Nicki Elson's Blog, page 57

One Lovely Blog

A Big THANK YOU to the always fun and interesting Zoe C. Courtman, horror writer for awarding me with the One Lovely Blog Award.

I confess, I've been coveting this one ever since I first saw it on someone else's blog.  And thanks to Blogger's easy peasy template designer, I actually feel like I deserve it.  Doesn't it look so great with my grey background? Thanks Zoe.

While I'm busy patting myself on the back...I'm tickled to tell you that the Three Daves book trailer has surpassed 1500 views! Eternal gratitude to the director and editor, Barb Hallworth. (If you wanna help me get to 2000, give it a watch. ;))



And now, to accept the One Lovely Blog Award, I am to bestow it upon fifteen worthy blogs that I have recently discovered.  I must have amazing taste in blogs, because so many of the ones I follow already won this award!  Congrats to all of you, and to the fifteen new recipients whose blogs are lovely inside and out:   

Above the Clouds
Art n' writin'
The Block
Crazy Jane
Damsel in a Dirty Dress
Eleri Stone
It's My Life
Katie Anderson Writer 
Musings of an Aspiring Scribe
Purl One, Yarn Over, Purl Two Together, Knit One 
Rambles and Randomness
Roses & Thorns
Sandra Ulbrich Almazon: Speculative Fiction Writer
A Woman's Write
Where Fantasy and Love Take Flight

The Guy with the Dragon Tattoo

I just won this book!  
It's from Sandra Ulbrich Almazan: Speculative Fiction Author as part of her 100 follower giveaway.  Thanks Sandra!

I honestly didn't know anything about this one, but I liked the name of it.  And now that I take a good look at it, I...I rather like the cover too. ;)
Like I said---thanks Sandra!

Meet an Author Monday

Welcome to Meet and Author Monday! To meet new authors and discover great reads, simply visit any of the author links at our hostess, Cali Cheer Mom's, blog post.  Look for our "Meet an Author Monday" icon at any of the blogs listed there to keep on hoppin.  

Authors! Have a book out? Are you under contract for publication? Join in the hop for a great way to network your blog and let readers know who you are.



While you're hopping, you'll see that the awesome Jennifer Lane, author of With Good Behavior, has posted an interview with moi and a four star review of Three Daves!  Along with listing her favorite 80s moments in the book, she had some very nice things to say, including:

I really thought that Nicki Elson showed a realistic portrayal of college. Sure, we grow intellectually at college, but personal development seems to matter the most during these years. The formation of Jen's identity was subtle yet strong, aided by the Three Daves along the way. She starts off as a chameleon but grows into a confident young woman who is not afraid to be herself. In terms of which Dave she chose at the end, I was very satisfied. (He was my choice too!)
Read the whole review HERE.  Thanks Jennifer!

Retro Road Trip!

I'm doing it!  Thanks to the encouragement of friend and author, Robin DeJarnett, I'm going back to where it all began and heading to Eastern Illinois University for Homecoming Weekend!!!  In case you didn't know, EIU is the inspiration behind the CIU campus in Three Daves.  It's going to be surreal to be back there, because while I was dancing the night away at Romans nights and grabbing a beer with friends at Ike's, I had no idea that what I was actually doing was "research" for an 80s chick-lit/romance I would one day write.  Seriously, I was studying finance; no one could've foreseen this.
So I've booked a room at the lovely Super 8, arranged to do a book signing at the Panther Scholarship Scramble, and cajoled two girlfriends, also EIU alumn, into joining me on October 22.  Fun, fun, FUN! 
In addition to a little postcard distribution and making new EIU memories, my mission will be to snap  photos of places that get a mention in the book so I can share them with you. I wonder how many Daves we can find... 
If any of you have any advice on other promo-related things I should try to accomplish on my road trip, I'm all ears.

Meet Victoria Michaels

I had the pleasure of working with Victoria Michaels to edit her second novel, Trust in Advertising, just released at the end of July.  It follows (but is not a sequel to) the publication of her debut novel, Boycotts and Barflies .

Everything about Victoria is delightful, including her stories. She has a talent for pulling readers in to the hearts and minds of her characters, and her sense of humor and fun personality shine throughout each of her novels.  Here's a peek into Trust in...

Meet an Author Monday...and Met Some Readers Friday

Last Friday I was hosted by the Urban Book Club in Forest Park, IL and was once again blown away by the "Book Experience."  It was so much more than a book discussion.  The club members had scoured shops and the internet for 80s apparel, and one even wore an authentic pair of extremely colorful leggings FROM the 80s!  To top it off, hair was pouffed to maximum height and 80s tunes played in the background. 

As if getting greeted with this flashback to my heday wasn't enough, our gracious host...

Writing Compelling Characters

I'm excited to particpate in The Great Blogging Experiment, brainchild of bloggers extraordinaire Elana Johnson, Alex J Cavanaugh and Jennifer Daiker.  The experiment is simply this: a bunch of bloggers blog on the same exact topic on the same exact day---today!  Will it be mass redundancy, or will we find each post insightful in it's own way, colored by each blogger's unique personality?  We shall see.  I'm betting on the latter.

For a list of participants in The Great Blogging Experiment, cl...

Meet an Author Monday

Welcome to the weekly Meet an Author Monday blog hop. To meet new authors and discover great reads, simply visit any of the author links below. Look for our "Meet an Author Monday" icon at any of these blogs to keep on hoppin.  

Authors! Have a book out? Are you under contract for publication? Join in the hop for a great way to network your blog and let readers know who you are!.

The 80s Are "Going the Distance"

The other night I saw the funny and sweet Going the Distance, starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long and was surprised and ridiculously delighted by all the 80s references.

The film is most definitely set in current times with texting and skyping galore, but someone involved in this movie was clearly jonesing for the 80s and found any which way to stick the decade in there, starting but certainly not ending with a game of Atari's Centipede.
Then there was a quick move over to a guy in a Ralph...

Meet Jennifer DeLucy

Jennifer DeLucy is a highly creative, wonderfully genuine person whom I had the pleasure of working with when I was assigned as Developmental Editor on her debut novel, Seers of Light.  Seers of Light is the first book in The Light Series, a paranormal journey of self-discovery, adventure, and romance.

Jennifer was inspired to tell this story after a personal exploration of various paths of philosophy and spirituality, including near death experiences.  All of these things come together in See...