Allure of the Gypsies Blog Tour Volunteer of the Day: Green Embers

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz
A Lich's Tale and Other Stories by Bradley Corbett

A Lich’s Tale and Other Stories by Bradley Corbett

Today’s volunteer is a blogging machine.  Bradley Corbett is more commonly known as Green Embers who runs the following:

He also has a collection of fantasy short stories on Amazon entitled A Lich’s Tale and Other Stories.  It’s his first published eBook, so give it a look.

A big thank you to this hard working dynamo of the blogosphere.  Check out his part of the blog tour HERE.

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Fly in the Ointment

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz
Yahoo Image Search. I think they're from Monster Hunter Video Games.

Yahoo Image Search. I think they’re from Monster Hunter Video Games.

It only takes one
To make a mess of all that is
A solitary being
Not always with a malice core
Who knocks the whole world down
So all must suffer full

Fingers of fire point around
Anger rising beyond reason
The righteous stand within shadows
Though they watched it all ensue
Finding it easier
To whine when the end can true

So now everyone has lost
Wrapped in chains and whipped
Spitting blame
As if only one can be the cause
When any could have stepped within
Guess it is easier to complain

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

I had an interesting email conversation with a friend over the weekend.  He does office work and loves his job as much as one would expect from someone who is not a morning person.  Basically, a coworker was doing something that took advantage of a loophole in the rules.  Keep in mind that it was nothing truly against the rules.  The bosses found out and made a stricter rule that stole some freedom away from everyone.  Now the office is riled up and hating the person that ’caused’ this.

Yet, I heard something else that was strange in this conversation.  Everyone knew what this person was doing.  They didn’t try to stop this person or talk to them about stopping the activity.  All they did was complain about it until somebody went to the bosses to mention it.  I’m not saying this was a terrible idea, but many bosses will take action to prevent the activity from happening again.  They’ll also assume that everyone knew and this is the one guy that got caught.

So, is it really one person that caused this or is there some blame that should be held by those who stood idle?

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Interesting WordPress Oops

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

I wondered why I wasn’t getting any emails from a few blogs that typically had a lot of activity.  Apparently, a WordPress glitch unsubscribed me from them.  Hopefully I fixed them all.

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Just 1 Week ’til Big Book Buying Bonanza

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

One week until the debut of Read Tuesday. Mark your calendars and get ready for this great sale.

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Allure of the Gypsies Blog Tour Volunteer of the Day: The Ranting Papizilla

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz
Conan the Barbarian looking his best

Conan the Barbarian looking his best

Here is the second volunteer of the day.  A man who requires theme music whenever he enters a room:

THE RANTING PAPIZILLA who runs THE LITERARY SYNDICATE

He reviews books, does shout outs, poses challenges, and is always there to help the indie author community.  Keep an eye out for the books and authors he recommends because he’s always got something up his sleeve.

Check out his blog tour post HERE!

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Allure of the Gypsies Blog Tour Volunteer of the Day: Dom DiFrancesco

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz
By Kayla Matt

By Kayla Matt

We have two volunteers today, so here is the first of our great bloggers.

This man is a phenomenal poet who has always been supportive and a positive voice upon the blogosphere.  Did I say he was an excellent poet?

Dom DiFrancesco

A big thank you and everyone should check out his blog.  Give a look at his part of the blog tour right HERE.

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Legends of Windemere: Allure of the Gypsies Now on Amazon Kindle!

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

(Made again because the links in the original got screwed up somehow. This happened last time too.)

 

Legends of Windemere: Allure of the Gypsies has Arrived!!!

Buy it HERE!
And Add it to Your ‘To Be Read’ List on Goodreads!

Book Blurb:

The epic adventures of Luke Callindor and Nyx continue after their journey down the L’Dandrin River in Legends of Windemere: Prodigy of Rainbow Tower.

Reeling from his failures in their previous adventure, Luke leads his surviving friends to his hometown.  With his mind frayed and his confidence fractured, Luke must face the family and fiancée he left behind.  It is a brief homecoming when the vampire Kalam attacks the village, forcing Luke and Nyx to break into his lair for the key to resurrecting a fallen warrior.  It is a quest that will force both young heroes to reach new heights of strength and power that they never knew they had.

Can Luke and Nyx escape the lair of Kalam?  And, what role will the orphaned gypsy Sari play in their looming destiny?

Wondering what you’re in for?  Check out the praise earned by the first two installments of this high fantasy series!

Review Excerpts for Legends of Windemere: Beginning of a Hero:

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

“I greatly enjoyed the vivid characters, the gripping plot, and the refreshingly unique writing style (present tense). ” – kdillmanjones

“This is a sophisticated and delightful read. I recommend this book to lovers of Fantasy or to General Fiction readers. The story is compelling enough to entertain a wide audience.” – John Howell

“One of the things that won me over was the bouts of humor. Especially in the beginning. “This is not possible! I am a Paladin!” I thought I was going to die with delight.” – C.N. Faust

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Review Excerpts for Legends of Windemere: Prodigy of Rainbow Tower:

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

“Something I find unique about this fantasy novel that I don’t often find in others, is that the hero, Luke Callindor is rather of the unlucky variety. He does not get everything he asks for, he stumbles, falls, gets knocked down (literally)and taught lessons as he goes. This is helping him to grow into the hero that was promised in the first book.” – Ionia Martin

“Nyx is such a strong personality. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her and more of the other characters, new and already known, with the rich tapestry of Windemere unfolding in between intense actions scenes and moments of kindness and budding friendships.” – Danielle Taylor

“Almost like the Harry Potter series. The books start out so young and innocent, but by the last book – watch out!” —  Momto4Booklover

Charles author photo B&WAuthor Biography:

Charles Yallowitz was born and raised on Long Island, NY, but he has spent most of his life wandering his own imagination in a blissful haze. Occasionally, he would return from this world for the necessities such as food, showers, and Saturday morning cartoons. One day he returned from his imagination and decided he would share his stories with the world. After his wife decided that she was tired of hearing the same stories repeatedly, she convinced him that it would make more sense to follow his dream of being a fantasy author. So, locked within the house under orders to shut up and get to work, Charles brings you Legends of Windemere. He looks forward to sharing all of his stories with you and his wife is happy he finally has someone else to play with.

ALSO!

Goodreads Giveaway for a Paperback Copy of Beginning of a Hero, Prodigy of Rainbow Tower, & Allure of the Gypsies!!!

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What Do You Look for in a Third Book?

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

Legends of Windemere: Allure of the Gypsies is Available on Amazon Kindle!!

So, here I am sitting around during the first week of my book’s debut thinking about what to write.  Yesterday, was the big debut and rushing around to submit to all my listed marketing sites.  Then it struck me that a question I asked during Prodigy of Rainbow Tower‘s debut was never asked:

What do you look for in the third book of a series?

Some people might not realize how a third book differs from a second book or the finale of a trilogy.  Obviously, you can’t give full closure like the ending of a trilogy, so that answers that difference.  The trick comes in when comparing it to a sequel.

To be honest, part two can be cleaner than the third book.  You have direct plotlines and foreshadowing to work off of.  The world is still being explored and you can move out from the initial setting, so there’s still a freshness for the author to depend on.  Same goes for the characters.  They’re still in early development and the second book is where you can throw in a good amount of shake ups.  Betrayals, deaths, failures, victories, and the whole bag of tricks to make that sequel even bigger than the first . . . then what?

Here’s where the third book will find a problem.  It has two books to live up to while forging its own niche in the series.  You can pull out some of the tricks from the second book, but too many and you doom the entire series.  There’s a lot riding on this third book and it could easily end up larger than the previous ones.  At this point, you may find some subplots are running their course and need to come to a conclusion.  Introducing a new character and removing an old one can be helpful too.  You need shock events without making them seem strained.

You also need to think more about the future of the series on this one.  Think of the reader dating your series:

  1. First book is the blind date where you’re getting to know each other.  Might not be smooth, but you can put on a good enough show for a return.
  2. Second book is the big second date where you give it your best and try to give the reader more of what they liked during the first book.  Also, add stuff that they hinted they wanted.
  3. Third book is the nerve-wracking date where you consider putting out.  By ‘putting out’, I mean revealing the big story and grabbing hold of the reader for the true roller coaster.

I hope that analogy makes sense.  So, what do people think about the third book of an on-going series?

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Captive at Christmas Cover Reveal!

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

First, a big congratulations to Danielle Taylor whose book Captive at Christmas is going to be published on December 12th.

Captive at Christmas Cover

Captive at Christmas Cover

Blurb

After a particularly harsh break-up, Hannah Magnus decides to spend Christmas away from her Vancouver home, enjoying a little time for herself, and picking up the pieces of her broken heart. She crosses the border into Washington State and locates the idyllic cabin that will serve as her home for the next two weeks.

Mackenzie Dunlop is a man of action and reaction. A creation of his past and his profession. When he travels to the cabin he rented to stay in until the repairs on his house are complete, there is a surprise waiting…and Mac loathes surprises.

Thrown together in the least likely of circumstances, Mac and Hannah find solace in each other after a harrowing event. But the future holds no promise for either of them. Distance and circumstances stand in their way. Will love prevail? Or will Hannah and Mac remain two solitary souls sharing love and memories, living separate lives.

Excerpt

Using stealth afforded to him from years of tactical training, Mackenzie edged nearer to assess the threat. When he reached the steps of the tub, he knelt, eyes narrowed. He took a fortifying breath and pushed himself up slowly, powerful thighs raising him evenly and without pause or strain.

Creamy pale skin poked out from the rapids in the tub…belonging to a woman. His eyes widened as the swell of her cleavage was jostled by the streams of water. Though she had the appearance of an angel and not that of a hired hit-man – or rather, woman – Mac knew better. Evil knew no bounds, ignored prejudices, race, and gender.

After a moment’s thought, he settled himself on the edge of the tub and held the muzzle less than an inch from her temple. “Who the fuck are you and what the hell are you doing in my cabin?”

Her eyes flashed open and pink lips opened wide in shock. Tension slithered between them.

The woman’s eyes landed on his gun. Her lush body went stiff beneath the water, giving him a much clearer view of her naked form. God damn it. His cock throbbed against the fly of his jeans. No, not now! Not again!

Author Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Danielle-Taylor/217716295040976

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DTaylor_Author

Blog: http://authordtaylor.wordpress.com/

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Allure of the Gypsies Blog Tour Volunteer of the Day: Madi Preda

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz
By Kayla Matt

By Kayla Matt

We’re starting off the Blog Tour with a great blogger who helps indie authors promote their books.  She handles blog tours, interviews, featured authors, and featured books.  She is a terrific person and I recommend all indie authors make her acquaintance.  A BIG THANK YOU TO:

Madi Preda

Check out her Blog Tour Post and see the interesting question she asked me.  Also, she made a great header for the post.

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