new authors

A Day Late and a Dollar Short

Friends,

It has been crazy town all over town, in every town, and it’s just getting crazier. Before the corona virus closed down everything here, our county came to a standstill with an e-coli scare in our water. Schools closed. Businesses closed. And there was a grocery store run as if it was the apocalypse itself!

And the very next day…my state, county, city, village,…went into corona virus lockdown. Schools closed. Businesses closed. Gym closed. Restaurants shut down. AND the good folks of this county and metro-area had already bought up all the supplies. Yes, folks! No toilet paper here either!

Sooooooooo, kids are home for at least 2 weeks! What does that mean for me? All writing/editing/marketing pretty much shuts down for the business that is KC Freeman Author!

So I will do what I can when I can, but deadlines have pretty much been thrown out the window.

Regardless there is two bits of good news.

Rekindled Prophecy – Book 1 of the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series is up for voting for the April book of the month in the Double Trouble Book Club.

April Nominations – Voting now open
Double Trouble Book Club Reader Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2220606254842963

The two books with the most readers signed up will be our winners. We begin reading on 4/1 and conclude on 4/21 followed by an exclusive Author Q&A.

We are voting on:

Good Intentions: Volume One by Ana Balen – Contemporary Romance 82 pages –
Available on Kindle Unlimited
getbook.at/DTgoodint

Rekindled Prophecy: Greylyn The Guardian Angel Series (Book 1) by KC Freeman -Fantasy Paranormal 392 pages
getbook.at/DTrkndled

Finding Purpose (Colorado Veterans Book 1) by Tiffani Lynn – Contemporary Romance 325 Pages
getbook.at/DTfndprp

Stone (Castle Sin Book 1) by Linz Basset – Suspense BDSM Club Romance 318 pages – Available on Kindle Unlimited
getbook.at/DTstone

Please sign up even if you’ve read the book.

2. Just because I’m a day late getting my blog posted doesn’t mean I can’t post it the next day (today). AND because it’s Tuesday the added bonus is it’s also…#TEASERTUESDAY!!! So without further delay, here’s a snippet from Rekindled Prophecy to whet your appetites and just perhaps encourages you to check out the above item and vote.

***************************************************************************

For a moment, Greylyn saw the lightning mirrored in his eyes. She shook her head to rid herself of the image.

Great! Now she was imagining things.

He warned, “It’s too late to go running for cover. Let’s just sit here and wait out the rain. Surely, there’s something we can discuss…in a civilized manner.”

Greylyn felt a pair of cornflower blue eyes peering at the two of them from the manor’s covered veranda. Maureen was watching.

After years of being subjected to his particular type of torment, she’d have to endure the insufferable man for at least one more go-around. But that didn’t mean she had to loiter in a gazebo with him. It was dangerous, in more ways than one. The gold flecks in his eyes beckoned her closer, not just to him but to the edge of her own sanity.

“Rain doesn’t frighten me, Kael. And neither do you. This little confab is over.” Pivoting, she stepped out into the torrential storm.

Instantly soaked, she steeled herself to keep marching right back towards the house, away from him. She felt his eyes boring into her back. It was as if he reached across the distance to trail a finger lightly down her spine, leaving a delicious tingling sensation that raised goosebumps over her entire body.

Just as Greylyn cleared the grove, another, more powerful, surge of electricity pierced the air. She whipped around just in time for a lightning bolt to strike the ground a few yards from her. The ground shook as the resulting thunder boomed and echoed through the valley.

The charged air was exhilarating. Her heart beat against her ribcage in frantic time to the raging rain. Adrenaline coursed through her body in waves. Everything seemed brighter, more vivid. Every detail of her surroundings accentuated.

Was it from the lightning or from the energy radiating from the being in the gazebo?

Greylyn couldn’t be sure. The whole situation seemed fitting somehow, and not entirely surprising. It mirrored the energy surging between them. Her eyes locked with Kael’s.

Rain pelted her body, and the wind whipped her hair around in all directions. Greylyn no longer felt a thing except his burning stare. It was achingly painful. Every molecule of her being hypnotized by his eyes. Time stopped. For that moment there was only Kael, everything else faded to black.

*****************************************************************************

https://books2read.com/u/bzoaBE

Until next time…Stay healthy, stay sanitized, my friends!

Oh, and HAPPY SAINT PATRICK’s DAY!!!!!!

Lessons Learned and Big Announcement

First, let’s get the BIG announcement out of the way because quite frankly I’m too tickled pink to put this off.

DRUM ROLL PLEASE…

After some fantastic reviews from The Naked Reviewers last week, they chose my paranormal fantasy romance book, Rekindled Prophecy – Book 1 of the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series, as their Book of the Month for March 2020!!!!!

The book was also named as the Book of the Week from 2/26/2020 to 3/4/2020!

Somebody pinch me! Okay, not THAT hard! Geez, now I’ll bruise.

*********************************************

Now for the original posting for this week ~ Lessons Learned from my first book signing event at Penned Charleston this past weekend.

To sum it up – it was a series of unfortunate events which ended happily ever after.

Should travel the night before the event. I was stuck in a traffic jam on I-26 EAST towards Charleston with all lanes blocked due to a horrific accident. Nowhere to turn around, just had to sit there and continue sitting for a long time. Ended up 1 1/2 hours late!
Bring an assistant! Can be anyone, friend, foe, hubby, kids! Just bring someone to help out so the author can make trips to the ladies’ room and get food/beverages. Initially the hubby was supposed to attend with me, but he was easily persuaded to ditch me to take our youngest son to a wrestling tournament in Fayetteville, NC. Figured I’d be okay on my own, but easily see now how having a helper with me would have made the whole experience run more smoothly and enjoyable. Also assistants were working the venue by walking around and visiting all the tables and mingling with the guests/readers to direct traffic to their author’s tables. Assistants also freed up their authors to walk around and meet new authors and just mingle.
Double-check swag before the event. I found a typo on the bookmarks as I was sitting at the table Saturday. To say I was horrified is an understatement!
Bring more swag! Some authors had some serious swag at their tables. Some had raffles going for their super swag. I had bookmarks with typos, postcards with book info (which I ran out of), candy (mints and chocolate), and mini hand sanitizers.
Personalized labels for swag (such as the hand sanitizers) can be easily purchased I learned from one incredibly helpful author assistant. One lady had personalized packaging for candies and chocolates!
When the venue doesn’t provide linen table cloths for the tables, bring your own nice linen table cloth, not a flimsy plastic tie-dye one.
Check into vinyl posters and heavy duty easels. Most authors had 8-10 foot posters set up behind and beside their tables. I had a foam board 12×18 book poster propped up a stack of books on a chair beside me.
Purchase easels for posters and something to connect the banner to the table.
Purchase book stands so the books aren’t just laying down on the table.
Sneak in snacks. The venue said no beverages or food to be brought in – they provided water stations and some appetizers were handed out in the beginning during setup (which I missed due to #1). I ended up eating more of my own candy which was supposed to be just for visitors to my table.

Sounds a bit like a disaster, right? Actually, it wasn’t at all! I met a lot of amazing authors, author assistants, bloggers, reviewers, cover artists, and most especially readers! I learned a lot! I made some contacts including a lovely author in my local area (Hi, Haven Cage!) who also organizes local author get-togethers, and I now have a Reiki healer to call locally when my chakras are imbalanced. So, HUGE WIN!

Sadly, I ended up leaving right after the event rather than staying for the 60s-themed party that evening (another Lesson Learned – STAY FOR THE PARTY!).

Hopefully this Lessons Learned segment will benefit other newbie authors as you go to your own book signing events.

Well, I’m off to celebrate my Book of the Month award with some of my leftover chocolate from Penned Charleston!

I hope everyone has a fabulous week!

A Belated “Teaser Tuesday”

Folks, the holidays have me so scatter-brained, I didn’t realize the day, thus “Teaser Tuesday” will have to be a bit late. We need a good name for Wednesday teasers… any suggestions?

How about:

Wowza Wednesday!

We’ll table that discussion and get down to business since I still have holiday shopping and wrapping…and don’t even mention holiday baking to me yet because I just can’t even right now!

So, a teaser? A teaser? What shall I tease this week from the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series? Should I stick with Book 1, Rekindled Prophecy, which by the way would make a perfect gift for the fantasy/paranormal fiction fan in your life?

Or should I leap forward and give you lovelies a taste of Book 2, Revelations? Maybe skip way ahead to Book 3, working title, Remembrance? Or way, way ahead to Book 4 (yes, I finally decided that Book 4 is definitely in order, there is no way I can fit all this story into just 3 books), working title, Redemption?

For the sake of not wanting to spill the beans too soon on future books, we’ll stick with Rekindled Prophecy for today. Although, with the working titles of the other books, I am considering renaming the first book to just Rekindled. Any opinions on the subject, please shoot me a comment here or direct message me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/KCFreemanAuthor/

Today, I’d like to introduce you to one of my all-time favorite villains — Olivier.

Olivier is a fallen archangel. It’s rumored he whispered evil tidings into Lucifer’s ear which led to his Fall. Quite honestly, it’s anyone’s guess who is the worst of the worst — Lucifer or Olivier.

Olivier wants the prophecy fulfilled, even though he’s not completely sure of what it entails. He knows enough to be dangerous. Apparently, he’s the ONLY ONE who wants this. Heaven is against it. Hell will do anything to stop it. So what will our heroine do with angels and demons fighting to keep this prophecy from reaching fruition?

How did I come up with Olivier? Well, the name is from one of my favorite actors of all time. Laurence Olivier. Actually…Sir Laurence Olivier. He was knighted by the Queen of England. Cool, huh?

But this Olivier, while debonair looking and always stylishly dressed in designer suits and power ties, is nothing like the actor who played Mr. Darcy in Pride & Prejudice nor Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights.

No, this Olivier is more Thor-looking with Loki’s sharp wit and designs for destruction.

So let me peel back the curtain a tad, and let you discover Olivier for yourselves.

***

“Well, my boy,” said the larger man in a Dolce & Gabbana suit while he slapped the other man on the shoulder. They had watched the petite guardian pick herself up and sprint away from the bloody carnage behind the bar. They had the best vantage point for the battle, hidden in the shadows atop a crumbling service station a couple blocks away. “You’ve done a fine job of keeping track of our girl over the years. I’ll admit that I’m thrilled you defied my brother so long ago and chose not to kill her. Not many can get away with such disobedience. But this gamble has really paid off.”

Smiling, Kael replied, “Always glad to be of service to you, sir.” Teaming up with one of the most notorious tyrants of Hell had been dangerous, but he wouldn’t change a thing.

“Not much longer now until we can set things in motion with our little angel. I’ve waited long enough.” Without so much as a farewell, the large, hulking man vanished into whirling tunnel of air with only the sound of his laughter continuing to resonate in stifling humidity.

***

Happy Holidays! I’ll be back next week for a Christmas Eve Tuesday Teaser!

Let me introduce…

JASPER MOREAU!

Who is he? Well, besides sexy and hot as hell…that’s more what he is, not who though.

Jasper is one of my absolute favorite characters to write. He’s not just eye candy, but I may stare at this inspirational photo when I need my muse to help me create his lines, his expression, and his attitude.

You see, Jasper is vital to the fantasy/paranormal story I need to tell in the “Greylyn the Guardian Angel series,” starting with Book 1 “Rekindled Prophecy”.

If you’ll pay close attention to the book cover you will notice that is NOT Jasper on the cover. Must be mistake, right? How can someone THAT sexy not be on the book cover? He HAS to be the love interest, right?

Sorry…NOPE!

But don’t worry, after this series I have every intention of giving Jasper his very own story because he is absolutely fascinating.

So back to the original question…who is Jasper Moreau?

Jasper is from French royalty (many centuries ago). He’s a guardian angel with a heart of gold and a body for sin. His panty-dropping smile is legendary. A simple come hither look from his ice-blue eyes will have you in his thrall before you even have a chance to blink.

So why isn’t he the heroine’s love interest then?

No one knows exactly. It would seem to make sense that he would be, but things are a bit complicated.

What we do know about him is that he’s a guardian angel and he was the one present when our heroine, Greylyn, dug herself out of her own grave over 450 years ago in the rural fields of Ireland. He took her under his wing and talk her everything she needed to know about being a guardian angel, including who to stay clear of (dark guardians to be precise – which turns out to be much more difficult than either one of them realizes since…hmmmm…Kael is a dark guardian — much more Kael in a later posting, I promise).

Greylyn has kept things platonic between her and Jasper for centuries. Silly girl! And Jasper, being a gentlemen, respects that. After all, humans come and go but guardian angels live on and on. So he’s got all the time in the world.

So why don’t we just let Jasper introduce himself…

***

Now how to explain Jasper’s arrival and abrupt departure? She’d peeked out the window while she was on the phone. Everyone was assembled under the gazebo except for the bride and her father, the groom … and Kael. They had all seen him come inside her suite.

“Act like we’re arguing but trying to be quiet about it. I’ll explain that you’re an ex- boyfriend making a last-ditch attempt to win me back and I’ve sent you packing…again.”

Jasper’s eyebrows raised inquisitively. “Now who in their right mind is going to believe that?”

The crowd under the gazebo was oddly quiet as Greylyn walked Jasper to his car. No one even tried to feign disinterest as they put their plan into action.

Taking his cue, Jasper began to gesture wildly with a pleading look on his face. Greylyn, in turn, pretended to speak softly, but firmly, hands on her hips for effect along with an occasional dramatic hand gesture. They must have been convincing because her sensitive hearing picked up the shocked comments from the young ladies of the wedding party. The buxom blonde was more than dismayed that the hunk appeared to be leaving.

“Oh, what is wrong with that girl? He’s divine!”

Jasper even audaciously glanced over at the woman and gave her a wink. Sure enough, it gained him what his ego wanted to hear, a soft gasp as she was drawn into his orbit without him even needing to take a step closer. The woman looked as if she’d swoon any second now. One of her friends reached out to grab her by the elbow.

Yes, Jasper had yet another female under this thrall.

“Works every time,” he breathlessly whispered as they reached the car.

***

If you’d like to read more about Jasper, and the other characters in Rekindled Prophecy…

Check back each week as I introduce the rest of the cast of characters from the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series, inspirations, muses, musical motivations, scene settings, and future plans for these characters.

XOXO!

As a bonus, here’s some more photos of guys I used as inspiration for writing Jasper Moreau.

Hope you enjoyed today’s eye candy!

Teaser Tuesday

Photo by freestocks.org on Pexels.com

It’s the day after Cyber-Monday, a four days after Black Friday (hope everyone finished their holiday shopping and everyone is giving and receiving books this year), and two weeks since the release of my debut fantasy/paranormal novel, Rekindled Prophecy (Book 1 of the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series).

If by chance you haven’t finished your shopping, and the person(s) on your list enjoy reading fantasy/paranormal fiction, check out this little teaser from the above story. Regardless of the completion of your gift-giving list, check out this excerpt from the book.

***

Just as a small ray of early morning sun peeked between the slate-gray clouds, the shadowy outline of Gaelic Haven came into view. There were no lights on in the main house or the Carriage House. Breathing a sigh of relief, she tiptoed from the car to the Carriage House and opened the foyer door without so much as a creak.

“Didn’t realize you were such a partier, Greylyn. If I had known you wanted to party all night, I could’ve joined you.”

She froze in place. Despite the sarcasm, there was an underlying tension behind his words. The words were more clipped than usual. Greylyn didn’t know what to make of it and was too tired to care. Ignoring him, she reached for the door to her room.

The shadow at the top of the stairs pounced like a preying tiger to stand between her and the door. The little light that was available in the foyer from a small tabletop lantern reflected the gold in his eyes as they stood almost nose to nose, staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity. No matter how she tried, there was no looking away.

How could she be this tired and still be so affected by his closeness?

Without warning, his hand came up to her face, causing her to flinch. Instead of striking as she expected, his hand caressed the place just below her eye where she had been sliced earlier. His fingers softly moved over the now dried and crusted blood. Her skin warmed, as if she’d stepped too close to a bonfire.

His eyes strayed back to her own. The pupils enlarged, registering alarm and something else she couldn’t place. In a strained, gruff voice, he whispered through clenched teeth, “Who or what did this to you?”

It was difficult to think, much less speak or move, with Kael this close to her. His hand, still cupping her face, paralyzed her. She repeated to herself, “This is the enemy. This is the enemy,” in an effort to free herself from his hypnotic gaze.

The best she could manage was to say, “What’s the big deal? Worried that someone else might kill me before you’ve had your chance?”

She had wanted to sound sarcastic. Instead, her words came out more like a breathy whisper that ended with a pitiful squeak.

He leaned in closer, a mere inch or two from her face, his eyes locked on her own. “I don’t want to kill you, Greylyn. I would never allow anyone else to hurt you either. Haven’t you figured that out by now?”

***

If you are enticed by the above teaser, please check out the entire story. Rekindled Prophecy is available on numerous book retail sites, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Audible, Walmart eBooks, Google Play, Abebooks, Book Depository, Alibris, Better World Books, and Indie Bound.

Here’s a link to the ebook at Amazon, but the hard cover is also available.

Also, I’m trying to build up my newsletter. If you believe you’d enjoy regular updates about the book, the series, general discussion of all things related to guardian angels, my silly rants and ravings on a myriad of topics, please check out my newsletter signup at http://www.eepurl.com/gDp4Jr

As an added enticement, I’ve joined with 9 other authors in a December Reader Appreciation/Newsletter Buildup campaign. Leann Ryans, L.P. Dillon, Becca Dawn, Nora Nolan, L.V. Lane, Krya Fox, Rowan Thalia, KC Freeman. V.T. Bonds, and Mandi Konesni have joined together to offer 24 days worth of prizes in December.

From December 1st through the 23rd, one person on our newsletter subscriber list will be chosen each day to win a prize leading up to the grand prize drawing on the 24th. The grand prize winner will receive 15 ebooks, an audiobook, 3 paperbacks, and Amazon gift cards totaling $50.

You must sign up for all 10 newsletters to qualify to win a prize. The winner each day will be notified and announced on Facebook once their subscriptions are verified. Each author is responsible for delivery of their book and prizes to the winner.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1LCoDbQsFeACRukRT_t0ZjyTQLDs7oKdXezS9HsCADgY/viewform?fbclid=IwAR25TxaSx_2wYzQgdX4-JfGXz-SgFHnb31SqsNlxJqav6Tay4_O7YVgb5BU&edit_requested=true

Happiest of holidays to everyone! Ciao for now! Come back next week for another teaser.

BOOK GIVEAWAY!!!

In the spirit of the holidays, and to celebrate the excitement of publishing my debut fantasy/paranormal novel, Rekindled Prophecy (Book 1 of the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series), I’ve arranged to gift some lucky reader with a free Kindle copy of the book. The winner will be announced Cyber-Monday (12/2/19)!

But that’s not all…

Even if you don’t win the book, a second winner will receive a $10 Amazon gift card. The winner of the gift card will be announced the next day (12/3/19).

How to enter the contest to win either the Kindle version of Rekindled Prophecy, or the $10 Amazon gift card?

Simple!

Follow the author (That’s me!) on social media and then let me know you’ve done so with a quick comment here on my author webpage or by sending me a direct message to me on my author FB page @KCFreemanAuthor.

My social media links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCFreemanAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KCFreeman5

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kvcfreeman5/

Newsletter (should be a link to it on my FB page as well): http://eepurl.com/gDp4Jr

It’s that simple!

XOXO!

Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving Teaser Tuesday

This Thanksgiving I have a lot to be thankful for…including the publication of my debut fantasy/paranormal novel, Rekindled Prophecy (Book 1 of the Greylyn the Guardian Angel series) which launched exactly one week ago.

To celebrate I am offering a giveaway (please see yesterday’s post) for a free Kindle version of the book. All you have to do in order to qualify to be included in the drawing is to follow me on:

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/KCFreemanAuthor/

Twitter https://twitter.com/KCFreeman5

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/kvcfreeman5/

And

Now you don’t have to do all the above to enter, but it does improve your odds of winning. The winner will be announced Cyber-Monday (12/2/2019). PM me on FB or leave a comment here with the simple phrase “Done”. An alternate winner will be chosen the following day for a $10 Amazon gift card!

Now to deliver on that teaser I promised in the title of this article.

***

“Didn’t realize you were such a partier, Greylyn. If I had known you wanted to party all night, I could’ve joined you.”

She froze in place. Despite the sarcasm, there was an underlying tension behind his words, more clipped than usual. Greylyn didn’t know what to make of it and was too tired to care. Ignoring him, she reached for the door to her room.

The shadow at the top of the stairs pounced like a preying tiger to stand between her and the door. The little light that was available in the foyer from a small tabletop lantern reflected the gold in his eyes. No matter how she tried, there was no looking away.

How could she be this exhausted and still be so affected by his closeness?

Without warning, his hand came up to her face. She flinched. Instead of striking as she expected, his hand caressed the place just below her eye where she had been sliced earlier. His fingers softly moved over the now dried and crusted blood. Her skin warmed as if she’d stepped too close to a bonfire.

His eyes strayed back to her own. The pupils enlarged, registering alarm and something else she couldn’t place. In a strained, gruff voice, he whisper-ed through clenched teeth, “Who or what did this to you?”

It was difficult to think, much less speak, with Kael this close to her. His hand, still cupping her face, paralyzed her. She repeated to herself, “This is the enemy. This is the enemy,” in an effort to free herself from his hypnotic gaze. It didn’t work.
The best she could manage was to say, “What’s the big deal? Worried that someone else might kill me before you had your chance?”

***

Hope you enjoyed the teaser and will check out Rekindled Prophecy for yourself. Don’t forget your chance to win a free Kindle version of the book!

Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving!

KC Freeman – Urban Fantasy & Paranormal Romance Author