Easy & Fun Book Promotion From a Self-Declared Technology-inept Author

By Maureen L. Bonatch 

On more than one occasion I've openly declared my limited ability, and desire, to learn all this new fangled technology.

 Despite my words sounding like a stubborn ancient oldster about to recollect the amount of snow traveled to school back in the days of their youth (hint: it's always uphill both ways) —or an ostrich with it's head in the sand—I've come to realize I'll have to learn some of the ever changing world of technology.                    

                                      Wanna come along?

Why Learn Something New?  

Because no one is going to come looking if you don't put yourself out there. 

Believe me, I've waited and waited, but no one has come knocking on my door to ask to see the books I have published...or the four draft manuscripts on my computer. 

Why do people wait, delay, stall or ignore?

Because Change is Hard

Taking that next step, finishing that draft, or learning a new skill is imperative to growth 

I've already...

• Shared a post about using Book Promotion using Pinterest 

• Provided a few reasons why you should attend/have a Facebook Party

Today I want to share my latest venture and a display few ways even a technology-phobe-novice like me used PicMonkey and Canva to interact with readers, share my books, and have a little fun. (Some items are free and others have a minimal fee for use- be sure to check.)

Yes, I said fun! Who would've thought? 

I'm not going to provide step by step methods to create these because...they're that simple. Go to the site and it tells you exactly what to do. 

Instead I'll show you a few different ways you can use these great resources for marketing your book, interacting with readers, or just having fun!

1. Use a line/quote from your book 

 2.  Use a quote of yours, or one you like, to  share your thoughts 

3.  Use a tagline to tell the reader a little about your story 

4. Use comments  (Be sure to quote and/or give credit)

5.  Use one of your own photos

These are just a few examples, and I'm by no means an expert. 

I mean, none, nada, not even close, miles away from anything close to an expert! 

Now go on and have some fun making your own 

Can't get enough Paranormal and Urban Fantasy? 

 You're invited to the Bump in the Night...a Paranormal Experience Facebook Party on March 12th from 12  p.m until 6 p.m. EST! 

You’ll find me (at 12:30 p.m.- 1:00 p.m. EST- check the time zone peeps!) and 11 other paranormal/urban fantasy authors. Stop by for prizes and loads of magical fun!

About the Author:

Maureen writes stories in the beautiful state of Pennsylvania that boast laughter, light suspense and something magical in the hope of sharing her love of finding the extraordinary in the ordinary world. She writes Paranormal Romance and Fantasy.

Find Me:
Writing on my Website
Tweeting on Twitter
Pinning on Pinterest
Flapping on Facebook

Out Today! Trusting Nat by @MeganSlayer ~ Lion Shifters #mmromance with an Excerpt!

Trusting Nat, the second book in my Sanctuary series releases today! To celebrate, I'm sharing a snippet with you! It's steamy!!

Trusting Nat by Megan Slayer 

Book 2 in the Sanctuary Series

Resplendence Publishing

Contemporary, Paranormal

M/M, Anal Sex, Masturbation

Novella

The key to his humanity is finding his place in the pride.

Sydney came to Sanctuary believing he wasn’t anything other than the runt of the litter. Strengths? According to the others, he had none. But one special shifter seems to think otherwise—Nat. To bring out the brave side of Syd, he’ll need to trust.

Nat has always known he’s a beta. No question. He’s drawn to Syd and wants to find out if their existence at the Sanctuary should be more than platonic. When he and Syd are called upon to bring back more lions from the petting zoo, he not only sees Syd’s true potential, but realizes his true feelings for the fellow shifter.

Can these two shifters forge an alliance and grow together or will their heated experiments between the sheets be the end for them both?

Out now from Resplendence Publishing:

And Now, an excerpt!

Copyright © 2015, Megan Slayer

“I’m not happy about this, but I’ll leave you alone. Get your rest, and I’ll check on you later, okay?” Nat trailed his fingers down Syd’s chest. “You worry me.”

“Sorry,” Syd mumbled. He hadn’t meant to be a bother. He waited for the other lion shifter to leave the room then he flopped onto the bed. He unzipped and eased his still rock-hard dick from his jeans. Jacking off wouldn’t make him feel better. Using his dildo wouldn’t work, either. He needed the touch of the man he crushed on to make everything level again. Except, he’d just caused Nat to leave him alone.

Syd wrapped his fingers around his cock and stroked. Just like downstairs, he wouldn’t need much in order to come. He stretched one leg out on the bed and draped the other leg over the side. He planted his foot on the floor.

As he jerked himself off, he pictured Nat with him. Nat knelt on the bed between Syd’s knees. Fire blazed in his eyes and his cheeks were stained red. His blond hair stuck up in odd tangles.

“Love watching you do that,” Nat said in the fantasy. “It’s sexy when you jerk off.”

“Love when you watch me,” Syd murmured. He closed his eyes and arched his back. With one hand on his dick, he used his other hand to stroke his balls. The fever in his veins engulfed him. He couldn’t think straight. The only thing that mattered was finding release. He puffed and grunted.

“I want to see you come. All over me, Syd. Decorate me.” Nat, now nude, perched between Syd’s knees. He plucked his nipple and licked his lips. “Come on.”

Syd nodded.  His breaths turned ragged, and his mind fuzzed. The orgasm built low in his body and spread throughout his groin. He parted his lips. “Nat. Fucking hell, I’m coming.” Something deep within him snapped, and he sagged against the bed. A rope of cum stretched across his belly, staining his shirt. The warmth seeped through to his skin. He panted, and when he opened his eyes, the room spun. Damn.

“Syd?” Nat raced into the bedroom and stopped. “I thought I heard my name…” He didn’t finish his sentence.

Syd tipped his head. He knew Nat was in the room, but anything he wanted to say was gone. He’d been found out. Well, shit.

* * * * *

​

 http://wendizwaduk.com/indexMegan.htm

Megan Slayer - It's Always Fun to Squirm

Subscribe to our newsletter ~ http://ymlp.com/xgjmjumygmgj 

Eight Ways to Determine if you're a Paranormal Romantic Reader (or Writer)

You may be a Paranormal Romantic Reader (or Writer) if...

by Maureen L. Bonatch

1. You've got a thing for book boyfriends with wings, fangs, fur or other out of the ordinary attributes
2. You're pretty sure the two guys with mullets aren't stuck in 80's fashion--they're time-travelers 
3. You aren't worried about snakes and other critters lurking on the other side of that abandoned bridge, you're more concerned that no one else has wanted to visit the secret village hidden there
4.  You fantasize about what kind of spell you'd stir first...if you ever gain the powers you're certain were denied to you at birth
5. You hope the poltergeist hiding things in your house is friendly---because you certainly didn't lose those items 
6. You don't ever think of anyone as weird or odd---only harboring character traits ripe for harvest
7. You like men who can sweep you off your feet. Literally...with their supernatural strength, magic or wings. 
8. You tense when you open a dark room in the basement, waiting for a creature to burst from it's hiding place you've disturbed. Every. Single. Time. (okay, maybe that's just me)

One thing for sure, your world will never be ordinary when your mind dwells in the extraordinary. 

Tell me what makes you think you're a reader and/or writer of the paranormal? 

Visit Maureen's website where she loves to talk about stuff and ...

Make the ordinary extraordinary and laugh all the way. 

Some of her other favorite haunts include

Facebook

Twitter 

Find stuff she's written

In darkness or light...what makes for your best writing and reading time

by Maureen L. Bonatch 

Ever since I stopped making snow angels and the hope of getting a snow day from school was long past, I no longer found much to enjoy about winter. That is, until I found out how to embrace the short days, heavy with night and cold as a witches…nose.

My mumbled threats directed at the groundhog who regularly taunts with six more weeks of winter, turned to a thoughtful musing of…"It’s snowing again.” Smiles inwardly. “Well, I guess I could write another chapter, or snuggle under a blanket by the fire with a good book.” 

Not that I’d ever give up the sunlight, warm days and walks of summer, but maybe winter’s not all bad.

Because it makes perfect sense to curl up, inside away from the cold and dampness to write, or read a good book, because when the sun is shining, people emerge from their self-imposed hibernation and expect conversation and normal human interactions. 

And pants, they expect you to wear something besides pajama or sweat pants.

As midsummer rapidly approaches with the longest day of the year, and the shortest night, it’s become obvious to me that a balance is in order between the chattering of the characters in my head, the ones I visit in the books I read, and people in the real world.

Hope, my protagonist in my upcoming release DESTINY CALLING, suffers with a similar challenge of balancing darkness and light…inside her.

Hope only wants to find out if her ability to infuse euphoria or despair with her touch makes her the devil's spawn, or his exterminator. But when the woman who raised her is murdered by something not human, she loses the only family she knew and discovers one she might wish she hadn’t.

Drawn to the city she vowed never to return, her ability is seen as an asset to everyone but Hope, and she doesn’t know who to trust. Her family wants her to help them overcome an enemy oppressing the human population, while the man of her dreams is courting her for the Underworld. Time is running out, and Hope’s choice may be made for her, as she discovers she’s a pawn in a bigger game played by a merciless ruler who doesn’t lose.

Look for DESTINY CALLING coming soon from The Wild RosePress.

Do you have a favorite season to read and/or write?Are you outside in the summer breeze?   Or at the beach?   Or huddled inside by the fire?

A Chat with Paranormal Romance Author JL Oiler

Hello and Thank You for allowing me this opportunity to introduce myself. I am JL Oiler and if you have not figuared it out yet, I write paranormal romance (a bit on the naughty side). I thought I would put this together by answering a few common questions;
1. How long have I been writing?
I have been creating stories for as long as I can remember. Though I was a shy child and generally kept them to myself until I was in my late teens.
2. How long have I been published?
My first release was Bood Dance: Seeds of Oden Book 1. It was released in January of this year by Wild Horse Press and followed by a short story release titled Eclipse of the Twin Moons on Feb 9 (my birthday) also by WHP. Blood Dance came out as a paperback in July.
3. Where do I get my ideas and inspiration?
Most my ideas and inspireation come from real llife. I will hear or see something that gets my mind working and e next thing you know I am scribbling it down.
4. Do I have any special projects or associations?
I currently one forth of the group WICKED MUSES. It is a group of writers that just seemed to click right from the beginning (we call ourselves wicked sisters). We share a lot of common interest and support. The other members include; Ashlynn Monroe, Lile Munro, and BethAnn Buehler. We are planning a major event to cover the entire month of October called our Parascary October. It will include lots of guest bloggers and prizes.
5. What about your upcoming releases?
I have a few coming up that include a Halloween piece due out October 30th from Silver Publishing. Its titled: Claiming Night. It is a M/F/M story about panther shape shifters. I also have a Demon story coming from Silver Publishing though we dont have a release date as of yet. It is titled: To Kiss a Demon.
The third in my Seeds of Oden Series is due out in January, Blood Denial from WHP and I am finishing up a christmas piece for Silver as well.
6. What about your current release?
Blood Dawn: Seeds of Oden Book 2 from Wild Horse Press
It is the second book that follows one of the daughters of Oden in thier fight to find thier lost siblings, battle evil Clage vampires, and find love and acceptance in the arms of thier Bloodmate.
Blurb:
Sol had always been different. Different from the humans who surrounded her, her nights are filled with meeting her craving for blood and protecting the residents of her small community from the evil vampires known as the Clage. But even to her own kind she is an anomaly. Her unique ability to walk in the sunlight sets her apart from any of her eleven missing siblings. Despite this, she has built herself a calm and relaxing home, moving about unnoticed among the local community, until the Clage and a breathtakingly gorgeous Nicaean male invade her world. Now she must battle to reach the sisters she thought were lost, the humans she is sworn to protect, and for the love of the only man who can make her feel complete. Can Sol learn to except her differences and give herself completely over to the breaking of Blood Dawn?
7. Website and Contact?
my web site is http://www.joiler.weebly.com/ I love to hear from readers regarding my work good or bad. I believe in honesty. It is the only way I can improve my work. My email is jloiler@live.com

Thanks for your time it was my pleasure to share it with you!
JL Oiler

A contest within a contest

Today is your lucky day--well hopefully!

I'm having a contest. It's more like a contest within a contest, actually. You see, I have a few book releases happening this summer and I'm searching for a really cool contest idea to promote them all.

I'll call it the Summer of Fangs, Fur and Bad Boys with Fast Toys.

You'll find out a little more later with the first release in May. And no, I'm not gonna say any more about it until then.

So, here's what I'd like to ask you. What do you want to see in a contest? Free book, swag bag filled with stuff, edible prizes? Do you want to blog hop, look answers up on websites? What will make a contest fun for you?

Now here's where today's contest comes in. I'll pick the best idea from the comments and you'll get to pick one of my 2009 backlist of e-books.

So, wrack your brain and give me your best shot. You may just win!