I’m a Terrible Person…

Donna Yates (author of Always) was kind enough to post a book review of Heart of the Raven no less than SIX days ago and it’s taken me that long to comment on it and post this thank you to her. If you get a chance please stop by her blog and leave her a comment telling her how undeserving I am. *

If that’s not bad enough, Amanda at Wicca Witch 4 Book Blog has very kindly posted a review of the whole series; Shades of Gray, Legacy of Ghosts, Ties of Blood, Ashes of Deceit, and Heart of the Raven! And have I shared links? No!  You should stop by her blogs too, and leave her some comments about her excellent reviews and my poor social skills! **

I also have a blog tour coming up, engineered by Incandescent Enchantments Book Tours  that will run April 29 to May 4 and includes prizes such as:

bookmarks

 

There’s also a free ebook, and a t-shirt, if I recall. That is If I haven’t been clamped in leg irons and had tomatoes thrown at me by then.***

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* Or you could leave comments about what a great blog it is. That would be good, too. No real need to mention my faux pas.

** Or you could just tell her what great reviews she does. I mean, pointing out my lack of social skills might bring the tone of the blog down.

*** I don’t think anyone will REALLY clamp me in REAL leg irons. They can’t find me. Now digital leg irons… those are a possibility.

 

A Shades of Gray Review & More Celebrity Vampire Fun

I hate people who post blog after blog of links to their amazing reviews, but at the same time I want to say a big public thank you to Amanda of Wicca Witch 4 Book Blog for taking the time to read and review Shades of Gray. It really means a lot!

So, to give this post a little more bite, I thought I’d share something funny I ran into the other day. You may remember the publicity surrounding the alleged proof of  Nicolas Cage’s vampire-ness? Did you know John Travolta is one, too?

Okay, so you may have seen this already, as it similarly appeared on ebay around the same time as Nicolas’ supposed photo, but I thought it was still fun, anyway!

And as a special bonus link, for all you authors out there, check out Donna Yates post full of tips for your book release!

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Experimental Shades of Gray Cover

vs 2 - 2500

It was supposed to stay red like the original cover, but it turned kind of orangey, but I liked it, so I left it. As for design elements, since the first book does have a heavier romance element it got a hunky hero silhouette. I could give you a lot of crap about the symbolism of the tree, but really I just like trees. Plus they look cool.

See it in action on Amazonsignature for white

An Awesome Review and a Sneak Peek at Chapter One!

The first Jo read through of Heart of the Raven is finished! I will now do a quick read through (aka two days) for plot flow and send it off to the next round of betas. As usual, it is well over 100,000 words. But, instead of panicking like I usually do and racing through the document slashing and cutting because “industry insiders” say that readers want books between 80,000 and 90,000 words, I’m going to relax a little and pay more attention to the reader data that Mark Coker collected (“…60% of the top twenty Smashwords bestsellers were over 100,000 words long…”) and not stress as much if it ends up a little longer. That’s not to say that there aren’t sentences, paragraphs and scenes that can, and will, be tightened up still, only that I see no point in agonizing over it because that’s the “length preferred by agents” for my genre. I’m not submitting to an agent, anyway.

Either way, it’s on schedule and I am still hopeful for a late February or early March release.

With that good news, I have two great links to share! First, fellow author Beth Muscat was kind enough to review Shades of Gray. If you haven’t checked it out yet, please stop by and tell her thanks for the great post! And while you’re there, check out her other reviews.

And if you haven’t heard, the first (unfinalized) chapter of Heart of the Raven is avaliable for your perusal via fellow author Vicki Hudson‘s First Look segment on her blog.

Also don’t forget about the Valentines blog hop which is coming up in a couple of weeks. If you’re an author or reviewer, there is still time to join the fun. I may be giving away a prize in my blog if I can think of something interesting.

signature for whiteNow, if I can just decide who to put on the cover of the new book….

 

 

Verchiel Gone Wild – Blogjacking Day 5

Mysterious narrator: Yesterday we left Verchiel and Jorick fighting in the attic of the Amaranthine Character’s Complex. Apparantly during an interview, Donna dared Verchiel to give Katelina a birthday surprise. The idiot did it, and Jorick isn’t amused. Now, our hero… wait. Which one is the hero?

Ummmmm…

Anyway, Jorick has Verchiel by the throat and…

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Verchiel: *choke*cough* But you can’t kill me! I’m too important!

Jorick: Says who?

*POOF*

A cloud of mysterious pink smoke appears and then dissipates to reveal… the author, who by the way is also the mysterious narrator.

Jo the Amazing Author: STOP! Jorick, you know better! *waves hand. There is the clicky clack noise of keys typing and suddenly Jorick is standing on the other side of the room* I’m sorry, but you can’t kill him.

J: And why not? He isn’t necessary to the series! There were two books before he came along!

V: *rubbing throat* but people love me.

Jo the Amazing Author: That may be, Jorick, but he’s here now, and he’s staying.  You might as well face it, he’s necessary to certain plot details. As for you, *turns to Verchiel* Is this the sort of thing you get up to when you think I’m too busy to notice? Is it?

V: Um… no? Ah, come on! It was just a bit of fun. It was Donna’s idea.

Jo the Amazing Author: Don’t you try to blame this on her! I saw your birthday dance, young man and I was appalled! Appalled! I taught you better than that didn’t I? To think one of my own characters would sing such a terrible rendition of happy birthday! I’m going to have to send you to voice lessons!

J: WHAT!!?!

V: Well, it was a bit rushed…

Jo the Amazing Author: Rushed or not, it’s obvious you need some professional help! And you! *turns to Jorick* And you. Some anger management would not be amiss. Alas, there’s very little time. Though you may be unaware, the rough draft of Patrick is finished and we are going to spend September together working on book five. I suggest that you BOTH have your issues handled by then because you’re going to be spending plenty of time together. Oh, and Verchiel? You might want some pants. Your natural hair color is showing. *snickers*

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Mysterious narrator AKA the Amazing Author Jo: Once again the Amazing Author Jo saves the day! As was mentioned, Patrick, the full length novel, is now in beta stage and will hopefully be edited and released this autumn, with Heart of the Raven to follow this winter. Meanwhile, keep your eyes peeled for the upcoming Amaranthine two-fer Special Editions packed with extras like artwork and “deleted scenes”.

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Special thanks to Donna for inspiring this blog series! 

PS – and because I KNOW you wanna see…..

by me ;)

Verchiel Gone Wild – Blogjacking Day 4

Verchiel here, the hot redheaded vampire from Joleene Naylor’s Amaranthine series. If you’ve missed the last three posts let me bring you up to date. While interviewing me, Donna dared me to give Katelina a birthday surprise. So, I did. Apparently it’s upset Jorick a little bit, and I’m currently hiding in the rafters in the attic here in the good ol’ Amaranthine Character’s Complex, waiting for him to cool down.

Yes, that’s why I’m whispering. That and I don’t want to attract any bats. I’ve heard they nest in your hair. And since hair is all I’m wearing at the moment… well, you can imagine.

Oh crap! There he is!

Jorick: *shakes fist* Come down here now so I can kill you.

Verchiel: Hmm. The offer sounds tempting but, no. I’m afraid I have to pass. Sorry.

J: Then I’ll come up there. *jumps. Grabs rafter. Swings up and lands on the rafter next to Verchiel* Do you want to tell me what you were thinking now, or after I’ve ripped your heart out?

V: It’s going to be hard to talk then, isn’t it?

J *growls and reaches to grab Verchiel’s shirt, only, there is no shirt.*

V: I’m sure you don’t want to kill a naked man? *edges away* How would that look? People might think it was a lover’s tryst gone awry. You wouldn’t want that kind of reputation, now would you?

J: *growls and snatches at him again, only Verchiel jumps down too fast*

V: Oh come on, have a sense of humor. It was just a dare! I couldn’t very well back down and ruin my reputation, now could I? And Kately’s none the worse for wear. She’s been doing all those time travel scenes for that Patrick prequel lately, and I don’t see you beating Patrick up just because she saw him naked!

J: *drops down and feigns right. Verchiel hops left and Jorick grabs him by the throat* That’s different and if I had my way, I just might.

V: *cough*choke*Come on now, you *cough* know you can’t really kill me!

J: Watch me.

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Mysterious narrator: Oh no! It looks like this is the end for Verchiel! Tune in tomorrow for “Smear of Vampire on the Wall” or “Verchiel’s Last Laugh”.

Verchiel Gone Wild – Blogjacking Day 3

Mysterious Narrator: While being interviewed by Donna, Verchiel was dared to give Katelina a birthday surprise. Unable to resist, he has readied himself, and now we will see how it goes….

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Katelina and Jorick were snuggled up on the couch in the character lounge, watching a movie. It took three hours to agree on one, and in the end they only reached an agreement because Katelina let Jorick have his way. The foreign film lived up to its promise. Five minutes in and she was already depressed. She didn’t understand why people made movies like that.

The voice that trilled through the air was almost a relief, or it would have been if it was anyone besides Verchiel.

“Oh, Kately!”

Katelina buried her face in Jorick’s arm and stifled a groan. It was bad enough that she’d had to pull time-traveling overtime the last month to appear in the Patrick prequel, and that she’d had no scenes with Jorick, but now, on her one day off…

Jorick snarled over the top of the movie, “Go away!”

The overly cheerful answer floated through the doorway, “Sorry, I can’t do that! Are you ready?”

Katelina groaned again. The only way to get rid of him was to humor him. “Ready for what?”

“Ta-da!”

As if by magic, Verchiel was suddenly in front of her, blocking the television. Perched on his head was a sequined top hat, and on his feet were matching tap shoes. The only thing in the middle was miles of pale white skin and a sign that hung around his hips and proclaimed “Happy Un-Birthday” in multicolored letters.

Her eyes bulged from their socket. “What in the-”

She didn’t get to finish before he shouted, “Go!” Music blared from the adjoining room and, in super-speed, he sang, “Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Kately, Happy birthday to you!”

Jorick was on his feet as the last word fell. He snarled and snatched at the redhead, but Verchiel was too fast. He disappeared and seemed to materialize on the other side of the room. “Sorry, I’m afraid I don’t know when your real birthday is. Though, if you tell me, we could do this again?”

“That will be hard, since you’ll be dead!”

Jorick lunged again and Verchiel tossed aside his sign with a wink and disappeared through the doorway. Jorick bounded after him and Katelina sat frozen in place, her eyes wide and her mouth gaping. There was only one thought running through her startled mind:

“Well, I guess now we know he’s not a natural redhead.”

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Mysterious Narrator: Tune in tomorrow to see the disastrous conclusion.

Verchiel Gone Wild – Blogjacking Day 2

Welcome back, dear readers! Verchiel here, the hot redhead from Joleene Naylor’s Amaranthine vampire series, and today I’m celebrating Katelina’s un-birthday! Katelina and Jorick are just now settling down on the couch in the character’s lounge here in the Amaranthine Characters Complex (think of it like a biiiiig house) to watch a movie (you should have heard the three hour discussion while they tried to pick one) This seems the perfect time to present her with her gift. Never let it be said that I back out of a dare.

(If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then check out the interview Donna and I did yesterday)

Now, let’s get into my special birthday suit *snicker*snicker* Sensitive men may wish to cover their eyes now. What? Yes, you can plainly see that red was not my natural hair color. Apparently it was black. *snicker*snicker*  Now for the happy birthday sign – ah, yes, I am hanging it there. That’s why it has this big string around it. See? Right around the waist. Ah, no complaining, You ladies already got a peek – men you can uncover your eyes now. The sign is big enough to cover what it needs to. Now for the tap shoes… Tie them up… and of course they’re glittery! Tap shoes should be glittery by default. And here’s the sparkly top hat. Okay. Primed and ready. When I yell go, hit the play button on the music, huh?

“Oh, Kately!”

Tune in tomorrow to see my masterful execution!

Casting Call by Jonathan Harvey

Ha ha! I was doing some random google searches the other night and I ran into this old post by Jonathan Harvey that I wanted to share. Yeah, I am just going to steal it (images and all) and post it here because Jonathan is so cool he won’t care. You can see his original on his now abandoned MySpace though, and if you want to catch up with him he has a blog he occasionally posts in, a book he’s published called Shades of Plaid, and he writes the Terrible Turtle Conspiracy web comic.

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If you are looking for a book featuring Commando Cows of the Undead that fly around drinking blood from the udders of farm cows while dispatching bulls using submachine guns with extreme prejudice, then Shades of Gray by Joleene Naylor is definitely the wrong book. Shades of Gray is a delightfully gruesome paranormal romance that takes place during the dreaded war between vampire covens. The story’s heroine, Katelina, finds herself inexplicably caught up in a world of vampires. Not only does the poor woman have to grapple with the knowledge that vampires are real and that they want to kill her, but she also has to come to terms that the one who is sworn to protect her is a vampire himself.

Shades of Gray grabs the reader’s attention and keeps it throughout the course of the book. The story is well paced and well written. I was particularly fond of the villainy in the book. The characters were well developed. The book had a good balance of action and romance and the gore was at acceptable levels for a book of it type. I greatly enjoyed reading Shades of Gray and I am looking forward to reading the next book of the Amaranthine Series.

Now for the fun stuff! If they were to make a movie of Shades of Gray, who should be in it?

Jorick : The handsome vampire hero who protects Katelina! I’m thinking a dark haired Legolas, Orlando Bloom (Pirates of the Caribbean, The Lord of the Rings) should play Jorick.

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Katelina:  The main character of the story.  In the book the vamps are constantly putting her down for being plain.  This is a movie, so she should at least be pretty.  She should be pretty, but not overly sexy.  I chose Elisabeth Röhm (Heroes, Angel) she’s pretty not too young and she knows her way around science fiction.

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Oren is a friend of Jorick who loses most of his family during the Coven Wars.  He sticks with Jorick through the end.  He is the blond vampire.  For him I think we should cast Brad Pitt (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, An Interview with a Vampire).  He’s played a vampire before.  He was okay, I think he would make a decent Oren.

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Torina is Oren’s Sister.  She’s the sexy, red headed, femme fatale type.  I was thinking it would be cool to see Nikki Cox (Unhappily Ever After, Nikki) play this vamp.

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Jesslynn is the wife of Oren.  She is a proud dark haired and dangerous vampire coven queen.  I chose Angelina Jolie (Wanted, Tomb Raider) for this part.  She has the look and she works well with Brad Pitt.

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Kateesha is a treacherous and villainous vampire temptress whose alliances are questionable.  I  chose Aaliyah (Queen of the Damned, Romeo Must Die).  I know it’s type casting, but she was so darned awesome in Queen of the Damned.

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Patrick was Katelina’s old lover.  He’s killed off before the story ever really gets started.  Still, there are enough flashbacks of him that I thought why not cast him.  I’m thinking, why not James Marsters (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville)

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Arowenia  is Claudius’s plaything.  She gets kidnapped.  She gets killed.  She is the catalyst to all this vampire unpleasantness.  Like Patrick she really has a small role.  So why not cast Leslie Bibb (Iron Man, Popular).  She’s young, pretty, and blonde.  What more do we need?

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 Claudius is the big bad of the book.  He’s the guy that has who is so upset about poor Arowenia being kidnapped that heads are going to roll.  Cast for this role is Gerard Butler (300, Law Abiding Citizen).  Because “This is Sparta!” just kidding.  It’s madness.

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Well there you have it.  Shades of Gray is all cast.  This might not make you want to read the book.  But heck, I think I’ll be first in line to see the movie.

 What do you think of Jonathan’s choices? Who would you pick to play the characters? And do you think I should take his advice and add undead cows (LOL!)?
 

101 Tips for Traveling with a Vampire Free on Amazon

Get 'er while she's free!

Amazon sent me a notice about this a few days ago and I completely forgot.  So, fast forward I hopped onto Amazon tonight to check my sales and had over 3,000 for 101 Tips. Considering I haven’t sold any of those for the last two months, I immediately though “this is a mistake”, and then I remembered the mail from Amazon and it made sense.

Of course, free means I’m not making any royalties off those sales, but I don’t mind since it’s already a free book at Smashwords, anyway, and would have been free on Amazon if they allowed for it.

Right now you’re asking yourself “WHat’s the point of this post?”  It’s to tell you that if you haven’t gotten 101 Tips for Traveling with a Vampire from Amazon, now is the time to do it coz it’s a freebie, and we all love a freebie!

If you don’t have a Kindle, you can still get it for free on Smashwords as a document or PDF. it’s only about 9,000 words total, including the preview of Legacy of Ghosts, so it’s not too bad to read on a computer screen.

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