Fire HD Tablet Giveaway! One Week Until Dangerously Charming

I can't believe after all the waiting, Dangerously Charming is finally going to be out in ONE WEEK, on Tuesday October 4th. *bounce* bounce* bounce*

Obviously, this means I have to pull out the biggest giveaway celebration of them all! I mean, if you guys don't mind. [Waits to hear protests...] Okay then. So here we go.

I'm giving away one big prize and two smaller ones:

Magic is very excited to give away a Fire HD Tablet. No, you don't get the cat.

Want a tablet? Of course you do!

But just in case you don't win the big prize, I am also giving away one of the cool Dangerously Charming key chains I had made up, plus one of the few remaining ARCs (advanced reader copies) of the books.

Look at the little motorcycle!

Collector's item!

Plus I'll be showing up at guest blogs with giveaways, and doing flash giveaways on Facebook and Twitter (and maybe here) over the next couple of weeks, so be sure to check in often.

I hope you'll help me out by spreading the word about the book, buying a copy or asking your local library to get one, reviewing it ASAP if you do read it, or reviewing any of the earlier books if you've read them. All those things are SO helpful, and I really, really appreciate each and every one.

Don't forget that my publisher has put up a GOODREADS GIVEAWAY of 15 copies, that ends on Thursday the 30th, PLUS, I am giving away another Fire Tablet over on Flash Fiction, also ending at the end of the month. You can enter that one HERE.

I'm getting really excited about having this book finally come out into the world. I hope you'll celebrate with me.

 

Only Two More Weeks Celebration Giveaway!

As you might have already figured out, I am really excited about the upcoming release of DANGEROUSLY CHARMING. I hope I'm not driving y'all crazy with all this jumping up and down. (Although I have noticed a few of you jumping up and down with me.)

But really, how can you not be excited about THIS?

He's SO gorgeous!

 And look, I got my box o' author copies just in time to take to RoberCon in Binghamton, NY this weekend!

But in the meanwhile, OF COURSE, I'm doing a giveaway here to celebrate the fact that the release day is only TWO WEEKS AWAY!!! Look, I have this cool prize pack with a tote bag, a notebook, a large magnet, and a bookmark for one lucky winner.

Or maybe I should say "giveawayS" because I'm also giving way to a second winner one of these neat key chains I special ordered. (There will only be 10 in the whole world!)

But wait, there's MORE! A third winner will get one of the few remaining Advanced Reader Copies of the book. Bazinga!

Of course, I'd love it if you'd pre-order the book, or put up a review of one of my previous books, or spread the word somewhere on the Interwebs...but you don't have to do any of that. All you have to do is use the Rafflecopter form below to enter (and yes, you still get credit if you have already followed the blog and such).

And, of course, celebrate with me! Two weeks to go! (And wait until you see what I'm giving away NEXT week.)

Buy Links

Barnes & Noble |Amazon |Penguin

Goodies, Good News, and Giveaways

As of Tuesday September 20th, we're two weeks away from the release of the first Rider book, DANGEROUSLY CHARMING! (And not to get you excited or anything, but the print version is on sale right now at Amazon. Click the link to see.) What does that mean? Well, sadly, it means that for the next two weeks you are going to get a whole lot of me saying, "OMG, did you see this giveaway?" On the up side, GIVEAWAYS! But feel free to just wander away for the next few weeks and come back after, if you get bored. I promise I won't take it personally.

The truth is, for those of you who don't know much about the business end of publishing, the advance pre-orders and the sales in the first week that the book is available tend to pretty much make-or-break the success of the book. (Which doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it later, if that's what works for you!) For those of you who have been asking me if Berkley is going to buy the third book in the Riders series (they've already bought the second one, DANGEROUSLY DIVINE, out in November 2017), that first week may well decide it. But that's only part of why I'm doing so much promotional work on DANGEROUSLY CHARMING. I love this book, and I hope you'll love it too, and it is just possible I got a little carried away buying swag and goodies. I'm not quite sure how I'll give them all away. But I'm going to give it my best shot!

So, here is a sneak peak at a few of the goodies I'm going to be giving away both here on my blog and elsewhere :-)

Tote bags and notebooks and magnets OH MY

Specially made Dangerously Charming key chains with little motorcycles

Amazon gift cards

Advanced Reader Copies

All of these are in limited supply, so I'm going to have to pick and chose where I give them away, but I also have two of these:

Not the cat. There is only one Magic the Cat, Queen of the Universe

Yes, those are Kindle Fire HD Tablets!

I'm giving the first one away at Fresh Fiction, in a contest going on all month HERE. The other one will be given away here on my blog at a giveaway that runs the last week, starting Tuesday, September 27th, so be sure to check back.

My lovely publisher Berkley is giving away FIFTEEN COPIES of the book on Goodreads, in a giveaway that ends on the 30th. (USA only, alas.) Check it out HERE

I'm also going to be bopping around the Interwebs, showing up at various places in the next few weeks, almost all of which will also include giveaways. I'll try and remember to keep you posted. But you definitely will want to check out LITERARY ESCAPISM on September 28th, since I've written a short-short story featuring Mikhail Day, just for them. (And you.)

Tune in tomorrow to see what I'm giving away here on the blog next. You know, unless you're bored already with this...

OMG, he's PERTY

 Oh, and the good news part. I can't remember if I shared this here yet or not (between the writing and the promo, I'm kind of fuzzy). RT Reviews gave DANGEROUSLY CHARMING a 4 1/2 star review and named it a Top Pick for October. This is a really big deal, and made me uber-happy. It might have also caused me to get a bit carried away with the goodies... So blame them.

Robercon Ho!

I'm working my butt off this weekend, trying to get as much done as I can on the 365 Day book for Llewellyn, because next weekend, I'm going to be at ROBERCON! I'm so excited!

Robercon is my "local" SF/fantasy convention, located in Binghamton, New York, about an hour from where I live. I have gone for the last few years and always had a blast.

Look at all the cool people who attend!

 The convention has both general SF/fantasy panels, cosplay, and the like, plus a bunch of guest authors, including yours truly. Last year, the amazing Tamora Pierce was the author guest of honor, and we had so much fun hanging out together, she is actually coming back this year. I can't wait!

Me and the fabulous Tamora.

 But the REAL reason I am so, so, so excited this year is that my friend Alex Bledsoe is flying in to be the author guest of honor. Alex and I have been friends for years, supporting each other's careers and cheering each other on, but this will be the first time we will actually get to meet in person!

Handsome devil!

Plus, of course, there is the convention guest of honor, Chase Masterson, who had a reoccurring role on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. This year is going to ROCK.

As an added bonus, for the folks who make it there, my publisher has kindly arranged for me to have my author copies of DANGEROUSLY CHARMING in time to take them to the con, even though the book isn't officially out until October 4th. So a few lucky people are going to get their hands on the book a week and a half before everyone else! Whoo hoo!

I hope I get to see a few of you there. Here's the schedule of events for those who are thinking of coming: Robercon Schedule I will be at both author signings (Saturday and Sunday). I will undoubtedly have a few goodies with me too.

Whoo hooo!

Tarot Deck Update and 2-Prize Giveaway!

If you've been around here for a while, you know that I and fabulous illustrator Elisabeth Alba have a uber-cool tarot deck coming out from Llewellyn on January 8th. (See the Everyday Witch Tarot Deck on Amazon.)

We're planning to do an update every month until the deck comes out, along with some cool giveaways, including signed prints of Elisabeth's wonderful art for the cards. Elisabeth is doing this month's update, along with some input from me. Enjoy!

FROM ELISABETH:

In four more months, the Everyday Witch Tarot will be published by Llewellyn! Deborah and I are super excited. So excited, in fact, that we're revealing the process behind another card, AND having a giveaway (see bottom of post for details)!

We'd like to share the Judgment card, which is also used on the cover of the kit box. Everyone has seen the image by now, but here's a bit of the work that went into making it.

 

Here is the original Rider-Waite version of the card that ours is based on:

Deborah: "I tend to look at the Judgment card in a more positive way than some. Not so much as a judgment ON you, but more how you judge your own life. Do you like what you see? This witch is clearly following her own path with joy, which is what I was trying to represent with this card."

Elisabeth: The image description Deborah gave me was, "A witch in a black hat dances merrily down a path playing a flute [think Pied Piper] with her black gown hiked up to show her striped stockings, a black kitten bouncing in her wake, chasing a butterfly which flits in amongst the musical notes from the flute. A shining light beckons from the direction they are heading in. The mood is of anticipation."

I began with rough 'thumbnail' pencil sketches, and once a composition was approved I moved on to the drawing and digital color rough to figure out how I wanted to paint it.

Before doing the drawing, I took photo reference of myself pretending to be the witch in the image. I wanted all the figures in the deck to have accurate anatomy and feel more lifelike and dynamic, so I took a lot of photo reference!

I also looked at photos of canyons, shrubs, and playful cats.

Here is the image after inking on watercolor paper. Unfortunately I don't have any process photos mid-paint, but this is what I painted on top of!

Here is the final painting, and below is the text from the guide book that comes with the deck.

“Here we go again.”
Where has your path led you and where will it lead you now?

A witch in a black hat dances merrily down a path playing a flute with her black gown hiked up to show her striped stockings, a black kitten bouncing in her wake, chasing a butterfly which flits in amongst the musical notes from the flute. A shining light beckons from the direction they are heading in. The mood is of anticipation.

The Judgment card is often perceived as something ominous due to the traditional picture that features naked dead people being summoned by the Angel Gabriel’s trumpet. What isn’t clear is that this call is less about “being judged” by someone else and more about taking a look at your own life and finding it unsatisfactory. Our witch on the card is following some music that only she can hear, playing along as she moves happily down the path towards rebirth, renewal, and letting go. She is light of heart and feet because she has put down old grudges and hurts that were dragging her down. There is joy in finally heeding the call to the life you are meant to be living.

Things to consider: Are you following your own music, or dancing to someone else’s tune? The Judgment card reminds us to listen to our own inner wisdom. It can also be a suggestion that we are judging ourselves too harshly, or taking others judgment of us to heart. If this card shows up in your reading, it may be an indication that it is time to let go of the old and embrace the new. Rebirth and renewal await, if you are willing to go down the path that will take you to them.

And the Judgment card on the cover of the kit... The team at Llewellyn did a fabulous job with the design. We couldn't be happier!

Elisabeth and I are having a double giveaway!!!! Two winners will be picked! Use the Rafflecopter form at the bottom of the blog. We are offering a copy of Llewellyn's Witch's Coloring Book (which has some images from the deck that you can color in yourself!) and a signed print of the Judgment card! The print is on archival matte 11x14 paper, signed by Elisabeth!

The Everyday Witch tarot deck can be pre-ordered now direct from Llewellyn at https://www.llewellyn.com/product.php?ean=9780738746340 or on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Everyday-Witch-Tarot-Deborah-Blake/dp/0738746347.

And if you can't wait four months for a new deck, you might want to check out The Modern Spellcaster's Tarot by Melanie Marquis with illustrations by one Scott Murphy (aka, Mr. Elisabeth Alba). It looks so cool, I can't wait to get a copy for myself!

*No purchase necessary

Four Weeks to DANGEROUSLY CHARMING!

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm starting to get a *little* bit excited about DANGEROUSLY CHARMING, the first book in the Rider series. It seems like it has taken forever, but now it is going to be out it four weeks! Of course, the Rider series is really a continuation/offshoot/spinoff of the Baba Yaga series, and while you could read it on its own, it will probably make a little more sense to you if you have read the first three Baba Yaga books:
 Wickedly Dangerous
 Wickedly Wonderful 
 Wickedly Powerful
(Here's a hint..some thing happen in Wickedly Powerful that make a big difference in the Riders' stories...)

Dangerously Charming, as you might guess from the title, is all about the charming Mikhail Day. I know you want to find out what happens to him!

But just in case you haven't had a chance to read the first three Baba Yaga books, I'm going to do something drastic--and give away signed copies of ALL THREE to one lucky person. If the winner happens to have already read all the previous books (in which case, I love you), they can choose a signed Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of Dangerously Charming instead.

Ta da!

 So you can win these...

The Baba Yaga series

 Or this...

An ARC of the new book before it is even out! Don't you love that cover?

 As usual, all you have to do is use the Rafflecopter form below. And yes, if you already follow the blog or have signed up for my newsletter, you still get credit for that. 

Obviously, I would love it if you would pre-order the book (if you are a print reader, Amazon has the print version on sale!), and spread the word, and put up reviews of the Baba books if you read them and liked them. (If you hated them, really, don't bother. LOL) But you don't have to do any of those things. All you have to do is join me in jumping up and down and saying, "FOUR WEEKS! FOUR WEEKS!"

So tell me--have you read the Baba Yaga books? 

 

 

The Glamorous Life of the Author

I know y'all probably think that authors live glamorous lives (mostly in full make-up and stiletto heels). So I thought, on this holiday weekend, that I'd give you a glimpse into mine before I go full-bore promotional "THE BOOK IS COMING OUT SOON" for Dangerously Charming. (Which is on sale now at Amazon, by the way. The paperback version is actually cheaper than the Kindle one, if you can believe it.)

So here you are, for your amusement, my glamorous life this weekend:

First, I defrosted the freezer in the mudroom.

 I'm making pesto today, so I needed to make room to put up the extra.

Then I went to the dump. No, I was not wearing full make-up and high heels.

Then I picked up a new office chair. I have to replace them a lot. Apparently my butt kills them.

 Magic the Cat is checking it out. She doesn't look too sure.

My friend Ellen came over to help me harvest things from the garden.

 Eggplants, tomatoes, and onions, OH MY.

The garlic harvest had been drying and it was time to clip it off and put it away.

It looks like a lot, but half will get replanted for next year.

No, you're not seeing double.

 The old cat tower had seen better days, but Angus spends most of his time sitting on the top bit, so when I saw the exact same thing on sale, I bought it. Ellen helped me put the new one together, using the non-instructions that always come with such things, and then we dragged the old one down to the street in hopes that it would find a new home. It was gone before we went back into the house. (Seriously. A nice lady with a station wagon was VERY happy.)

Naturally, Magic had to check this out too, even though she doesn't sit up there.

Yesterday was mostly house cleaning.

Yes, that's a pile of cat fur. Yes, that's all from one room. Yes, that is Magic supervising in the upper left. See? Glamour. Lots and lots of glamour.

Today I'm mostly working on the 365 Days of Everyday Witchcraft book for Llewellyn, although I did finish writing a short short story for Literary Escapism later this month, featuring Mikhail Day and Beka. And I have to go out and harvest a bunch of the seriously-out-of-control basil and make a huge batch of pesto. At least now I have a clean freezer to put it in.

What did you do with your weekend, three-day or not?

Oh, and be sure to come back tomorrow, because GIVEAWAY. Just sayin' :-)