Free download Wiccan Wonderland by Traci Hall

http://www.thesamhellion.com/ebooks/hall_wiccanwonderland.pdf

Happy Holidays to all of you internet savvy people out there cruisin' the blogging world. Samhain Publishing is giving away free reads this December for some extra holiday cheer. Something Wiccan This Way Comes was just released as an ebook (you can go to samhainpublishing.com) and Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways will be available at amazon.com - barnesandnoble.com and yes, even target.com, lolol. Of course you can always walk into a bookstore and ask for it too.

We have a sad tree this year - it had a huge open hole in the branches. We stuffed it with stuffed animals, turned it to the wall, and called it good. My husband is already planning on taking it down the day after Christmas.
Christmas is meant to be snowy, and filled with family and friends. I come from the Pacific Northwest, you know? We all worried about tempermental tropical weather when we moved to Florida! But hurricanes seem like a cake walk compared to what the people there are going through right now. 30 inches of snow - that is practically 3 feet. In less than a week!

No matter where you spend your holidays, I hope that you are safe and warm and with people you love,

Traci

Ho de ho de ho ho ho

We had the best Thanksgiving - we had bunco, mashed potato mermaids and lots of turkey!

I am singing christmas tunes and writing and partying and booksigning :) I am so happy to be here at this exact spot in my life. Yes, I want my agent to sell Guardians of the Underground by Christmas this year - and yes, I want to make money selling books - but other than that? I am content to work hard and put my time in.

Sunday we had a booksigning at Starbucks - and let me tell you, my friends rock. Dev, Faith, Sheryl, Becky, Nancy - thank you for being you! My wonderful manager/hubby made sure we were set up just right, the Starbucks crew had lemon loaf and coffee out and new friends came by too. Sold almost 25 books, so it gets thumbs up from me.

Today I spoke at Murder on the Beach in Delray - the ladies were terrific, Joanne and John had the store looking hot, and it was a 29 book day. Saturday is the FRW/MWA Christmas Party and then that afternoon Cindy Thompson and I are doing a booksinging at Waldenbooks in Miami.

On the just plain fun side, Brighton and I went shopping together this afternoon and we had a blast in Bath Works. We both ended up smelling like a combination of spice, tree and frosted cranberry. Ayyyy.

Destini is supposed to be home early enough tonight that we might play yahtzee and listen to oldies. We'll see. I am on deadline for my Feb 1st book - I am on page 25 of 400 pages needed so I probably should be writing. sigh.

Christmas is tight this year. It is for everybody...we are doing one 'big' gift for each of the kids and maybe some jammies and their stocking, of course - they would riot if there wasn't a stocking! I can't think of anything that I want other than a SALE and a CONTRACT. oh, and world peace. Want to know what I'm really looking forward to? The night when we decorate the tree, eat homemade popcorn and watch Holiday Inn and White Christmas and Scrooged.

what do you look forward to? what traditions have you managed to hang on to?

Traci

something wiccan this way comes

Hi!!! It is release day for Something Wiccan This Way Comes!! I am really excited - I love the Rhiannon series and I want everyone else to love it too. See - all this time writing and publishing (more time writing than publishing!) and I still am full of neurotic tendencies.
Gotta love this gig!The first Rhiannon book will be available in print at your local bookstore on December 28! Gooooo, Rhiannon!
Something Wiccan This Way Comes by Traci HallGenre: Young AdultISBN: 978-1-60504-241-1Length: NovelPrice: 5.50 Get it Now for 4.95Cover art by Scott CarpenterWhat's a girl to do when trouble finds her at every turn?

A Rhiannon Godfrey story.Being different is nothing new for Rhiannon Godfrey. Neither is hiding who she really is to all but a select few. So far she's managed to walk that line, but now someone is spreading rumors that the Godfreys' New Age store is really a front for witchcraft, complete with cauldrons and eyes of newt.The whole town is turning against them--even Rhee's boyfriend is suspicious. Then there's her ex-crush Matthew, who just showed up uninvited on her doorstep carrying a single suitcase--and a heavy secret.Rhiannon tries to be good, she really does. But it's hard when trouble pounces at every turn, and her unsuccessful spells seem to prove that science is the only path to enlightenment.Hiding her gifts and running from confrontation is easier than standing up for what she believes in. But this time, there's more at stake. And the possibility she may have to find the inner strength to banish one friend in order to save another.http://www.mybookstoreandmore.com/shop/product.da/something-wiccan-this-way-comes

shoes

Hello and Happy Monday - the Altamonte Springs booksigning was really really fun. I bought the best new shoes and they turned out to be Lucky - I sold all the books they gave me to sell, and had a great time, too.

My husband (a patient, long-suffering man who understands that his wife has quite a few screws loose) said that nobody would even notice my feet - he wanted to know WHY I couldn't wear my flip flops!!! Well, as we walked out of the store and down the mall, we heard all kinds of women go "great shoes" and one woman walked into a wall trying to get a better look.

I so won that round.

Greg and I have been having a blast going to local booksignings. It seems that we are both working so hard that the three hours each way driving somewhere is a chance to catch up on what is going on in each other's world. If anybody wants to come and meet my driver, lol, or maybe pick up a book signed by moi, then come and see us November 15th at the Miami Bookfair. Or December 7th at Starbucks. I'll be giving out my 2009 schedule soon!! I hope everyone had a great Samhain, Halloween, or All Saints Day. Say a blessing or prayer for Loren.

One year, and the loss is still great.

xoxoxoxo

Traci

ps - if you'd like, head over to www.tracihall.com Greg has re-designed by very boring website. I'd love to hear your feedback

contest over at myspace....

Hi everyone!
It has been a whirlwind of a few weeks - but I am hangin' in. What else is there? lol. This is Halloween week - my favorite week of the year! Scary movies, skulls, ghosts, and goblins abound. Tonight I watched one of the cheesiest movies ever - Frogs - from forty years ago, staring Sam Elliot and Joan Van Ark.
I know.
It was worse than you can imagine! And yet fascinating...filmed in Florida, the frogs were actually toads the size of dinner plates and Sam Elliot had brown hair. Joan needed a decent meal because her knees were the biggest part of her entire body, and in the end, the frogs took over the swamp and ate the old man who had been polluting the water.
I am one happy camper :) We watched Dead and Breakfast, and The Omen. We ate Halloween candy and drank hot chai tea. Yum. Almost as yummy as a young, buff Sam Elliot, lolololol.

Hey -tomorrow I am posting over at enchanting reviews - www.myspace.com/enchantingya and I am giving away book marks and a book or two - come chat with me!

Traci

back from San Fran, and booksignings and - well, I'm back

With the help of copious amounts of SLEEP I am finally recovered enough from the past two months to post pictures of San Francisco. And the WEAM (erotica museum in Miami) field trip - and - well, that's all for now.

First off, I had the BEST time in San Francisco. But a few days before that, I had a really great time in Orlando at the booksigning with Linnea Sinclair, Dara Edmondson, and Catherine Kean - talk about wonderful ladies! Professional writers who were more than kind about sharing their expertise - and lunch was fun!

I actually had a lady who bought my book email me to tell me that after the first chapters, she was hooked - yeah!! But those first few chapters were dicey, lol.

So. San Francisco. Another Sin City (why are those my favorite kind???) and so much fun. I didn't get to see enough of my friends, but I did network and do everything I had on my agenda. Because as much fun as I had, this was still a business trip!

Most of my meetings revolved around food. Or drink. Or the smoking section, and I don't even smoke. And if I did smoke, and I lived in San Fran, where it was a nippy 52 degrees, I'd freaking quit all over again.

I loved Annabelle's - Kathleen Pickering and I had a wonderful dinner there, after a serendipitous meet and greet at a speak easy, lol, (thanks to Toni Andrews!) and the next day I had a great lunch with Cherry Adair, Heather Graham. Alex Sokolof, Rosemary from Australia!! And another fabulous lady, Joanne, from Australia - and a funny woman from Texas.

I gave my very first alone workshop to strangers - and it was FABULOUS, lol. Despite everything going wrong, it turned out wonderfully right. My room mate extraordinaire, Mary Stella, helped bail me out by ironing my pants. AND I got to meet my super cute editor, Lindsey from Samhain. AND I danced, and met new friends as well as cemented old friendships AND I went to about five workshops - okay! Hubby just came home and he wants to go out to dinner! So a few quick pics, and I'll do more later -I have gossip! Industry news! Blackmail worthy photos, lololol

thanks for reading,

Traci

Traci, Linnea, Dara and Catherine in Orlando!

Hi all!! Anybody in the Orlando area??? Come and visit us at the Millenia Mall -4200 Conroy Road, Orlando 32839. Easy to find - right off I-4. Store phone: (407) 345-2282.
I will have chocolate, in addition to books! These ladies are incredible authors and I'm thrilled to be signing my first book with them - come check us out, in between 1 and 3!

Hope to see you there!

Traci

kiss me, slap me - the world of publishing

My friend Rhonda calls the ups and downs of publishing "Kiss me, slap me" - which is true. I am not normally one to go for violent relationships, and yet here I am, stuck in an abusive one!
And there is no way I'm walking away.
Insights thanks to copious amounts of white zinfandel, and sort of meditating (zoning while watching Raymond reruns) have led me to believe that I am, on a very passive-aggressive level, no quitter.
Which basically means that even though my career path looks like a derailed roller coaster, I'm in til the end of the ride.
I've always written. I had a plan. After winning a People's Choice Award in 1996 (count em - twelve - TWELVE - years ago) I knew that writing would be so overwhelming that I wouldn't be able to put my all into raising my kids. Writing went on the back burner, and I took classes and wrote short stories, but basically put kids and family first.
Until 2001, when my kids could feed themselves without burning the house down, and my fab hubby told me "it was time" - stop whining about writing, and to get to it. He threatened me with duct tape.
So, blah blah blah, I wrote, and wrote, and scored well in the Golden Heart - 2 out of 3 scores, anyway. The third score knocked me out of the running. Whatever. I found a critique group, became active in my local RWA chapter (FRW rocks!) and blazed my way through conference after conference and agent and editor appointments galore.
I sold one book in 2005, sold more in 2006, only to close a line in 2006 and have all of my books returned to me. I've had two bad agents, one book with an editor I love for a year, and a great support group.
In between closing other lines, I've sold six books in the past year - one ebook YA - one print historical romance that is ON the shelves!! I threw myself into advertising and marketing and got a job to pay for it all - cause writing doesn't. Not yet. I set up booksignings, did panels and promoted the hell out of myself.
I got Books A Million to let me sign - and the day before all of my friends and family were coming to support me at my local Jupiter Chasewood Plaza location - the lovely Linda calls to say that my books are MIA.
It's a glitch, she tells me, which means ***T Happens.
Yes, I have books on the shelves - just not at Books A Million, lol. We are going to reschedule, but in the meantime, I have to call all my friends, family and places I'd advertised to tell them "Don't Come".
More than one person commented on the fact that my writing career seemed to have more than the average bumps in the road.
And did I cry? No. Did I want to curl into a ball and pout? No.
My answer is that for all the really crappy lows - and there have been many - I will get some terrific highs. I don't know if that is why I stick around. Maybe I just don't know better? I have a feeling that it's because being a writer is who I am. Telling stories is what I do. And even though I cannot stand roller coasters, I'm trying to enjoy the ride.

No time to stop!

These past few weeks have been insane, but since I'm fond of mild craziness, I'm adapting. I went to my first official in a book store booksigning with some terrific writers. We did a romance panel at Books and Books, which is a FABULOUS independent book store in Miami.

I have pictures of us all - here is the entire panel. Cynthia Thomason, Linda Conrad, me, Lyn Armstrong and Patrice Wilton. The next picture is of me and Patrice - who also signed her first book, Replacing Barney! We've been CP's for (gulp) over four years. Seeing Love's Magic behind the counter was impossibly cool

The people there were so helpful and it was a kick to sign books. We talked about romance, and how romance as a genre has evolved. Kristen Wallace was there, and Joanne Straatsma, but none of it could have come together without Isabel Barney!

We Florida Romance Writers are tackling the Erotica Museam in Miami next - come visit us, and hear our panel discuss S E X (what else would we talk about at an erotica museum??) lol

Event: FLORIDA ROMANCE WRITERS AT WORLD EROTIC ART MUSEUM in SOUTH BEACH -Museum Tour, Panel Discussion, Book signing: Authors Lyn Armstrong, Linda Conrad, Traci E Hall, Allison Chase/Lisa Manuel, Zelda Benjamin, Jianne Carlo and Mary Ricksen will be discussing sensuality in romance novels.Date: July 12, 2008 - 11 AM Location: 1205 Washington Ave - Miami Beach, FL 33139

Come visit us! We are a lot of fun - and I'll post more pictures - there should be some great ones!

crap...I keep forgetting to breathe

So. I knew on some level that my life was going to go from zero to sixty in a nano second, but quite honestly, I haven't even had time to realize that June is almost over. I've spent over a year waiting for JUNE to come and now - woooooooosh. Here comes July. Which is even more jam-packed with fun. Fun, with a sort of tongue in cheek eye-roll thing.
I've finished the non-fiction I was working on with Rhon, and I've just finished writing my workshop course for San Fran and the Beau Monde, and now I'm starting a research book on Nefertiti - because my next project is due by July 15th.

I'm working 20 hours a week at Starbucks and it's actually been good for me because I don't have time to think about me, my books, my career, my need for a runaway bestseller so that I can be rich, when I'm ringing up customers or making cappucinos. It's me and the milk steamer, baby, and that's it. I think writers (me, me, me!) can be very introverted, so getting out into the world is painful but important.

Yesterday I got my first peek at the cover for Beauty's Curse - and I swear to God I almost cried like a girl. It's beautiful...and it's mine. I am almost done with Pump Up Your Book Promotion. Dorothy is a brave and busy soul for taking this biz on, but she was wonderful to work with and I'll definitely sign on for another round, probably in December when Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways is out in print.

Thanks for checking in!!!

Traci

I have a booksigning date at BAM !

After many grumbled complaints, I have a real, honest to goodness signing date at my local Books A Million - yeah (imagine me doing cartwheels - without breaking my neck but really fast) and I'm so excited! After the 2-4 signing, we will go to McArthy's in Tequesta for more fun and merriment!! How can you go wrong with Irish Brogue Karioke? I can't do any accents, not even after a few coffee and bailey's, but I try Everyone is welcome to join us - I'll do more advertising closer to the day.

Pump Up Your Book Promotion has me as their Author of the Day (awwww) and I would love it very much if you (or anybody you can scare up) would come and visit me at http://pumpupyourbookpromotion.ning.com/group/authorday/forum/topic/show?id=2101272%3ATopic%3A1282
and ask me a question or two...otherwise I will be left twiddling my thumbs, and I don't have time to unknot them.

On another networking front, I am now an official member of the Jupiter Tequesta Women's club, and I've been invited to do a signing in Orlando in September!!!
And my Starbucks boss is rooting for me to be able to have my books in the store...we shall see anyway, everything is hectic and crazy and wonderful!

Come visit me...and there's a chance you can win a free book!

Pump up your book - day 4!

Welcome to Day Four of Pump Up Your Book Promotion’s June Authors on Tour! Follow along as these talented authors travel the blogosphere all month long to talk about their books, their lives and their future projects. Leave a comment at their blog stops and you could win a FREE virtual book tour if you’re a published author with a recent release or a $25 Amazon gift certificate if you are not published. So, pick your favorites, follow their tours, and make sure you leave them a note to tell them you stopped by!Steven Baldwin and Karen Holgate, authors of the non-fiction current events book, From Crayons to Condoms: The Ugly Truth About America’s Public Schools, will be stopping off at The Writer’s Life! In Steven and Karen’s book, you’ll experience today’s public schools as never before, through the voices of parents, students and dedicated teachers left stranded in the system, the same voices that school administrators are determined to stifle.
Peter Bowerman, author of the book on self-publishing, The Well Fed Self Publisher: How to Turn One Book into a Full-Time Living, will be stopping off at Amateur de Livre! Fun, irreverent, exhaustively detailed, double-award-winning, step-by-step, real-world blueprint for profitable self-publishing, and building a full-time income stream from one book.
James Burns, author of the financial how to book, The 3 Secret Pillars of Wealth will be stopping off at Beyond the Books The 3 Secret Pillars of Wealth is a virtual survivor’s manual for the investor informing them of what they face in the future that is new and unpredictable and how much investing is costing them with traditional investment vehicles. Forward-thinking financial planners will avail themselves of the technical information outlined in The 3 Secret Pillars of Wealth, while the average investor will have a roadmap that guides them to financial success.
Mayra Calvani, author of the children’s book, Crash!, will be stopping off at Beverly McClure! The Writing Jungle Marcelo is thrilled when he gets a gold retriever puppy for his birthday, but now he faces one of the toughest jobs of his life, not only because owning a pet is a huge responsibility, but because he has to find the perfect name for it - and that’s hard!
Edythe Denkin, PhD., author of the self-help/relationship book, Relationship Magic, will be stopping off at Virtual Book Tour de Net! Relationships bring out unconscious behavior learned in childhood. Prince James and Princess Cinda take you into their lives and show you how you, too, can develop lasting love. Edythe’s book helps couples realize that long-term marital bliss does not “just happen” and that “happily ever after” is possible when couples learn to treat each other with respect, honor, and trust.
Traci E. Hall, author of the paranormal romance novel, Love’s Magic, will be stopping off at Paperback Writer! Celestia Montehue has inherited special healing powers from the maternal line of her family. It comes with a glitch. The year is 1192, witch hunting abounds in England and she can only marry for love or risk losing her gifts. Nicholas Le Blanc is a soul-sick Crusader who escapes from his captivity in Tripoli. He wants redemption and forgiveness from God for losing the sacred relic of Saint James the Apostle. And the other matter of murder, as well. Forced to marry and move to Falcon Keep, which is haunted by Nicholas’ mother, they must learn to love one another before their family’s curses doom them for eternity.
Linda Merlino, author of the literary fiction novel, Belly of the Whale, will be stopping off at The Story Behind the Book! Hudson Catalina has given up. Having lost both breasts to cancer, she is emotionally and physically exhausted, no longer willing to endure the nausea and crushing weakness that chemotherapy causes, until the wrecked-by-life young Buddy Baker arrives, bend on murder. A touching story of despair, abuse, murder and survival takes you on a journey through the darkest places of the human mind and spirit, and in the end, leads you back out of “the belly of the whale,” enriched by the experience.
Phyllis Zimbler Miller, author of the woman’s fiction novel, Mrs. Lieutenant, will be stopping off at Bookfoolery! In the spring of 1970 - right after the Kent State National Guard shootings and President Nixon’s two-month incursion into Cambodia - four newly married young women come together at Ft. Knox, Kentucky, when their husbands go on active duty as officers in the U.S. Army. Discover what happens as these women overcome their prejudices, reveal their darkest secrets, and are initiated into their new lives as army officers’ wives during the turbulent Vietnam War period.
Grace Reddick, author of the children’s book, Ashley’s Unforgettable Summer, will be stopping off at The Friendly Book Nook. Ashley was beginning to question herself. Had she made the right decision by bringing this chimpanzee home? Tina seemed to be three steps ahead of Ashley and her best friend Rylee. Tina was obviously out of control. Just how far would she go? Only time would tell.
LaConnie Taylor-Jones, author of the contemporary romance novel, When a Man Loves a Woman, will be stopping off at Amateur de Livre! What do you do when you are in love with someone who won’t give you the time of day? How do you convince her that she is really meant to spend the rest of her life with you when she avoids you at all costs? These are the questions that Alcee Jules (A.J.) Baptiste must answer. He knows that he wants to spend his life with Victoria Bennett, but she wants nothing to do with love and even less to do with him. It is going to take all the scheming this man can do just to keep her in the state when she threatens to move to Atlanta, Georgia.
Victoria Wells, author of the multicultural romance novel, A Special Summer will be stopping off at Pump Up Your Online Book Promotion! In love with the man of her dreams, Summer Jackson is living her life in sheer bliss…so she thought. Devastation rocks her world when handsome Nick Stiles walks out on her, leaving her to pick up the shattered pieces. Out of the blue, Nick resurfaces with intentions of reclaiming Summer as his woman. That is..until he is confronted with a betrayal that is so insurmountable he finds himself in a blind rage, hell-bent on revenge.
Karen White, author of the southern fiction novel, The Memory of Water, will be stopping off at Book Excerpts from Bestselling Authors! Set in the South Carolina low country, estranged sisters Diana and Marnie Maitland reunite to help heal Diana’s emotionally disturbed son and reveal the secrets surrounding the sailing accident ten years earlier that took their mother’s life.
Debbie Williamson, author of the self-help book, Stand, will be stopping off at The Book Connection! One courageous woman shatters the chains of abuse that bound her family for generations and dares to brave the crippling memories of sexual abuse; shatter the illusions of denial; reveal her family’s bitter legacy of violence; reach for healing and wholeness, and take her place on a path to forgiveness and peace.
Candis C. Coffee author of the literary fiction novel, Mariposa, will be stopping at The Dark Phantom! A spiritual, intellectual, brave young woman creates the life of her dreams, only to be deeply disappointed by its inability to sustain her. The theme is that of a spiritual quest - a young woman’s desire to feel the magic she believes exists in connections to nature, to people. Along the way, the story illuminates the perils of prejudice as well as the intimate, yet treacherous bond that exists between Angelo and Mexican people who live side by side near the border.
PUMP UP YOUR BOOK PROMOTION VIRTUAL BOOK TOURS
"We take books to the virtual level!"
www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.com

My book is Really Truly Here!!! Love's Magic

Hey! Okay – wanna see me panic and run around in circles? Well – forget it, lol. I am going to go and pour a glass (a large glass, lol) of white zinfandel and then try and catch up with my life.
I’m supposed to be blogging on all of the nuances of being newly published. I wasn’t prepared for the OMG factor of Aunt K emailing me to tell me that Spokane only had one copy of Love’s Magic at the biggest Barnes and Noble in the valley, and that someone already bought it. Cool, that someone already bought it (mom???) and cool – agh – that my book is really and truly out in the world – but Not Cool that there was only one copy to begin with…so my Aunt K gathered her posse together and they are schooling the Spokane bookstores on the fact that I was raised in Spokane, making me a local author – and they would need to stock more than five copies

Thank Aunt K!!

And if you have the chance to pop on over to www.medallionpress.com you can find my audio blog interview, where I stutter a lot and sound like the only words I know are amazing and incredible and I think. I think excuse me while I get more wine…


Traci

ps - I am scheduled for blog interviews all over this month, so this site will be busy! today you can see me over at the book connection!! please leave posts and you have a chance to win a free book and some other fun stuff!!!

Birthdays and National Holidays

My birthday sometimes falls on Memorial Day. When I was little I always associated my birthday with the holiday weekend - is it any wonder I grew up feeling special? lol - seriously, I appreciate all of the men and women who serve our country - it is a hard job and I can only imagine how tough it truly is. Thanks, thanks and thanks :)

Back to my national holiday, er, birthday - I had a great time. My son graduated a few days before, so my mom, my mom in law and my dad in law, were all in town - a built in party already. By the time we had mimosas at the Crab House, we were on a roll! I was only sort of kidding about being special and the entire month of May is dedicated to moi and scary movies. We've seen Hatchet, the old classic Evil Dead, some new good ones and some that really stretched the B movie into the bottom of the alphabet. Thirty Days of Night, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake with Matthew M and Renee Z, Lost Boys, Fright Night, Dusk til Dawn - I adore cheesy horror movies - really really love them, lol!
Tonight we're watching Army of Darkness...life can be sweet :)

What this has to do with writing? Nothing at all - but good news is that Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways finaled in the 2008 Indie Book Awards - and Love's Magic got 4 out of 5 stars from Romantic Times :)

Love's Magic is available June 1st at a bookstore near you!

Thanks to all of the wonderful people in my life

Woo Hoo - Love's Magic in Print !!!

From this....

to this! Plotting and writing and staying on page count is all worth while now that my author copies have come, and I'm HOLDING MY BOOK IN MY HANDS :):)

I can't get over the rush of it. A dream that has come true. A goal accomplished - a faithful lunge toward my writing career!!!

All of the hard stuff is nothing compared to this. it's like childbirth - you don't remember the racking pain once you cuddle that baby in your arms.

I screamed, I cried - as you can see, I didn't bother with make-up :) My terrific husband brought me champagne and roses. This is his journey too. Thanks honey!

Thursday Writing Update

The idea of this blog was not to bore you snotless with aimless writing on nothing – the purpose is to motivate, share my experiences, and maybe amuse you for a second or two. In this business, if you don’t laugh, you die :)

I am NOT GOOD at patting myself on the back or leading a parade in my honor. But since this is the cool part about writing, the part where you can Google yourself and come up with all kinds of hits, lol, well, I will share.

Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways is collecting killer reviews – I will post the links. I’m really excited about this because this book, this SERIES, has endured a tough beginning. Thank you to everyone who bought the e-version, and thanks to those who posted a review. I think that the print version may be available sooner than February – I hope so, and all my body parts are crossed!
Something Wiccan This Way Comes will be available, in e-book format, in November.

Good news on the Love’s Magic front! My cover has been in the May and June editions of Romantic Times Magazine, and I was spotlighted for the online version – you can read the interview by clicking here: http://www.romantictimes.com/stage/authors_spotprev.php?id=397

In May I will be in Melbourne, on a panel with fellow e-authors, and Siren and Samhain Publishing – I’m nervous, because what do I KNOW??? Nothing. And if anybody asks me anything harder than ‘what’s your name?’ I’ll have to lie and pretend that I know stuff JJJ

In June I will be doing a radio blog post with Medallion Press – how is cool is that?? I will give more information as it comes in. I will also be doing an online workshop in June over at Romance Divas, and I will be doing various booksignings up and down the Florida coast in June and July before going to San Francisco for RWA.

Because the word is out about author’s doing their own promo, I’ve decided to sign on with Pump Up Your Book promotion – very reasonable. I’ll let you know how it works.

This is the part I have been waiting for, for sooooo long. I’m ready! Very, very ready to work even harder to keep the momentum going – this is something I’ve dreamed about since I was a kid – to have MY book in MY hands. To tell funny but sorta scary stories, with a happy ending.

And make money at it :)

Again, I will let you know how it goes…I took a job at Starbucks so that I can pay for promo until book money comes in – lol

Traci

the writing muse

I don't actually believe in the writing muse. I joke about her, and blame my bad days on her, but I'm not really into sitting yoga-style to conjure a misty angel in opulescent skirts before waxing poetic.

By the time I sit down to write, I've usually plotted my book pretty heavy so I know (or should know) where I'm going. Sort of like doing a major outline with dark purple crayon before filling it in with the lighter lavander.

It doesn't always work, but I think that comes from trying to go in the wrong direction more than anything else.

I tend to procrastinate (a lot, lol) so I think I'd be in bigger trouble if I bought into the whole muse thing. And I'm super susceptible to imagination so it might spill over into other areas of my life.

Cook dinner? No...the muse isn't striking me. Yard work...sorry. No muse. Laundry? Now that would be worth having the wench around for!

I could give her a name, like Mable, and she could wear an apron and have chapped hands from scrubbing toilets. A mustache even...poor Mable. She works her fingers to the bone, and for what??? Minimum wage and no respect...my luck, Mable would quit, leaving me mounds of mythical laundry. No ironed shirts and no muse.

So the muse isn't for me, not really, but I will tell you what motivates me: the next goal. The next deadline - self-imposed or editor-mandated, I work for that great feeling of completing a project.

I know - lame. The make-believe muse is much more fun!

Traci

Friday - Prom Night

I should really go see that - it looks great! Maybe the girls that will be having their anti-prom party at our house tonight would want to go???
I have my fingers crossed - when they should be typing.
Where in the hell does the time go? I’d promised myself that I would have my YA proposal done to send out today. And I will – but I never wrote a synopsis, and those are So Hard. Plus I need to help the kids today because tonight is prom, and even though my two slacker children chose not to go, despite much urging, I have to help a few of their friends – boys and corsages, that kind of thing.
This is where the fact that I used to be a florist comes in handy!!!

Anyway, I’ve been figuring out what I will need to spend over the next year and a half – for promo and travel etc.
It exceeds what I make by so much that I am going to get a job to afford my writing career.

There is something pathetic there, although determined sounds better.

Me at McDonalds: Would you like fries with that?
Me at a Bank: Would you like a reciept with that?
Me at Walmart: Would you like a cart with that?
Me at my current stage in publishing:Would you like whipped cream with that?

Wish me luck

I’ve blogged over at the babes today on advice, lol – as if I should be handing out any of THAT to go along with the coffee…. Check out www.babesinbookland.com

thanks for stopping by!!

hittin' my stride

Okay, so I just saw Run Fat Boy Run, and I have to tell you that feeling you get when you are in the zone, when the miles are speeding beneath your feet, when the smell of the road is enough to keep you going - that is exactly the feeling that I get when I am on the right track with a book.



I can't wait to get up in the morning and write - even better, I get up with a character clue, or another layer that I want to add in. It is amazing. I'm thinking about the characters while I'm cooking, driving or cleaning - their life takes over mine and it is DIVINE, lol.



Makes it hard to be a part of the day to day world though - how can I possibly care about volunteering for the Band Banquet when I'm really focused on hiding a serial rapist? Or smack dab in the middle of roofie research? It's no wonder that during this period I wander around with one earring and no make up - I will be lucky if I can remember to comb my hair. The ponytail holder is my friend. I give the kids cash and a grocery list and hope they come home with something besides sunflower seeds and coke.



What is making it harder this go around is learning how to market my current ebook and promote my print book while trying to get the most from my writing stride...

But I don't care how many challenges are put in my way, I don't care how depressing the market news is - I am tired of hearing about how the publishing sky is falling! I am a story teller and there will always be people who want a story - starting from when they first swapped lies about how big of a dinosaur they caught while sitting around a campfire, people want to be entertained - I will find whatever medium works!

happy day!

Traci

Starting something new

Writers - new or seasoned - have all complained about how easy it is to procrastinate rather than write.

I consider myself kind of in the middle - my first book is finally out and available, making me new - but I'm an old dog in writing years, I swear. I first published in 1996 with a short story in Hob Nob magazine. It won a People's Choice award, and lemme tell ya, I thought I was IN. So, silly, naive me that I was, I put the children's books aside to wait until my kids were older. I had an idea that writing would be all consuming (ya think???)and they (the kids) had to come first. So I wrote long romances instead, lolol.

It made sense at the time

So here am, 12 years later, struggling to make my way in the world of writing. You have to be pretty damn new to not understand that writing is the least of your worries. Finish the manuscript, polish the manuscript, publish the manuscript....and repeat.

That's where I am today - the 'repeat' part, lol.

Sit ass in chair, apply duct tape, disable internet, remember that you love to tell a story...what are we writing about, again???

life is forward moving...saturday was my last day as president of Florida Romance Writers - sad, but it will give me more time procrast - I mean, write.

Traci

two days after release day...

Writing - and recouping after the first book debut
Seriously, I was totally overwhelmed by all of the beautiful people in my life who not only bought Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways, but read it, too!
And then said such incredible things!! I swear I didn't pay a soul. Thanks to everybody for making me feel like a princess, lol.
Sort of a princess. Maybe a princess in between laundry and cat puke and being yelled at by my kids for not having any food in the house. Or food that was Good Food. Which I am supposed to know by reading their minds, but their minds are cluttered this spring break, and I thought bread and lunchmeat and delivery pizza were good enough.
My fault for not realizing that they wanted Hot Pockets and pasta…
Floating on Cloud 9 is so cool but my kids make sure that my feet remain firmly planted on the ground, lol. This is a good thing, since I could be one of those HUGE fun shaped helium-filled Disney float balloons - celebrating and happy as I bounce along with the parade, yet firmly tethered to the sturdy cart of bills and kitty litter so I can't actually get lost.
Yes, this is a possibility
I’m being invited to give author interviews (thanks guys!!) and it’s really nice to be treated like a writer – a writer who has been judged by her peers and so far, things are looking good.

I am still grinning like an idiot whenever I think about it!!!
Traci

Her Wiccan, Wiccan Ways - release day!!

I am feeling incredibly writerish today :) could be because I've bought my own book online at

http://samhainpublishing.com/books/her-wiccan-wiccan-wayshttp://www.mybookstoreandmore.com/product_info.php?products_id=921

I am plastering this news all over the internet, and now I have to wait to see if I will sell more than my one lonely copy, lol. Right now I don't care! I just want to dance around my computer and stare at my name...I was wondering how it would feel to be epubbed versus print - which will happen in June. I'll let you know...but the OMG, I'm really a writer!!! feeling is very strong and it is GREAT, lol. So my writing day has been this: running around in circles until I'm both dizzy and sick, drinking coffee and manically checking email for - I don't know what.

If you want a chance at winning a free copy, along with a gift basket, head on over to TeensReadToo.com and enter the contest - good luck! I'll probably be back later

Traci

writing day

I am ashamed to even check in today :(

I've spent all day getting ready to hand over the Presidential BOXES of stuff. Florida Romance Writers is a terrific group, and I'm very proud to list being president as one of my accomplishments for the past two years.
I can't say that I'll miss the hours and hours of work.
I've promised myself to get back into a routine, but a writer's life (or at least this writer's life, lol) is very far from routine!
I've got big plans starting in May for a new, orderly life that starts at 7 am and ends at 5. Don't hurt yourself laughing - it can happen!
or not...I'll let you know, lol

I have to get back to packing and culling so that the next pres doesn't pass out from box shock!

writing on tuesdays

pffft (weird noise being puffed through lips like a raspberry, but not, lol) it is no different than making yourself write any other day of the week

Okay, I was going to write yesterday - but I ended up blogging over at http://www.babesinbookland.com/ and so - well - that's just an excuse. The truth of the matter is I went off on a million promotional tangents, and only wrote 3 crappy pages before coming to a screeching halt. A HUGE plot issue that I can't get around. Let's face it, when the teen heroine is in love with her teacher the teacher CAN'T know about this without being a pedophile, and that totally ruins the flow of the story!! lol. I will work on this today until I get it right. This book has a lot of potential and I don't wanna mess it up. I've deleted over 100 pages already so what's 3 more?
Still painful, that's what, lol.

My FIRST book comes out in a week! Yeah, yeah, yeah. I am trying to get reviews on the story, so if you want to give me one, send me an email and I will send you a free ecopy!

Happy Tuesday!! Seven more days until Her Wiccan Wiccan Ways is available for purchase!!!!

Writing while suffering the plague

Or: Letting your husband take care of you

Obviously this is not my strong point!

Last week, when I was starting to feel under the weather, my husband asks, “Do you want me to make chicken soup?”
We’d just finished St. Paddy’s Day and there was a bunch of leftovers and Easter was coming up, so I knew we’d have a ton of food around. I said no. Two days later, when I’m dragging my butt behind me with both hands, he asks again. Thinking of the ham and scalloped potatoes we’re making the next day, I again said no.
There’s only so much room in the fridge, right? My mistake.
Monday morning I couldn’t even get out of bed.

I have allergies, so normally I pop my daily Claritan and I go on my merry way. While traveling at the beginning of the month, I ended up buying Zyrtec, and instead of a prescription nasal spray, I picked up Afrin.
Zyrtec made me tired and crabby, and Afrin gave me a sinus infection.
The doc yesterday told me that they are taught in med school that Afrin, after three days of consecutive use, can do this – they all know it, but where is the freaking warning on the bottle??? Because I’m no stranger to sinus infections, and this one threw my ass down to the mat, had its knee in my back and was singing the Victory song from Rocky ten thousand.
My teeth ached so bad I thought they were going to fall out, I had laryngitis for three days straight, and I alternated from hot flashes to chills that three blankets and two heating pads couldn’t reach. Along with my antibiotic and cough medicine with codeine, I knew it was time for nature’s penicillin.

My husband makes the best homemade chicken soup in the world. Before he bought the smoker, the only thing he ever made was chicken. Since I burned Top Ramen, chicken was damn good J Anyway, Greg has this recipe that he learned from his dad. He has a system, and you never mess with it.
At first it’s easy to mock the method – you can’t cut the vegetables when you put them in the soup. He lines everything up, peels the carrots (we found out that pre-peeled bagged baby carrots don’t pack the flavor) peels the leek, the onion, and washes the parsley. Everything is clean and piled on the plate ready to be added once he, the master soup chef, deems it time. Then nobody is allowed near the soup (no matter how good it smells, and it does) until the chicken is cooked – but just because the chicken is cooked doesn’t mean that the broth is finished. So you get torturous little salty bites of chicken to wet your palate as you wait for another half an hour…while the pasta cooks.
All of this long, drawn out temptation is worth it as soon as you get that first bowl. That broth hit my tongue, soothed my sore throat, and eased down my aching esophagus – immediately making me feel better.

I woke up this morning knowing I was going to live (Allelujai!) and had to remember how good that soup was as my loving and talented husband said, “You should have let me make the soup last week! When are you going to learn?”

After twenty years…

I love you honey!

missed post :(

Yesterday was a sick day. My voice refused to work, so I texted and answered all of two emails. I spent the entire day dozing or reading Today is also a sick day, but I just can’t justify two days spent in bed. I’ve cooked, done laundry, read my CP’s works in progress (3 chapters total) and I’ve been ‘pres’ today for at least two hours today, answering loop stuff and talking (hoarse whispering, lololol) to my fellow board members.
My nose won’t stop running so I am about ready to call a halt and put on the television and take a nap, Kleenexes wadded up each nostril. Attractive? Hey, it is all in the life of a not-close-to-famous author. After my shower I didn’t have to even comb out my hair or put on a bra. I wrapped my sneezing, miserable self in a ten sizes too big tee shirt and stretch pants and my green fuzzy robe.
I get to do this because I work from home. I am also working more than I should because I work from home, lol.

I have two pages written, and I like them a lot. I am finally on the right track for this book! Which makes the 100 pages I’ve had to delete a little easier to bear. The hardest, hardest part about writing is deleting perfectly hysterical scenes that just don’t work. Great lines? Sure, I try to add them in later, but I hardly ever do. I have a file marked snippets that has all of my unwanted brilliance. So far it is gathering dust – happy Tuesday and congratulations to my friend Cherry Adair on her RITA nomination – and to everyone else who has been nominated for the RITA or the Golden Heart.

Let’s blame the tacky sense of humor on the Nyquil, okay???

Traci

Critique Group

All right - I promised the good, bad and the ugly when I said I'd do this writing blog. Today was critique group, and my first five pages didn't pass the 'aha!' test they should've in order to catch an editor or an agent's eye. I knew that I wasn't on the right track when I was writing yesterday, but I had a page count in my head. Now I need to start completely over and it's my own fault. Damn it, lol.

I love my critique partners. I think having a group of writers that you know and trust to read your work and give critism is one of the most valuable resources available. Our group has been together for five years :) with a few additions here and there. Rhon was already published when she came to us, then I was contracted, and now Patrice has an ebook out tomorrow! Joan won't be far behind, and Jasmin is a natural storyteller - Doc's got a great book he's been working on and he's almost finished. Then it will be on to the next project! We've been there for each other, rooting each other on or commiserating over rejections. This biz is too hard to have to go it alone, lol.

Patrice and I went to lunch afterward to celebrate how far we've come. I've sold and lost and sold some more, and she's been steady Freddy - now her ebook is out tomorrow - go to www.patricewilton.com and pick up a copy of a great book - Desperately Seeking Susie - and she has a print book out in June, Replacing Barnie. I have an ebook out in April, and my first print book is also out in June.

As we toasted with champagne, we acknowledged that we couldn't have made it so far without our CP's!

Writing for the fun of it!

Hi!

Welcome to my new blog, all about writing. Now, I don’t pretend to be the Grand Poobah of all things writing related – my role is more that of the court jester J
So what exactly do I have to offer?
A daily (or almost daily, lol) account of what it is like to be a brand new working writer in a market that is shrinking as I type. I am not signed on with a New York Publishing house – although that is a personal goal of mine. I don’t make a bunch of money – that’s a goal, too! I will be published in both ebook format and print, so I can give insight into both venues.

I will be as honest as I can with my own personal motivation, or lack of it, and how I overcome the obstacles - that nine times out of ten - I put in front of me. Is there anything more ridiculous than self sabotage? Most of the time we don’t even realize that we are doing it!

We can talk about marketing, sales, numbers and publisher’s expectations – please feel free to comment and share!