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Once upon a time there was a fairytale that needed twisting

5/29/2015

In Fractured Dream and in the rest of the Dreamer Saga, twisted fairytales, legends, and myths are significant characters and an important element that makes up Tressla, the land where Fairytales go once they're created. I'm now offering subscribers the chance to twist a favorite "fairytale"—or legend or myth.

As I work on writing the second book in the Dreamer Saga trilogy, Shattered World, new fairytales are revealed, and I thought some help from the minds of my readers or potential readers would be amazing. So if you're game, head to the Home page and fill out the subscription form. When I send out the newsletter on June 1, you'll be eligible to enter the contest and be privy to all the details.

Happy twisting!

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The Song: Copyright Issues When Creating Your Book Trailer

5/28/2015

This post was re-blogged from Cellar Door Lit Rants & Reviews and was written by my sister, Sheilah Randall, who can be found at Indigo-Ashe Book Trailers.

Since I began assembling book trailers, I have learned a few things. First and most importantly is copyright issues.

Many people think it's okay to pick your favorite song and just use it. Just throw some images together you find online and pair it to your favorite jam and post it online and everything will be okie dokie.

Unfortunately, as much as I'd love to use a Red Hot Chili Peppers' tune or a Tori Amos haunting melody, I can't. Not if I want to break copyright laws and potentially put myself at risk with the law enforcers. And/or not unless I want to spend LOTS of money to obtain the rights to that particular song. But let's be real here, no one in their right mind should spend that kind of money to market a book via a book trailer.

So what do you do? Where can you go to find songs that you can legally use without fear of running into copyright law infringements? Well luckily, there exists stock audio sites that allow you to purchase the rights to a song (usually for a single time use). What I love about these types of sites is that there are many quality musicians posting their work out there for you to buy for a generally inexpensive price.

My go-to site is audiojungle. For all the trailers I create, I look for a one to two-minute-long song, which costs roughly $14. Anything longer than two minutes and the prices increase by a few dollars. Just do yourself and your viewers a favor and don't bore them. Anything longer than two minutes and most people are hitting the snooze alarm.

There are many other stock audio sites as well:

istockphoto images and audio content you can purchase the rights to

pond5 images and audio available for purchase

audioblocks all audio

audiomicro all audio

freesound all audio

free stock music all audio

Even YouTube has a library you can use (with limitations).

While these are just some, there are plenty more out there. You just have to do a little digging and you can find a unique song to help translate your novels theme or feel. Did you write a horror novel? Well there are plenty of creepy tunes for you to pick from. A love story? Even more to navigate.

If you are going to market your book using music, do it right and legally. Find the song that will enhance and sell your book. Nothing kills a book trailer faster than a boring song. If you pick quality music your viewers will stick around to watch the entire trailer, I promise. If you pick a boring melody, your viewers will have moved on within 15 seconds.

--Sheilah G. Randall

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Disney's Bad Rap

5/20/2015

I am sick to death of articles destroying time-loved classics because of the argument that the princesses in them were repressed or the film itself wasn't feminist enough. One writer—and I wish I could find the article—put it into perfect perspective. And the gist was that Disney has evolved as much with the times as society itself. So if Snow White was a lovely, caterwauling princess, who liked to cook and clean to earn her keep, let's take a look at the era in which it was first made: 1937.

So in my defense of Disney and the heroines that have evolved over years, just like women and men have evolved themselves, here's a list of positive articles detailing the weaknesses AND strengths of Disney princesses:

Disney Heroines: A Feminist Evolution, Part 1: The Classics

Disney Heroines: A Feminist Evolution, Part 2: The Princesses

The Truth About Feminism and Disney Princesses

Disney Princesses Are My (Imperfect) Feminist Role Models

4 Ways the Disney Princesses Created Modern Feminism

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't point you toward Whitney Avalon's amazing rap battles. Snow White v. Elsa is my absolute fave. Regardless of who wins, they both rock it. And of course, the big Buffy fan that I am, Cinderella v. Belle is also is amazing.

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Launches, Parties, & Finding New Friends

5/11/2015

One of my very dearest and best friends, who isn't so into the social media thing, told me today she wasn't so sure she liked Facebook book launch parties ... Whatever happened to going to a place with real people and sitting down to have a drink?"

No offense, dear friend, but they are "real" people. And while I know my best friends would come to an actual physical launch party in my town, very few of them can talk books like the people I met on Saturday, or the many authors I've met through social media channels. I've decided I quite honestly think the Facebook launch party, when planned well, is brilliant.

Social media has made it possible for people to engage on so many new levels, I don't think I truly appreciated it until I was an author. For me, engaging with a passionate fan, meeting a new author, or talking books with another voracious reader, is a natural high. I've thought to myself often lately how amazing and broad my literary world could have been when I was in high school if I'd had all these channels at our fingertips. Especially when one of the author hosts at the launch party for my book The Reaper's Daughter, was a seventeen-year-old guy who is passionate about his writing.

While some may argue that the world is too fixated with technology, their phones, and connecting online, I'd argue that too much of anything isn't healthy. But people can reach a balance. And being able to connect online within the publishing industry is a necessity.

What I'm trying to say, in way too many words, is that I had a blast on Saturday, and I'm excited to have made some new friends. And while I've at times had to force myself onto my Twitter feed, there are certain aspects I truly do enjoy, and the number one thing is meeting readers and writers. There's a lot of social media elements I've found myself opening up to, although I can say without hesitation, I will never embrace the unrequested pic of someone's meal.

Everyone's favorite picture to use for sarcastic memes:

And with that, I'll leave off by saying that there's still a giveaway featuring three e-copies of The Reaper's Daughter that are up for grabs. So head over to the Tome Tender blog if you're interested in trying to win. There's six days left!

“The more you engage and connect, the more engagement and connections you will have.” ― Loren Weisman

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The Reaper's Daughter Launches!

5/9/2015

"The chaotic world K. M. Randall has created is nothing short of brilliant! Who knew death could be so feisty? Heck, who knew Death wasn’t a skeletal, smelly, robe-wearing guy with a scythe to be feared?" - Tome Tender

I'm happy to announce the official launch of The Reaper's Daughter! In celebration of the day we're hosting a launch party over at Facebook, featuring giveaways, contests, and Q&As! Join us Here.

There's also a couple of other giveaways going on for both print and e-books, so check out the links below.

Enter a chance to win three e-books of The Reaper's Daughter

Enter to win a signed paperback copy of The Reaper's Daughter or Fractured Dream

Also, if you're interested in purchasing a copy of The Reaper's Daughter, the links are right here:

The Reaper needs her and the dead want her ...

I’ve always felt like an average girl ... except for my strange relationship with death. You could say I like to court it. Whether I’m soaring through the air as a flyer for Specter University’s cheer squad, or speeding down the steepest mountain with only grace and balance keeping me from an icy end, I’ve always needed to feel a rush. But now Death is courting me―in more ways than one. First, there’s Rishi, a rogue death deity who has a penchant for annoying me nearly to my grave and whose intense gaze has the power to see right through me. Then there’s Hades, who I’d rather had stayed just a myth. Now that he knows I exist, he’s not going to leave me alone until I meet the same end as my mother.

Oh yeah, did I forget to mention her? I spent my whole life thinking she had died when I was a baby, but now I’ve found out she’s much more than dead. Fifty years ago, Hades banished my mother from the underworld and took away her ability to cross over souls―souls that have wandered lost through the world ever since. Now she wants me to clean up the mess. You may have heard of her before ...

They call her the Grim Reaper.

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Rafflecopter Giveaway: Win Signed Paperbacks!

5/6/2015

We're just two days away from the launch of The Reaper's Daughter this Saturday and my marketing manager wants me to dress up as the Grim Reaper and make a video for my book launch party on Facebook. Will I do it? We shall see. But until then, I'm so stoked about my launch I'm giving stuff away. Books, that is. Beautiful, tangible, paperback books. But there's only a couple of days left to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for one signed copy of The Reaper's Daughter or one signed copy of Fractured Dream.

To join said Facebook launch party for lots of other goodies and giveaways from myself and a number of other YA authors, click here: The Reaper's Daughter Facebook Launch Party, Enter Here ... Goes from 2-9 pm this Saturday.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Once upon a time there was a fairytale that needed twisting

The Song: Copyright Issues When Creating Your Book Trailer

Disney's Bad Rap

Launches, Parties, & Finding New Friends

The Reaper's Daughter Launches!

Rafflecopter Giveaway: Win Signed Paperbacks!

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