Angela Myron's Blog, page 10

Love, God & Tattoos Bundle by Aleshia Robinson

Love, God & Tattoos is a series of young adult novels written by American author Aleshia Robinson. The story chronicles the spiritual journey of 21 year old Alcatraz, a troubled tattoo artist, and her struggle to have a positive relationship with God and herself. 

ALCATRAZ THE LOST PEARL 
Fifteen year old Alcatraz is being chased. Born and raised in a loving family, she suddenly finds herself fending for her life on the streets of Los Angeles. Consumed with anger, hurt and confusion, Alcatraz turns to the spiritual realm to find life’s answers. While experimenting with pagan spells, Buddhist chants, and yoga sutras, she continually encounters a spirit who claims He is God. The Truth she learns from this spiritual quest introduces her to the unexpected world of divine healing, acceptance and unconditional love. 

ALCATRAZ THE RIGHTEOUS PEARL 
After two years of spiritual searching, Alcatraz has finally decided who the One true God is for her life. But trouble soon follows. Being rejected by her new found religious organization because of her appearance and discharged from the tattoo shop for her beliefs, Alcatraz is forced to enter the Hollywood adult entertainment life with her best friend Kuriko. The nightmares she experiences living on the dubious streets of Los Angeles causes her to struggle to keep her faith. 

KURIKO THE DAMAGED PEARL 
Alcatraz has desperately wanted to learn more about the mysterious past of her street-smart Japanese best friend, Kuriko. Now her wish has come true, but not in the way she expected. Kuriko handed Alcatraz a black bamboo box before the tragic accident. Inside, Alcatraz finds the diary of a nineteen-year-old girl's struggle with sex trafficking, powerful men, abuse, betrayal, and surprisingly, a burning desire to know God. After two years of living with the secretive, over-protective high-dollar prostitute, Alcatraz learns the dark truth of Kuriko's inhumane journey. Now she wishes the past could have been buried with her best friend. 

From ALCATRAZ THE RIGHTEOUS PEARL- BOOK 2  “What!” I shouted. I couldn’t believe it.

“I’m sorry, kid, I have to let you go,” Moon said.

“What do you mean, let me go? I have appointments booked for the next two weeks.”

Blue Moon stood guard at the reception desk. He wouldn’t let me go to my booth.

“Alcatraz, I believe you are a very talented and promising tattoo artist who will no doubt go far in the field, but I can’t have outbursts like I had yesterday in this shop, kid. Highly unprofessional. That makes people here extremely uncomfortable, and I’’m one of them. So I went ahead and packed up your station for you. All your supplies are here. I even threw in some extra materials so you can freelance. Sorry it had to end this way, kid, but I’m in a tough spot here.”

“Moon, come on, surely we can work this out. I experienced a supernatural love yesterday. I didn’t know that was gonna happen to me or else I would have waited until I got home. Come on, man.”” I threw up my hands. “You can’t fire me because of that. I work too hard here and I know you see that. I’ll keep it under control from now on. I promise.”

Moon hesitated for a moment. “Here.” He slowly reached behind the desk and handed me my stuff. I could tell he didn’t want to do this. He must have felt strapped because Josh was a cash cow. Moon looked back towards the other tattoo artists then turned to me. “If you need a recommendation just have ’em call me. I’ll refer you to any shop in town. You won’t have a problem getting another gig. I’m sure of it.” He turned around and walked towards his office in the back.

I walked slowly back to my condo with several thoughts running through my mind: What am I supposed to do for work? How am I gonna pay rent? Where am I gonna get a job at fifteen years old? Moon did Kuriko a favor by offering me an apprenticeship but there’s no guarantee another shop owner will extend the same favor. I wouldn’t even turn sixteen for another three and a half months! I didn’t have any legal identification, social security card or birth certificate to even apply for a real job. I didn’t even know what state to begin digging for those documents. California, where I was allegedly born? Illinois, where I was state property or Utah where the Robinsons adopted me last July?

Losing my job at the tattoo parlor turned my world completely upside down. Other fifteen year old girls loitered around in the tenth grade in their cute plaid skirts, studied for SATs, borrowed their daddy’s car for driver’s ed and worked at Forever 21. I was an eighth grade dropout, runaway, semi-tattoo artist rooming with a battered Japanese stripper. I didn’t have a mommy or daddy to get me out of difficult situations in life. The only person I had was three years, three months and twelve days older than me, and I decided to wake up.

Aleshia Robinson was born in Chicago, Illinois and enjoys writing edgy inspirational fiction, traveling, decoupaging, empowering women in the sex trade and providing clean water for mankind.

WEBSITE: www.lovegodandtattoos.com
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/authenticityink
TWITTER: @lovegodtattoos

AMAZON | B&N | APPLE | KOBO
Aleshia will be awarding a print copy of the Love, God & Tattoos Bundle (US and Canada only) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Follow the tour and comment! The more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  
http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2014/04/virtual-blurb-blitz-tour-love-god.html

New Trailer and Release Date

Well, let's just say I had to show off my shiny new trailer. Fearful of joining the ranks of amateur book trailers, I decided my first would stick to the most basic movie trailer format: great visuals, compelling music, and a release date. Which made me fix a release date! How exciting. September 23rd, 2014. 

Stay tuned for more fancy book trailers. I might just get more adventurous and, you know, tell you a little about the story.

The Eye-Dancers by Michael Fedison

Seventh-grader Mitchell Brant and three of his classmates inexplicably wake up at the back edge of a softball field to the sounds of a game, the cheering of the crowd. None of them remembers coming here. And as they soon learn, “here” is like no place they’ve ever seen. Cars resemble antiques from the 1950s. There are no cell phones, no PCs. Even the spelling of words is slightly off.

A compulsive liar, constantly telling fantastic stories to garner attention and approval, Mitchell can only wish this were just one more of his tall tales. But it isn’t. It’s all too real. Together, as they confront unexpected and life-threatening dangers, Mitchell and his friends must overcome their bickering and insecurities to learn what happened, where they are, and how to get back home.

The answers can be found only in the mysterious little girl with the blue, hypnotic eyes. The one they had each dreamed of three nights in a row before arriving here. She is their only hope. And, as they eventually discover, they are her only hope.

And time is running out.

From the Book Peering out his bedroom window, his eyes flattened into squinting slits, Mitchell Brant saw her. 
            
“No,” he said.  “It can’t be her.  It can’t be.” 
            
But it was.  She had come again. 
            
He looked away, at the night-shadows on the floor, at the sheets jumbled and strewn on his bed.  Maybe she wasn’t really out there.  Maybe it was just an illusion, some odd distortion of the light.

He looked out the window. 

She was still there. 

He felt the fine hairs at the nape of his neck stand up.  Gooseflesh, cold against the stifling humidity filtering in through the open window, speckled his forearms. 

The girl was standing under the streetlamp, looking straight in at him—the same way she had last night and the night before.  She was just a child, probably no more than seven years old—his sister’s age.  What was she doing out in the street, alone, well past midnight?  Was she a runaway?  And why had she come three nights in a row?

He tried to look away again, but he couldn’t.  It was as though the girl had cast a spell over him.  “What’s with you?” he said to himself.  “Just go back to sleep.”  Instead, he stood up.  She had raised her right arm above her head, waving at him frantically.

“Help me.”  The voice filtered in through the window.  “Why don’t you . . .?”  The girl’s voice.  And yet, there was something different about it, something off.  It sounded hollow, as if it had originated from a dark place, a secret place, cold like the grave.  

Michael S. Fedison was born in Rochester, New York, and now lives with his wife, Sarah, and regal cat, Luke, in the green hills of central Vermont. Michael has been writing creatively for as long as he can remember, and has had short fiction published in several literary magazines, including Iconoclast and The Written Word. He works as a full-time technical writer and also is a freelance proofreader and copy editor.

Michael has been a lover of imaginative stories his entire life. He enjoys any story that takes you by the hand, lifts you up, and transports you to another place, a new and creative way of looking at the world around us.

Buy Links: Amazon | B & N | Smashwords | Kobo
Michael will be awarding a $25 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. The more you comment, the better your chances to win! The tour dates can be found here: 
http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2014/04/virtual-blurb-blitz-tour-eye-dancers-by.html

What's Your High Score?

New to the site: games! The first game I'm featuring here is a classic run and jump adventure in the style of Indiana Jones, er, Tork Vossen. Imagine distant worlds, magical artifacts, pirates, and danger. Collect as many coins, er, artifacts and you can and post your high score here!

Every once in a while, when I find a new fun game, I'll update the site with a new adventure. (Game developers, I'm looking for a permanent spot for a wizards versus zombie flowers...)

Go to Games to play now, then post your high score below in the comments!

Now on Netgalley

Ta-da! My books are now available on Netgalley, review site extraordinaire. Right, so that means Ennara and the Fallen Druid is up there, and as soon as I have an ARC (advance review copy) available for Ennara's sequel, it'll be up there too. And more. 

Sooo, librarians and teacher folks, head on over and pick up a review copy of the hottest middle-grade fantasy adventure out there!
Request a review copy of Ennara on NEtgalley

Ennara a Cool 99¢

Beat the heat and enjoy a cool adventure for only 99¢! Now through June 15th, Ennara and the Fallen Druid (Kindle Edition) is less than a buck on Amazon.  It is featured today on Kindle Books and Tips and Book Gorilla, too. So go get it! Ennara deal on Amazon

Writing Process Blog Hop! Again!

That's right, I somehow did it again. I signed up for the same blog hop twice. And while I'd like to blame it on twins brain, on some deep level, I know. Oh yes, I know.

So anywho, I'm gonna talk about different stuff this time. But aren't I supposed to answer the questions? Yes, I am. But, you know, multiple viewpoints and stuff. Let's see how this goes: 

I was tagged, this time, by historical romance writer Sherry Ewing. Check out her blog and buy a book!

What am I working on?
Still book mapping. What?!? Yes. Well, actually at this point I'm doing everything I can to avoid book mapping, like participating in blog hops (Ahem), posting that paranormal mystery I wrote last summer on Wattpad, getting new covers made for the Ennara series and its upcoming sequel (check out my amazing new illustrator Niniel here), getting an audiobook produced (check out my talented voice actress Crystal here). Well, at least I can say that when I procrastinate, I stay busy.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?
One big difference between my stories and others writing middle-grade fantasy is that most  authors doing children's books are still traditionally publishing, whereas I've chosen to start my career self-publishing. It isn't an easy path, but then again, neither is finding a traditional publisher.

Some question your motivation with self-publishing. Like your book isn't good enough to sell to a publisher, so you're selling yourself for your ego. And whether that is the motives of some or not (it isn't really for any of us to say), that isn't the case here. You see, I'm brutally honest with myself about this business, and about my career. I need to keep writing. Publishers need to publish what they believe will sell. And oftentimes, the quality of a book isn't enough to sell it traditionally. 

So when I wasn't able to sell the first Ennara, I refused to slow down. I recognized that sometimes it isn't the story, or the characters, but the market, or even the availability of space in a publisher's production line.  I self-published the book, and it went on to win an award and gather a strong readership on Wattpad.

I have a lot of stories in me, and less time than that. I am a creator, and I will keep creating until I am done.

Why do I write what I do?
To understand other people, other lives.

How does my writing process work?
I have an idea that I think will interest me for several months. I build a plot and characters around it that I also think will hold my interest for months. Then I write a sentence, then a paragraph, then a page. Than a scene, and a chapter. Eventually it becomes a book. Then I edit that book and try to make it better.

And that's it! Thanks for stopping by.

Audiobook Soon!

I'm so excited to announce the production of Ennara and the Fallen Druid in audiobook! Actress Crystal Marcano is lending her talented voice to bring Ennara, her friends, and the world of Lan to life. The audio will be available in early June. Stay tuned!

Baton Blog Hop: My Writing Process

Writing coach and indie fantasy author Beth Barany passed on the baton to me for this blog hop. I've been writing on this very subject on Wattpad recently, where readers and fledgling authors often reach out for support and ideas on their own writing. I'll try not to repeat what I've already said there, but check out the link below to look at this new project of mine. I'll be updating it weekly with pithy, practical advice for new writers. You can also check out Beth's website for great advice and tips.
 
What are you working on? 
After a long month of letting the first draft of Ennara's sequel rest, I'm diving into revisions. As we speak, I'm using a new-to-me revision technique that I picked up at SCBWI's Los Angeles Writer's Days two weeks ago, called book mapping. Easier said than done! I'm also querying agents and publishers on the book, and concurrently planing an indie release if the story isn't picked up on my first round of submissions.

How does your work differ from others in this genre? 
At first glance, you might find a lot of similarities between this series and other YA fantasies, but the heart of Ennara's story is a spiritual struggle. Under the magic, schools and monsters, she's really just trying to understand right and wrong, and find the support she needs from friends and mentors to become who she wants to be.

Why do you write what you do? 
I write these stories to examine, to comment, and to reflect on the world around me. But underneath all that, I write to try to help my readers. 

I try to share philosophies on life--like that you'll get much farther with help from friends. That underneath it all, there is a potential for you to create magic in your world. And that sometimes, when everything is crazy around you, the greatest help can be to still your thoughts and call on higher powers, be it God, angels, saints, enlightened ones.

How does your writing process work? 
I'm a plotter. It's a relic from my days of writing manuals and online help. I have to see the book in its entirety, broken into main plot events, before I start drafting scene one. I know that not everyone writes this way, and I know my way isn't better or worse than others, it's just the way I do. So. That said, this is my process:
I plot. Extensively. Like, for a month or two, or more, depending. I plan character development, the three acts, settings, comedic scenes, everything. I draft. Fast and furious. Sometimes during NANOWRIMO, if the timing is convenient. I submit the draft to my critique groups while I let the book "rest" for a month. During time off, I work on new story ideas. It's difficult, ripping my head out of one world to put it in a new one temporarily, but alas, it has to be done. I revise. I map the book to look for holes. I go though the text to look for repetitions and lazy words. About three quarters of the way though revisions, I start submitting and/or making plans for publication. And now, I am passing the baton a wonderful fantasy writer, Joyce Hertzoff. Her stories are filled with magic and intrigue, and if you ever get the change to read them, you'll be transported to new and wondrous worlds. More at: hertzoffjo.blogspot.com and joycehertzoffauthor.com.

NestPitch Round 2!

In case you hadn't heard me jabbering excited expletives on Facebook or Twitter this morning, my pitch for Ennara book 2 has  made it through to the second round at Nestpitch. Selected to be featured on author Tina Moss's website, now the pitch is getting up close and personal with agents in the final round. Woohoo! The agent round finishes on April 19. Wish us luck!