About The Author

Katie Salidas is a USA Today bestselling author and RONE award winner known for her unique genre-blending style.

Since 2010 she's penned five bestselling book series: the Immortalis, Olde Town Pack, Little Werewolf, Chronicles of the Uprising, and the all-new Agents of A.S.S.E.T. series. As her not-so-secret alter ego, Rozlyn Sparks, she is a USA Today bestselling author of romance with a naughty side.

In her spare time Katie also produces and hosts a YouTube talk show; Spilling Ink. She also has a regular column on First Comics News where she explores writing from a nerdy perspective.

#Free #FridayReads - House of Immortal Pleasures (Part 1)



House of Immortal Pleasures
Copyright © 2010 by Katie Salidas

This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It contains substantial
sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which may be considered offensive by some readers.



Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4



Daphne’s friends were cunning little wenches. This wasn’t the first time she’d been kidnapped by them. It was, however, the first time they’d decided to blindfold her. Though well-meaning, they always seemed to drag her to places she would never think to go.
The blindfold—a silky, black scarf—had been tied too tightly; it tugged at Daphne’s face, making her not only blind, but annoyed too.
Sounds of their laughter, the constant rumble of the car engine, and the whipping wind told Daphne that she was being whisked off somewhere far from home.
“C’mon, guys,” she groaned. “This is ridiculous. Cut the crap and take me back home.”
Her plea met with cackling laughter. Daphne reached up, attempting to tug away the blindfold when a hand caught her wrist.
“I don’t think so, Daph!” Jamie, her best friend, teased.
“This is stupid. I just want to go back home. I’ve got things to do.”
“Like what?” Jamie snapped. “Got some huge knitting project to finish? No. Not this time. I’m sick of seeing you mope around. You don’t do anything anymore. You don’t live. Since Ken left, you’ve been a mess. That changes tonight.”
Another feminine voice cheered from the back seat of the car. Daphne recognized the voice—her old roommate, Kerri.
Though the blindfold prevented Daphne from seeing Kerri, she still turned around to face the back seat. “It takes time to heal. Kerri, back me up on this.”
“Sorry, hun,” Kerri laughed. “But this is for your own good.”
“Yeah, it takes time,” Jamie said. “But honey, it’s been six months. You’ve lost it. You need to get back in the saddle … and quick, before you get old and rusty.”
Kerri shouted, “Woot!”
“I’m just not ready to face the world, or another man, right now.” Daphne sighed and leaned back in her seat, grumbling under her breath. Her friends meant well, but she wasn’t ready to get back out there again.
Ken had hurt her deeply. True, it had been six months, but that wasn’t long enough to dull the memory of Ken’s naked ass. She cringed, remembering the way his cheeks had flexed as he thrust himself into that blonde bimbo, lying like a whore in her bed.
Ken hadn’t even had the decency to look ashamed when she caught him in the act. The angry scowl on his face made him appear more annoyed with her interruption than anything else.
The memory alone made her heart ache. She trembled and crossed her arms over her chest to help hold back the pain. Time was supposed to heal all wounds, but in six months, she hadn’t gotten over it. In that one moment, seeing him in the throes of passion with another woman, he‘d taken everything away: her heart, her dreams, and her self-confidence.
Ken had been her first. The only man she’d ever given herself to; the only man to ever see her naked body. She couldn’t imagine sharing something as intimate as that with another man.
She sulked to herself as the car continued to speed down what felt like an endless stretch of highway.
Secretly, she blamed herself for his cheating. Daphne knew if she’d been good enough in bed, or maybe let him do the kinky things he wanted, he might have stayed with her. Ken had constantly complained that she wasn’t experimental enough. She knew she never satisfied him. Daphne wanted to do more, but the fear of doing something wrong, of embarrassing herself, of not satisfying her man, prevented her from trying. She couldn’t act like the women in Ken’s porn movies. Just the thought of it sent heat rushing to her face, turning it the color of Bing cherries. She had never been raised to be … kinky.
Jamie and Kerri giggled and sang loudly to sappy love songs playing on the radio.
An hour passed, maybe more; time was a blur while she was trapped. Daphne soon reached the limits of her patience. She’d endured enough bad karaoke and teasing clues about where they were taking her. It became pretty obvious they wanted her to get out and have a night of fun. What wasn’t obvious was the reason for the blindfold.
The car turned sharply, throwing Daphne sideways in her seat. The ride became rough, as if the car had left the smooth highway for a rocky, dirt road.
“What the hell is going on? Where are we?” she yelped, almost bouncing out of her seat as they hit an unexpected dip.
The blindfold came off and Daphne let out a shocked gasp. Through the graying darkness of twilight, she saw the bright, unmistakable neon sign. Large, red letters spelled out, House of Immortal Pleasures.
Her eyes grew wide with realization as they approached. “Oh, hell no,” she shouted. A brothel. A vampire brothel. They brought me here? “Turn this car around right now. I’m not going in there.”

Read More Next Friday!

May Giveaway! #Goodreads #amreading

I've got three print copies of Go Publish Yourself up for grabs on Goodreads.com!

Go Publish Yourself!
  • Paperback: 160 pages
  • Publisher: Rising Sign Books (January 31, 2012)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0985127708
  • ISBN-13: 978-0985127701


Goodreads Book Giveaway

Go Publish Yourself! by Katie Salidas

Go Publish Yourself!

by Katie Salidas

Giveaway ends May 19, 2012.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
 
Enter to win

 

Go Publish Yourself!
Self-Publishing made simple. Get your polished novel ready for Kindle, Nook, or Print in thirty days or less.
 
Avoid the common stumbling blocks and get on the road to successful self-publishing. This handy dandy guide, filled with insider’s tips and tricks, will unscramble the world of self-publishing into simple, easy-to-follow steps. 
 

What’s in the book?
Common Misconceptions
The Business of Self-Publishing
Costs & Budgeting
Publishing Formats: Epub, Kindle, Smashwords, & Print
Cover Art
Interior Layout
Pricing
Printing and Distribution
Marketing: Platform Building, Book Signings, Blog Tours, etc.
 
And much more!

Follow along as Soulstone goes on tour with Bewitching Book Tours

Soulstone is going on virtual tour!




Witches, Werewolves, and Vampires... Oh My! Add a mystical stone and a few disembodied spirits and you have the latest, and most exciting installment of the Immortalis series, Soulstone!

An Urban fantasy with a whole lot of Paranormal Romance, this one's got a little something for everyone: Supernatural creatures, mysterious artifacts, fanatical religious organizations, war, and eternal love hanging in the balance. This book grabs you from page one and won't let you stop until you reach the last word.

Follow along as Soulstone goes on tour with Bewitching Book Tours. Meet Alyssa, a rookie vampire fighting to save her mate's immortal soul. Learn about the inspiration behind the characters, read chapter excerpts & teasers, and enter for chances to win your very own copy of the book!



May 4 Guest Blog
http://falln2books.blogspot.com


May 5 Promo and Review (all 4)
Doctorsnotes-shy.blogspot.com


May 6 Guest Blog (reviews)
 Butterfly-o-Meter Books


May 7 review
Sapphyria's Book Reviews
saphsbookblog.blogspot.com

May 8 Promo
http://abookishgirl.com


May 9 Guest Blog
Flutey Words
http://authoraubrie.blogspot.com

May 11 Promo and review (all 4)
Literati Shuffle
http://literatishuffle.wordpress.com


may 14 review and promo
Froggarita's Bookcase 
www.froggaritasbookcase.net


May 15 Guest blog
Mama Knows Books
http://mamaknowsbooks.blogspot.com

May 16 Interview
http://www.kaydeeroyal.blogspot.com

May 17 Guest Blog
Reading Between the Wines
http://readingbetweenthewinesbookclub.blogspot.com/


May 18 Promo and review
Cocktails and Books
http://www.cocktailsandbooks.com

May 19 Guest blog
Ramblings From This Chick

May 22 Promo
Ce-Ce`s Garden of Reviews
http://cecesreviews.blogspot.com

May 23 Guest blog
 Fictional Candy
www.fictionalcandy.com

May 24 Guest Blog and review
http://wormhole.blogspot.com


May 24 Interview
Tory Michaels’ World,
 www.torymichaels.com


May 25 Guest blog
Fiction Fascination
http://fictionfascination.blogspot.co.uk/

May 25 Promo
Arianne Cruz
http://ariannecruz07.blogspot.com


May 26 Guest Blog
The Bornean Bookworm
http://borneanbookworm.blogspot.com/

May 28 Guest blog
Bookin' It Reviews
http://www.bookinitreviews.com/

May 29 Guest blog
Mama Knows Books
http://mamaknowsbooks.blogspot.com

May 30 Guest blog
Lucy Felthouse
http://lucyfelthouse.co.uk



 


Soulstone
Book 4 In the Immortalis Series

Minnie Lahongrais - My Journey in the World of Writing & Giveaway


My Journey in the World of Writing


 

Two years ago I began writing as a way to deal with the death of my father. I had a deep and abiding desire to see him, hold him again; have a conversation with him. Someone suggested therapy. Yea, right! I was in the hole for a sum topping off in the mid five figures and trying to rebuild my life after a bad breakup. Therapy was not going to happen! So what could I do but immerse myself in my favorite pastime? Read! During that process, I discovered free reads on Kindle; specifically the world of the paranormal. I was home! The more of these stories I read, the more I began to imagine a world where I could share an existence with my father, and we could hang out again, just like we did in this world.

A light bulb went off and, “Resurrection of Dead Dreams” was born; currently in progress. Why isn’t it done, you ask? Well for one thing, during that time writing was just a way to deal with my issues. I never thought I would seriously be doing this. A posting on Facebook about NaNoWriMo by Katie made me curious and after a little bit of research, I decided I would make an attempt to participate; but I would write about something else completely.

They say ignorance is bliss, but in this case, I will disagree. Ignorance has taken me on one twisty/turny journey. Granted, I didn’t have a clue as to what I was doing when I first started writing. Maybe I still don’t, but I definitely knew even less in 2010.

I wrote “Sinner’s Ride” during one sleepless month, with no real plan, no concrete idea where I was going with it or what I would do with it once it was done. In fact, the current ending was not the original ending. The published version was finished in February, 2011.

I published with Xlibris because a friend suggested it, but at the time, I didn’t know what questions to ask nor did I know anything about the publishing process. I had no clue as to how to go about marketing my story and I absolutely never imagined that two years down the line I’d be tweeting, blogging AND writing another novel, much less offering tips to other authors on my hero’s blog!

Today I want to talk a little bit about how my writing style has changed and what I have learned so far:

  • I learned that if I was going to be serious about writing, I would have to find time to write a little bit each day. For me this meant a minimum of an hour a day, even if it wasn’t in one sitting. Writing is like raising children: you have to nurture your muse, tease more out of him/her; nurture that bit then go at it again…on a daily basis.

  • I learned that I needed to read any and every thing I could get my hands on – every day. I’m not talking about the newspaper or magazines. I have a 3 hour round trip commute, so I read other indie authors’ work; at least one way. Though I do get into the story that I am reading, I am also looking for tips on story structure and plotting. I study prose. If something strikes me, I read it two or three times in order to get a better understanding of the technicalities involved. i.e. POV; show not tell., etc.

  • I try to live in a state of constant awareness by paying closer attention to the world around me. For example, sometimes I don’t read on my commute. On one of those train rides, I might talk to random people and while I do, I pay close attention to their mannerisms, quirks and other idiosyncrasies as these are characteristics I will want to use for my characters.

  • I try to learn a new word each day and use it either in my daily life or in my writing. There’s a word of the day app for that J Remember, we’re wordsmiths! We should know words! Oh! And I use a thesaurus!

  • I learned that word count doesn’t mean a thing until the story is told. If I write a little bit each day, the words will not only come, but they will pile up. For me, counting words as I worked on a WIP was too stressful. Writing should be fun!

  • Here’s a biggie: I used to worry about editing; and story timeline while writing. I learned not to be so anal. I feel I am better now than I was a year ago. I used to write a chapter, sleep on it, read/edit it the next day then move on to the next chapter. No longer. Now, I just dump it all out until I hit a wall, then I go back and read all that I’ve written, clean it up and move on if I can. If I can’t continue with the current project, I work on something else like marketing/social networking or another WIP. If that gets overwhelming, I shut everything down and either veg or hang out with my kids.

With my current WIP, “Divergent Lives”, there was no way I could edit each chapter as I wrote it. This story requires a lot of research and sometimes in discussions with professionals, I get ideas. So what I have is fifteen good chapters, a great idea for the ending (which I’ve outlined – something else I didn’t do in the past) and, a big hole in the middle that needs filling up. The plus is that I have identified storyline matters that have to be addressed and will tackle each one individually -- as standalone stories within the story.

What the foregoing tells me is that rather than panster-ing (is that a word??) my way through a story, I am becoming more organized in my telling of it, thereby keeping the reader engaged and then hitting them with something totally unexpected. I love doing that!

The bottom line is: Do what feels right for you as long as you end up with a complete story that is engaging.

  • And finally, I learned to dream big!

So for me, ignorance is not bliss. It is a doorway to the blissfulness I experience when I sit at my computer and immerse myself in the wonderland of my imagination.

 Giveaway Info!

Minnie is offering up 5 copies of her book TODAY, you pick the format (Print or Ebook!). All you have to do to enter to win is leave a comment on this blog post, then stop by one of Minnie's social networking sites (Blog, & Facebook Page) and tell her "Katie Sent you." She'll add up the entries and select a winner. It's that simple. All you have to do is tell Sinner, "Hi." and you could win a free book.

Links: