Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Movers, Shakers, Winners & Dust Bunnies

Thanks so much to all those who entered the Blog Hop eBook contest. Rafflecopter has chosen two winners who have been notified. Congrats to Yto and Tami Brothers! Hope you guys will enjoy WISHLESS!
The Blog Hop was a great distraction. Truth be told - I needed one. We're in the eleventh hour of our move and the boxes are piling up. I'd climb the walls if only I could find them. Musician Dave Mustaine said, "Moving on is a simple thing. What it leaves behind is hard."
Simple? I beg to differ.
After seventeen years it seems we've acquired the household contents equivalent in mass to one moderately sized third world country. And here I was, positive that I'd been diligent in effectively heaving and hoeing throughout the years. Now I'm thinking...not so much.
So, for the next couple weeks I will be shaking things up around this place. The sanitation men will likely have my photo on their dash with a giant black slash through my face. Sorry for the trash boys, but its time for this girl to pack up and get a move on. The only things I plan to leave behind are the dust bunnies under the stove. And that's only if the Swiffer doesn't reach that far.
PS - Stay tuned for the next contest, gang. I had way too much fun to stop now!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

New Author Blog Hop and Giveaway


Welcome to Of Thoughts and Words visitors! http://worddiaries.blogspot.com/2011/10/calling-new-authors-and-book-lovers.html Thanks for your interest in WISHLESS. Please take a second to check out the book (upper right hand side of the page.) I hope you'll enter the eBook contest below (click "read more" for the rafflecopter) and as a bonus - you'll find another contest going on as we speak over at the Facebook page. SO cool, right?
Happy Holidays everyone!!

Monday, November 21, 2011

New Author Blog Hop and Giveaway - Part 2

Hey guys here's the list of the other wonderful authors participating in the hop. Hope you'll check them out!



Reindeer Games

In the spirit of all things merry and bright, I wanted to let you in on the Wishless Facebook Holiday Contest.
Just drop by the page here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wishless/232063146839096 - like us, leave your picture if you want to (for an extra entry) and you'll be entered to win a $15.00 Barnes and Noble gift card plus a signed paperback copy of Wishless.
Also, while you're here at The Hook, if you feel like some tunes - check out the Holiday Hitz on the bottom left hand side of this page. Every day I'll be posting another of my faves of the season. AND I'm taking requests. What song do you want to hear?

Oh and Rudolph - you can play, too!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

A Turtle Can't be a Turkey - A Thanksgiving Story



Theodore was a very disgruntled turtle. Not all of the time, mind you. But lately, it seemed, he'd begun to feel, well, unimportant, in the scheme of things. The thrill over those Ninja Turtles had pretty much died down and now nobody really paid any attention to turtles as a group and Theodore in particular. So with Thanksgiving only a week away, he concocted a plan to pretend to be a turkey, since those guys got ALL the attention.(Theodore had no idea why folks kicked up such a fuss anyway since turkeys were the planets dumbest animals.)
His best turtle friend, Thelma, told him to, "Just chill, Theo." Yet Theodore didn't listen. He went out and plucked a bunch of feathers from a nearby nest and glued them to his backside (ouch) and tried his best to walk on just his hind legs, (not an easy task at all) in hopes that someone would think he was a turkey and bring him home for the holiday.
Three days went by and most folks just gave Theodore a strange look, or suggested therapy, but nobody bought him. Huh. He was more perplexed and peeved now than ever. When Thanksgiving eve came and he was still homeless, Theodore tore the feathers off his butt (#*!!*) and nursed his wounds glumly. Thelma sat down beside him. "Theo, you can't be a turkey if you were born a turtle. You have to be who you really are. And besides, don't you know what happens to those guys on Thanksgiving?"
Theodore shook his head. Thelma leaned in and whispered in his ear. Theodore gulped and nearly toppled over.
And so it was that Theodore began to embrace his turtlehood. It was then he decided to strive to become the next big thing in Turtle Cinema. He figured if those Ninjas could do it, why couldn't he? Oh, and he finally got up the courage to ask Thelma for a date with a not-so-smooth segue,
"Your shell or mine?"
Have a Happy Thanksgiving :)

Sunday, November 13, 2011

A Sign of the Times

So, the first book signing went off without a hitch. (Blogger emits gigantic sigh of relief.) The Book Revue in Huntington, NY (check them out here: http://www.bookrevue.com) is the happiest place on earth, after Disneyland. They were so kind and accommodating. I couldn't have asked for anything more. We had a good turnout, great food, & amazing friends and family support. And $ales. I venture to say it's a sign of the times. I am hopeful, which isn't an emotion I tend to visit a whole lot. I thank God for the blessing.

And I thank Neutrogena for their skincare line. (Huh?)
Truth be told I was on pimple patrol all this past week. Figured it had to happen, right? Big day. Lots of attention (squirm) Pictures (say cheese). Speech (ugh). All eyes on you (double ugh). It would only stand to reason I'd get a zit. Somewhere smack dab in the middle of my face. Yes?
No. (Blogger emits second sigh of relief.) Vanity thy name is Writer.

Admit it, we all want to put our best foot (or face) forward, don't we?

But I digress. Thanks to all for receiving me so warmly. Book Baby is ever so grateful. Now I'll ride off into the sunset.
Or not. Hey, I could get used to this author-type stuff...


Friday, November 11, 2011

With Thanks...



Just want to pause for a moment today, on this Veterans Day, and remember that our freedom didn't just happen. It's  man-made. Thanks to all the men and women who fight for the cause so selflessly. May God bless and keep those who gave their lives in the process.


Saturday, November 5, 2011

Perfect Shmerfect


"And in fact, I think the more we start to worship perfection the more soul leaks out of art." 



For those of you who don't know me that well, you may not be aware that I have this thing about perfection. I really like the notion of it. A lot. Yeah, yeah, I know. It's like Santa; exists only in your mind and spirit - blah, blah. Still, when you tend to strive for it, and it eludes you, it's a tough pill to swallow. I've spent the past few days working on a story and struggling to get it down the exact way I want to. It's gone something like this: Write, delete, write, delete. Chocolate. Not a pretty picture, gang.
As of this morning I've decided I need to relax my standards. It's nearly impossible to be creative with a self-imposed perfection pistol poised at your temple. I realize this is going to take some getting used to. Rome wasn't built in a day and all that. I plan to start small, with a page, not an entire chapter. Just a page. In a writers world, it's a baby step.
I'll admit I'm no stranger to  Perfect Shmerfect. I'm privy to the actualization that my Book Baby is not without it's technical difficulties. You should know that a spit-shined manuscript, once out of your trembling hands, meets many other hands. Sometimes mistakes are unavoidable. Finished products are not always presented for your intense scrutiny. For the perfectionista like your truly, it's a bit like a traffic accident - gory, yet I can't help but stare. I've had to take a crash course in reality. Accept the fact: that's the way it goes, and move along.
All this said, I'm still going to shoot for 100%. I'm still going to aim high. I'm just not going to stare down the barrel of the gun.