Apparitions is Released!

The two year journey I've had with Apparitions has finally began anew - in print form! I'm happy to say it was released today by ArcheBooks and is available for pre-sale!

To check it out, along with sample chapters, go to the book page here.

They're also offering Apparitions for $6 off the cover price - which is a pretty good deal!

It'll hit Amazon.com, Shocklines, Barns and Noble.com and bookstores at the end of June.

If you read it, please let me know what you think. I believe that readers mold writers and so, your opinions matter!

Enjoy,
~Raven

Apparitions' Cover Art!

The cover art for Apparitions is set! It's made by the ever impressive, talented Lain, otherwise known as Mr. B, Hashy or the Hubby-type.*drum roll*



Bob, my publisher, made a neat scene for the back too. I don't have that picture though. But imagine a forest shrouded in mist with a nasty dead chick on it. muahah.

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About the author -

Raven Bower is the author of the horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks, May 2007)

Nudge of the Week

Sometimes all our minds need to get fired up and in gear for writing is a little nudge. Each week I'll be posting new nudges that I use to kick my muse in gear and help improve my writing. Feel free to try them out yourself! I repeat them now and again to compare how I did before to how I do now.

Enjoy!

Detail

Good writing involves the ability to not only pay attention to detail, but, to remember those details later. This nudge helps to teach yourself how to absorb details and recall them.

Choose an object, this can be anything you want but try for something you don't always look at. Stare at it for 1 minute and note all the details you can - shape, shadows, texture, smell, etc.

After a minute turn away from it, close your eyes and try to remember it. Write out all the details you can remember. When you can't think of any more, return to the object and see how you did.

Almost...Done

Galleys are almost done. My publisher, Bob, and I decided to re-do the last chapter. It's muuuch more dastardly than the original. Muahahahahah

When we're done tweaking and editing the final chapter, then off to the printers!

For right now I'm going to go find my eyeballs while Bob checks out the new ending. They seem to have fallen out of my head...so be careful where you step please...

The Galleys Are Here!

My galleys came last night! YAY!!! I'm editing through Chapter Six and I'll keep at it til it's done. So far I've liked the changes my publisher made - all very good calls.

I have to give a hats off to all the editors of the world...Kudos guys. You must have eyeballs of solid steel. Mine are about to fall out of my head and this is just one manuscript. I can't imagine doing this all day every day.

Anyways I must get back to it. I'll be slow or absent for a few days while I get it done, but I will eventually respond :)

___________________
About the author -

Raven Bower is the author of the upcoming horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks May 2007)

News From The HWA

n an effort to promote its members, the Horror Writers Association has launched Dark Whispers, an electronic newsletter aimed at librarians and booksellers.

Dark Whispers will deliver news about new releases from HWA members on a monthly basis. Vanity press publications are excluded from inclusion in Dark Whispers.

To get this project off the ground and gauge interest, Dark Whispers will begin as a Yahoo group.

Although the target audience is librarians and book sellers, anyone is welcome to join the list.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hwa_dark_whispers/

ArcheBookZine!

My publisher, ArcheBooks, just made an announcement today – they are doing something new and spiffy in the book world! Imagine all the adventures of a book in magazine format (minus the annoying advertisements) and you have the new ArcheBookZine. So check out ArcheBookZines.

Check for all ArcheBooks' titles in the ArcheBookZine format.

And may I take a moment to encourage you to check out John DeDakis' mystery suspense novel, Fast Track, also available in the new format. I've read Fast Track and let me tell you, John's writing is fast! He starts out with a whopper of a beginning (talk about not being able to walk away…) and doesn't let go until the end. So if you like fast, like mystery, suspense and want to know a wonderful character named Lark – check it out!

He's also working on the sequel. If you like Fast Track visit his site and email him…tell him to get the sequel out! (that's a purely selfish request btw…as I want to see Lark again :) )

___________________
About the author:

Raven Bower is the author of the upcoming horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks May 2007)

Pirates of the Caribbean!!!!

It's coming out...soon!!! May 25th they say...YAY!!!!!!!

Ok ok...I'll calm down. But I love this series and I've been waiting since Jack was swollowed to see this next one! I might even make Lain take me to go see it in the theater - which we never have done except for the LoTR series. That should tell you how geeked I am.

_________________
About the author -

Raven Bower is the author of the upcoming horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks 2007)

GenreCon - News off of LightSpeed PressWire!

FANTASY SCIENCE FICTION/All Ages/GenreCon 2007/GenreCon 2007 Final List of Panels and Authors


SARNIA, Ont., May 3/LPW – The annual Fantasy Science Fiction Horror gathering, GenreCon, has finalized the list of panels and participants. GenreCon will be held May 12, 2007, at the Sarnia Branch of the Lambton County Library.

Final list of Panels and Panelists:

12 p.m. Genre Jumping a Good or Bad Idea?

Moderator Sarah Zettel, Robert J. Sawyer, Kelley Armstrong, Steve Climer, Jean Rae Baxter

Does writing in more than genre increase or decrease the success of your writing career? If you do jump genres what are the best ways to do it and what are things to avoid? What are some examples of successful and unsuccessful attempts to jump genres?

1 p.m Spear Carriers: The Characters Other Than the Hero

Moderator Jeff DeLuzio, John McFetridge, Peggy Herron, Dennis Collins, Suzanne Church

How are they created? How can they be used to fill out the background of the story giving texture and detail without overwhelming the plot. The writers will talk about where the character came from and how they were developed.

At the end of the discussion the audience can choose a picture, list words describing a person in it and write a paragraph putting the words together and voila: a character is born. At 5:00 PM we will have a follow up where people will then read their paragraphs.

2 p.m. The Art and Science of Evolving as a Writer

Moderator Sarah Zettel, Sylvia Hubbard, Suzanne Church, Peggy Herron, Jake Doherty

In order to improve as a writer you have to practice. What are some of the ways to do this? How can you tell if there is improvement?

3 p.m. Creating an Effect With Your Writing.

Moderator Rick Blechta, Sylvia Hubbard, Caitlin Sweet, John McFetridge, Steve Climer

Many writers strive to create a certain feeling in the reader with their work. How is this achieved and how does it affect the creation of the story.

4 p.m. So How Does it End?

Moderator Dennis Collins, Rick Blechta, Caitlin Sweet, Jake Doherty, Jean Rae Baxter

A good ending leaves the reader satisfied but also wanting more. What kinds of ways can a writer end a story and what are ways to come up with a good ending to your story?

5 p.m. Show and Tell Panel on Characters

Jeff DeLuzio and Kelley Armstrong moderators

Name: GenreCon
Where: Sarnia Branch, Lambton County Library,
124 Christina St. South, Sarnia, Ontario N7T 8E1
Sarnia is one hour north east of Detroit Michigan on I-94 and
One hour west of London, Ontario on the 402.
ConChairs: Jeff Beeler and Ellen Dark

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About the Author -

Raven Bower is the author of the upcoming horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks 2007)

Bitternest - by Alan Draven

Fellow horror author Alan Draven's new book has just hit the stands! You can find his book at Amazon.com, Barnsandnoble, Borders and BooksaMillion. It's also available in a PDF form for $6.00.

Here's a brief synopsis:

Synopsis
Bitternest. A Louisiana city of sunken dreams and drunken ambitions. A hidden gateway to hell infused with dark myths and a sinister history where evil lurks in every fog-shrouded corner. A pandemic of avian influenza is slowly crippling the world. Oddly, only this city appears to be resisting, but at what cost? Following a grim discovery, Detective Terry Graves is taken to a secret underground crypt, and thrown into the dark realm of vampires. There he learns that their numbers are dwindling; their only salvation lies in creating an alliance. Together, they must face a new breed of creatures waging war to both man and vampires while a drug lord with a hidden agenda plans the city's downfall. Nothing is what it seems. Terry finds himself drowning in a web of deception. Upon seeking answers, he realizes that something much worse is looming in the city, for an ancient evil has been unleashed-and cannot be stopped.

For more information check out his page here: Alan Draven

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About the author -

Raven Bower is the author of the upcoming horror novel, Apparitions (ArcheBooks May 2007)