Sophia Rose's Blog, page 2

Announcing the Coming of Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen's Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues

Eleven of Jane Austen's most infamous characters are inviting you into their intimate lives to know their thoughts, their motives, and their actions from their point of view. In essentials they are much the same as they have always been, but in knowing them perhaps you will like at least understand them better (Wickham quit twisting Lizzy's words to suit yourself or was that you Willoughby...).

You are invited to join our excitement by visiting several of the blogs who are posting our announcement where you can also participate in a fabulous giveaway opportunity. Thanks to all who are hosting us

Here are links to a few of the blogs hosting our announcement:
Claudine's JustJane1813: http://justjane1813.com/2017/09/05/24...

Ceri's Babblings of a Bookworm: http://babblingsofabookworm.blogspot....

Meredith's Austenesque Reviews: http://austenesquereviews.com/2017/09...

Rita's From Pemberley to Milton: https://frompemberleytomilton.wordpre...

Candy's So Little Time:
http://candy-m.blogspot.com/

Mira's Obsessed with Mr. Darcy: https://obsessedwithmrdarcy.wordpress...

Maria's My Jane Austen Book Club:
http://thesecretunderstandingofthehea...

And, just so you know, Dangerous to Know has made itself at home here on GoodReads. We'd love it if you gave it a click and placed it on your 'Want to Read' shelf:

Stay tuned for the cover reveal, blog tour, and November 15th release date!
#RakesandGentlemenRogues

TEN HUT!!! Support the Troops Auction

I have a really cool banner that I was allowed to snitch for this announcement, but alas photobucket has gremlins and won't spit out my html code. So, hopefully, I will have it up shortly. Just pretend there is a really cool stars and stripes American flag with Support the Troops imposed over it floating here. LOL

Support the Troops Auction Is Happening Now Through September 1st


My blogger book buddy, Anna @ Herding Cats and Burning Soup hosts the Support the Troops auction each year. I had to give a shoutout to all my GR followers to help get the word out.

Here's a bit about the 'whys and wherefores' behind the auction:
Anna says,
The USO where I volunteer is at our airport. We provide a lounge where military and their dependents can rest while waiting for flights or if they've had a delay/cancellation. We have a playroom, kitchen, lounge and computer area. We also have an honors team that comes in to escort fallen soldiers coming through our airport and their families. We do welcome home celebrations and deployments as well as a ton of other things.
Last time I looked I think it was 500,000 who come through our center each year. You can find out more about what we do here.
The auction is to benefit our center and the USO of NC!
We've got a ton of cool stuff from books to crafts up for grabs. Please come bid on items! And if you can't bid please share the post on your social media. It would be greatly appreciated! Huge thanks to everyone who donated items! Be sure to check them out!


Charities that support the US Military are near and dear to my heart so I put up a print copy of The Darcy Monologues to the highest US bidder. The auction is open now through Sept 1st.

Anna's blog post about the Auction: http://www.herdingcats-burningsoup.co...

Link to the online auction page: https://www.32auctions.com/organizati...

Sophia's Sofa Chat With Alexa

Wow! It has been several months since I sat down with a guest for a chat. I was tickled to death when my invitation to visit was accepted by author Alexa Adams while she’s out on tour this month. Alexa’s been a shining star in the Jane Austen community for some time. I know I’ve been loving on her books for hmm, seven years… something like that. Whew! Time flies. She has a friendly on-line presence both on social media and through her blog, happily connecting with readers and fans.
For this occasion, Alexa is dropping by to chat, but also to share about her latest release, Darcy in Wonderland, which comes out this month. Woohoo!

Howdy, Alexa!
Hi, Sophia! It’s a pleasure to be here.

Thanks for dropping by. Have a seat on my comfy couch that tends to swallow people up and won’t let them go. Can I get you iced tea or lemonade to help cool you off after your trip?
A lemonade sounds perfect, thank you.
I got this fantastic peach tart recipe from a friend and peaches in season out at the local orchard so I had to make up some mini tarts to share. Help yourself!
I will. They look delicious.

How has your summer been going? Do any fun trips, festivals, family outings?
My family and I recently returned from two weeks visiting with friends and family in the United States. Since we moved to Switzerland two years ago, these summer trips across the Atlantic are not exactly relaxing, but they are great fun. It’s wonderful to catch up with everyone and indulge in all the foods we miss. Now we’re back to schnitzel and sausages.
Now isn't that how it is- we do seem to need a vacation after our vacations. Haha!

Did you read any great ‘summer-beach reads’?
I haven’t had as much reading time as I like with the book release, but I did find time to finish A Quest for Mr. Darcy by Cassandra Grafton, which was excellent.

It's on my pile and glad to know it got your seal of excellence.

Speaking of reads… Happy Release for Darcy in Wonderland…
I understand it’s a mash-up of Pride & Prejudice and Alice in Wonderland. I am hopping with curiosity and love the idea.
How did that idea come about?
My inspiration was my daughter. She’s quite Alice-like. I’ve always loved the story and have long wanted to blend Pride and Prejudice with a different writer’s work. Also, I was looking for something fun to write. My last book, The Madness of Mr. Darcy, emotionally drained me. This is much more lighthearted.

Ahhh, now how can one not find this inspiration adorable.

These are both fantastic stories, of course. What’s a favorite scene from both stories?
That’s a tough question. I think, as it is for so many other fans, that the mad tea party is my favorite part of Alice in Wonderland.
I adore every minute of Pride and Prejudice, but if I have to choose a favorite, I’d better go with when Lady Catherine barges in on the Bennets at Longbourn, if for no other reason than it manages to creep into almost all my books. I adore writing for Lady Catherine. She’s a major plot mover in the new book.

Did you lean more toward one book more than the other in the mash-up or is it even-Steven?
The story is more Carroll’s than Austen. I stay pretty close to his original tale, but it is encapsulated within a Pride and Prejudice sequel (many years on), with Darcy tagging along on his daughter’s adventure. As is so often true, he’s the real star of the show: a proper foil for his whimsical little girl.
Now, that does captivate my attention.

What was the most difficult thing about writing such a mash-up?
Trying to balance the tones of my two muses, which are very different. Austen is far more formal than Carroll. I tried to keep the characters from the former’s world true to her stylings, while allowing the latter’s to run amuck, as they are so prone to do. This was rather tough on my editor, I think, as she really wanted to limit my contraction use in the manner of a typical Austenesque novel, but Carroll uses them constantly. It was a tricky negotiation.

Was there a character that really surprised you once you started writing?
Alice. As I said, she’s based on my own six-year-old daughter. What I didn’t expect was that she would also prove the perfect little Lizzy.

Is there a particular non-spoiler scene that really hit you emotionally?
Throughout the adventure in Wonderland, Darcy tries so hard to impose reason on all the impossible things happening around him. Finally, when he meets the Mock-Turtle, he cracks from the effort, losing himself in hysterics and really relishing the absurdity. I had a blast writing that scene.
Sounds like a really insightful read on his character.

Are you busy with another work in progress or maybe plotting out a future work in progress now?
I am on my fourth round of edits on a very long-term project, Being Mrs. Bennet. It’s the story a modern woman who, following a car accident, finds herself inhabiting the body of Mrs. Bennet. It’s a very challenging piece that I’ve been working on for years, but I hope to publish it early next year.
And, I know I will not be the only one perked up with interest for this news.

Sofa Starters:
Orange or Yellow?
I guess yellow, as it is the color of madness, but I’m really not a huge fan of either. More of a blue or green girl.
Italian or Mexican food?
Mexican because they don’t really have it in Switzerland.
Beach or Mountains?
Must I choose? I’d be lost without both.
Traffic Jam or Long Line?
Long line. Better people watching.
Music or Sports?
Music.
Mini-Tool Kit or Mini-Sewing Kit?
Mini-sewing kit.
Sci-Fi or Steampunk?
Sci-Fi.
Mrs. Norris or Lady Catherine?
Definitely Lady Catherine, who really is one of my favorite of Austen’s characters. However, I did write a novella a few years ago entitled Becoming Mrs. Norris. It’s a Mansfield Park prequel told from her perspective. I’ve never done a purely Lady Catherine story. Maybe it’s time.


Well, I should let Alexa get going. Let me package up some of these tarts for the road. Thanks so much for dropping by, Alexa.
Thank you, Sophia! It’s been a lot of fun (though I think I might have overindulged on the tarts).

If she’s not visiting here on GoodReads, you can find Alexa at:
alexaadams.blogspot.com
austenauthors.net
www.facebook.com/AuthorAlexaAdams
www.facebook.com/ElegantExtracts
twitter.com/ElegantExtracts


Now, isn't this cover adorable? Love how it suits the story inside so well.


Feel free to leave your calling cards at the stops along the way for Alexa's blog tour:
August 5th - Laughing with Lizzie
August 7th - Austenesque Reviews
VVB32 Reads
August 8th - Just Jane 1813
August 9th & 10th - From Pemberley to Milton
August 11th - Austen Authors
August 12th - Sophia Rose's Blog (Goodreads)
August 13th - Musings from the Yellow Kitchen
August 14th - Diary of an Eccentric
August 15th - More Agreeably Engaged
August 16th - My Jane Austen Book Club
VVB32 Reads
August 17th - Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell
August 18th - Babblings of a Bookworm
August 19th - Savvy Verse & Wit

Darcy in Wonderland is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Darcy-Wonderla...

Cover Wars- May the Games Begin

Now, this is one gorgeous cover with pop. Memorable! Exciting! Pettable! Have to have it on your shelf! Are you convinced yet?

Well, good, because The Darcy Monologues with a cover designed by Shari Ryan is engaged in a fun contest and I am shamelessly attempting to drum up support for a big win.

AuthorShout.com hosts a weekly Cover Wars contest.
This is a contest that is not about a book's content, but it's outer wrapping (i.e. no prior reading of the book needed). Sunday to Sunday, beginning June 18th) the poll is open and then the winner is announced. Voters can come back once a day for a whole week to leave a vote for the cover.

There are 15 worthy book covers in the contest. Naturally, I would love it if you could stop by and vote up The Darcy Monologues, but I'll be a sport and say TDM has some worthy competition. :)

To vote, all you need do is follow the link to the authorshout.com site. They require you to follow or share in at least ONE of the ways and then click on your vote pick. Votes DO NOT need to become a member of the site to vote (I tested this out for last week's Cover War). You can vote more than once (or hey, vote a different book each day if you struggle with a tie) every 24 hours. Voting begins 8am EST

So, get ready... get set... and one-click for TDM!!!!
http://authorshout.com/cover-wars/

Thank you ahead for your time and vote. :)

Release Day Happened Early

No, it is not May 21st and yet, woohoo, we have a paperback release.
So...
Happy Release Day!!! ensues *tossing virtual confetti*

Here's the link if you wish confirmation and further desire to add the handsome The Darcy Monologues to your cart:
https://www.amazon.com/Darcy-Monologu...

Just to clarify, the electronic version is still slated for a May 21st release and this is paper back only.

Oh and pretty please with sprinkles on top, if you have read our book, it would be a huginormous favor to us if you could add a review on TDM's Amazon page. A few sentences will suffice if you're not usually a review person. Thank you whole-heartedly to those who have already done so.

First Time on the First- April's Here No Foolin'

Holy Smoly! It's April already. Easter and spring are around the corner. Baseball Opening Day is next week. April was a total sneak attack. LOL

So March was brisk with activity, but also it roared in and roared out like a herd of lions.
Weather-wise.
Our tribe here got hit with a wind storm around the time of the Ides of March- yeah, beware, indeed. Shakespeare called that one, didn't he?
Funny part, it just so happened to be our weekly garbage pick up day so I had the joy of chasing down three empty garbage bins and lids that were ours and collecting two lids and a bin out of our tree that were not ours. At least, the garbage was collected before the fierce part of the storm hit.
We had a few days with no power as a result and naturally that was when the temps plunged below freezing and gave us ice and snow.
Good news is that we lost no food from spoilage and the truly good news (luck O' the Irish, I guess though I'm not Irish so I guess I shouldn't be claiming that one, LOL) is that for all the damage that storm could have done, we lost no personal property.

On the Writing Front
Another roaring good piece of news was to see everyone's reaction to the cover reveal for our short story anthology, The Darcy Monologues. It's a team effort to be sure and there are so many non-author folks involved that I do indeed mean TEAM.



Now that the delicious TDM cover with so much pop is on the loose, we are gearing up for Release Day (yes, capital letters are necessary for the big enchilada). I've
enjoyed working on my tour guest post interview (I get to visit Debbie @ The Reading Frenzy's blog) and also work on this really cool idea Claudine had regarding fan girls (I'll say no more, you'll have to wait and see...)




Photo of pitcher, Jeff Samardzija, belongs to Official San Francisco Giants website

I get in an odd sort of focus mood when I'm planning/writing/just written a story. It is there with me and I start to see parallels and symbolism everywhere that ties to my story (we will not discuss my craving for French Toast while I was writing this one).
This happened the other night when I was watching a pre-season baseball game for my favorite San Francisco Giants team because my story for TDM is set against the baseball sports world.
I made the correlation that TDM is in the pre-season, too. Our cover reveal tour and Amazon e-book pre-order is our pre-Season. And I am greatly anticipating our big Opening Day (Release date, May 22).
And oh yes, I've been looking over this year's teams for my Will 'the Dandy' Darcy and his buddy Richie Fitzwilliam to make an appearance. Maybe they're at a press junket meeting with sportswriter, Liz Bennet...

So what about you? How was your March? Any Mother Nature on a bender stories for you? Did it fly by? Making any Easter or spring plans (yes, I will be doing some spring cleaning tasks and they count, ugh)? Are you a baseball fan? What Jane Austen character would you like to see out in the ball field?

Link to Cover Reveal blog tour stop @ The Reading Frenzy featuring talk of the cover, intro to the authors, intro to Darcy Strikes Out, and TWO giveaways: http://thereadingfrenzy.blogspot.com/...

Link to Amazon to pre-order The Darcy Monologues e-book version: https://www.amazon.com/Darcy-Monologu...

The Darcy Monologues Cover Reveal: Coming to a Blog Near You

The Great Cover Reveal is upon us. Flinging virtual confetti into the air and huzzahing euphorically. Each author from the collection will be under the spotlight at several abso-fab blogs. Drop by one, drop by them all....

Here's the list where you may leave your calling cards beginning March 27th.


My Love for Jane Austen
Margie’s Must Reads
My Jane Austen Book Club
Austenesque Reviews
Of Pens and Pages
More Agreeably Engaged
So Little Time
Diary of an Eccentric
Book Lover in Florida
My Vices and Weaknesses
Savvy Verse & Wit
Every Savage Can Dance
Obsessed with Mr Darcy
Polished and Bubbly
The Reading Frenzy
Just Jane 1813


If you wish to drop in on moi, you may leave your gilt-edged card at The Reading Frenzy hosted by my fabulous friend, Debbie.
http://thereadingfrenzy.blogspot.com/



And here's a fun quote and graphic designed by the talented truly, Beau North

It's Everywhere! It's Everywhere!

Many know about a certain slice of Darcymania I am part of called The Darcy Monologues, a short story anthology, which I fondly refer to as darling TDM.


TDM is making a splash all over social media sites and I had to share where you can tune in and follow so you don't miss the cool stuff- announcements, Darcy gifs, giveaways.

And I mustn't be selfish. I must share that TDM is raising all sorts of anticipation and excitement with cunning quote teasers created by our very own Darcy Whisperer, Beau North for each story in TDM.
You've not lived until you've seen these. Enjoy this latest one:




Where can you find these phenom quotes and more?
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/TheDarcyMono...

Instagram: #TheDarcyMonologues
https://www.instagram.com/explore/tag...

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/stircrazyar...



*****Bloggers and Reviewers Wanted*****
If you are interested in participating in posting the Cover Release, Tour Posts, or Posting Up Reviews, please let me know and I will get your contact deets to Claudine our on-line promotions goddess.

First Time on the First- It's a LOVEly Time of the Year

February really came fast for me. I've been slacking off on my resolutions a little hard at work trying to fulfill many of my January resolutions and discovered something.
If I want a new, better habit to form, I can't get all drastic about it. I've learned to taper into big changes. Like, let's take eating right. I can do this and do it well if I can also have moments of eating entirely wrong (yep, still had some Christmas chocolate calling my name and whew boy, stressed is Rootbeer spelled forward).

But seriously, I've made strides in the right direction and I'm content because I've made progress and actually still have my list of goals in sight and on my mind. I've hit more goals than not and I'll take that as a win.

Speaking of working on goals, one of my goals was connecting more with folks here on GoodReads in a positive way. One of those ways is my Sofa Chats.




I want to continue on with these so if you don't mind chatting with me here on the blog in the form of a series of casual interview questions, drop me a comment or send me a message to sign up or inquire further.

And another of my goals was reading challenges. I tried the COYER (Clean Off Your E-Reader) Challenge (clever name by the by) for the first time last summer and did the winter challenge and I really made a dent in my older TBR pile books. There is the challenge of course, but also a fun and lively Facebook Group with daily activities that are optional, but oh so encouraging and fun. The three bloggers, Stormi, Berls, and Michelle, who host this challenge do an abso-fab job. So I am giving them a shout out, but also plugging it shamelessly to you all to join. :)

February really is a LOVEly month for me in that I get to celebrate my folks' anniversary, several family birthdays, and it was also the month years ago that I went on a blind date and later married the charmer who is still a charmer (he enables my reading and writing habits).

Announcing The Darcy Monologues

I am tickled to be sharing with you about a special short story anthology project that I'm absolutely certain lovers of Pride & Prejudice are really going to love. And why is that? Because it's Darcy's story.

Humbled and thrilled to be on this team of writers that creator Christina Boyd brought together. I've already gotten glimpses of my fellow author's stories and I can't wait for you to get your hands on their brilliant and creative tales.

Want to get in on the early excitement? Drop by the blogs hosting our announcement to enjoy an intimate interview with our editor Christina and toss your hat into the ring for one of three fab giveaway prizes.
Leave your calling card at:
My Jane Austen Book Club
So Little Time…
Pemberley to Milton
Babblings of a Bookworm
More Agreeably Engaged
Austenesque Reviews
Margie’s Must Reads
My Vices and Weaknesses
Obsessed With Mr Darcy
Savvy Verse & Wit

The Darcy Monologues edited by Christina Boyd will release in May 2017. Let him tell you his story...