Happy Wednesday All, We're almost done with August, in fact, September starts tomorrow. Writers have until September 23rd to register for the Northwest Houston RWA Lone Star Writer's Conference . All writers, of all genres are welcome. We open up the conference to all writers of all genres, so take advantage of that. Morning Speaker will be NY Times Bestseller, Kerrelyn Sparks. The afternoon speaker is going to be Sandra Beckwith from Buildbookbuzz.com. We'll have raffle baskets to raffle off, there will be pitch sessions going on, and more.  Some writers have said they couldn't make this year. Very well, if you, a writer, can't make it this year, then put us down for next year. Generally we have the Conference the first Saturday in October. That's the date it's been ever since I started going to the conference back in 2009. So see, the time of year hasn't changed, just when the first Saturday of October is changes (some years it's not the 1st ...

Happy Monday All, I know I haven't been good about keeping up with the blog. Currently I have a full plate. I'm working on a project my publisher has requested, plus something I did on my own, and a couple of stories I'm hoping to finish writing. On top of that, I've got the mommy/wife gigs going on, and the audiobook. However, I do want to make all writers aware that the time has come to get your registration for the Northwest Houston chapter of Romance Writers of America Lone Star Writer's Conference in! The deadline to register is September 15 , and we're about halfway through August already. Me with editor, Debby Gilbert at the 2014 Lone Star Writer's Conference I have been attending this conference since 2009. Every year is different, but consistently it's been fun, informative, and worth every penny. I'm excited that this year Kerrelyn Sparks is speaking. Me, author Kerrelyn Sparks, and author Christie Craig Kerrelyn is a fel...

Happy Wednesday All, Well, I'm back on antibiotics with ear infection issues, again. Fun times in the Averie household, but oh well. It's August, and a part of me can't believe we're already facing Fall again, and another part of me says it can't get here fast enough. I'm not a fan of snow and ice, but I do like cooler temperatures and the heat is oppressive. I mean granted, it's been hotter here than it has been, but it's still plenty hot. My WIP (Work In Progress) is with my proofreader and I'm looking forward to sending it to my publisher. In some ways I can't believe I'm already here again, in others it feels like it's taken me forever. But it's nice to have another novel written and going through the process. Of course, I'm working on the next story and that's going okay so far. We'll see what happens. Registration is still going on for the NWHRWA's Lone Star Writer's Conference. It looks like it...

Happy Monday All, It's another week, you ready? Apparently whether we're ready or not, the week begins. I don't mind my writing work, and generally the mommy-gig isn't too bad, but it's been a bit rough this week with Youngest, so it's a little tougher than usual--especially when migraines hit. So I'm sipping my coffee, wishing I got a little more sleep, and doing my best to get myself together for the day. One of the topics that will be covered at the NWHRWA 2016 Lone Star Writer's Conference ( for more information, click here ) is PR--aka Promotion. A lot of writers (including myself) are either shy or introverted (sometimes both). I have met some writers who weren't shy, and some extroverted writers, but I haven't met many. The one thing that is often on any writer's mind when they think of promotion and putting themselves out there is how? What can you do? The short answer is--a lot. Almost everywhere you go there are opportun...

Happy Wednesday Everybody! I'm one tired chica. For the last 4 nights either dizziness (due to allergies) or Youngest Offspring has made sure I don't get a full-night's sleep. In fact, I don't think I've slept from 11 p.m. to 8 or 9 a.m. in over a year. I imagine it's part and parcel of the whole Mommy-gig. But since I know things could be much worse, I suppose I should thank the Lord this is all I'm up against in terms of being a mom at the moment. The NWHRWA has opened up registration for the annual Fall Conference--the Lone Star Writer's Conference, which is happening Saturday, October 1st. This conference is open to ALL writers, NOT just Romance novelist. So you Thriller, Suspense, Horror, and such, you can come, too. YA and NA writers, you come, too. It's open to ALL writers. The fabulous NY Times Best Seller, Kerrelyn Sparks, will be Me, KERRELYN SPARKS, and author Christie Craig talking about world building and all of that fun stuf...

Happy Monday All, I hope everyone is having a wonderful Summer. Down here in the Lone Star State we are melting, but that's not unusual. Heat + Humidity = Texas Summers. I'm surprised we're not in the triple digits (the week forecast looks like we're going to get close). It makes me very grateful for central air condition and car air conditioning. This week is the week of RWA Nationals. RWA is Romance Writers of America. Nationals are the conference they host every year--generally in a different location each year. The Conference is open to members (and I believe non-members) alike. A huge number of industry professionals, as well as writers, attend Nationals every year. Although, I'm in the latter group--the group that doesn't attend. You have to budget for Nationals because typically it does cost more than the local ones. Given my family demands and my financial situation, it's not something I can do at this point. Maybe in the future. I would like to ...

Happy Thursday All, Wow! It feels like an eternity since I updated my blog. I have been super-busy with family obligations (in fact, still am...motherhood is a demanding job, as many of you know). But I am getting back into writing and working on getting back into everything else. It's happening veeerrrryyyyy sllllloooowwwwllly...but it's HAPPENING! Yay. :-) I'm having issues with my regular browser, so I'm using an interim one until I can sit down with my awesome IT guy, Jeff (if you're interested in consulting with him, email me , and I'll check his availability. He's been a big help to me). To keep up with me, watch Twitter and Facebook mostly. I update Facebook often, and try to get to Twitter at least once a day. (The interim browser I'm using is slow, so I'll just provide a link to my website, which I think has links to my Twitter and Facebook pages). So what's going on in my world aside from motherhood? I'm working on the firs...

Happy Monday Everybody, It's my birthday week...did you know that? And yes, I may be over 30, but I STILL get excited about my birthday (which is Wednesday, the 15th). I'm hoping to do something special for my readers that day, but we'll see. There is A LOT going on in my life. Currently working on 2nd round edit read through for my publisher on Book Two in the Immortal Dreams Trilogy, Astral Love , which is supposed to release on October 28th. So yes, there's a lot of "I need to get this done!" going on in my head. I'm excited about the Trilogy continuing and hoping that my readers enjoy this next installment. It took me on quite an adventure. On October 4th I attended my chapter's Lone Star Writer's On left: My editor from my publishing house On right: Me (Bethany Averie) Conference , which happens every year. I had a lot of fun. My editor was in town and so I got to spend some time chatting with her, talking about my progress and...

Happy Wednesday All, Also, a very happy October to everybody! October is one of my favorite months. Okay, I'm going to come across as biased, but my birthday is in October and I've always loved my birthday--yeah, I'm over 30, but who cares? It's my special day and I get to celebrate it...even though this year it's on a Wednesday (not today, a different Wednesday). But never mind! I will be celebrating! Currently I'm gearing up for the NWHRWA Lone Star Writer's Conference , which is featuring keynote  speaker Bob Mayer , and special guest, Jen Talty . I always look forward to the NWHRWA conference. It's an opportunity to hang out with all my writing pals and meet new ones. Also, this year, my publisher is coming down, so it'll be a new (and I'm thinking fun) experience to see my publisher as one of their authors rather than someone who they didn't know. Another way I'm celebrating is by being a guest on author Anne B. Cole...

Happy Wednesday Everybody, Don't forget to plan to attend this year's NWHRWA Lone Star Writers' Conference on Oct. 5, 2013:

Happy Tuesday All, It's voting day here in the US of A, so all of those who are eligible have a civic duty to exercise our right to vote. Which, is something I will (or depending on when you, my readers read this post and when I get to my designated voting area) or have done. Today Laura Childs' Stake & Eggs is released, which I reviewed yesterday . This past NWHRWA meeting I've learned some pretty awesome things about next year's Lone Star Conference. We are fortunate to be able to have Donald Maass of the Donald Maass Literary Agency come and be our keynote speaker. We're also going to have an agent from Larsen Pomada Literary Agents , and Marisal Lyon Literary Agency  and who knows what other awesome things will be in store by the time the date of the conference rolls around. The date of the conference is on October 5, 2013--so you can start planning now. It's apple cider season (Fall)! I've been enjoying the tasty treat. I'll be glad ...

Happy Wednesday All, Whew! Things have been extremely busy on my end (but mostly GOOD busy). Monday was my birthday, and it was a wonderful birthday--thank you to everyone who wished me Happy Birthday. I truly appreciated the thoughtfulness! Before I launch into talking about the Lone Star Conference, I want to tell you I did a stupid thing. I forgot my camera! Can you believe it? I was so bummed. So unfortunately, I don't have pictures (color me sad) but others had photos and I have many witnesses to say I was, in fact, there. Hopefully the next time I go to the Lone Star Conference I'll remember a camera. So here's a run-down of my experience... Friday was the Meet & Greet party at the 1st V.P. of my chapter's house. As always, Stacey is a wonderful hostess (her husband minion-ed with the best of them) and it had good food, good company, and good fun. A bunch of us gave James Scott Bell a tutorial on how to talk like a Texan, and he picked up very quick...

Happy Wednesday All, (No matter what the date tab says, this post is meant for Wednesday). I can hardly believe it...not counting today, there are TWO days left until the Lone Star Conference. This is my third year going, and I'll be entering my fourth year as a member of the NWHRWA. This group is an incredible group of men and women. I'm very lucky and blessed to be a member and to be amid so many talented writers. I know travel can be a pain (especially if you live out of state, or even out of the country) but folks, these people are so hospitable and kind. If you're a writer, I cannot stress enough how important that is. It's also why I invite my fellow authors to this Conference every year. Now that I've gotten the sentimentality out and told you how truly awesome the NWHRWA & the Lone Star Conference is, let me move on to what's kept me from the blog... I have been reading like a mad fool, my dear readers. My cousin got me interested in an a...

Happy Friday One And All, I'm having a pretty good day so far. The weather is mild, something I was worried about is getting resolved, I've proven to myself I could do something I was sure I wasn't going to be able to do (although that last one has me eating crow, which isn't my favorite thing, but oh well). Today's a short post. I asked this question on Twitter (which, by the way, if you don't have an account, get one and you can see all my updates that sometimes don't make it to my blog by following me at @WriteByBethany--also, my Twitter Feed is in the margin of this blog) and all the other awesome authors I follow. Like I was saying... I asked this on Twitter, and I'll post it here: What's your sweet treat weakness?  Mine is often chocolate or cookies (sometimes candy). What's yours? Have A Fun-Filled Friday! FYI:  NEXT weekend is the NWHRWA Lone Star Writers' Conference...all you writers...have YOU registered? Hope so :-)...

Happy Monday All, I am very sorry for my long absence. There's been so much going on: In late August my grandfather died. It's hard to say goodbye to him, but he lead a long and wonderful life. I'll be attending his graveside memorial service later this month--so there's been some prep work surrounding that. I've been gearing up for a couple of blog book reviews that are coming around October. I'm looking forward to posting them, too! I've also been writing. I sent the pages I've written of Conjure A Man to my critique partner because I wanted her input. While she's been reading the pages, I've been working on another story of mine. It's coming okay and I'm thinking about some of my other stories that are waiting on the sidelines for me to get to them. Also, I'm gearing up for my RWA chapter's annual conference--the Lone Star Conference  (the Northwest Houston RWA), which is being held on October 13, 2012 in Houston, Te...

Happy Wednesday All, Today Katie McGarry's Pushing The Limits is available on e-reader! I got mine. I'm looking forward to reading it. Shanna Swendson's book 5, Much Ado About Magic , is available for preorder from Amazon . Right now I don't have any information about it being available for preorder for Nook anytime soon. When I find that out, I'll let you know. It's due to release in e-book form on August 15, 2012. RWA Nationals just ended and several of my chaptermates have gone. They seem to have come back energized and excited. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to attend Nationals. However, there is my chapter's October Conference! All writers welcome. For more information, click here . It should be a lot of fun! Anyway, that's all I have off the top of my head (for now) :-) Have A Wonderful Wenesday!