Christa Simpson's Blog, page 20
September 11, 2015
SINGING at the TOP OF YOUR LUNGS because it’s fun
The first time I heard this song I didn’t like it. By the second time, it had already grown on me. Now I can’t listen to the damn song without belting out Meghan Trainor’s part at the top of my lungs. I just can’t. Is it just me? Yeah? Okay, just checking. ;)Meghan Trainor – Like I’m Gonna Lose You ft. John Legend
Cuz Macklemore makes me laugh…
MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS – DOWNTOWN (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO) *Explicit*
But he also makes me cry…
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Growing Up (Sloane’s Song) feat. Ed Sheeran
My hubby can’t get enough of this one.
I agree she sings the crap out of this song.
A Southern Gospel Revival – Jamie Wilson – Ain’t No Grave
And finally, a little bit of Marianna’s Trench.
Good song and just love this video. It makes me smile.
Marianas Trench – Desperate Measures
Have I horrified you with my music selection? Visit my YouTube channel if you want more. :P
What do you listen to? I encourage leaving links to your favourite music videos in the comments!
September 10, 2015
RELEASE BLITZ: Onyx Unleashed by Tanya Vought (Good vs. Evil Series)
ONYX UNLEASHED
by Tanya Vought
When good and evil collide, who will be left standing?
Eden Cross is lonely. If she didn’t have her beloved cat, Onyx, she’d have no one at all. Eden longs for companionship, but, being a prisoner, all she gets is foul-mouthed demons, and hatred from the one man she wants respect from the most.
Collier Brigham is son of the King of Demons. Bitter with hatred, like his father, he’s expected to be a force to be reckoned with. He never believed love would rear its ugly head in his favor. Especially not when the woman is the daughter of the man who is to blame for the deaths of his mother and brother.
She is a beautiful force of nature and he is misery personified. When secrets are revealed, can they see past the unthinkable and work together to right their wrongs?
***
NOW AVAILABLE FOR $0.99!!! (For a limited time!)
| AMAZON | BARNES AND NOBLE | iBOOKS |
EXCERPT
Collier exits the shower, grabs a towel off the small rack and smiles, assuming it’s Eden’s as well. Just as he’s about to dry himself off, he hears a noise behind him. He turns around to find Eden licking her lips at his body. She’s eye fucking him and it drives him insane.
“Eden, like what you see?” He grabs his girth in front of her, enjoying her eyes as he tantalizes her.
But this is not the time for this. He’s vowed to make himself a new man—to be the one she wants—the one to make her laugh and be carefree, like she is with Drew.
One thought of Drew and he turns his back on her and dries off. “Please give me a minute to myself. Leave the bathroom, now.”
He hates having seen the confusion all over Eden’s face. Anger is definitely there too.
“You know what, Collier? I’m tired of the bullshit and all you stupid, mercurial men. I’m so freaking tired of it. I stuck up for your sorry ass, but forget it. I’m done.” She slams the door, leaving him alone and confused. Why did she have to stick up for him?
What the hell just happened here?
He dries off the rest of his body with the purple towel, even though he has mostly air-dried. He runs his fingers through his hair, trying to restrain the crazy head of hair of his. He huffs and growls. He feels his skin start to crack… he’s angry. He was rude to Eden after thinking of Drew. He knows he needs to talk with her. He wraps his towel around his waist, since he left his clothes in the other room. He hopes Eden is waiting for him.
Slowly opening the door, Collier finds Eden reading on the bed. He knows she’s seen him but also knows he deserves her stubborn silent treatment. He notices that she’s brought food back, but, well, it’s not quite what he expected. On a white plate with red grapes and banana slices she’s formed the words: Eat Shit Asshole.
He laughs and grumbles. He takes a bite of his food and in the corner of his eye he notices Eden watching him.
“If you’d like a piece of this, you’re more than welcome to some, sweetheart.”
He enjoys watching her squirm on the bed, without making a peep. He also enjoys watching her huff before turning back to her book, which he knows she’s definitely not reading.
AUTHOR BIO
What started as a lifelong dream became a reality when Tanya Vought penned and released her debut romance novel, Granted Wishes. She is a hopeless romantic who loves reading, writing and singing. You may know her as blogger “Tanya – The Book Obsessed Momma”, where she’s been a loyal supporter of authors and an active participant in the book community for several years.
You’ll find that Tanya writes stories that are sweet, sassy and unique—like her. When she’s not inspiring others with her kindness, she’s spending time with her husband and two imaginative children. She believes whole-heartedly that anything is possible. If you can dream it, you can achieve it!
Be social and visit one of her author pages!
| WEBSITE |
| BLOG | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | GOODREADS |
GIVEAWAY!
September 7, 2015
777 Writers’ Challenge – Authors: I Dare You to Share Yours
Finlay is very pleased with himself. That grin disgusts me. The man I love is completely taken by the way he hurts me. It’s like a drug that feeds his mental illness, at times when he’s unsure of himself. It’s not healthy for him and it’s life threatening for me.
“That was good, baby,” he tells me, as if I should agree with him.
I want to drop onto the shabby carpet and beg for him to stop this.
***
I got to it right away for you. This is my post for the 777 Writers’ Challenge. I’ve shared 7 lines, starting on page 7, at line 7 of my current Work In Progress, Playing House, A Black Widow Novel.
In case you are wondering what was going on up there…
Clarisse Blackwell, my MC, is talking about violent sex. Finlay is always pushing her boundaries and this time he nearly suffocates her. She’s come to find that her boyfriend is not right in the head and what he’s doing is wrong, but… she’s in love. All this history–the mind games, the trauma–is what drives Clarisse’s behaviour in the rest of the novel.
Playing House, Part One in the Black Widow Serials, will not be the usual breezy romance you might have come to expect from me, but you shall be entertained. You may enjoy this story if you can handle a gritty storyline, with dark romantic elements and mentally unstable, salt of the earth kinds of characters. The story will be rightfully categorized as an erotic thriller.
This book is all new brand of twisted—even for me! ;)
I want to tell you where the idea for this post originated. The lovely Brittney Sagin () and Tanya Vought challenged me to post certain lines in my WIP, so this is all you get for now, but you better believe more will be coming soon! My newsletter subscribers will be getting first dibs on reading this story, even before it releases. Please join up if that interests you!
Now, to challenge another seven writers… I dare you to share your work in progress with me and keep the chain going. Why stop at seven nominees? Here are ten! :-)
CE Black (Erotic Paranormal Romance) ~ http://ceblackbooks.weebly.com
Nicky D. White (Contemporary Romance/Suspense) ~ www.nickydwhite.com
Violet Haze (Erotic Romance) ~ www.authorviolethaze.com
Cori Williams (Contemporary Romance) ~ www.AuthorCoriWilliams.com
Steph Schiefer (Dark Romances) ~ www.authorslschiefer.com
A.M. Willard (Contemporary Romance) ~ www.amwillard.com
Marie O’Halloran (Short Stories & Poetry) ~ http://marieohalloran.blogspot.com
Briana Gaitan (YA/Adult Romance) ~ www.brianagaitan.blogspot.com
JC Hannigan (New Adult Romance) ~ www.sarcastica.ca
Alyne Roberts (New Adult/Erotic Romance) ~ www.alyneroberts.com
READERS: Are these new-to-you authors? There’s something here for everyone! Pay the nominees a visit and see what they’re working on!
AUTHORS: I dare you to share yours!
September 4, 2015
How To Find Your Kindle.com Address on Amazon
I can’t tell you how many times readers have told me they don’t have a Kindle.com address. I’m here to tell you now:
If you read on the Kindle app, you have a Kindle.com address.
Here are directions to help you find your kindle.com address on Amazon and show you how to receive an e-book directly onto your Kindle reading device, or any other device with the Kindle app. There is one exception, and you can scroll to the bottom to see what that is. Okay! Let’s get to it, shall we?
First off, you need to log in to your Amazon account where you buy all your books. I’m in Canada, so I typed “Amazon.ca” in the address bar of Internet Explorer and then logged in on Amazon as usual.
In the upper right corner, point your cursor over the spot where mine reads, “Hello Christa. Your Account” and select “Manage Your Content and Devices“.
Next, you want to select “Settings“, which you’ll find to the right of “Your Content” and “Your Devices”, below the heading “Manage Your Content and Devices”.
Scroll down to where it says “Personal Document Settings“. Check your “Send-to-Kindle E-mail Settings” to locate the email address related to your kindle account. Select “Edit” if you’d like to change or shorten your address.
And that’s it! Easy enough, right?
Now, authors, when someone tells you they don’t have a Kindle.com address, you can explain to them how to find it! Feel free to refer your friends, family or fans to this post to save you the trouble. If you’re a reader, you should be able to easily locate your own address for receiving e-books directly from your favourite authors and/or publishers. Ooh! One last thing!
Don’t forget to add the publisher to your list of approved senders!
In that same settings section, farther down on the page, select “add a new approved e-mail address” and insert the email address of the person sending you the book. In case you were wondering, this step has been put in place to prevent people from spamming your kindle. Thank you, Amazon!
AUTHORS: Sending your book files to readers via Kindle is a great way to prevent and deter piracy of your e-books. It sure beats sending a mobi or pdf file to an email address, which file is easily forwarded to friends, family and potentially e-book pirates. Do yourself a favour! Use this method now and save yourself the headaches later.
READERS: THE ONLY exception to this process, I am told, is for those reading solely on a desktop. In that case, since you’re only reading online, you do not have a device to send the document to. I have a laptop running Windows 8 and can confirm it too has its own kindle address. That kindle address does not show in my samples above because I have both an Amazon.ca and an Amazon.com account. I’ve always used Amazon.com but, when I got my Android, I was required to set up an Amazon.ca account in order to use the Kindle app. Hope this answers your concerns!
Was this post helpful to you? Is there anything else you’d like to see on my blog? Tell me about it in the comments!
Cover Reveal: The Push by Sara V. Zook (A sequel to The Pull)
Cover Reveal
Title: the Push
Author: Sara V. Zook
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 25, 2015
Check out Sara V. Zook’s new one! I love her work!!
An accident. A coma. Another woman stealing her husband’s heart.
Livvy Thorne has been through hell. She’s just gotten Darin back, and with Violet now out of the picture, she can focus on her marriage and the anticipated arrival of their newborn son. Having a family, that’s not too much to ask for, is it?
A heart attack. A hospital. More pain.
Another man is about to step into Livvy’s life to help her through the torments she’s experiencing. Will she lean on him and forget everything she’s worked so hard to get back?
Sometimes our destiny is to be happy, uplifted, and content. Other times our destiny stabs us in the back, laughs at our suffering, and pushes us down.
✫✫✫SALE✫✫✫
For a limited time 99 cents!
Having two women wanting you at the same time … isn’t that every man’s fantasy? Wrong. It’s a nightmare, at least for Darin Thorne. The doctors had assured him his wife was going to die, sooner or later, so he’d moved on with someone else. Then he’d gotten the last call he’d expected to ever get—his wife was back from the dead. She’s coming home from the hospital and needs a place to stay. Darin is forced to invite her to come home with him. Two women living under the same roof, one his wife, the other his fiancé. Could this ever work? Darin feels a storm brewing in his life. He can’t possibly live like this much longer. The question still stands … which woman will he choose?
Sara V. Zook pursued her dream of becoming a writer and after earning her bachelor’s degree, sat down to create her first novel in which Strange in Skin was completed in three short months.
She’s the author of the Strange in Skin Trilogy, Clipped, A Magic Within, Evanescent, Reminiscence, her mobster release, Six Guns, A Chaos Within, and her first contemporary romance, The Pull.
She resides in Pennsylvania, where she was born and raised, with her husband and three small children.
PAY HER A VISIT!
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SaraVZook
Website: http://authorsaravzook.blogspot.com/
Twiiter: http://www.twitter.com/SaraVZook
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6450481.Sara_V_Zook
August 31, 2015
Name that beater!
I always check my engine wearing a mini dress and four-inch heels. :-P
A Beater . . .
The following definition, which I found on UrbanDictionary.com, is close enough. The next best one was, “A $50 car.” I would say a $500 car fits the bill too, because I don’t think you’ll find too many $50 cars driving down the street, or maybe I’m not paying close enough attention???
You’re probably still wondering what the heck I’m getting at. Allow me to get to the point.
I’m editing a book that starts with college-aged characters who are putting themselves through school. This point in the story is fairly short-lived, but while revisiting my manuscript on paper, I’ve decided I need to name the beater my dude is driving–and I’m not talking about calling it Bertha.
This is the part that’s scary!
I can’t, for the life of me, name what beater–or shall I say “affordable”– cars kids are driving to college these days. I’ve been out of college long enough now that the cars from my time have been long discontinued. Both my husband and I each drove a fabulous, and yet reliable, Ford Tempo throughout our post-secondary years, thanks to having to pay for our own vehicles and put ourselves through college.
I DO NOT want my contemporary story to be outdated, and so I would love to enlist your help!
Are you in college now, struggling to get by? Do you have a friend that drives a really “sweet ride” that matches this description? Maybe you have teenagers or grandchildren who you don’t want driving your car, so you’ve invested in a good old…
NAME THAT BEATER!
Thank you in advance for your help! As a side note, I’d love to know what you drove to school in your day. :)
August 29, 2015
A Blog Post About Blogging and Becoming an Author
When I first started blogging, while I was writing my debut novel, I was so uncensored. I had very few followers and so I posted to my blog regularly (LIKE THREE TIMES A WEEK, EASILY!) without fretting too hard over grammatical and typographical errors. I didn’t own licences to any stock photography and I didn’t understand how to use the free feature on WordPress to add images, so my posts had very few photos, if any at all. Life was simple. The people who followed me, joined my blog on their own accord, by no request, force or pressure to do so. I knew, if they were following me it was because they actually cared about what I had to say. I didn’t blow time hanging out on Facebook and Twitter (as much), although I did really enjoy Twitter before the auto-bots ruined it over there. I spent time writing my book, learning about publishing, and sharing my results. And you know what? PEOPLE LOVED IT!
So, what changed?
After publishing, the way I used my time changed in a big way. Readers wanted more. So I gave them more, but I started to lost bits and pieces of myself along the way. I have no one to blame but myself, but…
Here’s what happened…
Set up a Facebook page, authors told me. So I did. Tweet the crap out of your books on Twitter, writers said. So I did. Don’t leave all your eggs in one basket, they said. So I joined Google Plus. You’re missing all these readers over here, they said. And so I figured out how Pinterest worked (Still love it, by the way; perfect for story boards!) You need a street team, they said. Got one of those. Offer them something for free, they said. Doing it now. It seemed to work for Beautifully Broken over at Barnes and Noble, so fingers crossed that it revives my Twisted Series. (You know how I feel about Amazon.) I’ve even joined YouTube and Instagram, for God’s sake. Tell me that wasn’t a total waste of my time!
Okay, I take that back. YouTube is more for fun. I love sharing my playlists on there, but Instagram can stay in the bag of wasted time, although just today a local acquaintance told me that she learned I was an author due to accidentally landing on my Instagram account… Anyways!!! (Forget you heard that. Lol)
Where it got me…
I now have hundreds of thousands of views and fans across so many channels that I can’t keep up with them all. What’s happening is I’m stretched too thin and am not seeing the results worthy of my time and effort; not even close. It’s just not possible to actively engage all of your readers on all of these social media channels! Instagram is a buzz-kill too. Tell me a woman of my age shouldn’t get a little depressed from seeing all these model-worthy young ladies selfying themselves (yes, I like to make up words and just did it rather effectively) and looking fabulous with their tight, young skin and fun adventures. A case of TMI there? I thought so. But it’s the truth… and I needed to get that out there.
On top of that, my time has been spread so thin that blogging kind of slipped right off the table of things to do. That’s just not right, because I actually do love blogging. A fellow Ontario writer/blogger actually made me realize this yesterday, when he was writing about nothing too stunning, but I enjoyed his writing style nonetheless. THAT, my friends, is the way to go. THAT is how I want to be portrayed as a writer; not posting random crap on social media sites to maybe 3% of my following on any given day; even less when I’m talking about my books, because you have to pay for promotions. To put it bluntly:
Nothing in life is free and I’m doing it all wrong.
The worst part is, I’ve read/watched so many episodes of how to do it right, now—and I actually do believe I’m finally watching the right people who can help me get to where I want to be—that I know what I have to do!
Here’s to actually making it happen!!!
What I’m going to do about it…
So, now, instead of editing the crap out of this post and deciding not to publish it at all—like I’ve done waaay too often this year—because I have so many of you fabulous followers’ eyes on me, I’m going to send it off with one quick proofread (Cuz, let’s face it, I’m just not that careless!)
Okay, just proofread. I really can’t shut up when I get going! Jeez! I’ve decided that I should probably end this post with some sort of engagement, and I really do want to know… so please, please comment. For the two seconds it will take out of your day, it will make mine.
If you had to pick only TWO (no cheating) social media channels to interact on, which sites would you choose and why? If the WHY scares you, then please just share the sites. J J J Thanks for listening!
August 26, 2015
SUMMER SALE: TWISTED IS #FREE!!!
To celebrate the final days of summer, I’ve put my baby, TWISTED, on sale! Not just “on sale”, but for free! This means you can get this complete novel (all 99,000 words of it) for zero pennies, the price of nothing, for FREE!!! If you’re into friends-with-benefits, friends to lovers, new adult sass, and/or romances with a paranormal twist, then I have a feeling you will enjoy this story. 
Did you know that my newsletter subscribers were the first to scoop up this delicious deal? They’ll be receiving exclusive specials in the future, too. It’s not too late to join, if you’re interested. You can sign up here!
What readers are saying about Twisted.
Readers are calling this story sexy, entertaining and easy to read. The characters are a little crazy, but who isn’t? There’s never a dull moment in the Twisted Trilogy.
Check out that Amazon Best Sellers Rank!
You might have noticed that Twisted is book one in a trilogy. It DOES NOT stand alone; at least you won’t feel satisfied at the end of this novel. The trilogy, as a whole, is a romance… a drama. Know that there is an amazing happy ever after to come, but also know that you will be slammed with a cliffy by the end of this book. YOU’VE BEEN WARNED!!! I get the love-hate relationship with cliffies and I’m not asking you to love it, but when you do, the rest of the books in the series will be waiting for you.
Still not sure whether this book is for you? Read on!
Blurb:
Can a man and woman be “just friends”?
After graduating from law school with honours, Edwin Santora, Abigail’s occasional ex and handsome housemate, could get a job anywhere he wants. Of all the places to land, why does he take a position with her small firm? As if sharing a house with her irresistible ex isn’t bad enough, it quickly becomes the least of her concerns. When Edwin’s macho arrogance begins to seriously affect her dating life, Abigail starts to reconsider their friendship; not that Edwin believes a man and woman can be “just friends” anyway.
With Edwin’s swoon-worthy stunts and fierce persistence, Abigail finds herself catching feelings. When Edwin makes a friendly proposal, no-strings-attached, Abigail can’t resist.
After some sexy role playing, she finds herself dangerously in love and wrapped back up in Edwin’s powerful grip. When Abigail risks everything, revealing a treacherous little secret, will their friendship pass the test? Or will they give in to the mysterious forces trying to drive them apart?
So tell me! Have you read Twisted yet? Are you going to now?
Don’t forget to join my reader’s list! By joining, you’ll receive special news, sneak previews and exclusive offers from me! Please sign up today!
July 29, 2015
Cover Reveal: Onyx Unleashed by Tanya Vought
When good and evil collide, who will be left standing?
ONYX UNLEASHED by TANYA VOUGHT
Publisher: Black Widow Publishing
Expected Release: September 10, 2015
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Blurb:
Eden Cross is lonely. If she didn’t have her beloved cat, Onyx, she’d have no one at all. Eden longs for companionship, but, being a prisoner, all she gets is foul-mouthed demons and hatred from the one man she wants respect from the most.
Collier Brigham is son of the King of Demons. Bitter with hatred, like his father, he’s expected to be a force to be reckoned with. He never believed love would rear its ugly head in his favor. Especially not when the woman is the daughter of the man who is to blame for the deaths of his mother and brother.
She is a beautiful force of nature and he is misery personified. When secrets are revealed, can they see past the unthinkable and work together to right their wrongs?
***
PRE-ORDER LINKS: (discounted price!)
| AMAZON | BARNES AND NOBLE | iBOOKS |
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
What started as a lifelong dream became a reality when Tanya Vought penned and released her debut romance novel, Granted Wishes. She is a hopeless romantic who loves reading, writing and singing. You may know her as blogger “Tanya – The Book Obsessed Momma”, where she’s been a loyal supporter of authors and an active participant in the book community for several years.
You’ll find that Tanya writes stories that are sweet, sassy and unique—like her. When she’s not inspiring others with her kindness, she’s spending time with her husband and two imaginative children. She believes whole-heartedly that anything is possible. If you can dream it, you can achieve it!
Be social and visit one of her author pages!
| BLOG | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | GOODREADS |
COMING SEPTEMBER 10, 2015!
Please SIGN UP if you can help blog about the release day blitz or blog tour!
For more information on the release of this sexy new story, please visit Black Widow Publishing at www.BWPbooks.com!
I was lucky enough to design this beautiful cover! What do you think? The editing will be my handy work as well. Hope you’ll pick up a copy as soon as it’s up for pre-order. It’s already up on iBooks and should be up on Barnes and Noble by the time you read this! If Amazon is your vendor of choice, check back after August 28, 2015 but before September 10 if you want to get that special pre-order price!
June 27, 2015
Playing House by Christa Simpson (A Black Widow Novel)
PLAYING HOUSE by Christa Simpson
This book will be quite different from what you’re used to from me. There will be no guarantee of a Happy Ever After, because PLAYING HOUSE (a Black Widow Novel) is not a romance. There are romantic elements, don’t get me wrong, because it is an erotic thriller, but there will also be violence, suspense, and a host of other trigger situations that might cause you pain and dig up old memories and emotions that are better left in hiding. That’s what the Black Widow does. She hurts people any way she knows how.
If you’re willing to face your fears and scare off those inner demons, here’s the blurb.
She’s only playing. He’s playing for keeps.
My name is Clarisse Blackwell. With nothing left to lose, I am a dangerous woman. There’s a reason they call me the Black Widow. My boyfriend died trying to kill me and my husband died trying to save my life.
Destroyed by grief and consumed by an urge to bring revenge so passionately, darkness devours my soul. A master of persuasion, I trick and tease, reducing a grown man to trembling knees to make him see what it’s like to be me. He’ll learn the hard way, as you will, that my sweet revenge only feeds the dark thrill of causing others pain.
Lying. Cheating. Stealing. It’s what I do. You think you know me? You don’t, and neither does the man whose life mustn’t be worth living anymore. Our relationship is like an explosion set to detonate on my command. He thinks he knows me. His mistake. He thinks he’s different. He doesn’t believe I’m cursed. I’ll make him believe.
Lives will end, minds will be blown, and one thing is for certain:
the Black Widow will strike again.
For more information on the release of this sexy new story, please click here! I’ll be updating this page regularly.
In the meantime, this is me. Don’t be a stranger. ;)
http://www.christasimpson.com
