Evernight Teen turns two, & there's a huge party & giveaways this week, including an iPad Mini!!!

Happy Birthday 
to EVERNIGHT TEEN!!!

Evernight Teen turns two this month and we’re having a HUGE party to celebrate! It may be Evenight Teen’s birthday, but YOU get the presents. So, grab a piece of cake, hop from blog-to-blog and discover EVERNIGHT TEEN!

Be sure to visit every stop on the hop and answer each question. The more you blogs you hop, the more chances to win the GRAND PRIZE of an iPad Mini sponsored by Evernight Teen (one entry per blog). Plus, hop each blog for a host of other fabulous prizes.

Have your TBR list handy. We have lots of new titles for you to add, including my featured book DORIANNA, which just won 2014 Best Horror Book in the Kindle Hub Awards!

Here are two key songs from the Dorianna playlist to entertain you... or creep you out, followed by a mini-excerpt. Hey, this is dark fantasy, peeps.

Bring Me to Life by Evanescence
Demons by Imagine Dragons  

Evanescence's Bring Me to Life

Imagine Dragon's Demons

Now, a mini-excerpt. This scene comes after Dorianna discovers weird changes on the videos made of her by videographer Wilson:

This isn’t happening. I hunch over and clutch my ribs as I play the thing again. At least the YouTube verbal shit-storm isn’t as bad as the one on my DVD copy, I rationalize. What can I do? Each video is changing in its own way, at its own pace. It’s horrid not being able to control this. It’s as if some insidious spam keeps infiltrating no matter what.

Scrolling down to see the latest YouTube comments, I gasp.
The lady doth protest too much—cackle, cackle, cackle
u might b hella changin but u still shine big
Sungirl’s turning into a sun-witch. Bring it on, evil girl
Hangin’ out at sungirl.com to watch u turn b-b-bad to the bone

There's a huge amount of hits—over five thousand. Where do these flipping trolls come from? I can’t take my evil outburst, even if my viewers can. I make a beeline over to my bookshelf to get my aunt’s money. “I’ll return it,” I pledge, but my hand freezes in mid-stream. Finally, I understand the phrase “frozen in place”—more than I ever wanted to. 

Wilson might’ve lied about not altering the YouTube beach scene, but this DVD copy? He had nothing to do with this. He was right after all. These consequences are unacceptable. I’ll have to work harder to thwart them. That revolting DVD cannot stay on my desk. No one can ever, ever see it. I hide it in my bookshelf, behind a row of novels.

Where does Wilson—the so-called Prince of Darkness—get his powers? How exactly has he transferred them to me? And who’s behind the whole operation? That question is almost the scariest part.

You could win the mug AND ebook!

Enter for a chance to win EVERNIGHT TEEN’s GRAND PRIZE of an iPad Mini and my blog prize of a Dorianna coffee mug with an ebook of Dorianna by answering this question (be sure to include your email address to be eligible to win):
What book scared the bloody effing bejezus out of you, and WHY? (If you absolutely cannot think of a book you can say a film, but props go first to peeps who think of books).

The ET birthday blog hop continues here:

TSU? Ello? Tumblr? Instagram? Facebook loyalist? Which are you? Plus some fab launches!

There's talk about changes over at Facebook that will take place in 2015 regarding promo and book launch posts. This includes rumors about Facebook charging a base rate for a biz subscription. And there's also buzz about a new social media alternative called Tsu, and how FB folks should set up new profiles over there. Here's a NY Times article about it. Your thoughts on TSU?

And now, for the array of great launches!
Fantasy Uprising, the Untethered Realms boxed set is out, and just in time for the upcoming holidays! Isn't it spectacular? It contains novels from fantasy to dark magic to sci-fi.
Only $0.99 and available at Amazon, Nook, Smashwords, Googleplay, iTunes

Stephanie Keyes, creator of the popular Star Child series has a new novella, The Last Protector.

Here's a summary:
Gabriel Stewart helped his best friend Kellen St. James save the world from The Scourge in the Battle of Dublin. But before that? Gabe was just an ordinary guy who kept having dreams about a little boy with black hair and green eyes—a boy he hadn’t even met yet.

And even weirder? Gabe’s mind kept replaying these images on loop of things he’d never seen. He heard voices in his head when no one was around. And he actually blew off hot Valerie Gibbons to chase after the black-haired kid in the park. What was up with that?
As Gabe searches for the truth, fate continually puts him in Kellen’s path, but will he be able to stop the Children of Danu from stealing Kellen before the battle begins? What will it take for Gabe to become The Last Protector?
*The Last Protector is a companion novella--intended to be read after the other books in the series.

See all of Stephanie's novels on Amazon & B&N

C Lee McKenzie has a new YA novel out, Sudden Secrets.

A summary:
One Secret 
Cleo has struggled to heal after her baby sister’s death, but the flashbacks to the accident won’t go away. With the move, she vows to keep her tragedy a secret and avoid pitying looks. 
One Mystery 
Something’s strange about the abandoned house across the street—flashes of light late at night and small flickers of movement that only someone looking for them would see. 
Everyone says the house is deserted, but Cleo is sure it isn’t, and she’s sure whoever is inside is watching her. 
Another Secret 
In one night, Belleza’s life changes forever. So famous, her only choice is to hide her secret from the world so she can silence small town bigotry. 
Then Cleo happens.

Sudden Secrets is available at Amazon & Evernight Teen

My own YA thriller Ruby's Fire is on sale $0.99 at Amazon!

And my new dark YA Dorianna is getting nice reviews, which I'm grateful for.

Here's the newest reader review:
WOW .... SERIOUSLY WOW!!! I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from this book as Dorian Grey was ... well, Dorian Grey. Someone who wants to adapt this to more modern times could really go either way, really bad or really good. This was FANTASTIC!!! Although personally, I do prefer the bad and want a Wilson of my own it was so very well written! The fact that it tackles the current fad of "followers" and current internet insanity was just brilliantly written and well executed! I really really loved it and will definitely be recommending it to others. An excellent read for sure!!!

Medeia Sharif's brand new YA novel Vitamins and Death is out.
A summary: 

Deidra Battle wants nothing more than to be invisible. After her mother, a public school teacher, engages in an embarrassing teacher-student affair at Lincoln High, they relocate to a different neighborhood and school. Being her mother's briefcase, Deidra joins her mother at her new workplace, Hodge High. Since her mother has reverted to her maiden name and changed her appearance, she thinks no one will figure out they're the Battles from recent news and that they're safe. Neither of them is. Hodge brings a fresh set of bullies who discover details about the scandal that changed Deidra's life. Feeling trapped at home with an emotionally abusive, pill-addicted mother and at school with hostile classmates who attempt to assault and blackmail her, Deidra yearns for freedom, even if she has to act out of character and hurt others in the process. Freedom comes at a price.
Available at Amazon

Cherie Reich's newest, People of Foxwick is out too. What a gorgeous cover! See all of Cherie's Foxwick's books: Amazon & B&N  The blurb:

The kingdom hangs in the balance. War threatens Foxwick on all sides.

The dreaded Shadowlands gains more souls. From the shrouded trees in Greymist Forest to the arid Blackden Barrens, monsters roam in search of their next victim. Sirens lure ships beneath Merrilea Sea. In cold and snowy Wintermill, royals plot to claim Foxwick as their own, even if they must use dragons and sorcery. Marriage between Foxwick's king and Lochhollow's princess creates a perilous alliance. Although brave Valdale will come to Foxwick's aid, the cost may be more than a true friend can stomach. Set over a hundred years, these seventeen fantasy short stories explore the people, creatures, and lands in and around the Kingdom of Foxwick.

Short stories in the collection: Common Love, Blind Scribe, Lady Bard, Siren's Call, Tribal Abandonment, Dragon's Sacrifice, Dragon Spy, Dragon Seer, Sword Master, Lady Death, Mage Game, Courting Magic, Monster Hunger, Mourner's Lament, Magic Seeker, Prince's Price, and Love's Challenge

The best present one can give to an indie author is the gift of buying, reading and reviewing their books. Agree?

So what are your thoughts on Tsu, Ello, Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook's new policies, any of the above? Which are your fave social media hangouts? For personal posts? For promo?

DORIANNA is OUT! Plus, new profile spotlights

DORIANNA releases today!!! I'm so excited to share this novel with you. I've been inspired by A Picture of Dorian Gray for many years, and I really wanted to create a new twist on it with a female lead. I wrote the first draft a few years ago during Nano, and I've been working on it ever since between other novels.

If you like edgy love triangles and psychological horror,
if you're intrigued by the idea of online meetup parties that get more and more out of control like a runaway rollercoaster, and you love a skeezy, carny boardwalk setting like Coney Island...
You just might get a kick out of this read!

You can buy the ebook here

Also, please help me celebrate by tweeting and sharing about the novel. I will be so, so grateful! Here are three pre-written tweets to make it easy:

DORIANNA is out! #YA twist on Dorian Gray.  http://www.amazon.com/Dorianna-Catherine-Stine-ebook/dp/B00OU6OENY/ref=sr_1_1_twi_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414120746&sr=8-1&keywords=dorianna #horror #YA #DorianGray #ConeyIsland #meetup #LoveTriangle

Internet followers? Beauty? Power? It sounded good, until... DORIANNA a #YA #horror is OUT! Twist on #DorianGray http://www.amazon.com/Dorianna-Catherine-Stine-ebook/dp/B00OU6OENY/ref=sr_1_1_twi_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414120746&sr=8-1&keywords=dorianna

Like #YA #horror? Toxic #LoveTriangles #MeetupParty fiascos?

DORIANNA! A YA twist on #DorianGray DORIANNA is out! http://www.amazon.com/Dorianna-Catherine-Stine-ebook/dp/B00OU6OENY/ref=sr_1_1_twi_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414120746&sr=8-1&keywords=dorianna

On another note, I made these two character profiles for Sienna and Caz from my new adult Art of Love series. What do you think?

News, news, news!

This has been a busy time, and it's only going to get busier! With good stuff. First of all, Private Internship, my new adult novel (sequel to my novella Model Position) is coming out on September 29th with Inkspell!
Also, I signed my YA contemporary horror, Dorianna with Evernight Teen!

Dorianna is a fresh yet toxic twist (think daisies, snakes and burlesque dancers at Coney Island) on the Oscar Wilde classic, A Picture of Dorian Gray. It's a cautionary tale for the Internet generation. More on that soon . . .

Private Internship is . . .

In the meantime, I'd LOVE for anyone who's up for it, to help me with my cover reveal (or release day blitz) for Private Internship!! It's a really pretty cover, and I'm proud to say that I helped design it with the lovely and talented Najla who does the covers over at Inkspell. The cover reveal will be on Wednesday, August 27, but August 28 & 29 are fine days to post as well! (The blitz will be on Sept 29) Just fill out this easy peasy sign-up form here. Once you sign up, I'll send you all the info you'll need to post. (Plus you'll get a magical chocolate sundae & bestie sticker)

What's your news/obsession/thrill/fave summer activity, and how's your July going so far?