Top 10 reasons to attend AAD Philly

So I have been hearing a lot about cons and other short of events, and I think its about time I explain why AAD is the best choice for your con-going needs!

1. AAD is the CHEAPEST convention in romance fandom! at $130 for registration, all your meals are included in this price, which NO OTHER con does for that price. And the food? AMAZING! I don't sign with a hotel that has crappy food, So many out there, why settle for nasty food?

2. AAD is the ONLY con that welcomes all forms of authoring, be it NY published, Small Press, E pubbed or self pubbed. We offer both a regular signing for print and a e book signing as well.

3.NO authors are above others at AAD, everyone is equal. We all made the journey into publishing, and succeeded, no one is better then anyone else.

4. AAD is the ONLY con that offers a in house tattoo artist! That's right, our awesome tattoo guy, Geoff, is on hand all weekend to provide for all your tattooing (and piercing) needs.

5. AAD has the most amount of books as goodies! This past year we gave away over 3000, and are planning on at least 4000 for this year, from amazing publishers like Pocket, TOR, Kensington, MLR Press, Tease Publishing, NAL and Sourcebooks! No other con gives away as many books as we do, and this year, you'll be able to get E BOOKS for free as well!

6. AAD is a more laid back con, bringing readers and authors together. Authors hangout with you, sit at your table at dinner, party with you and of course, talk about the one thing that brings us all there, BOOKS!

7. AAD is a Not For Profit, making it the only one in romance fandom as well. What does this mean? It means we dont do this to make money off you, we do it to further the Author/ Reader relationship. Without readers, authors would be outta business... and we love you for every book you read and every author you support. At AAD Readers Rule Romance!

8. at AAD bloggers are amazing! Bloggers are the backbone of this industry. Forget review sites, Readers trust their friends for recommendations, and as close knit as the romance community is, most voracious readers are also bloggers. We reward them for keeping this industry alive with ARC's goodies and special events, because we love them.

9. AAD also has a stunning writers track, lead by authors and industry professionals, sure to help you on your way to publication. We offer some amazing editors and agents for our appointments, and because we limit the amount of time they are "working" they have a good time as well. At most cons, your stuck with a 8 minute appointment to make an impression. At AAD, Editors and Agents hangout, and sit with you through the weekend, cultivating relationships!

10. Last but not least, AAD has some of the best authors in romance today attending, not because they are being paid to, or because they are being offered something, but because they want to meet and hangout with you, the reader. Everyone at AAD is approachable, because we make sure the environment is not stressed and is just a big old party they can enjoy as well. Check our website for the full list, it keeps growing because they are all looking for quality time with their fans!


Now, maybe I'm just biased, but I really think AAD is the best value for your money when your choosing a con. I mean it isn't about making money, well not in the sense other cons are. AAD is about making money through BOOKS, not to slip into my or the organizations pockets. Everything extra we collect goes to an animal charity, this year its once again, Pets Alive. Every book sold at this cons helps to further each of us in this industry, and allows us to keep writing, and giving you all beautiful and sexy stories to fall in love with. Its why its so cheap, so YOU the reader can keep buying the books you love, and not have to dip into your 401k to meet the authors you really wanna meet. Utopian? Nah. Just realistic. Spending oodles of cash on a con is not going to make sure you can buy books, it only puts the money into the cons pockets, not the authors, and isn't that what we want?

Questions? Comments? Concerns? I'm open to them all!

the Bookies are open for voting!

CLICK HERE and let the voting begin! Good Luck to all the Nominees!

So Cloooooose :)

Wow, I can't believe that it's only ten days until the release of Tane's story :) I'm not sure if it's been the rocking weather, or just being piled under deadlines, but I somehow missed the last of summer and most of the fall!! Now Thanksgiving is almost here, my boys are headed home from college and I scrambling like mad to do a little last minute shout out for Devoured by Darkness :) I'm still hoping I can make it to AAD this year (I'm waiting for final tuition costs to come rolling in :((( And I would love to be able to join the fun. Until then I hope everyone has a fantastic Thanksgiving and that you're time with friends and family is blessed.
Oh, I hope that you have a yummy stack of TBRs by the bed to keep you warm as the cold weather settles in!!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Alex

Steampunk styles for AAD 2011 Post One

Hey guys!

So i know you guys are all rocking hard on trying to figure out what to wear for the Steampunk Ball, and Imma help you all! Yes I am. So today marks the first of the Steampunk "What to wear" series on the AAD blog. Trust me guys, I wear these clothes myself, I wouldnt be playing with you.

Today is skirt day. Now this skirt is one that is easy to pair with a bustle, corset and shirt, that will totally make the outfit. It comes in three colors, Blue, Black and White, and all of them are made of soft Jersey material so they have a bit of give, and they BREATHE so you will have an easy time wearing it. Whats cooler? It comes in both regular and plus sizes, and works for both costuming and for actual everyday wear. This is a FLOOR LENGTH skirt, and it flares at the bottom to give it a kind of mermaid style look.

Standard size approx. length: 41.5 inches; Plus size approx. length: 41.7 inches. It is86% polyester / 14% spandex; and is completely Machine washable, which makes it doubly desirable. So the price for this little beauty? $39.95. Not bad right? You can purchase it HERE.

So... YOu like it? Well I will have more suggestions! Check my personal blog and here once a week, And youll have a great idea of some awesome clothes for your costumes!

New Paranormal from Bianca D'Arc

My turn to blog again already? Wow. Okay... well... lots going on, as usual. Since last we spoke, I had a new release: A DARKER SHADE OF DEAD. It's the second novel in my military paranormal romance series from Kensington Brava that started with ONCE BITTEN, TWICE DEAD. There will be one more in this series, releasing sometime next year, called DEAD ALERT. I'm working on the edits for that right now and it's a heck of an adventure! (If I do say so myself.) ;-)

A DARKER SHADE OF DEAD has been getting great reviews and I'm really pleased with reader response to it. It's a little bit of a different sort of book. It's hot romance with a studly Special Forces hero and his brainy heroine going after zombie bad guys and mad scientists. Lots of adventure. Lots of fun. Not too scary, I don't think. This isn't horror, so even though you hear the word "zombie" please don't think it's full of blood and gore. It's a romance, people! LOL!

Publishers Weekly said: "Zombie fighters find love in the light, sexy sequel to April 2010's Once Bitten, Twice Dead....plenty of zombie action and steamy romance..." And Coffee Time Romance called it "...a strangely sultry and action packed read...tantalizing and mysterious." Cool, huh?

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, I'd like to thank you all for nominating my website in the Bookie Awards. I really appreciate the nod. I put in a lot of time on my website (although I need to do some updating right now) and it's nice to know the effort is appreciated. *mwah!*

I'll be working on updates to my site as time allows. I'm also finishing edits on my last zombie book for Brava and polishing up proposals for new series. I have lots of writing to do and will be working on new books in all my series for Samhain. It'll just take a little while to get them in the pipeline for release. Hopefully next year I'll have a lot of new material coming out. I'll keep you all posted as I find out the particulars. Meanwhile, I've got a lot of work to do! :)

Bianca D'Arc
Come over to The D'Arc Side... www.biancadarc.com

Wanna win your way into AAD?

The Smut Vixens have your way in!

Pop over to their blog and check it all out! CLICK HERE

And I wanna thank you all for your registrations, you have validated this event once again!

Blogger announcement

Ahoy everyone!

Ok so we had 20 bloggers sign up and as of RIGHT now, I only have room for 12 for the blogger bags. These will be special bags of books that will be given out. Now Why only 12? because they will have ARC's and special edition stuff from the publishers, and the most I can assure getting from them right now is a dozen. Now, in the event that I CAN get more stuff, I will be adding more. As of now the Bloggers not chosen in the below list (and they were chosen using random.org) are the ONLY ones that will be offered blogger spots should spots open up.

ALL those that have registered as Bloggers will be able to participate in the blogger programming, and parties, but unfortunately, I cant guarantee ARC's to anyone but these 12:

Lillie H
Lady Grace
Qwill
Ali (Simply Ali)
Robin K
Jojo (Jojo's book corner)
Mandi (Smexy Books)
Tigris Eden
Bells
Larissa (Larissa's Life)
Minxy (loose knickers)
Sarah (Sarah's reviews)

So congrats, and We are building an AMAZING track of programing for you all! I cant wait to talk about it!

Thanks guys!

Registration information: PLEASE READ!

Hey all.

So Pay pal is being a big old dirty bum and isnt letting me use the new account we set up for AAD till they figure some stuff out. That doesnt mean Im not opening registration. But it does mean that you guys cant pay for it yet. So this is how we are going to do it.

At NOON EASTERN TIME I will be opening the registration form on the website. This will ensure everyone doesnt grab the pitchforks and call for my blood and a good hanging tomorrow afternoon. Honestly I dont look good in rope.

The second Pay Pal lets me use the damn account, I will be emailing everyone that registers to revisit the site, and click the pay pal button. The you will be able to pay for it. I'm sorry about the 2 time visit to the registration page, but at this point its the only way I can do it.

I believe that the hotel will be open as well tomorrow, so check that as well! Don't forget, get your registrations in ASAP, to make sure you have a room available. (wouldnt it be awesome if we sold out of our roomblock????!)

For those that dont know, AAD is doing this year without a backer, which means that we had to open all new accounts and such, as well as incorporate as a NFP (Not for Profit). This is the reason why its been so hard to get everything done. Now in the long run this is an amazing thing, and we still are committed to making this the cheapest event in romance fandom.

So I know you are ready to rock (cuz I am!) Tomorrow starts the insanity!

Big AAD news!!!!

Ok guys!

Well its Friday, the website is loading up so you can see all the awesome goodness that we have in store (well the beginnings of it, I swear theres lots being figured out as we speak!) but i wanted to give you guys the big big news!

We have a new Master of Ceremonies for AAD this year and we are all tickled pink to have the ever lovely and talented LARISSA IONE!!!! Yes I know! Totally excited here, especially because this will also be Larissa's first AAD and shes up for a BUNCH of awards in the Bookies!

Now... on to more awesome news...

We were told this morning that BORDERS will be out bookseller this year! Very excited, especially because the BORDERS closest to the hotel is all of 2 blocks away! This is very advantageous to everyone!

The Authors After Dark Website is up and running, and I have a date for registration and room reservations to open: NOVEMBER 10th! And just an FYI, the hotel told me to make the attendees aware of the fact that they normally sell out of saturdays, and WILL dip into our room block if they have to.

So who is excited? I'm so excited! Ok off to get some work done!

Website, updates and registration info

Hey All!

Sorry I have been quiet on this end, pertaining to AAD info, but I have some right now I wanted to get out to all of you. So shall I?

The AAD website will hopefully be up by the 5th. Why the wait? I'm making sure we get all the info on it and its up to date. We have some awesome things involved this year, and there's a lot of stuff to add in, so I'm making sure its perfect.

AAD Registration opens on November 10th. Excited? I bet you are! I know I'm really excited to see all the new amazing authors and attendees that are planning on joining us this year! So for those that have sent me emails with questions, allow me to address them here:

YES: we will have writing workshops set up for authors, run by some of the best authors out there today including Zoe Archer, Allie Boniface, C.J. Henderson, and Tilly Greene so far, so Check out the AUTHORS CORNER page for updates!

YES: We will have 2 nighttime parties, A Mythos Masquerade and the Steampunk Ball. Both will follow dinners and will run several hours.

YES: We will have special events this year that will be 'Ticketed'. This means that there is a limited number of people able to attend these events, so those that are really interested will buy a ticket, and ALL PROCEEDS from these events will go to the charities this year.

YES: WE will have a tattoo artist attending again this year, 2 actually, and will have a full roster of vendors in our After Dark Bazaar! Bath and body, jewelry, clothing, handbags... I will be posting about the finalized count in a few months!

YES: we will have agent and editor appointments this year, though limited. More on that as we get closer, Appointment registration opens June 15th.

YES: there will be a complete Blogger track this year, including workshops, panels, meet and greets and some special surprises! We have to limit our blogger list this year to 10-12, (because we want to ensure they receive the best ARC's and goodies available.) Blogger Hopefuls will be screened (blog checked out) and notified if they made the top 10. This is not us vetting one person over another, its simply first come first serve.

YES: there WILL be a charity basket room this year. Authors are encouraged to donate baskets and books, to help us raise money for some most deserving charities! If your an author (or publisher) looking to donate, PLEASE contact me ASAP so I can get your name on the website.

Panels will run like normal, 50 minute events, and a full list will be up soon on what we plan to offer this year! AAD 2010 had some of the best attended panels I have seen all year (And I did 20 cons this year!) So I'm hoping to duplicate that for 2011!

And last but not least... The BOOKIE AWARDS! Yes, I know a lot of you are excited about this event, and the possiblity of winning a READER NOMINATED award, the ONLY READER NOMINATED awards in Romance Fandom! I know Im excited, and Im flattered we were even nominated for anything. Im in some of the best company I could ever hope for, and I know that whoever wins this inaugural year, will be tickled beyond Tickled! Voting begins November 20th ON THE WEBSITE on the Bookie Awards Page. We will have a running list of presenters going up as they come forward and agree to it. Ooh so whats the Bookie awards? What does all women love? No, not chocolate (well maybe, lol)... Jewelry! Yes this year's Bookies will have Jewelry for the award, a wonderful certificate, and that chocolate could be in the mix too...

Excited? I know I am... So... Stay tuned! It all starts happening in a few days!