Thursday, February 12, 2009

Shadowed Summer Giveaway and Randomness

This was a really happy week for me! I went to the bookstore on Tuesday and got to see several of my friends' books on the shelves! Most face-out even! I have known a lot of authors in my time, but most of them were either already published or about to be published. It has been so fun to see some of my Debut 2009 friends go from barely contracted to on the shelf! And only 82 days for me!!! (Not that I'm counting.;))

So in celebration of this, the first Debut 2009 giveaway featuring the inestimable Saundra Mitchell's Shadowed Summer! You can read all about it here.) This is an incredible book and I have been predicting for months that it is going to be a sleeper hit and possibly an awards contender. Beautifully written, fabulous voice, creepy undead, trust me, you can't ask for more.

Want it?

Easy entry. Just leave a comment with where or who you would haunt if you were a ghost.:D Entries are accepted until I put up my next giveaway which will be on Saturday when I get the time. Could be early, could be late--I suggest you comment now.;)

Okay, now for some serious randomness.

*I've started doing an actual organized homeschooling system with my three year old son who reads and does math at about a first grade level. He needs more structure than he has now and this seems to work really well. His handwriting? Not quite so advanced.;)

*My daughter's new favorite song is Kate Perry's I Kissed a Girl. There are few things funnier than listening to a five year old sitting at the table singing, "I kissed a girl and I liked it. . . . It felt so wrong, it felt so right." Love it!

*My "desk" is eating my closet. One of the really cool promotional things I am doing (that I don't know if I have actually mentioned here . . .) is that Harper is offering specially bound signed first editions of my book. Well, rather than ship me a zillion books, they shipped me a zillion title pages and then they will tip them into the binding process. Smart huh! However, these pages all (obviously) have to be kept very clean, so I keep them on a table locked in my walk-in-closet. Originally the table was ONLY for the pages, but . . . well, my "desk" is now full of lots of things and it has become very apparent to me that when we move this summer, I need an office.



This is said table with the pages in two stacks--finished and unfinished--and lest you think I'm a slacker, there are a ton more finished pages already packed in the box on the right. The box on the left is the recording device for the podcast that I have to do sometime next week. (Yes, next week! Eeek! Deadline approaching!!!) Oh, and that manila envelope on the far left? Estonian contracts. How cool is that!?!?



Worse, my work stuff has spilled onto the floor. Here are a bunch of bags of swag bags that I made for touring and now have lots of extras of (didn't want to run out!) that I will be giving out for lots of other things, such as Saturday's ARC giveaway.:D




And, of course, beside my file box (that looks way more organized than it is!) is the thing that is NOT allowed on my table at all; my drink. Anything that could possibly mar my pages in any way, is NOT allowed anywhere near the table. So much for snacking while working. *sniff*

* Gender neutral names are apparently the new thing. I was getting my daughter's valentines prepared and she had a class list and we had Barbie cards for the girls and Superhero cards for the boys. And I had to ask on over half of the names whether they were a boy or girl. I am so not crazy! Check some of these out!!
Emory (girl), Riley (boy), Morgan (girl), Jaden (girl; this one stumped me because every female Jaden I've seen has a Y in there, i.e. Jayden.) Also, there are only four boys in her class. Odd.

So there's my randomness! I have been crazy busy trying to catch up from tour and meet deadlines this week, so I promise something a little more organized next week.:D

Ciao!

22 comments:

Carbonneau said...

I enjoyed the tidbits about the kids, and I love the fun stuff on your desk. It looks so exciting! Did you find something online or a course to follow for the homeschooling stuff for Brennan? I think it is funny, the gender neutral names, I have always liked those names for girls (Ryann, Jordan, Taylor, Alex). But Chris says, "Wesly, Travis, Nathan, Ryann...Guess which one is a girl"...lol I guess our girl needs a more feminine name.

Unknown said...

I am counting down the days too!

Remember with little boys and their writing: The nerve ending on the tips of little boys fingers are not fully developed yet at 3 and it actually hurts them to write too much, especially with a pencil. In my classes they suggested soft wood pencils that are bigger around!

Martha Flynn said...

This is like...the third contest I've entered for a copy of this book. :) I really want it. And sure I'll *buy* it, but I want to win one, too!

As to who/where I would haunt, assuming I couldn't interact with anyone it would be too depressing to hang around loved ones or food, so I'd have to go with a movie theater so I could hang around and watch films all day long. What can I say. I'm kind of a couch potato.

Miranda said...

Sounds like life is so exciting. So what are in the swag bags? those are cool! Ok, what would I haunt?? ...... I would think it would be fun to haunt a jail. It would be fun to bug people and scare them until they confessed the crime. Hehehe. Melissa said she would haunt the ocean because you can play in the ship wrecks, and haunt good looking sailors and navy boys all day.

Sheryl said...

I'm really enjoying reading your blog these days. I would like to know what's in the swag bags, too.

As for where I would haunt... I would haunt an old theater, steeped in mystery and I would do it to help the theater thrive... which then would make me a patron of the arts!

juiciliciousss reviews said...

i will haunt...kim bum, this awesome korean actor that i am now currently obsessed with xDD he's so cute and i'll totally haunt him because then ill always be with him ^^

where? wherever he is because it'll be so much fun :)

stephanie

woman who roars said...

Hi,
We home school our kids (6, 4 & 2 1/2) b/f they start school and are still teaching my daughter (6) supplements to her kindergarten stuff (my husband is teaching her Greek and Latin - go figure). Anyway, we did a lot of integrated learning with her; ie. baking for math (fractions, addition, subraction, multiplication) and reading. I think she might me one of the only 6 year olds I know who knows what masala spices are and who has alphabetized the spice rack. We also had her write out the grocery list each week which she loved b/c she felt grown up, and she learned how to spell. Oh yeah - science was baking also. She learned the hard way that baking powder and soda do very different things; and we had to do a burial service for a cookie tray after that experiment. He he he.
Anyway, best of luck with Brennan - it is so much fun watching them absorb information!

If I could haunt someone, I'd want to watch over my kids and make sure they were ok; provided I could haunt in a non creepy way!

Alexandra said...

I love the pictures of your desk. Also, the Calvin & Hobbes collection sitting on the floor... I've got that in my bedroom. Thanks for holding the contest! If I were a ghost, I would haunt my high school, the most fabulous high school in the world and my home away from home (and I would obviously visit my family a lot and haunt them, too, heh heh).

mindy said...

i would haunt my ex!! thanks for the givaway

taterbug said...

The opportunity to haunt my ex-husband almost makes me giddy! Thanks for the visual. Love, love the giveaway!

techyone said...

Hmm, I would haunt a library. I love books.

Anonymous said...

I would haunt...umm...honestly? I wouldn't want to haunt anyone at all. The thought of being a ghost scares me just a little ;)

Emily H

Christi said...

well, I have never really given much thought to whom I would haunt if I were dead- but I want a book, so, here it goes: I would haunt Steven King- I think it would be hilarious to play ghost pranks on a guy who has a definite imagination for it!

A Reader said...

I would haunt my family to see what they were up to.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Kimspam66(at)yahoo(dot)com

Jessie Oliveros said...

I would haunt a college campus, preferably my alma mater. And I would be the love ghost, playing the eternal matchmaker, and only scaring the very heartless.

Melinda said...

I would haunt my little sister, because she loves things like horror movies and haunted houses.

Lady Roxi said...

I would definitely haunt my cats. I always want to know what they do when I am away.

Thanks,

darkfyre1(at)gmail(dot)com

Kiersten White said...

Oh, oh! I would haunt any old castles or countryside in England or Ireland. Mostly because I still haven't gotten there in life...

trinathegranny said...

I would haunt the library, all the libraries and the bookstores, expecially the ones with cushy chairs. :D

Unknown said...

Your closet looks fun! :) Go Brennan!

I would haunt YOU!! Cuz then I can read what you're writing over your shoulder... :P

susanne said...

i am brand new to your blog, and as such, am enjoying it immensely.

if i were to haunt anywhere, it would definitly be paris, in particular, the seine. i would be the ghost of the bridges... could never pick just one, but i guess that would be the bonus of being a ghost! :-)

ChelMo said...

I would haunt Congress. And not in a nice way.