A luminous novel of female empowerment

I'd heard of Caroline Herschel before, sister of the composer/astronomer William Herschel. (He is the man who discovered Uranus, which was once known as "Herschel's Planet.") When I stumbled across this book on Pinterest, on a board dedicated to beautiful covers, my curiosity was piqued. (I LOVE the cover.) The Stargazer's Sister was a wonderful historical novel and I recommend it highly.

Free Sci Fi and Fantasy Books

Love free books?  Click here to go to Patty Jansen's monthly promo site where you can choose your favorite retailer. Just one click gives you a choice of more than 100 books in all flavors of sci fi and fantasy. You'll find short reads like my book Daughter of the Midnight King there, along with Heartblaze 1: Vampire Soul, The Cobweb Bride, and many others I KNOW you've been dying to read. And did I mention it's FREE???

Cover reveal--my new urban fantasy series

I know that generally you reveal a cover when you're about to actually publish your latest novel, but I am so excited about this new cover that I can't wait. It was created by Kristyn McQuiggan of Drop Dead Designs, who sells both premades and custom covers. (There's a pre-made I have my eye on right now that's pretty stunning.)

This image is fabulous, I think. The model is gorgeous, the photoshopping is fine, and the overall urban fantasy concept just works beautifully. Go check out her work. She prices her work for the indie author on a budget but her work doesn't look like those cheap covers you pick up on Fiverr. (She includes the print book wraparound in her cover prices, and they are VERY affordable.)

An anthology of political satire

My story, "Looking Good America," is part of this new anthology, We've Been Trumped, timed to hit the bookstores a month before the election. The genre is political satire, the them is what life might be like under a Trump presidency. There are some excellent stories in the collection, and if you enjoy snark, you might enjoy them.

You Know This Already

But I'm going to say it again. If you're not registered to vote--register.
Just Google "How to Register to Vote" and all the info will come up.
And if you are registered to vote, VOTE.
Don't make me tell you again that my father voted on his deathbed by absentee ballot.
Don't make me tell you that that my great grandmother died before women had the right to vote.
Don't make me remind you that African-Americans had to die to win the right to vote.
Not voting is un-American.
And if you do vote, make sure your vote counts. It's all very well to write in a  no-hoper for Senior Class President, because there's not a lot at stake. What's the worst that can happen?
But only one of two people in this election has a chance at being elected President--Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. Even if there are elements of Jill Stein and Gary Johnson's platforms that reflect your values, they will not win. They won't.  But there are Libertarian and Green Party candidates in down-ticket races that might have a chance. If you believe America should have multiple party systems, be a part of building those parties up so that they are viable alternatives.
But in this race, in 2016, a vote for anyone but one of the two major party candidates is a vote that says you don't really care who wins because it's not the candidate you wanted. And "not caring" is how we got into this mess in the first place. This is a participatory Democracy.
Participate.

Happy Banned Books Week!

Don't just sit there--read something subversive. Go to the official Banned Books Week site for ideas.

Autumn sentinel

It's so much fun having fall weather again. I missed that in Los Angeles.