IWSG & The Galactic Empires Boxed Set

Today's the day for the March meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group, which means it's time for us to share our insecurities, fears, or anxieties with supportive and understanding friends. The IWSG is hosted by founder Alex J. Cavanaugh, and Alex's co-hosts for this month are Lauren Hennessy, Lisa Buie-Collard, Lidy, Christine Rains, and Mary Aalgard. If you'd like to join the group, visit the list of members here and add your name!

I had trouble coming up with a topic for today's post, which I realized is a very good thing! For most of my life I would have been able to fill book after book after book with my various insecurities. One blog post would hardly be sufficient. But I've noticed that as each month passes and the first Wednesday rolls around again, I don't really feel that way anymore. That's an amazing feeling and something I never would have expected to be able to say with any degree of honesty. I credit this encouraging group with helping me to grow in that regard!

So instead of sharing insecurities today, I am helping to spread the word about a new boxed set featuring my friend M. Pax and her terrific book The Backworlds.

Galactic Empires

Eight Novels of Deep Space Adventure

Blurb:

Eight full-length novels of adventure, war, intrigue and survival in the far reaches of space.

The Backworlds by M. Pax
A man struggles to survive in the harsh world of humanity's outer settlements and prove his father wrong.
Ambassador 1: Seeing Red by Patty Jansen
To look an alien superior in the eye is a deadly offense. To accuse him of a political murder…
Alien Hunters by Daniel Arenson
A scruffy alien pest controller faces an alien threat the likes of which the universe has never seen.
Hard Duty by Mark E. Cooper
Hostile aliens nearly eradicated humanity. Will the next encounter finish the job?
Bypass Gemini by Joseph Lallo
A disgraced racer pilot gets mixed up with a mega-corporation. Now he has to stop them.
Sky Hunter by Chris Reher
Sent to a human outpost to investigate sabotage, a pilot finds more trouble than she bargained for.
The Galapagos Incident by Felix Savage
A genocidal AI attacks the solar system, and a Space Corps agent has one chance of saving a bunch of asteroid squatters she was sent to evict.
First Conquest by David VanDyke
To find a home and keep humanity safe from hostile aliens, Task Force Conquest must fight to seize a new star system.

Buy Links: Amazon / iBook / B&N / Kobo / Googleplay / AmazonUK / 

AmazonCA / AmazonAU / AmazonDE /

AmazonFR / AmazonIT /AmazonES

Day 4: Who Roams Here?

Welcome to day 4 of the 2015 Realms Faire, hosted by M. Pax. This year there are twelve games going on, so there are lots of chances to have fun and win prizes. Be sure to check out all of these great games! 

Riddle Me This ~ Dueling Bards ~ Phasers ~ Unicorn Hunt ~ Beware the Vortex ~ VelociRaffle ~ The Hero’s Dilemma ~Stockade Brigade ~ Hall of Doors ~ The Joust ~ Drench-a-Wench/Soak-a-Bloke

Here at the House of The Spirits, I am welcoming a different ghost each day to take over the blog. I will leave clues throughout the day and the first person to guess the ghost's identity in the comments wins a prize. You don't need a google or blogger profile to participate - anonymous users are welcome to guess but please just make sure I can contact you in case you are a winner.

In addition, everyone who leaves a comment before midnight on Saturday, 11/14 will be entered in the Grand Prize drawing at the end of the Faire. The Grand Prize will be a $30 Amazon gift card, an ebook bundle of my books Polar Night, The Turnagain Arm, & The Ghosts of Aquinnah, and the Once Upon a Nightmare Collection ebook set by Cherie Reich.

Want to know about today's prize? Today my ghostly guest and I are giving away a $5 Amazon gift card, an audio book of The Backworlds by M. Pax, and an ebook of my story The Ghosts of Aquinnah.

Thanks to Mary for the donation!

Today's ghost is already irritated about not being invited until day 4 of this event, so I will turn things over quickly. Take it away, ghost!

*ETA: Cathrina Constantine correctly identified today's ghost after just one clue. He is the Headless Horseman. Congratulations, Cathrina! I will add the remaining clues and his picture so he doesn't feel short-changed. Feel free to still leave a comment if you would like to be entered into the Grand Prize giveaway. Otherwise, my last ghost and I will be back tomorrow for the last day of the Faire. 

Who Am I? 

1.       I was killed in 1776 during the American Revolution

2. I was decapitated by a cannonball

3. I'm sometimes called The Galloping Hessian

4. I enjoy roaming Sleepy Hollow on my horse

My picture: 

Precipice by M.Pax, moving the Gay Head Lighthouse, & the real ghost of Aquinnah

I never intended to drop out of the blogosphere after May's IWSG meeting but, as seems to be the norm for me lately, I got distracted by some unexpected issues and next thing I knew May was almost at an end. The good news is the issues are behind me and were nothing serious, but the bad news is I am very late to the launch party for the latest book in M. Pax's amazing Backworlds series, Precipice.

Still, I am thrilled to be able to share another great installment in this series and help spread the word about all of M. Pax's brilliant books. If you are reading this and haven't checked her work out yet, do so right away! You won't regret it. :)

Before I get to Precipice though I just wanted to share a few things that relate to my book The Ghosts of Aquinnah and the island on which it is set, Martha's Vineyard.

I wrote this post in the summer of 2013 about the need to move the Gay Head lighthouse, which is featured on the book cover, due to erosion of the Aquinnah cliffs. After two years of planning and fundraising, the move is underway now.

Source: http://www.mvtimes.com/

While I can't begin to understand the engineering behind the move, the lighthouse will somehow be transferred to the track shown in the above photo and moved 130 feet back from its current location.

The lighthouse has been on the cliffs since 1856 and it is still a guiding light for those navigating the waters of Vineyard Sound. It will be strange to see it in a different place when I return to the island, but I'm so glad that it has been saved.

In another interesting tidbit related to my Aquinnah book, I learned that there is actually a real legend of a female ghost haunting the beach that is eerily close to my own story.

In the book Martha's Vineyard: Quiet Pleasures, author Phyllis Meras writes about a local legend which states that a young woman wearing a long cape can be found prowling the Aquinnah shoreline on the night of the full moon. While my ghost Stella didn't only appear during a full moon, she did wear a cape, she was very young, and the Aquinnah cliffs were her haunting grounds. It was bizarre and kind of surreal to come upon this story in Ms. Meras' book. Now I can't help but hope I get to see this ghost sometime! :D

Now on to Precipice!

Blurb:

In the far future, humanity settles the stars, bioengineering its descendants to survive in a harsh universe. This is the sixth book in the science fiction series, The Backworlds. A space opera adventure.

The Backworlds hang by a Quantum string, a thread about to snap. Annihilation is coming if Craze can’t stop it.

The genocidal alien he had trapped breaks free, destroying a ship belonging to the Backworlds’ oldest enemy, the Fo’wo’s. The murderous alien wants to overtake the galaxy. The Fo’wo’s want another war.

The Backworlds’ best chance to survive is to overcome a century of hate and forge an alliance with the Fo’wo’s. Because of his history with the alien, Craze is recruited to represent his people. Now he’s the most hated man in the galaxy.

The looming war will be a holocaust unless Craze can stop it, knowing salvation comes at a price.

Excerpt: 

Commander Hunninger tapped an icon on her tab and jabbed it in Craze’s face. “You really want to say no to this?”

The screen was too close. He grabbed the device from her manly fingers and brought the image into focus. A brand new, state-of-the-art, mini city docking facility. Pardeep Station had never seen finer and probably never would. Better protection from the dust storms was a necessity, and folks had to get out of the cold. Craze tired of the stench of the sick. “How much is it goin’ to cost? Everyone on this moon barely has three chips to jangle in their holey pockets.”

“No chips.” She smiled. Her wide mouth contained a lot of very white teeth.

Three good sucks on his air hose and Craze knew he wasn’t dreaming. He narrowed his eyes. “There’s still a price.”

Buy links: Amazon / B&N / iBook / Googleplay / Smashwords / Kobo / Other

About M. Pax:

Fantasy, science fiction, and the weird beckons to her, and she blames Oregon, a source of endless inspiration. She docents at Pine Mountain Observatory in the summers, and one of her cats has a crush on Mr. Spock. You can find out more by visiting her website: mpaxauthor.com

Come Back Teaser & Worlds on Edge Release

Two of my favorite writers/bloggers have new books either on the way or already available and I'm excited to have the opportunity to help spread the word about both of them today.

First up, today is the official launch of the new release by the prolific and mega-talented M. Pax. Worlds on Edge, the fifth entry in the wonderful Backworlds series, is now available! Here is all the info on the book:

The story of the Backworlds continues, and the story of Earth begins.

Worlds on Edge

by M. Pax

Fifth book in the Backworlds series

  

War is coming. A horde of merciless aliens poise just beyond the Edge. In a matter of weeks they will devour the worlds.

Racing ahead of the apocalypse, Craze returns to the Backworlds to warn them and plan a defense. Only he can’t go home. Banned from Pardeep Station, he must wage a more urgent battle. His moon is under siege, and his friends are dying.

Bad things come in threes, and the galaxy is no exception. An old enemy returns, attacking moons and defenseless globes, leaving a wake of destruction. Worse than that, they threaten to join forces with the alien horde.

Defeat seems inevitable. Craze may not be able to stop it. Yet home is worth the fight.

Amazon / AmazonUK / Smashwords / Nook / Other Outlets

Fantasy, science fiction, and the weird beckons to M. Pax, and she blames Oregon for that, a source of endless inspiration. She docents at Pine Mountain Observatory in the summers, teaching the public about the stars and the galaxy. A Bachelors of Science in Journalism, she had former lives in marketing and television before settling down to write. Want to know more? mpaxauthor.com

Congratulations and best of luck to Mary on the latest Backworlds installment!

Next, Melissa Maygrove is releasing her debut novel Come Back soon and will be revealing the novel's cover next week. She is hosting a fun teaser contest all this week in the lead up to the reveal and I am happy to be part of it! Here is the info:

In anticipation of her debut cover reveal on Monday, March 31st, Melissa Maygrove is sharing some teaser images this week. A trivia question has been paired with each one. It’s a contest!

Hop around to participating blogs and collect all 7 answers, then give them to Melissa by Saturday. Your answers don’t have to be correct to win, but you must submit a complete list by the deadline to be entered in the drawing for the giveaway.

The prize is a free e-copy of her book once it’s published and a $10 gift certificate to either Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

‘Sometimes a single choice

alters the course of a person's life forever.’

Come Back
Western Historical Romance
Adult / New Adult
Coming May 2014

Teaser images designed by Carrie Butler,

Forward Authority Design Services

Check Melissa’s blog for links to all the questions. Submit your answers to her email, melissamaygrove(at)gmail(dot)com, or use the contact form found on her blog. *Deadline for entries is Saturday, March 29^th at midnight central time. A randomly drawn winner will be announced in the cover reveal post on her blog on Monday, March 31^st. She’ll list the answers to the questions then, too.

If you’d like to be notified of important events, like cover reveals and releases, consider signing up for Melissa’s newsletter. You can do the on the home page of her website, www.melissamaygrove.com. 

Native Texan Melissa Maygrove is a wife, mother, nurse, freelance editor, and romance writer. When she's not busy caring for her tiny nursery patients or shuttling teenagers back and forth to after-school activities, she's hunched over her laptop, complicating the lives of her imaginary friends and playing matchmaker. Melissa loves books with unpretentious characters and unforgettable romance, and she strives to create those same kinds of stories for her readers.

Huge congratulations and best wishes to Melissa! 

Talking to Crickets with M.Pax, a One Word Interview with Tyrean Martinson, and Friday Celebrations

M. Pax is here today as part of her blog tour to promote Beyond The Edge, the latest installment of her spectacular series The Backworlds. I'm excited to welcome Mary as she is a friend as well as a terrific writer and a fellow member of Untethered Realms. Thanks for being here, Mary!

I'm also excited to be on Tyrean Martinson's site as part of her One Word Interview series. Thanks for having me, Tyrean! You can find my interview here.

But now back to The Backworlds and M. Pax. 

Talking to Crickets

If you’re out there publishing, you probably get what I mean by crickets. We scream, we shout, we stand on our heads with flags on our butts [OK, maybe not that], trying to be heard, trying to be seen and noticed.

It’s not easy. Is it? No.

I’ve spent month after month talking to an empty room, so it seemed. Fortunately, I’m extremely stubborn. So I never gave up.

Don’t you give up. It has nothing to do with talent. There’s a heck of a lot of noise out there. You never know when someone might hear you, though. That’s why you can’t quit. Not ever.

I lucked out with Bookbub noticing me in June. They gave me a free ad. That sure was fun. Loved the sales that resulted from that. Thank you Bookbub!

A month later, an editor contacted me and asked me to consider putting Semper Audacia in their anthology, Space Jockey. After some negotiation, I agreed. They paid me. It came out recently and is better than I expected. It gains me exposure.

I published Semper Audacia exactly two years ago. It sells 10+ a month on average. Yeah, so a lot of crickets until something happened.

I hope I’m paying attention to myself here, because I released The Renaissance of Hetty Locklear a year ago. The crickets for that one are deafening. It’s a different audience than my space opera. Obviously, I’m still struggling with how to connect with that audience.

The Backworlds connects, and when I compare what I did for it versus what I did for Hetty, I can see what worked. I offered Backworlds #1 as a perma free and released the second in the series shortly after — a recipe I will repeat for any new series.

However, it seems what works and what doesn’t differs from author to author and from book to book. This formula may not work for my next. That’s what makes this game baffling.

I likened book marketing to pushing a boulder up a hill. My friend, Vella Munn, likens it to pushing water up a hill. Yup, she’s more right than I am, and she’s written a heckuva lot more books than I have.

Don’t be discouraged! Stay out there! Keep yapping! Someone will eventually hear you and things will start to happen. You won’t know when and you won’t know when. Which is why you shouldn’t stop.

Luck is what happens after a lot of work, a lot of work that on first glance seems to be getting you nowhere. 

About Beyond The Edge

Some truths are better left unfound.

 

For two years Craze’s dear friend, Lepsi, has been missing. The murmurings of a haunted spaceship might be a message and may mean his old pal isn’t dead. The possibility spurs Craze and Captain Talos to travel to uncharted worlds, searching. Out there, in an unfamiliar region of the galaxy beyond the Backworlds, they stumble upon a terrible truth.

 

Meanwhile, Rainly remains on Pardeep Station as acting planetlord, dealing with the discovery of her lover’s dark and brutal past. Alone and questioning her judgment, her introspection unlocks more than heartache. Latent protocols in her cybernetics activate, forcing her to face a sinister secret of her own.

 

In the far future, humanity settles the stars, bioengineering its descendents to survive in a harsh universe. This is the fourth book in the science fiction series, The Backworlds. A space opera adventure.

Amazon / AmazonUK / Nook / Smashwords / Kobo / Other Outlets

M. Pax-- Inspiring the words she writes, she spends her summers as a star guide at Pine Mountain Observatory in stunning Central Oregon where she lives with the Husband Unit and two demanding cats. She writes science fiction and fantasy mostly. You can find out more by visiting her at:

Website / FB / Twitter / Goodreads / Pinterest / Wattpad

 

Thanks again to Mary for being here!

Today is also the day for Vikki's Celebrate the Small Things hop. I am celebrating that I am finished with jury duty! I actually got dismissed a few days early and it's been great to be able to get back to a normal routine.

I didn't have a bad experience but I'm still glad to have that behind me. I didn't end up on a case but did get as far as the jury box before the prosecutor decided to dismiss me. I have no clue why he did but I didn't complain!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! :)