Happy #ObumbrateDay!

OH SQUEEEEEEEE! It's finally here, guys! Six months in the making and IT'S FINALLY HERE AND I CAN'T THINK PAST THESE WORDS SO I'LL SAY IT AGAIN- IT'S HERE!


There aren't words to describe how excited I am for today. Really, there aren't. But if I could tone down today's awesomeness of Obumbrate's release, it would use words like 'awesome' and 'superfragalisticexpialadocious'. I have no idea if I spelled that right. 


So in case you've been living under a ROCK for the last few weeks, here's the run down! The second book to TIS, Obumbrate, is out and available! That means you can grab a copy, scarf it down like Mera did for Mera's YA Book Blog, snag a digital copy on Amazon or B&N, or you know, pick up a signed copy here on the blog! There's all kinds of good things going on today! 


Like what? I'm so glad you asked that! 


Boosh! There's a Facebook event running all day! Or better yet, a massive Rafflecopter Giveaway!  


If that isn't tickling your fancy, Goodreads is still running the giveaway for Obumbrate, too! 


And if none of those fulfill your insatiable need to chat about #TeamEssallie or #TeamKayden or #TeamAri, hit up Twitter! #ObumbrateDay is the code-word, ladies and gents! 


This entire day is going to be nothing but shenanigans, shenanigans, and maybe some SHENANIGANS WITH CUPCAKES. And music. And posted excerpts all day. And probably soda. But not fish, Essallie hates fish. 


Come on! Let's get this party ROLLING! 



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Multi-Tasking As An Author (Or Crazy Person)

First things first, Happy Independence Day!  

Here's a photo of cake (that I didn't make, boo) that will probably make you very hungry. And have the urge to bake. Or maybe that's just me. 

(source lovefromtheoven)

So earlier this week I had a mini revelation, and I knew I had to share it with all of you. 

Multi-tasking. Is. Ridiculous. 

We're inching closer (and closer, and closer) to Friday, aka #ObumbrateDay (you can sign up to attend the online event on Facebook here or just Twitter hashtag #ObumbrateDay), or as I like to call it, The Day I Spend More Time Staring At Amazon Than Any Other Day of The Year. Between working a 12-hour shift at my day job, I'll be slamming the internet like a giddy author, happily posting quotes and answering questions and doing flash giveaways all day. 

But until that day actually comes, I've been doing a mountain of prep behind the scenes! Designing t-shirts, formatting the digital version of Obumbrate for Kindle/Nook/iBooks, completing paperback and hardback designs, promo items, bookmarks, I could list this stuff all day. I'm also pretty sure that if I wasn't so twitchy about being hands-on with my projects, I could have someone do some of this stuff for me and reduce the work load, but honestly where is the fun in that? 

But back to topic. Multi-tasking is a miserable feat, and one that, if conquered, I tip my hat to you. I've only barely managed to juggle work, family, friends, and all the little things in-between and maybe catch my breath along the way. Example, my Monday kind of went like this: 

9AM- Up. Acknowledge that the dishes did not magically finish themselves last night. Inwardly sob. 

9:30AM- Receive email from CreateSpace, kindly informing me my cover was rejected because one of the E's was toeing the red line. Promptly rage. 

10AM-2PM- Re-do cover. Get distracted along the way with imgur. Curse those cat photos. 

2-4PM- Oh hey, those dishes still haven't finished themselves! And they're... growing. 

4-8PM- Head over to friend's house for a few hours. Insert random stop at Starbucks and B&N.  

8PM-3AM- Can't sleep, so let's do more graphic design! 

Rinse and repeat for two days. Only add more later. 

In hindsight, this doesn't look that bad. But something about trying to make a photo look good and accepting it in the end is impossible. 

Oh, speaking of! If you've been lurking around Goodreads, you've probably seen the new cover for Illumine. Surprise! If not, as a 4th of July and early #ObumbrateDay treat, here's the cover.

Indie Author Giveaway Hop!

It's here! The ultimate of indie giveaways is here!


Okay, so I'm totally not going to sugar-talk all of you, I'm just going to toss up the list of awesome stuff up for grabs and let you handle it from here!


ONE lucky winner will receive-

- A signed first edition copy of Illumine

- A signed EARLY EDITION copy of Obumbrate 

- Matching bookmarks for each book!

It doesn't get much better than this! And what a better way to support an indie author by entering in this madness of a giveaway hop! The Rafflecopter below will tell you exactly what you can do to enter, and don't forget to keep up with other sweet giveaways and posts on my Facebook fan page Alivia Anders, Author!



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Special Updates On TIS!

Hey everyone! 


I know it's been a little bit since I've done a full-fledged dedicated post, so I kind of need to cram you all with a huge overload of updates and information and myth dispellers (curse those Mythers!) on a whole bunch of stuff going. Super promise it won't be heavy on the brain. 


1- Obumbrate is still locked for its July 7th release. This hasn't changed! What HAS changed is where the online festivities will be taking place to celebrate. Originally, I had planned a Facebook party on several pages, but with Facebook's new fan page promotion policies, I can't unless I risk having the pages removed. 


So we're going to make this super-easy and super-fun by simply making a Twitter party! All day on July 7th, use the hashtag #obumbrateday in your tweets, and you're in! I'll be posting from my user @aliviaanders and doing a series of flash giveaways including signed bookmarks, a couple signed paperbacks, and even some other sweet swag! Trust me, you do NOT want to miss this! 


2- I am trying, desperately, to include a snippet of my next book, Unwanted, which is slated for a tentative Summer 2013 release. BUT I may not make the cut in time to include it. I may, however, have the ability to include a snippet of A Shard of Ice in the back, which is something I've been carefully working on and is slated for a Winter 2013 release. 


3- The cover for A Shard of Ice is NOT the final cover. It's been dancing around online and a couple of people asked me if it was the final cover, but sadly, it isn't. I won't know the final cover of ASoI until this fall/winter. But, in case you haven't seen what I'm talking about, here's the idea of the cover I've been tinkering with: 

(credit to istockphoto for the, uh, stock.)

That's all she wrote for the moment, but until my next post (which is for a MEGA giveaway hop I'm in that goes up in... 2 hours) see you all soon! 

Obumbrate Book Trailer!

I only have one word. 

SQUEE! 

Okay, I lied. I have more than one word. HOLY SMOKES THERE'S ONLY 45 DAYS LEFT UNTIL OBUMBRATE COMES OUT. 

There. I said it. Feels good, getting that off my chest. Phew! 

So let's hear it! Does the trailer give you shivers? 

Biggest TIS Fan Contest!

Can you believe it? Only 57 days left until OBUMBRATE is released! Don't know about you guys, but I'm chewing off all my nails and freaking out by ODing on coffee as the day grows closer. 


Since announcing the date, you've seen the cover, you've read sneak peeks of the continuing tumultuous relationship between Essallie and Kayden, and you've probably twisted your mind around the mystery of Ari. So while you wait for the days to pass by, why not join in on the fun going on at my Facebook fan page? 


Right now, and until the 17th of May, if you head on over to my Facebook page and tell me why you're the biggest TIS fan, you could win a signed copy of Obumbrate when it releases! Um, hello? How cool is that? 


Meanwhile, if you haven't grabbed your paperback copy of Illumine yet, this is a heads up. Illumine will be getting a new cover come this July, probably right around the time Obumbrate is released. So if you're digging the whole 'indie cover' look, snatch your copy before the new cover rolls in. Or, you know, wait for the new cover and see if you love that one more. Either way, I promise the new one will be just as beautiful, if not more so. 

Spring Fling Giveaway Hop!

Following along with the party, I'm participating in yet another awesome hop! If you missed your chance on some goodies and prizes, fret not- you've got another shot right here!


For this giveaway, I've got the following up for grabs:


1 Star Pendant from Stone Soup Designs


3 Signed bookmarks for TIS


& $10 for Amazon! 


Please note- this is NOT an international giveaway! However, the giveaway/pre-order event for Obumbrate IS INTERNATIONAL! Follow this link for the details!