Come Sign up for our Christmas Kindle Event. The Christmas Kindle Event  is being hosted by Independent Inklings and runs from Nov 25th until Dec 1th

The holiday season is the perfect time to get your name and book in front of potential buyers. This event is geared to market your book and growing your fan base through your social media outlets.

The prize for one lucky winner will be a $139 Amazon gift card to buy a Kindle or to use as they like and an ebook from every author participating!

How do you participate? You promise to gift one of your ebooks to the winner and send $5 to djdull78@gmail.com via paypal. The $5 is going towards the kindle gift card and marketing the event.

The event is open to 50 participants and we will be marketing the books (in groups of 5) on the Online Magazine Taking Time for Mommy before the Event as well as all over twitter, facebook, and various websites.

Liz Schulte was nice enough to answer a few questions on her writing experiences. She is the author of Dark Corners, a mystery, chocked full of suspense and spine tingling moments. That will leave you wondering, who done it?

Blurb: Ella Reynolds knew from the first moment she walked into the old house someone or something was watching her. Waiting. Her husband's violent murder sent her spiraling into a world of grief and isolation, but Ella isn't alone. Who or what is responsible for her husband's death is still with her. Darkness has engulfed the past year of Ella's life. Everyday reality slips a little more between her fingers as she struggles to break free from her memories. She must look deeper into her past as well as the present to discover truth of her husband's homicide. A string of uncanny events takes place and practical explanations run thin as Ella follows the terrifying road to closure. As the past and present come to a head, Ella must decipher who or what the murderer is before it takes her as well.
Available through:  BARNES & NOBLE |  AMAZON
Find Liz on Facebook

Tell us a little bit about yourself I am just a normal girl from the Midwest with a wild imagination. I have always been a student of life and an observer of people around me. Reading is my passion, television is my obsession, and movies are my pleasure—especially when any of those things fall into a paranormal or scary category. I travel whenever possible, and social network entirely too much, so stop by and say hi.

 

When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
After I decided I didn’t want to be a lawyer or a forensic psychologist. Hahaha Those were my two main career objectives, but they didn’t really suit me. In the end it was better for me to write about characters who were only limited by the boundaries of imagination.

 
In your experience, what has been the toughest obstacle with writing?
I haven’t had much writers block or anything like that. For me it is finding the time to keep up with the ideas in my mind. I keep about five books going at once so I can get the ideas on paper, but there never seem to be enough hours in the day.


The easiest?
The stories come easiest for me. Ideas are constantly forming and swirling around in my mind. I love abandoning myself to characters and letting them take me on an adventure. 

What is the best piece of advice you’ve gotten about writing?
The best way to build your platform is to write more. I think as independent authors we all get tied down to the idea of marketing and networking, but we sacrifice our writing to do it. However, at the end of the day it is the stories you write and the characters you create that keep people coming back to you.

Do you plot and outline your books before you write them, or do you just go with the flow?
I do not plot, however, I plan on doing National Novel Writing Month this year and I will plot that novel with a method I learned recently. I can see the benefits of plotting if it doesn’t impede creativity.

Dark Corners is a suspenseful mystery with a serious creepy factor, how did you come up with the idea?
Dark Corners is part reality and part imagination. There were some strange occurrences that happened at my childhood home that I incorporated into the story, but mostly I think it came from a misguided youth of horror movies. hahaha

Was it difficult to write a character with the Ella’s personality?
Actually no. It was a relief almost. I love writing characters who aren’t concerned with what society thinks, and who do and say whatever they want. It is so much freer than life is for me and most people, I believe. Ella is in a dark place and she wallows in her pain without apology. She knows her flaws and embraces them, which makes me a pain in the butt as much as it makes her one of the most honest characters I have ever written.

 
If your lead character had one day to live, what would they do?
Wow, that’s a hard question. I think she would get Detective Troy to sail out on Lake Michigan with her  and spend a peaceful day with the wind in her hair and laughter on her lips.

 
If you were faced with a ghost, what would you do?
Question it until it got annoyed with me and left. Hahaha

 
Pick one song that best describes either your lead character or you book
Your Ghost by Greg Laswell

What are you currently working on?
My next book is the first in an urban fantasy trilogy called Secrets.

Blurb: While Olivia Martin observed life through her camera, the abyss gazed back at her. She discovers mysterious men follow her around, people close to her are dying, and her dreams are no longer her own as she falls head over heels for a perfect stranger. A chance encounter leads to an obsession that could destroy everything she has ever known or loved. Olivia is about to find out there is a lot she doesn't know and sometimes what you don't know can kill you.

Thank you, Liz! If you haven't read Dark Corners yet, what are you waiting for? It's a story that will force you to turn the page and leave goose bumps dancing up your spine! I am very much looking forward to reading more books from Liz Schulte

C.G Powell is the author of Spell Checked: Book 1 in the No Uncertain Logic Series. C.G Powell has created a unique world with her witches and vampires, instead of the ordinary tale we've all come to read about. <-----Click on cover to be directed to the Barnes & Noble website.

Buying Links
Amazon | Barns & Noble | Smashwords


Blurb: Broken relationships were a constant in Mae’s life, causing her to swear off men forever. Unwittingly lured to Ireland, Mae finds herself knee-deep in a hidden world she never knew existed and head over heels for the very man that tricked her to coming there. His deception is complicated by his own feelings for the one person that holds the key to merging the ancient races that once ruled the ancient word.
Mae finds herself in an underground world of witches, and vampires, which are half-breeds of aliens long gone. She learns about her own unique parentage and powers, which she must study in order to control, before they consume her.
Beck and Helen’s love for one another spans across a millennium, her human soul reincarnated to match Beck’s own immortality. This time however the body she occupies is of a being that cannot be eclipsed by her return. After waiting two hundred years, Beck finds himself tormented by Helen’s inability to return and his growing love for her new host.
Some of the underworld creatures welcome her with open arms as a savior, while others seek to destroy the abomination they believe her to be. Will the knowledge of her existence cause a race war when the true power of her blood is discovered? Or will love become her ultimate downfall?

Tell us a little about yourself – Let’s see...I was raised in Louisiana, after High school I joined the Navy and spent 16 years traveling the world, where I met my husband of 16 years.  We currently make our home in Virginia, in the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains, living small town life, where I tend to spend much time abusing the local authorities just for entertainment.   
Click on C.G's picture to be directed to her FB fan page ----------------------------------->

 

In your experience what has been the toughest obstacle you’ve faced with writing?   The toughest part for me was the grammar, I am not a writer, but a story teller so, the mechanical portion of writing was and still is my biggest obstacle.  Although, like they say, practice makes perfect, the more I write and learn the rules the better my writing becomes....Less work for the editor.

 
What do you find is the easiest?  The story itself, it is rare for me to hit a wall when I write, except maybe when I have to research a past event.

 
Do you plot and outline your books or do you just go with the flow?  I do make a loose outline just to keep me on track, otherwise I think I would end up just pointlessly babbling (my characters like to talk a lot).  It helps me to organize what needs to happen next.

 
How did you come up with your story?  I have always disagreed with the logic behind vampires, witches and other mythological beings.  My need to make scientific sense of these creators drove me to the concept of writing them the way I felt was scientifically possible.

 

Were there any specific people who played the roles of your muses?  In Spell Checked there is only one character that has a physical muse that they were modeled after, and that would be Alexis.  The real Alexis is much like the one in the book, the other characters had photo muses of what I thought they might look like. 

 

If your main character had one day to live, what would they do?  They would have sex!  Isn’t that what you would do if you only had one day.

 
How long does it take you for finish a novel?  Spell Checked took me 3 months to write and another 2 to edit and publish.  Book 2 “Exile Bytes” is taking a bit longer due to summer vacation and the kids being home.

 
When faced with writer’s block, what do you do?  I go back and read the chapters before the one I am stuck on.  I feel like it gets me back in the mind of the characters, it makes me think, what would they do next?  I usually don’t get writers block, my bigger nemesis is getting constantly distracted.  I have a problem staying at the keyboard for more than 20 minutes at a time, even when my head is full of story to get down on paper.



Where do you find motivation?  The need to complete what I have started is what drives me to sit and write.  It is the reason I only work on one project at a time, I like to commit 100% to that project alone from start to finish.


What’s the best piece of advice you’ve gotten about writing?   Get an editor!  It is what separates good writing from fantastic writing.

Pick one song that best describes your book, or the personality of your lead character.  Bring me to life by Evanescence was one of Beck’s songs...He needed for Mae to bring him out of the darkness that his love of Helen left him in.  Book 2 “Exile Bytes” has a very different feel to it, one of the songs that comes to mind, for Beck, in this book is What I’ve Done by Linkin Park.  Beck is finally going to tell us what he did in his past that almost destroyed the world.

What are you currently working on?  I am working on “Exile Bytes” which is the second book of the No Uncertain Logic series.  This book is a little darker than the first, as it starts off with catastrophe and death.  It also gives us a look at the world of vampires and the Veshtu home world.  You will also get a glimpse of a couple of other alien races that have visited Earth and still continue to.


C.G. Powell---Author of Spell Checked: Book One of The No Uncertain Logic Series

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Olivia Hardin is a newbie to the writing world. I'm told that her first book Witch Way Bends should be released by November, so finger's crossed. I have personally read her book and i loved it and you guys will too!
Part of my blog is asking the advice of both published and unpublished author's It's a different look at both sides of the fence and being a newbie myself, i really connected with Olivia's answers.


Blurb:  Devan Stowe had only one thing on her mind when she teamed up with Kent Crosby and his men; putting an end to her own father’s dirty business of selling children. Her fixation sends her on a journey of discovery of the true energy within her self and in the process connects her to the one man she was destined to love. In his arms she’ll learn to trust herself, unlocking an amazing gift that will free her from her past and open up a future of magic, faeries and otherworldly creatures…

Tell us a little about yourself Being a native Texas girl I of course live in the beautiful Lone Star state with my husband of 14 years; and when I’m not writing stories or spending time with loved ones, I work as a legal assistant.  Although I was never one who excelled in school, the university classroom was an exhilarating experience and I sometimes wish I could just be career college student, studying anything and everything I want on a whim.   I guess that’s partially why writing is so much fun – I can us it to explore whatever my heart desires!
If you click on the picture of Olivia you'll be directed to her Facebook Page --------->

 

Can you tell us a little bit about what your WIP (Work in progress) is about?
I’m working on a trilogy called Bend-Bite-Shift.  Book 1 Witch Way Bends was finished just over a month ago.  It’s the story of Devan Stowe who’s on a mission to end her father’s trafficking of children.  When she teams up with Kent Crosby she discovers she’s actually a fabled faery-witch and the children her father sells are actually desired by a coven of vampires for the magic of their blood.  In the end she’ll learn the strength of her own inner-being and also the power that can be had by connecting with true love. 

I just started Bitten Shame, Book 2; which is the story of Devan’s best friend Jill Prescott.  Jill’s journey began years before Bend when she became a paid companion to a very sexy vampire known as “Doc”.  Book 3, Shifty Business will be the story of a shape-shifting witch named Gerry who works for Kent alongside a mouthy, hot-headed dhampire named Nicky.

 

Why did you decide to become a writer?
Because of the voices of course!  My mom likes to tell the story of when I was a little girl on the “potty seat” and she would listen to me carry on an entire conversation with my imaginary friends.   *blushing*

These days the voices talk to me in dreams.  I think it’s just what I am.  I started turning dreams into stories when I was around thirteen or so, writing them in spiral notebooks almost constantly.  By high school I was typing out “historical” romances on our home computer and passing them around to my friends.  When I got to college, the writing somehow faded away.  It wasn’t until last year that I remembered how much I really missed it.  Now it feels so good to weave these thoughts onto paper, I almost can’t imagine not doing it.

 

What has been the biggest obstacle you’ve faced in writing?
Time.  Although I’m not a mom like so many of my fellow writers, I’m pretty busy.  I work full-time as a legal assistant, I’m active in a local grassroots movement, I’m the social chairperson for my property owner’s association and I work closely with my husband’s pilot’s association.  It seems like there always something going on for us, not to mention our newest addition to our family, a Corgi-mix puppy named Bonnie.

 
What’s the easiest?
Writing dialogue.  I love writing dialogue and sometimes I wonder if I put too much of it in my stories.  I probably neglect being descriptive to an extent because I focus so much attention on either vocal discussions or even mental ramblings.  Probably has something to do with the fact that I’m sort of a “gabber.”  I can be pretty chatty when I get going.

 

How did you come up with your characters?
My female characters have a strong connection to “me.”  Devan’s probably a lot like me because she doesn’t put enough stock in herself.  She’s pretty, but not gorgeous.  She’s sharp and can make good decisions, but she doesn’t trust herself.  It’s been a little tougher to write Jill because she’s different.  She’s a bombshell and she knows it.  She’s also bubbly and sometimes gives in to immaturity.  But even she has to find her real self and has to come to understand that she has more brains than she gives herself credit for… I guess for my female characters it’s about the journey of discovery of self.

As for the men, I follow a general pattern.  First off he’s sexy as hell!  And to me sexy has so many meanings.  It’s not just physical looks, but could be a movement, the way he walks, the way he carries himself, a look in his eyes.  He’s strong and sometimes hard, but he’s someone a girl can count on and lean on.  Most importantly, he’ll trust her implicitly when they’re in a pinch.  That said, he’s better because of her and the development of that bond is the fun part of building those character relationships.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve gotten about writing?
Probably the best advice has been to write every day if at all possible, even if it is only a few words.  There have been times that I stop writing.  I’m too busy, don’t feel inspired, etc.  But then I get lost and nervous and worried that I’ll never get it back.  If I just make myself do a little bit each day then I keep connected with the “spirit” of the process and then I don’t get so bogged down later.

 

What do you do when faced with writer’s block?
Wow, what a segue, eh?  I’ve tended to get the worst writer’s block when I’m reaching a part of the story I’m not comfortable with.  For instance I had a real problem with the “fight scene” in Witch Way Bends, so to get past that I did a few things.  First, I read action scenes from several of my favorite books.  Then, when I was ready to start fleshing out the scene in my mind, I listened to mood music.  I’ve referred to it before, but I really like to listen to “Uprising” by Muse.  Otherwise, just writing through it.  Even if you have to throw out or rewrite it later, just get something down on paper.

 

Pick a song that best describes your story or lead character.
Alva Leigh’s “Calling Me”.  I listened to this song early in the writing process and it struck me as sort of magical and ethereal in some way.  Also, there’s a certain line that has very special relation to the “Bend-Bite-Shift” Trilogy.  I wish I could say more but that will have to wait until AFTER Witch Way Bends gets published.

Are you planning on self-publishing or going the traditional route? Reasons behind your choice
Well, because I’m pretty impatient, I’ll probably self-publish.  I figure I do this because I enjoy it and although I’d love for millions of people to read my words, being picked up by a publishing company and “making it big” isn’t what this is about.  Now if I were lucky at some point to catch the attention of a publisher, I certainly wouldn’t ignore the call.  But for now, self-publishing seems the most realistic to me.  And I like the idea of building my own following; connecting with people one-by-one is really fascinating to me.  The process is almost like a story all unto itself – a story within the story. 

 
What genre do you feel most comfortable writing and why?
Well I consider myself a romance writer, but one of my critique partners recently said they thought my writing wasn’t so much romance as fantasy/adventure with romance mixed in.  The truth is I love, love stories and I don’t just mean romantic love.  I’m inspired by the affection between siblings, friends, parent and child.  The intimacy of relationships on all levels captivates me and I’d like to explore those as well.  And I’m not all about the happy ending either.  One of my favorite books, Through a Glass Darkly by Karleen Koen was a terribly tragic novel, but it moved me in a way that very few books ever have.  I’d like to be able reach someone like that one day.

 

If you could give aspiring authors a tip, what would it be?
Don’t give up.  And when you feel like giving up, network with someone.  The writer’s I’ve connected with through Facebook have given me the support I’ve needed to trudge on.  No matter what problem I have, no matter what is holding me back, all I have to do is call on one or all of them and they talk me through it.  If this is your dream, then close your eyes and dream it.  “You” are the one that truly matters.

 
When can we expect to read your work?
Well, when I finished Witch Way Bends I thought I wanted to publish immediately, but I’m taking my time to be sure I get it right.  Choosing the right editor has been quite a task and also as I’ve started fleshing out the next two books in the trilogy I’ve discovered some “connectors” I need to add in order to keep the books cohesive.

So, to answer your question, I’m shooting for November at this point.  Finger’s crossed.


Thank you, Olivia! Be on the look out for Witch Way Bends folks!

Angela K Roe was nice enough to answer a few questions and share her experiences of the writing world. Author of the book This Montana Man: Book 1 in the Walker Ridge Romance, available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Or click on picture to be directed to Amazon!!



Blurb: Caroline Edwards takes a year's lease on a run-down farmhouse in the middle of Montana. She needs the solitude to complete her newest novel. Jamie Overton isn't pleased that his mother rented out the old house and thinks it should be torn down. When he meets Caroline, he's convinced this city girl is out of her element. Will those sparks grow stronger when Caroline's ex puts in an appearance?

Tell us a little about yourself My name is Angela K Roe and I’m married to my best friend, Phil. He’s very supportive, thankfully. He reads everything I write and gives me advice and guidance. Phil publishes all of our self-published work and helps me edit works for other publishing companies so I’d honestly be lost without him.

In your experience what has been the toughest obstacle you’ve faced with writing?
In my experience, finding the time to write is the toughest obstacle. We have a large family so we have all the normal things that keep me busy as a mother, but I also write SEO web content for a living. The life of a freelance writer is feast or famine so that’s supplemented with temporary work. Balancing all of that makes it tough for me to carve out the time to write fiction. But it’s a double-edged sword, because the more work an author as available, the more successful they are so I have to make that time, because that’s what I’m driven to do and because it only enhances my success.

What do you find is the easiest?
The actual writing for me is the easiest and the most fun. My characters are clamoring for attention; they want their story told and are quite insistent. Once I sit down to write, I honestly get lost in the story.

Do you plot and outline your books or do you just go with the flow?
I do not outline or plot in advance. I have a very general idea of what’s going to happen but my characters lead me on a merry chase as the story unfolds. Plotting and outlining works for a lot of people, and honestly, it sounds like it would be easier to complete a project, but when I plot or outline, the story stalls. Once I toss out the preconceived plot lines, it flows again. So for me, as much as I’d like to, it simply doesn’t work.

How did you come up with your story?
Usually in my dreams or because of a phrase I’ve overheard. Most of them come to me in my dreams. I’ll wake up after having dreamt a complete story and scribble madly to get down the main points…sounds like plotting, doesn’t it? Really, it isn’t, because once I start writing the story, it changes dramatically from the original dream.

The phrases are also very common and are usually a collaboration with Phil. We will hear a phrase that for some reason, strikes us and we’ll start talking about different ideas. Once we have a general idea of what it should be, I write it.

Were there any specific people who played the roles of your muses?
I suppose my characters are my muses. That may sound odd, but it’s the characters that are constantly butting into my daily life and they won’t leave me alone until I’ve started their stories. As far as real people are concerned, it would be my family. My husband, my kids and my parents are enormously supportive. They’re the most outraged at rejections and the most proud at acceptances and they are my best advertising, as well. I sometimes wonder if their friends hate me or get tired of hearing about me! =)

If your main character had one day to live, what would they do?
She would spend it with the people she loves and the people that love her. Just sharing each other’s company, laughing and crying and being together, cramming as much life into one day as possible.

How long does it take you for finish a novel?
When I can write full time, it takes me about a month, maybe six weeks. When I’m writing non-fiction or working outside the house, it can take years. I have some stories I’ve started and never gone back to. It varies from project to project.

When faced with writer’s block, what do you do?
I forget how fortunate I am, until I hear this question. I rarely have writer’s block and I attribute that to a writer’s group I belonged to several years ago. This particular group was a prompt-based group so we would gather at a local bakery after they closed and the leader of the group would read a prompt comprised of a single sentence or phrase. We would all go to separate tables and write a complete story around that prompt and 20 minutes later, we shared our stories. When I was participating in this group, I honestly had no idea that I was learning one of the greatest lessons in my professional career.

When I occasionally find myself stalled, I typically look at the previous sentence and treat it as a prompt, writing whatever comes to mind. What I write from that prompt rarely stays in the final manuscript, but it does get me over the stall and back to writing. I am forever grateful to the women of that group and I miss them dearly.

Where do you find motivation?
My motivation is to make my living as an author. It’s what I’m driven to do; it’s what I’ve been dreaming of since I was a small child. I don’t want to be a writer, at my very core, I am a writer. I have no more choice about that than I did over the color of my eyes, it’s just who I am. To contribute to my family’s financial success while writing stories that entertain children and adults…really, what could be better?

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve gotten about writing?
The best advice I’ve ever received is write when it’s time to write and edit when it’s time to edit. What that means is write the story first and don’t stop the writing or creative process to edit what you’re writing. So if I’m writing about a gun and I need to know the size and weight of the gun, I don’t stop to look up that information. I write a note, directly in the manuscript, to research the specifics of the gun and I go on with the writing. If I spell a word incorrectly, I don’t fix it while I’m writing, nor do I make grammatical changes while I’m writing. When I write the story, that’s all I’m focusing on. Editing comes after the story is done. This advice is essential, for me personally, in finishing manuscripts. Stopping to do the mundane tasks like researching and editing kills the creative aspect of writing. If I’m not creative, I can’t write.

Pick one song that best describes your book, or the personality of your lead character.
Oh wow, terrific question…a song that describes the book…I think the song that works best is “This” by Darius Rucker. The song talks about how he wouldn’t change any of the choices he made previously, even the ones that hurt, because it brought him to this moment.
Having said that, I have to address Caroline’s personality. What I love about her is how tough she is. She’s got such strength and such spunk but she’s also very vulnerable. She’s smart, funny and sassy and she’s someone I’d love to be friends with in real life.

What are you currently working on?
I’ve got several projects that I’m actively working on. The second in the Walkers Ridge Romance series is about a third of the way complete and I also have the second volume of Carried Away that will be complete, probably today. Once it’s complete, it’ll be released a day or two after that.