November Kindle Vella Blog Hop

Hi Everyone!

I hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and family and wishing you all a wonderful holiday season.

Here are some great reads to enjoy and unwind with during this busy time 🙂

Genre: Family, Coming of Age

An Operator’s Daughter
 
Finding inner strength to overcome the obstacles of changing living situations and high schools, 17-year-old Ashton overcomes severe anxiety, fights back against sexual harassment, and attempts to rebuild a relationship with her grieving Navy SEAL Veteran father.

When her own budding relationship with a Special Warfare Operator begins to parallel her parents’ love-at-first story, she must decide whether the life she grew up with is the one she wishes to continue living into the future.

Laurie Anne Brandon’s writing draws upon her experiences as a military educational counselor, high school teacher, and years working in television production. She contributes to the Kindle-Vella anthology group called Vellains Florilegium which released a horror anthology, Season 1: Horrors of SinteTek Anthology, in October and will release a collection of short stories with the theme of life after death in December.
 
https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/story/B09HGM2GJX
 
Find her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurie.brandon.12 (https://www.facebook.com/laurie.brandon.12)

Genre: Sci-fi/Fantasy

Forsaken Beauty and the Etherbeast

Kelsey Josephson

A bookish strongwoman longs for freedom.

A beast searches for a cure.

Together, they’ll break man-made curses.

After her own father sells her to the unscrupulous Ringmaster, Belle thinks she’ll spend the rest of her days performing cheap stunts while the Nuzaran masses gawk at her ether-poisoned body. A chance encounter with a beast by her solitary campfire changes everything. Can they find liberation or will the past consume them both?

I have a deep love for Universal Monster movies, all things related to Nikola Tesla, and iced coffee. The first two things fuel my creativity and the latter keeps me motivated! You can check my other works on my website: https://simplykelseyjo.com/

Genre : Romantic Fantasy

My Time or Yours: King’s Road Season One

By Elizabeth Ash

She crossed time to save him. She wasn’t supposed to fall in love. “I don’t want to leave you,” she whispers, and his eyes swirl with intensity as he gazes up at her. “I’ll be here when you return,” he says. “I promise.” Maybe he doesn’t hate her. Maybe he will forgive her. Maybe she won’t have to figure out how to live without him. She came to stop a war and save a kingdom. Now all that matters is saving him.

I live in the middle of the woods of the Pacific Northwest, where I keep a wary eye out for sasquatch. So far, he hasn’t revealed himself, but the trees around me are the inspiration for many of the forest scenes in my stories. https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethAshBooks/

A Forest of Stolen Memories 

By Callie Thomas

Genre: YA Fantasy/Sweet Romance

Celebration turns to disaster when a mysterious curse goes awry. A reminder that the Sorcerer’s prophecy still plagued the royal family. Roselyn’s memory is suddenly erased, leaving her panicked at the altar. Confused, she flees to the place the prince fears most–the enchanted Mistbrooke Forest. Danger lingers closer than she can imagine, forcing her to seek help from a dark stranger who may be the key to recovering her lost memories. Can she break the curse without breaking her heart?

Author Note:

A lot of inspiration for my forest descriptions comes from the tropical island where I’m stationed: Okinawa, Japan.

** Check out my Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCallieThomas/

Genre: Romantic Comedy

FAKING IT WITH THE BACHELOR

THE BACHELOR meets MISS CONGENIALITY

After an Army vet who’s looking for love begins falling for the date planner of the reality dating program he’s set to star on, the show’s producers trick the jaded staffer into posing as a contestant for one night to save the show’s tarnished reputation. To keep her job, she needs this season’s star to find love. He needs her to give him her heart to get his happy ending.

What can go wrong when she gets a rose? Then another?

 I have four books out in my Bad Karma Special Ops romantic suspense series. Not only do I write Army heroes, I volunteer at the USO, but not singing and dancing (much.) I have a sense of humor and am not afraid to use it. I’m an extrovert writer and you can interact with me on Facebook and Instagram.

https://www.facebook.com/tracybrodyauthor/

https://www.instagram.com/tracybrodybooks/

Genre: Motorcycle Club Romance 

We Own These Streets 

A deadly accident. A fake identity only known by friends. And a truth that changes everything.

When Victor broke into Iris’ repair shop, she expected a profit raid, not an unknown racer fit for the pro-circuit. But their unintentional attraction provides a chance to get what they both want: a way out. When adrenaline remains the most addictive commodity in a corporate sponsored world, it’s hard to know who to trust and who is trying to sell you something. The race is on, but can they ever stop?

In addition to writing science fiction and fantasy, I always aim to infuse those genres with representation because I think stories become beautifully more complex and truer to life for it. You can check more about me at www.RoseSinclair.com or on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/roseoverchaos.

Genre: Romance

An Italian Christmas

Recently widowed, Casey Hargrove, returns to work in an attempt to get through the holidays without a constant reminder that she will spend it alone. Work isn’t exactly how she left it though. Lucas Santori, an Acquisition Consultant, has been hired to help sell the business. When the business is sold to an Italian company, Casey is offered an opportunity to spend the Christmas season in Italy.

Will her Italian Christmas be the fresh start she’s been looking for?

When I’m not writing, you can find me on my paddleboard or snuggling my chocolate lab. https://www.instagram.com/darling_davenport

Genre: Supernatural/YA

True Vision

Do the past, present, and future exist simultaneously? Is it really possible for Heaven and Earth to intersect?

Marcus Hanes is struggling to cope with the death of his grandfather, when he comes across a few of his vintage belongings. The items are an odd looking compass, a pair of reading glasses, and a journal. For sentimental reasons, he toys with the compass and suddenly finds himself facing in the opposite direction. Upon sharing the experience with his cousins, they discern that the glasses could hold power as well. What they discover next is a level of truth that will alter their existence forever. 

Writing about ordinary people who experience extraordinary things is my passion. To learn more about my other literary works, please visit the link below. https://linktr.ee/MHandy1

Genre: Fantasy

Elianora

Driven by her past to the very edge of the kingdom, Elianora vows to spend the rest of her life atoning for that day when her world was shattered.

But fate, as it turns out, is not done with her yet.

With a soulmate trying to win her heart and the threat of war looming on the horizon, will she be able to cling to her vow of atonement or will she end up taking a path that she never expected?

In addition to writing Urban Fantasy, one of the things I love to do is write fanfiction. You can check it all out here on my blog in addition to my original works.

https://theseekerfiles.wordpress.com/

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Slow Burn Romance A fast pace, Urban Fantasy tale with slow burn romance. Suggested age for reading is 18-up.

I never thought I’d be running the family business alone, but a freak hunting accident left Fenris, my Direwolf companion and me half-dead. Luckily, we pulled through, but my dad he didn’t make it. Now I am searching for the people responsible for his death while digging up the pieces of secrets he kept.

About the author: Adalynd Grayves is the name  and writing darker fiction is my game. When writing my stories, I like to take a pinch of monster, a dash of myth, and add a sprinkle of fairytales into the mix. I’ve been in anthologies in the past, but I’m currently working on publishing my first novel releasing  in 2022 ( official date TBA) and I  have my Kindle Vella serial out and ready to read now.  You can find all my links here:
https://linktr.ee/AdalyndGrayves

Kindle Vella Blog Hop

Hi Everyone!

We’ve made it through the month of September (and three-quarters of the way through 2021) and because of this, I think we all deserve a treat 🙂

Because of this, I’ve gathered together some great Kindle Vella authors for you guys to check out and enjoy.

Hope you’re having a wonderful day!

Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Forsaken Beauty and the Etherbeast

Kelsey Josephson

A bookish strongwoman longs for freedom.

A beast searches for a cure.

Together, they’ll break man-made curses.

After her own father sells her to the unscrupulous Ringmaster, Belle thinks she’ll spend the rest of her days performing cheap stunts while the Nuzaran masses gawk at her ether-poisoned body. A chance encounter with a beast by her solitary campfire changes everything. Can they find liberation or will the past consume them both?

I have a deep love for Universal Monster movies, all things related to Nikola Tesla, and iced coffee. The first two things fuel my creativity and the latter keeps me motivated! You can check my other works on my website: https://simplykelseyjo.com/

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Genre: Dystopian Steampunk SciFi 

Beneath Gehenna

After an alert goes out to the paying members of the disaster bunker known as New Eden, residents find themselves trapped between two vastly different worlds: one that preys on trauma and one that creates it. Now, a newly wealthy yet troubled man and his new friends must find a way to live with the Hell they bought or return to the Hell which remains.

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B09CZK57GP/

Benjamin ran with scissors when he was five. He now writes, paints, uses sharp woodworking tools and plays with glue. Sometimes he does these things at the same time. You can read more at https://www.bxwretlind.com/ where, in addition to books and art, he writes blog articles focused (mostly) on writing.

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Genre: YA Dystopian

Death Date

People tell you to live life to the fullest. Take your time. Don’t make rash decisions. I should have listened. Maybe it would have made a difference. Tomorrow is my eighteenth birthday. A day that’s supposed to be special. Eighteen years old means adulthood. Life is just starting. That’s how it used to be, years ago. Before our new society formed. Instead, I face uncertainty. My past sways the outcome. On this birthday, I will receive the most important gift. The gift of the date I will die. 

Death Date | Kindle Vella (amazon.com)

In addition to writing YA Dystopian, I also write YA Fantasy. You can check out more about my projects on Facebook-  https://www.facebook.com/authorbysimpson/

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Genre: YA Fantasy

A Forest of Stolen Memories, by Callie Thomas

Celebration turns to disaster when a mysterious curse goes awry. A reminder that the Sorcerer’s prophecy still plagued the royal family. Roselyn’s memory is suddenly erased, leaving her panicked at the altar. Confused, she flees to the place the prince fears most–the enchanted Mistbrooke Forest. Danger lingers closer than she can imagine, forcing her to seek help from a dark stranger who may be the key to recovering her lost memories. Can she break the curse without breaking her heart?

A lot of inspiration for the forest descriptions in my story comes from the tropical island where I’m stationed: Okinawa, Japan.

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCallieThomas/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/authorcalliethomas/

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Genre: Science Fiction

We Own These Streets 

Victor and Iris aim to change a dangerous race to first place, that’s if they can survive the literal fast-paced profit motive. 

When Victor broke into Iris’ repair shop, she expected a profit raid, not an unknown racer fit for the pro-circuit. But their chance encounter provides a chance to get what they both want. A way out. When adrenaline remains the most addictive commodity in this corporate sponsored world, can they resist the attention it brings? 

The race is on… but can they ever stop?

Rose Sinclair was a community leader who started with a blog in 2013, and now writes science fiction, fantasy, and romance novels and organizes pen pal projects. https://artoverchaos.tumblr.com/

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Genre: Fantasy

Fight or Flight: A Cinderella Tale of Court Intrigue

Who doesn’t love a Cinderella story?

However, the stories never tell of what happens after the Prince finds his Bride and Cinderella finds her ‘Happily Ever After’. What should be a happily ever after for Alyssa quickly becomes a game of survival as she tries to navigate a hostile court and those who are eyeing her position next to the prince.

Will she manage to win the game or will the strike of midnight only declare the beginning of her doom?

In addition to writing Urban Fantasy, one of the things I love to do is write fanfiction. You can check it all out here on my blog in addition to my original works.

Home

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Genre: Thriller/Romance

Tate and Claire are leaving Las Vegas. He wants to escape a crippled MC after their beloved leader is murdered. She wants to flee a dead-end job and “Mommy Dearest” mother–who suspiciously took her father’s place as the club’s new president. When she hastily agrees to a meeting with a man her mother hates, Claire’s thrown into a night of terror that derails Tate’s plans. Lies unravel…and sins are revealed. But will those secrets be bigger than the one they buried in the desert years ago?

I live in Cincinnati and write the Darcy Walker mysteries and the Rivera and Gutierrez Novellas. www.instagram.com/ajlapebooks

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Genre: Coming of Age Romance, Family/High School Drama

An Operator’s Daughter

Severe anxiety and sexual harassment, 17-year-old Ashton has to deal with both when jettisoned into a dysfunctional family and chaotic high school. Her father, a retired SEAL, is struggling with the death of his soulmate and loss of self-purpose, and refuses to provide a home for the two of them to share.

Drawing strength from her deceased mother’s journals, Ashton begins to overcome the chaos of her present situation. But when her own budding relationship with an Operator begins to parallel her parents’ love-at-first-sight story, she must put aside logic to secure her own happy beginning.

New episodes for An Operator’s Daughter are released on Tuesdays and Fridays, with part II schedule for release in December 2021.

Laurie Anne Brandon writes fiction based on her experiences living in suburban Western Washington state and careers in sports television production, alpine ski instruction, secondary education, and military educational counseling. An Operator’s Daughter is her first work of serial fiction.

https://www.facebook.com/laurie.brandon.12

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Genre: Mystery/Suspense/YA

The 7^th Whistleblower

Claire, a journalism student at Brunston University has stumbled onto quite a few secrets about B.U.s alumnae. Outing the culprits might not only destroy the guilty, but take down the innocent as well. Travel with Claire Richardson as she navigates a sticky trail of clues that will ultimately force her to choose between what is good and what is evil.

The 7th Whistleblower | Kindle Vella (amazon.com)

Every since I was a young girl I absolutely loved watching Mystery and Suspense movies with my mother. The art of a story unfolding to reveal the larger picture inspires me to create characters whose curiosity pushes them to find the truth.

Visit my Link Tree for more info on current works @

https://linktr.ee/MHandy1

Facing Your Fears – Author Toolbox

I haven’t been a published author very long, just a little over six months at this point. If you had told me even I year ago that I would have published not one, but two books, I would’ve looked at you skeptically and probably walked away.

Let me share a bit of backstory with you. I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I don’t even remember learning how to read and I know that I’ve been writing for just as long. Now, I can’t look back at my early stories without rolling my eyes and groaning a bit. They were basically one long run-on sentence with very little in the way of grammar. Still, I am fond of those early attempts because they show my love of writing.

However, when I was fifteen, I completed my first novel. It was my pride and joy and I had spent countless hours working on it. Filled with youthful surety and confidence as only a teenager can be, I sent my manuscript out in search of a publisher. Unfortunately, I fell into the trap of a vanity publisher. After waiting months to hear back, I was told that they could indeed publish my manuscript, for the hefty sum of $4,000. Needless to say, I was crushed. Afterwards, I stopped showing my writing to anyone. I didn’t stop writing, but I stopped sharing it with anyone, including my family.

It’s been over a decade since that happened. I set aside my dream of becoming an author and pursued other goals. I finished college, became a librarian and then an entrepreneur, traveled overseas, and even have started the journey to becoming a black belt. But I still felt empty inside, unfulfilled. And despite everything, I never stopped writing. Some stories were good, some not so much, but I couldn’t deny the urge to write. Last year, I got fed up with hiding and decided to go big. I wrote my first novel in just under a month and published it. It was one of the most exhausting things that I’ve ever done, but I had never felt so alive and satisfied.

So now that I’ve practically written another novel in this post, what does all of this have to do with facing your fears? I want to share with you what I’ve learned and hopefully some tricks that will help your overcome your fears.

1) Embrace your uniqueness

Now this may seem patently obvious, but please bear with me. So many times when we’re writing something, fear loves to whisper in our ears. We start to doubt ourselves, what makes us qualified to write something? Who are we to think think that we have something special to say? Why do we think we can put a new spin on something that’s been written about a hundred times before? But the truth is, we can show something new, something unique. People see the world differently. Ten people can see the exact same situation and then tell you ten entirely different versions of the event. No one can see the story like you can. And when you stay true to yourself, that genuineness will draw others to you and your writing. So don’t try to be what’s popular or mainstream. Be yourself and tell your story your way. That’s what people really want to see.

2) Staring down the blank page

For me, the hardest part of any story is starting. You’ve had a story running around in your brain for weeks. Your characters have become your constant companions, whispering their stories into your ear day and night. So you pull out a pen and paper or sit down at the computer and…. nothing. Your characters have fled into the ether and all you’re left with is a gnawing in your gut and sweaty palms. The blinking cursor seems to be growing ever larger, mocking you with the pristine whiteness of the page. This moment can be pivotal, as you can either walk away or gut through it. Don’t give in to the blank page fears, your story deserves to be told. So take a deep breath and shove aside the worries about having the perfect hook and first chapter. All of that will come later. Right now, just start writing. It doesn’t even have to be the story line. Describe a character, write a scenery element, describe one of your characters favorite foods. Once you get words on the page, even if it’s only a handful, the fear of the blank page will magically diminish. Your characters will cautiously creep back and before you know it, they will be as loud and insistent as ever, wanting their story told right.

3) Perfectionism

This is one of the biggest fears of any writer. I can literally tear my work apart, criticize it until I’m to paralyzed, until I can’t write anything at all. In fact, I’m the hardest critic of my work. What you need to learn to do is turn off the inner critic. Instead, just write. Write the whole story. When you reread to clarify the story in your mind, turn off your inner editor and just focus on the story. Instead let the story flow and write until it’s done. There will be time to go back and edit, time to go back and fix all of the small mistakes, but don’t take away the joy of writing by focusing on making it exactly right. That will come later. And truthfully? Most of what seems glaringly obvious to you, other people will not see at all.

Bonus:

Have fun. So many people think that writers are chained to their desks, scribbling or typing feverishly. They are stereotyped as being odd, super introverted, having weird quirks. While this is maybe true for a few, for the vast majority it is simply not. Authors tend to be fully engaged in life, always looking for something new, something that they can take and share with others through their books. They have stories that they want to share because they add color and joy to their lives. So live each day to the fullest, engage with the world around you, because you never know what you will find that will be worth sharing.

I really appreciate being invited to join in this blog hop by Author Toolbox. If you want to learn more check it out here:

To continue hopping through other great blogs in the monthly #AuthorToolboxBlogHop or to join, click here.

 

Also, I would like to share real briefly, I just released the second book in my series The Seeker Files yesterday. If you would like to check it out, you can find it here: In Search of Healing: Seeker Files bk 2

Happy Wednesday Everyone!