Fun Galore

Lots of great bloggy peeps and activities to pimp!  Here's what you don't want to miss:

Second Writer's Platform-Building Crusade

If you've been visiting writers' blogs in the past week or so, you've definitely noticed this photo on sidebars everywhere.  Rachael Harrie @Rach Writes is launching this event for the second time, after the huge success of the first Writer's Platform-Building Crusade.  Become a Crusader and join us as we network with authors within our genres and outside.  Event is underway and runs from February 1st to April 30th.  Full details and sign-ups HERE

Don't forget: Next Wednesday, February 16th, is the Bernard Pivot Blogfest. To date, there are 95 bloggers playing along, but since the questionnaire is only 10 questions, it'll be quick reading and so easy to hit tons of blogs that day.  You'll meet dozens of new people, hopefully gain new followers, and share about yourself.  Fun!  Still plenty of time to sign up HERE.

LOLApalooza!☆∴*★∵∶｡◦°✰•*¨*•♪♫

Lola Sharp @Sharp Pen/Dull Sword is one of the sweetest bloggy friends I know!  Her giveaway is all about paying it forward, supporting each other in our writerly and personal pursuits, and spreading the love around.  Visit her blog on any given day and you'll be met with colorful, uplifting posts that do just that.  The prizes in this particular giveaway are awesome, but it's about more than that.  It's all about the rewards you reap from being the wind beneath another's wings.  Get in on it today, click HERE.

DL's WHODUNNIT

DL Hammons over at Cruising Altitude is celebrating a fantastic following of +600!  And because he's a mystery writer, and because he's highly creative and all-around awesome, DL has crafted a murder for us to solve.  To play along, read the murder-mystery short story HERE.  Then, hunt for clues that have been posted on the sidebars of 37 fellow bloggers.  (Psst....look at MY sidebar...)  Next week, DL will post a list of those 37 clue-toting blogs to help those out who haven't found enough to break the case.  Everyone who plays along gets a chance to win a prize, but those who solve the case risk to win more!  Full details HERE.

If you're looking for contests to join, I have a couple listed on my right sidebar.  If you know of any I can get in on, leave me the 411 in a comment!

And lastly, I have created an account with DropBox.  I have a question for those of you that use it.  Do you drop your files to save/archive/protect into your DropBox, or do you put a COPY of the files in?  It seems like to copy would be to double the memory it takes on my hard drive, but to drop means I no longer have a copy on my hard drive??  Is that smart/safe??  What if the files are compromised?  Maybe I don't fully understand.  All advice and tips are welcome and appreciated!

My sister's coming from Florida for a visit, so I won't be around.  Have a great weekend!!

                                    

Little Darth Vader

Though I'm not an avid football fan, I love the game and never miss the Super Bowl. In fact, Super Bowl Sunday has become a holiday in our house. And truth be told, it's mostly because we love to watch the commercials. Here's my pick for the best Super Bowl 2011 Commercial:





How cute is that?? I thought most of the other commercials were lackluster. I did love the Snickers add with Roseanne Barr and the iPhone add with Ozzy and Bieber.

Which Super Bowl ad topped your list?

And in unrelated news, here are a couple items of note:

My sweet sister -- who is a talented writer and poet, and who is my number one support system out here in the "real world" -- has launched a blog. She's going through what we all go through in the beginning: nervousness, searching for her "voice," wondering if anyone will want to read what she blogs, etc. I hope you'll shoot over there and help me make her feel welcome! You'll find her at Noelle Skeldon, Author.

Lastly, there's still plenty of time to sign up for the Bernard Pivot Blogfest, scheduled for February 16.  It's going to be a fun way to get to know each other better through our answers to M. Pivot's famous questionnaire -- the same one James Lipton uses at the end of Inside the Actor's Studio -- (questionnaire and blogfest instructions HERE) It'll be quick to post, fast to read everyone else's posts, and -- don't forget -- there's a giveaway involved!  Prizes will be revealed at the end of the week!  SIGN UP HERE :D


I'm going to make this a productive writing week.  What about you?  Best of luck reaching all your goals!

                                    

Paranormalcy Conest Entry & Book Recs Galore!

[My entry for Kiersten White's At Home with Paranormalcy Contest is at the bottom of this post!]

Last night as I was cooking dinner, I realized it was September 2nd.  Normally, I know the date earlier in the day!  But this has been another busy week that's left me reeling in its wake.  (That's my story, at least, and I'm sticking to it.)  So why was I suddenly excited, as September 2nd seeped into my overloaded brain?  That's the date Amazon said my order would arrive.  I rushed out to the mailbox.

And there they were.  Not just a box from Amazon, but also an envelop from Shannon Messenger!

In Shannon's envelop was the ARC of Kathy Reichs' newest book, Virals, with a release date of November 2010.  I won this in one of Shannon's recent contests, which totally rocked my world -- and I didn't even know at the time that it was SIGNED.  Yes!  I'm a big Kathy Reichs fan, so having this ARC is sooo cool.  Thanks, Shannon!!!!

In the Amazon box was Nightshade City, by the lovely Hilary Wagner.  I have been anxiously awaiting this book.  Hilary is the kindest blogger/writer out there, and her artistic energy is evident in everything she writes.  As many of you know, Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series endorsed this book with a praising testimonial on the back cover.  How exciting for a debut author!!!  Way to go, Hilary, and I can't wait to read you book!

And the second book in my Amazon box was Kiersten White's breakout novel, Paranormalcy.  The buzz surrounding this book across the blogosphere and in major bookstores is incredible.  I read four pages of chapter one as I cooked dinner, and I was immediately hooked by main character Evie's voice.  She's funny, confident, bold, and exactly the kind of heroine I want to get behind and root for to the end.  I can't wait to read this one, as well!

Kiersten is having a contest on her blog (you can enter, too. HERE's the link).  In her words: "...until September 12th, you can enter the At Home with Paranormalcy contest! It's pretty simple. Buy Paranormalcy, take it home, and take a picture of yourself doing something with the book."  (And she gives hilarious examples to help inspire you)

So, here is my entry for Kiersten's contest! 

Me, cooking dinner with Paranormalcy!

And, don't miss out on the great prizes in these contest:

Theresa Milstein at Substitute Teachers Saga is giving away a SIGNED copy of Mockingjay!!  Seriously!  How awesome is she to share the spoils of her two-hour wait in line and let us help her celebrate her first blogging anniversary with this awesome contest??  CLICK HERE to enter before September 6th!

Jamie Burch at Dancing Down Serendipity Street is hosting the Moon Chasers Contest, with a prize package you won't want to miss (it includes chocolate, fyi).  CLICK HERE to enter before September 7th!

And Sarah Ahiers at Falen Formulates Fiction is celebrating her 200+ followers with a contest offering beautiful handmade journals for prizes.  Enter a poem for extra entries!  CLICK HERE for details before September 17th!

Do you know any contests I haven't mentioned?  Pimp them in the comment section.  Thanks in advance!

Happy Labor Day weekend, y'all!

Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming...

I wish!

Life's got me spinning in circles -- and I'm trying to write.  It's the kids' last week and a half of school before summer break -- a crazy, busy time!  I wanted to publish a quick post, though, letting you all know that I'm thinking of you.  I'm reading as many of your insightful, creative posts as I can squeeze in between breaks.  Wish I could respond to all of them!

Have a fantastic day!  

Extra! Extra! (Contests!!)

Don't miss out on these two fab giveaway contests!

The fabulous Carolina Valdez Miller of Carol's Prints is celebrating surpassing 300 followers.  Whoot!  Her blog is top-notch, and I love her energy.  She's giving away a TON of signed books, y'all!  Click here, click here!!
And, every time she gets 50 more followers between now and May 25th, she's adding prize packages, so spread the word :))

The incomparable Simon Larter of Constant Revision  is celebrating more than 250 followers with an awesome, vodka-soaked, iambic metered contest.  All you have to do to enter is follow him and fill out the high-tech form, but you up your chances of winning when you follow his prompts and write a piece of flash fiction or metered poetry.  Lots of fun and great prizes!  Click here to read all about it!

Other great contests to enter today are:

Sarah Jayne's 150 Followers Contest - 4/28

Steena and Stina's OMG! Contest - 5/3

Steph Bowe's Massive Book GiveAway - 4/30

Noelle Nolan's 150 Followers Contest!

Good luck everyone!

Awards and Announcements

First off, thank you to everyone who provided feedback on my WiP excerpt.  I will leave it up through today with the hopes of drawing more reactions, so vital to my writing process.  After today, I'll take it down, as it is the first draft of a current project.  Click here to read it :)


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Help celebrate Earth Day tomorrow, April 21 by neutralizing your blog's carbon emissions. How? By participating in a joint effort by "Make It Green" and "Arbor Day Foundation." It couldn't be simpler:

1. Click the Leaf Logo above, taking you to a website that explains the program.

2. Copy the HTML code for one of the buttons (like the one above)and paste it on your blog's sidebar. Blog about the program to increase awareness and boost participation.

3. Email your blog URL to CO2-neutral@kaufda.de

4. For your blog, one tree will be planted in Plumas National Forest in Northern California by “Arbor Day Foundation” our partner in US for the “My blog is carbon neutral” initiative!

How will planting a tree in California help reduce a blog's emissions in, say, Georgia? Here's what initiative organizers say: "We plant trees, both in Germany (in the upper Harz region) and in Northern California. Why are we doing this? Because the reduction of carbon emissions by planting trees has the same effect, regardless of where in the world the trees are planted. It involves all of us to give something back to our environment." (Read more HERE)



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Thank you to Courtney at Southern Princess and Lola at Sharp Pen/Dull Sword for the Sweet Blog Award! I love both these blogs, so check them out if you haven't already!!

I'm passing it along to:

Jade @ Chasing Pavements -- She has a published short story, check it the link from her post yesterday!
Michelle Teacress
Mary @ Play off the Page
Angie @ Answering the What If
Ellen @ Pink Tea and Paper

Sweet Dominique at En Violet passed me the Beautiful Blogger award.  Please be sure to visit her today!

This one asks me to share 7 things about myself.  In the spirit of keeping things lively (and I think I've shared all the fun facts about me already!), I'm going to share seven things I did yesterday to make my day a success:

1. Ate a mixture of Shredded Wheat and organic granola for breakfast.
2. Ran three miles on the treadmill.
3. Lifted weights: super set of Smith machine squats and Sumo squats; super set targeting biceps and triceps
4. Wrote 3,000+ words of chapter four.
5. Emailed an old friend from college.
6. Cheered my daughter and her team to softball victory, pulling ahead 16-14 in the bottom of the last inning.
7. Renewed Catching Fire at the library and promised myself I'd finish it by this weekend.

I'm passing this award on to:

Shannon McMahon
Alexandra @ The Publication Follies of Alexandra Shostak
Wendy @ On 'n' On 'n' On
Tiana Smith
Laura @ Wavy Lines

Thank you to the most awesome author/blogger Wendy Ramer at On 'n' On 'n' On -- Because a Writer Always has Something to Say for the Butterfly Award.  Wendy's blog always puts a smile on my face.  Check out her site today!

This award goes to:

Jessica @ The Alliterative Allomorph
Harley @ Labotomy of a Writer
Lilah Pierce
Jenn Johansson
Tory @ Head in the Clouds

I'd like to thank Cherie at Surrounded by Books for the Blogger BFF award.  Cherie's multi-talented and her blog is wonderful.  Drop by today!

This award goes to:

Anne at Piedmont Writer
Shelley at Stories of the Ordinary
Summer at ...And This Time, Concentrate
DL at Cruising Altitude
Simon at Constant Revision

And, thank you to the warm and hilarious Roxy at A Woman's Write.  If you don't read Roxy every day, I encourage you to start!

I'm passing the Awesomesauce award on to:

Sarah at Falen Formulates Fiction
Crimey at Crimogenic
Terry at Gardner West, Private Eye
Amber at Musings of Amber Murphy
Roland at Writing in the Crosshairs

Steena and Stina's OMG! Contest - 5/3

Julie Dao's 200 Awesome People Contest - 4/25

Susan Fields 100 Followers Contest - 4/25

Steph Bowe's Massive Book GiveAway - 4/30

April Book Giveaway - 4/24

Noelle Nolan's 150 Followers Contest!

Update!!  Here is the response I received after emailing the "My Blog is Carbon Neutral" Initiative this morning (email address is above in this post):
Hi Nicole,

thank you so much for participating in our initiative and making your blog carbon neutral! Your tree will be planted this month by the Arbor Day Foundation. The scheduled start plant date was Monday, April 19 and the trees will be planted by a contracted crew. The roads are being plowed, all contracts solidified, and twelve shipments of 150,000 seedling each are being assembled. We thank you for the support!

There are still some trees looking for a sponsor. So if you know some people who have a blog or website, pass it on and we'll make their blogs carbon neutral too!

Best,
Christin 
Very cool!  Come on, go green today!

Sick Day

I have a little one home sick with Strep :(

Hope everyone's day is going well. I look forward to visiting your awesome blogs as soon as I tuck my nurse-Mom cap back in the drawer and don again my blogging beanie.

(I am wearing my writer's socks...in case my patient dozes off and I can word-doodle in a notebook. That's the closest thing to an author's hat I'll be wearing today!)

Have a fab day!

Contest Announcements!

It's a gorgeous day here in the Altanta area, and I'm spending it outside with hubby and the kids. We were up ridiculously early, for a "day off," to merged with the lighter-than-normal rush hour traffic and arrived at the French Embassy in Buckhead by 8:45 a.m. The three "Frenchies" in the family now have their updated passports for our trip to France in June. Now back home, they have zipped over to a gardening shop to buy a truckload of top soil, and I have a minute to dash off a quick blog post.

Here are some great contests you don't want to miss out on!

Tawna Fenske's @ Don't Pet Me, I'm Writing is a talented writer with THREE romantic comedies scheduled for release beginning in August 2011. Her blog posts are informative, inspirational, and often hilarious! Help her celebrate reaching 100 followers in only two months by joining her give-away. The prize is too good to pass up!! (*wink*)

The fabulous Roxy @ A Woman's Write is celebrating 200 followers with her Blogging Buddies Give-Away Contest. Way to go, Roxy!

Christine Danek at Christine's Journey has surpassed 100 followers and is having a give-away contest with fab prize. (I hope I win this one!!) Visit her today :)

Christina Farley @ Chocolate for Inspiration is giving away some AWESOME prizes, all of which are from the country setting of her WiP: Korea! Help her celebrate surpassing her 100 followers milestone by visiting her and entering the contest today!

Shannon Messenger @ Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe has an agent!! Way to go, Shannon! Living the dream, how exciting! To celebrate, she's hosting a fantastic contest and giving away SIX books, each SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR! Visit Shannon and sign up today :)

Karen Akins @ Novels During Naptime has also surpassed the 100 followers mark. Her celebratory give-away features gorgeous writing supplies and a bead bracelet that matches one she has. I want to be bracelet twins with Karen, don't you?

Noelle Nolan @ A life Rewritten is giving away an Amazon gift card as soon as she reaches 100 followers. Let's get her there quickly! Visit her today and sign up to follow. You'll be making a wonderful new friend and supporting a published author and her platform!

There you have it, some fantastic contests to enter, all of which end in the next week or two (check my sidebar for deadlines).

And, if you know of other contests I can enter and promote, leave me the blogger's URL in a comment. I'll let them know you sent me!

Happy Easter Weekend, everyone!

~ Excuse My Dust ~

I'm changing my blog template and you know what that means...

SIGNIFICANT CHAOS!!

For the next couple hours :))

Please check back later and tell me what you think of the new decor!

F.Y.I.

Here are some fab contests you won't want to miss out on:

Guinevere at This Is Not My Day Job is having a contest to celebrate her 100+ followers. She's giving away two prize packages that include books and a hobo purse, inspired by Shards of Glass.

Noelle Nolan at A Life Unwritten is generating a strong following with her 150 Followers Contest. Once she reaches that magic number, she'll have a drawing for an Amazon gift card. Sign up to follower her today!

Sara at The Babbling Flow of a Fledgling Scribbler is having a major give-away contest, "Saradise Style!" She put the prizes up for grabs in a slide show -- too cool! Enter her March Madness Contest before March 22nd.

Hurry over to Sarah Jayne's blog at Writing in the Wilderness before 6:00 p.m. EST TODAY to get in on her celebration contest for reaching over 50 followers in just two months! Win a $20 gift card of your choice (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders, etc.)

And, Lindsay's Show Me Your Dangerous Contest is so much fun; share your "dangerous" story, scene from your WIP, poem, etc. I had a blast reading everyone else's posts! Zip over there before March 15th to play along!

Remember this....

Check your blogger profile page! When you sign on as my follower, I like to return the favor. I'm always sad when a new follower joins me on my blogging journey, and I click their picture... only to find there's no blog link to lead me chez eux. If you don't edit your profile page to include a link to your blog, I won't be able to find your corner of cyberspace :(

If you follow me and I don't follow you, please leave a comment with your blog's URL. Thanks!!

Have a great weekend, everyone!