Please welcome my new assistant, Justine Greene. She may occasionally be posting things on the blog for me, she's been the president of my fan club for a year, and a huge help. It feels right having her step into the job. Even though Samwise will still be doing my MySpace, Justine will help me handle Facebook and other things I need her for. She can be found on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/fairyfindings and on Myspace at: http://www.myspace.com/fairyfindings and http://www.myspace.com/moonstalkers
She will still be running the fan club as part of her duties, and she can be found on Facebook. She will be authorized to answer fan mail for me as well as comments when I can't get to them. :) Please make her feel welcome.
Yasmine
5.30.2009
5.29.2009
Shopping List For Tuesday!
Okay, a plug here for a couple special friends of mine. It's release day at Berkley next Tuesday, and here are a couple I recommend for your shopping list (of course, along with Demon Mistress). ~grins~
Anya Bast's Witch Fury is coming out on the same day, and Alyssa Day's Atlantis Unleashed is coming out! You can follow both authors on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/anyabast and http://www.twitter.com/alyssa_day (and me, too, obviously: http://www.twitter.com/yasminegalenorn). Seriously talented women!
So check out their books, check out their twitters and websites!
Yasmine
Last Backlist Contest for Demon Mistress
My part of the round robin Faerie Tale is up at the Witchy Chicks. If you drop by, read the whole tale, and leave me a hello over there on my blog post (I've been working hard, I could use a few friendly faces and encouragement), I'll draw one name from all the commenters to receive a book from my backlist and one by another author I like (it will be a surprise). :)
Yasmine
Yasmine
5.28.2009
Demon Mistress: Last Excerpt
First, a little news I'm proud of re: my Witchy Chicks Blogging Group! We've been given a hugely wonderful review and rating. I found out about it by accident! LOL But it makes me proud of all the work Linda and I did in building the blog in the first place, and all the time and energy put into it by our fellow Witchy Chicks. ~smiles~
And: Before being archived, my latest radio interview will be rebroadcast on Sat. May 30th at 8pm EST. Radio Dentata The site and commercials are definitely ADULT as in over R-rated. The language on the radio show is uncensored, so I wouldn't be playing it at work outloud or if you are squeamish about your kids hearing. I'll be doing a second interview with Sascha Illyvich (who is a blast) in a little over a month or so. BTW: he's a great erotica writer and I will put his link in the forums on my site.
And now: the last excerpt before Demon Mistress is released. Enjoy!
Demon Mistress Excerpt:
“Holy crap!” I leapt toward Camille as she stumbled back. “Move! Now!”
She spun around, racing like the wind away from the demon, which was careening at full tilt toward her. Either it sensed her magical energy or the energy of the horn. Whatever the case, it aimed itself at her, tentacles streaming behind it. No lumbering movements here. The thing sailed through the air like a real squid swimming through water.
Smoky was instantly on its tail, shifting into full dragon form again as he hurled himself at the creature. Rozurial pulled out a long silver sword and headed into the fray, with Vanzir on his heels. I decided to help Camille. She might be able to run faster than me out on the astral, but I was still stronger. I raced to the front of the squid and leapt in between them.
The Karsetii was rumbling at me, full throttle. I waited. It could ram me a good one, but it couldn’t suck out any life energy from me because— guess what?— I didn’t have any.
As it loomed large, slowing by a fraction of a second, I ducked and spun, kicking with every ounce of strength I had as it zoomed overhead. My foot met it square in the eye, and I heard a shriek. Even though the impact jarred me to the core, it wasn’t as rough as hitting its incarnations. It occurred to me that perhaps they were part of the hive mother’s defense; maybe the demon was more vulnerable in person than its “children” were.
The Karsetii let out another shriek. I rolled out from under it, arching my back to leap back to a standing position. Smoky was on it now, and he had the bulbous brain of the demon in his gigantic mouth, shaking it like a dog might shake a rat. I stepped back, both impressed and wary. Smoky in attack mode at any time was impressive, but when he was in full dragon form, whoa Mama, he was a mean sucker.
I heard Camille gasp, then she yelled, “Menolly, run like hell. I’m going to fry this thing with fire.”
I ran. I ran so hard I almost tripped over Roz, who was darting around, looking for an opening in which to attack. Vanzir was just standing there, arms folded across his chest, watching the fight. I raced past him, and he knocked me to the ground, shielding me with his body. I had the feeling the move wasn’t entirely altruistic, but I wasn’t complaining. Anything to keep me from becoming a crispy critter at the hands of my sister’s wayward magic.
“Smoky—move!” Her voice echoed through the mists as she held up the horn. I gather he moved, because she let out some sort of incantation, and a heat wave ripped through the area.
Copyright 2009, all rights reserved
Yasmine Galenorn
And: Before being archived, my latest radio interview will be rebroadcast on Sat. May 30th at 8pm EST. Radio Dentata The site and commercials are definitely ADULT as in over R-rated. The language on the radio show is uncensored, so I wouldn't be playing it at work outloud or if you are squeamish about your kids hearing. I'll be doing a second interview with Sascha Illyvich (who is a blast) in a little over a month or so. BTW: he's a great erotica writer and I will put his link in the forums on my site.
And now: the last excerpt before Demon Mistress is released. Enjoy!
Demon Mistress Excerpt:
“Holy crap!” I leapt toward Camille as she stumbled back. “Move! Now!”
She spun around, racing like the wind away from the demon, which was careening at full tilt toward her. Either it sensed her magical energy or the energy of the horn. Whatever the case, it aimed itself at her, tentacles streaming behind it. No lumbering movements here. The thing sailed through the air like a real squid swimming through water.
Smoky was instantly on its tail, shifting into full dragon form again as he hurled himself at the creature. Rozurial pulled out a long silver sword and headed into the fray, with Vanzir on his heels. I decided to help Camille. She might be able to run faster than me out on the astral, but I was still stronger. I raced to the front of the squid and leapt in between them.
The Karsetii was rumbling at me, full throttle. I waited. It could ram me a good one, but it couldn’t suck out any life energy from me because— guess what?— I didn’t have any.
As it loomed large, slowing by a fraction of a second, I ducked and spun, kicking with every ounce of strength I had as it zoomed overhead. My foot met it square in the eye, and I heard a shriek. Even though the impact jarred me to the core, it wasn’t as rough as hitting its incarnations. It occurred to me that perhaps they were part of the hive mother’s defense; maybe the demon was more vulnerable in person than its “children” were.
The Karsetii let out another shriek. I rolled out from under it, arching my back to leap back to a standing position. Smoky was on it now, and he had the bulbous brain of the demon in his gigantic mouth, shaking it like a dog might shake a rat. I stepped back, both impressed and wary. Smoky in attack mode at any time was impressive, but when he was in full dragon form, whoa Mama, he was a mean sucker.
I heard Camille gasp, then she yelled, “Menolly, run like hell. I’m going to fry this thing with fire.”
I ran. I ran so hard I almost tripped over Roz, who was darting around, looking for an opening in which to attack. Vanzir was just standing there, arms folded across his chest, watching the fight. I raced past him, and he knocked me to the ground, shielding me with his body. I had the feeling the move wasn’t entirely altruistic, but I wasn’t complaining. Anything to keep me from becoming a crispy critter at the hands of my sister’s wayward magic.
“Smoky—move!” Her voice echoed through the mists as she held up the horn. I gather he moved, because she let out some sort of incantation, and a heat wave ripped through the area.
Copyright 2009, all rights reserved
Yasmine Galenorn
5.27.2009
Demon Mistress Countdown: Spin the Bottle Contest
We're getting freaky on the contest blog, with a Spin the Bottle contest, D'Artigo Girl style. Ever wonder who you'd be (un)lucky enough to kiss in a game of Spin the Bottle with the sisters and their friends? Hop over to the Life on the Fringe contest blog for instructions on how to enter. 3 $10 online gift certificates up for grabs!
OH, and I forgot to add Siobhan Morgan's theme song in there yesterday. It would be Calypso, by Suzanne Vega. :)
Yasmine
OH, and I forgot to add Siobhan Morgan's theme song in there yesterday. It would be Calypso, by Suzanne Vega. :)
Yasmine
5.26.2009
Characters & Their Theme Songs & More Backlist Giveaway
Okay, talking about music and writing today—mostly giving you a list of the theme songs I use for each character. These are the songs that bring them immediately to mind for me, that epitomize the energy I get from them.
Three people from combined comments on MySpace, my Blogger Blog, and my forums will win a book from my backlist. This contest closes Wednesday night (the 27th) at 9:00 PM.
But first, to answer a question someone asked me over on Anya’s blog yesterday. Bookaholic asked me, “I hope you don't mind me asking, but why did music not factor so much in your previous writing? Why does the Otherworld series lend itself more to you listening to music compared to your previous work?”
The mysteries were harder for me to write in many ways, mostly because I didn’t feel them on a ‘gut’ level like I do the urban fantasy books. My voice, my nature, really lends itself to urban fantasy far more than it ever did—or would—to cozy mysteries.
Since that wasn’t the genre I normally read much of, nor that I really gravitated toward, I had to follow an outline/synopsis so much more than I do with these books. While I really adored Emerald and her crew, and I’m proud of the work, the books didn’t come from my heart like the Otherworld books (and now, the Indigo Court series, too).
I couldn’t just get lost in the music and write—writing the mysteries took more conscious effort and offered me a lot more stumbling blocks. With the work now, I can put it on autopilot most days and lose myself in the writing and the world.
Okay, on to my list of theme songs for the characters of Otherworld. Some characters may have several, for different aspects of them.
The Otherworld Series as a Whole: Believe (the Bravery); and secondary: Demon Days (Gorillaz), March of Cambreadth (Heather Alexander)
Camille: American Witch (Rob Zombie); Dare (Gorillaz); Outland (Gary Numan); Super Freak (Rick James)
Delilah: It Don’t Come Easy (Ringo Starr); The Chain (Fleetwood Mac); Broken Train (Beck)
Menolly: Living Dead Girl (Rob Zombie); In the Waiting Line (Zero 7); Lithium Flower (Yoko Kanno)
Smoky: Don’t You (Simple Minds), Sunshine of Your Love (Cream);
Trillian: The Gap (Thompson Twins); I Will Possess Your Heart (Death Cab for Cutie)
Morio: Paralyzer (Finger Eleven); The Fox (Steel Eye Span); Play With Fire (Rolling Stones)
Rozurial: Hunger (Gary Numan); Dream Killer (Gary Numan); Diamonds & Guns (Transplants)
Nerissa: Sweet Dreams (Eurythmics); Brick House (Commadores)
Chase: Without You (David Bowie); Gimme Shelter (Rolling Stones)
Zachary: Bad Moon on the Rise (CCR); Children of the Moon (Alan Parsons)
Vanzir: Remedy (Seether); Sleep By Windows (Gary Numan);
Iris: The Battle of Evermore (Led Zeppelin); Shattered Glass (Heather Alexander)
Siobhan Morgan: Calypso (Suzanne Vega)
Venus the Moonchild: Fly Away (Lenny Kravitz)
Sassy Branson: Rest Your Tears Here (Gabrielle Roth)
Carter: Dark Star (Beck)
Feddrah-Dahns: Queen of Argyll (Tempest)
Mistletoe: Midsummer (Heather Alexander)
Wade: Rockit (Gorillaz); Mother's Little Helper (Rolling Stones)
Erin Morgan: Trouble (Cat Stevens);
TimWinthrop/Cleo Blanco: Secret Agent Man (Devo)
Wilbur: Don’t Fear the Reaper (BOC)
Shadow Wing: Walking With Shadows (Gary Numan); Superbeast (Rob Zombie)
Bad Ass Luke: Mutilated Lips (Ween)
Karvanak: New Man (Shriekback)
Dredge: Possum Kingdom (Toadies)
Stacia (the) Bonecrusher: 8 Ghosts 1 (NIN)
Trytian: All My Life (Foo Fighters)
Harold Young & Dante’s Hellions: Jeremy (Pearl Jam); Freak on a Leash (Korn); Falling to Pieces (Faith No More)
And my theme songs, the music that really connects to the way I am/feel? Well, it depends on the day but several crop up over and over again:
Gary Numan: Hunger; The Angel Wars; Melt; Prophecy; Dead Heaven; The Angel Wars; My Breathing
Orgy: Social Enemies
Low: Half Light
Gabrielle Roth: Mother Night; The Calling; Seducing Hades
Death Cab For Cutie: I Will Possess Your Heart
NIN: Closer
Doors: My Wild Love
Beck: Que Onda Guero; Nausea; Soul of a Man; Hot Wax
And now, to enter the backlist contest, tell me: what are the songs that you feel most epitomize your feelings, your life and inner self?
Yasmine
Three people from combined comments on MySpace, my Blogger Blog, and my forums will win a book from my backlist. This contest closes Wednesday night (the 27th) at 9:00 PM.
But first, to answer a question someone asked me over on Anya’s blog yesterday. Bookaholic asked me, “I hope you don't mind me asking, but why did music not factor so much in your previous writing? Why does the Otherworld series lend itself more to you listening to music compared to your previous work?”
The mysteries were harder for me to write in many ways, mostly because I didn’t feel them on a ‘gut’ level like I do the urban fantasy books. My voice, my nature, really lends itself to urban fantasy far more than it ever did—or would—to cozy mysteries.
Since that wasn’t the genre I normally read much of, nor that I really gravitated toward, I had to follow an outline/synopsis so much more than I do with these books. While I really adored Emerald and her crew, and I’m proud of the work, the books didn’t come from my heart like the Otherworld books (and now, the Indigo Court series, too).
I couldn’t just get lost in the music and write—writing the mysteries took more conscious effort and offered me a lot more stumbling blocks. With the work now, I can put it on autopilot most days and lose myself in the writing and the world.
Okay, on to my list of theme songs for the characters of Otherworld. Some characters may have several, for different aspects of them.
The Otherworld Series as a Whole: Believe (the Bravery); and secondary: Demon Days (Gorillaz), March of Cambreadth (Heather Alexander)
Camille: American Witch (Rob Zombie); Dare (Gorillaz); Outland (Gary Numan); Super Freak (Rick James)
Delilah: It Don’t Come Easy (Ringo Starr); The Chain (Fleetwood Mac); Broken Train (Beck)
Menolly: Living Dead Girl (Rob Zombie); In the Waiting Line (Zero 7); Lithium Flower (Yoko Kanno)
Smoky: Don’t You (Simple Minds), Sunshine of Your Love (Cream);
Trillian: The Gap (Thompson Twins); I Will Possess Your Heart (Death Cab for Cutie)
Morio: Paralyzer (Finger Eleven); The Fox (Steel Eye Span); Play With Fire (Rolling Stones)
Rozurial: Hunger (Gary Numan); Dream Killer (Gary Numan); Diamonds & Guns (Transplants)
Nerissa: Sweet Dreams (Eurythmics); Brick House (Commadores)
Chase: Without You (David Bowie); Gimme Shelter (Rolling Stones)
Zachary: Bad Moon on the Rise (CCR); Children of the Moon (Alan Parsons)
Vanzir: Remedy (Seether); Sleep By Windows (Gary Numan);
Iris: The Battle of Evermore (Led Zeppelin); Shattered Glass (Heather Alexander)
Siobhan Morgan: Calypso (Suzanne Vega)
Venus the Moonchild: Fly Away (Lenny Kravitz)
Sassy Branson: Rest Your Tears Here (Gabrielle Roth)
Carter: Dark Star (Beck)
Feddrah-Dahns: Queen of Argyll (Tempest)
Mistletoe: Midsummer (Heather Alexander)
Wade: Rockit (Gorillaz); Mother's Little Helper (Rolling Stones)
Erin Morgan: Trouble (Cat Stevens);
TimWinthrop/Cleo Blanco: Secret Agent Man (Devo)
Wilbur: Don’t Fear the Reaper (BOC)
Shadow Wing: Walking With Shadows (Gary Numan); Superbeast (Rob Zombie)
Bad Ass Luke: Mutilated Lips (Ween)
Karvanak: New Man (Shriekback)
Dredge: Possum Kingdom (Toadies)
Stacia (the) Bonecrusher: 8 Ghosts 1 (NIN)
Trytian: All My Life (Foo Fighters)
Harold Young & Dante’s Hellions: Jeremy (Pearl Jam); Freak on a Leash (Korn); Falling to Pieces (Faith No More)
And my theme songs, the music that really connects to the way I am/feel? Well, it depends on the day but several crop up over and over again:
Gary Numan: Hunger; The Angel Wars; Melt; Prophecy; Dead Heaven; The Angel Wars; My Breathing
Orgy: Social Enemies
Low: Half Light
Gabrielle Roth: Mother Night; The Calling; Seducing Hades
Death Cab For Cutie: I Will Possess Your Heart
NIN: Closer
Doors: My Wild Love
Beck: Que Onda Guero; Nausea; Soul of a Man; Hot Wax
And now, to enter the backlist contest, tell me: what are the songs that you feel most epitomize your feelings, your life and inner self?
Yasmine
Anya's Winner of the Blog Exchange Contest
The winner of Anya's Summer Goody bag is: Greta, from Blogger. Anya will be contacting you via the link to your website that's from your profile, with instructions! Congratulations!
And thanks to everybody who joined in our blog exchange. We have a lot of fun doing them. :)
Yasmine
And thanks to everybody who joined in our blog exchange. We have a lot of fun doing them. :)
Yasmine
5.25.2009
The Girls of Summer: Bast & Galenorn Turn Up The Heat
Join two of Berkley's most magical authors as they interview each other about their upcoming releases. Yasmine Galenorn's Demon Mistress and Anya Bast's Witch Fury will be coming out on June 2, 2009--just in time for theBeach Reads Season. Get your copies when they come hot off the press, to turn up the heat with the Girls of Summer!
Just as Anya is interviewing here on my blog, I'm interviewing with her over on hers. And we're both offering a delicious goody bag to two lucky winners--(she'll send a goody bag to one of the commenters from my blogs, and I will do the same to one off hers). So be sure to hop over to her blogs and read my interview and enter for a chance to win some Sizzling Summer fun! You'll find her website blog Here, and her MySpace Here.
WITCH FURY:
Sarafina Connell is having the worst week of her life. It takes an even darker turn when an infamous playboy kidnaps her and reveals a world she never knew existed….
It’s a world where magick is real, and where Sarafina is given a chance to join a secret cabal that is bent on gaining absolute power. They could use a woman like her—a witch with an untapped gift for creating fire. But she isn’t about to get in league with the devil.
Rescued from her captors, Sarafina is introduced to a coven that is duty-bound to fight the forces of darkness. She’s pleased that her savior is the imposingly seductive Theo—until the trust between them goes up in flames. However, as the war between good and evil is waged,
Sarafina and Theo realize they have no choice but to unite in the battle for supremacy—that’s getting hotter by the minute.
Interview:
It’s a world where magick is real, and where Sarafina is given a chance to join a secret cabal that is bent on gaining absolute power. They could use a woman like her—a witch with an untapped gift for creating fire. But she isn’t about to get in league with the devil.
Rescued from her captors, Sarafina is introduced to a coven that is duty-bound to fight the forces of darkness. She’s pleased that her savior is the imposingly seductive Theo—until the trust between them goes up in flames. However, as the war between good and evil is waged,
Sarafina and Theo realize they have no choice but to unite in the battle for supremacy—that’s getting hotter by the minute.
Interview:
Yasmine: What do you think makes this book stand out from the previous ones in the series?
Anya: It's the last one. It ties together the threads I've woven in the first three books and (I hope!) brings them all together for an exciting edge-of-your-seat ride and satisfying conclusion to the series. I wrote the book to stand alone (so people reading this one without having read the first three wouldn't be confused). This book has non-stop action. It should be a quick, fun, sexy read.
Yasmine: If you could hit the sheets with any one of your characters, who would it be and why?
Anya: Hm, that's such a hard one. One that immediately pops to mind is Alejandro from The Chosen Sin. He's got this sexy Latin thing happening that's irresistible. I think he's one of the hotter men I've written. However, Daria would most certainly kick my butt for even thinking about Alejandro in that way. The other that instantly comes to mind is Theo from Witch Fury. He's just the kind of character I love to write—dark, brooding, a little bit dangerous and volatile.
But, honestly, I think he's just the right fit for Sarafina and wouldn't want to come between them. ;) I always fall a little in love with the heroes I write, though. Any of them would be totally
sheet-worthy.
Yasmine: How do you think your character has grown/evolved over the past few books?
Anya: Every one of my books features new main characters, as opposed to a central character that recurs in every book. That said, I do have a group of secondary characters that appear in all the books of the Elemental Witches series. Thomas Monahan has learned to relax a bit
more throughout the series, be a little playful now and then. Isabelle has learned to love and accept love without fear. Adam has stopped drowning his grief and sorrow in meaningless affairs and has forgiven himself. Claire has embraced all aspects of herself, accepted herself, and made peace with her tumultuous childhood.
Yasmine: How did the original seed of the idea for your series implant itself in your mind?
Anya: I originally pitched the idea for the series as Charmed meets The West Wing, but at the time I wasn't totally sure where I was going with that. Eventually "Charmed meets The West Wing" developed into the Chicago Coven, though the overall series is nothing like either
Charmed or The West Wing. That's the way these things turn out. There's a small idea that grows and changes until it's completely different than your original concept and totally unique from anything else out there. It's like a living thing, evolving and maturing. I go back and look at notes I made in the early stages of the series and see that I went in a completely different direction because one idea sprouted off and grew others.
Yasmine: Do you listen to music when you write? Why or why not? What are some of the songs off your current playlist?
Anya: I sometimes listen to music when I write, if, for example, it will help inspire me to write a certain kind of scene. Or sometimes I use my iPod, set on low volume, to distract me the sound of my daughter's Dora the Explorer or something. It's hard to write dark speculative fiction with, say, Snow White singing in the background. I need something to help me get into the mood and music can help me do that. Often rotating on my ipod is Black Light Burns, Seether, Death
Cab for Cutie, The Decemberists, Fall out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Regina Specktor and Billie Holliday. I like a wide range of music. What I'm listening to depends on my mood and what I'm writing at the moment.
Yasmine: I know you have many cats like I do. Do they "help" you write? ;)
Anya: I have eight cats and they all love me. That means I usually have furry bookends on either of my laptop or someone right up in my face, purring at me. At the moment, the one purring in my face is Synja. Kiki is flush up against my laptop on the other side, almost
lying on my keyboard. I'm forever cleaning my screen/keyboard because of all the cat hair. But I love them back, so I accept the inconveniences.
Bio: Anya Bast is the national bestselling author of numerous works of romantic fiction, mostly all paranormal and mostly all scorching hot. She lives in the country with her husband, daughter, eight cats, a dog, and an odd assortment of rescued animals.
She grew up in Minnesota and still favors the colder climates. After high school she moved to the southeast United States where she attended college. While in graduate school she sold her first book and decide to pursue her lifelong dream of writing instead of a career in psychology.
Somewhat reclusive by nature, she can be drawn out with a good bottle of red wine, classic movies, or good music. When she’s not writing, she can be found trying to grow organic vegetables, shopping in thrift stores for that perfect piece of clothing, or dreaming about travel to
some faraway country.
You can visit Anya at her web site, http://www.anyabast.com/ She haunts Twitter frequently and you can find her on Livejournal, Facebook and Myspace too. Search for her under her name on all of them.
Anya: It's the last one. It ties together the threads I've woven in the first three books and (I hope!) brings them all together for an exciting edge-of-your-seat ride and satisfying conclusion to the series. I wrote the book to stand alone (so people reading this one without having read the first three wouldn't be confused). This book has non-stop action. It should be a quick, fun, sexy read.
Yasmine: If you could hit the sheets with any one of your characters, who would it be and why?
Anya: Hm, that's such a hard one. One that immediately pops to mind is Alejandro from The Chosen Sin. He's got this sexy Latin thing happening that's irresistible. I think he's one of the hotter men I've written. However, Daria would most certainly kick my butt for even thinking about Alejandro in that way. The other that instantly comes to mind is Theo from Witch Fury. He's just the kind of character I love to write—dark, brooding, a little bit dangerous and volatile.
But, honestly, I think he's just the right fit for Sarafina and wouldn't want to come between them. ;) I always fall a little in love with the heroes I write, though. Any of them would be totally
sheet-worthy.
Yasmine: How do you think your character has grown/evolved over the past few books?
Anya: Every one of my books features new main characters, as opposed to a central character that recurs in every book. That said, I do have a group of secondary characters that appear in all the books of the Elemental Witches series. Thomas Monahan has learned to relax a bit
more throughout the series, be a little playful now and then. Isabelle has learned to love and accept love without fear. Adam has stopped drowning his grief and sorrow in meaningless affairs and has forgiven himself. Claire has embraced all aspects of herself, accepted herself, and made peace with her tumultuous childhood.
Yasmine: How did the original seed of the idea for your series implant itself in your mind?
Anya: I originally pitched the idea for the series as Charmed meets The West Wing, but at the time I wasn't totally sure where I was going with that. Eventually "Charmed meets The West Wing" developed into the Chicago Coven, though the overall series is nothing like either
Charmed or The West Wing. That's the way these things turn out. There's a small idea that grows and changes until it's completely different than your original concept and totally unique from anything else out there. It's like a living thing, evolving and maturing. I go back and look at notes I made in the early stages of the series and see that I went in a completely different direction because one idea sprouted off and grew others.
Yasmine: Do you listen to music when you write? Why or why not? What are some of the songs off your current playlist?
Anya: I sometimes listen to music when I write, if, for example, it will help inspire me to write a certain kind of scene. Or sometimes I use my iPod, set on low volume, to distract me the sound of my daughter's Dora the Explorer or something. It's hard to write dark speculative fiction with, say, Snow White singing in the background. I need something to help me get into the mood and music can help me do that. Often rotating on my ipod is Black Light Burns, Seether, Death
Cab for Cutie, The Decemberists, Fall out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Regina Specktor and Billie Holliday. I like a wide range of music. What I'm listening to depends on my mood and what I'm writing at the moment.
Yasmine: I know you have many cats like I do. Do they "help" you write? ;)
Anya: I have eight cats and they all love me. That means I usually have furry bookends on either of my laptop or someone right up in my face, purring at me. At the moment, the one purring in my face is Synja. Kiki is flush up against my laptop on the other side, almost
lying on my keyboard. I'm forever cleaning my screen/keyboard because of all the cat hair. But I love them back, so I accept the inconveniences.
Bio: Anya Bast is the national bestselling author of numerous works of romantic fiction, mostly all paranormal and mostly all scorching hot. She lives in the country with her husband, daughter, eight cats, a dog, and an odd assortment of rescued animals.
She grew up in Minnesota and still favors the colder climates. After high school she moved to the southeast United States where she attended college. While in graduate school she sold her first book and decide to pursue her lifelong dream of writing instead of a career in psychology.
Somewhat reclusive by nature, she can be drawn out with a good bottle of red wine, classic movies, or good music. When she’s not writing, she can be found trying to grow organic vegetables, shopping in thrift stores for that perfect piece of clothing, or dreaming about travel to
some faraway country.
You can visit Anya at her web site, http://www.anyabast.com/ She haunts Twitter frequently and you can find her on Livejournal, Facebook and Myspace too. Search for her under her name on all of them.
5.23.2009
Special Demon Mistress Excerpt/Reader Chat & Backlist Books
Yes, a special Demon Mistress excerpt before chat today--and three more people will get a book from my backlist from the combined comments here, MySpace, and my forums.
Excerpt in Forums!
See you in chat at 6:00 PM Pacific time--in my forums. Register now if you haven't already. It's free.
Excerpt in Forums!
See you in chat at 6:00 PM Pacific time--in my forums. Register now if you haven't already. It's free.
5.22.2009
Demon Mistress Excerpt & More Backlist Up For Grabs
First: yes, we did get a new furbaby and her name is Morgana. I’ll try to blog specifically about her this weekend. ~smiles~ But for today—we have plans.
Note: For the winners of all contests, your books, etc., will be mailed within two weeks of the closing of the contest (unless there’s some weird fluke that takes longer, if there is, I’ll let people know). Justine (fan club president) will be contacting you via the Moon Stalkers Fan Club account.
I’ll be giving away 5 random books from my backlist, one to each of five people from the combined comments on my blogs on Blogger, MySpace, or the copy posted in my forums today. You must post your comment before midnight in the comments thread of this blog post. You can enter in all three places but you’ll only win once if you win. Justine, my fan club president, will be notifying winners and collecting your information for me.
Remember: Tomorrow night there will be a special excerpt from Demon Mistress posted in my forums at around 4:30 Pacific time, and then a chat in my forum chat room at 6:00 PM Pacific time. You must be signed up at my forums to enter the chatroom, and registration is free.
See you there!
Demon Mistress Excerpt (copyright 2009, Yasmine Galenorn, all rights reserved: do not reproduce in any form).
At that moment, there was a movement at the entry to the parlor, and a gangly young man stood there. He was average height and must have been mid- twenties, with short-cropped
hair and beard stubble the same color as mine. With black wire- framed glasses, torn jeans that looked all too expensive, and a T-shirt that read Fuck You, Too, he looked like the
typical college geek. Except that his energy reeked of Demonkin.
I heard Camille gasp, then her hand fluttered to her throat, and she forced a smile as she stood. “Harold, I presume? Harold Young?”
He gave us the once-over and, with a thin smile that was anything but friendly, crossed to the sofa and held out his hand. Camille stared at it for a fraction of a second before taking it.
“Yeah, I’m Harold. You’re Camille, the reporter?” His gaze slid over her in a sleazy, possessive manner.
“Uh . . . yeah.” Camille tried to extricate herself from the handshake, but Harold wouldn’t let go until she yanked her hand away. He folded his arms across his chest, smirking as she wiped her hand on her skirt. I didn’t think she even realized she was doing it.
Morio bristled, and I slid a hand onto his arm. He sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. Our little interaction didn’t go unnoticed. Harold raked his gaze over Morio, and then he turned to me, ignoring the youkai.
“And you? You’re Fae, too?”
I nodded. “The name’s Menolly.” I thrust my hand at him, wanting to see if I could pick up anything. I also wanted to give him a little taste of his own medicine. When he clasped my hand, I squeezed. Hard. He gasped and tried to let go, but I held on for a beat longer than necessary, squeezing again while flashing him a big smile. Oh yeah, this meeting was going
hunky-dory, all right. Just like the meeting at the O.K. Corral.
Harold stared at his hand, then at me, and motioned for us to sit down again. He cautiously took a seat opposite in the chair that Larry had vacated. Larry sat next to him on the ottoman,
and the hierarchy was clear. Harold was the big cheese, all right.
Camille pulled out her notebook and nodded to me. “If it’s all right, Menolly’s going to film you.”
“No.” Harold shook his head. “No film.”
“All right, then.” Camille frowned, motioning for me to put away the camcorder. “Will you tell me a little about the background of Dante’s Hellions? Why and when did you start the organization?”
Harold let out a loud snort. “I didn’t start it. My father belonged to it, and my uncle. I joined when I was a freshman.”
“Why not one of the other fraternities?” Camille’s eyes flashed, and I knew she was goading him. And she got a reaction, all right.
Harold let out a harsh laugh. “Because the sheep in this college are a bunch of idiots, and I have no intention on joining their fucking social clubs. I’m president of Dante’s Hellions
because the university is run by a bunch of imbeciles. Because when the big one goes down, we fully intend to be the ones left standing in our little corner of the globe.”
He flashed us a dazzling grin, and in that smile, I saw the unmistakable signs of a predator. Harold Young was dangerous. And who knew what he’d been dabbling in over the years?
Note: For the winners of all contests, your books, etc., will be mailed within two weeks of the closing of the contest (unless there’s some weird fluke that takes longer, if there is, I’ll let people know). Justine (fan club president) will be contacting you via the Moon Stalkers Fan Club account.
I’ll be giving away 5 random books from my backlist, one to each of five people from the combined comments on my blogs on Blogger, MySpace, or the copy posted in my forums today. You must post your comment before midnight in the comments thread of this blog post. You can enter in all three places but you’ll only win once if you win. Justine, my fan club president, will be notifying winners and collecting your information for me.
Remember: Tomorrow night there will be a special excerpt from Demon Mistress posted in my forums at around 4:30 Pacific time, and then a chat in my forum chat room at 6:00 PM Pacific time. You must be signed up at my forums to enter the chatroom, and registration is free.
See you there!
Demon Mistress Excerpt (copyright 2009, Yasmine Galenorn, all rights reserved: do not reproduce in any form).
At that moment, there was a movement at the entry to the parlor, and a gangly young man stood there. He was average height and must have been mid- twenties, with short-cropped
hair and beard stubble the same color as mine. With black wire- framed glasses, torn jeans that looked all too expensive, and a T-shirt that read Fuck You, Too, he looked like the
typical college geek. Except that his energy reeked of Demonkin.
I heard Camille gasp, then her hand fluttered to her throat, and she forced a smile as she stood. “Harold, I presume? Harold Young?”
He gave us the once-over and, with a thin smile that was anything but friendly, crossed to the sofa and held out his hand. Camille stared at it for a fraction of a second before taking it.
“Yeah, I’m Harold. You’re Camille, the reporter?” His gaze slid over her in a sleazy, possessive manner.
“Uh . . . yeah.” Camille tried to extricate herself from the handshake, but Harold wouldn’t let go until she yanked her hand away. He folded his arms across his chest, smirking as she wiped her hand on her skirt. I didn’t think she even realized she was doing it.
Morio bristled, and I slid a hand onto his arm. He sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. Our little interaction didn’t go unnoticed. Harold raked his gaze over Morio, and then he turned to me, ignoring the youkai.
“And you? You’re Fae, too?”
I nodded. “The name’s Menolly.” I thrust my hand at him, wanting to see if I could pick up anything. I also wanted to give him a little taste of his own medicine. When he clasped my hand, I squeezed. Hard. He gasped and tried to let go, but I held on for a beat longer than necessary, squeezing again while flashing him a big smile. Oh yeah, this meeting was going
hunky-dory, all right. Just like the meeting at the O.K. Corral.
Harold stared at his hand, then at me, and motioned for us to sit down again. He cautiously took a seat opposite in the chair that Larry had vacated. Larry sat next to him on the ottoman,
and the hierarchy was clear. Harold was the big cheese, all right.
Camille pulled out her notebook and nodded to me. “If it’s all right, Menolly’s going to film you.”
“No.” Harold shook his head. “No film.”
“All right, then.” Camille frowned, motioning for me to put away the camcorder. “Will you tell me a little about the background of Dante’s Hellions? Why and when did you start the organization?”
Harold let out a loud snort. “I didn’t start it. My father belonged to it, and my uncle. I joined when I was a freshman.”
“Why not one of the other fraternities?” Camille’s eyes flashed, and I knew she was goading him. And she got a reaction, all right.
Harold let out a harsh laugh. “Because the sheep in this college are a bunch of idiots, and I have no intention on joining their fucking social clubs. I’m president of Dante’s Hellions
because the university is run by a bunch of imbeciles. Because when the big one goes down, we fully intend to be the ones left standing in our little corner of the globe.”
He flashed us a dazzling grin, and in that smile, I saw the unmistakable signs of a predator. Harold Young was dangerous. And who knew what he’d been dabbling in over the years?
5.21.2009
Elevator Chat Winners/Answers--More Backlist Books Up For Grabs
Somehow I don’t find it surprising that most of the questions from most of the entries were aimed at my tattoos. ~grins~ Here are my answers, as promised, and to get a glimpse of my tattoos (albeit not that clear in some of the pics) you can see them on my still-in-progress Foxglove Glade personal site.
And since I received a lot of tattoo questions, I’m also going to put a little plug in here for my book Crafting the Body Divine, in which I do discuss tattoos, the process, how to ritually deal with the pain that may come with them (mine hurt—I’ve never been in the chair under two hours and believe me, after two hours, they hurt), what to look for in terms of cleanliness, etc.. You can pick up CTBD off most online bookstores, and I sell signed copies off my Nightqueen Enterprises site.
And yes—more backlist books up for grabs! (Pre-release months are a great way to clear out some of my closet where my extra author copies are!). So, two people who leave a comment in the reply thread to this post today—one from my MySpace blog and one from my Blogger Blog, will each receive a random book from my backlist. You need to be 18 or over, promise not to pirate it, and the book will be random. Don’t message me with entries—they’ll be deleted without comment.
Also remember, that we have a new contest up on my contest blog. If you belong to my forums, you can enter there. So far, we only have a handful of entries and there are three $10 gift certificates up for grabs!
So, the situation was this: I’m in an elevator and you’re there. We’re on our way to either a tattoo parlor, a spa, or a nightclub. You don’t know who I am, and you have just a couple minutes to ask me three questions. What do you ask? The winners were Tasoula, Tynga, and Jeremy. And here are their questions and my answers:
Tasoula - Australia (WA Perth):
1.) Your tattoos look amazing! how many years has it taken to get so many?
I wanted my first tattoo as far back as—I remember 1991, when I decided I needed to get tattooed. It took me 7 years to be able to start affording them—I got my first tattoo in 1998. The most recent one I have (which isn’t the ‘last’ but just haven’t had the chance to get more since then), I got done in 2004 and those are the bears on my left forearm. So all of the tattoos I currently have, I got in a period of six years. I’m jonesing for more work this year!
2.) Do you think it's bad or all right to get a pentagram tattoo to show our love of nature and the Goddess?
I think it’s only a bad idea if you do so too early in your spiritual path before you absolutely know this is the right path for you to walk, and if you do so without considering the ramifications of wearing the symbol and just where you place it. If you’re looking at a job where visible tattoos aren’t approved, you may want to keep it in a private area. And people will give you odd looks—I know because I am heavily tattooed and have more than one pentacle tattooed on me, to represent the fact that I’m a shamanic witch. But I don’t have to fill out employment applications or work a job where they frown on visible tattoos either. Just think before getting any tattoo—it’s a lifelong commitment and not to be taken lightly because I gather removal is a bitch. (And I advise people never, ever to get a name tattooed on you—especially of a lover.)
3.) What tattoo on your body holds a lot of significance and is very precious to you?
Every tattoo on my body is significant—they’re all spiritually oriented at this point. I think my favorite is probably still the first one I got, simply because it’s so beautifully and I waited so long to get it. That would be the one on my left breast.
Tynga –Canada -
1.) You're also going to the spa? Is it your first time here? I tried a few places, but never been here before...
I’ve been getting my hair done here for several years now. I love the bustle and energy that runs through the salon. And I love the thought that every time I emerge from my appointment, I feel better about myself than I did when I went in.
2.) You're getting a massage? Best stress release then? *grins*
Actually, my massage therapist doesn’t work here—she has her own practice. I love massages and back rubs and back scratches. There’s one better stress release that I can think of, ~grins~, but I get that at home, not at a salon.
3.) Are you always meeting the same person for your massage? It's kinda hard to find someone you really like.
I am uncomfortable going to anybody new. Which is why I seldom get my massages anymore since my massage therapist no longer works accessible hours for me. I should look for someone who has Saturday hours, because my back desperately needs the work considering my long hours at the computer and the injury that still plagues me from years ago, but I’m really careful about the people I go to for bodywork and finding someone new is always an anxiety-producing task for me.
Jeremy –Kansas
1. *Entering a club* What’s your name?
Yasmine. ~smiles~ And that’s Yasmine, pronounced and spelled with a “Y”, not a “J”. Yaz’-mihn. You can also call me Yaz-meen if you like.
2. Would you like to dance with me tonight?
If my husband doesn’t object, yes, I’d love to dance. Chances are, if you ask politely, he’ll say it’s okay with him.
3. Tell me the story of that tattoo? *With that he pointed towards her left breast.*
That was my first tattoo, and it combines all three of my animal totem spirits. The black panther is my primary soul-connection, and then the green boa and the peacock. The pentacle set in the peacock feathered-fan represents the fact that I’m a shamanic witch, the fly agaric is connected both with Finno-Ugraic shamanism and the Fae, and the foxglove is one of my primary connections with the Fae (and also, my favorite flower, though you really have to be careful around it because of the natural digitalis in it’s pollen/flower).
Thank you all for your questions, it was fun, and remember: leave me a comment or question here. I’ll use the questions for blog fodder, and everybody who does, will have a chance to win a backlist book.
Yasmine
And since I received a lot of tattoo questions, I’m also going to put a little plug in here for my book Crafting the Body Divine, in which I do discuss tattoos, the process, how to ritually deal with the pain that may come with them (mine hurt—I’ve never been in the chair under two hours and believe me, after two hours, they hurt), what to look for in terms of cleanliness, etc.. You can pick up CTBD off most online bookstores, and I sell signed copies off my Nightqueen Enterprises site.
And yes—more backlist books up for grabs! (Pre-release months are a great way to clear out some of my closet where my extra author copies are!). So, two people who leave a comment in the reply thread to this post today—one from my MySpace blog and one from my Blogger Blog, will each receive a random book from my backlist. You need to be 18 or over, promise not to pirate it, and the book will be random. Don’t message me with entries—they’ll be deleted without comment.
Also remember, that we have a new contest up on my contest blog. If you belong to my forums, you can enter there. So far, we only have a handful of entries and there are three $10 gift certificates up for grabs!
So, the situation was this: I’m in an elevator and you’re there. We’re on our way to either a tattoo parlor, a spa, or a nightclub. You don’t know who I am, and you have just a couple minutes to ask me three questions. What do you ask? The winners were Tasoula, Tynga, and Jeremy. And here are their questions and my answers:
Tasoula - Australia (WA Perth):
1.) Your tattoos look amazing! how many years has it taken to get so many?
I wanted my first tattoo as far back as—I remember 1991, when I decided I needed to get tattooed. It took me 7 years to be able to start affording them—I got my first tattoo in 1998. The most recent one I have (which isn’t the ‘last’ but just haven’t had the chance to get more since then), I got done in 2004 and those are the bears on my left forearm. So all of the tattoos I currently have, I got in a period of six years. I’m jonesing for more work this year!
2.) Do you think it's bad or all right to get a pentagram tattoo to show our love of nature and the Goddess?
I think it’s only a bad idea if you do so too early in your spiritual path before you absolutely know this is the right path for you to walk, and if you do so without considering the ramifications of wearing the symbol and just where you place it. If you’re looking at a job where visible tattoos aren’t approved, you may want to keep it in a private area. And people will give you odd looks—I know because I am heavily tattooed and have more than one pentacle tattooed on me, to represent the fact that I’m a shamanic witch. But I don’t have to fill out employment applications or work a job where they frown on visible tattoos either. Just think before getting any tattoo—it’s a lifelong commitment and not to be taken lightly because I gather removal is a bitch. (And I advise people never, ever to get a name tattooed on you—especially of a lover.)
3.) What tattoo on your body holds a lot of significance and is very precious to you?
Every tattoo on my body is significant—they’re all spiritually oriented at this point. I think my favorite is probably still the first one I got, simply because it’s so beautifully and I waited so long to get it. That would be the one on my left breast.
Tynga –Canada -
1.) You're also going to the spa? Is it your first time here? I tried a few places, but never been here before...
I’ve been getting my hair done here for several years now. I love the bustle and energy that runs through the salon. And I love the thought that every time I emerge from my appointment, I feel better about myself than I did when I went in.
2.) You're getting a massage? Best stress release then? *grins*
Actually, my massage therapist doesn’t work here—she has her own practice. I love massages and back rubs and back scratches. There’s one better stress release that I can think of, ~grins~, but I get that at home, not at a salon.
3.) Are you always meeting the same person for your massage? It's kinda hard to find someone you really like.
I am uncomfortable going to anybody new. Which is why I seldom get my massages anymore since my massage therapist no longer works accessible hours for me. I should look for someone who has Saturday hours, because my back desperately needs the work considering my long hours at the computer and the injury that still plagues me from years ago, but I’m really careful about the people I go to for bodywork and finding someone new is always an anxiety-producing task for me.
Jeremy –Kansas
1. *Entering a club* What’s your name?
Yasmine. ~smiles~ And that’s Yasmine, pronounced and spelled with a “Y”, not a “J”. Yaz’-mihn. You can also call me Yaz-meen if you like.
2. Would you like to dance with me tonight?
If my husband doesn’t object, yes, I’d love to dance. Chances are, if you ask politely, he’ll say it’s okay with him.
3. Tell me the story of that tattoo? *With that he pointed towards her left breast.*
That was my first tattoo, and it combines all three of my animal totem spirits. The black panther is my primary soul-connection, and then the green boa and the peacock. The pentacle set in the peacock feathered-fan represents the fact that I’m a shamanic witch, the fly agaric is connected both with Finno-Ugraic shamanism and the Fae, and the foxglove is one of my primary connections with the Fae (and also, my favorite flower, though you really have to be careful around it because of the natural digitalis in it’s pollen/flower).
Thank you all for your questions, it was fun, and remember: leave me a comment or question here. I’ll use the questions for blog fodder, and everybody who does, will have a chance to win a backlist book.
Yasmine
5.20.2009
Cover for Never After
Here's the cover for Never After, the anthology coming out November 3, 2009 (the first OW novella coming out).
Pre-order Now
Never After
by: Laurell K. Hamilton, Yasmine Galenorn, Marjorie Liu, Sharon Shinn
Berkley/Jove: November 3, 2009
Urban Fantasy
ISBN: 978-0515147285
All new tales of magic revealed, and matrimony refused, by four of today's most provocative authors
The Shadow of Mist by Yasmine Galenorn:
Siobhan Morgan, a friend of the D'Artigo sisters, has a hidden past. A selkie, Siobhan has told everyone she was sent to the United States because inbreeding was wiping out her people. What she didn't tell anyone was that a dark presence from her past who has been stalking her for a hundred years, since she first left the shores of Ireland. A man who will stop at nothing to possess her. With the help of the D'Artigo sisters, Siobhan must stop him before he destroys everything she loves and everything she's built in her new life.
Demon Mistress Countdown Continues
Today I'm giving away two copies of Night Huntress over at Running With Quills, and I'm also starting a new contest on my own contest blog. Winners of the Elevator Chat Contest have been posted there, as well. :) Tomorrow, I'll be answering the winners' questions on my blog here and at MySpace.
Yasmine
Yasmine
5.19.2009
Running With Quills Blog
You’ll find a blog of mine over at Running With Quills, where I’ll be giving away two copies of Night Huntress to two people who leave me a comment on my post there through tomorrow. And more here tomorrow (as in Wednesday) as soon as I get it written up.
Bone Magic revisions are done (and done again, just tweaked the last scene and sent a new copy to my editor), so it’s back to Night Myst.
The winners of last post's contest have been contacted by Justine, my volunteer assistant right now. :) Thanks for playing and stay tuned for more contests, one starting tomorrow!
I need sleep…very much so, so will see you tomorrow on the blogs, and until then, sleep well and dream deep.
(And PS: again: if you’re going to send me hate mail, remember—I keep records of it, and ya know, dudes, it’s just a waste of your time because the only thing it accomplishes is giving me a bemused shake of the head as to how much some people need to get a life. Don’t like me or the books? Don’t buy any more—find an author you do like and support them with that energy. Is this diplomatic to say? Nope. And I don’t give a rat’s ass…*shrugs*).
Yasmine
Bone Magic revisions are done (and done again, just tweaked the last scene and sent a new copy to my editor), so it’s back to Night Myst.
The winners of last post's contest have been contacted by Justine, my volunteer assistant right now. :) Thanks for playing and stay tuned for more contests, one starting tomorrow!
I need sleep…very much so, so will see you tomorrow on the blogs, and until then, sleep well and dream deep.
(And PS: again: if you’re going to send me hate mail, remember—I keep records of it, and ya know, dudes, it’s just a waste of your time because the only thing it accomplishes is giving me a bemused shake of the head as to how much some people need to get a life. Don’t like me or the books? Don’t buy any more—find an author you do like and support them with that energy. Is this diplomatic to say? Nope. And I don’t give a rat’s ass…*shrugs*).
Yasmine
5.18.2009
Bone Magic News & Movie-Ville & 1 Day Backlist contest
First: great news, my editor loved BONE MAGIC and thinks it takes the series to a whole new level. A lot goes on in the book, a lot of major transformations and shifts and I can hardly wait to see what you guys think next January. Of course, first you have to read DEMON MISTRESS (2 weeks away!!!!) and, of course, there’s the novella this fall in NEVER AFTER, and the novella in INKED coming out in January as well.
Anyway, onto my blog post today. One person who answer my question at the end of today's blog in the comments of the blog post thread (as a reply to this blog) by midnight tonight will receive a random pick from my backlist titles and a random cover flat, by the way! That's one from Blogger and one from my MySpace blog. You just have to promise you won't pirate the book and that you're 18 or over.
Samwise and I very seldom go to the theatres anymore. Tickets are too high, seats are too uncomfortable, and we hate the half-hour long commercial shows they now do there—if we wanted to see commercials, we’d turn on the TV. Instead, we rent most movies, and with Netflix, which finally won us over, it’s worth it.
There are movies I’m thinking about for the theatre this summer: Star Trek (though I am one of TOS fans and if they did, indeed, play with the timeline, I’m probably not going to be impressed if they altered it through time travel—that always seems like a copout in writing to me). Harry Potter—love Harry Potter. But for the most part, lately we’ve been exploring movies that we wanted to see and forgot, movies that we couldn’t find at the local vid store.
Over the past couple of months, I’ve accumulated a list of movies I finally managed to see, and here are some of my recommendations and didn’t likes:
LOVED:
Howl’s Moving Castle: absolutely loved it—steampunk anime, is where I’d place it, and both story and art were complex, vivid, and compelling.
Forbidden Kingdom: Jackie Chan, Chinese legends, what more can I ask for?
Wall-E: One word: brilliant
The Mothman Prophecies: Absolutely riveting—and an incredible soundtrack. Made me start researching the story behind the legend, it captivated me so much.
LIKED:
House of Flying Daggers: I would have moved this into the ‘loved’ category except for the tragic ending. Which is common in movies like this—we’re getting used to it, but I still wanted it to end on a more upbeat note. However, that being said, the movie was vivid and riveting.
Neverland: A good movie, though it wasn’t at all what I expected. I was thinking along the lines of a less-creepy Heavenly Creatures but that wasn’t it at all. Johnny Depp did a great job, as usual, but I was expecting something a bit more fantasy-oriented.
Blade: Hey, gorgeous dude in long black duster and wrap-around dark glasses fighting vampires? I’m so on-board. And the movie itself was pretty good. Going to watch Blade 2 soon.
Stir of Echoes: Kevin Bacon is one of my favorite psycho guys and he did a really good job in a mediocre horror flick.
SENT BACK WITHOUT FINISHING:
Robots: By fifteen minutes into the movie we were so bored we turned it off. Can’t really review it since we didn’t watch the whole thing—but it just left us yawning.
UP NEXT IN THE QUEUE:
The Hunger
Corpse Bride
Blade 2
And after that:
The Haunting
Donnie Darko
A Scanner Darkly and a whole bunch of others!
That’s my viewing fodder for the next few weeks. :)
Anyway, onto my blog post today. One person who answer my question at the end of today's blog in the comments of the blog post thread (as a reply to this blog) by midnight tonight will receive a random pick from my backlist titles and a random cover flat, by the way! That's one from Blogger and one from my MySpace blog. You just have to promise you won't pirate the book and that you're 18 or over.
Samwise and I very seldom go to the theatres anymore. Tickets are too high, seats are too uncomfortable, and we hate the half-hour long commercial shows they now do there—if we wanted to see commercials, we’d turn on the TV. Instead, we rent most movies, and with Netflix, which finally won us over, it’s worth it.
There are movies I’m thinking about for the theatre this summer: Star Trek (though I am one of TOS fans and if they did, indeed, play with the timeline, I’m probably not going to be impressed if they altered it through time travel—that always seems like a copout in writing to me). Harry Potter—love Harry Potter. But for the most part, lately we’ve been exploring movies that we wanted to see and forgot, movies that we couldn’t find at the local vid store.
Over the past couple of months, I’ve accumulated a list of movies I finally managed to see, and here are some of my recommendations and didn’t likes:
LOVED:
Howl’s Moving Castle: absolutely loved it—steampunk anime, is where I’d place it, and both story and art were complex, vivid, and compelling.
Forbidden Kingdom: Jackie Chan, Chinese legends, what more can I ask for?
Wall-E: One word: brilliant
The Mothman Prophecies: Absolutely riveting—and an incredible soundtrack. Made me start researching the story behind the legend, it captivated me so much.
LIKED:
House of Flying Daggers: I would have moved this into the ‘loved’ category except for the tragic ending. Which is common in movies like this—we’re getting used to it, but I still wanted it to end on a more upbeat note. However, that being said, the movie was vivid and riveting.
Neverland: A good movie, though it wasn’t at all what I expected. I was thinking along the lines of a less-creepy Heavenly Creatures but that wasn’t it at all. Johnny Depp did a great job, as usual, but I was expecting something a bit more fantasy-oriented.
Blade: Hey, gorgeous dude in long black duster and wrap-around dark glasses fighting vampires? I’m so on-board. And the movie itself was pretty good. Going to watch Blade 2 soon.
Stir of Echoes: Kevin Bacon is one of my favorite psycho guys and he did a really good job in a mediocre horror flick.
SENT BACK WITHOUT FINISHING:
Robots: By fifteen minutes into the movie we were so bored we turned it off. Can’t really review it since we didn’t watch the whole thing—but it just left us yawning.
UP NEXT IN THE QUEUE:
The Hunger
Corpse Bride
Blade 2
And after that:
The Haunting
Donnie Darko
A Scanner Darkly and a whole bunch of others!
That’s my viewing fodder for the next few weeks. :)
So, what have you been watching? What do you want to see this summer?
Yasmine
Yasmine
5.16.2009
Demon Mistress Elevator Chat Contest!
Go to my new contest blog to enter the Demon Mistress Elevator Chat Contest! Or you can enter in my forums if you are a forum member! Follow all directions--and please read them through before entering. We can't change your answer for you if you make a mistake and will only be counting those entries who actually follow the rules.
Have fun!
Yasmine
Have fun!
Yasmine
5.15.2009
Demon Mistress Excerpt, Review, & Upcoming Contests & Chat
First: thank you for all your concern over my allergy attack the other day. I’m okay—it takes a few days for my body to recover from allergy attacks but I’ll be fine. No more oranges, though—or orange oil or orange flavoring. What disappoints me most is I had a chance to meet another author friend who was in town and I had to cancel. We’ve talked online and via phone but this would have been so cool to see her in person. I’m bummed.
I’ve got a full plate of plans for the rest of the month, with contests and Demon Mistress excerpts, and the upcoming reader chat in my Moon Stalker Discussion Forums coming up on May 23rd. And a few other special treats—including a blog exchange with my friend Anya Bast, who has a release coming out the same day as Demon Mistress.
I’m also working like a crazed bitch on Night Myst, so am going to be pulling some late, late hours the rest of the month and the first week of June. Hell, I’m up after four hours of sleep right now, and while I’ll probably hit the sheets again in a bit for another hour or two, I’m expecting insane hours from now till about mid-June. Lots of music and caffeine in my future!
So today: three things. One, my Otherworld Fan Perks page is up on the Moon Stalkers site. Two: a great new review of Demon Mistress can be found here. And third: here’s the second Demon Mistress excerpt! And stay tuned tomorrow, Saturday the 16th, for the first of three really fun contests I’ll be holding during the rest of the month.
Bright Blessings, and enjoy the excerpt,
Yasmine
Demon Mistress Excerpt 2:
So why was I hesitating? Was I afraid I’d get hooked on the incubus? We’d kissed before, true, but it had been playful, almost buddy-buddy-like. This time, I knew it would be for real.
I listened to the clock tick away the seconds, then made my decision. I let myself hover a few inches off the ground and leaned in.
A shock wave ricocheted through me as he gathered me into his arms, his tongue seeking entrance. Every nerve in my body flared, burned by the wave of pure sex that emanated from his touch. The fire sparked off my own ravenous hunger to fuck, to feed, to drink deeply.
Rozurial’s eyes deepened, the violent brown turning jet black as he held me. His hands weren’t moving, and yet it felt like he was touching every inch of my body. As the kiss deepened, I fell— dark and wild— into the passion that swelled from his aura to encompass me.
Tumbling so deeply, I realized that this was why men feared incubi. One kiss, and their women would race off, following the holy grail of sex that promised to leave them exhausted
and drained and satisfied in a way they’d never before managed to reach. Was this what Trillian had done to Camille?
Was the Svartan charm as powerful as the kiss of an incubus? If so, I knew why my sister would never, ever walk away from him again.
And then Roz let go and gently pushed me back. He looked triumphant and delighted and thoroughly ready for more. But all he said was, “You have work to do before the dawn. This is
just the start, my Menolly. You and I have an appointment to keep. We’re both demons, creatures of the night, creatures of the blood. You drink it, and I stir it. Together, we’ll rock the
world.”
With that, he pushed me out the door, and I heard him arm the security system. My stomach fluttered. Thirst parching my throat, I stood there, staring at the door, thinking I’d just
opened my very own Pandora’s box.
Copyright 2009, Yasmine Galenorn All rights reserved
I’ve got a full plate of plans for the rest of the month, with contests and Demon Mistress excerpts, and the upcoming reader chat in my Moon Stalker Discussion Forums coming up on May 23rd. And a few other special treats—including a blog exchange with my friend Anya Bast, who has a release coming out the same day as Demon Mistress.
I’m also working like a crazed bitch on Night Myst, so am going to be pulling some late, late hours the rest of the month and the first week of June. Hell, I’m up after four hours of sleep right now, and while I’ll probably hit the sheets again in a bit for another hour or two, I’m expecting insane hours from now till about mid-June. Lots of music and caffeine in my future!
So today: three things. One, my Otherworld Fan Perks page is up on the Moon Stalkers site. Two: a great new review of Demon Mistress can be found here. And third: here’s the second Demon Mistress excerpt! And stay tuned tomorrow, Saturday the 16th, for the first of three really fun contests I’ll be holding during the rest of the month.
Bright Blessings, and enjoy the excerpt,
Yasmine
Demon Mistress Excerpt 2:
So why was I hesitating? Was I afraid I’d get hooked on the incubus? We’d kissed before, true, but it had been playful, almost buddy-buddy-like. This time, I knew it would be for real.
I listened to the clock tick away the seconds, then made my decision. I let myself hover a few inches off the ground and leaned in.
A shock wave ricocheted through me as he gathered me into his arms, his tongue seeking entrance. Every nerve in my body flared, burned by the wave of pure sex that emanated from his touch. The fire sparked off my own ravenous hunger to fuck, to feed, to drink deeply.
Rozurial’s eyes deepened, the violent brown turning jet black as he held me. His hands weren’t moving, and yet it felt like he was touching every inch of my body. As the kiss deepened, I fell— dark and wild— into the passion that swelled from his aura to encompass me.
Tumbling so deeply, I realized that this was why men feared incubi. One kiss, and their women would race off, following the holy grail of sex that promised to leave them exhausted
and drained and satisfied in a way they’d never before managed to reach. Was this what Trillian had done to Camille?
Was the Svartan charm as powerful as the kiss of an incubus? If so, I knew why my sister would never, ever walk away from him again.
And then Roz let go and gently pushed me back. He looked triumphant and delighted and thoroughly ready for more. But all he said was, “You have work to do before the dawn. This is
just the start, my Menolly. You and I have an appointment to keep. We’re both demons, creatures of the night, creatures of the blood. You drink it, and I stir it. Together, we’ll rock the
world.”
With that, he pushed me out the door, and I heard him arm the security system. My stomach fluttered. Thirst parching my throat, I stood there, staring at the door, thinking I’d just
opened my very own Pandora’s box.
Copyright 2009, Yasmine Galenorn All rights reserved
5.12.2009
Trillian Poster & Diabetes Auction Note
Okay people, short one here.
First: thanks to the person who bid $170 in the one-day auction for me to take them to lunch and critique a chapter: thank you for helping add to our goal towards diabetes research and I promise you a great lunch!
Second: I still have four packages to send off in the Backlist contest. That will happen this weekend.
Third: As promised, the poster of Trillian. Actually, a page for all of Camille’s lovers. And yes, right click has been disabled. These are copyrighted images. However, I will be making a Trillian banner like the other banners for your use, and a Trillian avatar for my forums/sites/etc. for you to use in the next day or so. And please don’t ask me when the next poster might show up—most likely not till next year. Maybe earlier but my publisher does not pay for these—I do.
Okay, so hope you liked the excerpt of Demon Mistress, and hope you enjoy getting a glimpse of Trillian as much as I have—he’s perfect, IMO—Tony captured my vision, as always, and Trillian’s entirely yummy. (I believe on Twitter I actually used the word ‘lickable’ in describing him…which immediately made me shake my head…but hell, I write explicit scenes, one thought like that isn’t going to make me any less respectable than I already am! LOL). Now, I love Smoky and Morio and both are absolutely gorgeous, but somehow, I think Trillian’s image just…has that indefinable ‘wow’ factor.
Yasmine
First: thanks to the person who bid $170 in the one-day auction for me to take them to lunch and critique a chapter: thank you for helping add to our goal towards diabetes research and I promise you a great lunch!
Second: I still have four packages to send off in the Backlist contest. That will happen this weekend.
Third: As promised, the poster of Trillian. Actually, a page for all of Camille’s lovers. And yes, right click has been disabled. These are copyrighted images. However, I will be making a Trillian banner like the other banners for your use, and a Trillian avatar for my forums/sites/etc. for you to use in the next day or so. And please don’t ask me when the next poster might show up—most likely not till next year. Maybe earlier but my publisher does not pay for these—I do.
Okay, so hope you liked the excerpt of Demon Mistress, and hope you enjoy getting a glimpse of Trillian as much as I have—he’s perfect, IMO—Tony captured my vision, as always, and Trillian’s entirely yummy. (I believe on Twitter I actually used the word ‘lickable’ in describing him…which immediately made me shake my head…but hell, I write explicit scenes, one thought like that isn’t going to make me any less respectable than I already am! LOL). Now, I love Smoky and Morio and both are absolutely gorgeous, but somehow, I think Trillian’s image just…has that indefinable ‘wow’ factor.
Yasmine
Contest Winners, Smoky's Up For a Vote, Demon Mistress Excerpt
Yes, yes, I promised Trillian’s poster soon—by tonight, I’m hoping (working on a special page for my site that my husband just has to finish up that has all three of Camille’s men on it).
First: over at Bitten By Books, they’re doing another contest and this time Smoky’s up on the poll for favorite shapeshifter. You love Smoky? Your chance to give him a vote! You could win something (I could win something if he nabs the top vote). Check it out.
For the spread-the-word contest, winners of the three online gift certificates are:
Phil
Bella Nala Milaya
Tynga
If you entered through the forums too, (even if you entered other places), you've been contacted through there. Check your private messages please.
Demon Mistress Excerpt 2:
He started to get up again. Ghouls, like zombies, would keep on going and going, until they were destroyed. Kind of like a demented Energizer Bunny. However, the real problem with ghouls was that, unlike zombies, they still had some sort of reasoning going on in their heads. They weren’t brilliant, but they were aware enough to take orders. I wasn’t sure what caused the distinction— it had to be some twist to the magic used to raise them— but there it was. This dude wasn’t just going to be a pile of shambling flesh.
As he pushed himself to his feet, I kicked him in the backside again and landed atop him, grimacing at the smell that wafted up. Overripe, by about a year, I’d guess. I grabbed hold of his head and twisted, breaking his neck. It wouldn’t kill him, but the more limbs I could disable, the harder it would be for him to attack us. And then it hit me— he’d still function without a head, but he wouldn’t be able to see us. Or at least, it should work that way.
I twisted, hard, not wanting to have to use my teeth to sever the flesh, but if need be, I’d do it. I was stronger than he was, by a long shot, so even though it might take a little while, I could rip him apart, limb from limb.
Unfortunately, as I was focused on carving up our new friend, I wasn’t paying attention to what was going on behind me. A hefty kick to my back knocked me off balance.
I went down but immediately tucked and rolled, flipping onto my feet again à la Bruce Lee. As I whirled around, I found myself staring into the face of a tall man wearing a leather jacket. He was sporting a bushy head of hair down to his shoulders, and an even bushier beard. Think ZZ Top, only muscle- bound and not so friendly looking.
Fangs extended, eyes crimson and burning, I dropped into fighting stance, ready to take him out.
He smiled softly and pulled out a long wooden stake, pointing it directly at me. “You really want to take me on? Fight me, and I’ll dust you so fast you won’t have time to blink those beautiful bloody eyes of yours. Now, step away from the ghoul, or you’ll find yourself a pretty shish kebab. Your choice. What’s it going to be?”
Copyright, 2009, Yasmine Galenorn (please do not reproduce)
First: over at Bitten By Books, they’re doing another contest and this time Smoky’s up on the poll for favorite shapeshifter. You love Smoky? Your chance to give him a vote! You could win something (I could win something if he nabs the top vote). Check it out.
For the spread-the-word contest, winners of the three online gift certificates are:
Phil
Bella Nala Milaya
Tynga
If you entered through the forums too, (even if you entered other places), you've been contacted through there. Check your private messages please.
Demon Mistress Excerpt 2:
He started to get up again. Ghouls, like zombies, would keep on going and going, until they were destroyed. Kind of like a demented Energizer Bunny. However, the real problem with ghouls was that, unlike zombies, they still had some sort of reasoning going on in their heads. They weren’t brilliant, but they were aware enough to take orders. I wasn’t sure what caused the distinction— it had to be some twist to the magic used to raise them— but there it was. This dude wasn’t just going to be a pile of shambling flesh.
As he pushed himself to his feet, I kicked him in the backside again and landed atop him, grimacing at the smell that wafted up. Overripe, by about a year, I’d guess. I grabbed hold of his head and twisted, breaking his neck. It wouldn’t kill him, but the more limbs I could disable, the harder it would be for him to attack us. And then it hit me— he’d still function without a head, but he wouldn’t be able to see us. Or at least, it should work that way.
I twisted, hard, not wanting to have to use my teeth to sever the flesh, but if need be, I’d do it. I was stronger than he was, by a long shot, so even though it might take a little while, I could rip him apart, limb from limb.
Unfortunately, as I was focused on carving up our new friend, I wasn’t paying attention to what was going on behind me. A hefty kick to my back knocked me off balance.
I went down but immediately tucked and rolled, flipping onto my feet again à la Bruce Lee. As I whirled around, I found myself staring into the face of a tall man wearing a leather jacket. He was sporting a bushy head of hair down to his shoulders, and an even bushier beard. Think ZZ Top, only muscle- bound and not so friendly looking.
Fangs extended, eyes crimson and burning, I dropped into fighting stance, ready to take him out.
He smiled softly and pulled out a long wooden stake, pointing it directly at me. “You really want to take me on? Fight me, and I’ll dust you so fast you won’t have time to blink those beautiful bloody eyes of yours. Now, step away from the ghoul, or you’ll find yourself a pretty shish kebab. Your choice. What’s it going to be?”
Copyright, 2009, Yasmine Galenorn (please do not reproduce)
5.08.2009
5.07.2009
Answering Questions, Interview with Menolly, & Contest Clarification
Short blog here to answer a few reader questions, but first, if you’d like to read an interview with Menolly, you can find it on my Spring newsletter.
Question: On the Bone Magic cover, what are the symbols on her back?
Answer: If you remember in Dragon Wytch, during the flashback to her initiation, she was given a tattoo of a spiral labyrinth on her left shoulder. The other, you’ll have to read Bone Magic to find out about—but it’s another life-changing transformation that takes place to Camille.
Question: How do you do it...cook these great meals and still do all your other activities including writing..you are a superwoman.
Answer: No, though I wish I WAS a superwoman. Well, my husband does his share of the cleaning, and we tend to get around to it on the weekends. I cook because I have to—convenience food is pretty much off limits for both of us most of the time due to dietary issues (his diabetes, me—allergies and starch intolerance). I write full time of course, which means more than 40 hours a week when you include promotion and administration and research and blogging. I don’t take vacations—not for a long time, though I’m hoping to remedy that this year. I don’t get enough sleep, though I’m trying to remedy that. And my back is a mess thanks to sitting so long everyday, which aggravates an old injury I have (causing muscle spasms and chronic pain). I wouldn’t call that superwoman category. *sigh* As far as hobbies—most hobbies had to go by the wayside with a career in writing, but hey—I’m doing what I love to do, so except for not getting enough exercise, it’s okay with me. ~smiles~
A couple other notes:
Some people seem to be very confused about the directions for the contest. It’s really very simple. You go to your blog or your Live Journal or a readers forum you might belong to (not mine) or your Myspace page. You post a note (if it’s in another forum make sure it’s in an appropriate place—like a discussion of books you’re looking forward to…I don’t want people spamming in my name) about Demon Mistress coming out on June 2nd, and why you’re looking forward to it—and the link to it on Amazon.
THEN you come back to the contest posts on my blog on MySpace or Blogger, or to the contest thread in my forums, and let me know where you posted the URL, and ask Menolly a question. You can enter at all three places—my MySpace Blog, my Blogger blog, or my forums—with a different link for each entry.
You canNOT enter via email or private message to me. And I don’t have time to help everyone who doesn’t read through the instructions. When a contest says ‘read the instructions’ read it carefully. ~smiles~ Now, don’t enter in THIS blog post, but in the CONTEST blog post. It went up just a day or so ago--read back to find it. Got it? Okay.
Okay, now I’m off to work on Night Myst. Talk to you later!
(Oh: PS--thanks for the votes on Menolly! It's just a fun thing, I'm not worried about but hey--it's cute and nice to see her fans come out for her).
Yasmine
Question: On the Bone Magic cover, what are the symbols on her back?
Answer: If you remember in Dragon Wytch, during the flashback to her initiation, she was given a tattoo of a spiral labyrinth on her left shoulder. The other, you’ll have to read Bone Magic to find out about—but it’s another life-changing transformation that takes place to Camille.
Question: How do you do it...cook these great meals and still do all your other activities including writing..you are a superwoman.
Answer: No, though I wish I WAS a superwoman. Well, my husband does his share of the cleaning, and we tend to get around to it on the weekends. I cook because I have to—convenience food is pretty much off limits for both of us most of the time due to dietary issues (his diabetes, me—allergies and starch intolerance). I write full time of course, which means more than 40 hours a week when you include promotion and administration and research and blogging. I don’t take vacations—not for a long time, though I’m hoping to remedy that this year. I don’t get enough sleep, though I’m trying to remedy that. And my back is a mess thanks to sitting so long everyday, which aggravates an old injury I have (causing muscle spasms and chronic pain). I wouldn’t call that superwoman category. *sigh* As far as hobbies—most hobbies had to go by the wayside with a career in writing, but hey—I’m doing what I love to do, so except for not getting enough exercise, it’s okay with me. ~smiles~
A couple other notes:
Some people seem to be very confused about the directions for the contest. It’s really very simple. You go to your blog or your Live Journal or a readers forum you might belong to (not mine) or your Myspace page. You post a note (if it’s in another forum make sure it’s in an appropriate place—like a discussion of books you’re looking forward to…I don’t want people spamming in my name) about Demon Mistress coming out on June 2nd, and why you’re looking forward to it—and the link to it on Amazon.
THEN you come back to the contest posts on my blog on MySpace or Blogger, or to the contest thread in my forums, and let me know where you posted the URL, and ask Menolly a question. You can enter at all three places—my MySpace Blog, my Blogger blog, or my forums—with a different link for each entry.
You canNOT enter via email or private message to me. And I don’t have time to help everyone who doesn’t read through the instructions. When a contest says ‘read the instructions’ read it carefully. ~smiles~ Now, don’t enter in THIS blog post, but in the CONTEST blog post. It went up just a day or so ago--read back to find it. Got it? Okay.
Okay, now I’m off to work on Night Myst. Talk to you later!
(Oh: PS--thanks for the votes on Menolly! It's just a fun thing, I'm not worried about but hey--it's cute and nice to see her fans come out for her).
Yasmine
5.06.2009
5.05.2009
Rock The Vampire Vote, Demon Mistress Excerpt & Contest, & Other Fun Stuff Coming Up!
We’re going to be having a lot of fun this month, on the countdown to Demon Mistress.
As a hint, one of the things you'll get to see this month is the unveiling of my Trillian painting that Tony’s doing for me! (And there was much rejoicing). As I’ve said before—I get these done as I can because they are pricey for me to commission (and deservedly so), so please don’t keep asking me when so-and-so character will be next, because I can’t tell you. But finally, yes, I’ve been able to commission Trillian and I’ve seen the preliminary work and ohhhhhh Mama, he’s smokin'. Camille’s a lucky, lucky woman. And this month Anya Bast and I'll be doing a blog-switching thing like we did for our last releases at some point.
SO FIRST: Bitten By Books is having a Rock the Vampire Contest and somebody nominated Menolly. Run over there and vote, please, (vote for your favorite vampire, whoever it is, and if that’s Menolly hey—she’d be thrilled).
SO FIRST: Bitten By Books is having a Rock the Vampire Contest and somebody nominated Menolly. Run over there and vote, please, (vote for your favorite vampire, whoever it is, and if that’s Menolly hey—she’d be thrilled).
TO KICK OFF the pre-release month before Demon Mistress comes out, we’re going to start with an excerpt from the book and a contest (and there was more rejoicing!!!).
This time, you can enter on both blogs and in my forums (but only once on each, please—and somewhere in your entry, use the same name…if you enter in my forums or my MySpace blog too, leave a way to contact you there please or I won’t bother trying to track you down). The three winners will be taken from the combination of all three. While you can enter three times, you can’t win three times.
For this contest of the week (I’ll be having a contest each week until DM comes out). I’ll be giving away three $25 online gift certificates to Barnes & Noble .com (hey, I know what book you could pre-order with that! *grins*). Anybody over 16 can enter. You have until midnight Pacific time, Sunday, May 10th to enter and PLEASE--read the instructions. You mess up on entering, I'm not going to tell you. ENTER ON THE BLOG (or in the forums)--NOT via email or message.
Here’s the contest:
First: somewhere, in a forum (where it’s appropriate), or on your blog or website, put up a reminder about Demon Mistress’s upcoming release on June 2, 2009, and the link to either one or more of the BN.com, Borders, or Amazon pages where people can pre-order it, and a note about why you want to read the book.
Second: In your entry, give me the URL to where you posted the above, and THEN answer the following question: If you met Menolly face-to-face, what would you most want to ask her?
For this contest of the week (I’ll be having a contest each week until DM comes out). I’ll be giving away three $25 online gift certificates to Barnes & Noble .com (hey, I know what book you could pre-order with that! *grins*). Anybody over 16 can enter. You have until midnight Pacific time, Sunday, May 10th to enter and PLEASE--read the instructions. You mess up on entering, I'm not going to tell you. ENTER ON THE BLOG (or in the forums)--NOT via email or message.
Here’s the contest:
First: somewhere, in a forum (where it’s appropriate), or on your blog or website, put up a reminder about Demon Mistress’s upcoming release on June 2, 2009, and the link to either one or more of the BN.com, Borders, or Amazon pages where people can pre-order it, and a note about why you want to read the book.
Second: In your entry, give me the URL to where you posted the above, and THEN answer the following question: If you met Menolly face-to-face, what would you most want to ask her?
Needless to say, if you’re going to tell her off or be nasty, you’re not going to be considered for this contest—(as an explanation, I got hate mail about Menolly not long ago and I refuse to give someone a prize for hating my work).
To enter on both my blogs and in my forums, you must give a different link for each entry (IOW: you must post the note/link to book in three different places). If you have two different blogs (that are already established), yes, that will count as two different places.
And now, the first Demon Mistress Excerpt:
I glanced up at her from lacing my boots, and as I lifted my head, one of my braids managed to get itself hooked on the fringe of my bedspread, the thin threads tangling with the ivory beads that decorated my cornrows.
Delilah hurried over as I tried to tug myself free. “Here, you’re going to rip the spread if you aren’t careful.”
As she unwound the threads from my coppery hair, a playful glint began to grow in her eyes. She stared at the strings, fixated. Oh shit, I knew what that meant.
“Let go of my hair and back away slowly,” I said, quickly grabbing for my braid in her hand. “I’ve got it.”
She quivered for a moment, breathing quickly, and then reached out again, her eyes glazed over. Within the blink of an eye and a whirlwind of color, I had a golden tabby hanging from my braids, wrestling them with all the glee of a kid in a candy store.
“Hey! You little sh—” I tried to shake her off, but my braid was still tangled in the threads. Delilah tightened her grip on the hair.
Camille raced over and scooped her up, getting a nice little swipe on her arm for doing so. I decided that I could buy a new bedspread and ripped the fringe off the edge, tearing the material in the process. But it freed me. I turned to find Camille
holding Delilah up above her head, her hands wrapped around our sister’s furry tummy. Delilah plaintively yowled and squirmed, her eyes wide, toes splayed, tufts of fur sticking out from between them.
“You free?” Camille asked.
I nodded, and she tossed Kitten on my bed. Delilah promptly zoomed off across the room and up the stairs on a manic quest for— well, for what ever cats were aiming for when they did that. I’d asked her about it once but only got a burst of
laughter in reply.
“Well, hell. That was not exactly the way I planned to start my night,” I said, examining the ruined spread. “It’s not too bad. Maybe Iris can mend it for me when she has some extra time.”
Camille finished untangling the fringe from my hair and gave me the once- over. “You ever think about a different hairstyle? Your hair used to be so pretty when you wore it long and curly.”
Copyrighted 2009, Yasmine Galenorn
And now, the first Demon Mistress Excerpt:
I glanced up at her from lacing my boots, and as I lifted my head, one of my braids managed to get itself hooked on the fringe of my bedspread, the thin threads tangling with the ivory beads that decorated my cornrows.
Delilah hurried over as I tried to tug myself free. “Here, you’re going to rip the spread if you aren’t careful.”
As she unwound the threads from my coppery hair, a playful glint began to grow in her eyes. She stared at the strings, fixated. Oh shit, I knew what that meant.
“Let go of my hair and back away slowly,” I said, quickly grabbing for my braid in her hand. “I’ve got it.”
She quivered for a moment, breathing quickly, and then reached out again, her eyes glazed over. Within the blink of an eye and a whirlwind of color, I had a golden tabby hanging from my braids, wrestling them with all the glee of a kid in a candy store.
“Hey! You little sh—” I tried to shake her off, but my braid was still tangled in the threads. Delilah tightened her grip on the hair.
Camille raced over and scooped her up, getting a nice little swipe on her arm for doing so. I decided that I could buy a new bedspread and ripped the fringe off the edge, tearing the material in the process. But it freed me. I turned to find Camille
holding Delilah up above her head, her hands wrapped around our sister’s furry tummy. Delilah plaintively yowled and squirmed, her eyes wide, toes splayed, tufts of fur sticking out from between them.
“You free?” Camille asked.
I nodded, and she tossed Kitten on my bed. Delilah promptly zoomed off across the room and up the stairs on a manic quest for— well, for what ever cats were aiming for when they did that. I’d asked her about it once but only got a burst of
laughter in reply.
“Well, hell. That was not exactly the way I planned to start my night,” I said, examining the ruined spread. “It’s not too bad. Maybe Iris can mend it for me when she has some extra time.”
Camille finished untangling the fringe from my hair and gave me the once- over. “You ever think about a different hairstyle? Your hair used to be so pretty when you wore it long and curly.”
Copyrighted 2009, Yasmine Galenorn
5.01.2009
Blessed Beltane, Our Anniversary, Romance Extravaganza, and the Auction is Open
Beltane--when the King Stag goes into rut and looks for his mate, when the Young Lord chases the Maiden (or the other way around), when the solitary wanderer casts off her robe and runs skyclad under the gibbous moon, dancing among the stars.
This is the time when the Fae come out to tease the unwary, when we celebrate the joys of our bodies, the joys of creation--whether we're making babies, making books, making apple pie. For pagans, this day is a tap on the shoulder, when Big Mama whispers, "Don't forget, you are still bound to your primal roots, as are all my children, be they four or two footed, be they winged or crawl on their bellies or slip silently through the sea." We touch our roots, today, we are reminded that we are of the Earth and from the Earth, and to the Earth we will return.
And so, Blessed Beltane to you, may Pan and Aphrodite fill your lives with joy, and the sensual delights of all things passionate. Whether you celebrate in solitude or with others, keep it safe, sane, and consensual.
Today is Samwise and my 16th wedding anniversary. Sixteen years ago today, we had a lovely wedding/handfasting, out in an apple orchard, under a rain-soaked sky. The rain stopped the moment we stepped into Circle, and started again the minute the ceremony finished. Under the watchful eyes of Mielikki and Tapio and about sixty of our friends, we joined together as husband and wife, as a Priestess and her Consort, and as blood-oath brother and sister.
We folded a thousand gold cranes and strung them from the trees with streamers blowing in the wind. We had two Maypoles, and danced the ribbons tight around them--then a fantastic potluck. That night we had three bonfires across the hillside, the wood piles were 10 feet high and the flames roared up into the sky--we drummed and danced good share of the night away. We've come a long way from scraping together 600 dollars over 5 months to pull our wedding together, but despite the tight budget, it was the most beautiful Beltane, and I'm still amazed that a whirlwind romance could last this long, and be so good.
For those in my area, remember the Romance Extravaganza on Saturday. I'll be paneling and signing.
And lastly--the Diabetes auction has begun! Check out what I'm offering--you can reach the auction through the links on my site. The critique/lunch is being featured as a one-day auction and yes, I've answered a couple questions before on it: you can bid if you just want the critique or just the lunch. But both are included if you want both.
Brightest Blessings, and thank you to everyone who wished us a happy anniversary. We've had some rough times, health concerns that were terrifying at times, loss and sorrow, but we're learned that if you want to make your love last--and that was our vow, "As long as love shall last" rather than "Til death do us part"...then you work to make it happen.
Yasmine
This is the time when the Fae come out to tease the unwary, when we celebrate the joys of our bodies, the joys of creation--whether we're making babies, making books, making apple pie. For pagans, this day is a tap on the shoulder, when Big Mama whispers, "Don't forget, you are still bound to your primal roots, as are all my children, be they four or two footed, be they winged or crawl on their bellies or slip silently through the sea." We touch our roots, today, we are reminded that we are of the Earth and from the Earth, and to the Earth we will return.
And so, Blessed Beltane to you, may Pan and Aphrodite fill your lives with joy, and the sensual delights of all things passionate. Whether you celebrate in solitude or with others, keep it safe, sane, and consensual.
Today is Samwise and my 16th wedding anniversary. Sixteen years ago today, we had a lovely wedding/handfasting, out in an apple orchard, under a rain-soaked sky. The rain stopped the moment we stepped into Circle, and started again the minute the ceremony finished. Under the watchful eyes of Mielikki and Tapio and about sixty of our friends, we joined together as husband and wife, as a Priestess and her Consort, and as blood-oath brother and sister.
We folded a thousand gold cranes and strung them from the trees with streamers blowing in the wind. We had two Maypoles, and danced the ribbons tight around them--then a fantastic potluck. That night we had three bonfires across the hillside, the wood piles were 10 feet high and the flames roared up into the sky--we drummed and danced good share of the night away. We've come a long way from scraping together 600 dollars over 5 months to pull our wedding together, but despite the tight budget, it was the most beautiful Beltane, and I'm still amazed that a whirlwind romance could last this long, and be so good.
For those in my area, remember the Romance Extravaganza on Saturday. I'll be paneling and signing.
And lastly--the Diabetes auction has begun! Check out what I'm offering--you can reach the auction through the links on my site. The critique/lunch is being featured as a one-day auction and yes, I've answered a couple questions before on it: you can bid if you just want the critique or just the lunch. But both are included if you want both.
Brightest Blessings, and thank you to everyone who wished us a happy anniversary. We've had some rough times, health concerns that were terrifying at times, loss and sorrow, but we're learned that if you want to make your love last--and that was our vow, "As long as love shall last" rather than "Til death do us part"...then you work to make it happen.
Yasmine
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