Drowning by Rachel Firasek - Cover Reveal & Giveaway - Win Gift Cards, ARCs, Swag

Drowning by Rachel Firasek

Expected publication: November 5, 2013

"I dare you." 

Those words would change adrenaline junkie, Alice Harrison's life forever. She's a party girl that doesn't believe in love until she meets a man that only writes about it.

Seth James escaped his overbearing father and moved into one of the James family's vacant condos, hoping to create the music he loves in peace. But the fragile calm he's envisioned shatters when a tiny woman with a world full of energy bounces out of the elevator and nearly takes him out.

With the patience of a saint, Seth seeks the dark that keeps Alice from enjoying life. He challenges her to exorcise the demons in her past in order to discover the true meaning of love. But when the walls fall down, the hidden deceptions will bare the ugly truth about a woman drowning in sorrow and a man who may not know how to be her hero.

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About the author:

Rachel Firasek spends her days daydreaming of stories and her nights putting the ideas to ink. She has spent a dull life following the rules, meeting deadlines, and toeing the line, but in her made up worlds, she can let the wild side loose. Her wonderful husband and three children support her love of the written word and only ask for the occasional American Idol or Swamp People quality hour.

She has a philosophy about love. It must devastate or it isn't truly worth loving. She hopes that you all find your devastating love and cling to it with all your heart!

Find out more at RachelFirasek.com.

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Self-Pubbing vs. Small Press: I Must Be Insane!

Self-Pubbing VS Small Press: 
I must be insane!
Guest Post by Rachel Firasek
 

I’m very excited to be here today, and want to give a big Thank You to Tami for making it happen.

I’ve been writing seriously for about three years now, and I’m still waiting for that book to come to me that says, “This is it!”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy with the books that have poured out of me, but I don’t think I’ve found that “Book of my heart” that everyone speaks about. The closest one to that label is probably Piper’s Fury.

I was very lucky to have that book picked up by Heather Howland when she was at Crescent Moon Press, my first small press to work with. She taught me all about amateur writing and brought me into a different level of storytelling.  And, after five months of sweet patience from her, we finally had Piper’s story edited to a fine art and ready for publications. As I said, I was very lucky she took a chance and believed that there was a really good story beneath the basic beginner’s voice.

After that story, I went on to publish three more novellas with small presses over the span of 2011. So, that made a total of 4 books published last year and another novella that came out in Feb 2012. Yes, I’ve been one busy little bee.

Small Presses will teach and take a chance on you when one of the Big 6 won’t. But, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t strive to be bigger and better. Learn from them. Grow. Be better.

In July 2012, I’ll be releasing my very first Indie Pub novella. It’s part of the Unspun Series with authors Berinn Rae and Elle J Rossi. I can’t tell you how wonderful working on this story has been. We gave ourselves realistic deadlines, took our time writing them, revised them, critiqued them, and then had a professional editor proof them. Yes, we’re doing it right.

Why self pub?

Well, mostly because I was tired of deadlines, I needed a chance to write something for art and not feel like I was deconstructing my story, and I wanted the control. Don’t get me wrong, I love my publishers, but it was just such a busy year last year that I really developed some bad writing habits—forgetting that I had children, husband, family, a life—that I needed to get back to some fundamentals.

I made a list of all the things that worked for me and didn’t with both styles of publishing, and I’d love to share them.

Small Press VS Indie:

SP Win: Having a professionally trained editor work with you to make your story perfect.

IP Lose: Having to pay for a professionally trained editor to make your story perfect.

SP Win: Marketing with other authors and often splitting the cost of advertising.

IP Lose: It’s a lone marketing adventure.

SP Lose: Drama. Anytime you get that many women, artist, professionals together, there will be some sort of drama or hurt feelings or misunderstandings— it may not be with you directly, but you’ll witness it.

IP Win: No Drama, unless you argue with yourself.

SP Lose: Loss of control. You are at the mercy of the publisher.

IP Win: All the control. If your book isn’t as ready as you’d like, you can extend deadlines. It’s a wonderful thing.

These are just a few of the differences, but they are the ones that made me try an Indie Pub book. I’m crossing my fingers that this story is a success and if it’s not, I’ll just write another, lol. Each book is different and you never know when that “Book of your heart” will appear. I’m still chasing mine. 

I’d love to know if you are published, why you chose the route you took. Please feel free to share. 

About the author:

Rachel Firasek grew up in the south and despite the gentle pace, she harassed life at full steam. Her curiosity about mythology, human nature, and the chemical imbalance we call love led her to writing. Her stories began with macabre war poems and shifted to enchanted fairytales, before she settled on a blending of the two.

Today you’ll find her tucked on a small parcel of land, surrounded by bleating sheep and barking dogs, with her husband and children. She entertains them all with her wacky sense of humor or animated reenactments of bad 80’s dance moves.

She’s intrigued by anything unexplained and seeks the answers to this crazy thing we call life. You can find her where the heart twists the soul and lights the shadows… or at www.rachelfirasek.com.

This is part of a weekly feature, posted each Friday, which looks at publishing related topics. If you are interested in doing a guest post, please contact me.

Previous posts:
Indie Authors are on the Wrong Side of the Tracks by Darian Wilk
Why Do Indie Writers Need Editors by Valerie Douglas
Let's Talk About Sex ... in YA Books - Is Sexual Content Appropriate by Deb Hanrahan
Traditional vs. Self-Publishing: Why I Chose to Fight the Odds by Ryan Graudin
It's All About Me - Marketing and Branding as an Indie Author by Patti Larsen

Unspun Trilogy Cover Reveal

Today I have the pleasure of presenting you with the covers for all three books in the Unspun Trilogy! Enjoy!

The Fates are said to control our destinies. From our first breath to our dying gasp, these creatures of legend weave the courses of our lives. Even the gods are subject to their decrees. Spinners of dark secrets, the Fates have been feared for the tragedies they weave. No man dared confront the Relentless Ones . . . until now.

Creating Fate
(An Unspun Novella, #1)
Author: Rachel Firasek 

Genre: Paranormal Romance 

Length: Novella
Release Date: July 10, 2012 

Add it on Goodreads.
 

She gave away her heart…

Giving her heart to a mortal wasn't something the First Fate planned. Losing him nearly shattered her soul. Upon his death, Clothos swore never to love—or weave life—again.

Hoping she'll change her mind before it's too late, Zeus commands the spinner of life to take a much needed vacation from her immortal responsibilities.

He had to hide his...

Dane is close to cracking the drug ring he's spent the last two years infiltrating, but needs to perform one last heist to meet the head man and prevent an impending war. An undercover agent, he’s now on the run from drug lords, thieves and with the very woman whose tears make him forget his purpose.

Together they’ll find a way back from the dark.

Chloe will have to put her trust in the man she believes may have killed her fiance, or face an eternity on Earth. Without the desire for life, hope could slip through the cracks of time if he doesn’t love away her sorrow.

Stealing Fate
(An Unspun Novella, #2)
Author: Berinn Rae 

Genre: Paranormal Romance 

Length: Novella 

Release Date: July 24, 2012
Add it on Goodreads.

She stole his fate…

Lachesis—now known simply as Lacey—is a Fate, an ancient goddess in whose hands our destinies are unraveled. When she’s not weaving fortune, she does what she wants when she wants. Until she runs into a man she craves but hoped—and prayed—never to see again. It had been a dangerous gamble to betray the god of terror, but in war, hard choices--and enemies--are made. And she'll soon discover the most frightening of immortals can really hold a grudge.

Now it’s his turn…

The most cruel of gods, Phobos is a predator who takes pleasure in terrorizing the world. After millennia of relentless searching, he finds the Fate who caused him to be cast from Olympus. Now he plans to use every bit of his talents on the goddess to regain his lost heritage without losing his heart in the process.

As the outcast god ignites her passions, Lacey must come to grips with the destiny she has long denied herself. And Phobos must find a way to escape the destiny that would force him to betray the woman he has grown to love.

Chasing Fate
(An Unspun Novella, #3)
Author: Elle J Rossi
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: Novella
Release Date: August 7, 2012
Add it on Goodreads.

She is forced to kill . . .

When a much-needed vacation turns into work for the third Fate, Atropos vows to sever the mortal’s lifeline quickly and get back to the sea and sand. Having her mysterious quarry offer a deal in exchange for more time is an unexpected complication. Always surrounded by darkness and death, Attie takes a chance to get a taste of life and help right a wrong that never should have happened.

She is forced to kill . . .

When a much-needed vacation turns into work for the third Fate, Atropos vows to sever the mortal’s lifeline quickly and get back to the sea and sand. Having her mysterious quarry offer a deal in exchange for more time is an unexpected complication. Always surrounded by darkness and death, Attie takes a chance to get a taste of life and help right a wrong that never should have happened.