monday blogs

BOOK LAUNCH: Dyndaer by Joshua Robertson

Fans of the Kaelandur series, behold! Joshua Robertson is back with the second book and it promises to be a fast-paced sword and sorcery fantasy that picks up right where book one left off. Here are three excerpts to whet your appetite.

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Excerpt 1

A woman, unlike any Branimir had ever seen, emerged from the crowd and occupied the remaining chair. The bow slung over her shoulder, and the quiver on her back were the last things Branimir noticed. She was shorter than most Anshedar with an oversized head, a scrawny neck, and a sickly, thin frame. Yet her skin, smooth and colored a reddish brown, darker than Branimir, caused him to lean toward her. A sash, red as blood, hung DyndaerCoveracross her shoulder, angled over her small chest.

She sat with her back stiffened and chin jutted forward. Pushing long black strands behind her ears, she introduced herself, “Hanna Bretka, daughter of Briv, from Danduher in Haemus Mons.” She sloshed her mug onto the table after taking a gulp.

“Branimir and Dorofej,” Bran said, “And, excuse my asking, but what are you?”

Her eyes swelled like an owl, a circular black center and the rest filled with a cerulean orb. The colored ring twinkled like the Ojenek in his pocket. “What do you mean what am I?”

Adamus and Dorofej merged in laughter.

“Kras,” she said, “I am a Lilitu. How would you not know my kind? The Kras frequent trade with the Lilitu in Halderon.”

Branimir rubbed the back of his neck with a crooked smile, and meekly shrugged. He could not take his eyes off of her.

What are you?” Adamus repeated, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. “Best thing I have heard in two months. Having you travel with me never tires, Hanna.”

“Glad to please you, Adamus,” Hanna muttered, rolling his name off her tongue. “Is this why we detoured to Cavell? I thought we were aiming for debauchery, not expanding on our alleged friendship.”

Excerpt 2

“You told me that I would never find joy,” Branimir went on. “I can’t help but think the rune staves might be right, mainly when I think of these past several weeks.”

“Oh.” Dorofej shuffled out from the shadows, rejoining them near the fire. He appeared disgruntled, despite his words. “We have shared pleasant times together, yes? I say, do not sum up all arduous times to be grievous.”

“I was only telling you what I was seeing,” Drak explained. “I did not mean anything by it.”

“All the same, your words have stayed with me,” said Branimir, scooting over to make room for Dorofej.

“I say, Hanna did warn us that we may create our own future by thinking that we know what to expect, yes? Emotions can create your reality if you are not careful,” Dorofej softened his gaze.

Drak sniffed through his nose. “The rune staves tell what will happen. Branimir cannot change it, no matter how he feels about it.”

Dorofej furrowed his brow. “Know that for certain, we do not. Regardless, whether our paths are fixed or not, we choose how we walk them. Dangerous, it is, to find comfort in sadness. Leads only to more sadness, it does.”

“I like that thought,” Drak granted, and then grinned wide. “Feelings are unseen and untouched by anyone or anything. Fate cannot tell you how to feel.”

Branimir held his face, pondering the wisdom of the two. “Telling yourself how to feel seems easier to think about than to do.”

“Such is the task of the living, yes? I say, our minds are riddled with grand ideas and limited enthusiasm to see it done. Driven towards the things we wish to avoid, men are. Drink, does the drunkard; fight, does the warrior; and on and on, it goes.”

“Is it not what they want?” Branimir asked.

Dorofej lifted his eyebrows, “What do you want, Branimir?”

“I want…” Branimir may have never thought about the question before. He had always been entertained with trying to survive, the question of what to live for was beyond his knowing. Yet, upon taking a moment to think, the answer was not hard to come by. “I want happiness, Dorofej.”

Excerpt 3

The demons of the Netherworld chased him. Four-legged, wolf-like creatures, known as Dreka, rammed their goat horns at Branimir. The gray, wrinkled skin clung to their gaunt frames. Thin lips were stretched back giving sight to the rows of teeth on the tops and bottoms of their bloodied gums.

Branimir tumbled, swinging his weapon and feeling it tear through flesh as easily as a hot blade through frost. For a moment, he may have heard Dorofej’s riddlesome voice—no, his cry—but Branimir had not the time to listen. Bran had to scramble, and sneak, and stab.

And stab. And stab. And stab.

The urgency of the battle and the demons thumped inside of his head.

“Stop!” A familiar voice, again, cried in desperation.

Crimson splattered his vision as his dagger cut through skin once more. His blade loved the taste of blood; he felt the need to drench it again.

Pain stung his leg, but it was quickly forgotten as demon after demon lunged for him. The Dreka were ever persistent in their attack. He spun, and twisted, and disappeared to avoid every demonic beast soaring through the air, vicious teeth aimed for his throat. They would not reach him. For a moment, he thought he saw a flash of Hanna’s wide eyes, but they looked unfamiliar. Treacherous. Evil. Besides, his dagger was already cocked behind his ear and he felt incapable of restraining himself.

BLURB

Branimir emerges from the Netherworld as a living legend and learns the Ash Tree is still in danger from the cursed dagger, kaelandur. An old friend compels Branimir to finish what they started at Melkorka. Once again, the former slave must keep kaelandur out of uncertain hands, while struggling to separate heroes from villains and friends from foes. Some evils never lessen.

BIO

RobertsonPicJoshua currently lives in Alaska with his wife and children. In 1999, he began crafting the world for Thrice Nine Legends, including Melkorka and Anaerfell. He is also the author of the A Midwinter Sellsword and Gladiators and Thieves in the Hawkhurst Saga. His short story, Grimsdalr, is inspired by the tale of Beowulf.

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LINKS

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Author Chat: Elizabeth Marx

Author Chat: Elizabeth Marx

Elizabeth Marx is a prolific writer of multiple genres and series. Every time we get a manuscript from her, we’re amazed that she can write so much so quickly! But she’s got what it takes to hit home with her readers. Her latest release, Just Close Enough, is available for pre-order and will be released tomorrow, December 1. Find out more about her, her characters, and how the two come together, plus a sneak peek into what she’s publishing next!

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Your new book, Just Close Enough, places a slick, wealthy Russian business JCE_sept23_smallerowner smack dab in the middle of rural small-town Alabama – the deep South. He must gain the trust of a tight-knit Southern farm community in order to fulfill his goal of revenge against one of their own, who he believes is behind his brother’s disappearance. What inspired you to choose these two very opposite cultures in particular as the basis of your story?

I like the immediate conflict when two personalities with different backgrounds collide. The reason I chose these two cultures is because one of them I’m familiar with and the other fit the context of the story.

I grew up in Chicago in a neighborhood that was a true melting pot with Irish, Polish, and Italian families. Some of these families were new immigrants and some had been here for generations. My family was from the deep South like Polly Anna’s family. Although my background is more like Scarlett’s, I grew up in Chicago and then spent most of my summers in the South. I lived this dual tradition of Northern mentality with exposure to different ethnicities and deep Southern roots, so it was something I wanted to explore in my writing.

As far as Alex being Russian, I selected that immigrant population because when his character popped up in Just in Case, the first book in the Alabama Secrets series, he came to me as this mysterious man named Alex with an alluring, sexy accent. All Scarlett could get out of him was that he was from Seattle and there is a large Russian immigrant population. Also, Russian men are known for being domineering and that fit into Polly Anna’s conflict of not wanting to get tangled up with another man with that sort of disposition.

JIC CROSSROADS_

You write from the perspective of both Alex, a wealthy Russian man infiltrating a small Southern farming town, and from the perspective of Polly Anna, the town’s favorite daughter, a born-and-bred Southerner. How were you able to manage two different types of dialogue, not only from both sexes but from very different backgrounds?

I grew up with a Southern grandmother so Polly Anna and her family’s speech pattern are loosely based on that tradition. When writing Alex’s POV I kept his speech more formal because he has an Ivy League education. I enjoy writing the male POV because men tend to say what they’re thinking with fewer filters and they tend to express themselves with physical reactions. I’ve written several books with this dual POV and I like the natural pull of the back and forth between the male/female POV, it’s almost a dance.

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One thing I always enjoy in a novel is being immersed in a culture that’s completely different from mine. In Just Close Enough, I enjoyed spending time in the world of a small Southern community as well as inside the mind of a somewhat arrogant Russian man. Have you spent a lot of time around either culture to gain a better understanding of them in order to write this book?

I spent many summer months in Alabama, Tennessee, and even West Virginia. My Southern cousins called me Yankee Doodle Dandy and made fun of the way I spoke, and in spite of this I loved the South. The kindness of the people and the secrets of small town living always drew me back to the hilly landscapes and dogwood trees. Many of the people and traditions in Just Close Enough I’ve experienced firsthand. There was a real Miss Pearl and she did deliver babies and chew tobacco; I have a vague memory of her but she passed away many years ago. For Just Close Enough I made her a Cherokee wise woman and gave her two identical sisters. My family is part Cherokee and my mother often told me of her grandmother who was a Cherokee matriarch, she taught my mother how to chew and spit tobacco. I’ve actually handpicked cotton, I’ve attended a Sacred Harp singing, or what my grandmother called a “singing”. I believe one of my grandmother’s sisters was a Sacred Harp singer because I remember her and my great aunt Delta ribbing her about it. I’ve never seen a snake handling service in person, but I have been inside a barn where the snakes for snake handling were held.

JICcherokeewisewoman

Although revenge is the driving force of Just Close Enough, there are many other layers including love, loyalty, family, and individual strength. Is there any one layer you most closely identify with or enjoy writing most? What draws you more strongly to that?

I think revenge is Alex’s driving force in the book, and secrets and love of family are Polly Anna’s. In a small town where everyone thinks they know everything about Polly Anna, I wanted to peel back the layers of who she really is and see what makes her tick. For example, everyone thinks Polly Anna’s happy-go-lucky, but deep down she has a yearning for a family of her own, something she thinks she’ll never have, and she also wants to protect her family from past sins. She’s also a pleaser, believing you attract more good things with honey than with vinegar. But she uses this pleasant façade as a way to overcompensate or hide the things her father did in her youth, almost as if she thinks she has to make up for his sins, as if the burns she suffered because of his drug dealing weren’t payment enough. She’s not hiding secrets out of fear of exposure as most people do, she’s keeping them close out of loyalty, respect and a deep sense of love.

JCE-Teaser2

You’re a very prolific writer with nine books to your credit – is any one book or any one series closest to your heart? If so, what makes it special to you?

Binding Arbitration will always hold a special place in my heart because it’s touched so many people. Some readers have a negative reaction because it’s a powerfully gritty story about two very stubborn people who have to work together to save the one they love. I had a particular reader write a very sad review of it because she didn’t like what happened. I wrote to her to discuss her feelings and to this day she drops me notes and says, “After all this time I still think of your story.” So the fact that I was able to touch her, even if she didn’t like what specifically happened in the story, means I feel I did my job. In Binding Arbitration, Aidan and Libby find common ground and work together, but they lose the thing that’s most precious to them. In the process they find each other again and realize what an enduring love they share. They learn that in spite of their losses they deserve forgiveness, redemption, and love.

CHGO SERIES TWITTER BANNER

Can you give us a sneak peek at what you’re working on next?

Up next is Tell Me Something Real, a story about two college students who are so opposite yet so perfect for each other. Mason Pendleton’s life was planned for him the moment he was born, and Kamilla Dawson is a free spirit and modern day crusader who utilizes a special way of reaching an audience with her graffiti art. Neither is looking for the other, but the moment Kami asks, “Tell me something real, something so real it hurts,” Mason Pendleton is a goner. He’s a guy who has had prospects heaped on him his entire life. He hasn’t always lived up to the expectations because for the most part they aren’t what he wants, but when Kami poses this seemingly harmless question, Mason starts to ask himself hard questions about who he is, what he wants from life and most importantly who he wants to love. Mason’s real truth also sparks an awareness in Kami that she hadn’t expected or experienced with anyone else. It’s a true coming of age story.

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RELAUNCH! Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic by Marnie Cate

RELAUNCH! Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic by Marnie Cate

To celebrate the relaunch of Marnie Cate’s beloved first novel, Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic, get it on Kindle for $0.99 / £0.99 beginning October 29, 2015 through November 4, 2015!

Author: Marnie Cate
Title: Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

relaunch sale

Synopsis

Hiding the truth from you is no longer protecting you. Sit and I will tell you what you need to know.

With those words, the secrets of my great grandmother, Genevieve Silver, were unburied and my role as a protector of the elemental magic was revealed.

My name is Marina Addisyn Stone but Mara is what my friends and family call me. I had always felt that there was something missing and that nothing was permanent. Why would I feel that way? I was being raised with my little sister by my grandmother that loved and doted on me. Then, there was Cole Sands. Who could forget the blue-eyed boy that had stolen my heart? What more could a girl need? I always thought I was just being dramatic and that bad things do happen to people but that is part of life. People die. People go away. Little did I know that with one secret, my life would change forever and my new world would be surrounded by the world of elemental magic?

Excerpt

As I felt my determination build, the mirror in front of me began to change and the reflection filled with rippling water. The image made me think of the choppy water of Sparrow Lake. At first, the small waves were calm but the speed and intensity of each movement of the water grew. I found myself being splashed as the waves grew harder and began to slap against the mirror. Standing up, I moved away just in time to watch the mirror before me shatter and the violent water burst out towards me.

The room began to fill with rushing water. Feeling around the room, I searched for an exit. Behind the shattered mirror, I only found solid rock. Looking to the ceiling, I could see the same hard stone. Feeling the emotions build inside me, I began search the floor and walls around me for any exit.

“Damn! Damn! Damn it!” I cried.Remember_Complete

The water did not slow. Instead it continued to fill the room as I frantically searched for my escape. The water soon reached my knees and, what seemed like seconds later, I was wading through waist high water. As the water continued to rise, I was soon struggling to keep my head above water. It was not enough that the water was filling the room so rapidly but soon the water felt alive. The cold waves kept tossing me back and forth as the water rose and I began to feel like I was in a game of Ping-Pong where I was the ball. Soon, I found myself pulled under the icy water and surrounded by thousands of bubbles. Frantically kicking my feet to keep my head above water, I broke the surface.

Remembering the swimming lessons my grandfather insisted on, I thought about the times I spent with my grandfather learning to swim. I began to feel less scared as I recalled his calm voice and gentle words telling me that I would be safe. As I floated in the rising water, it seemed to respond to my emotions. The thrashing became calmer as I focused on my grandfather’s words. My brief moment of peace did not last. Before I knew it, I had almost reached the ceiling that had no exit and I began to panic. At this rate, I would be trapped and drowned in minutes. As if it was feeding off my fear, the water began to toss me around again.

As the water began to rise up my neck and almost over the top of my head, I tried to calm myself. You are the granddaughter of Mae Veracor and the great granddaughter of Genevieve Silver. You are the descendent of strong women. You have nothing to fear. With these words, the water once again calmed and I was able to tilt my head back above the water. How am I going to get out of this?

Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic is on sale $0.99 / £0.99 Kindle from Thursday, October 29th to Wednesday, November 4th!

 

Amazon Book link: My Book

 

Marnie Cate Biography

marnie cateMarnie Cate was born and raised in Montana before adventuring to the warmer states of Arizona and California. Her love of Dame Judi Dench and dreams of caticorns and rainbows inspired her to chase her dreams. One great sentence came to mind and the world of elemental magic and the humans they lived amongst filled her mind. With Remember, the story has begun.

Other Works by Marnie Cate

Exigency: Protectors of the Elemental Magic – Coming Soon

The story of Mara Stone continues. Her world was shaken but she is a fighter. Facing new adversaries, Mara is learning what it truly means to protect the magic.

Awethology Light – Contribution Story

Beginnings: Protectors of the Elemental Magic (Novellette)

The story of Genevieve Silver and the origins of the protectors of the magic. With the balance of the elemental world shaken, four elementals take on the task of protecting the magic.

Links:

Website: www.marniecate.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarnieCate

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00UJNT7J8

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/Marnie_Cate

Twitter: @Marnie_Cate

Prerelease Excerpts from ANAERFELL by Joshua Robertson & J.C. Boyd

Joshua Robertson and J.C. Boyd’s’s Anaerfell comes out October 31, and we’ve got not one, not two, but three excerpts for you to enjoy! Not sure if this is the Halloween read you’re looking for? Just check out the blurb. One word: “skin-switchers”.

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BLURB

Drast, cunning but reckless, is on the hunt for admiration. Tyran, calculating but tactless,
is in search of affection. Bound by a friendship thicker than blood, the two brothers have been hardened by their father’s ambitions. Drast and Tyran are forced to set aside their own hopes and dreams during their struggle to fulfill their father’s desire for immortality. The two will face skin-switchers and dragons, ultimately leading to a final clash with Wolos, God of the Dead.

 

Excerpt 1

Erzebeth convulsed. Her fur and skin shedding away while she wheeled about on the ground in agony. The bones readjusted and organs reset from beast to human. Where a beast had stood was now the naked figure of Erzebeth. Cuts and scratches patterned her body, but none were fatal.

Tyran had no place for modesty. The Vucari woman, within the privacy of the ice dome, struggled to her feet. Again, her dark eyes met his own, filled with compassion.

“You need to be put down, young Red.” Her voice was calm as her feet crossed in front of one another, closing the distance between them. “Your power is greater than any I have seen before, even from the Anshedar.”

“What?” Tyran said, forehead wrinkled with confusion. He had never heard of the race before, whether beast or otherwise.

“You are like a rabid dog, young Red. You are the perfect companion, loyal, and possibly even loving somewhere deep inside,” Erzebeth bit her lip. Her breasts, barely covered by her dark hair, touched the front of his chest. She halted her feet. “But, you are tainted by a disease that is stronger than the goodness in you. You cannot be left to live in this world, or you will corrupt every living thing around you.”

Tyran tilted his chin, lips parting. His free hand touched her pale skin, as whitish as the ice fortress that veiled this moment.

“You would taint me, young Red.” She stepped up on her tiptoes. “As with the rabid dog, you need to be put down.”AnaerfellCover

He grabbed her by the back of the neck, and pulled her to him. He kissed her with more force than he had ever kissed any woman.

This woman was not Isolde. This woman was battle hardened, and a warrior. She was not plain.

She grabbed his shoulders and returned the embrace, her tongue touching his lips. Her body was far warmer than his own, as if it were heated by the darkness.

He did not know what he was doing in this moment. It may have likely been the first time that his mind was clear from thought, acting without thinking. Though, in time, he may consider that when his death was nigh, he found that this was something he wanted to do before death found him.

The crashing against the ice pulled him from the moment. Tyran pulled back, moving the Vucari’s hair from her cheek. “You won’t kill me, Erzebeth.”

“No,” she breathed. Her hands fell to his chest. “But, it still needs to be done.”

 

Excerpt 2

His brother looked at his hands, now covered by great warm mittens. “Drast?”

“Mm?” Drast grunted, mimicking his brother.

“How are they going to remember us?”

“Who?”

Tyran shrugged his heavy shoulders. “The Stuhia. The Vucari. The world, I suppose.”

“By our apotheosis.”

“Does it always come down to glory?”

Drast snorted. “Yes. If we fail we will not be remembered. It must come to glory.”

Tyran shook his head. “But is what we are doing glorious?”

“We are off to kill a god. How could it not be?”

Tyran stopped and turned. “But if we are wrong. If killing Wolos is somehow an evil act. Or, if we fail and we are remembered because of our tyrant father—”

“Tyran the Tyrant,” Drast interrupted, chittering.

“I am serious. How do we know that we should even be doing what we are planning on doing? How do we know it is right? How do we know we can?”

“Tyran, you are overthinking this. Why do you even care how people will remember you to begin with? It will not matter. We will either succeed, in which case we are allowed to tell whatever tale of our victory we choose, or we fail and are dead and it doesn’t matter. Regardless, people will remember us for the height of our lives, when we faced a god.”

“I want to believe that I did something right for this world before I died.”

 

Excerpt 3

The room still whirled from last night. He tried to close his eyes to keep his stomach from doing the same, but closing his eyes actually made it worse. Drast was somewhat surprised that the drink was still affecting him like this. He had been having more than his fill for—he did not know how long. How long ago did Tyran leave? His mind was too foggy to remember. And Walstan was gone, too.

Vaguely, Drast saw that the sky was just turning blue with the rising sun. At least, he was fairly certain it was sunrise. None of the hues of sunset had begun to color the sky.

“Ser Drast?”

AnaerfellPosterHe turned his head to the entrance into his chambers and pulled himself more upright to lean against the nightstand beside his bed. One of the serving women stood just inside of his room. “What?”

“The Arkhon wishes to speak with you.”

He was not certain what string of curses came from his lips, but the maid blanched and her face grew pink, almost to the color of her hair. The room swirled again while she spoke.

“What?” he asked again.

“I said, Ser Drast, the Arkhon instructed me to remain with you until you came to meet with him.” Her voice quivered.

She was right to fear him. Her voice was fuzzy, just like everything. But, he knew he had not been particularly kind to any of the servants of late. He had managed to avoid his father by effectively frightening the servants. Their fear, combined with late nights, ale, and sleeping until the sun set, had allowed him to avoid talking with anyone who did not enjoy a mug or two.

A few of the servants had initially joined him in drinking. He loosely recalled this maid among them. Ura? Mura? Lura?

“Kura,” he finally muttered. He had been a little too handsy and she had since avoided him like—he could not clearly comprise a simile. Like. Like? Like the moon avoided the sun? Good enough.

“Yes, Kura,” she murmured.

Drast spat at the chamber pot. He was fairly certain he missed. “Well, come on in, Kura.” He belched. “I know how we can pass the time.”

 

BIOS

RobertsonPicJoshua currently lives in Alaska with his wife and children. In 1999, he began crafting the world for Thrice Nine Legends, including Melkorka and Anaerfell. He is also the author of the A Midwinter Sellsword and Gladiators and Thieves in the Hawkhurst Saga. His short story, Grimsdalr, is inspired by the tale of Beowulf.BoydPic

J.C. lives in the Midwest with his wife and two dogs. He is currently pursuing his M.A. in English Literature while continuing to craft his own dark fantasy world.  Before he had completed junior high, J.C. had received his first box set of Dungeons & Dragons and devoured the J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. He has had a passion for the fantasy genre ever since.

 

LINKS

Pre-Order Anaerfell

Website

Do your words serve your story – or do they serve you?

by Anita Stratos, Proof Positive editor

Picture this: you’re craving apple pie – one of those “just gotta have it” days – so you go to your favorite café and order up a slice.

Your mouth waters when the server puts your pie in front of you, but when you look closer, you see cranberries, blueberries and pecans mixed with a few apples inside a coconut crust.

“What’s this?” you ask your server with disappointment. “I just wanted a simple apple apple piepie.”

“That’s our pastry chef’s version of apple pie,” she answers. “He likes to stretch his creative culinary muscle.”

Do you think you got what you ordered? Or did you get a more complex dessert, a berry-apple-nut pie with a unique crust? The chef promised apple pie on the menu, but he loaded it up with lots of other things and topped it off in a nontraditional way.

While that gourmet pie might be delicious and welcome on any other night, this time you wanted apple pie and trusted what was written on the menu. So even though the recipe might win a James Beard award, it’s most unwelcome and unappreciated by you at this moment.

Two things went wrong here, and the same things can go wrong with your writing, too.

First, don’t promise something in your title, cover image, or book blurb that you don’t deliver in your story. A book blurb that describes a fantasy novel but delivers a romance is bound to get bad reviews. Your writing may be superb, but you attracted the wrong audience.

The first takeaway: Don’t write “apple pie” on the menu when you’re crafting a multi-berry-apple-nut coconut-crusted pie.

Second, write your prose in a way that best serves your story, not in a complex way that doesn’t match the story or reflect something within the book or character(s). Unnecessarily complex writing gets very tiresome very quickly, slows readers down, and could sound pretentious.

The second takeaway: Serve apple pie to people who love apple pie, and save the gourmet blends for a different audience.

Inedible Spelling Mistake

If you read this carefully, you’ll realize this menu item would be dangerous to consume…and potentially disgusting.

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What funny misspellings have you seen lately?

Dear Authors: My Editing Education and Experience

Dearest authors,

I’ve heard the question time and time again: what qualifies me to be an editor and own an editing company? I’ve gotten many questions about my education and my experience, so here’s a video in which I talk about all of it, from my alma mater (Lebanon Valley College) and college jobs to my real-world experience. While I was at it, I filmed some footage of my college campus and the buildings I spent most of my time in, going to classes, studying, and working.

I hope you enjoy learning a little more about me, and please feel free to ask any other questions you may have about Proof Positive!

– Owner of Proof Positive, Christie Stratos

(If you cannot see the video on this page, please click here: https://youtu.be/K3JrSv6zL5I)

Author Chat: Marnie Cate

Have you ever thought of something fantastic that inspired you to write, whether it was a sentence or an image or even a general idea? Marnie Cate has, and she wrote and published her first book based on it. In fact, it’s the first book in a series. Get inspired by Marnie, who turned a thought into a whole book!

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Is Remember: Protectors of the Elemental Magic your first book? How long did it take you to plan it before you began writing it?

Remember is my first book. It was really random how I started. Three years ago, these words came to mind: “A blinding light surged through me and I fell to my knees. Stumbling and confused, I found myself being led to safety by Gram. She told me to hide in a crevice in one of the old oak trees that had split.” I decided that day that I was going to write. I started writing without really knowing where I was going.

Do you plan your writing out with outlines, character development exercises, and other pre-writing activities? Or do you just write as it comes to you?

I just write as it comes to me. Typically, I will have an idea come to me that I want to include and it changes my original thought. In my second book, I have issues from the first book that need to be addressed. This has created a new way for me to think about writing but I am still finding that free writing leads to my best work.

Is this book part of a series? If so, when can we look forward to the next book being published?

This is planned to be a series. The second book, Exigency, has a solid start and the ideas that have come to me have confirmed that I do have more than one book inside me to be written.

Do you mostly write in this particular genre or do you dabble in other genres? If so, which ones?

I never really planned to write in any genre. I think my books will always have their “feet” planted in the world I know and wander into the world I dream.

What do you think makes your work stand apart from other works in your genre?

There are so many fantastic books in the fantasy genre. My thoughts on magic and its origin are different than anything I have read. The relationships that Mara has formed are the true story. I think relationships are universal but I would like to think that my characters are unique and ever changing.

Remember’s book blurb starts out with a quote from the main character’s remember by marnie cate book covergreat-grandmother that changes the MC’s life. Was this inspired by something that happened to you in real life? Or is it purely from your imagination?

“Hiding the truth from you is no longer protecting you. Sit and I will tell you what you need to know.” is spoken by Mara’s grandmother, Mae Veracor (Gram). Gram is the daughter of Genevieve Silver.

I can sadly say I was never told that my family were the protectors of magic. The reality of the story is that I do have a little sister that I adore and I was lucky to have the best grandmother in the world.

Tell us a little bit about the magic in your book, if it won’t spoil the plot. What is it like and how does it work? What’s original about it?

Without giving away too much, I can say that the magic in Remember is elemental magic. This encompasses the ability to call upon the elements (Air, Fire, Water, Earth). Many books talk about the elements and their use. In my book, there are not just the elements but the elementals that teach Mara to use her gift.

You’re a fan of Dame Judi Dench, so much so that it’s on your Amazon author profile. What do you love so much about her? Have you based any of your characters on her in Remember?

The character of Mae Veracor is a combination of my grandmother, Judi Dench and my imagination. There is something that can’t be named when I watch movies, television shows or interviews of Dame Judi. She has a spirit for life that is contagious.

What inspires you to write? Music? Other books? Real life events? Just an incredible imagination?

I fear it is my imagination that keeps me writing.

Are you part of any writers’ groups? If so, what do you like about them? How do they help you or inspire you? If not, why not?

I have connected with several writers’ groups: #IndieBooksBeSeen and #Awethors. Both groups have very supportive authors who are about encouraging and helping each other. It is a great way to see that I am not alone on the island of indie authors.

Did you do any research for this book, even by reading other fantasy books?

The only research I did was to make sure that the ingredients in the spells in the book would not hurt anyone if they decided to try it. I would never recommend trying something you read in a book.

Do you read the kinds of books you like to write? Do you watch movies similar to or the same genre as your writing?

When I decided to write, my book reading dropped. I cannot narrow down just one genre of books that I like to read. One thing I did allow myself was to keep up with two series that I had stared before I decided to write. Each is very different from my book. As far as movies, I love all kinds but I do not think there is a movie out there quite like my book. I would love to see my book on the big screen one day.

If you could write anywhere in the world – in a fictional or nonfiction place – where would you write?

Either a flat in London close to the theatre or in a cabin in the woods with no distractions.

~~~

BIO

marnie cate headshotMarnie Cate was born and raised in Montana before adventuring to the warmer states of Arizona and California. Her love of Dame Judi Dench and dreams of caticorns and rainbows inspired her to chase her dreams. One great sentence came to mind and the world of elemental magic and the humans they lived amongst filled her mind. With Remember, the story has begun.

BUY THE BOOK

Amazon: http://amzn.com/1508795320
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/520293
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/remember-marnie-cate/1121537003?ean=9781508795322

SOCIAL MEDIA

Follow me on Twitter: @Marnie_Cate
Friend me on Facebook
Find me on Amazon
Favorite me at Smashwords
Find me on Goodreads

Author Chat: Bradley Cannon

Did you ever wonder what might happen if you didn’t die when you were meant to? Author Bradley Cannon explores the possibilities of this in his first novel, Extended Stay. And don’t be afraid to love his work – he’s got six more novels in the works!

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Extended Stay is your debut novel (congratulations!). How long did it take you to plan it before you began writing it?

Thanks! It’s been great to finally let people see what I’ve been working on. The beginning ideas for Extended Stay taunted me for about a year before I finally figured out how to go about writing it. I had a theme in mind all along, but the actual storyline took a while to develop. I have no idea why the pieces of the puzzle finally came to me when they did. I didn’t question it at the time. I just jumped right out of the shower at that moment (no joke!) and ran around the house wet and butt-naked for the next hour to write down all of my ideas.

I have never had so many plotlines and themes come to me so quickly for any other novel. I outlined more than half of Extended Stay’s chapters that day and began writing the first draft by the end of the week, which took around nine months to complete. The next seven drafts took four years. Then the publishing process took an additional year before the book ultimately became available January 26, 2015.

Do you typically plan your writing out with outlines, character development exercises, and other pre-writing activities? Or do you just write as it comes to you?

I always have an overarching outline of where a novel should go, chapter by chapter, from beginning to end before I start writing. I do this because I find that the constant worry of wasting six months only to corner myself with no proper conclusion slows me down more than any creative freedom would otherwise speed me up. However, I don’t think writers should ever be afraid to deviate from an outline if a particular scene or moment compels them to do so.

As for writing activities, I usually only do character development exercises if I am creating a character who is not partially based on a real person (or people) that I already know. My favorite prewriting exercise is to visit a location (e.g., a swamp, a bus station, or a movie theater) before writing about it. I do that often!

Your book, Extended Stay, is based on the idea of nobody dying within a 50-mile radius of Chattanooga, TN for 30 days. Is this concept about overpopulation and its effects, people taking life and death for granted, or something else?

Have you ever wondered why someone you knew had to die the way that they did? Extended Stay Cover-6.7ForKindleExtended Stay is my opportunity to express the answer to that question by showing how bleak the world would become if people never died at all. Along the way, many characters lose their sense of purpose and begin to make bad or reckless decisions to reveal why death, in all of its gruesomeness and bluntness, is actually a very necessary part of being human.

What do you think makes Extended Stay stand apart from other works in its genre?

There are numerous stories where an immortal character tells a mortal character about how tired or hardened they feel because they have lived for hundreds or thousands of years. However, the majority of Extended Stay spans a mere 30-day timeline in order to show a big picture of how quickly people would begin to change if they couldn’t die. That’s been a really fun angle to pursue that I haven’t heard as much about in the past.

Also, the Final Destination series is a major source of inspiration for the novel. However, Extended Stay focuses on the fact that people are not in control of when or how they will die, and then the novel goes on to show how this may actually be a good thing. As one reviewer put it, Extended Stay “makes readers think about their lives, privileges, and surroundings.”

It looks like you have two more books in the works, one literary fiction and one historical fiction. Extended Stay is gritty commercial fiction. Which of these three genres would you say you like writing the most, or do you like them equally?

Each novel and genre has had its own unique set of challenges. I suppose I felt the most comfortable writing Extended Stay. The novel has a lot of characters, each with their own storylines brimming with opportunities to pull in different readers. This forced me to do a little more research than usual, but it also gave me a lot of wiggle room to switch between stories on bleak days when I was feeling less inspired. Also, the idea of writing about people who avoid more than 40 forms of death was a blast to write about, and it created varying levels of suspense in each and every chapter. I didn’t want the novel to become some 800 page philosophical tome, so I took the fast “gritty commercial fiction” route instead, which I found to be an especially exhilarating and entertaining style to write in.

On the other hand, my literary fiction novel, The Wholesome Bell (coming summer 2016?), has been a little more challenging. In this novel, four uneducated men move into a doublewide trailer and create a bunch of utterly outrageous rules that they believe will bring them closer to happiness. Fortunately, I had already learned the value of writing about a familiar location in Extended Stay, so I placed The Wholesome Bell in Collegedale, TN to ensure that I always understand the setting. There is also a lot of dialogue in The Wholesome Bell, which I tend to struggle to describe after a while, especially when I am trying to be…well, “literary.” The solution to this problem has involved reading a lot of dialogue and implementing a variety of language tools, such as direct quotes, indirect quotes, summaries, and so forth, depending on the situation. The biggest difference between this novel and Extended Stay is that The Wholesome Bell is written in the first person, meaning that readers will have much more time to get to know a small group of characters, especially the main protagonist and narrator, Nick Johnston. That’s something I really wanted to try out after writing Extended Stay.

The historical fiction novel Darling, Schatzi has been the most daunting by far. This novel is about my grandmother’s experience growing up in pre-WWII Germany and how she eventually fell in love with my grandfather, an American soldier. The first draft of this novel is now finished, but there were many times that I had to go “over the hill and through the woods to Grandma’s house” for backup. I’m sure I’ll have to visit her again as soon I start working on future drafts too. After all, how was I ever supposed to write about life in pre-WWII Germany when I couldn’t even imagine what life in pre-WWII America was like? I really could not have completed the first draft without my grandmother’s support. I have spent many hours speaking with her to get all the pieces of her journey, which I believe has revealed a truly miraculous story of incredible growth and courage.

Did you do any research for Extended Stay?

I wish I could say no! Unfortunately I am not a police officer, lawyer, oncologist, exterminator, or any of the other professions that appear throughout the novel. I did use several locations and occupations that I do understand (e.g., lawn maintenance! Haha!). However, I also have had to ask people questions about everything from Catholicism to their experiences during a tornado in order to make sure the story remained both credible and incredible at the same time.

If you could write anywhere in the world – in a fictional or nonfiction place – where would you write?

I would write in a soundproof room with nothing visible in front of me except for a computer screen and a keyboard. Even the desk and chair beneath me would be invisible. The Internet would only work for occasional research. The room would have no door, no telephone, and it wouldn’t let me out until I complete at least 1,000 words. A slot where snacks magically appear would be a great bonus.

Going out into the world to discover new stories is integral to write any book, but privacy away from all distractions is absolutely necessary as well. This is not to say that I always want to be secreted away. For this magic writing room to be truly perfect, it would also stop time while I am inside so that I can see family, friends, and readers as soon as I get done. I greatly appreciate all of your support over the years and look forward to seeing and hearing from you at each and every opportunity.

Thank you, Proof Positive, for hosting this interview and for all you do to support authors. Everyone else, thank you for reading this interview; I hope you enjoyed!

BIOGRAPHY

Bradley Cannon NovelsBradley Cannon was born March 26, 1991 in Cleveland, Tennessee. He attended Bradley Central High School and recognized his interest in literature at the early age of 15. After that, a few long-winded ideas spiraled into several novels in excess of 100,000 words each. So far, six complete novels have emerged, all in different draft stages from one to seven.

Bradley graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as an English Major/Communication Minor in summer 2013. Besides getting up early to write, he also works as a writer for Psi Chi Central Office, the International Honor Society for Psychology.

Bradley is now 24. He enjoys criticizing and praising television and looks forward to one day creating his own continuing selection of work. On his birthday, he proposed to his wonderful new fiancée, Leslie. They married in the summer of 2014.

POPULAR LINKS

You can view the first few pages of Extended Stay for free, check out customer reviews, and purchase a print or Kindle edition of the novel at Amazon.com HERE.

The Extended Stay video trailer is available on YouTube.com HERE.

You are also invited to connect with me via Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, LinkedIn, or Google+.

Awethors Event: Interview with Sunshine Somerville

Our eighth awesome author in the countdown until the Get Down With The Awethors Facebook event on April 12 is Sunshine Somerville (how cool is her name?!). She’s going to have some fun competitions at the Awethors event with multiple chances to win her books.

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1. What will you be sharing with the group on April 12 at the Get Down With The Awethors event? Free book giveaway, sneak peek, merchandise, holding a competition, discussion?

I plan to have an ongoing Q&A discussion about my books in The Kota Series. I’ll pick my favorite question, and that winner will receive free paperback copies of books 1-4 (the Kota Cover Bigwhole series).

I’ll also have a “What actor would best play this character?” competition where I’ll post drawn pictures of my characters, and my favorite four winners will receive free ebooks of book 1.

(Psst: ebook versions of books 2-4 will be free on Amazon all day)

2. What is your latest book or work, and where can we find it?

I just finished putting together an ebook box set for The Kota Series. That’s on pre-order right now for $4.99 and will release 12/18/2015 at: http://amzn.to/1CW9Yc7.

3. What drives you to write? Music, an interest in the human mind, is it cathartic for you?

I’ve been writing The Kota Series since I was nine, so I’ve always had a lot of ideas in my head. I love creating anything, really, and world-building is my absolute favorite part of writing. I think, like most writers, there’s just so much in my head that I have to get it out there!

4. What’s your favorite book in the world? One you couldn’t imagine having lived your life without reading.

I can never pick a favorite! But The Chronicles of Narnia was definitely the first book I ever remember reading as a kid and thinking, “Aha! I want to make my own worlds,” so that series was pretty influential to my start as a writer.

5. When will you be at the Awethors event on April 12? All day or at a certain time?

I’ll definitely get my above-mentioned discussions/contests going by 8:00 a.m. EST. I plan to check every hour (at least) until midnight to keep things going. And of course I’m excited to interact with all the other authors (I hope to win book goodies for myself!), so you’ll probably see me around a lot all day.

~~~

Author Bio

Author PicSunshine Somerville lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She self-published her first book in college in 2004 and has been evolving The Kota Series since she was nine, basing the story on childhood fantasies derived from watching too much X-Men and Star Wars and reading too much Chronicles of Narnia and A Wrinkle in Time.

Connect with Sunshine

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: www.SunshineSomerville.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Kota-Series/423480655920
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kynacoba

BOOK LINKS:

Book 1 – http://amzn.to/1D6Fwda
Book 2 – http://amzn.to/1ji79Xu
Book 3 – http://amzn.to/RKf0lm
Book 4 – http://amzn.to/1CnziGL
Box set – http://amzn.to/1CW9Yc7

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