Winner!

Winner of the Autism Awareness Hop is: Linda Kujaca.

Congrats, Linda! I'll be contacting you by email to confirm your shipping address for the book.

Thanks to everyone who joined the hop, and for your support of this awareness campaign.

Small Blogs, Big Dreams and Small Books, Big Stories Go Together . . . Right?

Thanks to Forbidden Passions Reviews and Walking on Bookshelves for hosting this blog hop. I'll have 2 winners of my two latest short story releases: Reluctance (already released) and Beautiful Beast (releasing May 1). Giveaway is international as the giveaways are both ebooks. Enter on the Rafflecopter form and then hop to the other blogs on the linky list for more chances to win.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Three More Days to Win!



You still have time to win in the Annual Autism Awareness Giveaway Hop. Be sure to enter to win, and to hop on over to the other blogs listed on the linky list for over 75 more chances to win other great prizes!

Annual Autism Awareness Giveaway Hop



Because I feel it is a worthy thing to spread awareness of diseases, I decided to join the Autism Awareness Hop along with the hosts I Am a Reader, Not a Writer, Just Another Book Addict, Fire and Ice Photo, and Page Turners. Autism is one of those diseases on the rise. Whether because it is now being more correctly diagnosed or because there are more cases of it, it's still something that everyone needs to be aware of. Autism Speaks is a great site with current info about autism and strides being made in treatments, cures, and discovering the causes of autism.



Several years ago I read a book written by a woman who had autism. It was a fascinating autobiographical look into her mind, to see why she did the things she did, how the world was affecting her, and how she fought to live as normally as possible. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the book or the author, which is so disappointing because I'd love to read it again. If any of you have any idea what the book is, please let me know.

Recently I read a fiction book called Unlocked: A Love Story. This is the blurb:

Before You Take a Stand ... You've Got to Take a Chance. Holden Harris is an eighteen-year-old locked in a prison of autism. Despite his quiet ways and quirky behaviors, Holden is very happy and socially normal---on the inside, in a private world all his own. In reality, he is bullied at school by kids who only see that he is very different. Ella Reynolds is part of the 'in' crowd. A cheerleader and star of the high school drama production, her life seems perfect. When she catches Holden listening to her rehearse for the school play, she is drawn to him ... the way he is drawn to the music. Then, Ella makes a dramatic discovery---she and Holden were best friends as children. Frustrated by the way Holden is bullied, and horrified at the indifference of her peers, Ella decides to take a stand against the most privileged and popular kids at school, including her boyfriend, Jake. Ella believes miracles can happen in the unlikeliest places, and that just maybe an entire community might celebrate from the sidelines. But will Holden's praying mother and the efforts of Ella and a cast of theater kids be enough to unlock the prison that contains Holden? This time, friendship, faith, and the power of a song must be strong enough to open the doors to the miracle Holden needs.

I loved this book. The author switched POV's from Ella, Holden's mom, and Holden himself. It was fascinating to see all their different thoughts on why he was doing some of the "weird" things he was doing, and then to see from Holden's POV exactly why he was doing it. It was great watching Holden't journey as he fights to come out of his own world and rejoin the "real" world. I thought it was fitting for this giveaway to give a copy of this book. (Domestic Only)

Enter using the Rafflecopter below (you may have to click on the more button to see it). Then click on any of the many other blogs listed below for a chance to win great prizes on those sites.

Is it Worth $1 to Cure Diabetes? Join the Charity Hop and Win $20

There are two distinctly different types of diabetes. In Type I Diabetes (also commonly referred to as juvenile diabetes) the body no longer produces insulin - at all. In Type II Diabetes either your body doesn't produce enough insulin or your cells no longer know how to use the insulin you do produce.

While my giveaway is to promote the American Diabetes Association, I'm going to focus on Type I Diabetes for a very personal reason. In the general population 1 in 400 people under the age of 20 have Type I. In my house, it's 1 in 4. My youngest daughter has diabetes. She's 17.

Lexcie, age 9

She was diagnosed at age 9. In hindsight we can see all the symptoms that led up to her diagnosis, but at the time they were happening, they were all spread out just enough that we couldn't see the writing on the wall, so to speak. Over the year before she was diagnosed, these are some of the things she went through: enuresis, problems with her vision (including her vision going black), lethargic (tired) much of the time, thirsty all of the time, sores that healed slowly. Those things all seem obvious, but none of them occurred together. That added to the fact that we don't have a history of diabetes on either side of our families. It wasn't something we looked for at all. The final thing that made me wonder was when she lost 13 lbs in about 2 weeks. That's a lot for a 9 year old girl! Once that happened, and I started thinking about all the other things, it seemed clear  . . . and yet, unlikely.

When the diagnosis was confirmed, I was stunned. I cried. I raged. I cried some more. I knew that this was life-altering for all of us, but especially for her. Let me give you an idea of what her life was like as soon as she was diagnosed:

She went from eating what she wanted, when she wanted to being on a strictly controlled, carb controlled diet. She had to eat at certain times, and at those times she had to eat a certain number of carbs. She could eat a little extra if she wanted, but she couldn't eat less. Her base medication was set up for that minimum number of carbs. Didn't matter if she was full, she still had to eat. If she finished eating and was still hungry, or wanted dessert, she had to decide if it was worth taking an extra shot of insulin for.

She had to poke her finger at least 4 times a day: at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime. If she was feeling like her BG (blood glucose, or blood sugar, level) was either low or high, it meant another poke to get the drop of blood needed to read her level. If she was high, it required a shot of insulin. If it was low, it required her to drink some juice and then eat some kind of protein (usually peanut butter) to stabelize her.

She had one shot she took every night at bedtime that was the slow acting insulin to sustain her throughout the day. She took another shot of the short acting insulin with each meal. That meant at least 4 shots per day.

As if that weren't enough, it required things like having someone go with her at school if she had to go to the restroom, or walk to the office, because they couldn't take the liability of her going alone. She also had kids constantly asking her about it (and she did not want to talk about it) or teachers telling her to put her phone away when it was her blood meter she was using, therefore calling attention to what she was doing.

She has to worry short term about seizures. She's had 2 because of low blood sugars: one at her friends house at a birthday party, and the other in Wal Mart. Imagine that for a teen girl. A seizure leads to her losing memory of the day of the seizure and usually 1-3 days afterward.

Long term she (and I and everyone who loves her) have to worry about blindness, kidney shut-down, nerve damage, the possibility of an early death if she doesn't take care of herself.

She now has an insulin pump, which has made life a little easier. Rather than having to give herself shots of insulin, she gives herself one "shot" every three days when she puts in a new pump site. She still has to poke her fingers multiple times a day, but it has made her eating schedule much more flexible. She still has lows and highs with her BG's but they're a little easier to take care of. So yeah, it's not perfect, but it's a little better.

She has to think about her diabetes all day, every day. There isn't ever a time when she doesn't have to. If she wants to exercise, she has to prepare differently from you and I. Going out of town, even for a couple days requires a lot of extra packing (of her supplies). Leaving the house for a short time or going to a friends house requires supplies being carried with her. Eating has consequences. Not eating has worse consequences. Stress messes with her BG's, as does euphoria. Being sick with a simple cold requires extra care to keep her BG's steady. There is no escape from her disease.

The costs can be astronomical. Our out-of-pocket for prescriptions and supplies is usually around $7,000 a year. That's with insurance, and doesn't include our insurance premiums. We always tease her that when she brings a boy home that she's serious with, rather than asking how heplans to treat her or what heplans to do with his life, we'll be asking, "What kind of health insurance do you have? Does it cover her medication and supplies? Can you afford the co-pays?"

The ADA is making progress in their studies of diabetes, and there are a few things on the horizon that would not only make her life easier, but also diminish the short and long term problems she may have to face. There's even something new that could possibly spell a cure, something we didn't ever think possible.

As a result, I'm asking for a little help. One of my friends is riding in the Tour de Cure. All money raised goes to the ADA for research. You can sponsor her here. Anything helps, even if it's only a buck.  I'm giving away a $20 Amazon gift card. You don't have to donate to enter, but you'll get extra entries if you do. Use the Rafflecopter form below to enter (you mayhave to click on "more" to see it). Then hop on over to the blogs listed below that to read about their worthy causes and win more great prizes.

As they all are, this is a great cause, one that's particularly dear to my heart. In advance, I thank you!

And the Winner Is...

Congrats to Jeannette Whitus! She wins the Paranormal Blog Hop Giveaway. She gets her choice of either a paper copy or an ecopy of Immortal Mine.

Thanks to everyone who entered! I hope you all had fun blog hopping and won some great prizes.

YA Paranormal Blog Hop (insert scary music here)

My thanks to I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and vvb32reads for the opportunity to do this blog hop featuring YA books that have some kind of paranormal element to them. Who doesn't love a great paranormal book?

I'm giving away a copy of Immortal Mine. Domestic winner will have the choice of a paper copy or digital (eBook) copy. International winner will get a digital (eBook) copy.

Make sure to visit the other blogs in the hop to win more great books!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Who Doesn't Love a Good Prank?

My friend and fellow author Sherry Gammon is hosting an interview and giveaway on her blog for the newest release of author Stephanie Fowers Prank Wars. Stop by to read the fun interview and be entered for the giveaway!

Book Blurb: All war. No love. Madeleine’s been hurt too many times in the dating scene to let Byron beat her in some huge prank war. They’ve had their deserters, their POWS, their casualties, but no one can risk losing the battle of the sexes.
Except now something strange is happening at the college...and it’s not just the students. Buried deep beneath the pranks is real danger, and the only other person who suspects is Byron. Should Mad join sides with him or does that mean forfeiting her heart to the enemy?

More Chances to Win!

LDSWBR is running a multi-author book contest Countdown to Christmas. Hop on over to see what you can win, and sign up!

Last Day to Win!

Today is the last day to sign up to win in the Give Books Giveaway Hop!

To enter to win a copy of Geek Girl click here.

To enter to win a copy of Heart on a Chain click here.

To enter to win a copy of Immortal Mine click here.

Good luck to all!

Give Books Christmas Giveaway Hop

Who doesn't love to receive books for Christmas?

I'm participating in  the Give Books Christmas Giveaway Hop hosted by InkSplasher.

I'm giving away one copy of each of my books: Geek Girl, Heart on a Chain, and Immortal Mine. Just hop on over to each of the book pages to sign up for your entry (don't sign up on this page, you must fill out the forms on each page).

If you live in the US, you have your choice of receiving either a paperback or an ebook from Smashwords or Amazon. If you live outside the US, you will receive an ebook from Smashwords (works on all readers, including your computer).

Enter from now until December 15th.
Here are the links to my giveaways:

Geek Girl

Heart on a Chain

Immortal Mine

Here are the links to other giveaways in the hop:

In Gratitude Giveaway

In gratitude to all of my readers and followers, I'm giving away a copy of my newest novel, Immortal Mine, as soon as it comes available (before the end of November). You can choose a paper copy or an ebook copy (Kindle or Smashwords).

You don't have to do anything, except be a GFC follower (link is on right side about halfway down). All of my followers are automatically entered. Contest closes at Midnight MST 11/11/11.

This contest is international.

THANK YOU ALL!!!

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

THANKS TO ALL OF MY FOLLOWERS AND CONGRATS TO WINNER: KRYSYKAT!

WINNER CHOSEN BY RANDOM.ORG.

Banned Books Blog Hop

This contest is now closed. Thank you to everyone who entered, and especially to everyone who commented on the banned books. It's nice to know so many people believe completely banning books is wrong. All of those who commented will be entered in the constest for a second entry. I will then post the winner on my blog. Good luck to all!! And happy reading.

In celebration of Banned Books Week I'm joining several other blogs to giveaway a book that has been banned at some point or another, or to bring awareness to these books, as there are some missed gems among them. Enter below to win a copy of Flowers in the Attic. The contest runs until midnight, Oct. 1, 2011.

My Banned Book of Choice: Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews

Synopsis: After the death of her loving husband and doting father of her children, Corinne Dollanganger takes her four children home to live with her parents. Unfortunately, one of the conditions of their living there is that the children must be hidden from Corinne’s father who doesn’t know of their existence. Corrine stands to inherit her father’s vast fortune but only if there are no children from her first marriage. Why? Because her husband was her half-uncle, half-brother to her father. Her extremely religious parents believe she is a sinner as she lived in incest.

The children, Chris, 14, Cathy, 12, and the twins Cory and Carrie, 5, are unaware of this. They are locked in the attic where they are sadistically treated by their grandmother: constantly called “the devil’s spawn” and “abominations”, whipped, starved, Cathy’s hair coated in tar, and poisoned, among other cruelties. Their mother, who at first visits with gifts and promises to get them out of there at the first chance possible, soon stops coming to visit at all. Not long after, the twins get ill, and it’s discovered by Chris that their mother has been poisoning them. She has remarried, and needs the children to disappear so as to not interrupt her idyllic new life.

As they are locked up with no one else to interact with, they soon make up their own family unit, with Chris and Cathy acting as parents to the twins. As Chris and Cathy go through puberty in their three-and-a-half year confinement, Chris and Cathy become attracted to one another. After the death of Cory due to the poisoning, they decide they must escape to save their lives and the life of Carrie.

Why I chose this book: I remember reading this book as a young teen. It really struck me, how unfair and cruelly these kids were treated. I wanted to jump into the pages of the book and rescue them. It’s one of VC Andrews’ best works, when it was really VC Andrews writing and not a ghost writer as writes under her name now. She touches on so many deep issues in this single book.

As an adult I can understand things I couldn’t as a child. Back then I was shocked by the incest between Chris and Cathy; as an adult—not that I approve or think it’s okay in any way—I can’t help but think if you put two adolescents who are going through puberty while being locked up for years on end with nothing to look forward to but abuse, who have formed a sort of family unit to retain a sense of normalcy, it stands to reason that without any guidance they would naturally turn to one another.

It also delves into the deep greed of one woman, who would rather keep her wealthy, fantasy life with her trophy husband and pseudo happiness than keep her children alive, let alone healthy and free. As much as we’d like to believe that couldn’t really happen, that would be deluding ourselves. Abuse is nothing new and is perpetrated by selfish people.
It also opens the debate as to whether a person can call themselves Christian when they use it as an excuse for brutality and vindictiveness. I personally feel that God is about love, and would not condone such behavior.

Why this book was banned: It seems pretty obvious. Not only does it deal with abuse and incest, there is a rape scene between the siblings—pretty heavy, blatant, graphic material. The book has been banned at various times from various places, and I don’t know that you’d be able to find it in any school library due to the graphic rape scene and incestuous passages.

Do I think it should be banned? I don’t think any book should be banned, per se. I think every parent has the responsibility to make sure that what their children are reading is appropriate. I also think that each individual librarian has the right to choose whether they think a book is appropriate to be carried in their schools library. That being said, if a student wishes to bring the book from home to read in school, or to write a book report on, I don’t think the school has a right to tell them no if their parent(s) has already said yes. Personally, I think Andrews could have written the same book without being so graphic, and it would have the same impact. Still, she chose to write it her way, and I respect that. And I’m a fan of the book. It ranks up there in probably my top 20 or so of all-time favorite books.

The giveaway: Now, for the good stuff! I’m going to send the winner of the contest a copy of the controversial Flowers in the Attic, your choice of paperback or Kindle edition. All you have to do is fill out the form below with your email (so I can contact you if you’re the winner). That’s the only requirement to enter. Want an extra entry? Leave a comment below telling me if you’ve read the book and what you think of it, why you’d like to read it if you haven’t, if you think it should be banned, or what your favorite banned book is—anything that has to do with this or any banned book, really.

Good luck!

Use the links below to hop on over to the next blog.