Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Cover Reveal and Swag Giveaway

It's always fun when a critique partner has exciting news. Here's a cover reveal of my CP Tracy E. Banghart's YA paranormal novel BY BLOOD

To celebrate, Tracy's giving away a bunch of swag. To participate in a Rafflecopter giveaway, just click on the link. Here's the list of awesome prizes:

GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY

Giveaway Prize Pack #1 (US only)

Signed paperback copy of By Blood by Tracy E. Banghart
Plus (all hardcover):
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini
The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
Jane by April Lindner
By the Time You Read This, I’ll Be Dead by Julie Anne Peters
Sean Griswold’s Head by Lindsey Leavitt
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Slide by Jill Hathaway
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma

Giveaway Prize Pack #2 (Intl)

Signed paperback copy of By Blood + $50 Amazon Gift Card

About BY BLOOD:

For 17-year-old Emma Wong, spending a summer in England should be a dream come true. Gorgeous scenery? Check. Lots of hot guys with accents? Yes, please.

Throw in an estranged mom, annoying new stepdad, and drooling baby half-brother, and it’s a disaster even her favorite cherry red leather jacket can’t fix. Even worse, there’s (hot) live-in research assistant Josh to contend with. The only thing more embarrassing than drunk-kissing him hours after they meet? Knowing he’ll be witness to her family’s dysfunction all. summer. long.

But when Emma meets a mysterious girl who happens to be a Druid, her vacation suddenly promises to be far more intriguing than she anticipated. Powerful rituals, new friends, an intoxicating sense of freedom...and Simon, the sexy foreign stranger she was hoping for. It’s all a perfect distraction from dirty diapers and awkward family dinners.

Trouble is, intriguing doesn’t often mean simple. And Emma is about to discover just how not simple her life really is.

By Blood is a novel about the ways that blood can bind us to others – or tear us apart.


About Tracy:

Tracy E. Banghart is a cheesy movie–loving, fantasy football–playing (go Ravens!), globe-trotting Army wife who began “practicing” her craft at the age of five, when she wrote her first story. She loves visiting the international friends she met while pursuing her MA in Publishing and spends a portion of every summer at her family’s cabin in Canada, where she finds inspiration and lots of time to relax on the dock. She lives with her husband, son, two lazy dogs and one ornery cat. When not writing or spending time with her family, she is on a mission to bake the perfect cupcake.
 
Tracy's Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

Friday, June 21, 2013

Cover reveal: Betting It All by Cate Masters

I was blown away by this cover! Decadent Publishing cover artists put the art into book covers. :)



Betting It All
by Cate Masters

Historical romance novella
(about 29k)
Coming soon from Decadent Publishing http://www.decadentpublishing.com

Blurb
Can the daughter of a well-known prostitute start a new life where no one knows her family history? Norah Hawkins is sure going to try. When a letter arrives deeding her property in San Francisco, she packs her bags.
Irishman Gerard MacKenzie likes his life free and easy, but is tired of the snobbish East Coast folk. San Francisco has enough vice and folly to suit his needs. Meeting Norah gives him the opportunity to bartend in her saloon. Maybe he can convince her to let him play the piano, too. She’s a shrewd businesswoman, and negotiating with her makes his blood boil. Damn if she doesn’t make his blood boil in other ways.
The morning of April 18, 1906, a terrible earthquake buries their dreams beneath the city’s ruins. Can Norah and Mac rebuild their lives? Will rebuilding their dreams bond them forever, or tear them apart?

About Cate

Cate Masters has made beautiful central Pennsylvania her home, but she’ll always be a Jersey girl at heart. When not spending time with her dear hubby, she can be found in her lair, concocting a magical brew of contemporary, historical, and fantasy/paranormal stories with her cat Chairman Maiow and dog Lily as company. Look for her at http://catemasters.blogspot.com and in strange nooks and far-flung corners of the web.
Cate loves to hear from readers! Email her at: cate.masters@gmail.com

Catch up to Cate
Blog     Facebook     Goodreads   Amazon

To receive extras exclusive to subscribers,
sign up for Cate's newsletter through her blog

 

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Speaking up

I'm reposting this from last Saturday on my blog. It's too important not to spread the word.

I woke up today, psyched that it was a Saturday -- free time, which means writing. Loosing into words those ideas that have been building up inside my head all week.

But I can't. My head's reeling with outrage and indignation. I read Delilah Dawson'spost and it left me stupefied. I wanted to reach out and hug her for all she's had to endure. I wanted to tell her it will be all right. Things will get better.


Except I don't believe it. Especially after reading Ann Aguire's post (linked to Delilah's), and the ugly comments that followed. Horrendous replies that attacked her personally, and bordered on threatening. All because she's writing what she loves.


And then I began remembering all the times I hadn't spoken up.


The time when another author said she "didn't understand women's fiction and would never write it." (A YA author.)


The time I got so excited that Margaret Atwood came to speak at a local college, but she quashed my decades-old awe of her by literally laughing at the romance genre. When my turn in line came to have my book signed, I couldn't say anything to her. I couldn't understand why a writer of her superstar status felt the need to put down other writers. So I said nothing as she signed my book, and I didn't even say thanks or goodbye afterward.


Other instances have left me puzzled too.


Writers who started out the same time as me, before I began writing romance but who now look at me as less than a serious writer.


It astounds me even more when writers within the same genre bash each other. It's almost a given that non-romance authors consider romance stories to be fluff. But romance writers bashing other romance writers?


And the latest head-scratcher: complaints about authors helping other authors promote their work. Alex J. Cavanaughmentioned it in this post. Which -- unbelievable as it is -- was part of the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Alex is an amazing guy who helps other writers regardless of genre, and I applaud him.


So now I'm responding.


Delilah Dawson and Ann Aguire, I truly wish I could say things will get better. They won't. There will always be people who feel the need to belittle others. Be sorry for them. And then keep writing awesome stories.


What I should have said to the YA author who "didn't get" women's fiction:  Fine. Don't read it. Plenty of readers "get it" and love it. Read whatever you like.


To Margaret Atwood: Bullshit. An author of your status should be encouraging other writers, not creating divisive cliques to exclude certain types. Leave that for your fiction.


Me, not a serious writer? Really? I spend every spare moment of my time either writing, promoting, or trying to better my craft through how-to books. And I read as often as possible--mainstream, scifi, urban fantasy, fantasy, contemporary, historical, steampunk. Whatever. Genre doesn't matter to me. I'm drawn to stories with compelling story lines, engaging characters and dialogue. Well written stories. (Because face it, crappy stories exist in every genre.)


To romance writers: Romance has a myriad of subgenres. Some stories don't fit the specific definition of romance, but end up there because it might contain a romantic element. It's a marketing gimmick, nothing more, but that's the way it is. It doesn't make your subgenre any better than another. Again, let the readers decide which they prefer.


To those who object to authors helping each other promote, I'll repeat my response that I left on Alex's blog: Why anyone would object to one another helping another with promotion is beyond me. Writers work hard enough to write a great book, but promotion is another full-time job. If blog visitors don't want to read about an author's work, they're fully capable of skipping over it. I love to help other authors spread the word about their work, and I've been blessed with plenty of generous writers who help me as well.


To anyone who feels the need to lash out at a writer--for whatever reason--get the hell over yourself. If you think you can write a better book, go for it. That's how lots of writers started out. Some succeeded, others discovered it isn't such a cakewalk to create great stories. It's damn hard work. Again--and I'm not sure why this is so difficult a concept to wrap your head around--support the writers you do love by buying their books. If you don't like an author's work, don't buy it. Period.


Author or reader, let's have some respect. If you can't manage that much, then I hope you learn someday how to embrace your humanity.


I encourage other authors to read both Delilah and Ann's posts. Then speak up as well. Bigotry's rooted in a lack of education, so let's educate everyone. Even ourselves.


And now, I've already lost half a day. I'm going to write.


Peace.