Kia Garriques

Hi everyone!

It has been a while since I have updated my blog. Things have been rather hectic with preparations for the release of my novel but I can now share all of the exciting news with you all.

World Book Day is coming up on March 7^th which is always a day of fun and festivities in the book world. It is one of my favourite events of the year, and so I am excited and privileged to announce that I have been invited to speak at Bedford School on the day. The school’s ethos of encouraging excellence in their boys across the spectrum of education, pastimes and interests is wonderful, and I cannot wait to speak to them about all things literary.

As you can imagine, with the release of Innovera Yakov: The Journey of a Thousand Eyes imminient, it has been a hectic few weeks. As well as getting everything in order for the launch of the novel, I have been busy finalising details of my blog tour.

And I am already hopping with excitement at the prospect! I have been truly overwhelmed by the response I have received from the blogging community, with so many enthusiastic reviewers coming on board to discover the world of Innovera Yakov. Even those who had to turn down the opportunity were so positive in their feedback. I now cannot wait to kick off the tour and welcome a host of new readers.

As hectic as these past few weeks have been, all of the hard work has been well and truly worth it. The response I have received from the bloggers whom I have connected with has been wonderful and, given that this is my debut novel, the reaction has shown me what can be achieved when you dedicate yourself and your passion to achieving a dream.

While many will turn to the internet for tips on approaching bloggers to review their book, I have always been a firm believer that the personal approach is best. And so, I made sure to craft a very personal letter to each blogger to ensure that I made the best possible impression. It is not enough to just churn out a generic email to hundreds of people asking them to review your material; you need to be respectful of them and their work, especially when you consider just how many such requests they receive on a weekly basis.

And the blog tour looks set to be a hit! As a result of the wonderful response, I have been able to spread out my blog appearances over a few months, and the blog tour will accordingly run from the end of this month until June. I could not have asked for a better result and I am extremely grateful to those bloggers who have agreed to join the tour.

While I am still busy communicating with bloggers and setting specific dates, you will all be the first to know when each blog will be hosting me and my book. I will be uploading the schedule to my ‘Appearances’ page, which will be your first port of call to check. And of course, I will be updating my social media networks on a regular basis, so be sure to follow for all of the latest news and information.

The work doesn’t end there! I am also busy planning for press reviews at the moment, and hopefully you will be hearing from me about upcoming reviews and interviews in student publication, teenage magazines and local newspapers very soon. This is a very exciting time, so be sure to stay tuned to find out all about my latest movements!

The wheels are now in motion and I just know that Innovera Yakov: The Journey of a Thousand Eyes is going to set off a whole new adventure in my life and career. I have always been a firm believer in the saying that slow and steady wins the race, and so this journey is has been as much about the build-up as the sprint to the finish line. While there may have been times that I wanted to rush forward with the process, I am glad that I took my time carefully. Everything is coming together at the right time, in its right place.

Thank you all for your continued support. It’s going to be an exciting year and I hope you will all be right by my side at every step of the way.

Kia xx