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Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Quick update on STAIN

Just peeking my head out of the writer's cave to shout share that I'm only chapters away from finishing this book! Wow, it's been a doozy to write; I really challenged myself with Stain

Aside from the elaborate world-building, there are four distinctive POV characters I got to know along the way. I can't say that I've fallen in love with them all (there's one in particular who is VERY hard to love), but I understand each one's motivations, and am endlessly fascinated by their interactions throughout the story.

Here's a look at their faces from my secret pinterest board:



Clockwise, we have the prince, the princess, the harrower witch, and the royal aunt. Not going to say who's good or bad. Maybe they all have shades of gray? *bats lashes* You'll have to read the story to see...


Okay, back to the business of writing. I hope everyone has a happy holiday season, and I'll see you in the new year!



Sunday, October 22, 2017

Lubbock Book Festival on the horizon!

I’ll be attending the Lubbock Book Festival this coming Sat, October 28th, chatting about fantasy w/ the amazing Rachel Caine. There will be a signing immediately after! 

For more info go to Lubbockbookfestival.org


(click image to enlarge)

Monday, October 16, 2017

My visit to Prague and the Humbook Festival!


Sorry I’ve been so quiet! My generous Czech publisher, CooBoo, flew me into Prague for the fabulous #Humbook festival last week. Here are highlights, scrapbook style (click images to enlarge).







To see more pictures of the architecture, shops, and food I sampled, follow this link to my Prague pinterest board.


Now, I’m going dark a while longer. I've less than 2 months to finish Stain, my gothic Princess and the Pea fairytale retelling. Have an awesome Halloween, and I’ll see you when I come up for air!

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Announcing winners of 2017 YASH fall giveaway!


The winner of the Red Team's gift pack (pictured below) is: 
Seraph Captrix


For my own personal giveaway, the winners are listed below.

Splintered box set, signed: 
Amy Bernal


Splintered character / quote cards, signed: 
Kailey Bradley


Splintered playing card set: 
Justine Schweitzer


Alice in Wonderland gift tags: 
Debi


Thanks to everyone who took part in the giveaway and helped me get the word out about The Splintered Series collector's box

The winners have been emailed, so check your inboxes if you find your name listed below. If you don't receive an email, please reach out to me via my contact info here


Tuesday, October 3, 2017

YA SCAVENGER HUNT! Fall 2017


 Welcome to the fall 2017 YA Scavenger Hunt! This bi-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors...and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize--one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours! 

HELP: If you're confused at any time, you can always get back on track by going to the YA Scavenger Hunt how to hunt page to read the steps. Or, go to the STUCK page for a bird's eye view of all the author's links. 


There are seven hunts going on simultaneously with up to 140+ books up for grabs INTL, and you can enter one or all! I'm a part of the RED TEAM--




but there are also BLUE, ORANGE, GREEN, GOLD, PINK, & PURPLE teams, each with different sets of signed books in their prize packs!

If you'd like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt prize page.



SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE

Directions: At the bottom of this post, you'll notice that I've listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the RED TEAM and then add them up (don't worry, you can use a calculator!) for a chance to win the prize pack of books pictured below: 



Entry Form: Once you've added up all the secret numbers of the RED TEAMmake sure to fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize above. Only entries that have the correct answer will be put in the drawing.

Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian's permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by October 8, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.


SCAVENGER HUNT POST

For my post in the YA Scavenger Hunt, I'm honored to be hosting Hilary Thompson, author of the SoulShifter series:


Click image to enlarge



Hilary used to be such a practical girl. Then she let the stories out.

Now she creates worlds, people, and problems that are grounded in real life, if you accept that real life has magic around every turn.

She also teaches Writing and English, writes whenever and wherever she can, and reads as much as her eyes can handle. She plays superheroes and dress up games and reads books in bed with her children, and plays at homesteading and world traveling with her husband.


For the hunt, Hilary is giving away Book 1: Shift of Shadow and Soul 

There are three kinds of magic in the world, and Corentine has the wrong one. 

Long ago, the Restless King forced Corentine's people into hiding as he scoured their blood for the SoulShifter. When Corentine learns she possesses some of the forbidden Shifter magic, she must hide her power or risk the same death her twin suffered. 

Raised to trust no one, she rejects the General's son Sy, until she realizes his family secrets might be the key to unlocking hers. When his brother turns against them, they are forced to fight family to save what's left of their home, or accept banishment to find a new future.

If Coren and Sy can't convince their people to accept the light of Shifter magic, the growing Shadow will ruin everyone's chance of freedom.

Sulit Witch
Weshen Shifter
Umbren Shadow

When dark meets light, will all become Shadow?

Find out more information on Lori and her books by following her online venues:

Website 

Twitter: @HilaryLThompson

FaceBook 

GoodReads author page 


EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

Today, Hilary is sharing a montage from the pinterest board inspired by her series:

Click image to enlarge

And check out the cover reveal for book 3, seen for the first time here! Scroll down . . .


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Wow. Beautiful colors and artwork. It's simply magical! 

In fact, I think I'm going to look at it 7 more times, since 7 is a magical number.  Be sure to let Hilary know what you think of the cover in the comments below!


CONTINUE THE HUNT

To continue your hunt for another number clue to help you win the RED TEAM prize pack, you'll need to visit the next author hereBut before you go . . .


CHECK OUT MY PERSONAL GIVEAWAY!

Although the official #YASH giveaways only last for 72 hours, my personal one is going on for a week. So you have through October 10th to build up those entries. What is this mysterious giveaway, you ask?

To celebrate the upcoming release of my gorgeous Splintered Series Collector's box set (hitting shelves October 10, 2017), I'm giving away the following international prizes:

1 - Signed Splintered Collector's Box Set

1 - Set Splintered Playing Cards

1 - 6 piece Set Splintered Character / Quote Cards

3 - Alice in Wonderland gift tags (designs may vary from picture)

That means four different INTL winners! See the rafflecopter below for entry options. Good luck to everyone, and happy hunting!

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

Giveaway Winners Announced!

Thanks to everyone who took part in the giveaway and helped me get the word out about The Hummingbird Heart's book birthday! 

The winners have been emailed, so check your inboxes if you find your name listed below. If you don't receive an email, please reach out to me via my contact info here




Things will be kind of quiet here for the next few months while I wrap up writing Stain. The deadline is looming... 

I hope everyone has a great fall (or whatever season it might be where you live)!


Tuesday, August 15, 2017

Happy Book Birthday to The Hummingbird Heart!



Today, Book 2 of the Haunted Hearts Legacy is officially available in both paperback and e-versions! If you like ghost stories, historical romance, sea-faring adventure, mysteries, and circus themes, this is the book for you! 

You can find ordering & more book info on this page of my website

And, as you probably know by now, one of the nicest things about book birthdays is that YOU get the gifts. :)

One gift I'd like to share is the book's official ♪♫  playlist ♪♫. You can listen to it here on spotify, or go to this page of my website for links to the songs on youtube.

As a second gift, I'm having an INTL giveaway consisting of the following prizes: 

1 - Signed PB set of The Architect of Song
& The Hummingbird Heart

1 - Signed PB of The Hummingbird Heart

1 - Signed The Hummingbird Heart poster

3 - Signed The Architect of Song
& The Hummingbird Heart swag packs

To enter for your chance to win, help me get the word out about The Hummingbird Heart by following the instructions on the rafflecopter below. 

Good luck to everyone, and thanks for sharing in the festivities as I bring another one of my heart's stories into the world!




a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Announcing The Hummingbird Heart Giveaway winners!

Thanks to everyone who took part in the giveaway. We had winners from the US, Argentina, Germany, France, the UK, Mexico,  and South Africa! The winners have been emailed, so check your inboxes if you find your name listed below.



Grand Prize (3- e-ARCs of The Hummingbird Heart):

Amanda Tedford
Agus Z
Julia Treter Kajevski


Medusa Masquerade Mask:

Jordan Finch


8x11 - "Not all those who wander are lost" Nautical Print:

H. Sandrine


8x11 - Circus Nightmare Print:

Suzanne Cattanes


Hummingbird/Ladybug Jeweled Bookmark:

Michaela McClelland


Faux Antique Watch Pin:

Gaby Navarro


Set of 3: Hummingbird Magnets:

Alice (Arctic Books)


Set of 5 - Nautical Magnets:

Tom Lancaster


Hummingbird Temporary Tattoo:

Amy (A Magical World of Books)


Special bonus prize (2- The Architect of Song paperbacks, signed and personalized):

Kelsey Hunter
Katherine Kalasic


Thanks again, and be sure to watch for The Hummingbird Heart when it launches on August 15, 2017!


Monday, July 3, 2017

The Hummingbird Heart Six-Weeks-Away Giveaway!

August 15th is right around the corner, which means we're close to six weeks away from the release of book two in my Haunted Hearts Legacy series! 

To celebrate, I'm having an international giveaway with lots of prizes, including a chance for a few readers to read The Hummingbird Heart early.

Before we get to the deets, here's a quick intro to my new adult series for anyone who hasn't started it yet. 


The Haunted Hearts Legacy is a set of sensual, gothic historical romances with paranormal elements. Being a generational / familial series, each story is tied to the main characters from book one. You get glimpses of the original couple throughout the series, and find out how they're faring over time, all while being taken on new ghostly journeys by their grown children.

So, if you haven't read book one, it's a bit spoilery to jump into the second, but each story can still stand alone. If I did my job right, reading book two will make you curious enough to go back and read how everything played out in the first one. ;)

Here's a peek at the first book in the series, The Architect of Song: 

Click to enlarge and read description

To read a sample, follow this link. Also, check out the visual and musical inspirations for the book on my pinterest board:

Click to visit pinterest board


The Architect of Song is available for purchase now. Follow this link for ordering options. Also, the kindle version is available for a limited time at the discounted price of $2.99 to help ring in book two's imminent arrival. Follow this link for deets


Here's a look at book two, The Hummingbird Heart:

Click to enlarge and read description

If you'd like to read a sample, follow this link. And, you can check out my visual inspirations and a few samples from my playlist on the pinterest board:

Click to visit board

The Hummingbird Heart is now available for kindle preorder at a discounted price of $5.95 (regular kindle price post-launch will be $7.95). Follow this link for deets

Nook, book depository, iBook, and print versions will be available on the official launch date, August 15, 2017. 

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Now, lets get down to business. Here are the prizes up for grabs (each one has significance to the story line):

3 - Grand Prize winners will receive an e-ARC for early reading!

Medusa Masquerade Mask

8x11 - "Not all those who wander are lost" Nautical Print

8x11 - Circus Nightmare Print


Hummingbird/Ladybug Jeweled Bookmark

Faux Antique Watch Pin

Set of 3: Hummingbird Magnets

Set of 5 - Nautical Magnets

Hummingbird Temporary Tattoo

 And two special bonus grand prizes:

2 - The Architect of Song paperbacks, signed and personalized


That's thirteen winners! The giveaway ends in two weeks. To enter, follow the rafflecopter instructions below, and good luck to everyone!


Friday, May 12, 2017

Author appearance / Book event!


For anyone planning to attend the Greater Rochester Teen Book Fest next weekend, I have three sessions w/ the fabulous Danielle Paige! We'll be chatting about our publishing journeys and dark fairytale retellings. Check out the schedule here.

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Dipping my toes into Instagram...

I made the leap to Instagram, after telling myself I already had too many social venues. ;) But knowing that I could plug three of them in to post simultaneously with IG sealed the deal for me! 

If you'd like to find me there, I'm @aghoward_writes. And if you have any useful tips, I'd love to hear them!

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

I'll be at Yellow City Comic Con this weekend, April 29th, alongside these awesome authors! Our panel is from 4:30-5:30, and we'll be signing books directly after. Hope to see some of you there!




Tuesday, April 11, 2017

YA Scavenger Hunt Spring 2017 Winners!


The YA Scavenger Hunt Spring 2017 has ended! Winners have been posted on the official website, so follow this link to see who won the TEAM prize packs.

As for my personal giveaway, the rafflecopter's first chosen winner never got back to me in the 72 hour window, so I drew an alternate winner, and it's Kassie Petersen. Congrats!



Thanks to all who took part! If you didn't win this time, take heart. There will be more giveaways in the future. ;)