Passing on the Honest Scrap Award

On September 4th, Helen Ginger of Straight From Hel awarded me the Honest Scrap Award. I commented at the time that this award title made me chuckle since I suspected everything on my blog would qualify as scrap. The real meaning of the award, however, is sweet and kind and worthy of sending on to the right folks.

The award rules are simple - pass the award to seven worthy bloggers who post from the heart, and list ten honest things about yourself. Happily, Helen added this: You don’t have to pass it along, unless you want to, but you do have to list 10 honest things about yourself.

On September 8th, I responded to thank Helen and posted the obligatory list about myself, but I reserved the right to pass the award on at a future date. I'm doing that today.

Seven wonderful bloggers who post from the heart:

Janet Lane at Red Plume Press

Maryann Miller at It's Not All Gravy

Kerrie Flanagan at The Writing Bug

Kaye Barley at Meanderings and Muses

Terry Odell at Terry's Place

Lynnette Labelle at Chatterbox Chit Chat

Holly Jahangiri at It's All a Matter of Perspective

Please drop by and visit these bloggers when you have a chance. They deserve a little love.

Poudre River Public Library Writers' Block

Here's what happened at the Writers' Block event at the main library in Fort Collins, Colorado, last Saturday.

Author Cricket McRae and I set up our books and promo materials at tables under an awning on the library grounds a little before noon. The third table under the awning was for the local NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) chapter to recruit participants for the November writing challenge. At the fourth table, materials were available for attendees to make their own bookmarks. And cookies. Lots of cookies.

Not too far away, another awning sheltered a bluegrass band called Horsetooth Mountain Rangers. I'm still humming Homegrown Tomatoes.

The purpose of the event was to create a community-written story with chalk on the sidewalk surrounding the library block. I had the honor of writing the first sentence. Cricket wrote the second. From that point on, participants of all ages took turns adding the next twist to a very complicated tale. At 3:00 PM, I started a sentence to bring the story back to earth (since it had taken flight to a distant galaxy), and Cricket wrote the ending.

The original goal had been to set a record by making it all the way around the block. However, the curvy pattern we established at the beginning didn't help our effort. We might have made it all the way if we had written in a straight line and used really big letters. We'll know better next time.

The weather was perfect. We met a lot of interesting and friendly folks and some amazing children who are already writing stories. An event of this type is more "show and tell" exposure than it is a sales opportunity for authors. To me, it was worth it to spend a beautiful afternoon meeting and talking to nice people. I'm very sorry I didn't take my camera.

Colorado Author -- Will Hobbs

By participating in a fun event at the Poudre River Public Library in Fort Collins, Colorado yesterday, I uncovered the name of another extraordinary and multi-published Colorado author, Will Hobbs. Mr. Hobbs was scheduled to speak after Writers Block (more about the story on the sidewalk tomorrow). Although I wasn't able to attend the Hobbs presentation, I looked up his website and was thrilled with this great find for my Colorado author Monday post.

Author of seventeen books for elementary, middle grade, and YA readers, Hobbs has won multiple awards. His books (and stunning bookcovers) are described in detail on his website. I've selected three examples with short quotes from the site to give you an idea of story content:

GO BIG OR GO HOME

"Brady Steele watches in awe as a fireball comes crashing through the roof of his house. Brady immediately calls up his cousin, Quinn. They both love all things extreme, and this is the most extreme thing ever!

Fred, as Brady names his space rock, turns out to be one of the rarest meteorites ever found. Professor Rip Ripley from the museum in Hill City wants to study a sliver of it in search of extraterrestrial bacteria. He's hoping to discover the first proof of life beyond Earth, a momentous breakthrough for the new science of astrobiology."


CROSSING THE WIRE

"When falling crop prices threaten his family with starvation, fifteen-year-old Victor Flores heads north in an attempt to “cross the wire” from Mexico into the United States so he can find work and send money home. But with no coyote money to pay the smugglers who sneak illegal workers across the border, Victor must struggle to survive as he jumps trains, stows away on trucks, and hikes grueling miles through the Arizona desert."



KOKOPELLI'S FLUTE

"The magic had always been there. 13-year-old Tepary Jones could feel it. Fascinated by Picture House, the ancient cliff dwelling near his parents' Seed Farm, he knew this would be the perfect place to view his first total eclipse of the moon. Waiting for the eclipse to begin, Tep admired the mysterious pictures chipped into the cliff walls by the Ancient Ones. His favorites were two of Kokopelli, the legendary humpbacked flute player. Suddenly Tep's dog Dusty heard noises—robbers with shovels were digging in the red sandstone, destroying the ancient ruins and stealing the priceless treasures! In their haste the vandals left behind a small, polished bone flute. Something told Tep he shouldn't put the flute to his lips, but he did. . . ."


With the holidays threatening to be here before we know it, books for young folks may be of special interest for anyone who'll need gift ideas. Award-winning author Will Hobbs might be the right place to start.

I Have Another Winner!

Ta Da...

The winner of a signed copy of The Desert Hedge Murders (and a bonus gift) is:

Julie Godfrey Miller
Minnesota

Julie's entry was one of the carryover entries from the first drawing. In addition to the book, she will receive a large mug displaying the book's cover on the outside . I order these mugs from zazzle.com. They make it very easy to create your own design, they produce and ship the mug before your can click your heels three times, and they do quality work.

Congratulations to Julie.

Another Way to Win Books

DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TODAY IF YOU WANT TO ENTER THE RUNNING FOR A SIGNED COPY OF THE DESERT HEDGE MURDERS AND A SURPRISE BONUS GIFT. THE DEADLINE IS MIDNIGHT TONIGHT (FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2009 U.S. MOUNTAIN TIME).

Did you know the Mystery Writers of America now has a monthly contest for readers where books by MWA members are given away? Yep, it's true. The September winner was just announced.

There are twelve books in the October contest.

"Losers Live Longer by Russell Atwood
Evidence of Murder by Lisa Black
For Better, For Murder by Lisa Bork
A Trace of Smoke by Rebecca Cantrell
Mind Scrambler by Chris Grabenstein
Matters of the Blood by Maria Lima
Double Exposure by Michael Lister
September Fair by Jess Lourey
Poison Pen by Sheila Lowe
The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz
Identity Crisis by Debbi Mack
Working Stiff by Annelise Ryan"

To enter, follow the rules at the Mystery Writers of America website's Contests for Readers page. You must be a resident of one of the fifty U.S. states to participate.

And just so you know, if you're an MWA member, you can contribute a signed copy of your book for a future giveaway.


DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TODAY IF YOU WANT TO ENTER THE RUNNING FOR A SIGNED COPY OF THE DESERT HEDGE MURDERS AND A SURPRISE BONUS GIFT. THE DEADLINE IS MIDNIGHT TONIGHT (FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2009 U.S. MOUNTAIN TIME).

Mix and Match Thursday

DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TODAY IF YOU WANT TO ENTER THE RUNNING FOR A SIGNED COPY OF THE DESERT HEDGE MURDERS AND A SURPRISE BONUS GIFT.

What I'm Reading This Week:

A few weeks ago I read the Sophie Littlefield interview at Linda Faulkner's Author Exchange Blog. I decided right then I wanted to read Sophie's mystery, A Bad Day for Sorry. A quick search found the book was not available yet at any of the libraries in our region, so I put in a request for a library purchase. I was contacted last week that the book had arrived. Hurrying to finish Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout, I then made a library run.

The main character in this crime novel is a fifty-something sewing shop owner in Missouri. She's also a self-appointed enforcer in her free time, tracking down men who abuse their wives or girlfriends to give them a taste of their own medicine. Here's a short quote from the novel's prologue:

"Whuppin' ass wasn't so hard, Stella Hardesty thought as she took aim with the little Raven .25 she took off a cheating son-of-a-bitch in Kansas City last month."

The rest of that very short prologue is a hoot, but I'm not going to spoil the fun by putting any more of it here. Stella is tough and rough, but she has a real soft heart for the damaged women who come to her for help. Word gets around. After all, Stella took her own husband out with a wrench when she'd had enough of his abusive treatment.

What I'm Thinking About:

The flu. Upcoming travel and a big convention. Lots of people. I swear, if someone coughs on me and I get sick, I'll write him into my next mystery...as a victim.

I'm also thinking about Saturday's two-hour event at the library when community folks will write a story, one sentence at the time, on the sidewalk around the library block. We're using chalk, of course. Local authors (including me) will be there to contribute our sentences to the masterpiece, pass out our bookmarks, and chat about books. Should be a lot of fun.

My Quote of the Week:

"If widowhood had given Stella license to explore her authentic self, menopause stood under the window yelling at the bitch to come out and rumble."
----------Sophie Littlefield in A Bad Day for Sorry

This Week's Recommended Blog:

Susan Helene Gottfried at West of Mars. Susan announces book giveaways, guest bloggers, interviews, and other relevant links. She's very interested in helping promote newly published authors and their books. Stop by West of Mars and get acquainted.

The Best Thing I Had to Eat This Week:

No contest. My hubby and I went to a college football game last Saturday. I had a hot dog. In a bun. With mustard and onions. No, I'm not kidding. We rarely eat hot dogs at home, so this was a treat. Almost as good as chocolate.


DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TODAY IF YOU WANT TO ENTER THE RUNNING FOR A SIGNED COPY OF THE DESERT HEDGE MURDERS AND A SURPRISE BONUS GIFT.

The Second and Last September Drawing

Welcome to the second drawing for a signed copy of the hardcover edition of The Desert Hedge Murders, the second novel in the Sylvia and Willie series. If you follow the title link, you will be able to read the excerpt and synopsis I posted here in August.

There will be a secret bonus gift included with the winner's book (and I promise you'll like it), so please enter. You will not be required to eat dirt, drink sauerkraut juice, or anything like that, to participate.

To enter, please leave a comment at my blog today (Wednesday), Thursday, or Friday. Be sure to include your name and the state where you live for identification purposes. Note that all those who did not win the first drawing (last week) are automatically entered in this one.

At midnight Friday (U.S. Mountain Time), September 25, 2009, I'll cut off the entries and use my scientific and more-random-than-you-can-imagine number-picking method of selecting a winner. I'll announce the winner sometime over the weekend, probably Sunday.

Don't be shy. Just keep thinking about that surprise bonus gift and how sure I am that you'll like it, and you won't be able to resist. Come on. Don't you love surprises? Leave a comment. You know you want to....

Colorado Author -- Warren Hammond

I discovered Warren Hammond at the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Conference when I picked up one of his books in the bookseller's room, thought the story line and main character (Juno Mozambe) were intriguing, and bought copies of both Kop and Ex-Kop.


Here's a quote from the publisher's synopsis of Kop:

"Juno is a dirty cop with a difficult past and an uncertain future. When his family and thousands of others emigrated to the colony world of Lagarto, they were promised a bright future on a planet with a booming economy. But before the colonists arrived, everything changed. An opportunistic Earth-based company developed a way to produce a cheaper version of Lagarto’s main export, thus effectively paupering the planet and all its inhabitants. Growing up on post-boom Lagarto, Juno is but one of the many who live in despair."

One of many interviews and reviews on the web, Dark Wolf's Fantasy Review of Kop from September 16th, 2009 seems the most recent.

I'm eager to read about this dark fantasy world and its gritty hero...as soon as I finish the two library books I picked up last week. But more about that on Thursday.

Check back tomorrow for your second chance to enter the drawing for a signed copy of The Desert Hedge Murders. I'm going to make it so easy for you (and even add a bonus).

I Have a Winner!

Please excuse this tiny deviation from our regularly scheduled Colorado Author Monday (which will be on Tuesday this week), so I may announce the winner of my first drawing for a signed hardcover copy of The Desert Hedge Murders:

Paul David Brazill
Poland

It appears Mr. Brazill is a fan and author of noir, so I hope he has a sense of humor. The Desert Hedge Murders sits at the extreme other end of the crime genre. Readers are cautioned not to take it seriously.

However, I like the idea that my book will soon be on its way to Poland. I also had an entry from British Columbia, as well as entries from six states. Thanks to everyone who participated. And just to show you how much I appreciate your entries, those who did not win are automatically entered in the second drawing which I will announce on Wednesday.

The Desert Hedge Murders -- Book Drawing

It's time for my first drawing of a signed hardcover copy of The Desert Hedge Murders. If you want to read a synopsis and an excerpt before entering, check out the information I posted on August 7th.

This drawing will be tweeted throughout the day today, as well as advertised on several lists and groups. Here's how you enter:

1. Click on my blog photo. That will take you to my website.

2. Click on the Contact button. You'll be on the page that lists scheduled appearances. Near the top is a link that says "E-Mail Patricia." If you click on that link, you should end up in your default e-mail account. For those who cannot get to an e-mail screen that way, leave your cursor on the E-mail Patricia link while you check your toolbar at the bottom left side of your screen. That should tell you the correct e-mail address to use from your own e-mail account.

3. Create an e-mail with "DHM book drawing" in the Subject line.

4. In the body of the e-mail, give me your name and your state or country.

5. Send the e-mail no later than midnight U. S. Mountain Time on Saturday, September 19th, 2009.

6. I will number the entries in the order they come in. On Sunday, I'll draw from my envelope of corresponding numbers to select the winner and will make the announcement on Monday's blog post.

Sound like too much trouble? Don't be wimpy. I'm telling you, your mom (aunt, grandmother, whatever) will love the older ladies in the Florida Flippers travel club.

Mix and Match Thursday

What I'm Reading This Week:

In fiction I'm still working on Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe mystery, Some Buried Caesar. I was sidetracked by the Colorado Gold Conference and the extra sleep required to recover (and the two-hour finale of Big Brother), so I haven't had as much time to read this week.

In nonfiction, I'm studying the food drying section of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Preserving Food by Karen Brees.

What I'm Thinking About:

I admit it. I'm thinking about the state of the nation and all the sub-topics that go with it. But this is a book and writing blog, so we're not going to deal with those weighty issues here.

The writerly stuff on my mind has to do with whether or not to take a Saturday morning screenwriting class which falls on the same day as my ticket to see the stage version of To Kill a Mocking Bird.

What got me interested in screenwriting, you ask? I check in on Alan Chin's blog, A Passage to Now, from time to time, and lately he's been focusing on interest shown in his screenplay and how he's doing a partial rewrite while juggling two other projects. It's pretty interesting stuff if you have that little notion in the back of your mind that you might like to branch out and try something new. Alan also posted the names of books he'd recommend, so if you're interested, here's the link: Writing Good Screenplays.

My Quote of the Week:

So it goes.

----------Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. in Slaughterhouse-Five

This Week's Recommended Blog:

I found K. D. Easley's KD Blog when I followed a link to an article written by mystery author Lonnie Cruse: Writer's Conferences: Are They Worth It? As I read some of the other posts, I knew I wanted to pass on the fun. Another post I especially enjoyed was: How to know if you're a mystery writer.


The Best Thing I Had to Eat This Week:

That's easy. It was the two squares of Lindt Dark Chocolate I had with my popcorn last night (while watching So You Think You Can Dance and Glee).

More Links for Writers Who Want to Know Stuff

I received my newsletter from C. Hope Clark's Funds for Writers and found an interesting article on Web 2.0 Addiction. Web 2.0 is the designation used for social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, as well as blogs, among others. When you follow the link, you'll want to look for the September 13th edition and scroll down the page a little to see the Web 2.0 article.

While you're there, scan the rest of the newsletter and see the kind of quality information you can get regularly if you subscribe. Articles, Competitions, Grants, Freelance Markets, Jobs, Publishers/Agents and more. The cost? Nothing.

Yesterday, Carolyn recommended The Rejecter in her comment. I checked it out and want to pass on the recommendation. Who is The Rejecter?

I am an assistant at a literary agency. I am the first line of defense for my boss. On average, I reject 95% of the letters immediately and put the other 5% in the "maybe" pile.

The Rejecter doesn't post daily, but here's an example of a very effective short blog post: Dumb Things Said in Query Letters.

And finally, here's another pick of the litter from Twitter: a brand new blog called Pinch a Pig Toe. The article I want you to read is called 6 Stages of Twitter. The similarity to the stages of dying is surely accidental...or maybe not. Nevertheless, it's entertaining, and the post was enough to make me want to follow the blog's author on Twitter (at least for a while).

Random Thoughts

I found an interesting blog today. I think I picked the link off Twitter, but I have no idea which Twitter ID, so I apologize for that. If I ever figure it out, I'll let you know. The blog is called: Pimp My Novel. This is good insider stuff from Eric, who works "in the sales department of a major trade book publisher." You won't be disappointed.

Florida mystery writer James O. Born was the closing speaker at last weekend's Colorado Gold Conference. His entertaining and informative talk began and ended with the same observation. The world has never been improved by whining. (Or something like that. I didn't write it down word for word, and my brain is still tired). Anyway, you get the drift. Don't whine about the way things are (or a bad review, or lousy sales, or whatever). Fix it or write something new.

Joseph Finder was the keynote speaker at the banquet on Saturday night. Joe's advice: Write every single day, even if you write only thirty minutes. He's been doing this for years. I think I'll give it a shot. Thirty minutes is doable, even on the worst day.

And finally, I was so tired last night that I could hardly keep my eyes open. Lucky you, I had to keep this post very short so I didn't fall asleep and end up with my nose in the keyboard.

News and Books from the Colorado Gold Conference

I wanted to report on a few of the highlights of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Conference so the usual Monday Colorado Author feature will return next week. I will, however, be mentioning a few of our authors in this post, just to whet your appetite for more good books to come.

First, I have great news. My RMFW friend Kimberly Savage won the writing contest in the action/thriller category. And David Jessup, a member of our Northern Colorado Writers, won the contest in the mainstream category. Although I didn't know any of the other finalists and winners, I understand the quantity of submissions has grown and the quality of submissions was outstanding. In addition to all the great Colorado talent, we had several out-of-state finalists as well. Kinda takes my breath away to think of all those hard-working writers doing the things they need to do to get published (and a wonderful pool of future subjects for my blog).

On Friday, I served as a registration volunteer for a couple of hours before heading off for workshop duty. I moderated or attended the agents' panel, the editors' panel, and workshops on publicity and promotion, Twitter, personal networking, character development (that's fictional character development, not author's character development), and a wonderful workshop given by literary agent Janet Reid on what authors have to know and do for themselves when they do not have agents.

Friday night I participated in the all-author book sale and signing. In between sessions and at meals, I caught up with old friends, made a bunch of new friends, made a couple of excellent business connections, and finally arrived home totally frazzled.

The people connection is always the best part of a conference, but the second best thing is the exposure to books, books, books. Joe Finder was one of our honored guests this weekend, and I now have a signed copy of his new release, Vanished. Joe is not a Colorado author, but he was so darned likable, I figured the book has to be good.

I brought home a list of new (or at least new to me) Colorado authors for future reference, but I bought a few books as well. First on the list was the newly released Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Anthology, Broken Links, Mended Lives.

Next, I was interested in reading something from Pamela Nowak because she was the chairperson for this year's Colorado Gold conference and I found her to be charming and energetic and efficient. Her new release Is Choices, so that's the one I now own.

A favorite Colorado thriller author, Bonnie Ramthun, recently released her first YA novel, The White Gates, so I took this opportunity to buy a copy, after which I tracked her all the way to the lobby for her signature.

And finally, after listening to Warren Hammond discuss his sci-fi noir kop and ex-kop, I was hooked on the character and the story line. I purchased both books, and was lucky enough to catch Warren in the book room for an impromptu, personal signing.

I know. I'm a big klutzy fan with a book addiction. Can't help it.

Colorado Gold Conference Begins Today

Today the conference fun begins. I checked into the hotel yesterday afternoon and played hermit while I caught up on e-mail, and did other online chores. I'll be pretty busy from 11:00 AM today until about 1:00 PM on Sunday.

Be sure to stop by The Blood-Red Pencil today for more tips on self-editing your manuscript.

In addition to tonight's booksigning event at the conference, I now have appearances or signings scheduled at:

Writers Block at Poudre River Public Library District in Fort Collins -- Saturday, September 26th 12:00-3:00PM

Brief signing session after Bouchercon Panel in Indianapolis -- Saturday, October 17th

Barnes & Noble Centerra in Loveland, CO -- Saturday, October 24th tentative time 3:00PM-5:00PM mystery event with other authors

Old Firehouse Bookshop in Fort Collins, CO -- Saturday, November 7th 12:00-2:00PM with mystery author Cricket McRae

Holiday Market at the Senior Center in Fort Collins, CO -- Friday and Saturday, November 27-28 10:00AM-5:00PM Author's Nook with various authors.

I still haven't scheduled an official launch party...can't decide what, where, and when. And I'm still debating the blogbooktour project. The thought of churning out an extra 7-10 blog posts when I could be working on my current novel project makes me feel anxious. But that's a decision for another day. Now it's conference time. Gotta get out there and do my assigned chores, meet lots of new people, connect up with old friends, and have a ball.

Mix and Match

What I'm Reading This Week:

I finished The Neighbor by Lisa Gardner. It was hard to put down, but I was just a tiny bit disappointed by the ending. While I would have thought early on that I would rank it 5 out of 5, I'd have to drop that to something like 4.25 out of 5. That's still pretty darned good, right?

Now I'm reading the all-conference chosen book for Bouchercon, Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout (a Nero Wolfe mystery).


What I'm Thinking About:

Mostly thinking about the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Colorado Gold Conference this weekend. And I'm thinking I'm not even close to being ready. I still have a lot of tasks to do, including my packing. I received my bookmarks and postcards yesterday, thank goodness. I don't know if I'll have a chance to post any conference happenings over the weekend. I'm usually so exhausted by 9:00 that I head for my room and collapse. I'm one wild and crazy woman when I'm away from home.


My Quote of the Week:

"The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof, shit detector. This is the writer's radar and all great writers have had it."
----------Ernest Hemingway, Interview in Paris Review, 1958

This Week's Recommended Blog:

The Blood-Red Pencil (of course): See this week's posts on self-critiquing and self-editing.


The Best Thing I Had To Eat This Week:

I threw together a meal with random ingredients and it came out like shrimp creole made with chicken instead of shrimp. Served it over rice and it was darned good. I added a little ground rosemary and yellow curry powder with my chili powder (and an extra dash of cayenne).

Setting Goals -- The Way I Do It

Here's the final count for my long weekend writing binge: 6,131 words.

My target was 10,000 words. So how would you view the actual words written against the target number? If you were doing the goal setting, and the writing, would you feel you had failed?

Here's the thing about my writing habits. Because I was itching to write, and because I had set aside specific blocks of time to work on my book, I probably would have written 3,000-4000 words if I had set no goal at all. By setting a goal that was much higher than my normal output, and then announcing it to anyone who would listen, I challenged myself to work a little longer and with a little more focus than I would have otherwise. That 6,131 words feels pretty good.

If I set a goal that's reasonable and conservative, my tendency is to be satisfied when I've reached that goal. Meeting the target word count means I can quit for the day. I achieve less when I expect less.

What works best for you--setting an easily achievable goal, or raising the target high enough that you must stretch to reach it?

For more information on goal setting and goal setting exercises, I recommend A Goal Setting Exercise on Tim Northburg's HubPages. Tim is a member of Northern Colorado Writers and recently completed his first fantasy novel: Maddox Finnegan and the Relics of Merlin.

Progress Report and New Awards Received

As I announced last week, I had hoped to add 10,000 words to my novel over the long weekend. Here's my report through Sunday:

Friday: 1,908 Saturday: 1,183 Sunday: 2,366 TOTAL through Sunday: 5,457

I guess I'd have to write all night on Monday to get the job done, wouldn't I? Since I wrote this post Monday afternoon to pre-schedule for Tuesday, and since I planned to work on the book Monday evening, I'll have to let you know how that worked out.

Now for the fun blog awards I received last week.

On September 3rd, Jane Kennedy Sutton passed on the B-I-N-G-O Beautiful Blog Award (naming me B for Beautiful) at her blog, Jane's Ride. Thanks, Jane, that was a sweet surprise. The idea here is to name recipients that fit the following labels: B for Beautiful, I for Informative, N for Neigborly, G for Gorgeous, and O for Outstanding. Since these awards seem to keep hitting a lot of the same bloggers, I'm going to reserve the right to pass on the honor at a later date.

The second award I received last week was on September 4th. Helen Ginger of Straight From Hel awarded the Honest Scrap Award, which made me chuckle since I suspect everything on my blog would qualify as scrap. Hah. I love that.

The award rules are simple - pass the award to seven worthy bloggers who post from the heart, and list ten honest things about yourself. Happily, Helen added this: You don’t have to pass it along, unless you want to, but you do have to list 10 honest things about yourself.

Once again, I'm going to reserve the right to pass the award on at a later date. The ten honest things about myself? Here they are:

1. I had to buy new slacks to wear to next weekend's conference. I don't have to tell you why.

2. I often take on more projects than I should. I keep forgetting how old I am and fail to remember I don't have as much energy as I used to.

3. I feel anxious when the gas in the car falls below a quarter of a tank.

4. I love Ben & Jerry's Coffee, Coffee, Buzz, Buzz, Buzz Ice Cream.

5. I don't pay much attention to other people's expectations. I pretty much do my own thing.

6. I cry at sad movies and while I'm reading sad books.

7. I really miss the little kids my grown-up children used to be. They were the greatest joy in my life.

8. I don't answer the phone unless I feel like it, and I rarely feel like it.

9. I still have the bracelet my first boyfriend gave me when I was in 6th or 7th grade.

10. My mother-in-law died in 2008 at age 97 and my brother's wife died in 2009 (age 61). I miss them both so much more than I ever thought I would.

And that's the truth.

Colorado Author -- Mario Acevedo

Since the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' Colorado Gold Conference is coming up this weekend, September 11-13, it's fitting that this week's featured author would be RMFW's recently announced Writer of the Year, Mario Acevedo. RMFW Writer of the Year is a big deal in these parts, pardner.

Mario's mystery series is about Felix Gomex, a man who went to Iraq as a soldier and returned a vampire. Isn't it to be expected that someone with that kind of background would then become a private detective? In the first novel, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, Felix investigates an outbreak of nymphomania at the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons plant.

In X-Rated Blood Suckers, the vampire detective looks for the killer of a porn star. Felix protects earth women from alien gangsters in The Undead Kama Sutra. In book four of the series, Jailbait Zombie, Felix is sent to get rid of a nest of zombies found in (oh, goodness) Denver.

You probably already suspect that Mr. Acevedo has a sense of humor.

Mario also shares a blog with another author and expert on the vampire life, Jeanne Stein. Visit The Biting Edge to see what these two authors are up to, and find out more about Mario Acevedo and his books (including excerpts and reviews) at his website.

NaNoWriMo vs PaNoWriPro

It's just around the corner. November, I mean. November used to mean Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Now we think of NaNoWriMo.

You know what it is, right?

"National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30."

To be a part of the project, you follow ten easy steps for signing up, writing and logging your word count, and if you finish, uploading your manuscript for validation.

It's a cool way to jump start a novel.

It's not for me, though. I'm already a binge writer, so I know the drill. But I march to a different drummer. I'm binge writing in spurts this month. September. This is PaNoWriPro.

That's right. Patricia's Novel Writing Project. I have some nice blocks of writing time lined up during the next four days. My goal for this round is 10,000 words.

Anyone want to write along?

Mix and Match

What I'm Reading This Week--

I'm just finishing up The Apostle by Brad Thor. This is a satisfying political thriller involving an American doctor kidnapped in Afghanistan and the special team hired by her rich mother to rescue her. Features Scot Harvath, Thor's series character, who is a former covert counterterrorism operative.

Next book on the list (just became available from the Hold I had placed on it at the library): The Neighbor by Lisa Gardner. I've heard a little buzz about this book so am anxious to get started. The beginning of the synopsis says, "...dangers lurking closer than you think. Because even in the perfect family, you never know what is going on behind closed doors."

What I'm Thinking About--

H1N1 flu and pandemics. We now have a few cases on our university's campus. For the first time today, I used one of those sanitary wipe cloths on my cart handle and my hands at the grocery store. I'm stocking a few extra supplies (about the same as we collected for hurricane season when we lived in Florida) in case we're told to stay home at any point.

I have two airplane trips to take this fall, and two writers' conferences to attend. I suspect social distancing will be in order, frequent hand washing, and use of sanitary wipes or hand sanitizer.

This is not a silly virusphobia. The CDC seems to think older people are less vulnerable than younger folks, but I wouldn't want to innocently transmit the H1N1 any more than I'd want to get it myself.

Pay attention to this thing. The CDC couldn't keep up with the testing, so doctors/hospitals are now only required to test and report the cases that are hospitalized. Those are the confirmed numbers you'll see in the paper. For more information, see the H1N1 flu page at CDC.gov.

My Quote of the Week:

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
----Edmund Burke

This Week's Recommended Blog:

Problogger: 9 Things to Do To Make Sure Your Next Blog Post is Read By More Than Your Mom

The Best Thing I Had to Eat This Week:

The grilled buffalo with barbecue sauce at a lunch buffet at (get this) a little French restaurant in the small town of Berthoud, Colorado.

Chipping Away at the To Do List

In case anyone was wondering, I did not win either Lotto or Powerball with those tickets I bought on Saturday. Sorry, Galen, but I only matched one number on each ticket. I was pretty sure my good feelings weren't related to unexpected windfalls. My record with lottery tickets has not been good since the early 90s when my department (at a company in Florida) won $20,000 which gave us about $700 apiece. That was nice, but I've never won more than $3.00 per ticket since then.

However, there were other snippets (and chunks) of good news to validate my feeling that good things would be happening.

First of all, I received the signed contract from Harlequin Worldwide Mystery for my second mystery to be published by their Mystery Book Club in mass market paperback.

Secondly, I was accepted as a vendor author for the well-attended Holiday Market held at our Senior Center the two days after Thanksgiving.

In addition, my volunteer assignments were confirmed for the Colorado Gold conference in Denver, and I get to do all the stuff I wanted to do (which, by the way, includes introducing and watching over the agent panel and the editor panel).

Now, with any luck, the 500 bookmarks and 500 postcards I ordered from printingforless.com will arrive in time for the conference (yes, I did procrastinate a bit too long) I must say, the online .pdf proofs of both look stunning. When I get the real thing, I'll scan the rascals and post a copy on this blog so you can see what I did and how well my vendor handled my order. Two of the things I really like about printingforless.com are: (1) They are service-oriented and they call me on the phone from Montana, and (2) I can design my projects in Microsoft Publisher and upload it in that format.

I also designed a large mug at zazzle.com and ordered six for starters. Honestly, these folks couldn't make the process much easier.

That knocks my To Do List down to something a little more manageable, at least until the postcards arrive and I prepare my mailings. Here's an excellent article on marketing by Linda Faulkner at examiner.com (that just happens to feature my book cover) -- Shameless self-promotion: 9 ways to do it with postcards.

So what's on the lineup for today? Adding some more pages to my current project, ordering a box of books to use as inventory, catching up on a few more chores, and, best of all, getting my monthly massage. I hope you have a great day, too.

Book Reviews -- Don't You Just Love 'Em?

Here are the reasons you want to send advance review copies of your book to as many magazine and online reader review sites as you can:

1. Reviewers are real people. Real people have a variety of preferences, preferred genres, and writing styles. Just because one reviewer doesn't like your book so much, doesn't mean that all reviewers will feel the same way.

2. Reviewers are real people. They have bad days and good days.

3. Reviewers are real people. It's not all that easy to read a book, keep track of the characters, sort out the plot, identify the book's good points and its not-so-good points, and then write a competent, clear report. We're grateful for the book lovers who are willing to perform this service for authors and readers, aren't we?

Aren't we?

Well, sometimes we are and sometimes we aren't.

Here are four nice quotes from the reviews of The Desert Hedge Murders I've received so far:

From Mary Elizabeth Devine for reviewingtheevidence.com:

"The book is told from alternate points of view -- first person by Sylvia and third person focusing on her clairvoyant brother, Willie. That sort of shift is often difficult to handle, but it works out very nicely in this case."

From Lesa Holstine at Lesa's Book Critiques:

"Since the Flippers need to return to Oatman a couple of times, Stoltey has the opportunity to capture the town with all of its charms. ...Sylvia's reactions to the wild burros that actually roam the streets is priceless."

From Harriet Klausner:

"The story line is as fast as Freda the amazon drives her bike and never slows down even when the seniors are a bit tired. Fans will enjoy this zany Nevada-Arizona whodunit."

And from Caryn St. Clair at armchairinterviews.com:

"...there were enough of references to their first adventure to pique my interest so I am going to look for the first book, The Prairie Grass Murders."

And that, my writerly friends, is called selective perception, because there were also less than favorable comments in a couple of those reviews. Each of these reviewers focused on very different aspects of the plot. Each focused on a different character or characters.

Mary said, "She [Sylvia] keeps saying that she realizes what she's doing is stupid but that her pig-headed personality makes her do it anyway. Sorry. Admitting you know something is stupid is no excuse for stupidity."

Lesa says, "Willie, with his lovable quirks, is a more likable character [than Sylvia]."

Harriet added that the story is "...over the top of Hoover Dam," but hey, I decided to take that as a compliment.

Caryn, bless her heart, went very easy on me.

In addition to the review copies sent out by my publisher, I mailed an additional ten or so. As a result, I'm hoping for a few more reviews before mid-September. Lots of feedback gives me a better sense of what's working and what needs to be improved.

Does a negative comment hurt my feelings? Yes, sometimes. But it doesn't last very long. All I have to do is think of all the novels I read and how often I find something I'd pick on if I were to write reviews. If I'm not tough enough to take criticism, then I'd better go back to watching television and crocheting afghans. No risk there.