Interacting with authors, live chats, a few contests (updated 1/27/14)

One of the most thrilling side-effects of doing reviews has been the access to authors.  It's amazing how much the internet has changed our lives with respect to being able to contact people since the days of sending off a fan letter in care of a publisher (yes, I am dating myself) and wondering if it ever arrived.  Most authors welcome contact with their readers (although the more I read about how hurtful some people are, the more I wonder if it is worth it when you have to deal with the crazies as well).  The thing they seem to appreciate the most is a nice review.  It doesn't have to be particularly long, but should say a little more than "this was a good book".  The second most appreciated seems to be a little note that tells them directly what you liked most about the story.

For those of you who like direct interaction, consider attending a chat with an author.  Night Owl Reviews hosts a chat most Mondays, 5:00 p.m. (West Coast US time) at this link and Writerspace.com has chats throughout the week at this link.  Occasionally there is a protocol so you may wish to observe before jumping in with your question (e.g. at Writerspace, you may be requested to type a question mark "?" and wait to be called on) and usually it is preferred that you wait until the author has a chance to put up a blurb about the book they are promoting.  These two are live chats that last about an hour but there are often chats that take place over a day or so on Goodreads, if you have a particular author that you like, make sure you sign up as a 'fan' and you will usually get notifications when there are new books or chats by that person.  Try to put Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 6:00 pm (West coast time) on your calendars.  I have the pleasure of having at least three of the authors I have edited for presenting their titles at the Writerspace.com New Releases chat and there will be a $25.00 gift certificate to Secret Cravings Publishing up for grabs!  Link
There are a variety of romance genres being represented from sweet to spicy, so come join us!

             







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Contests:

Chloe Neill is celebrating the February 4 release of Wild Things: A Chicagolands Vampire Novel with a Kindle giveaway! Visit chloeneill.com for details

Collette Cameron still has a great contest celebrating her blogiversary at this link

Delilah Devlin has contests frequently on her blog, there's a post featuring the talented Randi Alexander at this link (and continue browsing, there are other giveaways)

Don't forget to browse back through my blog, there are several giveaways that are ongoing and there will be more to come...