Getting to Know Your Co-Hosts - Shannon, The Warrior Muse

ABOUT ME

Name: Shannon Lawrence
Blogs: The Warrior Muse, Writing From the Peak (as Managing Editor)
Publications: Sunday Snaps: The Stories, an anthology
Other Places to Find Me: LinkedIn, Facebook (blog), Facebook (personal), Twitter (@thewarriormuse), She Writes, Google+

10 GETTING TO KNOW YOU QUESTIONS

1. When writing, do you prefer to compose your first-draft by hand, on your computer, or using Morse code?  While I wish I knew Morse code, I usually compose in a mix of pencil and computer (but never the two together...that would be messy!)  For novel writing, I prefer that go directly onto the computer.  A specific computer, in fact.  For short stories and such, I will often write on paper first, though not always.  It really just depends when and where the mood takes me, and if I feel like paper and pencil or computer keys.

2. Who would win a fight: Jiminy Cricket or Tinkerbell?  Tinkerbell, hands down.  That girl is feisty.  She's pretty scary.  J.C. is a bit of a softie, and I feel like he'd run and hide when he saw the pixie dust flying.

3. Cake or pie?  Cake.  Always cake.  While I won't turn down pie (for the most part), a moist delicious slice of cake is impossible to say no to.

4. Describe the last Halloween costume you wore.  I was a rainbow faerie this year.  I'd intended to go with something different, but found a rainbow wig and colorful wings that I couldn't resist.  Below is a pic of hubby and I (he made that Batman costume).  I also had on rainbow striped leggings.  Fun!

5. Where do you hail from?  All over!  I was born in California, and have lived in Oregon, Maryland and Colorado.  Not as many places as some, but good enough for me.  We've had opportunities to move, but have so far passed them up; some of those opportunities were for overseas.  Maybe some day.  I really love it here in Colorado, though.  I AM a Coloradan.

6. Do you know how to Gangnam Style?  Heck yeah, I do!  I like to bust it out to humiliate my children.  That's why we have them, right?  Unfortunately for my son, he's very easy to embarrass.  My daughter, on the other hand, is impossible to humiliate.  I imagine my son will adjust, as both his parents are smart alecks (I can never figure out the proper spelling for that word...).

7. Where do you go to get away from it all?  I like to hike, and I back up to a place called Ute Valley Park, so I can go there if I need a walk or to hide myself.  If I'm okay with being around other people, but want gorgeous views, I'll go to Garden of the Gods.  It relaxes me.  Both places do.

Garden of the Gods in the fall

Can you see why?  That's Pikes Peak in the background.  I know I'm home when I see Pikes Peak.

8. What makes life worth living?  So much.  My kids, my hubby, my family, my writing, nature, my surroundings, my kitty, my friends, movies, books, the simple pleasures.

9. Who inspires you to write?  My fellow writers.  My friends and family.  My writer's groups.  Nature.  I find my inspiration all around me.  I love writing!

10. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?  Cone or cup?  Sprinkles or hot fudge sauce?  I like anything chocolate, but chocolate and marshmallow make me supremely happy.  I prefer a cup.  I don't like the taste of cones, and I'm always sad when that is the flavor I'm left with.  I prefer whipped cream, hot fudge and a maraschino cherry.  Not the mediciny ones I always manage to get from Baskin Robbins, though.  What's up with that?

I hope you feel like you've gotten to know me a little better!  What are your answers to these questions?  I'd love to see your views in the comments.

May you find your Muse.

Shannon L.
The Warrior Muse

Latest And Greatest With NASA

So what’s the latest and greatest regarding NASA? And why should I care, you ask? Hasn't the shuttling of the Space Shuttle Program and cutbacks in funding and lack of vision from our political leaders made this once awesome organization boring and irrelevant? Well, please allow me dispel these thoughts and take you on a tour of the NASA Web site. 

NASA: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research. Since February 2006, NASA's mission statement has been to "pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery, and aeronautics research.” You can check out the latest and greatest in news, missions, multimedia, apps, and other ways to connect with NASA. You can even plan a visit to some of their eighteen facilities across the United States. 

NASA For Students: Have kids? Are you a school teacher, home schooler, or know someone who is? Then the NASA for Educators, the NASA for Students, and the NASA Kids Club and are worth a navigating and Bookmark or save in your Favorites. NASA for Students is broken up into grade groups of: K-4 5-8 9-12 Higher Education Each group has age appropriate links. 

   

NASA also hosts youth ambassadors from around the globe for successful outreach programs. NASA’s Web site is a great site for kids to research homework and for author to research their novels. What about classrooms and partnering with other classrooms around the globe?  

Virtual Tours: Can't work out a visit to a NASA facility? Check out their interactive features such as their Interactive Features and Virtual Tours.  

Connect with NASA: Yep. There's an app for that. Check out the various apps and social networks NASA has such as Facebook and Twitter.  

What's Next For NASA? NASA is conducting an unprecedented array of missions that will seek new knowledge and understanding of Earth, the solar system and the universe. NASA has observatories in Earth orbit and deep space, spacecraft visiting the moon and other planetary bodies, and robotic landers, rovers, and sample return missions. One example is designing and building the capabilities to send humans to explore the solar system and working toward a goal of landing humans on Mars. NASA has a payback on our hard-earned tax dollars, providing great paying jobs, supporting entire communities, and opening doors for incredible future opportunities such as planet colonization and mining asteroids (more on this in a future post). 

Stephen Tremp, author of the BREAKTHROUGH series, has a B.A. in information systems and an MBA degree in global management. Stephen has a background in information systems, management, and finance and draws from this varied and complex experiential knowledge to write one-of-a-kind thrillers. His novels are enhanced by current events at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and other scientific research facilities around the world. These potential advances have the ability to change the way we perceive our universe and our place in it! 

You can visit Stephen Tremp at Breakthrough Blogs. 
BREAKTHROUGH and OPENING can be downloaded:  Kindle for $2.99  

The #atozchallenge Team Needs Volunteers to Help!

Wanna help us out? We're seeking minions to help do some of the behind the scenes grunt work with us. You'd get a special badge emailed to you so that no non-minion could have one. Perhaps you object to the word minion. Of course, we'd never call you that in public. It would be a secret between the team and you priceless minions. You'd get the prestigious title of “volunteer administrative assistants” in public.  (You'd be listed as an assistant on the A-Z Blog and that would probably bring you more traffic.)

Are you game? Here's how it works. Each team member wants their own number of volunteers, and will choose their volunteers in their own way. No, even though it sounds like it, it's not a popularity contest. 

What it really boils down to is what we've been trying to show bloggers about this challenge, and about blogging itself. It's a community and friend building activity.  For example, I have a lot of blogger buddies I know well and trust. I know they'd follow the guidelines, I know they'd follow through. I know who to pick if they volunteer.  Consider it a perk of being an active part of the blogging and A-Z community.

So! If you want to be a minion/volunteer/list checker, etc. Here's what you do. Leave a comment saying you volunteer.   We'll let you know by private email who we've picked, and then once all is settled, we'll put your names up as minions, I mean volunteers!

Questions? Stick 'em in your comments, or send to the new infoaz2013@gmail.com. Be aware there you'd get me (Tina) because that's one of my jobs. So you might as well email me drectly with general questions.  My email is tndowney (at) gmail (dot) com.  Either one, just I check my own more often.

~ Tina, on behalf of the entire A-Z Team

How to Publish and Promote Your Book Now!

I’ve been involved in the publishing industry for almost ten years and taught publishing and promoting seminars for over five years. They are my favorite seminars - I get so fired up when I speak in front of a room of hopeful writers! After years of attendees asking for a book, not to mention my husband prodding me to write one, I finally wrote one. And today, I can finally say - yes, I have a book!

HOW TO PUBLISH AND PROMOTE YOUR BOOK NOW!

By L. Diane Wolfe

Publishing and promoting made simple!

Have you always dreamed of publishing a book but didn’t know where to begin? This book walks you through the steps of identifying markets, budgeting, building an online presence, and generating publicity. Get the whole story on:

• Traditional publishing

• Self-publishing

• Print and e-book setup, formatting, and distribution

• Finding your target audience

• Generating reviews and media interest

• Networking and developing an online presence

• Promotional materials and appearances

Uncover your ideal publishing path and numerous marketing options before you begin. Writing is your dream. Give it the best chance for success!

Publishing/Marketing, 214 pages, Dancing Lemur Press LLC
$14.95 Trade paperback ISBN 978-0-9827139-5-2
$4.99 Ebook ISBN 978-0-9827139-9-0

Purchase here: Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and Amazon Kindle Available soon for all e-readers.

“She gives an unbiased take on the advantages and disadvantages of traditional publishing and self-publishing and publishing paths that combine the two… It's the perfect book for those who want an overview to begin the decision-making process.”
- Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning series of how-to books for writers

“A must-read for writers planning on self-publishing or any writer who wants the ultimate how-to on promoting. Tons of links, advice, and how-to, whether you're going for print or e-publication.”
- Helen Ginger, author of Angel Sometimes

Known as “Spunk On A Stick,” Wolfe is a member of the National Speakers Association and a motivational speaker. She’s conducted seminars on book publishing and promoting for five years and assisted writers through several author services. Her other titles include “Overcoming Obstacles With SPUNK!” which ties her goal-setting and leadership seminar’s information together, and a YA series, “The Circle of Friends.” Wolfe travels extensively for media interviews and speaking engagements, maintains a dozen websites & blogs, and contributes to several other sites and newsletters.

Spunky’s sites: Blog, Website, Twitter, Facebook, and Deviant Art

And today I am giving away one autographed copy and some cool swag at my blog, so please visit Spunk On A Stick’s Tips!

This Is the Place for #atozchallenge News!

Blog Topics    

     Do you ever get the feeling of deja vu at the Blogging from A to Z Blog?  Why do we repeat topics?  Why do all of us bloggers repeat topics?  Maybe sometimes it's because they bear repeating.

     I realize you may have seen more than one blog post about Word Verification, Following, Social Media, and many others.  I've also seen these topics on some of your blogs.  In fact today on my blog Tossing It Out I've got still another post about Blog Comments.

      Why do we all do it?  It's because there are new bloggers out there who don't know about some of these things and there are still old bloggers who haven't gotten the message apparently.

       So please bear with us because we may be repeating things we've said before.  We may do it here and the co-hosts may do it on their own blogs.  And we certainly don't mind if you take on some of these topics as well.  If something needs to be said, let's say it!


Thank You A to Z'ers!

        We try to keep an eye out for those of you who help to promote the A to Z April Challenge and we periodically recognize those who have caught our attention with special promotional efforts.  We encourage you to do whatever you can to get the word out about the April Challenge so we can get more participants joining in the fun.

         Some of the things you can consider is shouting out on all the social media platforms, posting notices, contacting your newspapers, doing radio or TV interviews, and holding up signs on street corners.  Be creative!  Send us links, stories, or pictures that tell us about your efforts and we'll put them up on the A to Z Blog site.  

        Here are some of the wonderful bloggers who featured the A to Z Challenge on special blog posts:

       A to Z Opening day saw plenty of blog announcements including one from Scribbles From Jenn.

Halls of the Nephilim was one of the sites that actually put up the Linky list for sign-ups.

Sophey Says she saw the A to Z links on Twitter which just goes to show the effectiveness of the tweets.   Keep on tweeting about the Challenge people!

 Returning for another year of A to Z is Catherine Ensley's Words World and Wings.

As is Heather at Stretching My Wings -- Welcome back!

Nicki at Off the Beaten Plan described her intent for April.  Sounds like she'll have her hands full with a real Challenge to herself.

Shannon at Moments of Introspection provided a big send off to help start the Challenge sign-ups.

Tim Brannan is a Challenge veteran and knows how things roll with us.  Thanks, Tim, for helping to promote opening day on your blog The Other Side.

Also returning for another year is John at The Sound of One Hand Typing.  He put in a nice plug for this April's Challenge.

Alana from Writercize is also back for another go at the A to Z.   In a recent post where she gave the Challenge a promo she also included a link to the very nice story she did about me last year.

If you're still trying to decide whether or not to join in the A to Z event, pop on over to Raising the Curtain to see if that post convinces you.

Connie at Peanut Butter and Whine linked to the Challenge in her announcement to join up.

Another blogger returning for the A to Z fun is Patricia Stoltey, who offered some helpful tips about the Challenge at her blog Patricia Stoltey.

Jennifer at A Creative Exercise also called out for the cause of the A to Z.

A special A to Z post was offered at the blog Pouffia--another first timer for the Challenge.

Tami at Thrift Shop Commando let her A to Z intents be known to the world.

If I weren't doing the A to Z Challenge already, Mina at Some Dark Romantic would have convinced me with her great post about why one should do the April Challenge.

       I'm sure there are many more of you who provided special posts and we thank you for them.  We'll try to keep up with all of you, but we're sure you'll understand the magnitude of catching every one of your posts and listing them on this site.   Don't let that stop you!  Keep promoting the A to Z.

Special Co-Host Announcement:
     
      Damyanti, at her blog Daily (W)rite, has an offer of featuring books for authors during the #atozchallenge.    She still has a few openings.

     Here's what Damyanti has to say:   "Basically, I’m going to feature excerpts from 26 books with Titles beginning from the 26 letters of the alphabet. These could be books I have fallen in love with, or books by friends whose work I would recommend."

        If you have a book you'd like to have included go to Daily (W)rite for more information.


Be sure not to miss a single post at the A to Z Blog or you might be missing something you need to know.  Even if we do sometimes repeat ourselves.

       Will you be doing a feature post on your blog about the Challenge?    Can you think of some other ways to get the word out to bloggers about the A to Z?   What are some topics you'd like to see covered on this blog?    

Related articles

• 8 Places You Should Promote Your Blog to Get More Readers
• A - Z April Blog Hop Challenge
• Would you like your Book Excerpt featured this April? #atozchallenge