Je t’aime, Paris

November 14, 2015 / Shauna Granger / Leave a comment

I know it’s been too long since I posted here and I know I don’t ever post political things here, but I would be remiss not to say something about the terrible things that happened in Paris last night.

If you know me personally, you know how much I love Paris. I have been lucky enough to have visited Paris twice in my life. I have spent a total of three weeks in that city and, honestly, it’s not enough. Paris is one of those magical places you fantasize about but when you get there, it actually lives up to those fantasies.

It is beautiful and inspiring. The people are wonderful and kind. There is this idea that Paris is snobby and they look down on Americans, but I tell you, I’ve never been to such a polite and patience place as is Paris. The smiles, the “please” and “thank you” and “until we meet again!” that echoes everywhere is lovely.

When the attack happened in January I watched in horror and panic. We had friends in Paris that morning and, though we knew the chances were slim that anything had happened to them, we worried. But last night? My heart stopped. No friends or family were in Paris, but that didn’t mean anything. I was watching something horrible happen, not just in a place I love, but just something horrible in the world we now live in.

I understand the panic and the anger we all feel. I understand in some parts of the country people get news in different ways, sometimes those ways are biased and may stoke the fires of intolerance. I know some people will think, because I live in California, my news is all liberal and tree-hugging. But it’s not. I don’t take the news from just one source, but some people do. I just want to remind you that ISIS, like the Westboro Baptist Church, like the KKK, like so many other radicals, is not the whole, not the sole representation of the Muslim faith and community.

I don’t know any Muslims personally. But I was curious about the faith and I took time to read about it, not from any church website, but to understand the principle beliefs and no, ISIS is not representative of what I’ve learned. I doubt any of my readers who may be Christian would ever stay the WBC represents what they believe. And I think a lot of people would be surprised to find many similarities in their own faith in the Muslim faith. I think people forget how similar most religions are, we just all speak different languages so it seems like belief systems must be totally different. They’re not.

So, I understand your anger and your fear, but don’t let people convince you to become intolerant and abusive to people who are also victims of this hate group. Remember, ISIS is killing Muslims too – they kill those who do not adopt their ideological hate. ISIS wants us, everyone, to help with their goals. Don’t help them. Help each other.

John Scalzi said it quite well and I urge you to read more things like this in the coming weeks: Paris.

Je t’aime, Paris. Nous sommes tous Parisians. À bientôt!

Matilda Kavanagh Sixth Novel: Cover Reveal!

September 1, 2015September 3, 2015 / Shauna Granger / 2 Comments

I really can’t believe I’m already doing the cover reveal for the sixth Matilda Kavanagh Novel. Sometimes, when you commit to a series, writing can feel like a chore and you start to fall out of love with the characters, but that hasn’t happened for me with this series. Mattie and her world are my escape. I love writing these adventures and playing with this magic. This book will explore something new for Mattie, revealing new things about her world, and we’ll understand her a little better. I’m really excited about it and I hope you are too.

So, without further ado…

Coming 12/1/2015:

Maleficium

Preorder:

Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords | Kobo

(missing links will be updated as they become available!)

My First Con

August 31, 2015August 31, 2015 / Shauna Granger / 4 Comments

So, if you were following along, you know I was going to have a table in Artists’ Alley for the first time ever at a Comic Con this month. Welp, that was this past weekend at the Ventura Comic Con, aka Central Coast Comic Co, aka C4.

I learned a lot over the two and a half days and I had a surprisingly good time. I thought it would be good to share my experiences with you, dear readers, in case this is something you’re ever considering doing. I’m not going to get into the specifics of the behind-the-scenes stuff at this particular con because there were some issues, but they were specifics to this con. I’m just gonna give some generalities.

So, going in I was ridiculously nervous for a few reasons. First, this was the first time I’d be in public, face-to-face with people asking them to buy my books. Secondly, I have social anxiety and I have a hard time dealing with the unknown if things aren’t organized well. Third, I am not artist who draws or paints or sculpts, I write books and would be selling books alongside talented drawing, painting, sculpting artists. What the hell was I thinking?!

Well, amazingly, I did really well. I beat my own expectations of what I would sell. I met some awesome people. And I got to have some fangirl moments myself.

When I went in I said I just wanted to sell one book and get a picture in Baby (the Impala from Supernatural) and a picture with Doug Jones.

So I bought a table banner from esigns.com, which was reasonably priced, easy to design, and the quality was awesome. I bought bookmarks and pins and business cards (the cards were minicards from moo.com which were super popular) that featured my book covers for people to take in case they wanted to check out my stuff online later. And I had around 50 copies of my books, ready for sale. I had more of book 1 than the other two in the trilogy, thinking most people would want to buy the first, not the whole set, to see if they liked it. Boy was I wrong.

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I sold about 50% of the stock I brought with me, which is pretty fricken amazing because most people looked at me with furrowed brows when they found out I was selling books at a Comic Con so I really thought I wouldn’t sell anything. But of those sold, only 3 were singles. Everyone else said, “Well, if I’m gonna buy them, I’m gonna buy the whole set.” Which I cheered while being totally shocked on the inside.

So, first thing I learned – not for the first time: don’t under-value yourself. I was super worried my price of $9 for a paperback, or $25 for the set, would be too high. But I saw people walking around with $9 cups of Budweiser, so I decided I would be confident in my price point.

Second thing I learned: don’t freak out. This is the hardest thing for people like me, with social anxiety, to learn. Because of some of the behind-the-scenes stuff, me and a few other locals, or lesser-known peoples, had no idea what the hell to do or where to go and some things weren’t done on time, which stressed us all out. But the fact is, for a table, you don’t need a lot of time to set up and people are pretty forgiving if you’re running late or setting up late. I am so lucky I had my husband with me, helping me and supporting me all weekend. He took a lot of the stress off of me just by being there so I didn’t feel alone. I don’t know how anyone does this alone. Even just for the bathroom breaks! So lesson 2b, bring a partner or friend to help you.

In the end, we got our table, had everything set up nicely, and met our table neighbors who were just as nice with time to spare. I was even lucky enough to be across from Brian Pulido, the creator of Lady Death, and his beautiful muse and wife, Francisca. I read Lady Death and Purgatori as a teen so I got to squee over him and he even traded me two gorgeous prints for a copy of my book – which still freaks me out!

With my husband there to help man my table so I could take breaks as needed, I even got to meet the astounding Doug Jones. If you don’t know him, you probably do and just don’t know it. He was Billie the Zombie in Hocus Pocus. He was Abe Sapien in Hellboy. He was the Faun in Pan’s Labyrinth. And much, much more. He was amazing. He was so sweet and approachable and he kept the same amount of energy for every fan. He cradled my face and hugged me so many times.

Then my husband told me “Hey, Xander’s here.” Xander, Nicolas Brendon, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer was at our con. I grabbed my phone and ran. The day before he’d tweeted with the hashtag, hugtheshitoutofme, so when I found his table, I smiled at him and asked, “Can I hug the shit out of you?!” And he jumped up and hugged me. Both of these guys are great huggers. We saw Nicolas Brendon again the next morning passing my table and he stopped to hug me and my husband. Such a great guy, hug him if you ever get the chance.

Good morning. I’ll be @VenturaC4CC at 11:00 this morning. I have a talk at 1:00pm. Please someone come. I don’t want to talk to myself

— Nicholas Brendon (@NicholasBrendon) August 30, 2015

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And, I got my picture in Baby.

So, another lesson, try to have fun. It’s stressful and overwhelming to do this for yourself, so try to have fun while you’re there, even just a little. And if you get to know your con-mates, they may want to trade with you if they’re interested in your stuff.

A commision I got from my table neighbor, Jenney Martinez of one of my characters! (instagram.com/jenney_todd)

Another thing you should do is make sure you take both cash and cards for payments. With Square and PayPal nowadays there’s no reason why you can’t. I had people totally relieved when I told them I could take their cards for payment because there were actual booths that were only taking cash. Don’t let someone who wants to buy your product walk away to “come back later after the ATM” because they probably won’t.

So who bought my books? The majority were grown women, many who were mom’s coming to the Con with their kids. Which was great. They were lugging things around for family that they’d bought, but they’d stop at my table, talk to me, and then buy the whole set for themselves. So it was good that I was different from those around me. Some said they were buying for them and their kid, which might be true. Lots asked if they could buy my stuff online. So you know, just like the card reader, always be ready to say “Yes!” But my favorite sale was to Darth Maul who said, “I have a growing TBR pile, but I can’t help myself.” Yeah, those are my people.

I had people tell me “cosplayers don’t buy” but Darth Maul and this awesome Steampunk lady bought full sets, so… yanno.

And lastly, probably most importantly, have a good attitude. This was a smaller con with a lower attendance than a lot of the other, more established cons out there and a lot of the other vendors maybe didn’t realize that and were disappointed in the turn out and let that show in their faces and tone of voice. Don’t do that. Try to stay positive and happy to meet people. There were things that bugged me about the con and some of the attendees, but how would that have helped me make sales and meet potential new readers? It wouldn’t.

So yeah, I’m exhausted, my back still aches, and I don’t have a lot of mental bandwidth left over, but I feel good. I feel excited for the new readers. And I am so glad I did it.

Things I might do differently: no candy on the table, have a raffle, and calm down.

I brought Dum Dums to have on my table to attract passersby, but the truth was, people who bought from me didn’t stop for the candy. 97% of people who took candy didn’t even talk to me. People were happy to take the candy, some were polite, others super rude about it (had two kids dive bomb the bowl, dig around, and get pissed at me when they couldn’t find the flavor they wanted), but if they wanted the candy and asked about my books, it was only because they thought they had to not because they were ever intending to buy a book. Just because of the rude people, I wouldn’t do it again. People who were interested in my books/table didn’t care about the candy.

I thought about a raffle, but I couldn’t think of how it could work for me. I mean, who would buy a book if they could win it? But I could give extra tickets for every book bought. So next time, I’ll raffle a toy, like a Funko Pop figurine to entice more people.

Now that I’ve done it, now that I know how quick I can be since I am organized, the con could be a shitshow behind-the-scenes and I know I’ll be okay.

So that’s how it went, in a condensed nutshell! If you have questions, please ask, I’m happy to answer. I skimmed over a lot because there was a lot to cover, but if there’s something you’re curious about, as a vendor or attender, let me know and I’ll try to help!

Release Day: Cursed

July 7, 2015July 8, 2015 / Shauna Granger / 4 Comments

Today is a release day for me. It’s the fifth book in my Matilda Kavanagh Novels, Cursed. That’s kind of an appropriate title.

I work really hard for each book I write, there’s no question in my mind about that. I know some people might think because I can get 2-3 titles published a year I’m probably just churning out some formulaic trite, but I really do try to make each book different from the others. And, since I write Paranormal Fantasy, that’s not always easy. Since I write full time and self-publish I don’t have to go through the hurry up and wait process a lot of traditionally published authors do. You may have to wait 12-18 months for a sequel, but that doesn’t mean it took a writer that long to get the story written. Luckily for me, I write my first draft, snag a spot on my editor’s schedule, she focuses on my book for a couple of weeks, ripping it apart, then get’s it back to me. Once I go through her edits, I send it back for one last proofread from fresh eyes, then it’s ready to go.

Well, not really. While it’s away in an editor’s hands I’m working on the cover if I’m doing it myself. For my Mattie books, I have done all my own covers. They aren’t so complicated that I can’t work my own magic on them. And of course there is the horrible couple of days I spend formatting the books for eprint and paperback. That’s the worst part.

But I digress. Being self-published is difficult in more ways that one. One of the biggest ways is feeling like you’re celebrating all on your own. It’s awesome that we can do pre-orders now because, at the very least, you can see ahead of time that other people are excited for your book to come out too. But once the day comes, you’re kind of struck with a sense of… “so what?” It’s like there should be some ticker tape parade for you, but there’s not. Or flower deliveries or a flood of notes congratulating you because, damnit that was a hard book to write! But really, it’s more waking up, shuffling to the coffee pot, checking your email, making sure the book is live and doing fine and then getting back to work.

I titled Cursed before I even knew what the story was going to be about. I thought it would make a cool title, so I made a note of it over a year ago so I wouldn’t forget. Then, as I was outlining this book, I knew that was the title for this one. And boy was I spot on.

Cursed is a summer read. It’s a story about our main characters getting away for a long weekend in wine country to recharge but, of course, things go horribly wrong. To research this book, I packed my hubs and dogs up in our car and drove to the same location I was basing the book to have a look around (and a few glasses of wine, you know, research and all) and figure out where this book would be set.

That day was awesome. It was beautiful and picturesque and I found the perfect winery to base Wyvern Wines on. So thrilled it all worked out.

Then a few weeks later, in the middle of the book, we’d been a little stressed and my husband got an afternoon off. He asked me if I wanted to play hooky and drive back up, just the two of us for the afternoon and check out the little town the wineries were by. Of course I did! More research!

It was a horrible mistake. It was cool in our part of the world, but a good 20 degrees hotter up there, so I dressed entirely wrong with knee-high boots. The town, as it turns out, shuts down for a few hours between lunch and dinner so our food choices were limited and would be my downfall. We picked this cute sandwich shop and sat outside in the lovely sunshine to enjoy lunch before strolling the picturesque street and the little shops and wine tasting rooms.

It was all fine for a little while, until it wasn’t. We were in the first tasting room and I was so, so hot. I almost laid down on the marble counter top when the girl helping us wasn’t looking. I thought it was my boots and I was just over-heated because my hubs was fine. But after that first stop, we walked outside and I just couldn’t. All I wanted was to get to the car and take off my boots and crank up the AC. I just felt off.

So we left. We made the 2 hour drive home and I struggled to stay awake. It was like my body was shutting down. When we got home, I remember something came up in the office I just had to do, but now I couldn’t tell you what. I just remember taking care of it for about 20 mins before walking out to my hubs and telling him something was wrong and then I threw up for the first time.

Food poisoning.

I’ve never had food poisoning before. I know this because now I’ve truly had it. I would spend the next 72 hours in bed, in pain, unable to eat lest I threw it all up again and again, sipping 7-Up, sleeping to escape the pain in my legs, with a 103* fever. All for a damn sandwich. I’ve said in the past, “I don’t think such-and-such agreed with me.” I will never say that again. Until you’ve had real food poisoning, you just don’t know. But through that, I had a little chuckle that I was writing a book called “Cursed” because, right then, that’s exactly how I felt.

So see? I suffer for my work, even if I don’t mean to, no matter how fast or easily you may think I write. So, please, buy my books, read them, leave a quick review – even if you didn’t like them.

If you’ve read this far, cheers dear reader! If you take anything away from this, know how much authors give to their books and return the favor with a review. Yep, I’m saying that again. My Mattie books get pre-orders every time I put a new one up, but there are not the reviews to prove it. I need those reviews like I needed 7-Up to get me through those 72 hours.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | iBooks

10 Writing Facts About Me!

June 8, 2015June 8, 2015 / Shauna Granger / 1 Comment

My friend Lyra posted about this over on her blog, and I thought, “Hey! Cool idea!” So I ~~stole it~~ am doing it too.

Writing is a strange vocation. You’re in a world with hundreds of thousands of others, but it also feels totally isolated – especially for a self-pubber – so it’s good to see how other people work or deal with it. Maybe you need some suggestions on how to make things work for you and seeing into other people’s process can help with that. It did for me when I was first starting out.

So here are ten things I do while writing.

1. I am an entirely different writer today than when I was when I first started out writing. When I first started, I was a panster. I just sat down and blindly wrote, figuring out the story as I went. I knew what the end was, I just had to figure out how to get there. Now I outline. When I first started, if I outlined, I lost the momentum, the urgency to tell the story, because, basically, I already did. Now I need a road map. But it’s like a road trip – I know my final destination and I know the pit stops on the way, but anything can happen while I’m there. I will occasionally write off the cuff still, but I have more focus than I did before.

2. I use music to write. If I’m starting a brand new project, I give myself a couple of hours before I begin to get a soundtrack going. I do use songs with lyrics because they really help me. I can write and not consciously pay attention to lyrics, but they’ll propel me into the mood I want for the book and/or scene, like subliminal messages. If I’m writing a series, I’ll just keep building on the same playlist until I have an epic soundtrack. This works for me because, if I’m not in the mood or the right headspace to write, I can turn on that soundtrack and like a Pavlov’s Law, I will suddenly be able to get into the mood of the story.

3. Sometimes my soundtracks fail me. Sometimes you gotta switch it up. If a book has been tension filled and I’m coming to a big battle or bloody scene sometimes I need to switch to actual soundtracks to get me through. I have a backup playlist that is just full of music from movies and video games with no lyrics that really drive me through intense, physical scenes.

4. If there’s a fight scene in a book, I have choreographed it in real life with my husband. I’m very lucky to have my husband as a resource at my beck and call. He is a trained fighter and a lifetime martial artist and a self-defense instructor. So, often, I’ll think of a scene and then grab my husband and work it out down to the last gory detail so I know it’s real and not just a movie fight.

5. For me, the hardest part is the rough draft. People hate editing, hate revising, but for me it’s getting that first draft done. Which is why I tend to “fast draft” – get big word counts done so I can get it done faster. It’s also why I outline. Editing and revising are easy to me because the hard part is done. Every milestone is great until I realize how far I am from the end.

6. I pinterest to keep track of what my characters look like. I have a lot of series going at once and that means a huge cast of characters to keep track of. So I will start boards with pics of celebs and other people so I can keep them all straight. It also helps me make sure no new character sounds like they look like another character.

7. If a book/series is particularly hard to figure out, I talk it out. So many books have been resolved while I was sitting on the counter in the kitchen, sipping coffee, while I talk AT my husband. He will offer suggestions, but often, my mind is racing and I’m watching the book unfold in my head and I’m talking out loud for the benefit of hearing it and committing it to memory. Also, I want to hear another human being tell me how awesome that idea is.

8. I used to say “write every day” but I don’t anymore. That phrase is so misleading, especially to new writers. I am a full time writer. I write 4-6 days a week depending on how well the sessions have gone. To me, that is writing every day. Yes, even with a day off. And then when the first draft is over, I take a break. Sometimes just a week, sometimes much more, depending on what I need. To me that is writing every day, but when you hear that phrase, it makes people think, to be a “real” writer they have to be writing 365 days a year and that’s just not true.

9. I don’t disconnect from the internet when I write. Some people need that, but I couldn’t focus if I knew I couldn’t take a break if I needed it. It’s like in school, when the clock is on the wall in the back and you weren’t supposed to look at it. That drove me nuts. If I write a few hundred and then want to check Twitter, I do. Sometimes I’ll bang out two thousand words without breaking stride, but I know I can take a break, so it helps. It’s all about figuring out what works for you.

10. It took me a long time to figure out what works for me to be a full time writer. My music, a set time of day that I write almost every day, a cup of coffee or a bottle of water, an outline, these work for me. But you know what? Even if I don’t have all these things, I sit down and write, or edit, or revise, whatever stage I’m at in a project, I get it done because this is what I want to do with my life.

Where and I? Who am I? What now?

May 7, 2015 / Shauna Granger / Leave a comment

My monthly post over at The Spellbound Scribes’ blog.

Spellbound Scribes

There’s always this strange feeling that comes with finishing a book. Whether it’s just after finishing the rough draft and tumbling down the mountain of the denouement, or you’ve finally conquered the many-headed monster of line edits and plot holes, or finally, finally typed those two little words: The End. But the feeling comes and it’s one of bewilderment.

You’ve been working so hard, from idea conception, to finally hitting the last period, or – if it’s a series – you got to finally write The End, when you’re done, you’re not quite sure what to do with yourself. There’s no word goal that needs to be met. No deadline looming. No emails from your editor, with an attachment that now has more Track Changes than original work. No acknowledgements to write. Nothing but trying to enjoy the idea that you get to take a break. But it’s strangely hard to…

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YA Scavenger Hunt – Team Purple Stop!

April 2, 2015April 5, 2015 / Shauna Granger / 4 Comments

Hello all! Welcome to the next stop on the 2015 Spring #YASH! If you’re here, you’re competing to win the awesome prizes for Team Purple!

If you’re new to the #YASH the rules are simple. You just need to check out each hosting blog for each team and find the secret numbers hidden in the post. Hint: for Team Purple, our numbers will all be in PURPLE! Then add up all the numbers and enter your answer here. Make sure to double and triple check your answer because only correct answers will be entered to win.

Here’s a little bit about me: Like so many other writers, Shauna grew up as an avid reader, but it was in high school that she realized she wanted to be a writer. She released the first installment of her Paranormal YA Series, The Elemental Series, Earth, on May 1, 2011 and has since released four sequels, with the series coming to an end with Spirit. In December of 2013 she released the first in her Paranormal Post-Apocalyptic trilogy (Ash And Ruin Trilogy), World of Ash. Be sure to also check out her newest series: The Matilda Kavanagh Novels about a spunky witch just trying to pay her rent in West Hollywood. Shauna is currently hard at work on one too many projects, trying to organize the many voices in her head. It’s a writer thing

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads | Facebook

If you keep going on the hunt you will find a never-before-seen scene from my upcoming release: AGE OF BLOOD – the final installment of the ASH AND RUIN TRILOGY! And for those of you who are fans, I am giving away three sets of pin-back buttons, all you have to do to enter to win is follow the options on the rafflecopter below!

On to the next!

I’m very lucky to be hosting E.E. Holmes on this stop of the scavenger hunt. And here’s the gorgeous cover of her book (I know it’s enough to get me to check it out!):

About the book: “The Gateway is open…”

These cryptic words wake college student Jess Ballard from a terrifying dream into an even more terrifying reality.
Jess’ life has never been what anyone would call easy; doing damage control in the wake of your nomadic, alcoholic mother doesn’t exactly make for a storybook childhood. But now her world has fallen apart just when it should be coming together: her mother gone—dead under mysterious circumstances; her life uprooted to stay with estranged relatives she’s never met; and there’s something odd about some of the people she’s been meeting at school:

They’re dead.

Aided by Tia, her neurotic roommate, and Dr. David Pierce, a ghost-hunting professor, Jess must unravel the mystery behind her hauntings. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more danger shadows her every move. An ancient secret, long-buried, is about to claw its way to the surface, and nothing can prepare Jess for one terrifying truth … her encounters with the world of the dead are only just beginning.

Spirit Legacy is the award-winning first installment in The Gateway Trilogy by E.E. Holmes.

Amazon | Goodreads | Website

Shauna here: I do love trilogies. As I said above if you find my exclusive content on this hunt, you’ll see I’m promoting a trilogy as well. Maybe it’s because trilogies are told in threes and 3 is my favorite number.

About the author: E.E. Holmes grew up in Wakefield, Massachusetts, where she spent the majority of her childhood reading books. She read them all the time, and, as a result, perfected the art of walking and reading at the same time, a skill she can still perform to this day with remarkably few instances of falling on her face. She also wrote many books and poems in blank books and on the backs of legal pads her father brought home from the office. They remain some of her finest work.

She discovered a love of theater in high school. Her books were jealous at first, but they soon realized that she would always love them too. She earned a B.A. in Theater from College of the Holy Cross. After graduation, she set out to prove that her degree was, in fact, not useless, and worked as an actor in a summer Shakespeare festival and as a theater teacher, directing over thirty productions and numerous workshops for youth and high school students. She spent seven years as the theater director at Wakefield High School where she also taught English literature and public speaking. It was in her classroom that she discovered the horrible truth: a disturbingly large percentage of high school students hate to read. This revelation devastated and bewildered her. She decided she wanted to do something about it, and thus she started work on her first young adult novel, Spirit Legacy: Book 1 of the Gateway Trilogy, published in 2013. The book went on to win First in Category in the Dante Rossetti Awards for Young Adult Fiction and the Paranormal Awards from Chanticleer Book Reviews and Media. Spirit Prophecy: Book 2 of the Gateway Trilogy, was released in 2014. The series enjoys a rampant readership both in the US and the UK, and regularly enjoys time at the top of its categories on both Amazon and Amazon UK.
E.E. Holmes lives near Boston with her husband, two children, and small, but surprisingly loud, dog. When not writing, she enjoys watching unhealthy amounts of British television, procrastinating, and rediscovering her favorite books from her childhood all over again with her children. Her next projects are Spirit Ascendancy :Book 3 of the Gateway Trilogy, due for release in 2015, and another as-yet-unnamed YA series.

Here is the awesome exclusive content!

Originally Spirit Legacy was written as a Victorian Gothic novel before being re-written for present day Boston. If you’re a fan of the series, you’d probably like to see what that would have been like. So here is a scene from the original version set in London!

Future lessons with Madam Mishka brought no hitherto undiscovered wells of musical talent bubbling to the surface. On the contrary, Lucy felt so discouraged with the futility of the whole affair that her weekly singing lessons had become associated with a feeling of utter despair. And so it was on a sparkling winter morning in January, after three months of humiliation, that Lucy found herself dragging her unwilling feet yet again to the bright little room off the parlor, where the undaunted Madam stood waiting for her, smiling as though they were not about to endure an hour of torture.

“Ah, yes, good afternoon, my darling Lucy! And how have we done with our music this week?” Madam purred indulgently.

“Oh, um… well, I tried of course,” Lucy faltered, trying to flatten her sheet music onto the waiting stand; it kept reforming itself into the tight little cylinder she had nervously rolled it into.

“Have you been practicing your breathing and your posture?”

Lucy, who had stood with her back against the wall and a volume of Italian art songs balanced precariously on her head every day for a quarter of an hour, merely nodded.

“Very good, my darling. Then we continue!” She raised that blasted walking stick. Bang.

Mr. Meekins began to play and Lucy fumbled her way through Caldara’s Sebben Crudele, hoping her careful pronunciation of the Italian would somehow make up for her complete lack of tone. She felt guilty as she listened to what would have been a lovely piano piece, were it not for her interference.

“Yes, darling, yes! But you must remember that this song is about the unendurable pain of unrequited love! Again, and I want you to feel the cruelty.” Bang, Bang!

Lucy sang it twice more, now with Madam Mishka warbling along with her, her be-plumed head nodding and her fleshy fingers gesticulating wildly through the air, presumably to help Lucy “feel the cruelty.”

“Brava, my dear! I think you are ready now for more posture work. Perhaps heavier book will help to keep your back straight. Run to your rooms, dear and fetch heavier book. We work on your posture, yes? Then you have voice of an angel!”

Wondering if the Madam could possibly mean the angel of death, Lucy left and returned with the heaviest book she could find in her mother’s bookcase. It was covered in a tattered green fabric; the gold embossed words on the binding proclaimed it to be a volume of The English Horticultural Companion. She reluctantly spent the next twenty minutes against the wall, singing scales as The English Horticultural Companion balanced on her head.

Bang. “Enough! Very good!”

Heaving a sigh of relief, Lucy relaxed her body, the book slipping sideways off her head and landing splayed upside down on the floor, where she would have been contented to let it stay forever.

Madam was beaming warmly. “Excellent work, Lucy darling! So like your mother, her voice was lovely too!”

“Really? Do you think we sound alike?” Lucy highly doubted this, as she had heard her mother hum many a pleasant tune.

“Oh, yes, darling! And you look so alike as well! As I was standing watching you there, I could remember your mother doing the very same thing! Why she even used that book for her posture work!”

“This book?” Lucy pointed down at The English Horticultural Companion, her eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Oh yes! She brought that book with her every day! Often I would find her sitting in this room before our lessons began, reading. I would often startle her when I came in, she was concentrating so intently.”

Lucy looked down at the book again. It seemed an odd choice for a young girl to be fascinated with.

“Told me she loved flowers and gardening,” Madam Mishka prattled on nostalgically. “I don’t know if I ever saw her without that book in her hands. I recognized it the moment you brought it in! Of course, I don’t garden myself…”

Lucy stopped listening. She picked up the book and examined the cover more closely, running her fingers over the cover and letting it fall open. Her eyes found a sentence at the top of the page.

“In order for initial contact with the chosen spirit to be made, one must first light the candle, being careful to…”

Lucy’s heart began pounding. She slammed the book shut and looked up at Madam Mishka, who was still talking.

“… once visited the gardens at the Palace at Versailles, you know. I was singing Salome at the time, a very demanding role, but I still took the time to see the city…”

“Madam, I, um- I think our time is up. I wouldn’t want to be late for my French lesson.” Lucy interrupted breathlessly.

“Oh! Yes of course,” the Madam replied, looking a bit perturbed at being pulled out of her reverie so suddenly but recovering quickly with her customary indulgent smile. “So you shall continue to practice and I shall see you very soon, yes?”

“Yes, thank you. Goodbye. Goodbye, Mr. Meekins.” Not waiting for a response, Lucy turned on her heel and walked quickly from the room, breaking into a run as soon as she was through the doorway.

Safely in the privacy of her room, Lucy locked her door and curled on the chaise, the faded green volume heavy in her lap. She examined the cover more closely. It was frayed and pulling away from the corners. Black leather peeked through the rough weave of the fabric. Her mother had tried to disguise it; somewhere, Lucy knew, a copy of the real English Horticultural Companion lay stripped of its cover. Her breath coming quickly, Lucy opened the book to the first page. In an old and crooked typeset, the first page bore the following verse.

Be wary Reader, if ye do seek

That World of which we do not speak

For if thy longings wicked be

Encounters dire awaiteth thee

But if thy heart be good, proceed

If pure, this art shall not mislead

Lucy’s hand hovered over the page, her fingers twitching slightly as she gathered the will to turn the page. With the strange sensation that many eyes were upon her, Lucy turned the page and began to read.

Lucy did not go to dinner that night, sending word with Mrs. Spry that she was not hungry. The housekeeper appeared two hours later carrying a tray of food and a pot of tea, which sat untouched on the fireside table. Lucy read through the night, startled only once by the sudden appearance of Dinah, who had slipped in unnoticed and timidly asked if Lucy needed anything. Lucy dismissed her and read on, until the sun had crept under the drapes and the breakfast summons had long since faded away. She sat staring into the dying embers of the fire when a tiny knock sounded on her door.

“Lucy? It’s Miranda. Tom’s here too. Can we come in?” The voice was muffled and hesitant.

“Yes, come in,” Lucy replied, her exhaustion ebbing away. “And shut the door behind you,” she added, as her cousins appeared in her doorway.

“Are you feeling well?” Miranda asked, lowering herself carefully onto the corner of the chaise.

“We thought maybe something happened when you didn’t come to dinner last night. And then when you didn’t come this morning…” Tom was staring at her searchingly, as though expecting to see an answer written somewhere on her person.

“No, I’m fine. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” Lucy smiled wanly.

“So no visions or unexpected visitors?” Tom asked, crestfallen.

“Well, don’t sound so disappointed Tom, for heaven’s sake!” scolded Miranda exasperatedly. “After all, we don’t want her to be scared out of her wits twice a day, do we?”

Tom looked slightly ashamed. “Well, no, of course not. I just thought…”

“No it’s okay, I’m really fine. I’ve been reading this.” Lucy patted the book still cradled in her lap.

“Thinking of taking up gardening?” Tom snorted, sinking into the chair by the fire and helping himself to the cold pheasant.

“Why, yes, I am. I find this chapter particularly interesting.” Lucy handed the open book to Tom, who glanced at it, grinning while he chewed. Lucy watched with a slight smirk as his grin faded away, replaced with a look of shock .

“What… where did you get this?!” Tom exclaimed, his half eaten pheasant leg dropping unnoticed to the carpet.

“It was in one of my mother’s trunks that arrived last week. I didn’t know what it was until I opened it. I’m still not sure what it is.”

“Well, did you read it?” Tom’s eyes were flying over the pages.

“Yes, I did. And I’m not sure what to think.”

“What is it?” Miranda asked eagerly, appearing over Tom’s shoulder.

“It’s a book about… well, ghosts.” Lucy admitted hesitantly.

Miranda gaped. “But this is wonderful! Maybe this can tell us what we need to know about Edward and…” Her voice faltered and died as she watched Lucy shake her head.

“I’m not sure what to make of it,” Lucy said again, staring thoughtfully into the fireplace.

“Why not?” Tom was still thumbing through pages, but Miranda was watching her carefully.

“Well, most of it seems to be ghost stories, like the ones they publish in the penny dreadfuls, written to scare people and to give children nightmares. I don’t think those stories have any real basis of fact to them. But then at the end there…” Lucy shook her head.

“What? What is it?” Tom prodded, flipping now to the end of the book.

“It seems to be a sort of… guide. For contacting and speaking to spirits. At the end there, the last twenty pages or so.”

Tom found the section and started reading it at once. Miranda was watching Lucy shrewdly.

“ You don’t think its reliable?” Miranda asked.

Lucy shrugged. “I’m just not sure what to make of it. On its own it sounds as though it could be real, but paired with all of those silly stories! And I just wonder why my mother had a book like this. I just can’t imagine her reading such a thing!”

“Well I can certainly understand why she would disguise it. Can you imagine Grandfather’s reaction if he saw a book like this under his roof?” Miranda looked frightened at the very thought.

“That’s just it. How would my mother have even come across a book like this? It certainly wasn’t already in the house. And besides that, why would she want to read it?” Lucy asked no one in particular, as she was not expecting an answer,

Tom’s face shot up on a sharp intake of breath. “Wait! On the night you saw Edward you overheard Grandfather and Mother talking, isn’t that right?”

“Yes.”

“And Grandfather said something about having to cover up this sort of thing before?”

“I…yes.” Lucy was frowning now.

“So maybe this was it! Something happened with this book, maybe your mother read it or… or maybe even tried this communicating with spirits!”

“I suppose that could be it,” Lucy admitted.

“Of course that’s it! It makes perfect sense! What else could it be?” Tom cried, and turned his attention back to the book as though the matter were settled.

Lucy had already considered the possibility that this very book was the reason for her grandfather’s animosity toward her mother. She had played the entire scenario out in her mind: her mother as a young girl, reading the book, perhaps in the very same spot where Lucy sat now. Grandfather bursting into the room, eyes blazing, shouting about disgracing the family and shaming the church. It was entirely plausible, and yet Lucy had her doubts. If Grandfather had caught her mother with the book, why didn’t he destroy it? Was simply reading a book of gothic stories enough to create such a rift between father and daughter? No, there is something more to it.

“I think we should try it.” Lucy said suddenly.

Tom and Miranda both raised their heads at the same time and stared at Lucy as though she had just suggested they all leap from the balcony.

“You think we should try what?” Miranda asked, although it sounded as though she already knew the answer.

“Communicating. I think we should follow the ritual in the book and see if we can make contact,” Lucy continued with conviction.

Miranda was already shaking her head. “Lucy, I really don’t think-“

“Look, I know it’s probably a bunch of nonsense, but what other choice do we have?” Lucy pressed.

“But you just said yourself that you thought it was unreliable- a bunch of ghost stories!” Tom exclaimed.

“I know, and I wouldn’t be surprised if nothing came of it at all, but if all of these dreams and my encounter with Edward, if there is any chance these things can be explained, I want to give it a chance! What if there was a reason my mother kept this book? What if she meant for me to find it? What if my mother could see them too!”

Now, continue on your way and make sure to keep track of those numbers! Next stop: Krystalyn Drown

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2015 Spring YA Scavenger Hunt!

March 23, 2015March 21, 2015 / Shauna Granger / Leave a comment

Hello Everyone!

I’m so happy to introduce to you the Spring 2015 YA Scavenger Hunt Authors!

We have eight outstanding teams this season. I am going to be a part of #TeamPurple! The Scavenger Hunt runs from April 2nd through April 5th beginning and ending at noon Pacific time on those days.

If you’ve never been a part of the hunt before you should give it a try. It runs like a giant blog hop, introducing you to new YA authors and books along the way. There are tons of prizes including a grand prize for each team. If you win one of the grand prizes you will get a book from each author on that team! For more information and to make sure you get hunt updates, sign up for news on the #YASH website.

I will be hiding an exclusive never-before-revealed sneak peek of AGE OF BLOOD! On my website I’ll be giving away 3 sets of ASH & RUIN cover pin-back buttons. You don’t want to miss out on this fabulous and fun event, but play fast because the hunt is only live for three days – that means we will all be taking down our posts on April 5th and you’ll miss your chance.

And now, here are the teams! (Hint: If you click on the image you can get a close up)

I hope you are all as excited as I am!

THE HUNT BEGINS 4/2/15!

Cover Reveal: AGE OF BLOOD

March 5, 2015March 1, 2015 / Shauna Granger / Leave a comment

Age of Blood (Ash and Ruin #3) by Shauna Granger

Hope is a dangerous thing, but powerful. Hope keeps you going. Hope can keep you alive.

But hope can shatter your world.

Kat and Dylan have found a home, but the monsters are still out there. The pox and plague still ravage the world. They have hope of finding a vaccine, but their encampment isn’t equipped to develop it.

Dylan is still too weak from the pox to leave the encampment, so Kat must decide between staying by his side and protecting her last remaining family member as he leaves to find supplies. Separated for the first time since they came together, Kat and Dylan will have to fight their own battles to save what is left of their bloody world.

Kat will have to hold on to hope that she has anything left to save and someone to come home to.

If she can survive.

Available 5/5/2015

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About the series:

World of Ash – book 1

There are two inherent truths in the world: life as we know it is over, and monsters are real.

The Pestas came in the night, spreading their pox, a deadly plague that decimated the population. Kat, one of the unlucky few who survived, is determined to get to her last living relative and find shelter from the pox that continues to devastate the world. When it mutates and becomes airborne, Kat is desperate to avoid people because staying alone might be her only chance to stay alive.

That is, until she meets Dylan. Dylan, with his easy smile and dark, curly hair, has nowhere to go and no one to live for. He convinces Kat there can be safety in numbers, that they can watch out for each other. So the unlikely couple set off together through the barren wasteland to find a new life – if they can survive the roaming Pestas, bands of wild, gun-toting children, and piles of burning, pox-ridden bodies.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Smashwords

Time of Ruin – book 2

TOR The world has ended, and hope is the most dangerous thing left.

Battered and bruised after barely escaping San Francisco with their lives, Kat, Dylan, and Blue press north – desperate to reach the possibility of a new home.

But strange, monstrous ravens are tracking the remaining survivors, food is becoming scarce, gasoline is running short, and people are becoming suicidal, making survival almost impossible.

And the Pestas are growing bolder. Somehow, their numbers are growing.

The further north they go, the harder it becomes to ignore the signs that they’ve made a fatal mistake. Kat must face the impossible truth that there is no escape, there is no safe haven, and their worst nightmares don’t come close to their new reality.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Smashwords

About the author:

Like so many other writers, Shauna grew up as an avid reader, but it was in high school that she realized she wanted to be a writer. She released the first installment of her Paranormal YA Series, The Elemental Series, Earth, on May 1, 2011 and has since released four sequels, with the series coming to an end with Spirit. In December of 2013 she released the first in her Paranormal Post-Apocalyptic trilogy (Ash And Ruin Trilogy), World of Ash. Be sure to also check out her newest series: The Matilda Kavanagh Novels about a spunky witch just trying to pay her rent in West Hollywood. Shauna is currently hard at work on one too many projects, trying to organize the many voices in her head. It’s a writer thing.

Stalkables:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

About the Cover Artist Stephanie Mooney:

SANYO DIGITAL CAMERA

I am a 25-year-old graphic designer, artist, and aspiring author currently living in Cincinnati, Ohio. I’m a renaissance girl — a lover of all things creative and artistic. From the moment I learned to use my hands, I was writing stories about princesses and sketching ballerinas. I guess I never really stopped.

Most of my training has been informal, and many of my skills are self taught. In 2006-07, I spent a year interning at a church in Louisiana where I worked in their art and design department. In July 2007, they hired me as one of their designers. I worked there for three years, gaining experience in graphic design, advertising, set building, event planning, and product design. From there, I began my career in freelance design.

Many of my clients are indie authors looking for affordable cover designs. I love working with authors and getting excited about their stories with them. I’m still building my web portfolio, but I really enjoy designing and developing websites as well.

Stalkables:

Website | Flickr| Twitter | Instagram

Writing writing writing

February 5, 2015 / Shauna Granger / Leave a comment

My monthly post over at the Spellbound Scribes’ Blog!

Spellbound Scribes

Happy Thursday my loverlies! The week is nearly over, huzzah!

This week has been equal parts awesome and stressful. Awesome and stressful because I started writing my sixteenth novel. Yup. Sixteenth. Mind, I write under this name and under and alter ego, so a couple of those novels are under a different name, but all told, I have a YA series that had five installments, an NA trilogy, an Adult UF series that has four completed books (this one I’m starting is the fifth in that series) and then my alter ego has written four novels.

When I finished writing my fifteenth novel in mid December I was totally spent. I wasn’t burnt out, because I hadn’t overdone it over the course of 2014 but I had still written a vast number of words. I was just happy I’d finished before the holidays so I could actually enjoy them…

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