Kim Carmichael's Blog

Kindle Scout - the program where Amazon gives readers a voice in who gets published was both my nemesis and my friend.  Last December I entered On The Dotted Line through Kindle Scout and after a month of having one of the worst anxiety attacks I can remember I wasn't selected.I went on to publish Dotted through Irksome Rebel Press and the book has seen much success and it was freeing to finally be in charge of my own destiny.But Kindle Scout was still there, the great what if...Something drew me to this program more than the great agent quest or search for a "Big 5" publisher.Plainly put...I wanted it.Enter Typecast, my baby, the love of my life, the first book in the Hollywood Stardust series which I have toiled over for quite some time.Typecast represented freedom to me from a past with writing people I wanted to forget.  Typecast dodged a bullet because I wasn't done with it when I was going through my "I have to have a publisher phase."  Simply put Typecast was mine, 100 percent and no one could take it away from me.Isn't that the kind of book that deserves to be put up for nomination in one of your life's great what ifs?Well, either way I thought so and I entered it and tried not to be a psychopath about it.  However it is me and I sort of had to be a little psychopath about it.  (Some would say a lot psychopath)So I did my thirty day promotion and hoped for the best.  Honestly I thought I did pretty good up until the time where I was supposed to hear if I won or not.  I think I may have got caught in a glitch because where most people hear within two days I didn't hear until day four.But.....Drum roll.....I was selected!!  (Cue big band here and shining golden light).Then I was contacted by Amazon and made all official and even put into the Kindle Scout winners facebook group (you know its real when you are in the facebook group).Honestly, I was so sure I wasn't going to win that I planned an entire release for Typecast.  (Oops)Thankfully I did have a backup plan in the form of another story (Pieces of Three) that was edited and ready to go.  I wasn't sure that an author should keep a spare story on hand, but now I am seeing that it can be quite useful.  This story was another bullet dodger, so it appropriate that it take over my May 15th release while I wait to see what Kindle Press has in store for me.So the moral to the story is...1.   Never give up on what ifs...2.  Be glad every once in a while you dodge bullets...3.  Keep a spare story.4.  Don't give up.I will keep you all updated on how this goes down, but I'm ready for the journey!

Kindle Scout - the program where Amazon gives readers a voice in who gets published was both my nemesis and my friend.  Last December I entered On The Dotted Line through Kindle Scout and after a month of having one of the worst anxiety attacks I can remember I wasn't selected.     I went on to publish Dotted through Irksome Rebel Press and the book has seen much success and it was freeing to finally be in charge of my own destiny.   But Kindle Scout was still there, the great what if...  

  So, I've decided to try Kindle Scout again.  This time I have sacrificed my baby up for grabs - Typecast.  So if you have an inclincation to nominate the book I would truly appreciate it.  Here is the link:https://kindlescout.amazon.com/search...        

  So, I've decided to try Kindle Scout again.  This time I have sacrificed my baby up for grabs - Typecast.  So if you have an inclincation to nominate the book I would truly appreciate it.  Here is the link:https://kindlescout.amazon.com/search...        

I'm not sure who watches these but for the author they are really fun.

I swear all photo shoots should be selfies.  This was just a fun shot but I ended up really liking it!

I am more than proud to announce that Trifecta has received a coveted five star review from Mary’s Menage Whispers. Mary’s blog specializes in menage romance and only menage romance, she is a reviewer for several amazing publishing houses, and I am honored from the bottom of my heart to have this review. As a writer we literally pour our heart on our page, when someone sees our vision it is magic. Thank you Mary!

I am going to pull out a few quotes and then give you all the link so you can see her wonderful blog. If you are looking for menage romance, go there to get her recommendations.

 I loved it. Each characters had their struggles and fears and expressed them with their own personalities. One wanted to show thru his art, one was scared to show it at all and the third just wanted insurance that was not a fling.-Mary’s Menage Whispers

 

I totally loved something that I rarely find in romance : humor. I can honestly count on one hand the authors that make me laugh or just even add some humor in their stories. For some reasons, intense romance does not rhythm with humor. Humor does not mean comedy! It means that some funny comments are drop here and there and makes you laugh and smile. Big difference. I am so very greedy on this. I want it all and if humor is added in the story, it really put the cherry on the cake! – Mary’s Menage Whispers

 

Kim Carmichael wrote a sensational menage story. And I believe that what made it so great is because she was smart to write about what she knows in real life. – Mary’s Menage Whispers

You can view Mary’s wonderful site and the review in its entirety here: http://marymenage.wordpress.com/2013/07/25/review-trifecta-by-kim-carmichael-3/

Right now Trifecta is part of the international bestselling Naughty Box.  For a limited time this box set is only .99c.  It can be found on Amazon here:
http://www.amazon.com/Naughty-Box-books-box-ebook/dp/B00DYV1GGO/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374808443&sr=1-6

Part of Lady Amber’s Author’s Blog Hop

Last year I wrote about my husband and the air conditioner and my book hero.  This year, as I was getting ready to write this blog post, the air conditioning went out again, so I thought it appropriate to show you the blog and give you a follow-up:

Last year’s blog:

Summertime in Southern California can last well into October.  In fact now that I write this, I am melting from the heat and the weather has become milder the last few days.  This summer was especially hot and as luck would have it our air conditioner decided to break on one of the hottest days of the year.  During that time I had a conversation with my husband that reminded me very much of this topic and how an Alpha Male would fare in everyday living.

The conversation went something like this:

Husband sits down after installing a window air conditioning unit in his office.  I only have a fan in the living room where I sit.

Me:  “I am going to die.”

Husband:  “No you’re fine.  The fan is on, it will be dark soon and it will cool off.  Go sit in the bedroom.”

Me:  Narrows eyes at the back of his head.  “I actually think I’m going to die and I want to sit in the living room where my computer is.”

Husband:  “Take your laptop.”

Me:  Sighs.  Glances over at my computer and back to my husband.

Husband:  “It’s only for a day or two.”

Me:  “You installed an air conditioner in your room.”  (Just wanted to make sure he knew I knew that.)

Husband:  “What would you like me to do?”

Me:  Purses lips to try to hold back telling what I really want him to do.  “Jason would have fixed it.”

Husband:  Turns and looks at me.  “Who the Hell is Jason?”

Me:  Shrug my shoulders.

Husband:  “Who the Hell is Jason?”

Me:  “The hero in my story.”  (I refrain from saying ‘duh’ to him)

Husband:  Stares at me.

Me:  Stares back (it seems appropriate)  Then I add.  “Jason wouldn’t have even asked, it would have just been done.”  (at least that’s how I would have written it, and now I sort of become distracted because I’m wondering if I can add some sort of ‘stuck in a heat wave’ scene into my WIP where Jason does fix it.

Husband:  Stands up.  “I’ll be back.”

Me:  “Where are you going?”

Husband:  “Home Depot.”  He grumbles something as he walks away.

Me:  I get up and walk over.  “Why?  You just came from Home Depot.”  (With the stuff to fix his office)

Husband:  “I’m going to go fix it like Jason.”  He took his wallet and left.

I suppose he didn’t want to be outdone by the voices in my head, but it did make me wonder in every day living how the Alpha male would fare. In that case I really did want my husband to swoop in and just fix it.  I didn’t want to care if he was tired or hot, I wanted it done without having to think about it, and an Alpha male would have done just that.

That got me thinking about another conversation with my husband.  This time about a purse purchase.  Those who know me know that I am a sucker for a designer handbag, when faced with naysayers I will still contend that my Louis Vuitton has held its value.  This conversation was after I closed a big sale that almost landed me in the hospital from stress and he was not so happy with my health at that moment.  I spent many nights crying.

Me:  “I finally got paid for that horrible sale.”

Husband:  “Awesome.  Let me see.”

Me:  Points to the computer where the direct deposit came in.

Husband:  Nods and pats me on the head.  “We can catch up on a few things.”

Me:  Shrugs shoulders and nods.

Husband:  “What?”

Me:  “I really wanted a Birkin Bag.”  Purses out lower lip. (Yes, I used the word ‘purses’ on purpose.)

Husband: “What the hell is that?”  (obviously a favorite line of his)

Me:  Goes into a thirty minute explanation of a Birkin bag and how this is quite possibly the best thing that could ever happen to a girl like me.  I let it be known that it is the most impossible bag to find on the planet, they won’t sell you one in the story, and if you get to be on the mailing list it’s like one million years long.

Husband:  Blinks away the glaze that has formed over his eyes.  “It doesn’t say Birkin Bag on it?”

Me:  Shakes head.

Husband:  “How will anyone know what it is?”

Me:  “Those who know, know.”

Husband:   Looks between me, my Louis Vuitton and the computer with the bank balance.  “You should get that.  Go ahead.”  With that he kisses the top of my head and walks away.

I think the moral to the story is that the Alpha male is what we make it.  Today, without dragons to slay and swords to wield, it is more of a state of mind.  It is the man who can fix an air conditioner or tell you to spend your commission check on something frivolous when there are bills to pay.  It is the man who doesn’t want you to make yourself sick over work and will stand on the sidelines to make sure you’re okay.    He is the man who will listen to a thirty minute story on a purse, and buy another air conditioner even though the other one is getting fixed in two days.

The Alpha male is the man that loves his heroine.

Update:  As I said this year the air conditioning went out again.  Last year my husband came home with a portable A/C unit that barely did the job.  This year, without my prodding he went out and installed a window unit.  One thing he asked…”Would Jason have done it better?”  I must say he lived up to the hero and then some.

Okay now for the fun!

First I have a new release coming out on July 9th!  This is part of Decadent’s 1Night Stand Series:

Five years ago Dahlia Adair left her business partners, the two men she loved. Unable to choose between them, she vanished with their venture capital and their hearts. Betrayed by the woman they both love, Todd Shelton and Cooper Montgomery dissolved their company and their friendship.

When Todd and Cooper reunite, they can’t move forward with their new business until they confront the woman who called them “interchangeable” before she disappeared.

Five years later, Dahlia wants to live without looking over her shoulder, Todd wants his love and his friend back, and Cooper wants answers. With the help of Madame Eve and 1Night Stand, they give Dahlia the chance to live free of repercussions for her crimes if she’ll agree to spend one night with them, vowing to make her aware of their differences, and offer her a life they’re sure she can’t refuse.

Fun and Prizes!!

Leave me your email address and I will be giving away five swag packs!!

Also, Lady Amber is having a grand prize

Don’t forget to visit the other participants!

http://ambersupernaturalandya.blogspot.com/p/authors-blog-hop-july-3-10.html

Excerpt:

He slithered his way across the casino floor and instantly his predacious gaze locked onto me. In a spontaneous act of avoidance, I burrowed into the crowd a bit deeper and tunneled my way through the unsuspecting human-shields and headed toward the mock-safety of the elevators. Not that I am afraid of him, far from it, I just cannot stand cocky bastards that think they are God’s gift to the game. Especially when it’s obvious that the only reason he chats me up so often is he is trying to learn my strategy and make a place for himself as poker royalty. Not on my watch, chump. But wait, I am not prey in this situation! I am never going to be someone’s doormat or stepping stone ever again! Resolve hit me suddenly and I pivoted on my heel quickly, nearly slamming into his eye-level chest. Man, he was fast! And tall, geez. When did he get so tall? How had I never noticed that before? Ahh yes, always sitting at a poker table and only having to deal with his consuming gazes. This was a new level of freak-out.

“Is there something I can help you with, Rey?” I said as I craned my neck to see the tower of man before me, “Or were you on a mad dash to bilk someone of their life savings or rob some unsuspecting college girl of her panties and possible virtue tonight?”

“You wound me, truffle.” He drawled with his gorgeous Latin accented “r”.

Seriously? What is up with everyone and their nicknames for me lately?

“I decided at the last moment to switch to this hotel so I could be away from the action over at Caesar’s and as I was registering I couldn’t miss your glorious essence calling to me from the crowd.”

As if I was “calling” to him? Pssh. As if!

“And I just had to come speak to you and make sure you are doing well. Are you busy? You seemed in a hurry.”

Rey could fool most people into thinking he was innocent or sweet or whatever façade he wanted to wear today but I know poker players and I know men and he was not fooling me one bit. He always stayed at Caesar’s, which was one of the most important reasons I never did. Had he followed me? There would be no point in that. I have to stop being so paranoid.

“I was in a hurry yes, I.. uh.. have a date.” It was sort of the truth. I was planning on going to my room for a nap before the tournament and was also praying that I would have a few moments with my Dream Guy, that always settled my nerves and gave me a little something extra to smile about.

A flash of something crossed Rey’s face. Amazingly, I couldn’t decipher if it was anger, confusion, or some other emotion. Even though I have been training to read people’s faces, actions, words, and other characteristics for years now, he somehow managed to show an emotion I hadn’t seen before. Weird. Well-played, sir. Game on.

Bluffing the Devil Trailer ~ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4UWMHklfcg

Stalk CL Foster!  She likes it…

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCLFoster

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1920252.C_L_Foster

http://www.amazon.com/C.L.-Foster/e/B00A5GV1OS/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_3

https://twitter.com/CLFoster1

Cover by the amazingly talented Regina Wamba of Mae I Designs  ~

https://www.facebook.com/MaeIDesignandPhotography

You only get one first of anything, and no matter the time, or space, or age, you never forget your firsts.

 When thirteen year old Nicky Moore’s parents decide to buy a small summer beach cottage at Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, she thought her life would end.  It didn’t matter the beauty of the area – land and water as far as the eye could see – she was bound and determined to make her family’s summer vacation as dismal as she felt.  That was until she met a boy from down the beach; a beautiful boy, with the most intense brown eyes she had ever seen and a smile that could light the ocean on fire.  A summer that Nicky thought was doomed from the start, turned into a summer that she would never forget; one full of firsts.  It was impossible for her to know years later how one seemingly little decision could change everything forever, but soon, as an adult, Nicky will find out that everything she once thought were real and the promises once made, were lost in a sea of inner turmoil.

I’m not even sure where to begin.  How do you explain what an impact a story has on one self?  This story is one so very special to me and I put a lot of tears into writing it.

After a friend of mine came to me and presented a book idea to me, which has happened many times since becoming a writer, immediately the story unfolded in my mind. I knew the exact story I wanted to tell. A story that I felt needed to be told. It is a story of finding yourself through young love and trying to maintain that love through life’s obstacles. This story is so very special to me because this story is about me and someone who was very special to me, my first love. I am truly honored to be able to share it with you.

My story is not very unlike the one you are about to read.  I fell in love for the first time when I was just 13 years old with the most beautiful boy I had ever known, Jeremy Hayes Hewett. Some told me it was just a crush, a child’s fantasy, and some just dismissed it all together.  They were all wrong. Yes, I was 13 and that is young, but I knew how I felt and they did not. He was a truly special person who had the biggest heart of anyone I had ever known. We dated the entire school year until I moved away at the end of the school year. We continued to stay in touch after I moved away, but long distance relationships are hard whether you are 13 or 31 and like so many long distance relationships it didn’t last. Slowly, the once constant letters and phone calls started becoming fewer and further in between until they stopped all together. I would always think about him from time to time though whether I was driving through his hometown, or if I heard a certain song on the radio. I sang our song “I Swear” every night for a year.

Finally, when I was nineteen, I contacted everyone that I could think of who knew him or would possibly know how to contact him, and since this was before advances in technology had taken off I decided to leave it up to the universe. If we were meant to be, then we would be. As the years went by the universe remained steadily quiet, so once again I grew impatient and took it upon myself to try and locate him once more. Unfortunately, this time I did find out where he was, but what I found out was the LAST thing I had ever expected to hear. My first love had been dead for three years after taking his life. The impact of his death left me in complete shock, and after the shock, there was guilt. I was utterly consumed by guilt because oddly enough, it had been exactly three years since I had last tried to find him, I felt guilty for not trying harder. I thought that maybe, had I known what he was going through I could’ve helped him.

Why I wrote the book:

Well, what I can’t do, as much as I wish I could, is go back and help him, but what I can do now is share this story in the hopes that it may help someone else. So, that is what I have done. He and I may have only had that one perfect year together when we were kids, but it was a time in my life I will never forget. I often wonder had he and I stayed together how would our lives have played out? People always say that if they could go back in time and change anything in their life they wanted to they wouldn’t change a thing.  But if you knew that was the ending would you change it if you could do it all over again? I would.

 

www.tressamessenger.com

www.facebook.com/tressamessenger

www.twitter.com/tressamessenger