Goading the Pen

I attempted one more time to hit the Thrift Shops in search of options for a Victorian Outfit.
Apparently if you are looking for a Victorian Men's outfit you should shop in the Women's Department at the Thrift Shops!

I found....
Pants: $5
Vest: $6 
Jacket: $8
Shoes: $10

Sweet! Add a top hat and white gloves from the costume store and there you go! Less than $50. I was SOOOOO lucky to find the pieces and have them all fit. I'm going to order an ascot, or make one...(I used black socks to get the feel for what it will look like). I think I'm going to look for some vintage looking buttons also.

Any suggestions where I might find a Victorian type Caroling outfit for a guy???

Son is in Victorian Choir and needs outfit by end of September. I have found a couple different very costume type outfits for around $130

Some really expensive ones @ gentlemens emporium.

Anyone know of anywhere else I am missing?????

Okay since all my writing work has been freelance and I haven't really had to worry about promotion, I don't know if this will appeal to anyone but thought I would throw it out there if anyone was interested.

My son attends a High School in VA that has a specialized program for the Fine and Performing Arts. His study concentration is Music Technology (Composition and Recording) They have conentrations in Art, Dance, Writing....and more. He is also part of the choir.

The Choir is running a Sponsorship Program..... One in particular offers a 4x6 advertising space in every program they print. They will be having 5 programs this year with one of them being a 2-night event.

Target Audience: High School Kids and Parents
They print about 865 programs at each event.

How much: $500
(Hmmmm....2 authors could split this one...4x6 is enough space to put two books and author info =) )

What you get:
4x6 ad in all programs (a minimum of 5 programs)
A copy of each program sent to you.

A WSHS Choir T-Shirt

(Of course if you aren't local to VA this probably doesn't mean too much.)
4 tickets w/reserved seating at the Spring Show (2 night generally sold out event)
Complimentary copy of the Spring Show on DVD
2 tickets to the Victorian Dinner (Hosted in December)
Reserved seating at ALL choir performances

There is also a $250 level that puts your ad in a business size space only in the programs printed for the Spring Show.
4 tickets w/reserved seating at the Spring Show (2 night generally sold out event)
WSHS Choir T-Shirt

This is ALL tax deductable. =)

I've so missed my LJ! Facebook is merely a quick fix for not having time to dedicate to posting. I've missed my friends.

SUMMER WAS INSANE!! to say the least.

I'm excited school is back in session and that busy from catastrophe has changed to busy from PTA, Boards, Church Groups, and other various kid related activities. =)

I'm excited my writing bug is back to causing me to itch. The only way to get rid of an itch is to scratch....so I have been scratching my pencil to the tablet.

I'm thankful that my freelance work has kept me a little bit busy. =)

I'm thinking very serious about getting back into making a few "Book Purses" and perhaps putting them up on line. Was fun and with Christmas around the corner who knows.

Remember these:


Anyway....glad to be back. Feels like I have come home after being on a very long vacation!

In honor of Eric Luper's Book Birthday!  Boys Blogging Books Blogs Bug Boy!

(Say that 10 times really fast.)

Congrats Eric! And thumbs up Kurtis loved it!

Seems like Janette Rallison's Fair Godmother is quite the active thing. Last week she was spotted byauthorwithin in an insurance ad:

Click on Pic to see her post!

I was gallivanting around the internet and I spotted her moonlighting here:

http://www.gonedigging.co.uk/products/eCards/ECProductDetail.aspx?pId=801

You can have your name put in the stars and sent as an E-Greeting.
Like this:


Very interesting how she changes ever so slightly in each photo. Hey the kids could try and spot what's different in each photo. =)


 

Red doors are considered symbolic by many. There is a religious connotation for some associated with a red door, while to others it may be prosperity or luck. I've even heard that a red door symbolizes that the mortgage has been paid off.

What if any connotations does a red door hold for you?

Because I have nothing better to do while I wait for someone to figure out that a leaking sewer pipe into your house really deserves immediate attention. (Well I guess I could be cleaning up the mess from the water pipe break...)

Exceptional customer service means that you are treated like you are the most important customer a company /waiter/cashier has. Even if you really aren't. And so should every other customer.

"There is NOTHING we can do." is not a term that should ever slip out. There is always SOMETHING that can be done. It might not be the direct solution to the  problem, but at least it might soften the blow.

Exceptional customer service means sometimes admitting the job is better off in someone elses hands. Especially if they have time on their schedule to handle the situation with Exceptional customer service.

Honestly, I would prefer Exceptional Customer Service and Average Work over Exceptional Work and Average Customer Service.

How about you?

If you haven't already, take the dare and show you care! There is an awesome auction over here to help benefit a Title I school in Oklahoma.

Check it out! There is something for everyone from PB to YA.

http://www.cynthealiu.com/showyoucare/

Finally! Here is the mailing order for the Shiver ARC. When it arrives read it quickly enjoy every last word of it, and get it back out the door. Before you do take a minute to write a little note in the cover. When the last person on the list gets it, they will have a little memoir of the books travels. This lovely idea courtesy of lalam ! Congrats to authorwithin  , robinellen  , and pandorasblog  you were drawn last in each round.

Teams were broken down by location (I was in hopes this would expediate mailing time) drawings were done to decide mailing order withing each group. (Sorry no pics this time. Unless you want one of me pulling my hair out trying to keep it all fair!) If you know that you sent me your name and address before the cut-off and you don't see your name on the list please email me immediately! I will get you on a list.

Thanks again to everyone who joined the fun of Team Raving Pen!

Team A -Ravelda

1. afraclose 
2. crzywritermindi 
3. eclectic_writer 
4. ecm_sketches 
5. elissacruz 
6. inkbabies 
7. kbaccellia 
8. lisa_schroeder 
9. mandywriter 
10. music_lover3 
11. sboman 
12. authorwithin 

Team B - goadingthepen 
1. lillpluta 
2. tamarak 
3. futuredoctor19 
4. heatherkb 
5. latteya 
6. sahm2 
7. katharinethayer 
8. __bac__ 
9. jessica_shea 
10. sixverstein 
11. cyn2write  
12. robinellen 

Team C - annemariewrites 

1. allegore (Wordpress)
2. shanasilver 
3. fandoria 
4. lalam   
5. susan_schmid 
6. veschwab  
7 carriejones 
8. sarahlepstein 
9. confusedlook 
10. pandorasblog 
11. scrr

Prize Recap:

2 Copies of Eyes Like Stars and Theatre Package Go To:
(ravelda , lisa_schroeder  and Lisa Mantchev will be mailing these out.)

edgyauthor 
allegore (Wordpress)

Eyes Like Stars Pre-Order
(goadingthepen  will be sending this one.)

inkbabies 

8 Copies of Lament

4 Copies will be mailed out by ravelda 

kathys_shadow 
afraclose 
shanasilver 
cyn2write 

4 Copies will be mailed out by goadingthepen 

lillpluta 
tamarak 
lisa_schroeder
carriejones 
heatherkb 

Lisa Schroeder has already read Lament so requested her win be put back in the hat! Congrats heatherkb!

Edited to add missing names onto lists. Mailing order may have changed slightly.

With a bit of assistance from my little bookworms:


(Bet you have never heard THIS version of Me With You!)
This pic was taken after they wore themselves out pulling names from the rooster!
These are my borrowed babies! I only get them while their parents are working. =(

 We took the names of everyone who said they were interested and put them in the rooster. My tiniest borrowed baby points for clarification!

Then we folded them all up and put them in the Rooster. Tiny borrowed baby checked to make sure we got it right!



And the winners of the Signed Copies of Lament ARE:


DRUM ROLL PLEASE>>>>>>>>>>>>>




Oops! Seems I aligned the check marks in the wrong place.
I added names to the hat that weren't supposed to be there.
I had to re-select 3 names. I used a random number picker.
Nothing fancy with codes like Karens!

Congrats to: carriejones  and kathys_shadow  and cyn2write 

I have everyones address and will be sending out soon!

Tune in tomorrow to see where you are on the Shiver Snailmail list!

If you haven't already check out ravelda  for updates on the Eyes Like Stars contest. lillpluta was a double winner so she put her Star package back in the pot!

 

Approximately half the loot was handed off by the post lady a few minutes ago! I will be drawing tonight for the winners. I will be sad to watch them leave my hands on Friday!

Karen will be mailing out Eyes Like Stars and the other half of the loot. Anne Marie will start the rounds on the third ARC! I will post the line up tomorrow!

If you have not contacted me by 8PM tonight, I will assume you are not interested in the drawings.

Again THANKS FOR PLAYING ON TEAM RAVING PEN!

I have already decorated the place:

I thought these were fitting.

There will be plenty of food for all:

And Marinis too:

I have found the perfect band!

You can preview them here:
http://www.myspace.com/theresidents

There will be party games:

Bobbing For Eye-Balls!

And for the young at heart- Jacks!


I searched long and hard to find the perfect cake for the ocassion:


If you are looking for your hostess you won't have to look far. I will be the one dressed in this:


Be sure to grab your goodie bags before you go. Eyeball Rings and Whoopee Cushions for ALL!
 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY brian_ohio  !!!!

My 16 year old wanted to show me what he had been learning at drivers ed. I wanted to go to Borders and look for Kristy Dempsey's new picture book, Me With You.

So we went.

Bookstore first. I looked on the shelves and was bummed there was nothing to be found. So scuttled over to the computer with my 6 year old in tow. Only to be told this:

(ON its way. Reserve at the Info Desk.)

Not funny. I HATE waiting.
Next I thought I would look for Linda Urban's Mouse Was Mad. No luck there either. They said it wasn't published yet! PULEEZ! I know it is, because wasn't it thatgirlygirlthat just posted a picture of both of them together on a shelf??

So I flagged down a lady straightening out books. She did NOT look very happy that a disrupted her.
Me: Is there a chance that even if your computer is saying they are "on the way" that they might actually be here already.
Her: Huh??
Me: Well, because it says Linda Urban's book Mouse Was Mad isn't even published yet and that is wrong. So I though maybe....
Her: (Ridiculous Look...I swear an eyeroll) What's the book.
Me: Me and You (duh wrong title!) by Kristy Dempsey
Her: Keyword Search: Me and You (Phone Rings...puts customer on hold because she is helping me.)
Me: Huh???
Her: Title Search: Me and You Nothing.....What was the authors name.
Me: Kristy Dempsey
Her: Author Name: CHR
Me: No. K-r-i-s-t-y D-e-m-p-s-e-y
Her: Ratta-tat-tat Hmm. It's Me With You. Says we have 3 copies in the store. (Goes to the shelf because obviously I can't look for an author's name on the book shelf. Even though I goofed the name.) Hmm. Straightens a few books. Let me go check in the back.
Me: Wow you mean you would really do that for me Thank you. I appreciate it.
Me and Kids: Play with puppets falling head over heals for a rat, a squirrel, and a hampster!
Her: Walks across store with Me With You in hand. (From the back room...HELLOOOO??)
Me: Thank you.
Her: Goes back to stocking shelves.
Me and Kids: Go back to playing puppets.
Person on Phone: Continues to hold.

We mentioned to her the phone was still on hold. She went back to it....chatted...rolled eyes....put back on hold. WENT BACK TO FIXING SHELVES!!!

Well........I thought it would be appropriate to put the book in the hands it was meant for:


I tried taking a pic in front of the Borders sign but it was too dark. Instead I got this one on top of my car:

Me with you was not the only thing to walk out of the bookstore:

 

Son snuck into the driver's seat while I was out of the car taking pictures. With the help of his little brother they convinced me to let him drive home. He is getting better. I only had to take half the bottle of tylenol when I got home tonight!

HAPPY BELATED BOOK BIRTHDAY KRISTY!!

Okay, I'm following through with one of my Team Raving Pen campaign promises and I am on my way out to look for Kristy Dempsey's new Picture Book!

Then it is off to the road range so K can show off what he learned in driver's ed today. Prayers Please!

May you all have a productive writing night!

I think I got everyone via LJ message and such but if I missed you somehow and you are on Team Raving Pen here is the prize info:
Congrats Team Raving Pen!

Can you believe we won with 79 Team Members? Wow! Talk about kicking it into high gear.
Now it's time for the prizes, Yay!

Here is what I need you to do.

1. If you are interested in sharing the ARC of Shiver please send me your name and address no later than Wednesday.

There are 3 ARCS to share. We will put all interested names into a hat. The first third of the names drawn will pass around ARC #1.
Name #1 will receive the ARC read it and then put it promptly in the mail to the next address on the list. The last person on the address list will keep the ARC.
The same will go for ARC #2 and #3.
If you are not willing to mail the ARC after reading it, please don't put your name on the list.

2. If you are intersted in receiving the ARC and Theatre Package of Eyes Like Stars, please say: Yes I am interested in EYES LIKE STARS.

(This will go to one lucky winner.)

3. If you are interested in receiving one of the 8 signed copies of Lament please say: Yes I am interested in LAMENT.

(These will be mailed out to 8 lucky winners!)

4. If you are interested in getting the 5 page critiqe from Maggie, please visit the contest results here: http://m-stiefvater.livejournal.com/107610.html
(Everyone gets this but you must email her today and let her know you are interested!)

I know that some of you already have these prizes and just kicked in to help out, HUGE THANKS TO YOU! And of course to EVERYONE who made this contest so much fun.

Hope to hear from you soon!

Sheri

Please send replies to: goadingthepen at gmail dot com No later than Wednesday. THANKS AGAIN!
 

Many thanks to EVERYONE who participated in the Maggie Stiefvater Shiver Contest.

Many more thanks to the friends who tolerated my insane flood of postings about the Maggie Stiefvater Shiver Contest!

Howling Sam! We won with 78 team members! You guys really know how to step up the game!

I'm thrilled to announce Team Raving Pen has WON this!



Photo Borrowed From: m_stiefvater
Contest Results
We will be contacting all Team Raving Pen members about prize distribution on Monday! You are also eligable for a free 5 page critique by Maggie! See Contest Result page on how to contact Maggie about your critique.

Have a fantastic weekend! I'm going to go pre-order Shiver. (I forgot in all the excitement!) Then off to watch my fantabulous step son graduate from college!

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

I am on my way to my stepsons graduation this weekend. It is hard to believe he is a senior in college!!

I am leaving the last few hours in the very capable hands of all the cool kids on the block!

Be sure and rally the troops if someone tries to sprint by us in the last mile of our race.

We are at 68 posts right now. Maybe 69 but I'm not 100% sure one of the posts counts. (I think all the others are on the up and up with Book cover, blurb, and preorder link present.)

You all did AWESOME!!!

I'm going to go CRAZY not being able to be at a computer at 8 o'clock. If anyone wants to send me a text...hopefully telling me we won....um...yeah....I will be in my car working on the first five pages of the MS I would love to get critiqued. =P

Oh yeah, in the last hours....I would love to get at least 3 more posts. The ARC that sold on ebay...the one that started all this craziness went for $71. I think it would be fitting if we were able to muster up 71 posts. Fitting don't you think.

If you somehow missed the Whole MAGGIE's Contest Craziness....go here and catch up for pete's sake!
http://goadingthepen.livejournal.com/88070.html

Have a great weekend!!