Insecure Writer’s Support Group Day and Anthology! Plus Books, Writing Contests, Bloghops, and a Solid Gold Godzilla

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

My awesome co-hosts today are Kristin Smith, Elsie, Suzanne Furness, and Fundy Blue!

Today marks the one year anniversary since the IWSG site and Facebook group opened. We invite all IWSG members, Facebook members, and followers to contribute to The IWSG Guide to Publishing and Beyond, whether you are a writer on the journey or a published author. Post your contribution today or email your submission to the IWSG or me. Full details posted today at the IWSG site.
 
If you are posting for the anthology today be sure to include: title, topic (writing, publishing, or marketing), a one line bio (with your name, book(s), and blog), and state that you give us permission to use it. After you have posted, please add your link HERE.

As I mentioned earlier this week, I completed revisions on my latest manuscript and sent it to my publisher last Friday. Yeah, baby – done!

While there are things I can’t share yet about the story (at least until I hear back from my publisher) I can give you a few hints.

It’s a stand-alone space opera story. Set in a world different than the Cassa series.

The story was inspired by a song – the lyrics tell one story, and I just rearranged them to tell another story. (So every line of the song is in the story, just not in the same order. Don’t worry, that will confuse you even further when I post the song.)

It’s third person point of view, but told from the viewpoint of just one character. (Sorry, I don’t do first person. I didn’t want to be in this guy’s head any more than I was in Byron’s.)

I discovered that writing an entire story based on an ending inspired by a song was a little more difficult than I imagined…

There’s more than one woman in this book!

There is also a bit of a fantasy element in the story. Blame the song. It started it…

I aimed for grittier. I missed. You would think since I’ve been reading Joe Abercrombie lately some of that would’ve rubbed off.

This story has been with me for ten years, ever since I first heard the song that inspired it.

And if I have my way, it’s the last one I intend to write…

Ninja News

Don’t forget October 20 is the Survive and Thrive Bloghop. It’s all about prevention and staying healthy, so please join us.

Available today -

Hope for Her by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle 
Buy it on Kobo Amazon Barnes and Noble
There's also a great giveaway - visit Sydney's site for details.

White Lady by Jessica Bell 
Jessica will be visiting the Ninja Army on October 13!


Now open for submissions - Bold New Worlds
A National Speculative Fiction Short Story Contest for High School Students
Organized by Charity Bradford
Spread the news! If you have a high school student, encourage them to enter.
(I’m also one of the judges, which is really exciting!)

Hosted by Patricia Lynne - the Trick-Or-Treat Book Blog Hop
Authors sign up for a blog hop, write a post about the books they are handing out and post it on Halloween, people visit their blogs and comment trick-or-treat and the author gives them an ebook. EBOOKS ARE THE CANDY!

And from Blastr - if you happen to have a spare 1.5 million dollars lying around, you can be the proud owner of a 24-karat solid gold Godzilla based on the original 1954 look:

Picking up a solid gold Godzilla? Know a high school student who’d like to enter the writing contest? Anyone else base a story off of a song? What are your writer insecurities today? And are you contributing to the IWSG book…?

Why Do I Blog, SyFy’s Chupacabra vs. The Alamo, Ninja and Entertainment News, and Movie Trivia Answers

Sydney Aaliyah has been celebrating two years of blogging this month with guests discussing why they blog. Today, it is my turn. Thank you for asking, Sydney! Please join me at her site and discover why I blog. (Besides the usual fame, fortune, and a shot at Kate Beckinsale!)

Ninja News

Michael Di Gesu is looking for new books and authors for his A to Z Challenge theme! You know how his introductions rock, and for twenty-six days, he will rock twenty-six books. Visit his site or contact him directly at mculi AT aol DOT com.

The A to Z Challenge starts in one week!! I’m revealing my theme this Friday. It’s along the same idea as the past two years, but with a twist or two. Or three!

Misha Gericke’s manuscript for Doorways was accepted by Etopia Press. Congratulations, Misha!

Donna Weaving had some great examples of past perfect and how to use it.

And you can now add CassaStorm on Goodreads HERE!

The SyFy Saturday Night Craptastic

Saturday night while surfing the basketball games, I discovered yet another SyFy movie original. Opting to take a break from watching my brackets go up in flames, I tuned in to the first ten minutes of Chupacabra vs. The Alamo. These were my thoughts:

Vicious animal attack in drainage tunnel, lots of blood…. Wait, that’s not a chupacabra, that’s a Chihuahua with a skin condition.

No, not Erik Estrada! Guess the director had a photo of him with a donkey as well.

Estrada has a teenaged daughter. Crap, the dude is sixty-three – he should be playing her grandfather.

They green screened Erik Estrada riding his motorcycle through the desert. We’re talking 1970’s local weatherman quality green screen!

Estrada drives through the hot desert and arrives at the drainage tunnel… soaking wet? Wow, he was so hot he pitted out his leather jacket.

I’m done! They should’ve named this movie Erik Estrada vs. His Dignity.

Entertainment News

The Croods were number one at the box office with a domestic take of almost $45 million.

The NCAA March Madness saw several upsets this weekend, including favorite Gonzaga losing to Witchita State. We won’t even discuss my bracket at the moment.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation comes out this Friday – and it actually got a good review from Jo Blo’s site.

The Swedish metal band Soilwork recently released their ninth album – and took a leap of faith with a double album! Their last disc was ‘all right’ and I almost didn’t purchase this one. Glad I did – The Living Infinite is brilliant!

And they just released an updated and extended version of the trailer for World War Z at Jo Blo’s site view it HERE

Movie Trivia Answers!

1 – “If this is foreplay, I’m a dead man.” Cocoon - Jack (Steve Guttenburg)
2 – “The Fourth of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice, ‘We will not go quietly into the night…’” Independence Day – The President (Bill Pullman)
3 – “His pattern indicates two-dimensional thinking.” Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan – Spock (Leonard Nimoy)
4 – “Can I ask you a personal question? Have you ever retired a human by mistake?” Blade Runner – Rachel (Sean Young)
5 - “I just want to know that it’s really happening.” Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss)

Have a book suggestion for Michael? Catch any of the SyFy Craptastic? (My apologies if you did.) How are your brackets holding up? Seeing any movies soon? And how did you do on the trivia?

Don’t forget to visit Sydney Aaliyah!

Kyra and Christmas Movies, Ninja News, Author Book Page, and Awesome News – CassaStorm is a Go!

Today I welcome the wonderful Kyra Lennon! She’s going to talk to you about Christmas movies. (We’re past Thanksgiving now, so bring it on!)

So … Christmas movies. There are so many out there, it can be hard to pinpoint a favourite. I know I have a list a mile long, but I want to talk about Christmas movie memories. Those movies that remind you of being a kid, or the ones that make you think of a particular Christmas. Ones that, when you see them, take you back to another time.

For me, it’s The BFG. I know that sounds ridiculous because it’s not even a Christmas movie. I can’t recall why it makes me think of Christmas, all I know is that whenever it’s on TV, I see myself surrounded by coloured wrapping paper, gifts, and … just feeling excited. My guess is that The BFG was on TV one Christmas, and that’s what makes my brain go to that happy place. Even if it doesn’t make any real sense to me, I love the feeling I get from that film.

The other movie that sparks Christmas memories for me is Elf. It had been out for quite a few years before I saw it for the first time, and I stumbled over it by chance one evening when there was nothing on TV. I clearly remember crying with laughter over Elf’s antics, and saying out loud, “I think everyone should have an Elf in their life!” It’s the one Christmas movie I MUST watch every year, just because it brings a smile to my face. Who wouldn’t love a movie that gets even the most cynical people believing in Santa?

So tell me, what are your favourite Christmas movie memories?

Blindsided Synopsis:
After a successful first soccer season in L.A, Jesse Shaw heads to London with his best buddy, Hunter, but his world is turned upside down when a dangerous prank threatens his career and his blossoming relationship with Hunter’s cousin, Isabelle.
Isabelle Mills lives in Notting Hill with her parents and her twin sister, Georgia. When she finds out her cousin is coming to stay, along with his famous soccer player friend, her first instinct is to hibernate until they’ve gone. However, once she meets Jesse, everything changes. He’s everything she ever wanted, but with so many obstacles in their path, can she really risk putting her heart on the line?

Author Bio:
Kyra Lennon was born on the South coast of England, and to this day, still lives by the sea. After years spent working in retail, where she met enough versatile characters to write hundreds of books, she finally took the plunge and quit her day job. Kyra's debut novel, Game On, was released in July 2012. While fiction writing has always been her passion, she also has numerous articles on a variety of topics published on prolific websites.

Find Kyra’s books on Amazon US and Amazon UK
Find Kyra here: Blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Thanks, Kyra – you rock!

Ninja News

Today’s Special Challenge Participant Feature at the A to Z Blog is Sydney Aaliyah! Her Challenge theme was “Traveling in Australia.” So if you’ve ever wanted to explore the land down under, check out the highlights from Sydney.

Karen announced the 2012 Blog Award Semi-Finalists - and I’m up for Blog of the Year! And quite a few of my blogger buddies are nominated as well. Be sure to stop by and vote.

Laura Pauling has TWO new releases – a children’s book and the sequel to A Spy Like Me. Congratulations, Laura!

Hildie McQueen’s latest is now available – Highlander’s Captive – and she’s holding a giveaway for five copies at her blog. Congratulations, Hildie!

Stephen Tremp just launched E. T. Registry where you can Own A Piece Of The Universe! You can buy extra-terrestrial real estate for a friend, family member, or that certain person you are not quite sure what to buy for Christmas. E. T. Registry gives fully fifty percent of all proceeds to four organizations that benefit the youth of today in math and science so they can develop into our leaders of tomorrow.

Lynn Rush is just one of twenty authors who contributed to Christmas Lites II – and all proceeds are donated to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. That’s awesome, Lynn!

HM Sinclair has a new cookbook – 365 Nights: Menus & Recipes for Every Night of the Year. Congratulations, Holly!

Patsy Collins’ book, Escape to the Country, is a free download Wednesday and Thursday! Find it on Amazon US and Amazon UK.

Author Books!

I updated my Awesome Authors and Books page this week. If you are one of my blogger buddies, one of your books should be listed on that page. Please check to be sure yours is listed, as I’m sure I forgot someone!

The Awesome News!!!!!

Yes, I’m going to overuse the exclamation point! I got a call from my publisher yesterday afternoon – CassaStorm is a go!!!!

They’d asked me to change one thing Monday morning and I’d worked on it that night, sending the new version the moment I was finished. Tuesday afternoon the call came – they were emailing me the contract and wanted to publish CassaStorm. There was even a signing bonus. (Is that what it’s called? Sorry, resorting to sports terms here.) Of course I signed that bad boy!

Projected release date – September 2013.

Whoa…

My third book is coming out next year. I never envisioned any of this when I wrote the first one. NEVER! One book – what the hell, let’s see what happens. I never even wanted to be a writer…

Thanks to everyone who has supported me and purchased my books. I am truly blessed.

So what is your favorite Christmas movie? See any new books to add to your collection? Did you vote for the 2012 Blog Awards? Ready to buy some space real estate through E. T. Registry? Blogger buddies, did you find your book on my Authors and Books page? And how many think September is a long ways away…?

Don’t forget to visit Sydney at the A to Z Blog!