Adrianne Ambrose

Free Comic Book Day Art

2012-01-15T17:37:00.001-08:00

For those of you who aren't already Corey Godbey fans, gird your loins. Here is some of his Labyrinth art for Free Comic Book Day. Love him. Really think he captures the feel of the story. Wait until you see the rest of the pages. Really good.

Free Comic Book Day Update

2012-01-11T18:00:00.000-08:00

Just saw the art for Ted Naifeh and my Free Comic Book Day story and it's fantastic. Cory Godbey did an amazing job. Now I'm even more excited to work on the graphic novel. This guy really knows his stuff. The FCBD story turned out adorably, if I do say so myself. I think Labyrinth fans are going to be over the moon with Godbey's art.

Fangs for Nothing is now Free!!!

2011-12-29T12:36:00.000-08:00

That's right. For a limited time you can download a copy of Fangs for Nothing onto your Kindle, Nook, iPad, whatever you like, for FREE. Yes, it's a little holiday present for you to enjoy in the coming new year.

Kindle

Nook

And wherever else you seek it.

Fixing Congress

2011-12-21T11:06:00.000-08:00

Okay, I don't normally write about politics on my blog, but I just received this chain letter and thought it was too good to ignore.:

Warren Buffett, in a recent interview with CNBC, offers one of the best quotes about the debt ceiling:

"I could end the deficit in 5 minutes," he told CNBC. "You just pass a law that says that anytime there is a deficit of more than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible for re-election.”

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, e-mail, cell phones, etc.

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution (Prevents laws affecting Congressional salary from taking effect until the beginning of the next session of Congress), seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure.

Warren Buffet is asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise.

In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around.

*Congressional Reform Act of 2011*

1. No Tenure / No Pension.

A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.

2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security.

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen.

Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S.) to receive the message. Maybe it is time.

THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!!!!!

If you agree with the above, pass it on. If not, just delete.
You are one of my 20+.. Please keep it going.

North by North,,, Huh?

2011-12-08T14:39:00.000-08:00

I turned on North by Northwest for a few minutes while having lunch. I haven't seen the movie in years, but remembered the general gist. It was the part where Grant has been arrested for drunk driving and he takes the police to the house where he was held captive, but everything is different. There's a woman with him who at first I took to be his wife. But then I remembered that Eva Marie Saint is his love interest in the movie, so who was the woman? That's when I heard Grant's character refer to her as Mother. I thought I must be mistaken, but he said it again. Yes, the woman, played by Jessie Royce Landis, was only eight years older than Grant but cast as his mother. E.M Saint, who played his love interest, was twenty years his junior. Yuck! I don't care how debonair Grant was, just yuck.

I remember watching About Schmidt and being confused by a scene where Nicholson was seated next to a slightly frumpy woman. I thought, they can't possibly have cast her as his mother, can they? But then I realized that she was cast as his wife. It's just so rare to see an aging actor paired with a woman his actual age it threw me off for several seconds. But then they killed the wife character off rather quickly so there wasn't that to worry about anymore.

Fab New Gig

2011-12-07T16:11:00.000-08:00

Looks like Ted Naifeh and I will be writing a couple of Labyrinth graphic novels for Archaia and the Henson Co.. Check out this new press release.

Labyrinth

I committed Facebook suicide

2011-12-01T14:38:00.000-08:00

I just committed Facebook suicide. The company itself made it very hard to figure out how to shut down my account, but a little Googling around gave me a link that made it quite simple. Now, as long as I don't log onto Facebook for the next two weeks, my account should be terminated. Yay!

After the suicide, I received this lovely email from my friend Lou:

Welcome to the club!

This month we're voting on mottoes. The finalists are:

"You don't need to know that"

and

"Sorry, you're just not that interesting"

Leave it to Lou to so eloquently and hilariously summarize why I left Facebook. That and Facebook's need to harangue me every day demanding to know why I hadn't logged on.

Goodbye cruel Facebook!

Help Fun the Harvey Pekar Statue

2011-11-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

The top three reasons you should donate a dollar or more to help finance a statue to Harvey Pekar in Cleveland:

3) You love comics.

2) Pekar was a delightful grouch.

1) Cleveland needs more cool stuff.

Okay, these are probably my personal reasons, but that shouldn't stop you. Pekar needs a statue. Go to this link and pledge a buck. Harvey Pekar statue.

Was one of the Brontes a Vampire?

2011-10-22T09:20:00.000-07:00

Back in 1892, Mercy Brown was a young girl that caught tuberculosis from a family member and died. Her mother was the first to die of the disease, but some of her siblings also became ill and died. When her brother Edwin became ill, the townspeople encourage Mr. Brown to dig up his kin and see which one was a vampire, which he did. Mercy, having been the latest to die and due to a cold winter, hadn't decomposed much in her grave, so it was concluded she was undead and sucking the life out of the remaining family members. Poor Mercy's heart was removed from her body, burned and made into a draft for Edwin to drink. He died two months later.

I learned of this gruesome bit of history when I was in my early twenties and it stuck with me over the years. Just the gruesomeness of digging up a loved one and making a potion from the ashes of their heart is enough to put me off my feed.

So I was thinking, what if it was true that tuberculosis was a form a vampirism? That would mean someone in the Bronte family was a vampire. Charlotte was the only sibling to survive into her thirties. Imagine the horror of knowing your dead relatives are trying to suck the life out of you from beyond the grave. No wonder Charlotte was always described as being so humorless. She must have felt it was her sister, Anne, that was the vampire. That would explain why she went out of her way to surpress the reprinting of Anne's books. But given his ability to suck so much out of the family during his life, I'd put the blame on Branwell.

If you prefer your vampires with a little more humor and romance, try my ebook, Fangs for Nothing, for 99 cents on all ereaders.

Kindle

Nook

H.P. Mallory talks about selling ebooks

2011-10-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

H.P. Mallory was kind enough to do a mini-interview about her latest title, How I Sold 200,000 ebooks, A Guide for the Self Published Author:

AA - You have a new book out and it's non-fiction. What can you tell us about it?

HP - Well, I've hosted quite a few sessions on self publishing and I get a ton of emails from authors asking for advice so I thought it would be a great idea to put out a book detailing everything I did to get where I am today, that's my newest release, How I Sold 200,000 ebooks.

AA - What tricks of the trade can readers expect from

How I Sold 200,000 E-Books, A Guide for the Self Published Author?

HP - Quite a lot actually. Here is the bio:
* What is the best approach to take when creating book covers
* How to optimize your book's description page
* Choosing the category of your book
* The question of pricing your book
* The importance of Social Media and, more specifically, Facebook, Twitter and Blogging
* How to get reviews including interviews with leading Review websites such as Dear Author
* What to feature on your website
* The importance of Search Engine Optimization
* A Q&A with the people from Pubit!, the self publishing platform of Barnes and Noble
* The seven steps of self publishing success from the owner of Smashwords, one of the largest and most well known self-publishing platforms
* Tips and tidbits from Goodreads, the world's largest online book club website
* And so much more!

AA - If you could ask one famous person from history three questions, who would it be and what would you ask?

HP - Shakespeare: Did you really write everything or was it Mary Sydney pretending to be you?

Jane Austen: I would just tell her how much I admire her work!

AA - Name three authors that have influenced your writing. What do you love about them?

HP - Jane Austen: Just love how she characterizes men.
Karen Marie Moning: Love the action and romance and mystery of her Fever Series
Laurell K. Hamilton: Love how badass Anita Blake was!

AA - What will be your next fiction title and what can you tell us about it? When do you expect it to launch?

HP - Great Hexpectations is my next title and that is due to release on Halloween 2011. It is the third installment in my Dulcie O'Neil series, about a fairy in law enforcement. This book will see Dulcie traveling to the Netherworld and it will be a wild ride!

AA - You are currently running a super-cool contest. What is it and how can people enter?

Before each of my releases, I run a contest whereby the winner becomes a character in my book. I'll be posting a new contest for the next Jolie book, probably next month!

Thank you H.P. Mallory!

Fangs for Nothing -Reviews! + Interview + Contest!

2011-10-11T07:28:00.001-07:00

My smile is a little wider this week because I've just received two excellent reviews for Fangs for Nothing.

Boekie's Book Reviews said, "Wow. This book was amazing! I found Fangs for Nothing to be the ideal YA novel. If you're looking for a book with adventure, mystery, friendship and romance than this is definitely it. I loved the storyline, I read the book in one sitting. With the vampire craze going on it's interesting to see it shown in a different light. For the entire review, go here.

And

Word Spelunking said, "There is definitely no shortage of YA vampire novels these days and after awhile it seems that one vamp story just sorta runs into the next, which is why Adrianne Ambrose’s Fangs for Nothing was such a delightful surprise. Fangs for Nothing is one of the most fun, original, smart YA vampire books that I have read in a long time. This book is delightfully tongue in cheek sarcastic, well written, and full of impossible to not like characters." For the entire review, go here.

Plus
Word Spelunking did an interview with yours truly which you can find here.

To put the cherry on the Sundae, Word Spelunking is holding a contest so you can win your very own Kindle e-copy of Fangs for Nothing. It's super easy to enter and the chances of winning are extremely good. Go to the end of the interview and you'll see the simple to enter contest.

Yay for fabulous book reviewers on the web!

Is Tuberculosis Responsible for Vampirism?

2011-10-08T10:08:00.000-07:00

Hundreds of years ago, before there were scientific explanations for every day occurrences (like diseases) people would explain them with superstitions and magic. If you sneezed, it was because you were possessed, if you were too hairy it was because you were a werewolf, if your young children were naughty it was because of the fairies …etc. Nowadays, we have completely logical explanations for these things. Keeping this in mind, you can understand why countless historians and doctors have tried to explain the birth of the vampire myth. For more information, go here.

I remember hearing a story on NPR about how after a family member dies of TB, if you then became ill you had to dig up the body and make up a draft using a piece of their heart. I can't even imagine thinking a dead member of my family was trying to suck the life out of me and then having to dig them up. Very troublesome.

In the mood for a humorous vampire story? Check out Fangs for Nothing. Only 99 cents on all ereaders.

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice - Chapter 1

2011-09-24T14:07:00.001-07:00

Chapter 1

The Sack Race.

I don't believe in virgin sacrifice. It encourages promiscuity at an early age. Take my tribe, for example: as soon as any young woman became ripe, she would hop into the nearest bachelor's bed. I know it sounds rash, but it was the only way to avoid being chosen as that year's designated Virgin.

The last gal left standing found herself the focal point of our most time-honored ceremony. She was supposed to take a giant step for mankind into the crater of the local volcano. My tribe believed her virginity would appease Bucka Pow, the cranky god who was in residence there. Her sacrifice would ensure our tribe's safety for the next year from that particular element. I'm not exactly a religious person, so for me, our tradition held very little appeal. Let me assure you, there were plenty of young women racing to the bedroom in agreement.

Believe it or not, the males of our tribe did not discourage the practice of sacrifice. As a matter of fact, they became quite conceited and began to discriminate against the less attractive females. Looks, apparently, were unimportant to Bucka Pow, as long as the gal was pure, to put it delicately. The consequences being, our tribe grew to be quite a handsome group of people, even if we were a bit easy.

On occasion, some of the women of our tribe would question the necessity of the tradition. What would happen if the yearly Virgin was not sacrificed? The male Elders of the village were quick to squelch this line of questioning. If the custom was not strictly adhered to, they predicted a hell on earth that was never meant to be experienced by man. They never did give us a whole lot of details about the hell, but we were led to believe that it would be pretty unpleasant.

On the last day of my first blood, I headed over to the blacksmith's hut, undressed, and climbed into his bed. I'd had him ear-marked for quite some time prior to then. He did a lot to encourage my crush by not wearing a shirt while working. All sweaty and covered in grime, his chest was quite impressive to behold. Besides, I had heard from some of the non-Virgins about town that he was a good man for the job.

Dirk's bungalow was as sparsely decorated as any other young bachelor's hut. Besides the king-sized bed with a slendros skin tossed across it, he didn't have much in terms of furniture. There was quite a selection of fermented tatha berry juice, incense and a few stringed instruments, but as far as curtains, rugs, or any type of ornamental decorations, his bungalow was barren.

Upon returning home from his day's labor, Dirk did not seem overly surprised to discover me snuggled between his pillows. Nor did he seem displeased. I assume his original plan that evening was to eat dinner and relax after a hard day of forging metal. Shockingly, he seemed just as amiable to find a naked nymph beneath his covers and in need of a favor.

“Hi”, I squeaked, for lack of a better introduction. Even though our tribe ran late getting the show on the road, I was still barely twenty.

“Hi, there,” he grinned. “How are you?”

“Fine. Yourself?”

“Can't complain. Say, haven't I seen you around my shop lately?” Dirk asked casually.

“Yes,” I blushed, “I had some wrist cuffs made a couple of months ago.”

“I remember, but I've seen you since then,” he persisted.

More blood rushed to my face. “That's true. Metal work fascinates me.” A blatant lie, but what was I supposed to say? True, I enjoy ogling your chest?

“Really? Maybe I could show you around the shop sometime?”

“Dirk, I'm sure you're aware of our tribe's policy on Virgin sacrifice.” He nodded, so I continued. “Well, I'm one of this year's candidates. I know it's a big honor to be chosen and all, but I'm not really that devout a believer. So, I was kind of hoping you could help me out.”

“Sure, no problem. I'd be happy to help you out.” Dirk smiled broadly. “Do you mind if I eat first? Or were you in a hurry?”

“Well...” There were still one or two other things on my list to do that day.

“No big deal. I can eat afterwards. Is it okay if I shower first?”

“Please, go right ahead. As a matter of fact, I'd prefer it.”

Once Dirk had bathed, we fell immediately to our task. When all was done and little said, I felt reasonably safe from having to throw myself into the fiery pit. Dirk was not only known for his lovemaking prowess, but also for being the town gossip. One of the benefits of making him your first lover was you knew it would not be kept hush-hush.

There was still a bit of daylight, so I left Dirk to prepare his meal. I had some hunting and collecting to attend to before dusk. You can imagine my surprise, when later that night, Dirk dropped by my hut. He was worried that our lovemaking didn't take and that I might still be classified as a Virgin. I remember thinking how considerate it was for him to go out of his way to ensure my safety. So, it was back to the mat for the both of us. Better safe than sorry.

By the next morning, after there was no doubt that I was a one hundred percent non-Virgin, I was beginning to get the hang of things. Apparently sex wasn't something only necessary to save your hide from bubbling lava. It could also be done for sport. In fact, I was beginning to find it quite pleasurable. Dirk and I agreed it was something we should try again, and frequently. But I insisted he make our practices well known to the tribe. As far as I was aware, he hadn't mentioned anything to anyone. I was still on the list of potential candidates for sacrifice. He generously agreed to spread the word.

Things went quite well for a few blissful weeks. I was one of the best nut and berry collectors in the whole tribe and I was growing very enthusiastic about my new hobby with Dirk. We met every day at least once, usually more. He could be quite romantic. He even fashioned me a metal breastplate. They were all the rage at the time. But, if you're considering investing in a bronze brassiere, I advise against it. In moderate climates, they are fine, but in cases of slightly more intense heat or cold, they are extremely uncomfortable.

My good times came to an abrupt halt when I discovered that my cousin Dizeray, my only living relative, was still on the offering list for sacrifice. While I had been distracted making sure every vestige of my virginity was snuffed, Dizeray’s first blood had come and gone. She was still a Virgin, and dragging her feet about remedying the problem.

Now, my cousin was not the most stunning creature on the planet, but she wasn't unattractive. Besides, she had large breasts, a trait frequently mistaken for beauty. I naturally assumed she had taken care of business. It was only by chance that I happened to be strolling past the council hut and decided to glance at the list of remaining candidates. Diz’s name was second from the top. After making this alarming discovery, I hustled over to my cousin’s bungalow so we could have a quiet chat.

“By the skull of Crom, Dizeray, have you lost your mind?” I screeched. Diz stared at me in stupefied silence. “There's only two other girls on the list. If you don't step lively, you'll be chosen as the sacrifice, and won't that be a fine mess?” Diz remained mute. “What in Zoric's hells have you been doing with your time? Don't tell me you just plain forgot!”

Diz started to tremble, and tears filled her eyes. By the gods, she had forgotten. Apparently, there were more important things on Diz's mind than avoiding taking the plunge to a molten death.

“I'm sorry,” she began to whimper.

“Oh, come on now, don't cry. It's not that bad. Look, there are still two other girls on the list and you're much cuter than either one of them. All you've got to do is ditch your virginity first and everything will be fine. That shouldn't be too difficult.” I pulled out a cloth to blot her tears. “Now stop crying. Your eyes will puff up and you'll look less attractive.”

“I don't know what to do,” Diz wailed. A new supply of tears began to gush down her cheeks.

“Listen, honey, it's not that big a deal. The woodcutter hasn't had his yearly Virgin yet. All you’ve got to do is go over to his hut, take off your clothes, and get in his bed. He'll show you how to do the rest. You'll be fine.” I tried to give her what I hoped was a reassuring pat. “Just make sure he tells the village Elders when you're finished.”

“The woodcutter?” Diz looked terrified by the thought.

“Yes, the woodcutter. Now go straight over there and don't allow yourself to be distracted. You get naked and get in that bed before someone else gets there first.” I pushed her firmly in the direction of his hut. She went, but sullenly. My gods, you'd have thought she preferred the volcano.

I should have gone with her. I have only myself to blame for what happened. By the time Diz dragged her feet to the woodcutter's place, there was already a naked nymph in his bed. Instead of doing the logical thing and snagging the next available bachelor, Diz went home depressed and fell asleep. Bright and early the next morning, the Elders announced that Dizeray was that year's designated Virgin.

She took it very well for a young woman facing a scalding death. If it had been me, there would have been a lot more screaming, begging, and attempts to flee. Diz simply headed over to the oil hut for some anointing. I, as Diz’s closest living relative, was supposed to escort her on her sacrifice. If only I hadn't been so preoccupied with Dirk, it all would never have happened.

I wasn’t about to stand idly by while my only living relative succumbed to some stupid tribal peer pressure. I had to do something. To avoid suspicion, I grabbed my basket and pretended I was going in search of tatha berries. Instead, I crept behind the anointing hut. Diz had a couple of old women in the hut helping her prepare for the ceremony. As soon as they left and I knew Diz was alone, I hauled myself through the back window.

“Jezebelle, what are you doing here?” Dizeray acted very surprised.

“Diz, just keep quiet and take off your clothes.” I was in no mood for her naivete. Instead of doing what I told her, Diz stood there looking at me. “Hurry up! We don’t have much time,” I barked in a low voice as I shrugged off my own clothing.

“Huh, why?” Diz slowly began to follow my example, unwinding herself from numerous colorful veils.

“Diz, don’t be an idiot. You didn’t think I was just going to stand by and let you go through with this stupidity, did you? Now listen closely because we don’t have a lot of time. I want you to put on my clothes and wrap this scarf around your head.” I thrust a muse scarf at her. “When you climb out the window you’ll find my berry basket. It’s got some food and supplies in it. Pick it up and head towards the berry patch. You’re supposed to be me, so act casual. Just pretend you are wandering out to collect tatha berries. Once you’re out of sight, run for it. Head down to that cave we went to for a picnic last summer. I’ll stall for time as long as I can. Now, it’s going to probably take a couple of days before I can come for you. The Elders are not going to take this calmly, so be patient and lay low. I’ll meet you as soon as I can.”

“What are you talking about?” Diz stopped removing her clothes.

“Escape, Diz, escape. Obviously.” She could be so thick. “I’ll put on your clothes and veils. I’m going to try and fake them out for as long as possible, but you’ve got to hurry.”

“I can’t run away, Jez. I’m going to do the ceremony.”

“You’re going to...what?” I was stunned.

“I’m going to be the sacrifice.”

“Diz, you know what the word sacrifice means, don’t you? It means they’re going to kill you.”

“I know. I’m still going to do it.” By her expression, I could tell she was sincere. Diz re-adjusted her veils.

“But why? You can run. I’ll help you. We could go to the other side of the volcano.”

“You mean go to The-Land-From-Which-No-One-Ever-Returns-Especially-the-Women?”

“Yes, Diz. The Elders would probably never find us. It's unlikely anyone would even try to search for us there. I don't understand why you…”

“I’m doing it because it’s the right thing to do. I was chosen for the sacrifice. The tribe is counting on me.”

“Diz, it’s a stupid tradition. Killing yourself only makes you as idiotic as the rest of them.” I could hear the anointing women clucking outside the door. “Go!” I grabbed Diz’s arm and shoved her towards the window.

“I can’t.” She held up her hands in a gesture of helplessness.

“Dizeray... please!”

The old battle-axes were about to enter the room, so I did a dive-roll out the window. If Diz didn’t want to run, she didn’t want to run. Not everyone has my acute instincts for survival.

The anointing women did swathe Diz in some mighty fine regalia. She was dripping in gold and gemstones. Numerous rings and bracelets weighed down both her arms. A giant pertona-blood ruby studded her navel. The women had braided Diz’s honey-blonde hair into an intricate pattern, and a giant tear-shaped pearl with a rosy nacre dangled on her forehead. Diz had never looked better, and I could tell more than one or two of the bachelors were regretting her virginity.

My job was to escort the sacrifice up the volcano and make sure she toddled in. After confirming that she had successfully completed her duty, I was to carry the sacrificial gold and finery back down the hill for the next year's ceremony. The Elders weren’t foolish enough to allow her to swan dive while still wearing it.

Normally, the Virgin's mother or an older sister would accompany the gal on her great honor. Unfortunately, a large portion of our tribe had been lost in a typhoon a couple of years earlier. All of Diz's and my relatives had been killed. So, the privilege was bestowed on me.

“Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow Kow. Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow Kow. Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow, Bucka Pow Kow,” the Elders chanted as a small fanfare led Diz and me out of town.

“I'll be waiting for you,” Segner the Watcher smugly called to me as we exited the village. “No foolish Virgin tricks, and remember to bring back the jewels.” Segner would sit at the base of the volcano until my return.

“Don't worry, as soon as she tumbles in, I'll be straight back down with the jewelry,” I assured him.

“See that you do, or I will sound the alarm, and we Elders will come hunting for you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I had always disliked Elder Segner. He wielded his little bit of power like it was a weighty club.

It was a hot day to be climbing up the side of a volcano. One third of the way up, we passed a large sign carved in stone which read, 'Stop! You are about to cross into The-Land-From-Which-No-One-Ever-Returns-Especially-the-Women'.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” I panted behind Diz as we plodded along. I really wished I had not decided to wear my breastplate.

“What am I supposed to do, Jez? Not jump?” She sounded a bit peevish.

“Well, you could have had sex with someone and then we wouldn't be in this predicament,” I grumbled.

“What? I couldn't hear you.” Diz paused to look back at me.

“I said, we don't really know that the volcano will erupt if you don't throw yourself in. We could always run away.”

Diz was genuinely shocked. “I couldn't do that, Jez. What about the tribe?”

“What about them?”

“What if they all suffered because I was not devout enough to kill myself?”

“What do you care? I'm the only family you've got left. It'd be their own fault anyway. I don't see why we don't just relocate the village, instead of messing with this damned volcano every year.”

Diz's face became pinched as we continued hoofing up the mountain.

“Diz,” I probed, “there isn't someone from the tribe that you fancy, is there? Is that why you're going through with this thing?” Her face revealed that my suspicions were true. “Diz, I am going to strangle you! Why the heck didn't you just sleep with him instead of doing things the hard way?”

“Because you already had!” Her eyes flooded with tears.

Great Ragnarok! She had wanted Dirk and I hadn't realized it. Their names did go well together, Dirk and Dizeray. Still, she could have said something. How was I to know? “I'm sorry, honey. You should have spoken up. I would have gone with the shepherd.”

She giggled through her tears. “I was too embarrassed.”

By the gods, we were a society based on fast women and lazy men! But, Dizeray was too embarrassed to play rock, papyrus, sword to see who got to bunk with Dirk.

“I still think you shouldn't sacrifice yourself. With all that gold you're wearing we could easily finance an escape. We have a good head start. We’re almost half way over the volcano. Once we enter The-Land-From-Which-No-One-Ever-Returns-Especially-the-Women, it's unlikely the Elders would ever be able to catch us.”

“No, Jez, it wouldn't be honorable, and that's all I have to say about it.”

We finished the rest of the climb in silence. Diz could be very single-minded, and I knew it was useless to argue with her. If only she had opened her damned yip about Dirk. I wasn't looking forward to being the only surviving member of my family. There would be incredible pressure to procreate.

The wind picked up as we approached the lip of the volcano. Loose soil whipped our faces. “I guess this is it,” Diz gulped. We both stared for the first time into the mouth of the crater.

Funny, I had always pictured intense heat and spurting lava. Instead, we gazed upon a dry, dusty cavern sparsely littered with petrified rocks. There was a small dark hole at the bottom of the crater, but even that was not very menacing. I don’t know why I was surprised. The volcano hadn't so much as puffed a bit of smoke in my lifetime.

It was at that point that I began to suspect the male Elders of falsely perpetuating the need for Virgin sacrifice.

“Do you think I’m supposed to jump in that little hole?” Diz pointed toward the tiny opening.

“I guess,” I shrugged. “There doesn’t seem to be any other practical way of killing yourself.”

We both sighed. Bucka Pow was a sincere disappointment.

“Good-bye, cousin.” I gave her a big hug. “I love you. I'm going to miss you.”

Diz peered forlornly at the small cavern beneath us. “Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.”

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice is available on all ereaders for 99 cents. Go here for the Kindle link.

Bittersweet Enchantment Review of Fangs

2011-09-21T09:24:00.000-07:00

Beckie at Bittersweet Enchantment was kind enough to do a review of Fangs for Nothing. Here is my favorite line of the review:

"At one point in the middle of the book I could not stop laughing. I literally had tears in my eyes from laughing so hard."

Hooray! That really makes me feel good. Check out the full review at Bittersweet Enchantment. Buy a copy of Fangs for Nothing on all ereaders for just 99 cents.

But What Are They Eating?

2011-09-20T18:57:00.000-07:00

But What Are They Eating? is such a cool blog. It smelds food and literature in a very stylized way. Check out my guest post for What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader.

Thanks Shelly.

H. Killough-Walden Interview!

2011-09-16T17:22:00.000-07:00

H. Killough-Walden is the New York Times best selling e-book author of The Big Bad Wolf series and The October Trilogy.

AA - What’s so big and bad about your wolves? What can you tell us about your Big Bad Wolf series?

HKW - You’d have to read the books to understand how they came about their reputation. ;) But I will tell you that my wolves are not the hair-shedding, bone-popping, painful morphing werewolves of night time television or other werewolf series. These are men – dominant men – who know what they want, can flash into wolf form with no more than a thought, and who possess a vast array of supernatural powers. They’re hot, they’re hard, and they love their women deeply and eternally.

AA - Why did you decide to go e-books instead of the traditional publishing route?

HKW - I didn’t really have a choice at first. I tried for ten years to get published. I have three hundred rejection letters in my closet. Along came Kindle, a light at the end of my seemingly endless print publication tunnel, and I posted one of my books. It shot to #1 in vampires, a wonderful agent (the chairman of Trident Media Group) gave me a call, and it’s been a dream come true from there.

AA - Who are your favorite hero and heroine in classic literature?

HKW - To be honest, it’s an author of classic literature that is probably my favorite hero – Samuel Clemens. The man was a genius.

AA - What’s the best movie you’ve seen in the last six months?

HKW -I haven’t seen a movie in six months. LOL But if I’m allowed to go prior to that, then I’d have to say Alice in Wonderland by Tim Burton (Disney). It’s one of my all-time favorite movies. Also Tron. I absolutely want a light cycle for my birthday.

AA - What can you share with us about The October Trilogy?

HKW - This trilogy spawned from a dream I had where I was walking through the darkened, hollow halls of my high school late at night. The sound of my boots echoed through the shadows, the gray lockers to my left seemed longer, taller than normal. They radiated an empty kind of cold. I could almost hear the remnants of student chatter, like ghosts of what had occupied the space hours before. I moved down the length of linoleum toward a destination that both beckoned and terrified. In the distance, I heard the sound of music playing.

When I awoke, the entire plot of the series throbbed like a beacon in my mind. I whipped out a journal and a pen and scribbled as fast as my still-sleeping hand would write. What was born the next day was the first chapter of what would become a three-part series about a girl who possessed the power to bring things to life with her writing… and the man – the all-encompassing being of tall, dark, forbidden power – that she unknowingly awakens with said power.

AA - Why is the month of October so magical?

HKW - What’s not to love about October? It’s like the world stops its frantic spinning in October. The tired, overheated globe begins to slow, the air grows still and cools, the allergens fall away, the chilled breezes kiss the plants to sleep. The night grows longer, the moon shines brighter, and mist envelopes the stones and statues of cemeteries everywhere. Danny Elfman reigns in October. Leaves skittering across the ground are a portent in October. Everything means something in October – nothing can be taken for granted. I love that. A more powerful month does not exist. It’s magic from day one to day thirty-one.

AA - Tell us the details of being a New York Times bestselling e-book author. How did that come about?

HKW - I have no idea. LOL I made it to the NYT list with The Spell, the third book in my Big Bad Wolf series. I don’t even think it was my best book of the four. But, the timing was right, the mood of the reading consumer was right, and the material I wrote and posted was right – it was kismet. I think that a large amount of success depends on luck. Don’t get me wrong. I think talent, hard work, and effort play an enormous role under normal circumstances. But I’m not so foolish as to discount the effects of environment, and whether a person makes it or breaks it really can be determined by something as crazy and seemingly insignificant as the weather.

AA - List three things that are better in Texas. (Okay, I know the expression is everything’s bigger in Texas, but I didn’t want to go down that road. ;o)

HKW - I honestly don’t think many things are better in Texas. I prefer the West Coast to Texas. I prefer Pittsburgh to Texas. I prefer Hawaii and the UK to Texas. Texas is hot. It’s windy. It’s agoraphobic-inducing. But if you insist on having me scrounge through my brain for positive points, I’ll say this: They’ve got good roads. I know that seems like a silly thing to mention, but I drive a gorgeous black muscle car with five hundred and fifty fire-breathing nightmares chomping at the bit in its engine, so roads are important to me. Of course, this only counts when they aren’t covered half the year by orange barrels.

AA - What is the history of your writing career? What did you like to write about when you were a little girl?

HKW - When I was four, I wrote a poem about how people are like bananas – they can be bruised and battered on the outside but still have hearts ripe with life and sweetness if anyone cares to look. When I was in high school, I nearly flunked out my senior year because I spent my time in Calculus, History, and Economics writing vampire stories instead of listening to the teachers (mostly this was The Lost Boys fan fiction). I have always turned to pen and paper for comfort. I spoke to my diary as if it were my best friend… because it was.

AA - If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you do for a living?

HKW - Forget it. It’s writing or nothing.

AA - If you were having a dinner party and could invite six famous guests, (all living) who would they be?

HKW - I don’t know about “famous,” but six well known figures that I feel very strongly and very positively about would be the secretary general and the secretariat directors of Amnesty International: Shalil Shetti, Claudio Cordone, Colm O Cuanachain, George McFarlane, Sara Wilbourne, and Widney Brown. The work they do is more vital than even the words of an author can fully give credit to.

AA - What’s next for H. Killough-Walden?

HKW - More writing, of course. I’m writing the fourth book in the Lost Angels series, working on the first book in a new eBook open-ended spinoff of the Big Bad Wolf series, writing Drake of Tanith, which is the sequel to The Chosen Soul, and working on Secretly Sam, the sequel to Sam I Am. I will always be writing. When I die, I want to be one hundred and twenty-three years, found bent over my mahogany writing desk with a Montblanc fountain pen in my arthritic hand, new Frye boots on my crooked feet, and a perma grin across my withered old face.

Thank you, H. Killough-Walden!

Fangs for Nothing - Contest!

2011-09-10T17:40:00.000-07:00

Fancy winning a free Kindle ecopy of Fangs for Nothing. All you have to do is visit the delightful blog, Paromantasy, and leave a comment.

Yes, it's that simple. click, comment, and more than likely win.

Talking vs. Listening

2011-09-08T13:27:00.000-07:00

For a few years, I conducted an informal survey where I asked people if they had to choose one, would they rather be deaf or mute. The majority of men said deaf. When I asked why they'd say, "Because then I could talk. I could tell people things." The majority of women said mute. When I asked why they'd say, "Because I'd want to be able to hear what other people are saying."

A Visit From the Goon Squad

2011-09-07T21:20:00.001-07:00

Just reviewed A Visit From the Goon Squad on Goodreads. An interesting, yet depressing, but annoying and engaging book.

Guest Post - M.S. Nasar for Archaic

2011-09-07T07:54:00.000-07:00

I am Saboor Nasar I live and work in London, where I grew up and studied.

I write under the pen name of M.S. Nasar, I have written a YA Urban Fantasy set in London UK but with a story that takes the characters across the world.

I am a mathematics graduate who has found a penchant for reading and writing. Tapping in to my creative side I came up with Archaic my first novel.

Archaic is the story of a young man who is whipped away from the daily rigmarole of student life when he learns of his ancestry, an ancestry greater than he could have ever imagined, one which provides him powers and responsibility far beyond his wildest dreams. The story reaches its culmination when the reader realises the girl, he is so inexplicably attracted to, has more to do with the tale than just being his love interest.

This is a smart YA urban fantasy with a touch of romance from a male perspective.

Below is the link for Archaic on Amazon, it’s at a bargain price and there are sample chapters. Please leave feedback to let me know what you think; I would love to hear from you all.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005AYR4ZU

Fangs for Nothing Questions

2011-09-04T18:23:00.000-07:00

Becky from Book Bite Reviews has some interesting questions about Fangs for Nothing.

Vampire Hunting Kit

2011-09-04T18:11:00.000-07:00

A friend just sent me this link to a "1890" vampire hunting kit. Looks pretty cool. Someone did a nice job.

Sherbie and Xander would have loved this in Fangs for Nothing

Vampire kit

Why YA over regular A?

2011-09-04T09:13:00.001-07:00

It's no news to anyone that young adult fiction is mega-popular right now. It's not just teenagers reading YA, it's millions of adults also delving into the genre. In fact, I've encountered numerous adults who prefer YA or only exclusively read YA.

But why? Being a teenager is challenging at best and I don't think most people would choose to go back to being a teenager. So why read about it? Why choose to live vicariously through the eyes of a teen for a span of three hundred pages?

I read a lot of YA. I justify it by saying that because I'm a YA author I need to know what's out there, but that isn't 100% the truth. I don't exclusively read YA but I find myself really enjoying YA. Recently I started reading an acclaimed book for adults and I found myself not enjoying it. Not because it wasn't well written or didn't have interesting characters, but because I was intolerant of the stupidity of the characters. Don't get me wrong, I felt they were accurate portrayals of humans, I was just less patient with their foibles because of their age. Hearing a 48 year old man whine about his love life is somehow much more annoying than hearing a 16 year old kid whine about his love life. I guess there's the idea that a struggling teen will get his or her act together and go on to be a functioning adult. Transporting that kid 30 years into the future and having them still struggle gets depressing.

But let's face it. We all struggle all the time. We all want to lose weight, or find a better mate, or finally land a date with the hot guy from R&D, but I don't necessarily want to read about it.

Pillow Talk

2011-09-03T09:27:00.000-07:00

I was looking for the ancient Japanese diary of Sei Shōnagon called The Pillow Book in the San Francisco library system. I threw The Pillow Book into the search engine and the first thing that came up was The pillow book: over 25 simple-to-sew patterns for every room and every mood by Shannon Okey. This has really set me in a good mood for this dreary Saturday morning. I wonder if anyone at Ms. Okay's publishers knew that The Pillow Book was already taken. Or, even better, if they did know and were smirking and winking at each other as the title went to press. Either way, I'm delighted.

John Hughes Themes

2011-09-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

I got sucked into watching Some Kind of Wonderful the other night. I know a lot of people like this movie, but I find it a little choppy. Maybe it's because John Hughes only wrote the script, he didn't direct. I did notice some themes that run through a couple of different Hughes movies.

Yes, of course, teenagers, growing pains, different cliques, liking someone who doesn't like you, but also diamond earrings - both in Wonderful and The Breakfast Club as symbolizing wealth and with that wealth confidence, popularity, etc... Also, visiting a museum appears in Wonderful and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. It's meant to express... uhm... maybe... that there's more of a world out there than what you find in high school. (Yes, I think that's it. Let's go with that.)

If you want to read a story about high school, friendship, fitting in, having a crush on someone who doesn't know you exist and vampires, check out Fangs for Nothing. 99 cents on all ereaders.

Things that go squawk in the night

2011-08-27T07:59:00.000-07:00

Two nights ago, husband and I lay slumbering in our bed, when for no good reason our smoke detector started shrieking, rocketing us onto the ceiling. It lasted for about 5 seconds and then went silent. There was no fire, no smoke, no conceivable reason for it to have scared the living poop out of us. Husband climbed up on a stool and tried to figure out if it needed batteries or something, which was hilarious to me because he sleeps au natural. I was able to go back to sleep, but husband was awake since three a.m..

This morning, 6:15 on a Saturday, we woke to a horrible commotion. It sounded like someone was torturing several chickens and had forgotten to gag them before starting in with the plucking. After lying in bed for several minutes waiting for it to stop, I got up, put on my robe, went out the back door, surveyed the cityscape, identified the source of the noise (our neighbors across the alley) came back in, got dressed, wrote a nasty note explaining that it's unpleasant to be woken up at 6:15 on a Saturday by chickens, especially when you live in a densely populated city and headed outside again. As I began walking down the alley, the neighbor's garage door opened half way and a woman came shimmying out. I asked her what was going on and she explained that one of her chickens had gotten into the neighbor's yard, decided it was a bad idea and set off a series of shrieking that could have woken Colonel Sanders from the dead. She seemed genuinely upset about her chicken, so I didn't rip her head off like I originally intended, but I do wonder why it took her close to thirty minutes to decide to save her precious pet.

Okay, fine. Chickens feather's unruffled, blood pressure dropping to a normal level, cuddling up with husband to get some sleep and then beep, beep, beep, 7:15 and the construction crew down the street decided to put in some Saturday hours. Guess I'll make a pot of coffee.

Feeling the need for a hunky barbarian in your life? Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice is available for 99 cents on all readers.

Book Bite Reviews

2011-08-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

Awesome new Fangs for Nothing review by Book Bite Reviews.

Thank you Beckie!

Crazy, Stupid Love

2011-08-21T20:20:00.000-07:00

Turns out Crazy, Stupid Love is a reasonably funny movie. I caught myself laughing out loud at least three times and the people sitting behind us were rolling in the aisle. Definitely a great date movie. Worth the price of admission.

For example, a male character in the movie says, "The war between the sexes is over. We won the day women started pole dancing for exercise."

New Fangs for Nothing Review

2011-08-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun Fangs for Nothing review by the blog Raindrop Reflections.

Thank you Rida.

WILFBC

2011-08-16T09:59:00.000-07:00

Super fun What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader interview over at Bibliophilia - Maggie's Bookshelf. It's Maggie's blog, but she let her 11 year old sister, Ellie, interview me. I have to give Ellie credit, she came up with some good questions.

What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader - Free!

2011-08-04T13:13:00.000-07:00

What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader is now on sale at the Kindle store for FREE. Yes, you read that correctly. For a limited time you can download What I Learned to your Kindle or device that has a Kindle app for $0.00. I'm not sure how long the giveaway will last so better to download now than regret it later.

Fangs for Nothing - Interview

2011-07-30T14:13:00.000-07:00

Chronicles of a Lonely Bookee was kind enough to do an interview about Fangs for Nothing. To find out more about how I ended up writing Fangs, go Here.

Fangs for Nothing is still only 99 cents on all ereaders.

M.R. Mathias Interview! - Part II

2011-07-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

AA - Who are three of your favorite ebook authors and why?

MRM - Hmmm.... ebook authors are just authors so the question is: Who are three of my favorite Indie authors or three of my favorite authors?

Indy: 1- Tracey Alley 2-Derek Prior 3-Tracy Falbe Published: 1-Raymond E. Feist 2-Clive Cussler 3-George R. R. Martin

AA - What’s your favorite piece of jewelry and what significance does it have in your life?

MRM - The ring in my authors photo has a great signifigance to me. It has a dragons teardrop mounted in it. My Grandfather wore it until he died. It was handed down.

AA - What’s your advice for aspiring fantasy writers?

MRM - Get a Kindle or a Nook. Read several books by indie authors in the genre you want to write in and then ask yourself if you think you can compete. If you think you can,,, Go For It! But know this. Writing a good book is the easy part. Selling it is a whole other animal.

AA - If you had a magical power, what would it be and how would you use it?

MRM - I have a magic ring. It brings people to me and my writing. See, you are reading this, so it still works. If I had another power I would use it to make politicians unable to tell lies.

AA - What can you tell us about your book The First ten Steps?

MRM - The First Ten Steps work. Just read the reviews. They say it all.

AA - What’s next for M.R. Mathias?

MRM - I am currently writing 'Cold Hearted Son of a Witch' - The Dragoneers Saga II. I am going to try and get it, and another complete Dragoneer novel, out by Christmas. After that it's another Michael Robb pen name "thriller" novel, then I'll get Wardstone III from ink and paper to MS-Word and start editing.

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice - In Between Bit

2011-07-27T18:13:00.001-07:00

In Between Bit, Part 1

The sun was gaining height in the sky by the time all of the village Elders were finally awake. Most were cranky and stiff from a night of sleeping on the cold, damp ground. The long ride the previous day contributed to their aching muscles.

It had seemed very exciting in the beginning. Two saucy trollops defying tribal customs and threatening the active sex life of every male member of the tribe. Who did they think they were, refusing to kill themselves? It was enough to send the male Elders into a geriatric frenzy.

Segner the Watcher sounded a call to arms. The legendary warriors suited up in the traditional war armor, shoving their bald heads into rusting helmets and wiggling into chain-mail tunics. They grabbed every club, sword, and battle-ax available. It is safe to say that the Elders were adequately or even excessively armed. It's true that two Virgins on the run can be a bit irritable. But it’s nothing that can't be settled with a couple of well-placed crossbows or a box of chocolates.

Sadly, the war steeds were getting a bit long in the tooth. Having been put out to pasture many years earlier, they were strongly against an arduous journey in heavy equipment. In fact, they kept the Elders scampering about the fields for several hours in an attempt to avoid the duty. Besides being shameful behavior for a war horse, it gave the renegade Virgins a longer lead.

Warriors and horses finally suited, the steeds were whipped into a canter and the Elders went clattering out of the village. Unfortunately, no one had thought to consider provisions such as food or water.

By dusk, the angry horde had barely cleared the opposite side of the volcano. Most of the warriors decided it was more practical to sleep in their armor, so as to remain constantly alert. One never knew when renegade Virgins might stage a sneak attack. Besides, it was best to conserve one's strength.

Several of the least rusty helmets were commandeered for cooking pots. Feeble attempts were made to hunt game. By nightfall, the mighty warriors found it necessary to satisfy themselves with a lukewarm broth of berries and bark.

In the bleak light of dawn, or more accurately, early afternoon, the journey that lay before the village Elders seemed daunting. The thought of running a rebel Virgin through with cold steel was appealing, but the whole process of tracking the damned gals down lacked luster.

M.R. Mathias Interview! - Part I

2011-07-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

Indie fantasy writer M. R. Mathias was kind enough to give us an interview. He's know for his series The Dragoneers Saga and The Wardstone Trilogy, along with his stand alone titles including Crimzon and Clover, Oathbreaker, Superhero and The Venturion. Here's what Mathias had to say:

AA - Why do you think you’re drawn to fantasy and write in the fantasy genre?

MRM - I played D&D when I was younger. I was always the Dungeon Master so I was the one making up the world for the players. Adding characters and a story just came naturally. I read fantasy because I read to escape. Nothing takes me away like a spell or a bit of sword play.

AA - What can you tell us about the world of the Dragoneers?

MRM - The world of the Royal Dragoneers is a bit different from the world of The First Dragoneer. Lets just say, they wont always be Royal Dragoneers, and the continent they are on in the first few full length novels may not be where they end up. It is a Saga after all.

AA - What do you think is the best jailbreak movie and why?

MRM - I liked Con-Air, but recently 'Law Abiding Citizen' where he tunnels into prison so he can leave at will is the best.

AA - If you couldn't write fantasy, what genre would you write and why?

MRM - I probably wouldn't write if I couldn't write fantasy. I love creating fantasy characters and worlds more than I love penning them for everyone else to enjoy. I would still create them and think out plots and fancy even if I couldn't write.

AA - What are three things we should know about the Wardstone Trilogy?

MRM:

1 - It took only seven and a half months of writing 3k words a day to write all three books. I was in a solitary cell at Michael's Unit in Tennessee Colony, TX, so there were very few distractions.

2 - I used about 300 crappy ink pens and over 2100 sheets of notebook paper to get it all down.

3 - The story is every fantasy I have ever read (and that's a lot) all rolled up into one great traditional epic sword and sorcery dragon adventure.

AA - Why did you decide to pursue ebooks instead of going to traditional publishing route?

MRM - I just did it. I was tired of getting rejection letters. Now I open the mailbox and get checks.

Stayed tuned for Part II of the M.R. Mathias interview later this week.

What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader - On Sale

2011-07-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

Belle Bridge Books just let me know that my Middle Grade novel, What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader is going on sale tomorrow for Kindle. Somewhere between 99 cents and $2.99. (I'm kind of hoping for 99 cents because then everyone can get a copy ;O) It'll only be on sale for two weeks, so bust out that Kindle, iPhone or Kindle app and download a copy.

Here's the blurb:

Eleven-year-old Elaine Rewitzer is funny, smart and happy being a geek, but when she wins a spot on the Cross Creek Middle School Buccaneers cheerleading squad, she gets totally into her new life. Her mega-brain best friend Bethany warns that Elaine will just become "part of the herd," and her best geek-guy-pal, Tim, (who‛s struggling with nose polyps) feels forgotten. Will Elaine survive the roller coaster of pre-teen cheerleader fame? Will she win the heart of the cutest boy on the basketball team? Will she confess her "uncool" love for comic books? Will she lose Bethany and Tim‛s friendship for-evah?

Rock n' Roll is Undead - Rose Pressey

2011-07-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

Rose Pressey (author of How to Date a Werewolf and No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells) has a new book out, Rock n’ Roll is Undead, and it’s so super cute that I wanted to ask her a few questions about the title.

AA - What is the premise of Rock n’Roll is Undead and what was the inspiration for the book?

RP - Rock 'n' Roll is Undead is about a rockabilly singer living in a fun paranormal world. She's a witch with less-than-stellar magic skills. I'm a big rockabilly music fan, so I wanted to introduce readers to that fun world.

AA - Do you play an instrument or have you ever played an instrument? If yes, tell us about it. If no, what would you like to play and why?

RP - I don't play an instrument, but I love to sing.

AA - You have a contest running for the next Mystic Café series. What is it and how can people enter?

RP - The contest is to have a character in the next Mystic Cafe series named after the winner. I'm really excited about it. I can't wait to find out the winner. The contest ends July 31. All people have to do is leave a comment on my blog post to enter.

AA - Who/What are some of your favorite bands, singers, songs, musical genres? In other words, what do you listen to, why and when?

RP - I love all music. I can listen to just about anything. My favorite is oldies like Elvis, Buddy Holly, Pasty Cline, etc. I really like Imelda May. I'm also a fan of bluegrass music. I think I lived in the fifties in my previous life. Ha-ha. I usually don't listen to music while I'm writing because I sing along too much and it's distracting.

AA - The covers of your books are really cute. What can you tell us about them? Is there an artist to credit or do you make them yourself?

RP - I do the covers myself with stock images. I enjoy making them more than I thought I would. It's a lot of fun.

AA - What can you tell us about your next book? Besides the fabulous contest.

RP - The next book I have coming out is Ghouls Night Out. It's the follow-up to Me and My Ghoulfriends. After that is How to Date a Vampire. I do have a new series I'll be working on when I get the time. I'm very excited about it, but I can't say much about it just yet.

AA - Thank you Rose Pressy

RP - Thanks for having me on your blog, Adrianne!

Spewlazor!

2011-07-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice is not available on all ereaders. Here's a random sample to get you started:

Pitching Woo.

True to his word, Thor overtook us at dusk. The three of us were setting up camp for the night by a small lake that Lestor referred to as The Lake of Complete Blackness. I decided not to ask him how the lake acquired that romantic title.

Thor had no news, nor supplies to show for his absence. I remember thinking, what in the worlds had he been doing all day? I assumed he was galloping around the countryside, enjoying himself. I realize Thor was just some Barbarian we had picked up along the trail and he owed us no debt. But at the time, his non-performance really ticked me off.

“Have a good day, did you?” I fixed him with an icy stare.

He gave me a curt nod, which vexed me even more.

“Do anything interesting? Ransack a village? Dismember a ferocious animal with your bare hands? Anything?”

The Barbarian turned and cocked his head towards me. The strong and silent routine was really grating my nerves. And, to tell the truth, I was used to more attentive men.

Thor had at least accomplished one task. He dragged a fresh swinehog carcass into camp. Lestor, Diz and I skewered it with a stick and began to roast it over the fire. The outer meat was beginning to crisp. Thor’s sword was leaning against a stump, so I grabbed it to shave down the roast. Thor immediately strode across the camp and wrenched the sword from my grasp.

“Whah?” I was caught off-guard by his abruptness.

“No one but a true Barbarian may touch Sphere.”

“You named your sword Sphere?” I said with a giggle.

“I did not name the sword. It is The Last of the Sphere of Swords to the Lost Barbarian Kingdom of Spewlazor.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that. But why do you call it Sphere? If it’s from Spewlazor it seems you would call it Spew.”

“Look.” Thor briskly raised the sword, causing it to make a little zinging noise as it sliced through the air. Imbedded in the handle was a small orb of crystal. Pinpoint flashes of orange light continuously danced in the ball like lava spurting from a volcano. “This orb symbolizes the Sphere of Swords.”

“Yeah, but that orange stuff keeps getting tossed around in there. It is constantly being spewed in the crystal. I think the real name of your sword is Spew.”

“If you value your life, you will never touch the sword again!” Thor shouted in my face.

“That's it. I absolutely don't need men who name their swords yelling at me. I'm out of here,” I said abruptly. “Diz, do what you want. Have sex with one of these oafs, stay celibate, throw yourself in the volcano; it's up to you. All I know is, I've got to go.” With that, I marched out of camp and headed in the general direction from which we came. The others gawked at me in stunned disbelief.

Things I Luuuuuurve - Fangs Interview!

2011-07-12T19:20:00.000-07:00

The lovely and talented CLE Shopaholic did an interview with me about my new vampire comedy Fangs for Nothing.

To check out the interview go here

Find out the answers to burning questions like, Why vampires? Why Cleveland? Why not?

But there's more! Things I Luuuuuuurve is having a contest where you can win a free copy of Fangs for Nothing. It's super easy to enter. Enter here.

Thank you, fabulous CLE Shopaholic. Great website. Now I know where to shop on my next visit to the city of lights, city of magic.

Upcoming Rose Pressy Interview - R n' R is Undead

2011-07-11T21:52:00.000-07:00

Rose Pressey's latest ebook, Rock n' Roll is Undead, is hilarious. The author was kind enough to share a few thoughts about the story in an upcoming interview. Stay tuned.

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice

2011-07-08T11:08:00.001-07:00

Confessions of a Virgin Sacrifice is soon to be available on all eBooks.

Here's the blurb:

Sound the alarm! Saddle the horses! Wake up the village elders! The Sacrificial Virgin has escaped!

Jezebelle's voluptuous cousin Dizeray is slated for a sacrificial swan dive into the local volcano. Not if Jez can help it! She plots to rescue her cousin and find an eager candidate to 'disqualify' Diz from being this year's Virgin Sacrifice. But things to horribly wrong and now the gals are on the run with the furious Village Elders in hot pursuit!

Jez sweeps her cousin on a whirlwind adventure through the jungle and beyond with nothing but her sardonic wit and bronze brassiere at her disposal. Along the way the two Glamazons attract a motley cast of characters including a brooding barbarian with a decidedly un-heroic phobia, an ill-tempered troll looking for love, and a deadly blue wolf with a soft spot for Jezebelle.

This unlikely troupe stumbles head first into one wacky adventure after another, encountering love, magic, monsters and mayhem. Throughout their travels, Jez untangles clues to her True Destiny. She discovers a Forbidden Secret that threatens to unravel the very fabric of her word—or at least ruin her day.

This saucy off-beat romp will keep you laughing as you follow Jez and her friends on their first adventure.

Megan Abbott Interview

2011-07-06T10:03:00.000-07:00

Award winning author Megan Abbott has wowed fans of noir and lovers of good ficiton alike with her hardboiled books including Die a Little, Queenpin, The Song is You, and Bury Me Deep. One of the things I love about Megan's writing is that, even though her stories are usually centered around female characters, she doesn't pull her punches. If you want an intriguing read that's hard to put down, do yourself a favor and check out one of her books.

AA - What is your history with noir? What first drew you to writing in the genre?

MA - Everything I write I can trace back to the movies I watched as a child. My primary fantasy life stemmed from watching old movies on TV on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Somehow, those movies, especially film noir, became the dark foundation for me—they formed the world I wanted to enter, and writing was my way of entering that world. I became fixated on both the worlds of those movies and everything they might be just barely concealing. So when I discovered James Ellroy’s novels in my teens, it brought everything together—the official cultural history and alternative, subterranean truths. I fell head over heels. I wanted « in. » When I write, I tend to even cast my favorite actors. Gloria Grahame appears in almost all my books. As does Ralph Meeker. Steve Cochran. There’s a slightly seedy glamour to all of them, and I think that’s the feel I’m most drawn to, as a writer, reader, spectator, voyeur.

AA - You have a new book coming out. What can you tell us about it?

MA - It’s called The End of Everything. Set in the suburbs during the 1980s, it’s the story of Lizzie, a 13-year-old girl, whose best friend, Evie Verver, has disappeared. The two girls have been intensely close in that way young girls can be right before adolescence really crashes in. With Evie gone, and Evie’s glamorous family (a beautiful, popular sister and a handsome, charismatic dad) struggling, Lizzie begins to insert herself into the investigation, unable to stop herself. It’s a big departure for me in terms of time and place, but in most ways, I’m exploring the same dark corners. All my books seem to be about the treacherous journey from innocence to experience. They’re all Little Red Riding Hood.

AA - If you can't say Chandler or Hammett, who is your favorite noir / hardboiled writer. What do you admire about his / her style?
MA - James M. Cain. The Postman Always Rings Twice. Confessional narrative that’s like a whisper in the ear and you can’t stop listening. It’s completely persuasive, utterly cunning and finally heartbreaking.

AA - Why do you think so many noir classics are set in California?

MA - I think because California is, by geographic fate, the dropping-off of the American frontier. Manifest Destiny at its endpoint. You reach your dream here or you’ve lost it forever. The Land of Milk and Honey but also the place of last chances. So many noir characters are there because it’s the last place to go. They can’t run any more.

AA - If you couldn't write noir, what genre do you think you'd write?

MA - I guess I don’t think in terms of genre, as a reader or writer. I never set out to write a noir novel, or a mystery or anything else. I think we all respond to story, voice and character and that’s the main thing I think of when I write. That said, my love of the books and movies dubbed noir is because they are so filled with the big feelings and drives of life—desire, greed, rage, sorrow—and in its purest form. What could be better? That’s terrain I never want to leave and I think you can find that across all the genres. Even writing a book set in the suburbs in the 80s, it felt like I was writing about the same heightened feelings.

AA - Besides the ones you have created in your own books, who is your favorite femme fatale and why?

MA - Oh, there’s too many good ones for me to have to resort to picking one of my own! I’m going with Gene Tierney in Leave Her to Heaven: cold, remorseless, perverse. And so gorgeous you find yourself believing her any way. And that movie disproves the old axiom that noir must be in black and white. In that movie, color—the look of a host flush on the skin, the glaciality of Tierney’s’ eyes—make for pitch-black noir.

AA - Have any words of hardboiled slang crept into your daily usage? If yes, which ones?

MA - I don’t think I use it much in speech, though I hear the slang in my head all the time. To me, they’re part of my unconscious, the life of my brain. Though occasionally I do want to describe someone as a blonde who could make a bishop kick a hole through a stained-glass window. And sometimes I want to walk into a room and ask, “What’s the rumpus?” I also use “stooge,” “patsy,” “hoosgow,” “high-hat” and “gunsel” sometimes. Gosh, I guess they have crept in!

AA - What is one of your favorite lines from your book that's about to launch?

MA - “I know everything.” The 13-year-old narrator says it so many times and every time she’s wrong.

AA - Thank you Megan Abbott!

Upcoming Megan Abbott Interview

2011-07-03T11:20:00.000-07:00

Film noir writer Megan Abbott has a new book out, The End of Everything. She kindly agreed to do an interview with my blog, which should be available within the next week. Stay tuned to read Megan's thoughts on writing, noir and the future of publishing.

Barbra Annino Interview - Part II

2011-07-02T12:37:00.000-07:00

AA - Who are three of your favorite eBook authors and what genres do they write?

BA - Oy, that's tough. There are so many. LJ Sellers writes great mystery/suspense, Deborah Greary has a book out called A Modern Witch that I'm reading now--a fun fantasy/romance and JL Bryan writers creepy horror.

AA - What’s an average work day like for you? Up and fully dressed in business casual or wearing your pajamas until you realize it’s past noon?

I get up, crawl into workout gear, drink coffee, work until a Dane pokes me in the shoulder, then walk a dog, lunch, shower, then back to work until 6.

BA - If you weren’t a writer, how would you earn your living?

As a professional poker player.

AA - What are your five top tips for promoting an eBook?

BA - Make a walking billboard with your book cover, get naked, slip it over your head and stand in rush hour traffic. Repeat five times.

AA - When writing a novel, do you bullet point out the whole plot or just find yourself listing into it? How do you set about writing a book?

BA - Usually characters come to me first. I do a lot of writing in my head and I might jot down really basic ideas or traits such as occupation of the protagonist.

The first book I outlined, but since then, I've been flying through the air without a net. That way, no one can tell me they knew who the killer was or how the story would end, because I didn't even know.

AA - What can you tell us about your new novelette Doppelganger?

BA - It's a suspense story about a woman who is always in a hurry, never slowing down to enjoy her life until someone tries to take it away--someone who looks just like her.

Have you ever met your own doppelganger?

No, but I suspect she may have had one too many glasses of wine a few years ago because it certainly wasn't me who flashed that tour bus.

AA - What’s next for Barbra Annino?

BA - BLOODSTONE is the second title in this series and then I have plans for an urban fantasy and a YA, but right now I have to wipe the slobber from my keyboard.

Thank you Barbra!

eBook release for Fangs

2011-07-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

Fangs for Nothing now available on Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader, iBooks, iPad, iPhone, iWant To Read Fangs For Nothing. (Okay, that last bit was made up ;O)

Barbra Annino Interview - Part I

2011-07-01T08:28:00.000-07:00

Barbra Annino is an indie writer best known for her Stacy Justice series.

AA - How did you become an indie writer? Please give us a brief history of your writing career.

BA - I've been a professional writer since just after college. I was a technical writer, a journalist and then a freelancer before I tried my hand at fiction. The fictional path to publication was a lot like Dorothy's trip to Oz except I never quite made it to Emerald City.

In 2008, I pitched my first novel to a small publisher at a conference. She loved the premise and asked for the first three chapters on the spot. She enjoyed those so much she invited me to dine with her and introduced me to everyone as her new author. I sent the full script as soon as I got home and promptly never heard from her again. (I would learn the following year at the same conference she was interested, but never received my email.) A few months after that, I landed an agent. When I learned he only shopped the book to one editor in a year, I fired him. Meanwhile, I had written book two, which I felt was stronger. I pitched Opal Fire to a few more agents and publishers and received an offer from a small press in late 2010. Unfortunately, editorial mistakes were made and the novel that went to print was worse for the wear. I took a deep breath, took my rights back and published in March of this year.

I believe the Universe points you in the right direction if you can just read the signs. I had so many mishaps on this journey (more than what is here even) that I could no longer ignore the message I was getting to go indie. So glad I listened.

AA - What kind of justice does Stacy Justice dish out? Please tell us more about this series.

BA - The series centers around a reporter raised by witches who finds herself in heaps of trouble everywhere she turns. Stacy is funny, honest and a major klutz with a deep sense of right and wrong and a devotion to her family that is unwavering--even though they drive her batty. Opal Fire opens in the middle of a burning building. The Black Opal is owned by Stacy's cousin Cinnamon and before long, she's accused of arson and Stacy is determined to prove that theory wrong. What sets the series apart from other mysteries is that the crimes and victims affect Stacy's family and close friends, so the stakes are very personal for her. It's been compared to Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series.

AA - What’s with all the Great Danes on your website? How do you house them and do the neighborhood kids ever try to ride them?

BA - Those are my furkids! They aren't available for rides, but it is funny to hear the comments people make. I was walking Thor down Main Street and someone asked, "Does he bite?" My response was, "Not me."

Rose Pressey Interview Part II

2011-06-28T10:13:00.000-07:00

Part II of my Rose Pressey interview, author of No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells, Me and My Ghoulfriends, and How to Date a Werewolf.

Upcoming title: Rock n' Roll is Undead

Coming soon: How to date a vampire

(love this cover)

AA - What are six of your favorite adjectives?

RP - Delicious, hilarious, sarcastic, suspicious, humble, and cuddly.

AA - If you weren’t writing paranormal romance, what genre would you be writing and why?

RP - I write mystery in all my books, so I'm sure it would involve mystery. I'd love to try historical, but I'm not sure I could ever pull that off.

AA - Why is it important that cupcakes have sprinkles?

RP - Extra sugar is good. Plus they add color and whimsy.

AA - In your book My Haunted Family, you write of your family members ghostly encounters. Have you had any of your own? If yes, please describe. If no, how about one from the book?

RP - My Haunted will be rereleased with new content this fall as an ebook. It’s a book with ghost stories and other unexplained events, tales passed down from family members. I’ve had some experiences which I talk about in the book. I’ve been on some paranormal investigations where I’ve experienced cold spots, being touched, seeing a black shadow figure, and catching some great EVP.

AA - What advice do you have when it comes to ebook publishing? What do you do to promote your own work?

RP - Good covers, editing and just get your name out there. Word of mouth is the best promotion. If a reader enjoys your book, they'll likely tell a friend.

AA - What’s next for Rose Pressey?

RP - More books! I have another book out on July 1. The title is Rock ‘n’ Roll is Undead. I’m very excited about it. I’ll have follow-ups to all my series out this year and next. I have another idea for a different series, so I hope to get around to writing it later this year.

Thank you Rose Pressey!

Fangs for Nothing - Blurb

2011-06-27T10:11:00.000-07:00

Grab some garlic and start sharpening your mother's wooden spoons because there are vampires living in the most unlikely of places.

I’ve always wanted to meet a vampire. Not to stake some poor bloodsucker as he sleeps in his coffin or have some sexy vampiress bite me on the neck, but just to see a creature so rare and infamous. What can I say? Some people want to sail to Easter Island, others want to fling themselves out of an airplane, I want to shake hands with a vampire. Well, maybe I should prioritize getting a girlfriend first, but a vampire sighting is pretty high up on the list. Trust me, a lot of kids my age dream about it. Like my two best friends, Rini and Xander. We spent half the summer searching the most notorious cities in the United States for the undead, but so far, no luck.

That’s why it came as a total shock to discover a living, breathing vampire in our hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. (Okay, so he’s more undead and not breathing, but you get the picture.) At first we were kind of excited, but then pretty freaked because it turns out our new fanged friend has a hold on the city's teenage population and a specific thirst for their blood. Which, in a word—bites.

To read the Fangs for Nothing Prologue, go here.

To read Chapter 1, go here.

To buy the book on Amazon Kindle, go here.

Rose Pressey Interview Part I

2011-06-26T19:47:00.000-07:00

Rose Pressey is an indie author who has found ebook success with titles that include How to Date a Werewolf, Me and My Ghoulfriends, and No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells. Here's part one of her interview:

AA - You have previously been traditionally published by a small press. Why did you decide to make the jump to being an indie author with ebooks?

RP - When I started writing, I knew I wanted readers. Sharing my stories with others is so much fun. Most people are reluctant to try a new author with an ebook priced at over five dollars. I think people are more likely to give my books a chance if they're not super expensive. With self-publishing, I liked the appeal of being able to offer my books at whatever price I wanted. Being an indie author allows me to do that.

AA - Who are your best Ghoulfriends?

RP - My best Ghoulfriends are my Chihuahuas. I had two, but one recently passed away and I miss him a whole bunch. I like to think he's still with me in spirit. Even though I can’t see him like Larue Donavan sees ghosts hanging around in Me and My Ghoulfriends, I feel he’s still watching out for me.

AA - What can you tell us about your latest title No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells?

RP - I wrote No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells while dieting, so it's no surprise it's full of delicious cuisine. Ha-ha. I had food on the brain. The main character, Elly Blair takes over her grandmother's little southern café. Her sweet granny failed to mention that she added magic to the menu items. Elly's a bit accident prone, so disaster strikes soon after she flips the first burger. There's hunky men, great food, and a lot of magic spells.

AA - What are your top four tips for dating a werewolf?

RP - I haven’t personally tested these rules, but I’d say buy steak dinners, avoid moonlit strolls, don't mention excess hair, and don't give silver jewelry as a gift.

AA - With ebooks in the picture, what do you think is the future of publishing?

RP - I feel a lot of people think it's ebooks or paper. To me, this isn’t necessarily an either/or situation. There’s room for both, but publishers need to adjust their pricing for ebooks. For the most part, people aren’t comfortable paying hardback prices for ebooks. As more ebooks become available though, more people will embrace ereaders and that could change things significantly.

AA - Who is your new favorite author? Or, what book have you read recently that you absolutely love?

RP - I have a bunch of favorite authors, but my favorite is anything light and humorous. I love Molly Harper's humor. She's unique and I love her Jane Jameson series.

Fangs for Nothing Now on Kindle

2011-06-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

Fangs for Nothing is now available on the Kindle for 99 cents.

Fangs for Nothing - Now Available

2011-06-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

Hey, hey! Fangs for Nothing is now available on the Nook and at the iBook store. (No image with the Nook for some reason... Hmmm... must look into that.) Will be available on Amazon in the next day or two.

Upcoming Rose Pressy Interview

2011-06-10T15:41:00.000-07:00

Stay tuned for my upcoming Rose Pressey interview, indie author of How to Date a Werewolf, Me and My Ghoulfriends, and No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells.

H.P. Mallory Interview - Part II

2011-06-08T09:28:00.000-07:00

AA - Besides the characters in your own books, who is your favorite vampire?

HP - Oh, man. I do love classic Dracula but from more recent stuff, I love love love Jean Claude from the Anita Blake series.

AA - Are you related to the famous British mountaineer, George Mallory? If yes, how? If no, make something up.

HP - LOL No I'm not. But, wasn't there a Mallory among King Arthur's knights of Camelot or something? If so, I'm related to him...

AA - What is your preferred ebook reading device?

HP - I have an IPad.

AA - Given that you’ve had success as an indie author and are on the verge of having success as a traditionally published author, what do you think is the future of the publishing industry?

HP - I think the future is definitely heading toward more and more ebooks. Having said that, though, I don't ever think paperback or hardbound books will completely disappear.

But, yes, I think we are definitely in and will continue to be in a ebook revolution!

AA - If you couldn’t write in your prefered genres, (Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy) what do you think you’d write?

HP -Probably historical romance.

AA - So many people say that they want to be a writer, but have trouble finding the time / motivation to write. What drove you to complete your first novel?

HP - I was living in Cambridge, England and found myself without a 9-5 job, instead, working for myself as an online marketing consultant. Given the fact that I had lots of extra time and was living in the most beautiful, historical place imaginable, it was sort of like I couldn't not write a book. LOL

AA - What’s next for H.P. Mallory? Are you focusing on your Jolie series for Random House or will we have another title first?

HP - Right now I'm focusing on the next Jolie Wilkins book for Random House. Then I'll be working on antoher Dulcie book and then I'm going to be putting my head together wtih bestselling author, JR Rain, to co author a book! Lots coming up!

AA - Thank you very much H.P. Mallory!

HP - Thank you!!!