Ever since learning of the world of self-publishing, I have made a point to regularly read the work of other indie authors. One of my absolute favorite experiences in this endeavor was with The Touchstone Trilogy by Andrea K. Host. Touchstone, which started as a fiction blog before being published, is a young adult science fiction/fantasy story, and it’s kind of amazing. The trilogy begins with Stray, continues in Lab Rat One, and concludes in Caszandra. Then there is the Gratuitous Epilogue, detailing bits of our heroine’s life after she no longer has to worry about the troubles she helped to right in the primary three installments. It was perfect for readers who, like me, weren’t quite ready to leave the wonderful world Host had introduced us to in her books. This bit can be downloaded for free from the author’s website.

Anyway, Host recently held a giveaway that included three different prizes one could make a bid for. The choices included: a copy of any of her books the contestant did not yet own, in ebook or paperback format; one of several partial novels she began but never completed; or galley copies of the Touchstone novels from when she was preparing them for publication.

As another author, I considered which prize would be the best choice for me. As awesome as it would be to get a copy of all of Host’s books, I figured I would rather support her by purchasing them myself as I read through her work. I own the Touchstone books for the ereader only, and so I thought having a hard copy of them in a galley would be nice. And since I’m new to the industry of self-publishing, receiving the drafts, as part of the publishing process, would not only be pretty sweet, but also appropriate for a fellow indie author learning the trade.

You can probably guess where this is going (at least from the title of the post, if nothing else!) I won the prize I had entered the contest for! I’ll be receiving the galleys of Host’s books that I enjoyed so much. Very exciting!

If you are so inclined, you can check out Host’s website here: http://www.andreakhost.com/ You’re welcome. 🙂