What's New at Splashdown Books, 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.

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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 here: http://youtu.be/meixJW_8UJE

"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.

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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.

"Caprice is truly a master world builder. This was the first book in her series that I read, but within a few chapters I felt like I’d been reading in that universe my whole life. Now that I finished I’m going back toget the first two in the series!" ~ Tim Ambrose , Managing Editor, Digital Dragon Magazine

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Avenir Eclectia 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. That 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.

 

The Kindle store with all of them is here: http://astore.amazon.com/splasbooks-20

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**

New novel, Second Chance - put life back into your heart!

Read my review here.

Visit Eileen Rife, Healing Words for Hurting Hearts

Book blurb: An empty nest mom wants the life back in her marriage. A teen from the projects just wants a life. Could they be the answer to each other's dream?

Bonus features:
The 21 Day Romance Challenge for married couples
Song of Solomon Bible study for women's groups

You get two books in one!

Themes addressed in Second Chance:

Love between a husband and wife

Love between Christ and the believer

Forgiveness (especially between father and child)

Empty nest

Depression

Purpose in the second half of life

Volunteer work

Unplanned pregnancy

A portion of proceeds goes to support Straight Street, a Christian inner city teen ministry that reaches out to lost and hurting teens with the gospel of Jesus Christ. www.straightstreet.org

February is Library Lovers Month

Having come from a long line of librarians, I appreciate this!

 

February is Library Lovers Month

At Home in the Library

By Gerry Wakeland

If you asked me to describe my dream home, without pause I'd respond, "My dream home would be an old vacant library where I would remove all the fixtures except the bathroom and the bookshelves and then I'd move my bed and desk into the center and start filling the shelves with my books." At which point you would stare at me quizzically.

My love affair with books and the library began as a child and continues to this very day. I remember as an elementary student begging my mother to take me to the library. She'd pull up to the curb in front and let me out, reminding me she would be back in an hour. Every time, I'd race up three sets of steps, fling open the double doors, run inside and stop. I would stand perfectly still and inhale the fragrance of the books. True love.

The library was my refuge. It provided a safe and silent haven from the noise and chaos of my home. But more than that, it opened doors for me, doors to the past, doors to the future, doors of adventure, and doors of romance, most importantly doors of wisdom.

I learned so much at the library. I learned that as a woman I could be brave and bold like Amelia Earhart or save lives like Florence Nightingale or Clara Barton. I could write poetry like Elizabeth Barrett Browning or books like Jane Austen. The library gave me hope!

Over the years I have continued to be a library patron. Sometimes I take my laptop and head to the library to work on a project. With the world at my fingertips, both digitally and in hard copy, I can research any topic to my heart’s content. Hardly a Saturday goes by that you cannot find me at some point in the day at the local library, perusing the new arrivals for the week.

Or sometimes I just sit quietly in one of the easy chairs wishing that the books could talk and wondering what they would say if they could tell the stories behind the stories.

I may never have the unusual, almost bizarre, home of my dreams. But the library is still my refuge, affording me a place that’s safe and silent, where dreams are born and hope exists.

 

Gerry Wakeland is the President and CEO of CLASSEMINARS, Inc. She loves helping Christian communicators identify their passion, clarify their vision and define their mission so that they can articulate God’s message effectively. Gerry is the mother of two grown daughters and grandmother to three precious grandsons. She makes her home in the land of enchantment, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Her favorite pastime is reading and one of her favorite places is the public library. In March, the CLASS website will release news of the 2012 Christian Writers Conference: www.classeminars.org. Come meet Gerry and the rest of the CLASS faculty there!

Read in the Bathtub Day beats Talk like a Pirate Day

This has got to be my second all-time favorite day...But Don't forge the ZipLock baggie trick for your eReader. :)

February 9th is "Read in the Bathtub" Day

Take a Break

By Linda Gilden

I held the dripping book by one corner. Water poured from between its pages. How could that have happened? Until this moment I had never even gotten a cover wet.

For years the bathtub has provided my favorite literary getaway. Preparation for bath time means gathering the essentials: a glass of cold water, one towel for drying, a small one for drying hands occasionally, a flashlight, eyeglasses (a fairly recent addition to the list), and a good book.

You may not be a bathtub reader but finding a daily time for yourself is important and reading enhances that special, individual time. Making the effort to have personal time each day has great benefits.

1. Keeps you grounded. The best way to start every day is with a personal time of devotion. Making a connection with God when you first get up gives you a solid foundation for the day. This time may include Bible reading, your favorite devotional book, and a time of meditation and prayer.
2. Recharges your “batteries.” We were not created to go and go and go. We need a break. Life is busy if not frantic for most of us and burnout lurks just around the corner. A few minutes away from the family, workplace, and the demands that go along with them gives you new strength, energy, and perspective to face your day.
3. Provides a time for enjoyment. Everyone needs to have a little fun every day. Reading is one of my favorite pastimes. So relaxing with a good book, whether in the bathtub, under a tree, or wrapped in a blanket in the recliner gives me a few minutes of enjoyment and entertainment.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Linda Gilden is an author, speaker, editor, and writing coach. She has written hundreds of articles as well as the Love Notes series, Mommy Pick-Me-Ups, and has ghostwritten or contributed to over three dozen books. Directing the CLASS Christian Writers Conference in Abiquiu, NM, she encourages others to clearly communicate God’s love to the world. Linda lives in SC with her family – a great source of speaking and writing material!

In March, the CLASS website will release news of the 2012 Christian Writers Conference: http://www.classeminars.org/. Come meet Linda and the rest of the CLASS faculty there!

YA Genre book review: Pretty Girls Don't Always Get It All

Review The Jerk Magnet, by Melody Carlson

A Kingston High Book

YA

Revell

c. Jan 2012

ISBN: 9780800719623

$12.99

Pretty girls don’t always get the good guys, high school junior Chelsea Martin learns.

A geeky frump, especially since her mom died, Chelsea suffers from awful teeth, hair and skin, and hides from her image. Worse than zits, her dad blindsides her with a double whammy: he’s getting married again and they’re moving. Chelsea barely knows her new drop-dead gorgeous stepmom2B and grudgingly accepts her advice for new clothes, skin and hair treatment and confidence-building exercises. Realizing she has the chance to start all over in a new city, Chelsea decides to go for it and by the time she’s made friends with the new neighbor girl Janelle and others in her church youth group, school begins.

Since she understands what it feels like to be the one never chosen, a complete makeover from the outside in helps Chelsea deal with prejudice from a direction she never considered. While most of the guys hover over the new hot-babe Chelsea, the girls keep her at arm’s length. Janelle comes clean when they have a heart2heart. Chelsea’s attracting jerk guys who want more than clueless Chelsea can provide. The two of them cook up a scheme to give their friends a lesson they can’t learn in class, but Chelsea’s new-found faith in Jesus may be the only true friend she has left if they bomb.

This is a such a sweet book. I wouldn’t hesitate to give it to the girlchildren in my life. There are lots of tips about what really counts in life, how to read hormonal guys and to consider a person’s true motives. Empathy and sympathy go hand in hand in good relationships. Melody Carlson has a huge, lengthy career, and her high school fashion and talk feels natural to me, although I know the bits and pieces of high school life she shares are more what I wish than reality. With teachers in my family, I dislike the portrayal of predator teachers, but I know they’re out there and the students’ instincts and actions are correctly portrayed in this piece of fiction. The pacing of the story kept me turning pages, the premise achieved without feeling like every loose end is tied up in a pink bow and delivered with sweets.

Available January 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.