Tuesday, August 28, 2012

The end of another summer

With August quickly approaching its end, we'll soon be saying good-bye to summer and hello to fall. September is just a few short days away and with it comes cooler nights, golden leaves and my favourite season. 

I love everything there is about fall. The smells, the colours, getting to wear hoodies all the time, being able to take out my A/C and have my hydro bill go down--at least for the one month until I have to turn my furnace on because winter will soon be upon us. But the best thing about this wonderful season? No more thunderstorms. Little thundershowers with a few claps of thunder I can handle, but when that severe warning goes up all I can think about is being tossed around like a feather by a tornado. Xanax and I could be BFFs during the summer if I allowed it. Yes, I'm terrified of thunderstorms--yet like the sound of thunder. Go figure. 

Another thing to look forward to: school is back in. Yes, as sad as I am that my baby, my last little munchkin, is going to be in Kindergarten I'm also excited that both children will be in school. My youngest thrives on attention and interaction with others, and my oldest is more of a loner (like his mama) and needs to have that interaction so he learns to open up. And school time for them means sleep catch up for Mama. I mean work. Work catch up. 

So how did I spend my summer? I'd like to say that I traveled a lot, discovered new things, learned new languages and came back with so many stories to tell that I have material for my next five books. Instead, I stayed home, played a lot of Wii with the kiddos, caught up on some old TV shows, did some reading and not a whole lot of work. It was great, the perfect lazy summer. Not novel material great, but "mom" great. 

How do I plan to enjoy the last few days of summer freedom? Lying on a beach with the sun in my face, the sand between my toes listening to the splashing of the waves. No. Wait. I'm confusing my life with my character's. I get to celebrate the end of summer by partying it up at our annual rodeo. Because let's face it, cowboys in dirty jeans and hot hats beat the beach any day. 








Monday, August 13, 2012

Today is the day

You can now pre-order your paperback copy of Risking It All! Dean shares my excitement, as you can see ;)


That means there are only four weeks - four weeks! - until PUB day. I really am so proud of RIA and all the work that went into it, not only by me but also by my fabulous editing team. And I cannot wait to share it with you!

For those of you who are waiting for the ebook, that will be available September 13 - RIA release date. But for those who share my love of a real book still (you cannot beat the smell of a book!) you can order your paperback copy here.

Let's all do the Dean Winchester happy dance now!


Friday, August 10, 2012

Those "dreaded" ratings and reviews


To say that I’m excited about the reviews I’ve gotten for Risking It All would be an understatement. Sure, they haven’t all been 5 stars, but it’s still thrilling to see so many people have read it or put it on their to-read list.

I was asked today how I feel about the 1 and 2 star reviews. I’m pretty sure the person was expecting the “it sucks” answer. But does it really suck?

 Am I disappointed that those people didn’t like the book? Sure. As an author you hope that everyone is going to fall in love with your work. Except… that’s not realistic, is it? Even the most popular books/authors have people who dislike or downright hate them. So yes, getting a bad review is part of the job. But it’s not the end of the world. I can’t please everybody, right? And by getting those “bad” reviews it actually helps me see what I’m doing wrong and how I can change it and make my next book that much better.

So how do I feel about those stars that just don’t make it past second? Disappointed? Of course. I think all authors are. Discouraged? Meh, not so much anymore. Angry? Not a chance. It’s not something to be mad about. People get pissed at each other all the time for lying, so why would I be angry by the truth? Yes, it’s personal when someone says they don’t like what you’ve done but not enough to get defensive and pissed. It’s their opinion, something everyone is entitled to.

In the end, it really just comes down to me being happy with what I’ve done. After all, I did this to prove to myself I could. I’ll take what the reviewers have to say about my books (good or bad) and move on˗˗appreciating each and every single one of you along the way.

Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Risking It All Virtual Tour

The big day for Risking It All's release is fast approaching! September 13 is PUB day and you know what that means, right? My publishing house is now looking for bloggers who are interested in participating in the virtual tour.

If you're interested in reviewing Risking It All, or have already reviewed it and want to do a author interview, character interview (which I have never done but it sounds like fun!) or have me write a guest post for your blog, simply fill out the form I'll link below and voila! You're part of the tour.

There will be giveaways along the way for bloggers who want to host them and I have a little something special planned also. Since Last Call's one year anniversary is coming up (how can it be a year already since I first published?!) I am giving away a signed copy of both Last Call and Risking It All. More details about the grand prize giveaway will be revealed closer in a couple of weeks.

In the meantime, if you would like to participate in the tour, which will run from September 9-13th, here's how

Risking It All Virtual Tour form