W4WS for November 2013

Welcome to the November 2013 W4WS event! I'm honored to co-host this event with three talented writers, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Stephen Tremp.  The mission of this group is simple: we have a spotlighted author(s) that we strive to help bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people, increase the sales of their book(s), drive new traffic to their blogs and increase followers, and create verbal and viral buzz.
 
We've made this simple and fast. It's as easy as a tweet or a RT, and sharing a status on Facebook. Go to the writer's blog and copy a tweet or RT from the posts with the tag #W4WS. The W4WS Facebook page will have all the updates and links for you.
 
To join the W4WS event, click here for the linky list. It will only take a minute of your time, and you'll have talented writers take a step closer to their dreams.

Michael Offutt writes speculative fiction books that have science fiction, LGBT, and paranormal elements. His first book, Slipstream has received some critical acclaim and was published by Double Dragon in 2012. You can find Michael on his blog, Twitter, and Facebook.

On A More Somber Note: Nick Wilford at Scattergun Scribblings superstar boy Andrew sadly passed away in his sleep a few days ago. Kyra Lennon is coordinating flowers/donation from authors for Nick and his family. Kyra is one of Nick's crit partners. If you want to donate and/or pass on the info, feel free. You can send money through Paypal to Kyra. Her Paypal address is kyralennon@gmail.com

 

Although it's early days, and we're not sure what Nick's family need right now (not that there's anything that can REALLY help), if anyone would like to donate some money to send them some flowers to let them know we're thinking of them, and any remaining money can be donated to a charity of their choice.

 

You can send money through Paypal - because that's the easiest way for it to be collected and sent on. Any donations are welcome - if you can only afford £1/$1, then great! If you can't afford anything, don't feel bad. What we're doing here is trying to let Nick and his family know that - as a group - us writers are there for him.

St. Peter at the Gate guest post and W4WS event for Septemeber 2013

Welcome to the September 2013 W4WS event! I'm honored to co-host this event with three talented writers, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Stephen Tremp.  The mission of this group is simple: we have a spotlighted author(s) that we strive to help bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people, increase the sales of their book(s), drive new traffic to their blogs and increase followers, and create verbal and viral buzz.
 
We've made this simple and fast. It's as easy as a tweet or a RT, and sharing a status on Facebook. Go to the writer's blog and copy a tweet or RT from the posts with the tag #W4WS. The W4WS Facebook page will have all the updates and links for you.
 
To join the W4WS event, click here for the linky list. It will only take a minute of your time, and you'll have talented writers take a step closer to their dreams. 

Cherie Reich is a self-proclaimed bookworm, a speculative fiction author, a freelance editor, and a book blogger. Her epic YA fantasy novel, REBORN, will be released May of 2014. Right now, her Nightmare Collection is just 99 cents! You can find Cherie on her blog, site, Facebook, and Twitter.

Helen Ginger is the author of three non-fiction books, a short story anthology, and a contemporary fiction novel, ANGEL SOMETIMES. She maintains an informational and interactive blog for writers and a weekly e-newsletter that has been going out to subscribers around the globe for thirteen years. You can find Helen on her site, blog, and Facebook.

Now on to our guest post by the talented M. Pepper Langlinais!

My award-winning novella St. Peter in Chains is currently free on Amazon (Kindle format only). In it, British spy Peter Stoller falls in love and must deal with the consequences when his lover is accused of espionage. And be sure to read the sequel, St. Peter at the Gate, in preparation for the third installment, St. Peter Ascends, which I hope to have out next year. As a fun little exercise, I’ve written a piece that shows Charles and Peter at Peter’s childhood home in Derbyshire. It is Charles’s first visit; Peter almost never goes home. Unlike the novellas, which focus on Peter’s perspective, this bit is told from Charles’s point of view. I hope you enjoy it!

He found Peter seated on a chair in the garden, a book from the house library open on his lap, the morning sun slanting over him in dappled kisses. For some, the honesty of light makes them appear older, but on Peter it had the opposite effect, making him unaccountably unlined, young and innocent. Charles felt ancient by comparison, though there were not a full five years of difference in their actual ages.

Peter knew he was there; Charles was certain of it. The appearance of youth did not bestow a lack of intelligence, and Peter’s work was as embedded in him as any genetic code. But Peter kept his eyes on his book as Charles walked over to join him.

The garden was enclosed in low hedges and ringed in rose bushes that were only just beginning to bud. A flagstone path led to a similarly paved square that held two chairs and a small table between them. The chairs faced out rather than one another, as if it was not expected that two people might want to look at each other while conversing. This simple arrangement told Charles more about Peter’s home life than anything else he’d yet encountered in the house.

But then, they had not yet seen Peter’s mother.

“You’re up early,” Charles remarked as he eased into the vacant chair. “Couldn’t sleep?”

“Mum only allows breakfast until eight,” said Peter, never looking up from his book. “One has to be up early if one wants to eat.”

Charles’s eyes traveled up the lovely grey stone of the house. Beautiful, but not warm. He suddenly understood why Peter had come out into the garden to read; the chairs were not the most comfortable, but there was warmth here that the plush armchairs of the library could not provide. The house radiated cool, even chill; the garden, with its smell of grass and perfume of roses, offered contentment and unspoken kindness.

“It’s a good thing I’m not hungry, then, I suppose,” Charles said. He hesitated, then asked the question that weighed on him. “Will she like me?”

“No.”

The answer came so quickly, and with such certainty, that Charles started where he sat. He looked hard at Peter, who finally deigned to lift his gaze from the pages. “I’m sorry,” Peter went on, though his tone was matter-of-fact, “but better to know the truth. Then you won’t need to waste any time trying to make a good impression. Ah, God,” he sighed, his eyes turning toward the house, and Charles looked too.

She was coming up the path toward them, her spine erect, her face pinched. But what surprised Charles—though why it should, he didn’t know—was how like Peter she looked. Or rather, he looked like her, Charles supposed. The same aristocratic cheekbones and stubborn mouth. And now the faces wore identical expressions, ones akin to two knights readying for the joust.

Pick up your copy of St. Peter in Chains on Amazon.

And you can find St. Peter at the Gate here!

Re-Introduce Myself Blogfest

This wonderful blogfest gives everyone a chance to re-introduce themselves to our growing community. All you have to do is take a minute and tell everyone something interesting about yourself. This is a blogfest, so please visit the other participants and get to know them. Don't forget to give a big thank you to our marvelous hosts Stephen Tremp, Mark Koopmans, Elise Fallson, and C.M. Brown.

Hello! Please allow me to re-introduce myself. I'll make it short and sweet. My name is Christine Rains and I'm a geek mom. My son shares his bed with Ernie, Brobee, and Cthulhu. We play Candyland like a role-playing game and frequently turn our couch into a pirate ship. I love to write and read. Hopefully I can help nurture those loves in my son as well.

I'm shy and not terribly exciting, but I love getting to know new and old friends alike. Tell me something about yourself, please.

Announcing the Writers4Writers Group

I'm so excited to announce the Writers4Writers Group (W4WS). I've teamed up with three absolutely amazing writers to host this monthly event: Stephen Tremp, C.M. Brown, and M. Pax.

Our Mission:
1) Help writers bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands new people.
2) Help writers reach Amazon's top 100 in at least one category (i.e. suspense, free, etc.)
3) Increase sales of their book(s) after the promo is over.
4) Drive new traffic to their blog and increase following.
5) Create verbal and viral buzz.

We'll choose one writer a month to promote to start off. As the group takes off, we can choose two or three. With enough people helping in this initiative, it will have an astounding effect. It will be fast and simple to do. Easy as a tweet.

Nancy Thompson, author of the recently released The Mistaken, will be our first recipient. We'll be starting on December 6th. Mark it on your calendars! We'll have more information later in the month. Please feel free to take the badge and display it on your site.

Sign up for W4WS on the linky list below.

7x7 Link Award

A huge thank you to L.G. Keltner for not only honoring me with the 7x7 Link Award,

but the Versatile Blogger and Kreativ Blogger awards too.
A big thank you to C.M. Brown as well for passing on the 7x7 Link Award.

I've recently done the other two awards, but the 7x7 one is new.

For this award, I need to choose the post that best fits each category.

This will be a challenge.

Most beautiful piece - Auntie Tara's Short Story Prompt for January

Most helpful piece - Wicked Wednesday - the fast-paced novel

Most popular piece - First Campaign Challenge

Most controversial piece - Wicked Wednesday - taboo? (I don't have anything really controversial, but this is the closest!)

Most surprisingly successful piece -  Wicked Wednesday - paranormal romance cliches

Most underrated piece - Wicked Wednesday - sexual tension

Most pride worthy piece - A to Z Challenge - A is for Abby

I'm suppose to give this away to seven people.

The first seven who comment and want may have it!