Midweek Mixer

Wednesdays feature quotes and phrases that make me heady because we all need a boost to get us to the weekend. 

This week is for anyone who just finished something, whether it be NaNo, a novel, revisions. or non-writing related.

“Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.”
― Dr. Seuss

Ten-Word Tuesday

When I try to keep time,

it slips away faster.

Midweek Mixer

Wednesdays feature quotes and phrases that make me heady because we all need a boost to get us to the weekend.

Tomorrow many people will be celebrating Thanksgiving. This holiday isn't just an American/Canadian thing anymore. It's spreading and I think that's not just because of the delicious feast. I think it has a lot to do with the importance of gratitude in our lives.

I have so many blessings in my life, it would be impossible to count them all. Though I do believe it's important that I mention how thankful I am for you. I consider my readers to be friends. This isn't about networking for me. There are times when I honestly wonder if publishing is for me. I don't have the answer to that, but I don't intend to stop blogging, either, because of all of you. Your support and friendship is astounding. For this reason, I chose a quote from the incredible book "The Last Lecture." I hope you  enjoy it!

“Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other.”
― Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture

Ten-Word Tuesday

 

 Gratitude is free; wrap it up and give it daily.

Ten-Word Tuesday: NaNo edition

18,000 words in five days; NaNo has fried my brain.

Problem with Pre-scheduled Posts

Do you write out your blog posts weeks in advance and schedule them? That's what works for me. I devote an afternoon to writing up blogs, set up the dates, then walk away. The problem with this method is that I miss things that pop up later.

Take today for example. The wonderful and extremely talented J. A. Bennett interviewed me and it's up on her blog today. It didn't get into my pre-scheduled post, so I'm writing one just for her. Check out the interview, but more importantly, get to know her. You will love her!

Check the previous post for last weeks winners!

Passing Out....

Passing out books to the winners of Ali Cross' Become, that is. YEA! It's always so fun to see who will win these things.

 But first, a little news of my own. Every 2-3 years, we have to up and move to a new place and I just received word on where we're being shipped off to next. I am ecstatic because I'm such a history geek. Next summer, we'll be moving to the land of Alexander, the Great. Macedonia! Woo hoo! I bet I can't find a local writer's group there, either, but I'll take it! :D

As for our winners, let's start at the beginning of the week and work up to the grand prize, shall we?
For an e-book copy of Become....

MONDAY: Shannon O'Donnell!

TUESDAY:  E. R. King!

WEDNESDAY: Sharon K. Mayhew!

THURSDAY: J. A. Bennett!

and the grand prize winner is.... Kayeleen Hamblin!


E-mail me at nisa79 @ gmail . com and we'll get you your prizes. Congratulations and thank you all for entering!

Oh, and keep a watch out for a 300 followers giveaway. I'm getting close and when I hit it, I promise it will be epic! I've been collecting books. ;)

Ali Week: Launch Day = Grand Prize!

Today is the big day! Woo hoo! Congratulations, Ali!

If you could name one thing you'd love to win, what would it be?

AC: I already won the lottery--it's called "a happy family". After that, pretty much everything else is gravy. But I guess I'd love to win free airplane travel forever and ever so I could visit my friends in Idaho and my sister in Nova Scotia as often as I wanted.

Thanks so much for sharing your review of BECOME and for having me at your blog today, Nisa! You are truly the hostess with the mostest!

Me: I think that last question's harder than all the others put together, but I can't think of a better answer. Thank you, Ali! I'm so excited to be sharing this day with you. You are amazing and you raised an amazing book. Thanks for sharing your talents with us!

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Now it's time to announce what you could win. The grand prize consists of one signed copy of Become, some great book swag and a $25 gift certificate from Amazon.com. The same rules apply. Comment on this post and follow Ali's blog and mine. Also, visit her blog for other chances to win!

Thank you so much, Ali, for allowing me to be a part of your book launch. Your book is fantastic and deserves lots and lots of readers!

And thanks to the followers of this blog. Without you, so many amazing books would remain obscure.  

*All contest winners will be announced on Monday, November 14th. International contestants are eligible for e-book prizes only.

Ali Week: Let's Talk Travel

As a gypsy, I'm fascinated with all things travel. It stands to reason that I have to ask you where your favorite spot is on Earth.

AC: My favorite spot on Earth is a rocky outcropping near Mahone Bay in Nova Scotia, Canada. See, this is where the beach/mountain question confused me. That spot on the shore of the Atlantic ocean FEELS like mountain--there is no sand, only rocky outcroppings, pine trees and crashing ocean waves. So it's like the mountains at the beach. ;)

Have your travels influenced your writing?

AC: A little, yeah. I have a middle grade fantasy that is entirely set on Nova Scotia's coast. I can still feel the ocean spray on my face (like bites from vampire icicles) and smell the sea. It made writing the story so vivid and real to me.

Do you prefer writing indoors or outside? 

AC: I think I would probably prefer to write outdoors if I could find a place that wasn't 1) so stinkin' hot or 2) made hazardous by the super shiny sun. As it is, I try to mimic it the best I can by sitting at my desk directly in front of the window in the daytime hours so I can bask in the warm sunshine--that shines on the back of my computer leaving it completely glare free. :)

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Ali is generously giving one copy of her e-book away from now until Thursday. What do you have to do to win one for yourself? Follow my blog, follow Ali's blog, spread the word on your favorite social media site (or all of them!) and leave a comment on each post on the days you'd like to enter. The more days you enter, the more chances you have to win. I will be randomly picking five different winners total. Come back on Friday to enter for the grand prize, which I'll reveal then. You won't want to miss it!

*All contest winners will be announced on Monday, November 14th. International contestants are eligible for e-book prizes only.

Ali Week: Dishing on the Dojo

Do you have a favorite phonetically pleasing word or onomatopoeia? (I just wanted to use onomatopoeia in a sentence.)

AC: Dang. You're making me work for this interview Nisa! And of course, I'm totally drawing a blank! I love the word HAPPINESS. I love that it sounds bouncy and joyful and since JOY is my favorite word of all time, I like happiness because it SOUNDS like joy.

Beach or mountains? 

AC: Can't I have both? I love them both, I truly do. But I suppose if I really, truly (really? truly?) have to choose, I'd choose mountains.

You've done so much for the writer community. Can you tell us about your dojo (blog)? 

AC: I love writing with friends! NaNo is a fabulous time for writers--we can encourage and support and cheer cheer cheer one another on to story satisfaction. But it's beyond sad that NaNo is only once a year. (Well, I just heard about Camp NaNoWriMo this summer--too late to join--so I'll definitely be doing that next year!). So I wanted to create something that would provide a way for us to continue to write and cheer each other along--and that's where Ninja Novel Writing Month came from. Except EVERY month is a good month for NiNoWriMo. ;)

The other part of the dojo is, of course, the whole martial arts thing. My family loves the martial arts. We are all martial art students and it's a big part of our life. I have seen so many similarities between writing a novel and working toward your black belt. I use the dojo as a way to teach some of these skills and mindsets so that every writer can obtain that coveted writer's black belt--a published novel!

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Ali is generously giving one copy of her e-book away from now until Thursday. What do you have to do to win one for yourself? Follow my blog, follow Ali's blog, spread the word on your favorite social media site (or all of them!) and leave a comment on each post on the days you'd like to enter. The more days you enter, the more chances you have to win. I will be randomly picking five different winners total. Come back on Friday to enter for the grand prize, which I'll reveal then. You won't want to miss it!

*All contest winners will be announced on Monday, November 14th. International contestants are eligible for e-book prizes only.

Ali Cross Week: Ten Word Tuesday - Ninja style

Sell your book to us in ten words. 

AC: Young adult dark paranormal novel of emotion, action and hope. Whew. That was hard!

Me: Hard, but you did it well!

Ali is generously giving one copy of her e-book away from now until Thursday. What do you have to do to win one for yourself? Follow my blog, follow Ali's blog, spread the word on your favorite social media site (or all of them!) and leave a comment on each post on the days you'd like to enter. The more days you enter, the more chances you have to win. I will be randomly picking five different winners total. Come back on Friday to enter for the grand prize, which I'll reveal then. You won't want to miss it!

*All contest winners will be announced on Monday, November 14th. International contestants are eligible for e-book prizes only.

It's Ali Week: Interviews and Giveaways!

Gypsy and ninja chat it out all week on my blog. I am so excited to have Ali Cross here! The launch of her debut novel, Become, is Friday so she's going to be answering some random questions for us in true ninja style. Of course, I'll be asking them in true gypsy style. Without further ado:

Where did you get the inspiration for Become?

AC: Sometimes I like to play the "what if" game to see if I can come up with any neat ideas for a story. Usually it's a concept--which this one was. "What if the devil's daughter only wanted to do good?" That was the nugget from which the story sprang!

Sweet or savory? 

AC: Um, sweet. :)

Do you have a favorite character in Become?

AC: Well, I love them all. Even the bad guys. But I suppose in order they go, Desi, Lucy, Michael, James, Miri. :)

Status quo or change?

AC: I think change is fun. :)

Can you give us a favorite quote from Become?

AC: I have a handful of favorites, but right at this moment I like this one: "I could be the same as I ever was, or I could be something more." (pg. 218)

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Ali is generously giving one copy of her e-book away from now until Thursday. What do you have to do to win one for yourself? Follow my blog, follow Ali's blog, spread the word on your favorite social media site (or all of them!) and leave a comment on each post on the days you'd like to enter. The more days you enter, the more chances you have to win. I will be randomly picking five different winners total. Come back on Friday to enter for the grand prize, which I'll reveal then. You won't want to miss it!

*All contest winners will be announced on Monday, November 14th. International contestants are only eligible for the e-book prizes.

Come back Nov 7-11

...because the amazing black belt of words, Ali Cross, will be here to celebrate the release of her novel, Become. You don't want to miss  my interview with her or the daily giveaways. It's going to be a lot of fun!

Also, check out the four other authors she's debuting with over at Dark C.A.R.M.A. 11/11/11 is going to be a spectacular day!


(I'm on holiday so forgive me for not replying over the last week.)

Ten-Word Tuesday

Out of office: somewhere in the Western Caribbean right now.