Wow. Just wow.

I just got another insanely kickass review: 5 Stars from Ecataromance! "A laugh out loud roller coaster ride." Woohoo! Check it out!

I have two questions:

1) When does bragging about your reviews become annoying? I've already passed that point, haven't I? You're collecting rotten tomatoes to chuck at me, aren't you?

2) Who is feeding the reviewers the happy pills before they read my book and can I have a little of whatever they are smoking? Not to question their superlative judgement in any way, but I'm starting to wonder if my publisher is passing out hits of laughing gas with the reviewer copies. Or am I really this lucky?

Interesting side note about this particular review: At one point the reviewer referred to me as Ms. Tyler. Psychic! How did she know about my deep and abiding passion for Aerosmith? Oh, Steven. *sigh* I want your love. Let's break the walls between us. Don't make it tough. I've put away my pride. Enough's enough. I've suffered and I've seen the light. Bay-ee-yay-ee-bay, you're my aaaaangel. Come and save me tonight...

DABWAHA 2009 is here!

I know what you're thinking. What on earth is DABWAHA, right? Well, folks, DABWAHA is the Dear Author Bitchery Writing Award for Hellagood Authors. And it's interactive! Woot!

Step one: Go there http://dabwaha.com/ (TODAY!! The brackets are locked in at 11PM ET tonight) and fill out your NCAA-esq bracket to guess the winners.

Step two: Return and vote for your favs during the various and sundry rounds o' voting.

Step three: Win mad prizes, including a shiny new Sony eReader. Oooooh. Aaaaaaah.

Want more details? Check out Dear Author or Smart Bitches for the skinny, the lowdown, and the 411... as well as more reviews than you can shake a stick at. Although why you would shake a stick at reviews is beyond me.

Go forth and conquer, my friends. And may the schwartz be with you.

Pillowtalk Tuesday

I'm being interviewed over at Michelle Pillow's Blog today where one lucky commenter will WIN a copy of The Ghost Shrink, the Accidental Gigolo & the Poltergeist Accountant. Stop on by and join the fun!

American Title V: Vote Now!

And then there were two.

It's come down to this, ladies and gentlemen. The final round of Romantic Times American Title V Contest is upon us. What is this American Title contest, you ask? In a nutshell, it's American Idol for romance novelists and your votes will determine which one of these two deserving finalists will be walking away with a publishing contract from Dorchester Publishing! Each of the final two contestants have posted a romance scene from their books to induce you to pick them. Go, read, vote!

Now, I confess, I have a bit of a bias where this contest is concerned. One of the final two, Marie-Claude Bourque, author of the sultry paranormal Ancient Whispers, is a member of my local writing chapter. It's such a thrill to see her doing so well and it couldn't be happening to a nicer person. I've posted her book trailer here for your viewing pleasure:

VOTE NOW: http://www.romantictimes.com/news_amtitle3.php

Outside the Box

This morning I was filling out my passport renewal forms and I got stuck. One of the little drop down menus confused the hell out of me. I began calling family members, begging for assistance. It is a tribute to how bizarre some of my conversations with my family are that none of them were thrown for even a second when the first words out of my mouth were not "Hello" or any varietal thereof, but rather "Mom, what color are my eyes?"

See, I'd always thought that hazel meant changeable. Apparently I was wrong. Hazel (adj.) 1. of a light brown or yellowish brown color. My eyes are sort of a bluish-greenish-greyish mutable color with a ring of yellow-brown right around the pupil. The passport form's dropdown menu didn't have an option for that.

The debate raged on. My father thought "blue-green" should be an option (yeah, well, tell that to the US Passport Service) while my mother argued that "there are many different kinds of blue." My aunt didn't think I could qualify for hazel since my eyes never look fully brown. When informed that my eyes often change color based on what I'm wearing, she wanted to know what color they are when I'm not wearing anything. Logical, but since I plan on wearing clothing while traveling in and out of the country... I ended up going with grey, because, as my best friend said, "Grey is the most like both green and blue somehow."

Now why am I burdening you with all this ridiculous babble about eye color? Cuz it's a metaphor, baby!

My eyes don't always fit into the same neat little box, and neither does my writing. This is actually something I've been worrying about quite a bit lately. As writers, we are told that we need to brand ourselves. The Ghost Shrink (et al) is clearly a paranormal romantic comedy. And so will The Ghost Exterminator be. However, I recently wrote a lion shape-shifter novella that is in no way comedy and several degrees steamier. If that gets published, are my readers going to rebel? I'm also puttering away at a dark-actiony-psychic novel. Is that a mistake?

All these books are paranormal, but am I sabotaging my career with these blue-green-grey shifts? When a reader picks up a book by a certain author, aren't they trusting that author to give them what they got before? Is writing a career in which it is necessary to think inside the box? (Or at least pick one box and stick to it?)

Genre-jumping is okay, but is it only okay when the genres being jumped between are so drastically different there could be no confusion? Once you have branded yourself, are you stuck? If that's true, I might be in trouble. I've never been very good at sticking.

Guest-blog-tastic: No regrets, baby!

Check me out, y'all. I'm over at Naughty & Spice today blogging about taking life in big bites, grabbing the bull by the horns (Dodgeball, anyone?) and going for it with no regrets!

And if that wasn't enough for you, the Tickle My Fantasy girls are chatting it up at the Samhain Cafe this morning (7:30-8:30am Pacific).

AND we're giving away a set of all four of the Tickle My Fantasy stories at Barbara Fey's Publishers Weekly Anniversary Blog Party today!

It's a Bermuda triangle of online goodness. Happy Friday the 13th!

Hurray!

The Ghost Shrink, the Accidental Gigolo & the Poltergeist Accountant was selected as a Reviewer's Top Pick for February at ParaNormal Romance Reviews! How much does that rock?

And in other news, I have not yet managed to kill the Paperwhite bulbs on my desk. They are growing and flowering, if you'll believe it. My black thumb has not yet managed to send them to the terrifying flower hell which is the usual destination for all plants unlucky enough to live (and die) within a five foot radius of me. Woohoo! A good day, all the way around.

Another Day, Another Chance to Win...

Scavenger Hunt!

Just in case you thought there weren't enough chances to win fabulous free things this week for Read an eBook Week... there is a new Scavenger Hunt every day this week through Saturday at the Samhellion! And, yes, ladies and gentlemen, one of the lucky Scavenger Hunt winners will receive a free download of The Ghost Shrink, the Accidental Gigolo & the Poltergeist Accountant. Already read it? Never fear! Dozens of other Samhain authors are also supplying fabulous prizes. So CLICK HERE NOW and enter for your chance to win!

I am such a five-year-old. I love love love Scavenger Hunts. Not as much as I love trivia games, but it's a close call. I live for pub quizzes and remain undefeated at Scene It. I may have a terrible memory for names & faces, but random, useless information sticks in my brain forever, making me a trivia juggernaut. So what's your favorite game/challenge/contest? Do you prefer games of luck or skill?