Forced reading. (That's an oxymoron, by the way.)
Greetings! I am coming to you live from where I work, a.k.a the only other place I'll be going until I finish my self-imposed Whitney reading. It sounds like torture, doesn't it?
Riiight.
Can I just say how nice it is to actually have a reason to look forward to February now? It's always been my least favorite month, but as of recently, there's been a silver lining. Now it comes complete with permission to gorge myself on books I've been meaning to read but haven't managed to fit into my schedule yet. It's like a shiny present; infinitely better than a box of Valentine's Day chocolates.
Ideally, I'd like to be able to vote in all the categories, but there might be one teeny, tiny snag.
I'm significantly behind. Last year I had a much bigger head start when the list of nominees came out. Still, I'm going to make a SERIOUS effort. I'd love to vote for Best Book of the Year, but that means I'd have to finish all thirty books before April 3rd. It's a worthy goal, but perhaps not a very realistic one.
So, I thought I'd give you the occasional report on how it's going... as long as you promise not to laugh too hard if I fall short. Plus, it's an excuse to blog!
Here goes...
Current tally: eight books read. (And yes, that includes mine.)
Comments? Encouragement? Raucous laughter?
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Has the keyboard always been this loud?
I'm skipping the blog today. The computer screen is blinding me with it's unnatural brightness, and my fingers are sluggish. In fact, the darn keys seem to have switched places overnight.
I'm afraid it might be ice cream poisoning. Does anyone know of a good cure for a Ben and Jerry's hangover?
I'm afraid it might be ice cream poisoning. Does anyone know of a good cure for a Ben and Jerry's hangover?
Friday, February 12, 2010
And now, a rare glimpse at the...past?
Remember that TV show about the guy who got tomorrow's paper a day early? I've decided that perhaps my blog could be a bit of a novelty as well. Except I'm not going to dabble in fortunes or predicting the future-- I'm going to boldly go where no blogger has gone before and reveal...
(drumroll please)
The past.
I know what you're thinking. Anyone can report the past, right? But it's still quite a challenge for some of us because I guess I forgot to mention something rather important this week. With all that whining I was doing about having nothing interesting to blog about, I missed the perfect opportunity.
Santa Maybe was nominated for a Whitney Award in the romance category!
See, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops last Friday, but I made myself wait so that I could perform this most important task of making sure that everyone was firmly grounded in the past. For a full list of the Whitney nominees for 2009, go here. http://www.whitneyawards.com/2009finalists.html There are some incredibly awesome books just waiting to be discovered!
Oh, and by the way, if you drive a Toyota, you might want to be careful because apparently there's some sort of problem with the brakes. Updates will be provided when they are no longer useful.
(drumroll please)
The past.
I know what you're thinking. Anyone can report the past, right? But it's still quite a challenge for some of us because I guess I forgot to mention something rather important this week. With all that whining I was doing about having nothing interesting to blog about, I missed the perfect opportunity.
Santa Maybe was nominated for a Whitney Award in the romance category!
See, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops last Friday, but I made myself wait so that I could perform this most important task of making sure that everyone was firmly grounded in the past. For a full list of the Whitney nominees for 2009, go here. http://www.whitneyawards.com/2009finalists.html There are some incredibly awesome books just waiting to be discovered!
Oh, and by the way, if you drive a Toyota, you might want to be careful because apparently there's some sort of problem with the brakes. Updates will be provided when they are no longer useful.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
The Mark and a blog contest
Something really cool happened to me recently. I was lucky enough to get to read an upcoming release from a new author at Cedar Fort and invited to write a endorsement for the cover. The book is called The Mark by M.R. Bunderson, and I really enjoyed it-- YA romance and suspense and an otherworldly twist all wrapped into one. The release date is March 8th, but if you want to get a sneak peek, you can read the first chapter and synopsis here. www.marilynbunderson.com/books/the-mark
By the way, I got to meet Marilyn at Authorpalooza yesterday, and she was so down-to-earth and nice. I'm really excited for her and I hope she has as much fun with her first book release as I did with mine!
Which brings us to the second part of the blog-- the contest. Marilyn Bunderson is having a series of giveaways to celebrate the release of The Mark that you don't want to miss. Right now, she's giving away a copy of My Fairy Grandmother. So if you want a chance to win, go here. www.mrbunderson.blogspot.com And make sure to check her blog for some other really cool books she's giving away.
That's all for now. Congratulations, Marilyn! :)
By the way, I got to meet Marilyn at Authorpalooza yesterday, and she was so down-to-earth and nice. I'm really excited for her and I hope she has as much fun with her first book release as I did with mine!
Which brings us to the second part of the blog-- the contest. Marilyn Bunderson is having a series of giveaways to celebrate the release of The Mark that you don't want to miss. Right now, she's giving away a copy of My Fairy Grandmother. So if you want a chance to win, go here. www.mrbunderson.blogspot.com And make sure to check her blog for some other really cool books she's giving away.
That's all for now. Congratulations, Marilyn! :)
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Authorpalooza!
I will be signing books at Authorpalooza on Saturday, February 6th at the Sandy Barnes & Noble from 1-4 PM! (Thank heavens because I was having a really hard time coming up with something to blog about, so this was about to be the shortest New Year's Resolution ever.) For more information about all the cool authors who will be signing, go here. http://ldsauthorevents.blogspot.com/
Oh, and a surprising blog from an agent about what's hot right now in the publishing world...
Amish fiction. Really?
http://ow.ly/13bPi
Oh, and a surprising blog from an agent about what's hot right now in the publishing world...
Amish fiction. Really?
http://ow.ly/13bPi
Monday, February 1, 2010
My New Year's Resolution
Yes, I realize that it's February 1st, not January 1st. I'm a little behind this year.
Can anyone guess what it is?
Hmmm, that might be kind of fun, actually. I think I'll give a mystery prize to the person who guesses what my belated resolution is. If no one guesses it right, I'll start giving hints. In fact, I'll give you a little hint right now: given my past history, this resolution probably won't last very long, despite my good intentions.
Guess away-- I promise I won't be offended. :)
Can anyone guess what it is?
Hmmm, that might be kind of fun, actually. I think I'll give a mystery prize to the person who guesses what my belated resolution is. If no one guesses it right, I'll start giving hints. In fact, I'll give you a little hint right now: given my past history, this resolution probably won't last very long, despite my good intentions.
Guess away-- I promise I won't be offended. :)
Friday, January 8, 2010
Book review: Second Chances
Must begin with apologies to Linda Chadwick, who kindly gave me a copy of her book, Second Chances, to review two MONTHS ago. Unfortunately, between NaNoWriMo and the holidays, life sort of pounded me into the ground and I'm just now beginning to resurface. So thank you, Linda, for your patience!
Cover blurb:
He slowly sat down in the porch swing. Even though it was not raining, he thought he could hear the rain falling softly from a darkened sky. He imagined Barbara sitting beside him, a sweet smile on her beautiful face and her silky brown hair blowing in the breeze.Suddenly, the front door opened, and a small, elderly woman stepped out onto the porch.
"Can I help you?" she asked abruptly. Embarrassed, Larry jumped out of the swing. "I . . . I used to live in this house . . . I was . . . reminiscing . . ." he tried to explain. He quickly came to his senses. "I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'll be going now."
Still grieving over the loss of his wife, forty-one-year-old Larry Porter is facing challenges that no father should ever have to face. Almost overnight he becomes both father and mother to his three children, and they aren't having anything to do with him. A former workaholic, he now regrets being an absentee parent, but doesn't know how to make amends. Soon, Larry comes to understand that his children are more important to him than anything else. He must change the path they are on or lose them forever.
This tender and thought-provoking story will bring you face-to-face with the realities of losing a loved one. It will touch your heart, lift your spirit, and inspire you to tackle your own challenges with determination and hope.
Linda does a great job with characterization. It was easy for me to picture Larry and his children, and to sympathize fully with the different sense of loss that each feels for their newly deceased wife and mother. I found it very interesting to see how each character dealt with that loss in different ways. Although Barbara had already passed on when the book begins, she is an important character with a solid presence throughout the story, if only in the memories of her family. I thought that it was fascinating to see how Larry develops from a workaholic father who knew very little about his children to the glue that holds the family together. He struggles with a crisis of faith and kids who have a difficult time putting their trust in him and manages to persevere through hard times. Things definitely get worse before they get better, so be prepared for a rough ride-- the second half of the novel deals primarily with Chris, the son who suffers a brutal attack and becomes inadvertantly addicted to prescription pain medication.
I don't want to give away too much of the story, but by the end of the book, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel as the family begin to rediscover their faith and love for each other. I read an interview that Linda gave where she said that her next novel is a humorous romance, and I'm excited to see how she deals with the lighter side of life.
Cover blurb:
He slowly sat down in the porch swing. Even though it was not raining, he thought he could hear the rain falling softly from a darkened sky. He imagined Barbara sitting beside him, a sweet smile on her beautiful face and her silky brown hair blowing in the breeze.Suddenly, the front door opened, and a small, elderly woman stepped out onto the porch.
"Can I help you?" she asked abruptly. Embarrassed, Larry jumped out of the swing. "I . . . I used to live in this house . . . I was . . . reminiscing . . ." he tried to explain. He quickly came to his senses. "I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'll be going now."
Still grieving over the loss of his wife, forty-one-year-old Larry Porter is facing challenges that no father should ever have to face. Almost overnight he becomes both father and mother to his three children, and they aren't having anything to do with him. A former workaholic, he now regrets being an absentee parent, but doesn't know how to make amends. Soon, Larry comes to understand that his children are more important to him than anything else. He must change the path they are on or lose them forever.
This tender and thought-provoking story will bring you face-to-face with the realities of losing a loved one. It will touch your heart, lift your spirit, and inspire you to tackle your own challenges with determination and hope.
Linda does a great job with characterization. It was easy for me to picture Larry and his children, and to sympathize fully with the different sense of loss that each feels for their newly deceased wife and mother. I found it very interesting to see how each character dealt with that loss in different ways. Although Barbara had already passed on when the book begins, she is an important character with a solid presence throughout the story, if only in the memories of her family. I thought that it was fascinating to see how Larry develops from a workaholic father who knew very little about his children to the glue that holds the family together. He struggles with a crisis of faith and kids who have a difficult time putting their trust in him and manages to persevere through hard times. Things definitely get worse before they get better, so be prepared for a rough ride-- the second half of the novel deals primarily with Chris, the son who suffers a brutal attack and becomes inadvertantly addicted to prescription pain medication.
I don't want to give away too much of the story, but by the end of the book, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel as the family begin to rediscover their faith and love for each other. I read an interview that Linda gave where she said that her next novel is a humorous romance, and I'm excited to see how she deals with the lighter side of life.
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