Category: Ines Johnson

Moonlight by Ines Johnson (Book II in the Moonkind series)

Moonlight (Moonkind Series) by [Johnson, Ines]

Blurb:

You can never go home again…
Viviane Veracruz is on her way home from university with a degree in one hand…and a
baby in her belly. Desperate to escape the judgement of her family, she accepts a sexy
stranger’s offer to pose as the father for a few days. The plan is for him to run off leaving
her family none the wiser. But the longer Pierce Alcede stays, the more she can’t let him
go.
Home is where the heart is…
Pierce Alcede has finally come to terms with the fact that he is a lone wolf, prone to roam
the wilderness alone and never settle down with a family of his own. When he meets a
pregnant woman in need, he thinks nothing of stepping in to take the brunt of her
family’s ire. But somewhere between working on the Veracruz Ranch by day and
climbing into Viviane’s bed at night, Pierce forgets to run away.
Can a woman searching for a place to belong find a home with a man who lives to roam?

Excerpt:

“Is this seat taken?”
The husky feminine voice called Pierce’s attention away from the window and up
long legs, down dangerously curved hips, around high, pert breasts to end at a heart-shaped
face engulfed in a halo of dark curls. The dark curls and lush curves marked her as a wolf.
Pierce cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. He motioned with his hands for the
she-wolf to take the place across from him. She struggled to lift her luggage into the
overhead compartment. Pierce stood to offer assistance.
“I’ve got it,” she insisted and hefted the bulk over her head with a grunt.
Pierce stepped back. He was used to strong, independent women. He’d been
surrounded by them his whole life. He took no offense that this woman didn’t want his
assistance. That didn’t mean he wasn’t a gentleman. He waited to be sure she’d secured the
case. Then he waited some more until she was seated.
When she’d finished with her case and stepped into the booth, she stopped in front
of her seat and blinked at him. Confusion and then irritation played across the angles of her
beautiful face. Her brows rose to her hairline. She tilted her head towards his seat. When he
failed to sit down, she motioned with her hand.
Pierce flustered down into his seat, averting his gaze. Had he made a mistake?
Perhaps she wasn’t a wolf? Perhaps she was a witch?
It wouldn’t be the first time he’d mistaken a witch for a wolf. His last encounter with
a witch -on a train no less- had led to a wedding. It had nearly been his wedding. Until his
older brother, Jackson, had stepped in and claimed Lucia as the mate to his soul. The wolf
and witch lived happily in a quaint little cottage in the woods.
With Pierce now in his seat, the woman sat. She crossed those mile long legs. Then
she cleared her throat.
Pierce blinked. Then he realized; he’d been staring. That’s when he knew she wasn’t
a witch. Had she been one he’d have been under a spell by now.
He looked up to offer a sheepish apology. When his eyes met hers, his breath caught
in his throat. Beneath the halo of dark, thick hair she had eyes of the lightest blue. Pierce had
seen the ocean of the Arctic. That body of water was a dark, murky swamp compared to the
crystals set deep in this woman’s face.
He was a lone wolf, prone to roam. He was also a man with needs. Both man and
wolf salivated at this woman before him. He was certain his interest was plain. He heard
himself panting. His mouth watered. He brushed his thumb at the corner of his lip to
capture the drop of evidence.
In response, the she-wolf closed her eyes and sighed. Her foot tapped an irritated
song on the floorboards. She turned her head and focused her attention outside at the
scenery.
“This is beautiful countryside,” he tried.
They were now far from Sequoia and nearer to the Mexican border.
“Yes,” she said. She turned her head from the window and produced a book from
the bag in her lap. She held the book up in front of her face, blocking him from her beauty.
The terse response indicated that she wasn’t interested in him. It should’ve turned
Pierce off. It didn’t. The last thing he wanted was an entanglement. Her disinterest in him
would serve him well. If he could flip that disinterest, and by extension her, on its back for
the morning.
Pierce rarely went for she-wolves. The hot-blooded females could form attachments
with males who were not their mates. It was in their natures.
He saw no bite marks on her collarbone. He scented no other wolf on her skin.
Though he noted a male scent; probably human. Wolves played with humans, but they
didn’t mate for life. Which meant she likely wasn’t looking for any entanglements herself. If
he could just capture her attention, he might spark her interest.
“I hope you don’t mind my saying,” he began, a wolfish smile on his face. “But you
have the most beautiful-”
“You know, I’m perfectly fine if we dispense with all the niceties and sit here in
companionable silence.” She said it with the most polite, most beatific smile.
That smile made Pierce’s blood pump and his cock harden. He’d give her anything to
keep her smiling at him like that. “If that’s what you wish.”
“It is.” She aimed the smile pointedly at him.
From his peripheral view, he caught a look at the stupid grin on his face in the glass
window. “Then that’s what you’ll have.”
“Thank you.” She pulled the book up, hiding her smile and those eyes, breaking the
spell.
With her smile gone, Pierce’s grin turned into a frown. He read the cover of the thick book
in her hands; Sheep Health, Husbandry, and Disease. He doubted it was for pleasure
reading. Perhaps it was a textbook? Maybe she was a student? Sequoia University was near
the train station.
“Are you a student?”
She lowered the book and arrowed those light-colored eyes at him. “I thought we
agreed to dispense with the niceties?” She smiled, but the facial expression was tight and full
of annoyed patience.
His wolf wanted to poke it with his paw. “I can’t help it. I’m always nice. My mother
raised a gentleman.”
Her false facade dropped at the word gentleman. “The only time males are
gentlemen,” she practically spat the word, “is when they want to get up a female’s skirt.”
Pierce’s eyes darted to those long legs and the hem of her skirt. By the time he made
it back to her face, he knew he was caught. He put on his most winning smile. This smile
had gotten him an A in Ms. Peckham’s Chemistry class even after he failed both the midterm
and final exams. Fairies fell to their knees at this smile. Hell, even a witch had fallen under
the spell of this smile. Pierce launched it at the wolf across from him.
Before he could put forth words, she opened her mouth to speak. Then she
swallowed. She rubbed her hand over her flat abdomen. Finally, she lurched forward,
vomiting in his lap.
So much for his A game.

 

Amazon Purchase Link
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N2PW6LX

 

altheas treatment

Ines writes books for strong women who suck at love. If you rocked out to the twisted triangle of Jem, Jericha, and Rio as a girl; if you were slayed by vampires with souls alongside Buffy; if you need your scandalous fix from Olivia Pope each week, then you’ll love her books!

Aside from being a writer, professional reader, and teacher, Ines is a very bad Buddhist. She sits in sangha each week, and while others are meditating and getting their zen on, she’s contemplating how to use the teachings to strengthen her plots and character motivations.

Ines lives outside Washington, DC with her two little sidekicks who are growing up way too fast.
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/ineswrites
Twitter
https://twitter.com/ineswrites
Website
https://inesjohnson.wordpress.com/
Publisher
http://heartspell.com/



Guest Post: DIY Blog Tours by Ines Johnson

Ines Johnson is on the blog today, sharing a little bit about do it yourself blog tours. My thanks to Ines for stopping by and teaching us all a little something about promotion today.

DIY Blog Tour

If You Publish It, They Will Come
That may have been true ten, five years ago in indie publishing. It is no longer the case today. Readers have a lot of authors and books to choose from. They don’t know you, so you have to do something to get their attention.

Okay, but what something? After visiting Google, I decided to do my own blog tour. I went to listservs and chat rooms for authors and asked questions. Established authors said a blog tour was a waste of time. But new and indie authors said to go for it. I had nothing to lose, and no money to spend, so I did it myself. Here’s how I did it.

1. Build a MEDIA KIT
Honestly, this wasn’t the first thing I did. I realized I needed it as responses started rolling in with bloggers requesting the same materials over and again. But I recommend it be the first thing you do.

A media kit is everything a blogger could possibly want or need in order to host you on their webpage. Include in your Media Kit the following:
? Your book blurb. I included different lengths of my blurb, including the full blurb that’s up on Amazon. A shorter three sentence blurb. And a one sentence blurb. My debut book was erotic romance, so I also had to be sure and include a PG version of my blurb for bloggers who also showcased YA books.
? Book excerpts. Choose one to two scenes that you feel would get readers engaged in your story. I recommend the excerpt should start somewhere in the middle of the scene and end before the scene is over at a high point of tension. If you choose well, this tactic would naturally lead a reader to push the ‘buy now’ link so they can find out what happens next. Again, make sure you have a PG excerpt for bloggers who showcase YA books.
? Guest Posts. I wrote three guests posts for my tour. I found that bloggers liked craft pieces, writing tips, and social commentary. So, I wrote one of each. I also found that some bloggers wanted you to answer their list of questions instead of using your posts. I complied, and then saved each question and answer. I included these Q&A’s in my media kit and made them available to all subsequent bloggers.
? Author biography. Be sure to include the bio you’ve written for yourself and posted on your website. I found that some bloggers preferred a one sentence bio, called a tagline. So, I paired my long bio down and included two options in my kit.
? Links. Be sure to include your store purchase links, your website url, and all social media links and handles. In my ebook, I have fancy graphic links. I assumed the bloggers would do something graphical with my link, but few did. Instead they just left the entire URL up under my name. I didn’t like that, but I had to realize that many of these bloggers weren’t graphic artists or any more tech savvy than your average person. Moving forward, I’ll need to think of a better way to list these links.
? Images. Attach images separately, as well as in the body of the kit. If you have a lot of images, make them available upon request.

That was a lot of information, but I suggest you get started on that before contacting bloggers. Many get back to you straight away and begin making requests.

2. Find BLOGGERS
Once your media kit is assembled, you need to start finding blogs to host your amazing information.

I began my search at the Book Blogger Directory: https://bookbloggerdirectory.wordpress.com/
I made certain to check for bloggers who were in my genre.

I also checked their sites to see when their last activity happened. You don’t want to spend time querying a blogger whose last post was in 2013.

3. Make CONTACT
Once I had my list of vetted bloggers in my genre, I began to contact them. Be aware that some of these bloggers have handy Google Docs. They’d prefer you use these instead of emailing them directly.

For those I emailed directly, I made a form email, but I sent each blogger an individual email with their name in the salutation. I also tailored the form email to each blogger where possible. For example, if I saw that a blogger was only interested in author interviews, I didn’t mention that I had blog posts and excerpts because I knew they wouldn’t be interested in those items.

Here’s an example of the basic form email that I sent out:

Dear [Book Blogger],
I write erotic romance, paranormal romance, and fairytale retellings under the pen name, Ines Johnson. My newest release, Pumpkin: a Cindermama story, which is a fairytale retelling of the Cinderella story will hit the print and virtual shelves on March 17th.

I’ve planned a book tour throughout the month of March to create some buzz and garner a bigger audience for my book. I’d love to make a stop at your site. I’m happy to do a Q&A, a blog posting, submit my book for your review, or any combination of the three. I’ve prepared three posts for the occasion. If you feel that one of the topics might interest your readers, I would be happy to make it available to you any day during the month of March and April. Attached you’ll find my Media Kit for your convenience.

4. Keep RECORDS
It looks bad to contact the same person over and again. Or to forget that you agreed to give this blogger that post on this day. I kept a spreadsheet in Google Docs so that I had access to it at all times.

On the list I listed the blog title, the blog URL, the contact person’s name and email address. In other columns, I placed what each blog looked for from guest bloggers, when I contacted them, if they responded, if they said yes and what they wanted, when the post would be live, and when they needed the information by. You should also note if they want exclusive content, and if they want you to provide them a giveaway.
BLOG NAME
BLOG ADDRESS
CONTACT Review Interview Blog
Post Promo NOTES CONTACT EMAIL RESPONSE DATE Requested
* a note about giveaways: try where possible to offer your book as a giveaway. I got my highest sales on the days I offered my book as a free giveaway. I didn’t want to offer a gift card, remember I was broke by this time.

5. Be SOCIAL
As the blog tour began, I made a fancy banner announcing the tour for my webpage. I linked to each blog that hosted me.

On the day of each tour stop, I tweeted and posted each blog. A simple tweet or Instagram post can go a long way when it comes to creating awareness, you know. It would work even better if you have a large following, as everyone wants to reach as many people as possible. On my journey to being more social, someone told us about Nitreo, which seems to be the best organic growth service we’ve found. We have learnt that they can help people when it comes to increasing the number of followers that you have, so it could be a good thing to consider if you want to promote your blog further. Alongside this, I visited each site to try and interact with any commenters and responded where appropriate.

6. Send THANK YOU NOTES
But the most important thing I did, was mind my manners. After each post I wrote a personalized thank you note to each blogger. I told them how they affected my sales rank that day. Each one invited me back!

7. The VERDICT
I had phenomenal success with my tour! I was on thirty blogs over the course of my launch week. As soon as those posts went live, my debut novel was launched into the Top 100 where its stayed for a week after my launch. I could see the effects in real time. When a tour stop went live, an hour or so later, I’d see sales. I didn’t see much of a blip on social media (ie, my newsletter or Facebook Likes). My twitter followers did see some of an uptick, but mostly from the bloggers themselves as they tweeted about the post.

altheas-treatmentAuthor Bio:

Ines writes books for strong women who suck at love. If you rocked out to the twisted triangle of Jem, Jericha, and Rio as a girl; if you were slayed by vampires with souls alongside Buffy; if you need your scandalous fix from Olivia Pope each week, then you’ll love her books!
Aside from being a writer, professional reader, and teacher, Ines is a very bad Buddhist. She sits in sangha each week, and while others are meditating and getting their zen on, she’s contemplating how to use the teachings to strengthen her plots and character motivations.
Ines lives outside Washington, DC with her two little sidekicks who are growing up way too fast.

Pumpkin-3D

Amazon Purchase Link

Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24927912-pumpkin

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/ineswrites

Twitter

Website
https://inesjohnson.wordpress.com/

Publisher

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