Pretty Dark Nothing, by Heather L. Reid

Today I have the awesome opportunity to participate in blog tour of my fellow Month9 Books author, Heather L. Reid. Her book, Pretty Dark Nothing, came out just last month. And today, on Operation Awesome, we are having Heather's book on here. I've also asked Heather a few random questions so you can get to know her better, and then you can run out and buy here book.  You can do that HERE or HERE.

Or don't forget to add it to your Goodreads list HERE.

Seventeen-year-old Quinn hadn’t slept a full night in twenty-three days. She’s terrified of the demons that stalk her dreams, pull her into a deep dark nothingness and whisper hauntingly of her death. Exhausted, Quinn dozes off in the school hallway, and Aaron, an amnesiac with a psychic ability, accidentally enters her nightmare. If Quinn can learn to trust her heart, and Aaron can discover the secret locked away in his fragile memory, their combined power could banish the darkness back to the underworld for good. That is, unless the demons kill them first.


Interview with Heather:

What was your favorite book as a child?
I can only pick one? There are so many books that suck with me over the years, but the one that stuck with me the most is A Wrinkle In Time.

 Who is your book character crush?

Right now it has to be Jon Snow from A Song of Ice and Fire series by George RR Martin

What movie can you watch over and over again?

X-Men-Wolverine

Morning person or Night Person?

Night

Flip Flops or Sandals?

Flip Flops

Favorite late night snack?

Tortilla Chips and guacamole

******

Bio:
Heather L. Reid is both American and British and has called six different cities in three different countries, home. Her strong sense of wanderlust and craving for a new adventure mean you might find her wandering the moors of her beloved Scotland, exploring haunted castles, or hiking through a magical forest in search of fairies and sprites. When she’s not venturing into the unknown in her real life, she loves getting lost in the worlds of video games or curling up by the fire with good story. For now, this native Texan is back in the Lone Star State, settling down with her Scottish husband and dreaming up new novels to write.



Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Pretty-Dark-Nothing-Heather-Reid/dp/0985327812/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368808104&sr=8-1&keywords=pretty+dark+nothing
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pretty-dark-nothing-heather-reid/1109686541?ean=9780985327811
Twitter: @HeatherLReid
Website: www.heatherlreid.com

A Day in the Life of THIS Published Author: Shannon Duffy

So today on Operation Awesome, we welcome, Shannon Duffy, one of my fellow Month9Book authors.  Shannon's MG book, GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA, released earlier this month from. If you haven't yet bought your copy, I suggest you run out and do so now! Here is her link on Amazon so you can take a peek.

To get to know Shannon a little better, she is sharing with us what a day in her life is like. Feel free to add your version of a writing day in the comments below. And, without further ado,  I bring you A Day in the Life of Shannon Duffy:

On weekdays, first I take my son to school. Once I get back home, it’s coffee time. I so can’t start the day with my java. I work out four days a week in my gym downstairs so that’s what I do next. After that I’ll eat breakfast before diving in to answer emails and do a bit of social media stuff. Yes, I love Twitter! It’s addictive, I’m not gonna lie. In the afternoons is my time to write if I'm working on something. I’ll either write in my office or on my laptop in my bedroom. If I have a blog tour like now, I'll work on doing blog posts. At night, I love to watch reality TV and then read before bed. On the days I'm not writing, I hang out with friends or my mom. We do all the girly stuff. And of course I spend lots of time with my husband and son. Anything at all with them is awesome. And we like to travel--someplace sunny is always my favorite destination.

Thanks for inviting me to your blog today!
~Shannon 

Gabriel Stone is a twelve-year-old boy still reeling from the unsolved disappearance of his mother. With a dad who’s hard to relate to, and mounting pressures at school, Gabriel lets off steam by hiking in the place where his mother was last seen. There, Gabe and friends find a crystal that proves not only beautiful, but magical beyond their wildest dreams. Only, magic and beauty come with a price: in order to return home, they must save the dying world of Valta.

Gabriel Stone and the Divinity of Valta is a magical, fast-paced story that takes readers on a journey they won’t soon forget. It has enough mystery, intrigue and wonder to keep readers up, lamp lit, and reading into the night.

GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA is perfect for the classroom. Reading and Teacher Guides are available. Contact Caroline Patty at: educationm9b@gmail.com to request guides. GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA also makes a great gift for readers ages 9 and up who enjoy fantasy stories like THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA and THE BRIDGE TO TARABITHIA.

GABRIEL STONE AND THE WRATH OF THE SOLARIAN, Book 2 in the Gabriel Stone series will be available from Month9Books in February 2014!

~~~

ABOUT SHANNON DUFFY

Shannon Duffy grew up on the beautiful east coast of Canada, and now lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and son, Gabriel. She’s mom to one boy, and several pets. Shannon loves writing, reading, working out, soccer, and the sport of champions: shopping. Shannon Duffy is available for quotes, signings, video or podcast appearances, and all opportunities relative to GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA. 

~~~

ABOUT MONTH9BOOKS:

Month 9 Books is a publisher of speculative fiction for teens and tweens… where nothing is as it seems. Month9Books will donate proceeds from each of its annual charity anthologies to a deserving charity. Individually, authors may donate his or her advances and royalties to a charitable organization. Month9Books will also release 10-12 non-charitable titles annually. GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA is Month9Books’s first Middle Grade release. Month9Books is distributed by Small Press United, a division of IPG. You may visit www.month9books.com for more information.

LINKS:

Goodreads GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA: 

Goodreads SHANNON DUFFY: 

Shannon Duffy Twitter: 

Shannon Duffy Website: 

Goodreads Month9Books: 

Month9Books Blogger Central: 

Month9Books Facebook: 

Month9Books Twitter: 

Month9Books Publishing Website: 

Cover Reveal: The Emissary

Today I wanted to take a moment and reveal my cover for my epic YA fantasy novel, THE EMISSARY. It's coming out this December from Month9Books.

I hope you all love it as much as I do.

THE EMISSARY, by Kristal Shaff (Coming December 2013 from Month9Books)

Six rare and fading powers govern the land of Adamah. Possessing one demands entrance to the king’s army. To refuse means a traitorous death.

 In a land where a few privileged youth come into one of the six extraordinary and often-feared abilities called Shays, Nolan Trividar hides his own flawless accuracy, the Shay of Precision, behind the guise of a scribe. He teams up with a deserter from the king’s army and a hot-headed young fighter in order to resist an ageless king who has deceived the people for centuries. To save their land, they must defeat the king and his elite Shay-empowered army before an enveloping cloud of darkness chokes out the Shays which define them.

Website
Twitter
Facebook
THE EMISSARY, on goodreads.

Cover Reveal(s)

Yesterday, my publisher, Month 9 Books, revealed this AWESOME trailer which includes a bunch of new cover reveals. Among them...is my cover for THE EMISSARY! (Squee!)

Can you find it in with the others? I'll post a photo once I get it. But for now, enjoy all the pretty.

Shimmer of Angels, Sneak Peek

I'm so very excited to share with you today a new release, which came out only yesterday, from my fellow Month9Books author, Lisa Basso

SHIMMER OF ANGELS, a debut young adult title from Lisa M. Basso.

Sixteen-year-old Rayna sees angels, and has the medication and weekly therapy sessions to prove it. Now, in remission, Rayna starts fresh at a new school, lands a new job, and desperately tries for normalcy. She ignores signs that she may be slipping into the world she has tried so hard to climb out of. But these days, it’s more than just hallucinations that keep Rayna up at night. Students are dying, and she may be the only one who can stop it. Can she keep her job, her sanity, and her friends from dying at the hands of angels she can't admit to seeing?

Author of THE IRON WITCH, Karen Mahoney, says, “A SHIMMER OF ANGELS has a courageous heroine who finds herself in the middle of two gorgeous angels, a fascinating world, and a story that builds to an exciting climax - I'll be looking forward to more from Lisa M. Basso!"

To help celebrate the release, we on the OA are giving you a sneak peek. Take a look inside of the awesomeness.. 

ALSO, Month9Books will be highlighting this author tour each day, so remember to follow their twitter and facebook page to find out more. Each day will feature a giveaway. Sign up on the raffelcopter for a chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And also, don't forget our post earlier today where you can win from our new Mystery Bloggers.

And now, sit back, relax and enjoy reading the excerpt of this awesome book from Lisa Basso.  

  MNB ASOA 1st Ch LisaMBasso July 18 2012 by  

ABOUT LISA M. BASSO

Lisa M. Basso was born and raised in San Francisco, California. She is a lover of books, video games, animals, and baking (not baking with animals though). As a child she would crawl into worlds of her own creation and get lost for hours. Her love for YA fiction started with a simple school reading assignment: S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. When not reading or writing she can usually be found at home with The Best Boyfriend that Ever Lived ™ and her two darling (and sometimes evil) cats, Kitties A and B. Lisa M. Basso is available for quotes, signings, video or podcast appearances, and all opportunities relative to A SHIMMER OF ANGELS. 

A SLITHER OF HOPE, Book 2 in the ANGEL SIGHT series will be available from Month9Books in February 2014!

ABOUT MONTH9BOOKS:

Month 9 Books is a publisher of speculative fiction for teens and tweens… where nothing is as it seems. Month9Books will donate proceeds from each of its annual charity anthologies to a deserving charity. Individually, authors may donate his or her advances and royalties to a charitable organization. Month9Books will also release 10-12 non-charitable titles annually. A SHIMMER OF ANGELS is Month9Books’s first Young Adult release. Month9Books is distributed by Small Press United, a division of IPG. You may visit www.month9books.com for more information.

LINKS:

Goodreads A SHIMMER OF ANGELS: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13572197-a-shimmer-of-angels

Goodreads Lisa M. Basso: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3201662.Lisa_M_Basso
Lisa M. Basso Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Lisa-M-Basso/340213186037936?fref=ts
Lisa M. Basso Twitter: http://twitter.com/LisaMBasso
Lisa M. Basso Website: http://lisa-basso.blogspot.com/
Goodreads Month9Books: http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/67761-month9books
Month9Books Blogger Central: http://month9booksblog.com/?page_id=477
Month9Books Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/month9books
Month9Books Twitter: http://twitter.com/Month9Books
Month9Books Publishing Website: http://www.Month9Books.com 

"Show Us Your Wings" Contest

Hi all!

Just thought I'd share with you all a contest that my publisher, Month 9 Books, is doing.

The info from Month 9 Books:

Month9Books is so excited about the release of A Shimmer of Angels, by Lisa M. Basso, that we are giving away the book and angel swag every day in the month of February! Sixteen-year-old Rayna sees angels, and we want you to show us what you would love to see if you saw angel wings.  You can design your angel wings many different ways, so be creative!

Readers can begin submitting their wings Tuesday, January 22nd, and a winner will be chosen every day in the month of February!  Whether you are taking a picture of yourself in wings, drawing wings, or creating wings digitally, you can submit your photo or video to mnbcontests@gmail.com.  You can also link to the files in the comments section on this page.  You can enter in a few additional ways in the Rafflecopter to increase your chances of winning.  With a total of 28 winners, your chances of winning are great!

Find out more, and enter here:

Cover Reveal: Praefatio

Today is the cover reveal for Georgia McBride's debut novel, Praefatio, coming next year to Month 9 Books. Run over to Mundie Mom's where you can hear more about the book and also see the awesome trailer. Also, visit Goodreads and add Praefatio to your "to read" list as well!

WHEN ALL YOU HAVE IS YOUR WORD, HOW DO YOU PROVE WHO YOU ARE?

Seventeen-year-old Grace Ann Miller is no ordinary runaway. After having been missing for weeks, Grace is found on the estate of international rock star Gavin Vault, half-dressed and yelling for help. Over the course of twenty-four hours Grace holds an entire police force captive with incredulous tales of angels, demons, and war; intent on saving Gavin from lockup, and her family from worry over her safety. But instead, authorities believe that Grace is ill, and suffering from Stockholm Syndrome, the victim of assault and a severely fractured mind. Undeterred, Grace reveals the secret existence of dark angels on earth, an ancient prophecy and a wretched curse steeped in Biblical myth. Grace’s claims set into motion an ages-old war, resulting in blood, death and the loss of everything that matters. But are these the delusions of an immensely sick girl, or could Grace’s story actually be true? Praefatio is Grace’s account of weeks on the run, falling in love and losing everything but her faith. When it’s sister against brother, light versus darkness, corrupt police officers, eager doctors and accusing journalists, against one girl with nothing but her word as proof: who do you believe?

Submission Opportunities

Today I thought I'd post a couple of submission opportunites for you all.

The first is from Haper Voyager: 

For the first time in over a decade, Harper Voyager are opening the doors to unsolicited submissions in order to seek new authors with fresh voices, strong storytelling abilities, original ideas and compelling storylines. So, if you believe your manuscript has these qualities, then we want to read it!
We’re seeking all kinds of adult and young adult speculative fiction for digital publication, but particularly epic fantasy, science fiction, urban fantasy, horror, dystopia and supernatural. For more idea of the type of books we love to read and publish, check out our authors and their titles at www.harpervoyagerbooks.comSubmissions for digital originals will be open for a limited two-week period from 1^st to the 14^th of October, 2012. Click HERE to find out more.

Short story submissions from Month 9 Books:

They are looking for novella and short stories, under15k, that have a strong romantic element. Any genre is accepted. To pitch your novella go to their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/month9books

Entangled is looking for steamy romance:

Forget the flowers and stuffy boxes of chocolate—Brazen, the bestselling sexy romance imprint affectionately coined “the naughty little sister of Indulgence,” is on the hunt for scintillating Valentine’s Day seductions readers won’t soon forget.
Submissions must:

• Revolve around Valentine’s Day.

• Be 45,000 to 65,000 words in length.

• Feature an alpha hero in either a heroic or high-powered profession.

• Revolve around familiar story lines such as enemies to lovers, one night stand, mistaken identity, matchmaker, best friends to lovers, office romance, etc. Stories that utilize more than one of these tropes are preferred. 

• Maintain strong sexual tension throughout.

• End in a satisfying happily ever after.

Submissions are open until November 25th, 2012 Find out more HERE. 

Launch of Month 9 Books!

Yesterday, Month 9 Books (my publisher) launched on the Bookalicious Blog, and then today another post on Mundie Moms.

They revealed some great new covers and are giving away some great stuff, too.

Stop on over and check them out to learn more about Month 9 Books!

Blog Tour Schedule:

Be sure to follow each stop, as each blog will be revealing a different book(s)/series, as well as hosting a different blog tour at each stop. 

July 23-Bookalicous.org

July 24-Mundie Moms

July 25-Girls in the Stacks AND Supernatural Snark

July 26-Reading Teen AND Once Upon A Twilight

July 27-Hypable.com

The Stubborn Shall Conquer the Earth: Announcement

About a month ago, I posted about rejection and how I was grateful for the hard journey. If you haven't read my post, you can catch it here.

Well, ironically enough, exactly 1 week after I posted this blog entry, I received an offer of publication from Month 9 Books. 

Here is my Publisher's Marketplace listing.

In case you can't read it, it says:

Children's: Young Adult
Kristal Shaff's debut THE EMISSARY, in which a seventeen-year-old must defeat an ageless king and his powerful army in order to save their land from a cloud of darkness that threatens to destroy him, and those like him, who possess one of six deadly powers, to Courtney Koschel at Month9Books, in a two-book deal, for publication in December 2013 (World).

I want to send my OA ladies, and my writing friends, a BIG thanks. It's been a really long and difficult journey. It goes to prove that perseverance--and a dose of stubborn, hardheadedness--does pay off.