Bev Pettersen's Blog, page 24

This… Is… Jeopardy!

I can’t spill any of the details yet, but I wanted to swing by with a drive-by post to say that I’m going to be on Jeopardy tonight!  Aaaahhhh!!!

I’ll be back tomorrow to spill any details you want, but if you want to watch tonight and play along with insider info, see if you can spot if I:

a) accidentally caught a glimpse of myself on the monitor and got flustered because I realized I was on TV (I would be a terrible famous person)

b) rang in with the right answer in my head, convinced myse...

Winners Announced for the 2018 MAKE IT GOLDEN Contest!

Oh, my goodness, Finalists!! You nearly broke the Rubies this time!  This was the toughest final vote we’ve ever had.  Truly, we could happily award our top prizes multiple times over…but we forced ourselves to choose just our top three entries each, and then made the razor-thin distinctions needed to come up with our winners.  What an amazing group of entries this year!! Each of us has favorites that didn’t quite make the podium, and we’re eagerly awaiting the releases of ALL these stories!!...

ONE MORE WORD OR MAYBE JUST ONE WORD

I realized only minutes ago (Sunday evening 10:30 p.m.) that I scheduled to blog here at RSS on Monday. In a panic, I found this blog I wrote almost ten years ago (now updated) and realized that my life has changed a lot since then but also, I’m just as busy. I’m still working outside the home—actually studying for another career too—and I’m now helping my son raise his two sons. Motherhood in your golden years is challenging, but oh so fun. And finding time to write is  still a chore. Most d...

Back to Double Digits

Well, here we are. October is upon us once more. We’re in the double digit months and I, for one, have no idea how this has happened. Wasn’t it just New Year’s? And right after that Easter? And boy, wasn’t Memorial Day a blast?

Since my year has whizzed by faster than a Fourth of July firework, I figured it might be time to take stock of what the year has been.

As productive as I’d hoped? No, not quite.

A total wash? Nope, can’t say that either.

What I can say is that no matter how often I la...

Finalists Announced for the 2018 MAKE IT GOLDEN Contest!

It’s time to announce the top ten finalists for the 2018 MAKE IT GOLDEN CONTEST!! Finalists: be sure to post your EXPANDED entries in the comments below (a maximum total of 250 words, starting with the exact opening lines you showed us already, plus what immediately follows) by 12:01 a.m. PACIFIC TIME October 4 to stay in contention for the final round. In other words, you’ll have 27 hours from the time this post appears. Please put the word ENTRY in all caps at the top again (and, no, that d...

Prep NOW for NaNo (and the 2019 Golden Heart)!!!!

It’s October, and that means it’s time for NaNoWriMo!!!

Silly Elisa, some of you may be saying right now. National Novel Writing Month is in NOVEMBER, honey. You’re jumping the gun.

But nooooooo, my friends. I’ve learned through trial and error (lots and lots of error) that waiting until November 1 to get started is a big mistake. I’m a pantser by nature, but when it comes time to pump out 1667 useful words a day for 30 days straight, a little planning is actually in order.

Take heart, those...

The Definition of Done

A few weeks ago, I wrote about rewarding yourself to help train your brain to get into a productive, creative mode and the value of not moving the goalposts on yourself – but that can be easier said than done when you’re doing something as subjective as writing.  

How many of you (like me) have finished a first draft, but you don’t feel like you’ve finished because you already have a list in your head (or on paper) of all the things you need to tackle in revisions?  How many of you (like me)...

Opening Day for the 2018 MAKE IT GOLDEN Contest!

Welcome to the NINTH Annual MAKE IT GOLDEN Contest!! The MAKE IT GOLDEN contest is designed for unpublished authors who are polishing up their entries for RWA’s Golden Heart Contest. We all know how important a strong opening is in grabbing the attention of Golden Heart judges, and this contest is a great chance to test yours out!

Check out the finalists from 2017’s contest, 2016’s contest,  2015’s contest, 2014’s contest, and 2013’s contest , (plus 2012’s contest here, 2011 here, and 2010 he...

How to Set up & Run a Facebook Release Party

Today is book release day for the first book in my new Highland Roses School series! Welcome to the world, A ROSE IN THE HIGHLANDS! To celebrate my new Scottish Historical romance, I am hosting my first Facebook party, starting later today at 4PM ET. So today on the Ruby blog, I am going to share with you how to set up a Facebook party. It can seem intimidating, but so far, it’s been fairly easy. 1. Choose a date and time. Take into account your audience. Even though I am having a release day...

It’s Birthday Number NINE for the Ruby Blog!!

Happy birthday to us!! The Ruby Slippered Sisterhood blog is NINE YEARS OLD today!! It’s been a joy creating and sustaining this blog as a supportive online community for Romance writers and readers, offering a space for inspiration, advice, and Sisterhood for all!!

To date, we’ve offered up 2,692 blog posts, lots of special events like our annual  Rita/Golden Heart Announcement Day Cyber-Party, an interview series with each new class of Golden Heart Finalists, fun Holiday Blog Hops, and our...