Andi Marquette

Memorial Day

Hi, kids. I blogged some resources and organizations over at Women and Words to donate to on this Memorial Day. Find that here.

Commemorate those veterans who are lost, remember their families, and let’s also help our veterans still with us, and their families, as well.

The Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia ends today. Thanks to all who participated, and thanks to all the readers who came by. I’ll be picking a winner tonight and notifying said winner within 30 minutes of the 9 PM EST drawing and I’ll post that winner’s name (the handle he or she left on the comment) on the blog I did for the hop.

Hope everyone had a safe weekend, and to those of you who serve or have served, thank you. To those families who have lost someone in service in our armed forces, our thoughts are with you and many of us are trying to help organizations that help veterans and their families if we can’t help you directly.

Thanks, all, and I’ll catch you later this week.

Happy reading, happy writing.

May 27, 2013May 27, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Announcements, Holidays, In MemoriamTags: holiday, Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, Memorial Day 2 Comments

Ah, vampires

Hey, all–

Fellow author R.G. Emanuelle is giving away a copy of her debut vampire novel, Twice Bitten, at Women and Words today.

Go get you some! R.G. will be holding the drawing tonight, 9 PM EST.

And don’t forget the Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, still ongoing, in honor of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

I blogged, and you can get in on the prizes I’m offering by clicking RIGHT FREAKING HERE. We’ll be doing this ’til the 27th. If you go to the Hop website, you’ll see almost 200 other authors involved, and every one of ’em is offering cool words and cool prizes to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

So there you go. Some cool stuff going on.

Happy reading!

May 23, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Announcements, Events, Free BooksTags: Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, R.G. Emanuelle, Twice Bitten

Hoppin’ Against Homophobia and Transphobia

AND WE HAVE A WINNER of a $25 Amazon gift card and a copy of 1 of my books! Lisa W, come on down! YEEE-HA!!!! (Lisa, if you do not have an email message from me, check your spam filter)

Thanks, everyone, for stopping by. Thanks for the comments and thanks to those authors who participated in this hop. Happy reading, happy writing.
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Hi, peeps. And hello, newcomers. Thanks for joining me today, which is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

I agreed to join in the (Blog) Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, which is going on from May 17-27 on various blogs. I hope you’ll go and check out the others, too, to get an array of perspectives on this very important topic (and also to join in on some prize-winnin’!).

This day (commonly acronymed as IDAHO) was launched in 2004. It’s always on May 17th, which is the day in 1990 that the World Health Organization decided to remove homosexuality from the list of mental illnesses/disorders in the International Classification of Diseases. Transgender identity (referred to as transsexualism in the ICD), however, remains in the ICD as a “mental/behavioral disorder,” classified as a gender identity disorder.

Also, for those of you not in the know, I write F/F mysteries, sci fi, and romance, though all of my works generally include an array of characters. You can find out more about me here on my website (click “About”) and you can check out what I write here and here.

And here’s information about the giveaway I’m doing as part of this blog hop:

Answer the following question for a chance to receive a $25 gift card to Amazon.com and 1 copy of any one of my published books. Here’s my book list, which will explain the order of books in my two series (one is mystery, one is science fiction).

Here’s your question: Who is Alysia Yeoh? Give me a little bit of a reason as to why she might be considered important.

Put your answer in a comment on this post. Please include an actual, working email address when you fill out the comment form. Do NOT include your email address in the comment body, to avoid spam bots. Don’t worry. My little merry blog elves will make sure I get your email address. NOTE: I will notify the winner within 30 minutes of the drawing. If you do not hear from me, CHECK YOUR SPAM FILTER. Thank yuh. Thank yuh ver-uh much. 😀

I’ll draw the winner randomly from all the correct answers on May 27th, 9 PM EST (US). Have fun!

All right. So let’s get global…

Continue reading →

May 17, 2013May 27, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Blog Hop, Events, Free Books, InspirationTags: Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia 47 Comments

International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia

Hi, peeps!

So this Friday is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. To mark that event, I’m participating in a blog hop that’ll be going on from May 17-27 on a whole bunch of different sites. For realz, yo. It’s a veritable cornucopia o’ blogging about this important issue. Seriously. Almost 200 authors/writers signed up.

My blog goes up on the 17th, and along with my thoughts about homophobia and transphobia (beyond the “totally sucks” kind of comments), I’m also doing a little giveaway. All the blog hoppers are doing giveaways, so when we launch, make sure you go and check out some of the other blogs to get some different perspectives, get introduced to new writers, and maybe snag some swag. My blog will include a handy linkie thing at the end that will send you flinging through cyberspace to other blogs involved in the hop.

Wanna see more info about who’s doing the hop? Here’s the link to the Blog Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

There you go. And now, just cuz every time I hear the word “hop” used with “blog,” I always think of Danny and the Juniors and this song.

Hope to see you this coming week!

May 15, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Announcements, Blog Hop, Free BooksTags: blog hop, Blog Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia, International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia 1 Comment

Recycled writing tip: “As you know, Bob”

Hi, all–

On occasion, I re-post writing tips that I’ve gone over in the past. This one is from Women and Words (where I blog and co-admin). It’s the “As you know, Bob” syndrome or, in other parlance, a version of telling and not showing. Remember, you want to SHOW and not TELL. And you want to avoid info-dumps.

Here’s the link.

Happy reading, happy writing!

May 12, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Inspiration, Things that might make you think, Writing, Writing tipsTags: as you know bob, info-dump, writing tips 2 Comments

Friday grooviness

Skip on over to Women and Words and catch author Baxter Clare Trautman‘s interview with thriller writer Amanda Kyle Williams. FOR REALZ!

And if you haven’t read Williams’ stuff, WHY NOT? Find out more about her at her website.

Oh, and don’t forget. Ironman 3 opens today!

Other stuff:

Have a dance party.

Jimmy Kimmel doing Lie Witness News. Made-up bands that people insist they know in the line-up at Coachella 2013.

Heh. The Suburban Jungle blog.

Fun tip:
Think up some random search terms to plug into Google and see what comes up. I just tried “Yikes, monkeys” and “butt zombies.” You’re welcome.

Happy Friday!

May 3, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Announcements, Coolness, Random WTF stuffTags: Amanda Kyle Williams, Baxter Clare Trautman, Ironman 3, Jimmy Kimmel 1 Comment

Comic book angst

Hi, peeperas y peeperos!

As some of you may know, I got back into reading and collecting comics. I’ll have to thank quirky/awesome horror writer Gina Ranalli for that. She and I got to talking one day and she was waxing enthusiastic over some of the comics she regularly follows, and I decided to get back into it, especially since DC introduced the new out n’ proud Batwoman (drawn until now mostly by J.H. Williams, III, who is awesome):

Source: Huffpo via Bleeding Cool; re-sized here

And the awesome Gail Simone is writing the resurrected and walking Batgirl/Barbara Gordon. Plus, Batgirl #19 just introduced a transgender character. She’s Barbara Gordon’s roommate. So freaking cool.

I’ve also been following the latest incarnation of DC’s Birds of Prey, and totally developed a comic book crush on team member Starling, a whole new character introduced for the series. She’s kick-ass, irreverent, prickly, laugh-out-loud funny, and all was right with the world because you knew she’s kick ass and take names.

Source: Gothamspoilers, re-sized here

I’ve been totally geek comic-crushed on Starling since she was introduced to the Birds. She had some baggage — she’s working for ruthless government op Amanda Waller — but so what? She was kicking ass with the Birds.

And then came BoP #19 and my heart is crushed. (cue sad violin music) Crushed, I tell you. Starling’s been playing the Birds all along, and she busts out in cahoots with the skanky Mr. Freeze and she’s all gonna take the Birds down, now. She freaking betrayed the Birds. At least that’s what DC wants me to believe, and I’m so bummed about this that I’m probably going to need therapy, like after Walking Dead episodes. Gothamspoilers sums up my feelings about this turn of events quite nicely. Starling is one of the best characters to hit DC in a long time, and now she’s probably gone over to the dark side.

Sigh. At least there’s fanfic, I guess.

Anyway, anybody else out there follow comics? If so, what are you reading now and what are your faves? Join my geek alliance!

Happy reading, happy writing, happy Monday!

April 29, 2013April 29, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: ComicsTags: Batgirl, Batwoman, Birds of Prey, comics, Gail Simone, J.H. Williams III, Starling 2 Comments

September, join me and some other cool authors in New Mexico!

Hey, there peeperinos!

This September, I’m going to be involved with an event outside Albuquerque, New Mexico. An author extravaganza/BBQ/reading/hanging out with readers kinda thing.

When: Saturday, September 14, 2013, 2-4 PM
Where: Pine Flats Picnic Area, Highway 14 south of Tijeras, NM (don’t worry, we’ll be helping you out on how to get there and all that good stuff–it’s about 20 miles from Albuquerque)
Who: Andi Marquette (that’s me), Lynn Ames, Karen Badger, Barrett, Bett Reece Johnson, Nat Burns
Other: yes, we’ll be selling print copies of our books and yes, we’ll have burgers n’ hotdogs n’ veggie burgers and like that.

More info: Western Women Writers (of NM) Facebook page.

And here’s a flyer (.pdf) for your viewing pleasure!
NM event flyer

We’ll be providing more info at the FB page, including some suggestions about places to stay in Albuquerque, things to do, and maps to the event. It’s not that far, but you will need a car.

source: Citydata (re-sized here)
Don’t flip out. Tijeras is 14 miles from Albuquerque. The picnic area is about 6 miles south of Tijeras.

Stay tuned! I’ll be posting info here, as well, and at Women and Words.

April 25, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Announcements, EventsTags: Andi Marquette, Barrett, Bett Reece Johnson, event in New Mexico, Karen Badger, Lynn Ames, Nat Burns 3 Comments

Writing tips, redux

Hey, peeps–

Thought I’d re-post some of the writing tips I’ve done in the past (since I am, ostensibly, a writer of sorts). And I’ve needed to re-focus on that after the crazy and tragic week. So here you go:

Tips for writing (hopefully good) dialogue.

Tips on point-of-view, and how it can affect your narrative.

Tips on why headhopping might not be a good idea (not to suggest it never is, just why you might want to focus on not doing it, at least at first).

Why you should try to avoid participial phrases.

And here’s a bonus blog from writer Sacchi Green, about some of her writing pet peeves.

There. Have at.

Happy writing!

April 21, 2013April 21, 2013 by Andi Marquette Categories: Things that might make you think, Writing, Writing tipsTags: headhopping, participial phrases, point of view, writing dialogue, writing tips