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Greetings!
Welcome to our Halloween newsletter.
JournalStone will be 2 1/2 years old in the month of October. Yes, when you are young you still count the half years, just ask my 9 1/2 year old daughter. To celebrate our 1/2 birthday, as well as Halloween, we are offering a free electronic copy of one of the following:
Shaman's Bloood, The Pentacle Pendant, The Traiteur's Ring or Jokers Club.
All we require is that you are a member of our mailing list and that you agree to write an honest review. Feel free to tell your friends and family to join as well. October is open enrollment month and we are feeling generous. Just send me an e-mail at christophercpayne@journalstone.com and let me know which book you are interested in receiving. It is that easy.
For everyone involved in our short story contest, it has officially ended. We will be announcing the winners in October. Keep an eye on the contest page link for the announcement. We are excited to wrap up the submissions and get started on producing the anthology. We are hoping for a December release date but will keep you informed. Some great stories were received and we want to thank everyone who participated.
October will see us release two new offerings, The Pentacle Pendant by Stephen M. DeBock and our 2011 writing contest winner, That Which Should Not Be by Brett J. Talley. We are excited about our newest releases and hope you enjoy them as much as we have at JournalStone Publishing.
If you don't normally venture too far down this page, I would suggest you give it a try this month. Joel Kirkpatrick is starting a series of blog posts on tips to help you submit manuscripts to JournalStone or any other publishing company or agent. You should take a look at what he has to say. Just head straight down this page to see Joel's first entry and if you like what you read, click over to the complete post.
If you don't read anything else in this newsletter please read the HWA section. There is an auction occurring to help Rocky Wood, who is diagnosed with ALS, obtain some much needed medical equipment. This is a cause worth donating to so please help out. Even if you don't bid on any of the items, jump over to the site and donate some funds. Dollars add up and I would ask you to please give whatever you can afford no matter how small. Every penny counts.
Thanks everyone for another great month and make sure you collect your free electronic book for October. This might be the only time we give items away just because we care. We really aren't that nice on a normal day.
Christopher C. Payne
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Joel's Publishing Tips
What might it take, to be published?
Millions of authors ask this question, even though only a few thousand of those will even get a chance with an agent in the coming year. I'm not an agent - let's clear that suspicion up quickly. I am a direct line into the next steps of having your book printed. No agent is necessary to approach me or JournalStone Publishing but agents are more than welcome.
What am I then, if not the person you believe to hold the mythical keys? I am your reader. I represent you directly to JournalStone. I have less selling work to do than some agents might in the process of seeing your book published. I will be involved with you all the way to the printer, if we agree on the next few things.
Those items are the topic of our new series of blog posts at www.JournalStone.com
What might it take... once you have my eyes on your text? It will take these things, at the very least:
A great story, surprises, consistency, good editing, an understanding of criticism and last - though not least - a willingness to act on suggestions. Those topics are important to me as a reader. I am judging whether to buy your text after all.
The first four things mentioned are important to every person who reads your work and it is our intent that you have millions. Millions and millions of readers would please all of us a great deal. The last two elements stated are important to us as the publisher. Your readers may not focus on them, though they will in the end receive the benefit.
With that paragraph, I've outlined what our series will attempt to address. I am a reader and I am looking to buy your manuscript. Hopefully my words here will be a great help to you. If they are, believe me, the process will have been worth it once you get an email from us praising your work. This week on the JournalStone blog we will talk about good editing. To continue reading click on this link. Writing Tips - Editing
Thanks everyone and enjoy.
Joel |
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SPOOKTACULAR TIME!!
We have another exciting month planned for everyone on the best blog talk radio show ever! (Okay, well, not ever....BUT it's pretty darn close!)
Coming up this month we will hear from:
October 4, Regina Wamba, owner of Mae I Design and Photography.
October 11, Angela Yurko-Smith, author of All You Need Is Like and End of May.
October 18, Stephen Debock, author of The Pentacle Pendant
And don't forget our super-spooky Halloween costume contest! Dress up in your favorite costume and send us a pic! Not into dressing up? Catch hold of your dog, kids, neighbor, cousin, or smelly uncle and get them to pose for you.
We will be posting the winners on our banner and on our Journal Jabber webpage just in time for our Halloween show on Oct 25th, where the winner of our spooky story contest will be reading his award-winning short story!!
Send the pictures to amy@journalstone.com
JournalJabber is heating things up just as the temps are cooling down, so be sure to be here with us every Tuesday night 9PM EST!
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Reviewer's Corner!
Do you want to hear about the latest and greatest books and movies? Head over to www.journalstone.com and check out the reviews that we have plastered all over our front page!
Why do we have them you may ask. Well I'm here to tell you. (Lean in really close...closer... there ya go...) We like them. YUP! That is honestly the only reason. We love the movie reviews and the book reviews.
JournalStone is in the literary business but we also know we aren't the only ones putting out great things, so we want to share what interests us in addition to our work. Plus, you never know what you may run into when you come and visit www.journalstone.com.
With a dedicated group of reviewers, we have a bunch of new reviews for you to check out every week. Do you have a book you would like to see on our webpage? Tell me about it, and we just may have to give it a read! If we love it, it may find its way to the Journal Jabber show - we like to tie things together that way.
Send requests to amy@journalstone.com
So if you are looking for something good to read or watch, head over to JournalStone, check out our reviews and then check out our books. You will be a much happier person for it, I promise!
Amy |
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About Us
JournalStone is a small press publishing company, focusing on horror, fantasy and science fiction in both the adult and young adult markets.
We are members of & actively support the:
HWA - Horror Writers Association
WNBA - Women's Nat'l Book Assn.
HPLHS - HP Lovecraft Historical Society
IBPA - Independent Book Publishing Assn.
SFWA - Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
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HWA
My favorite association, (Horror Writers Association) is doing some mighty things this month and I wanted to share them with you.
First, the Australian HWA is hosting an auction to benefit Rocky Wood, the current HWA President and the former Australian HWA President. Rocky has been diagnosed with ALS/Lou Gehrig's disease. All the proceeds will be going towards an eyegaze medical device to help him communicate as he loses his ability to speak. Click here to head over to the auction site. This is an awesome guy so help out as much as you can. Any donation possible would be helpful. You can donate at the site without participating in the auction.
The HWA is also doing a special Halloween blog roll. JournalStone is donating a Nook as one of the prizes. If you want to win some free stuff and read some HWA member contributions click here. http://www.horror.org/blog/ |
Ghosts of Coronado Bay is on sale at Amazon for $4.73. I can't even buy it for that. Now is the time to buy. |
Jokers Club
Did you ever do something you were not proud of as a child? Did you ever dream that one blunder would haunt you for the rest of your life? Ever think a mistake you made as a child could leave you paying the debt with your life years later? I made more than my share of mistakes growing up, I'm just happy I wasn't a part of the Jokers Club.
Once upon a time, there was a group of pleasant, young boys. They had meetings trying to decide how to better their community, how to help their fellow man, and how to lift the self-esteem of all those around them.
This is NOT their story.
The Jokers Club had a different agenda.
Instead of planting flowers, walking the old lady across the street, and smiling at the dork in class, the Jokers Club is smoking (oh no!), removing dead bodies from the grave (NO JOKE!!), and something much, much worse (DUN DUN DUN!!!). |
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The Pentacle Pendant
In the throes of passion, Claire doesn't take her lover seriously when he confesses he is a werewolf and asks if he can change her. When she awakes, it isn't such a joke to her any longer. Claire manages to somehow adjust to her new life. Soon, however, her lover is led astray by another woman who wants his gift as well as his loyalty. When she realizes his heart belongs to Claire, she vows to destroy both their lives forever. Now, Claire is pursued by agents who wish to protect her and the evil that wishes to end her life. Who will succeed, and will Claire's humanity survive the heartbreak and loss she must endure along the way?
Don't let the synopsis fool you. This isn't really a romance novel. There are werewolves and vampires and big, burly military guys...okay, so that doesn't help much does it? Well, how about a kick ass protagonist who is after the next righteous kill and a nasty vampire that mutilates her boyfriend?
I love the way Claire's character was introduced as cruel and vicious. It makes the reader want to hate her initially. Then, we get to go back and hear her story and see how she got to that point and what is driving her to be so vicious. We see her in a whole new light and can't help but have sympathy. |
Give Up the Ghost
Cass McKenna much prefers ghosts over "breathers." Ghosts are uncomplicated and dependable, and they know the dirt on everybody...and Cass loves dirt. She's on a mission to expose the dirty secrets of the poseurs in her school. But when the vice president of the student council discovers her secret, Cass's whole scheme hangs in the balance. Tim wants her to help him contact his recently deceased mother, and Cass reluctantly agrees. As Cass becomes increasingly entwined in Tim's life, she's surprised to realize he's not so bad-and he needs help more desperately than anyone else suspects. Maybe it's time to give the living another chance.... Song: Emily - From First to last
Cass/Cassie is a social misfit, a person who everyone hates and fears, and someone who could see ghosts.
Being Cass has not been easy, she has no friends after her former best friend, Danielle, turned the whole school against her four years ago, and her social life dwindled even more with the death of her sister, Paige, and how suddenly she found herself being able to commune with the dead.
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Mile 81
The first half of the story is about Pete Simmons. He's too young to go off with his big brother, so he makes up an adventure for himself in an abandoned old rest area/Burger King. As a popular teen partying spot, there was lots for young Pete to see and do, including having a taste of some discarded vodka. When Pete decides to take a short nap, the real action begins. An old, muddy station wagon crashes into the traffic barrels barricading the entrance to the rest area. A station wagon that apparently doesn't have a driver. There it sits, waiting for innocent passersby to fall into the trap.
Another unmistakably classic Stephen King fiction. I was all captivated with Pete's part of the story and then, WHAM!, here comes the completely bizarre and creepy part! The religious insurance salesman and lesbian equestrian I dealt with, but when the family came along with their two young children-oh my goodness. |
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