The word is spreading...

I have been saying this for a long time as well...

Quotes of the Week

Maybe all one can do is hope to end up with the right regrets.
—Arthur Miller

Don't be nervous. Work calmly, joyously, recklessly on whatever is in hand.
—Henry Miller

When someone is mean to me, I just make them a victim in my next book.
—Mary Higgins Clark

Good books don't give up all their secrets at once.
—Stephen King

Talent is helpful in writing, but guts are absolutely essential.
—Jessamyn West

All the information you need can be given in dialogue.
—Elmore Leonard

I am by nature a dealer in words, and Words are the most powerful drug known to humanity.
—Rudyard Kipling

Don’t talk about it; write.
—Ray Bradbury

Some books leave us free and some books make us free.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tuesday Tips: First Drafts

This is easy to say but hard to do.

Give yourself permission to write a crappy first draft.

Trying to make a perfect first draft has crippled so many writers I can't even make a joke about it.

Once I gave myself permission to hammer through the first draft, all the way to the end, without going back to polish, I finally finished something.

Here is a list of things that made it easier for me:

• Forget about spell checking
• Grammar need not be perfect on the first pass
• Keep a character name list as you go
• Punctuation can be tuned later
• Never look back
• Work from an outline 
• Never look back until you are finished
• Make a list of things to do on revision

 It is a switch in your brain that will set you free. The Perfect is the enemy of the good. 

--Finish Things.

I love being an Indie Author

Images that Inspire

They lived to see dawn...

Fast Friday Indie Interviews: Kelsey Jensen

Kelsey Jensen

Tell me about yourself, Kelsey!

I'm a daughter, a granddaughter, a sister (little and big), and an aunt. I'm a romance hoarder (seriously, 2500+ and counting on my kindle. I'll have to read till I die and beyond to finish my TBR). I'm an amateur baker, an experimental cook, a Bob Seger groupie and a die-hard fan of all things leather, fringe, silver, classy, and full of sparkles.

I grew up the only girl in my family and, because of the age difference between us kids, I turned to books and barbies for enjoyment. That is, when I wasn't horsing around the cul-de-sac with the neighborhood kids.

My love for reading and creating stories only grew from there.

As I got older, I got more involved with sports (mainly golf and softball), friends, boys, (duh!) but that never stopped me from enjoying books, or from making up background stories for my barbies, and then later the sims in my game.

Summer of '15, I found myself at a point where one character wouldn't let me keep her story quiet.

Anna came to me while I was mowing, of all things, and she wouldn't stop until I put her story down. While giving Anna and Jake their HEA, they introduced me to all the awesome people in their lives. And because I'm a sucker for a HEA, I'll be assisting every one (that wants it of course) in finding their own happily ever after.

But, when I'm not lost in the world of Willowbrook and all it's inhabitants, or exploring a new planet, I can be found deep in the world of other authors, trying out my baking skills on family and friends, learning, then tweaking, new recipes from the Food Network, immersing myself in good music, relaxing and cackling with the people close to me, or disappearing as I binge watch seasons in a day on Netflix.

Tell me about your current Book:

Short version? It’s the love story of Anna Pierce and Jake Taylor.

Official synopsis:
It all began with a choice...

Anna Pierce had, by all accounts, a blessed life. She grew up in a home full of laughter, love, and support. Where the biggest problem she faced (other than how to deal with her family's crazy antics) was deciding her plans for college. Little did she know the ugly path her choice would drag her down.

A choice that left her free-falling...

Fast forward five years. Her life still held that same laughter, love and support, but it was no longer full. A shadow hung overhead, waiting. Always threatening.

Until he caught her...

Jake Taylor stormed into her life and turned her world upside down. He made her feel things she'd hidden away from; made her face life again. But, most importantly, he helped her find the light.

And gave her happily ever after...

*This book contains adult content (lots of swearing, some drinking, and some sexy times) and is intended for readers 18 and older*

**This is book one in a series, but each book will be a STANDALONE with a new couple. NO cliffhanger**

What are you working on now?

Right now I’m finishing up with my first novel, Pierce My Heart. I’ve also started on a sci-fi romance as well as a PNR, but I’ve got about three other stories running ‘round in my head at the moment. I’m not sure who will win the fight and be next.

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?

So far the only place I write is my room. I do my best writing at night, or when the house is dead silent and I have no distractions.

What is your favorite Website?

Oh boy, um…
Google.
Google gives me EVERYTHING.

Links:

Email: keljauthor@gmail.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelseyjauthor/
Website: http://kelseyjensenauthor.weebly.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KelseyJensenAuthorPage
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KelseyJAuthor
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/KelseyJAuthor/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/KelseyJAuthor
Thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/17510170-kelsey-s-happily-ever-after?page=1

Need your help to pick the next project!

I only ever work on two projects at a time. The book I am currently writing, Proper Darkness, and the next book I am outlining. I have not decided on the next one to outline. All of the stories I propose are the kind of stories I love to read.

The Outlining Process I use begins with a short description of the book. The four listed below are the leading contenders for the queue: 

Proper Darkness by Martin Wilsey

1) The Zombie Novel: When a newly married couple returns from their camping honeymoon in the Rockies they find Denver in flames and the dead walking the streets. Can they figure out what happened and find a way to survive with death pressing in from the living as well as the dead?

2) The Time Travel Novel: When a widower tries to find himself again on a Trans-Pacific race, alone on a damaged sailboat, in the middle of the Pacific he stumbles into a conspiracy that if it goes wrong could destroy all of mankind and even Time itself.

3) The Alien Mystery: When a quiet groundskeeper of a historic cemetery in Richmond VA discovers the bodies of six executed Police officers, he must hide who he is as long as he can, or it will mark just the beginning of dark times for us all. 

4) The Haunted Spaceship: When a deep space salvage team discovers a giant derelict ship, Captain Adriana Fischer must decide if the haunted vessel is too good to be true when her crew begins to disappear one at a time.

--Which one would you pick? Let me know in the comments!

Quotes of the Week

When one is writing a novel in first person, one must be that person.
—Daphne Du Maurier

You got to look on the bright side, even if there ain't one.
—Dashiell Hammett

Don't plan the ending. It has to be earned by all that will go before it.
—Rose Tremain

If no one ever took risks, Michelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor.
—Neil Simon

To survive you must tell stories.
—Umberto Eco

Just as a good rain clears the air, a good writing day clears the psyche.
—Julia Cameron

I set out to tell the truth. And sometimes the truth is shocking.
—Tennessee Williams

It is perfectly okay to write garbage—as long as you edit brilliantly.
–C. J. Cherryh

What I write is smarter than I am, because I can re-write it.
—Susan Sontag

Writing comes from reading, and reading is the finest teacher of how to write.
—Annie Proulx

You must write. It’s not enough to start by thinking. You become a writer by writing.
—R.K. Narayan

Tuesday Tips: Images

As a writer that sells my Intellectual Property for actual money I have come to understand and respect other folks IP as well. Not only their writing of words but their Art, Photos, Music and more.

I use a lot of images in my Blogging for instance. I also create my own covers for my Kindle short stories. I use copyright free images.

The easiest way to find the images you need that you can reuse is though the advanced search options of Google Image Search.

--Give it a try. 

Reading: The Fall of Hyperion

This week I read The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons.

Here is the description from Amazon:

In the stunning continuation of the epic adventure begun in Hyperion, Simmons returns us to a far future resplendent with drama and invention.  

On the world of Hyperion, the mysterious Time Tombs are opening.  And the secrets they contain mean that nothing--nothing anywhere in the universe--will ever be the same.

This is a direct continuation of Book 1. It is beautifully written and has excellent character development. It makes me want to read the poetry of John Keets!

I must admit I was a bit disappointed in how it ended. But I am just a simple man that enjoys a good hero story.

--I still highly recommend it! What are you reading this week?

That Happened

I have heard that these things happen but it has never happened to me. No this is not story for Penthouse Forum. It happened at yesterday's Writers Group.

This is my favorite Writers Group. It gives, by far, the best feedback of any writers groups I have ever attended. We are a critique group. Members submit chapters, short stories, outlines and the group helps make them better wit honest feedback.

We had a first timer submit a story this week. He told us he had been writer and working on this story since 1982. It was a time travel travel story that had an autobiographical flavor. I actually liked the premise and told him so.

We began talking about copyrights because he had a lot of references to musical works. Practical advice about avoiding landmines of copyright. When were began noting that there was no hook to capture the reader early, he slammed his hand on the table and stormed out. Without discussing any of it.

I guess we called his baby ugly. This grand opus he had worked since 1982. He was expecting high praise. He was so close to the work even the mild suggestions we gave set him off.

After he stormed out, we were in shock for a minute. We discussed what we may have done wrong. The only thing we realized is that a new member should attend and observe the process before presenting an item. See how the group works. That way they can get to know what to expect.

I keep thinking there needs to be a Sitcom called The Writers Group. This would make a great episode!

--I hope he publishes his work one day. If that is what he really wants. Because user reviews are far worse.

Better Life Through Science

Book signing today

Today I was at a book signing at the Tacket's Mill Festival in Woodbridge VA.

I was a beautiful day. Sunny and breezy and 82 degrees. We were outside and the organizers had provided shade flies and tables and chairs.

But no people.

They had food venders, a beer garden and music.

But no people.

I sold one book all day and that was to the husband of the woman author I was sharing my table with because he was bored.

My friend and named character in the Solstice 31 Saga, Karen, stopped in for a visit! She let me read a story her son wrote, HORROR ISLAND. It was awesome.

--Oh well. Every day can't be awesome!

Fast Friday Indie Interviews: Chantal Gadoury

Chantal Gadoury

Tell me about yourself?

Chantal Gadoury is a young author who currently resides near the beaches of Delaware, though originally from the country side of Muncy, PA. She shares a home with her two cats, Theo and Harper, and her fiancé Robert. Chantal enjoys to paint in her spare time, drink a good cup of coffee when she can and appreciates watching her favorite Disney classics with loved ones. When she’s not busy crafting or reading, Chantal is dedicated to her family at home: her mom, sister and a furry-puppy-brother (and her Dad, who has now lives in heaven.) As a 2011 college graduate from Susquehanna University, with a degree in Creative Writing, writing novels has become a dream come true!

Tell me about your current Book:

When the King of Tränen turns his searching gaze to his daughter, the Princess Aurelia must find a way to escape his desires or else become his golden-haired wife.

Once Upon a Time…
In the Kingdom of Tränen, a King makes a promise to his dying wife to only remarry someone who has her golden hair. With time, the King finds his eyes are turned by his maturing daughter. Realizing her father’s intentions, Princess Aurelia tries to trick her Father by requesting impossible gifts: dresses created by the sun, moon and stars and a coat made of a thousand furs. When Aurelia discovers his success, she knows she must run away from her privileged life and escapes the kingdom disguised by the cloak and under a new name, “Allerleirauh.”

Aurelia enters the safe haven of the Kingdom of Saarland der Licht, where she is taken under the care of the handsome and gentle Prince Klaus. Hoping to not be discovered by her father’s courtiers, Aurelia tries to remain hidden under her new false identity. Unexpected love is found between Aurelia and Prince Klaus and is challenged with an approaching arranged marriage between the Kingdom of Saarland der Licht and a neighboring ruler. With the possibility of discovery hanging in the air, Aurelia must face the difficulties of her past with her father in her journey of self-discovery before the Prince and his entire Kingdom learns the truth of her real identity, and she looses him forever.

What are you working on now?

Currently, I’m working on a collection of personal essays. I’d really like to write a novel about my High School years / College years. For now, it’s just a way for me to release my thoughts and work through some of the traumatic events that have occurred recently.

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?: My Desk. I like to just sit and focus. Though, there are times that I can get easily distracted and my desk counter-acts as a safe, quiet place to be. I love to write near water. There is something very relaxing in regards to lakes, ponds and oceans.

What is your favorite Website?

Since I’m trying to avoid mentioning the typical social media sites like Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest and Instagram – I love to use this site: https://pixlr.com/express/ I’m not quite lucky enough to have my own Photoshop on my laptop, so this works for me. It’s one of the most used sites on my computer.

Links:

Email: cgadoury16@yahoo.com
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019O4UAN4
Blog: http://www.chantalgadoury.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/chantalgadouryfans
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/cgadoury16
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/cgadoury16

Images that Inspire

The image below was my inspiration for the medical nanites that are used in my Solstice 31 Saga.

Quotes of the Week

Quantity produces quality. If you only write a few things, you're doomed.
—Ray Bradbury

Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That's why it's so hard.
—David McCullough

I can shake off everything if I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.
—Anne Frank

Whatever makes you weird is probably your greatest asset.
—Joss Whedon

Don't be seduced into thinking that that which does not make a profit is without value.
—Arthur Miller

We have Art in order not to die of the truth.
—Nietzsche

A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper.
—E.B. White

Do it now—write nothing but what your conviction of its truth inspires you to write.
—Percy Bysshe Shelley

Write only if you cannot live without writing. Write only what you alone can write.
—Elie Wiesel

Don’t write it right, just write it—and then make it right later.
—Tara Moss

Tuesday Tips: Rowlings 10 Rules

J. K. Rowling has made over a billion dollars from writing. Here is her top ten rules for writers success:

Reading: The Adventures of Tom Stranger

Last week I read The Adventures of Tom Stranger, Interdimensional Insurance Agent by Larry Correia.

This was a great story. It is really funny. We need some humor today.

This was a free Audible download short story.

Here is the description from Amazon:

Have you ever seen a planet invaded by rampaging space mutants from another dimension or Nazi dinosaurs from the future? 

Don't let this happen to you! 

Rifts happen, so you should be ready when universes collide. A policy with Stranger & Stranger can cover all of your interdimensional insurance needs. Rated "Number One in Customer Satisfaction" for three years running, no claim is too big or too weird for Tom Stranger to handle. 

But now Tom faces his greatest challenge yet. Despite being assigned the wrong - and woefully inadequate - intern, Tom must still provide quality customer service to multiple alternate Earths, all while battling tentacle monsters, legions of the damned, an evil call center in Nebraska, and his archnemesis, Jeff Conundrum. Armed with his Combat Wombat and a sense of fair play, can Tom survive? And will Jimmy the Intern ever discover his inner insurance agent?
It's time to kick ass and adjust claims. 

Adam Baldwin (Firefly, Chuck) performs Larry Correia's madcap interdimensional tale of underwriting and space travel, where the only thing scarier than tentacle monsters is a high deductible. 

The Adventures of Tom Stranger is free until June 21, 2016.

Princess Leia's Slave Costume?

Fast Friday Indie Interviews: Garfield Whyte

Garfield Whyte

Tell me about yourself, Garfield?

I am a  lawyer who is gradually trying to make a career change as he find law mundane and boring. Over the years I have been writing but on a small scale until I finally accomplished what I didn’t dream of doing, of writing 2 books in one years. I hold a bachelor’s degree in geography and social sciences from the University of the West Indies, a master’s degree in business administration from the Nova Southeastern University in Florida, USA. Still not satisfied with my academic achievements, I went on to complete a law degree from the University of London, then on to the Norman Manley Law School.

Prior to my legal career, he worked in the banking sector with leading commercial banks, including Scotiabank, with his final banking position being senior marketing manager.

I limit my practice to real estate, probates, and contract law. He is also the author of; Feelings an environmental photography and poetry book as the recently completed Nostalgia from: A City Set Upon a Hill, his memoir about life at Munro College, his all- boys boarding high school, one of Jamaica’s most prestigious citadels of learning. Also recently completed is his coming of age novel entitled: TJ’s Last Summer in Cape Cod (sub titled, Don’t Cry for me Cape Cod), a novel that will make you want to be 18 again

Tell me about your current Book:

TJ’s Last Summer in Cape Cod

When an 18 year high school basketball star teams up with his uncle to have a grand summer before he goes off to college, their bond seems more sacred that wedding vows, that’s even his girlfriend and parents play second fiddle to his uncle.

TJ (Taj James) an 18 year old high school basketball star wants to make this summer his best ever, before he leaves to take up his college basketball scholarship, but he needs help. So, he rolls the dice and calls on his 55 year old Uncle Peter, a womanizer par excellence, to help him with those plans. TJ holds secrets for Uncle Peter so TJ was very sure his uncle would do anything for him, as his uncle's promises seemed more sacred than wedding vows. As summer rolled along TJ is forced to make decisions whether to be a good boy or to practice some of the lessons his uncle is teaching him. Was it worth it when summer ended? That will depend on whose side you are on.

TJ's Last Summer in Cape Cod is; bold, provocative, rude, sexy, suspenseful, unpredictable and witty. You will want to be 18 again.

Review by Self-Publishing Review says:
A sexy summer saga of growing up and falling in love.
The stumbling journey of young love is often the core subject of great stories, and this amusing and compelling novel by Garfield Whyte certainly falls in that category…Transitional periods in life always make a great setting for a novel, and the summer after senior year, before “adult” life officially begins, was perfect for this story…The fickle nature of youth and love are on impressive display in Whyte’s latest novel, and his firm grasp on the intricacies of human relationships is undeniable.

What are you working on now?

A new novel entitled: South Sea Sagas

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?

By a river in the hills on the outskirts of town.

What is your favorite Website?

www.Tennis.com and www.nba.com

Links:

Email: garfield@garfieldlawoffice.com
Twitter: Garwhyte

Reading: The Fireman

I just finished reading The Fireman by Joe Hill.

Here is the description from Amazon:

From the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of NOS4A2 and Heart-Shaped Box comes a chilling novel about a worldwide pandemic of spontaneous combustion that threatens to reduce civilization to ashes and a band of improbable heroes who battle to save it, led by one powerful and enigmatic man known as the Fireman.

The fireman is coming. Stay cool.

No one knows exactly when it began or where it originated. A terrifying new plague is spreading like wildfire across the country, striking cities one by one: Boston, Detroit, Seattle. The doctors call it Draco Incendia Trychophyton. To everyone else it’s Dragonscale, a highly contagious, deadly spore that marks its hosts with beautiful black and gold marks across their bodies—before causing them to burst into flames. Millions are infected; blazes erupt everywhere. There is no antidote. No one is safe.
Harper Grayson, a compassionate, dedicated nurse as pragmatic as Mary Poppins, treated hundreds of infected patients before her hospital burned to the ground. Now she’s discovered the telltale gold-flecked marks on her skin. When the outbreak first began, she and her husband, Jakob, had made a pact: they would take matters into their own hands if they became infected. To Jakob’s dismay, Harper wants to live—at least until the fetus she is carrying comes to term. At the hospital, she witnessed infected mothers give birth to healthy babies and believes hers will be fine too. . . if she can live long enough to deliver the child.

Convinced that his do-gooding wife has made him sick, Jakob becomes unhinged, and eventually abandons her as their placid New England community collapses in terror. The chaos gives rise to ruthless Cremation Squads—armed, self-appointed posses roaming the streets and woods to exterminate those who they believe carry the spore. But Harper isn’t as alone as she fears: a mysterious and compelling stranger she briefly met at the hospital, a man in a dirty yellow fire fighter’s jacket, carrying a hooked iron bar, straddles the abyss between insanity and death. Known as The Fireman, he strolls the ruins of New Hampshire, a madman afflicted with Dragonscale who has learned to control the fire within himself, using it as a shield to protect the hunted . . . and as a weapon to avenge the wronged.

In the desperate season to come, as the world burns out of control, Harper must learn the Fireman’s secrets before her life—and that of her unborn child—goes up in smoke.

I really enjoyed this story. The character development is really good and the story is original. The protagonist is a really strong female lead that has flaws and is NOT a comic super hero. At almost 800 pages it may be a bit long for some readers but it was just right for me.

--My wifes reading it now. She will LOVE it.

Quotes of the Week

I never reread a text until I have finished the first draft. Otherwise it’s too discouraging.
—Gore Vidal

In any language it is a struggle to make a sentence say exactly what you mean.
—Arthur Koestler

You want to be a writer? A writer is someone who writes every day — so start writing.
—Shonda Rhimes

A writer is someone who pays attention to the world — a writer is a professional observer.
—Susan Sontag

The writer's job is to get the main character up a tree, and then... throw rocks at them.
—Vladimir Nabokov

Work like hell! I had 122 rejection slips before I sold a story.
—F. Scott Fitzgerald

Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.
—Zilda Fitzgerald

You start by writing to live. You end by writing so as not to die.
—Carlos Fuentes

The job of the artist is to remind people of what they have chosen to forget.
—Arthur Miller

Tuesday Tips: Listen

There are lots of reasons to write a novel. All of them are good reasons:

• To make money
• To get the story out of your head
• To see it in print
• To convey their beliefs
• To exact vengence
• Just for fun

This post will focus on having fun and making money.

I love writing. Creating a story from scratch and bringing it to life is big fun. Building characters from thin air is magical and very rewarding. For many people that is enough. It is important that the story you write can make you laugh or cry or scared of joyous. Because if it does effect you as the writer, it won't effect the reader.

If you want it to be commercially viable you need help. You need a good editor but in this post I am not talking about spelling, grammar or punctuation. All of those are important.

The help I am talking about is beta readers, pre-release readers. Find people that love your genre and read proofs before you publish. They help in several ways:

• They find typos your editor missed.
• They find plot holes.
• They find character issues.
• They find over used tropes or cliches.
• They find story problems you are blind to.
• They are not as close to it as the author.
• They can identify strong and weak sections.
• They can recommend cuts.
• They can identify the pace issues in the story.

I have ten beta readers, including my wife. You need to find people that will be honest. They need to be able to tell you the truth. My wife is brutal in her recommendations. Her recommendations always make the story better. All my Beta Readers help be make the story better. They each have a different lens on the story. One may focus on plot, another characters, another may focus on your science, or commas, or settings.

All the feedback helps. All the feedback and changes will make the work more commercially viable by removing things that bother readers, as well as things that will make readers happier. Writers groups are great for finding beta readers. It's also a great place to get lessons learned by others regarding tools, techniques and resources. Friendships result!

You don't want readers that will just pat you on the head and say, "I liked it.", humoring, encouraging  you like your mom.

I know writers that take NO feedback. "My first draft is the final draft." has been said. They wonder why no one buys their books.

The take away is, LISTEN to people. If everyone is telling you something, they may be right. These people are your fist audience. Make them your team.

--Maybe even name a character after them and let them die a hero!


 

Images that Inspire

Hint hint hint...

Images that inspire

Fast Friday Indie Interviews: Vincent Morrone

Tell me about yourself, Vincent.

Vincent Morrone

I’m the father of twins girls who are about to go away to college. I’ve been writing for most of my life, but kept putting off getting serious about it until my wife gave me the kick in the butt I needed. Even then, it took a while before my first novel, a Young Adult/PNR called Vision of Shadows, was first published by a now defunct publisher called Entranced. I was able to get it republished for a time by Silence in the Library and now it’s self-published along with the next two books in the series, Vision of Serpents and most recently, Vision of Sacrifices. The Audio book of Vision of Shadows was also just recently released. I also put out a New Adult romance Just Breathe which has sold about 10k.

My focus right now is my new book, Torn Away, which in submitted to Kindle Scout, which is an affiliate of Amazon Kindle. It gets a 30 day campaign (Mine started April 3rd and goes to May 3rd.) Readers can read a sample and nominate it for publication. If Kindle Scout decides to publish Torn Away, everyone who nominated it will get an advance copy for free.

I think Torn Away is my best novel yet, and it won 1st place in the Saratoga RWA Great Beginnings contest this past February.

Please vote for it here: https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/2L5L5H19QUEGM

Tell me about your current Book:

When his sister is killed, Drew Duncan must come back to his home town to protect her young son and find her killer, or else he may lose the rest of those he loves.

Blurb:
        After being acquitted of the murder of his high school girlfriend, Drew fled his home town of Ember Falls and never looked back. With a past full of abuse at the hands of his father, and the shame of leaving his two sisters behind, Drew vowed to become a man who saved others. 

        A decade later, he’s a decorated Marine and works for a private company to save and rescue those who need it when his sister, Kelli, reaches out to him. She’s left an abusive marriage and needs Drew to return home to help her and her young son, Cole. Only by the time Drew comes to aide, Kelli’s been murdered, and he’s the prime suspect for a corrupt town. 

        All of Drew’s fears come flooding in as he returns to Ember Falls to care for Cole, and try to repair his broken relationship with his only other living sibling. But with help from two town cops, the site where Kelli’s body was found tells Drew there might be a serial killer in Ember Falls, and the entire Duncan family is next on his list.

        Drew must piece together a decade’s worth of secrets in time to save his family, or his nephew and sister will be the next victims of a killer no one even suspects

What are you working on now?

I’ve got a lot going on, but my main focus is the sequel to Torn Away, called Torn Apart. (It’s planned as a 3 part series.) I was recently at a writer’s retreat for my local chapter of RWA and brought the first chapter for a critique. The guest speaker, Kat Doran, the retired senior editor from The Wild Rose Press was very impressed. She told me she had one word for it. “Wow!”
I’ve also got a novella I’m polishing that’s going to be a part of an Anthology Series called The Hotel Paranormal. (That’s the series name.) My installment is called The Red Strokes.
The Hotel Paranormal is the place for supernatural beings looking to get away from it all, existing in a plane separate from our mortal world, but connected through doorways in all major cities. Beings like werewolves, vampires, elves, sprites, djinn and more check in for business and for pleasure -- and sometimes for both. The Hotel has unparalleled style and is equipped to meet its guests special needs.

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?

I usually write in my recliner in the great room with either my Old English Bulldog or my Boxer curled up between my legs. However, like many authors, I’ll take my laptop almost anywhere to write.

What is your favorite Website?

Absolute Write Water Cooler: a great place for writers to get advice, brainstorm, read about editors, publishers, and agents and so much more.

Links:

Email: Vincent@vincentmorrone.com
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Vincent-Morrone/e/B00HPIE1SC/
Blog: Vincentmorrone.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Morrrone/
Twitter: Vince524
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7143975.Vincent_Morrone

The Proofs are in!

The final review proofs were delivered yesterday of Blood of the Scarecrow.

We are getting so close!

I have ten independent reviewers on my beta team that will read and make any final recommendations.

--So very close...

Quotes of the Week

I try to create sympathy for my characters, then turn the monsters loose.
– Stephen King

It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.
– Ernest Hemingway

Most writers regard the truth as their most valuable possession, and therefore are most economical in its use.
– Mark Twain

And as imagination bodies forth
The forms of things unknown, the poet’s pen
Turns them to shapes and gives to airy nothing
A local habitation and a name.
– William Shakespeare (from A Midsummer Night’s Dream)

If you can tell stories, create characters, devise incidents, and have sincerity and passion, it doesn’t matter a damn how you write.
– Somerset Maugham

To produce a mighty book, you must choose a mighty theme.
– Herman Melville