Saturday, September 29, 2012

Joseph Aquilino and Author Nook Show


From Tears of Crimson:  @JoeyGiggles has been a long time supporter of Tears of Crimson, so needless to say we support everything he does!  The #JGF family was one of the first hashtags we followed on twitter, and it's been a positive experience since 2009!



I'm looking for more authors interested in being on my Author's Nook show through the month of December,  if interested please see the links below.  Time slots for the show:  4-5 PM Est on Wednesdays.

The dates available for shows:  Oct. 3rd, Oct 10th, Oct 17th, 24th of October from 4-5 PM Est let me know if your interested in talking about and promoting your books to get your names out there with some great conversation

For November the times and dates available for the author's nook:  November 7th and November 14th from 4-5 PM EST

For December the times and dates available for the Author's Nook show is December 5th, 12th, and 19th from 4-5 PM Est.  I would love to have you on please let me know ASAP

Please include bio, topic and picture for RSVP

Joe

Blogtalk Radio With Joey
Joseph's XeeMe
Joseph on Facebook
Joey on Twitter

Friday, September 28, 2012

Tears of Crimson Celebration Party - Come On!


Tears of Crimson Celebration Party - Come On!

It's Friday at Tears of Crimson and we've got a huge reason to celebrate!  10 Nights, our September release, has been labeled as the #1 American Drama and #99 Contemporary Romance on Amazon!  We're inviting you to come in and share some great music, and thank some incredible people who we just absolutely adore! It's been an AMAZING month and we just can't say thank you enough to each and every person that supported our endeavors to debut 10 Nights!

First, we wanted to thank the Tears of Crimson cast who has stuck by our sides for the last three years, when people had no idea what or who we were.  Much love to @Steve Grimaldi and @FrecklesMiley over the years they have always given so much to Tears of Crimson, and we are so very thankful!  We're sharing the twitter list of our Tears of Crimson Cast here and hope that you will follow all these incredible people! 




              
Many thanks to Tammy at Tam's Two Cents, for the amazing blog that helped kick off the interest for 10 Nights!  Our incredible friends on Facebook, at Vampire Lovers  and our writers group, The Write Stuff.  It's been amazing to have support from our Vampire loving friends, even when the only Vampire scene in 10 Nights was a realistic vampire role-play for a dungeon scene!  Another incredible facebook page that we'd love to thank is What to read after Fifty (50) Shades of Grey and the incredible reviewers over at Wanda's Amazing Amazon Reviewers



So many incredible people to thank and we don't want to leave anyone out!  Brandy Roark Dorsch,
Joyce Szczepanski, Lynn Petersen, Shanna Brouillard O'Haire, Ruby Violence, Stephanie Tudgay, Angela Mendoca, Rachel Mendoca, Jon Schrader and of course Susan Hall who now runs our TOC Promotions site and manages @TearsofCrimson on Twitter!



Incredible people, great friends, and a lifetime of gratitude for each and every reader and friend of Tears of Crimson.  This has been an amazing journey and we are all so grateful for your love and support!  

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Fifty Shades of BDSM

Fifty Shades of BDSM


BDSM is not new, and Fifty Shades of Grey was not the first book to appear under the romance genre.  Back in 1999 I read this series by one of my favorite vampire authors, Anne Rice.  It was titled The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty.  This book was found in my local bookstore under Romance, and I have to admit that I was blown away when I read the first pages.  I'd never heard about BDSM, and to say that I was shocked would be a huge understatement.  Imagine if you will expecting to read some sweet Harlequin romance novel and instead discovering people being hung on walls and tortured, and you'll understand my mindset when I first read the Beauty Series.

I remember vividly sneaking into the bathroom to read these books, because I didn't want my grandmother to catch me reading them.  I was fascinated!  This was a world that I had never heard of before, and I was aching to soak up every single minute of it.  I had to know more, did people actually do this kind of thing in real life, surely not, I thought to myself.  At this time I was on AOL (back in the days of the paid subscription), and I ran across a little chat room called LeChateau.

For the next year I would talk to people online who lived this lifestyle and learn things that would change my life forever.  I won't go into those experiences, but I will say they opened my eyes to a completely new world, and eventually I moved to Chicago for a summer to research even more. It was a summer that will live on in my memories for eternity.


So let's discuss BDSM.  In it's basic form BDSM is Bondage, Discipline, and Sadomasochism.  It's a lifestyle that is not hindered by religion (we'll discuss that in a minute), race or financial status.  Society, in the past, has labeled it as perverted and even a form of mental illness.  That was changed in the DSM-IV in 1994 when studies concluded that BDSM did not impair social, occupational, or other factors in life.  You can read about those findings and the subject of BDSM on Wikipedia.

The people that I was fortunate enough to meet when researching had professional titles.  Some were physicians, lawyers, nurses, and even a psychologist.  They were all members of the BDSM lifestyle.  I think the biggest shock was meeting people who were very religious, and chose this lifestyle stating that it went along with their belief that a woman should submit to her husband, that it was biblical.  I was raised in the Bible Belt, so it was very significant to me that religion was not a deterring factor.

What many people fail to understand is that you can have a BDSM relationship without sex.  While most of the romance and erotica books that discuss BDSM revolve around the sexual nature of the lifestyle, it's not a given.  It would take more pages than I have available on this site to delve into the many different ways people incorporate this into their lives, so I suggest you research.  Follow the List of BDSM organizations, to discover more about what this lifestyle is truly about. 

In conclusion, while Fifty Shades of Grey brought BDSM to the mainstream with it's popularity, there is so much more to it than the fiction you read in books.  I encourage all readers to find out the facts before believing that everything you read in romance or erotica is reality.  With our latest book 10 Nights, we delve into some of the scenes of the lifestyle, but it is still a work of fiction.  Tears of Crimson promotes Safe, Sane, Sexuality and the exploration of all fantasies, but we also caution you to educate yourself prior to experimentation.  

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Taking over Tears of Crimson Today



10 Nights is CLIMBING up the US Amazon Charts! 

Before I start talking about rankings, let me just say that I had to go check the calendar to make sure no one was scheduled to post as a guest today.  Since I wasn't bouncing anyone off, I had to share with you the latest rankings for our book!  

#1,684 Paid in Kindle Store 
#2 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > United States
#3 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Fiction > Drama > United States


I don't normally do the whole first person thing at Tears, because as our friends know, it's not just my website.  Tons of great folks have helped make Tears of Crimson what it is today, and I like to include each and every one of them when we do our posts here.  Who would have thought that some chick from Rockford, Alabama could meet so many great folks and then have them care about what she was saying?  Definitely not me!  Ask me if I'm not humbled every single day by the amazing comments, and friendships I've made here!  I'm am beyond humbled.  

Mr. Jones and I started 10 Nights with a hope and a dream, and we are both so blown away at how folks have responded.  I've had people ask me what I'm getting so excited about, you still aren't in the top 100 overall?  Well let me just say that I'm extremely thankful about where we've been able to take this book.  I've heard of authors complaining when their book made it to number two, and not number one and that just amazes me.  There are SO many incredible books out there!  To have our book considered as worthy enough to make it this high in the charts, to me that's an amazing privilege!

I talk to authors every single day that have incredible books for sale.  Each one of those authors has poured their hearts and souls into their work.  We are all writers attempting to share our love of words with the world.  Each and every one of those authors deserves to be a #1 bestseller in my opinion.  All I'm saying is, thank you for allowing 10 Nights to go as far as it has, and I'm so very grateful.  

Love,
Michelle

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Passionate Cooks - Heating it up one recipe at a time!


Passionate Cooks - Heating it up one recipe at a time

There's only one thing we love as much as passionate books, and that's incredible recipes.  It was an honor to pair up with Passionate Cooks and have my recipe included.  Ladies, you know the fastest way to a man's heart is through his tummy, and men, if you really want to impress that special someone, cook her up a great meal!  We've even turned this blog post pink, we're so excited about the new free cookbook!

Passionate Cooks takes recipes from over 150 Romance Authors that show you how to make that kitchen a little hotter!  Thanks to All Romance Books for bringing together a group of authors who are just waiting to show you how to cook up a little slice of heaven!  There's something for every level of chef in this sexy cookbook, so why don't you stop on in and pre-order your copy today!

Don't forget to share this book with all your friends!  It's free!  Who knows, maybe these recipes might spark a little heat in the bedroom as well.  It's time to put on that apron and serve up a little delicious lovin' with the help from Passionate Cooks!


Don't forget to follow everything going on with Passionate Cooks on twitter by using the hashtag #AReCooks and Liking the Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/PassionateCooks  Let's heat up that kitchen and share some love baby!




Friday, September 21, 2012

Twitter Has Tinkled In My Cornflakes!




Twitter Has Tinkled In My Cornflakes!


I don't normally bad talk any service, but when you suspend my account without a reason, then you have earned my wrath!  If there was an error committed on my part, then you send me a letter and let me know about the infraction before taking the next step.  This is common business knowledge, heck it's common grade school knowledge!  When you abruptly end my conversation with 12,000 + followers, you make me look bad, and damage my brand name.  There has been no different activity on my account since 2009, so I would very much like to know what made Twitter decide today to destroy a positive relationship between one of their supporters.

To all my Triberr connections (All 282,352 of you) I am sorry but Twitter will not allow me to send out your messages today.  Please feel free to discuss with them why they felt the need to suspend an account that has only promoted authors for the last three years.  For all my readers at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, iBooks, All Romance, Kobo, Createspace,  not to mention the incredible authors that I have befriended and helped support over the years, please forgive me but thanks to Twitter, I can no longer update you on anything.

Now please ask me if I plan on doing any advertising with Twitter!  At this moment I'm considering deleting my account with Hootesuite, and Feed140 since it's apparent without a Twitter account, it's not worth my investment.  Like I said in the beginning of this post, I don't like talking bad about a company, BUT if you can't be responsible for your actions or at LEAST give a valid reason why you've ended a service after three years, then you basically deserve to be called out.

Truly,
Michelle Hughes
A FORMER Twitter user!




Writing a Guest Blog - And why you should!


Guest Blogging - Are You Ready to Share?


If you read any books about how to promote yourself, you've probably seen the suggestion to guest blog.  So what's the deal with guest blogging, and how can it help you?  When you guest blog, you reach readers that may have never heard of your work before and that can open some new doors of opportunity.  Imagine that you've been invited to be a guest speaker at a new event, and that's pretty much guest blogging in a nutshell.  

So how can you be a guest blogger that people will want to invite back again into their space?  Writing a great guest blog means considering the blog you are posting for.  Read a few of their previous blog posts and see what they are discussing and try to stay within the theme of the site.  If you're appearing on a site, it's just good manners to subscribe or follow, in appreciation for their time.  

When writing a guest blog post, remember that you need to try and catch a readers attention quickly.  Most people have very busy lives and if you haven't caught there attention in the first paragraph, they'll move on to something else that does interest them.  Give a great headline and a quick overview of what you'll be discussing in the first paragraph.  Basically you're answering two questions for the readers:  Who are you and why should I care?  

What we've discovered with guest blogging (at least for posts coming in to our site), if you create a word document that labels where you want pictures inserted in your guest post, it helps tremendously.  When you send your email to the site owner, attach the photos to that email.  You should always ask the site owner what works best for them.  Remember the owner of the site probably keeps a schedule of which bloggers are appearing on a calendar, so ask how soon you should have your post ready in advance.  We've included a sample guest blog word doc here to give an example.

That's our 411 on guest blogging!  If you'd like to appear on this blog, then please send an email and tell us why you think your post would be interesting to the Tears of Crimson family!  Happy Guest Blogging!

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Why I always write the boy - ShaNeil Harda




 Why I always write the boy


A bit about ShaNeil Harada - Author:
I have been writing since I was six. I was sitting in church and my mom gave me a piece of paper and pencil to keep me occupied.  I wrote a terrible little poem, I wish I still had a copy of it.

I have always wanted to take all the beauty and magic in the world and put it on paper for people to see.  I love writing fantasy/fiction and always have a story playing out in my head.




As a female writer, collaborating with other women, the question that I am often asked is: “Why are you always the boy?”

To be honest, I have more fun with boy characters.  I can make them strong and arrogant or socially awkward and shy.  I always had more ‘guy’ friends growing up than girls and I never was much of a girlie-girl.  As such I feel like I have a much easier time getting into the heads of boy characters.

“Is it awkward writing the boy half of a love story?”

Absolutely, I often find that I’m red from ear to ear after writing a scene, but it can be fun too.  I consider myself lucky, I get to make my characters say and do whatever I want.  So my guys always remember to say something sweet or make a romantic gesture, unless of course it suits the story better for them not to.

One question that I have a really hard time answering is: “Who is your favorite character?”

Do I have to pick?  Like my children, I love all of my characters equally.

I would have to say that Zayne in the series Reapers and Guardians, which I wrote with my good friend V Ann Crook, is one of the first characters that I absolutely gave my heart to.  He’s sweet and just wants what it seems that everyone else has…love.  I love the guy by default, but I had a blast writing him and getting into his head.  


After giving his mother the ‘kiss of death’ when he was four, Zayne always kept his distance from people.  He was so lonely, but it became second nature to him to just keep everyone at arm’s length.  With a tragic background like that how can you not love the guy?



The Reapers and Guardians series brings teen angst to a whole new level with a sixteen year old grim reaper who just wants to be a normal kid.  This series consists of four novellas.  The first two, Kiss of Death and Kiss of Shadows are available in Kindle format on Amazon:

Zayne is a sixteen year-old with a kiss to die for, literally.  He has lived in foster homes since he was four, ever since he kissed his mother and felt her die in his arms.  


He has mastered the art of pretending to be normal while keeping everyone at a distance.  That is until a fiery-haired angel, named Nadya, sends his carefully balanced world spinning on its axis.
Nadya has a gift of her own, one very different from the curse he bears.  Will their similar yet opposing gifts create an unbreakable bond of friendship between them?  Or are they destined to be enemies?
Zayne fights to control the emotions he has worked so hard to bury as his heart begins to long for the one thing he knows for sure that he can never have... love.

http://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Death-novella-Guardians-ebook/dp/B008EEQ350



Terrified by his foster brother, Zayne's ability to suck the very soul from a person with a simple kiss, Zack runs away from home to live with his friend, a drug dealer named Alex. 

Trying numerous drugs to escape the creepy shadows that seem to be after him, Zack overdoses and ends up in a coma in the hospital, barely hanging on to life.
Zayne, wracked by guilt, rushes to find a way to rescue his brother from the shadows that torment him and threaten to strip away the last of his soul.
There is a way to make the shadows go away, but to do so Zayne must die. Can Zayne and Nadya rescue Zack and get rid of the shadows, or is the price too high?
http://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Shadows-novella-Guardians-ebook/dp/B008MRBRJ6



For readers who have not yet embraced the concept of e-books, the two novellas are also combined in a single paperback called “Reaper’s Kiss”:













The remaining novellas: Kiss of Life and Kiss of Fate will be available soon (They will also be combined in a paperback called “Guardian’s Kiss”)

For a complete list of my available books, please check out my Amazon Author’s Page: http://www.amazon.com/ShaNeil-Harada/e/B008EJQOKY

Check out more about my works in progress on my website: http://shaneilharada.com/

Monday, September 17, 2012

Erotic Books - Share Your Opinion!



Erotic Books - Share Your Opinion!

With our recent release of 10 Nights, we've been seeing a lot of comments about how BDSM seems to be infiltrating the romance category.  We want to hear your opinions on what this means for Romance, so we're opening up our blog to the readers.  Come tell us your opinion, good, bad or indifferent.  Have we overstepped the boundaries or was it time for Romance Novels to expand outside the norm and start including more types of relationships?  

Whether or not you loved, or hated Fifty Shades of Grey, you can't deny that it's having a huge impact on the entire categorization of the Romance genre.  Books that were once hidden behind the Erotic label are coming out in droves under contemporary romance.  As a reader do you now have to filter your search to exclude certain topics, or has this opened up a new world of possible fantasy related themes?  Where does the Romance category go from here?  If we've opened up BDSM what will be the next topic that dominates the genre?

The breakout percent for new erotic books has increased 110% in the last 90 days.  That's a trend that booksellers can't ignore.  How far though, is too far?  As a reader, we'd like your opinion on when a book should no longer be labeled as romance and only as Erotica.  What subject matter do you consider too Taboo for just a romance label?  This is your chance to give an opinion and we hope you take it.  At Tears of Crimson, we listen to our friends, so your opinions help shape future book releases.  

We encourage you NOT to hold back.  Tell us what you really think!  As a reader that we would like to keep, your opinions matter more than anyone else's.  Have questions?  We'd like to know about them.  We would love to be able to read your mind, but only our vampires do that, and they don't always like to share.  So take a moment out of your day today and tell us what your opinions are.  


Without distractions...

Without distractions, anything is possible. Well virtually anything. Normally I am a very distracted person, the slightest little thing can turn my focus away from whatever project I am trying to work on.
The projects have mounted up though, and no I have no choice but to focus, unless I want to get swarmed under and face the wrath of Mistress Michelle, so today I have locked myself away in a box with no distractions possible and knuckled down. The result, 30 pages of editing complete in less than 4 hours, with a few rest breaks for coffee and to preserve my eyes and fingers, and there's plenty of time to get the same done again, if not more, before the end of the day.
If I can keep this kind of pace up until the end of the month I should have at least two of the projects currently underway finished. That will be a great burden off my shoulders, and will possibly free up enough time for me to try and work on a couple of ideas I have lurking at the back of my mind.

If anyone sees me online, please slap me and tell me to get back to work, I'm not supposed to be here.
Thanks
Karl

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Release for hot, new "Vegas" Series – Are you feeling lucky?

Release for hot, new "Vegas" Series – Are you feeling lucky?



Thank you Tears of Crimson for letting me visit your blog today and for your support in helping me spread the news about my new series called "Vegas"


~Welcome~




This is release day for the new romantic suspense
Vegas Series by Mimi Barbour



  "Partners" Book One in the new Romantic Suspense Vegas Series.

Riveting and fast-paced, this short blockbuster will introduce you to Aurora Morelli and Kai Lawson, the characters who are the stars of the Vegas Series.


In this novel, Aurora is forced to accept one very difficult fact—she's lonesome for her partner Debbie. An attack by a maniac put paid to their working together and Aurora is pissed. She's out to get the madman who hurt her friend and God help anyone who gets in her way.  Therefore when a new partner is forced on her, a bloody hotshot no less, the kind of dude she always stays as far away from as possible, she's even more pissed.
This action–packed short is humorous and will sweep you into the lives of these Las Vegas Detectives.



Short Excerpt – Chapter One

So this is what missing someone feels like. Kind of sad and lonely mashed together, eating away at you all day long. Aurora had never felt this way before; wouldn’t have given herself permission. This time the annoying ache refused to stop.
She seldom allowed gloomy thoughts to grab hold and mess with her head. But looking around the small office assigned to her and another, seeing the empty desk, sorrow gnawed away until she gave in. Her old partner Deb left behind a hollow emptiness, a sensation she wouldn’t ever admit to anyone else. What did you expect? She chastised herself. Not having the person you trust more than anyone else in the world backing you up sucked big time.
Two weeks ago, life had been normal. She’d gone to get a cup of the sludge they called coffee and left Debbie working on their backlog of case files. Returning to their office, Lieutenant Cory Ashton had caught up with her and they’d stepped into the room together, both coming to a dead stop. Debbie, who’d lately taken to the layered look with sloppy clothes, had bent over to pick something up from the floor and everything had draped open— her pregnant belly had been revealed for all to see.



 "Roll the Dice" Book Two in the romantic suspense Vegas Series.

“You shot me!” Aurora is incensed. Her new partner shrugs and answers. “I saved your life.” From the very first page of this riveting story, these two battle for supremacy in trying to catch the serial rapist who ripped both their lives apart. With all her might, she fights the attraction to his baby blues that tease and start her internal warning devices humming. After all, her job is her life and determination has always been her lifeline.

Kai has a mission of honor to undertake. The man who’d raped his sister can’t be allowed to live. After all, she hadn’t! Revenge fills his soul while visions of his new partner fills his heart. The sassy woman rattles his calm, and he can’t keep his hands to himself. Doesn’t mean she has the power to stop him from doing what has to be done.



Short Excerpt – Chapter One

“You shot me!”
“You told me to.”
“Dumb shit!” Aurora pushed her new partner from hovering over her so she could sit up. “I didn't mean it. I just wanted you to scare Rhondo.” She felt blood poring from the wound on her arm and purposely kept her head turned away.
“Shooting you did scare him. He let you go, didn't he?”
Aurora frowned at him. Why did his voice have to sound so damn reasonable?
“What-ever!” She hoped her scorn would get to him.
“Hey! I saw his eyes, you didn’t.  He had every intention of using that knife. You know, the sharp one he had pressed against your throat. If I’d shot him instead of you…” He shrugged.
Aurora shuddered, fighting off nausea. She didn’t want to listen to reason. Being angry made the situation a whole lot easier to deal with. Sarcasm, the best weapon she had in a macho man's environment, replaced whining.
She glared at him and saw his shapely eyebrows rise. The light of the bulb hanging from the ceiling of the cruddy apartment haloed his head making the bare skin shine.  “Just my frigging luck to end up with a partner who thinks and looks like Bruce Willis."
Kai chuckled. Her glower put a quick end to his merriment. He tried changing the subject with sweet talk. "I've been told I have a nicely shaped head for being bald."
"Sure and it goes swell with your baby-blue eyes." She sneered on purpose. No way would she admit he did look good.
His response was a grunt of displeasure. “Are you always this crabby?”
Disbelief shone in her amazed expression. “Not at all…” She said, disdain evident. “…only when I’ve been shot.”




"Vegas" Contest Rules 
(Sept 15 – Sept 30th)


1. Read the book called "Roll the Dice".
2. Write an honest review for Amazon.
3. Send a copy of Amazon's notice to
mimibarbour@hotmail.com

Then…
you'll have a chance at being the lucky winner of a
$50 Amazon Gift Certificate

I've purposely set the price of the book down to $.99 for this contest and on Sept 19 & 20 it will be promoted in the

www.Freepartay.com

and will be …

…you guessed it!

FREE!!!

Good Luck!!!

Friday, September 14, 2012

All the Damn Vampires - Emma Meade






All the Damn Vampires


When I discovered the world of Twitter and book promotion less than a year ago, the first person I remember ‘meeting’ was Michelle Hughes. I stumbled across the Tears of Crimson website and actually thought it was a real, vampire-themed bar in New Orleans!  Michelle was kind enough to allow me to send her my short story collection, Night Sighs to hear her thoughts.  Since then, I’ve kept in touch with Michelle on Twitter, Facebook and via her blog.  I also went on to read her fantastic book, A Night at Tears of Crimson and found myself wanting to be in Cara’s place, working at the bar in New Orleans and living an exciting life among the vampires.

I’ve always been fascinated by the supernatural. There was a book of short stories lying around the house when I was a kid called Eerie Tales, which I read time and time again. It had a spooky cover and all the tales were set in Ireland, where I was born, grew up and still live. I’m not sure when it was that I noticed the book had disappeared, but I was gutted. I missed the old familiar, worn copy, devoured over and over by a young girl eager to be scared and thrilled. I’ve searched online for the book but haven’t been able to find it.

The Point Horror collection became my obsession when I was maybe ten years old. That obsession would continue throughout my early teenage years. It wasn’t just ghosts and vampires anymore, I discovered a world where mummies came back to life (The Mummy by Barbara Steiner), psychos stalked young girls and hid them away in rooms under the local shopping mall (The Mall by Richie Tankersley Cusick), teenagers played nasty games on fellow classmates (The Invitation by Diane Hoh), others liked to participate in a deadly round of freeze tag (Freeze Tag by Caroline B. Cooney) and shadow men hunted human women (The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith).

Is it any wonder my own writing focuses almost exclusively on the paranormal! I have just released my own YA novel, Under the Desert Moon, a teenage coming-of-age story that features my very own, bad boy, vampire, James Linkin.  James swaggers into Copperfield, Arizona with the rest of the cast and crew for the movie they’re shooting, Kiss of the Vampire. Small town girl, Erin Harris is one of the few left unimpressed by his arrogance. James is going to have to work a little harder than usual if he wants to win Erin over.




Check it out on


Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Tears of Crimson and The Books Debut


Tears of Crimson and The Books Debut


At Tears of Crimson, supporting Indie Authors is something we pride ourselves on.  We have just started a petition for a National Indie Author Day and hope that you'll join in our efforts to make this dream a reality.  You can sign the petition here.  We wanted to let you know about a great  service to debut your Indie Book, called The Books Debut.  

The Books Debut accepts ALL books from Non-Fiction to Erotica.  It's a simple way to spread the word about your book and is free.  Readers and authors alike can submit books.  There are also openings for reviewers, so if you are interested or know someone that might be, please have them contact the site.  All books shared on The Books Debut are also shared on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

We hope you'll spread the word about The Books Debut and the petition to have a National Indie Author Day.  As always we thank you so much for all your support!



Tuesday, September 11, 2012

From the Author's of 10 Nights - Notice!



From the Author's of 10 Nights - Notice!


We wanted to give our friends at Tears of Crimson a little updated notice about our book, 10 Nights.  This book has a STRONG element of BDSM and while it is a romance it is more about the drama and the contest of wills between Leah and Rhett.  This is the first time we've ever gone so in-depth about the subject of Domination and submission, and we want our readers to be aware up front.  To be honest, this wasn't a thought we considered until some of the reviews started pouring in on release.

The dungeon scenes and nights that Rhett exposes Leah to are not sugar coated.  Which means you may be shocked or even outraged by what's happening, trust us when we say 10 Nights needed these elements to move forward.  There are tons of steamy hot sex scenes, but the underlying emotions behind those scenes is why we've also labeled this as a Drama.  It's not just about sex, if it were we would have labeled 10 Nights as an Erotica.  As we like to say, this isn't your Grannies Harlequin Romance Novel!

10 Nights will definitely challenge your thoughts and maybe even your own sexuality.  When we tell you to get ready for the ride of your life, it's not just promotion.  This book was written to create an emotional response in a reader and I think the reviews have proven we've done just that.





Sunday, September 9, 2012

After Fifty Shades of Grey?


After Fifty Shades of Grey? 

Get ready to delve deeper into the world of BDSM 


We debated on sharing the idea that 10 Nights was a great book to read after Fifty Shades of Grey, because the books are only similar in the basis that Fifty gives you a small taste of what the BDSM lifestyle encompasses.  The reviews of 10 Nights have shown just what we're trying to explain so we'll allow them to speak for us.

"OMG I couldn't put my kindle down. 10 nights IS what I imagine BDSM to be. And the end of the book I didn't want it to end. The Authors are talented."  - Kami Jensen

"Having read the Fifty Shades series, I thought nothing could compare. Boy was I wrong! Unlike Bared to You, which to me is nothing more then a knock off of Fifty Shades, this story takes that "lifestyle" to a whole different level. As much as I liked Fifty Shades, this story makes Christian and Ana's relationship seem almost....vanilla, if you will. Very intense, very gripping and it will keep reading to see just how far Leah will go." - Nancy

10 Nights is a romance, drama, and erotica all rolled into one book that goes much deeper down the rabbit hole when it comes to exploring BDSM.  We like to say it's not a book, but an experience.   Rhett is the true Alpha Male and it's such a contrast to the innocence of Leah that those two worlds colliding is destined to be  filled with overwhelming emotion.  Definitely not a book for the weak at heart, and be prepared to have your thoughts on sexuality challenged at every turn.  It's not just hype, we're warning you in advance.  

Passion, romance, lust, sexual exploration, fear, need, longing all of these things are found in 10 Nights.  So come play in our world, in ten nights we promise you'll either love us or hate us!


Amazon Kindle



Saturday, September 8, 2012

TOC presents... The Super Spud Trilogy - By Michael Diack

We can all use a little humor in our lives, so Tears of Crimson would like to share with you this hilarious book all about your favorite Spuds!  We hope you enjoy it as much as we did! 




The Super Spud Trilogy - Michael Diack


Genetic engineering has accomplished many things, one of which has
been to create the Super Spud! The humble potato elevated to new
heights, creating the most flavoursome crisps ever known to humankind!
But that's not all - A magical transformation occurs to all Super Spud
crisps not eaten before their use-by date. They take on a life of
their own. And so long as they remain undetected by humans, they enjoy
life in their own Super Spud cities, take part in major Super Spud
sporting events and even start the odd Super Spud war or two. Join
Colin, Cougar, Hannibal Vector, Generals Rock, Jock and Strap and all
the others in their rollicking adventures. You'll never look at a
packet of crisps in the same way again! Fun, quirky and totally
original.

The personality of the Super Spud is determined by their flavour. Tuna
flavours, enriched with omega-3 fish oils are very smart, while steak
and spinach flavours are incredibly strong due to their high iron
content.  The story is fast and a series of non-stop adventures from
one chapter to the next, encompassing locations including Egypt,
Mexico, UK, Italy and the North Pole! I basically want to entertain
the reader and let them read something truly original and quirky.It
also contains many references to popular films and characters like:
Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Robin Hood, 24's Jack Bauer and Batman.
It's fun, quirky, strange and, hopefully, unlike anything the reader
has read before ( it is walking, talking crisp packets afterall...)


Goodreads: 
Amazon:

Friday, September 7, 2012

Thank you Amazon - 10 Nights Love



Amazon Shares 10 Nights as Hot New Release


We know two posts in one day is a little much, but we had to share some love for Amazon for putting 10 Nights as the #1 spot in Hot New Releases!  This was truly appreciated and we are just giddy!  So we're just basking in the love right now, and wanted to share the news with you.  The Kindle edition and Paperback have just made the bestseller list for American Drama and that blows our mind!

Mr. Jones, and myself, have just been blown away by the overwhelming support we've received since debuting this book on September 1, 2012.  We are so very proud to have such wonderful friends that support our work and still talk to us when we go on non-stop about it.  10 Nights was and still is a labor of love and one of the accomplishments I personally, am excited to share.

If you still haven't read the book, we both hope you'll take the time to do so.  It all began with researching the top ten sexual fantasies women have from various polls of thousands of participants.  We wanted to put our female lead into a situation that would challenge everything she thought she knew about her sexuality.  With Rhett, the ultimate alpha male and dominant, we explore the boundaries of sexual exploration.  Taking a woman with no sexual experience and throwing her together with a man who expects complete control, it's definitely a ride of passion that will put your emotions on a roller coaster ride!

Thank you again to everyone who believed we could get this book off the ground. We are humbled and appreciative!

You can purchase 10 Nights on Amazon for your Kindle here 10 Nights

Tears of Crimson loves the new Kindle Fire HD!



Amazon Reveals the New Kindle Fire HD


Tears of Crimson was really excited to hear the announcement of the new Kindle Fire HD.  Shipping starts November 20th and this is one little gadget that's a must add to our toys to play with.  The new Kindle Fire boasts of the Fastest Wi-fi of any tablet, Dolby Audio, and a stunning HD display, oh yeah we're in! Add in the 4G price tag for the Kindle Fire is about $300 less than the iPad 3 and we're calling that a win!  

We don't normally talk toys on Tears of Crimson, but this little delight was too cool not to share.  Of course we can't wait to see how 10 Nights looks on the display screen! The Kindle Fire can play all our favorite apps which is great, but our big interest is seeing our books on the best possible background and we are kinda stoked about the big screen making it even easier to read for those that have a little trouble with the smaller print.  And since we at Tears of Crimson love our bands, we can't wait to hear the sounds system on this baby!  The books, videos, apps, audiobooks, games, and music that you buy for your Kindle Fire HD can also be enjoyed on Amazon apps for Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, game consoles, TVs and more.

So let's talk about features!  X-Ray for Movies, X-Ray for Books, X-Ray for Textbooks,  Experience Immersion Reading, Whispersynce for: Voice, Movies, Books and Games! Definitely what we want for a great multimedia experience!  So yeah we're a little excited!  Get your Santa Hat on because we think this is definitely going to be the ultimate gift this year.





Wednesday, September 5, 2012

True Blood Fan Fic - How it should have ended!


Disclaimer:  Tears of Crimson is not affiliated with True Blood, HBO, or Charlaine Harris in any way.  This is a fan fiction fantasy online.  



Sookie, run!..... Those were the last words I heard as we made it out of the building.  Eric had pulled me into his arms and took off vamp speed out of the building.  I couldn't believe the vampire we'd left behind had once told me he loved me, that Bill was a long forgotten dream because there was nothing left of him in the form he now held.  I wanted to think that it was the possession of the angry god that now filled his body, but a part of me had to wonder if he had truly been lying to me all along.

"We're meeting the others at your house," Eric flew us through the balmy Louisiana air.

 I could only nod into his chest as I hid the hurt that I knew he'd see in my eyes.  Of all the things Eric had done before he lost his memory, he had never truly lied to me.  At least if he had, I hadn't figured out any of his lies yet.  I held on to him tighter as we landed in Gran's front yard.  I wasn't stupid enough to think he was a saint by any means, but when it came to taking care of me, it was funny how it was always him that did it.

"I think we should all stay together here until we figure out just what Bill has planned," he let me go and there was a part of me that wanted to beg him to hold me longer.  Between finding out that I belonged to some crazy vampire who I guess wanted to make babies with me, and Bill's confession of never having loved me, it was nice to feel wanted for a few minutes.

Pam, Jason, Jessica, and Tara were all standing on the front porch and by the expressions on each of their faces, tonight hadn't exactly been like a good time at Merlotte's.  Eric filled them in on his demands, and everyone seemed to be in agreement that Gran's house would be our safe house at least for now.  I wonder sometimes if Gran is looking down and laughing about how much action her home has seen since she left us.

I opened up the door, "Come on in."  I sure didn't want to spend the night standing on the porch if Bill was coming for me.  As much as Pam and Tara both disliked me at the moment, I was sure my odds of living through the night were increased with them inside. I walked into the living room, and just stared around trying to figure out what we were going to do.

"What a world of Shit," Pam brushed off debris from her designer suit and stared at me with that condescending look like I was to blame for everything.

"Well when isn't it when Sookie's involved?" Tara glared right along with Pam and I tried to pretend it didn't hurt my feelings, but it cut me to the core.  We had been friends our whole life, and now it was like that past no longer existed.

"Don't be blaming Sookie for your vampire shit!"  Jason walked over and put his arm around me and it was nice to see there were a few people left in this world that didn't hate the ground I walked on.

The bickering between Jason, Pam, and Tara started heating up on the merits of who was responsible for what and I just couldn't take it anymore.  Personally they could stand there all night arguing about who did what, I just wanted a hot shower and a few minutes of peace before having to fight for my life again.

"Enough!" Eric shouted, looking around at the trio with that stare that only Eric can give.  The one that says he's had enough and you better get in line before he opens up a can of whoop ass.  "We need to prepare the house, arguing will not protect us."  

Jessica stood over in a corner not saying anything and to be honest I couldn't figure out anything nice to say.  Bill was her 'daddy' in vampire terms and he just wasn't my favorite person at the moment.  Still I felt bad that she was hurting.  I figured Jason would be the one doing the comforting, but I noticed he hadn't even looked at her since we walked inside.  

"I don't know about you, but I could use some freshening up," I looked straight at Jess.  Just because I couldn't summon up any kind words, didn't mean I had to be rude.

"By all mean go get pretty before all hell breaks loose," Pam rolled her eyes and wrapped her arm around Tara's waist protectively.  I was somewhat shocked at the bond between them, outside of Eric, I'd never seen her show compassion to another person.

"Pam, could you give the attitude a rest," Eric spoke wearily to her, it was the first time I'd seen him show weakness since the memory loss.  "Sookie, you and Jess go ahead, we'll start preparing down here."  The warmth in his blue eyes made my heart race.  I don't know what my emotions were doing at that moment, I just knew that on some level I needed him and above everything else he had my back.

I walked over, grabbed Jess's hand and led her up to my bedroom.  "Do you want to shower first?"  It was more than a little awkward standing there not knowing what to say.

"All my clothes are at home," the way she stressed the word home made me feel for her.  You could tell she wasn't really sure what that word meant any longer.

"Grab a shower, I'm sure I've got something that will fit."  I was glad when she took my advice, because I needed a few minutes to come to terms with my own feelings.  Going through my closet I found a sundress that I was sure would be to short for her, but it was about the longest one I had.  I put that and some underclothes out on the bed for her.

My mind went back to Eric.  That time we spent together came pouring through my memories and almost sent me to my knees.  I had let him go because I couldn't hurt him or Bill.  I loved them both and that thought almost destroyed me more than once.  Now that there was no Bill, at least one that existed on the same thinking pattern I did, well that left a whole bunch of uncertainties.

Jess walked out of the bathroom and was dressed before I even noticed her in the room.  "Thanks for the clothes Sookie."  I smiled, again not really knowing how to console her.  "You're welcome, I'm going to grab that shower."  I walked toward the bathroom and stripped down before turning the hot water on to the hottest it would go.

I don't know how long I stayed in but the persistent knocking finally got my attention.  Before I could answer the door the shower curtain was being pulled back and I was left gasping at a very concerned Eric.  "What are you doing?" I whispered the words because looking at him made me ache for things I knew I shouldn't be thinking of right now, and I was completely naked and I could see that it was having an effect on him.

"I've been knocking for five minutes," his voice was an accusation, but his blue eyes were roaming over my body and there was a heat there that left me shivering.

I couldn't help it, my libido was doing cartwheels.  Having a thousand year old viking looking at you like Gran's apple pie, well that just does things to a girl.  "I didn't hear..." my voice broke off in a sigh of longing.  I hadn't forgotten how good those long fingers felt when they touched me.  I knew it was wrong, but with everything that had happened tonight, I just really didn't care.

"Sookie," my name fell from his lips in almost a strange desperation.  He wanted me, that much was easy to tell, it always was easy to tell with Eric.  What made me do it, I don't know, but I reached out to him.  I needed to feel something other than this overwhelming depression at finding out a man I use to love had never given a damn about me.  And maybe I'm making excuses, but I loved the man before me too, just in a completely different way.

His arms wrapped around me and he stepped into the shower soaking his clothes.  "I don't have anything for you to wear," it was a stupid comment but looking at him with water dripping over that gorgeous head I think I can be excused.

Buttons started flying off as he stripped out of his drenched clothes and I wanted to tell him to move even faster.  Any minute now Bill could rip into this house and destroy us, and I didn't care.  I wanted this, I wanted him and if I had to die tonight, then the touch of his hands on my body was the last thing I wanted to feel.

It felt like hours, but it was only minutes until he joined me and pulled me into his arms.  The water had grown cool but the heat in my body was definitely warm enough to start fireworks on the fourth of July.  His large hands were everywhere, cupping my breasts, between my legs, caressing my butt.  It wasn't nearly enough.

"You are mine, Sookie," he lifted me up like I weighed nothing and my legs wrapped around his waist.  I'd promise him gold at the end of rainbow if he'd stop talking and take me, I thought to myself so I simply nodded frantically.  I wanted to feel him inside of me, to forget all this insanity around me just for a little while and as he slid home the gasp that fell from my lips was both ecstasy and surprise.

There was nothing small about Eric and as he began to move, all I could do was hold on tightly and enjoy the ride.  My body was made for his, the thought entered my mind and I smiled before his lips caught mine and he kissed me with all the passion a girl could dream of.  He knew just how to move to bring me to that point of release and within moments I was crying out his name.

"Not nearly enough," his lips broke from mine and he smiled and continued to love my body in the way only he could.  The pounding on the door minutes or hours later, I was to lost in feeling to tell, brought a groan to both of our lips.  "This is far from over Sookie," he lifted me from his body and held me as my feet touched the ground.  My legs felt like jelly but my body was completely satisfied.  

I could only hope he was right and we had many more nights like this one.  But first we had to make it through the one before us.....

Sell More Books - Free Tips

Sell More Books - Free Tips

We won't waste your time with all the reasons you should be promoting your books, instead let's jump right in and tell you how to do it.  The decision to market your work is your choice alone, and these aren't the end all ideas, they are beginnings.  We won't walk you through step by step, but we will give you the knowledge to take the path that can't hurt when it comes to selling more books.

TAGS

Tags are important no matter what book site you're selling from.  If a reader is interested in a certain topic they will type in a tag to find the information they are seeking.  It's a busy world out there, and most people are looking for shortcuts, so make sure to tag your books with information that makes sense.  On Amazon you are given the choice to add 15 tags to your book, use them wisely and use them all!  Think about what you would be searching for if looking for your book and add it as a tag.

It's very important to remember on Amazon that if you tag in the US, it will not cross over to the other sites, like UK Amazon.  You have to go in to each site and tag individually.  We've noticed several authors who have tagged in the US but when you move over to the UK they have nothing.  

 CATEGORIES

All authors would like to have a book in the #1 spot of their favorite popular category, but realistically that's not going to happen for everyone.  Getting to a bestseller spot on Amazon helps increase the visibility for your book so choosing a category wisely can help promote your book.  There are many categories available for your book if you take the time to look.  And example of this, we had A Night at Tears of Crimson in the Paranormal Romance category (which is tough to get a top number in), we decided to re-list in Gothic and made a bestseller list.  This actually increased views of our books and gave us more sells.  

See what alternative categories are available for your books.  Check the ranking of the #100 book in the bestseller for that category and see if it's an obtainable goal in the near future.  If it's not, consider changing to a category where you will get more visibility.

AUTO TWEETS & HASHTAGS #

We won't argue the point on whether this is what you should do, instead we'll tell you it's what we do.  It's your choice, this is something that has shown very visible sales results for us.  If you choose to use this function you have a 24/7 marketing campaign going on with only a minimal effort one day a month.  The key to this is to have a set of 50 tweets that you write out and add to your auto-feeder.  We use www.feed140.com  and if you choose to use it our affiliate code is x0BpRgIVvxm0AsgD since this service is now invite only, you will need that code to access.

When you write out your tweets, we suggest you leave room for others to retweet them and since there are only 140 characters allowed for tweets using 120 characters means getting the most impact with the fewest words.  This is where hashtags come in.  Hashtags can help you reach readers that may not be following you, which makes this very important in your marketing strategy.  Twubs.com will allow you to register your own hashtag and find out which ones are most popular at the moment.  We suggest you take the time to research this, the results could be amazing.

Some hashtags that we use weekly are #WW (Writer's Wednesday to give mentions of authors we like) and #FF (Follow Friday to mention all those people we want to thank or influence).  There are several popular book hashtags and it would take pages to list them all but here are a few:  #bookgiveaway #books #fridayreads #amwriting #SampleSunday #kindle #nook #smashwords #Amazon  that should at least get you started.

SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLS

One of our favorite tools to use for book promotion is Pinterest.  The thing we like about Pinterest is the ability to share book covers.  This works very well if you blog, each post we do gets pinned to the Pinterest board.  You can also do a search there for book and friend others who post book pins.  Definitely a service worth checking out.

StumbleUpon  is another site that we've used for our benefit.  Again, this works very well with blogs and every post we create is added there and on Google+.  To make this easier for us we've added a nifty little tab to our blogs thanks to Spice Up Your Blog, if you haven't discovered this little gem then take a few minutes to look over the site.  There are tons of gadgets there to help make your site easier to share and more visually appealing.  Sharing your site means more readers find you and that's a great way to sell books!

BLOGS AND WEBSITES

Readers need a place to go to find your work in one central location.  Your blog or website is your cyber business card, and you should think of it that way.  When readers stumble across your site they should be looking at a professional representation of you, the author.  Make your books visible and keep your content updated.  Remember these readers may not know you and they are going to judge your work by what they see on your personal pages.  Make them professional, and give them a way to reach you easily.  Brand your site by making it unique.  If you're writing about Romance, fit the theme of a romance writer if you're a Horror writer, give it a dark feel.  

A great way to share your blog posts is to join Triberr this blog share program will allow your posts to reach a much larger audience than you could on your own.

SHARE YOUR BOOK EVERYWHERE

Promotion and Writing are what we do for a living, and it's all we do.  That being said we spend time daily looking for new places to post our books.  The more places we can put them in front of readers, the better chance we have of selling books.  Most authors have full time jobs and can't afford to spend that much time promoting, so we suggest you take the free time you have and search for new places that will allow you to post your book.  It may seem random but on a daily basis we search Google with terms like "share your book here" and follow those links to see if we can actually give a link or a blurb about the books we are pushing.

Again we could spend hours listing every single place we post our books, but this post isn't long enough for that.  We are giving you a few places where you can share your book and hope that you'll continue with your own research.  There are literally hundreds of places to post your book and we suggest posting them to every site that will allow it.  Below you'll find a few places that allow you to post your books.


Those links will give you hours of places to add your books, but don't stop there!  Keep searching because these only scratch the surface.

FACEBOOK AND TWITTER

Creating a great author page for Facebook is a wonderful idea, and you can add new books to your wall and share information.  There are so many great articles about how to do this that we won't try to reinvent the wheel here, but we'll leave some links for your to follow below.

We touched on Twitter earlier but wanted to also recommend that you take the time to make your Twitter profile as professional as possible.  Like your blog or website, Twitter should also be considered a virtual business card.  It doesn't have to be fancy, as long as it brands you as an author.  An example of how to do this is Michelle Hughes on Twitter you'll noticed that it's not fancy it simply has an author picture with the name.  The other important thing there is to make sure your Twitter profile gives a direct link to where you are selling your books.  We're giving you links for how to make a professional Twitter landing page below as well.

Facebook Fan Page Creation


Twitter Background Creations



I hope these ideas get your mind flowing on ways to promote your books.  There is enough information in this post to keep you busy for weeks.  Remember that it's up to you to promote your work.  The greatest book in the world still has to be seen to be found.  You make the decision on whether or not your book sells.  Being a writer these days means also being a promoter, unless you can afford to pay someone to promote for you.  

We love getting your feedback.  If this article has helped you please tell us about it and pass it on to an author you know that could use a little help selling their books.  Please feel free to share this post on your blogs or pages as long as you post it in it's entirety.  We would love a link back!  Tears of Crimson Books is dedicated to helping authors, as is our affiliate site The Books Debut.  Sharing is definitely caring, so please share!













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