E's blog

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge Results

2012-01-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

I am going to get right to the good stuff because I am sure that's why you're all here. When I say good stuff, I mean contest results. I received 12 answers and all of them were correct. The Academy Award winning movie is Slumdog Millionaire. The scrambled actor's name is Anil Kapoor. Because there were only 12 players the prize is still a $10 Amazon gift card, which is nothing to sneeze at.

While there were 12 correct answers there can only be one winner. "Can I have the envelope, please?" *reading* "The winner of the Academy Award edition of the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge is Nikki Greis whose blog is For The Love of Books. Congratulations, Nikki. Your $10 Amazon gift card will be sent to you this afternoon. I am glad a first time player won this time because a few of you (you know who you are) have been dominating this thing.

Stay tuned, there will be another Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge in the near future... Now I want to talk to you about something new I am going to do.

I have noticed authors, bloggers and marketers offering advice on Twitter and blogs on how to make it as a writer. I don't readily offer advice. It's not that I don't want to help other writers. I do. But the truth is all these people are offering are their opinions. A friend of mine once told me opinions are like assholes--everyone has one and most of them stink. So generally I am slow to offer an opinion unless I am asked. However, it seems to me that most of the advice offered on the net is the same advice from different people.

Anyone who knows me knows I tend to see things differently than others. It's just the way I am wired. So I have decided to start a column called The Way I See It. If you are a new writer or an author trying to make it in the digital age it may offer some new perspective you haven't thought about. If you like it, cool. Let me know and I will write more. If you don't, that's cool, too. It's not meant as the gospel according to E. It's just the way I see it.

I have real qualifications as a writer. For the last twenty plus years I have earned my living (and a very good one, I might add) as a writer. I have nothing against people who have cobbled together careers as writers but had to do many other jobs to survive. It's tough out there. I'm just saying I feel I am more qualified than most to talk about a career as a writer since writing (and producing what I've written) is my only career, and has been for a very long time. I know what it takes to do it.

Those of you subscribing to the newsletter, excuse me for writing again so soon, but I am going to send an email blast when the first column is posted later this week. The subject of this one is: Lottery Mentality. I plan to post it in the next few days. If you're not interested in this kind of thing, I apologize again, just delete the email when you see it. For those of you who choose to read the post, you may get something from it or not. It's just the way I see it. Look for it in the next few days.

Peace.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, Awards Edition

2012-01-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

It’s awards season, folks. So this week I am hosting an Academy Award edition of theHollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. Yes, the challenge is back. Think you’re up onAcademy Award winning movies? Think again. The quote below is from an AcademyAward winning film. Get it right and youcould be on your way to winning up to $100 dollar Amazon gift card. Andremember, while we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday TriviaChallenge, you don't have to enter today. You have untilSunday to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening. So you have lots of time to come up with thecorrect answer. I think you’re going toneed it ;-)

Just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner willreceive a free $10 Amazon gift card. However, there’s a chance to win more—a lot more. If I get more than 16 entries I will up theprize to a $25 Amazon gift card. If Iget more than 30 entries I will up the prize to a $50 dollar Amazon giftcard. And if I get 40 entries I willgive away a $100 Amazon gift card. Themore entries the more you can win, so tell your friends, co-workers, family, even tell your enemies. Heck, there’s a hundred dollars on the linehere. The more people who play, the more you can win. On Monday I will draw awinner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Areyou ready for the challenge?

The quote below is from a film that won eight academy awardsincluding Best Picture and Best director. Here it is: In what Academy Award winning film did a character say: "I never forgot.Not for one day. I knew I’d find you in the end. It’s our destiny.”

Name the movie the above quote is from, and then unscramble the actor’sname (below center) who appeared in the film. You must do both to win.

Lian Rokpoa

As a reminder, there are a few things you will need to do to qualify. Youneed to do #1 or #2, plus the three other things listed below:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog, or

2) ...follow me at http://evanlowe.com/

3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my postsanytime during the week of the current challenge. DO NOT put your answer in thecomments, instead…

4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com

5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or ina tweet the week of the current challenge.

Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win.

Remember, you must do four things to qualify to win.

Peace.

My New Year's Revolution

2012-01-19T10:25:00.000-08:00

I’ve never been one for New Year’s resolutions. I used to make resolutions back when I was inhigh school and I didn’t understand what it takes to reach your goals. Back then, every January I’d say somethinglike “I’m gonna lose some weight.” And “I’mgonna pay more attention in school.” Thenmidway through March when I was barreling toward an “F” in French and my lovehandles were spilling over the sides of my pants, I’d realize I hadn’t stuck tomy resolutions. Okay, maybe I didn’t have love handles, but you know what Imean. Most people don’t stick to theirresolutions, and so me not sticking to mine made me normal. I liked being normal.

At some point in my life I went from resolutions toplans. My plans don’t begin in Januaryand end in December. Some plans takeyears to accomplish. I had a great year last year. It didn’t go entirely as planned, but it wasfun and I learned a lot. So today Ithought I’d look back with you a bit, but more importantly, I wanted to sharemy plans for what’s ahead.

In September my first independent novel, Boyfriend From Hell waspublished by White Whisker Books. I amso fortunate to have my friend Chris Meeks and his new book venture in mylife. Self-publishing isn’t foreveryone. I am certain I am one of thosepeople it is not for. With an indiepublisher I get most of the benefits of self-publishing and NONE of theheadache. If you are an author who islike me, there are lots of new indie publishers springing up all over theplace. Find one run by people like Chriswith a background in publishing, and leave the headaches to them.

Boyfriend From Hell got off to a great start in September, butafter the Kindle Nation Daily feature on October 8^th sales slowed. Rather than cry in our beer, Chris and Idecided to change the book cover for BFFH and its sequel, Earth Angel (that was dueout in December), to a more adult cover with a romantic theme. The new covers were created by AdaraRosalie. I then went to my pal RoxanneRhoads and her Bewitching Books Toursand asked her to host a blog tour for me that featured both books. She came up with an awesome theme that startedmy tour on Cyber Monday (the Monday after Thanksgiving). By December 31^st both BoyfriendFrom Hell and Earth Angel were soaring in sales.

As some of you know (I’ve tweeted about it ad infinitum), after my January 6^thfeature on Pixel Of Ink, Boyfriend From Hell spent nineconsecutive days on the Amazon Kindle top 100 Best Sellers list (for Girls& Women). Earth Angel made thelist as well, but only for a very short period of time.

Before I tell you what’s ahead, I want to begin by thankingmy friends and fans—frans—for their support the past year. I couldn’t have done it without you. I’m not just thanking you for yoursales. I know all of you aren’t buyingmy books. That’s all right. If you’ve left a comment on my blog orGoodreads page, or if you participated in the Hollyweird Tuesday TriviaChallenge or some other contest, I thank you.

A few of you have lamented that Heaven Sent, the thirdbook in the Falling Angels Saga, won’t be out until December. Sorry. I want you to know I have begun working on it, and it is going to be thebest FallingAngels Saga book so far. Seriously. That’s why I am taking my time. I want it to be awesome.

As I was outlining Heaven Sent, I realized I needed onemore book to conclude the series. Thatbook (currently entitled Falling) will tentatively be out latespring 2013. See, you won’t have to waitan entire year for that one. If you don’t see me on the blog or Twitter orholding fewer contests in 2012, please know I will be hunkered down writing. I’ve got a lot of writing to do.

Something else I am excited about this year is the firstbook in my Hollyweird series. Isold this project to a publisher last year and it stalled. That’s because it was sold to a new Indiepublisher who wound up going out of business. The principal, however (a woman with tons of big time publishingexperience), asked several of the authors to hang in there with her as shesearched for new financing. Her deal isdone; the new pub house is open. I willtell you more about it when I can, but editing on Hollyweird should begin inthe next few weeks. That book will beout this year as well. I will post about my journey to publication right hereon a regular basis.

I am also keeping my hand in television and film. I just completed the first draft of aromantic comedy that I was hired by a foreign production company to write. Bothmy first YA novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie and the Sal Conte (myalter ego) horror short story, The Toothache Man are currently indevelopment for feature films. I mayalso announce a TV project some-time this year.

My larger plan is to create entertainment (Books and shortstories) that can become movies, TV shows, graphic novels and/or videogames. That’s a big plan. I’m not Disney or Dreamworks. I’m just a guy with a dream, but I do have over 20 years’experience in Hollywood. That shouldhelp. But I know it will take more than a New Year’s Resolution to carry out aplan like mine. It will take arevolution.

So that’s my year ahead—busy, busy, busy. I welcome you all along for the ride. You can always leave words of encouragement onmy blog, or if you have a question about me, or writing, or anything at all pleasewrite to me at info@evanlowe.com. I am still available for book club dates andschool visits. And I travel on my own dime, so getting methere cost you nothing. I do this because the best way to make you my fan forlife is for you to meet me personally. I’mreally quite lovable. Invite meout. You’ll see. If you are interested in having me attendyour book club or event send me an email.

When I was a kid I wanted to be a writer because writinglooked like fun. I didn’t realize howmuch hard work was involved, but I’ve got to tell you, I was right about thefun part. Have a great year.

Peace.

Twitter Party Cancelled

2012-01-12T17:44:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, after all the hoopla I made, I am afraid I am going to have to cancel my Twitter Party scheduled for tomorrow, Friday January 13th. Please know that it couldn't be avoided. Thanks for your support. I will let you know when I have a new date.

Peace.

Twitter Party Yo!

2012-01-08T12:33:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, I’m having a Twitter Party. It’s the perfect time for me to celebrate. Boyfriend From Hell dipped its toeinto the Kindle top sellers last Friday, peaking at #533 in overall sales, and was in thetop 100 sellers in three categories. That’s an amazing accomplishment for me... So it’s time to party.

If you’ve ever had a question you’d like to ask me aboutwriting, about my career in TV, about the Falling Angels Saga , or if you’veever wanted to sit and chat with your old pal E, please join me on FridayJanuary 13^th at 7pm EST (that’s 4pm in the west) for a tweetup. It’s on Friday evening so pouryourself a glass of wine or a shot of tequila (my favorite libations) stop byand let’s have some fun. I willdefinitely be sipping on something, so when my writing becomes more and morelike gobbledygook you’ll know why ;-) The party will last about an hour, if you guys can hang with me that long.

This is my first Twitter party ever, so please help me makeit a success. Here’s how it will workand what you need to know to participate. The party is being hosted by my pal, @RoxanneRhoads at Bewitching Book Tours. My Twitter handle is @evanlowe. Here’s the easiest way to follow along: Log onto your Twitter account some time before the 13th, then type #evanlowe into the search column at the top of the page. When my results come up you will see a buttonjust above my handle that says “save this search.” Click that button and#evanlowe will be saved in your searches. When the party begins on Friday the 13^th,click on the saved #evanlowe search and you will be able to follow along. Whenyou want to say something to me, add #evanlowe (or @evanlowe) to your tweet, and I will see itand reply. It’s that simple… or thathard. If this isn’t clear enough, leavea message in the comments and I will walk you through it. If you plan to attend I’d also like to know,so please leave a comment. I need toknow how much wine and tequila to buy. Don’t want to run out ;-)

Help me celebrate my recent success. Stop by and chat Friday January 13^th at 7pm EST (4pm PST).

PEACE.

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T15:52:00.000-08:00

I want to thank everyone for hanging with me in 2011. Writing can be a very lonely profession. It's so gratifying when you guys stop by to participate in a contest, or leave a comment on my blog, or a review on Amazon or Goodreads. It let's me know I'm not writing in a vacuum, and that somebody is out there. So please, keep stopping by from time to time.

Speaking of reviews, Boyfriend From Hell continues to garner excellent reviews. The Earth Angel reviews have just begun. There are currently seventeen reviews on Goodreads. 11 of them are 4 and 5 star reviews. There are six reviews on Amazon--three 5 star reviews, 1 four star and 2 three star reviews. I am so pleased so many of you are enjoying the books. Those of you who haven't read them yet, I hope you give them a try.

I have lots of exciting things coming in 2012. I have a Twitter party scheduled for January 13th. There will be an all new Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, as well as some cool events and a new book. I will have more details on the Twitter party in the coming week. If you've ever wanted to chat with me or ask a question, the Twitter Party is the perfect opportunity.

Now it's time for me to start getting ready for my own New Year's Eve festivities. Please have a safe New Year's Eve and I wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. And please remember to take some time to help those who are less fortunate. You may think you're in bad shape, but I'm telling you there are people out there in worse shape than you. Please lend a hand. We live in a wonderful country, but imagine how wonderful it would be if we all took the time to help one another.

Peace.

Holly Zombie Christmas Winner

2011-12-20T06:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays everyone. I know you're all here to find out who won all the cool swag in the Holly Zombie Christmas Giveaway. I won't keep you waiting too long, but before I announce I want you all to know what a blast I had hosting the contest. I love having contests. Speaking of hosts, I want to thank the five bloggers who co-hosted the contest with me. I also want to thank Janiera, who liked the contest so much she co-hosted on her own. Thanks, Janiera, that was awesome of you.

And now for the winner. The winner of the Holly Zombie Christmas Giveaway is Ta-Taaaaaa! Jeanette Jackson. Hey Jeanette, congratulations! Send me your mailing info. I will pop the swag bag into the mail. Sorry you won't have it for Christmas, but some time during the holidays, you will be knee deep in zombie paraphernalia. The blogger who sent the most fans my way is Stephanie at Beauty Brite. Thanks Stephanie for enrolling so many contestants into the giveaway. A mini-swag bag will be going out to you as well.

If you like contests please stay tuned, I will be hosting another Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge very soon. Guess the movie and win a free Amazon gift card. It's that easy. And if you like good books, hopefully you will check out mine. If you're not into my genre, why not give Boyfriend From Hell or Never Slow Dance With A Zombie as a gift. I'm an author, people. If I don't sell these books I will have to go back to work in the salt mine. You don't want that, and neither do I. So please, please support me as an author. If you're into horror, check out my alter ego Sal Conte, the author of the original Child's Play. His ebooks are available on my site along with my own: http://evanlowe.com/

I hope everyone will hang around long enough to read my interview with cover artist Adara Rosalie. If you can't stay now, please come back and read it. She's a terrific artist and an awesome person. I know she'd love it if you left a comment.

Please be careful out there during the holidays. I want to see you all back here real soon.

MERRY CHRISTMAS. PEACE ON EARTH.

*Correction. Earlier I mistakenly posted it was Michelle at Beauty Brite who was the winning blogger. I have corrected the error. I apologize, Stephanie.
E

Interview With Earth Angel Cover Designer, Adara Rosalie

2011-12-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Since I've had the Falling Angles Saga covers redesigned, so many people have asked me "who does your book covers? They're gorgeous!" Today I am unveiling my secret weapon. I'd like everyone to meet the woman who created and designed the covers for Boyfriend From Hell and Earth Angel, my new friend Jayde, also known as Adara Rosalie. First a brief bio.

Knownas Adara Rosalie, Jayde, is a self-taught digital artist living in the SydneyRegion of New South Wales, Australia. Her works bring forth the beauty in the dark, strange andGothic. Her images are beautifully rendered, with a blend of photo manipulationand digital painting, showing a natural talent for creating new and fantasticvisual artworks that are original in concept.

Fast becoming sought after for her particularstyle, Adara has been commissioned for the design of a number of CD covers, promotionaldisplays, and book covers.
She has also been featured in magazines such asAdvanced Photoshop (Issue 81), won a number of awards on artist communitywebsites (thanks to all her supporters, whom bolster and strengthen her and herart with their wonderful comments) and a variety of other wonderful things thatare to be confirmed in the near future (including publication in a digital bookby Quarto Publishing Ltd.).

Jayde currently lives at home with her family and her puppy-dog, Constantine, but has recently made another big change in her life by purchasing her first home with her partner, Michael.

1)     HiJayde. Thanks for stopping by. I noticedwhen I first saw your work that you have an eye for making things pretty usingPhotoshop. Where does this gift comefrom?
            I am an only child so developed a vivid imagination at an early age thatdeveloped in later years into a passion for visual arts. It was not until Ienrolled into a visual arts diploma at TAFE (tertiary educational institution)that I was introduced to Photoshop in one of the core units. I was instantlycaptivated with the program (if a little over whelmed at first by all the toolsand features) and branched out in my spare time in researching tutorials andpracticing with it until I understood all aspects of the program. If I wasunsure how to create an effect I took the initiative to contact other artiststo ask their advice, or if available, discuss techniques with my teachers.
            Everyartist develops their own individual artist practice and finds inspiration in avariety of ways (music, TV, movies, life experiences, appropriation ofconcepts, history, mythology, culture or subculture). I find my inspiration from my love of Gothicsubcultures, mythology, fables and life experiences.
            I was not always as proficient with Photoshop. My first works are devoidof finesse and were very raw. I did not have the knowledge to create specialeffects or produce professional quality images. It is only with hours and hoursof practice that I was able to create high quality images that were visualrepresentations of my imagination.

     Tellus a little about yourself?
            I have been subject to High School Bullying because I came from a lowincome household and saw things differently from others. In year 12 , I foundthe body of my Uncle who had committed suicide. In spite of this trauma Icontinued on to complete year 12 and receive my High School Certificate. It wasthrough the support and care of my teachers and family that helped me tosucceed.
I had to put off enrolling into university, and hadto enter the work force to be able to pay household living costs. I waited 5years before my family was financially stable, I took a leap of faith and quitmy job, and enrolled into a diploma of visual arts course that ran for 2 years.It was in those two years at Tafe, working and developing my skills, that Idiscovered that working in an office as a paper pusher was not a career thatmakes me happy. In my last year of Tafe, I applied to the Australian CatholicUniversity to enroll into a Bachelor of Teaching/ Bachelor of Visual Arts, andto my utter delight was accepted. I was a mature aged student. My educationcomes first. It is the basis for a career that I love and a solid income.
In the meantime it I have been working with digitalart, and following my personal dreams of becoming a well-known artist and bookcover designer. It has taken me 5 years to build my artist portfolio,reputation and network. I am continually reaching new heights and have neverbeen happier with my life and choices.
TheFalling Angels Saga covers are really gorgeous. How hard was it to come with the design? How hard was it working with E? (Be honest)
                Thank you! I was truly honored and blessed to beable to work with E. (and not only because I grew up with the Cosby Show)!Working on any commission for a client has its ups and downs, it is the mostdifficult thing to be able to take what another individual envisions and try tocreate a visual image. I have worked with a variety of clientele and found thatE. was one of the most pleasurable and easiest clients to work with.
            E.provided me with an outline, or suggestion, on the type of images that heenvisioned and gave me creative license to work within my own imaginative andartistic capabilities. This provided me with the freedom to work WITH E.on creating the perfect cover.
6)     What’s your favorite project you everworked on? Why?
            I don’t really have a favorite project, but if I had to choose, I wouldsay working with E. on his book covers. I love being able to develop freely,creating new works of art that reach out and capture the imagination of people.I think that the act of creating, in itself, is a wonderful gift and I loveevery moment that I have creating.

7)     Whatare your guilty pleasures in life?
                Hmmnnn, guilty pleasures... I love pepperoni pizza!I know that it is not healthy, but so yummy! And I am a HUGE fan of Family Guy.
8)     Wherecan fans find you on the web?
            My works of art can be found in a variety of places. I have many artistportfolios, and am a member of a few sites where prints, posters and iPhonecases can be purchased of my work.
Redbubble:http://www.redbubble.com/people/jayderosalie
DeviantArt: http://jayderosalie.deviantart.com/
AdvancedPhotoshop UK: http://www.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/user/adararosalie
TheUntapped Source: http://www.theuntappedsource.com/artist_detail.php?category=344
ArtFlakes: http://www.artflakes.com/en/shop/adararosalie
Flickr:http://www.flickr.com/photos/adararosalie/
Shadowness: http://shadowness.com/Jayde
Thanks for stopping by, Jayde. For those of you who didn't get enough, we'll be hearing from Jayde again some time early next year. Please stop by some of Jayde's sites, check out her work, and maybe even purchase something.
Peace and Happy Holidays.

Have A Holly Zombie Christmas

2011-12-09T07:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays Everyone. T’is the season to be zombie. To kick it off I am sponsoring a Holly ZombieGiveaway. I am giving away a swag bagfilled with goodies any serious zombie aficionado is going to want to own. The contest starts today, December 9^thand ends next Friday, December 16^th. There are six additional bloggers co-hosting the extravaganza. They are:

http://shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com/

http://maryanndeborde.blogspot.com/

http://booksfromthepurplejellybeanchair.blogspot.com/

http://www.beautybrite.com/

http://vvb32reads.blogspot.com/

http://mardel-rabidreader.blogspot.com/

There is only one prize, but it's easy to win. Just sign up for my newsletter at http://evanlowe.com/ For more details view the post below this one and watch the video. On the 17th I will place all the entries into a fishbowl and draw the winner. The six bloggers have a chance to win as well. The one who signs up the most contestants will win a special prize. If you'd like to help a blogger win, leave a comment on my blog letting me know they sent you. I will post the winning blogger along with the winning contestant on the 19^th.

I promise you this is an awesome gift bag. You are not going to want to miss out on it. So scroll down and check it out.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good bite!

Holly Zombie Giveaway--Call For Host Bloggers

2011-12-05T18:45:00.000-08:00

Holly Zombie Giveaway

December 9th thru the 16th

I am celebrating this holiday season in Zombie Style with my first ever Holly Zombie Giveaway. I am giving away a Swag Bag full of zombirific goodies any serious zombie fan will love. To see a presentation of the awesome goodies just click on the video link:

The goodies include:

My Uncle Enoch's 1964 Zombie High, High School Year Book: This is an authentic yearbook with blood spattered pages filled with photos of the graduating class, the faculty, and of course all the teams--including the track team who had the distinction of not completing one meet the entire season. If you have any friends or family members who attended Zombie High, this is for you.

That's Not Your Mommy Anymore: Matt Mogk's illustrated children's book is a favorite at bedtime in my house because it explains to the little ones--in colored illustrations and verse--what to do when mommy starts acting strange.

Zombie Water or Juice Bottle: You can work up a tremendous thirst battling zombies. This zombie green water bottle is perfect for the zombie fighter who wants to quench his thirst and look the part while doing it.

Autographed copy of Never Slow Dance With A Zombie--this special editionautographed copy comes with a hand written Christmas greeting from the author.Any true zombie lover will want to add this to their collection of zombieparaphernalia.

Three Never Slow Dance With AZombie Bookmarks-- Why three? Because when you're reading while fighting zombiesit's easy to lose your place. Duh!

Zombie Love Button-- If you can't beat em join em.Sport this zombie pin while roaming among the zombie hordes to let them knowyou're not looking for a fight and would love to hang onto your braiins.

Zombie Love men's large TeeShirt--Azombie attack can come at any time--even while you're sleeping. Wear this teeshirt to bed so if you are ever dragged from your sleep by a band of maraudingzombies, they will know you are a lover not a fighter.

Never Slow Dance With A Zombie Tote—Tired ofcarrying around all your zombie fighting gear in your hands? This stylish toteis perfect for carrying around all your gear and at the same time lettingeveryone know that you wouldNever Slow Dance With A Zombie.

This giveaway is available internationally

The rules to enter are simple:

Everyone can have up to five entries. here's how.

you must sign up for my newsletter at http://evanlowe.com/ The sign up link is in the left hand column on the home page.

bonus entry if you also sing up for my blog (1 entry)

bonus II follow me on twitter (1 entry)

bonus III Like my Facebook Fan Page (1 entry)

bonus iV leave a comment on my blog telling me on whose blog you discovered the contest. (1 entry)

For those of my fans who have already done these, leave a comment on my blog and you will automatically have 5 entries.

NO ENTRIES ACCEPTED BEFORE DECEMBER 9TH

***Bloggers who'd like to co-host this contest don't leave a comment here. Email me at info@evanlowe.com. There's also a prize for the blogger who recruits the most entries.

I will accept blogger entries up until the 8th of December***

Boyfriend From Hell/ Earth Angel Blog Tour

2011-11-30T08:41:00.001-08:00

The Boyfriend From Hell/Earth Angel Blog Tour is under way with stops throughout the month of December. I want to thank Roxanne for putting together another awesome tour. There are so many stops. Please drop in on a few of the stops listed below. Some will feature a chance to win Earth Angel:

11/30 Review @Sapphyria's Book Reviews

11/30 Guest Blog @ Obsession With Books

12/1 Guest Blog & Review (both books) @ SupaGurl Books

12/2 Interview @ Tribute Books Reviews & Giveaways

12/4 Review (Earth Angel) @ Sapphyria's Book Reviews

12/6 Interview @ Work A Day Reads

12/7 Guest Blog @ Manga Maniac Cafe

12/8 Interview @ Basia's Bookshelf

12/9 Guest Post/Earth Angel Review @ My Neurotic Book Affair

12/10 Guest Blog @ The Fairytale Nerd

12/11 Guest Blog & Review of both books @ Book Lover's Paradise

12/13 Guest Post & Review of both books @ Cocktails And Books

12/14 Earth Angel Review @ Freda's Voice

12/15 Interview @ Lisa's Book World

12/16 Review & Guest Post @ Books R Us

12/18 Interview & Review (both books) @ A Cupcake And Latte: YA Reviews

12/18 Interview @ Jeanz Book Read N Review

12/19 Guest Post & Review @ Book Lover's Hideaway

12/19 Promo Review of both books @ Book Whispers

12/20 Review of both books @ Michelle's Book Blog & Michelle's Cozy YA Blog

12/21 Guest Blog @ Mother/Gamer/Writer

12/22 Character Interview & Review @ A Bookalicious Story

12/23 Review of both books @ Hippies, Beauty And Books Oh My!

12'24 Review & Excerpts of both books @ Book Briefs

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

12/27 Guest blog & Review @ I Just Wanna Sity Here And Read

12/28 Interview & Review of both books @ The Wormhole

12/28 Review & Promo @Curling Up By The Fire

12/30 Guest Blog & Rwview both books @ Simplistic

12/30 Earth Angel review @ That Bookish Girl

Review some time inJanuary @ Between The Prose

Happy Thanksgiving & Cyber Monday Giveaway

2011-11-24T10:52:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I am thankful for my family, friends, and all the wonderful frans I email and tweet with nearly every day. You guys are sooo awesome! I hope everyone has a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

Tomorrow is Black Friday the beginning of the holiday shopping season--a day where millions of you (not me, nuh-uh!) will venture out to stores and malls looking for super bargains. Well, it just so happens I know of a super bargain, and it's free. That's right FREE. The only catch is you'll have to wait until Cyber Monday (November 28th) to get in on it. Without further ado (what the hell does "ado" mean?) I bring you....

Bewitching Book Tours is hosting the Boyfriend From Hell/Earth Angel Cyber Monday Giveaway Blitz. This awesome swag bag features lots of goodies, like the Bath and Body Works Candy Apple Gift Set.

In a addition to the gift set there's a fuzzy black winter hat, perfect for keeping your head stylish and warm throughout the winter; there's also fuzzy black and purple striped winter gloves. There's too much great swag to mention. Roxanne over at Bewitching Books Tours put together an incredible giveaway. Topping off this great giveaway will be autographed copies of both Boyfriend From Hell and Earth Angel.

To find out how you can qualify for the Cyber Monday Giveaway Blitz just click on the link. If you miss out on the giveaway there will be more chances to win both books in the Falling Angels Saga when I start my new blog tour. I will post it here some time next week. In the mean time, enjoy your turkey, don't eat too much pumpkin pie, remember to give thanks, and have a happy and safe day. I love you all. Peace.

Boyfriend From Hell-Earth Angel Trailer

2011-11-22T21:46:00.001-08:00

Here it is, people. I finally had a trailer made for Boyfriend From Hell and Earth Angel. I am so excited for you to see it. I hope you enjoy it.

New Boyfriend From Hell Cover

2011-11-14T16:06:00.001-08:00

Earth Angel Unveiled

2011-11-09T21:34:00.000-08:00

Here it is, folks, the cover to my newest novel-- Earth Angel. Isn't it GORGEOUS?

I decided to do a redesign of the Falling Angels Saga covers. I wanted the series covers to better reflect the attitude of my series and my readers--more adult and more romantic. The redesigned Boyfriend From Hell cover is just as beautiful as this one. Can't wait to show it to you. That will happen next week.

I am very proud of this new cover. Please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Earth Angel comes out mid-December, about a month from now. I'm bubbling over with excitement to share my new book with you. Those of you who emailed me that you couldn't wait for Earth Angel to come out won't be disappointed.

There's a new hot series in town. The Falling Angels Saga. Peace.

Halloween Trivia Challenge Winner

2011-11-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Hope Everyone had a happy and safe Halloween. I did.

We had a nice turnout for the Halloween challenge. Everyone who entered got it right. But there can only be one winner. The correct answer was: The Twilight Zone (The Movie). The unjumbled actor was Dan Aykroyd. This week's winner is Nikki at Close Encounters With The Night Kind. Nikki's prize is an autographed copy of my debut novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie--the perfect Halloween prize. Our next challenge won't be until the Christmas season, so bone up on your Christmas movies folks.

My next personal appearance will be this coming Saturday in Camarillo California at the Ventura County Book & Author Fair. The fair is from 10am to 4pm. There will be seminars, author readings and books for sale. I will be participating in the seminar “Comedy Writing Mastering The Hardest Craft.” Some of you may not know this, but before I wrote YA paranormal with a humorous twist, I wrote TV sitcoms—Even Stevens, The Cosby Show and others. My panel is at 10am, among the first sessions of the day. Want to learn more about adding some genuine humor to your stories? This is the seminar for you. The fair will be held in the Pleasant Valley Community Park Auditorium.

I will also be in a booth some time later in the day, autographing books and bookmarks. If you're in the area, please stop by and say hi. I have some special swag for bona fide fans. For more info on the Ventura County Book & Author Fair visit their website http://www.vcbookandauthorfair.com/

For those of you who can't make it, and would like to know more about adding humor to your writing, I did a guest post a few days ago at SIMPLE CLOCKWORK. My friend, Nancy Cudis has an excellent new blog. It won't be long before she's among the top book bloggers. Please stop by and read my post on humor, and while you're there, leave a comment. It'll make me look good :-) Come on! It's three minutes out of your life. SIMPLE CLOCKWORK. Thanks.

My alter ego, Sal Conte's first new work in more than 20 years came out a week before Halloween. The Toothache Man is a surprising new ebook short story available for just ninety-nine cents for kindle and nook only. And check it out, Sal just got an offer to turn his thrilling new short into a major motion picture. Maybe it will be out next year, in time for Halloween 2012. Anyway, you know the movie is not going to do the original story justice. You can get the original here: THE TOOTHACHE MAN. More on Sal's offer in a future post. I think I've given you enough info for now. Besides, I've gotta go polish off some candy corn.

Peace.

A Scary Good Challenge

2011-10-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

This week in honor of the scary weekend ahead, we're going to have the Halloween edition of the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. It's a little of the old format and a little of the new.

And remember, while we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening. So everyone has plenty of time to come up with the correct answer. But just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive an autographed copy of my hit novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie. You say you already have the comic horror novel? The holidays are coming. It could make a lovely gift. On Monday I will draw a winner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Are you ready for the challenge?

In a creepy old film, somebody said this: “You wanna see something really scary?”
Name the movie, and unscramble the actor's name who appeared in the movie"

ADKYDYROAN

As a reminder, there are a few things you will need to do to qualify. You need to do #1 or #2, plus the three other things listed below:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog, or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge. DO NOT put your answer in the comments, instead…
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.
Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win.

Remember, you must do four things to qualify to win.

Peace.

Springsteen, Me and My Ebook Adventure

2011-10-20T20:30:00.000-07:00

Back In June I did a post entitled “Springsteen And Me:Taking Control of Your Writing Career.” It was about my leap into the world ofindependent publishing and why I made the leap from Big 6 traditional publishingin the first place. Now that my firstindie novel, Boyfriend From Hell, is out, I am reprising the post along with the freshperspective of a newly published indie author at the end. Check it out:

For those of you thinking this is a post about Bruce Springsteen and me, letme say right here that it is not. I do not know Bruce Springsteen. Of course Iknow who he is, but until quite recently I was not a fan. So, if you’reinterested in Springsteen’s music stop reading now. This post is about howBruce Springsteen inspired me to take control of my career, and how those of uswho are creative can learn from what he did.

In October of 2010 I was having a beer with my publisher. But he wasn’t my publisherat the time. He was my friend. I didn’t even realize Christopher Meekswas a publisher until that October conversation.

During that conversation, Chris mentioned an HBO documentary he’d seen aboutBruce Springsteen. It seems after the success of their first album, Springsteenrealized he was under the control of his (then) manager. As is typical (Iguess) in the music business, the contract Springsteen signed gave his managertotal creative control forever. That didn’t sit well with Bruce. In fact, hegambled his future on ending that contract. Springsteen decided he could neverrecord again under those conditions.

Bruce, along with the members of the E Street Band ,were young and hungry—but not hungry enough to give away creative control. He’d rather go back to obscurity than turn his ideas over to a gatekeeper. He was an artist. An artist needs to control his art. He didn’t record for three years.

They could have caved to the pressure and made a living, but he stuck to his guns, not recording for THREE WHOLE YEARS. The special is about those years and the first album they recorded after he waited out his manager. Springsteen called the album “a meditation on where are you going to stand.”

The documentary changed me. The Promise: The Making of Darkness On The Edge of Town is acclaimed for how Springsteen created the music. I love it for the message it sends to those of us struggling out here in the creative community.

Soon after I saw it, I decided to leave Big 6 publishing behind and asked Chris and his White Whisker Books to be the publisher for Boyfriend From Hell, along with the other novels in the saga. Why? My first novel , Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, (Tor/Teen) sold very well, but as an artist I wanted more control over what went into my books.

So that’s my story. Boyfriend FromHell came out on September 1^st . So far I have loved joining theranks of indie authors. I’ve made lotsof new blogger and indie author friends. It’s a wonderfully supportivecommunity.

Boyfriend From Hell is a paranormal romance with a comedic twist. In style, it’s closer to H.P. Mallory thanAmanda Hocking, but readers of both will enjoy the book. It’s gotten rave reviews.

While you’re here,I’d like you to take a chance and download it for just $2.99. I promise it isn’t one of those poorlywritten self-published books riddled with mistakes. I guarantee it will not letyou down. Did I mention it’s already received 22 four and five star reviews onGOODREADS?

Give it a try.

Here is the link for both Amazon and Barnes & Noble: PURCHASE. If you don’t have a kindle or nook, don’t letthat stop you. The kindle app is free. You can download the book along with the free app.

Do it now, before your busy lives get in the way. Help me realize my creative dream and read a fun,romantic paranormal adventure at the same time. And while you're at it, consider where are YOU going to stand.

Thanks,

e

The Toothache Man Cometh

2011-10-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

In a few days Sal Conte's The Toothache Man will be available for ereaders: Kindle, Nook and ipad. Just in time for Halloween. I want to thank my friends at White Whisker Books for helping me get the Sal Conte titles out there. I don't have the patience or the technical where-with-all to self publish. But White Whisker was so happy with Boyfriend From Hell, Earth Angel, and our relationship in general, that they agreed to help get the work out there--and not for their normal splits, either. I must say my royalty split with White Whisker is quite generous, but the deal they made with Sal Conte is even better. He must have made them an offer they couldn't refuse. hehe.

I am really proud of the story. Fans of horror thrillers will find it fun and surprising. Wanna know more? Check out the blurb below:

There is no pain like toothachepain

Jim Roberts is a victim of today's economy. Whilehe's lucky enough to have a job, his job has been keeping him temp for twoyears to avoid paying medical benefits. When Jim gets a terrible toothache, afriend tells him about The Toothache Man, an unlicensed dentist where peoplelike Jim can have their dental problems solved for a song. Unfortunately, TheToothache Man turns out to be a lot more than Jim bargained for—with an oldfashioned dentist’s chair, and a penchant for pain. Jim is about to discover a toothache is theleast of his problems.

The Toothache Man clocks in at just over 5300 words. Long enough for you to read in one hair-raising sitting. The price is only 99c. Pretty damned inexpensive for a Sal Conte original, if I do say so myself.

By the way, Sal Conte has his own Twitter account now, where he's constantly carping about me. You can follow him here: http://twitter.co/SalConte1

Peace.

Boyfriend From Hell Weekend Sale

2011-10-07T16:24:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, I have some really exciting news! In honor of Boyfriend From Hell being chosen ebook of the day in this coming Saturday’s Kindle Nation Daily, my publisher (White Whisker Books) has dropped the price to JUST 99 cents.

Yes, NINETY-NINE CENTS!

This super low price is effective immediately, but it’s for the weekend only. If you want to read Boyfriend From Hell as an ebook, now is the time to get it. It will go back up to its regular price on Monday.

You’ve seen all the great reviews the book has been getting on Goodreads: REVIEWS. Now see what all the excitement is about for yourself for just 99 cents. Less than a dollar. A good book for the price of a candy bar.Yowzah!

This is a special deal. Please take advantage of it. Thank you, Steve, at Kindle Nation Daily for featuring my new book. And thank you, Chris, for lowering the price. I really appreciate what both of you have done. I’m sure the readers will appreciate it as well.

To purchase Boyfriend From Hell for 99 cents go to AMAZON or BARNES & NOBLE.

Peace

A Few Words From Sal Conte

2011-10-05T13:44:00.000-07:00

Well, well, well….

How is everybody? I’m new to blogging, so bear with me. I am about to tell you a horrible truth about a man some of you havecome to love, the owner of this blog—E. Van Lowe. As some of you may know, my career startedlong before E’s did. I published the horrornovel Child’s Play back in 1984. I followed it with The Power a few years later. My books were selling well. E seemed really happy for me.

Then one day he comes into our apartment and tells mehe just landed the dream job, the start of a dream career. He landed a writing gig at Universaltelevision. He was going to be writingTV shows. I knew E had been trying toget into TV for some time. I was happyfor him. I was so happy that I said“Let’s go out and celebrate.”

It was late afternoon when we took that long driveout the Pacific Coast Highway. Thesetting sun glistening off the ocean was so beautiful. E pulled the car alongside a deserted stretchof road and said “Let’s take a walk on the beach.” I should have known there was somethingamiss. E is not is not a big fan of theocean. But I figured it was acelebration. He just wanted to stand onthe beach, enjoy the sunset and bask in his glory. Didn’t realize he meant it to be my sunset.

We took our shoes off and walked out to the water’sedge. The surf nibbled at my toes. It was a moment of triumph. I was a successful author of gruesome horror,and my pal had finally gotten his break in TV. That’s when E said: “It ends here, Sal.”

“You mean the days of eating top ramen for dinnerevery night?” I asked smiling.

“Yes. But more than just that. It all ends here. YOU end here.”

I was flabbergasted, at a loss for words. I was E’s alter ego, the one with the cajonesto get him this far. He could not havehung in there long enough to land that TV gig without me at his side.

“I’m leaving you here, Sal,” he said. “We had a good run together, but I’m startinga new life, and there’s no room for horror in that life. I’m a comedy writernow. See ya.”

I watched as E turned around and headed back to thecar, leaving me standing there, my toes in the soup. That was 25 years ago. E went on to have a very exciting careerwriting TV and film. Then six months agoa knock came at his door. “Hi, E, how’veyou been?” This time it was him who wasflabbergasted. "That was a long damn walk," I said entering his palatial estate.

I will spare you the gory details of the bigfight. All you need to know is, I won. Despitewhat E has been telling everyone, Sal Conte is not dead--far from it. In fact (thanks to some arm-twisting), I’m back with my very own page onE’s website, and some brand new horror to shock your heart and scare thebejesus out of you.

First off, I am rereleasing (in ebook form only) my1980s horror classic Child’s Play. Not the lame-ass Chucky movie, but theoriginal Child’s Play. I am alsoreleasing (ebook only again—sorry) a brand new short story, TheToothache Man, both in time for Halloween. Check out the playful yet gruesome cover Ichose for the short.

Neato, right? The price is right, too. So if you like good horror you need to checkme out. E is hoping that you won’t, thatyou’ll leave me to die the slow death he had planned for me. But I know that everyone has a dark side, andwhat better way to serve that dark side than by reading a gruesome horrorstory. Right? Prove E wrong. Don’t leave me here to die… again.

E: I guess here is where I am supposed to thank my guest... which is hard to do since he pretty much told you I left him for dead. Anyways, that's my horror writing alter ego, Sal Conte. You'll be hearing more from him as we get closer to Halloween. In the mean time, if you'd like to find out more about Sal and his upcomingreleases go here: SAL CONTE'S PAGE. You can also follow him on Twitter @SalConte1

Peace.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge Winner

2011-10-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

I finally stumped you guys.
Most of you, that is...

I had near record traffic at E's blog last week, but very few of you submitted to the challenge. There were three submissions--three of you got it right. But there can only be one winner of the free Amazon gift card. I'd like to give a round of *applause* to the three of you who got it right. The name drawn as the winner, however, was Lisa aka Lasergirl. I could be wrong, but I believe this is the third time Lisa has won the challenge. You now hold the record, girl. Congratulations. Your $10 Amazon gift card will be going out shortly.

And now, what was that darned movie that had you all so stumped? The correct, unjumbled answers are:

Pieces Of April

Thanksgiving

Sean Hayes

The runners up were Dottie at Tink's Place and Ammy Belle at The Crooked Book Shelf. Yes, Ammy, Canadians qualify.

Those of you who were stumped, I promise the next Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge will be a bit easier. Hint: brush-up on your horror film knowledge, folks. The next challenge will be a Halloween challenge.

I'd also like to thank those of you who came out to the OC Children's Book Fest this past Sunday. It was a beautiful day, and I made a lot of new friends. A special shout out to Kambiz and China.

With Halloween fast approaching, Sal Conte will be stopping by later in the week with a special message. Speaking of Sal, he's now on Twitter: Sal Conte1. He could use a few followers. I hope some of you will follow him. I don't know why I'm plugging old Sal, he has nothing but nasty things to say about me. It's tough having an alter ego with a mind of his own.

Have a great week. Boyfriend From Hell has 10 five star reviews on Goodreads, and it's still just $2.99 for Kindle and Nook owners. If you don't own a Kindle, try downloading the free Kindle app... then go buy my book ;-) Peace.

Legend Of The Fall Challenge

2011-09-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

Legend has it that if a person were to guess the title of a movie that takes place during the fall, tens of thousands of dollars will fall into their laps... Okay, maybe just $10. The Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge is back with its Legend of The Fall challenge. Unscramble the movie jumble and win a free $10 Amazon gift card. Since we've only done the new format once, let me refresh your memory on how it's done:

Each challenge will consistof three separate jumbles. Three words or phrases you will have to unscramble all relatingto the same movie. The subjects you will have to unscramble are: movie title,name of an actor in the movie, and one word that can be used in a descriptionof the movie. The three jumbles are not necessarily going to be given in theorder I just stated. Here is an un-jumbled example:

TheX Men

HalleBerry

Mutants

In The Legend of The Fallchallenge, the movie you are looking for takes place during the fall. Are youready for the challenge?

Here ya go:

Pripe is Foacle

Kingtagnivhs

Nay Aeshes

And remember, while we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge,you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sundayevening, so everyone has plenty of time to come up with the correct answer. Butjust one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive afree $10 Amazon gift card. On Monday I will draw a winner from all thecorrect answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Remember, this is allfrom the same movie, and may not be in the order stated. If you'd like to playthere are a few things you will need to do to qualify.1) be a follower of this blog, or...
2) ...a subscriber at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my postsanytime during the week of the current challenge. DO NOT put your answer in thecomments, instead…4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on yourblog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.
Do 1 +3,4&;5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, youmust do four things to qualify to win.

We didn’t get a big turnout last time out so I held off holding the next challenge untilnow. If you like the HollyweirdTuesday Trivia Challenge, and would like it to continue, please spreadthe word.

The Orange CountyChildren’s Book Fair

This coming Sunday, October 2nd, I will be live and in person, autographing Boyfriend From Hell at the Orange County Children's Book Fair at Orange College, in Costa Mesa, California. I will be in booth 26 from 1pm to 4:30pm. Hope some of you will come out and support me and this wonderful event. The book will be for sale at a discount, and if you stop by my booth (whether you buy a book or not), I will autograph a hot off the press Boyfriend From Hell bookmark for you for free, just for coming out and supporting me. Who knows? This bookmark may be a collector's item some day ;-) Seriously, I hope some of you will stop by and chat with me. Peace.

Orange County Children's Book Festival

2011-09-21T11:54:00.000-07:00

Hey Frans (Friend + Fan=fran), Several of you have beenasking about my next appearance. Well,it’s Sunday October 2^nd at the Orange County Children’s BookFestival. It’s being held at OrangeCoast College in Costa Mesa. I am honored to have been asked to participate. I willbe in booth 26 from 1-4:30pm. I will beautographing Boyfriend From Hell for those of you who’d like to buy it. We’ll be selling the book at a discount. It’s worth coming out just for that. Butwhether you buy a book or not, I’d appreciate it if some of you wouldstop by and chat with me. It’s going tobe an amazing affair with a stellar lineup of YA authors including Kami Garciaof Beautiful Creatures fame (The Caster Chronicles).

You need to be at this event. If you’re a yet to be published writer, here's a chance to soak up the atmosphereand get inspired by all the authors and books around. If you’re newlypublished, you can hang with your favorite children’s and YA authors—me included--and get tips on how to navigate the professional writing landscape. And ifyou’re a fan of books, trust me, this is the place to be.

If you stop by my booth and I will autograph a hot off thepress Boyfriend From Hell bookmark for you for free. I’d really like to meet some of my OC frans. I know you're out there. Meeting you guys is what inspires me.

The Orange County Children’s Book Festival. Sunday October 2^nd,Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, booth 26, from 1-4:30pm. Peace.

A Heart Warming Launch Party Story

2011-09-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

Fans young and old attended my launch party. That’s part of the fun of writing this genre—youreally do have fans of all ages.

This post, however, is about two particular fans. Let me tell you a little bit about thesegirls. I first met them two years ago atNever Slow Dance With A Zombie Fest. They arrived late because their guardians drove them all the way fromSan Diego (two hours) for the event. Atthe time they had recently been taken in by relatives when their mother became unfit to raise them. They were going to go into foster care. The relatives that took them in, did not wantto break up the family, so despite personal hardship, they took the girlsin. Never Slow Dance With A Zombie Fest seemed a safeenvironment for a Halloween party, so they brought the girls.

While they were at the fest, the guardians bought one copy of Never Slow Dance With A Zombie for the girls to share,and something amazing happened. Thegirls enjoyed Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, so much so, that they became readers. You know how hard it is to get some kids toread, and I hate to say it, but especially black kids.

Suddenly I had two young fans dying for my next book. That gave me a double thrill—what authordoesn’t like to have fans? But more importantly, we all know that reading really isfun-damental, and that while these girl's discovery of reading may not ensure their future, it will definitely put them on the right path to a getting a good education.

Saturday the girls had their foster parents bring them up toLA so they could each get their own spanking new copy of Boyfriend From Hell signed by me.

Sorry the quality of the photo is not good. Their dad (guardian) took it with his phone. I wanted to share it with you so you could see how proud they are to each have their own copy of Boyfriend From Hell. That is too cute!

If you know me, you know I am sincere when I say how much Ilove my friends/fans ( I am now coining the phrase—Frans… friend + fan). Knowing your work can have a positiveinfluence on people makes writing these silly stories all the more worthwhile. I love these girls.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. This post means a lot to me. Boyfriend From Hell is available right now on Kindle andNook for just $3.99, $12.95 for a hard copy. http://evanlowe.com/ See for yourself what all the fuss is about.

Peace.

Launch Party Recap

2011-09-11T20:58:00.000-07:00

The Boyfriend From Hell launch party was Saturday night. That's a candid shot of me waiting to go on. Once my publisher finished with the introduction, I danced up to an 80s tune by The Gap Band. I had a wonderful time, dancing, reading and chatting with friends and fans. I'm so glad so many of you showed.

That's me encouraging the ladies in the house to dance with me. Some did. You know who you are. Thanks for coming out. Thanks to those of you who danced, and thank you all for purchasing 50 books, which is a Vroman's record for an indy publisher. We sold out.

My caterer, Cousin Pam, unveiled one of her newest desert creations--cake pops.

Dancing, food, drink, music, and a reading by me. If you weren't there you missed a great time. But all is not lost. I hear we are taking the show on the road. Stay tuned. You still may get a chance to dance with me yet ;-)

Peace.

Launch Party

2011-09-09T12:31:00.000-07:00

In my last post I said my next post would be about my rolemodel. That post is going to have to wait,because I need to remind you that my Boyfriend From Hell launch party istomorrow, Saturday September 10^th. It’s being held at an awesome and quite large independent book store. Vroman’s in Pasadena. It will start at 4pm. There will be music, food, along with areading and signing by me. And it’s allfree. So, if you’re in Southern Caltomorrow, and you’re not busy, come out and meet some of your blogging friends,a few authors, and of course—me ;-)

That's me signing at the Never Slow Dance With A Zombie Fest, October 2009. We had a Hollywood makeup artist make up fans as zombies. All they had to do was come early and bring their own wardrobe. As you can tell from all the neat looking zombies in the room, I throw some fun parties.

This event again is being catered by my cousin, Pam. Get a load of her spread:

So if you want to have a great time hanging out with people who love books, come on out. And remember, Boyfriend From Hell is now available. If you'd like to download a free sample, or grab an ecopy, go here: http://evanlowe.com/ Peace.

How Lucky Am I?

2011-09-04T11:42:00.000-07:00

I planned to sit down today and write a new forward to mySal Conte 80s horror novel, Child’s Play. I am bringing out my old Dorchester titlesalong with a new short for Halloween, and I thought a forward looking backwould be a great addition. As Iconsidered what to say, my mind drifted back to the 80s—the awesome music, the houseparties, the fun I had at USC hanging with all the young would be writerstrying to get our nascent careers going. It was a time of equal parts fear and exhilaration.

As I conjured up those halcyon days, my mind drifted back tomy time in the South Bronx where I grew up. I started thinking of how I got here in the first place and realized itwas luck. How is it that I’ve led the life I’ve led, have the career I have? Pure dumb luck. The police of the 41^stPrecinct dubbed my neighborhood Fort Apache. They felt any time they ventured outside of the precinct house into thestreets, they were taking their lives into their hands. They even made a movieabout it: “Where even the cops fear to tread.”

It didn’t seem so dangerous to me, but I was just a kidback then. It was all I knew, so whatdid I know.

It was back then,however, that my luck first kicked in. The tough kids in my neighborhood liked thatI was different, liked that I had ambition. They looked out for me. Whensomething bad was about to go down they’d insist I get lost. It was luck that after I graduated highschool I had a friend going to Lehman College in the Bronx. She said I should check it out. It was luck that despite my terrible highschool transcript they accepted me. Itwas luck that I was looking at the bulletin board outside the EnglishDepartment office where I happened to see a poster touting the USC ProfessionalWriting Graduate Program. It was luck Ifound a professor, George Blecher, to take me under his wing and nurture me.

It was luck that after arriving in Southern California (brokerthan I expected to be) I happened to read an article in The Writer about writingfor romance magazines—which is how (after several tries) my professional careerstarted. It was luck that I was standingat a newsstand thumbing through horror novels (I couldn’t afford to buy one),and I noticed a number of them were published by Dorchester.

Wow! Some days I can’thelp but look at my life and wonder “how lucky am I?” Yeah, I know, somewhere in there comes hardwork. But we all need a little luck togo along with the hard work, and I've had my share.

Okay, that’s it. That’sall I wanted to say. No deep meaninghere. Before I write the Sal Conte forward I realize I have another post towrite. In this one I will be thanking myrole model. If you’d like to know moreabout Sal Conte he has his own page on my website. Check him out HERE. And my latest, Boyfriendfrom Hell, is still on Sale for $2.99. The price was supposed to go up on the 1^st but it didn’t. I know it will be going up soon. If you’d like to read a few sample chaptersclick HERE and then click on Boyfriend From Hell Sample.

Enjoy your life. Takeadvantage of all the luck that comes your way. And remember to pay it forward. Peace.

Publication Day

2011-09-01T09:01:00.000-07:00

Please excuse me for going on and on about my new book coming out. Boyfriend From Hell comes out today, September 1st, and I am so excited. Okay, I'm going to stop yammering now. It's too early for tequila. Guess I'll have a cup of coffee. Peace.

Seven Days To Hell

2011-08-25T16:59:00.000-07:00

I just looked at the countdown clock on my website for the launch date of Boyfriend From Hell. It read 7 days 6 hours and 23 minutes. It's sweaty palms time, people. My baby is about to be born. I hope you like her. So far it's been very good. I have had some amazing reviews. REVIEWS. I've had thousands of requests for a copy of the book in my Goodreads giveaways. I want to thank all of you for your support. If you'd like to read the first four chapters before you buy it, they're available now on my HOMEPAGE. Just click on the Boyfriend From Hell Sample link, read and enjoy.

If you've already made the decision to purchase it, but haven't done so yet, remember it's on pre-publication sale for Nook and Kindle owners at just $2.99. The price will go up in seven days. If you'd like to purchase your copy now, go here. PURCHASE.

That's all the news that's fit to print. Next up is my super awesome launch party on September 10th. I will be talking more about it here next week. Peace.

Boyfriend From Hell Bewitching Book Tour

2011-08-22T22:40:00.000-07:00

The book launch for Boyfriend From Hell is about to go into full swing. I am so excited. Next up is my Bewitching Books Blog Tour. The tour was put together by the Amazing Roxanne Rhoades. Among her many talents, Roxanne is also an author. You can check out her latest work here: Paranormal Pleasures.

If you write paranormal romance or Urban Fantasy and you’re looking for a tour, look no further. The Bewitching Books Tour is just what you need. Thanks, Roxanne for taking such good care of me.

For my tour there will be twenty-six stops along with a radio interview on September 6^th. Please drop in on a tour stop or two, support me, and maybe meet some new friends. The tour schedule is below:

8/29 - Tour Launch @ Fang-tastic Books

8/29- Review @ Bees Knees Reviews

8/30 – Review & Guest Post @ Mama Knows Books

8/31 – Review @ Authors By Authors

9/1 – Interview @ I Smell Sheep

9/2 - Review & Interview @ Truthfully Fictional

9/5 - Guest Post & Review @ That Bookish Girl

9/6 – Guest Post @ Laurie’s Thoughts & Reviews

9/9 – Review & Guest Post @ A Chick Who Reads

9/12 – Review & Guest Post @ Reader Girls

9/13 – Review & Guest Post @ Freda’s Voice

9/15 – Review & Guest Post @ The Book Faery

9/16 – Review @ BooksFrom The Purple Jellybean Chair

9/19 – Review & Guest Post @ All Things Books

9/20 – Guest Post @ Oodles of Books

9/21 – Review & Guest Post @ Red House Books

9/22 – Review & Guest Post @ Livin' Life Through Books

9/23 – Review & Guest Post @ MY Bookish Fairy Tale

Boyfriend From Hell Ebook Pre-Sale

2011-08-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

I have had my good friend Tatiana at Creative Force Group do a total redesign of my website to more suit my personality, and to help promote the books. Please check it out, and then come back and leave a comment. I know you’re all going to love it. http://evanlowe.com/ Tatiana is an awesome person and her prices are reasonable. If you’re looking for awesome web design and your budget is tight, she’s your man… er wo-man. Creative Force Group.

Ebook Presale

My most exciting news is that my publisher is so excited about the prospects of Boyfriend From Hell that we are holding an ebook pre-sale. From now until August 31^st the Kindle and Nook versions of the book will be just $2.99. On September 1^st (when all the advertising starts) the book will return to it's original price. If you have a Kindle or Nook now is the perfect time to buy. Blogger reviews so far have been quite positive. If you'd like to see some reviews go here: REVIEWS

It would also be quite generous if a few of you could tweet the information about the sale to your followers. I’d like to prime the sales pump a bit before September. The book can be purchased on my website http://evanlowe.com.

Thanks for your support.

Peace

Togetherness

2011-08-09T15:05:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago the lady in my life (I won’t mention her name here. If you stay with me you’ll see why) suggested we have some together time.

“Let’s get up early one Sunday morning and go out to Venice Beach. We can rent elliptical bikes, and ride along the bike path together.”

“Elliptical?”

“Yes, just like the machine I like to use at the gym. You like working out. You’ll get both a great arms and cardio workout. And we’ll do it together.”

I don’t use the elliptical machine at the gym. I used to use the Stairmaster, but 30-45 minutes of going nowhere didn’t do it for me. But this was different. We’d be at the beach, riding along in the open air.

She even had a Groupon for a two hour ride. So Sunday before last, we got up early and headed out to beautiful Venice Beach. As we got closer to the beach, the sky clouded up. The weather man calls this the inversion layer. I was hoping the beach would be sunny, but my lady pointed out that since we were going to be working out, the cool air would be welcome.

We arrived at the bike rental just after they opened for the day. We signed up for bikes, watched a short video on how to ride the darn things, and then the clerk took us out to the parking lot for a practice run before we headed off to the bike path.

That’s me in the parking lot, getting up on the bike for the first time.

We got on our bikes and I took off around the parking lot. I noticed the faster I went, the easier it was to hold my balance. I stopped, looked behind me. My lady was not there. I walked my bike back to where she was standing next to hers. Let me tell you, walking an elliptical bike is not as easy as walking a two-wheeler. It’s more like walking an octopus.

“You okay?” I asked, out of breath from walking the bike.

“Yes. It’s different than the one at the gym. It kind of sways back-and-forth.”

Do I remind her the machine at the gym is a stationery bike, and this is the real deal? No. That wouldn’t go over very well. I said nothing.

A short time later, we made our way to the bike path.

“I’ll be right behind you,” she said.

“I won’t go too fast. I’ll let you get the hang of it. But you know, the faster you go, the easier it is to keep your balance.”

“Got it,” she replied.

I didn’t see her again for half an hour. After riding for a few minutes I looked back and saw that she had stopped. I figured I’d ride very slowly so she could catch up. But she didn’t catch up. After a while, I stopped along-side the bike path and waited. Ten minutes and probably twenty bikes passed me by. A group of four on ellipticals (that I had passed a long time ago) went flying by.

I decided to go back. I figured when I saw her coming up the bike path, I’d make a U-turn, and we could ride along together. About twenty feet from where she first stopped I saw her alongside the path.

“You okay?”

“Yes. I’m just getting the hang of this thing. Don’t worry about me. You ride ahead, when I see you on your way back, I will turn around and join you. Don’t let me spoil your fun.”

It was then I decided she should take a picture of me riding the bike.

I’m glad I did. This was the last time I saw her before our two hours were up. When I got back to the parking lot, she was standing by her bike.

“I thought you might come back here to practice some more,” I said.

“I didn’t practice. I just came back and waited for you. Did you have fun?”

“Yeah, but I thought we were going to do this together. We did do it together.”

Do I point out that the only time we were together was in the car on the way to the beach? No.

Afterwards, we went to lunch. She told me how much fun she’d had, and that she’d like to do it again. That’s when it hit me (any guy reading this needs to let this coming part soak in) for a woman, togetherness is not a state of being, togetherness is a state of mind.

“It had fun,” I said as I drove her home. “Let me know when you’d like to do it again.”

I write paranormal novels about young women, their thoughts, their hopes, their dreams. I think I just learned something I didn’t know. Maybe I can use it in my next book.

BTW, I was sore for a week.

Peace.

High School Book Drive

2011-08-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

This post is a reblog. I don't normally do reblogs, but this one is important. Please read:

Danielle over at Frenzy of Noise wrote a post about a high school who only had 63 books in their library. So I decided to pass the word along and let everyone know that this high school desperately needs book donations. Here's the info. directly from Danielle's post:

I know I'm part of a community that bands together to stand up for literary injustice, backlash, plagiarism and everything in between. We build hashtags on twitter and give small ideas a way to be big. We're awesome.

That's why when the director of my MFA program sent us an email about a book drive, I knew I had to bring the need to my community. This community. Why? Well...
"The literature section of Ballou Senior High School's library in Washington, DC has 63 books, not enough to fill five small shelves. In the area marked "Pure Science," there are 77 volumes. The generally accepted standard for school libraries is 11 books for each of Ballou's 1,104 students." THAT'S WHY.

What they need:
Everything. From Shakespeare to Octavia Butler to Richard Wright. Fantasy, sci-fi, YA, adult fiction, history books, poetry, classic literature, science. Basically anything and everything that's suitable for high school. They will take anything as long as it is in GOOD condition and has no writing in it.

I've asked if they would accept ARCs (new and old), and the director of the book drive, Lisa, said YES. Please note however, that they really need finished copies. ARCs are fantastic, but the lasting value isn't always standing.

How to donate:
If you have books you want to give, please mail them directly to:
The Art of Living Center
International Association for Human Values
c/o Filiz Odabas-Geldiay
2401 15th St. NW
Washington, DC 20009

There should be a note inside donation boxes that says:
Green Line Initiative Book Drive
attn: Lisa Pegram
They will be accepting books until August 22!!

Also, if you'd like to include some kind of quick note for the kids, words of encouragement, that would be awesome!! But it's not mandatory.

Spread the word!

Reblog this post on your blog. Tweet this post. (we're on twitter at #HSBookDrive) Tell everyone. Send books.

I really hope you guys can all participate in some way. (Even if it's just blogging or tweeting about it.) My high school library had quite a lot of books and I was in there all the time. I'd like to help create a library like that for these kids. So let's get them some books to read!

Peace

Bad Boy, Bad Boy, Whatcha Gonna Do?

2011-08-02T10:33:00.000-07:00

Lots of female friends have told me they’ve had boyfriends from hell. I’ve heard some horror stories and some very funny stories as well. Many women thought they were getting involved with sweet guys, only to find out they were going to hell. But others, many others, chose to date bad boys… on purpose.

In writing Boyfriend From Hell, I tried to deal with what a girl feels dating a bad boy. I created Guy Matson, the handsome, bad boy Megan is instantly attracted to. In truth, I have no idea what it feels like being a bad boy. Although when I was growing up I really, really, really wanted to be one. When I was fourteen I fell in love with a girl who had a thing for bad boys—the guys who ditched school, and drank, and made out with their girlfriends right on the school steps; the boys who didn’t seem to care if they got busted by a teacher or the cops.

One day I got up the nerve to walk Carolyn home from school. She only lived two blocks from school, so I could walk her home and still get home before my mother started a sweep of the neighborhood looking for me. My mom was a stickler for us getting home on time. But Carolyn didn’t know I had a three o’clock curfew. For all she knew, I didn’t have to be home—ever.

We walked and she asked me if I’d ever been to a certain community center on Friday nights. They had dancing. I grew up in a tough neighborhood. The community center she spoke of was in the toughest part of the neighborhood. I did not walk down that street after dark.

“Dancing, huh? I love to dance.” I did like to dance. Of course, it was mostly at home alone in my mirror, or with my mother. But she didn’t need to know who my partner was. For all she knew, I was dancing the night away at wild parties every weekend.

“You should come,” she said.

“Will you be there?” This was the height of flirting for me. My palms were sweaty when I asked the question. What did you expect, George Clooney? I was a fourteen year-old who had to be in the house by three o’clock for chrissake.

“Yes,” she said. The way she said yes left no doubt in my mind, that if I swaggered into that community center looking like the Fonz, Carolyn would be mine.

Friday evening I announced I was going to the community center. Mom didn’t need to know which one. By the time I got there my heart was beating a mile a minute—partly because I was nervous about seeing Carolyn, and partly because I feared for my life. When I arrived outside, Carolyn was on the steps talking to a bad boy who had the youthful swagger of James Dean. He was very close to her, and she seemed to like the closeness. She looked up and saw me.

“Oh, hi, you came,” she said with a smile that was warm and inviting.

“Yeah. I come here sometimes, just to kick it, you know.” I said trying to sound like I had swagger as well.

That’s when I noticed the boy she standing with eyeing me like I was just the person he had been waiting to punch in the face. He whispered something in her ear, draped his arm around her shoulder. She laughed.

“See you inside,” she said.

I nodded and went inside. A short time later I slipped out the side door and went back home. I didn’t know if the boy was her boyfriend. But I knew I wasn’t a bad boy. I could never whisper seductively in her ear, or drape my around her shoulder without sweating out my undershirt. I was destined to be a nice guy. In retrospect, I realize there’s nothing wrong with that.

In Boyfriend From Hell, when Megan is flirting with the idea of being a bad girl she muses: You can’t be a bad girl, unless you actually do something bad. Megan couldn’t fake it, and neither could I.

Book Lovin' Bitches Ebook Tour

2011-07-23T18:45:00.000-07:00

The marketing and publicity for Boyfriend From Hell is about to begin. I have an awesome tour schedule beginning with my Book Lovin' Bitches Ebook Tour. The tour was put together by Theresa at Fade Into Fantasy. I am so lucky to have discovered Theresa. She's done a fantastic job of putting my tour together. Thanks, Theresa. There will be twenty-six stops, and several of them will have giveaways. So if you're still hoping to win a copy of Boyfriend From Hell, here's your chance. Please drop in on a tour stop or two, support me, win a book, and maybe meet some new friends. The tour schedule is below:

8/10 - review @ Imaginary Reads
8/11 - review @ Reading Romances
8/11 - review @ The Book Addict
8/12 - review @ My Neurotic Book Affair
8/12 - giveaway @ Reading Romances
8/13 - interview @ My Neurotic Book Affair
8/13 - giveaway @ Imaginary Reads
8/15 - review @ Book Lover's Hideaway
8/16 - giveaway @ Book Lover's Hideaway
8/16 - review @ Sugarbeat's Books
8/17 - interview @ Sugarbeat's Books
8/17 - review @ Just Another Book Addict
8/17 - review @ It's All About Books
8/18 - review @ EARphoria
8/18 - interview @ Just Another Book Addict
8/19 - excerpt @ It's All About Books
8/20 - interview @ EARphoria
8/22 - review @ The Phantom Paragrapher
8/23 - review @ Lisa's World of Books
8/24 - giveaway @ Lisa's World of Books
8/25 - interview @ The Book Addict
8/26 - excerpt @ The Phantom Paragrapher
8/27 - review @ Nightly Reading
8/28 - giveaway @ Nightly Reading
8/29 - review @ Novel Addiction
8/30 - giveaway @ Novel Addiction

Peace.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge Results

2011-07-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

You guys are too good for me! Everyone who played the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge this week got it right. Unfortunately there were only five players. For those of you who didn't play, the correct answers were:

Ellen Page. Inception. Subconscious.

This week's winner is a fairly new player, Nikki. Congratulations, Nikki. Your $10 Amazon gift card will go out later today.

I am going to put the challenge on hiatus for a while. I don't know if the low turnout is because of low interest, the new format, or the time of year. I am going to contribute it to the time of year. It's summer, and people are spending time outside, enjoying the good weather. So the challenge will not be returning until the fall, or even winter. As you know, my new book, Boyfriend From Hell, comes out in September. The sequel, Earth Angel, comes out in December. This is a very ambitious production schedule. I am just now starting the marketing for Boyfriend from Hell, along with the edit for Earth Angel, so I will be having a very busy summer.

Still, I will be checking in each week, keeping you up to date on what's happening with me, the book, and my boring life... Just kidding. My life is not boring. How can it be? My dream was to write for a living, and that is what I do. I really hope I can count on some of you to go out and buy the book when it comes out in September. You know, help keep my dream alive. Those of you that have won a free ARC, I hope you will write an Amazon review and recommend it to a friend.

And please, tell your friends about the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. We need to have a good turnout for me to keep it going. Peace.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge--New Format

2011-07-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

It's time for our next Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. I am excited about this week's challenge because we have a new format. The new format should make it easier for more people to play. It's a word jumble. Each challenge will consist of three separate jumbles. Three words you will have to unscramble all relating to the same movie. The subjects you will have to unscramble are: movie title, name of an actor in the movie, and one word that can be used in a description of the movie. The three jumbles are not necessarily going to be given in the order I just stated. Here is an unjumbled example:

The X Men

Halle Berry

Mutants

And remember, while we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening, so everyone has plenty of time to come up with the correct answer. But just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive a free $10 Amazon gift card. On Monday I will draw a winner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Are you ready for the challenge?

Here ya go:

eplen gela

nitponcei

suconcisoub

Remember, this is all from one movie, and may not be in the order stated. If you'd like to play there are a few things you will need to do to qualify.

1) be a follower of this blog, or...
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge. DO NOT put your answer in the comments, instead…
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.
Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, you must do four things to qualify to win.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the new concept. If you like it or hate it, please let me know. Peace.

The Early Reviews Are In!

2011-07-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Hey gang! I recently received my first two reviews for Boyfriend From Hell. They're both positive. And the best part is, they're not from stodgy reviewers. They're from readers, like you. Don't you want to know what people are saying about the book? Of course you do! You can find one of the reviews right here: Boyfriend Review.

I have also recently booked two awesome blog tours that begin in August and run through the entire month of September. I will keep you posted on my tour stops as the time draws nearer. And in case you forgot, my launch party is September 10th. I'd like to see most of you there: Free food, free booze, music, a reading by yours truly, along with other surprises. And did I mention it's all free to my friends and fans? If you are planning to be in the LA area in September you need to make this event. If you're not planning on being here, you need to make a special trip. This is an event you won't want to miss.

All for now. Go read my early review. Peace.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge Winner!

2011-06-28T06:00:00.003-07:00

Dang! You guys are good. I had twelve submissions the the latest Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge and every one of you got the answer right.

The question: In what movie with summer in its title did somebody say: “It’s love, it’s not Santa Claus.”

The correct answer is 500 Days of Summer.

The winner is Lasergirl. I believe she is our second multiple winner. Congratulations, Lasergirl, your $10 Amazon gift card will go out shortly. I want to thank all the new players for joining in the fun. We will do another summertime challenge right after the fourth. Tell a friend.

Jessica B of Book Sake also guessed the correct answer to the additional challenge. The answer was King Kong. You know your stuff, Jessica. Thanks for playing. The bragging rights are yours.

Finally, some of you know that I have been supporting author, Sal Conte, his entire life. It's time Sal got out there and earned a living. He plans to do this with the release of three horror works in October, just in time for Halloween. Here's how you can help. Just scroll down to the post before this one and participate in the Old Skool Book Cover Smackdown. That's it. Costs you nothing. You do that and we will be one step closer to getting Sal off my couch, and into the workforce. Thanks. Peace.

An Old Skool Book Cover Smackdown

2011-06-23T22:00:00.000-07:00

In 1984, Sal Conte’s baseball themed novel, Child’s Play, was released by Dorchester publishing. The successful novel went through several printings and boasted a stunning cover. But that was twenty-seven years ago, dresses with shoulder pads that turned petites into linebackers were stunning back then. In September, Conte is rereleasing both of his old splatterpunk titles, Child’s Play and The Power, along with a brand new short, The Toothache Man.

Sal wanted a modern, updated look for his new titles, something that would catch the eye of today’s horror fan. He enlisted the aid of Dustin Ashe, of Indy Armada to give his old baby a facelift. In the author’s opinion, Dustin did more than just give the little girl a facelift. He made her bionic. I love the cover. But what do you think? This is the first of an Old School versus New School smackdown. OGs versus Newbies. So, will it be Old School #1 or New School #2? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a comment.

Old School #1

New School #2

Child’s Play, The Power and The Toothache Man will be available this October for both the kindle and the Nook only for a paltry 99c each. And for those of you who don’t know, Sal Conte is my alter ego. I write YA paranormal romance by day and gruesome horror by night. Buahahahahaaaaaaaa!

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Summer Challenge

2011-06-21T06:00:00.001-07:00

Today is the first day of summer. But according to calculations, summer starts around noon. So, tomorrow is actually the first full day of summer. Tomorrow is also my birthday. Yep, I’m a summer time guy. I love the summer. I love hot weather. We are coming into my favorite time of year. To celebrate my birth and the birthday of summer, I am hosting a Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge-summer challenge. Unlike our last (Summer Blockbuster movie trivia challenge), the movie in this trivia challenge will have the word summer in its title. The movie, A Summer Place, would be a good answer. But I know most of you haven’t even heard of that movie so it’s not A Summer Place. However, you need to think of other movies with the word summer in their title.

Many of you have found these challenges a bit too easy—at least from where I’m sitting. And so, I am hoping to up the ante with this one. However, I won’t be surprised if seven of you get it within the first hour. But I hope this one at least makes you think, or google movies with summer in their titles. But, like I said, I won’t be surprised.

And remember, while we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening. So everyone has plenty of time to come up with the correct answer. But just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive a free $10 Amazon gift card. On Monday I will draw a winner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Are you ready for the challenge?

In what movie with summer in its title did somebody say: “It’s love, it’s not Santa Claus.”

As a reminder, there are a few things you will need to do to qualify. You need to do #1 or #2, plus the three other things listed below:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog, or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge. DO NOT put your answer in the comments, instead…
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.
Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, you must do four things to qualify to win.

My friend Lulilut, a recent Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge winner, left a trivia challenge for me on my blog. I thought it was tough, but I got it. Wanna take a crack at it?

Which movie pokes fun at writers by having a screenwriter tricked into traveling by ship, but due to overcrowding, has to bunk down in the cargo hold in one of the animal cages to finish writing the script?

No prize for this one, just bragging rights. Thanks Lulilut, for a terrific challenge. Good luck, and please tell friends. We need more players. If we can substantially up the players, I will substantially up the prize. Then it will really get interesting. Peace.

Even Indy Publishers Get The Blues

2011-06-14T06:15:00.000-07:00

Some of you may recognize that I cribbed my post title from a Tom Robbins novel I read (and loved) way back when I was in college. For those of you who don’t know the book, click on Tom’s name. Now for my confession. This isn’t a post about my Indy publisher’s blues (That’s him in the photo up top, BTW). This is a post about my own blues, caused by something my publisher went through. The cause of our blues. Returns.

My publisher, White Whisker Books, is the brainchild of my friend and colleague, Christopher Meeks. He named the company after his cat, which has one white whisker. Chris originally created White Whisker to publish his own work, that hadn’t yet found a main stream publisher. Chris published two books of short stories, and a novel. All received high praise from reviewers. Chris’ books were selling well. He was both a critical and financial success. Chris decided to expand his little publishing house. He has four titles coming out this year, including mine. He was on a roll.

Then one day in April, Chris came home to find several large boxes in front of his garage. The boxes were filled with books--his books. Inside the boxes, Chris found 500 returns, some were of books he’d sold three years ago.

A little primer on publishing: publishers send books to a distributor who then sends them to book stores. Publishers print the books based on perceived orders. Book stores receive books on consignment, meaning they do not pay for them. They pay for what they sell, and the rest are returned.

Okay, so far that sounds fair. But let me ask you something. If you bought a blouse, and kept that blouse for three years, could you then return it? The store thinks you like the blouse. The distributor thinks you like the blouse. The manufacturer thinks you like the blouse, so much so that they spend the profits making a whole bunch more. Then one day, two and a half years after your purchase, you’re watching The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and see that one of the housewives you hate has a blouse similar to one you purchased three years ago. So you decide you don’t like the blouse and take it back. Really?

Returns! Oh, nooooooo!

Doesn’t it seem unreasonable to expect someone to accept returns after three years? Yet in the book business returns after three years are okay—no problem. Chris thinks my new novel, Boyfriend From Hell, could do very well, especially considering how well Never Slow Dance With A Zombie sold. Good news ,right? Well, maybe not. He sent me an email after receiving the returns saying that if he got five thousand returns of my book we could very well go bankrupt. So, after much exploring, Chris decided to make my book non-returnable. For Chris' post on returns go here: Returns.

And that is why I have the blues. I love being published by Chris. He is a great guy, and a good business man. But when book stores see a book is non-returnable they are less likely to order it. Even though my last book sold well, bookstores will be reluctant to stock Boyfriend From Hell, because if they don’t sell it, they cannot return it. With all the changes in publishing, I am sure the returns problem will work itself out some time in the near future. But for now, if you are thinking of buying Boyfriend From Hell, either order it online: B&N, Amazon, or as an ebook available on kindle, Nook and ipad. And if you like going to your local bookstore, no problem, just tell them to order it. If you would do that for me, you can keep me from having the blues. I’d love to hear your comments on this. Thanks.

Oops! I almost forgot. I will be having a Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge next Tuesday. I ran out of time this week. But for those of you who like all things Hollywood, I want to introduce you to my friend Rebecca's blog, Hollywood Daze. She has celebrity news, vintage Hollywood as well as trivia. Please drop by. Just click on the link. Now I'm out.

Peace.

Getting Down with Drew Carey

2011-06-07T10:49:00.000-07:00

One of the perks of being a member of the Hollywood show biz community is that I get invited to cool parties. Friday night I got to attend Drew Carey’s, The Price Is Right wrap party. Drew really knows how to throw a party. This one had a 70s theme. Check out the Saturday Night Fever couple and the lighted dance floor. Brings back memories, doesn't it... Okay, I know you're too young. But it brings back memories for me.

I was soo happy to get out Friday night because I’d been knee deep in the first draft edit of the Boyfriend From Hell sequel. I needed some fun time. I danced the night away to songs like Michael Jackson’s “Off The Wall” and Kool And The Gang’s “Get Down On It.” Many of the guests came in period costume. Most of them weren’t even born yet, but there they were in halter tops, platform shoes and Afros. There were even some roller skaters. Sorry the photos are dark, but I took them with my iphone.

I don’t have one of Drew, but he was in costume as well, looking his Dirk Diggler finest, complete with bushy mustache and mutton chops. The highlight of the night was K.C. and The Sunshine Band performing.

K.C. looked way out of shape, but he moved across the stage like a young man. I thought he might have a heart attack. All-in-all it was a fun night. I think I’m going to play some 70s or 80s music at my Boyfriend From Hell, launch party in September. I play music at all my readings. I try to make a party out of them. And with 70s or 80s music, you can’t help but dance.

The launch party is taking place at Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena. All are invited. I hope Vroman's is partial to music and dancing. I will give you more details on the party as we get closer. Now… Ugh! Back to... Ugh! editing… Ugh! Why can't these books just fall off the top of my head?

BTW, for all my Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge friends, I buried a movie trivia tid bit in this post. Do any of you know what movie? Drop it in the comments if you do. No prize, just bragging rights.

Peace

Springsteen & Me: Taking Control of Your Writing Career

2011-06-02T09:40:00.000-07:00

For those of you thinking this is a post about Bruce Springsteen and me, let me say right here that it is not. I do not know Bruce Springsteen. Of course I know who he is, but until quite recently I hadn’t followed him. So, if you’re interested in Springsteen’s music stop reading now. This post is about how Bruce Springsteen inspired me to take control of my career, and how those of us who are creative can learn from what he did.

In October of 2010 I was having a beer with my publisher. But he wasn’t my publisher then. He was my friend. I didn’t even realize Chris was a publisher until that conversation. Christopher Meeks is a writer who I met attending grad school at USC. We were both aspiring writers on the—then, fledgling—Professional Writing Program. Chris told me he was publishing one of our old professors, acclaimed playwright and novelist, David Scott Milton.

Chris learned his publishing skills working for Peter McWilliams, and has gone on to self-publish two short story collections, a novel and a play. For more on Chris and Peter McWilliams go HERE.

During that conversation in October, Chris mentioned an HBO documentary he’d seen about Bruce Springsteen. It seems after the success of the first album, Springsteen realized he was under the control of his (then) manager. As is typical (I guess) in the music business, the contract Springsteen signed gave his manager total creative control forever. That didn’t sit well with Bruce. In fact, he gambled his future on ending that contract. Springsteen decided he could never record again under those conditions.

Bruce, along with the members of the E Street Band were young, and hungry—but not hungry enough to give away creative control. He’d rather go back to obscurity than turn his ideas over to a gatekeeper. He was an artist. An artist needs to control his art. He didn’t record for three years.

They could have caved to the pressure and made a living, but he stuck to his guns, not recording for THREE WHOLE YEARS. The special is about those years and the first album they recorded after he waited out his manager. Springsteen called the album “a meditation on where are you going to stand.”

I was impressed with the story my friend Chris told about artistic integrity. Luckily, one Saturday afternoon I was flipping channels and saw the documentary was again on HBO. I watched it. It is a brilliant special. It changed me. The Promise: The Making of Darkness On The Edge of Town. The documentary is acclaimed for how he created the music. I love it for the message it sends to those of us struggling out here in the creative community.

Soon after I saw it I asked Chris and White Whisker to be the publisher of Boyfriend From Hell, along with the two other novels in the saga. Why? I was with Tor, a division of McMillan/St. Martin’s Press—a Big Six Publisher. I loved my editor. My first novel , Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, sold very well. But I was not happy with the relationship. There was a disconnect. My editor loved my second novel, but her boss didn’t. They pitched me something else. I went to work on it. But every time I would do a reading or let someone read Boyfriend From Hell, they’d say, this is a great book. So I asked Chris to take a look at it. Fortunately, he thought it was a great book, too.

Me, I think it’s a terrific book. But I am the author. What do I know? I want to let you, the reader, decide. I can’t do that if it’s not out there. One of the E Street band members said “Bruce is a man with a vision, and at the same time he’s a man in search of a vision.” That is exactly how I see myself, constantly in search of the vision inside my head. But aren't we all like that?

When the Never Slow Dance With A Zombie movie option lapsed, I decided to shop the movie myself. I want to do it as a musical. My agent and many others don’t get this idea. Dancing zombies! Come on! That’s a great idea. At least it is to me. I don’t know if I will get it done, but I am in control this time. It feels good.

I am thankful that Chris is delighted with Boyfriend From Hell. Just as many of you decided what cover should go on the book, I want my work in your hands, and not the hands of some gatekeeper. Mind you, I had already published two horror novels under the pseudonym, Sal Conte, back when I was in grad school. I have a twenty plus year career writing TV and film and have been nominated for both an Oscar and an Emmy. So I knew my work wasn’t crap. But can I write paranormal YA?

Like Springsteen, I wanted to be in control of my ideas. I was inspired by him to take control of my career. Is the book good? You will let me know. Can I have a career as a YA author? You will let me know. I’d rather hear it from you than some gatekeeper.

Today I found out the ARCs will be in on the 13th. Reviews will follow. I will know very soon what people think of the book. I am now in total control of my career. I’m not a kid. I need to do everything I can to make this damn thing work. It’s daunting yet exciting. I feel invigorated. Thank you for taking the time to read this. Thank you in advance if you leave a comment. I hope some of you will. I hope all of you read the book. I also hope this inspires some of you who have been sitting on the self-publishing/Indy-publishing fence to take a stand. We can be each other’s cheer leaders. Take control of your careers.

That’s the story behind Boyfriend From Hell, and how I started taking control of my career. Here we go.

Peace.

Winner!

2011-05-31T07:20:00.000-07:00

I have two contests ending today. I want to thank all who entered. I enjoy holding contests, especially the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. And so we will start there.

I thought this was a really tough one, and debated with myself on whether or not I should put it up. I got 13 correct answers. You guys are gooood!

The Challenge: In what movie did someone say I didn't kill my wife," and who said it?

The Answer: The Fugitive. Said by Dr. Richard Kimble.

The winner is Lulilut of Lulilut's Stack o' Books. You will be receiving your free $10 Amazon gift card later today. Thanks for playing. BTW, Lulilut already won an ARC in the cover contest. She's picked up quite a bit of swag. You go, girl!

The winners of the three free ARCs for my September release novel, Boyfriend From Hell:

Lisa at Cold Moon Violet Books

hmsgofita at Gofita's Pages

Donna at Girl Who Reads

Congratulations to the three ARC winners. I am so excited about this book. Enjoy the ARCs, and if you do, tell a friend. The ARCs will be in the mail in the next two weeks.

I want to also thank those of you who came over from Armchair BEA. I met quite a few new bloggers there. It was a spectacular event. My hat's off to the organizers. Looking forward to next year.

And now, I'm off to write.

Peace

Book Bloggers

2011-05-25T10:32:00.000-07:00

Hi. Today is day three of Armchair BEA. Subject for the day: Work The Network. Over the first two days I have met new bloggers and seen some great giveaways. I am not a book blogger, but I wanted to get in on the fun, mainly to sing the praises of book bloggers.

My 2009 debut YA novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie (TOR/Teen), sold very... Very, very well. I owe this success to book bloggers. I didn't realize as a debut author, how little publicity support I'd receive from my publisher. And trust me, when I say little, that's probably too big a word for the amount of support I got. But I got loads of support from you guys. Several bloggers held contests on their blogs. One blogger even hosted a Twitter contest that boasted over 1000 tweets of my book title.

I wanted you all to know how important you are to us authors, especially those of us considered mid-list. I also wanted to thank the hosts of Armchair BEA for this awesome idea. I'm having so much fun.

And now for the pitch (That's right, now that I've got you seated, I'm going to try to sell you something) My second novel, Boyfriend From Hell, hits shelves in September. To entice bloggers to get the word out, I am hosting an ARC giveaway. I also host a something I call the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. It's a movie trivia contest where I give away a free Amazon gift card. To participate in either or both click here: CONTESTS.

And now, I have to get back to finishing the new novel.... or checking SportsCenter for updates. Bloggers blog, writer's write, and E.Van Lowe is a master at wasting time.

Peace.

Free ARCs & A New Trivia Challenge

2011-05-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Today is the second day of the BEA. While most of us can't be there, there is a great new site I found while tweeting around (a new expression. Feel free to use it) called Armchair BEA. This is a site for those of us who want to experience the BEA from the comfort of our own armchairs--or, we didn't have the money to go. You can check them out here: Armchair BEA.

Since my Indy Publisher (White Whisker) can't send me to BEA to sit in a booth with other authors and sign ARCs, I will be sitting right here, signing three ARCs of my new YA novel, Boyfriend From Hell, to send to three lucky readers in the mail. All you need to do to enter is write in the comments below: "I want the free ARC" or something like that. This contest is open only to those of you living in the U.S. or Canada. The only other thing I ask is that if you have already won an ARC in the cover contest that you don't enter this one. That's it! I will do a random drawing on Monday, and post the winners here next Tuesday, May 31st. The ARCs are not available yet, but I expect to get some at the end of the week.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge #7

I haven't had a trivia challenge since February. But with the summer Blockbuster movie season starting I thought it would be fun to do a summer blockbuster movie challenge.

While we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening. So everyone has plenty of time to come up with the correct answer. But just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive a free $10 Amazon gift card. On Monday I will draw a winner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday. Are you ready for the challenge?

In what famous summer blockbuster did a character say: "I didn’t kill my wife!"
And who was the character?

I think this one is easy, but to some of you they're all easy. By the way, you have to answer both questions correctly to win.
As a reminder, there are a few things you will need to do to qualify. You need to do four of the five things listed below:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog, or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge.
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.
Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, you must do four things to win.

Two contests, two chances to win. Thanks for participating.

Adding Humore To Your Writing--POV

2011-05-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

One of the keys to unleashing your humor is the point of view chosen for your story or characters. When Charles Schultz looked at the world through the eyes of Charlie Brown, or Lucy Van Pelt, we laughed. It was the same world we were looking at every day, but through the eyes of insecure, Charlie Brown, and extroverted, Lucy, we got a glimpse as to how funny our world could be. Point of view allows you to comment on things that might not seem funny at first glance. It’s all in the angle of attack.

Charles Schultz did it with kids, but you can do it with any of your characters. A few years ago I was starting a novel about a girl whose father was a corporate whistle blower. The family went into the witness protection program, relocating from New York City to a small community in Denver. My protagonist was faced with the unhappy situation of leaving her friends and everything familiar behind. A situation like this can be traumatic for any fifteen year-old. But I wanted to take the trauma out of it, and show how resourceful my protagonist could be. So I infused in her the attitude that starting over was good:

If I have to go where nobody knows me, then why not start over as a fourteen year old? she thought. I’ve already made all the fourteen year old mistakes. And I will know all the work in school, since I just completed ninth grade. This, she realized, would give her more time for her fabulous social life.

By changing my protagonist’s point of view, I have given her the chance to be funny. There’s no humor in the story yet, but with this POV it will be easier to write humorous situations. I bet you can think of two or three funny situations you could see her in as you read this.

If you give your stories or characters a slightly off-center POV, they will more easily lend themselves to humor. Do not shoot down the middle when you want to add humor. How will you know if you’ve got the right POV? If you’re smiling as you think about it, you’re on the right track.

My Publisher

2011-05-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

I had an editorial meeting last Thursday. That's my publisher at the meeting holding Boyfriend From Hell. Cool looking guy, right? The smile is genuine. He's smiling because he loves the book. My editor loves it as well. If you're a writer reading this, you know how good that makes me feel.

That's a beta copy of the book in his hands. I was going to give some betas away, but there were too many mistakes. Not to worry, the ARCs will be in soon. They should have been here by now. He says in two weeks. Editorial issues. Not the book, but with the layout.

Of course I will be having at least one contest giving ARCs away. I hope some of you will hosts contests as well. I can't wait to share the book with you. It's really good. I mean really. I am growing as a writer. You'll see.

My publisher (the man, not the imprint) is great guy. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to experience the publishing process through him. He has taken me along every step of the way. One thing's for sure: I do not want to be a publisher. I'd rather spend my time creating. But I am glad he included me in the process. I've learned a lot.

Speaking of creating, it's time to get back to work. ARC's coming soon. So stay tuned.

Peace.

A Word From Sal

2011-05-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

Those of you who have been following closely know I started my novel writing career a long time ago as Sal Conte.

Today I started a new Sal Conte short story. It's straight up horror. That's what Sal writes. But there are no monsters in this one. The horror is a dentist. I had a dream about going to the dentist. The dentist was Sam Jackson. He was cursing up a storm (as always) and telling me how he liked to inflict pain. I woke up in a sweat, and realized I had the concept for my new Sal Conte Short story. The Toothache Man.

I started writing it today. I plan to have it available along with the vintage Sal Conte Splatterpunk stuff in October. If all goes according to plan I will be posting them on kindle in time for some Halloween fun. All will retail for a paltry 99c each.

I will keep you posted on how it's going. Hope some of you will support the horror work. If horror is not your thing, no prob. My new YA paranormal, Boyfriend From Hell, comes out in September.

I have something for all your morbid tastes.

Peace.

Branded!

2011-05-03T09:32:00.001-07:00

This is a post about branding, which I admittedly know very little about, so it will be a short one. The one thing I know is that we writers need to brand ourselves. We need to find the one thing that distinguishes us from others in our genre. I write paranormal YA romance with a comedic twist. That's how I plan to distinguish myself.. until that proves not to work. Then I will come up with something else.

A few months ago I was talking to a friend about branding. I knew the friend as an actress who acted in a pilot I did back in 2005, when we met. What I didn't know was that before acting, she worked in branding. She gave me a wealth of advice, most of which I believe has to to with physical products and not me--a person. One thing she said that I liked is that a brand should have a distinguishing mark, or logo. I don't know what I will do with a mark or logo, but I had one designed. I designed it after the Facebook and Twitter icons. This is it below:

I also had one done in green, but I like blue best.

So what do you think? That drop of blood is kind of sexy, right? Or maybe that's just my morbid side showing. Oh, well...

Is this logo a waste of my hard-earned cash? I have a tiny one I can use as my signature on blog posts and emails. Guess I will start there. Unfortunately, it's too late to load it for this post. Next time. Let me know what you think.

Peace.

Inspiration

2011-04-29T16:39:00.001-07:00

Inspiration. Where does it come from?

My sudden interest in the subject of inspiration comes because for two weeks I had been totally uninspired. Not only was I uninspired, the truth is, I was stuck. I had been going over the same pages for two weeks. Every day I didn’t write I felt more pressure. The book I am currently working on is supposed to be coming out at the end of the year, pushed up from March 2012. I still had plenty of time, but I wondered if I would miss my deadline.

I am one of those writers who doesn’t discuss his work. My friends and family usually have no idea what I am working on. My friend, G, and my reader are the only people who know at any given time what I am doing.

Last Monday morning I was playing tennis with my friend, Franklyn Ajaye. Not only is Franklyn a good friend and tennis player, he is a very funny man. He is a stand up comic who has toured the world. Remember that famous seventies film Car Wash? Franklyn was the star of that film. He had a big ole Afro back then, ha,ha. This is Franklyn today:

Monday morning, as my time on the tennis court was coming to an end, I could feel a sense of dread coming over me. I was dreading going back home to my office to work on the same pages I’d been staring at for two weeks. That’s when I did something I don’t normally do. I said: “Hey man, I’ve been having a problem with something and I’d like to run it by you. Do you mind?”

I know Franklyn pretty well. I am certain he has no interest in YA paranormal romance. Yet he listened as though he was interested as I told him where I had been stuck, and how I thought I’d get out of it. He listened quietly. He told me he thought my solution to the problem was sound. And then he told me about his god daughter, whom he had been giving tennis lessons. He said he could see the same kind of self esteem issue my character was having in her.

I thanked him, went home and started re-outlining the rest of the book. I worked for two days on a new outline and have been churning out pages ever since. I keep coming up with new and exciting ideas to push the story along. I was behind schedule. Now, I am ahead of schedule. Most of what I have been working on has little to do with that conversation in the parking lot last Monday morning. And yet, since then I have been on fire. I’m not sure what triggered the inspiration. I think all it was was having someone to tell me my idea was okay. Sometimes that’s all we need to get ourselves going—a little validation. Thanks Franklyn.

If you’d like to check out some of his stand up, click on his name here: Franklyn Ajaye.

Peace.

The Key To Unleashing Your Humor--Thinking Crooked

2011-04-22T07:00:00.000-07:00

Bill Cosby has an old comedy album called To My Brother Russell Whom I Slept With. It’s about Bill and his brother, Russell, who not only shared a room when they were small, they shared a bed. Growing up, my brother and I loved this album, because the antics between the brothers sounded so much like us. For a short time, while we were waiting for new beds to arrive, we shared a bed—the pullout sofa. So the album had special meaning.

There’s a section in the album where the boys are jumping on the bed and break it. CRASH! Their father comes into the room and asks what happened, and Bill begins to lie. He tells a preposterous story of a man who came in through the window, jumped up and down on their bed, laughed at them and left.

Bill’s father asks “Do you know what happens to little boys who lie?” He tells a horrible, graphic tale of going to hell and burning. He again asks a now crying Bill to tell the truth, and through teary eyes Bill says: “A man came in the window…”

Bill Cosby understood that children lie. They lie even when it is apparent they are lying. They tell preposterous lies with straight faces that have us often wondering: “Where did I go wrong?” The idea of children lying to their parents isn’t funny. We want our children to tell the truth. Lying isn’t funny until Bill Cosby took the truth and bent it. He was doing what my early comedy teachers called thinking crooked.

Crooked thinking is looking at what is common place and relatable, and coming up with a funny angle. It’s funny to the reader because we recognize it.

So, how do we do this? How do we teach ourselves to think crooked? You need to become an observer. Like a poet, you must begin to notice the small things. Then you must find an odd angle. Crooked.

Small thing: as my father got older he made sounds like hmm when he was eating or reading the paper. Lots of older people do this. Sadly, I am starting to do it. It’s an observation. But it’s a relatable observation because our parents and grandparents do it, which means when I talk about it my audience can relate. How do I make it funny? I have a few ideas, but I’m not going to tell you. What are yours?

Another exercise is to look at photos around the house and mentally add captions—funny captions. At first these exercises will be hard to do. Your mind isn’t used to thinking crooked. But keep trying. Add these two exercises to your daily life, and before you know it you will have unleashed your humor and be thinking crooked just like Bill Cosby.

Next Week: POV

Dare To Be Funny

2011-04-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

When I was quite young, I heard an old joke that became one of my favorites. It goes like this:

A woman and her young son are strolling along the beach when a huge wave comes along and pulls the boy out to sea. A man standing nearby, who witnesses the event, springs into action. He dives into the ocean, swims against the current, and somehow is able to reach the child. He brings the child back safely, and presents him to his mother on the beach. The mother looks at her son and says to the man: “He had a hat.”

It’s probably a corny joke, but I’m smiling right now. What makes the joke work so well for me is the audacity of the mother. The man just saved her child, and she is not satisfied.

Many writers who don’t write humor on a regular basis have a fear of writing it. They feel they will either come off as corny, or not funny. Truth is, sometimes we’re not funny. Sometimes we are corny. But to successfully add humor to your work, you need to be like the mother in the joke, and have the audacity to dare to be funny.

This is your greatest challenge in writing humor. Have you ever written something in a manuscript, chuckled to yourself and then cut it, because you thought no one else would think it’s funny? Just as you have to believe in your prose, must also believe in your sense of humor. Every one of us has one.

When I was writing Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, I had my sense of humor turned way up. It was my first YA and I wanted to take advantage of what I thought was one of my greatest assets –my humor. Being a sitcom writer, I realized that some things I thought were funny were going to fall flat. However, some things I thought were cute were going to get big laughs. That’s exactly what happened. In readings, passages I thought were funny didn’t get so much as a chuckle, while other things I didn’t think were funny at all, got laughs. I knew I had achieved my goal when one reviewer called my little book “a laugh out loud debut novel.”

When a comedian goes on stage he has no idea from night-to-night what material is going to get a laugh. Some nights, things that have been sure-fire funny fall flat. That’s how it is with humor. It doesn’t work the same for every reader. But the beauty of injecting humor into your work is it adds balance. It adds color and depth, and can illuminate the most dramatic of moments. And it sets you apart from writers who are afraid to attempt it. So, if you want to step up your game as a writer, you must make the conscious effort to dare to add humor.

Next week: The Key To Unleashing Your Humor—Thinking Crooked

Adding Humor To Your Writing

2011-04-08T15:40:00.000-07:00

This is the first in a weekly series of posts on adding humor to your writing.

Humor Me

When I was a boy growing up in the Bronx I loved making my older brother laugh. I’d do anything: tell bad jokes, drizzle milk out of my nose, armpit farts, butt farts. I was a real laugh riot. However, as I got older I grew more serious… and at some point in time the farting stopped being funny.

I’d never thought of myself as a funny person. My early writing was dramatic, almost melodramatic. As an undergrad I’d read Hubert Selby Jr.’s Last Exit To Brooklyn, an epithet-filled tale of the horrors of living in 1950s Brooklyn. I decided these were the kinds of stories I wanted to tell. The difference is, I wanted to tell my stories about growing up in the hard-scrabble streets of the South Bronx.

I set out writing humorless tales about the underbelly of society. I gave one of my gut-wrenching tales to my brother, and as he read it he started to laugh. ”Hey, what’s so funny?” I demanded. “This,” he said pointing to the pages in his hand. I loved making my brother laugh. However, I did not like making him laugh when I wasn’t trying. I was insulted.

Fortunately for me, later in life I would learn why my story was so funny to him. It happened at a production of The Great White Hope. I had just moved to Los Angeles to attend graduate school. The Great White Hope is a play written by Howard Sackler about the life of Jack Johnson.

The night I attended the play, the actor playing Jack Johnson was in the midst of performing a gut-wrenching soliloquy, when the audience started to laugh. I was surprised. I didn’t hear anything funny, yet the laughter continued. In fact, it grew. Embarrassing. There was a famous director seated a few seats away from me. I heard him say “The audience needs a release.” I realized instantly what he was talking about. The audience was being bludgeoned by the weight of the material, and the actor’s melodramatic performance. They needed some relief from the drama. When relief wasn’t provided for them, they created their own.

It was in that moment in a darkened theater in the early 1980s I recognized the power of humor. I became a student of it. Since then I have gone on to work for one of America’s greatest living humorists, Bill Cosby. I wrote and produced The Cosby Show. I learned a lot from Mr. Cosby. I will share some of my lessons with you here. In the early 90s I had the pleasure of originating the humor course at USC’s graduate school of professional writing, also known as the prestigious MPW program.

Humor has served me well. My first YA novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, was a laugh-out-loud satire about high school life. In that first novel I wanted to prove to myself that I could be funny in prose as well as in a script. In my new novel, Boyfriend From Hell, there’s a good dose of humor, but it’s blended much better with action and drama. This time I am not trying to prove anything to myself. I am just trying to tell a good story.

Over the next few weeks I will share some of my lessons with you on how and when to add humor to your writing. If you think you are not funny, I will show how to find your funny bone. If you’re interested in learning more about adding humor to your writing, check back. Peace.

Next week: Dare to Be Funny

Sal Conte

2011-04-05T19:21:00.000-07:00

I want to introduce everyone who reads the blog to a new author. He is one of my favorite people. He is the author of the graphic horror novels, Child's Play and The Power... And he is me. You heard me right, I am 80s splatterpunk author, Sal Conte.

A little back story.

in 1980 when I was a student at USC, my greatest goal was to be published. I started my writing career by selling stories to romance and confession magazines. True Romance and True Confessions among others. How I chose confessions was, I wanted to be published, but I needed to get paid for writing fiction if I was going to give up my job and become a full time fiction writer. I'd read in a Writer's Digest article that the true stories in those magazines were indeed, fiction. I surmised that there were eight magazines publishing six to seven stories each a month. Most literary magazines publish one story a month, but with fifty or more opportunities available to be published in this genre, I figured my chances of getting published were greater.

I was right. I sold the second story I submitted, and soon became a regular contributor. The pay was a paltry $40-$150 for a story. I wrote two stories a week with the goal of earning $400 a month. Not every story sold.

Most of my reading at the time was horror--big time. Stephen King and Peter Straub were my faves. I read that King had started out by publishing horror short fiction in magazines aimed at men. So, emulating King, I started writing horror shorts. Again, I sold my second story. These paid far better, $350-$1000 per story.

I was happy. I was making more than $400 a month writing fiction, paying my way through college. I was a success. A professor of mine at USC (Shelly Lowenkopf) didn't think so. I had written the opening of a horror novel in his class, and he asked me what I was doing with the book. "Nothing," I responded. "I make four bills a month writing short fiction." I know, I had no vision.

He thought the book was terrific, and at his prompting I finished it. This was my first novel, Child's Play (not the Chuckie movies, which I love and wished I'd written, but no)

I decided to write under a pseudonym. Why I chose Sal Conte is a story for another post. You now know more about me than I thought you'd ever know. But here comes the big news. The books were published by Dorchester, under their Leisure Imprint. Last Friday I read about authors boycotting Dorchester because of what they were doing with their digital rights. "Wait a minute," I thought. "Sal's books (yes, I call him Sal, as if he's another guy) have digital rights that I own.

So here's my announcement. I am going to republish Child's Play and The Power as digital books available on the kindle and Nook for 99c. I am even starting work on a new Sal Conte novella. The Sal Conte books will come out after Boyfriend From Hell (which is coming in September, friends), in October or November.

I am not asking any of you to purchase them. I am sure I will get a few sales from 80s horror aficionados. I just thought it was high time you heard a bit more about my literary roots. So, there you have it.

Peace.

It's Over!

2011-04-04T20:57:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted since March Madness began. I posted twenty minutes before the start of the madness, and I am posting now, twenty minutes after. My friends cannot believe what a nut I am for the NCAA basketball tournament. I can't explain it. I am not this way about anything else. But once the tourney starts, it becomes my main focus. While I haven't been posting, I have been writing. Two weeks ago I received a galley copy of Boyfriend From Hell. I did quite a few edits, and I am turning it in tomorrow. This is good news for those of you who won ARCs. They should be available in the next month. I also turned in the first third of the Boyfriend from Hell sequel last week. See? I told you I was writing. It's not all b-ball for me, I have also been working. That's it for tonight. I will be posting again tomorrow with an announcement. Until then... Peace.

Twenty Minutes

2011-03-17T08:44:00.001-07:00

Yes. In twenty minutes I will disappear from the face of the earth into March Madness oblivion. Yesterday I completed what I hope is the final edit on Boyfriend From Hell (Chris, are ya listening?) I also wrote ten pages on the sequel, so I won't feel guilty watching basketball for the next four days. I also filled out my bracket. This year I chose Pittsburgh to win it all, although coming from New York, St. John's is my sentimental favorite.

For those of you who care about YA paranormal this seems like some silly guy activity. It is. And I love it. See you next week.

GuestPost: Tatiana El Khouri

2011-03-09T23:04:00.000-08:00

Today I am pleased to announce that my first guest post telling her Boyfriend From Hell story is my good friend Tatiana. Tatiana is not just my friend, she's also my web designer, a talented floral arranger and an artist who painted the cover art for my novella, I Want You Back! That's right, the cover for I Want You Back! is an oil painting. She's obviously an awesome person, and I am happy to have her as a friend. For more on what she's been up to go here: Creative Force Group.

I call Tatiana's dating story, Cyber Spy. Here's Tatiana:

Tati: I was fresh out of college and anxious to delve into the business world as an entrepreneur. I soon discovered that holding down a job and pursuing my own art business left me with little time to date. One day I was talking to a friend and fellow business owner who had a burgeoning empire and a pretty good dating life. "How do you do it?" I asked. "How do you pursue your goals and still find the time to meet guys?"

Her answer was: "Online dating."

The hopeless romantic in me tried clinging to the notion that the man of my dreams would come riding into my life on a white horse. No way did I see him emailing into my life over the internet. Yet, after a little convincing, I found myself setting up my online profile. I have to admit, I was actually surprised at the caliber of guys and the ease of the process.

One day I got a message from a user who seemed great on paper. Amazing education and a great job. Shortly afterward we started talking on the phone. To my surprise, the chemistry was great. We found ourselves finishing each others sentences. At night I would go to sleep exhausted from hours of great conversations that ranged from random trivia, to my favorite movies, all the way to politics. I was quite impressed! We even found out we had some of the same friends. There was an uncanny sense of comfort.

I was on cloud nine. Until he slipped.

We were talking late one night and he asked if I was going to a specific event. Well, I was. But how did he know? I never mentioned it to him. Nor had I ever mentioned that group of friends. For the first time, I got a creepy chill. I couldn't figure out how he knew about the event. I questioned it a little, and then I let it slide.

However, the more I thought about, the more it bothered me. So what did I do? The only thing a girl could do... I Confronted him!

After much stalling he finally admitted to doing a background check on me. He said he was worried I wasn’t who I said I was. Bull! He did a background so that he could be perfect for me. No wonder he was finishing all my sentences. He had collected a dossier on me. The chemistry was fixed. I felt so duped!

Needless to say, I stopped returning his calls and emails. I ran into him a few years later at a party. He looked familiar but I couldn’t place him, until he asked how my art and my house was. I walked straight away from him to my girlfriend that recommended online dating in first place, and sarcastically thanked her for giving me a great story to tell.

Thanks Tatiana for sharing your story. If any of you reading this would like to be a guest and share your dating horror story with me, leave your contact info in the comments. All guests will receive a beautiful I Survived A Boyfriend From Hell t-shirt just for participating.

Peace.

We Have A Winner!

2011-03-05T07:04:00.000-08:00

See that heart? That's the love I am feeling for all you guys. Thank you so much for participating in my cover contest. I had over 100 responses across four blogs. The responses varied from those of you who loved certain covers, to those who hated all of them. Everyone of your responses is important to me, and was seriously considered. One cover, however, had an overwhelmingly positive response. That response was reflected across all four blogs. So I am now announcing that the cover of my new novel, Boyfriend From Hell, will be this one:

This cover design was not my first choice, mainly because it's a cartoon cover, and I like photographs. But after reading your responses I have to agree that it will stand out in a crowd. I hope those of you who didn't choose this cover will still support the book. It's a good, fun, paranormal read.

The two winners of the prizes for this contest are: Lulilut (who I believe has also won at least one of my Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenges), and Pamela Kaye. You each win your choice of a Boyfriend From Hell ARC, or the lovely I Survived A Boyfriend From Hell t-shirt. Please send your prize preference and mailing address to me at info@evanlowe.com. The ARCs are not available yet, we are finishing up the final edit, so you will have to wait about a month or so. The t-shirts are available now.

Starting some time soon I will be having a series of guest posts from my friends and followers telling brief, humorous bad boyfriend experience stories. I have four guests lined up so far. If any of you would like to guest here and share your boyfriend experience please let me know in the comments. Leave your email, and I will tell you what you need to do. You don't have to limit it to boyfriends per se. It can be a bad date, a bad blind date, an idiot who annoyed you at a club, anything bad about a guy, but with a humorous spin. All guests whose stories I choose will receive the I Survived A Boyfriend From Hell tee just for participating.

Of course, all of these fun posts and contests are leading up to the publication of Boyfriend From Hell in September. Please, please, support the book.

I'd also like to send a special shout-out to the bloggers who helped out with the contest. Each of you will receive a t-shirt as a token of my appreciation. The bloggers are:

Velvet at VVB Reads

Dottie at Tink's Place

and Titania86 at Fishmuffins of Doom

Thanks again everyone, and stay tuned.

Peace

The Boyfriend From Hell Tee

2011-03-01T09:34:00.000-08:00

As you may recall, there is a prize choice for the cover contest. Either an ARC or a t-shirt. Here is a photo of the tee with the saying "I Survived A Boyfriend from Hell." They are really gorgeous feminine tees designed by my friend Tatiana of the Creative Force Group. The color is asphalt. Sized from women's sm-xl. I'm sure some of you have survived a boyfriend from hell. Why not flaunt it?

I'd like to thank everyone who has entered the contest so far. It looks like we have a winner as far as the cover goes. If you haven't yet entered you have until this Friday, March fourth. On Saturday I will draw two winners randomly and post them here. If you don't win this time, there will be more contests leading up to the publication of the book. Stay tuned.

Contest & Giveaway: Boyfriend From Hell

2011-02-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

I need your help in choosing the cover for my new novel, Boyfriend From Hell. To entice you into helping me, I am giving away some awesome swag. The contest is easy. All you need to do to qualify is look at the three covers below and tell me in the comments section which of the three covers you like best. Easy Peasy:

Cover #1

Cover #2

Cover #3

Here's an idea of what the book is about:

Have you ever had a boyfriend from hell?

You know the kind: guy who messes with your life so much he turns it into Swiss cheese. Or maybe he was the guy who followed you home like a lost puppy, then turned into the pit bull you couldn't get rid of, no matter how hard you tried. Or maybe he was abusive.

I'm sure we've all had a bad boyfriend or two (or girlfriend in my case). My new novel, Boyfriend From Hell, is about a boyfriend from hell--literally. It's a YA paranormal like Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, but I've cut back on the comedy a bit in this one. It's the story of Megan Barnett, the fifteen year-old daughter of a 39 year-old single mom, Suze. When Suze decides it's time she had a man in her life, Megan is not happy. With good reason:

"First off, if anyone in my family should be dating, it should be me. I'm primo dating age here. How's it going to look if my mother has a boyfriend and I don't?" So Megan and Suze both set out to meet boyfriends. That's when all hell breaks loose.

Prizes: ARCs (when they are available in April) or a tee shirt. 2 prizes in all.

Open to all.

Offer ends: March 4, 2011

TO DO:

Of the three book covers above, which do you like best?

Tell me the answer and leave your email address in comments. On March 5th I will hold a random drawing of all who left comments. There will be two winners who will receive their choice of an ARC or an I Survived A Boyfriend From Hell tee shirt. I will email the winners and post the winning cover design on the blog. (photo of the tee coming soon)

Thanks for your help.

Is It Soup Yet?

2011-02-21T19:58:00.000-08:00

That's a line from an old Campbell's soup commercial. The kid who calls out the line, runs into the house, and his mother proudly says "It's soup!" Which if you think about it is kinda dumb. It's not like she's been slaving over a hot stove all day. It's Campbell's soup for Chrissake. Open a can, pour in water, five minutes later, it's soup. Duh!

But I digress. I have been dying to see the first wave of book covers created by art director, Daniel Will-Harris, for my new novel, Boyfriend From Hell. And guess what? It's soup!

Yesterday my publisher sent me the covers. This evening he sent some revisions. I am very pleased. The question is, will you be pleased. I need your honest and unbiased feedback. And to coax you into giving me that feedback I will be revealing the covers on Friday along with a cover contest. ARCs and other goodies are promised. In the meantime, I am going to call on a few blogger friends with discriminating followers to see if they'd like to co-host this contest with me. If you'd like to co host let me know in the comments.

They say don't judge a book by it's cover, but we all do. Book covers are a very important first impression. Above is the awesome cover art for my first novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie. That cover helped me sell almost 40,000 books. If you haven't read it yet, I may be giving an autographed copy away in the contest as well.

Until Friday.

What?

2011-02-15T05:59:00.000-08:00

Before I get to the winner of this week's challenge a have a bit of a rant. Sorry, but you're just going to have to listen. I don't rant often.

Yesterday I got an email (that should have gone into my spam box) with this in the subject line: Looking For A Retirement Community?

Okay *deep breath* I was cool with all the Viagra spam, and the online "dating" spam, and even all the life insurance spam. But does anyone need spam that reminds them that maybe it's time to start looking for a retirement community? Okay, I'm OLD! I get it. I don't need spam from some twenty-five year old (I'm just guessing here) reminding me of it.

So, Dear Mister (or Miss) Spam Sender, First off let me thank you not only for your spam, but for all the spam that clogs up my inbox. I don't know what I'd do with all the time I spend deleting it. And since you asked, no, I am NOT looking for a retirement community. I have two or three more good productive years in me before I am ready to be put out to pasture. But If I was looking for a retirement community, I don't think one suggested to me by an unknown spammer would be the way to go. Okay?

Thanks for listening. And now for the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. This week's correct answer was: Bela Swan of Twilight, of course. I know, easy. This weeks winner is Dottie. Her blog is Tink's Place. Congratulations, Dottie, you will receive your $10 Amazon gift card later today.

I won't be hosting a challenge for the next few weeks because I'm putting together a few things around the new novel, Boyfriend From Hell. Stay tuned. I have some fun stuff and great contests coming soon. And if you happen to be looking for a retirement community for yourself or your parents, and you'd like a suggestion from somebody you don't know and have no idea of their taste, let me know and I will forward one to you.

Peace.

"I'll Have What She's Having"

2011-02-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

I think last week's challenge was too easy. Seven of you entered. Seven of you got it right. The correct answer is: "When Harry Met Sally." The line was uttered by a woman in the restaurant who happens to be Rob Reiner's mother, Estelle Reiner.

While everyone got it right, there can only be one winner. This week's winner is Kryskat. Congratulations Kryskat! Your $10 Amazon gift card will be emailed to you later today.

I was a bit disappointed with the turnout, but want to thank all of you who participated. I hope you'll play again this week, and perhaps tell a friend or two about our little trivia challenge. You can cut and paste the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge button onto your blogs or websites. That might help get the word out. If you'd like me to send it to you as a jpeg, I can do that as well. Just ask.

And now for this week's challenge. This week I am doing weird romantic. My definition of weird romantic is the movie I choose will be paranormal in nature and have a romance in it. Beetlejuice Would be a weird romantic movie. Okay? The Challenge:

In what weird romantic movie did a character say: "I've never given much thought to how I would die?"

That's it. I think it's an easy one, too, but maybe not. The winner will receive a $10 Amazon gift card. You don't need to get your answers in today. You have until Sunday February 13th. I will do a drawing of all the correct answers on Monday, Valentine's Day, and post the winner here next Tuesday. If you're not sure how to play, read what follows:

There are a few things you will need to do to qualify to win, and they are:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge.
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.

Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, you must do four things to win.

Good luck.

Squirrel Impossible!

2011-02-03T17:54:00.000-08:00

This has nothing to do with writing, or reading, or books, or my life. A friend sent it to me and I thought it was pretty darn cute. And when we writer's are procrastinating writing, we look for things that tickle our fancy. This is the copy in the email I got. Read the copy, push the button, and maybe it'll tickle you, too:

This takes place in deepest East Texas, near Lovelady. The owner of the yard added each piece of the Rube Goldberg contraption slowly so that when the squirrel learned one section and got the nuts, they added another section.

Finally, it ended with what you see on the video! It took over two-weeks to get to this point.

Darn, those East Texas squirrels are something else.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge #6

2011-02-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

We haven't had a trivia challenge in a while. I've been hard at work on the edit of my new book that comes out in September. But with Valentine's Day so near I thought it would be fun to have a Sweetheart's Challenge. So this week and next I will be hosting challenges in which the films will be romantic in nature.

While we call it the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge, you don't have to enter today. You have 6 days to enter. The drawing closes Sunday evening. So everyone has plenty of time to come up with a good answer. But just one entry per person will be accepted. The winner will receive a free $10 Amazon gift card. On Monday I will draw a winner from all the correct answers, and post the winner here next Tuesday.

I'd also like for everyone who enters (or even if you don't enter) to tell me the name of a favorite romantic comedy. I added some great Christmas movies to my Christmas queue because so many of you generously shared your faves. I LOVE romantic comedies, so I'd like to see if there are some good ones I've missed.

And now for the challenge:

In what famous romantic comedy did a character say: "I'll have what she's having."

And who was the character?

You have to answer both questions correctly to win.

As a reminder, and for those of you new to the challenge, there are a few things you will need to do to qualify to win, and they are:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge.
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge.

Do 1 +3,4&5, or 2 +3 ,4&5 and you are entered to win. Remember, you must do four things to win.

Good luck. And don't forget to share a favorite romantic comedy with me.

It Starts!

2011-01-18T20:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I met with my new publisher. That's right, not my agent, or my editor, but my publisher. One of the advantages of being with a small press is you get to hang out with the big wigs. Over a light lunch we discussed the rewrite of my up-coming novel, Boyfriend From Hell.

As I drove to the meeting a feeling of dread came over me. I kept thinking he was going to tell me he'd changed his mind about publishing me. He'd had the holidays to think about it, and had invited me to lunch to give me the bad news. Even though I knew this was my paranoia kicking in, I couldn't stop thinking it.

When I got to The Spitfire Grill (that's the real name) he was already seated. He greeted me with a warm handshake, and said he was hungry. He hasn't mentioned my book. Uh-oh. My paranoia was suddenly turned way up.

After some small talk he pulled out a folder, removed some pages and proceeded to give me a few notes. *Big sigh of relief*

After several minutes of note taking, I said "So, we're good?"

He looked up a bit puzzled. "Yes. Of course."

"You still want to publish my book?"

"Yes. I'm very excited about it. I was wondering how you were going to feel getting notes from me."

At that point I was thinking: "If you're not firing me, you can give me all the notes you want." I also think that's when I relaxed and ordered a beer.

And so it starts. The rewriting process. The novel is still scheduled to come out in September. He even told me his graphic artist was reading the manuscript to get some ideas on cover art. You may recall I mentioned in an earlier post I'd be having a cover contest. I think we're going to get to see four covers, and you (along with me) are going to weigh in on which cover you think would make someone actually want to purchase the book. I'm not sure what the contest or prize will be. Something cool for sure.

The four book covers in the photo above are rejected cover choices for my first novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie. I saw the covers on Irene Gallo's website, art director for Tor, Forge and Starscape Books. I got news of the covers after Tor (my publisher) had chosen the one currently on the book. Now don't get me wrong. I think they made the right choice. I LOVE my book cover. But wouldn't it have been cool if I could have been included in the process? That's what's going to happen with my new publisher. I will have a hand in the process, and I will share that hand with you. WE will be the art department. I love it!

Okay, enough rambling. Gotta get to work. The rewriting process begins today. Stay tuned.

What's That I Smell?

2011-01-13T12:46:00.000-08:00

... Oh, yeah. It's the winds of change.

A few days ago I read in the Los Angeles Times that The Mystery Book Store in Westwood will be closing at the end of the month. This is the last bookstore in Westwood, aside from the one at UCLA. While I didn't frequent the store, it is always sad to see book stores disappear.

Last week I had to make a doctors visit in Encino. I drove out early because whenever I am in Encino I stop by the big Barnes & Noble on Hayvenhurst. It's a great store, with the largest and most well stocked children's section I have ever seen. Their YA section is unbelievable. I drove into the outdoor mall parking lot and was surprised to find so many open spaces. That was unusual. But what was even more unusual is the Barnes & Noble was GONE. A big, hulking empty structure stood before me. It was like the book store equivalent of a ghost town.

Borders is in trouble as well. They are trying to cut a deal with publishers to accept notes in exchange for the money they owe them. Some of the money they owe the publishers goes to pay us--uh oh!

Truth is, it's a new day, people. A while ago I read the book Hit Men by Fredric Dannen, about the music industry. I was surprised to discover that when record albums came along the music industry didn't like them very much. They didn't like it when CDs came along either, even though, as it turned out, both record albums and CDs grew sales. When Television came along the movie industry feared it. But TV went on to help grow and promote the film business. To this day the biggest way films are promoted is on TV. If there was no TV, the film business would probably have died a long time ago.

Fast forward to when MP3s came along. The music industry fought them vehemently. And now the music business is in free fall. You see where I'm going with this? Change is inevitable. There is always a downside to change, but the more we resist it, the more it winds up biting us on the butt down the road. What we need to do with any change in our lives is figure out how to make it work for us--or at least coexist with it.

I grew up hanging out in libraries and staring in the windows of bookstores wishing I had enough money to buy a book. I loved book stores. I still do. But change is in the air. The internet is fast becoming a new generation's book store. I'm not saying give up on the old. I will always love book stores. But it is time to embrace the new.

We are readers and writers. The good news for us as readers is books aren't going away. In fact, even more books are being offered to us, at lower prices. And yes, there is even more crap out there, but there are amazing gems out there today as well, gems that we would not have been exposed to in the old model. As writers there is also good news. Books aren't going away. There are now more opportunities for us to connect with readers than ever before. We just need to figure out how.

I was very nervous a few months ago when I made my deal with White Whisker (an independent publisher) for Boyfriend From Hell. I wondered if people would think: "This one is with an independent because it isn't any good?" But that was my fear of change talking. So today I am going to be fearless. I am sniffing the scent of change, and you know what? It is sweet.

What are your feelings about the changes in publishing?

The Purple Couch--Update

2011-01-10T11:26:00.000-08:00

The Purple Couch is hitting the streets.

Last Tuesday I told you about Michael and Cheryl Johnson's wonderful project, The Purple Couch: stories from America's living room. I have an update. My uber agent, Jim Kellem, set a meeting for Michael, Cheryl and me to screen the presentation for Discovery Studios. We screened it for them, and guess what? They loved it! They want to take it into OWN--Oprah's new network.

This gives me a great deal of relief, because that is where Cheryl felt it belonged in the first place. So, step one is accomplished--we have a studio partner. In TV you need a studio AND a network. Simply put, studios make stuff, networks show stuff. Now we need to screen it for the network, and for them to like it.

Discovery wants to do a a tiny edit to the presentation before taking it in to OWN. Hopefully that will happen this week. Keep your fingers and toes crossed. Michael and Cheryl have worked so hard on this. This is not something that just came off the top of their heads. It's a project that has gone through a lot of development. Wouldn't it be neat to help make their dream come true and see them get their show on national television? I know the answer to that--YES!

If you haven't seen The Purple Couch trailer and would like to watch it, click: HERE. I'd love to hear what you think. And I have a special bonus. If you'd like to check out a very sweet story straight from the couch click on: Amanda's Story.

Stay tuned.

The Purple Couch

2011-01-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

I am a story junkie.

It’s true. But as writers and readers, aren’t we all story junkies? Everyone loves a good story. One that makes them laugh, or moves them to tears, or makes them think. That’s why we read; that’s why we write. We love stories.

Okay, so here’s my story about how I got involved with The Purple Couch. What is The Purple Couch? You’ll have to read my little story to find out:

About a month ago I got a call from my friend, Bruce Jones, telling me about a project he had been working on. It was a platform for telling stories. Bruce wanted to know if I could help the creators get the project on TV. Now Bruce knows I’m a story junkie, so he dangled just enough carrot for me to say: “Send it to me, and I’ll give it a look.”

Several days later a DVD arrived. It was a simple concept: A purple couch shows up on your street, in your mall, on the beach, at your school, and invites you to sit down and share a brief story about a defining moment in your life. Simple enough, right?

I popped in the DVD, watched the man sitting on the couch telling his story, and was moved to tears. I thought: “What a terrific story.” In days Bruce set up a conference call for me to meet the creators, Michael and Cheryl Johnson, over the phone. Yesterday they came to up LA, and over burgers I met them in person. They are sweet, kind, thoughtful. Not your typical TV producers. I fell in love with them instantly. I even love their log line: One Couch, Many Voices: stories from America’s Living Room.

Please click on the link (The Purple Couch Trailer) and check out the beautiful trailer they put together for the show, and let me know what you think.

I can’t wait to share some of these stories with you. So over the next few weeks I may post a video clip or two, along with a progress report on our journey to TV.

I have a lot to share with you this year, what with Boyfriend From Hell being published, the Never Slow Dance With A Zombie movie progress, and now this.

There’s an old saying that everyone has at least one great story in them. With The Purple Couch you are going to hear some of those wonderful stories being told.

My New Year's News

2010-12-31T11:00:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had a boyfriend from hell?

You know the kind: guy who messes with your life so much he turns it into Swiss cheese. Or maybe he was the guy who followed you home like a lost puppy, then turned into the pit bull you couldn't get rid of, no matter how hard you tried. Or maybe he was abusive.

I'm sure we've all had a bad boyfriend or two (or girlfriend in my case). My new novel, Boyfriend From Hell, is about a boyfriend from hell--literally. It's a YA paranormal like Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, but I've cut back on the comedy a bit in this one. It's the story of Megan Barnett, the fifteen year-old daughter of a 39 year-old single mom, Suze. When Suze decides it's time she had a man in her life, Megan is not happy. With good reason:

"First off, if anyone in my family should be dating, it should be me. I'm primo dating age here. How's it going to look if my mother has a boyfriend and I don't?" So Megan and Suze both set out to meet boyfriends. That's when all hell breaks loose.

I am so excited about my new book. My publisher is an old friend, author Christopher Meeks, who started White Whiskers Books several years ago to get his own work out, and wound up becoming a small indy publisher. If you'd like to know a little about White Whiskers Books and self publishing, click on the link.

My novel is one of three they have coming out this year. And I am WW's first YA. What makes this so exciting for me is all the attention I will be getting by being with an independent. This attention will bring me closer to you. to kick things off, WW plans to have a contest on the cover design. This means you guys get to help choose the design for the cover art on the book. I'd like to bring you all along for the entire ride right up to publication. If my new book is going to be a success I am going to need your help, so I hope you will come along.

I will also have a much better touring schedule than I did with NSDWAZ. This time I will be traveling around the country. Many more stops than with my last novel. If you'd like me to make a stop at book store or school in your town, just drop me an email at info@evanlowe.com. I will do my best to be there.

More news to come soon, maybe a chapter or an excerpt or two, and definitely some contests and ARC giveaways. If you'd like to host a contest, or have ideas for contests or giveaways please let me know.

Boyfriend From Hell is set to hit stores and kindles September 2011. I know that's a long ways off, but what with editing and all the other things that go into publishing a book that time will fly by.

What a great start for my new year, huh? Hope yours starts out just as well. Happy New Year, and thanks for your support.

E

Christmas Challenge Winner!

2010-12-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hi there! I hope everyone had a rad Christmas. I did. I got an ipad. Yowzah! And, of course, I watched lots of Christmas movies. I saw The Bishop's Wife for the first time, which was a recommendation by Dawn G. Thanks, Dawn. I caught it on TCM on Christmas Eve. It was delightful. Although, I have to admit I laughed out loud when the angel, Dudley, kept refilling the professor's liquor bottle. I thought "This angel is trying to turn the professor into an alcoholic." Aside from that I really enjoyed it, and will be adding it to my list.

Hi Samantha. Thanks for suggesting Love Actually. I really do love that movie. When I saw your suggestion I went to pull it out. I thought I owned it, but looked all over on Christmas Eve and couldn't find it. It's now on my "to purchase" list. Lisa suggested Christmas Vacation. That's already on my list. Both my son and I love that one. And my old friend Dubin suggested Reefer Madness and Freaks. Hmm. Okay, Dube, I really don't know what to say about those choices. I guess all I can say is, Merry Christmas.

Thanks everyone for the movie choices. I didn't mention them all, but they were all good... well, almost all of them (Dube). I hope you had a great holiday. Did I mention I got an ipad? Yowzah!

And now for the contest. Everyone got it right: The correct answer is: Four Christmases. If this movie is not on your Christmas movie list, you need to add it. It is sweet and very funny. The winner of the contest is Linda at Lulilut's Stack O Books. Congratulations, Linda. Your $25 Amazon gift card will be emailed later today.

I want to thank everyone for participating, and please remember to check back on New Year's Eve when I announce my new YA coming out next year. There will be a number of contests and ARC giveaways as I head toward production. I am extra excited about sharing my new book with you. I think you are going to love it. So check back on the 31st, and hear more. I want you all along on my road to publication.

Thanks again for playing the Christmas Challenge. If you are a movie buff, There will be more Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenges next year. Stay tuned.

E's Christmas Movie Trivia Challenge

2010-12-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. Yesterday was Tuesday. I've been side-tracked with the holidays. I thought of not doing this contest, but I love Christmas. I also love Christmas movies, and wanted to share some of that love with you. Those of you who know me know I have a Christmas Eve tradition of screening my favorite Christmas movie, Die Hard. For more on my Die Hard contest post go here.

Anyway, in honor of the holiday I am hosting a Christmas Movie Trivia Challenge. It's just like the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge with the exception that the quote will be from a popular Christmas movie.

The movie I have selected is one of my recent favorites. And the winner of this contest will win a $25 Amazon gift card. I'm sure twenty-five bucks can come in handy this time of year.

I'd like everyone who enters (or even if you don't enter) to do me a favor and share the title of one of your favorite Christmas movies. It might be one that's not on my list. Just leave it in the comments.

And now for the quote: In what recent Christmas movie did one of the stars say: "They just saw us on the news!"

I know it's the holidays, but I sure would like a number of you to respond. If you don't know the answer--guess. You have until Saturday, Christmas day to come up with an answer. And if you don't want to play, at least leave the name of a Christmas movie fave in the comments. I will post the winner here next Tuesday. The rules are the same as the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. If you are new and don't know the rules, they are in the Die Hard post here.

Thank you so much for following my blog. And stay tuned, on New Year's Eve I'm going to announce my new novel coming out next year. Happy Holidays.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like...

2010-12-08T19:36:00.000-08:00

I hate snow.

With the holidays upon us I realize that's a lousy way to begin a post, so let explain. I love a fresh snowfall. I love watching big, puffy flakes fall from the sky, and catching them on my tongue. I love going for a walk in a fresh snow, feeling it gently crunch beneath my feet. I love looking out my window right after a snowfall, when everything as far as the eye can see is covered in white, and the world seems somehow smaller, and oh, so peaceful.

But I am from New York City, where a fresh snowfall lasts about five minutes. In Manhattan it disappears just about that fast. However, in the outer boroughs, where I am from (The Bronx) the snow lingers. Almost instantly it turns an ugly shade of gray as automobiles cover it with a light patina of soot. From there it turns into a crusty brown fugue that pools up into ice banks at the curbs and between parked cars, and can lurk there like a derelict until spring.

I hate that stuff.

I also don't like cold weather. I was born in the summer and that is my favorite time of year. If I had a choice between ninety degree sweltering heat and seventeen degree frigid cold, gimme da heat. That's just how I am wired.

The only time I long for a snowfall, or a frosty winter's day is during the holidays. Ah, but there's the rub. A long time ago my son and I escaped New York for Southern California. We love it here. But anyone from the east or Midwest knows Christmas out here just isn't the same.

Out here, December twenty-fifth looks a lot like June twenty-fifth, or March twenty-fifth for that matter. Yes, the shops are decorated, wreaths are hung, Black Friday is still a shopping nightmare, and holiday lights abound. But when it's seventy-five degrees, or even eighty, hot apple cider just doesn't go down the same. Southern California has many advantages, but this time of year SC sucks.

All across the nation it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. On my block, it looks a lot like it always does. *sigh* Guess I'll have a Corona and go for a swim. Ho, ho, ho.

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge

2010-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

It's Thanksgiving week, so I am going to get right to the contest.

The correct answer to last week's challenge is: Mean Girls. Six of you got it right. But there's only one winner and the winner of last week's Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge is Lisa at the Hair Today Gone Tomorrow blog. Congratulations, Lisa. Your $10 Amazon gift card will be emailed to you shortly.

As I mentioned last week the game will be going on hiatus for the rest of the year. But please keep checking in. I have some exciting news about the publication of my next novel, and there will be a Holiday Trivia contest closer to Christmas. So stay tuned.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends. Keep reading, and don't eat too much turkey ;-)

Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge #5

2010-11-16T06:00:00.000-08:00

This past week I had the pleasure of hosting a guest post and contest for my friend and former student, author, Ilie Ruby. I’d like to thank those of you who participated for your comments. We loved hearing from you. As you know, I am giving away a free autographed copy of Ruby’s debut novel, The Language of Trees. Drum roll, please.

Badump, badump… Okay, I don’t know how to do a drum roll. Why don’t I just announce the winner. The winner is Juliana. Congratulations, Juliana. I will send you an email shortly to get your mailing info. The rest of you, go out and buy the book. It’s a really beautiful story. You can get it HERE.

And now for the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge. This will be the last week of the contest for a while. Entries are down and the holidays are coming up. I Plan to hold a special Holiday trivia drawing around Christmas. The line will be from a holiday themed movie, so bone up on your holiday flicks people. I will pick-up the regular contest some time early next year.

The correct answer for this week’s challenge is: Pulp Fiction. There were three correct answers, but just one winner. The winner is Elizabeth at the Fishmufins Of Doom blog. Congratulations, Elizabeth. Your $10 dollar Amazon gift card will arrive by email shortly.
And now for this week’s challenge:

In what recent (last 10 years) film did a character say: “It’s like I have ESPN. My breasts can always tell when it’s going to rain.”

Obviously it’s a comedy. That line is funny all by itself.

Each week's winner will receive a free $10.00 Amazon gift card. And you don't have to be first to win. You also don't have to know the answer on Tuesday. You have until Saturday to come up with your answer. Every correct answer will be included in the drawing. On the Sunday following the challenge I will put all the correct answers in a hat, and draw the winner to be posted on Tuesday. It's that simple.If you forgot the rules, or are playing for the first time the rules are below:

1) Be a registered follower of this blog or
2) ...follow me at http://www.evanlowe.com/
3) leave a comment on this blog in the comment section on any of my posts anytime during the week of the current challenge.
4) send your answer to me at info@evanlowe.com
5)mention the Hollyweird Tuesday Trivia Challenge either on your blog or in a tweet the week of the current challenge. Meaning, each week you compete, you'll have to give me my props.

Do 1 +3+4&5, or 2 +3 +4&5 and you are entered to win. Winners will receive a free $10 Amazon gift card. If you need more details check an earlier blog post.

Have a great week. And good luck!

Smart Heart Photos

2010-11-14T16:46:00.000-08:00

Springerdoodles waiting to get sprung

Ilie's daughter sleeps with the dogs

Guest Post: Author, Ilie Ruby

2010-11-12T05:00:00.000-08:00

Ilie Ruby was a student of mine when I taught the humor writing class for graduate students in the USC Professional Writing Program. Now she is an author. Bravo! Her magical debut novel, The Language of Trees, (Avon/Harper Collins) is in stores now. Join me in welcoming Ilie to the world of authors and to my blog.

THE SMART HEART

On a blustery fall day nearly two years ago, weeks after my two daughters and one son were adopted from Ethiopia, our two wild furry springerdoodles escaped. This was the 5th escape in a month. I had caught them at several failed attempts, trying to escape in three ways: 1) by standing on the patio furniture and jumping over the fence, 2) by knocking down the slats of the fence, and 3) by burrowing under the fence.

We had a routine when one of these three things happened. My eldest daughter and I first called the dogs. Of course, they never came. Then we’d get in the car and I’d call the local police to see if anyone had called in with news of two wild wandering dogs that resembled hyperactive sheep. Finally, we’d drive around the neighborhood shouting the dogs' names and interrogating every jogger and friendly-looking dog person out for an innocent stroll.

In time, we always found the dogs. Once the police said they were weaving in and out of traffic on a main road near our house. Miraculously, they were never harmed. It seemed that as with Moses and his Red Sea, traffic parted for our dogs. My earnest husband, a self-confessed failed handyman, secured the fences after every escape. He did his best. He used a variety of interesting and exotic pieces of wiring, species of duct tape, and other various fence-related equipment that he bought from emergency trips to Home Depot. Still the dogs outwitted us and found their way out.

But on this day, when my daughter and I discovered them missing, something felt different. We shouted and shouted. We ran up and down our street. Then we jumped in the car and I picked up my phone, ready to call the police. My daughter put her hand on my arm and said, "No mom. Wait. Just stay here and the dogs will come. I know how to do it."

I decided to see what would happen. Somehow I believed her.

She closed her eyes and called the dogs one more time. Not loudly, but in the most calm and centered little voice. And then, somehow, from out of nowhere, the dogs came running. One from up the street. The other from out of the woods. They had never done this before. How could she, after only 7 weeks in America, have managed to call the dogs home?

"See?" teased my daughter, as we dragged the dogs inside, her eyes sparkling with pride.

We fed the dogs and sent them to bed in their crates. When I put her to sleep that night and she nuzzled into my neck, I asked my daughter how she knew she how to do it.

"My heart said stay here and call the dogs. My stomach said to go in the car. I listened to my heart."

I was awestruck. How many of us struggle to access our intuition and even more, to articulate it? My then 8-year old daughter knew to trust herself, and she was already more connected to her new home, our furry wanton pets, and to me, than I ever imagined possible in such a short period of time.

“I think you have a very smart heart,” I said.

“I know,” she said. “You, too. That is how you found me and I found you.”

The Language of Trees (Avon HarperCollins August 2010) is a story about healing, second chances, and how far we will go to protect the ones we love. Ruby lives near Boston and is at work on her second novel. Click the link to join Ilie on Facebook.

CONTEST

If you'd like to win an autographed copy of The Language of Trees, just leave a comment here for Ilie to be eligible to win. I am giving away one free copy. This contest is available world-wide. I will do a drawing on Monday, and post the winner on Trivia Tuesday.