You’re running out of time to read the Choisie series for free!

After October 27, the books in my Choisie series will no longer be in Kindle Select. That’s good news for iBooks and Nook readers because it means they will be back in those stores. If you’re a Kindle reader, though, you’ll no longer be able to read Contessa, Olivia, Dear Jon, and Livvy for free in Kindle Unlimited!

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So… if you’ve started the series in KU, bump them up on your TBR list and finish them now! And if you haven’t started them… well, you do have time to start and finish them. Yes, three of them are long reads, but they’re quick reads. I have faith in you. 😉 Happy reading!

Contessa (Choisie 1)
Olivia (Choisie 2)
Dear Jon (Choisie 3)
Livvy (Choisie 4)

Choisie Series book availability news!

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Beginning this week, I will be removing all of my Choisie series books from Nook and iBooks for a few months. They will only be available in the Kindle store. This means that if you’re a Nook or iBooks reader, and you’re mid-series and haven’t bought the rest, this is the time to buy. Purchase links are here.

If you are a member of Kindle Unlimited, this means that the Choisie Series will soon be available for you to read for free! Amazon Prime customers will also be able to select any book in the series as their KOLL book each month.

For now, this is a test run to see how sales do. As you all know, I’m working hard to fulfill my dream of becoming a full-time author, and in August, I’ll have the month to devote to writing, strategizing, and marketing. This is step one in the strategy.

I’m not a big fan of limiting the distribution of my books. I’ve done it before with varying degrees of success. But what I’m currently doing won’t pay the bills, so I have to mix things up a little bit. The program with Amazon has changed since I last tried it a few years ago, so I have to see what it may do for me.

The good thing about Kindle is that they do offer a free e-reader app that works on any computer and nearly any handheld device, so they are very cross-platform. Although I, myself, don’t use a Kindle, I read 95% of my books on the Kindle app on my iPad.

Please spread the word to any of your Nook or iBooks friends!

We won five Lost in a Book Blog awards for 2014!

Recently, Lost in a Book Blog held their first annual book awards, which had readers both vote and nominate for their favorites in different categories. I am happy, honored and grateful to report that we won FIVE awards in 2014!

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I want to thank all the readers out there who nominated, voted and asked for more vote! There was some amazing competition, and I’m surprised to have won in even one category!! It means so much to have books and characters from both of my series as winners, too. See? They’re both worth reading! 😉

Last but not least, thanks to Lost in a Book Blog for hosting these fun awards, and for all of their support year-round!

Choisie Blog Tour information

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This week, October 12-18, the Choisie series will be touring around multiple blogs! If you’ve read any of the series, consisting of four books (Contessa, Olivia, Dear Jon and the up-coming Livvy), then this will be a chance to remember some of its highlights. If you haven’t read the books, this is your chance to get a nice introduction to my young adult series focusing on a 16-year-old gifted painter who was adopted by wealthy parents when she was four. Below, you’ll find links to all the participating blogs, and below that, you’ll see the series description.

Blog Tour Participants: Thank you so very much to everyone who signed up to spread the word about my Choisie series!

October 12, 2014

October 13, 2014

October 14, 2014

October 15, 2014

October 16, 2014

October 17, 2014

October 18, 2014

Choisie series description:

The Choisie series is a Young Adult/New Adult story following a teenage girl as she struggles to find her footing under the scrutiny of local media and the cautious eye of her overprotective father.Livvy Holland was adopted by a generous and wealthy couple as a child. Now sixteen, she is a burgeoning artist, encouraged by her mother and inspired by a man she was never able to meet. Feeling estranged from a loving father whose mind works much differently than her own, she questions whether or not she was paired with the right guardians. In her plight for independence, she reconnects with a fellow art student who grew up alongside Livvy.
Jon Scott has led anything but a privileged life. After his father passes away, he is left to care for his two half-brothers while his mother’s alcoholism threatens to tear his family apart. All he wants for himself and his brothers is a better life. His dreams for an Ivy League education are coming to fruition, thanks to a lifetime of hard work and ambition. This is not only important to Jon himself; he also knows that the man who will win Livvy’s heart has to be someone exceptional. Her father would accept nothing less and Jon believes that Livvy deserves the best of everything, too.
That may be the only thing Jon and Livvy’s father agree upon.
Over the course of their courtship, these two teens will experience the bliss of true love, but their immaturity and differing lifestyles will also threaten to tear them apart. They both begin to question the other’s devotion and commitment; only time will tell if their first love is meant to last a lifetime.
This series, comprised in totality of four books, allows the reader to experience first love for a second time. The first three books Contessa, Olivia, and Dear Jon are available now, with the fourth book, Livvy, slated to be released December 9!
Purchase links:

Contessa (Book One): Paperback / Kindle / iBooks / Nook

Olivia (Book Two): Paperback / Kindle / iBooks / Nook

Dear Jon (Book Three): Paperback / Kindle / iBooks / Nook

Livvy (Book Four [preorder]): Kindle / iBooks

*Scheduled to review a book in the Choisie series!!

gray blogs = can’t find their post; yellow *s = can’t find their scheduled review

40th Birthday Mega Ebook Sale! Save $12 on 7 books!

Purchase links beneath the graphic!

40thbdaynolinksKindle:

 Nook:

iBooks:

Read the Choisie Series!

ChoisieFourBooksNoPricesAll novels in the four-book Choisie series are out! Here are some purchase links, and full descriptions of the books are below!

Contessa (Book One): Paperback / Kindle / Nook / iBooks

Olivia (Book Two): Paperback / Kindle / Nook / iBooks

Dear Jon (Book Three): Paperback / Kindle / Nook / iBooks

Livvy (Book Four): PaperbackKindle / Nook / iBooks


CONTESSA | When she was four, a generous couple welcomed orphan Olivia Sophia into their lives. As she grew up, her parents made good decisions for her, raising Livvy to be an intelligent and creative young girl. Now sixteen, three people influence many of her choices: her first love, her second father, and a third man who speaks to her through his artwork.

Livvy’s father is practical and steadfast; even-tempered and quietly observant. She’s an artist who acts on her emotions and thrives on attention. Unhappy with their differences– and misunderstanding her father’s methods– Livvy chooses to focus on the similarities she shares with an enigmatic painter from her mother’s past. Her overactive imagination leads her down an obsessive path– one that only stands to hurt everyone around her.

The distraction of a new boyfriend has the potential to end her search and reunite her family, but his involvement in her life could be just as devastating, taking Livvy away from her father for good.

*The Contessa ebook now contains the short story, “Jackson.”

OLIVIA | When devastating news brings an abrupt end to a romantic rendezvous, Livvy Holland struggles to accept the death of one of her closest mentors. Livvy’s artwork has always been an expression of her emotions, and avoiding the pain she feels from her recent loss makes painting seem impossible. Her inspiration gone, she devotes her attention to the future she’s planning with Jon Scott.

Blissfully happy in her own denial, all of Livvy’s free time has been given to the boy she’s always loved. Facing grown up decisions, she finds it hard to live up to her parents’ expectations of her as a daughter and an artist. Under her father’s constant scrutiny and persistent surveillance from curious paparazzi, Livvy finds it difficult to maintain the adult relationship she’s begun with Jon.

The changes in Livvy are evident to those closest to her, and a few that were once her allies begin to interfere with her personal life. This newfound attention – along with distractions that take Jon’s attention elsewhere – cause Livvy to question all the choices she’s made: what college she’ll attend, what man she should be with, and what she thought was her life’s purpose.

Livvy faces her greatest challenge when Jon’s unanticipated plans derail her own. Overwhelmed, confused, and longing to satisfy her own wants and needs, Livvy must endure more heartache before finding herself.

DEAR JON | A summer with his family in Utah is all Jon Scott needs to pull himself together. It’s time to focus on his mom’s sobriety and the continuing education of his two younger brothers, Will and Max. For once, things seem to be on track with that part of his life. For the first time, he sees real hope for his family.

This family time is a much-needed distraction from the relationship he walked away from in Manhattan. Livvy Holland, the girl he’s loved since they were children, has let him down for the last time. He doesn’t want to waste his time dwelling on the fight they had, or the shocking incident that happened the next day, after her graduation. It’s something he’ll never forget, or forgive.

Things never go as Jon plans, though. Despite her actions and a distance of two thousand miles, Livvy has every intention of keeping Jon’s attention throughout the summer with a series of 30 letters: three a week for every week he’s gone. He doesn’t have to read them; there are times when he simply doesn’t want to. He has plenty of things keeping him busy: a job that requires long hours, family friends that come over for parties, brothers that ask too many questions, and a girl that’s very unlike anyone Jon’s dated before.

But there’s something about Livvy Holland that keeps drawing him back to her. Reading the letters will either break the ties, or eventually reunite them. His brain wants one thing; his heart wants another.By the end of the summer, Jon will return to Manhattan. He’s come to terms with his past. He has a bright future. Back at Columbia, though, he must accept choices Livvy has made without him that will change his present plans.

LIVVY | In her first year of college at Yale, challenging courses and new friends provide a much-needed distraction for Livvy Holland. Beyond the tears–for the most part– she won’t allow the lingering anger she harbors toward her ex-boyfriend to consume her.

Even after taking steps to conceal her identity, Livvy is still very recognizable and popular among her new classmates. She takes advantage of her situation and accepts dates with multiple guys, trying to piece together an image of ‘her type of guy’ that differs from all the good qualities Jon Scott once possessed.

An unexpected letter arrives on Livvy’s 18th birthday, shifting her focus and forcing her to reevaluate all the relationships in her life. She now knows the identity of her biological father, and struggles to make sense of the news alone. Fortunately, she won’t have to.

Just as Livvy’s life begins to normalize, one of her professors provides her with the creative opportunity of a lifetime. Trusting in the bonds she’s made with everyone she loves, she believes she can have everything she wants and makes the decision that allows her to be true to herself. She was chosen for a reason. Chosen to be a gifted artist that–with a few strokes of a paintbrush–could touch people emotionally; profoundly. Chosen by her parents so they had a place to share their boundless love and devotion. Chosen by her friend so he could return the encouragement, inspiration and affection she’d shown him for so many years.

Livvy Holland will never again take her position in life for granted. She wears the name with humility and respect. She is Choisie.

Contessa Re-Releases with short story Jackson!

Tuesday, August 12th, Contessa will re-release with a new publisher! This new version will include the short story, Jackson, which has only been available before in the Choisie facebook group. If you liked Emi Lost & Found, but haven’t ventured into this spin-off series, you will want to check out Contessa at least for the short story. There’s a happy surprise contained in it.

But let me talk about Contessa for a little bit. It isn’t just a spin-off to my original series. In fact, you don’t have to read Emi Lost & Found first.  The Choisie series is Young Adult/New Adult. It follows a teenage girl, taken in by a generous and wealthy couple, as she struggles to find her footing under the scrutiny of local media and the cautious eye of her overprotective father.

Livvy Holland is a burgeoning artist, encouraged by her mother and inspired by a man she was never able to meet. An adopted child, she questions whether or not she was paired with the right guardians. In her plight for independence, she reconnects with a fellow art student who grew up alongside Livvy.

Jon Scott has led anything but a privileged life. After his father passes away, he is left to care for his two half-brothers while his mother’s alcoholism threatens to tear his family apart. All he wants for himself and his brothers is a better life. He will soon graduate as the valedictorian of his class, with hopes of getting scholarships to the Ivy League school nearby. He wants all of this for himself, but he also knows that the man who will win Livvy’s heart has to be someone exceptional. Her father would accept nothing less–and Jon believes that Livvy deserves the best of everything, too.

That may be the only thing Jon and Livvy’s father, Jack, agree upon.

Contessa is book one of the Choisie series, a collection of four books that will remind you of–or possibly show you for the first time–all the wonders first love has to offer. Olivia, the second book in the series, was released in June, and the third book, Dear Jon, will be released later this month! The goal is to finish up the series by the end of the year.

Contessa has a 4.45 average and nearly 200 5-star reviews on Goodreads; it has a 4.8 rating and nearly 60 5-star reviews on Amazon.com.

Olivia has a 4.68 average and 85 5-star reviews on Goodreads; it has a 4.8 rating and over 30 5-star reviews on Amazon.com.

Dear Jon is currently being reviewed by ARC readers, and so far, it has a 4.93 average on Goodreads. Many reviewers have said it’s my best book yet!

Purchase links for your Kindle, iPad and Nook are all on this page. If you’ve already read the books and want to spread the word, feel free to share the graphics on this page!

Dear Jon “Themes” Campaign

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Over the next 25 days, in anticipation of my upcoming release, Dear Jon, I will be posting 30 separate “themes” that appear in the book. Most will be posted to my Instagram page and to my Facebook author page. I may include a quote relating to some of the words, if I’m feeling generous.  😉 Consider these little hints about the things Livvy will confront Jon with in her letters.

If you haven’t added Dear Jon to your Goodreads TBR list, do it now! You’ll also get the full synopsis and at least one early review from a trusted beta reader. Still haven’t read Contessa and/or Olivia, the first two books in the Choisie series? Check out this page for purchase links!

Thanks once more to Daniela at Lost in a Book Blog for not only creating these beautiful “themes” (which will make even more sense when you read the book), but for thinking of the idea in the first place! She’s in marketing for a reason, folks. And if you haven’t checked out their blog, you should. It’s beautifully done and they have a very nice community of both bloggers and authors. Plus, Daniela and Soreonne have good taste in books!

Dear Jon Release Date!

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It’s decided! Dear Jon will be released on Tuesday, August 26th! This is the third book in my Choisie series, so if you need to catch up, check out this page for info on where to buy Contessa and Olivia!

Here’s a little tidbit from one of Jon’s flashbacks of… well, it was a special night in the lives of Jon and Livvy.

“Maybe we should swim tonight, before we settle in,” I’d suggested.

“You’re crazy, right?”

“Some of us have never been in water like this,” I reminded her.  “This is nothing like the Atlantic.”

“Jon, we can barely see what’s in the water!”

“What water?” I asked, picking her up swiftly in my arms and wading further into the surf, toward the moon.

“Jon!” she shrieked.  “You have no idea how deep it is!”

“Well, I know you can swim, so…”  I kept walking, my pants now soaked to the knee.  There were other swimmers wading nearby, so I didn’t think we’d be in danger of finding ourselves in deep water.  She put her arms around my neck and held on tight.  I stopped walking to kiss her.

“There could be sharks,” she whispered, her eyes sparkling in the light.

“Sharks here are harmless,” I assured her.  I took a few more steps, stopping just before she’d have any chance of getting water on her clothes.

“You’re crazy.  Definitely,” she said.

“So no swimming tonight?”

“No,” she laughed.  “Even though you’re halfway there.”

“It’s pretty cold.  But that’s the only reason I’m not dropping you in the ocean and stripping down to my boxers.”

“Take me back to land, please.  And remind me what the signs of hypothermia are… slurred speech, right?  Poor decision making?  See you’ve already got it,” she teased me.

“Lethargy is a symptom,” I told her, propping her up and turning back around.  “And I am as alive and awake as I’ve ever been right now.  I feel like I could swim out to the horizon and back.”

“The horizon never ends, you know…”  I stopped walking again and kissed her once more.  Her kisses were slow and deep.

“I do know.  I am so excited about tonight, Olivia… a shark attack couldn’t stop me.”

“Good, because there’s a fin in the water.”

Dear Jon ©2014 Lori L. Otto

As always, thank you a million times over to Daniela at Lost in a Book Blog for her beautiful graphic! I am a designer and do a lot of my own things, but her creativity and passion has allowed me to focus on the book, and I can’t thank her enough.  (Thank you thank you thank you!)

Dear Jon Teaser: Tattoo

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Daniela at Lost in a Book Blog was given some of Dear Jon to read.  I selected her because she makes these beautiful graphics… it’s like she knows my design aesthetic better than I do!  I had hoped something I had written would inspire her, and she has been gracious enough to share a few with me.

Here’s the first one, along with the excerpt she took this line from:

I know I’ll never forget it – forget Olivia – because I have a constant reminder of her forever marked on my skin.  I guess a part of me always knew it wouldn’t work out between us.  That day before Christmas a year and a half ago, I’d considered getting her name tattooed on my back, but at the last minute, I found a way to honor her with less of a personal commitment to her.

No future girlfriends would ever need to know the true significance of the phrase.  I’ll just tell them I like Shakespeare.

If it be thus to dream, still let me sleep.

But now, about the last thing I want to do is sleep.  Despite the anger I feel for her during every waking minute of my days, she’s still all I’ve been able to dream about at night.

From Dear Jon ©2014 Lori L. Otto

I had hoped to give a release day with this post, but it’s still unknown at this point.  While I’m on track with writing, I think I’ll need to get a firm grasp on how much editing will need to be done before I can give a date with any sort of certainty.

Thanks for your patience!

P.S. No, this is not a movie that Logan Lerman is set to star in.  He’s just the actor that I see as Jon Scott.  🙂