Robert Pruneda's Blog, page 10

First 5-star Review for Devil’s Nightmare

I am excited to announce my very first five-star review for my novel Devil’s Nightmare today. This review really made my day. Have a gander and if you haven’t grabbed your copy yet, be sure to click on one of the links below. Enjoy! 

Wow! My heart’s still beating out of my chest! – January 13, 2013

By Donna L. Sadd

I really enjoyed reading Devil’s Nightmare. I was hooked at the prologue; then it’s fast pace proceeded to yank me through one heck of a scary thrill ride! This is a difficult review to write without spoilers, but what I can say is that the characters are fleshed out well, description and dialog paint the story vividly, and the mystery takes twists and turns that kept this reader guessing. I’m not a horror fiction fan; however, I’m a fan of Mr. Pruneda’s work and this occult thriller seriously kept my heart pounding every step of the way. I could easily see Devil’s Nightmare being made into a film and I recommend that you read it . . . with the lights on of course!

 

Devil’s Nightmare is available in several formats. Just click on the image of your favorite eBook retailer below and claim your copy today. 

And remember to Pursue your dreams… and never look back!

Available now in several formats:

 

Indie Author in the Spotlight: Devil’s Nightmare Promo

Just a quick post to announce that I have been selected as this week’s “Indie Author in the Spotlight” at Ken Hoss’s site today. Click on the link below to see the post that highlights me and my new book Devil’s Nightmare.

Indie Author in the Spotlight

Now available on Kindle, Nook, and Kobo.

Book Review: A Warrior’s Tale by Lorna Suzuki

In December I finished reading A Warrior’s Tale, the first of several novels in The Imago Chronicles fantasy series by the talented Lorna Suzuki. To read my full review of A Warrior’s Tale click on the cover image below:

Devil’s Nightmare Now Available on Amazon

It’s official!  My latest novel Devil’s Nightmare is now available for purchase on Amazon for all Kindle readers and Kindle reading apps. Just click on the cover image and you’ll be directed to my book’s page on Amazon.com. My novel is also available on Amazon UK here.

I was originally planning on publishing this novel on January 15, but I was up late last night working on my synopsis do to a bit of insomnia (i.e. I couldn’t stop thinking about publishing my book). Now that the Kindle version is up and ready for purchase, I will be working on the .ePub version for Nook and Kobo. They should be ready within the next week. Until then, if you have a Kobo or Nook, you can get the .ePub versions on Smashwords here. You can also download 20% of the book for free. I’ll let everyone know when the book is available on Nook and Kobo in a separate post. 

Thanks again for your support and encouragement as I release this novel for the world to enjoy! Have an awesome week! 

Cheers!

Robert Pruneda

Author of Devil’s Nightmare and Pursuit of a Dream.

Devil’s Nightmare Now Available on Smashwords!

I just wanted to post a quick announcement to let everyone know that Devil’s Nightmare is now officially available for purchase on Smashwords in most ebook formats (including Kindle, Nook and Kobo). Just click on the cover image and you’ll be directed to my book’s page on Smashwords.com.

After hundreds of hours and a year’s worth of work planning, researching, writing, editing, and formatting, this puppy is ready to hit the ebook market. You can also download a sample of the first 20% of my novel for free. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Smashwords, you can basically purchase the ebook in several different formats which can be viewed with your favorite ebook application on your computer, smart phone, or tablet (including Kindle, Nook and Kobo). I just downloaded and tested the .mobi and  .epub files and they came out great! Amazon should have the Kindle version uploaded to their site within the next 12 – 24 hours, so if you have been anticipating purchasing Devil’s Nightmare directly on Amazon for your Kindle, I’ll send out another post as soon as it is available.

Thank you all for your continued support! You are all awesome! Now it’s time to start writing the next book.

Cheers!

Robert Pruneda

Author of Devil’s Nightmare and Pursuit of a Dream.

Devil’s Nightmare Editing Complete!

Final Edits Completed in the Wee Hours of the Morning

I’m pleased to announce that at approximately 3 a.m. this morning I completed the final edits for my upcoming supernatural horror Devil’s Nightmare. After four drafts and countless numbers of hours (and many sleepless nights) I was able to shave nearly 3,000 words off the original 125,000-word manuscript  while also doing some polishing with the help of my awesome beta readers. You were all a very integral part of this process and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I couldn’t have done it without you! 

Devil’s Nightmare Now in Formatting Mode 

With the final edits complete I’m now switching gears to the task that is probably the most tedious of all during the publication process . . . FORMATTING! At least this time around I don’t have to worry about those blasted tabs that plagued my previous novel. Rookie mistake! I’m currently working on the Smashwords Edition of Devil’s Nightmare and going step by step through Mark Coker’s Smashwords Style Guide to make sure I don’t miss anything. In hindsight I probably should have done this before using italics throughout my manuscript because now I have to go back and reapply them. Oy! Oh, well. Mark that one off as another lesson learned.

After I’m finished with the Smashwords formatting, I will work on the Kindle, Nook and Kobo versions. A print edition will be forthcoming later this year. I just have to scrape up the cash to pay my cover designer. I’m taking donations.

Devil’s Nightmare On Schedule for Jan. 15 Release

While I still have a lot of work to do with the formatting, I still plan to hit that publish button on Jan. 15, 2013. I have a few bloggers ready to help me promote Devil’s Nightmare, but I’m still looking for more. So if you are willing to open up some virtual real estate for an interview, guest post, or spotlight feature, I would greatly appreciate it. I am also looking for authors to cross promote on Sharkbait Writes with interviews and guest posts, so don’t hesitate to ask. 

Now back to formatting!

Cheers!

Robert Pruneda

Author of Devil’s Nightmare and Pursuit of a Dream.

2012 Blogging Year in Review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 5,900 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 10 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

Liebster Blog Award

Earlier this month my friend Karen Einsel nominated me for the Liebster Blog Award, and after realizing that I had completely forgot about this post, something slapped me across the face and reminded me. So, I figured I would end the year with this fun blog award.

The rules:

Post 11 random facts about oneself and answer 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.

Pass the award on to 11 other blogs (if you can’t find 11, that’s okay too – my revised rule).

Write 11 NEW questions directed towards your nominees. Are you seeing the pattern here?

Post the award picture into your blog.

Now that we got the rules out of the way, on with the show . . .

Eleven Random Facts About Sharkbait

My favorite pastime is playing video games with friends on the PS3 / Xbox 360.
As much as I’ve played video games all of my life, I’ve never owned an Atari or Nintendo. I always had “the other system” when I was growing up.
I’m a proud active supporter of the ASPCA. Two of my dogs are rescues.
I used to sell dragons at the local monthly trade shows. I had to stop selling them after the dragons kept eating the customers.
I owned a boa constrictor when I was a kid. And no, the snake didn’t eat the neighbors next door . . . and that’s the story I’m sticking to!
When my brother and I were kids, we would go “critter hunting” in the woods outside of Austin, Texas. We would bring home lizards, snakes, spiders, and even a giant centipede once (no joke)! Not to mention the coral snake.
One of the coolest vacations I took when I was a kid was when my family went to Guanajuato, Mexico and stayed in a castle that was converted into a hotel. The creepiest part of that same vacation was when we visited a museum that had real mummies (not the wrapped up ones, either).
I’ve never flown on a commercial airplane, but I have flown in a Cessna.
I drive a limousine (and even a hearse) on occasion for extra cash.
I collect shot glasses, but I rarely drink alcohol.
I’ve pulled on one cigarette in my entire life. That happened when I was about eight or nine years old. My uncle let me take a puff. I swallowed the smoke. I gagged. My eyes literally fogged up . . . and I’ve never touched a cigarette since!

Karen Einsel’s questions for me

If you wrote a bucket list, what would be the No. 1 thing on it? Probably to write a bucket list.
Favorite sport? NASCAR To play? Paintball, although I haven’t done that in years. To watch? NASCAR.
If you were going on your first date, what would you do to impress him/her? Hmm. That’s a tough one since I’m not the type to try and impress. I think if I focused on trying to impress her, I would just end up making a fool of myself. I would just be myself and talk. I would do a lot of listening to what she had to say, so I could get to know her better.
Dancing or bowling? Bowling. I would just embarrass myself dancing. Then again, I stink at bowling too. Let’s go to a movie instead. What is this? A dating survey?
If you could blink your eyes and be anywhere right this minute, where would you be? Sitting on a beach, earning twenty percent.
Favorite holiday? Christmas.
Are you an only child? Or first, middle, or baby in the family? I’m the youngest of three siblings.
How long have you been blogging? I’ve been blogging since May 2011.
What is your favorite word or expression that you use most often? Awesome! Could you base a short story on it? I don’t know, but if I could, I’m sure it would be awesome!
What color are your eyes? Brown. (Back to the dating survey, I see . . . this better not show up on eHarmony!)
And since I’m a horoscope junkie, what is your sign? Gemini. I don’t read horoscopes, but in the spirit of this blog post, I think I’ll read mine. It says: “Money is a serious problem right now – but help is on the way! Of course you still need to take positive steps to ensure that things don’t get worse or return to the same point, so get to work.” (Horoscope from astrology.com) Hmm . . . that was spot on!

Eleven Bloggers Tagged

Now for my selection of 11 bloggers to pass the Liebster Blog Award to. Note to bloggers, feel free to participate if you can. If not, that is cool, too. I know how busy we can get.

Christina Esdon

Jack D. Albrecht

Lorna Suzuki

Wyatt McIntyre

Steven Montano

Justin Bogdanovitch

Spencer Brokaw

Tess Thompson

Junying Kirk

Carolyn Arnold

Shelli Johnson

Eleven 2012 Themed Questions

These are the questions for my tagged bloggers to answer, should they accept the mission . . .

What is the best book you read in 2012?
What is the best movie you watched in 2012?
What is the worst movie you saw in 2012?
If you could change one thing in 2012, what would it be?
Was there anything in 2012 that you always wanted to do and finally did? Was there anything in 2012 that you wanted to do, but just missed out on?
Did you make any resolutions for 2012? If so, how many of those did you actually fulfill? Me neither!
Do you know anyone who actually (really) believed that the world was going to end on Dec. 21, 2012?
Did you try anything new or learn a new skill in 2012? If so, what was it and what inspired you to try it or learn how to do it?
What was the most difficult challenge you faced in 2012?
What was your greatest achievement in 2012?
Now, look back to the year 2012. In one word, how would you describe it overall?

If you participate, please be sure to let me know when you publish your blog post, so I can read your answers. Have an awesome New Year!

The End of the World Didn’t Come So . . .

Still Alive and Kicking

Considering the fact I dropped off the face of the blogosphere recently and the world didn’t end today, I figured I’d put together a quick post to let you all know that I’m still alive and kicking. The truth is I’ve been very busy with the whole self-employment thing and frantically working on Devil’s Nightmare so I can have it ready shortly after Santa Claus delivers all those new Kindle, Nook, and Kobo readers all over the world next week. And for those of you who already have an e-reader you most certainly will have shiny new gift cards to load up on some great books to read in the coming weeks.

(Insert shameless self-promotional plug here)

Devil’s Nightmare Available in Mid-January 

I just finished attacking my printed manuscript with pink red ink and have applied the edits for the first five chapters this week. I plan to take advantage of the downtime from the day job over the weekend and throughout next week (and the fact that the world didn’t blow up today) to finish applying all of my edits. I will then review feedback from my awesome beta readers (Thank you, Sara, Sheilagh, and Dannie!) and make additional edits during the first week of the New Year. Formatting for the e-book edition of Devil’s Nightmare should begin during the second week of January, and if all goes as planned, I will have this novel published on January 12, 2013! That’s my goal, anyway.

Devil’s Nightmare Virtual Book Tour

On that note, if you have a blog and would be interested in hosting me during a virtual book tour I would greatly appreciate it. You can contact me here by leaving a comment or sending me an email at SharkbaitWrites (at) gmail (dot) com. You may also contact me via Twitter @SharkbaitWrites. I will certainly return the favor for those wanting to promote their work on Sharkbait Writes!

I wish you and your families safe travels during the holiday week and a very merry Christmas! Thank you all for the support you have given me throughout this year as I have put hundreds of hours into Devil’s Nightmare. You are the best!

Cheers!

Robert Pruneda

Author of Devil’s Nightmare and Pursuit of a Dream.

The Next Big Thing Blog Hop

Steven Montano, author of the Blood Skies series, recently tagged me for this cool little blog hop called “The Next Big Thing” where I get to tell you a little bit about my current work in progress (WIP). I would also like to recognize S.G. Lee, author of the working title A Penny Saved, A Murder Earned, who also tagged me a while back with a very similar post, so since I wasn’t able to get that post done before this one, I’m going to kill two birds with one stone (sorry for the cliché).

Update (Nov. 20, 2012): The lovely Marina Martindale also tagged me for this blog hop recently, so I’d like to also give her a shout out. You can read her post HERE.

The Next Big Thing blog hop started on She Writes, and has been circulating around the web for a while now, and I’m happy to take part. Here’s the rundown of how this works:

If I tagged you, use this format. Include an introduction to your interview post and a link to the person who tagged you to participate. Answer the ten questions about your current WIP. Include some pictures if possible. Tag five other writers/bloggers by sending them an email and then add their links to the end of your interview post. Their answers should go up the week after. Sound easy enough? Of course it is! So, now that I got all of the details out of the way, on to my responses.

1. What is the working title of your book? 

The title of my current novel is Devil’s Nightmare.

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

The general idea for my book was inspired by a personal experience I had when I was around eleven or twelve years old. Some friends and I would make Ouija boards to talk to spirits, and while we all accused the other of pushing the marker, I’m not convinced it was simply a game. We had heard the stories that you should never play with a Ouija board by yourself or else risk being oppressed by demons. We all dismissed it as a bunch of crap, of course, but I think we were all curious. I was the only one stupid enough to actually do it.

For weeks I would play with the Ouija board by myself out of pure fun, asking childish questions about fame, fortune, girlfriends, etc. I didn’t know if I was actually summoning spirits with the Ouija board or if it was just my mind playing tricks on me and causing me to subconsciously move the marker with my fingers. It didn’t matter; I was having fun with this Ouija board.

The fun and games ended after I started having nightmares, and then late one night I woke up and could not breathe. I tried to get up from my bed, but I could not move. I felt something pressing against my chest and then I saw the eyes floating above me. Those hideous eyes will forever be impeded in my brain. They were almond shaped and a pale yellow. They narrowed and grew closer to my face. I wanted to scream. I wanted to get out of my bed and run away, but my body froze. The pressure in my chest continued to constrict my breathing. All I saw were those horrible eyes among a shadowy figure.

Finally, I could breathe and I screamed with hysteria, but I still could not move. Moments later, my parents rushed through my door and turned on the light. The eyes and shadowy figure disappeared. I then shot up from my bed with my shirt drenched in sweat and my face flowing with tears. I ran to my mother for protection crying about the demon that I had just seen. It was the most horrifying experience I have ever had in my life. Was it a dream? Was it my imagination? Or was it truly a demon oppressing me because I had broken some spiritual rule of the Ouija board? I don’t know for certain, but I can tell you this . . . that Ouija board went in the trash the very next day and I have never messed with one ever since.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Devil’s Nightmare is a supernatural thriller with horror elements.

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

This was a tough one that took a lot of thought. I put together a PDF document of my hypothetical cast for Devil’s Nightmare, which includes Christian Slater playing the lead character “Detective Aaron Sanders.” Click here for the rest of the main cast.

5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

I find it hard enough to write a regular paragraph synopsis, so you can imagine how difficult it was to come up with a one-liner, but in the spirit of this blog hop, I’m going to give it a shot:

Detective Aaron Sanders investigates the brutal deaths of three youth and two adults, and the evidence leads him to an evil force that cannot be defeated without unthinkable consequences.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

At this time I plan to self-publish, but I have considered submitting Devil’s Nightmare to a small publisher. I just haven’t made up my mind yet.

7. How long did it take to write the first draft of your manuscript?

The first draft took me just under nine months to complete.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I don’t like comparing my work with other books due to simple respect of the creative and unique efforts of those authors. However, for the sake of this post I will say that one of my beta readers recently compared my writing to Stephen King. That was an unexpected compliment that really boosted my confidence, and while I would never try to compare my writing to the King of Horror, I did find it very flattering and encouraging. This also sets up my response to the next question.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Stephen King inspired me to write Devil’s Nightmare. I’m a huge fan of the horror and thriller genres and have always wanted to take a stab at a horror novel and finally decided to go for it this year. Stephen King’s non-fiction book On Writing is probably the biggest inspiration to me as a writer. It was after I read this book that I shifted my thoughts of writing novels from simple aspiration to heartfelt dedication. If you’re serious about writing a novel, I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of On Writing by Stephen King.

10. What else about your book might peak the reader’s interest?

I think fans of the thriller and horror genres will find that Devil’s Nightmare is a unique story that will hook you from the very beginning. I wrote Devil’s Nightmare without an outline for the sole purpose of trying to avoid making the story predictable. I found that if I didn’t know what was going to happen next as I wrote it, then it would make for a more enjoyable experience for the reader. I believe I achieved that and found it very challenging and rewarding writing in this fashion. Now I obviously had a general idea of the story’s direction throughout the writing process, but there were many times where I found my characters pushing me in a different direction . . . and I tend to listen to them. After all, it was their lives on the line.

I wrote most of Devil’s Nightmare late at night with the lights off and was very pleased that certain scenes gave me cold chills that ran up my entire spine. It is my desire to share that same experience with my readers. Look for Devil’s Nightmare in early 2013 for Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and Smashwords (and later in print).

MORE rules:

If I tagged you, your blog post should be scheduled to publish between Sunday, Nov. 4 to Saturday, Nov. 10. If you are on She Writes, you put the post up there too. Your blog post should be labeled: The Next Big Thing Blog Hop (and not The Next BEST Thing Blog Hop, like I originally labeled it. I’m such a dork!) .

Here are the authors I am tagging. I hope you will be able to participate in this fun blog hop, and I look forward to reading your responses.

Eden Baylee, author of Fall Into Winter and Spring Into Summer

Karen Einsel, author of The Good Dr. Grant

Spencer Brokaw, author of The Impenetrable Spy series

Dannie Hill, author of In Search of a Soul and Death’s Door

Jessie James Freeman, author of the Billy Purgatory series

Be sure to check out their blogs and their books. They are all awesome and great writers. Also, be sure to comment below.

Cheers!

vV””Vv