Good News

I'm going to start off the conference posts with good news. There was plenty to be had.

I believe I mentioned here that I had an agent appointment at conference. I met with the lovely Emmanuelle Morgen (formerly Alspaugh). I was excited and nervous in turn, but in the end, Ms. Morgen was very good at putting me at ease at the beginning of our meeting.

It was my first time pitching and I had no idea what to expect. I had a whole spiel memorized and turned out, I didn't need it. She asked about me. Seemed interested that I wrote erotic romance. Asked about my novel. Said it sounded interesting and like something she represented but wouldn't know for sure until she'd read some of it. Asked me to send the first three chapters.

That's right, my friends. A partial request.

I'm sure that's par for the course, but it's exciting for me anyway. So, I'm running it through one more spit and polish, one more round through my fabulous critique partners and then I'm going to send it off with REQUESTED MATERIAL big and bold.

That's my personal good news.

I've mentioned on here that 4 of my chapter mates from the Austin chapter were up for Golden Heart/Rita awards. I'm proud to say that 2 of them won!

Sherry Thomas won the RITA for Best Historical Romance with Not Quite a Husband and Laura Griffin won the RITA for Best Romantic Suspense!

Another chapter mate, Jane Sevier, won the Scriptscene contest.

Very exciting.

And my last piece of good news for the day. I'm going to be a full-time author again. At least for a little while. I turned in my resignation letter and my last day will be 2 weeks from today. I've enjoyed the craft shop and it's definitely helped keep my creative juices flowing but with everything on my plate, it was too much.

Do you have any good news to share? I'd love to hear it.

Blogmania is Here!

Welcome to Blogmania!
 My Blog is 64 of 123

You've arrived at exactly the right time to explore lots of new blogs, all of which, ARE GIVING AWAY A VERY SPECIAL BLOGMANIA GIVEAWAY  (For One Day Only – April 30^th) .

We've done all the work for you. No hunting or surfing. Each blog will have a number and each new blog link will have a number. These numbers will allow you to keep track of which blogs you've visited and how many are left to visit. Why not take a moment to make a list of blog numbers 1-123 and check off the blogs as you go.

I know you'll want to visit as many blogs today as you can. So, if you see something that interests you on any of our participating blogs, why not bookmark that site. Later, when you have more time, you can discover all its fabulous treasures. 

CLICK! CLICK! CLICK! MY GIVEAWAY and RULES: I'm calling my giveaway A Month of Sundays Relaxation Kit. 2 yummy candles from Colonial Candle, bubblebath from Bath and Body Works, 4 great books (The Christmas Present by Tracy Wolff, Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas, Whisper of Warning by Laura Griffin and Stellar Heat by Scarlett Jameson) and a $25 gift card. Great prize, right? And easy to qualify. All you have to do is become a follower. On the left, under the Blogmania badge, is a button that has the Google symbol and says Follow. Click it and sign up to become a follower. I'll be announcing the winner of the prize on Monday's blog entry, so make sure you come back!

Next week, I'll be blogging about my weekend trip to Holland.

Below is a small group of links. At each site, you'll find even more. From those sites, even more still. You get the idea. Each blog has their own criteria for their giveaway, so read carefully. Have fun checking out all these great sites. Have a great weekend!

(Blog- 1 – HOST OF BLOGMANIA) Between The Pages - http://betweenthelinesandmore.blogspot.com/

(Blog -2 – CO-HOST OF BLOGMANIA) The Black Sheep Dances - http://www.theblacksheepdances.blogspot.com

(Blog-43 - CO-HOST OF BLOGMANIA) Books, Books Everywhere - http://bookywooks.blogspot.com/

(Blog-6) Ashleyladd - http://www.ashleyladd.blogspot.com

(Blog-27) Blackberry Jam Café - http://www.BlackberryJamCafe.blogspot.com

(Blog-34) Reading AT The Beach - http://www.readingatthebeach.com/

(Blog-54) Paper Cut Reviews - http://papercut-reviews.blogspot.com/

(Blog-90) SMS Book Reviews - http://smsbookreviews.blogspot.com

(Blog-111) Deanna's Tidbits - http://deannajewel.blogspot.com

(Blog-120) I Sew Cute and Draw Pretty Nifty Also - http://isewcute.blogspot.com/

Almost time for Blogmania

Only a couple more days and Blogmania will be here. April 30^th. This Friday. You will find tons of great blogs to explore, on all topics. And best of all? We're all giving away some great prizes. Each blog will have their own guidelines for their giveaway, so please read each one carefully. I've finally decided on my giveaway. In order to be eligible, all you have to do is become a follower. On the left side of the screen, there is a button with the Google symbol and the word Follow. On Friday I will move it up so that it is underneath the Blogmania badge. Click that button and become a follower. Easy, right? If you're already a follower (thank you very much), you're good to go.

So what goodies am I giving away? Good question. I'm calling it A Month of Sundays Relaxation Kit. A mouthful, I know. I call it this because I love to settle into a warm bubble bath, with flickering candles and read a great book. That is a little slice of heaven for me, and I hope it appeals to you too.

We'll start with 2 yummy candles from Colonial Candle. Then, while you're running your bath water, pour in some bubble bath from Bath and Body Works. Now that we've set the mood and gotten our water ready, what to read?

There are 4 Sundays in a month. Usually. So, 4 books it is. Which 4 books, you ask? Quite a selection, in several different genres. I'm a member of the Austin RWA chapter, even though I'm over here in Germany now. Recently, our chapter had a bunch of good news. 3 of our published authors were finalists for the RITA award. If you don't know what this is, the easy answer is that it's the Emmys of the romance writers world. A very big deal. So I will include all three of these books, plus a copy of my own that just came out last week.

The Christmas Present by Tracy Wolff
Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas
Whisper of Warning by Laura Griffin
Stellar Heat by Scarlett Jameson

And, last but not least, if I've missed a crucial ingredient that you require for total relaxation, I'm also including a $25 Visa gift card.

Remember, all you have to do to be in the running is to become a follower. And as a teaser. I know a lot of you like the little glimpses I give to my time in Europe. I'm heading to Holland this weekend, so next week will be a European extravaganza!

What do you think of my prize? Interested?