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Authors, Publishers & Editors & Cover Models, please contact me at:
Arkgirl1@aol.com
(Vicki Rose) Or through my Facebook page.

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

'Typecast' by Kim Carmichael

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Another excellent novel by the always-amazing Kim Carmichael! This is the first novel in the Hollywood Stardust series & it follows the show's villain, Logan. Twenty years go by & Logan is needed for an interview.. He is still a bit full of himself & decides he only wants Ivy, a studio assistant, to interview him, as he doesn't like the lead interviewer. The chemistry between Ivy & Logan is near instant.. You can feel it in every word, in every look...Logan is undeniably attracted to Ivy & she feels the same but Logan has also been a very private person for many years & has trouble letting Ivy into his world.. There are flashbacks from the scripts to Hollywood Stardust to help understand why Logan is the way he is.. The scenes in this book are intense, detailed, intriguing & sexy as hell! Typecast is easily one of my favorite books from this year! Don't miss it! 

Platinum gives Typecast:
FIVE PLATINUM RINGS!


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Typecast blurb:

Twenty years ago, the movie Hollywood Stardust defined a generation of teens and changed the four actors’ lives forever.

Typecast as the villain both in front and behind the silver screen, Logan Alexander has purposely allowed his star to fade. Now with the 20th Anniversary of the movie on the horizon, he is the only one fit to step into the spotlight, deal with the unwanted publicity, and make sure that things meant to be left on the cutting room floor remain there.

Ivy Vermont has always longed to be a leading lady, yet her paralyzing stage fright has relegated her to stay behind the scenes as a fact checker for Chargge.com’s entertainment webcasts. However, when her one-time poster-boy crush walks in to the studio demanding only she be in charge of his story, she knows she must take advantage of her big break.

Now, Logan tightropes between old loyalties and new love, while Ivy struggles to stay in reality with her ultimate fantasy.

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Excerpt:
As if she could see the image in front of her, Ivy smiled.
He started to ask another one of his questions and vomit up another pre-rehearsed answer.
“So, b-b-back on topic, how often do you see your other cast mates?” Still keeping hold of his hand, she sat up. “Are you still friends?”
Well, well, she not only recovered, she got right back on the on-ramp to the questions everyone wanted to ask, shaky voice and all. He had to give it to her for starting with a lead-in
question, but the next one would undoubtedly be about Drew,
which sped right to everything else.
“Of course we keep in touch.” He offered the most benign answer possible.
“All of you?”
At least the woman stayed focused.
He tilted his head and ran his thumb across the back of her hand, wishing he could explore her smooth skin elsewhere. “I would rather talk about what we are going to do tonight to
celebrate the twentieth anniversary of one of your favorite films.” He smiled the same smile he produced the day the talent scout discovered him and called him a natural. Little did he know back then there was no such thing.
Her eyes widened and her hand trembled in his. “What’s the worst part of being the bad guy?”
Not expecting her to keep on track, he responded with the first thing to enter his mind. “Do you know that I never get the girl?” Right as the words left his lips, he wanted them back. Of
all the subjects, he needed to leave his love life, or lack thereof, out of the conversation.
“Do you ever wish you would have?”
“Oh, tough question.” Again, she surprised him by pressing forward instead of asking if he were attached at the moment, or ever, but he needed a second to reformulate his plan. “What if I
tell you after we look at a clip?”
They both stopped and stared into each other’s eyes. If they weren’t surrounded by a multitude of people and their relationship was more than an hour old, it would be the perfect time for a kiss. He bet her lips tasted sweet with a bit of tang, and was thankful no one put any of that horrendous gloss on them.
“You have ninety seconds and people are online commenting already,” the director announced. “Ivy, maybe you should introduce our guest?”
“Oh, man.” She shut her eyes for a moment, pressing her free hand to her chest.
Logan knew he played dirty, but even with her stage fright, she threw plenty of mud of her own. In fact, he just managed to avoid the splatter. “You’re fine.” All women loved the bad boy, even if art imitated life and he never got one long term. No matter, there was always another one, but not many quite like the sultry vine that made up Miss Details. “Take your time and remember to breathe.”
When he had arrived at the studio, he’d heard her defend him, and upon entering the room, it had pleased him to find her appearance matched her voice. Dark hair that glowed with
a tint of red under the lights framed her face and highlighted her huge gray eyes and perky lips. The second he had seen her, he’d almost expected a cartoon bird to appear and eat out of
her hand while she waved her magic wand of facts as her weapon and won.
“Thank you, Mr. Alexander.” She opened her eyes.
“Logan.” He leaned in even closer, wanting to remind her of the name she would be screaming out tonight in ecstasy.......

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~~CLICK HERE TO SEE TYPECAST ON AMAZON~~

~~CLICK HERE TO VISIT KIM ON FACEBOOK~~

Thursday, June 11, 2015

**Author Feature** Rob Browatzke


                                                                         
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Hey, everyone! I'd love for you to meet a fantastic new author to the LGBT world! This is the handsome Rob Browatzke, hailing from Alberta, Canada! He's the author of several fabulous up & coming LGBT novels including my personal favorites, the ones centered around his stunning new version of Alice In Wonderland! Titled: Wonderland & Through The Mirror Ball, you seriously MUST check these books out! He also has two other novels out: Parallel Lives & The Holey Bible..Head to Amazon to find his work, today! Rob took a little bit of time to sit down with us & answer a few questions! I hope you'll enjoy his little Q&A! :)

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1) Why did you decide to start writing?

Who knows! I have been writing since I learned to pick up a pencil. Telling stories is what I always wanted to do. It wasn't a choice really. As I've aged, I've learned to appreciate the beauty of the words themselves and like to think I have a flair for stringing them together.  Writing has pulled me out of darkness, distracted me from pain, and helped me fly. If my stories do for readers one-tenth of what they've done for me, I'll be happy.

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2) Do you think authors can succeed in multiple genres or should they stick with a single genre?

Authors should write what they feel passionate about. Just as your reading tastes evolve over time, so too does what you want to write. 
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3) What do you feel is the biggest reward to you with writing?

There are so many. It's creation, right? It's immortality. It's giving the voices in your head flesh and blood (well, ink and page anyway). Being able to share those voices and their story with other people? That's pretty awesome. "It's why cavemen drew on walls". But the best part is the part where THEY take over the story. Where I just become an extension of their will, their wants, and the characters practically take physical form. Where even I as the writer don't know what happens next.  
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4) Who are some of your favorite authors & why?

My favourite book of all time is probably Hugo's Les Miserables; it never ceases to inspire me with its beauty. I adore Christopher Rice's works (he's one of those authors that successfully jumped genre). Armistead Maupin has an exquisite mastery of language, blending drama, comedy, and heart. And I love to escape into a good epic fantasy (Tolkien, Rowling, Martin, pre-Sanderson Wheel of Time). I also have an immediate love of any Oz, Wonderland, or Neverland stories; most recently that has found me devouring Dorothy Must Die and the prequels by Danielle Paige.

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5) What are the biggest hurdles to overcome as an author?

 It's so easy to procrastinate. You can be writing away and OOH SOMETHING SHINY and next thing you know you've been on Facebook for twelve hours and not written a damn thing. And reviews. That is my new hurdle. A bad review can be a hard thing to overcome, but as emotionally devastating as they are, they aren't why we do what we do. We write for ourselves, and for the people who will enjoy it. Not every story will please everyone.
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6) Is there any advice that you can offer for new writers?

Write. Write often. Read. Read often. Don't be bound by rules of grammar and structure (but do keep in mind it has to be readable). Be true to your characters and their story; you might have an idea about where things are headed but if you find they go somewhere else, don't force them back to your path - let them live. It will create something more real, and readers will respond.
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7) Tell us a few random personal things about yourself, personal & professional!

I've worked the gay nightclub scene in Edmonton Alberta for fifteen+ years (So like fifty years in gay men years). I am four+ years clean and sober from drugs and alcohol. I'm an avid journalier, and have been since 1993 (no, there's no plans to publish those... yet) 

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~~~CLICK HERE TO FIND ROB ON FACEBOOK~~~

Sunday, May 31, 2015

*AUTHOR FEATURE* Kim Carmichael


                              

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Our latest author feature is on Kim Carmichael! Recently Kim took a few minutes to chat with me about her work & I'm sharing that interview with you! If you haven't yet, pick up one of Kim's novels! They are amazing!
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1) Why did you decide to start writing?
I started writing because I love a happy ending. I was reading fan fiction and threw my hat in the ring, then decided I simply love telling a story.
2) Do you think authors can succeed in multiple genres or should they stick with a single genre?
I think they can write multiple genres, I know I do, but I think for branding purposes you do get known for one genre. But I have had a lot of good luck with crossing the genre line.  
3) What do you feel is the biggest reward to you with writing?

Actually getting to write and then that magic moment when a reader ‘gets it.’
4) Who are some of your favorite authors & why?
VC Andrews – because only she could tell that type of story and have everyone clamoring for more. Johanna Lindsay – True romance at its core. Beatrice Small – Great historical romance author.
5) What are the biggest hurdles to overcome as an author?
Trying not to fixate on the numbers and what other people are doing and focus on my own writing. Making sure I do write and not get caught up in things that don’t matter.
6) Is there any advice that you can offer for new writers?
Don’t stop writing, always try to hone your craft and don’t let others bring you down. Also GET AN EDITOR!! 
7) Tell us a few random personal things about yourself personal & professional!
I love my day job. I really do.
I work in sales and not watching numbers goes against my DNA but I try.
I crochet.
I have a Master’s Degree.
I have seen Phantom of the Opera (Play) over 100 times but that is not my favorite version, I much prefer the Yetsin/Kopit version entitled Phantom.
I think my characters are real and much more interesting than most people I know. I named my puppy after my purse.
My favorite band is The Smiths.
My favorite modern band is OneRepublic
I have met Christopher Knight (Peter Brady)
I went to elementary school with Molly Ringwald for only a short time before she left for the “the industry.”
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~~CONNECT WITH KIM ON FACEBOOK HERE~~

Monday, April 6, 2015

*AUTHOR FEATURE* Calinda B


                                                             

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Meet Author Calinda B!
I've had the pleasure of chatting with the lovely Ms Calinda several times over the past month & let me tell you, this is one witty, intelligent & fun woman! I've enjoyed all of our conversations & now I've brought a little Q&A session here for you to check out!
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1. Why did you decide to start writing?

a. Don’t have a good answer here…a few years back, I went to California to see my youngest kid, told him, out of the blue, I was going to write a book and finish it. I’m a creative and I believe I had a lot of unfinished works of art around the house. He said in typical twenty-something fashion, “Uh, okay, mom.” When I arrived home I sat down and wrote an entire book in six weeks. Haven’t stopped since. It’s truly changed my life. Best therapy I ever invested in.

2. Do you think authors can succeed in multiple genres or should they stick with a single genre?

a. I don’t know the answer to this question. I like to write in both paranormal and contemporary. Since I’m not yet making a gazillion dollars on my writing, I figure I can experiment freely.

3. What do you feel is the biggest reward to you with writing?

a. Oh, man, I LOVE writing. Crafting stories. Creating worlds and situations. Designing covers. The art part of it is extremely satisfying. You know when I’m between books at my house because I get grumpy.

4. Who are some of your favorite authors & why?

a. Gosh, I read so much it’s a changing sea of favorites. Both JR Ward and Karen Marie Moning were inspirations to write. Oh, and Diana Gabaldon. Current faves include Jim Butcher (The Dresden Files series), Lianne Moriarty, and Helen Wecker. I like a book that’s intelligent, interesting, well-written and not a cookie cutter kind of story. There are SO MANY BOOKS out there that seem like the author pulled a plot off the shelf, plunked in a few characters, changing the names, and called it good.

5. What are the biggest hurdles to overcome as an author?

a. We all want to make “the lists” (USA Today and NYT, as well as top 100 Amazon), earn loads of money and get movie offers. The hard part is waiting for reviews, waiting for sales, putting yourself out there and not getting the notice you wanted, not comparing yourself to others, etc. In other words, the sales and marketing part. I also can’t stand hearing stories of my author pals who aren’t getting paid by their publishers. It’s a difficult business to make a living at. But the art part is a blast, as well as all the wonderful people I’ve met through my writing.

6. Is there any advice that you can offer for new writers?

a. Hang in there, baby. It takes time to build a following, make a masterpiece, become a bestselling author. Don’t compare yourself to others – we’re all in this mess together. Do your best to avoid reading reviews, good and bad. It’s like riding a scary rollercoaster. Network, network, network. Find time to do other things besides write and obsess about sales. Yes, I’m speaking from experience.

7. Tell us a few random personal things about yourself personal & professional!

a. Let’s see…I’m an adventure junkie who gets scared a lot. Example – went bike riding in the rain a week ago. Took out off the trail, through the woods. Path was muddy and I couldn’t get any purchase but I’m pretty agile so there was no real reason to be scared. I needed to say “Wait. Hold on. I need a moment to have a chat with myself.” That’s usually all it takes to unwind my wound up self.
b. I’m a contradiction unto myself. Sometimes I’m not scared when I should be. While scuba diving a couple weeks ago, I laughed at an octopus who was trying to scare me.
He was huge, I was close, he flared out and flattened against the wall trying to look like a badass. I know he wanted me to swim away, not laugh at him. I probably should have swum away. He might have wrapped his arm(s) around me and they’re heavy and strong.
c. I make good money as a web/graphic designer yet hope to someday drop kick it when the book income rolls in.
d. I make a terrible wife and an awful employee. That’s why I own my business and my sweetie pie and I never tied the knot. We’ve been together for 12 years and are happy, happy, happy.

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Thanks so much, Calinda!
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~~CLICK HERE TO CONNECT WITH CALINDA ON FACEBOOK~~

Monday, November 17, 2014

Author Feature: Tina Blenke


                                                                                

Meet Tina Blenke! Tina is a fantastic new up & coming LGBT author with a bright, smile & intriguing mind! I had a chance to do a quick Q&A with this lovely young lady & here are the answers! I hope you'll enjoy it!
The author contact info is at the bottom of this interview! 
Thanks so much, Tina! We adored this session!

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(Q): What do you feel is the biggest reward to you with writing?

(A): I just need one reader to tell me it was the most perfect story that made them laugh, brought them to tears, and made them feel good about the characters. I have a beta reader that told me she thought about my characters all day, she was drawn to the story and my main characters so much that she dreamed about them that night, too. This moved me. It made me feel special to know that I had taken all of the emotion that I felt in telling the story and transferred it so effectively that she felt it on the other side of the book. Just one reader is all it takes for me.

(Q):  Who are some of your favorite authors & why? 

(A): Yikes, this is a tough question because there are so many that I love and I’ll feel bad for leaving anybody out. The first author I ever read in M/M romance was K.A. Mitchell and it’s because of her that I fell in love with gay romance. Collision Course is the book that I credit with my own personal reason for writing M/M instead of M/F and it’s all because I fell in love with Joey and Aaron. This is my definite go-to book when I need a quick escape to something warm and familiar. Another favorite author is Cardeno C because I know that this will have me laughing out loud and filling me full of “aww” moments. It also helps that CC also writes paranormal like me. Outside of romance, I love to read Stephen King and Rob Thurman, two fantastic thriller authors. King makes me afraid to turn pages while Thurman has me lusting over snarky characters one minute and enjoying violence and gore the next. What’s not to love? A new author to the scene is PT Denys. She had me shredded and left for raw after reading her novel. I was such a mess after reading Violence Begets that I had to stop reading all novels for nearly a week and then recuperate with Collision Course. Then, I have a long list of favorites that make up my immediate buy list that include Damon Suede and Stephani Hecht and Kade Boehme.
I love to read all the time. No kidding, I read a minimum of an hour a day and more if I’m lucky. I read first thing in the morning and the last thing at night. My nose is constantly glued to my Kindle app.

(Q): What are the biggest hurdles to overcome as an author? 

(A): Finding the time to write is always a challenge since I’m the primary bread winner in the family with a demanding job as a business analyst. Sometimes, I can write thousands of words in one sitting and the prose pours out of me like fine wine and other times I have to force words onto the page in an effort to get started. It all depends on the week. After that, I have to admit that the marketing portion is the most challenging for me. I’d much rather write stories, read novels, or talk about books. That is my passion. Marketing is a new world for me and is definitely a huge hurdle.

(Q): Is there any advice that you can offer for new writers? 

(A): Just write. Write what you know about and what you feel most passionate about. I dragged through the completion of my first novel because I wasn’t in love with one of the main characters but once I fixed the problem, I completed the story in a few months. The same thing happened with my second story to be released in November. The story came to me and it was written and signed within a few months. In the meantime, I’ve had another story that’s taken me over a year to write but I keep plugging away. Eventually, the characters will find their groove and it will be a fantastic story. But if I don’t take the time to write, then my dream sits there on my laptop and nobody will be able to read it. If you want it, then take it. Dust off that story, finish it, and submit it. It might get rejected and then you polish it up again and re-submit. Don’t let somebody else tell you that your dreams aren’t good enough. Everybody has a story to tell.

(Q): Tell us a few random personal things about yourself personal & professional!

(A): I’m a seasoned world traveler and have lived in several countries on a few continents. Because my father was in the Air Force, I’m used to moving every few years and I get antsy when I’ve been in one place too long. I combat the need to move by redecorating and painting various rooms in my home or traveling throughout the year to visit family scattered all over the states. I enjoy traveling to GayRomLit and meeting with fellow authors and readers for a week of retreat and debauchery. 
Outside of the reading and  writing world, I like to crochet. I’m working on a TARDIS afghan at the moment since I’m a huge Doctor Who fan. I love to cook and I enjoy watching football and I absolutely love to snuggle up with my three dogs. I have a Husky and two Chihuahuas that make up my own little pack of hellhounds.

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