Thursday 20 November 2014

Snow Blood by Carol McKibben: Interview + Giveaway




Snow Blood Season 1 
Snow Blood Series, Episodes 1-6
by Carol McKibben 
 

Genre: Paranormal Romance  
Publisher: Troll River Publications  
Number of pages: 240 pages  
Cover Artist: Truenot Dreams

Snow Blood Season 1 by Carol McKibben is the first in a series of short novels retelling the modern day adventures of the first vampire.  

When Brogio must turn Snow, a beautiful white husky, in order to save the dog, a series of events is unleashed that reveal a sinister plot against the father of all vampires.  

As life and true death experiences bond the master vampire and his newly transformed vampire canine together, they unravel a conspiracy that when resolved may return Selene, the love of Brogio’s life, back to him and set him free from the lonely existence that has plagued him for thousands of years! From the author of Luke’s Tale, follow Snow Blood, an epic story of the first vampire as told through the eyes of his kindred dog.


Available at
Amazon       BN        Kobo        Smashwords

 


 
 About the Author
Carol McKibben graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Secondary Education and a minor in Journalism. She went on to earn a Master’s of Arts in Teaching (MAT) from Rollins College. After teaching English and Journalism for a decade, she was offered the opportunity to join Miramar Communications, the 8th largest publishing house west of the Mississippi in Los Angeles.

Working her way up from editorial and then as Director of Market Development, she became the publisher of Special Events magazine (a trade publication for all those working in the events industry) that she helped launch in 1984. In addition, she created a companion trade show, The Special Event, for which she was also the director for a decade, planning every aspect – from exhibits to educational conferences and events.

During that time, she earned her Certified Special Events Professional (CSEP) designation and helped found the International Special Events Society (ISES) of which she was international president from 1999-2000. She co-authored The Dictionary of Event Management for ISES and helped write the study guides for the CSEP exam.

She was a magazine publisher for both consumer and trade magazines for 20+ years. She has written numerous articles and conducted a myriad of seminars, often speaking to large audiences for both The Special Event and ISES. She was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the special events industry in 1999.

In 2007, she began a freelance writing and editing career, working with other authors to help them realize their dreams. She has published Luke’s Tale, Riding Through It and Snow Blood Season 1. Luke’s Tale and Snow Blood are targeted to a YA market. Luke’s Tale was included in the Summer Solstice Top 12 Book Pick List. Carol writes from the heart of a dog’s eyes. Her books help support her dog rescue efforts and focus on unconditional love.

Carol is married to Mark McKibben, a broadcast engineering sales professional and experienced airplane pilot, and they have two grown children, Rett and Stephanie, and three grandchildren, Lauren, Diesel and Slater. Their current “babies” are Neo, their 117-lb. Labradoodle, a trained therapy dog, and Binks, a black Labrador Retriever rescue. Together Mark and Carol work with the Los Angeles Animal Rescue and Wings of Rescue to save the precious lives of endangered dogs.

Carol is a firm believer in Maya Angelou’s quote:” I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” She believes that angels were her inspiration for Luke’s Tale – a Story of Unconditional Love and feels that even though the Snow Blood Series is about the original vampire and his kindred dog, that theme carries through. “There’s a method to my madness,” she states. “The world is waiting for love to overcome hate. I feel that my purpose is to show others how to love unconditionally, just as dogs love us we should love each other.”

Carol’s other favorite quote is one that her husband taught her. “I love myself more when I am with you.”

Carol ,Neo and Binks are currently working on Snow Blood Season 2.

To learn even more about Carol, go to http://www.carolmckibben.com
Blog: http://www.carolmckibben.com/blog
Twitter: https://twitter.com/@carolmckibben
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/carolmckibbenauthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20497411-snow-blood
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4046806.Carol_McKibben
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/carolmckibben
RSS: http://www.carolmckibben.com/1/feed
Luke’s Tale: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5TgN5PQao8






Q & A with Author Carol McKibben

Q:  Tell us a little bit about your main characters.

A:  My main characters are Snow Blood, Brogio, Selene and Kane.

Snow Blood is a beautiful white husky turned vampire by the original, the first vampire, Brogio. Resistant at first, Snow Blood become the loyal companion and best friend to his master. He is the embodiment of unconditional love. Snow Blood is the narrator of his story, and we see the other characters through his eyes.

Brogio is the very first vampire. Powerful and closed-off, Brogio isn’t the monster he appears to be at first. Snow Blood uncovers Brogio’s tragic story as a series of events are unleashed that reveal a sinister plot against the father of all vampires. Life and true death experiences bond the master to his newly transformed vampire canine. Together they unravel the conspiracy that when resolved may return Selene, the love of Brogio’s life, back to him and set him free from the lonely existence that has plagued him for thousands of years.

Selene is the love of Brogio’s life. Once his human wife, Selene has been ripped away from Brogio by Artemis, a jealous god, and then inexplicably returned to him. Is she part of the sinister plot to destroy Brogio?

Kane is Brogio’s first vampire progeny. Handsome, witty, a flirt and a wanderer, he is the opposite of Brogio in appearance and dress. Flamboyant and a lover of history and detail, Kane was Brogio’s best friend and confidante after Brogio returned to Italy as a vampire. Longing for immortality, Kane convinced Brogio to make him kindred and thus becomes the first son of the vampire race.

Q:  Who designed the covers for your book and what was that process like for you as the author?
A: 
I am so in love with my covers.

Troll River Publications is my publisher. Stephanie at Troll River designed the cover for Luke’s Tale – A Story of Unconditional Love. She was very collaborative with me. She asked me for my vision, and I told her I wanted to play on the title Luke’s Tale and focus somewhat on a Labrador retriever’s tail. Every pun intended. Then, we had volunteers vote on a variety of covers. We actually came up with two different covers, one for the Kindle version and another for the paperback.

Troll River hired Truenotdreams Design to create the cover for Snow Blood Season 1. Again, I was asked for my vision. I wanted Snow Blood’s face and emphasis on his blue eyes. They came back to me with the art, and I was immediately in love. Then, they gave me about 8 versions of the different graphics. We all wanted the fonts to drip with blood and to have a winter background scene. We picked the “blood” font with the most of that! It was a great experience.

Q:  What is the best advice you have been given?
A: 
Love what you write. Believe in your abilities. Write every day – the more you write, the better you will become.
 Q:  How do you keep busy when you're not writing?
A: 
Laughing at that one. I run a writing/editing business. I’m always writing. I work with other authors to complete their dreams. I work with businesses to produce all their written products … so that, plus my own writing. And then … I compete in classical dressage with my horse. I’ve been at that since 2002. By the way, he’s a 1,600-pound. Black Friesian. His name is Aramis. 
Q:  If you could have any superhuman ability, what would you choose and why?
A: 
Psychic abilities so I would know if people are going to love what I write before I write it!!!! I hate to disappoint people.

Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
A: 
Paperbacks. They’re easy to take with me, and I still love to hold a book in my hands when I’m reading.

Q:  What book are you reading now?
A: 
I am reading A Big Little Life by Dean Koontz and A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny.




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1 comment:

  1. Thanks so much to Shut Up & Read for hosting Snow Blood Season 1 and me. If readers have questions, just ask! Best, Carol McKibben

    ReplyDelete