Every month, Mary at BookHounds gives away a themed mystery box full of goodies, and this month is no exception (I might even enter, which sort of makes me wonder why I’m telling my competition to go throw their names in the hat).

Now, while the books are all music-themed, I might be a bit premature in saying they are all Rock Fiction. In fact, I’m not sure any of them are. So whoever wins, let me know, okay?

Go check out the first parts of the blurbs and throw your name in the hat. It’s Rocktober, after all. Time to live dangerously, in the rock and roll lifestyle. And besides, the entries aren’t huge. Not yet. Not until you all go enter, if only to save me from the piles of books waiting for me around here…

Seriously. There is such a thing as Record Store Day.

It seems fitting to me that I, as an author and champion of Rock Fiction, set up some sort of fun promotion.

Here’s what I’m thinking…

I invite everyone who likes to post fiction on their blog, if they write Rock Fiction or not, to write some flash fiction celebrating Record Store Day or music in general. I’ll set up a linkie so you can share your link and draw in new friends. We’ll make it like a blog carnival of old.

And if you’ve written a work of Rock Fiction, why not consider giving a copy or two of your books away? Again, I’ll set up a linkie for that, too and we’ll have ourselves a Hop!

More details will follow as we get closer, complete with the promised linkies and other ways to share the fun (I can hear my IT guy swearing at me now). Let me know if you’re interested in any way — and other ideas for the day are welcome, too.

My friend, author Emily Casey, has interrupted my editing nirvana to remind me — and everyone else — that I am a born writer. She’s doing it in one of the most clever ways possible: by giving books awhile WHILE trying to educate even the most bashful reader about how important it is to support your favorite authors.

Here’s what she has to say about the Boost a Book event:

You, the reader

When you read a good book, you want to tell people about it! But aside from trying to convince your friend that they’re really going to like this random book you just found, what can you, as a reader, do to help an author?

How To Help
Word of mouth is of course really helpful, but did you know that just by leaving a review, you can make a book more visible to other readers? The review can be on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, your blog, Goodreads, Shelfari, it doesn’t matter. If it’s where readers can find it, you’re helping. The more times a book shows up on the internet, the more people hear about it.
[Note from Susan: If you post a review of any of my books on your own blog, I’ll link back to it.]

You can click the “like” button at the top of the book’s Amazon page, or the “Tags People Associate with This Product” at the bottom of the page. These help the book come up in search results and the “Readers Who Bought…” section.

You can also tweet about the book, mention it on facebook or Google+, or request the book at your local library or bookstore (if it’s in paperback).

The Good Stuff
The Boost a Book authors have some great fans and we know you all do some of these things already. So as a thank you, we’d like to offer some free ebooks. And, as an added bonus, we think it’d be fun to offer more books and more contest entries for each book you boost.

So grab your free entry below for a chance to win a free ebook from one of our Boost a Book authors. And if you want to discover even more new authors (by winning free ebooks) you can let us know how you’ve boosted a book and get extra entries.

How cool is THIS???

I’ve got some books in this give, myself, helping bring the grand total of books to be given away to 45. Yes. 45. How ’bout THEM cookies?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Yes, in case you missed it: ShapeShifter is a band name. It came from the desire of a young Trevor Wolff to shapeshift into his namesake and rip out the throat of the man who claimed to be his father.

That’s why I’ve stopped in at Laurie’s NON-paranormal Thoughts and Reviews today, for an interview and spotlight of Trevor’s Song. There’s an excerpt, too.

Why Trevor’s Song and not King Trevor? Because with the hullabaloo over here that I hope you’ve known nothing about (but if you’ve clicked through recently, you’ve seen it first-hand), I couldn’t get it together for King Trevor in time. Which means it’s been worse than crazy over here.

Stop in. See what’s going on. Click through to the give for Smashwords coupons for BOTH Trevor’s Song and King Trevor.

While you’re out and about, stop in at JC Cassels’ Gotta Name My Blog. I’m talking about heroes over there.

Remember a few months back, when I joined in a mega-huge give over at Darcia Helle’s site?

We’re at it again.

Only, this time, it’s e-books. And, instead of one winner taking home the bacon — well, okay, half the pig — this time, there will be multiple winners. Five of them (you?), in fact. Each winner will get five books.

Stop in. Check it out. Enter. Spread the word and all that jazz…

As the blog world continues to evolve and change underneath my feet, I’m doing my best to adapt and grow and change with it. It’s not always easy — after all, when I first started blogging, posting fiction was a rarity. Now there are multiple prompts and Twitter hashtags devoted to it.

Many of you guys have stuck with me from the first. With your support, I’ve been able to put out three books, with more on the way.

And now it’s time for me to give back.

As part of the Gratitude Giveaway over at I am a Reader, Not a Writer, I’m offering one print copy of each of my books: The Demo Tapes: Year 1, The Demo Tapes: Year 2, and Trevor’s Song. Each book will be autographed to the winner (or whoever the winner specifies).

I’m going to have to limit my shipping to the US and Canada only; right now, at least half my reported royalties until the end of the year are headed to charity. That means I’m only recouping half of what I’m spending!

Entry is easy. Tell me which book you want to be entered to win. Join the Google Followers (this is really important, as there are some future events that say I have to have x-number of followers before I’ll be allowed to join in!). And sit back and wait for me to announce the winners on November 29.

And if you’re an International friend and are willing to read an e-book and post a review online, let me know. I’ll hook you up with a coupon code for a freebie of any of my books at Smashwords (heck, any of you who’re willing to read an e-book and post a review can ask for this, in addition to winning an autographed print copy for your shelves!)

Go visit more of the 180 or so blogs joining in. See what else they are giving away. Have some fun, meet some new folk.

And remember, if you want to support me AND a charity all at once, at least 50% of my reported royalties between now and the end of the calendar year are headed to help kids make music. If you make a direct donation to the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, you will be entered to win some pretty nice books.