YA Indie Carnival ~ Writer Resolution

Friday, December 30, 2011

Mine is super simple... I resolve to just keep writing! Here is a list of the books I have planned for the coming year:

Forever is my next finished work. This book completes Danielle and Ethan's story. (And here are two preview shots of the cover! I haven't decided which one I like best yet. The center solar flare or the side solar flare. Which one do you prefer? And can you find the pixies?)

Danielle and Ethan may have solved their problem with vampires, but other magical beings have taken interest in the ones who discovered the cure. On the run trying to escape a gaggle of evil pixies, a clan of creepy werewolves, a coven or two of wicked witches, and a school of lovely but naughty mermaids, they fight to have a normal life with the aid of slightly dishonest fairies and flirtatious vampire bodyguards. The end of Celeste and Lucas will be revealed, as well as how Ethan and Danielle recognized each other...and how they finally get their happily forever after.

I know you'll miss these two characters. However, two novellas will come out to supplement the Fateful series. Max and Nadia, and Beon and Sophia will get their stories... One will take place in a historical setting, the other will start out historical and move into modern times. Richard will likely get his own novella as well, and if  you keep asking for more...I'll probably keep going....

Before those novellas, though, I'll release Sophia’s Cookbook for Mortals ~ A fun recipe book featuring recipes Sophia likes to mess up her apron with.

Christian and Tessa from Fair Maiden will get a novella about their wedding since many of you asked for that.

Following that, will be The Trapping club (A sequel to Fair Maiden) ~ Beginning with a magical masquerade and a kidnapping, The Trapping club is the tale of second sons as they struggle for survival in a society that leaves such forgotten. Those who’ve read the first book will be surprised to find that the hero of this next enchanting tale is the brother of the villain in Fair Maiden, and the heroine will be a grown-up Emma...

Book 3 in the Fair Maiden series, is titled The Mistaken Reformer. Peter, Christian’s brother, will be the hero and the heroine is still a mystery as of yet...

And somewhere in the middle of all of this, I'll release The Fairy Ring Enchantment ~ This is the first story I dreamed about, thinking it would be a short picture book. But when I started writing, it was turning into a novel. With no plans of becoming a writer, I was extremely confused by that. I never thought I'd have a novel in me. This is a story about fair rings and why you shouldn’t step inside them...

Thanks for visiting my blog and don't forget to enter my New Year Giveaway Hop in the post right below this one. And if you'd like to check out more awesome books from my fellow carnis please go here.

Happy New Year Giveaway Hop

Thursday, December 29, 2011


Happy New Years everyone! To celebrate, I'm participating in another blog hop hosted by I'm A Reader, Not A Writer and Babs of Babs Book Bistro.

The prize:
A gifted Kindle or Nook eBook copy of either Fractured or Fair Maiden.

Synopsis for Fair Maiden:
It's the Victorian era in England, but Tessa is from the medieval past. She awakens within a castle she has never seen before. Knowledge of her name also evades her. However, even worse than not knowing who or where she is, she cannot recall how she died or why she is dressed as a bride.

Along with Christian, the earl of the castle she haunts, Tessa tries to discover who she is and break the spell holding her in a prison of death. They never imagined the curse keeping them apart is the only thing protecting her, until it's too late.          







Synopsis for Fractured:
(If you haven't read the Fateful Series yet, I suggest you do since Forever, bk3, will soon be released!)


The Fateful Trilogy continues with Fractured. No, it’s not called Fractured because Ethan and Danielle break up, because they don't...in case you were wondering.

They had thought they’d escaped most of the danger surrounding them, when in truth they’ve made it worse by unintentionally sparking a civil war amongst vampires. Many vampires want to protect them for discovering the cure to the curse binding their kind. However many more want to destroy them for that same discovery.

Ethan’s and Danielle’s struggle for survival intensifies while they sink deeper into the midst of this danger. The romantic fairytale bliss they once had will soon fracture under the pressure of the curse....

To Enter:
Follow my Blog Via GFC or Email Subscription, and fill out the form below.
For an extra chance to win, like my Facebook Fan page too.

This giveaway is closed.

Winners of the Secret Santa Giveaway

Friday, December 23, 2011


The winner of The Grand Prize is: Vanessa Eric!!! To see what you won, go here.

And the winners of my giveaway are: Diana and Cola! I'll be emailing you to see which eBook you'd like. You may choose any of the ones I spotlighted or any of the books from any of the YA Indie Carnival writers listed here.

Merry Christmas!

Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Thanks for all of your entries! I'll enter those names into Virtual Hat and contact the winner as soon as I can. And, just so you all know, the winner of the pearl necklace from the Gratitude Giveaway Hop never did respond to my email, so I'll be choosing a new winner!

Welcome to another blog hop hosted by I'm A Reader Not A Writer, and Jessie Harrell from Oasis For YA & The Daily Harrell.

The Prize:
A Kindle or Nook copy of Fairy Maiden gifted to you. This giveaway is open internationally. You just need to be able to receive a gifted eBook from either Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

To Enter:
This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for visiting my blog, and check back frequently for great giveaways!


Description

It's the Victorian era in England, but Tessa is from the medieval past. She awakens within a castle she has never seen before. Knowledge of her name also evades her. However, even worse than not knowing who or where she is, she cannot recall how she died or why she is dressed as a bride.

Along with Christian, the earl of the castle she haunts, Tessa tries to discover who she is and break the spell holding her in a prison of death. They never imagined the curse keeping them apart is the only thing protecting her, until it's too late.

Reviews:

Magical, Romantic and Unique! ~ Courtney

This book is amazing!!I finished in half a day because I could not put it down. There is a good amount of romance in this novel, but it is not overboard. The characters are great and you really get involved in their emotions. Abosolutely loved this book and recomend it to anyone who enjoys romance and/or novels about magic and medival times!! ~Jodi

This has to be one of the most fun, magical, sweet and yes...emotional books I have read. The old fashion love story was very refreshing compared to some of the modern day love stories of today. I have heard that there will be another book to this story and am so excited for it to come out. Love this book so much! ~ LeAnn

Being a Cheri Schmidt fan, I knew I would like this book... But I didn't realize how much I would LOVE this book. It is so clever, and takes you on a suspenseful and romantic ride from beginning to end. As usual Cheri has created a perfect romance and wonderfully quirky characters for you to fall in love with from the moment they are introduced! You will feel like you are living the story... and if you are an avid reader like I am, then you know how hard that can be to find in a book. So, if you are in the mood for a murder mystery/fantasy/romance novel this is the book for you. Personally, I love the combination of the genres in this book and I really hope to see more work like this from Cheri. :) Also, if you have not already, check out Cheri's other books, Fateful and Fractured. They are absolutely spell binding as well. ~Brittany 

Naughty or Nice

Friday, December 16, 2011


Have you been naughty or nice this year? Or, as my husband would say, "Have you been nice and naughty?"  ;)

December 16th to the 22th, YA Indie Carnival presents Secret Santa! We're giving you an awesome chance to win a ton of indie books! And all you have to do it follow us at YA Author Club and tell us (in the comments of any of our blogs) if you've been naughty or nice this year. Winners will be announced on the 23rd.

GRAND PRIZE: A Kindle or Nook copy of the books featured on the Grand Prize List! View that list here: http://yaauthorclub.blogspot.com (I see 21 books so far!!!)

To enter the Secret Santa GRAND PRIZE Giveaway just FOLLOW us at YA Author Club & comment on any carni’s site (like this one) telling us why you’ve been naughty or nice this year. Each carni will have individual giveaways too so be sure to visit all the carnis to win as many books as possible!
Here's my giveaway:

To enter:
Follow my blog, then fill out the form at the bottom of this post so I can enter your names into Virtual Hat. Two winners will be awarded their choice of any one of these Nook or Kindle books I spotlight between December 16th-22th.

The world of ebooks has made it possible for readers like me, and you, to get our hands on some really great stories that will enchant you and satisfy your craving for a great story. Here are some that have tantalized my curiosity. Throughout this contest, I'll be listing more, so keep checking back.


Rippler by Cindy Swanson ( I LOVE  her dreamy coves.)
Description
Samantha Ruiz has a freak gene that makes her turn invisible, or ripple. She can’t control it, and it’s getting worse. Afraid of becoming a lab-rat, Sam keeps her ability secret, until fellow runner Will Baker sees her vanish into thin air. Will promises secrecy and help, and Sam begins to fall in love. Together, the two discover there are worse things than being a scientific curiosity. Someone’s been killing people who possess Sam's gene. A mysterious man from France sends letters that offer hope for safety, but also reveal a sinister connection with Nazi experiments. The more time Sam spends with Will, the less she can imagine life without him. When Sam uncovers secrets from her past, she must choose between keeping Will in her life or keeping Will safe.


Of Sun & Moon by Bryna Butler (Another cover I love)
Description
Teens are disappearing in a small river town in southern Ohio as Keira Ryan begins her freshman year. Kidnappings aside, her worries mount as she crushes on an older guy, her best friend starts dating a spoiled cheerleader, and the parents that abandoned her at birth arrive at her doorstep. And, oh yeah, she’s a tooth fairy destined to kick some butt and bring about the end of a royal line of vicious, blood-sucking tyrants. Over the years, humans have pieced together sightings and assumptions to create the myth of the tooth fairy. As it turns out, they were pretty much wrong.


Blood Like Poison by M. Leighton (This cover makes me want to kiss my hubby.)
Description
Like most seventeen year olds, Ridley Heller thought she had her future all planned out. What she wanted most in life was to get out of small town Harker. Her only goal was to keep her mouth shut and her grades high so she could win a cheerleading scholarship to Stanford. But that was before she met Bo.

In Ridley’s wildest dreams, she could never have planned for someone like Bo, for a love so intense it left her breathless. No human girl could.

A haunting stranger that watched her from afar, Bo stole Ridley’s heart from the moment she laid eyes on him. But he has secrets. Bo’s a vampire. Both his past and his present are a danger to Ridley, but the biggest threat is not her blood; it’s her heart. He’s feeding a thirst for revenge that will cost him his life, and it may already be too late.

The more darkness Ridley uncovers, the more she realizes that her life will never be the same—with or without Bo. Can she sacrifice her future and her heart for someone who has a death wish?

Sorry, I didn't get more of these up sooner. I don't know why, but I'm always surprised at how busy I am the week before Christmas. Anyway, The winner will have their choice of any of the eBooks available from any of the carnis at YA Indie Carnival. I'll personally gift your choice of Kindle or Nook to you.

Here are a few more great books that have caught my interest...

Vampires Rule by KC Blake:
They don't call him Jackpot for nothing.

Jack has always beat the odds... until now. When a werewolf tried to kill him, vampires saved him. When he got tired of life as a vampire, another attack gave him back his mortality. Now Jack just wants to live a normal life, but what's normal about having a hunter for a girlfriend, a brother who wants to stake him to be on the safe side, and a werewolf building an army to rule the world?



Family Magic by Patti Larsen:
Sixteen-year-old Sydlynn Hayle is the daughter of a powerful witch and a demon lord of the seventh plane. The trouble is, she just wants to be ordinary. Syd struggles to survive the minefield of her new high school while being torn between her attraction to football hero Brad Peters and the darkly mysterious Quaid Moromond. When her coven comes under attack, Syd is forced to face the fact she is a witch and only her power can save her family’s magic.


Warriors of the Cross by T.R. Graves
Allison La Crosse, beginning a challenging family medicine residency, leaves the protection of her family. With the transfer, her worst nightmares come true. Her closely guarded mystical talents – those which seldom appeared before the move – unleash themselves from her confinement and reveal their presence with very little provocation. Allison’s most terrifying power is her compulsion to cure the dying with her touch. Given her career, this gift would be valuable if she were not drawn like a magnet to the ailing person's every symptom. Some of which are fatal. At the hospital and surrounded by life-and-death emergencies, Allison’s inability to manage her impulse turns deadly. When it does, her mentor, Brody, rescues her from her own demise. His resuscitation ignites an exciting and tempestuous bond between them. Desperate for a cure, they join forces and embark upon a journey to uncover the origins of Allison’s lethal curse. In the midst of their adventure, Allison exposes a secret pursued by many…known by few. Warriors of the Cross is Book One in The Warrior Series. To find out more go to: http://thewarriorseries.blogspot.com/


Soul Quest By Amy Jones
Do you remember how horrified you were about the idea of attending high school? I remember ticking off those last miserable days of my summer vacation following my eighth grade year. Maybe you don’t, maybe you were one of 'those people.' You know who I’m talking about, people like Melissa Small, the distinguished District Attorney, Larry Small’s daughter, popular, gorgeous... and absolutely terrifying to someone like me, Liv Glyn. No, I am far from measuring up to the standards required to make Melissa’s crowd. I’m not even close. I’m just a simple man’s daughter, mostly tolerated by my peers with average looks. If this isn’t depressing enough for you, stay tuned, it gets worse. I was commanded with Spirit at birth by the Great Spirit, Hala. I know, it sounds crazy but it’s true. If you think it's difficult being a teenager, try being a teenager who was born destined to save the world from soul sucking Daevas and their mutant progeny Aengels. There are four of us. My companions of Spirit are Laith, Brayan and Meena. Melissa Small is Laith’s step sister and she is always meddling where she doesn’t belong, further complicating our lives. To make matters even worse, my best friend Jedd is apparently aware of things that are typically undetectable to ordinary humans. So, I have to lie to Jedd, the boy who has been my constant standby since the third grade, to shield him from the horrible and very dangerous truth. Did I mention that I think I’m falling in love with him? The term awkward doesn’t even begin to cover it, trust me. Welcome to the mess that is my life.

YA Indie Carnival ~ Cover Love

Thursday, December 8, 2011


Our theme this week is cover design. I'm super busy finishing up with Forever, so I decided to recycle one of my older posts on this very topic. Enjoy!

I thought I would take a moment and share a little background about one of my book covers. First of all I took most of the pictures associated with the cover. The picture of Big Ben was taken during my 2009 Anniversary trip to London with my husband. We stayed a few nights at a Marriott directly across from the Thames near Big Ben. We both love photography and took thousands of pictures on the trip.

The model on the right is my biggest fan, and she really wanted to be on the cover. I was happy to oblige.

The model on the left is a friend of hers. He was good enough to help a new and struggling author with her cover especially because the stock photo I had originally wanted was $500. Fateful is doing very well, but I still wouldn't be able to afford that price. And since I've worked many years as a professional photographer, I really didn't see the point in paying someone else that much for a photo I could take.

I used Adobe Photoshop to create the final product. If you are unfamiliar with Photoshop imagine those old over-head projectors when a teacher would lay one transparency over the top of another to teach a lesson. Photoshop works in very much the same way. This image has about 30 layers or more. The picture of Big Ben is the bottom layer. Built on top of that are the models, the moon, the glow on the moon, the text, a couple of texture layers and the graphic embellishment. Even a bit of stubble was added to the male model's face. There is some overall shading and smoothing done to blend it all together and this is the result.

Some of the graphic designs are Photoshop brushes from http://www.brusheezy.com/ and/or 123freebrushes If you use brushes like this, I would recommend checking the copy right on each one to make certain they can be used for commercial purposes.

It takes a few hows to get it the way I want it...and it takes a bit of trial and error, even so, I immensely enjoy the process. Of course I hope you like the design as well.

(Note: I actually did two designs. One for the eBook, and one for the printed book. I might not do it that way for everything I do next, that's just how the first one came out.)

Also!!! For Christmas shopping, if you've already read and loved the Fateful Trilogy there are signed books and replica jewelry available in my shop on my website. For the first 5 customers who buy something, you will get a coupon for half off your next purchase!!!

Until next time, my friends! But before you leave, check out my other amazing YA Carnival friends:
1. Laura A. H. Elliott author of Winnemucca & 13 on Halloween, Book 1 in the Teen Halloween Series
2. Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series
3. Heather Self
4. T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series
5. Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga
6. Darby Karchut, author of GRIFFIN RISING
7. Lexus Luke
8. PJ Hoover, Author of SOLSTICE, Blogging at ROOTS IN MYTH
9. Cheri Schmidt, author of the Fateful Trilogy
10. Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog
11. K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
12. Patti Larsen, The Hunted series and The Hayle Coven series
13. Courtney Cole, author of The Bloodstone Saga
14. Amy Maurer Jones, Author of The Soul Quest Trilogy
15. Dani Snell's Refracted Light Reviews
16. Fisher Amelie, author of The Understorey
17. M. Leighton, Blood Like Poison Series, Madly, The Reaping
18. Abbi Glines, author of Breathe and The Vincent Boys
19. Kimberly Kinrade, Bits of You & Pieces of Me, Forbidden Mind
20. Madeline Smoot, Missing, Summer Shorts, and The Girls
21. Cidney Swanson, author of Rippler
22. Gwenn Wright, author of Filter

Book Lover's Holiday Giveaway Hop

Thursday, December 1, 2011


Thank you to everyone who entered! I'll be emailing the winner just as soon as I've entered all of the names, with extra entries, into Virtual Hat. Good luck! (And a special thank you to those of you who posted comments. I really appreciate that you took the time to share your thoughts with me.)

This Hop is hosted by the wonderful and amazing I'm A Reader, Not A Writer and Alyson from Kid Lit Frenzy.

Prizes:
In preparation for the release of Forever, I'm giving away a Kindle eBook copy of Fractured so you can get all caught up with your reading when Forever comes out. The Kindle copy will be gifted to you. You must be able to receive gifted books from Amazon for this. (Note: Amazon offers many free aps, so this book can be read on iPad, iPod, iPhone, PC, etc. So even if you don't have a Kindle you can still read this.)



For those of you who don't like reading ebooks, you may instead choose a beaded bookmark as your prize like the one pictured below, which is made from crystal beads and silver spacer beads strung on silk cord.



Printed copies of my books can be purchased from these locations:
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and The Book Depository for free international shipping.
Singed copies of my books can be purchased from my website at www.cherischmidt.net

Thanks for stopping by my blog!!!