Dragon Con or Bust

Posted on August 25, 2018 by - news

Well, the time is upon me.

In three days, I leave for the land of awesome, that is to say, Dragon Con. Most of you know that this is my first time and like any first, I’m full of fluttery anticipation, yet at the same time, stamping down on a whole lot of trepidation. It’s big. There’s lots of people. The crowds will be of epic proportions. You know, all the chaos is that a 5 day nerd convention full of 80,000 people.

Yeah, let that sink in.

80,000 people.

Yikes.

And while it may be like running the gauntlet and my tired old body hasn’t recovered from the jet lag from being in the UK, I’m still ready to embrace the crazy. It helps that I have lots of author friends also going, and we all plan to be propping up a bar in a hotel at the end of each day. It’s what we call Author Therapy 101. But if you’re around, or if you’re tempting to come even for a day, come look me up. I’ve offered to take any member of my Fan Club out for a drink, or several if they come hunt me down. I extend that offer to you, too.

This is where you can find me:

Title: The Plot Thickens: Mystery & Suspense in UF
Time: Fri 01:00 pm Location: Chastain 1-2 – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Often a mix of genres, Urban Fantasy tends to typically contain an element of mystery and/or suspense. Our panel discusses why they feel this component necessary to the stories they wish to tell.

Title: Open vs. Closed: Worldbuilding in Urban Fantasy
Time: Sat 05:30 pm Location: Chastain I-J – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: In Urban Fantasy, the supernatural is either known to the human world or hidden from it, & our panelists will discuss which approach they use & why.

Title: Guardians or Adversaries? Angels in Urban Fantasy
Time: Sun 10:00 am Location: Chastain 1-2 – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Our authors explore the fascinating concept of angels on Earth, discussing their roles in the human world.

Title: Magic, Psychics, and Superpowers–oh My!
Time: Sun 07:00 pm Location: Embassy EF – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: There is magic, then there are superpowers and mutants. What is genetic–and is it still fantasy, or is it really science?

 

With that said, wish me luck, and as always . . . see you on the other side.

xo Shawnee

 

USA Today Bestselling Shades of Fae

Posted on July 23, 2018 by - Uncategorized

 

For those who didn’t see the news on my social media feeds last week, the Shades of Fae boxset hit the USA Today Bestsellers list at #107. After months of hard work and dedication, this fantastic group of authors ticked a box on their bucket list and I feel lucky to have had the privilege of working with such a funny and talented  lot. They were amazeballs.

If you haven’t picked up your copy of Shades of Fae, you still can. It’s available at all major book outlets online although the price has gone up to $2.99 since release week. My new series, The Shaded Veil debuts in this box set and won’t be available as a stand alone until 2019. So if you’re at all interested, now’s the time to pick it up before it’s gone.

Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/Shades-Fae-Limited-Collection-Fantasy-ebook/dp/B07C4JW594
iTunes – https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/shades-of-fae/id1333316500?mt=11
Barnes & Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/shades-of-fae-ck-dawn/1127801922?ean=2940154982204
Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/shades-of-fae

So now it’s back onto Destroyer for me as we get closer to Dragon Con at the end of August.

Enjoy the rest of July, peeps, and as always see you on the other side.

 

xo

shawnee

Back from the Dead

Posted on June 8, 2018 by - news

*whispers* Hello, yes, it’s really me.

I know. I’m as shocked as you are.

Where the hell have you been?

I’m glad you asked. I think the appropriate answer is everywhere.

Since October, I’ve  . . .

  • Become a USA Today Bestselling Author
  • Written 2 books (more on that)
  • Re-vamped this website
  • Attended a half dozen cons and book events
  • Written some ’80s short stories

And that’s just off the top of my head. No rest for the wicked, right?

So I haven’t been active on this blog, but you might’ve seen me around on Facebook or gotten my newsletter every two weeks. There aren’t enough hours in the day for everything, but hey, I’m trying.

What’s going on now?

I’m finishing off edits on The Shaded Veil, the first book in my ’80s epic fantasy mash up. It’ll be available in the Shades of Fae boxset come July 10th and you can grab it there until mid-October at which point it will come out of the set. It will be releasing as a stand alone in early 2019 once the next book in that series is ready to go. There will be three books in total in the Shaded Veil trilogy. I’m having a blast writing them so I’m eager to get back to that series once the Shining Ones is done.

Speaking of, I’m back on Destroyer next week. It’s already partially written, but I’m almost afraid to go back for fear that I’ll throw it all out. But I won’t. I know everyone is waiting for the end and it’s coming. Destroyer will be out before the end of the year. I’m hoping for October so fingers crossed. It’s later than I would’ve wanted by about a year, but I had to shuffle around due to other commitments. Life gets infinitely easier once this book goes off to the publisher next week.

And yes, I haven’t mentioned Love Like Blood and the Night Kind series. Some people have looked for it outside of the original box set it was in. It’s not available yet, but I’m hoping for sometime next year if I can get Dorian’s story written since he’s the first book in that series. I’m not good at juggling series unfortunately – I have a tendency to get world contamination – but I’m shooting for 4 books next year. Wish me luck.

Other than that, all is well at Chez Small. We survived the flooding so thank you for all your concern and prayers. We were lucky – some of our neighbors weren’t. The neighborhood still looks like a warzone, but everyone is doing what they can to get back to normal. Climate change is real, folks. The year we’ve had so far in Virginia is bringing that home. It’s been like living in a disaster movie, but humankind endures. That sums it up nicely.

I’m also desperate for a dog. I’ve now gotten to the point where my grief over Hazel is far enough in the rearview mirror that I can actually look at dog videos without bursting into tears. So yay me! Anyone with dog advice is more than welcome to chime in or drop me an email. I’m hoping we’ll be a dog family again by the Autumn.

Anyhow, back to the writing den. I’ve got a newsletter to get out and some final edits to go over.

Thanks for your patience, everyone. See you on the other side.

xo shawnee

Pages of Fear Blog Hop

Posted on October 19, 2017 by - Uncategorized

There were 14 stops before mine – are you ready for Wicked no. 15? Somehow my secret word seems appropriate. LOL. All right Ladies and Gents . . .

Welcome to the first ever Pages of Fear blog hop. It’s a pre-Halloween event celebrating authors who like to fright and delight with their writing. As you progress through the twenty-eight blogs/websites you’ll learn about authors you may already know and be introduced to some new ones.

Everyone loves the opportunity to get something free. All of the authors have gathered together to give ONE lucky winner signed copies of their books (one per author). You may even find other types of giveaways on their sites so, keep your eyes open. While you’re looking you want to locate the secret word on each site. Make a list of the words in the proper order. When you reach the final destination (Authorsfbenson.com), you’ll find an email address. Send your list to it. The winner will be selected courtesy of random.org.

Ready? Get on your marks.
Get set.
GO!

DIRTY

To continue the hop, please go to D. A. Roach

Need a reminder on the story?

Here it is:

Once there was a very special _______ doll. She had been well-______ for ________. Kept on a _______ when there weren’t any young girls to play with her. And brought out and cherished when young ________ were in the __________.

Eventually, the toy was forgotten and relegated to a _______ in the attic. The house was eventually ________ and all of its belongings were either sold, given away, or ________ into a ________ at the curb.

But the doll… she __________.

Shortly before the ________ collectors arrived, a young couple comes upon the _________. Immediately, the doll’s _______ face and _________ clothes catches the woman’s _________.

“Rebecca, you can’t be serious. That’s a piece of ________,” the man points out.

She reaches into the jumbled ______ and pulls the ______ out. “This is an _______. I can _______ she’ll go for top dollar. She just needs a little love and care.”

The young ______ just shakes his head and continues walking down the _________. His wife was good for finding trash and turning it into a ___________.

Rebecca took the hem of her ________ and wiped some of the dirt off the doll’s face. “You have a _______ now.”

She _________ the _______ in the doll’s eye.

What I did on my Summer Vacation

Posted on August 21, 2017 by - Uncategorized

The short answer is . . . write.

You guessed it. I’ve spent most of my summer finishing off the “Felix and Rose” project which is now titled Love Like Blood. It’s a full length novel in my brand new paranormal series, The Night Kind, and it will be available exclusively this year in Other Worlds: A Limited Edition Collection of Science Fiction Romance and Paranormal Romance releasing on October 17, 2017.

If you haven’t pre-ordered your copy, you can do so from Amazon. It’s only 99 cents for 20 books from some awesome paranormal and science fiction romance authors. It’s also available for a limited time for iBooks, Nook, Kobo, and Google Play.

So right now, Love Like Blood is with Amanda and I’m in a holding pattern while she starts her editing magic. I’ll be back in the hot seat in a couple of days, but at the moment, I’m kinda suspended in limboland. It’s a weird feeling and not one that sits well with me, but I’m trying to be grateful for the downtime because it’s not going to last long.

But as I sit here listening to the band Pink Turns Blue, my brain keeps returning to Tybee and my beloved Shining Ones characters. I have mixed feelings about starting Destroyer if I was honest. I know everyone is waiting and I’m only one step away from open revolt. I hear you. I just, well, I’m not sure I’m ready for it to end. This last book is going to be hard. In more ways than one. To say good bye to Poesy, Birdie, Haylee, and Adam will be extremely difficult for me especially knowing where it’s going to end. I’ve known since Book One how this thing was going to play out, but I’m not sure I’m ready for it yet, but the show must go on, right? That’s the reality of the situation. The Shining Ones was always planned to end after four books. So it’s time to pull up my big girl pants and get on with it. Happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts.

What else?

I’ll be at Penned Con in St. Louis September 29th-October 1st. It’s rapidly approaching and I’m soooooo not prepared, but it’s going to be a stellar event. If you’re thinking about coming, I still have some FREE tickets so email me or PM me on Facebook if you’d like one. You’re not going to want to miss this one – last year they had over 1,000 attendees and that’s not counting the authors and their assistants. It’s probably the biggest signing of my career to date. Yeah, no pressure, there. You can read more about Penned Con on the website.

I think that’s it for now. 

See you on the other side.

xo shawnee