News & Greetings!

Hey, gang! Just wanted to share a bit of news about my latest Moonsongs release, a website, and wish y'all a happy holiday and joyous New Year. 

 About the release... 
Vampire's Ball, Moonsongs Book 5


 Jenny Moonsong recently inherited the title of "monster hunter" and an ancient tribal journal/how-to manual passed down by her Apache ancestors. Being a girl of action, she has found herself particularly capable when it comes to battling the werewolves, trolls, and other supernatural denizens lurking in the Texas night. Until now.

Vampire's Ball, Moonsongs book 5, finds Jenny and her best friend Marshal in their most harrowing adventure yet. Traveling by boat to an extravagant masquerade party located at a Galveston Island mansion, Jenny must parlay with an ancient vampire in order to secure the release of the dragon princes, Isis. The unexpected return of an old "friend" turns the evening into chaos, and leaves Jenny and company once again fighting for survival amidst a sea of supernatural foes.

Vampire's Ball is approximately 12,500 words of humor, horror and paranormal mystery. It is the fifth volume of the Moonsongs Books, an ongoing series of New Adult, urban fantasy novelettes by author E.J. Wesley.

~Moonsongs Series List~ 


Vampire's Ball, Moonsongs Book 5


Moonsongs, Anthology 1 (Collecting books 1, 2, & 3) - eBook/AMAZON - PAPERBACK

A little help from my friends...

I'm not doing any kind of big release "thing" for this one for a couple of reasons. 1) I've got a big blog tour coming in January, so I'm putting most of my energy into that. 2) It's the holidays and I know most of my blogging friends are very busy doing what they ought to be doing. (Hanging with friends/family, eating cookies, and drinking eggnog.) So I didn't want to ask people to post stuff on their blogs this week.

However, if you could spare a second to tweet or Facebook about the release it'd be HUGELY appreciated. (Or just share this post.) If not, no worries. We're still besties! (More on you being my besties below. :)

Here are some pre-cooked tweets and Facebook things for your ease of use:

(click to tweet)

Tweet: "As it turned out, pretty much everything that had ever given a kid a nightmare was real-" Vampire's Ball http://ctt.ec/cN3Zn+ #ebook

Facebook:

 (copy/paste)

Warm up your holidays with some action-packed urban fantasy! E.J. Wesley just released book 5 in his Moonsongs series, Vampire's Ball. http://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Ball-Moonsongs-Book-5-ebook/dp/B00HFYCE9O/ref=la_B009GI10B0_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1387738341&sr=1-6 #NewAdult #UrbanFantasy

"If you haven't started this series and have a thing for heroines with an attitude problem, add it to your TBR list right quick." ~ Amazon Reviewer ~ Vampire's Ball, Moonsongs book 5 by E.J. Wesley is now available. http://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Ball-Moonsongs-Book-5-ebook/dp/B00HFYCE9O/ref=la_B009GI10B0_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1387738885&sr=1-6 #NewAdult #UrbanFantasy

"As it turned out, pretty much everything that had ever given a kid a nightmare was real..." Vampire's Ball by author E.J. Wesley is now available. http://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Ball-Moonsongs-Book-5-ebook/dp/B00HFYCE9O/ref=la_B009GI10B0_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1387738885&sr=1-6 #NewAdult #UrbanFantasy

The website...

I have a website now! It's still a work in progress, but feel free to hop over and let me know what you think.

2013 and Holiday Wishes...

So, 2013 was busy/crazy/insane/fun/happy/sad/awesome/meh for me. After spending 6 years in South Texas, my wife and I uprooted and moved to Northern California over the summer. 99% of our family and friends live elsewhere (like far, far away elsewhere). So, as with any move, it has been a transition.

We're making new friends and truly love the area and people, however. Plus, I now live a short drive from Napa/Sonoma, San Francisco, and a bunch of the prettiest National Parks and mountains the US has to offer. So don't shed a tear for me just yet! :)

Meanwhile in 2013, I published 3 more Moonsongs stories, an Anthology, my first print book, joined the team over at the New Adult Alley Blog, helped start a new audio companion show for our New Adult literature Twitter chats (every Thursday night, 9 PM Eastern--if you haven't seen what we're up to lately, stop by in the new year), and started (and trying like heck to finish) what will become my first published novel for next year.

In a time full of change for me, the one constant has been y'all. (My besties!) I've grown as a writer, failed as a blogger (at times), made friends, lost touch with friends, shared in your joys, related to your setbacks, and so much more. 

There are precious few certainties in this writing life (and really, life in general), so knowing that I can hop online no matter where I might wander off to and find friends who are still writing, still passionate about reading, and still encouraging one another has made all the difference to me. 

So with that, I'd like to say thank you one last time in 2013. It's an honor to call you my peers and friends. May the rest of your year be happy, healthy, and blessed. And here's to 2014 bringing you more of the same.

~EJW~
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The Ghosts of Aquinnah - Get To Know Stella

Hey, gang! Very excited to share a character profile from my pal Julie Flanders' latest, The Ghosts of Aquinnah. Sounds like Julie has woven yet another superbly suspenseful story for us! (If you haven't read Polar Night yet, do so. Soon. :)

Take it away, Stella!

Aquinnah, Massachusetts
The Ghosts of Aquinnah Character Interview

What is your name?

Stella Winslow

What do you look like?

I’m petite and thin, I’ve always been called tiny. I have long auburn hair, fair skin, and green eyes.

When were you born? Where do you live?

I was born in 1864 and I live in the town of Chilmark on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. I’ve lived on the same farm for my whole life. It used to belong to my parents, now it belongs to my husband.

What has been the most important event in your life?

I helped in the rescue efforts when The City of Columbus sank off the coast of Gay Head in January, 1884. I took care of one of the survivors, a young man named Christopher Casey. That experience totally changed my life.

Have you ever been in love?

I have, once. I’ve also been married once. I didn’t marry the person I loved and I didn’t love the person I married.

Do you hold grudges?

Yes, I do. And I’m like a dog with a bone once I’ve set my mind to something. If I have a wrong that I think needs to be righted, I don’t care how long it takes me to accomplish that.

Who is the person you respect the most? Despise the most?

I respect my parents, they were wonderful people. I despise my husband.

What goal do you most want to accomplish in your lifetime?

I want people to know the truth about Christopher Casey.





Blurb:

A brilliant flash of light transcends through time.

Another freezes a cloaked figure within a frame of salty mist as waves crash against a rocky shore. Her harrowing expression shadows the beacon to a pinprick.

By the next blaze, she is gone. Only the lighthouse remains.

Hannah’s eyes blink in step with each heartbeat. Images of her deceased parents and Martha’s Vineyard explode like firecrackers inside her mind.

She shakes her head.

For weeks this eerie woman dressed in nineteenth century garb has been haunting my webcam, but tonight she stared into my soul.

Why? ...

Who is she? ...

Casting aside months of research on historic lighthouses, Hannah drives to the coast and boards a ferry.

What is the strange connection she has to this mysterious woman suspended in time?

Hannah finds out.

But, it’s not at all what she expects...

Hannah unravels a century old murder.

Buy The Ghosts of Aquinnah:




Author Bio: Julie Flanders is a novelist and freelance writer in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has a life-long love affair with the ocean and has spent more summer vacations than she can count on the island of Martha’s Vineyard. When not writing, Julie can be found playing with her pets, reading, cheering on her favorite sports teams, and watching too much television. The Ghosts of Aquinnah is Julie’s second novel. Her debut novel Polar Night was released in February, 2013 by Ink Smith Publishing.



Find Julie at:
 

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IWSG - A Casual Affair

Hey, gang! Hope those of you who celebrated turkey and togetherness last week did so in grand fashion. It's time to for another Insecure Writer's Support Group post (IWSG). 

 What is IWSG? Besides being a collection of awesome people, it's THE support network for writers. We offer each other encouragement and commiseration on the first Wednesday of each month. Click the pic below for more details and to learn how to join.

A fling… 

 A flirt… 

 A dalliance… 

 A romp… 

 A cup of devilishly unusual tea in a strange café I'll never set foot in again…

 Sometimes writing a story is all of those things to me. It's like a pair of expensive shoes so impractical I'll only be able to wear them once, with a specific shirt, and then put them back in the box forever. It's one night spent in the company of a beautiful stranger, no names or phone numbers exchanged.

I firmly believe writing CAN be a casual affair. Thing is, it took me a while to work up to being able to accept that. 

 See, I've been something of a serial monogamist when it comes to my writing. For the most part, I'm a Plain Jane, stick-in-the-mud, write-what-I-love kind of writer. 

 I like fantasy. The impossible excites me. Thinking about dark things that shouldn't exist frightens me--in a terribly good way. The story is a-rocking when fantastical things come a-knocking so to speak.

 I like feisty characters who crack the quip-whip with reckless abandon. (Don't stand too close! She'll snap you!) Bold is usually the first--and main--ingredient in my protagonist soup.

 So what happens when I start writing a contemporary story with a main character who is more contemplative than combative? A story where I can't toss in an explosion or fangs when things start to drag?

 *breathes heavily into paper sack*

 I get a little nervous. The itchy, twitchy shakes set in. If I'm being completely honest, it feels a little like I'm stepping out on my main gal. No, it goes deeper than that. At times it feels more like I'm betraying my very writing nature.

 But it's damned fun! Like a kid playing dress up, I get to be something I'm not. I get to be a writer of "serious fiction" (well, not SO serious--War And Peace this is not). In that way it is fantasy I suppose. 

 Perhaps the most important aspect of playing in the shadows of my comfort zone is that it has forced me to grow as a writer. Nothing about writing this contemporary story has come easily for me. There's no writing from the cuff. It's a blissful struggle most days. 

 And like all meaningful workouts, it sometimes leaves me sore and questioning if I'm fit enough to pull it off. Then I'll re-read a few pages. 

 I'll see that I'm letting characters express themselves in ways I've never done before. A good scene will jump out, and I'll think, "I could never have done this in fantasy!" 

 I'll find a few nuggets of sparkling brilliance in a mine full of dark rocks. My confidence spikes (a little LOL) and I get back to digging, because I know I might just hit the mother load if I keep at it.

 Will I consider myself a master of contemporary fiction when I'm done? Will anyone else? Not likely. But I will have had one heck of a good time doing it. Who knows, maybe I'll even try another one.

 What about you? Have you written anything outside of your usual genre or category lately? How did it turn out? Would you do it again?

 ~EJW~ 


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