Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Five Things you might not know about me...

Diane Craver tagged me, so I guess it's my turn to fess up. ;) In the process, I'll tag my fellow authors Tori Scott and Laura Hamby -- two friends who write very different and wonderful romances. You're it, ladies! ;)

Five Things You Might not Know About Me:

1. Some of my previous career aspirations included: astronaut, astronomer, and fashion model. The latter I gave up on when I stopped growing at 5'6". ;)

2. I played Sally Brown my senior year in our school's production of the musical: SNOOPY!!! (Yes, I still have the costume.)

3. If I had had a bit more drive and courage, I would've loved to be a professional actress. While I'm shy in public, I come alive on stage. I think that talent helps me tremendously in my writing.

4. I cannot go to the movies without a box of Snowcaps in hand.

5. Many years ago -- back in high school, I believe -- I had a huge crush on Barry Manilow. Yes, I hear the snickering...but it's true. The man has a wonderful voice and gorgeous eyes. ;)

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Which of the X-Men are you?

You Are Jean Grey

Although your fate is often unknown, you always seem to survive (even after death).
Your mind is your greatest weapon, literally!

Powers: telepathy and telekinesis, the ability to project thoughts into the mind of others, communication with animals

Saturday, November 25, 2006

CONTRACTED! ~~ A Writer's Challenge!

CONTRACTED
UNIQUE ENTERPRISES' WRITING CHALLENGE
2007

Unique Enterprises, the parent company of By Grace Publishing and
Moonlit Romance, is sponsoring CONTRACTED– A Writers' Challenge
during 2007. We will hold 2 challenges, January-June and July-
December, with the winner being announced and published in
September, 2007 and March 2008.

This contest is open to unpublished in romance authors only. The
novels entered into the contest must have 12 chapters, and may be
any romance sub-genre. All novels must meet the guidelines for
either By Grace Publishing or Moonlit Romance. Please see the
Guidelines at Moonlit Romance and By Grace Publishing.

To Enter: Please send a query letter to Laura Hamby
(laurahambyeditor @ yahoo.com) and the completed entry form you'll
find in the files section of either the By Grace or Moonlit romance readers' loops: Moonlit Romance Reader's Loop OR By Grace Reader's Loop.

All attached files must be saved in .rtf format, or they will not be opened. There will be 2 rounds of CONTRACTED— A Writers' Challenge in 2007. Entry
deadlines:

Round One — December 15, 2006
Round Two — May 15, 2007.
Please put "Contracted–A Writers' Challenge Entry" in the
subject line of the email.

Contestants will compete for 6 months in two different forums: the
public Blog Challenges and the private Editors' Challenges, based on
a monthly challenge theme. Once a month, contestants will provide
their Blog Challenges to Laura Hamby to be posted on the Unique
Enterprises' Authors' Blog, in addition to submitting their private
Editors' Challenge to Laura Hamby to be forwarded to the judging
Unique Enterprises editors. Both the Blog Challenges and the
Editors' Challenges will be rated on a rubric that will be provided
to each contestant before each contest begins. In order to continue
from month to month, contestants must complete both the Blog and the
Editors' Challenges. Contestants who fail to participate in both
monthly challenges every month will be disqualified. Standings will
be determined by averaging the Editors' and Blog Challenges
together.

Contestants who do not satisfactorily pass the monthly Challenges
will not proceed to the next month's round. Points will be awarded
on a 1-5 scale, and those authors not achieving an Editors' and Blog
Challenge of 3.5 or higher won't progress to the next level. These
contestants will receive a critique of the first 3 chapters of their
novel from Unique Enterprises' Senior Editors Sheila Holloway or
Laura Hamby, and will be encouraged to participate in the next
Writers' Challenge.

At the conclusion of the 6 month competition, the authors who have
made it successfully through the Writers' Challenge with a 6 month
average of the equivalent to a 3.5 will have one month to revise,
edit and polish their novel for the Final Competition. For entrants
in the January-June contest, their final product will be due August
1, 2007.

For entrants in the July-December contest, their final
product will be due February 1, 2008. Contestants will receive the
Final Judging Rubric at the conclusion of the 6 month competition.
Winners will be publically announced on the Unique Enterprises
Authors' Blog on September 1, 2007 and March 1, 2008. The winning
novel will be published in September, 2007 (1stround) and March,
2008 (2nd round).

The winner(s) of CONTRACTED–A Writers' Challenge will win a contract
for their completed, ready-to-publish novel with either Moonlit
Romance or By Grace Publishing. The runners-up will receive comments
of their novels from the judges, and are invited to resubmit their
novels to By Grace Publishing or Moonlit Romance.

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Chat today!

Writers Across Time will be chatting at the CataNetwork Readers Group today, Saturday, November 18th, beginning at noon and lasting until 10 p.m. --- all Eastern U.S. times.

Join me and my fellow historical writers for hours of chatter, excerpts and I'm sure a prize give-away or two. ;) I'll be there from 8-10 p.m. --- just in time for my hero to give you warm, happy dreams.

See you there!

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Join the Scavenger Hunt!



Come join us for a chance to win a great prize! I'll be giving away a download of my romantic suspense, SECRETS AND SHADOWS...but check out the other authors and their prizes, too.

Happy hunting!