Melissa C. Walker's Blog, page 49

Win-it Wednesday: A Boat Name for a Box o' Books

Yup, that's right. This contest is on for one more week. Keep those names coming! I'm writing like a fiend and I've already used at least one of your boat names. I realized there are a few boats in this book, so anyone who names a book in the boat gets some books. I promise!

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Name that boat!

Tuesday Cooking: Chick Peas!

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This week I made this Jamie Oliver Summer Chickpea Salad. It was DELICIOUS, and I did not repeat my bean sprout blunder.

I also served fried pimientos with this one, because I adored them in Spain and I'm trying to recapture the joie de vivre I had en Espana!

I'm a big meat-eater, but I like the idea of at least one day a week where I'm a vegetarian. This was it!

Happy Tuesday, don't forget to visit Holly Cupala's Book Birthday Party!

Cover Stories: Tell Me a Secret by Holly Cupala

[image error] Holly Cupala's debut novel, Tell Me a Secret, is out this week! Hooray! I've been thinking about this book since I first saw what I've come to call "The whisper cover." Very hot. Here's Holly with the back story:"I don't think I had a cover in mind as I was writing, though I did have a clear picture of what the characters looked like--especially the bad-girl older sister, Xanda, and what her younger sister might look like. And of course, the love interest (Kamran, a.k.a. the super hot sci-fi...

Photo Fr-Saturday: Dad

So tomorrow is Father's Day, and it's actually the 6th anniversary of my dad's death. Yeah, Father's Day--what a day to go. Time has mostly been healing, and I have the best memories a daughter could have. So bear with me if I ramble for this Photo entry?In the summer, my family always visited to the cemetery in Three Churches, WVA (where Dad is buried today). Here's one of him pointing out gravestones of relatives with me in his arms. Dave once said, "You have a lot of childhood photos in th...

Cover Stories: Lifted by Wendy Toliver

[image error] Wendy Toliver's new book, Lifted, is already getting rave reviews. Wings author Aprilynne Pike says, "Lifted is the story of an imperfect heroine seeking her place not only in school, but in life. Its exploration of the amount of truth behind social and religious stereotypes escalates into a double-dog dare to believe them. A haunting morality tale that will leave you questioning just what it means to be 'good.'" Ooh... intriguing! Wendy's here to talk about her cover:"I had a vague idea of w...

Win-It Wednesday + Your Date With John Green

[image error] So this contest is still going on, through June 30th! Don't worry about reading through and not repeating already-suggested sailboat names, just get in that comment box and brainstorm away! It is all soooo helpful. Thank you! The Prize: A box o' books! In other news, there's a LIVE readergirlz twitter chat tonight with John Green at 6pm PST/9pm EST. Be there!If you've never used Twitter before, here's how to do it in three easy steps:1. First, create a Twitter account if you don't have one...

Cover Stories: 4 at Unabashedly Bookish

Just a heads up on a few Cover Stories that have been published over at Unabashedly Bookish for Barnes and Noble. [image error] Stay by Allie Larkin (that's Allie's dog on the cover!). Joe, the dog in the book, was inspired by my dog, Argo. I offered to take some pictures of Argo, to see if we could get anything usable. I took over 1,000 pictures of Argo in our backyard on a Sunday afternoon, and sent the best ones along to Dutton to choose from. Read more... [image error] Falling Apart in One Piece by Stacy Morrison. "T...

Cover Stories: Kiss It by Erin Downing

[image error] Erin Downing has written a bunch of fun romantic comedies, and now she's edging into a new space. KISS IT, which is out tomorrow, is a story about True Lust. Sign me up!Here's Erin to talk about how the Cover inspired the story. Crazy, love it."The strange thing about KISS IT is that the book's cover image was in place long before a single page of the book had been written. I had just finished writing my third Simon Pulse Romantic Comedy (Drive Me Crazy, below right), and my editor, Anica, an...

Photo Friday: In My Mind, I'm Gone to Carolina...

My friend Jeff from high school got married over Memorial Day weekend in gorgeous, sunny Chapel Hill. In true Jeff style, the ceremony was at the Old Well -- a central campus landmark. It was beautiful, Stephanie his bride looked gorgeous (and she's smart and funny too!), and the whole thing just gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling. Aw, I love high school friends. Nipsy, you did well.Hipstomatic vows shot: [image error] Bride and Groom! [image error] Dave and Silent Sam. Man, I love this campus. (Go Heels!) [image error] Old Well cake! [image error] Me with...

Win-It Wednesday: Box o' Books Continues

I'm loving the list of sailboat name ideas for my next novel. This contest will run through June and the prize is a box full of books! Enter as often as you think of a cool name. I'm listening!

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Here's the contest. Happy Wednesday!