Shades of Pink 2014

WHAT IS SHADES OF PINK?

As you may know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Last year, the first Shades of Pink event raised over $10.000 through more than 1300 donations!

For our second year, 22 authors have allied for 1 cause: fundraising for research. Their gift to everyone who makes a donation? A romance anthology (ebook) titled Shades of Pink (volume 2), totaling almost 150.000 words / about 400 pages as a PDF.

The suggested donation is $5. Funds are raised via Stayclassy.org and all proceeds go directly to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Readers can also donate to the charity organization of their choice (with a focus on breast cancer) and email their receipt to receive their copy of the anthology in either PDF, ePub or mobi (kindle).

Who: Catherine Bowman, Mitzi Calderone, Vivien Dean, JJ and TA Ellis, Sabrina Garie, Nina Day Gerard, T. Hammond, Susan Harris, Laura Hunsaker, Kallysten, Amara Lebel, Alicia J. Love, Deelylah Mullin, C. Deanne Rowe, Cynthia Sax, DJ Shaw, Alice Stark, Ashley Suzanne, Gill Taber, Natasza Waters, Zoe York, Angela Yseult

When: Now through November 15th.

What: 22 short stories, including…

• 4 paranormal, 1 sci-fi, 11 contemporary, 1 historical, 2 military, 3 BDSM, 2 YA (some stories have more than one genre)
• 3 spicy (ménage or kink), 7 sexy (explicit sex scenes), 12 sweet (no sex)
• A couple of vampires, about three dozen humans including soldiers, geeks, teachers, librarians, writers, survivors, bosses, rock stars, teens, mages, wives, husbands and fiancés, 1 succubus, 1 genie, a few aliens, some werewolves and other shifters.
• Pink, pink and more pink, including tattoos, plenty of flowers, precious stones, jewelry, a bookmark, a drawing, ropes, lingerie, a car, a bag, a vase, various clothes, an anteater and a squirrel.

Where: Kallysten’s blog

Here you’ll find links to teasers for the stories, interviews of the authors and blog posts during all of October, a FAQ, and of course the link where you can donate and help this worthy cause.

Link to donate to a great cause:  Donate

About Deanne’s writings .

When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways– either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.
 Dalai Lama

 

When I was asked to talk about my writing this quote came to mind.  It’s because of a tragedy in      my life I found the strength to give my writing life.

You see, I have been making up stories as long as I can remember, playing with dolls, with my  brother and sisters or friends.  I started writing poetry then added writing short stories.                                                   I had no  clue everyone didn’t write down their thoughts or ideas or weren’t able to pick out                                          the villain  before the end of the movie.  I always believed everyone had a voice in their head                                  telling them  stories, waking them up in the middle of the night with ideas and asking ‘what if’                            to situations they  found themselves in.  It wasn’t until I became a teenager I realized I was                  different.  As a teenager  you hide things that make you different.  You don’t want to be          made fun off.  So I hid my writing  never letting anyone read it.  It wasn’t until I was much older that I summoned the courage to  take a writing course.  Being around other writers gave me the courage to allow others to read   my writing and also made me realize I wasn’t alone.  There were other people like me,  inner voices and all.  A whole new world opened up for me.

I decided in October of 2010 I was going to allow myself to dream big.  I was going to put                                          myself and my writing out there and see exactly what the universe had in store for me.                   How I came to this decision  was after I attended my Saturday Writers Group on         October 2, 2010.  I was sitting across the conference room table from a friend, Smiley, trying to convince her to take her sense of humor and start  her own blog or to enter her writing in contests.  We left our meeting and she was so                                      excited about her  writing and the possibilities ahead of her.  The next Tuesday,                October 5th she was hit by a car while crossing the street with her son. She died of massive head injuries on October 10, 2010 leaving behind a thirteen year old son.  Smiley died a day after my birthday.

I’ve been trying to make sense of why Smiley graced my life.  What was I supposed to have learned  from her?  I came to the conclusion I needed to live my dreams.  To not wait any longer because we  don’t know how much longer we have.  I had been holding on to my dreams, protecting them like they  were my children.  Smiley taught me it was time for me to give my dreams life, to give them wings and  see what place they had in the universe.  Don’t be afraid to let them go.  You never know where your   dreams might take you.

My dreams have taken me to publish five books of my own.

My Valley Series:

In the Heart of Valley

Return to Valley

Dream of Valley.

My Cowboy Temptation Series:

Cowboy Temptation ~ Colt and Cassy

Southern Sophistication

I also have seven published books as a one of The Stiletto Girls:

Blue Jeans and Stilettos 

Ms. Claus Wears Stilettos 

Venus in Stilettos 

Stilettos (Flip Flops) in the Sand

Stilettos in the South

Stilettos in Wine Country

Stilettos in Sturgis

You can find more about my writing and my books on my website www.cdeannerowe.com

You can also find out more about The Stiletto Girls on our website www.thestilettogirls.com.

Don’t be afraid to live your dreams.  Fate has plans for you but you have to do your part.

Remember Romance!  

1. Deanne Rowe

A breast cancer survivor story. Deanne’s Story.

One woman’s story of survival and her husbands love.

Click on the link below and read this beautiful story of survival and love.

My_Journey

Patriot by A.S. Bond

 

• Print Length: 263 pages
• Publisher: Castle Books (April 21, 2014)
• ASIN: B00JV60S88

 

Read and reviewed by Snow White

WOW! This book is full of suspense. Its a thriller I could not put it down it was a page tuner.  If you want a book you can not put down this is the one. I read it in one day. I can not wait to read more by this author. I am not going to tell you much about what I read as I want you to read this AMAZING book. You will not regret it.

The 4th of July is coming up that would be a great time to grab this book and read it!

5 stars all the way a+

Book Angels12 Was given a copy to read and review to take part in a book tour!

GET YOUR COPY TODAY

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

 

 

Author Guest Post

Five Things New Writers Should Always Do by A.S. Bond
So you want to be a writer? Think you’ve got what it takes? Maybe you are the next JK Rowling, but as everyone knows, even she languished on the rejection pile for a while…here’s how to give yourself the best chance of getting your literary voice heard.
1. Read. OK, I know it sounds silly and you probably devour books by the truckload, but are you doing the right kind of reading? Are you reading the genre you want to write in? If you love to read horror, but have decided to write romance because you think it is more ‘commercial’ or some similar reason, forget it; your heart won’t be in it. You also need to read quite critically. How does that author tackle introduce suspense or a new character? I highly recommend Bernard Cornwall’s advice, particularly the latter section, where he discusses how he analysed the work of successful authors before writing his own first novel http://www.bernardcornwell.net/writing-advice/
2. Start to think technically. You want to switch from being a consumer to a producer and that takes work. Writing is a craft, so learn it. Don’t buy into the rubbish about writers being born not made. To be successful you will need talent + luck + hard work. 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration is about right. Learn how to write fiction; do you understand ‘show don’t tell’? Can you create great dialogue? Have you eliminated all the cliché’s, overused adverbs and irrelevant description? Even if you have been writing for yourself for decades, it’s worth taking a class or joining a book group to get some objective feedback on your work. It’s easier to take than a pile of rejection notes or, even worse, a handful of cutting, 1* reviews on public forums.
3. Develop your own voice. The one thing both publishers and readers alike are looking for is originality. A new voice will excite your target readership and rack up those sales.
4. Don’t rush to publication. Are you confident your work is as good as it can be? Then take a step back. Put it in a drawer for a while and go do something else. When you’ve forgotten enough detail to make reading it seem fresh again, go through it. You’ll be amazed at what jumps out at you. Finally, whether you are going for traditional publication and submitting to agents and/or publishers, or taking the plunge into self publishing, I recommend hiring a professional copyeditor before sending out your manuscript. You don’t have to pay a big company thousands for this – although there are plenty out there ready to take your money – look up a well qualified individual on a freelance website like Elance or Guru. There are plenty of professionals who work at very reasonable rates. If you don’t want to spend a couple hundred dollars, you could be throwing away months or even years of your own work (and a possible new career) because of a few typos or easily remedied errors.
5. Whether you get a book deal, or self publish, be prepared to market yourself. Every day. The days of an author leaving all that to their publishers are long gone. Even really famous names still have to do a lot of ‘heavy lifting’ in terms of appearances, interviews etc. You’ll probably be focused on discoverability, which is particularly hard for self published writers. What all new authors should know however, is that even if you sign a deal with a big publisher, there won’t be glamorous launch parties, book tours etc. You will get a fraction of the attention of either an in-house or contracted publicist, who will send out a press release and everyone then waits with their fingers crossed. There’s libraries worth of advice out there on how to market yourself as a writer, both on and off-line, so take a look and get started long before your book hits the shelves.
*

A.S Bond is the pen name of Alexandra Pratt, an internationally acclaimed travel writer and journalist. Alexandra is also the author of six previous books, including Lost Lands, Forgotten Stories (HarperCollins, 2002), which is the story of her canoe expedition to Labrador that later inspired much of the ‘action’ in Patriot and The Day The Island Exploded, which is the story of her father-in-law’s real life escape from an erupting volcanic island in Antarctica. Now married and based in the west of England, Alexandra works as a freelance journalist and also writes adventure thrillers under the pen name A.S.Bond. ‘Patriot’ is an award-winning thriller, which debuted at #13 in its category on Amazon. It is the first title in her series of Brooke Kinley Adventures. For more information and the latest news, visit http://www.brookekinleyadventures.com

End

Queen of the Loch by Elizabeth >> Delana Rosa

 

 

About the Book:

COMING JUNE 13, 2014

Title:  Queen of the Loch

Series:  Children of the Loch Saga

Author:   Elizabeth Delana Rosa

Published:  Expected publishing June 13th, 2014

Word Count:  Approximately 42,000

Genre:  YA Paranormal

Synopsis:

Nineteen year old, Jaelyn Adena McDonnell, known as J.J. to all, just found out she is not who she thought she was. On her twentieth birthday, a handsome man shows up on her porch with a marriage edict and news that the grandfather she has never met, has died. Her world is about to change forever. J.J. must make the perilous journey to the Loch and take her place on its throne. With no idea, what is expected of her and dark forces closing in at every turn, will J.J. be able to accept her destiny or will she be stopped her before she can? Come join this first person account of a young woman’s journey to finding herself and those she meets along the way. Previously released as a free novella named Child of the Loch, this is a completely new novel based on the same premise with new characters, renamed characters and completely revamped story-line. The novella has stayed in the top 20 of Christian Fantasy and Science fiction Free Kindle since its publishing date in November of 2013. The expected publishing date is June 13, 2014. While it maintains a great level of clean reading and it references a faith, it is in no way preachy.

Bio:

Elizabeth Delana Rosa has always been a writer. When she first learned to write in Kindergarten, she wrote about pigs who “groo” wings and became “butterfys.” Elizabeth knew way back then that she would have a love affair with writing. It overtook her life and has been a constant companion. Now over 20 years later, that love flows over into writing blogs, reviews, poetry and fantasy novels. Lastly Elizabeth is a big nerd. She loves Fantasy, YA, Paranormal Romance, and Sci-Fi books. Her dream is to promote Authors and help them reach the highest level of Success, while writing her own YA and NA Fantasy Novels. She often says,

 I hope that my stories connect with people of all ages, genders and races. All it takes is a good story to unite people who wouldn’t normally be on the same side.

Follow Elizabeth on Social Media:

Gary Alan Ruse

 

WANT A GREAT WEEKEND READ? CHECK OUT ANY OF THESE GREAT BOOKS BY GARY ALAN RUSE.

Our review for Murder In Deer Park

They say “never judge a book by it’s cover”. Well, it is the cover that drew me to it. I recognized a picture of one of our Presidents, however, I did not recognize which one. My fault as I did not pay a lot of attention in school to either Sister Emily Clare or the textbooks. The President was
Grover Cleveland.

President Cleveland marries his young bride, who is 21 and he 49. They get married at the White House. To avoid nosy reporters they are swiftly taken to the private train by a horse carriage. The reporters get wind of this and decide to follow. Luckily, the President and first lady manage to get away. Away to a beautiful mountain resort in Deer Park, Maryland for their honeymoon

The reporters end up there, but the story turns out not to be the President but a murder of a young reporter among other things. There are people in the background plotting sinister things for their own benefit.

The quiet honeymoon turns into an adventure they could not have imagined. Thanks to the President, his wife and those sent to guard him things are solved and then they can go on with their lives.

I highly recommend this novella as it is an easy, interesting read. I give it 5 stars.

Now, if you excuse me I am off to my next adventure with Gary Ruse this time into the cold war.

Amazon

SmashWords

 

Bluebonnet Bride A Butterfly Palace Story By Colleen Coble

• Print Length: 58 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (April 1, 2014)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Christian Publishing
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00E68O02Q

 

 

Bluebonnet Bride A Butterfly Palace Story

By Colleen Coble
Published by Thomas Nelson

Read and Reviewed by Snow White

 

This is about an arranged mail order bride to a Texan.

A Texan who wants someone to take care of his niece. This story has break-ins, attempted murders, and a kidnapping. That is just a few things that happen in this great book.

I would recommend it to everyone I know it was a great compelling story.

5 stars A+

BOOKANGELS12 GOT A COPY TO READ AND REVIEW FROM BOOKLOOK.

 

 

The Rainbow Egg by M.D. Linda K. Hendricks

• Paperback: 24 pages
• Publisher: WestBowPress (November 27, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 144977539X
• ISBN-13: 978-1449775391

Read and Reviewed by Snow White

This was a great book for children kept my childs attention. She enjoyed it. She had us read it to her over and over. I would tell other parents to check this book out for their children.

My daughter wants us to read it again tonight. She really enjoyed this one. I even enjoyed this one.She is starting to read on her own so she is trying to read this one on her own also.

5 stars A+

BOOKANGELS12 GOT A COPY TO READ AND REVIEW FROM BOOKLOOK

Life, will It Take Me under! by Joan L Sample

• Print Length: 212 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0557333210
• Publisher: Joan L Sample; 5th edition (March 4, 2010)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B003C1QMT2

 

Read and Reviewed by Snow White

This book gives you an inside look to what happens when you get in with the wrong group of friends. Sadly this happens to many people. I really enjoyed this book. I would recommend it to people as it was a great read and makes you think about that life style.

5 stars all the way

A+

BOOKANGELS12 WAS GIVEN A COPY TO READ AND REVIEW IN RETURN FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.

Funny Conversations With God by Dunn Neugebauer

• Paperback: 254 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse.com (September 28, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1475950861
• ISBN-13: 978-1475950861

 

Read and reviewed by Evil Witch

This was a great book. I loved it. I laughed so hard at times also made me think. This book gives some great advice while making you think and laugh.

I would tell everyone I know to read this book.  I really enjoyed it.

5 Starts

A+

BOOKANGELS12 WAS GIVEN A COPY TO READ AND REVIEW FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.