12 Days of Review Requests - Day Six

Happy Saturday, everyone! What a crazy week it's been. Are you all having fun yet? Welcome back to the 12 Days of Review Requests event! If you missed the opening post, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD6. Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous days and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

Books marked with an astrisks and in BOLD are winners.
(That doesn't mean your book wasn't chosen, only that it wasn't chosen today)

***Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Amazon Kindle $3.56
From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE
An Unlikely Goddess - Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The House at Zaronza - Vanessa Couchman - Amazon Kindle $2.99
***8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Click. Date. Repeat. - K. J. Farnham - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Six Months to Get a Life - Ben Adams - Grab a sample on Drive here!
Family Planning (Choices Book 3) - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Moonlight - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $1.69
View from the Sixth Floor: An Oswald Tale - Elizabeth Horton-Newton - Amazon Kindle $2.99
***Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The ABCs of Dinkology: Life - A. E. Stueve - Amazon Paperback $8.91
Of Mice and Money - Winifred Morris - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Cure - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.51
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Pariah - Casey L. Bond - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99
In Dreams - Heather Mullins - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Indelible - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
They Called It Moosicide: A Denali Hawthorne Alaska Mystery - Lisa Hall Deckert - Amazon Kindle $2.99
At One's Beast - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $2.99
To Get Me to You - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Rabbit Ate My Homework - Rachel Elizabeth Cole - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Unseen - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Sticks and Stones - Shawn McGuire - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Sir Lyle's Dig - Sheldon Lefkowitz - Amazon Kindle $6.99
Warrior Lore: Scandinavian Ballads - Ian Cumpstey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Good Luck With That Thing You're Doing: One Woman's Adventures in Dating, Plumbing and Other Full Contact Sports - Karen Yankosky - Amazon Kindle $2.99
***The Heart Thief - S. Lee Benedict - Amazon Kindle $4.99
Damsel Not - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.95
Tempted - Brenda Tetreault - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Christmas Come Early - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Crime of Seduction - Nadine LaForet - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Be Careful, It's My Heart - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Roots Entwine - Victoria Bastedo - Amazon Kindle $5.99
The Sextape: A Dedication to the Ladies - Peprah Boasiako - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Living on the Knife's Edge - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Nissa: a contemporary fairy tale - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Unknown Sun - Cheryl Mackey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Refuge - Violet Haze - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Angels Dawn - Komali DaSilva - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Recalculating Route - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Desprite Measures-The Caledonian Sprite - Deborah Jay - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Watcher's Keep - Timothy Bond - Amazon Kindle $7.99
Fearsome Creatures - David B. Ross - Amazon Kindle $1.99

Congratulations to R. M.! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook.

Congratulations also to S. Lee! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook.

PITCH your book in the comments. Put the LINK to your book in the Rafflecopter form. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

AUTHOR ONLY entries will be removed from Rafflecopter before a winner is chosen. If you want a shot at winning the prizes, put BOTH in the box asking how you're entering.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.
If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

Now it's time to announce the winners from Friday's giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Up for grabs today are prizes from Tia Silverthorne Bach and IBGW.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Let's get back into the pitching! Throw me a fast ball. I'm totally ready.

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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests - Day Five

Happy Friday! Welcome back to the 12 Days of Review Requests fun here on the Jo Michaels blog! If you missed the opening post, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD6. Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous day and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

Today, I invite you all to join the Facebook party for the upcoming release of Fractured Glass. We're giving away a $100.00 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky person and lots of books, swag, and other goodies the day of the event. Join in the fun here. Feel free to invite your friends.

Books marked with an astrisks and in BOLD are winners.
(That doesn't mean your book wasn't chosen, only that it wasn't chosen today)

***Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Amazon Kindle $3.56
From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE
An Unlikely Goddess - Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The House at Zaronza - Vanessa Couchman - Amazon Kindle $2.99
***8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Click. Date. Repeat. - K. J. Farnham - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Six Months to Get a Life - Ben Adams - Grab a sample on Drive here!
Family Planning (Choices Book 3) - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Moonlight - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $1.69
View from the Sixth Floor: An Oswald Tale - Elizabeth Horton-Newton - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The ABCs of Dinkology: Life - A. E. Stueve - Amazon Paperback $8.91
Of Mice and Money - Winifred Morris - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Cure - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.51
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Pariah - Casey L. Bond - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99
In Dreams - Heather Mullins - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Indelible - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
They Called It Moosicide: A Denali Hawthorne Alaska Mystery - Lisa Hall Deckert - Amazon Kindle $2.99
At One's Beast - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $2.99
To Get Me to You - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Rabbit Ate My Homework - Rachel Elizabeth Cole - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Unseen - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Sticks and Stones - Shawn McGuire - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Sir Lyle's Dig - Sheldon Lefkowitz - Amazon Kindle $6.99
Warrior Lore: Scandinavian Ballads - Ian Cumpstey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Good Luck With That Thing You're Doing: One Woman's Adventures in Dating, Plumbing and Other Full Contact Sports - Karen Yankosky - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Heart Thief - S. Lee Benedict - Amazon Kindle $4.99
Damsel Not - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.95
Tempted - Brenda Tetreault - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Christmas Come Early - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Crime of Seduction - Nadine LaForet - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Be Careful, It's My Heart - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Roots Entwine - Victoria Bastedo - Amazon Kindle $5.99
The Sextape: A Dedication to the Ladies - Peprah Boasiako - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Living on the Knife's Edge - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Nissa: a contemporary fairy tale - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Unknown Sun - Cheryl Mackey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Refuge - Violet Haze - Amazon Kindle $0.99

Congratulations to Bethany! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook.

If you pitched and your book isn't in the list, you didn't put the link in the Rafflecopter form. Ergo, it wasn't added.

PITCH your book in the comments. Put the LINK to your book in the Rafflecopter form. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

AUTHOR ONLY entries will be removed from Rafflecopter before a winner is chosen. If you want a shot at winning the prizes, put BOTH in the box asking how you're entering.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.

If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

Now it's time to announce the winners from yesterday's giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today, prizes from the fabulous Elizabeth Sharp and myself!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!


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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests - Day Four

Happy Thursday, everyone! Welcome back to the 12 Days of Review Requests fun here on the Jo Michaels blog! If you missed the opening post, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD6. Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous day and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

 Before we get to the pitch list today, I'm gonna give you all a look at my 5 and 4 star reads from last year:

5 STARS
The Bestiarum Vocabulum
Chasing Shadows
Crewel
Falling for Autumn
happenstance
Iron Pendulum
Sanctuary
Sir Edric's Temple
Tbinkerknese 101
Unhinged

Not only were these phenomenal reads, they were also eligible for my giveaways during the year (these are random) for receiving 5 stars.

4 STARS
The Druid's Doorway
The Fly House
Illusions Begin
Magic Unfolds
Keepers of Arden
The Last Keeper's Daughter
Masked Encounters
Reap
Resist
Surrender to You
The Memory Witch
The Five Elements

Please, by all means, check them out. You won't be sorry! Let's get on to the pitch list, shall we?

Books marked with an astrisks and in BOLD are winners.
(That doesn't mean your book wasn't chosen, only that it wasn't chosen today)

***Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Amazon Kindle $3.56
From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE
An Unlikely Goddess - Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The House at Zaronza - Vanessa Couchman - Amazon Kindle $2.99
8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Click. Date. Repeat. - K. J. Farnham - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Six Months to Get a Life - Ben Adams - Grab a sample on Drive here!
Family Planning (Choices Book 3) - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Moonlight - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $1.69
View from the Sixth Floor: An Oswald Tale - Elizabeth Horton-Newton - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The ABCs of Dinkology: Life - A. E. Stueve - Amazon Paperback $8.91
Of Mice and Money - Winifred Morris - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Cure - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.51
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Pariah - Casey L. Bond - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99In Dreams - Heather Mullins - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Indelible - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
They Called It Moosicide: A Denali Hawthorne Alaska Mystery - Lisa Hall Deckert - Amazon Kindle $2.99
At One's Beast - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $2.99
To Get Me to You - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Rabbit Ate My Homework - Rachel Elizabeth Cole - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Unseen - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Sticks and Stones - Shawn McGuire - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Sir Lyle's Dig - Sheldon Lefkowitz - Amazon Kindle $6.99
Warrior Lore: Scandinavian Ballads - Ian Cumpstey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Good Luck With That Thing You're Doing: One Woman's Adventures in Dating, Plumbing and Other Full Contact Sports - Karen Yankosky - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Heart Thief - S. Lee Benedict - Amazon Kindle $4.99Damsel Not - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.95
Tempted - Brenda Tetreault - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Christmas Come Early - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Crime of Seduction - Nadine LaForet - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Be Careful, It's My Heart - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Roots Entwine - Victoria Bastedo - Amazon Kindle $5.99
The Sextape: A Dedication to the Ladies - Peprah Boasiako - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Living on the Knife's Edge - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $0.99

Congratulations to Stormy! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook. 

PITCH your book in the comments. Put the LINK to your book in the Rafflecopter form. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

AUTHOR ONLY entries will be removed from Rafflecopter before a winner is chosen. If you want a shot at winning the prizes, put BOTH in the box asking how you're entering.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.

If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

Now it's time to announce the winners from yesterday's giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today, you have the chance to win prizes donated by Mindy Ruiz and Starla Huchton!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck! I'm looking forward to more pitches today. Hope you're all having fun!

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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests - Day Three

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere! Welcome to the 12 Days of Review Requests fun here on the Jo Michaels blog! If you missed the opening post, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD7 (yeah, we got upgraded!). Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous day and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

I'm going to take a moment to remind everyone of my RULES (this is the last warning):

1. There's a place on each Rafflecopter entry form where you need to put the link to your book on Amazon. Do it. I export them as excel documents and go to the links from there.
2. Your pitch goes in the comments. Moderation will be turned off during this event. No ugly captchas, either. If you aren't nice, I reserve the right to delete your stuff. DO NOT put your link in with your pitch. I'll remove the entire thing.
3. **NO affiliate links and do not shorten your links.** I understand the need to make a buck, but really? I'll remove them.
4. I announce one review winner per day. You may pitch more than one book to me.
5. DO NOT review my books. Please. Feel free to read and love them, but if I'm reviewing yours, don't review mine. I'm not a swapper *grin*
6. Comments will be closed at 8am for the previous day's post. This is when a new post will go up. If you can't comment, you're on the wrong post.
7. BE NICE. Don't goad, harass, or annoy the other authors pitching their books (or myself).
8. DO feel free to buy some of the books and read/review them. We're all in this together. It's a party, guys!

Books marked with an astrisks and in BOLD are winners.
(That doesn't mean your book wasn't chosen, only that it wasn't chosen today)

Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Amazon Kindle $3.56
From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE
An Unlikely Goddess - Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The House at Zaronza - Vanessa Couchman - Amazon Kindle $2.99
8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Click. Date. Repeat. - K. J. Farnham - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Six Months to Get a Life - Ben Adams - Grab a sample on Drive here!
Family Planning (Choices Book 3) - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Moonlight - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $1.69
View from the Sixth Floor: An Oswald Tale - Elizabeth Horton-Newton - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The ABCs of Dinkology: Life - A. E. Stueve - Amazon Paperback $8.91
Of Mice and Money - Winifred Morris - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Cure - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.51
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Pariah - Casey L. Bond - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99In Dreams - Heather Mullins - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Indelible - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
They Called It Moosicide: A Denali Hawthorne Alaska Mystery - Lisa Hall Deckert - Amazon Kindle $2.99
At One's Beast - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $2.99
To Get Me to You - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Rabbit Ate My Homework - Rachel Elizabeth Cole - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Unseen - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Sticks and Stones - Shawn McGuire - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Sir Lyle's Dig - Sheldon Lefkowitz - Amazon Kindle $6.99
Warrior Lore: Scandinavian Ballads - Ian Cumpstey - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Good Luck With That Thing You're Doing: One Woman's Adventures in Dating, Plumbing and Other Full Contact Sports - Karen Yankosky - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Heart Thief - S. Lee Benedict - Amazon Kindle $4.99


Congratulations to Sherry! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook.

Today, I'm giving you my 2014 Review Video as a bonus! Great music *grin*

PITCH your book in the comments. Put the LINK to your book in the Rafflecopter form. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

AUTHOR ONLY entries will be removed from Rafflecopter before a winner is chosen. If you want a shot at winning the prizes, put BOTH in the box asking how you're entering.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.

If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

Now it's time to announce the winners from yesterday's giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Your prizes for today are from the fabulous N. L. Greene and me.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Throw me a pitch!

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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests - Day Two

Happy Tuesday and welcome to the 12 Days of Review Requests fun here on the Jo Michaels blog! If you missed the opening post, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD6. Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous day and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

I had a little snafu with Rafflecotper (wouldn't export the excel) so if you put a link to a sample yesterday, please send to me via PM either on Facebook or Goodreads. SORRY!

 Books marked with an astrisks and in BOLD are winners.
(That doesn't mean your book wasn't chosen, only that it wasn't chosen today)

Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Amazon Kindle $3.56
From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE
An Unlikely Goddess - Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The House at Zaronza - Vanessa Couchman - Amazon Kindle $2.99
8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Click. Date. Repeat. - K. J. Farnham - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Six Months to Get a Life - Ben Adams - Grab a sample on Drive here!
Family Planning (Choices Book 3) - Beth Carpenter - Amazon Kindle $0.99
***The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Moonlight - David Rose - Amazon Kindle $1.69
View from the Sixth Floor: An Oswald Tale - Elizabeth Horton-Newton - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The ABCs of Dinkology: Life - A. E. Stueve - Amazon Paperback $8.91
Of Mice and Money - Winifred Morris - Amazon Kindle $0.99
The Cure - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.51
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Pariah - Casey L. Bond - Amazon Kindle $3.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99

Congratulations to Christine Nolfi! Your book has been tweeted, shared on Pinterest, added to my Goodreads TBR for the event, and shared on Facebook.

PITCH your book in the comments. Put your LINK in the Rafflecopter entry form. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

Please specify if you're entering as an author, a reader, or both. Author only entries will be removed before a winner is chosen.

IF you have a pre-order, please upload a SAMPLE to Google Drive and give people with the link permission to view. Put that link in the Rafflecopter form.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.

If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

Now it's time to announce the winners from yesterday's giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today, we have a prize pack from Kristie Cook and a book from me! Be sure to thank Kristie for her donation to this event!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I look forward to your pitches today!

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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests - Day One

Happy Monday, and welcome to the 12 Days of Review Requests fun here on the Jo Michaels blog! We're gonna kick off this event in style. If you missed the opening post from yesterday, be SURE and check it out here. It has the Rafflecopter entry form for the Kindle HD6. Each day, I'll post links to all the books pitched the previous day and a short recap of what I'm looking for you to put in the comments. Then, I'll have the Rafflecopter winner from the previous day, and the entry form for the current one along with the prizes. Let's get going!

BOOKS PITCHED WILL GO HERE.

For your comment (in the comments below NOT in the rafflecopter), pitch your book. Tell me why you think I'll like it, why I should check it out, and a little about the story. DO NOT give me a synopsis. I can get that from Amazon. Make it personal or make it funny. I care not. I'll be grabbing a sample of every book pitched and go from there.

I strongly encourage you to check out the works of your fellow Indie authors. Chat in the comments, talk each other up, make friends!

Book reviewers! You're welcome to play along, too! Meet and greet authors. Get new books to read and review. It only works if we all work together.

If you haven't joined my 2015 Review Team, do that here. 

**Kindly remember, there's no guarantee your book will be reviewed by me. You will get a purchase if your sample interests me, and I'll try my best to read it. But if I find I can't give it more than 2 stars, I won't write the review. I've had a few I couldn't finish and it led to me not giving a review.**

RAFFLECOPTER FROM PREVIOUS DAY WILL APPEAR HERE WITH WINNERS

Now, up for grabs on day one is a HUGE prize pack of books from author Liz C. Long, and Toni Lesatz. Be sure and thank these generous ladies!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

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

Jo

12 Days of Review Requests Coming Soon!

Happy Tuesday, everyone! As most of you know, I drop the blog posts for twelve days every year in December and devote all my time to accepting review requests from authors. Well, this year, we're doing things a little differently! Grab a cup of coffee and let me tell you what's changed.

First of all, you'll still get your twelve days of pitching, but you'll be marketing to a much larger audience this year.

Why?

Because I've invited some really awesome people to join in the fun. They're readers, they're writers, and they're book reviewers eager to get their hands on your books.

HOLY MOLY!

I know. I said the same thing.

But wait! There's more.

This year, you'll have an opportunity to win a brand new Kindle Fire HD6 16GB in white with no special offers every day of the event, as well as daily prizes donated by those same authors, readers, and bloggers who are coming together to look at your novels. After all, this is an event for readers and writers.

Are you getting excited? I am!

I'll be releasing the names and URLs of the people participating sometime next week. Until then, go familiarize yourself with the rules here. That's where the links to each day's post will go live, too, so you may want to bookmark it.

I'm making it bigger, badder, and more awesome for all you book writers, readers, and bloggers this year. Let's have some fun, read some amazing books, and write some reviews!

Official announcement post will go live on December 7th, the day before the fun starts, so be ready!

What do you think? Wanna join in as a reviewer? Watch for that signup form next week.

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Getting Books and Writing Reviews

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today, we're gonna discuss how you write your reviews on the blog you've been creating, and where to get books. You should already have your rating system in place, as well as a review policy, and you may already have a few titles in hand (because of that last post and the weekend you had to nurse your social media connections. Anyway, grab your pen and notebook and let's get to it!

Here are the past posts and what's coming

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews (you're there now)
• Money, You Say?

First off, go out to your social media outlets and put out an APB for some books that need reviews (I can promise, you'll very quickly become overwhelmed). Then, make a reading list. Write down the titles in the order you plan to read them.

Start with the first one, and get it read from front to back. Make notes on things as you go along (if you wish to do so). And, you're ready to write your very first review (don't publish it yet, wait until Friday's post for that).

So, read book in hand, or close by, sit down and think about all the things you liked.

Consider:

• characters
• plot
• pacing
• grammar and punctuation
• inconsistencies
• tone
• writing style
• even point of view (if you want)
• anything else related to the story
• cover image and typography (if you so choose)

Write it down.

Now think about all those things you didn't like using the same guide as above.

Write it down.

Somewhere in your review (IF YOU GOT THE BOOK FREE), you need to add a disclaimer that you were sent a copy of the book for free, and who it came from, in exchange for an honest review.

Like so: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Or: Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Go on to talk about how the book made you feel, what you thought, and whether you'd recommend it to someone else. There's no need to restate the plot or summarize the book in your review, people will see that on the book's page on the sell site, or (if you summarize the book before your review), they'll see it on your blog.

Don't post spoilers (telling people how the book turns out or ends). IF you do, be sure and put at the BEGINNING of your review: ****SPOILER ALERT**** That way, those who have a serious interest in reading the book won't read your review. You can probably see how that could be an issue (you want your reviews to be read).

Yeah, it's gonna take some practice to fall into your groove, but I know, once you do, you'll grow to love writing reviews more every day.

So get going and hold on to that review post until Friday, when I'll discuss money and posting your reviews to the relevant sites.

Any of you old hats wish to add some advice here? You're more than welcome!

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Building an Audience

Happy freaking Friday, good people of the blogosphere! It's been a long haul, but we're on the final three posts. You'll get one today, one on Tuesday, and one on Friday. I have some awesome stuff coming your way next week: An author interview on Monday with B. J. Sheldon, a book review of Off Target on Wednesday, and a cover reveal for A Reaper Made on Thursday. So, it's gonna be an exciting week! By this time, if you've been following along, you should have a name, policy, look and feel with imagery, a posting platform, a well designed blog, and a rating system. Today, we focus on building your social media presence. Okay, enough of my jawing, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

 Here are the past posts and what's coming:

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy (you're there now)
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

How many social media networks are there?

A ton. I'm not gonna list them all.

Here's the thing: You don't have to be on all of them, you just need to be on the right ones. I'm referring to the places your target audience hangs out, which outlets you feel most comfortable with, and which ones will do what you need them to (drive traffic to your blog).

So, here's the link list of social media sites I encourage you to sign up with, and a little bit about how to build your audience once you're there:

Twitter - This is a place where people with short attention spans can gather a lot of news without being bogged down by huge chunks of text. It's easy to share tweets and simple to follow someone. Build your audience here by following at least thirteen new people every day. Do a search for this: #amreading Then, follow about thirteen people who use it. Why? Because they're readers! Alternate with a search for this: #amwriting Give those folks a follow, too. Why? Because they're the writers who'll want you to review their books. Alternate by days and give a follow back to anyone who adds you organically. Once you have a couple, go at least three times a week and retweet some content. You'll find your follower base grow by leaps and bounds.

Facebook - Create a page if you haven't already. Here's a trick you must know to succeed on Facebook: It hates auto-posts and buries them beneath muck. You'll be lucky if fifteen people see an auto-post. Seriously. You'll be better off posting to your Facebook page organically, with no links in the main message (put all links in the comments). Invite all your friends to like your page. Interact at least three times a week with folks. Join a reader group on Facebook. Go to your search and type in: readers. When the box drops down, click on groups. Get to know people. Once in a while, ask them to share your blog with any writers who may want a review. Now, go do the same thing with writer groups. Be sure you're sharing if you expect others to share in return.

Goodreads - Yeah. Just do it. Go poke through the groups and join a couple there, too. Goodreads has a ton of review groups. There are always authors there asking for reviews. But wait! Join reader groups, too! This is a place where you'll be led to wonderful works of fiction, and it's a place where you can discuss books with others. Wow. Plus, you'll need a Goodreads account when you start writing reviews. More on that Tuesday!

Google+ - When you set up a gmail account (you did that, right?), you automatically got a Google+ page. Go to it, add your stuff, and set your custom URL. Then start adding people you already know. Yeah, I bet a lot of them read, too! Readers attract readers as friends.

YouTube - If you think you may ever want to do video reviews, go ahead and set up a YouTube channel. It can't hurt. Share videos by other book reviewers.

Here's another tidbit for thought: Go to one of the major book review sites (like Reader's Favorite or KBR) and apply to be one of their reviewers on staff. All they can say is no, right? You won't know if you don't try.

Two more places to put in your name:  Netgalley  and  Edelweiss
Both of those companies work with major publishers and will send you physical copies of books to read and review before the release dates. Just make sure you do it, or they'll drop you from the list.

Of course, it you want to stick strictly with Indie authors, we'll all love you forever and spread your name like wildfire through our ranks *grin*

I think I've given you all quite enough to do over the weekend. So get to it!

Any of you other book reviewers, where do you connect with readers and writers?

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Structuring a Rating System

Happy Thursday, everyone! Yay! We're over the hump and moving forward with my series on becoming a book blogger. Today's topic is structuring your rating system, and I'm going over your 1-5 "stars" and perhaps a total bomb idea. Stay with me! Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

First, a recap of the past posts and what's coming:

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System (you're there now)
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

Ratings are the number of stars you give a book. They can range from 1-5 on most book selling sites. But we're talking about your blog! You can give a book zero stars if you so choose.

What's important here is to decide what the ratings mean for you. If you give a book a rating of 1, does that mean it was a total stinker; or does that mean it wasn't so bad you wanted to burn it or couldn't get through it, but wasn't good enough that you itch to read it again?

Once again, we'll use my go-to, The Chicken Coop, as an example.

1 Egg means = It wasn't for me
2 Eggs mean = It had a couple of redeeming qualities, but fell flat on all others
3 Eggs mean = There was something about it I didn't like and something I did
4 Eggs mean = I enjoyed it immensely
5 Eggs mean = Author gets a parade and confetti the book was so good
Big, Fat, ROTTEN Egg means = It stinks

Of course, how you rate is up to you, and you'll find the number of stars mean different things on different sites. You'll also probably find yourself on the fence between two ratings sometimes. So, if you used the egg rating system, be sure you mention how many you gave and what that means when copying over your review.

Also, put your rating system somewhere easy to see on your blog (perhaps in the banner across the top?) so folks know right away what they're reading about when they see your eggs.

Plus, you can have cute icons like these for your ratings (note the requisite half an egg):

Be sure you're consistent when using your icons. Your brand matters!

What have you come up with? Share! I'd love to see your works in progress as we go along here.

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Design Considerations

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today, we're going into design considerations for your blog. Step four in becoming a book blogger. I do hope you're getting excited as you follow along and create your blog. By now, you've chosen a name, have a URL, and have picked a publishing platform. More than that, you have your review policies (what you will and won't review and how to submit)! You should also be a little bit familiar with your hosting service. This post is going into your blog design (layout) and content. So, grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

First, a recap of the past posts and what's coming:

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations (you're there now)
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

Now, take a close look at my blog. You'll see there's a background that encompasses my logo and color/design scheme. On the sidebar, I don't have a ton of clutter for folks to wade through. One thing I have going on right now is my UtopYA con author interview posts. Because of that, I have two additional images on the right hand side. But, as you can see, my subscribe box is above the fold (this is referencing the part of your blog that's visible before the scroll).

Moving on down, you'll see another couple of ways to follow me and my posts (you do want your blog to be read, right?), then it goes right into my archive. Not having an archive where people can browse your past posts isn't a good idea. You want them to stay and look around a while.

Let's go back to the top!

You see my banner telling you what my blog is about, then a set of links I think are pertinent for everyone on social media to make as easy to find as possible. Note they're above the fold.

Because I'm OCD, and my blog is my haven for all the information I impart to my fellow Indie authors, I have a categorized link list. This is a whole separate page on my blog I use to sort posts into categories (with a little snap of what the post is about) so people don't have to wade through my archive to find specific information.

But my blog loads fast on a browser. Six seconds. Ideally, you want five or less, but I'm okay with six. I've visited blogs that took over a minute to load because there was all this extra "stuff" all over them. I waited, but only to take a look at the mess, click away, and never return.

You have about fifteen seconds to catch someone's attention. They won't wait much longer than that (if they wait at all). So, keep the clutter down and increase your load times.

Black text on a white background in an easy to read font is the next thing you need to consider for your design. If you make it hard to read your posts, people will be turned off and not come back.

You want them to come back. That's why you're blogging.

Make sure all your stuff is harmonious. Not that everything has to be identical, but when someone clicks on the link to your Twitter page, make sure it at least resembles your blog, website (if you choose to have one), and Facebook page. Don't let them doubt they've found the person they're looking for.

The Chicken Coop can have one chicken image on their blog, a different one on Facebook and Twitter, and still another on their website, and (as long as the look and feel is the same) they'll connect the dots.

Remember your name! If you've chosen The Chicken Coop for your blog, be @TheChickenCoop on Twitter as well. Be facebook.com/TheChickenCoop or facebook.com/ChickenCoop. Sign up for TheChickenCoop [at] gmail!

Be consistent and keep it simple.

If you want a couple more tips and tricks on making your public appearance gel, grab my free PDF on branding here. Feel free to download, study, read, print, and redistribute at your leisure. As long as you don't charge for it, I'm good.

What do you think? Have you built up your blog yet? Got any subscribers?

Go on and get those signup boxes going! I'll be back later in the week with advice on structuring your rating system.

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Picking a Posting Platform

Happy Monday, everyone! We're continuing on our journey to you becoming a book blogger. If you've been following along and working with me, you'll have a review blog name, policies, and an idea of your branding imagery. Today, I'm gonna talk about choosing a platform. No, I'm not gonna choose a platform for you, this is just gonna be an introduction to the various ones out there. Once you find a blogging platform you like and it's easy for you to use, then you go get a book on how to use the darn thing and go from there (there's a great one at the library - title to come at the end of the post). Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

As always, a little recap of the series and links to previous days:

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing (you're there now)
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

Now we can get into the various platforms available for you to choose from. These links will take you to the main page for each service. There are no affiliate links on the Jo Michaels blog, so you can click freely here. I get paid when I see you being successful.

FREE Blogging Platforms

• Blogger
• WordPress
• Anchor
• Tumblr
• Weebly

PAID Blogging Platforms

• SquareSpace
• Typepad

How to choose? Well, go check each one out! Play with them or take a peek around their control decks. See which one is the most user friendly and customizable for your needs.

Maybe you'll want to have more than one. I have two: Blogger and Tumblr. Each has a very different audience, but readers nonetheless. Like choosing anything, go with the one that makes you the most comfortable and won't have you tearing your hair out after a few hours of setup time. Still not sure what you're doing? Call someone who does or check out these books from your local library:

Blogging for Creatives: How Designers, Artists, Crafters and Writers can blog to make contacts, win business and build success. by Robin Houghton
and
Blogging all in One: For Dummies by Susan Gunelius

Speaking of libraries! You can find books in the how-to section on almost everything having to do with blogs.

Moving on!

Now that you've chosen your platform, go register your new blog name (get your URL - something like TheChickenCoop.blogspot.com) and get your pages set up. At this point, you should have at least two pages: Home (where your blog posts are) and Review Policies. Get those two up and going, and we'll go into design choices you'll make for your blog tomorrow.

Baby steps!

What's your preferred blogging platform? Why?

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Branding Yourself with Imagery

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! Continuing on with my Becoming a Book Blogger series, today I'm gonna talk about choosing the imagery to go with your name. If you've been with me so far, you have a great name picked out, a tagline, and a review policy. As I stated yesterday, I'll be using The Chicken Coop as the name for the example review blog. Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Recap!

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery (you're there now)
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

When considering branding yourself with imagery, keep this post in mind. While you want to be different and exciting, be sure you aren't cluttering your blog up with stuff that'll keep it from loading quickly. Remember, you have three to five seconds to make an impression. Use it wisely.

Here's a quicky for The Chicken Coop Book Reviews:

Now, this doesn't take into account any kind of color scheme you may have going on, and you may want a smart looking chicken, standing up, reading a book behind the banner, but you get the idea. This will matter when we get to structuring your rating system, too. Themes are fun!

Monday, we'll go into picking a platform to host your amazeblog.

What do you think? Are you coming up with some great ideas? Want to share?

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

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - Naming and Policies

Happy Thursday, everyone! Today, we're continuing the series on how to become a book blogger. Why am I doing this series? Because I've had so many people come up to me and tell me they're readers that consume at least three to four books a week, and don't write reviews for those books. What a loss for all those Indie authors out there! I know I'd give my book to someone who wanted to read and review it, and there are plenty of us out there who need those reviews. So, for those of you who love to read and have ever considered starting to write reviews, this series is for you. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

First, a recap of the series:

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy (you're there now)
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

I'm starting with choosing a name because that's something that'll probably take you the longest, define your brand, and what everything else will follow. It's the single most important thing you have to consider. If you aren't creative like that, here are a couple of cool names not yet in use:

The Chicken Coop
Flower Power
The Book Gardener
Razing the Page

All of those can have awesome taglines that tell potential readers you're a book blog and here's why. Of course, The Chicken Coop would probably center on Hen-Lit. *grin* I'll use this name for the duration of the series for example purposes.

So, make a list of potential names and do a Google search to find out if the ones you like are already in use. When you find a suitable one, come up with your tag line (something like The Chicken Coop - Scratching Around for Great Books) and write it all down.

A WORD OF WARNING: Book bloggers are very protective of their babies. Don't steal a name from someone else or create a name that's too similar to one that exists. You'll be in for a war. Consider the information imparted.

Once you have your new, exciting name chosen, start on writing out your review policy.

This is for authors who find your blog or website, like your review/rating system, and want you to review their book. They need to know how to submit to you, how long it may take you to review the book, and your policy on rating books you can't finish (do you leave them alone or review and say you couldn't finish and why). How do you choose among the hundreds of submissions you get?

Also write a disclaimer about what you do when you're unable to finish or review a book. Will you contact the author privately, or will the title just fall away into the ether? No one really likes to coast along without knowing if they'll be reviewed or not, so be sure you're clear.

I think I've given you enough to think about for one day, so get busy and get that name chosen!

Anything you book bloggers might want to add about naming or policies?

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

Jo

How To: Start a Book Review Blog - Series on Becoming a Book Blogger Introduction

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm giving you some information about a new post series that'll walk you through the steps of creating your very own book review blog. So, if you haven't subscribed yet, and you're interested in reading great, free books (and making money doing it) get on it. You may subscribe on the right ------------>

For this first of many posts to come on this topic, I'm giving you all a topic list that'll be updated as we go through the process. Why? Well, it's so I can show one link (to this page) and folks can find the information they're looking for. I love simplicity and organization (yeah, have you seen my link list?). Haha! In order, here are the post topics I'll be covering:

• Choosing a Name
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say?

When you see the following image, you'll know you're on one of the building a blog pages:

I can't wait to get started. May the odds be ever in your favor!

What do you think? Interested?

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

Jo

Book Review - The Last Keeper's Daughter

Happy Friday, everyone! Today, I bring you another book review from my Indie Fever reading challenge commitment. I know this post is a bit late, but I do like to finish the books before I review them. If you aren't familiar with the Indie Fever reading challenge, check it out here. So far this year, we've reviewed over 300 Indie books, and still have three months to go! You can still join us. Just visit the link, add your name and commitment level to the linky thing, and get to reading. It's a wonderful event that celebrates my favorite people in the world: Indie authors! I'm gonna give you a quick recap of the reviews I've written so far, and the list of books on my TBR (in no particular order), before we get to information about the book and my review. So grab your comfy chair and a cup of coffee, and let's get going!

Rebecca Trogner The Last Keeper's Daughter REVIEW BELOW
Scott Marlowe The Five Elements REVIEW HERE
L.K. Evans Keepers of Arden: The Brothers Volume 1 REVIEW HERE
Sarah Mäkelä The Witch Who Cried Wolf REVIEW HERE
Felicia Tatum Masked Encounters REVIEW HERE
David T Griffith The Bestiarum Vocabulum REVIEW HERE
Thaddeus White Sir Edric's Temple REVIEW HERE
Heather Topham Wood The Memory Witch REVIEW HERE
N. L. Greene Illusions Begin REVIEW HERE
J. A. Huss Tragic REVIEW HERE
Pauline Creeden Sanctuary REVIEW HERE
Casey Bond Reap REVIEW HERE 
Casey Bond Devil Creek REVIEW HERE
S. G. Daniels The Druid's Doorway REVIEW HERE
Misty Provencher The Fly House Amazon Kindle $3.99
Peprah Boasiako The Hitman Amazon Kindle $0.99
C. S. Janey Surrender To You Amazon Kindle $2.99
Gloria Piper Finnegan's Quest Amazon Kindle $4.99
Elle Todd The Elect Amazon Kindle $3.99 
Morgan Wylie Silent Orchids Amazon Kindle **FREE**
Laura Howard The Forgotten Ones Amazon Kindle $0.99
Skylar Hamilton Burris The Strange Marriage of Anne de Bourgh Amazon Kindle $2.99
Christina Marie Morales Ambience Amazon Kindle $2.99
Tamar Hela Feast Island Amazon Kindle $2.99
Molly Taggart Off Target Amazon Kindle $2.99

Title: The Last Keeper's Daughter
Author: Rebecca Trogner
Genre: New Adult Paranormal
Length (print): ~ 242 Pages
Buy Link: Amazon Kindle $4.99

Synopsis: To the outside world Lily Ayres is the privileged daughter of an old moneyed family. She is young, beautiful, and a talented horsewoman. All of which are enviably qualities, but few know that beneath this thin veneer of societal perfection lies a deeply troubled young woman. For Lily rarely speaks and is incapable of normal, human interaction.

Unable to understand why she is this way, she further retreats inside herself, until memories and suppressed emotions begin to bubble to the surface. Murder, revelations of her family's hidden purpose and dark secrets are revealed as she is thrust into the supernatural world of Krieger Barnes, Vampire King of North America.

Now that you know about the book, how about that review? *grin*

***Will not appear in review elsewhere. You all know how much I love covers. This one is pretty as all get out, but it's hard to read the title at small sizes. I'd also like to see the author's name in a larger point size. Your books are your chance to make a real stamp on your author platform. Be proud, not meek.***

Rebecca Trogner answered a call last year to pitch her book to me during the Twelve Days of Christmas event on my blog. This is the only time of the year I take requests for reviews, and buy the books that capture my attention. Well, her pitch and sample snagged a purchase. I loved the intrigue building behind the opener, and I had to know more. Let's get going about the rest of the story, eh?

From a Reader's Perspective:
Humans and vampires. But, then, there are Others. Let me tell you, I had no idea what to expect out of this story, but I loved the twisting and turning of paranormal creatures. Vantors were my favorite! Descriptions were very well done, and I liked how the main character, Lily, came into her own over the course of the novel. I didn't care for the back and forth between Lily and Krieger, hot one minute and cold the next, but I did appreciate the moments when the two were together and he seemed deep and caring. On characters, I got confused a number of times when reading about Walter, Winston, Henry, and Hunter. Their names were a bit too close to one another, and I kept having to stop and think about who the heck the subject of conversation was. Not fun. I liked the pacing (no dawdling here), and was able to finish the book in a week. Surprises abound. This tale is a twisty one and will keep you guessing until the end. I did have to shut off my editor's brain, but the errors I noticed probably would go unseen by the casual reader. Speaking of that...

From an Editor's Perspective:
There were several places I lost traction. Sentences like this one: "The bladed was forged with magic," and "Randolph convinced him to let him investigate it." Use of the word wracked in place of racked. It was little things like these that lose half a star, but the book is well written despite. Great plot that doesn't dawdle.

Rating:
1 Star for giving me lots of paranormal folks besides vampires
1 Star for bringing Lily from weak and meek to awesome
1 Star for the twists and turns
-1 Star for names that were too similar and the weird romance/not romance thing happening
-.5 Star for editing of sentences, grammar, and pronoun misuse
.5 Star for a unique plot and good pacing
Overall 3.5 out of 5 stars. We all know I round up, so this book gets a 4. Recommended to fans of vampires, mysteries, and other paranormal creatures.

What do you think? Have you read it? Plan to?

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

Jo