clara blinked, and the eyes went blank again. Bella whirled around and caught me staring. She looked as shocked as if I'd watched her undress through an open window. I think she'd forgotten I was there, and she glared at me. "What are you looking at?" "Nothing." "Have some more gummy worms," she said, but not at all friendly. She gave me the half-eaten bag, which had slipped from my fingers. Granny had stopped chipping. "Maybe he's had enough." Bella wheeled around. "He saw. He knows!" Granny put down her tools and turned to me. "Tyler, do you play music?" She had taken off the owl-glasses and fixed me with her bright blue eyes. A single word arose in my mind, Run. "A bit," I said, trying to stand up. "I think I'll head out now." But the cats encircled my legs, rubbing against me and licking ferociously at the bare skin between my knees and sneakers. I felt bound to the chair. "But, Granny," Bella whined. "No," said Granny. "Off you go." I took the hand she offered, and with a surprising amount of strength, she pulled me out of my seat. "And you too," she said, pushing away the cats with her foot.  "Away with you. Gluttons!" I chanced a glance at Bella, whose face had darkened like a storm cloud. The air around her fizzled. "Granny," she began again, but the old woman cut her off. "We don't do children!" I swear blue sparks flew from her eyes, and the steel in her voice made me flinch, but Bella seemed unfazed. "Except for the ones you choose, you mean," Bella muttered. Granny opened her mouth to speak, closed it, and then spoke in a gentle voice. "Lagom är bäst." "I'll get my own. I don't need you." Granny said, "Weren't you going to a party tonight? Let's fix your hair." I lingered, expecting Bella to protest but she perched on a stool and produced a hairbrush from her tiny purse. Granny pulled out the chopsticks wedged Japanese style in Bella's ponytail and brushed her auburn hair smooth until it shone, humming a strange tune as she did so. Bella closed her eyes and relaxed while Granny did her thing. "Don't be in such a hurry to grow up." The old woman had redone Bella's hair. "Plenty of time to learn all you need. And we don't practice on friends." The piercing blue eyes turned to me. "You are a friend, aren't you, Tyler." I didn't think it wise to contradict. She fished something out of her pocket. "This is for you. Happy Halloween." In her slim, fair, outstretched hand she displayed a small, irregular pearl. I took it and left the shed--how did it get so late? Clouds scudded past the bright moon, and shadows crossed the vast yard. Cat tails moved through the long ferns, bits of movement at the corners of my vision. Granny started singing the strange melody again, and Bella joined in. I pulled the tin whistle out of my pocket and matched the notes. The seated and kneeling figures hummed a deep rumble and swayed with the grasses. Opening their pearly eyes, they stood. Like marionettes rising they cast herky-jerky shadows around the yard. Bella came out to see. "Granny, look!" By now I had the melody and the magic in my flute. I marched through the yard. Clara, quicker than the others, fell into place behind me, then Jeffrey and the other figures trudged into our Conga line, humming a bass harmony to my piccolo melody. I played, the figures shuffled forward, and our clumsy procession filed around the house. Outside the front gate, I turned right toward the party--I couldn't wait to see the look on Xander's face. Alas, alas, Clara could not pass. Her pearly eyes implored me. I remembered Granny's gift and slipped the pearl into Clara's open mouth. A vertical, hairline crack formed between her eyes, which shone with hope as the gap lengthened down her face. When it reached her chest and widened to an inch, Clara's real face, exposed behind the mask, nodded. I jammed my plastic sword into the split. She gasped. Using my sword like a crow bar, and praying it wouldn't snap, I levered the crack wider. It extended the length of her stony torso, splitting her shell in two. I heaved and opened her up like an oyster. Once the main pieces fell away and crashed to the ground, Clara stepped out of her prison. With her dusty ballerina costume and dazed expression, she looked like an earthquake survivor. "What did you do?" Bella loomed like a storm. Jeffrey and the others retreated when Granny appeared at her side. "You can't take her."  Bella hissed. But Granny said, "Back by midnight." "C'mon," I said to Clara. A pack of zombie kids was lurching down the street to the Roosevelt house, shaving cream cans at the ready. I grabbed Clara's hand and dragged her away. Behind me I heard, "Trick-or-Treat."


*Squee* Oh, how I LOVE stories featuring Granny & all her awesome! Check out Granny in Oyster, featured in Somewhere South of Normal--you won't regret it, although it may make you think twice about ever underestimating sweet little old ladies!  


 Get updates via email for more free goodness at http://www.falsekey.com/contact

 

Connect with Serena here: 
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GIVEAWAY : *See a breakdown of the goodies, terms & conditions, & pictures here* 
 
a Rafflecopter giveaway






Pick up a copy of Somewhere South of Normal :Amazon 
Add to your Goodreads Shelf :Goodreads: Somewhere South of Normal
Check out the website : False Key