Hart Johnson's Blog, page 39

Visiting Tote Bags and Blogs

And feeling insecure about it.  See... it's a site for REAL authors... you know... famous people... *cough*



This blogosphere is so completely fabulous, and I LOVE all of you guys. But when I see names on a roster that I knew before I was even paying attention and mine is included... well I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking about...



Anyway, I'd LOVE it if all of you could pop over THERE so I at least have some friends around me as I fumble...  And in the meantime... some monsters...





Man being absorbed by The Blob





Badass Alien





An OTHER among the Whitewalkers





Nazgul





Cthulu





And the scariest of all... a self-righteous hypocrite

Visiting Diana Wilder Today

So today I have an author interview of a little more serious nature than the one I barely survived Tuesday... Although I had a BLAST.  Still, it's a relief to be able to relax a bit and have a great conversation with the lovely Diana Wilder.  Come by and see us!



In the meantime... I showed up last night to my author chat with Writer Space... that actually occurred on Tuesday.  GAH!  I had it on my calendar, but the reminder came to me AFTER I was off the computer for the night, so I missed it completely!



Any of you make any bonehead moves like that?



In the meantime, I will leave you with tattoos for some of my favorite books, inspired by a FB share I saw yesterday.

Tart Attempts to Survive Mistress Snark

Hey there! Just dropping by quickly for some survival gear. I'm over having Tea Tuesday with Mistress Snark today.



I will confess, this interview is probably the most entertaining I've ever done, but the jury is still out on whether I will survive it. Why don't you drop over an cheer me on!?



And in the meantime... some survival gear!







So I've been working on building my immunity to iocane powder...





And though it's unattractive, I will bring a bezoar just in case...





And I probably ought to bring a couple weapons...









My personal favorite





Though this one looks scarier...



Got some of these in case I need to throw messages toward Alex...





Because this is what I'm really scared of...

Visiting L. Diane Wolfe Today!!!

Halo, fine friends!  I hope all of you had a FABULOUS weekend and that those of you who are or have mothers celebrated accordingly!!!



I'm over visiting L. Diane Wolfe today at Spunk on a Stick's Tips sharing the kind of promotion that a shy retiring sort like me can manage...



Don't laugh... seriously. I'm awkward... but I DO think I have some things that work.



In the meantime... some mama pics...

At Alex's Today!!!

Halo, fine friends! I'm really over visiting Alex Cavanaugh today... You all know where that is—he's friends with EVERYBODY, but just in case, here's the link: http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/



For HERE, I just wanted to share a few pics from my event at Aunt Agatha's last night...



(also got to meet local blogger buddy J. Weller! Love that!)









Accentuating the highlights, though the base color is redder than this looks.









And officially my first author photo I really LIKE...



So now go to Alex's and see us for real!

Gone Today, Hair Today, Party Today

Erm... yeah... What I mean by that is I won't be online much (taking the day off)... have a hair appointment and my release party/signing/reading... whatever it is...



BUT, I want to throw out the invitation to anybody nearby:



WHERE: Aunt Agatha's Mystery Bookstore

213 S. Fourth

Ann Arbor, MI



TONIGHT at 7:00 PM



Come see me. Just to offer support or to get a book signed or to buy a book. Any way you roll, I'd love to see you!

Hooray Hooray, I'm Visiting Jessica Today!!!

Not only that, it's the 8th of May!!! (Inter)National Outdoor Intercourse Day!!!





So your FIRST assignment is to come see me at the Alliterative Allomorph, talking about PLAYING TO YOUR STRENGTHS



THEN, go out and celebrate the day accordingly... Here are some ideas if you are coming up short...







Be sure to stretch first so you don't pull anything...







Grass can be scratchy. Bring a blanket.





And careful where the sand ends up...





And definitely be safe... Though I'd permit those bottom, two, all parties permitting...

Release Day, Fantasy Style

So if this were my 42nd book, instead of my 2nd... if I had a list of bestsellers and a couple movie deals under my hat... THIS is how I would be spending today:





8am: Wake up early enough to feel productive, but not so early I feel hostile.



Brush teeth, make coffee, head out for nice sunny walk









And maybe I'll have a yard like this to cool down in...



9:30am: Arrive home to Sven's fresh fruit and yogurt with granola and maybe a mimosa, as it's a special day (Sven is my in-home chef I will hire)





Sven can get very strange, but that's how I roll...



10:00am: Head for my spa treatment: massage, facial, mani/pedi. I'll take a buddy along if y'all want to start sucking up now...







Noon: Lunch with a couple girlfriends at a nice rooftop place with sun and fabulous food.





This is what I have in mind: a laughing lunch.



1:30pm: Head to a couple bookstores and ask if they'd like some copies signed... flocked by fans in the parking lot and have impromptu signing





Would ya LOOK at that mob!?



3:30pm: lounge with a good book for an hour or two.





Might need a flight for this one...



6:00pm: Small party with family and friends featuring fresh crab, artichokes, brie... all my favorites...





What?  They might be my friends...



9:00pm moonlit swim in a nicely heated pool.







But instead, this is my second book and I am at my day job... I AM taking Thursday off, as I have an event that night at Aunt Agatha's and I want to get my hair done and take a day to enjoy it...



So what do you think of my plan? Am I missing anything you'd include?

An Amusement and a PLAN *BUWAHAHAHAHAHA*

So you know how it's a big giant pain in the booty to write a bio? How you feel like a tool saying all these fantastic things about yourself, but you have a vested interest in it coming out okay? Well I ran across a solution this weekend thanks to my friend Marjorie... It's a random artist bio generator!!!



Here was mine:



My work explores the relationship between gender politics and UFO sightings.



With influences as diverse as Wittgenstein and Roy Lichtenstein, new combinations are created from both orderly and random dialogues.



Ever since I was a teenager I have been fascinated by the unrelenting divergence of the zeitgeist. What starts out as vision soon becomes corroded into a hegemony of power, leaving only a sense of decadence and the prospect of a new undefined.



As undefined derivatives become distorted through frantic and academic practice, the viewer is left with a statement of the inaccuracies of our culture.



Go here to generate your own! http://www.artybollocks.com/





And as to that PLAN!!!!! *BUWAHAHAHAHAHAHA*



Plan for WHAT, you ask...



Well, see, TOMORROW is the release date for my second book, The Begonia Bribe... so HERE are the places I've booked to visit on my blog tour! I am writing something different for each, so hope you'll get a chance to visit these fabulous hosts and hostesses.





Blog Tour

May 8: Jessica Bell

May 10: Alex Cavanaugh

May 13: L. Diane Wolfe

May 14: Ms. Snark (aka: Laura Eno: bring any items you might need for personal defense)

May 17: Tote Bags-n-Blogs

May 22: Writer Space

May 22: Dru's Musings (A day in the life of Rob Columbus)

May 24:  Fresh Fiction

May 30:  Patricia Stoltey





Huge huge THANKS to those hosting me!!! And if I snuffed up and got lines crossed with anyone who offered, please accept my apology. I've been inordinately scatter-brained of late.

A to Z-view

If anyone ever tries to convince you I'm clever, you just point them at this title and nod—you know better.



First off, I want to throw out a HUGE thanks to





Gratuitous Llama Picture

Lee (Arlee Bird at Tossing it Out)

Alex Cavanaugh

Damyanti

Tina Downey

DL Hammons

Jeremy Hawkins

Shannon Lawrence

Matthew MacNish

Konstanz Silverbow

Stephen Tremp

Livia Peterson

L. Diane Wolfe

and Nicole



These guys did a GREAT job! Compared to past years I ran across far fewer spammish, outdated or non-participating blog. I only hit a couple where people hadn't jumped in and then a couple more where people got a few days behind. Compared to past years, it was REALLY minimal, so I know these guys were working HARD! THANK YOU!!!



I think, too, the labels worked where they were there—I was one of the guilty folks who signed up without reading the instructions, but it was helpful to know what I was in for. I didn't use it to screen per se, though I DID use it in conjunction with blog length—if it was LONG and on a subject I don't have much interest in (gaming... and I think I did it once for a crafty thing) then I screened just a little. I like to get to know a variety of people.



So overall, I think it was run REALLY WELL this year.





As for MY Report Card...



That is more a mixed bag. I had a couple successes:



I FINISHED

I have several new followers (not quite 20, but close)

I made a pretty good effort at visiting everyone who visited me

I made some new friends I plan to visit regularly



Where I fell down though, is where life got busy... book promo prep, the SWAMPED day job, family crises... I started strong on the visiting, but by the end, I was barely keeping up with visitors, let alone getting to others on the list. I think I got through 300 from the list, but probably 2/3 of that was in the first week, then I trickled.



Overall it was a good experience though.



So how was YOUR A to Z?