Constance Burris's Blog, page 2
April 21, 2017
Jade: Meet The Characters
Today is the official release date of Jade! Woot! To celebrate lets do a few character dossiers.
Jade
Real Talk, Jade (who’s original name was Akasha) was created as a matter of convenience. I needed a back story for Coal, which was mostly finished, and I needed to make the antagonist from Black Beauty (which was only halfway finished) something other than a voodoo priestess because that’s boring, unoriginal, and offensive to the practitioners of voodoo. Eventually, I decided to connect two totally different stories and changed Akasha to Jade and added references to Coal and Chalcedony towards the end of Black Beauty.
This is partly why the books have two different feels. Black Beauty is a horror and Coal a fantasy, but I had a lot of fun merging horror and fantasy.
Writers are always talking about how surprised they are when characters grow and end up major characters in future. Well, I gotta say the same about Jade. I had no idea when I started the second book that she would play such a big role in Jade. The third book was supposed to be Elizabeth, but there was too much happening in Chalcedony, and I had to break it up into two books.
Teaser: Elizabeth will get her revenge and her own book, but it won’t be until later. She has to mature.
Random Fact: When I can’t think of bad girl’s name, I always go with Akasha AKA the HAWT villain in the Queen of the Damned. (RIP Aaliyah).
Coal
Coal was original seed for the entire series. The story was told to me like this “a boy with skin the color of coal is taken by an evil queen to live with the fairies”. Of course, you know the evil queen turned into a selfish princess, and you know the rest, right? That was even a surprise to me. I love how Coal and the entire series has really surprised me.
Shemeya The Snake Woman
Shemeya, Shemeya, Shemeya. I heart so much because she was the original catalyst for Black Beauty. I imagined a girl with dreds running off a school bus to avoid bullies, and the story grew from there.
I love how she’s grown from this high schooler to this slightly twisted (cause all my heroines are twisted) confident woman. She’s a little haunted, though. She doesn’t know if she loves or hates the snakes.
Zora
Zora is named after Zora Neale Hurston the first black author I remember reading. I didn’t find a book by a black author until middle school, which speaks to the lack of diverse books in my mostly white elementary. I hope it’s different now.
If you can’t tell, I’m pretty scarce with my character descriptions. I believe you should give as few details as possible and let the reader fill in the details. So if you ask me on any given day who do I think my characters I’ll look like, I’ll probably give you twenty different answers because I think of them more in their actions and not what they look like. I did take lots of time to drop descriptions of Zora. Her nails, her wigs, her lipstick. She likes to play with beauty standards. She’s smart but she likes looking dressing up, also.
Zora is introduced in Chalcedony, but her role in the book is a bit of a trope. Of course, when you enter the new world you have to have two sidekicks a girl and a boy i.e. Zora and Joseph . For this trope, I wanted my characters to be carefree black kids to combat the negative images in media of black teens. Unfortunately they aren’t so carefree by the end Chalcedony.
The girl sidekick trope is also thrown off in Jade, and she’ll come into her own. Teaser: She will play a pivotal role in the last scene of Jade.
April 3, 2017
!!!I’m On FIYAH!!
FIYAH Giveaway
I’m super honored to announce that I’m the Indie Author spotlight in the second issue of FIYAH Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction. Yep! That’s right. The #2 Issue. Even before they contacted me I was all about this magazine. I have the T-shirt and Coffee Mug to prove it.
The merchandise is awesome but the stories are even better. This month, to celebrate my Indie Spotlight, I’m giving away Issue #2: Spilling Tea and a coffee mug or a T-shirt of your choice.
Enter below for your a chance to win some cool swag and some awesome stories!
Book Deals
The Instafreebie Titans Collection…
Love free books? Awesome. So do we. Grab as many of the books below as you’d like, all for free.
April 3-4 ONLY
Click the pic for Instafreebie and KU reads!!!
Legends of the Damned Box Set 99c for a limited time
The ULTIMATE Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Boxed Set!
23 New York Times, USA Today, and International bestselling authors bring you 21 novels of magic, adventure, suspense, and romance.
With over one million words of magical fiction from the urban fantasy and paranormal romance genres, this omnibus will provide over one hundred hours of reading, including some BRAND NEW material!
Never Miss A Release
March 8, 2017
March´s Author Newsletter
Big Shout out to everyone that has pre-ordered Jade already. If you haven’t gotten your copy yet, you still have time to get it before the price increases on April 22.
You can pre-order your copies here:
If you haven’t started the Everleaf Series yet, the first book Coal is free on Instafreebie or 99c at: Amazon l B&N l Kobo l Apple
Audiobook News and Giveaway
I’m a big fan of audible, so I’ve made it a 2017 goal to get the Everleaf Series in audiobooks. Well, I’ve I found an awesome narrator at an incredible rate, so all three books of the Everleaf Series: Coal, Chalcedony, and Jade will have an audiobook very, very soon. Woot!
PS… If you didn’t know, Black Beauty is on Audible, or it’s only $1.99 if you buy the kindle on Amazon.
In the meantime, let’s have a giveaway. If you want a free copy, reply to this email with “Give me” and you’ll entered into the giveaway. The winner will be announced April 3.
Book Deals
Redemption by Laxmi Hariharan for 99c
From New York Times bestselling author, Laxmi Hariharan, comes Redemption, the much anticipated next standalone story in the Many Lives Series. For fans of Nalini Singh and Christine Feehan. Experience a thrilling paranormal romance where shifters, vampires and immortals fight to save their love and their race.
LEANA
I submit to nobody—not even him.
MIKHAIL
I’ve never needed anyone, but now I more than need her—I want her.
When differences threaten to tear fated mates apart
Soul Sanctuary: Book Two Of The Spirit Shield Saga. $3.99 or free on KU
A temple awakened. The forbidden mountain stirs.The dead are missing.
Snatched from her home by a Primordial Seeker, seventeen-year-old Avery is imprisoned by the people she intended to serve. In a desperate bid for freedom, she escapes, only to find herself racing against time to save those who seek to use her.
Driven by jealousy, the lust for power and the stain of ancient crimes, conflicting factions struggle to gain control of the magic of a Spirit Shield. Avery must dodge all who cross her path, for each group vies to control her actions.
Aided by the mythical creatures of her native land, she discovers that a true Spirit Shield is much more than a simple priestess. She must fight for control of the souls of the world, and in doing so must face her worst fear of all: family.
Dark Humanity Box Set 99c for a limited time
The second edition of the Dark Humanity Boxed Set is a compilation of 20+ Novels, Novellas, and Short Science Fiction and Epic Fantasy reads! We’ve spared no great discovery, with inclusion of a diverse mix of existing titles and brand new content! Every story inside is currently exclusive to this collection and cannot be read anywhere else online!
The pages inside are packed with everything from faeries, dragons, and mysterious viruses to fantastical quests, frozen cities, fearless knights, ancient foes, and powerful enemies.
With over a million words of fiction, this is your one stop shop for sword and sorcery, military and AI science fiction, dark fantasy, and mesmerizing space opera adventures from more than twenty Award Winning and New York Times & USA Today bestselling authors!
This is the stuff legends are made of.
Free Urban Fantasy Books!!!
ead one! Read them all! 17 Urban Fantasy samples and full stories for your reading pleasure.
February 26, 2017
Today Only: 99 cents Flash Sale!
I’ve decided to take Coal and Chalcedony wide sale them on Apple, Kobo, Google and Barnes & Nobles. To celebrate and to jumpstart the sales, both Coal and Chalcedony are 99. FYI, Coal is 99cents until April 21st, but Chalcedony is on sale for Today Only.
Grab Coal for 99c
Grab Chalcedony for 99c
Have you preordered your copy of Jade: Book Three of the Everleaf Series? Grab your copy here for $2.99 before the price increases on release day.
Pre-Order! $2.99 for a Limited Time!
Special Book SpotLights
In the spirit of fantasy epics like George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones and Brandon Sanderson’s The Way of Kings, The Fatemarked Epic promises immaculate world building, an ancient prophecy, a mysterious source of magic, interesting characters, war, political intrigue, and romance.he Hundred Years War has ravaged more than three generations of kings, queens, and citizens across the Four Kingdoms. Corrupt rulers dominate. Religious intolerance runs rampant. The cycle of vengeance continues to turn with the seasons.
An ancient prophecy by a legendary oracle has been long forgotten. The prophecy promises the return of peace to the Four Kingdoms on the backs of a chosen few, the fatemarked, individuals marked at birth and blessed with specific magical powers. One shall be the Kings’ Bane, and will bring death to the warmongering rulers, using fear to force peace; another shall be the Peacemaker, bestowed with the rare ability to heal. Opposite sides of the same coin, dark and light, death and life, the Kings’ Bane and the Peacemaker are responsible for the fate of an entire continent.
As they fight to achieve their destinies, adversity will hinder them in every realm: in the frozen north, assassination attempts and a brutal power struggle; in the holy west, a vicious queen and her self-righteous army of warriors; in the mysterious iron-clad forest of the east, revenge and glory rule the day; and in the southern empires of Calyp and Phanes, maturing dragons, slaves, and a civil war.
To truly fulfill the oracle’s prophecy of peace, both the Kings’ Bane and the Peacemaker, as well as the other fatemarked, will need to overcome those who seek to destroy everything in their pursuit for power.
The first book in an epic saga years in the making, Fatemarked will sweep you away to another land, another time, when magic and dragons, kings and queens, and courage and valor still meant something.
Pre-order on Amazon for $2.99, or Free in KU
Descended from dragons. Condemned to death. Driven underground.
Andie Rogers is no stranger to secrecy. After watching her dragonborn mother get taken away at a young age, she has had to learn to use her sorcery inherited from her father to disguise all trace of her own dragon’s blood magic. Now, longer a child, Andie must attend The University, center of all magic and government in Arvall City, to learn to wield her magic and become a fully-fledged sorcerer.
In Feyland, not everything is as it seems…
Fey
land: a new computer game that allows Scottish teenager Corinne MacArthur to escape the sadness haunting her everyday life after losing a loved one. It’s a game where legends come to life, the lines between reality and fantasy become blurred, and the impossible becomes – probable?
Unicorn Magic is the 1st story in the Celtic Fey series set in Anthea Sharp’s Feyland universe (with her kind permission). A stand-alone short story with a full plot arc, Unicorn Magic was first published in the anthology Chronicle Worlds: Feyland. The story continues in Kelpie Curse,
This is a clean urban fantasy which is set in Scotland (and the faerie realm) and uses British English spelling and grammar.
January 31, 2017
New Release Alert! Jade: Book Three of the Everleaf Series
It’s almost been a year in the making, Jade: Book Three of the Everleaf Series officially has a release date of April 21st. I worked hard on this book and I believe it’s the best of the series so far.
You can pre-order your copy here for $2.99. The price will increase to $3.99 after April 21.
New Release Alert!
I know it’s almost been a year in the making, but Jade: Book Three of the Everleaf Series officially has a release date of April 21st. I worked hard on this book and I believe its the best of the series so far. I’m dying to know if you guys agree.
For everyone that pre-orders and sends me a screen shot of your purchase at cb@constanceburris.com, you’ll get a free copy of the “short story” sequel that’ll be released shortly after Jade. FYI, the short will feature Coal and Chalcedony and it’ll be a fantasy with “romantic elements”. Y’all ain’t even ready.
You can pre-order your copy here for the pre-order price of $2.99. The price will increase after April 21.
To celebrate Jade’s pre-order announcement, Black Beauty the horror/fantasy prequel to the Everleaf Series is free on Amazon **Today Only**
Read for Free, Listen for $1.99
January 30, 2017
December 17, 2016
Enter to Win #Binti and #BintiHome by Nnedi Okorafor
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor was one of my favorite reads of 2015. You can read my review: here. Binti had all the things I liked: The ability to learn about a new culture in an exciting way, charismatic, strong leads, scary aliens, and just an overall great story. Welp,
Welp, Home, the sequel to Binti is due January 30, so I just had to celebrate by having a giveaway. Just had to! To make the giveaway even sweeter, G.L. Tomas, Imani Josey, and Jamie Thornton are co-hosting with me.
You can enter the giveaway Below.
P.S. Because I’m stalking all things Binti, Tor is also having a Giveaway. Tor’s giveaway ends tomorrow, so hurry and enter.
P.S.S. I found an awesome early review of Binti: Home HERE
November 25, 2016
Black Friday Sale
If you’re catching Black Friday deals online this weekend, don’t forget to grab this amazing deal! Grab 20+ science fiction and fantasy books for just 99 cents. Add us to your shopping basket!
About Dark Humanity
The Dark Humanity Boxed Set is a compilation of 22 Full-Length Science Fiction and Epic Fantasy reads! We’ve spared no great discovery, with inclusion of a diverse mix of existing titles and brand new content!
The pages inside are packed with everything from faeries, dragons, and mysterious viruses to fantastical quests, frozen cities, fearless knights, ancient foes, and powerful enemies.
With over a million words of fiction, this is your one stop shop for sword and sorcery, military and AI science fiction, dark fantasy, and mesmerizing space opera adventures from more than twenty Award Winning and New York Times & USA Today bestselling authors!
This is the stuff legends are made of.
Scroll up to secure your Limited Edition copy with one click today!
*Estimated Total Page Count: 5,000+
Works by:
Gwynn White
Erin St. Pierre
Norma Hinkens
Melanie Karsak
Jamie Thornton
Jeff Gunzel
E.E. Isherwood
Michael-Scott Earle
Christopher D. Morgan
Joanne Wadsworth
Constance Burris
Nirina Stone
Andrea Ring
M.D. Cooper
Aaron Hodges
Robyn Wideman
Felix R. Savage
K.R. Thompson
Patricia Loofbourrow
Jamie Campbell
Kristen Middleton
Nancy Segovia
K.N. Lee
Monica Corvin
Don’t forget to enter the $100 giveaway from Dark Humanity!
November 20, 2016
Movie Review: Moonlight
A timeless story of human connection and self-discovery, Moonlight chronicles the life of a young black man (Chiron) from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami.
-From IMDB
Other than Captain America: Civil War, Moonlight was probably my most anticipated movie of 2016. After hearing about it on both Fresh Air and Code Switch, the hype was real. Thankfully, the movie lived up to all of the hype. Here are some of my random thoughts.
1. Moonlight was filled with white space.
White space probably isn’t the right term, but as a writer, it’s the only term I can think of. By white space, I mean the director is a minimalist. He removes large chunks of the narrative out of the story, leaving only essential scenes and interactions. It’s like the director leaves plenty of room for the audience to make their own connections. The biggest example of white space is the absence of violence. We never see any violence until the midpoint climax, but the violence is inferred through the whole movie. The violence is like an invisible character. You see it’s shadow but hardly ever see the character itself. Which I’m happy, oh so happy about. That meant I never had to ugly cry like I did in 12 Years A Slave. That’s damn movie used violence like a machete. It cut me to pieces. I don’t think I will ever see another slave movie again.
But back to Moonlight. The audience took it easy on the audience. I don’t know if that’s fair to the main character, but as reader, I’m thankful. Not seeing most of the violence didn’t mean that I cared for Chiron any less.
2. Juan played by Mahershala Ali deserves an Oscar
I first saw Mahershala Ali on House of Cards as Remi. Ali is a strong actor and he holds his own against the likes of Kevin Spacey. In Luke Cage, he was playing a bad guy with a horrible temper. I never believed his performance in the Marvel show. But in Moonlight, as the kindly, strong drug dealer, who befriends Little, he gave a beautiful, Oscar Worthy, performance. The character Juan is a bright spot against the darkness. He is a flawed character and a realistic hero.
By the second act, Juan is gone/dead. We’re never told how. We don’t see his death. We don’t see Chiron’s reaction to it. Again the audience is spared the pain of seeing Chiron in pain. But we know it’s there. This is another example of white space. We have to fill in the blanks, take notes off to the side in the margins.
3. Trevante Rhodes, the dude that plays adult Chiron AKA Black is very, very handsome.
Yo! he was fine. If I was rich and a director, I would make lots of movies and only have him star in them. 
