Sharla Lovelace's Blog, page 15

I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read…

And I do!

But actually, that is the name of the site I’m visiting today.    I’m at I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read talking about what makes a good romance novel.  If you have an opinion on that, and would like a chance to win some goodies, please come by!!

Tagged: book launch, ghosts, i just wanna sit here and read, reviews, romance, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction

Why is April 16th significant?

 

Have you read REASON yet?  If so, you know what April 16th was….  But do you the rest of the little personal details meshed into the story?  I’m at Writerspace today (starting at noon) talking about that and giving away a signed copy!  Come comment for a chance to win!

I’m also discussing the writing process as part of my blog tour at The Paranormal Romance Party

Tagged: april 16, giveaway, paranormal romance party, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction, writerspace blog

Down the road…

Is there a trip you've taken that's changed your life?

I am at Once Upon A Time today talking about one that changed mine.  Come share your thoughts and enter to win prizes for the blog tour!

 

Tagged: book launch, once upon a time, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, trip

Where does your inner reader live?

What is it like in the town where you live?  Quiet?

Buzzing busy?  Quaint?  Grassy?  Concrete and efficient?

Now, which of those settings draws you in as a reader?  I'm at Words of Wisdom from the Scarf Princess talking about this.  Come join in to win prizes!

 

 

Tagged: book launch, sharla lovelace, small towns, the reason is you, womens fiction, words of wisdom from the scarf princess

What are you doing today?

Good morning!!

Today I'm chatting about books at Kindling the Fire…come chat with us and enter for a giveaway!!

What are YOU doing today?

Tagged: blog tour, book launch, coffee, kindling the fire, romance, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction

Blog tour…and cover reveal of BEFORE AND EVER SINCE…

Today we are back on track with the Blog Tour, but today is a two-fold thing.  First, I'll be over at Asian Cocoa's Secret Garden today talking about how Dani and Alex met in THE REASON IS YOU.  Please come comment on the post to enter to win prizes!

>>>>>>>>>Now…<<<<<<<<<

I've been holding back on announcing anything on my second book, wanting to give REASON it's day in the sun, and it still has a long sunny road ahead.  But it's now time to reveal the book that will sit next to it on the shelf, coming November 6th.  So here it is!!!

BEFORE AND EVER SINCE

Emily Lockwood, your past is showing.

Emily Lockwood has been sitting on a secret for so long, and buried so deep that she really doesn't even think of it anymore. Why should she? She has a successful career, an ex-husband who rarely tests her patience, a mother who usually does, and a stubbornly independent grown daughter. Everything is fine, just another crazy kind of normal.

Until Ben Landry comes back to town. From childhood friends to young lovers, Ben and Emily had an unbreakable bond. Or so she thought—until he disappeared for over twenty years without explanation. Seeing Ben again triggers more than mere memories and a tug at her heart. It rips the cover off an old secret that could hurt the people she loves most.

While Emily works to keep her secret safe and her heart safer, her sanity gets a reality check. She's been seeing things—her past played out like home movies unreeling before her eyes, visions that are making Emily see herself, her family, everyone she knew, and every choice she made, in a revealing new light and a startling new angle. For Emily, seeing her life in rewind makes her realize she has hard choices to make for her future. Choices that may redefine everyone else's future as well.

 

So what do you think??? 

 

Tagged: asian cocoa's secret garden, before and ever since, blog tour, book launch, cover reveal, romance, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction

Growing up with BOOKS and the first week down!

Blog tour kicks back up on Monday, so today I'm taking it a little easy. 

THE REASON IS YOU has been out in the world for one week now, and I couldn't be happier.  It's everything I hoped it would be like, seeing it out there, hearing from readers.  Of course I'm told this is Week One Euphoria (see Roni Loren's post in January about the stages of a book release…it's hysterical…lol).  And that's okay.  I'm aware that there won't always be people loving my book–right now that's all I'm hearing from–but it will come.  The bad reviews and negativity.  I know.  And I'm prepared with my big girl armor to shake it off when it happens because this industry is brutal and you never please everyone.  But right now?  I'm floating with the chirpy birds and rainbows.  Even problems like local bookstores not getting my books in and late shipments–it's okay.  It's all good. 

On another subject, I wanted to talk about something that came up in an email loop I'm involved in, on the number of Americans that had never read a book.  Ever.

From the Pew Research Study on ebooks vs print:

However, 19% of respondents aged 16 and over said that they hadn't read a single book in any format, over the previous 12 months – the highest since such surveys on American reading habits began in 1978. If this figure is accurate, that means more than 50 million Americans don't read books at all.

I can't even begin to comprehend that.  And it stirred up a great conversation on how we grew up, whether we were introduced to books and what our children do now.  I personally was in our town library more than anything else as a child.  My mom and I went every single Saturday and sometimes more than that, and I can still remember the smell of that tiny old library.  It's been replaced now, but I remember it being a magical place.  My mom would go one direction and I'd go another.  I went through all those red hardcover books about Daniel Boone and Davy Crocket and Pocahontas…lol…and all the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drews.  I won the Summer Reading Clubs every summer, having to staple extra pages to the forms.  And I remember the sound of the card puncher when I'd hand it up to the librarian to check out my books…the kachoooga…of it.  LOL!  I thought she was the luckiest person in the world to be in such a place all day long.  I even remember her name.  It was Miss Virginia.

How on earth do I remember that?  Because reading was a staple activity in my home.  I don't remember being read TO, but I'm sure I was, because I was hooked on all my Little Golden Books stacked deep on my bookshelf when I was little.

I've read ever since.  I owned an indie bookstore for a couple of years when we came back to Texas, and it was heaven on earth to me and to my daughter.  See…we read to her since she was an infant, and before she could really read, she was "reading" by memory, turning the pages and repeating the words she'd heard day after day after day.  I brought her to the library every weekend, too, and later when she was in middle school, she'd walk there after school till I got off work, and sit and read whatever struck her fancy that day.  She's seventeen now, and has read more in her life than I ever have.  She reads 4-5 at one time, and her most precious gift is a Barnes & Noble gift card where she can go get lost in the magic of the store.

So I can't imagine never reading a book.  Can you?  Tell me your experience.

Tagged: book launch, libraries, reading, romance, roni loren, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction

Rolling along…

Realmantic Moments has me over at their place today.  Come visit and comment for a chance to win prizes!

Tagged: blog tour, realmantic moments, sharla lovelace, the reason is you

A New Day!

And that's a good thing!!! 

Having another new day every day is better than the alternative!!

Well today's new day, at least in my world, brings me to two special places today.

One is part of my blog tour, over at The ParaRomance Club, where they were gracious enough to review REASON and chat with me a little.  (They are in the UK, and the post isn't up yet as of 8:30am CST, so keep checking back)

The second is the popular Happy Ever After (HEA) Blog at USA Today, with fellow Berkley author, Joyce Lamb.

*clapping and cartwheeling commence*

(or if it's still early…just a meaningful nod over the coffee cup is perfectly understandable.)

I'm excited about both of these, and can't wait to head over there.  So here I go….come on…

Survived the first day!! :-)

Whew!  Yesterday was a whirlwind!

Today should be a little calmer.  Should…maybe… LOL.

I got to sign stock at Barnes and Noble, after a little inventory drama, and a few people took pictures of my book in other bookstores.  Very surreal!  I received verification that I have the world's best friends and family.

I sent out a newsletter, with a book giveaway and a trivia contest with a QR code to scan.  The free book went quickly, but the trivia question prize is still up for grabs!

Today I am at Novel Reflections where they reviewed THE REASON IS YOU.  Come visit for a chance at prizes!!

Tagged: blog tour, book launch, novel reflections, sharla lovelace, the reason is you