Witch's Nocturne is more fun than 8 seconds on a bronco

"A handsome and likely intelligent guy, who wasn't my best friend and gay, was something of a unicorn in my life. So I maybe let my eyes linger a touch too long on the front of his pants as he approached. And my posture might've stiffened to let him know I was tall and lean, but still had enough curves to make driving dangerous--and fun."

                                                      -- Witch's Nocturne by E.J. Wesley

You know how agents and professional writing blogs are always telling you to write with voice? E.J. has got voice down. You can pick it up in that single paragraph, and it's like he picks you up and stuffs you into Jenny Moonsong's head. It's SO AWESOME.

I LOVE Witch's Nocturne. Finished it in two lunch breaks at work. E.J. brings alive the best aspects of a paranormal hunter by giving us a character that is equally cool to the well-known Anita Blake that we saw in Laurel K. Hamilton's earlier books, Burnt Offerings and my favorite, Obsidian Butterfly. Here's one of my favorite lines from Hamilton (compare the voice with Penny Moonsong):

“Accidental sex. He made it sound like I fell down, and there just happened to be an erection in the way.”

—	Anita Blake, Incubus Dreams by Laurell K. Hamilton

Jenny Moonsong on the outside, would not fit your typical Texan. But on the inside she's a gun totin', ass-kickin, mohawk wearin', tomahawk totin' female with size 11 boots (everything is big in Texas). Along for the ride is Marshal and the above tall, dark, and handsome stranger who just happens to be a warlock.

Because the story is short, I'm not going to spoil the plot. But if you're a fan of dark paranormal stories that don't shy away from blood, language, and violence all in the name of putting dirty bad nasties (DBN's) back into the grave, then E.J. is the author for you. Witch's Nocturne is the second book in the Moonsong trilogy and I can't wait for the third. I've seen werewolves, and now I've seen a powerful coven of witches summoning dark powers under a blood red moon. What's next E.J.?

I give this novella five stars, because I can't wait until the next installment. Witch's Nocturne is more fun than 8 seconds on a bronco at a championship rodeo. And you can take that all the way to the roundup.

If you are intrigued, visit E.J. at his blog HERE. You can also pick up a copy of Witch's Nocturne by visiting his book page HERE wherein you will find links to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other fine online outlets. For 99 cents, you should own this book out of principle. Seriously. Cheapest entertainment ever.

*****

Ellie Garratt allowed me to post on her blog yesterday. If you have time, please go and visit. I'd love to have some more comments to read. 

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Weighted Release Day Blitz

I love this cover! It's like a Nationwide insurance commercial where the guy talks
about "vanishing deductible" and makes a huge boulder hanging over a
woman's head disappear.

Today, I'm participating in the Weighted release day blitz written by critically acclaimed author and fantastic blogger, Ciara Knight. At right, I've included a picture of what she looks like:

This is Ciara Knight. She writes great books.

Ciara writes to ‘Defy the Dark’ with her fantasy and paranormal books. Her debut novel, The Curse of Gremdon, was released to acclaimed reviews, securing a Night Owl Top Pick and five stars from the Paranormal Romance Guild. Also, book I, Rise From Darkness, from her debut young adult Battle For Souls series, secured glowing reviews and won July Book of the Month from Long and Short Reviews.

Her first love, besides her family, reading, and writing, is travel. She's backpacked through Europe, visited orphanages in China, and landed in a helicopter on a glacier in Alaska.

Ciara is extremely sociable so please feel free to connect with her at her blog, website, Twitter, Goodreads, or Facebook,

Weighted (Prequel Novelette)

The Great War of 2185 is over, but my nightmare has just begun. I am being held captive in the Queen’s ship awaiting interrogation. My only possible ally is the princess, but I’m unsure if she is really my friend or a trap set by the Queen to fool me into sharing the secret of my gift. A gift I keep hidden even from myself. It swirls inside my body begging for release, but it is the one thing the Queen can never discover. Will I have the strength to keep the secret? I’ll know the answer soon. If the stories are true about the interrogators, I’ll either be dead or a traitor to my people by morning.

Want to know more about Weighted? Please go read THIS excerpt right now.

Here is where you can find Weighted today. Don't "wait." LOL...punny, right?

SMASHWORDS
AMAZON
BARNES & NOBLE 

It will be up on all online retailers soon, including iBookstore, Kobo, AReCafe, etc…
If anyone has a second to ‘like’ or agree with tags on Amazon, that would be awesome.

Upcoming books in The Neumarian Chronicles:
Escapement (Book I) - Early 2013

Pendulum (Book II) - Mid 2013

Balance (Book III) - Early 2014

Other books by Cara Knight:

Battle for Souls Series

Rise From Darkness

Fall From Grace

Ascension of Evil - Coming in October

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I love that I live in the golden age of trash fiction

The website io9 recently did an article on the golden age of trash culture, and I couldn't agree more. You can read the whole article HERE. In the TL;DR version, basically "there is more corporate-funded trash being unleashed on the public than ever before... and meanwhile, there's a huge wave of new-media trash coming as well."

Isn't it glorious?

All the movie adaptation of this book needs is to cast
Alex Pettyfer as the guy. That's it. Ka-Ching. Google
Alex Pettyfer and you'll see what I'm talking about.

With free books and or 99 cent offerings on kindle, we have access to wafer-thin characters in just about every paranormal situation you could shake a stake at. The rise of erotica with such offerings as Fifty Shades of Gray and the subsequent sequels are plain awesome. Plus you can read smutty books on the kindle in the subway or on the train because no one can see what you're reading so you don't have to be embarrassed by the fact that you're secretly into whips and chains or possess bizarre sex fetishes.

On television insanity rules. Basically, nothing is too insane or too out there. Really, writing has broken through a boundary where you can literally string together a story from four random dice rolls (roll twice in the first section) and it seems to work. Example:

1 A guy who gets naked a lot
2 A girl who gets naked a lot
3 A vampire who gets naked a lot
4 A werewolf who gets naked a lot
5 An alien from the planet Shmieldorf who gets naked a lot
6 A ghost who gets naked a lot

1 Don't have sex but falls in tortured love
2 Can manipulate fire but is a cheerleader
3 Can read minds but feels guilty about that
4 Can teleport into a person's dreams and realizes they are actually dead in real life
5 Learns magic at a school for magical peeps
6 Drives a BMW hybrid while listening to Chicago love songs

1 Takes Newt Gingrich to a moon colony.
2 Saves the world from Goatzilla
3 Pimps minors out for sex
4 Finds a duck with super powers and prevents an alien invasion
5 Wins a game show in a post apocalyptic setting
6 Gets married.

Okay my rolls using my trusty 6-sided dice are: 3, 4, 4, 6
My new story plot is "A vampire who gets naked a lot and a werewolf who gets naked a lot can teleport into a person's dreams and realizes that they are actually dead in real life and then gets married."

I don't think these kinds of stories could have ever had a place in the 80's or the 90's because people would see through them. But now...bring it on baby. Just look at True Blood. I'm addicted to this show which has about as flimsy a writing as anything. In Sunday's episode, a guy talks to Bill Compton and gestures at a book. He says, "Do you know what this is?" Bill answers, "It's a Bible." But then goes on to say that it's not "THE Bible" but the "original testament"...you know...the vampire Bible and then they go on to say how vampires came first and were really god's children and how Adam and Eve came later and it just shows how humans were meant to feed vampires.

Brilliantly written dialogue? Alcide is awesome. This really is

the written conversation. Not kidding.

What did I think of that background? It was both brilliant and incredibly stupid trash and I loved it. The mire of bullshit that flows from writers these days is awesome. In our trashy culture...pure bullshit reigns. You can explain anything away in your plot--plausible no longer matters, just make it up. For television and movies, you don't even need to script it. This kind of thinking can be done on the fly as long as it sounds clever. And being random is now king.

Random True Blood baby eater character that got more lines 
than Alcide 

Random characters (like those in the above picture) are key to trashy stories. Have you seen Jersey Shore? Random is that cast's bread and butter. That and tanning, big bewbs, and tequila.

From the article, io9 points out that Michael Bay is one of the greatest film makers alive. Have you seen a Michael Bay film? All you need are explosions. That's it. Check out one of the greatest moments in last night's True Blood episode. Jessica (the red-head) gave Steve (a former religious pastor) a "Fang Boner" by describing Jason Stackhouse's butt and cock to him and offering to sell him for $20,000.00 since she technically has the rights to Jason's body. How is this at all great television? I have no idea, but I'm glued to the screen like millions of other watchers in America every Sunday with our bowls of Cheetos and our guts hanging out over our belts muttering, "damn...this show is GOOOOOODDDD. Mmmmhmmm."

So writers...WRITE MORE TRASH! WE NEEDSSES IT. There clearly isn't enough. Twilight, as an example, is getting rebooted by Lion's Gate because they don't want to lose their cash cow. Yep, they are going to cast a whole new group of people right after Breaking Dawn, Part Two shatters records this fall.

I can't wait. I hope they get a better looking Edward. #JustSayin

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Nightfire by Alyson Burdette will set your kindle on fire

I give this book five stars out of five.

I just finished Alyson Burdette's Nightfire, and I have to say that this is one of the best vampire books I have ever read. Just so you know, I read Anita Blake (Laurel K. Hamilton), Anne Rice (Lestat), and have read the first book in the Twilight series so it's not like I'm a stranger to vampire fiction.

What I loved:

1) Olivia. She's an amazing and refreshing protagonist. This is a vampire novel told from the female point-of-view (as a vampire and something else). I'm going to leave the "something else" as a spoiler free thing. But trust me...Olivia is not a run-of-the-mill vamp. There's a reason she hangs out around all that water in Peninsula, and I can't wait to see Alyson explore this in future installments of the series.

2) Jesse. Although he does something that is pretty terrible, I couldn't help feeling drawn to his obvious charm. It's clear that he loves Olivia, wants what he sees as is best for her, but ends up hurting her terribly in the climax of the book all to prove a point. I wonder if she'll be able to see that Jesse is probably better for her than William, but Olivia is definitely stuck on William.

3) William. The handsome vampire hunter. Aside from being a tough-as-nails guy he's also got the whole swoon worthy blue-eyed boy-next-door thing going on. I loved every scene in which Alyson explores with this guy. It's some of the best romance writing around.

4) Alyson's prose. She is a great writer. Here are examples pulled from the book:

"He's suddenly little more than a memory, and I wonder if my body has remembered how to dream...His deep blue eyes open wide as he pulls me toward him. They are two glass jars full of fireflies that dance in the moonlight."

"I spit the words out at him, wishing they were knives."

"He laughs, and it is the sound of a thousand birds in song."

Pretty amazing, right?

So yeah. Alyson...when can we expect a sequel? Nightfire has left me wanting more :))

If you haven't met Alyson yet, you might want to hit her up on her blog HERE.

If you want to be supportive, mark her book "to read" on goodreads so that others that follow your stream will see that you at least find the book "of interest". Go HERE to do that.

And if you want a sample or can't wait to read it, go to Amazon right HERE.

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Whisper of Memory by Brinda Berry

Today I would like to welcome author Brinda Berry. I read her first book called The Waiting Booth and reviewed it HERE. Now, she's back with a sequel and it's very exciting.

From Inside the Flap...

Weapons training and winter formals… a deadly combination

All Mia ever wanted was to fit in at Whispering Woods High. But being a portal-finder who dates a guy from another dimension sort of makes it hard. A month ago her brother disappeared, and agents from the IIA began policing people’s movements through dimensions. She’d trusted Dr. Bleeker from the local university when he’d told her the IIA were the bad guys. But even a girl with an extraordinary ability to sense things can make mistakes.

Now two people are dead, and as a portal gatekeeper for the IIA, Mia needs to find Dr. Bleeker before he hurts anyone else. And her boyfriend Regulus, an Agent for the IIA, carries secrets of his own. Between learning about weaponry, finding the perfect dress for the winter formal, and catching bad guys, who has time to fit in?

Brinda is running a contest to celebrate the release of her new book. She is giving away romance trading cards and a Kindle Touch. The giveaway ends on April 30th so please enter below and win win win.

Check out the cool romance card

Now Brinda has a question for you.

High school senior Mia Taylor and her friends seem to draw trouble like a magnet. Did you have anything out of the ordinary happen to you during your senior year? As for me, my senior year was pretty boring. I guess the highlight was that I graduated. Oh and I thought my senior class was lucky...no one died through all three years of high school (and it was a big class). So maybe that's somewhat out of the ordinary. Most high school classes have one or two deaths by the time the average kid reaches graduation. Oh and we had six valedictorians. How dumb is that?

Please be sure to check out Brinda's blog located HERE.

Follow Brinda on twitter @Brinda_Berry

And check her out on Facebook HERE.


Buy Whisper of Memory on Amazon Kindle HERE.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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How do you define success? An answer from author Theresa Milstein

Please give a warm welcome to Theresa Milstein whose short story "Allured" is included in the YA Anthology called Fangtales.  You can find Theresa at her blog located here. I for one am so thankful that I met Theresa through blogging. She is an accomplished, intelligent, and spiritual woman. I would encourage you to get to know her as well through correspondence and through her writing. In reading her guest post on my blog today, I was reminded of his holiness, the Dalai Lama and a very spiritual story.

On October 1st, I attended a program for writers, illustrators, and educators.  It was called Overcoming Challenges.  Authors Jacqueline Davies, Kathryn Lasky, and Lois Lowry were in attendance.  Illustrator Bill Thompson was also on the panel.  All four of them have received awards.  Jacqueline Davies won a Massachusetts Book Award Honor.  Kathryn Lasky won a Newbery Honor.  Lois Lowry won two Newbery Medals.  Bill Thompson won awards and was up for a Caldecott. 

When they were asked, “How do you define success?” I listened. 

Not too long ago, I wondered how I’d define success.  I wrote a post about it called “Making It”. 

Author Theresa Milstein on the left and author Jacqueline Davies on the right.

Jacqueline Davies answered this in three bullet points:

1)     Write what she wanted to write

2)     Have a lot of readers

3)     Earn a living as a writer

She’s recently accomplished her three goals.

Kathryn Lasky said she feels successful because, “Everyday I get up and re-invent the world.”

Lois Lowry said she feels the word is subjective, like trying to obtain perfection.  “Satisfaction is more important.” 

Theresa Milstein and Lois Lowry

Bill Thompson had the most poignant answer.  He thought winning a Caldecott Medal would be his measure of success.  When his book was being considered, he thought he’d reach his goal.

He’s also a teacher.

A student stood up in his classroom.  She collapsed.  Face-forward onto concrete.  He checked her.  She was breathing, so he didn’t start CPR.  He didn’t want to move her in case she’d injured her spine.  He had someone call for help.  Then she stopped breathing.  He performed CPR until the ambulance arrived. 

Bill visited her in the hospital.  She was in a coma.  She had a husband of six months.  He prayed that he didn’t care about the award.  He’d rather have her live. 

Eventually she woke up.

He didn’t receive the award.

He’s learned not to focus on worldly praise.  He loves that he can do what he loves to do.

He’s still a teacher.  If someone called him in the middle of the night and asked him what he is, he’d say, “Illustrator.” 

All of the writers who haven’t been published, what would they say if they received that call in the middle of the night?

I’ve had two short stories published.  I clearly don’t make my living as a writer.  My time is divided between so many different jobs: mother, instructional aide, wannabe teacher, student, and writer.  What would I say?  Would I feel like a fraud to respond, “I’m a writer,” because I don’t make my living from it?

I think about my stories almost all the time.

I will still write when my children grow up.

I’ll still be typing tales when I retire from teaching.

Am I defined by a paycheck or a role or a passion?

When that call comes, I hope I’m brave enough to answer, “Writer.”

FANGTALES:

Available from Barnes and Noble.

Available from Amazon, the World's Largest Bookseller.

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