Happy Thursday All, Lately I've been working on a couple of new projects. One of them has to do with one of my published novels, and the other one is a WIP. Both projects are moving along pretty well and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with them. One of the projects deals with another side of writing that's often talked about, but some authors struggle with--networking. It's funny, but I get asked about this more often than I thought I would. I really don't consider myself an expert on the subject, I'm pretty much doing what everyone else does--picking which social Me with the amazing Christie Craig If I didn't open my mouth and network I wouldn't have gotten to know this gem of a person media works for me, going to writer's group meeting, attending the annual conference, talking to readers, seeing what opportunities open up for me. A lot of authors are shy and/or introverts. Some aren't, but the majority I've come a...

Dear Readers & Fellow Authors: Based on some current events (where I was asked to do a review and had to say no) I decided it was time to post a review policy. In the right hand margin of my blog (if you arrow down a bit) you will see my review policy, complete with a list of authors I regularly do official blog book reviews for. I didn't want to do this. I hate making rules and telling people "No, I can't help you." I didn't need rules before because nobody who I couldn't say yes to asked me for a review (in fact, official blog book reviews are generally because I approached the author myself and we worked out an agreement).  But, given what I said in the previous paragraph, it had to be done, especially now. I'm incredibly busy with the Trilogy and other writing projects, and work for critique partner(s), plus my real life. Hopefully this will clear up confusion I've encountered. Also, I apologize if you're an author who is not on t...

Happy Weekend Everybody, Normally I don't post on the weekend, but today is stop #2 of the Bethany Averie All's Fair In Love & Lion Blog Tour... Today's stop is as the guest of Stella, over on the Soul Mate Publishing Blog. Stella is a chapter mate of mine. She's encouraging, generous, and fun to be around. We've had a blast bouncing ideas off each other and at one time critiqued one another's work. She's very creative, and I enjoy knowing her. There's also two other Soul Mate Publishing authors being featured along with me! So come on out and check it all out. Do I have a muse...?  Well the only way to find out, is to join me on the Soul Mate Publishing Blog ! Have A Great Weekend!

I've got the first round edits from my publisher and have gotten started on them. There's some storyline things the editor wants me to work on, so I've been contemplating that and I think I have a solution to one of the biggies she mentioned. So that's good. Anna Kathryn Lanier , talented author, friend, NWHRWA pal, and all around nice lady, nominated me for Very Inspiring Blogger Award. So thank you very much, Anna, for the award! The rules are as follows: *Display the award logo on your blog. *Link back to the person who nominated you *State 7 things about yourself *Nominate other bloggers (the numbers seem to vary) and link back to them So in keeping with the rules...7 things about myself: 1.  I was born in Texas; but 6 1/2 years of my life I lived in Madison, NJ (a place right near Morristown). 2.  I wasn't as good a student as my classmates who attempted to cheat off of my papers thought (especially Freshmen through Junior year--I nearly fai...

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, Well, it's Thanksgiving Week, if you can believe it! Where did November go? I know some of you all aren't on Twitter, but like I said, you can check out my Twitter feed in the margin of this blog. The Twitter feed will show you the posts (or "tweets") I put up on Twitter. So if you've been following the feed (by coming here and reading it). You know a little of what's going on. I've been feeling guilty about not updating this blog. But, I truly do have good reasons. I've been working on some other stories and querying agents for SURREAL. Plus, I'm a wife and mother, so I have had things going on with that. However, I DO plan to make it up to you, my readers/blog followers. In December I'm planning a humugus in-print book giveaway! There's more than one day, because there's more than one author particpating in providing the prize. I haven't set the dates, but I'm lining up the authors/books and nailing do...

Happy Monday Everyone, This past weekend the illustrious Christie Craig gave a special workshop to the Northwest Houston Romance Writers of America , which, I'm proud to say I'm a member of this awesome group. The workshop was called "High Tea & POV" although, I don't know how many people actually consumed tea (I had water), but we sure listened in rapt attention as Christie talked about getting into your character's heads. In fact...that's precisely what POV is. POV--point of view. Which character is telling the story? Is it your heroine? Then you see, feel, hear, smell, taste, experience intuition and thoughts of that character. These are things that I've talked about with my C.P. but I'm not always consciously aware of them while I'm writing. When I'm writing I'm imaging how the character reacts based on what I know about the character. I'm reacting and visualizing. When I go back and edit I'm looking at the dialogu...

Happy Friday Everyone, Also, Happy September--yay, Fall is on its way! Not only am I late posting this during the day, but I'm also behind on blog posts. I've been working hard on edits and a bunch of things going on in my life, so I had to put blog updates on hold. I don't know what next week will bring in the way of blog posts, but I'll try to post more. I'm not the only busy one around here. While I'm hiding under the editing rock, the world keeps spinning around me (which is a good thing!) So, I'm going to tell you to what's going on in the order I heard/found out about it: In October I'll be posting another official book review. This is one where the author has asked me to do this. I've started the book in question and I'll be setting a date, soon. Adult Romance author, Robin Badillo's Whiskey Road is now available on Amazon Kindle . My book review of Christie Craig's new release (adult Romance), Don't Mess With ...

Happy Monday All, So...did y'all notice the new addition on the top of the margin on the right hand side? Yes...it's that time again... registration time for the Lone Star Conference ! The Northwest Houston Romance Writers of America is inviting writings near and far to come join us for fun, pitching appointments, a keynote speaker ( Alexandra Sokoloff ), and a great group of writers who are waiting to welcome you to the Lone Star State. Whether you write Romance or something else, I urge you to think about coming down. I attended the last 2 Lone Star Conferences and it was and awesome experience both times. I plan (God willing) to be at the conference for a third year. To me, it's a great way to celebrate my birthday!  (Yep, you read that right. The Lone Star Conference falls on my birthday this year...October 15th). Anyway...I hope writers all over will come and visit the Lone Star State and hang out with us NWHRWA members. We'd love to have you. What ...

Happy Friday Everyone, This won't be my regular type of post, but these things sound like so much fun and well, w hen author  Christie Craig  asked me to let you all know about these events, I couldn't say no. After all, I'm a big fan of hers and I'm looking forward to reading the new release, Don't Mess With Texas .   Are you going to be in Houston, Texas on August 27, 2011 or November 12, 2011? If so, you will want to put these two events in your plans. If you live in Houston, add these to your calender: Saturday, August 27, 2011  Christie Craig book Signing at Katy Budget Books at 2450 Fry Road, Houston, Texas 77084. The book signing will start at 1:30 p.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. (Central Time). Saturday, November 12, 2011 Christie Craig will be teaming up with Romantic Mystery author, Diane Kelly  (Diane will be signing her new release: Death, Taxes, And A French Manicure --release date November 2011--this book looks like a lot of ...

Happy Monday All, A very happy 4th of July to all my fellow Americans! Happy Birthday to the U.S.A! Will Graham is celebrating the 4th all the way through July 15th with a very special offer on his novels, Street Heat and Sometimes There Really ARE Monsters Under The Bed . Up until July 15th both novels are on sale on Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook for just 99 cents each! Be sure to stop by his blog for links to both novels on Kindle and Nook . So do any of you all have special plans for today? Me and my family are going to have a laid back 4th . Have A Fabulous Fourth!

Hey Everyone, I'm behind on reporting on a couple of contests. I apologize to the contests hosts and to you, my readers, as well. I hope you all will forgive me. Anyway, TA-DA! Here's some information on a couple of contests I know about... Here's info on the contest that C.C. Hunter's holding . The deadline is September 1, 2011  and there's all kinds of prizes. Please go to her blog for more information. C.C. Hunter is the author of Born At Midnight. Her second one, Awake At Dawn arrives in print in October of 2011. It looks like a really fun contest, so I hope you'll take the time to go check it out. Fortunately the owner of the blog that's hosting this contest just posted about it on Tuesday, so I'm not far behind--I hope. Anyway, I need to tell  you all about the contest  Suzan Harden , author of Blood Magick and Seasons Of Magic: Spring (both novels available on Amazon Kindle  and Barnes & Noble Nook) is holding on her blog . T...

Happy Tuesday Everyone, Bet you never thought you'd see that on my blog, huh? "Bethany runs with lions? What in the world? Is she a safari fanatic and just didn't tell us?" No, I'm not a safari fanatic. In fact, I've never even been on a safari. It's just a reference to my novel, Surreal , which brings me to today's questions: Who do you run with? Who's company do you keep? What type of characters do you have running around in your head? Whether you're a reader, a writer, or both, you have all kinds of characters running in your head. Those characters are the people/creatures you run with. They are your company and companions through a story. They are your safari tour guides and help you navigate the world of the book you're either reading or writing. Sometimes those tour guides are all contemporary human beings. Sometimes they're extraordinary humans, like for example, knights in shining armor, wooing a damsel--the onl...

Happy Friday All, I'm a bit late posting this. Last night my Internet went nuts and decided to see if I was paying attention.  Today I got it to work despite electrical sockets deciding to go on vacation and not work for me. (And we just had the electrician come and check out these same sockets!) Anyway, I got this idea from a blog post that Shannon Hale did about an interview she had with Stephenie Meyer . Here's what I came up with: You get to ask ME questions. What do you want to know about me? ( Please note:  I reserve the right to not answer any question I deem too personal--this includes information on my age, personal information on family members and my sexual life ). However feel free to ask about my writing, inspiration, the NWHRWA, reading, movies I like, and things like that. You can also tell me if there's something in particular you want me to blog about or ask me about author interviews--make suggestions if you'd like. So whatcha wanna know? ...

Happy Monday Folks, I'm posting this way later in the day than I normally would, but there's several things going on in my life right now (not bad, just several things) so if I miss a day posting (or post later in the day), that's why. The NWHRWA's Annual Lone Star Conference is still accepting early entries--early bird discount won't last much longer (early bird discount ends on May 25, 2011 at midnight). Oh and writers/authors--the NWHRWA Lone Star Conference is in October ! Have A Merry Monday!

Happy Wednesday All, The contest portion of this blog post is now closed. However, you can enjoy the rest of the post. Yesterday's The Shadows Are Falling Jewelry Winner is Donna Marie! Congratulations to Donna Marie and I hope you enjoy the ShadowFalls #1 Necklace and Earrings Set. Never fear, readers...the week continues and so does the author/jewelry pairings... Tea Trelawny ( accent on the e in Tea ) has an erotic story out called Hidden Treasure : Lara Lacy inherits a Victorian home, a ghost and a possible treasure. But too many fake mediums have convinced her that anyone claiming to communicate with ghosts is a liar—including Lara’s inventive lover Nate Hoffmann. Of course, his seductive ways tempt her to change her mind. Stripped bare—in all ways possible—the lovers engage in deep exploration and eager discovery—of the physical and paranormal type. Tea commissioned that Kathy of Beadmore Designs make her an antique looking necklace that's so exquisite you wo...

Happy Tuesday All, Thank you so much for all the support for Tess St. John in yesterday's post. It was wonderful to see everyone backing her up. She rocks! Wednesday is her release and on that day I will be posting my review of her release, Second Chances . Since this is the eve of the review and Tess's release, I thought I'd go along with the genre. Tess actually writes in more than one genre, but since Second Chances is a Historical Romance, I thought I'd go with that. I haven't read a lot of Historical Romances...well, unless you count the 13 Georgette Heyer or the 14 Lynn Kurland novels I've read. Georgette Heyer's Historical Romances are typically set in the Regency Era...complete with the ton and everything--fashion, dances, young girls being introduced into society and all that. Here's a list of the Georgette Heyer books I've read (by the way, they've reprinted pretty much all of hers and some of her mysteries , too). (You ca...