Sealer's Promise Cover Reveal Sign-Ups!

Hey guys!

I've talked a lot about covers here on the blog, and you all knew this day was coming. :) It's time to prepare for the Sealer's Promise Cover Reveal!

What Is Sealer's Promise?

Some promises are meant to be broken.

Sarena Lengton knows what it's like to die -- two years ago her soul journeyed to the Underworld. Zakariah, the Lord of Judgement, has offered to spare her life in return for a promise. Sarena must convince his younger brother, Kesyl, to use his powers as a Sealer to open a portal to the Underworld. Then Zakariah can absorb Kesyl's soul and experience life on Earth.

Now seventeen, Sarena has managed to avoid completing Zakariah's task. But when she witnesses a murder at Sterling High where nothing but a skeleton is left behind, Sarena knows she will need Kesyl's help to catch the killer. As they work together, she finds herself falling for the boy she promised to help destroy.

Sarena doesn't want to know what Zakariah will do to her if she defies him. But if she keeps her end of the bargain, Kesyl will lose his soul. Can Sarena keep her life and her love? Or will both be torn from her forever?

I'm contacting a few close friends to help with this, but I'm also putting out a call for bloggers to help spread the word as well. The more blogs involved, the merrier!

What Can I Tell You Now? 

• The cover for Sealer's Promise was designed by Robin Ludwig Design Inc.
• I'm extremely hyper that I'm finally going to get to share it with everyone!
• If you want to see it early, you need to sign up for the cover reveal. ;) 
• Sign-ups for the cover reveal will close on Monday October 15th, 2012.
• I plan to reveal the cover on Friday October 19th, 2012.

What You'll Receive Via E-mail:

1. The Cover, book blurb and links to my blog, author blog, twitter, facebook and goodreads.

2. A link to the Sealer's Promise book trailer on YouTube.

3. A link to a live reading of the Sealer's Promise prologue and a link to the written version on my author blog. These will both remain (relatively or totally) hidden until the cover reveal. Those helping me will be the first to get to read or listen to the prologue! (If you want to share the written version of the prologue let me know and I can send you a file.)

4. The rafflecopter code for the commentor giveaway. If you would like an entry for your blog on the rafflecopter, please let me know. (BTW, anyone with a bit more experience then me regarding rafflecopter: I would love advice on how to make following blogs, etc. as painless as possible.)

What you use from the various materials I send will be totally up to you. Set up your post however you like. Let your personality shine through!

Plus, a couple Giveaways!

For Cover Lover Month *and* Cover Reveal Participants: 

As a thank you to all of those who take part in this event (Sealer's Promise cover reveal / Cover Lover Month), I will be gathering the names of all participants and using Random.org to draw one winner. The winner will receive a book of their choosing worth up to $12 USD via The Book Depository.

For Blog Readers / Commentors: 

I will be including the code to a Rafflecopter giveaway where one lucky commentor among the various blogs taking part in the reveal will also receive a book of their choice valued at up to $12 USD from The Book Depository. (Don't worry, Cover Lover fans! There will be tons of giveaways for you this month, from me and several guests, too.)

Q: Why are the winner selection methods different?

A: I can't think of a logical way to make sure only the participants use a rafflecopter for giveaway #1. And I can't think of an easier way for all those viewing the blogs for the reveal to get to take part in giveaway #2. If you have any suggestions here, feel free to share.

Want to take part? Great!

E-mail me at: 

isis_willowsong (at) hotmail (dot) com

Subject: Sealer's Promise Cover Reveal

Or leave your e-mail in the comments and I will contact you. :) 

Thanks for taking a look at this post. Have a great day!

Putting the Cart Before the Horse...

At least he can't hit the horse.

Does anyone else ever feel like this? 

Sealers's Promise is *essentially* done and it is out with betas. However, that has left me with a lot of free time, which has left me with lots of time to think. That may not be the best thing in the world. 

I'm considering several things, and I thought that I would share them with you guys.

1. Might be time for another blog makeover. Yay?

Something you might not know about me: I'm NEVER happy with how my blog looks. Ever. Okay, that's not totally true. I loved the pink design I had, but I hated my header. I think that I Write, I Read, I Review has gone through maybe four? five? makeovers since I started it last year and none of them have ever fully done "it" for me. 

Since I seem to be headed in that direction, I wanted to ask you guys if there is anything you think could make the blog look better? I realize the biggest issue--a lack of consistent content--should be receiving priority. But that's a constant issue and this is a more contained one, so I'll deal with what I can here while I work to deal with the situation there. 

The problem is that I change my darn design every few months. I'm very torn over whether I should try hiring someone to design something for I Write, I Read, I Review or whether to give it another go myself. I enjoy designing my blog, but it always feels like something is "off" and I can never seem to get past that. Which leads to the nonsense I'm spewing here. 

2. I'm debating whether to release the eBook and Print editions of Sealer's Promise at the same time, or whether to stagger them.

Each option seems to have its pros and cons. I will be releasing a print edition--that's been my goal since day one. I'm doing that for me.

But I know, from talking to a lot of fellow authors, that eBook is what most of you will be reading. It's just the way that it is because of the way I am publishing. And I'm totally fine with that.

Here are the pros and cons of each option:

If I release everything together:

-- It will make me able to do giveaways via GoodReads, on my author blog (which I DO I love the design of--miraculous! But it's not ready to be shared yet.), here at I Write, I Read, I Review, when I go to events, etc. right away. Yes, most of those can be done with eBook, too. (Excluding GoodReads)

-- The whole thing is "done" and I will have reached my major goal. (To hold my book in my hands.)

-- Options will be available for people who want print and people who want eBook.

If I do eBook first and print after the holidays:

-- The book will be out sooner, likely reaching my initial release goal. (I want to release the book on my grandfather's birthday, December 11th. It's dedicated to him and that's a Tuesday, so it seems appropriate.) 

-- I can always do physical copy giveaways later and I can gain another, smaller, wave of promotion from the print release. 

-- I can take the extra time to raise the last bit of funding needed for this. (I need to get the back and spine done and I also need to get the inside formatted.) 

-- I can (*hopes, prays, but No Guarantees.*) potentially use some of the good things said about the book by reviewers on the back cover or inside the front of the book. (This is probably the biggest thing that is making me consider separating the releases. These would make the thing feel more 'real' to me since they are normally in or on a book in those places.) 

What do you think? 

3. Organizing the Sealer's Promise book tour and launch party.

I labeled the post Cart Before Horse for really good reasons. :p Think about this: my next post is going to be a call for bloggers to sign up for the cover reveal. So take a deep breath and relax. I'm not quite ready to get knee deep in this just yet. 

There are two things that I need to consider regarding this, and I would deeply appreciate your imput.

a) Should I organize the thing or should I hire a touring company? 

As with what to do with the physical copies issue, this is something I am torn over. 

On one hand, I have made friends over the last year or so and it might be possible to organize the thing. If I go this route, I can deliberately hire who I want for every detail of the thing--the jewelry artist I want to make a necklace, bracelet and anklet for giveaways, the design company I want to do my banner and buttons, etc. I can rest assured that any of the people I've met who want to be involved can be since the thing is not tied to a single touring company.

On the other hand, I am *not* a promotions guru. Do I know How to do it? Sure. But I'm definitely the sort who errs on the side of caution, especially with twitter. If I hire someone to help me, I will still need to get this under better control, but I will also have some support with this thing. (Which is going to be a huge undertaking either way. I feel the same way about wanting a blog tour as I do about wanting a print edition of my book.) 

b) Should I actually hold off the release, etc. until 2013?

Another thing I have to realize is that I may either need to move the launch into 2013 or have the tour after the actual book release. I am bad for wanting to do things and not realizing how long they actually take. (One of these days I'll figure that out.) 

Reading takes time and I still need to get the feedback from my betas, fix any major issues, sweep yet again for typos and errors. (I will find you all, you blasted things!) and make certain it is properly formatted. 

Any advice or opinions on this are extremely welcome. 

Anyway, all I can do for now is keep moving forward, do my best to make sure the cover reveal and Cover Lover Month go over as well as I can and (big surprise here) keep reading. 

The Time Will Come (Sept. 27th)

Every Thursday l am going to list a book which l really want to read/keep meaning to get to. These are mostly books which have been on my shelf for awhile now but don't have to be, maybe you got it two weeks ago and really want to read it! 

~

Want to join in?

- Pick a book you have been meaning to read

- Do a post telling us about the book 

- Link the post up in the linky

- Visit the other blogs!

Cinder
by Marissa Meyer

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

I love fairytale retellings. So the fact that I purchased Cinder comes as no surprise. What is shocking is that I haven't even opened this yet, despite awesome reviews and really wanting to read it. My local bookstore had this a week before release when I picked it up, so the amount of time I've waited is ridiculous.

So, have you read Cinder? What did you think? Should this get pushed up the TBR pile? I'd love to know, so feel free to leave a comment. :)  

Waiting on Wednesday (Sept. 26th)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication can't-wait-to-read selections are:

Destroy Me
by Tahereh Mafi

Perfect for the fans of Shatter Me who are desperately awaiting the release of Unravel Me, this novella-length digital original will bridge the gap between these two novels from the perspective of the villain we all love to hate, Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45.

In Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me, Juliette escaped from The Reestablishment by seducing Warner—and then putting a bullet in his shoulder. But as she’ll learn in Destroy Me, Warner is not that easy to get rid of. . .

Back at the base and recovering from his near-fatal wound, Warner must do everything in his power to keep his soldiers in check and suppress any mention of a rebellion in the sector. Still as obsessed with Juliette as ever, his first priority is to find her, bring her back, and dispose of Adam and Kenji, the two traitors who helped her escape. But when Warner’s father, The Supreme Commander of The Reestablishment, arrives to correct his son’s mistakes, it’s clear that he has much different plans for Juliette. Plans Warner simply cannot allow.

Set after Shatter Me and before its forthcoming sequel, Unravel Me, Destroy Me is a novella told from the perspective of Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45.

This might qualify me as sick in the head: Warner was my favorite character in Shatter Me. Cold, caculating, ruthless ... and yet charismatic and obsessed with Juliette in the most terribly beautiful way. He's my kinda villain.

So when I found out that this novella was being done and that it's from his point of view, I squeed with joy. Warner is such an interesting character that getting inside his head should be great! (And greatly disturbing, I am sure.) I absolutely cannot WAIT to get my hands on this. 

Ironskin

by Tina Connolly

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

With its gorgeous cover and darkly compelling concept, Ironskin jumped out at me from the books being released this week and demanded to be featured. Channeling some Man in the Iron Mask vibes and featuring a love interest who might turn out to be cool or creepy, I can't resist checking this one out.

So, what are you looking forward to this week? Leave a link and I'll drop by and have a look. 

Shopaholic Sundays (Sept. 23rd)

Shopholic Sunday is a feature here at I Write, I Read, I Review where I get to share the fabulous things I've bought, borrowed or received. It's also a place where I sometimes share books coming out that I'm dying to read or tell you about events that have been here or that are coming which I think you might be interested in. Thanks for visiting!

Hey guys! 

Sealer's Promise is almost ready for betas. Finally.

I am 60% through a final read through--basically a pre-beta proof read. Thank goodness I decided to. There are so many little keyboard mix ups that I would not have wanted to have see the light of day! Plus it's giving me a chance to see this all "together" rather then over a long span like when I did revisions or editing.

I also have my new cover!!!! *is extremely excited* I've shown it to a few close friends and the responses have been good. (My aunt made fun of the book title when I e-mailed her, but she does stuff like that about everything.) I'm aiming to do a cover and book trailer reveal in October during my Cover Lover Month event. If you want to be involved in that, please let me know. :)

I'm also still looking for interview guests for Cover Lover Month, so if you want to be a guest here at I Write, I Read, I Review and talk covers, please click here to learn more about how to make that happen.

But enough about me, my upcoming debut and my plans for October (which also include taking part in Zompocolypse and the Spooktacular Paranormal Reading Challenge for the second year). You're here to see what I bought this week, so lets get to it! 

Stacking the Shelves is a meme created by Tynga's Book Reviews where we get to share the fabulous things we bought, borrowed or received during the week.

For Review:

Broken

A.E. Rought

Imagine a modern spin on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein where a young couple’s undying love and the grief of a father pushed beyond sanity could spell the destruction of them all.

A string of suspicious deaths near a small Michigan town ends with a fall that claims the life of Emma Gentry's boyfriend, Daniel. Emma is broken, a hollow shell mechanically moving through her days. She and Daniel had been made for each other, complete only when they were together. Now she restlessly wanders the town in the late Fall gloom, haunting the cemetery and its white-marbled tombs, feeling Daniel everywhere, his spectre in the moonlight and the fog.

When she encounters newcomer Alex Franks, only son of a renowned widowed surgeon, she's intrigued despite herself. He's an enigma, melting into shadows, preferring to keep to himself. But he is as drawn to her as she is to him. He is strangely... familiar. From the way he knows how to open her locker when it sticks, to the nickname she shared only with Daniel, even his hazel eyes with brown flecks are just like Daniel's.

The closer they become, though, the more something inside her screams there's something very wrong with Alex Franks. And when Emma stumbles across a grotesque and terrifying menagerie of mangled but living animals within the walls of the Franks' estate, creatures she surely knows must have died from their injuries, she knows.

I am extremely excited to be holding an ARC of this book. Broken looks like it's going to be absolutely fabulous and I am very excited to dive in. I did one of my major English papers on Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, so any book that references it has a tendency to be near and dear to my heart. When I read the description for this I was absolutely dying to get my hands on it. Huge thanks to Strange Chemistry for sending this to me. :) 

I Won:

A White So Red

by Krystle Jones

Seventeen-year-old Snow’s life changed forever the night her stepmother, the Queen, sent her huntsman to cut out her heart. Fleeing for her life, Snow runs to the Silver Forest, a place as dangerous as it is enchanting, and begins an adventure she could never have dreamed.

With no one at her side but a rowdy band of carnivorous dwarves and an arrogant, rogue prince who’s too handsome for his own good, Snow must confront the challenge that’s been laid before her: Kill the Queen, and take back the kingdom that should have been hers.

But if she is to succeed, Snow will have to tap into a powerful, ancient form of magic, one that may have been sleeping inside her all along.

I've been looking forward to A White So Red for a long time. I absolutely loved Krystle's vampire / dystopian novel The Scarlet Dagger, so seeing what she would do with a classic fairytale held a lot of appeal for me. She is also one of the people I've become good friends with in the year or so that I've been blogging or publicly talking about my novel, so seeing this *finally* be on the brink of being readable by everyone is great. (I like seeing my friends succeed.) 

I always have to watch what I am doing when I review stuff by friends, but I've done it before and as always I'll note it. If you want an unbiased review from me of her work, look at the one I linked for The Scarlet Dagger. That was back when I first met her (actually, how we met). For what it's worth--it got 5 hearts and my Kat's Meow award, so I thought highly of it.

Will A White So Red far equally well? You'll have to wait and see. :) 

I Bought: 

Yes, I was bad. Yes, I spoiled myself with three new hardcovers from Chapters. But considering how much I've gotten done this summer I think I deserve them. :D I could not resist getting these! 

Throne of Glass

by Sarah J. Maas

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.

Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

This was a Waiting on Wednesday pick for me a few weeks ago, but I've been so busy getting stuff done for Sealer's Promise that I haven't had time to read. So I held off on picking it up. Now that I'm about to be taking a 'breather' after I get SP out to betas and while I work on outlining the rest of the series, I should be able to dive into this soon. I'm looking forward to it--what I read on the way home in the car had my attention from the first page. I have high hopes here. 

Alice in Zombieland

by Gena Showalter

She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real….

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….

I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.

Gena Showalter + Alice in Wonderland + Zombies ... How could I not pick this up? It also doesn't hurt that the book has a totally gorgeous cover. This book has potential to be totally fabulous and I'm going to do my best to get to it soon. It will likely be one of the books I read for the Spooktacular Paranormal Reading Challenge.

Dearly, Beloved

by Lia Habel

Can the living coexist with the living dead?

That’s the question that has New Victorian society fiercely divided ever since the mysterious plague known as “The Laz” hit the city of New London and turned thousands into walking corpses. But while some of these zombies are mindless monsters, hungry for human flesh, others can still think, speak, reason, and control their ravenous new appetites.

Just ask Nora Dearly, the young lady of means who was nearly kidnapped by a band of sinister zombies but valiantly rescued by a dashing young man . . . of the dead variety.

Nora and her savior, the young zombie soldier Bram Griswold, fell hopelessly in love. But others feel only fear and loathing for the reanimated dead. Now, as tensions grow between pro- and anti-zombie factions, battle lines are being drawn in the streets. And though Bram is no longer in the New Victorian army, he and his ex-commando zombie comrades are determined to help keep the peace. That means taking a dangerous stand between The Changed, a radical group of sentient zombies fighting for survival, and The Murder, a masked squad of urban guerrillas hellbent on destroying the living dead. But zombies aren’t the only ones in danger: Their living allies are also in The Murder’s crosshairs, and for one vengeful zealot, Nora Dearly is the number one target.

As paranoia, prejudice, and terrorist attacks threaten to plunge the city into full-scale war, Nora’s scientist father and his team continue their desperate race to unlock the secrets of “The Laz” and find a cure. But their efforts may be doomed when a mysterious zombie appears bearing an entirely new strain of the virus—and the nation of New Victoria braces for a new wave of the apocalypse.

Lia Habel’s spellbinding, suspenseful sequel to Dearly, Departed takes her imaginative mash-up of period romance, futuristic thriller, and zombie drama to a whole new level of innovative and irresistible storytelling.

Dearly Departed was one of my favorite books last year, so when I found out that the sequel was releasing and saw it today at Chapters I had to have it. I absolutely have to know what happens to Nora and Bram! This is likely another book for next month--if I can wait that long. 

So that was my week of absolute awesome. I would love to know what you got, too. I hope this week has been good to you. :) Please feel free to leave a link to your Stacking the Shelves, IMM, book haul, etc. and I'll do my best to visit. :) 

The Time Will Come (Sept 20th)

Every Thursday l am going to list a book which l really want to read/keep meaning to get to. These are mostly books which have been on my shelf for awhile now but don't have to be, maybe you got it two weeks ago and really want to read it! 

Want to join in?

- Pick a book you have been meaning to read

- Do a post telling us about the book 

- Link the post up in the linky

- Visit the other blogs!

The Boyfriend List
by E. Lockhart

E. Lockhart’s spot-on dialogue and descriptions of painfully but hilariously relatable situations make this young adult novel an addictive read.

Fifteen-year-old Ruby has had a rough ten days. During that time she:

* lost her boyfriend (#13 on the list)
* lost her best friend (Kim)
* lost all her other friends (Nora, Cricket)
* did something suspicious with a boy (#10)
* did something advanced with a boy (#15)
* had an argument with a boy (#14)
* had a panic attack
* lost a lacrosse game (she's the goalie)
* failed a math test (she'll make it up)
* hurt Meghan's feelings (even though they aren't really friends)
* became a social outcast (no one to sit with at lunch)
* had graffiti written about her in the girls' bathroom (who knows what was in the boys'!?!)

But don't worry—Ruby lives to tell the tale. And make more lists.

I don't know what's up here. This was recommended by a good friend. I bought it a year ago. I read a sample before I bought it and loved the sample. Yet here it sits. Eek! I do remember that I was going through a huge contemporary kick before I got this so maybe I was burnt out.

I don't know the exact why I didn't read it. What I want to know is, should I read it? 

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments and link me to your post. Thanks for visiting. :)

Waiting on Wednesday (Sept. 19th)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication can't-wait-to-read selections is:

The Mephisto Kiss
by Trinity Faegen

The eyes never lie. No one’s eyes are darker than Eryx. Not even the Devil’s.

When Jax and Sasha first see Jordan Ellis, they know she is no ordinary teenager. She’s the daughter of the President after all, but she’s also Anabo – a descendant of Eve.

What they don’t know is that Eryx plans to kidnap Jordan and force President Ellis to pledge his soul. If Eryx’s plot succeeds, the consequences would be catastrophic.

But the Mephisto brothers do know about Jordan’s secret identity. And for one of them, she could be the match that leads to their soul’s salvation.

Now it’s a desperate race against time to save Jordan and prevent Eryx’s haunting eyes from discovering her true identity.

A thrilling story of romance, danger, and intrigue, THE MEPHISTO KISS continues the marvelous mythology that began in THE MEPHISTO COVENANT.

The Mephisto Covenant was one of my most coveted books last year. While it did not have the absolute blow-me-away factor I was hoping it would, I did enjoy it and I have been looking forward to The Mephisto Kiss for months now. 

Trinity Faegen's series is my favorite heaven and hell based series I've read. Her mythology is fascinating, her characters--while they can sometimes drive me nuts--are distinct and she writes great romance. I can't believe it's almost time to pick this up. I have it pre-ordered so I don't have long to wait now. :) 

So what are you looking forward to this week? Leave a link and I'll drop by and have a look. 

Cover Lover Month: Want to Get Involved?

As some of you might know, I am in the process of having the cover designed for my debut novel, Sealer's Promise. In the journey I've chosen to take, that of publishing my first novel, being at a point where I will (soon!) have my cover is a really big deal. So I sat down and started thinking about what the best way to share that with everyone here would be.

I'm going to having a cover (and book trailer) reveal next month. I'm thrilled about that. But that's all very "Me! Me! Me!". There wouldn't be a me standing here without the support that I have received from many of *you*. And then, last week the most awesome brainwave hit me. Today I'm going to share it with you.

This October, it is my pleasure to invite you all to participate in Cover Lover Month.

What is it?: 

Cover Lover Month is going to run from October 1st - 31st and is going to celebrate everything covers. What we love, what we loathe, how they are made and everything in between. I have been in contact with several of the friends I have made in the last year and thanks to their generous support I have some fabulous interviews, guest posts and giveaways planned. My goal is to make this a month full of bloggers, authors and artists sharing the beauty of book covers.

I need your help: 

I am looking for people to interview as guests on my blog, people willing to tweet about the event, and people willing to put the event button (below) on their sidebar. Anyone who would be willing to blog letting people know about this would also be a tremendous help.

I will also be looking for people interested in taking part in the reveal for the Sealer's Promise cover and trailer.

Interview Info & Questions: 

If you love books, odds are high you have some opinions on covers. I want to know what those are and I would love for you to be a guest here on I Write, I Read, I Review next month. Interested? Copy the following questions, answer them and e-mail them to me at isis_willowsong (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Questions:

1. Have you ever chosen to read a book because of its cover? How did that go?

2. How big of an influence do you feel cover art is in your reading choices? Do you have any reasons for feeling this way?

3. What are your favorite things to see on the cover of a book? Are there any types of images or overall moods / themes that will instantly compel you to click on a book or lift it off a bookstore shelf?

4. Are there any design choices on covers that discourage you from taking a closer look? Any particular reasons for your preference or is it just something that "is what it is"?

5. Does it bother you when the cover does not directly relate to what is in the book? For instance, if the cover has a girl in a blue dress then there'd better be a girl in a blue dress at some point?

6. These are a few of my favorite things: ONE that you love that's from a book you've read, ONE that's on the front of a book you're dying to read but haven't gotten your hands on yet and ONE that doesn't have a cover that does it justice, yet you feel more people need to read it. (You are free to cheat and list more if you must, just don't go too crazy.)

-- What do you love about these covers?

-- Did the cover for the book you've read fit the book?

-- Is there something about the cover for the upcoming book that has caused it to be something you're dying to read?

-- What drew you to the book with the less thrilling cover? If you could describe a new cover for this book, what would it be?

Grab The Button!

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I will be posting with more details on the event, a call for help in revealing the cover for Sealer's Promise and much more in the days to come. Thanks for dropping by and taking a look! :)

Music Monday (2)

Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Ramblings of a Daydreamer where we get to share our favorite music: singers, bands, videos, concerts, or anything else that catches our attention.

Sealer's Promise Edition #2: Kesyl Veradayne

mage by Kattling

Who is Kesyl Veradayne? 

Kesyl is often referred to as the Moon Prince, since he is the son of the Moon Goddess, Ruby. She despises him and views him as an abomination, and Kess was actually raised by Ruby's former high priestess, Carita Veradayne. 

Kesyl was the one who opened the tear in the veil between the Kindred homeworld of Zynedia and our planet so that his people would not be wiped out. Despite this, he is often feared or outright hated by his peers since his Immortal blood has somehow imbued him with the powers of a Sealer--someone who has the power to give or take away the connection others have to the Weave. (The invisible force of every living thing's emotions, from which the Kindred derive their magic and their name.)

In contrast to what most people think, Kesyl is actually a quiet and gentle person when he doesn't have to use his powers to set things right in the midst of one crisis or another. He enjoys cooking, water sports, dancing (he has permitted me to begrudgingly admit this to all of you here. Shhh, don't tell Sarena.) and collecting unique or exotic cars. 

So, what can I tell you about the man from his music? Take a look below to hear some of the songs that have helped me define Kess and get a closer peek into who he is as a character. :) 

Song #1: So She Dances by Josh Groban

Kess has super uber amazing powers, money and the ability to take someone's soul. Sounds a bit too perfect / scary / out there, doesn't it? I thought so too, so one of my goals when I wrote him was to find some way to humanize him and give him a vulnerability that would allow readers to connect with him. I decided to do that by making him very uncertain about his own worth when he likes someone. There is a scene where he has bought Sarena's Christmas gift and is carrying it to the tree with Carita. They are talking about how he needs to let her know how he feels and the scene ends with the line:

Money talks so much better then I do.

When I think of Kess' doubts about whether he will end up with Sara, one of the first songs that comes to mind is So She Dances by Josh Groban. I love the song because when I think about Sara and Kess while listening to it, it reminds me of how much he comes to appreciate her commitment to her art (dancing) and as the book progresses we see that same commitment shown toward her friendship (and possibly more ;) ) with him. 

I particularly love the lines:

I watch for the chance I should take
But how will I know where to start?
She's spinning between constellations and dreams
Her rhythm is my beating heart. 

Song #2: She's Everything by Brad Paisley

I went over this last week but for anyone who doesn't know: I'm really into country music. I ended up really connecting to "She's Everything" while writing Kess because I got Brad Paisley's Hits Alive CD as I was just working on my rough draft of Sealer's Promise (then it was called Moon Dance) in May of 2011. I actually didn't realize Brad had recorded the song until I got that CD, and it was a pleasant surprise since it was a song I already liked.

But there is something very special about the live version on this CD. It has a different intro then the actual recording which is pretty neat, but the best part is, in my opinion, the way the lines:

She looks good in cheap sunglasses
She looks good in anything

are done. Yet again, it's a showcase for that vulnerability that I was so desperate to try and show in Kess and I could see him talking to someone about Sara and reacting like that, which was incredibly helpful (and was what inspired the line he says to Carita in the Christmas scene that I quoted, actually.). 

Song #3: Somebody Like You by Keith Urban

Kesyl is the God of Justice, and as such he has had to make some very tough decisions despite being an 18 year old guy. He can also be a bit quick to be angry or frustrated about things that go wrong, which has not helped him win friends and influence people. Because of the events that predated her birth, Sarena is destined to become the Goddess of Mercy. She is much more mellow then Kess, although like him she has a very fine tuned moral compass and strives to do the right thing.

I'm lettin' go of all my lonely yesterdays
I've forgiven myself for the mistakes I've made
Now there's just one thing, the only thing I wanna do
I wanna love somebody, love somebody like you.

The two strengthen each other's weaknesses--Kess grows to understand people and gain more compassion because of his closeness to Sara, and Sara learns to have more courage and stand up for what she believes in rather then always trying to stay out of things because she loves / wants to protect Kess. 

"Somebody Like You" really speaks to this part of the relationship between Sara and Kess, which is a vital part of their story. As the God of Justice, Kesyl finds it incredibly hard to forgive people for their mistakes, and even harder to forgive himself when he screws up. As he grows to love Sara this is something he must confront and learn to change.

So, what music is on your mind this week? If you're taking part in Music Monday feel free to link to your post and I'll drop by. Thanks for visiting my blog, learning a bit about some of the music that has inspired me and getting to know Sarena a little better.

Shopaholic Sunday (Sept. 16th)

Shopholic Sunday is a feature here at I Write, I Read, I Review where I get to share the fabulous things I've bought, borrowed or received. It's also a place where I sometimes share books coming out that I'm dying to read or tell you about events that have been here or that are coming which I think you might be interested in. Thanks for visiting! 

Hey guys!

I am SIX chapters from Sealer's Promise going out to betas. I can't believe this thing is finally almost there. It's been a long summer and a lot of work has gone into the book to make it as good as I can on my own. I need some fresh eyes and I've had some awesome people offer to beta for me. (Thanks again!)

I have also moved on from the cover scandal that happened to me. (I posted about that last week.) I am working with Robin Ludwig Design Inc. to do the cover for Sealer's Promise. I have the comp (basically a rough draft before the images are bought.) sitting on my computer and I can tell you now that I am going to be thrilled when the time comes to share the real cover with you all.

With that in mind, I am organizing an event for this October called Cover Lover Month. There are plenty of ways that you can get involved, but for now I just want to show off the banner I made and make sure people know it is happening. I will do my best to have an official post up about the event tomorrow.

Enough chatter, though. You came to see what I got this week, so let's get to the books. :)

Stacking the Shelves is a meme created by Tynga's Book Reviews where we get to share the fabulous things we bought, borrowed or received during the week.

So, have you read any of these? Love them or loathe them? Feel free to link up to your shelves, mailbox, haul or whatever type of book sharing post you do and I will drop by and see what you got. Have a great day! 

The Time Will Come (Sept. 13th)

Every Thursday l am going to list a book which l really want to read/keep meaning to get to. These are mostly books which have been on my shelf for awhile now but don't have to be, maybe you got it two weeks ago and really want to read it! 

Want to join in?

- Pick a book you have been meaning to read

- Do a post telling us about the book 

- Link the post up in the linky

- Visit the other blogs!

13 Little Blue Envelopes
by Maureen Johnson

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke-about-town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous-though utterly romantic-results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

I spent a lot of my youth traveling with my grandparents. While that isn't what's going on here, I love traveling and I love books where characters are off on a physical journey, especially when there is hope or need for it to transform them deep within. So why the heck haven't I read this yet? I grabbed it on sale for $3 for my Kindle and I actually forgot I had it! D'oh! I'll need to fix that soon.

So, have you read 13 Little Blue Envelopes? Love it or hate it? I'd love to know so feel free to leave a comment. 

Cover Reveal: The Game Changer by Marie Landry

Click here to buy Blue Sky Days!

Today I'm pleased to be part of the cover reveal for Marie Landry's newest novel, The Game Changer. Marie was one of the first friends I made when I started I Write, I Read, I Review. I'm sure this post makes it obvious we are still friends now. :)

The first thing that I will say to all of you is this: If you have not read Marie's debut, Blue Sky Days, make sure that you take adventage of the SALE she is hosting. Blue Sky Days is a wonderful book filled with great romance, wonderful characters and writing that is both crystal clear and utterly gorgeous. I reviewed it here and cannot recommend it to you highly enough.

But as much as I love Blue Sky Days, that's not the main reason we are here today.

Today, Marie is revealing the cover of her new book. Scroll down and have look. The cover is lovely and the blurb has my attention, I can tell you that much!

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The Plot: (Summary provided by the author)

Melody Cartwright has never had a problem with change, but for the first time in her life the changes are beyond her control—she suddenly has a niece she never knew, but has to prove herself to; her best friend is making huge life changes of her own; and she has to deal with her ex and his crazy new girlfriend who has stalker tendencies.

When Melody meets confident, sexy Julian, she’s not interested in a relationship. He tells her it’s possible for a man and a woman to just be friends, and despite his ultra-charming ways there’s something about him that makes Melody believe he could be right.

During a time of change and turmoil, it doesn’t take long for Julian to become everything Melody never knew she needed in her life. But is it possible for them to remain ‘just friends’ or will Melody be a game changer for Julian the playboy?

I'm really looking forward to reading this. The genre is a departure, but I have great faith that regardless of what genre Marie tackles, the story and writing will be excellent. :) Congrats on having the courage to put another book out there for the world to see. That takes more courage than some might imagine.

Why not add The Game Changer to you to-read list on GoodReads?

So, what do you think of the cover for The Game Changer? Do you want to read it? I'd love to hear your thoughts so feel free to leave a comment. :)