Breakthrough Giveaway, 7x7 Award, & Lucky 7 Meme Revisited

Stephen Tremp's novel, Breakthrough, is available FREE to download today and tomorrow on Amazon! Click on the book cover to get your copy now. And if you haven't checked out Stephen's blog, then I suggest you do! Below is a brief description of Breakthrough taken from Stephen's Goodreads event.

“In a world about to be radically changed by a scientific discovery that will trump for good or evil purposes, a power-play struggle unfolds with breakneck speed and riveting drama in Breakthrough. Filled with intrigue, romance, betrayal, action scenes that have you gripping, some spiritual contemplation and quandary, emotions that run deep and strong, and packed with a multi-faceted cast of varied and multi-dimensional characters, Breakthrough is a novel you will find next to impossible to put down once you start reading” - Marvin Wilson, author and editor.”

Thank you to C.M. Brown for passing this award on to me! She is the author of He Comes for Me, which she is offering as a prize in her Indie Author Giveaway Blog Hop, which continues through Wednesday. Check it out!

RULE #1: Tell everyone something that no one else knows about you.

This is something that pretty much no one who knows me now except for my immediate family, knows...When I was in elementary school, I used to make haunted Forest attractions in my backyard for the neighborhood kids around Halloween. They were horrifically bad. Haha.

RULE #2: Link to one of the posts that I personally think best fits the following categories.

Most Beautiful 
"G" is for Gwendolyn  
My April A-Z Challenge entry about my now five month old daughter is very special for me.

Most Helpful & Most Popular
Self-Publishing in 300 Words or Less

I think my recent guest post of Alex Cavanaugh's blog was the most helpful and most popular (what do you expect, it was on the Ninja Captain's blog)

Most Controversial
"C" is for Customer Service
This post during the April challenge got very little response, so I wasn't sure if I had offended people. Otherwise, I don't really have any controversial posts. 

Most Surprisingly Successful
April 1st! The A-Z Challenge Begins! "A" is for Amazon
The April challenge sparked my emergence as a real blogger with real blogger interactions. I have Alex to thank for introducing me to that challenge, too!

Most Underrated
Waiting for Inspiration
No one read my early posts. They were like journal entries. I feel like I've come so far in a short period of time. This was just one of those I liked.

Most Pride Worthy
"P" is for Provex City is Finally Available in Paperback
It was such a great feeling to make this announcement!

RULE #3: Pass this award on to 7 3 bloggers
(don't feel obligated to participate if you don't want to; it's just for fun!)

Heather Murphy @ Random Interrumptions
Andrea Teagan @ The Enchanted Writer
Nick Wilford @ Scattergun Scribblings

Julie @ What Else is Possible? passed on The Lucky 7 Meme to me, and I do feel lucky...punk. I've done this twice now. You can read all my answers from my original post HERE. The second time, I just set up a link to the original post. This time, I've got a special treat. I'm redoing the excerpt part of the meme, and I'm using my WIP--Book 2 in The Lorne Family Vault Series. Page 77, Line 7, post the next 7 lines (or paragraphs). It's still rough, but here it is:

 (Oliver, Desiree, and a new character named Darius Fitz, are sitting and talking at a coffee shop in Provex City)

“You can go out and spend all your parent’s money?” Desiree asked.

“Not exactly. Parents set the parameters. I’m capped pretty low. And they’re alerted to all my transactions," Darius said.

“Oh...that actually kind of sucks.”

“But when I turn sixteen I get my permanent ID and my own private accounts and everything. I can’t wait.”

“What happened with the fake ID you tried to make?” I asked, thinking we could use something like that.

“It’s really complicated. We had to essentially create new people because we are already in the Greater Meric government files, which is practically impossible to hack into. So we had to create new identities, new accounts, and unique ID codes. I don’t know if you saw one up close, but they look similar to the code that I have, except that it’s a specialized tattoo called a DNA Brand. The ink is interlaced with your DNA for authenticity, which is picked up by the scanners. There are generator programs on the interlanet to help build a unique code, but getting the DNA percentage exact in the ink is not so easy.”

“It didn’t work, I take it.” I knew it was too good to be true.  

Lucky 7 - Round Two!

I was tagged for the Lucky 7 MeMe by a truly wonderful and exciting blogger, Mina Burrows. If you're not a follower, then you damn well should be. :)

I participated in this MeMe about two months ago, so I'll place a link to my answers HERE. They may not be new, but their still good...and true. I hope you enjoy. Thanks again, Mina!

Summon the Brilliance

Why am I the most productive when I have the least amount of time? I remember doing that in school, too. I procrastinated until the week or night before a project was due and put it all together in a flash of brilliance. Okay, not always (brilliant, that is). But I felt like I got my best ideas at the last minute.

Over the past few years as a Starbucks manager, I would typically get home three hours before my wife. I also usually took a weekday off, having it all to myself. I had so much free time! And I got some writing done, some editing done, some submissions in... But I also wasted a lot of time. I hadn't yet decided to self-publish Provex City and had no social media marketing in place.I was just indecisively chugging along.

Now, I work about 50 hours a week, and have a wife and two month old daughter waiting for me when I get home every day. I have no more quiet weekdays off. And I've gotten more done in these past two months than I had in the entire year before. I'm writing my second book on my breaks at work (also coming into the office a little early). I'm blogging and trying to find new ways to promote Provex City and meet new book-loving people in my one hour of quiet time per night (once we finally get the baby to sleep), and during naps and feedings on the weekend. I've never felt so strapped for time, so productive, motivated, excited, and exhausted all at the same time.

I wish I had utilized my time better when I had it in excess, but I believe there is a reason for everything (though many reasons go unrealized). I wasn't ready then. I'm ready now. I sometimes think I waited too long and missed the boat--it's too late now--but then I remind myself of one of my favorite movie lines (from Vanilla Sky): Evey passing moment is another chance to turn it all around. Yes, I said that in my Lucky 7 post, and now I'm just repeating myself. But it was worth repeating. It's not too late. It's happening now, which is obviously the perfect time because it's happening. All I can do is keep working. Maybe since every night now feels like the night before a deadline, the brilliance will continue to flow from the mountain tops in a seemingly endless supply. That would be nice.

*** I've been listening to the new The Used single, Hands and Faces, over and over throughout the writing of this entire post. Editing included. :) ***

Lucky Me & the Secret to Bubbles

Thank you to Candy Lynn Fite over at On the Trail to Publication. She tagged me with the Lucky 7 Meme & answering her 10 questions and gave me the secret to her Bubbles nickname (continue reading to find out). Here are the rules for Lucky 7 Meme:

1. Go to page 77 of your current MS.
2. Go to line 7.
3. Copy the next 7 lines - sentences or paragraphs - and post them as they're written. No cheating!
4. Tag 7 authors.
5. Let them know.

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“That’s the trippiest thing I’ve ever seen!” Greg said.

The florescent lights hanging from the ceiling began to crackle and flicker.

“I’m not feeling good about being here,” Logan whispered.

“This is obviously some elaborate prank. Good one!” Greg yelled out to the room.

“No, I don’t think so,” Logan said, stepping away from the other two.

The florescent lights on the far end of the locker room went out, followed by the next row, and the next—until the only lights illuminated were directly above the row where the three boys stood.

“I’m getting out of here,” Logan said and ventured into the shadows, headed toward the door. He dragged his left hand along the cement wall and stepped slowly and carefully as the room in front of him darkened. Upon finding the door, he pushed as hard as he could, but it still wouldn’t open.

- p. 77 (in my formatting), Provex City (The Lorne Family Vault, Book 1)

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Now, on to The Lucky 7 questions (but there are 10 of them...I know):

1.   What is your dream vacation? There are many places I’ve never been to that I really want to visit and explore. But one place I had the opportunity to visit for an afternoon and swim with dolphins was the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. When we were there, I told my wife that we absolutely must come back and actually stay here—in a suite.

 

2. Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan? I like to plan for spontaneity.

3. Tell us one thing you want to do, but don't dare do. I’d love to be the lead singer of a band, but I don’t sing very well and I’m petrified of being up in front of a crowd, so I probably won’t be doing that any time soon.

4. What's your biggest phobia? Public speaking—it’s a fear worse than death. Kind of irrational, but true.

5. If you were stranded on a desert island--what 3 things would you want with you (not including laptop or family)? One notebook, one pen, and one boat to get off the island when I'm done writing the next great American novel. 

6. Name 3 blessings in your life. Family, friends, and work (it's still a tough economy!)

7. What was your nickname in high school? "Mikey Likes It," from the old Life cereal commercials. 

8. If you could meet the President of the US, what would you say to him? I'd like to ask him about his family, his most memorable moment in office, and see if he’d be willing to promote Provex City on national television. Haha.

9. If you could be any literary character for a day, who would you be? Roland of Gilead, from Stephen King’s The Dark Tower Series. He’s just bad-ass in every sense of the word. Though I’d want to be him before he lost two vital fingers on his shooting hand.

10. What is your favorite quote? “Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around.” – Sofia Serrano from Vanilla Sky

Now, it’s time to extend the Lucky 7 to a few fellow writers of my choice (oh, the power!). Since I’m new to the Insecure Writer’s Support Group, I’m choosing 7 members of Alex J. Cavanaugh's IWSG. I'm interested and anxious to meet more members. If you’ve been chosen, then I hope you have fun with this. If you’ve been chosen before, then I’m sorry, but do it again. Just kidding, that would be mean. :) Lastly, I'm also sorry, but I lied. I don't have the answer to Candy's Bubbles nickname. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.

Now, without delay, please join me on a journey through the blogs of these seven “lucky” writers:

Angeline Trevena

Misha Gericke 

Laura Eno

Callie Leuck 

Kaye Draper 

Hope Roberson 

Gabriel M Clarke