Bloglovin

Hello everyone,

As most of you know, Google is making big changes to Google Friends Connect and Google Reader. I know that Google Reader will be gone in June and I'm not sure what the means for Friends Connect. So, I'm adding Bloglovin to my blog to make it easier to follow and keep track of blogs. Hopefully, you'll join me there. You can click on the link below and I'm adding a button to the sidebar.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Have a great weekend everyone!
Coreena

Book Blast: Sprung

Sprung (Book 2 of the Witchbound Series):

Since she discovered magic, seventeen-year-old Skye Jackson's life is almost perfect. Almost. Even perfect has its glitches.

What happens when the one with all the power makes the biggest mistakes? Welcome to my life.

Four months ago, I couldn’t have been happier. When my parents got divorced, I wasn’t exactly thrilled. Especially when Mom married a guy half her age. But then I found out I wasn’t the average Joana. Discovering magic existed and, best of all, I could use it, made everything easier to deal with. That is until I got a little too spell happy. But what girl wouldn't defend her best friend against a world-class creep? Now I’m stuck in a nightmare, forced to make life and death decisions I never dreamed I’d face.

Love the magic, hate the responsibility.

Amazon

Book Trailer

Roots

Seventeen-year-old Baltimore Land just wants to be normal, but magic has other plans. 

I don’t consider myself a witch, that's my parents' thing. I've never really believed in magic either. Sure, I tried it a few times. Fell for the whole “magic happens” thing. But it didn’t happen to me. No amount of rhyming stopped my parents from moving me halfway across the country. Not one spell stopped me from being labeled the town freak.

And worst of all, no matter how many times I begged the Universe to bring my twin back, I was ignored. Until now.

He’s back all right. And in a magical bind of his own. Not the magic-won’t-work-for-me kind either. In fact, it’s working a little too well. Too dark. Too deep.

It turns out our entire family’s magical roots run just as deep and my brother didn’t end up where he is by accident. So I’m going to help him. But magic isn’t really on my side. Nope. Once I finally get the craft under control, I’m expected to abandon the one person in the world who’s closest to me, just to save myself

Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Praise for Roots (Book 1):

"I truly enjoyed this story." Jessica, Goodreads
"...a great start to a promising series." Kaylee, Goodreads
"I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. Sprung is already on my "to read" list now!" Stacy, Goodreads
"...the first novel I've read by Kelbian Noel but it sure won't be the last." BellaReadz, Goodreads
"This book was great. It showed a different view of witches." Kristy, Amazon
"A refreshing take on a classic theme." looks and literature, Amazon

Author Kelbian Noel

Kelbian Noel is the author of the Witchbound Series and a blogger at Diverse Pages. She lives in Toronto, Ontario with her two children.

Website * Twitter * Facebook

Book Blast Giveaway
$100 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 4/21/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

NaPoWriMo, Day 4

Prompt: use one of the oddly poetic ship names from the Scottish sci fi writer, Iain M. Banks.

April 4/13

Irregular Apocalypse

The known world,

My world of pain and fear,

Is destroyed

With a simple shift of view.

A small tweak,

And reality is left in the rubble of its former glory.

Some landmarks still stand,

Though looking battered and shabby,

Out of place amongst the ruins.

In time, these too will fall.

Still, I cling to the familiarity of my old ways,

The well-known and comforting darkness

That prickles angst and worry through my soul.

Funny how hard that is to let go,

But it has always been there for me,

A deceptive friend.

But to thrive in the apocalyptic shift

I must embrace the light,

The relief,

The freedom from fear,

And become the pioneer of my self-propelled future.

Time to get rid of the clutter and clear the way.

My old ways have collapsed

With this simple shift.

I will rebuild.

NaPoWriMo: Day 3

prompt: sea shanty - that wasn't working for me, so I'm doing something about the sea

April 3/13

A Perfect Day

A perfect day -

Running out onto the beach,

Clambering over washed up logs,

Wading through sea grass,

To the rocks and barnacles and tidal pools,

Feet squishing slippery, popping seaweed,

And rolling on ball bearing periwinkles.

Flipping boulders to find sideways scuttling crabs,

Each unique and exciting,

Tickling with angry pincers.

Grab a stick to poke anemones,

And explore the universes left overnight by the tide.

Treasures abound -

Shells and rocks and bones,

Examined and pondered,

Placed carefully in a plastic pail,

Or left.

There is magic here,

Where the fairies dance

To the music of the crashing waves,

The shrill eagles,

And the squawking of hungry gulls.

Looking out,

Squinting at the glittering swell,

Dark heads bob,

Teasing and curious,

Only to bark and swim away.

There must be mermaids there,

Tempting the seals away.

The tide eases in,

Taking back the shore,

Rearranging, eroding, hiding,

Sending us home,

Sun baked and tired after a day of adventure.

Another perfect day.

Writing Wednesday: National Poetry Month

On April 1 I found out it was National Poetry Month and that, in celebration, several organizations were doing challenges to write a poem a day for April. Instinctively, this felt like a fun thing to do. In fact, it was synchronicity because I was just thinking that I'd like to write more poetry after concentrating on novel writing for so long.

So, I took the leap and decided to join National Poetry Writing Month. This looks like a fun and informal challenge modeled on National Novel Writing Month. They provide a daily prompt and you can choose to use them or not, but the idea is to write poetry. Some people (like me) are posting on their blogs, others are not. In the spirit of writing without doing too much editing, I will post even really bad poems, along with the ones I like. The idea is to get the juices flowing.

At the same time, I am editing my last Nanowrimo novel, Fatal, which is a mythological fantasy about Clytemnestra (ancient Greek, sister to the famous Helen of Troy). This has been a fun book to write, full of vengeance, murder, affairs... Definitely an adult book this time. My stumbling block this week was that my program, for some inexplicable reason, did not save the changes I had made for at least a day. I had done a lot of work that day, adding scenes and generally fixing up the grammar, etc. I got briefly frustrated, then went back to another section that I knew needed some work.

I would love to connect with other people writing poetry or editing their books. How is it going? Have you written something lately that you're happy with? Something you think is terrible? Feel free to connect up in the comments.

Winner of Fairy Tale Giveaway Hop

The winner of the $15 book of their choice from The Book Depository with a fairy tale element in it is:

Siti N. 

Congratulations!!!!

I have emailed her and she has 2 days to confirm her win.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by my blog and entered the Fairy Tale Giveaway Hop.

NaPoWriMo: Day 2

Writing prompt: lies

April 2/13

You don't want to know the truth

When you ask how I am.

Not really, unless it's fine, great, fantastic.

One of the acceptable answers.

You barely stop to hear the answer, anyway.

But that's okay,

Because I don't really want to tell you.

Don't want to drag myself through the mud of my mind,

The truth of ugly thoughts and fear,

The forked tongue brain that makes me think:

I'm unworthy.

I'd rather curl up and cry.

The smile is a deception

The armour that lets me face your fleeting question.

I pretend to wear the rose coloured glasses

That everyone wears,

Though mine are really grey.

When I take them off I don't see rose,

But a kaleidoscope of colours.

How much more fun

To live a rainbow lie

Than to exist in rose or grey.

My lies are more true

Than your reality, anyway.

NaPoWriMo: Day 1

I've just found out that April is National Poetry Writing Month and have decided at the spur of the moment to sign up. Actually, I've just been thinking that I wanted to write some poetry so this is synchronicity in action.

There are lots of different events for the month, but I've chosen to join NaPoWriMo, which you can find by clicking this link here. There is a new prompt every day (which you may or may not use) and you can link up your blog, if you like.
I am determined to post every day, even if I don't like the poem I wrote. Just like NaNoWriMo, I realize I have to write some bad stuff to get to the good.
Today's prompt is to use the first line of another poem as your first line. I chose one provided: "Slowly, silently, now the moon." Something about the moon appealed to me today.
So, here goes the first one. I would love to hear from other people doing this, so feel free to link up your blog in the comments.

Poem, April 1/13

Slowly, silently, now the moon

Masks the world in luminescent dimness,

Reflecting its own silvery light

From borrowed rays.

Colours drained and features shrouded

In one, indistinct shadow.

Even the moon waxes and wanes,

Holding itself back,

Veiling ugliness, blemishes, inadequacies

No one could like.

Night is a time to pretend, hide, insulate, disguise

What is.

Shade the truth of what is behind the shadow,

The ugliness camouflaged under the sun

By the niceties of life,

   "I'm fine, and you?"

But fine is not okay,

Only another mask.

Better to howl at the moon.

Fool For Books Giveaway Hop

Happy April Everyone,

It finally feels like spring is here (at least in my neck of the woods).

Welcome to my stop on the Fool For Books Giveaway Hop, generously hosted by:

 I Am A Reader, Not A Writer.

I am a crazy fool for books - lately some of my favorite authors are: John Green, Neil Gaiman, and Richard Wagamese. I also tend to love anything with a mythological bent to it.

My giveaway is for a book of your choice of up to $15 CDN from The Book Depository.

It's international, so long as The Book Depository ships to you.

I am not responsible for books lost in the mail.

I will contact the winner by email and they will have 2 days to respond or I will pick a new winner.

So, fill out the rafflecopter below and then check out the other great blogs in the hop, listed below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Writing Wednesday: Baby Steps

Writing a novel, for me at least, is an exciting, fun, inspiring, arduous, frustrating, tedious process. There are so many emotions, but, ultimately, writing is something that feeds my soul. Be that as it may, it can be difficult to get motivated sometimes, especially when it comes to editing and rewriting.

Something that has worked remarkably is to set up writing times to hold space with another person. For about two years now, I call my friend Janet at around 9am and check in with her. I then hang up and set a timer for 20 minutes and I write or work on my book in some way. So does Janet. When the timer goes off, I call her again.

No matter what else happens that day, I've worked on my book, got my thoughts going, engaged my subconscious, done something that a writer would do. More often than not, I continue working after that 20 minutes, but the important thing is that I got started, which if often the hardest part. To be honest, this has changed recently due to various circumstances, but I still feel accountable to work at least 20 minutes a day. It has now become a habit.

This simple baby step has resulted in my novel, Antigone: The True Story, being edited enough to send to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards and making it to the quarter finals (even though I think it needs another part added now and am working on that...). It is nearly finished the editing stages and will be ready to send out into the great big world of agents and publishers soon. And it is thanks to baby steps taken consistently - or even mostly consistently.

And, as for my friend Janet, her book that she's been working on for nearly 7 years is almost done! She's just doing some final work to get it ready for her beta readers. Yeah for baby steps!

I would love to hear from other writers what works for them? How do you keep motivated and working, even when you don't feel like it?