Travel; progress

I’m leaving this afternoon for BEA in NYC! I got all caught up on my word count this weekend, but I’m running behind on everything else, so I’ll try to catch up on blog and FB comments at the airport. I’ll also try to announce the latest giveaway winner from the road.

If you’re going to be at BEA, come see me! I’ll be signing Soul Screamers omnibus Vol. 1 at 11 am at the Harlequin booth tomorrow (Tuesdsay, June 5) and I’ll be signing Shadow Bound at the Harlequin booth at 1 pm that same day!

—–

Shadow Bound is up for cover of the month at the RT book reviews blog. If you want to vote, click here!

—-

Here’s where the WITH ALL MY SOUL manuscript stands after three weeks:

75,174 / 100,000
(75.17%)

This book is almost done! I’m in the home stretch, writing the ending and possibly the epilogue (which will have changed from the one I drafted at the beginning). I can’t believe it’s almost over!

Reminder; Progress (Edited!)

Is it just me, or does time seem to slip by faster and faster the older we get? I’m pretty sure last year lasted longer than this year seems to be, and the one before was even longer than that. Regardless, somehow we’ve come to the last day of May, so I need to remind everyone that today is the LAST day to purchase “Never To Sleep” and know that my royalties from your purchase will go to St. Jude’s Children’s hospital. I will be donating all of the royalties from the first six months’ sales (minus any taxes owed) as soon as I am paid, which won’t be for several more months. The details are here.

Some things to keep in mind about “Never To Sleep”:

• Pirated copies and illegally bought copies (yes, these exist–some e-pirates actually CHARGE for illegal copies) won’t benefit the charity, because neither my publisher nor I will see any profit from those, thus there will be nothing for me to donate from them.
• “Never To Sleep” is available only in electronic format at the moment
• “Never To Sleep” is not yet available outside the US (that I know of). I’m sorry about that. There’s nothing I can do about that. It’s a territorial rights issue, and way beyond anything I can control. The story can’t/won’t be published in any other countries until my publishers in those countries buy/exercise the rights to publish it in their territory. (And I believe the UK will be publishing it very soon.) I can’t speed that process up, but you can, by writing to ask the publisher in your territory to publish it.

EDIT: The English edition IS available in Germany! Thanks to Britta for the heads-up! And the UK edition will be on sale tomorrow!

—–

Next Monday, I leave for Book Expo America. If you’re going to be there and are interested, On June 5, at the Harlequin booth, I’ll be signing copies of the Soul Screamers omnibus Vol 1 at 11 am for the HQTeen hour (with several other HQTeen authors) and Shadow Bound at 1 pm for the paranormal hour (with several other Mira and HQN authors). This’ll be a short trip for me–I’m leaving early for a family obligation–but I hope to see some of you there.

—–

In other news, I’m chugging right along on the WITH ALL MY SOUL manuscript. I’ve made my goal every day this week so far, except for Tuesday, which was disastrous (regarding word count) because it was full of family and social obligations. So I’ll have to make up 3000 words of that day’s goal this weekend. Here’s where it stands now.

62,235 / 100,000
(62.24%)

In looking at that word count meter and thinking back to the first couple of Soul Screamers books, I’m hyper-aware that if this book were as short as those, I’d only have 10,000 words left to write. I’d be finishing this up in the next two days. Alas, that is not the case. Fortunately it’s going quickly, and I’m making notes of emotional high-points and scene details that need to be fleshed out in the rewrites.

—–

Since I now have finished copies of Before I Wake (have I  shown you those here yet?), I should give some away! Check back tomorrow for a teen-only giveaway of THE ENTIRE SERIES so far (Volume 1 – book 5, US edition). If you know a teen who likes the series, or who might like the series, please feel free to spread the word. Later I’ll do a no-restrictions giveaway, but I want to take care of the teens (the target audience) first.

Okay, I’m off to work! Have a great Thursday!

Shadow Bound is out today!

Shadow Bound is out today! Mostly. I’m hearing reports that the US paperback version is available most places, and that some of the ebook versions have been released. Other ebook versions and some non-US English versions may not release until June 1.

I currently have no information about foreign language editions or audio editons, but I suspect the audio will be available soon. All my other books are in audio.

I’ve posted a giveaway on the Deadline Dames site today, and the one here is still going on too, so you have at least two chances to win a free, signed copy.

You can find the official back cover blurb here, and that page also contains a link to the first two chapters in PDF format, which you’re welcome to read for free, whenever you want, however many times you want.

Today, I’m celebrating the Shadow Bound release by writing another 5,000 words in WITH ALL MY SOUL. And maybe with an extra cup of coffee.

Six days into writing (I took the weekend off), the book stands thus:

30,537 / 100,000
(30.54%)

I’m very pleased with the progress, and I’ll be even more pleased if I actually make my goal today. This is a very busy day for me, with the new release and a personal obligation. I was up working until midnight last night, and I’d like to pack it in earlier today. So…we’ll see.

And, today I actually have a line from what I wrote yesterday, with a name deleted to avoid spoilers. Be warned, though, that this is rough draft. This snippet could change drastically or be deleted entirely before the book ever sees print. Here goes, from chapter eight of WITH ALL MY SOUL:

“Even scarier was the fact that I had yet to find a limit to what I’d be willing to do to protect him. To keep him with me. To keep us together. I’d spent most of my life setting boundaries. Lines I wouldn’t cross. Lines I wouldn’t let others cross.

With [redacted], there were no boundaries.”

Okay, that’s it! Happy Shadow Bound release day to me! And happy Shadow Bound release day to you too!

To clarify…

Okay, I’m seeing some problems with the entries coming in for the current Shadow Bound contest (details and the entry form for that can be found here) and I’ve had to delete three entries so far. So let me explain what seems to be confusing people.

First, the link you leave in the form needs to be a direct link to the post you want to show me. If I click on the link and it takes me to the front page of your blog, where I can scroll down and eventually find your post about Shadow Bound (and everything else you’ve ever posted) your entry won’t count. Your link needs to show ONLY the Shadow Bound post. Because I won’t be checking most of these for a while, and your newer posts will cover up your Shadow Bound post, and I just don’t have time to scroll back through all the posts looking for the one I need to see.

Second, if you decide to do the B option (a review), the review has to be for Shadow Bound. Not for Blood Bound. And it needs to be a review by YOU not someone else’s review that you’ve linked to. I know that Shadow Bound isn’t out yet, so those of you who didn’t get ARCs can’t review it yet. But the book comes out in paperback on May 22 and in e-format on June 1st. The contest runs until June 5, which means you’ll have AT LEAST five days (possibly much longer) to review the book and enter your review in the contest.

Make sense? If any of that isn’t clear, leave me your questions here and I’ll answer them.

The irony? Rafflecopter is now up. After I’ve already hosted the contest in a Google Doc.

—–

 In writing news, I barely made last night’s writing goal. There were real-life interruptions, but I’m not going to make excuses. There are always real-life interruptions, and when that happens, I work until the goal is met. Which means I was working until nearly midnight. But… Ta da!

20,566 / 100,000
(20.57%)

I’m a fifth of the way through the book (at least) in four days. Today I’ll hit the 25,000 word mark, which will put me a quarter of the way through the book. The weekend will be spent with family, recharging so I can keep up this pace for the next three weeks.

Whew!

Shadow Bound release contest!

Well, Rafflecopter seems to have gone the way of the dodo bird, which is frustrating, because I just tried to use it for the first time yesterday. But since it’s not working (AT ALL), I guess we’ll have to go back to good ole Google Docs.

So, here’s the new Shadow Bound contest:

Up for grabs: Winner’s choice of a signed copy of both Blood Bound and Shadow Bound OR a signed copy of Before I Wake (all US print editions).

How to enter:

A. Post the Shadow Bound cover image, back cover description, and at least one legitimate buy link (Amazon, B&N, IndieBound, etc…) on your blog as a new release post. Leave the direct link to your post in the entry form. Must be done between now and June 5th. The necessary information, image, and links can ALL be found here.

B. Post a review of Shadow Bound (Goodreads, Amazon, your blog, etc…) and leave the direct link to your review in the entry form. Must be done between now and June 5th.

Details:

• You may enter once for A and once for B, for a total of two entries.
• Each entry must be made separately. So, if you posted a new release announcement (A), you would enter that on the form, then enter AGAIN with your review post if you’re also doing a review (B).
• You may cross-post your review or announcement as many times as you like, but you can only enter one of those links as your entry, for A, and one for B.
• Neither your new release announcement nor your review may be posted on a YA only site. Shadow Bound is NOT a young adult book.
• International entries are welcome.
• This contest is void where prohibited.
• If you are under 18 years of age, you MUST have a parent or guardian’s permission to enter and to provide a shipping address if you win. Shadow Bound is NOT a young adult book.
• Please allow 2 weeks for shipping of the prize inside the US; 4 weeks for international shipping.

This contest will run through June 5, 2012. There will be two winners, chosen at random from the entries.

To enter, fill out the form found here.

—–

I wrote another 5,100+ words last night, but it was tough. Yesterday was full of real-life obligations and internet frustrations, which meant I was still writing at 11 pm. But I made it. I’m hoping for an earlier finish tonight.

I’m REALLY tempted to post my favorite non-spoilery line from yesterday’s work, but really, any line I post will be spoilery, because it will help you figure out who survived Before I Wake. So there probably won’t be any quotes for a while.

Here’s my writing progress bar.

15,504 / 100,000
(15.5%)

I’m going overseas! (+ contest)

As promised, my new travel news…

The Australian Romance Readers Convention has invited me to be one of their keynote speakers for 2013! Which means I’ll be in Brisbane, Australia early next March speaking, signing books, and meeting readers! This’ll be my first trip out of the US, and I’m very excited! Thanks so much for having me, ARRC!

I am hoping to get to do some sightseeing and maybe another small event or two before the con, but I don’t have any concrete plans in place for that yet, but, Australia, I will keep you updated when and if those opportunities arise.

—–

Also, Shadow Bound comes out in less than a week! I’m both nervous and very, very excited. Please note, however, that while May 22 is the release date, Shadow Bound is officially considered a June release, so some stores may not have it on the shelf until June 1. However, in my experience, most stores shelve/sell books early, and most pre-orders ship early as well.

To help get the word out about the release, I’m having a contest. (Winner’s choice of a signed copy of both Blood Bound and Shadow Bound OR an early copy of Before I Wake).

NOTE: Raffelcopter doesn’t seem to be working at the moment, to my EXTREME frustration. As soon as the problem is resolved, I’ll repost the form. Please check back later.
Click the link above for details (includes posting about Shadow Bound during the release week, with an option to post a review for extra entries). You do not have to follow me online to enter, nor do you have to post or tweet about the contest. But you do have to follow the directions listed on the form.

—–

In other, slightly less exciting news, I wrote another 5,200 words on WITH ALL MY SOUL yesterday (including the first kissing scene) and am still pleased with the progress. The most frustrating part for me so far is that it’s way to early to share my favorite lines from the manuscript. Here’s how my progress looks on the progress bar:

10,327 / 100,000
(10.33%)

Questions about the contest or my upcoming Australian appearance? Leave them here…

All the news!

Well, since I’ve been a bad blogger of late, my news has piled up, and there’s too much for one post. So let me start by saying that tomorrow I will have some awesome travel/appearance news, so check back here for that. Though it may leak out first on Twitter or FB. Because there are no secrets on the internet.

Now for the rest…

I’m sorry I kept forgetting to announce the winner of the Blood Bound + Shadow Bound giveaway, but the winner has now been notified via email. Her first name is Rebecca, so if that’s your name, check your inbox!

—–

The next Soul Screamers Reading Challenge live chat will be next Wednesday! All are welcome. We’ll be discussing any and all spoilers in the series up to and through My Soul To Steal and “Reaper.” That means you can complain about Sabine. You can discuss how Tod died. You can argue over who saw Kaylee first. (Not that it matters. You can’t call dibs on a person!) Feel free to post the graphic below and to mark your calendar! The link to the chat will go live here on my blog 30 minutes prior to the chat.

Again, thanks to Fiktshun for the graphic, for organizing the challenge, and for generally being awesome!

—–

I turned in the WITH ALL MY SOUL synopsis yesterday, and a few hours later, my editor approved it. Since then, she’s already sent two drafts of the back cover copy, which makes me really excited, because that means this book is almost a real thing! All that’s left to do is write it. And revise it. And edit it. And copy edit it. And line edit it. And proofread it. And promote it. And print it. And ship it. So…you know. Almost there.

On that front, I also started the actual manuscript yesterday and am pleased to report that I wrote the first chapter and a half, which is just over 5,000 words. The deadline for this one is pretty tight, mostly because I needed an extension on Oath Bound, so 5,000 words is actually my daily goal for WITH ALL MY SOUL. That’s tough, but it should be doable, considering that I’ve already written six other books from Kaylee’s POV, with this same cast of characters, in this same world.

Does that mean Kaylee is the same confused, scared sixteen year old bean sidhe we met in My Soul To Take? No. Not at all, actually. The past few books have changed her. She’s grown a  lot. She’s been through a lot. Also, she had a birthday. Kaylee turned seventeen (sort of) in Before I Wake, which will be out in just a few short weeks.

Here’s what my first day’s progress looks like on the progress bar:

5,094 / 100,000
(5.09%)

Yes, I’m expecting this one to top 100,000 words, as did Before I Wake. If I Die was close, at 97,000 words.

—–

Since I’m starting to get these questions again, and in looking back, I realize that I’ve gained several thousand followers on FB and Twitter since I last discussed this, here’s just a bit about my writing method…

Note: This is the method I use, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only method out there or that it’s the best method (there’s no such thing) or that something else might not work better for you.

I write a true rough draft. I write pretty quickly, but that means that my work needs several rounds of rewrites.

My method: Write it down. Write it ALL down. Write it down as fast as you can, without making yourself sick or neglecting the other important parts of your life. Then, when it’s done, go back and rewrite it. Fix the problems. Polish the prose. Layer in the foreshadowing and fine details. Research any facts you didn’t have time to check during the original composition, and adjust accordingly.

I’m able to write 3,000-5,000 words a day, consistently, because I don’t go back and edit what I wrote earlier. I don’t even always read what I wrote earlier. This works for me, because it keeps me in the story. Any time I have to stop writing for several days during the first draft because of travel or edits on another book, I lose touch with the story I’m writing. I fall out of that world and must then go back and read the whole thing (without editing, mostly) to get back to that place, in order to resume the draft. So I’d rather write it down quickly, flaws and all, than bog myself down with details that can be fixed in the rewrites.

Of course, at least for me, that pace and that process isn’t possible unless the entire book has been outlined in advance. But that’s another blog entry…

Link salad (+ giveaway)

[This contest is now closed.]

Thanks so much to everyone who helped me try out my new chat room last night in the Blood Bound spoiler chat. I’d hoped to archive the chat for those who couldn’t make it, but, alas, I didn’t figure out how to do that until it was too late. I do apologize for that, but (!!!) about a month after Shadow Bound comes out (May 22, 2012, in the US/CA) we’ll have a Shadow Bound spoiler chat, and you can ask both Blood Bound and Shadow Bound questions there.

Today I have several links for you, and, of course, this week’s International Edition giveaway.

First, my website Extras page has been updated with two different versions of the transcript of the My Soul To Take spoiler chat, both compiled by the amazing Fiktshun, your awesome Soul Screamers Reading Challenge host. The first is a complete transcript, with all non-MSTTake spoilers removed. The second is the Q&A portion of the chat only, and it’s super easy to read, because she’s lined up the Qs and As (which didn’t happen, in the live version–I was always several Qs behind) and has grouped them by conversation. You can find both versions of the transcript here, or you can read them on Fiktshun’s blog.

Second, the Appearances page of my website has also been updated with the following:

Romantic Times Booklovers Convention
April 11-15
Chicago, Il

-April 11, 3:30pm-4:30pm-
The Kids Are All Right Panel
-April 14-
Teen Day
Giant Book Fair
Texas Librarians Association Annual Conference
Houston, TX

April 18-19

-April 18, 12:00pm
YART Texas Tea

-April 19, 10:30am-
Texas Teens for Libraries (TT4L)

Murder By The BookHouston, TX

June 30, 4:30pm
Signing Shadow Bound and Before I Wake (with fellow author Jaye Wells)

There may be another event or two added soon, and if/when that happens, I’ll post an update.

And, third, for those who keep insisting that e-piracy is practically the same as borrowing a book from a library (or simply don’t understand why that’s not true), John Green has written an excellent post explaining. Please read. For those who won’t take the time, here are a few highlights.

“Libraries buy books. Lots of them. And there are tens of thousands of libraries around the country. That is good for me and good for my book.”

“American public and school libraries play a huge role in preserving the breadth of American literature by collecting and sharing books that are excellent but may not be written by YouTubers with large built-in audiences.”

“And this is the most important: I believe that creators of books should have control over how their work is distributed. [...] It’s not because I’m a greedy bastard or want to keep my books from people who might otherwise read them. It’s because I believe books are valuable. Right now, on Amazon, my brand new hardcover book costs about $10, which represents 1.2 hours of work at the federal minimum wage. I believe books are worth 1.2 hours of work.”

And, finally, re: Oath Bound, I am finally almost done with the rough draft. Here’s where it stands:

81,040 / 100,000
(81.04%)

What this means is that very soon I’ll be disappearing into my cave to speed-write the last bit of the book. I apologize in advance for my absence, but I will re-emerge just in time to meet friends and readers alike at RT and TLA (see my appearance schedule above).

Now for this week’s International Edition giveaway. To enter, leave me a comment in this post answering the following question: Have you ever attended a signing or conference, where you got to meet an author? If so, what was the event?

The list of available prize books is here, but please don’t leave your entry in that post. That is a static page, which will be updated as books are chosen or donated to libraries.

The rules:

• One entry per person
• This contest is open to both domestic and international entries
• This contest is void where prohibited
• If you’re under 18 yrs of age, you must have a parent’s permission to enter and to provide your shipping information if you win
• Please allow 2-4 weeks for shipping
• You must come back to this blog on Friday to see if you’ve won and claim your prize
• Prizes not claimed within two weeks will be awarded to a redrawn winner’s name
• Please DO NOT leave your email address in your entry. I don’t need it (if you win, you email me to claim your prize) and I’m sure you don’t need the spam that inevitably comes with posting your email address online.

2012 travel plans

People have started asking, and conference season is almost at hand, so here’s where I know I’ll be this year:

• The 2012 Romantic Times Booklovers Convention, in Chicago
• The Texas Library Association’s annual conference, in Houston

I’m considering at least one other large event, and I may do a few TX-area signings this summer, one in the DFW area, one in Houston, and one (possibly) here in San Antonio. If there’s enough interest.

—–

In writing news, I’m still plodding along in Oath Bound. I expect to hit the halfway point in the rough draft today, and I’m hoping the second half will go much faster. My goal for the rough draft is 100,000 words, but this draft has been pretty sparse so far, so I expect to both tighten and add details in the rewrite, which should put the book around 110,000 words. Blood Bound and Shadow Bound were both published at 120,000, but I’m hoping this one will be a little tighter. We’ll see.

I’m having fun with Kris and Sera. More fun than they’re having with each other at the moment, but that should start to change soon, as I pass the half-way point and they start to hate the bad guys more than each other. Both previous viewpoint couples (Liv & Cam, Kori & Ian) are heavily featured in this book, as are several of the secondary characters (Kenley, Van, Anne, Hadley, and others) so I’m really working with an ensemble cast, which makes this feel kind of like writing the Shifters books did. Only way harder.

Here’s my progress as it stands now:

47,351 / 100,000
(47.35%)

I have some errands to run today, then I’m diving right back in. Wish me luck!

2012 appearances (+ winner)

I see I’ve been neglecting my blog again. In my defense, it’s been a rough week. But on the bright side, after deleting almost as much as I’d written of Oath Bound, I seem to have finally found some forward momentum. I also had a HUGE epiphany on a side project, which I won’t have time to work on until I’ve met my deadlines, so I’m keeping lots of notes about that. And no, I can’t tell you what that is just yet. My CP got an earful on the phone this week, though.

In other news, my UK blog tour kicks off today with a review and an interview at Book Passion For Life. Check that out to read about my favorite characters and find out which book in the series was most difficult to write so far.

Also, Mira Ink (who publishes Soul Screamers in the UK) is giving away five copies of the UK edition of If I Die on their FB page. I got my own copies of the UK version yesterday, and they’re gorgeous! They’ll be going up on the prize list later today.

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In travel news, I’m confirmed for the 2012 Romantic Times Booklovers Convention (my 8th consecutive year!) in Chicago in mid-April, where I’m scheduled for a YA panel on Wednesday, and both the mass signing and an author speed-dating session on Saturday. I’ll be signing Blood Bound, the Soul Screamers omnibus, and If I Die.

Things are looking good for TLA this year too, so Texas librarians, I hope to see you there!

—–

Now for this week’s International Edition winner!

emmadnz, who wrote: “Haven’t imported any for some time now due to having a kindle but I used to buy books via the book depository.”

Emmadnz, please email me (rachelkvincentATgmailDOTcom) with your name, shipping information, and chosen prize, and I’ll put your book in the mail.

Everyone else, check back  for the next giveaway and for more stops on my UK blog tour!