Save the Date: Crescent Moon Press, Summer Lovin’ Blog Hop

Crescent Moon Press authors are ready for summer! We'll be blogging about our summer loves, our romances, and how much we love summer! Have you ever had a summer fling? Do you have a favorite book about summer? What's on your summer reading list? What are some great beach reads? We're blogging about all of it!

Visit our blogs below and enter to win some great prizes between June 14 -17.

Grand Prize: A Kindle Paperwhite & some of our eBooks to read on it!

1st Prize: A $20 Amazon gift card, and a Swag Pack that contains paperbacks, more eBooks, bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, and more!

Drop by our blogs between June 14 & 17 and enter the rafflecopter!

Good luck & hope to see you there!

Shawna Romkey Author blog

Constance Phillips, A Writer's Musings

Katie O'Sullivan

Summer Lovin' - On Olympus...

Kate's Blog

Kary Rader

Lindsey R. Loucks

Summer Lovin', postcards, and maybe bookmarks

Jody A Kessler Summer Lovin' Mountain Style

Official Website of Maer Wilson

Author Jean Murray ~ Wicked Romance Blog

Summer Lovin' Heat

Hildie McQueen's Author Site

Loni Lynne's Blog Site

Author Avery Olive Blog

Wendy S. Russo

Cindy Young-Turner

Michelle Clay - The Darkside of Romance

the Marvelous Misadventures of Mrs. t

Shannon Eckrich

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Book Review: Where It Began

Where It Began

by Ann Redisch Stampler

Book Review

So, this isn’t a review site. Duh. But it is my site to discuss things that are important to me and this book is going to fall into that category. It was one of those books that when you finish you look the author up because you want to see the face of the person who wrote such beautiful words. Her name is Ann, just FYI. I wish I knew her. I wish I could call her on the phone and just talk to her. The way she writes makes me feel like I’m laid out on a hammock at my granny and papa’s, swinging back and forth in a cool breeze. Whatever the character is feeling, Ann has a way of pulling us right along with them and not necessarily by the words they say but how they say them and when. Love her writing.

The book itself chronicles the recovery of a teen named Gabby who has been in a horrific car accident. She lives in LA and while she herself has money, goes to school with kids who have way more than she does and gets caught up with the ‘in crowd’ when her mom decides it’s time for a makeover. The story itself isn’t earth shattering. It’s good, I like the point behind it and the characters but what blew me away was the writing. I mean, what else would you expect from a woman who says something like: “That folk tales last forever because they're so good, and that with great simplicity and wisdom, the best ones map the human heart.” on her Amazon page? Genius, I tell you. The woman is a genius.

Go read the book.

That is all.

See! Doesn't she look so nice?? Here are her links if you want to check her out, which you do.
http://www.goodreads.com/AnnStampler 
http://www.annredischstampler.com/

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Some Kind of Beautiful

There is a certain kind of beautiful that I know I'll never be. You know, the kind of beautiful that stops people mid-sentence and people write songs about. It’s the kind of beautiful that never has to be qualified, like 'oh you have such lovely eyes' or 'what a pretty face you have.' Just lovely. Just pretty. That is the kind of beautiful that I'll never be. I struggle with this on a daily basis, bombarded by images of women who are airbrushed and photoshoped and have nothing to do but workout and focus on themselves. To be clear, I don’t blame the women. If you have a god-given talent (mine is writing, some people have their face) then you should use it. I blame the media and society for allowing these things to continue on and perpetuate this notion of how women should be. I’m sure it’s possible to walk right past these images and not allow them to bother you in the least and I can do that on a good day. Today is not a good day. Being a woman is hard. Being honest with yourself is even harder.

So, hi, BTW. I’ve been gone for a while. No, I’m not dead – just working on my life. Smack in the middle of edits of Playing With Fire, it is a much more strenuous process this time and I’m very glad for it. My editor, her name is Farrah, is super calm and understanding. I’m like, flipping out and she’s like, ‘All is well, Christy.’ LOL The book is up on Goodreads and here is the link should you be so inclined to add it to your TBR list:

                 

                        

I’m excited for this one. I want to redo my website and throw some PR around. Have you heard that saying: you have to have money to make money? That is a true saying. I don’t really have any upfront capital to invest, nor do I have any willing investors, so promoting will come down to me, my laptop, and some long nights begging for blog tours and praying for reviews. It will be worth it though, in the end. I can feel it in my bones.

I promise not to stay away so long next time.

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Standing Still

Some folks spend their whole lives standing still. They look at what life has dropped in their laps, say thank you very much, and hold it until their bodies shrivel with old age and they once again belong to the very earth on which they stood. I don’t know if I should feel sorry for these people or just envy the hell out of them. Honestly, I feel a little of both.


I look at people standing in their spot, happily holding their lives and think, “Run, you fool! Run before you’re stuck there so deep a MAC truck couldn’t tow your ass out!” How can they just accept what’s been given to them, what’s expected of them, what life says they ‘must’ do? Don’t they know there’s more out there, more for them to learn and know? More books to read and people to meet? I feel sorry for them and the fact that they don’t want more.

I look at people standing in their spot, happily holding their lives and think, “My God, that must feel good; to be content. That must be wonderful.” What peace they must have to know that everything they could ever want is right there in their hands. Everything they could ever need is within their reach and there’s nothing to worry about or strive for or fail at, because they’ve already found their way. They’ve already found their place. I envy them and the fact that they don’t want more.

There are two sides to every story, well, three if you’re my granny: ‘Your side, My side and The Damn Truth.’ There’s always more than one way to look at a situation and more than one choice to make. I suppose a case could be made for either way, standing still or wanting more, and at the end of the day we just have to find out what’s right for ourselves and pray like hell that we figure it out before the end of our days.

Let me know if you come up with anything because I sure as shit aint got a thing.

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Passion

There was a time when I thought love was the most powerful emotion one could experience. I still feel this way, that it is truly a force tearing its way through the human race, pulling us apart and pushing us back together at its will. Though, lately, I see love as a delicate and beautiful thing who has a lover herself and his name is passion. Love is steady, a heartbeat of comfort. Passion is what pushes love forward. Passion is what moves people out of their own little worlds. Only when someone is truly passionate about a cause can they become involved. Only when someone is passionate about their work, will they achieve the level of success they wish. Passion is erratic and moves in unexplained patterns, pulling love along for the ride.

I think passion and love are often confused, especially between a man and a woman. Love is built over time; again, a steady heartbeat you can set the rhythm of your life to. But passion is something entirely different. Now, I’m not talking about lust. Lust is the immediate desire to intimately know someone; a kneejerk reaction of a chemical shift in our brains when our prehistoric anatomy finds another to reproduce with. Passion builds on itself, growing and shifting over time the more you know a person. The more you recognize their mind and their desires and how they match your own. Passion can make your body tingle and your mind wander to places you never meant for it to go.

Passion between a man and woman may not always lead to love and it doesn’t have to; he can stand alone confident in his nature and he is strong enough to keep two people bonded together. But by God you cannot love someone without passion. Without passion, love is meek and may or may not be able to sustain itself indefinitely. I love you. What does that even mean if there isn’t any passion to back it up? Nothing. It means nothing. It means we have a life here, we own things together, we have a routine. It doesn’t have anything to do with happiness or satisfaction and if you say you don’t want those things either you’re lying to me or you’ve been lying to yourself for a long time. For your sake, I hope you’re just lying to me. 

I have been told that my ability to feel passion is greater than most, and I am inclined to agree. When I want something, when I believe in something, when something moves me…and I mean to my core, I will have it. I will move heaven and earth until they crash together; until the raging fire inside of me has been tamed and only the embers remain, though they threaten to ignite at any moment. I’m often scolded for this in my life, by those around me who in fact lack passion for anything and don’t know how to categorize the emotion when they come across it. I used to feel bad, feel like I was the one who had something wrong with her, but you know what? Fuck that and fuck you. As my granny said, "If you can’t take this heat, baby - get your ass out of my kitchen."

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Cover Reveal! - Speak of the Devil

My fellow CM Press author, Shawna's cover reveal is today and holy majoly, is it a treat! Hot angels with smoldering eyes and sexy hair? Yes, please. I can't wait to read this book! What's it about? So glad you asked:

 

 

What happens when falling in love and falling from grace collide?

After dying in a car accident with her two best friends, Lily miraculously awakens to grief and guilt. She escapes to her dad’s to come to terms with the event and meets some people at her new school who seem all too eager to help her heal. Sliding deeper into sorrow and trying to fight her feelings for two of them, she finds out who…what they really are and that they are falling too.

Can she find the strength to move on from the past, reconcile her feelings for Luc, find a way to stop a divine war with fallen angels, and still pass the eleventh grade?

Without further ado, I present the cover for Speak of the Devil!

For more info about Shawna, hop on over to her site. She's a cool chick and a hell of a writer!

Fall in love. Fall to pieces. Fall from grace.
Shawna Romkey, YA Paranormal Author
http://www.shawnaromkey.com/

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Best.Day.Ever.

I’m happy to announce that I’ve signed a contract with Crescent Moon Press (www.crescentmoonpress.com) to publish my new novel, Playing With Fire. While this will be my sixth published novel, it will be my first in hard copy so the process is all new for me this time around. My release is set for early 2014 and I can't wait to get started with the process. I mean, I’m sure I’ll drag Eleanore with me to Lady K’s desk and cry that my editor hates me or call my sister and sob into the phone at some point, but I’m excited nonetheless. 

Playing With Fire is a New Adult, Urban Fantasy that blends history and fiction, creating an epic tale through one family’s path to forgiveness and one race’s desire to chose unity over extinction. Look for more about the book as we get closer to publication. I’ll release the blurb and cover when I have permission from CMP. For now you should check out the links below, like and follow accordingly, and spread the word! If all goes well, two books will follow this one – but only time will tell.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Crescent-Moon-Press-Inc/210977012269127

http://twitter.com/CM_Press

You guys. YOU GUYS. I’m going to be in print. I had some back and forth discussion with CMP before signing; asking questions and whatnot and finally I just had to ask, ‘Are you sure?’ Because…really? Me? You want to publish – in print – something I’ve written? Her response?  

‘Lol. Yes. We loved it. You have a fantastic voice.’  

I do? I mean…yeah, I do! ;) Over the moon doesn’t describe how I feel in my heart. Thank you all for sticking with me and I hope you will enjoy Playing With Fire knowing I couldn’t have done it without each and every one of you.

For everyone still working at it; still struggling with the first draft of their first novel, do not give up. Turn the world off and write for you. Write the story that’s in your heart and know that someone, somewhere needs it in their heart too.

Love,

Christy

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