The Versatile Blogger Award

Thanks to Julia for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award! You can find Julia's blog by clicking on her name. A few weeks back, I was also nominated for a Kreativ Blogger award, thanks to Tarah Dunn. For those looking to buck up their manuscripts, Julia is a free-lance editor. You can follow her on Twitter at @julializzbeth.

So here's how it works:

1. In a post on your blog, nominate 15 fellow bloggers for The Versatile Blogger Award.

2. In the same post, Add the Versatile Blogger Award.
3. In the same post, thank the blogger who nominated you in a post with a link back to their blog.
4. In the same post, share 7 completely random pieces of information about yourself.
5. In the same post, include this set of rules.
6. Inform each nominated blogger of their nomination by posting a comment on each of their blogs.


7 Random Pieces of Information (per the Versatile Blogger rules)

1. I didn't see snow fall until I was fifteen years old. We flew to Wyoming when I was eight to see it snow there, but while we were gone it snowed in my hometown and stuck.

2. My grandfather (on my father's side) was born in 1897. I am the product of a second marriage--my dad is 76 and my oldest brother is fifty-something. (I'm the youngest, at 31). My oldest brother taught me how to tie my shoes.

3. In the sixth grade, I collided with a parked Ford pick-up on my bike. And yes, that did make it into my novel (except my protagonist has braces--much more gruesome).

4. Like Julia (listed above), I roll my own sushi (with a Japanese rice cooker and my husband's help).

5. I have one cat, Amazon, who was a stray, abandoned when her owners moved. She is a Maine Coon, has lots of fur and hates other cats (which is why we don't have more). A version of her also made it into my novel.

6. One of my best friends encouraged me to get first my novel on paper. Ironically, her last name is Page (and she's a great writer).

7. Some of my favorite sayings come from my grandfather (on my mother's side), who used to travel around the country giving speeches on how to sell better. I may build blog posts based on them, as a lot of them pertain to writing (and marketing yourself). Here are two of my favorites:

"There are two ways to climb an oak tree--one is to climb the tree, and the other is to sit on an acorn and wait."

"When you stop getting better, you stop being good."

And the 15 Bloggers I'm nominating (in no particular order)...

Eliza Loves Sci Fi
An aspiring writer from Ireland, Eliza blogs about writing, science, technology, and other fun stuff.

Tarah Dunn
Mentioned above. A great testimony to the journey toward publication, with a whimsical twist.

Juliana Haygert
Another aspiring writer who really knows her stuff. And the cover art on her projects are fantastic.

Young Adult Books-What We're Reading Now
This blog, written by Pamela Thompson, was nominated for a Best Blog 2012 award for the Texas Association of School Librarians. Great recommendations for YA reads (a reference to her blog was originally in my School Library Journal article, but was very unfortunately cut due to space constraints). Be sure to check it out!

Literary Rambles
This blog has 2000 followers, and is great for researching agents. Get this one in your blogroll if you haven't already.

Ryan Writes
Author of LUMINANCE HOUR, set to come out in 2013.  Right now she's posting about her editing/revision process.

The Ruby Slippered Sisterhood
A blog run by a group of Golden Heart Winners from RWA (Romance Writers of America). One of the members, Anne Becker, heads up NARWA (Northern Arizona Romance Writers of America) and just published ONLY FEAR, a great book of romantic suspense.

Sarah Duncan
Useful blog by a published author with great info. Check out this post on how to format picture books before submission.

TerribleMinds
Written by the great Chuck Wendig. Offers great writing advice, like this. Chuck also wrote a book, 500 WAYS TO BE A BETTER WRITER.

distraction no. 99
Blog of Nova Ren Suma, author of IMAGINARY GIRLS. Lots of great guest posts from other authors also.

Angela Scott-Whimsy & Writing
Great blog from an aspiring writer. She talks about balancing writing and family life, among other things.

Elle Strauss
Her novel CLOCKWISE is available on Amazon. Great for info about indie publishing.

Anna Staniszewski
Her novel, MY VERY UNFAIRYTALE LIFE was just published. Also a great example of good blog design.

Hyperbole and a Half
Great for laughs, especially this post.

KelseyFinklestein.com
A blog written by Meredith Zeitlin, named after the protagonist of her new book, FRESHMAN YEAR AND OTHER UNNATURAL DISASTERS which comes out very soon! I'll be featuring an interview with her later this week!

Thanks to all the nominees! I've learned a great deal from you all.