It’s Giftmas Time Again! 2019

If you’ve been with me for a while, you know that Giftmas is when we raise funds for the Edmonton Food Bank. (No, I don’t live in Edmonton. No, I don’t even live in Canada. But look, Canada would help me out, too.) Giftmas is organized each year by Rhonda Parrish, my editor of many anthologies, and each year it’s a fun way to tour some writers’ sites, do good by putting food on the table, and win cool stuff.

There are three parts to this post: What’s in it for charity, what’s in it for you, and a tease for a Christmas gift from me.

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12 Days of Fantasy & Sci-Fi Christmas Deals

Spotted online:

If they don’t want a book, do they really deserve a gift at all?

Well, I’ll allow that other gifts can be nice, too, but this is a great time of year to introduce friends to your favorites and to find new favorites for yourself — particularly here in the northern hemisphere, where the days are short and cold and snuggling with a book and hot cocoa is the best adventure.

That’s why I’ve linked up with some colleagues to offer a dozen new fave-book opportunities, where you can browse for gifting (or yourself!) and maybe even win some goodies along the way.

I’m offering one winner a paperback of Shard & Shield, custom signed to the reader of your choice*, and to everyone I’m offering the ebook at a special discount of $0.99. Yes, you can give ebooks as gifts! But act quickly, because like all the deals on this tour, it will end soon.

Here’s the full blog-touring itinerary:

12/01/19
Yaasha Moriah – www.yaashamoriah.com
One paperback giveaway (US shipping only) + $.99 on all books

12/02/19
Verity A. Buchanan – www.verityabuchanan.com
One signed paperback giveaway + bookmark

12/03/19
Melissa Little – mllittleauthor.blogspot.com
One signed paperback giveaway + bookmark

12/04/19
J.D. Rempel – www.jdrempel.com
One personal signed hardback giveaway (US shipping only) + book swag

12/05/19
Claire Banschbach – www.clairembanschbach.com
Paperback giveaway (US only) The Wolf Prince x 1 – discounted ebooks for Adela’s Curse and The Rise of Aredor

12/06/19
Anne Wheeler – www.anne-wheeler.com
$0.99 on all books + 3 paperback giveaways of Asrian Skies

12/07/19
J.M. Hackman – https://jmhackman.com/
One signed paperback giveaway (Spark or Flare) (US shipping only) + related swag

12/08/19
Janeen Ippolito – https://www.janeenippolito.com/
Signed paperback giveaway (US only), super swag + sticker pack (anyone)

12/09/19
H. L. Burke – www.hlburkeauthor.com/blog
Paperback giveaway (US shipping only) Ultimate Nyssa Glass+Free ebook downloads for An Ordinary Knight and Thaddeus Whiskers and the Dragon

12/10/19
Laura VanArendonk Baugh – www.LauraVanArendonkBaugh.com
Paperback giveaway (single) plus discount on Shard & Shield

12/11/19
Hans Erdman – www.gewellynchronicles.com
6 giveaways of paperback Aerielands Christmas (US only) plus discount on all e-books

12/12/19
​M. J. Padgett – www.mjpadgettbooks.com
Two free e-books (first in each series) plus one download code for a free holiday themed audio book

Here’s my giveaway:


* I’m sorry, but this time it’s USA-only. I just shipped a prize pack overseas and the cost and shipping time was impressive, and the materials didn’t all arrive in pristine condition. I’d rather this potential gift be won by someone I’m reasonably sure can receive it sooner and intact for giving. International friends, you know I love you and usually include you, so I’m sorry for this exception.

Also, all custom inscriptions must be socially acceptable — but surely I don’t have anyone who would request otherwise. :)

The NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge is Coming

It’s that time of year when we writers must consider whether to join the annual Short Story Challenge.

Unlike NaNoWriMo or Inktober or other creative challenges, the NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge is a contest, with prizes. And it’s a challenge with a twist: All stories are written from scratch on a deadline, incorporating surprise elements assigned at the start time. You might receive a assignment to write a suspense story featuring a koala and an actor, or a romance with a compass and a plumber, or almost anything.

The three 2020 heats are in January, April, and May.

You can read about my previous (successful!) experiences here (and also here). (Spoiler: I made it to round 3, the top 75 out of over 4,000 entrants, and then tanked. But I got feedback and I learned, as the second post explains.) And if you might want to join me this year, hop over and read about the contest here.

NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge

Shard & Shield: Preorders & Loot & Charity

Today is the official start of Shard & Shield‘s preorder countdown, and I’ve got goodies to share!

Got a minute? Let me tell you about what’s available if you order your copy in advance. Bonus: You get the sadistic glee of watching me try to be all professional as cold rain intensifies. (It’s winter in New Zealand, where I recorded this just a couple weeks ago.)

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The F-BOM Flash Fiction Contest – Yay!

I’m please to share that my story took second place in F-BOM’s flash fiction contest for December 2017. Yes, I know it’s now officially 2018 — woo, I think that’s the first time I’ve written that — but the winning stories went up this weekend.

You can read my second-place story “Transfer,” as well as the first-place “The Fix” and honorable mentions, over on the F-BOM blog. The contest was judged by the fabulous Intisar Khanani, an F-BOM featured author. F-BOM is a “science fiction, fantasy, and feminist book club” (book of the month, get it?) which focuses on diverse books and related news. Continue reading

Celebrating 2017 — With Loot

list of handwritten creative ideas
I need a bigger fire for all my  irons.

We need to step back sometimes to be able to see the bigger picture.

I had been a little down on myself for not publishing as much as I’d wanted and being behind on my idea list. I have a beefy project list that feels like I’ll never catch up. (I wrote it out as an Idea Debt Inventory for a productivity lesson. Lemme tell ya, that’s simultaneously inspiring — look how much I can create! — and super-depressing.)

But then I started doing the math for this year, and wow, I’ve had a more productive year than I thought. No wonder I felt busy.

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