Freebie Books and Giveaway Event

My two bestsellers are absolutely free today and tomorrow on Amazon! Don't miss out on downloading the series starters: First Visions and Falling for Autumn. To celebrate the event, I'm hosting a giveaway for a $50 Gift Card to either Amazon or Barnes & Noble (winner's choice).

Pick up the books here: https://www.amazon.com/Heather-Topham-Wood/e/B0074I2SPQ/

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Interview With Kate Edwards from First Visions: Second Sight Book One

As part of First Visions Birthday celebration, I was feeling nostalgic and I found this interview Kate Edwards did last year as part of my very first blog tour. The answers are so Kate lol and I even dropped in a few hints about things that happen in later books. Just a reminder First Visions: Second Sight Book One will remain on sale for 99 cents through the weekend on Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

When did you first realize you’re psychic?

Jeez lady, don’t you have to do a little research before you go and interview someone? I lived in a skeezy college dorm when I was 19 and caught meningitis. One near death experience later, I woke up with the ability to slip into other people’s memories.

Why did you keep being psychic hidden for so long?

When you’re psychic, it not only makes you uncomfortable, but the people around you. Everyone has dirty little secrets they don’t want you to find out. Since I don’t have much control over my visions, I often find out things about people I rather not know. It was just easier to say that the vision that led me to Matt Spencer two years ago was a one-time occurrence.

What changed for you?

I know I have my hang-ups. I’m immature and tend to have my guard up at all times. I think part of it comes from feeling like a freak of nature when I woke up from the coma with a second sight. But I’m not a horrible person. I want to help people and if my visions give me the chance to locate the missing, that’s what I need to do.

I’ve heard rumors you’re personally involved with a detective on the Cori Preston case, is this true?

Personally involved, that’s such a strange term, don’t you think? I mean my gynecologist gets an eyeful once a year, but you wouldn’t say I was personally involved with him, would you?

It seems like you’re dodging the question?

Jared Corbett is a great guy and a very dedicated detective. And he just so happens to be genetically blessed. I mean everyone has a crush on him, it would be impossible not to.

If you were a color, what color would it be?

What kind of Psych 101 B.S, is that? What if I say red, does it mean I’m deep down an axe murderer or something? Anyway, I guess I would pick gray. I can have a bit of a stormy personality at times. Plus, this hot guy I know has gray eyes.

Favorite TV show?
The Maury Show. I know I’m psychic, but I can usually guess who is the baby’s daddy way before the paternity test results are revealed.

What is it like to be in someone else’s mind?

You would think it would be really exciting, right? Nope, not usually. Since I can’t control the visions I see, most of the time I either witness people’s most mundane or grossest memories. I really don’t want to know about the affair my dentist is having or how my neighbor stole fifty bucks worth of undergarments from the local Wal-Mart. This is not to say all of my visions are horrible. They can help me understand a person’s motivations better. Sometimes they also offer up the chance for me to help others.

How did your family react when you told them about your gift?

I think most of my family thinks I have daddy issues and I’m making up the visions to get attention. Believe me, I could do a lot more outrageous things if I wanted to get my father’s attention. However, my mom has been super supportive and thinks maybe there’s a reason I developed these powers when I almost died.

Is it hard to hide that you are psychic?

Most people think psychics are full of it, so it’s easy to play it off and pretend I don’t really have this strange ability. When I do confide in them, they ask me to predict something. Believe me I wish I could predict something. I’d buy a lottery ticket with winning numbers and move me and my mom into the biggest McMansion in all of Franklin.

Do you plan on returning to college?

I’m doing online classes now and majoring in English. I wanted to take a few art classes, but that’s not really possible since you typically need to be physically present.

What do you have planned for yourself after you graduate?

Well, I’m going to have an English degree and I don’t want to teach, so that’s a tough question to answer. I may end up having to set up a psychic booth down the shore and charge the tourists tenners if I can’t decide on a real job.

If you could choose to have a super power, would you keep the one you have or choose another?

Hmm, I probably would want the ability to see into the future. I see into the past and there’s nothing you can do to change what’s already happened.

What’s your favorite thing about living in NJ?

That people always expect you to be a cliched representation of a cast member of the Jersey Shore. Just kidding, you get the best of both worlds and live close to both the city and the beach.

Belated One Year Book Birthday to First Visions! On Sale for 99 Cents All Week

I'm a little late, but I realized First Visions: Second Sight Book One turned one a few weeks back on April 27. I can't believe it's only been a year since I published the first in the series. Since then, I released two sequels and my new adult contemporary The Disappearing Girl. I also signed with Crescent Moon Press to publish my upcoming Memory Witch.

Thank you to all my readers! I can't believe how much support I've received as an unknown author. The indie author and book blogger communities are amazing and I'm so proud to be part of them both. To celebrate, I've discounted First Visions to 99 cents through May 26.

Kindle Version: http://www.amazon.com/First-Visions-Second-Sight-ebook/dp/B007YUP4D2
Nook Version: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/first-visions-heather-topham-wood/1110496475

First Visions: Second Sight Book One Review Tour and $40 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway

First Visions: Second Sight Book One is on tour March 11-16 through Xpresso Book Tours. It's a reviews only tour and I posted the stops down below. You can also enter the chance to win a $40 Amazon.com gift card.

March 11th
-Pink Polka Dot Book Blog
-The Bookmark Blog
-Classy Me Books
-Busy Moms Book Reviews
-Unraveling Words
-BoundbyWords
-Imagine a World
-New Adult Addiction
-Comfort Books
-Pieces of Whimsy
-A Soul Unsung
-Oops! I Read A Book Again


March 12th
-Basia's Bookshelf
-Shortie Says
-BookPics
-A Book and a Latte
-Books Books and More Books
-Librarian Mouse
-She's Got Books on Her Mind
-Curling Up With A Good Book


March 13th
-Must Read Faster
-The Bibliophile's Corner
-Seeing Night Reviews
-oodles of books
-Girls *Heart* Books
-Inkk Reviews
-The Solitary Bookworm
-A Diary Of A Book Addict


March 14th
-ReadingToTheStarsAndBack
-Doodle's Book Blog
-Tugcenin Kitapligi
-Fic Fare
-Intoxicated by Books
-Deal Sharing Aunt
-Oh, The Books You'll Read!
-It's a Book Life


March 15th
-The Literati Press
-Megz Madd Readz
-Magical Manuscripts
-Books i View
-Just a Booklover
-Ed and Em's Reviews
-Musings of a YA Reader


March 16th
-The LUV'NV
-Java With Jambor
-Manhattan Reader
-Turning the Pages
-Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf
-That Girl Reads

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Dark Premonitions: Second Sight Book Three eBook Giveaway and Book Announcements

Giveaway has ended. Winners have been notified by email. Thanks to everyone who entered!

Dark Premonitions will be released on March 7, but I have ten advanced copies available that I'm giving away in eBook format. Just enter via the Rafflecopter below. The eBook will be available in ePub, Kindle and PDF formats. If you could post a review after reading it that would be greatly appreciated =) Without everyone's support, I couldn't be doing what I love. If you don't have an ereader, no worries, I have a paperback ARC giveaway going on through Goodreads until 2/28: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/43663-dark-premonitions

The tentative release schedule is that the final book in the series Second Sight Book Four will come out in the fall. In the summer, I'm planning on releasing a novella that's a prequel. It's been so fun to write about Kate in college and how her psychic powers came about. Along with that, I'll be working on the sequel to the upcoming Memory Witch from Crescent Moon Press and a standalone new adult contemporary romance.

First Visions: Second Sight Book One is going on tour March 11-16 through Xpresso Book Tours. This is my first tour with the company, but I'm already very impressed with them! The packages are fairly priced and Giselle has been great to work with. Here's the schedule for the tour, but I'll repost once the tour starts. http://www.xpressobooktours.com/2013/01/tour-sign-up-first-visions-by-heather.html

Since my KDP term ended with Amazon, First Visions is once again through Barnes & Noble and Smashwords.

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Bookish Updates

Happy Hump Day All! A few updates on my projects today:

Dark Premonitions: Second Sight Book Three will be released on March 7! It’s my birthday, so I’m very excited that the book is going to be ready on time. It will be available through Amazon.com, BN.com and Smashwords.

First Visions is going to be available through Barnes and Noble and Smashwords once again starting February 23. I’m enrolled in KDP Select for New Revelations until April 1, but if you’re a Nook user, you can email me for a review copy in the meantime (woodtop255@yahoo.com).

First Visions will also be on sale for only 99 cents starting today through February 17. Pick up your copy here: http://www.amazon.com/First-Visions-Second-Sight-ebook/dp/B007YUP4D2

Memory Witch (Memory Witch #1) has been undergoing edits by the staff of Crescent Moon Press. Once I have a release date, I’ll be posting that information. Everyone at the publishing house has been great and I’ve enjoyed the couple of books I read so far from other CMP authors.

As a bonus, here’s a quick excerpt from Dark Premonitions. Jared and Kate are having dinner with Jared’s aunt while away in Maine =)

Kate sent a swift kick under the table in Jared’s direction. He let out a choked guffaw as she glared at him. As Lizzie and William commenced eating, Jared was unsuccessfully trying to contain his laughter. His hand moved under the table and grabbed her leg before she could assault him again. His fingers trailed up to her knee and squeezed it. Her fork froze midway to her mouth. Instead of releasing her knee, his thumb grazed over thigh. She was suddenly regretting her decision to wear black pants instead of a skirt.

Jared eyebrows shot up as he watched her carefully across the table. She felt his hand start to move away. Her hand darted under the table and she held it in place. His hand inched away from her knee and landed on her thigh. He kneaded her leg and she could feel her pulse quickening the longer he touched her. Her skin was on fire as he maneuvered his fingers to her inner thigh. She was squirming and wondered if Jared could see by her expression the crazed frenzy he was working her into.

One-Year Book Anniversary (Sort-Of)

January marks my one-year anniversary of when I started my journey as a novelist. It’s around this time that I started working on my first two releases: Shattered Love and First Visions. I have to say I didn’t know jack back then about publishing, blogging and book marketing. After a year, I’ve learned so much, a lot that has been taught to me by fellow bloggers and writers.

The main thing I’ve taken away from this experience is that you can’t just write a book. This is what I did with Shattered Love. Although I’m glad I wrote this novel before my Second Sight series, my inexperience is one of the reasons I pulled the book from publication. I go back and forth on whether I want to revise the book and put it back out there, but I’m not sure. Although I liked the premise when I wrote it, I’ve lost my faith in the book and I’m uncertain whether it’s worth a revisit. With First Visions, I invested the money in editing and marketing because of my belief in Kate and her story. Without putting up initial money to get my book out there, I don’t believe it would’ve done as well as how it has done.

I’m extremely pleased with how well the Second Sight series has turned out. I don’t judge my success by only sales numbers, but also by reader comments. This is one of the reasons I like the free days on Amazon, I feel it gets my book in the hands of readers that end up loving the books after stumbling upon them. If you’re a writer and you’re unsure about the KDP program, I recommend giving it a go. It has been especially helpful in increasing sales for my sequel New Revelations.

I give props to all of my fellow writers out there. This is a tough business! It has been a year of ups and downs, failures and successes. I appreciate the support and that’s why I’m always open to returning the favor, whether it is a guest spot on my blog or requesting a book review.

I’m glad that I’ve met so many wonderful people through the blogger community because I’ve had almost as much fun book blogging as I’ve had writing. It’s been a crazy year for sure, but not one I’ll ever regret.

First Visions AND New Revelations Are Free Today and Tomorrow

Happy holidays to all of my lovely readers! In celebration, I'm offering both books in my Second Sight series today and tomorrow (12/23 and 12/24) for free on Amazon. If you've already read the series, I'd appreciate if you spread the word =) After the promotion, the books will return to the normal $2.99 and $3.19 pricing.

First Visions Link: http://www.amazon.com/First-Visions-Second-Sight-ebook/dp/B007YUP4D2

New Revelations Link: http://www.amazon.com/New-Revelations-Second-Sight-ebook/dp/B009MO8CNW

First Visions: Second Sight Book One Free Today and Tomorrow

Anyone who has followed me or my blog knows what an incredible woman my grandmother was. She's the main reason I am writing novels and it saddens me that she never got to see my work published. It's been almost two years since she died and the ache of losing her hasn't seemed to dull.

In honor of her birthday today, I'm offering my final two free days for First Visions. Grab a copy over at Amazon.com and feel free to let me know what you think.

First Visions ebook on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/First-Visions-Second-Sight-
ebook/dp/B007YUP4D2/

Results of KDP Select Promotion

Crazy busy week guys! My oldest started kindergarten yesterday and mom cried enough tears to fill up a couple of buckets. On top of that, I’ve been trying to get ready for my book signing on Saturday. Flyers are printed, prizes have been purchased and books are ready to go. Now it’s just time to hope that the weather is nice and I have some visitors to my lil’ old stand. If you’re in the central NJ area-come on out to see me! Here’s the link with the info.    

Well, I wanted to talk today about KDP Select. I actually did it. I drank the Kool-Aid. And although it’s killing me to admit it-my first experience with Amazon’s program has turned out pretty fabulous.

When I first published First Visions, I decided against KDP Select. It just seemed to make more sense to offer up my novel on as many platforms as possible. However, each month that went by, I found it hard to ignore my sales figures. I sold at least ten times the amount of books on Amazon as Smashwords and Barnes and Noble combined. After I ran into a distribution issue on Smashwords, I decided to give KDP Select a shot.

To sign up for KDP Select, you have to offer up exclusive rights to the ebook version of your novel for 90 days. During the 90 days, you are allowed to choose five free days to promote your book and the book is placed in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.

To prepare for my free day, I submitted my book to sites that advertise free Kindle books. I did this about a week before my scheduled promotion. This included Pixel of Ink, eReader News and Digital Book Today. These sites did not charge a fee for submission. Keep in mind though that free submission sites do not usually guarantee your book will be listed. If you want more of a guarantee, you may want to go for a paid advertising option like Kindle Nation Daily. On the actual promotion day, I announced my book was free via my blog, Facebook page and Twitter. I also tagged my book as free on Amazon.com that morning.

When I checked in the morning of my free promotion day, I had a very modest number of downloads. I was still thrilled though because even if I had a handful of downloads, it still means more people are reading my book. Then, suddenly by the afternoon, the numbers of downloads were steadily climbing to crazy high numbers. I’m definitely not the most confident person in the world, so of course I thought it must be a glitch in the system and the numbers couldn’t actually be accurate.

KDP Select has some rules about releasing sales information, but I can tell you that downloads went well into the five figure range. And here’s the screenshot of First Visions when it hit #3 in Amazon’s Top 100 Free!

It’s been a little over a week since my free promotion day and sales have been really great. Through the Labor Day weekend, First Visions stayed within the top 500 to 1,000 on Amazon. Today, I’m around 2,500 in the Kindle Store and still in the Top 100 for Teen Love and Romance. By the way, if you want access to a great tool for authors, check out the free ebook tracker from Kindle NationDaily. It monitors your rank so you don’t have to keep logging on Amazon.com every hour.

Not only did I sell more copies, I’ve made some new fans =) New ratings and reviews have popped up along with a handful of emails from readers who really enjoyed Kate’s story.

I know this is only one experience, so I’m curious about how other authors have fared. Would you renew enrollment? How did subsequent free promotion days go?    

Free Today! First Visions: Second Sight Book One

Today is my first free day as part of the KDP Select program on Amazon.com! Download your free copy by clicking here:

First Visions: Second Sight Book One Kindle Edition

My next free days are October 2 and 3. I'm planning them to correspond with the release of my second book: New Revelations: Second Sight Book Two! Since I was iffy about enrolling in the program, I'll be sure to let everyone know the results of the promotion at the end of the 90 days.

My First Book Signing!!!

Very excited to announce today that I have my first ever book signing coming up! Hooray! Any of you Jersey folk are invited to come out and see me at Cranbury Day. Besides the pleasure of seeing me, lol, there will be food, vendors and entertainment. I'll be giving away freebies and also holding a contest for a chance to win a $100 Prize Pack (Autographed First Visions, Deck of Tarot Cards and $50 Visa Gift Card).

September 8 10am to 6pm

Cranbury Bookworm

54 N. Main Street

Cranbury, NJ 08512

Paid Book Promotions-What Works and What Doesn’t

Since May 1 when I released First Visions, I’ve done a number of book promotions. This has been really a trial and error process for me as I tracked sales in correlation to each promotion. This is only my personal experience and many indie writers could have very different results.

Virtual Book Tours

I can’t rave enough about doing a blog tour for your book. I had such a great experience during both my tours and they probably offered up the best value as far as paid promotional opportunities. A month long tour through Reading Addiction Virtual Book Tours costs around $100 and includes 20 stops. For a two week tour through Bewitching Book Tours, you’ll pay around $50 and stop at 10 blogs.

Why do a blog tour? Because you’re expanding your readership at each stop on your tour. Tour stops can include an interview, excerpt and guest post. My favorite part of my blog tours is that many of the blogs reviewed First Visions. When you don’t have that many reviews, this can be extremely helpful.

As far as sales, I did see a significant jump. During the tours (which I scheduled back to back for six weeks), I was selling about double the number of copies I had been averaging before the tour started.

Kindle Nation Daily Sponsorship

This promotion is definitely one of the priciest of the ones I tried. However, if you have the budget, I HIGHLY recommend it! The package I purchased included an ebook of the day sponsorship and a free excerpts email blast. The ebook of the day post includes a widget and sample of your book featured on Kindle Nation Daily, Book Gorilla and Book Lending.com. The email blast sends out a 5,000 to 20,000 word excerpt to 30,000 opted in email subscribers. Cost of the package was $300.

On May 31, my email blast was scheduled through Kindle Nation Daily. On the day before my sponsorship, my Amazon.com sales rank was 24,093. The day of my sponsorship, First Visions peaked at 5,364.

For the August 1 ebook of the day sponsorship, my Amazon.com sales rank the day before was 10,246. During the sponsorship, First Visions peaked at 3,550. Sales did well following the sponsorships as well.

Google Ads

I’ve heard authors that like Google ads to market their books, but I’m unsure if I will use it for my next book. The major advantage of Google ads are they are ideal if you’re looking for a low cost marketing opportunity. You can deposit $20 and set a low daily budget to keep your ads running for a few weeks. They also have plenty of promotions for first time users (I had a $100 free credit for my first ads). I earned a significant number of clicks and impressions, but didn’t see a huge jump in book sales. However, if you’re only paying $2.00 a day, selling only one extra copy a day of a $2.99 ebook would make you break even.

Blog Ads

For me, blog ads didn’t have a major effect on my sales. I signed up for a week-long promotion and chose four different book blogs for my ad to appear. The cost was $50 and prices were based on the number of site views each blog averaged daily. To be honest, the ads were pretty expensive and I didn’t see any difference in the number of the copies sold during that week.   

After careful consideration, I decided to enroll First Visions in the KDP Select program for three months. Although I have mixed feelings about the program, it’s hard not to admit how the vast majority of my sales come from Amazon.com. I also feel it would be a good way to introduce readers to the series before my second book comes out in October. My first free day will be August 28. Here’s the link to the Kindle version: First Visions: Second Sight Book One.

First Visions 99 Cents Book Sale

Update 8/12 5:00PM: Hooray! The Amazon.com ebook issue has been resolved and First Visions is back on sale through the site! Click here for the link.

Unfortunately as I try to work out a pricing issue with Amazon.com for the ebook of First Visions: Second Sight Book One, it will be temporarily unavailable on the site. However, never fear! I'm hosting a sale on Smashwords through Monday August 13. The Kindle and other editions will be available for only 99 cents. Simply stop by the site and enter the following coupon code when checking out.

Smashwords Link: First Visions: Second Sight Book One

Promotional price: $0.99
Coupon Code: SH54W
Expires: August 13, 2012

Second Sight Book Two Updates

Hi everyone! I haven't written any updates lately about Second Sight Book Two, so I thought I'd let you know how things are going. By the way, sales for First Visions have exceeded my expectations! Since the book's publication on May 1, sales have grown each month. I seriously love you guys! I felt sort of half out of mind when I decided to pass up the small press offers and publish the book on my own. Although I'll never know if the book would have done as well, at least I don't have to kick myself because I put in this huge marketing effort and was only able to sell a couple of copies.

As for book two, I'm finally able to really get back into writing it. I had to take a break to market First Visions, but it now has my full focus. I'm hoping to get the first draft done in the next couple of weeks and begin my first round of edits. With the pace I'm going at now, I'm shooting for a tentative release date of October 2. I worked with a speedy and efficient editor last time around, so I'm hoping for the same experience this time.

A few plot hints:

• Kate continues to grapple with control over her visions.
• She meets a new psychic who offers to help her control her visions, but his reasons may be less than altruistic.
• There will be two new abduction cases she's asked to work on. One will involve a five-year-old boy who is taken from a shopping center in Washington. The other will be a case of a 24-year-old missing fitness instructor from Pennsylvania.
• Jared and Kate attempt to have a normal relationship despite her unnerving psychic visions and her involvement in potentially dangerous investigations.

By the way, blog move has been successful so far and I've been working on rebuilding my following. Hope everyone has a great week!

Bringing the Funny-How to Add Humor to Novels

This week I stopped by Fangtastic Books to discuss adding humor when you're writing. Check out the entire promo stop and leave a comment for a chance to enter my giveaway for a $20 Amazon gift card and an autographed copy of my novel. Details of the contest are here and the entry form can be found on my Facebook page.

If you read my blurb for First Visions, you probably wouldn’t think there’s much room for humor in the novel. The basic plot is a psychic is enlisted to help on a case to find an abducted child. Not exactly knee slapping material. However, I think adding some levity to a novel can really diffuse the tension and prevent a book from becoming overly melodramatic.

Here are a few tips:

1) Create a character that says basically everything you wish you could. The character of Kate in First Visions is an uncensored version of me. My sense of humor leans towards the snarky and sarcastic side, but since I actually want to keep my friends, I never say half the things I’m thinking.

2) Find inspiration in the people around you. Although I try not to base too many of my characters off of people I know (you know how many friends swear they are the bitchy girlfriend in First Visions?), I do add their quirks for some laughs in my stories.

3) Decide on the type of humor you want to add into your novel. Some people may find toilet humor the highest level of hilarity while others find comedy in parody and satire. Kate is sarcastic which may not endear her to all readers, but I found it worked best for the story and the character. Kate’s best friend has a boyfriend Gage who is more a fan of low brow humor since it worked with his characterization.

4) Make the situations you place the characters in funny. I think my strength lies in funny dialogue, but situational humor can also be great for a story. One instance in my book occurs when the detective tries to have a moment with Kate and takes her to feed the ducks. The geese end up charging her for the bag of bread and she has to run for cover. Other examples of situational humor in stories I’ve scene is mistaken identity (art professor thinks the handsome cop is at her studio for the nude model audition) or physical comedy (the princess makes her grand entrance into the ball by falling flat on her face).

Interview on My Neurotic Book Affair and Giveaway

Shari from My Neurotic Book Affair was awesome enough to let me pop by her blog as part of my tour through Bewitching Book Tours. She gave First Visions an AMAZING review and asked me some questions about writing and the book. Stop by her blog to leave a comment or tweet the stop to enter a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card and autographed book. Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway here.

1) In three words can you describe First Visions?

Haha, you're gonna ask the tough ones, aren't you? Hmm, I guess I would choose: YA psychic romance.



2) If you had to choose a theme song for First Visions what would that song be?

I have two: Where Have You Been? by Rihanna and Trouble Is a Friend by Lenka



3) Which of your First Visions characters is your favorite? Why?

I would have to say Kate. I love writing her and I usually have her say things I would love to say, but never have the nerve. I also like that she's not perfect, but still someone you can root for. I'm a fan of non-traditional female leads in stories and I think Kate fits that description.



4) I've always thought it would be super cool to be physic (which is why I was drawn to First Visions). If you could chose to have one supernatural or super power which one would you want to have?

The first thing that popped into my head was being able to read minds. But the more I think about it, I probably rather not know what people are thinking most of the time!



5) What are a few of your favorite supernatural books and tv shows?

I have a ton, so I'll try to narrow it down. For TV, I love the shows True Blood, The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural. For books, a few favorites include the Existence series by Abbi Glines, Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer, Lothaire by Kresley Cole and Ethereal by Addison Moore.



6) Are you an organized writer with everything being just so, or are you more of fly by the seat of your pants kind of writer?

I am desperately trying to be more organized, but I am more of a fly by the seat of your pants writer. I'm attempting to work off of an outline for my next novels and schedule times to write, but instead I find myself pulling all nighters or walking away from one story because I feel inspired about another tale.



7) When you were little what did you want to be when you grew up?

A part of me always wanted to be a writer, but I never considered it a very realistic goal. Then, I went through a long period of time when I wanted to be a nurse which is funny since I can't stand the sight of blood.



8) How many books are you planning for the Second Sight Series as of now?

I'm almost certain there will be total of four. I have the majority of them worked out in my head and partially outlined. I wanted an end in sight before I began because I find it annoying sometimes reading a series that goes on and on well past its prime.

Casting Couch for First Visions: Second Sight Book One

Can't believe it, but we're almost through the 28-Day Blog Challenge for Authors! Today is Day 23 and the question is:

If a Hollywood agent were to come knocking on your door with an offer to turn your book into a movie and told you that you could call all the shots, who would you have direct and star in it?

I LOVE these kinds of questions because of my extreme love of pop culture. Here's my thoughts on the casting for First Visions:

Jared Corbett-A gorgeous detective with dark hair and gray eyes. He's tall with a phenomenal body and a casual fashion sense. He can be tough when his job calls for it, but also has a very sensitive and kind side. I had to narrow it down, but my casting choices would be between Henry Cavill, Jake Gyllenhaal or Ian Somerhalder. I think the three actors fit the physical description, but Henry and Jake would probably be able to play Jared's personality the best.

Kate Edwards-Light brown hair and hazel eyes with an average height and build. She's an unwilling psychic with a snarky sense of humor. I tried to think of actresses that would do well with Kate's sense of humor and also had similar physical attributes. My picks were Leighton Meester, Ellen Page and Anna Kendrick.


Julie-Kate's best friend who is described as a gorgeous brunette. Seems shallow at first, but has a big heart. For Julie, my casting selections would be Nina Dobrev or Vanessa Hudgens.

Gage-Julie's boyfriend is tall and stocky with an obnoxious personality to boot. I kind of picture Kellan Lutz in the role of Gage whenever I write the character.

Cori Preston-A sweet eight year old girl with blond hair and blue eyes. I can't think of any current child actresses, but I think Dakota Fanning's character in War of the Worlds would work for Cori.

Nikki Preston-Jared's not so nice girlfriend is a petite blond with blue eyes. Diane Kruger always comes to mind when I think about how I picture Nikki.


I'm not sure about director since most directors I like work on superhero movies. Can't wait to see what actors and actresses other writers picture for their characters.

Character Interview on Simply Infatuated and Book Tour Giveaway

Simply Infatuated was kind enough to let Kate from First Visions: Second Sight Book One stop by their blog yesterday to give an interview. I printed a portion of the interview below, but make sure you stop by their blog to read the interview in its entirety. This tour stop is also the launch of my new giveaway for a $20 Amazon.com gift card and autographed copy of my novel. The Rafflecopter giveaway is being hosted on my FB page and there are plenty of chances to enter including liking my page, following my blog, commenting at one of my blog tour stops (schedule is here) or tweeting about one of my tour stops. Just a reminder First Visions will be on sale for $1.99 through 6/24 at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.

What is it like to be in someone else’s mind?

You would think it would be really exciting, right? Nope, not usually. Since I can’t control the visions I see, most of the time I either witness people’s most mundane or grossest memories. I really don’t want to know about the affair my dentist is having or how my neighbor stole fifty bucks worth of undergarments from the local Wal-Mart. This is not to say all of my visions are horrible. They can help me understand a person’s motivations better. Sometimes they also offer up the chance for me to help others.

How did your family react when you told them about your gift?

I think most of my family thinks I have daddy issues and I’m making up the visions to get attention. Believe me, I could do a lot more outrageous things if I wanted to get my father’s attention. However, my mom has been super supportive and thinks maybe there’s a reason I developed these powers when I almost died.

Is it hard to hide that you are psychic?

Most people think psychics are full of it, so it’s easy to play it off and pretend I don’t really have this strange ability. When I do confide in them, they ask me to predict something. Believe me I wish I could predict something. I’d buy a lottery ticket with winning numbers and move me and my mom into the biggest McMansion in all of Franklin.

Do you plan on returning to college?

I’m doing online classes now and majoring in English. I wanted to take a few art classes, but that’s not really possible since you typically need to be physically present.

What do you have planned for yourself after you graduate?

Well, I’m going to have an English degree and I don’t want to teach, so that’s a tough question to answer. I may end up having to set up a psychic booth down the shore and charge the tourists tenners if I can’t decide on a real job.

If you could choose to have a super power, would you keep the one you have or choose another?

Hmm, I probably would want the ability to see into the future. I see into the past and there’s nothing you can do to change what’s already happened.

What’s your favorite thing about living in NJ?

That people always expect you to be a cliched representation of a cast member of the Jersey Shore. Just kidding, you get the best of both worlds and live close to both the city and the beach.

 

 

Blog Tour Take Two and Upcoming Giveaway

Tomorrow my Reading Addiction Blog Tour comes to an end. The good news is my second blog tour will be starting on Friday through July 9 and has been set up through Bewitching Book Tours. To celebrate this next leg of my book tour, I'll be hosting another giveaway. Prize will be a $20 Amazon.com Gift Card and an autographed copy of my novel. Since Wordpress.com doesn't support Rafflecopter (totally lame) I'll be running my giveaways on my Facebook page. Like the page to keep posted on book news and upcoming contests. To enter, you can like my Facebook page, tweet one of my blog stops or leave a comment at one of the stops. Here's the link to the contest and the tour schedule is posted below.

By the way, if you're on the fence about doing a virtual book tour, I highly recommend it. It has helped expand my audience and receive more reviews on my novel. Tour hosts post reviews on Amazon and Goodreads which is helpful for new books or novels that do not have many reviews. Compared to other promotions, the price was very reasonable.

June 22 Character Interview
Simply Infatuated
http://simplyinfatuated.wordpress.com/

June 25 Promo
It's All About me
heathercim.wordpress.com

June 26 Promo
http://ariannecruz07.blogspot.com

June 27 Interview and review
Tana Rae Reads
http://tana-someofmyfavoritebooks.blogspot.ca/

June 29 Interview and review
My Neurotic Book Affair
http://myneuroticbookaffair.blogspot.com

June 30 Promo
Read 2 Review
http://read2review.com

June 30 review
Books, Books, and More Books
http://dream-reader-dreamer2229.blogspot.com/

July 1 Interview and review
For The Love Of Film And Novels
http://www.fortheloveoffilmandnovels.com/

July 2 Guest blog (review later)
Keeping Up With The Rheinlander's
http://mnmrheinlander.com

July 3 Promo
A Bibliophile's Thoughts on Books
http://bibliophilesthoughtsonbooks.blogspot.com/

July 5 Review
A Case of Reading Insomnia

http://acaseofreadinginsomnia.blogspot.com

July 5 Guest blog and review
www.stormgoddessbookreviews.blogspot.com

July 6 Promo
Mila Ramos
www.jademystique.blogspot.com

July 8 Review
http://booksfromthepurplejellybeanchair.blogspot.com

July 9 Guest blog
Fang-tastic Books
http://www.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com