By P.J. MacLayne (Guest Blogger)
First,
thanks to Lisabet for hosting me today.
Now
that Super Bowl and the hype around the commercials are over, I have
a confession to make.
I
don't care.
I'm
not talking about the Super Bowl. I don't follow sports, but the
Super Bowl is at least mildly interesting, especially as I live near
Denver.
It's
the commercials I don't care about.
Let
me get something off my chest right away. I HATE commercials. I don't
watch TV anymore because of commercials. On the rare occasions when I
do watch a show, I get up and find something else to do while the
commercials are playing. You'd be surprised how much housework I can
get done in a limited amount of time. And my dearly beloved got tired
of me picking apart commercials while they were on.
Now,
there's a good chance I'll watch on or two of the commercials created
for the Super Bowl on YouTube. After all, they tend to be better than
your average, run-of-the-mill ad. A few are actually humorous and
might make me giggle. But what are the chances that watching any of
those commercials will make me want to run out and buy the product?
None.
Nada. Zippo.
Because
it gets much worse.
I
spend a lot of time on a computer. You know all those annoying ads on
the tops and sides of web pages? I don't. I mean, I know they exist.
But I've trained myself to ignore them, even the ones that flash
brightly. I just don't see them. And the chances that I will click on
one of them? Zero. Zed.
I've
been surfing the Web since the days of dial-up and BBS's. Yes, I'm
that old. Not once have I bought anything from an ad on the internet.
If I want to buy something, I'll go out and do my research on it, but
an ad has never convinced me to buy anything.
I
am an advertisers worst nightmare. I am an anti-consumer. But that
makes sense, because I'm an old-hippie chick and material goods are
not my biggest priority. I'd rather spend money on a camping trip in
the mountains or a night out with old friends than some fancy gadget
for my kitchen that I might use twice.
With
one exception. Books.
I'll
actually buy books I see recommended by acquaintances on Facebook or
on Twitter. I've expanded into buying books I see on blogs and other
websites. I'm pretty open to genre as long as it promises to have a
good plot. I use to be one of those people who clung to paper books -
I still have two bookshelves stuffed full - but I like being able to
buy an ebook from the comfort of my easy chair and and start reading
it immediately. I do miss the act of holding a book in my hands and
physically turning the pages, but I've learned to be flexible.
Which
puts me in an odd place, because I'm going to try to sell you my book
now. It's called Wolves' Pawn and it's the story of Dot McKenzie, a
lone wolf-shifter on the run, using everything available to her to
stay one step ahead of her pursuers. When she is offered a chance for
friendship and safety with the Fairwood pack, she accepts.
Gavin
Fairwood, reluctant heir for Fairwood pack leadership, is content to
let life happen while he waits. Old longings surface when he
appoints himself as Dot's protector and becomes more than a friend.
Dot
goes into hiding again when her presence puts the pack and her new
friends at risk. When those same forces threaten the destruction of
the Fairwood pack, it will take the combined efforts of Dot and Gavin
to save it. But can anything save their love and Dot's life when she
becomes a pawn in a pack leader's deadly game?
And
here's a short excerpt from the book. Dot is telling Gavin and his
friend Dmitri about her first experiences as a shifter.
She
sat on one bed, and sipped her coffee while the two men sat opposite
of her on the other.
“First
time I shifted I was eighteen. I was running away from my aunt's
house for reasons I won't get into. I thought I got a bad cramp, and
found myself running faster and easier than I ever thought possible.
When I finally got tired, I laid down under a tree to rest. Woke up
in the morning miles from home, cold and completely naked. I stole
some clothes from a farmhouse to wear home. Had no idea what
happened. Thought I was hallucinating or something. Wondered if I
should check myself in to a mental health facility.”
“The
next time it happened, I was being hassled by some guys when I was
walking home after work one night. Got that cramping again as I tried
to fight them off, next thing I knew they were running away. Went to
look at myself in a store window and saw a wolf.” She smiled.
“Freaked me out. When I realized the wolf was me, freaked me out
even more. My clothes were in shreds on the sidewalk, but I figured
it didn't matter. Got my house keys out of my pocket with my mouth
and trotted all the way home. Hoped people would think I was just a
big dog. Seemed to work too. Fell asleep in the yard of my aunt's
house, and in the morning, when I had changed back to human form,
snuck in and got dressed without ever being missed.”
“After
a couple more incidents, I realized I had to learn to control the
changing before I hurt someone. Plus, I think someone was watching me
even back then. So I left my aunt's and set off on my own. Took a lot
of work, but I have it mostly under control. Now if I could just
figure out who is chasing me and why.”
*****
Sounds
good, doesn't it? You can buy it from Amazon right now, from the
comfort of your easy chair, or your desk chair, or wherever you might
be at the moment, because you have an internet connection. Here's the
link. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HVDD1G4 (US)
In
case you're interested in a little bit about me, here it is. I'm a
computer geek by day and a writer by night. I grew up amid the
rolling hills of Pennsylvania I love to set my stories in, but I
currently make my home in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. I can be
found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pjmaclayne or on
Twitter @PjMacLayne.
