Rogues Angels Present: Check In Day!

It's Check In Day.

Time to pay the piper! How did you do? How much did you write? Did words explode on your WIP?

This is the Rogue's Angels weekly check-in. Every Thursday we encourage the Angels and visitors to let us know how their writing is going.

How well are you doing?

Had problems this week? That's ok. Just sit down this coming week and write. Whatever you do, don't let difficulties from the week before get in your way this week.

Every word is one word closer to the finished product.

Working on Sweet Talkin' Sugar. I started chapter three and now my plan is to write 5000 words this week. I missed the mark last week by about two hundred words.

How was your week?

Rogues Angels Presents: Forever His by Christine Young

Forever His by Chrsitine Young

Excerpt Heat Level:

Book Heat Level:

August 30, 1895

Near Buffalo Creek,

South Dakota

Buy at: www.roguephoenixpress.com

Buy at Amazon

REVIEW:

Christine Young has done it again in this historical romance. The blizzards, betrayal, deceit and a ruthless bandito like Chavez made this a great romance.

Melinda for Night Owl Romance     5 out of 5

BLURB:

Struggling to come to terms with the part she played in Jacob St. John’s death, Etta Barringer resigns from Pinkerton Agency and seeks peace and solace in a Rocky Mountain Cabin.

Jacob has vowed to discover the reason Etta has betrayed him, sold him out to his enemy and left him for dead.

Isolated in their cabin, they discover their love for each other and learn to trust. But the trust is shattered when Jacob learns she is married to his sworn enemy; the man who left him in the desert to die.

EXCERPT:

The sun beat down. Searing heat waves hit the hard packed earth, blistering, charring everything, even the dry prairie grass. Jacob St. John, his arms stretched overhead and bound to a whipping post, no longer counted the lashes tearing into his back, no longer felt the horrific agony.

More than a half-dozen men and one woman were gathered in the sage-patched backyard of the run-down shack. So far not one person made a sound as they watched Chavez wield the whip, stripping the flesh off his back.

If Chavez weren't so angry and seeking revenge of his own, he would probably have just had him shot. Revenge was a powerful motive. Chavez wanted Jacob to suffer, to yell before he died. It seemed Etta Barringer did too. So far Chavez was toying with him, taunting and teasing him, cutting an inch here, ripping an inch there, not doing much damage but making mincemeat out of his back.

Jacob hadn't made a sound yet, not even a sharp, indrawn breath. He wasn't about to even though he knew Chavez would get impatient and start slashing. There was no hurry. Chavez had as long as he wanted. No one save Etta knew where he was, no one would come looking for him, at least not until the sun went down. By then Chavez would be done with him, and he would either be dead or buzzard-bait. For the life of him, he couldn't figure why Etta would hand him over to Chavez. She had always been Pinkerton to the core, yet she had betrayed him once before. If he survived this, he meant to have answers. He'd move heaven and earth to search out the lying Etta Barringer and find out exactly what she had against him.

The pain of betrayal at the forefront of his mind, and vows of revenge against the instigator of this kept him going. He focused on the woman's laughter and the scent of lemons that permeated his soul.

He had been taken by surprise. Still, he didn't go down easily. It took all of Chavez's men to get him bound securely to the post in back of the shack. And of those men, not one came away from the encounter without a scratch. Blood from the multitude of small cuts Chavez had inflicted ran in rivulets from his back, pooling on the parched thirsty ground, soaking into the dirt, staining it.

He stood, his head proudly erect and that seemed to draw anger from Chavez. The grip of his fingers curled around the top of the post, the only sign of Jacob's pain--and fury.

The first real stroke of the whip felt like a red-hot branding iron searing across his back. Jacob didn't flinch, nor would he as long as he could hear her laughter or smell lemons floating languidly on the breeze. He wished he could see her, stare into her beguiling, green eyes until she knew he'd never stop hunting for her. Fury at his own weakness rose, and the anger he felt deep inside simmered, because she'd always attracted him. Ever since she showed up in a small town in Oregon, seduced him then drugged him and left him to sleep off the opium-laced whiskey, she'd fascinated him.

Concentrate on her--on what you're going to do when you find her again . . .

Christine Young has done it again in this historical romance. The blizzards, betrayal, deceit and a ruthless bandito like Chavez made this a great romance.

Melinda for Night Owl Romance     5 out of 5

other titles by Christine:

Rogues Angels Present: Lockdown by Samie Sands

Please welcome Samie Sands author of Lockdown.


Samie will be awarding a signed copy of Lockdown (International winner) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, and a $15 Amazon Voucher to a randomly drawn host. Please use the raffelcopter link below to enter.

Lockdown

by Samie Sands

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leah's practical joke has spiraled way out of control. Now everyone seems convinced that the apocalypse is coming - in the form of zombies. The government is calling the virus AM13, and is advising – or more like forcing - everyone to stay indoors while they 'clean up the mess'.

Leah tries to persuade everyone that it was all just a horrible mistake, however she starts to see there may be more truth to it all than she first thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Finally, I've done it.

Red lights, flashing. Alarms sounding. Panic. Fear. What have I done? This must be bad, really bad. I can hear a screaming noise, where is it coming from?

They're coming out. This is it. Oh my God, I need to run. It's then I notice the screams are coming from me.

Time stands still. Everything has been so quiet for days, so the loud alarm noise feels like an intrusion on my brain, my thoughts. I can't get myself together enough to do something to stop it.

I turn and run, towards Mike. My plan was to rescue him and that's what I need to do. Then I realise I don't even know this guy. Loyalties forgotten, I move towards getting the hell out of there. I grab my bag and get to the door. The gun, I forgot to pick it up. I look back to see my chances of retrieving it, but there's no hope. The infected are everywhere, shambling towards me. I need to move right now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Samie Sands is a 28-year-old Graphic Designer who has recently decided to follow her lifelong dream and use her creativity in a different way. Lockdown is her debut published novel, but she's also had a number of short stories included in successful anthologies.

She lives in a small seaside town in the UK,  but loves to travel to gain inspiration from different cultures. To keep up to date with Samie, please check out her website www.samiesands.com.

http://samiesands.com

http://thelockdown.co.uk

http://www.facebook.com/SamieSandsLockdown

http://www.twitter.com/SamieSands

http://samiesands.tumblr.com

http://www.wattpad.com/SamieSands

Use this raffelcopter code to enter:

"http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e434128/"

Rogues Angels Present Dragons among the Eagles by C. L. Kraemer

Dragons Among the Eagles by C. L. Kraemer

Excerpt Heat Level: 0

Book Heat Level:

Buy at: www.roguephoenixpress.com

Buy at Amazon:

Buy at Barnes & Noble  

BLURB:

Aleda Sable faces the toughest decision of her life--to stay in dragon form, live as a two-legged or put one foot in the human world and one talon in the dragon world.

An urgent call from her newspaper editor sends Aleda to report on an accident whose driver appears to be a dragon. Authorities have the scene locked down and aren't allowing access to anyone. Television broadcasts flash pictures of scaly legs hanging from a crashed car. However, the bodies disappear into thin air. When the stations try follow-up reports, all they find are state highway workers busily tearing up the roads.

In determining the truth of the shifter disappearances, Aleda finds the truth of her own dilemma.

EXCERPT:

Rain thwacked against Aleda's leathery black appendages. Her arms ached; heck, every muscle in her body ached. This flying thing was going to take more practice. The continual downpour of the spring night slithered past her shielded turquoise eyes, bathing her scales in cool refreshment. As much as she would like to have frolicked in the showers, she was more interested in landing in one spot, curling up and sleeping for the next four days. If only…

Cyre winged up to her side.

"You go in first and I'll follow. I want to wash off the grit of the trip."

Aleda pulled back her lips in a semblance of a smile.

"No problem," she shouted over the wind drafts.

When Cyre's sister, Brittany, had first suggested Aleda attend the dragon council in China, she'd been ecstatic. Her recent discovery of her true identity--half human, half dragon--had put her beliefs to the test. She imagined being around those like her would make her transition simpler. Cyre and Brittany, full-blooded Celtic dragons, had helped as best they could by explaining rules of dragon protocol and pointing out the good guys from the bad guys at the council meetings. By the end of the week, Aleda's fairy tale illusion had fallen abruptly on sharp rocks. Politics and power were as rampant in the dragon-shapeshifter community as in the human community.

Brittany was going to spend a night or two in Cyre's den before continuing her journey back to Scotland. Then Aleda and Cyre would be faced with the decisions they'd both been putting off since their first meeting.

She felt the solid rock beneath her talons and breathed a sigh of relief. The council meeting had been exhilarating, educational and overwhelming all at once. It was nice, really nice, to be back in the Northwest of the United States. Aleda stood, getting her land legs then shook the extra moisture from her body. Placing her talon on the button in the rock wall, she pushed and the door of the cave slid open. Watching the heavy glass trundle into the backside of Mt. St. Helens still gave her chill bumps. So much about the twenty-first century dragon world made her shake her head. How could they survive with all the advancements humans had accomplished? Knowing the answer still didn't stop her from asking the question.

The few minutes she'd stood contemplating questions already asked had given the cavern a chance to air out. While her sense of smell wasn't as acute for some things, sulfur being one of those, she still hadn't been able to adjust completely to the acrid aroma Cyre tolerated in his cave.

As she dragged her tired feet over the threshold, Cyre backwinged his way on the landing. Aleda turned just in time to catch the wicked twinkle in his eyes.

He sprayed water over the landing, his laughter bubbling over the surrounding rocks like thunder.

"Cyre! I just dried off! Jiminy!"

Aleda wrinkled her brow and glared at the young gray-green dragon. His mirthful smirk did nothing to help her anger.

"Hey, you two. Get in here and dry off. I did some hunting before you got here and there's dinner in the great room. I've had mine and to be quite frank, I'm exhausted. I'm going to sleep."

Brittany tromped back to the great room and found a warm spot near the back wall.

Cyre and Aleda located the carcasses of the deer where Brittany had dropped the bodies. Each took one and moved off to eat, alone, before settling in for the night. Minutes after devouring their meals, the trio of dragons were fast asleep, the decisions of the previous week set aside for the normality of life.

Dragons Among the Eagles is an excellent sequel that will hold your attention until the very end and leave you craving more.  Well done Ms. Kraemer for delivering yet another awesome book!

Worthy of a 5 Angel Eyes rating

L. Nickels for Rogue's Angels

Buy at:  http://www.roguephoenixpress.com/

Other titles by C.L. Kraemer

Covers

 

Are you able to convey your cover idea to the cover artist?

 

The cover of your novel will sell or sink your book. Covers that illicit immediate reaction will make the reader grab the book or walk away. The above picture puts one in mind of fantasy or science fiction with a medieval setting.

 

Are you able to tell your cover designer what you want? Or are you vague and uncertain?

 

The following CAIF, Cover Artist Information Form, clearly shows what the author needs to be thinking of in the way of a cover. If you tell the publisher you don't have an idea and don't care... don't complain when the cover on your book is the exact opposite of what you envisioned.

 

 

Cover Art Information Form

Authors, please fill in the information below, to the best of your ability. 

TITLE: 

GENRE:

E-ISBN: 

POD-ISBN:

AUTHOR NAME: 

WRITING AS:

EDITOR:  

CE:  

SE:

ME:

EE:

ARTIST:

PUBLICATION DATE: 

Author

ADDRESS: 

PHONE:

HOME PAGE:

EMAIL ADDRESS:

BOOK COVER ART

Designing book covers is time consuming and sometimes very frustrating for both the artist and the author. The small amount the artists are paid for their work does not compensate for the long hours sometimes spent on designing the “perfect” cover. With a little help from our authors, our jobs as artists will be a great deal simpler. Have your CAIF’s filled out ASAP so an artist can be assigned to your work and has as much time as possible to accomplish their goal, which is to bring you a cover that both pleases and excites you.

Ideas: Please share ideas of what you would like on your cover, but also be open to new ideas if what you’ve requested cannot be attained in a timely fashion to design an attractive cover.

Theme: Pick a subject for the cover that follows suit to the theme of your book. Keep it simple and to the point. If you do not supply an idea, then be informative about the theme of your book so the artist can do their best work. After all, their name goes on your book too.

Objects: There are always significant objects in a story; a bouquet of long-stemmed red roses or a broken down antique car, a dainty floral teacup or a bottle of deadly poison, a pestiferous fat cat or a worn out pair of dusty cowboy boots. Setting the theme of your book on its cover, helps to sell your book. Be specific about your ideas so we can fine-tune your cover art. Not just roses, but the color and amount too, two-dozen red roses in a tall glass vase. Not just a cat, but a high strung Siamese cat with an attitude…you get the picture. But keep it simple and don’t use several elements or the cover becomes too cluttered.

People: Unless you have a photograph of people for the art department to use, it is very difficult to use real people on your covers. Silhouettes work well, as do ghostly images, but it’s unlawful to use a person’s photograph without their permission. If you have photographs you'd like us to you, be sure you have the rights to the images, models, etc.

Color: If there is a particular color scheme you would like on your cover, please let us know in advance. Also, if there is a particular color you absolutely abhor, that would be nice to know as well. If you have a color scheme in mind, let us know. If there is a previous cover you like, let us know that, too.

LOG-LINE: [Boil your plot down to 25 words or so, to be used by Marketing Department.]

BACK COVER BLURB: When writing your blurb, keep it as short as possible and enticing. Describe what will be of interest to the reader, a sneak preview of your work. Be careful of wordiness and revealing too much. The idea of a blurb is to lure the reader into purchasing your book by reading two interesting, short paragraphs. Total word length - 50. NOTE: Your blurb may be edited as necessary.

REVIEWS/QUOTES: [Format: "Quote." - Reviewer/Title, Publication name, date] Y
You can get quotes from reviewers prior to publishing by sending them the edited draft. Most reviewers understand the power of a good review.

1/2 PAGE TEASER SCENE: [For the artist, to get a feel for the book setting/characters, etc.. And for the inside front cover of the book. And please do keep it to one-half page.]


WEBSITE EXCERPT: [Up to 3 pages copy/pasted from the edited and copy edited manuscript. Please fill out this part and add at the top of the text: (in red bold or pink bold) Unedited Text. The unedited text will be replaced with the copy edited text when the copy edited manuscript is received.