winner

RED BUTTERFLY Winner!

And the winner is . . .

Congratulations!! You’ve won a pre-order of Amy Sonnichsen’s RED BUTTERFLY, which is set to release Feb. 3, 2015.

I have sent an email, and I’ll get you all set up as soon as I have your address.

Hope you all have a great Monday!

Speak up:

| TAGS:

We Have a Winner!

Thanks to everyone who entered my giveaway and helped spread the word. You guys are awesome!

Rafflecopter has chosen a winner . . .

Congratulations! I have e-mailed you with instructions to claim your prize. Thanks again to all who entered. Now go enjoy your day!

Speak up:

| TAGS:

Winner and Thoughts about “The Journey”

Finally! After all the debates and hullaballoo, we have a winner!! *throws confetti*

Amy gathered the names. Her daughter, very fairly, drew a name from a hat. And the winner is . . .

Congratulations!

You can email either me or Amy and let us know which prize you choose:

1) TWO 10-page critiques (1 from Amy & 1 from me)

OR

2) The SURPRISE package!!!

Thank you to everyone who entered our contest and passed along congratulations to our amazing friends. 🙂

So I’ve been thinking a lot about this whole writing journey lately. I remember when I first started writing with the idea of getting published. So much excitement! Every word on the page was magic, and everything I wrote was brilliant.

I didn’t stop to consider the reality of the publishing world and all the hurdles I’d have to overcome to get my book in print. I just wrote. And I loved every minute of it! I subjected my (then new) husband to first drafts and he laughed in all the right places and told me he just knew I’d be published some day. (See why he’s a keeper?!) 🙂

Good times, those.

But, of course, that doesn’t last forever. The rejections came. I still remember my very first conference critique by a real live editor. “It sounds like you haven’t found your voice,” he said.

Oh, but that hurt.

And then my first critique group. My perfected chapters came back covered in ink.

That first rejection from that first query. I think it took a little under an hour to receive it in all it’s “Dear Author” glory.

And the list goes on.

More often than I care to express, I wondered if all this effort was worth it? With all the rejection, why did I think I could ever reach that shiny goal of seeing my words in print, and my name on the cover?

Two things kept me going.

First, was remembering why I started writing in the first place. Remembering the sheer joy of bringing a world alive and watching others react to it. How could I give that up? WHY should I give that up just because I hadn’t been published yet?

Second, was this quote:

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising
every time we fall.”

 

Confucius

551 — 479 B.C

Success is not achieving something we can’t control. Success is moving forward in the face of difficulties. It’s not giving up just because something is hard.

And that my friends, is pretty awesome. Because we can control that.

I’d love to hear about your journey, and how you define success, too.

Speak up:

| TAGS:

Tying Up Random Odds and Ends

First thing to tie up: Around mid-week I realized that I FORGOT to choose the winner of Leigh Moore’s THE TRUTH ABOUT LETTING GO. So I am rectifying that right now. Random.org has spoken and the winner is:

Hurray! *throws confetti* Congratulations! I have e-mailed you, so check your inbox. 🙂

Second, a few of you had some questions about last week’s blog hop. Did I end up with S or X? (If any of you wondered about M . . . he’s my brother, so ewww! Did NOT end up with him).

Darling Husband

The answer to that burning question is neither. I met darling husband a couple of months later, and I’d like to say the drama ended there. Since I can’t, I will say that I am ever so grateful I ended up with who I did. He’s a keeper!

Finally, the last loose end to tie up is my annual April blog break. What with A to Z going on, and some serious revisions on my plate, I am going to disappear for the month (or so). I wish you all happy April, and hope you all the best. I look forward to lots of good news when I return in May.

Happy Blogging!

P.S. Happy April Fool’s Day! May you play some fun jokes on people who appreciate your humor. 😉

Speak up:

| TAGS:

Winner and License Plate Interpretation

Third, you may have noticed I took my Blog Roll down. Something to do with a virus on one of the referenced blogs. Easiest thing was to chop the whole kit and kaboodle. I’ll start rebuilding soon. Just wanted to let you know.

Finally, I know I’ve kept you all in suspense for a horrible amount of time, so here are the license plate interpretations from >>this<< post (for the “hard” ones):

1. CRPE DM = Carpe Diem
2. TRNTLA  = Tarantula (Pontiac G5 Spyder)
3. HAF PINT = Half Pint (Cream-colored convertible Mini Cooper)
4. YES OCFR = Yes Ociffer (What a drunk person would say to the cop who pulled him over. Odacious, no?)
5. APRESVU = After you. (How polite!)

P.S. Here is another interesting one: NOT ED’S. It was on a convertible BMW. What’s the story this time?

Speak up:

| TAGS:

Drumroll please . . .

First of all, I want to thank everyone who entered this contest! I had a great time reading your limericks. And don’t they say that doing something creative builds brain cells? Okay, I may be making that up, but I hope you had as much fun writing them as I did reading them.

Second of all, it was very had to choose a winner, you were all so good (and you all hit on different crazy areas of my life—all of which I love to laugh about). However, since a winner must be chosen, here we are:

The winner is Melanie for “Ode to St. Patty’s Cuisine”

For those of you who didn’t get a chance to read it, here it is:

A green dinner sounds so creative,
Until you think “what’s it made of?”
Your kids will all scream
Because everything’s green!
But cabbage and corned beef’s so native!

Maybe it was the St. Patrick’s day theme that won me over, but either way, congratulations! Watch for the coveted gift card in the mail. 🙂

Speak up:

| TAGS: