Sell your Self-Published Books on Consignment

The American Booksellers Association shared a very useful article last year by Karen Schechner (the senior editor at Kirkus Indie) explaining how self-published authors can sell their books at a few independent bookstores around the country.

Read the full article here:

https://www.adweek.com/galleycat/how-to-sell-your-self-published-book-into-bookstores/52736

Win an Amazon Gift Card!

I'm looking for someone to create the cover art (preferably digital or photographed) for my upcoming high seas thriller, On Deadly Seas. It's an 18th century pirate ghost story. Summary of the book is as follows:

Strange things happen aboard the 18^th century brigantine, The Fiery Wench. Accidents occur quite frequently; crew men are killed off in horrific ways; and visitors have reported seeing the ghosts of those tortured souls warning them of worse things to come. Pirate Captain Aiden McGuire never believed in curses and he would have anyone whipped who even suggested the idea. It’s only when young Jaclyn steals away aboard his ship that one misfortune after another befalls him and his crew. The decks of The Fiery Wench, for the first time since he became captain, start to flow red from the blood of his men. Is his stowaway a Siren who has come aboard to tear apart his vessel, or is she an innocent caught in a game of tragedy? Only time will tell as this ship sets sail ON DEADLY SEAS.

THE PRIZE: $50 AMAZON GIFT CARD

CONTEST RULES:

Winner will be selected on April 2, 2019 and announced via my email list, . The prize will be emailed within 5 business days. Winner must check our blog and contact us within 2 business days to confirm their email address for delivery. Valid only where permitted by law.

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Answer this question in a comment on this blog post: Why should I choose your cover art?

2. Like Screams for Sale on Facebook and share it with a friend.

3. Follow me on Twitter @shelbypatrick

4. Subscribe to my email list at darkfictionmuse-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

5. Email up to three of your best cover artwork to blackwidow@shelbypatrick.com

Winning entry will be used as the cover art for my book. Artist will be credited on the inside of the book. 

How to become a successful writer

This is a great article from Writer’s Digest.

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/questions-and-quandaries/writing-advice/how-to-become-a-successful-writer-to-dream-or-not-to-dream

Fright Night Hoodie

This is totally awesome.

Limited Edition Print

Love Gone Awry

2019 is just around the corner. It's not too early to start planning for Valentine's Day and I have the perfect gift.

Have you always wanted to be the star of your own story? Do any of the following apply to you?

• Been scarred by love
• Had a scorned woman try to exact revenge on you
• Lost the love of your life
• Dumped or been dumped but then reunited with that person and realized they weren't the same
• Been blinded by love
• Went a little too far for love
• Had regrets with a past lover
• Will never forget your first love
• Found true love that only a tragedy could stop

Well here's a unique opportunity to be the hero (or villain) of your own making.

I will write a piece of dark fiction, up to 1,000 words, based on your "Love Gone Awry" idea.

Send me an email at blackwidow@shelbypatrick.com with the subject "Custom V-Day Story" briefly summarizing your idea in 100 words or less. Since this is meant to be a horror story for the Valentine's season, please let me know if you want to be the hero or the villain and provide me with a location (preferably your own or some place you always wanted to go but isn't too exotic). Also, please provide two names to be used in the story: yours (or an alias) and that of a loved one.

For example, your email may look like this:

I would like a custom story featuring me as the hero, where I was foolish and lost the love of my life and now realize my life is incomplete without him/her.

 

OR

 

I would like a custom story featuring me as the villain, in post-apocalyptic California, where Necromancers roam the place, seeking out depressed souls to reunite with loved ones.

Stories cost $30, paid via PayPal, and will be sent to you via email. Please allow up to three weeks for turn-around time. 

Buyers must agree to allow their story, or a portion of it, to be posted at my website, blog, or in a future anthology.

Horror Excerpts

I have three excerpts online from short stories in my anthology The Fear Within. To read the complete stories and more, you can purchase my book HERE

Please send an email to each of the following addresses to read the excerpts:

After Hours -- Working late becomes a night for survival. CLICK HERE

Behind Closed Doors -- What was grandmother hiding behind the locked door in her basement? CLICK HERE

Under a Watchful Eye -- No guards, no fences, and no escape for prisoners once they enter Innsmouth. CLICK HERE 

The Nun - Movie Review by Shelby Patrick

"Pray for forgiveness"

Set in the Carta Monastery in Romania in 1952, this horror story is quick to tear apart our faith. It is based on the Conjuring series and centers around a few true-life facts. Three main stars light up the screen -- Jonas Bloquet (Frenchie), Demian Bichir (Father Anthony Burke), and Taissa Farmiga (Sister Irene).

Plot Synopsis (from imdb.com): A priest with a haunted past and a novice on the threshold of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate the death of a young nun in Romania and confront a malevolent force in the form of a demonic nun.

The movie opens with two nuns walking down a creepy hallway to a door that reads "God Ends Here". Once they unlock the door, they unleash the evil demon Valak, who needs a host to be able to walk in this world. One nun is possessed while the other one hangs herself, setting off events in the Vatican that result in sending a priest and a nun on the verge of taking her vows to investigate.

The movie is riddled with cliches from the start and there isn't much left to the imagination. You can pretty much guess what is about to come before it happens. The most horrifying part was the demonic face of the nun; the rest was child's play for a seasoned horror fan.

Most surprising of all was that the ending didn't suck. They didn't throw in some stupid finale that made you sit up and say, "what just happened?" It actually made sense.

It might scare some people. The movie was rated R for obvious reasons. It was released on September 7, 2018.

It was mildly entertaining but not worth the money I paid to see it.