# The Girl Born of Smoke - an epic fantasy adventure



## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

When Aurora is thrust into a world torn apart by war, she realizes she is the magically gifted child everyone is searching for. Haunted by the guilt of her sister's accidental death and terrified of being found out, she swears never to use her powers. But all that changes when her best friend is mistaken as the wizard and kidnapped.

In her struggle to rescue him, she finds evidence the opposing armies may be connected, controlled by a single individual with his own agenda. With loved ones on both sides of the war, she is forced to decide who she can trust as she tries to stop the fighting. But, can she even trust her own sanity?

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Available on Amazon for $2.99.

For the first chapter, visit my website.


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## David &#039;Half-Orc&#039; Dalglish (Feb 1, 2010)

chelzaya said:


> I know not everyone likes fantasy...


And they're poorer for it, too. 

Welcome to family, Jessica.

David Dalglish


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## karinlib (Jan 1, 2010)

Half-Orc said:


> And they're poorer for it, too.
> 
> Welcome to family, Jessica.
> 
> David Dalglish


Agreed.

Jessica,

I can't wait to ready your book. Downloaded it.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Thanks guys! I love how friendly everyone is here, I think I will enjoy my stay.


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## karinlib (Jan 1, 2010)

Downloaded it, can't wait to read it.


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## Neo (Mar 30, 2009)

I always ask the same question and I apologize about this but... Is this a stand alone book or the first in a series?

Thank you and welcome to the Boards !


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

It's a standalone for now. I wrote it with the idea that it would not be part of a series, but a few people have been encouraging me to write a sequel. I don't know if that will ever happen, but it is a possibility. 

And thank you everyone for the responses, I appreciate it!


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## Neo (Mar 30, 2009)

Thank you for the quick response, will definitely check it out


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## Kristen Painter (Apr 21, 2010)

I like fantasy! Heck, I write it. I kinda have to like it.


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## Edward C. Patterson (Mar 28, 2009)

Today's featured author at the Indie Spotlight is

Saturday: Jessica Billings - The Girl Born of Smoke

http://www.theindiespotlight.com

Come up and read and leave a comment.

Edward C. Patterson
& Gregory B. Banks


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Thank you for featuring me! The website looks beautiful, btw. I'm honored to be on there!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Hi Jessica; it doesn't look like we ever officially congratulated you on your book. . . .so. . . .congratulations! 

Also, just a quick reminder of the rules.  We invite you to use your book cover as your avatar and have links to your book and website in your signature. Be sure to read the fine print below. Don't forget to bookmark this thread so you can update it. Although self-promotion is limited to the Book Bazaar, most of our authors have found the best way to promote their books is to be as active throughout KindleBoards as time allows. This is your target audience--book lovers with Kindles!

Thanks for being part of KindleBoards! Feel free to PM us if you have any questions.

Betsy & Ann
Book Bazaar Moderators

_The fine print:
Please add to your existing book thread when you have news about your book rather than start a new one, it helps the members who are trying to follow you. You may have a separate thread for each of your books. We recommend you bookmark your post so that you can find it in the future.  You may respond to all posts, but if there have been no member posts, we ask that you wait a week before "bumping" the thread by posting back-to-back posts of your own. And we ask that Amazon reviews not be repeated here as they are easy to find at your book link. Also, full reviews from other sites should not be posted here, but you may post a short blurb and a link to the full review instead. All this, and more, is included in our Forum Decorum. From time to time our site rules may change; be sure to check Forum Decorum (http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,36.0.html) for the current guidelines and rules. _


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## Guest (Aug 28, 2010)

You need to change the picture at the top of this thread.  The newer cover that Ronnel did is faAanTasTic!


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## Guest (Aug 28, 2010)

M.R. Mathias said:


> You need to change the picture at the top of this thread. The newer cover that Ronnel did is faAanTasTic!


I HOPE you used the search feature to find this thread. Either way, I hereby pronounce you official spelunker of the book bazaar!

P.S. Jessica, why aren't you bumping your thread every week?


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## Sandra Edwards (May 10, 2010)

Definitely love that kick-


Spoiler



ass


 new cover 

Sandy


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## shawn p cormier (Jul 30, 2010)

Love your blurb for your book. You know how to hook a reader. Sounds great and I will have to check it out. Is this your first novel?


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2010)

foreverjuly said:


> I HOPE you used the search feature to find this thread. Either way, I hereby pronounce you official spelunker of the book bazaar!
> 
> P.S. Jessica, why aren't you bumping your thread every week?


I did it the hard way.... But I think I'm glad I did!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

M.R. Mathias said:


> You need to change the picture at the top of this thread. The newer cover that Ronnel did is faAanTasTic!


Oh wow thanks, totally forgot about this thread. I should probably start bumping it weekly...with how fast threads go down the page, I kind of thought it was a futile battle. Apparently not!

Thank you Shawn, yes, this is my first novel.


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2010)

Wow cool you got it changed.... Good job!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

So today I was bemoaning the fact (in my head) that I'd never had a blog review and then I realized I did...I just forgot about it. 

Anyway, here's a link: http://hubpages.com/hub/Book-Review-The-Girl-Born-of-Smoke

Thankfully it's very positive and he even posted an excerpt he liked AND dug up an absolutely terrible video I did. The video was more of a joke - something totally different than what everyone else was doing and highlighted my abysmal artistic skills. But hey whatever, I don't draw books, I write them.

Now maybe someday I'll get a review on Red Adept (nevermind the fact that I think she passed over my book, since fantasy isn't her favorite and I submitted it to her many months ago).


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## Lynn McNamee (Jan 8, 2009)

I haven't "passed it over". I promise. I just have a VERY long TBR list!

You will hear from me regarding your book at some point. I always respond to authors in some way.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Oh thanks, that is good to know! Of course I wouldn't have minded at all if you passed it over, but it's great to know it's still out there on your radar. Thanks for the reply.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Kyrin was kind enough to post his first impressions of GBoS on his blog.



> The sample is well written and entertaining. It lacks a number of details that some authors try to cram into the first few chapters of a book. It is this lack of details that makes the sample enjoyable. Instead of throwing details at you, the author slowly immerses you into the world, characters and story. There are hints strewn throughout the sample, enough to make me interested in seeing where the story and characters go.


This was refreshing to hear, because I'm always worried that it opens too slowly. I'm one of those people who wants to get to know the characters while the plot builds. I'm looking forward to reading his review!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Totally unrelated to my book, but my weekly update is that I have a job interview in 45 minutes. It's just for a receptionist job in the dorms at my school, but hey, it's money.


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## 911jason (Aug 17, 2009)

Any luck on the job interview?

P.S. What happened to your book cover? I miss the old quirky font... it gave your cover character! =)


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

I haven't found out yet, actually! I think I'll find out if I got the job in a week. I'm hopeful, though.

Ronnell re-made the cover with his new software and added a bunch of details and made the overall thing much clearer. I think this font is easier to read, but the curly font was pretty cool too, hehe.


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2010)

Jessica Billings said:


> Ronnell re-made the cover with his new software and added a bunch of details and made the overall thing much clearer. I think this font is easier to read, but the curly font was pretty cool too, hehe.


Yes it is better!


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## 911jason (Aug 17, 2009)

M.R. Mathias said:


> Yes it is better!


I agree that the image is better, but I think the text is a step back. Looks like the same text as 1/2 the books currently on this board. Times New Roman (or clone) vertically stretched about 50% and filling every bit of free space on the cover. The old font was a tad less legible, but the illustration made it perfectly clear what it said (if there were even any doubts). What you lost in legibility with the old font, you definitely gained in personality and individuality.

Just my two cents worth, though! =)


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

911jason said:


> I agree that the image is better, but I think the text is a step back. Looks like the same text as 1/2 the books currently on this board. Times New Roman (or clone) vertically stretched about 50% and filling every bit of free space on the cover. The old font was a tad less legible, but the illustration made it perfectly clear what it said (if there were even any doubts). What you lost in legibility with the old font, you definitely gained in personality and individuality.
> 
> Just my two cents worth, though! =)


Thanks for the input. Ronnell gave me the illustration without text as well, so I might play around with it!


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## 911jason (Aug 17, 2009)

I hope that was okay to post here Jessica, reading your quote of my post made me think it may have been better as a PM. Let me know if you'd like me to delete my post! 

Wishing you all the best on your novel! 

=)


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

It's totally fine, Jason!! Not an issue in the slightest.


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## Guest (Sep 28, 2010)

I like the way the text stands out now.  I never pay that much attention to fonts, unless they make me cringe.  Yours does not do that!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

M.R. Mathias said:


> I like the way the text stands out now. I never pay that much attention to fonts, unless they make me cringe. Yours does not do that!


Hehe, thanks, M.R. I got the proof copy of the paperback today in the mail and I'm pretty pleased with the way it looks. I still might play around with it, but for now, I'm happy.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Whoops, definitely haven't updated this in a couple weeks. I got the job I interviewed for, so now I have even less free time, gah! I also turned 25 (quarter of a century!) in the time I was slacking off on updating. Nothing too new on the book front. Got a new 5-star review (yay!), submitted for a couple sponsorships (still can't afford KND), and just been working on the next project.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Totally unrelated - I'm trying my hand at voice acting. I am a total amateur (never done this before), and it's unpaid for a fan-made game, but we're all having a lot of fun! Check out the trailer (only my voice has been added so far). So far, people have been telling me I'm not the worst they've ever heard, so hey. That's something.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Yay, my book is featured on Daily Cheap Reads today! It's like having my own little Black Friday ad. 

Now, back to shopping online for myself....


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Hahaha, I haven't posted in here for so long that it's giving me a warning at the top to make sure I want to reply. Anyway, GBoS got a 5-star review on Red Adept Reviews today!

I try not to take reviews too personally, but I was a MESS about this one. I knew all my friends would see it and what if it was only 1-star, what would they think of me, how could I ever show my face at KB again...etc. I managed to finally get to sleep around 2:30am and then woke promptly up at 5am, when I knew it would probably go up on the website. I was so excited and relieved that it was a good review that it took me another hour to fall asleep! So anyway, I'm running on 4 or 5 hours of sleep today, but nothing is going to hamper my mood today!


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

We're pleased to have The Girl Born of Smoke as our KB Book of the Day!


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## Dolorous Edd Tollett (May 29, 2011)

Decided to buy this book as my first indie book. I am not sure when I am going to get to read it, but soon I hope.


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## Will Granger (Apr 12, 2011)

Congratulations on publishing your book. I like your title - for some reason, it caught my attention. 

Good luck with your sales!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Dolorous Edd Tollet said:


> Decided to buy this book as my first indie book. I am not sure when I am going to get to read it, but soon I hope.


Wow, that's quite an honor! You've given me a very nice start to my day and I hope you enjoy the story. 



Will Granger said:


> Congratulations on publishing your book. I like your title - for some reason, it caught my attention.
> 
> Good luck with your sales!


Thanks, Will! That's always good to hear.


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