My friend Rachelle J. Christensen has just had her second novel come out, and today, she’s organizing a book bomb to help get the word out! Here’s a little about her book:

When twenty-three-year-old Courtney Beckham is abducted near her home, the search turns up more than just a kidnapping crime. FBI agent Jason Edwards investigates the ten-million-dollar ransom and stumbles upon something he wasn’t meant to find. When Courtney catches a glimpse of the caller ID in her kidnapper’s home, what she sees turns her world upside down.

To participate, go to Amazon and buy Caller ID (aff) today!

Why should I participate? I know, I’m mostly participating to help out a friend, but there’s a lot more in it for you. Rachelle is holding a contest for an Ultra Flip Camcorder!

Also, if you buy the book on Amazon today and email her the receipt (you can take your address out and things), Rachelle is offering dozens of freebies from a great group of friends (including me)—including nine free ebooks! Considering Caller ID is less than $11 at Amazon right now, that’s a pretty great deal! You can read about all the freebies on Rachelle’s blog.

So go buy Caller ID today (aff)!

Enjoy some time with your family, reflect on your blessings, and prepare to power through the last days of NaNo!

Photo and cardboard turkey by Bre Pettis

Presumably, most people reading this blog are dreaming about publishing their writing. Hey, me too. But this week, I was thinking about one of my writing friends whose bio talks about her many dreams. Her dreams of publishing are coming true now, but her other dreams—which have also come true!—included such disparate things as becoming an opera singer and dancing ballet. Yep.

Publishing is one of my dreams, and the one I’m working hardest to pursue right now. (You know, outside of my family life and the battle against the mess.) But I have other dreams, too.

One of my dreams isn’t really a secret, but I don’t think the people I’ve shared it with realize that I’m actually serious. I want to be in a band. Really. I don’t want to storm the charts and sell gold records. My dream doesn’t even require recording or writing original songs. A cover band is great: I would love to perform my favorite songs from my favorite artists.

This dream isn’t that far fetched. I’ve played the piano for 20 years and have a decent singing voice. Virtually my entire family is musically talented. I even know what venues we’d play and how to get in. In fact, the biggest problems are that 1.) we don’t have a drummer and 2.) we live thousands of miles apart.

But if we do get to live closer to one another, I have every intention of doing this. I’m even working on our set list. You know, whenever I think of it (3-4 times a year).

I think I would be remiss here if I didn’t mention my family as one of my dreams. While I’m already living that dream, and it’s definitely not easy all the time, it’s probably the more important and more valuable than all my other dreams combined.

I have smaller dreams, too—more like goals, really. Things like not killing every plant in my garden one year, having a lovely home, and designing a few pieces of knitwear (I have the ideas and knitting ability, but not the design skill yet). Things I’ll all (probably) do—someday, one thing at a time.

And then there are the more fleeting, flitting, wouldn’t-it-be-nice-if ones: becoming an FBI agent (yeah, because that’s something you undertake lightly, uh huh), getting back into Irish dance, recording a few original arrangements with my family, becoming a fantastically awesome quilt artist (never having made a quilt myself, or even seen an art quilt up close, LOL). These are more of the things I think “that would be so coooool!!” about, but realistically probably won’t make a priority any time soon.

So, what are your other dreams? Are they attainable? Are you going to pursue them, or do you just enjoy the idea?

Photo by Jake Bellucci

Photo by Eric Lynch

I came across this last year, and many of you have probably have seen this, but found this article funny: the advantages of dating a writer, or the rank OBJECTIFICATION of writers.

My favorite parts:

* Writers will offer you an interesting perspective on things. Yes. Constantly. While you’re trying to watch TV or take a shower. You will have to listen to observations all day long, in addition to being asked to read the observations we wrote about when you were at work and unavailable for bothering. It will be almost as annoying as dating a stand-up comedian, except if you don’t find these observations scintillating we will think you’re dumb, instead of uptight.

* Writers are smart. The moment you realize this is not true, your relationship with a writer will develop a significant problem.

What are your favorite parts?