Kailin Gow's Blog, page 50
October 17, 2010
Stoker Sisters Book 1: Daughters of Dracula is Now Available! Read the Forward Here.
After months and months of writing, revising, producing a short, and everything else that goes into a book, the Stoker Sisters Series' first book, Daughters of Dracula is finally out for the public to read!
This book originated about 20 years ago, as most of my book series stem from something personal, when I visited Dracula's Castle in Transylvania, Romania as a teen journalist. It was an amazing experience which have given me an insight into a man, whom everyone in the world, except those who were close to him, thought of as a monster. Although The Stoker Sisters is about two vampire sisters who find themselves as vampires in a modern world with choices (for women, especially, and even for vampires) after being raised prim and proper in Jane Austen's time, this series is not about Dracula, but on these two descendants of Dracula.
To give you a sense of what Stoker Sisters is, I've included the forward I have written in the book here so you get a sense what happened when I visited Romania and was told the truth about Vlad Dracula from his people…
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Forward
Almost 20 years ago, I visited Dracula's Castle in Transylvania. I was nineteen and a young journalist. I was familiar with the story of Dracula, made famous by Bram Stoker, but I was also curious about the Dracula who ruled this land. The people of Transylvania took me in for a short stay and showed me a side of Dracula, quite unlike the one portrayed by Stoker. He was a Dracula who loved deeply, especially of humanity. He loved his wife and family deeply, but most importantly, he loved his country above all else.
They specifically mentioned he was not a "Strigoi", which in Romanian folklore was an evil undead. The people saw him not as a monster, but as a ruler, a brilliant military strategist, and a man with great passion. They told me he was not the monster Bram Stoker depicted in the novel Dracula, but a great man, whose military feats were legendary.
The Stoker Sisters, in the vein of Bram Stoker's Victorian world, is a fictionalized series incorporating the world of Jane Austen, the true view of Dracula by the Romanians, and popular contemporary vampire mythology.
The world of The Stoker Sisters is not black and white, but one where vampires, like humans, are faced with choices and allegiances. They have a choice to be good or bad, saintly or evil. Last of all, vampires may be monsters, but they may also be the most humane of all creatures.
Enjoy,
Kailin Gow
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The Stoker Sisters: Daughters of Dracula is now available on Amazon.com, BN.com, and where books are sold.
Filed under: Book Release Announcement, encouraging reading, Girl Power, Life and Loves
October 15, 2010
Bully on Bullies – For a Limited Time, My Not-Yet-Release Non-fiction on Bullies will be Available FREE
Hi Everyone,
I'm furious. Yes, furious about all the news I hear about teens committing suicide because of bullies. This doesn't have to be! No one should hold that power over someone. Words, no matter how harmless you may think they are, pack a punch. Be it spoken, written, and especially now easily transmitted digitally over the internet or video, words can hurt.
For years since my first books were published in 2001, I've had the privilege of speaking to schools and getting involved in parenting and teacher associations as a guest speaker and then as an involved parent. And, believe it or not…there are many parents and school officials ready to get involved in helping curb bullying. There just isn't a widespread support of this publicly and resource-wise. But slowly this is changing. Laws are being put into place, and communities are being made aware of the signs of bullying and the retribution that goes with it.
Bullying is particularly more prevalent among teen girls, believe it or not. Especially where one girl or a group of girls bully one girl. Many times, it is because they (the bullies) believe the girl is "different" or is "weak" and "easy" to pick on. Some of that is spurred by jealousy. Some of that is spurred by rivalry.
Unfortunately, I see this too often. Even in the adult world, this happens. Even to authors. Yes, authors. I just attended a conference for authors where bestselling authors were present, and we compared notes. Everyone has had "haters" whom authors and publishers called "trolls" bash our books by taking personal attacks on authors through book reviews. Like bullying, because it's easy to over the internet, personal attacks by "trolls" and "haters" only comes back to bite the one attacking. In the end, the bully and the attacker only make themselves look bad.
Sadly, with young teenagers facing emotional and hormonal issues, as well as social acceptance from peers, bullying is magnified many folds. And with the ones who have suffered additional blows (for instance, a recent death in the family, breakup, a move, you get it – major stressers), bullying makes everything worse.
So…I've been talking to my publisher and we've decided to make my new non-fiction book on bullying and how to handle it available for FREE as a download. Of course, my publishers need to recoup some cost so if you want a paperback copy of it, you can purchase it when it gets released on paperback later on this month on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble, and wherever its sold.
It will be available beginning this weekend at the Twitter Party under Giveaways. Let everyone know. If you want people to become more aware of bullies (how they think and why they bully) as well as how to diffuse this and what to do as a friend, parent, teacher, and/or community, I talk about it in this book.
Shy Girls Social Club Handbook for Dealing with Bullies and Other Meanies.
Make a stance against bullying and recognize when bullying is taking place and the simple things you can do to diffuse the situation.
Hopefully I'll See You This Weekend!
With lots of love,
Kailin
Filed under: Uncategorized
October 8, 2010
Guest Blogger and Amazing Teen Alexander Bennett
Hi everyone,
I'd like to introduce you to an amazing teenager who reached out and found me on Twitter and Goodreads. Alexander Bennett – he's fourteen and is very well-read. He plays sports at school and has been blogging since he was 13. He is one of the youngest book bloggers I've come across who has the fortitude to set up his own blog and find books from all places. He also posts his reviews on YouTube. Even more impressive is his desire to write fiction. He's currently working on four writing projects, besides his blogging, school, and playing sports.
I'm happy to announce, he will be guest blogging once in a while with me, along with other teen and young adult bloggers. So here's a big welcome to Alex and his guest post on why he began blogging. Hopefully you'll be inspired by Alex to begin blogging and writing as well.
It was a chilly December day. I was home alone with nothing to do. Somehow, I came across a video review of a book I was reading. I went to the user's channel and saw she had a book blog. I didn't know what that meant, so I clicked.
And from then on, I was hooked. I started making my own book videos on YouTube. Then I started my own book blog. I started reviewing books from my school library. Then I started buying books. Finally, authors and publishers started sending me their books. I was in ecstasy.
Young adult books are my favorite genre because they are so fun. I can relate to the characters since they are around my age. I was enveloped in countless different worlds with my favorite vampires, faeries, shapeshifters, zombies, witches, aliens, and more fantastical creatures, along with contemporary stories about teens and their realistic lives.
Now, I do love adult and middle grade books, but I feel like they aren't as relatable to teens like me since they are designed for different age groups. Middle grade books aren't as mature as young adult, adult books are sometimes too mature. I like a nice balance, which is why YA is perfect.
Young adult authors and bloggers are some of the best people in the world. I have never found as many friends as I have when I started my blog, joined twitter, communicated with my followers, and watched video reviews in a tight-knit community that I am proud to be a part of.
The YA authors (like Kailin) are so kind to readers and actually take the time to interact with their readers, listening to their ideas and applying wishes the best they can in their works.
I love being a young adult book reader, writer, and reviewer. Long live YA!
Alexander Bennett is 14 years old and have been blogging since he was 13. His blog is:
http://www.electrifyingreviews.com.
Filed under: Amazing Reader/Blogger, Amazing Teen, encouraging reading
October 4, 2010
Phantom Diaries Book 2 – Dark Memories Now Out!
The past has become present, and all the players are in place.
Dark Memories has been released midnight today in Kindle, soon-to-follow in paperback in Amazon.com, BN.com, and other stores in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
I am quite satisfied with the ending to this book as it does answer a lot of questions from the first book (but this is a series so I can't answer all the questions yet), and there is a prequel called Dark Beginnings that I'm working on right now that will shed some light on The Phantom. Dark Beginnings is about The Phantom's mother as a young woman. Hopefully, that will be available in December or January.
We'll see…in the meantime, there will be more discussion questions sheets for download on this blog and on my publisher's blog, theedgebooks.com coming this week. Stay tuned!
Filed under: Book Release Announcement, New Project, Writing Tagged: dark memories, discussion questions, new releases, phantom diaries, sequel, writing
September 13, 2010
Book Bloggers Appreciation Week - Giveaway to Book Bloggers
Well…to show an appreciation for all book bloggers during Book Bloggers Appreciation Week, here’s a contest. It’s simple. Sign up under "Email Subscription" at http://www.kailingow.wordpress.com during September 13 through September 30, and get entered to win a copy of Bitter Frost and Forever Frost and a $50 Amazon Gift Card!
Enter at http://www.kailingow.wordpress.com
Book Bloggers Appreciation Week
It's Book Bloggers Appreciation Week, and as an author who has been on at least 6 book blog tours within the last 3 months (whew!), I truly appreciate connecting with and meeting all the book bloggers who've reviewed my books. I have to admit, going on book blog tours have been a new experience for me. The tour directors like Dorothy, Yan, and Drea have been awesome, and I know they're out there to truly help people discover more books.
Well…to show an appreciation for all book bloggers...
September 12, 2010
Mothers and Daughters are Reading Bitter Frost, PULSE, and even The Phantom Diaries Together!
When I first set out to write edgy books for teens and young adults, the audience I had in mind for these books were age 14 and up. I really didn't anticipate my books to be read together by teen girls and their mothers. I did intend for these books to open up discussion, sometimes on very sensitive topics like dating, sex, friendships, bullying, and stress for teens and even for young women in their 20s.
In my own life, as someone who constantly gives advice to women of all ages about...
September 11, 2010
Jack Frost and Prince Caspian – Character Study for Prince Kian
I've been on several blog tours lately, especially for – Bitter Frost, the first of the Frost Series, and the question all authors get is: what are your inspirations? The Frost Series is a five-book series about human love being stronger than fairy magic, a story about a half-human, half-fairy girl who is intended to marry her enemy, the Winter Prince. It's a series about growing up, about relationships, falling in love for the first time, and rising up to the challenges of life and...
August 2, 2010
PULSE News
So exciting...I actually began work on this series a few years ago before I started Bitter Frost. Personal life inspiration...I lost a lot of blood once to the point I blacked out and required 3 bags of transfusion, and it still wasn't enough.
My body craved the blood to keep alive, yet the thought of having to receive the blood from others because my own body couldn't generate it fast enough, made me empathize with what my vampire characters like Jaegar and Stuart felt.
Well...you'll soon have the opportunity to read about Jaegar and Stuart this month.
Releases on August 31 in paperback. A little earlier in Kindle and IPad.
June 23, 2010
So Many Releases this Summer and Beyond!
I'm falling behind in blogging, and now I find out that due to a glitch on Facebook, my account under Author Kailin Gow there was disabled. We're working to get that up again, though.
We're continuing an exciting summer of new releases as I am fortunate to be an inaugural author of THE EDGE publishers.
I'll be posting many of my blog entries on theEDGEbooks.com as well.
So the newest books from me coming out this summer and continuing this fall would be:
Summer
Bitter Frost
The Phantom Diaries
Rise of the Fire Tamer
The Shy Girls Social Club
Harold the Kung Fu Kid: Date with a Vampire
The Alchemists Academy: Stones to Ashes
The Stoker Sisters: Daughters of Dracula
Fall/Winter
Forever Frost (Bitter Frost Book 2)
Dark Memories (The Phantom Diaries Book 2)
The Ascension (The Wordwick Games Book 2)
Harold the Kung Fu Kid: My Best Friend is a Werewolf
The Stoker Sisters: Book 2
Stay tune for the exact dates of these new releases, contests, and giveaways, too!
