My 2013 writing goals

The 13th Floor series: This is going to be my main focus for the year. I have four novellas to write, five tours to run, and all the promoting that comes with it. I put myself on a tight schedule for it. Maybe too tight? Being sick has already put me behind schedule. I keep telling myself it will be okay if I'm not rigid and strict with myself, because life happens and self-publishing gives you flexibility. That's why I decided to take that path after all. So yes, you'll be hearing A LOT about the 13th Floor series from me in 2013. How convenient the year matches my series!

The A to Z Blogging Challenge: You may have noticed I didn't schedule a book release in April for this very reason! *winks* I love the Challenge. It was incredible last year. So many original posts from people. I wrote Fearless, and I self-published it. It's been a huge success. (Almost 700 downloads just this month!) I've gotten a lot of requests for another book. You might scream and protest, but Abby, Demetrius, and Tawa's story is done. I'm not going to do another with them. BUT I might do another story about a different Fearless. There are hundreds of these warriors around the world saving children from the monsters. I haven't any ideas yet, but I'm a pantser. It'll come to me!

NaNoWriMo 2013: I considered doing Camp NaNo instead, but November wouldn't be the same if I didn't participate in this challenge. Besides, I have a book tour in June. I have no idea what I'll write, but that's okay. This is one thing I want to do every year for the rest of my life. It doesn't matter if I publish every book or not. It's the rush of the challenge and the creation of a new story.

Short stories: I'm not going to do the write 1 / submit 1 this coming year. It was an excellent exercise and I encourage writers to try it, but I need to concentrate on the 13the Floor series. Yet if I am inspired, I still would like to try to do six in 2013. I would love to get something accepted by a SFWA approved publication. That dream hasn't faded.

Revise and query one novel: I have several completed novels. All of them need to be reworked and polished. I hate revising but love writing first drafts! I want to find them homes. I'm not sure which one I'll work with. This won't be until the latter half of the year after all my work with the 13th Floor series is complete.

What are your writing goals for 2013?

Books read in 2012

The number surprised me too. I know I'm a fast reader, but I didn't think this fast! That's just over ten books a month. This doesn't include any short stories or novels I've beta read or critiqued.

I'm not going to set a goal for next year, but I'd still like to read 100 books. It doesn't seem unreasonable to me now. Most of these books were print copies. I rarely get the chance to use my Nook or sit at the computer to read. I'd love to be able to read more ebooks, but it's difficult with a toddler who loves gadgets. Maybe when he's a bit older and doesn't have to have every toy Mommy is playing with.

How many books did you read this year? Are you fast or slow reader?

How I did with my 2012 goals

Short stories - write 1 / submit 1 every month

I did it! My stories have gotten shorter as they year went on, but I'm happy with how they've turned out. I've learned a lot about writing short stories and flash fiction this year. Even if I don't get any more accepted, I feel I'm a better writer for having done this challenge.

 

Paranormal romance series

This is my 13th Floor series. I originally intended to write the first drafts of all six novellas this year, but you can never predict how life is going to change. I have the first two written. I planned to write the third this month, but with the holidays and sickness, I'm not going to make it. I'm very happy with how they're turning out and how the overall concept is coming together. This is the series I'm going to use to represent me as a writer. So it's probably for the best that I didn't rush into writing all six of them.

NaNoWriMo 2012

Yay! On November 26th, I reached over 50,000 words! I'm a 2012 NaNoWriMo winner. I wrote a superhero story called "Super Famous." I'm not sure I'll do anything with it, but it was a lot of fun to write.

 

Witch's First Rule revisions

This is a paranormal romance novel. The first in a completed trilogy. I queried the book three years ago and it got a lot of attention, but in the end, agents and publishers passed on it. I could never figure out why. Recently, I realized I was marketing it all wrong. The story started in the wrong place too. I've done two major revisions. The first chapter has been rewritten five times. But I had to put it aside. I still wasn't completely happy with the new beginning. It's starting in the right place now, but I'm not wild about the first chapter. I'm giving myself some time apart from it and maybe next year when I come back to it, I'll be able to write a first chapter that will wow me. I believe the protagonist is unique and her story fantastic, but I need to get it right before I start to query it again.

 

Projects I didn't plan

Fearless. Well, I did plan to do write it for the A to Z Challenge this year, but I never thought it would be so popular or that I would publish it. I'm very happy that everyone encouraged me to do so. Fearless continues to do very well. Thousands of readers have picked it up.

L'il Gal Al and the Zombies of Amarillo. I never thought I'd do anything with this story either. It was originally a short-listed story for an anthology, but was rejected in the end. Since it is on the longer side of short stories, I had trouble finding it a home. I wanted to get another story out there before I started publishing my 13th Floor series, and I wanted something different than paranormal romance. L'il Gal Al was perfect for the job.

 

Join me on Monday for my 2013 goals.

The Winners of The Marquis Giveaway

Thank you to everyone who entered the big Marquis giveaway. I wish everyone could win. Here are the three winners:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

As the first place winner, Lynda as won a digital copy of The Marquis,

an ARC of The Alpha, and a signed copy of Fearless.

As the second place winner, Rosemary has won a digital copy of The Marquis

and an ARC of The Alpha.

Finally, as the third place winner, Trisha as won a digital copy of The Marquis.

Emails have been sent to the winners.

Another big thank you to Shannon Lawrence for hosting the giveaway for me.

The wicked neighbors post was so much fun!

Last day for the big Marquis giveaway

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We had a nice, quiet day. It took the boy two hours to open all the presents. He'd open one, play with it, and then move on. He was very excited about the playhouse we bought him. He played in the garage a lot yesterday.

A mean little virus has taken me down today. I can't think. I can barely look at the screen. We're snowed in and there's a state of emergency. I hope it isn't something dire!

There's less than 11 hours left to enter the big Marquis giveaway! There's three awesome prizes! Check out my guest post on The Warrior Muse's blog and tell us about your experiences with bad neighbors. The giveaway is open to everyone around the world.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Christmas 2012!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

 There's my gorgeous son sitting with Santa.

He was happy to sit on his lap this year.

I just wish the photographer centered the photo properly!

Have a wonderful holiday season.

 

The Alpha blog tour and the 13th Floor tours in 2013

A great big thank you to everyone who participated in The Alpha's cover reveal. And I'm blushing at all the wonderful comments too. Thank you so much.

A few of you asked if I made my own covers. Yes, I did. I bought the model images from Dreamstime, and I played around in Photoshop with them until I had exactly what I wanted. I wanted something simple yet intense. I have the first four covers of the series done. The fifth one is giving me trouble. I have a definite image of Harriet (the banshee) in my head, and I can't seem to find any models that suit her. It's a case of wishing I could've had the cover done first and then come up with the character.

The Alpha's blog tour is scheduled for January 13th - 17th. If you'd like to host me on the tour or any of the tours next year, please send me an email at christinerains [dot] writer @ gmail [dot] com. All the dates for the tours and cover reveals are listed on my 13th Floor series page.

Please add 1302 - The Alpha "to read" on Goodreads.

Another huge thank you to everyone who hosted me on the 1301 - The Marquis blog tour. You guys are awesome. The final giveaway is still going on until the 27th. Check out The Warrior Muse's blog for details.

One final bit of exciting news: Fearless got a massive boost during my blog tour. It's still sitting in Amazon's top 100 free ebooks for paranormal under fantasy. It made it as far as #27. My brilliant editor added the first chapter of The Marquis after the end of Fearless. Hopefully this will help push up sales for it. So if you don't have your copy of Fearless yet, grab one, and get a preview of The Marquis too!

1302 - The Alpha cover reveal

Title: 1302 - The Alpha, (The 13th Floor series, #2)
Author: Christine Rains
Genre: paranormal romance
Release date: January 13th, 2013

Having been cooped up in her apartment for months, Stefanie Porter didn't think one run in the woods would matter. The wolf within her needed to stretch her legs, but obviously she didn't have very good instincts. Her former pack found her, and they almost catch her too, but a mysterious lone wolf jumps in to help Stefanie escape.

The pack is driven by their cruel Alpha, Wyatt. He refuses to give Stefanie her freedom even after she lost the challenge to lead them and left their territory. She can hide in her apartment, or the lone wolf can teach her some of his unusual urban survival tricks. James Roberts might be a bit geeky, but he's smart and looks hot when the argyle sweater comes off. He has a ridiculous ambition to become a superhero, and it might be admirable if Wyatt couldn't rip him limb from limb.

With the pack scouring the city for her, Stefanie must convince James to teach her, or fight not only for her life, but his as well.

Final Day of The Marquis blog tour

It's the last day of the tour. Wow!

What a fantastic time I've had.

Thank you to all the wonderful hosts and

to all the people who commented.

A big congratulations to Heather Holden
who won a digital copy of The Marquis
from Aubrie Dionne's blog!
Check out Heather's site.
She's an awesome artist.  
 

But wait! The fun isn't over yet.

I have a guest post on choosing the perfect title for your book at Livia Peterson's blog.

This is always difficult for me, but there are some tricks to finding the best name.

On the 13th Floor, there are some noisy and fearsome tenants. But I'm sure you've experienced worse neighbors than them. We want to hear about your experiences.

I've listed 13 types of bad neighbors on

Shannon Lawrence's blog.

There's also one final big giveaway!
Three AWESOME prizes!
International entries are welcome.
1st prize: one digital copy of The Marquis, an ARC of The Alpha, and a signed copy of Fearless
2nd prize: one digital copy of The Marquis and an ARC of The Alpha
3rd prize: one digital copy of The Marquis  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today's tidbit: When I wrote The Marquis, my favorite parts involved Vetis. He's one of my favorite types of villains. When I wrote The Alpha, I loved writing about the heroine. Strong and feisty woman falling for a geeky guy. Now I'm writing The Dragonslayer, and I'm falling in love with the hero.

Come back tomorrow for The Alpha cover reveal!

Day 7 of The Marquis blog tour

Two more guest posts on the tour.

I'm talking about being a writer mom on

Jackie Felger's blog.

How she manages to write with four boys amazes me. I only have one and I'm lucky to find a few minutes to myself!

Come on over to Kyra Lennon's blog

to learn a little about the romance between the hero and heroine of The Marquis, Marc and Mae. Love is in the air!

Today's tidbit: I originally had a different name for my heroine. I was going to call her Innes. She refused the name, told me to sit down and listen instead of spending so much time on baby name sites. Her name was Mae, and though it looked a little too much like Marc, she refused to let me change it.

Day 6 of The Marquis blog tour

I have two great stops today on the tour.

First I'm sitting down to chat with my new and very brave beta reader, Clare Dugmore.

We talk about the story and her experience being a beta reader for me.

Next I'm popping over to the lovely

Gwen Gardner's blog. 

I have a guest post on the need for balance in writing paranormal romance.

Today's tidbit: I was worried that the romance in The Marquis would be overshadowed by the conflict between Marc and Vetis. It turned out that the romance was the most powerful aspect of the story.

In other story news: the paranormal crime anthology, Mortis Operandi is now available. My short story, "Immaculate" is featured within. It was one of the stories I wrote and submitted this year as part of my 2012 goals. I'm happy to be part of this great collection of stories.

Day 5 of The Marquis blog tour

The blog tour continues with another great excerpt and giveaway today on Aubrie Dionne's blog.

Congratulations to Hilary Melton-Butcher who won a copy of the novella from the first giveaway on Cherie Reich's blog. Enjoy!

Do you have your copy of The Marquis yet?

Amazon

B&N

Smashwords

Kobo 

Today's tidbit: I dedicated The Marquis to my father. He passed away in 2007. I originally had a longer dedication than what's in the book now. It read: "For my dad who battled against his demons and lost, but he always believed in me." Even five years later when I go back to visit family in my hometown, people will mention how my father talked about me being a talented writer and ask if I'm still writing.

Day 4 of The Marquis blog tour

Today I'm being interviewed by

M. Pepper Langlinais.

She asks some deep and clever questions about the series and the 13th floor itself.

I love this isn't your standard author interview.

Today's tidbit: I've been in buildings that have a 13th floor. They were sadly mundane. Years ago, I worked as a security guard in a building that did not mark it had a 13th floor. It did have one, but it was left unfinished and used as a storage area. I don't know why it was left that way. It was a new building in a big city, but it seems even today people still hold on to those old superstitions.

Day 3 of The Marquis blog tour

I'm over at my other  fabulous CP's blog today,

Tania Walsh.

She has an awesome weekly series on mythological creatures. In honor of her love of beings of lore, I wrote a post on the central ones in The Marquis: demons.

Today's tidbit: There are several BIG mythological beings in the 13th Floor series such as giants, dragons, and Zeus.

Day 2 of The Marquis blog tour

Today I'm over at Nick Wilford's blog

with a character post.

Usually writers profile their heroes and heroines, but I gave it a little twist. I wrote about the villain, a trickster demon called Vetis.

 

Today's tidbit: I love writing villains. Years ago when I played online RPGs, I would always get requests to take on the role of one of the big bad guys. Sometimes I felt a bit typecasted, but I enjoyed it too much to protest.

The Marquis is here!

The first novella in my 13th Floor series,

1301 - The Marquis is now available!

Amazon

B&N

Smashwords

Kobo

The first stop on my blog tour will be over at

Cherie Reich's blog.

My talented CP and editor.

None of this would've been possible without her.

She's sharing an excerpt and

giving away one digital copy of The Marquis!

Today's tidbit: My protagonist, Marc gave me a lot of trouble because he isn't the chatty type. Usually my characters won't shut up. He just stands around and glares. Give me words! At least he gave me a lot of action.

Life after Hell isn't more exciting than watching football and fixing a busted pipe. Once a powerful demon, Marc enjoys his quiet existence and a good cup of coffee. With big ambitions to gain his master's favor, a trickster demon named Vetis shatters Marc's peace and vows to deliver Marc's head to the fires of Hell. Not before he destroys everything Marc cares about, of course.

Marc's power has diminished over the years. Heaven will never grant him absolution, and he refuses to return to Hell. Running isn't an option. The city of Carmine is his territory. It's also home to his favorite cafe owner, Mae Hopkins. The dame has a lovely smile, but it's her heart and soul that shine bright.

While his city burns and his love is captured, Marc must decide to surrender or let hate and anger fuel him to become the fearsome beast he so loathes: The Marquis. If the Marquis rises, Vetis can be defeated and Mae saved, but Marc would be lost to his demon forever.

Wicked Wednesday - promoting tips and one day until The Marquis

One more day until the first book of the 13th Floor series is officially released. I'm hyperventilating a little bit and eating too much chocolate. I worry about whether I'm doing enough to promote the series. So I've been reading articles about self-promotion. When I'm anxious about something, research does help. Or it's enough to distract me from my worries!

Here are a few things I've learned about promoting your books:
1. Word-of-mouth is extremely important. When people get talking about your book, it can snowball. Especially on sites like Twitter.
2. Reviews are also very important. Encourage readers to leave reviews on their blogs and from wherever they purchased your book. Send your book to review sites.
3. Samples and excerpts will let readers who are unfamiliar with your work get a peek. Pick something that will hook them.
4. Have an awesome cover and blurb. These will attract readers who randomly come across your book.
5. If you can afford it, use paid advertising.

Tomorrow I begin my eight day blog tour for The Marquis. My first stop is at Cherie Reich's blog. We'll be starting the excitement right off with a giveaway. Every day during the tour, I'll be posting a tidbit about The Marquis or the 13th Floor series. On the 21st, I'll be revealing the cover to the second book in the series, The Alpha.

And then I'll be taking a little Christmas break to catch up on my sleep!

Teaser Tuesday with Alchemystic

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This is the newest book from Anton Strout. His Simon Canderous series is hilarious. His writing is very Buffy-esque. Alchemystic is an urban fantasy about a gargoyle. Pretty cool, eh? Makes me miss the Gargoyles cartoon.

Here's your teaser:
With perfect accuracy, my stone form hit the man hard - as I had intended - driving his body away from the woman, the sound of cracking running through him. So fragile, these creatures. (page 73)

Cheers, Cavanaugh Blogfest

This fantastically fun blogfest is in honor of a talented and generous ninja by the name of Alex J. Cavanaugh. It's hosted by by Mark Koopmans, Morgan Shamy, David King, and Stephen Tremp. This is a way the blogging community can say thank you to Alex.

Here's what you need to do. Answer these four questions:

• In +/- 20 words, what does Alex look like?

• In +/- 20 words,who could play Alex in a documentary? (Living or dead.)

• In +/- 20 words, who does Alex remind you of?

• In +/- 100 words,(excluding the title) write flash fiction using all these prompts:

• Cavanaugh

• Ninja

• IWSG

• Cosbolt

• Guitar For

Bonus Points:

• In+/- 40 words, leave a comment for Mrs. Cavanaugh - thanking her for sharing

Rules:

• Join the Linky List

• Be a follower.

• Post your 200 (total) word contribution Monday, Dec. 10.

• Have Fun!

Two winners – chosen by Alex – will each win one prize:

FIRST PLACE: A signed copy of CassaStar.

GRAND PRIZE: A picture of Alex and a download of him playing the guitar. (*One caveat: Alex asks the picture or download NOT be shared online.)

  

Here we go!

What does Alex look like? A little bit rock but with tame hair. Sage eyes. Understated. A sneakers and jeans guy.

Who would play Alex? I'm seeing Jason Bateman for some reason.

Who does Alex remind you of? My fifth grade teacher, Mr. V. (He didn't look a thing like Jason Bateman.) Supportive, encouraging, and fun. Every kid flocked to him and adored him.

Flash fiction: He dove across the stage as quick as a Cosbolt. The energy bolt blackened the spot Cavanaugh had stood. Acrid smoke teased his nose, making his stomach roil. The creature with the bad eighties rocker hair chortled. The building shook with it, but the ninja didn't flinch. He grabbed the Guitar for Victory and strummed a note. This time, it was the monster that trembled. With a snarl, it attacked and shot another beam from its one eye. Cavanaugh strummed again. The energy frizzled before it could hit him. A few more chords launched him into a rocking solo, and his enemy stood not a chance. No one made this ninja late for an IWSG meeting.

Bonus: Thank you to Mrs. Cavanaugh. You're as generous as your husband for giving him the time to share with us.  He's a lucky man to have a supportive partner such as yourself.

Four Days Until The Release Of The Marquis

Four days until the official release of the first book of the 13th Floor series. 

 The clock is ticking.

What will Marc sacrifice to save

his city, his friend,

and the woman he loves?  

The Marquis is already available on

Smashwords.

You can mark it "to read"

on Goodreads.

Friday Five for December 7th, 2012

1. I completed one of my big goals for 2012 yesterday. I wrote my 12th short story of the year and submitted my 12th one. It was a tougher goal to keep up with than I originally thought. I've been aiming high with my stories too. I haven't gotten one accepted by a SFWA approved press yet. I'll keep trying, but I won't be doing this again next year. I'd like to say I'll write six and submit six, but I'm not going to set any goals for short stories. Let them come as the inspiration hits me.

2. I had a lovely visit with my mom. It was a bit crazy, but we had fun. We took my son to see Santa and rode in a little mall train. We shopped. A lot. My feet hurt afterward. It was a nice early holiday visit. Now I have a ton to catch up online and prepare for the release of The Marquis next week. Yikes!

3. Yesterday's kickoff for the Writers4Writers Group went wonderfully. Thank you to everyone that participated. If you're interested in joining, just click on the tab above and pop your name into the linky link list. Helping fellow writers is as fast and easy as retweeting.

4. I just finished Cold Days by Jim Butcher. Brilliant! I'm so excited about it and I want to talk to someone, but my husband has only started to read it. It's so hard not to shout out spoilers. And he reads so slow!

5. We put up our Christmas tree on Wednesday. We did it while the boy was taking his nap. When he woke up and finally saw it, he let out this awesome breathy gasp and said, "I love it!" Seeing his gorgeous little face light up made my month.

 

Have a great weekend!

Writers4Writers Group

Today is the official kickoff of the Writers4Writers Group. Yippee! I've teamed together with three marvelous authors, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Stephen Tremp, to show our support for our fellow writers. We invite you to spare a minute of your time to do the same.

Our featured author this month is Nancy S. Thompson. Her new thriller, The Mistaken is now available on Amazon. Please stop by Nancy's blog and copy and paste her prewritten Tweets onto your Twitter page. Then stop by our W4WS Facebook page and share her link with your friends. That's it! Simple. Fast. Powerful.

The W4WS Group's Mission:

• Help writers bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people

• Help writers reach Amazon Top 100 in at least one category (i.e., suspense, free, whatever)

• Increase sales of their book(s) after the promo is over

• Drive new traffic to their blog and increase following

• Create verbal and viral buzz.

In A Nut Shell: the spotlighted author will choose a social media avenue such as Twitter or Facebook (or both). Each month we will spotlight one, two, or possibly three new authors.

 
Then, the good people of Blogdom will promote the author’s book to their Twitter followers or Facebook friends, and thus to incredibly large new audiences the author could not reach on their own.

Please show your support for your fellow writers and sign up on the linky list below!

Insecure Writer's Support Group for December 2012

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.

I'm eight days away from releasing the first book of my 13th Floor series. I'm sure many of you know what those days feel like. The self doubt, the panicking, the elation, the fear, and the hope. All of those mixing together causing your mood to go up and down with no warning.

I'm highly anxious about this series because I want it to represent me. I want people to recognize me as Christine Rains, the author of the 13th Floor series. Yes, I know all our stories represent ourselves as writers. Yet I have published fantasy, romance, horror, and erotica stories. I haven't put any particular one to my name, my brand. That's what I want to do with the 13th Floor series.

I think about the series all the time. The stories, the characters, the tours, how to market them, what will readers think, and can I handle it if it isn't well received. All possible scenarios go through my head. I over-think things. A lot.

I feel like I'm bracing myself for impact.

How do you prepare yourself for a release? And how do you handle the anxiety and self doubts that come with it?

Teaser Tuesday with Cursed

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This is the second book in the Alex Verus series, but I forgot to make a teaser out of the first one. I'm enjoying these books so much. A fantastic urban fantasy world much like the Harry Dresden books, but in London. Benedict Jacka writes amazingly vulnerable and yet strong characters. A must read for all urban fantasy fans.

Here's your teaser:
Without pause the creature pulled itself to its feet and lunged straight for us.
Some days are just better spent in bed. (page 41)

The Nightmare Collection blog tour - Interview with Cassie Richards and giveaway

I'm very excited about Cherie's The Nightmare Collection. Three chilling tales of horror. You can read my review of it here. Two of the stories feature a brave young woman named Cassie Richards, and I'm lucky enough to get a chance to sit down with her today. Getting through my questions won't be nearly as difficult as surviving what happened in the woods!

Thank you for joining me, Cassie. Let's start off easy. I know you're a teacher. What do you teach and what made you go into teaching?

I teach high school history, mainly American History and World History. I’ve always loved the past, so I knew I wanted to study history. But my choices were limited in what to do with a history degree, so teaching was the most likely option.

I'm a history fan myself, and I had a lot in my hometown. What's your hometown? Do you miss it?

Although I was born in Roanoke, Virginia, I lived in New Haven. It’s about as small southern town as you can get in Virginia, filled with rednecks. I was glad to leave. But there are a few things I miss. The mountains, my family, the familiarity of home.

My town was really small too. What was your family life like? What's it like now?

I suppose my family life was pretty normal. I’m an only child, so their focus tended to be on me. I was in everything— soccer, theater, choir, etc. I was an overachiever, and I always felt they were there for me. But everything changed overnight. Now we rarely talk and our relationship is strained. Before I went with Tim to Virginia, I had only seen them twice in ten years.

Ah, that fateful night. It's absolutely horrifying what happened. Do you consider yourself a heroic or just lucky?

I’m no hero. I just got lucky. If that car hadn’t come by and struck me, the monster would’ve likely grabbed me, dragged me back into the woods, and killed me too.

Then you were accused of the murders. To what lengths did you go to convince people to believe you about who actually committed those atrocious acts?

I begged them to believe me when I woke up in the hospital. They thought I was crazy, so imagine how hard it is to get people to believe you then? When I got out of Grayson Sanatorium, I used my resources as a history major to research local history. We couldn’t be the only ones to cross the monster’s path. I sent my findings to New Haven Police, but they didn’t believe me. Eventually, I stopped trying. It was easier that way. If I hadn’t, then those other people might not have died.

Do you feel any anger towards those people who wouldn't believe you?

Uh, yeah. Wouldn’t you? The worse was they wouldn’t believe me. I knew what I saw. Even when my name was cleared, they wanted to believe the worse in me. It wears a girl down.

I have no doubt. Do you think there's anything different you could've done that night to help your friends survive?

I go over that night every day. It’s the first thing in my mind when I wake up and keeps me awake at night. I still don’t know what I could’ve done differently. Maybe I could’ve been stronger, faster, smarter. I just don’t know.

I guess we'll never know. Thank you again for being here, Cassie. It was a pleasure chatting with you.

Author Bio: A self-proclaimed bookworm, Cherie Reich is a writer, freelance editor, book blogger, and library assistant living in Virginia. Her short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies. Her e-books include the horror series Nightmare, a short story collection with authors Aubrie Dionne and Lisa Rusczyk titled The Best of Raven and the Writing Desk, the futuristic space fantasy novelette trilogy Gravity, and The Foxwick Chronicles, a series of fantasy stories. She is a member of Valley Writers and the Virginia Writers Club.

Author Links:
Website: http://cheriereich.webs.com
Blog: http://cheriereich.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bookworm0753
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorcheriereich
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4268457.Cherie_Reich

Book blurb: A legend is hungry tonight.

A child monster will get its first taste of blood in Nightmare at the Freak Show. Four friend will enter the forest on December night, but only one can survive in Once Upon a December Nightmare. Almost ten years after Cassie's December nightmare, the monster awakens to hunt again in Nightmare Ever After.

Add to Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16089321-the-nightmare-collection

Buy the book!
Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/256004
Amazon US http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A93EMNE
Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A93EMNE
Nook http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-nightmare-collection-cherie-reich/1113808878?ean=2940015726503
Nook UK http://uk.nook.com/ebooks/the-nightmare-collection-by-cherie-reich/2940015726503
Kobo http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/The-Nightmare-Collection/book-NTs2Bn-DK0-ypSR2cseCvA/page1.html?s=K9KRpcbL8UC68DBm7NN-KA&r=9
Createspace https://www.createspace.com/4043291

GIVEAWAY!

Cherie is giving away prizes to two lucky people!

The prize packages are open internationally and include: a signed copy of The Nightmare Collection, a signed copy of Gravity: The Complete Trilogy, and a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

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Sunday sales peek and what's coming up this week

Only 11 days until the release of the first book in my 13th Floor series, 1301 - The Marquis. It's coming on so quickly. You can see all the wonderful blogs I'll be visiting on my blog tour if you click on the 13th Floor series tab above. I'd like to remind you all if you'd like to be part of one or more of the upcoming blog tours, please email me. The more the merrier!

This week, there's a lot of exciting things happening. I'm hosting Cherie Reich tomorrow for her newest release, The Nightmare Collection. I'll be interviewing a brave young woman by the name of Cassie Richards and talking about her horrific experiences with the monster.

On Wednesday, it's the Insecure Writer's Support Group hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. I'll be posting on the right day this month!

This Thursday is the very first Writers4Writers Group post. It's a brilliant way for writers to help other writers through social media. It's as fast and simple as a tweet.

I hadn't checked on my sales for about four weeks. November was a busy month. It was also a very bad month for sales. I've noticed a few other writers have mentioned this as well. Maybe everyone was too busy NaNo-ing? Or maybe I just need to promote some more.

Fearless still does pretty well. Hopefully it'll get a boost when The Marquis is released. These are my Fearless total sales since August. (Not including anything that's been downloaded from Kobo as they don't track free downloads.)
Amazon - 3921
Smashwords - 890
B&N - 3

Downloads for L'il Gal Al and the Zombies of Amarillo still mosey along like a tortoise on a desert vacation.
Amazon - 5
Smashwords - 89
B&N - 3

Colonization Blog Tour - Guest Post with Aubrie Dionne

Please welcome sci-fi romance author, Aubrie Dionne.

Colonization is her newest book, and by far, my favorite of all her stories.

You can read my review of it here.

Take it away, Aubrie!

Why I Love Working with Inkspell Publishing:

When Inkspell publishing agreed to take Colonization: Paradise Reclaimed last spring, I was ecstatic. I’d had two offers from two different publishing companies, and Inkspell won hands down. Their website is gorgeous, their covers are phenomenal, and I loved the sound of the stories they had coming out. I thought my book would be a perfect fit.

Not only that, but they have a print contract for most of their books, which is hard to find nowadays with small publishers. Having a print book is a great marketing tool. You can only do a Goodreads giveaway if the book is in print, and some reviewers won’t take ebooks, not to mention book signings, so print definitely opens more doors.

As I got to know the people at Inkspell, I loved the company even more. They are polite, courteous, and always get back to me as soon as possible, unlike other companies I’ve dealt with that don’t return my emails at all. They make me feel special, and they support my book wholeheartedly. I think it’s important to find a company that believes in you and your work.

As I started to read the ARC’s coming out of Inkspell, I was amazed. Want by Stephanie Lawton was so irresistible, I couldn’t put it down. I ate it up like chocolate balls and ice cream. Frozen by Annabelle Blume was another steamy hit. Book after book that I read I liked. I knew I’d truly found a home for my YA books.

Aubrie Dionne is an author and flutist in New England. Her writings have appeared in Mindflights, Niteblade, Silver Blade, Emerald Tales, Hazard Cat, Moon Drenched Fables, A Fly in Amber, and Aurora Wolf. Her books are published by Entangled Publishing, Lyrical Press, and Gypsy Shadow Publishing. Her newest YA sci fi novel with Inkspell Publishing titled: Colonization: Paradise Reclaimed, was released in October. When she's not writing, Aubrie teaches flute and plays in orchestras. She's a big Star Trek TNG fan, as well as Star Wars and Serenity.

Visit Aubrie at her website and her blog. You can find her on Goodreads and Twitter.

Colonization is now available on Amazon, B&N, and Inkspell Publishing.

Blurb: Finding a new home has never been so dangerous.

Andromeda has spent all seventeen years of her life aboard a deep space transport vessel destined for a paradise planet. Her safe cocoon is about to break open as Paradise 21 looms only one month away, and she must take the aptitude tests to determine her role on the new world and her computer assigned lifemate. As a great-granddaughter of the Commander of the ship, she wants to live up to her family name. But, her forbidden love for her childhood friend, Sirius, distracts her and she fails the tests. The results place her in a menial role in the new colony and pair her with Corvus, “the oaf”.

But when Andromeda steps foot on Paradise 21, her predestined future is the least of her worries. Alien ghosts from a failed colonization warn her of a deadly threat to her colony. And when Sirius's ship crashes on the far ridge in an attempt to investigate, she journeys to rescue him with Corvus.

Andromeda now must convince the authorities of the imminent danger to protect her new home. What she didn't expect was a battle of her own feelings for Sirius and Corvus.

Can she save the colony and discover her true love? 

GIVEAWAY TIME!

   a Rafflecopter giveaway