Contest and Some Writing Updates

Getting ready for another week of adventures, involving things with me and with the rest of my SSP family.  RJ Sullivan's new book Haunted Obsession gets announced Monday, so I'll be heavily involved with the outreach on that one, including the announcement of his blog tour, reveals of the cover art, his limited hardcover offer and more.  I always love the energy of book launches, and I think it is really cool that SSP has a a paranormal thriller in the catalog too.  RJ's a really excellent writer, so give this one a look for sure.

As for me, watch out for my very first contest.  Yes, that's right, a big giveaway, with a very nice grand prize.     I will be using a system where you can get extra entries for liking/adding some authors who are participating along with me, so you'll have a chance to accumulate a few more entries.  

I'm continuing work on the new SSP site as well as my own, and expect those to get fully shored up in the next several days.  In the meantime, if you wanted to pick up some books, or posters and t-shirts featuring some of the artwork, head on over to: http://www.seventhstarpress.com/ssp-store/

I've been writing a lot this past week, making more good progress on the 4th Rising Dawn Saga book.  Was working on a Gregory section, one for Dagian, and another for Jovan earlier today, in fact.  Going to be some big surprises in this one for sure.  

Short-story wise, I'm polishing some of the stories in the new horror series I've mentioned before, as well as a few intended for the Chronicles of Ave and the Annals of the Rising Dawn.  I think we are very, very close to seeing a number of these ready.    Beyond that, I've been fleshing out some ideas for a new YA urban fantasy/paranormal series that I've been envisioning.  I'll keep everyone posted on that front.

Also would like to thank everyone for the kind notes and words of encouragement about my mother, who is making progress following the surgery she had two weeks ago.  She's largely back to her usual self, though her vision will take awhile to improve due to the nature of the surgery.  

So that's it for the moment!   I'll be sure to let everyone know the details about the contest when it is ready early in the week!

Author's Fair and MidSouth Con Looms!

Last weekend's Author's Fair in Madison, Indiana was wonderful, and the week has sped by as I prepare for MidSouthCon in Memphis this weekend.

First of all, I want to salute Frank and Kim Hall, and their wonderful group of volunteers, for a great experience at the 2nd Annual Author's Fair. Frank, as readers of my blog know, is the owner of That Book Place and is also the proprietor of Hydra Publications, a rising small press publisher that has seen some wonderful success this year. Frank also blogs for the Seventh Star Press blog site. (Yes, that is a rare photo of Frank that I took at the Author's Fair! LOL)

He is one of the best people I've encountered in the book business, and the Author's Fair reflects what Frank is all about. It was well-run, a sense of hospitality was everywhere, and it brought together a group of very wonderful people from all around the region. The tone was set right from the beginning when Kim Hall came to my table space with a nice cold Monster Energy, a perfect way to start the day!






Fortunately, we had some great weather for the outdoor event. I was at a two-table space with Michael West and RJ Sullivan. We were joined by Rodney Carlstrom, one of the Seventh Star Saints, a blog reviewer, and writer from Indiana, who brought along John F. Allen, another writer, who was subsequently absorbed into our wacky world! LOL

Madison is a smaller town, and the public turnout was modest, but the people that came definitely came to talk to authors and buy books. Michael had a book launch party for Poseidon's Children, which came complete with his sons in fish garb as well as a pair of themed cakes (Photo shown also features the great authors Gary Braunbeck and Lucy Snyder, who stopped by for a visit at Mike's launch). Michael usually goes all out for these kinds of events, an the Author's Fair was no exception. Michael has been awesome to work with since he came aboard Seventh Star Press, and it is really enjoyable for me to be at an event that he is attending as well.

RJ Sullivan was making his first appearance as an SSP author. His first novel with SSP won't be out until August, but he sold copies of his book Haunting Blue and gave out a new bookmark featuring one of his iconic characters. I can already tell that RJ will be great to work with at events

Rodney, John, and I had a blast talking books and other topics throughout the day, during which time we were often joined by our neighbor on the other side, Ren Garcia, a great author and friend from Ohio. We even had a guest star visit by another Seventh Star Saint, Nikki Howard, who unknowingly came dressed as one of RJ Sullivan's characters in her blue wig! (Nikki shown here with Rodney Carlstrom)

It was simply a very enjoyable experience, and I can't wait to go back to the third Author's Fair in 2013!


MidSouthCon in Memphis is one of my favorite conventions, and I am looking forward to returning and seeing a lot of great folks again. I will have a booth in the dealer's room, where author Georgia Jones will be hanging out with her new book Legends of Darkness. I will be participating in a launch party for Jackie Gamber's Sela, Book 2 of the Leland Dragon Series.

My schedule throughout the MidSouthCon weekend, panel-wise, is as follows:

Friday, 3/23 6:00 PM Con Etiquette How to interact with editors, publishers and writers in a professional manner, and still have fun.

Friday, 3/23 7:00 PM Author Co-ops What is an author co-op and how can
you use it to promote yourself and your work?

Saturday, 3/24 3:00 PM Marketing for Authors How to get your name out
there and get people reading your work.

Sunday, 3/25 11:00 AM Faith in Speculative Fiction How do faith and
religion fit into science fiction and fantasy and where can readers go
to find good stories with faith-based themes?

Should be a fun weekend during which I will get to visit with a lot of reader-friends, authors, publishers, and editors I know. I'll be sure to grab some nice pics to share when I get back!