One of the best things about Speedbo is hearing the astonishment voiced by our participants regarding how much they accomplished. It's not about winning. It's about running the race. And these writers are. We are entering week 4 of 5 of Speedbo. How are you doing?
We Have Winners
Giveaway rules can be found here. Please drop us a line to claim your giveaway at seekers@seekerville.net. All prizes not claimed in 8 weeks go back into the prize vault. We wish we could contact all our winners individually, but we'd rather write books! And P.S. - if we forget to send your prize DO let us know after 8 weeks per our rules.
Did you claim your giveaway from Last Week?
This week's winner of a $25 Amazon Speedbo gift card is Jessica Laurie. Winner of a one chapter manuscript critique is Kav. The box of books winner is Heidi Robbins.
All prizes are mailed out April 1. During Speedbo we write.
Comment any day this week to win the VERY SAME GIVEAWAYS in week four of Speedbo! Remember that you must either be enrolled in Speedbo for the gift card and critique or have declared yourself a cheerleader for the box of books! Let us know how you're doing and if you want to be entered!
Love Inspired Historical author Janet Dean will shared tips on writing internal monologue in her Monday post "Introspection: The Advantages and Pitfalls." Winner of a $15 Amazon gift card is Janet Ferguson.
Tuesday Love Inspired editor Emily Rodmell was our special guest, sharing how writers can turn a few pages a day into multiple books each year. And she shared the new Love Inspired writing challenge...From Blurb to Book! Winners of the surprise book packages are: Walt, Martha H., Mz. Zey Zey, Crystal Barnes, Sarah Claucherty, Connie Queen, Candee Fick, Helen, Tracey Hagwood, Julie Hilton Steele, Cynthia Herron, Becky Dempsey, Amanda Barratt, Lily O, Connie from "Older & Smarter"
Love Inspired Author Debby Giusti blogged on Wednesday. She talked about “Speedbo—Quality vs. Quantity.” Winner of Debby’s March release—an Amish suspense story—entitled, “STRANDED,” is Dee LeRoy.
Thursday Abingdon Press and Love Inspired author Lisa Carter returned with a Speedbo post entitled, "Story Weaving—10 Fundamentals in Writing the Romantic Suspense Novel." Terri Wangard and Olivia are the winners of her latest release, Vines of Entanglement.
Friday Tina Radcliffe shared what some of your favorite authors do when they're STUCK. Winner of The 12 Key Pillars of Novel Construction is Barbara Scott. Winner of Rock Your Novel is Wilani.
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Next Week in Seekerville
Monday: "How does your Speedbo garden grow, Part I. " Pam Hillman is your hostess today and she’s going to talk about the weeks and months you’ve spend preparing the fertile ground for Speedbo and the time you’ve spent sowing your words in March.
Tuesday: Sandra Leesmith is your hostess today and she'll share some tips about "Swag and Promotional Tools" to have around for all occasions.
Wednesday: Today we're going to barrel into the last days of SPEEDBO with Ruth Logan Herne as she shares "Contemporary vs. Historical: The Rest of the Story." And to further your April reading joy, Ruthy is giving away two copies of both the With This Kiss Historical Collection and two copies of the With This Kiss Contemporary Collection!
Thursday: Erica Vetsch stops in Seekerville today to talk about courage. “Courage doesn’t mean you’re not afraid. It means you stuff your fear into your hat and then sit on your hat.” Erica will be giving away a copy of The Homestead Brides Collection -Autographed by all NINE Authors!
Friday: Time for the April Contest Update. Stop by to meet the April Contest Diva/Divo. The prize vault will be open!
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Seeker Sightings
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| Available for Preorder Here. |
Award-winning author Debby Giusti will sign copies of her latest Love Inspired Suspense, STRANDED, on Thursday, March 26, from 4-6:30 PM, at Omega Book Center, 100 North Peachtree Parkway, Peachtree City, GA. This seventh book in her Military Investigations series is dedicated to Frank Forth, a member of the Greatest Generation who fought in the Battle of the Bulge.
Proceeds from the signing will benefit Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge, Inc., and Bugles Across America, a non-profit organization that honors veterans by providing buglers who play a live rendition of Taps at their funerals. The event is open to the public. Refreshments will be provided. Orders can also be phoned in at 770-487-3977, and autographed copies can be held for pickup or mailed.
10-BOOK GIVEAWAY!! Ten authors of historical romance including our very own Julie Lessman have teamed up to bring you a fun giveaway, so here’s the link and GOOD LUCK!!
10-BOOK GIVEAWAY!! Ten authors of historical romance including our very own Julie Lessman have teamed up to bring you a fun giveaway, so here’s the link and GOOD LUCK!! - See more at: http://seekerville.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-weekend-edition-speedbo-week-2.html#sthash.KXGTlkOt.dpuf
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| Time to Run! |
RWA RITA & GOLDEN HEART ANNOUNCEMENTS THIS WEEK! March 26, 2015 E-mails and phone calls to notify finalists will commence. Release of official finalist list on RWA's website by 2 p.m. CT.
How Harlequin Became the Most Famous Name in Romance (Pictorial)
Want to Know More About the Structure of Your Favorite Books and Movies? Announcing the Story Structure Database! (K.M. Weiland)
8 Tips on Writing Faster – and Why You Should Try It (Writers In the Storm)
Announcing! From Book to Blurb Contest (Harlequin)
How to Write a Perfect Webpage (ContentAudit.biz)
Solving The Discoverability Problem: Virtual Reality And The Future Of Publishing (The Creative Penn)
Harlequin Teen is partnering with Seventeen Magazine to publish original novels as Seventeen Books. These books, to be available in hardcover and ebook formats, will feature ” multi-dimensional and empowered fictional female characters and explore topics and situations that authentically reflect the challenges and joys of being a teenager today.” The first titles will be released in 2016. Though no specific guidelines for the Seventeen books have been released, you can read more about Harlequin Teen here.(Cindi Myers Market News's Blog)
HarperCollins Looks to Sell Books via Twitter (PW)
ECPA announces 2015 Christian Book Award finalists (Christian Retailing)
And because the very patient Susan Mason's Tips for my post yesterday on Getting Unstuck..GOT STUCK in my emails, I am posting it here with apologies. Thanks for being patient, Susan! This week we'll do a giveaway of Susan's debut Love Inspired novel, Healing the Widower's Heart too! Just say you want it. One print and one ecopy. Winners announced in the next Weekend Edition.
Tips on Getting Unstuck in Your Writing — from Susan Mason
If I’m having trouble with a particular scene, or I don’t know what to write next, the best way for me to get unstuck is to write a fun scene. For instance, I love writing the first kiss scene (or any kiss scene, for that matter!) So if I’m really stuck, I invent a kissing scene, which may or may not be included in the final draft. If action or drama excites you, imagine a fight scene between two rival males, or an argument between a father and son, or two sisters. Ramp up the tension and angst! Make your characters squirm! Writing for fun gets you away from the scene that is giving you so much grief and gets the creative juices flowing —and who knows, sometimes you might even learn a new facet of your characters from that scene. Characters have a funny way of surprising you!
That's it! May your Speedbo Week 4 be productive!
Great WE, Miss T!!
ReplyDeleteCongrats to all the winners!!
YAY SPEEDBO!!!!
And thank you to the cheerleaders who are rooting us all on toward our goal!
Happy Spring, and Happy Speedbo!
Hugs, Patti Jo :)
p.s. Yes, I got carried away with all my !!!! ;) But Springtime is here, and Speedbo is going great, so it's exciting, LOL!!
ReplyDeleteLate two weeks in a row. I should be shot. My internet was problematic. Sorrreeee!
ReplyDeleteI've been reading those links, but I've come back to get the coffee brewing. Done!
ReplyDeleteI love the WE's.
I wasn't going to mention that you are late to make the coffee, Helen since I was late.
ReplyDeleteI love prizes... AND books! Thank you SO much!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to all winners, and sending positive energy and ongoing prayers for all Speedbo folks!
Another great W.E., Tina! You. Rock!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful week ahead with awesome posts galore and the Golden Heart & RITA announcements, too. Can't wait to see how many Seekers' and Seekervillagers' names are on the lists.
Helen: I'm heading to bed, but I'll take a big cup of that hot brew in a few hours! Thanks ! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat WE edition Tina. A big congratulations going out to all the winners this week!
ReplyDeleteI'm praying that all you Speedbo participants achieve your goals this month and beyond. Happy Speedboing!
Everyone have a blessed weekend!
Smiles & Blessings,
Cindy W.
Wheeee --- thanks for the critique win!!!! I'm excited (and shaking in my boots. LOL)
ReplyDeleteGreat links -- the history of Harlequin was interesting...loved a glimpse at those earlier book covers. :-) And funny how the whole company came about as almost an afterthought. And the author hit the mark at the beginning of the article, talking about the public impression and even prejudice of Harlequin books.
I recently decided to 'get real' and confessed my writing ambition to a long time friend and mentor (she's a retired English teacher) and man, did she shoot me down! I told her I was entering the Book2Blurb contest and scathing doesn't begin to describe her diatribe. She's called me twice since then to continue the verbal attack. Words like rubbish, trash, waste of time, diminished intellect. Sigh. This is the reason I am a closet writer in my real life. I fear she's not the only one who will react that way. So thankful for Seekerville which provides me a safe place to land.
Oh wow, Kav, so sorry for the negativity you had to deal with this week. There will always be those who don't understand our love of certain types of books and the desire to write them too. I've encountered this mindset also, but don't let that discourage you!
ReplyDeleteBe who you are, love what you love and be proud of it. Seekerville is a safe place for both writers and readers alike, kindred spirits who are rooting for you!
Congrats Winners!
ReplyDelete(((hugs))) Kav...
But you see, English teachers usually don't write novels do they?
Seriously, what IS her point? Is she trying "to protect you" or "save you from yourself" or "afraid you'll be successful" or just WHAT?
When I gathered my courage enough, I'd ask her what her bottom line is...
Gracious. Sounds like you both could use a dose of Philippians 4:8 (NIV) Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
If you are writing for the Lord, what she has told you is an absolute lie. Don't believe it!!! (((hugs)))
Thanks for the coffee Helen, I am ready. Off to read Story Structure Database and 8 Tips on Writing Faster to get me going, then off to get words on paper for May's 4th adventure.
Tina, once again, you've outdone yourself. I'm more than 1/2 way to my writing goal, which is particularly shocking since I essentially lost 6 days week before last. The quality of the words is *just* *awful* but those can be fixed. Lots and LOTS of layering to do, characters to develop farther (or is that further. ack.) but it's getting there.
I've especially appreciated checking in with the folks at 1K1H on Facebook. Keeps me rallying!
Thanks to Seekers one and all. Know we'll be seeing familiar names in the big announcements coming up!!!
#Speedbo2015 #NoLimits
I'm enjoying some of Helen's coffee and a muffin while reading Tina's great WE, perfect Saturday morning with some of my favorite people.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy for all the winners this week.
I'd like to read Susan Masons "Healing the Widowers Heart", so include me in that drawing.
The finish line is in sight, so press on toward the prize of achieving your own personal writing goals SPEEDBOERS! Cheering you on from the sidelines!
Congrats to all the winners.
ReplyDeleteI'm off to the Saguaro Chapter RWA meeting this morning to attend a workshop on The Five Keys to Finishing Your Story presented by Nancy Ellen Dodd.
I'm hoping this will help with my current Speedbo project as I'm in the middle and you know how that is? I don't like this sag. yikes.
And doesn't this count as speedbo stuff? I hope so.
Happy writing this week.
Thanks for the great Weekend Edition, Tina!
ReplyDeleteCongrats to our winners!
Sue Mason, wonderful suggestion for getting unstuck!
The end of SpeedBo is in sight. I've got to pick up the pace to make that finish line.
Janet
Kav, I'm sickened by a teacher's reaction to your dreams. Shame on her for being a literary snob. Be proud that you're a wordsmith. God planted that dream. It's the right one.
ReplyDeleteJanet
Congratulations to all the winners!
ReplyDeleteI am amazed that I have already met one goal and zoomed right on past. I set a goal to write 1k a day and as of last night I've written 35,915. Another goal was to finish the novel I started last year for speedbo and I estimate that I may not get it done. But it is now over 90,000.
Because of the accomplishments of this Speedbo, I have been encouraged that I can continue this and plan to enter the blurb to book with Love Inspired. This is all a brand new thing for me and I am scared but know the challenge will be good for me even if I don't make it past the first round.
I want to thank all of you for your help and encouragement this last year.
Kav, I just want to encourage you to keep on and don't let what that English teacher said, get you down.
ReplyDeleteI had a similar situation last summer, only the English teacher was my mother so the devastation I felt was huge. I put the work aside for awhile to regroup, but now I am back working on it.
Thanks for the kind words everyone. Seekervillains are the bestest. But writing 100 word blurbs is not.
ReplyDeleteKav, I'm sorry that your English teacher friend treated you that way.
ReplyDeleteI've been fortunate. Two retired English teachers have been among my local book buyers/readers, and they have been extremely encouraging. They see that I am WRITING. I hope your friend will come to the realization that you are putting action to your dream, not just talking about it.
KAV !!! Just now read your comments about your "teacher-friend" who was so unkind to you. That is shameful. Bless your heart (said very sincerely) for continuing on with your goals - - please know your Seeker friends are all behind you. GO KAV!!!!
ReplyDeleteSending gentle hugs AND a warm Peach cobbler to you.
Blessings, Patti Jo :)
Congrats to this week's winners! What a haul!!!
ReplyDeleteReally??? It's March 21 already??? Speedbo Month is speeeeeeding by!!!
The good news for me is that I've already written over 22K of my wip! Granted, I began a couple of days early, the last week of February, but Speedbo has kept me motivated to press on with the story!
KAV!!! I can't believe your friend could be so insensitively cruel! And not just once, but calling you back again and again to continue her rant? Actually, this makes me sad for her. I wonder what dreams she's locked away in a closet and now can't stand to see you pursue your own.
BTW, Kav, writing that 100-word blurb may be the hardest part. Never easy to distill our story ideas down to the merest essence!
ReplyDeleteKav - be true to yourself and the stories God lays on your heart! Just Keep Swimming! Just Keep Swimming!
ReplyDeleteI've got anotherr 3,000 words this week. Funny Speedbo for most is getting them on the page and I need to get them off!
Hahaha! I meant I've CUT 3,000 words this week~
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tina, for including my blurb here and for the giveaways!
ReplyDeleteKAV, how awful for someone to react that way to you sharing your dream. I think Myra is right and she is jealous that you are getting close to achieving your dream. You can do it!! We are all proof of that! Sending hugs and prayers!
Sue
Speedbo check in. This week hasn't been great, but no matter my desire to write has not wavered and even though I couldn't hit my goals I wrote! That's been a blessing considering a year ago I had no desire for anything. Thank you for the good thoughts and cheerleading.
ReplyDeleteKav, this is the world of the literary reader.
ReplyDeleteMass market writing is appalling to them.
So now you got hit with it and you move on.
We all get slammed with this. It's a part of being a mass market writer.
And I can tell you a few things you need to remember.
1. We do not write for our readers or our critics. We write for God. Don't disobey his calling.
2. You can remember this woman when you cash your first royalty check.
3. Writer friends are here to tell you that WE LOVE YOU AND WHAT YOU WRITE.
Love, as usual all your wonderful content and links! No words typed yesterday for #Speedbo, BUT my husband, son and I got to spend the day with my Nana in Lake Havasu and arrived home again early this morning. We are hitting the road for Williams, AZ to enjoy the sites and in my hopes some new characters. Pen & notebook in bag. Will write tonight.
ReplyDeleteThis week we are going to finish strong! Cheering you on and praying for good things for you all!
Congratulations to all the winners!
Once again, thanks everyone. Good points, Tina....and I just got off the phone from my friend and endured another lecture. She's worried I've lost my mind because I'm on disability leave and she's afraid I'm turning into 'one of those' whatever that means. LOL. She's always been outspoken and opinionated, but it's getting worse as she ages.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to be able to come here and be cheered on. And yes, I finally stood up for myself and told her we'd have to agree to disagree and I didn't want to discuss this any more. Maybe she'll stop calling now. :-)
Back to those 100 words...honestly, if I could count all the blurbs I've written this week, my speedbo goal would have been met already!
Congratulations winners!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Speedbo-ers!!
So much happening in Seekerville this week. I love it.
The how-to links look marvelous, T!
Gearing up for the big finalist announcement for the RITAs and Golden Heart. Good luck to all who entered.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe it's that time of year again.
Kav...this was a FRIEND?? Wow. Was is writing a book or writing romance or writing Christian romance she's so upset about? No matter her reason, her reaction is so NOT COOL!
ReplyDeleteI'm behind you all the way, honey. You go, girlfriend, get that ms written and finished!
AND enter Book2Blurb. If you need personal one-on-one encouragement, let me know!!
I forgot to mention that I would love a copy of Susan Masons book.
ReplyDeleteRuthy, I finished your novella and loved it no surprise there!
ReplyDeleteGreat WE. Birds are chirping here. It's warming up, and I want to go out and dig in the flower beds. I don't know why, because I'm NOT a gardener, so after about 30 minutes, I'm ready to quit.
ReplyDeleteI have a bunch of "pass-along" seeds I got from a workshop a few weeks ago. The hostess with the green thumb assured me these would grow anywhere and that I couldn't KILL THEM.
BUT I must resist the urge to play in the dirt until all my Speedbo work is done.
Still, the grass is SO GREEN and it's feels like Spring here in MS ... :)
Great WE! Congratulations to all the winners and Speedbo counts.
ReplyDeleteKav I'm praying for your blurb to wow the LI editors!
Hi Kav:
ReplyDeleteThey teach the 'Romance novel' at Yale for college credit.
And Yale is not alone in this.
Somewhere I have a college textbook on the romance novel. These are serious courses and they are not anti-romance genre.
Your friend's views, are objectively wrong, and have been so for probably at least 50 years -- if they were ever correct for the majority of romance novels in the first place.
I have a relative who had the same hostile views for years of romance novels and then one day she read a Christian romance. (It was the only reading material available.)
Now she can't stop reading them!
"There is nothing objectionable in these stories", she said to explain why she was now reading and loving romance novels.
I'd be nice to your friend. I suggest using the three F method of changing her mind.
The 3 F Method
1. I understand how you can 'feel' that way.
2. Many other people have 'felt' the same way.
3. But this is what many people have 'found' out:
(Give the reason below).
"The romance novel has improved to the point where even Yale, and other fine universities, are offering college credit courses on the genre. Some of the best writing being published today can be found in the romance genre.
"If you could convince yourself that some romance writing provides very high quality, rewarding reading, would you at least give one a try?
"Let me give you "Winter's End," to read. This is an inspirational romance that college professors read with pleasure. Go ahead. Give it a try. And be prepared to be delighted!"
****
I suggest "Winter's End" because, as an academic myself, I know that the more death, dying, pain and suffering in a novel, the more it seems like real literature to these people.
Vince
P.S. I haven't given the "3 F" talk in a long time. I miss it. : )
I was here early, went to a couple of links and then had to work.... but work I did, so this is my reward!!!!
ReplyDeleteComing back over to Seekerville and seeing all these fun things! First, congrats to all the winners! I know having Emily here was crazy fun and I hope you all enjoy whatever surprise package you get!
And those links, oh my stars, the Harlequin one (TINA!!!!! THEY WROTE A POST LONGER, WAY LONGER, LIKE WAY, WAY LONGER THAN ME AND JULIE!!!!)
And then the website one, but I got depressed because I'm clearly doing it all wrong...
AAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!
KAV...
ReplyDeleteOh my stars, I'm so sorry that happened to you.
How many books has your former teacher written?
OY!
I remember when I first came out of the romance closet and got a reaction like that. I was in Philly, hanging out at Penn, an Ivy League university, and waiting for my son. Another mother asked what I did and I said I write romance... and she made a face like I was possibly leprous and most likely mentally challenged, and certainly beneath here.
Oh, piffle.
The next time was when Tina and I went to BEA in NYC and an avante garde woman scoffed at BOTH OF US!!! YIKES! And then the last time was on a plane, heading to Omaha and a rich, cultured, snobbish woman informed me that she knew XXXXXXX who lives in Omaha and made quite a bit of money selling rubbish.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH.
Who cares what people think? Each time I get a letter from a reader or an abused woman or someone who's lost a mom or dad or spouse to Alzheimer's. Gosh, Kav, I know I'm right where God wanted me to be.
Shrug 'em off. That's what I do.
VINCE!!!!! ROF, LOL!!!!
ReplyDeleteYou're so right! I'm one step shy of Oprah!!!!!
LAUGHING!
And then thanking you because I always love it when you recommend my work. You make me smile.
VINCE: You have to tell me if you love my historical coming out in a few weeks.
I want you to love it, of course, but I always feel better about things when you do! :)
Kav, you brought all kinds of folks out of the woodwork! I just called to order more brownies for today!
ReplyDeleteOopsey for monopolizing the thread, but I sure am thrilled with everyone's input.
ReplyDeleteAnd Vince, you can come up here and champion romance to my friend any day. Just wait until the snow melts. LOL
The crazy thing is this woman doesn't read 'literature'. She reads mass market paperbacks that you can get at the grocery store including romance. What she objects to is a Harlequin brand.
Okay -- back to the WE stuff. :-)
That woman was a children's writer at BEA. I shall never forget it. She was excited to run into fellow authors and then disappeared when she found out what we write.
ReplyDeleteThank you to all the generous Seekers and their author friends for encouraging us and continuing giveaways! It is not so easy to write in sunny Phoenix with spring training games, hanging with my family and enjoying wearing sandals again. Back to writing today using both Tina's Friday blog and my romantic suspense checklist.
ReplyDeleteI am always excited to see what Seekerville has given us for the day!
ReplyDeleteSpeedbo: I am so excited to finally be seeing my WIP wrapping up! I typed more from my notebook and the date next to the parts I typed today said 'January 2014'. I've been working on this story FOREVER!
Olivia, go you!!!! I know what you mean, I use my mini-reward system (and get up super early, long before the ball players do!) to deal with those temptations.
ReplyDeleteBecky, YAY!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's the progress, the making of a new, daily habit, that makes me jump for joy with you guys!
I have just met Speedbo Goal 2.
ReplyDeleteGoal #1 was to complete the edits on the 94K book "Refuge of the Heart" which comes out in September.....
DONE!
Goal #2 was to finish my second beautiful Waterbrook cowboy story... Nick and Elsa's story, working title "Home on the Range".
DONE!
DONE!!!
DONE! DONE! DONE!
I am a happy woman.
I'm not lying a bit, I am happy. And that's the truth. :)
Yes, Tina, she was a SNARKY CHILDREN'S AUTHOR.....
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm laughing all the way to the bank.
Whatever.
Okay - - have to comment just one more time to say I am giggling at Ruthy's "when I came out of the romance closet" comment - - LOL!! I'm not sure why but that struck me as so funny, so thank you for the giggles today, Ruthy!
ReplyDeleteNow, on to my Speedbo goal for today! :)
What a great tea break reading about all these accomplishments and winners.Congrats to each of you.
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed for any of you who entered contests -- can't wait to cheer accomplishments in that regard. Although, entering a contest is a big accomplishment on its own.
Good links, Tina. I spent some pleasurable time reading the story structure of "Master and Commander," one of my all-time favorite movies. I'll think about how virtual reality might affect publishing and reading after I finish Speedbo :-)
A BIG THANK YOU to all the Speedbo cheerleaders!
Nancy C
Patti Jo, LOL! It's kind of like that, though, as if it's a scarlet "A" across our bosoms! Poor Hester Prynne, she was the romance author of her time!
ReplyDeleteKAV, it strikes me that the lady with negative remarks is simply not your reader.
ReplyDeleteHer loss.
Lots of your readers are out there waiting :-)
Nancy
Hi Ruth
ReplyDeleteYou wrote:
(TINA!!!!! THEY WROTE A POST LONGER, WAY LONGER, LIKE WAY, WAY LONGER THAN ME AND JULIE!!!!)
Yes, but not longer than you and Julie combined. That post was 6770 words. But who’s counting? : )
BTW: I just pre-ordered “With this Kiss Contemporary” because I can’t wait to read a Missy Tippens novella!!! Is this her first?
And I also just pre-ordered “With this Kiss Historical” because I can’t wait to see if I love your new historical.
Since you have a novella in both collections, I have this question for you:
do you follow up the story line from the historical novella in the contemporary novella? This was done with your “Red Kettle Christmas” (search for “Love Finds You in the City for Christmas – “Red Kettle Christmas” does not work any more as a keyword on Amazon) followed by Anna Schmidt’s “Manhattan Miracle”. I think that was a good idea but it would have been even better if the same author wrote both stories.
So did you do this?
Vince
P.S. Do you realize that you are creating a whole generation of novella readers and when you're reading a novella, you are not reading a novel.
Hi Kav:
ReplyDeleteIf you think that lady was hard on Harlequin you should read some of the blogs on eHarlequin and what some Harlequin Romance fans have to say about Presents and Blaze. It’s not nice, to say the least.
It might be more comforting to say you write inspirational romances for Love Inspired.
Vince
Great weekend, Tina. My week of vacation is winding down. At this point I've reached 21,030 words. I hope to be back to a normal writing schedule on Monday.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to all of the winners this week!
What a great weekend edition. Timely post on the writing fast.!
ReplyDeleteAnd I won one of the surprise book. Yay!
Everyone have a great weekend and keep up w/those Speedbo goals!
Kav!
ReplyDeleteYour friend isn't your friend. Enough said!
Great WE,Tina.
Another great WE! Has anyone told you lately that YOU ROCK, TINA?!!! Congratulations to all the winners. And all those participating in SPEEDBO
ReplyDeleteHope you're all having a great weekend! I just got home from visiting my parents in Kentucky. Had a really nice time! But I've been without Internet (except for a weak signal on my phone) since Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm ready to catch up!
Helen, I got to reading links, too. And forgot to comment! So here I am hours later finally leaving a comment. LOL
ReplyDeleteVince, thank you for ordering them!!!!
ReplyDeleteWe didn't link them because we wanted these initial collections to be stand alone if we ever break them apart. We're not planning to do that, but we wanted to be smart up front.
And you know, we noticed with the novella collections that you can't search the novella name. You have to know the collection name, and that's a mistake on Amazon's part, I think because you'd want things available with any tidbit of info the consumer has, right?
I'm going to write them about that. Feel free to do the same because these collections are bringing Amazon a hefty paycheck and traffic.
I've linked my first three contemp novellas, so that I can bundle them together if we ever break down the sets (a lot of authors have done that, broken down the novella groupings after the initial release), the smokin' hot Greek cousins Rafe, Dimi (Jim) and Jake Karralis, so that was a fun idea!
And I think I'd enjoy doing a two-part on my own, Vince, doing the historical and the contemp myself. That would be fun! Once I semi-retire in September, I've got a list of first-year projects waiting for me. That might be one of them, it's a brilliant idea!
Congrats to all the winners!!
ReplyDeleteCheering on all those in Speedbo!!!
Great WE Tina.
ReplyDeleteKav Debby G is right. Your friend is not a true friend, based on her actions. My heart hurts for you. I'm looking forward to watching you grow as you move through the blurb2book contest. Hugs!!!
Not much progress on SPEEDBO. It has not been good for me this year. A big struggle, but I really feel encouraged by other people's success, because it shows me I can muddle on and hit a stride if I persevere.
Vince thanks for you 3F speech. Priceless. You're a treasure.
Happy first weekend of spring everyone. Hope you are all enjoying.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that this weekend I have not met my daily writing goal for Speedbo. We are celebrating my mom's 80th birthday this weekend with family. We surprised her with a family dinner which included her two sisters who came for the weekend. It was a wonderful time.
I did actually do some writing each day, which I would not have done at all if I hadn't been doing Speedbo, so that is a good thing. I am on spring break from subbing this week, so I will be able to catch up and will be on task by month's end.
It doesn't help that I am now at a point where I don't know what needs to happen. Not to mention being too tired to think.
Didn't make my goal the first two weeks, but made it this week!
ReplyDeleteKav, praying for your successful ROMANCE blurb and for your friend's ultimate understanding! All the supportive comments to you are good for all of us to read. This is why I love our Seekerville community!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to all the winners and to all the Speedbo-ers. Thank you for the WE, Tina. I'll be reading the links and catching up with last week's posts when I get some words on the page....hopefully today.
Hanging my head as I report in for the week.....four days of unexpected travel, though fun, WERE NOT good for my Speedbo goals. I did make limited progress.....and need to learn to write more while traveling.
Thank you, cheerleaders, and ladies I write with in FB #1K1HR! Go SpeedBo! #NoLimits!
Vince, I just saw your comment. You're so sweet! I'm glad you want to read a Missy novella. :)
ReplyDeleteActually, I had one in the Christmas collection as well, so this is my second one! Very fun!! :)
Go, Mary Garcia. The turtle wins the race.
ReplyDeleteSherida, try using a pen and paper and just jotting down ideas and dialogue while traveling. You can use it to launch yourself when you do have time to write.
But gee, you still did well even with traveling.
Hi Missy:
ReplyDeleteYou are right. I checked Amazon and you did have a Christmas novella and I already have it on my Kindle. I guess having the Seekers coming out with two sets of novellas at a time is a little too much for me to keep track of.
Anyway, now I can have twice the fun!
Vince
Hello DebH:
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind comment about my 3-F example. That was always a favorite in my sales seminars. Now I'll be happy and sleep well tonight! : )
Vince
Sherida, I don't vary my schedule when I travel. If I do, I lose way too much time, so my laptop goes with me and I slip into the lobby in the middle of the night (or a business center, but the lobby is more fun) and I write in a sweatshirt, socks and jammie pants. It's part of my eccentric author mode.
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Honestly it works, the staff is always nice about it, and I don't mess up my writing schedule. I can't write in the room because it will wake Dave (or Tina or Mary or Beth or Mandy, whoever I'm traveling with) but this works beautifully. And I don't take time to get dressed because it will disturb someone in the room. Eccentric is fun. :)
Thank you for the suggestions, Tina and Ruthy. I am learning to be proficient with thumb typing on my mini. What skills we discover during SpeedBo!
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting the Harlequin article from Pictorial --I just finished it. I kind of had/have that "snobbish" attitude toward the romance genre and Harlequins until I started reading Christian/inspirational romance and the LI line ... =)
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