Thursday 29 August 2013

'Because of Lucy' by Lisa Swallow - Cover Reveal & Release!!!

This wonderful gem from one of my favourite authors, Lisa Swallow is now available on Amazon!



Because of Lucy Cover Reveal Information

Coming August 2013…

Synopsis:

"In life, there are some people you have to lose in order to find yourself."
Ness’s parents are shocked when she turns down her place at Leeds University and takes on a full-time job in a call center. Determined to begin her adult life the way she wants, Ness moves to Leeds to live with her best friend Abby.
One night she meets Evan, who is everything she hates about guys. He may be hot but he’s also drunken, arrogant, and on top of that, he apparently has sex with girls and forgets about it. But Evan isn't what he seems and Ness soon discovers they have more in common than she thought.
Evan is struggling to escape from his past too, and when Lucy appears she threatens his new relationship with Ness. Unsure if she can deal with the effect Lucy has on Evan, Ness makes a decision about her future which pulls them apart.
When their new lives don't go as planned, Ness and Evan are both faced with difficult choices. All because of Lucy. 
*Recommended 17+ due to strong language and sexual content*


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lisa was born in the UK and she moved around Europe with her military family before completing a BA (Hons) in English at the University of Leeds. Her home is now in Perth, Australia with her husband and three children. Lisa has written since she was a child - moving from writing poems and short stories aged nine to writing novels in the last few years. With the encouragement of her family and local writers group, Lisa found the confidence to share her latest paranormal romance series with the world.
In between running her home based craft supplies business, looking after her family, and writing, Lisa sometimes finds spare time to do other things. This often involves swapping her book worlds for gaming worlds. She even leaves the house occasionally, enjoying walks with her dog and time with her family. She loves all things from the Whedonverse and preferred vampires before they sparkled.
Lisa enjoys reading both classics and modern fiction. Her favorite genres are gothic, paranormal and urban fantasy, but she also enjoys contemporary new adult. She is currently working on more books in the Soul Ties series, and has other projects lined up waiting.




Wednesday 14 August 2013

Letter from my 6 year old self.

I have loved to write since I was young, I've just found proof. 

My Mum was going through some old boxes the other day and came across something pretty special.  One of the first stories I ever wrote, I was 6 years old. It's even illustrated.

I just wanted to share this with everyone.







Friday 2 August 2013

So you want to write a book...

In the immortal words of Ferris Bueller, "life is what happens while you're making other plans. If you don't stop and look around once in a while you could miss it."

When my dad asked me the all important question when I was 6 what I wanted to be when I grew up, I knew then I wanted to be an author.  That was 34 years ago. Somewhere along the line, I got a little lost.

But wanting something and getting it are two very different beasts. One of the hardest things about becoming an author is knowing how to get a foot in that gilded, golden door  before someone else younger, smarter and with a much better idea body slams you out the way on their way through.

That was until 6 weeks ago when I met a local author which set the proverbial snowball in motion.  I was introduced to a couple of people, who put me in touch with a couple more people, who knew even MORE people. All of them craftsmen in their own right and truly amazing humans, each and every one. All of a sudden I was talking to real live published authors and now I find myself sitting in front of a 50,000 word manuscript and hoping beyond hope, that a publisher might offer me a contract. 

If I have one piece of advice for writers just starting out and looking for that elusive way in, one very effective way is networking.  Talk to people, make contacts. Go to book launches, readings, sessions at your local Writer's Centre and talk to people. Don't just sit in the corner hiding and leave when it's over, get out of your comfort zone. Go and talk to the author, introduce yourself to other writers AND not forgetting the most important group of people, the readers! Get on social media, join some author groups, there is an abundance of information and help just waiting for you to tap into it.

 As it turns out, authors are not the frightening, unapproachable rock-stars I thought of them as. They are the ones that will help you with your first draft, help you with critiquing and beta reading, and you will find these amazing people becoming lifelong friends.  They have been where you are and can provide more advice than just doing the occasional writing course and hoping magically publishers will fall all over themselves to get your manuscript.

 These people will become your support network when you are feeling low, hate what you've written and are close to binning the lot, can't find the write word or phrase, need to get more words out or just need to vent.

The only other snippet I would offer at this juncture is; be prepared to have to work hard, you aren't going to be able to give up your day job on your first book sales, or your second, or even your third.  Write because you love to write.

It won't come to you,  you have to go and get it, grab it and hold on.