Friday is The Big Day!

Happy Monday everyone! Well, my first book is being released this Friday and I am pumped! So I hope you don't mind a little shameless self-promotion on the blog today. This book is the first in my shifter series and I'm hoping you'll enjoy it...and then of course want to get the rest of the series.

One more thing, my new website is up and running. Come on by and have a look.

http://sarataneyhumphreys.com/

Paranormal Romance of a Different Breed!

The Amoveo Series: The Amoveo Legacy

Author: Sara Taney Humphreys

Contemporary Paranormal Romance
Release Date May 15, 2009

Blurb:

What if everything you knew turned out to be a lie? You find out that you aren’t even human—at least not entirely. What if, one day, you realize your world will never be the same again? These are the questions that Samantha Logan must face in “The Amoveo Legacy”. A dream on her thirtieth birthday compels her to leave her artists loft in New York City and move back to the beach with her Grandmother, Nonie.

However, the instant Samantha steps foot on the salty shores of her childhood home, she realizes the landscape has changed. The moment she encounters the mysterious, arrogant neighbor Malcolm Drew, her life is never the same. Through a seductive courtship, he introduces her to the magical mystical world of the Amoveo. The dream walking, telepathic, shape shifters that he claims are her true heritage. However, Malcolm holds back a secret that could destroy them both. Will he be able to protect Samantha and convince her of the secret legacy buried deep inside of her?

Excerpt:

They rode back to the house in a heavy silence. He could feel her confusion vibrate around them both. His eyes had instinctively shifted to their animal form, a symptom of his desire. He’d been so caught up in his passion for her, so terrified by the thought of losing her that he completely forgot to keep his eyes from shifting. She broke the silence as they pulled up the gravel driveway of her home.

“Malcolm, who was that man you were talking to on the balcony this afternoon,” She asked quietly.

“You mean Davis,” He said, hoping that may satisfy her curiosity but knowing it wouldn’t.

“No. You know exactly who I mean,” she said with steady resolve. “The tall guy, with long dark hair. I saw you speaking with him today on your deck..”

The car came to a halt at the top of the driveway. She looked at him daring him to deny it. He saw the determination in her face and looked away before answering her.
“I’m sorry. The only person at the house today was Davis,” He said getting out of the car.

Sam was starting to get pissed. She knew he was lying about the man on the deck. She couldn’t explain how the guy disappeared, but he did. The more she ran it over in her mind, the more certain she was that it happened. Tonight, his eyes were the eyes of the eagle. She wasn’t seeing things. It wasn’t a trick of the light. His eyes had changed into the same eyes she’d seen in her dream, in the bird on her window sill and in the portrait in her studio. This eagle nonsense only started after she’d moved back home, next door to him.

Malcolm opened the door and offered to help her from the car. Hesitantly, she took his hand. He pulled her effortlessly from the car. He felt her breasts gently brush up against him. That feather light touch held a promise of pleasure to come. Their breath mingled in the cool, late summer evening. Their bodies hummed in unison with anticipation.

“I want you to trust me Samantha. I need you to trust me,” He said in a low voice that vibrated through her. He brought her hand to his mouth and gently brushed his lips back and forth across her knuckles. He slowly ran his other hand up her back and gently began to massage the nape of her neck. Her breath quickened with each passing moment.

“Please, give me a chance to win your trust,” He whispered against her trembling hand. He feathered small kisses along her palm.


Samantha was on fire, desire building up inside of her, beyond her control. Her head told her to run, while every other fiber of her being begged for his touch. Her resolve was slipping away inch by inch. She knew this man was dangerous. He hid secrets from her that she may never learn or comprehend. Yet she was still drawn to him beyond all reason.


He leaned in and this time kissed her gently, slowly seducing her lips with his. He took her face delicately in his hands, as though she might break. She opened to him and swept her tongue along his. Samantha felt the slow burn of desire crackling between them. She deepened the kiss and wrapped her arms around him. His large frame dwarfed her as she fit easily in his embrace. It was as though they’d been made for one another. She’d never in her life felt anything like this. Her desire for him clawed at her from the inside out.

Trust me, she heard him say in the corners of her mind. Her eyes flew open and she pulled back from him. She held him there at arm’s length for a moment, her breath coming quickly, not quite able to register what she just heard.


He held his desire in check and kept his eyes from shifting. He allowed her time to process what had just happened. Looking into her frightened eyes he reached out and whispered gently along the edges of her mind, Trust me. Sam’s eyes widened further. She shook her head and backed away from him in disbelief. Blindly she ran into the house leaving Malcolm alone. One glimmer of hope remained. He’d been looking into the ice blue eyes of a wolf.

Where to Buy It: http://devinedestinies.com/shopdevine/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_coming&product_id=303&category_id=22&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=52&vmcchk=1&Itemid=52

Is this week over yet?

This has been one of those weeks where nothing has gone right for me. Ever have one of those? Yup, this be mine!

It actually started out well. Tuesday was our Greater Detroit RWA meeting and our speaker Suzanne McMinn was excellent. She had a great handout on how to write a 100 word or less blurb for your book that you can use for promotion, hand in to editors or agents, or even just for your use. Oh yeah and learning about fainting goats was pretty cool too. If you want to know about farm life, check out her website at www.suzannemcminn.com .

Wednesday wasn’t bad except I had to run to the hospital for pre-surgical blood work. Now anyone that knows me, knows that I am intensely, immensely panicky anytime a needle comes in sight. This time the gal was so fast I didn’t even know she had done the two tubes.

Thursday, ah lovely Thursday, the day of surgery. It has been an ongoing battle with my gall bladder for years but turned ugly last fall. Every test the doctors and specialists put me through came back negative. Until this past March 09, an oh so fun ERCP. It’s a big word, but you can google it if you feel the need to see the lovely description. Thank goodness they knock you on your butt before sticking the tube down your throat for a look-see. But it did find 3 gallstones lodged in the bile duct. Now I have a stent in place till June which can then be removed. But I digress. Thursday a.m. bright and early I got to the hospital to have the dreaded gall bladder removed. I was primed for action, the needles never even phased me this time (hmm, wonder why). The surgeon came in, we were ready to roll and that’s all I remember. And that’s a very good thing. (G)

But as usual, nothing with me goes textbook for very long. I had some internal bleeding, procedure took longer than planned, I didn’t want to wake up in the recovery room, then barfed in the parking lot (in the cute pink banana split bowl as I call them) when getting in the car to go home. Once home the bed was calling my name and I was heeding the call. Right up till 1:28 a.m. Friday morning when the ‘shoulder pain’ kicked in. Now I had been warned about it. What they forget to tell you is it feels like someone is cutting off your right shoulder with a dull hedge trimmer. Thank god for Vicodin!!!! Friday a blur mostly.

Saturday, the appetite returns. Yup, when I get hungry, it’s best to get me food. And during all this we are under a severe thunderstorm warning, trees are whipping, cars are pulled over to the side of the highway and my storage bin lids are blowing across the street to the neighbors. Do I care, nope! I want Chinese. My loving child (remember her – evil thing that came from my womb) comes over just before the storm starts, and then we wait till it passes so she doesn’t have to get wet to get my food. She brings the food back; I eat about 10 forkfuls and decide I’m full. Best not to tell you the look on her face at that point. (G) And I go back to bed.

Today, Sunday, I’m upright, not really hungry but very thirsty. And of course the weather looks so pretty out there and it’s all I can do to get down the steps (we live in a quad level) so I doubt I’m sitting outside anytime soon. I figure I’ll stay upright all day and then sleep better tonight. Nice theory if nothing else.

And truth be told, I have not written a word this weekend except for my blog. I have been reading trash magazines, watching TV, and sleeping. I think I’ve earned it. Especially if you count the 5 incisions I’ve got instead of the normal 3 for gall bladder surgery. Rumor has it in 5 - 7 days I'll feel right as rain (hmm, wonder what that means). So in closing, I hope you all have a great day whatever you have planned. Me, I’m off to read some more.

Dee's MoonBow Musings: Getting a Review

Let’s face it, competition is stiff in the publishing world. With hundreds of new electronic and print releases each month, how do you make your book stand out amongst the crowd? Well a review is one way that may capture the attention of a reader who has a smorgasbord of choices for new reading material. But as mentioned, there are hundreds of releases each month vying for a review, so getting a review for your book is sometimes easier said than done.

Here are some tips:

• Research: Are your review inquiries targeting review sites or venues that except or focus on the genre or theme of your book? This is important to consider, sending your book to the right place can increase the odds of getting a review. For instance, although PNR Reviews will review books in all genres, our focus is paranormal romance and speculative fiction; so review requests in that genre receive priority over mainstream requests. An internet search will help you find review outlets that fit your needs. Another good source of information is your colleagues. Ask other authors where they are getting reviews for their work, take names.

• Making Contact: After you’ve done your research it’s time to make contact with the review site. Most sites have review request contact information on their site or general contact info at least. If you have the name of the reviews editor or coordinator, use it. Speaking from experience, it’s helpful to provide your book information (title, author, publisher, ISBN, release date) and an interesting blurb when inquiring. Your blurb may be the key to capturing the attention of a reviewer who has countless review books to choose from. Keep in mind that the majority of review sites are staffed by volunteer (=unpaid) reviewers. Although you’re understandably anxious for a review, please be considerate and polite when making inquiries about the status of your review. Many print and electronic publishers regularly offer review sites their new releases for review. Don’t be afraid to request a review even if this is the case with your publisher. An individual request may help your book stand out from the crowd.

• Name Recognition: If a reviewer has heard your name, even if you are a new author, it increases the chance that your book will capture their attention when the request comes in. Most review sites have social groups, such as Yahoo, MySpace, Facebook, etc. Additionally, reviewers are readers as well and many join promotional groups and author groups. Join these groups to get your name out there. Many offer the opportunity to participate in author chats or to be interviewed. Make yourself visible, but be mindful of the promo rules for each group you join. Investing a little time in this area will yield huge pay offs.

• A Word About Professionalism: Be aware that when you are requesting a review, you are asking someone for their opinion on your writing. In doing so, you need to realize you may not agree with their opinion. What a reader brings to and expects from a book is very individual, and a review is simply their perspective. In my experience, there are few reviewers that give a negative review out of spite, and there may be some constructive criticism that can be taken away from this experience; or you can chalk it up to a difference of opinion. In any case, short of out right bashing or major plot spoilers, if you do not receive a positive review it is not in your best interest as a professional author to contact the review site to complain or otherwise react.
  

If you need any additional information or would like to request a review from ParaNormal Romance (PNR Reviews), feel free to contact me at pnr4staff (at) yahoo.com

Take care,
Dee:)

Dee's MoonBow Musings: Hello

Hello Everyone,
Welcome to my MoonBow Musings. I’m excited to have the opportunity to contribute to The Many Shades blog.

A little about me:

• I’m an avid reader (avid=addicted, but we won’t get into that)

• I’m the reviews & features editor for ParaNormal Romance, PNR Reviews.

• I publish a monthly eZine feature, Paraphernalia, that spotlights sub-genres of paranormal romance and speculative fiction with author interviews and book spotlights.

• I’m an editor for Red Rose Publishing.

Though I’m not a published author, in the coming weeks I hope to provide a perspective from a different side of the publishing business; as a reader, reviewer and editor. I’ll be providing tips for authors on getting reviews for their work, discussing the pro & cons of reviews, looking at current genre and publishing trends, the paranormal and just about anything that captures my interest.

Take care,
Dee:)