Tanya Miranda | Author Interview

A Selfish Moment : 

Jubilee Ray wakes up Saturday morning in a strange bed with a handsome guy asleep at her side and no memory of how she got there. Everett Salerno wakes up ecstatic about the incredible night he spent with Jubilee. She can’t wait to get out of his apartment and he can’t wait to start their romance. Jubilee is a blackout drunk. Everett is drunk with love.  

Their one-night-stand ends almost as quickly as it began, however fate has other plans in mind. In the next three days filled with impossible coincidences, humiliating moments, and mouthwatering recollections, Everett can’t find the right moment to express his intentions and Jubilee can’t let go of her past long enough to really give Everett a chance.
Neither Jubilee nor Everett can let go of that first night together. Was that one perfect evening a fluke, or was it a preview of something greater than they ever imagined? eBook available at:  Amazon, Smashwords, Apple, Kobo, Nook Paperback available at: CreateSpace (Amazon), Amazon

Dramani:

The Dramani orphans live among us. They were discovered decades ago and have been kept secret ever since. They look and sound human, and have similar DNA, so you would never suspect them. They have been raised as normal human beings, and have gone their entire lives without knowing their true origin.

They will never know the truth, unless they encounter one of their own.

In a city inhabited by over 8 million people, the chances of two aliens of the same species meeting are astronomical, but Sarah and Darren beat the odds. When their paths collide, their lives are altered forever.

eBook available at:  Amazon, Smashwords, Apple, Kobo, Nook, Sony
Paperback available at:  Amazon, Barnes & Noble, CreateSpace (Amazon)

Author Interview :  

Author Bio:

My name is Tanya Miranda. I am a writer of science fiction, romance, suspense...I still haven't settled on a specific genre yet. In a former life I was an I.T. professional in the retail industry. On the side, I build websites for small businesses and startups. But, at the heart of it all, I am a stay-at-home mother of two incredible children.

What inspires you to write?

Writing is something I’ve done since I was very young. I wrote poetry and short stories for as long as I can remember, but I never shared them with anyone except a few writer friends in high school.

Flash forward fifteen years after graduating college… work got more political than I’d expected and I found myself working late night and weekends with no reward. It was mentally, physically, and emotionally draining. This propelled my decision to take some time off to spend with my young children while they still thought I had magical powers.

A month after I quit my job, my daughter and I found a long letter that I had written to her before she was born. While I read it, she and my husband laughed and told me that it was really funny. Then she said, “Mommy, you should be a writer.” I haven’t stopped writing since.

What are you reading now?

Right now I am re-reading Ender’s Game as part of getting my daughter into science fiction novels. Her and my son both love sci-fi movies. After watching an adaptation of a novel, I tell her the parts that the movies leave out. This got her thinking about reading the original novels before watching the movies. 

She read the first few chapters of Enders Game and had a couple of questions that I could not answer because the details have been long forgotten. So I just picked it up this weekend in order to help her out.

For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?

All the time! I play the roles out in my car, as I’m driving to pick up my son from kindergarten. Sometimes I forget the kids are in the car, and they catch me creating dialog. My daughter once asked me what I was doing, and I told her I was “writing”.

What advice would you give other writers?

Writing takes time and patience. Take your time to write the story you want to write, and be patient with the process. I rushed Dramani, my first novel, and had to go back and re-edit several times before the final version was released. My second novel, A Selfish Moment, was easier and more fun to write once I established my process.

How did you decide how to publish your books?

Dramani was a great learning experience. I got great feedback from my friends and family, as well as a few other people who read the earlier edition, but I couldn’t successfully pitch the idea it to an agent or directly to publishers.  So I thought, why not just self-publish? I have heard so much about it that I thought it would be a stepping stone to grabbing an agent. I rushed the production and was up on Amazon in November of 2012.

During a revision of A Selfish Moment, I established my process. Once A Selfish Moment was done and I sent it off to a professional editor. I re-read Dramani’s first chapter.  To my utter humiliation, I realized that Dramani was nowhere near being production-worthy, yet it was out in the market for the world to reject. And reject the world did. Aside from several orders by friends and family, the book didn’t sell. My rushed edition was just not up to par. (I wrote a full post about this on my blog.)  I re-edited the novel as if I was starting with a first draft using my new process.  I released an improved version in Spring of 2013 on Amazon, Smashwords and CreateSpace. I finally have sales from people I don’t know.

This made me more determined in publishing A Selfish Moment the right way, and on my own.  So far, it has been selling modestly, and received its first 4-star review on Goodreads.com. My editor, during an email exchange about her status, had let slip that she was enjoying the story. It gave me some reassurance that choosing to self-publish, and not begging for representation, was the best choice for me.

What do you think about the future of book publishing?

It’s unpredictable. Look at Hugh Howey and Maria Murnane. These folks are making moves people never dreamed of as self-publishers.

What genres do you write?

So far, I have written science fiction novel and contemporary romance novel.  I have a paranormal story in the idea mill, probably to start once I finish the first draft of Voyaran, the sequel to Dramani. I have a few short stories in other genres, but I love writing about life-and-death situations, events that intensifies relationships and help us value the things we take for granted.  Science fiction opens up more possibilities, and allows me to hit topics that are somewhat taboo in today’s world. I can make you “understand” the antagonist’s point of view from a scientific, logical, cold, inhumane perspective. Whether you agree with it or not is a whole other story.

What formats are your books in?

In all formats available today: paperback via CreateSpace, Kindle, Nook, Sony, Kobo, Apple iTunes, and all formats available on Smashwords (pdf, txt, etc.)

Website(s)

Official

Amazon

Smashwords

GoodReads

 

Read More...

Guest Post by Madhavi Sood

 

Thank you very much Faiza Butt, who invited me to write this Guest blog for her wonderful Repository of Books. Indeed I am very grateful & feel honored for this opportunity.

On different shades and hues of Life .....

I have seen Life at close quarters from being a high achiever at School & college and later at work. 

Every thing some how came to a stand still when I  had almost died that too in my prime, struck with disease and bed ridden (had a NDE  - near death experience). 

It was perhaps my zest for living, and love from my Family & Doctors care that brought me back from the depths of pain and darkness, for a purpose yet to fulfill  that perhaps egged me on to recover faster and write poems and stories and sketch & paint.  

Traversing and crossing the boundaries of spaces and times through my poems that reached out to me and my own soul and helped me move my body engulfed as it was in aches, pains and ailments. Writing set my soul free and helped my body too recover faster – for here I could express my innermost thoughts and feelings and simply be.

I Believe ..... Sometimes our deepest desires are the ones that push us to move on and do and become all we want to in Life.

At times, I had lost sense of myself in pain and at those times the Light & Nature beckoned me to pen poems and words which flowed down like a cascade, while I was still lying down on my bed; looking through the window at the sky & green trees by my bedside.

My Parents & husband and my in-laws supported me at each step and my Doctors counselled & treated me so that I could live again and come back from a crumbled building to one who could support others and sustain.

I have always been close to Nature and love kids. I feel there is a child inside all of us who gives us freedom to be what we are and can be.  And I am learning this each moment that I have been blessed with a wonderful daughter who teaches me and reminds me each step of the way.

The poems in this book “From the Silence Within”, were written by me whilst I was bed ridden and ‘fighting for life’  some time back.. Most of them are soul stirring, inspiring and motivating the self. Some poems are funny and a few lyrical and some romantic too.  Yet most of them are motivating and dealing with Life in its different shades and hues.

“From the Silence Within” 

“From the Silence within, shall bloom a thousand flowers.

Showered on life’s path, colourful and radiant like the stars.

And as each petal shall unfold.

A brand new verse, a poem, a, new story unspoken will be told.

And as you browse through each page.

A mystery, some wisdom sprinkled will uncage.

For in my silence you will find.

My feelings, my joys and my sorrows hidden behind.

And when I am gone and lost.

These few words do treasure and keep fast.

Just close your eyes and listen from the Silence Within.

For I’ll be there with you forever, through, thick or thin”.

© Madhavi Sood alias Madhavi Mohandas 2012.

Published in ‘From the Silence Within’

I do hope these poems move you, touch your soul and spirit  as much as I loved writing them, for they eased me from pain and gave me a hope to survive.

Hoping that my poems in my book  “From the Silence Within’  which is actually my soul's first flight  inspires you, awakens you too to become what you want to be and to spread your wings and soar high ...  

Buy from amazonBuy from tower.com Buy from uread Buy from cresswords

A small movie clip about my book excerpts link :

A video of one of my poems I have recited and published in my book:

Book Review links :

Link1
Link2
Link3

Interview Links :

Link1
Link2

 
Author's blogs : www.madhavisood.blogspot.in and
www.madhavisood.wordpress.com
Author Page
Twitter page : madhavisood : handle -> mads2011
tumblr page

 

Read More...

To Spoil or Not to Spoil -- the Problems of Publicizing a Sequel

Guest post for Faiza Iqbal by Karen A. Wyle

Since self-publishing my first novel in October 2011, I've had plenty of practice in publicizing my work. But now, as I prepare for the release of my third novel, I face a new conundrum. Novel Number Three, Reach: a Twin-Bred novel, is the sequel to Novel Number One, Twin-Bred. How do I tell readers what to expect without "spoiling" the first novel for those who haven't read it?

Here's a typical teaser for Twin-Bred:

Can interspecies diplomacy begin in the womb?

Humans have lived on Tofarn, planet of creeks and rivers, for seventy years, but they still don't understand the Tofa. The Tofa are an enigma, from their featureless faces to the four arms that sometimes seem to be five. They take arbitrary umbrage at the simplest human activities, while annoying their human neighbors in seemingly pointless ways. The next infuriating, inexplicable incident may explode into war.

Scientist Mara Cadell's radical proposal: that host mothers carry fraternal twins, human and Tofa, in the hope that the bond between twins can bridge the gap between species. Mara knows about the bond between twins: her own twin, Levi, died in utero, but she has secretly kept him alive in her mind as companion and collaborator.

Perhaps Mara should have expected the enigmatic Tofa to have their own reasons to support her project. Perhaps the ever-cynical Levi should have warned her that members of the human government might use her twins as weapons against the Tofa. Will the Twin-Bred bring peace, war, or something else entirely?

 

Once you've read that blurb, here's some what you don't know:

--Do the Twin-Bred (the fraternal twins in question) live to maturity?

--Does Mara Cadell survive until the end of the book?

--What, exactly, are the schemes that others outside the Project have for the Twin-Bred, and do any of them succeed?

--Do the Twin-Bred manage to bring peace, or at least reduce the danger of war, between their native communities?

--Does anything change in the relationship (if we can call it that) between Mara and her never-born twin Levi in the course of the book?

--How do the events of the book change the principal characters -- and who are those characters, anyway? . . .

All well and good. So how do I describe the sequel without answering at least some of those questions?

Well-established authors may be able to assume that most of those considering the purchase of a sequel will have already read the earlier book(s). But I can't realistically place myself in that category. Also, I've been learning about book publicity, as well as about the craft of writing, since I published Twin-Bred in October 2011. I hope to reach potential readers whom I didn't manage to reach with either of my earlier novels. Reach: a Twin-Bred novel will be my third published novel, and it will probably be the first one to come to some folks' attention.


Now that I've posed the problem, I should be able to present the solution. Sorry, folks -- if there's a formula, I'd love to hear it! All I've been able to do is keep my spoilers as few and as vague as possible.

On Smashwords, where Reach is already "live," there are two levels of description, one shorter and one longer. The shorter appears in "summary views," and goes to "some" retailers; the longer is distributed to "most" retailers. Both appear on the book page. Here's what I came up with for both. 
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

>

Short Description :

In this sequel to Twin-Bred, scientist Mara Cadell and the Twin-Bred she helped to create embark on a new and perilous journey -- except for one pair who remain on Tofarn, attempting to live in the human and Tofa communities. Meanwhile, events on Tofarn approach a crisis, in which former host mothers Laura and Veda are deeply involved.

And here's the longer description:

Scientist Mara Cadell created the Twin-Bred -- pairs of fraternal twins, one human and one Tofa -- to bridge the profound and dangerous gap between the human colonists on Tofarn and the indigenous Tofa. Unexpectedly, it is the Tofa host mothers who now claim the capacity to bring peace between the two. The Twin-Bred themselves have been forced to abandon their mission and their planet, in the hope of finding a less hostile home. Only one pair remain behind, seeking to build new and separate lives with their own kind.
But Mara and the Twin-Bred should know by now that plans provide little protection. New challenges are in store for all the Twin-Bred, and for those whose lives they touch.

Links:

Author website

Facebook authorpage

Twitter handle: @WordsmithWyle

Reach'sSmashwords page

Reach on Goodreads

Read More...

Letters to the Granddaughter - The Story of Dillon Wallace of the Labrador Wild

Guest Post by Philip Schubert

I'm really pleased to accept Faiza Iqbal Butt's invitation to be a guest blogger and tell her readers about my biography 'Letters to the Granddaughter - The Story of Dillon Wallace of the Labrador Wild' (print edition:  ISBN 9781482388442).  It has been out since January 2013 and can be purchased in print and eReader format on:  Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Create Space, Kobo, Nook or Smashwords.  It can also be purchased as an iBook and read on an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad.  Reviews of the biography are posted on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk.

  

Dillon Wallace was a key figure in the Hubbard and Wallace Saga which took place more than 100 years ago in Labrador and northern Quebec. Approximately 10 books have been published on the saga over the years but this is the first biography on Dillon Wallace.

Wallace ensured that the story would never be forgotten by publishing one of the finest books ever written on the North, 'The Lure of the Labrador Wild', and by taking part in the three canoe trips linked to the saga. To date no one person has been equal to the challenge of fully retracing these trips.

I discovered the joys and dangers of travel in trackless wilderness starting in 1999 after reading Dillon Wallace's 'The Lure of the Labrador Wild'. I spent a decade retracing the routes in Labrador and northern Quebec described in 'The Lure', in Wallace's follow-on book, 'The Long Labrador Trail', and in Mina Hubbard's 'A Woman's Way Through Unknown Labrador'.

Nothing in Dillon's early life as an impoverished youth on a farm suggested that he would still fascinate people nearly 150 years later. Dillon was blessed in fact with "Grit A'Plenty", which no one would suspect from his unimpressive physique and unsmiling face. He pulled himself up by his bootstraps, rising from gristmill employee, to self-trained telegraph operator, to stenographer, to finally becoming a lawyer. His life from that point on, however, was equal parts tragic and heroic, but continued to be marked by splendid accomplishments. Starting at the age of 40 in 1903, he carried out a series of trips in Labrador and today's northern Quebec covering several thousand miles.

Buy this Book from Amazon!

The first trip sadly resulted in the tragic death of his trip leader and best friend, Leonidas Hubbard, and a narrow escape for him. His book on the trip, The 'Lure of the Labrador Wild', published in 1904, became a best seller and is still in print. It would change Dillon's life forever. It told the story of the trip as it was documented in his and Leonidas' trip journals. Leonidas' widow, Mina Hubbard, who would be forever changed also due to the unbearable loss of "her laddie", had commissioned the book. When Dillon refused to rewrite the book and make Leonidas into the larger than life figure she had been expecting, she became Dillon's sworn enemy for life.

There then followed two extraordinary trips in 1905 across Labrador, following the route planned in 1903. Dillon led one. Mina, drawing on skills that no one had realized she had, led the other. She planned hers in secret, and then provoked a life-long estrangement from Leonidas' family by telling the press as she left that she suspected that Dillon played a role in her husband's death and was on her way to investigate it. A third fascinating figure, voyager George Elson, the other survivor of the first trip, safely canoed Mina the length of Labrador down some of the most challenging rivers that George and his crack team of outdoorsmen had ever seen. No one was more impressed than George, or more disappointed than Mina, when Dillon and his only team member, forestry student Clifford Easton, successfully completed the trip as well. The evidence that George, a heroic figure in his own right, had fallen in love with Mina and which may have motivated him to agree to organize the trip at Mina's behest, added another fascinating dimension to the saga. The 1905 trip formed the basis for Dillon's second book and he went on to publish another 25 books, becoming a legend in his time.

Buy Book this from Amazon!

This is the story of Dillon Wallace as told by me, with an introduction by Dillon's granddaughter, Amy McKendry. It includes extensively illustrated maps and dozens of my colour photographs of the challenges faced and overcome in the wilds by the saga participants.

This book will appeal firstly to hard-core canoeists like me who have learned to survive in the kind of wilds experienced by saga participants 100 years ago.  It will appeal secondly to those in love with nature at its most unspoiled and pristine.  Finally, it will appeal to those looking for stories involving a character like Mina Hubbard who loved and hated with equal intensity and a character like the quietly courageous Dillon Wallace whose achievements have never been equalled to date.

Read More...

Eric Laing

About Author : 

J. Eric Laing was born and raised in the South but now lives in New York City with his wife and their two wonderful boys. 

He is the author of five novels: Cicada (general fiction), Seep (horror), The Night Watch (thriller), Scissors & Tweed (young adult), and The Crooked Man's Mile (general fiction), as well as a collection of short stories simply titled Shorts. Look for his latest title, Weird Tales to Tell to Strangers, coming this summer!

Website                 Blog                Books on GoodReads               

   

 

The Night Watch :

Murder, sex, magic, and ancient Rome

A serial killer preys upon those who are truly the most dangerous game…the gladiators. As the killer collects macabre trophies, it falls to the Prefect of the Night Watch to end the madness.But this is Rome, where blood spills like wine, and dreams…they are all too often nightmares.

Amazon Link For US 
Amazon Link for UK 

Cicada:

A family and community become swept-up in a tempest of violence and tragedy.

After John Sayre starts slipping off at odd hours from the family farm, his wife Frances begins to suspect that he’s joined a newly-revived chapter of the Ku Klux Klan. By the time their young son discovers the corpse of a lynched black man along the side of a nearby dirt road, Frances Sayre has had enough. But John hasn’t joined the ranks of the murderous KKK as his wife fears. Just the same, John’s secret has the potential to destroy their marriage, if not so much more. What comes to pass over those heated days of summer, none on any side could have imagined, or wanted. 

Kirkus Reviews named CICADA ”new and notable” as well as awarded it “Best Indies of 2012″ status, calling it a beautifully crafted tale with well-drawn characters, adding, “Be sure to read this steamy Southern noir in the AC.” 
Amazon Link For US 

Amazon Link for UK 

The Crooked Man's Mile:

When Conner Connley was six years old he killed a man…or so he was made to believe. From that lie is born a lonely life of homeless drifting and hardship on the road. A story at turns heartbreaking and humorous, bleak and then blooming with life, love, and hope. The Crooked Man’s Mile…one man’s epic journey to learn the truth and discover himself.
Amazon Link For US 

Amazon Link for UK

Read More...

Deadly to Love

Author: Mia Hoddell
ASIN: B00BDQ3QGA
ISBN: 9781291319170
Genre: YA/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy/Romance

Description

There is a love that is so dangerous, so powerful, so intoxicating that it embraces your heart and smothers your mind until it leaves you defenceless.Serena knew that but still, it didn't stop her. His name was Kai. He was the most beautiful, irresistible man she had ever encountered. Their attraction was too compelling to fight and she knew she would go to the end of the world beside him. That is love.However behind the allure was hidden a deadly secret – a secret that threatened her fragile life... But secrets best left unsaid never remain hidden forever. When Kai reveals his true identity, she is exposed to a frightening world she had no idea existed. Controlled by powerful Elemental forces her life is placed in mortal danger. 

Unbeknown to them, their lives have been entwined from the beginning and it leads her to discover an even greater secret about who she really is. As the pieces begin to unravel and death becomes a reality, Serena is forced to decide what is more important...her love or life.

About the Author 

Mia Hoddell lives in the UK with her family and two cats. She spends most of her time writing or reading and her preferred genre is Young Adult, Paranormal Romance. Before 2009, Mia wouldn't even pick up a book and was more interested in sports. However she finally found some novels that captured her interest and developed a love of both reading and writing. Mia began with poems and after getting two published in separate anthologies she moved on to short stories. Although she enjoyed this, Mia found she had too much to tell with too little space, so later on she created her first series The Wanderer Trilogy and from there other ideas have emerged which she hopes to turn into novels as well. Elemental Killers is her second series and book two will be out soon. 

What people are saying

"It was a very original idea, not to mention modern. I loved that little twist. This story had such a good plot and the story structure was sound." ~ Kacii - The Kooky Bookworm 5/5

“I read this book in one sitting as I just couldn't put it down. The story line was original, intriguing and made you feel like you were part of the action. As well as this there were many twists and turns that kept me hooked and the book was really well written with a solid plot. The book didn't reveal everything straight away which was great as it left in suspense right up until the end.” ~Lucy M 5/5

“I found that it's surprisingly original concept was quite common in real life but not so much in books. I found it a delightful read that I will look forward to reading in the future. And the new cover! Marvelous.” ~ Kathy H 5/5

“All I can say is WOW! This book was amazing and different. I love the twist and detail she used I was instantly pulled in and felt like I was there with the characters.” ~Brianna 5/5

"This book surpassed all of my expectations and kept me hooked from beginning to end. In Deadly to Love the action is constructed incredibly well, it is fast paced but filled with loads of detail that leaves everything easy to imagine and visualize." ~ Billie 5/5

"Mia Hoddell used the senses well to add depth and engage me as a reader, especially during action sequences or heightened moments. I really struggled to stop reading this book!" ~ L. Morgan 5/5

Buy Links

1. Buy it From Amazon 2. Paperback (Lulu)

Author Links

Blog: http://miahoddell.blogspot.com
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mia-Hoddell-Author/421368247889610?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MiaHoddell
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/miahoddell

Read More...