Friday Fun Facts: Pre-Order Beacon of Love Now!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! Just in time for this lovers' holiday, you can pre-order Beacon of Love for the super-low re-release price of $0.99! Smashwords is featuring the pre-order, and it should soon be up on Barnes & Noble as well.

In other news, I'm going away for the long weekend to a place that has more snow....yes, more than is in my front yard, which after yesterday is about 2 feet. It's a Presidents' Weekend snowy getaway, and while the people I'm with will probably be doing all kinds of outdoor winter activities, I'm hoping to stay inside and get some writing done. No Internet or TV, so at least I won't have those distractions.

I'm hoping it will be cozy and quiet, more like The Holiday

and less like, well, The Shining

(not like I'm going away with a madman or anything, just that I'll be in an isolated hotel in the middle of a snowstorm).

Here's to getting a lot of new words written on a new book ~ I"ll give you the update next week!

Writers' Wednesday: The Re-Release of Beacon of Love is 1 Week Away!

Hello readers! I'm thrilled to let you know that the re-release of Beacon of Love is happening next week, so that means if you didn't get around to reading it last year when it came out, you'll soon be able to! Even better, for the month of February, it will be on sale for only $.99 - less than a cup of coffee! Want to know what readers thought of it? Reviews over on Goodreads if you're interested.

For writers, here are a couple of links to share with you today, courtesy of BookBaby. The first is a blog post about where to post your free/sale ebooks (always helpful info!) and the second is a pointed article about how to use - and not use - social media to your advantage when you're first releasing a book. Good stuff!

Now, to bunker down and prepare for the snow....more snow....always more snow....

Monday Mentionables: Why I'm Not Watching the Winter Olympics

"Be the change you want to see in the world." (Mahatma Gandhi)

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter." (Martin Luther King, Jr.)

Today's post admittedly has little to do with writing or my books that are releasing shortly, but I felt the need to vent today. So bear with me.

I am not watching the 2014 Winter Olympics this year. I have the feeling I am in the minority when it comes to this decision, being a person who would normally enjoy watching the opening ceremony and cheering for the figure skaters and oohing and aahing over the ski jumpers and rooting on the speed skaters and hockey teams. But this year, in the wake of not only the whole stray dog-killing scandal but also Russia's blatant anti-gay legislation, I feel that I can't watch the competition when it is supported, organized, and marketed by a country that goes against two of my greatest beliefs.

I know what I stand for. Human rights and the equal treatment of human beings, and ethical treatment of animals, are two of the biggest. I also know that my watching, or not watching, the Olympics as a single viewer will have little effect on the event as a whole. I also know that the athletes are not the ones to blame, and that their performance and preparation should have nothing to do with the political beliefs or practices of the country in which the competition happens to take place this year.

But, finally, I also know that I could not, in good faith, be a role model for my students, my friends, or my community members, or be the kind of person I want to be, if I did not stand up for my beliefs. I believe we should all be true to ourselves, whatever that means to us. That is why I decided to publish my Hometown Heroes as an indie publisher, (haha - got a writing reference in after all!) why I write sex scenes that take place behind closed doors, and, finally, why I will not be watching the Winter Olympics.

To each her own. Have a great Monday, friends.