Blog Tour de Force+The Indie Book Collective=Free Books! (Also, some book review updates)
I first stumbled upon Blog Tour de Force a few months ago, well past the Veteran’s Day tour where each author gave one free book to each commenter AND a soldier. I thought that rocked. I mean, that really rocked! Maybe it’s my family’s past in the military that made me extra excited about that, but maybe not. I mean, my husband was a Marine, not a soldier, but still. Anything that benefits soldiers, readers, reviewers, and blog visitors is a huge win. And free books? What’s not to love?
I signed up, of course, because I wanted to participate in the reviews in 2012, hoping the Veteran’s Day tour returns. So I’m on the Blog Tour de Force mailing list, and if you’re not on there, too, you should be. Here’s why:
Everyday this week I’m getting an email about the Indie Book Collective’s “Get Loaded” tour. One author a day is giving away a free copy to every commenter. It’s that easy. In addition, the IBC is doing other giveaways, including a free Kindle, and authors are giving away gift baskets.
Here’s the lineup:
- January 23: A Hustler’s Promise by Jackie Chanel
- January 24: Neiko’s Five Land Adventure by AK Taylor
- January 25: ANEW by Chelsea Fine
- January 26: Book of Mercy by Sherry Roberts
- January 27: Secrets (Guardian Trilogy: Book 1) by Liz Schulte
It’s a blog hop, and I’m pretty sure you can catch up on past participants until the end of the week, so it’s not too late. I really love authors who participate in these kinds of things. They deserve some support and definitely some reviews, so if you receive a free book, make sure you review it for them. It’s good karma.
SPEAKING of book reviews, I’ve updated Blackbird with the following:
The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga
Scarlet: Book 1 by Brian Michael Bendis (Issues 1-5)
The Forest of Hands & Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Well, enjoy. I hope you all have an excellent Wednesday.
Ramblings for January: eBooks, Reviews, and the Question of Romance
Just a quick note here to let you all know I’m still alive. Unlike this time last winter, when I was fat and pregnant, I’m not getting many opportunities to be online.
A couple updates.
One, I finally have an eReader. A Kindle Fire, to be specific. Which means that soon I’ll be able to accept eBook copies for review. Right now on the Kindle, I’m reading Rutger Klamor’s Z Strain and Dalya Moon’s Practice Cake. I’m liking it. It’s different from print copy, of course, but still good (in my head, I sound like Stitch from Lilo & Stitch: broken, but still good. Yeah, still good.) I don’t know if I’ll ever prefer it to print copy, though- but I’m pretty happy about the doors it has opened so far.
Two, I’m changing my format for my book review blog to simply publish my Goodreads reviews. They’ll be less formal, and probably even shorter, and they won’t include synopses or summaries (because everyone who reads them on Goodreads already knows the synopsis of each book listed.) I figure we live in a hurried age: brevity has value. It’s also more fun to write about the books I read when I’m not worried about sticking to a formula or doing the plot justice in my descriptions. After all, I’m not writing these to convince you to read the books (well, often I am, but…), I’m writing them to generate conversations about the books after you’ve read them.
That said, I’ve scheduled posts for Blackbird for everyday this week. Check them out.
I’m also wondering if I should abandon Blackbird and post my reviews here instead, since it’s not exactly like I’m overwhelming you with content- but that could change. What do you think?
Another thing I want to touch on because it’s on my mind: as readers and writers, how important is romance in your stories? I’m curious because I’ve never been a Romance Reader, exactly, but lately I’ve appreciated romance when it appears in other genres. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness might have been the first time I recognized this, and more recently, Awaken by Katie Kacvinsky. Neither book is solely romantic by design, but the relationships within aid the story in ways that might not have been possible otherwise. Two of the stories I’ve edited for our April catalog are romantic, too, and they’re both completely awesome (I can’t wait until they’re illustrated and out there for all of you.) Now I’m finding myself looking for romance in non-Romance books. Sometimes I’m disappointed when this element isn’t there, even though there’s no reason for me to expect it. And I’m not talking sappy love stories, I’m talking complicated, multifaceted, often doomed tentative relationships. Or a hint of them.
What do you think about romance in non-Romance genres? There’s next to none in my own writing. I’m wondering if I should add some, which actually isn’t half as simple as it sounds, and would require almost a total rewrite of most of my stuff. Which I’m fine with, because I’m a perpetual re-writer.
December is Impossible
How do people find time to do anything in December?
I’m sorry to all of you who are waiting on me for something or another: book reviews, beta reading, and social get-togethers. This is my official apology, and it applies to all of November, December, and… quite possibly, January.
November was busy. I was balancing a few too many things. Then there was my husband’s birthday and Thanksgiving— the first one at our house. I was also really diving into my role as editor for Grit City Publications, or at least trying to. I talked to a LOT of writers last month. It was NaNoWriMo, after all. So I pushed my own projects off ’til December.
December, as it turns out, is ridiculous. There’s the holidays, of course— a feat much larger to those of us with huge, complicated families. And there’s work to be done, just like every other month (although one of my clients pushed my deadline up a whole month out of nowhere.) And a baby to care for— of which I’m eternally grateful. Then there’s my husband who works 10 hour shifts 7 days a week to complete his jobs before the weather turns to winter for good. And did I mention the holidays?…
Anyway, I’m looking forward to a few things: Practice Cake by Dalya Moon, The Willing by C.S. Splitter, This Devil’s Dice by Jackson Spence, Get Unstuck! For Freelancers by Linda Formichelli, The Rise of Majick by Jay Taylor, A Sane Woman by Anthony Lee Collins, and some others.
I’ve also been in a huge zombie apocalypse mood ever since addicting myself to the AMC show, The Walking Dead. (I know, when do I have time for TV, you ask? When the baby keeps me up all night and I can’t concentrate on work or reading, that’s when.) I was already a fan of the graphic novels, you see, so this addiction only required a small leap of faith. I was rewarded. The show is freaking awesome.
On that note, I’m looking forward to the suggestions for zombie apocalypse books I received from my tweeps yesterday: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith, and some shorts by R.L. Schaeffer. And I’m reading World War Z, finally, which was a gift I received from a fellow zombie fan several years ago.
So reviews are upcoming. That’s the point. Just be patient with me. I have zero time-management skills.
Lastly, a special shout-out to all of my rockin’ guest bloggers. Thank you for keeping my blog alive when I can’t give it the attention it deserves.
