Showing Your Favorite Author(s) Some Love

It's that time of year again... Time to shop 'til you drop! LOL. Well, you know what I mean. There will be lots of gift-giving over the next few weeks and some of the big gifts will be new tablets, iPads, Kindles, Nooks, and many more electronics that can be used to read books. Soon those eReaders will need to be filled with many, many new reads, so why not show your favorite authors some love this holiday season?

It's really easy to give your favorite author a little holiday joy. A simple review is a big one. Reviews help us gain new readers. They help us sell more books, pull in potential fans, and even give us a better standing in the book selling marketplaces. There are even deals and discounts newsletters that require a certain amount of reviews before we can list our books with them.

So please, during this holiday season, take a moment to leave a few words on a book you enjoyed. It can be as simple or as detailed as you like. Even a short, "I liked it," is enough to make a beloved author happy.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving!

As you read this, I'm on my way out of town for a day trip with Tim and our girls. We had the family Thanksgiving get-together last Saturday, freeing us up to do what ever we wanted today. With Tim off work and the girls out of school this week, what better time to take a trip?

Today we will spend the day in Pigeon Forge, TN. I have reservations for a late lunch and a show at Dixie Stampede at 1pm. When Tim & I saw the Christmas show there last year we knew we had to bring the kids back for it. And the best part: It's a Thanksgiving meal I don't have to cook or clean up after! Woohoo!

After our meal and show, we'll go spend some time shopping and visiting Gatlinburg before heading back home in the evening.

This is family togetherness at its best!

I hope you're having a beautiful day with the ones you love!

Happy Thanksgiving,

Christmas Party Details...

Happy Tuesday morning! What do you have planned for today? I can't believe it's almost Christmas. Tim's still waiting for the gift he ordered me to arrive via FedEx; and he's getting pretty anxious. I keep reminding the man that he still has plenty of time, but he's determined that if he ordered it last Thursday it should already be here.  LOL!

The poor guy has such a difficult time thinking of anything to get me for Christmas or birthdays, and this time he did it all on his own (I have no idea what it is, just that it's from Zales).  Now he's worried it won't arrive in time.  I'm sure all will be fine and that he'll receive a shipping e-mail by the end of today.

Speaking of Christmas...

I mentioned the other day that I'll be hosting my very first online Christmas party this week. Here are all the details!

• Date:  Thursday, December 17, 2009
• Time:  7 p.m. - 10 p.m. Eastern (maybe longer if we're partying hard, LOL)
• Where:  Christie's ChatRoom

We'll chat, sing songs, enjoy drinks and eats, and all from the privacy of your own home. Just use the link above, choose a username and enter (no password required). At the end of the night, one lucky guest will go home (log off) with a holiday gift from lil ole me.  :-)

When I have a chat people always have a great time. My LTTM ladies can attest to that. ;-)

I hope to see you there!

Now I'm off to get my Tuesday started and eat some breakfast.  Have a wonderful day and mark your calendars for the Christmas party!

Online Christmas Party!

Who wants to party with me?  Technically, there aren't many of you who could physically party with me, but we can certainly party together online! 

On Thursday December 17, 2009, from 8pm - 10pm EST, I'll be hosting my very first online Christmas party.  Come, eat (your own food), and be merry with me!  Settle down in your comfy computer chair, have a glass of wine, and snack on some cheese and crackers while we chat, joke around, and just have a good time.  We might even sing some Christmas carols!!

At the end of the night, I'll give a Christmas gift to one lucky guest.  I'll post all the details close to time (where the chat is, log-in info, etc.).

Speaking of Christmas gifts, don't forget about my December-Twitter GiveAway that's going right now.  All the contest details are here, so pop by and tell me what your Christmas gift wish is for this year.  :-)

All righty!  Today's Monday, the start of a brand new week, and I get to go back to my writing work.  I'm very excited to pull out my manuscript of Time For Death, go over it once again and get it all ready to send out into the world.  I'm planning to have it sent off to several people by the end of the week.  Then it'll be time to jump back into Time for Battle to get it finished up.  I'm sure Liz'll be happy that I'm back to giving her the time of day.  LOL.

Speaking of Liz, one of my lovely beta readers informed me last week that she was going through "Liz withdrawls".  LOL!  Looks like I better hurry up with book 2 before she starts having seizures from the withdrawls.  ;-)

I'm of now.  I hope you all have a fantastic Monday.  I'm going to work until I have to pick the oldest up for her orthodontics appointment this afternoon.

*Smooches*

Wanna Know Wednesday #43

Happy Hump Day everyone!  It's a wet, rainy, dreary day here this morning.  That didn't keep us from going out in it though.  LOL.  We had to get some groceries and run by the bank.  When I told the 4 yr old to get dressed she asked, "Do you know that it's raining out there?"  LOL!  She's such a ham.

We made it back though... maybe a littler wetter, but definitely safe and sound.  :-)

According to the Weather Channel, we'll have rain all day, clouds over the next four days, and a possibility of snow showers on Saturday.  That's pretty early for snow showers here in north Georgia.  Usually it's not until after the new year.  We'll see if it happens though.  Don't want to get the kids excited until we see fat flakes falling from the sky.

So, it's the time of the year that every time a parent takes their small children shopping (even just for groceries) we hear the phrases that won't stop until we leave the store...  "Can I have this?  Will you buy me this?  I want this!"

Holiday displays run amuck these days.  Kids have voices that live in a constant state of whining, begging, pleading for something, anything that's within the grasp of their small hands.

Yep, my 4 year old has joined the ranks of these holiday begging soldiers.  I've heard so many Oooohs and Ahhhhs and I want and I need and Buy me this and of course....  Pleeeeeease!  It's enough to make a parent pull their hair out.

In the holiday spirit of giving, today's Wanna Know Wedneday will be......

10 Gifts Under My Tree

1. 1600 Xbox Live Points
2. MP3 Player
3. Books
4. Journals
5. Strawberry Shortcake games
6. Twilight Jewelry box
7. Twilight Poster
8. Star Trek dvd
9. A Tupperware set
10. A photo calendar

There are more, and there are more to get.  These are just the first ten that came to mind.  All three children got books and I need to get them each a new pajama set.  We have a Christmas Eve tradition that they get to open one gift and it's always new pjs.  It's fun and they like to see what I've picked out for them.

Santa still has to make a trip to Toys R Us this weekend, too.  Then I'll be all satisfied with everything being ready for Christmas.  Of course, five days after Christmas is our oldest daughter's 13th birthday and two weeks later is our youngest daughter's 5th birthday.  I'll have to figure something out for their birthday gifts too.
This is a busy time of year, but I so love it.  The lights, the happiness, the fun and games, the parties, the time spent as a family... I love it all.  :-)

I'm off to do laundry now.  My monthly newsletter went out this morning, so I hope everyone on the list enjoyed it.  Thank you all for reading.  *Smooches*

Have a great Wednesday.

It's date night in the Silvers Household.

Happy Friday everyone!  Today will be a fantastic day, I'll be my happy-go-lucky self (gotta make up for yesterday), and Tim is taking me out tonight.  Woohoo!

It's Mom's night to have the kids; I'll be taking them to her when the oldest gets home from school.  Then Tim and I will be heading to Chattanooga for an evening out.  First we'll have dinner at Famous Dave's (a yummy BBQ place we like) and then we'll go over to Hamilton Place Mall for some Christmas shopping that I can't get done down here.  I need to hit Barnes & Noble up there since all of our bookstores appear to have closed down here.

I'm getting the older girls brand new journals for Christmas and I can't find any good ones here.  I didn't see any I liked on Amazon either, but the B&N website shows a lot of pretty ones.  So we'll do that.  And afterwards we'll come home to watch some Netflix movies, enjoy the peace and quiet, and enjoy each other... tremendously!  ;-)

This morning however, I have lots of writing to do, since I'm way behind on my NaNo word count... still.  I have no doubt that I'll finish (I'm not a quitter), but it'll be a rush to the end in those last few days.  I'll be sequestered in my bedroom with death threats to anyone who dares to knock.  Seriously, there will be dire consequences in those last few days.  Fear of bodily harm will be practiced by all.  LOL!

Tim knows how I am when I'm on a deadline and I'm rushing to meet it.  This isn't his first rodeo with me.  He can't leave me alone up to those last days, but when it comes right down to that point he has a deep rooted fear of death by my hand.  I know how to use every tool in this house and have no problem fashioning some of my own, if need be.  LOL.

Nonetheless, today I'll do laundry and work.  Tonight we'll be kid-less and out on the town.  Then back home for drinks, movies, and dare I say it... NOOKIE!  Oh yeah, baby!  ;-)

So that's my Friday plans, what about yours?  What will you be up to today/night?  Whatever it is, I hope you have a great day and enjoy every bit of it. 

Christie is happy!

Yesterday my Annie returned to my lap. I was so anxious for her to load up so that I could see if my files were still there. The anticipation was horrid and her loading process seemed to take FOREVER (even though I know it never takes log).

After what seemed like 10 mins (it wasn't), the screen brightened and there on the background of colorful beach rocks sat the one file I had most wanted to see....

The manuscript for Time For Death!!!

Yep, all of my files are still right where I left them, fully intact. I was so filled with joy that I immediately grabbed the closest flash drive and copied the file (and it's accompanying notes file) right on over to it. That mess won't be happening to me again. No way! No how!

Whew!

What was funny is that since my laptop had been out of commision for 10 days, all of my programs that regularly update themselves when wild as soon as it was connected to the internet. My antivirus, spyware, firewall, etc. all wanted to update at the same time. The Windows Defender was chastising me because there hadn't been a scan run for 10 days. GASP!! LMAO!

All is well now though. Annie is running smoothly. All of the programs have updated and ran their scans (soooo sorry Windows Defender). And I'm happy in the knowledge that my book hasn't been lost. As soon as Christmas is over I'll be back to work on Time For Death with a newfound urgency to get it finished. I love the story and can't wait to stand back and say, "Awww, even after all the trouble and scares, it's done!"

While I'm thinking about it, I must say that the Dell Support was superb during all of this. The people I spoke with, both online and over the phone, were so helpful, kind, and knowledgeable. And alk about fast! My laptop reached their repair facility on Tuesday and by Wednesday they'd shipped it back to me and it arrived home on Friday. Talk about quick!

Thank you Dell! I would have preferred that the motherboard NOT have gone out, but I'm so thankful that it was repaired so quickly. And I'll say it again... Thank goodness for warranties! LOL!

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone! I hope that Santa brings you everything that you deserve. Or at least a little of what you desire.
;-)

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Annie Update

Good morning everyone! It's a cool, dreary, rainy day here in north Georgia. I swear it never seems to stop raining here these days. I *think* we had a few hours of sunshine one day last week, but my mood was so dreary that I hardly noticed.

Well, as I sit here typing this, my beloved Annie is now in Houston, Texas. Very far from home. So now that they have Annie, it will be 5-8 business days for them to fix her and send her back home to me. I'm still being caustiously optimistic that she'll come back with all my files safe and sound. I really, really, REALLY do not want to rewrite the entire manuscript for Time For Death. I wasn't even finished with it, but it was getting close.

On another topic... With just over a week until Christmas, I've already been bombarded by the chants and pleading of, "Can I open my present? Please let me open my present! I can't wait another week to open my present!" And those are just from Tim!!! LOL! He's a 32 year old child! LOL.

The girls only have 4 days of school this week, meaning that they'll be home with me Friday when I'm having to do my last minute Christmas dinner shopping. UGH! I don't know why they couldn't keep then in school for Friday too. LOL! They will be out until January 6th. I'll be finding white hairs before they go back. LOL.

Okay then. That's all for today. I'm off to watch the Prison Break from last night that's sitting in my DVR and obsess over how soon Annie will come home. Have a great day, where ever you are!

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Nine days and counting....

The big girls only have nine days of school left before being let out for Christmas and New Year's. ACK! I'm not sure if I should be excited for Christmas, for the fact that the holidays are almost over, or if I should be terrified of the fact that all of the kids will be home for weeks. LOL!

I love the holiday season. Or maybe it's that I love the thought of the holiday season. However, this time of the year is so busy, so stressful, so, so... just SO! I definitely have more headaches during this time of the year, but I enjoy seeing the girls excited and happy. I like watching the lights twinkle on the Christmas tree late at night when there are no other lights on in the house. I like the smell of all the holiday goodies that we don't normally make any other time of the year.

With that said, come January 1st, I'm always soooooo happy that it's all over!

Between now and the end of January I have Christmas Eve Day (2 different family gatherings), Christmas Eve night with the kids, Christmas Day lunch (which I'll be preparing), my oldest daughter's 12th birthday on the 30th, New Year's, my birthday, and my youngest daughter's 4th birthday. December 18th is my mom's birthday, as well as the older girls' last day of school until next month.

Next month will also include the girls' 6 month dental checkup, yearly checkup at the pediatrician, and my oldest will be getting the braces we postponed from October.

Is it time for summer vacation yet??? LOL!

I just want to lock myself away in a room with nothing and no one except me and my laptop. Just for a day or two. Please? Can't I? Ah, come on! It's not fair! *Stomps foot childishly*

Well, alright then. I'll just go back to work, pop two more Excedrin Migraine pills, and get ready to go pick the girls up at school as my youngest throws a fit because she wants to watch Dora a little longer. Joy, joy!

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