Pump Up Your Book Blog Tour

My PUYB blog tour is over as of today. It was nearly a month of whirlwind landings here and there, reading interviews or Q&As I'd forgotten I'd given, reading reviews that were mostly sensational, and being exposed to readers I might never have been exposed to any other way. The tour was upfront a lot of work. All the interviews, articles, columns, promotions, etc., had to be done beforehand. That part was intense. Basically, how many ways can you say, "Please buy and read my book, pretty please, pretty please?" But I did my best, actually had a great time, and hopefully, a few books got purchased along the way, or at least, read about.
My personal PUYB tour guide was Cheryl Malandrinos, a lovely gal with talent, perseverance, a lot of innate sweetness and tolerance, and very savvy. I adore her. Cheryl's willing to go where no man (or woman) has gone before within the blogging world. She set up my tour (and others at the same time) and traipsed along with me into the virtual world of web touring. She was there every step of the way, every single day, and I am grateful to her. it didn't always go smoothly, but what does? During the merry month of May, the blogger was down, it was up, it was down, it was down. Then the mighty floods happened, taking out some of our fellow bloggers in the Midwest, who couldn't deliver the goods on the specific dates committed. No matter. Everyone - without exception -- came through eventually. I had an opportunity to experience a nationwide coming together of we the people of book minds.
It was wonderful. I would do it again in an instant and probably will when I get another fistful of dollars. Meanwhile, thanks to all the PUYB Team. I am very, very happy.

Kirstie and Oprah, my kinda gals

For those of you who are fans of Dancing with the Stars and The Oprah Winfrey Show, you know better than anyone that we will no longer be tuning in to see either Kirstie and Oprah strut their stuff. Kirstie didn't win the glitter ball trophy, and even if she had, it's done and over. Oprah decided that 25-years was long enough for a talk show.
These two women have some things in common other than being in show biz. They are often two larger than life ladies - literally - and we love them for it. They balloon, they shrink, they balloon, they shrink, all in front of our eyes. And we love them for it. They talk about the problems of losing weight and we see them battle it, just like the rest of us do. It doesn't hurt they both are funny, down to earth, and seem to let it all 'hang out,' figuratively, moaning and groaning about life's travails, just like the rest of us.
it has been a blast watching the two of them throughout the years. For one thing, I had no idea Kirstie was 60. That's six-oh. I mean, the woman's gorgeous and doesn't look a day over 45. I'm impressed. As for Oprah, I have always been a fan, even though I've watched her shows only occasionally. I did see the finale and she is one gutsy lady. She says we should all take responsibility for our own lives and not blame anyone else for what happens to us.
She didn't mention the scale, but you could transfer the responsibility of life to that. I'm with her. I'm the one that ate the candy, cookies, pasta, bread, and drank all that wine. I'd love to blame someone else for being a pudge, but there you are. It's me. Thank you Oprah.
And thank you, Kirstie, for doing a cartwheel in front of millions of people, live and on-air. You got chutzpah, gal. But then, you were merely taking responsibility for your life.
Good luck to both of you.

Murder is a Family Business has been getting great reviews!

I've been doing a virtual book tour - ah! the modern world of the internet - and my book has been getting wonderful reviews. check out the latest: Pretty in pink - That would be colors of the blog site, The Phantom Paragraqpher, who gave me a great review. http://tinyurl.com/3q32goc

Just Finished Reading Pat Dale's Sleeping With Her Enemy

And thought I would let you know what I thought of it.

Sleeping With Her Enemy, by author Pat Dale, is a novel about a beautiful, bitter widow; a handsome, sad widower; a precocious, adorable nine-year old; and a darling, rambunctious dog. Deftly written, this story satisfies the reader from beginning to end, with large amounts of mountain scenery thrown in. If you are into a lot of romance, a little sex, a lot of plot twists and turns, and no small amount of villainy, then this is the book to take with you into a warm bath or under a cool tree. Pat Dale is an accomplished weaver of tales.

You can find this novel at MuseItUp Publishing: http://tinyurl.com/3smc8dg



Cheers! Heather

So the Blogger Was Down

I'm sure that shocked a lot of people. It occurred to me that in this day and age, you can't trust much. One of these days, your car isn't going to start, you'll be charged by your bank for a withdrawal you didn't make, and your cat's going to poop in the bathtub. That just happened to me, by the way. Ellie, my little Black Ash doll baby, wasn't happy with the condition of the floor in her bathroom. I write her bathroom, because I've turned over one of the two bathrooms to the cats, Yulie and Ellie. I mean, where do you put litter pans, anyway? Who thinks of that when you get a cat? No screened-in front or back porch, no laundry room, and these are two indoor kitties. So, you turn over one of the bathrooms to them. Their litter pans are on the floor, their food and water sit across on the other side of the small room. Their bags of dry food and treats are on the back of the tub. Ellie uses the inside of the tub to play with some of her toys.
My two beautiful and well-trained cats have never made a mistake, even when they were small kittens. I should say 'had' never. Recently, I was sick and hadn't vacuumed the floor of the bathroom in several days. There was a build up of litter than had made its way onto the tiled floor, so much so I'd made a mental note to drag out the vacuum cleaner when I was feeling a little better. As I was thinking this thought, Ellie looked me dead in the eye, hopped into the bathtub and squatted. I was so stunned, I watched her in mute horror. Then when she was finished, she looked me dead in the eye again and if she could have crossed her 'arms,' to say, 'so there,' I think she would have done so. I cleaned up the mess, and with a runny nose, vacuumed the bathroom floor and have NEVER let it go that long again. P.S. and by the way, she has never made a mistake since that time. Now what has that got to do with the blogging site being down? Not sure, but I know it does. Let me think about it while I get out the vacuum cleaner.

Five Things You May Not Know About Me

Putting aside your main question might be, why would I? I thought I would share an article about me appearing in The Hot Author Report:

1 – I have to stop writing at 12:00 noon no matter what to watch the soap, All My Children. It calms me, lets me shake everything out, realign myself. I’ve been watching that stupid soap since high school and I love it. I’m not sure Erica Kane can get married and married and married, without my love and support. I understand AMC is going off the air after 40 years the middle of September. When it does, I have no idea how I will get through. Maybe I’ll have to start taking Valium or drinking soothing tea in the middle of the day. Or maybe a martini, because I love green olives. Whoa! Wait a minute. There’s a slippery road to nowhere. Never mind.

2 – Whatever and whenever I write, I like to write draped in my cats. Unless I am really on a roll, where I have to have both hands free to type at 115 wpm, I usually lollygag around the office with one or both of my two cats hanging onto me or stretched out nearby. Yulie, my Flamepoint Siamese, likes to climb up on my shoulder and wrap himself around my neck like a scarf, purring incessantly. Ellie, my black ash mix, likes to hang over the keyboard, gazing at me soulfully with her green eyes. My husband of 28-years can’t understand how this isn’t distracting. But they have a soothing effect on me, like AMC. Hmmmm. I realize this makes me sound a little high strung. Must be the caffeine from all that tea.

3 – Both my parents were members of the Ringling Brothers Circus when I was born. My father was an elephant trainer and my mother was a featured performer. I have pictures of me as a toddler sitting atop a baby elephant’s head. This could explain a lot.

4 – I went to college on a costume scholarship. I still love glad rags, even though I don’t wear nearly the eye-catching numbers I used to. I was quite a clotheshorse in my younger, single days. Now I buy cat litter.

5 – I would like to write eight more books before I hang up my keyboard. That would make it an even dozen. But I could go for a baker’s dozen, too. I like to feel I’m flexible.

By Grace Is On Its Way

Talented writer, Grace DeLuca, author of Betwixt and Between, which debuts May 20, will be starting her own blog called By Grace. Please join me in welcoming Grace - my cuz, you know -- to the wild and whacky world of blogging! I know she would appreciate the support and good will!