I still need a final winner for Hope Tarr's contest. First person to email me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com that has not won a contest at Book Talk before will win a copy of Strokes of Midnight. And when I checked this morning, I had an email from Leslie, who won the book. So, this contest is closed.
I also posted the January contest this past week. It can be found here. This one is open to everyone who comments on that post.
And last, Sue McGeown is graciously leaving her free ebook offer open. If you'd like to try one of her books, contact her at susanmcgeown@faithinspiredbooks.com. Just let Sue know which of her books you'd like.
Showing posts with label free books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label free books. Show all posts
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Jen: Sue McGeownis our guest at Book Talk this week. Welcome Sue. Will you please share a short bio with us?
Sue: I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, aunt, uncle (don’t ask), teacher, author … but, most importantly, a “woman after God’s own heart.” I’ve been a 4th grade teacher, a teacher of the gifted, a curriculum writer, a Children’s minister, a church deacon, a vacation Bible school coordinator, a preschool director, and a Bible study leader. Living in Bridgewater, New Jersey, with my husband of over fifteen years and my three children, writing stories is just about the best way I can imagine spending my time. Each of my stories champions those emotions nearest and dearest to me: faith, joy, hope and love.
Jen: Tell us about Joining The Club and where it's available.
Sue: I like to write about people that are flawed but have good hearts. And by good hearts I mean that they have hearts, which are open to God and what He’d like to accomplish in their lives.
Joining The Club is a story loaded with colorful, flawed characters with truckloads of attitudes and issues and quirks. I had grand fun writing it! My main character, Elaine, is a thrice-married woman who’s sworn off love and relationships forever. After all, her life is already complicated enough with one daughter who’s “easy” and one daughter who’s “hard”, a grandson who’s a potential criminal, a meter reader who’s got attitude to spare, a girlfriend who’s trying to save her soul while at the same time jump start her love-life, and a mother who’s best avoided at all costs. Despite Elaine’s effort to keep her life as simple as possible, her life grows more and more complicated: drunken ex-husbands park on her front lawn, a secret she’s kept her entire life becomes public knowledge, and she meets a man that can’t possibly be as good as he seems.
Joining The Club is my ninth book. It’s currently available only on my self-publishing site www.lulu.com. PLEASE! Don’t let that deter you, okay? Lulu is very user friendly – just like Amazon and by searching for me – Susan McGeown – all of my stories will immediately show up. (Or you can just click here: http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=681731)
Jen: At what age did you discover writing and when were you first published? Tell us your call story.
Sue: Ha. Do you know that up until about five years ago I thought that everyone had stories in their heads? Seriously. A friend asked me once where I got the ideas from my stories. I said, “You know how you’ve always got a story running in your head? I just started to write mine down.” My friend acted like I was nuts. Said she had no idea what I was talking about. I was stunned. “What do you think about when you’re in traffic, or lying in bed waiting to fall asleep, or stuck listening to Aunt Lucy tell you about the time she met Uncle Fred for the five hundredth time?” I asked. She told me she thought about bills or her latest to do list or what she was going to fix for dinner. I was so shocked that I did this independent survey of all my friends asking them if they had stories in their heads. Only one friend – who writes music – gave me a smile and a nod. “Yeah, I know what you’re talking about. I dream music,” he said. I was rather overwhelmed to discover that this thing I had taken for granted literally from early childhood – this ability to dream up stories (and keep them running in my head for days or even weeks until I finished them or just got tried of the train of thought) was something rare and special.
So, in answer to your question, I’ve always written (even when I was too little to actually write it down, I ran the stories in my head). I didn’t appreciate my call though until about five years ago.
Jen: Describe your writing in three words.
Sue: Empowering, hopeful, realistic
Jen: Do you have a writing routine?
Sue: My stories always start with a bang – a sudden, vivid image in my mind that I want to know more about. Most of my stories’ opening scenes are these initial images. When I’ve got a story going, I write about 5-6 hours a day when the kids are at school or when I can escape to the sanctity of my room and computer.
Jen: What’s the most challenging aspect of writing? Easiest?
Sue: Historical fiction is harder than contemporary fiction because there is the pressure to keep things accurate. But for me, the hardest aspect as I write is keeping all the little details accurate – like timelines and character “facts” I’ve invented. And oh my goodness do I hate to proofread and correct. I’ve got a wonderful team of friends who proofread my stuff once I’ve got a rough draft. I hate having the tedious job of going back and having to fix everything.
The most fun is the story itself. Sometimes I dream parts of it, sometimes I’ll be listening to music (usually Christian rock) and the story will roll out in my head like a movie, and sometimes I sit at my computer and just type. The process of the story unfolding and then gradually coming together for a conclusion is a wondrous, delightful process – the ultimate rush.
Jen: What’s the most rewarding aspect?
Sue: I love when people talk to me about my stories. I love hearing any kind of feedback – questions, observations, or discussions. One of my friends read my story A Well Behaved Woman’s Life. All of a sudden, one summer evening there she was sitting out on my back deck. I went out to see her and she looked at me with wonder and tears in her eyes and said, “How did you know? How could you understand? What? Are you in my head or something?” I had made the whole story up and yet I had really, really touched her. That just about blew me away.
Jen: Is there a genre that you’d like to write?
Sue: I write Women’s Inspirational Fiction. Yeah, I know. There really isn’t a genre like that. I can perceive that as a problem because agents and publishing houses say, “Umm, Sue? You have a strong, unique voice and your writing is snappy and clever but we don’t have a place for what you write ... Sorry …” Or I can perceive all this as an advantage: “Have you read the stories that Sue McGeown writes? I’ve never read anything like them! AT LAST, someone is writing realistic stories about people like me that I can really associate with!” So I write Women’s Inspirational Fiction: fiction stories that speak to all kinds of women and whose ultimate purpose is to inspire.
Jen: Where do you draw your inspiration?
Sue: I believe that my talent is God’s gift to me. I believe that my stories are God’s direction. I believe that my purpose is to make God smile. That is the framework I operate in.
Jen: Do you have a favorite character or one that you identify most with?
Sue: Tough question. I suppose you’ll want to know which one of my children is my favorite in your next question! Ha. Hmmm. I really wish I was as quick witted as Elaine is in Joining The Club. In the story I have her rolling off these great witticisms like lightning bolts when in reality the conversation has taken me six hours to write! Ha. And I love Bear – from my Trilogy – Call Me Bear, Call Me Elle, and Call Me Survivor. I love how she transforms over the course of her life from a terrified, frightened white girl named Elle to a powerful, outspoken woman of the Eastern Cherokees named Bear. In reality, everyone of my main female characters are me … either from experience or imagining how I would react in a particular situation.
And here’s a little secret – my male main characters (AKA known as The Love Interest) are always modeled after my husband … the good parts anyway! Sometimes I’ll ask him questions, trying to get the male perspective. On occasion, he’s given me a hard look and said, “You’re doing book research, aren’t you? I’M NOT ANSWERING THAT!!!” (So I ask my girlfriends to ask their husbands and get back to me … HA!)
Jen: Who are some of your favorite authors and books? What are you reading now?
Sue: Well, I try not to read whatever I’m writing. I just don’t want to let my brain collect “stuff” even subconsciously. I enjoy romantic suspense, romance, historical, contemporary, some fantasy and science fiction. NO HORROR!!!!
That being said I love Suzanne Brockmann (Romantic Suspense), Diana Gabaldon (Fantasy), Sara Donati (Historical Fiction), Linda Howard (Romanic Suspense), Rachel Gibson (love her romantic humor!!), Sharon Shinn (her Science Fiction Angel series) and Beverly Swerling (Historical Fiction). I’ve recently been delighted with Marian Keyes (Rachel’s Holiday) and am laughing my way through her book Watermelon right now. Let’s just say this – I am a voracious reader. I not only always have a book in progress but I also always have about ten or eleven “on the shelf” waiting to go!
Jen: What do you do in your free time?
Sue: I have to be careful because “staying home and writing” doesn’t always qualify for a lot of people as a priority and there can be a mentality of “Ask Sue. She’s home all day … just … writing.” But for me, writing makes me happy, energizes me, and makes me feel alive. I have to do it. And if I’ve got free time … we’ll that’s what I’m doing.
That being said, family is tremendously important and has first priority. Shocking as it might be, I really like hanging out with my husband and three kids. I’m always a class mom at school and have gone in and spoken about being a writer a number of times at school. I’m also very active in my church and lead three Bible studies from my home. I lead youth groups and direct vacation Bible school each summer, too. So IF family and God responsibilities are met, I run to my computer and write … (And if I’m not writing, I’m reading!)
Jen: What's next for you?
Sue: I wrote my first nonfiction right after Joining The Club. It’s called Biblical Women and Who They Hooked Up With. (No kidding!!) It’s gotten a lot of favorable buzz and I’ve even gotten some speaking engagements out of it! Is that ever fun! I’ve got another nonfiction in the works: Biblical Warrior Women And Their Weapons. (Again, no kidding.) Both books take some famous and not so famous biblical women and examine their stories and how the lessons these women learned can be applied to us. I do it with a little bit of tongue in cheek humor with chapters like “Rahab and The Guy Who Got It For Free” and “Jael And A Really Sharp Nail.” I also have more than 150 pages written of an historical fiction story (set in the 12th century B.C.) that I stalled on and would like to eventually finish and a great lead in chapter done to a contemporary fiction story I think about often. I can only do one book at a time so occasionally things get a little backed up with me.
Jen: Where can you be found on the web?
Sue: Joining The Club (and Biblical Women And Who They Hooked Up With) are only available on my self publishing website http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=681731. CHECK IT OUT!! This website has all of my books in both print and electronic versions.
All my books except Joining The Club and Biblical Women And Who They Hooked Up With are available on Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Borders.
My website http://www.faithinspiredbooks.com/ has all my books and their first chapters.
There is also my blog http://www.faithinspiredbook.blogspot.com/.
Jen: Do you have anything you’d like to ask our readers?
Sue: I would sincerely love to hear feedback about my works. My email address susanmcgeown@faithinspiredbooks.com is a perfect place to contact me to ask questions, request free e-copies of certain stories, and tell me what you think of my stories. PLEASE!! I’d love to hear from you!!
Jen: Thank you Sue for being our guest this week. Readers, Sue has a special offer for all those who stop by the blog this week. If you contact Sue at susanmcgeown@faithinspiredbooks.com before Thursday, you can request an ecopy of any of her books... free to you. So, no real contest this week. But Sue will be at the blog all week to answer your questions and respond to your comments, so comment away!
And the winners of Christine Son's Off the Menu are:
Anne
Sarabelle
Traveler
Will each of you please e-mail admin.bookblog@gmail.com with your mailing address? You have until next Friday, October 3 to claim your prize.
And thanks for everyone who stopped by to support Christine. And I hope you all go out and pick up a copy of Off the Menu soon!
First of all... Donna, thanks so much for a fun week. It was great to learn more about you and your books.
And it's now time to pick winners of the contest. Since we had such a nice turnout, we're drawing two names. One is getting an autographed copy of Falling for Mr. Dark and Dangerous. The other is getting a copy of Hired by the Cowboy (from my shelf).
The winners are Yan (autographed copy) and Tammy Y (my copy). Please email me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com to claim your book before Friday, Sept 26 or a new winner will be chosen.
And while I've got you're attention, don't forget that there are two other contests going on now and are ending in a little over a week. Details can be found here and here.
My birthday is in a couple weeks... 2 weeks and 1 day to be exact. :D I currently have an Amazon.com gift card burning a hole in my pocket (OK, it's really in my e-mail, but you get the idea). Problem is, I'm torn at what to buy with the card.
That's where you come in. I'm looking for book suggestions. Post a comment here with a book suggestion. I need a title, author and why I should get the book. Remember that I read mostly romances, the occasional light mystery, action book or non-fiction (usually biographies).... no horror! Each suggestion you give me will put your name in the pot. Winner will get to chose from the following books: Deep Magic by Joy Nash, Just One Sip anthology, Eclipse Bay by Jayne Ann Krentz or Murder, She Wrote: Murder on the QE2.
As always, the more entrants I have (not multiple posts, but people posting) the more likely I am to pick more than one winner. Contest will end on my birthday, Sunday, Sept 28, sometime in the evening. Winner will be posted here, so be sure to subscribe to the post or leave your contact information.
*** I'm extending the contest until Sept 30 due to birthday commitments and our guest blogger on Monday. So, watch for the winner(s) to be announced on Wed. Oct 1.***
The contest for the copy of Life is Like Making Chocolate Chip Cookies is over. Thanks to everyone who came and commented.
And our winner is RobynL. Robyn, please e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com before Friday, Sept 19 with your mailing address to claim your autographed copy.
And while we're talking contests, if you have a blog that you would like linked from ours, visit this post and give us the URL and be entered in a contest for a variety of books. This contest ends on Sept. 30th. Authors and previous blog winners are eligible to win.
Thanks to everyone who stopped by to chat with Donna Grant. I hope all of you run out and pick up a copy of The Pleasure of His Bed. But wait, I need to announce the winner of the autograped copy.
Drum roll please.... And
Acdaisy, please e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com before next Friday with your mailing address to claim the book.
Do you have a blog? We would love to post a link to your site (and would ask that you do the same with Book Talk).
Comment here with the link to your blog with a short description of what you blog about and I'll enter you in a contest. I'll run this contest until September 30. Everyone is eligible to win... readers, authors, and even those who have won books here in the past.
As for the prize, I have a bunch of Harlequin books I've read recently that I'll give to several people. One of the books I'll give away is Her Book Of Pleasure. I just finished it and found it to be a pretty good read with interesting characters and a fun plot. As the deadline looms closer, I'll make updates here with more books that I'll giveaway.
So, what are you waiting for? Post your links so you can gain more readers and possibly win a book.
Updated on Sept 12: I'm adding Wild Notion by Cathy McDavid and Susannah's Garden by Debbie Macomber into the contest mix.
I'm still trying to give away an autographed copy of Anne McAllister's One-Night Love Child. If you want the book, send an e-mail to admin.bookblog@gmail.com. First person to send that e-mail will get it (if you've won a book here before, send an e-mail and I'll consider you if no non-winners contact me). I'll also throw in the mix a copy of Kate Walker's At The Sheikh's Command (from my shelf, not autographed) to someone who e-mails me.
Update: The books have been claimed. Thanks to everyone who e-mailed. And good luck in future contests. I'm sure I'll be giving away more books from my shelf and most of our guests are holding contests.
I've pulled two names for the Jodi Lynn Copeland book and no response from either winner. And I never heard from the winner of the Anne McAllister book. So, here's what we're going to do....
If you've not won a book on the blog in July or August, you're eligible for the contest. First person to e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com with "Pick Me!" in the subject line will win the book from Jodi Lynn Copeland. Second e-mail will win Anne McAllister's book. And since I'm feeling generous, the third e-mail will win a book from my shelf... a signed copy of the anthology Christmas Gold. If you already have a copy of one of the books, please make mention in the e-mail so you don't get picked for it.
Update: The Jodi Lynn Copeland book and Christmas Gold are taken. So, all that's left is the Anne McAllister book. And who knows, I might throw in another book off my shelf. So, send in your e-mails. And I'll post again when the contest is closed.
Kristina is the winner from the Ericka Scott Interview contest. Please pick one of the backlist titles from the blog and e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com with your title choice and preferred ebook format. Please contact me before next Friday with your choice or a new winner will be chosen.
I still haven't heard from Cynthya or Melissa, who won books in previous weeks. You two have until Sunday, Aug 31 at noon PDT to claim the books before I pick new names.
Actually I have 3 winners to post. I never heard back from the Jodi Lynn Copeland winner, so I'm redrawing. Cynthya, you're the new winner of a copy of Sweet and Sinful.
Up next is the copy of Deadly Gamble. Thanks to everyone for telling me about their adventures (or wanna be adventures). And I've pulled Sue's name out of the bowl
And last is the copy of One-Night Love Child. Actually, I'm feeling generous this week. So, the winner of the signed copy of the book (straight from Anne) is Melissa. And a copy of the book (unfortunately not signed, but in awesome condition) coming from my shelf goes to Ellen.
If each of you would please e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com and provide me with what book you've won and your mailing address we'll get these books in the mail. You have until next Friday, August 29 to contact me or I'll choose new winners. Congrats!!!
I'm going white water rafting on Saturday. It's a family trip and the first time I've gone in 10 years. I'm really excited! This is one of the most adventurous things I've ever done (although last week's tattoo is probably up there on the list).
Deadly Gamble is the first book in a new series by Linda Lael Miller. It's contemporary, suspense, romance and western-- all rolled into one.
I somehow ended up with two copies of the book so I've decided to give away one copy to someone who tells me about an adventure they been on. And if you're not the adventurous type, then tell me something that you'd like to do or why you've never done anything out of your comfort zone.
I'll leave this contest open for a week and draw a winner next Friday, August 22 sometime around 5 pm PDT.
Edited on Sunday to add: So, yesterday was the big rafting day. We left Spokane at about 5am and had a 4 hour drive to Riggins, Idaho. The first half of the day was pretty tame rapids, just getting our feet wet. I sat in the back of the raft and enjoyed the ride. After lunch, I switched places with my sister and sat in the front with my niece and nephew. Wow! The rapids were much better! The whole family had an awesome day. We're all exhausted (we got home about 11pm) and sore (from sitting in the raft and sunburns), but it's all good. My sister and brother-in-law (married to my other sister) are both celebrating 30 birthdays this coming year and we are talking about going rafting again as a birthday present to them. We'll just go earlier in the season for better rapids. We took pics with a waterproof disposable camera... so as soon as I have pics in hand and scanned onto the computer, I'll share them.
The winner of Jodi Lynn Copeland's book is Anitra Lynn McLeod. Big congrats. I wish I was able to get my name in the pot... but then how fair would that be?
Anitra, please e-mail me at admin.bookblog AT gmail.com with your mailing address so that I can pass it along to Jodi. I need to hear from you by Friday, August 22 or I'll pick another winner.
Read More......Congrats to BethRe!
Beth, please send an e-mail to admin.bookblog at gmail.com and include your mailing address so that we can get the book to you.
And we hope y'all join us this coming week as Jodi Lynn Copeland stops by for an interview and book giveaway.
Congratulations Larena (lrwirum)! You're the winner of an autographed copy of Flesh and the Devil. Please e-mail me at admin.bookblog @ gmail.com with your mailing address so we can get the book to you.
And if you didn't win today, visit Devyn's website to see where she'll be next. Thanks to everyone who stopped by and helped make Devyn's virtual book tour a success!
Nancy Bristow is the winner of the ebook from the Selena Kitt interview. Nancy, jump over to http://www.exessica.com and choose what ebook you'd like and e-mail your selection to admin.bookblog at gmail.com.
And to everyone else eXessica has some free reads on their site... so check it out!
DawnM, you're the winner of the 2 books given away with the Kate Walker interview. Please e-mail me at admin.bookblog@gmail.com with your mailing address by Wednesday, July 16 to claim your prize. If I do not hear from you, I'll draw another name on Thursday.
Lady Jeannette is banished from her family's estate in England to the Irish countryside after a scandal. On her trip, she meets Darragh, an architect who sweeps her off her feet. She thinks he's a commoner and not worthy of her hand. But he's an earl and ready to teach her a lesson about love.
The Wife Trap is the second in a series of books. I quite enjoyed the whole series, but only ended up with 2 of the 3. The first book is up for grabs on paperback swap (see my previous post for the link) and this one I'm offering up here. It is an autographed copy. So, post what review on our blog you've liked and why and I'll draw a winning name next Saturday (June 21). Check back to see if you're the lucky person!
It's June 22 and I didn't get any takers for the book. So, it's been posted on Paperback swap. I wasn't asking much. Only a comment... too bad.
While I was cleaning through my books that were on my bookshelf, I decided that I really needed to do a more thorough cleaning. So, I've pulled out all my boxes of books and started weeding out books. I'm keeping packed away all my series books that I'll be keeping. And of course, I'll hang on to most of the autographed books that I have. I'm created a huge "to-be-read" pile. And all those books that have been read but I don't want to keep... well, most of those are being posted on Paperback swap. If you'd like to see what I have available, check out my inventory at http://dukefn99.paperbackswap.com.
And I'll pull out some books and post them here for giveaways. So, watch out for Freebie postings, where all you'll have to do is post a comment about why you want the book and I'll pick a winner.
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