Book Giveaway - Sixty Days of Grace by Dorothy Ruppert

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! Tomorrow starts the weekend! I heard that sigh of relief. I'm right there with ya! Today I'm sharing with you all a giveaway we have running on the IBGW blog. It's for a printed copy of a wonderful book. Even if you aren't a religious person, you'll find this book a much loved read. I know I did. Enjoy! Rafflecopter entry form follows!

Introducing:
Title: Sixty Days of Grace: Reflections on God's Sufficiency for the Journey
Author: Dorothy Ruppert
Genre: Christian Inspirational
Pages: 136 printed pages
Amazon link: Paperback $10.58
Kindle $3.99

Description from Amazon:
In today's world, women desperately struggle to meet the unrealistic expectations of others and of themselves. Society tells women they can do it all, and yet they instinctively know they do not have the resources to accomplish all the demands placed upon them. Drawing on their own strength is not enough; in order to survive, women must draw on God. Sixty Days of Grace shares sixty stories from author Dorothy Ruppert, who has struggled through life and succeeded, only because of God's grace. This grace is the prevalent theme of the Bible. From beginning to end, the accounts of the lives of biblical figures demonstrate His eternal grace. However, in modern society His grace is often overlooked. There are many challenges women face as daughters of the King living in a broken environment. Ruppert has been there, as mother, grandmother, working woman, and retiree. Thanks to His grace, she found her strength. All women can do the same, with the power of God. It's time to turn away from self-sufficiency and lean on God's everlasting arm, because His grace is sufficient for the journey; His power is made perfect in human weakness.

It's a book you won't want to put down. But rather than a one-sitting consumption, the author suggests you read one chapter a day for two months. Besides, that cover is just lovely, isn't it?

Without further ado, the rafflecopter entry form!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck, everyone!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Limited Edition Covers for the Mystic Series

Happy Thursday, everyone! It's a nice, cool day here in Georgia and my printed proofs for Mystic~Melody arrived yesterday. We all know what I'll be doing with part of my day! On another note, I was looking at the stats for the blog and noticed I'm five posts away from four hundred. Maybe I'll cook up something special for that post! I did a little math, because I'm a curious sort (and you all know how long winded I am), and if I wrote a minimum of five hundred words per post, my blog alone is worth 197,500 words so far. My mind is blown.

Anywayyyyyy...

I know fans of my Mystic series will love getting to see the girls. So, while these covers will be released on the digital versions next year (after Markaza releases), I'm putting together some limited edition hardcover books for UtopYA Con that you'll only be able to get if you buy them off the table at the event. They won't be available in paperback until December 2014. Until then, this is all you get! I hope you love them as much as I do.

Anyone who's read the books, knows why the colors are what they are. If you haven't read the first three, you should go pick them up. I reduced the price of Bronya and Lily to just $0.99 each and the price of Shelia to $2.99. Melody will be $3.99 when it releases. Clicking on the names will take you to the buy page on Amazon.

You can enter to win a copy of Melody (with the tree and orb cover) over on Goodreads. There are four available so get your booties scootin'! Enter here. Coralie is written but needs some heavy editing. I'm aiming for a late October release. We'll see!

What do you think of the revamp? I'm eager to hear your thoughts.

Don't forget to check out the featured author this week. You can find M.R. Polish's interview here.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Rafflecopter has Flash Sale for Annual Subscriptions

Happy Hump-Day, blogospherians! Everyone relax and take a deep breath. If you make it through today, there's just two days left until the weekend arrives. Yup, I heard that cheer. Way to stay positive! Today, I'm talking about yet another e-mail I got. This one involves Rafflecopter again, that awesome little widget we all love and couldn't live without. Let's get going!

If you're a blogger, author, reader, or you just love to host giveaways and use Rafflecopter to manage them, this announcement will make you smile, squee, and jump up and down. I'm sure everyone using the site with the free subscription has seen this:

At that price, bloggers pay $95.88 a year for access to the awesome features listed. One of the most notable is adding an image to your giveaway. People like images, folks! There's a reason Pinterest does so well.

Moving on...

Until 11:59pm MST on Thursday, September 19, 2013, you can have an annual subscription to all the awesome extras for bloggers for just $59.

PLUS! I know, I know, the plus is always awesome! You'll get a Rafflecopter t-shirt and handful of stickers shipped to your door (worldwide) FREE when you subscribe. How cool is that?

You want the link yet?

Are you frothing at the mouth?

Okay, okay. Here ya go:
This link will take you to the Annual Subscription page. It should look something like this:

Follow the prompts and you're golden. Make sure you visit this page so you aren't confused when your e-mail saying you've subscribed for the $7.99 a year plan arrives in your inbox (I straight freaked out, I gotta tell ya). FAQ: Linky for you!

May all your giveaways shine forevermore! As always, I get no kickbacks from anything you see here on my blog. I share information and choose what it's going to say. Jo Michaels Blog is ad free and will remain that way forever.

While you're here, don't forget to visit the interview with my featured UtopYA Con 2014 author, M.R. Polish!

Were you aware of this sale? What features will keep you up at night thinking about the possibilities?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Mystic ~ Melody Goodreads Giveaway

Happy frikkin' Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! All I'm sharing for today is the fab giveaway on Goodreads for a printed, signed copy of Mystic ~ Melody. There are four copies up for grabs. Get your booty over there and enter!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Melody

by Jo Michaels

Giveaway ends October 01, 2013.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

As always, good luck!

Don't forget to check out the author interview for M.R. Polish while you're hanging around today! You can find it here: Author Interview M.R. Polish.

She's the featured author for the next two weeks and one of the fab ladies attending UtopYA Con 2014. Go say hi!!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

M.R. Polish Author Interview

Hello, blogospherians! Today, I have Ms. M.R. Polish here with me. She’s an author who’ll be attending UtopYA Con in June of 2014. What? You’ve never heard of UtopYA Con? Well, you need to check out this link:

UtopYA Con

Now that you’ve all figured out what it is we authors will be attending, mark your calendars so you can pick up a ticket and join us! 

Without further ado, I bring you an interview with Ms. Polish. Sit back, relax, and enjoy a cup of coffee while you read. **Beware! Coffee may spew out of nose or be sprayed orally; be careful around electronic devices. Jo Michaels Blog is not responsible for damage done to devices while interview is read.**

Jo: Howdy, M.R. Good to have you with us today!
MR: *Snicker* Howdy… I love that word! I'm so excited to be here! Thank you for having me. 

Jo: Anytime. Now, I stalked you online (purely for interview research, of course) and I see from your bio that you have four kids. Congratulations! I’m the mother of five kidlings myself. I know how hard it can be to find time to write because of that. Do you find it difficult with that many nose-miners running around? How do you stay sane?
MR: Is sane a word? HAHA…. Well, as you know with five kiddos yourself, the only way to get through it is to love every minute of it, and I do! Being a mom is my greatest blessing.

Jo: I have no idea if sane is a word. I lost my sanity about eighteen years ago. That many kids is an adventure and it takes a special kind of person to handle it. How old are your kids and what are the biggest challenges you face on a daily basis?
MR: Well, I have a 10 yr old son, a 7 (almost 8) yr old daughter, a 5 yr old son, and a 2 yr old daughter. Right now my biggest challenge is juggling potty training, scouts, and ballet classes. My husband and I take regular dates to keep things fresh so that helps keep a lot of challenges at bay.

Jo: Dates are always good. Gotta keep the marriage connected! I read that you won a writing contest in the fifth grade. Share with us how that made you feel at the time.
MR: I had the biggest shiz eating grin. (Yes, I said shiz…) I can remember the feeling because I still get it every time I finish a book, publish one, or get a review. Remember the most exciting feeling you’ve ever had then times it by ten hahaha.

Jo: Holy shiz! I kinda like that. *grin* Break down your journey in writing for us. Tell us about the first story you wrote and how your mindset has progressed since then.
MR: Well, it started off with short visions or clips that I could see and write down. Now I see things long term and deeper; like what will happen to a character IF that happens.

Jo: Who’s your biggest cheerleader?
MR: My husband and kiddos.

Jo: What knowledge have you gained from their support?
MR: I've learned that no matter what the world thinks, I'm the best to them. I’ve also learned more about what inspires them and that there are no boundaries to our imaginations.

Jo:  They sound awesome. Your book cover for Ageless Sea was nominated for best cover at the UtopYA Con in 2013. Did Jeanette Mathews or Jenny Laatsch design it and why do you love it?
MR: Yes, Jenny Laatsch was my cover artist. She is spectacular and incredibly talented. I love that cover because it depicts the story completely. The tattoos are perfect, the water, the necklace (which she drew by hand), the custom drawn clothing…. Gosh, there are so many things I love about it hahaha.

Jo: Tell me about your editor, Kristina Circelli. How did you meet her, and is she a super harsh (eek!) editor?
MR: Hahahaa…. Is she reading??? I love Kristina. She came to me by a reference and since I met her, I knew she was the perfect editor for me. She makes sure my characters are on track and I don’t stray from my story. I can say red might be her favorite color. Although, it’s because of her that my stories are polished.

Jo: As an editor myself, I do my markups in pink. It seems less aggressive somehow. Maybe because it doesn't look like I slit my wrists and bled all over the page after seeing all the errors? *grin* When was the last time you plugged your name into Google? Do you have any thoughts on being listed with Mr. Polish automotive care?
MR: HAHAHAHA! I did that once and was like, "What is that?" I haven’t Googled myself in a long time, but I have to say that M.R. Polish and Mr. Polish get confused a lot. I have had a few readers surprised that I was a girl and I have also been called Mister Polish.

Jo: Mister Polish. Hmmmm, perhaps a good thing to put on a t-shirt? I could see it now: Mister Polish - Woman Author. Would be a great conversation starter, eh? *grin* What are your long-term goals with your writing and how do you intend to achieve them?
MR: I have lots of goals and dreams. My writing is something that makes me happy and I want to go far with it. Achieving my goals is a little harder than just dreaming though… I can say that I wouldn’t be where I am or where I want to go without my awesome readers.

Jo: Readers are the backbone of the author community. Without them, we toil for nothing. *bows to readers* I see you concoct magic potions in your spare time. Where might one find references to help them mix and bake their own?
MR: *Looks around to make sure no one is listening* Okay, but it might surprise you. I find all my spells in my magic book that I found while visiting the unicorns, but before I went to see the leprechauns. The fairies keep it hidden for me so no one can find it. You do, however, have to fight a werewolf to have rights to any spell book, so you might want to prepare yourself.

Jo: Leprechauns. Nasty little boogers. They give my protagonist some trouble in The Bird. Haha! I found you here: http://utopyacon.wordpress.com/2013-exhibitors/ashley-laveringm-r-polish/ and I’m wondering about living in Nevada. Do you see many UFOs out there? Ever been to Area 51?
MR: LMBO… Area 51 is real and sometimes at night you’ll see strange lights in the sky. Seriously, not fictitiously. I haven’t seen Area 51 myself, but living here is very crazy.

Jo: Is there any way you could bring us an alien or two from your home state? That would go well with the theme for 2014. I’ve never seen a real alien (unless you count the ones that abducted me in ‘98…) and would love to get up close and personal with one. Maybe do an interview! What do you think?
MR: That would be awesome! Maybe me and the kiddos should go alien hunting and capture one to bring! Do you think TSA would let it pass through security though?

Jo: It couldn’t hurt to try. Or, maybe it could. Not sure I’d want to be strip-searched over having an alien for a seatmate. I couldn’t find a map of your blog on any of the pages. How long have you been blogging and what has it done for you as a writer?
MR: Honestly, I suck at blogging! I do, however, love to help show off other authors and promote them on my blog as well. I use my website, www.mrpolishauthor.com, for myself and my blog for everyone.

Jo: So, you’re an Indie author. Congratulations! You’re part of the most elite publishing and writing group on the planet! Okay, we may not be elite, but we’re huge, and size is everything, right? Seriously though, what’s your favorite thing about being Indie?
MR: Everything! I love the hours, the fact that I have a say in my books/covers, I get to meet and make friends with some of the most amazing people.

Jo: I also love being Indie! We all rock. Did you ever try (or are you still trying) to get a trade publisher? Why/Why not?
MR: I was contracted with my first book, Wolf Spell. It was through a small house but two weeks before it was to publish they closed their doors. They gave me full rights to my book and I started my Indie career right then. I was nervous and had no idea what I was going to do. I had to get a cover and publish it myself, all the fans I had excited about the release of that book were ready so I didn’t want to disappoint them. Thankfully I had Ashley Lavering, who is my bestie and knew what I had to do.

Jo: This may sound weird, but I know of another author that was two weeks or so away from publishing and the company closed up shop on them. What are the odds of that? What’s one thing you hope no one ever finds out about you?
MR: Well, if I told you then it wouldn’t be a secret.

Jo: Ouch. You got me! I was trying to sneak that one in there! Okay, what’s your theme song?
MR: A theme song huh… (It changes periodically lol) Who Says by Selena Gomez.

Jo: M.R. Polish is different and it’s intrigued me. Why do you use that as your author name rather than first name, last name? Or did I just answer my own question?
MR: Well, I write using my first initial and middle initial and then the most obvious, last name. It’s actually Misty Polish, I don’t care who knows my name, but I write with my initials so I can keep work and personal separate. So, for example, on Facebook, Misty is my personal profile and anything with M.R. is public.

Jo: That makes sense. Good idea! Now, Tell us about your featured book for this week!
MR: My newest release, Wolf Dream, is the second book in my Wolf Trilogy. It is a older YA paranormal and I am super excited about sharing it with everyone. I love that story and the characters.

Description:
Saying Goodbye Isn't the End... 
The Reaping Spell has weakened her greatest enemy, but now Esmerelda faces a different threat - one that haunts her dreams. To finally defeat Nicholas and end his madness for good, she must travel back to Spain with the help of her powerful friends.
What she doesn’t know is that in his weakness, Nicholas made a deal with the Death Keeper – his soul in exchange for Esmerelda’s life. Worse, she soon learns that the ones she trusted most have become part of her nightmares. The only one she can trust is the man who holds her heart, and together they must fight Nicholas to the death.
Fighting to stay awake so Nicholas can’t find her in sleep, Esmerelda prepares for the battle that will finish this war. One of them must die for her nightmares to end - unless the Death Keeper, with plans of his own for Esmerelda’s soul, gets to her first.
Amazon: Kindle - $2.99 Paperback - $9.49 
B&N: Nook - $2.99

Jo: You guys can pick it up at the links shown. Well, that’s all the time we have for today! Any parting shots? 
MR: Thank you so much for having me! I loved this so much! I can’t wait to meet you at UtopYA 2014 and hopefully I’ll be able to sneak an alien on board with me.

Jo: I can’t wait to meet him/her. Here’s hoping they don’t detain you too long. *grin* Thanks for visiting with me here on the blog! I look forward to meeting you in person at UtopYA Con 2014! 

Connect with M.R. Polish! 
Website: https://www.mrpolishauthor.com  
On Twitter: @_MRPolish_ 
On Facebook: M.R. Polish  
On Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/mpolish/boards/ 

Do you have any questions for M.R.? Post them below! 

Well, that’s all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!
  
Jo

Smashwords Author Interviews

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! You all know I talk about your search rankings and Google returns a lot here on the blog. Well, today I'm talking about author interviews. Not only because Monday launches my great new series of interviews for authors attending UtopYAcon 2014, but also because I got an interesting e-mail last night from Smashwords. They're starting to allow an author to go complete an interview on the Smashwords website. Anyway, strap in and let's discuss.

Click this link to be taken to the interview page:
Smashwords Author Interviews

You'll notice you can answer up to ten questions (either pre-written or write your own) and give 5k character responses (~ 600 words) for each. I wonder if Smashwords considered that we're authors and 5k characters is a drop in the bucket for us? Did they consider that if we use 600 words for each answer, the resulting interview would be 6k words long?

I'm not too keen on asking myself interview questions, but I may try it out. I don't want to come off as cheesy, and that's one of the things keeping me from pressing the start button on the bottom of the page. The other is time. Those authors with agents or publishers kinda have a leg up on Indies here because those authors have someone to ask the questions for them. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Here are some of the prefabricated questions:

• What are you working on next?
• Who are your favorite authors?
• What inspires you to get out of bed each day?
• When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
• How do you discover the ebooks you read?
• Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
• What is your writing process?
• How has Smashwords contributed to your success?

After all, without Indie authors, Smashwords would never have taken off the way it did.

While they're great for getting my book in the hands of certain retailers (iBooks, for one), I haven't made as much there as I have on Amazon. It's starting to feel like a waste of my time (their meatgrinder requires special formatting). With all the new things Amazon keeps coming out with to support their digital and print media (have you heard of Kindle Matchbook?), I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.

You all know I'm one for boosting your exposure any way you can. But I'm also very outspoken about wasting time. This one is leaving me scratching my head. After all, I already have a bio page on Smashwords.

It's never been about the profit for me, don't get me wrong. I'm talking about getting my books into the hands of readers that could possibly enjoy my stories. My royalties are a gauge of how well that's working.

As an aside, Smashwords also just released their Series Manager tool. I took the two seconds to put The Abigale Chronicles in, but if it had taken any longer than that, I'm not sure I would've bothered. Amazon has exclusive rights to the Mystic series so, unless I decide to drop them from Select in the future, I don't see it helping much.

Whatever you decide, there are the links for ya!

Don't forget to come on back Monday to meet M.R. Polish, the first author up for an interview in my UtopYAcon 2014 Unofficial Author Interview series! You'll also have a chance to grab a copy of one of her books. Check out the graphics!

If you're planning to help us out with promotion, feel free to grab the buttons above. These are the ones that must be used because they contain the correct verbiage.

What are your thoughts on all the changes Smashwords is making?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Rafflecopter Integrates Facebook Flash Giveaways - How to Use it

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! I got some amazing news in my e-mail yesterday. I'd like to talk you through it today. Either grab your pens and pencils, or your mouse and Facebook page, and follow along.

First, the news: Because of recent changes to Facebook's ToS, Rafflecopter now allows you to integrate your Facebook flash giveaways with their app. This means you can select people that perform a duty on your page as entries for your prize drawing. WOW! It negates the need for a third party list randomizer.

If any of you have done a flash giveaway, you know that entries can be missed and, if you get a ton of entries, it's time consuming as hell. Boo! This takes care of that problem and the issue of writing everything down and typing it again, or copy/pasting a zillion things into a form then screenshot, save, upload, announce, etc... I'm sure you get the idea.

Let's get going!

First, open your Facebook page and start a giveaway where folks have to either like the post or perform a task then comment on the post to win.

When it's over, click on this link and go to this page:

You'll be required to log in if you haven't already, give Rafflecopter permission to post (as with any app), and if you have more than one page, you'll be asked to choose the page the giveaway appears on. I'll select my Jo Michaels page and move on.

Next, you come to this screen:

Last, you choose the relevant post and scroll to the bottom of the page where you'll see this button:

CLICK IT!

Rafflecopter will return your results in a few moments.

Now how easy was that? Your time is important! Use the tools available to you so life is easier!

If you've never used Rafflecopter before, now's the time to start. I hope this helps you all with your Facebook giveaways in some small way.

Are you excited about this development? What was your biggest problem with giveaways before?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo