Welcome Author D. C. Juris/Excerpt

So let’s get this party started. Please tell us about yourself. What got you interested in being an author? Hi there! Thanks for having me. I was born in Florida, but moved to Upstate NY in 2001. I'm a transgender man, and I live with my husband, four small dogs, and three cats.

Can you tell me a bit about your most recent/upcoming release? I've got a 7-story anthology called "Simply Smut" due out in a few days from Breathless Press. The stories consist of 4 m/m stories, 2 transgender stories, and one female masturbation story.

For any readers who may not have read any of your books, can you just give us a little sneak peak into your world (i.e. the type of genre you write, type of stories you like to write....etc)? I write all across the spectrum in regards to pairings - I write m/f, m/m, f/f, and transgender. As far as a preference, I'm more comfortable with m/m or transgender, but I enjoy the challenge of m/f. Although my stories are anywhere from sweet (no sex) to heavy, bloody BDSM, all of my books can be categorized as romance, and they all have happy endings. As far as settings, I typically write contemporary or fantasy.

How much of yourself, if any, do you put into your characters? Some and none. I do draw on my own experiences for my transgender characters. But all of my characters have their own backgrounds and personalities. We have very little in common overall.

Is there a genre you haven’t done that you would like to explore in the future? I haven't done a historical. I'd love to, but frankly the amount of research just terrifies me.

If you could throw a party with any five people (living or dead) who would you pick and why? Oscar Wilde, Edgar Allan Poe, Gerard Butler (he has to arrive naked, just because he's so much fun to look at), Tim Curry, and Ron Jeremy. Yep. :-)

What are at least five things you have on your bucket list and have you done any of them? I don't have a bucket list. If I want to do something passionately enough, I'll make it happen.

Is there one series/author you feel is a must read for readers to explore (can be e book authors or print NY house authors)? It all depends on the genre.

Do you listen to music when writing? Do you feel like some stories write themselves a soundtrack with specific music? If so, what book and what kind of music influenced it? I don't feel like any of my stories have a soundtrack, however I do have a specific playlist that I listen to when I'm in the mood for music when I write. It's a varied list that ranges from Pearl Jam, to Nirvana, to The Black Eyed Peas, to Ludacris, to the Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos.

What is coming up for you in 2011? 2011 is turning out to be a busy year for me! I've had four releases so far, and have at least three more, including another story featuring Calliph and Mateo, my werewolf/werecat pair.

Are any of your characters just like you or have personality quirks/traits of you or someone you know? My character Derek is probably the closest thing to me on paper.

Where can readers find you on the web?

www.dcjuris.com

www.facebook.com/dcjuris

www.twitter.com/dcjuris

http://dcjuris.livejournal.com

and I'm published at:

www.torquerepress.com

www.fannypress.com

www.breathlesspress.com

www.nobleromance.com

www.mlrpress.com

www.ravenousromance.com

 Sneak Peek into Simply Smut  Anthology

Available at Breathless Press

Excerpt from "Rub-a-Dub-Dub"

Amber closed her eyes and leaned back in the tub, resting her head on the curved edge. She thought back to earlier in the day, to the website of erotic stories she'd run across at work. She'd been doing a search for a favorite romance author, and had wound up finding one by the same name, with a different spelling. But the stories she discovered weren't romantic at all, but steamy, hot tales of pure, unadulterated sex. Sex for the sake of sex, and, while she had initially turned up her nose, she hadn't been able to suppress a little bit of curiosity. 

She'd gone back to the website and was soon opening tab after tab in her browser, pouring over tale after tale of all kinds of sexual acts—anal sex, oral sex, BDSM, even homosexual sex—and then there were the things she'd never even heard of. The story about cock docking had nearly done her in. Such imagery in the authors' words! She had pictured every story in her mind, and by the time the end of the day rolled around, she had worked herself into such a sexual frenzy she'd barely been able to keep her cool when she'd stepped out of her office.

She'd hurried home, fed the goldfish, grabbed up her favorite sex toys, and gone immediately for the bathroom. Now here she sat, hot water up to her shoulders, still just as turned on as she had been when she'd left work.

Excerpt from "Torn"

Torn's not like any other place you've ever been. That planet has a soul—remember that. She'll demand your respect, and you'd do best to give it.

And in true human fashion, William had dismissed the words of his superior officer. Ten years of living in the barely-describable-as-civilized wilderness of Torn without incident had only served to cement his belief—no, his conceit—that nothing could stop him. There existed nothing that William, indeed any human, couldn't conquer, couldn't bend to their will. Couldn't convert.

Except Torn. She'd proven that, at last, and taken back the land from terraforming, digging, and drilling. Torn had handed down her revenge. The storm—the natives called it The Great Anger—had come on quickly. No preceding black skies, no foretelling howling winds. No time to react. No warning. Nothing.

Crudely built, the wooden shanties they had lived in had splintered and crumbled under the powerful gusting gales. The Great Anger had ripped mighty trees from their roots as if they had not been rooted at all, careened them through the air like they'd weighed no more than twigs. They'd become weapons in Torn's plan, a way of bringing about even more damage as they were slammed through walls and rooftops. Quakes had split the roads open, torrential rains had flooded the cities. In its wake, the Great Anger had left nothing but devastation.

You Oughta Be In Pictures by Josh Lanyon

You Oughta Be In Pictures!

Like pretty much every author I know, I’m always trying to find new ways of promoting my work to potential readers. It’s tough out there these days. We’re all watching our pennies, and for most of us our disposable income is shrinking. That means less money to spend on entertainment. Meanwhile, the ranks of writers are growing steadily. Sometimes it seems like there are three writers for every reader I stumble across.

One method of promotion that I see getting a lot of press lately is the book trailer. You know: those one to three minute mini-movies that are -- counter intuitively -- supposed to help sell books. As other methods of marketing are exhausted -- or just fall flat -- I see more and more ebook authors trying the literary version of the music vid. With mixed results.

I was recently reading an article in the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/11/fashion/11AuthorVideos.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=author%20takes%20a%20star%20turn&st=cse) about how putting together a book trailer is pretty much considered standard procedure now in mainstream publishing. Generally mainstream book trailers consist of a writer talking about writing, or reading from their latest work, but a lot of trailers are more dramatic, more theatrical. More like mini-movies.

One thing the NYT article pointed out was that it’s difficult to draw a direct correlation between book sales and book trailers, but then it’s often hard to draw a direct correlation between most promotion efforts and book sales. Besides, what works for one author and one book, may not work for another.

Still, there is a native appeal to the idea of a book trailers. We’re a visual generation. Most of us grew up with TV, movies, and way too many of us spent our formative years watching music vids and playing video games.

Plus, a lot of us dream of seeing our work on the big (or even little) screen, and for the vast majority, a book trailer is as close as we’re going to get.

Not everyone thinks book trailers are a great idea. Laura Miller of Salon.com (http://www.salon.com/books/laura_miller/2010/01/26/book_trailers)

thinks they’re pretty much a waste of time and money if only because the average book buyer is unlikely to ever see a book trailer.  (Unless they’re already checking out the book and the author, in which case…the trailer is probably moot.)

I tend to agree with Miller, both about the effectiveness of book trailers and the difficulty of getting the right people to see them. Still, they are an interesting development in book marketing, and my feeling is, since it’s all cumulative anyway, can having a book trailer possibly hurt?

Well, yes. If the trailer is really bad, it probably can hurt. An amateurish or unattractive trailer might actually be worse than no trailer at all -- this is certainly my gut feeling scrolling through the offerings at YouTube. But a good book trailer can set you back anywhere from a couple of hundred to a couple of thousand dollars, and most of us in the indie publishing sector don’t have that kind of dough to throw around on an “iffy” marketing tool.

Bringing us back to the problem of finding new ways to promote your work in an increasingly crowded market. I mean, how many banner ads can we run or excerpts post before it begins to seem like we’ve exhausted another resource? This is how I happened to be pricing book trailers one day and came across a casual reference to the fact that most of us with computers already have “movie making software.”

Say what?!

I checked my laptop, and sure enough. I’ve got something called Windows Movie Maker right there in my programs. Macs have their own movie making programs. But even if you’re computer doesn’t come with a DIY movie maker, there are all kinds of free downloadable programs on the web.

Anyway, I clicked to open WMM and -- totally intimidated by what I saw there -- immediately closed the program. But I was curious enough that I began surfing the web for articles on Do It Yourself book trailers.

There are tons and tons of articles on making your own book trailer. To be honest, I found most of them confusing. They either took too much for granted on the part of the student director or they got too technical. Let me just tell you now that you need to read a number of them and then you need to play with your movie making software. Be patient. Be prepared for a slow learning curve.

A couple of articles I found useful -- not least because of their helpful list of additional links -- were:

http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/39-FE6-BookTrailerBasics.html

http://thewriterslife.homestead.com/booktrailers.html

I won’t reinvent the wheel by writing my own article on how to make a book trailer (or at least not until I feel I’m better at it myself), but I’ll share my tips on things to remember when creating a book trailer -- as both a fan of book trailers and a novice book trailer producer.

1 - Find good music. There are plenty of royalty-free sources. If you are not using a royalty-free source, use only a snippet (the ideal book trailer length is less than two minutes long), credit the artist, and promote the buying of the song/album by posting your book trailer to YouTube where buy links will be attached automatically for copyrighted works. I don’t know that I’ve ever bought a book based on a book trailer, but I’ve definitely bought albums based on them.

2 - Go easy on the text. Rather than thinking of your book trailer as a mini-movie, I’d think of it as a music vid. Instead of offering blocks and blocks of text like a book jacket, restrain yourself to key phrases that capture mood and theme. In a book trailer, mood and theme are actually more important than plot and character.

3 - Avoid spoilers. I can’t believe how many book trailers give away key story points -- the very things writers would be shrieking at their publishers for. You’re not actually making a movie of the book, so don’t reveal the name of the killer or the climactic moment of the book. Don’t tell us how it all ends. The idea here is to get someone to buy the book.

4 - Keep it short. The basic rule of thumb is between one to three minutes, but most people seem to agree about a minute and a half is optimum for a DIY book trailer.

5 - Use large enough photos and art. Unless you’re deliberately going for a blurry effect, you want sharp, clear photographs and film clips. That means selecting images of 400x500 and up. Anything smaller is probably going to be blurry.

There are all kinds of other tips and tricks, but those are generally covered in the majority of book trailer articles.

As for my own results…I’ve had a lot of fun experimenting with book trailers. I’ve yet to sell a book based on a trailer (at least that I know of). The biggest benefit, oddly enough, is that planning out the book trailer in advance is a great way of clarifying in my own mind the tone and theme of a book I’m working on. Book trailers as a writing tool! Who knew.

Oh, and I suppose it’s only fair to share one of my own trailers. Here’s the trailer for my m/m mystery romance Fair Game, due out from Carina Press August 2^nd.   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61zbV6jHiug 

Fair Game

Coming from Carina Press in August!

http://www.joshlanyon.com/

http://jgraeme2007.livejournal.com/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JoshLanyon

Getting to know author Ashlynn Monroe

Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story.

My first release with Wild Horse Press is called Hidden Magic and it is the story of a woman who learns that she has a very special destiny.  This destiny was hidden from her to protect her.  I have always loved magic and my malicious magician was actually inspired by my love of street magic. 

How would you describe your creative process while writing this book? Was it stream-of-consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline?

I am a very random kind of person!  I never use an outline except when making a book proposal for an unfinished piece.  I just let it flow.

Did your book require a lot of research?

In Chemical Lust I researched Project MKULTRA.  It was a secret CIA project that tested on humans and had some terrible consequences.  

If you could have any vice without repercussions, what would it be?

I quit smoking a long while ago, but sometimes I really miss it.  

If you could have been the servant to any famous person in history, who would that be and why?

Emily Bronte, she is my all time favorite writer.

What so you see for the future of publishing and eBooks?

I think that in another twenty years the majority of books will be sold electronically.  I am so glad to be a part of the revolution now.  I love to read eBooks because there are so many fresh ideas and voices that the traditional paper publishers would reject.

Which of your characters do you love/hate/fear/pity the most and why?

I love Jericho in Chemical Lust.  He is a super hot guy but he is able to see Leah’s inner beauty.  He reminds me of my husband.

Do you get along with your muse? What do you do to placate her when she refuses to inspire you?

My muse has been inspiring me since I was a very little girl.  I remember telling stories with my cousins before I was even in school.  I have been writing since I was thirteen.  Imagination is the only thing that gets me through the day some days.  So far my muse has never abandoned me, yet (gulp).

Do you have another book in the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects?

I am so excited for my Templar Vampire Series that is coming out with Keith Publications this fall!  I am hoping for 10 books in all and the 1^st is called Pray for Me.  Michael is the 1^st of my tormented Templar Knights.  I use real history and legend and then I give it a special twist.  I am working on book two and three right now.

Have you ever experience weird cravings while you write? If so, what kind?

After a particularly difficult scene to write I usually want a beer ***Wink***.

What are your top 3 favorite paranormal books and movies?

My three favorite books are The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance, The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance, and Blood Dance by J. L. Oiler.  My three favorite movies are Twilight (I know I’m one of those people!) The Vampire Diaries and Fringe are my favorite television shows I don’t watch many movies.

What character (s) in any of your books is most like you?

Alexia from hidden magic is most like me.

What is the most ridiculous thing that you have thought about doing to any of your characters but never did?

One of my current WIPs is a story call Whitney in Wonderland, the other dimension that Whitney is trapped in is a void of time where pieces of all time past and present exists simultaneously.  I was going to have the hero fighting a t-rex but I just couldn’t do it!

What books are currently on your nightstand?

I am working on the Stand by Steven King again.

If someone hasn't read any of your work, what book would you recommend that they start with and why?

As Hidden Magic is the only one that is available right now…I would say that one.

Where can we find you on the web?

ashlynnmonroe.webs.com/

Hidden Magic will be available from Wild Horse Press June 8^th and Chemical lust will be available from Cobblestone Press early July.

Excerpt-Chemical Lust:

Coming to Cobblestone Press in July 2010 (www.cobblestonepress.com)

Leah tried to cover her mouth and nose, but it was too late. She was already feeling lightheaded, the first sign that the drug was taking hold of her. Jericho seemed to be fairing no better than she was, even with his makeshift mask. His pupils dilated; she assumed hers were as well. No matter what, she was still the scientist, so she began to mentally compile her data on their reaction. If they lived, she would have much to say about the effectiveness of the drug, as she was now experiencing it firsthand with her knowledge of its structure and of how the human body would metabolize it.

Jericho stumbled and dropped to the floor. His large frame made the elevator shake, but it still had not moved. Leah also lost her strength and sank down next to him. The gas was starting to dissipate, and they were still alive. For one moment of relief, she was sure that the gas was having no effect on her—and then it happened. Raging fire shot through her body, and she gasped for air. Her head fell back as her back arched. She felt as if she was on the brink of an orgasm right there, fully dressed and untouched on the elevator floor. Her keen awareness of Jericho’s eyes on her and the fact he was watching with interest, not saying or doing anything, made it all the more embarrassing and yet kind of kinky. Leah actually shook her head to try and clear that thought away. I am a scientist, and this is a perfectly uncontrollable reaction to a laboratory mishap, she reassured herself. I am in no way responsible for my actions, she thought as if pleading with her own subconscious.

Before she completely gave in to her loss of control, she managed to grab her jacket off the floor and flip it up to where the security camera was pointing directly at her. She did not want even more of an audience for her panting and writhing; it was bad enough that Jericho seemed to be completely aware of her predicament and enjoying it thoroughly. It made her hot just knowing he was the one seeing her need. She wanted him between her legs. She wanted him to fuck her right there on the elevator floor—an elevator that could start working any second, she reminded herself. Jericho’s perfect lips made her want to kiss him more than she’d thought it possible to want to kiss anyone. She was never the sexual aggressor in a relationship, but she suddenly wanted to pin him to the floor and remove his clothing until nothing but skin was rubbing together in delicious friction. 

*~*

Excerpt Hidden Magic

Coming to The Wild Horse Press June 8th, 2010

They grabbed the children and stroller and started to leave. Suddenly, the magician made himself appear in front of Alexia.  She was startled and honestly afraid for her niece and nephew’s safety.  She casually gave the performer the finger and said, “Excuse me. Your show stinks and we want to leave.  Please get out of our way!”  The word please pushed passed through her teeth with menace. 

       A strange light entered his eyes and Alexia immediately regretted letting her temper get the best of her. While she was not surprised that her temper was causing her trouble again, she regretted it anyway.  He looked down at the almost sleeping Dixie and Alexia panicked.  Gripping the child tighter, she tried to run, but the crowd had blocked her in.  Georgia and Little Tony found themselves pushed to the back of the crowd, everyone wanted to see what would happen next.  Alexia saw him feeding on her fear, enjoying it.  Reaching around them, he yanked the doll away from the girl and held it up to the crowd.  Alexia whispered, “You better not damage that or I’ll sue your ass buddy!” 

       He looked at her and this time his eyes held humor instead of anger.  He spoke to the crowd.  “I am going to make this doll live by giving it part of this child’s spirit!”  Alexia heard the collected gasp followed by the obligatory rabble. 

       “I don’t think so pal!”  She spoke with her full force of girl power while raising her knee, attempting to make contact with his groin.  Unfortunately, this magician also had fortune telling skills because he had blocked her movement and she kneed his thigh instead.  He laughed and then became scary intense.  Alexia heard his whisper in a strange lilting language she had not ever heard before. Suddenly, she felt her niece stiffen in her arms and then go limp.  Dixie’s little arms dangled as Alexia struggled with the dead weight of the child.  Alexia motioned for the bystanders to back up and give her room. Somehow, they managed to accommodate even with the crowd pressing in on them.  Alexia laid her beloved niece on the hot asphalt of the patio and felt for a pulse.  To her relief the child was alive.  Tears of fear and suffocating sorrow flowed from her eyes as she tried to revive the girl.  She began to call for help.  In the distance, she could hear Georgia screaming.  She looked up, about to plead that he stop whatever he had done. 

            Her breath caught in her throat and she could not breath as she saw the most horrific thing she could possible imagine. 

Talking with author Ed Williams

“When I Have A Godzillian Level Urge For Candy I Eat…”

…the following, and these are in order of preference. They be:

1. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups - Man, talk about heroin converted into candy form, I’ve craved Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups for years! Their texture is great, their chocolate is both kinda chunky and kinda creamy, and their peanut butter - if I could, I’d sneak into a Reese’s production facility, get buck naked, and then jump into a vat full of their peanut butter. I might end up getting covered up in it or even drown, but I’d be gobblin’ it down like a Linda Lovelace inspired turkey before my final chapter was written - Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups rock!

2. Atomic Fireballs - I love hot candies and I love cinnamon, so my addiction to Atomic Fireballs can only be deemed a natural. I first encountered them years ago in Juliette at my granddad’s general store (y’all have actually seen his store in the movies, it was used as the Whistle Stop Café in the movie Fried Green Tomatoes). Back then, you could get one for a couple of pennies and they were a lot bigger than they are now. So big, in fact, that you could barely get one in your mouth, and God when you did it would be hotter than a Times Square Rolex! Thing was, if you could get past that initial burst of hotness then it was all sugar the rest of the way. Today, their hotness technology has improved, so even though Atomic Fireballs are smaller they now have multiple layers of hot cinnamon built right into them so you get more of an “Atomic” experience as you’re happily consuming a fireball.

3. Sweet Tarts - I love sour candies too, and accordingly I’ve loved Sweet Tarts since day one. You can buy them in small or huge sizes, but one thing about Sweet Tarts really frustrates me. A few years ago I actually had some Sweet Tart Jelly Beans. They were the best jelly beans I’ve ever had in my life, y’all would not believe how good their flavor is! Unfortunately, I’ve discovered they’re pretty hard to find, so if anyone out there ever wants to suck up to me in a major way, then just get me some Sweet Tart Jelly Beans. The only thing that would make me happier than Sweet Tart Jelly Beans would be an Elvis concert, and we all know that can’t happen again. Sweet Tart Jelly Beans, however, can!

4. Sour Jelly Bellies - In line with my just professed love of sour candies is another fav, Sour Jelly Bellies! They are usually just a bit expensive, but believe me they’re worth every extra cent you’ll pay for ‘em. Whatever you do, don’t ever buy the store brand equivalents of these, because you’ll be even more disappointed than you’d be if you purchased store brand Captain Crunch. Sour Jelly Bellies taste good, and there are maybe six or seven flavors offered, so a hand full of them is a bit more focused than just regular Jelly Bellies. With regular Jelly Bellies there are just too many flavors, and some of them are grotesque. Cream soda? Chili mango? Dr. Pepper? Pomegranate? God, it makes my stomach spasm to even think about them, and even worse is the fact that you never quite know when you’re going to be biting into one of these pellets from hell. Stick to the sours and your glower will turn from dour to super powered!

5. Peppermint Life Savers - I love their taste, their consistency, and the fact that after you eat five or six of ‘em your mouth will be so cool that you’ll feel like you could use it for refrigeration purposes. They price ‘em reasonably and now they offer even bigger sizes, which is just all too cool (pun intended) with me. Eating a Peppermint Life Saver is kinda like having a Bachman-Turner Overdrive concert take place on your palate, and just how cool would that be if it were possible? Hmmmmm? (Don’t y’all like it when I get into abstract analogies that don’t make sense at all)?

So there y’all have it, my personal candy favs of all-time. But hey, this isn’t all about what my favorite commercial candy products are, I wanna know what y’all like, tell me about your own personal favs and why. That should start a really interesting conversational thread going here today. And, if anyone out there has any leads on where to get some Sweet Tart Jelly Beans, then please let me know if you’d like to have a new best friend for life! Now, with everything having been said, let’s talk candy, candy, and more candy below…..

"ChristmaSin'", my new Christmas novel, is now available for sale! Click this link below to order!

www.christmasinthebook.com

www.elwiii.gather.com
www.ed-williams.com
www.twitter.com/ELW3

Getting to Know Author Donna Hatch

Tell us about your most recent book. What’s it about? When does/did it release?

Queen in Exile was released on April 1, 2010. I’m choosing to ignore the implications of it coming out on April Fool’s Day!

The only surviving member of her family, a princess must place her life and the fate of her kingdom into the hands of a trained killer. But accepting both her destiny and her own dark powers will mean choosing between her people, and the man she loves.

How long have you been writing in general? How long have you been writing romance?

Casually writing? Always. Seriously writing to get published? About the last five years. I’ve always been drawn to romance, not only because there’s a guaranteed happily ever after (a must in fiction!) but I love to vicariously experience the euphoria of falling in love.

Do you write anything other than romance? Under this name or a different one?

Nope. I write both historical Regency and fantasy, but both have strong romantic elements.

Tell us something about you that you’d like your readers to know.

I hear voices. And I talk to them. Oh, you mean something not creepy? Um, I’m an incurable romantic and a hopeless optimist. I also use sarcasm as a part of my normal speech, which, really, seems contradictory, huh?

When you look back now on the first story you ever wrote, what do you think of it?

I hope no one ever finds it. It could be blackmail of the worst kind.

What goals do you have for your writing career?

To sell more books than Nora Roberts and Stephanie Myers put together;-)

Would you like to share any words of wisdom with aspiring/new authors?

Be persistent. Most people have dreams of writing a novel, but never finish one. Most people who finish a novel never submit it, and most who submit, give up after a few rejections.

Where can your readers learn more about you? (Website, blog, etc.) Where can your books be purchased?

www.donnahatch.com

http://donnahatch.blogspot.com

I’m also on Twitter and Facebook. I love new friends.

Out of the books you’ve written, which is your favorite and why?

Oh, no fair! That’s like asking me to choose a favorite child. But the new releases definitely get most of my attention.

I’m also running a contest to win a book for free and you have five chances if you do all five, or you can just do one or a few:

1.    go to my website and then find out what is the name of the hero of Queen in Exile (hint, read the backcover blurb underneath the book cover), then send me an email at donnahatch29@gmail.com, telling me the answer to the question and put "Queen in Exile for free" in the subject line

2.    Follow my blog, then send me an email at donnahatch29@gmail.com, telling me you're now following me and put "free book" in the subject line.

3.    Leave a comment in my blog, www.donnahatch.blogspot.com. Then send me an email at donnahatch29@gmail.com and put “free book” in the subject line.

4.    Friend me on Facebook,  (http://www.facebook.com/people/Donna-Hatch/1053967713#!/profile.php?ref=profile&id=1053967713) then send me an email at donnahatch29@gmail.com, telling me you're now my friend on Face book and put "free book" in the subject line.
Remember, for each thing you do, you have another chance to win. Good Luck!!!
Thank you, Donna for joining us. You can find Donna’s books at Amazon, your local bookstore, and Costcos across the country. 

Queen in Exile blurb:

Rumors of war hang over Princess Jeniah's peaceful country of Arden, a land that shuns both magic and warfare. Following a lifelong dream, Jeniah forms a telpathic bond with a revered creature called a chayim, who is prophesied to save her kingdom. But when a Darborian knight comes upon Jeniah with her chayim, he sees only a vicious monster about to devour a maiden, and he slays the beast.

Devastated by the loss of her chayim, and fearing that her own magic is evil, Jeniah doubts her destiny. When an enemy invades Arden City, they slaughter the people, storm the castle, and execute the entire royal family except the princess. Rescued by the knight who slew her chayim, Jeniah is now heir to the throne of Arden and the only hope for freeing her people.

On the run and hunted by enemy soldiers, Jeniah must place her life and the fate of her kingdom in the hands of this trained killer. Torn between embracing her destiny as queen of Arden, and her love for a mere knight, she must ultimately rely on her magic to save herself and her people from death and tyranny.

It's Proposal Day with Author Marianne Stephens

It’s Proposal Day

Ah, love and romance. They meet. Fall in love. He proposes. Spring is coming and thoughts of single women now turn from “we’re just a couple” relationships to “I want it all”…that “Happily-Ever-After” ending of marriage.

Visions of a man getting down on one knee, lovingly looking up into the eyes of the woman he loves and asking her to marry him, fill the heads of little girls from childhood when we first play “Let’s Pretend” with a neighborhood boy. We want that fantasy wedding, white gown and veil, new life, our own family.

But first, you may have to kiss a lot of toads along the way. No one warns you that finding “Mr. Right” may take forever. And, the older you get, the younger a man wants his date/wife to be. Plus, the more set in your ways you become, just as a man does.

Where do you find that man who’ll propose? Night spots? Concerts? The Internet? Blind dates?

Some are lucky. They find the right man and seem to know it immediately. I remember meeting my husband and thinking “this is the kind of man I could take home to meet my mother”. A month after we met, we argued. Then, we “made up”.  We each said we loved the other. Then my husband said, “I guess we better go get a ring.” That was it. My proposal. Simple and to the point. No knee bending. We married six months later and are still married after almost 40 years.

Some aren’t so lucky. Their dates lead nowhere and they wallow through the muddy waters of the dating pool longer than desired. Are they being picky? Are the guys they date confirmed bachelors? Do women have a list of characteristics they want in a man that makes it impossible for anyone to live up to?  Do they keep dating the same type of “marriage phobic” men?

Do men actually go through the act of formally proposing? When one of my daughters got engaged, her husband proposed in front of the entire family…and got down on one knee. Very romantic. Sweet. Charming. They divorced two years later.

Proposals come in all types of encounters, acts, and conversations…and some are “surprise” proposals (like at a football game, live and on TV).  The knee bit is nice, but may not be what happens to everyone. Declaring love for each other and the realization that you want to spend the rest of your life with that loved one inspires a marriage proposal.

I think about my books, and I’ve never had my hero drop to a knee and propose. Declare his love and propose, yes. But I’ve never used the formal ritual. Does it take away something from the hero’s appeal? I don’t think so…not in my books or “real” life! In “Anything You Can Do”, my hero proposes in a special romantic way…you’ll have to read the book to find out how!

Has someone proposed to you? Have you proposed to someone? In these times, it’s not taboo for a woman to propose…just maybe out of the ordinary. What’s your story?

Visit http://www.mariannestephens.net (mainstream contemporary/paranormal romance books).

New ebook release, “Anything You Can Do”, is available at: http://www.breathlesspress.com.

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Meet "New to Me" Author Kiki Howell

Excerpt From A Questionable Hero Available Now at http://www.shadowfirepress.com

A divine proclivity to perceive imminent danger made Shaebiel turn in time to glimpse the glinting silver of a demon’s sword inches from slashing into her flesh. As her body tensed for the pain, a sharp metallic clash rang in her ears followed by the shrill grate of metal against metal. Two long daggers crossed beside her, and moments later a human form was reduced to smoky ash on the blacktop. To her utter confusion and dismay, when she followed the length of the sword that had saved her, it was held by a demon—a devilish being with magnetic silver eyes.

These eyes, lighter than the inky black of most of his kind, bore into hers, searched hers. As an angel warrior gifted with empathic abilities she could feel lust burning over the rush of his more erratic feelings of fear, confusion and shame. It could have been a minute or an hour they stood there, because time seemed to stand still wrapped in the embrace of this man’s stare. Her angel’s sword of light remained down at her side instead of being jabbed into the cavity of his chest to kill him. At the same time, he slowly returned his weapon to his side rather than coming for her. They were opposing sides of the war in a shocked stalemate, entranced by each other, out of sync with the natural order of events.

Before she could figure out a plan of action, a sword of light wielded by another Angel warrior seared through the demon’s hip. His cry cut through the background noise of the fighting, causing her rapid breathing to pause. He grabbed at the burning flesh and his sooty hair fell over his face. Another angel, seeing the demon who had saved her as an obvious threat given his proximity, had come to her rescue as well.  She stood there frozen as if she had never been trained for such a battle.

The attacking angel warrior to her right was still in a duel with his own demon. His one light sword had stopped a metal dagger in mid-air. Metal forged with evil intent could not cut through the light produced by heavenly beings. At the same time, his other sword stabbed a second time at the demon before her. It seared his thigh. His cry was cut off to a mere rush of air as if he had been punched in the stomach. Then, her questionable hero fell between two trash cans adorning the asphalt land. She had to hand it to the other angel for trying to fight two demons at once. The angel warrior’s aim may have been off, but his mission had been successful. He had unknowingly saved her from her savior. The warring emotions of this evil incarnation now at her feet struck her with the impact of a bludgeon.

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Working With Sequels by Heather Kreul

 

Working with sequels

For me, when it comes to writing nothing is worse than working on the sequel. Especially if people loved the first work that you are basing your sequel on. There is a lot of pressure, hoping that you don’t disappoint the fans you have while attracting new readers to your work. I’ve come across this several times while writing. To date I have four characters that have been blessed with sequels; Xerri, Amythist, Mika, and Sarah. Some of these sequels have been published, some haven’t. Yet, each of them had their own troubles to deal with.

Xerri was the easiest while Sarah was (and still is) the hardest. There are some rules I have learned while writing a series. These rules have been mainly for my short stories, especially those concerning Amythist and Mika, but I have found that they are useful when writing longer works.

1)      Assume the reader hasn’t read your other works. Don’t write a story that you MUST read story A before reading story B. You’ll lose readers that way.

2)      Don’t get crazy about details. Amythist lost her lover to a demon. It comes up, since most of her stories are dealing with revenge, but I don’t explain everything. If a reader wants to know how it happened, they can go to my website and look it up. Also, don’t explain everything. Does knowing exactly how Amythist lost her lover help the plot any? No. Then leave it out. I can easily say, “Memories of the past assaulted Amythist, making it hard to breath. ‘Dalli,’ she whispered. Her heart ached, but she couldn’t focus on that now. She had work to do.” See what I mean. No need to go into it. The reader knows that something in her past hurt her, but they don’t need to know exactly what.

3)      Be consistent. Make sure the same rules apply in every story. Readers will be able to tell if you change something, especially if Sarah was a werewolf in one story and a weresquirrel in another.

4)      This is the most important one. Pay close attention….

Have fun!

You just created an awesome character and a world for them to live in. Play with it. See what can happen. Nothing is off limits!

Heather Kuehl

Promises to Keep, available 3/7/10 from Eternal Press

Summary

Starlette is on a mission, and nothing will get in her way.

Starlette DeFore knows that her father is alive, even though her family buried him ten years ago. When a faerie confirms this she travels to Charleston, South Carolina to hunt down Sivad Night, the only person to have ever escaped from the hands of a powerful sorceress, the Dark Lady Dreashae. With help from a witch, Stalette travels into Verella, a fantasy realm filled with centaurs, dragons and magic. She is very close to finding her father, but first must defeat Dreashae.

Will Starlette, a mere mortal, have the strength needed to finish her quest and save her father?

Excerpt

I heard Sivad scream my name as mud rose up and cut off my words. It enveloped me, filling my mouth with gritty swamp muck and submersing me. I rolled around frantically, trying to get free of the mess and gulp some air. I felt something near me in the water, and my body stilled as a voice came to my ears.

“I’ll decide when you can breathe, just as I can decide whether you will live or die.”

The voice was soft and deceptively pleasing, like a viper hiding in the grass. I struggled, my hands at my mouth trying to scoop away the muck that was choking me. The voice laughed, a tinkling of bells, and I had the image of a dark-haired woman sitting in a throne room made of onyx. Her gossamer dress clung to her, accenting all her curves. She looked like a seductive goddess, and I knew that was how she liked to be seen. Dreashae’s dark eyes burned into mine, and I wondered how I could see all this if I was under water in a swamp with mud trying to smother me. I reached up and felt my hand rise above the water, the cool night air brushing across it. Then the world went black as the ground swallowed me. I struggled and fought to get free, but my body was slow. The mud clogged my lungs as I tried to gasp for breath. Darkness opened its gates, and I gladly walked in.

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