Every Saturday ALLi will tell the world about our members' latest book launches, news, awards, freebies, workshops and updates on the writing life and take a look at the projects and businesses of our partner members.
E-BOOKS, PRINT RELEASES and PRE-ORDERS
Connie Brentford
The Write Life: Beat Writer's Block, Increase Productivity and Maximize Your Word Count Every Day
Authors or writers of any kind that struggle with productivity; ebook
Banish writer's block and increase your word count. Are you suffering because you don’t meet your word count goals? Does the blank page taunt you even when you’re not in front of your computer? Do you spend days rewriting one sentence? The inability to produce words has created writer misery and suffering for ages and no writer is completely immune.
The Write Life was created to relieve your distress, encourage your creativity and help you maximize your word count.
This book is full of advice, exercises and prompts to help you identify and change your bad habits and fear into productivity and confidence. We teach you how to manage your time and give you the resources and skills to help you create the writing career you deserve, starting today.
Book Launch offer: Get Connie Brentford’s Five-Star rated, Twitter for Authors: Book Marketing and Brand Building video course (a $97 value) at Udemy, for FREE.
There is a limited time coupon inside for the first 100 book buyers.
Ian H Sutherland
Advanced Twitter Strategies for Authors
Authors, book, print
Advanced Twitter Strategies for Authors reveals how to effectively exploit Twitter to market books and systematically drive thousands of potential purchasers to an author’s works on Amazon and other retailers.
The techniques are equally applicable to fiction and non-fiction author, and also to published and yet-to-be-published authors. Most importantly, it reveals how to make it all happen in less than 15 minutes a day!
I loved that everything was practical and actionable, which is often not the case with many of the author books purporting to help authors do/achieve various things. I definitely take my hat off to the author for the time it must have taken to develop such a powerful and effective system – no mean feat! — Marsha Pink, Author & Entrepreneur
Caroline Batten
Nearly Almost Somebody
She’s nearly perfect – He’s almost the one.
When Patrick’s caught in flagrante with a local beauty queen, his father delivers an ultimatum: one more newspaper scandal and Patrick will be out on his ear. Desperate not to lose his job at the family veterinary practice, Patrick needs to avoid trouble – and girls like Libby.
She’s a headline waiting to happen and mourning her short-lived career as a dancer, Libby casts a wiccan spell to summon a new love.
But fighting Libby’s love spell will be the least of Patrick’s problems when a woman dies from a ketamine overdose.
Will anyone find their perfect somebody?
Murder, love, cheating, poison and passion! This book lacks in nothing. A five star book for me. Well written, emotionally real. It is not just a romance, it is so much more! It has that something for me, that wow factor that you get every now and then with most things, celebrities, films and most definitely books! It is charming, heartfelt and has a dark vibe that is addictive. ~ Tay @ Chicks That Read
The best book I’ve read in 2015. ~ Amazon Bestseller, Brooke Harris
NAS was incredible. ~ Amber @ Cosying up With Books
JJ Toner
Zugzwang
I have launched a new short story on Smashwords.
It’s FREE.
Germany, March 1933. Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party have swept into power.
In Munich, Kommissar Saxon of the civilian police force is hunting a brutal killer that stalks the streets of the city.
But the shadow of the Schutzstaffel (SS) hangs over Saxon and his assistant, making their task close to impossible.
Ann Swinfen
Suffer the Little Children: The Chronicles of Christoval Alvarez Book 5
In Elizabethan London, no child is safe.
Children are misused and exploited by parents, masters, strangers, and society at large.
Even the children of the rich are in danger. When a five-year-old heiress to great estates is kidnapped, Christoval Alvarez, the players of James Burbage’s company, and a disreputable group of child beggars all become involved in the search.
At Seething Lane, matters are approaching a crisis. Sir Francis Walsingham is dying and, as Thomas Phelippes struggles to hold the intelligence service together, he receives information that another attack on the Queen is planned.
The identity of the assassin is unknown, but Phelippes does know the place and the date – Whitehall Palace on the day of the Twelfth Night Revels.
AD Starrling
AD Starrling is happy to announce that The Warrior Monk (A Seventeen Series Short Story) is now available for pre-order.
This short story happens in the same timeline as King's Crusade (A Seventeen Series Novel: Book 2) and shows events in the first half of the book from another character's perspective.
Founded at the turn of the ninth century by the Lotus-Born Second Buddha and inspired by the most powerful immortal warrior who has ever lived, the Order of the Three Spears has kept the existence of the immortals a secret from the eyes of ordinary humans and maintained peace between the races for nearly twelve hundred years.
When news of an ancient enemy reaches them from the West, the Order sends its best and most unorthodox field agent to investigate.
David Penny
Breaker of Bones
March 1483, and Spain is preparing for yet more war.
Surgeon Thomas Berrington makes a reluctant journey to Qurtuba at the request of his master. He expects only to operate on a Spanish prince and return home to Moorish al-Andalus. But fate has something else in store for him and his companion, the eunuch Jorge.
A warped killer has been murdering young women and creating twisted creatures from their bodies. When Thomas is tasked by Queen Isabel to hunt down the culprit he is propelled into an unfamiliar world of religious mania where it is impossible to tell who can be trusted. Meanwhile Jorge is on a quest of his own—to track down the family he hasn’t seen in almost twenty years.
When Jorge’s new found niece is chosen as the Bonebreaker’s next victim the pair are faced with their most dangerous challenge yet. Will they be able to expose the killer in time, or is there yet another life to pay for one man’s madness?
Sometimes only sacrifice can save those you love.
Breaker of Bones is available on Amazon Kindle only at the moment but there should be a paperback version by next wee
ONLINE EVENTS
Suzan Collins
Fed up of writing alone?
Come and join us for the virtual write-in this afternoon from 3-4pm (UK time).
If you would like to join me let me know by going to the Just Write It! page and leave a message on here and then come back at 4pm and say what writing, editing etc. you have done during that time. Hope you can join us.
If you cannot make today’s virtual write in like the Just Write It! FB page and you’ll be able to see when the next virtual write-in will be.
APPEARANCES – RADIO and TV
Steph Haxton
Author and historian features on new BBC2 Antiques Roadshow detectives
Anyone interested in the history behind historical fiction?; TV
Antiques Roadshow Detectives, is a companion programme to the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow, and follows up on intriguing stories behind family heirlooms.
The exciting items with which we were working related to Lewis Tremayne, one of the central male protagonists in my novel Exposed to All Villainies.
Because so much of the novel closely follows real historical events, I was able to help with details about Pendennis Castle and Lewis' story beyond that too, some of the material for the sequel.
The artifacts tell a story of loyalty and honour, danger and high drama, culminating in the execution of a king.
Debbie Young
Regular BBC Broadcast Features Debbie Young
Of potential interest to all authors and readers; Live and online event
Debbie Young is now part of a regular monthly Book Club feature on BBC Radio Gloucestershire, doing a double-act with The Bookseller's Caroline Sanderson, talking about books and writing. Click the link to hear their latest programme.
Karen Inglis
Barnes Children’s Literature Festival welcomes Karen Inglis
ALLi children’s author Karen Inglis is to appear at the inaugural Barnes Children’s Literature Festival in southwest London on Saturday 25 April. The festival is thinking big and includes a roll call of household names and multi award-winning children’s authors and illustrators, including Alex Scheffler of Gruffalo fame; Carnegie Medal Winner, Sally Gardner and one of the UK’s favourite poets, Roger McGough to name but a few.
Karen will be introducing 7-10 year-olds to her popular graphic novel Eeek! The Runaway Alien and showing the children how she works with her illustrator in Bosnia across the Internet. Eeek was selected by Julia Eccleshare of The Guardian and The Literacy Trust for the reluctant readers’ list on LoveReading4KidsUK
Click on Karen’s name above to read her blog post about how working with local bookshops and schools earned her a place at the event – and to see Barnes village duck pond! Or visit barneskidslitfest.org to see the full schedule and book tickets.
TALKS
Lucienne Boyce
The Rocky Road to Democracy: From King John to Mayor George, Avon Local History & Archaeology Study Day, Frenchay Campus, University of the West of England, 18 April 2015
I will be giving a talk about the suffragettes as part of the ALHA Study Day, which will include sessions on the civil war, individual freedom in the eighteenth century, riots and reform. The day will run from 9.45 (doors open 9.15) to 4.15, and will take place in the Lecture Theatre, 2B020, Frenchay Campus, University of the West of England, Coldharbour Lane, Bristol BS16 1QY on 18 April 2015.
There is ample parking on site. The event is organised in association with the Regional History Centre at UWE and costs £12 per person (£9 concessions). There will be copies of The Bristol Suffragettes on sale. For further information and to book visit the ALHA website
AWARDS
Linda Gillard
House of Silence
Readers of general fiction (adult); ebook & print
Linda Gillard's novel House of Silence has been awarded an IndieBRAG Medallion. This is the third of her novels to be so honoured, after Cauldstane and Untying the Knot.
BRAG is an acronym for Book Readers Appreciation Group, a US group whose mission is to discover talented self-published authors and help give their work the attention and recognition it deserves.
House of Silence was selected by Amazon UK as one of their “Top Ten Best of 2011” in the Indie Author category.
COMPETITIONS
John Yeoman
£1000 top prize for short fiction in Writers’ Village Contest summer 2015
£1000 is the top prize on offer for short fiction in the Writers' Village International Short Fiction Award summer 2015, with cash prizes totaling £2000. The second prize is £500, third prize £250 and there are five runner up prizes of £50. Ten further Highly Commended entrants will have their stories acknowledged at the site.
Everyone wins because every contestant, win or lose, gains feedback on how their stories were graded – plus tips for improvement.
Winners will be awarded the title ‘Winner, the Writers’ Village International Short Fiction Award summer 2015’ and see their work showcased online.
Any genre of prose fiction may be submitted up to 3000 words, except playscripts and poetry. Entries are welcomed world-wide. The fee is £15 and multiple entries are permitted. Deadline is midnight 30th June 2015. Entry rules plus all winning stories since 2009 can be found here.
If you are a member of The Alliance of Independent Authors and you would like to showcase your work on our ALLi Showcase, please send it to [email protected] to reach me no later than the Thursday proceeding the Saturday you would like it published.
By doing so I get larger and bigger up to a place in which no person can consume me personally, so I could win the
overall game with this hack!