Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Guest Post, Excerpt & Giveaway ~ FEAR JUSTICE by C.C. Bolick


FEAR JUSTICE is on sale for $.99, during the tour.

Fear Justice (The Fear Chronicles Series, #1)
by: C.C. Bolick
Series: The Fear Chronicles Series
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Release Date: April 25, 2019
Publisher: Dirt Road Books

Seventeen-year-old Rena Mason counts the days until she can leave for college. Every night her father drinks himself to sleep, leaving her to care for her younger brother. When her father is kidnapped by terrorists, her dreams of freedom become a nightmare.

Stunned that her father has a history with these terrorists, Rena knows she must run or be their next victim. She learns the tough guy at school has a reason to look after her - he's working for a government agency with the same goal as the terrorists: find a woman who disappeared eighteen years ago. Time is running out since only this woman's special gift can save the world from a looming nuclear attack.

Rena can't trust anyone, especially not the stone-cold agent she's falling for. Can they save the world before Rena's feelings trap her in an agent's fight for justice?

Fear Justice contains elements of fantasy, sci-fi, and paranormal, with a clean romance. It's the first book in an exciting new series called The Fear Chronicles.

Balancing life with writing is an everyday battle, especially for the many writers who work a full-time job. You can’t stop living to write, although at times I admit to doing almost that.

Since publishing my first book in 2016, I’ve written a new book every four months. I usually take two months for plotting – those days are filled with brainstorming sessions while I complete all of my necessary daily activities. This ‘plotting’ time might include detailing my character map on my lunch break or making notes of important dialogue snippets and must-have actions. During this time, I focus on life (75%) and preparing for the upcoming book (25%). If I can get up early (before the kids) or stay up late (after they’re snoozing), I might get a few passages outlined.

Sticky notes are my best friends. If I don’t have one and I’ve got an idea that can’t wait, I use an envelope, a napkin, or my hand. The thought of letting one idea slip away sends my OCD into overdrive.

After two months of plotting, I spend the next month writing the text. At this point, it’s life (25%) and writing the book (75%). I write early, late, and at any time I can sneak in a few minutes during the day. If I feel up to writing a full chapter or two at one time, I might take a vacation day from work. It typically takes me about a week to get in a good rhythm.

Once I’ve found that magic feeling of my story rocking onward, I don’t stop until the book is done.

I never write a book from the first page to the last. I lay out my chapters in Scrivener, add a short description of each major scene, and then write what feels most interesting to me that day. My emotions dictate what I write.

After the text is complete, I send the story off to my editor and start planning the next. Some writers say they must write a small amount each day. Early on, I found that hard to accomplish with kids and a job. It seems less stressful on my family if I plan out the books and write in alternating sessions.

Family is important, so is religion and about a hundred other things including the job that pays the bills. Until I’m lucky enough to write full-time, which will probably be never, I must find a way to balance all of this in the air like a circus juggler.

To finish a book, writing must have importance. Sure, it takes time I might never get paid for and a dream that only I understand. Some days writing has to be the most important part of my life.

There will be people in your life who have no idea what fuels this need to write. They may insist you’re wasting your time. No one will like your stories. Your books will never sell. Writing is so subjective – it doesn’t hurt my feelings to know someone hates my stories. What hurts my feelings is someone encouraging me to give up my dreams.

I bring up these negative items because writing is a conscious choice. I’d argue that for some of us, writing is both a passion and a curse. Time is a limited resource and we all must decide if our time is better spent writing.

Only you know if the answer is yes.

Tony cleared his throat. “You said your dad was kidnapped?”

“Last night. Coach and my dad were friends. They joined the Army together.” Why was I babbling? Tony didn’t need to know my life story. “I showed up this morning because I thought he might know why these people were after my dad.”

“Did either of them tell you?”

I shook my head and looked at Tony. “The man who beat up Coach Andrews—he said he’d give me a head start before hunting me down.”

Again, Tony glanced in the mirror. “He didn’t happen to say he drives a black Lincoln, did he?”

As I spun in the seat and leaned over the headrest to see, the belt cut into my neck. Behind us, a black car crept closer with every second. Someone in the passenger seat leaned out of the window with a gun. “There’s a man with a gun following us and I’m not freaking out. At least, I don’t think I am.”

“No, you’re cool.”

With a bitter laugh, I turned back around and dropped down on the red vinyl seat. “Cool? When are you going to ask why I’m not afraid?”

Tony hit the brakes and made a turn that left me choking from the belt’s grip. “Right after you ask why I picked you up.”

Purchase Fear Justice from:

C.C. Bolick grew up in south Alabama, where she’s happy to still reside. She’s an engineer by day and a writer by night—too bad she could never do one without the other.

Camping, fishing… she loves the outdoors and the warm Alabama weather. For years she thought up stories to write and finally started putting them on paper back in 2006. If you hear her talking with no one to answer, don’t think she’s crazy. Since talking through her stories works best, a library is her worst place to write… even though it’s her favorite!

C.C. loves to mix sci-fi and paranormal—throw in a little romance and adventure and you’ve got her kind of story. She’s written nine books including the Leftover Girl series, The Agency series, and The Fear Chronicles.

Places to follow C.C. Bolick:

You can follow the Fear Justice Blog Tour here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Follow

60 comments:

  1. I encourage reading so having a family who loves to read I sure support.Thanks for sharing your terrific read with us.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for checking out my guest post on the Read Your Writes blog today.

      Delete
  2. Thanks so much for hosting this stop of my tour. The post looks great!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Are any of the places in the book based off of real places that you visited?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I try not to use the same names of places I've visited unless it's a major city, but yes, most of what I write is based on my own experiences. Rena grows up in a camper - the idea came when I was working on another book while camping. I thought, what would it be like to grow up in this tiny space?

      Delete
  4. The book sounds amazing, and I love the cover.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Congratulations! Thanks for sharing your Joy!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sweet! Cover looks good! Thank you for the giveaway!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad you like the cover. Good luck with the giveaway!

      Delete
  7. I love the cover. The colors are beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for checking out the post and for the comment.

      Delete
  8. How many books have you written so far? Congrats on the release.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks. Fear Justice is my ninth book, which started a new series for me - The Fear Chronicles. I'm currently working on book 2 which is called Fear Power. I'm also writing a bonus book for fans of my first two series. It will be available soon through my website as a gift to those who've asked for more.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sounds like an excellent YA read. I like the cover art.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the comment. When I saw this cover, I knew it was the one.

      Delete
  11. Great cover, this sounds really good

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for checking out the post on Read Your Writes blog.

      Delete
  12. Replies
    1. Glad you love the cover. Thanks for stopping by.

      Delete
  13. How many books do you have planned for this series?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Fear Chronicles will be a four-book series. I'm currently working on book #2, which should be ready for release next month.

      Delete
  14. I love strong female characters in books

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too!!! My goal with Rena was to create a character who really was fearless. But she'll learn that being fearless won't always keep you safe.

      Delete
  15. This sounds like a good action story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, there are several car chases and a fight to save people from a nuclear bomb. I loved writing the action parts, but there are quiet moments too, where Rena must figure out how she feels about the agent trying to protect her and how she'll save her dad and brother.

      Delete
  16. I'm really excited about this one after reading the description!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, this book was a blast to write. I love the dynamic between fearless Rena and the agent who's tasked with protecting her.

      Delete
  17. thanks for hosting this great giveaway

    ReplyDelete
  18. I thought it was interesting to see an author with the name of "Bolick". My maiden name was Bolick, I'm from North Carolina. (Connie Bolick Lee)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm from Alabama, but you never know. It could be the same Bolick name :-)

      Delete
  19. Always like to start a new series.. this looks like a really good one.. Best of luck and thank you...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome. This first book has been fun to write and I have several twists planned for the other books. It won't be easy for Rena, that's for sure!

      Delete
  20. Eye catching cover! Thanks for the chance!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Wow, this is such a creative, imaginative story. Not what I was expecting at all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the comment Emmaline. Of all my books, I think Fear Justice has been my favorite to write so far. I just love the characters!

      Delete
  22. I'm really looking forward to reading this book.

    ReplyDelete
  23. What was your favorite part about writing this book?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The interactions between Rena and the agent who's protecting her. He had no idea what he was getting into when he took this mission. I loved writing the banter between them and especially the humorous parts.

      Delete
  24. I liked both the excerpt, and the gorgeous book cover.

    ReplyDelete
  25. This sounds fantastic! I Love urban fantasy!

    ReplyDelete

Comments which include links to other sites, or names including links WILL BE CONSIDERED SPAM AND DELETED.

Please be original in your comments. DO NOT comment on multiple posts with the SAME EXACT words. It looks spammy and makes it hard to tell that you are commenting on different posts during comment moderation. ~ For blog tours, don't forget to spread the love, by visiting and commenting at other stops.