May new releases by Indelible Authors!

May releases by Indelible Authors   Debt Collector 6 & 7 by Susan Kaye Quinn   Episodes 6 and 7 of the future-noir serial Debt Collector by Susan Kaye Quinn have been released, as well as the Volume 4-6 collection. Try the first episode, Delirium, for FREE: What’s your life worth on the open market?   Delirium (Debt Collector 1) FREE on  Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, iTunes.   Touching Melody by RaShelle Workman Inspired by real events... **Due to its heavy subject matter, this book is recommended for ages 17+** Praise for Touching Melody: "I loved this story of two lost souls, toughened up and emotionally closed off by their circumstances, who opened up to each other and themselves through music." ~ Stacey Wallace Benefiel, author of Crossing "Touching Melody is a haunting love story filled with thrills, chills and secrets that keep the pages turning right up unto the breathless finish." ~ Kate Ashton, author of Every Little Piece. Summary: Maddie Martin's first weekend at college is nothing like she's used to. It's wild, like the wilderness on which the University of Bellam Springs sits. Roped into going to a fraternity party, she literally runs into Kyle Hadley. The boy she's loved since she was nine. The boy she promised all of her firsts to. But that was before his father killed her parents. Determined to stay away from him, she throws herself into her music. Practicing piano eases her heavy heart, calms the sadness, and pushes away images of Kyle's face. Until it doesn't. Her music professor asks her to play a duet for their annual Winter Gala. Doing so means she'll be assured another full ride scholarship. It's an opportunity she can't pass up. But Kyle is the other half of the duet. And that means hours and hours of practicing. Weeks of seclusion - just the two of them. And it's more than just music. It's passion like Maddie never believed was possible. The inevitable happens. She falls in love with him all over again. But, will loving him be enough to erase all the hate in her heart for his father? Can she look at him, and not see the evil in his family tree? And maybe it's all a set up. Maybe Kyle is only pretending to care so he can finish what his father started, and kill her too.   AMAZON Barnes and Noble Collateral Damage by Katie Klein   True love can blossom in unexpected places. This is Parker pretending not to care. . . .   Parker Whalen and Jaden McEntyre are a wrong fit from the start. Jaden is driven and focused, Harvard Med School within reach. Parker has a past—a reputation—and the rumors about his mysterious habits abound. So there’s no reason why, when they're assigned to work together on a project in English, they should discover they have anything in common, or even like each other, and they definitely shouldn't be falling in love. What they have? It isn't real. Because the truth is, Parker Whalen is a liar. This has never mattered…until now. Because lying to someone you care about—someone who matters, someone who believes in you—that's when people get hurt. And Parker is about to hurt Jaden in the biggest way imaginable. COLLATERAL DAMAGE is the companion novel to CROSS MY HEART, which spent more than 100 days on the Amazon Teen Top 100 Bestseller List in its first year of release, and was a 2011 Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee for Best YA Fiction. COLLATERAL DAMAGE, a 76k word/300 page novel for Young Adults, is CROSS MY HEART told from Parker's point of view. **Though this is not a series, the author highly recommends reading CROSS MY HEART before COLLATERAL DAMAGE** Rated PG-13 for violence, adult language, and some sensuality. *** Amazon Barnes & Noble   The Seer (Desolation Diaries #2) by Ali Cross She's always been the one protected, shielded from the darkness in the world. But Miri wants to be as capable and strong as Desi and James. She wants to control her visions so they can actually be of use, actually give her friends an advantage over the dark. When her visions reveal an enemy fixated on James, Miri must face the evil alone, and risk everything to do it.   Amazon | Goodreads TAKING BACK FOREVER (Book 2 of The Kindrily series) By Karen Amanda Hooper Release Date: May 31, 2013 Starry Sky Publishing *Recommended for ages 15 and older due to mature content.*   Forever is worth the fight. Maryah erased all memory of her past lives, but she couldn't erase her soul mate Nathan, or his undying love. Now, Maryah and Nathan have a second chance at a future together, but first Maryah must remember the person she used to be and embrace her supernatural gifts--more than one kindrily member's life depends on it. Maryah's power is Harmony's best hope of finding her kidnapped soul mate, Gregory. But Harmony isn't big on asking anyone for help, and she's tired of waiting, so she's taking matters into her own hands. Heaven help anyone who stands in her way.   Amazon, Barnes & Noble Kobo Goodreads   Several of our Indelible Authors will be attending the UtopYA conference in Nashville Jun 28-30.  If you're going to be there, make sure you look them up! Addison Moore Chanda Hahn Chelsea Fine RaShelle Workman Susan Kaye Quinn S.R. Johannes

When the Going Gets Tough . . .

Sometimes the tough drop the ball.

I was supposed to post here today. Technically, it's still "today" (in North America, anyway), but we all know that's not what's meant by "today". My post should have been up in time for early Eastern time readers, and available for all other time zones as they hit the blogosphere.

Thing is, I've been barely keeping my balls in the air lately, so it was inevitable that I drop one of them.

And that's the thing, isn't it? Life isn't always easy. There's that Murphy Law thing, the whole "it pours" bit--you get the picture. And for the entrepreneurial author, life sometimes gets very, very busy.

The trick, I think, is to adjust the speed with which you're juggling, to adapt for the dropped ball, and keep on going. This isn't a business for pansies. But it is a business for humans and humans make mistakes.

Do I wish I'd remembered to post on time? Of course! I'm embarrassed and feel a lot like I've let my fellow Indies down. But really? If I had to drop one of my balls, this was the best one to go. It's soft and bouncy and very forgiving. Some of the other balls I have up in the air are as fine as Christmas ornaments and if I drop one of those it'll make quite the mess!

So be forgiving of yourself, my friends. Stop and pick up the ball if you need to, but get right back at it. After all, you're tough. So keep going!

*no actual colloquialisms were harmed in the writing of this post.

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, one sumo dog and four zen turtles.

She's the author the the young adult paranormal romance Desolation series, and the middle grade sci fi adventure, Jump Boys. Find Ali online: Blog |Facebook | Twitter

Introducing My First Middle Grade Novel!

It's been a few days since I released my first middle grade science fiction, Jump Boys: SOS and I'm still giddy with excitement! I swear I almost feel more thrilled over this release than I did over my very first book. I'm not sure why, exactly--maybe because Jump Boys is only the second book I ever wrote and I wrote it for my boys. This was a story for them, and now it's a story for your kids, too.

It's available as an ebook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo, with print coming soon. You can add it to Goodreads, too!

A dare gone terribly wrong.

An SOS from another universe.

A threat from right next door.

Thirteen-year-old twin brothers Jayce and Val are about to jump the multi-verses on a dangerous dare, but true danger is closer to home than they realize.

The Jupiter Prime colony has been orbiting the stormy gas giant for nineteen years and all anyone wants is to get back to Earth. Sent to preserve the best and brightest of the population, a grievous error in the Prime’s navigation coordinates sent the colony to an alternate dimension with no way to return to the Earth they call home.

In a society where technical expertise is valued above all else, Jayce and Val are among the most privileged—until they uncover their uncle’s plot to claim dominion over space and time. While attempting to rescue a lone girl from a post-apocalyptic earth, Val will come face to face with space pirates and Jayce will lay his life on the line for the sake of his brother and the little girl who holds the key to time itself.

Don't forget IndieReCon starts TOMORROW!

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the a young adult paranormal romance Desolation series. Find Ali online: Blog |Facebook | Twitter

Writer's Dojo... Back & Ready to Geaux!

Leigh here! It's my day to post something Indelibilicious (I made that up. So?), but my good Indelible writer-friend Ali Cross OUT-COOLED me, so I'm turning the spotlight on her...

Take it away, Ali~

The Writer's Dojo is returning to its roots and invites you to join in on the fun! 

When I first started the writer's dojo in 2008, it was a way to keep the glory of National Novel Writing Month alive all year long. I loved the camaraderie and support I received during the month of November and desired that same feeling of community every month of the year, in every aspect of writing--not just the drafting.

Beginning February 1st, 2013, the writer's dojo returns to its roots and ushers in a new age of ninjawesomeness. Each month we will open three training rooms at the writer's dojo website. A room for drafters (Writing Month, aka WriMo), a room for revisers (Revising Month, aka ReMo) and a room for those querying (Querying Month, aka QuMo).

We invite you to set your own goals, whether it's to write a thousand words a day, revise ten pages a week, or submit twenty queries in a month, and register your goal in the appropriate training room.

Every Monday we'll post the leaderboard for the previous week, and at the end of each month those who met their goal will be able to post the coveted Writing Ninja Warrior badge on their blog or website.

To help you reach your goals, we have a number of ways to support you:

CHATS: At the dojo every Thursday at 4:00 p.m. Eastern time.

TWITTER: Anytime, day or night, at #writingninja.

GOOGLE+: Join our community for random write-ins and sprints.

NEWSLETTER: Subscribe to our Ninja News and once a month you'll receive an email with an encouraging note and a list of the top performers for the previous month. There will also be opportunities for giveaways, starting with February's newsletter!

We hope to see you at the dojo as you reach for--and achieve--your goals!

Help Me Choose the Name for My Book!

This is the first time this has happened to me--that I haven't been able to choose a name for a book. Usually, the title is often the first thing that comes to me. Certainly I know what the title should be before I'm finished writing it.

But this time, with the third and last in the Desolation series, I have no idea what it's title is. So, I'm putting it in the hands of my readers and friends.

Throughout this week, Tiffany Mahaffy at Escaping . . . One Book at a Time, is hosting a scavenger hunt and poll. She's revealing the mock-up for Desi 3's cover, the cover copy, and running a poll between three possible title choices. There will be prizes, so I hope you'll stop by and vote for your favorite title!

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the a young adult paranormal romance Desolation series. Find Ali online: Blog |Facebook | Twitter

The Only Reader that Matters is the One Reading Your Book

I download and read a zillion independently published books. Okay, maybe not a zillion, because I'm an interminably slow reader (*curse you slow reading ability!*), but I've been noticing a seriously disturbing behavior among some indie authors.

And that's the, "I can always upload a new version" mentality.

It's like the author slaps up the shiny new draft of a story, hoping to start making money on it right away, even though they know ~ they know ~ there are mistakes in the manuscript. Meanwhile, they'll edit the story and then upload a new-and-improved version. Maybe they'll even do that five or six (or more!) times before they have finally made the story "good" (read: publishable).

I find this extremely disturbing.

To me, that's like saying those first readers aren't important. Like they're expendable ~ which is exactly how they're being treated because that author didn't bother to give them their best work. Sure, they took the reader's money, but they're "expendable" because that reader will likely never go back to that author.

And that worries me to no end.

Because I'm an indie author too. It's my bread and butter this independent publishing gig, and I can't afford for other authors to be disrespecting readers. Those readers might potentially be my readers ~ but if they've learned from experience that self-published authors aren't reliable and sometimes put out unedited crap, well . . . that hurts my bottom line.

I think it's even worse, even more offensive, when the author doesn't just put out unedited work because they don't know better, but they do it because they intend to take advantage of the sales, those poor suckers willing to shell out money on their story, at the earliest possible moment.

It reminds me of one of the more popular bits of advice I've read regarding when you know your manuscript is ready to be queried to agents. It goes something like, "When you think you're book is good enough--edit it again. Then it's ready." In other words, you never, ever, want to query a book that's only "kind of" ready. That's only "sort of" polished. You only get that one chance with an agent, that one little glimpse to know if the story is right for them. You want that experience to be as perfect as you can possibly make it.

Why in the world would we ever treat our readers with anything less than this pinnacle of respect?

Every reader counts.

But that first one? That brave soul who's willing to take a chance on your self-published work? That one counts the most. Because that reader can make or break you.

Make sure that everything you publish represents your very best.

Every.

Single.

Time.

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.


She's the author the young adult urban fantasy books BECOME and DESOLATE. Find Ali online: Blog | Facebook | Twitter

Making a Great Thing Better

One thing I thought I got right the first time around, was my cover--with the exception of the spine. Oh, the spine. LAME doesn't even begin to describe it. 

But, you know. My cover was "listed" on Goodreads for having an awesome cover. Fans raved about it--including this video review!

All of this is fabulous . . . except I knew. I knew it wasn't perfect. I knew there were things that could have been better. 

And you know what? As an indie author, I am not stuck with my out-of-the-gate offering. I am free to change it up, switch it up and do whatever it takes to help my book be awesome.

I designed my original cover myself, with the help of Fanye L.O.'s brilliant photo manipulation artwork. Fanye's work is fantastic, mine, however, was not. So I enlisted the help of Susan's cover designer, Dale Pease. I was also able to incorportate some reviews into the cover. I almost wish I could have a couple different covers that I could rotate through to include all the great endorsements. (I promise that's not my pride talking--that's gratitude!)

Behold my new and improved cover for BECOME! (Thank you Dale! Thank you Susan!) And stay tuned . . . DESOLATION (book two in the Desolation series) is coming soon!

This is just one of the reasons why I love being an indie author. Can you limit to just one thing? If you can--tell me!

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the young adult urban fantasy novel BECOME, and a member of the Author's IncognitoExecutive Committee.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter 

The Art of Novel Ninjutsu

It's true. I'm a little ninja-obsessed. But not because I think killing people in their sleep is awesome. Or that I'd look good in black pajamas and toe-socks. It's writing ninjas that I think are cool.

See, writing ninjas train until our writing muscles are wearing and we just can't take any more.

And then we train some more.

We kill our darlings. Slit the throat of our beautiful prose.

We slash pages and pages of worthless stuff.

 

A writing ninja knows the importance of focus, imagination and feeling. She regularly seeks the opportunity to meditate on her story. 

The writing ninja can write anytime, anywhere. He knows the best time to get the job done is right now.

A writing ninja expects to work. Expects to be awesome. She expects it--and so it is true.

A writing ninja is successful not only because she is fearless and fierce, but also because she doesn't do what's always been done.

A writing ninja shows respect for those who have come before him and he helps those who are following behind.

The writing ninja knows he can always improve; that there is no end to learning. 

Wait. Didn't say this was the art of NOVEL ninjutsu? Sure, I didn't tell you how to write a novel. But I promise you, if you practice the way of the writing ninja, you will write THE END on the most amazing novel you can write. 

Because that's what writing ninjas do--they write, and they conquer.

Are You Ready For Some FOOTBALL - Erm, I mean NiNoCon?!?

K, so I'm sure lots of you are gearing up for SUPER BOWL SUNDAY on Feb, 5th. I know I am. Love it!!!

But, the day BEFORE the Giants go up against the Patriots is going to be even more awesome.

You want to know why?

It's NiNoCon.

Here's the deal (as told from Ali's website):

Ninja Novel Conference ~ an online writers conference for the daring, the dedicated, the ninja writer!

Ninja Novel Conference (NiNoCon) is the brainchild of the Ninja Pirate herself, Angela Kulig. She approached me with a plan to take over the world and hey, it sounded like fun!


Saturday, February 4th, 2012, will be the first NiNoCon, and we hope you'll join us!


NiNoCon focuses on publishing by non-traditional means. We're talking about doing what hasn't been done before, stretching your imagination to extend beyond your stories and into a world of your making.


We've invited top-notch presenters to share how they thought "outside the box". Come learn what they have to say and discover how you can make your own magic happen.

Can't wait to check it out. Hope to see you there. HiYah!!! 

Oh, and don't forget the chips and salsa for the big game.

Which team are you rooting for?


(Pics courtesy of Ali Cross and google.)