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City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare Giveaway

Friday, June 15, 2012
Title: City of Lost Souls
Series: The Mortal Instruments (#5)
Publisher: McElderry Books
Release Date: May 8 2012

Synopsis
 The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.
No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own?
Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.
And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?
Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

The Dark Garden by Eden Bradley Cover Reveal

Thursday, June 14, 2012
The Dark Garden

Title: The Dark Garden
Author: Eden Bradley
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group

Goodreads Synopsis
A deliciously potent tale of one woman’s quest for self-discovery.
Rowan Cassidy likes to be in charge—especially in her personal life. As a mistress at Club PrivĂ©, the most exclusive bondage/S & M club on the West Coast, Rowan can live out her dominant fantasies safely, and with complete control—until the night Christian Thorne walks in. Self-confident and sophisticated, he’s a natural dominant if Rowan’s ever seen one. Yet she can’t stop thinking about him and imagining his touch.
Christian has returned home, hoping to break free from his dissatisfaction and malaise—and discovers the cure in Rowan. He’s dying to get his skilled hands on her and watch her surrender, to unlock the mystery of her that captivates him. Determined to be her master, he makes Rowan a daring proposition: give herself over to him for thirty days. Rowan finds Christian’s offer terrifying—and impossible to resist. But abandoning herself to Christian’s power might be more than she can handle…. Or it might be the realization of her true nature and the dark garden within her. There will be only one way to find out. And once the game has begun, there’s no turning back.
 
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The Realm Between Heaven and Hell by J.S. Turner Blog Tour (Excerpt)

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Title: The Realm Between Heave and Hell
Author: J. S. Turner
Publisher: Pylon Publishing
Published: December 4th 2011

Book Description:

On earth, life for Dawn Chitoe had been cruel. Although she was strong in her faith, her future looked grim. She found her blessings to be painfully short and too few in between. Until one day, a beautiful baby boy, Josiah, miraculously came into her world.
Just when Dawn felt her troubles had vanished, she found herself the victim of a brutal murder. With Josiah cradled in her arms, she embarked on an adventure through the realm between Heaven and Hell. Along the way she finds friends, love, and the truth about religion and faith.

Alpha Moon By Rachel Deagan Cover Reveal

Alpha Moon

Title: Alpha Moon
Author: Rachel Deagan
Series: Caged Moon (# 1.5)
Release Date: June 17th 2012



Goodreads Synopsis
Tormented by a repressed past, Liam is faced with the responsibility of raising, and taking care of a pack of younger, obnoxious ‘pups’. He’d do anything for them; guilt from prior mistakes, driving him to protect them at any cost. Until a strange human girl, bearing the scent of a wolf, throws his world into chaos. Instinct says she’s his mate. Logic says she’s a danger to the pack. Curiosity can’t keep him away.
Revisit the YA Paranormal Romance, Caged Moon, through an all new perspective.

I really enjoyed book one in this series. Rachel has a unique twist on werewolf legend that you do not want to miss. You can find my review for Caged Moon Book 1 here.


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Indie Author Blog Hop June 13 - 19

Wednesday, June 13, 2012
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When came across this blog hop I knew I wanted to participate because lately some of the books I have read have come from Indie Authors. And the stories were fantastic. So for this giveaway there will be multiple winners on my blog. I have had so many ah~may~zing authors donate books and swag. The Print Book and Swag will be US only due to shipping fees but e~books are international. Just fill out the Rafflecopter below.


Adrienne DeWolfe Blog Tour

Tuesday, June 12, 2012
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WANT TO WRITE POPULAR ROMANCE? Let Adrienne De Wolfe Tell Us How It Is Done.



Want to Write Popular Romance?

Here’s How to Start

By Adrienne deWolfe

I was reading a marketing statistic recently that said that 50,000 new Kindles are purchased every month by readers around the world.
That’s mind-boggling! To give you some perspective, in the old days (as recently as 2000,) a midlist paperback novel in the Romance genre may have had a print run of only 35,000 books – total. And Romance is the most popular category of adult commercial fiction in the world!
With the growing popularity of e-readers, the potential reading audience for your Romance novels is growing astronomically. The days of having your audience (and your income) limited by the costs of printing and shipping are rapidly fading into the past. That’s great news for writers!
But the emerging electronic market has also opened the door for a lot of poorly written commercial fiction to get formatted as Romance “e-books.” This trend has made many readers leery about investing money in a novel that was written by an unknown author.
If your goal is to write profitable Romance novels, you need to attract tens of thousands of readers, who are happily spreading the word about you and your novels via their iPhones or their social media networks. You also need these readers chomping at the bit to buy your next book.
So how do you start?

You write a good book.

Here are five tips that will get aspiring Romance authors headed in the “write” direction:

#1. Read Voraciously in Your Sub-Genre (“Niche Market”)
If you want to establish yourself as a Romance author, then you need to understand who your target readers are and why they read Romance novels.  You won't do yourself any good financially or career-wise if you write a novel that nobody wants to read. That's why I highly recommend that you start your research with the website of Romance Writers of America (RWAnational.org).
At last count, Romance had nine sub-genres (Contemporary, Historical, Paranormal, Inspirational, Regency, Romantic Suspense, Gothic, Ethnic, and Romantica.) Each of these sub-genres is rife with story-plot archetypes that your target readers have come to love and expect. To be successful, you need to be an expert in your sub-genre so you can give your readers the story plot elements that they want. Don’t assume that because you’ve read one Romantic Suspense (for instance), that you’ve read them all.
For market research purposes, read at least 30 books that were published by new names in your sub-category over the last 2-3 years. Reading books that bestsellers were writing 10 years ago isn’t going to help you understand market trends in the 21st Century.
You might also investigate my e-book series, The Secrets of Getting Your Romance Novel Published, which includes the following titles: How to Write Wildly Popular Romances (featuring the 14 bestselling archetypes in the genre); How to Write Romance Heroes with Sex Appeal; and How to Write Sensual Love Scenes.


#2. Take an in-depth course on novel structure and the foundations of fiction from a successful Romance author.
Romance is considered commercial fiction. The primary purpose of commercial fiction is to entertain the reader by evoking feelings. Endings are happy (the guy gets the girl.) A commercial writer’s style appeals to the common man; and thus, a broader range of readers.
However, most creative writing courses that are offered at American colleges teach how to write literary fiction. This is an important distinction, and must be understood. In literary fiction, the writer’s primary goal is to indulge in self-expression; consideration of the reader’s taste is secondary. Literary storylines are rife with angst, and endings are not often happy.
For all these reasons, you'll be happier learning how to write Romance from a successful Romance author, who understands the peculiarities of the genre, and therefore, will not misdirect you into writing a literary (non-commercial) novel.
That's why I developed my course, How to Write a Romance Novel That Sells, which is a spin-off of my popular course, How to Write Novels That Sell, which I taught for three years at a college in Texas.

#3. Set writing goals and stick to them.
Once you start writing, it’s easy to stop writing. At the beginning of your project, you’ll be riding the wave of your enthusiasm. Aspiring authors have lots of ideas and lots of good intentions -- until the cold stark reality sets in.
If you want to finish your story, you have to cough up fresh material, day after day. To make matters more challenging, you have to write your story in a coherent manner, filling it with characters and plot twists that your readers will find entertaining, or at least interesting.
These tasks aren’t easy, even for veteran published authors. That’s why so many people talk about writing books . . . but never actually finish one. To keep yourself on track, establish a daily writing routine and a daily word-count goal. Surround yourself with people who are supportive of the time and effort that you must expend to write your novel.

#4 Network with published Romance authors who are knowledgeable about the business of writing
Don’t wait until it’s time to select a cover artist or to hire a literary agent to start learning the business of writing! Start early. Seek out allies and mentors who have had success in the sub-category of Romance that you’re writing. Join forums. Attend conferences. Network with other writers in your hometown. Learn “publishing etiquette” before you submit your book proposal to any publishing professional.
If you’ve chosen the self-publishing route, stay on top of the market! Trends in electronic publishing change constantly. New technology explodes onto the market every few weeks. Book covers that were “adequate” to sell novels one year ago are not doing the job today. If you don’t have time to keep up with the ever-changing trends, hire someone who does, so your books – and your income – won’t lag behind.

#5 Attitude is everything: get yours “write”
Talking about writing isn’t writing. Reading about writing isn’t writing. A writer learns his craft by knuckling down and going to work.
My writing teacher, Romance novelist Rita Gallagher, once told me, “Books aren’t written. They’re re-written.” Even published authors have to revise their manuscripts. Trust me. I know. Writing a book is like raising kids: no two books will ever have the same problem.
Even when you think you’ve mastered every trick, you’ll find yourself challenged by some freaky new writing dilemma that you hadn’t anticipated. To fix that problem, you may have to re-write hundreds of pages. You may have to toss out characters that you absolutely loved for the good of the “greater work.”
Most daunting of all, a writer has to gird himself to face critics. You won’t go far in the writing business if you can’t cope with contrary opinions in a gracious manner – or worse, if you crumble like a soda cracker when someone challenges your ideas.
Writing Romance novels isn’t for the faint-hearted. You need a powerful determination to succeed. Persistence, humility, and a hunger for self-improvement will keep you on the right track.
But the most important ingredient to your success will be the courage to write every day. Ignore the nay-sayers, and stay focused on your dream.
In the words of Irwin Shaw, “If you’re a real writer, you’ll write no matter what.”

About Adrienne deWolfe     

                                 AdriennedeWolfe
Adrienne deWolfe’s five historical Romance novels have earned 9 writing awards, including "The Best Historical Romance of the Year." Through August, Adrienne is offering various raffles to celebrate the release of her new ebook series, The Secrets to Getting Your Romance Novel Published, which includes How to Write Sensual Love Scenes.
 
 
Look for the books on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. (Or purchase the pdfs from Adrienne’s website, WritingNovelsThatSell.com.)
 
You can also follow Adrienne on Twitter, Google+, and Facebook
WritingNovelsThatSell.comhttp://WritingNovelsThatSell.com
How to Write Wildly Popular Romances (ebook page w/ trailer; launched in May) http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/how-to-write-wildly-popular-romances/
How to Write Romance Heroes with Sex Appeal (ebook launching in June) http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/how-to-write-heroes-with-sex-appeal/
The Secrets to Getting Your Romance Novel Published (eSeries): http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/the-secrets-to-getting-your-romance-published/
novel writing workshops and courses online:  http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/how-to-write-novels-that-sell-fiction-writing-course/
in-depth course on novel structure and the foundations of fiction: http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/how-to-write-novels-that-sell-fiction-writing-course/
book writing coach / story critiques:  http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/story-critiques-private-coaching-for-how-to-write-a-novel/
How to Write a Romance Novel That Sells (course) http://writingnovelsthatsell.com/how-to-write-a-romance-novel-that-sells/
Twitter:  http://Twitter.com/AdriennedeWolfe
Facebook:  http://Facebook.com/Writing.Novels
Google+  https://plus.google.com/109088666107201832076/posts


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Dirty Little Secret #4

Thursday, June 7, 2012



Dirty Little Secret is a weekly meme hosted by us at Under the Covers. Every Thursday we get to know other bloggers and our readers more intimately by asking them a question hoping to reveal their dirty little secrets. We hope that you will all join us!

To participate in the meme all you need to do is:

1. Be a follower of Under the Covers.
2. Create a post in your blog taking the meme image (code above) and copy instructions. 
3. Answer the question we propose! This can be done in any way you like, post a video, write a post etc.
4. Then add your link below.

Non-bloggers: We want to hear from you as well!!! Let us know your answer in the comments! 

We hope you join us and let us know your Dirty Little Secrets!

This week's question: 
Share your experiences with blogging! 

List TWO "Don't" and one "Do" when it comes to blogging and reviewing.


Olive: I haven't been blogging and reviewing long. I am but a mere co-blogger, but I have been doing websites for a LONG time and I guess I can draw from that experience. M 

Don't:

 bully anyone no matter what. You may not like what someone posts, writes or does, but that is not a reason to say bad things about them on their blogs or websites. If you have something to address with someone, please send them a message. Don't paint their webspace with juvenile things.

Don't act like you are better than everyone. Just because you have 1 million followers does not make you a better person. Remember you were a little guy once too.

DO: 

pay it forward. If someone asks you for help; no matter what help them. Even if you don't want to. You may make a friend out of it. Questions are real easy to answer. So do it!