Friday, August 29, 2014

Cephalopod Coffeehouse Chat - Fool's Assassin



From the ArmChair Squid: “The idea is simple: on the last Friday of each month, post about the best book you've finished over the past month while visiting other bloggers doing the same. In this way, we'll all have the opportunity to share our thoughts with other enthusiastic readers.”

Join the club here.



I began reading Robin Hobb's epic fantasy books in June and, boy howdy, was I ever pulled into her world. The first book, Assassin’s Apprentice, begins with six-year-old Fitz and his journey from lonely bastard to acknowledged royalty. Death awaits him by the hands of those who hate the Farseer line but he is a quick learner. And few know about his ability to use Wit and Skill. At least, not until it is too late. 


Ms. Hobb started her series in 1995 and gave us six books about Fitz. This month, she released the seventh book about the Farseers in Fool’s Assassin. Fool is a character rich in background and mysterious beyond belief. He reminds me of the kind of secondary that takes over a manuscript, kicks the outline to the curb, and says, “I’m in charge now.” But I’m only guessing.

If you like epic fantasy, try Assassin's Apprentice. I guarantee you'll have enough reading material for weeks afterwards.

Five-stars for making me care about her world, Fitz, and Fool. 

Can't wait for the next one.


Monday, August 25, 2014

So, who's up for a little FUN?

Are the kids in school yet? Vacations behind you? How about writing, editing, and drinking your caffeinated beverage of choice. Still doing that, I betcha.

So, why not plan on a little fun in October?

The beginning of a wonderful, blog hop with a silly, trendy twist - THE SHELFIE BLOG HOP!



Dates: Now thru Monday, Oct 6
Entries: Take a picture of you and your book(s) - your favorites or your own novels. Or you can just arrange the books in a special way and take the picture - but you do get extra points for being in the photo.
Formats: Tweet, Facebook, Blog - just make sure to include a link(s) to each.

My lovely co-hosts, co-conspirators and contributors: Heather M. Gardner, Christine Rains, Vikki Biram, CD Coffelt aka Huntress, M.J. Fifield, Elizabeth Seckman, and Rena Rocford

But that's not all - check out the fabulous prizes! It's easy and profitable! I hope you'll join us and spread the word =)

Contestants:


Ellie Garrett
L. Diane Wolfe
Gina Stoneheart
Stephen Tremp
Alex J. Cavanaugh
Tyrean Martinson
Tami Aschenbrenner
Elizabeth Arroyo
Chrys Fey
Eric Juneau

Loni Townsend

Nicki Elson
Rebecca Bradley
Susanne Drazic
Carrie Anne Brownian
Michelle Wallace

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Wilder Mage, Available in Paperback

The earthquake wasn't his fault. 
Not this time.

I wrote those words over four years ago, the first paragraph of my bestseller speculative fiction novel, Wilder Mage. 

Wilder came out as an Ebook in August 2013 and went on to achieve number one status in several categories including Occult, Hot New Releases, Most Wished For, and #4 in Magic and Wizards.







Its #9 ranking in Urban Fantasy honored me the most.

Wilder Mage is now available in paperback at Amazon.

Check it out and see what people are talking about.  






Monday, August 18, 2014

Blogs, DRM, Wilder Mage, and Edits

Is silence golden? Or merely a case of shiny objects diverting my attention from blogging?

Anyway, I’m back on the bloggery track after a jumbled July and an awesome August. Plus, I been sick.

Yeah. That’s the ticket.

Wilder Mage has entered the realm of the Fifth Sense. Or Touch. It is in print now and available through Amazon. My publisher Musa decided to branch out from Ebooks and into the glue-and-paper versions. I most humbly appreciate that Wilder is one of their first to go to print. In October, Mage Revealed will come out in both print and Ebook also. And I’m doing the Snoopy Dance.


DRM or Digital Rights Management. Is it good or bad for an author? I’m reading both sides and confess that I’m more confused than ever. An article in Publishers Weekly breaks it down to a single sentence:

“...all DRM does is punish legitimate users who had the misfortune to be so honest that they paid for the book, rather than taking it...”

By holding the digital rights of our books, is it slithering out of our fingers like a broken egg? This blogger thinks so.

Another question from an article by Writers Beta hit me hard:
"...is pirating going to cost me so much, that I'm better off risking limiting and annoying users..."
Wilder Mage is on the Torrent websites available for a free download and there ain’t nuthin’ I can do about it. Sure, you can email them and give the spiel to remove your book from their lists immediately. But it is a waste of time. Believe me, I know.

Summary: any book, DRM protected or not, can be formatted to fit your programs. Look to Calibre to see how it’s done.

Edits. I am in the final edits to Mage Revealed, the sequel to Wilder Mage. I’m up against a deadline for the first time in my writing career and find it...er...stimulating.
Cover reveal soon. For now, here is the book trailer.




So what do you think about DRM? Ready to cut your book loose and let it fly like a kite?

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