Writers and Readers discussion

Post all contests, books giveaways and free online reads here.

My 1 year Blogoversary is coming up in September. Come help me celebrate. We all win. :) http://justbookinaround.blogspot.com/...

My online, in-progress vampire novel, The Elite of the Blood, is here: Pages of Darkness
Just be kind; the website is being overhauled.

Write a story using exactly 55 words.
(Not including the title, although the title should lend depth to the story and be no longer than seven words.)

The story should:
open with a conflict
Contain metaphor
Have a resolution--hopefully with a twist or deeper insight

Here's one I wrote (not saying it's brilliant, but it will give you the idea):

Application

I didn’t get the job, you say. There’s no room for me in your organization. Maybe you can use an arm, a foot, a little toe. Perhaps my head. But definitely not my heart. You offer me part-time work, and advise me to move on—seek full-time employment elsewhere. Meanwhile, you moonlight in my dreams.


Please send your entries (one or two) to my blog http://ghostplanestory.blogspot.com/, as a comment, by October 5. (Of course, I'll need a way to contact you, if you're the winner!) Or email me at: [email protected]

Three people will judge these, and I will send the winner Flash Fiction: 72 very short stories--or you can choose a book of equal value from Amazon or Kindle. Winner to be determined by October 31.

I will also post the top ten entries on my blog, on Goodreads and on Kindleboards.

Hope you take me up on this--it's fun.
A hint: this can be a great way to recycle poems.

The PodPeople Free Book Friday

http://podpeep.blogspot.com/2010/09/f...

Title: Threshold
Author: Bonnie Kozek
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Price: $ 11.95
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 978-0595497584
Pages: 128

Description: Honey McGuinness hasn't weathered the storm of life; she's been chewed up and spit out by it. Although she hasn't exactly landed on her feet, she's a strong, enigmatic, and untamed creature-with more than enough juice to play with the big boys. When a haunting past becomes too painful, she moves to Skid Row where she hopes to disappear among the forsaken and forgotten. But things don't work out like she hopes. And when she finds her friend Billy lying in a pool of blood with a tape recorder strapped to his waist, she is sucked right back into the slough. To avenge Billy's murder, Honey risks it all. Her fearless pursuit of the killer thrusts her straight into the murky, seedy world of sex, drugs, and greed-a sinister and depraved world of panacea and oblivion that holds particular seduction for a gal like Honey. In the final round, bloodied and defiled Honey hooks up with a big lug of a cop who's willing to lay down his life for hers-if both of them live that long. Bawdy, gritty, and unrelenting, Threshold pushes you to the edge of darkness ... and beyond. My review can be found here: http://podpeep.blogspot.com/2010/01/r...

Enter to win this book by leaving a comment -- with a valid email address -- on the Podpeople blog post by Midnight, Sunday September 26, 2010. The winner will be announced Monday September 27, 2010.

Good luck and happy reading everyone!

I'm giving away an Amazon gift card to celebrate the five-star review of my novel, Belvoir. No purchase necessary. You can find the details in the sidebar of my blog: http://www.peelingcheek.wordpress.com.

S.A. Huggins

I hope it's okay to post this hear, A.F. Just let me know if it's not. As some of you may be aware, I contribute a flash fiction challenge every month in Open Book Toronto. Due to some confusion over the Easter holidays, people away, etc. April's challenge deadline has been extended to the 15th for those of you who want to answer the question "What if?" for me. Full details are here: http://www.openbooktoronto.com/news/a... . The winner will have their story published in Open Book.

Renee wrote: "I hope it's okay to post this hear, A.F. Just let me know if it's not. As some of you may be aware, I contribute a flash fiction challenge every month in Open Book Toronto. Due to some confusion o..."

It's just the right place tp post this. I keep meaning to try your challenge, but time always seems to slip by too fast.

I know, we actually don't give very much time, which I'd like to change. I try to arrange it so I can post the winner with the next challenge but it gives less than a month to write something. I'm going to try to rework it a bit. I might post the challenge, and then the previous winner a week later. I hope you'll give it a shot. This challenge is any genre, as long as it answers one of my 'what if' questions.

Renee wrote: "I know, we actually don't give very much time, which I'd like to change. I try to arrange it so I can post the winner with the next challenge but it gives less than a month to write something. I'm ..."

Maybe if I somehow manage to ever organize my life.

Haha. I feel your pain.

I've just published my latest collection of horror stories, Killers and Demons, and I'm giving the members of the group an exclusive contest:

The first five group members who request it will receive a coupon to download the book for free from Smashwords! But hurry the coupon expires on June 19th, 2011.

You can check out the book here:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/59000

Can you think of a disgusting flavour of ice-cream? A REALLY disgusting one? Then put on your thinking cap, disengage your tastebuds and enter The Ice-Cream Gross-Out Challenge!

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/5...
- prize of a choice of free bookery goes to the grossest entry.

Don't let me down, people, I have full faith in you!

JAC

If I hadn't already bought it I would enter! Just starting it now...

A. F. wrote: "I've just published my latest collection of horror stories, Killers and Demons, and I'm giving the members of the group an exclusive contest:

The first five group members who request it will rec..."

Ok I wasn't sure where to post this so I figured I'd try here. The thing is I just don't have the reach that some of you guys do. I could really use some help I interviewed Julie Kagawa and I'm running a contest for an autographed copy of the Iron Queen on my blog. Right now it's only got today and tomorrow left to enter and there's only 31 initial entries (not counting bonus entries) I really want for this to be worth her time. So if anyone could help me out and spread the word I can't tell you how much I'd appreciate it.
http://frequentreaderinfrequentblogge...
That's the link to the interview, there's a link to the initial contest post on it as well as a link to the entry form. Anyone that could help me out by getting people there to read it I would really really really appreciate your help.

Jenn wrote: "Ok I wasn't sure where to post this so I figured I'd try here. The thing is I just don't have the reach that some of you guys do. I could really use some help I interviewed Julie Kagawa and I'm ru..."

Posting here is fine since contests are involved, and you can post about interviews in the Interviews topic that's floating around here somewhere.
I'll Tweet about this and see if that drums up some views for you.

This week I am hosting Jayne Fordham, author of A Season of Transformation, on her book blog tour. I would love for you all to drop by and show some love!

Jayne posted a great guest post yesterday, and I really want to see some comments in response to her questions! Also, check out today's interview and enter to win a copy of A Season of Transformation!!

Review: http://gatheringleavesreviews.blogspo...

Guest Post: http://gatheringleavesreviews.blogspo...

Interview & Giveaway: http://gatheringleavesreviews.blogspo...

Let me know if you see any typos or if something is not working correctly too!!

Thanks so much!!!!

Cassie
gathering leaves

Free, free, free!
Yes that's right. As part of Smashwords Summer Sale and in conjunction with my blog tour, Killers amd Demons is being offered free for the month of July!

Also, Once Upon a Dark and Eerie... is on sale at 50% off!

I'm celebrating 100+ followers at Gathering Leaves!

$10 Amazon gift certificate is up for grabs!!

http://www.gatheringleavesreviews.blo...

Cassie, I can't leave a comment, and if you don't get many others may be having the same problem. You might want to open your comments up to anyone - whenever I try to leave a comment via my google account I get lost in a round of logging in, comment, log in to verify... to put it mildly google comments is broken and has been for a month at least. I can leave a comment when I get the choice to do Name/URL... but I think think that is a setting allowing anyone to comment.

Great looking blog, and I'm following via email...

Cassie wrote: "I'm celebrating 100+ followers at Gathering Leaves!

$10 Amazon gift certificate is up for grabs!!

http://www.gatheringleavesreviews.blo..."

Cassie wrote: "I'm celebrating 100+ followers at Gathering Leaves!

$10 Amazon gift certificate is up for grabs!!

http://www.gatheringleavesreviews.blo..."

Thanks for letting me know. I knew one other person was having the same trouble with comments. I'll see what I can do!

Angela wrote: "Cassie, I can't leave a comment, and if you don't get many others may be having the same problem. You might want to open your comments up to anyone - whenever I try to leave a comment via my googl..."

I have opened up comments to everyone. If you don't mind, will you go back and see if you can leave one now? Thanks!!

I think it's a setting in comments letting anyone comment.. I used to have my blog on Blogger and I know for the first 3 months I couldn't get comments because I didn't have it set to "anyone can comment" sort of thing. I had wondered why no one responded on my blog, they'd actually come back to my facebook to comment but never mention they couldn't comment on the actual blog. If someone had only told me...lol

Cassie wrote: "Angela wrote: "Cassie, I can't leave a comment, and if you don't get many others may be having the same problem. You might want to open your comments up to anyone - whenever I try to leave a comme..."

It works! Yay! Congratz on reaching 100 followers... I can see why too, you have a great blog :D

Phew! Thanks for pointing that out to me! Now, I need to let the others that were having problems know...lol...

Also, thank you for your kind words about the blog!! ;-)

Blogging: not an adventure for the faint at heart ;p

Hi Cassie. I went to post a comment but got a message that for security reasons the comment box wouldn't open up in the frame, and to open it up in another window. So I did, and commented...did it make it over there??? It didn't say it did, it didn't say it didn't, so I don't know if I'm up or down! In or out! Here or gone! LOL

I had the same problem with blogger comments; it's a ongoing glitch with the system. I use the manual sign in (where you leave your name/URL) now.

A. F. wrote: "I had the same problem with blogger comments; it's a ongoing glitch with the system. I use the manual sign in (where you leave your name/URL) now."

I think I couldn't leave comments for you before either, so I'll go back and add those tomorrow....

Angela wrote: "A. F. wrote: "I had the same problem with blogger comments; it's a ongoing glitch with the system. I use the manual sign in (where you leave your name/URL) now."

I think I couldn't leave commen..."

Thanks.

Goodreads Slideshow Story Contest... I found out this is by vote, and the top 5 will be chosen. Can you please go check them out and if you like mine, The Story Behind the Story, please give it a vote ;D

http://www.goodreads.com/bookclub/sli...

Thank you!

I am doing a giveaway for my new novel Where Would I Be! Just click on the following link to enter the contest. And please by all means visit my author profile and read an excerpt and character diary entries under the writing section. HAPPY READING

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...

I'm happy to give away my brand new book if anyone is interested as a way to get the word out. Just like my Facebook page and I'll send you the smashwords promo: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Discont...

DISCONTENTS



Synopsis:

Emory Walden is a talented writer at odds with the corporate America of his twenty-something peers. He can’t remember how he ended up hospitalized needing a risky surgery to save his life. Someone tried to kill him.

He suspects his involvement with the enigmatic Fletcher Spivey in a plot to spark a political uprising in the U.S. has been infiltrated. But he’s not sure who the nebulous adversary is.

If he can uncover the infiltrator before the surgery, he can find out who wants him dead and warn Spivey in time to save the movement. But the deeper he digs, the less certain he is that anything is as it seems.


You can learn more about the book and see a scan of the original letter Emory sent me at DiscontentsBook.com if you feel like it.

thanks for your time and consideration!

James wrote: "I'm happy to give away my brand new book if anyone is interested as a way to get the word out. Just like my Facebook page and I'll send you the smashwords promo: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Disco..."

Wow, congratz James! Interesting idea and I like the letter connection... bring the reader in to participate in your story. I may use that idea in one of my blog posts soon and I'll link to your page of course.

thank you! Yes, the book has a copy of the letter in it, which is also on my site (discontentsbook.com). It is also referenced in the book trailer (also on the site). I created the letter to look like it was typewritten, mashed it up, and scanned it. Or, it is a real letter I received from Emory when he disappeared :)

If you'd like a copy of the book, you can see how it is integrated into the story - there is a letter from me, discussing how I received the letter from Emory and the book itself is written by Emory, and I am just writing the intro... if that makes sense. Anyhow, if you'd like to see the book, just let me know (via message) and I'll send you a copy!
Angela wrote: "James wrote: "I'm happy to give away my brand new book if anyone is interested as a way to get the word out. Just like my Facebook page and I'll send you the smashwords promo: http://www.facebook.c..."