Author Archives: Patrick Jones

Gordon A. Long Talks About His New Book, “A Sword Called…Kitten?”

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Please Welcome Gordon A. Long to the Blog Hop at The Linden Chronicles!  We are all anxious to hear about Gordon’s new WIP!  Thanks for visiting, Gordon!SWORD COVER SMALL

Gordon A. Long is a writer/editor/playwrite/director in Tsawwassen, British Columbia. His fantasy novel, “A Sword Called…Kitten? Is available in paperback and ebook on Amazon at  http://www.amazon.com/A-Sword-Called-Kitten-ebook/dp/B006QQHTH4/rGordon Long

The second book in the series, “Excisor” is due in September this year.

His social commentary, “Why Are People So Stupid?” is available as an e-book at

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Are-People-Stupid-ebook/dp/B00A3HU6ZE/ and at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/247418

and in paperback at

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Are-People-So-Stupid/dp/0968883575/

He has two blogs,

The Renaissance Writer,            

http://airbornpress.ca/writing/blogweb/index.php

 Are People Really That Stupid?

http://airbornpress.ca/arewestupid/blogweb/index.php

He can be contacted at: gordonlong@airbornpress.ca

What is the working title of your next book?

Excisor. Which means it’s either something about the tax man or the story of a tooth that cuts things out. I’ll leave the reader to imagine which.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

It’s the sequel to “A Sword Called…Kitten?” which was based on the personality of my cat. Then I got a new puppy who is very much a character, but he didn’t get along with the cat. I couldn’t resist.

What genre does your book fall under?

Humorous Fantasy. Or Romantic Comedy. That’s the trouble with being creative. I put a book up on Smashwords, and they ask me to put it in a category, and there’s no category for fantasy humour. I guess they never heard of Terry Pratchet or Piers Anthony.

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

A Healer struggles to fulfill the needs of her people and to keep her infant Magic Scalpel under control, hampered by racial prejudice, revolution, and a Magic Sword who won’t be serious.

Since this is a series, the setting must be important. What might interest the reader about the setting?

Inderjorn is a late medieval realm with a disrupted past. About 200 years ago the original people, a blond, nordic-type race, were invaded by the Maridons, a dark-haired, hispanic-type race. The resulting mix has never quite come together. Most nobles are Maridon, but not all. Most commoners are Inderjornese, but not all. Think Norman England, about 1200.

Then, of course, there’s the Magic. Inderjornese of the Blood, or former ruling class, are Sensitive to the emotions of others. Exceptionally talented Magicians can communicate speech, and even sway the minds of weaker people. However, a Sensitive can use an outside agency, such as a Magic Sword, to ease the communication of actual words and images.

The main character is a young Magic Sword with a chequered past of her own and a burning desire for a Name of honour and glory. This she achieves, rather against her will, in the first book of the series.

In the second book, racial tensions erupt. Maridons are becoming Sensitives as well, without the years of lore and social convention that the natives have available to control their Powers. Kitten throws her weight behind Eirlin the Healer, the only one with the Power to Heal the realm. But will Eirlin grow to meet the challenge in time?

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I’m a starting-up publisher, so my book will be handled by Airborn Press. Which at the moment is me. I am working on some other people’s projects, so I hope to soon have some more authors in my stable. Submissions gladly accepted.

What other books would you compare this to within your genre?

It doesn’t really compare. The curse of originality. I have always been a fan of Terry Pratchett, but my humour is very different from his. I have my own brand of humour, rather sharp and (I hope) witty, with a touch of the ridiculous for colouring. Oscar Wilde was one of my heroes as well. Sorry about the indefinite answer. I guess you’ll just have to read it and find out.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

I have been an Anne McCafferey fan for ages. One of the universal human fantasies is a powerful animal you can communicate with telepathically. Then I discovered Terry Pratchett. I mean, traditional fantasy has a fairly limited appeal, and one can get sated quite quickly. Adding humour refreshes my interest. Humour and creativity like Pratchett’s has refreshed my interest for about 15 years.

What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?

A rather unusual love story, a couple of very different sword fights, and a psychotic villainess with dual personalities. Also, this story is completely told from the POV of the Sword

How to Improve Your Amazon Sales Page

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Reblogged from Savvy Writers & e-Books online:

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One of the greatest benefits of selling your e-book (or paper book) at Amazon is the space they provide you to “advertise” your work.  If you are a savvy author, take advantage of this marvelous opportunity and insert as much information about your writing and yourself as you can. 

Look at it from the standpoint of a reader; which e-book or book would you buy: The one that shows just a boring cover, name of the author, and a very short introduction to the book – or the one that:

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Dale Furse Talks About Her New Novel, “Secret of Wexkia”

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Please welcome Dale Furse, author of “Curse of Wexkia” to the Blog Hop at The Linden Chronicles!  Thanks for stopping by and visiting!

Curse of Wexkia

Dale Furse is a writer who lives West of Townsville, North Queensland. Her Science Fiction/Fantasy (heavy on the fantasy) novel, Curse of Wexkia is available as an ebook on Amazon at  http://www.amazon.com/Curse-Of-WEXKIA-ebook/dp/B007Z88XIG/ref=la_B0080JKMLK_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341359745&sr=1-1

The second book in the series, Secret of Wexkia will be available in the near future.

She blogs at  http://dalefurse.wordpress.com/

What is the working title of your next book?

Secret of Wexkia and, after many revisions and edits, it is at proofread stage and will be published soon. The book is the continuation of Nell’s story from Curse of Wexkia and the second in the Wexkia trilogy. In Curse of Wexkia, Nell learns of her heritage and although she is willing to live with the changes, a lot of alien beings believe she is a danger to the entire known universe. They think she is a curse – a throwback to a cruel, ancient race that not only enslaved whole worlds but committed genocide more than once. Nell proved she wasn’t the menace they claimed her to be with the exposure of the Book of Wexkia and an account of what happened to the Wexkians. But not everyone was happy with the verdict and some would do anything to stop her from becoming a true Wexkian.

What genre does your book fall under?

Young Adult Science Fiction/Fantasy. The Science Fiction tag is because Nell’s stories take her to other planets with cool aliens and space ships but it is far more fantasy inasmuch as it’s all fiction – no hard SciFi facts. But then again, who says there are no planets like the ones featured in Wexkia or beings like the ones who inhabit those planets? I think they are all real.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Although I grew up with four brothers and five sisters, I was often lonely. That’s where a lot of my stories originate. Nell’s story was just one of my daydreams but it was, and is, the one that has stayed with me the most. Like all children at some stage, I wished I could fly and as Nell, I could. I could also visit unknown planets and meet the beings inhabiting those worlds. Of course, a lot has changed – title, names, characters etc – but it is still the same story.

What was the hardest part of writing your book?

Ha, that’s easy, finishing it. I always find that the hardest part of writing any book because, just like when I read a good book, I never want it to end.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I like the idea of going it alone and will continue to self-publish. You can read about my writing and news on my blog at http://dalefurse.wordpress.com/

Which Plug-Ins Are You Using For Your Website or Blog?

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Reblogged from The Linden Chronicles:

Savvy Writers & e-Books online has a great reference for Word Press Plug ins.  The reference to this infographic is: This infographic is Courtesy of WP Template and Designed by Graphs.

Excellent infographic Courtesy of WP Template and Designed by Graphs. Please see link below the infographic.

Twitter Co-Founder's Second Best Idea

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Reblogged from Savvy Writers & e-Books online:

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Imagine, you are at a function, such as a party or book signing and someone wants to buy a signed copy of your book directly from you, but has no cash on hand. How useful would it be to accept a credit card for your sales (besides that, spending increases more, when using credit cards). This transaction is now possible with a tiny device, you attach to your cell phone, called the "

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Twitter Co-Founder Square Card Reader...Interesting information from Doris-Maria Heilmann with 111Publishing!!

It’s NATIONAL PRETZEL DAY!!!

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Sticks-and-Twist-In-BagAWESOME!!

It’s NATIONAL PRETZEL DAY!!

We have the absolute best pretzel store in the nation right here in St. Louis, MO!  Gus‘ Pretzel is a family owned business in operation since the 1920′s.  They have the best brats wrapped in pretzel dough, as well as a number of other delicacies!  Click on the picture to go straight to the menu.

Now you will be thinking about this all day long and will have to go out a buy pretzels!  Happy FRIDAY!

A Glimpse into the NEW WIP from JK Mikals, Author of “A Chip in Time”

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JK Mikals, Author of A Chip in Time, Talks About Her Next Novel

Welcome to The Linden Chronicles!

chipintime

My work in progress is called Cold, Cold Heart.  What’s it about?  In 1941 a girl journeys across a grey Atlantic filled with U-boats to wartime Panama, only to be spurned by her new husband. Pregnant, she struggles to survive, hide the child and conceal all further trace of herself.  Why did she work so hard to block her trail?

The idea popped up on two different fronts. While trying to straighten out my incredibly tangled paperwork for residency in Panama, I found whole rooms full of strangers quieting so they could eavesdrop as I regaled the officials with tales of my probable origins.  That gave me an appreciation of how intriguing the story was.  Then, a casual suggestion in a science popularization book about quantum physics that it might – actually – be possible to shift the past sent the story roaring into my keyboard.

Genre?  I guess we have to call it literary, although, too, it is a mystery without a murder, and contains elements of what some might still call science fiction.  I can’t say what other books it might be like, because I haven’t seen anything quite like it before.  It’s certainly not like my first book, A Chip in Time, which is a satire featuring fertility gods, businessmen, the Akashic Records, rabid squirrels and an innocent twit who is supposed to save the world.  A Chip in Time takes a gentle swipe at nearly everything and makes people laugh, while Cold, Cold Heart raises questions and might make readers cry.

I’m an Indie to the core, so I’ll be publishing it myself on Smashwords and Amazon Kindle and CreateSpace.  Look for occasional teasers and discussions of the back story and science behind it on my blog at http://jkmikals.blogspot.com

What Every Author Should Know

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Reblogged from Savvy Writers & e-Books online:

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When consulting / coaching our clients, helping them with their book marketing, we often have to watch them coming to a screeching hold when they try to organize special sales or free days: authors cannot change prices, text or anything else on their retailers account if they go with a publisher. No matter if it is a traditional big publisher or one of these "vanity" publishers, as only those can go into the retailers account - unless they give their authors the keyword and other details and the permission to do changes on the sales page.

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Great thoughts from Doris-Maria Heilmann with 111Publishing!

Libraries: More Popular Than Ever!

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Reblogged from Savvy Writers & e-Books online:

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Courtesy of: CityTownInfo.com
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In the face of new technologies, libraries are adapting to a new reality and they are more popular than ever!

81 % of American adults use the Internet and almost as many people agree that free computer and internet access (including Wi-Fi) are very important services that libraries offer. 62% of libraries are the sole provider of computers and Wi-Fi for free in their community.  

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More great information from Doris-Maria Heilmann with 111Publishing about the popularity of Libraries.

Yvonne Hertzberger – The Dreamt Child: Earth Pendulum – Book Three

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Please welcome Yvonne Hertzberger talking about her latest WIP, “The Dreamt Child.”  Thanks for visiting, Yvonne! 
dreamtchild

My current work in progress is the third volume in the “Earth’s Pendulum” trilogy “The Dreamt Child”. I call it “Old World Fantasy” because it is set in a pseudo,  early medieval period with little technology. While many fantasies have a great deal of magic or mythical beasts and such, the only paranormal in this series is a seer who has visions and a relationship with the goddess Earth. This seer also communicates with certain animals via ‘mind speak’ and sometimes this adds a little humour.

In “The Dreamt Child”, the seer, Liannis faces major changes in her world and what it means to be a seer amidst these changes. The goddess has decided one seer is not enough in a growing society. This is a story of transitions, relationships, good guys and bad guys, and a good smattering of action.

I never intended to write a trilogy. It just happened. When I attempted to write a short story all these amazing characters wormed their way into my consciousness and demanded that I tell their story. It’s been a fun and unpredictable ride.

As with the first two instalments, “The Dreamt Child” will be Indie published on Createspace, Kindle and Smashwords.  I hope to have “The Dreamt Child” available for the holiday shopping rush (Rush? Well, a girl can dream.)

Each book seems to take me roughly two years to complete. I really thought this one would take less time but I got involved in social media, promotion and marketing, and with a wonderful group of authors called Indies Unlimited.

I truly cannot say my work compares to any other writer’s work, though I would love to have Robin Hobbs or Juliet Marillier say they liked it.

While my books are labelled Fantasy because they are not historically accurate they will also appeal to those who like historical fiction and historical romance. These are traditionally considered ‘women’s genres’ but several men have read and enjoyed the first two, “Back From Chaos” and “Through Kestrel’s Eyes”, because they have enough action and there are such strong, well-developed characters – both male and female. That is what readers say they love best – my characters.

You can find me at http://yvonnehertzberger.com for a closer look, sneak peeks, and my blog.