Writers in the Storm

A blog about writing

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April 1, 2020

Let's Celebrate April With a Pimp & Promote!

March was a hard month with coronavirus, quarantines, self-isolation and school closures. A lot of people are understandably stressed out. But people are starting to rally. Home-baked goods, family time, long-delayed projects and a renewed interest in goals are creep up in all the feeds. That means it's time to celebrate Spring with a little "Pimp and Promote!"

Warning: This means the height of our "to be read piles" is going to climb because we have to go find those shiny new stories and wallow in them.

Jenny Note: Thank God for e-readers and the ability to check books out online. Overdrive is my friend. Plus many used book stores are doing free and cheap shipping. (Score!) I can't wait to see what y'all recommend down in the comments.

How does Pimp & Promote work?

To quote the genie in Aladdin, “There are a few provisos, a couple of quid-pro-quos…"

  • Pimp out somebody else’s work – this can be a favorite author, blogger, post or book you’ve read, a wonderful teacher or just someone who had profound influence on you as a writer or a person. Please limit your comments to one work.
    AND
  • Promote one of your projects that you’re excited about – a hobby, a blog, a book, or a new direction your writing is taking you. You decide. Just tell us about it in the comments! (Please restrain your enthusiasm to just one of your WIPs.) The rest of us will jump in and “ooooh and ahh” at you, and likely promote your project even further because we’re just so darn excited today.

We'll start things off by honoring (read "pimping") our pal, Julie Glover, who just stepped back from hosting this glorious blog. She'll be a contributor and a visitor, but will be focusing more on publishing her wonderful books.

If you loved Sharing Hunter as much as we did, her next YA novel is almost here! Daring Charlotte is available for pre-order and will be ready for you to read in June. WOO! Here's a quick description:

What dare would you take to fulfill a dream?

High school drama geek Charlotte Romero loves the stage, but not her stage fright. Instead, she works theater tech and dreams of one day seeing a show on Broadway.

When her teacher announces a drama class trip to New York, the price is way too high for her cash-poor family. But not for drama queen Deedra, a rich classmate offering $5,000 to the student who best completes her dozen dares.

Charlotte pushes past her performance anxiety and enters the contest. Soon, she’s got an unwanted spotlight, a crush on a competitor, and increasing panic that she can’t possibly win the prize.

From award-winning author, Julie Glover, another YA novel with a quirky premise, lighthearted humor, emotional depth, and memorable characters.


From Jenny

For my promote, I choose WITS (aka Writers In the Storm). For ten years, WITS has been giving back to writers. We've only gone through a few changes in all that time, and it's time for another one.

I'm working on a new site design as we speak: new colors, new photos, new logo and a bit more sunshine to our look. Sometime in the next month, you'll open a post and things will look different. I hope you'll like it.

The content will still be thought-provoking, and all of us who love this place will still be around. We hope you keep visiting with us, and sharing us with your friends, for ten more years!

Stay healthy, y'all...
Jenny and the WITS Crew

39 comments on “Let's Celebrate April With a Pimp & Promote!”

  1. I'd like to pimp my client, Asa Ortiz. I took him on two months ago as a book coaching client and he has absolutely nailed it, time and again. He's a brilliant writer who absorbs information like a sponge, and he's improved so much that it's nearly baffling. He's a ghostwriter by trade, so you won't know his work by his name, but chances are that you've run into his writing if you're into series romances. This guy is so talented and industrious that I've hired him on as one of my in-house ghostwriters, which brings me to...

    Promotion- Me and my team are launching our new and improved website - http://www.axieleditorial.com. We'll be offering ghostwriting, editing, and coaching services for affordable prices. We'll also be doing a launch competition starting May 1st (though it may be June.)
    So, keep updated by following us on Instagram and Twitter, and bookmark http://www.axieleditorial.com!

    1. Isn't that fun, Arra, to come across talent like that? Greatest of luck with your new endeavor. I'll keep my eye out for your launch. I hope you come around and keep us up to date!

  2. What a lovely way to start the month!!

    For my PIMP, I want to honor the poet Mary Oliver who is a never-ending source of light for me. Her "Instructions on Living a Life" seem more apt than ever. She offers these three simple lines:
    Pay attention.
    Be astonished.
    Tell about it.

    And for my PROMOTE, I offer "Queen of the Owls," launching on April 7—a novel about a woman's search for self, framed around the art and life of iconic American painter Georgia O'Keeffe. Stories have always helped to bring healing, renewal, and growth. I hope mine—about the path to wholeness, through embracing the parts of yourself you've denied—may help to bring that to readers at this challenging time.

    1. I'm so excited for you that THE QUEEN OF OWLS is finally here! And Mary Oliver's writing is just sumptuous, isn't it? I'm amazed by poets.

  3. For my PIMP I'll share "Lead Me Home," by Theresa Hupp. It's the first in a series of love and hardship on the Oregon Trail. Well written and researched.

    For My Promote: "The Road Home" just out. My first-hand account of becoming a widow and God's faithfulness thereafter.

    1. I'm sorry for your loss, Sally, but so happy you were able to turn it into something positive with your book. I've heard recommendations for Theresa Hupp before and will add her to my reading pile. Ellen Buikema is writing historical fiction. I'll bet she'd love this book!

  4. OOOO what a great idea and thank you!!! I want to Pimp my long time writing buddy Darcy Devlon's first single: "Fated Kiss" Cat's Paw Cove Book 11. So proud of her!

    My promote is my "Familiar Blessings: Book One in The Magic Potter Series" and Cat's Paw Cove Book 7.

    The Cat's Paw Cove books are amazing. Hope you will give them a try!

  5. I love this blog! It has helped me quite a bit with my writing. I am currently finishing the first draft of a new novel, linked to my first. The Sleeping Serpent is Women's Fiction that is a psychological study of relationship abuse that shatters our perceptions of identity, duty, and self-worth. It has similarities to Big Little Lies and Gone Girl, with a main character as tortured and seductive as Heathclif in Wuthering Heights, and a protagonist like a modern-day Anna Karenina. Here are the links if you are interested. And thank you so much for this opportunity to pimp and promote Amazon Worldwide: myBook.to/SleepingSerpent
    Books2Read Universal Link: http://www.books2read.com/u/478WLj

  6. I'd like to pimp Sheri Liemkuhler's upcoming debut, What's Left Untold. I had the opportunity to read her manuscript and loved her clean, heartfelt writing and warm storytelling. Like others whose books are releasing during this unsteady time, she will need the support of her writing community more than ever. http://www.sherrileimkuhler.com/

    And I'd like to promote a non-profit initiative I helped found this past January called Who Will Let the Dogs Out. Our mission is to raise awareness and resources for homeless dogs and shelter dogs in the south. We've traveled to almost 50 shelters, rescues and dog pounds and I've written about all we've seen and learned on our site WhoWillLetTheDogsOut.org.

    1. Cara, it is so great that you founded that organization. It is unbelievable to me how many people abandon dogs. And I LOVE "clean, heartfelt writing and warm storytelling." I'll go take a look at Sheri's.

      p.s. Is there a chance there is an extra "L" in that website address?

  7. Thank you for this blog. Such a great idea!

    For my pimp, I want to thank James Scott Bell for sharing his knowledge on the craft of writing.

    And I want to promote his book, (copyright 2019), PLOTMAN, to the Rescue.

  8. I want to pimp my Pitch Wars classmate and writing buddy Arianne Costner's Middle Grade debut, My Life as a Potato. It's hilarious, lively, full of fun and has a pitch perfect MG voice.

  9. While it's so hard to pick only one to PIMP, I'll pimping Jeanne Oates Estridge and her THE DEMON ALWAYS WINS. Jeanne has studied the craft of writing and structure and this book is witty, well-written, and oozes sexual tension. I loved the spunky heroine, Dara Strong, and her grandmother, and I even loved and rooted for the demon. Read it and you'll see why! Since I'm not sure you want buy links, here's link to her website: https://www.jeanneestridge.com/

    As for PROMOTE, I'm picking DEADLY AIM. It's my second book, but first full-length in my Bad Karma Special Ops series and it released yesterday. Squee! Mack is the Special Ops team sniper, and he’s set his sights on a second chance at love. However, widowed Black Hawk pilot Kristie Donovan is not an easy target. After losing her Army Ranger husband in combat, she’s not risking her heart for another man in his dangerous profession. Throw in fraternization issues because of rank and a cartel head seeking vengeance for the death of his son, and you’ll see why reviewer Christy said, “This book has all the feels. Romance, action, adventure and mystery all in one book. The ending was perfect!”
    You can find it on my website: https://www.tracybrody.com/

  10. Thanks for this opportunity, Jenny. Pimp and Promote is much better than an April Fools joke.

    I'm going to take this opportunity to pimp the doctor's, nurses, health care workers, and all of the supporting staff fighting on the front lines of this pandemic. Many of them are also writers. They have put their stories on hold so that we can go on with our lives, healthy and free to keep adding to our own stories.

    For my promote, I'd like to call out an anthology one of my stories appears in. A Flash of Word from Scout media contains my flash fiction piece A Family Thing, as well as 48 other stories by 48 other amazing authors covering a rainbow of genres. I guess this is my way of sneaking in a little pimping for 48 other writers as well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07M5MML46/

    1. You made me smile, Eldred! With no school, I didn't have to worry about the April fools' jokes today. Good thing!

  11. These are all so fabulous! Keep 'em coming!!! I will be by to comment after my next conference call. 🙂

    Note: If you have any trouble commenting, log out of WordPress and log back in. The "Back" button that shows up in the error will allow you to copy your comment before you do so. Just one of the many reasons I'm designing the site. Our old designer gave us some wonky plugins.

  12. Thank you for this P & P invitation and for producing helpful, inspiring blogs for all these years. I know I speak for many when I say I look forward to this site's new iteration. I am pimping the author Laura Lippman, particularly The Lady in the Lake. Lippman amazes me in how powerfully she can slip into widely diverse POVs from one chapter to another. She's created a complex and compelling protagonist amid the historical context of the civil rights movement. Wow.

    As for promote, I'm taking a big breath and declaring, despite continuing challenges with my current WIP: I'm still in the game, still writing and learning and getting better. Nothing is going to stop me.

    1. Congratulations, Rick! As long as you keep writing, you are writing. Seems self-evident, right? It's taken me twice as long to get PRISM Book Two finished, but it is almost there and I'm very happy with the result of letting ideas percolate and taking some classes to learn how to get some of my skills where I wanted them to be to deliver this book.

    2. Thank you, Rick! Laura Lippman is a Margie grad, I believe, and her writing is amazeballs!! I'll go check this one out.

      And GO YOU for doubling down on your work. You can do this!!!!

  13. Wow!!!! Thank you so much! I'm eager to get DARING CHARLOTTE out into the world.

    In the meantime, let me PIMP out Becca Syme's amazing resources with her Better Faster Academy (https://betterfasteracademy.com/). I mentioned her free YouTube videos on Monday, but she also has classes and books worth checking out!

    As for PROMOTE, the next book in my Muse Island series, co-written with Kris Faryn with my pen name Jules Lynn, is now up for preorder too! CURSE OF THE NIGHT is Book 4, and folks can purchase the first three or read them for free through Kindle Unlimited! https://www.amazon.com/Muse-Island-Box-Set-Books-ebook/dp/B07R5NQ87J/

    1. I'll be sure to have a Muse Island marathon as soon as I can. I love it when a whole series in on Kindle Unlimited. It lets me rip right through.

  14. As a 911 operator, I'd like to Pimp all the First Responders. As a First First Responder, we are still manning the phones and helping to protect our brothers/ sisters in Blue and our Fire Fighters as best we can with this pandemic. I hear the worst and the best of humanity and right now, we are coming together as a community better than we have in years. I am proud of us all!

    For my Promote, after a 2 year hiatus from writing, I have my 6th novel out as of last week. It was also my quarantine Birthday, but a great week all in all. My novel, Guarding Him, is about a kickass female bodyguard and a tech genius with a chivalrous streak. Add in a couple of bad guys and the FBI and its a fun ride. The link is below. And thanks for the opportunity!

    https://www.amazon.com/Guarding-Him-Protection-Agency-Book-ebook/dp/B0868SL7D1/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=guarding+him&qid=1585761474&sr=8-2

    1. Thanks for your long hours, Kori. My sister was a 911 operator in Los Angeles until her retirement.

  15. If you have ever wished you were better at editing your work, or the work of your critique partners, you're going to love being able to look inside Tiffany Yates Martin's thinking with her new book Intuitive Editing, available for pre-order now on Amazon. (I got to sneak a peek!) Here's the link:
    https://www.amazon.com/Intuitive-Editing-Creative-Practical-Revising-ebook/dp/B084WZVL9N/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Tiffany+Yates+martin&qid=1585771721&sr=8-2

    I'm so happy to have something new to promote! In the wee hours this morning, my first Amazon Ignite math unit went on sale. It consists of timed tests for addition and subtraction basic facts, but the format isn't what you usually see. You all know that I've been a math teacher forever--well, Amazon invited me to write math lessons for them. As Ms. Rowen, I'll have the multiplication and division tests available this weekend and an activity unit for fun ways to learn all the facts by Easter Sunday. More units—through calculus!—to be added weekly. Here's the link:
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086M76DVL/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Ms.+Rowen&qid=1585765681&sr=8-2

    1. Thanks for the reminder, Fae! I've been meaning to get the Intuitive Editing book. I just love what she does. Tiffany as my editor is on my Writing Bucket List. 🙂

  16. So many good pimps in this post. My pimp is to for Roadifer and her book, This Time Justice. It's a fast paced thriller. I found it a quick read. It's the first of two. She's also written a couple of fantasy books.
    I'm going to have to check out Fae's editing suggestion. Good timing, as I'm finally back writing regulary!

    For my promote, it's Silent Gavel, a murder mystery set in Wyoming. https://amzn.to/2HKi6UJ

    1. I always find the BEST books when we do this, Merissa. Both of yours sound fantastic. I'm off to click that Amazon link (and to buy Tiffany's book). 🙂

  17. Wonderful offer. I'd like to PIMP a memoir by Susan Darvas entitled "Resist, Endure, Escape." Susan, who unfortunately passed away a few weeks ago, was born in Hungary in 1934 and survived the second world war with her family and then escaped from Hungary in 1956 when the Soviet Union crushed a popular revolt.

    I wasn't sure whether to promote the epic fantasy that I'm putting the final touches on although I don't yet have a publisher, or my last novel, Missing, which came out late last year. I'd love to get feedback on Missing because I took a lot of risks in creating the story as the protagonist is a mixed race female private detective who is hired to find a missing co-ed.

    I know some people might object to my telling a story from that viewpoint since I'm a white male, but as Diana Gabaldon said "Whoever said write what you know is by far the most damaging and stupid thing anyone ever said about writing."

  18. I would love to pimp a book by an author I discovered a few months ago, Anne Ursu. There's something about her writing that just grabs me and leaves me breathless in the wake of a beautiful story. I especially liked her middle-grade book "Breadcrumbs."
    And I would love to promote a blog post I wrote recently. It's a reflection about being a rule-follower and then choosing to rebel 😉 https://forhisglorydotblog.wordpress.com

  19. I'd like to pimp one of my favorite writing instructors. Laurie Schnebly Campbell who teaches on-line classes most months of the year. Email her for a list of classes. booklaurie@yahoo.com

    For my promotion, I'd like to give a nod to my friend Joanne Jaytanie and her Winters Sisters series now available in Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Victory-Winters-Sisters-Book-ebook/dp/B01JHEF2V6/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=joanne+jaytanie&qid=1585884767&s=books&sr=1-6

    Mahalo.

  20. I love challenging common truths. In my latest novel I write about politicians. Like anyone, once you know where a person is coming from that person isn't so bad.

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