Bette Maybee's Blog, page 4

Confessions...

I have a confession to make...I'm a signing event virgin. I've never even attended one**sigh**and here I am, on the brink of having one of my very own. In my hometown. With people who know me--some as I am now, but most, as an awkward, skinny, shy teenager who sang a lot, snuck cigarettes in the girl's bathroom, and always had her nose buried in book.

It's scary thinking about meeting the very people who have, are, or plan on reading your book. What do I say? What do I write? Will anyone even show up??

Question Time:
For my author friends: What have been your experiences with book signing events?
For my regular friends, old and new: What do you expect at a book signing? If I had one, would you even considering attending?? If so, would you want me to provide books for purchase/signing?

I'd really love to have your feedback!

Oh, BTW--Only 2.5 days until the Goodreads Giveaway of a paperback copy of PHOENIX: THE RISING!

Other news: PHOENIX: THE RISING has earned a Silver YA Bestseller Star on All Romance and continues to be the Top Seller on Evernight Teen. A HUGE "THANK YOU" to all of you for your support, whether it's from buying a copy, writing a review, or hitting that ever-helpful "LIKE" or  "SHARE" button on Amazon, Evernight Teen, Barnes and Noble, or Facebook!! You ROCK!!

Watch Out for SHRAPNEL!!

I'm so excited to be able to feature my friend and fellow Evernight Teen author, Stephanie Lawton, acclaimed author of WANT, on The Cinderella Diaries today! Stephanie's newest upper-YA novel, Shrapnel , is now available from Evernight Teen. Happy Book Birthday, Stephanie!! Isn't this cover luscious??!!       A little about the book...

It’s been six years since Dylanie and her family visited a Civil War site and the place came alive with cannon fire. Problem was, no one could hear it but her. Now she’s sixteen, her dad’s moved out, her mom’s come out of the closet and Dylan’s got a spot on Paranormal Teen, a reality TV show filming at historic Oakleigh Mansion. She’ll spend a weekend with two other psychic teens—Jake and Ashley—learning how to control her abilities. None of them realized how much their emotional baggage would put them at the mercy of Oakleigh’s resident spirits, or that they’d find themselves pawns in the 150-year-old battle for the South’s legendary Confederate gold. Each must conquer their personal ghosts to face down Jackson, a seductive spirit who will do anything to protect the gold’s current location and avenge a heinous attack that destroyed his family.

 


The story is told from three characters’ POVs, but the main one is Dylan, a tomboy with a bad attitude. She transforms herself into a goth goddess, and it’s her that you see on the cover. It’s a strange mix of paranormal romance/magical realism/historical fiction/soft horror/and just a touch of LGBT. 
About the Author...   Stephanie Lawton  After collecting a couple English degrees in the Midwest, Stephanie Lawton suddenly awoke in the deepest reaches of the Deep South. Culture shock inspired her to write about Mobile, Alabama, her adopted city, and all the ways Southern culture, history and attitudes seduce the unsuspecting.A lover of all things gothic, she can often be spotted photographing old cemeteries, historic buildings and, ironically, the beautiful beaches of the Gulf Coast. She also has a tendency to psychoanalyze people, which comes in handy when creating character profiles  Where can I buy Shrapnel, you ask??   Evernight Teen

Amazon

AllRomance      

Do You Want to Win an E-copy of Phoenix: The Rising??

So, I forgot to hit "checkout" when I ordered my print copies of Phoenix: The Rising the other night. My own book!! I. AM. AN. IDIOT! My sister even has a copy in her greedy little hands right now, and now I have to wait two days to get mine.

You don't have to miss out! If you'd like to win an e-copy, just go to the blog below and leave a comment about your favorite song from my playlist (which is awesomely awesome!) Only one person has commented so far, so you'll have a good chance of winning!

http://talesofbooksandbands.com/2013/01/14/phoenix-the-rising-by-bette-maybee-blog-tour-book-playlist-giveaway/

Phoenix: The Rising on the Blog Tour Bus!!

Whew!  This blog tour gig is intense! Thought I'd stop by my own blog and let you know what has happened so far...

I started off the tour with a character interview  and giveaway at Bookish Temptations. Saturday I traveled over to My Guilty Obsession and made a guest post. And now, the infamous podcast interview with Girls in the Stacks is here! You can learn all my secrets about Phoenix: The Rising and writing! I'm a bit hard to hear at the beginning, but after I get rid of the jitters, all is okie-dokie!

http://girlsinthestacks.com/podcasts/ya-podcast/2013/01/chatting-with-ya-author-bette-maybee/

Oo-oo, you can also listen to it on iTunes, which is pretty cool!

Tomorrow, I'll be moving on to Tales of Books and Bands and share my playlist for Phoenix: The Rising. I hope you all tune in!

Talk to you later!

PHOENIX: THE RISING RELEASE DAY!!

BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER!! I am so amazingly pumped to announce that my debut YA paranormal, PHOENIX: THE RISING was released tonight on Evernight Teen and Createspace.     Live buy links as of tonight!

Amazon--print and e-format Evernight Teen--e-formats and link to print Createspace--print (POD) Tomorrow morning 1-11-13 e-formats will be available on All Romance, Smashwords, and Bookstrand. It will be on Smashwords affiliates (Sony, Kobo, B&N, Diesel, Apple, etc.) within 2-4 weeks.   My Blog Tour begins tomorrow with the incredible Bookish Temptations. Check it out! 11th Bookish Temptations--character interviews and giveaway
12th My Guilty Obsession--guest blog and giveaway
13th Girl in the Stacks--podcast and giveaway
14th Tales Of Books and Bands--Book Playlist and giveaway
15th Evernight Teen--Guest blog, excerpt and giveaway
16th Stephanie Lawton--Guest blog, excerpt My web-presencehttp://www.bjmaybee.blogspot.comhttps://www.facebook.com/BetteMaybeeAuthorhttps://www.facebook.com/bette.bushoremaybeehttps://twitter.com/BetteMaybee Thanks so much for all your support! I couldn't have done it without you!

EEEK!! Only SIX days until PHOENIX: THE RISING debuts!!

OMG! I can't believe January 11th is coming up so fast! It's like I just breached the summit of a the first hill on a roller coaster and am on the fastest, scariest, most thrilling ride of my life!

Things have really started rolling in my writing world! My blog tour is almost totally booked. I started this morning with a SKYPE interview with Stacy and Shannan from girlsinthestacks.com that'll be aired as a podcast shortly after my release. These girls are BESTIES and they totally made me feel welcome. The best part of all? I think they actually like my writing! Girls in the Stacks rock, and I hope I get to work with them in the future!

For other blogs on the tour, including the fabulous Bookish Temptations, My Guilty Obsession, and Tales of Books and Bands (to name a few!) I have been writing guest blogs, playlists, and character profiles. It looks like I'm gonna be one busy girl for a while!

Only SIX MORE DAYS...

REMAIN CALM . . . ALL IS WELL!!!

Ecstatic?? YUP! Petrified?? YOU BET!! About ready to pee my pants?? THAT'S AN UNDERSTATEMENT!!!  This is me when I found out that my BLOG TOUR for PHOENIX: THE RISING is in the works:


(YUM--Love me some Bacon)
I am TOTALLY pumped and honored that the AMAZING blogs by the Girls In The Stacks, My Guilty Obsession, and Kate's Tales of Books and Bands (so far) have welcomed me with open arms. 
Sounds like I'll be doing some guest posts, a playlist, giveaways and **whispering in sweat-inducing anticipation** A PODCAST **gulp**. That last one made me rush to previous podcasts by my girlies to try and figure out what they'll be asking me. I found out two things: 1) There is no generic list of questions because they are really interested in YOU and YOUR story, and 2) there is a LOT of giggling that goes on, which is good, cuz I'm gonna giggle like a school girl on her first date!  
As soon as I know the names of the other blogs on the tour and all the dates are set in stone (this begins 1-12-13), I will SHOUT IT FROM THE MOUNTAINTOP! If you'd like to be part of the tour, just let me know, or contact Emma at evernightteen.com. We'd love to put you on the schedule!
Meanwhile, I will have a little Irish Mist and REMAIN CALM... :)

I'll Take Manhattan...Another SNEAK PEEK!

I've been working on my next WIP--I'LL TAKE MANHATTAN--one of my Four Sisters novels--and decided to rewrite the whole thing in first-person-present POV. I've written in first person before, but choosing to go present-tense is a big, risky step for me. New authors can sometimes slaughter present-tense and make it extremely uncomfortable and unenjoyable for the reader, but I'm hoping I can really sink my teeth into the characters and their internal conflict by going present-tense. I at least have to give it a try. Anyhoo, here are the first 750 words or so of I'LL TAKE MANHATTAN. Please let me know what you think...


“Wish me luck, George.” My shoes hit the pavement of 15 Central Park West, and I know this is it. I tug at the knot of my Lorenzo Cana charcoal silk. Her favorite. At least that’s what she says every time I wear the damn thing. Today it feels like a noose around my neck. Choking me. Taunting me to turn and run while I have a chance. I can broker multi-million dollar deals, butt heads with Trump and his cronies, but this one little deed, the utterance of four simple words, has me sweating like Fat Bastard in a Santa suit. Is it worth it? Damn straight it’s worth it. She’sworth it.George closes the door behind me as only George can do. Noiselessly. “Ain’t no such thing as luck, Mr. Jamison. Either the woman loves you, or she doesn’t.”My hand slips over the obscenely expensive lump in my jacket pocket for the millionth time that morning, seeking some type of palpable reassurance of the decision I’ve made. Pffft.  Of course she loves me. Who wouldn’t? I’m Collin Edward Jamison III. Heir to the largest real estate development firm in New York City. Manhattan’s Most Eligible Bachelor...George raises an eyebrow as he waits for my reply. He’s expecting me to say something like that. Something cocky and self-absorbed. But George knows as well as I do that Annette Bradshaw is the love of my life. This time, he’ll have to settle for the truth instead of a smart-ass answer. “She loves me.”Silence. Shit. Now what?“Are you sure you don’t want me to wait? In case she chases you off with her briefcase?” George winks and lets loose a throaty James Earl Jones chuckle, the kind that seems to start in his toes before working its way up to his deep baritone vocal cords. I can’t help but smile.“I don’t plan on needing your services until later in the day, George.” I shoot him my own wink. “Much later. Miss Bradshaw and I will have a bit of .... celebrating to do.” I pat the lump one more time, then head for the door to Annette’s building.“Wait!”  George’s booming voice stops me in my tracks, the same way it did when I was eight years old and he caught me pissing in my mother’s rose bushes. I turn, expecting George to give me one more tidbit of unsolicited fatherly advice, or at least a May the Force be with you. After all, it isn’t every day that a man asks a woman to marry him, and George’s advice was the closest thing I’d be getting to anything fatherly. Instead, I find him holding out a brown paper bag. “You forgot your bagels ... and I think you’re gonna need your strength, Mr. Jamison. Celebrating takes a lot of energy.” George guffaws at his own joke and shoves the bag at my chest, but I block the assault before it crushes the Lorenzo Cana. Her favorite.  Those two words follow on the tail of “Lorenzo Cana” as automatically as the succulent memory of her wearing nothing but that charcoal silk and an I’m gonna make you beg for mercy look in her chocolate brown eyes the day she gave it to me.  The thought elicits a delicious but inconvenient tug in my groin. At least I don’t feel like I’m choking anymore. “Thanks, old man.” “Old? What do you mean, old, you little pipsqueak?” George puffs his chest out like a rooster in a henhouse. “I’ve done more celebrating on a daily basis for the last thirty years than you’ll do in the next sixty.” George struts around the Mercedes to the driver’s door. “As a matter of fact, I think I’m gonna head on home and do some celebrating myself, since you won’t be needing my services for the day.”  I chuckle. “You do that, George.” George slides into the driver’s seat and, for the first time in recorded history, slams the door of his beloved Mercedes. Holy shit! Seems I ruffled the old man’s feathers. I turn and face the nineteen-story tower as George drives away, take a deep breath to calm my nerves, pat the lump in my pocket one more time, and smile.She loves me.

CHARADE by Nyrae Dawn--A Review

I can't help myself ... I just have to review CHARADE by Nyrae Dawn! That's how much I love it!

Nyrae Dawn has made me fall in love with contemporary romance all over again, first, with her YA hit--What A Boy Wants, and now with her New Adult masterpiece--Charade--a beautiful, heart-wrenching love story of two souls who need each other more than each ever want to admit.

Colt and Cheyenne swept me away in their little charade and it wasn't just the romance that got me, but their stories--the relationship each of them have with their mothers--the lives each have had to endure and overcome. I could feel the hopelessness, the choking fingers of panic around Cheyenne's neck I've experienced so many times in my own life, and the relief and true passion they found in each others' arms.

Charade is a novel that will make you laugh, cry, and order pizza for your family so you can finish reading it. It deserves nothing less than five stars!

Here's her cover (YUM!!) and a blurb about the story!


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Nineteen-year-old Cheyenne tries to portray the perfect life to mask the memories of her past. Walking in on her boyfriend with another woman her freshman year in college threatens that picture of perfection. 
Twenty-one-year-old Colt never wanted college and never expected to amount to anything, but when his mom's dying wish is for him to get his degree, he has no choice but to pretend it's what he wants too. 

Cheyenne needs a fake boyfriend to get back at her ex and Colt needs cash to take care of his mom, so they strike a deal that helps them both. But what if Cheyenne’s past isn’t what she thought? Soon they’re trading one charade for another—losing themselves in each other to forget about their pain. The more they play their game, the more it becomes the only thing they have that feels real.

Both Cheyenne and Colt know life is never easy, but neither of them expect the tragedy that threatens to end their charade and rip them apart forever.

Blog Tours, Bookmarks, and Bears...OH MY!

My journey into publishing continues, and just like Dorothy and her friends as they entered The Haunted Forest in the Land of Oz, I'm entering into a world I haven't experienced before, full of the unknown. It's just a wee bit scary, but thrilling at the same time!

I just turned in what I hope are my last edits, and on the heels of that comes the marketing plan. I had so many questions for my marketing manager...How do I set up a blog tour? Should I have a separate website and blog? Should I pass out bookmarks? How can I get some pre-release reviews? How can you have a book signing or something similar when your novel is released in e-format and POD only? Without going into detail on all of these questions, the one answer I was ecstatic to hear is that Evernight Teen will set up a blog tour for me! Considering that I don't know the first thing about blog tours, this is fantastic news! I had already given them a list of YA bloggers who added PHOENIX: THE RISING to their to-read list on Goodreads (you can add it, too), so they'll be adding them to their list of blogs they'll be contacting. I can't wait!

With all this marketing stuff swimming around in my head, I'm really curious...
Author friends--What are your top marketing strategies for promoting your work? How do you utilize Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, Pinterest, etc.? I would be eternally grateful for any advice you can give this newbie!
Non-author friends--What type of promotional material do you like to see/what influences you to read a book? Do you ever watch book trailers? Do you read reviews before you buy a book? Are you more likely to order a book in e-format or in print? Would you ever attend a book signing?  I really value your input, so PLEASE leave a comment and let me know what you're thinking!

(BTW--Have you seen the trailer for OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL? It looks absolutely fantabulous! Have a peek HERE! )