Shiloh Walker's Blog, page 174

Ch-Ch-changes…

Folks… a change here in Shi*land… both the blog and on Facebook.  I've got a friend coming on to help me out with a few small things.

Folks…meet Nicole.  Nicole, meet folks.

Nicole is kindly stepping in to help me with a few things.  Yes, yes, I keep telling people I'm not ready to hire an assistant because I can't.  Nicole is working for peanuts & books.  Well.  Books and to help me out.  I actually insisted she take the books.

And before anybody who has previously offered gets upset, gets offended or hurt (pretty please don't-I can honestly say, it's not you, it's me) or says anything…well, this really needs to be more something I request, not something somebody requests of me, and for a whole slew of reasons that I can't really go into detail about.

Nicole is pretty much what I needed, and she just happened to be willing at the exact time I was finally willing to open my brain and acknowledge I needed to do this.  It's not just that she was willing to work cheap… *G* it was a little more complicated than that.

So if by chance you see Nicole answering questions…yes, she does have my permission, yes, she's cool to be here…and I'm so glad she is…

Goodreads V. Shelfari

Which do you use and why… pretty please answer…please? And I'm not asking just so I can spam you all more effectively.    I'll spam you all through here.

Authors I'm thankful for

So I saw this on twitter, when Tor.com posted it…they asked for one.   I won't be that mean.  I'm listing three.

Authors I'm thankful for:

Laura Ingalls Wilder-without her, I dunno if I'd be writing, because she got me hooked on reading.  And without loving reading, would I really have discovered that I loved to write?
Nora Roberts-discovered the love of romance, and not just romance, but the sheer magic…the imagery-she can inside the guy's head, not just the heroine's side, but his side.  And that's magic.  Not all authors can do it.  I grew up around guys-three brothers, their million friends… egads.  I'm telling you, I love romance, but some of the writers, they think they can tell a guy's POV, but they can't.
SL Viehl/Lynn Viehl-I don't even know where to begin with her.  Romance, science fiction, paranormal…not to mention the sheer knowledge this woman has, and is willing to share.  But the worlds she introduced me to with the Stardoc books?  Oh, yeah.  Thankful.

What about you?  What authors are you thankful for?

also… some reviews on Beg Me…now available… info on buying here.…

Mean Marie


Maldivian Book Reviews

Update on Beg Me.. Kindle, Nook, etc

Just a reminder, guys… my weekends are my time to be with my family and I don't tend to keep up with facebook, twitter, email, etc.  But a quick run-down on Beg Me, because of some questions/comments.

Kindle/Smashwords/Etc

Okay, Beg Me is showing on Kindle now, you can find it here.

Now if people are having trouble with the files, I wish I could help, but as far as tech help goes, I'm useless. I don't think it's a file problem because a lot of people are downloading it fine with no trouble & reading it.  So the best bet is check with tech support.

Kindle-try here to start.

For Smashwords, (or if you want to buy from Smashwords) check their FAQs here for info about Nook, Kindle, etc. You can also contact their customer support by looking to the very top of the screen and clicking on the contact/customer support-be specific about your problem, tell them what device you have, what you've done and what problem you're experiencing.

Re: The Nook

It does appear that Beg Me has gone through Smashwords premium catalog, and gotten the approval, which should get it out to the other various outlets, that includes Nook & Sony, and a few others.  I don't know when this will be.  But it takes a few days to a few weeks.  Please understand that even if I were to upload the book on my own, it's not going to post right away-a friend uploaded a title of hers and it took almost a week to post to the Nook store.

None of this stuff is an immediate process.  There are several other platforms out there and instead of taking a day to investigate each of them (at least), deal with the formatting (which could be an hour or another day long process and that's for each platform…or I can simply go through Smashwords-from a time management standpoint, this is the wisest option.  They'll handle the various stores, Nook, Kobo, Sony, Diesel, etc.  Since I also have writing to do, and a lot of it, I really need to focus on that.   I'm already running behind on my own personal deadlines this month from my surgery and that's not even taking into account some time I gave myself off for the loss of two close friends.

For those who don't want to wait, you can still get the book on your Nook now.  I realize that's an extra step, but it's not that much more complicated than saving a file to a disc-you just need your USB cord.

The format you want is epub, and you can browse Nook's FAQs and forums for more info.  Here's one forum where they talk about sideloading in particular (drag/dropping-it sounds complicated but it's really not, I promise).

I actually just downloaded to my Nook-all I did was plug in my Nook with the USB, selected the epub file, clicked download and save to computer (not open), and when it the screen pops up, it will show your Nook, just save it to the Nook.  It took about one minute and all I needed was the account with smashwords and a paypal account.  This is also how you'd get books from other epubs like Samhain and Ellora's Cave.

And while I don't use my Sony as much-the same process (if I recall correctly) is how it works for the Sony, too and Sony will read PDFs & epubs as well, I believe.

All that info can all be found on Smashwords FAQ page. (as well as how to read on iPhone, iPad, etc)

Once I get more info about the other ebookstores, I'll get them posted as well.

Hunter's Fall…the cover thing

Do you know… this book was supposed to be out about two years ago?

But I wasn't ready. Because Nessa's wasn't ready.

Then it was supposed to be out, I think, a year ago.

But I wasn't ready.  Because she wasn't ready.

Finally, though, I was ready to write Nessa's story.

Because she was finally ready.

And now she's got a cover, too…

So… whaddya think…?

I love it.  I love the way their hair is blowing, love the smirk on Nessa's face.  It's so screw you, which is totally her.  I love the moon.  FYI… the first pic? From Tuesday?  The contest?  It was the upper edge of the moon.  I'll draw a random winner from those who guessed the moon.

And I think I should intro the hero…this is Dominic…and he hates heights.

Excerpt

Dominic hated heights.

He hated heights and he couldn't stand outside during the day, not even on a cloudy day. Unless he wanted to burn to a crisp. At least not yet. Few more decades, he might be able to handle it.

But right now, he couldn't. And even if he could, he wouldn't be outside here. Nausea hit him and he knew where he was. Chicago. He'd been to Chicago before and he'd even been in the Sears tower—no, the Willis Tower. They'd renamed it. But he'd been inside before. In the tower, not on top of it.

"I'm not really here now, either," he muttered, shooting a look at the sky.

He was dreaming.

He didn't even have to see her, didn't hear her voice to know he was dreaming. He just knew.

He heard voices. Two of them—both women. Although the voices sounded the same, they weren't. One was accented, with the crisp, lyrical sound of England, and the other was good old American with the slow, lazy drawl of the south.

"Why don't you just jump?"

"I won't jump because that would be too easy for you. Too easy for us both."

"Easy…what in the fuck do you care if it's easy for you? You want it over, so just end it already. Be done with it."

Dominic felt his fangs throb in their sheaths, ready to emerge. His body tensed, ready to attack as he searched the rooftop for the other woman. He'd kill the bitch—whoever she was, taunting this woman to jump, he'd kill her.

But there was no other woman.

Just the witch. Just his witch.

Looking at her made him ache.

It had been months since he'd had held her…even in his dreams. You'd think a man's libido would kick in and he could at least have her in his dreams, but not lately.

Not since the dream where she'd stood crying in a field of stone.

Since then, his dreams had taken a drastic turn and not a good one. Either he was reliving that dream where she held him as he died, or he was in these dreams where he was nothing more than an observer, watching as she drifted through life like a heartbroken ghost. Dreams where he couldn't touch her, couldn't hold her, couldn't talk to her.

Because she wouldn't let him.

She had isolated herself, even in her dreams.

No…not her dreams. They were his dreams.

Whatever…none of it made sense, and he couldn't try to make sense of it now, either, not when she was there.

He wanted to go to her. Hold her, tell her she wasn't alone.

He wanted to tell her to come away from the ledge, that she wasn't alone up there on the roof. That she wasn't alone, period. He was there…he was with her.

And then she wasn't alone, but Dominic wasn't the one standing just behind her.

It was another vampire.

Dominic couldn't reach out to the witch. Couldn't touch her, couldn't make her hear him if she spoke. Couldn't save her if she tried to jump.

But the other vampire could.

Don't you let her jump, you big bastard, he thought darkly.

And still, in some part of his mind, he wondered why he was so worried about a dream-woman jumping off the Willis Tower. It wasn't like she was real. It wasn't like it would hurt her. The next time he'd slept, she'd be there…waiting for him. In his dreams. Only in his dreams.

Not if she jumps, he thought.

If she jumps, I've lost her.

He knew it. If she jumped, she was lost to him. He knew it…somehow.

Also… in case you missed it… I have a book out.  Info here.

Beg Me….Now Available…

New release

erotic contemporary romance

Excerpt

Beg me…there had been a time when those words made her burn with desire. But now, there was only fear.

Once, Tania Sinclair's life was almost perfect…oh, it had its ups and downs but she was happily married to a guy that adored her, one who had no problem indulging every kinky fantasy she ever had. But a couple of tragedies later, she's barely holding it together. A car accident took away her husband, and an attack from somebody she should have been able to trust has shaken not only her confidence, but it's also stripped away her fantasies and even made it painful to look back on her memories of her husband without fear.

Two years after her attack, Tania is determined to take her life back and the first step is taking back herself…her fantasies, her dreams, her memories. There's only one person she can trust to do it, too. One person she wants enough…Drake Bennett, her husband's best friend.

Falling for your best friend's wife—never smart. Drake's watched Tania quietly for years, watched her…wanted her, knowing he'd never have her. First, she was taken. And then, that night two years ago—a night that still scars her, a night that's left bruises on her that still haven't healed. He does what he can, though, because he loves her too much not to. He's her friend, there when she needs him.

And now she needs him. She's asked him for a favor…one that just about blows his mind…



Warning: This book involves light bondage play, rape fantasy & role-playing. The acts between the hero & heroine are consensual, but they may not be ideal for all readers…

Out now. Well, at Smashwords.

It's pending at Amazon. I have no control over when it goes live at Amazon.

FYI, Smashwords does sell the various formats so you should be able to get it on your Kindle, and I know you can get read other formats on the Nook, like epub, which can be read on the Nook.  All you need to buy at Smashwords is a paypal account and the book is only $2.99 and it's available worldwide.  If you're not sure how to get it to your reader…well, when I do it, I plug in my reader, download the book and then save it to the reader-the reader shows up like an external disk drive.  Other more techie types can explain it better than that, though.

You can also use apps like Goodreader or Bluefire to read it on iPhone *and probably iPad*

FYI, I'm listing the Kindle buy link because it will show up there, but I'm aware it's not live yet.  Again, I have no control over that…Regarding other outlets (ie: Kobo, Nook, Sony, Borders), Smashwords does have a premium catalog and more than likely, this book should make it into that which will get it available to those outlets, but that takes time and it's in Smashwords' hands, not mine.  I'll keep an eye on the updates and once I know, I will post the info to the blog.

Smashwords | Kindle

Short Excerpt…

"I want to ask you for a favor," she said, staring at him over her wine glass.

Drake told himself he could get through this—he told himself he wasn't about to lose it, thinking about how sexy and sweet she looked in a short, flippy little tan shirt that left too much leg bare. He told himself he wasn't all but drooling as he thought about the breasts under her close-fitting, clingy black top. He also told himself the dinner had been delicious, but he couldn't remember what it tasted like or what he'd even eaten twenty minutes ago. Some kind of chicken. He thought. Or maybe pork. Right?

No, he was too focused on Tania, and the fact that she was sitting three feet away from him. Too focused on the fact that his cock was throbbing like a bad tooth and had been ever since she'd let him into her apartment an hour earlier.

Her words rang in his mind. She needed help—finally, though, something real, something physical he could focus on. That would really help. Maybe her car needed a tune-up, that was easy, although why she'd felt the need to cook for him just to ask for that, he didn't know.

"Anything." He tipped his beer bottle back, wetting his throat. Fuck it, she looked so beautiful. She was sitting so close, he could smell the scent of the lotion she'd slicked all over her skin. Good enough to eat, and that's just what he wanted to do, too.

She grimaced and said, "Maybe you should put the beer down. Stop drinking for a minute because I don't want you to choke when I ask."

"Okay." He smirked a little and leaned forward, setting the bottle on the table. "Although I don't know what you could ask that would surprise me that much, Tania."

"Five years ago."

Okay—maybe I was wrong. She can surprise me.

Drake grabbed the bottle. "I think I need the beer," he muttered.

She smiled. "Five years ago," she said again. "You know what I like."

He shifted his gaze to her, all too aware of just how little distance separated them, all too aware of that short, flippy skirt, of the sweet scent of her skin…and just how acutely he remembered things from five years ago.

"Do you remember?" she asked, her voice low and quiet.

Read the rest…

*UTA: for the print readers, I'm sorry, but I don't know when or if I'll get this into print…if this project goes well, I'm considering doing another one.  If that happens, then yes, I'll likely look into combining the two stories to make them long enough to put into a print single-author antho.  Should that happen, I'll post info to the blog, but I won't know about that for a while yet.

Hunter's Fall… a bit more…Your Friday 56 & Signing news… oops

I kinda sorta forgot something.  Like the fact that I'm signing books tomorrow.  I didn't forget that I'm signing, I just forgot to tell you all.

KYRW Annual Signing

Saturday

11.20.2010

2-4 p.m.

Jo-Beth Booksellers

Lexington Green Mall

Lexington, KY

UNKNOWN PAST

Something strange is happening to Nessa. Ever since she survived a near-death experience she's not exactly who she used to be—and enjoying every minute of it. Then she's called upon to go to battle against darkness. If only she could remember why.

UNEXPECTED LOVER

Dominic is having his own problems with memory, sanity, and hallucinations. Sent to Excelsior, the covert Hunter training facility, he senses a female presence that seems so hauntingly familiar. That's because he and Nessa share a forgotten past.

UNSEEN EVIL

As Nessa and Dominic regain their memories, their strange mission against evil becomes clearer. And all the more dangerous because whether they should trust each other is the still the greatest unknown of all.

Yes.  I am having fun with this.  O.o

And no… this isn't part of the contest, either.  Just the post from Tuesday, and you can only enter once.  Duplicate entries are voided.

And since the file was open for the excerpts I was pulling, this is actually the closest book I've got on hand.  So here's your Friday 56

"Crashing the party?" she asked.  Some part of her, the part that had tried to chide her into resting, recovering, was glad to see him.  That part of her, the part that wouldn't give up, was glad to see him, glad that she wasn't going to walk into a fight she couldn't survive alone.

"Bloody fool witch," Malachi growled.  He stormed past her, sending her an icy look.  "You might not give a damn if you live or die, but I do."

Nessa sighed.  "I know."

BTW-it's due out in June

About the Friday 56

Grab the book nearest you. Right now
Turn to page 56.
Find the fifth sentence.
Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Tarnished Knight giveaway, cover teases, & a cool thing

Today we take time out for the cover teasing…nah, no we won't, we just have something else to do, too.

Cover tease…

No…this isn't a contest thing.  That was for Tuesday only and it's still open, but you can only make the one guess, for that one image, not this one.

The cool thing

Read on…Wednesday was pretty cool period, but the cool thing happened @ Borders and this was the first time this has happened to me.

I had a field trip today-went to Actor's Theatre of Louisville (Lou @ Loueyville hooked me up with this) where I rummaged through their costume department looking at corsets and talking to their costume crew.  Very friendly, helpful people and I learned some cool info, got the names of some research books.  When I left, I headed to the Borders on Bardstown Road because I needed a) sign stock b) go by Heine Brothers coffee and try this new creme brulatte that Michelle from Consuming Louisville had mentioned and I had to try it. It was delicious.

So I'm in Borders.  I get my books and go to the counter, introduce myself.  A customer came up while I was doing so.  And suddenly I'm being hugged.  "You're Shiloh Walker?  Are you really?  I don't believe it…I love your books…"

O.o Somebody recognized my name.  Somebody who'd pick up my books there.  I was…amazed.  Reader D from the Bardstown Rd Borders just totally made my day yesterday.  I wanted to share.

Now onto…

The giveaway

(It's not here.)  It's over at Access Romance.  I think… If it's not today, it's because I got the days wrong and I'll correct it once I get the right day.  O.o  yes, I'm that big of a ditz.  But in case I'm right, here's the link.

Cover teasing… and an excerpt this time…

Another little piece of the cover from Hunter's Fall…

"Have you lost your mind?"

She glanced behind her and the wind whipped her hair into her eyes, blinding her.  She caught it in her hand, holding it back from her face as she stared at Malachi.

Lifting a brow, she said, "Where the bloody hell did you come from?"

"What in the bloody hell are you doing?" he fired back.   "Damn it, you have gone insane."

Malachi didn't look too impressed with the view from the top of the skyscraper.  "I thought we had already decided on that particular subject, Mal."

Although he didn't age, Nessa decided he looked older now than he had a year before.  Something akin to guilt tried to stir within her, but she simply didn't care enough.

She'd tried.  Well and truly, she'd tried to settle back into this life that had been thrust upon her, tried to view it as the gift everybody else made it out to be.  But then the one thing she had viewed as a gift—Mei-Lin—had been torn from her.  That girl…Nessa had loved that girl like a daughter.  More than.

She'd loved her and just like Elias, Mei-Lin had been taken away from her.

It was just too much.  That precious girl, all of her friends, all dead.

If this was the sort of gift life offered, Nessa wanted none of it.

Malachi, the poor fool, he worried.  All of her friends did.  Nessa wished she could care.

But she just didn't.

Looking from Malachi, she cocked her head and stared down at the street.  "They are all in such a hurry," she murmured.  She slid Malachi a glance and asked, "Why do you think mortals always rush to and fro, Mal?  Don't they know that all that rushing accomplishes nothing?  They'll still get sick. They'll still suffer.  They'll still die."

"Lovely, morbid thoughts there, love." He blew out a disgusted sigh and edged a little closer.  Stretching out his hand, Malachi quietly said, "Come down, Nessa."

"Hmmmm…"  A gust of wind picked up and as she held out her arms, it slapped against her with an intensity that made her clothes flap around her and had her swaying near the edge of one of the tallest buildings in the world.

In the middle of the fucking day.  Malachi stared at her and then made the fool mistake of glancing down.  While he tried to pretend he wasn't dizzy, Nessa giggled like a loon and murmured, "It almost makes me feel as though I could fly, Malachi.  Truly fly, like a bird."

Hunter's Fall-I have the cover…Pssst, contest

Although I dunno if I'm okay to post it.

At least not all of it.  And since I'm in dire need of cheering myself up… I'm going to torment people.

Here's a tiny peek.

What is it? And because I figure I haven't done a contest in a while… whoever guesses get a prize.  I'm not sure what… I think I've still got a goody bag laying around here from one of the cons, with books and stuff.  Maybe that-maybe something else.  If more than one person guesses, we'll just do a draw.  *FYI, if it's an international reader, I'm going to sub in a gift certificate (amazon or Samhain/My Bookstore and More)-mailing that bag would cost my left kidney and I'm not up to any more surgeries, especially not to cover postage. O.o  It's scary, and that's one heavy bag.

So… what is it?

Normal rules apply-no sharing to sweepstakes sites/twitter sweeps, one entry per household, yadda yadda, read the disclaimer for other rules and i you aren't familiar, check out my disclaimer before you enter.  Entering means you've read it and agree to my rules.  If you don't want to miss winning, you might want to sign up for my RSS feed, right over there on the left.