Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Cover Reveal: The Snake Pit - Jr High Can Be Torture, by Donna Dillon


The Snake Pit: Jr High Can be Torture is an important piece of work because of its content and subject matter. It’s not an easy, fun read, but is a book that every student, teacher and child advocate should read. Donna is very passionate to do what she can to stop bullying in the school system and MKSP has joined her in her quest. 


Donna Dillon published her first book in October 2010. When Master Koda Select Publishing approached her with a publishing contract, she took the opportunity in hopes to expand her reach and build her brand.


Together, Donna and Master Koda Select Publishing will be re-releasing her first novel today with updated editing and a fresh new cover.





The Snake Pit: Jr. High can be Torture Synopsis:


Cinda doesn't look like other twelve-year-old girls. A facial defect, and the surgery to correct it has left her face scarred and disfigured. When she walks into Hargrove Junior High for the first time, Cinda knows the other kids won't see how smart she is, or what a good friend she could be. The other kids will see her as a monster, and her life will be torture.


The school cafeteria, or The Snake Pit, as the kids call it, is the prime location for bullying. One pretty girl in particular takes an instant dislike to Cinda. Day after day she is pushed, tripped, and laughed at. Not all the other kids bully her, but only one tries to help.


Charlene Carsten is Cinda's only friend. She tries to stop the bullying, but the other kids won't listen. She tries to tell the Principal, but he only sees what he wants to. She tries to tell the teachers, but they all say the same thing, “kids will be kids.”


When Cinda falls victim to a vicious prank at a school dance, it sets off a series of events that will change the lives of everyone involved.



Donna, why did you write this book?


Cinda, the character in my book, The Snake Pit, was born with a cleft palate, and so was I. The things that happen in the book are fiction, but how she felt was exactly how I felt growing up. Being bullied for something you can't possibly help, or change, is horrible. I chose to turn it into something positive, but many bullied children do not. I'm 47 y ears old now. I can still hear the bullies voice in my head. But, the thing I remember the most, the thing that bothers me the most: the silence from those who just stood by and let it happen, and did nothing to stop it. That is why I wrote this book.




Five things people might not know about Donna

 

1. I can ride a unicycle.

2. I can write as fast backwards as I can forward.

3. I once played Miss Mona is a stage production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

4. I can't breathe through my nose and I have never had a sense of smell. I can taste, though, don't ask me why, it's a mystery.

5. When I was 22 I was flown out to Hollywood and made a make-up commercial for Victoria Jackson cosmetics that you can still catch on TV late at night. I also met Johnny Depp and had my picture taken with Heavy D on that same trip.




Author Bio:


Hello everyone! I am Donna Dillon: Author, Illustrator, and M&M connoisseur. I am the author of 5 and 1/4 books thus far. I have been writing in the young adult genre with The Snake Pit and Return to the Snake Pit which both deal with bullying in the public schools, and the children's genre with Why Did It Have to Rain Today? and My Special Christmas Child. My new book is a leap into the thriller/suspense genre so I'm anxious to finish and see how that goes.

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Silken Secrets, by Laci Paige

Silken Secrets, by Laci Paige (Silken Edge #4)

*Erotic Romance/ BDSM (9/1/14)
Amazon purchase link for your country:
http://myBook.to/SilkenSecrets

Can the bonds formed between high school friends survive separation and a taste for darker desires?

Devon and Troy were good friends in high school and fellow musicians, a bond that remained even after Devon’s stint in the Army. Their relationship with their close friend Cindy ended abruptly, despite the firsts that she shared with Troy and the obvious affection she had for Devon.

The guys have changed, and now their casual garage band is the successful group known as Sinful Souls. When Cindy finally meets them again, the guys discover that Cindy has also changed, and the only man she is going to accept into her life and her bed will have to explore the kinkier aspects of sex that she craves. Will either man be willing to share in her lifestyle or is what they had only a fond memory?
Cover Art by Mina Carter
Edited by ELF

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Marketing Sucks

Having to market my own books really sucks! Just thought I'd throw that out there, but those of you who market yourselves already know this. I go through either one extreme or another. I either promo a ton (which I'm sure my followers get sick of me during this time), or I don't promo at all.

If I'm writing I don't promo, if I'm not writing I promo. Simple as that, right?

Not really. Sometimes I'm not writing because I'm marketing. It's not fair, I begin to resent the fact that I have to do this, what seems like a chore, and having it take away from my creative time. But it's a must to survive in this world. My stats prove it to me. Every. Single. Time. When I don't promote my sales drop. I market myself, they rise. Simple as that.

During the month of August, I participated in the Sizzlin' Summer Book Bash thrown by MKSP, and part of the event was to discount my books. I planned one month in advance. Contacted all the promo sites that would take erotic romance and asked them to run my ad on the dates of the Book Bash. I contacted blogs, and blogged myself about the event, and discounted prices. I set up a schedule on HootSuite to tweet about the event and the sales. I asked people to spread the word. I did what I could, and what I knew how to do. It was a lot of work, very time consuming, but I sucked it up and made the best of it.

Know what? August was my best month EVER in sales (except when I gave my books away for free), but my current WIP's took a serious hit for it. Damned if I do, damned if I don't.

What are some of the least time consuming ways you've found to market/promote yourself?

*****

Oh wait, while I have you, let me promo myself...
 Laci Paige on Amazon


Bio:
Above all else, Laci enjoys spending time with her family. She and her husband support their children on the soccer pitch and off. Laci enjoys the outdoors, and of course reading and writing (and chocolate). Their family lives in Hampton Roads.






Places on the internet you can find Laci:









Friday, August 8, 2014

Silken Edge Series .99 Cent Sale

All three books that have been released in the Silken Edge series so far are on sale for .99 cents until 8/15/14.

Just because.

I thought I’d have a little summer sale for readers. First it was going to be only the first book reduced, but then I have the fourth book in edits now, and have offered the first one on sale many times, but never the second or third. So in conjunction with the  Sizzlin' Summer Book Bash
with Master Koda Select Publishing. I lowered all three of them.

I don’t have a book published with Master Koda, but I spend a lot of time with the authors there, so they invited me to come hang out for their little summer bash. You should stop by 8/8/14 - 8/9/14 there will be prizes to win! I'll be hanging out on the event page on Saturday 8/9/14 at 6pm PST/9pm EST come visit and keep me company!


Here are some mini blurbs for the three books on sale:

The Silken Edge #1

After her longtime boyfriend dumps her, Kristy craves a change in her life. Her best friend, Sherry, is into the BDSM scene, and on a whim and a bet, Kristy finds herself in the playroom at an exclusive club. For the past couple of years, Jake quietly watched Kristy in his gym. He doesn't care that she's older than him; he wants her. Can vanilla Kristy and kinky Jake find a future together?

 

 

Silken Desires #2

Friends since childhood and lovers as adults, Roxi leaves Jonathan without explanation. He assumes it's due to his changing lifestyle; venturing deep into the world of BDSM, but she has a deeper secret that has her running away.

 

 

 

Silken Kisses #3

It takes friends of Steven and Mona's to force them to face their issues, and not in the way they had thought. Will they be able to adapt or is the relationship doomed? Maybe it will take someone else to show them what they’re missing.

 

 

 

Silken Secrets #4

Coming soon!
Cindy and Troy, two childhood best friends turned lovers lose touch for a few years and are reunited at a rock concert. Troy finds out about Cindy’s enjoyment of impact play and it throws him, men aren’t supposed to do that to women, at least that’s how he was raised. Could they be more than friends with those missing years and her new kink hanging over their heads?







Amazon links:


Smashword links:



Bio

More than anything Laci enjoys spending time with her family. She and her husband support their children on the soccer pitch and off. Laci enjoys the outdoors, travel, and of course reading and writing (and chocolate). Their family lives in Hampton Roads, Virginia where her adult muse wakes up late at night.
Places on the internet you can find Laci:





Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Lunatic Luau, and Rick DeJesus of Adelita's Way

For my son's 14th birthday present, I got tickets for the whole family to go to the local Lunatic Luau in Virginia Beach. Which actually fell on my husbands birthday, a two-for-one deal, and that worked out just fine with me.

What is the Luau all you ask? Well, I had no earthly idea. I was skeptical and not sure I'd enjoy myself, but I love my family and so off we went. There were twelve bands on two different stages playing one after another from 3pm-10pm. Here's the line-up from that day. I pictured a bunch of metal heads, strange people, drunkenness, and smoking. And that's exactly what was there, boy I had  field day people watching. I absolutely loved that no matter the person (older in khaki's and a polo shirt, or youth in leather) everyone was their own person, comfortable being in a hodgepodge of a crowd, and comfortable in their own shoes. Just like any other concert I've been to - music brings people together.

Adelita's Way
Before we arrived I had a mental list of what bands I didn't want to see, and so I set off to watch the others. Out of all of them, it surprised me that I liked what I heard, and really enjoyed myself that night. One of my favorites was Adelita's Way.

I contacted the bands founder/vocalist/song writer, Rick DeJesus after the Luau, and asked him for the set list for that night, because I wanted to buy some of the songs. He's a super nice, and down to earth. So I asked him for a brief interview, and being the cool guy that he is, he said yes.

Before we get to that though, I need to say I've known the Adelita's Way song, Alive for years, and just never knew it was them. But now I know...



Interview with Rick DeJesus:

Q. Is there a book that you’ve read that you can’t forget? Why?
A. Game of Thrones, it's pretty hard to forget because it's absolutely amazing.


Q. I know a busy man like yourself doesn’t have a whole lot of time to read nowadays while on tour, but if you had time to read what kind of books would interest you?
A.I think I'm gonna read Heaven next, my wife is reading it now, and I'm very interested in it.

Q. You write songs, I write books. We write. I’ve read interviews where you say inspiration for the songs you write comes from everywhere. It’s the same for me writing books, but when I write I need complete silence, no distractions, I even dim the lights, and have a drink on hand with a snack nearby. Is there anything specific you need while writing a song/album?
A. I just need to be able to focus, the original idea always comes at odd times, when I'm running, or cooking, I take that idea then I focus and help it become a reality.

Q. When I write I see the scene, I see people, I see the setting…What is it that you see when writing? Do you actually see a scene playing out in your head?
A. Of course, I see every person who feels the way I feel, it's almost like I'm connecting with them right there and they don't know it.


Q. Do you think of the words first, and then the tune, a chord, or a riffOr the other way around; the sound first with the words to be filled in later?
A. I start a lot of songs off with lyrics first and the song built around that.

Q. Is every single song you’ve written based on or inspired by something that has happened to you or someone close to you? 
A. Every song written is inspired by life, through my eyes, or I can feel the pain of others and tap into it.

Q. What do you love most about your job? And with the good comes the bad, what do you like the least?
A. I just love every aspect of music, it's good for the soul. The music business is the worst business I have ever seen, but the connection to music is so strong, that artists just deal with all of the downside.

Choose only one from each with no explanation:
Cats or Dogs- dogs
Red or Black- black
Hot or Cold- hot
Coffee or Tea- tea 
Vanilla or Chocolate- chocolate 
Top or Bottom- top

Share two things that the average person doesn’t know about you:
1 I was a star baseball player. 
2 I moved to Vegas when I was 19 years old and had my own Las Vegas show.


**I'd like to thank Rick for taking the time to answer some questions for my blog, and to remind him he still owes me a set list :) But that's okay because I have it all figured out now.

If you'd like to see if Adelita's Way is in your neighborhood, check out their events page, or "like" them on Facebook. If you do, say hello, and tell them Laci sent you.

Here's their latest video, if you enjoy the song stop by iTunes and buy it.

Monday, May 26, 2014

Is It Summer Yet? Blog Hop

I'm late in posting this (only by a couple of hours)! It's because I've
My son rocking out at the campfire.
started on "summer". Not really, but we are away camping for the weekend and I was so stoked to get out of the house that I forgot to get my blog set up and ready.

This blog hop is hosted by Julie's Book Review.

Good thing the Wifi is operational at the campground where we are staying. It was crappy all weekend, but tonight it's good to go, but only one hour free! Gotta type faster....

One lucky commenter will receive an eCopy of any one of my stories, here is my Amazon page with the list:


Winner can choose what format they'd like for the story they chose.

Comment on my blog and let me know what you did for Memorial Day, and leave your email address so I can contact you if you are the winner. I will be using random.org to choose the winner!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Happy summer days ahead to you all :) And be sure to visit all the other blogs on the hop...



Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Spotlight - One Night with the Groom, by Sara Daniel



New Release Spotlight – One Night with the Groom
By Sara Daniel

One Night with the Bridal Party is a subseries of Decadent Publishing’s popular 1Night Stand line. One Night With the Bride and One Night With the Bridesmaid share the same opening scene where the bride’s mother presents each woman with a one-night stand a week before the wedding.

Meanwhile, the poor jilted groom has been twisting in the wind since his bride left him a year before. Fear not! He’s about to meet up with the woman from his past who still holds his heart captive, despite him spending fifteen years trying to forget her.

One Night With the Groom
As if trying to save the family farm and pay her mother’s medical bills isn’t enough struggle, Luciana Cortez discovers her brother has used the last of the mortgage money to buy her a one night stand. Even if she wasn’t appalled at the prospect, her farm chores leave her too exhausted for sex. The silver lining: she’s also too busy to think about the man who’d once pledged to marry her then abandoned her.

Working on an important business deal, CEO Blake Wellington doesn’t think twice when he steps out of the limousine…until the car leaves. Instead of the business he needs to attend to, he’s on the doorstep of the farm where his past love Luciana lives. Without cell phone service or transportation, he must rely on her for help, a move that threatens to awaken his long-dead emotions.

As they attempt to gain closure over the ache and secrets of their past, neither are prepared for the onslaught of emotions that jeopardize everything they’ve worked their whole lives for. When the night is over, they must heed their responsibilities and go their separate ways, even if it means a lifetime of heartbreak.

EXCERPT:
“Blake.” Her heart bled as if she’d stabbed it with a pitchfork. She dropped her hand from her stomach to her side. “What are you doing here?”

“I haven’t the foggiest idea.” His lips curved in a crooked smile.

Aching to wrap her arms around him, to kiss his sexy mouth, to soak in his presence while grinning at him like a fool, she took a step back. She might not be hallucinating, but his sudden appearance had the power to drive her over the edge of insanity and longing. Her heel caught on the threshold at the opening of the barn, and she stumbled.

He reached for her, but she steadied herself on the doorframe, holding out her other palm to ward him away. She couldn’t handle seeing him, let alone skin-on-skin contact.

“Give me a minute,” she begged. “I’m kind of shocked to see you.” Kind of, ha. Completely would have been an understatement.

His smile faded. “Good shocked or bad shocked?”

“I don’t know yet.” The dead tree beside the barn creaked in the wind. She’d let her fear over it falling on the barn or, worse, in the other direction keep her from cutting it down, but the nasty gusts made her regret the decision.

“Keep me posted on which way it goes. I’m already skittish about getting shot at.”

“You won’t be unless you touch me, in which case I’ll shoot you myself.”

“Fair enough.” He pocketed his hands and stepped back.

The distance helped. So did the fact he didn’t call her bluff. Luciana’s limbs shook too much to pick up any weapon. At one time, she’d been furious with him for abandoning her when she’d needed him most. Although he’d bowed to her parents’ pressure and hadn’t fought to save their future together, her emotions had faded to regret and resignation.

“So, you decided to drop in after fifteen years without a word, and you don’t have a clue why?” Okay, maybe her anger hadn’t faded.

“I didn’t come to see you.”

“Ouch. Thanks for being straight with me, rather than sparing my ego. I think.”

He winced. “I didn’t mean an insult. I’m supposed to be in Des Moines to consider a potential property for my company to add to their hotel portfolio. But the limo took me here instead and then left me.”

Limo. Hotel portfolio. If he hadn’t been out of her league before, he’d traveled far beyond her social realm. “So, are you one of those ‘if I build it, they will come’ visionaries?”

“No, I’m a market-feasibility, make-sure-every-aspect-is-viable-before-I-sink-a-penny-into-it type of executive. I don’t have a reason that makes any sense for why I showed up here, and my cell phone isn’t getting reception. If I could borrow your landline to make some calls, I’ll get out of your hair as soon as possible.”

He hadn’t come to see her. He’d arrived by mistake and wanted to get far away without further ado. Once upon a time, they’d shared a rare, special love. She remembered it and regretted losing it, even if he didn’t.





Sara Daniel started writing One Night with the Bride and couldn’t stop. So, she wrote One Night with the Bridesmaid next.  Her latest release is One Night with the Groom. She’ll let you guess what the next title in the One Night With the Bridal Party series will be! Connect with her online at:
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