January 31, 2012

Tween Angel, Tween Angel…

Yes, I know I’ve been coming up with the silliest blog titles lately. :)

I wanted to let you all know that author S.R. Johannes has a new book out today, On the Bright Side, and it looks absolutely adorable. It’s a fun middle grade paranormal geared towards readers 10-14.

S.R. is doing a bit of a marketing experiment with this book, because middle grade e-books aren’t a super happening thing yet – but mark my words, they will be!

I will now lay all the cover art and blurbage and buy links on you.  Get Ready!

 

On the Bright Side is a hilarious road to guardian angeldom paved with so much drama and due-paying that it makes middle school look painless.

 

As if the devil’s food cake at her wake and the white fat pants she’s stuck wearing for eternity weren’t bad enough, fourteen year-old Gabby is quick to discover that Cirrus, the main rung of Heaven, is a far cry from the Pearly Gates. Here, Skyphones and InnerNets are all the rage. Until Gabby finds out she has to protect Angela, her school nemesis, in order to move up through the training levels of heaven. Problem is, Angela is now hitting on Gabby’s should-have-been boyfriend. (awkward!)

 

Instead of protecting Angela, Gabby pranks her (like tripping is a sin?) at the hopes of cooling off the new couple. At first, they seem harmless until the school dance sabotage gets completely out of control. Then, her Celestial Sky Agent, who happens to have anger management issues of his own, puts Gabby on probation, threatening her eternal future.

 

Determined to right her wrongs, Gabby steals an ancient artifact that allows her to return to Earth for just one day. Without knowing, she kicks off a series of events and learns what can happen when you hate someone to death.

On the Bright Side is only 99 cents for the first month!  You can purchase the e-book at Amazon and BN.

The paperback will be available soon.

I can’t tell you how happy I am to have a book that my friends’ 10-year-olds can read! (Some of them have read Glimpse, but I always tell their mom’s that they have to read it first and approve it.) Not only is On the Bright Side kid tested and mother approved, it’s YA author approved as well.

Check it!

“S.R. Johannes delivers a cute paranormal thrill ride for middle graders! Even in death there is a BRIGHT SIDE!” - Addison Moore, author of the bestselling Celestra series and soon to be TV show

Clever and charming, ON THE BRIGHT SIDE is the story of a reluctant guardian angel, her still-breathing crush, and the frenemy she’s assigned to protect. A great read! -Suzanne Young, author of A Need So Beautiful, A Want So Wicket (6/12), and The Program (2013)

“ON THE BRIGHT SIDE is both hilarious and heart-warming – a tale that’ll have you hoping that there really *are* spunky and determined angels like Gabby who’ve got our backs.” - Kristin O’Donnell Tubb, author of Selling Hope & The 13th Sign (2013) (Feiwel & Friends)

“With a smart, snappy heroine and a heart-warming crush, ON THE BRIGHT SIDE is a page-turning new take on guardian angels that left me begging for a sequel!” - Gretchen McNeil, author of Possess and Ten (9/12) (Balzar + Bray)

To learn more about S.R. Johannes and OTBS:

Click here for a sneak peek at the first two chapters.

Click here for On The Bright Side’s Goodreads Page

To follow S.R. Johannes’s tween marketing journey:

Check out her BLOG!

Follow her on TWITTER!

Check her out on FACEBOOK!

Cheers, guys! Now back into my hidey-hole to work on Dissent some more, more, more!

 

Posted by on January 31, 2012 in Writing.

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January 27, 2012

Using the iBooks author app.

My friend Cheri Lasota – the author of Artemis Rising, who is also both a fellow PacNWYAer and Indelible – has a great post up on her blog today about her experience using the new iBooks author app.  I thought you all might be interested in checking it out. You can find the post here.

Posted by on January 27, 2012 in Blogs, E-books, Fiction, Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing, YAY YA, Young Adult and tagged , , , , , , , .

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January 21, 2012

New reads from Vicki Keire

My friend Vicki Keire is having a banner week! She’s got two new releases – the novella Worlds Burn Through and the first installment in the serial Daughter of Glass.

Chloe Burke dreams of creatures who walk through fire and a strange boy who saves them both.
Her parents convinced her long ago that the dreams are the result of a childhood fever, but she can’t shake the feeling that some of it is real, most especially the boy.
Beneath the dreams lies a deeply buried reality: Chloe and her family are refugees from Annwyn, once a formidable techno-agrarian civilization now burned to ash. Years before, a handful of her world’s survivors escaped to present-day Earth after their world was razed by the Abandoned, powerful elemental creatures who burn through world after world in an endless cycle of consumption and destruction.
Using a combination of alien technology and indigenous elemental magic, the refugees sealed off their burning world from modern-day Earth by binding one of the Burke bloodline to the portal. To keep her safe, Chloe’s parents hide her as a normal teenager in Atlanta, with no knowledge of her true birth or purpose. But the Abandoned slowly infiltrate anyway, brutally murdering everyone who knows their ultimate goal: to reopen the portal and let more of their kind through.
Eliot Gray is a Guardian, the last member of a powerful warrior tradition, kept isolated from his adopted world by the uncle who trained him. Unknown to his blood-bound Ward except in dreams, he must convince her that not only is her life in danger, but to trust him as well. Enraged by her family’s lies and grieving over her losses, Chloe must face the truth about her origins as she becomes the Abandoned’s next target. Together they journey to Gray’s Landing, the tiny town sparsely populated by refugees from her world, in order to protect the portal hidden there.
But just across the river from Gray’s Landing is Raven’s Ward, an industrial wasteland of a town determined to expand no matter what the cost. When Alexander, troublesome heir to the vast Ravenwood fortune, returns home after getting kicked out of school, he finds that his power-hungry father has strange new business partners who are determined to make Gray’s Landing their own. Unsettled by the changes he sees in his family and home since their arrival, Alexander vows to do everything in his power to keep these bizarrely dangerous partners from growing stronger.
Can Chloe and Eliot keep their adopted world safe from annihilation, while Alexander fights the Abandoned in his own home? Will the secrets buried in the past’s deepest, darkest ashes destroy yet another world?

I’ve read Worlds Burn Through and it is fantastic.  It’s no secret I’m a big fan of Vicki’s writing and I can’t wait to read the upcoming novellas in this series.

Sasha Alexander has a powerful ability. The seven guardians that only she can see protect her from hurt, pain, fear and love – until a strange young man with scarred hands suddenly makes her feel again. But unless she can learn to control her own emotions, the biggest danger to them all may be Sasha herself.

Daughter of Glass is a paranormal romance by bestselling author Vicki Keire, serialized and published  at Curiosity Quills, every Friday.

New stuff from Vicki every week!  How lucky are we?

I hope you all will check out Worlds Burn Through and Daughter of Glass – you won’t be disappointed!

 

Posted by on January 21, 2012 in E-books, Fiction, indie authors, indie readers, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing, YAY YA and tagged , , , , , , , .

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January 20, 2012

Dissent Cover Reveal

It’s Friday and I’ve had one heckuva busy week! I’ve got the plague and more work to do than one person should.  I’ve been writing on Dissent mostly and it’s coming along.  Well, except for the part where I cut 1K words from it yesterday. :)

For motivation and procrastination, I like to peruse cover art.  I saw this photo and knew it would be perfect for Dissent.  Here is the cover:

 

Bwahahahahaha!  Is that mysterious enough for you?  Don’t worry, it will all make sense once you start reading the story.

So, you’re probably wondering when you get to read the story? End of February. I’ve got a bunch of Valentines/ Anthology stuff coming up and then Dissent will be out.  Not much longer!  And, as always, thanks for your patience. I write as fast as I can, but I also have this whole other life where I’m a mom/wife/sister/daughter/friend. Yeah, the mom stuff takes up the most time, but all you parents out there know about that!

Today is also my day to blog over at the Indelibles. I wrote my post for them on Monday, so it’s a lot funnier and more coherent than this one. :)

Have a swell Friday.

 

Posted by on January 20, 2012 in Blogs, E-books, Fiction, Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Progress, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , .

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January 18, 2012

Indie Writer Chat 1/18

Tonight the Indelibles are hosting an indie writer chat on our website from 8-9 EST.  I’m going to be there, along with many other members of the group.  Stop by and talk with us.  You can ask me anything!  I swear.  Also, we’re giving away a bunch of books! (That’s how the Indelibles roll.)

Information about how to sign in to the chat will be up on the Indelibles website later today.

I hope to “see” you all there!

Posted by on January 18, 2012 in Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing and tagged , , , , .

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January 17, 2012

The Green

Karly Kirkpatrick and DarkSide Publishing are excited to announce the release of Kirkpatrick’s third novel, the edgy YA contemporary romance, THE GREEN.

Book Description:

 

How far would you go to save your dream?

 

Seventeen-year-old Ariceli Pisa is a senior at the prestigious Cambridge High School and has her sights set on Northwestern University. She’s a cheerleader, a member of the National Honor Society…and a drug dealer.That’s not the only secret she has to keep from her best friend Naomi–she’s also madly in love with Naomi’s ex-boyfriend, James Bartlett. Trying to balance her life at Cambridge High with her new demanding job keeps her teetering on the edge of disaster.

 

THE GREEN is available in ebook format at the following retailers for $3.99:

 

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Green-ebook/dp/B006XZS16Q/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1326754697&sr=8-12

 

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-green-karly-kirkpatrick/1037769334?ean=2940013762183&itm=2&usri=karly+kirkpatrick

 

Also available on Amazon UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.

 

For more info about Karly and her books, check out www.karlykirkpatrick.com andwww.darksidepublishing.com.

Posted by on January 17, 2012 in E-books, Fiction, Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing, YAY YA, Young Adult and tagged , , , , , , , , , .

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January 13, 2012

Trilogy winner and a review that’s not a review

Yes, that blog post title sucks, but I just couldn’t bring myself to title it Winning! like I really wanted to.

Anyhoo…

I’m happy to announce the winner of the e-book of the Zellie Wells trilogy is Brenda Demko!  Yay, Brenda!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by during the blog hop and left a comment.  I love hearing from y’all. Also, big thanks to those of you that followed me on Twitter and Facebook and signed up for my newsletter and blog.

So, I went to see Young Adult yesterday. (Pardon the segway, I was up very late last night with my wheezing daughter…and I had a hard time putting down the book I’m reading .  Bad combo!) I wanted to see this movie the second I discovered it existed because it’s written by Diablo Cody and directed by Jason Reitman- the Juno team. I totally loved Juno and could care less if it’s not cool to like Juno anymore.

Besides that, I had a few other reasons for wanting to see it.  I really dig Patton Oswalt – he’s so funny and truthful – I just think he needs to be in all movies. He did not disappoint in Young Adult. I also, obviously, wanted to see it because it’s about a YA author.  Lastly, I’ll admit there was a bit of a nostalgia thing going for me – the characters are my age and I wanted to see if they knew what they were doing yet. Like going to a high school reunion at someone else’s school.

In a nutshell, Young Adult is about Mavis Gary, an author who ghost writes a Sweet Valley High-type series. Mavis’ life is in the crapper and she goes  home to Mercury, Minnesota after being gone for a long time to win back her high school sweetheart, Buddy – who happens to be married and has a new daughter.

We’re supposed to hate Mavis, she’s in Charlize Theron’s body after all. She’s also an alcoholic and her emotions are in arrested development. She’s that popular girl who said hi to you once in the girls bathroom and asked for a stick of gum.  You’ll always remember it and she forgot it while it was happening.  Mavis disses her hometown, disses her parents and generally doesn’t care how her actions affect anyone around her.

Like I said, we’re supposed to hate her.  We’re supposed to think, “Ha ha popular chick, welcome to the real world.”

But I didn’t. I actually had a lot of empathy for her. I got that juxtaposition between having high school be your glory days and having those glory days take place in a town you couldn’t wait to get out of. I understood why she would dwell on the past. For me, as a young adult writer, your head is in that space more than most people.  You can’t help but have a hard time adjusting to adulthood because you spend a lot of time “pretending” you’re still seventeen.

You’re also used to rewriting your history a little bit in your books, so I found it believable that Mavis thought she could go back home and rewrite the ending to her teenage love affair.

Anyway, I don’t have much more to say about it.  It’s a good movie and I recommend you all see it, but it’s not sunshine and rainbows.  It depressed me in a weird, self-reflective way that I’m sure is not a normal reaction. :)

The strangest thing, after I went to see Young Adult, I picked my kids up at my parents house and they’d gotten into a box of my stuff in their garage.  My son handed me a scrap of cloth, which turned out to be the front of this guy’s skateboarding t-shirt I’d had up on my bulletin board since the 8th grade.

I don’t know what to do with it.  I can’t throw it away.

 

For a real review of Young Adult go here.

Posted by on January 13, 2012 in E-books, Fiction, Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Reviews, Writers, Writing, YAY YA, Young Adult and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

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January 8, 2012

Introducing the Indelibles!

http://indelibles.blogspot.com

Marketing guru Shelli Johannes Wells has teamed up with twenty-four other indie and small press authors to bring you the Indelibles.

“We are indie authors who write middle grade and young adult fiction. We are dedicated to leaving a permanent mark on the world with our stories and words. We are the Indelibles.”

Each week, we’ll explore fun, fabulous, and fierce topics for today’s teens, drawing on pop culture and themes from the books we write. We’ve got several great things coming up. There will be a “blogger” chat on January 17th and a writer/author chat on January 18th to answer questions about self and indie publishing. See our blog for details.

A little about Stacey Wallace Benefiel: I’m the author of the YA paranormal romance Zellie Wells trilogy, the paranormal romance/urban fantasy serial Day of Sacrifice and The Toilet Business, a collection of essays about all the crappy jobs I’ve had.

I live in Beaverton, OR – which is a suburb of Portland. Before graduating from Portland State University in 2005 with a B.S. in Creative Writing and Theatre, I did a five-year stint at the University of Oregon in Eugene, attended bartending and floral design school, and graduated from the Art Institute of Los Angeles with a degree in Culinary Arts.

I like school.

I grew up in Columbia, MO, but haven’t been back since my ten-year high school reunion because my entire family moved out to Oregon.  I’m very close with my parents and my younger sister, printmaker Valerie Wallace.

I’ve been married to Robert Benefiel since 2002 and we have a 5-year-old son and a 3-year-old daughter. We live in an orange house with our dog, Chief, and our two cats, Simon and Willis.

Zellie Wells trilogy

e-book

Requisite blurbage:

Glimpse: Zellie Wells has a devastating crush on Avery Adams, the son of her mom’s high school sweetheart. At her sixteenth birthday party, held in the basement of her dad’s church, she finally finds the courage to talk to him. Turns out, the devastating crush is mutual.
As Avery takes her hand and leads her out onto the makeshift dance floor, Zellie is overwhelmed by her first vision of his death; shocking because not only are they both covered in his blood, but they’re old, like thirty-five, and she is pregnant.
Afraid to tell anyone about the vision, (she’d just be labeled a freaky black magic witch, right?) Zellie keeps the knowledge of Avery’s future to herself and tries to act like any other teenager in love. When they get caught on their way to a secret rendezvous by her mom and his dad, they are forbidden to see each other.
Convinced that their parents are freaking out unnecessarily, Avery and Zellie vow to be together no matter what. They continue their relationship in secret until Zellie learns that their parents are just trying to prevent her and Avery from suffering like they did. The visions are hereditary, they’re dangerous, and if they stay together the visions will come true.
Now Zellie must choose between severing all ties with Avery, like her mom did to prevent his father’s death, and finding a way to change Avery’s future.

Glimmer: Zellie Wells’ life is changing. Her relationship with Avery is growing stronger every day, but their parents are still giving them ultimatums and trying to keep them apart. Her newly discovered powers have all but disappeared. Benjamin, another young Retroact, is back and has brought with him a painful shared vision and a troubled past. While working together to figure out what the vision means, Zellie discovers that Benjamin is a worthy friend and mentor. If only he could keep his hands off of her – if only she wanted him to…

Glow: Zellie Wells has mastered her powers and gotten the guy. She’s lived through her parents’ divorce and being separated from Avery. She’s come back from the dead. What else is there?

Oh, yeah. REVENGE.

Discover how it all ends when Zellie and the gang finally track down Mildred and fight to right the wrongs of The Society’s past, present and future.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Posted by on January 8, 2012 in Blogs, E-books, Fiction, good neighbors, Indelibles, indie authors, indie readers, Kindle, Self-publishing, Writers, Writing, YAY YA, Young Adult and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

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January 3, 2012

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!

Happy Switched Re-Release Day to Amanda Hocking!  I don’t know about you guys, but I’m super excited to read the bonus story, The Vittra Attacks.  More goodness from the Trylle world is always appreciated. (You know I pre-ordered, yo.)

I swiped the cover pic and link from Amazon, but Switched is available, like, everywhere.  Most awesomely, at actual Barnes and Noble stores where you can walk in and stand in front of a book shelf and hold the book. (Even this e-book enthusiast is excited about the prospect of seeing an AH book at the store!)

If you’re not able to rush out and get it right away, my fellow Indelible, Susan Kaye Quinn, is hosting a Switched giveaway on her site.  Check it out!

Okay, that’s probably enough exclamation points for one post.  Talk at you all later.

Posted by on January 3, 2012 in Writing.

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December 31, 2011

Happy New Year! *with prizes

Oh, the hilarity and cringeyness of reading last year’s resolutions post.  Ack.

Let’s see, I mentioned something about donating money to Matt Damon to build wells instead of buying the kids Christmas presents. Ha!  Not only did I not do that, I haven’t even donated money to Matt Damon by seeing We Bought A Zoo.  Aw, well (ha ha) maybe 2012 will be my Year Of Philanthropy.

I wanted to lose another 30 pounds in 2011, but would’ve been okay with only 10.  Guess I’m going to have to be okay with gaining 5 instead, because that’s what happened.  There is hope for this resolution in the new year, though, as I’ve signed up for the Personal Paleo Code.  Be prepared for lots of grouchy posts from me as I give up dairy, sugar, bread, pasta, corn, soda and everything else I love besides steak and eggs for a few months.

That’s the personal stuff.  How did I do with my career/writing goals?

Much better.  (I swear it’s one or the other. I will never be thin and productive at the same time.)

In 2011 I published Rebellion, Dormant, Day of Sacrifice Vol. 1-3, Takeover, If You Leave, Glow, the Zellie Wells trilogy, The Toilet Business, and a pen name story.  Seven new things and two bundled together dealies.  More than pleased with that!

I completed four rounds of ROW80 and did a local authors tour with my Pacific Northwest YA Authors group. I joined The Indelibles and the *Death by Chocolate and Dark Tomorrows anthologies. I wrote a short essay for Let’s Get Digital. I participated in Blog tour De Troops, a YA Scavenger Hunt, the 12 Days of Christmas Reading promotion, and did a two-week Glimpse blog tour.  I almost figured out how to use Twitter.  Yay for upping my marketing game!

In 2010, I was really proud of the 2,500 I’d sold in my first eight months as a self-published author.  I’m still proud of that, but am happy to report that I had more than a few months in 2011 where I sold well over 2,500 books. Thank you SO much for taking a chance on me, you all.  I’ll keep writing stories if you keep reading them!

For 2012, I think I’m going to steer clear of making resolutions and just do what I do.  I seem to accomplish more if I let my goals sneak up on me. :)

Have a safe and Happy New Year’s Eve and a killer 2012!

*Since you have endured this entire post of me bragging about myself, you are entitled to some books.  The Zellie Wells trilogy (normally $7.99) can be yours for the low price of 99 cents until January 2nd.  All you have to do is go here to get the Smashwords coupon code.

Posted by on December 31, 2011 in Writing.

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