New Year…where did it go?

I’ve been MIA.
It’s been a whirlwind summer and I’ve met myself at the door so many times, I’m thinking I don’t know where I am anymore. Most recently, I’ve been at PENNED CON. If you’ve never been…make a point to get there. It is a phenomenal event all proceeding charity. Readers…180 Authors…someone has to tickle your reader fancy.

While I’m still hip deep in words, because I set an OUTRAGEOUS goal for this year…I can’t pass the chance to share so many great moments.

 

Highlight for me.
Gravedigger getting the nod for Best Ugly Cry in AMAZING company.

Best Keepsake ever!
READER autographs.

Signing Day one -Talking books.

Channeling PINK for the Lip Sync

Posing with the Beast Revealed for Lip Sync night

 

Signing Day TWO with the fabulous!

 

 

 

 

Awards Night – Roaring 20’s as Charlie Chaplain.

This is what Charity means.

RICK MILES – Organizer & Founder…dressing up to raise funds for AFA Academy

 

 

New Year…whoops.

I keep thinking I have more time than I do. It’s nearly the end of June and I’m completely flummoxed by that at the moment. This post will be short-ish…but oh so sweet!

I have two things to share…ONE is that for this week, Gravedigger…my thriller/suspense/mystery title that came out late last year is $0.99 on all outlets. That’s right! You read that here…the e-book version….however you like to read ebooks…is on sale! Grab your copy before the price goes back to normal!

I LOVE…ABSOLUTELY LOVE almost every one of my covers, but this one is so special. My graphic artist actually LAID IN A GRAVE to get this shot and let her hubs stand over her with the shovel. That’s trust. And, that’s immense craft in my opinion. (Turn the cover sideways for the full effect.) I cannot ever say enough about this one, or the designer Suzanna from Funky Book Design.
MAD LOVE GIRL!!

Thing number TWO this week is another cover reveal. September 7 – 9 I’ll be attending Show Me Your Books Kansas City. This new event is a charity fundraiser for The Dream Factory. If you know me even a little, you know why I signed on. BUT…adding to the good juju is that opening night there is a small group of authors who have all agreed to release a new title, and the proceeds from that night go straight to the charity…no middle nuthin.
GUESS WHO is in that group. Seriously. Guess.

Yeappers…it’s me. I’m excited to sneak peek the cover here. The tale is the first of a new series surrounding Heartland Emergency Air Regional Transport. It will be stories surrounding the team of professionals who staff the life flights where seconds matter and having heart is sometimes harder than getting a medical license. I can’t wait to introduce you to the crazy cast of characters who have been keeping me awake.

The HEART Flights lift off September 7th.

Check back with me next week. Maybe, just maybe I’ll have an update on what’s what…but I’ll definitely have at least one more cover reveal. (I’ve got 4 more for you…so, it could be more than one.)

Read something awesome.
Sav

The Mighty Power of Words

In less than 3 weeks, on May 8th, Breathe Me to Life in the Once Upon a Twisted Time box set, will be live and in the hands of the public at large. Right now  some bloggers have it, and there is a nervous anxiety in knowing that your brand new baby is in the hands of readers who’s job it is to read your story objectively and judge it.

Don’t get me wrong….I know my story is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. That knowing, however, doesn’t negate the desire of wanting everyone to like my book baby…or at least to be kind and constructive with their criticism of it.  I get that once you expose your art, in whatever form you chose to display your creativity, to the public, you are opening yourself up to their public opinion.

There is this observation that has been made by more than a few authors. Some people are reluctant to leave reviews for things they enjoy, but things they don’t like…they are more than willing to pull up their mighty desk chair steed and fire off their keyboards to leave a scathing review, which at times can turn into a personal attack on the author. I have not had this experience. I hope I never do, but there is always the possibility that it will happen. I don’t think there is an effective way of preparing yourself for the eventuality of that punch in the gut. I don’t think this happens only in reviews. I think it happens in our everyday lives as well. Words have the power to build up and tear down…it’s on all of us to be conscious of how we use them.

With the good, there is  the bad…and you have to accept that you can’t have one without the other, for without the darkness how do you appreciate the light?

All that being said…here is a sneak peek at Breathe Me to Life…

The combined scent of amber and sandalwood floating on the current of air that came through when the door opened niggled at her memory of Kellan. It had been seven years since she last laid eyes on him in the flesh. Seven long years. He had left his imprint on her life, and every man she tried to date didn’t come close in comparison with him. I’m doomed to spend my life waiting for a man who has probably forgotten I even exist. She closed her eyes and inhaled, hoping to carry the smell of him with her when she fell into sleep’s dark embrace later.

Two years, after the veil between the Fae and human realms fell, she started seeing Kellan in her dreams. Only there did she know the feel of his hands against her skin, the never satisfying hunger for his kiss, the taste of his sweat, and the musky scent of their bodies as they rose to the pinnacle of ecstasy and shattered together. In her dreams, she knew the feel of his arms holding her tightly against his sweat-drenched body. She’d reluctantly fall into an exhausted sleep, only to awaken to an empty room and bed, with only the phantom touch of him upon her skin.

Those nightly visits came to an abrupt stop three weeks ago. Her heart ached at the pang of loss even as her brain railed at his disappearance without out a word of goodbye. In the light of day, she knew they were just dreams. What she shared with Kellan in the recesses of her sleeping mind was not real, but it felt like it was, or had been.

The sound of a throat clearing brought Ailsa out of her out of her reverie. Looking up, her breath caught in her throat. Standing there was Kellan dressed in black leather pants that hugged his hips and muscular legs like a second skin. A white tunic tucked into his waistband with a V at the neckline offered a teasing glimpse of the chest it covered. The man who had been her dream lover and ruined any attraction to other men was now standing in front of her. Mouth open, she stood, her feet rooted to the floor, staring at him in shocked surprise, as a smirk tipped up one corner of his full lips.

“Are you not happy to see me, mo milis?” His voice was more seductive than it had been in her dreams.~©Jolanthe Aleksander, Breathe Me to Life 2018~

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079MQKQF5 
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B079MQKQF5 
Amazon CAN: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B079MQKQF5 
Amazon AUS: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B079MQKQF5 
Nook: http://bit.ly/2zythZw
iBooks: http://hyperurl.co/OUATT
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2yqXKLs
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2gkvAXU 

Until next week….Happy Reading!

~Jolanthe~

Olympics

It’s Olympics season! Are you an Olympic Couch Athlete? What’s that you ask? It’s a person who sits watching the Olympics and thinks…”I could do that.” Many moons ago, in my younger days, I was an Olympic Couch Athlete. Nowadays, while my brain may dream of attempting the impossible, my body is saying…”don’t even think about it.” lol

I am, what I like to call…athletically challenged and not normally a sports watcher. But the Olympics is a whole different story. These athletes have worked their hineys off to get to the top of the podium. They are part of an elite group of people at the top of their game. They are bravely and boldly reaching for their dream with the eyes of the world watching them with bated breath. Whether their goal is to win the gold or achieve their personal best while representing their country, they should be watched, supported, applauded, and celebrated.

I wish reading was an Olympic sport…I could soooooo be a top contender! lol

Until next week…Good Luck to the Athletes of the World and Happy Reading!

~Jolanthe~

 

New Year – New Everything continues

2018 is going to be full of changes for me, as previously mentioned. Some of it I’m planning and some things will happen as they happen. 🙂

One new thing is that my titles are going wide. It’s a HUGE learning curve for me and I have no real idea what I’m doing, but I’m going to learn as I go and hopefully, like with other things, be better for the adventure. With this, one thing that needed to happen was to get The Custos series covers adjusted so it is easier to know which one comes next. For the next couple weeks, I’ll reveal each of them in turn.

This week is Book of Time, which isn’t much different, just has the series logo identifier added…but, by Mysteries I’m excited to share the new wash over with you. I feel like the cover finally goes with the others better. I hope you’ll agree.

Once we get these shared, I’ll start sharing the new stuff. I’m doing my last 2 boxsets this spring and can’t wait to share them with you. One, coming in March is going to be a fun PNR set called Magic Rising. That set has a single cover that I hope you’ll enjoy.

After that is Once Upon a Twisted Time…a collection of re-imagined fairy tales that you know, with twists you might not see coming. My contribution is based on The Twelve Dancing Princesses and is called Twelve. I’ll reveal my individual cover soon, but here’s the overall for you to gaze upon.

Next on the crazy train of ’18 for me is a regrowth of my street team, The Zapatistas. This group is who gets to see new covers first, helps with promotion of my work and shares back with me sites, events, and other places where my work would be a good fit, but hasn’t been found yet. Do you have a few minutes each week to share my work and get the 411 early?

If you’re interested in joining my Street Team and getting the sneak peeks at what’s coming before everyone else…you can do so HERE. We’d love to add you to the group. My VPA Jennifer runs the group and keeps everything tracking, so there’s no inventing the wheel going on…just sharing and sharing.

More New Year – New Everything to come in the weeks ahead. Thanks for sticking around for the journey. Til next time, read something great & share with your friends!

Sav

 

 

 

Recovery mode

What a year…SERIOUSLY, what a year??!

From the early months when we were hitting the 80’s before spring officially sprang, to the summer of rain and cool breezes… & finally the autumn of record and near record highs… It’s finally temperate, and average for the time of year, and I’m in shell-shock. 42 degrees overnight after sleeping in the upper 50s & low 60s with the windows open is a hard pill to swallow.

But, that’s only one of the whirlwinds I’m trying to wrap my head around. This year has been manic, and exhausting, and exceptional, even as it’s been ominous and scary. I haven’t found solid yet…which is a problem since next year is looking like it’s going to be similar – or worse.  I need to find a way to recover quicker. The weather going wonky just doesn’t work for me…I need something to be stable. 🙂 As if, right?

This week is the week. It has to be. This Saturday marks my final signing event for the year- GLASS CITY AUTHOR EVENT – WOOOOT!!! -so the last time to clear inventory before the crates get tucked onto the shelf for the season, or something like that. It’s not like they get buried. It’s also the final piece on my white board of doom…kind of like the white screen of death, except that everything starts on the board and slowly disappears. The notion that I’m starting November with the board blank is giving me a twitch…but I’m looking for the lining and organizing my thoughts to fill it early.

Jump starts are allowed, aren’t they?

My November Crossword Puzzle Bloghop is nearly finalized and ready…look for the details on that with my post next week. I’m so excited to play…I LOVE WORD GAMES. I can’t wait to see how this format goes. It’s a new one, so there’s bound to be hiccups…but I’m excited. I hope you’re planning to join me.

Honestly, I need a week, or a month… where the fam leaves and I can do the gut and grouse…tough love clean sweep of the house with no witnesses. I think that’s the problem I’ve got finding level. Everything around me goes up for grabs while I’m in the cave, but it keeps swirling once I emerge and I can’t get a clear shot to take it out, and keep it that way. I’d hire a maid, but this is SO MUCH MORE than maid issue…this is borderline hoarder in a couple of rooms that I can’t peek into without getting hives.

I think a track loader starting at the back, shoving it all to the curb would make me feel so much better…I just need the others to stop chaining themselves to the woobies, roller skates that no longer fit, and the lawn ornaments that migrated from other family members houses. Do you think they’d suspect cruise tickets or something?? I mean, I can’t wear this whiplash collar forever…it’s me or the stuff. I’m voting for me.

See you next week – hopefully saner. Til then, read something amazing and thank the author…leave a review.

Sav

 

(don’t) Let it Show…

I’m not a big dog in this race…not even close. There are some that think I’m a big deal though, and well versed too…why? Because I learned one lesson in business young and have never forgotten it – Don’t flinch…and I don’t.  That doesn’t mean that there isn’t a full-blown tornado ripping though my soul at any given moment.

I did something a week or so ago, something I never thought I’d ever consider doing again…I pitched a literary agent to go back to traditional publishing. I LOVE being an Indie…don’t get me wrong, there’s just something about the idea of traditional backing, and marketing funds, and a few other perks that are tempting…though only recently. I’ll give it to you gospel…I was shaking in my shoes and nearly yerked my lunch before I got to the door. All in all, there are some great things on the horizon though because of that meeting…and I did manage to keep lunch in. So there’s that too. I just have to re-evaluate how I’m going to travel the road I’ve endeavored to take.

I’m fully confident of my abilities to write and be in the public eye at signings or conventions. I love the energy in a signing room…not gonna lie, it’s a hard habit to break and I have a fix every chance I get. That said, I also know my limitations. Public Relations and Marketing are easily my predominant Achilles heel, and the aspect of the business I struggle forward every inch to gain ground. I have to consider that I may need to go hybrid at the least to be able to have that front get the attention it deserves. It scares me more than a little, but I know I need help.

 

I did not make the decision to leave traditional publishing lightly. Any consideration to go back must be as carefully weighed. Whichever way this road goes, one thing will hold true…you won’t see my frenzy if I can help it. Composure will be me, if I have to stand on my own feet to accomplish it.

Actively baffled-

A long while back…or at least it seems like a long while back, it really wasn’t, I decided that in 2017 I was going to catch up. ’16 had damn near killed me, and my drive…I wanted a do-over.

The goal: Fulfill the docket from 16, and add 17 to the mix…meaning, EIGHT releases…EIGHT releases of MY OWN. Not counting an edit for someone else, or a publishing job for the house, that would all be extra…eight Savie V. releases.

Folks said I was crazy. Heck, I said I was crazy…I was right. I was, still am.

BUT…I did it. Gravedigger releases this coming Saturday. I confirmed it with the final upload around 12:30 this morning. I’ve been sussing over it for weeks now, not happy with little pieces here or there. I was seriously debating killing my ability to do a preorder for the next year…and push it back or cancel the preorder all together. I was that irritated with pieces. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it though.

I’m glad I didn’t. Gravedigger has shown me something that I needed to see, and while it was enlightening…it has also left me actively baffled about where I’m going next.

I’ve called myself a Contemporary Vagabond for a long while now, and I think that will hold true…but, I’m seeing a few things shift as I’ve been writing this year; my tendencies narrowing, my tastes…refining perhaps, and my choices…they don’t surprise me as much as they used to. I am enjoying writing certain genres and twists more than others, and I’m harder-pressed to turn down some things than others.

The biggest shock is that a piece I wrote to stand alone…I believe is going to launch a series. I fell in love with a character who, even though the story is done and in print, won’t stop talking to me. I’ll tell you more about them soon. right now…I’m here to tell you that release #7 of the year, Gravedigger comes out this Saturday. The preorder is live for $0.99 but that price will not last. The change date is on my calendar already….don’t wait.

Release #8 of mine for the year is Veil Break. It comes out in the Haunting Savannah set on October 10th. I am thrilled to share that story in a set with other awesome writers…great all 8 stories at once…just in time for Halloween!

‘Til next time…I’m taking a day to maybe sleep normal, then packing for Penned Con in St. Louis. The writing parts may be done, but the adventure always beckons.

see you soon.

 

Sanity is over-rated.

It’s go time. I’ve been working for this kick off point for half of the year between other things, and honestly…I’m ready to wrap. How abysmal is that? I’m at the beginning of my victory lap and I’m too pooped to run it. lol

I will. No worries…I always rally. Right now, I’m just zoinked from the hard run marathon to reach this point.

What am I talking about?? FIVE RELEASES IN SIX WEEKS.
Yupp, you read that right. Even though one has moved dates, the lead up didn’t change…so in my mind it still counts.

Ready??
Here goes.
Tomorrow, Tuesday August 29: Imposs-i-Bella releases.

Tuesday September 12: Book of Mysteries (The Custos Series book 3) releases.
AND Rogue in Cimmerian Shade Limited Edition box set releases.

Saturday September 30: Gravedigger releases.

Tuesday October 10: Veil Break in Haunting Savannah releases.

I’m going to grin like a madman when it’s all done…but right now I could use a masseuse, a housekeeper, and a cook.

True story.

Sav

Sneak Peek Cover Reveal

The official cover reveal isn’t happening until Wednesday…but I love sneak peeks! so….shhhhhhhhhhhh.

I’m head over feet for this cover too…so much so, it’s made concentrating on the other stories SO HARD. See what you think!!
(For the full effect…rotate the image sideways so the spine is down…TELL ME it doesn’t give you goosebumps!)

Gravedigger
By Savannah Verte
PreOrder August 2017
Release September 26, 2017

Secrets and lies don’t stay buried long in shallow graves.

working blurb:
A string of seemingly unrelated murders force sleepy town detective Eric Dublin to earn his retirement. The national news descends when Callie Faire, the one local girl to make good, becomes the latest victim retrieved from the Howard Community Cemetery as all hell breaks loose. But, the connections between the dead are finding light too.
Can Dublin put the pieces together in time to stop the next murder, or will the gravedigger have to unearth another fresh corpse in the morning?