Release Announcement! Beyond Fate

“BEYOND FATE” / AMALIA DILLIN

Alpena, MI (September 16, 2014) – World Weaver Press (Eileen Wiedbrauk, Editor-in-Chief) has announced Beyond Fate, the highly anticipated conclusion to the“Fate of the Gods” trilogy by Amalia Dillin, is available in trade paperback and ebook today, Tuesday, September 16, 2014.

Praise for “Fate of the Gods”: “You won’t be able to deny that Miss Dillin is a genius … This story was absolutely amazing. It’s like nothing I’ve read before … a complete game changer.” — Parajunkee “An amazing fantasy world which succeeds in cleverly incorporating history, mythology and biblical figures. The seamless integration of Norse and Greek gods was inspired and I can’t wait to see where this series heads next.” — Book Chick City "Eve is my absolute favorite kind of character. I would absolute recommend reading the entire [Fate of the Gods] series. I can't wait to read more by Amalia Dillin. Definitely worth the read!" — Good Choice Reading “One of the more fascinating and haunting books I’ve read in quite some time.” — JC Andrijeski, Allie’s War “A beautiful, sweeping story that puts on display the power of every interpretation of love, and the truth of what can be accomplished when people choose peace over strife. I couldn’t put it out of my mind for days.” — Trisha Leigh, The Last Year

The epic conclusion to the Fate of the Gods trilogy. When Adam left Eve, abandoning his wife and their newborn daughter Elah, he thought he was saving the world. But he hadn't counted on the influence of Michael, twisting Elah's love for her parents into paranoia, or the slow, leaching death of the world she rules. Even with the help of Raphael, Elah is becoming her father's daughter, a master manipulator, and she's determined to have her way, even if it means betraying her own mother's trust.

With Loki and the Aesir gone, Thor thinks he’s protected Eve from the ravages of Ragnarok, but there are forces in play even the gods can’t see. When Thor arrives in Eve's next life, offering her everything she ever wanted from Adam, and more -- eternity without death or rebirth, and the freedom to live outside of her daughter's reach -- Eve is more than tempted. But can the world survive with only Adam to protect it?

Beyond Fate is available in trade paperback and ebook via Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Kobo.com, WorldWeaverPress.com, and other online retailers, and for wholesale through Ingram. You can also find Beyond Fate on Goodreads.

Amalia Dillin  began as a Biology major before taking Latin and falling in love with old heroes and older gods. After that, she couldn't stop writing about them, with the occasional break for more contemporary subjects. Her short stories have been published by Daily Science Fiction and Birdville magazine, and she's also the author of the “Fate of the Gods” series and Honor Among Orcs, the first book in the Orc Saga. Amalia lives in upstate New York with her husband, and dreams of the day when she will own goats — to pull her chariot through the sky, of course.

World Weaver Press is an independently owned publisher of fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction. We believe in great storytelling.

Publication Date: September 16 • Contemporary Fantasy / Norse Mythology $16.95 trade paperback, 425 pages  • $6.99 ebook ISBN: 978-0692278833 Publicity/Reviews: publicity@worldweaverpress.com Information: www.worldweaverpress.com/beyond-fate.html

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Guest Post: Sapphire

When I tell people that I am a published author, I usually get asked, “How did you do it?” If I wanted to be sarcastic, I could just tell them I sat in front of a laptop and began to type—but that’s not what they mean…usually. What most people really want to know is how I formed a story and where I got the patience to actually write it. Was it easy? Was it frustrating? Did it take long? Those are the questions I am going to answer here.

            The story that is now my debut novel Sapphire, was the product of many that formed in my mind over the years. I adored fairy tales and loved any book and movie with adventure. Over time, the things I watched and read inspired me. I wrote the first “version” of this story for one of my high school English classes—though I will tell you that it ended very differently. It was your typical fairy tale—prince meets girl, they fall in love, overthrow his parents and rule together—well kind of like a fairy tale…either way, this slowly led to the evolution of Sapphire.

            During my senior year of high school I began writing Sapphire. I wrote two pages in Spanish class and passed them along to my friends. They loved it. Their enthusiasm gave me the push to keep going. A year and a half later, the first draft of Sapphire was complete.

How did I find the patience to sit there and write? The best answer I can give is that it was the drive to get Layla’s (my protagonist) story out of my head and onto paper. I was so determined to finish it and share it with my friends and family that I just kept going. Sure, there were frustrating moments of writer’s block and it took a long time to finish it, but it was worth it. Two and half years of editing and rewriting later, Sapphire was published by Soul Fire Press. The key is not to give up.

Sapphire takes place in the mythical kingdom of Asteria and follows the story of sixteen-year-old Layla Fallon—a commoner that dreams of royal balls and adventure. After persuading her aunt and uncle to allow her to attend a ball, she is swept off her feet by the prince. He offers her a life that she never thought she could have—a life that would mean turning her back on her family. But the thought of the prince’s love was tempting.  Love from a prince who saw only her in a crowd of beautiful women in exquisite gowns. Love from a prince who visited her everyday just so he could win her heart. Love that was strong enough to blind her to rumors of rebellion and the true nature of the royal family.

But just when Layla begins to imagine her life as a princess, she learns the truth about her murdered parents and is given a sapphire that changes everything. Her life is turned upside down and she is forced to flee from everything she has known. It is a story of hardships and determination; of adventure and romance; but most of all, it is Layla’s story.

About the Author:

Sarah Fay Olson is the author of Sapphire, her young adult debut novel. She currently resides in Montana where she is pursuing a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Montana. In her spare time, she enjoys playing the violin, horseback riding, reading, watching lots of TV and movies, and playing with her dog “Buzz Lightyear.”

Check out Sapphire on Amazon

Press Release: Amazon Burning

ASPIRING JOURNALIST SWEPT INTO HIGH PROFILE MURDER

MYSTERY IN THE AMAZON

"Victoria Griffith’s debut novel is a triumph! Amazon Burning is a spellbinding tale of love, intrigue, and murder set in the imperiled Amazon rainforest. A young woman’s coming of age story is deftly woven into this vast ecological conflict, as indigenous tribes struggle to defend their land against the loggers, ranchers, and miners who are destroying it. A nonstop thrill ride that will leave you wanting more."

--Courtney Farrell, author of Enhanced

Astor + Blue Editions is proud to present, Amazon Burning [ISBN: 978-1- 938231-94-0 (paperback); New Adult/ Romance/ Fiction; US $12.95; 338 pages; Pub Date: October, 2014 (paperback)], a debut young adult novel by Victoria Griffith.  In this page- turner, Griffith weaves a suspense- action thriller centered on coming of age in a tangled web of romance, mystery, and chaos in the Amazon.

When 22-year-old aspiring journalist, Emma Cohen, is forced to flee the comforts of her NYU student life, she maneuvers an internship from her father at his newspaper in Rio de Janeiro.  There, Emma is immediately swept into a major news story--and a life-threatening situation--when a famous jungle environmentalist, Milton Silva, is mysteriously murdered.

Emma must now enter the Amazon rainforest with her father to investigate; both awed by the enormity and beauty of the Amazon, and appalled by its reckless destruction.  Not only will Emma have to brave the primal world of the Amazon, she must fight to survive the kidnappers, villains, corrupt activists, and indigenous tribes that lay in wait along the ever-twisting trail of the murder case.  Stretched to the brink, it’s up to Emma, her father and the dreamy news photographer, Jimmy, to unravel the mystery and live to tell the tale.

Amazon Burning by Victoria Griffith is a spectacular debut Young Adult novel.  Griffith's powerful rendering of the Amazon rainforest forms the perfect, wildly exotic backdrop for this extraordinary tale of a young urban woman coming of age in the midst of intense conflict.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Victoria Griffith is the author of the award winning non-fiction picture book The Fabulous Flying Machines of Alberto Santos-Dumont (Abrams, 2011), which won numerous awards, including the prestigious Parents’ Choice. The book was recently translated into Portuguese for the Brazilian market and was also released in audio book version.

Before becoming a full-time author, Victoria spent twenty years as an international journalist, fifteen of those years as foreign correspondent for the UK’s Financial Times. During that time, she had fun writing on a wide range of topics, including Brazil’s Yanomami Indians, architecture, space exploration, the human genome, and the growth of the Internet. She even managed to fit in some children’s book reviews. Her most terrifying assignment was preparing lunch for Julia Child, who praised the Brazilian fish stew but refused to touch the blackberry dessert. Victoria lives in Boston with her husband and three daughters.

http://www.victoriagriffith.com/

Author Interview: Casey Clubb

I'd like to welcome Casey Clubb, author of Jacob, King of Portalia, to the blog today!

Tell us about a favorite character from a book.

Miles Vorkosigan in the Vorkosigan Saga books by Lois McMaster Bujold.

Miles is a loveable and heroic rebel. He was born with friable bones that break easily and he grew up deformed in a culture that is prejudiced against people with disabilities.

Miles is considered a mutant by many of his own, but he goes about his life as if his health issues are nothing more than an inconvenience.

He is reckless with his life, putting himself in grave danger to save others. But he is just cheeky enough and brilliant enough to pull himself, and those he is intent on rescuing, out of the fire.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned while writing Jacob, King of Portalia?

That Jacob is gay.

I had another story I’d planned to write about a young gay man named Jake, but I hadn’t thought to write Jacob as gay. After all, my target audience is middle school. Who’s going to read about a gay middle school hero, right?

But the story never came together right, not the way I wanted it to. Not until I realized that Jacob was Jake, only a younger version of him.

Ironically, Jacob’s story is a story about coming out of hiding and learning to be true to one’s own self. Perhaps it shouldn’t have surprised me that the story never quite came together while I was resisting the truth about who Jacob is :-).

What do you think makes a good story?

My first thought is to say that it’s all about connecting with the character, but I’m pretty sure that’s a writing cliché :-).

For me as a reader, a good story is one that I want to keep reading. But what that is really depends on my mood and where I’m at in life.

Sometimes I want to be moved to tears, sometimes I want to think and sometimes I just want to laugh. And sometimes, I just want to fall in love with an unlikeable character.

One of my favorite books is Prince of Thorns. The main character, Jorg, drew me in within the first page. I don’t know why, but I can’t really say that it was because I “connected” with him because although Jorg does turn out to have some redeeming qualities, I was hooked long before any of those became apparent.

There was just something about the voice in that story that made me want to find out who Jorg was, to learn more about him and find out what happened next and how it ended.

So, to me, that’s what makes a good story.

What books have most influenced your life?

The Four Agreements.

What book are you reading now?

Well, I can never read just one book at a time :-). Right now I’m reading three books:

Prince Of Fools by Mark Lawrence

The Warded Man by Peter Brett

Tomorrow, The Killing by Daniel Polansky

Where are your fans most likely to find you hanging out?

At a coffee shop. Most likely a Starbucks. Although when I’m traveling, you can usually find me at a non-Starbucks coffee shop.

        I’m a complete dork. No matter where I go and no matter what wonders there may be to see and do one of the things I most enjoy doing is discovering a new coffee shop. I don’t necessarily go for the coffee. I love great coffee but, like with wine, although my taste buds can certainly appreciate an exquisite, and probably expensive, coffee, my coffee needs are easy to please.

        But what I love is to find a cozy, curl up and while away the afternoon type of coffee shop. On a recent trip to L.A. I discovered a great place called Moby’s Coffee and Tea in North Hollywood. I could have stayed at Moby’s for days, I loved it!

Is there a piece of advice that you have received that has really stuck with you? If so, what was it?

Write what you want to read.

A piece of advice I read in an article of tips from Chuck Palahnuik. It stuck with me because it’s succinct, and ultimately, so true.

        Of course I want to write what other people want to read. But unless somebody tells me directly what they want to read I’m only guessing. So the best I can do is to write what I want to read, and hope that there are others out there who want to read the same things I do.

If you could select one book that you could rewrite and add your own unique twist on, which book would that be and why?

Coredelia’s Honor, which is actually an omnibus comprised of the two books: Shards of Honor and Barrayar.

I would rewrite it in first person from Aral Vorkosigan’s point of view. The current story is written in 3rd person primarily from Cordelia’s POV.

  I love all the stories in the Vorkosigan Saga as they are and I am loathe to suggest changing any of them :-). But if I could add my own unique twist to any book, I would rewrite Shards of Honor and Barrayar from Aral’s perspective. Or at least I would write companion volumes from his perspective.

Cordelia is an amazing woman, I’d love to see her through Aral’s eyes as she turns his, and his people’s, world upside down :-).

Book Info:

Title: Jacob, King of Portalia

Series:The Pillars of Life

By: Casey Clubb

Genre: YA/MG Fantasy, GLBT story

Publication Date: September 16, 2014

Published By: Booktrope

Blurb:

Jacob is the only one who can protect us all from a vengeful lunatic.

But Jacob’s a tiny sixth grader who’s scared of his own shadow. And his only known talent is hiding.

A misfit in his own home, a boy out of place in his own skin, Jacob has been hiding all his life—in his head, or behind his only friend.

His kind of different just isn’t accepted.

He thought hiding would keep him safe. But he was wrong.

For Jacob’s hiding has buried more than one truth, more than one secret. Including a destiny and a duty that are his to fulfill.

And a powerful talent. One that could doom his people.

Or save them…if he can find the courage to stop hiding from the thing that terrifies him the most—the truth about who he is:

A boy who likes boys.

A boy with a destiny foretold in an ancient legend.

A boy whose love could save us all.

Links

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22670108-jacob-king-of-portalia

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jacob-King-Portalia-Pillars-Life-ebook/dp/B00LJ4YG8S/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1404663407&sr=1-1&keywords=jacob%2C+king+of+portalia

Barnes & Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jacob-king-of-portalia-casey-clubb/1119910252?ean=9781620154571

iTunes:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/jacob-king-of-portalia/id896211588?mt=11

About the Author

Casey Clubb lives near Portland, Oregon with her husband and her ever-growing collection of stuffed Tiggers.

For news and updates on Book Two—Jacob, Portal Master, visit www.caseyclubb.com.

Links

Goodreads- https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7825631.Casey_Clubb

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/CaseyClubb1

Twitter- https://twitter.com/Tigger_Rocks1

Website- www.caseyclubb.com