Her Book Self

Somehow Book Blogger Appreciation Week is here - and halfway over - without me doing much to commemorate the event. The theme this year is Cultivating a Community of Bloggers and Readers. Today's prompt says,

"The world of book blogging has grown enormously and sometimes it can be hard to find a place. Share your tips for finding and keeping community in book blogging despite the hectic demands made on your time and the overwhelming number of blogs out there. If you’re struggling with finding a community, share your concerns and explain what you’re looking for–this is the week to connect!"

I suppose I'm not sure how to respond to this one.  I certainly feel like I've found a community within book blogging but I haven't been as involved in that community as others seem to be. Her Book Self isn't currently on Facebook and I haven't yet put time or effort into figuring out Twitter.  But I don't see those as community outlets so much as ways to network.  I know I have a decent number of Google Friend Connect followers and I know I follow way too many blogs than I have time to read.  Yet within the group of all the blogs I follow - and within the group of all those that follow me - I feel there's a bit of an inner circle of those that really read my posts.  They're usually the ones that take the time to leave a thoughtful comment.  And I do the same for them because they're the blogs that make me smile a little when I see them come up in my massive blog roll because I'm actually excited to see their posts. 

I don't have any tricks or tips to contribute here because I don't think there's a how-to guide about finding blogs you like to read.  It's going to be different for each person, but I know when I do find blogs I like, I'm quick to comment and even quicker to follow.  When those bloggers reciprocate - either responding to my comments or commenting on my own blog - I feel a sense of connection.  It's validating to have people care about what I write.  

And of course, cultivating community online can be most difficult in busy seasons.  Right now I've been struggling to keep this blog updated as two family friends were diagnosed with cancer within a week of each other.  These are the times when I feel like giving up this blog altogether because real life seems too demanding.   But at the same time, I love the creative outlet that blogging provides.   Reading keeps me sane and blogging keeps me reading.  So how do I maintain community when I rarely have time for my own blog let alone time to keep tabs on those I enjoy most?  Like good friends that can go years without seeing each other and still fall into intimate friendship, I appreciate comments and posts from bloggers in my community, even in their periods of inconsistency and I can only hope that same grace extends from other bloggers to me. 

Whether you read every post I publish, one a week, one a month, or one a year - I appreciate you taking the time to hear me.

I write for myself, but I hit "Publish Post" for you.

It's cover comparison time again!  This time the culprit... I mean the subject is the work by Lucy Maud Montgomery Anne of Avonlea.  You may be wondering why not Anne of Green Gables, but since this is Series in September I thought it would be fun to instead focus on the sequel!

Time to choose your favorite! 

Do you like the modern or the retro?  Anne alone?  Anne and Diana? Anne and Gilbert?   (I have a soft spot in my heart for the miniseries with Megan Follows so I had to include that one.)  Check out more great - or not so great - Anne of Avonlea covers here and be sure to leave your thougts in the comments below!

Book: Changeless by Gail Carriger

Series: The Parasol Protectorate

Book Order: Soulless* (1), Changeless* (2), Blameless (3), Heartless (4), Timeless (5)  * indicates a book I have read

Changeless, the second novel in Gail Carriger's steampunk romance series begins with a strange force temporarily wiping out the powers of London's supernaturals.  Amidst the clawless werewolves and fangless vampires, preternatural heroine Alexia is puzzled but determined to discover the source of the event - though some point to her as the problem.  Alexia boards an airship to Scotland accompanied  by her trying sister Felicity, her dear friend with a horrid fashion sense Miss Ivy Hisselpenny, Tunstall the valet turned suitor, and the enigmatic inventor Madame LaFoux.

I loved Soulless for its humor and though perhaps not as laugh out loud funny as the first, Carriger's witty style is equally present in Changeless.  This one is very decidedly a "book two" in that I don't recommend reading it before the first one and it definitely leaves off with a cliffhanger for book three.  Though some of the plot twists were predictable, Changeless is still highly enjoyable and an excellent entry into The Parasol Protectorate series.  

I read this one as an eBook on my Kindle, in which I purchased the first three in the series as a single package.  I was incredibly tempted to delve right into Blameless when I finished this one, but decided that some other series should be mixed into my Series in September reading plan.

I rarely binge read series and prefer to savor them with one book at a time and other works and authors in between.  How about you? Do you read series from start to finish or break them up book at a time?

In a strange incidence of blogging convergence, this week's topic for Top Ten Tuesday fits in beautifully with my Series in September Feature!  Top Ten Tuesday is a fun list-based meme hosted by one of my favorite blogs The Broke and the Bookish!  Today's theme is Top Ten Sequels I'm Dying to Read.  My list features some that have been out for a while that I've somehow just never gotten around to as well as some new releases and some that are still to come. 

So with which books on my list do you agree or disagree?  Does anyone else fall behind on series and find themselves having to reread several books before checking out a favorite author's latest?  Are there series books that you find yourself eager to purchase as soon as they are released?  

You know how when you watch a TV series and the last episode left off with a cliffhanger, the new show starts with "Previously on..."?  Well, for those that missed it, click here for  "Previously on Her Book Self". Welcome back, J.C. Phelps!


****

I finally settled on submitting a scene I have written. It may or may not be used in an upcoming book.

To set the scene: Alex and Will’s relationship has grown stronger and Will has invited her to tour the Naval carrier he will be deployed to. After the tour, the two of them decide to make an evening of it and do some bar hopping.

To begin the night inside my comfort zone we went to the Skylight first. I’d done my fair share of partying in the past but I’d only been to a few select bars.

“I see Anthony is working.” Will pointed out my one and only ex-boyfriend.

“How do you know Anthony?”

“Rick told me all about your history,” Will said.

“Do you two make it a habit of talking about my past?” The thought was both flattering and embarrassing.

“No. There’s not much past to talk about. I think we covered it all in one or two conversations.” Will winked. “Let’s go say hi. Rick also told me a few things about Anthony that I bet you don’t even know.” Will raised his eyebrows in a challenge that I left unanswered. I was too engrossed in my thoughts anyway.

As usual, Anthony came right to me. “Wow. I thought you’d moved. I haven’t seen you forever. How long has it been? A year?” He was doing his best to show off his severely lacking biceps by imitating ‘The Thinker’. Actually, they didn’t look half bad but I knew he didn’t know how to use them, so they didn’t count.

“Nope. Didn’t move. Can you get me a coke and…” I turned to get Will’s order but Anthony cut in.

“I’m glad you came to see me. I’m currently between girlfriends,” he waggled his eyebrows at me.

Oh, the ego. I hadn’t even considered Anthony might still be working here when Will and I decided to come to The Skylight. “I’m currently taken.” I didn’t expect what happened next. Will cleared his throat and Anthony noticed him for the first time.

Anthony's normally tanned skin had become pale. “Ssss... Sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. Please tell Malone not to… not to…”

Will’s ominous look changed to a grin. “Don’t worry, Anthony. She’s on my arm tonight, not my brother’s. Can you please get the lady her coke and add a beer and two shots of whiskey.”

“On the house.” Anthony quickly filled our order and moved away.

“What was that all about?” I asked as we moved away from the bar.

“Rick told me about a visit he paid to Anthony a while ago. Good to know he hasn’t forgotten.”

“When did -- What did he do?” Will ignored me and led me to a table near the dance floor.

We each had a couple of drinks and made our way to the dance floor twice before we decided it was time to move onto the next bar. By the time we were leaving the third bar on the list I was ready to call it a night. However, Will was still warming up. I didn’t want to ruin his fun, but I told him I had to slow down on the drinking. He complied by ordering me only one shot at bar number four. But, that still was number seven and I was surprised I could even count that high by then. It had been months since I’d had any alcohol and I’d never been able to handle it well anyway.

Bar number five could have been The Rave as far as I was concerned. It was definitely a dance club. The deep tones radiating through my body sent me to places I hadn’t been for a long time.

I closed my eyes. The heady music, the close bodies and the various smells pushed all thoughts from my brain.

Eventually, a very distinctive aroma snuck in on my consciousness and brought me back to reality. I opened my eyes and searched for the source. As I turned around I was met with White, not more than a few inches from me.

“What are you doing here?” Having to yell didn’t help mask the slur in my voice.

White hiked his head toward Will.

I threw an accusatory look at Will.

He shrugged. “I’m out of money and can’t pay for a cab to get us home.”

“I have money. You didn’t have to call him.” I yelled at Will.

“I’m not asking a girl to pay on a date.” I could tell by the look on his face this was unthinkable.

I looked at White for support on this but he just mimicked Will’s previous shrug.

I leaned in to talk in Will’s ear. “I thought you wanted to give the guys something to talk about.” I’d been looking forward to making White wonder if Will and I got along extra well, and now I didn’t know how to go about it without actually doing something drastic.

“Oh, they’ve already started,” he answered.

His voice in my ear gave me chills and made me giggle like a girl. I’m sure the alcohol helped.

“Ready?” I heard White yell from directly behind me.

“Not yet,” Will hollered over the music and gave me a wink.

It didn’t take me long to get lost in the music again. Strangely enough it was even easier to lose myself with White directly behind me. I knew I’d be safe with these two men near me and I was able to relax.

The music finally released its hold long enough for me to realize I’d backed up enough to feel White’s body heat against my back. I don’t know how long I’d been that close to him but I knew how it was affecting me. It was time to go home. I turned my head just enough to get a glimpse of White’s face. He was in bodyguard mode, scanning the entire building. It didn’t take him long to glance down at me with his undecipherable look. I mouthed the words, “Are you ready to go?” He answered with a nod.

I poked Will in the ribs and asked him the same thing in a shout. He also nodded his agreement.

I sat in the back of White’s black Mustang, though the seat was extremely uncomfortable. I figured I’d be left out of the conversation on the way home if I did and they didn’t let me down. I’d definitely had too much to drink and didn’t need to emphasize that fact with my slurred speech.

Will generously helped me navigate my way out of the vehicle once we’d parked in the garage of White and Associates. I held my own quite well after I got to my feet and Will and White let me lead the way into the lobby where I was greeted by all of my partners. Green and Black wore disapproving looks, but Red, Blue and especially Brown all smiled broadly.

“Pay up,” Will said to Brown as he stumbled up to him with his hand out.

“I want proof first. So, Ms. Grey. Did you have a good time tonight?”

I gave him a tight-lipped smile and muttered, “Mmm hmm.”

Suddenly, he took a swing at me. I had him on the floor instantly and just as quickly I lost my balance and found myself on top of him. Brown lifted me easily as he rose from the floor and set me upright.

“Okay. Here you go.” He laughed as he pulled out a wad of cash.

Money was being exchanged between everyone and I had no idea what was going on.

White was the only one not handing out or receiving cash. I gave him a questioning look. “What’s going on?”

“Will bet the guys he could take you out and get you drunk.”

“What?” White gave me his evil grin, the one that tied me in knots.

I stammered, “I didn’t mean to get drunk.” It took me being drunk, but I realized I preferred to be one of the guys instead of the girl in the company. I wondered why it had taken a prank like this to make me recognize that.

“I’ll take you home,” White offered but was instantly swarmed by the rest of the men with Brown up front.

“Oh no you don’t! You, Black and Blue are the only guys that have been around her when her tongue has been loosened by spirits. The rest of us want to get to know our partner like we know each other.” Brown grabbed my arm.

“No, no, no. I think White’s right and I should go home.” I tried to free myself as Brown towed me toward the elevator. I looked back at White for help but he was lost in the sea of men following us.

Everyone piled into the elevator and I felt a little claustrophobic. The feeling came mostly from everyone poking fun at me rather than the closeness of the bodies. As soon as the doors opened I pushed my way out to a floor I’d never been on before.

“Where are we?” I asked as Red pushed past me.

“Welcome to my abode.” He opened up the door and showcased the interior with a flourish of his arm.

I walked in and was overwhelmed with the feel of it.

“Now this is exactly what I thought White’s apartment would look like.” The black and red accents made me think of Gigi’s, the strip joint that Colin had me working at before the Dimitri hit. The apartment screamed bachelor on the hunt.

Black let out a chuckle as he followed me inside.

All of the partners’ apartments were the same floor plan but we each had a room that we used for our personal touch. White’s housed C.I.C. Mine was still used for storage. Black’s housed plants and all kinds of non-bachelor items, and Red’s was set up as a game room. He had a bar in one corner, a pool table, a dart board, and those tall tables that only seated a couple of people. However, he did have a couple of larger tables that would allow us all to sit together.

Blue stepped behind the bar and started lining up shot glasses like a pro. There was one for everyone but I didn’t get a chance to object until he brought over my usual shot of whiskey with a coke back.

“I can’t drink this,” I said as I pushed the shot away.

“Gonna be sick?” Brown mocked me with an exaggerated pout.

“Not yet, but I might soon,” I countered, weakly.

“Oh, come on. You’re home now. Who cares if you get sick. Just as long as you make it to the bathroom,” Red added.

“I promise to hold your hair,” Brown teased.

****
For more of J.C.'s writing check out The Alexis Stanton Chronicles.  Color Me Grey (book one) is my current favorite KinDEAL (at present it's free from Amazon).

Though September is here, I'm holding onto the last dregs of summer for as long as possible so my Indie in Summer feature of spotlighting independent authors isn't quite done.  Joining me for a two-part guest post on this lovely labor day weekend is J.C. Phelps author of the Alexis Stanton Chronicles (Color Me Grey, Shades of Grey, and Reflections of Grey)!

***
I want to start this post with a big thank you to Lisa for allowing me to post here. Her Book Self is a blog that I have followed for quite a long time and this is a great honor.

Though I run a blog of my own, I mostly post about other authors and their books. I love letting my readers know how diverse and great the writing world has become. But when I’m not posting about other authors I’ll post something more personal such as pictures of my garden, books I’ve recently read or want to read, and every once in a while I post recipes I’ve recently tried.

Since you can find all that at my blog I decided I needed something different for this post. I could write a post about my writing process. A lot of authors might be interested in something like that and maybe even some readers. Let me tell you, my writing process, if I were a hermit living in a cave, would be nothing to talk about. However, with three kids…

Just let me give you an example the things I go through after the writing bug has passed and I rejoin the real world.

The other day I finally had an idea and started to type it up on the computer. I wasn’t involved in my writing for very long before I had to pull myself away and yell at the three-year-old to get out of the kitchen. She loves to get into everything, including the cleaning supplies. I can’t have that!

Later, after I’d made sure she remained in my sights for the majority of the day, I made a journey into the kitchen for coffee or something else equally mundane. I about fell on my butt.

In the course of the couple of minutes she had spent in the kitchen earlier that day, the three-year-old had managed to get butter out of the refrigerator and spread it all over the floor in front of the refrigerator AND she had washed the floor in front of the sink with nothing but dish soap. Butter AND dish soap on linoleum creates a slippery situation.

These are the kinds of things I must deal with whenever I stick my head into my computer for more than just a few seconds. Even though I could write an entire book on the antics of my three-year-old and how she affects my writing process, I decided I didn’t want that to be the main topic of my post. So what should I write about, I wondered.

The next thing on my list was talking about my self-published status and why I chose that route. Again, this would be something that could be interesting to other authors, but the general reader really just doesn’t care that I didn’t submit to agents or publishers because I have no patience and I’m afraid of deadlines. The general reader doesn’t care about the business of writing and how I think it’s best to have your books out there, gathering readers and making money rather than sitting in the drawer gathering dust. So, cross that off the list and move onto…

What are some of the questions people have asked me after reading my books?

Well, the most frequently asked questions are, “Are you going to write another book? When is it coming out?”

The answers to these questions are as elusive to me as they are to the reader. Let me just say I am working on a fourth book. But because of my writing process and my fear of deadlines I have no idea if I can ever finish it or give a release date until it is complete.

So, I finally settled on submitting a scene I have written. It may or may not be used in an upcoming book.

*****

Stay tuned tomorrow for the scene that J.C. Phelps wrote for us!

It's September 1st!!  Which along with shocking statements of "Where oh where did the summer go??" means it's time for Series in September to return!  This is a feature I started last year where I devote the month to making progress through series that I'm currently reading as well as embarking on fun new-to-me works that are "Book One" in their sagas.  Today's pick is a bit of a crossover from my Indie in Summer feature and stay tuned for upcoming posts from the book's fabulous author!

Book: Reflections of Grey by J.C. Phelps

Series: The Alexis Stanton Chronicles

Book Order: Color Me Grey* (1), Shades of Grey* (2), Reflections of Grey* (3)
*indicates a book I have read

The action and intrigue of The Alexis Stanton Chronicles continues in book three Reflections of Grey. Alex Stanton, also known as Ms. Grey extends her training with White & Associates and takes on the challenge of an undercover job. Despite her misgivings about getting involved with Rick "Mr. White" Malone, Alex finds her resolve about their relationship tested. Things only get more complicated when Alex's work brings her across the path of another Malone, Rick's equally handsome brother.

Reflections of Grey carries the same high-energy, character driven action of the books that preceded it (Color Me Grey, Shades of Grey). J.C. Phelps continues to grow and develop her heroine with each new book in the series. Three books strong, there remains plenty more of Alex's story to be told and readers can only hope that Phelps has future works in store for the series.

The longer a series is, the harder time I have writing reviews for the books in it.   It's not that I don't love the books as much as the early ones in the series, but I tend to get really worried about including spoilers in my reviews!  Hopefully this teaser of a review conveys how much I enjoy the series, without giving away any plot points of the earlier books to readers who may be curious about the third!

Stay tuned this week and weekend as J.C. Phelps returns to Her Book Self with a fun guest post and a preview of her future work!

A while ago I posted a review of book I read back in 2007 but wanted to mention on this blog because it was a charming tale (and I was in the mood to write about something light). The book I mentioned was Becky by Lenore Hart.  In recalling how much I enjoyed that book, I did a little web search of Ms. Hart and found she had released another book - also dealing with a fictionalized version of historic characters but this time focusing on Edgar Allan Poe. I secreted the title away in my mind to pick up in the future, so imagine my surprise when on my very next trip to the library, Hart's book was facing me from the front of the New Fiction shelf!

The Raven's Bride is the story of Virginia "Sissy" Clemm, first cousin to Edgar Allan Poe who later becomes his wife.  The story follows young Sissy who is charmed by her cousin at a very early age and weds him when she was just 13 and he 27.  As a reader it was odd to think about this relationship in modern context, but Hart writes in such a way that Sissy's feelings for Edgar and her intellectual attraction to him seem quite natural.  Despite her youth, she comes across as very mature and her relationship with the moody writer makes for a very interesting story.

Hart ties Edgar's relationship to Sissy with the inspirations for his most famous works and paints a believable picture of what their life may have looked like.  Granted, the story of Poe's life is a tragic one.  Plagued with alcoholism and financial instability, Edgar and Sissy walk a rocky and troubled road.   Sissy's health also fails and though she and Edgar don't have long together, Hart weaves in a bit of the supernatural in a way that is both a positive spin to the story and a tribute to Poe's darker tendencies.

In the author's note, Lenore Hart reveals that her own name is taken from Poe's most famous poem and her admiration for him is shown in her dedication to detail regarding the life of the master writer.  The Raven's Bride is an unique and original story and acts as a great companion work to those seeking to learn more about the lives of Edgar Allan Poe and his lesser known wife.