Write Writing Written

At fifteen, Iris is a hobo of sorts – no home, no family, no plan. After her mother’s early death, Iris’s father focuses on big plans for his new shoe stores and his latest girlfriend, and has no time for his daughter. Unbeknownst to her, he hires Iris out as housekeeper and companion for a country doctor’s elderly mother. Suddenly Iris is alone, stuck in gritty rural Missouri, too far from her only friend Leroy and too close to a tenant farmer Cecil Deets, who menaces the neighbors, and Iris suspects, his own daughter.

Iris is buoyed by the warmth and understanding the doctor and his mother show her, but just as she starts to break out of her shell tragedy strikes. Iris must find the guts and cunning to take aim at the devil incarnate and discover if she is really as helpless - or hopeless – or homeless - as she once believed.

I won this book in a contest. The author signed it and left me a gracious note. I opened the book and was immediately drawn into the s…

*Fire And Ice are giving away a New Infinite Days Inspired Necklace here, a I heart Wickham Pendant here (I borrowed the image because you HAD to see this necklace!), Black Tears book mark here, Pixie Dust! Who doesn't need a little of that once in a while?

*Christine Fonseca is giving away HOLLOW or HAUNTED on her blog. Don't miss the interview with the author.

*From All Ruby Cakes win James Patterson's audio book THE POSTCARD KILLERS.

*Anne Bradshaw is giving away by A QUESTION OF TRUST Carole Warburton.

*Shannon Messenger is having a giveaway also. Check out her Grey Griffins MEGA Giveaway!

*Nicole Zoltack is celebrating her 100 followers by giving away a three chapter critique or a one chapter critique.

*ARC giveaway of HERO by Mike Lupica on Looksie Lovitz blog.

*CUPCAKES! Wanna win a cupcake cookbook? MomsReview4You is giving one away!

*Zoe Winters is giving away a Kindle to help promote her newest book, Blood Lust. Good luck!

*More ARCS to give away over at Carol In Print. T…

I stole this idea from Shannon Messenger (if you haven't seen her blog, pop over soon). I have Googled my name a few times to see what pops up.


If I goggle my first name, this is what I get from Wikipedia:
Taffy can refer to any of the following:A type of chewy candy
Taffy horses are silver dapple colored (I had friends whose dogs were named Taffy)
A nickname for Navy-Task Units in WWII. e.g.: Taffy IIITaffy is the daughter of the president in MARS ATTACKS! (I'm writing an alien abduction story!)Taffy is a singer known for her 'I Love My Radio' record. (Couldn't find it to listen.)
Taffy is also a song sung by Lisa Loeb (It's, um, interesting. There's also a song called Laffy Taffy. Again, interesting.)
Slang for the drug Tafil, used to treat anxiety disorders. (Great!)When I add Google my whole name I find the top hit is Listorious. Kinda forgot I was on that site. What is it anyway? Can anyone explain it to me? I think it has something to do with Twitter.

The ne…

CJ Wine over on THE LAST WORD is finally getting close to adopting her little girl from China. Because the cost has gone up, they are asking for donations. If you donate, you will be entered to win many, many fun things. Go here and read their story!

Sara on Babbling Flow is giving away signed SHIVER and LINGER books if you donate! Click here.

Carol's Prints is also part of the Skip-A-Starbucks AND she's also giving away TONS of ARCS!! Go here to see I'm not lying!

Unrelated contest: Book giveaway over at Christine Fonseca's blog!

What place are these two guarding?

I was walking up to a cute little house when I met Shannon Hale, James Dashner and his wife walking up to the same house. James stopped and asked what I was doing. I told him I came to visit Heather Moore. He said he'd go with me. Mrs. Dashner and Mrs. Hale went on to the Dashner a basement apartment which was below Heather's house. Heather was rather embarrassed that we were there to visit her because she thought her house was messy (it wasn't). But there was a black snake in her house which James and I tried to catch and take outside.
I woke up and wondered why in the world I would dream about those three authors! I feel back to sleep and dreamed on:
I was staying at Sarah Eden's house. Actually, quite a few of us were staying with her. There was a conference/carnival/party at her house so we were there for the weekend. I really wanted to change into something cooler because it was hot so I was looking for my extra clothes which I had left on Sarah's coffee table …

Everyone!
Take a deep breath in...
Now let it all out.
Stretch your hands up over your head. S-T-R-E-T-C-H! Reach for the sky.
Shake out your hands.
Wiggle your legs.
Flex your fingers.


Now get typing!
Try this little typing place to see how fast you are. Click here.
I'll tell you my speed after you tell me yours!

Shannon Whitney is giving away quite a few books here. Stay tuned! She's giving more away later.

I love stopping over at A Good Addiction. Not only because she has great giveaways, but also great book reviews and author interviews. Check over there for these contests going on right now:
TWEET HEART Prize Pack
LOUDER THAN WORDS books
PROPHECY OF THE SISTERS book
Take Me There Blog Stop from TX

Dashner Dude's Dude is giving away a ARC of THE SCORCH TRIAL by James Dashner. Get over there right now! Click here to enter.

Win a copy of UNLOCKED over here in the cornfield :)

There's a monster Comic Con giveaway on Cindy Pon's blog. Check out the books here.

Dante's Inferno in under 2 minutes from DECLAN MORAN on Vimeo.

What does the world look like in your book?

I'm not here this week. Well, I'm by the computer but not posting because I'm @ WriteOnCon!!
It's a free online writing conference with awesomesauce editors, authors, writers.
Get over there!
It's A-M-A-Zing!

YA blogger and writer, Heather Zundel has put together a great idea!

Something is going down. Something big.

How would you like to see Edward duke it out against Hermione? Or Katniss and Katsa? Well, guess what? You can, in the first ever YA Fantasy Showdown. In celebration of Suzanne Collin’s final book in the Hunger Games trilogy, a group of bloggers are pitting some of the best-known characters in YA in the ultimate showdown. And you get to pick the winner.

That’s right. You read the battles, evaluate the characters, and vote for who has the honor of moving on to the next round. It’s a tournament like you’ve never seen before (because there’s more). The authors have been asked to participate and advocate their character in writing their own version of the battle. It’s going to be truly epic. Or at least a good way to pass the time until Mockingjay comes out. It all goes down August 10th.

Click here to vote/cheer/rant for the YA Showdown.

"You're depressed," the doctor declared."Ya think?" is author Avery Elkins Thompson's sarcastic response to the astute diagnosis for the malaise that set in following her husband's untimely death. Avery's carefully controlled world is imploding, and her adult children fear they are losing her too."You're just a shadow of the person you used to be...We'd gladly give you up for a while if it meant getting you back."Avery can't write, and questions about their father's death leave the family mired in pain. "We need a healing place," her oldest son tells her, suggesting she find it on Anna Maria Island, Florida, a former family vacation spot.When Avery returns to Baltimore to sell the family's waterfront condo, she meets rodeo-ers-turned-real-estate-brokers Teddie and Rider Davis, and Avery's quiet life will never be the same again.The Davises help arrange a short-term house swap with wi…

Interesting picture...
Could this be a character in your book?

Babbling Flow is giving away SEVEN ARCS! Head over here and check it out.

Good Addiction is giving away SIX books here.

Book Inspired Beauty! Great soap giveaway @ Fire and Ice. There are also really cute orange Popsicle cards to win!

Have you ever seen a LEGO Mermaid? Wanna win one? Check it out here.

When the Prom Queen becomes your fairy godmother…

Sixteen year old outsider, Jess Parker, gets the chance of a lifetime: an invitation to join a secret society of popular girls dedicated to defeating the mean girls of the world. The Cinderella Society guides all new recruits through its top secret ultimate life makeover. It’s all part of preparing them to face down the Wickeds and win. Determined not to let the Cindys down, Jess dives in with a passion. Finally, a chance to belong and show the world what she’s made of.

… be careful what you wish for.

Jess’s transformation wins her the heart of her dream crush and a shot at uber-popularity. Until the Wickeds–led by Jess’s arch enemy–begin targeting innocent girls in their war against the Cindys, and Jess discovers the real force behind her exclusive society. It’s a high stakes battle of good vs. evil, and the Cindys in power need Jess on special assignment. When the mission threatens to destroy her dream life c…

Okay then.
I finished self-editing my WIP!
It needs to go through my critique group now.
I do want to put one more chapter in somewhere but if I do then I'll need to tie up that storyline at the end and do I really want to add more work when I'm so excited to be finished and ready to work on queries now even though the story hasn't been edited hard and if I add any more wordxs will this be a run on sentence or a paragraph and how do you know which is which and so now I end.
*sigh of relief and happiness*