This and That

Not much to report this week given that last week was Thanksgiving and I've not really done much of anything.  I did finish three Carolina colored scarves and two of the Clemson colored scarves.  I think I can get one more Clemson one made but that will have to wait until this evening while I'm doing laundry.

I decided to do the drawing for the red, white and blue afghan next Sunday since I'm by myself and will be at our local chapter Sisters in Crime holiday celebration.   I'll have one of the folks pick the winning ticket.  Officially sales are completed but if I get any  online requests this week for chances, I'll add them to the  pot which is well over 300 - thanks to my wonderful book sales from the weekend at the Cascades Verdae.  Good luck to all my readers who have chances already. 

See you all in the postings - E :)

School Color Scarves

I started crocheting scarves a couple of weeks ago and today put the finishing touches on the three USCarolina scarves I had made up.  I just started the Clemson colored scarves and should have those finished this weekend.  If anyone would like to order a scarf in their school colors (2 different colors) or even a scarf in their favorite colors, they are selling for $10 plus $5 for shipping.  They make great gifts for the sports fan you may know.  Pictures to come soon - see you all in the postings - E :)

Thanksgiving 2012

Today, we citizens in the United States celebrate a day of thanks.  We spend time with family and remember what we are thankful for.since the beginning of the year.  Today I am thankful  for my friends and family.  I'm thankful for having the opportunity of putting my books in the hands of a few readers.  I'm thankful to have a job and wonderful supervisors.  I'm thankful for a roof over my  head and food in my belly.  What are you thankful for?  Share your thanks.  E :)

Writers On The Move: Character Relationships

Great posting by Shirley Corder over on Writers on the Move blog - E :)

Writers On The Move: Character Relationships: Although my publications are all non-fiction, I have written six novels, five of them for NaNoWriMo. I've never got around to publishing...

Finally Home Half Price Pre-Black Friday Sale

If you would like to get a copy of FINALLY HOME for any ereader, just go to www.smashwords.com and purchase the book.  At checkout, just enter the code NL88Q (not case sensitive).  Once you have made your purchase, email me with your choice of "The Proposal" or "The Tulip Kiss" or "Bride-and-Seek" as a free download (Kindle or Nook versions only).  This sale is good through December 23 - so gift a copy to someone you love for the holidays - E :)

This and That

Let's start this week's post by saying NaNo is a bust of sorts in that I've not had a chance to write.  But it's all good, I've written over 4000 words this month.  I'll get back to the writing soon. 

Ebook sales are nonexistent at this point but it's all good.  I'll probably run a special deal on several of my books on smashwords and see if that will boost sales.  Of course, if I would publish a few more books, that might help too.

This past weekend I participated in the Holiday Bazaar at the Cascades Verdae (a retirement community) in Greenville. This was Friday and Saturday, so should have done better the second day.  That wasn't the case, not  that I'm complaining or anythng.  I did very well the first day - sold 17 books and 8 bookworms on Friday.  On Saturday I sold 1 book and 6 or 8 or 10 (I lost count as there were no shoppers to speak of on Saturday).  I had also put some The Girl's duct tape wallets out for her even though she was working and sold four of them for her.  I sold  the woven one and three small ones.  She was very happy with that.  I didn't sell any afghans or scarves that I had made up but did purchase some Carolina Gamecocks colored  yarn to make up a couple of scarves that way (only got one part way completed not that it mattered as no one was buying anything Saturday) as well as some Clemson colors.  As soon as I have those made up - I will post them and put them up for sale.  I would have loved to have sold some afghans, and the weather is cold enough, but with old people in a retirement community they already have enough of this type of  item or most of the ladies crochet or knit, so selling there wouldn't be a good thing.

I covered my costs and was able to get ink for my printer and a few other items.  So overall, I am pleased with the weekend.  There may be one  more local event for me in Greenville but I'll have to check them out and see if  I can still get a spot.  I'll keep you  all  posted and for now signing off so I can get some work done - E :)

This and That

No sales this week.  I do have on event scheduled this coming weekend.  It is a local event at a retirement center.  Apparently the director of the festival has been talking up my books, so hopefully that will generate some decent sales.  I'm glad I've got something scheduled this month as I was feeling a bit antsy about not having anything this month.  I've been trying to contact the museum to get my books in there but every time I call, the person I need to speak to is out or not there.  Maybe this week before the scheduled event I can get my books in the gift shop at the Belton Depot Museum. 

This is the last week to get your raffle chances at the special price of 2/$1.  The drawing will be held December 1 and the afghan mailed out about the 7th of December.  If you purchase any book, you still get the 5 chances in the drawing. 

See you all in the postings - E :)

One Year

I've had my van one year today.  Experiencing a few problems but hopefully I can get them taken care of soon.  I still love having my van because almost every single book event realted item is packed in there.  Grant it, I can't get too many passengers in my van, but I usually don't have anyone riding with me unless THE GIRL goes to an event with me.  So, I'm a pretty happy camper with my van.  Still don't have a name for her yet, so maybe I'll run a contest soon to name the van and  give away some goodies.  See you all in the postings - E :)

This and That

I was without my internet yesterday so didn't get to post.  Nothing new to report.  Afghan raffle drawing chances are still on sale 2/$1 and will be until next week - the 15th.  I do have a local event on the 16th and 17th - so will report more about that next week.

Writing is going rather slowly - I've written one day and not the others and today is already the 5th, but work first and then I can think of writing - I hope to get on track with this story although I really don't feel it will come together like I envisioned it. 

See you all in the postings - E :)

Imogene: Innocense Lost

So yesterday was the start of NaNo (for those who haven't heard this before it is National Novel Writing Month, NaNoWriMo or NaNo for short) and I decided instead of trying to pump out Imogene's story over the course of the 10 weeks as previously stated using the BIW method that I would attempt to write most of her story this month.  Grant it, I do have one event scheduled for the middle of the month - 2 days but it's fairly local and if I can work on Imogene during that event, I'll be okay.  Anyway, the month is just getting started and the goal is to write 1667 words a day for the next 30 days.  I'm hoping that I can write more than that on Saturdays and nonwork days.  I did fall a little short yesterday at only 1320 words written but have hopes of making that up and then some tomorrow.  I have my widget on the side bar if you are interested in following my word counts for the month.  I'm also going to put the regional widgets up so you can see where all the regions in South Carolina are faring.  I could participate in two of the seven regions but my home region is Greenville, sorry Clemson/Anderson (really this is more a Clemson region than it is Anderson as they meet mostly in Clemson and the members are mostly students at Clemson University).  Looking forward to finally getting Imogene's story written - see you all in the postings - E :)

KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: It was a dark and stormy night...

Wow - some terrific points by Karen Elizabeth - stop over and see what she has to say.  See you all in the postings - E :)

KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: It was a dark and stormy night...: Have you had trouble with that first sentence? Do you want to set the scene without becoming cliche? I've struggled over that first line tim...

Anne R. Allen's Blog: 8 Sure-Fire Ways to Improve Your Book—Tips from a ...

Check out the posting on 8 ways to improve your writing.  Some of these were just discussed with the 6th grade class I work with.  Nice to be reinforced a bit.  E :)
Anne R. Allen's Blog: 8 Sure-Fire Ways to Improve Your Book—Tips from a ...: T his week we have some serious nuts-and-bolts advice from our own Ruth Harris. Ruth learned this stuff from both sides of the editorial d...

This and That

Not much going on this week.  Halloween is right around the corner and behind that is NaNo (National Novel Writing Month - November) and my writer inspiration friend is back (and particiapting in NaNo also) and I hope to get Imogene's story written during the month. 

I am still running my afghan drawing special through the middle of November for the special deal of 2/$1 - so hurry and get your chances before the deal goes away.

I am also offerig my 8 "Curl up with a good book" afghans at 10% off until October 31 (reduced from $75 to $68 plus shipping - $80 total).  I would love to see them go to good homes and I did have a lot of comments on them at the Sugarfoot festival last weekend.

I've been trying to play catchup with work so I best get over there and really buckle down today since romorrow is laundry day and editing for a friend day.  See you all in the postings - E :)

Alaskan Healing

My friend Lana has been interviewed by my other friend Darcia Helle.  Stop on over for a coupon code for Lana's book on smashwords and see what Lana has to say about writing and life in general.  E :

Alaskan Healing

KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: Characterization

We were talking about characters and developing them in our stories in class and lo and behold, Elizabeth posts a really good listing of how to keep track of your characters' characterizations/personalities/mannerisms  - stop over and see what all she has to say on the subject. - E :)

KAREN ELIZABETH BROWN: Characterization: Creating characters that are believable and capricious all at the same time can require a lot of work. I've started a character journal ...

PUTTING WORDS DOWN ON PAPER: Check Out L'il Gal Al And The Zombies Of Amarillo ...

Susanne is at it again - finding the zombies or should I say they are finding her.  Wonder if they have eaten anyone's brains yet - lol.  Stop over to check out the book she is featuring today - E :)

PUTTING WORDS DOWN ON PAPER: Check Out L'il Gal Al And The Zombies Of Amarillo ...: Stop by Christine Rains blog and check out her book, L'IL GAL AL AND THE ZOMBIES OF AMARILLO.   You'll find a blurb for the book and l...

This and That

The online sales this week have been nil again. 

The Sugarfoot festival this weekend wasn't too bad but I don't think the crowds were nearly what they were a couple of years ago.  I did sell 3 books and about a dozen bookworms, no afghans though which I really needed to sell some of them to pay the car payment or get groceries but it will all work out. 

I sold 3 (really 6 since I had a 2/$1 special going on) chances for the red, white, and blue afghan and gave 15 chances for the book purchases.  This year's drawing will be a good one since I have quite a few chances in the bucket, compared to last year only having 20 but I didn't start the drawing idea until May and didn't do the drawing the same way.  Last year I didn't have rolls of tickets for the drawing but used the sales receipts so only those who actually made a purchase got their name in the drawing and only one time regardless of how many books on their purchase.  This year the chances are greater since you get several with the purchase of a book and you can buy chances without buying a book. 

The people next to me are starting their own "festival company" where they book festivals and invite vendors in to come display their wares and I've been invited to two fairly local ones in November and it may be a good thing as I didn't have anything scheduled in November this year secondary to finances.  I can't make the first event since it is a couple of weeks away (although I would love to go to that but I don't get paid until after the event so can't even pay for the booth rental right now).  The next one is the middle of November, the week before Thanksgiving, which I will probably do as that will be the Christmas shopping season.  I hadn't planned doing any events in November secondary to finances as well as wanting to write Imogene's story during NaNo, but if I can get to the point of being back on track from book sales, et cetera.  It will all work out as it is supposed to and if Imogene is meant to be completed next month, she will be. 

One of the ladies who bought a State of Successes book works in the museum in the next town over and asked me to contact the person in charge of the gift shop there to put my books there on consignment, which I will do this coming week. 

And then I had the 11-year-old who bought a copy of State of Wilderness and Finally Home who wanted to talk my ear off at the end of the day after having been there for over 12 hours.  She was sweet and had the heaviest southern accent I've heard on a child but then again she lives in the area and this is a very redneck/hick/southern town/area.  I hope I don't sound that southern when I'm talking to folks since I'm not a true southerner, having been born in Japan and lived in quite a few places, although admittedly I have been in the South Carolina/North Carolina area the last 36 years probably makes more more southern than not.  She told me jokes, about "kidnapping" her grandmother and taking her to Cracker Barrel for her birthday, about the place in Anderson where her cousin apparently fell in the hay like she was supposed to and hit her head on something and ended up with a mild concussion.  She is an avid reader, more than I can claim to read because she read over 17,000 pages during the summer (I think that is the number her mother said or maybe it was more than 1700 pages) so I gave her a bookworm for that accomplishment.  After all the jokes and what not, I pulled out a composition book that I had won as a door prize from an event I attended back in March and gave it to her to start writing all her stories down so that when I see her next year at the Sugarfoot festival she can share some of her stories with me.  I really think she needs to write down all her little ditties as she has some pretty good stories to tell.

Her mother also encouraged me to try to be at the Standpipe festival which is in Belton, the next town over, which the lady from the museum had also asked if I participated in the festival, because they do a thing called heritage days and that will help get me in the schools since they have local schools doing field trips and what not.  I have to double check and see when it is next year since I'm committed to Georgia COMO next year again and I can't have any conflicts - lol. 

Lastly, a man came up to the table right near the very end and does some work with one of the children's home in the area and was telling me about the event in December and so I'm looking at a possible book signing or author event there the first weekend of December. 

We had a good crowd late in the afternoon but most folks weren't even stopping at the tables - mostly just walking by and not talking.  I had printed off some Halloween coloring books for the COMO event to pass on to the librarians but no one wanted them (I think I gave out 2) so had those to pass out and I tried to give them to the smaller kids are into coloring and what not - so I did give all of them away. 

You all will probably see me at a few more local events next year with my travel being limited by finances right now, but if the distributors start carrying my books, then I could be at more events - see you all in the postings - E :)

The Next Big Thing blog Challenge

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?  Imogene:  Innocense Lost

Where did the idea come from for the book?  I was looking at some creative writing prompt sites last Decmeber and came across this site and five of the pictures jumped out at me that just said - story, story, story - (the numbers of the picture are #10, #20, #23, #38, and #41, not necessarily in that order - but China came to mind when I saw the pictures and the doll basically said - kidnapped little girl and the search for her.

What genre does your book fall under?  This is a tough one.  I'm thinking maybe intrigue, suspense but not a mystery per se - because we know who kidnapped Imogene; we just have to figure out how to get her back to her family.  Perhaps it's a psychological thriller - I just don't really know what genre to put it in. 

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?  I've not thought that far ahead and I don't really follow any actors or actresses and the ones I do follow are too old to play this young family. 

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?  A young girl goes missing and the search is on; mother is unrelentless until she brings her home.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?  Probably self-published as I don't feel it is necessary to go through the angst of trying to get someone else to publish for me.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?  Ha.  I'm still working on the first draft.  I hope to participate in NaNo next month and totally write the story but it will be going through a revamping since I can't really get it to start in China but can get her mother to China after the fact.  There is a secret that will have to come out that helps get the mother there. 

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?  When I was describing this story to someone on the phone, they kind of said this sounds like one of those made for TV movies   So, I'm not really sure what other book to compare this to.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?  The pictures from the website as noted above.  I know there is a decent story here; so, now, the challenge is just to write the story. 

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?  We have kidnapping, search and rescue, and bringing a family together - what's can be better than that?  Only kidding.  I don't know what would pique my readers' interests. 

UPDATE:  10/28/2012 - I was supposed to post this a couple of weeks ago and forgot but I don't have anyone to tag, so I apologize to Susanne for posting late.  If any of my readers would like to participate, same questions and just let me in the comment that you tagged yourself so we can follow your blog and postings - E :)

"The Look" Blog Challenge

I've been tagged, not once but twice this week to participate in two different blog hops.  The first challenge is from my friend, Lana Voynich, author of Alaskan Healing and upcoming hockey romance story, Faceoff of the Heart.  For the challenge and to see Lana's posting, you can find it here
. 
Here are the rules:  "The Look" is a writing prompt, a game, another tagging event. This is how U Got “The Look” works: you take your current manuscript, search for the word “look”, and post the surrounding paragraphs. Lastly, you tag 5 blogging authors who you think will be a good choice for the game.


So here is the beginning of Imogene:  Innocense Lost with the understanding that even though this story is really rough I'm about to revamp it next month when I participate in NaNo (gave up on BIW as previously challenged for myself).  I hope to release this story next summer or fall. 

Jacob watched his mother move her mashed potatoes around on the plate. He knew that this was a big trip for her. He couldn't help but wonder if he would ever measure up to Imogene. Even at his young age of almost eight years, he knew that Imogene was the love of his parents' lives. They always told him that he was special too and that they loved him just as much, but he had seen his mother holding the photograph, talking to the doll and crying herself to sleep so many nights. The photo. It wasn't anything spectacular, just the last time they were a family, and that was even before Jacob had been born. The photo was that of a smiling, young, dark-haired girl. So full of life and bubbling at the brims. Her long, straight hair and slightly slanted eyes gave her the appearance of having been of a different nationality, almost giving her an Asian look. His parents had been happy then too, but in pictures of Jacob and his parents it was very noticeable that the smiles had faded. People always said if Jacob had been older that he and Imogene could have been twins, and they could have; they had very similar features and shared more than just their parents as Jacob shared the same birth date with Imogene


The conversation lacked words but the emotions spoke loud and clear. Sarah Beth had decided that she would make one last trip to find her daughter. Daniel didn't want her to go; Sarah Beth fought and screamed and cried until there were no words left. She felt this trip was going to be different than previous trips where they had tried to make it a family vacation, all the while searching for their lost daughter. This year, something was different. She couldn't quite put her finger on what was bothering her but she had to try. It was find Imogene or die trying and with that thought, Sarah Beth decided this had to be done on her own as she really didn't want to lose the rest of her family.

UPDATE:  10/28/2012 - I was supposed to post this a couple of weeks ago and I don't have anyone to tag so I apologize to Lana for being so late in posting this - See you all in the postings

YA Authors You've Never Heard Of: The Poisoned Pencil – new YA mystery imprint

If you write YA mysteries and are looking for a new publisher, Poisoned Pen has opened a new imprint specifically for YA mysteries - go to the submission guidelines to see what they are looking for.  E :)

YA Authors You've Never Heard Of: The Poisoned Pencil – new YA mystery imprint:   Poisoned Pen Press is launching a new imprint The Poisoned Pencil , which will publish YA mysteries. Jessica Tribble was named publish...