U Got the Look

I've been tagged for the U Got the Look meme by Ilima Todd!

All I have to do is go to my current WIP, hunt down the word "look", and post the surrounding paragraphs. I've had two projects going this month, my NaNoRevMo project: Champion in the Darkness, and my NaNoWriMo project: The Identity of Captain Wrath. So I thought I would give you a "look" at both.

From Champion in the Darkness:

He smiled at her, and then looked down at his papers. “You’re expected,” he said. “Although you’re younger than I thought you would be.”

Clara merely nodded, knowing that she was younger than most students who entered their mastership. At fifteen, she had already passed up students two to three years older than herself. But as Salene had pointed out, she had been under the tutelage of two unofficial masters, as well as her assigned Master teacher.
“You’re to wait there, by the doors to the Chamber,” said the sword guard.

“Thank you, sir,” said Clara. She walked slowly over the doors, which she had been looking at every day since her first day as an apprentice seven years ago. The doors were carved with several scenes, the history of the Champions of Septily, with the first Champion overlapping the two doors at the center. Champion Elar had fought back the divisive forces of the Dark Sisterhood and brought seven kingdoms together to form Septily itself. Space around the scenes left room for future Champions.


From The Identity of Captain Wrath:

“Would anyone care to wager on the outcome?” asked Doug, looking around the crowded barracks.

“You’re going to bet on your own fight?” asked Wistar, his Elvanen friend, who stood taller and leaner than the rest.

“Well, that would be cheating,” said Doug slowly, “so of course not.” He smiled at Reynad. “But if you,” now he looked at Wistar and their other friend Smith, “would like to place a wager on me, I’m sure you’ll get your money’s worth out of it.”

And I would like to pass this meme on to Julie Luek at A Thought Grows, Allison at Geek Banter who has a new blog look today, and Jack at Hapharzardly Improbable.

Thanks everyone for your graciousness yesterday!
I will have a final update on project goals on Wednesday next week for IWSG.

Life keeps being interesting around our house and within our family - my father-in-law spent a few hours in the hospital the other day for some heart issues - we joked later that he was just jealous of the attention my dad got (they know each other pretty well). Thankfully, everyone is on the mend, and we all still have our humor intact.

Despite all that's going on, my family and I are taking a day off today to see the King Tut exhibit. I'll be in blogland for a bit this morning and this evening. Then this weekend we plan on getting our Christmas Tree, and doing some decorating around the house . . .so we have a packed weekend ahead of us.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!

In Which Time as I Make VERY HUGE MISTAKES and have to apologize to everyone

You know the old chapter titles in books that start with a description of events like "In Which Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets Into a Very Tight Place."

Yeah, that title fits me right now. Big mistake, Huge Embarassment, Tight place.

So, I hosted a giveaway for Emily Ann Benedict's book. She and I exchanged a flurry of small e-mails.

It turns out that I thought she was giving away a copy of The Father Christmas Confessions when in actuality she was giving away a copy of her book Only Angels Are Bulletproof.

Umm, oops.

And then it turns out that she legally can't give away a copy of The Father Christmas Confessions.

Yikes.

So, Livia is still the winner of an Emily Ann Benedict book, just not the one that I thought she won.

And I owe everyone who entered and Especially Livia and Emily, a HUGE APOLOGY.
Already I've already sent a red-faced e-mail,  but I thought I should say I'm sorry here too.

Please forgive me. 

And the Winner Is . . .

Livia is the winner of The Father Christmas Confessions Giveaway!!!

Remember, if you didn't win, The Father Christmas Confessions can be found at Amazon.

And I have to admit that I forgot something, or well, a couple of somethings, on my Monday post:

Emily and Tammy are hosting the And You Are? Blog Hop on Monday, December 3rd. It's going to be a fun fest.

Monday is a very busy day, but the more the merrier, right?

Then on Wednesday we have IWSG by Ninja Captain soon-to-be-roasted Alex.

And Thursday is the first ever Writers 4 Writers event!!!

 

And the linky list for Hobbit fest being closed? It's fixed!!! Please sign up today! Either go to my last post, or hit the tab on the top of my page labeled Hobbit Fest!

Today, I'm working at catching up with all of you in blogland, NaNoRevMo, and a little more for NaNoWriMo. You may have noticed that those numbers for NaNoWriMo haven't moved in a long, long while . . .yeah. I've noticed that too.

I didn't crash Wonder Woman's invisible plane again, but I decided I needed to prioritize, and getting Champion in the Darkness completely ready for publication in February 2013 is taking the top of the list (well, after family and stuff like that).

I love The Identity of Captain Wrath, but I don't think I'm winning NaNoWriMo this year with that book. I have a new plan for that book - more to be revealed on IWSG, next week.

Our dear friends' daughter Jessica who has been in the hospital since early September, and who has been through two major spinal surgeries, will be coming home tomorrow. It's a bittersweet homecoming.  There's an ambulance ride involved and Jessica will be on complete bed rest and unable to move her back/spine even to sit up for the next six weeks. They are basically moving the hospital room equipment into the living room of their house. So . . .I'm hoping to stay involved in blogland, and get my writing done, but I feel like I need to be there for them too. If my attention is a little divided, I hope you understand.

All your prayers for my dad's recovery from pneumonia are greatly appreciated, and if you could pray for Jessica for the next six weeks, I would really appreciate that too.

Giveaway, Giving Back, and FESTS!!!

The Father Christmas Confessions Giveaway is starting right here and right now!!!

Emily Ann Benedict is giving away one kindle copy of The Father Christmas Confessions this week, and all you have to do is write a comment below to enter! I'll be putting your names into a hat, literally, and then having one of my kids pick one out - I know this isn't tech-savvy, but it works. The drawing will take place late Tuesday night and the winner will be announced Wednesday morning (Pacific time).

So, first, who is Emily? She's a really sweet blog buddy of mine who I've known since the beginning of my blog days when I had no idea what I was doing. I used to lurk around her blog to see how a blog really worked. She gave me one of my first awards, and she's a fantastic writer. In addition to The Father Christmas Confessions, she's also the author of Only Angels Are Bulletproof, a sweet romantic mystery.

I asked Emily how The Father Christmas Confessions started, and this is her answer:

"My family has a very serious tradition every Christmas. We simply try to watch as many Christmas movies as we possibly can. Whether it is a big Hollywood hit or a simple TV movie, we’ll watch it just so long as it is about Christmas. I guess one year I must have overdosed, because I starting thinking about how I would write a Christmas story. Well, with a head full of Christmas history and Hallmark Channel amusement, I started with the idea of re-writing the Santa Claus legend and it all went downhill from there."

 

Official blurb for The Father Christmas Confessions:

 What if Santa Claus isn’t one man? What if he is a secret organization?

Jeremy Ogden has 25 days to accomplish his mission and a list of people whose lives can be changed forever if he makes it to them in time. He just has one big problem…And her name is Virginia.

Virginia Kipyard is the last girl Jeremy wants holding his family’s ancient secret, no matter how many times his mother suggests she’s “the right girl.” But if he wants to save the life of the next man on his list, he might just need her help.

The “season of miracles” is about to take on a whole new meaning, even for Father Christmas.

If you don't win a copy, I highly recommending purchasing one for .99 at Amazon.

GIVING BACK

Julie Luek has invited all of her blog-friends to give their love for books to First Book, and has created this cute button:

First Book donates books to children, contributing to the efforts of literacy everywhere. What better way for writers to give back than donating books and nurturing the love of reading in children?

And now onto the LONG LIST OF FESTS

Trisha at Word + Stuff is celebrating her blogiversary with Baby Faces Blogfest on December 2-3!

 

Lynda R. Young at W.I.P. It is celebrating the publication of her short story, Birthright, with the Make Believe Launch Party on December 3rd. (two celebrations in one day, no problem, right?) She's also starting her book blog tour that day!

 

 



 Mark Koopman, Morgan Shamy, Stephen Tremp, and David Powers King have teamed up for the Cheers, Cavanaugh Fest.

     In Mark's words:
Ever attended a Christmas party where you bump into the person who was always there for you during the last year. You’d thank them for being such a RockStar, right?

If there’s one person in the Blogisfear who you want to say cheers to, who would it be?

For us, it was a no-brainer: Alex “no hyperlink needed” Cavanaugh.

Alex is an awesome blogger who’s helped hundreds of us via book releases, guest posts, guest interviews and always positive comments. While we can’t have a live part-ay for the Ninja Captain, we can host a BlogFest.

In +/- 20 words, what does Alex look like?

In +/- 20 words, who could play Alex in a documentary? (Living or dead.)

In +/- 20 words, who does Alex remind you of?

In +/- 100 words, (excluding the title) write flash fiction using all these prompts:

Cavanaugh
Ninja
IWSG
Cosbolt
Guitar

For Bonus Points:
In +/- 40 words, leave a comment for Mrs. Cavanaugh - thanking her for sharing J

Rules:
Join the Linky List
Be a follower.
Post your 200 (total) word contribution Monday, Dec. 10.
Have Fun!

Two winners – chosen by Alex – will each win one prize:

FIRST PLACE: A signed copy of CassaStar. (Or CassaFire)

GRAND PRIZE*: A picture of Alex and a download of him playing the guitar. (There might be another prize… all depends!)
This fest runs December 10-12th!

Plus, Don't Forget Hobbit Fest!
I'm teaming up with M. Pax for this fun fest on December 14th! Check out the tab on the upper right for more info!

 

What is your favorite hobbit characteristic/or the one that you think closely resembles you . . .?
If you could choose between a scrumptious second breakfast and a perilous unexpected journey – which would you prefer?

Have you ever left behind something on a journey (expected or unexpected) and wished you could have it over and over again? (a pocket handkerchief?)
What is your Favorite part or quote from the book that you hope will be in the movie?

 And Steampunk Author Jack Lewis Baillot's Book Blog Party starts December 17th!

 

Have you signed up for these fests and celebrations? Planning to give back in some way this December? and are you ready to win a copy of The Father Christmas Confessions? Be sure to comment below!

And again, many thanks to those who prayed for my Dad last week . . .he's out of the hospital and getting good rest at home.

A Very Happy Thanksgiving

My dad was released from the hospital yesterday in just enough time to make it to our family Thanksgiving Feast. He didn't stay too long, still feeling tired, but I'm very glad that he made it, and felt well enough to come and even tell a few stories.

His main priority is rest for the next few months.
So I'm giving him a few books to read . . .like whole series of books . . .

I hope all in blogland had a very happy Thanksgiving too!!!

Oh, and I won the awesome 500 follower giveaway from Cassie and Tara - Thanks Ladies!