Giveaway Madness - FUN!

Now that's cool - "Let's Do Lunch" and "50 Shades Darker" on the same page.

But the best is this one:



Hello La Nora! (Waves happily.)

 This giveaway has been a bright spot in my week. Pixel of Ink picked 'Let's Do Lunch' as one of their afternoon freebies. The numbers are staggering!

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #37 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store) 
#3 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Fiction > Genre Fiction > Romance > Romantic Suspense
As you can see - "Lunch" is also #9 on the FREE Contemporary Romance Chart.

• Now I have to drive home from Ashtabula without peeking for 9 hours! (WAAAA!)
  I'll check back later. 
  Related posts click here.

What Day Is It? I'm Soo Busy!

We have set up a base camp and after a few days of general running around I've started my research projects. Hey now, that's not as bad as it sounds. I've gotten to see friends and family - my cousin and my best friend from high school. There are still a few people I want to look up.

I've never felt isolated or out of touch in Kentucky, because my parents and my sister moved down. However, here I'm very aware of how many blood relations I have that I haven't seen in 20 or 30 years. Many of them can only be visited in graveyards.

Last night the wind came off the lake, dropping temps into the low 60's. We were fortunate to be surrounded by trees, so the camper got knocked around a little bit, intermittently.

Today my cousin took us down to Tinker's Hollow. Which, to my surprise is on State Road and has a covered bridge over the Conneaut Creek.

There is a vineyard nearby - not in the Hollow, because of the curse, you see.

I was also petitioned by some of the local flora to set them free. They were in a sandbank and doing poorly. I promised them a place in my garden. So I'm returning with a bucket full of Tinker's Hollow Tiger lilies.

I hate to admit this, but I'm a crappy researcher. I thought I could whip through the files on the Ashtabula Horror Bridge Disaster. Wrong, I did get a few things scanned, but didn't have the time or a quiet place to read through it all.

The Kingsville Public Library was a good place to start. I spent most of Monday there.

Today is Tuesday - we took a big slice of the Covered Bridge tour - Kingsville, Tinker's Hollow, Gageville, Ashtabula Harbor and Main street. Spent a couple hours at the Ashtabula public library too. I just scratched the surface there.

Also had the COOLEST encounter with Jim Drew, a writer, and his wife at the Marine Museum (which was closed - only open on weekends - I'll bet they're funded on a shoestring.) Jim writes SciFi - and has 1 book self-published to Amazon.

We exchanged email addresses - I gave him a couple URLs and blogs to check out. Told him to read to Dean Wesley Smith's "Think Like a Publisher' because it was the best place to get started. He mentioned being overwhelmed - which I understand - and not knowing what to do next.

I figured this was my chance to pay-it-forward in a big way.

WOW - what a day!

Trolls and Other Annoying Things

Just when I thought I was an obscure nobody - a troll came fishing for some docs and dropped an old tongue-in-cheek bio into a tiny Face Book forum. I'm so pleased to be so important that someone waded through 10 years of posts to find something worth dropping.

I've done my research - read several pages of Encyclopedia Dramatica (nope, no link today) so I know what the trolls are expecting me to do. Reactions like racing to cover my tracks (baleting), posting long rants against them (BAWWWING) and enlisting my friends to stalk them back (lollercoaster) are expected.

Gee, sorry guys.

I'm feeding them this post - and one on Face Book - to keep them scouring the interwebz for more lulz at my expense.

Why?

Because there is no such thing as bad publicity.

My book sales have shot up since this started. I've been busting my butt to advertise 'Swallow the Moon' - my paranormal romance set in Ashtabula - with no success.

Thanks guys! This keeps up and you will fund my next trip to Ashtabula!

Click here to see the paperback of 'Swallow the Moon'

Smashwords:

Barnes & Noble

Amazon US:

Amazon UK:

July 23, 2012
The number of hits this post has gotten requires me to make an update. The "Stop the Good Reads Bullies" from The Passive Voice.
There is a sociopathic insistence that the Trolls are the victims, even though they were the first to descend like raving harpies on targets chosen because 'they couldn't fight back.' They're running around, with tears in their eyes 'BWAAAAING' for all their worth, rationalizing and justifying their actions, denying they brought this on themselves. 
So it's come to a typical troll-fest - complete with internet-wide LOLLERcoaster. The Huffington Post has now been drawn into it. (Note to HP - grow a freaking SPINE!)

Whoever updates The Encyclopedia Dramatica should have enough LULZ to keep them laughing for years.

Procrastination Revelation

Yes, I've been procrastinating.

The 2nd proof of 'Swallow the Moon' is in the mail - but yours truly is leaving on Thursday for Ashtabula so it's not likely I'll have a box of paperbacks with me. This is a setback, not a disaster. After all, I think I'm entitled to grieve for my mother for 6 months without kicking myself in the head for my depression.

Well, I'll have a box of 'Let's Do Lunch' and '18 Days in September' for Dr. Allen Hunt, but 'Swallow the Moon' won't be likely to make the deadline. That's why I haven't been busting my butt to schedule book signings or any other publicity. The best place to launch the paperback for 'Swallow the Moon' is Ashtabula, but Fall is a better time than summer.

What I will do is take the proofs with me, and see if I can rustle up some book signings for the week of August 12, 2012 during the Ashtabula Native Reunion.

So far my itinerary includes Harbor Topkey Library, Beach Glass Festival, Kingsville Public Library, and Chestnut Grove Cemetary.

I'm looking for any information I can get on the Ashtabula Horror - a railroad accident that happened in 1876.

I'm currently reading up on the EPA reports (a personal obsession of mine since the first EPA report was handed to me by a friend in 1986. Found this little gem in the report I'm currently reading:

"Outside of the contaminated sediments, the Ashtabula River as a whole has some
of the highest water quality of any Ohio Lake Erie tributary. Because of this, the Ashtabula River
lacustuary and Harbor have a very high ecological potential. The system could potentially
support the highest quality fish community of any Ohio tributary and could provide unique
sporting and recreational opportunities that could draw attention from all of Ohio."

It appears that the Ashtabula River is not as hopelessly contaminated as many of us feared back in 1986. Perhaps it is possible to recreate the economy from the ground to the water and up, after all.

Road Trip!

Today marks the 7 day countdown for the Road Trip to Ashtabula and the Beach Glass Festival.

I wish I could say that I'll have copies of 'Swallow the Moon' to take with me. But I can't - the book is still in the proof stage and I doubt I can get copies in time. The project fell through the cracks while Real Life kicked my tush.

Regardless of setbacks (and there have been some doozies!) I've got the truck in the shop to get electric brakes, the tent camper is in the yard, waiting to be packed, and as of today I have a human traveling companion - hubby - as well Trouble for his very first Road Trip.

I called the campground to make sure there will be a space with electric (yep!) and the family has been warned that I'm coming into town, sort of. 

I've got a list of things I need to do - and a week to get them all done.

I didn't want to go by myself - Ashtabula isn't the safest place in the world. Some of my choices of traveling companion wouldn't work for a lot of reasons. The Fort Knox Kentucky area is just more progressive than 'Bula - some of my friends would get culture shock.

Hell, hubby gets culture shock every time we go to 'Bula - he says he's seen 3rd world countries that don't look as worn out and neglected as Main Street the last time we were there.

Speaking of narrow minds and shitty attitudes...some Troll dropped docs on a Face Book forum purporting to be "Open" for some minor lulz. Very minor - I actually sold a book because of him.

I considered opening an Encyclopedia Dramatica account to return the favor, but decided it would take up more time than it was worth.

Since the book isn't ready I didn't contact anyone about putting together a book signing. No book, no signing. But I might see what I can do at a later date. The camper makes going to 'Bula a minor financial project, not a major investment. (But I miss Cahill House! The breakfasts were incredible!)

I intend to post some pictures here from the Beach Glass Festival. It should be fun.

Stay tuned!

Da Frizzy

Often animals come into our lives in different ways.

Frizzy is a little white fluffy dog, kinda cute, in that lapdog way.

He's the only dog in the bunch who is utterly clueless. I've got two Jack Russel Terriers and a JRT, Mini-pin, Chihuahua and Beagle mix. All three are much smarter than Frizzy.

For instance - Mocha the Mutt wants on my lap, but Trouble is already there. She goes looking for his favorite toy, or a chewy, gets up on the couch, plays with it to get his interest, then drops it to the floor.

Trouble knows better than to fall for it.

Frizzy never figured it out. Poor dog.

Rand Paul & GOP #Think-Fail

I got another of those infuriating Emails from the GOP today. So I'm replying to it

 here on my blog.

Senator Rand Paul -

Your utter lack of compassion for women and family issues infuriates intelligent women.

You would gladly spread lies and propaganda instead of facing the historical facts of 'back-alley' abortions and the deaths and misery caused by illegal abortions instead of promoting FREE BIRTH CONTROL that would end the need for abortions. (And cost a lot less.)

Like the rest of the GOP you would rather create divisions with propaganda instead of creating solutions that would benefit the State you represent.

I detest the GOP War on Women. It will NOT gain any political power for anyone who perpetrates it - instead I expect to see many 1 term Senators and Representatives.

If you expect to gain re-election I suggest you moderate your position on Women's Rights. More than half the US population is female - they vote more frequently than men and are more likely to vote Independent or for the best candidate.

Kathleen Jordan - Voter and Democrat

 

This is an excerpt from the Office of Rand Paul - who sits next to Mitch McConnell. I'm ashamed to say these two blithering idiots represent the beautiful state of Kentucky where I make my home. 

Neither one appears to comprehend the difficulties that women face every day - married or single and especially not the special needs of single parents of either gender. Both appear to be as racist as they are sexist and anti-family.

When I see them on TV, I cringe.

"Now the time to grovel before the Supreme Court is over.... (UNLESS they rule against Health Insurance Reform then the GOP will grovel nicely.)

Working from what the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade, pro-life lawmakers can pass a Life at Conception Act and end abortion using the Constitution instead of amending it...
If you and other pro-life activists pour on enough pressure, pro-lifers can force politicians from both parties who were elected on pro-life platforms to make good on their promises and ultimately win passage of this bill.

But even if a Life at Conception Act doesn't pass immediately, the public attention will send another crew of radical abortionists down to defeat in the next election.

(Why stop there? Why not say that life begins with sperm? There is a bill that would make 'self-abuse' murder. I must say, it would be interesting to see it enforced since much of what Congress does is mental masturbation.)

 I know - getting my knickers in a twist over these things doesn't do me any good. But just as I had to file an FCC complaint against Rush Lumbaugh - I can't stop myself from firing back at GOP idiots. 

The GOP (Grand Old Patriarchs) haven't a clue about what it means to be middle-class and female. I have nothing but compassion for a woman whose choice of birth control has failed and is facing that terrible choice. I've seen the tears and the agonizing that women go through when they face an un-expected pregnancy.

But not only is the GOP trying to make abortion illegal - they are also trying to make ALL birth-control illegal. Which makes NO SENSE at all. This planet is already staggering under the load of over-population and exploitation of resources.

This is the WORST time in the world for a woman to be forced to have a child she can't afford to take care of. All social services in the safety net have been gutted already. We KNOW what the GOP thinks of 'welfare mothers' even as they force more women onto welfare by their short-sighted refusal to pass economic stimulus packages that might just get women back in the workforce.

This is one huge '#Think-Fail' on the part of politicians. 

Unfortunately - I don't think Senator Rand Paul is capable of anything else.

"Swallow the Moon" is Free

Just a quick note - I was able to get the 'price match' function on Amazon US to make "Swallow the Moon" free. So the books is free on Smashwords, Sony, and Barnes and Noble was supposed to make it free via Smashwords but hasn't for some reason.

While on the subject of Barnes & Noble - I gifted a copy of 'Swallow the Moon' to someone on B&N yet my royalty statement doesn't show the sale.

I'm concerned about that.

Especially in light of these posts on The Business Rusch post on Royalty Statements and The Passive Voice post about Harlequin contracts (via Joe Konrath) I'm not sure I should trust B&N. (Amazon is fully automated - with tested and true software. B&N's site is new and full of bugs.)

It appears to me that the Trade Publishing industry is corrupt beyond all redemption. The light at the end of the tunnel is that the Department of Justice agrees.

A Department of Justice (DoJ) audit may or may not bring the shady business practices of the Publishing Defendants Five to light. I know that Kris Rusch thinks it will and Passive Guy agrees. I trust their judgement as they have been right more often that not, but I can't see how 20 years of corruption is going to be put right.

Are the Defendants Five going to correct their errors and pay back royalties? This will be to the tune of millions, if not billions, of dollars. A crushing amount of money in a good economy - which we do not have.

Most likely these 1% elites will get a slap on the wrist and a public scolding.

After all - who of the 1% has more social standing than the publishing industry? Snobbery being what it its (a social ladder that the elites must also climb) one-upmanship puts the publishing industry just under Royalty and Wall Street moguls.

I've been watching for years as the current social/political battle unfolds. It is about the 1% - the human social hierarchy that we can't explain or fight because it is written in our DNA. Writers are on the bottom of the Publishing heap - though certain ones are elevated for the masses to worship - as long as they starve like good little tin-gods. Money is the tool used to keep score - not the only tool, but a powerful one.

Fortunately (or not) I have never believed in the caste system. I'm surely too old to start now. And I have digressed enough for one day.

"Swallow the Moon" will remain free for the rest of the week. Currently people are picking up about 100 copies a day. "Badlands Rescue" and "Let's Do Lunch" will go free over the weekend. After that we'll see how long it takes the prices to reset. Most likely another week or two.

After that I'm planning on taking a very long vacation - I've got a few things to do but I'm still planning on  being a part-time farmer for the summer and camping a lot.

Sorry for the Silence

I'm usually better at keeping the blog updated than this. I had a series of articles on chickens, geese and my new irrigation system planned. But Real Life is in utter Chaos since Mom passed away. I can't concentrate on any one task for more than a couple of minutes.

I'm in the process of getting ready to do some traveling this summer. This means the house and the farm have to be in order so I can leave. This is a huge project on it's own. So for now, I've given up the office in town, moved all my stuff back to the house, bought a camper which I'm slowly outfitting for a summer of fishing and maybe some research for the next Dark Harbor book. Also I've got plans to go to Ashtabula for the Beach Glass festival where I'm going to sell copies of 'Swallow the Moon' just for kicks.

Then, sometime in this mess, I need to start selling all the accumulated stuff my beloved hoarder of a mother has collected over the years. This will be interesting, but not the least bit fun.

So stayed tuned, but don't expect a lot.

I Have a Brown Thumb

Spring 2010 - The day after I planted. It looks great, but won't last very long.

Once upon a time, a long time ago, I had a green thumb.

I don't know what happened to it. All I know is that I don't have one anymore.

I miss having a green thumb.

I have two nice porches, one in the front and one in the back. The front one is where I do a lot of writing in the spring and for part of the summer. The front porch is about 35 feet long and 8 feet wide. It faces north east, catches some morning sun and is in shade the rest of the day. It's a perfect summer porch.

The logical thing to have in such a large, shady space is lots and lots of flowers. You know, fragrant herbs, trailing plants, big blooms in vibrant colors and plants that attract humming birds, butterflies and assorted cuteness. Big pots, little pots, window boxes and converted containers over-flowing with endless flowers, just like in all the garden magazines.

Only in my dreams, I'm ashamed to say.

Every year I start with high hopes. This year I'm going to be good and water every day. So, I buy a bunch of plants, potting soil and so forth, always with the very best of intentions.

Every year, I kill a bunch of plants. Last year, I even killed a bunch of Aloe Vera – a relative of the cactus.

I'm a hopeless brown thumb with a porch lined with pathetic pots of stunted, wilted, colorless weeds.

When we moved in, we had a deck that baked from morning until after noon. The only shade was an umbrella over a table. I spent very little time on the deck – complained that we needed a roof over it to make it a porch. It took a couple of years, but we got the roof. It made a difference on the entire house, an unexpected plus. I immediately moved outside, started putting up plants…and killing them.

At first I blamed it on no water spigot up front. I had to carry water from the house, so of course I lost a few (dozen) plants. So the next year I got a water barrel. It gave me more confidence, but it became a brothel for mosquitoes. I dropped a couple goldfish in the barrel, which took care of the mosquito brothel.

The plants still died – because I couldn't remember to water them every day.

After years as a plant serial killer, I was going to give up, put in silk flowers and dare the neighbors to notice.

Instead, I made a small investment.

More about that later – I've got to track down my camera.

Badlands' Rescue - FREE April 12th

In the spirit of the Fighting Irish - I'm offering the story of Ellie O'Grady, retired Army Captain on a rescue mission. She needs her ex-husband, Daniel "Grady" O'Grady to get her to the Badlands' mesa where their son's plane crashed. There's a blizzard coming, time is running out.

Ellie is the kind of woman who isn't afraid to put her ex-husband into an icy horse-trough to get his co-operation.

She's got her secrets, though, and Air Force Captain Evan Smith expects her to keep them.

The thing is, can she keep the two alpha-males from killing each other long enough to rescue the survivors?

I must admit this was a lot of fun to write. I laughed at Ellie's predicament, I hope you do, too.

Badlands' Rescue Amazon USA

Badlands' Rescue Amazon UK

Rush Has No Advertisers? Awww!

Saw it yesterday - the Official Voice of the GOP hasn't got enough advertisers to fill the next two weeks. His bosses at Premiere Radio have thrown open all his spots to local ad because everyone else has fled.

In fact, it was reported there was 5 minutes of DEAD AIR (complete silence) on his home show. That's right, not even enough 10 second or 30 second spots to keep out the flow going.

What a victory for women!

Yeah, he still ran his mouth about 'Nags' and other female-centric insults. But the proof is in the dead air, because radio will do ANYTHING to avoid silence. But they didn't even have enough Public Service Announcements to fill the time.

So, to all the FemiNazi's like myself who complained to advertisers, filed FCC complaints, and generally raised Hell with the Official Voice of the GOP - pat yourselves  on the back, ladies. We've put the old boar's balls between a rock and a hard place and squeezed until Rush, Premiere and Clear Channel all squealed like the cowardly swine they are.

Now, if the GOP has any collective intelligence at all - they will tip-toe as far from Rush as they can get - so the smell of dead, blasted ego doesn't get on them.

Because, ladies, we have won a Great Victory. Any time a celebrity is taken to task by a pissed-off public, those who fawn on said celebrity will desert him like rats from a sinking ship.