April 30th is Blogmania!

Less than one week till Blogmania! I'm excited! My blog at http://catemasters.blogspot.com will be one of more than 100 participating that day.

If you want to have the most fun and scoop up as much loot as possible, here are a few Early Bird Reminders to help you do just that.

1. Be at any of the blogs participating in the Blogmania Event as early as possible on April 30th. The easiest way to find a Blogmania Blog is to look for the Blogmania Badge.

2. This is an international event, so understand that there will be some differences in time zones. My advice is to start early and stay late to catch all the blogs.

3. Each blog will have their own giveaway requirements. Read them carefully, follow through, and then move on as quickly as possible. If you run across a blog that you really like and want to spend some time exploring, copy their URL and then visit them after Blogmania is over.

4. We will have a 100+ blogs for you to visit. Each one will post their number like this. ( This is blog 47 of 100) This is to help you keep track of which blogs you’ve visited, and which ones you still need to reach. You may want to prepare a blog sheet numbered from 1 – 120, then mark off each numbered blog as you visit.

5. All blog links provided will also have a number like (Blog 89 of 100). Look for the blogs that you haven’t yet visited and follow those links until you’ve checked off all the blogs on your sheet.

6. We have all types of blogs participating in Blogmania, which means that the range of items in their giveaways are diverse. I have previewed many and they are awesome.

Here are the goodies I'll be offering to a random commenter on April 30 for Blogmania - one print copy each of One Soul for Sale and Picture This!



Also, I'll include a bracelet handmade by me, and a beaded book thong! Click on either photo for a closeup view.




Don't forget to visit my blog on April 30! More than 100 authors and artisans are participating with some very cool offerings, so it's well worth visiting their blogs! You can check out other offerings on the Blogmania Facebook fan page.



Cate Masters writes fantasy/dark fantasy, historical, contemporary and speculative fiction, described by reviewers as “so compelling, I did not want to put it down,” “such romantic tales that really touch your soul,” “filled with action scenes which made it a riveting story,” and “the author weaves a great tale with a creative way of using words that makes the story refreshing to read.” Visit Cate online at www.catemasters.com, www.catemasters.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

Celebrating Valentine's Day with a giveaway

by Cate Masters

Romance Junkies is throwing a mega Valentine's Day celebration! I'll be giving away a print copy of Picture This and the book thong shown in the photo below. Visit my contest page to learn how you can win!
The contest runs until March 31st.

Thankful for many reasons

by Cate Masters
Yesterday when I checked my email, I found a contract from Eternal Press for my novel, Fever Dreams!
Being so close to the Thanksgiving holiday, I've been tallying up all my blessings for this year. Topping the list are my wonderful and supportive family. I love you all more than anything.
My friends and critique partners are amazing, giving sound advice while cheering me on.
I've met many incredible people this year. Though some only virtually, their warmth and caring and creative spark shine through.
Though this year has been tough for many reasons, it's been incredible on the writing front. Fever Dreams will be my eleventh story contracted by an epress this year, and the third with Eternal Press. Like One Soul for Sale and Picture This, Fever Dreams will be available through Amazon as well.
This story has special meaning for me. It represents the return of my muse, who'd given up on me while I raised my kids and went off to Tijuana on a drunken binge. After I began writing this story, she returned with the vengeance of a ten-year hangover and has been lobbing story ideas at me faster than I can type. I'm not complaining. I'm typing as fast as I can, or writing in notebooks, or generally mulling over what the characters might be planning to spring on me next. And loving every millisecond of it all.
Fever Dreams probably won't be easy to classify. It incorporates the theme of a woman finding her bliss in life, which doesn't necessarily mean romance. Although it has a love story, it's a complicated one, much like real life. But it also contains some dream sequences that aren't quite fantasy. I'll leave the categorizing to the experts.
In the meanwhile, my muse is waiting. And I don't want to keep her waiting anymore.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, all.

Cate Masters writes fantasy/dark fantasy, historical, contemporary and speculative fiction, described by reviewers as “so compelling I I did not want to put it down,” “such romantic tales that really touch your soul,” “filled with action scenes which made it a riveting story,” and “the author weaves a great tale with a creative way of using words that makes the story refreshing to read.” Visit Cate online at www.catemasters.com, www.catemasters.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

What sort of music inspires you?

by Cate Masters
Leave me a comment on my blog this weekend, and you could win a copy of my latest release, Picture This! Available now from Eternal Press and soon in print from Amazon and Barnes and Noble!

Publishing game changer

by Cate Masters

Barnes & Noble made the leap to digital publishing last week when it launched its ebook store. This after previous news B&N had purchased ebook distributor Fictionwise, and fast on the heels of B&N’s announcement they’d hired a digital executive, Jamie Iannone, to manage “strategic initiatives.”
Pretty exciting news for me, as my Eternal Press novella One Soul for Sale is now available through their online bookstore, as will be Picture This, my EP novella to be released on Aug 7.
The downside is that B&N ebooks aren’t compatible with Amazon Kindles or Sony eReaders, though Fictionwise apps support “wireless and wired access” for iPhones and the iPod Touch. Ebooks are already a drawback for some customers, but if I’d plunked down hundreds of dollars for a reader, I probably wouldn’t approve of this strategy.
Still, I’m eager to see how it all shakes out. I’m hoping that, with a big-name publisher such as B&N behind ebooks, piracy will become less of an issue. Currently, it’s fairly rampant. I came across a blog recently reviewing my short story Seventh Heaven. The review was favorable, but the reviewer came across my story through a Monday Book Swap through another blog. Illegal sharing is piracy, plain and simple. But how do I know it hasn’t worked in my favor? Seventh Heaven has been the number one bestseller on The Wild Rose Press site for the past week and a half. And honestly, it was kind of cool having a reader in Finland.
As an author, I’m happy on one hand to have my work more widely available to the public, though I’m not sure how it will trickle down to me. The ebook publishing system needs an overhaul, in my opinion, to provide greater benefit to authors, consistent with those offered by the major print publishers. A playing field slightly more level, finance-wise, so authors can possibly make an actual living at it.
I have a feeling publishing will be in a state of flux for a long while yet.

Cate Masters’ novels, novellas, short stories and flash fiction appear at epublishers The Wild Rose Press, Eternal Press, Wild Child Publishing/Freya’s Bower and Shadowfire Press. Her flash and short stories appear at such web zines as Cezanne’s Carrot, The Battered Suitcase, A Long Story Short, Dark Sky Magazine, and The Harrow. Visit her online at www.catemasters.com, www.catemasters.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook or on Twitter.

Follow me to the UK!

by Cate Masters

Today I'm over at fellow Eternal Press author Colin Galbraith's blog, Freedom from the Mundane. Come join the party (Colin's away all weekend! Sounds like party time to me. Don't worry, Colin, I'll clean up any mess!). Leave a comment and you might win a copy of One Soul for Sale!

Here's what You Gotta Read Reviews said about One Soul for Sale: "The writing style made me feel as though I were a part of the story instead of someone on the outside looking in. I was pulled into the story and couldn't stop until I hit the last page. The ending by the way ..... OUTSTANDING! I loved it! One Soul for Sale was filled with action scenes which made it a riveting story."

For you more traditional readers, One Soul for Sale's also available in print from Amazon.

One Soul for Sale releases today!

by Cate Masters
The long awaited day has arrived! Eternal Press releases One Soul for Sale today! Woo hoo!



Eternal Press is having an all-day launch party - stop over and help us celebrate! Mine is one of seven titles out today. You just might win a prize.

Cate Masters’ novellas, short stories and flash fiction have appeared in various web zines and epress sites. Visit her online at www.catemasters.com, www.catemasters.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook