Fandom Fest 6 Days To Go!

I'm feeling a lit wiped out. Having written two novellas and done a ton of online promoting I feel a little bit burned out. I wish I could explain while Fandom Fest is a good thing it is a taxing thing too. I've put more money into than I'm likely to get out of it. But here's the truth of the matter. It gets my name out there.

I'm fortunate in that I have a great publisher behind the book I'm pushing for Fandom Fest. Between my editors Tanja Cilia and Greta Gunselman and Lea Schizas and my cover artist Delilah Stephans I have a great book on pre-order available to the public at Fandom Fest.

It's 20% off the cover price and you get a free copy of Another Way to Die with your purchase. Yes these are e-books BUT my publisher has come up with a solution to this dilemma. VOUCHERS. Can't come to Fandom Fest? Get your copies now. Just click on this link http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=495&category_id=69&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1 and for $4.40 two books will be yours!

I can feel the toastiness that comes with the hard press of promoting and writing at the same time. Today I'm going to treat myself to the Outback and do some last minute shopping for Fandom Fest. I spent some time updating my Amazon Central Page too if you'd like to see it. https://www.amazon.com/author/amymccorkle. There are several events planned. While GLADIATOR is available for pre-order now Set Fire to the Rain and BOUNTY HUNTER are coming soon too. More on them later.

Until then here is a taste of GLADIATOR to whet your appetite.



 
Back Cover:
Ten years ago Tristan Shane had failed to pick sides and he paid with the ultimate price—his family.  Enslaved as a post-apocalyptic gladiator, he is now faced with a similar dilemma, serve the despot  Queen and murder her innocent sister, or face certain death himself. What will he choose?
Tristan Shane was a moderate before the nuclear and economic crisis which plunged the world into darkness. While his sister Aidia ran off to fight the rebel’s war he desperately tried to hang onto normalcy and lost his wife and children in the process. Spending the next ten years as the Crown’s favored and the mob’s favorite Gladiator, he never expects to meet the Queen’s sister, Alexandra, a Healer.
She claims to be the much whispered about Savior sent to heal the wounded Earth and oceans, the one who would bring about her cruel sister’s dethroning. But is she? Or is she just a fraud? But he quickly learns her erotic touch has the power to heal his heart and his to save her life. But as the passion heightens and the danger increases will they have forever or will he have to give up everything to save the planet?
Excerpt:
“What is it you want, Veronica?”
She leaned in close and whispered seductively, “Why, you know I only want you, Tristan.”
He snatched her up by her throat, pinned her against the wall and kissed her passionately, brutally, and without clemency. When he pulled away she was smiling with a darkness that made him angry. She was a power-hungry mongrel who played on her husband’s weaknesses and jealousies. Tristan hated her. And he hated himself for f***ing her. But this was his life. He let go of her and walked away.
“Is my poor Gladiator jealous? There’s really no need for that, is there? You know you’re my favorite.”
“What is it you really want, Veronica?”
She came up behind him and seductively began to ease off his armor. He was covered in sweat and blood and he felt her shiver against his body. And as always there was a twinge of nausea that would precede the raw animal aggression.
She turned him around. He looked at her. There was no doubt about it; she was beautiful. But she was poisonous—a rattlesnake with crystal green eyes and flaming red hair. Her father had promised peace and a return to normalcy and democracy in the wake of economic and nuclear disaster, and instead this was what had become of the world. And she was no doubt always enjoining her father to maintain her life in this fashion. He loathed her. He detested her. And every time he had sex with her his intense hatred for himself deepened a little bit more.
“My dear, sweet Gladiator, as much as I’d like to celebrate your victory with you tonight, my husband wishes me to share his bed. But fear not—I do have a consolation prize for you.”
His skin began to crawl. Veronica had a twisted way of looking at what constituted a consolation prize; it was usually just a groupie who wanted to watch what the queen did with the equivalent of rock stars of the former United States of America. And he usually did the dog and pony show. But sometimes Veronica required something to prove his loyalty to her. That would be more complicated.
“What is it this time?”
She smiled. His response had given her the mistaken impression that he cared.
“The rebels have been restless. And it seems there is a young woman we have in our prison whom they want terribly. Well, frankly, they are in two minds as to what to believe. It is rumored she is the mythical Healer. The one meant to find her soul mate, so together they will lead our Nation out of the so-called darkness into which it has plunged itself.”
“And what do you want me to do?”
“Oh Tristan, why are you being so defensive? I just want you to find out whether she really is the Healer, and report to me if she is.”
“And then, what?”
“And then you let me handle it,” Veronica said, sliding back into the evil skin that was her natural state. “The rebels have no idea what it takes to run a country.”
The image of his wife being raped and murdered flooded him and it was all he could do not to throttle the queen right then and there.
“So can I count on you to do this for me or do I need to find someone else who can?”
He was no one’s hero. But she had said young woman. And he couldn’t just allow his wife’s fate to be visited upon some other unsuspecting girl. “I’ll do what I can.”
Veronica ran her index finger down his cheek and whispered, “Good boy, Tristan,” she purred. “Guard! She’ll be delivered before the night is over. I don’t know when I’ll be able to return to you, but I expect that you’ll have had enough time to gain her trust by then.”
Tristan’s stomach churned. The Healer? In the beginning there had been whispers of it. But he had never believed in such a thing. It had been years since the crown had feared anything. And now this. He said nothing as the queen was escorted away. He was left to think about the young woman he might be forced to turn over in the end.

A Hard Task

When you want the book in your hand, to smell the paper, to feel the pages flip, you know there are some sacrifices to be made.

The immediacy of e-publishing is awesome. It's where I broke through and where I make my home currently. I'd be a fool to flip the bird at it. I've made friends and connections which I might not have otherwise made. Some have made the jump from e-pub to traditional publishing quite well.

Now, there is an attitude that prevails in the print community that e-pubbed authors aren't real authors but that attitude is antiquated and way past it's time. I think there's room enough in the sandbox for us all and there will even be some of us who straddle those worlds. (I hope to be one of them).

I wish both sides would take a moment to see where working together would benefit both sides where giving a little bit would bring gains in the long run. My first 'print' book is with a small press. It will eventually be turned into an audiobook as well. I'm very lucky in that respect. But it's also going to be an e-book too.

Traditional Press is a hard nut to crack. Especially without an agent to help you and first you have to win over an agent. Whereas in e-publishing you don't necessarily have to have an agent. And really without the advance you don't want one. Sharing in royalties is a pittance for an agent unless they're smart and see it as a way of building a backlist so that the Big Boys who are struggling at the moment, will pay attention to you.

And yet, even in the face of all this, with the 90% of the publishers money going to the top 5% of the writers marketing and shrinking shelf space I want a contract that will give me a traditionally published book in my hands.

BUT! Me and my writing partner have signed a contract for a 5 book series with Hydra Publications it's called Gunpowder & Lead and I'm thrilled to make that our home.

Fandom Fest! 12 Days and Counting!

I have to say after getting sick last year and being unable to execute this opportunity to the fullest I'm really looking forward to what seems like what will be an awesome time. With authors like fellow Muser Pamela Turner there will be a monster party in my room for the launch of yes, GLADIATOR, book 1 of the Gladiator Chronicles.

There will be swag, promo, goodie bags, people in costume, giveaway baskets which have books, bookmarks, mousepads, magnets, postcards, rack cards, flyers, bumper stickers and more! A delicious cake and drinks will be provided and of course books will be available for sale. Just so you know, it will be my young cousins, Bridgette and Mary handing out the bags to stuff your goodies in, so please be kind when they approach you.

Fandom Fest is a great event. It is held in conjunction with Mid-American Comic Con and the Fright Night Film Festival and will include special guests such as James Marsters, Bruce Campbell, and the dudes from the Boondock Saints. And for all you wanting to take a step back into the 1990's there will be the stars of the ORIGINAL 90210 cast. Is gaming your thing? Checkout the vendors hall. Books more your speed? Joseph-Beth Booksellers will be there answering all your reading needs.

And the writers? There's a whole track for craft and fans of those writers. I will be taking pitches for MuseItUp Publishing at 7PM on Friday, June 29th in the Collins Room. My publisher is looking for all manner of fiction from something new in YA, to horror and romance. Come surprise me! On Saturday June 30th is the big launch for GLADIATOR! Come join the party at 8:30-? in the McCreary Room  and have some fun and get some new reading material! Then July 1st at 10AM come give me back up as I'm the only girl on panel full of guys about world building for Science Fiction in the Tayor Room.

Hope to see you there!

Violence In Stories

This is an open letter to those in the publishing industry who are squeamish about the use rape of abuse in the stories they publish. Especially the romance industry. Let me say this first, I do not enjoy rape as titilation. I do not enjoy rape stories with a safe word. None of that does anything for me. But there is one adage, write what you know. And what I know from experience is that men can be sexually violent and that there is nothing attractive about it. And when I write about it that's how I portray it.

I know this makes people uncomfortable. Good. Those types histories or scenes aren't supposed to be easy for the reader. What I want to know is why in a publishing world online which is revolutionizes the industry are people so hell bent on allowing these type of stories to go by the wayside. Too many times I have seen the words NO VIOLENCE. I also write dark romantic suspense. That may not include sexual violence but violence in a gritty world could be included.

I write post apocalyptic literature as well. Chaos and anarchy would be included. I'm not saying blow up someone for the sake of blowing up someone or to shoot them just to shoot them either. What I'm saying is that there's room enough for all kinds of stories and frustrating to feel as if your voice is being stifled for that reason.

Now, that being said I have found fabulous homes for my work. MuseItUp Publishing and Hydra Publications have been nothing but gracious and welcoming to me. These two places have made my publishing dreams come true. Hopefully there will be more to come.

Keep an eye out, the winner of the Muse Gift Certificate will be announced soon! 

New Story & Free Read

I know, my quasi-obsession for all things Daniel is legendary on this blog by now. But not only is he sexy but the man can act which makes it easy for me to cast him as the different kinds of heroes in my books. And he has this kind of tortured, world weary quality to his features which lends itself to the type of hero I like to write about.

I once went to an online writing conference and the women talked about how they liked the heroin chic look like Johnny Depp. Anyone seen Johnny lately? The man is seriously buily like damn brick house, he is hot, but not in that heroin chic kind of way, not anymore at least.

What I like writing for a character that looks like Daniel is that he's always a man of action, and there's always a deep seated volatility that when the heroine is threatened comes out in full force. Russell Crowe has that quality to his acting only the volatility is much closer to the surface. These actors are MEN. Not boys like the twilight crowd is gaga for. Nothing wrong with the Twilight series, it's just that it's not written for grown women, yet it gave birth to the kind of thing that is 50 Shades of Grey. BDSM isn't my thing. But if you do I recommend checking out the different e-publishers like Loose ID, Ellora's Cave, and MuseItUp Publishing for stuff like that. Just don't expect to find it in my stuff.

So what's this new story about? Well all I'll say is that Daniel's character plays a pivotal role in it and his name is Jacob Enoch.

So what's this free read all about? Well GLADIATOR is available for PRE-ORDER now for 20% off. But is you PRE-ORDER it now you will get ANOTHER WAY TO DIE for free immediately! http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=495&category_id=69&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1

Enjoy this excerpt from ANOTHER WAY TO DIE:

Blurb:

Almira Sands has been running all her life from her abusive father Jack. She knows one day the running will end and only she or her father will be left standing. What she doesn’t expect is to be kidnapped by Daniel Logan.

Daniel Logan is a mercenary who only intended to use Almira long enough to get to safety, but when she takes a bullet and almost dies he finds himself questioning who he is and what he does and saves her life.

On the run and falling in love they are forced to decide: a life on the run together, or face her father, the man who has the power to separate them forever.

Excerpt:

I felt his hand tapping on my face and heard his voice coming from what seemed like a million miles away. “Almira. Almira, wake up.”

My eyes slid open for a moment and I saw him as he was. Older, stronger, maybe crazier for helping me now than he had been then. My eyes drifted closed. I was back in the past with him carrying me out of my father’s estate and into his waiting car. I was so doped up on pills and heroin at the time I couldn’t think beyond ‘help me get out of here.’

Then Daniel’s voice called again, this time from the present day. “Don’t you dare die on me! Not now. Not after all of this.”

My eyes opened again, and he was standing over me. I managed to scan the room and saw a beautiful woman preparing to work on me.

“If you fail her, I’ll come looking for you.”

“Don’t be so dramatic, Danny. You know I do good work. If I didn’t, you wouldn’t have called me in on this.”

I gazed up at Daniel and said raggedly, “Yeah, Daniel, don’t be so dramatic.”

His head jerked downward and he took my hand; images of our brief time together flooded me: him carrying me… throwing me in the shower... of us naked in the shower, making love. Suddenly I felt hot all over—well, as hot as can be under the circumstances.

“Daniel, don’t go…” I murmured. Daniel let go and pulled up a chair, lighting a cigarette.

“I’m giving you something for the pain but it’s still going to hurt. Put that out,” Jasmine said as she worked over me, digging out the bullets; the pain was mind numbing. Tears rolled down my cheeks as he took my hand again and I crushed it.

With each dig into my body to retrieve those goddamn bullets, memories flooded my head. The night Daniel and I spent together surfaced. Suddenly I felt at peace…

“I’m losing her, Daniel.” Jasmine’s voice sounded like a faint echo.

“Stay with me, kiddo, stay with me.”

I opened my eyes but I wasn’t in the present. I was in another time, another place. I felt hands pressing down on my chest. Air rushed down into my lungs.

“Save her damn it!” Danny’s voice was so like it had been all those years ago.

I could see us that night as we made love. Hear his voice. “You don’t know what kind of man I am,” he’d said.

I’d known exactly what kind of man he was then.

His mouth captured mine. His air breathed life into me, desperately pulling me back from the brink.

I opened my eyes, coughing and sucking in air as he held onto my face, his gaze burning into me, reminding me of why I had slept with him in the first place. “Don’t ever do that to me again,” he said. “Do you understand me?”

“Is she gone?”

He looked up toward Jasmine. “No.”

“Then get her the hell out of here because I don’t trust her.”

“Ungrateful bitch.”

Daniel leaned back. Before he could stop me, my hand shot up and I nailed her in the mouth with a hard sucker punch.

“Crazy—”

Daniel stood up. “I suggest you choose your next words very carefully,” he warned her.

My eyes slid shut. I heard a door slam, and before I lost consciousness completely, I heard a faint whisper. “This time I refuse to let you go.”

GLADIATOR Revisited

Growing up there was a movie called Red Dawn. I was 11 when I saw it and my Young Authors book that year was heavily influenced by it. I didn't win, but then, I as an odd child and people tended to a pecking order at that point.

But I've found  here recently I like the Mad Max meets GLADIATOR meets two parts  fairytale story telling style, and with it now officially available for pre-order I feel like book 1 in the Gladiator Chronicles should be celebrated. So today I'm giving away a MuseItUp Publishing gift certificate worth $10! With GLADIATOR available for the low price of $4.40 at the moment that's worth two novels or a novel and two short stories. Or 4 short stories...well you get the point. Here's the blurb and excerpt from GLADIATOR and remember for that gc leave a comment.

Back Cover:

Ten years ago Tristan Shane had failed to pick sides and he paid with the ultimate price—his family.  Enslaved as a post-apocalyptic gladiator, he is now faced with a similar dilemma, serve the despot  Queen and murder her innocent sister, or face certain death himself. What will he choose?

Tristan Shane was a moderate before the nuclear and economic crisis which plunged the world into darkness. While his sister Aidia ran off to fight the rebel’s war he desperately tried to hang onto normalcy and lost his wife and children in the process. Spending the next ten years as the Crown’s favored and the mob’s favorite Gladiator, he never expects to meet the Queen’s sister, Alexandra, a Healer.

She claims to be the much whispered about Savior sent to heal the wounded Earth and oceans, the one who would bring about her cruel sister’s dethroning. But is she? Or is she just a fraud? But he quickly learns her erotic touch has the power to heal his heart and his to save her life. But as the passion heightens and the danger increases will they have forever or will he have to give up everything to save the planet?

Excerpt:

“What is it you want, Veronica?”

She leaned in close and whispered seductively, “Why, you know I only want you, Tristan.”

He snatched her up by her throat, pinned her against the wall and kissed her passionately, brutally, and without clemency. When he pulled away she was smiling with a darkness that made him angry. She was a power-hungry mongrel who played on her husband’s weaknesses and jealousies. Tristan hated her. And he hated himself for f***ing her. But this was his life. He let go of her and walked away.

“Is my poor Gladiator jealous? There’s really no need for that, is there? You know you’re my favorite.”

“What is it you really want, Veronica?”

She came up behind him and seductively began to ease off his armor. He was covered in sweat and blood and he felt her shiver against his body. And as always there was a twinge of nausea that would precede the raw animal aggression.

She turned him around. He looked at her. There was no doubt about it; she was beautiful. But she was poisonous—a rattlesnake with crystal green eyes and flaming red hair. Her father had promised peace and a return to normalcy and democracy in the wake of economic and nuclear disaster, and instead this was what had become of the world. And she was no doubt always enjoining her father to maintain her life in this fashion. He loathed her. He detested her. And every time he had sex with her his intense hatred for himself deepened a little bit more.

“My dear, sweet Gladiator, as much as I’d like to celebrate your victory with you tonight, my husband wishes me to share his bed. But fear not—I do have a consolation prize for you.”

His skin began to crawl. Veronica had a twisted way of looking at what constituted a consolation prize; it was usually just a groupie who wanted to watch what the queen did with the equivalent of rock stars of the former United States of America. And he usually did the dog and pony show. But sometimes Veronica required something to prove his loyalty to her. That would be more complicated.

“What is it this time?”

She smiled. His response had given her the mistaken impression that he cared.

“The rebels have been restless. And it seems there is a young woman we have in our prison whom they want terribly. Well, frankly, they are in two minds as to what to believe. It is rumored she is the mythical Healer. The one meant to find her soul mate, so together they will lead our Nation out of the so-called darkness into which it has plunged itself.”

“And what do you want me to do?”

“Oh Tristan, why are you being so defensive? I just want you to find out whether she really is the Healer, and report to me if she is.”

“And then, what?”

“And then you let me handle it,” Veronica said, sliding back into the evil skin that was her natural state. “The rebels have no idea what it takes to run a country.”

The image of his wife being raped and murdered flooded him and it was all he could do not to throttle the queen right then and there.

“So can I count on you to do this for me or do I need to find someone else who can?”

He was no one’s hero. But she had said young woman. And he couldn’t just allow his wife’s fate to be visited upon some other unsuspecting girl. “I’ll do what I can.”

Veronica ran her index finger down his cheek and whispered, “Good boy, Tristan,” she purred. “Guard! She’ll be delivered before the night is over. I don’t know when I’ll be able to return to you, but I expect that you’ll have had enough time to gain her trust by then.”

Tristan’s stomach churned. The Healer? In the beginning there had been whispers of it. But he had never believed in such a thing. It had been years since the crown had feared anything. And now this. He said nothing as the queen was escorted away. He was left to think about the young woman he might be forced to turn over in the end.

PRE-ORDER Link: http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=495&category_id=69&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1

Introducing Cain

After the Avengers and seeing previews for Snow White & the Huntsman I knew who my new hero for ORACLE was going to be. He's an Aussie and he bears a striking resemblance to Russell Crowe so it's no wonder that I find him absolutely delicious to look at.

I recently finished book one in the Gunpowder & Lead series that I'm co-authoring, that is awesome all by itself. I got to write a Daniel Craig hero based on a Hatfield's & McCoys meets Mad Max scenario. Daniel is my main man these days. But I right at the end of that book I found myself thinking about book 2 of the Gladiator Chronicles, ORACLE which I seemed to be wrestling with so much. I like tortured heroes. Heroes with angst and since I'm so in love with Daniel at the moment it was hard to see myself falling in love with anyone else. Until I saw the Avengers and well look at the assorted man candy there. Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, and Robert Downey Jr. Robert is really the thinking woman's superhero. While Chris is sexy even if he's still young. Jeremy Renner is just the guy you want to have sweaty hot...never mind I digress. But for ORACLE it's all about Chris. Or should I say Cain. I know, I even stuck with the same first initial. I tapped into the raw, violent, aggression which is an element all of my heroes must have in this series.

Gunpowder & Lead is a quiet series punctuated by horrible violence during a turbulent time in the future. ORACLE is full on hot emotional connection, steamy sex, and violence in a turbulent time where the hero and heroine are connected by prophecy and fated to put the nail in exiled queen's coffin.

I like what I'm writing about and hope you do to.

Dreams

I'm writing this at four o'clock in the morning fresh from one of the most haunting and beautiful dreams. Of course it made no sense but, when did dreams ever make sense? In the end it's just your mind processing your experiences. Of course I had an overload of caffeine and then took melatonin. Not too much, just the doctor prescribed amount. I don't mess around with meds.

The dream, like most dreams kind of rambles. There's no real meaning to it. Just the feeling of wanting to hang onto it when I woke up. It starts at a house that is my MeMaw's old house where a man tells me e're going to have sex. I feel like I don't want to do this but don't get the courage to tell him know until it's too late. But we wake up his kid and and my deceased Grandmother makes her presence known by chiming the grandfather clock and making everything feel weird. My sister Brandy helps find my pajama bottoms and underwear and everyone is watching me as if I'm some kind of whore.

It transitions to being in a room full of people I have no business being around. People in the music industry and the Mtv feel back when they had videos on television. I'm like the cat lady rescuing angry cats out of this enviroment. As I leave I'm told to never come back.

I kind of float to brightly lit and warm colored room where a young version of my ex-boyfriend, Billy tells me I'm welcome there and we watch shows like the X-Files. Buffy. And Angel. It's like I've found a new home. Pretty soon I'm floating again only now I'm watching a magnificent movie trailer as if drawn in pencil from start to finish and it colors in to live action and it's as if I know that this is a big important film and I'm watching it with my best friend Missy.

Finally I come to a film where people's lives are threatened and stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Johnny Depp, and Ryan Gosling are in it and it's about mobsters and has a glamorous 1940's look like the horse racing film does.

The last movie I see I'm alone and I'm angry and crying. Jeremy Renner is in the poster with several different shots of him in different kinds of hair and make-up. I'm trying to explain how the dream with Billy touched me because Billy is a person from my life and John Malkovich is ready to say I don't know what I'm talking about.

Like I said, the dream doesn't make much sense it kind of rambles, but it made me want to hang onto it especially the parts with Billy and the trailer drawn out in pencil that I'm watching with Missy. Ever have dream that made you want to hang onto it? Comment on it and enter at a chance to win an ARC of the firsr book in my Gladiator Chronicles.

Return To Fandom Fest & Other Updates

So it's been awhile since I've posted, I wish I could be more disciplined or less streaky, but there you have it. It's June and we are on the cusp of GLADIATOR'S launch. June 30th to be exact. I've worked hard on the manuscript and while the first draft was my blood, sweat, and tears the book wouldn't be what it is without the content edits of Tanja Cilia, the line edits of Greta Gunselman, or the final run through by Lea Schizas. Or this fabulous cover by Delilah Stephans. So it's taken a small village to take what I believe was a fantastic dystopian erotic romance to begin with and shine it up to its full potential. It arrives in online retail stores (the first 90 days belonging to KDP on August 31,2012. If you'd like to be reminded of when it becomes available just follow this link http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=495&category_id=69&keyword=kate+lynd&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1 and remember Fandom Fest is June 29th-July 1st and I will be there with giveaways, goodies, books, and cake!

Also of note for those with a NOOK or the NOOK Ap and are looking for a good, gritty, dark romantic thriller Another Way to Die is FINALLY available from Barnes & Noble. Here's the link.  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/another-way-to-die-amy-mccorkle/1109800890?ean=2940033093304 and checkout the beautiful cover by Delilah Stephans.










And finally, having been inspired by the recent mini-series, Hatfields and the McCoys my best friend of 15 years and I are penning a 5 book series which is one part Western, one part Post Apocalyptic, and all kinds of romance . It tells of the lives of three families set in the not too distant future and how they intertwine, sometimes tragically, sometimes not so much. They are the Brices, the Hamiltons, and the Walkers. Set in the mountains of Kentucky with brief trips to the city we see what the war has done to them both individually and collectively.