I figured we'd start Monday off with a bang. I've been running my mouth about the new cover of Traitors (and about Traitors itself) and hadn't produced much of nothing. Well, covers take time and as we here at Crooked Fang have found out, lots of cooperating people. Or maybe layers of talent, either way. Carrie Clevenger designed the first Traitors concept art and was pretty proud of it until she started talking to the art geeks. One thing led to another and in a Facebook group for automotive artists (how about that) she ran into Jyann Boyer (pop his website url into Google Translate for English) from France. Considering that conversation took place using Google Translate for the most part, it really is neat that Jyann understood her vision for the cover damn near immediately. After that, Carrie's husband, Lucas Clevenger, added a few last flame highlights and amped up the color even more.

The font for the title is Carrie Clevenger's own handwriting. Cool, huh?

Anyway, here you go. Looking to release this baby somewhere between September and October (I'm rooting for 10/10, my birthday) as a novella on all the ebook formats. Print options are gonna be dependent on demand, as a wrap-around cover would have to be worked out and we don't believe in half-assed shit around here.

Speaking of half-assed, sorry for no blurb yet, but it's still in progress. What I can say is, this is a fast-paced adventure-type novella set for the most part in East Texas. My passenger? Nin.

'Til next time,

Xan

As you know, our friends up on the East coast were hit real hard by Hurricane Sandy and some lost every damn thing they had. I'd like to encourage each of my readers to take this time to stop for a moment and send a little monetary hug to those people. If you're in the area, jackets and warm clothing are needed real bad. And if you aren't, there's a few ways you can help still.

One of the easiest ways I've found is donating through iTunes, (skip buying an album, look at it this way) and you can give various amounts, from $5 to $200 and 100% of your donation will go directly to Red Cross. Or, if you prefer, drop by http://www.redcross.org/charitable-donations and give directly. You can even have recurring donations if you want.

To donate through iTunes, here's the direct link that will prompt your iTunes to pop up.

To those affected by Hurricane Sandy, we at Crooked Fang are thinking of you. Stay safe, dry and warm.

Xan

Congrats to John Taylor who won the big ass grand prize of a signed paperback and some other shit. Stay safe tonight!

Xan

Last week to get Crooked Fang on sale and there's a few places to get it at the discount:

Author post on sale locations for Kindle, Nook and print

Direct off Lyrical for $1.50 (which is less than the others even and includes a zip file of all formats, including PDF)

Hope you cats have a great Halloween and as a last chance to get in for the signed print prize (which includes entrants from the earlier ebook giveaways) you can comment here and tell me something nice. Maybe you're excited for a new movie or album. Doesn't matter what you tell me, just talk away. Your comment will be an entry for the print book drawing on Halloween.

Since we've had an issue of people not being able to be contacted, you gotta leave an email address in your comment to be reached. I don't make phone calls.

Have fun,

Xan

Alright. Here's round two. Another ebook up for grabs. Any format because I know not everybody has a Kindle.

Tell me your favorite way to cut loose and have fun. What fires you up?

Go.

Here's your first chance to snag a free copy of Crooked Fang in any electronic format. Let's give you a question to answer, just in case. What question would you like to answer?

Halloween is coming up and spooky shit is in the air.

What's your favorite Halloween tradition?

And tell me Happy Birthday. I'm 54 today.

Comment below and let's do this.

Lates,

Xan

25% off print Crooked Fang books the entire month of October!
Crooked Fang on CreateSpace
Crooked Fang on Amazon (yup, Amazon too)

AND

Crooked Fang ebooks on both B&N and Amazon for $2.99! That's for Nook or Kindle. (If it's not $2.99 by the time this goes out, it will be in a day or two, you know how it is)

AND EVEN MORE GOOD SHIT:

Ebook giveaway right here October 10, 17, and 24th.

You’ll get one week to put in an entry on each giveaway along with a grand bonus drawing of signed Crooked Fang print book on Halloween (10/31/2012). That’s three chances to get a Crooked Fang ebook and possibly a print edition signed by Carrie Clevenger (and maybe some other stuff slipped into the envelope). How about that? Different ways to keep an eye out for the blog posts: Follow crookedfang or Carrie Clevenger on Twitter or watch the Crooked Fang Facebook page because I'll be talking about it.

Give Crooked Fang as a gift. Get some Xmas shopping done early. Treat your own damn self. You got ‘til October 31^st.

So it came about to where people was asking me if Pale Rider had a special drink. Truth is, we have all kinds of special drinks, some of which double as paint thinner in a pinch. So, I went to one of the best drink mixer-uppers I know, Myria Free.

"You drink whiskey," she said. Which is true. But I have people that might want some flavor aside from cigarettes and hillbilly booze. She got that look in her eye that let me know she had an idea and next thing we knew, this is what came out of it.

Crooked Fang

1 shot Moonshine clear corn whiskey

1 shot Montepulciano wine

¼ shot raspberry liquor

A splash of grenadine

Combine in a shaker with ice, strain into a short glass.

Let me know how it comes out, huh? Right on.

About Myria: 

Myria loves to create drink recipes, but please don't call her a mixologist. You can find some of her creations on the menu at Trifecta on 3rd, or online at http://www.angelsenvy.com/whiskey/recipes in books or ask her to create one just for you!

When a blue-haired girl and her abusive boyfriend have a public spat after a Crooked Fang show on Halloween, Xan intervenes, not knowing that his gesture of chivalry will change his quiet lifestyle. With zombie-like creatures, faces from his living past, even possibly a ghost, Xan is forced out of his comfortable space and back into the world…at least for a little while.

Crooked Fang is an urban fantasy, first in the Crooked Fang Series, published by Katarr Kanticles (print) and contracted by Lyrical Press (ebook). For more on Xan and Crooked Fang, visit http://www.crookedfang.com/

Now that you're here, take a tour of the website. The Merch tab has goodies inspired by Crooked Fang from coffee cups to custom-made jewelry. Books contains the buy links with recognizable icons for your favorite vendor. Reviews can help you decide whether Crooked Fang is a book you'd want to read. Get On The Guest List feature will add you to the super-special mailing list where I will host most of my giveaways.

Feedback on the site? Contact me at crookedfang@gmail.com

And as always, I'm honored that you stopped by and gave Crooked Fang a few minutes of your time. To my readers: Without you, I'm nothing. I adore you.

xx

Carrie Clevenger

So I did it. I finished the photo shoot in about an hour and learned tons about how awkward and painful most cute female modelling poses are. Oi, my ankles. My knees. Christie was incredibly patient with me as I stared blankly into her camera. Much of our conversation went like this:

"Bring your leg up."

"Which one?"

"The left one. And bring your right one down."

"How?"

[sigh from photographer] "Okay, now look sultry."

[Me, trying]

[photographer shakes her head] "That's not really...sultry."

"I really suck at this."

"No one said modelling was easy. Now give me sexy."

Needless to say, I was a complete amateur! I think I did okay; the photos on her preview screen didn't look like me at all, and that's a good thing. Edits should come soon. I might have neat surprises to give away at book signings in the future.

Hey, I'm open. Keep the puns down please.

And Xan, yes. Your guitar certainly gets around.

--CC

Photography by Christie Mathis, Ultralicious Photography

Jewelry custom made exclusively for Crooked Fang by Synde Korman