Cover Reveal FOR ME! Playing for Keeps!

Remember a year ago when I wrote this post? (You probably do. I reposted the link just a few days ago!) The great thing about writing that post you always wanted to write--the one about your book getting published or landing an agent--is that you get to keep writing posts you've always wanted to write.

Like your very own cover reveals!

Without further adieu...

I was able to look at some mock-ups of my cover a few weeks ago, and when I saw this one, I was absolutely smitten. I think my exact words to Christina, my cover designer, were, "I want to kiss it and marry it."

When I first started writing PLAYING FOR KEEPS, it was originally titled Marry Me, Anthony Rogers, and the cover I pictured was a girl holding up a sign at a game with the title on the cover. Fun, right? :) Then I realized I hated that title and my friend Kaylee helped me come up with a new title, "The Game Plan." At that point, the cover above is pretty much exactly what I pictured--a game plan drawn out with hearts and O's I ahhhhhhdore the title font--the cute hearts and the cursive "for."

It's really just perfect. So. Perfect.

Covers are one of those things you give up control over when you go the traditional publishing road, and it was the only thing that worried me about going that direction. With my novellas, I'd been able to choose exactly what I wanted. I was so worried about what this cover would look like. I should not have been. They actually gave me four really good options that had elements I really loved too.

You want to know the other AWESOME news about this? You can actually pre-order PLAYING FOR KEEPS on Amazon! When my friend Jenny showed me that yesterday (and ordered it--she's SO fun. I love her) I almost fell off my chair. My book. For preorder. I am so legit. :)

So ENJOY. And share my cover everywhere so people will see it's awesomeness and want to go buy it.

NEW cover review for THE PAPER MAGICIAN by Charlie N. Holmberg

My friend Charlie's book THE PAPER MAGICIAN has a new, awesome cover. Now the first one was pretty grand, but I this one is amazing. I love it! And Charlie says I can share it with you all! You're going to love it too, I know.

Isn't it FANTASTIC? I love everything about it. Everything. I think, Charlie, I might even like it better than the first. It makes me hope so so much that my book gets a really fantastic cover too. :D

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Ceony Twill arrives at the cottage of Magician Emery Thane with a broken heart. Having graduated at the top of her class from the Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined, Ceony is assigned an apprenticeship in paper magic despite her dreams of bespelling metal. And once she’s bonded to paper, that will be her only magic...forever.

Yet the spells Ceony learns under the strange yet kind Thane turn out to be more marvelous than she could have ever imagined—animating paper creatures, bringing stories to life via ghostly images, even reading fortunes. But as she discovers these wonders, Ceony also learns of the extraordinary dangers of forbidden magic.

An Excisioner—a practitioner of dark, flesh magic—invades the cottage and rips Thane’s heart from his chest. To save her teacher’s life, Ceony must face the evil magician and embark on an unbelievable adventure that will take her into the chambers of Thane’s still-beating heart—and reveal the very soul of the man.

* * *

Homegrown in Salt Lake City, Charlie was raised a Trekkie with three sisters who also have boy names. She writes fantasy novels and does freelance editing on the side. She’s a proud BYU alumna, plays the ukulele, and owns too many pairs of glasses.

Links

Website * Twitter * Amazon  

Cover Reveal: THE PAPER MAGICIAN by Charlie Holmberg

I still remember the day I *met* Charlie. She left a comment on a post I'd written about THE GAME PLAN and how it was inspired by BYU basketball player Jimmer Fredette. She said she'd been at BYU while he was and been in on the hype. It was friendship at first sight. I immediately went over to Twitter and found her.

When Charlie got her agent, I was very excited for her. Then her book sold. MORE EXCITEMENT! Today I am so happy to be part of revealing the cover for Charlie's book, THE PAPER MAGICIAN.

About the book: Ceony Twill arrives at the cottage of Magician Emery Thane with a broken heart. Having graduated at the top of her class from the Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined, Ceony is assigned an apprenticeship in paper magic despite her dreams of bespelling metal. And once she’s bonded to paper, that will be her only magic…forever.
 Yet the spells Ceony learns under the strange yet kind Thane turn out to be more marvelous than she could have ever imagined—animating paper creatures, bringing stories to life via ghostly images, even reading fortunes. But as she discovers these wonders, Ceony also learns of the extraordinary dangers of forbidden magic.
 An Excisioner—a practitioner of dark, flesh magic—invades the cottage and rips Thane’s heart from his chest. To save her teacher’s life, Ceony must face the evil magician and embark on an unbelievable adventure that will take her into the chambers of Thane’s still-beating heart—and reveal the very soul of the man.
 From the imaginative mind of debut author Charlie N. Holmberg, The Paper Magician is an extraordinary adventure both dark and whimsical that will delight readers of all ages.

And now, the cover...

SO pretty, right??

Congrats, Charlie! So excited for you!

Born in Salt Lake City, Charlie was raised a Trekkie alongside three sisters who also have boy names. In addition to writing fantasy novels, she is also a freelance editor. She graduated from BYU, plays the ukulele, owns too many pairs of glasses, and hopes to one day own a dog. The Paper Magician is her debut novel and the first in a whimsical series exploring a world of magicians who animate manmade materials. She currently lives with her family in Utah * CharlieNHolmberg.com

Amazon * Goodreads * Twitter

Cover Reveal: WORKING IT OUT by Rachel Renee Anderson

Author Rachael Renee Anderson

Rachael Anderson is the author of four books: Divinely Designed, Luck of the Draw, Minor Adjustments, and The Reluctant Bachelorette. She's the mother of four and is pretty good at breaking up fights, or at least sending guilty parties to their rooms. She can't sing, doesn't dance, and despises tragedies. But she recently figured out how yeast works and can now make homemade bread, which she is really good at eating.

Blog * Facebook * Twitter

Working It Out
A chance encounter . . . 
Grace Warren's life is safe and predictable—exactly the way she likes it. But when she gets roped into going to an auction to help out a friend, everything changes. She meets Seth Tuttle—a guy who unexpectedly kisses her then disappears, leaving her flustered and upset. If she never sees him again, it will be too soon.

A chance for love . . .  
Weeks later, when Seth limps into Grace's rehab clinic post surgery, she immediately recognizes him. Unfortunately, he's every bit as frustrating and annoying as she remembered. Yet there's something about him that makes her second-guess her carefully placed boundaries even though he's everything she's sure she doesn't want in a man. But maybe Seth is exactly what Grace has needed all along—assuming she's willing to risk safe and predictable for a chance at love.


Giveaway Details
Enter to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 5/31/13

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Coming Soon: A LADY AND A SPY

I have to be honest with you guys. After the first few weeks A CONTEMPTIBLE AFFECTION was on sale and I remembered to go check my stats, the number of copies it had sold astounded me. It was awesome to think that so many people wanted to read my novella!

The idea for A LADY AND A SPY had been kicking around in my head for sometime and I thought, "This means it's time to get to work." So I did. With a new baby and all it took me a lot longer than I wanted, but I'm now working on edits and confident that A LADY AND A SPY will be released in Spring 2013. (Way to be specific ... right? I figure that gives me anywhere from March to June -- and the way life is going right now, anything could happen!)

How about a peek at the cover. I'm not absolutely positive this will be final, so how about giving your opinion?

Image (c)  YuriyZhuravov  Cover Design (c) Ranee` S. Clark

As Jolene can attest, I went through a lot of versions before I came to this -- thank heavens for her wisdom! (Though one of the earlier versions might still end up on the paperback ... we'll see!)

And of course, you all need some back-cover love:

Blanche Audley's old-fashioned grandfather cut off her mother after she married Thomas Audley and his millions of "new money," and for the last ten years since her parents' deaths, Blanche has lived under the gloom of his disappointment. So when she recklessly loses a thousand dollars to Etta Channing in a game of baccarat, she will do anything to keep her foolish actions from him. Except he oversees every penny she spends of the wealth her father left her, leaving her no way of paying the debt without his knowledge.

Until Etta offers her a deal. Alexander Whealdon, one of the most eligible bachelors in town, needs a companion to shepherd his younger sister through her first season. Etta wants Blanche to take the position and use it to infiltrate the household and pass along information that will help Etta get her hooks into the reserved Mr. Whealdon. It seems like an easy way to pay off the debt and save face at the same time. But the more Blanche sees of Mr. Whealdon's playful side, not to mention his surprising generosity, the less she wants to help Etta win him over.

Backing out means humiliating herself and disappointing both her grandfather and Mr. Whealdon, not to mention losing Miss Whealdon's trust and friendship, but if she goes through with her promise to Etta, she will lose what might be her last chance for love.

AND that's not all the love I'm giving out. Have you reviewed A CONTEMPTIBLE AFFECTION either on your blog, Amazon, or Goodreads? (Are you going to do it right now...? :) If the answer is yes, comment on this post (with a link) and I'll give you an early-release copy of A LADY AND A SPY. No drawing. No random pick. Just you get one if you've reviewed it.

New Cover Reveal for ANGEL

The cover for my short story ANGEL was really bad. So I gave it a new one, of course.

When Abbey's uncle calls in a "guardian angel" to help her recover from a troubling past, she'll do anything to get rid of him. Until she discovers who he is and why he's there.

Cover Reveal!

I promised I'd tell you more as I knew it, right? Remember how I told you my short story HAVEN would be published in the Prose by Design anthology IT'S A LOVE THING? Well, today I get to show you the IT'S A LOVE THING cover!

Awesome, right? The book will be released June 1st, and I am super excited about it. (Of course.)