Steven Saus of Alliterationink on Epublishing

Today, I welcome Steven Saus.  When I put out my short stories, Annals of the Immortyls, I'd never self-published anything before.  I had great help with editing and proofreading from some writers in my crit group, one of whom edits professionally, but I had not the first idea of how to go about formatting a book to make it into an ebook.  Enter Steven Saus, a writer I'd met through sci fi conventions.  He'd started a company that helps authors to convert their works into ebooks.  I asked Steven here today, to tell you a little about his company.

Steven Saus on Alliterationink

“I want to make an eBook,” Slartibartfast (not his real name) tells me. “That’s what you do, right?”

“Yes, I --”

He breaks in: “So here’s my idea. It’ll change the world, it will. First, there’s this guy...”

The specifics of the idea are interchangeable. It quickly becomes apparent that Slartibartfast doesn’t have a book that needs to be converted. He hasn’t written a book yet.

It’s the newest wrinkle on “Hey, you’re an author, you should totally write this idea I had” that you’ve probably heard before. (Honestly, you’ve probably done it before - I know I have.) And in some ways, those of us who are participating in the “digital revolution” are probably encouraging it.

You know the slogans and catchphrases (along with the failed attempts at each): Digital revolution. Vertically integrated publishing. e-Revolution. And so on.

And they’re not wrong. There’s money to be made out there. But in convincing authors that they’re able to make money without a gigantic support network, we’ve given the impression that it’s simple or automatic.

At Origins, I was on a panel with Bryan Young, Tracy Chowdhury, and R.T. Kaelin. All of us - all of us - agreed that when an author takes on the publishing aspects of the business, that it’s not a shortcut. As Tracy said: “I think it took just as long, and maybe more work publishing it myself than if I’d sent it off to a publisher.”

So you already know the difference between Slartibartfast’s “I have this idea for a book you could write” and writing a good book. There’s just as much of a difference between “I have this book you could publish” and (successfully) publishing your own book, either digitally or in print.

Both writing and publishing can be fascinating, fulfilling, and even a lot of fun.

But doing it well isn’t easy. And that’s okay.

---

Steven Saus

Steven Saus injects people with radioactive material for a living, but only to serve the forces of good. He is an author with multiple story credits in markets online and off, including “So You Want to Make an eBook?”. He is also the force behind Alliteration Ink, a small publisher whose titles include “Net Impact” by Donald J. Bingle, the Crimson Pact series of anthologies edited by Paul Genesse, and “Eighth Day Genesis: A Worldbuilding Codex” edited by Sabrina Klein. You can find him at stevensaus.com and alliterationink.com.



Link for Bryan: http://www.bigshinyrobot.com
Link for Tracy: http://worldofshandahar.com/index.html
Link for RT: http://www.rtkaelin.com/
Link for eBook: http://alliterationink.com/store.html#ebook
Link for Net Impact: http://netimpact.alliterationink.com/
Link for Crimson Pact: http://thecrimsonpact.com
Link for 8th day: http://8thday.alliterationink.com

Please leave a comment for Steven to receive a free ebook of Annals of the Immortyls.  You must leave an email address or url where I can contact you.

Keira Michelle Telford on Five Things a Writer Should Know

Today, I welcome Keira Michelle Telford.  She is currently on tour with The Virtual Book Tour Cafe.  She has some great tips to share.  


Giveaway!  Please leave a comment for Keira and you'll be entered to win a e-copy of Silver: Acheron (A River of Pain).  Deadline to enter 7/3/12 T 11:59 P.M. EST.  Also, just for leaving a comment, I'll send you a link and free coupon code for my short stories Annals of the Immortyls, and you'll also be entered to win a copy of my latest novel, Servant of the Goddess. Drawing ends 6/30/12 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Please provide a contact email for both giveaways.

Fragment, Consider Revising

From a persistent, irritating wavy green line to the IRS, here’s five things a new writer should know:

First and foremost…

Turn Off the Grammar Checker

It lies. It was the bane of my existence while I was writing my first book, and I quickly learned that there was no way to placate it. No matter what I did, it wasn’t happy. Part of the problem with it is that it doesn’t understand style and aesthetic. My advice? Cut the damn thing loose and make an effort to learn the rules of proper grammar. Rely on your own knowledge, not on a computer program that might understand the dictionary definition of ‘creative’, but doesn’t know how to apply it.

Beta Readers

I can’t emphasize their importance enough. Put together a reliable network of people who read (preferably people who love your genre) and whose opinions you trust. And in case you were wondering, the answer’s no: your mom doesn’t count. You don’t need people who’re going to tell you how awesome you are, and how you’re the next Stephen King. You want people to tell you “there’s something fucky with it” or “that doesn’t make any sense”. If someone reads an entire draft of your book and can’t give you one single criticism, don’t be fooled. You’re not a genius, they’re just a lousy beta reader.

Royalties

Collecting royalties is simple. Just go to a CAA to file a W-7 with the IRS to get an ITIN, then fill out a W-8BEN and send it to… wait. Did I say this was going to be easy? Sorry. I might’ve told a porky. It’s easy if you’re a US citizen, or if you have an agent who can deal with this type of thing for you (or if you don’t mind having 30% of your cheque withheld). But, if you’re a non-US indie like me, and you want that 30%, you’ll need to follow the rules. If you’re published through Amazon/Createspace, it’s laid out in a fairly straightforward manner. Go here if you’d like to read more: https://www.createspace.com/Help/Index.jsp

Ignore, Ignore, Ignore

You’re going to get a bad review. Or two. Or three. Over the course of your writing career, you’ll probably get many. The thing is: a bad review isn’t the end of the world. A lot of times, a bad review isn’t even a reflection on the quality of your work. Sometimes, a reader just won’t ‘get’ you—and that’s okay. Opinions are free, and they’re all valid. The trick is not to take anything personally. To one reader, my use of present tense might be ‘jarring’. To another, it’ll add to the cinematic feel of the text. In any case, whatever you do, don’t respond. Even if a reviewer makes a criticism that you feel is invalid, say nothing. Hold your tongue. Bite back the instinct to defend yourself. In the end, it’s just not worth it.

Learn When to Say No

People are going to want to give you advice. Some of it’s going to be good, and some of it’s going to be bad. Someone once told me that there was too much extraneous information in my narrative. They said that if they took out all of the ‘junk’, they’d cut away a third of my book. My immediate reaction was to doubt myself. In the past, I know that I’ve had issues with dumping information into a narrative like truffle oil over a nice risotto. It’s too much, it’s over-powering and it’s unnecessary. That being said, I’d put a lot of work into pinpointing the weak areas in my text and banishing the exposition where necessary, so I didn’t feel like that was a legitimate criticism of the book.

So what did I do? After much thought, I decided to ignore the advice. And as it turns out, one of the things that’s most often highlighted in the positive reviews of my work is my world-building. See, the person who gave me that advice isn’t a big science fiction fan. It’s not that he doesn’t get me per se; he just doesn’t get the genre. The trick is learning to spot that, and knowing when to go with your instincts.

Ultimately, it’s impossible to please everybody—never forget that. Don’t beat yourself up over a negative comment or a few less stars than you’d like. There’s plenty more where those came from. Just take it on the chin and get ready to do the same thing all over again tomorrow.

Keira Michelle Telford
www.keiramichelle.com
www.ellacross.com
www.facebook.com/thesilverseries
www.facebook.com/silver.acheron
@mylostanddamned


JOIN THE FIGHT

Dishonorably discharged from the Hunter Division and banished for crimes she did not commit, Silver struggles to come to terms with her new prison-like surroundings: a segregated area of the city called the Fringe District, populated by murderers, thieves and rapists. 

Starving, and desperate for money, she reluctantly accepts the Police Division's invitation to enroll in a covert Bounty Hunter program: an initiative devised to infiltrate the criminal underworld of the Fringers, and to force the very worst warrant dodging law-breakers to meet their fate—death.

Unfortunately, Silver doesn't realize that the Police Division is about to up the ante. They need more than little snippets of information and arrests—they need someone to pull the trigger.

They need an executioner.

Book Trailer

Available now:

 

   

Coming Soon!

About the Author:

Keira Michelle was born and raised in the UK. She moved to Canada in 2006, and there she still resides in her west coast townhouse with a husband and 10 guinea pigs.
She is the author of a 10-book series of post-apocalyptic dystopian science fiction novels, all centering on the lead character of Ella 'Silver' Cross. The first book (a novella) in this series, Acheron, was released Nov 2011.




Buy her books on Amazon!

Sexy Cedric Interviews a Fully Functional Cyborg/ The Syn-En Solution by Linda Andrews Virtual Tour

Genre: SciFi with Romantic elements
Publisher: LandNa Publishing
Release Date: 4/27/12

Welcome to Sexy Saturday with Cedric!  Today is definitely a first for me.  I’ve interviewed shape shifters, vampires, werewolves, humans and hermaphrodite aliens, but I’ve never before interviewed a cyborg.  Not that I have any prejudices.  I’ve spent meaningful evenings and had deep—ahem—relationships with machinery. 

Giveaway: Leave a comment for our guests today, and you'll receive a free ebook of Annals of the Immortyls and be entered in the Immortyl Revolution monthly drawing for an ebook of my latest full-length adventure, Servant of the Goddess! You must leave a contact email, so we can send you your free ebook.

All commenters will get this!

CM: Welcome!  I do hope you’ll share a few spicy tidbits, my darling.  Settle into my hot seat of love.  Don’t worry--I never bite unless invited.  Of course, it might present a challenge.

Please introduce yourself to the readers.

BY: My name is Beijing York and I am an Admiral in the Syn-En Fleet. The first Synthetically-Enhanced human to make Admiral in the 120 year history of the Corps.

My men and I are on a mission to settle the alien world of Terra Dos  when I discovered a naked human female floating in my cargo bay. Her name is Nell Stafford and she claims to be from 2012. In the future we've colonized space but have yet to master time travel, so her story is a bit hard to believe. But there's not denying she's a bit odd even for an unenhanced human.

CM:Bei, why don’t you share a little about your vital statistics?  What makes you such a mouth-watering object of desire?  How do you differ from humans?  Can you actually feel things?  In other words, are you fully functional?

BY: I'm over six foot and of Eurasian descent. I differ from humans in that except for my brain and a modified biologic core, I am made up of interchangeable parts. I understand you biologics are constantly working to increase certain areas of your anatomy. Syn-En can shop for stronger limbs without lifting weights should we so desire. As for feeling things, I have extra sensors built under my synthetic skin that allow me to detect when a subject is telling lies.

Wait. What? Nell tells me you're asking about our sex life.

I find it odd that biologics are so fascinated with Syn-En habits. Sure, we don't have the same taboos as your society. Most of us use sex to blow off steam (some call them orgies) but quite a few of us set a period of time in which we are mate exclusively. We tend to stick with our own kind but a few of us, myself for example, enjoy the textures of human skin against my sensors. My Security Chief says I'm a skin addict. With skin like Nell's I'm quite happy to be so.

 (Nell interrupts) 

Nell: Ahem. Bei is fully function and that part of his anatomy doesn't require pills or pumps to be, um, used. Nor do I think any woman could, um, accommodate an upgrade.

CM: Sounds like my kind of man.  Tell me a little about yourself—don’t spare any juicy details.

BY: Like many Syn-En, I was given by my parents to the government to pay for their debts. I was less than a year old at the time. As I grew, more and more of my biologic pieces were stripped away and with each promotion my upgrades became heavier and more specialized.

What?

Again with the sex thing. You should seriously consider have  your mental subroutines checked. I believe yours is looping. Besides, last time I mentioned having slept with other biologics, Nell stalked off. It didn't matter that the encounters were before I'd met Nell...

CM: My dear, sex is my business.  I'm a conduit of divinity.  Well, lately I've been killing nasty vamps rather than sleeping with them.   But I digress.  Share a little of your fascinating world of the future. 

BY: Fascinating? Maybe from where you sit. Nell is certainly fascinated by it. To me, this world settling represents one problem after another. Ships keep exploding and there's a saboteur on my ship. Plus my new mate (Nell) is hearing voices and sometimes speaks in a language that I've never heard called TV shows. Apparently, it's main adverb is MacGuyering.

CM:What are some of the unique challenges that face your species? 

BY: Is that another sexual reference? Oh, I see you're talking about our space voyage. We're more than up to face any challenge. Indeed, if we find our upgrades are not sufficient, we'll create a new one. Of course, no one survives a cascade failure but all Syn-En are happy to ride the chariot (Nell: that's their saying for die) to keep humanity safe. It is who we are and it is a duty to serve.

Nell: But service is not the same thing as slavery. Right now, the Syn-En are slaves. Settling on this new alien world will emancipate them, set them free. Now, I just have to work on getting everyone to see passed their technology and see them as people.

CM: Ah, I understand.  My kind practices slavery.  I used to be a slave.  Bloody awful life, let me tell you.


What do you look for in your ideal partner?

BY: I just look at Nell. She's never what I would have pictured for a mate. She talks. A lot. (Nell elbows him) But she sees me, not my upgrades and she's not constantly throwing it in my face that I'm not human.

CM: So Nell is the special someone in your life? She is simply ravishing.

She's special to everyone on the Planet. And I don't mean that in a good way. But if you're talking about sex, she's my mate. And the terms are everlasting. (Bei flexes  his arm) Do you know the pressure at which biologic bones snap? I do.

CM: I've never measured, but I've snapped my share.  
I’ve had my share of tumultuous relationships, but I must admit, I prefer those that present a challenge.  Do you like someone who lets you take the lead, or do you like strong-minded lovers? 

BY: In the relationship department, we are much alike. Most of the biologics wanted me to be in charge, sometimes forcefully. But with Nell, sometimes she's on top, other times I am. It is better that way, don't you think?

CM: What is your idea of the perfect evening?  All great lovers have their trade secrets.  How you create the perfect romantic atmosphere?

BY: A perfect evening would be with the Com off and Nell behind locked doors. It rarely happens but we're finding some nearby places to take the edge off. I don't create atmosphere but I can seal--

What?

Oh, for sex, you mean. Nell likes chocolate. A lot. It excites her and by touching her skin, I can share in the excitement. I like to taste my chocolate on Nell.

CM: Mmm...I love chocolate. Just ask Mia.  Talk about a woman on top.  Yow. Thanks for joining me today, Bei--and you too, Nell. It's been simply delightful. I'm always up for a threesome.  


Nell and Bei are products of the fertile imagination of the lovely Linda Andrews.  Read on to learn more about them and their adventures!

Linda Andrews:

Linda Andrews lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband, three children and a menagerie of domesticated animals. While she started writing a decade ago, she always used her stories to escape the redundancy of her day job as a scientist and never thought to actually combine her love of fiction and science. DOH! After that Homer Simpson moment, she allowed the two halves of her brain to talk to each other. The journeys she's embarked on since then are dark, twisted and occasionally violent, but never predictable.

Visit Linda's website at:  http://www.lindaandrews.net/

A woman from the past. A cyborg with no future.
They have every reason to mistrust each other but one: survival.

When Nell Stafford passed out it was 2012. When she wakes up naked aboard a starship it's 2138, and she's surrounded by the Syn-En:
synthetically-enhanced soldiers with a grudge against humans like her. She
doesn't know where she is or what's happened, only that her life has been
destroyed and everyone she's ever known is dead.

Their leader Beijing York has just discovered his people's creators--humans--have betrayed them. They were promised freedom and equality in exchange for settling a newly discovered planet at the other side of a wormhole. But the Syn-En have outlived their usefulness.

The offer was a trick.

The wormhole has collapsed, and now both Nell and the Syn-En are trapped
far, far from Earth to face almost certain death.

Bei has lost his future, and Nell has lost her past.

But Nell gained something in her 120-year sleep; somehow, she knows
everything the Syn-En need to survive. Now she must convince Bei and his
people to trust her--as soon as she learns to trust the mysterious intelligence.

Excerpt

His gray eyes narrowed a fraction. "You want me to believe you're from over a century ago come forward in time to save us?" "I don't expect you to believe it." Nell gulped as hysteria threatened to bubble out of her. She set her hand over his, knowing she wouldn't be able to stop him if he decided to strangle her but determined to try anyway. "Honestly, I'm having a hard time thinking of this as anything other than a dream." "Do you have proof?" She snorted. "Where exactly would I put it?" Soft as a caress, his gaze skimmed down and then up her body. "There are places." Nell squeezed her legs together. "There better not be!" His lips twitched. "Shang'hai found a data recorder on your life pod." Feeling cold air against her teeth, Nell clicked her mouth shut. He deliberately let her think he planned a body cavity search. Should she take it as proof of a sense of humor or sadistic streak? She forced the thoughts aside. "Shang'hai? You're talking about the pink haired woman who left with the box, right?" "Yes." "Well good. Then I hope we both get answers about how I got here." Purchase this book through Amazon.

Once more, I'd like to thanks my guest for chatting!




Until next time, love and dark kisses,




Cedric MacKinnon

         

Katie Salidas on Go Publish Yourself/Review and Giveaway

Today, I welcome Katie Salidas back to Immortyl Revolution.  She's currently on her Virtual Book Tour.  I've been following Katie's career since the publication of her first novel, Immortalis Carpe Noctem.  She's the owner of Rising Sign Books and has been on before to talk about self-publishing. 
Recently, she released a how-to book called
Go Publish Yourself!.

Contest: Two ways to win!
1. You can enter to win a ebook of Go Publish Yourself! To enter, leave a comment for Katie.  Deadline is 4/26/12, 11:59 p.m. Winner will be chose by random drawing. Please leave a contact email.
2. By leaving a comment for Katie, you'll also be entered in my monthly drawing.  This month's prize is an ebook (Nook, Kindle or PDF format) of my vampire novel, My Fearful Symmetry.  Deadline to enter is 11:59 p.m., 4/30/12.  Winner will be chosen by random drawing from all commenters at this blog throughout the month of April.  Please leave a contact email.

Review of Go Publish Yourself!

Go Publish Yourself! is a step-by-step, easy-to-read guide about the self-publishing process. Author Katie Salidas draws upon her experience of starting her own publishing company and offers not only a guide to putting together a polished product, but information on how to market it, something even a traditionally published author will find useful. The book encompasses everything from obtaining ISBN numbers to creating an attractive cover. There are sections on both bound and ebooks. Salidas also provides several useful links at the end of the book.


I like that the author stresses the importance of submitting a book to multiple critiques and hiring the services of a professional editor before publication. Right off the bat, she cautions that self-publishing isn’t likely to make one a millionaire and that creating and promoting a book takes a lot of effort. She also stresses that there is a financial investment and hard work involved in doing the job right, but if someone is willing to put in the work, it can be done. I would recommend this book to anyone researching the possibility of self-publishing.

Interview with Author Katie Salidas

What led you to form Rising Sign Books and self-publish?


KS: Publishing has been a dream of mine for a long time. When I originally looked to publish Immortalis Carpe Noctem, book one in the Immortalis series, I attempted the traditional route. The book, while well received was looked at as too late to reach the hot market. Vampires at that point (thanks to Twilight) were a popular creature, sadly though, that also meant the market was being flooded with vampire-related stories. In traditional publishing it can take up to 24 months from the sale of a story to seeing it in print. At that rate, even if I had sold the story, I might still have missed the hot market by the time it was published. That’s when I began looking into self-publishing. Doing it myself, I could get it to the market while it was still hot. That’s what gave me the inspiration to pursue self-publishing, and Rising Sign Books was born.


What would you say is the most important consideration for an author seeking to self-publish?

KS: If you’re going to self-publish, you need to take the time to do it right. One of the biggest reasons that self-publishing had a bad name to begin with is quality. Back before it became more mainstream, self-publishing was super expensive. Editing for example could cost thousands. Many authors couldn’t afford to do it right and self-publishing became synonymous with poor quality. It left a bad taste in many reader’s mouths. Today it is cheaper and much easier to do, but quality is still key. So if you’re interested in self-publishing, take your time, do your research, and put out the best quality product you can.

Give a brief run-down of the steps you take to develop, create and market your work.


KS: Brief is hard to do. That’s exactly why I wrote a book on the subject. Go Publish Yourself does exactly that. It begins with budgeting your book, taking into consideration things like: editing, layout, and book cover art, etc… Then, it runs through both print and ebook formatting tips. After that, you’ll look at pricing, copyright, and getting the book into book stores. Finally, it ends on marketing with topics such as: press kits, blog tours, giveaways, and book signings. There’s a whole wealth of information inside that I think will really help any self-publisher, both novices and even seasoned authors.


Realistically, what kind of investment in time and money (aside from the actual writing) should a self-published author anticipate?


KS: Rather than say, “it should take you 4 months” to self-publish, I’d say it really boils down to steps. Once your manuscript is finished (meaning you’ve written all the way to “the end.”) you’ll need to have it critiqued. This is not editing. This is where you give the book to a few readers to pick apart. Consider that a first pass. You should revise after this. Then, you’ll want to beta read the revisions. This is another pass by a different set of eyes. There is usually another round of revisions here too. After that, if you’re completely satisfied with all of the changes, you can move on to editing. Once edited then you’ll need to lay it out for your publishing formats. At this stage you’ll need to nail down your cover art, file your copyright, and assign your ISBN. Then when it’s all ready, you can put it all together and publish.


As far as money is concerned. You’ll want to budget for: Editing (variable pricing dependent on who you hire), Cover art (variable pricing dependent on who you hire), ISBN (purchase a pack of 10 for about $250), Copyright (file online for $35), Layout (you can do this yourself or hire out for $100-200), and if you’re going to have print copies, you’ll have some setup fees from your printer.


While it no longer has to cost thousands of dollars to print, the actual cost will vary from person to person depending on the options you chose and the freelancers you hire. Just be aware of your budget and do your homework when looking for freelancers to hire. To help get you started, you can look at this list of websites and freelance editors and artists.


http://www.risingsignbooks.net/2012/03/self-publishing-website-guide.html


What would you say is the most valuable marketing tool you've utilized? Is it important to give out free copies and keep your price point low?


Giving free copies away, if done right, is a wonderful way to draw readers to your new book. When I say, done right I mean with a purpose. Don’t just give away copies to everyone, you’ll never make any money on them that way. My favorite way to do this is to go on blog tour and offer various giveaways as part of each tour stop. I often give each tour host a free e-copy of my newest release. This way the blog hosts gets an incentive to host you. They can read the book at their leisure, and may also give a review on their book (Book reviews are a very important thing). I also like to offer an additional copy of the book to offer as a giveaway for their readers. Contests are great ways to excite readers and get more exposure for your book. Just remember, when marketing, have a purpose behind everything you do.

Do you recommend placing books in big bookstores like Barnes and Noble or independent booksellers?

That’s a tough one. Yes, we all want big bookstore exposure but it can be a little easier said than done. It’s actually a topic I cover in Go Publish Yourself, with a few calculations to show you what price points you would have to set your book at in order to make it cost effective. In short, I would say try to get yourself into indie book stores first before hitting the big chain stores.

Does your company have any plans to publish other authors? What are some of the services your company has to offer writers?


Rising Sign Books is working on creating a boilerplate Author contract and will look to take on new authors later this year. To be notified about upcoming Rising Sign Books news and request for submissions please sign up for our newsletter at http://www.risingsignbooks.net

As of right now we are not open to submissions but we do offer some a la carte services to assist authors in self-publishing their novels. Services such as: Manuscript critiquing at $0.0025 per word and

Katie, than you for joining me today and sharing your wealth of knowlege. 

You can also follow Katie at these links:
Facebook
http://twitter.com/#!/quixotickatie



Author Interview with Patti Hultstrand

I'm pleased to welcome Patti Hultstrand today!  Please leave a comment for Patti to be entered for prize drawings through Authors supporting Authors.

Patti, to what age group is your work geared?

I do not like to be left behind the door in romance stories. I like to see in the story what happens in the bedroom, so this is also how I write. I also write from multiple points of view because I want to know what these other characters think of my main character. Ok – so I am noisy and didn’t even know that I was. Or, at least, I want to know what’s going on in my mind, and I’m still the last one to know; at least where my characters are concerned.


Into which genre would you say your work falls and why?


The Time Chaser series are time-travel romances in that you can’t separate the romance from the story and be able to keep the story true to the idea. Parker must meet Tamea in order to find his other half and Tamea must meet Parker in order to fulfill her destiny and become a time chaser. This series is an epic romance where they are meant to be together for so many reasons, one being to save the world as they know it. Of course!


Tell us a little about your books.


In "Time Conquers All," Tamea, a nineteen-year old warrior princess from the India region of the world in the late 1500's, is being plagued by disturbing dreams and visions of the future. Tamea is assigned to protect a visiting king from a neighboring country while their two countries solidify a treaty that will benefit both countries. This king brings with him assassins that want to kill him and his family who are hiding a bigger secret regarding the origins of his country.

This king is not who he seems, and Tamea must unravel the intrigue that surrounds him and his country, but even more important, she must find out why he has been haunting her dreams and visions.

In book 2, "Rescue In Time" due to be released in June 2010, we find Tamea and Parker are connected by more than just their countries' alliances, but have a destiny to discern. Tamea continues to have the disturbing vision where Parker dies in her arms from a successful assassins bullet. She is subconsciously trying to solve the outcome to save his life in the future.

Meanwhile, in the 1500's, Tamea and Parker must take their countries to war with their neighboring country of Bengal who have been implicated as the mastermind behind the assassination attempts on both of their families' lives. Tamea must learn that not all those close to her can be trusted, maybe not even the man she loves.

Who is your favorite character in your books and why?

My favorite is Parker, of course, because when it comes to men, he is my ultimate hero. Yes, he has mental issues, but we find out why in the upcoming books in the series. You would think at first his mental problems were a direct issue from his Vietman years, but we find out there are more layers to Parker. You could say that peeling back the layers on Parker is an interest of mine.

I had written a short story with Parker and his author having a relationship outside of the book. I think all of us romance writers have this kind of weird relationship with our hero characters. Think about the whole movie premise of “Romancing the Stone” and tell me honestly, if you are a romance author, do we not try to find our “Jessie” character from our stories, in the real world somewhere?

What is your website and/or blog where readers can learn more? Can they friend you on Facebook or other sites?

Readers may find me at:

http://www.azpublishingservices.com

http://www.timeconquersall.com

http://azpublishingservices.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pj.hultstrand

http://www.twitter.com/chance2publish


Are there any upcoming events that you’d like to mention?

I'm actually working on designing a brand new magazine out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, so will probably not be in the public much for a month or two. I can be found at the CopperCon convention in Mesa, Arizona over Labor Day weekend. We will be in the dealer’s room, as well as speaking in a group of panels and sponsoring a workshop over that weekend. We will also be doing a book signing party that weekend as well.

My favorite personal anecdote right now is:

I don't think dogs care why they walked into a room - they only know if they're happy to be there or not. A tiger would know why it's there.


Great quote, Patti!  Thanks for being my guest and good luck on your tour!

Interview with author, Louise Wise

Today, Louise Wise is visitng all the way from the U.K. on her virtual tour.  Please leave a comment to be entered for prizes through Authors Supporting Authors Virtual Tours. 

JOURNEY TO THE PAST…


A tale of romance and survival as three people travel from 2236 to the beginning of time.


Jennifer Daykin joins the three-man crew to explore the newly discovered planet, Eden.


All was going well until Jenny found herself deserted…

She listened for an answering shout – there was nothing. In the distance, Jenny was transfixed with horror as the space shuttle rose into the blue sky of Eden.


‘No... Don’t leave me here!’


Only the pounding of her heart answered her.

…but not alone

The instant she hit the floor she curled into the foetal position. Finally, the bare feet walked away. A Native American warrior, had been her first thought, but it was his eyes that had alerted her he wasn’t an Indian or even human. They were completely black; black, dry orbs in a battered face.


Ordinary people with ordinary emotions, fears and insecurities.


Only this isn’t Earth, and he isn’t human.


A modern day Adam and Eve.

Welcome to Immortyl Revolution, Louise!  To what age group is Eden geared?

It was meant for adult but I’ve heard that some teens have been enjoying it.


Into which genre would you say your work falls and why?

Eden is a crossover romance to science fiction.


Tell us a little about your book.

Jenny Daykin is a woman very much of the future (2236), she is an astronaut who joins a three-manned crew to the world’s first trip outside the solar system to the planet Eden. Unfortunately, things go very wrong on entry and their shuttle is damaged. On landing, they discover a crashed UFO, which seems to have been there a long time; only it has a survivor. The crew panic and Jenny gets accidently left behind. She has to live an existence of a cave-dweller, except she has a very big, a very angry alien man to contend with. A love story with a HUGE difference.

Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

The alien, Fly because his lifestyle had been so brutal and different compared to Jenny’s that he didn’t understand what was happening when he fell in love. He just didn’t recognize the emotion! Matt was a close second. He was my evil character-turned-nice, but I could really understand his reasoning beyond his badness.


What other writers would you say have influenced your work and why? What are some of your favorite books in the genre?

Others writers influenced my writing, but Eden was tailor-written, if you like, for me. I was going through a strong bad man phase when I thought up Fly. I don’t read science fiction – isn’t that awful to admit that? I like astronomy and am a little geeky looking through my telescope, but reading unpronounceable names do not appeal to me. And all the sci-fi I know have some kind of battle or war to win. I’m a romantic through and through. Saying all that though, I admit to reading Red Dwarf and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, but that was for the comedy.


What is your writing process like? Do you do a lot of background research? Do you plot every detail or do you prefer the characters to move the story in new directions, or a combination of both? Do you belong to a critique group and do you find this helpful?

I do a lot of day-dreaming first to get a feel of the characters, then I put write about them, not necessarily to start the story. I always change the first and second chapter anyway. I have the plot in my head and know the basic ending but my books are very much character led. I research as I go. My writing is very muddled but it works for me. If I can’t get one chapter right, I move on to the next and come back to it. I usually have six or seven drafts before I deem it good enough to send to my editor.


I use www.youwriteon.com. as my critique group. They are very good.




Do you have any advice for young or beginning writers?

Enter writing competitions and join on-line writing forums. This is a really good one for beginners  Writer's Biz.  Grow a thick skin and be prepared for rejection from every angle.

Who is your publisher and where are your books available? Are there e-books and hard copies available?

The publisher is www.youwriteon.com. You can find an eBook of Eden on Obooko: http://www.obooko.com/index.html and hard copies from any Internet store like Amazon,
Amazon U.K., Or buy a signed copy straight from me with paypal: http://louisewise.blogspot.com or request it at a library if they haven’t already got it in.







What is your website and/or blog where readers can learn more? Can they friend you on Facebook or other sites?

You can follow me at: www.twitter.com/wisebird2009,  http://louisewise.blogspot.com/ and http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=546054093 . 

My next book A Proper Charlie will be out for Christmas.

Tell my readers about your background?

I’m married and live with my husband in Northampton (where the late Princess Diana was born), England. We have four boys, the youngest is six and the eldest is nineteen. We also have two cats and a rabbit with a personality disorder – he thinks he’s a cat also. Professionally I am an on-line editor as well as a writer. I do love editing (I think I’m alone?), I love seeing pieces come alive on the page just by changing the position of a comma.


Louise, thanks for joining me today and good luck on the tour! 

Interview with author, Susan Hanniford Crowley

Today, I welcome Susan Hanniford Crowley to Immortyl Revolution.  Susan is on her Authors Supporting Authors Virtual Tour.

What age group is your work geared toward?

I write for adults. I have explicit sexual content in my books.

Into which genre would you say your work falls and why?

I write paranormal romance. Since I am a cross over author from science fiction and fantasy, the genre appealed to me as it allows me to write science fiction, fantasy, and supernatural with romance. 

 Tell us a little about your latest book.


THE STORMY LOVE LIFE OF LAURA CORDELAIS (which is part of the Vampires in Manhattan series) is about a woman who doesn’t realize she’s inherited Telkhine powers from her mother. Laura has a desperately horrible day which makes her question her existence. She ends up clinging to a railing on the Brooklyn Bridge. When she changes her mind, she falls into the river. Vampire David Hilliard has just asked God for mercy and to end his loneliness. He has a vision of her and plunges into the river to save her. Unfortunately, Laura is mortally injured and he has only one choice. David doesn’t know that to love a Telkhine brings doom upon them both and plunges them into a world of sorcery and voodoo. Will his love be enough to save them? Does Laura truly love him?

Available as an ebook at: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-thestormylovelifeoflauracordelais-374695-139.html
Also available in Kindle:















I’m awaiting news of the print release date.

Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

I love David Hilliard, because he’s brave, patient, kind, and even though he’s over a hundred, he’s not opposed to learning new things. It doesn’t hurt that he’s great looking and has a weird sense of humor.

What other writers would you say have influenced your work and why? What are some of your favorite books in the genre?

My first editor in fantasy was Marion Zimmer Bradley, and her work as an author greatly influenced me. I found her work transporting as if I had walked through a door into another world. Now-a-days I’m influenced by a lot of the up and coming authors in paranormal romance like Bianca D’Arc, Stella and Audra Price, and a.c. Mason.

What is your writing process like? Do you do a lot of background research? Do you plot every detail or do you prefer the characters to move the story in new directions, or a combination of both? Do you belong to a critique group and do you find this helpful?

I dream a story. When I wake I write it down as fast as possible—sometimes only in an outline or grocery list format. Then I flesh it out more and I do tons of research to get details right. As for plotting, I let my characters move the story but I get all that in my dreams, for the most part. Sometimes I have to fix places that don’t quite work.

For THE STORMY LOVE LIFE OF LAURA CORDELAIS, I researched the Brooklyn Bridge, the East River, cemeteries in New Orleans, the different dialects spoken in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina timeline over Florida and New Orleans, the flooding pattern, the French Quarter, Voodoo, different forms of magic, the mythology of Rhodes (the legendary homes of the Telkhines) and obscure Greek Mythology.

I have belonged to critique groups in the past: Critters.org for science fiction, fantasy, and horror writers and Rom-Critters, which is a yahoo group for romance writers. I found them tremendously helpful when I was honing my craft. I belong to SFWA and RWA and also a local chapter of RWA. I love the local chapter meetings because they are highly educational and I’m always learning something new I can use.

 Do you have any advice for young or beginning writers?

Read everything in the genre you want to pursue as a writer. That way you’re not wasting time writing something someone else already has. Join a writers group for the education and a critique group to help with the process and get emotional support.

Who is your publisher?

My publisher is Tease Publishing LLC.  My other books (I also have WHEN LOVE SURVIVES and A VAMPIRE FOR CHRISTMAS in the Vampires in Manhattan series) are available at: All Romance Books

What is your website and/or blog where readers can learn more? Can they friend you on Facebook or other sites?

Readers can always find me at http://susanhannifordcrowley.com/
My romance blog: http://nightsofpassion.wordpress.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHCrowley
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Susan-Hanniford-Crowley/629298868
Absolutely friend me and ask to be in the Internet Book Party, that way you get all the news.

Are there any upcoming signings or appearances you’d like to mention?

My next ebook release will be VAMPIRE IN THE BASEMENT—tentative release date July 15.
I will be participating in the Authors After Dark Romance Unlimited Convention in Secaucus, New Jersey, September 16-19. There's still time to register. There will be tons of fun events, panels, workshops, parties, and giveaways. Here's the link:

http://authorsafterdark.blogspot.com/p/aad-confrence-info.html


For those that are attending Authors After Dark Romance Unlimited Convention, come up to me and say “I saw you on Immortal Revolution” and I will give you a small gift.

Susan, Thanks so much for joining me today!

Thank you for having me.

Readers, please leave a comment to be entered in drawing through Authors Supporting Authors.

Interview with author, Pauline Baird Jones

 Today, I'm thrilled to feature my fellow L&L Dreamspell author, Pauline Baird Jones! Pauline is kindly giving away some handmade bookmarks to the first four commenters.

What age group is your work geared toward?

PBJ: I write for and to adults, but my work can, and is, read by older teens. I wouldn’t be comfortable having YA reading A Dangerous Dance because it has some disturbing content, but otherwise, my older nieces and nephews have read my books.



Into which genre would you say your latest book falls and why?



Girl Gone Nova is most definitely science fiction romance, with strong action/adventure elements, because it takes place in another galaxy (though it is present day, SF, not futuristic SF.)



Fantasy and science fiction create a new world for the reader. Tell us about the world you’ve built.



PBJ: Both Girl Gone Nova and the previous book in the series, The Key, are based on assumption that US has secret space program that is taking first steps in intergalactic travel. It’s called Project Enterprise and the intergalactic ship is called the Doolittle. Its mission is to “jump” the farthest into space (there are other ships exploring “closer” galaxies) where they land in the middle of an galactic conflict between the Dusan and the Gadi. The Key is the story about that firs contact and Girl Gone Nova picks up the story two years later.

The people they’ve encountered thus far are humans and while they have their own languages, there is something called “standard” that allows my people to converse with these aliens, though there are many differences in experience to overcome. So far they’ve mostly run into misogynists. It’s bothered a couple of readers, but I chose to do this quite deliberately. If you look at our own world, and the way women’s emancipation has played out, there are still large pockets of people who don’t see their women as an important resource. A lot of SFR fiction shows alien civilizations as more advanced than us in women’s emancipation, I just went the other direction.
It makes for interesting conflict as the cultures clash and it lets me explore what happens when a civilization fails to use all its resources effectively. For instance, in Girl Gone Nova, I explore what happens when boy babies are more valuable than girls (since a civilization needs girls to have boy babies.) I try to use a light hand, but the subject does interest me.

Who is your favorite character in your book(s) and why?


PBJ: Wow, you’re going to make me choose. Let’s see, well, I always like my heroes (if I don’t like them why should my heroine?). The hero of this book is quite the character. He was a sort of bad guy (at least not the good guy!) in The Key and when I wrote “the end” he was miffed that he didn’t get the girl. I never planned to give him any girl, but he kept bugging me and finally I had to play “what if” in my head. I had a lot of fun getting to know him better.


What other writers would you say have influenced your work and why? What are some of your favorite books in the genre?


PBJ: My early influences were Mary Stewart, Elizabeth Cadell, Georgette Heyer, Alastair Maclean and Helen McInnes. From them I learned character, plot, humor and great storytelling.

In my genre, my favorite author is, hands down, Linnea Sinclair. She writes fun and exciting science fiction romance. I particularly like that she doesn’t flinch from writing the big ending. Nothing I hate more than to read an “adventure” novel that fizzles at the end.


What is your writing process like? Do you do a lot of background research? Do you plot every detail or do you prefer the characters to move the story in new directions, or a combination of both? Do you belong to a critique group and do you find this helpful?


PBJ: Well, it is kind of hard to do a lot of background research on fictional science, but I did do some research on the US Air Force, using it as a basis for how my fictional space ships might be structured. For The Key. Sara, the heroine of that book, is a pilot, so I wanted her to be grounded in the real AF, even if she was in space. For Girl Gone Nova, my heroine was a black ops genius. She hides in plain sight. I did do some research on SERE (survival-evasion-resistance-escape) training, a bit on weapons. But since I already had my foundation laid down, I didn’t have to do as much.

My writing process is very much “seat of the pants, into the mist” writing. I do little to no advance plotting. When I started The Key, I had one scene: a woman crashes something and wakes up in a cave with someone. That was it. I just started asking myself questions and 142,000 wds later, I had a book. With Girl Gone Nova, I had a setting and a problem. I had some characters (one who insisted he was the hero!) and I asked myself, who could solve this problem AND cause my hero the most problems? 138,000 wds (and some near head exploding) later I had a new book.

Obviously I spend a lot of time editing, though I also edit as I write. I’ll write myself out on a limb, inch back and rewrite, then press on again. It’s very…organic in a somewhat painful, but very fun way. As long as my head doesn’t actually explode, I’m good.
I do not use a critique group, but I do have a couple of very good friends/readers who give me feedback at key points in the writing process.

 Do you have any advice for young or beginning writers?

PBJ: Don't let anyone tell you that you can’t make it. But don’t expect it to be easy. Easy is no fun anyway. Doing hard things are the only things really worth doing.


 Are there e-books and hard copies available?


PBJ: My books, print and digital, are available in a variety of online outlets, including Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Fictionwise (my personal favorite place to shop digital).


What is your website and/or blog where readers can learn more? Can they friend you on Facebook or other sites?

PBJ: http://www.paulinebjones.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pauline-Baird-Jones/55567420451

http://twitter.com/paulinejones

http://www.myspace.com/perilouspauline



There’s something else special about this book, for you and your publisher, isn’t there?


PBJ: Not only is Girl Gone Nova my eighth, full length novel, but it is L&L Publishing’s 100th release! It is a wonderful achievement for them and I’m thrilled to be going “nova” with them (and that they’ll be re-releasing my backlist and my new novella Tangled in Time in 2010).

Wow!  That's very exciting, Pauline, congratulations to you and L&L Dreamspell.  I'm happy to have them as my publisher as well!  Thanks so much for joining me today!