Category: Guest Posts

Omenana: speculative fiction from Africa and the African diaspora

Posted on by Galen Charlton | Author : | Guest Posts

Guest post by Galen

I’m a fan of short stories, particularly fantasy, science fiction, and broadly, speculative fiction. Although many of the print science fiction and fantasy magazines have had struggles in recent years, there’s been an explosion of online publication featuring speculative short stories. Some of the usual suspects include Tor.com, Clarksworld, and Strange Horizons, but for this post I’d like to feature a Nigerian online magazine I’ve run across via a post on Metafilter.

Omenana issue 1 coverIt’s called Omenana, and its first issue was published this month. From the that issue’s editorial:

Science fiction is still very new in Nigeria, but while we could barely find 10 people to contribute to the anthology in 2010, there are now hundreds of writers who will readily try their hand at the genre. Just as I did, more writers are recognising that we have a copious amount of material for speculative fiction here in Nigeria. That means we need platforms where these stories can be anchored. To help this along, Chinelo Onwualu and I present Omenana, a bimonthly speculative fiction e-publication.

And from Chinelo Onwualu’s essay in that issue, The Unbearable Solitude of Being an African Fan Girl:

Being an African fan girl is a strange, liminal thing. You’re never quite sure that you exist, you see. A part of you is rooted in your culture and its expectations for how a woman ought to behave – church, family, school – but another is flying off into the stars carrying a samurai sword and a machete. Not one thing or another, you’re both at the same time.

…

You know you are not alone. There are thousands of women just like you all over the continent. They have fought to forge their unique identities outside of the prescribed roles they were expected to fill. They have kept that childhood sense of wonder and aren’t ashamed to squeal like schoolgirls when they get excited. They run when they are in a hurry and they take the stairs two at a time. Like you, they are still curious and aren’t afraid to ask questions, but they scattered like magic beans across a vast farm. They are growing into their own twisted shapes and no one around them can understand why.

A standout story in the first issue is HostBods by Tendai Huchu. It is set in a time when mind transference technology is possible — and indeed so commonplace that it is possible to rent the use of another person’s body for a period of time. However, being a “HostBod” is a risky and usually short-lived career, and the people who do it tend to be treated as if they had all of the value of purely artificial robots — in other words, they’re disposable. Ordinarily, a HostBod isn’t supposed to be aware of what goes on when another person uses them, but for the protagonist… things are a little different.

Another story, Winter in Lagos by Saratu Abiola, takes a simple premise — Lagos experiencing its first snowfall — and uses it to turn a mirror onto contemporary issues in Nigeria.

Other features in the first issue are an interview with Ibrahim Ganiyu and art by Kelsey Arrington.

I look forward to Omenana’s next issue.

Guest Post by Author C.C. Humphreys + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome C.C. Humphreys, author of the fascinating Jack Absolute historical fiction series, to talk about the creation of his latest book to be released in the U.S. The French Executioner. (reviewed here).

I’m very happy to host C.C. again today. I loved the first two Jack Absolute books, and I’ve been interested in Anne Boleyn and her time since I saw Anne of the Thousand Days lo these many years ago. So I had to ask C.C. why feature the unknown man instead of the very famous queen?

french executioner by cc humphreys original coverWHY WRITE A NOVEL ABOUT THE MAN WHO KILLED ANNE BOLEYN?
By C.C. Humphreys

Where do the ideas for novels come from?

I remember exactly what I was doing when the idea for The French Executioner hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was working out.

I was living in Vancouver at the time. Making my living as an actor. I’d written a couple of plays. But my dream from childhood had always been to write historical fiction.

I wasn’t thinking of any of that, on that day in a gym in 1993. I was thinking about shoulder presses. Checking my form in the mirror.

This is what happened. (It also shows you the rather strange associations in my brain!)

I lift the weight bar.
Me, in my head. ‘God, I’ve got a long neck.’
Lower bar.
‘If I was ever executed,’ – Raise bar – ‘it would be a really easy shot for the ax.’
Lower bar.
‘Or the sword. Because, of course, Anne Boleyn was executed with a sword.’
Raise bar. Stop half way.
‘Anne Boleyn had six fingers on one hand.’

Flash! Boom! Put down bar before I drop it. It came together in my head, as one thing: the executioner, brought from France to do the deed, (I remembered that from school). Not just taking her head. Taking her hand as well, that infamous hand – and then the question all writers have to ask: what happened next?

I scurried to the library. Took out books. I knew it had to be a novel. I did some research, sketched a few ideas. But the problem was, I wasn’t a novelist. A play had seemed like a hill. A novel – well, it was a mountain, and I wasn’t ready to climb it. So I dreamed a while, then quietly put all my research, sketches, notes away.

But I never stopped thinking about it. The story kept coming and whenever I was in a second hand bookstore I’d study the history shelves and think: if ever I write that novel – which I probably never will – I’ll want… a battle at sea between slave galleys. So I’d buy a book on that subject, read it. Buy another, read it.

November 1999. Six years after being struck by lightning. I’m living back in England and I find a book on sixteenth century mercenaries – and I knew the novel I was never going to write would have mercenaries. Twenty pages in, I turn to my wife and say: “You know, I think I’m going to write that book.” And she replies, “It’s about bloody time.”

I wrote. The story, all that research, had stewed in my head for so long, it just poured out. Ten months and I was done. I wondered if it was any good. I sent it to an agent. She took me on and had it sold three months later.

I was a novelist after all.

About the Book: The year is 1536, and notorious French executioner Jean Rombaud is brought in by Henry VIII to behead Anne Boleyn, the condemned Queen of England. But on the eve of her execution, Rombaud becomes enchanted with the ill-fated queen and swears a vow to her: to bury her six-fingered hand, a symbol of her rumored witchery, at a sacred crossroads.
Yet in a Europe ravaged by religious war, the hand of this infamous Protestant icon is so powerful a relic that many will kill for it. Bloodthirsty warriors, corrupt church fathers, Vikings, alchemists, and sullied noblemen alike vie for the prize as Rombaud, a man loyal to the grave, struggles to honor his promise.
From sea battles to lusty liaisons, from the hallucinations of St. Anthony’s fire to the fortress of an apocalyptic messiah, The French Executioner sweeps readers into a breathtaking story of courage, the pursuit of power, and loyalty at whatever cost.
cc humphreysC.C. Humphreys is the author of eight historical novels. The French Executioner, which was his first novel and a runner-up for the CWA Steel Dagger for Thrillers award in 2002, has never before been published in the U.S. The sequel, The Curse of Anne Boleyn, will be published in the U.S. in May 2015.
Humphreys has acted all over the world and appeared on stages ranging from London’s West End to Hollywood’s Twentieth Century Fox. He is also an accomplished swordsman and fight choreographer. For more information, visit http://cchumphreys.com/

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Chris is kindly giving away a copy of The French Executioner to one lucky winner! (US/Canada). To enter, use the Rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest Post by Author Jeffe Kennedy on Ebooks and Libraries + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Giveaways> Guest Posts

My featured guest for today is Jeffe Kennedy, the author of the marvelous fantasy romance series, Covenant of Thorns. The series concludes with today’s featured review book, Rogue’s Paradise, which answers so many of the questions that series fans have been waiting for.

In her guest post, Jeffe talks about one of the subjects near and dear to my heart, getting ebooks into libraries.

Rogues Paradise Button 300 x 225

I love that Reading Reality focuses on ebooks and ebook integration into libraries. This is partly because libraries and librarians have always been such a huge part of my life as a reader. As a writer, too, which is less visible to me. But more and more, librarians come up to me at events and tell me how my ebooks are in their collections and I should know how often they’re checked out and how their patrons just love, love, love them! I’m glad they tell me, because otherwise I have no way of knowing that.

I also appreciate that Marlene is dedicated to bringing ebooks into libraries, especially genre books, because I strongly feel that, without Carina and their willingness to take a chance on my digital series, A Covenant of Thorns, then these books might never have seen the light of day. That’s the terrific thing about ebook publishers—they’ve allowed books that don’t neatly fit into genre categories to have a chance.

rogues pawn goodreadsWhen I started Rogue’s Pawn,, I had no idea that I was writing a story that would “fall into the cracks between genres.” My tale of a modern woman, a professor of neuroscience who passes through a magical gate at Devils Tower and ends up in Faerie—exactly as in the tales of old—would maybe be an urban fantasy. Only with more romance. And sexier.

Okay, like many newbie writers, I had no idea what I was doing. I understood my story, but not how the marketplace worked.

Since I first started shopping that book—to praise for the writing and imagination, followed by rejection for marketability—the market has changed. Carina called it Fantasy Romance and now there’s lots more of those books out there. The Covenant of Thorns trilogy doesn’t sit squarely in Fantasy Romance, but it gets to be in the club still. More, the books have found readers and I’ve gotten to write others.

All because people embraced ebooks and the windows they open.

I couldn’t be more thrilled!

Jeffe KennedyJeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author with a writing career that spans decades. Her works include non-fiction, poetry, short fiction, and novels. She has been a Ucross Foundation Fellow, received the Wyoming Arts Council Fellowship for Poetry, and was awarded a Frank Nelson Doubleday Memorial Award. Her essays have appeared in many publications, including Redbook. Her most recent works include a number of fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns; the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion, and an erotic contemporary serial novel, Master of the Opera, which released beginning January 2, 2014. A fourth series, the fantasy trilogy The Twelve Kingdoms, hit the shelves starting in May 2014 and a fifth, the highly anticipated erotic romance trilogy, Falling Under, will release starting in July.

She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with two Maine coon cats, plentiful free-range lizards and a very handsome Doctor of Oriental Medicine.

Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com, every Sunday at the popular Word Whores blog, on Facebook, and pretty much constantly on Twitter @jeffekennedy. She is represented by Foreword Literary.

To learn about Jeffe, visit her website or blog or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Because I enjoyed the Covenant of Thorns series so much, I want to give some lucky reader the chance to enjoy it too. So, the prize is the winner’s choice of Rogue’s Pawn, Rogue’s Possession or Rogue’s Paradise. These are all ebook only, so anyone can win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest Post: Silly Cat Books

Posted on by Galen Charlton | Author : | Guest Posts

Today I’m at my sister’s house. My sister has a cat named George, who is perhaps two years old. That means that George is actually “Georgie”; he’s a very silly cat, and consequently needs a sillier name than just “George”.

This is Georgie, pretending that he is not at all silly:

2014-08-08 14.34.41

What aren’t you seeing in the picture? The toesy-pouncing! His three-second attention span!

What goes with a silly cat? Silly cat books, of course! Books to read (or for silly cats to bat at). Here are some of my favorites.

The Theory of Cat Gravity by Robin WoodThe Theory of Cat Gravity by Robin Wood. Do you know the feeling you get when a cat curls up on your lap and you lose not only the desire, but the ability to stand up? It’s not just you! There are scientific reasons why your black hole cat feels like she instantly gained five hundred pounds.

When I read this book a few years ago, my reaction was a combination of recognition and the thought that yes! This explains so much!

All My Patients Are Under The Bed by Loius CamutiAll My Patients Are Under The Bed by Louis J. Camuti. This book is by a veterinarian who made house calls in New York City. Of course, if the vet comes to you, you don’t have to deal with the trauma of packing kitty up and going for a drive — on the other hand, a vet in your house is a still a stranger. Must hide! If I can’t see him, he can’t see me! Doesn’t matter if my tail is sticking out from under the bed!

Ahem…

This is a heartwarming book by somebody who had devoted his life to animals and clearly loves them and their ways (and, as I just learned, whose life may have been saved by a cat when he was 11).

 

Games You Can Play With Your Pussy by Ira AltermanGames You Can Play With Your Pussy by Ira Alterman. No, that those kind of games — get your mind out of the gutter! Taking care of cats can be a serious thing, but as anybody who is owned by a kitty knows, there are lots of funny moments to be had. This book covers important topics like Naming Your Pussy, Pussy Hairs, How to Handle a Hot Pussy, Exercising Your Pussy, and Talking With Your Pussy.

 

 

 

What are your favorite silly cat (or dog) books?

Guest Post by Author C.L. Wilson on Putting the Character in Characters + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Today, I’d like to welcome C.L. Wilson, who recent published The Winter King (reviewed here).

Putting the Character in Characters
by C.L. Wilson

The Winter King Banner 851 x 315

One of the best things about writing fantasy romance (besides the worldbuilding, which I adore) is the freedom you have to create wildly unique and interesting characters to populate your world. In fiction—especially fantasy fiction—larger-than-life qualities often make for the most interesting characters.

Unbound by conventional mores, laws, or even realities, fantasy characters can be literally larger than life: immortal, magical, world-endingly dangerous, you name it. It’s part of what makes reading such a thrill ride. You can enjoy the danger from the safety of your armchair, and you can explore all manner of provocative “what if” scenarios without having your suspension of disbelief destroyed.

For example, in one of my absolute favorite recent reads, Heart of Obsidian, phenomenally talented Nalini Singh created a character (Kaleb Krychek) who is a telekinetic so powerful, he can literally rip the world apart, and so tortured he will use that power without remorse if anything happens to the one and only person he cares about. He is a self-admitted sociopath, devoid of empathy and teetering on the brink of insanity, who has killed people before, driven others insane, and will “line the street with bodies” to protect his one love. In real life, someone like Kaleb would send most women running the other way, screaming in terror (and rightfully so), yet through the course of the novel, Nalini not only helps her readers and heroine understand him, she makes us fall irrevocably and eternally in love with him. Yes, unashamedly, I ♥ Kaleb Krychek.

GMC - Goals, Motivation, & Conflict by Debra DixonSo how do you go about building characters that will grip a reader’s attention and rouse their emotions? For me, it all starts with the basic building blocks of fiction: Goal, Motivation and Conflict. Or, more simply put, what does this character want, why does s/he want it, and why can’t s/he have it? (There’s a fabulous book on Goal, Motivation, and Conflict by Debra Dixon called, wait for it, GMC: Goal, Motivation & Conflict, which I highly recommend to all writers.) Understanding both the external (material/worldly) and internal (emotional) GMC of my characters is the point from which I begin developing every character I write (walk-ons excluded, of course). Because in order to answer the question of GMC, you have to understand where you character comes from, what they value most, what their greatest strengths and weaknesses are, and what is the source of their pain (ie, you need to understand and build their backstory).

We are all creatures of both nurture and nature. We are born with certain gifts, physical qualities, aptitudes, temperaments, etc. But on an emotional level, who we become is heavily influenced by nurture: the environment we are raised in, the friendships we form, the culture we grow up in, the battles we win and lose, etc. It’s that emotional past (that baggage) as well as natural abilities that combine to make interesting, complex people in real life and fascinating, truly compelling characters on the pages of a book.

I always, when fleshing out a character, look for sources of conflict that can arise from their abilities, their past experiences, their current desires and fears.

Some of the questions I ask when fleshing out a character:

    • What is the person’s greatest strength? What does that person do best, or what is the strongest element of their character. Often, that greatest strength is also the characters greatest weakness. For instance, a fantasy character’s greatest strength might be empathy—the ability to sense the feelings of others, so you can tell when someone is lying, afraid, nervous, etc. But then the character’s greatest weakness might be that they are physically defenseless, because any pain they deal another doubles back on them. Or the person with ESP who can read thoughts—a great strength—who has no friends because no one wants their real thoughts laid bare to another person.
    • What is the person’s greatest weakness? (for ideas, see above) Yes, every character must have a weakness, and it must be a good one. Even Superman has his Kryptonite. An invincible character does not make for fascinating reading. Now, nearly invincible on the other hand…that can be lots of fun to read and write about.
    • What does this person love/value most? What will s/he do to get it/protect it/keep it? (This often speaks to either Goal and/or Motivation in a story)
    • What is this person’s greatest source of pain? What is their Wound (capitalization intended)? The deep emotional scar or longing. The pain this person doesn’t want to face again (and, of course, the story will force the character to face that pain). This is the core emotional Conflict (the C of GMC) of the story, and it’s closely linked to the transformation the character will need to undergo, the growth s/he’ll need to make in order to triumph in the end.

Finally, in fiction, more can often be better. More power, more angst, more pain, more at stake, more, more, more. Genre fiction readers don’t read for blah, everyday characters (unless said character is caught up in some extremely NOT-everyday events, and has to rise to the occasion to deal with it). We all get up, put our clothes on, go to work, raise our families, rinse, repeat. We might have fights at the office, get stuck in traffic, glare at the rude person who jumps in front of little old ladies in the grocery store line, but lives like that don’t make for page-turning fiction.

I’m not saying your character should be the most gifted, the most beautiful, the most everything. I would hate that character, and such a character would probably destroy my suspension of disbelief in a story. But it is the unique, fantastic, even extreme qualities of fictional characters and their situations that grab our interest on the page.

And it is those larger-than-life qualities that make for compelling characters and page-turning novels.

CL WilsonAbout C. L. Wilson
 
Praised for exceptional worldbuilding and lyric prose, C.L. Wilson’s unique blend of action, romance, and richly-imagined fantasy have endeared her books romance and fantasy readers alike. Her critically acclaimed novels have regularly appeared on bestseller lists including the USA Today, the New York Times, and Publisher’s Weekly.

When not torturing her characters mercilessly, C.L. enjoys reading, questing through the wilds of the latest Elder Scrolls game and dreaming of a world where Bluebell’s Nutty Chocolate ice cream is a fat burning food.

Her newest novel, The Winter King, is available anywhere books are sold. She can be found online at www.clwilson.com.

~~~~~~TOURWIDE GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

cl_wilson_giveaway
C.L. is giving away copy of The Winter King, complete with a gorgeous white rose snow globe pendant reminiscent of the book!

Open to US Shipping

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bewitching Book Tours

Guest Post by Author Susannah Sandlin on the evolution of a series character + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome Susannah Sandlin, who recently published Allegiance (reviewed here), the latest book in the awesome Penton Legacy series. (Penton is like vampire toffee, once you sink your teeth into the story, you can’t let go) She’s here to talk about…

Evolution of a series character
by Susannah Sandlin

Allegiance Button

One of the most interesting challenges about writing a series is how to keep the characters changing and growing, especially in a paranormal romance series where a different couple takes center-stage for each book while there’s an ongoing story line running in the background from book to book.

Also, we want to keep readers up to date on their favorites from previous books without having them steal the show.

Here’s a (spoiler-free) look at how the heroes and heroines of the individual books have carried over into the fourth book in the Penton Legacy series, out this week:

Redemption by Susannah SandlinAidan Murphy and Krys Harris. The first book in the series, Redemption, belonged to Aidan and Krys, and they’ve continued to be a force of stability in Penton through the ravages of the subsequent books. Aidan remains a “keep calm and carry on” type of leader for the town, while Krys is his confidante and a steadying presence in her own right. In Allegiance, we get to see Aidan and Krys as they try to transition the town of Penton into rebuilding mode. Aidan’s also up for a seat on the Vampire Tribunal, where he’ll have a chance to change things from the inside. Does that work out for him? Oops, that’s veering into spoiler territory!

Mirren Kincaid and Glory Cummings. The hero and heroine of Absolution also provide a stable force in the rebuilding of Penton. The former Scottish gallowglass warrior, Mirren is his usual taciturn, grumpy self, while Glory runs interference. It’s always fun to poke the bear, though, so readers will have plenty of chances for Mirren to react in his own gruffly hilarious way to things like trash-talking shapeshifters and Cage Reynolds’ love life. Since so much of Penton has been destroyed, Glory has opened a place called the Chow House where Penton’s humans can grab breakfast and lunch—but not dinner. She needs to be there when her vampire rises from daysleep, of course.

Omega by Susannah SandlinWill Ludlam and Randa Thomas. The first couple of book three, Omega, are still dealing with the aftermath of what happened to Will in the third book and something personal that happens in Randa’s life in the early pages of Allegiance. So we’re missing Will’s banter for swaths of this book. Don’t worry, though, Will fans. He is back for the last third of the book!

Melissa Calvert and Mark Calvert. Melissa and Mark, the stable human familiars of Aidan Murphy in Redemption and Glory’s confidantes in Absolution, had a bit of a setback (okay, yeah, that’s an understatement) in their relationship at the end of Absolution, with ramifications that carried on through Omega. The issues finally get resolved in Allegiance, but not quickly and not easily. A sabotage aimed at Mark doesn’t help matters.

Cage Reynolds. Cage is back in Penton as the hero of Allegiance, and this is definitely his book. But is his heroine the woman he was flirting with at the end of Omega? Or is he falling for someone new to the series? Stay tuned; our favorite British vampire has his own baggage to overcome, secrets to reveal, and love conflicts to sort out.

allegiance by susannah sandlinMatthias Ludlam. The Big Bad Evil Meanie of the series is up to his dirty tricks again after being released from prison on the eve of his execution. But by whom? And is Matthias calling the shots, or is somebody playing Matthias this time? Only time will tell….

Of course we have new Pentonites this time around—an Irish acquaintance of Cage’s from his human life; two women, both vampires, who met Aidan in Atlanta and have joined the crew, and two cast members from my Penton spinoff novel, Storm Force: golden eagle shape-shifter Robin Ashton and psychic Army Ranger Nikolas Dimitrou. Welcome to Penton, Robin and Nik!

Those of you who are fans of paranormal romance series….Do you like keeping up with past series characters as the series progresses, or do you want all the focus to be on the main couple?

Suzanne-Johnson-Susannah-SandlinAbout Susannah Sandlin

Susannah Sandlin writes paranormal romance and romantic thrillers from Auburn, Alabama, on top of a career in educational publishing that has thus far spanned five states and six universities—including both Alabama and Auburn, which makes her bilingual. She grew up in Winfield, Alabama, but was also a longtime resident of New Orleans, so she has a highly refined sense of the absurd and an ingrained love of SEC football, cheap Mardi Gras trinkets, and fried gator on a stick.She’s the author of the award-winning Penton Legacy paranormal romance series, a spinoff novel, Storm Force, a standalone novelette, Chenoire, and a new romantic thriller series, The Collectors, beginning with Lovely, Dark, and Deep. Writing as Suzanne Johnson, she also is the author of the Sentinels of New Orleans urban fantasy series. Her Penton novel, Omega, was nominated for a 2013 Reviewer’s Choice Award in Paranormal Romance from RT Book Reviews magazine. Absolution was the winner of the 2013 Holt Medallion in Paranormal Romance.

To learn more about Suzanne, visit her website or follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

~~~~~~TOURWIDE GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Susannah is giving away several prizes on this blog tour:

  • 1 $50 Amazon gift card
  • 2 $10 Amazon gift cards
  • 2 Author swag packs (books, swag)

For a chance to win, use the Rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bewitching Book Tours

Guest Post by Author Isabo Kelly on What Having Kids Taught Me About Writing + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | ebook giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome Isabo Kelly, who recently published The Darkness of Glengowyn (reviewed by me and E. at The Book Pushers), and the equally awesome first book in the series, Brightarrow Burning, reviewed here. She’s here to talk about…

What Having Kids Taught Me About Writing
by Isabo Kelly

The Darkness of Glengowyn Button 300 x 225

Thanks for having me here today!

Rather than a straight up “about my book” post, I thought I’d start the tour with a little more personal post. I’m just going to say up front, though, this has nothing to do with airy fairy feelings. LOL. Yes, yes, I learned about a whole new kind of love when I had kids, but the only way that’s affected my writing is that there are now certain topics I have a much harder time dealing with (anything that has a kid in jeopardy is really really hard for me to tackle; and because my oldest is on the Autism spectrum, I’m really sensitive about kids with special needs topics).

brightarrow burning by isabo kellyNo, what having kids really taught me about writing is time management skills—and how sorely I lack said skills.

I’ve learned I had a whole lot more free time before I had kids. Granted it was infinitely less flexible because of the day job, but there was definitely more time in my life. I just squandered it on things like sleep and showers that last longer than five minutes.

I’ve learned I can do a LOT in a very short amount of time. If all I have is an hour during naptime, or worse 15 minutes during naptime because neither of my boys are good sleepers, I can write actual books during those short spurts of creativity.

I’ve learned not to bother waiting on anything as ephemeral as my muse. She can catch up with me whenever she decides to show up. In the meantime, I have books to write.

I’ve learned I actually do need the occasional block of quiet time to edit, and sometimes, with kids, the only thing I don’t have is quiet. This is when I tell my husband I’m hiding in the bedroom with the door locked for a few hours.

I’ve learned I don’t need that much quiet to write the first draft. My imagination spills out onto the page even in the midst of chaos and mayhem. This is kind of a relief, to be honest. If I can write amid the uproar of my young boys charging around the place, I can write anywhere, anytime.

I’ve learned I can’t live without lists. Having kids did a number on my memory so I need lists or I will forget everything I need to do—including wash my hair (seriously, I can forget I need to do this if it’s not on my list!)

darkness of glengowyn by isabo kellyI am still trying to learn not to fret and worry about the work I’m not getting done in those periods of time when I can’t work because I’m being mommy. This is one of those life lessons I really want to figure out because when I’m playing with my kids I want to be present, not stressing my work load. This is an ongoing learning curve, though.

I’ve learned I can write sex scenes even if my kids are in the room. I just don’t let them see the screen.

But I’ve also learned, I enjoy writing those scenes more when my kids are asleep.

Finally, I’ve learned I still have a lot to learn about organizing my time and my writing around my family life. I’m not very good at it yet, but I try. And in the meantime, I manage to hug and kiss my kids a lot and still write lots of fiction. Overall, I call that a win.

So, anyone have any good hints or suggestions for time management? I’m always looking!

Isabo KellyAbout Isabo Kelly

Isabo Kelly is the award-winning author of numerous fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal romances. Her life has taken her from Las Vegas to Hawaii, where she got her BA in Zoology, back to Vegas where she looked after sharks, then on to Germany and Ireland where she got her Ph.D. in Animal Behavior.Now Isabo focuses on writing. She lives in New York with her Irish husband, two beautiful boys, and funny dog. She works as a full time author and stay-at-home mom.

For more on Isabo and her books, visit her website, follow her on Twitter @IsaboKelly, friend her on Facebook, or follow her on Goodreads.

~~~~~~TOURWIDE GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Isabo is giving away three ebook copies of the first book in the Fire and Tears series, Brightarrow Burning, and a $40 gift certificate to winner’s choice of B&N or Amazon! For a chance to win, please use the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bewitching Book Tours

Guest Post by Suzanne Johnson on Keeping Fantasy Real + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Giveaways> Guest Posts

It’s not often that I do spotlights or guest posts without reviewing the book in question, but for Suzanne Johnson, I’m happy to make an exception. Except that I’m waiting on pins and needles for book 4 in the Sentinels of New Orleans series to come out, and it’s not here yet!

I’ve adored the series so far. New Orleans has always fascinated me, and her series brings the city to life in an absolutely magical way, and not just because of the paranormal element involved! If you love urban fantasy with a touch of romance, start with Royal Street (reviewed here) and barrel on through River Road (see review) and Elysian Fields (of course review).

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

Sentinels of New Orleans Button 2 - 300 x 225

Keeping Fantasy Real
by Suzanne Johnson

One of my favorite things about paranormal fantasy set in the real world is the “what-ifs” it brings up. The more real the setting, the more the paranormal world in that setting seems possible. I mean, can you PROVE the hot guy down the block isn’t a werewolf? A day-walking demon? I didn’t think so.

So one of the things I like to do in building the worlds for my urban fantasy and paranormal romance novels is to find a real-world setting and make it a character in itself. I want readers to be able to look on a map or in a guidebook and say, “Hey, that place really exists!”

In the Sentinels of New Orleans series, which is celebrating the release of Elysian Fields in paperback on May 13, that setting is, of course, New Orleans. It’s not only my favorite city, but is the place I consider my hometown even though I no longer live there. I was there for Hurricane Katrina. I’ve attended more Mardi Gras parades than I can count. And, yes, I’ve eaten gator (which does NOT taste like chicken).

Here are some of my favorite New Orleans settings for the Sentinels series. Most you can visit but one could land you in jail!

1) Uptown. This is a big swath of New Orleans located about two miles west of the French Quarter. My heroine, DJ, lives on the corner of Nashville Avenue and Magazine Street; her significant something-or-other Alex lives next door; her friend Eugenie is across the street; and her stalker-ish nemesis Rand across the street. In reality, this corner houses a pizza restaurant, a couple of coffee shops, and a meat market. Also in this area: DJ’s office, in Riverside Market on Tchoupitoulas Street (where a pack-and-ship store is located); Audubon Park, where DJ and Alex run (well, he runs and she dawdles); and some of their favorite restaurants, particularly Frankie and Johnny’s on Arabella and Tchoupitoulas.

This is a nice little tour of Uptown, where I was fortunate to live for almost 15 years.

2) The Hotel Monteleone. I don’t set a lot of the book in the French Quarter, because, quite frankly, locals go to the Quarter maybe once a year, when the tourists are gone. But still, one can’t set a book in New Orleans without including the Quarter. On upper Royal Street is the Hotel Monteleone, where the undead early 18th-century pirate Jean Lafitte makes his home in the Eudora Welty Suite. For $1,800 a night (plus taxes), you can rent that suite for yourself. And you might see Jean downstairs in the Carousel Bar, which he’s been known to frequent. Yes, you read that price correctly; the sexy French pirate is loaded, and he pays in ill-gotten gold.

3) Six Flags New Orleans. A theme park, you ask? A ghostly theme park. In the flooding following Hurricane Katrina, back in 2005, Six Flags went under eight or ten feet of water. The water eventually drained, but it was a total loss and never reopened. Caught in terminal litigation, it also never got torn down. So you can still head out to New Orleans East and see the creepy ruins and rusted rides. It’s illegal to enter, however, so don’t say I sent you! You can watch this video (which erroneously says it was torn down) and creep out vicariously. Quite a few scenes in Elysian Fields are set here.

4) The Napoleon House. One of my favorite real-life spots in the French Quarter, on the corner of Chartres and St. Louis, and worth the parking hassle. In Royal Street, before he moves into modern New Orleans permanently, the pirate Lafitte makes the banquet room on the second floor of this restaurant and bar that was built back when the human Lafitte walked the streets of the city. These days, they make the best muffaletta in town, a great drink called a Pimm’s Cup, and is a fab place to people watch.

5) Plaquemines Parish. This is the parish (what the rest of the country calls a county) located due east of New Orleans, on the narrow spit of land that sticks out into the Gulf of Mexico, bisected by the Mississippi River. I love Plaquemines, which is why I made it home base for a clan of merpeople—aquatic shapeshifters, many of whom work in the fishing industry. (Don’t think about it too hard.) Anyway, much of River Road is set in Plaquemines, from Belle Chasse down to the mouth of the Mississippi. It’s worth a drive out of the city, and if you go, stop for lunch at the Black Velvet Oyster Bar in the community of Buras; you might see Rene Delachaise or one of the other mermen plowing through a plate of crawfish.

If you have a half hour to spend, take this trip through Plaquemines and you might see some of the spots from River Road, from Pass a Loutre (which DJ tried to burn up) to Venice (Rene’s home base):

So there you have it—a quick tour of New Orleans via the Sentinels series. Hope to see you round there sometime! Have you been to New Orleans, and did you have a favorite spot (or do you want to go to a particular spot)? Leave a comment in addition to entering for the tour prizes for a signed copy of your choice of the Sentinels books.

Suzanne JohnsonAbout Suzanne Johnson
On Aug. 28, 2005, Suzanne Johnson loaded two dogs, a cat, a friend, and her mom into a car and fled New Orleans in the hours before Hurricane Katrina made landfall.Four years later, she began weaving her experiences and love for her city into the Sentinels of New Orleans urban fantasy series, beginning with Royal Street (2012), continuing with River Road (2012), and now with Elysian Fields (August 2013).She grew up in rural Alabama, halfway between the Bear Bryant Museum and Elvis’ birthplace, and lived in New Orleans for fifteen years—which means she has a highly refined sense of the absurd and an ingrained love of SEC football and fried gator on a stick.As Susannah Sandlin, she writes the best-selling Penton Vampire Legacy paranormal romance series and the recent standalone, Storm Force.To learn more about Suzanne, visit her Website and Blog   Twitter    Facebook    Facebook Fan Page   Goodreads

~~~~~~TOURWIDE GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Suzanne is giving away the following prizes to lucky commenters on this tour:

(1) $25 GC to Amazon or equivalent to Book Depository
(2) $10 GC
(2) Signed books and swag packs
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest Post by Nico Rosso on Concerts and Memories + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> ebook giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

slam dance with the devil by nico rossoToday is the release day for Nico Rosso’s latest venture into the world of demonic rock and roll. So I was thrilled when he asked me to host him today, and of course I have a review of the fantastic Slam Dance with the Devil here. 

They say (well actually Bob Seger said) that rock and roll never forgets. Maybe there is something otherworldly about that driving rhythm? Certainly once we’re hooked, we never forget it.

And now, let’s hear it from Nico…

Big thanks to Marlene for having me!

Heavy Metal Heart by Nico RossoWhen I was on Reading Reality for the release of the first Demon Rock book we talked about our most memorable concert experiences.

The second book, Slam Dance with the Devil, is out now and I’d like to broaden our horizons. Instead of thinking of a concert you’ve been to, what about picking any concert in history to attend?

I’ll admit that there’s one show in this latest book that I was really wishing I could go to while I was writing it. The hero, wild rocker Kent Gaol, and his band are playing an old venue in Chicago, complete with gilded walls and a chandelier. Of course they rock hard, but they’re all such accomplished musicians (being near-immortal demons who’ve been alive for thousands of years feeding off the energy of the crowd helps) they mix in classical music with the metal. The heroine, tough investigator Nona Harris, is lucky enough to see the show, though her journey with Kent isn’t all glamour. It’s a long, tough road she goes down, tracking Kent while falling into his paranormal world.

Besides this fictional concert, if I could pick one show to go to, I think I’d hit up one of the gigs The Doors played on the Sunset Strip in the ’60s. All that creative energy in a small venue would’ve been a hell of a thing to see.

What about you? What concert would you go to? It could be anything from Woodstock to Bach to Beck. Let me know in the comments and one random person will be selected to win a PDF of Slam Dance with the Devil.

Thanks for stopping by!

You can find Slam Dance with the Devil here:

Amazon Kindle
Barnes & Noble Nook
Google Play Books
Carina Press
All Romance eBooks

Rosso_Portrait_12V2-255x300If you want to keep the conversation going, I can be found here:
Twitter
Facebook
NicoRosso.com

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Nico is giving away a PDF copy of Slam Dance with the Devil. To enter the giveaway, fill out the rafflecopter, starting with Nico’s question, “If you could pick a concert to go to, past or present, what would it be?”

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest Post by Mark T Barnes on Starting in the Middle + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Book Giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

When I read The Garden of Stones last spring, it absolutely blew me away. It arrived as a review book from Library Journal, and all I can say is that those can be hit or miss. The Garden of Stones was such a big hit that I gave it a starred review in LJ and included it in my Best of 2013 list.  The Obsidian Heart (reviewed last week) is every bit as excellent, and now I’m stalking NetGalley for The Pillars of Sand.

If you love epic fantasy on a grand scale, immerse yourself in this series. You’ll be utterly lost in this world, and never want to come out.

The Past Informing the Present
by Mark T. Barnes

Garden of Stones by Mark T BarnesWhen I was talking to Marlene about the topic of the blog article, she raised a point about how in The Garden of Stones there was the sensation of being dropped into the middle of a story, rather than getting a gentle introduction.

There’s a line in The Obsidian Heart from Mari’s point of view that says, the ripples of today were stones in the waters of yesterday. We form our truths from the facts of what’s gone before. You can’t separate what was from what is. You can only change what will be. It’s Mari admitting that for good or ill, she is who she because of everything she has seen and done in her life up to that point.

My view of characters is that they should have realistic motivations that are rooted to events a reader can understand. We’re all of us born, our values shaped by history, society, cultural mores, our family, and our friends. Who we are in our own story changes as we progress through life and experience what it has to offer. But none of us started out at the beginning of history, we’re only page one of our own story: there are millennia of civilisation across the globe that precede us, with history that shaped the world in which we live. We in turn will add to that history, leaving part of ourselves for others to find.

The Obsidian Heart by Mark T. BarnesFor that reason I designed the world of Īa before I developed the characters that populated it. Like a lot of fantasy novels it started with a map, which I explored and gave names to things. Names, like all language, have weight and meaning. What kind of people lived in a place called Shrīan? Or Tanis? Pashrea, Ygran, or the Golden Kingdom of Manté? How do these different people see each other, and would their histories provide frictions that added depth to the relationships in the story? From the knowledge of the various races, their cultures, and history, the overarching story concept took place. It was only then that I knew what characters I thought would be interesting, and best suited to telling the stories in The Garden of Stones, The Obsidian Heart, and The Pillars of Sand.

pillars of sand by mark barnesThe decision to start an epic story this way wasn’t without risk, and it’s a different approach to a lot of fantasy stories where the reader starts with a younger and less experienced character. But the story I wanted to tell wouldn’t have worked with a naïve character at the helm: if I was being honest with my story they would’ve been mown down before the end of the third chapter. As it was, knowing my world and my story informed my choice of using experienced characters, each with their own fully formed histories. Even so each of the characters grows and changes throughout the series like any person would, influenced by their own actions as well as the events of the world around them.

Starting characters in the middle of a larger backstory, but at the beginning of their own story arc, is also something I’m doing in the two novels I’m working on at the moment. The device gives the characters a context within which to work, as well as a series of events that the antagonists also react to in a different way.

To tell the Echoes of Empire story the way I did, I:

  • Designed the world so that I knew the geography, history, the cultures that existed, and those cultures related to each other;
  • Planned the story based upon the way the world worked, and the meaningful historical events that underpinned the story arcs; then
  • Designed the characters I felt were best suited to tell that tale and to represent the world, both as point of view characters and supporting cast. It also informed the decision to have the antagonist as one of the point of view characters, as he was the cause of some events, as well as suffering in the effects of them.

There’s a lot of work to write a story this way but that work won’t go to waste. The benefit of the process is that I now have a fully realised world with various nations, species of people, culture and thousands of years of history to bring a level of consistency and gravity to Īa. I also have characters who’ve left their mark on the world, which will be referenced in short stories and later books. It ensures that the world is a living one, and gives fans a literary version of an ‘Easter egg’ when they read different stories set in the same world.

There’s no right or wrong way to start a story, only the right or wrong way for the story itself. Every story will be different, depending on the nature of the world, and the people who live in it. We authors ask for readers to take a lot on faith, and trust that we’ve done what we’ve done for a reason. Then all we can do is hope that the decisions we’ve made resonate with our readers and that enjoy what we’ve done.

mark t barnesMark Barnes lives in Sydney, Australia. He is the author of the epic fantasy Echoes of Empire series, published by 47North. The series includes The Garden of Stones (released May 2013), and The Obsidian Heart (released October 2013). The Pillars of Sand is the third of the series, due for release in May 2014. You can find out more at www.marktbarnes.com, his Facebook page at www.facebook.com/marktbarnes.author, or follow Mark on Twitter @MarkTBarnes.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Mark is generously giving away a signed copy of The Obsidian Heart. And since Mark is in Australia, he is opening the giveaway Internationally. He’ll ship your book to wherever you are!

a Rafflecopter giveaway