Announcing the Winners of the Haunted Harvest Contest!

Thanks to everyone who entered my November contest! The winning names have been drawn, and here they are!:

A signed copy of WEDDINGS FROM HELL autographed by Jeaniene Frost and Terri Garey goes to AVIS CAUSEY!

A copy of HALFWAY TO THE GRAVE by Jeaniene Frost goes to LELLEN STEWART!

A copy of HOLIDAYS ARE HELL, an anthology by Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Vicki Pettersson and Marjorie Liu goes to ROSE PRESSEY!

A copy of NIGHTWALKER by Jocelynn Drake goes to ZARA HEFLIN!

A copy of SWORD OF DARKNESS by Kinley McGregor goes to CHERYL BULONE!

A copy of ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A VAMPIRE by Kerrelyn Sparks goes to JESSICA SMITH!

Avis, Lellen, Rose, Zara, Cheryl and Jessica will also get an assortment of cover flats, bookmarks and other goodies from a variety of other authors!

Congratulations, ghoulfriends!! :-)

Sixth Sense, or Serendipity?

I had a birthday last week, and I gave myself the gift of going to visit my sister in Atlanta for a couple of days.

While sitting on the plane, out of nowhere, I found myself slipping into this odd little daydream that went like this: What if Stephen King was on the same flight, perhaps sitting in first class. Would I have the nerve to go up to him and ask him for his autograph? (I've heard he's reluctant to sign autographs because notoriety makes him uncomfortable.) Btw, I had a basis for my little daydream, because Mr. King lives part of the year in the Tampa area. Anyway, I tried to decide whether I'd trouble him for his signature, and decided that yes, even though I'm not normally bold enough to act like an autograph hound, in his case I'd have to make an exception. You see, while I don't claim to be a fan of every single one of his books, I admire the man himself for being stubborn enough and tough enough to gut it out for many years in this business, and for writing my favorite writing book of all time, On Writing (did I use the word "writing" enough in that sentence?" :-)

Anyway, daydream over, the plane took off and I was on my way to Atlanta. So, that evening, my sister and brother-in-law gave me my present:

A signed, first edition copy of Stephen King's 1994 release, Insomnia.

To summarize, in the morning I'm daydreaming about getting Stephen King's autograph, and that evening I had it. Had I somehow picked up that I was going to get it for my birthday, which sparked the daydream, or was it pure coincidence? Sixth sense, or serendipity? I'm sure I'll never know, but it was a pretty unusual coincidence, don't you think?

Words To Live By

Ah, the writing life... so easy, so rewarding, so laid back and relaxed... you get to lay around in your pj's all day, sipping coffee, eating chocolate, and puttering with your computer. Words flow from your fingertips like water, brilliance and creativity flood your mind like a shower of sparks, royalty checks overflow your mailbox.

And if you believe that, I've got a bridge to sell you.

Here, my dears, is what's much closer to reality (except my computer isn't nearly as cool as hers):

The Mosaics of Louis Comfort Tiffany

Looking for a beautiful Christmas gift for the artistically minded person in your life?

Then I'd like to suggest this gorgeous book, compiled and written by my very dear friend, Edith (Edie) Crouch.

I'm so proud of Edie - in my humble opinion, she's the true definition of a "Renaissance Woman". Once a successful 9-to-5 businesswoman, she found and embraced the opportunity to expand her mind and her horizons by becoming a stained glass artist. She's also become quite an expert on Louis Comfort Tiffany - famous for his stained glass, he was also a master of the art of jewelry-making, pottery and mosaics, which is something many people don't realize.

Edie and I met many years ago, when her son and my son started pre-school together, and we've been friends ever since (even though she moved away, which I still haven't quite forgiven her for!) :-) Her stained glass work graces my home with color and warmth - a beautiful peony lamp hangs in my breakfast nook, and on either side of my front door is an absolutely GORGEOUS pair of six-feet stained glass panels, each depicting a vase of tall, colorful flowers (we designed them together, and I can quite honestly say that they're my most prized possessions! I can never move, because I couldn't bear to leave them behind!) It was quite an adventure for her to ship both panels to me from North Carolina all in one piece, but well worth it! She also made me a beautiful Tarot card panel depicting "the Hermit", which I commissioned for one of my sisters to hang in her living room window.

Well-read, well-spoken, kind-hearted, loving and talented - you just don't get better friends than Edie, and I want to share her talent with the world.

You can read about The Mosaics of Louis Comfort Tiffany in more detail HERE, and pre-order it from Amazon.com. Personally, I can't wait for my autographed copy!

Election Day Has Finally Arrived!

Did you?

November's "Haunted Harvest" Contest!

I'm giving away a "haunted harvest of goodies" this month! Six lucky winners will each win one special book by one of my favorite paranormal authors, plus an assortment of bookmarks and signed cover flats!

Here's what's included in this month's giveaway:

~A signed copy of WEDDINGS FROM HELL autographed by Jeaniene Frost and Terri Garey
~A copy of HALFWAY TO THE GRAVE by Jeaniene Frost
~A copy of HOLIDAYS ARE HELL, an anthology by Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Vicki Pettersson and Marjorie Liu
~A copy of NIGHTWALKER by Jocelynn Drake
~A copy of SWORD OF DARKNESS by Kinley McGregor
~A copy of ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A VAMPIRE by Kerrelyn Sparks

Plus, each winner will receive signed cover flats, assorted bookmarks and other goodies from a variety of other paranormal authors! (Sorry, but the skeleton, pumpkins and fall leaves are not included in the giveaway - they're just props for the photo!) :-)

All you have to do to enter the contest is send me an EMAIL that answers the question:

"What's the name of the woman Sammy blames for his downfall?"

Don't know the answer? You can find it by reading an EXCERPT from my upcoming February release,
YOU'RE THE ONE THAT I HAUNT, which is HERE.

Drawing will be held November 25, 2009.

(Entering this contest will automatically add you to my mailing list, but your information will NEVER be shared with anyone else. You'll get an occasional notice of my upcoming books, and that's all, I promise!)

So what are you waiting for, ghoulfriend? You can't win if you don't enter! :-)