Interview & Giveaway: Tina Martin

        TINA MARTIN is a fiction author from eastern North Carolina. A recipient of the Outstanding Achievement in Poetry Award from the Famous Poets Society, she now uses her creativity to pen novels which include Secrets On Lake Drive, Another Man's Treasure, The Baby Daddy Interviews and Accidental Deception. She is also the author of two short stories - Vacation Interrupted and The Crush and one poetry book, Love Like Yours. Tina resides in Charlotte, North Carolina with her family. Read more about Tina and read excerpts of her novels at her website:www.tinamartin.net

Favorite reads? 

          Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin

Inspirations for the book? 

          I was inspired to write this book when the recession was in full swing and I noticed the homeless rate in my city was growing.

Did you know you wanted to be an author when you were little? 

          No. I thought I’d be an interior designer because I loved to decorate.

Any Pet Peeves?

          People who talk extremely LOUD on their cell phones in public places.

Chocolate or Peanut Butter? 

          Chocolate!

The weirdest thing you've ever done?  

          Um, this is a tough one. I’d say jumping out the second floor window of a two-story barn…just because.

Is there a soundtrack to the book/Favorite music?

          I love to listen to music when I write. Songs I’ve been listening to while writing this one are as follows: You Belong To Me by Trey Songz, Part of the List by Ne-Yo and He Loves Me by Jill Scott. There were others, but these are the main three.

Do you need anything to write? 

          Music and coffee. Then there are times when I need complete silence.

How long do you write on any average day? 

          One to Two hours.

Give us the number one reason to read your book. 

          It’s very entertaining and informative as it delves into the minds of two opposite people – a homeless woman and a financially well-off man. It’s a novel that proves money isn’t everything. Also, the deception is enough to keep you flipping the pages to find out if love is stronger than loyalty.

Author Info:

Website: www.tinamartin.net

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tinamartinfans

Blog: http://ibetterfindyourlove.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tinamartinbooks

          Accidental Deception (book one of a three-part series) is a story about love versus loyalty, the tug-of-war that dictates every action Carter Williams will take after he stumbles upon a homeless woman, Shayla Kline, in Uptown Charlotte. Completely out of character for the usually self-centered bachelor, he puts his life on hold to spend a few nights with the stranger in the hospital.

          That’s when he makes an earth shattering discovery – Shayla was the fiancée of Jacob, his estranged brother. His brother who hated him. His brother who recently committed suicide. His brother who, despite the animosity between them, wrote him a suicide note asking him to take care of Shayla.

         Out of guilt and fulfillment of Jacob’s final wish, he moves Shayla into his home and gives her everything she needs to start over. The more she confides in him, the deeper their relationship grows and Carter not only wants to help her, he finds himself wanting desperately to love her, to be a man for her, to give her everything his brother could not. There’s only one problem – Shayla does not know that Jacob was his brother. Now, Carter wages an internal war within himself with his own morals – morals that tells him he should be loyal to his brother by not pursuing Shayla. But it’s hard to walk away from the only woman that has been able to awaken his heart.

Interview & Giveaway: Helen Sedwick

          Helen Sedwick is the author of COYOTE WINDS. A finalist in the 2011 Mainstream Fiction Writer’s Digest Competition and the Lorian Hemmingway Short Story Contest, Helen Sedwick recently won second place in the Redwood Writers Flash Fiction Contest for a piece adapted from COYOTE WINDS. She is a lawyer and lives in the Sonoma wine country with Howard Klepper, a builder of handcrafted guitars, and an exuberant hound dog named Farlow. For more info, http://www.helensedwick.com.

Inspirations for the book?
          I was inspired to write COYOTE WINDS by my father’s stories of growing up during the Dust Bowl. While there was plenty of blowing dust in his stories, he also talked about freedom and adventure. With the schools closed, he spent his days hunting rattlesnakes and rabbits. He collected arrowheads and grasshopper. He camped out on the prairie grass and counted a thousand shooting stars. I wanted to contrast my father’s unfenced boyhood with the over-supervised life of a modern, suburban boy who “couldn’t ride a bike without a helmet, play soccer without pads, or ride in a car with a driver under thirty.” I suspect many modern boys would love hunting rabbits and snaring rattlesnakes, even sharing the responsibility of helping feed and shelter their families.

Did you know you wanted to be an author when you were little?
          Yes. I can trace it to reading SNOW TREASURE by Marie McSwigan in second grade. Based on a true story, SNOW TREASURE tells of Norwegian children transporting nine million dollars of gold bullion past the noses of Nazi soldiers by hiding the gold on the sleds. The children were resourceful heroes facing real dangers. I remember sitting on the floor in my families’ apartment in New York and deciding that if I couldn’t live stories like SNOW TREASURE, then I wanted to make them up. I recently reread SNOW TREASURE. I still love it.

Do you prefer Chocolate or Peanut Butter?
          If I really had to choose, it would be chocolate. Thankfully, that is one of those choices I don’t have to make in life.

The weirdest thing you've ever done?
          Becoming the mother of identical twin girls. Yes, they were endlessly fascinating and wonderfully cute. But I saw the challenges of facing the world with someone who looks just like you. The girls had to learn how to handle the attention and to balance their togetherness and separateness. In middle school, one of my daughters complained that everyone assumed they were the same person, but as soon as people realized they were different, all they talked about were the differences. She was tired of being compared to her sister. She wanted to just be herself.

Is there a soundtrack to the book/Favorite music?
          The howling wind. According to my father, the prairie wind blew so constantly that he stopped noticing it after awhile. Unless, of course, it suddenly stopped. Then you knew a dust storm was coming. The Dust Bowl storms were so large and thick, they held back the wind like a sail. But when they hit, they packed a sixty miles per hour punch full of stinging grit.

Do you need anything to write?
          A cup of tea and lot of silence. The tea is easier to come by than the silence.

How long do you write on any average day?
          I wish my life were predictable enough that I had an average day. Sometimes I write for several hours; too many times for only 15 minutes. I do most of my writing on weekends.

Give us the number one reason to read your book.
          COYOTE WINDS tells the story BEFORE the Dust Bowl; a story about good people doing what they thought was right only to have it turn out so terribly wrong. Most people don’t know that the Dust Bowl was one of the worst man-made ecological disasters in history. I portray the people who brought this on themselves by believing in hard work and technology. It is a classic American story that happens again and again.

Author Info:
Website

When thirteen-year old Myles brings home a coyote pup half-blinded by a dust storm, his father warns him a coyote can’t be trusted. His neighbor loads his rifle and takes aim. Yet Myles is determined to tame the pup just as his father is taming the land. The time is 1930. Tractors and fertilizers are transforming the prairie into the world’s breadbasket. The American dream is within every man’s reach. But when drought turns these dreams into paint-stripping, crop-killing dust, Myles wonders if they have made a mistake taming the untamable.

Seventy year later, when Andy remembers his Grandpa Myles’s tales about growing up on the prairie, he wonders what stories he will tell when he has grandchildren. Algebra, soccer practice, computer games, the mall? Determined to keep his grandfather’s memories alive and have some adventures of his own, Andy heads out to discover what’s left of the wild prairie.

COYOTE WINDS tells of the times leading up to the Dust Bowl, a time of optimism and confidence, a time when a man was measured by what he produced, not what he could buy. It explores that American can-do spirit that drew people to the last frontier and the consequences of that spirit. And it asks whether that spirit survives today.

Interview & Giveaway: C. S. Marks

Favorite reads? 

         I love James Herriot, Richard Adams, Stephen King, and J.R.R.Tolkien. I also enjoy Dickens, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, and George R.R. Martin. Hunger Games was great! 

Inspirations for the book? 

         Tolkien is a strong influence in my fantasy-writing life. I've been Elf-obsessed since I first read LOTR at age 12. The story itself, though, is centered around the villain. The inspiration for that character came from the unfortunate people who have few choices in life--those raised to hate others, to be violent, to lack empathy. Is such a person redeemable? I wanted to explore that theme. 

Did you know you wanted to be an author when you were little? 

          My dad was a Lit Prof.  I knew I loved to read, I loved to tell stories, and I enjoyed playing with words. I think I was pretty much a goner.

Any Pet Peeves? 

           People who pass gas in public and then blame it on the dog? I don't know. I really dislike whiners, people who complain and play the victim. I get weary of excuses for lack of achievement or responsibility.  And I hate it when tall people pat my head and ruffle my hair. That hasn't happened in a long time...I think my aura of "touch me, and die!" is working. 

Chocolate or Peanut Butter? 

            This is a choice? Chocolate!

The weirdest thing you've ever done? 

            Weird, eh? Hmmm...so many choices there...there's not one that truly stands out.

Is there a soundtrack to the book/Favorite music? 

             The song "Dante's Prayer", performed by Loreena McKennitt, is Gorgon's theme song. ;-)

Do you need anything to write? 

             A computer is helpful, and I like my noise-cancelling headphones if the house gets noisy. Otherwise, no. 

How long do you write on any average day? 

             On a good day, I'll put in eight-ten hours. 

Give us the number one reason to read your book. 

             Because, if the story appeals to you, you'll LOVE the series. That will make us both very happy. (And if you're a horse lover, you are totally MINE. Muahhahaha!)

Author Info:

             Twitter: https://twitter.com/CSMarks_Alterra

             Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Alterra.CSMarks

             Website/Blog: http://csmarks.com

             Book Website: http://elfhunter.net

Elfhunter (Tales of Alterra, the World that Is)

                   This is the tale of Gorgon Elfhunter, a monstrous, mysterious creature who has sworn to destroy all the Elves of Alterra—until none remain. It is the story of Wood-elven heroine Gaelen Taldin, who has sworn to rid her world of the Elfhunter even as she is hunted by him. The conflict between them creates a tangled web that blurs the line between Light and Darkness, love and obsession, free will and fate. Filled with moments both tender and terrifying, thrilling yet thought-provoking, it is a timeless epic fantasy suitable for readers of all ages. Join the Company of Elves, dwarves, mortal men, and delightfully intelligent horses. Come to Alterra—the “World that Is”. 

        'After a year of all titles being “out of print and unavailable”, Chris is now looking forward to the re-release of the newly remastered Elfhunter trilogy, to be followed by comic book and graphic novel adaptations. She is also hard at work on a new Alterran series, The Undiscovered Realms, and the first in a series of novellas, The Alterra Histories, has recently been released (The Fire King).'

The Fire King (The Alterra Histories)

Invincible. Unconquerable. Fearless.

It’s no longer enough…

...not for Aincor Fire-heart, the first High Elven King of Alterra. 

For Aincor’s reign, his power, his life itself – is about to change. 

After charging headlong into a conflict that plunges all of Alterra into war, Aincor must face a force of such power and terror that none may stand against it. Despite unrivaled skill, pride, and valor, no one is truly invincible...or fearless. As the Flame struggles against the Shadow, Aincor’s secret, hidden dread rises up to torment him. Will it stand in the way of victory?

If the King falls – what of the Kingdom?

From the creator of the beloved ELFHUNTER Series comes a tale of fate and faith, of the eternal but never certain struggle of Light against Darkness, of the power of love itself – as a King is forced to confront that which is in himself, that which is in us all. 

WHAT WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO LOSE TO GAIN ALL?

*Giveaway*
(Ends 4/10)

Mustaches for Maddie

         
         Debut author, Chad Morris, was about to go on tour for his MG novel, The Inventor's Secret, (A fantastic book!) but canceled because his 9-year-old daughter, Maddie, is in the hospital for a brain tumor. I just want to say how much I admire Chad Morris for putting his family first, and, moreover, not even using the situation to rack up publicity. From the article on Fox13 you would never guess he was an author with a book barely launched.
          To help Maddie, friends and family have started Mustaches for Maddie, an online trend to cheer her up. Simply take a picture of yourself or your friend or your dog or your stuffed cat with a mustache on and tweet it with the hashtag #mustachesformaddie.
          “We have this collection of people wearing mustaches for Maddie,” Chad Morris said. “The idea just being to make her smile to let her know there’s a lot of people hoping and praying and loving her, and she likes that–she likes that a lot.”
           So come on guys! Let's make this little girl smile!

Interview & Giveaway: Nick Green

          I’m the author of The Cat Kin trilogy, published in the UK by Strident Publishing and in Germany by Ravensburger, and also as a BBC audiobook. I’ve been interviewed about The Cat Kin on BBC radio, and shortlisted for two literary awards. The Storm Bottle is my first foray into independent e-publishing.

Favorite reads?

          As a child I used to be heavily into fantasy and SF, but these days I find I’ll read absolutely anything, so long as it’s well written. I like to be surprised by an author I’ve never tried before. I try to think of favorite books, but it wouldn't be an honest list! I don’t feel a need to make up top tens.

Inspirations for the book?

          My current book, The Storm Bottle, was very definitely inspired by a single incident. I was walking beside a beach on the south coast of England when we saw a wild bottlenose dolphin close to shore. Very uncharacteristically for me, I ran into the water and joined the people who were swimming with it. I realised it was a chance that would probably never come again. Later I reflected: why are people so enchanted by swimming with dolphins? What is it that attracts us so much? Why is there this primal tug between two such different species? That became the basis of the story, which I ended up setting in Bermuda, where my father lives.

Did you know you wanted to be an author when you were little?

          I knew I wanted to be an astronaut, a scientist, a knight, a ghost-hunter, a detective, a werewolf, a superhero and a vet. Eventually I realized that only one profession would make this possible. Though I haven’t written those exact books yet…

Any Pet Peeves?

          Why does driving a car turn otherwise nice people into psychopaths?

Chocolate or Peanut Butter?

          Peanut butter – but the English kind please! Yours is too sweet, sorry.

The weirdest thing you've ever done?

          Probably the impromptu swimming with a dolphin, see above. Did I mention it was October and I didn’t have a towel or change of clothes?

Is there a soundtrack to the book/Favorite music?

          Interesting question! I guess a lot of writers do get inspired by music, and put together their imaginary soundtrack. For The Storm Bottle I listened to a lot of atmospheric, mainly instrumental artists such as Mike Oldfield, Bjorn Lynne and Delirium, because that seemed to capture the vast ocean-scapes in which much of the action takes place.

Do you need anything to write?

          I don’t use props as such, but I do have my rituals. For instance, I write notes in Arial font but actual first drafts in Times New Roman. This way I feel more free to explore, because if it’s in Arial it doesn’t matter if it makes no sense yet.

How long do you write on any average day?

          I have young kids so there isn’t really an average day. Just as much as I can, really.

Give us the number one reason to read your book.

          Swimming with dolphins is always said to be the number one thing to do before you die, and this is the next best thing to swimming with dolphins!

Author Info:

My website is www.nickgreenbooks.webeden.co.uk and you can follow me on Twitter at @nickgreen90125.

Foam unzipped the waves. I saw a crescent fin, a glass-boulder forehead. The dolphin had come back.’

Swimming with dolphins is said to be the number one thing to do before you die. For 12-year-old Michael, it very nearly is. A secret boat trip has gone tragically wrong, and now he lies unconscious in hospital.

But when Michael finally wakes up, he seems different. His step sister Bibi is soon convinced that he is not who he appears to be. Meanwhile, in the ocean beyond Bermuda’s reefs, a group of bottlenose dolphins are astonished to discover a stranger in their midst – a boy lost and desperate to return home.

Bermuda is a place of mysteries. Some believe its seas are enchanted, and the sun-drenched islands conceal a darker past, haunted with tales of lost ships. Now Bibi and Michael are finding themselves in the most extraordinary tale of all.

The Cat Kin Trilogy Bk. 1

                     Everyone who came across the strange gym class was looking for something else. What they found was mysterious Mrs Powell with her silent feet and unnerving stare and pashki, a lost art from an age when cats were worshiped as gods. 

              But Ben and Tiffany wonder: who is their eccentric old teacher? What does she really want? And why are they suddenly able to see in the dark? Meanwhile, in London's gloomy streets, human vermin are stirring. Ben and Tiffany may soon be glad of their new gifts. But against men whose cunning is matched only by their unspeakable cruelty, would even nine lives be enough? 

Giveaway (US Only)

Ends 4/1

Paperback of Cat Kin Bk. 1, Signed

Interview: Lauren Baratz-Logsted

         Lauren Baratz-Logsted is the author of 31 books for adults, teens and children. You can read more about her life and work at laurenbaratzlogsted.com or follow her on Twitter at @LaurenBaratzL

Favorite reads?

          Favorite Adult Book: The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

          Favorite Recent YA Book: Fault in Our Stars, John Green.

          Favorite Children's Author: Roald Dahl.

Inspirations for the book?

         I got the idea for the Book 1 in the Hat City Middle School Series, GUYS AGAINST THE GIRLS, from something that happened at my daughter's school a few years back. They had a substitute one day who favored the boys so heavily, she ignored it when the girls raised their hands, and then actually had the nerve to smugly say, "Just as I always thought - boys *are* better at math than girls!"
         I got the idea for Book 2 because a boy who read the first book was so tickled by the character of Robbie Knightley, I realized Robbie needed his own book, hence ROBBIE KNIGHTLEY.

Did you know you wanted to be an author when you were little?

         I had an inkling.

Any Pet Peeves?

         Judgmental, unforgiving people.

Chocolate or Peanut Butter?

          It has to be chocolate. After all, when it comes to candy, peanut butter needs chocolate, but chocolate can just go it alone.

The weirdest thing you've ever done?

          You make it sound like it should be easy to pick just one. How about *a* weird thing I did? For about a dozen years I had a writing group that met in my condo every Friday night. One week, someone remembered hearing that Mars was supposed to be visible with the naked eye, so, at around 11pm, we all headed outside and began running around the condo complex, necks craned upward, looking for something red. Finally, after about an hour, we saw the taillight of a plane, decided it was Mars, and headed back inside.

Is there a soundtrack to the book/Favorite music?

          There is not a soundtrack to either Book 1 or Book 2 in the series. I love a lot of music from Frank Sinatra to the Rolling Stones to Green Day to stuff so modern I don't know who the bands are when I hear the songs on the radio.

Do you need anything to write?

          Nope, I'm not a picky writer. If I'm really in the zone on a book, I can even keep typing while listening to "General Hospital" on the TV in my office and answering my husband's questions.

How long do you write on any average day?

          When I'm working on a book, I write pretty much straight from when I drop my daughter at the bus stop at 7am until when I pick her up at 4pm.

Give us the number one reason to read your book.

          Wait a second. I answered the chocolate v. peanut butter question honestly and now I have to *sell* myself too? OK, because The Sisters 8 series for young readers sold 200,000 copies, I get more fan mail for that than anything I've ever done as a writer - I've had over 30 books published - and I still hear from kids ever day wanting more. OK, so maybe that's a good reason why you should read The Sisters 8, but maybe this series is good too. It's new! Give it a chance!

                  There's trouble at Hat City Middle School! This first volume in an exciting new series by the author of the popular Sisters 8 series introduces readers to the six guys and six girls who make up a special class at Hat City Middle School. When a substitute teacher says something she shouldn't, the girls are outraged. Then their regular teacher makes matters worse, and everyone is outraged. Soon the guys and girls are facing off about everything, but will it end in victory or disaster? Told in alternating first-person plural viewpoints, GUYS AGAINST THE GIRLS is as original in its execution as any middle-grade novel out there today.

Find more info here.

               A modern-day Dennis the Menace, Robbie Knightley stumbles through life annoying the next-door neighbor, frustrating his teachers and perplexing his parents, who can't quite understand why he's so different than his six older sisters. When Robbie opens his Christmas presents prematurely without remorse for the second year running, his parents consult his therapist grandfather and Robbie hears his parents say they think there's something wrong with him, something missing. Robbie decides he'll get by in life by keeping his mouth shut and avoiding spending too much time with other people. But when a five-day class trip is unexpectedly moved up and he can't get out of it, Robbie fears the worst: that his friends will see him for who he really is, a boy with something missing.

Find more info here.

Free: Paying Piper by Ilana Waters

          The people of Hamelin have a problem with rats. There are rats in their houses, their stores—even swimming in their stew! The rats don’t think they’re a problem. They just want to live their lives in peace. With the town’s approval, the mayor thinks of a clever way to solve the problem. He offers twenty gold pieces to a piper to rid the town of rats. He delivers only five. 

          But he’s cheated the wrong piper, who’ll have to use both skill and wit to teach this town a lesson. Because there’s more than money at stake. An evil pattern is emerging in the way Hamelin treats anycreature it considers inferior. And the Piper vows to put an end to it—once and for all.

           Think you know everything about this classic folktale of greed and cunning? In “Paying Piper,” you’ll learn what really happened the day a magical musician came to Hamelin—and why.

           The story can be found free at Smashwords, Kobo, and Ilana Waters’ website. You can also check it out at at Amazon, Amazon UK, and B&N.

           Also, be sure not to miss Ilana's newest novella, Castles in the Air, available exlusivly at Amazon!

Ten-year-old Wikkley McStag and his family are born farmers, happy to work the land. But then they—and other royal subjects—are forced to buy strange, useless machines. Money starts running out. Now the McStags have two days before they lose their farm. As the eldest child, Wikkley must journey to the palace and ask for the king’s help. His loved ones only hope his reckless nature won’t get him in trouble once he’s there!

When Wikkley arrives at the palace, he finds an unnecessary castle being built right into the sky. The same thing is happening in a neighboring kingdom. When royal foolishness leads to disaster, it’s up to Wikkley to save several lives. Will his recklessness finally come in handy? Or will it mean the end of his family, his farm, and possibly . . . his life?
From the fantasy world of “The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt,” Ilana Waters brings you another alternate-medieval adventure. If you like Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, don’t miss meeting Wikkley McStag!

          Ilana is also the author of a middle grade adventure novel, The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt. More info on her work can be seen here.