Moving On To Bigger And Better!

I'm back again and yet I'm gone. Let me explain.

I am back to blogging, but the time has come for me to leave Blogger behind.

I've totally redesigned my website and merged it with my brand new blog at: www.emilyannbenedict.com. I'm also planning on using my official Face Book page more for our discussions. Oh! And my new website has tons of new content...plus it's pretty. ;)

So, please, do come find me. I've missed you all and I'd love to chat some more!

Good things for you and for me. :)

This is a heads up about a very big giveaway! My blogger friend, Diane Estrella, is holding a week long giveaway on her blog with new prizes every day.
Prizes include everything from handmade purses, jewelry, mineral wear natural makeup, and a signed copy of Facets Of Fantasy, by Sarah Scheele. (If you read this blog you know I love Miss Sarah and her work. ;)

Anyway, you must run over to Diane’s blog right away and check out all the wonderfulness! And don’t forget to visit throughout the week for more chances to win.

Hope everyone his having a great Memorial Day holiday! Don’t forget to pray for all our amazing veterans and their families who have sacrifice so much for us.

The Weekend

I found myself wondering last night, “What on earth am I going to post about tomorrow?” My brain was dry of anything particularly profound or amusing. I’ve got a feeling that had a lot to do with this weekend.
We had one of “those” weekends. You know the kind. By 7 o’clock Saturday morning the whole family was on the porch wondering what on earth we were going to do. :P
The air conditioning flat-lined late Friday night, so we all woke up on Saturday feeling icky while my mother tried to find a repair man she could beg into coming over. In the wake of that circumstance our plans were official dead as well.
We’d set aside both the money and the day to at last finish the courtyard we’d been working on out front, but with the prospect of having to buy a new air conditioning our budget promptly went out the window. And somewhere along the way the favored coffee mug broke, burning a family member with hot coffee in the process.
But 7:30 we were all considering going back to bed. ;)
Fortunately, my father is good at rallying us, so after debate we settled on finally fixing the watering system in the backyard. We all got muddy in the process, but the yard started looking and working remarkably better as we went along. We were actually having fun, then I suddenly realized my dog was having even more fun. I found her lying in puddle, happy as a sow in her pen. She’s is the cleanest dog in the house every day of the week, but as soon as she sees me digging in the dirt she decides her chance to muddy up has at last come. LOL
So, when a repair man miraculously arrived, I picked her up and put her in the bathtub (which, looking back, was a stupid thing to do considering she weights more than 65lbs) while my mother changed the covers on the sofa. Yes, she made it to the couch cushions before we could stop her. :) Gotta love dogs.
And, in the middle of it all, I had a story I really needed to finish. It wasn’t working well in my head and I finally got to the, “Okay, God, if it’s going to work You’re just going to have give it to me” point. Shortly thereafter the story came to me in crystal clarity. Why is it so easy to forget I can't do this without Him?
All and all, it was a successful weekend and amusing now that I looked back on it. Currently, the most amusing part is, after all the work we put into the AC and water system so both human and plants would be happy in the 90 degree weather, we awoke this morning to find the temperature had done a freefall into the 60s and rain is in the forecast. LOL
Okay, now that it’s all out of my head, maybe I’ll be able come up with something profound shortly.
How was your weekend, my friend?

Oh, just two quick announcements. I have a book signing coming up on June 5th at a library in Fresno CA. Check out my EVENTS page for all the details.
And, blogger-writer Th. Mafi is having an AWESOME contest on her blog right now. Prizes include Amazon cash, sighed books, and query/manuscript critiques. You must go over and see right away!

A Winner, a Crash, and a Plea For Help

Okay, listen up, we’ve got some important things today. :)

First, to the winner of Monday’s Spread The Awesome event! (drum roll please) Jen D! Congrats, Jen! Beguiled is awesome book. I hope you enjoy it. Everyone should jump over to Jenn’s blog and say hello.
http://jennifer-daiker.blogspot.com/

Overall, I think my first giveaway went well…except every time someone left a comment I thought, “I hope you win!” By the end I wished I had 70 copies available. But fear not, I plan on having another one soon. :) And with that future giveaway in mind, I’d like to ask, how did you hear about this contest? Was a link through another blog, Twitter, Face Book? It would be great to know for the next time around.

Of course in the middle of the whole thing my computer had to crash. I clicked over to my e-mail and they randomly started to disappear. That didn’t seem good, so I quickly clicked restart…and that’s where it got stuck for hours. :? Unfortunately, my brother, who has always been my IT department, is working full-time now, so I had to wait for him to get home. (This whole adulthood thing is rough sometimes. ;) While we’re not entirely sure what happened, it seems in part Microsoft had corrupted itself. Apparently this naturally happens over time. So, he clicked something called “CCleaner” and now it’s working. I don’t know….
(A plea to my Apple loving friends. Don’t e-mail me and tell me this is a sign I need to get a Mac. Most of the programs and systems I interface with are not compatible with Macs. I’m sorry. That’s just the way it is. ;)

Now on to the plea for help. Have you seen the flooding going on in Tennessee right now? It’s pretty bad. A lot of people have lost their homes and loved ones. I actually have a friend out there who says his family can’t get out of their house without a 4wheeler. They driveway was just washed away. And they won’t have regular phone service until the end of the month.
Several writers located in the region are setting up an auction to help fund the rebuilding that will need to happen fast. They are asking writers, agents, and publishers to donate signed copies of their books and critique services. And if you don’t have anything to auction, please consider bidding. According to the organizers, the outpouring has been wonderful. For more information check here.

Well, that’s all for the moment. I hope you had a lovely, “Spread the Awesome” week. :) And remember, this event was about spreading the word about your favorite books and authors. Your opinions are actually as important as any reviewer. Check out my previous post on the subject for a list of great ways you can help.

Friday Fun, Awards, and Sneak Peaks

Oh, yes, we’re having all sorts of fun today. ;) I’ve got a tag, an award, and two big announcements!

First, Karen Lange from Write Now has tagged me with the Like, Hate, Love tag. These sorts of things are just fun. When you’re tagged you share things you like, hate, and love.
So…
I like going to Star Bucks with my dad on Fridays.
I like shopping days with my mom (especially when we stop for lunch ;).
I like discovering a new writer.
I hate it when people hurt someone I love.
I hate it when I make a stupid, easily avoidable mistake.
I hate it when people try to ignore or put down others just because they don’t understand their differences.
I love writing.
I love making people laugh.
I love knowing how much God loves me! :)

Btw, you should definitely jump over to Write Now. It is full of great tips and info for writers!
Okay, so now to the people I’m tagging.
Alicia@ Life's A Journey
Karen@ Karen R. Evans
Shannon@ Book Dreaming

Also, Lydia Kang from The Word Is My Oyster gave me the Blogger BFF award. Thanks so much, Lydia! This is one of the cutest blog awards I’ve ever seen. :D
Everyone really needs to check out Lydia’s blog. As a doctor, Lydia has started up “Medical Mondays.” Writers can ask questions about medical conditions and she helps us sort them out so we have things right in our manuscripts. They are really fascinating posts.
And now to the people I’m passing this award onto. :)

Karen@ Write Now
Sarah@ Southern Sky
Linnae@ Scarabocchi
Jill@ Jill Kemerer: Christian Romance

Definitely check out all the blogs I listed today. They are all great. :D

Now, hurry, hurry over to author Sarah Scheele’s site today! It’s the last day of her online book signing. Don’t you just love this idea? If you order her awesome book, Facets Of Fantasy, through her site today she’ll send you a signed copy and a free signed copy of her first book, The Birthday Present. :D Plus, she has an open discussion on her fan page right now too! (Go on. Get over there!)

And last, but not least, the sneak peak!! (Drops voice to a whisper.) You definitely want to come back to this blog on Monday…good things are going to happen…like my very first book giveaway!...ssshhh, you didn’t hear it from me. ;)

Crunch Time!

Ah, the day before a book signing. :) Are you a procrastinator? I’m trying not to be. There have been times when I start preparing for a book signing the night before. I wouldn’t really recommend it. ;)
This time I’ve actually got everyone notified, the event listed locally, and the posters to the bookstore. I even decided what to wear without having to pull everything out of my closet. (This is a great triumph ;)

Now it’s just down to getting the last few things done. I’ve got to find a couple of table clothes. I never know what table I’m going to end up, but they always need a table cloth. Last time the table was so small it could have been covered by a handkerchief!
I’ve also got to dig out my “guestbook.” Of course it will be really great if I can remember to ask people to sigh it. :P
Oh, and I need to find some cards to hand out to people who don’t want to buy the book just now. ;) Never let them walk away with nothing!!
Hm, I’m going to need to find my big purse too. Lol, I tend to think of things I need to bring right up until the last minute….Which reminds me, I need to go charge the camera.

Ah, well. If you’re in the Central Valley area of CA tomorrow, please come down and say hello! :) Click here for more details.
And if not, please pray that all goes well. The bookstore ordered a lot of books and I really need to sell them all.
Thanks! Have a great weekend!

Let Me Explain The Change…

If you’ve visited this blog at least once before today you might have noticed that between now and then I’ve COMPLETELY changed the whole blog. I thought I should probably mention what and why I did. Oh, yes, there is always method to my madness. ;)

I wanted to take advantage of some blogger features that I had previously neglected. For instance, you can now easily subscribe to Benedictions! Just find the “Subscribe Via Email” box on the sidebar. I’ve also set up blogger’s new Pages Gadget (find the links directly beneath the header). Now I can cleanly keep information permanently posted.
I also wanted to widen the whole blog. The traditional format was so narrow, every time I wanted to post something more than a few hundred words it turned into a scroll-a-thon. Personally, I’m allergic to too much scrolling. ;)
My sidebar was staring to look really messy too, so I streamed lined it and reduced the mismatched images to text. I’m not sure if that makes them less visible, but it feels cleaner.
Of course, I also have to admit that this blog has become my perpetual art project. :) And yes, the image in the header is a real picture of an edit I was going through one day. That’s what happens when you have three versions of the same story and you attempt to merge them. :P
Anyway, I hope you like it! Have a great weekend.

Btw, if you’d like to update your blog in the future, I’ve designed dozens of blog backgrounds and made them available to download for free at Blogcargo.com. Like I said, this is sort of my new art project. :)

New book signing AND what’s up and coming.

Okay, this is a notice of two things; a new book signing and an update on what is coming up on this blog over the next two weeks.

To start with, NEW BOOK SIGNING!
If you’re going to be in the Central Valley of CA on March 27th, please consider visiting the River Park Borders Books. I’ll be there starting at 2PM. So if you’re looking for a new book, gift (Mother’s Day is coming up), or just ready to start your Summer reading list come on by. I’d love to see you!

I’m just glad I got this one because things became a little tangled up along the way. Somehow my marketing agent and I got the location of the store and the manager’s names crossed, so I called, asked for the manager (who had a ridiculously hard name to pronounce), and got a moment of dead silence in return. After being informed that no one by that name worked there and I was already talking to the manager of the store I somehow chocked out the reason I was calling. Happily she still gave me the signing! And ordered a lot of books…so please come! Lol.

NOW, onto the next two weeks.
Staring on Monday I’m going to do an interview with Sarah Scheele, author of the Facets of Fantasy collection and the American Homeschooler serial.
Then the following week I have an interview with Warren Baldwin, author of Roaring Lions, Cracking Rocks, and other gems from Proverbs.
It’s been an interesting experience talking to a fiction and non-fiction writer. I’m sure you’ll enjoy hearing from both of them. Trust me, I already have all the answers. ;)
In the meantime, check out Sarah and Warren’s website to learn more about their work.
Sarah Scheele: http://facebooknovel.yolasite.com/
Warren Baldwin: http://www.warrentbaldwin.com/

Help Me Decide & A Great Opportunity For Writers.

This is a double topic post, just because I have two things I want to say and I don’t want to wait to post them separately. Yeah, waiting is not one of my strong points. God and I work on it often. ;)

ANYWAY…First off, I’m having a great time with the discussion we’re all having over Blonde heroines verses other hair colors, both here on the social networking world and in the real one. A friend of mine came to visit this week and one of the first things she said after getting settled was, “I support blonde heroines!” :D
So, I’ve decided to ask for your help decided my next round with hair colors. The current heroine I’m working on does not yet have an assigned color. Would you like to help me decided? Then vote in the poll I just put up (look to the right). Whatever color has the most votes will appear in the story.

All right, up next. Author, Elana Johnson is offering an amazing opportunity to writers. She’s running a contest on her blog this week. The grand prize? You’ll get your query critiqued for free by a real agent. I think it’s fair to say we could all use a little professional help when it comes to our writing and especially our queries. It’s the first chance we have to sell our work.
So, check it out at http://elanajohnson.blogspot.com/
(Deadline: Sunday)

Have a great weekend all! And hooray for team USA! Two gold medals last night alone!
…Hm, did I just introduce a third topic?

Share your link!

I’ve started a share your link board on my Face Book fan page’s discussion board.
Please come and share the link to your blog, website, Face Book fan page, Twitter, and/or Etsy shop.
It’s a great chance to announce your work and find others follow and fan.
Just hop on over to my fan page and click on the discussion board.
And don’t forget to tell us about your link.

Next month I’ll randomly pick a few from each category and post them on this blog.
Thanks for joining in. :)

Face Book Fan Pages…The IF Debate.

I’ve noticed over the past few months there is a bit of a debate going on over whether authors or other businesses that require marketing should have FAN pages on Face Book or just maintain PERSONAL pages.
While it’s an interesting debate, I decided this week to set up a Fan page. Why?

It is okay to ask people to be your fans: The biggest aversion people seem to have over Fan pages is it asks people to become your “fan.” A lot of people feel uncomfortable doing this. I totally understand this sentiment. Trust me. But I came to the realization that I didn’t have the least bit of a problem becoming a fan of pages my friends set up. They’re not asking me to do anything more than support their work. So why should I be afraid to ask people to follow my page?
It is cleaner: My personal page is, well, my “personal” page. It’s full of inside jokes, “I love you’s” from my family, and “What time will you be here’s” from my friends (not to mention those invisible ninjas…you had to be there). If I start introducing all my book oriented stuff in there it would get pretty messy and it would probably be a little confusing for people who came to take a look at my work.
A fan page gives me a place for all book related pictures, videos, announcements, and allows me to reach out specifically on the topics that center on my book. I can also personalize it. Plus, people who are not on Face Book can explore it.
It is easier: One remedy I’ve heard people suggest is creating two personal pages, one devoted to their work and one devoted to their everyday lives. This is a decent idea and it might work for some people, but I really don’t want get into creating and maintaining two entirely separate accounts. I can administrate my Fan Page through my main account and easily share applications, like the Network Blog app that allows me to promote my blog.
(If you have a blog and a Face Book account I highly recommend using this app)

Anyway, those are my reason and my official announcement that I now have a Fan Page. If you have the time, check it out. I’ve put up never before posted stuff, like the original cover designs for my book. I also have a discussion going on miracles and angels. If you have an opinion on either, please join in.

New Year. New Look.

I know I just redid this blog in the summer, but I had to redesign it again. I stepped back, looked at the design, and frankly found it embarrassing. :P It was actually the result of my first attempt with design programs. I didn’t even know how to add shadowing and my library of elements was very limited.
So, here’s my latest attempt. What do you think?
At the very least, it suits the blog’s content. ;)

Just a quick thanks: Most of the elements I used to create this came from Summer Time Designs and Veronica Spriggs Designs.
If you’d like to spruce up your blog for the new year, check out the dozens of free designs I’ve got up on Blogcarog.com.

Happy New Year everyone! :)

My First Interview (Would you like to see?)

I found out the local TV station that gave me an interview put the video on their website, so I thought I’d put it up on here. :)
It turned out to be a lot of fun. First I was led to the “green room”…I’d say it was sort of a minty green.
Then we were led to an open newsroom/set. My brother, dad, and I all sat there, trying not to cough or talk too loud.
Then at last I was sitting at the news table with a microphone woven into my jacket. I just told myself “Don’t look at the camera. Just look at the people.” About six minutes later it was over. The funny thing is I didn’t start shaking until it was all over and I was walking back to the car.
The show was actually on air about an hour before I came on, so I was watching it as I got ready to go. The anchor had a copy of my book and every time they would go to a commercial break she would say “I’m going back to reading this great book!” and open it up. :)
At one point someone on the set yelled out, “Are there any vampires?” Lol. Happily, the anchor had read enough that she could say no and tell them what the book was about.
Have a look. By the grace of God I didn’t go blank or cough or anything like that. ;) It still feels a bit surreal.
(sorry, you will have to sit through a short commercial)

I'm Scared and other Announcements

Gasp! You are never going to believe this. It hasn’t completely sunk into my brain yet.
Right out of the blue I got an e-mail from a television station, asking me if I would be available to do an interview on their local morning show. Yes, me…on live TV! Gasp!
At this point I’m actually trying not to think too much about it because I’m pretty sure I would panic if I did.

This week has actually turned out to be completely insane, but in a very good way.
-I just got back from a local Jr./Highschool where I had my own table at their Career Day event. It turned out to be a lot of fun. The love of books and writing is a universal language whether you are 12 or 26.
-Then on Friday I’ll be at the local Fox station at 8:40AM. (Amazing :)
-And finally I will have my very first Christmas Book signing on Saturday. Which reminds me, if you are going to be in the Fresno area, or know someone who will be, please come on over to the Borders Books in the River Park shopping center. I’d love to meet you. See my EVENTS page for all the details.
-Oh, don’t forget, you have just one more month to enter my contest. Check out my Contest Blog.

I have to say, to all my friends with whom I correspond, please forgive me if I don’t get back to you until next week. I hate doing that, but you probably don’t want me this week. I’m a little scattered. ;)
At the moment, I’ve got to go find something to wear on Friday. I was told I cannot wear red, patterns, stripes, or too much white or black. I think that eliminates the majority of my wardrobe. Lol.

Check This Out

Another good thing has reached the blogosphere.

My blogger friend, Diane Estrella, has moved her world over to Wordpress and in the process created an awesome new blog.
To celebrate her move, she is setting up several giveaways over the next few weeks. Anyone who signs up as a follower is automatically entered to win.
She already has a lot of content up, so if you get a chance, check out her new site and become a follower. :)
dianeestrella.com

Shopping Along

Yes, the Christmas shopping season has begun! I know that makes some people happy and others terrified. Come now, it must be done. No getting around it. ;)
Well, personally, my family likes it. We are already gearing up for Black Friday. What? Doesn’t shopping at 5AM sound fun? Before I lose any gentlemen readers or sleepy friends I have, let me remind you that if you know where to go, there is a lot of free food involved with this. You have to admit that is a very important factor. ;)

Well, anyway, if you’d like any signed copies of Only Angels Are Bulletproof for someone on your shopping list, please let me know. SOON! Shipping costs are lower the sooner you order.
Just e-mail me at: emilyannbenedict@gmail.com

And good luck with the rest of your shopping! I’m actually at a lost right now as to what I’m going to get people for Christmas… :P

Remember?

Did you remember I have a book signing on December 5th? I didn’t until a few days ago. :O
Yes, that memory lapse could have been very bad, especially since I have to spend prior weeks notifying everyone. (Thank you God)
You see, this is why I call myself the Queen of the sticky note. It seems the best way to overcome short-term memory problems is a plethora of post-it notes. (sigh) Though, as of late, I have been informed by a certain member of my family that I am not allowed to stick my reminders to decorator items any more. Apparently that defeats the purpose of decorator items….LOL.
Well, anyway, I have a book signing on December 5th!
I’ll be at the Borders Books in Fresno California, starting at 2PM. I’d love to see you there. And don’t forget to bring your Christmas shopping list. Can you believe it’s already that time of year? Visit the EVENTS page of my website for more details.
Don’t worry, I’ll put up another reminder as we get a little closer…I wouldn’t be opposed, however, to you reminding me. ;)

Operation Christmas Child

Today begins the national collection week for Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child. I urge you to get involved with this ministry. It is one of the most enjoyable, worthy, and personal ministry you can become involved with.
First, a little explanation in case you haven’t heard of Operation Christmas Child before. All you need to do is grab a shoe box or a plastic box around the same size, go to a Walmart, or Dollar Store, or any shop that provides the same products, and then proceed to fill that box with as many things as can possibly fit. Remarkably everything from socks, soap, toothbrushes, pencils, paper, rulers, hard candies, and of course toys (lots and lots of toys) can fit into these boxes. And the boxes will end up in the hands of children all over the world, from Asia to Africa to Russia, who have never experienced even a small fraction of the Christmases we know here.
It is an incredible ministry for so many reasons, but one being it makes us step outside ourselves. Financial donations to world missions are undoubtedly important, but sometimes just writing a check can in a way disconnect us from the people we are trying to help. This event, however, forces us to think specifically about the children we are trying to reach, about what would make boys and girls of different ages happy, what they would need…and in doing so understand the basic necessities they lack.
You can visit the official website,www.samaritanspurse.org for suggestions, guidelines, and locations to drop the boxes off. Drop off locations are being set up in churches, local businesses, and national chains around the country. The final date for drop offs is November 23rd.
It might take a little more effort, but it is so worth it.
Come on, don’t make me say something corny like “ ‘Tis the season.” (Yes, I am tossing you a challenging smile ;)

I'd So Appreciate It :)

This is just a quick reminder for my contest! I’d so appreciate it if you’d join in. Every little bit helps. All you need to do is send the link to my first chapter out to your friends and family.
http://www.emilyannbenedict.com/Read_The_First_Chapter.html
Encouragement them to tell me, either by e-mail or by leaving a comment on my blog, who sent them to the link.
Every referral you get counts as a point towards Barnes and Noble and iTunes gift cards.
Check out my contest blog for all the details: http://emilyannbenedictcontest.blogspot.com/
Don’t delay. The contest ends on December 31st.

By the way…It’s November 2nd. :)

I love my neighborhood.....

A Change Of Plans

I was alerted to a little change in plans for this Saturday’s book signing at Barns and Noble. This is both good and a little scary.
The store decided to bring in multiple authors and change the time to 2:00-4:00PM. Bringing in more authors is always a good thing. That tends to naturally bring in more traffic.
So, what’s the scary part? Well, another author I know recently ended up in this exact same situation in the Barns and Noble in her town...and it turned into an event that included the authors reading from their books. (gasp)
I know, that probably doesn’t seem so bad, but it’s bad for me. I have been informed in the past that my “reading voice” is not very good. Let’s put it this way. It’s great when I babysit because the kids fall asleep real fast. (I’m not sure if I should laugh or sigh. ;)
But I have also been informed that this is what God has called me to do so I’d better find a way to get better. :P
Well, once again, if you are going to be in the Central Valley area of California on Saturday, I’ll be at the Barns and Noble in Fresno from 2:00-4:00PM along with other authors whose names I do not yet know. (complete details on my EVENTS page)
And just in case I do have to read I promise I will do a little practicing this week.
(Open to page 1 and clear throat) “I would not have answered my cell that day , if habit hadn't forced me to check the caller I.D. the minute I heard it ring……..Are you still awake?”
Perhaps you’d better start praying for me now…..