Aliens? Find out when you read Abducted Life by Patricia Josephine

Savannah Janowitz’s perfect life was destroyed the night she and her boyfriend vanished without a trace. When she reappears a year later––alone––she’s a shell of her former self. Robbed of her popularity and her boyfriend, she has no memory of what happened to her. Savannah struggles to move forward as strange, new abilities manifest.

Evan Sullivan never gave extra-terrestrials much thought until the night he and Savannah were abducted. While Savannah’s memory was wiped clean, he remembers every horrific detail. Constantly reminded of the experiments that made him less than human, Evan hides in the shadows and watches Savannah rebuild her life without him. But neither can let the other go.

When their paths cross, Savannah and Evan finally see a glimmer of their old lives return. As they face what happened to them, they soon discover they aren’t safe. There’s more to fear than what’s hiding in the stars.

Available for 99cents at Amazon.

About the Author

Patricia Josephine never set out to become a writer. In fact, she never considered it an option during high school and college. She was all about art. On a whim, she wrote down a story bouncing in her head. That was the start of it and she hasn't regretted a moment. She writes young adult under the name Patricia Lynne.

Patricia lives with her husband in Michigan, hopes one day to have what will resemble a small petting zoo, has a fondness for dying her hair the colors of the rainbow, and an obsession with Doctor Who.

You can find her lurking on Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, and Wattpad. Find the latest news at her website or sign up for her newsletter. A link to all her books can be found here.

* * * * *

Don't forget to get yourself some books to cuddle up with this weekend!

And if one giveaway isn't thrilling enough, Vanessa Morgan is hosting a ten book giveaway from the authors of When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies With Killer Animals. My urban fantasy, Of Blood and Sorrow is included in the bundle.

Sharing a little bit of excitement!

Guess who I met on Saturday at Sci-Fi Central?

I met the awesome Tara Tyler!
She did wonderfully on her panel about sci-fi films and books. She's one fun and smart woman.

There were tons of people dressed up and lots of Star Wars stuff. My little guy had tons of fun exploring the museum. (Yes, the convention was in the children's science museum!) Tara had a table beautifully set up. I got her to sign my copy of Broken Branch Falls. Did you know the sequel is coming out in a few months? I've been lucky enough to read Cradle Rock already. Check out my review on Goodreads!

* * *

Only two weeks until the release of Dark Dawning (Totem #1)!

If you've subscribed to my newsletters, you've been getting Totem tidbits, excerpts, and giveaways! You can subscribe right now by popping your email address into the handy little widget on the right there. I'll continue to share all these goodies through to the release of the third book in November.

Pre-order Dark Dawning now!

Word Witch Wednesday - marketing firsts

Twenty-six days until the release of the first book in my Totem series. Writing the books have been amazingly fun, but marketing them, well, I have some new white hairs.

I've been doing a lot of research on book promotion. My first reaction was: AAAH! I've been doing it wrong all along. *falls down and cries* Okay. Maybe that's a little overdramatic, but that's how I felt. In the past, I did cover reveals, blog tours, blitzes, and giveaways, but it was not helping me reach a larger audience.

I had not been taking advantage of two key marketing tools: ads and newsletters. All my research states these two things should be what authors are focusing on.

ADS:

- You need money to buy ads. So what if you're not selling enough? Look for venues that will shout-out about your book for cheap or free. Or ask for ad money for your birthday like I did.

- Research the ad sites. Some have strict submission requirements. Make sure they will accept your book.

- Plan way ahead. Some venues are booked two months in advance.

I decided to go with The Fussy Librarian. The prices are very affordable, and the site is easy to navigate. Nothing to be intimidated about there. I have an ad scheduled for October 25th for Dark Dawning (Totem #1). And yes, I'll let you know how it goes.

I also have a sale next month for Of Blood and Sorrow. It will be the first time I've put it on sale, and I hope to lure readers to the Totem series with the novel. I submitted it to Ereader News Today. It's more expensive than The Fussy Librarian, but it has a bigger audience. Plus, they only take novels. I could not advertise my Totem books on there. The ad will coincide with the first day of the sale on October 12th.

NEWSLETTERS:

- According to several authors, this is the key tool for connecting with readers, and you can create one for free. Well, it's free up to a certain point, and then you'll have to pay. But if you make it to that point, you'll be making enough sales to afford the small cost.

- Newsletters are easy to create once you're familiar with the template.

- Building your newsletter list is difficult. Offering freebies and holding giveaways helps, but in the long run, you're building your list one subscriber at a time. (I offer a digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection to new subscribers.)

- You can grow your list with newsletter swaps. What's this, you ask? I only recently started to take advantage of this myself. You trade book info with another author and each of you feature the other in their newsletter. This works very well for those of us who have a small following when paired with authors who have huge lists.

Last Friday, I asked for authors who have books with shifters in them to do swaps. I'd love to feature them alongside my Totem books over the next few months. Please leave a comment below or email me if you're interested.

Have you tried ads to sell your books? Do you have a newsletter, and if so, how do you go about building your list?

Have you signed up for the MEME Blog Hop yet?

C. Lee McKenzie, Tara Tyler, and I are hosting A MEME Blog Hop!

 

We want to help chase away the winter blues with some Encouraging, Inspiring, and Funny MEMEs! Join us the week of February 29 - March 4!

Easy Peasy "rules":

1) Post a MEME during the week (use your own pic or an easy meme maker app) - and if you can't think of anything, pass on encouraging words from one of your reviews, or an inspiring quote! 

2) Visit others.

 

That's it! Then, your awesome hostesses will hop around and ooo and ahh and choose one entry each to win an ebook. AND two lucky random participants will win a $20 gift card.

 

Sign up HERE!

 

 

Friday Five for November 6, 2015

1. Did you think October was the month for treats? No way! There are lots of chances for you to win this month. TB Markinson holds a monthly book giveaway. She has five awesome books for you to win, and this month, The 13th Floor Complete Collection is one of them. Untethered Realms is touring with their new short story collection, Mayhem in the Air. Get exclusive excerpts and enter for a chance to win a $40 gift card. Last but not least, Realms Faire 2015 begins on Monday. Huzzah! Tons of medieval games, giveaways, and grog. I'll be hosting the Drench-a-Wench event with a giveaway every day.

2. I recently had two short story rewrite & resubmits, and now I have two acceptances to Every Day Fiction! "Paid" is a little noir cop piece with a twist and "Ligeia's Song" is about a girl kidnapped by pirates and pit against the Sirens. Every Day Fiction is having a few technical problems at the moment, but hopefully they'll be back very soon.

3. This week, my mom was down and we did our Christmas shopping. I'm almost all done. Just a few special gifts for my son that I'll need to get online. I also make a calendar every year on Shutterfly with pictures of my son and give it to the relatives.

4. I'm tuckered out today. I'll get back into the swing of things and catch up with everyone next week. Have a good weekend!

5. Oh! I was so surprised last week to find I was a winner in Yolanda Renee's Desperation Holler Halloween Challenge. It was so much fun answering her scary interview questions and finishing off a piece of flash fiction. Check out all the authors' awesome stories on her blog. I would definitely do it again next year!

#IWSG for November 2015

The Insecure Writer's Support Group (IWSG) is the brilliant idea of Alex J. Cavanaugh. The purpose of the group is to share doubts and insecurities and to encourage one another. Please visit the other participants and share your support. A kind word goes a long way.

The awesome co-hosts this month are Stephen Tremp, Karen Walker, Denise Covey, and Tyrean Martinson!

More, more, more!

I am hounded by this voice in my head that tells me I'm not writing enough. I need to get more books out there. I need to write better faster. And I need to do it now!

The voice makes me highly anxious. It gives me stressful writer work dreams. So much editing and marketing! So much to do, so little time. Where is that mind jack I can plug into my head and pour my stories right into the computer? My fingers don't move fast enough. My eyes are old and tired.

I've got to write more!

I know reasonably this isn't realistic. We all write at different paces, and we have limited time to write. But the nag beats down my reason and demands I write, write, write!

Anyone else harassed by this voice? What do you do to ease that anxiety?

* * * * *

Don't forget about TB Markinson's monthly book giveaway. You can win five awesome books, and this month, one of them is The 13th Floor Complete Collection. Also, the Mayhem in the Air tour is going on this week and into the next. You can get exclusive excerpts from the stories in the collections and enter for a chance to win a $40 gift card. Finally, Realms Faire 2015 begins on Monday. Shine your armor and fill your mugs! Tons of medieval games, giveaways, and grog. I'll be hosting the Drench-a-Wench event. There will be a giveaway every day of a minimum four books for you to win.

Friday Five for July 17, 2015

1. I've managed to catch up on my sleep and some online things. I think I have to realize that I'm not going to catch up on it all and just let it go. Sometimes that's difficult for me. I'm still learning to be easier on myself.

2. I wrote a flash horror piece for my local critique group tomorrow. A Christmas story with a monster in the closet. Perfect for July! And no, it's not a Fearless story. I wanted to write another Christmas tale because right now is the time of year to submit them to magazines and other venues. I still have six stories out there under consideration, and hopefully after this weekend, I can send out a seventh.

3. I've been sending out my Dice & Debauchery series to reviewers. It's hard to find people that review erotica. I sent out a batch of queries in December and didn't receive one reply. I've only received one reply from the dozen I sent out this week. One of my dream reviewers would be Felicia Day. She and three other geeky women have a book club called Vaginal Fantasy. It's absolutely hilarious and fun.

4. Only two weeks until Gen Con! Will any of you be attending this year? I'll be going on Sunday for Family Day. Their writer guest of honor this year is Terry Brooks.

5. A reminder for two fantastic giveaways: Win 5 awesome ebooks and an Amazon gift card from T.B. Markinson, and celebrate Tara Tyler's book birthday with an incredible giveaway that includes prizes of a signed print copy of her book, an ecopy of my book, Of Blood and Sorrow, and an Amazon gift card.

Don't forget about the Smashwords Summer Sale!

The Last Stop on the Loose Corset Tour & #SpecFicChat

Geek girl problem #122: You only have a few hours left to enter the Loose Corset Goddess Fish tour giveaway!

The final stop on the Loose Corset tour is Long and Short Reviews.

I have some tips on how to handle negative criticism.

A big thank you to all my hosts on this tour.

Also a huge thanks to Goddess Fish Promotions.

It's the first time I've used a virtual book tour company, and I have nothing but good things to say about them. They're super efficient, and I will use them again in the future. I highly recommend Goddess Fish to writers who want help in promoting their books.

My Geeky Dice & Debauchery Tour will continue next week.

You still have over a week to enter for a chance to win your own set of gaming dice from Chessex.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

* * * * *

Talking about all things speculative fiction, Fridays on Twitter.

 

 

Next chat begins January 23, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. GMT/1:00 p.m. EST. @mpax1 is starting it off.

 

Topic: Punking it up. What’s the attraction of Steampunk?

 

Use #SpecFicChat to join the conversation any time. The chat is ongoing, which means you can join in anytime that’s convenient to you, including a day after this Friday.

Two Awesome Geeky Tour Stops

The dice are rolling hot this week!

Today I'm over at Unabridged Andra's blog with a guest post on writing different genres.

My next host for the Geeky Dice & Debauchery tour is the sci-fi and SyFy loving author, Mary Pax. Come find out some of my Geek Woman Problems.

You know you want some more dice!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Next Stop on the Loose Corset Tour!

Ready for more geeky fun?

Today I'm being interviewed at It's Raining Books.
My favorite kind of rain storm!

Do you have your copy of Loose Corset yet?

Ellora's Cave * Amazon * B&N * Kobo

Add it to read on Goodreads!

Fifth stop on the Loose Corset Goddess Fish tour

Geek girl problem #88: The Loose Corset Goddess Fish tour is half over!

Today I'm sharing ten geeky things about me

at Behind Closed Doors.

Share with us something geeky about you!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Next stop on the Loose Corset Tour

Have you entered the giveaways for a chance to win your own Christine Rains die yet?

Today I'm talking about why people are drawn to erotic reads at Words of Wisdom... from the Scarf Princess.

Why do you think people read erotic stories?

The geeky tours continue!

Push up your glasses and read on!

Today I'm visiting with Merissa and Debbie at the Archaeolibrarian.

I'll be giving you tips on how to meet your deadlines and remain sane.

The next host on my Geeky Dice & Debauchery tour is a proud geek girl, L.G. Keltner.

Click over to her blog and learn about gamers' superstitions about their dice. Oh yes, we gamers are a superstitious bunch!

Friday Five for January 2, 2015

1. Happy new year! I'm excited for 2015. I have a lot going on this year. I started off the year with a quiet new year with my husband and son. It's cold out there, but we bundled up and took a walk in the woods.

2. One week until the release of Loose Corset! You can pre-order it on Amazon and add it to your wish list at Ellora's Cave. You can also add it to read on Goodreads. I'm eager to hear what readers think of this hilarious and geeky novella. If you'd like to review the book, please email Service@ellorascave.com and request a copy.

3. I'll be running two blog tours with the release of Loose Corset. The first will start on Friday, and I'll be giving away dice, dice, and more dice. You can win your own set of gaming dice! I'm giving away personalized dice with my name on it too. My second tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions will start on the 12th. There I'm giving away a gift card and more dice! You'll have two chances to win.

4. Since I'll be touring for the next several weeks, I would love to have you as a guest on my blog. Theme: anything geeky. Short posts of between 200 and 350 words. Please email me if you'd like to write a guest post and join in on the nerdy fun.

5. I'll be posting my 2015 writing goals on Monday. Wednesday is the first IWSG of the year. And Friday is my big release day! Have a terrific weekend.

Realms Faire 2014 - Drench-a-Wench event

HUZZAH!

Welcome to the final day of Realms Faire 2014!

The Realms Faire is hosted by our most magnificent Lady Mary Pax.

I can't believe it's the final day already. We've been having so much fun!

There are several terrific events happening. Each host is giving away prizes for their games. Check out the Realms Faire page for all the links.

I'm hosting the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-bloke event!

The rules to this game are simple:

1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.

2) I post a link to the dunkee's blog and you click on it.

3) You leave a comment, soaking them with blog love.

4) You are entered into a drawing for a chance to win awesome prizes.

Today's prize package:
A signed print copy of Moonless by Crystal Collier (US only)
An ebook of your choice from Mary Pax

A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection.

You have until 7:00 pm EST to leave a comment on the dunkee's blog.

A winner will be chosen randomly each day and contacted at the end of the week.

Yesterday's winner is Melissa Maygrove!

One final awesome dunkee to surprise:

Elizabeth Seckman is an amazing romance writer and mom. How she finds time to write at all I'll never know. Now soak her with some blog love!

More Games! More Prizes! Visit other Realms Faire events for more fun and chances to win more prizes: Joust ~ Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Phasers ~Dragon Hunt ~ Wisdom of the Creative Realms ~VelociRaffle

~ Live Performance / Cody Sill: Into Oblivion

Realms Faire 2014 - Soak-a-bloke event

HUZZAH!

Welcome to Day 4 of Realms Faire 2014!

The Realms Faire is hosted by our most magnificent Lady Mary Pax.

We're nearing the end of the week, but the fun's not done yet.
Have you cheered for your favorite knight? Found all the dragons in the scavenger hunt? Been confused by some riddles?

There are several terrific events happening this week. Each host is giving away prizes for their games. Check out the Realms Faire page for all the links.

I'm hosting the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-bloke event!

The rules to this game are simple:

1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.

2) I post a link to the dunkee's blog and you click on it.

3) You leave a comment, soaking them with blog love.

4) You are entered into a drawing for a chance to win awesome prizes.

Today's prize package:
A print copy of Being Human by Patricia Lynne (international)
A digital copy of Thanmir War by Loni Townsend

A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection.

You have until 7:00 pm EST to leave a comment on the dunkee's blog.

A winner will be chosen randomly each day and contacted at the end of the week.

Yesterday's winner is dolorah!

Today be careful when you surprise this dunkee in his lair:

Al Diaz is our beloved Father Dragon. He's an artist, writer, and philosopher. He has dwarves guarding his cave, but I'm sure once you explain yourself, they'll be more than happy to help you soak Father Dragon with blog love!

More Games! More Prizes! Visit other Realms Faire events for more fun and chances to win more prizes: Joust ~ Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Phasers ~Dragon Hunt ~ Wisdom of the Creative Realms ~VelociRaffle

~ Live Performance / Cody Sill: Into Oblivion

Realms Faire 2014 - Drench-a-Wench

HUZZAH!

Welcome to Day 3 of Realms Faire 2014!

The Realms Faire is hosted by our most magnificent Lady Mary Pax.

She'll be conducting the Joust. Cheer for your favorite knight and win prizes!

There are several terrific events happening this week. Each host is giving away prizes for their games. Check out the Realms Faire page for all the links.

I'm hosting the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-bloke event!

The rules to this game are simple:

1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.

2) I post a link to the dunkee's blog and you click on it.

3) You leave a comment, soaking them with blog love.

4) You are entered into a drawing for a chance to win awesome prizes.

Today's prize package:
A print copy of And Then I Smiled by Dean K. Miller (US & Canada only)
An ebook set from Julie Flanders

A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection.

You have until 7:00 pm EST to leave a comment on the dunkee's blog.

A winner will be chosen randomly each day and contacted at the end of the week.

Yesterday's winner is Michelle Wallace!

Let's surprise another worthy dunkee!

Carol Kilgore is a talented mystery writer from San Antonio. She writes crime fiction with a kiss!

Drench her with blog love!

More Games! More Prizes! Visit other Realms Faire events for more fun and chances to win more prizes: Joust ~ Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Phasers ~Dragon Hunt ~ Wisdom of the Creative Realms ~VelociRaffle

~ Live Performance / Cody Sill: Into Oblivion

Realms Faire 2014 - Soak-a-bloke!

HUZZAH!

Welcome to Day 2 of Realms Faire 2014!

The Realms Faire is hosted by our most magnificent Lady Mary Pax.

She'll be conducting the Joust. Cheer for your favorite knight and win prizes!

There are several terrific events happening this week. Each host is giving away prizes for their games. Check out the Realms Faire page for all the links.

I'm hosting the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-bloke event!

The rules to this game are simple:

1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.

2) I post a link to the dunkee's blog and you click on it.

3) You leave a comment, soaking them with blog love.

4) You are entered into a drawing for a chance to win awesome prizes.

Today's prize package:

An ebook of your choice from Cherie Reich
A digital copy of Snip, Snip Revenge by Medeia Sharif

A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection.

You have until 7:00 pm EST to leave a comment on the dunkee's blog.

A winner will be chosen randomly each day and contacted at the end of the week.

Yesterday's winner was Tonja Drecker!

Our next brilliant dunkee is:

E.J. Wesley is a fantastic NA author. His love for NA literature led him to producing the New Adult Lit Chat on Twitter. Show him some blog love!

More Games! More Prizes! Visit other Realms Faire events for more fun and chances to win more prizes: Joust ~ Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Phasers ~Dragon Hunt ~ Wisdom of the Creative Realms ~VelociRaffle

~ Live Performance / Cody Sill: Into Oblivion

Welcome to Realms Faire 2014! Drench-a-Wench if you dare!

HUZZAH!

Welcome to Realms Faire 2014!

The Realms Faire is hosted by our most magnificent Lady Mary Pax.

She'll be conducting the Joust. Cheer for your favorite knight and win prizes!

There are several terrific events happening this week. Each host is giving away prizes for their games. Check out the Realms Faire page for all the links.

Once again, I'm hosting the Drench-a-Wench / Soak-a-bloke event!

The rules to this game are simple:

1) The dunkee is chosen by committee.

2) I post a link to the dunkee's blog and you click on it.

3) You leave a comment, soaking them with blog love.

4) You are entered into a drawing for a chance to win prizes.

I'll have different prizes every day. You don't want to miss out on these awesome books!

Today's prize packet consists of:
A print copy of The Headhunters Race by Kimberly Afe (US & Canada only)
A digital copy of Taking Time or Passing Time by Ellie Garratt
A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection

You have until 7:00 pm EST to leave a comment on the dunkee's blog.

A winner will be chosen randomly each day and contacted at the end of the week.

Our first wonderful dunkee is:

J.L. Campbell is an award-winning YA, romance and woman's lit writer.

She is absolutely fabulous!

More Games! More Prizes! Visit other Realms Faire events for more fun and chances to win more prizes: Joust ~ Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Stockade Brigade ~ Phasers ~Dragon Hunt ~ Wisdom of the Creative Realms ~VelociRaffle

~ Live Performance / Cody Sill: Into Oblivion

Creepy Freebies

It's that time of year again.

Time for some spooky treats!

Creepy Freebies is the brilliant idea of Milo James Fowler.

Because what's better than candy or having your brain eaten by zombies?

FREE BOOKS!

Milo will be giving away a couple of his creepy story collections.

But this isn't a one house treat fest.

All these awesome authors are giving away free reads!

Cory Cone

James Garcia, Jr.

Anne E. Johnson

Simon Kewin
Michelle Ann King

Mary Rajotte

Kay Theodoratus
Erin Cole
Rhonda Parrish

 In celebration of my favorite time of year, and the one year anniversary of The 13th Floor Complete Collection, I'll be giving away a bunch of  treats!

One lucky US winner (sorry, shipping costs are huge!) will win a signed print copy of the collection. It's the last one I have on my shelf to give away!

Three international winners will receive a digital copy of the book.

Don't forget that I also have three novellas that are perma-free:

The Marquis

Fearless

L'il Gal Al and the Zombies of Amarillo

Be sure to visit all the authors and collect your treats!

a Rafflecopter giveaway