Tina Folsom

Release Day: Edge of Passion

2012-03-08T12:01:00.000-08:00

A day early: Edge of Passion, the first book in my new paranormal romance series Cloak Warriors is available:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Soon on Apple iTunes and in Paperback.

Stuff my smartass Editor says

2012-02-23T17:54:00.000-08:00

My editor is one of the funniest guys alive. Whenever I get edits back from him, I break out in fits of laughter at some of his comments. He's given me permission to share some of those with my readers.

Enjoy!

From the edits of "Edge of Passion"

“Cute,” Leila managed to say, wondering what else Jane had been prattling on about while she’d had her heads in the clouds again. [If Leila has multiple heads, I think it’s worthy of an earlier mention!]

His breathing, his footsteps, none of it could be disguised by his cloak. It was one of the reasons, he and all his fellow Cloak Warriors wore specially designed soft-soled shoes when on assignment. [I’m wearing a pair right now; we non-cloak warriors call them sneakers]

She dug into her shoulder bag and pulled out her weapon of choice, waving it triumphantly. “Maze.” [Here’s my thought: a rape-defense strategy which relies upon the rapist to pause in order to work out a handheld puzzle in the form of a complex branching passage through which he must find a route is dubious indeed, even if it does contain such distractions as, say, mermaids or sports figures! Now maize could prove highly effective if you firmly jam the cob right up the bastard’s nose. But I’m recommending mace.]

Fear made her comply without protest. She clung to him like a chipmunk, his breath hot at her ear.[Are chipmunks particularly known for clinging? I defer. Now baby possums…

…or you could go with Velcro^®.]

And with that image, I'll be saying bye for now.

Vampires for Valentines Giveaway Hop

2012-02-09T21:00:00.001-08:00

February is the month of love and what do we love more than hot, sexy, dangerous and seductive vampires? Vampires For Valentines Giveaway Hop is all about spreading our love for these supernatural creatures. So sign up your blog below and join us in bringing readers their very own vampire for Valentines!

So, what can you win on this blog?

An autographed copy of Amaury's Hellion from Tina Folsom's bestselling Scanguards Vampires series.

UPDATE:

The Winner is Anna Cade! Congratulations!

And YES, I will ship internationally.

What do you need to do to win?
Simply 'like' my page on Facebook, then enter via the Rafflecopter form below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Vampires For Valentines Giveaway Hop runs from 12:01am February 10th through to 11:59pm February 16th 2012, and is hosted by Felicity Heaton (Paranormal Romance Author) and Bitten by Paranormal Romance.

Winner of Kindle Fire

2011-12-27T07:33:00.000-08:00

And the winner of the Kindle Fire is: DRUMROLL PLEASE!!!!

************* Erin Poma! *************

Congratulations!

The Winner will be contacted by email. Thanks to all of you for entering and taking the time to visit my page, tweet or post on FB about it. I had over 1,500 entries. Hope you'll stick around: I love doing contests and hope to do another big one in 2012.

Kindle Fire Giveaway!!!!

2011-12-13T14:12:00.000-08:00

Just in time for Christmas:

I'm giving away a brand new Kindle Fire. Here's what you need to do:

Go to my Facebook Fan Page and 'Like' it.
Fill in the entry form

That's all!

Of course, if you want more than one entry, you can do a few other things to get more (the entry form will prompt you):

Tweet about the contest
Post about the contest on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Write a review on Amazon for any of my books

The contest is open till December 26, and you will need to have a US shipping address if you win.

Good Luck!

Pay With A Tweet

2011-12-13T07:50:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to announce that you can now download Samson's Lovely Mortal, book 1 in my bestselling Scanguards Vampires series for FREE.

All you need to do is go to the link below and tweet about it. As soon as your tweet is posted you will be directed to a download link for Samson's Lovely Mortal.

Or, if you have a smartphone you can just simply scan this QR code below. It works the same way (even though I haven't tried it out since, yes, I'm still on my Blackberry. One of these days, I'll get an iPhone.)

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a Happy New Year to all my readers and their families!

Venice Vampyr: The Beginning nominated for Award - Please vote

2011-11-19T14:50:00.000-08:00

My collection of 3 erotic, historical Vampire Novellas was nominated for Best Erotic Paranormal (Vampire) on The Romance Reviews.

If you have read this book and would like to vote for it, please visit the button below and follow the link.

Voting is open until November 30, 2011.

Thanks!

Author Sharon Hamilton and Heavenly Lover

2011-11-18T16:11:00.000-08:00

Today, my RWA sister, author Sharon Hamilton is here and has brought us her debut novel Heavenly Lover. If you stay till the end of the interview, there will be a giveaway.

Tina: You started writing relatively late in life. Please tell your readers what inspired you to put pen to paper.

Sharon: I’d always wanted to be a writer. Actually started writing in grade school, and have kept a journal ever since I was 5.

But life has a funny way of getting in the way, plus, I didn’t like what I wrote when I was young. I felt I didn’t have enough life experience. At that time, I was reading mainly classics. Romance was never talked about in my household. In fact, I never knew it existed. I thought it was porn. (tee hee)

After raising 4 children and having a successful sales career for some 25 years, our house burned down. Overnight, everything changed for us. So did my focus. I was relocated to an 800 sf apartment while my husband had to stay up on the property to take care of our animals. I started writing December 15^th 2008 and basically never went back to work!

All I can say now is that I’m glad I never discovered the joys of being a novelist while my kids were little. I would have sucked at being a mom and wife.

Tina: When most paranormal authors write about vampires and werewolves, you write about angels. Please tell us more about this world you've created.

Sharon: The house fire was really divine providence. I started thinking how really lucky I was at having to start all over. I actually started dreaming about angels, guardian angels in particular.

Then this story came to me in a dream. The rough outline of it just poured out. I went to bed when I got tired, got up and wrote. Went to bed with the story ideas, and woke up with the solutions. I became intrigued with the idea that a guardian angel, sent to save a human from committing suicide, could fall in love with a human. What would she feel? Would she risk her immortality, or worse, risk his soul to experience this forbidden love?

Although I like other beings and am working on 2 Navy SEAL romances, as well as 2 vampire romances, angels, at least the way I write angels, are not portrayed anywhere else the way my story shows them. I’ve watched movies and read other books, and no one shows them the way I do. As a writer, you have to love your work, and I do.

I also like the idea that angels have free will. My premise is this: Heaven isn’t 100% perfect by design. The Underworld isn’t 100% evil by accident.

My angels challenge and test this theory.

Tina: In Heavenly Lover your hero tries to commit suicide at the very beginning of the book. This seems a hard sell for romance readers. How are you making sure that your hero is still a man a woman can look up to?

Sharon: Daniel, who is based on the actor Rodrigo Santoro (I have a video of him on my blog site in a commercial with Nicole Kidman), is a normal, Brazilian-born painter with tons of talent, but, like most artists, doubts his genius. He isn’t a weak man plagued by insecurities. He’s been targeted and preyed on for several months by a talented dark angel and his female accomplice. This creates in Daniel fear, doubt and insecurities, making him a prime candidate for suicide. The dark angel stages this so just the perfect things happen that send him over the edge.

Claire gets the emergency job. She is called in because she has a 100% track record saving humans. And, her unconventional ways are thought to be a good fit against the powerful and cunning dark angel.

Away from the negative influence of the dark angel, and with the help of his guardian, the fullness and passion of Daniel’s life blooms back. And that is what the guardian falls in love with.

Tina: What plans do you have for this series? What other books are planned?

Sharon: The next book, being edited now, and hopefully uploaded just in time for the Holidays, is Underworld Lover. It is the story of the villain in Heavenly Lover, Joshua, a sexy and powerful dark angel, who falls in love with a human woman whose soul he cannot take. As in Heavenly Lover, the dark angel must make a decision in order to save the woman he loves.

Tina: What does your writing day look like?

Sharon: I get up usually between 4-5 AM, write until almost 6. I go back to my writing desk about 9 and write until noon. In the afternoon I do editing of completed works, if I don’t have other work to do for my husband’s real estate business. I also like to write before bedtime, especially if I haven’t made my daily word count of 2000-3000. On weekends I try to use the hours for polishing and editing the work I’ve done during the week.

Fridays are my “off days” where I go do something like visit a winery, an art gallery or watch movies with my husband.

Tina: Is there anything else you want your readers to know about you?

Sharon: My angel books are not in any way religious. The Heaven/Underworld I have created and the characters that live there are my own twisted spin, like a fractured fairy tale on the Bible and some biblical stories. But good always triumphs over evil. True love always conquers all.

True Love Heals in the Gardens of the Heart.

I like to think I have a direct connection to my higher power, but I fully admit, my antenna is bent.

Thank you, Tina, for having me. This book is partially dedicated to you. After all, I can’t thank you enough for having to suffer through some of my early versions of it!

And now to the Giveaway:

I will give away 2 Kindle copies of Heavenly Lover. All you have to do is comment on this blog and what comes to mind when you think of angels and romance.

Giveaway open internationally.

Want to find out more about Sharon? Check out her blog and her website:

Sharon's Blog

Sharon's Website

New releases and links and what's next?

2011-11-15T08:03:00.000-08:00

I know I've been really bad about keeping my blog up to date, but I've had so much going on in the last few weeks. So, I figured, I'd do a quick post just to update you on the latest releases and any links you might want.

Zane's Redemption, Scanguards Vampires #5 was released on November 3. Here are the links to:

Other retailers will come soon.

I also released my first Spanish edition. Samson's Lovely Mortal, Scanguards Vampires #1 can now be purchased in Spanish as La Mortal Amada de Samson, Vampiros de Scanguards #1:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Other retailers to come soon.

What's next?

I will be releasing the German and French editions of Samson's Lovely Mortal in early December.

Scanguards: the next Scanguards book will be Quinn, however, you'll most likely have to wait until late Spring / early Summer before I'll be able to release it. Why? I'm working on developing a new paranormal series and hope to release the first book of it in early Spring.

Zane's Redemption

2011-10-25T17:15:00.000-07:00

Don't want to keep you on tenterhooks any longer:

The last thing vampire bodyguard Zane wants to do is to guard a hybrid, a half-vampire, half-human, whose father wants to keep her a virgin. Known for his violent temper and callous lack of compassion, Zane’s out-of-control rage, born of the cruelty he suffered during the Holocaust, drives him to focus only on revenge. Trying to find the last of his torturers is his only goal in life.

Portia is a young hybrid with a serious dilemma: in a few weeks, her body will be set in its final vampire form. If she is to avoid having to live out her immortal life as a virgin, she must find a lover in that short time—something her father hires Zane to prevent.

The moment Portia and Zane meet, rules begin to bend, and a forbidden attraction bursts into flames hotter than the hell of Zane’s past. But that past threatens to pull them apart unless they can overcome their prejudice, forsake hate for love, and revenge for forgiveness.

Zane's Redemption will be available between November 5th and 10th - exact release date to be determined.

Teaser Chapter for Zane

2011-10-22T08:59:00.000-07:00

Finally, here's the first chapter of Zane's book. For the title, I'm leaning toward "Zane's Redemption" at this point. Enjoy!

Copyright 2011 Tina Folsom

Chapter One

Zane heard a scream and blocked it out to prolong feeding from the succulent neck of the Latino kid he’d cornered in an alley in the Mission, the predominantly Mexican and South American neighborhood of San Francisco. It was a sketchy area; on one hand, trendy restaurants and nightclubs attracted the rich residents from the north side of town, on the other, poor immigrants toiled in dead-end jobs for minimum wage. Yet somehow, Zane had instantly felt at home when he’d first set foot in the neighborhood.

As his fangs lodged deeper to draw more blood, Zane listened to the thundering heartbeat of his victim, fully aware of the power he had over the teenager’s life. If he took an ounce too much, the boy would bleed out, his heartbeat ceasing, his breath rushing from his lungs for the last time, leaving behind a lifeless shell.

It was how he liked to feed, not from a bottle of lifeless donated blood like his colleagues at Scanguards preferred, but from a human where he felt the life pulsing beneath his palms while the warm, rich blood coated his throat. There was no substitute for this feeling. It went beyond pure nourishment; it appealed to his need to feel superior, to be powerful, to be in control of the life in his arms.

Every night, the struggle to allow that life to continue renewed. Despite the fact that each night a different human was at his mercy, it changed nothing, and the battle inside him remained the same: to stop while the human was still alive or to give into the urge to destroy and assuage his need to avenge, for no matter whether he fed from a Latino kid, a black woman, or an Asian man, their faces were all the same once his memories of the past took possession of his mind. Their features morphed into those of a white man, his hair a dark blond, his eyes brown, and his cheekbones high: the face of one of his torturers, the only one he had failed to track down after chasing him for over sixty-five years. The only one he hadn’t slain—yet.

Zane noticed the change in pressure of the blood rushing through the kid’s veins, and drew his fangs from his neck. He quickly licked over the wound to close it and prevent any more blood loss as his fangs retracted back into their sockets, deep within his gums, satisfied for the moment. His own heart hammered furiously in his chest as he felt his victim slacken, but his ears picked up the faint heartbeat, assuring him that he hadn’t gone too far. He’d won tonight’s battle, but the restlessness he’d felt in the last few months was increasing and driving him to take more and more risks with his victims’ lives.

He’d come to San Francisco nine months ago on an assignment for Scanguards, the vampire-run bodyguard company that had employed him for several decades. The assignment had turned into a permanent stay. At first, he’d thought that the change of venue from New York to this quiet West coast town that was frequently engulfed in fog would bring him peace, but the opposite was the case. The hunt for his torturer had stalled, then come to a dead end. With every day that passed after the trail had gone cold, this failure drove his anger and hatred higher. He needed to hurt somebody. Soon.

At a sound, Zane snapped his head to the side. He lowered the Latino kid to the ground, resting him against the wall of a building. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, concentrating on the distant voice he’d heard. Past the noise that indicated a vibrant nightlife, a low whimpering laced with fear and despair drifted to him. It was remote, but his sensitive vampire hearing identified it as a plea for help.

“Fuck!”

He shouldn’t have ignored the scream he’d heard earlier. He should have known that something was wrong. Both his vampire instincts and his training as a bodyguard told him as much. Without casting another glance at his victim, Zane charged out of the alley and headed for the origin of the sound. He hoped he wasn’t too late already.

A few drunks stumbled along the sidewalk, their incoherent mumbles temporarily blocking out the distressed sobs he was following. Had he lost the trail? Zane rocked to a halt at the next corner and forced his ears to concentrate. For a moment, everything was completely quiet, but then the sound returned and intensified his gut feeling that he was needed.

This time the cry was accompanied by the low hissing voice of a man. “Shut up, bitch, or I’m gonna gut you.”

Instinct took over as Zane raced around the corner and into the driveway where two shabby apartment buildings converged. His superior night vision assessed the situation instantly: a man was forcing a young woman face down against a dumpster, holding a knife to her throat. His pants bunched at his knees, and his bare ass moved frantically back and forth as he raped her.

“Shit!” Zane leapt at him just as the man’s head turned, alerted by Zane’s curse.

His fangs lengthened in mid-flight, and his fingers transformed into sharp claws capable of ripping an elephant to shreds. Zane pried the rapist off his victim with one swoop, his claws digging into the guy’s shoulders, cleaving clear through his hoodie sweater.

The man’s scream was first surprise, then pain as Zane’s claws slashed deeper into his flesh. He relished the sound and dragged one hand, claws extended, through the entire width of his shoulder, tearing the flesh apart, rupturing muscle and nerve tissue. Blood spurted from the open wound, and the air became pregnant with its metallic scent. He flashed his fangs, making sure the asshole got a good look at them.

“Nooooo!” The desperate protest of his victim did nothing to stop Zane’s assault. Deliberately slowly, he allowed his other hand to tear through the muscles of the left shoulder, doing equal damage there. His arms dangling limp from his shoulders, the severed sinew and nerves not supporting their movement any longer, the rapist was defenseless.

At his mercy.

If Zane had had a heart, he would have ended it right there, but it was too late. One look at the frightened girl who gaped at him in horror, and his past took hold of him. Suddenly, the strawberry blond rape victim’s features with the terrified blue eyes became a face he knew so well, a face he’d not seen in decades, yet never forgotten.

Her dark brown hair curled at its ends and caressed her pale shoulders as it framed her young face. Her chocolate brown eyes looked up at him, innocence lost, begging him to help her, to save her. “Zacharias …” As her voice faded, he reached for her, but she shrunk back, petrified.

“Maria,” he whispered. “Don’t be afraid.”

Zane became aware of the man struggling against him and tore his gaze from her. He would kill the man who was hurting her, hurting his little Maria.

Zane tossed the rapist against a wall, hearing the cracking of his ribs with utter satisfaction. When he crossed the distance to his victim, his steps were deliberate. He allowed his body to harden and enjoyed the horrified look in the man’s eyes. But he didn’t see the face of the rapist anymore. It had changed. He saw a dark blond man with brown eyes. And finally those eyes shone with fear and the knowledge that his time had finally run out. He was caught and would pay for his crimes tonight.

Without another thought, Zane slammed his claws into the man’s chest and sliced it open with the infallible precision of a man who’d performed this task before. Ignoring the bloodcurdling screams, he plunged his hands inside and jerked the ribs apart. Blood spurted onto him, liberally gushing from the open chest. He inhaled the scent, the smell of life and death equally strong. Despite the fact that he’d only just fed, hunger surged, but it was a different kind of hunger this time, not for food, but for revenge. Sweeter than hunger, it begged to be satisfied by the only means possible.

Zane jammed his hand through the chest wall and reached for the beating heart. His palm clamped around it, the life-sustaining organ beating into his fist, its spasms still strong and fighting against the inevitable. “You’ll never hurt anybody again.”

As he tore the beating heart from its body, the man’s eyes went blank. Zane stared at the still-beating heart in his hand as the warm blood dripped from the torn veins and arteries and ran down his hand and wrist. A river of it tunneled under the sleeve of his black shirt, soaking it, pasting it against his skin. His heartbeat slowed to near normal.

It was done.

“Maria, he’s dead. You’re safe now.”

Zane pivoted, but Maria was gone. In her stead, a strawberry blond, young woman cowered against the dumpster, whimpering and shaking like a leaf. Tears had dissolved her black mascara and left long dark streaks along her cheeks. Her lips quivered.

Zane blinked. Maria wasn’t safe. Maria was gone, and he couldn’t bring her back. But this girl here was alive, and her attacker was dead.

He took a step toward her to impart the good news, but she scrambled back and away from him. “Noooo!” she echoed breathlessly, her eyes frantically searching for an escape route as if she thought Zane was coming after her next.

“I won’t hurt you.” He stretched his bloody hands toward her, but his gesture only made her shriek in panic.

Zane knew what she saw. His jeans and shirt were soaked in blood. The sticky, warm liquid had even penetrated his boots. But that wasn’t the worst. The girl he’d rescued saw his vampire side, the deadly claws, the sharp fangs that pushed past his lips, and the glowing red eyes that made him look like the devil. His bald head only accentuated the air of danger that always accompanied him even when he was in his human form. Even without his fangs extended, people feared him—as they should.

He’d massacred a man like a butcher slaughtered a pig and felt no remorse. He’d done what was necessary, even if most people would never understand it. Evil had to be eradicated instantly, before it had a chance to grow bigger and turn into a festering cancer that could destroy an entire people. As it had once done while the world had stood by and watched.

They’d stood by until it was too late, until the worst had been done.

“I’ll make you forget,” Zane promised the scared girl and allowed his mental powers to take hold of her mind, erasing everything that had happened tonight, including the rape. When she woke tomorrow, she wouldn’t remember anything about the man who’d attacked her, nor the man who’d saved her from this monster.

Or was Zane the monster? Was he the one to be feared, the one who was evil for wanting to avenge what had been done to him and his family?

As he stalked through the night, the warm blood of his victim rapidly drying on his skin and clothes, once again the face of his torturer hovered before him, taunting him. He had to close this chapter of his life and find him, otherwise peace would elude him and happiness remain a foreign word.

Help make Samson's Lovely Mortal free on Amazon

2011-09-27T16:22:00.000-07:00

As all of you ferocious readers out there know, Amazon occasionally price-matches free books on other sites. I would love for them to make Samson's Lovely Mortal free on Amazon again so that more readers get a chance at reading the first book in the series for free.

If you want to help me with that, here's what you can do:

Go to the book on Amazon: Samson's Lovely Mortal and click on " Tell us about a lower price" (just below the bestseller ranking in the middle of the page.

Then fill in the window that opens up and tell them it's available for $0 at either of the following links (just copy and paste the links):

Apple http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/samsons-lovely-mortal/id435208984?mt=11

Kobo http://kobobooks.com/ebook/Samsons-Lovely-Mortal-Scanguards-Vampires/book-vvso4iYWjkWk-HUb_B1mHw/page1.html

Google http://books.google.com/books?printsec=frontcover&id=Gm5MvGgJUrUC#v=onepage&q&f=false

Thanks for your help! And I hope Amazon listens to you!

Moving Day ahead

2011-09-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

I think it is only once we prepare for a house or apartment move that we realize how complicated our lives have gotten.

My husband and I are just preparing to move out of our condo and into a larger apartment in the next few days, and after putting a list together of all the people and places we have to notify with our new address, I'm stunned.

Over 40 places? And that doesn't include any friends or family. It's all companies like Netflix, Credit Cards, insurance companies, DMV, phone companies, banks, RWA, AAA. You name it, we have it.

I remember my first move in the US in 2000 when I moved from NY to LA. I had three suitcases and a couple of boxes that I shipped cross country, as well as two places to notify of my new address: the only credit card company I had a card from, and my bank. I had no cell phone, no insurances, no memberships at any organizations, no subscriptions.

Eleven years later, I have all the trappings of society. No wonder I'm always so busy, and no wonder I dread this move so much, even though I know we need the extra space. After all, I need a private office to have the peace and quiet I need to continue writing my books now that my husband is at home (early retirement, lucky man!).

So, if I fall off the internet in the next few days you know where I'll be: somewhere with my head buried in a moving box.

Do you have a blog?

2011-09-23T16:09:00.000-07:00

Would you like to host an interview, excerpt, and/or a giveaway?

I released my 2nd Greek God romantic comedy, A Scent of Greek, on August 20th and would like to tour several blogs with it.

Contact me if you want me to appear on your blog.

tina@tinawritesromance.com

Click on cover to be taken to Amazon to read more about the book:

A Scent of Greek (Out of Olympus #2) released!

2011-08-21T15:23:00.000-07:00

Finally, the second book in the Out of Olympus series, is released. Here's what Dionysus' story is all about:

When the god of wine and ecstasy, Dionysus, callously dumps his latest conquest, the mortal Ariadne, the goddess Hera has had enough. She robs Dionysus of his memory to teach him a lesson in humility.

Ariadne is deeply hurt after Dionysus dismisses their night of passion as “just sex” and doesn’t want to see her anymore. When she finds him bloodied and beaten and suffering from amnesia, she quickly forms a plan to get back at him. As she pretends to be his fiancée, Ariadne makes Dionysus believe he loves her. But the longer the charade continues, the more difficult it becomes to really see who teaches whom a lesson.

And what if Dionysus gains his memory back? Will there be hell to pay for her deception, or can a mortal woman truly win a god’s love?

Purchase at Amazon.com

Purchase at Barnes & Noble.com

I am working on uploading the book to Apple, Google, and Kobo.

The paperback will be available in about 2 - 3 weeks.

Teaser Chapter for A Scent of Greek!

2011-07-17T14:56:00.000-07:00

While A Scent of Greek (Out of Olympus #2) is with my critique partners for feedback, please enjoy the first chapter below. Please excuse any typos; my editor will go over the manuscript before it will be released in mid August.

Chapter One

“You may kiss the bride!”

Dionysus watched as his best friend, Triton, the God of Seafarers and Sailors, drew the lovely Sophia into his embrace and kissed her for longer than was decent at a wedding, particularly one at which half of Olympus was assembled. If he held her any tighter, her white flowing gown of pure silk would wrinkle beyond repair and be ruined forever, but neither of the two newlyweds seemed to care or even notice.

Even Dio was taken in by the picture: Triton’s blond hair and sun-kissed skin contrasted against Sophia’s long, dark hair, and while the two lovers looked like opposites, Dio knew they complemented each other perfectly.

More than one throat cleared before Triton—rather reluctantly—removed his lips from his wife’s and winked at Dio. It appeared that despite the fact that his once philandering friend was now one-hundred-percent monogamous, he hadn’t lost his sense of humor and his passion.

At least Dionysus could be sure that his friend would be happy albeit the golden cage he’d just allowed the mortal priest to lock him into. By the looks of it, Triton didn’t mind one bit. Dio shook his head and glanced at the guests who now filed past the couple one by one to express their well-wishes. As Best Man, he remained standing next to Triton, in equal parts happy and sad—happy to know that his friend had found true love, yet sad for himself to have lost his position as best friend. Sophia was Triton’s best friend now.

Sophia’s mansion had been decked out for the wedding; no expense had been spared. Not even on Olympus, the event could have been any more extravagant. The opulent house she’d inherited from her aunt and turned into a B&B to pay the inheritance taxes lent itself to affairs like this. The dining room with its fourteen foot ceiling had been cleared to accommodate the many guests present for the ceremony. The adjoining living area, which was as large as a ballroom, stood waiting with a most sumptuous buffet of the finest delicacies and some even more enticing waitresses. Flowers adorned the entire house inside and out, and the scent of roses and jasmine permeated throughout the building.

Dio watched patiently as Poseidon and Amphitrite, Triton’s parents, hugged their son and new daughter-in-law, both of them fairly beaming with pride. Even Orion, Triton’s half-brother behaved in a civil way, shaking hands rather amicably. It appeared that now that Triton didn’t represent competition for female attention anymore, Orion felt no animosity toward his sibling.

When Zeus approached, Dionysus stiffened in concert with Triton. In his designer tuxedo, diamond-studded cufflinks, and Italian dress shoes, Zeus looked like a playboy ripped from the pages of GQ Magazine: smoldering hot, powerful, and looking not a day over thirty-five. His five o’clock shadow added an air of danger, one every woman of the wedding party should head, but wouldn’t because of Zeus’ overwhelming charm.

The God of Gods congratulated the young couple and kissed Sophia on the cheek. Triton’s tension radiated outward like an ocean wave, making Dio physically aware of his friend’s possessiveness. It could be endearing at times, but at this moment, it wouldn’t be prudent to act on it. Dio put a hand on his friend’s arm, cautioning him not to do anything rash, even though he understood his friend only too well: Dio’s no-good father was well known for his love of beautiful women, and not even the presence of Hera, his head-strong wife, assured that Zeus kept his paws to himself. But hopefully he had enough sense not to make a pass at a new bride.

However, just to make sure, Dio felt the need to steer Zeus’ attention into another direction. “Father.” He nodded curtly when he caught his father’s eye. “I see you brought your wife. How nice of you.”

The narrowing of Zeus’ eyes confirmed that he didn’t like to be reminded of Hera. “Your stepmother has a way of wringing invitations out of unsuspecting people.” He shot a glance at Sophia, who had the good sense to smile, a charming, sweet smile not even Zeus seemed to be able to have any protection against.

“I thought it only appropriate to invite her. She seems such a nice woman. And after all, we’re all related,” Sophia chirped good-naturedly.

Dio refrained from rolling his eyes and noticed that the cords in his father’s neck bulged, attesting to the restraint it took him not to blow up and unleash his vile temper.

“Indeed, my dear Sophia,” Zeus ground out instead.

The knowledge that Hera’s presence at the wedding cramped Zeus’ style made Dio feel almost giddy. Anything or anybody who pissed his father off was welcome. And that included his wicked stepmother.

“One big, happy family!” Dio grinned back at Sophia before he caught a movement in the corner of his eye and turned. “Ah, if that’s not the person we’re talking about.” Just because he was glad that Hera’s presence annoyed Zeus, however, didn’t mean that he wanted to spend any time with her. Because if anybody had a chance at ranking higher on Dio’s shit-o-meter than his father, Hera sure put a good run in at that race, fighting for first place with her incorrigible husband.

Dressed in a figure-hugging long, red dress, her long dark hair draped high on her head, Hera arched an eyebrow before she nudged Zeus aside and hugged Sophia. She was beautiful, he had to grant his father that concession. But even Dio, who was no more interested in love and affection than a street vendor enjoyed a thunderstorm raining down on his goods, liked beauty with a hint of warmth. Yet, Hera’s beauty was all ice: cold—with a chance of hail.

“Congratulations, my dear. You could have done much worse than Triton.” Hera made a pause, tossing Dio a sideways glance, a sure indication that a wicked remark was in the making. “Be glad you didn’t fall for Dionysus.”

Before Dio could muster a comeback, Triton took Hera’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I’m pleased you approve.” The twinkle in his eyes couldn’t be denied, proving that his friend was too deliriously happy to have noticed Hera’s backhanded stab at Dio.

“Of your bride, I approve,” she answered pointedly. “Your choice of Best Man leaves much to be desired. Defeats the purpose of best man, doesn’t it? Best at philandering maybe, even though I believe that title belongs to his father.”

“Ouch, you wound me, Hera,” Dio countered, clutching his hand to his chest as if suffering a heart attack. Not that she was too far off the mark. He wasn’t any better when it came to relationships than Zeus. Cut from the same bone, thigh bone to be precise. But he needed no reminder of who or what he was. “Will you excuse me? It appears I need to practice since my qualifications as the number one philanderer are being put into question.”

He ignored Hera’s thinned lips and wasn’t even remotely interested in Zeus’ reaction. He simply shrugged when Triton shook his head.

Yet Sophia gave him a charming smile. “The bar is open,” she hinted.

Bless her for her understanding, because as sure as the sun rose every day, two minutes in the presence of his father and his stepmother dried out his throat like a sandstorm in the Sahara.

Dio headed for the living room, where a bar had been set up at one end, and ignored the buffet tables on which deliciously looking hors d’oeuvres played neighbor to lavish flower arrangements. Soon, the guests would descend on the food like locusts onto a field of corn albeit with less grace and manners. He gestured to the bartender to pour him a glass of Zin. He wasn’t the God of Wine for nothing. Because if Dio knew one thing, it was his wine.

He took the proffered glass and swallowed away the remnants of his conversation with Hera and his father.

“Who’s pissed into your wine?” Eros asked, slapping him on the back of his expensive three-piece Armani suit, most likely imprinting a permanent crease with his powerful hand.

Dionysus swiveled and glared at the God of Love—just the person he wanted to see right now—not! At least Eros had had the decency to leave his bow and quiver at home and looked almost at ease in his elegant grey suit. Zeus had warned that whoever gave any indication to the assembled mortals that half the guests were Gods and other immortal creatures, would be punished severely. And his father knew something about punishment.

“Piss off!”

Another slap on his shoulder announced the arrival of Hermes, the Messenger God. “Envious?” he prompted, motioning his head into Triton’s direction.

Dio jerked his gaze toward Hermes. “Of a golden cage? Think again.”

“Triton doesn’t see it as a cage.” Eros had the audacity to exchange a smirk with Hermes.

“He looks positively happy,” Hermes added. “Whereas you look like you’re drinking vinegar.” He waved to the bartender. “A glass of red, just not the same he’s having.”

“The wine is perfectly fine. It’s the company that stinks.”

Eros took a step closer. “You wouldn’t be talking about your two best friends here, would you now? Or are you in the mood for a fight?”

Maybe that was what he needed, a good bar brawl to feel like himself again. The last few weeks, helping Triton and Sophia with the arrangements for their wedding, had taken their toll. But as Best Man, he’d felt obligated to chip in and take certain errands off Triton’s hands—such as handling the guest list for the Immortals and smoothing over bruised egos. But not even he had been able to prevent Sophia’s invitation from reaching Hera.

“If I knew you’d be fighting fair, I’d love a quick hand-to-hand.”

Eros lifted his hands in a show of surrender. “Moi? Not fighting fair?” Then he looked at Hermes. “Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

Despite himself, Dio had to grin. Hermes joined in laughter a second later. And just like that, Dio’s bad mood was gone. His friends could do that to him. That’s why he loved them. It was just a shame that they’d see so much less of Triton now that he resided in the—admittedly very charming—city of Charleston. Even Dio had a little bachelor pad here that he used on occasion, that’s how much he liked the city and the many bars. It wouldn’t be too much of a hardship to visit Triton from time to time. So, maybe very little would change after all.

“Did you notice the lovely redhead in the crowd?” Hermes asked.

“Francesca? She’s Sophia’s best friend. But don’t bother.” Dio took a big gulp of his wine.

“You think I have no chance?”

“Depends on the competition.” Dio loved needling his half-brother.

Hermes grinned. “If you’re the competition, then I’m home free.”

Eros laughed. “I’m happy to play umpire.”

Dio waved his friends off. “I’m not interested in her, but you go right ahead and compete with Zeus.”

Hermes deflated as if somebody had stuck a pin into a balloon. “That’s just so unfair. Why does he always get first dibs?”

“He doesn’t always,” Dio interrupted and smiled to himself. The delectable morsel he’d chosen for himself hadn’t entered Zeus periphery yet, and if Dio could help it, his father would never set eyes on her, at least not until Dio was done with her.

“Which means exactly what?” Hermes challenged.

Eros graced him with a knowing glance. “It appears our dear friend has found a victim that has so far escaped Zeus’ eye.”

Dio winked at the God of Love. “And that’s all I’m saying.”

“Who is she? Is she here?” Hermes asked, eagerly craning his neck to survey the crowd that had already poured into the living room and was now jostling for position in line for the buffet.

“Do I look stupid enough to choose somebody from the wedding party when I know for certain Zeus will lay claim to her as soon as he sees her?”

“Ah, so maybe one of the waitresses?” Eros interjected.

“Same difference. Once Zeus lays eyes on her, not even Francesca’s beauty can keep him from going for my girl.” Not that she was his girl yet. The lovely Ariadne had so far resisted his advances and only allowed a few chaste kisses, claiming she wanted to get to know him first. Just like Dio wanted to know her—in a biblical kind of way.

“Your girl? Dio, you wouldn’t by any chance have given up your one-night-only rule?” Hermes gave him a you’re-shitting-me look.

Dio instantly shook off the thought. “Don’t be ridiculous! Do you see me walking down the aisle anytime soon? As soon as I’ve had her, I’ll let her loose. My weeks of wining and dining her will pay off tonight.”

Eros laid his hand on Dio’s forearm. “Hold it. Are you telling me that you haven’t fucked her yet?”

Dio swallowed hard. Admitting to his friends that he hadn’t gotten a woman into his bed on the first try was like admitting to a monumental defeat. “I’m enjoying the chase.” Which wasn’t entirely untrue. Seducing Ariadne slowly had its charm.

Hermes broke out in hearty laughter. “Finally a woman who doesn’t drop her panties the moment you crook your finger.”

Anger churned up in Dio. “Believe me, she will drop her panties tonight, or I’m through with her.”

“Sounds like a dare.” Eros lifted his glass in mock-toast.

“It’s a fact!” Tonight, Ariadne would surrender to him. He’d sink into her sweet heat and finally unleash his passion on her, take her to heights she’d never known before, and make her beg for more. And then he’d do it again until the sun rose. Because once the night was over, he’d leave, sated and done with the inexplicable draw she had on him. It was that draw that had compelled him to start dating her when he never dated. All he usually had were one-night-stands. It was different with Ariadne. For two weeks now, they’d played their little game, gone out for dinners and dances, yet she’d always stopped him when he wanted to go further. With any other woman, he’d have stopped his pursuit and moved onto the next, not willing to waste his time any longer. But Ariadne held his attention.

He stared at his two friends. “Tonight she’ll be mine. And tomorrow I’ll be moving on to the next one.” He raised his glass. “Mark my words.”

As he toasted to his friends, his gaze strayed into the distance and collided with Hera’s. The glower in her icy-blue eyes confirmed that she’d heard each and every word of his conversation with his friends. The Mother Goddess wasn’t pleased.

End of Excerpt.

Dionysus' Cover unveiled

2011-06-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

I'm halfway with my manuscript! Time to celebrate by unveiling the cover! My cover artist Elaina Lee has prepared the cover for Dionysus' story: Book #2 in the Out of Olympus series will be called A Scent of Greek.

A Writer's Life --- and Giveaway

2011-05-26T07:34:00.000-07:00

I'm blogging over at Sharon Hamilton's blog today. Here's a re-posting of my guest blog:

Stop by, and if you leave a comment on Sharon's blog post, you'll be entered to win an autographed paperback of Venice Vampyr - The Beginning (Novellas 1 - 3).

When I started out writing, I had a definite preconceived idea of what life as a writer was like: long stretches of sitting behind my computer, writing eagerly, would be interspersed with tea breaks and contemplating looks out through the window, then long lunches with my girlfriends, a little shopping in between. And by four p.m. my work for the day would be done, and I’d prepare a leisurely dinner for me and my husband or make a reservation at a nearby restaurant.

But becoming a writer was nothing like I’d imagined, yet everything I wanted.

My day starts early: I rise before 7 a.m. After a quick cup of coffee, I’m already at the computer, checking emails, sales statistics and sales rankings and make sure that all my books are still showing up at the various retailers. I’m a little paranoid that way, but after the things that have happened at various online retailers over the last few months (and I’m not naming names), I find it prudent to make sure my books are still for sale.

Once some of the admin work is out of the way, and I’ve replied to reader emails and guest blog requests, I start writing. I try to get about 4 - 5 hours of pure writing time in every day. On most days this translates to about 2000 - 3000 words or 8 - 12 pages double-spaced.

But if I thought that my day would then wind down, I was sadly mistaken. The rest of the afternoon and early evening is often spent with marketing tasks. Whenever I find a new retailer to upload my books to, a whole process of formatting and marketing starts.

Only recently, I started uploading my books to the Apple iBookstore and had to discover that even though my ePub looked perfectly formatted on my computer, when I bought a test copy for my iPad, most of the formatting was gone: no indents, no justified text, no italics, no centered headings. It was a disaster. That’s when my real work started: I had to find out why my perfect ePub was suddenly not so perfect anymore. Needless to say, I spent hours correcting things and re-uploading. I’m a perfectionist that way. Now, every time I upload a new book somewhere, I purchase a copy for the appropriate device and make sure it looks all right. Would a publisher do that for you? Not sure. But frankly, that’s why I’m self-published, so I can control every aspect of my books.

So, while other authors out there tell me that they don’t want to be both publisher and author, but would rather just concentrate on writing, I can’t let go of either. And even though it often is double the work, and many days I work 12 hours, I also reap all the rewards: I don’t have to share my royalties with an agent or a publisher.

But what’s even more rewarding is the knowledge that I was able to do it all myself. With the help of my faithful readers, of course, because without them, my books would be languishing on the digital shelf.

Why I love Vampires

2011-05-20T10:38:00.001-07:00

Here's a guest blog I'm doing over at Fierce Romance today:

Ever since I can think of, vampires have fascinated me. At first when watching Nosferatu, I was scared out of my skull, but when I saw Dracula (the Gary Oldman version), my feelings were entirely different. So I started to examine what I’m truly drawn to when I think of these preternatural creatures. Is it their strength, their superiority, or even their sexuality? Or is it something much more elemental, something much more at the heart of each human’s existence?

Mortality—I would be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m scared of dying. The thought that I’ll be gone one day, my thoughts and my mind vanishing into thin air as my body decomposes, has me hoping that soon the scientists will invent something that stops the aging process and has us live longer. I feel like bargaining: just an extra 20 years, please. And then I start thinking about the vampires. And it hits me: what attracts me to them is their immortality.

The attraction that lies within that one word is undeniable: immortality. It gives you the chance to see more than just a tiny slice of history. It allows you to be part of different eras, to experience the shifts that span generations. And to constantly change yourself. You can reinvent yourself with each change in society, live so many different lives, and experience everything that’s on offer. Who could resist?

Even in my relatively short life, I’ve seen the world change. When I grew up, there were no computers, and look at us today. Personally, I can’t imagine not having a computer. Plane travel has become common day. Most young people have never seen a rotary phone or used a typewriter. Imagine the changes a vampire would see: to go from a horse-drawn carriage to an automobile to a plane.

But this intimate look into history as a vampire isn’t all that attracts me to this creature. We probably all remember our first love. Who thought it would last forever? (*raises hand*) Yet, it didn’t last. But then later, we find our one true love and we think how could I have wasted all these years? I met my husband when I was already in my mid-thirties. Now we only have a relatively short time left. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know that we have eternity with our love, with our soul mate? A vampire has that. When he finds his true love he can say “I love you for eternity.” And mean it.

So maybe that’s what our fascination with vampires (or at least mine) is all about: our fear of mortality, and our wish to love and be loved for eternity.

And that’s why I write vampire romances: my characters will live and love forever.

Venice Vampyr - Paperback

2011-05-06T06:28:00.000-07:00

Venice Vampyr - The Beginning, which contains the first three novellas, is now available in Paperback format from Amazon.com. If you want an autographed copy, please contact me at tina (at) tinawritesromance.com. I expect my shipment within the next 10 days.

Amazon

Yvette's Haven (Scanguards Vampires #4) -- released over the weekend - hits top 100 on Barnes & Noble

2011-05-02T18:10:00.000-07:00

I released Yvette's Haven, the 4th book in the Scanguards Vampires series on Friday. It has already hit the top 100 on Barnes & Noble.

Here are the purchase links

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

Smashwords

Soon also in the iBookstore

Venice Vampyr #3 Sinful Treasure - just released

2011-04-27T07:40:00.000-07:00

Just a quick announcement: Venice Vampyr - Sinful Treasure, the 3rd novella in my historical vampire series, is now available on Barnes and Noble. It should shortly also be live on Amazon and soon in the Apple iBookstore.

Here's the link to Barnes and Noble
and here's the link to Amazon

Paperback Sale - Scanguards Vampires

2011-04-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

I'm making space for the newly edited paperbacks for Scanguards Vampires and am therefore putting on a quick sale of the following (as long as my supplies last - still have: 14 Amaury, 16 Samson, 11 Gabriel):

Samson's Lovely Mortal
Amaury's Hellion
Gabriel's Mate

Each book is $5 incl. shipping in the US.

Disclosure: all books have typos, punctuation and minor grammatical errors (that's why I had them newly copy edited and now need to make space for the copies). These paperbacks still have the old covers (not the new ones you already see all over my blog). If none of that bothers you, please email me at tina@tinawritesromance.com to order your books. Payment will be by paypal (I'll send you an invoice to your email address).

Cover for Yvette's Haven revealed

2011-04-05T11:26:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited. Elaina Lee, my fabulous cover artist, has just sent me the cover for Yvette's Haven, Book 4 in the Scanguards Vampires series. I hope you guys love it as much as I do.

Release Date: End of April 2011

Writing Retreat - Scanguards Vampires

2011-03-29T11:00:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving for a writing retreat tomorrow. There'll be no internet access for five days, and I hope to return with a pretty decent first draft of Yvette's Haven on Sunday night, so that my critique partners and editor can then have a go at it.

I'm still on track to release Yvette's Haven, Book #4 in the Scanguards Vampires series at the end of April. Wish me luck!

100,000 Books sold!!!

2011-03-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

Just updated my spreadsheet with yesterday's sales data, and couldn't believe my own eyes:

I've now sold over 100,000 e-books since I started self-publishing!

Yippeehh!!!!!

Audio cast on the Lit Chick Show

2011-03-17T20:00:00.000-07:00

Sylvia Massara from the Chick Lit Show posted an audio cast about my books on her website. Check it out:

Lit Chick Show

All the good news!

2011-03-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

I've been offline for a little while. And while I was gone, lots of good things happened.

Samson's Lovely Mortal hits B&N Top 100
On March 7th, one day before my birthday (thanks for all the wishes!), Samson's Lovely Mortal hit the top 100 Nookbooks on Barnes & Noble! I was totally thrilled, even though it only stayed there for about two days. It went as high as 33 in the rankings! And since I made the top 100 of a major national retailer, I can now call myself National Bestselling Author - hi hi hi!

Interviews
I was interviewed for the Next Web about the economics of e-publishing and was later quoted on the Blog January Magazine. Check out both articles. Also check out the interview I gave on Forbidden Bookshelf's Tied up Event - the giveaway is still open, and it's open internationally.

Writing
I'm back at the computer, continuing my work on Yvette's Haven, the fourth installment in the Scanguards Vampires series. So, if you don't see me much on Facebook or the blogosphere in the next few weeks, you know what I'm doing.

Until then, signing off to get some work done!

Scanguards Paperbacks temporarily off sale

2011-03-05T12:26:00.000-08:00

Just to let you all know that I've taken the Scanguards paperbacks off sales in order to make changes. They'll all be getting the new cover that already graces their e-versions, and they're currently undergoing extensive copy-editing and proof-reading by a professional editor.

The paperbacks should be available again within the next few weeks. Thanks for your patience.

Update: Amaury's Hellion is available on Amazon.com again.

Exciting News: A Touch of Greek is approaching TOP 100 on Barnes & Noble

2011-03-04T11:08:00.000-08:00

I have some really exciting news today:

Currently, my Greek God romance

A Touch of Greek

is ranked in the low 100's at Barnes & Noble, perched to break into the top 100!

This is so exciting! None of my books has ever ranked this high!

I know I'm shameless, but I'm so close to making it into the bestseller list that I figured, I'll just ask all of you for help.

For those of you who haven't read A Touch of Greek yet, if you purchase it today or tomorrow (March 4th or 5th, 2011) from Barnes & Noble and email your purchase receipt to tina@tinawritesromance.com I will send you another one of my books or two novellas or short stories for free. Just let me know which ones you want and in which format (Kindle / pdf / ePub etc).

Thanks so much for all your help, and enjoy reading.

Click on the cover to be taken to Barnes & Noble's product page for A Touch of Greek.

B&N removes ability to download free samples

2011-03-01T17:53:00.000-08:00

It was quite a shock when I noticed last night that I couldn't download any free samples of my books on Barnes & Noble anymore. I'd wanted to download a sample of one of my books because I'd just done an update on the formatting and wanted to make sure it looked alright. Imagine my shock when I realized that none of my books could be sampled.

In the morning, I checked the website again and spoke to several other authors only to find out that I wasn't the only one this happened to. I started a topic on Kindleboards to discuss it with others, and a pattern soon emerged.

It appears that Barnes and Noble has removed all "Download Free Sample" functionality from self-published authors who write in the erotic romance or erotica category.

Censorship anybody?

I've already seen a sharp drop-off in sales today. And I can't really blame readers. I wouldn't buy a book if I couldn't sample it.

I have therefore done the following: my blog now has samples of four of my most popular books online (see the legend above), and I'm referring to these samples on the product pages of my books on Barnes & Noble. I've also pasted short excerpts onto the product pages themselves, but I'm restricted as to the number of works I'm allowed to paste, so those excerpts are short.

I don't know whether this will help revive my sales on Barnes & Noble, but it's the best I can do right now. In the meantime, some of us are trying to get answers from Barnes & Noble about this obvious discrimination.

Needless to say, I didn't get any writing done today.

Promotion - A Touch of Greek @ $1.99

2011-02-19T15:29:00.000-08:00

Quick alert:

I'm currently promoting A Touch of Greek on Barnes & Noble with the special price of $1.99.

Don't have a Nook? No problem - purchase the e-book at B&N, forward me the email receipt B&N sends you ( tina (at) tinawritesromance.com -- no spaces), and let me know what format you would like the book in: Kindle, Sony, or pdf, and I will email it to you.

To visit the product page, click on the image.

More and more self-published romances in Amazon Bestseller Lists

2011-02-14T11:09:00.000-08:00

After a great Saturday meeting with my RWA-sisters in Berkeley (RWA stands for Romance Writers of America), where lots of them asked me again how I manage to sell my books so well on Amazon Kindle, I kind of got curious to how many other romance authors are doing well without the backing of a publisher behind them.

So, I looked through the Amazon Bestseller lists today to see which self-published authors are in there (for this purpose I'm only looking in the "paid" bestsellers, excluding all those freebies).

28 novels within the Top 100 Kindle Romances were written by Indie Authors and self-published, with one indie author (we all know her name: Amanda Hocking) having 9 titles in the top 100 romances. She's followed by Heather Killogh-Walden with four titles and H.P. Mallory with three titles.

How is this even possible?

I've read several of those romances, and the ones I've read are damn good books (Monique Martin & HP Mallory in particular).
Price: most of those 28 titles are priced extremely low: $0.99 - $2.99. Only one book out of the 28 was priced as high as $3.99 which by any stretch is still much lower than what the NY publishers price their e-books at.
Most book covers look intriguing and professional - in fact so much so that unless I recognized the author's name I had to look at the detail page to find if the author had a "proper" publisher or was self-published.

Will we see more indies break into the bestseller lists? I sure hope so. For one, I'd love to be in there too. Yes, you heard right, even though I sold over 27,000 books across all my titles in January alone, I haven't quite made it into the top 100 romances yet. I am, however, ranking in the paranormal romance sub-genre with five of my books.

And my first book in the Scanguards Vampires series, Samson's Lovely Mortal, is inching closer to the top 100 romances. At present, it hovers around the top 600 Kindle books. To make the top 100 romances on Amazon, I'd have to get around the 400 overall on Kindle. But I know that's a tough nut to crack: my book is priced at $4.99 - still well below what traditionally published vampire romances cost, but above what people seem to be willing to pay for an indie author at present.

Another great review for Gabriel's Mate

2011-02-14T09:31:00.000-08:00

Hey, check out Selena's review over at The Enchanted Book.

She wrote a great review for Gabriel's Mate.

Winner of a Free Tina Folsom e-book

2011-02-11T09:13:00.000-08:00

Thanks to all for helping me choose a new cover for A Touch of Greek. The race was neck to neck for a while between cover #3 and cover #1, but in the end #1 won out. The little Greek God in the corner will be carried through all four books in the series.

And now to the winner:

Janice O'Rourke (email entry) has won a Tina Folsom e-book of her choice.

The winner will be contacted by email.

The new cover is already up at Amazon and at Barnes & Noble.

Vote on the Cover and enter to win a Tina Folsom e-book of your choice

2011-02-08T10:46:00.000-08:00

I need your help again.

The fabulous Elaina Lee has designed a wonderful new cover for my Out of Olympus (Greek God) romance A Touch of Greek. This is book 1 in the series.

However, I had Elaina do three different mock-ups and am torn on which one to choose. So, please have a look at the three covers below, vote for one of them in the comment section and, if you want to be entered into a draw to get a Tina Folsom e-book of your choice, please either leave your email address in the comment section (or email me at tina at tinawritesromance.com to provide me with your email if you don't want to leave it in the comment section). The winner will be drawn on Friday, Feb 11 at 9am PST.

Thanks!

Cover 1 - small God in the corner

Cover 2 - large God in the corner

Cover 3 - no God

Egyptian author unable to promote her book

2011-02-06T09:17:00.000-08:00

My fellow author Carolyn Jewel is helping promote the romance novel of an Egyptian author who's unable to do it herself. With all that's going on in Egypt right now, let's help spread the word.

Here's Carolyn's Blog Post about Egyptian author Olivia Gates and her romance novel.

I should be ashamed of myself

2011-02-05T20:20:00.000-08:00

Today I'd like to share a couple of 1-star reviews I received yesterday: one for Gabriel's Mate and one for Venice Vampyr. I just wanted to drive my point home again: my novels are not for the faint of heart - and the warnings on the books' descriptions say as much! Yet, people who clearly can't take the graphic nature of my sex scenes keep on buying them. Is it so that they can complain about them later?

So here are the reviews. Both are from the same reader who clearly took issue with the sexual nature of my books.

Review for Gabriel's Mate (verbatim - so don't blame me for the typos):
Disgraceful Novel
This novel was absoluetly horrible. Its explict scenes were over bearing and sick! I was expecting a romance novel not some tripple X book! And the worse part is that I was dumb enough to buy 2 books by Tina Folsom. How could this woman come up with something as disgusting as this! All I am is saying to eager readers looking for a good romance novel, bypass this book and this author as a whole. This is a disgrace to literature. Actually this is not even literature at all.

Review for Venice Vampyr (word for word):
DISGUSTING!!!!
This book was sick and a disgrace it is completly disgusting and perverse! Who would write thia sort of thing? Absoluetly reckless! Poor decision to write this on Tina Folsoms part. She should be ashamed.

And yes, I should be ashamed of myself - right after I stop laughing. Because by calling my books triple X, this reader is only driving up my sales. And no, I'm not looking to win a Pulitzer prize - I write to entertain people.

For all of you who do enjoy a steamy read, you know where to buy my books: Barnes & Noble and Amazon

New cover for Gabriel's Mate

2011-02-04T07:20:00.000-08:00

Gabriel's Mate, Book #3 in my Scanguards Vampires series, has received a new cover. It's already up at Barnes & Noble and should be up at Amazon shortly.

Again, I kept the same cover models as on the old cover, but had Elaina Lee bring the layout in line with the other two books in the series.

Hope you like it!

New Cover for Samson's Lovely Mortal

2011-02-02T06:40:00.000-08:00

The new cover for Samson's Lovely Mortal is ready.

I had some comments from readers that they wanted the series numbers on the books, but I decided not to put them on the covers. However, I'm adding the series # to the title on the product page of the various retailers, so it's immediately clear which book number it is. On Amazon, this will show up shortly. Barnes & Noble actually already shows the series numbers when you look in the detailed information.

It will take a few weeks for this cover to be placed on the paperback version of the book though.

For Samson's cover I kept Jimmy Thomas as my model since I really feel that he looks like Samson. Elaina Lee did the cover. Thanks Elaina!

VENICE VAMPYR IS LIKE A WALK IN THE PIAZZA

2011-01-31T10:19:00.000-08:00

Read Steph's review:
VENICE VAMPYR IS LIKE A WALK IN THE PIAZZA

5-star review for Gabriel's Mate

2011-01-31T10:16:00.000-08:00

Check out Theresa's review of Gabriel's Mate on

Fade into Fantasy

New Cover for Amaury's Hellion

2011-01-30T07:02:00.000-08:00

My new cover artist, the very talented Elaina Lee, has designed a new cover for Amaury's Hellion. Hope you like it. I was able to keep the face of the original Amaury since I really liked him.

I'm in the process of uploading the new cover to Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Many changes coming

2011-01-29T12:40:00.000-08:00

Lots of things have happened in the last two months, most of them good, some of them not so good. Well, the bad news first: my injured hand (ulnar nerve) and my shoulder and neck pain are getting worse. It's no wonder with the number of hours I spend at the computer. That's why I have decided on some changes that will reduce the time I have to spend at the computer.

Cover Artist
First of all, I think my times of designing my own covers are over. With my limited Photoshop experience, I could never get them to be that professional in the first place. Plus, it takes a lot of clicking with the mouse to fiddle around with a cover. And that just aggravates my already sore muscles and nerves. Therefore, I'll be hiring a cover artist to design my covers. Expect that some of my books will receive new covers over the next few weeks to make them more appealing.

Copy Editor
Considering that I'll never really find all the typos that are so cleverly hidden in my manuscripts and that not even my critique partners will find, I've hired a copy editor who'll go through my books and will make sure they are as error-free and grammatically correct as humanly possible. So, my Scanguards Vampires series, my Venice Vampyr series, and my Out of Olympus series, will undergo corrections. If you already have your copies and would like a clean e-copy once the corrections are done, please email me your proof of purchase and I will email you a new copy.

Audio Books
I'm also looking into turning my Scanguards Vampires series into audio books. At present, I'm having auditions prepared with a few paragraphs from Samson's Lovely Mortal to decide on the voice that's suitable for my novels. If the company allows it, I will post my choices on the blog. I'll keep you posted on this.

Foreign Translations
I am also working on finding foreign publishers who would be interested in publishing my Scanguards Vampires series in foreign languages. I expect this search to take many months and to yield many rejections.

For my health
I'm undergoing physical therapy for my hand, shoulders, and neck. I'm also getting regular massages now and have hired a personal trainer to help me strengthen my muscles to help me avoid injuries in the future. After all, I need to be able to continue writing.

Thanks for all your support!

Tina

Cover Dilemma

2011-01-29T08:28:00.000-08:00

You all know, of course, that as a writer I'm constantly second guessing myself and wondering what I'm doing right or wrong. And that I'm totally insecure. So, here's my little dilemma right now:

All my three Scanguards Vampires romances are doing well, however, the two that are selling best are Samson's Lovely Mortal and Gabriel's Mate. Both of those novels have a couple on the cover. Amaury's Hellion which only sells about 65% of the copies that the other two sell, has only a man on the cover. So, now I'm thinking, is it the cover? Do I need to put a cover out there that shows a couple?

Here's Amaury's current cover, and next to it is the new proposed cover. What's more appealing? Also, what do you think of the blue background? It can easily be changed to something else. Any color suggestions are welcome too.

Okay, here is what the new cover would look like with a red background:

My Eclectic Bookshelf: Hurry, I Don't Have Much Time

2011-01-28T11:54:00.000-08:00

Triton, the hero from A Touch of Greek, is blogging at My Eclectic Bookshelf today. Stop by the check out what he's got to say.

My Eclectic Bookshelf: Hurry, I Don't Have Much Time

Rabid Reads: Review: Gabriel's Mate by Tina Folsom

2011-01-27T10:08:00.000-08:00

Another great review for Gabriel's Mate:

Rabid Reads: Review: Gabriel's Mate by Tina Folsom

Nook Color Contest Winner - to be announced here

2011-01-24T21:01:00.000-08:00

The deadline for the Nook Color Contest has passed and all entries have been registered.

Shortly, Author Carolyn Jewel will announce the winner's entry number in the comment section in this blog post. So, please check the numbers I emailed you to compare to the winner's number. I will then verify on my spreadsheet who the number was assigned to and announce the winner's name here.

Good Luck!

Update: The Winner is Christina Marsee!

Possible Cover for Dionysus' story - Out of Olympus series

2011-01-21T17:04:00.000-08:00

Had a little time and didn't have any creativity left for writing, so I tinkered around with a possible cover for Dionysus' story in the Out of Olympus series.

What do you guys think?

He is the God of Wine and Ecstasy, and the heroine owns a wine shop.

My critique partner Vina DePaul on Murder She Writes

2011-01-21T07:10:00.000-08:00

My critique partner Virna DePaul has written a great blog post about her print and self-publishing career.

Murder She Writes

Sugarbeat's Books loves A Touch of Greek!

2011-01-20T16:59:00.000-08:00

Check our this 5-star review Sugarbeat's Book just gave my humorous and sexy novel A Touch of Greek about the Greek God Triton who's exiled to modern day America for being naughty.

Sugarbeat's Books Review

Fangtastic Books: Guest Blog and Giveaway with Tina Folsom

2011-01-14T07:48:00.000-08:00

FANGTASTIC BOOKS: Darker, more sensual vampire rakes: Venice Vampyr
"Some readers will know me for my Scanguards Vampires series, an erotic vampire romance series set in contemporary San Francisco. While my Scanguards Vampires are more on the lighter side, I decided I wanted to do something a little darker and steamier ..."

My Eclectic Bookshelf: Author Guest Post and Giveaway with Tina Folsom

2011-01-14T07:42:00.000-08:00

My Eclectic Bookshelf: Author Guest Post and Giveaway with Tina Folsom: "Good morning all. Today I welcome the wonderful Miss Tina Folsom to my blog. As you know this week I have had her book Gabriel's Mate on to..."

Warning Labels on my Books

2011-01-13T11:52:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

when I put warning labels on my books, I really do mean what I say.

Venice Vampyr carries the following warning label: This vampire novella is sexually more explicit than my other books. So, if you're a little squeamish about things like voyeurism and other sexual taboos, it's safe to assume you won't like this one.

It appears that a reader on B&N did not heed my warning and read the book anyway, and then promptly gave me a 1-star review because she couldn't take it. That's why the warning is there in the first place: I know that not everybody likes their sex quite as steamy and uninhibited as my characters do. So I try to warn people when things might be beyond what some readers can tolerate.

By the way, I do wear this 1-star review like a badge of honor. It's almost as good as being banned by the Catholic Church!

Happy reading!

Author Carolyn Jewel will draw Nook Color winner

2011-01-08T14:27:00.000-08:00

Quick update: fabulous historical romance and paranormal romance author Carolyn Jewel will be the person drawing the winner for my Nook Color Contest.

Carolyn will draw a random number on January 24 after 9pm PST and announce the number on my blog. She will have no access to my spreadsheet containing the list of entrants and their contact information.

While you're all waiting for the draw, please check out Carolyn's Website and her great books.

Nook Color Giveaway --- we're half-way there

2011-01-08T07:21:00.000-08:00

Just a little over 2 weeks left, and we'll be drawing the winner of the Nook Color. So, here are a few statistics so far:

Total number of valid entries: 189
Total number of individual entrants: 42
Number of individuals with multiple entries (ie. one or more bonus questions answered): 19
Number of individuals with one entry: 23

All entrants so far should have received an email from me with their entry number(s). If you haven't, then I didn't receive your email, so please resubmit.

If you haven't entered yet, you still have plenty of time. Here are the contest rules.

Good Luck!

Bella Andre is giving away a Nook Color!

2011-01-05T08:48:00.000-08:00

My friend and fellow author Bella Andre has decided to kick of the new year with a wonderful giveaway. She'll be raffling off a NOOK COLOR!

Go to her website and check for the rules!

Bella's Nook Color Giveaway

And remember, my own Nook Color giveaway is still open till January 24.

Venice Vampyr: Final Affair now available!!!

2011-01-03T17:13:00.000-08:00

Venice Vampyr: Final Affair, the second installment in my new historical erotic vampire novella series, is now available for purchase at:

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

Synopsis:

Venice, Italy - early 1800s

Viola has been given three months to live but she refuses to die a virgin. She travels to Venice where she wants to experience physical pleasure with a man without causing a scandal for her family. Afterwards, she plans to take her own life to ensure she exits the world painlessly and with dignity. Unfortunately, the man she meets in a disreputable club couldn’t be a worse choice for her plans.

Dante, a hedonistic vampire, saves Viola from a violent rake. To stop her from seeking out even more dangerous men to find carnal pleasures, he offers her a night of passion in his arms, only to discover she’s a virgin.

Viola flees, disdainful of the sex act and determined to end her life. Horrified, Dante stops Viola from harming herself and proceeds to deliver the pleasure he promised – one kiss and one touch at a time until she’s ready to take all of him, over and over again. Until events force Dante’s hand ...

Erotic vampire novella - approx. 124 pages / 28,000 words. The book is illustrated with pictures of Venice from the author's personal collection. Again, this novella is sexually explicit.

A Touch of Greek - Top Pick 2010

2010-12-30T21:41:00.000-08:00

My Greek God romance A TOUCH OF GREEK received the 2010 Top Pick award in Erotic Paranormal Romance from Bitten by Paranormal Romance:

Click on the Ribbon to read Laurie's post.

Thanks Laurie!!

Scorcher Award for Venice Vampyr!

2010-12-28T08:45:00.000-08:00

You guys are not going to believe this, but Laurie from Bitten by Paranormal Romance has just given Venice Vampyr the first ever Scorcher Award!

Check out her review: Bitten by Paranormal Romance

Win a Nook Color!

2010-12-25T16:51:00.000-08:00

Didn't get what you wanted for Christmas? Here's another chance!

As a little post-Christmas treat, Tina Folsom is raffling off a brand-new Color Nook (retail price: $249) to one reader.

Here are the rules:

MANDATORY (no purchase necessary): For one entry into the contest, please answer the following 3 questions from Tina Folsom's vampire series Scanguards Vampires:

What's the name of the shrink Samson sees at the beginning of Samson's Lovely Mortal?
Who calls Amaury on his cell phone to summon him to a crisis meeting in Amaury's Hellion?
Why is the entry to Maya's apartment building dark when she comes home in the middle of the night in Gabriel's Mate?

Answers to these three questions can be found in the free samples available on Amazon.com and Barnes&Noble.com and/or the Audio Excerpt of Gabriel's Mate on Tina's Website. No purchase is necessary to find the answers to the three mandatory questions.

OPTIONAL: You can earn extra entries by answering as many of the bonus questions as you like. Get 3 extra entries for each bonus question you answer correctly (max. 9 additional entries):

In Samson's Lovely Mortal: What does Carl find in Delilah's luggage?
In Amaury's Hellion: Who does Amaury visit in the hospital?
In Gabriel's Mate: Where do Gabriel and Maya find shelter when they are chased by the villain?

Answers to the optional questions can be found in later chapters of the books, not the free sections.

More rules:

Email your answers to authortinafolsom (at) gmail (dot) com. Please use a valid email address so Tina can contact you if you win. Do not post your answers on Tina's blog, Facebook, or Twitter. Only emails to the above email address constitute valid entries. Please put "Win a Nook" in the subject line of your email.
Contest open only to US Residents.
Winner will be selected using random.org
Winner will provide Tina Folsom with her/his name and a US mailing address.
Winner agrees to her/his name being announced on Tina's blog and Facebook page. Email address and/or mailing address will not be published.
Contest runs through January 24, 2011 9pm PST. All emails containing the 3 correct answers to the mandatory questions received by that time will be entered in the draw. All emails containing correct answers to the bonus questions will receive an additional 3 entries per correct bonus answer. A total number of 10 entries per person are possible.
Contest void where prohibited by law.
Tina Folsom reserves the right to disqualify entrants who disclose the answers to the contest questions on any social networking sites, blogs, or other websites.
Permission granted to re-post this contest on blogs and social networking sites. Please link back to this post.

How will the draw take place?
Each entrant will receive an email from Tina with their entry number(s). To keep everything fair, the winning entry number will be drawn by a professional in the romance novel industry (TBA), who will have no access to the names and email addresses of the entrants.

Venice Vampyr: Final Affair soon to be released

2010-12-24T16:39:00.000-08:00

I will soon be releasing the second installment in my novella series Venice Vampyr. The first book "Venice Vampyr" was released on December 13.

The second novella will follow the story of Dante, Raphael's brother. And here's the cover:

A Touch of Greek - 5 star review

2010-12-24T16:33:00.001-08:00

Check out this great review by Michelle from Indie Paranormal Book Reviews. She gave A Touch of Greek, my sexy new Greek God series 5 stars.

Indie Paranormal Book Reviews