Author Extends Book Naming Contest

We previously posted a book contest to name Elle C. Turner's upcoming book in the Presley Thurman series. She's extended the contest until June 15, so you still have time to get in on it! If she uses your title, you'll win $100 to shop The Book Blues!

Here's the previous information:

How often have you seen a book and thought, "Wow. I could come up with a waaaaaay cooler title!"

(OK, maybe that's just us. Whatever.)

Anyway...

Indie author Elle C. Turner (real name Laina Molaski) is asking for our help in naming her upcoming chick lit novel. Part of the Presley Thurman Series, Elle's debut (and yet untitled) novel will be released in August 2009 and she wants you involved in the book naming contest.

Wait, that's not all!

If you are a Book Blues Bookstore customer who wins the contest, Elle will give you $100 gift certificate to shop The Book Blues Bookstore! The winner will also get his or her title in print, a signed copy of the first release, and your name in the dedication.

Groovy, huh?

Here's some info on the book:

Presley Thurman, lover of shoes and Starbucks, thinks she's starting a fun new career as a writer until it turns into something unexpected. The person she's to write about, a U.S. Senator is murdered! Presley hasn't seen this much excitement since the spring sample sale at Saks...

Head on over to Elle's blog to check out the cover. And then get your thinking caps on because you only have until May 30 June 15. When you're ready to enter your choices, go to Elle's contact page and fill out the required information with your title suggestions in the message field. (Don't forget to let her know The Book Blues Bookstore sent you!) Elle says, "Enter as many times as you wish when inspiration hits or when you're just really, really bored."

The winners will be announced in June and we'll re-post the winning title information here.

So, go on now, get creative (but don't embarrass us)!

Congrats to Our CD Book Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to The Book Blues Twitter follower Vois, winner of our random drawing for the CD book Hex Breaker by Devon Ellington. The giveaway was in conjunction with author Devon Ellington's guest blog post The Balance of Passion on May 22. Devon graciously donated a CD version of Hex Breaker for our giveaway.

Want to get in on our other giveaways? We give away great author signed books, gifts and prizes on a regular basis. Just sign up for our newsletter, become a Book Blues fan on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and you will automatically be entered!


If we don't hear back from giveaway and contest winners within 5 days, another winner will be drawn.

[Guest Blogger] The Balance of Passion with Author Devon Ellington

The Balance of Passion:
Balancing Passion for Words with Practicality
by Devon Ellington

Don't miss a giveaway opportunity at the end of Devon's post!

One of the reasons we write is because we love words, we love language, we love telling stories, and helping people see and experience the world in new ways through our words. But sometimes we can overdo the love of words and that becomes a block to the practicality of publishing.

Whether you choose writing as the way to earn your living or you fit it in on the side, most writers hope for publication. Part of telling the stories is having someone on the other end to receive them. Every writer hits a time when passion must balance with practicality.

What to Write. Write what you love, what interests you, what moves you, what intrigues you, what you want to explore. You don’t have to write what you already know, but you have to care enough about what you write to immerse yourself in it, to explore all the sensory details involved with it. Write whatever you want, but remember that, if you write about a real place or a real profession, even in fiction, you have to gain enough knowledge to hold readers who know it intimately. I’ve put more than one writer on my “never buy again” list because the writer couldn’t be bothered to do something as simple as research the geography of New York City. If you are on Bleecker Street, you don’t turn a corner and wind up in Harlem, unless you’re writing speculative fiction or magical realism. If I can’t trust you for something as simple as basic street sense, how can I possibly trust you for anything else?

Basic Craft. You must bother to learn the basics of grammar, spelling, structure. Once you know them inside out, you can CHOOSE to break the rules. There’s an enormous difference between a gifted writer who chooses to break rules and writes a magnificent piece, and a writer who can’t be bothered to learn the rules and comes across as sloppy and careless.

If it Doesn’t Work, Take it Out. Many experts swear you have to “kill your darlings.” You don’t have to cut something BECAUSE you like it. You cut it when it DOESN’T WORK. Nothing is ever wasted. Every sensation a writer experiences, every smell, taste, experience, touch, sound, emotion, and word written is always useful. It just might not all be useful in the same book. There are very few writers whose every word is authorial gold. And most of them were smart enough to cut out the bits that didn’t work before we ever got to see them. Drop the ego and look at the forest, not just each individual word-tree.

Read, Read, Read. Read as much as you can in as many genres as you can, from authors who steadily publish. Dissect the work, separate from your emotional response to it. See what works and why. Apply the techniques -- not the content -- to your own work.

Choose Your Battles. Once you’re contracted, you might not always agree with everything your editor wants. Don’t respond immediately. Think it over for a few days. Cool down and look at it objectively. Choose where to take a stand, and where to compromise. I chose to lose a cover battle in order to win a content battle. Talk calmly, clearly, honestly, and diplomatically with your editor. If there’s something that’s non-negotiable about your book, put it in the contract. It saves battles farther down the line.

Always Be on Time. If it means staying up for three days straight to get the work done, do it. If it’s a family emergency or a health issue -- contact your editor immediately and work out an alternate schedule. Or buckle down and get it done no matter what.

Your early drafts are your playground. Explore every facet of your story and characters fully, follow every tangent. Then, as you hone if for submission, step away from the emotional attachment and read it as though it was someone else’s work. You never stop loving your book (well, okay, by the time you read final proofs, you can’t stand looking at it anymore -- but you still love it), but you’ve also got to balance your passion for your piece with practicality if you want it to reach a wide audience. The world is hungry for stories -- with the right balance of passion and practicality, they will be hungry for yours.


Devon has graciously donated a CD version of HEX BREAKER! One lucky Book Blues follower on Twitter will win the CD in a random drawing on May 31st. Want to get in on the fun? Just follow us on Twitter. (It's that simple!)
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Devon Ellington publishes under a half a dozen names in both fiction and non-fiction. Her work appears in publications as varied as NEW MYTHS, BOOKS FOR MONSTERS, ESPRESSO FICTION, THE ROSE AND THORN, FEMME FAN, THE CRAFTY TRAVELER, HAMPTON FAMILY LIFE, THE ARMCHAIR DETECTIVE and ELLE. She writes “The Literary Athlete” for THE SCRUFFY DOG REVIEW. Her Jain Lazarus Adventures are published by FireDrakes Weyr Publishing and the YA horse racing mystery DIXIE DUST RUMORS will be published under the Jenny Storm name by eTreasures in summer 2008. Her plays are produced in New York, London, Edinburgh, and Australia. Visit her blog on the writing life, Ink in My Coffee (http://devonellington.wordpress.com), the site for the Jain Lazarus Adventures (http://hexbreaker.devonellingtonwork.com) and her main website, www.devonellingtonwork.com.

Want to be a guest blogger or reviewer on this site? Email us!

May's Autographed Book Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Sue J. of Michigan. She was the winner of our May indie author spotlight book giveaway - an autographed copy of Ellen Tomaszewski's book My Blindy Girl - A Mother's Journey through Achromatopsia. Sue's name was randomly drawn from our database of newsletter subscribers.

Special thanks to Ellen for donating the autographed copy of her book for our giveaway. You can see an excerpt of our May newsletter interview with Ellen on our indie author spotlight page throughout May.

Don't want to miss other great author interviews found only in our newsletter? Want to be sure that you are entered for our other newsletter subscriber giveaways? Sign up for our monthly newsletter now!

Are you an indie author (or know an indie author) that would like to be featured on our website, in our newsletter or on our blog? Email us with "Indie Author" in the subject line.

May Book Review: World Wide Rave By David Meerman Scott

May 2009 Book Review
World Wide Rave By David Meerman Scott
with Guest Reviewer Stacy Lukasavitz

Whether the systematic “rules” will work for everyone, I don’t know, but it’s certainly worth trying, and this book is certainly worth reading at least for inspiration. It’s a quick read, can fit in your purse (albeit a hardcover), and it’s eye-pleasing and funny. -Stacy

What is a World Wide Rave, you ask?

It’s telling just seven people about your product and setting the world afire with buzz.

It’s the one teenager with cancer that created a movement for kids his age with cancer across the globe.

It’s the writer who got turned down by every publisher she approached, then ended up with a best-seller by self-publishing, tenacity, and believing she had something of value.

It’s when people come to you and are interested in your products, not the other way around. It’s when they talk about you and your ideas in a good way, without you trying to “sell” them anything. It’s contagious enthusiasm about your ideas, and it’s fueled by harnessing the social web to spread them.

Read the full review...

[Guest Blogger] Have You Ever Dreamed of Writing for Children?

Today's guest blogger is Dana Lehman, author of the Mom's Choice Award-winning children's Walnut Grove series. She is working on the third title in the series (currently titled I Can Do It!) to be released in 2010.

We asked Dana to share with us her inspiration on how she became a children's author and how others can follow their dreams, too.

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When I was in college I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I was dating my boyfriend (future husband). He was going to school to be a mechanical engineer. He said that he always knew he wanted to be an engineer. I was envious because I didn’t know what kind of career I wanted to pursue. I wondered…would I ever find a career that I really loved?

I did know one thing. I loved my boyfriend (now husband) and I wanted to get married to him, have children, and stay home with my children. That part of my dream…I accomplished. I know that I am fortunate that I have been able to be a stay at home mom. I would not trade my time with my kids for anything. I have enjoyed every minute of it…well almost all of it!

About three years ago I wrote a children’s book. Originally, just for my boys. My mom used to tell us stories about a squirrel when we were growing up. Every squirrel story taught us a lesson. When my kids got older she started telling them squirrel stories. When I watched her tell her stories, and watched their faces, it brought back memories of when I was a child.

The lesson my mom always taught us when we were growing up was to treat others as you would like to be treated. One day, after visiting my mom, and listening to one of her squirrel stories, I decided that I was going to write a book. A book for my kids, about a squirrel, who gets teased because he is different, and always treats others as he wants to be treated. With all the violence in schools it was a good lesson to teach children. The earlier they were taught…the better.

My mother-in-law is an artist. I asked her to do the illustrations. She accepted and in my opinion did a beautiful job!

I had no intention of getting my book published. It was originally a gift for my boys for Christmas. I have a lot of friends that are teachers. They were encouraging me to get Adventures at Walnut Grove: A Lesson about Teasing published and go to schools to do author presentations.

It took me a while to finally get the courage to pursue getting my book published. I kept doubting myself. All kinds of thoughts ran through my mind. What if kids don’t like my story? What if parents don’t like my story? These thoughts lasted about a year…

I opened Lehman Publishing in December of 2006. I have a friend that works for a newspaper. She does the lay-out for the newspaper and my books. I hired two editors and a printer. We have now published two books: Adventures at Walnut Grove: A Lesson about Teasing and I DOUBLE Dare You! I am currently working on my third book titled I Can Do It! It is about self-esteem and how you can do anything if you believe in yourself! (It’s always good to write from experience.)

I did not send my manuscript to any publishers because my illustrations were already complete. I read that a publisher only wants your manuscript. They find their own illustrator. That wasn’t an option for me. The illustrations were done and they were just as I had envisioned them.

After the book was done my mother-in-law called and told me that she was donating all of her royalties as illustrator to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. She donates money and I donate books.

Now I do school presentations. Remember how I asked if I would ever find a career that I loved? Well, I found it! Other than being a mom it is the most rewarding thing I have ever done. I believe I am successful! I will be posting thank you letters on my website that I have received from children soon. I am making a difference in children’s lives! I never imagined I could find a career that I loved this much! I just had to take that step…and believe in myself.


-Dana Lehman