Beware of Dragons

Welcome, Monster-hunters and fellow Monstrologists!

Today I’m participating in the MonsterFest 2011 blog-hop, hosted by Sommer Leigh at “Tell Great Stories”. (Go check out the details and other participants by clicking the MonsterFest icon in my left sidebar.)

The “monster” I’ve chosen to research and share with you readers is…dragons! While not necessarily a “Halloween-time” monster, dragons have been considered monsters for ages all over the world. Many popular myths, legends, and fairy-tales involve dragons and their species. But what are dragons exactly?

Rule of Three: "Renaissance" (part IV)

Greetings! I'm afraid we have reached the end of our journey, faithful travelers! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for following my characters all month long. It was an awesome experience and I've enjoyed reading all the stories involved. (And in case you still have no clue what I'm talking about: check out the Renaissance post and read the other participants' stories.)

For another chance to read my previous three installments, click on their titles to refresh your memory of my characters: Gwyn's Discovery, Myzukia's Deceit, and Ciaran's Decision. Our final story today will feature all three characters' perspective. Comments and feedback are still welcomed!

And as always: "Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay."

Rule of Three: "Renaissance" (part III)

Hello faithful travelers! I'm glad to see you return for another story installment on this "Rule of Three Writing Challenge" blogfest. (For new travelers, check out the Renaissance post for more information and read others' stories as well.)

If you didn't get a chance to read my first two installments, you can read them by clicking their titles: Gwyn's Discovery and Myzukia's Deceit. Today we will hear from a third character in our mysterious tale, Ciaran. Again, please feel free to post comments/feedback.

Take heed: "Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay."

Belated Things and NaNoWriMo

So I realized the other day that I missed my one-year blog anniversary back in August. (Wow, I've had this thing for over a year?!) Anywho...

*throws confetti into the air* Happy Belated Blog-versary to me! *sweeps up confetti* Okay, I'm done now...back to my post!

November is right around the corner and do you know what that means? It's time for NaNoWriMo! Yay!

Haunted Halloween: "Walking Home"

Over at Confessions of a Bookaholic and A Life Bound by Books, they are hosting a spooky short story contest as a part of their month-long "Haunted Halloween" extravaganza. (Notice the button in the left sidebar of my blog?) The deadline for entry was October 15th and I just barely made it in time. The judging round starts Sunday October 16, so click here for details and if you enjoy my "spooky tale", please give me a vote. And now...story time!

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"Walking Home"

Nana always warned me there were trolls under bridges…

Rule of Three: "Renaissance" (part II)

Welcome once again to this stop on the "Rule of Three Writing Challenge" blogfest. I've been enjoying all the entries and am astounded by all the creative writers and approaches in this fest. (If you're just joining us, check out the Renaissance post for more information.)

And in case you missed my first installment of this four-part story, check out Gwyn's Discovery here. This week we will learn more about our story through the eyes of another character, Myzukia. Please feel free to post comments/feedback.

And remember: "Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay."

Wind, Water, Fire, and...Yarn?

Last week I received a shiny present in the mail...

*squee* I won this lovely ARC of Rae Carson's new book from the lovely people at Epic Reads. They held a twitter contest for 20 lucky retweeters a few weeks ago. This is a book that has been on my to-read book since I first heard about it! And when my fiancee give me the package from the doorstep, I did a little happy dance! =D

In other news...

Rule of Three: "Renaissance" (part I)

Welcome to my stop on the "Rule of Three Writing Challenge" blogfest. I signed up for this blogfest last month and have been super excited to read all the other entries. (This blogfest is hosted by Stu Nager - Tale Spinning, Damyanti Biswas - Daily (W)rite, Lisa Vooght - Flash Fiction, and JC Martin - Fighter Writer. Please check out their blogs for more information.)

The goal of this blogfest is to write a four part story revolving around three main characters and occurring in the town of Renaissance. (Renaissance is a fictional shared world created by the bloggers mentioned above.) Each week, the writers involved with the blogfest receive the following week's prompt. So over the month of October I will be posting each installment of my story every Thursday. Please follow me along this new journey. Feel free to post comments/feedback and join me in reading the other participants' stories. (Click this Link for complete List.)

Now remember: "Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay."

Austin Teen Book Festival 2011 Recap

On Saturday, I attended the Austin Teen Book Festival...where, as my fiancee explained to a friend, I was pretending to be a "teenager". Actually I wasn't since there were many other adults there too, but there were many many teenagers. And it made me happy to see so many teen readers. The purpose of the festival is to promote teen reading and connnect readers with YA authors, which is exactly what it did.

This is the first of many pictures to come in this post. You have been warned.

And the Winner Is...

The winner of my Monarch giveaway is...*drum-roll*...

HEATHER

Congratulations! I'll be emailing you soon!

Special thanks to all who entered and help spread the word! (If you still want a chance to win a copy of Monarch, please check Michelle's blog for more giveaways.)

~Namárië
(Elvish Farewell) 

P.S. I had a terrific time with the TX bloggers I meet last night, and I'm now at the Austin Teen Book Festival! *squee* Check back on Tuesday for my juicy details and pictures!