Just wanted to let everyone know, Keepers and Killers is now available in audio format on Audible.com and iTunes. Shattered is currently in production. The very talented Laurel Schroeder will be narrating the entire series.
DONNA AUGUSTINE
AUTHOR, DREAMER, DESTROYER OF WORLDS
Author: Donna Augustine (page 13 of 19)
I’m happy to host the Finishing Fairies and Author Troy Lambert, animal activist, to the site today.
After our wildly successful launch day for Stray Ally, the Finishing Fairies are now delightedly hosting a small tour for the very same book. Since it’s launch, it’s garnered some great critical criticism, and currently has an average of 4.6 stars on Amazon.com (as of April 3rd).
The tour, from the fourth to the 11th, is on some great blogs, with all unique content, and a great view of the inner workings of Troy Lambert, rescuing animals and the writing habits of a great author.
A strange accident on the freeway, accusations of murder, and an encounter in the Idaho wilderness all propel Todd Clarke into a new friendship with a dog named Sparky. But Sparky is no ordinary dog, and there is more going on than Clarke could have imagined.
A military commander he investigated for Aryan activity and links to domestic terrorism is after him, and he’s not sure why until another chance encounter provides the answer.
With Sparky and the help of his canine friends, will he be able to figure out the Colonel’s plan and stop him in time? All Clarke knows for sure is none of it would be possible without the help of his Stray Ally.
Buy the book here, from the Tirgearr Publishing.
Puppy Love
I pulled up to the house on a tiny street in Kellogg, Idaho. I later moved to that small town, but at the time I had driven 45 minutes over a mountain pass to meet a dog. Why, you ask?
My wife at the time knew I had been looking, albeit half-heartedly for a lab. Looking through the paper, she spotted one, a yellow, a year and a half old. The woman who had him was forced to move back to New Zealand where she was from, to take care of her aging mother. She didn’t want him to have to go through quarantine and all the horrors of moving to another country.
His face lit up at the same time mine did as I pulled up to the house. My wife worked out the details of the transfer, I played with my new dog. From the moment we met, it was clear we were meant for each other. His old owner wanted to keep him for a couple of days until she had to leave, and I consented. When I went back to get him, he perked right up. When his kennel and all his toys were loaded in the back of the truck, he jumped up in the passenger seat just like he belonged. The transition to our family took almost no time at all.
Why do they call it puppy love? Because it’s enthusiastic and unconditional. Years later, as he nears his tenth year, Indie is no less enthusiastic to see me come home, to cuddle (when I let him) and to fetch a ball or play tug of war with his rope. He’s a good dog. Yes he is. Who’s a good boy? (Did you hear my talking to a baby voice?)
The love described in Stray Ally is the same. Sparky immediately adopts Todd Clarke as his own master, and will go to any length to help and protect him. It’s truly puppy love. So what’s your story of puppy love and who’s your Stray Ally? Feel free to let me know, either here or in my inbox, author_at_troylambertwrites.com. I’d love to hear from you.
Troy works as a freelance writer, researcher, and editor. He writes historical site characterization reports for those performing remediation on former resource extraction sites, software instruction and help guides, and edits the research of others as well. His true passion is writing dark, psychological thrillers. His work includes Broken Bones, a collection of his short stories, Redemption the first in the Samuel Elijah Johnson Series, Temptation the sequel to Redemption, along with the horror Satanarium, co-authored with Poppet, a brilliant author from South Africa and published by Wild Wolf Publishing. His next novel, Stray Ally, will be published March 4th by Tirgearr Publishing. The final in the Samuel Elijah Johnson Series, Confession will be published May 1st.
Troy lives with his wife of twelve years, two of his five children and two very talented dogs. He is a skier, cyclist, hiker, fisherman, hunter, and a terrible beginning golfer.
Author Website |Twitter |Facebook | Amazon Author page | Goodreads | Smashwords | Linkedin | Pinterest
Appearing….
April 4th –The Finishing Fairies Introduction
April 5th -The Horror Tree Guest post
April 6th – Authors you want to read Top Ten
April 7th – Danielle DeVor Guest Post
April 8th – Shaun Allan Guest post
April 9th –Diane Nelson Guest Post
April 10th – Donna Augustine Guest post
April 11th – Michael Melville Top Ten
April 12th – Deborah Carney Animal rescue post
April 13th – Author Interrupted Guest Post
April 17th – AtoZ special post – Wilderness Apocalypse
Head on over to The Finishing Fairies for tour central, information and more!
Promotion of Stray Ally Launch Tour is brought to you by:
Join us for other tours, social media and community management at The Finishing Fairies mailing list!
Birth of an Idea
Since I’ve started writing, one question I get all the time is where do the ideas come from? I never really have a good answer. They just pop into my brain. But this got me thinking, where the hell do they come from? So, I decided to do some research.
I’ve managed to find some information, mostly theories since how the brain works isn’t an area easily proved. One article struck home with me. It wrote that creative people tend to link unusual things together. I sat back and tried to determine if this applied to any of my ideas. I think it might.
In my book, The Keepers, they operate a wormhole in the basement of a casino. To me, this didn’t seem like an unusual match up since a casino has a high level of energy and so does a wormhole. But, when people think wormholes, is a casino a natural progression of thought? Perhaps not. So next time you need to think creatively, try matching up some unusual thoughts and see where it leads.
Grand Prize
My Prize
a Rafflecopter giveaway
List of participating blogs, all with their own giveaway!
Hello! My name is Joleene Naylor. I’m the author of the Amaranthine vampire series. I’d like to thank Donna for allowing us to come by today as part of the blog tour for my newest release, Children of Shadows. Since Jorick and Verchiel have both had interviews on the tour, I thought it might be fun to interview the protagonist of the series, Katelina.
Joleene: Would you like to tell us a little bit about yourself?
Katelina: I suppose. Hi. I’m Katelina. I’m twenty-five. I used to work for the newspaper until I met Jorick. He brought me into the secret world of vampires and darkness, and nothing has been the same since.
Joleene: You don’t regret that, do you?
Katelina: No, of course not. It’s not like I was really going anywhere, and I wouldn’t want to miss Jorick. If I have to deal with the blood and the nightmares to be with him, then it’s worth it.
Joleene: Have you told him that?
Katelina: Um, sort of. Look, don’t start pushing commitment crap at me, all right? He knows I love him. I know he loves me. Let’s leave it there for right now.
Joleene: And that’s why we’re on book six and you’re *still* human. Most normal protagonists would have been turned by now.
Katelina: Excuse me if I’m not normal. I’ll get turned when the time is right. There’s no need to rush into things.
Joleene: No, because you *always* think things through. *sarcasm*
Katelina: Sometimes I’m a little… rash. But looks who’s talking? You used to kill everyone off right and left, and now you’re sorry for it.
Joleene: This isn’t about me, and for your information we’re due for some deaths, so you’d better behave or it might be you. Anyway, what is it about Jorick that makes him worth all that?
Katelina: Seriously? He’s gorgeous – long black hair, dark eyes, perfect pale skin – he’s sexy, smart, strong – a total alpha vampire – he’s romantic and he has just enough of a tragic past to be hot but not enough to be whiny or broken. Oh, and he actually apologizes when he’s in the wrong. Some of the time, at least.
Joleene: He has his bad traits, too.
Katelina: Well, yeah. Sometimes he’s aggravating. And stubborn. And he has this habit of trying to protect people by withholding information. That’s pretty annoying. And he thinks that just because he’s five hundred years old he knows more than anyone else. Not to mention he’s convinced he’s the only thing that stands between the world and complete chaos. Oh, and he’s nosey-
Joleene: Moving on, would you like to tell everyone a little about the newest book?
Katelina: Should I just read what you wrote up for me to say? ‘Children of Shadows opens with the beach vacation Jorick has promised me for the last four books. It ends too soon with a trip to Munich, Germany, where we’re supposed to testify to the head of all the vampires in the world. Things spiral from bad to worse when an extinct cult resurfaces and starts attacking vampire citadels. Ume, a mysterious vampiress who claims to know one of our traveling companions, offers the help of her secret organization, but can we even trust her? And if the Children of Shadows target Munich, will we survive?’
Joleene: I knew if I let you really sum it up you’d take too long. What’s your favorite part of the story?
Katelina: The first chapter, when we’re still on the island. Everything after that-
Joleene: *cough* is action packed and exciting? What event in the book do you think is the most defining for you as a character?
Katelina: I think the first night in Finland shows how much my perceptions, not only of vampires, but of the whole vampire thing, have changed. If that had happened in the first book there’s no way I’d have gone along with it.
Joleene: Before we go, tell the readers why they might want to check out your story.
Katelina: If they’re looking for a more realistic view of what dating a vampire is, then they should try out the series. Or if they don’t mind some gore with their romance. Or if they’re just looking for an exciting read. They don’t have to start with book 1 – though it’s a series, each book is written so that they can pick up wherever they want and still know what’s going on.
Joleene: Thanks so much for cooperating (for a change), thanks to Donna, and thank you for reading. Be sure to enter the blog tour giveaway for a chance at an Amazon gift card among other cool prizes.
Bio:
Joleene Naylor is the author of Amaranthine, a paranormal series where vampires live in the shadows and don’t sparkle. In her spare time she is a freelance artist, book cover designer and photographer. You can find information on all of her pursuits at her website http://JoleeneNaylor.com . She also maintains blogs full of odd ramblings and hopes to win the lottery. Until she does, she and her husband live near Bolivar Missouri with their miniature zoo and a couch coated in cat fur.
Blurb:
The sixth installment of the Amaranthine series pulsates with the dark blood of vampire lore.
The Children of Shadows, a vampire cult not seen for hundreds of years, resurfaces to wage war on the vampire guilds. Led by a familiar face, the cult wreaks havoc while Katelina and Jorick are trapped in Munich. Ume, a mysterious vampiress, claims to know Verchiel and offers the help of her secret organization. But can they trust her?
As mysteries are solved, new ones appear. Why have the Children of Shadows returned, and is it really a former ally that leads them, or a look-alike?
Legends rise and secrets are revealed in a world where vampires walk, drenched in blood and shadows.
Buy links:
Paperback – https://www.createspace.com/4668712
Amazon Kindle- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IZ6OX18
B&N NOOKbook – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/children-of-shadows-joleene-naylor/1118473860?ean=2940045616157
Smashwords – http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/403239
itunes – https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/children-of-shadows/id811435603?mt=11&uo=4
My Links:
website- http://JoleeneNaylor.com
author blog: http://joleenenaylor.wordpress.com/
FB author page: https://www.facebook.com/joleenenaylorbooks
twitter: http://twitter.com/joleene_naylor
goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3165393.Joleene_Naylor
facebook profile: http://facebook.com/joleene.naylor
pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/joleenenaylor/boards/
I was in the middle of doing a tiger when someone sent me a picture of a needle felted bunny, and I just had to make one myself.
1. As always, I start with a fluff of wool, a barbed needle made for felting and a foam pad.
2. Start poking wool into basic shape.
3. Make base of head on top.
4. Add more wool and start building a shape. You can see in this picture I started adding some more wool for the cheeks and the lower legs.
5. Felt a roll of wool separately. This will be the arms. 
6. After it’s firm, cut it in half. 
7. Poke half the side in so that it’s profile looks like the one on the right when turned. 
8. Poke the loose wool into the body.
9. Build up the face more.
10. Add more cheek fullness. 
11. Poke in a continuous line to make mouth and nose definition 
12. Make a pointed tube like this. This will eventually be the ears. 
13. Cut it in half lengthwise. 
14. Split in half. 
15. Flip over so that what was the inside of the tube is facing upward. Poke at the center. This will help hollow the ears out. 
16. Poke in and pinch near the tops. Then place this on the head and poke on.
17. Add on bottom paws with the same technique as arms. The loose wool from that will help form the lower legs. Add more wool to fill out. 
18. Add beads for eyes by sewing them on. 
19. Cover the eyes with wool and then shape them.
Add a hint of pink on the nose and some tan around the eyes and mouth. Here is the finished bunny below. 
© 2024 DONNA AUGUSTINE
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