Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Release Day for The Pixie Queen by Susan V. Vaughn!

Just stopping in quick to share the Release Day news for a fellow InkSpell author, Susan V. Vaughn!







The Pixie Queen
 
By Susan V. Vaughn

Publisher - InkSpell Publishing
Cover Design - Najla Qamber Designs
ISBN: 978-1-939590-85-5


In the small town of Caseville strange things have occurred…

From the time Jane Hensley was little, she knew she was different. Instead of hanging out with friends, she was often in the woods, alone, chanting magical words that filled her with power and effected the environment around her. A sudden summer storm on a perfectly sunny day. Monster waves crashing into the shores of Lake Huron. Strange things happening in nature with no rhyme or reason. Residents are mystified by these occurrences, but would never dream they could come from Plain Jane Hensley, the girl that was so quiet, it was like she wasn’t there at all.

But David Reynolds, the town’s football star, has noticed Jane. In fact he has been secretly in love with the strange girl for years. And on the morning of her sixteenth birthday, he is determined to finally reveal his heart to her. Instead David discovers Jane’s powerful secret. A secret that has brought a magical stranger to their town. One who claims to be a Pixie King, and entices Jane on a quest.
Now David must choose whether to allow the girl of his dreams to disappear forever. Or follow her on a journey that defies logic.


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About the Author:
Romance Author, Susan V. Vaughn understood the meaning of sarcasm before she could walk.  Her childhood in the suburbs of Detroit was spent mainly trying to outwit her six creative siblings.  When she wasn’t working on the next soul crushing jab, she sharpened her imagination on romantic literature and day dreamed about her knight in shining armor.
It didn’t take long for Susan to take her passion for reading romances into writing her own unique love stories.  Susan lives her life finding laughter in all situations, and delights in marrying sarcasm with romance to create realistic falling-in-love stories in the unlikeliest of scenarios.  
Susan lives on the shores of Lake Huron with her real life knight in shining armor and enjoys watching their three children learn the art of sarcasm and wit.

Twitter-@susanvaughn1124

Monday, June 27, 2016

Whew! I think I lost a week or two!

So sorry that I've been MIA. There was just so much going on!

Summer started, husband went on a bunch of road trips, 5th grade ended, and we had carnival week as well.

It's been fun and exhausting. The house is a mess and I didn't get much writing done, but I've been thinking about writing so that totally counts. :)

2016 WFD Carnival
As I mentioned on Facebook, a summer traveling carnival is a remarkable piece of our American culture that we are lucky we get to enjoy. We love it, but its 4 solid nights of work and it gets a bit tiring.

 


This is from the fireworks show that is on the fourth and last night of carnival.






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Summer haircut for The BOY. The color was only temporary, but the Mohawk is pretty cool.


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I'll have release info for a YA book tomorrow and The Thing That Turned Me, an Anthology is set to release on 6-30-2016!



Stay tuned!

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Reluctant to review...


I posted this on my Facebook author page the other day.

Hello there, Friends! I have a special request this evening!
For any of you that left an Amazon review for my original book, Maguire's Corner:
First - THANK YOU!!
and Second - It would be really helpful if you could copy/paste or summarize that review and put it under the new edition, Already Home.
Why?
Some sites won't even let you advertise if you don't have at least 10 reviews of your book.
Convince readers to buy your book
Assure readers of quality
Serve as word of mouth recommendations

If you need any help or have a concern, feel free to contact me.
 
Well, I didn't get any takers yet, BUT a nice woman said she'd buy my book, read it, and then review it! And she did!

It was an amazing review for Already Home and I really appreciated it.

I can't understand why more people don't leave book reviews.

I know some think it has to be a formal dissertation or something, but its not a book report, just a few words would do.

Personally, I can almost always find something I like about a book to share with others.

Why do you think readers are reluctant to write reviews?

Monday, June 13, 2016

One thing you can do to help...

In the wake of a terrible loss of life, a tragedy, or a disaster, there are lots of people that just want to help.


They don't live close by, they don't have generous funds to donate, but they still want to do something.

One brilliant way to help is to donate blood. Not everyone can, but millions of people who can...don't.

*Although an estimated 38 percent of the U.S. population is eligible to donate blood at any given time, less than 10% of that eligible population actually do each year.* [American Red Cross]
  • Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood.
  • Approximately 36,000 units of red blood cells are needed every day in the U.S.
  • Nearly 7,000 units of platelets and 10,000 units of plasma are needed daily in the U.S.
  • The average red blood cell transfusion is approximately 3 pints.
  • The blood type most often requested by hospitals is type O.
  • The blood used in an emergency is already on the shelves before the event occurs.
  • A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 pints of blood.
 [American Red Cross]

Now you can imagine the hospitals in Florida scrambling to get enough blood for the influx of patients.

They pull from every state around them to fill the immediate need, then again to re-stock their shelves. Then those states must request from the states around them. And, so on and so on.

So, even if you live in North Dakota, when you donate blood you are helping replenish the blood pool.



If you don't know where to donate, most of your local hospitals will know where you can go or use the links below to find a drive near you.

Some states have already declared a blood emergency and donations typically drop during the summer months.

Donating blood is more than help, its a gift of life.

American Red Cross
New York Blood Center
Community Blood Services

Friday, June 10, 2016

Reading really IS fundamental!

Am I showing my age by reciting that?
RIF? Anyone?

As a kid, I remember TV commercials for 'Reading Is Fundamental'.

Of course, growing up pre-internet, reading was a necessity. If you were bored, you read. If you wanted to know more about a subject, you read. If you needed to research anything, you read.

It's a great habit.

I read less than I used to, but I still read a lot. I read a TON of romance. I try to read my fellow author's books when I can, no matter what genre.

I still read a bunch to my son. Yeah, he's 10 and he reads his own books, but we still enjoy reading a chapter or two at night of our favorite authors.

Since I've been left without words of my own recently, I have been reading some of the books on my TBR virtual pile.

It's been like a really weird roller coaster ride. Here are two posts I put on my author Facebook page.

From May 31:
Ugh! Yet another romance title that has over 900 4 & 5 star reviews and yet I can't even finish the book. And, it wasn't a freebie! I paid $2.99 for the darn thing. This book had some major issues and it's from a big name traditional publisher. Time and money I won't get back. Do you guys finish books even if they're awful? 


From June 6:

Had trouble sleeping last night so I decided to read a book on the Kindle. The MC was described as an Alpha Male, my favorite. But, he wasn't. He was more of a bully.
Unrelated to the first book, I came across two book promos in my news feed today that continued to bug me.
First: "I loved her into unconsciousness." What?
Second: "It was a simple possessive lovemaking." What the what?
What does this even mean?
I may be a little sensitive, and some people might like this behavior, but in my opinion this is not being an Alpha Male.
This is being an ass hat!




I'm sharing this post here first:
I made it through 2/3 of a very popular author's book, but I can't go anymore. It's killing me. Not only am I bored to tears, but I could give a crap less about any of these characters!


Not to say that all is lost. I just read Amy Lamont's newest release and I really enjoyed it. *fans face*

And, I read another book, that I shouldn't have liked, but I did like, called Crow by A. Zavarelli. I'm about to read the second in her series and I shouldn't like that one either.

I hope I do. :)

When I say shouldn't, I can only equate these books to watching Sons of Anarchy. I should have hated that show and those characters, but I just didn't. I loved them and mourned them when the show went off the air. All the violence, the sex, the crimes, it should have bothered me, but I chalked it up to fiction and let it go.

These books were very similar. Irish mob. Gratuitous sex and violence. Men behaving badly. I enjoyed it way more than I should have. :)  

What's my point? Well, reading books, good ones and bad ones, has had the desired effect on me.

I want to write.


So, now I just have to convince myself to stop reading and get back to work on any of the works in progress I have milling about.

Sure.

I'll do that.

Right after this chapter...

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

#IWSG - It's June. Do you know where your writing is? & Tour stop for The Warrior Prophet!

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group
 
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Alex's awesome co-hosts for the June 1 posting of the IWSG will be Murees Dupe, Alexia Chamberlynn, Chemist Ken, and Me!



You are right!


I have it bad.

 
I've cleaned the kitchen and the entire refrigerator. I've sorted and filed in the office. I've even mowed the lawn in a timely manner. 

This is not normal for me.


But, we take the bad with the good and vice versa.

Brain needs a break? I'll give it a break.

At least the family is getting fed and the laundry isn't piling up.


Make sure to visit the LIST to find other Insecure Writers!


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The Warrior Prophet (The Watcher Saga #3) by Lisa Voisin


Release Date: April 13, 2016
Publisher:  Inkspell Publishing


Mia Crawford is a prophet.

She can see angels. She also sees demons. Everywhere.

The angels are preparing for war to get her fallen angel boyfriend, Michael, back. A war that could take years.

Haunted by visions of Michael's soul being tortured, Mia can't rest until she knows he's safe.

To save him, she must make an impossible journey through Hell with the one person she prayed she'd never see again.


Purchase Links:

BAM | Indies | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks



A Canadian-born author, Lisa Voisin spent her childhood daydreaming and making up stories, but it was her love of reading and writing in her teens that drew her to Young Adult fiction.

Lisa is also a technical writer, a meditation teacher with the Training in Power Academy, and the leader of the Young Writer’s Club, a local writing group for teens in her home town. A self-proclaimed coffee lover, she can usually be found writing in a local café. When she's not writing, you'll find her meditating or hiking in the mountains to counteract the side effects of drinking too much caffeine!

Though she’s lived in several cities across Canada, she currently lives in Vancouver, B.C. with her fiancé and their two cats.

More about Lisa can be found on her web site: http://www.lisavoisin.com or blog: http://lisavoisin.wordpress.com