Splashdown News, February 2012

Kia Ora!

Splashdown Books is ready to dive right into the deep end in 2012. This promises to be one of our most exciting swims yet and we are glad you've decided to join us. The water looks fine and the sun is shining bright. Take off your shoes and stay a while.

To start this year's swim we have Diane M Graham readying from the high-dive.

Open your heart and mind to the simplicity and complexity of a name.
I know only my name. Beyond that is confusion, a void where fantasy and reality swirl together. Fairies, Giants, Elves, Dwarves, ancient Keepers, and...Dragons?

A dark soul threatens the Five Kingdoms, but I am powerless to stand against him, overwhelmed by phantom memories, broken and lost.

Somehow, I must live. I must find my purpose. There are friends to love and battles to fight.

I know my name. Perhaps that is enough.

I am Ocilla.
This is my story.

A note from Di: A writer’s life is often said to be a lonely life. But any Christian writer knows this isn’t so. God walks with us from the time He plants the seed of inspiration, through the countless hours of writing, rewriting,editing and then sometimes rewriting again. He sends helpers. We tend to never feel our work is fully complete. Another sweep, just one more time to make sure all the T’s are crossed and all the I’s are dotted. But there comes a time when He tells us it is time to show our work to the world. He holds our hand while we walk to the edgeof the gaping chasm known as publication and He tells us to jump.

Gulp!

You turn right and left and see all the many Saints He sentto help you and you are emboldened and filled with hope. On faith, and faith alone,you jump.

So today, I stand at that chasm and look at all those thathave been sent to help me lined for miles in each direction. I may soar. I mayfloat to the bottom. But no matter what, He is with me.

I jump.

I Am Ocilla is available for purchase at Amazon, Kindle Store, Barnes & Noble, Nook (coming soon), Book Depository (coming soon), and Smashwords. You can just click over to Splashdown Bookshop for more information. We have a wonderful sale going on we will tell you about below.

Also, if you would like to hear the prologue read by Diane, you may do so HERE on youtube.

The wonderful music for Diane's audio recording was provided by friend of Splashdown Books Eleon. For more of his excellent music, you can find his page on youtube right HERE.

Ryan Grabow gives us a double-backflip with a wonderful book trailer for CAFFEINE:

"Supernatural: above, beyond, in excess of nature. If the meaning of life cannot be found in nature, then I must determine if the answer lies beyond it."

Caffeine will also take part in our special sale we will tell you about below, but not just yet.

Next we have a the long awaited Sparrow-dive, similiar to a swan-dive but more awesome, from Caprice Hokstad. The e-book will be available on March 1st, with the print copy coming two short weeks later.

What should be a season of rejoicing over Duke Vahn’s newly-recovered son is overshadowed by fear of an uncertain future. Vahn’s brother, King Arx, expands the war with neighboring Ganluc, while enemies at home seek to shatter the Rebono dynasty forever. Strained relations between royal twins harden into cold suspicion and treasonous accusations while a deadly plague sweeps across the land.


As the royal bloodline is torn asunder, two races, the Elva and Itzi, discover that only together can they stop the plague and restore their unraveling kingdom.


Blood and Brine: the exciting conclusion to the Ascendancy Trilogy.

A little teaser for my upcoming release.... "Caprice is truly a master world builder. This was the firstbook in her series that I read, but within a few chapters I felt like I’d beenreading in that universe my whole life. Now that I finished I’m going back toget the first two in the series!" ~ Tim Abrose , Managing Editor, DigitalDragon Magazine

Avenir has its own music. Yes, you read right and the world you have grown to love can now be swirled with the wonderful musical talent of Eleon.

Michael L. Rogers has created a soundtrack to accompany the online multi-author shared world microfiction site Avenir Eclectia. Hear the songs, read the stories. Published in association with Splashdown Books.
Available now at Amazon in cd and mp3

And please remember you can have Avenir Eclectia delivered to you kindle for just $.99 cents each month.

Also, something very exciting is in the works which we can't tell you anything about yet, but watch this space!

Now, what you have all been waiting for: To celebrate I Am Ocilla's launch, her ebook is on sale at 4.99 for one week only. Our Kindle store is here: http://astore.amazon.com/splasbooks-20 and Ocilla is HERE so you may take advantage of this super cool deal.

But wait! There is so much more. In addition, the Splashdown team has rallied and several more are adding to the party by selling their e-books at a discounted price.

Also for $4.99.
-Alpha Redemption by P.A. Baines
-Finding Angel by Kat Heckenbach
-Faith Awakened and Legendary Space Pilgrims by Grace Bridges

For just $2.99/ You read right...$2.99.

-CAFFEINE by Ryan Grabow

-The Duke's Handmaid and Nor Iron Bars a Cage by Caprice Hokstad. These are the first two in the trilogy and a great chance to get ready for her third.
- The Crystal Portal by Travis Perry & Mike Lynch.
- Tales of the Dim Knight by Adam & Andrea Graham

- Odd Little Miracles by Fred Warren.
- Aquasynthesis by the Splashdown Team.

Please note: if you want a format other than Kindle for any of the titles on sale, just let us know and we'll send you a voucher for Smashwords where all types of files are available, including PDF for computer reading, Epub for Nook, and many more.

Don't go anywhere yet. Tucked over in the corner, behind the seaweed, Keven Newsome, Diane M Graham and Caprice Hokstad have been up to no good. Seems they have been betting in the most ridiculous ways imaginable. All in good spirit, though. Keven and Diane have a plot bet going in which the loser will have to post a video on youtube, dancing, singing and being silly. You can see the details HERE. And Caprice stuck her foot in her mouth...Diane happily helped her cram it down a little more by holding her to it. You can read about how Caprice will channel her inner Disney right HERE. No one can ever say Splashdown Books is a boring place to work. Stay tuned for updates and a chance for all of you to join in on the fun.

As all of you have read, we are busy, busy splashing around these parts. There is never a dull moment. Can't wait until next month when we can tell you more about skirted men and Turtles.

~The Splashdown Team

**This issue was written by a Crazy-Hair Vaulter**

News for January 2012

Kia Ora everyone! I hope you enjoyed the festive season. I for one am glad to be starting a new year that promises to be very different in more ways than one - my day job of translation will be in an office for six months, instead of working from home. But we have a whole lot of exciting stuff planned with Splashdown! There's a Kindle freebie for you today and tomorrow, so keep reading :)

2011 was a huge year for us, publishing 9 books and bringing our total to 16. Yep, it may not seem like much, but for a micro-sized team, I think it's pretty cool - and I'm grateful to everyone who helped make it possible. You can check them all out in our bookshop: www.splashdownbooks.com/bookshop

Fiction Awards Voting Time!

Despite the name, I am not affiliated in any way with the Grace Awards ;) but I'd sure love for you to vote if you enjoyed one of our books. Here's what to include, according to instructions at www.grace-awards.com:

- Link to your Facebook profile (or any other kind of online profile; your page must have existed before November 2011)

- Speculative Fiction: Title/Author

- Why you liked it (at least 25 words)

Send all this to graceawards@aol.com. You may only vote once in each category, so choose carefully!

Our eligible titles for this year's contest are:

Reality's Dawn and Reality's Ascent by R. L. Copple

The Crystal Portal by Travis Perry and Mike Lynch

Winter by Keven Newsome

Finding Angel by Kat Heckenbach (Also eligible for the YA category!)

The Seer by Fred Warren

Caffeine by Ryan Grabow

(Anthologies aren't eligible, so don't vote for those!)

There's also the Family Fiction Readers' Choice Awards, with several categories to vote in, such as best author, best novel, best NEW author, etc. You can leave categories blank if you don't have favourites. There's one for short stories so if you're fond of Aquasynthesis or Odd Little Miracles, you can put them there. And there's even a category for best video trailer (remember Winter, anyone? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5r8Lb6Er_A).

To vote in this award, go here:

http://www.familyfiction.com/news/vote-in-the-2012-familyfiction-readers-choice-awards/

Preparing for an awesome year!

We have another full year of stupendous stories coming up for you, beginning very shortly with I Am Ocilla by Diane M. Graham. This young adult fantasy novel was a winner of the legendary Marcher Lord Select contest in 2009 - and guess what, she's been making it even better ever since! I bet you're going to love it.

After that comes the grand finale to Caprice Hokstad's Ascendancy Trilogy: Blood and Brine. Return with us to the kingdom of Latoph where Duke Vahn fights for his life and that of his people - in more ways than one.

And much more, of course! Details forthcoming. Science fiction, supernatural, young adult fantasy, and more sequels to books you have loved!

FREE KINDLE STORY

That's right! If you've read this far, you get to join in the fun and grab a retro tale by yours truly. Invasion is one of the first short stories I wrote as an adult, around the time I was finishing work on my first novel. Religious content is fairly strong in this one, so give it a miss if you're sensitive. Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006UI73CO

You don't even need a Kindle e-reader - you can view it directly in the Kindle Cloud Reader online, or download Kindle apps for PC, Mac or smartphone.

This free offer is for today and tomorrow only - Saturday and Sunday! Ends Sunday midnight, Pacific time. And - if you like it, leave me some stars!

This is the first in a series I've christened Splashdown Droplets - the bite-sized weirdness of my own short stories, possibly to be joined by other Splashdown authors in the near future. See them all here: http://amzn.to/z0KnAj and watch for new ones coming out.

We'll be back next month with Ocilla, more Kindle goodies, AND something else we've never done before! So stay tuned.

All the best, and happy reading, from the (rather wet) Kiwi summer!

Grace

Splashdown News: WINTER is here!

Science Fiction and Fantasy from New Zealand

and now: Supernatural!

Kia Ora everyone!

Welcome to another exciting month with Splashdown. Winter has arrived downunder and we're in the grip of a chill! But Winter can come to those of you in the north as well: Winter, the novel, that is. And with it the launch of our new imprint Splashdown Darkwater, for the supernatural side of fiction - dare to go deeper. We're excited!

"It's been four and a half years since the first words of Winter were written. I started this book as a hack wannabe, but somewhere along the road I learned enough about writing to get Splashdown to notice. And then my editors promptly reminded me that I still had a long way to go! But writing is rewriting, and being an author is a process of growing and learning. I am a better writer today than I was just two months ago. And I will be a better writer still, by the end of the summer.

Winter is the story of a broken and unlovable person being transformed by God into something amazing. It's fun, suspenseful, and heart-breaking. Please join me as we officially begin the journey into Winter's extraordinary life...a journey that will take several years as the series progresses. Writing this book changed me. And it is my hope that you'll close the cover, gently set the book on the table, and sigh...having been changed just a little, too."

--Keven Newsome

AMAZON CAMPAIGN

Amazon updates its bestseller lists every hour, and we'd like to be on one! So, if you plan to order Winter with us on June 1, could you plan to do it between 5-8 pm Central time? And if possible, narrow it further and order in the 7 o'clock hour.Order as many as you want - don't forget shipping is free if you order two copies! Invite your friends and family! Order for birthdays and Christmas! Let's make this a day to remember!

Link: Winter on Amazon

THE MAKING OF...

You've seen the Winter trailer. Now you can see behind the scenes and even see parts that didn't make it into the final version. Meet the cast and crew, find out how to make fake blood, and hear the demon-fighting heroine extol the virtues of her favourite drink!

http://www.facebook.com/v/2055179464390 (no login required)

AUTHOR CHAT

The Launch Party for Winter is in the usual place: http://tinychat.com/splashdown (no login required, or you can use Facebook or Twitter) at 8pm Central time on Thursday June 2nd. Come along, join in the fun, talk with the author and publisher, maybe even some editors, and yes, we'll be doing some ebook giveaways right there in chat as well - starting with the person who brings the most friends!

FANS OF CAPRICE HOKSTAD

Caprice is gearing up to begin writing Book 3 of the Ascendancy Trilogy, the long-awaited follow-on to Nor Iron Bars a Cage. Are you as curious as I am to see what Duke Vahn and Keedrina make of the kingdom? Now's your chance. Check out Caprice's blog post here and sign up to receive the chapters as she writes them! How cool is that!

COMING IN JULY

Odd Little Miracles, a collection of 22 short stories by Fred Warren... You may have read a few of these online, or even quite a lot, but now we gather them together into a book for the first time! From wizards to aliens, funny to pensive, this collection is one you won't want to miss. In print: $5.98 and as an ebook: $2.99.

That's all for today, folks... but be watching for some cool news about the Avenir Eclectia project real soon!

Grace

www.splashdownbooks.com

check out this new Eleon album... http://eleonmusic.virb.com/little-stepping-stones

The Duke's Handmaid gets a New Cover!

I recently signed a contract with Splashdown Books to re-release my previously self-published novels in the Ascendancy Trilogy, The Duke's Handmaid and its sequel, Nor Iron Bars a Cage. The new cover for book one appears above.

The twin suns picture was part of the package I paid for when I self-published with Xulon Press, so you will see that on all the old covers. But we wanted something that made the new cover standout as different as well as a way to tie-in the first book with the second. (If you go to my website, you can see the older versions, which will probably continue to be available until the new ones come out.) So Grace framed the suns-set picture with a burlap background [which will also frame something in the sequel] and then we discussed adding an extra item of visual interest which would capture a plot element.

The plot of the first book includes a magical key (as well as a character named "Kee") so we settled on adding a key. But deciding we wanted a key and finding one that would look like it belonged in my fantasy world of Byntar was a much more daunting task than we had ever imagined. After both of us scoured the internet to no avail, Grace decided to appeal to the Lost Genre Guild for a lead on an artist to create something suitable. Kat Heckenbach stepped up to the plate and drew us the key of our dreams.

So the new cover features Kat's key and I couldn't be happier with it. Look for second edition (newly edited and revised!) of The Duke's Handmaid sometime this summer. Watch this blog for news on the exact release date.

Welcome to Caprice Hokstad!

Yes, the portentous envelope arrived in my mailbox in recent days, bearing the signed contract. So now I can announce to you the identity of Splashdown's second author, and I'm very excited to do so.

Caprice is first and foremost a wonderful writer, but also a longtime stalwart of the Lost Genre Guild and the Christian Fiction Review Blog. She's a homeschooling mother, expert seamstress, and very helpful whenever I need something edited.

Now in this case we have the unusual circumstance that I will be republishing Caprice's two books: The Duke's Handmaid and Nor Iron Bars A Cage. Both have been out for a number of years, but have tragically not received the success of which I believe they are utterly worthy. So I'm going to throw all of my marketing power at them and see if we can't get a better result for these marvellous stories.

The two books are fantasy, set on a world of two races, with two suns and two moons and encircling the romance between the Duke Vahn and the peasant Keedrina who seeks to be his servant. The style is very allegorical in places, and every word is a carefully-cut diamond - every reason for me to back these books.

Of course, I also hope that their success will in turn lead to Caprice completing the third book in the trilogy. And she also writes sci-fi, a fact to make my geekish heart glow.

I'm giving her free rein to post on this blog, the same as Fred, so look out for her here soon!