Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway: The Hierophant's Daughter (The Disgraced Martyr Trilogy Book 1) by M.F. Sullivan

Welcome to my stop on the virtual book tour for The Hierophant's Daughter (The Disgraced Martyr Trilogy Book 1) by M.F. Sullivan. This book tour was organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. On my stop, I have an excerpt and a guest post for you. There's also a tour wide giveaway. Be sure to check out the rest of the stops on the book tour for more excerpts, guest posts, author interviews, reviews, and more. Enjoy!

Title: The Hierophant's Daughter

Series: The Disgraced Martyr Trilogy Book 1

Author: M.F. Sullivan

Release Date: May 19th 2019

Genre: Horror, Science Fiction, LGBTQ

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By 4042 CE, the Hierophant and his Church have risen to political dominance with his cannibalistic army of genetically modified humans: martyrs. In an era when mankind's intergenerational cold wars against their long-lived predators seem close to running hot, the Holy Family is poised on the verge of complete planetary control. It will take a miracle to save humanity from extinction.

It will also take a miracle to resurrect the wife of 331-year-old General Dominia di Mephitoli, who defects during martyr year 1997 AL in search of Lazarus, the one man rumored to bring life to the dead. With the Hierophant's Project Black Sun looming over her head, she has little choice but to believe this Lazarus is really all her new friends say he is--assuming he exists at all--and that these companions of hers are really able to help her. From the foulmouthed Japanese prostitute with a few secrets of her own to the outright sapient dog who seems to judge every move, they don't inspire a lot of confidence, but the General has to take the help she can get.

After all, Dominia is no ordinary martyr. She is THE HIEROPHANT'S DAUGHTER, and her Father won't let her switch sides without a fight. Not when she still has so much to learn.

The dystopic first entry of an epic cyberpunk trilogy, THE HIEROPHANT’S DAUGHTER is a horror/sci-fi adventure sure to delight and inspire adult readers of all stripes.

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble

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EXCERPT:

Cassandra’s absence was not her first discovery. That was her (officially) broken watch, whose blank face reflected her own bleary one. Then came the porter’s uniform, folded beside her unconscious body with such tight creases it looked as if it had been ironed: it smelled like the lavender of the woman who had pinned her against the cool metal of the train car to multiply the current’s kick. That, plus the ache in her stiff muscles, meant the woman was no hallucination. Dominia had escaped Japan, and now had a whole new level of problems. Who was she? Miki Soto. A card sat atop the uniform, its front embossed with a black-petaled, red-outlined lotus. Familiar symbol, but one she couldn’t place in her post-electric haze. She sat up to rub her head and neck with a pained sigh that turned into suffocation as her hand found the necklace gone from her throat.

Her palms were wet with sweat beneath her gloves. She stripped them off to feel around on her chest, then cried out to confirm Cassandra gone. Up the General sprang, then back down on hands and knees in search of her beloved’s remains. No trace.

Dominia knew where she was: with that same woman who had left the uniform. A disguise for the train, in exchange for her wife’s body. Cassandra! Oh, poor Cassandra, forever dying in Dominia’s mind, much as she forever stood in her flowing black dress, whose lace she smoothed while they waited outside the throne room of the Hierophant. Telling her, “You look beautiful, don’t worry; you’re so smart and funny, everyone will love you.”

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

M.F. Sullivan is the author of Delilah, My Woman, The Lightning Stenography Device, and a slew of plays in addition to the Trilogy. She lives in Ashland, Oregon with her boyfriend and her cat, where she attends the local Shakespeare Festival and experiments with the occult.

Website * Amazon * Goodreads * Twitter

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GUEST POST:

A Day With Me Behind the Scenes

by M.F. Sullivan

By far and away, the most important aspect of a writer’s life is their schedule. By making writing a scheduled, daily activity, novels appear in a neat pile by your desk as if produced in the night by little elves. Better, as I’ve discussed elsewhere, the inciting habit of daily writing effects and inspires many other positive habits. My schedule has developed in a ‘When You Give A Mouse A Cookie’ type of fashion—that is, a habit of writing required I get up as early as possible to get started on it as soon as possible, which required I keep my house and space clean as possible so as to limit distractions, which required I get better sleep to maintain an energy level I needed, which required a bit of exercise and reading to make me tired…the chain reaction goes on, but let’s talk specificity.

I think I tend to live my life one week at a time, rather than one day. Over the course of a given week I have many tasks, especially when marketing a new release book. I get up at 4 am and hit the gym by 5 or, if it’s an off-day, make breakfast. As soon as the dishes are done, I’m sitting down to write—especially if I’m inspired. When that’s the case I often don’t even remember sitting down! I just sort of come to from a trancelike state with some new pages on the screen in front of me. The same can happen with editing, especially when I’m eager to be done with a project and open up room for new writing!

After I’ve spent a few hours with my current work, usually anywhere from three to six depending on how hot the flow is (or how close I am to my editing deadline), I turn my attention to administrative tasks like communicating with my cover artist or editor, reaching out to potential reviewers for new releases, drafting letters and non-fiction blog posts, and designing ads or other promotional material. If it wasn’t for my boyfriend I’d forget to eat lunch almost every day! Luckily, he comes by my office to snap me back to reality around noon, and we’ll grab a bite to eat, then either go back to work or spend the rest of the afternoon together.

One aspect of publishing is that, especially with a trilogy, there is always something to do, every single day. There’s never an ‘off day’ and if you think there is then you’re probably forgetting something! So, if not for my boyfriend to occasionally want my company, I really could work from 6am to 8pm before doing it all again the next day. Not good—I could feel the neurons in my brain worn down by the time I passed Book III, The Lady’s Champion, to my editor, Michelle Hope!

I would do well to take a break now and again—but when you love your job this much, how can you? I used to play a lot of videogames and spend a lot of time on the Internet, but these days the amount of pleasure I get out of finishing and publishing a novel is infinitely more fulfilling than any 100% completion game could be. That said, I do still like to play the odd game, so sometimes if I can I’ll slip Fatal Frame or something into my afternoon—but there’s never much time for that, because my early schedule means I’m usually ready for bed by 7:30pm! Early as it seems, the effects on my writing, energy level and overall sense of well-being can’t be overstated. If you’re struggling to find time to write, try getting up a few hours earlier and see what happens.

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GIVEAWAY:

One randomly chosen winner via Rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card. Be sure to leave a comment at a different stop each day to increase your chance of winning. You can find a list of participating blogs here. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway