INTL SIGNED Book + Gini Koch's Top 10 Fave TV Shows!

Thanks so much to Gini for being here today! =)

Gini's Top 10 Favorite TV Shows:

Gini: Mixing it up with current loves and all timers, some long running, some very short, just because it’s my list and I can.

10. The A-Team

9. The Magnificent Seven

8. Castle (used to be #1 but not loving this season, so it’s dropped way down)

7. Firefly

6. Gotham

5. The Flash

4. Buffy, the Vampire Slayer

3. Arrow

2. Elementary

1. Burn Notice 

 Gini Koch

Gini Koch lives in Hell’s Orientation Area (aka Phoenix, AZ), works her butt off (sadly, not literally) by day, and writes by night with the rest of the beautiful people. She writes the fast, fresh and funny Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series for DAW Books, the Necropolis Enforcement Files series, and the Martian Alliance Chronicles series for Musa Publishing. As G.J. Koch she writes the Alexander Outland series. 

She also writes under a variety of other pen names (including Anita Ensal, Jemma Chase, A.E. Stanton, and J.C. Koch), listens to all kinds of music 24/7, and is a proud comics geek-girl willing to discuss at any time why Wolverine is the best superhero ever (even if Deadpool does get all the best lines). 

She speaks frequently on what it takes to become a successful author and other aspects of writing and the publishing business. She is also the Lead Editor at Raphael’s Village, an online, nonpaying ’zine. Because she wasn’t busy enough, Gini’s added on featured guest columnist, reviewer, and webcaster for Slice of SciFi and It’s Comic Book Day. She can be reached through her website at www.ginikoch.com.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads 

The Katherine "Kitty" Katt / Alien Series:

Newest Kitty/Alien Novel!

Coming Out December 2nd

  

Being the wife of the Vice President isn’t easy. Especially when your talents lie in kicking butt and rocking out…

Jeff and Kitty Katt-Martini find out just how easy it is for the wife of the Vice President of the United States to unintentionally insult an ally. Now they have to smooth things over with the Australian Prime Minister, pronto, or risk creating an international incident the worldwide anti-alien coalitions will be able to use to force Jeff to resign and the A-Cs to leave the planet.

But before Kitty can make things worse, a cosmic congruence and a little help from some powerful beings shoves her into another world -- one where she’s been married to Charles Reynolds for years and aliens don’t exist. She’s also landed in the middle of a huge conspiracy and is marked for death…but at least that’s business as usual.

Kitty’s not the only one confused, because the Kitty from that world has taken her place in this one. Now Alpha Team and the Diplomatic Corps have to make sure that no one spots that there’s been a switch, while keeping World War III from happening. And they have to do so while keeping this new Kitty in line, because she has views about what to do and how to it, and time is running out.

Can both Kittys save their respective days before it’s too late to go home to the universes they belong to? Or will one Kitty decide to keep the other’s life…forever? 

Pre-Order Links:

WIN a SIGNED Book from the Katherine "Kitty" Katt / Alien series (1-9) 

of YOUR choice 

by Gini Koch

{INTERNATIONAL}

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Awesome GIVEAWAY + Top 5 Ways to Pick From Your TBR by R.L. Naquin {Monster Haven Series}

Top Five Ways to 

Choose a Book from Your TBR Pile

by R.L. Naquin

We all have them. Towers of unread books threatening to bury us alive. E-readers so bloated with files that we haven’t even had a chance to open them all yet, let alone read them. You’ve finally got a moment to yourself, and you’re eager to get lost in another world. Is your pulse racing and your stomach queasy at the thought of having to make a choice? What will you do!? What. Will. You. Do? Fortunately, I have some tips on how to quickly get started on a new book without wasting three hours skimming through the list. 

1 - The Random Nose Dive

Close your eyes and jump. The jumping can be literal, if you have a pile of physical books, or figurative, if you have an e-reader. Oh, hell. Even if it’s an e-reader, you can still do a little jump in place while you’re flipping through with your eyes closed. Whatever you land on is the book you should read. No changing your mind. Just do it.

2 - The Plodder

Start at the top of the list (or pile) and read the first one. Again, no changing your mind. No vetoes. If you allow yourself to skip over the first one, you’ll likely skip over the next one, too, if only so you can see what other choices you have. No choices! Choices are paralyzing and waste good reading time!

3 - The Librarian

Choose whatever is first alphabetically and start there. This one is a little dangerous. First, you have to choose whether you’re going by author, title, or series. If you choose by title, are you counting words like “the” and “a,” or will you skip them and go straight to the meat of the title? If you’re choosing by author, are you alphabetizing by last name or first? The additional choices involved in this method may send you spiraling into that paralysis we’re trying to avoid, so it’s kind of an advanced method. Use with caution.

4 - The Artiste

Pick the prettiest cover. Seriously. Yeah, I know. We’ve all heard that judging a book by its cover is wrong, but it’s not a literal saying. It’s a metaphor about people. If we weren’t supposed to judge actual books by their covers, books probably wouldn’t have covers. 

5 - The Procrastinator

Personally, this is my favorite method. Avoid the problem altogether and buy a new book. If you do this, though, you have to make an agreement with yourself to read the one you buy. You can buy just one. Sure. I know I can. (Somebody get my wallet. I have more books to buy.) So, there you go. Five ways to choose which of your many unread books to start reading when you have a minute. But seriously. You know the real answer is to grab one of my books and avoid the whole problem, right? Happy reading!

Find R.L. Naquin Online 

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook

Golem in My Glovebox

A Monster Haven Story, book four

In her role as Aegis, Zoey Donovan has rescued and cared for hundreds of monsters and mythical creatures. Now humans are the ones in need of her help. Someone with a personal vendetta against the Board of Hidden Affairs has kidnapped all the other Aegises in the country--including Zoey's mother.

With the Hidden government in shambles and a string of deadly clues to follow, Zoey and her reaper boyfriend set out on a cross-country chase to stop the kidnapper from killing the captured Aegises. Along the way, they pick up a miniature golem who's on a quest to find his humanity...and may be the key to solving the grisly clues.

If Zoey succeeds in defeating this new evil, she'll finally be reunited with the mother she lost over twenty years ago. But if she fails, she'll become the final victim.

Don't Miss Monster in My Closet, Pooka in My Pantry, and Fairies in My Fireplace, available now!

Buy Links:

Amazon 

Previously on The Monster Haven Series:

 

#1 | #1.5 | #2 | #3

Review! Freebie! Review! Review!

1st & 2nd Prize:

 Complete Set {4 books} of The Monster Haven Series

3rd - 7th Prize:

Book #1 

or

ONE Book in The Monster Haven Series of Their Choice!

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Signed Book Giveaway + Guest Post by David Matthew Barnes {Stronger Than This - Blog Tour}

Two Worlds at One Time: The Writer’s Life

A Guest Blog by David-Matthew Barnes

An undergraduate writing student of mine summed up the joys of reading when he defined the experience as "living in two worlds at one time."

I couldn't agree more. Good writing moves you. Great writing transports you.

I was once asked, "Have you ever been to Bath, England?"

I responded with, "Yes...once...in a Jane Austen novel."

A good novel should do just that: allow us to travel the globe without once stepping foot outside of our home, office, library, coffee shop, or wherever our favorite place to read is.

Novelist and essayist William Styron once said about reading, “A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading.”

But can't the same be said for the writer? The duality my student recognized as a reader is similar to the double existence we live each day as writers, culling through our own experiences (imagined and real), sifting through research to make our words more authentic, managing a day job vs. a creative one, and politely ignoring the always-present response when we've told someone we've just met that we're a writer: "Have you written anything I would've heard of?"

While we are busy creating on page those literary landscapes we whisk our readers away to, we are balancing two worlds - the one in which our characters exist and the other we draw daily inspiration from - our own. When we sit down at the computer and begin to tell a story, aren't we in fact living in two worlds at one time? Perhaps the allure for writing begins with the desire to "leave behind" our current life and slip into someone else's.

So often I have heard writers talk about "the zone" - that high peak of creativity that is so momentous, nothing else seems to matter or even register except for the words that our traveling from our imaginations, through our fingertips, and onto the page where, hopefully, they are later discovered by a reader who feels the same sense of rapture. I wonder if this state of intense creation is the fine line between the two worlds. When we stand (or dance) on it, are we straddling the very thing that separates fiction from truth?

As writers, we don't just travel vicariously through the lives of our characters. Certainly by living the life of a published writer, I have been given the opportunity to travel extensively. I am amazed by the random, wonderful places my writing has allowed me to go. From Amelia Island, Florida to Altoona, Pennsylvania to Palm Springs, California - I have met readers, signed books, and instructed writing workshops in more cities and towns than I could have ever dreamed of. Each of those journeys have inspired and impacted my writing, giving me personal insight into otherwise unexplored territories. Each time I find myself in a new environment, I can't help but observe my surroundings of this "new world" with a writer's eye, knowing that later I might chose to recreate it for my readers - knowing they will be experiencing a sense of place through me and my words.

In my novels, I take my readers all around the world: from the streets of London to a Greek island, from the suburbs of Chicago to a seaside town in Belgium, from a prestigious music conservatory to a fairy tale village in Germany. I want every reader who picks up one of my novels to feel as if they have lived those "several lives" Styron talked about, that they saw the world without ever leaving the comfort of their bedroom.

Two worlds at one time. The phrase itself can have many meanings. For my undergraduate writing student it sums up the incredible experience he looks forward to as a reader. For us writers, it means the tough balancing act we must master in order to succeed - our creative life and our daily routine, the sometimes blurred line we teeter on between the real and the imagined.

Find David Matthew Barnes Online 

Amazon Author Page | Facebook | Goodreads

Google+ | Newsletter | Official Website | Twitter

Stronger Than This

by David Matthew Barnes

Genre: Literary Fiction/LGBT/Death/Dying/Grief

Publisher: Bold Strokes Books

Publication Date: February 18, 2014

Charlene’s soul mate, Samantha, has been killed in a car accident. Daniel’s partner, Martin, has been murdered in a robbery gone wrong. Seeking comfort, Charlene and Daniel attend a support group where they meet for the first time.

Emotionally devastated and discarded by their loved ones’ conservative families, Charlene and Daniel feel an immediate connection. Rather than reveal their pain to a room full of strangers, they decide to see each other through their shared anguish.

As a beautiful friendship emerges from grief, slivers of new hope are found.

Buy Links:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble 

Books-A-Million

Tour Wide Giveaway:

10 eBooks (in PDF format)

 

2 autographed paperback copies

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INTL Giveaway + Guest Post by Renea Mason {Symphony of Light & Winter Blog Tour}

By Renea Mason

Being a paranormal author it’s probably not surprising that I’ve always enjoyed this time of year. The mysticism surrounding harvest celebrations, Samhain, All Saint’s Day, and Halloween always make for great stories. I sat down with my writer’s group the Coffee Talk Writers and asked, “What is your favorite thing about the Halloween time of year?” Cait Jarrod - “Not that I celebrate Halloween much anymore with teenagers and older kids. My favorite was of course, the girls dressing up in costumes, but I love haunted houses. Laugh all the way through them.” Michaela Miles – “Oh dear - we don't do Halloween in Australia (it's getting bigger because of the exploding zombie/vampire/icky stuff market, but it's not usually kid-friendly).” Aubrey Wynne – “I love the decorations and the excitement of the kids all week long. As a teacher, I get a big dose every year and never get tired of it.” Valerie Twombly – “I love the dress up, as an adult you can be who ever you want to for a night. Then there is the chocolate.” Lea Bronsen – “I love the kids' enthusiasm. They talk about it for weeks and weeks in advance, and when the big day arrives, there is no controlling my little monsters Isabella Harper – “I Love the decorations, the 13 days of Halloween on ABC family {lots and lots of Hocus Pocus!}, the activities and books {that's coming from a teacher perspective, haha!}, pumpkin patches, the costumes... Oh, and the candy corn. OMG...” Kishan Paul – “Chocolate” A couple of recurring themes—decorations, costumes and CHOCOLATE! My favorite – “Pumpkins” Please stop buy to enter my October Pumpkin Spice giveaway. And get a chance to win the CoffeeTalk Writer’s book of your choice—10 winners!

Find Renea Mason Online 

http://www.ReneaMason.com

http://www.Facebook.com/ReneaMasonAuthor

http://www.Facebook.com/symphonyoflightandwinter

http://www.Pinterest.com/ReneaMason

http://www.goodreads.com/ReneaMason

http://www.tumblr.com/blog/reneamasonauthor

https://twitter.com/ReneaMason1

S.ReneaMason@gmail.com

Symphony of Light & Winter

by Renea Mason

Symphony of Light, Book 1

Publisher:   Etopia Press

Publication Date:  June 21st, 2013

One woman. Seven men. All bound by one man’s undying devotion.

Fundraiser Linden Hill has a knack for reading people. She always knows which conversations will put a prospect at ease, which drink will loosen a patron’s lips—or his wallet, and how cleavage will make a donor sweeten the deal. She’s even foreseen her dateless weekends four hundred and sixty-four times in a row.

But ten years after watching life drain from her former mentor’s and first love’s eyes, her skills for divining the predictable are lost. When Cyril returns, he’s still gorgeous, but this time he’s beyond human, far less dead, and pissed. His lack of memory drives him to desperate acts, and his turbulent re-acquaintance with Linden pulls her into his war with a creature hell-bent on his destruction. His group of six supernatural men share a tantalizing secret, but despite the hunger, it’s love that leads her to sacrifice everything to save him…

Buy Links:

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AllRomanceeBooks | Kobo

Win a $20.00 gift card to Amazon

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