Tag: Chrys Fey

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IWSG Virtual Book Tours

#IWSG June 2018 & Write with Fey #newrelease #giveaway

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Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click the image to learn more or sign up.

Optional Monthly Question: What’s harder for you to come up with, book titles or character names?

For me, it’s definitely book titles. I have this whole obsession with names and their meanings and keep a list of possible names I could use at any time. Book titles, on the other hand, elude me. Even after I’ve settled on one, I never really feel it fits. At some point, I have to call the book something so people will know what they are getting. It’s not easy making that final decision.

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So, first off, this is going to be a long one, but for good reason. I’ll be back to my shorter posts next time, I promise.

Now, I’d like to congratulate Juneta Key on her member spotlight in the May newsletter. Not only is she a great blogger and writer, she’s constantly giving back to the community. A very well-deserved recognition.

Now, on to the personal updates. Please stick around for a special new release message at the end.

So, in case you missed it, I unpublished the first two books in the Eternal Curse Series (they are still available to anyone who asks for them). You can learn more about that at the link above. Needless to say, I have a lot of writing to do with that rewrite as well as finishing the first draft of my Sayings sequel, which I still don’t have a title for. I seriously thought I’d be on my 3rd or 4th draft by now, but as usual, my day job, which is convenient for writing, is also so stressful as of late, that it’s blocked all my creativity… Oh well, that’s life.

On a slightly fun note, I’m in position 56 on the IWSG blog hop list. When I started out, I was 181. All that means is that many people have come and gone, and likely come back again in the time I’ve participated in this blog and I’ve been sticking with it and moving up the ladder. Being part of this group is one of my greatest accomplishments. I’m sadly thinking of reducing my blog to once a month post, still being open to interviews and spotlights whenever someone needs to fill a spot or wants some free promo… We’ll see what happens.

In typical Toi Thomas fashion, I’ve taken on a project that’s probably too ambitious for the likes of me to pull off, but since I can’t stop the dreams from keeping me up at night, I’m going for it. I’m attempting to host a fan-fueled book fair in my local area sometime next year (or the year after 😉 ). I’ve created a cute little mascot named Carnie the Bookworm. Would you like to meet him?

Over at A Small Gang of Authors, we are hosting our first ever book cover contest. We’d love for you to head over, check it out, and vote in the comments. Thanks bunches!

NEW RELEASE & GIVEAWAY!
Catch the sparks you need to write, edit, publish, and market your book!
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Write with Fey: 10 Sparks to Guide You from Idea to Publication offers an
abundance of data in one handy book. From writing your novel to prepping for publication and beyond, you’ll find sparks on every page, including 100 bonus marketing tips. You’ll also discover how to write specific scenes and characters, adding depth to your work.
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•        Spark One: Being a Writer
•        Spark Two: Story Essentials
•        Spark Three: A Book’s Stepping Stones
•        Spark Four: How To
•        Spark Five: Character ER
•        Spark Six: Editing
•        Spark Seven: Publishing
•        Spark Eight: Marketing
•        Spark Nine: Writing About
•        Spark Ten: Final Inspiration
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With so much information, you’ll take notes, highlight, and flag pages to come back to again and again on your writing journey.
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AUTHOR BIO:
Chrys Fey is the author of the Disaster Crimes Series, a unique concept blending romance, crimes, and disasters. She’s partnered with the Insecure Writer’s Support Group and runs their Goodreads book club. She’s also an editor for Dancing Lemur Press.
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Fey realized she wanted to write by watching her mother pursue publication. At the age of twelve, she started her first novel, which flourished into a series she later rewrote at seventeen. Fey lives in Florida and is always on the lookout for hurricanes.
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Chrys Fey’s Links:
Website / Blog / Amazon / Goodreads
Facebook / Twitter
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GIVEAWAY!
Open to all from June 4th 2018 – July 6th 2018
Click here to enter or use the form below.

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So, are you a whiz at book titles but struggle with character names or vice versa?
Would you ever unpublish a book? Does the idea of it terrify you?
What did you think of Carnie?
You gonna enter Chrys Fey’s giveaway?

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After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Beverly Stowe McClure,
Tyrean Martinson,
Tonja Drecker, and
Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor!

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Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share more inspiration and support. (This month, I’m #56).

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
About Toi Videos

Yay, More Winter-ish Stuff ’17 Haul – #books #vinyl

Well, today is a day of, what one art teacher I know calls, ‘happy mistakes’. Not sure how I didn’t know about this, but I was interviewed by Angel M, but somehow missed the post. Please check it out here. It’s a really fun feature called #SQUIRREL.

So, this is a fun little video I threw together in preparation for an early Spring. Turns out, I jumped the gun. Oh well, I still got some pretty cool stuff: clothes, vinyl, and of course books. I’m so blessed.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
IWSG

#IWSG January 2017: What writing rule do you wish you’d never heard? Oh, and Happy New Year!

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Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click the image to learn more or sign up.

Happy New Year Everyone! Lots of changes coming, but first…

Monthly Question: What writing rule do you wish you’d never heard?

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I’ll admit that I still sometimes want to roll my eyes when I hear someone say “show not tell”, but when writing fiction, it really is a must. It’s just too bad that not everyone who strives to be a writer has had a classical education in creative writing. Most of us have to learn here, there, through trial and error, and wherever we can get viable and applicable feedback.

But if you really want to know what writing rules drive me crazy, I have two words: voice and p.o.v.

Everyone always wants to give their two cents on the writer’s voice, until the writer’s voice sounds just like theirs. I don’t think it’s wise to say “never use passive voice” because there may be times when it’s needed. It would make more sense to say, avoid using passive voice. I don’t think it’s wise to say “don’t use dialog tags”. I think it’s better to say “use them sparingly and wisely with variety.” Sometimes long convoluted sentences are part of the story, scene, or character. These and other tidbits are all opinions that can alter the author’s voice…

And just for the record, not all the best stories ever written are in first person. Why are people so against third or second person? Why can’t people handle more than one point of view?

Lastly, for me a preface or prologue is an extra bit of info to introduce the story or tease the action to come. It’s not technically part of the story and can be or not be read. So why are so many writers against them?

On a completely separate note, thank you, Chrys Fey, for your article “Dear Persistent Writer” in the last newsletter. Those words of encouragement came right when I needed it.

Also, since it’s a new year, I’ve changed a bunch of things and will be trying some new things. I’ll be posting about it all later, but wanted to mention that there may be pictures of cute dogs on my side panel at any given moment. That’s new. You’re welcome.

Also, in a rare weekend post, I’ll be announcing the winners of my Teacher cash prize and other giveaways this Saturday.

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Do you strongly dislike third person or prologues?
Any changes for you this year?
Slightly random here, but do you have an active You Tube channel?

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After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Eva,
Crystal Collier,
Sheena-kay Graham,
Chemist Ken,
LG Keltner, and
Heather Gardner!!

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Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share more inspiration and support. (This month, I’m #71).

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords