Apr 20
2009

The first official Tourist of the Day contest has now ended! Thanks to everyone who entered, and thanks a lot for making it a really tough contest. <g> But it is now time to announce the winners! First place – and the title of Geonn Cannon’s First Official Tourist of the Day – goes to Kendall Evans, who will soon be receiving a signed copy of Gemini for her awesome thoughts on the lovely, shy, awkward Kira McManus (I’ll hopefully get it out by tomorrow!). Congratulations, and I hope you enjoy the book!

Second place goes to Rachel Cockman, who blows me away every time I talk with her, and her entry about Nick Bronwyn was no different. She will receive an alternate prize, since she already has a copy of both On the Air and Gemini.  Talk about dedicated! <g>

Third place belongs to Bethany Williams, who is going to get a signed copy of On the Air for her thoughts about the proprietor of Coffee Table Books, Amy Wellis! Her book is in the mail to her right now, so hopefully she’ll get it very soon!

Once again, thanks to everyone who entered! You totally made my day. And that’s what the Tourist of the Day contest is all about. <g> I hope you all enjoy your books and find a slew of great new characters to enjoy. :D



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Apr 16
2009

For those of you who enjoyed Better Angels, it’s time to revisit Riley Parra’s world in the second installment of the series No Use Crying. It’s available now as a free PDF download from my website in the Riley Parra Stories section. The story follows on from Better Angels, but there’s a touch less supernatural element.

Riley has to figure out who the real target was when two people are found murdered on the elevated train while trying to deal with the angels and demons who have made themselves a part of her life.

I hope everyone enjoys this story as much as they did the last one. Look for the third installment, Losing My Religion, one month from today on May 14.



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Apr 12
2009

One of the biggest things about getting published was that I could say “I have a page on Amazon!” It was an amazing thing to see my name on one of those pages, to be able to tell people they could just search for my name on Amazon and actually find stuff created by me. Well, today is slightly different, because Amazon is totally screwing over gay and lesbian authors. All of my fellow PD authors, and countless others are being stripped of their sales rank because they are “adult material.”

That doesn’t mean Harlequin romances or Nora Roberts, or other straight romances that get just as risque and detailed as gay and lesbian-featured novels. This is an obvious and blatant attempt to ghettoize GLBT works. Works like Brokeback Mountain and “Radclyffe Hill’s classic novel about lesbians in Victorian times, The Well of Loneliness, and which contains not one sentence of sexual description” (quote from the petition site mentioned below), alongside nonfiction books like John Barrowman’s autobiography (because he is gay, and the gay may be catching) and books that help suicidal gay teenagers work through the issues and maybe feel better about who they are. Yes, must hide that.

There is a petition going around which you can sign here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/in-protest-at-amazons-new-adult-policy

If you don’t want to sign, that’s okay. If you do, go right ahead. Add your voice to the countless people who are flabbergasted by this utter and blatant discrimination. Ellen Degeneres did not write an erotic biography. If someone at Amazon got turned on while reading it, that’s not Ellen’s fault.  This needs to be corrected, and quickly.

If you’re not the petition signing kind, that’s fine, too. All I ask is that you go elsewhere for your novel-buying needs. SCP Books is a fine lesbian-owned and operated independent bookstore. They may be a little more expensive than Amazon, but the money goes to people who deserve it rather than to some corporation that seeks to shuffle us under the carpet while still getting money from the few sales we manage to make while not showing up on search results. For shame, Amazon. I regret making an order from you last week. If it wasn’t already on the way, I would cancel it. I would threaten to send it back for a refund, but I’ve tried that before and never got my money back. Never again. So Amazon, it’s been real and it’s been fun, but it hasn’t been real fun. Good day, sir.

I said good day.



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Apr 11
2009

I’ve told several people that the story Better Angels is being considered a “pilot” for a series of stories. Each following story would then be “episodes.” So, in keeping with that, I thought I would give people a viewing schedule so they can know when to expect a new Riley story and what that story will be called. Like looking up an episode guide for your favorite TV series. <g> This is all subject to change, keep in mind, but I will give you some notice if there’s going to be a delay. Stories will be posted on Thursdays, with four weeks in between (mainly to give me a chance to write the things <g>). So, without further ado, here is the schedule!

1×1 – Better Angels, March 19
1×2 – No Use Crying, April 17
1×3 – Losing My Religion, May 14
1×4 – Angels Would Fall, June 11
1×5 – The Martyr, July 9
1×6 – My Empire of Dirt, August 6
1×7 – The Life of Riley, September 3 (season finale)

Again, titles and dates are subject to change. We writers are an indecisive bunch. Well, that’s not true… although… well, maybe.

Hearing: “Still Beating,” Josh Ritter (from The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter album. Buy it at Amazon with Gemini and maybe you’ll get free shipping!)



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Apr 8
2009

Well, I wanted to wait to see what the actual number of days would be, and it has now come to an end. Gemini premiered on the best-seller list of SCPBooks.com, and it stayed there from Friday, April 28, until today, April 8. That’s twelve solid weeks! It bounced around, from the Number 2 spot, to number 3, back to Number 4 and 5, but the important thing is that it was there! <g> Thank you to everyone who pre-ordered, and ordered it after the novel was announced, and will continue to buy it. You guys all rock.

On another Gemini note, keep sending in your entries for the Tourist of the Day contest! :D

And now, for a bit of a tease… eight days from today, a new Riley Parra story will appear on my website. It will be called “No Use Crying,” and it will be the second story in the series. I’ve told people that I view the series as a TV series, so this would be like the first episode post-pilot. There will be seven episodes total (counting Better Angels as 1×1) in “season one,” followed by a second season if demand is high. So let me know if you demand. <g>

I even have a theme song for the stories: “Angels Would Fall” by Melissa Etheridge. Spend the week getting your hands on it, or listening to the copy you already have. It’ll get you in the right mood to get back into Riley’s world. :)



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Apr 1
2009

That’s right, my second novel Gemini is available for sale now! Believe me! Why would you doubt what I have to say? ~looks at calendar~ Oh. Huh. You know, it’s very typical that I have a book coming out on April Fools’ Day. <g> Trust me, though, you pays your money you gets your book! It’s still listed as a pre-order on Star-Crossed, but Amazon is, I think, actually sending the books out as soon as you order. So go, buy! I hope you enjoy the story!

And you can buy a reading copy, and win an autographed copy! That’s right, I’m giving away a free autographed copy of Gemini. Visit my website for more information on how to enter (no purchase necessary, blah blah blah, open to residents of US and Canada only (unfortunately)). Good luck! I look forward to your entries. <g>

The fine print says that the delivery of the prizes may be delayed, but that will not be the case. I have copies winging their way to me now by the angels of the United Parcel Service, so they will be in-hand and ready to go by the end of the contest. No fear. <g>



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