Monthly Mishmash - January + GIVEAWAYS

I sort of stole this idea from Kelly Hashway who created Monday Mishmash. Well, I never feel like I have enough to share each week, so I decided to do a Monthly Mishmash. :)

HEALTH: I've been having a hard time since October. I never really talk about it, but I suffer from depression. Stress and drama, anxiety and responsibilities really dragged me down during those months. I am doing much better now, though. I'm taking a low dosage of anti-depressants (there's no shame in admitting this!), and I'm doing my best to stay positive.

I also experienced physical health problems in December. I started to have really bad nausea after eating (Nope, I'm not pregnant) that ended up impacting my eating. No matter how hungry I got or how much I wanted to eat, I couldn't. I lost a lot of weight. I was always tried and napping. I did no writing. Nothing. But...I'm eating normally again, slowly putting the weight back on, and my motivation has returned.


BLOGIVERSARY: 

On January 1st, I stepped into my 6th year of blogging. :)

PROMO EFFORTS:

Free Ebook - I announced my very first PERMA-FREE eBook, LIGHTNING CRIMES! I believe this is by far my best marketing strategy to date for my series. It got up to #21 on the Kindle Short Reads - Romance category.

To promote my free eBook so far, I did a Thunderclap campaign (which might not have had an impact). I also announced it in my IWSG post (best promo tool EVER!) as well as in a special newsletter to my subscribers. I did a $10 Facebook ad (I got 45 link clicks for that, so money well spent), set up a Goodreads Event, and submitted to free eBook websites. I think promoting something free is easier than even a 99 cents sale. ;)

GIVEAWAYS:

12-Month Book Giveaway - I am giving away 12 books I own throughout the year. All different genres. 12 months. 12 winners! Sign up for my free, monthly newsletter to see the books and enter the giveaways for the chance to win. 

Plus, enter this Rafflecopter giveaway for the chance to win a signed, paperback copy of Seismic Crimes and Hurricane Crimes playing cards.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

IWSG ANTHOLOGY:

Hero Lost

Mysteries of Death and Life

An Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology

Can a lost hero find redemption?

What if Death himself wanted to die? Can deliverance be found on a bloody battlefield? Could the gift of silvering become a prison for those who possessed it? Will an ancient warrior be forever the caretaker of a house of mystery?

Delving into the depths of the tortured hero, twelve authors explore the realms of fantasy in this enthralling and thought-provoking collection. Featuring the talents of Jen Chandler, L. Nahay, Renee Cheung, Roland Yeomans, Elizabeth Seckman, Olga Godim, Yvonne Ventresca, Ellen Jacobson, Sean McLachlan, Erika Beebe, Tyrean Martinson, and Sarah Foster.

Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these twelve tales will take you into the heart of heroes who have fallen from grace. Join the journey and discover a hero’s redemption!

Release Date: May 2, 2017

BLOGGER INTERVIEWS: After two years, I am going to stop doing Blogger Interviews on Write with Fey. I know that many of you loved them, and there are bloggers I still want to feature, but I'm trying to cut back. However, I might do them for a final time next year.

Here are the Blogger Interviews from Write with Fey:

Alex J. Cavanaugh

Stephanie Faris

Gina Stoneheart

Arlee Bird

Sarah Foster

DL Hammon

Sherry Ellis

Lisa Thomson

Crystal Collier

Pat Hatt

ME!

Jeffrey Scott

Gary aka "klahanie"

Denise Covey

Liz A

diedre Knight

J.H. Moncrieff
Roland Yeomans

QUESTION: What news do you have to share?

Brenda Sparks - Character Date - Alpha Lover

Welcome to my new feature to support my fellow authors from The Wild Rose Press! I will be featuring one author for each letter of the alphabet. I also created a few new guest post options, which I hope you'll enjoy. For this one, I ask authors to envision they are going out on a date with one of their characters. ;)

Please help me to welcome the author for B . . . Brenda Sparks!

Thank you so much for having me on your blog to share a little about my latest story, Alpha Lover. When you invited me to pretend to go on a date with one of my characters, the choice was easy—the hero from Alpha Lover.

Pre-Date Questions:

1. Which character are you going out on a date with?

If I could pick any of my characters to date it would be Nicholai Peterhof. He is so romantic and sweet. He’s my favorite male character.

2. Where are you going? 

We will be taking a horse-drawn sleigh out to the frozen pond on his property to do a little ice skating.

THE DATE:

I settle into the leather seat, snuggling under the red quilt against the handsome man sitting beside me. The cool air kisses my cheeks; my vision clouds with unshed tears from the stinging air as it flows around my face. My lashes bind together, creating a rainbow effect that adds an ethereal beauty to the winter wonderland.

Nicholai draws me snuggly against his side. His warmth surrounds me, taking the chill from my body. It is heavenly, toasty warm. I want to remain like this forever.

“How much longer?” I ask, secretly hoping the answer would be ‘eternity’.

“Why, my dear woman? Tired of my company already?”

I pull away and my brows furrow in consternation. He’s misunderstood! “No! No! I didn’t mean it that way.”

A smile pulls at the corner of Nicholai’s lips. When a deep chuckle pulsates from his muscular chest, I realize I’ve been had, so I playfully ruffle his raven hair.

Laughter shows in Nicholai’s hazel eyes as pulls me back against his side. “I know what you meant. We are almost there. It’s just over this next rise.”

When the sleigh crests the rise, the scene greeting us reminds me of a Thomas Kinkaid painting. At the bottom of the hill, a frozen pond sparkles in the moonlight with rainbow prisms dancing on the ice. Bare trees, their branches heavy with snow, line the pond. Candles hang from the bowing branches, and their dancing flames makes the snow glitter with the ambient light. Tiny frozen crystals bid us a lustrous welcome.

Nicholai reins the horse to a stop. Kedar prances in the snow, making his bells jingle and turns to look at us from over his muscular shoulder as if to say, “We’re here.”

As the tinkling bells quiet, Nicholai reaches under the seat and pulls out a pair of ice skates. “Tell me, Brenda, do you skate?”

Child-like glee widens my smile. “Oh yes, I love to ice skate. I took lessons when we were children.”

Anticipation of his strong arms around me, guiding me over the ice with his front pressing against my back, makes my heart race.

Blurb:

Starved for blood, vampire, Nicholai Peterhof is greatly relieved when two tourists, in Russia for the Christmas holiday, decide to grace his restaurant, but one sip from the pretty brunette and his world is forever turned upside down. Juliette Staint-John is everything he could have asked for in a heartmate; pretty, smart, built with curves in all the right places…and totally unavailable.

Juliette doesn’t want anything to do with the handsome, young-looking Nicholai. As if their differences aren’t enough, the acute grief over the loss of loved ones keeps her heart guarded. He may be her fantasy, but that’s all he can ever be.

To get past Juliette’s defenses and in order to keep her safe, Nicholai must prove himself worthy of her love and trust. Unbeknownst to the couple, her personal demons are not the only ones threatening their relationship. Hiding virtually unseen by the vampires, Demon Royalty plots to destroy not only the couple but the entire vampire breed. Luckily, Nicholai will do anything for Juliette—even if it means sacrificing himself.

BUY LINKS:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iTunes / KOBO

The Wild Rose Press

Bio:

Born in Virginia, Brenda Sparks now resides in the Sunshine State.  Balancing her professional commitment to the local school district with her writing is challenging at times, but writing suspenseful paranormal romances is a passion that won’t be denied. Her idea of a perfect day is one spent in front of a computer with a hot cup of coffee, her fingers flying over the keys to send her characters off on their latest adventure.  Brenda loves to connect with readers.  Please visit her online or stop by her website to say hi.

AUTHOR LINKS:

Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon / Website

Thanks for sharing that lovely date with us, Brenda!

Please leave a comment for Brenda. :)

Diverse Characters - A + B

Welcome to the third new feature on my blog! This one will hopefully help writers and push them to use more diverse characters in their work.

INTRODUCTION:

There’s been a lot of talk about adding diverse characters to fictional books. Most of the time, this is about including people of color if you’re a Caucasian writer, but all writers can add diverse characters to their books. And why stop at race? In this series, I’m going to list all sorts of diverse characters.

Note: I'm not knowledgeable about all types of people, so I'm skipping my usual tips in favor of letting others share their knowledge. See below.

**I won't be able to list them all, so here's a list of ethnic groups...with a list of even more lists at the bottom of the page. lol

Here are the diverse characters for A:

Aboriginals

Acapella Singers

Adopted Children/Adoptive Parents

Afghans

Africans

African Americans 

Individuals with AIDS/HIV 

Alaskans

Albinos 

Individuals suffering from Alcoholism

Elderly with Alzheimer's

The Amish

Amputees

Individuals with Amnesia

Individuals suffering from Anorexia

Individuals with Asperger's 

Argentinians 

Artists

Asians

Athletes

Australians 

Individuals with Autism

Here are the diverse characters for B:

Babies

Ballerinas

Belgians (Individuals from Belgium)

Bikers 

Biracial Individuals 

Individuals suffering from Bipolar Disorder

Blind Individuals

Individuals with Braces (teeth)

Brazilians

Brides 

The British 

Bolivians (Individuals from Bolivia)

Bounty Hunters

Buddhists 

Individuals with Bulimia

SHARE: If you can come up with more diverse characters that start with A or B, let me know and I will add them to my list, if they don't fall under other categories or a later letter. :)

QUESTION: Do you have tips or Do's/Dont's for one of the characters I mentioned above? Share your advice for writing about those characters in your comment.

Have you written about a character from my list?

I SURVIVED! Blogfest - How did Disaster Chrys Survive?

"This is Chrys Fey reporting for Disaster 5 News. I am in Central Florida where a tsunami hit yesterday morning. I have my doppelganger with me, Disaster Chrys, a survivor of the tsunami. Diz, can you tell our viewers what happened, and how you survived?"

Diz: “You probably won’t believe me, but I’ll tell you anyway.

“I was walking along the shore, collecting shells, when the water sucked back out so fast and far that I could see reefs, the breaker, and several fish flopping on the sand. A gust of wind tossed my hair over my head and caused me to stumble. I looked toward the ocean to see a giant wall of water. At once, it was frightening. And then magnificent; a humpback whale curved over the top. Its tail waved at me and splashed salt water into the air. Along the crest, dolphins jumped like synchronized swimmers performing a routine.

“Something told me not to run, that I’d be okay. The water bubbled up my body, but it didn’t toss me around. Instead, it lifted me high, as if putting me on a watery throne. It swept me forward, making me feel like Poseidon’s Queen.

“I peered at the gentle waves lapping around my hips and saw a school of mermaids below my feet. They waved at me, beckoning me to come play with them. So, I let my body sink under the surface. There was a mermaid with a black tail spotted with white barnacle, a mermaid with seaweed braided through her hair, and another with starfish attached to her arms.

“A merman with cobalt blue hair and a crown of coral atop his head swam up to me. He put his mouth to mine, granting me his breath. He held onto me until the water stopped. Then he and the other mermaids lifted me onto a patch of green land. Before me stood a pearly-white unicorn. She bowed her head and lowered so I could climb onto her strong back. She carried me for miles. Eventually, I feel asleep.

“Sometime later, I woke up in the aftermath of the tsunami. The land wasn’t destroyed. It was healed, and magical creatures were everywhere.”

Title: Tsunami Crimes

Series: Disaster Crimes #3

Author: Chrys Fey

Genre: Romantic-Suspense

Page Count: 272

BLURB: Beth and Donovan have come a long way from Hurricane Sabrina and the San Francisco earthquake. Now they are approaching their wedding day and anxiously waiting to promise each other a lifetime of love. The journey down the aisle isn’t smooth, though, as they receive threats from the followers of the notorious criminal, Jackson Storm. They think they’ll be safe in Hawaii, but distance can’t stop these killers. Not even a tsunami can.

This monstrous wave is the most devastating disaster Beth has ever faced. It leaves her beaten, frightened. Is she a widow on her honeymoon? As she struggles to hold herself together and find Donovan, she’s kidnapped by Jackson's men.

Fearing her dead, Donovan searches the rubble and shelters with no luck. The thought of her being swept out to sea is almost too much for him to bear, but the reality is much worse. She’s being used as bait to get him to fall into a deadly trap.

If they live through this disaster, they may never be the same again. 

QUESTION: What "out there" survival story can you come up with?

Empowering Women - Emma Watson

Welcome to my second new feature for 2017! This one won't be for everyone, but I felt strongly that I should do this. I am highlighting 12 women and discussing the amazing things they do. They are celebrities, but they are empowering!

INTRODUCTION

Feminism - advocating social, political, legal, and economic rights for women equal to those of men.

Unlike popular belief, feminist do not hate men. In fact, we love them! We just want women to have same rights as men. We want to be (treated) equal and have equal opportunities in all things. 

Men, if you want your wives, daughters, and granddaughters to have the same rights as men, then you are indeed a feminist.

Emma Watson is shining light on this issue in the hopes of real change. I am doing my part by discussing one empowering woman a month.

EMMA WATSON

Emma came onto the scene as the legendary Hermione Granger in all of the Harry Potter movies. It’s pretty fitting that she had this role because Hermione was a feminist. She didn’t care what people thought of her or her smarts. She defended the weak and stood up for what was right. Hermione tried to calm Professor Lupin when he turned into a werewolf, she yelled for Professor Moody to stop when Neville was affected by the curse hurting the spider, and she even punched Draco Malfoy!

“Young girls are told you have to be delicate princesses. Hermione taught them that you can be the warrior.” - Emma

Later, Emma played Sam in the Parks of Being a Wallflower and Ila in Noah. In Noah, she sings to her newborn twin girls because she doesn't want them to die crying. It was a moving scene. Her portrayal was flawless. I always thought she deserved an award for it.

But those are characters. In real life, Emma fights for women and the Earth. She was the face for People Tree (eco-friendly clothing) and wears eco-friendly clothing all the time.

Emma is also a U.N. Ambassador, using her celebrity status to spread the word about HeforShe. In 2014, she spoke to the United Nations and gave a stunning speech about the impact this has had on girls and the importance of equal rights for all.

“Don’t let anyone tell you what you can and can’t do or achieve. Do what you want to do and be who you want to be. Just encourage and include each other. Don’t ostracize the gender in front of you.”

Last year, she even started a group on Goodreads called “Our Shared Shelf.” Do you see the equality in that title? OUR. Isn’t it beautiful? This group reads one book a month under the feminism theme and discusses them. Some of the books were My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, and How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran.

I encourage everyone to watch the video above, listen to Emma’s words, and check out those books to see if you might be interested in reading them. The important thing is to keep an open mind.

QUESTION: Have you seen Noah or read any of the books I mentioned?

Inspiring Song:

Abigail Owen / Meet the Muse / Bait N' Witch

Welcome to my new feature to support my fellow authors from The Wild Rose Press! I will be featuring one author for each letter of the alphabet. I also created a few new guest post options, which I hope you'll enjoy. For this one, I ask authors to tell us about their muse.

Please help me to welcome the author for A . . . Abigail Owen!

1. Tell us about your recent release.

Bait N’ Witch is the third book in my Legendary Consultants series of paranormal romance novellas. Each novella features different paranormal creatures, and this one focuses on witches…

Rowan McAuliffe has been hiding most of her life. Secretly trained in her powers by an unusual source, she’d been taught not to trust anyone. Especially other witches. However, after she was forced to perform a hateful act against her will, she now hides from the Mage High Council who seek answers, and possibly her life.

Greyson Masters is the Council’s best enforcer–a witch hunter who lays down the law. Despite the danger of his job, Greyson is also raising his triplet daughters. Alone. Budding new witches who display an alarming combined power no one understands. Too bad he hasn’t got a clue how to deal with them.

Little does Greyson realize that the new nanny sent to him by Legendary Consultants is the very witch he is hunting. When the truth is revealed, can these two opposing forces find a way to listen to their hearts? Or will Greyson have to follow orders and kill Rowan–the one woman who has made his soul come alive?

Buy Link:

Amazon

2. Who is your muse?

My muse for every story I write is my heroine. For Bait N’ Witch, that means my heroine is Rowan McAuliffe. Rowan and I met when I was working on Her Demigod Complex. Rowan showed up toward the end, and jumped off the page practically waving her arms in the air and shouting, write me a story too! Characters have a habit of doing that to me. Lol.

3. What does your muse look like?

Rowan has long, dark red curly hair and lovely grey eyes. Although, as a witch she can change her appearance. She once showed up with green hair and some funky colored eyes, each a different color. Of course, she was hiding from a demigod and some werewolves at the time.

4. Describe your muse’s personality.

Rowan is a witch with an interesting past. One which means hiding who she truly is in order to protect herself. But she just can’t hide her quirky personality and blunt opinions around Grey, the warlock she’s nannying for.

5. How do you tempt your muse to work?

I’m a bit of a slave driver. I work on a book every single day. My various muses (all my heroines) do get time off now and then, when I’m working with a different muse. When we disagree about working, my muse and I sit down and go over notes from old workshops, we brainstorm, and then we write anyway. Doesn’t always work, but it gets words on the page.

6. When/where does your muse inspire you the most?

At the most inopportune times, usually. Lol. My best ideas come in the middle of the night, or in the shower, or in the middle of a meeting when I can’t jump on it right away. All my muses do that. Maybe it’s a conspiracy to drive me nuts. J

7. Has your muse ever gone on strike?

Absolutely. Rowan got pretty irritated with how she kept getting bumped for other projects and deadlines. It took a lot of groveling to finally get her story finished to her satisfaction. But I’m happy to say she got her HEA!

8. What would your muse’s motto be to get your butt into gear?

Suck it up buttercup and write. Mama needs a HEA.

9. What was your relationship like with your muse while writing BAIT N’ WITCH?

Like any friendship, there’s a period of time where you get to know each other. Then a friendship solidifies. There might be some bumps here and there. But by the end of the project, you can practically finish each others’ sentences.

10. Are you and your muse working on something new?

It’ll probably be a little while before I work with Rowan on any new story, and even then it’ll just be for a few pages here and there. My muse at the moment is Holly Jensen. She is shy but has a great sense of humor. I’m trying to work out a HEA for her with Cash Hill in Saving the Sheriff and see if a publisher likes the changes. Fingers crossed!

Bio:

Award-winning paranormal and contemporary romance author, Abigail Owen, grew up consuming books and exploring the world through her writing. She attempted to find a practical career related to her favorite pastime by earning a degree in English Rhetoric (Technical Writing). However, she swiftly discovered that writing without imagination is not nearly as fun as writing with it.

No matter the genre, she loves to write witty, feisty heroines, sexy heroes who deserve them, and a cast of lovable characters to surround them (and maybe get their own stories). She currently resides in Austin, Texas, with her own personal hero, her husband, and their two children, who are growing up way too fast.

For the latest news and exclusive excerpts, sign up for her newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/Lw2XH

Author Links:

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Pinterest

Good luck, Abigail! And thanks for letting us meet Rowan.

Please leave a comment for Abigail. :)

The Grammar Bible / Books for Writers

Welcome to one of my new features for 2017! I will be highlighting 10 great books for writers. Each one will be different. And I highly recommend them all.


The Grammar Bible by Michael Strumpf is the best grammar book I have found, and I have read many. The Grammar Bible is simple and easy to understand with great examples. It will especially help you with the ever-complex comma. If you hate text books, no need to worry because The Grammar Bible doesn’t resemble one, but you will find more grammar advice and examples than in any other grammar book. That’s why this is called the “Bible.” On the cover, it says: “Everything you always wanted to know but didn’t know whom to ask.” And that’s an accurate statement.

Each chapter is divided into sections to help you learn. Part One consists of parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.

Part Two is all about dissecting sentences. Part Three is for spelling, vocabulary, and punctuation. The punctuation covers periods, commas, colons, semicolons, apostrophes, question marks, exclamation points, parentheses, brackets, hyphens, dashes, and quotation marks.

BLURB & BUY @ BOOKSHOP

Michael Stumpf also answers questions that he’s received from “anxious writers, conscientious students, and perplexed editors.” No question is stupid or silly. He answers them all with respect.

Some things you can find/learn:

- Place a comma between adjectives that describe the same now. Ex: a damp, gray day.

- Use a comma for two simple sentences that are joined. Meaning they have a noun and a verb. Ex: Sam loves to cook, but he loves to eat more.

You’ll also learn the differences between words such as bare/bear, sight/site, anyway/any way, affect/effect, all ready/already, awhile/ a while, born/borne, continual/continuous, whoever/whomever.

If you need grammar help, look for this book.

QUESTION: What grammar book(s) do you like?

FREE EBOOK - LIGHTNING CRIMES

FREE SHORT STORY EBOOK!

I self-published my first ebook! I also designed the cover art myself, so don't hate on it. lol And I've made it PERMA-FREE!

 Title: Lightning Crimes

Series: Disaster Crimes 2.5
Genre: Romantic-Suspense

NOTE: LIGHTNING CRIMES is a teaser story that takes place between Seismic Crimes and Tsunami Crimes.

BLURB:

A freak lightning storm unleashes its energy on Central Florida. Bolts of lightning crash to the ground. Torrential rain soaks everything within seconds. And the power goes out, casting Beth and Donovan’s apartment into darkness. Beth is already on edge after receiving a menacing phone call several months ago, and this storm doesn’t help with her nerves.

Donovan tries to distract her from Mother Nature’s tantrum, but someone else has other plans. When they find the front door to their apartment wide open, they soon realize that it Isn’t an accident. Someone is in their apartment with them.

What crime can happen as fast as lightning?

DOWNLOAD FOR FREE:

Amazon / Smashwords

Barnes& Noble / Kobo

FREE IN ALL AMAZON STORES!

****

QUESTION: What writing rule do you wish you’d never heard?

I wish I never heard that passive voice is wrong. Although active voice is better, and I do eliminate as much passive voice as possible in my work and the work I edit, I (for one) don’t think it’s entirely wrong. 

Another rule I struggled with (only because I stressed out about eliminating it from my writing) is that comma splices are incorrect. Comma splices are super common in most books. It's apparently acceptable in some languages, but in English it's an error. Go figure. :P

These two rules gave me the biggest headaches when I first started publishing. Why? Because I had to learn to change the way I wrote. Hurricane Crimes and 30 Seconds are FULL of passive voice. I'll admit it. And comma splices can be found in my stories up until recently as well. Since then, however, my writing has grown. And I am proud of that! :D

OPTIONAL FEBRUARY 1ST QUESTION: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?

Reminder: The questions are optional and meant as a prompt if you struggle with what to post. You don't have to answer a question if you don't want to. :)