This Quarter's Indie Ignites Releases (+ @Goodreads #giveaways, and more)

Welcome to the first ever Indie Ignites Quarterly Report! With so many members in Indie Ignites, there's always a steady stream of book releases (and giveaways, and blog tours, and... you get my point) so we figured it would be convenient to share a sort of "quarterly summary" every three months in order to share lots of links and info in one specific place! :)

January

We have three releases this month:

The first installment in Rachel Bateman's (@RachelBateman) serial, Incubus (YA paranormal) came out January 7th. Expect new installments to be released every first Tuesday of the month, throughout the year!

Blurb: All Kyle Prideaux wants is a normal life.

But with a serial killer in town, murdering women the same way her mother died seven years ago, and a silent stalker watching her during the day and invading her dreams at night, normal is impossible.

After she's attacked at work one night, Kyle wakes in the hospital to discover things of nightmares exist and walk among us every day.

And she's the only one who can stop them.

*Purchase on Amazon (link)

*Add to Goodreads (link)

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Jessica L. Brooks' (@coffeelvnmom) second book, If I Speak True (Flora, 1 -- YA magical realism) came out January 27th. 

Blurb: Dahlia Kennedy's sixteenth birthday marks a decade of mysterious dahlias arriving and strange, lonely dreams of being in a forest. The only difference this birthday, however, is that for the first time, someone is there with her. And he's practically from a whole other era.

The more often Dahlia visits Rowan in his land of Ambrosia, the stronger their connection grows. But... is Ambrosia real? Is he real? What is going on between the two of them, exactly, and why does he insist that she keep it to herself?

As secrets usually go, however, it's only a matter of time before everything comes out. And when Dahlia finds out the truth of who Rowan is, who she is, and how he really feels -- it’s beyond anything she could have ever imagined.

*Purchase on Amazon (link)
*Add to Goodreads (link)
*Enter the Goodreads US giveaway (link)
*Check out the blog tour & US/International giveaways (link)

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and

Nazarea Andrews' (@NazareaAndrews) Prince of Blood and Steel (NA romantic suspense) comes out this Thursday, January 30th (co-written with A.J. Elmore -- @MissVish).

Blurb: Seth Morgan has returned home after two years spent building an alliance that will take his family's crime syndicate to a new level in New York City's black collar society. He expects a warm welcome as heir of the Morgan empire. He hopes to finally marry Nicolette, the woman he's loved his whole life.

What he finds is a different world, one where his family's legacy is in ruins. His big brother, Caleb, has changed into someone cold and bitter, plotting to overthrow their patriarch. And Nicolette, daughter of the criminal banking industry, has left the family entirely.

When a vicious misunderstanding leaves Caleb dead, Seth is left reeling. Desperate for truth, Seth is forced to turn to his only remaining cousin, Emma, for support. As he tries to mend his relationship with Nicolette, he begins a search for answers that will take him from the dirty streets to the highest reaches of their illicit empire.

Torn between the desire to protect those who mean the most to him, and a need to learn more about Caleb's death, he grows distant to protect them. As each secret surfaces, he realizes that the only way to restore his family is to take his place at its head, and fully embrace the brutal way they live.

*Purchase on Amazon (link)
*Add to Goodreads (link)
*Enter Goodreads giveaway (link)


February



On February 24th, Nicole Zoltack's (@NicoleZoltack) Bloodlust (NA epic fantasy romance) will be released. 

Blurb: In a world torn by prejudice and hatred, six races struggled for supremacy. Ivy, the barbarian princess, is unwilling to allow her father to provoke the other races into war and forms an unlikely alliance with Lukor the orc to save her people from utter destruction. Unbeknownst to her, Lukor blames the barbarians for murdering his sister and plans on sabotaging her goal. 

Almost despite each other, they grow to respect each other on their journey to decode secret messages from the trolls. Nothing Ivy can do will stop the war as her father is blinded by bloodlust and incites it himself. Not even killing him and becoming queen can stop the tide. And when bloodlust claims Ivy, forcing her to kill everyone in her path, she must make a choice to destroy even Lukor, whom she may have started to fall for.

Purchase on Amazon (link)
Add to Goodreads (link)


March

The Billionaire and the Barfly (NA romance) by Adrianne James (@Adrianne_James) releases March 29th. Cover coming soon, but check out this teaser in the meantime!



Blurb: Henry Maximus is a super-hero-loving geek and proud of it. He’s also a genius when it comes to business. It’s how he earned the title of CEO of Maximus Gaming … not to mention the billions of dollars in his bank account. Henry’s tried living the life of a bachelor, but a different girl every night has left him wanting more. Needing more.

Aubrey Vincent is in love with her job. She’ll love it even more if she lands the promotion that gets her out of her parent’s attic. She loves it so much that she has no time for relationships, not that she was ever very good at them to begin with. Aubrey is perfectly happy with the random, nameless men she picks up at the bar.

After a brief encounter with Aubrey on a business trip, Henry packs his bags and moves back to the small town where he grew up. Aubrey’s town. Aubrey attempts to find her way into Henry’s bed, while he tries everything to get into her heart. Will Henry’s plan to break down the walls Aubrey has built around her heart work or will his unbelievable million dollar offer scare her away?

*Add to Goodreads (link)

And there you have it! Indie Ignites' releases for the first quarter! Now go forth, enter giveaways, add stuff to Goodreads! 

Happy reading and writing! :) 

The Waiting Game--Excerpt

Today we've got an excerpt from The Waiting Game by JL Fynn! Check below for more about the book and links! :)

 

A few minutes later, the organist started playing, and Jim and his brother walked down the aisle, taking their place in front of the alter. Next came Pop Reilly, the only other member of Jim’s immediate family. Pop wore a crisp three-piece suit with a gold watch chain polished to a blinding sheen. Next would’ve come Maggie’s family, but she had none here, so Bridget Sheedy, who was acting as Maggie’s matron-of-honor, rounded out the procession.

When I caught sight of her walking down the aisle, I was stunned. Traveler dresses were known for being loud, but this went far beyond anything I’d seen before. The base of her dress was a bright blue tube dress—strapless on top and only coming down to her mid-thigh. Appliquéd on the front was fabric in the shape of an enormous sequined pineapple. Sewn around the bottom of the skirt was a ruffled, neon-yellow fabric that reached the floor, but with a huge slit up the front, so her legs poked through when she walked.

How did she have that thing made so quickly? Or did she have it sitting around, waiting for a special occasion? You never knew with Bridget.

No wonder Maggie had put up a fight about her dress. Any wedding dress that would coordinate with this monstrosity was something I’d have a problem with too. I mean, sure you wanted to look grand on your wedding day, but not like some ungodly cross between Carmen Miranda and Carmen Electra.

Or at least, that was my opinion. I looked around to catch the reactions of the women around me, and nearly every one of them stared at Bridget with unconcealed envy. Incredible.

Bridget made her way down the aisle walking as slowly as possible to give everyone the opportunity to fully admire her dress, but finally she made it to her spot in the front of the church.

The music changed, and we all stood, waiting for the bride. The bridal march went on for more than a few notes, and I looked back at Jim, wondering how he must be feeling at this moment. His eyes looked a little glassy, but otherwise he didn’t look unhappy. The room erupted in startled gasps, and I turned back around to see what everyone was reacting to. When I did, I found Maggie wearing something so shocking I immediately understood the clan’s reaction.

No wonder Bridget was horrified. What was Maggie thinking with this dress? Most Traveler women wouldn’t be caught dead cleaning house in such a thing, let alone getting married in it. The Village would be talking about this for months. Years even. Maggie’s name might even be dragged, although this wasn’t enough of a violation to bring on full censure.

She wore a simple white dress that fell to the floor and only had the smallest of trains, half a foot at most. Lace covered her shoulders and her arms, but other than that, the dress was completely unadorned. No sequins. No feathers. No corset. Nothing.

It was modest and restrained, two words that never applied to Traveler wedding dresses.

When I took Maggie in, I gasped too, but my outburst was for a completely different reason than the rest of the clan. I didn’t care that Maggie didn’t have a single sequin on her bodice or ruffled fabric in her train or giant feathers in her hair. She was perfect. Absolutely perfect. And all of that nonsense only would’ve distracted from her perfection. I couldn’t imagine her looking more


Sounds great, right?? Here's the info on the book! :)

Synopsis:

Twenty-five-year-old Tommy Costello has been going out on the road with his best friend Jim Reilly since they were kids. They’ve pulled cons together, picked up dates together, and have always had each other’s backs. They’re as close as brothers, and Tommy’s sure their bond will never be broken.

That is, until Maggie Downey shows up. She’s an enigma: smart, bold, and charming. From the moment they meet, sparks fly. But there’s a huge problem. She’s arranged to be married to Jim.

Tommy tries to keep his feelings for Maggie in check, but it’s not easy, especially when he’s also hiding a dark secret for Jim—both from Maggie and the rest of their Irish-American Gypsy clan. A secret that not only affects his friend, but that could mean a life of misery for Maggie as well. Tommy does his best to protect both his friendship and his own heart, but it’s soon clear that falling in love with his best friend’s girl is the least dangerous thing happening in the Village that year.

The Waiting Game is a prequel to The Long Game, and the second book in J.L. Fynn’s American Gypsy series.

 

JL Fynn Bio:

J.L. Fynn is the public face of the writing collaboration between Katherine Ernst and Chelle Bruhn. Katherine and Chelle disagree on most everything (music, food, need for punctuality), except for what's really important, which is why they've been best friends for seventeen years and writing together for three.

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Links:

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jlfynnauthor

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jlfynnauthor

Tumblr: jlfynn.tumblr.com  

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/7173188.J_L_Fynn

Website: www.jlfynn.com

The Waiting Game Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18586633-the-waiting-game?from_search=true

The Post Where I Tell The Truth

We all know we support and love indie publishing--small press and self pub. And I want to be super clear before we get started:

I love my job. Writing is what I've always wanted to do and I get to and there is, in my opinion, NOTHING better than that.

But let's look at something we don't always consider: the unfortunate downsides of self publishing/small press.

 

-You are your own boss. And the job never ends.

I have been on deadline since March of last year. With one month off for major holidays--and I mentored in a contest and prepared a book for release the next month--I haven't had a deadline break in almost a year. I love deadlines--I work incredibly well under them. But the fact is, eventually they get exhausting. And even when you don't have a deadline, as a indie author, you always have something to do: emails to answer, a book to edit, expenses to track, social media, teasers--it's a never ending cycle. You are, essentially your own boss and that means you will always have something to do. If that isn't incredibly appealing? Not the job for you.

 

-This is not a get rich quick scheme.

 Publishing well takes money--I spend between 850-1500 per book. That is an initial investment and doesn't include mailing prizes, or events. When you think about each book making me just over two dollars a copy--do the math. Yes, you can make a steady income, but the fact is you don't go into publishing for money. Small press royalties are usually a lower percentage without the attractive high price point of you get with traditional. So the initial payout isn't a deterrent, but you still won't be making a ridiculous amount of money.

 

-Everyone is doing it.

So they are. But there is still a stigma attached to self-publishing and standing out in the ever crowded indie pond is becoming more difficult.

 

-Trends do matter.

 

So you don't have to have the approval of an editor to gamble. But when *you* gamble, it's with your money. Sometimes, the book you adore is not what the market demands and that, my friends, is a slightly heartbreaking choice to make. Because it isn't about what you love--not entirely. It's also a business decision. 

 

-It's all on you.

 Wild success. Crushing failure. The somewhat disconcerting mid list--whatever you do, the results are on you--especially true for self-publishers--because you don't have anyone BUT you making these decisions. That is at times exhilarating, and other times infuriating and daunting.

There are a lot of ways to spin self publishing to make it sound attractive and clearly, I like it. But these are some points bear considering. One last thought:

 

It is terrifying and thrilling and one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. I am exhausted and work constantly--even at family birthday parties--but I wouldn't change a second of it. <3

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Wishing you a wonderful year full of  productivity, amazing words,  great reads, and pleasant surprises! 
HAPPY NEW YEAR  from all of us at Indie Ignites!