Let's get started with sales or downloads. Since technically "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal" are being offered for free, they aren't really sales but I've had a few this week on smashwords, 3 of "The Tulip Kiss" and 1 of "The Proposal", none of Finally Home. On Kindle, there have been no sales this week as well as on Nook. So far this month, though, I've had something sell every week except the week of the 15th with "The Tulip Kiss" having a download on the 1st of the month when I actually started the SSW50 coupon participation on smashwords, Finally Home selling a copy on Kindle the week ending the 7th; Finally Home selling a copy on Nook the 11th; "The Tulip Kiss" selling a copy on Kindle the week ending the 14th; and then this week's downloads on smashwords. None of the downloads on smashwords this month will bring me any royalties unless someone purchases a copy of Finally Home at the half price special in the next couple of days. Tuesday is the final day for the special over on smashwords. So if you haven't received your copy yet and you enjoy reading Nancy Drew mysteries or know someone who would enjoy reading a short mystery similar to Nancy Drew stories, pop over to smashwords and get your copy for only $1.50 (don't forget to use the coupon code SSW50 on checkout).
I've started an Etsy store this week and have put all my bookworms and afghans on there and will be adding the kindle/nook covers and tablet covers soon. I hope you all will stop by and see everything. I'll be adding some more bookworms soon as I picked up three skeins of yarn the other day for bookworm purposes only. For more listings, stop by my shop.
I've been watching the Olympics some but mostly crocheting bookworms and finishing up more afghans. I've got 2 more skeins to finish the Watercolor one and I think I just started the 3rd skein of the Woodsy. All that's left is the Marrakesh. I keep forgetting to take the handheld sewing machine back or purchasing a power cord so I can sew the velcro on the tablet covers but for the most part, everything is finished other than the velcro and a few buttons. I have buttons for half the colors and have sewn those on but need to find buttons for the rest of them. Will be looking for buttons this week.
Nothing else to report for this week so see you all in the postings - E :)
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Miracles and Mystery of the Day
Days around here are getting a bit crazy and mysterious. This morning I took my friend, Andi, to the eye doctor (she's technically blind from a blood disorder called Factor V or Factor VIII but has a little bit of vision in her left eye; she also has developed cataracts over her eyes) for her followup status post cataract removal from the left eye yesterday. She was so excited by the ability to actually see the signs on the road, but the freaky thing is that she could see far away but not close up. So her visual acuity had reversed. When she left the doctor's office yesterday, or the surgery center, she was seeing 20/70 in her left eye; when she left the office today, her vision had improved to 20/25 in the left eye. She's to have the cataract removed from the right eye in about 3 weeks as a preventive measure because rupture of the cataract wouldn't be good with her blood conditions. The blindness was a quick loss of vision, not gradual and with the removal of the cataracts, she has clearer vision just as quickly or quicker than she actually lost her sight. The loss occurred over a period of 18 days. She had some blurriness in her right eye; called the eye doctor; had an appointment for 21 days later; and by day 18 had lost vision completely in her right eye and most of the vision in her left eye.
So now she needs reading glasses to see close up but that was an easy fix - Walmart sells them 3 pair for about $8. Yay - she can now see things both far and close up. No big mystery there, but nice little miracle. The doctor did tell her that when he does her surgery on the right eye she may gain some peripheral vision but probably not the central portion of her vision. She did say to me on the trip home that she would probably be driving again within a year or two (which will be a big miracle, although she knows she can't drive commercial vehicles any more).
After dropping her off and arriving home, I proceeded to go through all my emails and start working about 1:30 this afternoon. Sometime between arriving home and 2 or so this afternoon, I heard several shot sounds. Not unusual during hunting season, but it's not hunting season. I stepped out on the stoop to see if I saw anyone or anything that could be making the noise. No one else in the house heard the shots because they were all apparently sleeping.
About 5:30ish, son comes down and asks me to take him to town to get his phone from his friend's house. He usualy sits in the front seat and I thought it unusual he jumped in the back seat. His friend opened the front door and said it looked like "glitter" or glass or something was all over the seat. Upon closer inspection, we found my windshield had been blown out (shot) and found the bullet resting in the crevice of the seat where the back and seat part come together.
From what we all could figure was the shot was a downward trajectory right through the windshied. Police were called, and after waiting for about 45 minutes for them, showed up and took a report. Said it was definitely a shotgun, was a downward trajectory but couldn't figure out which direction it came from. He opened the front passanger door and looked at the glass and the bullet, et cetra, he looked at the door. There it was the richocet trajectory - the metal doorframe which stopped the bullet and caused it to bounce back to the seat. He said had it been a direct shot into the windshield the bullet would have gone through the seat or embedded in the seat and we wouldn't have seen it. So the mystery is who was on our property shooting and what were they shooting and why did my van take the brunt of the shooting? It's the mystery of the day.
I doubt we will ever find who shot at my windshield or why they did it but it does make me angry that someone did it in the first place. See you all in the postings - E :)
So now she needs reading glasses to see close up but that was an easy fix - Walmart sells them 3 pair for about $8. Yay - she can now see things both far and close up. No big mystery there, but nice little miracle. The doctor did tell her that when he does her surgery on the right eye she may gain some peripheral vision but probably not the central portion of her vision. She did say to me on the trip home that she would probably be driving again within a year or two (which will be a big miracle, although she knows she can't drive commercial vehicles any more).
After dropping her off and arriving home, I proceeded to go through all my emails and start working about 1:30 this afternoon. Sometime between arriving home and 2 or so this afternoon, I heard several shot sounds. Not unusual during hunting season, but it's not hunting season. I stepped out on the stoop to see if I saw anyone or anything that could be making the noise. No one else in the house heard the shots because they were all apparently sleeping.
About 5:30ish, son comes down and asks me to take him to town to get his phone from his friend's house. He usualy sits in the front seat and I thought it unusual he jumped in the back seat. His friend opened the front door and said it looked like "glitter" or glass or something was all over the seat. Upon closer inspection, we found my windshield had been blown out (shot) and found the bullet resting in the crevice of the seat where the back and seat part come together.
From what we all could figure was the shot was a downward trajectory right through the windshied. Police were called, and after waiting for about 45 minutes for them, showed up and took a report. Said it was definitely a shotgun, was a downward trajectory but couldn't figure out which direction it came from. He opened the front passanger door and looked at the glass and the bullet, et cetra, he looked at the door. There it was the richocet trajectory - the metal doorframe which stopped the bullet and caused it to bounce back to the seat. He said had it been a direct shot into the windshield the bullet would have gone through the seat or embedded in the seat and we wouldn't have seen it. So the mystery is who was on our property shooting and what were they shooting and why did my van take the brunt of the shooting? It's the mystery of the day.
I doubt we will ever find who shot at my windshield or why they did it but it does make me angry that someone did it in the first place. See you all in the postings - E :)
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Last Week
This is the last week for all the special deals I have going on. Afghan combos 20% off; ebooks available on smashwords for 1/2 off or free; and chances for the red, white, blue afghan drawing now only $1/chance (actually a permanent reduction in price).
An update on the afghans and what is available: Aspen is completed; Watercolor is 2/3 completed (need to purchase 2 more skeins tomorrow when I'm in town); Melonberry is completed; Primary is completed; and Bonbon print is completed. I started the Woodsy last night and all that is left is the Marrakesh to start and complete. May also get yarn to do another Monet - that will give me 8 afghans. Would really love to start selling them. The Kindle or Nook sleeves and the tablet sleeves are available in Primary, Monet, Bonbon print, Aspen, Woodsy, Watercolor, Melonberry, Marrakesh, Old Glory and Mistletoe. I do need to find some buttons for some of them and get the velcro strips sewn onto the tablet sleeves but for the most part they are completed.
See you all in the postings - E :)
An update on the afghans and what is available: Aspen is completed; Watercolor is 2/3 completed (need to purchase 2 more skeins tomorrow when I'm in town); Melonberry is completed; Primary is completed; and Bonbon print is completed. I started the Woodsy last night and all that is left is the Marrakesh to start and complete. May also get yarn to do another Monet - that will give me 8 afghans. Would really love to start selling them. The Kindle or Nook sleeves and the tablet sleeves are available in Primary, Monet, Bonbon print, Aspen, Woodsy, Watercolor, Melonberry, Marrakesh, Old Glory and Mistletoe. I do need to find some buttons for some of them and get the velcro strips sewn onto the tablet sleeves but for the most part they are completed.
See you all in the postings - E :)
Sunday, July 22, 2012
This and That
This past week was a slow week but I did my surprise Susanne with a Random Act of Kindness posting and had several of her followers stop by and leave comments. So thank you all for stopping by and I hope you check back every once in a while and leave comments again.
Sales wise, I did sell an actual copy of Finally Home and last week (I didn't know about it so didn't report it) a copy of Finally Home sold on Nook. So Finally Home is having a late debut time. I've been told by several folks I need to write more and make Kelly and Emma (my two main characters) their own series like Nancy Drew and her friends. I just don't have any ideas to make this a series since Emma and Kelly are both about 13 or 14 and can't drive and the town I've set it in really is one of those quiet places where not much happens that I could build some mysteries around. So again, I'm reaching out to my readers and asking for you all to help shed some ideas on new mysteries for both Kelly and Emma to take on, I'm open to ideas. I would especially love to hear from folks who have read Finally Home and have a feel for my characters.
See you all in the postings - hope to hear from all of you - E :)
Sales wise, I did sell an actual copy of Finally Home and last week (I didn't know about it so didn't report it) a copy of Finally Home sold on Nook. So Finally Home is having a late debut time. I've been told by several folks I need to write more and make Kelly and Emma (my two main characters) their own series like Nancy Drew and her friends. I just don't have any ideas to make this a series since Emma and Kelly are both about 13 or 14 and can't drive and the town I've set it in really is one of those quiet places where not much happens that I could build some mysteries around. So again, I'm reaching out to my readers and asking for you all to help shed some ideas on new mysteries for both Kelly and Emma to take on, I'm open to ideas. I would especially love to hear from folks who have read Finally Home and have a feel for my characters.
See you all in the postings - hope to hear from all of you - E :)
Thursday, July 19, 2012
RAOK - Susanne Drazic Appreciated
Not too long ago, Susanne honored me with a Random Acts of Kindness blog posting, introducing me to her blog followers. Since then, I've been trying to think of a way to honor her for being a true follower of my blog. So without her knowledge, I'm featuring Susanne in this blog posting.
What I know about Susanne: She lives in Michigan. She is a writer of YA/MG/Tween stories but has yet to brag about any of her writing per se. She participates in NaNo (National Novel Writing Month) and has been a winner at least two years now. She is working her way towards publication. Susanne does book reviews and follows a good many writers' blogs and comments on said blogs. She has been pretty consistent commenting on my blog. We've even exchanged mailing addresses and have sent each other goodies (she was cleaning out her craft supplies and sent me a bunch of wiggly eyes for my bookworms).
So, what can I do to honor her? What should I give her as a gift of appreciation? I'm open to ideas. Maybe I'll print up a wonderful certificate and send that to her, but again, I'll consider other suggestions (all within reason, of course).
If you would like to learn a little more about Susanne and the folks she follows and who follow her, stop by her blog and read some of her featured guests or book reviews; check out some of the blog awards bestowed on her.
Susanne, I really appreciate you being a true follower and leaving comments on my blog. I hope this honor makes your day and that you smile big all the day through. See you all in the postings - E :)
What I know about Susanne: She lives in Michigan. She is a writer of YA/MG/Tween stories but has yet to brag about any of her writing per se. She participates in NaNo (National Novel Writing Month) and has been a winner at least two years now. She is working her way towards publication. Susanne does book reviews and follows a good many writers' blogs and comments on said blogs. She has been pretty consistent commenting on my blog. We've even exchanged mailing addresses and have sent each other goodies (she was cleaning out her craft supplies and sent me a bunch of wiggly eyes for my bookworms).
So, what can I do to honor her? What should I give her as a gift of appreciation? I'm open to ideas. Maybe I'll print up a wonderful certificate and send that to her, but again, I'll consider other suggestions (all within reason, of course).
If you would like to learn a little more about Susanne and the folks she follows and who follow her, stop by her blog and read some of her featured guests or book reviews; check out some of the blog awards bestowed on her.
Susanne, I really appreciate you being a true follower and leaving comments on my blog. I hope this honor makes your day and that you smile big all the day through. See you all in the postings - E :)
Sunday, July 15, 2012
This and That
It's still Christmas in July and I have all kinds of special deals going on - afghan/kindle or nook sleeve or tablet sleeve/bookworm special deal $65 for the combination. I've finished the primary afghan and am working on the aspen and watercolor and then I've got the Marrakesh and Woodsy to complete and I'll need to get some more yarn for the Monet which is the only one I don't have since I sold that previously.
I have also cleared my desk of all the left over yarns and have made a ton of bookworms.
Don't forget my chances for the red, white, blue afghan which are now only $1 each and with the purchase of 25 you get 5 bonus chances for the drawing. The drawing is to be held on December 1 with the afghan mailed out around the 7th. I almost hate to give this one away.
Over on smashwords both "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal" are free with the coupon code SSW50 and Finally Home is only $1.50 with the same coupon code at check out.
Sales this week haven't been terrific but I've had a few. I sold one copy of "The Proposal" on kindle, two copies of Finally Home in person after an introduction to a ghost hunting class at our local library and 1 copy of State of Successes to a sister from Sisters in Crime.
The presentation was called "Ghost Hunting 101" and Cat is a psychic as well as a ghost hunter. She does a 4-week, 8-hour class on the basics of ghost hunting with a field trip during that time to an actual haunted place. The two shows I kind of relate this to that I watch (I don't watch many of them since I know mostly they are "Hollywood" types and are played up for the audience) are Paranormal State with Ryan someone as the leader of that and Pyschic Kids: Children of the Paranormal with Chip Coffey and Edy (parapsychologist, but I don't remember her last name). Cat's group, Paranormal Research Organization, does similar work to that of Paranormal State. I think it would be fun to do a ghost hunting session. The class is offered in October, which is right in the middle of my busy season with all the fall activities going on for my books, at three of our local colleges (TriCounty Tech, Piedmont Tech and Greenville Tech) at various times. When I first checked the schedule upon returning home Tuesday evening, I was disappointed because the first two were on Tuesdays or Thursdays and when I pulled the third one up what was showing were the previous dates. So I wasn't sure I would be taking the class this semester but on exploring further, the class is actually offered on Saturdays at the third school, which is the same school my daughter attends and so I'm thinking seriously about taking the class in October. The Saturday class is only 2 days but the classes are 4 hours long and right after the seond class we get to do the field trip, which is a good thing since the following weekend I have a local event and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do the field trip. I also was telling my daughter about it the other day and she said she wanted to do the class with me. So we will see how that goes.
Next month I'll be gearing up for events and am looking forward to everything planned; of course, a lot of is dependent on getting the funds up to participate in the events, so I need to sell my afghans - lol - just to cover costs. Wouldn't hurt to have some decent sales of books either.
I'll keep you posted as the events closer where I'll be, so keep reading and checking back and you never know, I may be in an area close to you soon. If I am, I would love to meet ya'll.
This week there will be a surprise posting for someone on my blog - see you all in the postings - E :)
I have also cleared my desk of all the left over yarns and have made a ton of bookworms.
Don't forget my chances for the red, white, blue afghan which are now only $1 each and with the purchase of 25 you get 5 bonus chances for the drawing. The drawing is to be held on December 1 with the afghan mailed out around the 7th. I almost hate to give this one away.
Over on smashwords both "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal" are free with the coupon code SSW50 and Finally Home is only $1.50 with the same coupon code at check out.
Sales this week haven't been terrific but I've had a few. I sold one copy of "The Proposal" on kindle, two copies of Finally Home in person after an introduction to a ghost hunting class at our local library and 1 copy of State of Successes to a sister from Sisters in Crime.
The presentation was called "Ghost Hunting 101" and Cat is a psychic as well as a ghost hunter. She does a 4-week, 8-hour class on the basics of ghost hunting with a field trip during that time to an actual haunted place. The two shows I kind of relate this to that I watch (I don't watch many of them since I know mostly they are "Hollywood" types and are played up for the audience) are Paranormal State with Ryan someone as the leader of that and Pyschic Kids: Children of the Paranormal with Chip Coffey and Edy (parapsychologist, but I don't remember her last name). Cat's group, Paranormal Research Organization, does similar work to that of Paranormal State. I think it would be fun to do a ghost hunting session. The class is offered in October, which is right in the middle of my busy season with all the fall activities going on for my books, at three of our local colleges (TriCounty Tech, Piedmont Tech and Greenville Tech) at various times. When I first checked the schedule upon returning home Tuesday evening, I was disappointed because the first two were on Tuesdays or Thursdays and when I pulled the third one up what was showing were the previous dates. So I wasn't sure I would be taking the class this semester but on exploring further, the class is actually offered on Saturdays at the third school, which is the same school my daughter attends and so I'm thinking seriously about taking the class in October. The Saturday class is only 2 days but the classes are 4 hours long and right after the seond class we get to do the field trip, which is a good thing since the following weekend I have a local event and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do the field trip. I also was telling my daughter about it the other day and she said she wanted to do the class with me. So we will see how that goes.
Next month I'll be gearing up for events and am looking forward to everything planned; of course, a lot of is dependent on getting the funds up to participate in the events, so I need to sell my afghans - lol - just to cover costs. Wouldn't hurt to have some decent sales of books either.
I'll keep you posted as the events closer where I'll be, so keep reading and checking back and you never know, I may be in an area close to you soon. If I am, I would love to meet ya'll.
This week there will be a surprise posting for someone on my blog - see you all in the postings - E :)
Friday, July 13, 2012
BibliOZ.com Birthday Best Sellers
Ever wonder what the top selling books were when you were born? Here is a site that will list the top books, both fiction and nonfiction, for the week ending during the week you were born. It is not day specific and make sure you don't enter the month first but the day you were born (format is dd/mm/yyyy) - Post a comment here and let me know what the #1 best selling books (fiction and nonfiction) were during the week you wre born. The site also lets you pull up the author info as well as learn more about the books.
Mine are Ship of Fools by Katherine Anne Porter and Calories Don't Count by Herbert Taller. Interestingly enough in the fiction category Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird was #13 for the week ending June 10, 1962.
Try it out and leave a comment and I'll do a drawing for something - your choice (in the comment tell me what you would like to win - bookworm, kindle or nook sleeve, tablet sleeve, ebook, et cetera) - E :)
BibliOZ.com Birthday Best Sellers
Here is the listing for my family:
Benjamin (f) Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy; (nf) Barbara Bush: A Memoir by Barbara Bush
Hailie (f) The Tale of the Body Thief by Anne Rice; (nf) The Way Things Ought To Be by Rush H. Limbaugh 3d
Jonathan (f) Texas by James A. Michener; (nf) Elvis and Me by Priscilla Beaulieu Presley with Sandra Harmon
Bear (aka Bill, husband who is a grizzley bear) (f) Desiree by Annemarie Selinko; (nf) The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
Leo (brother) (f) The Group by Mary McCarthy; (nf) Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy
Paul (brother) (f) Herzog by Saul Bellow; (nf) Markings by Dag Hammarsjold
Father (f) Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell; (nf) Man the Unknown by Alexis Carrel
Mother (f) The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck; (nf) Days of Our Years by Pierre van Paassen
It will be interesting to see what my readers show as being the best selling books for the week ending the day they were born - E :)
Mine are Ship of Fools by Katherine Anne Porter and Calories Don't Count by Herbert Taller. Interestingly enough in the fiction category Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird was #13 for the week ending June 10, 1962.
Try it out and leave a comment and I'll do a drawing for something - your choice (in the comment tell me what you would like to win - bookworm, kindle or nook sleeve, tablet sleeve, ebook, et cetera) - E :)
BibliOZ.com Birthday Best Sellers
Here is the listing for my family:
Benjamin (f) Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy; (nf) Barbara Bush: A Memoir by Barbara Bush
Hailie (f) The Tale of the Body Thief by Anne Rice; (nf) The Way Things Ought To Be by Rush H. Limbaugh 3d
Jonathan (f) Texas by James A. Michener; (nf) Elvis and Me by Priscilla Beaulieu Presley with Sandra Harmon
Bear (aka Bill, husband who is a grizzley bear) (f) Desiree by Annemarie Selinko; (nf) The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
Leo (brother) (f) The Group by Mary McCarthy; (nf) Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy
Paul (brother) (f) Herzog by Saul Bellow; (nf) Markings by Dag Hammarsjold
Father (f) Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell; (nf) Man the Unknown by Alexis Carrel
Mother (f) The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck; (nf) Days of Our Years by Pierre van Paassen
It will be interesting to see what my readers show as being the best selling books for the week ending the day they were born - E :)
Book Review - Out and About At the Zoo
Out and About at the Zoo
by Jo Linsdell
Reviewed by Elysabeth
Rating - 5 stars
How many of you have taken your kids to the zoo? Written a story about said experience? Jo Linsdell did just that. Out and About at the Zoo showcases animals seen at the zoo during an outing with her young son. This rhyming story shows the animal antics and other visions one would see at a busy zoo. Jo wrote the story as well as illustrated and the illustrations are so cute and very much in tune to the story that kids of all ages will enjoy reading this book many times over. Kids will start reciting their favorite passages and possibly act out what they hear after reading a few times.
The colorful illustrations and the rhyming story make this a story you will treasure for a long time.
Product details: (this says large print paperback so not sure if it is available in other formats or not)
Paperback: 32 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace (May 18, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1477446591
ISBN-13: 978-1477446591
Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
More details can be found here including more activities related to the book such as the masks featured in last week's interview. The downloads cost you a tweet or facebook posting, so why not check them out.
Good luck to Jo on her tour and hope everyone will get a copy of this very adorable rhyming book.
by Jo Linsdell
Reviewed by Elysabeth
Rating - 5 stars
How many of you have taken your kids to the zoo? Written a story about said experience? Jo Linsdell did just that. Out and About at the Zoo showcases animals seen at the zoo during an outing with her young son. This rhyming story shows the animal antics and other visions one would see at a busy zoo. Jo wrote the story as well as illustrated and the illustrations are so cute and very much in tune to the story that kids of all ages will enjoy reading this book many times over. Kids will start reciting their favorite passages and possibly act out what they hear after reading a few times.
The colorful illustrations and the rhyming story make this a story you will treasure for a long time.
Product details: (this says large print paperback so not sure if it is available in other formats or not)
Paperback: 32 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace (May 18, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1477446591
ISBN-13: 978-1477446591
Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
More details can be found here including more activities related to the book such as the masks featured in last week's interview. The downloads cost you a tweet or facebook posting, so why not check them out.
Good luck to Jo on her tour and hope everyone will get a copy of this very adorable rhyming book.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: Launch Party!
Are you looking for a free read? Why not stop by Karen's blog and sign up to be notified when she has released her novella, MEDIEVAL MUSE, the first week of August. If you aren't already a member of smashwords, make sure you get an account there first so when the book is available, you can go over there and download it for whatever ereader device you are using.
As an aside, the month of July is the Spring/Winter special for readers to get special deals on certain books. Some authors will discount their listed books 25%, 50%, 75% or even free. All my books, Finally Home, "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal", are discounted 50% with the coupon code SSW50 - but in reality you are getting the short stories for free since they are at the lowest possible regular price and can't be discounted below that amount other than as a free offering - so if you haven't read any of my books yet, stop over and get your downloads - E :)
KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: Launch Party!: (Cover by Art By Retta) Hi Everyone! I'm having a launch party for my new novella, Medieval Muse during the week of August 1st - 7th....
As an aside, the month of July is the Spring/Winter special for readers to get special deals on certain books. Some authors will discount their listed books 25%, 50%, 75% or even free. All my books, Finally Home, "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal", are discounted 50% with the coupon code SSW50 - but in reality you are getting the short stories for free since they are at the lowest possible regular price and can't be discounted below that amount other than as a free offering - so if you haven't read any of my books yet, stop over and get your downloads - E :)
KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: Launch Party!: (Cover by Art By Retta) Hi Everyone! I'm having a launch party for my new novella, Medieval Muse during the week of August 1st - 7th....
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
An Educator's Life: Share the Wealth Saturday- COME AND JOIN!
Mr. Hughes, the sixth grade teacher I've worked with online for the last four school years, is offering a place to post your links for teacher related items (most are in the Teachers Pay Teachers site). If you aren't familiar with the TpT site, it is a place where teachers offer sources and printouts, handouts, worksheets, games, et cetera to other teachers for a minimal fee. This helps everyone in the long run. Mr. Hughes is letting you offer your direct link to your store as well as any free offerings you may have. You do need to register for at the TpT site in order to download the free offerings or even to purchase the items you may be intersted in, but it's free to sign up so no worries there. If you have anything to offer teachers, whey not stop over and leave your free link so that teachers will be able to take advantage of some additional sources for their classrooms. E :)
An Educator's Life: Share the Wealth Saturday- COME AND JOIN!: Share the Wealth Saturdays! HERE IT IS! The Latest Place to get Great Freebies! If you are a seller- Add your LINK NOW! If you ar...
An Educator's Life: Share the Wealth Saturday- COME AND JOIN!: Share the Wealth Saturdays! HERE IT IS! The Latest Place to get Great Freebies! If you are a seller- Add your LINK NOW! If you ar...
Sunday, July 08, 2012
This and That
July is moving very slowly on my end or maybe it's moving fast but I don't realize it. It is only the 8th of July and i feel like I've already run a marathon and a half. I've watched some of the Olympic trials - swimming, track and gymnastics recently and am unsure what our chances for gold are going to be like at the Olympics this year. I guess I'll have to check them out this summer.
Sales are slow everywhere - 1 copy of Finally Home sold for kindle this week. A copy of "The Proposal" and "The Tulip Kiss" were "sold" on smashwords - given that they are being offered for free right now, no royalties on those.
No one has taken advantage of any of my special deals posted last week. For the month of July, I'm offering a 20% discount on my afghan/kindle sleeve or tablet sleeve/bookworm combo. I'm also going to continue my afghan drawing chances special through the end of the month - $1 each no matter how many you purchase and with each 25, you get an extra 5 chances for free. The smashowrds 1/2 price special is still available on Finally Home as well as the free purchases for both "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal". Coupon code SSW50 is needed at checkout but that is also on the side bar to let you know to use that coupon code to take advantage of the special deal.
I've been steady busy working on completing afghans and bookworms (have to build my collection back up for the August event).
I've been very nonparticipatory in events this year so far. I do have at least three more, maybe four, but most of that will depend on my funds. If I do well with my sales and special offers (the afghan combos, et cetera), I will probably be participating in at least four events with two definitely already booked.
This week, I'll have a book review for Jo Linsdell's "Out and About at the Zoo" as part of her book tour, and look for a surprise posting either this week or next. I need to start working on my guest posts for the upcoming school year and get with all the teachers with whom I've Skyped to start the bal rolling for my WWYWWQ postings so that after Labor Day, I'll be ready. Mr. Hughes has indicated that if the district approved their proposal that I would be working with the fourth, fifth and sixth grade classes this coming fall, so it will be interesting to see where this goes. More on that later - hope you all are staying cool and have a productive week - E :)
Sales are slow everywhere - 1 copy of Finally Home sold for kindle this week. A copy of "The Proposal" and "The Tulip Kiss" were "sold" on smashwords - given that they are being offered for free right now, no royalties on those.
No one has taken advantage of any of my special deals posted last week. For the month of July, I'm offering a 20% discount on my afghan/kindle sleeve or tablet sleeve/bookworm combo. I'm also going to continue my afghan drawing chances special through the end of the month - $1 each no matter how many you purchase and with each 25, you get an extra 5 chances for free. The smashowrds 1/2 price special is still available on Finally Home as well as the free purchases for both "The Tulip Kiss" and "The Proposal". Coupon code SSW50 is needed at checkout but that is also on the side bar to let you know to use that coupon code to take advantage of the special deal.
I've been steady busy working on completing afghans and bookworms (have to build my collection back up for the August event).
I've been very nonparticipatory in events this year so far. I do have at least three more, maybe four, but most of that will depend on my funds. If I do well with my sales and special offers (the afghan combos, et cetera), I will probably be participating in at least four events with two definitely already booked.
This week, I'll have a book review for Jo Linsdell's "Out and About at the Zoo" as part of her book tour, and look for a surprise posting either this week or next. I need to start working on my guest posts for the upcoming school year and get with all the teachers with whom I've Skyped to start the bal rolling for my WWYWWQ postings so that after Labor Day, I'll be ready. Mr. Hughes has indicated that if the district approved their proposal that I would be working with the fourth, fifth and sixth grade classes this coming fall, so it will be interesting to see where this goes. More on that later - hope you all are staying cool and have a productive week - E :)
Saturday, July 07, 2012
Milestone
I've been on blogger since July of 2005 (7 years now) and I finally have made it over the 15,000 hits mark (15,007 this morning when I looked).
So thank you to everyone who has stopped by and at least looked at my blog. I wish more of you would leave comments so I'd know what was working and what articles were being read the most, but I'm happy that I've had that many folks stop by.
For my milestone celebration, I'm offering my crocheted kindle/nook sleeves or the tablet sleeves for $7.50 each. This offer is valid for one week only.
I'm still offering my afghan chances at $1 each and for every 25 purchased, you get 5 extra chances.
Today is the last day to comment on the JGDS blog to be entered to win a red, white, blue kindle/nook sleeve or tablet sleeve, as well as the last day for the afghan special deal posted last Sunday.
The details of all the special deals can be found in last Sunday's This and That posting. Hurry before the deals run out tonight. Thanks again for all who have stopped by and checked out my blog - see you all in the postings - E :)
So thank you to everyone who has stopped by and at least looked at my blog. I wish more of you would leave comments so I'd know what was working and what articles were being read the most, but I'm happy that I've had that many folks stop by.
For my milestone celebration, I'm offering my crocheted kindle/nook sleeves or the tablet sleeves for $7.50 each. This offer is valid for one week only.
I'm still offering my afghan chances at $1 each and for every 25 purchased, you get 5 extra chances.
Today is the last day to comment on the JGDS blog to be entered to win a red, white, blue kindle/nook sleeve or tablet sleeve, as well as the last day for the afghan special deal posted last Sunday.
The details of all the special deals can be found in last Sunday's This and That posting. Hurry before the deals run out tonight. Thanks again for all who have stopped by and checked out my blog - see you all in the postings - E :)
Thursday, July 05, 2012
Guest Jo Linsdell Interview
Today I'll be chatting books with author and illustrator Jo Linsdell.
EE: Hi Jo, thanks for joining me today.
JL: It's a pleasure to be here.
EE: When did you first get bit by the writing bug?
JL: I've been writing pretty much since I could hold a pen and have experimented with various genres over the years... and will continue to experiment in the future too. I don't like to limit myself or my creativity. So far I've published non-fiction, poetry, short stories and recently a children's picture book Out and About at the Zoo.
EE: Tell us a bit about Out and About at the Zoo and what you feel is the most important message you share.
JL: I'm really excited about this book coming out. Out and About at the Zoo was released on 1st June 2012 and is a children's picture book. It's a fun day out discovering the different animals at the zoo. The rhyming text and colourful pictures make it perfect for younger children.
It also carries an important message as it highlights the joys of spending quality family time together. A day out like this one will remain with both the mother and child for a long time.
EE: How did you come up with the idea for the book?
JL: I wrote the text after taking my son to the zoo for the first time. It was great to watch him discovering all the animals. Children see everything as magical and interesting. It's amazing watching them discover the world and being able to see it through their eyes.
I decided to make it rhyming text as those are my sons favourite type of books.
EE: You're both the author and illustrator for this book. What was the hardest part of creating the book?
JL: Anyone that thinks making a children's book is easy is VERY wrong. As the text is so limited, every word counts. You also need to balance the text with the illustrations and make it so they work together to tell the story.
The hardest part was formatting the book. I studied art at college but making illustration digital and print quality is a whole different ball game! The technically stuff like transparencies and layers caused me no end of problems. Luckily I have a friend who is an expert in this field and he saved the day several times as I tried to get the final file ready.
EE: You've written various genres. How has this children's book been different from your other work?
JL: I've written non-fiction which relies on facts and presenting them in an easy to understand fashion. I've written poetry which is, for me, the most personal type of writing. I've written short stories where you need to tell a complete story in a limited number of words and longer fiction where the story is more complex and developed.
Writing a children's book was fun. Not that I don't enjoy writing the other genres but this was pure fun. It also gave me the chance to involve my children in my work. I have a 4 year old and a 9 month old. My 4 year old gave very honest feedback about both the text and the illustrations. If he didn't like it, it needed to be changed.
As I wrote the story for him, following our own day out at the zoo, it seemed right that he should play an active role in it's creation. It made the whole experience even more special.
EE: You're currently doing a 3 month tour to promote the release of the book. Where can people find the tour schedule?
JL: I have a page dedicated to Out and About at the Zoo on my website that contains all information regarding the book and the tour.
EE: You've created some book extra's to go with your book. Can you tell us a bit about them and where they can be found?
JL: On the Out and About at the Zoo page on my website I've added some activity packs for children. All the activities are strongly linked to the book and the animals featured in it. So far I've added a word search, printable animal masks and some printable colouring pages. To download any of them all you have to do is 'pay with a Tweet or Facebook update' to let others know about them. There is a button on site for each.
EE: Where else can people follow you on-line?
JL: I'm a real social media junky and am pretty much everywhere. The sites I use most are:
Website
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
Goodreads
Amazon.com
Thanks, Jo for being my guest today. I've read your book and will post my review next Friday. See you all in the postings - E :)
EE: Hi Jo, thanks for joining me today.
JL: It's a pleasure to be here.
EE: When did you first get bit by the writing bug?
JL: I've been writing pretty much since I could hold a pen and have experimented with various genres over the years... and will continue to experiment in the future too. I don't like to limit myself or my creativity. So far I've published non-fiction, poetry, short stories and recently a children's picture book Out and About at the Zoo.
EE: Tell us a bit about Out and About at the Zoo and what you feel is the most important message you share.
JL: I'm really excited about this book coming out. Out and About at the Zoo was released on 1st June 2012 and is a children's picture book. It's a fun day out discovering the different animals at the zoo. The rhyming text and colourful pictures make it perfect for younger children.
It also carries an important message as it highlights the joys of spending quality family time together. A day out like this one will remain with both the mother and child for a long time.
EE: How did you come up with the idea for the book?
JL: I wrote the text after taking my son to the zoo for the first time. It was great to watch him discovering all the animals. Children see everything as magical and interesting. It's amazing watching them discover the world and being able to see it through their eyes.
I decided to make it rhyming text as those are my sons favourite type of books.
EE: You're both the author and illustrator for this book. What was the hardest part of creating the book?
JL: Anyone that thinks making a children's book is easy is VERY wrong. As the text is so limited, every word counts. You also need to balance the text with the illustrations and make it so they work together to tell the story.
The hardest part was formatting the book. I studied art at college but making illustration digital and print quality is a whole different ball game! The technically stuff like transparencies and layers caused me no end of problems. Luckily I have a friend who is an expert in this field and he saved the day several times as I tried to get the final file ready.
EE: You've written various genres. How has this children's book been different from your other work?
JL: I've written non-fiction which relies on facts and presenting them in an easy to understand fashion. I've written poetry which is, for me, the most personal type of writing. I've written short stories where you need to tell a complete story in a limited number of words and longer fiction where the story is more complex and developed.
Writing a children's book was fun. Not that I don't enjoy writing the other genres but this was pure fun. It also gave me the chance to involve my children in my work. I have a 4 year old and a 9 month old. My 4 year old gave very honest feedback about both the text and the illustrations. If he didn't like it, it needed to be changed.
As I wrote the story for him, following our own day out at the zoo, it seemed right that he should play an active role in it's creation. It made the whole experience even more special.
EE: You're currently doing a 3 month tour to promote the release of the book. Where can people find the tour schedule?
JL: I have a page dedicated to Out and About at the Zoo on my website that contains all information regarding the book and the tour.
EE: You've created some book extra's to go with your book. Can you tell us a bit about them and where they can be found?
JL: On the Out and About at the Zoo page on my website I've added some activity packs for children. All the activities are strongly linked to the book and the animals featured in it. So far I've added a word search, printable animal masks and some printable colouring pages. To download any of them all you have to do is 'pay with a Tweet or Facebook update' to let others know about them. There is a button on site for each.
EE: Where else can people follow you on-line?
JL: I'm a real social media junky and am pretty much everywhere. The sites I use most are:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon.com
Thanks, Jo for being my guest today. I've read your book and will post my review next Friday. See you all in the postings - E :)
Wednesday, July 04, 2012
Independence Day 2012
Today is July 4th and here in the United States we celebrate it as Independence Day. This is the day our forefathers signed the Declaration of Independence giving us freedom from the overbearing King of England. Since America is the melting pot of the world (we come from many nationalities, having ancestors traveling far and wide for a better life than what they were used to and to pave the way for future generations), we are truly a land for all.
The Google Doodle is pretty cool today - if you look at each letter you will see that the words "This Land Was Made For You and Me" actually make up the doodle. So wherever you are in this land celebrating, just remember to have an enjoyable and safe holiday - E :)
The Google Doodle is pretty cool today - if you look at each letter you will see that the words "This Land Was Made For You and Me" actually make up the doodle. So wherever you are in this land celebrating, just remember to have an enjoyable and safe holiday - E :)
Sunday, July 01, 2012
This and That
Summer is in full swing across the country. This week will be very light due to the holiday coming up. I'm going to post a giveaway on my JGDS blog just to kick off the 4th of July week.
Not much to report sales wise - nothing that I can see has sold. Smashwords is having a site-wide Summer Winter Sale and we authors have the option of participating by either offering our books for free, or at a discounted price - 25, 50 or 75% off. I've put Finally Home at 25% off but am thinking of changing it to 50% off, so for $1.50 you can download my middle grade/YA paranormal mystery (which I've been told is written similar to a Nancy Drew mystery). Just come over to the Finally Home smashwords page and click on purchase and enter the promo code of SSW50 so when you check out, you will receive the book for 50% off. The other two stories, "The Propoal" and "The Tulip Kiss", are at the lowest price and I can only offer them for free regardless if I choose the 25, 50, or 75% off promotion, so enter the same code as for Finally Home to receive your copy for free. This promotion is good through 11:59 PM July 31. So if you like Nancy Drew mysteries and want a quick read, stop over and get your copy of Finally Home before the end of the month, or think about gifting it to the young reader in your life who enjoys reading mysteries like Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys, or any number of books written similar to these.
I may have an interview this week with Jo Linsdell, author of "Out and About at the Zoo", but unsure at this time as I've not heard back from her yet regarding this.
I'm running a special code on my createspace books (these are print copies of my state books and Finally Home for discounted pricing similar to my in-person events. If you are interested in a print book not directly through me, email me for the code and the links for the books to order through createspace. I'm still running the special deal on my state books of buy 3 for $25 or get all 6 for $50 (that's buy 2 at regular price and get the third for for 50% or in the case of all six, buy five at regular price and get the sixth one free). This promotion is good through the end of the day Saturday.
Don't forget to purchase extra chances for the red, white and blue afghan drawing which will be held in December. Chances are $1.50, 5/$6, 10/$12 and 25/$25, but this week only I'll sell chances at $1 each with the best deal of 30/$25 (five free chances). The only way to get this special pricing on the chances is to go directly through paypal - using eeldering@gmail.com to send the money for the number of chances you would like - 10/$10; 20/$20, et cetera. For every 25, I'll throw in those five extra so it would be 30/$25; 60/$50, et cetera.
I've also found a new color for my afghans/kindle sleeves/tablet sleeves/bookworms called Watercolor and really like the way the colors fall on this. I've made up a Kindle sleeve and tablet sleeve and however many bookworms I could get out of one skein of yarn but haven't taken pictures of them yet. They will be taken and posted on the websites soon. For Christmas in July, I'll run a special deal on the afghan/tablet or kindle sleeve/bookworm combo for $60 plus shipping and tax ($70 total). This is a 20% savings. I have the bonbon print and melonberry completed, the primary is lacking 1 skein from being completed, and the Aspen is started (just startd yesterday). The Marrakesh and Woodsy need about a 3-week lead time for each to be completed and the Monet and Watercolor I need to get the skeins of yarn to work up the afghans but if you order any of the unfinished colors, that will be the priority for me to work on. This sale is good for the month of July only.
I think that's all the news and special offers for this weeks. See you all in the postings and stay cool - E :)
Not much to report sales wise - nothing that I can see has sold. Smashwords is having a site-wide Summer Winter Sale and we authors have the option of participating by either offering our books for free, or at a discounted price - 25, 50 or 75% off. I've put Finally Home at 25% off but am thinking of changing it to 50% off, so for $1.50 you can download my middle grade/YA paranormal mystery (which I've been told is written similar to a Nancy Drew mystery). Just come over to the Finally Home smashwords page and click on purchase and enter the promo code of SSW50 so when you check out, you will receive the book for 50% off. The other two stories, "The Propoal" and "The Tulip Kiss", are at the lowest price and I can only offer them for free regardless if I choose the 25, 50, or 75% off promotion, so enter the same code as for Finally Home to receive your copy for free. This promotion is good through 11:59 PM July 31. So if you like Nancy Drew mysteries and want a quick read, stop over and get your copy of Finally Home before the end of the month, or think about gifting it to the young reader in your life who enjoys reading mysteries like Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys, or any number of books written similar to these.
I may have an interview this week with Jo Linsdell, author of "Out and About at the Zoo", but unsure at this time as I've not heard back from her yet regarding this.
I'm running a special code on my createspace books (these are print copies of my state books and Finally Home for discounted pricing similar to my in-person events. If you are interested in a print book not directly through me, email me for the code and the links for the books to order through createspace. I'm still running the special deal on my state books of buy 3 for $25 or get all 6 for $50 (that's buy 2 at regular price and get the third for for 50% or in the case of all six, buy five at regular price and get the sixth one free). This promotion is good through the end of the day Saturday.
Don't forget to purchase extra chances for the red, white and blue afghan drawing which will be held in December. Chances are $1.50, 5/$6, 10/$12 and 25/$25, but this week only I'll sell chances at $1 each with the best deal of 30/$25 (five free chances). The only way to get this special pricing on the chances is to go directly through paypal - using eeldering@gmail.com to send the money for the number of chances you would like - 10/$10; 20/$20, et cetera. For every 25, I'll throw in those five extra so it would be 30/$25; 60/$50, et cetera.
I've also found a new color for my afghans/kindle sleeves/tablet sleeves/bookworms called Watercolor and really like the way the colors fall on this. I've made up a Kindle sleeve and tablet sleeve and however many bookworms I could get out of one skein of yarn but haven't taken pictures of them yet. They will be taken and posted on the websites soon. For Christmas in July, I'll run a special deal on the afghan/tablet or kindle sleeve/bookworm combo for $60 plus shipping and tax ($70 total). This is a 20% savings. I have the bonbon print and melonberry completed, the primary is lacking 1 skein from being completed, and the Aspen is started (just startd yesterday). The Marrakesh and Woodsy need about a 3-week lead time for each to be completed and the Monet and Watercolor I need to get the skeins of yarn to work up the afghans but if you order any of the unfinished colors, that will be the priority for me to work on. This sale is good for the month of July only.
I think that's all the news and special offers for this weeks. See you all in the postings and stay cool - E :)
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