Fave Friday & Funnies...

Hooray for Friday! Woot! Woot!

Gaming night! Er... um, Friday faves and funnies, uh day. Yeah, that's it. And NO, I won't be gaming, I'll be um, revising. Yes, absolutely.

Before I forget, there is also this going on, Sunday:

Ahem.

Hope you all had a good week. Mine was part taking it easy and part running around trying to get paper work done.

And downloading Scrivener. Yes, I gave in and stopped trying to become part of the soil with the other dinosaurs.


So Scrivener is becoming a fave of mine rather quickly. I have to use it sparingly until I can afford to pay for the full program.

I also have been doing some reading. I read this:





I have to say I loved it. I'll do a review of it later. I got it while it was free, but you can get it for your Kindle for $1.49. That's like, what, a cup of coffee? Make your coffee at home, buy the short story.

I'm also loving GIMP these days and learning how to do stuff with it. I'm looking at making some animation so, yeah, watch out. I might get all 'hi-tech' on ya. Uh huh. Pfft.

Sorry, I'm also a little loopy. I get goofy (er) when I get sleepy. And sleep and I have not been on speaking terms the past couple of days. Tell the Sandman he's fat, just once, I dare you. Won't sleep for days...

All right! On to the funnies you so patiently wait for. Either that or you just bypass my gibbering mess and go right for 'em. Who can blame you? It's Friday, you wanna have a laugh.

Ninja kittehs! Attack! Have a great weekend everyone! What are your plans?

Author Interview: Lyn Croft...

1. Please tell us a little known fact about you:

I am scared to death of Hannibal Lector. I literally get goose bumps and freak out when
people imitate his voice. Don’t ask me why I can handle all the horror I watch, but not
Anthony Hopkins. It baffles even me…

2. What was your favorite genre to read growing up? Is this the genre you currently write in?

My favorite genre growing up was horror, and still is. When all the other little girls were
reading “The Babysitters Club”, I was reading Stephen King. My current book, “Blood and
Lilies ~ Bloodlines is Sci-Fi Fantasy, but I do write some horror here and there.

3. What inspires you to write?

My muse smacking me upside the back of my head. Honestly, authors and their books
inspire me. I love reading the journeys they take us on. There is just something magical
about being able to create a whole other world, and then share it with others so that they can
experience it as well.

4. What sort of atmosphere do you need to write?

It depends on my mood, and the weather. During spring and summer, you’ll find me on the
patio, hacking away on my laptop. When it’s cold, I’m hiding in my home office with the
space heater and a cup of hot tea.

5. What is your all time favorite book?

I have to say this one goes to “Book of the Damned”, by D.A. Fowler. That book had me
scared to read it and I loved it! It’s about these people that are cursed to die horrible deaths
when they read the book – Book of the Damned. It gets you feeling like you’ll be cursed
and damned just for reading about reading it. And what happens to the characters in the
book…Great stuff!

6. Who is your all time favorite character that is not your own.

Buffy Summers, AKA, the Vampire Slayer. I know, I’m queen nerd in my town, and I’m
proud of it. Yes, I have the DVD collection, the comic’s, video games, and have around 30
books based off the TV series. Joss Whedon created a brilliant character with her, as well as
many others. She is my all time fave though.

7. Who is your favorite character of your own creation?

Oh goodness. If I tell you, the rest of my characters might start yelling at me. They’re
already giving me dirty looks; waiting for me to choose which one. Maybe I shouldn’t make
the twin Vamps jealous right now. Celeste and Estelle aren’t very happy with me after what
I did to them in the book.

8. When did you decide to become a writer?

In high school. I always had friends and teachers reading my work. They all said I had a
gift, and that I needed to keep writing. I stuck with poetry mostly, and a few short stories
here and there. It was only about five years ago that I decided to try my hand at novels.

9. Where are you from?

Born and raised in Southern California.

10. Why do you write?

I can’t really explain it, I just need to. I get a rush when I create a story and my characters
come to life. The need to sit and fill pages with stories is overwhelming at times. I couldn’t
function otherwise.

11. What’s the best piece of writing advice you have ever been given?

To just write. No rules, no guidelines, and no fears. Just let the words and creativity flow. It
gives me freedom to worry about the fine tuning of everything later, and lets my characters
tell me where they want to go.

12. Has your writing ever been compared to another, famous author? If so, who?

Actually, yes! I had a friend just tell me I’m the next Christine Feehan. I was so flattered. I
can only hope to be as well recognized as well as her someday.

13. And last, but not least, something really random:
~ Real books or eReader?

It will always be real books. I own a kindle, and enjoy it, but there is something about holding a
book in my hand, or walking into a book store to browse the isles for hours. Those can never be
replaced with an eReader. I’m just old school that way.

Links:
http://www.hellfirepublishing.com/
https://www.facebook.com/lyn.croft.3
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Blood-and-Lilies-Bloodlines/147848071955494?ref=hl
Twitter: @lyncroft27

Spread The Word & Win!...

I am blessed to have lots and lots of author friends. I'm especially thankful that every book donated to my giveaway is from a fellow Word Weaver! So many, many thanks to Jenna Miller, Anita Dawn Stewart, Mary McDonald, Walki Tinkanesh and Hydra Star! Let's kick off this awesome week, shall we?

Spreading the word about a book is one of THE BEST advertisements. Reviews rank right up there and I've gotten a couple of good ones so far! So what now? Well, I'm glad you asked... three lucky people will win a free ebook copy of my book, Adversarius! But that's not all! You'll also get to choose from these fabulous books as well from some amazing authors. Check out the list, then we'll get to to the rules.

Ceremony of Chaos by Jennifer L. Miller ~ Ceremony of Chaos features 12 Short Stories from the twisted mind of Jennifer L. Miller. Within the pages you will find supernatural and real world horrors sure to keep you up at night. With one new tale of terror, Black Widow, Ceremony of Chaos also contains short stories penned for Darkened Horizons Magazine, such as The Shewolf and Slither, as well as Black Water City from the Horror Anthology Concrete Blood: Dark Tales of the City. Short Stories that appeared in several Word Weavers Anthologies also are included in this collection.


Outsider by W. Freedreamer Tinkanesh ~
Rooted in the music scene of London, UK, and inspired by a life-long passion for music and a peculiar interest in private dark sides, 'Outsider' is a study of human emotions, disturbed by vampires and punctuated with rock music. Sid is a medicated musician who has lost her rhythm, but strangely is finding her voice as a writer.For Joy, the bored blood-drinker, it might have started when a powerful vampire turned her into a creature of the night at the dawn of the 20th century. Is everything as it seems? Is everyone as they appear? With offbeat sense of humour and twisted realism, the author guides you down a trail of bodies (alive, dead and undead) until the final showdown.

 
 No One Makes It Out Alive by Hydra M. Star ~
"No One Makes It out Alive: and end of the world anthology" is in short a collection of writings about the end of the world. The genres and subject matter of these stories stretches from zombies to nuclear war and from comedy to erotica, with mostly everything else covered in-between. This anthology was edited by writer, columnist, book reviewer, and magazine owner Hydra M. Star. Cover art provided by Dave Lipscomb. Foreword by Garth von Buchholz. Includes stories from; Andrea Dean van Scoyoc, Joseph DeRepentigny, Josephine Seven, Ken Knight, Larry Lefkowitz, Magan Rodriguez, Tibbie X, and W. Freedreamer Tinkanesh.


Black Pyramid by Anita Dawn Stewart ~
A beautiful land enriched with a history of mythical Gods and power hungry pharaohs. There is ONE who walks among us. He knows the truth of the Ancient Egyptians....   Siaak hides the reality of an era long erased from the temples and obelisks in order to keep the world safe. For there lurks an evil waiting to regain control of Egypt and rule the entire world!   Archeologist, Melissa Ambers, can't resist the offer to excavate a newly discovered pyramid. Only this one isn’t just any pyramid. It’s the mysterious, Black Pyramid! She finds out there's more to the stone monument than meets the eye. And within hours of stepping inside the dark tomb, Melissa's on the war path with Siaak. An ancient being who will stop at nothing to keep the leader of the BloodSeekers imprisoned. Even if it means killing Melissa and all who seek the knowledge of, the Ancient Breeds!

No Good Deed by M. P. McDonald ~ Mark Taylor discovers first hand that no good deed goes unpunished when the old camera he found during a freelance job in an Afghanistan bazaar gives him more than great photos. It triggers dreams of disasters. Tragedies that happen exactly as he envisions them. He learns that not only can he see the future, he can change it. Then the unthinkable happened and everyone ignored his frantic warnings. Thousands die. Suddenly, the Feds are pounding on his door and the name they have for Taylor isn't urban hero. It's enemy combatant. And, it means they can do anything they want to him. Anything at all.


On December 17th, I will choose three winners.

First place will win: A copy of Adversarius PLUS three other books of your choice from the books shown here.

Second and Third place will win: A copy of Adversarius PLUS two other books, again, your choice.

Now here is how you can win. Since this is all about Spreading the Word, take a look at the list of how to gain entries: 


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Interview With Edward McKeown...

Hey everyone! I'd like you all to give a hearty hello to Edward McKeown, author of 'Was Once A Hero', which I reviewed last week. You can find that review here.

Edward is a fellow author over at Hellfire Publishing and it was a great pleasure to read his book, review it and now interview him. So without further ado:

Mel: What is your favorite genre? Is it also the genre you write in?


Edward: Yes SF is my favorite genre and in it I like the broad star-spanning far future stories of Andre Norton, CJ Cherryh, and Larry Niven. I am less fond of cyberpunk or near future or dystiopia stories. I want starships and aliens

Mel:How much research goes into writing a Sci-Fi story?
 
Edward: As you would imagine it is highly variable. I tend to take as few liberties with the laws of pyshics as I can. My stories are character centric and less concerned with the technology. While I do not want to be busted by “mythbusters” I have an educated layman’s version of the sciences and do the best I can. Sometime I get lucky when I got bonked with the difference between the rotation interval of a pulsar and my story needs of my work, the great Catherine Asaro (scientist and SF writer married to a rocket scientist) told me to use a Preon Star because as she put it, “No one knows how those things work.”

(I wouldn't want to get busted by 'mythbusters' either!)


Mel: How long have you been writing? 

Edward: On a serious basis about 10 years.

Mel: What made you start writing? 

Edward: I was finding it hard to find the sort of book that I liked and one day I was reading a work by a major author (and torture will not get the name out of me) who I normally like and I felt it was a bit of a dog. I thought maybe I could do as well. Fortunately I did not know how hard it would actually be….

(I hear you. But it is a labor of love.)

Mel: Do you read in the same genre you write? 

Edward: Yes, though less now as I am afraid of being overly influenced which is kind of silly as there is nothing new under the sun. I draw most of my influence from anime, and actual history books I read.

(No, that's not silly. I'm afraid to read fantasy sometimes as I dread finding a story too similar to my own.)

Mel: What part of the writing process is your favorite? (Plot development, character creation, etc.) 

Edward: My process is a spontaneously creative one. I preplan nothing, I sit down and I write, it pours out of me like wine from a bottle. So I don’t section my work or think of that way. My characters tell me what happens and I write it down.

Mel: Do you have a routine you do after completing a book?
 
Edward: Yeah I work like heck trying to promote the book and get the word around. 

Mel: And now for something totally random: What would you ask for as a last meal if you were on death row?

Edward: Something that would take a really long time to eat, maybe a Scottish dish as they take a long time to choke down and digest…

Well maybe a Hawiian Pizza? 

Thanks for all you do Mel.


Mel: You are most welcome, Edward! And all I can think of now is Haggis... lol! Have a great week everyone.

Book Review: 'Was Once A Hero' by Edward McKeown...

Title: Was Once A Hero

Author: Edward McKeown

Publisher: Hellfire Publishing, Inc.

Pages: 356 (Print), File size: 431 kb

ASIN: B006UMTBY8

Purchase: Amazon

Summary from Amazon:

Reluctant privateer Robert Fenaday searches the stars for his lost love, Lisa, a naval intelligence officer whose ship disappeared near the end of the Conchirri War . He’s joined by the genetically engineered assassin, Shasti Rainhell, whose cold perfection masks her dark past. Both are blackmailed by government spymaster, Mandela, into a suicidal mission to the doomed planet Enshar. Leading a team of scientists and soldiers, they must unravel the mystery of that planet’s death before an ancient force reaches out to claim their lives.

My Thoughts:

Sometimes it is difficult for me to get into a science fiction story. Some of the terminology used can be quite confusing. Not this time around, though. It was an easy read for someone like me who isn't a hard core sci-fi fan.
Robert Fenaday's loss of his wife is heartbreaking and his search for her seems fruitless. Now, with the Conchirri War over, funding his search becomes a bit of a problem. Enter the little Enshari who is about to change all of that. Granted, the government wants to see Fenaday go on this mission ... and not come back, but this isn't why Fenaday chooses to accept.
Shasti Rainhell is definitely not a woman you want to mess with. She lives up to her surname in lots of ways. Always by Fenaday's side, she isn't about to let him go to the Enshar planet without her.
This book contains a myriad of aliens and robots, cyborgs and intrigue. Enshar was attacked by an unseen force and McKeown keeps you guessing until the end as to what exactly wiped out almost an entire species and then some. Very well written, great plot and strong characters. I would definitely read more from this author.

My Rating:

5 out of 5 skull and crossbones

Sweet Treat, Sneak Peek!...

All right! I'm at the point where I can share snippets of my book with you all until it is released. And possibly even after to keep up interest, of course.

So I thought, hmm... what could I do to make this a bit more interesting? Well, since Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas are creeping up on us fast—Cookies!

I'm going to share a cookie recipe and a snippet. So you can make a sweet treat after I give you a sneak peek at my book.

Sound fair? All right, then, here we go!

I'm going to start with this recipe I found in the Better Homes and Gardens Ultimake Cookies and Bars magazine. I have yet to find another special interest issue like it.

This cookie fits Kayta. (Yes, I paired up the cookie with the character...) I have yet to make these, but they are on my cookie list this year.

~Chai Moons~

1 Cup softened butter     1 Cup packed brown sugar

1 Tablespoon leaf chai tea, finely ground     1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon baking soda     1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 Cups all purpose flour     Butter frosting      Demerara sugar

In large mixing bowl, beat butter with electric mixer 30 seconds. Add in all ingredients except flour, blend well. Slowly add in flour, mix well. Divide dough in half and chill for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll one half of dough until 1/4 inch thick. Using a 3 inch crescent shaped cutter, cut out dough. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and backe 8-10 minutes. Frost cooled cookies with butter frosting and sprinkle with Demerara sugar.

~Kayta~ 

Kayta sat up, sweat drenched her skin and she clutched at the sheet that covered her. She couldn't breathe, her throat constricted. After a moment, she gasped, filling her lungs with air, tears streaming down her cheeks. She looked around frantically, trying to get her bearings.

“Easy now,” someone moved to sit beside her and held her gently by the shoulders.

“Wh-where am I?” she whispered.

“Shh, do nae speak. Try tae be quiet,” the voice was low, the accent odd to her ears. Kayta pulled up the sheet to her chin and looked around. Beds lined the walls on either side, and lanterns were lit and turned low. In the dim light, she could see the face of the person who sat beside her, trying to soothe her.

“Who are you?” she whispered again. The man chuckled, his long black hair hung loose around his shoulders. There were bruises on his face, a greenish tinge indicating that they were healing as well as a few cuts.

“I'm Farrehn,” he told her. He turned his head to make sure they were not disturbing anyone, and his eyes caught the lamplight. The red of his eyes indicated his race.

Sweet Treat, Sneak Peek!...

All right! I'm at the point where I am allowed to share snippets of my book with you all until it is released. And possibly even after to keep up interest, of course.

So I thought, hmm... what could I do to make this a bit more interesting? Well, since Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas are creeping up on us fast—Cookies!

I'm going to share a cookie recipe and a snippet. So you can make a sweet treat after I give you a sneak peek at my book.

Sound fair? All right, then, here we go!

I'm going to start with this recipe I found in the Better Homes and Gardens Ultimake Cookies and Bars magazine. I have yet to find another special interest issue like it.

I figure this would be a good cookie to pair up with my character Nightshadow. She's pretty spicy and she loves her blended herb cigarettes.

~Spicy Molasses Cookies~

1 3/4 Cups all purpose flour     1/2 Cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon     1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground ginger     1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves     1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper     1/2 Cup softened butter

1/4 Cup shortening     1/3 Cup granulated sugar

1/3 Cup packed brown sugar     1 egg yolk

1/2 Cup dark molasses     1 teaspoon vanilla

In medium bowl, mix first 9 ingredients. In another bowl, beat butter and shortening for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar and brown sugar. Add yolk, molasses, and vanilla. Beat until combined, then slowly add in flour mixture. Chill for one hour. Roll into 1 inch balls. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

And since you were so patient through that long list of ingredients, here is the snippet! Enjoy, both the cookies and the sneak peek:

~Nightshadow~

Nightshadow sat up in her room inside the massive mansion Nikkolani had taken over when he first came to Moordigan. This home had been abandoned, overrun with vines and weeds, matching the state of the rest of the city when Nikkolani first arrived. He fixed it up to suit his tastes and used more of the king's coin rather than his own. When he built up his D'raetus Pastiniir, he rewarded his finest assassins handsomely and in different ways based on performance. Being the best at her profession gave her some perks, but it also gave her some heartaches. She worked up the courage to speak to Nikkolani at some length during the night about Farrehn, who now lay in the Healer's Guild because of her. The discussion had been very heated, so much so that she decided to wait to tell him about Sorcha and the agreement she had made.

Dressed in loose leggings and a tunic belted at the waist, Nightshadow now sat before the window, absentmindedly braiding her hair. When she reached the end, she tied it off and stood just as a soft knock landed on her door. She slowly crossed the room, not expecting anyone, and opened the door.

“Nikkolani would like to speak with you,” a young girl told her.

“I'll be down in a moment.”

“I'll let him know.” Nightshadow shut the door and went over to her bed to pull on her boots. As she left her room, she locked the door. Living with thieves, it would be a matter of moments before they picked the lock but she certainly was not going to make it easy for them.

Guest Post: Savannah Rayne ~ How Do You Measure Sucess?...

Hey everyone, I'd like you to give a big welcome to Savannah Rayne, author of 'Oh, Deer' and 'When It Leaves'.

Savannah Rayne:

I was once asked how I measured my successes. I guess I’ve never thought of things in that way. I mean, me successful…really? Then I gave it some thought…

So here it is, my story :)

In late 2010, I was offered the chance to work for Hellfire Publishing and in accepting that wonderful offer, I have come to wear quite a few hats. I am the Right Hand Demon (I love the sound of that so much better than being a plain old assistant, lol) to the Executive Editor and owner of HP. I also do some editing, but I am primarily the Senior Copy Editor. All of this keeps me busy and out of trouble!

Unlike most writers, I had never even thought about being a writer. Heck, it wasn’t even on my bucket list! But in January of 2011, an idea came to mind while talking with a friend, and we decided to see if we could turn those thoughts into a story. I co-authored a book and we submitted it for consideration to HP. I knew in my heart it was a really good story. I had never in all of my reading years, read anything like it. Hellfire Publishing agreed and we were offered a contract! I was super excited, and wanted to shout it from the roof tops, only to have that excitement end as quickly as it arrived. There was a conflict with the co-author and to make a devastating story short, the book was scrapped and never published. It also resulted in ending the friendship.

Hellfire Publishing told me that if I ever decided to write on my own, they would gladly give my work consideration. Again, my first thought was really? Not wanting to give up and to show that I did have the talent to be an author in my own right, I wrote my first story Oh, Deer. It was accepted and released in June, 2011. In November of 2011, my second eBook was published with Hellfire and is titled, When It Leaves. I guess some would say, I am now a success! I have several manuscripts in the works and all of these will be submitted to the place I will call home for all my writing—Hellfire Publishing.

I’m grateful that Hellfire Publishing encouraged me to write something on my own. I think the fact that they saw something in my writing skills and left the door open for me to walk through again if I so chose to, gave me the confidence, drive and desire to take the steps needed to reach the new personal goal I had set out to achieve. I was given a very, unexpected gift in finding out just how much I love and enjoy writing! I have always been an avid reader, but never did I think I could be a writer and tell stories that other people would enjoy reading. It goes to show life is full of surprises.

Had someone told me a few years ago that I would be a published author, I would have laughed. But having someone tell you that you’re good at something and sincerely mean it, followed with encouragement, can make all the difference in what you choose to do next. Try to remember that when you’re talking with people, friends or family. What you say and how you say it, may make a huge difference in the path of someone’s life.

I guess how one measures themselves as successful depends on the person. Up until now, I had thought I was successful at being a great Mom, raising two children that have grown up to be amazing, responsible adults. I’m also a great day care provider, as well as running a smooth, clean household. Now I’ve been blessed enough to add to that list, editor, copy editor, personal assistant and published author. I assume the list will keep growing…isn’t life wonderful?

Now, if I could only get over my fear of the dark and flying :)

Mel:

Thanks, Savannah! Now before you go, everyone, check the link below.

'When It Leaves' is currently free on Amazon.com for a limited time! You've seen my review. Don't just take my word for it, this is a must read! Go here to get your free copy! Who doesn't love free?

Book Review: When It Leaves by Savannah Rayne...

Title: When It Leaves

Author: Savannah Rayne

Publisher: Hellfire Publishing, Inc.

Pages: 32 (Print), File size: 60 kb

ASIN: B006CXG8ZU

Purchase: Amazon

Summary from Amazon:

Playing in the leaves is something all children do; twins Steven and K.C. are no different. One autumn evening, the five year olds ask to go out to play until dinner is ready. What happens that night will haunt Steven for the next twenty years
.
Now with a daughter of his own, Steven is left to struggle with the painful, guilt ridden choice of keeping his daughter safe or help the brother he lost, long ago, the one person Steven always thought he would do anything to have back.

This tale solidifies the old adage, “be careful what you wish for…”

My Thoughts:

Just a note, this is obviously a short story. Now that's out of the way, this was a good story! I'm a sucker for a good scare, and this was the perfect short story with the change in the air and knowing Halloween isn't far off.

The twin boys are typical. One is more dominant than the other and the taunting reminds me of my kids when they were that little. While not giving too much away, this story centers on something that takes one of the twins when they're five years old. Fast forward to twenty years later and you've got the remaining twin married, living in the same house and having nightmares every time the leaves begin to turn colors. He has a three year old daughter and when the anniversary of his twins' disappearance comes around, the dreams get worse. The elemental being (that's the only way I can describe what took the one twin) has become the twin and in order to free him, he demands that his brother sacrifice his own daughter.

On the creepy scale, this didn't give me nightmares or make me skirt blowing leaves, but in all fairness, it did creep me out. Like I said, it's an awesome story and one I would highly recommend now that Halloween is on the horizon. Strong writing, good flow, good characters developed quickly but not lingered on for a short story... I give it:

5 skull and crossbones.

Yay! I'm so happy to find good, well written books deserving of such reviews! Well done!

Guest Post: Kiera Kroft...

Thank you so much Mel for letting me talk about the most exciting thing in my life...my books.

A quick little bio about me :)

Keira Kroft carries a vet assistance degree. Her love for animals is as great as her love of people. She gives a percentage of her personal book sale profits to the animal welfare league. Residing in a quiet suburb in the outskirts Chicago with her husband and daughter she spends any spare time she has working with her cats Scamper and Sawyer, to achieve total world domination, one shared Twinkie at a time. Her passions include Reading, Writing, Football, Comic Books and nature.

Keira’s Books  

Coming Very, Very Soon.

Have it all, do it all, and be it all! Do it now. Pick up this book and change your life forever. From someone who has been from one end of the spectrum to the other.

Coming Soon

Synopsis for Death’s Reject.

Driven with fear for her husband’s life, Constance seeks the aid of federal protection for Mafia Don, Carlo Conti. When she realizes that the FBI has used her, setting a trap to turn her against her husband, it’s already too late.

Carlo Conti is faced with no other choices than to murder the love of his life or disappear. He packs up his family and flees to the beautiful country of New Zealand. After realizing that the “family” that he left behind in Chicago is being wiped out in brutal mob war, he has another tough choice to make…

If he stays, he may lose it all. But if he goes back, he will lose the only love he has ever known…his wife.

Coming ~ Late summer

Inamorata is the first Novel in the “One Bloody Night Series”.

They are supposed to be low key and get their nightly fix from a bag. But what if they could spend a cozy evening eating an old fashioned meal and then when they were done they would simply set the place on fire and walk away—no one would be the wiser?

That’s the plan when a group of rogue Vampires has poisoned the entire security staff at a Christmas Eve party at a mall in Chicago and proceed to take over for the evening and feast upon their own kind of tradition, four house keepers, a maintenance man, a girl who lives in the mall, a lonely late night worker and a couple who have escaped to the department store where she works so their spouses wouldn’t be privy to their affair and some other delightfully unexpected guests.

Everything goes exactly as they expected until the group leader Lucius Sturdevant, and second oldest Vampire to date, realizes that the woman that lives in the Comic book store that is trying to figure out how to kill him is the reincarnation of Laura, the love of his life, that died in his arms of old age, because he didn’t have the heart to turn her.

On Sale Now

Did somebody call a fireman? What about a rugged, yet gentle and very good looking fireman…anybody call one of those? His name is Jake Gilroy and he is about to change Corey Nolan’s life.

Synopsis

Determined to be out from under her mother’s ruling and away from a no-good soon-to-be ex-boyfriend, Corey Nolan exercises her independence. With a place to call her own and a job that doesn’t pay well but makes her happy, her life is full and her young daughter is content. There is no room for distractions, until she meets a local firefighter—who stirs an immediate forbidden attraction. In need of control, she tries to ignore Jake Gilroy, but circumstances bring her closer to him when someone is hell-bent on destroying her.

Dutiful playboy Jake is known as the smoking hot fireman. The first time he sets eyes on Corey, he knows he wants her. But when threats and strange occurrences start to happen, he finds the need to protect her and give more than he’s ever given any other woman.

Being together becomes more than they bargained for when their desire for each other becomes a matter of life and death….

Excerpt

She is a toddler, right? Like four or five years old? Her jaw dropped. A chill overwhelmed Corey, and she knew it didn’t have to do with the night air from the open bar door. “How do you know that? Have you been watching me?”

On Sale Now http://www.amazon.com/Glow-in-the-Dark-ebook/

Synopsis

Auntie Em has made a deal with the devil. She gave up her niece, Dorothy’s soul in exchange for a plentiful harvest. Em was smart and worked a clause into the contract. Satan could only have Dorothy’s soul in death, but she must also agree to meet the dark lord himself and shake his hand. Everything is going splendid until…

Dorothy unaware of her untimely demise or any satanic contract embarks on a journey through the Land of Oz, seeking the great Wizard in hopes that he will return her safely home. As she unwittingly marches through hell, she begins to notice that nothing and no one is what it seems and there is no turning back…

There is indeed a bad moon rising over Oz.

Excerpt

As Dorothy walked away, unbeknownst to her, the flowers turned to ash, and the munchkins had turned into little demons with ugly, red faces. The road behind her was now paved with broken bones and crushed human skulls. The sun had turned to black.

Buy it Now! http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Moon-Rising-Over-ebook/

Also Available

This thrilling assortment of carefully hand selected horror can only found together in this fine collection. Each story can be purchased separately at other outlets. This features Bad Moon Rising Over Oz and three other spine tingling stories.

On sale now http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Reads-Collection-Volume-ebook

Hugs,

Keira Kroft

www.keirakroft.blogspot.com

Guest Post: Dawn Binkley, Hellfire Publishing...

Thank you so much Mel for letting me have the day on your blog to talk to other writers and
reader’s.

A quick little bio about me :)

Executive Editor, Dawn Binkley

Dawn Binkley, a writer since her late teens is driven by the written word. She believes, without
writers, the world as we know it would cease to exist. Books, scripts, advertisements, history, the
daily news reports, none of it would be possible without smart, articulate people to write it.

Mrs. Binkley is also a writer and is better known under her pen name Keira Kroft.

Dawn, co-owner of Hellfire Publishing and Hellfire Comics, also carries a vet assistance degree.
Her love for animals is as great as her love of people. She gives a percentage of her personal
book sale profits to the animal welfare league.

She was born and raised in Chicago and now resides in a quiet suburbs in the outskirts of the
city with her husband and her daughter. Dawn spends her spare time working with her cats
Scamper and Sawyer, to achieve total world domination, one shared Twinkie at a time. Her
passions include reading, writing, football and shopping.

Dawn will read anything you put in front of her. Whether she will like it, is another story. Her
preferences are vampires. If an author were to submit something with what she calls “real”
vampires, she will rip the hair out the head of any one that will try to take it from her. Also
amongst her preferences are ghost stories, werewolves and other paranormal beings. She looks
for creativity and wild imagination.

Direct quote from Dawn “Without great imagination, writing would simply be nothing more than
meaningless paper.”

She strives to bring the best fiction possible to the plate and has carefully staffed HP with like-
minded, smart, driven people in the editor positions. The entire foundation of Hellfire Publishing
is built upon community, love and trust.

I would like to talk about the fact that writing is not a one person career.

Who do you have to thank? As a writer, now that your or when your career takes off, who do
you have to thank? I mean sincerely, not just people you promised, whose egos you would puff
up by placing their name and kind words inside your novel. I mean the real people that actually
sacrifice themselves for your career.

My husband is number one. He always supports me and lets me take the time I need to write. He
is also not afraid to tell me if I come up with an idea, that he deems, stoopid? LOL He also gives

me the freedom to take his advice or not and most of the time he is right. But, don’t tell him that,
shhhhh.

My daughter. Yes our kids sacrifice themselves in their own way as well. In my daughters case
it’s giving up time IM’ing her boyfriend and believe me that’s a sacrifice for her!

My proofreader Jeanette, She had to read the first piece of crap I had ever written, God love her.
She was wonderful, very objective and not afraid to tell me like it was.

Books and internet, made it easy for me to look up info and get answers.

Decadent publishing, for taking a chance on a newbie. Because everybody has to start
somewhere, and without people that are willing to do that, we don’t stand a chance. They have
been so wonderful to me, I don’t consider them a starting point, I consider them a home where I
would love to reside as long as they will keep me.

Last, but not least my friends that simply just believed I could do it! Their trust and faith in me,
made a believer out of my toughest critic— myself.

Both of my businesses are both supportive environments to my writing career. Especially the
writers at Hellfire Publishing, they understand that on top of everything I do, that I have a career
as well and they make allowance for that. I am truly blessed.

So tell me, who do you have to thank, really?

Most of all I would like thank the reader’s. Out of the millions of books available nowadays you
chose mine, and that means everything to me. Thank you.

Writing is a career choice and a very tough business. Don’t be afraid to accept help. Writing is
hard work, however it’s the friendliest business :-D

So enjoy!

I would like to offer a free ecopy of Glow in the Dark to anyone who comments.

Dawn Binkley
Executive Editor
Hellfire Publishing
www.hellfirepublishing.com

Also known as:
Keira Kroft
www.keirakroft.blogspot.com

Giveaway & Review: Elf Killers by Carol Marrs Phipps and Tom Phipps...

Hey everyone! This is the review I promised of Elf Killers. If you want to receive a copy of this book in my GIVEAWAY here is what you have to do:

Comment to this post. One entry per comment and sorry, multiple comments will not garner you additional entries.

Yep, that's it. Easy peasy, right? Of course! I'll announce the winner on Wednesday August 24, 2011.


Elf Killers by Carol Marrs Phipps and Tom Phipps:

Product description (Courtesy of Amazon.com):

It is the very worst time to be in the woods.

Oisin’s plan is to come with his bow to help Aedan and Doona lead a party of children into the forest to gather the maidenhair seedlings his people would take across the sea as they flee the trolls who hunt them as prey. Maybe he can be back in time for supper.

Dyr's plan is an early evening head smash for the foolish Elves who think they can steal away to the sands of the endless eye sting water and build their strange float huts. They will make a glorious feast.

But on the way, Dyr's brutes stumble across Oisin's gathering party and attack, leaving Aedan mortally wounded and scattering Doona and the children to flee in terror into the dark mountain woods, only to be run down and captured by the bloodthirsty trolls.

Can Oisin find the bonfires of the trolls and rescue them before it’s too late? And what then? Will any of them live long enough to reach safety?

My thoughts:

Elf Killers is a fast-paced, descriptive ride of emotional turmoil and flight or fight drama right from the get go.

As the young Elves are gathering their seedlings to head off to a new land to regroup and recoup their numbers after being hunted by the Elf Killer trolls for so long, they're attacked once more to be thrown into the cook-fires.

Not knowing if all of the young Elves are dead or alive, the elder Elves have no choice but to sail away for distant lands on schedule, sacrificing the few young ones to save the even fewer of the race.

Carol and Tom provide a glossary in the back of this epic fantasy because of the Trollish language and the Elves Gwaelic speech. If you want to understand the book a little more in-depth, I suggest you read through the glossary first. At the beginning, it was a little difficult for me to get in to simply because the Trollish threw me off guard. Being an avid fantasy buff, though, I was not going to let that deter me.

The book is full of rich, imaginative scenery, Elves (which I absolutely adore and love anyway) and beautiful names, unusual creatures (more so than the Elf Killer trolls) and of course unicorns and Sprites. There is much to learn about this world, which I felt I was only given a bare glimpse of, because the pace was heart racing and the need for survival at the fore-front. But even with such a fast rush, I found the book difficult to put down and the authors found time to show that love can blossom, even in the most harsh of situations.

There were a few errors in the book, but nothing so bad as to throw you off the trail of the story. This book is well written, detailed and smooth. Once you get immersed in the Trollish language, you get the gist of what's going on and can't wait for ... well I can't tell you!

If you like epic fantasy, you will like Elf Killers. A sound story of good versus evil, overcoming all odds in adverse conditions and survival of the fittest.

My Skull and Crossbones rating:

Four solid Skull and Crossbones. What can I say, I'm a pirate and a sucker for fantasy.

Available Here:

Amazon $5.99 Kindle Version
Smashwords $5.99

Okay, now leave your comment below to be entered in the drawing. Winner will be announced Wednesday August 24, 2011. Thanks!

{Edit~ I will leave this giveaway open longer. New drawing date will be Monday, August 29, 2011. Thanks!}