http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger On writing SFF & horror novels, publishers & publishing...and the writing life.. Watch for book excerpts! en NDblogger NDblogger Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:33:13 +0200 daily 1 Yes, it's winter downunder, and we're hovering next to the heater tonight! I'm afraid we're a bit soft here in the city - a cold wet wind is enough to send us scurrying indoors. I realized recently I have over a dozen titles being released this year. The book below has one of my favorite covers.   A Kiss for Luck     400 years trapped in a mirror...freed by a kiss Of Glass & Guile Artful deception, guileless lass, Aimless cast in silvered glass, To cling fore'er, but ne'er to hold, Lost in sight, 'til worn and old. Enslaved by glass, refraction frail, Bested, broken, trapped in Hell. Cursed. It had been a long time since she'd felt the limits of her confinement so strongly. The resonance of steps and movements, the sounds which rebounded into her small space before dissipating into nothingness, had kept... Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:33:13 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/chilly-Auckland-and-here-Kiss-for-Luck/21/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/chilly-Auckland-and-here-Kiss-for-Luck/21/ It's a muggy and rainy day here in Auckland. Phew! I was scrolling through my emails today, and found some posts from Terry Odell and Sharon Horton, some of my fellow Cerridwen Press authors. Apparently, CP is having a big sale at the moment. I checked on my books, and sure enough, the paperback copies of Gilded Folly are less than the ebooks (only $3.50!). This is a scary - and funny - fantasy. Very suspenseful at times, too. I've posted 3 excerpts below. I don't know how long this sale will last, so forgive me if it's run its course before you have a chance to get there. Regards, and best wishes, Norah/ND/Melody Review 1 - " Fantastic imagery, suspenseful plot, tension to beat all tension, incites the reader to sit on the edge of the seat and read until the last letter, the last dot, until THE END. ND Hansen-Hill weaves a tale of the battle of good versus evil that seems so real the reader will look askance at... Thu, 19 Feb 2009 21:15:47 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Gilded-Folly-for-the-Moment-Less-Paperback-than/20/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Gilded-Folly-for-the-Moment-Less-Paperback-than/20/ Hi! This month has been terribly hectic! Eleven book edits, with little else being accomplished, other than work and editing (oh, and the gym! I joined a gym and have actually been going, if only to get away from my computer). These edits are brought on by a very lucky 2008. In Flames, Of Dragons, The Hollowing, GlassWorks, ErRatic, and Emerald City were all released last year. The sequel to ~In Trysts~ REVIEWS In Flames 1 - " Fast paced and edgy tension highlights this passionate thriller. In Flames is a roller coaster ride of secrets and ghosts and sizzling sensuality. The plot line is solid and kept this reader guessing to the dramatic end. Marco and Sophia are likable individuals that I felt an affinity with from the opening. Melody Knight is an author whose back list I look forward to reading." Lettetia Elasser, Affaire de Coeur July/August 2008 2 - " Her combustibility and the secrets of... Wed, 28 Jan 2009 19:42:40 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/My-2008-in-Excerpts-and-Pictures/19/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/My-2008-in-Excerpts-and-Pictures/19/ It's been a fairly mild winter here in New Zealand, but September heralds in Spring. It's really been a fantastic year for me, book-wise, with a multitude of sales and a number of new publishers. I have 8 publishers now, and hope to acquire a few more before year's end. I saw beautiful Cheiranthus when I was out walking Ol' Foxy Dog today. Too bad the warm weather also makes me want to write something new! 'course, it doesn't take much to get me writing, does it, LOL? Here's a excerpt from Gilded Folly, which was released last year. Cheers, and best wishes, Norah/ND/Melody Review 1 - " Fantastic imagery, suspenseful plot, tension to beat all tension, incites the reader to sit on the edge of the seat and read until the last letter, the last dot, until THE END. ND Hansen-Hill weaves a tale of the battle of good versus evil that seems so real the reader will look askance at his/her neighbor and wonder. ND does... Tue, 30 Sep 2008 01:21:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Spring-s-Here-at-Last/18/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Spring-s-Here-at-Last/18/ AUTHOR: N. D. Hansen-Hill GENRE: Fantasy/Time Travel PUBLISHER: Cerridwen Press ISBN: 978-1-60202-061-0 RATING: PG BLURB: Shawn Walsh's problems don't arise from his own troubled past but from someone else's. Fires, floods, battles, bone-rattling quakes — he's frequently an unwilling and horrified participant in events long gone. For when The Hollowing claims him, his present dissolves. Unfortunately, his problems have everything to do with family and his rather questionable heritage — with a birthright he'd rather know nothing about. Lost and tossed about by destiny, trapped and extorted by those long deceased, he's tired of playing a victim. And he refuses to give up hope. There is still a chance he'll be able to resolve his issues without dying, given the right place… And enough time. BOOK LINK :>>http://www.cerridwenpress.com/productpage.asp?ISBN=9781419916465<<  AUTHOR WEBSITES:... Sat, 19 Apr 2008 23:01:03 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Promo-New-Release-THE-HOLLOWING/17/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Promo-New-Release-THE-HOLLOWING/17/ News & Networking It's been a busy week as usual. Of Dragons was released by Red Rose last Thursday, and it's been full on ever since. I have to admit I've learned a fair bit about promotion this week, and networking with other authors and author sites. Some of the romance sites, like Simply Romance  , are extremely generous with both their time and their space. I finished the first round of edits on Gray Beginnings, and will be hastily contriving a suitable blurb. The edits for GlassWorks should be in the Inbox shortly, too. In a few minutes I'll be posting on Tales of the Trade. My blog post is due there today. WIP & Other Things : Only a thousand words added this week to my "Nocturne Bites" effort, but I did submit a blurb for Art & Soul to the open call at Nocturne. This is a quick in effort, with decisions being made by April 16th. I love these mini subs and competitions because they spur me on either to try new genres or... Fri, 04 Apr 2008 00:19:30 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/News-Networking-Anthology-Return-of-the-Sword/16/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/News-Networking-Anthology-Return-of-the-Sword/16/ AUTHOR: Melody Knight GENRE: Mainstream Romance Sci-Fi/Fantasy PUBLISHER: Red Rose Publishing ISBN: 978-1-60435-077-7 RATING: Explicit sexual content BLURB: Ryon Colley can't understand what's happening to his life. This morning, he was a policeman investigating a potential hazard: a sparking, flashing, rainbow-spitting light show in the sky overhead. The source of the odd light appeared to be an unruly-haired blonde hellion, who couldn't figure out what normal was. Her radiant display scared him, but his physical reaction to it scares him more. By lunchtime he's gone from having coarse brown hair, to sporting a head full of blond locks—and from facing felons, to fending off thousands of voracious dragonflies.             Glynt has been sent to Earth to guard the dimensional gateways, but her arrival spawns nothing but trouble. Quite accidentally, she's summoned swarms of... Fri, 28 Mar 2008 19:50:18 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/New-Release-OF-DRAGONS/15/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/New-Release-OF-DRAGONS/15/ Hey, All. Looking at a busy day ahead. On the plus side, I finished editing, spell-checking, and submitting my Nocturne Bites entry yesterday. Today, it's review edits, a bit on my TLC WIP, and maybe the beginnings of a new Nocturne . These shorts are quick, and I enjoy writing short, scary romances, though admittedly, my latest wasn't all that scary. It was more a new twist on old fables. That will take me up to the time when I break out the Next Generation (Star Trek) DVD. My daughter and I are attempting to consume a season's worth in 3 days of after-school time. That's it - oh, join a new list if you want to read excerpts of books on Fictionwise.  Have a great day! Cheers, ND Mon, 18 Feb 2008 18:40:47 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Just-a-brief-hello/14/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Just-a-brief-hello/14/ News & Networking Happy Valentine's Day! This has been my week for finishing past work. I wrapped up a novel, newly named A Spirited Encounter on Tuesday, and then finished up a novella, A Kiss for Luck , on Wednesday. The novella may be of special interest to all you romance writers out there who like to turn a dark phrase or two. Nocturne is calling for submissions for in the 10,000 to 12,000 word range. So, do what I did: write one in 4 to 5 days. You have nothing to lose, and if Nocturne don't want it, someone else will. Novellas, because they are a quick lunchtime read on a PDA or mobile phone, are growing increasingly popular. I didn't master the novella "technique" until late last year, but it's one worth pursuing. I'm still not all that good at the genre, but it's about expanding your abilities and increasing your readership. I've also been blogging, answering interviews, and next week am... Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:35:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/From-Haunted-Houses-to-Haunted-Mirrors/13/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/From-Haunted-Houses-to-Haunted-Mirrors/13/ News & Networking It's been an absolutely incredible month! The contract's official - I can now announce the publisher for BoneSong and Relic : Drollerie Press . Red Rose Publishing also signed Of Dragons and Emerald City this month, and All Romance eBooks contracted a short story called Cut and Polish . Phew! Only BloodWorks is waiting in the works. If I have any time left, I'd like to get Art & Soul , Artifact , and Sqweams rewritten and out to publishers this month, but the month is going quickly... WIP : my haunted house story is sitting at 38,400 words, and I only plan on bringing it up to just over 50K. You'd think I'd be able to just whip that out, wouldn't ya? It's going veeeerrry slowly. Other things : I have interviews this week on both Crystal Adkins' new interview site, and the Fallen Angels Review Blog (scroll down until you find my work). The FAR blog has numerous excerpts from my... Tue, 22 Jan 2008 06:41:22 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Book-News-and-Networking-with-Jane-Beckenham-Excerpts/12/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Book-News-and-Networking-with-Jane-Beckenham-Excerpts/12/ HAPPY NEW YEAR! Your Holiday Gift - Download a Free Copy of my Full-Sized Novel Vision from Fictionwise! Happy Holidays from N. D. Hansen-Hill , the Author of: Fantasy  The Trees Series   Trees Crystals  Mud Shades  Fire  Light  The Elf Chronicles   Elf  Trolls   Kaituku Gilded Folly Science Fiction (SF)  The Light Play Trilogy   Light Play Light Plays  Lightning Play Static   BloodWorks  Relic   ErRatic BoneSong Horror  The Grave Images Series Grave Images  Graven Image  Grave Imagery Grave Image Vision The Hollowing Romance (writing as Melody Knight ) Romantic Suspense   In Trysts   In Flames Romantic Fantasy   Of... Sat, 22 Dec 2007 22:15:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Best-Wishes-and-Happy-Holidays-from-ND-Melody/11/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Best-Wishes-and-Happy-Holidays-from-ND-Melody/11/ Red Rose Publishing has signed my 28th novel, GlassWorks ! RRP has a good reputation among authors, so this is really exciting news. The Hollowing has a cover! Cerridwen Press's artist outdid themselves this time. Take a look at my MySpace page. The cover is absolutely beautiful! I received a Harriet Klausner review this week for ErRatic . First reviews on a book could go either way, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to receive a good one from such a prestigious reviewer. According to Time magazine, Harriet Klausner " is one of the world's most prolific and influential book reviewers ". In her review, she states "ErRatic is a fantastic horror thriller..." and "N.D. Hansen-Hill provides an entertaining powerful ghost story that will gain entry to fans’ keeper shelf." I couldn't ask for a better review! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I finished the first edits for The Hollowing , and am working on 3... Fri, 30 Nov 2007 19:56:14 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Red-Rose-signs-GlassWorks-The-Hollowing-has-cover/10/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Red-Rose-signs-GlassWorks-The-Hollowing-has-cover/10/ I've been lucky enough to get an offer from Cerridwen Press for Gray Beginnings ! This is really exciting news, particularly since it joins Gilded Folly and The Hollowing at CP, which gives me a "body of work". That's good for an author, because when you make up bookmarks, etc, it's much more impressive if you can list multiple titles with a publishe. In Flames is scheduled for release 15 December! I hope to glean a few reviews beforehand, and I really like the book even better than In Trysts . In Flames was my 2nd romance, and is being published by Linden Bay Romance. Now, to get one more book with them before the end of the year... Maybe a November book in a month. NaNoWriMo, here I come??? In the meantime, I'm working on a YA and an erotic novella. Very diverse and the novella, believe it or not, is far more difficult for me to write than the longer fantasy adventure. Go figure. I thinkit's all about where your heart is in writing, but... Tue, 04 Sep 2007 21:03:20 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/New-contract-Gray-Beginnings/9/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/New-contract-Gray-Beginnings/9/ I've just had word The Hollowing is about to be published! This is very exciting news, and I'm thrilled. In Flames is under consideration, as are BloodWorks and Relic. Cross your fingers! I'm attempting to finish up Glass Works. I finished Of Dragons two weeks ago. Other plans: see if I can find publishers for the rest, and finish up the last two books on my desktop, then write one for TLC, one for an EC continuity series, and finish up my Grave Images Series. Phew! An excerpt: from Trolls, presently at Fictionwise             Zeb had been in such a panic he had no idea how far he’d come, or how deep underground he was. He’d fled into tiny holes (by Troll standards) and toppled, more than once, onto hard rock. All the Trolls would have had to do to find him was sniff him out. As fast as he healed—and, surprisingly, the Trolls’ poultices had helped him—he’d reopened some nasty slices in his shoulder and chest. There’d be... Thu, 26 Apr 2007 19:46:09 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/The-Hollowing-is-going-to-a-publisher/8/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/The-Hollowing-is-going-to-a-publisher/8/ Just before Christmas, ErRatic was signed by Five Star! I feel so lucky, and am in the middle of rewrites now. Another lucky break has come from Linden Bay Romance. They want the sequel of my novel In Trysts, for publication in July! To celebrate, I've taken a few hours every day to get artistic (just to see whether I still can!). I've been painting again, and have nearly finished my first oil painting in a year. I've also been doing book trailers on Toufee. Check out these: http://flash-movies.toufee.com/mov/32861168994619  and http://flash-movies.toufee.com/mov/36371169692268 . The first one's for my book In Trysts, and the second one is for Be My Valentine by Jane Beckenham ( www.JaneBeckenham.com ). I don't have sound on them yet, but soon, I hope. I'm enjoying the fact I have In Flames to finish by the end of February. I really miss it when I'm not writing. Painting can very nearly take its place, but it's really not the same. It's good to have a... Mon, 29 Jan 2007 23:11:24 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/My-book-ErRatic-has-been-signed-by-5-Star/7/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/My-book-ErRatic-has-been-signed-by-5-Star/7/ Absolutely loving my life right now, but sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I had anthro and archaeology exams, plus essays to do! It was one of those happy nightmare times where you know you're learning heaps, but you have no time to appreciate it. On the plus side, I'm being published again. Before I continue with more excerpts, I'm going to drop in a few excerpts from some which are either about to be released (December 15th), or up for competitions. From IN TRYSTS - to be released from Linden Bay Romance December 15th! Written by my pseudonym, Melody Knight Peri sucked in a deep breath, realised she might be sucking corpse dust, and rapidly expelled it. Sophie glanced at her, but from a safe distance. “Pe-er-r?” she whispered, in a quavery voice. Peri closed her eyes, held her breath this time, and moved closer to that gaping hole. It was black, and bleak, like some giant maw... Stop it! This wasn’t her first... Sat, 18 Nov 2006 07:03:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Competitions-Excerpts-Exams-Coming-Soon/6/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Competitions-Excerpts-Exams-Coming-Soon/6/ I've been doing too much, which has rather robbed me of time to do much blogging. It's another thing I promised myself I'd do - like writing emails to all the family and friends when you don't really have time - so I don't lose track of everyone. I read an article yesterday about how driven people are today - how they need to be superpeople, and set themselves almost impossible goals. How they thrive on people's reactions (how did you manage it? or I don't know how you do it!). It's a matter of pride to list the numbers of jobs, organisations, committees you belong to. How strange we are! Definitely a need to compete with each other. It's not enough to be successful - your success has to put others to shame (LOL!)! We've probably always done it, too. H. erectus no doubt competed to see who could kill the biggest mammoth, or collect the most tubers. I've been doing it to me, but I've mostly been competing with me, myself, I, yours truly, and moi. That's because I'm working on... Wed, 12 Jul 2006 02:09:41 +0200 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Superpeople-Writing-Books-Once-Excerpt-from-Gilded/5/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Superpeople-Writing-Books-Once-Excerpt-from-Gilded/5/ Anthropology really makes a person think about prejudice, and how it comes about. Antagonism...defence. Establishing your place, and your rights to that niche. Something similar happens when you move - particularly, when you move a long distance. Suddenly, the shift in environment points out your weaknesses - your bias - your prejudice. Whereas you may have experienced significant antagonism for the "nationals" next door in your homeland (place of origin) - it's a real eye-opener to find that exactly the same prejudicial statements are made against people of completely different origins, but in parallel circumstances. Another interesting concept is oral tradition, and how history can alter over time. Just as the fish in the fish story grows with each retelling, so do our accomplishments, whether in taking back the land, or defeating adversaries, or sustaining hordes on single pieces of bread. The basis of fact is there, but it may be buried under layers of insignificant detail. Yet it is... Fri, 10 Mar 2006 10:25:14 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/ancient-humans-blurb-from-novelist-Judy-Lawn-excerpt/4/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/ancient-humans-blurb-from-novelist-Judy-Lawn-excerpt/4/ I swear, this blogging stuff exorcises more than a few demons. I have a few other blogs, and so far, I've vented, I've pouted, I've cheered, I've griped, and I've speculated online today. God help me if anyone visits them all! BTW, if you want excerpts from my other books, you can visit some of my other blogs. Just Google me, and I'm sure you'll find an excerpt or three... Next week Uni begins again, and I can't wait. I'm absolutely thrilled this time - taking 2 ancient history and 3 anthro classes. One of my courses is Egyptian hieroglyphics. Fascinating! I've also opted for a class in dynasty 18 - that's the dynasty sourced for that new find in the Valley of the Kings. Should be interesting. Writing? Some, but not enough. I've been promoting my website online like mad, which is rather sad because I still need to finish the remainder of it. It has an index page so far and that's all! Disgraceful! LOL! Later this week...maybe. Before next week I need to finish submitting books to search engines... Sun, 19 Feb 2006 23:47:09 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Blogging-great-writing-and-excerpt-from-ErRatic-chapter/3/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/Blogging-great-writing-and-excerpt-from-ErRatic-chapter/3/ I'm sitting here eating an apple with a big grin on my face. Last night, I finished BoneSong!!! My 24th novel! Ecstatic doesn't begin to describe the feeling... It's been really difficult to keep up my enthusiasm lately. All writers have down time, when you worry whether you're ever going to become a household name. Whether your books will ever have a chance of being found in every library, and every bookstore. For most of us, it's never going to happen. Novice writers, and non-writers, generally have the wrong idea. They believe that publication is everything! When you begin writing a novel, you never realise that you're signing on to be a website designer, publicist, salesperson - and many times - agent. The reality in today's world of independent publishers is no money upfront, and minor moneys quarterly. Promotion is generally totally via the Net, your book is one of thousands on Amazon, and availability does not equate to sales. Good reviews and contest placements make little difference. If you... Sun, 05 Feb 2006 23:00:46 +0100 http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/BoneSong-is-finished-an-excerpt-from-ErRatic/2/ http://www.blogigo.co.uk/NDblogger/BoneSong-is-finished-an-excerpt-from-ErRatic/2/