I'm The Guest and YOU Could be The Winner!

Penelope Anne Bartotto invited me to put on my cover designer hat and kick off the week of her designers in the spotlight event over at Library at the End of the Universe. Seems like a long ways away, but it's only a click or two thanks to modern technology :-)

Stop by and get the inside scoop on what goes into cover design and what I do at Tell~Tale Book Covers. And while you're there, may as well enter for a chance to win one of three pre-made covers! Pre-mades can be a wonderful way for an author to find an economical solution to that perfect cover design or can be a first step to an amazing custom cover.

Hope you'll take the time to read the post and leave some comment love: http://www.libraryattheendofuniverse.com/2013/05/covers-tell-story-too-tell-tale-cover.html.

And for those of you anxiously awaiting my Dance With The Enemy release ... stay tuned! We're on the FINAL COUNTDOWN!!!! A huge thank you to all of you who told me "that short story NEEDS to be turned into a book!" - so glad you did ♥

Impending Release for "Dance With The Enemy" -- the novel!

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!

We've made some lists and are checking them twice... Now we're making it official: The Release Party for "Dance With The Enemy" will be held by Lady Amber on FaceBook -- Here: https://www.facebook.com/events/553426354707931/?fref=ts

The Blurb:
She was marked with his blood. She belonged to him! And yet she’d dared to run, leading him on a chase through the dark forest. Had she honestly thought she could escape an elite warrior from the King’s own bloodline? It mattered little to him that she believed their match a mistake and wanted to get to the Masters to confirm her suspicions.

Fear propelled Elenya through the brush, the branches and twigs tearing at her dress and delicate flesh. Still, she moved, refusing to believe fate such an evil taskmaster as to pair her with those who had sent her family into exile all those years ago. If there was no mistake, honor would bind her to him. She would pay for the sins of her ancestors, bound forever, forced to dance for a lifetime in the arms of her enemy.

Hope you'll join us for a day of fun. There will be giveaways: books, bookmarks, jewelry pieces, and other swag :-) We're planning a great day!!!

Time For A Cool Change

The fact that I haven't posted since November is a pretty good indication that my post today is quite timely. You see, I'm making some changes so I can get back to something near and dear to my heart: writing! This blog was supposed to chronicle my path to writing my novel, and while I have several published books, I'm still not where I want to be. But I will be one step closer very, very soon, when my novel, Dance With The Enemy, is released on July 1, 2013.

I've spent the last few years helping others recognize their writing dreams through my many book services offerings, however, effective immediately, I will no longer be offering most of these services, concentrating instead on two things: Book Cover Design and Writing!

All other services are being rerouted and I will be recommending top-rate service providers sure to be able to meet every need with just as much love and care as I would have shown.

Be sure to visit TreasureLineBooks.com to see our recommendations and I hope you'll all be around to cheer me on just as much as I have been there as your champion all these years.

Ten Dollar Words lead to Healing Words

I received a series of texts from a writer friend of mine a short while back that contained what my family calls "Ten Dollar Words" -- you know, those big words that we all pretend to know and then quickly look up on Google. Except for my writer friend. He's an awesome bestselling author who writes thrillers that are deep and make your brain work if you want it to. I'm guessing Ten Dollar Words are a common part of his vocabulary although I would definitely recommend his books to ANYONE, whether you're into ten dollar words or not. Be warned, though, you'll be hooked from the get go.

Anyway, back to the words ... The texts came in just about the time I was to come up with a Clever Fiction Writing Challenge so I decided to use them for the prompt. And much to my relief, managed to squeeze in a story of my own. Whew!

Thanks, Andrew E. Kaufman for your Ten Dollar Words that inspired my Healing Words. Take a look and enjoy!

My Story: Healing Words by Linda Boulanger (Facile~Frenetic~Fastidious)

Read these awesome books by Andrew E. Kaufman.

You'll find the links on his website by clicking HERE!

Donning My Tiara

Today, I'm taking off my author hat and putting on my designer tiara -- book cover designer, that is :-) Karen S. Elliott asked me to write a guest post for her The Word Shark blog's Halloween Fright Week. Karen's blog is filled with great information for writers that I hope I have added to by discussing how I go about creating great book covers -- information that's useful whether you plan to design your own cover or enlist the help of a professional.

I hope you'll join me as I share the steps I use to put together a great cover: http://karenselliott.wordpress.com/2012/10/23/creep-into-the-mind-of-a-book-cover-designer-by-linda-boulanger/

My Reading List...

Since I received my Kindle Fire for Christmas last year, I've read so many books I'm starting to lose track. So, I've decided to list some of my recent favorites here. It's an eclectic list, so there's bound to be something of interest to just about everyone.

I'm please to say I helped format some of these books, others I designed their covers. A few I won and a few the authors simply gave to me to read. Others I grabbed because I liked their covers or their blurbs or found I truly enjoy reading that particular author. :-)

Chalk Valley by D.L. Johnstone
Old Acquaintances by Ursula Gorman
Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park
A Summer Down Under by Adrianna Blakeley
Million Dollar Bra by Jennifer Loy
Heartless by Jaimey Grant
The Grey Tier by Michele Scott
Tudor Rose by Jamie Salisbury
Divorced, Desperate and Delicious by Christie Craig
False Pretense ~ Short Story by Jenny Hilborne
The Wedding Wager by Rachel Astor
Gamble on Engagement by Rachel Astor
Bridesmaid Lotto by Rachel Astor
Out of Left Field by Morgan Kearns
Faking Mr. Right by Kerry Connor
Love Me by Bella Andre
Daddy's Home by A.K. Alexander
In It to Win It by Morgan Kearns
Fade to Black by Morgan Kearns
Dead in the Water ~ Short Story by Judity Yates Borger
Almost a Family by Donna Alward
Off the Clock by Donna Alward
Desolation Road ~ Short Story by Andrew E. Kaufman
Proud Rancher~Precious Bundle by Donna Alward
Breathe by Donna Alward
The Lion, The Lamb, The Hunted by Andrew E. Kaufman
Hired by the Cowboy by Donna Alward
Sold to the Highest Bidder by Donna Alward
Home for Christmas by Kate Davies
Undying Love ~ Short Story by Michael J. Evans
While The Savage Sleeps by Andrew E. Kaufman

Please note if I should decide to actually review these books, the majority would receive a 5 star rating. I don't automatically give 5 stars, it's just that most of what I read I really enjoy. From time to time I will add a technical rating if I've seen things that need work (sorry, it's the formatter in me), and a few of the books on this list will receive a 5+ rating from me because I believe those books are not just good but beyond exceptional.

That's What I LOVE!

(Download Coupon at the end along with story links)

I recently set about updating my author website and had to practically redo the Works In Progress section. The book I had listed as Next in Line for Publishing ended up moving down 2 notches. Does that mean that will not be the next book? Not necessarily. What it does mean is I finally realized something about myself that the rest of the world probably already knows: I'm an inspired writer - my preference is to write about particular characters when they are knocking on the door of my imagination, whispering in my ear for me to help them live for the enjoyment of others instead of just for myself. That's when their stories flow and I love what I've written. Those are the times when it feels as if someone else is writing and I'm just the tool. THAT'S WHAT I LOVE!

And that's why I started my own publishing company. When Terry and Mark from A Marriage of Necessity (which may or may not be getting another cover change along with a Title change) wanted to take a rest while Tahruk and Elenya from Dance With The Enemy took center stage, I was able to let them do that. And I wrote two new short stories that I've been able to work into chapters of the book: Dance With The Enemy. That book, in fact, started as a short story that reader request prompted me to continue. It now sits at just over 20,000 words. I recently published the short on both Amazon and Smashwords and in a minute I will give you the opportunity to download it free (until Oct. 13, 2012) from Smashwords.

But first, if you'd like to read the two shorts that preclude The Chase, you may find them here:

1) The Stars Still Shine (Meet Elenya)
2) To Be Sure (Meet Tahruk)

Then feel free to download the ebook short story Dance With The Enemy~The Chase in the format of your choice from Smashwords using the following coupon code at checkout: FX25N

Here's the link to get over there: Enemy Story on Smashwords

Enjoy!!!