Carly Phillips's Blog: Carly's Web Blogs, page 90

Carly's Mix It Up Contest at Plotmonkeys Blog

Awesome news! Cosmo picked KARMA as Red Hot Pick for June!! I’m celebrating!

And in light of the interest surrounding my Fifty Shades – Fifty Cents Blog, I thought I’d do something different for today’s contest. I’m giving away three separate prizes – three winners –

Win 1 of 3 prizes - 50 Shades of Grey; $10 Amazon GC or KARMA by me! plotmonkeys.com today.

Carly’s Mix It Up Contest!

Awesome news! Cosmo picked KARMA as Red Hot Pick for June!! I’m celebrating!



In light of the interest surrounding my Fifty Shades – Fifty Comments Blog, I thought I’d do something different for today’s contest. I’m giving away three separate prizes – three winners –

1. A copy (eBook or paperback (out April 3) – of FIFTY SHADES OF GREY – so you can read for yourself and see why I loved it – or get yourself a hard copy for your keeper shelf!

2. I’ll preorder KARMA for you - the 3rd in the Serendipity series (eBook or paperback, both out May 1) – so you receive a copy the day it comes out!

3. A $10 Amazon Gift Card - so you can buy your own Fifty Shades; pay for KARMA; or buy any other book of your choice and I’ll never know, LOL.

Post a comment for a chance to win! You know the drill.

HAPPY FRIDAY, ALL!

PS – haven’t heard from all the winners from the Fifty Shades Blog Winners Post – it’s up to you to contact me if you won!

Carly's Mix It Up Contest!

Awesome news! Cosmo picked KARMA as Red Hot Pick for June!! I'm celebrating!



In light of the interest surrounding my Fifty Shades – Fifty Comments Blog, I thought I'd do something different for today's contest. I'm giving away three separate prizes – three winners –

1. A copy (eBook or paperback (out April 3) – of FIFTY SHADES OF GREY – so you can read for yourself and see why I loved it – or get yourself a hard copy for your keeper shelf!

2. I'll preorder KARMA for you - the 3rd in the Serendipity series (eBook or paperback, both out May 1) – so you receive a copy the day it comes out!

3. A $10 Amazon Gift Card - so you can buy your own Fifty Shades; pay for KARMA; or buy any other book of your choice and I'll never know, LOL.

Post a comment for a chance to win! You know the drill.

HAPPY FRIDAY, ALL!

PS – haven't heard from all the winners from the Fifty Shades Blog Winners Post – it's up to you to contact me if you won!

The New iPad – It's Orgasmic.

Yes, I said it. No, I'm not talking dirty. I'm talking about my new iPad! One look at the Kindle App and all those gorgeous BOOK COVERS staring at me in bright, glorious color and I'm in heaven. Never going back to plain old B/W reading again. It's like having the book in my hand. Only not really. BEST THING I EVER BOUGHT. OK next to my Mac Air. Or my iPhone. I love love love Apple. I'm sure nobody here is surprised how much I love my new toy. Do you have an iPad? Older model? New one? If so what do you love about it? Favorite apps? Share!

My Fifty Shades Final Comments & Winners

As I write this post, I've had 285 comments about my blog, Fifty Shades – My Fifty Cents, my commentary on the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy by E.L. James. Over 2,000 impressions alone on the first day the blog ran. And not just "Hi, enter me in the contest" comments. Real, thought-provoking, carefully constructed comments. I find this all astounding. Humbling. Mind-boggling. All attributed to a series of books that gained national attention by word of mouth alone. This book/trilogy has truly garnered not only attention but opinions on many sides of the spectrum. I'm glad I wrote the blog, as the books really made an impression on me and I needed to express my thoughts in light of the craziness surrounding it at the moment. But I am even more glad (is that grammatically correct? Probably not) that you all joined me and expressed your own thoughts and feelings, pro and con. So thank you for visiting me here at Plotmonkeys.

I'm guessing there are many new faces who came for the first time on Thursday and are now returning to check out the winners. To you I say, PLEASE COME BACK OFTEN. Here at Plotmonkeys, we offer a daily escape from reality and controversy – There are four writers who are the Plotmonkeys: (me) Carly Phillips, Julie Leto, Leslie Kelly, and Janelle Denison. We met when we all started writing Harlequin Temptations around 1999 – we all have daughters the same age – we're all the same age – we've gone through the various stages and ups and downs of our careers together – and have come out stronger friends for it. Monday through Thursday, you'll get a daily blog post by each of us. Fridays is always contest day. Saturdays we discuss what books we are reading and ask you to do the same – I love Saturdays as I always find new to me authors and recommendations from our returning visitors. Lastly, on Sundays (like today) we announce Friday's winner and post a weekly joke.

To those who are our regular visitors, we love you! To the new people, we can't wait to get to know you better!

I've had a real blast talking about Fifty Shades with all of you – and thank you for your compliments on the blog and your insight.

To those who enjoyed hanging with me, I am a huge social networking junkie – here's where you can find me should you be interested:

Carly's Facebook

Carly's Twitter

Carly's Website

And now, on to the winners:

SIGNED BOOK GIVEAWAY WINNERS – chosen using Random.org:

1. Lauren Dane's LAID BARE - Comment # 4 – Lori Mosel

2. Maya Banks' Sweet Persuasion – Comment # 199 – Mikki

3. Maya Banks' Sweet Addiction (brand new so it may take longer to receive) – Comment # 211 – Chris Bails

4. Roni Loren's Crash into You – Comment # 173 – Ciel

5. Carly Phillips' Reader's choice backlist book (subject to availability, excluding Destiny but Serendipity is OK) – Comment # 55 Brimag

6. Carly Phillips' Serendipity – Comment # 36 – Kathie (KatMom)

CONGRATULATIONS!

All winners listed above – to receive your prize, you MUST email me at: carly phillips @ mac . com (no spaces) with your full name/address where you want the book sent – and I will forward your info. to the author. From there, they'll send out your prize.

AND THE WINNER OF JULIE'S JUNGLE MADNESS FRIDAY IS:

Comment # – 120 – Emily Tardy

CONGRATULATIONS!

Please email Julie at: julie @ julie leto . com (no spaces) to receive your prize!

In keeping with tradition – a SUNDAY FUNNY

HAPPY SUNDAY!!!!!!

Fifty Shades – My Fifty Cents

Warning – LONGEST Blog EVER ahead!

Intro – Why I am doing this blog – For the last couple of months in my "real" life – the life where people call me Karen not Carly – where they know I write romance and some read my books, others don't – everywhere I go, people ask if I've read THAT book and what did I think (usually they ask in a sort of scandalized way, as if they can't believe they've read it themselves). That books is Fifty Shades of Grey.

About a month ago, I did a blog post (or should I say rant) about my feelings on the Fifty Shades of Grey series' hoopla. (Click Here to read). That day I focused on my frustrations – nonromance readers oohing and aahing over this "erotica" book when they normally wouldn't read "those" books (meaning Romance – what I write). A lot of people on the blog misunderstood my post and most of the ensuing discussion was about whether or not they'd read the Fifty Shades series of books. Not surprising since I was fairly unclear in what I thought. But in my "real" life, when people asked, what I replied was – if you want good erotic romance, I can recommend books but it drives me crazy people are talking about this one book, which I'd heard wasn't all that good. And no, I hadn't read the series.

After a Twitter discussion regarding Dr. Drew's show (which I didn't see/couldn't find here), and the continuing buzz now on national media, I decided I needed to know what the fuss was all about – if nothing else so I could have an intelligent conversation about the books when people asked me my opinion. I should add, I'm not exactly proud of my earlier replies to people about the books – I know better – I should at least read something before I have something not so nice to say – and usually if that's the case, I wouldn't post it in public. That's not who I am. So last weekend, I read all three books in two days.

MY MEA CULPA – I'm here to say, in my humble opinion, from someone who HAS read erotic romance and books that are hotter and go further than Fifty Shades, I WAS WRONG. I ENJOYED The FIFTY SHADES BOOKS VERY VERY MUCH. Not everyone in the Romance community agrees and that's fine. We can agree to disagree. What I think we all know is that this series has sparked renewed discussion about Romance and hot books in general. People are READING Romance and that's a good good thing.



Before get into my thoughts on Fifty Shades, I just want to let you know and to encourage you to read through to the end and discuss - There will be a giveaway at the end – Fabulous author friends – Lauren Dane, Maya Banks, Shayla Black, and Roni Loren- have agreed to give away a SIGNED copy/copies of their fantastic erotic romances – And I'm in as well, doing a signed giveaway of my books (none classified as erotic romance but hot in their own way). Right now that's 6 giveaways/winners! So if you liked Fifty Shades and are wondering what else is out there for you to read, I'm giving you a chance to find out. Read on to the end to discover out how to be eligible.

To people who have never read BDSM style books before or Erotic Romance – you probably find the concept hard to understand or comprehend beyond the sizzle factor. The truth is, there are wonderful books in this genre, authors who write and understand the lifestyle of Dominant/Submissive and truly do both it and Romance justice (OK I'm assuming they do since I don't know of the lifestyle except for these books/authors but I've read enough to understand). If you haven't, I'm thinking you're judging Fifty Shades on the "sex" factor and I have issues with that. But that's my problem. Let's remember – by it's definition – BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, Dominance and Submission) is an erotic preference and a form of personal relationship involving the consensual use of restraint, intense sensory stimulation, and fantasy power role play. CONSENSUAL. Let's remember that. More importantly – it's SAFE, SANE and CONSENSUAL.

There are a number of things floating out in the ether about the Fifty Shades series and I'd like to hit on them and tell you my feelings –

1. I've heard the books were poorly edited – I didn't find any more errors than my own books have by big publishers. Yes, I make mistakes, editors don't pick them up, and I'm called on them all the time in emails from readers. I'm human I do the best I can. So do the publishers/copy editors. I will give E.L. James the same benefit of the doubt.

2. I've heard the books are too much money 9.99 per book. Yes, for what we can pay these days for books, this is a lot of money. That said, I pay that much for say, a Berkley Heat Trade book. So to me, if I love an author or story, I don't want to do it often, but I will pay that price in the right circumstance. In this case I did it for each of the 3 books in the series.

3. I've heard the books are too long – YES. And this goes to editing as well. Honestly this could have been written and told in one longer book or two books max. Book 3 went on way too long. That said, book 3 wraps up so much emotionally, it's not worth skipping it. If you are going to invest, know you are investing in all 3 for a full read/flavor. Then again, you're paying 9.99 so at least you know you are getting length for your money.

4. I've heard it said that Ana is a weak heroine who let the hero walk all over her – To me, Ana was NOT a weak heroine. She wasn't some naive virgin seduced into a lifestyle by a megalomaniac Dominant. Although she was a virgin and ignorant of the lifestyle until she met Christian Grey, by definition she had to be a strong heroine to put up with the Fifty shades of dysfunction and issues a man like Christian brings with him. And if you look at the changes in both the hero and the heroine by the end of the books, you KNOW there is growth on both sides, a must in any good Romance novel.

5. The book started as Fan Fiction – Bella and Edward from Twilight – My understanding is that yes this is true – does that somehow diminish what it is now? I'm unfamiliar with Fan Fiction, so I'll abstain from judgment there.

6. The books presume that Dominance and the need for certain Kinky WTFuckery (can I tell you how much I love this expression?) – can be explained by an abusive past and can be cured – I tend to take books one at a time. I certainly don't agree that everyone into the lifestyle has issues that drove them there nor do I agree that you can "cure" someone of a certain deep set need to control. That said, I'll take these books and say there was enough explanation and depth to THIS HERO for me to accept it. Was he wrapped up too neatly in a red bow at the end? Probably. Hey it's a ROMANTIC FANTASY. And I LIKED Christian's kinky WTFuckery and thought the heroine was well in control of her life and her decisions and when it went too far, SHE WALKED.

7. Fantasy – This "Mommy Porn" description, this "Oooh we can read these books on Kindles and hide the covers and nobody will know what we're reading, the giggling on the news by respected newscasters – this is insulting to those of us who write Romance and work damned hard at it. Women have fantasies. Men have fantasies. Men are more visual creatures. Women turn to fantasy wrapped up in a happy ending and no matter how we reach that ending – even if it includes the need to be dominated, it shouldn't be shameful or embarrassing and the media certainly shouldn't be telling us it is. Oh and while we're at it, I don't want to know my books (or these books) are spicing up someone's marriage. Yes, I've gotten mail to that effect. TMI, people. TMI.

An Aside – added this past Tuesday morning - Just watched Good Morning America cover the book. I'm offended on behalf of all Romance writers at the whole giggling mommy porn thing. This probably sounds odd from someone whose book, The Bachelor, was unveiled with smoke and innuendo and beach trash comments on LIVE! With Regis and Kelly in 2002 – BUT – it's not odd. 1. Kelly is not a news show, she's a talk show. 2. Kelly said she wanted anti-Oprah books – though she called them beach trash, she meant it in a fun way – she reads them – she likes them. 3. I KNEW what was coming. Sort of. But GMA, a news show, covering a book that went viral – went too far and was insulting, not unbiased. Hey – going viral – word of mouth alone selling these books and bringing them national attention is a GOOD THING and I hope the author is laughing all the way to the bank – I resent the mainstream media giggling over the titillation value of these books. This isn't the Victorian Era.

My Opinion of the series in a Nutshell – - Stripped of the hype, and the fact that yes, the books went on too long, at heart I found a beautiful love story. The story of an extremely wounded hero – and the special woman who invests in his life, his love, and understands what she has to accept in order to be with him.

Like every other woman who loved these books, I fell in love with Christian Grey. Unlike the women who came to these books ignorant of the Romance genre, I've seen elements of this story before – I wasn't shocked by the sex or the Dominance or the Erotic turns or the darkness of the hero's past. In fact these books are TAME in comparison to many I've read. As a writer, I found Christian Grey compelling, wounded, and flawed – and yet because he knows this about himself, because he gets help throughout the story, there was a realness to it all that I just adored. The emails between the hero and heroine? SHIVER. Fantastic!

Were there fantasy elements? Yes. What Romance novel doesn't have fantasy elements – in this case the self made, sexy as sin, millionaire sweeping a young woman off her feet and giving her a wealthy lifestyle most people can only dream of. But just like in real life, there are drawbacks to every situation and Ana, the heroine here, truly has to decide if she can live with him and his demons. She can because she loves him. Not because he comes with all the wealth. I think at heart, that's what I loved most about her. Even though she could be frustrating – sometimes too independent – sometimes too compliant – there were more times that I understood WHY she gave in – because he needed her – and she wasn't losing herself in the process. I saw that. I believed that. And putting aside some of the vast repetition of scenarios necessary to allow the books to be in 3 parts and go on as long as they did, it was the hero and the heroine and their love and understanding of each other that kept me coming back for more.

The Kinky WTFuckery? Well, that's SAFE, SANE, and consensual between them and thousands of people are reading these books – that ought to tell you something – and it's not that all women want to be dominated or abused in their real life. They may dream of giving up control, it's a fantasy, a relinquishing of power and letting someone else know what's best for you because you TRUST THEM. That's what I found between these characters. Consent. Trust. And Love.

My Rant – Aimed at people who don't read or claim not to like Romance, or "those books" – Fifty Shades of Grey, like the authors I'll recommend below, are NOT erotica for the sake of erotica – not as I've been led to believe by many of the articles in the papers discussing that "dirty little secret book" women and housewives are reading. Fifty Shades was a thoughtful look into how someone ended up relying on this type of lifestyle for his very salvation and how he over came a painful past to become the person he is today – and like in every Romance novel – how real, enduring love can change and help you out of the dark and into the light. If you are reading it for titillation value, you're missing the point. And if you are reading it for that, I guarantee you are NOT a Romance fan, you don't understand why Romance novels sell the way they do, why they appeal to women and even some men, and why they are not churned out books but carefully crafted, well thought out books with depth, emotion and occasionally humor and/or suspense. And if you don't read THOSE books – that's fine, you're entitled – but don't claim to fall in love with Christian Grey (hero in Fifty) and then turn your nose up at the genre because you read only high brow Oprah books. If you've read and liked or loved Fifty and you still won't try a Romance … your loss. Rant Over.

Another Aside -written this past Wednesday night - and the blog is going live tomorrow. I'm sorry for the length. It wasn't planned. But every day something new blows up about this series and so kept adding into what was already written above. But don't worry, I'll be rewarding your patience with me at the end!

FOR THOSE WHO LOVED FIFTY SHADES AND WONDER WHAT OTHER EROTIC ROMANCE NOVELS THEY CAN READ? MORE after the jump.

LIST OF BOOKS

As I mentioned, I thought Fifty Shades was TAME compared to many books I've read – Christian's past that we don't see held the heavier elements of the BDSM lifestyle, than you read between the pages here. Some are in these books. If you liked Fifty, I encourage you to give these authors a try – and if you haven't read me, though I don't write Erotic Romance, just hot (some say sizzling), contemporary Romance, I suggest you start there. (Shameless self promotion over now!)

1.

If you're interested in an author who delves into BDSM well with great Romance – Cherise Sinclair comes to mind. I appreciate the Dear Reader she puts at the beginning of every book, the warning so people don't think it's so easy to find love in a few days in this kind of environment, and she cautions care. I like that. Master of the Mountain, and the Shadowlands series are very good books of hers. Love them.

2.

A HUGE favorite of mine – Huge – Shayla Black's Wicked Lovers series - starts with Wicked Ties and keep going!

3.

A very good friend of mine who I recommend all the time – Lauren Dane – wrote a series of books beginning with my favorite, LAID BARE, which stayed with me for a long, long, time in part because she deals with such tragedy along with hope, and a family's adjustment to a committed menage situation.

4.

Another great Erotic Romance author is is Maya Banks and her Sweet Series starting with Sweet Surrender and Sweet Persuasion, which contains a total power exchange with a contract like 50 Shades, and Sweet Temptation.

5.

A new to me author who blew my mind with her sensual, hot hot hot books – Eve Berlin – Desire's Edge.

I also found good books suggested at author Roni Loren's blog – HERE – Roni wrote a Berkley Heat set at a BDSM Resort. I enjoyed Roni's book, Crash Into You – classified as a Contemporary Erotic Romance and in her Blog, What to Read if You've Read #50 Shades of Grey And Want More BDSM Romance, she gives you a similar list to what I've put here.

This is by no means a comprehensive list but it gives you a place to start!

Whew. The longest blog ever has finally come to an end. So now your reward. I've enlisted a few of my author friends to do signed book giveaways – 6 winners total!

SIGNED BOOK GIVEAWAYS:

1. Lauren Dane is generously giving away LAID BARE (one of my all time favorite books / characters),

2. Maya Banks is offering up Sweet Persuasion;

3. as well as Sweet Addiction (brand spanking new so it may take longer to send),

4. Roni Loren is giving Crash into You

5. Carly Phillips _ that's me! is offering a reader's choice backlist book (subject to availability);

6. And Carly Phillips' Serendipity – the first book in my current small town Romance series about the hot, sexy, and estranged Barron Brothers.

TO BE ELIGIBLE TO WIN - just comment below – participate in the discussion. All those who post something are eligible! Winners chosen at random and announced on Sunday.

DISCUSSION!

So let's start the discussion about Fifty Shades of Grey and all Erotic Romance – some jumping points in no particular order – or talk about whatever moves you -

1. Have you read the Fifty Shades books?

2. If so, did you enjoy them? Why or why not?

3. Are you new to Erotic Romance and if not, did that influence whether or not you liked it?

4. If you are new to Erotic Romance, are you looking to read more?

5. Do you prefer Erotic Romance? Or just more HOT Romance (similar to myself and Janelle's contemporaries?)

Thanks for visiting and putting up with me through this!

FYI – adding this early Thurs AM – I'm can tell already not going to be able to reply to each and every post but I AM reading them and THANK YOU for visiting and posting!

New Toy

Saturday March 3 – I've always said my husband I don't exchange or buy each other gifts. I've bought him more than he's bought me on our own. But we have a system that works and we go with it. Bday? I buy something and say, that's my bday gift. We're all happy. Same for him usually. I've also learned, with that kind of guy, to read gestures into words and tone of voice. Some may call me delusional. I call it smart. So last night, while we were at Barnes and Noble (a rare occurrence these days), I walked up to the counter and said to the sales girl and said, don't take this the wrong way but I own a Kindle (she said me too), and I picked up the Nook Tablet and said, "sell me." Frankly she did a poor job and I walked away, saying I'll think about it. My husband said, why aren't you getting it? (OK this is the man who usually say, why spend the money, you have X Y or Z). I had also mentioned in the past how cool it looked when I saw an ad for a magazine within the body of a color Nook. I did not think he paid attention. He also knew I had a hissy fit last week when my Kindle froze and I discovered the folders I painstakenly created couldn't be transferred to a new Kindle. They aren't backed up on my Kindle or computer. Now, I ask you, who wants to refile over 500 books if I bought a new device? (I didn't need one but in the fixing I did lose things from folders).

But I digress.

My husband had asked why I wasn't getting it. (Note here – I never told him I was getting one, I wanted to look at it). I said, I'm not sure and I want to see what Apple comes out with next week when they debut the new iPad. He said, "so?" He said you can use it or sell it if you don't love it. It's a no brainer. OK now trust me when I tell you, this isn't a man who normally does/says this. I'd also said at dinner before the BN trip, someone on Twitter said they had a Nook and a Kindle so Amazon didn't have ALL their business, and he said, "I can understand that." Needless to say, I left with a new gadget and told people my husband bought me a Nook Tablet. And in our house, that's how we roll!

So far, I loaded one book on it, have played Words with Friends, activated my Netflix subscription, will add Hulu Plus when I can remember the account info, read magazines – THIS I LOVE and it's good for the environment (I will cancel some of my paper subscriptions!), Twitter app and one that runs Facebook … and when the iPad comes out? I guess we'll see what happens. The only way that would sway me is if they make a mini.

UPDATE

Monday March 5 – I returned the Nook Tablet. Why? It was like having half a toy – once I left the house, I couldn't use it because of lack of wi-fi – I couldn't do anything but read and I didn't need something so heavy to read on. That and it drove me insane knowing that all my books were on my old Kindle. Clearly I was a Kindle girl. But I'm glad I got it out of my system. And I'm not getting a Kindle Fire because of that 1/2 a toy feeling I had with wifi only.

Wednesday March 7 – evening – I preordered the iPad 3 today. Note, I don't have an iPad already. We had one back when it first came out and my husband used it to read on – but eventually he sold it. After having the Nook Tablet, I KNOW I wanted the 4G iPad. I know I want to have access to my apps when I'm in the car waiting to pick up at school. I want to read on it at night when my husband's asleep – on my KINDLE APP. So I've blocked March 16 off on my calendar so I'll be here when the iPad is delivered and I can sign for it.

I'm sure nobody here is truly shocked, not that I tried another gadget, returned said gadget, or ended up with an Apple gadget after all. So? Tablets anyone? Do you have a Nook? Fire? iPad 2? Did you order an iPad 3? Let's talk!

More Serendipity Books – Titles & Release Dates!

So … I hope you know by now I'm continuing the SERENDIPITY series – my current plan is to write in 3 book arcs about the people in Serendipity for as long as readers love them and my publisher wants them! So. Who's up next? Well unfortunately, I can't tell you that until KARMA (May 2012 – 2 mos. from now) is out because you won't meet the characters until then, but once you do, I'm sure you'll be happy. What I CAN tell you now is that we decided on titles and release dates for the next books in the series.

PERFECT FIT – Feb. 2013

PERFECT CHANCE – Sept. 2013

PERFECT TOGETHER – Feb. 2014

Yay!

Wish I had more to tell you today, but as some of you know, this post was late going up (because I'm just plain exhausted) and because I'm exhausted I'm kinda out of ideas! I AM willing to answer questions and stuff about SERENDIPITY so far if you've got any!

Carly's Winner and Sunday Funny

So sorry to be late … still catching up from vacation!

The winner is: # 63 – MICHELE L.

CONGRATULATIONS! EMAIL me at: carly phillips @ mac . com (no spaces) with your confirmed email to receive your prize!

And now SUNDAY FUNNY!

A tough looking group of bikers were riding when they saw a girl about to jump off a bridge, so they stopped.

The leader, a big burly man, gets off his bike and says, "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to commit suicide," she says.

While he didn't want to appear insensitive, he didn't want to miss an opportunity so he asked… "Well, before you jump, why don't you give me a kiss?"

So she did… And it was a long, deep, lingering kiss.

After she's finished, the biker says, "Wow! That was the best kiss I have ever had! That's a real talent you are wasting. You could be famous. Why are you committing suicide?"

"My parents don't like me dressing up like a girl"

:rotf1:

Carly's Contest

Hey all! It's my Friday and that means … a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

You know the drill and in case you don't – post a comment for a chance to win and check back on Sunday to see if you got lucky!