A Darling Secret Official Release Date and Teaser Trailer!

Did you see??? A Darling Secret has an official release date!!!

It's Time for Ice Cream!

 
How does one celebrate after completing the first draft of a new book? ICE CREAM!!!

I'm thrilled to report that I've finished writing A Darling Secret. Woot! 

What's next? Lots and lots of editing. And then some more editing. Then a little more...

Stay tuned for details. :D

P.S. My website got a facelift. Check it out!

Review Time!

It's truly a remarkable feeling when authors you admire write glowing reviews about your own books. I'm so flattered that suspense author Ingrid Foster had this to say about Strange Luck:

"As a reader, I love any book that can pull me in on page one and keep me turning pages. Strange Luck is definitely that sort of book."

And had this to say about The Nightmare Birds:

"Original plot, unusual, captivating and memorable characters and story line. A must read for fantasy lovers.

I also just got a review of Strange Luck from the talented Sarah Noffke, author of the Lucidite series. 

"This book grabbed my attention from the beginning...A great story with fantastic writing."

 

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If you're looking for something new to read, I highly recommend checking out any books by these authors. You won't be sorry :)

www.ingrididfoster.com
www.sarahnoffke.com

What's On My Nightstand - Reading Recommendations

Curious about what I'm reading? Here's what's currently on my nightstand:

A Monster Calls: I had such high hopes for this book, especially given its gorgeous artwork, but ultimately I was disappointed. I thought it was going to be able actual monsters, secret worlds, spooky things...magic. At least that's how it was presented. Instead, it was a depressing middle-grade book. The protagonist is picked on at school, his dad is ass, he hates his grandma and is forced to live with her, oh, and his mom is dying an extremely painful death. The story is really sad and at points gut-wrenching, especially if you've ever had anyone close to you die of cancer. I can appreciate what the author was attempting to do with this story, and some parts were genuinely creative, but ultimately I found it increasingly difficult to stay motivated to read it.

Tuck Everlasting: I remember when this came out in theaters back in the day and never knew it was a book until recently. A free copy recently landed in my lap and I've been reading it at night before going to bed. It's an extremely easy read with an intriguing concept. The best word to describe this book is cute. It's definitely geared towards a younger audience, or for people who just want something light and whimsical to read.

Collected Ghost Stories: This book is seriously creeping me out! The use of descriptions and story concepts are haunting, and dare I say reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft (yay!). James does an incredible job of transporting you into the story in just a few short lines. The biggest surprise about this book is that it's a lot easier to read than most Gothic horror stories, but it has just as much bite.

Suspended: This is a mysterious, fun, and easy to read story that is full of imaginative and vivid imagery. The Dream Travelers are an interesting and original concept, and the story’s many twists and turns keep you hooked until the last page. This story reminded me of The Night Circus meets Alice in Wonderland. I enjoyed getting to know each of the unique characters and their equally unique magical abilities. Noffke has written a delightfully whimsical book that is sure to delight fantasy and YA readers.
 
What's next? I just got The Chaos of Stars and am really looking forward to reading it. The concept of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses living in modern times sounds really interesting.

~~~

What's on your nightstand at the moment?

Have any books you want to recommend?

Please share below.  :D

Strange Luck is an Amazon Best-Seller!

I can now officially call myself an Amazon best-selling author. Strange Luck just hit #1!!! 

AHHHHH!!!!!! Pardon me while I freak out. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

 

I am beyond words. This is something I've been wanting and working towards for the longest time and it seriously means the world to me.

A great big THANK YOU to everyone for your support. I appreciate each and every one of you. :) Including YOU. Yeah, YOU!!!!

Fantasia Reviews - Best Story of the Year

This morning I learned that Fantasia Reviews named The Nightmare Birds Best Story of the Year! I am incredibly honored and thrilled to have even been nominated. What a truly wonderful thing to wake up to on New Year's Day. I am especially touched by these remarks:

"While both Strange Luck and The Nightmare Birds are fantastic, we believe The Nightmare birds to be superior, which is quite the feat for a sequel."

"Miss Winters advances Daisy to the point of almost being real."

"While Miss Winters is a talented writer, her greatest gift is her ability to weave a
believable and beautiful tale."

You can read more about the awards and check out the other nominees here. Congratulations to all my fellow winners!

Thank you so much to Fantasia Reviews for honoring The Nightmare Birds with this award!

Book Impressions - Fantasia Reviews Strange Luck

"A fantastic story. Miss Winters has woven a tale that will enthrall readers and leave them begging for more."

"She paints in broad strokes and fine details, giving us food for thought and imagery to fawn over – we loved it."

"Miss Winters possesses and abundance of talent and imagination that she has poured onto the pages of this book to deliver something that is not only delightful, but worth reading, and that is a rare talent indeed."

I'm absolutely ecstatic about this review!!! These kind words mean the world to me :)

Read what else Fantasia Reviews had to say about Strange Luck in their five-star review.

Book Impressions - Love Serially

Getting a book review is like opening a gift on Xmas.

When it's a good review, it's like getting Super Nintendo with all of your favorite games that you'd been wanting all year. Hey, I'm a child of the 90s. :) Did you see this by the way?

Anyway, I'm so excited that Love Serially Book Blog reviewed BOTH of my books and had some awesome things to say.  Here's a snippet from the Strange Luck review:

"The writing and dialogue are smooth and the world that Amie Winters creates is vivid and interesting...it's a lot of fun."

You can read the full review here.

And here's a snippet of The Nightmare Birds review:

"Daisy is a very loving person and it really helps to draw people to her, including me the reader. The love of a daughter to her father, first love, and the love of a mother to her child—it’s all there and I enjoyed it immensely...highly entertaining."

You can read the full review here.

I'm so glad you enjoyed my books!:D

Who Wants FREE Books???

Do you love magic, the supernatural, and other worlds? For a limited time I'm giving away 100 FREE e-copies of Strange Luck!

What's the catch?

There is none. Just click HERE and click 'Get Free Copy'. That's it!

If you're so inclined, you can also leave a review.

Happy reading :)

Did I mention it's FREE???

Science And Other Scary Words: On Writing Science Fiction - Guest Post By Belinda Crawford

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by YA sci-fi author Belinda Crawford. Coincidentally, I just started reading my first sci-fi book (yes, of all time) and am really enjoying it, so when I connected with Belinda, I wanted to know more. The thought of writing sci-fi had always seemed really intriguing...and kinda scary, so, I asked Belinda if she would share some tips on how to write science fiction. Enjoy!

Science And Other Scary Words: On Writing Science Fiction

Here’s a little secret, there’s not a lot of difference between writing science fiction and writing any other genre. Sure, there are some new words (wormhole, nanotech, mecha, thingy-ma-bob, dohickey) and a proliferation of acronyms to learn (AI, FTL, OMG, WTF) but that whole bit where you write a great story with interesting characters…That doesn't change.

It’s all about the worldbuilding

What makes a story sci-fi is not the narrative, but the world it’s set in. In general, sci-fi is any story where science enables extraordinary things to happen, much the same as magic does in fantasy. Usually it’s set in the future (or at the very least, the author’s future—A Princess of Mars was set in 1912 and written prior) and features advanced technology, such as spaceships, robots and lightsabers. There are some notable exceptions, such as the steampunk and superhero subgenres, but for the most part, the above remains true.

The key to creating a great world is making it believable, which can be daunting if you’re just getting started in sci-fi and/or aren't the kind of person who reads Scientific American.

The Science in Science Fiction

A lot of people have the misconception sci-fi must be scientifically accurate, which can be a barrier for readers and writers alike. The truth is, just because the genre has science in the name, doesn’t mean you have to include any in the narrative.

There’s a spectrum to the scientific accuracy of sci-fi, often referred to as its ‘hardness’. It starts with science fantasy, which doesn’t worry about the scientific details (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), progresses to soft sci-fi, which worries just a little (Dune), and makes its way to hard sci-fi, which worries a lot (2001: A Space Odyssey).

The ‘hardness’ of a work of sci-fi is directly proportional to it’s scientific accuracy, and one of the first things you need to consider when writing sci-fi is where you want to fit on that scale.

What Sort of Sci-fi Should You Write?

First decide what sort of story you want to tell. If you want to tell a story about space knights who roam the galaxy kicking butt and dispensing justice with glowy swords and mental powers (The Lost King), science fantasy is probably your gig. If you want to explore how planets could be terraformed for human habitation (Red Mars) then hard sci-fi might be for you.

Second, look at your bookshelf. What sort of books do you like to read? What is it about those books that you enjoy? Is it powered armour (Armored), living spaceships (Warhorse), ecological apocalypse (The Windup Girl) or alien invasion (Battlefield Earth)? Is it none of them or several of them? Whatever it is, that's what you should write.

Third, ask yourself how much you like science and research. If you really, really want to write a detailed, realistic story about a man stranded on a hostile alien planet (The Martian), but the thought of cracking open a book or seeking advice from experts makes you want to throw up, you have a problem. That’s not to say that the softer end of the spectrum doesn’t also require research, but it (and when I say ‘it’, I mean the readership) is more forgiving.

You don’t need to be a science buff, professor or nerd to write sci-fi, even hard sci-fi, but you do need to be prepared to get your hands dirty and ask for help when you need it.

Research

So, how do you research things like faster-than-light travel, honking-big robots and astrophysics?

Google and Wikipedia are excellent first steps. Depending upon how close to the ‘soft’ end of science scale your story is, it may be all you need. If you want something more in-depth you’ll need to hunt down academic websites, books, journals or an actual expert.

Your local library, or an online one, should be your next step, and don't forget to ask the librarian if you need help. Often, if you need the advice of an expert, you can email the author of a particular book or journal article. You’ll be surprised how often people are willing to help, and quite flattered to be asked. You can also try talking to your local doctor, vet, car mechanic or any other professional whose expertise fits with what you’re trying to research.

For topics you're unlikely to find in a research book, such as cyborgs or Godzilla-sized monsters, consider TV Tropes–a website that categorises and discusses all sorts of weird and wonderful things–read other sci-fi books to see how they deal with it, or delve deep into Internet discussion boards.

Do It Your Way

Writing sci-fi is just like writing any other genre. There is no right or wrong way to do it and you don't need to be a super-duper library person, nerd or PhD of Future Sh— err, Stuff. All you need are a few characters, an interesting story and a little bit of the future, sprinkled with just as much research as you need to write a great book. How you go about doing that is up to you.

A Few More Resources

• Curiosity.com isn’t that good for in-depth research, but it’s full of fun little facts to expand your mind and inspire you.
• If you have a specific question (like ‘Could superpowers be scientifically possible?’) Quora is the place to find an answer, or at least a discussion.
• The Worldbuilding Stackexchange is great for discussions about worldbuilding topics, like ‘Would the human body support living on planets with a greater gravity than Earth?’. 
• Listopia on Goodreads is your resource for finding books in specific genres or about certain topics.
• The Tools section on this site has a handy-dandy faster-than-light travel calculator, among other things.

~~~
Wow! These are great resources and book recommendations, Belinda, especially for someone like me who doesn't know a thing about the sci-fi literary world. That faster-than-light travel calculator is quite nifty by the way. Maybe writing sci-fi isn't so scary after all. :) Thanks so much for sharing.

~~

Bio:
Physics makes Belinda’s brain hurt, while quadratics cause her eyes to cross and any mention of probability equations will have her running for the door. Nonetheless, she loves watching documentaries about the natural world, biology, space, history and technology (Megafactories is one of her favourite TV shows). Oh, and she writes science fiction.

Hero is the first book in The Hero Rebellion, a science fiction trilogy about a girl with a plan to get a life. There are alien steeds, AIs, illegal street racing and a conspiracy to change the world. The second book, Riven, will hit shelves on September 25 this year.

You can keep in touch with Belinda, or just pick her brains about sci-fi, via her website, Facebook or by sending her an email (she loves email).

Five Star Review From Josephine's Library!

 
There was a very pleasant surprise waiting for me this morning. A stellar review of The Nightmare Birds from Josephine's Library! Here's a preview of the five star review:

"When I read Strange Luck, it was unlike anything I'd ever read before. It was an amazing mixture of mystery and fantasy...And with The Nightmare Birds Ms. Winters has succeeded in leaving me mesmerized all over again...With a dazzling array of characters and a vibrant plot, it's no wonder this book is near impossible to put down."

You can read the full review HERE. If you'd like to check out her review of Strange Luck, you can find that HERE.

I'm so happy that the sequel is being so well received. Phew! I poured so much of my heart and soul into this story and have made it my mission to create something unique, mysterious, and imaginative, so reviews like this seriously make my week! Thank you so much. :D

If you've read my book(s), I'd love to hear what you think. Shoot me an email, post in the comments below, or send me a link to your review. Readers, like you, have the power to make or break a book, and every bit of feedback is appreciated.

 

I Heart Reading Interview

What was the most difficult part about writing my new book?

Are birds and squirrels necessary for my writing process?

Why was I inspired to write the Strange Luck series?

Find out in my interview with I Heart Reading. While you're there, be sure to check out Majanka Verstraete's books. She writes really cool speculative fiction children's books, as well as supernatural YA books!

The Nightmare Birds Book Giveaway!

I hope you've been enjoying all of the book goodies this week to celebrate the release of The Nightmare Birds. In case you missed it, you can meet the characters HERE and read the first chapter HERE.

I have lots more fun extras planned in the coming weeks, but first I'm going to be giving away some books. Woot!

Click HERE to enter my Amazon book giveaway!

I'll be giving away special signed copies and limited edition bookmarks of The Nightmare Birds soon, so keep checking back for details, or, you can sign up for my newsletter to be the first to know about my giveaways.

It's been a very exciting week and I greatly appreciate everyone's support. It seriously means the world to me :D Think I'll celebrate with some chocolate cake...

 

It's So Pretty - Book Giveaways and Other News

Yay!!!! It's finally here. :D

August 2 seemed like forever ago and now it's less than two weeks until my new book, The Nightmare Birds, will be released. I'm BEYOND ecstatic! My first response was to stare silently in shock and then squeal "It's soooooo pretty!" You can watch my excitement HERE.

 

Want to have first crack at extra content, behind-the-scenes glimpses, promotions, and giveaways? Sign up for my newsletter and you'll be the first to know.

Crazy Socks and Haunted Antiques - My Interview with J.D. Estrada

  
Did I write Strange Luck based on the advice of a fortune cookie?

Do I seriously only wear "crazy" socks?

Is a haunted shell the most expensive item in the antique shop?

Find out the answers to these questions (and others quirky ones) in my interview with the uber-talented J.D. Estrada. Enjoy!

COVER REVEAL of The Nightmare Birds!

I'm soooooooooo excited to reveal the cover of Book II in the Strange Luck series - The Nightmare Birds. Woot!

I didn't plan it this way, but the cover was actually created by the same designer who did Strange Luck (Humbert Glaffo). Everything in the cover is symbolic of things that happen in the book, like Daisy's owl-shaped birthmark on her ankle and the magical key on the back cover. This design really captures the essence of the story and I'm so happy to finally share it with you. So, without further ado...

How much do you love this cover??? Share below. :)

Help Choose My New Book Cover!

As an avid reader, I love engaging with my favorite authors, especially when they ask for input from their readers. Readers have the power to make or break a book. As an author, I greatly value your feedback, which is why I want YOU to help me choose my new book cover.

I've narrowed it down to four gorgeous designs. All you have to do is click the link below and select your favorite design. Comments are welcome. And if you haven't already, check out the official blurb of The Nightmare Birds here. Thank you so much for contributing :)

PICK THE OFFICIAL NIGHTMARE BIRDS BOOK COVER 

 

Strange Luck Secrets Revealed!

Fortune-telling crickets, mysterious candy, and haunted antiques?! I had a blast sharing 10 things you didn't know about Strange Luck and received such awesome feedback that I decided to share a few more secrets and elaborate on some of the ones from my post. I hope you enjoy it. And check out Loki's debut!!! He's the best sidekick ever. :)

Strange Luck Official Book Trailer!

It's here! I've been working on a new trailer and I'm so excited to finally share it with you. Please show your support by watching and liking the official Strange Luck book trailer. Thank you! :)

I'll be posting a teaser trailer of The Nightmare Birds soon. Stay tuned!