C. Lee McKenzie

Young Adult and Middle Grade Author

Thundering Luv? Cover Reveal & Partay! Her Grammarness Goes On & On

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New Books & Book Event

We have to have some LOVE on Valentine’s Day, so LM Preston has provided us with her latest book and it’s all about that subject.

Cover Reveal Ta da!

Here’s the next book in the Luv series by LM Preston. This is a stand alone story, but if you want at taste of this series before you get your copy of Thundering Luv, just pick up a copy of Summer of Luv for $.99 at all ebook retailers.

Thundering Luv-a Short Story-YA Romance: Jewel has always been able to get the guy she wanted. The starting jock on the football team, the team captain on the basketball team, and the lead swimmer on the swim team. Problem is, she didn’t find them the least bit exciting. Was she cold or a she-wolf for guys? Colin thought so, and he’d do anything to bring her down a peg or two. When these two collide on the sandy beach during their mixed up summer vacation,  sparks fly, making this a summer neither will forget.
Does this cover look hot, or what?

Release Date: June 1st, 2013
Format: Ebook Only Release, but will be part of a print book in 2014 that includes 3 short YA Summer Romances by LM Preston to include (Flutter Of Luv, Thundering Luv, and Double Trouble Luv)

FREE BOOK1 in the ‘Summer Luv’ series of short stories by LM Preston. Flutter Of Luv, to each person who:

  • comments within 2 days of the cover reveal
  • adds this book to their TBR list over at goodreads OR “like” Flutter of Luv at Amazon. (leave your like# in your comment here.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/bc05448/


You’re invited to join in the fun at the  Facebook Release Party: May, 18th, 2013 combined party with LM Preston’s 2013 releases.

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Her Grammarness

The Continuing Saga of The Amateur Writer: We all have to be amateurs at the start, but we don’t have to stay that way, do we? However, if amateur status is your goal, here are some things (semantic as well as grammatical) to include in your stories
Body parts that take on a life of their own:
  • Her hand flew to her mouth. (This is an interesting image. Wonder if she ducked?)
  • His eyes shot toward her. (Yikes! Incoming.)
  • The girl’s head dropped onto the table. (That would ruin any meal.)
Which: use liberally and be sure it never connects with its noun:
  • I didn’t write the story, which was very tragic. (Tragic that you didn’t write the story or did you mean that the story was tragic? Oh dear, we’ll never know.)
  • The aardvark ate the gorilla, which was truly amazing. (An amazing act, indeed for anything, especially the aardvark; however, just what is “truly amazing”-the eating of the gorilla or the gorilla itself?) 

Have you read any of these in WIP’s? I have. I think I even found a few in some early writing at the back of my bookshelf. Incinerated now!


Cover Reveal for Purgatory Reign

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Purgatory Reign 

by LM Preston

Young Adult Paranormal Romance, Action Adventure



Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atvKA9E4bPI&feature=youtu.be

Read Sample: http://www.freado.com/book/13273/purgatory-reign

Enter to Win the RaffleCopter Prize Pack
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/bc05446/” rel=”nofollow”>a Rafflecopter giveaway

Release Dates:
eBook (March 2013)
Print (May 2013)

Pre-Order:
Amazon:

 http://www.amazon.com/Purgatory-Reign-Series/dp/0985025131/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344012202&sr=8-1&keywords=purgatory+reign+by+lm+preston

Barnes & Noble: coming soon

Indie Bound: coming soon

Books A Million: coming soon

Monday Moods-All A-Flutter

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LM Preston’s new book FLUTTER OF LUV is here!


C. Lee’s take on Flutter of Love:
Your parents were kids when you arrived, so while they’re in your life, they’re not really. Your refuge is Nana. And how about you? Well, you’re the fifteen-year-old who can’t afford contacts, or a hair salon. What’s worse is you still have braces and your breasts haven’t come in yet, not like the other girls. You’re the tomboy who loves to play football with the “rag tag” team in your hood. Then Tony arrives and he’s the one you crave to notice the young woman behind those horrid glasses and wired teeth.

This is a sweet story about first love and all the angst that comes with it. What I enjoyed most were the characters: Nana who says things, like, “. . . in life we get what we get, so deal with it.” Dawn, the MC, with the knowledge that, “Every girl has a little ‘stalker’ in her. And, of course, Tony who won’t tell a girl he loves her unless he means it.

I also loved the authentic and consistent voice of this ten episode story. Well told and interesting from start to finish. A book with lots of heart.

Here’s the book summary: Dawn, the neighborhood tomboy, is happy to be her best friend’s shadow. Acceptance comes from playing football after school with the guys on the block while hiding safely behind her glasses, braces and boyish ways. But Tony moves in, becomes the star running back on Dawn’s school’s team and changes her world and her view of herself forever.

About LM Preston:


LM. Preston loved to create poetry and short-stories as a young girl.  She worked in the IT field as a Techie and Educator for over sixteen years. Her passion for writing science fiction was born under the encouragement of her husband, who is a Sci-Fi buff, and her four kids.  Her obsessive desire to write and create stories of young people who overcome unbelievable odds feeds her creation of multiple series for Middle Grade and Young Adult readers thirsty for an adventure.  She loves to write while on the porch watching her kids play or when she is traveling, which is another passion that encourages her writing.
Direct from LM: 

One of the challenges with deciding to write a romance was that I personally hate writing the ‘boring parts’. You know what I’m talking about, when nothing really is happening except the main characters are whining about how they love the other character.
So…
I have a problem. I hate reading or writing books that nothing happens. Now there are many books that have been considered bestsellers that are just plain dull. Nothing truly happens to the character for over ten chapters. At least nothing you can see outright. But I have stuck with them. I have read those works in spite of the fact it took me an awful long time to do so. And have to admit that sometimes nothing really has to happen for you to enjoy reading.
DOES IT PAYS TO BE DULL?
However, great works of fiction are not exciting. But they feed you bits, and nibbles of the underlying plot and conflict along the way. There are some genres that are notorious for this type of ‘ease the reader in’ approach and I find that they tend to be my least favorite genre.
WRITING THE DULL PARTS
As a writer there are parts when I just have to bring it down several notches. I’ve tried over my writing years to weave exciting things into those mundane parts where the character has to learn something, share something or experience something. And I’d be lying if I didn’t reveal that there have been bestsellers that I had to force myself to read in pieces just to finish.
I’ve realized that yes, yes, yes, there is a need for those slow parts of a book. It sets the pacing, brings the reader in, and if the writer is really clever, they are a welcomed slow down.
SO WHAT DO I DO?
In Flutter Of Luv, I decided to slim this book down to a short story and write only the part which something juicy happened.

Be sure to get your copy. 
Available on Amazon
Find out more about this author and her books at her WEB SITE 
Check  out herb blog at  YA SCIFI WRITER’S RAMBLING
Other Links: 
Facebook: YA Series 
Twitter

Explorer X-Beta Release Party

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I’m so excited to announce the details about the star studded guest that will be running the party at

LM Preston’s 
Explorer X-Beta 
Facebook Release Party!

Here’s the PARTEE!!!! Be in on the buzz:

Spotlight Author Guest Hosts Keeping the Party Rolling will be:

LM Preston to kick it off - Yours Truly

12pm-1pm (EST) - LM Preston party kickoff

1pm-2pm - Willow Cross

2pm-3pm - Leah Diane Hutchinson

3pm-4pm - C. Lee McKenzie (NOON for those in CA! I need this to remind myself I’m not on eastern time.)

4pm-5pm - Norwood Holland

6pm-7pm - Alivia Anders

7pm-8pm - Alicia ‘Kat’ Dilman

8pm-9pm -KaSonndra Leigh

9pm-10pm - Kristi M Worrell

10pm-11pm - Shevi Arnold

The Party Rundown!

11 hour marathon of Spotlight Authors, trivia games, food, itunes gift cards, list of freebie party favors, interactive chatting, singing, dancing, nonstop games, music, prizes and free stuff!! Author segments each hour that are themed and more giveaways!!!

Also having a Twitter release party on Tuesday April 3th, sponsored by #AAMBCBookParty so follow that hashtag on 4/3 if you want to party more 😀

Virtual Tour Schedule for Explorer X-Beta More Prizes More Fun:

April 8th: Mariah @ A Readers Adventure
April 8th: The Plot Thickens
9th: Angie @ My Four Monkeys
10th: Glenda @ Book Reader’s Heaven
11th: Krystal @ Live To Read
12th: Nicole @ Purple Peguin Reviews
13th: Shelia @ Shelia Deeth
14th: Luke @ Luke Reviews
15th: Andrea @ So Many Books, So Little Time
16th: Stormi @ Books, Movies, Reviews. Oh my! (Guest Post Only)
17th: Dee @ Book Zone

LM Preston,YA SciFi Author
www.lmpreston.com
Blog: http://lmpreston.blogspot.com/
Tweet Me: http://twitter.com/LM_Preston
Facebook:http://tinyurl.com/2fev6qc

My Books
Explorer X - Alpha, The Pack, BANDITS
Read Excerpts: The Pack, Bandits, The Pack-Retribution, Explorer X-Beta

Writing stories for and about kids that overcome the impossible…

In the Throes of Thursday-Guest Post by LM Preston

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I’m excited to have this author here today, and she’s going to be my last post for the month of July. I’m taking a break, giving myself some time off, and then knuckling down to work on my book. Hope you’ll come back in August to say hi. Have a wonderful end of July.

Welcome to LM PRESTON
author of 
EXPLORER X - Alpha (Buy Now, Amazon and All bookstores)
THE PACK (Buy Now, Amazon and All bookstores)
BANDITS

HOW TO DREAM BIG

Dreaming big, is something we do most when we are children.  Yet, when we hit the teenaged years, our dreams have gotten so beat up that we start to ‘Dream Safely’ or not at all. 
For me, growing up in the inner city with teenaged parents, I was counted out before I even started.  In order to persevere, I had to have a spirit for survival in order to catapult me to the person I am today.  Most people, who knew me, would meet me and never grasp the struggles I had growing up.  Truly, I didn’t grasp them because I always saw the glass as half full, yet it could get empty if I didn’t hustle to make something happen.
Dreaming big, is taking your dreams, and mapping them into reality then talking yourself out of moments of depression to push through no matter what.  No matter how many times people tell you that you can’t, you smile then say ‘I will’ and make up another roadway to your success.
Here are my steps for Dreaming Big:
KNOW THY SELF
Dreaming big starts with taking time to get to know the person you are turning into, and the person you want to become. 
I loved myself at an early age, and knew myself relatively well.  Part of the reason why was because I imagined myself as what I wanted to be.  I would create versions of myself in my minds eye when I was a kid, while I talked to imaginary friends.  I believed that I would be a warrior that killed dragons while I rode in on my unicorn.  I even wrote little stories about my imaginary adventures.
When I look closely at my created worlds when I was young, I realized that I created a place in my imagination where I could win.  In that world, I never took ‘no’ for an answer.  In that world I had revealed a lot about myself.
DREAM, YOU CAN DO IT…DREAM OF WHAT YOU WANT TO BE
First of all, you have to DREAM it in order to ACHIEVE it.  That was a motto I learned at a summer camp, and it stuck. 
As I got older, and started to listen to the many people in my life that told me that I couldn’t do this or that, I staggered in my dreaming.  I started to dream safe dreams.  I didn’t allow myself to wish for something beyond what I could see.
Don’t ever do that!  You don’t want anyone else to have control over your dreams or aspirations.  You own them, and you can make them happen.
PLAN IT!  RE-PLAN IT!
All dreams can come true.  However, you want to think about how you can do it.  You have to have a plan A, B and C.  If none of those work, figure out another way.
REJECTION WON’T STOP YOU!
Never let a ‘NO!’ stop you. Turn that ‘no’ into your own ‘YES!’
Brush it off and move onto plan B.  If plan b, c, d, e, f is not working then you need to take a step back and re-evaluate if you are ready to pursue the next plan.
As a writer, our first draft is not complete.  I have had to revise, edit, and rewrite my books up to ten times.  In the end, it was a better, cleaner, shined up piece of work.
After I received over fifty rejections on one manuscript, revised and edited my work, then I finally reached my Big Dream.
BE WILLING TO REDIRECT
Sometimes you set forth on a dream and find that you are no longer willing to pay the price for that dream.
Redirect – Take what you have learned from that dream and build your next dream.
Unlike most writers, I never dreamed of becoming a writer.  I just wrote because I loved it.  Some friends told me that I mentioned to them that I wanted to become a writer, but I truly didn’t remember that dream.  My original dream was to be a CFO (Chief Financial Officer).  I know that’s not exciting, but I really wanted to do that.  Okay, to be honest my first dream was to be a teacher, and then it was CFO.
Well like most people, I had unrealized talents.  I went to college and become a Financial Analyst.  I hated it.  I worked as a Financial Analyst for one year, and then I went back to school for my Masters in Information Technology.  I loved working in the Information Technology field, and took to it like a fish in water.  My recreational writing came to a stand still and I started writing technical documentation and designing large computer systems.
After sixteen years in IT, I decided to apply for a job teaching at the University.  I loved teaching.  It allowed me to create all of these really cool science fiction type devices for my students to design.
While working as an Engineer, I ran across a published author who I revealed that I wanted to write a book but I didn’t have the time.  He encouraged me to write a page a day.  After our conversation I put that thought away and did not start writing.  Later that same year, my husband suggested that I should write a book, and once I started I couldn’t stop.
I’ve had many Big Dreams, and some of them I have reached, others I have not.  The pleasure of pursuing those dreams, and the lessons I’ve learned in doing so has given me a fulfilled life.  I don’t ever have to look back over my life and say “I wish I would have tried to do that.”
You only ever get one life, so don’t be afraid to Dream Big and pursue your dream.

Thanks for the post, LM. Loved what you had to say about dreaming BIG! Be sure to visit LM at her BLOG and follow her on TWITTER @LM_Preston. She loves fans and she has a lot to share with them.