January READ THIS! Q&A and Lots More!

We're halfway through the first month of 2022! After the last two years, getting halfway through January seems like no mean feat, and I'm glad we've made it through so far. It's my birthday month, and a little lower down I'll tell you what I'd like (though I'll bet many of y'all can guess). But before my birthday arrives, we have the READ THIS! Author Q&A which is only a couple of days away, PLUS plenty of more! So let's get right to it, shall we? We shall! January 2022 READ THIS! Author Q&A

January's READ THIS! author Q&A with Alex Shvartsman will be on Thursday, January 20, 2022 from 9pm-10pm Eastern. Access to Discord is available worldwide, and everyone is invited to attend! You do not need to be a Discord member/user to attend: Use this link https://discord.gg/MnQDEKFYjU to go directly to the chat room! (You also don't need to have finished the book to join in the fun. We authors know that everyone reads at their own pace and we just want to hang out with you guys and have some good times!) Once in, you'll get to join in the fun of asking authors about their "process" and more. PLUS, one lucky winner will get February's READ THIS! selection for FREE! I know! It's too happy to be true! But true it is, so don't miss out! (You must be present in the chat to win. Physical copies U.S. only; ebook copies worldwide.)

January 2022 READ THIS! Selection

The READ THIS! Selection for January 2022 is:  Eridani's Crown By Alex Shvartsman Gini's Take: A critically acclaimed standalone political fantasy novel of revenge, warfare, prophecy, and betrayal, featuring a great female lead and all the intrigue you could want. About the Author: Alex Shvartsman is the author of The Middling Affliction (2022) and Eridani’s Crown (2019) fantasy novels. Over 120 of his short stories have been published in Analog, Nature, Strange Horizons, and elsewhere. He won the WSFA Small Press Award for Short Fiction in 2014 and was a two-time finalist (2015 & 2017) for the Canopus Award for Excellence in Interstellar Fiction. His translations from Russian have appeared in F&SF, Clarkesworld, Asimov’s, Apex, etc. Alex has edited over a dozen anthologies, including the long-running Unidentified Funny Objects series, and he is the editor-in-chief of Future Science Fiction Digest. He resides in Brooklyn, NY. His website is www.alexshvartsman.com.

February's READ THIS! Selection   And Remember: One Lucky Q&A Participant can win it early!

The READ THIS! Selection for February 2022 is:  My Luck (Twisted Luck Book #1) by Mel Todd

Get the Humor to the Geeks! In honor of a new year, I have a new humor piece over at TG Geeks. Get a bit of funny from moi today and keep your new year going right!

They're here, they're FINALLY here!

Silence in the City Featuring "The Darkening" by moi writing as A.E. Stanton The prequel story to my The New West series Get your copy today!   The Physical Copies Are Here! Get your physical copies of Gunfight on Europa Station featuring "Showdown on Big Rock 27" by moi writing as Anita Ensal

The Audio Version Has Arrived! The audio version of the Superstitions: Tales From the Mountains anthology, featuring "Coyote and the Doorway Between the Worlds" by moi writing as A.E. Stanton, has dropped. Get your copy today!

It's My Birthday Month! And what I want for said birthday is simple: Reviews. Reviews don't need to be long or wordy or impressively written. They just need to say "I did/didn't like this book and here's why."  Reviews are the lifesblood for authors -- the fewer reviews of a book, the less any algorithms will pop that book up, the lower on the search list it goes, and soon no one knows that book is out there. But the more reviews, the more the algorithms push said book up, the more books are sold, the more new books the author gets to write. So, please -- review at least one of the books of mine you've read, or to give love to one of the many anthologies I'm featured in. Amazon is the #1 place, but B&N.com, Smashwords, Goodreads, and publisher's websites are all also good. It's what I want, what I really, really want.

Because I get asked this daily (often multiple times daily)... Yes, Aliens Like Us IS coming, but... No, Aliens Like Us still isn't ready for Prime Time, but... I'm on Version 5 of the rewrite process. Does every book take me this long? No. Will all the others in the series take this long? Likely no. Life has tossed a lot at me and mine and that's made some things a struggle, but... Kitty is always with me, and she's not going to let the bad things win, in any universe. So...Watch this space for more updates as I have them. And keep those digits crossed for the hope that my shouting "the end!" comes sooner as opposed to later.

That's it for today, but, never fear, another Update, including the next READ THIS! selection for 2022, will be arriving in a couple of weeks! In the meantime, stay safe and healthy, remember we're all in this together, be kind to one another, give love and support to all those who are on the front lines in any capacity, and let's be readers out there. Peace out, my li'l gangstas, and I'll catch all y'all on the flip side! Love, Gini

June's READ THIS! Selection & More!

Happy June!

It's the official start of summer, so hopefully everyone has some kind of fun plan for the summertime, even if it's just hanging out reading a book without interruption. I mean, that's the best, right? Of course right.

Speaking of right, Father's Day is right around the corner, so wishing a wonderful day full of love and relaxation to all the dads, stepdads, foster dads, uncles, cousins, granddads, and all those out there doing the dad role (including all the gals who fill in there, too) -- you're vital to the lives you touch, so thank you for all that you do. 

We have June's READ THIS! Book of the Month as well as other cool stuff, so read on for all the things!

READ THIS! A Book Club by Moi for All Y'all Welcome to READ THIS! A Book Club by Gini Koch. This is my chance to introduce you to some great authors that I love and know you will, too. Every month I'll spotlight a book and, even better...every month I'll host a live discussion with the author, that all y'all can join! I know, it's too happy to be true, but true it is!

June 2021 READ THIS! Selection

The READ THIS! Selection for June 2021 is:  The Feral Children By David Simpson Gini's Take: The first spinoff to the massively successful Zombie Road series, where children and zoo animals have to learn to survive an apocalypse together. “Don’t threaten the children when the wolves are near.”  About the Author: David Simpson is a multi award-winning writer with 13 number one best sellers on Amazon. His groundbreaking Zombie Road series has been optioned to be developed into a TV series. Reach him at his Amazon Author Page.

June 2021 READ THIS! Author Q&A

So, you've read the READ THIS! selection and you want to share what you thought with the author, hang out with them and Gini, and generally talk books for an hour. Well, guess what? You can! The third Thursday of every month will be READ THIS! Author Q&A time. The event will be held utilizing Discord, and the invitation to Gini's READ THIS! room will come out in the week prior to the chat. And that's not all! Near the end of each Q&A session, we'll be doing a raffle and one lucky winner will get a copy of the next month's READ THIS! selection! (You must be present in the Q&A to win. Physical book prizes will be U.S. only. Ebook prizes will be worldwide.)

June's READ THIS! author Q&A with author David Simpson, will be on Thursday, June 17, 2021 from 9pm-10pm Eastern. Access to Discord is available worldwide, and everyone is invited to attend!

July's READ THIS! Selection   And Remember: One Lucky Q&A Participant can win it early!

The READ THIS! Selection for July 2021 is:  Uncanny Magazine #40 "Proof by Induction" By Jose Pablo Iriarte

Because I get asked this daily (often multiple times daily)... Yes, Aliens Like Us IS coming, but... No, Aliens Like Us still isn't ready for Prime Time, but... I'm using the Virus Troubles to git 'er dun, so... Fear not, Kitty & Company will be back sooner than you think... I promise. P.S. Despite what you'd think, pre-orders are still mattering a whole lot, so even though it SAYS it's coming in 2050 or 3000 or something, do your girl a solid and pre-order this book as soon as the various retailers allow it, please and thank you! P.P.S. The book isn't available for pre-order in most places at the moment, because it's not back on DAW's schedule yet (because, well, see above). This is the (constant) reminder that, when it IS available, it'll help a LOT if you pre-order it.  P.P.P.S. I think I'm in the last quarter of the book, which is exciting in many ways. It's not a promise, but I have hopes of gitten 'er dun very soon now.

IT'S KICKSTARTER TIME!

That's right, it's a new anthology hoping to come to life! If this funds, I'll be writing the prequel story to my New West series. Find out how The Darkening happened from those who were there live...though they may not make it through the experience... And speaking of experiences, if you've ever wanted to be in one of my stories, now is the time. I'm offering several tuckerizations -- aka your name or your name of choice in lights, so to speak, as a character in the story (details on the Kickstarter page) -- that will allow you to be in the story. Don't delay, tuckers tend to go fast. There are lots of cool reward levels, so don't miss out, get in on the Silence in the City Kickstarter today!

Don't forget to pre-order the cool Derelict anthology, featuring my story "Saving Sallie Ruth" written as Anita Ensal. The anthology is available for pre-order on Amazon, and special pre-orders are available at Zombies Need Brains. So don't delay, pre-order today!

The Superstions: Tales from the Mountains anthology is live and that means it's time to get your copies now! Featuring "Coyote and the Doorway Between the Worlds" by moi writing as A.E. Stanton. And, if you've already gotten it, please remember that reviews help everyone, hint, hint.

That's it for today but, never fear, another Update, including the Discord Q&A chat invitation, will be arriving in a couple of weeks! In the meantime, stay safe and healthy, remember we're all in this together, be kind to one another, give love and support to all those who are on the front lines in any capacity, and let's be readers out there. Peace out, my li'l gangstas, and I'll catch you on the flip side! Love, Gini