Spooktacular Giveaway Hop

I'm excited to be part of I Am A Reader, Not A Writer's Spooktacular Giveaway Hop again this year.

As part of this hop, I'm going to give away two signed paperback copies of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb. Visit I Am A Reader, Not A Writer for tons more contests to enter (or scroll to the bottom of this post).

Also, on October 29th, I'm going to be giving copies of the ebook for free on Amazon.com (if you want it in epub, just e-mail me on the 29th). Consider it an early Halloween treat.

Enter More Conests Here:

Enter by Midnight October 31st PST. A winner will be picked by random on or around Nov. 1st. His/her first name and last initial will be posted online shortly thereafter (last name will not be posted). The winner will also be notified via e-mail and will have 30 days to claim their prize. Unclaimed prizes will be given to charity, re-listed, or disposed of.

Contest valid in the continental US only and void were prohibited by law.

The winner will be required to provide a valid US shipping address. E-mail addresses will not be disclosed, except as required by law. I will not use your e-mail as part of my mailing list, give it away, or anything like that.

Kindle Daily Nation Gives Super Zombie Juice 5-Stars

Kindle Nation Daily's Kids Corner posted a 5-star kids review of Super Zombie Juice The Graphic Novel. Here's a quote:
"Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb was awesome! I not like this book, I LOVED this book! I couldn’t put this book down."
That's why I love kid reviews; when they really like something, they don't hold back. 


Also, if you haven't done so already, don't forget to enter to win a Kindle Fire as part of the Kindle INDIEpendence Day Giveaway.

My Book Breaks Out -- Or 100 Agents CAN Be Wrong!

Before I decided to self-publish, I submitted my manuscript to 100 MG agents and got 101 rejections (yes, one agent felt the need to let me know she wasn't interested in representing me twice). Actually, I did get 10 requests for fulls or partials and some had nice things to say about my writing (a couple even asked to see my next manuscript) when they sent the dreaded Rejection.

Still, I was convinced I had a book that some kids would love. Today, I'm glad to announce that I was right--I just sold my 500th copy of SZJMB this month.

Now, 500 copies a month may not sound like a lot, but it's very good for a Middle Grade ebook. In fact it's good enough to rank as  the number #1 most popular Children's Humor ebook on Amazon and the #1 Bestseller as well.

I don't know how long this will last, Amazon rankings change all the time. But it's been #1 for a week (occasionally it goes to #2 or even #3 for a few hours before bouncing back) and I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

I realize this isn't the same thing as selling a million books, or winning a Newbery, but it does prove that the agents missed a great book. No hard feelings though; I still plan on submitting my newest manuscript to them. But, I'm not going to spend a year querying and rewriting. If they don't like it, I have faith I can find kids who'll enjoy it.

Speaking of which, while I'm being self-indulgent, I might as well post some of my favorite kid reviews:

From Apple:
"i ♥ this book
this was the best book i have ever read"
"This was the best book ever
I could not put this book down I really hate reading but this book I could read it 1000 times if I could"

From B&N:
"You have to read this book
This book was one of the best books ive never read and im one of those kids that always reads that is saying a lot so read the damn book!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Omg
I couldn't put my nook down, it was just too good! It's thrilling, exciting, and in some cases sad. But i loved it when nate ran over the zombies! Usually girls don't like that stuff. Oh, by the way i finished this book in 3 days!"
"Best book ever!
I could not put this book down i read it all in on day it was so good. Everyone should read this book,i think anyway. I could read this book mutipule times plz write some more books like this one. If i could i would give M.J.A Ware an award for writeing such a good book!"

I do realize these reviews are so good, they almost read like fakes--honestly, unless my Mom posted them, they are real (and my Mom wouldn't do something like that--she probably can't figure out how to post a single review, let along a bunch of fake ones). It's really just that these are the best of the lot. If you want to see reviews from people who didn't like it, try Goodreads--hey, it wasn't written for them anyway.

That's all the blatant self-promotion I can stand for one day. I'm just so excited about my recent success, I had to share the news.

More Reviews and a Mini Sales update

So, I'm way behind in posting reviews, again. Sorry reviewers, I really do appreciate  the fact that you graciously give your time to help struggling authors. I'm just not very good at keeping up with you.

First up (and most belated) is a review from Kitty Bullard at Great Minds Think Aloud. Kitty loved SZJMB, well her exact words were, "I absolutely, 100%, loved this book!"
She's also the first person to spot a little Easter Egg in the print version of the book. I won't spoil it here, but if you are interested, check out her great review.

Cordelia Dinsmore frequents Absolute Write, a great writer's community and contacted me on there about getting a review copy. She's not a zombie fan and was a little worried SZJMB might not suit her taste, but I think the characters won her over as left a great review, "I think MJ has nailed the middle grade voice. I have a young son, so we read a lot of middle grade books around our house. We also watch quite a bit of kid-friendly television. The characters in SZJMB think and act quite similarly to many of the kids, both real and fictional, with which I am familiar."

Cordelia has her own MG/YA book, Michaela's Gift coming out next month, so keep an eye on her blog.

Last, is my shortest review ever (not counting iPod/Pad reviews), but it's still a great one, from Trisha at Passing Through. This also happens to be my first Tumblr review, which explains why it's just three (great) sentences.

Now for the mini sales update. Well, they've been great. I'll try to post an in-depth update in the near future, but for now, let me just say that in April I finally broke 500 books sold in one month. And--I hope I'm not jinxing myself here--but it looks like I'll do the same in May as well!

Thanks to everyone who's helped make that success possible (especially the reviewers).

Opening Day!!! - And Some Updates

Well, it's finally here, Opening Day 2012. I for one am taking off work early to watch the Giants beat the Diamondbacks.

I'll go even further and predict that the Giants have what it takes to get to the World Series this year.

!!GO GIANTS!!

In other news, I've been writing quite a bit recently. I have some shorts that I'm going to finish and put out soon.

I'm almost finished with the first draft of a Chapter Book I've tentatively titled: Zack and Zoey's Alien Apocalypse. It needs quite a bit of polishing, but I'm going to try to have it out by the end of the month. And even though it's a Chapter Book, I think fans of Super Zombie Juice will enjoy it.

Speaking of Super Zombie Juice, I'm about 20% done with book two. Looks like it's going to be at least a bit longer than book one. I'm hoping each book gets a little longer than its predecessor. I've mapped out the kids adventures right to the end; but I'm not sure how many books it will work will out to (seems like when I start writing, things always go in a different direction than I plan). It's looking like five titles total for the series, could be 4-6.

I know a few readers have asked when the heck am I going to finish Girls Bite (my YA paranormal). Well, it's going through another major revision. I know I've been predicting this one since December, but it's just not ready. It's the first of a series, and I really want to get it right. I love Paranormal Romances, but only when they are done right--and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure mine is done right. On the plus side, it's grown from what was supposed to be an intro novella to almost novel length (45-50k); still short for a YA paranormal, but the right length to tell the opening of this story.

If you enjoy reading my work, please consider signing up for my newsletter. I promise to never send out more than six e-mails a year (haven't sent one at all this year). I only use it when I have big news, like a new release. In fact, that's why I'm suggesting you sign up; because the newsletter readers are my BEST readers and until further notice get a free (e)copy of all my books. I hope one day, the list will grow to the point where I can't do that anymore, but if that happens, it's going to be a while and I'll still treat these readers like royalty.

One last thing. I really like doing Happy Release Day posts and they do get a little bit of traffic. I know a lot of other authors read the blog, so shoot me a note when you release a book and I'll post a link to just about any genre that's kid friendly (i.e. no erotica or really hardcore, slasher-type horror--but light romance is fine).

I hope everyone gets to leave work early to watch their favorite team play today!

Review from Kindling The Fire & My book Gets Pirated

Bri, over at Kindling The Fire just posted a great review of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb. Here's a quote:

"It's cute and funny in it's own way and will find it's way into your heart as you read it. The characters were depicted well, I loved Kali (I refuse to spoil anything! But it's so hard!) and I liked Nate and Misty's innocence, but awesome courage as they battled zombies."

Bri's site is newer, but she posts a lot and the site is growing quickly. If you haven't checked it out yet, I recommend you do.

In other news, I found my first pirated link to Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb. This isn't the first time one of my books have shown up online and I'm sure it won't be the last.

The good news is that you have to download and install the Ares file sharing program, then search for it and even then, I had trouble finding it. So basically, it's way easier to pay for a copy, espcially since it's only 99¢ right now.

Just a note to clarify: Bri's site has nothing to do the the copyright infringement, they just happened to be posted on the same day.

Google Digs Up New Reviews & Deranged Zombie Teddy Bears

If you have a book out and you don't have Google News Alerts setup, you really should. In theory, they'll tell you anytime someone posts news, a blog, or even a new webpage about you or your book.

However, as I recently figured out, the alerts sometimes miss blogs (and other pages) that the Google search engine picks up. I was recently searching for an old review of SZJMB on Google when I noticed pages that I had never received alerts for.

This lead me to search Google for undiscovered links to my book. Most turned out to be worthless, mostly Amazon affiliate links. But some were Gold. I found two reviews and a couple mentions of my book in blogs!

First, I found a great blog: Paranormal Sisters. They gave SZJMB 4.5 stars and wrote a great review. Here's a quote:

"Over all I totally loved and am happy with how it ended, with a slice of sense of humor. But I want more. Whether more of these characters or more of MJA Ware writing, which is lucky we get two bonus short stories along with this book. Yay. "

My reply is: Don't worry Dashley, book 2 is coming along! If you've never heard of this blog check it out, it has some great reviews and they provide updates on Free paranormal Kindle books.

Elsewhere, I found what seemed to be a great review from The Crew of Misfits:

"SUPER ZOMBIE JUICE MEGA BOMB is the first installment of this unique series that is something new, something fresh, and ..."

But alas, the site is now offline and all I can read of the review is that small portion which Google had cached.

I found one more blog: Jess Resides Here (header may not be work safe) recently got a copy and I'm keeping an out for the review.

Last, there was a really cool mention on the blog, Tales of a Semi-existent Being. Apparently, the blogger had a dream (maybe more of a deranged nightmare) inspired by a wonderful zombie book, Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (his words, not mine) :

"The zombies were giant pink fluffy teddie bears and they zombified you by giving you a hug."

Wow, that's what I call a dream, and the first dream (outside of my own while writing it) to be inspired by the book!

So, if you have Google News Alerts setup for your books, you may still want to check the Google search results out from time to time!

Image Credit: http://nightmarelunatic.deviantart.com/art/Zombie-Teddy-Bear-192973591

Win A Free Zombie Survival Kit, Last Day To Enter!

Just a quick reminder: today is the last day to enter to win a (kid safe) zombie survival kit and a signed copy of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (SZJMB). So if you haven't already, be sure to enter at I am a reader, not a writer.

Also, just a couple days ago, Death, books, & Tea, posted a great review of SZJMB. Here's a quote:

"The take on zombies was really good. They were funny, and the fact that something as simple as lemon juice kills them deader? Amazing. This book played to my sense of humour really well, especially the opening."

I also did a guest post with them last year on How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse. If your zombie survival planning isn't up to snuff, you might want to check it out.

Remember, if you are a blogger looking for a review copy, just email me at: mikejweare@gmail.com. I have ebook and a limited number of print copies available.

I love Giveaways: Young Adult Faeries & Fantasy Hop & Amazon Gift Card Giveaway

I love giving away copies of my book--anything to get it read. And I am a Reader, Not a Writer runs the best giveaways. So, I sorta didn't look at the YA Faeries and Fantasy Hop before I signed up.

I just figured zombies are fantasy, right? Well, when I took the time to actually read about the hop I realized it was more a fairy tale kind of hop. So, what I've decided to do is giveaway a $5 Amazon gift card and a signed copy of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (did you notice the way I put 'and' in italics, to make it seem like also getting my book is such a huge bonus ;-)

This way the winner can pick out their own Fantasy book (albeit probably a used one for $5).

There's well over 100 other sites offering giveaways too, so be sure to take a moment and see the huge list!

I'll ship anywhere in the US that the postal service will deliver to (P.O. boxes are fine). A winner will be picked on or around Jan 13th 2012; only the winner's first name and last initial will be posted, but the winner must provide a complete name and shipping address.

Good luck!

Giveaways and My First 1-Star Review

When I started this blog I didn't want it to be too self-promoting. Of course, I've ended up posting many Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (SZJMB) reviews here, especially the 5-star ones. So, I made myself a promise to also post my first 1-star review.

Well, it happened a few days ago on Barnes and Noble, but I think I'm going to chalk it up to a mistake. Why a mistake? See for yourself--here's the entire review:

Zombies asome!#12 Zombies asome! #1!!!

I dont like zombies but that was asome!!!!

Now it's possible that the reader was being sarcastic and really just hated the book. But when you consider the typos and spelling errors, I think a more likely explanation is that they rushed it out (probably on their nook keyboard) and didn't realize they put 1-star--at least that what I keep telling myself. So, there you have it my first 1-star review. Now, I can say I kept my promise.

On to important stuff. First, Congratulations to Chandra H. the winner of the Best of 2011 Blog Hop. She wins her choice of three books and a copy of SZJMB. This was my most successful contest to date with almost 300 total entries (counting extra entries). Thanks to everyone who entered.

If you didn't win, don't worry. Head over to I am a Reader, Not a Writer for a chance to win not only the book, but the last of my totally asome (purposefully misspelled) Zombie Survival kits.

I hope everyone has a great 2012!

New Review From Boys and Literacy Blog

Boys and Literacy is a great site to find books for boys. They posted a review last week of SZJMB and I forgot to post it.

Here's a quote:

"For the reader who likes zombie books, MJA Ware's Super Zombie Juice, has action without too much gore, but enough to keep it creepy."

You can check out the site and read the entire review here.

If you are an Amazon reviewer, or have a blog feel free to contact me about a review copy.

More Reviews for SZJMB

Gothical posted a 5-star review of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (SZJMB) on her blog. Here's a quote:

"...SUPER ZOMBIE JUICE MEGA BOMB was a fun, fast pace, unique read that I look forward to reading more from the author and MUST have a sequel I would sell a blue smurf for a sequel to this book."

Which leads to my only question about this review: I thought all smurfs were blue?

I also had two great kid reviews over on Goodreads. One by an eight-year-old and another by a fourteen-year-old. I was a little surprised that the younger boy seemed to enjoy SZJMB more and his review has to be my favorite so far:

"Nate & Misty are bestfriends. They decide to run away after they get grounded for sneaking out. When they come home they see the town is full of zombies. They are really smart and move in to a Walmart. By accident they find out that zombies can be killed with lemons and different things that have acid in them. They meet a genius named Kali that help them kill the zombies with a really cool firetruck.

Awesome book." 5-Stars

There's nothing like a review from a target reader to make your day!

If you haven't picked up your copy of SZJMB yet, the ebook is on sale now for 99¢ at Amazon and on my website (in 3 formats).

Happy Halloween!!!

First a reminder, Halloween is the last day to enter the giveaway for the final Zombie Survival Kit. There's tons of other great contests to be found over at I Am A Reader, Not A Writer's Spooktacular Giveaway Hop.

I'm also going to take Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (SZJMB) off free tomorrow. It will probably take Amazon at least a few days to change the price (they won't change it until it changes everywhere else first). So if you'd like a copy, better grab it in the next day or so.

Check out the photo of it ranked #55 on Amazon's Freebie Bestseller List, right above Dracula and bellow some book called The Holly Bible. You better watch out J.C, I'm right behind you! Actually, there's zero chance of people skipping their Bible study in favor of reading SZJMB; as soon as the price returns, it will go back to a more normal ranking.

Last, blogger David Stantos posted a great review of SZJMB yesterday. Here's an except:
"We aren't told what the kids did while they were gone. It turned me away a bit. I thought, well if this book is going to jump or skip 'scenes' it's probably not going to be very good."

Here's another:
"Anyways at first the two main characters Nate and Misty were kind of dull, no real personality."

Sounds bad, huh? Well, he goes on to say that it turns out he liked it so much he read it in one sitting--he gives it 5-stars. David actually warned me before I sent the book that he's a really frank reviewer. Hey, you know the critiques are going to come; it's a lot easier to swallow then they love the book!

Now I just have to wait for that 1-star critique--I don't mind waiting.

Have a happy and safe Halloween!!!

Free Copies of My eBook For EVERYONE!!!

This year, rather than passing out candy, I'm giving out free copies of my debut novel Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb (SZJMB). It's a great way to get into the Halloween spirit!

I'm running this promotion until Halloween, so if it looks like something you might want to put in your 'To Be Read' pile, better grab a copy now.

Speaking of SZJMB, Ken over at Paperless Reading, just posted a great review; here's an except:

"Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb is targeted at all ages so it is not as horrific as The Walking Dead but has enough gory scenes to satisfy zombie fans."

Happy Halloween!!!

Second Zombie Survival Kit Winner!

The Second Zombie Survival Kit Winner is:

Amy E.

The good news is that if you didn't win, your entries will be carried over for next week's zombie survival kit.

Also, the number of entries have been lower than I anticipated, so the odds of winner good.

If you haven't entered the contest yet, there's still 3 chances to win. Just enter below:

Also, I'm giving away 5 more print copies via goodreads. Enter here:

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb

by MJA Ware

Giveaway ends October 21, 2011.

See the giveaway details

at Goodreads.

Enter to win

SZJMB Review and Upcoming Guest Posts

Angela Fristoe, on her blog Turning the Pages, has given a great review of SZJMB. Here's a couple quotes:

"This book was the perfect blend of 'B movie' humor and the zombie gore I love, and I say that with all the positive feeling I can. I loved this book!"

"I was surprised by the ending, and had thought it would end a bit differently, with a perfect happy ending that most lighthearted children/middle grade/YA novels do, but Ware gave us a happy ending that is still sad... I would definitely recommend this for ages 9 and up, particularly boys."

Visit Turning the Pages to read the entire review.

Tomorrow is the last day for the second Zombie Survival Kit, be sure to enter and spread the word. Enter until midnight, PST. Remember, if you've already entered, all non-winning entries carry over to the next week.

This week I am going to be doing guest posts and giveaways over at Dragon Views with my list of the best books to get you into the Halloween spirit. And also the Teenage Reader with a list of Killer Zombie Movies You Haven't Seen. Be sure to check out both sites!

Win a Zombie Survival Kit

Okay, I've finally got the link for the first Zombie Survival Kit ready. Only your name and e-mail address are required to enter.

There are 3 opportunities for getting more entries:

-Plus 1 for following this blog.

-Plus 1 for "liking" my Facebook page.

-Plus 3 for posting a link on your website, blog, twitter, Facebook, or Goodreads account.

I really want to try to get the word out, so I'm including two chances to get 3 entries for posting a link to the contest (6 entries total). Link here: http://themissingword.blogspot.com/2011/10/win-zombie-survival-kit.html (a bit.ly link is okay).

A winner will be picked by random on or around Oct. 10th. His/her first name and last initial will be posted online shortly thereafter. The winner will also be notified via e-mail and will have 30 days to claim their prize. Unclaimed prizes will be given to charity, re-listed, or disposed of.

Contest valid in the continental US only and void were prohibited by law.

The winner will be required to provide a valid US shipping address. E-mail addresses will not be disclosed, except as required by law. I will not use your e-mail as part of my mailing list, give it away, or anything like that.

Finally, after they read the book, your kids might be inclined to put lemonade in the squirt gun; don't let them--you'll end up with crying kids and red eyes!

Good luck and help me spread the word!

Don't forget to enter to win a copy of the book at Jackie B's blog!

Update: In answer to a reader's questions, It's a enter once, contest, so if you don't win the first week, there's no need to re-enter. You (and your extra entries) will automatically be part of each of the 4 giveaways.

Blog Tour List

I just got back from Disneyland late last night and I still have a bit of a Disney hang-over. I have a question about that place: If it’s really the happiest place on earth, why is there a kid balling his eyes out like every twenty feet?

I’m going to try to get entry for the first zombie kit up tomorrow. But as promised, here’s the list of sites hosting the SZJMB blog tour. This includes the giveaway dates for the Zombie Survival Kits too. I might add a couple other sites, or add another contest or two. All the sites are doing giveaways, most are giving away a copy of the printed book, so they’ll be lots of chances to win!

Blog tour:

Oct. 3^rd – Jackie B’s Housewife Blues & Chihuahua Stories
Oct. 5^th – Death Books & Tea
Oct. 9^th – Everything To Do With Books
Oct. 10^th – Zombie Kit Giveaway #1 (here)
Oct. 11^th – Guerrilla WordFare
Oct. 14th – Sheila Deeth, Author of Flower Child
Oct. 16^th – Turning The Pages
Oct. 17^th – Zombie Kit Giveaway #2 (here)
Oct. 18^th – Lady D’s Dragon Views
Oct. 19^th – Teenage Reader
Oct. 23^th – Zombie Kit Giveaway #3 (here)
Oct. 24^th – Manga Maniac Cafe
Oct. 26^th – M.Pax, The Wistful Nebulae
Oct. 30^th – Fantastic Adventures
Oct. 31^st – Zombie Kit Giveaway #4 (here)

Let me add a big Thank You to all the sites that agreed to host me!

Blog Tour Giveaways!

This weekend I’ll be kicking off my blog tour. At each site I visit, I’ll giveaway an ebook or printed copy of SZJMB (a printed copy at most stops). I’ve got 10-12 sites lined up and I’ll post a schedule soon.

I’m also giving out a zombie survival kit each week. The kit consists of survival essentials, especially those that appear in the story:

• A copy of Super Zombie Juice Mega Bomb
• A high-powered water gun
• Lemonade mix
• Zombie snot (decontaminated)
• Recipe for making your own zombie snot
• LED flashlight
• Duct tape
• Personal first aid kit
• Rope
• Misty’s strawberry flavored lip-gloss
• Emergency glow stick
• Water balloons for making zombie juice bombs

Good luck to everyone. These have some great toys (not to mention great reading) and are the perfect way to kick start your Halloween!

SZJMB Featured on Blog Talk Radio's Journal Jabber

I just found out SZJMB was featured on tonight's episode of Journal Jabber. They were doing a special feature on boy books, though they said SZJMB would probably appeal to both sexes. You can listen right here:

Listen to internet radio with JournalJabber on Blog Talk Radio

In other news, I got a short, but killer review on iTunes, " I could not put this book down I really hate reading but this book I could read it 1000 times if I could"

Because of lack of punctuation (often, teens writing on iPhones skip the punctuation, for the sake of speed) and the hyperbole, I'm assuming it was written by someone in the MG or YA age groups. Which, to me, is sooo much more important than an adult review; it means (at least one person from the) target audience gets it!