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Elizabeth McKenna

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Elizabeth McKenna

Tag Archives: Dystopian

Sting by Cindy R. Wilson – New Release and Giveaway

03 Tuesday Mar 2020

Posted by Elizabeth McKenna - Author in Book Tour

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Tags

Dystopian, Giveaway, Romance, YA, Young Adult

STING

by Cindy R. Wilson
Publication Date: March 3, 2020
Genres: Entangled: Teen, YA, Dystopian, Friends-to-Lovers, Romance

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3884Imz
iTunes: https://apple.co/2vfgwpK
B&N: https://bit.ly/2PNhlNB
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2wac8IG
Paperback: https://amzn.to/2T7somD
Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/2wYs6WN
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3a8U5Ry
Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2Pw2Jlx

SYNOPSIS

They call me the Scorpion because they don’t know who I really am. All they know is that someone is stealing from people with excess to help people with nothing survive another day.

But then a trusted friend reveals who I am—“just” Tessa, “just” a girl—and sends me straight into the arms of the law. All those people I helped…couldn’t help me when I needed it.

In prison, I find an unlikely ally in Pike, who would have been my enemy on the outside. He represents everything I’m against. Luxury. Excess. The world immediately falling for his gorgeous smile. How he ended up in the dirty cell next to mine is a mystery, but he wants out as much as I do. Together, we have a real chance at escape.

With the sting of betrayal still fresh, Pike and I will seek revenge on those who wronged us. But uncovering all their secrets might turn deadly…

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ABOUT CINDY R. WILSON

Cindy began creating worlds as a kid, entertaining her siblings with spontaneous ghost stories before bed. She filled notebooks with novels and ideas and realized quickly she wanted to be a writer as an adult.

Now Cindy lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and loves using Colorado towns and cities as inspiration for settings in her stories. She’s the mother of three girls who provide plenty of fodder for her YA novels.

Visit her website to learn more about her books or subscribe to her newsletter: https://www.cindyrwilsonauthor.com

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Twitter | Bookbub | Amazon Author Profile

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Isolation by Denise R. Stephenson – Book Tour

01 Tuesday Jul 2014

Posted by Elizabeth McKenna - Author in Book Tour

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Apocalyptic, Dystopian, Medical Thriller, Political Thriller, Post-Apocalyptic, Science Fiction

isolation-cover-194x300Publisher: Mill City Press (April 15, 2014)
Category: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Apocalyptic & Post-Apocalyptic, Political Thriller, Medical Thriller
ISBN: 13: 978-1-62652-760-7
Tour Dates: June 15-July 30, 2014
Available in: Print and ebook, 383 Pages

Isolation depicts a bleak but recognizable future in which the fear of contagion reaches a fever pitch as a bacterial epidemic catapults the US into an apocalyptic crisis.

Touch is outlawed. Mothers like Maggie bind their infants’ hands, terrified they might slip fingers into mouths. Gary, a Sterilizer, uses robots to scour the infected, avoiding all contact with human flesh. Trevor, the Chief Enforcer, watches, eager to report any and all infractions.

One inadvertent touch will change all of their lives.

Buy Isolation

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About the Author

Denise-R-Stephenson-225x300DENISE R. STEPHENSON resides in Oceanside, CA, but she has lived in all the isolated locales of this novel at one time or another. Her publishing history is primarily academic, though as a member of Attention Deficit Drama, she has written and produced monologs and short plays. This is her first novel.

1. How did your life as a writer begin?

My theatre company, Attention Deficit Drama (ADD), was working on a show we called “A Million Monologs for the Millennium.” One of our trio suggested that I write some of the monologs. I said I might, but I doubted it. A few days later I awoke with a monolog in my head which poured out of me whole cloth, no revision needed. That moment changed my writing from self-directed to audience-focused. I wrote three monologs for that show, one for a girl chased by boys, “Squish,” one for a middle-aged hippie, “Hot Water,” and one for an old woman in a holler in West Virginia, “Rockin’.” The old woman has since appeared in a creative non-fiction piece called “Middle of Nowhere,”and she is in my novel Isolation.

2. What makes you feel inspired to write?

Inspiration is unpredictable—that’s its joy and curse. When I hear the voices, or a line repeats in my head, I try to be attentive and sit down to capture it. If I get the gist, I can then come back and follow the thread, but if I imagine it’s so good I’ll hold onto it and don’t write it down, it will likely disappear never to be heard from again.

3. How did you come with the idea for your current story?

The germs of my novel Isolation came from the fear of a swine flu epidemic in the fall of 2009, the CDC changing our behavior by teaching us to sleeve the sneeze, my concerns about the overuse of 99% bacterial killing soaps and sanitizers, and a line that came into my head: “laying a finger aside of his nose.” Then the gift of a sabbatical in the Spring of 2012 gave me the time to create a dystopian world torn apart, not by a virus, but by a variety of bacteria no longer within medical control.

4. Tell us about your writing process. Do you outline, or are you more of a seat of your pants type of a writer?

I call myself an organic writer, meaning I don’t outline, but rather, allow a story to grow organically from the seed of an idea or the voice of a character. Typically I have no idea where a story is going and am almost always surprised by the ending. But I feel I have a talent for endings, much more than beginnings which I have to work and rework to find the right starting place for readers. Endings, on the other hand, tend to just show up one day and often teach me something about themes in the work that I didn’t consciously know I was working with.

5. What is your favorite scene in the book? Why?

My favorite scene is probably the closing scene both because of how surprisingly it appeared for me and because I find it satisfying. If I said anymore, it would be a spoiler.

6. What is your most interesting writing quirk?

It used to be computer games. I used them to get past fear of the blank page. That was in graduate school, and I no longer need that trick. But if I am resisting writing, I often go to a library or café to change my environment into a space where I’ve had success before. It needn’t be my local library or favorite coffee house; there’s just something about the buzz of people and yet the anonymity that make such spaces work for me.

7. What is your usual writing routine?

No routine. But I do have an unusual process I use repeatedly. Some readers might be interested in my blog Cutting Out Fish which describes how I write vignettes and intercut them. Most writers seem to think it an odd process when I talk with them.

8. What is the highest goal that you desire to meet as an author?

I hope my readers are drawn in. When readers say they stayed up all night or that they were savoring the book so much they rationed their reading, I’m excited. When they ask for another book, I’m delighted and terrified; delighted by their desire and terrified that the inspiration will never come again.

9. Tell us three fun facts about yourself.

  • I gave up my car for four months last year so I could use the payment money to buy an electric bike, which allows me to go up the many hills along the coast.
  • I love flights of wine, especially reds.
  • I gave up cable a year ago and am incredibly happy about it.

10. Is there anything else you’d like to share with your readers?

As a first-time novelist I’m eager to find and talk to readers. I’d be thrilled to answer questions from readers who want to know more about particular aspects of Isolation or my writing process.

Connect with the Author

Website: http://denisestephenson.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeniseStephensonIsolation

 

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Dark Luminance by E.M. McDowell – Book Tour

19 Wednesday Mar 2014

Posted by Elizabeth McKenna - Author in Book Tour

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Adventure, Authors, Book Tour, Dystopian, Fantasy, Science Fiction

DL_blogtourDLSynopsis

Quantum energy. Unlimited power. Humanity’s salvation.

The Frameway Project promises all of this and more, and Mackland Luther is guiding the project to its final culmination. On the eve of what promises to be their biggest breakthrough, Mackland and his friends, Billy and Sean, prepare the test that will provide the almost limitless power needed to take the human race into the future.

Initial success and excitement quickly turn to horror as the Frame goes out of control, ripping Mackland and his friends from their world and depositing them in a world that is completely different yet strangely familiar. Along with Lily, a hard-charging security guard that was caught by the Frame along with them; and Grizzly, a rough yet gentle survivalist they meet in this new world, Mack and his friends must figure out some way to understand and undo whatever brought them here if they ever want to return to their own world.

But first they must survive an increasingly dangerous world full of undead drug addicts, giant mutants, and a relentless telepathic madman who will do anything to get his hands on the Frame for his own purposes.

Available here: Amazon, B&N

800_600_headshotAbout the Author

Born and raised in Northwest Indiana, E.M. McDowell first started writing in high school, consisting primarily of sappy poems aimed at impressing girls. A four year stint in the Marine Corps pushed literary endeavors to the background, where they remained for the next twenty-odd years, until they were uncovered by a mild mid-life crisis.

In the intervening years, he has worked in various technology jobs, and is currently the technology manager for a small county government.

Married for twenty-two years to his best friend, and blessed with two wonderful daughters, he works to balance his writing while living in a house full of women.

1. How did your life as a writer begin?

If I’m being honest, I’d say it was probably a mid-life crisis of sorts. I was tired of my daily job in the computer industry, but I didn’t want to take the risk of changing jobs. So in order to get a break from the monotony, I decided to go back to some creative writing ideas I had from high school. I always enjoyed writing poetry and stories, but life kind of got in the way, and I didn’t do any writing for over twenty years. So when I had this little mid-life crisis, I started writing, and Dark Luminance just kind of grew the more I wrote. About two months later, I felt like I had something that other people might want to read, so I began planning to publish, and here we are now!

2. What makes you feel inspired to write?

Once I began writing, it was as if the floodgates were opened, and the ideas for stories just kept popping up all around me. Now I have to write just to keep myself sane by letting the stories out into the light of day.

3. How did you come with the idea for your current story?

It first originated back around 1996, when I saw a TV show called “Sliders” which dealt with a group of people that wound up traveling between multiple universes as they searched for a way back home. I instantly found myself wondering what I would do if I had the ability to travel to an infinite number of universes. That ability to go anywhere, anytime, but with the restriction that you can’t really guide your travel was the original foundation for Dark Luminance.

4. Tell us about your writing process. Do you outline, or are you more of a seat of your pants type of a writer?

A little of both, actually. I have to do a basic outline before I start, just so that I can easily picture the entire story arc from a general perspective. It’s a 10,000 foot view, and very rough, but it gives me a framework that I feel comfortable with. Once I actually start the writing itself, things tend to be more free-flowing for the most part. I sit down for each scene and allow myself to see things through the eyes of the character experiencing it. I try to take myself out of the process as much as possible and let the story develop from there.

5. What is your favorite scene in the book? Why?

I’m a sucker for the fight scenes, which are the most fun to write, but my personal favorite is the first meeting with Grizzly. He was one of the products of the free-flowing process I talked about above, and I had no idea how he was going to turn out when I started that scene. I knew I wanted someone different from the existing characters, but Grizzly just kind of jumped out at me and took on a life of his own.

6. What is your most interesting writing quirk?

I always stop writing in the middle of a scene. I find it easier to pick up the thread again at that point. Sometimes it feels weird to stop part way through, but it works for me.

7. What is the highest goal that you desire to meet as an author?

Nothing fancy. I just want to write stories that I would like to read, and write them with enough skill that others enjoy them as much as I enjoy writing them.

8. Who is the one author that you would love to meet someday and why?

R.A. Salvatore. His dark elf novels are some of my all-time favorites, and I would like to spend a few minutes getting to know the man behind that kind of imagination.

9. What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?

The old adage “write what you love” is absolutely critical. If you don’t like what you are writing, your readers will know it. And don’t rush the process; let your story develop organically within yourself. It will be done when it is done.

10. Tell us three fun facts about yourself.

  • I do most of my writing in the world’s smallest man cave, it’s only 7 x 7.
  • I spend every weekend in the month of October with my daughters as zombies at a local haunted attraction called the Atlanta Zombie Apocalypse.
  • I have trouble thinking of three fun facts about myself.

11. What do you have in store next for your readers?

I have a short story called “Bad Seed” in an upcoming ASMSG Anthology called World of Worlds, which should be out in the next month or so. All of the authors in the anthology are great, and it’s free, so keep an eye out and pick it up for a great read! As I mentioned previously, I also have a YA Urban Fantasy novel, Urban Phoenix, which will hopefully be published late summer 2014. And of course, the sequel to Dark Luminance, Dark Nexxus, is currently in progress, and tentatively scheduled to be published in fall 2014.

12. Is there anything else you’d like to share with your readers?

Just to say thanks to everyone that has read Dark Luminance, and especially those that took the time to contact me with their thoughts and comments, or to leave a review on one of the many sites. Hearing how much others enjoy reading my stories makes it so much more exciting to sit down and put words on paper!

Thanks for having me, and I look forward to hearing from more of the readers in the future!

Excerpt from Dark Luminance by E.M. McDowell

Post-Experiment- Day 1

Where do I start? Nothing has gone the way I expected since we started the Frameway test last night. Or was it this morning?

I’m not sure of time or date, as everything seems to have changed when we ran the test and ended up—wherever…here is. Nothing seems to make sense yet, but maybe if I write down my observations, it will help me put the pieces together.

Everything appeared to be going fine with the test until the power surge. By the time Billy saw it and warned us, there wasn’t time to do anything about it. I haven’t had time to really discuss it with the others, but based on what happened to me, I can only guess that the Frameway pierced through nullspace and somehow pulled us through to some place else.

But where are we? Many of the buildings and landmarks are the same as the Pueblo we left, but…dead. Sounds melodramatic, but it’s the most accurate description I can come up with; silent and dark with an oppressive weight soaking into the night air. Moreover, since I don’t know of any dogs the size of bulls on Earth; I have to assume that we ended up in some kind of quantum copy of our own world. I’ll have to gather more information in the morning; right now, I just want to make sure we survive the night.

The bank seems like a safe enough location, although if another of those hellhounds decided to attack, I’m not sure if the plate glass is going to stop them. I’ve never seen anything like that before. It had to be at least eight-hundred pounds, with some type of mutated musculature that made it even stronger than its size would have indicated.

What kind of world creates a monster like that, anyway? And what else has it created?

Lily seems confident that we will be okay, and for some reason I trust her, even though I hardly know her. Something about her just puts me at ease, even in this crazy situation. If I’m honest, it might have something to do with the fact that she is pretty damn hot, but I think there is more to it. Anyway, we have more important issues, so my feelings don’t matter right now.

Tomorrow we’ll find out more about where we are and see if we can find anyone that can help us. Then we need to figure out how to get back home, if we can. I know if I can just get enough data, I can come up with a way to fix this. I have to.

I’ll try to keep this updated, for myself more than anything, but I guess if something happens and we don’t make it, this might give whoever finds it some idea of what we are going through. If you are that person, I am Dr. Mackland Luther, and it’s my fault we are in this mess.

Connect with the Author

Site: http://erinmcdowell.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authoremm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/E_M_McDowell

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When Luke is arrested for the murder of the head coach of his club softball team, Emma and Grace go up against cutthroat parents willing to kill for a chance to get their daughters onto a premier college sports team.

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