Friday, April 28, 2017

Win a Free Kindle Fire Loaded With Twenty Books


Grace in the Mirror is in the Amazon Storyteller Competition and in an effort to win a contest, I decided to throw one of my own. If you would like to win a Kindle Fire loaded with my twenty of my books, enter here.

Thursday, April 27, 2017

My Futurescapes Writer Conference


Warning, lots of superlatives ahead.
It snowed! I missed my socks.



My room. I had a kitchen, laundry, jetted tub and a sauna. Even better, the conference had lots of down time for writing. And since I had such a great space, I took full advantage of it.


Sundance is heaven on earth. Everything about the conference was lovely. Everyone brought 12 copies of the first twenty pages of our work. We met in groups of five for critiquing. Each group was spearheaded by an agent, bestselling author, or editor.

My group leaders were Naomi Novik best known for her Temeraire fantasy/alternate history series, and Nephele Tempest, an agent with the Knight Agency. (I thought maybe we'd click because we're both from L.A. Plus, she's Greek and my favorite neighbor who brings me Greek food is also Greek.)

It was nice to meet the "pros" but I also really enjoyed the snippets of stories I heard from the other writers.

It's also really nice to be back in California...where socks are nothing more than a fuzzy fashion accessory.

Now that I'm home, I need to put on my promoter's hat because my novel, Grace in the Mirror is in the Amazon UK Storyteller Competition. This morning it was #36 out of more than 1300 entries. Which is awesome, but I want to be #1, not #36. I don't really like wearing my promoter's hat, but I'll do it for a trip to London, 20k pounds, and a marketing campaign. I think I may run a contest of my own....stay tuned.
Help me win by getting your copy now. Only 2.99


Thursday, April 20, 2017

Double Blog Hop!


Welcome to the Spring Fling Mega Gift Card FB Hop, where you can enter to win a gift card at every stop. With 77 authors participating, that’s 77 chances for you to win cards ranging in value from $5 to $50!  

In the event of a broken link in the hop, you can always find the complete list of authors and links to their FB pages here: https://megagiftcardhop.wordpress.com/join-the-hop/

For this hop, I’m giving away an e-copy of my new book, Grace in the Mirror, plus a $10 Amazon gift card. Please read and follow the instructions below very carefully. I don’t want to have to disqualify anyone!



  1. Like my FB page and this post.
  2. Sign up for my newsletter and get a free book. (See the sign up form on the right hand side of my blog)
  3. Comment below this post: I Love Spring!

Winners will be chosen at random when the giveaway closes at 12 pm EST (9 am PST) on April 24.

Astrid Arditi - Author* is the next stop on the hop. Visit her/his Facebook page for a chance to win another gift card here: https://facebook.com/Astridarditiauthor/.

BONUS GIVEAWAY! If you visit every page on the hop and enter all 77 giveaways, you are eligible to enter to win an Amazon Echo Dot or Kindle Fire. Here’s the Rafflecopter:


Have you entered our Grand Prize Giveaway? Check it out. We’re giving away $1250 in gift cards!


Good luck and have fun on the hop!

Facebook giveaways are in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. In signing up for this promotion, participants release and indemnify Facebook from all liability. Information collected is not collected by Facebook.



List of Participating Authors and Links to Their Facebook Pages

Constance Phillips
Debbie White*
Tamara Lush
Nancy Segovia
Helen Smith
Alyson Hale*
Shirley Hailstock*
Trish McCallan*
Author Dena Garson*
Ava Bradley*
Tamara Ferguson*
Lynda Haviland*
Eva Chase*
Ashlee Price - Author
Allyson R Abbott*
Phoebe Rose*
Author Ysa Arcangel
Tee Garner*
Author Jennifer Allis Provost
Rachel Woods
Amelia James - Author
Jacqueline Diamond - Author*
Dragon’s Geas*
Marsha A. Moore - Author*
Siera London Books*
Emily Leigh*
Jenna Barwin - Author*
Tara Lain*
Christa Paige*
Cynthia A Clement Author*
Marie Booth Books*
Author Hope Welsh*
A Kiss At Midnight Reviews- Home of Sarah Fischer and Kelsey McKnight*
Marie Johnston - Writer
Anne Renwick*
Author Brea Viragh*
Gayle Parness Author*
Stella Marie Alden*
Aubrey Wynne
JD Monroe*
Sharon Kay*
Elizabeth Rose - Author*
Author H. D. Thomson*
Author Caitlyn Blue*
Margo Bond Collins
Bokerah Brumley*
Felicia Beasley - Author*
Author Amy L Gale*
Olivia Wildenstein*
Tracie E Christian*
Patricia M Jackson's Page*
Kristy Tate - Novelist*
Astrid Arditi - Author*
Lisa Mondello*
Cassie Alexander - Author*
Lori L. Robinett - Author*
Amanda Uhl - Author*
Melissa Belle*
Josie Riviera
Author Layla
Author Bree Dahlia*
Cherie Claire*
Barbara Barrett*
Ami’s Bookpage
Lizbeth Selvig - Author*
Amy Brent*
Cailin Briste*
Author Mia Ford*
Bambi Lynn*
Roxanne Snopek - Author*
Author Stacy Gold*
Alex Gordon Books*
Kristine Smith Books*
Greta Boris Author*
Oliver Chase
Allison Gatta*
Aileen Harkwood*
*indicates author is offering a $10 or higher value gift card.
Apple Streusel Bars
Easier (and tastier!) than pie, these apple streusel bars will find a permanent place on your dessert or brunch table!
Print
SWEET PASTRY
  1. 2 cups all-purpose flour
  2. 1/2 cup sugar
  3. 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  4. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  5. 1 cup real butter, softened (no substitutions!)
  6. 1 egg, beaten
APPLE FILLING
  1. 1/2 cup white sugar
  2. 1/4 cup flour
  3. 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  4. 4 cups (about 3 medium or 2 large) sliced, peeled baking apples like Granny Smith
GLAZE
  1. 2 cups powdered sugar
  2. About 3 tablespoons milk (whole milk is best)
  3. 1 teaspoon almond extract
Instructions
  1. To prepare crust, mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two knives until you have pea-sized crumbles. Gently mix in beaten egg.
  2. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Gently pat about 2/3 of the crumb mixture onto the bottom of the dish. Preheat oven to 350 and set aside.
  3. To prepare apple filling, combine flour, sugar, and cinnamon and toss with apples.
  4. Spread apples out on prepared crust. Sprinkle reserved crust mixture over apples evenly and bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes.
  5. When finished, allow to cool completely.
  6. To prepare glaze, whisk together powdered sugar, almond extract, and enough milk to achieve desired consistency.
  7. Place glaze in a Ziploc bag and cut off a very small portion of one of the corners (or just use a fork) to drizzle glaze over cooled pastry and allow to harden (you can place it in the freezer to hurry things along). Cut into bars and serve.

When it’s chilly outside, Snuggle In with Sweet Romance!
No matter where you are in the world, be it autumn breezes in the southern hemisphere or spring rains in the north, the weather these days is unpredictable, often chilly and wet. 
How do you get comfortable on those cold and rainy days? You might curl up with a good book, a hot chocolate, and a nice warm blanket to snuggle under. What good book can I recommend?
 AUTUMN’S KISS!
The AUTUMN’S KISS anthology presents a variety of stories by sweet romance authors from around the globe and gives you an opportunity to discover some new favorites.
While romance readers in the southern hemisphere are enjoying autumn, 7 authors from the AUTUMN’S KISS anthology have teamed up to share recipes for their favorite comfort foods and invite you to share in the bounty!
Join the AUTUMN’S KISS Blog Hop!
Many Chances for You to Win!
·        First, each blog in the hop provides a chance to win prizes direct from each author.
·        Second, visit every blog and you can be eligible for the $100 Grand Prize drawing or one of the runner-up prizes. 5 winners in all!
1 GRAND PRIZE WINNERS: $100 Amazon Gift Card
2 FIRST PRIZE WINNERS: $20 Amazon Gift Card
2 SECOND PRIZE WINNERS: FREE Autumn’s Kiss eBook