Jennifer-Crystal Johnson is originally from Germany, but was raised an Army brat. She has published one novella under her former last name, The Outside Girl: Perception is Reality (Publish America, 2005 – out of print as of 2013), a poetry book, Napkin Poetry (Broken Publications, 2010), and a collection of poetry, art, and prose called Strangers with Familiar Faces (Broken Publications, 2011). She’s also published a collection of short creature horror stories called If You’re Human Don’t Open the Door (Broken Publications, 2012), a personal development book called The Ten Pillars of a Happy Relationship (Broken Publications, 2014), and a collection of more horror stories (no creatures this time, just people) called Our Capacity for Evil (Broken Publications, 2015). She has several poems and short stories published on Every Writer’s Resource and has recently published a science fiction novel called Fibers, the first book in the Infiltration Trilogy. Jen owns and operates Broken Publications (www.BrokenPublications.com) and publishes an annual anthology to raise awareness about domestic violence called Soul Vomit (www.SoulVomit.com). When she isn’t writing or editing, she enjoys playing games with her three kids, watching crime shows on Netflix, or reading. She lives in WA State with her three children, three cats, and a crazy puppy named Thor. You can connect with her at , , or
BLURB:
Fibers; GENRE: Science Fiction
Anna Reynolds is caught up in the middle of a secret interdimensional government agreement… and she doesn’t even know it.
There’s a medical anomaly loosely dubbed Morgellons disease afflicting a number of people. Symptoms include open sores that produce colorful string-like fibers, fatigue, and nightmarish visions of shadowy figures. No one knows where it came from. No one knows what causes it. There is no cure.
When Anna begins having nightmares and waking hallucinations of the shadow people, her uneasiness about her condition grows. Enlisting the help of her doctor and some friends, Anna is determined to find out what’s really going on and why Morgellons is such a mystery.
With her health declining and doubts about whom she can trust, is Anna doomed to become a slave to her condition? Or will she and her unlikely group of would-be heroes come through, saving her… and, ultimately, the world?
Excerpt:
As Anna walked home through the glistening streets of Deeplake, Washington, she adjusted her scarf and wrapped her coat around herself tightly, her breath fogging up the air in front of her. After a brief glance over her shoulder, she quickened her pace, her bag of groceries teetering in her arms momentarily as she readjusted her grip.
She’d been feeling like someone was watching or following her for weeks. At first she just shrugged it off as her own overactive imagination, but the other day, she could’ve sworn she saw a shadow out of the corner of her eye. When she looked, there was nothing there. That wasn’t the first time she had seen shadows. They were always there, just out of sight, their existence never confirmed by a direct glance. But every time it happened, she got goosebumps and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end like it does when you know someone is watching you.
Her left eye began to feel itchy and grainy as she walked, and she cursed herself for not driving. She blinked several times, but after a few moments her eye felt like it had sand in it again. This was accompanied by an unpleasant tickling sensation, which became annoying very quickly.
Her thoughts wandered as her eye got worse. She felt guilty but justified for not mentioning her problems to Casey, who had more than enough on her plate already. She also didn’t want to come across as crazy; Anna was certain she wasn’t. Some of the recent events in her life were crazy, but she was definitely sane.
Hey everybody! I want to take this time to introduce you to emerging author Jason Pere, and his new book called Calling the Reaper.
Jason will be awarding 1 print copy of Calling the Reaper,(international winner) or 2 ebooks (one of Calling the Reaper and the second winner’s choice) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Jason Pere is a born-and-raised New Englander. He always had a passion for the arts and creative storytelling. At the age of thirteen, Jason took up the craft of acting for film and theater. He pursued that interest for over a decade until refocusing his medium of expression into writing.
At first, Jason took a causal interest in writing, starting with poetry and journaling. Over time, he honed his direction and finally began writing larger works. In November of 2012, Jason self-published his first book, Modern Knighthood: Diary of a Warrior Poet.
Since then, Jason has continued writing on his own, mostly short stories and poetry. Calling the Reaper was his first experience committing to a full-length Fiction title.
In early 2015, Jason became affiliated with Collaborative Writing Challenge (CWC). Since then, he has joined many other writers on numerous collaborative projects. Jason is a regular contributor to CWC and is scheduled to have multiple pieces of his work appear in their publications throughout 2016.
Jason also writes fanfiction for Team Covenant on their Blog of the Pheonixborn, dedicated to the new game by Plaid Hat Games, ‘Ashes’. Go to http://teamcovenant.com/ashesonline/ to read Jason’s flash fiction work.
BLURB:
Calling the Reaper; GENRE: Dark Fantasy
The time of the Unity has ended. Now, the realm of man is stranded between Paradise and Purgatory. The Valkyrie and Reaper battle over the fate of all who pass from the land of the living and into the afterlife.
Eight mortal spirits from vastly different worlds tread the same, inevitable path toward their last, crucial decision. Within them all exists the defining conflict every man must face—to look upon the end of their life with glory and honor, or to give credence to their baser longings, calling the Reaper to their own demise.
In this rich, harrowing tale of pride, deceit, honor, vengeance, and redemption, each individual must battle their inner turmoil, facing the sacrifices they have made before their unavoidable end in the land of the living.
But their last day in life is also their first day of death amidst the terrors of the underworld. Lord Master Death wants them all…and the real battle has only just begun.
It was said he could not be defeated. It was said he had slain over ten thousand warriors. It was said he had lived for nine hundred years and would live for nine hundred more. It was said that his father was the strike of lightning and his mother the winter’s frost, that he traded his spirit to a demon for the strength of twenty men. It was said his blades were forged from the teeth of dragons and his armor fashioned from the bones of giants.
No one knew how much was myth and how much truth save for this: he was the Fist of the Shogunate, the finest of warriors and the most brutal of killers. His thirst for blood and glory was unquenchable. His name was Kenji Rei.
In the final days of autumn, the air was filled with the crisp bite of the coming winter. The Emperor’s court found itself covered in the shadow of falling leaves and petals as the morning wind stripped the trees bare. Two men stood before an audience of some of the most prestigious men in the empire, including the Emperor himself.
The first man was a formidable bladesman of impressive lineage. Hoshi Okami was regarded far and wide as the pride of the Kobiko Dojo, the oldest and most exclusive school in all the empire. It admitted no more than four new students a year. Those Kobiko students were all remarkably gifted and skilled warriors in their own right, and they required not only one but two letters of recommendation from the most venerable Senseis in the empire before they could even petition for admittance.
Above any living practitioner, and arguably any practitioner of the Kobiko art who had ever lived, Hoshi Okami stood a paragon of the way of the warrior. To date, he had never declined a challenge and had fought precisely two hundred and eleven duels, winning each and every one of them. He was about to fight his two hundred and twelfth. Hoshi Okami currently served as the bodyguard and principle advisor to General Aiko Mastay. Okami’s opponent, and the second man before the gathered audience, was Kenji Rei, personal champion of the Shogun and Fist of the Shogunate.
L.K. Scott is a #1 Bestselling Amazon author. As a horror and mystery writer he has always had a taste for the macabre and the mysterious. In addition to his writing he has a BA in film and has written, directed, and produced over a dozen films. Born in Sunnyside, Washington, L.K. Scott now lives in Solvang, California with his partner Seth, where they enjoy surfing, traveling, and wine tasting. When he’s not writing you can find him tending to his garden of endangered and exotic plants, or hunting down the best Mexican food around.
And visit his website Dreadful Notions https://dreadfulnotions.wordpress.com to discuss horror writing tips, and to share and promote your own work! (A few of his articles have been reblogged here)
For a list of his books to purchase, please visit his Amazon Author page
Author Q&A
Will you ever write another mystery featuring Eric De la Cruz?
I don’t have any stories for Eric at this time, no. But who knows? Tomorrow I may wake up with a great idea he’d be perfect for. I’d like to write at least one more. A sort of mystery/comedy like She Tried the Window.
Penny Holloway, one of your supporting characters from She Tried the Window recently re-appeared in your short story, Murder After Sunset. Can we expect a series from her? If so, what makes her different from Eric De la Cruz?
Penny Holloway has an interesting, underprivileged life, but she’s so passionate about adventure. I’d love to write a series featuring her as the protagonist as she adventures around the world solving mysteries and uncovering sacred objects. Maybe something like Carmen Sandiego or Tomb Raider. She’s different from Eric in many ways. Penny, unlike Eric, is more rational and thoughtful. She’s clever and witty and sexy where as Eric is an asshole, a little spoiled, and opinionated. Eric is an angry, horny, whirlwind of drugs and drama, Penny is a calming ocean breeze. They couldn’t be more different.
How closely related is your novel Massacre’ade Party to your real life?
The events of Massacre’ade Party was actually inspired by a true story. I had witnessed a crime one night while Gogo dancing except at the time I didn’t know it was a crime. It wasn’t until the following morning when my friend received a telephone call from the police station that I realized I had seen something peculiar. I remember knowing I had seen something strange, but I wasn’t sure precisely what was strange about it. Everything else in the novel was just a crazy exaggeration of actual events.
You were actually a Gogo Boy in West Hollywood?
Back when I was younger and in the best shape of my life I worked as a Gogo dancer all over Southern California to help pay for college, which opened up a lot of doors for me. I was even voted Top Male Model two years in a row for a couture clothing company.
In 2015 your novel caused a bit of controversy. Do you believe this had a negative impact on your success?
Actually quite the opposite. When word got out I was doing a book signing in a small conservative town, a group of conservative bible thumpers tried to protest because my novel featured a gay character engaging in sexually devious acts with other males, including, but not limited to, drug and alcohol abuse. The amount of support I received to combat those haters was tremendous. I don’t know if I would’ve made it to the Bestseller list without them.
Do you prefer writing horror or mystery?
That’s a tough one. They’re not totally different, they function best hand in hand. I think I prefer writing and reading horror, though I think mystery tends to be a bit more creative and witty. I do love them both but my favorite changes between them day to day.
What are some of your favorite horror and mystery novels?
Horror:
The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
We’ve Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
Bag of Bones by Stephen King
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
The Machinery of Night by Douglas Clegg
Mystery:
The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Death of a Party by Carolyn Hart
Who are your greatest influences when writing?
My late grandmother, Cloe Garrison, first inspired me to write. She read to me for hours every night since as young as I could remember. Even at five and six years old she was reading to me Shakespeare and Poe and Agatha Christie, explaining the language and situations when I didn’t understand, and when I started to get sleepy, we’d switch to picture books. She took me to every play at the high school and community college and watched classics and musicals on television. As an adult my grandmother and those authors still stick with me. Only now I’ve added Stephen King to that list.
Do you currently have something in the works?
I am currently working on a novel titled Evilution that I may turn into a series depending on their success.
What is Evilution about?
A certified emergency response team is sent to investigate an oil tanker that lost communication, but when the only witness kills himself, it causes a chain of events that cause them to be stranded on an uncharted island filled with bizarre and horrific experiments involving the self-regeneration of nanotechnology and “gray goo.” Basically it’s a zombie novel (possibly a series) that I wrote as a grim parable of the future in technology. I wanted to present the question: “If technology allows us to live forever, should we? And of the people who do take advantage of that, are they most likely the kind of people we don’t want to live forever?”
The first will take place on an island in the Pacific Northwest. If the book is well-received, I will write the sequel which takes place in a city on the mainland with a new cast of characters, but with cameos from previous ones.
When do you expect to release it?
Depends on the publisher. I’m currently writing revisions to my rough draft and the publisher who I intended it for is changing owners so the company may focus in a different genre. Otherwise I will seek an agent, a publisher, or just self-publish it. I’m not opposed to any option.
As a #1 Bestselling author, could you give some advice to new authors other than the obvious ‘read, read, read, and write?’
You don’t have to write great, you just have to write well. Kill your adverbs, show your characters actions and limit their thoughts. Write intelligently. You’re not doing your readers any favors by dumbing things down. Readers are smart, so let them be.
Your writing style has changed dramatically from Massacre’ade Party up until now. Why such a drastic change?
I graduated college. I still take writing classes each week, and each week I get a little better. I will continue taking writing classes for as long as I’m physically and mentally capable. A great writer should never stop learning how to write. One day I hope to write with the elegance and atmosphere of Susan Hill, the complexity of characters like Stephen King, the uninhibited raunchy and gross-out factor of Douglas Clegg and Chuck Wendig, and the sophistication of Jane Austen. That’s the dream.
SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT UPCOMING RELEASE: EVILUTION
Evilution is a unique story for its glimpse into the not too distant future. Technology is continuously evolving and soon, within the next fifty years, technology will have the capabilities to evolve itself, growing more advanced without the need for human intervention. According to over a dozen studies in science and research across the globe, nanotechnology in fifty years will be able to regenerate dead cells and destroy cancer cells, viruses, and diseases giving humans the ability to live forever. This technology is already available and currently in its testing phase. The concept of immortality is no longer paranormal or science-fiction. This is real life and it’s happening now.
This technology at first will be available only to those who can afford it. The wealthiest and the most powerful of the elite. There is such a thing as too much power and those who do not understand that are not the kind of people who should be in power. Do we really want the sociopaths and psychopaths living forever? Changing the fate of the world according to their own selfish desires forever?
Evilution is a novel that, in a narrative fashion, confronts the wide spectrum of possibilities where everything that can go wrong, does. Failed experiments that cause only partial regeneration of dead cells, corroding parts of the body to feed the rest, gray goo made of nanotechnology that devours all matter in order to continue replicating itself, and finally, immortal villains leading the world into annihilation.
Members of a certified emergency response team are sent to investigate an oil tanker after the communication is severed during a Pacific storm. When they arrive they find the oil tanker nearly completely abandoned except for a single witness driven mad from fear. When the man kills himself, the team is left stranded on the island where nano-experiments have been set loose feasting on every living thing on the island, including the C.E.R.T. members. Their mission goes from investigating the oil tanker to saving the world from an unstoppable hunger that will inevitably spread to the four corners of the earth.
This excerpt is an un-edited proof copy intended for promotional purposes only. Please leave reviews based on the final, edited print version.
Sheets soiled by muddy boots and cargo pants from the day before wrapped around his waist as he reached for the bottle of Four Roses on the nightstand, its contents dwindling as the soundless night exploded into a fiery dawn. Naked and chilled on the floor, he had at some point in the night pulled the blankets and pillows off the bed. He hoisted his achy body to a sitting position and felt the sting of dried blood crusted over split knuckles and when he rushed to the bathroom found more vomit around the toilette than in. When he finished angry pain hammered into his brain like a railroad spike through his skull curable by a gargle of water and two Scotch backs.
A line of daylight cut between the curtains and sliced through the dark haze of his bedroom when he returned. Down the center of his face and chest. He shielded his eyes with his hand and let himself fall to the mattress. Through the empty liquor bottle on the nightstand, Rebecca smiled at him from the photograph. These days her smile looked sad. He shut his eyes and waited for the pain to subside, but it never did. It never will.
It is a universal truth widely acknowledged that a man suffering the loss of his departed wife should wish above all else to have her safely returned. The world is different now than it used to be. People were still hit by cars, struck by lightning, dying of cancer, and even through the physical damage is the end to life, the soul—Travis’s soul—continued to suffer.
She was a slender and simple beauty, genuinely kind with a passion for the wild outdoors as a girl born and raised in the country should. She possessed the skill of a talented a abstract painter that he only learned to appreciate after he found the red crayon that had saved them from a cold and bitter darkness the previous winter.
It was neither a bus nor lightning but a black 2000 Chevrolet Suburban that struck Rebecca Pates driven by a college sophomore girl who had been looking at her phone instead of the road.
Hey everybody! I wanted to take this time and introduce you to a new author Julie Burns, and her new book called The Purse.
Julie will be awarding 1 printed book of The Purse or 2 ebooks (The Purse and a second of their choice) from RRPI to a randomly drawn winner (international) via rafflecopter during the tour.
Julie A. Burns is a native Iowan born in Marshalltown, Iowa and raised in Davenport, Iowa. After her parent’s divorce at age 7, she took to writing, whether it was her diary or poems about people she met or situations that bothered her. After graduating from high school in 1983, she spent time working as a Nurse’s Aide in different nursing homes in Iowa. In 1989, she gave birth to a daughter, Brittany and raised her as a single parent. In the same year, she enrolled at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology in 1994. Since then, Julie has spent time working with developmentally disabled adults and the mentally ill throughout Iowa and also in Wyoming, where she lived for 6 years. Julie currently lives in Waterloo, Iowa with her spouse. When she’s not writing, she enjoys being a grandmother to 3 year old Sophie.
BLURB:
The Purse; GENRE: Mystery Thriller
When Lydia Blackwell visits her dying father for the last time, he reveals the deeply hidden truth about her mother. After the funeral, the stranger Derek Meade gifts her with a gorgeous antique purse. But before she has the chance to connect with the man who knew her father intimately, Lydia finds Derek murdered in his home.
Lieutenant Sonja MacIntosh is assigned to investigate Mr. Meade’s death, but her career on the force never prepared her for Lydia Blackwell. As Sonja works to solve the murder, Lydia takes the greatest risk of her life in leaving Chicago to search for clues to her mother’s past. Their instant attraction surprises them both, but even through the chaos Lydia can’t deny the intensity of her feelings for the strong willed Lieutenant.
Lydia’s possession of the antique purse throws her already chaotic life into a whirlwind of kidnapping, blackmail, vengeful mob bosses, and mind-numbing revelations. Through it all, Lydia must find the strength to accept herself – and those closest to her – despite their darkest secrets.
As she walked into the bedroom, the smell of her father’s cologne lingered even through all the sickness that had been in the air. Stepping over to the deep walk-in closet, Lydia opened the double doors to reveal her father’s suits, ties, and shoes. She made a mental note to have Rosita donate her father’s clothes so they didn’t hang like a shrine. She stared at every inch of the closet until her eyes fell on a small shoebox buried on the top shelf. Lydia retrieved the step-ladder from within a hidden compartment in the closet’s wall and stood on it to pull down the shoebox. Without thinking, she strolled over to her father’s bed, sat down, and went through all the memories kept in the cardboard box.
Many were just baby pictures of Lydia, and then she discovered a picture of her mother when she was pregnant. How beautiful she was; she looked so happy and carefree. What in the world could have happened? More questions, no answers. Lydia decided to keep the picture with her. Digging deeper yet into the box, she also found pictures of her father and Derek together. They made a handsome couple, though it was still difficult to believe her father had been involved with a man. At least true love hadn’t escaped him as she’d previously thought.
If you would like to host a book tour, please visit the following link to sign up:
CC Wolfe is an author, wife and mother. She writes under her pen name of CC Wolfe because honestly she lives in a small area in South Carolina where people don’t accept easily a paranormal erotica romance author without judgment. So to protect her family she uses her pen name, CC Wolfe. She has also been published under her real name where she writes and illustrates children’s books and under her spirit name where she has pagan oriented works. She even published a natural health magazine for a short while. CC has written since a very early age, took a while for her grammar to catch up to her literary content, but with a teaching degree, that improved immensely.
CC Wolfe loves to write, in her words, “Writing is a release, a passion, a catharsis! When I write something, no matter book, poem, blog, and I look back on it and re-read it… it is almost as if someone else wrote it, like a different person lives in side of me and writes! But I know it was me that wrote it, the best part of me! The writer.”
Her books have a paranormal twist with strong heroines and heroes and an engaging story-line. She believes ever story should have a great story line, and have more than one amazing character to fall in love with when you read! Real love never comes easy! Her sex/relationship blog is straight forward and honest and tastefully done. Her poetry is straight from the heart on a variety of topics. She is working on becoming a freelance writer as well as establishing herself as an author that you want to read her books over and over and new books as soon as they are released!
Book One of the series, Vampire Sex; discover the hot sensuality of Devin, a purely erotic vampire male that knows how to satisfy any lover, male or female beyond their wildest wet dreams. He also knows how to protect his kind from those that would harm them. Can anyone truly tame Devin? Maybe it will take a witch that can put him under her spell? If only he can make the soul connection, because the little hot witch is not up for just a roll in the hay, she wants the real deal or nothing at all. See who saves whom in this intriguing tale. Find the steamy answers in this sultry tale and discover what vampire sex is all about. Discover if real love can span lifetimes and survive even death!
