Vanessa Barneveld's Blog, page 10

Birthday-Week Giveaway!

It’s the start of my birthday week, and I’m giving away presents in an Amazon Giveaway! Three Kindle e-copies of my paranormal YA, THIS IS YOUR AFTERLIFE, are up for grabs. Entries are open to U.S. and D.C. residents only.

Click here to enter the giveaway on Amazon.com!

Please note this Amazon Giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and the District of Columbia. No purchase necessary. Ends the earlier of Mar 26, 2016 11:59 PM PDT, or when all prizes are claimed. See official Amazon rules at http://amzn.to/GArules. Good luck!

If you’re visiting me from another locale, stay tuned for international giveaways in future!

 

DANGEROUS BOYS – up for pre-order!

Still super-excited here about the upcoming release of DANGEROUS BOYS, the YA e-anthology I’m contributing to along with Sara Hantz, Ebony McKenna, Maree Anderson and Robyn Grady! Even more so now that it’s just gone up for pre-order exclusively on iBooks for just U.S. 99 cents! Click here or on the pic below and it’ll take you to iBooks.

Tomorrow, of course, is Valentine’s Day, which I know people either love or hate or don’t care all that much for! But if you love *reading* about romance, head on over to my Facebook page, where I’m running a contest with my good friend and critique partner Pintip Dunn. We’re giving away prize packs consisting of Kindle e-copies of our debut YA books! Entries close 12:01am, February 15 US EST.

DANGEROUS BOYS Anthology Cover Reveal!

Here’s your first look at the cover of DANGEROUS BOYS, an upcoming e-novella bundle packed with five stories by YA authors from the lands down under, i.e. Australia and New Zealand! I’ve teamed up with the fabulous Sara Hantz, Maree Anderson, Ebony McKenna and Robyn Grady for this anthology. We’ll soon have pre-order links available ahead of our May 31 release — sign-up to my newsletter for updates.

DANGEROUS BOYS – Volume 1

Available through all major e-tailers from May 31, 2016!

DANGEROUS HONESTY

By Ebony McKenna

High school junior Bianca Martin is faking the best possible life in Orlando, Florida. She’s at a great school, has supportive friends and a Saturday job in a cookie store. Life is sweet!

As long as she remembers all the lies she’s told, everything is going to work out for the best – not just for Bianca but her whole family.

But when she teams up with the school nerd, Malcolm – because physics homework isn’t going to write itself – her carefully crafted stories start wobbling like spinning plates on bamboo poles. Malcolm is trustworthy and endearing, and seriously cute in an über geek way. Bianca is torn between protecting those she loves and unburdening her reality to someone she can trust.

They say honesty is the best policy, but if Bianca tells the truth, it will put everyone she loves at risk.

Ebony’s website | Facebook | Twitter

TANGENT: a Liminals novella

By Maree Anderson

When the girl Rix swore to protect is taken, he’ll stop at nothing to save her… even if it means revealing what he truly is.

For two years, lone wolf Rixon has protected Lily… and lied about his true feelings. Best to treat her like a younger sibling, because how could she possibly love a hulking great lummox like him? When Lily is snatched, and Rix discovers she’s being used in covert experiments, he moves heaven and earth to find her. But Lily is merely bait for the real target: Rix.

Vaughn Kincaid is obsessed with all things liminal. He’s a driven, sadistic bastard, who thinks nothing of experimenting on liminal kids… and using Lily to control Rix. Rix’s only ally is a lab-rat named Kade, but Kade has an agenda and Rix isn’t convinced he can be trusted. To keep Lily alive, Rix must use a dangerous liminal ability he’s kept secret his whole life… and risk becoming the one thing he vowed he would never be again: a killer.

Maree’s website | Facebook | Twitter

THUNDERSTRUCK

By Robyn Grady

If the truth gets out, it’s, “Goodbye dream school. Hello psych ward.”

Art college applications are calling. Going into senior year, Emily Grange needs to get her painter’s butt into gear and build her portfolio. But she can’t focus. Her fourteen-year-old sister won’t shut up about Mr. Gorgeous moving his tatts and bike into the mansion next door. She won’t let up on how Emily ought to forgive their father, either, and how she needs to chill out way more.

All right already. Except…

Everyone, including Emily, knows that her sister died a full year ago. So, it’s time to push past the pain, get back to reality. Maybe spending some time with Bad Boy next door could help make things right.

Or make them a billion times worse.

Robyn’s website | Facebook | Twitter

WRITTEN IN THE STARS

By Sara Hantz

The Best Laid Plans…

If Megan Russell messes up one more time her parents are going to pull her out of boarding school and life as she knows it will be over. The thought of never seeing Dan again, the guy she’s been crushing on since forever, fills her with dread. Which is why, when she accidentally crashes a friend’s car, she decides to earn the money herself to pay back the debt. And so she comes up with the idea of using her way of knowing stuff and selling psychic dating advice. After all, how hard can it be? Plenty hard. Especially when she’s forced to tell the meanest girl in school that the guy she likes is going to ask her out. Trouble is, not only is the guy Dan, but what she’s told the girl isn’t true. Megan asks Dan to go out with this girl as a favor to her, only to find out that his dislike for the girl goes way deep. Megan is in trouble. She risks getting taken out of school, losing all the money she made, and losing Dan, who’s done dangerous things to her heart for as long as she can remember.

Sara’s website | Facebook | Twitter

LIVE FAST, DIE YOUNG

By Vanessa Barneveld

Molly Corbett can’t stand seeing her childhood pal Alex Gibson destroy himself. He’s gone from straight-A student to rebel without a cause. With so much at stake, some serious interference is called for—or at least Micromanaging Molly thinks so. Alex needs to get back on the path to the Ivy League. But the harder Molly pushes Alex, the harder he pushes back.

Alex has a secret. Well, two secrets.

Number one: He has terminal melanoma. With six months to live, Alex hasn’t got a second to waste. And hanging around hospitals when his friends think he’s cutting school definitely counts as wasted time. Instead, he’s going to drop out, surf, drive fast cars…and finally put secret number two out there. He’s in love with Molly and he’s going to tell her before it’s too late.

My website | Facebook | Twitter

 

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Goodbye, Old Friend

About 19 years ago, a friendly little black kitten wandered into my laundry and rubbed against my newly clean clothes. Our then next-door neighbour, Dana, a doctor, found him — Pinklepurr — doing the rounds of her hospital north of Brisbane, Australia. She took him home as a companion to her terrier, Scully. Pretty soon, Pinkie and Scully became best friends, often chasing each other up and down the halls and stairs of our house.

Eventually, Pinkie decided he preferred our company full-time and moved in with us. Life would never be the same again! Pinkie soon established himself as the tough guy of the neighbourhood. His main rival was Tiger, an enormous grey cat who lived two doors up. We kept him inside at night, but by day, he would steal other cats’ kibble (or crunchies as we call them in our household). We did our best to keep him out of trouble, but Pinkie, ever the Houdini, always found a way outside. He’d climb out of second-storey windows. And re-enter through second-storey windows.

Unfortunately, he ate so much “inferior”-brand crunchies that he developed two types of painful bladder crystals. He almost died then. But he fought through it – the vet said he was “fit as a Mallee bull.” No more inferior food for this little black cat. The vet said he could only eat a premium-food diet for the rest of his life. After that, we adopted a little sister for Pinkie, a kitten we named Possum. He adored and protected her from day one.

The four of us moved to Sydney, to McElhone Place, a charming street where a family of ginger cats ruled. Pinkie was very much out-numbered and he fought a little less. He spent a lot more time with me indoors. In fact, I’m pretty sure he was by my side when I finished my very first manuscript back in 2004.

We moved a couple more times, eventually settling into our current home nine years ago, where I think Pinkie was happiest. Three floors to explore, lots of sunshine, and of course a loving family. I started obsessively taking photos of my kitties. So much so that I made a short-lived blog site called P&P Furball Factory. Pinkie got a real taste for fame when he and Possum were featured on the I Can Has Cheezburger site and, later, published in the ICHC 2012 desk calendar.

Like his mum (me), Pinkie loved watching TV. A show called Totally Wild was his favourite because it often had animal guests. One night, he watched a documentary about the black wolves of Yellowstone National Park. He looked terrified, often turning to us with wide black eyes whenever the wolves howled on TV. For about a week after that, he would not go outside. I guess he was convinced wolves were literally at our door!

Age started creeping up on Pinkie. He went 100% deaf about a year or so ago. He’d stick to Possum like glue whenever they dozed in the backyard. It was a survival mechanism. If she moved, he moved. Then last year, Pinkie started getting seizures. The vets theorised these seizures could have been caused by a tumour or a stroke. Because of his age, we decided not to get an MRI and that we would manage his condition. And Pinkie was happy and playful enough for the most part. He’d yowl a lot, which he never did before, and he’d demand to be fed every half hour rather than every eight hours.

But, unfortunately, just this past Christmas morning, Pinkie’s body decided it was time to go. I’m sure you’ll understand if I don’t talk about what exactly happened. Let’s just say he was a fighter to the end, a tough Mallee bull. It’s been a week and it is still very difficult to even think about it. I would like to thank everyone at the University Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Sydney for easing our beloved boy’s pain.

A good friend of mine was in a town called Wondai over the Christmas break. This town is about 30km from where Pinkie was found all those years ago. She saw a black cat doing the rounds of the local hospital. The nurses explained it was a therapy cat. Wouldn’t it be lovely to think this cat was a relative of Pinkie’s, carrying on the family tradition?

Pinkie, you loved and were loved for 19 wonderful years. We miss you. You’ll never be forgotten. RIP.

 

Triple Cover Reveal – Theresa DaLayne’s Stone Legacy Series!

It’s cover reveal time for Theresa DaLayne’s Stone Legacy series! Theresa’s running a Rafflecopter giveaway to celebrate the unveiling of all three covers in her paranormal YA series. To enter, click on the graphic below.

 

And now for the *gorgeous* covers…

 

Mayan Blood –  Book 1

Their empires have fallen, but their mythology lives on…

Zanya Coreandero is a seventeen-year-old orphan with only a single friend and no hope for a normal life. Diagnosed with anxiety and night terrors, no one believes her cuts and bruises are a result of an evil entity, and not a brutal case of self-harm.

With the only home she’s ever known being the isolated institution—where breakfast is a handful of medications, the psychiatry sessions are mandatory, and her every move is watched—the only relief is her red-haired roommate named Tara, who’s more like a little sister than her best friend.

Free will is strong, but destiny is stronger.

When Zanya is kidnapped, she meets a group of gifted Mayan descendants, each with a unique ability. Gone from a nameless castaway to the only hope of mankind, Zanya is forced to make a grueling decision: bond with an enchanted stone and save humanity from rising underworld forces, or watch helplessly as Earth falls victim to a familiar dark deity from her dreams. This time, he’s playing for keeps.

A wicked secret hides behind a handsome face…

When Arwan, a dark-eyed timebender, takes interest in Zanya’s mission, it’s unclear if his intention is to help, or if he’s on a hell-bent mission for revenge. Wary of falling for another guy with major secrets and a tainted past, Zanya fights to keep her distance. If only her heart gave her a choice.

Releasing in winter 2015 through Limitless Publishing.

Add Mayan Blood to your GoodReads shelf.

 

About Theresa

Theresa DaLayne is a north-south-east-western kind of girl with a quirky personality to

match her nomad life. Born in California, she migrated to three different cities in Washington State, a tiny island in Alaska, North Carolina, and finally to the suburbs of Ohio where she currently lives with her husband, three kids, vegetarian cat, and her ungrateful fish.

Always on the lookout for a new story, Theresa is a shameless eavesdropper and will take anyone who provides inspiration and mold them into a character without a second thought. She enjoys writing both paranormal and contemporary stories, considering her mind wanders between worlds of fantasy while she’s forced to live in the real world, very much against her will.

Theresa DaLayne’s website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | GoodReads

 

Giveaway!

Happy Friday the 13th! Are you feeling lucky? Over at my Facebook author page, my ‘otterly’ wonderful friend Anna Campbell is giving away five copies of her Regency historical e-novella, A PIRATE FOR CHRISTMAS. It’s a charming tale of mistaken identity, with some very witty bits that made me laugh out loud. Look out for a naughty donkey who almost steals the show from the humans.

I’ve given Anna five quick-fire questions and I’ve posted her answers on Facebook. For your chance to win one of five PIRATE downloads, add your own answers to those quick-fire questions in the comments trail, and like/share the post on Facebook.

International entries are welcome. Entries close 11:59pm Sunday, November 15, US EDT. Good luck!

Click on the graphic to reach my Facebook author page and enter the prize draw!

 

About A PIRATE FOR CHRISTMAS by Anna Campbell

Pursued by the pirate…

Bess Farrar might be an innocent village miss, but she knows enough about the world to doubt Lord Channing’s motives when he kisses her the very day they meet. After all, local gossip insists that before this dashing rake became an earl, he sailed the Seven Seas as a ruthless pirate.

Bewitched by the vicar’s daughter…



Until he unexpectedly inherits a title, staunchly honorable Scotsman Rory Beaton has devoted his adventurous life to the Royal Navy. But he sets his course for tempestuous new waters when he meets lovely, sparkling Bess Farrar. Now this daring mariner will do whatever it takes to convince the spirited lassie to launch herself into his arms and set sail into the sunset.

A Christmas marked by mayhem.

Wooing his vivacious lady, the new Earl of Channing finds himself embroiled with matchmaking villagers, an eccentric vicar, mistaken identities, a snowstorm, scandal, and a rascally donkey. Life at sea was never this exciting. The gallant naval captain’s first landlocked Christmas promises hijinks, danger, and passion – and a breathtaking chance to win the love of a lifetime.

Read an excerpt of A PIRATE FOR CHRISTMAS here.

TOMORROW Is Here!

FORGET TOMORROW, that is — the debut YA sci-fi novel by my critique partner, agency sis and super-good friend, Pintip Dunn! You won’t forget FORGET TOMORROW. It’s a high-stakes, thrilling story that’ll leave you breathless. Pintip has worked incredibly hard to make this dream come true and I’m thrilled her first book is finally out TODAY. Congrats, Pintip!

You could win a hardcover edition of Pintip’s book. To enter the draw, fly over to my Facebook author page, where I gave Pintip five quick-fire questions and posted her answers. In the comments trail, write your own answers to the quick-fire questions, then like/share the post on FB.

International entries welcome. Entries close November 4 at 11:59pm, US EDT.

Click on the graphic to reach my Facebook author page and enter the prize draw!

 

About FORGET TOMORROW by Pintip Dunn
Imagine a world where your destiny has already been decided…by your future self.

It’s Callie’s seventeenth birthday and, like everyone else, she’s eagerly awaiting her vision―a memory sent back in time to sculpt each citizen into the person they’re meant to be. A world-class swimmer. A renowned scientist.

Or in Callie’s case, a criminal.

In her vision, she sees herself murdering her gifted younger sister. Before she can process what it means, Callie is arrested and placed in Limbo―a hellish prison for those destined to break the law. With the help of her childhood crush, Logan, a boy she hasn’t spoken to in five years, she escapes.

But on the run from her future, as well as the government, Callie sets in motion a chain of events that she hopes will change her fate. If not, she must figure out how to protect her sister from the biggest threat of all—Callie, herself.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | GoodReads

Pintip and I are part of a very special group, the 2014 RWA Golden Heart finalists aka the Dreamweavers. Three other Dreamweavers are celebrating releases on this very day. Give these fantastic authors a huge cheer! (And shower Asa with some virtual Cheetos—her favourite thing to snack on while writing.)

▪ Asa Maria Bradley‘s debut paranormal romance, VIKING WARRIOR RISING.

▪ Laura Trentham‘s contemporary romance, MELTING INTO YOU.

▪ Shelly Alexander‘s contemporary romance, IT’S IN HIS TOUCH.

 

NaNoWriMo – I’m Giving It Another Go!

National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo aka NaNo) starts today! Writers around the world will aim to write 50,000 words in 30 days. I’ve got a supply of international treats lined up to help me get through it. My goal is to finish my current novel and begin a novella. Apologies in advance to friends and coworkers — I will be a zombie and may respond to you only in grunts and pained moans during this time!

If you’re participating, buddy up with me at http://nanowrimo.org/participants/author-ness.

Apart from my supply of treats, another tool I’ll be using this month is my Mac Freedom software. I can’t write without it. It’s an internet blocking tool that allows you to work without being distracted by emails, social media and cute cat gifs. Click here if you want to find out more.

Have you entered the Halloween Giveaway that I’m running with Tina Ferraro yet? Check my Facebook author page for details on how to win! One of the prizes is a book I wrote during a NaNo challenge a few years ago, THIS IS YOUR AFTERLIFE. After much revision, it went on to be published by Bloomsbury Spark. So if you’ve got a burning to desire to write and publish, don’t say no to NaNo. Give it a go! Visit the NaNoWriMo site to sign up.

These supplies should keep me going for the first couple of days.

Treat or Treat — A Halloween Giveaway!

YA author Tina Ferraro and I may reside on opposite ends of the world, but I feel like I’ve known her my whole life. She’s been such a great support throughout my writing career. This weekend we’re joining paranormal-author forces to bring you a very special Halloween giveaway!

We’re giving away Kindle copies of my ghost book, THIS IS YOUR AFTERLIFE and Tina’s spooky e-novella, HALF-LIFE. In addition to our e-books, one lucky person will win an exclusive THIS IS YOUR AFTERLIFE mug (there’s just one of these babies in the world, you know!) and a chocolate spoon to die for.

Haunt me over at my Facebook author page to find out how to win! Entries close November 1, 11:59pm Australian Eastern Standard Time. Good luck!

Click on the graphic to reach my Facebook page.

About Tina Ferraro’s HALF-LIFE (Shine/Leap Books)

Tina Ferraro

Probably not a good idea to take advice from your dead twin sister. High school sophomore Trisha Traynor and friends have played the Halloween mirror game for years, the one that’s supposed to show a glimpse of the guy they’ll marry. But no one’s ever seen anything. Until tonight­when Trisha is gob smacked by the candlelit arrival of her long-deceased twin sister, instead of her crush, Kirk Maxwell. In a voice and vision that only Trisha can hear and see, Chessie claims to be back on a compassionate journey. Trisha fears she’s gone nuthouse crazy. But she nonetheless follows the instructions Chessie outlines in their nightly conversations, until she finds herself stepping across some ethical lines, and probably ending all chances with Kirk. When a sisterly showdown ensues, resulting in the shattering of the mirror, Chessie’s gone again, and a heartsick Trisha sets about righting her recent wrongs. That is, until she stumbles upon the real reason Chessie had come back and the most important glimpse yet that the mirror could never predict.

Tina’s website | Twitter | Facebook

Find HALF-LIFE at Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | iTunes

“I’m your density.” – George McFly

It’s October 21, 2015 right now in Australia, a red-letter date that any Back to the Future fan worth their flux capacitor has chiselled into their brain. Yep, Marty McFly, Doc Brown and Jennifer Parker are due to arrive from 1985 any minute. It’s not a hoax this time. I’m standing by on my hoverboard, and pizza will be ready in a jiffy thanks to my instant food hydrator.

In the original BTTF, Marty jumps into a DeLorean which is actually a plutonium-fuelled time machine, zooms off and, when he hits 88mph, winds up in the year 1955. He interacts with his future parents and sets off a chain of events that could destroy his very existence. That’s heavy. It’s one of my top two ’80s movies — so much tension, action, suspense, comedy, science, and (a dubious) romance! Even Alan Silvestri’s film score gets my heart pumping. In Back to the Future II, Marty must travel to the future — to October 21, 2015, today! — to save his wayward kids.

Here’s a scene from Back to the Future Part II:

For me, Back to the Future Part I is the original and the best in the trilogy. I have such a soft spot for Marty’s lovesick dad, George “I’m your density” McFly.

A blast from the past — the original trailer.

Is there a cringe-worthy event or interaction you’d like to go back to and delete from your history? What inventions do you hope to see in 30 years’ time? Who’s your favourite BTTF character?