So You Wanna Be a Writer...

I saw this yesterday and it just cracked me up. Observe, the Future Best-seller!

Authorus Romanticus in the Wild

Today I join the fun at Beth Kery's Explosion Contest and discuss the reactions I get from people when they find out what I do for a living. Come observe the elusive authorus romanticus in the wild and possibly take home a prize for your troubles! There be book giveaways (and an ereader to be won at the Explosion party too)!

I'm Thankful For...

You.

I love you, reader-folk.

I popped online for a moment on Thanksgiving and saw that people were posting on Twitter about all the things they were thankful for. All I could think of to post was "Everything."

I love that I'm able to write and there are people who enjoy what I put out. I love my fabulous family and marvelous friends. I love the freedom to take hella awesome trips where serendipity gives me the most amazing experiences.

But mostly, I'm back to number one again. I love that there are people who "get" the books.

Favorite holiday anecdote: My family was sitting around talking story after attempting to clog our arteries with a single meal and you know what my cousin told me? That her friend who lives in Ireland's roommate is so in love with my books she wouldn't leave her room for days and just closeted herself and read. I about passed out from joy.

Now, I'm thinking there might be some hyperbole at work here, but I don't care if the story has been exaggerated in the telling. I love that chick in Ireland.

So if you are my cousin's friend's roommate, you rock. And if you aren't, you also rock. I'm thankful for YOU.

Giveaways, Pre-Orders & Reviews, Oh My!

I'm back on US soil, boys and girls! (And there was much rejoicing!) I cannot adequately express the warm fuzzies I feel toward internet that does not have to be purchased in fifteen minute increments. I'm so much more relaxed when I don't have this "Omigod-my-internet-is-going-to-die-in-ten-nine-eight-seven-six..." feeling all the time.

There are quite a few slices of awesome that I'm catching up on, so here's a bit of news to start off the holiday weekend. Listas? Okay.

NUMBER ONE: It's Inez Kelley's Birthday Bash today and she is going wild (wild, I tell you!) with the giving away of beaucoup books. (Over sixty giveaways!) New winners are being announced all the time so go! Comment! Win! (There might be chances to win free copies of The Naked Detective and No Angel. Just sayin'.)

NUMBER TWO: We have pre-order links, boys and girls! No Angel, my holiday angels & demons novella (which comes out in less that two weeks! squee!), is now available for your pre-ordering one-clickyness at both Amazon & Carina Press!

And (you knew there would be an "and") this little novella is also available in a paranormal holiday collection of awesomeness with exciting new releases from Moira Rogers - the post-apocalyptic witches & werewolves mid-winter romance Freeze Line - and Vivian Arend - who penned the steamy, playful cat-shifter Christmas hot-flash of Tangled Tinsel. You can pre-order the Winter Wishes Collection from Carina Press or Amazon too! Buy the package for less than you can buy all three individually! (I'm such a sucker for a good deal. It's genetic. Remind me to tell you the one about my grandpa and the Vienna sausages.)

NUMBER THREE: Google Alerts sent me what I think might be the first blogger review for Winter Wishes! She liked it! She really liked it! (Anytime a reviewer uses the word "wow" I'm catapulted into my happy place.) Click here to check it out.

And a Happy Thanksgiving to the US contingent! You can bet I'll be getting my turkey on. My grandma and I are running out to the store shortly to grab the makings for her "Christmas Salad" which fulfills zero vegetable requirements and is really a desert-type-thing that resembles cinnamon jello covered in three inches of whipped cream. (Yeah, we are all about the nutrition, baby.)

Gettin' Yer Giggle On

Good morning (afternoon, time of day of choice), darlings! In the exciting week of excitedness (<--yeah, I'm making it a word) for all things Nekkid! we have the nod from Mrs. Giggles on the latest Karmic caper:

The Naked Detective is another fun entry into the author's Karmic Consultants series, which is shaping up to be one big ball of prime entertainment so far.

Prime entertainment! Prime! I'm all aflutter. Here's the linky goodness if you'd like to peruse the whole review: CLICK ME!

**Travel update: My time in New Zealand is dwindling, which is cause for much sadness since I haven't had nearly enough time on the North Island. However, also cause for much rejoicing because it means Thanksgiving is coming! Soon to be returning stateside...

~Vivi

News!

There are two questions I get asked more often than any others. 1) When is Zoe’s story coming out? And 2) When is Karma’s book coming out? The answer to number two is still, “After I finish writing it.” (Yeah, sorry, I’m a slacker.) But the answer to number one has changed!

We have a contract, ladies and gents!

There are approximately eleven million steps in the publication process and this is just one of them, but now – thanks to my goddess editor – I have a rough guestimate of the release date of Zoe & Tyler’s Serengeti Sunrise! Early Summer 2011! I know, it’s forever. Patience is a virtue, so try to be virtuous. Or at least patient.

Can I get a woohoo for the Sunrise, y’all?

Jack-in-the-Box Books

Inspiration for books can crop up in the most unexpected places. And just keep popping, no matter how you try to shove it back in the box.

Take my new release, The Naked Detective. The original kernel of an idea for the story came from a bit of banter between the hero and heroine of The Ghost Exterminator. Jo offers to strip naked to perform a ghost extermination for Wyatt –if I had a nickel for every time someone propositioned me that way. ;) She then comments that there are other Karmic Consultants who work in the nude. Thus, Ciara, the Naked Detective was born. Human lo-jack, but only when she’s stark nekkid. I’d played with the idea of giving Ciara a book of her own, but my original series plan didn’t include that story in the arc, so I shoved the idea into my Maybe Someday file and forgot about it.

Fast forward a few months when I’m chatting with my editor about cover art and series arcs for the Karmic Consultants series. She asked if I was ever going to do anything with that naked chick and when I said I wasn’t planning it as a full length book, she lobbied for giving Ciara a novella. The idea appealed and I started mulling it over, but how was I going to squeeze Ciara’s story between The Sexorcist & Karma’s without messing up the series arc?

That afternoon, I got a call from an old friend. We hadn’t talked in years, but by the end of the conversation I had plans to meet her in Atlantic City that weekend for a concert and whatever trouble we could find on short notice. The weekend was an exercise in spontaneity, anything unexpected was fair game. It was that Friday night over blackjack at the Borgata when I realized a weekend getaway was the perfect way to give Ciara and her FBI stud Nate a chance to get to know one another outside of their normal boundaries (and without mucking up my series plan). My naked psychic and her Fed handler were going to Atlantic City, baby. America’s Playground wouldn’t know what hit it – and Ciara, who has a tendency to call for help rather than try to muddle through on her own, would have no one to rely on but Nate.

The Naked Detective was my jack-in-the-box book. The idea just kept popping up. Every time I shoved it back in the box, it would spring back out again until I finally gave in and wrote it.

Those who’ve enjoyed the Karmic Consultants books will see nods to some of their favorites, but if you’re just jumping into the series this one is a playful and lighthearted paranormal vacation of a novella – whether you’re on holiday or need one.

Where’s your favorite place for a spontaneous getaway? Or favorite place to read about escaping to?

The Naked Detective Release Day!

Happy Release Day! The Naked Detective has arrived in all her nekkid glory!

The “gift” that makes Ciara Liung the FBI’s prized secret weapon makes her existence more like a curse. Unable to bear human contact, she lives as a hermit, immersing herself in the water that gives her peace and amplifies her power.

Her new FBI handler, though, only believes what he can see. The problem? Her gift—the ability to psychically locate stolen jewels—only works in the nude.

Special Agent Nathan Smith can’t believe he’s expected to babysit some psychic finder. Psychic…right. An undercover op gone wrong may have left him a desk jockey—and Ciara’s charms are more distracting than he cares to admit—but he’s a field agent at heart. She’s working some kind of angle. It’s just a matter of time before he unravels it.

Sent to Atlantic City to recover a ruby necklace for Monaco’s royal family, both finder and Fed are pushed outside their comfort zones, and discover more than they ever believed possible. And when a trap is sprung, they realize they stand to lose much more than a sparkly stone…

Warning: This book contains gambling, go-go dancers, public indecency, and every brand of trouble a troubled psychic can get into in America’s Playground.

Click to read an excerpt! ** Click for buy links!

Since my online-ness is challenging from the road (a fact I have whined about repeatedly, I know) I’m doing all my wild and crazy blog touring for The Naked Detective today. 24-Hour Blog Tour! So I am many places all at once. Ready? Okay!

1. I’ll be at the Samhain Café (mid-afternoon EST) sharing excerpts and chatting with anyone who happens to drop by. (So drop on by, boys and girls!)
2. I’m at the Damned Scribbling Women blog, talking about gambling and risk taking in life and in love.
3. I’m at the Samhain blog, talking about the gigundous ruby necklace that inspired the bling found between the covers of The Naked Detective (and there are photos!).
4. And I’m at the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood, sharing synopsis-writing tips and a sneak peek inside the synopsis I used when I sold The Naked Detective.

(Anyone inclined to send me good internet juju for today is warmly encouraged to do so. Wish me luck finding connectivity!)

And the Winner is...

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! Congratulations, Gigi! Please email me at vivi@viviandrews.com to let me know in which format you would like your shiny new copy of The Naked Detective!

And, reader-friends, if you weren’t lucky this time, be sure to hie yourself on over to Beth Kery’s blog tomorrow where her two week long Explosion Contest is just beginning! Many a prize will be given away, boys and girls. Click here to check it out!

And last but not least…

It’s release day! Okay, so technically tomorrow is release day, but here on the other side of the International Date Line it’s tomorrow already so WOOOHOOOO! Unfortunately, since Samhain is on the wrong side of the International Date Line, the book isn’t actually out yet. Tomorrow… tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow…

Naked Newsflash & Win an ARC!

It's Naked Detective week, boys and girls! And what better way to launch the release frenzy than with a sparkly new review! Literary Nymphs reviews have obliged us with a lovely 4.5 Nymph review!

Observe, the awesome:

The Naked Detective is the 4th book in Vivi Andrews’ Karmic Consultants series and it’s slated for release on November 16, 2010. It’s another great addition to this fun and fast paced series and it had me chuckling on the very first page.

For the full review, CLICK HERE.

And for a chance to win a copy of The Naked Detective before it hits stores, just leave a comment here by midnight (Pacific) and tell me one of your stories about 1) Gettin' Nekkid (let's keep it PG-13 folks), 2) Atlantic City, or 3) Dunk Tanks.

And if you're wondering "Why dunk tanks?", check out the excerpt of The Naked Detective HERE.

The Ghost Exterminator Contest... goes down in flames

So I had this brilliant plan, right? I was gonna have this contest while I was out of the country, see? And all my minions were going to hie themselves to their local bookseller of choice and snap pics of my pretty pretty book on the pretty pretty shelves. However, a snag soon revealed itself in the fabric of my master plan. The books, they were not on the shelves! Even stores which were planning on stocking them did not have their shipments yet. Oh, the sadness which was mine!

Today was the day when the winners were to be revealed. Yes, I was originally planning on having three categories - but because only the luckiest category got off the ground, I am drawing one winner and promising (pinky swear!) that there will be more contesty chances for Ghost Exterminatory goodness in the future.

Ready? The randomly selected winner of their choice of a sneak peek at The Naked Detective or No Angel, a signed copy of The Ghost Exterminator (when I get to my copies) or the chance to name a character in Karma's book is....

**DRUMROLL PLEASE**

Kali! Congratulations! (An email has been sent, informing you of your winnings!)

Romantic Times Spotlights the Ghost Exterminator!

Hello, darlings! Want an inside scoop into the inspiration behind The Ghost Exterminator? Well, you are in luck, boys and girls! Today at the Romantic Times Everything Paranormal page they are spotlight lil ole me and my lil ole book! Come on by and learn that all good things come from amusement parks...

Swing on by RT and check me out!

******

Travel Update: I have arrived in New Zealand and I loooove it. I might stay a while. Or come back and stay a while. As I look out the window now, I see a boat of tourists punting down the Avon River in the shade of the trees that provide an archway above it. Seriously, you guys, it is abnormally gorgeous here.

Dames, Madames, and Excellencies

I'm saving up most of my trip stories for a time when I have better internet, at which point I promise there will be much spillage of travel tales, but I wanted to share this one right away because well... it was bizarre but very cool.

Ahem.

Yesterday I went to the State Memorial for Dame Joan Sutherland. Dame Joan was the most famous opera soprano to come out of Australia in... ever. Her voice is one of my personal favorites and I have several of her recordings on my iPod, including her version of Lucia Di Lammermoor which is freaking awesome. She passed away last month in her mid eighties, and when I found out that there was going to be a tribute to her at the Sydney Opera House while I just happened to be in Sydney and then the tickets were free (I was seriously expecting to pay a hundred bucks for those suckers), I was delighted.

Then the weird thing happened. I do not know how, but somehow I got seated in the VIP section. Second row, stalls. Which, at a State Memorial, means I was sitting with very important Very-Important-People. I bumped elbows (literally) with the Ambassador from New Zealand. I could have reached out and touched the Prime Minister of Australia. I did not, however, reach out and touch her, because even though the Australian Secret Service dudes were much more relaxed than their American counterparts, I do not question their ability to kick my ass six ways to Sunday should I try to lay a finger on Julia Gilard.

The Memorial was really lovely. You have not heard the Australian national anthem until you have heard it sung by a theatre full of opera lovers and a chorus consisting of a bunch of principal singers who decided to join the chore that day to honor Dame Joan. Sweet Bejeesus, boys and girls, that was a freaking epic national anthem.

Beautiful words were spoken, beautiful recordings of La Stupenda herself were played (including this one with Pavorati that I'd never heard before!), and the live opera orchestra played the stuffing out of the overture to La Traviata (which happens to be a personal favorite of mine).

My photo was taken by some of the press members covering the event (doubtless all of them wondering who the hell I was that I was sitting on the end of a row with Those People in it). Then the usher demanded the peons stand back while the VIPs exited and tried to get me to exit first (immediately after madame prime minister and the "excellencies" had gone).

Hilary Clinton was in Australia a few days ago, standing three feet from the prime minister. Then it was my turn. A writer of fluffy romances with no good reason to be put in the VIP section at a major arts/political function. Go figure.

Now, in the next few days, I will be off to New Zealand, where I plan to run into a few members of the British royal family or an A-list actor at the very least.

The Sexorcist Rocks the Romance Studio

Hello from Sydney! I'm back in the land of internet and guess what I found? A shiny new review for the Sexorcist from The Romance Studio! Five Hearts, y'all! Check out the awesome:

http://www.theromancestudio.com/reviews/reviews/sexorcistandrews.htm

"The plot... forces Brittany and Luis together so they can discover what lies below the surface as they explore their inexplicable attraction to each other. Not even the cold water they get doused with multiple times is enough to cool the heat between the two of them. Sparks fly whenever they're together and only get hotter once they give in to their attraction. This is a completely pleasurable, well written story full of humor and wit with a very satisfying ending."

Can I get a woohoo, boys and girls?

So if you just discovered Karmic Consultants (and me) with The Ghost Shrink or The Ghost Exterminator (now in print!) let me just say Hello New People! Come on by and introduce yourselves! And check out the next Karmic caper in The Sexorcist, now available in ebook and coming to print in March!

(T-minus nine days to The Naked Detective!)

Contest Amendment

As it has been brought to my attention that not all bookstores are rockstar awesome and carry my books (though bonus points if you get a snap of your child having a tantrum because the bookstore lady couldn't find him my book - though I should point out, these books are not intended for two year olds) I think we need another way to win... so to be enrolled in the "luckiest" category, you can also just send me an email at contest@viviandrews.com or comment here and we'll all sit in a little huddle and feel sorry for ourselves that we can't hold my book. This is why god invented ereaders.

That is all.

Naked Clash

Do you like the cover art for The Naked Detective? (Over there in the sidebar... sadly still having trouble getting pics to load to the flipping blog from here.)

Did you know that you can vote for The Naked Detective (or one of three other really gorgeous covers) over at the Embrace the Shadows Cover Clash this month? Well, you can, boys and girls! Yes, you! Just hie yourself on over to: http://embracetheshadows.wordpress.com/2010/11/01/novembers-clash-of-the-covers/ And let the voting commence!

Also today, in honor of The Ghost Exterminator's PRINT RELEASE (squee!) I'll be (trying really hand to find an internet connection that is somewhat reliable for) visiting the Samhain Cafe today in full on promo mode. Which means... excerpts! Random chatting! And... perhaps... a giveaway? Perhaps? I might be talked into it. (Provided I can find a good connection. Cross your fingers!)

Exterminatrix Unleashed!

It’s here, boys and girls! The Ghost Exterminator: A Love Story is now available in print! It’s on shelves! In bookstores! And wouldn’t you know I’m halfway around the world and don’t get to see it with my own eyes? Oh, the tragedy! Poor, poor, pitiful me.

Luckily, I have you, my beloved reader-minions. This week we’re having a bribe contest for people who send me photographic evidence of The Ghost Exterminator on bookstore shelves. I’ll pick three winners – the first, the goofiest, and the luckiest. To win the First, you have to be the first one to send me a picture of my book on the shelves to contest@viviandrews.com. To win the Goofiest, just be the one hamming it up the most while holding a copy of the book or standing in front of the display, drawing ungodly amounts of attention to yourself. To win the luckiest, just send a pic and I’ll draw one lucky winner at the end of the week.

What, you may be asking, will you win? Winners will get their choice of a signed print copy of The Ghost Exterminator (when I get back to the country and open my box of copies – sorry for the delay), an advanced ebook copy of either The Naked Detective or No Angel, or the chance to pick a character name in Karma’s book (some restrictions apply – like no naming a character after your ex husband just because you know it would piss him off. No real person names, folks. Unless it’s yours and then there may be waivers involved. Just sayin’.)

So get your cameras (your cell phones or anything else that captures images) and get thee to the bookstore! I’m dying to see what you guys come up with.

**The fine print: By sending me your picture, you are giving me permission to post it here on the blog, the website, or on Facebook or Twitter. Contest runs until November 13th, so if you need time to gather props or plan your assault on the bookstore, you have ten days, boys and girls. Void where prohibited.**