7 Tips to Make Your Summer a Success, IWSG, + Win a Beach Book

Are you ready? I'm so ready.

It's the season for beach reads, vacation, and kicking it with a capital "K". To start us off right, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Plan your road trips wisely.

2. It's okay if plans go amiss, as long as you make your destination in the end.

3. Enjoy each moment to the fullest.

4. Take things slow.

5. Don't get overwhelmed.

6. And HAVE FUN!

7. But remember, you can't take it home with you, so make good memories.

And last of all, the IWSG question for the month. I know some of you will spend the months dreading the lack of writing you get done, but keep in mind that life goes fast. Enjoy each moment.

The question: What's harder for you to come up with, book titles or character names?

Titles, though I usually don't struggle with either. Titles can get sorted out by a publisher...or critique group.

Huge thanks for hosting
Alex Cavanaugh, Beverly Stowe McClure,
Tyrean Martinson, and Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor!

Last month Judy Corry shared MEET ME THERE along with two truths and one lie. Anyone who guessed was entered to win a signed print copy.

The game:

1. I broke my toe doing a cartwheel into my friend's back.
2. I lived in 4 different houses on the same street.
3. I speak fluent Italian.

The lie: #3. From Judy: I speak a little German. (My dad taught it.) But my husband is the one who is fluent in Italian and lived there for two years before we were married. We wrote emails back and forth during that time, so Italian has a special place in my heart. This is why I made the main character in my book DON'T FORGET ME half-Italian.)

And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Christine Rains!

Congrats, Christine!

Today is all about summer, eh? And today I've got an awesome summer read for you (clean romance for the pool side). Check it out:

Ethan Walters has no time for distractions like romance. Not if he's going to have the brilliant medical career he's always dreamed of. But when he's given a trip to a theme park resort as a college graduation present, he can't exactly say no. Even if Samantha--the one girl with the power to dismantle his goals--is tagging along.

Samantha Diederik has managed to avoid her high society mother’s manipulations since the woman moved to Europe. Now she’s back and pressuring Sam to move to New York with her. With that battle on the horizon, Sam proceeds with a vacation with her brother and his roommate. She’s crushed on Ethan for years. They've only met online, but their hours-long conversations are the highlight of her week. Now she has a chance to find out if the cyber magic she's felt with him will translate to real life.

And wow, does it ever--with sparks flying! Now all she has to do is find a way to fight off her mother's machinations while convincing Ethan she won’t destroy his dreams.

Buy your copy for 99 cents now on Amazon.

Ready to meet Donna K. Weaver?

Award-winning author, wife, mother, grandmother, Harry Potter geek, Army veteran, karate black belt, and online gamer.

She loves Muenster cheese, but usually only get it when she attends those luncheons with sandwich trays. (Poor thing! She just needs to come to my house!)

Donna gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. If you guess the lie, right or wrong, you will be entered to win the winner's choice of an AUDIOBOOK or EBOOK of SWING VOTE. (Open internationally.) DON'T HAVE A BLOGGER ACCOUNT WITH AN EMAIL ON THE PROFILE? No problem. LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS OR EMAIL crystal@crystal-collier.com to enter.

You have until Tuesday, July 3rd at 2 p.m. EDT to guess. Be sure to come back for the answer on July 4th, 8 a.m. EDT.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. I was interviewed on TV just before the release of the last Harry Potter Book, Deathly Hallows.
2. I started school in Greece.
3. I flunked the second grade.

So sleuths, which is the lie? What are you most looking forward to about summer? Have any great tips for making summer rock? Do you like clean romance stories?

7 Ways to Make the Most of Your Summer

It's that time of the year. Kids are out of school. The sun makes regular appearances. Everyone has the urge to get out and enjoy it.

Well, everyone except for me. I'm hunkering down with my air conditioning, refrigerated foods, and a few good books...around the screaming of kids. If you're doing the same, here are a few quick tips to help make your summer stellar: 

1. Who really needs anything more?

2. Hit the pool.

3. Pick summer vacation destinations that make you feel summery.

4. Don't stay out in the sun too long.

5. Don't get in over your head.

6. Try out a new adventure...but preferably of the less dangerous variety.

And 

7. Read a good book, or fifty.

As of this post, I'm cutting back to one post a month until...well, until there's sanity. Wish me luck with home schooling and surviving this pregnancy!

Two weeks ago, Theresa Milstein shared TIME AND CIRCUMSTANCE along with two truths and one lie. Anyone who guessed was entered to win an ebook or print copy.

The game:

1. Right after college, I landed a job as a make a makeup artist at Macy's, Herald Square, New York City. This led to a year doing makeup for a few shows on The Food Network. 

2. During the summer, I worked as a carney in the game booths on Long Island. I hated working the fixed games, though I hated running the sticky cotton candy booth even more.

3. One semester, I interned with a U.S. Congressman in New York, which meant handling a lot of angry phone calls, looking up data, tracking potholes, and attending events.

The lie: #1. 

From Theresa: My sister, Kathleen Brown, actually did some makeup for fellow cast members when she performed plays at a local theater during college. Afterwards, someone recommended her for a makeup gig. She faked it until she made it. Now she gets to do makeup on TV shows (including the Food Network) and movies on a regular basis. She gets to meet celebrities all the time. Pretty cool, huh? However, she does credit me for teaching her how to apply makeup when she was a teen in the first place. 

And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Jennifer Hawes!

Congrats, Jennifer!

SPEAKING OF SUMMER, now, for a WONDERFUL contemporary you don't want to miss this summer that I LOVED! (I even reviewed it!):

Who would have thought that a teenager could have a successful career creating makeup tutorial videos on YouTube? For Lacey Robbins, this dream has been her reality. An up-and-coming YouTuber, she has thousands of fans and can't wait for the day when her subscriber count reaches the one million mark. And when she is offered a high school internship at On Trend Magazine, she figures that this could be the make it or break it moment.

But sometimes your dream job isn't all that it seems. Her editor is only interested in promoting junk products, and her boss in the Hair and Makeup department introduces her to the larger world of makeup artistry, making her wonder if making tutorials online is all she is meant to do. To top it all off, when the magazine's feature subject, musician Tyler Lance, turns his broodingly handsome smile her way, falling for him could mean losing her fans, forcing her to make a decision: her YouTube life or her real life?

Fans of Zoella's GIRL ONLINE will fall right into the world of this YA DEVIL WEARS PRADA and stay hooked from the first blush to the last glossy kiss.

Buy your copy on Amazon.

Ready to meet the author?

Beth Ellyn Summer writes contemporary young adult fiction that somehow always includes the following elements: fame, makeup, and television. She graduated from Long Island University with a degree in Print and Electronic Journalism. Interning for Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon was the highlight of her college years. When she's not writing, Beth can be found swatching eyeshadows, solving Wheel of Fortune puzzles, and playing with her adorable cat, Penny Belle. Beth lives on Long Island in a cookie cutter town that, in an ironic twist of fate, doesn't have a single decent bakery.

If she absolutely had to choose only one favorite cheese, then she'd say Parmesan. It's so light and salty and delicious that she usually grates up about four pounds of it on top of her pasta at dinner, or adds it to a salad. Her favorite place to eat Parm (and all cheese, really) is in the kitchen, where she can easily go back for more cheese.

Beth gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. If you guess the lie, right or wrong, you will be entered to win an ebook of AT FIRST BLUSH! (Open internationally.) IF YOU DON'T HAVE A BLOGGER ACCOUNT WITH AN EMAIL ON THE PROFILE, PLEASE LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS OR EMAIL IT TO crystal@crystal-collier.com WITH YOUR SCREEN ALIAS.

You have until Tuesday, July 4th at 2 p.m. EDT to guess. Be sure to come back for the answer on July 5, 8 a.m. EDT.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. I really hate movies! So much so that I haven't been to a movie theater in eight years. 

2. I appeared in a Saturday Night Live sketch once as an extra! It was nearly impossible not to laugh, especially around such a brilliant cast, but I kept a straight face.

3. I never learned to ride a bike.

So sleuths, which is the lie? What are your summer cheat/trick/traditions? Have you met Beth? Do you like contemporary stories? Are you going on vacation this year?

Organizing, Cleaning, Plotting, and other Strange Habits

Summer is here!

For many parents that means kids will be running around the house crazy and asking every five seconds, "I'm bored. What can I do?"

Welcome to our house all year round.

We home school, and despite the "loud" and "busy", it's a joy. So, how do we deal with the chaos?

We get organized. Yesterday we sat down as a family and put together a list of weekly chores, and of course, our new chore wheel. Yay!

That's great you say, but what does that have to do with PLOTTING?

By default, I'm a pantster. The idea of plotting used to make me laugh. Why did I need that? My stories were completely character driven, and when characters hijacked the story, I ran along side cheering and panting. It's not until I completed my first 140k word middle grade novel that the need for plotting really sank in. As an author I needed to know which scenes were absolutely paramount--so I could chop that 140 to its eventual 90k. Whew! Each scene had to build character or the story arc/tension to make the final cut. It would have been so much easier if I'd started with an outline of important scenes before typing a single word.

See my outline of responsibilities on the fridge? Less chaos, less trauma. =)

Pardon. Cheese break. Mmm...Jarlsburg...

So, how do we plot?

Recently I stumbled across a video series I'll recommend to anyone who struggles with plotting.



Even after years of practice I don't sit down (on novel #6 now) and map out every fine detail of who, what, where, when and why. There has to be some wiggle room. It's just like our chore assignments--structure is supplied, but every hour of every day isn't set in stone.

So, how do you write? By the seat of your pants, or plotting? Somewhere in between? Do YOU think plotting is necessary?

Super Short

I'm participating in the Second Summer in the City Blogfest, which is basically a "let's set some goals for June and all support each other" blogfest. =)

So, my current WIP's are Immortal the Musical, Dark Moon, and my kids, of course. (Goals as follows:)
         1. Revise Forever into a blow-your-mind piece of music (-with the help of our kick-trash producer).
         2. Finish revising Dark Moon to third person (as opposed to 1st).
         3. Smooth and submit The Kiss of Death to a writing contest.
         4. Create our home school plan for 2011-2012. (3 kids, 3 grades.)

Is that enough? What are your goals?