So as a nod to readers, and well a shameful way to promote my book I have a coupon.
Promotional price: $2.00 Coupon Code: XT76B Expires: February 14, 2013
It will only last for a couple of months, but it will drop the price of the book substantially, 75% off to be exact. Pass it around if you'd like to, the great thing about Smashwords is it keeps track of your numbers.
Merry Christmas!!!
Oh and as an added bonus the wonderful dude I found online that resembles the image of Duncan in my head has tons of pics on 123rf.com. Lucky for you I've got a christmas surprise of the visual kind.
Lorelei was late to our interview even though I checked, and rechecked the specific time a dozen times. After countless text messages,
directions and missed meetings. The interview finally took place. It’s a funny thing to actually meet your character face to face (so to speak). For a long time I lived inside Lorelei’s head while I wrote down her story. She arrived on her bike, wearing her signature denim shorts, knee high boots and a tank top. She didn’t smile when I extended my hand.
Me: “Hi Miss Preston, I’m so happy to finally meet you.”
Her: “Right can we move this bitch along; I have real shit to do today.”
Me: “Yes, of course…so Miss Preston-“
Her: “Lo, call me Lo, I’m not eighty.”
Me: “Okay sorry, Lo...”
A long pause stretches between us. She’s tapping her foot anxiously and I can’t help but wonder why I made her so utterly bitchy. Even to me her creator she’s snarky, it kind of sucks.
Me: “Right so, what can you tell me about yourself?”
Her: After a snort and snide smile she says….”I’m impatient, about as cuddly as a porcupine, and I don’t do relationships.”
Me: “Aren’t you currently in a relationship?”
Her: Smile disappears. “Depends on who you ask, I say we have an understanding, he thinks like an ape-man and therefore thinks he owns me.”
Me: “What would you like the readers to know?”
Her: “I’m not nearly as bitchy as you make me look.”
Me: “Right.”
Her: “I’m not, I just don’t like bullshit.”
Me: “Uh huh.”
Her: “People are idiots, they lie, they cheat, they all play this polite bullshit game and no one says what they really think or feel. I think they should, in fact I’m an advocate of STBS.”
Me: “STBS?”
Her: “Stop. The. Bull. Shit.”
Me: “And that makes you less bitchy somehow?”
Her: She narrows her eyes and sits forward. “You are absolutely right.” She sits back flopping in the chair and sighs. “I really am an asshole.”
Me: I nod along with her realization.
Her: “I guess I’m just as oblivious as everyone else.” She looks a little sick to her stomach.
Me: “No one’s perfect.”
Her: Snort. “Nope, I hear your cousin found 18 mistakes in the book.”
Me: “Right.” Now I feel sick.
Lorelei gets up from her chair, a smile firmly pulling at her lips.
Her: “Well I gotta get, I’m sure we’ll uh…be hearing from each other.” She turns on her heel and exits.
I have no words to say before she’s gone. The interview’s over before it ever even started.
So I suck, big surprise there I'm sure. A bunch of people signed up for The Wild Hunt giveaway a little over a month ago and I still have not got the books in the mail.
To the three people that won. I am truly sorry for being such a scatterbrained moron. Those books will be in the mail this week. If I had more money I'd put something awesome and expensive in the envelope with the book, like gold, or diamonds.
I hate being a flake, but I am one. I think flake should be in the dictionary next to writer. It should be a permanent explanation for forgetfulness and being tardy. "Hello secretary at my sons school, I'm a writer, therefore no further description is necessary to explain his constant tardiness, lack of jacket, lunch, backpack etc.
When I write not only do I pull experiences and places from my own life as inspiration, but I also use music, pictures, movies, etc. as well.
The picture above is what I envision when I describe the house that Duncan lives in.
The home is Victorian, old, and beautiful. It was passed down through generations, just like his own powerful ability. It belonged to his father. I imagine it would have more trees and out buildings on the property. A place for Duncan to work on bikes and for Travis to paint.
In Concord itself is Custom E Bikes, the business his father started. Everyday Duncan is reminded of his missing father, one of the reasons he left Concord five years ago. For a while he travelled alone, but once his brother Finley started getting into trouble (more so than normal) his mother sent him to Duncan to try and straighten him out. It didn't work.
Duncan never did find his father, but rogue Cwn Annwn's don't do well outside the pack structure. They tend to get into trouble by nature and without an alpha to keep a hound in check they almost always turn to crime. It's too easy for them not to use their abilities to steal, cheat, or harm humans.
I like to think that Duncan is a man's man. The kind of man that is rare in these days full of skinny jeans, eye liner, and the metro-man. It's all about preference really. Some girls like the pretty boy metro thing, I don't. I like men that can work with their hands and get dirty. The ones that have muscles not from a gym but from actual hard labor. The kind of men that look good shirtless and sweaty. Scruffy men, manly men, the men that throw you down in hay lofts or in fields and have their dirty hot way with you.........anyone else feeling a little warm all of the sudden?
Back to Duncan, even though he's a mans man, and tough and all that extra testosterone crap, he's still flawed, and real. He can get testy and pushy. He steps on Lo's toes and doesn't listen half as often as he should. My hope is that he comes across as real, and layered.
For a limited time The Wild Hunt will be available on Amazon for a discounted price of $3.99. The promotion will only last for a while so get your ebook copy today!!!
Yes, I am sorta quoting Poltergist. It is October after all, the bestest, scariest, most funnest month of the year, (ignore grammatical errors, its been a while).
So in honor of my favorite time of year, and my book launch, I decided to move, you know physically, with boxes and trailers and painting, because I didn't have enough going on. Seriously.....what in the hell was I thinking?
Not only did everything go wrong that could go wrong (almost three weeks without TV, Internet or phone, yes I almost died) I literally had, past tense, seven truck loads and one large trailer of junk. Junk. I only lived in the house for four years. Why did I have so much crap you might ask? I honestly don't know, it just happens. Even with the eight loads, I still have boxes upon boxes of Halloween decorations in my attic, and more out on the front porch being displayed. If I get a chance I'll post pictures.
So back to the book......well the launch is still on, it just may not be as polished as it should be, but that's life. A friend offered to edit it, and I think I'll take her up on it. Hopefully the daunting deadline doesn't scare her away. I know I am, but I also know that I've done what I can for my story. I've babied it long enough its time to release it out into the world. Be free Wild Hunt, soar through the sky and all that other hopeful, positive, nauseating stuff, I wish I had time to fluff it up, but really, the book speaks for itself. Some will love it, some will hate it, and all I really want is the know, know what readers see when they read it, the voices they hear, the images their imagination conjure up. Did I do my vision any justice........I think I did, but you just never know.
Starting October 1st I will host giveways (besides the goodreads) to promote The Wild Hunt. It will include loot, I either make myself or find on etsy or amazon ect.
Duncan oh Duncan where.......... in the hell are you?
Yes, I realize that is NOT Shakespeare. Half way through I couldn't remember the line, where art thou, wherearthout, is it all the same word or three separate, is it even the right three words? I went in confident lost my bearings and said screw it. It happens, I get potty mouth, its like the flu, only worst because it's constant. I'm rambling. I posted these two pics on my author blog, and thought I'd share them here on the book blog.
Why do I have two blogs you might ask?
Because I obviously have too much damn time on my hands. I'm feeling a bit facetious, hence the uncouth words, and soft profanity. Soft you know like hell and damn, not the really dirty wordies. Heh I crack myself up. So anyways.......the point.....yes I remember!!
I wish I could tell you who this model is, but I
have no clue. All I know is that I found the dude on www.123rf.com, it's my place for stock photos.
Really it's one of the cheapest places out there. It takes a little more digging
to find what you are looking for, but you'll spend less when you do. So here he
is, the closest thing I could find to what's in my head.
His hair is a bit
short in the pics above but he looks so dark and dirty who cares. I think he
looks a little like Matt Bomer (Magic Mike, White Collar). Albeit he's a
scruffier not nearly as pretty Matt Bomer. You can't tell from these pics but
the actual model has a crooked nose which I love because Duncan does. Luckily
there are tons of pictures of him so that I can treat the female
readers pretty often to some Duncan eye candy.
Not long ago I discovered Spotify, and have since been a convert/addict. Before Spotify I used Itunes, Pandora, Playlists, Amazon cloud, any number of separate sites to listen to music in the hopes that I would be inspired.
I think music plays a huge part in creating anything. I listen to music while I cook, when I have a home improvement project, and the rare times when I clean (I HATE cleaning). Music can set a mood, or a tone to the work you are doing. You blare some fun catchy beat and shake your butt, it brings you up, and lightens your mood. You listen to a somber song that makes you remember a lost love, or mistake, or someone that is no longer living, and it knocks you down, makes you able to use those feelings to write a great scene.
In honor of music inspiration and well my own OCD behavior I'm going to give a list of songs I listened to when I wrote The Wild Hunt. Its under a playlist on Spotify named conveniently The Wild Hunt.....so without further ado.......
THE WILD HUNT PLAYLIST
1. "9 Crimes"-Damien Rice
2. "Awake my Soul"-Mumford & Sons
3. "Blood Bank"-Bon Iver
4. "Catch your Breath"-Gus Black
5. "Closer"-Kings of Leon *
6. "Down by the Water"-Pj Harvey *
7. "Endless Melody"-Clarensau*
8. "Goin to the Party"-Alabama Shakes
9. "Green Valley"-Puscifer
10. "Howlin for You"-The Black Keys*
11. "Hurt"-Nine Inch Nails
12. "I would Trade"-Clarensau
13. "Judas"-Julie Feeney
14. "Lies"-The Black Keys
15. "Mad World"-Michael Schulte
16. "My Father's Father"-The Civil Wars
17. "Night Terrors"-Wild Sweet Orange
18. "Passive"-A Perfect Circle
19. "People C'mon"-Delta Spirit
20. "Poison & Wine"-The Civil Wars*
21. "Psycho"-Puddle of Mudd
22. "Pyro"-Kings of Leon
23. "Radioactive"-Kings of Leon
24. "Salt in the Wound"-Delta Spirit
25. "Sheets"-Clarensau
26. "Speaking a Dead Language"-Joy Williams*
27. "Teardrop"-Jose Gonzalez
28. "The End"-Kings of Leon
29. "The Funeral"-Band of Horses
30. "The Hollow"-A Perfect Circle*
31. "The Immortals"-Kings of Leon
32. "The Wolves"-Ben Howard*
33. "Tip of my Tongue"-The Civil Wars
34. "To Bring you my Love"-Pj Harvey
35. "Volcano"-Damien Rice
36. "Whisper"-A Fine Frenzy
37. "You Ain't Alone"-Alabama Shakes
*---Songs that were a HUGE inspiration for the book!
I also have lists for character's and ghosts, but I'll put those up at a different time!
I have noticed that a lot of readers (myself included) always wonder where an author gets their inspiration. For me, aside from folklore and mythology, I use places I know. That means my places like Pinecrest and Grey Lake for instance, are based on real places.
Pinecrest is based on Oakhurst in California, a place where my father and brother still live. I have spent many summers and vacations in Yosemite, and over the years I fall a little farther in love with it. It's beautiful.
Grey Lake is based on Bass Lake. One of the best lakes to swim in because of its cool-warm water. It can get up to 80 degree's in the summer. But no matter what, its a great lake for water play, floating and the like.
And because of my love of places and using real life as inspiration, I also used one of my favorite haunts at Bass Lake as a loosely based model for Lyle's Bar/Restaurant/Store.
The Forks, is kind of a landmark up there. The locals love it, and so do the tourists. The opposite sides of the lake is pretty accurate too, but again I took poetic license with everything. The North is rich and resorty, while the south is old cabins and campgrounds. If you ever make it up to Yosemite, stop by The Forks in Bass Lake, have a Forks burger and eat on the outside porch or the dock, its awesome. I'm too mean to share my favorite beach to swin at, but I will say this, it's southside.
All the pictures can be found on The Forks Resort website. The dock is a great place to rent a boat. My younger brother and step siblings all actually worked at Forks. I never had the honor, but I do eat their burgers whenever I'm up there. Gotta love Bass Lake. Other nods to the area are Half-Dome, a real and very scary hike. Yosemite Valley, the creek, and Sugar Pine Railroad.
Concord is a complete figment of my imagination. No such place exists, sadly. And that about sums of my real-life inspiration.
