Wednesday 28 October 2015

Karen Tyrrell and Jo-Kin Battles the It

Today we welcome author Karen Tyrrell to Promote Me Please to talk about her new book; Jo-Kin Battles the It.



This post is part of a blog tour, so read on below for more about the schedule.
For now though, here are our questions and Karen's answers.


    Q.1.Jo-kin is an interesting name for a character. Has anyone misheard it as “Joe King” or “Joking”?

Yes I hope so.  Jo-Kin aka Josh Atkins is a play on words. Josh is indeed the Joking boy, the king of jokes.

 Q.2.    Who is your favourite character in Jo-kin Battles the It and why?

Well, it’s got to be Jo-Kin the main character, the super science geek, the day dreamer and wannabe hero. He’s everything I was as a kid, great at science, a pale faced dreamer, terrible at sport … and bullied by the cool kids. But Jo-Kin learns how to be a Super Space Kid … and saves the galaxy.

  Q.3.    Who, or what, is the It?

The deadly It is the arch enemy of the Super Space Kids and their nemesis. The Its name is also a play on words. I’ll let you work that out when you read it. The It has a major flaw which is his downfall in the end.

Q.4.     Can you give us five words to describe the tone of Jo-kin Battles the It?

Buzz Words magazine reviewed Jo-kin Battles the It these are their 4words…
    “Brilliant, action-packed, humorous, creative.” 
     My extra word is page-turner.  

  Q.5.    Can we expect a sequel soon?
Yes, it’s almost finished. Still working on the title and the illustrations but it will have ‘Lord Terra’ in the title. Super Space Kids #2
 I promise this one will be even funnier and more exciting.

Thanks, Karen! To buy Jo-Kin Battles the It, check out BUY HERE.

To follow the blog tour, check out the following schedule.

Jo-Kin Battles the It Blog Tour
21 Oct Alison Stegert http://ali-stegert.com/2015/10/21/blog-tour-jo-kin-battles-the-it/ How to Write KIDS Sci-Fi
23 Oct Robyn Opie http://www.robynopie.blogspot.com.au/ Review
25 Oct Rebecca Sheraton http://www.rebeccasheraton.com/blog Imagine!
26 Oct Sandy Fussell http://www.sandyfussell.com  How to Promote your Book  
27 Oct Jill Smith https://authorjillsmith.wordpress.com/ Review          
            Melissa Wray http://melissawray.blogspot.com.au
28 Oct June Perkins http://gumbootspearlz.org Interview
29 Oct Sally Odgers http://promotemeplease.blogspot.com.au  Story behind Jo-Kin!
30 Oct Kate Foster http://www.katejfoster.com/blog How & Why Sci-Fi?

Jo-Kin Battles the It Book Giveaway
Win a signed copy of Jo-Kin Battles the It OR one of four eBooks of Jo-Kin Battles the It OR signed artwork from the illustrator, Trevor Salter.
 For a chance to WIN please like Karen’s Super Space Kids book series page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SuperSpaceKids and
Please leave a comment on any of the above Blog stops 19-30 Oct.
 Winners announced in November. Good luck J
 Where to buy Jo-Kin Battles the It
Jo-Kin Battles the It is available direct from the author, from Amazon, LSI, Fishpond and book shops such as Riverbend in Brisbane, Dymocks: Penrith, Carindale, Garden City. Angus & Robertson: Victoria Point & Post Office Square, Mary Ryans Milton.
 MORE stores coming soon.

Promote Me Please blog is associated with Affordable Manuscript Assessments

 It is open to anyone with a family-friendly creative endeavour to promote. Comments are welcome. The permanent url of this interview is http://tinyurl.com/KTPROMOTE. To read other interviews at Promote Me Please, choose from the menu on the right of this post.

Sunday 18 October 2015

Kellie Wallace talks about Her Sweetest Downfall

Her Sweetest Downfall by Kellie Wallace
Today we welcome Aussie author Kellie Wallace to Promote Me Please. Kellie agreed to answer five questions about her novel Her Sweetest Downfall.

Q1. Can you come up with a brand new logline/high concept that shows us your book in 25 or fewer words? 

During the height of the London Blitz, can one woman fight against all odds to achieve the one thing she wants most in the world?


Q.2. A word about the title. Which came first, the title or the plot? 

The plot came first. I had originally thought of something entirely different within the same time frame and the story evolved from there. The title Her Sweetest Downfall was a last minute decision right before publication!

Q 3. Who is your favourite
character in your book and why? 

That's hard! But I am biased when I say I love my MC Viola Craft. She embodies the woman of the 1940s: hard working, beautiful, tough, with a little hint of weakness. She is stronger than she believes and she's one of my characters I enjoyed creating. She's the type of woman I would love to meet. Actresses of the Golden Age inspired her creation, brutality of Bette Davis, the beauty of Rita Hayworth and the charm of Carole Lombard.


4. What other books by Aussie authors do you enjoy? 

I can't pinpoint just one. There are so many. Nora Roberts is an international author I enjoy. She is someone I would like to strive to become. She has an amazing catalogue and impressive reader base.

Q.5. Now, pretend you're a huge fan. Tell your best friend why he or she must totally buy this book. 

If you want a historical fiction novel surrounding forbidden love during the turbulent time of war, this book is for you. With strong characters and emotional themes, Her Sweetest Downfall will be a favourite in years to come.

Okay! There you have it. Now, to find the book itself you can check out Amazon or Barnes and Noble. You can find Kellie on Goodreads and Facebook.

If you've enjoyed this Promote Me Please interview or if you'd like to showcase your own artistic endeavour, please leave a comment for Kellie. And don't forget to check out her book. Anything inspired by the Hollywood heroines of the '40s has got to be worth a look. The direct url to this interview is http://tinyurl.com/KelliePMP

Promote Me Please is an initiative of the Affordable Manuscript Assessments service.  Affa's now on YouTube!






Friday 2 October 2015

Roger Boutwell talks about Eric; the pensioner who became an assassin

Today we welcome Roger Boutwell to Promote Me Please. Some time ago I read Roger's first novel; Conscious of Guilt. It has stuck in my mind very clearly as one of the most unusual crime thrillers I've read. Now Eric, the pensioner assassin rides again in a brand new book and Roger agreed to answer five curious questions about Eric Brand Revisited.



 Eric has to be one of the most unusual hitmen in the history of literature Can you describe him in five words?
     Vengeful, Meticulous, Persistent, Fearless,                      Purposeful.
How did the idea for Eric and his unlikely new identity come to mind?
Having been an avid reader since early childhood I was looking for a new challenge in my retirement. So I decided I would attempt to write a book. I was never any good at English or Grammar at school so I didn’t hold out much hope of completing a book. As I had worked for twenty years in Hospitality Management I thought maybe I could write about the Tourist Industry. I stumbled around and never got to grips with the subject, when I came across a quote on the net which stated that one of the most read genres was Crime fiction. Over the years I have read reams of Crime non-fiction, so here was a subject that immediately enthused me. Abuse and crime against the elderly is on the increase so my central character had to be someone I could relate to, hence a seventy year old pensioner. I developed Eric, an ordinary guy, father to an only son and daughter-in-law and tenderly caring for a chronically ill wife. I had to have something truly shocking to dramatically alter his life. And then came the horrific murders of his loved ones which were the opening scenes in the book. At this early stage I thought the book would consist of a long detailed story of Eric hunting down and slaying of all the individual killers. I put myself in Eric’s position, and yes I would have wanted revenge if someone had murdered my son. On the other hand I’m not saying I would turn into an assassin. As the plot progressed Eric turned out to be very efficient at tracking down his son and daughter-in-law’s killers, and also efficient in the cold calculating way he eliminates them. No guilty conscience here but a feeling of power from the gun which he acquired from a trip into the crime underworld. Here he was earmarked as a possible killer. Then there’s the approach by a stranger for Eric to kill for monetary gain which came at the lowest time in his life. Now alone and with no family responsibilities he dramatically slips into the macabre world of an assassin.

Thinking about other books in the same genre can you suggest a few which might appeal to the same audience?

I have read very little crime fiction, most notably, such as the likes of Childs, Patterson or Baldacci; books from these authors I have read tend to deal with FBI and CIA agents and would require some intimate knowledge of these organisations. I found the plots to be all very similar and in most cases they failed to hold my interest; perhaps I should have persevered and read more. Some of my readers have commented, “Conscious of Guilt” is not your “run of the mill crime fiction novel”. I prefer to read non-fiction crime but one of my favourite authors is Jeffery Archer; a great storyteller.

The sequel to Conscious of Guilt is Eric Brand Revisited; did you always plan to write a sequel?

No, I did in fact write several endings to the book but none sounded right or appealed to me. I didn’t want to kill Eric off, or have a soft finish. I thought there was another book left in Eric, hence the lead-in-to-a-sequel ending.

Can we expect more novels in 2016?

I’ve been asked this often, I’m not so sure about continuing with another episode of Eric but I am considering another book, perhaps something entirely different. I’m working on several plots at the moment.
My new website…www.rogerboutwell.com
I’m not really into social media and don’t utilise it as I should, I think it’s a younger person’s thing. '

I realise I’m probably showing my age. I’m also on LinkedIn.

Thank you, Roger.

Promote Me Please blog is an initiative of Affordable Manuscript Assessments and is open to anyone with a creative endeavour to promote.

The custom url for this interview is http://tinyurl.com/rogerboutwellspeaks .