Category Archives: Uncategorized

Book Review – The Eve Tree by Rachel Devenish Ford

The Eve TreeThe Eve Tree by Rachel Devenish Ford

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I wasn’t sure what to expect while reading this book, and it turned out to be a little more literary than I had anticipated (in a good way!)but overall I adored The Eve Tree. It’s a compelling cross-section of familial shortcomings, and how those shape our lives.

Set on a family farm in a time where a crawling forest fire threatens everything, the family converges to make preparations. Three generations of people that grew up on the land, nurtured from and by it, struggle to come to terms with themselves and each other.

The author’s writing style is simple at time and lyrical at others, but throughout the novel her prose is cohesive fluid and I made myself slow down from my normal break-neck speed while reading it because I didn’t want to miss her evocative turn of phrases. Stellar writing and compelling plot made for a A+ novel!

View all my reviews

Book Review on Masquerade Crew (Day 12 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day eleven of the blog tour and today over on Masquerade Crew is a review of Kill Me! So hop on over there and check out what Mark has to say about the debut of the Blood Chord Series!

4 Star Review: “The biggest thing for me that brought it down to a 4 from a 5 was the amount of sexual material.”

Source: The Masquerade Crew (http://s.tt/1aQfd)

(Blushes… what can I say? I like my vamps with a little bit of heat :-) )

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

And don’t forget to enter to one one of the Fab prizes for the Kill Me end-of-tour Giveaway!!

Get to Know Claire, from KILL ME (character interview- Blog Tour Day 11)

I thought I’d have a little fun today by interviewing the main character from the new release, Kill Me. So put your paws together and lets extend a warm welcome to our guest Claire!

Come on in Claire, grab a seat and settle in. Would you like something to drink? A glass of Merlot perhaps?

Hi! Thanks for having me… mind if I sit over here? No offense, but it’s been a few days since I last fed, and you’re smelling extremely scrumptious today.

Uh, sure. Make yourself comfortable on the stool waaaaay over there in the corner. So nothing to drink? Wait… never mind

It’s okay. I’m getting used to my diet and I have it under control now, mostly. It’s been quite an adjustment though. By the way, I love what you’ve done with the place. It’s just so… you!

Aww, thanks! I’ve put a lot of thought into the decor. I call it Controlled Chaos Chic. Though to be fair, my husband gets the credit for the Deer heads. And any crumbs/trash/toys would be courtesy of the kids. But I’m sure you understand about all of that.

Do I ever. My daughter’s nine now and it’s a good thing I don’t need to sleep, because my house is in a constant state of disaster. From weird science experiments to makeup and shoes (oh, lord the shoes!) her mess is spread from one end of the house to the other.

You just moved too. I bet that’s kept you busy.

Yes, we did. Within a few days of getting back from my trip to Florida, I found the perfect house for me and Quinn. It’s out by itself, so I don’t have to worry about any nosy neighbors. We’ve got a a sunset view of the creek that will make your eyes water.

That’s great! I’m glad you were able to find something that would work for you guys. And so fast!

Oh, I got lucky. The owners needed cash and I came into some money recently, so I offered a bonus if they could move out within a week. It was a win-win for both of us.

That was lucky. What did you do, win the lottery or something?

Or something… I probably shouldn’t tell you this since they frown on humans knowing our business, but during my trip, I received a nice chunk of change. You could call it an inheritance, but I’ve come to think of it as my Vampire Disability Fund. Because, you know, being a vampire is a huge disadvantage, at least in the begginning. We can’t go out in the sun (most can’t anyway) which makes things like grocery shopping, school plays, and errands super-hard to accomplish. Keeping a job is almost impossible until you get the hang of everything. I won’t even mention how difficult it is to be around friends and family when all you want to do is sink your teeth into them.

Wow, I’d never thought about it like that. I thought being a Vampire was all glamour and romance and crazy supernatural abilities. Seems like the reality of living as a Vampire is something that popular culture glosses over. 

Exactly. As my maker, Bette once told me, “Do not believe everything you read or see on television about us. Books and movies often make stuff up for the purpose of entertainment.”

Twilight-Smilight. I’d like to see that little waif of an actress try to work a blood-drive at her child’s school on a sunny Saturday in April. Or figure out how to pretend to eat in front of a child that doesn’t miss a thing.

We live in the land of sun and sand. I’m outside 4-5 times a day, so I’ve had to get creative with things. I have my daughter to think about and I wanted to live as normal as possible. Certainly makes life harder, but I wouldn’t change a thing about our lives now.

It sounds like you’re happy! I’m glad it’s all working out for you. I image that blood drive was something to see too! 

Yes, that was a very interesting day. I came home hungrier than I’ve ever been in my life, only to find out that power had gone out while I was gone and my bags of “dinner” were ruined. Good thing I knew where some takeout was!

Too funny! Now, you’ve mentioned your trip several times, and I’m wondering if that’s where your story begins?

Yes, it was. I went to Florida a harried working-mother and came back as something completely different. I blame the violin. 

Care to elaborate? Come now, don’t be shy. It’s just us girls here.

Well, it called to me from down the aisle and brought me to Bette and her collection of antique instruments. Then she put the stupid thing in my hands and told me to play it!

Before that, I was normal— I cooked, cleaned and brought home every bit of the bacon. I thought I had life figured out, but I had everything so completely wrong that it’s almost comical. Now the husband is a non-issue, my freakish talents are not of the domestic variety, and being a good mother just became a whole lot tougher. 

Holy-Llamas. That was rather on the cryptic side, don’tcha think? Is that all you’re going to give us?

Yep. If you want to know more, you’ll just have to read the book. Anyway, I’ve got to run. I’m due to pick up Quinn from school in a few minutes so she can get to her softball game on time. Yeah, I know. Softball game, vampire Mom– an odd combination, right?

It sure is! Well, it was great having you on the site Claire. Maybe you can come back some time to keep us posted on how abnormally-normal your life is? In the meantime, we can get the scoop from the novel you star in, KILL ME, correct?

Yep! It has a little bit of everything: mystery, magic, suspense, some smoking-hot romance, a sprinkling of rockin’ music and the occasional stripper pole. Oh, and a haunted violin. I can’t forget that, it started everything off.

No need to sell me on it. That sounds like my kind of book :-) Thanks again for stopping by. Give Quinn my best! Ciao’

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If you’d like to read more about Claire and her life-changing business trip, check out the newly released novel  Kill Me, Book One of the Blood Chord series, by Alex Owens. And do an Indie Author a solid and tweet, FB or share this interview or the book link with your friends and enemies. They’ll appreciate the gesture. 

KILL ME (Book One of the Blood Chord series)

Three days ago, she was a wife, a mother, and very much alive… then the music called for her.

Kill Me, the debut novel from author Alex Owens, is a quirky paranormal fantasy complete with music, magic, fangs and freaks. It is also the first in a planned series, with the second book due out by the Fall of 2012. Be forewarned, this is not your daughter’s paranormal.


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Also, being the slacker that I am, I neglected to post to let everyone know that Kill Me was featured over on the fabulous Heidi Hall’s website yesterday, so please so hop on over there and take a gander :-)

If you’d like to participate in the Release Blog Tour for Kill Me, more information can be seen here on the Blood Chord series web site.

Book Review on Lindsey Gray’s Blog (Day 8 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day eight of the blog tour and today over on Lindsey Gray’s blog is a review of Kill Me! So hop on over there and check out what she has to say about the debut of the Blood Chord Series! 

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

Author Interview on You Gotta Read (Day 7 – Kill Me Blog Tour)

It’s day seven of the Kill Me blog tour and today I’m over on You Gotta Read with an insightful author interview. Aside from peeking into my twisted inner-mind, you’ll see why I adore Jodi Picoult (even after her atrocious comments on Indie publishing) and how I feel about gratuitous sex and violence in books.

 YouGottaRead.com

So, without further ado… take a gander at the Interview on You Gotta Read!

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You can also check out the tour calendar over on the press page of the Blood Chord Series Site or Kill Me on Amazon if you’d like!

Author Spotlight – Jennifer Rainey and Thoroughly Modern Monsters

Today I wanted to do a little something different, so I asked the fabulous Jennifer Rainey to stop by and tell us a little bit about herself and to give us a peek at her new book Thoroughly Modern Monsters. Enjoy!

1. Tell us a bit about the inspiration for Thoroughly Modern Monsters.

I wrote a short about a girl who befriends the gorgon living under her bed about a year ago, and the concept of monsters being integrated into human society really interested me. So I started writing more short stories that fit in with that theme, and I ended up exploring the lives of ghosts, werewolves, sirens, vampires… even a minotaur! And when I linked those stories together, they became Thoroughly Modern Monsters.

2. Would you be friends/associate with the characters in your books? Why or why not?

I would certainly want to at least associate with Quinnish, the half-siren character in “Carnival,” the longest story in the collection. He’s outwardly very charming and confident, but beneath that he’s a little unstable. I’d love to pick his brain. Also, he works at a carnival. Maybe he could get me free food.
To move over to These Hellish Happenings,my first book, I’d definitely be friends with the protagonist, Jack. We’re both horrible music snobs. I think we’d get along nicely.

3. Do you read the same kinds of books you write? If there are any differences between the two, what are they?

I read exactly what I write, for the most part. I enjoy quirky paranormal/contemporary fantasy books, and that’s what I tend to write myself. However, I also have a degree in English lit, so after years of studying them, I’m quite fond of the Old Dead Guys, too. Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Huxley… I love old dead guys. In an uncreepy way, of course.

4. What do you think is alluring about your book? Why should someone pick it up?

Thoroughly Modern Monsters features a cast of very colorful and interesting characters. It can go from being hilarious to absolutely heartbreaking, and it’s also a fairly quick read.  There’s twisted romance, not-so-heartwarming family reunions and a woolly, three-eyed monster named Brian. What more could you ask for?

5. If you can tell us, what is it you’re working on now?

I’m currently balancing two projects. One is the sequel to These Hellish Happenings, When Hell Freezes Over. It’s sort of in Editing Hell right now, but it should be out in the next year. The second installment follows the main characters as they travel through Hell, Earth and even along the River Styx to find their missing Lord, Satan. Hilarity ensues!

I’m also preparing a book called Green-Eyed, which will be out late this summer. It follows two paranormal investigators who get a little more than they bargained for on their latest case. It’s a little darker than my usual stuff (though still humorous, I think), but I really love it. It’s been so much fun to write.

6. And finally, everyone is so gaga over the idea of vampires vs werewolves. What two supernatural beings do you want to see do battle?

Dumbledore versus Slimer from Ghostbusters. I don’t know why. That was just what came to mind. It’d be a sellout match!

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Now, a little bit about Thoroughly Modern Monsters!


Blurb:

A love-sick vampire working at a department store.

A confident siren kept from his home by the owner of a traveling carnival.

A famous crime-fighting werewolf reunited with his hostile brother.

The age of the monster under the bed is over! New law integrates all beings considered monsters by the United States government into human society, throwing them into the workforce. As these beings overcome workplace woes, unexpected romance and any personal demons that may have come along for the ride, they discover for better or worse what it means to be a thoroughly modern monster.

Thoroughly Modern Monsters is a collection of seven short stories complete at 21,800 words.

Thoroughly Modern Monsters for Kindle (Amazon)

Independent Paranormal

Jennifer Rainey’s Website: http://www.jenniferrainey.com 

Working on the Book Blurb for Kill Me

With release day for Kill Me quickly ticking away, I’ve been hard at work getting everything ready, and that (sadly) includes the blurb for the book. If you’ve never tried to write one of these, consider yourself lucky. It’s like trying to boil down seventy-thousand words into under fifty words, while trying to be coherent, eye-catching and the most important criteria– accurate.

I don’t know how many times I came up with something catchy only to realize it didn’t fit the darn book. And the ones the were true to the story were big old snooze-fests. After hours at this (more like days really) I finally think I’ve gotten to a good place. I may still tweak the blurb a little more before the official release of Kill Me, but for now it gives me something to query book reviewers with :-)

So, what do you think?

Looking back, it was the stupid violin’s fault. It called to me from down the aisle, brought me to Bette’s rare instrument collection and set everything in motion.  Before that, I was normal—I cooked, cleaned and brought home every bit of the bacon. Sure, I was stressed over bills (while my unemployed husband worried-not) but I was good at my job and hopeful that it would pay off soon. I thought I had life figured out, but I had everything so completely wrong that it’s almost comical. Well, for me it wasn’t very funny, but I could see how someone else would be amused at my misguided, naïve outlook on life. I know better now, that’s for sure. Now the husband is a non-issue, my freakish talents are not of the domestic variety, and being a good mother just became a whole lot tougher. Being kind of undead has a way of mucking things up like that.

Kill Me, the debut novel from author Alex Owens, is a quirky paranormal fantasy complete with music, magic, fangs and freaks. Be forewarned, this is not your daughter’s paranormal.

Claire, a thirty-something marketing Rep, attends a music conference with the hopes that her hard work will gain her a badly needed raise. Her plans are derailed when she meets a stunning Italian woman, Bette and the blood red violin that can only be played by the supernaturally gifted. And Bette thinks that Claire is just the woman to play it. But before she can even begin to process her unusual attraction to Bette or her own newly-materialized talents, Claire is pulled into a hidden world of seduction, secrets and things best left in folklore. Tied to darkness by blood and power, Claire must harness her abilities and take control of her life, before others take the control for themselves. 

Preparing for The Release of Kill Me, a Blood Chord Novel

When my book formatting guru told me I’d have to wait 2-3 weeks to get back the finished digital and print files, I cringed. That’s forever, I thought. I want to release it now!

Of course, while I’m ankle deep in organizing book reviews, a blog tour, giveaways and anything else that will help this novel make a big splash out of the gate, I am oh-so-grateful that the formatting is taking a few weeks. I’m honestly thinking about telling her to take her time with it.

I kid. Sort of. I am super-excited to get this novel birthed already. But I’m swamped with the preparations. Not to mention coordinating everything.

Timing is important you see. The Kindle version only gets 30 days on the New Releases list. So I’ve got a very short window to garner reviews and generate an overall buzz before the novel starts sliding in the ranks. Reviews need to come blitzkreig-style in the first few weeks. Aside from book bloggers, this means I have to create some ads and get placement on popular book sites. Here’s an example I just whipped up a few minutes ago.

During that time, I am also putting together a virtual book tour, where multiple book-centric websites will host me or the novel in one way or another. Author interviews, fictional character interviews, essays, book and swag giveaways (ack! I forgot to design and order my swag. crud) and the like. This means I have a lot of non-fiction writing to do in the next little bit. And organizing, because I don’t want all coverage to occur on the same day. I’m more interested in spreading the exposure out over a few weeks, since I think that will help the book sustain rank better for the long term.

Speaking of blog tours, what do you think of my little banner below? Do you love it? I do :-)

Other Creative Outlets for Writers?

This past weekend, an absolutely goregous spring day, I photographed my sister and her fiance. Out of the blue, it hit me. ——-> I needed to get my expanding-can outside more often and be creative. As the shutter on my camera clicked and clacked, my brain untangled plot holes, drafted the next novel in my subconscious, calmly listed the things I needed to do for the promo of my upcoming release.

Now, you might be wondering why I had the above epiphany? It’s easy, really. Doing a non-writing creative thing unlocked my brain, allowing for thoughts to flow more organically.

I’m not just a writer. I’m a photographer. A graphic artist. A fine art aficionado. A Pinterest freak. A painter, a crafter, a gardener.

It’s all those creative endeavors that make me the quirky gurl that I am. I just have to remember that writing all the time doesn’t work for me. I need to pick up a paint brush, dig in some dirt, click that shutter– so that my muse likes being with me enough to stick around for a good long while!

So, what do you do to stoke the creative fires between writing sessions? I’d love for you to comment, post, or show off your artistic creations!

Introducing the Blood Chord Series Web site

In anticipation of the release of Kill Me, the first novel in the Blood Chord series, author Alex Owens has (finally) set up a website dedicate to the series.

In addition to more in-depth information regarding the series and Book (Kill Me) you can also sign up for updates, giveaways and such. The new nifty site also has pages dedicate to the next two books (Titles are Up!) and as new information becomes available the updates will be posted.

So I invite you to click on through to the new site, have a look around, leave a comment and sign up for the blog notification or the newsletter.

Update on Kill Me – Paperback Cover Mock-up

Whew! The last few days have been a whirlwind of things to accomplish. Some totally unrelated to writing, which has left little time for making progress on Kill Me.

Late last night I finally started working on the paperback cover for Kill Me. It’s by no means finished, but I’m digging the way it’s shaping up so far. What do you think?

Also, I’ve made it about 90% through the edits that have come back from the latest Beta reader for Kill Me. A second beta has the made it a few chapters into the novel as well, so the process is nearing completion.

Speaking of nearing the end… I ran a LibraryThing giveaway, which ended yesterday. This week I’ll notify the winners and let them know their advance copies (ARC’s) will be sent out in the next few weeks. If I time it just right, I’ll hopefully have some reviews live within a few days of the launch (crossing fingers!)

The window for pre-ordering ebook copies of KILL ME is also coming to a close. There are only 11 days left in the campaign, so don’t hesitate– get your copy and some yummy swag today!

That’s all I’ve got for today. Edits are calling my name yet again! Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Launching a Book- What I’m Doing for KILL ME

Launching a novel is almost a full-time job. As an Indie Publisher, that equates to a lot of late nights and buckets of stress. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. It may be a complicated process, but at least it’s all mine.

The steps to launching a successful novel are, at least in my opinion, the following:

  1. Write the novel -check

  2. Rewrite the novel- check

  3. Get a Beta reader’s opinion- check

  4. Edit according to the above’s suggestions.- check

  5. Get another Beta reader’s opinion- in progress x 2

  6. Edit some more- in progress

  7. Repeat the last few steps until the novel is ready for final edits

  8. Send novel for edits

  9. Revise yet again

  10. Send novel for copy edits

  11. Decide when the book is clear of all grammatical, syntax and writer-brain errors, then proceed.

  12. Have the novel typeset or formatted. (I’ve picked out a super-duper formatter. I’ll not share her name yet. Can’t have her getting too busy before taking care of my novel!)

  13. Procure an awesome cover that whispers to readers, ”Come. Check me out. Buy me, you know you want to!” – check

  14. Set a launch date. - check, sort of. End of March for sure. Hopefully.

  15. Send out review copies and/or schedule free book giveaways on LibraryThing and Goodreads, so that the book hits the ground running with some reviews. -in progress. I’ve set up a Librarything giveaway, but I need to get cracking on the others.

  16. Consider marketing & promotions. Will you take out ads? Will you do blog tours, book signings, organize giveaways and swag drawings for readers? This alone is a huge task.

  17. Publish the book in whatever formats you want. Eventually, I’m angling towards Kindle (Amazon), Nook (B&N), Smashwords (distributing to Itunes, Kobo, etc) and Createspace. At first, KILL ME will be exclusive to Amazon so it can take advantage of the Select promo tools.

  18. Hit the publicity train doing blog tours, author interviews and generally selling your soul to anyone that will read/ mention/ or tweet about the book.

  19. Consider praying, casting a circle under a full moon while chanting in ancient tongues, sacrificing unworthy manuscripts, or anything else that may shine some favorable light on your spanking new baby book.

  20. Meanwhile, start writing a new novel.

  21. Rinse, repeat.

Sounds easy, doesn’t it? (I’ll try to keep my cackling down to a dull-roar.) 

So Close! It’s Coming! Pre-Order Blood Chord now!

English: A Picture of a eBook Español: Foto de...

Image via Wikipedia

Since the time of KILL ME is growing ever near, I’ve decided to open up a unique form of pre-sales. I’m using the website Kickstarter, which offers artist, authors and other creative types the chance to raise support for various projects/ products.

I’m mainly using it for ebook pre-orders as a way to cover some of the costs associated with launching an Indie Book.  Of course, I’ve built in some benefits for readers too.  The ebook is going to sell for $4.99 but at the first support level (a whopping $0.99- you can’t even buy a cup of coffee for that!) you get the ebook– saving you $4.00!

But the perks don’t end there! I’m offering some sweet swag for the higher levels of support too. Picture a wicked-cool bookmark, made from a custom printed, pearloid guitar pick and ribbon, or a necklace featuring the same guitar pick. Or paperback copies, very limited edition hardcover books, or even promises for all future ebooks in the series… So what do you think?

KILL ME (Blood Chord series) Kickstarter Campaign

You can show your support indirectly by sharing this campaign with your friends, linking to it online or on Facebook, or tweeting. Any buzz that you can help generate would be greatly appreciated! And not to mention good for your karma levels! :-)

On a side note, I’d love to have you guys stop by the campaign and tell me what you think about it. Does it look okay? Does everything make sense? Is it purty? :-) thanks!