New release: SHADOW MASTERS: An Anthology from The Horror Zine

Imajin Books is proud to release SHADOW MASTERS, a new horror anthology by some masters of suspense, along with some new talent in the genre. I am especially excited about this release as it includes all original, never-before-published shorts stories, including mine, DREAM HOUSE.

Featuring a haunted house cover designed by cover artist extraordinaire, Ryan Doan, SHADOW MASTERS has released to rave reviews, including a major plug from NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD co-writer, John Russo, who says, “This anthology is chock-full of wonderfully horrific stories from noted authors as well as talented unknowns.”

Fear casts a long shadow, and shadows take many shapes…

From award-winning editor, Jeani Rector, who brought you the terrifying anthology, WHAT FEARS BECOME, comes a wicked brew of spine-tingling fiction. Featuring never before published works from best-selling authors such as Bentley Little, Yvonne Navarro, Scott Nicholson, Melanie Tem, Elizabeth Massie, Earl Hamner, Simon Clark, Cheryl Kaye Tardif, Ronald Malfi, Lisa Morton, Jeff Bennington, JG Faherty and many others, this chilling collection of works also includes a foreword from Joe R. Lansdale.

From classic horror and exciting suspense to Twilight Zone-type speculative fiction with twisted endings, SHADOW MASTERS: An Anthology from The Horror Zine delves into the darkest corners of our nightmares and delivers the shivers.

And here's a sneak peek at my short, DREAM HOUSE...

The day we moved into our dream house was the beginning of our nightmare. And it all started with five fortuitous words…

“I want my dream house,” I told my husband.

We stood in the poor excuse of a kitchen in our rundown Boston bi-level. I was stuck between the open oven door and a cupboard on the other side, while Ray unloaded the dishwasher and tried not to bump into me.

“This kitchen is ridiculous,” I said. “Whoever designed it must have been a size zero anorexic who lived on her own.”

I was neither a size zero, nor an anorexic. I wasn’t willing to give up my bacon cheeseburgers and DQ Blizzards. So the scale tipped a little further—not in my favor. Oh well.

“Two weeks, Christine,” Ray said. Then his psychiatric training kicked in. “Are you sure you’re not substituting the new house for something else?”

“I just want space. If that makes me crazy, then…” I shrugged, “so be it.”

Fact is, I’d fallen in love with the idea of buying and renovating an old home. You know, one of those period mansions with hefty wooden doors and arched hallways. Where the ceilings are ornate...

* * *

SHADOW MASTERS: An Anthology from The Horror Zine, edited by Jeani Rector, is now available in ebook and paperback editions.

The Kindle edition is ON SALE for a limited time for only $0.99 USD. 

The trade paperback is $17.99 USD.

Amazon.com - ebook
Amazon.com - paperback

Amazon.ca - ebook
Paperback coming soon!

Amazon.co.uk - ebook
Paperback coming soon!

Createspace - paperback

25 Years Ago Cheryl Faced a Tsunami Head-On...and Survived

I am very pleased to be featured in an inspiring anthology, 25 Years in the Rearview Mirror: 52 Authors Look Back. 

This collection of poignant and uplifting essays is the perfect book to enjoy over your morning coffee, and features my essay titled Author Cherish D'Angelo Survives a Killer Tsunami. For those of you who don't know, my romantic suspense pen name is Cherish D'Angelo. :-)

Whether you're a reader or writer, I think you'll enjoy this book and all the stories in it.

Retailers:

Amazon: http://ow.ly/cU5iT 

Kindle edition only $1.99

Barnes & Noble:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/25-years-in-the-rearview-mirror-stacy-juba/1112413546?ean=2940014952613

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/212151

Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/25-Years-Rearview-Mirror-52/book-Y-yZFH0ItEefU2l1zppGxA/page1.html?s=9AwqyOW6xUmzs-QwIl35sQ&r=6

Additional retailers and information: http://stacyjuba.com/blog/25-years-in-the-rearview-mirror-52-authors-look-back/

(iTunes and Sony are coming soon.)  

FREE eBook: IMAJIN THIS!

IMAJIN THIS!

This special chapter preview book showcases all fiction titles published by Imajin Books in 2010/2011. Sample the first three chapters of each book.

Our international authors strive to entertain you with a wide range of genres - mystery, suspense, romance, horror, fantasy, paranormal, YA and more.

Featuring the following authors: Alison Bruce, Anna Patricio, Catherine Astolfo, Cherish D'Angelo, Cheryl Kaye Tardif, Chris Redding, Christian A. Larsen, C. Robert Lee, Gloria Ferris, Jeani Rector (editor), Kat Flannery, Melodie Campbell, Ric Wasley, Simon Clark, and Susan J. McLeod.

"Quality fiction beyond your wildest dreams." All ebooks under $5.

Available FREE at Smashwords.com (various file formats for all major ereaders, including Kindle, Nook and Kobo.)

Or you can download the PDF for Imajin This! HERE.

Skeletons in the Closet review: "Brilliantly conceived..."

Today I stumbled across a review of my horror collection: Skeletons in the Closet & Other Creepy Stories, a book that has been in the making for a number of years and contains some stories that are over 20 years old. Google Alerts notified me that someone had reviewed Skeletons, so I had to pop over to Lunch.com to take a peek.

I immediately contacted the reviewer and asked for permission to quote some of his review here and on my website, and he graciously said yes. So here is a condensed version of Paul Weiss's review...

"SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET is a thoroughly entertaining and unabashedly Canadian collection of horror shorts - a straightforward, in-your-face, goosebump raising, skin crawling creep fest with brilliantly conceived endings that, while crystal clear in their intent and meaning, typically arrive out of a shockingly distant and unforeseen left field...

Having vowed that I would read more from this obviously talented Canadian author, I was thrilled when I discovered this collection of short stories...SEPARATION ANXIETY tells a tragic story of the grief of losing a child to an untimely accident and reminds us that revenge is a dish that is sometimes best never served at all! DEADLY REUNION is a chilling little tale of long lost teenage acquaintances that starts with stories of teenage angst and the cruelty of bullying ending with paranormal visions and questions about fate and destiny. If a reader was as twisted as Cheryl Kaye Tardif, one might say that her endearing story, OUIJA, is about a gift that keeps on giving! There are several other stories and I was also thrilled to discover that, unlike so many other collections of this type, there is not a single piece of dead wood in the entire anthology.

I can't wait to try some of Tardif's full length novels. Highly recommended." --Paul Weiss

I never thought I would get so much enjoyment out of being called "twisted". LOL

Finding an unsolicited review is like getting an unexpected gift from a stranger. And it connects me to a primary reason WHY I write: to entertain others (or scare the crap out of them.)

You can read Paul's full review at Lunch.com and on Amazon.com.

Skeletons in the Closet & Other Creepy Stories is available in ebook edition via Amazon, KoboBooks, Smashwords, B&N, and other ebook retailers. It's currently on sale until January 10th, 2011, for $0.99.

Should writers pursue print publication or publish their own ebooks?

The above question came up in a forum recently, and while everyone has to determine what's right for them as it is a very personal decision, I gave them my thoughts on the topic.

I say go for both--print and ebooks. If you have a traditional publisher for your print, all the better. But don't let that stop you from publishing your own ebooks, especially the ones your agent and publisher aren't interested in. You definitely don't want to overlook the ebook market. That's where the money is right now for authors, if you publish the ebooks yourself.

As a self-published and traditionally published print author, I've seen the pros and cons to both sides.

If you have a backlist of titles that your publisher is finished with, get them up on Amazon Kindle, KoboBooks and Smashwords right away. Sales of ebooks are on the rise, and they won't be stopping or slowing any time too soon.

Other ideas for ebooks: publish a collection of short stories or an anthology with other authors, publish a novella or novelette, publish a how-to book or a book of poetry.

I have 4 ebooks coming out between April 1, 2010 and Sept 27, 2010. :-) There's only one thing better than promoting your books, and that's writing them!

My agent is holding 2 thrillers. I'm considering taking one back and publishing it as an ebook next spring.

The key is this: you want to build momentum, then try to keep that momentum going. And the only way to do this is to keep releasing books under some semblance of regularity.

With Amazon's recent royalty raise to 70% for qualifying ebooks, it's possible for authors to now make more money selling less expensive ebooks than selling traditionally published print books. But in the end, it depends on the personal goals of each writer.