****To celebrate, I’ve decided to GIVE a PDF copy of my spin off short story, TSAVO PRIDE, to every person who purchases a copy of Shifting Pride (ecopy or paperback)!****
Send proof of purchase to: laurabdiamond@yahoo.com
Please spread the word–It’s MUCH APPRECIATED!
Come back on SATURDAY, May 25 when I help Heather Van Fleet celebrate the release of her latest YA contemp romance, When It’s Least Expected!
I’m soooooo excited to share my new short story, TSAVO PRIDE. It’s a spin off based on the man-eating lions of Tsavo, so it has a decidedly horroresque bent. For those of you who read Shifting Pride, you know that the lions of Tsavo made a cameo appearance. Now, they have their own story.
Here’s a teaser trailer on YouTube:
Blurb:
Rogue shapeshifters, Santamo and Legeny, believe they are kings blessed with the power to shift into lions. Using that strength, they brutally defend their land from the British building the Ugandan Railroad that threatens their way of life. On a particularly ruthless raid, Santamo meets his match—Naserian. He spares the girl’s life, a move that fractures his relationship with Legeny and blurs his visions of cleansing his territory of invaders.
While the pile of bones in Santamo and Legeny’s cave grows, so does Santamo’s attraction to Naserian. When she challenges him to give up his murderous ways, will Santamo stay on the path of death he believes is his duty, or will he choose Naserian, and love?
As a final send off, this Wednesday is another edition of the Indie Life. I’d just like to point out that I would have never attempted to self publish anything if it weren’t for this fabulous group of authors. They took the plunge into the deep, vast waters of publishing and have steered their own course to success. Thanks for being an inspiration!
What is Indie Life? How: Sign up on the Linky at the bottom of this page When: Post on the second Wednesday of the month (starting 1/9/2013) What: Write anything indie related: something that will inspire or help a fellow indie; something that celebrates a release or a milestone; something that talks about the ups and downs, joys and heartaches of Being Indie. Grab: The banner above to include in your posts!
Because being Indie doesn’t have to mean going it alone.
I’m a sucker for vampires. I don’t care if they sparkle, if they are ugly, if they are moody, whiny, or even grumpy. I especially love ‘em if they’re HOT, but that goes without saying, right?
I met author Pixie Lynn Whitfield on Twitter and we decided to exchange books for reviews. Here’s her take on Shifting Pride (it involves My Little Pony. WIN.).
Luck was in my favor because her book, Darkness Comes This Way, is about VAMPS! YAY!
Zarah is a Guardian vampire, part of a group of immortals who keep humans safe by killing Rogue vampires. (Let me tell you, I’d very much enjoy that job, LOL!) She’s a kick-ass heroine with a cold exterior. But she’s got a tender heart inside.
She’s paired up with Draven, another Guardian, and they’re both charged with redoubling their efforts, because the Rogues are becoming more powerful and more deadly.
What I love about this story is that Zarah and Draven dislike each other and that tension kept me interested. Despite their butting heads, they are able to form a strong partnership and they work really well together–something that’s difficult to create, IMHO.
Another bit I liked was that Zarah ends up having to face her past head on, and she risks exposing her secret as a result.
The action is non-stop, the twists frequent, and the tension high. All must haves in my book.
The downside: I’d like to see more editing for streamlining. That being said, Pixie Lynn is a strong writer and I fully expect her skills to grow. I’m gonna keep an eye on her for her next projects!
While surfing the web yesterday, I noticed posts about the debut of Bridget Zinn’s YA fantasy, POISON. For those of you who haven’t heard, Bridget passed away from cancer in 2011–two years before her book published!
Her story, while tragic, is also inspirational. Bridget’s goal was to share humor and happiness with her teen readers. And she did just that. Now, her friends and family are picking up where she left off. They’re sharing her story. And her amazing life.
So how does this tie into the INDIE Life?
It ties in because the INDIE Life is about supporting your fellow authors. It’s about coming together as a community to hold up one another. It’s about hearing a story, feeling it on the inside, and doing something about it. It’s about commemorating the life of another author who reached her dream…even from the beyond.
Thank you, Bridget.
About Bridget Zinn
Bridget grew up in Wisconsin. She went to the county fair where she met the love of her life, Barrett Dowell. They got married right before she went in for exploratory surgery which revealed she had colon cancer. They christened that summer the “summer of love” and the two celebrated with several more weddings. Bridget continued to read and write until the day she died.
Her last tweet was
“Sunshine and a brand new book. Perfect.”
Bridget wanted to make people laugh and hoped readers would enjoy spending time with the characters she created. As a librarian/writer she loved books with strong young women with aspirations. She also felt teens needed more humorous reads. She really wanted to write a book with pockets of warmth and happiness and hoped that her readers’ copies would show the watermarks of many bath time reads.
About the novel
Sixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she’s the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom’s future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.
But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart…misses.
Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king’s army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she’s not alone. She’s armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can’t stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?
Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she’s certainly no damsel-in-distress—she’s the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.
During the week of March 11, blog about the release of your first novel (if you’re an author) or any other momentous first.
The release of my debut novel, SHIFTING PRIDE, was both thrilling and terrifying. I remember the excitement of finally being able to share my heroine, Nickie’s, story with the world. I also remember the fear that I didn’t do her justice and that people would miss what a great character she was.
At the same time, it was a milestone that demanded a celebration all of its own. Whether SHIFTING PRIDE flopped or flew off the electronic shelves, I’d accomplished a goal, a dream–I’d become a published author.
It’s a moment in my life that I shall never ever forget.
I’m SUPER STOKED to be co-hosting a RUSHED party with New Adult Paranormal Romance author Lynn Rush TOMORROW, Tuesday, March 12 @ 8:00 PM EST! Please be sure to hang out with us on Twitter–there will be prizes, chatting, and fun, fun, fun!
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Kathy at I’m A Reader, Not A Writer has organized a FABULOUS author hosted giveaway. Read on for all the deets!
Kindle Fire HD Giveaway!
The winner will have the option of receiving a 7″ Kindle Fire HD (US Only)
Giveaway Details
1 winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire HD (US Only), $199 Amazon Gift Card or $199 in Paypal Cash (International).
Ends: 3/31/13
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the authors. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
Anachron Press is hosting a pre-order special to the first 50 folks who pre-order the URBAN OCCULT anthology. Pre-order now and get a copy of Day of Demons for FREE! My story, City of Lights and Stone is in the Day of Demons anthology.
Here are the deets:
Urban Occult Limited Pre-Order
Limited to 50.
Behind urban life, weird and horrific things fester.
The whispers and chills of things long gone… the promise of power from the darkness… the seduction of those that lie in the shadows… the occult is all around us: in town houses, in mansions, and in your very own street.
Editor Colin F. Barnes collected together fifteen stories by a cast of critically acclaimed authors from around the globe who look into the stygian gloom, explore the dark corners of our houses, and peer into the abyss of human temptation.
Featuring stories by: Gary McMahon, Ren Warom, Gary Fry, Mark West, K.T. Davies, Nerine Dorman, Alan Baxter, Adam Millard, Julie Travis, Jason Andrew, James Brogden, A.A Garrison, Jennifer Williams, Sarah Anne Langton, and Chris Barnham.
Special Pre-Order Edition Limited to 50.
This pre-order edition means you will get the book at least a week to two weeks ahead of general release and:
A FREE ebook version (for any eReader)
and A FREE ebook of Day of Demons. (eBooks will be emailed to you on the 4th of March).
Just £9.99 (+£2.99 shipping anywhere in the world).
Time is money and us spread-too-thin multi-taskers have to spend it wisely.
For me, I spend around 50 hours a week doing day job stuff, and sometimes work weekends (those 12 day stretches really exhaust me!).
That leaves nights and weekends for writerly stuff. Encompassed in that time is blogging, visiting blogs, social media-ing, marketing, reading, reviewing, critting, writing, and editing. I tend to reserve reading and critting for weeknight stuff and writing and blogging for weekends, when I’m fresher.
Note the placement of each item.
It’s quite scary that writing and editing are last.
I’m a writer who writes after everything else is done. Shouldn’t that be the other way around?
Gosh, admitting this makes me sad.
When I first started writing, that’s where most of my time went. Sure, I’d spend some time on forums (like QueryTracker), but for the most part, my brain was hyperfocused on writing and that’s what I did.
With time came critting.
Then I started this blog.
Then I joined Facebook and Twitter.
Marketing came after New Pride and Shifting Pride were published.
With each added item, writing got shoved further down the list.
I’ve been feeling the pain about this for a while, but now it’s time to admit I need to do something.
I need to reassess where I’m at.
My goal is to incorporate more writing and editing into my routine. I will continue blogging, but may do only two posts a week. There will be the odd week with the same M-W-F routine, based on previously scheduled posts.
I’m getting back to basics.
What about you guys? Do you engage in periodic reassessment? What have you learned by checking in with your routine every so often?
I’ve learned over the years that authors need a strong presence in the Interwebz. Visibility is KEY in getting the word out for your books. And there’s a TON of ways to do it.
I strongly favor my blog, website, Facebook, and Twitter. I’m having fun with YouTube book trailers.
Today, I’d like to share StoryFinds.com with you. Started up by a fellow Etopia Press YA author, Renee D. Field, StoryFinds highlights authors and their books. There’s a $20 fee to be featured on the blog, Facebook page, and Twitter.
This week, StoryFinds has featured YA paranormal books, including me (SHIFTING PRIDE) and fellow Etopia Press YA authors Sara Hubbard (BLOOD, SHE READ) & Theresa McClinton (THE STONE GUARDIAN).
As I mentioned on Monday, I entered the cover art for NEW PRIDE and SHIFTING PRIDE in the Houston Bay Area Romance Writers Association’s Judge A Book By Its Cover Contest. JABBIC is a fun way to share cover art and have readers vote on what attracts them to buy a book.
Click HERE to go to the JABBIC website. Click START JUDGING, then select YOUNG ADULT, and rate each book on a scale of 5 to 1, 5 means you’d buy the book based on the cover and 1 means you don’t have interest in the book.
I’d totally appreciate your votes, if you’re so inclined! THANK YOU!
I'm a board-certified psychiatrist and a best-selling published author. I write YA, MG, paranormal, dystopian, and horror. My YA paranormal romance prequel novelette, NEW PRIDE, and YA pararom, SHIFTING PRIDE, is available NOW by Etopia Press! My YA dystopians, ENDURE and EVOKE, are coming soon from Etopia Press. My YA adventure, ZODIAC COLLECTOR, is coming 2014.
My short story CITY OF LIGHTS AND STONE is in the DAY OF DEMONS ANTHOLOGY by Anachron Press (April 2012). BEGGING DEATH is in the CARNAGE: AFTER THE END Anthology by Siren's Call Publications (Nov 2012).
Purchase NEW PRIDE (Shifting Pride prequel novelette)
