>Who wants Alpha? [Updated!]

>This giveaway is now closed. Check back for the next one!

For those who didn’t see this on Twitter and Facebook…I got a box of Alpha copies today!!! And suddenly this release feels really real.

And since Alpha got a 4.5 star rating from RT Magazine today, I’m not as nervous as I thought I’d be just one month from the shelf date. Other people/reviewers may hate the book later, but there is no Alpha-hate today. Today there is only Alpha-joy.

Oh. And a giveaway…

Up for grabs: One signed copy of Alpha, almost a month before the official release.

Details:

- open to international contestants
- to enter, fill out the form below
- deadline to enter is 11:59 pm (Central) on Monday, August 30, 2010
- One entry per customer–if you enter more than once, you WILL be disqualified
- not open to anyone I’ve already promised a copy to

AND… If the number of valid entries reaches 550, I will draw a second name, and that winner will receive a signed copy of every single Shifters book. That’s Stray, Rogue, Pride, Prey, Shift, and Alpha, all signed. So spread the word!

UPDATE! 551 entries in just over 19 hours! You guys are awesome!!! So it’s official. A second winner will win a complete set of signed Shifters books.

But there’s still two days to enter. I’m not gonna hold my breath on this one, but if we reach 800 valid entries (WAY more than I’ve ever had before) I will draw a 3rd name, and that winner will receive a signed copy of Alpha and an Alpha t-shirt.

>Easy ebook links

>I have good news for those who had trouble downloading My Soul to Lose, the free ebook prequel to my upcoming Soul Screamers series. You can now view the PDF onscreen without having to download or install Adobe Digital Additions. It’ll be available on my website tonight, but until then, SB Sarah has the whole thing available here.

Also, the Kindle version is now available for free here. So hopefully this solves all the access problems.

I’m sorry for my recent silence. We had company over the holiday weekend, and since then, I’ve been working (under a very tight deadline) on revisions for a short story that will be out this fall. (More details on that soon, I swear.) And kind of freaking out about both of my summer releases. Seriously freaking out.

Prey means so much to me, because I really pushed myself (and Faythe) in this one, and
I feel like we both rose to the occasion. And my YA debut feels like my very first release did–only there’s waaaaay more pressure because people already have expectations. So… I can’t promise much coherence between now and the first week of August.

I keep expecting this job to get easier as my career progresses, but so far that hasn’t happened. It’s only getting harder. It’s a good thing I like what I do.

Check back tomorrow for a multiple winner giveaway leading up to the release of my YA debut, and if you like Q&A, check out my post today at the Deadline Dames, where I answered several good questions.

>Ta da!

> Okay, it looks like we have everything sorted out with My Soul to Lose, the ebook prequel to my Soul Screamers series, and I am thrilled to report that IT IS FREE!

Click here to download the ebook in one of 3 formats.

My Soul to Lose takes place about a year before My Soul to Take , and tells about an event referenced in the first novel: Kaylee is involuntarily hospitalized in the psychiatric unit when she has a “panic attack” and can’t stop screaming. Among other things. At this point, she has no idea she’s a bean sidhe. It’s a dark story, and the parts based in reality are just as unnerving as the fantasy-based elements. I did a ton of research for this one short story because I was determined to get the hospital environment right. I then sent the story to five different beta readers. I really, really wanted to get this one right.

Rumor has it there’s a free audio version as well, but I’m still checking on that one.

My Soul to Lose is the first available glimpse of what Harlequin Teen has to offer, and your first taste of my Soul Screamers world. If you like it, I hope you’ll check out the rest of the series. And if you know a teenager who likes dark fantasy please feel free to forward the link. As much as I think this new YA world will appeal to adults, I would really, really like for it to connect with the target audience as well. That’s who I was writing for.

My Soul to Take, the first novel in the Soul Screamers series comes out August 1. The opening pages of the book have been posted here, on the book’s Amazon page.

And, of course, Prey is now out in the wild, and you have several opportunities to win a signed copy.

Click here for details on how you can win a copy of Vicki Petterson’s new release, City of Souls as well as a signed copy of Prey. We’re release buddies!

Also, I’m giving away a signed set of all four Shifters books, as well as the necklace Faythe wears on the three most recent covers at the Deadline Dames.

The SciFiGuy has a giveaway and a guest post by me, about why Prey was so difficult to write. And if you scroll down to yesterday’s post, there’s another list of contests still going on.

So, happy reading!