I find myself in the odd position of having two urban fantasy novels being released (by different publishers) on the same date (in the US, anyway): July 26th.
I'll inflict more information on you as the release date approaches, but for now I'd like to share with you the video trailers I made (with a LOT of help) for the books.
To celebrate, my publisher's offering Dark Legacy, Book 1 in my psychic fantasy series based on the same lucid dream theory as the movie Inception, as a FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, May 2nd - May 9th, on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders, etc.
From May 9th-22nd, Dark Legacy will be a .99 cent eBook.
Don't miss your chance to dive into this thrilling contemporary fantasy world from the very beginning!
Then catch up with my weekly Dream Theory and Psychic Realm blog series, where I share more behind the metaphysical and parapsychology behind my contemorpary world building.
Hey, I've just found out about this great new Tour company. It's called Supernatural Capital Tours and does these fantastic trips round all the fanged, fae and magical hot spots in London.
Supernatural Capital Tours is a recognised leader in London City sightseeing. Our hop-on, hop-off bus tours are operated on a fleet of new double-decker buses designed with top-deck-only seating to provide you with the best possible views of London’s magical attractions, supernatural neighbourhoods and places of paranormal interest.
Supernatural Capital Tours provides the best paranormal attractions, including vampire theatrical shows, magical markets, and Charmed river cruises. SCT is an expert in Magical Tourism.
I’ve been notified that the news officially hit Publishers Marketplace last week so I can make my own announcement here. I’ve sold new books for a new series! While the Dark Days series has been officially put to bed, my evil brain has turned its attention to a new set of victims and heroes.
The Tattoo Artist
The title of the series is just a working title so I have something to save the files under on the computer and is subject to change. Also considering that the first book hasn’t hit my editor’s desk, things in the books are still subject to change. However, I can try to give you some highlights.
With the new series, I wanted to do a sharp change for the Dark Days world. Where everything is hidden and secret in the Dark Days series, everything in the Tattoo Artist world is out in the open. The world was broken open centuries ago and now elves, faeries, trolls, werewolves, and dozens of other creatures walk free and happy among the humans. They live in relative harmony with each other. However, there is one group that hovers like a dark shadow over the rest: the warlocks and the witches. These magic users are dangerous and cruel, monitoring the use of magic by anyone other than themselves. They are the gatekeepers, the judges, and ultimately, the executioners.
Now understandably, the humans would occasionally feel at a disadvantage in this world filled with other magical creatures. They would need to find their own edge here. So they turn to the tattoo artists. Tattoo artists are more than just artists of the flesh. They are also potion stirrers, putting them outside the realm of the warlocks. Need a little good luck? Want love? Want revenge? The right ingredients mixed in the ink along with the right symbol etched into the skin can get you your heart’s desire. Of course, this all comes with a price.
The series follows the tattoo artists at the Asylum as they encounter some interesting clients and battle their own demons.
So far, two books have been sold for this series and there is an interest for a pair of novellas to be released along with the books set in the same world. I am currently chipping away at the first book. No release date has been officially discussed, but I believe we are aiming to keep me on the same release schedule that I am currently on, so we are looking at the first book being released in Summer 2012.
I will be posting updates and tidbits on the series as it comes. Also, don’t forget to pre-order your copy of Burn the Night: The Final Dark Days Book. There are now fewer than 71 days until the release!
I doubt anyone isn't aware of the terrible situation in Japan. I wanted to do something to help, and was disappointed when I discovered Authors for Japan too late to help with a donation through them. But now Genre for Japan is up and running, and I've donated two items (a Tuckerization, and a critique), for when their auction goes live on the 28th March.
Below is the press release, which says it so much better than I can. Genre for Japan are still open for donations, so if you're able to donate something suitable that could help, or if you're able to bid in the auction when it goes live, then please bookmark it, and thank you in advance. Full details are below:
But before you read on about Genre for Japan, I also wanted to mention some other auctions which are for manuscript critiques from some fabulous authors on which you can bid for here, and here, and for signed books organised by Richelle Mead, which you can find here.
Genre for Japan
Press Release: Time to Donate Prizes!
We’ve all heard the news and seen the horrific pictures coming from Japan in the aftermath of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami – and no doubt we’ve all wondered how to help.
Following the example of Authors for Japan, where bids are now closed, we’d like to introduce Genre for Japan, a chance for the comics, science fiction, fantasy and horror communities to unite and show our generosity to those who need it right now.
We are planning to run auctions for genre-themed prizes and we need YOU to donate. We are looking for really fantastic prizes: examples might include signed first editions, coaching sessions with agents for that perfect submission letter or original artwork!
Some of the prizes already donated include a year's supply of books from Tor, signed artwork from Solaris Books and editing/critiques from professional authors and editors.
If you have something really special to donate, please drop us a line at genreforjapan@gmail.com including information such as a starting bid amount, a sentence or two about the item, and whether you wish to send the prize to a central collecting point or would be willing to post it to the winning bidder. Photos would also help us to list the item, if relevant.
The deadline to receive offers of prizes is 25th March, with the auction set to begin on 28th March.
ETA: Bidding is now live! There are 137 Fabulous lots to choose from! Auction closes 3rd April!
I took a peek at the countdown clock on my Blogger accounttoday and noticed that we officially have less than 100 days until the release of Burn the Night: the Final Book of the Dark Days series on June 28. So, I've pulled together all the threads and tied up those loose ends with some neat and hopefully unexpected answers.
Does Aurora finally succeed in her quest for dominion over the planet and destruction of mankind?
What plans does Mira's father Nick have for her and can she escape?
Will Rowe finally corner Mira and be her demise?
Will the Daylight Coalition expose the nightwalkers' secret to the world?
Will Mira finally have the strength to get Jabari permanently out of her life?
Can the Great Awakening be stopped?
And will Mira and Danaus have their happily ever after?
All these questions and more will be answered in Burn the Night. But for now, as a celebration of having less than 100 days until the release, here is a brief snippet from the book that comes out on June 28.
“Damn it, Mira!” Danaus taunted in a low whisper, a smirk pulling at one corner of his mouth. “Are you going to need a tissue or can you pull it together?”
I threw the hunter a dark look, but otherwise kept my comments to myself. The ceremony was going to start soon, and Barrett had generously allowed us to attend since we were the only people that James saw as both friends and in a twisted way family. I wasn’t going to be the one that started trouble.
Yet, I could understand Danaus’s teasing all too well. As we stood there in the quiet forest, a ring of werewolves around us, I tried to focus on the bare-chested James next to Barrett and the rest of the Rainer family. Unfortunately, my mind drifted too often to my recently lost Lily and Tristan. Two people I had taken into my family, into my heart, that were stolen from me through violence and treachery just a few months ago. Watching James being inducted into the Savannah Pack, I tried to reassure myself that he would be safe and that no one would strike at him in an effort to get to me. He was now a part of Savannah, but there was a safe distance between me and him.
A hollow ache echoed through my chest. Months had passed and still I found myself conjuring up ways that things could have gone differently, resulting in one or both of them being alive today. It was a futile act that only extended my pain, making me more vulnerable to the world around me, but I had Danaus at my side.
Cross-posting this to Fangs, Fur, & Fey because I believe it's relevant:
So following are some comments I made in response to some extremely insulting comments a couple of people made on a writing board I frequent regarding "popular" fiction, the readers of popular fiction, and the publishers who (according to them) believe that readers are "dumb" and "dumb down" covers and content for this unintelligent mass of readers (NOTE: I IN NO WAY share these opinions!)
***
I write fun, sexy, action-packed books. Something I enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing. Why SHOULDN'T they be packaged appropriately? I don't believe that sexuality is wrong, or that portraying sensual characters is wrong. I don't believe that marketing something in a smart, targeted way is wrong. I don't believe that is "dumbing down" to readers. If some more "serious" book with a plain, unremarkable cover is what it takes to be considered "talented" by some people, I will just continue on in my deluded, talentless hack sort of way. That, you know, pays my bills. By writing books I love and am proud of, so that doesn't make it "selling out" or any of those other epithets that people who don't like this type of book like to throw out.
Tired of people who can't just like their own types of books (or anything really) without feeling the need to denigrate others. Bite me, plskthx!
ETA: Re dumbing down things...this isn't something I generally throw in people's faces because it doesn't mean much in the real world really, but I technically have a "genius" IQ and graduated summa com laude with my bachelor degree and maintained a 4.0 during my entire time in grad school obtaining my Master's degree. Yet I LOVE sexy, fun book covers and the stories they contain. Many of my readers are as smart as or smarter than me (whether they went to college or not). So again, bite me!
***
Related to that, here is a poignant, important blog post from someone I am extremely proud to call a friend (even though I don't get to see her NEARLY enough despite our living in the same city), the fabulous Heather Brewer. Please, read it, take it to heart, believe it! Be proud of who and what you are. I sure as hell am.
It's been a bit quiet over here for a while, so I thought I'd post a Sunday Snippet.
ETA:Well, the original Sunday Snippet is no more, as I've taken it down to play with it :-) Thanks for reading, and I hope you all enjoyed!
But rather than leave you with nothing, here's an extract from The Cold Kiss of Death, book 2 in my Spellcrackers.com series.
Enjoy!
My ‘date’ was hot; nothing to do with Finn, my boss, but entirely thanks to the gas-fired heaters in the underground tunnel. The air they blasted out was enough to raise the temperature to a level that only a fire-dragon would appreciate. But I could cope with the heat; it was the ghost part of the job that had sweat slicking down my spine.
It's Anna DeStefano again. Let's talk psychic fantasy and paranormal thrillers in movies and fantasy novels!
I get a lot of emails asking to know more about how my Legacy Series is similar to the Oscar award winning movie Inception. My first thought when this happens is that Dark Legacy sold and was published long before the movie--so why isn't everyone asking how Inception is similar to my popular Legacy Series of novels?
Of course I love to hear everyone's thoughts--even those who dig the movie more. Then again, you haven't read Secret Legacy yet (out in May), so hold that thought ;o)
On my blog (where you can WIN AN AMAZON GIFT CERTIFICATE just for commenting ;o) I give you some highlights in today's post to get the conversation started.
My name's Anna DeStefano. I'm a new member. I've published for years with Harlequin. For the last two years with Dorchester, I've written paranormal suspense that's morphed into contemporary fantasy (metaphysics, parapsychology, dream theory and fun like that).
I'm writing less and less romance in my mainstream stories. My next release is being racked under straight sci-fi/fantasy and being promoted as a "like" for those who enjoyed the movie Inception. I'm spending my time between now and the release date (May) figuring out what that means, how I found myself here (after loving sci-fi/fantasy as a kid but never dreaming that's what I'd end up creating), and getting the feel for this exciting new creative direction.
A friend's raved about this being a great group to network and learn from/share with fantasy and paranormal writers. I'm not sure if this is the active list for the group anymore, but in case it is I wanted to post and introduce myself.
bouncy
cheerful
