Help promote some gargoyle-y goodness and get some cool swag from yours truly!

Some of you know me as America’s Favorite Lower Midlist Urban Fantasy Author ™, the author of both the Simon Canderous paranormal detective and Spellmason Chronicles series.

Yes, it’s that time of year again, where we talk about my next book the upcoming 9/24/13 release of Stonecast, book two of The Spellmason Chronicles. 

Here’s where I dare to dream about growing my readership and possibly becoming an Upper Midlist author! 

Fact:  I have awesome readers

Fact:  Hearing their love for my books is also awesome, sometimes bringing me to tears

Fact:  I use awesome too much

Fact:  Despite the enthusiasm of my readers, the book world at large has little-to-no idea that my books exists

So for the pending launch of Stonecast, I decided to utilize my greatest promotional tool (short of bankrupting myself running an ad in USA Today).

Those tools are YOU, people.  Yes, you are all tools! 

Perhaps I should rephrase that…

Loyal readers:  your numbers may be small, but I have no doubt that you are mighty, and now I call upon your powers of mighty mightiness!

Hence, I’ve created the Stonecast Street Team, and I want you to join it.

What’s in it for you, you ask, oh savvy reader?  I’m glad you asked.

In exchange for your promotional powers and undying allegiance (listed below), you will receive this.

As part of our binding—and possibly demonic—contract, you will receive the following to aid in your efforts spreading the love of all things Strout:

-the awesomest of swag according to San Diego Comic Con attendeeds, the beloved and much coveted Ace Roc tote bags.  Use it wisely, perhaps to carry all the other items around as you assail your friends and strangers with urbanly fantasical knowledge of yours truly

-bookmarks for the upcoming release of Stonecast.  Spread the love, people!  If you’ve got a local bookstore, promise to drop some off.  If you’re going to a convention, leave some on the giveaway tables.  Give them to strangers you see reading.  Share them with your friends. 

-a variety of backlist bookmarks:  I’ve got promotional bookmarks and postcards for both the Simon Canderous series as well as for Alchemystic. Share them with the same ferocity that an ebloa monkey shares its virus! (No biting other readers, please)

-a handful of shiny, hypnotic buttons:  You will receive a mix of Alchemystic “Get Stoned” or Stonecast “Books are enchanting!” buttons.  Keep one for yourself, but again, share with the unconverted non-believers!

-depending on supply, you will receive at least one copy of the first book of either of my two series.  Now don’t be greedy with it.  You must promise to give it away to another enthusiastic reader to share your love of either Simon Canderous or The Spellmason Chronicles.  We want new readers in our army, and the first hit is free!

-a Stonecast miniposter, signed by yours truly!  Like a Tiger Beat pin up, display it proudly in your home, your office, your cubicle, the taxi you drive, the elevator you take, the ship you sail… you get the idea.

-several letters of introduction:  To win over your fellow readers, you’ll be able to hand out a humorous, handy checklist where I introduce myself to them, hopefully enticing the recipient into reading one and/or all of my books

 What do I ask for in return?  Well, some of it I listed with the items above, but there are a few other things that I’d like you to promise to do in exchange for your bag of goodies as we near the on sale date of 9/24: 

-         Tweet, tweet and retweet: Over at @antonstrout on twitter, I’ll no doubt be plugging Stonecast. I try not to be too annoying about it, so you try to not be annoying either, but the more of my tweets that get retweeted, the more spread out the word will be.

-         Facebookage:  I ask that you share the things I post to my Anton Strout author page.  I promise to be engaging and funny, and you promise to share like the dancing monkeys you are!  No doubt the book covers, lolcat memes, and exploitation of my newborn twins will be the focus of my promotional efforts.

-         Blogs:  If you have a blog, cover me-the books, my life as an author, my sordid sex scandals.  I’ll answer whatever poignant and/or stupid questions you have.

-         Podcasts:  If you have a favorite podcast or host one, I’d love to be on it.  Pitch me to them or give me their information and I’ll see what I can set up.

-         Review it: Love Stonecast? Hate Stonecast? Doesn’t matter… do it!  Books need reviews to feed the beast that are the determination engines on the internet. The more, the better as it feeds the secret fires that get my books better coverage.  For your part, you must promise to review it however you will with your varying degrees of love/hatred on at least two of the three venues:  Amazon, B&N, or Goodreads.  If you want to go crazy and do all three or others I haven’t mentioned, that would just be like extra sprinkles on an already delicious Sunday.

Now, listen:  I’m putting this together myself.  Rather than spending money on ads that may or may not work, I’m spending it getting all this stuff together and letting the enthusiasm you’ve already graciously shown me do its work. 

 This isn’t an opportunity for hoarders. Yes, getting free stuff is awesome, but not if it sits in your house going to waste.  You need to be participatory in order to enter into our mutual pact here.

 What I’d really like to happen is that we really go forth and spread the word about the books I love writing to the unwashed and clueless heathens who haven’t yet joined the movement.

 How do you get on board to get your own bag of swag? Just email your friendly neighborhood author at anton.strout@gmail.com with the subject line “Spellmason Chronicles Street Team”.  Please include your address (U.S. Residents only) and why you should be included in my share the love shenanigans.  I’ll keeping sending out what I can until the well runs dry here.

 I humbly thank each and every one of you for joining me in this.  Let’s get the enthusiastic word out there about the release of Stonecast, shall we?  I sincerely look forward to hearing from you.

 Best,

Anton