A Blogpost Full of WIN (And a Chance to Win)

You know how life can just get backed up on you, like a drain that's slowly clogging over time--and eventually it has to get cleared out or something will explode? Well, I like to occasionally wait to the point of explosion. 

BUT FIRST, yes, I know the suspense is killing you (or more likely me,) so let's get to our Writerly Wednesday winner!

Writerly Wednesdays here are dedicated to writers and readers. If you've published anything for Young Adults with a fantastic twist (fantasy in all varieties, paranormal, speculative fiction, horror, sci-fi, dystopian, etc.), shoot me an email (crystal AT crystal-collier DOT com). I'll be shouting about awesome books, sharing new covers, or participating in book releases every week--and I'd love to share yours. Spots are filling up quick, so schedule a date now. 

Before the fun, let's announce the winner for last week. Sandra Ulbrich Almazan shared with us Twinned Universes last week and blew my socks off with the premise. She told us two truths and one lie about herself, and those who guessed correctly were entered into a random drawing to win her ebook. The options were:

1. Sandra can make both bread and cheese from scratch. 

2. Sandra has a black belt in karate.
3. Sandra occasionally walks around at work and home balancing a book on her head.

And, the lie is: 

#2 Sandra is not a black belt, although she got half way to being one. Guess that means I'm going to have to adopt her, because I totally need a cheese maker in my house. (You heard me Sandra--so when that black bag flies over your head and someone shoves you in the back of a van, go peacefully. I promise eternal servitude will be awesome.)

Way to go those of you who guessed right! You are officially human lie detectors. And the winner is: 

...DRUM ROLL...

Madeleine Sara

Yay, Madeleine! 

And now who wants to WIN?

I've been stock piling blog awards for a couple months, and it's time to purge. First, from the ever-generous, super supportive and cheese deserving S.A. Larsen--and thank you TONZ for these: 

RULES:

These two have pretty much the same guidelines. 

1. Display the Award Certificate on your website. 

2. Link to whoever presented your award. 

3. State 7 things about yourself.

4. Present the award to 7 deserving bloggers.

5. Notify nominees.

6. Post 7 interesting things about yourself.

This third one is a bit different. 

1. Thank the Super Sweet Blogger that nominated you.

2. Answer 5 super sweet questions.

3. Post the award.

4. Nominate a bakers dozen (13) bloggers.

5. Notify your nominees. 

And if that weren't enough, the super suspense writer,  Michelle Wallace was kind enough to nominate me for this one. (You rock, Michelle!)

The only rule is to pass it on to 10 to 12 other amazing bloggers. 

So here's how this is going down. I'm going to give 7 facts about myself and answer 5 questions. PLEASE tell me something completely random about you in the comments. Anyone who mentions their favorite cheese will be entered to WIN a free ebook of your choice (also known as $5 at Amazon). If you mention your favorite cheese AND guess the magic # I'm thinking of (how many mind-readers are out there?) you win. Period. (I'll give you a hint, it's more than 1 and less than 500.) The winner will be announced next Wednesday.  

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE WINNER. WILL IT BE YOU? 

FACTZ...

1. I'm an accent chameleon. If I hear it, I can speak it. (And probably will. Unintentionally.) 

2. Along those lines, I sing anything from first soprano (burst-your-eardrums high) to tenor. 

3. My first blind date was with my amazing husband. 

4. I still delightedly answer to the nickname of "chicken."

5. I despise politicians. All politicians. Everywhere. (Sorry, politicians.)

6. One of my favorite places to live was Yellowstone National Park. 

7. My debut book will be available for purchase some time in the next six months. (Squee!)

My Super Sweet Questions:   

1. What is your favorite dessert?  Creme Brulee
2.  Cake or ice cream? Ice Cream. Hands down.
3. When do you like desserts most?  Truth? Most the time I can do without dessert. 
4. Would you choose cookies or cake? Definitely cookies. 
5. Vanilla or chocolate? Vanilla.

And now the nominees (And seriously, there were about 50 others I wanted to include!): 

Dragon's Loyalty: 

1. Liz
2. Catherine Stine
3. Dianne K. Salerni
4. Natalie Aguirre
5. Ian 
6. Rena
7. Medeia Sharif

Shine on: 

1. Melanie Schultz
2. Gwen Gardner
3. Beverly Fox
4. Lynda R Young
5. Keith Wynn
6. PK Hrezo
7. Julie Dao

Super Sweet Blogger: 

1. Michelle Wallace
2. Carol Riggs
3. Emily R. King
4. Jai
5. Celeste Holloway
6. Murees Dupe
7. C. Lee McKenzie
8. Carol Kilgore
9. Elizabeth Seckman
10. Suzanne Furness
11. M Pax
12. Connie Keller
13. Jyoti Mishra

Sisterhood of World Bloggers: 

1. Heather Holden
2. Mary Waibel
3. Denise Covey
4. Patsy Collins
5. Theresa Milstein
6. Nicole Zoltack
7. Madeline Mora-Summonte
8. Rachel Morgan
9. Ilima Todd
10. Miranda Hardy
11. Nutschell
12. Lynn Proctor

Okay, hit me with your randomness!!! 

SCI-FI FANS, Can You Guess the Lie (and WIN)?

It's game time! But first, let's meet the winner from this last week.

Writerly Wednesdays here are dedicated to writers and readers. If you've published anything for Young Adults with a fantastic twist (fantasy in all varieties, paranormal, speculative fiction, horror, sci-fi, dystopian, cheese, etc.), shoot me an email (crystal AT crystal-collier DOT com). I'll be shouting about awesome books, sharing new covers, or participating in book releases every week--and I'd love to share yours. Spots are filling up quick, so schedule a date now. 

Before the fun, let's announce the winner for last week. Celeste Holloway shared with us Sebastain Falls and offered an ebook to the human lie detectors among us. She told us two truths and one lie about herself, and those who guessed correctly were entered into a random drawing to win. The options were:

1. Celeste is an avid fisher and hunter.

2. She grew up playing in the graveyard next door.

3. Celeste is scared of crows. 

And, the lie is: 

#1 (and 3). Celeste is not a hunter and fisher. *gasp* But what's more, I've been in final edits for the last couple weeks, and my poor, over-used brain has apparently reached its max because Celeste is not actually afraid of crows, she's afraid of cows. (Can you see what my brain did there?) Anyone who guessed 1 or 3 was entered in the drawing for this week.

Way to go those of you who guessed right! You are officially human lie detectors. And the winner is: 

...DRUM ROLL...

Lexa Cain! 

Today's amazing feature is:

Paul Harrison always wanted to play Hamlet, but he never expected he’d live the role first.

In the aftermath of a family tragedy on 21^st century Earth, Paul discovers he’s the clone of Sean Lyon, his great-great-grandfather and a famous TwenCen musician. Suspecting his mother’s death was no accident, Paul comes up with a plan to trick the answers out of the great-uncle who had him cloned. But in order to make his plan work, Paul needs help from Sean himself—and Sean’s time is running out in the TwenCen universe next door. Although Paul’s family lives on the spaceship that travels between the universes, he’s never been allowed on TwenCen Earth. Now, with the help of his friends, his disguise-creating holoprojectors, and a quantum quirk, Paul must make his way to Sean while evading other time travelers who fear he’ll change the history of the TwenCen universe. If Paul is to achieve justice, he must not only risk his own life, but the wormhole connecting the universes. “To be or not to be” was a simple question in comparison...

Now shall we meet the author?

Sandra Ulbrich Almazan started reading at the age of three and only stops when absolutely required to. Although she hasn’t been writing quite that long, she did compose a very simple play in German during middle school. Her science fiction novella Move Over Ms. L. (an early version of Lyon’s Legacy) earned an Honorable Mention in the 2001 UPC Science Fiction Awards, and her short story “A Reptile at the Reunion” was published in the anthology Firestorm of Dragons. She is a founding member of BroadUniverse and a long-time member of the Online Writing Workshop for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror. Her undergraduate degree is in molecular biology/English, and she has a Master of Technical and Scientific Communication degree. Her current day job is in the laboratory of an enzyme company; she’s also been a technical writer and a part-time copyeditor for a local newspaper. Some of her other accomplishments are losing on Jeopardy! and taking a stuffed orca to three continents. She lives in the Chicago area with her husband, Eugene; and son, Alex. In her rare moments of free time, she enjoys crocheting, listening to classic rock (particularly the Beatles), and watching improv comedy.

Sandra has several cheese of choice, but especially loves cream cheese on toast for breakfast. 

She can be found online at her website, blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads. 

And now for the fun! *rubbing hands*

Sandra gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Can you figure out the lie? Those who do will go into my magic hat for a chance to win an ecopy of Twinned Universes. How cool is that? You have until Tuesday, August 20th at 1 p.m. to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on August 21st!

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Sandra can make both bread and cheese from scratch. (If this is true, I'm adopting her, btw.)

2. Sandra has a black belt in karate. (Eek, watch out!)
3. Sandra occasionally walks around at work and home balancing a book on her head.

Okay human lie detectors, which is it?