Here is my CONTEST. I have decided to award a FREE ebook copy of my contemporary romance novel, "OUTBACK LOVE," which is set in the Australian Outback, to the WINNER of this CONTEST. See entry rules below.
Priscilla Alexander is a city girl from San Francisco who desperately needs to get away from her high-stress advertising job and her dysfunctional parents who are getting a divorce after 30 years of marriage. So, in spite of the fact that Priscilla doesn't like to travel, anywhere, she decides to take a lengthy adventurous holiday through the Australian Outback. Alone.
Priscilla isn't interested in finding Mr. Right, particularly not in Australia, half a world away from her comfortable city life. But sometimes life doesn't go the way you have it planned.
Ian MacAlister, an Aussie who looks more like he should be wrestling crocodiles, isn't looking for his soul mate, particularly not stranded on a muddy Australian road. So what is he to do when he comes across Priscilla and her van which is stuck in the mud on a lonely highway?
Priscilla doesn't want Ian's help. And he doesn't want to help her. Only he feels obligated to come to the aid of a damsel in distress. Sparks fly and an adventure begins. Will Ian convince Pris that he really is her Mr. Right? Will Priscilla accept the fact that Ian is actually her one true love? Follow their romantic adventure through the Australian Outback.
ENTRY RULES: Now here's the deal with the CONTEST. I'm going to award a free ebook, Kindle copy, of my novel, "Outback Love," to the person with the best romantic destination. The contest will end next Tuesday at midnight on September 27th.
HOW TO ENTER: Tell me about your ideal romantic destination. Is it somewhere in the Caribbean? Or maybe in the South of France? Or what about the Scottish Highlands? Or maybe it's in you own backyard? The person who writes about the best, most unique, most romantic destination will win the free ebook, Kindle copy, of "Outback Love." Enter by posting a COMMENT below at the bottom of this blog post.
I'm going to invite my author friend, Ruth D. Kerce, to help me decide on the winner. Ruth has two new, really HOT, short story ebooks, "Into the Storm" and "G-String Gentleman," now available online at Amazon, Smashwords and Barnes&Noble.
The winner will be announced on my blog and also notified by email on Wednesday morning, September 28th. The link to the free ebook copy will be emailed to the winner. So please be sure that I have your email address.
Many thanks to all who decide to enter this CONTEST. I'm looking forward to hearing about your romantic destinations. I might even write a book set in your romantic locale.
Please note that "Outback Love" is available online at Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes&Noble and Apple. My ebook, "Jetting Away," a short story prequel to "Outback Love" is also available at the same online venues. Both "Outback Love" and "Jetting Away" can be read as stand-alones, but I hope that my readers will enjoy both books.
"Outback Love" was inspired by a three week long, 5000 mile trip, that my husband and I took a few years back through the Australian Outback and other parts of Australia. The trip was a wonderful, grand, exciting adventure. I feel very fortunate for having the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel there. Australia is a beautiful, exotic country. Definitely a romantic place to visit. According to my baby sister, Lisa, it's also a great place to live and raise a family, as she's been living there for the last three years.
I hope you all enjoy reading my books, "Outback Love" and "Jetting Away." Also, my newest release, a paranormal vampire/witch/ghost novella, "Moon Over Madness," should be available online in early October.
Showing posts with label Outback Australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Outback Australia. Show all posts
Friday, September 23, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
Looking for Readers/Reviewers for "Outback Love"
One of the things new authors need more than anything else is readers who are willing to review their books. For that reason, I am offering a free copy of my debut novel, "Outback Love," to the first few people who respond to my request. It will be a Kindle Edition and sent to your email address. Since I have to pay for these copies, I will only be able to send a few free copies. In return, I would appreciate it if the reader would follow up with a review on Amazon/Kindle. Of course, I can not force you to write the review, but hope that you will do so in return.
As a new indie author, I don't know if this is the appropriate way to do things. So please understand where I am coming from here. I wrote what I believe is a very entertaining novel, a contemporary romance set in the Australian Outback. This book was a labor of love inspired by an adventurous three week, 5000 mile trip my husband and I took through Australia a few years back. It was a grand adventure and I write about all the locales we visited on our trip.
Priscilla Alexander is a city girl from San Francisco who never travels anywhere. However, her high-stress job, in addition to family problems, drives her to escape as far away as she can get. So Priscilla ends up in Australia with an old conversion van and a plan to drive through the Outback on her own. Only her vehicle gets stuck in the mud at the very start of her trip and things after that don't go quite as planned.
Ian MacAlister, who comes across Priscilla and her van, doesn't have time to help a damsel in distress. On the other hand, he still feels obligated to help her out. Priscilla doesn't want Ian's help. He looks too dangerous to her. Besides, she's an independent female and believes she can do everything on her own.
"Outback Love" is the story of Priscilla and Ian and their trip through the Australian Outback. Priscilla fears she has found her Mr. Right, but at a time and a place that is totally wrong. Will Ian be able to convince Priscilla and himself that they're meant to be together? Please read "Outback Love" to find out.
As I've already said, if you'd like to be both a reader and reviewer, please let me know. I'm anxious to hear from you.
As a new indie author, I don't know if this is the appropriate way to do things. So please understand where I am coming from here. I wrote what I believe is a very entertaining novel, a contemporary romance set in the Australian Outback. This book was a labor of love inspired by an adventurous three week, 5000 mile trip my husband and I took through Australia a few years back. It was a grand adventure and I write about all the locales we visited on our trip.
Priscilla Alexander is a city girl from San Francisco who never travels anywhere. However, her high-stress job, in addition to family problems, drives her to escape as far away as she can get. So Priscilla ends up in Australia with an old conversion van and a plan to drive through the Outback on her own. Only her vehicle gets stuck in the mud at the very start of her trip and things after that don't go quite as planned.
Ian MacAlister, who comes across Priscilla and her van, doesn't have time to help a damsel in distress. On the other hand, he still feels obligated to help her out. Priscilla doesn't want Ian's help. He looks too dangerous to her. Besides, she's an independent female and believes she can do everything on her own.
"Outback Love" is the story of Priscilla and Ian and their trip through the Australian Outback. Priscilla fears she has found her Mr. Right, but at a time and a place that is totally wrong. Will Ian be able to convince Priscilla and himself that they're meant to be together? Please read "Outback Love" to find out.
As I've already said, if you'd like to be both a reader and reviewer, please let me know. I'm anxious to hear from you.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
"Outback Love" - The Story Behind the Story - Part 1
It was very exciting this morning to see that my debut ebook, "Outback Love," is now available at BarnesandNoble.com. This is one more milestone for a new indie author. "Outback Love" should soon be available online at Kobo, Sony, Apple and Diesel. Now all I need is some more readers.
For those who don't already know, "Outback Love" was inspired by a three week, 5000 mile road-trip, my husband Ben and I took through the Australian Outback a few years ago. It was a grand adventure that we began in the end of June, which was the beginning of winter in Australia.
We arrived in Melbourne, New South Wales, Australia in the middle of the night following a 13 1/2 hour flight from Los Angeles, California. We were tired, exhausted, ready to get some sleep, because I'm never able to sleep on a plane. Unfortunately, our new luggage was damaged in flight due to a hydraulic fuel leak on the plane. So here we were in the middle of the night with an oily mess of luggage. When we unzipped the luggage, much to our horror, at least half of our clothes were covered in that same oily mess.
It took close to an hour to convince the airline that they were responsible for the damage. Finally they handed us a bunch of red, white and blue striped, zippered bags and told us to put whatever we wanted to keep in those bags. Then they took our two duffel-style roller suitcases and gave us a receipt. We were told to come back at 9:00 the next morning to receive a check for $200 in damages.
I then called the hotel I had booked to ask for the free transportation that was part of our hotel stay. Only the desk clerk who answered said they didn't do airport pick-ups after midnight. Huh? No one mentioned that when the hotel was booked. Well, the next step was to get a cab. Only it turned out the cabbies wouldn't accept American dollars and the money exchange booth at the airport was long since closed for the night.
At this point I was about ready to sit down and cry. I had done all the bookings for this trip and it was all starting out bad. Then a Good Samaritan stepped forward in the form of a friendly, middle-aged, Australian business man. This kind man said he'd listened to our whole ordeal over the luggage, no transportation from the hotel to pick us up and now no Australian money to get a cab. He handed me a twenty in Australian dollars and assured me that would be enough for the cab ride to the hotel. I tried to offer him American dollars in exchange and he declined. He said that sometime down the line I was to help out another stranded tourist in return. Definitely a "pay it forward" kind of agreement.
Totally exhausted, we finally made it to the hotel. By this time we were well into the wee hours of the morning. After a quick shower we fell asleep in very hard twin beds. No, I hadn't requested twin beds, but the desk clerk said all the doubles were already taken. I managed to fall asleep in spite of the hard mattress.
My husband's older sister, Barb, and her husband, Dick, were traveling with us. They'd managed to sleep on the plane so hadn't been as tired. Their luggage and clothes were not damaged by hydraulic fluid. Though their hotel room also had hard twin beds.
In the morning I was counting our blessings. Only half of our clothes were oily. So the oily clothes were in separate striped bags from the good clothes. We'd traveled pretty light, so we didn't have much of a wearable wardrobe. We got some weak coffee for breakfast, but that was better than nothing, but no food was available. I swear that when I booked with that hotel they'd advertised a free continental breakfast.
To make a long story short, we exchanged some money at the front desk so we could all take a cab to the airport. Then, after a little haggling, we finally got our check for $200 U.S. Then another cab ride to the rental place where we were supposed to pick up our rental conversion van to start our trip through Australia. My husband, who was going to do all the driving, noticed immediately that the van's four tires plus the spare were all bald. We weren't about to venture into the Outback in a vehicle with bald tires. So after more haggling the rental people agreed to put new tires on the van. Only we had to wait in their lobby for several hours while that was done.
It was mid afternoon before we were ready to start out. I was very apprehensive by that time. I'd planned our trip day by day, having figured out how many miles we could travel each day and had booked all the hotels in advance. We had our doubts about making it to that night's destination. Because of the long delay waiting for the tires we didn't get to visit the sights I'd planned for us to see in Melbourne. We had to head out immediately and didn't even have time to search for a market where we could stock up with some food and other supplies.
I think at this point Ben, Barb and Dick were not that happy with me. With the trip starting out this way, what would happen next? I had my fingers crossed and I was praying that the rest of the trip would go smoothly.
Please continue to check back to read the rest of "The Story Behind the Story" of "Outback Love."
For those who don't already know, "Outback Love" was inspired by a three week, 5000 mile road-trip, my husband Ben and I took through the Australian Outback a few years ago. It was a grand adventure that we began in the end of June, which was the beginning of winter in Australia.
We arrived in Melbourne, New South Wales, Australia in the middle of the night following a 13 1/2 hour flight from Los Angeles, California. We were tired, exhausted, ready to get some sleep, because I'm never able to sleep on a plane. Unfortunately, our new luggage was damaged in flight due to a hydraulic fuel leak on the plane. So here we were in the middle of the night with an oily mess of luggage. When we unzipped the luggage, much to our horror, at least half of our clothes were covered in that same oily mess.
It took close to an hour to convince the airline that they were responsible for the damage. Finally they handed us a bunch of red, white and blue striped, zippered bags and told us to put whatever we wanted to keep in those bags. Then they took our two duffel-style roller suitcases and gave us a receipt. We were told to come back at 9:00 the next morning to receive a check for $200 in damages.
I then called the hotel I had booked to ask for the free transportation that was part of our hotel stay. Only the desk clerk who answered said they didn't do airport pick-ups after midnight. Huh? No one mentioned that when the hotel was booked. Well, the next step was to get a cab. Only it turned out the cabbies wouldn't accept American dollars and the money exchange booth at the airport was long since closed for the night.
At this point I was about ready to sit down and cry. I had done all the bookings for this trip and it was all starting out bad. Then a Good Samaritan stepped forward in the form of a friendly, middle-aged, Australian business man. This kind man said he'd listened to our whole ordeal over the luggage, no transportation from the hotel to pick us up and now no Australian money to get a cab. He handed me a twenty in Australian dollars and assured me that would be enough for the cab ride to the hotel. I tried to offer him American dollars in exchange and he declined. He said that sometime down the line I was to help out another stranded tourist in return. Definitely a "pay it forward" kind of agreement.
Totally exhausted, we finally made it to the hotel. By this time we were well into the wee hours of the morning. After a quick shower we fell asleep in very hard twin beds. No, I hadn't requested twin beds, but the desk clerk said all the doubles were already taken. I managed to fall asleep in spite of the hard mattress.
My husband's older sister, Barb, and her husband, Dick, were traveling with us. They'd managed to sleep on the plane so hadn't been as tired. Their luggage and clothes were not damaged by hydraulic fluid. Though their hotel room also had hard twin beds.
In the morning I was counting our blessings. Only half of our clothes were oily. So the oily clothes were in separate striped bags from the good clothes. We'd traveled pretty light, so we didn't have much of a wearable wardrobe. We got some weak coffee for breakfast, but that was better than nothing, but no food was available. I swear that when I booked with that hotel they'd advertised a free continental breakfast.
To make a long story short, we exchanged some money at the front desk so we could all take a cab to the airport. Then, after a little haggling, we finally got our check for $200 U.S. Then another cab ride to the rental place where we were supposed to pick up our rental conversion van to start our trip through Australia. My husband, who was going to do all the driving, noticed immediately that the van's four tires plus the spare were all bald. We weren't about to venture into the Outback in a vehicle with bald tires. So after more haggling the rental people agreed to put new tires on the van. Only we had to wait in their lobby for several hours while that was done.
It was mid afternoon before we were ready to start out. I was very apprehensive by that time. I'd planned our trip day by day, having figured out how many miles we could travel each day and had booked all the hotels in advance. We had our doubts about making it to that night's destination. Because of the long delay waiting for the tires we didn't get to visit the sights I'd planned for us to see in Melbourne. We had to head out immediately and didn't even have time to search for a market where we could stock up with some food and other supplies.
I think at this point Ben, Barb and Dick were not that happy with me. With the trip starting out this way, what would happen next? I had my fingers crossed and I was praying that the rest of the trip would go smoothly.
Please continue to check back to read the rest of "The Story Behind the Story" of "Outback Love."
Sunday, August 21, 2011
"Outback Love"
I'm really excited about the ePub of my debut novel, Outback Love, a contemporary romance set in the Australian Outback, which is now available as an ebook on Amazon.com. It's currently listed for .99 cents, which is a bargain in this economy. Please buy my book today and help out a "starving writer." That said ... I had a fun time writing Outback Love and hope that you will have just as much fun reading my story.
Priscilla Alexander, a city girl from San Francisco, is taking an extended vacation, alone, through the Australian Outback. She is not looking for Mr. Right, not in Australia and not in the Outback. But Ian MacAlister, an Aussie hunk wearing a bush hat adorned with crocodile teeth, comes to her aid. Will Priscilla decide that Ian is her Mr. Right after all? Will Ian decide he wants to fill that forever role in Priscilla's life? Please read this story of Priscilla and Ian's romp through Australia and the Outback as they struggle with their momentous decision to stay together or walk/run away.
The inspiration for Outback Love was a 3 week, 5,000 mile journey through the Australian Outback which I took with my husband, Ben, a few years back. It was a grand adventure and many of the locales we visited are written into the book. We traveled the Outback in a conversion van and actually stayed at all the hotels and motels I wrote about. We came back home with bunches of photos, a very long home-movie and lots of memories and dreams. Would we venture back to Australia and the Outback? Yes, in a minute, only we'd take more time to visit all those places we missed in the first trip.
As far as writing goes, I've been writing since my grammar school days. I had a vivid imagination even then and wrote about cowboys and Indians, traveling the Oregon Trail, dogs, horses and adventures.
I'm so excited that, with today's technology, books can now be published as ebooks. So Outback Love is my debut novel on Amazon.com. It's now available as a download to your Kindle, PC, iPhone, Blackberry, Nook or any other eReader. If you don't own a Kindle, then just download the free Kindle Reader App from Amazon.com. It's a wonderful way to enjoy reading.
Outback Love should be available on Smashwords.com within the next few days or so. I'll be sure to announce it here on my Blog when that happens.
I'm currently working on my next novel, Murder on Sunday Beach, which is a mystery/romance set on the Florida Panhandle amidst the white sugar-sand beaches and turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico. This is the first book in the Abby Love Mystery Series, which should be available on Amazon.com and Smashwords.com in the next few weeks.
My husband, Ben Heyer, and I also wrote a Futuristic/Thriller, Firefall, which will be offered on the same venues as Outback Love. The trilogy, which should be available in the fall, is Firefall: The Rising (Book 1), Firefall: The Journey (Book 2) and Firefall: The Dawn (Book 3). I'm working on the final edits now.
In future posts I'll be adding some of the photos I took in Australia, in addition to photos of our beautiful Gulf Coast beaches.
Please check back to hear the latest news on my writing, future ePubs, and adventures.
You can read more on my Facebook page and my Amazon Author's Page.
Priscilla Alexander, a city girl from San Francisco, is taking an extended vacation, alone, through the Australian Outback. She is not looking for Mr. Right, not in Australia and not in the Outback. But Ian MacAlister, an Aussie hunk wearing a bush hat adorned with crocodile teeth, comes to her aid. Will Priscilla decide that Ian is her Mr. Right after all? Will Ian decide he wants to fill that forever role in Priscilla's life? Please read this story of Priscilla and Ian's romp through Australia and the Outback as they struggle with their momentous decision to stay together or walk/run away.
The inspiration for Outback Love was a 3 week, 5,000 mile journey through the Australian Outback which I took with my husband, Ben, a few years back. It was a grand adventure and many of the locales we visited are written into the book. We traveled the Outback in a conversion van and actually stayed at all the hotels and motels I wrote about. We came back home with bunches of photos, a very long home-movie and lots of memories and dreams. Would we venture back to Australia and the Outback? Yes, in a minute, only we'd take more time to visit all those places we missed in the first trip.
As far as writing goes, I've been writing since my grammar school days. I had a vivid imagination even then and wrote about cowboys and Indians, traveling the Oregon Trail, dogs, horses and adventures.
I'm so excited that, with today's technology, books can now be published as ebooks. So Outback Love is my debut novel on Amazon.com. It's now available as a download to your Kindle, PC, iPhone, Blackberry, Nook or any other eReader. If you don't own a Kindle, then just download the free Kindle Reader App from Amazon.com. It's a wonderful way to enjoy reading.
Outback Love should be available on Smashwords.com within the next few days or so. I'll be sure to announce it here on my Blog when that happens.
I'm currently working on my next novel, Murder on Sunday Beach, which is a mystery/romance set on the Florida Panhandle amidst the white sugar-sand beaches and turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico. This is the first book in the Abby Love Mystery Series, which should be available on Amazon.com and Smashwords.com in the next few weeks.
My husband, Ben Heyer, and I also wrote a Futuristic/Thriller, Firefall, which will be offered on the same venues as Outback Love. The trilogy, which should be available in the fall, is Firefall: The Rising (Book 1), Firefall: The Journey (Book 2) and Firefall: The Dawn (Book 3). I'm working on the final edits now.
In future posts I'll be adding some of the photos I took in Australia, in addition to photos of our beautiful Gulf Coast beaches.
Please check back to hear the latest news on my writing, future ePubs, and adventures.
You can read more on my Facebook page and my Amazon Author's Page.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)