Tag Archives: Giveaway

Halloween promotional giveaway

UF Halloween giveaway banner

Today marks the beginning of a 13-day urban fantasy Halloween giveaway with many authors you may recognize participating (see banner below).  Some of you have probably already heard about it on Facebook, but I wanted to spread the word here in case you missed it.

Each day authors will be giving away prizes including signed paperbacks, ebooks, tote bags, Amazon gift cards, and some other great items.  October 25th is my day and I’ve got several awesome prizes lined up including books and pewter dragon statues.  There is also a grand prize where participants could win one of three Kindle Fires, but you’ve got to comment on special daily posts to enter.

For those interested, here’s the link to join the event:    https://www.facebook.com/events/106856986337823/

I hope to see you all there!

13 Days of Halloween poster

Giveaway #2 and other news…

The last couple of days have been interesting for me.  We discovered the carpet was getting rather damp outside the closet in the spare bedroom.  Upon closer inspection, we found out the hot water heater had been leaking.  It’s at the back of a large walk-in closet where I store all the stuff I don’t use often.  I probably hadn’t been in there in a week so I’ve got no idea when this leak first started.  Most of the things on the floor were wet and after I began clearing it out I found fresh mold along one of the walls.  Ugh.

My husband is going to school full-time right now with classes during the day and evenings.  This left it up to me to pull everything out of the closet (throwing away anything damaged) and clear out half the spare bedroom where the water had infiltrated.  Our place isn’t very big.  I’ve now got stuff strewn across the living room and dining room or piled in the part of the spare bedroom that wasn’t affected.  At least the water had the decency to stop just before the treadmill I get around to using about a dozen times per year.

The maintenance guys came and tore all the carpet out of the closet and removed the padding underneath part of the bedroom carpet.  They also used a machine to suck up any remaining water.  We’ve now got a super fan that is extremely loud blowing across everything to dry it out.  They also bleached down the mold spot in the closet.  The cats are unhappy because the super fan is too loud for them and they don’t like the disruptions going on in their home.  They stayed with me last night in the master bedroom which is on the opposite end of our place from where the water damage occurred.  We were at least lucky this didn’t happen in the parts of our apartment where we spend a lot of time.

Below are some pics with the super fan being the first.  We had to lift the treadmill since the fan needed to be sitting in a dry place for it to blow onto the damp parts of the carpet.  One of my cats (his name is Spock) helped me take some of the other photos.  Last November, I found him crying his little head off underneath my car engine.  At the time he was only six weeks old and it took me the better part of three hours, lying on the pavement in the pouring rain to coerce him out of there.  He’s been rather attached to me ever since and follows me wherever I go.

Super fan pic Closet pic #1


Closet pic #2
Closet pic #3


Needless to say, it’s a little crazy in our home right now.  Not a good time for water leaks .  I’m probably going to surprise my aunt and uncle by going to work on Darkness Wanes at their place today.  It’s a little too chaotic and loud for me here and the maintenance guys won’t be back until next week to put new flooring down, plus a new hot water heater.

GIVEAWAY

Now, for the second giveaway I promised would happen this week (thanks to everyone who participated last week!).  I just received CD copies for the audio version of Stalked by Flames from my publisher.  I’ve also got new tote bags I ordered with the Stalked by Flames cover on the side.  The first three people who reply to this post will each get an audio CD set and a tote bag.  This is open to international folks.  If your comment doesn’t show up right away, not to worry, I will approve it as soon as I can and it will appear in the order it came in.  Please be sure to leave a valid email address in the appropriate field so I can contact you if you’re a winner.

There will be a third giveaway next week with something different!

September publishing updates and a giveaway

First of all, thanks to everyone who has read/reviewed Stalked by Flames.  I’m pleased to announce it made it into the top 100 most read titles on Kindle Unlimited for the month of August with both Amazon U.S. and U.K.  It did far better than I imagined.  I must admit I was a little nervous about how people would react to me combining dragons, the modern world, and an apocalypse, but I absolutely felt the story in my head had to be written down.  The overwhelming positive response for the novel was amazing and very encouraging.  I’ll look forward to giving you more books in the series next year!

Truly, thanks to everyone who picked up a copy.  In appreciation of that I will be doing a few giveaways over the next couple of weeks with the first one starting today (see below for details).  I’ve also got several updates for you all including audio, paperbacks, official Darkness Wanes release date, and a giveaway.

Stalked by Flames paperback cover

STALKED BY FLAMES PAPERBACK

For those of you who prefer to have a paperback copy of the novel or use retailers other than Amazon and can’t access the ebook version, there is a hardcopy now available for Stalked by Flames.  Some of you may have already picked it up, but for those who haven’t here are some links:

AMAZON     BARNES & NOBLE     BOOK DEPOSITORY


Stalked by Flames audio CD cover

STALKED BY FLAMES AUDIO

The audio version of Stalked by Flames just released last Thursday (September 24th).  As I mentioned on Facebook a while back, the Dragon’s Breath series is being narrated by Marguerite Gavin.  She has done a fantastic job with the first book and I love the voices she gave the characters.  If you enjoy audio at all you should check it out.  Here are some links for you:

AMAZON     AUDIBLE     ITUNES


DARKNESS WANES RELEASE DATE

The official release date for Darkness Wanes is November 18th.  I’d hoped to get it out by the end of October, but with the delay on Stalked by Flames and other personal issues there was no way I could get it finished and edited in less than three months.  I know there are some speedy authors out there, but for me I need a little more time to write full-length novels.  Every author has to work at their own speed.  Thanks for your patience.  I will be revealing the cover and summary around mid-October.  Be on the lookout for that.  I’ll also post the first couple of chapters by early November so you can get a sneak peek!


GIVEAWAY!!!

 Three paperback copies of Stalked by Flames are up for grabs, along with bookmarks to go with them.  All you have to do is comment on this post no later than midnight (U.S. Pacific time) on November 2nd.  After that, I’ll randomly select three winners (who will get replies on this post if they won).  Be sure to put a valid email address in the appropriate field so that I can contact you for shipping details.  If you are reading this on Goodreads, please come to my website to comment.  This is open to international contestants.

The next big giveaway will be next week!  (Yes, if you enter this one you can still enter the others whether you win or not)

Giveaway for jewelry worn by the model on the Darkness Clashes cover

This Sunday (September 21st) I will be doing a giveaway for the necklace and bracelet worn by the female model on Darkness Clashes.  The winner will also receive one promo item of their choice (tote bag, series notebook, signed paperback, coffee mug, etc).  The contest will be on Facebook only.  I apologize to those who don’t have an account, but there will be other giveaways coming up soon that don’t require you to have one.  Such as a Q&A event I’m planning.

For those who are able to participate this Sunday (Monday in Australia), expect that I will be asking a random question from Darkness Clashes.  The first person to answer will win the prizes.  The question will come from the first half of the book so if you haven’t finished the novel yet you’ll be okay as long as you’ve hit close to the fifty percent mark.  I also understand time is precious and you can’t hover on Facebook all day/night.  You can expect the question to come during the following one-hour period (adjusted for time zones):

US Time

4pm-5pm (EDT)

3pm-4pm (CDT)

2pm-3pm (MDT)

1pm-2pm (PDT)

Europe

UK: 9pm-10pm

Germany/France: 10pm-11pm

Australia

Melbourne/Sydney: 6am-7am

Perth:  4am-6am

 

The vast majority of my readers come from the above areas.  I have worked the times out the best I can so that none of them are in the middle of the night, though the Aussies will have to be up rather early (sorry!).  These were calculated today based on current time differences.  If your area will be adjusting the clock over the weekend because of daylight savings ending please keep that in mind.  US times are the basis.  For those who live in another country I would recommend converting them yourself just to be safe.

For a close-up of the necklace and bracelet, here you go:

Darkness Clashes bracelet Darkness Clashes necklace

Excerpt from Darkness Clashes and giveaway

I’ve got the first four chapters of Darkness Clashes for you all below.  It comes to almost 12k words and should help tide you over until the novel releases.  At the end, you’ll also get the details for a giveaway of new series promo items.

_______________________________________

 Chapter One

 The werewolf had been staring at me for the last twenty minutes.  His relentless gaze sent chills along my spine and made it hard for me not to turn and face him.  Even from twenty feet away I could sense his growing desire.  What was he waiting for?  The right moment to pounce?

The dozens of humans surrounding us might have had something to do with it.  This was Spokane, Washington.  Not a lot of vampires around to compel the mortals into forgetting if the werewolf made a big scene.  With the full moon just passed, he’d still be on edge and have to watch himself.

People from one end of the rectangular bar to the other drank, danced, and played pool games as they enjoyed their Saturday night.  Music blared from the nearby speakers and it didn’t take a sensitive nose to catch the conflicting scents of sweat, stale beer, and cheap perfume.  It was the picture of normalcy and proved how utterly oblivious these people were to the dark underbelly of the supernatural world rubbing shoulders with them.

A world I’d once avoided and pretended not to see.

The werewolf couldn’t know I wasn’t human—at least not anymore—but some sixth sense must have registered that I wasn’t easy prey.  Not even close.  I was more like a spider weaving an alluring web and waiting for him to step into it.  The one enigmatic smile I’d given him when I arrived started the game.  My loose auburn hair and blue halter dress with its short skirt kept it going.

Playing the role of a shy and vulnerable woman wore on me, but I wanted him to make the first move.  For him to think he was in control—until he wasn’t.  I didn’t get away from Fairbanks, Alaska that often.  I had to get my kicks when I could.

I took a sip of my fruity drink.  A husband and wife sat on the left side of me, drinking beer and complaining about their kids.  I’d adopted a teenager myself and understood their difficulties.  The barstool on my right side was empty, but an older man with a long gray beard sat just beyond it.  He studied his beer bottle as if the answers to the universe might be revealed on the label.  I’d tried that once.  The words turn cryptic if you stare too long.

Toward the back of the place, a chair scraped against the tile floor.  The werewolf had finally decided to make his move.  My unique abilities as a sensor allowed me to track his movements without looking, but I also had the mirror behind the bar to help.  He had to weave around a handful of high tables filled with patrons before he could reach me.

My belly churned at the thought of him getting close, but I had to do this.  He was the first potential contact I’d found in Spokane and I only had one night to get what I needed.  Lucas wouldn’t care for my methods, but I was doing this for his brother—who’d been missing for four months.  We had to do whatever it took to find him.

The werewolf put a hand against the bar to my right, filling my peripheral vision.  His tanned arm was covered with curly dark hair.  My gaze trailed up to a bulging bicep and farther, to a thick chest covered loosely with a white t-shirt.  It had a Coors Light logo on it.

He leaned down until his face couldn’t have been more than a foot from mine.  His hair was shaved off, emphasizing a round head and full cheeks.  A day’s growth of beard dusted his chin and jaw.

“Hey, sweetheart.  What’s a pretty lady like you doin’ here all alone?” he asked, letting out a whiff of beer breath.

Take one for the team, Melena. You need this guy.

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