Cover of the Year - Asking for Your Vote

I just scanned the covers for Cover of the Year on Erin Aislinn's website and saw a lot of familiar covers - many were on my Judge A Book By its Cover blog last year :)

I invite you to visit http://www.erinaislinn.com/BookCoveroftheYear2007.htm and I hope that you will vote for Lady Lightkeeper which is one of my covers and it is listed as the winning cover for September.

If you prefer the easier route - feel free to email webmail@erinaislinn .com and put "VOTE for Lady Lightkeeper" in the subject line. I appreciate every vote :)

Nikki


Book Promo 101 - NOW AVAILABLE
www.nikkileigh. com/book_ promo_101. htm
"Coastal Suspense with a Touch of Romance"
Would you like information about the newest
blog tour option? Ask me for details and visit
www.inspiredauthor.com/promotion

Nimrod Rising - A Novel By Steven Clark Bradley

1 - Tell us a bit about your book. - Nimrod Rising is a book that seeks to answer where the terrorist scourge that currently plagues the world came from. The premise of the book is that the evil hitting the world is more than just a political phenomenon. I paint the picture that starts actually more than 4000 years ago when the first organized Satan worshipper, Nimrod, the first king of Babylon, is born resulting from a pact made with Lucifer by Nimrod's father Cush. The material used for this is all true historical facts. I spent 12 years researching this novel and was able to find several ancient texts such as the Book of Adam and Eve, the Cave of Treasures and the Book of Enoch. Of course, the actual events in Nimrod Rising are fiction, based on prophecies from the Bible and extra-biblical materials. Whether one is a believer in such things and future events said to be awaiting the world, the story is riveting and exciting and will touch the reader in so many different ways. I consider it a book of hope and faith in the midst of evil so pervasive that there is no where to turn but to the divine. As I say on the back of the book, ride the storm of Nimrod Rising.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them. - The Heroine is difficult to choose since there are three major female characters. The first two are Sally Michael, Shepard's mother. She was kidnapped as a believer in God and forced to have Manassa Dormin's child. She is really such a strong character and strong in faith.

Also, there is Elif Michael (Karaoglu) the Turkish wife of Shepard Michael who worked for Manassa Dormin but finds faith and turns her life and family around. She too is large in meaning in the story.

Yet, I have to say that the most powerful figure in the story is the six year old child of Shepard and Elif, Jesse. She possesses the powers of her daddy and grandfather, but the heart of the child shines through so powerfully how she reaches out to the grandfather and finds the miniscule residue of humanity left in Manassa Dormin. She can bring tears to the reader's eyes and truly wins the day through the wisdom of a child.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book? - My main hero of the novel has to be the character, Shepard Michael. Shepard is the son of Manassa Dormin who is the villain in the story. He is abused and used by his father to bring about the final destruction, but he remembers the principles that his mother, Sally Michael, taught him and resists his natural inclination for evil. I think we can all relate to him in that we have all had to resist doing wrong, and the wrong has often been an easier decision for us than the good. He is a really powerful figure in the story and very profound in his outlook.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book? - Sure, he is the one who will either stop Manassa Dormin or open the door to complete power for the forces of darkness. He is a young, somewhat confused and very smart man who is torn terribly by forces inside his mind. He loves his daughter and wants his wife back and is ready to lay down his life to save them. He is vital to the story of Nimrod Rising.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend? - Shepard and his daughter Jesse both have special gifts and are both sought out by evil, but even from afar, Shepard is able to save his little girl and Jesse has tremendous love for her daddy.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend? - Jesse confronts so many problems and sees her daddy being torn in two directions and reminds him as only a father's little girl can, with tender innocence. They are close and depend greatly on each other.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters? - Only stresses of the moment and fear of losing each other. Nimrod Rising truly demonstrates a lovely relationship between a father and his daughter.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story? - I can imagine anything, so perhaps.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know? - Well, Shepard is a good man, touched by evil and tempted by it. He has undergone a tremendous amount of abuse from his evil father, Manassa Dormin, but his faith and his mother Sally has helped him continue. Yet, his love for his little girl Jesse and his wife Elif truly pushes him forward into correct decision, but the rest I'll just let you read. I can't say any one person inspired his character, but I will say, he represents someone I'd like to be like, not that I am at all, but would like to be.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share. - The two other very important characters in Nimrod Rising are Mike Wakely and Gabriel. Mike Wakely is an archeologist who knew Dormin in Pakistan where they both were missionaries at the beginning of the book. Mike plays a vital role as the brains of the opposition against Dormin and is British. He is witty and smart and has a large role in part two of the novel. Gabriel is the founder of the movement called the MESSE, Messianic Servants of Elyon. He is a quiet soldier who shows lots of courage and intelligence and devotion to God and country.

11 - Please provide your website link. - www.stevenbradley.net

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

amazon.com
booksamillion.com
powells.com
bordersstores.com
barnesandnoble.com
copperfields.booksense.com

For much more information about Steven Clark Bradley and Nimrod Rising visit - http://www.inspiredauthor.com/promotion/steven-clark-bradley-author-nimrod-rising

Silk Palace by Colin Harvey

1 - Tell us a bit about your book.

I'll let the Library Journal do it for me, because I'm so proud of this review!

"The city-state of Whiterock, with its Silk Palace formed from nearly indestructible spiderwebs, is perched atop a high mountain between two rival empires. Here, changing one's name is tantamount to heresy, and the gods themselves sometimes take a direct interest in the world. Into this volatile situation arrives a young woman named Bluestocking, ostensibly to translate some rare and puzzling scrolls, but the secret she bears may rescue or undo the world. Harvey (Lightning Days) brings to life a compelling world of flying machines, wizardry, and divine magic."

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them.

The princess Lexi is the middle child of the King and Queen of Whiterock. She's a plump blonde in her early twenties, pampered and spoilt, a captive of circumstance due to be married to a fat foreign ruler and is bored to the point where she could scream. But she is lonely too, and recognizes a kindred spirit in Bluestocking, for all that the latter is an intellectual and Lexi barely knows which way up to hold a scroll, and has a kind heart as long as she is indulged.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book?

She helps Bluestocking by providing friendship and support at a time when the heroine is very lonely.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book?

She is the catalyst for the falling out between Bluestocking and at least one of the other princesses, inadvertantly placing her friend in mortal peril.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend?

Bluestocking likes her, but is aware of the precariousness of their friendship; Lexi can turn on her at any time having absolute command over anyone in the country with a few exceptions, such as her mother and father.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend?

Discreetly! Bluestocking knows that she cannot afford to alienate a third member of the Royal Family, but must instead humour her as best she can.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters?

Oh, yes; She's owner to Kyr, Bluestocking's slave lover, she falls out with her two sisters and falls obsessively in love with a visiting prince, and clashes regularly with her fiancee's representative.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story?

Possibly -- but there are too many other stories to tell first....

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know?

In the best traditions of fiction, she is a composite of many spoilt, beautiful young women.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share.

Like almost everyone else in the book, she has a dark and terrible secret that has a major impact on the course of The Silk Palace, and which (of course) I cannot reveal.

11 - Please provide your website link.

http://www.geocities.com/colin_harvey/TheSilkPalace.html

12 - What is the link to buy your book? In paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Silk-Palace-Colin-Harvey/dp/1934041424/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195502320&sr=1-1

Electronically: http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/eBook51966.htm

Novels from Swimming Kangaroo Books:

Lightning Days -- SF, Finalist for the USA Book News Awards

The Silk Palace -- "compelling" Library Journal

"Intrigues, betrayals, murders, love affairs, transformations, and

revelations," Bruce Boston, author of The Guardener's Tale

www.geocities.com/colin_harvey www.myspace.com/colin_harvey

Nimrod Rising with Stephen Bradley

1 - Tell us a bit about your book. - Nimrod Rising is a book that seeks to answer where the terrorist scourge that currently plagues the world came from. The premise of the book is that the evil hitting the world is more than just a political phenomenon. I paint the picture that starts actually more than 4000 years ago when the first organized Satan worshipper, Nimrod, the first king of Babylon, is born resulting from a pact made with Lucifer by Nimrod's father Cush. The material used for this is all true historical facts. I spent 12 years researching this novel and was able to find several ancient texts such as the Book of Adam and Eve, the Cave of Treasures and the Book of Enoch. Of course, the actual events in Nimrod Rising are fiction, based on prophecies from the Bible and extra-biblical materials. Whether one is a believer in such things and future events said to be awaiting the world, the story is riveting and exciting and will touch the reader in so many different ways. I consider it a book of hope and faith in the midst of evil so pervasive that there is no where to turn but to the divine. As I say on the back of the book, ride the storm of Nimrod Rising.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them. - The Heroine is difficult to choose since there are three major female characters. The first two are Sally Michael, Shepard's mother. She was kidnapped as a believer in God and forced to have Manassa Dormin's child. She is really such a strong character and strong in faith.

Also, there is Elif Michael (Karaoglu) the Turkish wife of Shepard Michael who worked for Manassa Dormin but finds faith and turns her life and family around. She too is large in meaning in the story.

Yet, I have to say that the most powerful figure in the story is the six year old child of Shepard and Elif, Jesse. She possesses the powers of her daddy and grandfather, but the heart of the child shines through so powerfully how she reaches out to the grandfather and finds the miniscule residue of humanity left in Manassa Dormin. She can bring tears to the reader's eyes and truly wins the day through the wisdom of a child.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book? - My main hero of the novel has to be the character, Shepard Michael. Shepard is the son of Manassa Dormin who is the villain in the story. He is abused and used by his father to bring about the final destruction, but he remembers the principles that his mother, Sally Michael, taught him and resists his natural inclination for evil. I think we can all relate to him in that we have all had to resist doing wrong, and the wrong has often been an easier decision for us than the good. He is a really powerful figure in the story and very profound in his outlook.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book? - Sure, he is the one who will either stop Manassa Dormin or open the door to complete power for the forces of darkness. He is a young, somewhat confused and very smart man who is torn terribly by forces inside his mind. He loves his daughter and wants his wife back and is ready to lay down his life to save them. He is vital to the story of Nimrod Rising.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend? - Shepard and his daughter Jesse both have special gifts and are both sought out by evil, but even from afar, Shepard is able to save his little girl and Jesse has tremendous love for her daddy.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend? - Jesse confronts so many problems and sees her daddy being torn in two directions and reminds him as only a father's little girl can, with tender innocence. They are close and depend greatly on each other.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters? - Only stresses of the moment and fear of losing each other. Nimrod Rising truly demonstrates a lovely relationship between a father and his daughter.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story? - I can imagine anything, so perhaps.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know? - Well, Shepard is a good man, touched by evil and tempted by it. He has undergone a tremendous amount of abuse from his evil father, Manassa Dormin, but his faith and his mother Sally has helped him continue. Yet, his love for his little girl Jesse and his wife Elif truly pushes him forward into correct decision, but the rest I'll just let you read. I can't say any one person inspired his character, but I will say, he represents someone I'd like to be like, not that I am at all, but would like to be.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share. - The two other very important characters in Nimrod Rising are Mike Wakely and Gabriel. Mike Wakely is an archeologist who knew Dormin in Pakistan where they both were missionaries at the beginning of the book. Mike plays a vital role as the brains of the opposition against Dormin and is British. He is witty and smart and has a large role in part two of the novel. Gabriel is the founder of the movement called the MESSE, Messianic Servants of Elyon. He is a quiet soldier who shows lots of courage and intelligence and devotion to God and country.
11 - Please provide your website link. - www.stevenbradley.net

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

publishamerica.com

amazon.com
booksamillion.com
powells.com
bordersstores.com
barnesandnoble.com
copperfields.booksense.com

Stephen invites you to visit him in January at www.inspiredauthor.com/promotion. He will be available all month to talk with you about his books.

Blog Tours - What Would You Like to Know

I'm doing a tele-seminar next week about blog tours and I would love input from you all.

There are many things to discuss about blog tours and I worked out some initial questions to get people thinking - they are:

Discover Ways to Promote Your Book on a Virtual Blog Tour to Gain Greater Visibility and Sales

• What are the benefits of doing a blog tour?

• Should you promote your book in a blog tour?

• Should fiction and non fiction books be promoted differently in a blog tour?

• Should you organize your own blog tour?

• Why hire a publicist to organize your tour?

• If you hire a publicist, will you still need to work on the tour?

• Can you use a blog tour to promote anything besides books?

• Is there a new option in book blog tours?

But, now I need to create a couple of handouts and I'd love your input. Is there any specific info about blog tours that any of you think would be most helpful? Some folks here have done tours, some have hosted touring authors and I bet some of you have thought about doing a tour. So, since many of the people here are authors, I figured it would be a great place to pose the question. What information would you suggest I offer in handouts? Thank you all for your thoughts. There will be plenty of blog tour info coming very soon .

Nikki Leigh

PS - The answer to the last question is - most definitely. Stay tuned for much more information about that option - SOON. Or, contact me to be added to the mailing list - nikki_leigh22939@yahoo.com with Mailing List in the subject line.

Late Night Sessions

1 - Tell us a bit about your book.

‘Late Night Sessions’ is a novel about love, healing and good music. It’s set around the West Midlands folk scene.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them.

Kirsten is a small, pixie woman, a very self possessed individual in her early twenties when we encounter her. She first meets Vicky, the heroine, through college. Kirsten advertises for someone to go to a folk festival with and Vicky responds. They hit it off almost instantly and end up as flat mates.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book?

Kirsten helps Vicky intentionally when she can, but also creates a situation that forces the heroine to grown and develop.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book?

She’s a lot more than just a plot device and in terms of the story’s emotional content, she’s very significant indeed.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend?

There are unresolved things between Vicky and Kirsten, but Vicky’s emotions are predominantly love, and profound grief.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend?

Kirsten is an honorable person, but a touch bloody minded. She is seldom very tolerant of Vicky’s dithering and uncertainty, and not afraid to say the things Vicky needs to be told.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters?

Only in that Kirsten is already dead when the story begins.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story?

No. Her story is fully played out within this book.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know?

Yes. A very beautiful druid friend of mine announced some years ago that she didn’t know how long she had to live. Thankfully she’s still here, but I have borrowed a little from her in creating this character. Kirsten exists partly as a response to that shocking news and partly due to the loss of friends and family members in recent years.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share.

Kirsten is an active druid, the first such character I’ve written.

11 - Please provide your website link. http://bryncolvin.mysite.orange.co.uk

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Late-Night-Sessions/dp/1934446076/ref=sr_1_1/202-6559455-6676664?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1191227563&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Late-Night-Sessions-Bryn-Colvin/dp/1934446076/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_ttl_in/105-8048599-4428442?ie=UTF8&qid=1191227046&sr=8-8

The Last Free Men - by Jack Everett & David Coles

1 - Tell us a bit about your book.

The Last Free Men ...

“We, the last men on earth, the last of the free, have been shielded till

today by the very remoteness and the seclusion for which we are famed ...

But today the boundary of Britain is exposed; beyond us lies no nation,

nothing but waves and rocks and the Romans.”

from Calgacus' address to his army at the battle of Mons Graupius.

...Tacitus.

During the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius in the 2nd Century AD, Rome's Ninth Legion was sent to Hadrian's Wall in northwest Britain to quell an insurrection that threatened the Empire's hold on the region. They were never heard from again. Historians have speculated for centuries about what might have happened to the mighty Ninth Legion -- here is one intriguing possibility.

THE LAST FREE MEN is the story of Marcus Gettorix, son of a Roman general and a British woman living in the northwest frontier of Rome's mighty empire (modern-day Scotland). During a battle, Marcus is wrongly assumed to have murdered his commandant. He is sentenced to work in the mines and escapes, the Druids use Marcus as a figurehead and fan the flames of resentment into an insurrection that joins British and Scottish tribes against the Romans. Now allied with the Druids, Marcus lures the ambitious Roman general in charge of the Ninth Legion into a deadly trap destined to create one of history's greatest mysteries.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them.

Marcus' best friend is the Centurion, Emelius Karrus, a hard-bitten career officer in the Roman Army who has taken the younger man under his wing. Karrus joined the Roman Army in his teens, signing up for the minimum tour of duty of 25 years. His career progressed; he is now one of the primi ordines, the Legion's five top centurions, the men that the Legions rely upon. Emelius' family is the army; it is not unlikely that there might be some paternal feelings in the relationship.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book?

Emelius helps Marcus. When Marcus is unbelievably found guilty of murdering his commandant, Emelius uses the fact of Marcus' father being a senator, to persuade the military court to commute the usual death sentence to life imprisonment.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book?

Emelius and Marcus end up on opposite sides of the campaign which leads to the destruction of the Ninth Legion. The two personalities lead the reader through the reasons and preparations for this conflict from both viewpoints.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend?

Marcus feels admiration towards Emelius, some one to rely on; this changes to a reluctant respect after their split.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend?

Plain speaking and honesty would straighten out most difficulties and problems. Agreement to disagree would handle those problems that could not be settled.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters?

There certainly are - more on Emelius' side than Marcus because Marcus' apparent murder of the commandant was so unbelievable and out of character. Only after the younger man's sentencing and escape do the facts become known by which time, Marcus has already changed sides and become a worry to the Roman command.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story?

It's a possibility. Emelius as we, the authors, know him is a charismatic figure. He is intelligent, capable and a real person with enough gaps in his history to create a highly paced story around.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know?

He was inspired by the idealistic figure of the best of modern British Regimental Sergeant Majors - the officers who hold the whole thing together.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share.

The thing about Emelius is that he is that person everybody looks up to, whom everyone asks advice from. The Roman Army didn't retire their best soldiers - officers or legionaries - at 40 years of age. Emelius and his contemporary centurions were the backbone of the military, the most respected part of the Roman war machine.

11 - Please provide your website link.

http://www.davidBColes.co.uk

http://www.JackLEverett.me.uk

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

http://www.virtualtales.com/StoryProducts~tn~Last+Free+Men.html