Fractured Glass Preorder Available NOW - Plus UtopYA Con 2015 Tickets on Sale

How amazing is it that it's Black Friday already? Happy shopping, everyone! Guess what's available for you to buy? *grin* Sit on back, relax, and let's get to it.

I can't help but think how amazingly appropriate it is that pre-orders for Fractured Glass and tickets to UtopYA Con 2015 go on sale the same day.

Why?

Because the ladies I wrote Fractured Glass with (Tia Silverthorne Bach, Casey L. Bond, Kelly Risser, and N. L. Greene) attended UtopYA in 2014, and will return in 2015. Our novel was conceived at the con, and we're so freaking excited to be bringing it into the world at last.

PRE-ORDER FRACTURED GLASS NOW!!!

Fractured Glass is a YA Sci-Fi Novel Anthology unlike any other. It was written by 5 different authors who came together to give you 1 amazing story.

 Blurb - 

What if other worlds existed alongside your own? What if you could travel through them and truly escape reality?

 

Sloan and Harley Glass were born moments apart; but, despite their differences, the sixteen-year-old twins couldn’t be closer. They’ve held their tongues each and every time their mother has uprooted them—often moving across the country with little notice. They’ve learned to accept change. But what is Mom running from?

 

They discover they’re travelers—half-descendants of those who can traverse an entire universe of parallel worlds known as fractals. When the past catches up, Harley is kidnapped and taken to one of those distant worlds. Now, Sloan must garner her courage and find a way to rescue her sister. Traversing the worlds isn’t the hard part; it’s surviving the elements and the creatures lying in wait to destroy everything in their path.

Will the Glass sisters be able to save the fractal worlds from the kidnapper, or will everything fracture and crumble around them?

Pre-Order Link

~ Amazon ~ 

Find the authors' Facebook pages here...

Jo Michaels ~ Tia Silverthorne Bach ~ Casey L. Bond ~ Kelly Risser ~ N.L. Greene

 Get to know the characters...

Sloan and Harley Glass

Harley and Sloan Glass are sixteen-year-old twin sisters with the ability to traverse what are known as fractals. Harley is a soccer player and loves dancing, hanging with her sister, and running. Sloan plays guitar and enjoys school, her mother, and reading books. Both girls are excellent students and are home schooled.

Are you excited about this YA novel anthology yet?? Well, here's the link again:

Amazon Kindle $2.99

Pre-order it, and you'll get it delivered to your device automatically the day before Christmas!

What else can you get today?

TICKETS TO UTOPYA CON!

Grab them via the link above. It'll take you to the Eventbrite page.

You deserve these gifts. Get them for yourself.

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

Jo

Happy Thanksgiving 2015!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Yeah, I'm a day early, but I have stuff coming tomorrow! *grin* I do hope you all took a moment to check out my post (and the posts of others) from the No Blog Left Behind Thanksgiving Giveaway Hop I posted on Monday. If you missed it, get on over there. Lots of great stuff to win!

But, today is about me telling you:

And wishing you well for the holidays. Tomorrow, I have some really, REALLY awesome stuff to share with you all. A couple of very important items go on sale that day, but you'll have to come check out the post to find out more. I know you will, because you're by far the most awesome blog followers in the Universe.

In the meantime, enter to win a copy of Fractured Glass (along with an awesome bookmark - see below) over on Goodreads.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Fractured Glass

by Jo Michaels

Giveaway ends December 31, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

With this bookmark:

Front            ~             Back

So, happy Thanksgiving, again!

What are you thankful for this year?

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

Jo

Cover Reveal - Lying, Cheating Heart

Holy smokes this cover!! We are so excited to bring you the Cover Reveal for Mindy Ruiz’s LYING, CHEATING HEART! LYING, CHEATING HEART is the second novel in Mindy’s upper YA/NA crossover fantasy Game of Hearts Series. The first book in the series, ENCHANTED HEART is available for a limited time for just $.99!

 

Cover designed by Regina at Mae I Design.

Amazon ** LYING, CHEATING HEART on Goodreads

LYING, CHEATING HEART Synopsis:

No More Lies!

Cassie Vera thought the biggest threat to her life disappeared the night her boyfriend, A.J. Vasillios, used his one-time-use power and saved her from certain death.

She was wrong.

The mythological hit list she was on is nothing compared to her freshman year at the University of Las Vegas. Rooming with Vegas’s future female royalty has pushed her estrogen tolerance to its limit. Worse, Cassie must take place in a time-honored tradition that tests her faith, while her boyfriend’s new job threatens to shatter her heart.

When age-old traditions change …

Cassie’s school year is interrupted when the future queens are ordered to represent their houses in an annual high-stakes competition. While at her ancestral home in Malaga, Spain, Cassie discovers the Greek gods have gifted her with new abilities. Cassie takes matters of righting an eighteen-year-old wrong into her hands. However, actions have consequences, and Cassie’s may very well end up costing her and the House of Hearts everything.

With her family’s future at stake and the love of her life choosing sides, Cassie must cheat death one more time.

When duty requires you to do the unthinkable, where will your loyalties lie?

Only a Cheating Heart Knows.

 





Read ENCHANTED HEART, the first book in the Game of Hearts series while you wait...

ENCHANTED HEART Goodreads ** Amazon ** Barnes & Noble ** Kobo

About ENCHANTED HEART: Cassandra Vera never ever breaks the rules. Ever! She’s also had a nonexistent social life since her best friend moved to Vegas. Armed with a new set of resolutions, the promise of a hot date, and her adoptive parents out of town, Cassandra agrees an overnight road trip to Las Vegas to celebrate her birthday is the perfect way to ring in the New Year. After all, it's Vegas, the city where secrets are meant to stay hidden. Little does Cassandra know the secrets of her own pastare buried there, as well. In the shadows of the glitz and gaudy lights of Vegas lies a power struggle centuries old. One wrong step and Cassandra could destroy the delicate web of secrets. Now an enemy she never knew existed is after her and the one boy who may be the missing piece to the puzzle —and her heart— is the one person she can’t afford to trust.  

About Mindy Ruiz: Mindy Ruiz lives in a sleepy Beach Town in Southern California. When she’s not writing, she spends her time chasing after three boys, making flirty eyes at her hunky husband, watching fantasy television shows, cheering for the Dallas Cowboys, and hanging out at the beach with her very large and loud Italian family. Her career in publishing started in the 4th grade with a story about a magic, museum-hopping, chair. Now, Mindy writes young adult, new adult, and adult paranormal romance. Her books always include tormented heroes, snarky heroines, and lots of swoon-y moments that will put a smile on your face or make your heart race. Mindy is the lover of a good romance, the underdog and John Hugh’s 80′s teen movies. When her toes aren’t in the sand or her mind isn’t in the clouds, Mindy loves hearing from readers.  

Facebook ** Twitter ** Instagram ** Author Goodreads ** Pinterest

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What do you think? Love it?

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

Jo 

#UtopYA2015 Time Warp Tuesday

Happy Time Warp Tuesday, everyone! Today's post is all about #WriteYourOwnFuture and talking about your past. Because I love the heart and soul of UtopYA Con, I'm gonna share some things about the event and give some advice to those wanting to write or the writers that are thinking of giving up. I'll also include some of my pictures from UtopYA 2014. Ready? Let's get rolling!

First off, let me pop in a reminder that tickets to the most awesome author conference on the planet go on sale NOVEMBER 28, 2014. That's right, Black Friday.

GET YOURS HERE

There are so many things I could say about UtopYA, but that would be a huge blog post. Now that I've gone, I know I won't be able to stay away. It'll take wild horses (and maybe chains) to keep me from returning to experience the camaraderie and spirit I found in Nashville.

Once a city I thought of as the Country music hub, it's now morphed into something magical and bookish in my mind. Readers lurking around every corner, mystical creatures peering from behind drapes, and a certain something that lights a fire in my writer self.

I'll get into Nashville and the Millennium Maxwell House more next month, for my UtopYA post in tandem with the other three bloggers: Shana, Maria, and Ashley. Watch out for those.

If you want to read about my experience at the con, I have a post here on my blog and a resolutions post here on The Paisley Reader that'll tell you what my goals are/were.

For fun, I'm including a couple of awesome photos from the con! Misty Provencher is with me in the first one, and Tia Silverthorne Bach and Toni Lesatz are in the second :)

Because those two posts are in place, I'd like to focus on the up and coming writer, or the one with serious doubts, in this one. I'm going with two of the prompts provided by Janet Wallace.

Q1: What would you say to someone who wants to write a book, but has doubts and fears?

"This one's easy: keep writing. No matter what, if you have the fire burning inside you to put words on a page in a cohesive manner, keep going. Never stop. Not even when that last word hits the page and you declare your first novel finished. Write another one. Put them out there for the world to see. Most people don't write 30k words in their lifetime. You're doing something awesome. Why would you ever let that go? WRITE ON! It's not just a meme."

Q2: What would you say to someone who's written a bunch of books, but haven't had the success they thought they would, and are thinking of giving up?

"Define success. First of all, you have to know what your idea of success is before you ever publish that first book. Are you after fame? Fortune? Notoriety? Supplying readers with great books? It's imperative you understand what you're trying to accomplish before you set out to get 'er done.

For example: My success is when someone leaves a review on something I've written that says how much they loved the story, or when someone comments on my blog saying how much they learned or appreciate the information I put here. I get all gooey inside knowing I entertained someone, moved them, made them feel something they might not have before, or brought them a little knowledge. I have pride in educating people. There's not one of my novels that doesn't teach the reader something. Even if it's just where Ringing Rocks Park in Pennsylvania is, and why it's such an interesting place to visit.

After you've given success your personal definition, move on to how you've achieved those goals.

If you're still feeling like you haven't done what you set out to do, try a different angle. Do something new. Keep going. To give up on yourself is worse than others giving up on you. Always drive forward with a goal in mind."

I hope that helps someone, somewhere, who's either thinking of writing a novel or giving up writing to forge ahead.

Did you post for Time Warp Tuesday? Leave us your link to check out!

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

Jo

No Blog Left Behind Thanksgiving Giveaway Hop

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! I'm so excited to bring you my post and giveaway for the No Blog Left Behind Thanksgiving Giveaway Hop, I have no words. First, I'll go into what I'm thankful for, then I'll post the giveaway. Easy to enter, easy to win! Let's get going.

To visit the other participants, head on over to the host's blog here!

What I'm thankful for:

• My husband. Without him, I shudder to think where I'd be today. He's super supportive and gives me great advice.
• My dearest and bestest friend. You know who you are. You make every day just a little bit brighter.
• Great followers on my blog. My readers are one of a kind.
• The ability to read. Thanks to school, I can read a book and get lost in another world.
• The ability to write. I love it. Life blood!
• Authors. All of them. What else would I have to read besides my own work if not for other authors?
• Art. Because it's inspiring and relaxing, all at the same time.
• UtopYA con. If not for that awesome conference, I'm not sure if I would've met my personal goals this year.
• Collaborative writing. Wow. I've been blessed with an opportunity to write with a handful of other women I shall be proud to call friends forever.

To show my thanks, I'm giving away some prizes!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Big Thanksgiving hugs to all my readers. Thanks so much for following, subscribing, and trusting me to guide you in this crazy adventure called self-publishing.

Be sure and check out the other stops on the hop!

What are you thankful for?

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

Jo

Being Indie

Happy Friday, everyone! Today, I'm gonna talk about something a very dear friend of mine brought up yesterday. I'm hoping it'll give everyone something to think about over the weekend. It's all about being an Indie author and why it doesn't make us crap or mean we're not awesome. So, sit back, relax, and let's get going.

Now, this conversation happened on Facebook, and many authors chimed in to say why they love being Indie (self) published.

I'm gonna start with a paraphrase of the original situation (kindly keep in mind the original poster was only seventeen when she published her first book):

She was sitting and talking with some of her college friends, and they were discussing being traditionally published. Someone mentioned that if you aren't with a big six house, you must not be a good writer (validation and all that). Because of this, my friend began to doubt her Indie ways and wonder if she was selling herself short.

Again, that's a short version of the situation with the same outcome and setting.

So, she asked: "Why do you self-publish? Am I selling myself short?"

Overwhelmingly, the responses were more about the community as a whole, maintaining control over one's work from soup to nuts, and keeping more of the profits from sales. There were also some most excellent points made. Some of the authors shared horror stories from friends who signed with publishers, some folks talked about the lack of publicity by presses both large and small, and others pointed out the aspects of film and big actors in crappy movies.

Everything kinda clicked together, and an epiphany hit me right between the eyes.

Know what I realized?

Indie isn't just about self-publishing.

There. I said it.

Allow me to explain. *grin*

Indie is a badge we wear on our chests with pride. When someone comes at one of us, for some reason or another, we go a little bananas. We're fiercely loyal to the title, love our brethren, and dare anyone to challenge our dreams. Because we're living those dreams. Each and every day, we get out of bed to do something we love. We set our own deadlines, work with editors we choose, and hire cover artists we know will do our work proud.

We have an amazing community around us that's a little like a family. People who get that we're a little strange, introverted, and hermit-like.

And they're okay with it.

As a matter of fact, they embrace us for our differences.

But wait! There's more!

As Indies, we get to know our book bloggers. They aren't just blurry faces in a sea of reviewers. They're a lot like us. Every single one of them has a passion that can't be squelched. Their passion is reading. Books. Literature. And we have the unique market insight to what those people are looking for. It's right there at our fingertips. All we have to do is nurture the connection and envelop them in the fold. They become part of the family and are celebrated.

Only Indies can put out a call to arms and have masses of others knocking over little old ladies with purses to rush to our aid (politely, of course).

Sometimes, an Indie will behave badly and get into a situation that's public and disgraceful.

But the community will punish that author so others don't have to. There's really no need for the public to go crazy and berate the person acting up. We do it for you. In that way, we're a lot like family.

Your mother doesn't hold her tongue when you screw up. Guess what? Neither do your peers. We're not afraid to tell you how wrong you are or how ashamed we are of your behavior. But it's done with the understanding that you're shaming the name we've worked so hard to build up.

Bad review? Someone will listen to you rant or give you a shoulder to cry on.

Writer's block? There are masses willing to talk you out of that corner of fear.

Struggling with a storyline? Ask. Someone will have a great piece of advice.

Got a huge deal? Your peers are gonna celebrate and pop champagne in your honor. Why? Because you'll always be an Indie.

So, yeah, Indie isn't just about self-publishing. It's about community, support, and family.

It's a way of life that lodges itself in your heart and refuses to let you go. Even when you push us away, we're there if you need us later.

Indie is in your blood.

You have been assimilated.

So, the next time someone asks you why you're Indie, the simple answer is:

"Because it's the only way to go."

What's your favorite thing about being Indie?

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

Jo

Time for Books 2015 Review Team Signups

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I have a little surprise for you all. Something I've been thinking about doing for a while, but I'm just getting around to. Get your 2015 TBR list ready to be filled, and come join me for a ton of bookish fun. This will go hand in hand with the 12 Days of Review Requests event coming up in just a couple of weeks. Get all cozy and I'll explain what prompted me to do this.

As you all may know, I curate a book review magazine on Flipboard that I update weekly. If I can search a Twitter hashtag, it makes it easy to find and curate reviews without searching through a bunch of crap that doesn't go.

Plus, I think it'll be nice for the authors in the event to be able to come check out who reviewed their books and read/share some of those reviews.

I have almost 2k readers and over 30k shares of the reviews I put in my magazine so far. Anyone who joins up will be included in my roundup each week. So, that being said, here's what I'm asking you to do:

Go to this page and follow the instructions to sign up. Every time you post a book review on your blog, enter it here and tweet about it with one of the hashtags on that page (#2015ReviewTeam or #Time4Books).

Stick the pretty team badge on your website somewhere. This one:

Yeah, I went with a time theme because of UtopYA Con. *grin* But I like time for books because, let's face it, it's always time for books.

That's it. Just join up, read, and post and tweet your reviews. Let's work together to bring more exposure to all: authors and book bloggers.

If you'd like, you can also join the Goodreads event here. That way, you'll get a reminder the day before the pitch fest begins.

Thanks for being awesome, everyone!

I signed up as HUNGRY and pledge to read between 21-40 books in 2015!

What do you think? Did you sign up?

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

Jo