Monday, January 21, 2013

Post: ARCed, Horse Power, WHIE Class, and Updates!


Hey, guys!

Man ... I never thought I'd get out of that dress ...

... ahem, moving on!

I'm way excited today. Why is that? Because you guys have really jumped on my invitation to highlight and showcase your books. I had to make a calender to keep track of everything. Hopefully, no one will slip through the cracks. If you do, call me a jerk. I'm sure I'll deserve that. I was all the more amazed to receive offers to help with book tours, enough to make my reading list busy for the next few months, and this lovely volume arrived in the mail to be reviewed first:

Check out the awesomeness of Mr. Chad Morris! Isn't that a lovely cover for a MG adventure? I know I'm excited, WAY excited, and having known Chad for a couple years has nothing to do with it (well, maybe a little). I know very little about this novel besides that it takes place in a school in the near-ish future with all sorts of crazy technology (has a sci-fi Harry Potter feel to it, but we'll see), but that will soon change. More details about this book to come when we get closer to its release. Thanks, Chad!


This part is quite the funny story - Between my lack of observance and a series of emails being sent to the wrong person, I won an ARC copy of Venom as a giveaway prize a couple months ago from Kate Coursey (what can I say - I'm a bit of a sucker when the cover teases the prospect of a masquerade ... they never seem to get old for me). All that business is sorted out and I should receive it soon, which will make my TBR list even fatter. Something tells me I'm in for some good reads this year, I take it!

Thanks, Kate!

Speaking of good reads, I have a Goodreads button now, at the top right. Check it out. I promise it won't send you to some promiscuous place (unless you have affairs with books ...). Thanks, Lisa!

And as a last minute addition, I'd like to reveal the cover for Julie Flanders's debut novel, Polar Night (look's awesome, doesn't it)!

 
*shoots off fireworks* - Congratulations, Julie!

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This is a couple weeks late, but I'd like to introduce you to Sue Ann Bowling's recently launched story, Horse Power!

Rumors have reached the Inner Council of the Jarnian Confederation that the Horizon Company is illegally exploiting the colonists. Roi has been sent to find out what’s happening, and he asks his old friends, colonists Timi and Amber, for help. But the Company’s behavior is legal, if immoral. Can the three find a solution to the problem?
(From Amazon)

Just so you know, you've got a Collie on the cover, which scores some serious points at our place. Congratulations on your release, Sue! May you have many readers!

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Ever heard of WHIE: Write Here in Ephraim (pronounced WHEE!)?

It's a one-day writing conference in my old college stomping grounds - and this year, I'm teaching a class about Social Media, Web Design, and Networking with my friend and design expert Darren Hansen (details to come). If you happen to be in the area, we'd love to see you - and we're going to have crullers (real ones this time - really)!

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Please welcome Debbie, the latest member of our Cosmic Crew!

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Update: It's official; Undead's projected word count bumped up to 70K words. I was hoping to keep it shorter than that, but what can I do? When the story can't contain itself, who am I do deny it?

You can expect another week of semi-cool posts here at the Laire - all the usual as usual (with maybe a few other surprises in store ...).

Hope you all had a great weekend, friends - see you soon!

I'm David, and this is how The Hobbit should have ended ...

31 comments:

  1. Julie is all over today!
    And funny video. He came back!

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  2. Awesome cover reveal, and books! It looks like you've got a great TBR list stretching out before you. :)

    I actually liked how the Hobbit should have ended. I thought it was funny, and made so much sense.

    Best of luck with Undead. Keep writing!

    Alexandra~

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  3. Congrats on your drafting progress, David!

    LOVE all the covers. :) Julie's is great.

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  4. Always great to learn about the new books out there-- thanks for sharing.

    I wrote a post about word porn recently, so yes, sending me to Goodreads might just cross that line. ;)

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  5. Some lovely new books. I was surprised the one with a horse on the cover was sci-fi though.

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  6. I scored an ARC of The Inventor's Secret last week and my kids are devouring it. :) And good luck teaching your class. That's so cool!

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  7. Looks like an awesome list of books! Loved the video too :)

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  8. All of the book covers look awesome, but there is something about Inventor's Secret that screams "BUY ME NOW!!!!!". I don't often read middle grade, but when I do, it's because the cover is so gosh darned exciting.

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  9. I got an ARC of Chad Morris's 'Inventor's Secret'.. all I can say, Great Book! Really lives up to the hype.

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  10. Sounds like you're gonna be rather busy. Few things are better than curling up with a good book.

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  11. I love the covers for The Inventor's Secret and Venom!

    As for the MG word count, my editor set 65k as the target for my book. So, assuming yours has some fat that can be trimmed later (all manuscripts do!), you're not off by much.

    Of course, I was coming down from 78k ...

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  12. Glad you made it out of the dress! :)

    Sounds like some great books!! And I loved How the Hobbit Should Have Ended. :)

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  13. That cover for "The Inventor's Secret" is gorgeous. I've seen so many awesome covers lately.

    I think what you're doing is super awesome.

    Oh, and I liked the cartoon! Funny how the smallest people can change the course of destiny--especially at the prompting of a wizard.

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  14. I really like the cover for "The Inventor's Secret." I like the perspective that it's done, and I think it has just the right amount of "bling" on the cover. Any more and it would be too much, any less and it would lose something.

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  15. I'm still laughing at you in that dress. So many good books. The Inventor's Secret has an amazing cover and sounds great. Polar Night sounds awesome, too. The others are new to me, so I'll have to check them out. Yay for Goodreads or I'd never remember to read any of the cool books I hear about.

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  16. Wait! What?
    What invitation to showcase books?
    And, man, now I'm going to have to go figure out how to get cool little buttons like that on my site! You suck!

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  17. I might actually be in Utah for WHIE...see there, perhaps.

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  18. Thanks for the cover reveals and updates, David. Hey, I like your avatar ... fun!

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  19. You've got great books posted today! Thanks for sharing and LOL at HISHE! :D

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  20. I'm actually still giggling about HISHE Hobbit style. I love those guys.

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  21. That video was so funny. Thanks for sharing all the book news.

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  22. Those all look like great books. The Inventor's Secret cover is very eye catching. That's just the kind of book my son would love!

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  23. How the Hobbit should've ended was funny. Love venom's cover, very pretty :)

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  24. That's a Border Collie puppy on the cover of Horse Power, standing in for a dog bred for psychic abilities, who turns out to have strong herding ability. The book is more a short story than a novel, and a sequel to the two novels I have in print, Homecoming and Tourist Trap.

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  25. I've been seeing so many new covers rolling around the blogosphere. Thanks for sharing these.

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  26. wow, so many cover reveals!! i've seen some of these already, too! i love how we are all so supportive.

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  27. You Da man (in the dress :)

    Love the self-addressed humor and good luck with your event at the conference.

    Spread the wealth - there are too many poor writers :)

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  28. Hey, if the dress fits, wear it. The cover of VENOM is so beautiful and it's been on my to-read list for a while now! Love that Hobbit video.

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  29. Thank you so much for sharing my cover, David! I'm thrilled and so glad you like it, thanks!
    Love the covers for Inventor's Secret and Venom too, both look awesome!

    Thanks again! :)

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