Well, you're all winners in my book! So many lovely participants -- you're all very charming and your book/tv/film recs were WONDERFUL. In fact, I hope to devote an entire blog entry to the recommendations you made. Thank you all so much for participating and making this incredibly fun for me. I look forward to getting to know you better through Twitter, Facebook and Blogger! Hope you stick around. (& not just because there will be more giveaways in the future!)
So, without further ado, our Grand Prize winner is . . .
Adriana!
She will receive the ARC of THE REVENANT, hardcover copies of THE VESPERTINE and CLARITY, plus a boatload of swag.
Our two runners up are . . .
Dana Wright and Jessica Ring!
They each receive a pre-order of THE REVENANT, plus swag-o-rama.
**Winners were chosen randomly by the random.org sequence generator!**
I have emailed the winners. If for some reason I don't hear from them within a week, I will do another drawing.
Thanks again to everyone for participating. I seriously wish I could give each of you a ginormous hug. Looking forward to seeing you around!
♥♥♥
Showing posts with label vespertine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vespertine. Show all posts
Monday, March 14, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
GIVEAWAY!
GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED TO NEW ENTRIES. STAY TUNED FOR ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNERS.
Hey guys! THE REVENANT will debut in just over three months. Can you believe it?
I'm having a giveaway to celebrate. There will be THREE winners!
GRAND PRIZE
The first name drawn will receive an advance reader's copy of THE REVENANT, plus swag:
Swag includes a signed bookmark, a super-cool Ouija Board keychain (with planchette inside), a not-so-cool REVENANT keychain (use it for a spare key), some REVENANT stickynotes, and whatever else I can rustle up.
PLUS . . . a copy of THE VESPERTINE and CLARITY, both chock full of mystery and paranormal deliciousness, along with swag:
Saundra Mitchell graciously included a bookmark and gorgeous dance card (see my interview with Saundra here), while Kim Harrington (interview forthcoming) kindly offered up a bookmark and signed bookplate!
PLUS . . . a cool journal from teNeues:
I bought one of these journals in Paris and FILLED IT UP. (See, here's a photo of me using mine.) I'm that "writer" who always gives up on a journal before it's 1/4 full, but this one was so nice because it was compact and yet also opened flat and was easy to write in. (I love that the pages are lined on one side only.) I ordered a bunch more when I got home!
AND FINALLY . . . an assortment of fabulous Elevensies swag:
You will never lack for bookmarks again!
RUNNERS UP
The second and third names drawn will each receive a pre-order of THE REVENANT, delivered to your door somewhere around June 14, without you having to lift a finger! And though you'll have to wait for this hardcover copy, it will be prettier and clean of typos (hopefully). These winners also will each receive REVENANT and Elevensies swag, plus a lovely teNeues journal -- so you will get something now AND something later!
All you have to do to enter is COMMENT BELOW. Easy, right?
You are not required to do so, but if you'd like additional entries thrown into the pot, you might:
1. Include in your comment a recommendation for a favorite ghostly or paranormal book/film/tv show. I love getting recs! + 1 entry
2. Tweet about the contest. Please use @soniagensler so I can see it. + 1 entry
(Here's a sample tweet: Win an ARC of @soniagensler's THE REVENANT, plus THE VESPERTINE, CLARITY and swag galore! Pls RT. http://tinyurl.com/4vnfz8h)
3. "Like" my brand new author page on Facebook and tag me in an update about the giveaway. + 1 entry
(The above tweet would work pretty well on Facebook, too!)
4. Follow this blog, if you like -- it gets lonely sometimes. + 1 entry
To make matters as simple as possible, I am temporarily allowing anonymous comments. Just make sure you give me a name (it's funny how many times people have entered my giveaways without providing a name) and, if you announce this contest elsewhere, identify your twitter/facebook handle so I know you when I see you!
You have until 11:59 p.m. (or thereabouts) on Sunday, March 13, to enter. Winners will be announced on Monday, March 14. ETA#1: You can leave an email addy now, or just check back on Monday and email me directly if you're one of the winners!
ETA#2: What the heck, in for a penny, in for a pound. Let's open this to international entries!
Good luck and thanks for entering!
Hey guys! THE REVENANT will debut in just over three months. Can you believe it?
I'm having a giveaway to celebrate. There will be THREE winners!
GRAND PRIZE
The first name drawn will receive an advance reader's copy of THE REVENANT, plus swag:
Swag includes a signed bookmark, a super-cool Ouija Board keychain (with planchette inside), a not-so-cool REVENANT keychain (use it for a spare key), some REVENANT stickynotes, and whatever else I can rustle up.
PLUS . . . a copy of THE VESPERTINE and CLARITY, both chock full of mystery and paranormal deliciousness, along with swag:
Saundra Mitchell graciously included a bookmark and gorgeous dance card (see my interview with Saundra here), while Kim Harrington (interview forthcoming) kindly offered up a bookmark and signed bookplate!
PLUS . . . a cool journal from teNeues:
I bought one of these journals in Paris and FILLED IT UP. (See, here's a photo of me using mine.) I'm that "writer" who always gives up on a journal before it's 1/4 full, but this one was so nice because it was compact and yet also opened flat and was easy to write in. (I love that the pages are lined on one side only.) I ordered a bunch more when I got home!
AND FINALLY . . . an assortment of fabulous Elevensies swag:
You will never lack for bookmarks again!
RUNNERS UP
The second and third names drawn will each receive a pre-order of THE REVENANT, delivered to your door somewhere around June 14, without you having to lift a finger! And though you'll have to wait for this hardcover copy, it will be prettier and clean of typos (hopefully). These winners also will each receive REVENANT and Elevensies swag, plus a lovely teNeues journal -- so you will get something now AND something later!
All you have to do to enter is COMMENT BELOW. Easy, right?
You are not required to do so, but if you'd like additional entries thrown into the pot, you might:
1. Include in your comment a recommendation for a favorite ghostly or paranormal book/film/tv show. I love getting recs! + 1 entry
2. Tweet about the contest. Please use @soniagensler so I can see it. + 1 entry
(Here's a sample tweet: Win an ARC of @soniagensler's THE REVENANT, plus THE VESPERTINE, CLARITY and swag galore! Pls RT. http://tinyurl.com/4vnfz8h)
3. "Like" my brand new author page on Facebook and tag me in an update about the giveaway. + 1 entry
(The above tweet would work pretty well on Facebook, too!)
4. Follow this blog, if you like -- it gets lonely sometimes. + 1 entry
To make matters as simple as possible, I am temporarily allowing anonymous comments. Just make sure you give me a name (it's funny how many times people have entered my giveaways without providing a name) and, if you announce this contest elsewhere, identify your twitter/facebook handle so I know you when I see you!
You have until 11:59 p.m. (or thereabouts) on Sunday, March 13, to enter. Winners will be announced on Monday, March 14. ETA#1: You can leave an email addy now, or just check back on Monday and email me directly if you're one of the winners!
ETA#2: What the heck, in for a penny, in for a pound. Let's open this to international entries!
Good luck and thanks for entering!
Friday, March 4, 2011
Four frivolous questions - Saundra Mitchell's THE VESPERTINE
Today I'm pleased to share an interview with Saundra Mitchell about her latest novel, The Vespertine, just out from Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt.
1. Your first book, Shadowed Summer, was a contemporary ghost story. The Vespertine is set in the late 19th century. Please share three things that captivated you about this time period.
First, I enjoyed the latitude. Instead of hanging out at the coffee shop, my characters could hang out at the park and goof off with a bow and arrow. It was perfectly reasonable for one of the characters to meet another when he came to sketch an autopsy in his living room. No seriously! There were so many interesting places to go and unusual things for them to do.
Second, I love how modern it is. The industrial revolution is starting, cars are coming, trains are connecting cities, states, countries. Telegraphs send instant messages, and telephones are coming. Suffragettes are demanding their equal rights, Spiritualists are trying to crack the code of death, Scientists are discovering radium and vaccines, Aesthetics are brazenly exploring sensuality-- this book may be set in our past, but it's also set on the very edge of the characters' future. It's a time so ripe and trembling with change that it was a delight to explore.
And thirdly, it was just plain fun to write characters who could use words like folderol, gibbering, miasma and temerity in common conversation. Reading through period newspapers to figure out the depth and parameters of the language of the time was like eating candy for me.
2. Tell me true, Saundra – why are 19th century boys so sexy? (I confess to swooning several times for Nathaniel.)
You're going to give that boy a big head, Sonia! :) I have to say for me, part of the appeal is the wardrobe. Cravats are hot. (Are they ever!) Morning coats are hot. Day gloves are hot. And the levels of intimacy were so different! I got the wickedest thrill out of writing the scene where Nathaniel leaves his glove in Amelia's pocket. Oh la la!
3. As someone obsessed with 19th century mediums, I loved the scene with Lady Privalovna – did the details of her performance come from research, your imagination, or both? Please explain!
I did tons of research on spiritualism and spiritism, which is why you see Amelia trying out some automatic writing in the book. (Not to mention collecting gloves and doing directed breathing!) These were method popularized by 19th century mediums. The Fox Sisters and Hélène Smith were serving up seances with these techniques, and they weren't the only ones.
But I have to admit, Lady Privalovna's show was all theatre-- that sequence came directly out of Harry Houdini's attempts to debunk the spiritualists in the early 20th century. He described how those performances were much more like magic shows than actual magic. He even went on tour with an Exposure Show, demonstrating how to produce mystical raps and ghostly manifestations. I'm just sorry I didn't manage to work in a Pepper's Ghost!
4. I suppose you might classify this novel as paranormal historical. (Or do you have a better classification?) Are there any other books or films in this genre that you would recommend? Something that lovers of The Vespertine would enjoy if they were dying for more? (Like me!!!)
Historical romance, historical fantasy, paranormal historical, paranormal romance, gothic... THE VESPERTINE gets around, yo. BUT! I really think that if you like THE VESPERTINE, you'll love THE SEASON by Sarah MacLean (historical romance,) A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY by Libba Bray (paranormal historical,) WILDTHORN by Jane Eagland (gothic!), THE PROPHECY OF THE SISTERS by Michelle Zink (paranormal historical,) KINDRED by Octavia Butler (historical fantasy,) and THE REVENANT by Sonia Gensler (paranormal historical!) However, I suspect you've read that last one. :D
Thanks for the kind mention of my book, Saundra! And thanks so much for answering my questions.
Readers, be sure to check out my review of The Vespertine at Book End Babes, and check back on Monday when I introduce my book giveaway, featuring a hardcover copy of The Vespertine, an ARC of The Revenant, and much more!
The Vespertine is currently available from: IndieBound ❘ Amazon ❘ Barnes & Noble ❘ Borders
[Cross-posted from Livejournal]
1. Your first book, Shadowed Summer, was a contemporary ghost story. The Vespertine is set in the late 19th century. Please share three things that captivated you about this time period.
First, I enjoyed the latitude. Instead of hanging out at the coffee shop, my characters could hang out at the park and goof off with a bow and arrow. It was perfectly reasonable for one of the characters to meet another when he came to sketch an autopsy in his living room. No seriously! There were so many interesting places to go and unusual things for them to do. Second, I love how modern it is. The industrial revolution is starting, cars are coming, trains are connecting cities, states, countries. Telegraphs send instant messages, and telephones are coming. Suffragettes are demanding their equal rights, Spiritualists are trying to crack the code of death, Scientists are discovering radium and vaccines, Aesthetics are brazenly exploring sensuality-- this book may be set in our past, but it's also set on the very edge of the characters' future. It's a time so ripe and trembling with change that it was a delight to explore.
And thirdly, it was just plain fun to write characters who could use words like folderol, gibbering, miasma and temerity in common conversation. Reading through period newspapers to figure out the depth and parameters of the language of the time was like eating candy for me.
2. Tell me true, Saundra – why are 19th century boys so sexy? (I confess to swooning several times for Nathaniel.)
You're going to give that boy a big head, Sonia! :) I have to say for me, part of the appeal is the wardrobe. Cravats are hot. (Are they ever!) Morning coats are hot. Day gloves are hot. And the levels of intimacy were so different! I got the wickedest thrill out of writing the scene where Nathaniel leaves his glove in Amelia's pocket. Oh la la!
3. As someone obsessed with 19th century mediums, I loved the scene with Lady Privalovna – did the details of her performance come from research, your imagination, or both? Please explain!
I did tons of research on spiritualism and spiritism, which is why you see Amelia trying out some automatic writing in the book. (Not to mention collecting gloves and doing directed breathing!) These were method popularized by 19th century mediums. The Fox Sisters and Hélène Smith were serving up seances with these techniques, and they weren't the only ones.
But I have to admit, Lady Privalovna's show was all theatre-- that sequence came directly out of Harry Houdini's attempts to debunk the spiritualists in the early 20th century. He described how those performances were much more like magic shows than actual magic. He even went on tour with an Exposure Show, demonstrating how to produce mystical raps and ghostly manifestations. I'm just sorry I didn't manage to work in a Pepper's Ghost!
4. I suppose you might classify this novel as paranormal historical. (Or do you have a better classification?) Are there any other books or films in this genre that you would recommend? Something that lovers of The Vespertine would enjoy if they were dying for more? (Like me!!!)
Historical romance, historical fantasy, paranormal historical, paranormal romance, gothic... THE VESPERTINE gets around, yo. BUT! I really think that if you like THE VESPERTINE, you'll love THE SEASON by Sarah MacLean (historical romance,) A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY by Libba Bray (paranormal historical,) WILDTHORN by Jane Eagland (gothic!), THE PROPHECY OF THE SISTERS by Michelle Zink (paranormal historical,) KINDRED by Octavia Butler (historical fantasy,) and THE REVENANT by Sonia Gensler (paranormal historical!) However, I suspect you've read that last one. :D
Thanks for the kind mention of my book, Saundra! And thanks so much for answering my questions.
Readers, be sure to check out my review of The Vespertine at Book End Babes, and check back on Monday when I introduce my book giveaway, featuring a hardcover copy of The Vespertine, an ARC of The Revenant, and much more!
The Vespertine is currently available from: IndieBound ❘ Amazon ❘ Barnes & Noble ❘ Borders
[Cross-posted from Livejournal]
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