The date has been set! The virtual release event for TheGreysons. What is a virtual release, you might ask? Well, it’s like a release party, only on Facebook!
I’ll be honest, I’ve never held a virtual release, so this will be new for me as well, but I’m really excited about it. If you don’t follow me on Facebook I hope that you’ll start. Find me @DanaLBrownAuthor.
I look forward to engaging with you whether you’re a fan of The AMI Series, or haven’t read either LottieLoser or CallMeCharlotte.. This is going to be a fun time with trivia questions and Charlotte approved prizes so you won’t want to miss it. One disclaimer. Icanonlysend prizestoaddresseswithintheUSA. Please understand.
Go into the link and let me know that you will be attending or are interested and then mark your calendars for:
May 16, 2019 7:00pm EST
Please help me celebrate one of the greatest accomplishments of my life. TheGreysons is the culmination of Charlotte Luce’s story, and it is through her that my Fairytale has come true.🌴
Until we read again…📚
Blessings,
Dana L.❤️
Some of the prizes to be given away during the virtual release of The Greysons
Last week I wanted to read, and I wanted to read a real book. Don’t get me wrong, I still download books to my Kindle, and I still enjoy reading them, but sometimes you just want to enjoy the feel of a real book in your hands, right? But it was a cold and rainy day and a trip to the library just wasn’t in the cards, and then I remembered my stash of books from Book Expo America.
BEA was the topic of last week’s blogpost, but I didn’t mention the stack of advance reader copies of books that I brought home from the event. I read several as soon as I returned, but in the busyness of everyday life, the others were forgotten. I know…shame on me! Anyway, in my quest for a real book to read and get wrapped up in, I remembered the box from BEA and started digging. And boy did I strike gold!
NEED TO KNOW by Karen Cleveland is the kind of novel that grabs you from the first page, and never lets go. It’s powerfully written, captures your heart, and makes you ask the question “What would I do if that were me?”
The protagonist in the story is a CIA analyst, as Karen herself was before writing this book, her debut novel. The crux of the story is Vivian Miller’s struggle to balance the love for her family with the love of her country, and the twists and turns will have you feeling like you’re on a roller coaster ride, but you won’t want to get off.
I’m not going to tell you more for fear of spoiling this addictive thriller, but I will share some facts. The actual book released in January of 2018 and has over 900 great reviews. On top of that, a movie is in the works with Charlize Theron producing and staring as Vivian.
Keep in mind that I’m addicted to romance novels, but this book captured my attention in a way that thrillers usually don’t. Even today, a week after I read the last page, the storyline haunts me enough that I may have to read it one more time.
In 2017, before LottieLoser was released, I was given tickets to BEA in New York City. An opportunity to see my book on display at the country’s biggest book venue? No way was I not going to attend.
So, The Captain and I made our plans and traveled to the Big Apple in late May for a week of books, books and more books! With a few authors and other celebrities thrown in.
On the first day we were invited to a breakfast where author Stephen King, actress and producer Whitney Cummins, photographer Pete Souza, astronaut Scott Kelly and author Jesmyn Ward spoke. It was magical. Listening to this illustrious group discuss their past writing, as well as the books they were presenting that week was every aspiring writers dream. I left there more determined than ever to become a real author.
It was also in New York where I first met Mark Wayne Adams. I had read a pre-BEA article from Mark, where he talked about the Florida Authors and Publishers Association, and that article is what encouraged me to enter their 2017 Presidential Awards. LottieLoser went on to win a Silver Medal that year, and I will be forever grateful to him for pointing a brand new author in the right direction.
When the idea for this Blogpost came to mind I got to thinking about how many of the events from that week in New York appear in my books. In CallMeCharlotte, there’s a scene where Charlotte buys Nick the first two books in the Harry Boesch series by Michael Connelly. I actually met Mr. Connelly that year at BEA and have a picture and signed book to commemorate the day. His books are so well written and thought through, and I’ve read and loved every one.
You all know that I’m a voracious reader, and although I like most genres, romance has a special place in my heart. That’s why meeting Elin Hildebrand at BEA was so exciting. I waited in a long long to meet her, and get a signed copy of TheIdenticals, but I also got a cold Corona with a slice of lime and cookies decorated with covers of other books of her’s. If I’m ever rich and famous, that’s my goal for book signings!
In TheGreysons you’ll find several of my actual experiences from that New York trip written into the book. I’m not going to tell you what they are, but instead hope that you will comment through my website with your ideas.
I hope someday to go to another BEA New York, and to live the life of an urbanite, even if only for a week. But in the meantime I’m going to keep writing and work towards my book signing goal; cookies decorated with the covers of my books!
Enjoy these pictures from BEA 2017
Me outside the Javits Center where BEA was held
Stephen King and his son
Me with Michael Connelly and Elin Hildebrands cookies!
Until we read again,📚
Blessings,
Dana L.❤️
*Thank you for all the interest in when The Greysons will release. The estimated date is April 30th and I promise to let you know just as soon as I do. In the meantime if you would like to preorder from the publisher here’s the link:
Today is cover reveal day! Writing a book and waiting for it to be published is like having a baby, and I’m so ready for this baby to be born!
This past week I’ve been running a video on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram that’s a sneak peek of a scene from The Greysons, and I promised you some of the backstory. There’s more in the back of the book so be sure to look for it when you’re done reading.
My dad was an engineer, entrepreneur and inventor. When my brother was born Dad made up the “Lawnmower Song” and sang it to Tom. Five years later when I came along Dad took it out of storage and sang it to me. It’s been through my three girls and their seven children, and someday my Great Grandkids will hear it, too. It’s part of a tradition in my family so of course it had to be in Charlotte’s life, as well.
I am so excited to share this cover with you and I hope you will love it as much as I do. It conveys all the emotions I have about the completion of Charlotte’s story, and has the appearance of a Fairytale. And as you know, that’s exactly what my writing career has been.
