The BookFetish Blog

As 2011 wraps up, I decided to take some time to recount some of my favorite moments from this year.

First, Dragon Con 2011.  For those of you not in the know, Dragon Con is a four day mutli-media Pop culture convention held in Atlanta every year over Labor Day weekend. There’s an emphasis on Science Fiction and Fantasy at the Con, and it is an awesome opportunity to see some amazing costumes and participate in panels with various authors, artists, and actors in the genre. While I enjoyed so much of this year’s Con, my favorite part was dinner on Friday night.  I had dinner with my friends Stephen and Emmet, Emmet’s wife Sharon, and their friend Mary. I’ve known Stephen and Emmet since my freshman year of high school. Stephen and I reconnected in person years ago, when we both moved to Atlanta. Emmet and I found each other on Facebook a few years ago. His wife and I friended each other, too, but this dinner was my first chance to meet her in person.  Another patron at the restaurant took this picture of us:

What I love about this picture is that first, it captures a great time. Second, we’re all proudly flying our geek flags. I’m in a Merlotte’s Waitress costume from True Blood. Stephen and Emmet are in nerd t-shirts. Sharon and Mary have the remnants of their costumes.    It was just so fun to discover after all these years how much we still do have in common.

It felt like I’ve known Sharon and Mary for years, and it was like no time had passed between Stephen, Emmet, and me.  I love meeting new people, but sometimes it is especially nice to reconnect with people from the past. This dinner was definitely one of 2011’s stand out moments for me.

This was also the year I was blessed with a couple of great travel opportunities.  My friend Ana and I planned a relatively impromptu Girls’ trip to Barcelona, Spain.  Ana’s brother, Jean-Paul from Cooking Keeps Me Sane , had a culinary internship over the summer at a hotel in Barcelona. Ana’s husband suggested Ana and I go over and visit Jean-Paul while he was there. Of course, we said YES!

Barcelona is an amazing city, with architecture dating back to Roman times, and so much good food and drink. We had a magnificent time. Aside from the crazy foot swelling I experienced, it was a great trip. We got to see a phenomenal Flamenco show. But the hands-down highlight of the trip for me was my motorcycle side car tour of the city, through BrightSide Side Car Tours. Seriously. If you visit Barcelona, this is a MUST DO.  A really great way to see and learn about the city, and something a bit out of the ordinary.

Four days after getting home from Barcelona, I was on the road again. This time, it was with my friend Stephen on a road trip to Nashville to see U2 play at Vanderbilt University.

I love U2, and on this last leg of the tour, this was as close to Atlanta as they were coming. Stephen is also a huge fan, so we packed up and made a weekend of it. We toured around the city, ate breakfast at a nationally famous breakfast spot, and of course enjoyed the show. We had great seats- front row, just past the front claw, on Adam’s side of the stage. This was the third 360 concert I attended, the first two being in 2009 in Dublin and Atlanta.    Just when I think I can’t top a prior U2 show, they do something that makes it not just the same old concert.

This time, it was the opportunity to meet some virtual friends in person. I know Lori Jo (@EdgeFest) through Twitter, and she and some friends and Stephen and I met the night before the concert to hear a great U2 cover band called UZoo.  At the concert itself, aside from seeing it from Adam’s side for the first time, I finally got to hear All I Want Is You live when Bono invited a blind man, self taught on the guitar, to join the band on stage after the encore to play the song for his wife. Amazing. Spine-tingling. Seriously. I got goose bumps. And, earlier in the show, the band performed The Wanderer, which they wrote for Johnny Cash and which he recorded for their Zooropa- we were in Nashville, after all.

Just a couple of weeks after the U2 show, there was another epic event.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 hit the theaters.  If you recall, I said my goodbyes to Harry and friends here but seeing the midnight opening with several friends who also adore Harry was another highlight of my year, and I hope something I remember for a very long time. Some of my friends came in costume. We all lined up at the theater hours before the show, playing games and socializing.  It was such a sense of camaraderie. Fans were united for this one event and just happy to be  a part of the experience. Although I was crazy tired the next day, it was completely worth it to have this experience.

And finally, the last of my very favorite moments from 2011.  My friend Michelle’s wedding.  Michelle and Jaimie had a whirlwind courtship and were engaged only a few months after they reconnected at their high school reunion. But for a number of reasons, they had to wait over a year to hold the wedding.  Michelle is one fo my closest friends. Aside from just being happy for her getting married, the wedding allowed a group of us to be together to celebrate with Michelle and Jaimie.   Everyone deserves as much happiness and Michelle and Jaimie have found, and the group of girlfriends who gathered to celebrate the occasion.

So there you are. A few of the highlights from 2011. And I can’t wait for 2012.

I had to travel for work last week. I  finished the book I brought with me for the trip out. And because of the “no electronics during take-off and landing” rule, I needed another book to keep me occupied on the return trip until I could read on the iPad (or, in this instance, re-watch the season finale of Sons of Anarchy). Anyway, I was in a really small airport that had a really small selection of books. The only one that really caught my eye was Making Rounds With Oscar.

Dr. David Dosa works with dementia patients and their families at a nursing home called Steere House in Rhode Island. Steere House is also home to Oscar and several other cats. While all the cats interact with the staff and patients, Oscar seems to know when a patient is going to die. Normally standoffish, Oscar makes a point of waiting, curled up next to a patient, in their final hours. He doesn’t leave until the patient has passed.

SPOILER ALERT: I only do this with books about animals, but before I bought the book, I flipped through the last few pages to make sure we were still talking about Oscar in the present tense.  I cannot read books where the animals die, so I know it is a spoiler, but it’s one I’m OK sharing. SPOILER OVER

A scientist, Dr. Dosa was admittedly skeptical of Oscar’s ability to sense death. But he began interviewing the families of former patients about their experience with Oscar.  And while he learned that Oscar provides a great sense of comfort to the families (and staff)  during their loved one’s final hours, he also gained a greater understanding on the impact of dementia (which includes but is not synonymous with Alzheimer’s) on the patient and their families.

I enjoyed the book because as a pet owner I’m firmly convinced that animals can sense our moods and provide comfort and companionship when we need it most. But at the same time, I call the experience of reading the book bittersweet. My family has a history of Alzheimer’s,  and those personal experiences (and fears that come from that place deep down inside that make me wonder if one day, I too, will suffer from it) brought a special poignancy and touch of melancholy to the story.

Still, it is a story of companionship and love in the sense of Oscar being a part of a patient’s final hours and in the stories of love from the patient’s families. It is overall heartwarming and comforting, and one I would recommend.

Samantha March, the nom de plume of the woman behind chicklitplus.com, has published her first novel. I’ve gotten to know Samantha, at least virtually, through the Chick Lit Plus challenge, Facebook, and Twitter.  Samantha was gracious enough to answer a few questions for me. I think you’ll enjoy hearing what she has to say:

TBF: What’s been the best part of the writing and self-publishing journey so far?

SM: The best part for me so far is simply knowing I did it. I took a goal I gave myself and worked hard to accomplish it. It was hard work and I learned a lot from it––about the publishing world, writing, and myself. There were so many times where I considered the idea of giving up. My editor continually wanting me to change pieces. Not understanding formatting. My endless cover woes. The hours put in to the marketing side. But when I saw my book for sale for the first time on Amazon, I understood why I never gave up. That moment was worth all the troubles and frustration I had put myself through to get to that moment.

TBF: What do you wish you had known that you didn’t know when you started out on this publishing journey?

SM: Great question! Let me think here…..one thing I wish I would have known about is formatting. The formatting for eBooks and print books are completely different. I remember logging on to Smashwords all excited to get the book uploaded….and then reading all the formatting guidelines. My work was nowhere near what they were asking for. I wasted a lot of time trying to fix it myself, then more time trying to find and hire someone to do it for me. And then to realize everything had to change again when I uploaded my material for print books––ah!

TBF: What was your inspiration for the story?

SM: The inspiration for Destined to Fail came from a majority of people. Me, my family, friends, and even mere acquaintances that I’ve met in my life. The hardships I’ve overcome and watched others overcome has been inspiring to me. Life can seem simply unfair to many people who are forced to struggle through adversity. But I have watched so many of these people not give up, to pick themselves up and make a better life than what they maybe thought they were destined for. My hope behind the book is that someone else will read it and see the strength in the characters and take action in their own life.

TBF: How has the virtual community you’ve created- chicklitplus, the challenge, the blog tours, twitter, FB, etc- impacted your writing and self-publishing?

SM: Oh, my––a million times over. I say it all the time––I would have never have gotten this far without ChickLitPlus. Hands down, the best purchase I have made! The community of book bloggers, readers, authors, etc. have kept me sane during the entire writing and publishing process. I can’t tell you how many times I took to Twitter or Facebook saying I was stuck on a scene or a character or I’m having trouble with this or that, and the responses are what gets me through. I found beta readers, my formatter, cover designer, and so many supporters through CLP, and I am so grateful for them all. It also gave me a built in fan base for when I did publish. CLP had been active for two years when I published Destined, and I already had a wait list of people wanting a copy. Can you believe that? Thanks to my CLP Blog Tours, I also had a slew of book bloggers who knew me and was comfortable taking on my book and hosting me on their site. My marketing plan was somewhat easier than other authors that are completely new on the scene. This was another big reason why I was so comfortable self-publishing!

TBF: What advice would you give to someone considering self-publishing?

SM: Do your homework. Have a solid plan before you hit publish. Connect with beta readers or a critique partner––Ladies Who Critique is a fantastic tool––hire an editor, take all the professional steps. I can’t tell you how many self-published authors I have chatted with that tell me they didn’t hire any editor. Say what? I am a freelance editor, and I still hired not one but two editors along the way. Have a marketing plan as well. Get a website! Twitter! Facebook! Readers will want to connect with you, but more than that––no one is going to know you or your books if you don’t tell them about it!

TBF: You obviously love chick lit- what draws you to it?  What do you think about the criticisms that chick lit and women’s fiction are inferior to literary fiction?

SM: I do love chick lit! I find it to be an inspiring yet fun genre. One that I can laugh throughout the books, but learn something at the end. I’ve never really understood the criticism. Or why the US can’t adapt to the genre as well as the Brit’s. British chick lit is a huge market! Confessions of the Shopaholic anyone? And the way we are embracing female comediennes––Tina Fey, Betty White, Chelsea Handler––why can’t we accept funny and strong women writers? Time for a change!

TBF: Are you already working on your next book?

SM:  I am! I am just over 50,000 words in with the first draft. The story is a money versus moral story––but not a typical girl has to choose between a rich guy and a poor guy. Think the workplace, some sketchy employers, and the temptation of fast cash. I can’t wait to share it!

I’d like to thank Samantha for taking the time to answer my questions. Her new book is called Destined to Fail. You can get a copy through Amazon. And you can keep up with what Samantha is doing here. Happy Reading!

I’m pleased to be a part of the blog tour for Chosen.

Chandra Hoffman’s Chosen tells the story of  Chloe Pinter, director of the domestic adoption program for The Chosen Child. Chloe works to bring together birth mothers and adoptive families. Although rewarding and an escape from her own tumultuous personal life, the job is demanding and unpredictable, especially with birth parents like Jason and Penny: young, impoverished, manipulative but with the baby desperately wanted by the wealthy McAdoo’s.  The Novas are former clients of Chloe and friends of the McAdoo’s. After years of infertility, they are finally expecting their own baby. When a baby is kidnapped, the lives of these characters are brought together in unexpected ways.

Chandra Hoffman shows the darker side of adoption- the desperation of both some birth and adoptive parents. She shows how the decisions we make in a moment- because of desperation, courage, or sheer exhaustion- can irrevocably alter lives in unanticipated and sometimes heartbreaking ways. These very human moments that stayed with me for several days after I finished the novel.  I’d find myself thinking about Penny, who loved her child enough to give him up, although not without reservation. At the same time, I’d think about Francie McAdoo, whose wealth could get her the baby she’s wanted for years, but it still can’t buy her a happy marriage.  And the Novas, who wanted a baby for so long and are finally giving birth. Like most new parents, though, they are wholly unprepared for how much their new baby truly will change their world.  Each of the characters is sympathetic to some degree, even the manipulative and criminal Jason.

I like that this story stuck with me. I can’t imagine the courage it takes to give up a baby for adoption. Nor can I imagine the emotional toll it takes on adoptive parents when prospective adoptions fall through.  Chloe, stuck in the middle of it all, just trying to make everyone happy and give the baby the best possible life, finds herself put in an untenable position with the very future of a baby at stake.

I turned the pages of this book quickly, wanting to know what happened next. Hoffman does a great job of drawing her characters. Francie McAdoo, for example, isn’t necessarily someone I would like in real life, but I still found myself sympathizing with her, and empathetic to her circumstances. Even with Jason, villain that he is, Hoffman finds ways to make the reader sympathize  with him, to a point.

This book had all the elements: conflict, great characters, a few curve balls, and an interesting plot.  I hope to read more by Chandra Hoffman in the future.

By the way, this blog tour is a giveaway tour, so click here to get to the tour page. Comment, and you’ll be entered for a chance to win!  You can also connect with Chandra at her site,  and on Facebook and @chandraKhoffman on Twitter.

Happy reading!

I wrote recently about the insane urge I’ve been having to wear pink. It’s still here, and I’m still exploring it.  And it has led me to my 2012 project.  I’m calling it This Charming Life.  It’s going to be my quest to create my own charming life.  I’ll give more details later, but for now, I want to share with you the song that inspired this whole thing. Joan Armitrading’s This Charming Life. It was used in the season three finale of (the very excellent) Sons of Anarchy, and I adored it.

Here’s a link to the official video on YouTube: This Charming Life

Stay tuned for updates on my Charming Life Quest.