Saturday, December 29, 2012

The Goodreads Challenge

Besides being an author and writer, I am also an avid reader. (Don't those two things go hand in hand?)

One of my favorite sites on the internet is Goodreads, where I can mark down all the books I read, make friends with other readers, read and write reviews, and find lots of other good books I want to read.

This year, I once again took part in the Goodreads Challenge. Because it was 2012, I challenged myself to read 112 books. (Last year I read 128, so I figured it would be no problem.)

2012 Reading Challenge

2012 Reading Challenge
Linda has completed her goal of reading 112 books in 2012!
hide

But as the middle of an extremely busy December rolled around, I was a little behind. Eek, could I make my goal? Truth be told, I also had just read about 1/3 of the way through two rather dark literary books, and decided not to finish them. So I didn't count those.

But I did take myself to the library a few days ago, and found some relatively easy, short books that I gobbled up quickly. Was that cheating? No, I don't think so.

But I made my goal! Last night, I finished my 112th book for the year, and I'm already reading another. I might even make 113 for the year.

Here is what I've read this year:



Linda's bookshelf: read

Cat Found
Man and Mustang
The Lost Island
Crow Call
Panda: A Guide Horse for Ann
Guernica: A Novel
Each Kindness
The Day of the Pelican
Broken Harbor
Wilderness: A Novel
Off to Camp and Discovering Art
The Lighthouse Road: A Novel
Wish Upon a Horse
The Dog Who Danced
A Hologram for the King
Dog in Charge
She Walks the Shore
The Curious Number
The Perfect Ride
Race the Wild Wind: A Story of the Sable Island Horses


Linda's favorite books »
Here's wishing a Happy New Year, and a Happy Reading Year, to all of you!

May the year 2013 bring you the best of everything!

By the way, I plan to read at least 113 books next year! :-)

Monday, December 24, 2012

A Holiday Wish

Wishing a Merry Christmas and a joyous holiday season to everyone!

Thanks to all of you who bought my books, read my books, took the time to review my books, or just stopped by to read this blog. I truly appreciate you all!

During this holiday season, I wish you time to spend with family, time to read, eat, enjoy life, or just reflect.

But most of all, I wish you peace.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Winter Book Blast and Giveaway!

Hi Everyone! This is one of the stops on the Winter Book Blast, sponsored by
The Edible Bookshelf.



This is a Blog Hop! It runs from December 15-23, 2012. I'm giving away a copy of my new young adult novel Six Degrees of Lost at this stop! Details and Rafflecopter entry below. (Be sure and enter both contests - two chances to win this book!)

A new young adult novel set in the Pacific Northwest, filled with lost dogs and cats, rescue horses, rural life, raft trips, boys behaving badly, and a mother in jail. Two teens from entirely different backgrounds, Olive and David, take a foolhardy journey to find out where they really belong.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Contest open internationally. U.S. winner receives choice of print or ebook. International winner will receive ebook.

Our host - The Edible Bookshelf - is giving away a Grand Prize of a packet of books for your reading pleasure. Enter here!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The list below is all of the stops on the blog hop, with lots of books and prizes to win!



So be sure to sign up for all of the contests, then curl up by the fire and enjoy!

Here's wishing you Lots of fun - Lots of good reading this winter.

Monday, December 10, 2012

A Fairy Garden

Look what sprang up overnight in our yard from a sodden bed of leaves, bark, needles, and twigs.

 
I don't know what kind of mushrooms these are, do you?

But it's enough to make you imagine sprites, elves, pixies, or fairies having a party here.

Shhh! Think I'll go pen a fairy tale. *grin*

Sunday, December 2, 2012

The Finish

Want to know what the biggest payoff for a writer is?
Huge advance?
Best-selling book?
Fame, Money, Recognition?

Well, granted, I've not well-acquainted with any of those things, so you can take what I have to say with a grain of salt, but I'm willing to bet that most writers, no matter who they are, will agree that the biggest satisfaction they get is actually
Finishing. Something.
Writing that last sentence.
That final word.

Yes, I know there are many drafts involved, and lots of editing, but when you finally get to
The. End.
of a project you've been working on, there is immense satisfaction.

Today, I finished a 10,000 word short story I've been working on, based loosely on a true story of saving a wild kitten. And that wonderful feeling, when you know you've nailed it, got it to the right place, finished the final sentence that wraps it up and says what you want to say - is just a pretty darn good feeling.



I'll let you know when this one is ready to read. It might be part of an anthology or I may do something else with it.

But for now, it sits on my desk, printed out and ready for another read-through and round of editing, but mostly, it is *big yay*
Finished!

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Animal Records - A Simple Method

Since many of you that read this blog are Animal Lovers like me, I thought I'd pass on a tip that might help you keep track of their health.

Records. If you are like many people, you jot on your calendar, day runner (or maybe on your smart phone) when your dog/cat/horse/parakeet needs its shots/wormer/flea treatment/etc.

Or, maybe these dates get lost in the daily shuffle of things, and you sit around scratching your head, mumbling "When was it that Frodo got his last vaccination?"

Maybe because I'm a writer, I like to actually Write Things Down. Ha!

Maybe I'm super-organized. Not!

Maybe I've just had lots of pets/livestock over the years, and sometimes it gets really hard to remember.

So I've came up with a really simple system to keep track of everyone.

First, whenever we welcome a new animal into our family, I make a folder for them, which I keep in my file cabinet. Then, I make a little chart to go inside. At the top, it lists Name/Age/When We brought them Home. (We've had Frodo for 6 years? Really?)

I take a clean piece of paper - like this:


You can do this yourself in about 30 seconds, and mark your columns however you like:

Vaccinations/Worming/Shoeing-Trimming for a horse or donkey.

Vaccinations/Worming/Flea Treatments for a cat or dog.

Or whatever works for you and your animals. Yes, if you take them to the vet, the vet writes this stuff down (and sometimes sends you reminders.) But because I do a lot of these things myself, I like to remember when Frodo had his last treatment/shot/etc.

Hope this helps some of you take good care of your animals!

Kisses to all of your horses, cats, dogs, or parakeets (actually, I've never had a parakeet, do they get shots?)



Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Giving Thanks

In the rush to mark down the Halloween costumes, set out the Christmas merchandise, and start playing Christmas tunes, Thanksgiving seems to be somewhat overlooked, at least as far as retail stores go. But I love Thanksgiving. In fact, I love the whole month of  November, when people begin to reflect on what they are truly thankful for.

Collection of ceramic and handmade turkeys that I bring out this time of year.
 
 
 
So here's my list:
  1. I'm thankful for family. Although we may not always be together, I come from a close family that talks and shares things and loves one another.
  2. I am thankful for my husband. I married him 22 years ago, and it was one of the best decisions of my life.
  3. I am thankful that I live in a warm house and that I have plenty to eat on Thanksgiving, and every day. I realize that this is not true for many people in the world, and I know how lucky I am.
  4. I am thankful I live in a peaceful country without war at our doors. I am thankful for the men and women who have given their lives to protect us, and those that do so every single day.
  5. I am thankful for the animals in my life, who bring me so much companionship, fun, and joy.
  6. I am thankful that I live in a beautiful place, with trees and woods surrounding me.
  7. I am thankful for my health. Although I am getting older and parts of me are not as good as they used to be, I am basically still pretty healthy, and I am very thankful for that.
  8. I am thankful that I received a good education, that allowed me to read well (one of my primary joys in life) and to learn to make good decisions.
  9. I am thankful for good friends and neighbors, which we have in abundance.
  10. I am thankful for turkey, and pumpkin pie, and laughter, and music. 
I could go on and on, but on this day sitting in my comfy chair with the rain pounding down outside, I am thankful for the time to reflect and give thanks for the many good things in my life.
 
I hope that all of you can do the same.
Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!
I hope you enjoy your day!

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

How to Choose a Book Club Book

I've been involved in a small neighborhood book club for just over a year. This has been a fun way to discuss things other than the normal talk of a small rural community, which tends to center around hunting, tractors, politics, livestock and oh, did I mention hunting?

So we've had an interesting time reading multi-cultural love stories, war-time drama, and how to cook like a French chef.

But we had come to the end of our list of books, and it was time to pick new ones. Because we've been a small group (usually no more than 4-6 people attend) it was easy to decide whether or not we might choose to read a book by the number of nods (or grimaces) when a book title was mentioned.

But this time, when the list of nominations was rolled out, we came upon some new dilemmas. As one interesting title was mentioned, we found it was only available as an e-book, with no print copies available. Most of us have e-readers, but not everyone does. Also, this one was not available from our (wonderful) library system.

Then we chose another popular title, which we were sure would have lots of copies available at the library, only to find out the library carried it in e-format only.

And one of the titles suggested is very popular, available at the library with lots and lots of copies, but over 100 people on the waiting list!

Because we are such a small club, we've never established rules for picking books. We've made some good choices over the last year, but also had a couple of clunkers. And of course, reading is very subjective, so not everyone will love every book (but of course that often makes for great discussion.)

So for those of you that have been in a book club - I'm wondering if you've run into any of these same problems. Have you established rules for picking books? For instance: Bestsellers, award-winners, on a book club list, achieving a certain rating on Goodreads, available at the library, etc.

Care to share what has helped in your selections?

As for our club - we did come up with the following books to read, and we are looking for more:

The Story of Beautiful Girl, by Rachel Simon
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, by Jamie Ford
The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers
The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak
The Winemaker's Daughter, by Timothy Egan
Still Alice, by Lisa Genova
Wild: from Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, by Chery Strayed

And, we decided that for our December meeting, we'll each bring a wrapped used book off of our shelves, as a surprise gift exchange. That should be fun!


For a complete list of the books we have read in the past year, check out my Goodreads Book Club list.

Please chime in with a comment, and share how you have picked your books for book club. Also, have you read any of our selections? Did we pick some good ones?

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Hanging Season

We have some unusual things hanging in our barn right now. The first are called Chinese Lanterns.

 
Chinese Lanterns - Physalis alkekengi
 
 
I received a start of this unusual perennial from a good friend, and they are quite easy to grow. The foliage is not much to look at, but check out the lovely orange lanterns it produces. I cut them off before the heavy rains set in, and hung them upside down to dry. I'll use them in arrangements soon. They are cool, aren't they?
 
 
 
 
And here are the tomato plants that we plucked from our garden, before the tomatoes all became split and ruined in the rain. We hung them upside down, too.
 
 
 
Even without soil, they'll continue to riped their fruit for several more weeks, and we can enjoy red-ripe tomatoes. Isn't that amazing?
 
 
Have you ever tried these methods, or hung anything else to dry that turned out well?



Monday, October 29, 2012

Ten Random Things

Some days, when I have time to write, I just cannot get the words out.

Some days I do feel creative, but instead, need to clean my house, feed my animals, cook dinner for my family, put make-up on for a party.

And some days I need to update my blog, and have NO IDEA what I should write about. *SIGH*

So, here are 10 Random Things happening right now:

1. I am worried about people and animals on the East Coast of the United States, in the path of Hurricane Sandy, and becoming somewhat glued to the television news of it, here on the West Coast. Sending good thoughts your way, everyone!

2. It is almost Halloween, a holiday that I don't really get into that much, because I don't like scary stuff.

3. I do love pumpkins, however, as well as pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice muffins, and pumpkin chocolate chip anything. :-)

4. I need to take my dogs for a walk, especially my new young rescue dog, who thrives on exercise. But is it quite windy and cold out, so I'm sitting inside procrastinating.

5. I am chugging away at the sequel to The Girl Who Remembered Horses, which is about a journey that the main character, Sahara, takes with her horse, and I'd like nothing better than to work on it all day, but I have other things planned.

6. I saw the movie "Argo" last night and I thought it was excellent. Oscars, anyone?

7. Since we got our new rescue dog, we haven't seen our barn cat, Lucy, for a month now, and I'm feeling guilty about that.

8. We pulled out tomato plants from the garden, and hung them upside down in the barn, where they will continue to ripen most of their remaining tomatoes. Every year I am amazed at how this happens.

9. I sent a package off to a young relative this morning for her birthday. I went through my bookcase, trying to decide which book to give her. This was one of my very favorites, and I had quite a talk with myself: "You can't part with that book - you LOVE it." "Yes, but what are books for, if not to share? This one would be perfect for her." "Okay, okay, but I will really miss this one, but perhaps we can have a book discussion about it after she reads it." Want to know which one it is? It's by Sharon Creech, and it's about poetry, dogs, love, and feelings. (You should read it, too. ;-))


10. Is that ten? Good, because it's going to rain. I am now going outside to brave the wind and give my dogs a good run. Then come back inside and try to squeeze in a few words on my manuscript, called (at the moment) Sahara's Journey. Wish me luck!

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Meet Lynne Kelly

Animal Lovers - please welcome middle grade author Lynne Kelly, whose debut novel CHAINED is about - an elephant! And a boy. And their special relationship.

It. Is. Awesome. And you can win a copy! See giveaway below:

 
Here's the blurb from Goodreads:
 
After ten-year-old Hastin’s family borrows money to pay for his sister’s hospital bill, he leaves his village in northern India to take a job as an elephant keeper and work off the debt. He thinks it will be an adventure, but he isn’t prepared for the cruel circus owner. The crowds that come to the circus see a lively animal who plays soccer and balances on milk bottles, but Hastin sees Nandita, a sweet elephant and his best friend, who is chained when she’s not performing and hurt with a hook until she learns tricks perfectly. Hastin protects Nandita as best as he can, knowing that the only way they will both survive is if he can find a way for them to escape.
 
How long have you been writing for children, Lynne? Tell us how you got your start as a writer.

Just since 2006, when I got the idea that led to Chained. I was a teacher at the time and started writing what I thought would be a picture book about an elephant, one that I'd share with the kids at school and then look into getting published if it was any good.

What made you decide to write a book about an elephant? Have you always loved elephants? I mean, why not a dog, or a giraffe, or a rhinoceros?

Yes, I've always loved elephants! They're so intelligent and have such strong connections with family and friends. For this story, I'd heard about elephants fighting to break free of their chains when they're first captured, and then giving up forever. I started thinking about a story with a captive elephant who wants to return to her home in the wild, but she doesn't try breaking free of her chains because she doesn't know she could do it.

I’ve heard that when you first imagined this novel, it was as a picture book. Can you elaborate?
 
Yes, I was thinking it would be a picture book about that elephant who grows up as a show elephant, then finally breaks free and runs back to her home in the jungle. It never occurred to me to try to write a novel, but some people who critiqued it recognized that the story needed expanding.

Tell us a little about the setting in Chained? Do you have first-hand knowledge of India? How did you make it feel so authentic?
 
I chose the setting because I wanted the elephant to be caught from her home in the wild and work as a show elephant sort of nearby, so her home felt just out of reach. I read a lot of online resources and books about India, but the most helpful information was from people who'd lived there. I elaborate on that more (and about going from picture book to novel) in "The Landscape Unseen," in a recent issue of Hunger Mountain.

How long did it take you to write Chained? How long was your journey to actual publication?
 
The journey from idea to publication was about six years, which isn't unusual, but it's probably a good thing I didn't know when I started that it takes that long to write a book and get it published. But I had a lot to learn about writing, so while reading all I could about elephants and India, I was reading all I could about writing, too, and taking my new chapters to critique groups for feedback. After finishing the novel and doing lots of revisions, I started submitting to literary agents in the spring of 2009. Coincidentally, during the same week in February 2010 I heard from two agents who were interested in representation. I talked to both and had a difficult decision to make, but I ended up signing with Joanna Volpe, now of New Leaf Literary & Media Representation. I did a new round of revisions for her, then she submitted the manuscript to a few publishers. A couple weeks later we had an offer, and Jo set up an auction when another publisher let her know they were also interested in acquiring it. The book sold to Macmillan/FSG in April, 2010, and hit the bookshelves about two years later, in May 2012.

I always love to find out how people choose titles? Was Chained the original title for this story, or was it chosen by the publisher, or someone else?
 
Often titles do change, but Chained was the title on the manuscript when I first submitted it. At first I was calling it "The Elephant's Path," but that wasn't interesting enough, so I kept brainstorming other titles. Somehow "Chained" came to me at some point and that's the one I stuck with.

This book is written in first-person present tense. Was that the way you envisioned the story from the start, or did it change?
 
I started writing it in 3rd person past tense, and a few chapters in I decided to try it in 1st person, and I really liked it that way. In the summer of 2008 I went to the Highlights Foundation workshop in Chautauqua, where Patricia Lee Gauch was my mentor. During one of our sessions she said, "Something makes me want to ask you to write this in present tense." That night I rewrote the first chapter in present tense and showed it to her the next day, and we both thought it was working out better; we felt closer to the character and the action seemed more immediate.

As an author promoting her first book, how important do you feel social media is to your career? Is marketing a love/hate relationship with you (as many authors admit) or do you enjoy it? How much time daily/weekly do you spend promoting?
 
I think it's very important, and I do enjoy it. I've gotten to know a huge writing community online that I wouldn't know about without my social media activity. Writing is a solitary activity, and it helps to have the support of people who are going through the same thing. And it's a great way to meet other book people, like teachers, librarians, and book bloggers. I've bought many books that I heard about from someone's online recommendation, and I'm sure the same thing has happened with my own book. It's hard to say how much time I spend on promotion because it varies a lot; when I'm busy with work or with a deadline, I'll take at least a few minutes during the day to tweet something and reply to others, but when my time's more flexible I'll spend more time on Twitter, Facebook, and my blog.

 
What are you working on next, Lynne? Anything new in your publishing career you’d like to tell us about?
 
Two things that are totally different; I'm revising a humorous YA novel with some mystery to it, REASONS FOR LEAVING, about an agoraphobic teen who has to go on a road trip to find a missing friend, and I'm writing my next MG novel, NESSIE MALONE'S GUIDE TO CREATURES THAT AREN'T REAL, about an amateur forensic scientist with cryptozoologist parents.

Okay, as a fellow animal person, I have to ask you this question. What, actually, is your favorite animal?
 
Elephants, of course! Although they'll crush the bed if you let them sleep with you, so I'm also a dog person.
 
Lynne - Thank you So Much for stopping by and telling us about your new book! Find more about Lynne here: website/ facebook/ twitter/ goodreads.   
 
Want to win a copy of Chained? Lynne has generously offered to giveaway a copy. Simple enter the contest using Rafflecopter, below. Open to U.S. addresses only. Good luck, everyone!
 
 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday, October 13, 2012

2012 National Book Award Finalists, or Why I Love My Public Library

Besides being an author, I am also an avid reader. And I use my public library A LOT. In fact, I LOVE my library. Why? Well, whenever I hear or see of a book that interests me, I usually do two things: 1) I search for it on Goodreads, where I get a summary and an idea of what people are saying about it, then 2) if it looks like something I might like to try/or read, I search for it in the online catalog of my public library, right from the comfort of home, and 9 times out of 10 they either have it in stock, or it's on order. Then, with a few simple clicks, the book will be available to me to pick up and read in short order. Sometimes, if it's a very popular book with lots of earlier holds on it, I might have to wait a while. But it's a fair trade for being able to keep up with my voracious reading/browsing/book habit. Because basically, all this is free. Aren't I lucky?

P.S. Go get a library card. Chances are, if you have a library, you can take advantage of this in your community.

But I digress. What did I do this morning? Well, I looked up all of the books that were nominated  as finalists for the 2012 National Book Awards, and ordered quite a few of them!

FICTION

Fiction FinalistsJunot Diaz, This Is How You Lose HerDave Eggers, A Hologram for the KingLouise Erdrich, The Round HouseBen Fountain, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime WalkThe Yellow Birds, by Kevin Powers

FINALISTS:

Junot Díaz, This Is How You Lose Her (Riverhead Books, a member of Penguin Group USA, Inc.)
Dave Eggers, A Hologram for the King (McSweeney's Books)
Louise Erdrich, The Round House (Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)
Ben Fountain, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)
Kevin Powers, The Yellow Birds (Little, Brown and Company)

NONFICTION

2012 NBA Nonfiction Finalists

FINALISTS:

Anne Applebaum, Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1945-1956 (Doubleday)
Katherine Boo, Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity (Random House)
Robert A. Caro, The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volume 4 (Knopf)
Domingo Martinez, The Boy Kings of Texas (Lyons Press, an imprint of Globe Pequot Press)
Anthony Shadid, House of Stone: A Memoir of Home, Family, and a Lost Middle East (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

POETRY

2012 NBA Poetry Finalists

FINALISTS:

David Ferry, Bewilderment: New Poems and Translations (University of Chicago Press)
Cynthia Huntington, Heavenly Bodies (Southern Illinois University Press)
Tim Seibles, Fast Animal (Etruscan Press)
Alan Shapiro, Night of the Republic (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Susan Wheeler, Meme (University of Iowa Press)
 
 YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE
2012 NBA YPL  Finalists

FINALISTS:

William Alexander, Goblin Secrets (Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing)
Carrie Arcos, Out of Reach (Simon Pulse, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing)
Patricia McCormick, Never Fall Down (Balzer+Bray, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)
Eliot Schrefer, Endangered (Scholastic)
Steve Sheinkin, Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon
(Flash Point, an imprint of Roaring Brook Press)
 
I love to sample all kinds of books, don't you?
Tell me, do you have a good library system where you live?

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Putting My Words Where My Heart Is

October is National Shelter Dog Month. I didn't know that until just today. But the month didn't matter. I fell madly in love with a dog at our local shelter 10 days ago, and ended up bringing her home.


If you've read any of my books, or even the descriptions, you probably realize that dogs play a role in each and every one of them. (And this from a self-described cat person LOL.)

In my first book, Finding Chance (Mondo Publishing 2007) a girl named Alice finds a lost and hungry dog.  Here's a great illustration from that book, by talented artist Nancy Lane.


In The Horse Jar (Mondo Publishing 2009) a girl's hope and dreams and plans for a horse of her own become all tangled up, when an incident with her best friend's dog, a dachshund named Spunky, changes everything.

In The Girl Who Remembered Horse (Musa Publishing 2011) a horse novel set in the future, dogs are also figured prominently in the plot, and play an important role in society.

In my two most recent novels, a lost yellow Lab bring together two teenagers, and a character named Aunt Trudy volunteers at the animal shelter, and also raises a houseful of strays, including cats, dogs, and horses (Six Degrees of Lost  Musa Publishing 2012.)

My newest release, Walking the Dog (Musa Publishing 2012) is a story about two kids dealing with some very adult problems, and features therapy dogs, animal shelter dogs, and a special animal shelter cat.

I guess I put my words where my heart is. I feel strongly about rescuing animals. I have volunteered at our local shelter - walking dogs and petting cats - and somehow those experiences seem to sneak into my novels. With the thousands of homeless animals out there, waiting for their special someone, it breaks my heart to see puppies advertised for sale on Craig's List, when there are so many animals being put to sleep at shelters across the country. (Maybe would-be dog breeders should spend a week or two volunteering at their local shelter. It might open their eyes.)

But enough soap box from me. Because of an ad on Petfinder.com about a medium female retriever mix with this description: A sweet girl, brought in by animal control. She was just covered in fleas, poor thing, so we treated her right away. She is young, around 10 months, and deserves a home where she will be well cared for. - I stopped by the animal shelter on my way home from town.

As I entered the double doors where large dogs were barking loudly, I saw her huddled up on a thin yellow blanket. Behind a chain link gate, she shivered, scared out of her wits. She was smaller and more fine-boned than I had expected, and absolutely beautiful. As we slipped a leash on her and brought her out of the kennel and into a quieter room, she stopped shaking and looked into my eyes. As I stroked her soft coat and ears, her tail wagged slowly. I was smitten.

She had a three day waiting period at the shelter, to see if an owner came forward. No one did. Someone else had put a "pre-adopt" on this dog, but when the day came to pick her up, they didn't want her either. But it didn't matter. I knew she was mine from the moment I laid eyes on her. It was love at first sight. When the shelter called, I was up there as fast as I could drive.

Isn't she beautiful?

 
We named her Jessie.


Thinking about adopting a new pet? October is a good time. Make it a point to stop by your local shelter today. You just might fall in love, too.

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Musa Publishing First Anniversary - A Blog Hop

Congratulations to Musa Publishing - a young, upstart company that opened its virtual doors just one year ago, and to celebrate, they are giving away a Kindle Fire! Plus more! This is one of the stops in their Anniversary Blog Hop, and to enter, simply leave a comment, and then check out all the other Musa authors who are participating (including me) and giving away great prizes.



Here's how it works: Musa Publishing is giving away the grand prize - a Kindle Fire. Plus a couple of swag bags filled with books and lots more. The complete rules are here:
http://musapublishingbloghops.blogspot.com/2012/09/musa-turns-1-and-we-are-celebrating.html

What is a Blog Hop? Lots of the Musa authors are having contests on their own blogs to give away goodies. And books! So hop around from blog to blog, and for every blog you leave a comment on, you are entered to win the Kindle Fire or Musa's other great prizes. That's a lot of chances to win!!

As for me, I took a chance with Musa when they were just brand new.
They published The Girl Who Remembered Horses in November 2011.



In the past year have also published Six Degrees of Lost


as well as my brand new novel, Walking the Dog.



Now you have a chance to win a copy of your choice of these great novels from Musa Publishing.

This contest is open internationally. Entries from the U.S. and Canada can choose from a print copy or ebook. Other countries will receive an ebook.

To enter, just leave a comment below telling me which book you would like:

The Girl Who Remembered Horses
Six Degrees of Lost
Walking the Dog

And you'll also be entered to win the prizes from Musa Publishing (including a Kindle Fire.)

Beginning October 1, be sure and visit all the other blogs on this hop for more chances to win. (Note: a few have adult content.) Woo Hoo! Get to hopping, and have fun.