Bump In The Night H0p #PNR

Welcome to the Bump In The Night Hop hosted by five paranormal romance authors, including myself, Carrie Ann Ryan, Ranae Rose, Lia Davis, and Marie Harte. We're the only stops on the hop, so be sure to visit each of us for a chance to win great prizes. Each author is giving away a prize, and one winner will be chosen to win all 5 prizes!

When I first began writing paranormal romance, I knew from the moment my first vampire jumped into my imagination that I loved writing in this genre. Now it's seven books later, and I love it more than ever! And with my newest book, Blood Prophecy (Sons of Navarus #4), coming this May 14, I add even more paranormal characters: werewolves, dragon shifters, witches, and daemons from the God of the Underworld himself, Hades.

It's no wonder I think I have the best job in the world. ;)

And when one of these paranormal characters gets sexy and romantic, wow! Then the heat gets turned up. My books are full of hot romance, and for me, there's nothing sexier than vampires. My 8 vampire warriors are the stars of my erotic romance series, the Sons of Navarus, and do those males know how to do it right!

Here's a snippet from the first Sons of Navarus book, Blood Avenged:

Vasilije didn’t bother to turn the lights on once inside. In truth, as a vampire, he saw as well in the dark as humans did in the light. Even more, there was no point in acting like they were going to sit on the couch and talk or watch television.

He knew what she wanted and he wanted it too.

Closing the door behind him, he reached out to her and pulled her to him, enjoying the feel of her body pressed to his. She was so warm. So willing.

Her hands slid over his stomach and chest as she arched up to kiss him. Bending down, his lips grazed hers for a moment before he pulled her closer, wanting what she offered.

Warm and wet, her mouth eagerly pressed against his and her tongue met his, teasing him with the tip. His fangs had slid into his mouth at the first touch of her hands on his body, and each playful flick of her tongue came so close, just missing them. To feel her tongue against his fangs would be heaven.

His hand tightened its grip in her hair and tugged, making her moan into his mouth. God, he wanted to hear that sound again. The sound of a woman needy for everything he could give her.

Sasa slid her hands over his shoulders and pulled him to her, pressing her breasts against his body as she devoured his mouth. Her tightened nipples rubbed against him, exciting him. Instinctively, he slid his hand under her thin t-shirt and plucked at one hardened pearl through her lacy bra, squeezing it gently between his thumb and forefinger as he cupped the fullness surrounding it.

Again, she moaned, making that sound that hit him directly between his legs. Already rock hard, his cock strained against the front of his pants. Whatever his mind may have thought about sleeping with her, his body had different plans.

And then her tongue flicked over the tip of one fang and sensations raced from his balls, up his cock, and through his body.

“Fuck,” he groaned as she seductively slid her tongue over his fang again. She had to know what she was doing to him. She had been a vampire’s girlfriend.

The idea that he was about to fuck the girlfriend of his dead vampire momentarily made Vasilije pull back from her, but the touch of her hands on his stomach made him forget every guilty feeling he had. Looking down, he watched her fumble with the shirt buttons.

“Sasa.”

At the sound of her name, she looked up and even in the darkness he saw the look of desire on her face. In one swift movement, he pinned her hands above her head. Pushing her up against the wall, he leaned into her and pressed his thigh between her legs, feeling the heat coming from her. Slowly, a low growl slid from his throat.

Sasa pushed against his hands, but he wouldn’t release her. Grinding against his thigh, she arched her body toward his.

His free hand lifted her shirt over her head and in seconds she stood before him in only her bra. A quick flick with his fingers and it was sailing to the floor to join her shirt.

Vasilije cupped one supple breast in his hand and tenderly stroked her silky soft flesh with his fingertips. Eager to feel her on his tongue, he bent his head and captured a nipple, quickly sucking it to an excited peak. A moan drew his attention from her tightened pink nipple, and he looked up to see Sasa’s face. Brown eyes clouded over with need stared into his.

“Please let me touch you. I want to feel you.”

Silently, he released her hands and returned to what his mouth craved. She felt so good in his mouth. Each pull made her grind her pussy against his thigh. Her hands raked through his hair, stroking and tugging as he sensually nibbled on her.

Vasilije couldn’t remember when he’d been with a woman who was so responsive. Every spot his mouth and hands visited aroused her, and she seemed to worship his body as she moved her hands from his hair to caress his neck and shoulders through his shirt.

Softly, he grazed her nipple with his fangs and from above he heard her cry out. He stood up and smiled with satisfaction, his sharp fangs aching to sink into her. He was surprised to find not fear in her face but desire—pure desire. Her cry hadn’t been of pain but pleasure.

Was she just drunk or did she realize what he planned to do?

As he studied her in the darkness, she pulled him to her and kissed him with a need that sent a jolt to his cock. His hands made their way to her jeans, and he made quick work of the button and zipper. Only cotton panties stood between him and his goal.

Vasilije slid two fingers under those panties and down through her bare slickness. Sasa wriggled against his hand as her mouth fed on his, her tongue darting in and around the inside passionately.

Bending down to pull her pants off, he whispered in her ear, “Careful, love. Teagan may have been able to control himself when you toyed with his fangs, but I won’t.”

Sasa stood in front of him naked and looking up at him as she licked her lips. Lifting herself onto her toes, she whispered next to his mouth, “You mean like this?” and then slowly ran her tongue over the point of his left fang.

His head thrown back, one thought controlled him now.

Find out more about the Sons of Navarus at my site www.gabriellebisset.com , including free desktop wallpapers and romance trading cards!

Now for the giveaway. Leave a comment below with your email address for a chance to win a signed copy of one of my Sons of Navarus series books: Blood Avenged, Blood Betrayed, Blood Spirit, or even the upcoming Blood Prophecy (which will be released in print in early May 2013), Sons of Navarus swag, and a handmade Sons bookthong featuring one of the four Sons of Navarus books.

And here's what the other authors are giving away:
Carrie Ann Ryan: an eArc of Her Warriors' Three Wishes, a swag pack, and a $15 Starbucks card.
Lia Davis: an eCopy of Winter Eve, $10 Amazon or B&N GC (winner's choice) and a swag pack.
Marie Harte: $15 Amazon e-gift certificate as well as any 2 of her backlist in ebook format, your choice
Ranae Rose: A signed paperback (winner's choice of Sleepy Hollow: Haunted Passions and Whiskey Dreams or Half Moon Shifters Volume 1) + a $10 Starbucks gift card.

The giveaway is US only this time (apologies to international readers). After you comment, be sure to hop around to the other four wonderful authors who have joined me in the Bump In The Night Hop, and good luck!


Carrie Ann Ryan http://carrieannryan.com/blog/
Lia Davis http://www.authorliadavis.com/blog/
Marie Harte http://marieharte.blogspot.com/
Ranae Rose http://www.ranaerose.blogspot.com/

How Much Is Your Work Worth?

I've been watching the indie publishing world for a while, and I'm seeing a trend that seems to have seduced a lot of my fellow writers. Just this week, I saw a box set of eight full length books go up for sale for $.99.  A good number of authors are literally giving their work away for free at all times with at least one of their books costing nothing. The loops I'm on include very passionate proponents of these marketing ploys who claim that this is just smart business and these are clever business tactics that indies must take. Their arguments often center on one main point: readers don't know the indie writer, so they must be given a free or very inexpensive taste of the indie's work to convince them that it's worth a higher price for subsequent books.

This seems misguided to me. Did Stephen King's first book have to be given away for free or nearly free? Did J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter book have to be promoted as so cheap you couldn't pass it up? No. Then why do indie books have to be treated differently?

The Free/Cheap Books people will tell you that these aren't valid questions. Those authors had NY and its massive publicity machine behind them. They weren't up against the competition that indies are--competition from a deluge of books written by virtually anyone with a laptop and the merest command of the English language and NY's releases, not to even mention the smaller epub books that come out with alarming speed.

I disagree. I think these are exactly the kind of questions that need to be asked. As an author, I know how many months I spend writing a book. I know how much work goes into crafting the story, researching the details of setting, history, and all the smaller points which add to a well-written book. After all that, I can't help disagree with the argument that one of my books is worth $.99 or should be given away because no one knows me. No one knew Stephen King or J.K. Rowling when they began either, yet their books were priced in such a way that showed a respect for their work.

The $.99 price point and the free giveaway only help to encourage consumers to believe that writing books is something anyone can do and that good writing isn't worth more. Neither of these are true. I think these marketing ploys also show something about indie writers even they don't see: that they don't believe their work is comparable to NY writing.

Not that they are more clever than NY but that they are less than NY, and therefore, should be paid less.

There's a tendency in this country to devolve down to the lowest common denominator, and nowhere can this be seen more clearly than with indie publishing. By showing readers that indie books are synonymous with cheap books, indies demean their own work even as they get bigger and bigger sales. It's ironic, but even those sales aren't going to fix the mindset readers inevitably will have about cheap indie books: easily obtained, easily read, and easily forgotten.

The $.99 and free price points are okay for sales and brief promotions, and I have no problem seeing $.99 as an appropriate price for a short story. I have two shorts around 5K each that I sell for $.99. However, the idea that a novel length book (or even a 30K word novella) is something so worthless that it should be given away for less than the price of a cup of coffee or even for free permanently is a mistake that I believe indies and the entire industry will pay for in the long run.

To me, writing books is a job. Maybe that's why I seem to differ from the many indies who believe in these marketing ideas. I have to guess that they don't see this as a job. Perhaps it's something they do in their spare time. Perhaps they rely on someone else to support them and writing is just there to provide what my mother and grandmother used to call "pin money." I guess that maybe if I saw this as a hobby, I wouldn't feel like I was selling myself short with these ploys.

The fact is, though, that this isn't a hobby to me, and I don't have a husband who supports my family so I can tinker around with writing in my spare time. I have a day job, as they say, and because of that, I know what good work is worth. I also know that I'd be selling myself short if I sold my work I do after the day job for mere pennies, no matter how many people purchased it.

I grew up with parents who used to say all the time "You get what you pay for." Times may have changed drastically, but this is still true. $.99 or always free for a book tells people that the author and the book aren't worth their time or consideration. If you're uncertain of this, spend some time in a dollar store or even the dollar bins at Wal-Mart and then make a visit to a basic department store like Macy's. There's a difference between those two types of stores, and you know it the second you walk through the doors. Macy's may not be Tiffany's, but it commands a bit more respect than the dollar store.

In the end, indies have to decide if being the dollar store in the publishing business is what they want to be. For me, I never find much of any good in the dollar store. I think I'll stick with Macy's, and who knows? Maybe one day, I'll spend some time in Tiffany's.

Read The First 5 Chapters of Blood Prophecy #kindle #nook

Since being an indie can be a royal pain in the ass sometimes (dealing with Amazon and B&N being one of those times), I've put up the free first five chapter preview of Blood Prophecy at my website instead of waiting for Amazon to price match it (taking forever) or not having it available to B&N customers at all (since B&N never price matches).

Just stop over at Blood Prophecy's page at my website and download the PDF, epub, or mobi (for Kindle) format. Enjoy!

Or, if you're looking to grab a few of the other Sons books before the release of Blood Prophecy, head on over to Amazon, B&N, or Kobo and pick up the Blood & Dreams Sons of Navarus Box Set, which includes Vampire Dreams Revamped (the series prequel), the first two books of the series, Blood Avenged and Blood Betrayed, AND the five chapter preview of Blood Prophecy. It's a steal at $3.99 and will only be available for a short time, so don't miss it!

Blood Prophecy's May 14 release date is just around the corner!  Happy reading!

5 Chapter Preview of Blood Prophecy #PNR #vampires

The surprise I've been hinting at for days is finally here--the first five chapters of Blood Prophecy are available for FREE at Kobo and Amazon. (Amazon will be .99 until I get them to price match...grrrrr...but readers can grab the .mobi file for the Kindle at Smashwords too).

The full ebook and paperback editions won't be out until May, but readers can sink their teeth into these first five chapters and get a taste of where the story is going. Here's the blurb:

I am everything you fear. I am vampire.

As the two Sons chosen to decipher the Prophecy of Idolas, Ramiel and Thane journey to find the key to defeating the Archons. Together with Noele, a born vampire, they confront their fates as they fulfill their duty to their world. Along the way, they'll find love, but death and betrayal lurk in the shadows, threatening everything dear to them.

Descended from the gods and warriors all, each Son's loyalty will be tested. Every action has consequences, and the choices they make now seal their fates. Alliances as old as the vampire world itself are reforged, and the Sons' duty is clear. Stop the Archons. Or die trying.

And don't forget that you can be notified the day the book comes out by signing up at my website at www.gabriellebisset.com for an email to be sent to you to let you know the minute it's available.

So head on over to Kobo  or Amazon and happy reading!(And if you're wanting to help an author in need, tell the Amazon folks there's a lower price at Kobo so they'll price match the preview to free.)

A Little Taste of #Vampire Dreams #PNR

In preparation for the release this spring of Blood Prophecy, book 4 in the Sons of Navarus series, I've reduced the price of the prequel novella, Vampire Dreams, to $.99. The story that began it all, it features the love story of Brandon and Arden along with three of the Sons of Navarus, Vasilije, Terek, and Thane (who is about to be featured prominently in the new release coming soon).

Here's a taste of that first story that introduced the world to Vasilije:

Blurb:

A vampire for hundreds of years, Brandon Ridley is surrounded by others of his kind who enjoy their world to the fullest. Orgies, debauchery, and sensual delights leave him empty, though. What he wants is that one woman who will share his life.

Homeless and without any family, Arden Stephens must live on the streets of mid 19th century London, never a safe place for a young woman.  One night, as she is running for her life from an attacker, she is rescued by Brandon and offered a place in his home as his maid.  Brandon is enchanted by Arden from the moment they meet and yearns to make her one of his kind.

Nightly, he visits her in her sleep, preparing her for the night he will finally make her his own.  For Arden, the wanton dreams she has about her handsome employer seduce her and each day when she wakes up, she finds herself more drawn to him.  But love and desire aren't enough for Brandon to sire her.  He must first obtain the approval of his own sire, an ancient vampire named Vasilije who has thwarted his chance for happiness before.

But if Brandon can convince him, he may finally find the love he's been without for centuries.

Excerpt:

The dark streets of the city lay sprawled out in front of her, filled with both possible danger and salvation. As she ran, her feet pounding against the stones beneath them, her breathing came in pants that stole the moisture from her mouth. Her eyes frantically scanned for someplace to hide as she pushed her legs to run faster.

She could hear his feet as each one solidly hit the ground behind her. His stride much longer than hers, he was coming closer with each step.

If he caught her...

The pounding of her heart hammered in her ears as the blood pushed faster and faster through her body. Up ahead, she saw a door ajar in a rundown building. If it was empty, she might be able to find a place to hide and hopefully escape from the pain of what awaited her if he captured her.

She slipped through the doorway, but her cape caught on the doorknob, costing her precious moments. As she worked to free herself, she heard his footsteps slow down to a walk, a sign he was as sure as she that he’d won.

Finally, in desperation, she tore the fabric from the knob, and free to run once more, she turned and ran headlong into the chest of a man who stood silently watching her.

“Please save me! He’s coming for me!”

In the dim light, she saw his emotionless expression. Would he help her? Or would he hand her over to him?

Without a word, the stranger took her roughly by the arm and led her to a table near the far wall. With his hands on her shoulders, he hesitated a moment and then spun her around.

His voice deep, he commanded, “Place your hands on the table and bend over.”

Fear raced through her as she questioned whether she’d chosen a fate as horrific as the one she’d fled from. But she did as she’d been told and waited in terror for what was to come.

The noise of her stalker entering the building caused her to turn her head, but the voice behind her sternly warned, “Face forward.”

She felt hands lift her cloak and dress, allowing the cool night air to hit the bare skin of her thighs. The feeling at once thrilled and shocked her, and she instinctively stood up to cover herself.

The man behind her forcibly pushed her back down toward the table and leaned over her. Whispering low in her ear, he said in a kind voice, “Trust me,” as he pushed his body firmly against her backside.

“Hey you! Where’s the girl who came in here?”

With his hands on her hips, the man who gave her no choice but to trust him pushed his hips toward hers and thrust toward her still clothed body to simulate sex. In her ear, he let out a throaty groan unlike anything she'd ever heard before.

“Hey! I asked you about the girl who came in here!”

Never looking back, Arden squeezed her eyes closed, shutting out the moonlight that streamed in through the window above, and waited for the attack she dreaded. Instead, she heard the man whose body continued to meet hers bark, “Go away! This whore’s mine!”

Indignant at the use of the word whore to describe her, she started to push herself up but his hand held her by the neck and forced her to remain still on the table. A sound like a hiss came from her protector and the other man hurriedly ran out of the building.

A hardness brushed past her thighs and she realized while she’d escaped death, she now faced being raped by this stranger who had asked her to trust him. Over and over, his erection teased her. Fear turned to arousal as she felt his stiff cock press toward her and her body begin to want him. His hand on her neck eased almost to a caress as he continued to hold her down.

Noises behind them told her the original attacker had been chased off, and when the thrusts stopped, she pushed back against him, forcing him off her. Spinning around, she smoothed her dress and snapped, “You are no gentleman! Whore?”

The man stood looking at her, a small grin creeping onto his lips. In a voice far silkier than she’d heard from him before, he said, “You didn’t need a gentleman.”

I kept it fairly clean for this excerpt, but I should warn you, the story is quite steamy. To grab your copy, visit Amazon, B&N, iTunes, Kobo, or Smashwords. Happy reading!

And here's a special surprise: Enter to win a paperback copy of Blood Prophecy, the 4th novel in the Sons of Navarus series! Just visit Goodreads and enter for a chance!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Blood Prophecy

by Gabrielle Bisset

Giveaway ends May 02, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Amazon's Newest Disaster For Indies

The author of the book Beautiful Disaster thought she'd hit it big when her indie book became a national bestseller. The money was rolling in and she was hitting the bestseller lists, not just Amazon's lists. Life got even better when NY came calling and she signed with a traditional publisher to get her book Beautiful Disaster into even more readers' hands.

It's a dream come true for many indies, but now comes the nightmare part. Amazon has decided that it should email readers who purchased the indie version of the book and let them know that it will no longer be available and they can ask for a refund, and they will pay for the over $4 difference to purchase the new NY book. But the author is going to have to pay for that refund.

Nice.

So because she's found some success, she can afford the many thousands of refunds that will come pouring in? How different is the book in its NY version that this refund is even necessary? And why is Amazon breaking its terms of service and allowing returns after 7 days? Does it do this with the indie books it signs for its publishing business? Do those now Amazon published authors get mass emails sent out that their books are available for refund and they then have to eat that cost?

Amazon seems to be saying something about the content being the problem. Yeah. I heard this, on a much smaller scale, a few months ago. I took a book off sale in July, yet Amazon kept it for sale until September. Then in November, I saw a refund for the book. Whoa! That's definitely more than 7 days (the length of time one gets to submit for a refund supposedly), even if you go with the September date. Amazon's answer? It was a content issue.

I called shenanigans and told them there was no problem with the content that the thousands of other readers hadn't found. I went round and round with them to no avail. They were like the ignorant kid who only knows enough to warrant a punch in the face but argues his point louder than anyone else. I finally gave up.

Hopefully, Jamie McGuire doesn't give up and takes the big Zon to the mat. It's about time. Amazon has become a bully in the indie world, regardless of how many devotees it has among us. Any time there's a problem, it spits back nonsense emails that answer nothing, and good luck trying to get them on the phone. (Why we tolerate this business with no phone calls is beyond me. They make money from me and I can't get to talk to someone in person?) Their customer service might be stellar, but their vendor service is the worst.

I personally have no real problem with people being stupid or naive (which seems to be an epidemic in the indie publishing world), but when the rest of us pay for that stupidity, it's a problem. There are constantly problems with authors' dashboards at Amazon and yet no one seems to be asking if we can even trust our sales numbers. As long as the rankings on the books keep rising, who cares, right?

Far too many indies can't see past their glowing praises of KDP Select or free days or permanently free books getting them something to notice that Amazon bears very careful watching. What it's doing with this author is wrong. It breaks their own TOS. That in itself is a problem, but it's even more than that. Amazon has become a bully, and unless indies begin to see that and stand up to it instead of trying to make friends with it or believing we make too much money for the company for them to ever want to hurt us, we'll all find ourselves in a place where we have no control over our work, much like Jamie McGuire.

Jamie McGuire is asking readers who have been offered the refund not to take it until she gets things straightened out with Amazon. I say they should go one better. Don't take the refund and complain to Amazon that this is unfair business practices. Stop Amazon on this and it might have to remember that their TOS is enforceable against them too, not just something to be wielded against authors.

For more on Jamie McGuire and the Beautiful Disaster issue, visit her FB page at https://www.facebook.com/Jamie.McGuire.Author

UPDATE:  Amazon has retracted its offer of a refund on Beautiful Disaster and now says the entire thing was an error.  While I am pleased for Ms. McGuire, this doesn't change my opinion that Amazon bears close watching.

Bloggers Help Paws With A Cause

Every so often a cause moves me to really care, and this is one of them. We have a total of 59 blogs that have gotten together to help raise money for a great cause. There are going to be some awesome prizes up for grabs for people that donate money to the cause. Here is a little about the company that we are raising the money for:

Paws With A Cause® enhances the independence and quality of life for people with disabilities nationally through custom-trained Assistance Dogs. 

PAWS® increases awareness of the rights and roles of Assistance Dog teams through education and advocacy.  Founded in 1979, Paws With A Cause is dedicated to helping its clients who are challenged by many disabilities, such as Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, Seizure Disorders, and Hearing Disorders to name just some.  Each of our dogs are trained to meet the specific needs of our clients. Tasks may include opening and closing doors, picking up objects, pulling a wheelchair, turning lights on and off, and alerting a person to particular sounds like a telephone, doorbell, smoke detector and many others. Our dogs change lives by enhancing the independence of our clients. By just opening a door, a dog opens up the world for a person with a disability and your donations will go to making that happen.  PAWS thanks you so much for your donation and allowing us to open more doors.

Paws With A Cause

4646 South Division

Wayland, MI 49348

How to donate:

1. Go to https://www.everribbon.com/PawswithaCause

2. Click on "Make a Donation"
3. Enter a amount you wish to donate. Everibbon will add a small fee to your donation for processing. My fee for donating $5.00 was .49 cents. So keep this in mind when deciding your donation amount. You will receive 1 entry into the giveaway for every $1 you donate. 
4. In the box that says "on the behalf of" please put your name. This is the name that will be listed on the everibbon website so put a name you do not mind being visible to everyone. Do not check the box to make a anonymous donation because I will not be able to track your donation to enter you into the giveaways.
5. Next it will ask you for your credit or debit card information.
6. Then it will ask for your email address to send you a receipt. This is so that you can submit it for tax purposes.
7. Ta Da! Your all done making your donation. Now you need to contact Danielle to enter the giveaway.
8. Please email Danielle at RomanceBookJunkiesDanielle@Yahoo.com with the name you used to donate your money. Do not send me your name off your credit or debit card because I will not be able to see this. Along with the name you used please tell me how much you donated and if you live in the US or are International.
9. Your all done. Thank you for donating!

Warning: Do not try to email Danielle the name and donation amount of another person that is not yourself. If Danielle recieves more than one email with the same persons name and donation amount she will have to ask for your copy of the receipt from everibbon to verify that you are the correct winner. Thank you.

We will have 3 winners for the main giveaway.
We have 2 $65 gift certificates to any online book store.
Also we have a huge box of books and swag from Romance Book Junkies for US residents only.

Good luck to all and thank you for helping make this fundraiser a success.

And these are two of my girls, Skippy (Angel) lying down and Fitty staring angrily at her for stealing her window seat.

BONUS: Leave a comment below to be entered to win ebook copies of my Sons of Navarus short stories, Longing and The Deepest Cut. One winner will be chosen at random on March 8, 2013 and the contest is open internationally. Just be sure to include your email with your comment. Good luck!