New Author Alert!

NEW AUTHOR ALERT

I have decided to include a new author or aspiring writer segment hopefully at least once a month, if not twice.

Anyone, who would like to be included, please contact me, my links are at the bottom of the page.

Please, give a warm welcome to new author Robin A. Stevens whose first book called Delivered is available for purchase and the links are below. 

                                                                   Robin A. Stevens

Tell us a little bit about yourself

 I was born and raised in Greensboro, NC and this is where I have made my home.  I share it with my wonderful son, Michael who is about to become a father.  I am so looking forward to the birth of my first grandchild in September. Our family is expanding and I could not be happier.  When I am not working and writing, I love nature walks and visits to the beach and the mountains. This is where I get most of my inspiration to write.  Back in 2000 I was in an abusive relationship and it was from this that I started to write.  Writing has been a way of escape and a tool for healing.  It is where I find most of my peace.

Thanks Robin for sharing your story and I'm so glad that out of an abusive relationship you were able to create something wonderful. Congratulations, on your book release, what an achievement, and congratulations on becoming a grandmother, how exciting.   

1. How long have you been writing?

I have been writing since December of 2000 and have written over 40 stage plays and skits.  I have also written many song lyrics, poems and monologues.  This is my first novel.

2. What do you write about?

I mainly write about human relationships.  Most of my stage plays are about issues that arise in family, couple, and church relationships, issues that otherwise would cause a person to turn away from love and acceptance and even forgiveness.  My book is about a secret between two adults that cause division in their family and lead a young girl down the wrong path.

3.What age is your book aimed at?

My plays, book, aims at people between the ages of 30 and 60.  I find that in this age range, we have most of our situations that bring about separation from each other and from God.

4. How have you found the journey to publication?

The journey to publication has been wonderful.  I have been busier with promoting the book and scheduling signings but I have enjoyed every minute.

5.How long do you spend writing?

 On a typical day, after working 9 hours on my day job, I may spend several hours writing.  When I have an idea in my head or new revelation for a book or play, I may spend every evening writing the story until I am finished.

6.What sort of books do you read and do you have a favorite author?

I read fiction and non-fiction books but my passion is love stories and mystery novels.  I do not have a favorite author, but enjoy Jackie Collins, Zane and James Rollins to name a few.

8. Where do you get inspiration from?

I have to say most of my inspiration comes from God.  My life has been filled with ups and down, joys and sorrows and it from these situations and circumstances, I have found my pen.

9. How do you deal with self-doubt?

The way I deal with self-doubt is to take a moment to look at all I have accomplished, to meditate and pray and then encourage myself by calling my best friend, or others who constantly encourage me.

10. What does the future hold for you?

I have already started writing a second novel and will write my autobiography in 2015. 

11. What is your book called and what is it about? 

Delivered is a fiction novel about a woman named Heaven, who from the time she could talk had questions about her identity. This was because she did not favor anyone in her immediate family and others outside of her family questioned whether she was adopted. Family secrets tore her family apart.   Because of this, Heaven traveled down the road to being every man’s desire.  She felt that because they worshiped her, this was her life’s mission, her destiny.  

Thank you so much Robin for giving us your time and I wish you all the luck in the world with this release and all your future books. Keep in touch and would love to hear back from you in the future to let us know how things are going. Hugs and kisses. Good luck on your book signing. 

Delivered can be purchased on xlibris.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.  

You may also visit my author page on www.facebook.com/rhabirites and there are excerpts available on 

www.facebook.com/unofficialdelivered.

If anyone would like to be featured in the New Author segment, please message me on my FB page, cheers Jen.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Davies/1421409368089313?ref_type=bookmark

Catching up with author Dilys J. Carnie.

                                                                  Hi Everyone,

 For a while now, I have wanted to catch up with  my friend and now colleague, Dilys J. Carnie to see what she has been up to in the world of writing. I interviewed her for the first time in 2012 when her first book called Her Passionate Protector was being released.

Wow! Firstly, I cannot believe it has been a year and a half since we did that blog post. 

Since then, Dilys has been writing non-stop. She has written a total of five books, her next one, titled Rejecting His Desire is due out in September and she has a further book called Seduced by His Desire slated for release in 2015.

One very busy and hard working lady.

A little bit about Dilys J. Carnie

My home is on the beautiful island of Anglesey on the west coast of North Wales with my family. I am extremely close to all my family members and enjoy spending time with them. I am the proud mother of two grown up *children* My daughter Emma is a primary school teacher and my son Christopher is part of the family business. Anglesey has been my home since the age of eleven after moving here with my mum and dad and three sisters from Scotland.

Thanks so much for fitting me into your schedule. Please, relax and enjoy some tea, a quick glass of something bubbly and some delicious cakes.

!. How has life changed now that you are a PUBLISHED AUTHOR?

It’s busier, I worked hard before but as a writer there are no holidays, no free time…I’m constantly thinking about a current manuscript or thinking up ideas for a new one.

 2. Is being published everything you imagined or not and why?

It’s nothing like I imagined! The getting published was the easy part. No one tells you about how hard it is to promote yourself. How difficult it is out of the thousands of authors out there getting readers to buy your book instead of theirs. It has been a difficult learning curve, and I’m happy to say that so far I have survived it.

 3. Any advice for new authors entering into the crazy world of publication?

Gosh, I don’t feel anyway near qualified to give out advice. However I do know that it is important to be involved in all social media pages. If you can build a website or a blog this will help promote you and your books. And just keep pushing and writing because the more books you have out there the more chance you have of gaining followers.

 4. Is time management important, and what's your secret?

As a full time worker and writer it is so important to manage your time. I work between 8-12 hours a day in my day job so most times I write at night and the weekend. I aim to try and write four books a year. It’s exhausting, frustrating and it drives me crazy but I wouldn’t have it any other way…except off course I would like to give up work and write full time but un-less I win the lottery which I don’t do so never will which means this is how my life will be…crazy!

 5. Who is your favorite character from your books and why?

Each book I write I always fall in love with my hero’s, my favourite is whoever I’m writing at that time!

 6. When you write do you edit as you go along or simply keep writing and then once the book is finish edit?

I draft out my book first then I go back and edit. Once I start to write I don’t want to stop the flow. So its head down and head for the finishing line.

 7. How do you market your book and what problems have you encountered if any?

My publisher holds a blog tour and does some advertising. I have a very good lady called Regina at Heartfelt Promos who does most of my advertising. I circulate my books on varies social media pages. Its trial and error and finding what suits you best.

 8. How do you draw followers to your FB page, and web site?

Word of mouth, joining and liking pages that are associated with whatever I’m writing at the time.

 9. Would you ever self-publish?

Yes! And excitingly enough I will be self-publishing a Christmas book this year with the help of my very good friend Annie.

 10. What is the future for Dilys J. Carnie?

Ah… that’s a ten million dollar question.

More writing off course!

Hopefully my trip that I had to cancel to America will be going ahead soon where I will be meeting my publisher and staying with my best friend.

Who knows what else will come my way. I do know that with every day that passes I am grateful for my health and family and as long as that continues I’m happy!

Thank you for having me, Jennifer It is always my pleasure to talk to you!

.

                            

A lone woman…a mysterious stranger…and a secret.

When Daisy Wallace meets Micah, a man of mystery, she is bowled over by an instant attraction. A passionate encounter follows, but he's holding back and Daisy doesn't understand why.

 Micah King has been retained by a client to locate the triplet daughters that she gave up for adoption, and he's pretty sure Daisy is the youngest of the girls. He wants to tell Daisy the truth, but before he can he needs to verify that she is indeed the woman he's looking for. He never meant to get involved with her, but she's just so tempting.

 When Daisy finds out the truth will she be able to forgive Micah's lie by omission? After all, he's deceived her from the first moment she laid eyes on him, and she's had her fill of deceitful men. And can she forgive the woman who gave her up thirty years ago? Content Warning: contains adult language and explicit sex

Excerpt

"I like it here…with you…in the kitchen." His words were enunciated slowly as she gripped the edge of the sink, pressing her back into the hardness…it was no good, she couldn't go back any further.

"Uh-huh." Daisy cleared her throat, trying to eradicate the huskiness present every time she'd spoken to him that morning.

Micah's eyes narrowed. "What's wrong, Daisy?"

"Nothing." She licked her lips.

"Yes, there is. Are you regretting last night?"

She swallowed, but her throat was bone dry. "Last night." She sucked in a breath as he stood in front of her and his hands landed on either side of her with a thud, coming to rest on the countertop.

"Have you got a boyfriend?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Keep it that way."

"Pardon me."

"Don't go looking for one…we have unfinished business."

She lifted her hands and pushed at his hard chest, which of course was a complete waste of time. "Now look here, you can't tell me what to do."

"Yes, I can." He kissed her hard, short, and succinct, and the power behind it made her knees tremble.

"No, you can't. If I want to go out and find a man, I will." She spoke defiantly with her chin held high, but it was lost in the fact that her chin only came up to his chest, and she had to strain further to look him in the eye. Her fingers tingled at the heat emanating from him. The smooth cotton of his shirt was soft to the touch, and his heartbeat was strong as the beat echoed against her fingertips.

"I don't think so."

"Excuse me." She pulled her head back and looked at him.

"Don't start thinking that you can bed someone else."

Her cheeks heated as she tried to push him away. "What the hell? You can't tell me who I can go to bed with…you hardly know me, and you most certainly don't have the right."

"After last night…you do want me, and if I hadn't stopped we would have been in that bed together. I would've made you forget whatever it is that has made you lose your confidence. You're one of the sexiest, most beautiful women I've ever met, and when I do what I have to…I'm going to show you exactly how much I really want you."

"That's just arrogant."

His smile was slow and sexy, and she was pretty sure that had he not been holding her up she would've glided to the floor in a stream of unbridled lust. His hardness was pressed against her stomach.

"Arrogant?" He shook his head. "No, that's not justifying the way I feel, but I'm confident you feel the same way."

"You think so, huh?" When she'd offered him a bed last night he'd refused.

He kissed her again, a little slower this time. Their kisses were hotter than a sauna on a cold day. She could hear the baby in the background, but it was as if she was a distant voice.

He parted from her just enough to speak and she watched his lips move. They were sexy, and she had to push herself to listen to what he was saying.

"I have to fly out today. I have a meeting tomorrow I need to be at, but when Amy goes down for her nap, we need to talk. I need to tell you why I'm here."

She frowned as his words penetrated her sex-befuddled mind. "What do you mean why you're here? I thought it was something to do with a golf course?"

"Actually…that was a lie."

"I knew there was something not quite right about that. If a golf course was going to be built I would've known. Jeez, you can't sneeze on this island without everybody knowing before you've even finished." She narrowed her eyes. Something was definitely going on. She pushed him away, catching him off balance.

* * * *

The look of worry that crossed her features made Micah want to kick himself. He hadn't meant to say anything, but damn it all to hell, he didn't seem to have much control over anything when she was around, including speech. He was trained to take all kinds of torture and not say a word, and now he only had to look at her and he was like some dribbling teenager.

"Daisy, I'm–" Before he could get his words out the frantic tone of her voice stopped him.

"You're from them, aren't you?" She leaned over, lifted Amy up from her chair and wrapped her arms around the baby. "You can just go back and tell whoever it is you work for that I don't have it…zilch…zitto, and even if I did, you wouldn't get a dime from me."

http://www.dilysjcarnie.com/shoping-links.html

Amazon UK Amazon USA Beachwalk Press Barnes and Noble All Romance ebooks

Time to celebrate!

Clink! Clink! Can you hear me toasting with my friends and celebrating the fact that I have       signed a three book deal for the Children of Annwn series. Woot! Woot! Amazing feeling to     receive some acknowledgement of what you have achieved, and I'm embracing that feeling     for a while because what comes next is I think MUCH  harder, marketing and selling them. 

So, contracts signed, what comes next, well I have to read through the manuscript and work with a specially assigned editor and bring this baby home.

No  more snippets or teasers until it's ready! Oh, and did I mention I have 2 further books to write, yep have written some vague outlines and will feel happier when I can submerge myself back into the story. I also plan to set up a web-site, so when it's ready I will let you know.  

Oh, also on a sideline, I am going to enter a first page competition for a WIP that I have. I love these and if you have something suitable send along to the link below.

                    http://sold.soyouthinkyoucanwrite.com/2014/06/harlequin-first-page-critiques/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Davies/1421409368089313?ref_type=bookmark

What happens after you submit?

When I started on that long road of writing, my biggest challenge was transferring the words from my head into the computer so that they made sense. I spent the next five years learning how to do it properly, changing the plot, adding characters, sub-plots, strengthen the world building, and learning how to edit, proofread, and go back after often harsh criticism and re-write.

I would hover at book signings, listening to authors talk about their books and how the stories were created and what inspired them as a way to re-inspire myself, even when at times I thought I should give up because I doubted I would ever be good enough.

 However, and I owe this to my mother who has been my greatest supporter and my ever loving husband without whom none of this would be possible, I did not give up and became more determined than ever to reach my goal of PUBLICATION.

After submitting my manuscript recently, I hope over the next few weeks to be able to share some very exciting and heart-stopping news, but before I do, I have taken a pause to consider what that next step really means.

 The next step is terrifying, challenging, and a whole new world of crazy!

For the longest time, I have been head bent and working tirelessly on getting Children of Annwn: The Promise, where it needs to be that I had not truly researched what is involved in the publication process?

          What do publishers actually do?

          Writing for me has always been a great joy, but it has not always been easy and now staring at what comes next, I wish I could simply carry on writing. Now, when you get your book published, there's a whole host of things to consider, like gaining  loyal followers, setting up a web-site, marketing your book, book signings, blog-hops, and finding ways to get your book out before your chosen audience. Am I ready for all of this????

I would like to thank all my followers for staying with me throughout the years and now more than ever, I need your support. Please, click on the links below and spread the word, thank you.

            https://twitter.com/jendaviesuk

 `https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Davies/1421409368089313

 http://www.forbes.com/sites/nickmorgan/2013/11/05/how-to-market-and-sell-your-book-in-five-steps/

Perfecting the query?

Perfecting the query is so damn hard!! I've written this brilliant story, well I believe so, and now I have to come up with a snappy query which seems impossibly hard! I have joined a forum called Agent Query. com
a great place to meet fellow writers and critique each others queries. Some comments and advice have been really helpful. Check out the link below.

agentqueryconnect.com/index.php?/forum/2-aq-connect-query-critiques/


                                               My  query for Children of Annwn:The Promise

Falling in love in the magical realm of Annwn comes with a price, and Mia Leronde is willing to pay by becoming human.  

Mia is a Guardian of Annwn, a protector of mankind, and a gifted seer. When her visions show dwindling pregnancies causing the end of the human race, she convinces Ryder, her love, that they must intervene or risk the same fate happening in Annwn. Mia uses an ancient law, The Promise, which tests the power of their love and magic to gain entry into the human world.

However, when the spell is cast to transform them into human teenagers they end up as babies, with their magic and memories locked away until the awakening.  Many human years pass, and now Mia is a seventeen-year-old frightened of the world and the visions she keeps secret. At night, she escapes into her dreams, which explode into reality in the shape of an obnoxious but drop-dead-gorgeous boy at school. His touch brings on the awakening causing memories to surge into her mind, unlocking her past and revealing her destiny.

Mia must put her fear aside, embrace her magic and love for Ryder, in order to fulfill her promise and save humanity.

CHILDREN OF ANNWN: THE PROMISE is a YA romantic fantasy. It’s a standalone novel with a series potential, and complete at 114,000 words.

Jennifer Davies is married with four very active boys and three sleepy cats. She can be found at  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Davies/1421409368089313
When she is not working hard at crafting her writing, she loves to work out her frustration at the gym.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

If you are able to give any constructive advice I would love to hear from you. 

Waiting!

The last couple of weeks have been a nightmare, not because of the book, well partly because of the book, but anyway finding my way through the fog of post completing the said book was a journey in itself.

I have carried this book for over four years, rewritten it completely at least once, submitted it to several agents and publishers and have spent the last four and half months re-writing as per suggestions made by a couple of publishers. So, when I finally exhausted my limit for re-reading the book and said 35 chapters, I literally felt I could collapse.

One extraordinary thing I have discovered, and I'm not sure if I like it is the fact I have become consumed by my writing, and as soon as it stopped I was like Oh My God so this is what REAL LIFE is about, and it takes some adjusting.

In writing I totally neglected my personal life!

If I am not writing, I am reading, and I am an introvert, who loves nothing more than having a blank afternoon to sit and read or write. I do enjoy going outside occasionally, really, but I often don't make the effort to do things socially that really every now and then I should. 

However, although I am taking a break from the reviewing the Children of Annwn, which I   actually read from beginning to end without changing anything, impossibly hard and still enjoyed it.    :)

I cannot sit idle, and I get impatient waiting for feedback from a couple of friends who are reading the entire book and giving feedback and hopefully checking for errors, which I know are  there because I saw them when I was reading through, but would not stop and change them as I would never stop changing stuff, you get the picture right?

So,  after a funky couple of weeks I decided to pick up and old story and I love it, I mean I really love it, and I am getting myself immersed once again in my new book, Capturing the Welsh Witch an adult paranormal romance. Yay!!!!

For this book, I am actually going to start a bible of sorts about the book you know notebooks on the characters, the setting, the history, and research I undertook for the story. I saw in another writer's blog how she started this for a book she was writing, and I thought it was a fab idea to get everything organized. I make notes and have endless scribbles on bits of paper but nothing quite so organized, so I am on it!!

Next week, I'm traveling home to Wales to visit my mum who turns 85, Happy Birthday mum, xxx

Travelling for me is always a source of inspiration and as Children of Annwn is set partly in Wales, I love going home because I always feel motivated to get writing...

Northern Irish Actor Jamie Dornan is my inspiration for Marcus Drayton in Capturing the last Welsh Witch. He's got that broody and serious look going on but underneath he is totally devoted to the one he loves and will give her everything to be by her side.

              Snippet from Capturing the Last Welsh Witch

 “Are you listening Drayton, I’ve had enough of your incompetence…” 

Marcus looked out his window, “Yes sir I understand.” He walked towards the bureau, open a drawer, and picked up a  picture of Ella, and stared hard at it.

   Where are you?

   He traced her heart-shaped face with his fingers. She looked young and innocent. After being knocked unconscious, Marcus had woken to discover the Professor battered to death. There was blood spatter everywhere. During his time as a Navy SEAL, he had seen plenty of harrowing scenes, but the thought that this petite and seemingly defenseless woman could bludgeon to death a man until he was unrecognizable was the reason he emptied the contents of his stomach. He simply could not believe that she was responsible. The last image Marcus remembered was of Ella crashing to the floor, after that bastard’s hand had walloped her. 

Have a great weekend doing what you love, and welcome all new members thanks for the support. x

Are you a writer?

      When was the moment you felt confident to call yourself a writer? Was it when you signed your first book deal or when you first saw your book in Borders? Or when you won a writing competition? I wonder when that light-bulb  moment was when you suddenly felt,  YES I'm a writer...

Up until that moment inside your head the word has been bashing back and forth as you settle to write a thousand words a day. And every time you hover at Starbucks for a skinny latte and peruse the crowd for inspiration for your next would be hero or heroine. You laugh to yourself thinking hm, maybe you're a writer. 

When you travel, the landscapes and scenery take, you to another world and ideas for stories and plots take over. You breathe in deep, shake your head and smile. I must be a writer, or else I've totally lost it!!! 

You may even whisper to your friends, who already believe you're very strange and a bit of a recluse that you write, but you blush profusely when they look at you wide-eyed, and you just know they are thinking "Hm and I'm the Queen of England."

I have been writing for four and a half years, boy has that flown. I have published one short story through Amazon called The Vineyards of Allegretti as a sort of dip your toe in the water kind of experiment! I completed my first full-length YA romantic fantasy last year and ever since I have been re-writing it based on the advice of a couple of interested editors. I have an adult romance a quarter of the way through and another that is barely a couple of chapters. When I am not writing, I am reading. I have become, obsessed and driven by the need to improve and strengthen my writing.

I did last summer after receiving some horrible comments about my writing from someone close to me, almost completely throw in the towel and give up. However, I have always been a survivor no matter what life throws at me. I allowed myself to wallow for a time. I think mainly because I was hurt and shocked, and then I picked myself up and carried on.  I realized that what no-one can take away from you is the desire or the absolute love of what you do. 

I don't write because it's a job, or because I have to, or because I'm paid to ( I wouldn't mind), but no it's almost like I have no choice, my fingers tap over the keys, and I guess it's like creating music I see what words I can put together to make a beautiful song. It takes time, incredible patience, devotion and complete determination not to let those that undermine, ridicule and don't believe in you get you down. And it's funny because if the purpose was to make me stop it has only served to fuel my desire to continue and prove them wrong. I believe the only way to succeed is to not give up.   

 The moment I believed I was a writer truly only happened recently, and it wasn't because I had achieved anything. I was on a short trip away up in New Hampshire, and when I walked into our rented cottage by the lake, I just knew I was a WRITER. As I walked in I was transported to heaven. The scene that greeted me couldn't have been more perfect. The view of the lake was brought into the cottage through a wall of glass windows. It was eerily quiet, secluded and right in front of the window was an antique writing table. It simply beckoned for me to sit and write and that's what I did. Bliss. Sitting there tapping one word in front of the other I had no qualms about who I was any longer...