What Happened To Your Hair?

Some of you may already know, but I recently did something a little crazy.  Well, crazier than my normal crazy.

I dyed my hair pink.

All of it.

Bright pink.

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

Here’s the rest of the story.

See, life is hard.  It’s true, there’s no way around it.  Life is not going to be easy.  But that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.  While there are a million different things going on in my life, how I choose to react and feel about those events is completely under my control.   And I firmly believe that even though life is hard it is also meant to be a time of great joy.

Somewhere along the way, a few months ago, maybe longer, I lost sight of that last fact.  I was worried, stressed, sad, frustrated and every other negative emotion you can think of.  But I was forgetting to balance it out with anything good and wonderful.  Yes, those parts were still there I was just ignoring them because I wanted to be grumpy.

One day I decided enough was enough.

I learned several years ago that adding touches of fun colors to my hair gave me a boost and made me giggle and remember that life was fun.  So, when it came time to re-do my color I looked at that bottle of pink stuff, thought really hard about the way I’d been feeling, and dumped the whole darn thing on my head.

It’s different.  I look like I think I’m still a teenager.  I get some weird looks.  I give myself some of those weird looks. But, here’s the thing.  When I look in the mirror now I forget to judge myself by the bags under my eyes, the lack of makeup, the spaces in my teeth, or the ghastly amount of weight I’ve gained in recent years.

Instead, I look in the mirror and laugh out loud. I think “you are one crazy, awesome lady!” and walk away giggling to enjoy my still rough day with a song in my heart.

While I certainly don’t recommend everyone dying their hair pink, (what if you’re not a fan of pink?) I certainly do recommend finding a way to remember what you love most about yourself every day.  The world will give you plenty of opportunities to focus on the other stuff, find your own brand of craziness that makes the rest of it all okay and dance with it daily.

Life is just better that way.

A Good Book is a Secret Door

Stumbled upon this wonderful talk on why writing for children and good books are particularly magical.

Keep Writing

Many of you are aware that the last few years of my life have been, well, interesting to put it lightly.  It has meant that many of my extra writing time and paying assignments had to be put aside.  I’d been building my career steadily for many years, now I’m almost back to square one as far as money goes.

I have other skills. I have things I could do that would bring in a descent paycheck.  I have things I would like to try that would bring in a fair paycheck.  I have things that I currently do that bring in teeny-weenie paycheck.

Now that my life has settled into a new normal I’ve begun pondering which one of those paychecks I value from every aspect.  I’ve done a lot of soul searching and wondering what would happen to my sanity if I went back to work at a “real” job full time.  It wouldn’t be pretty, but. . . money.  Need I say more?

The fascinating thing is the more I’ve pondered this, my heart and my God have whispered a very bizarre bit of counsel.

“You’re already doing exactly what you are supposed to be doing.

Don’t worry.

Keep writing.”

Can you guess which line I’m having trouble with?

Yep, it’s that whole “Don’t worry” thing.  Did I mention the lack of paying assignments and teeny-weeny paycheck?

It’s good to know I’m still doing what I’m supposed to be doing, but starting at square one is pretty scary.

So, for the next year or so I guess I’m back to busting my not so little hiny with that “Keep writing” thing.

It's Contest Time!

For the entire month of October I have been running small contests on my facebook page for free copies of my new book A Companion to the Children’s Songbook.

We’ve reached the last Monday in October, so this marks the last and biggest contest.

It will run until midnight (EST) October 31, 2013.

You may enter here, or on facebook.  I’ll be posting reminders throughout the week there.

How do you enter? Do one (or several) of the following things:

1. Visit your local Deseret Book store and go on a treasure hunt for my book.  Then: Leave a comment if you find it naming the specific store.
2.  If you don’t find it, kindly ask the staff at that store to consider carrying it. Then:  Leave a comment saying that you did so.
3. Don’t live anywhere near a Deseret Book?  Recommend my book to your local primary chorister, and provide them with this purchase link http://deseretbook.com/Companion-Childrens-Songbook-Alison-Palmer/i/5093163. Then: leave a comment that you did so.

That’s it, just help me spread the word a little bit and you could find a free copy in your own hands.  Yippee!

Look, I'm a Fairy!

My fairy name is Fen Golddancer

She  likes to steal shiny coins and pretty trinkets.
She  lives in reed marshes and lonely fenland.
She  can only be seen when the bees swarm and the crickets chirrup.
She wears pale pink marshmallow flowers  and has bright lemon coloured wings like a cicada.
Get your own fairy name from the fairy name generator!

Sorry, I just couldn't resist.  My friends and I have been having fun with this little name generator and for whatever reason it seems to be nailing our personalities every time.  very weird :)

Have Fun With It

I thought I’d share an old Facebook status with you today.

December 3, 2012

I'm still being haunted by a writing project that needed major revisions. Hubby was asking me about it yesterday and I said I felt like it was mocking me and telling me I didn't have a creative bone left in my body.
Him, "Could you hand this off to anyone else and get the same book you would write?"
Me, "No, but what if....."
Him, "Just stop it. It's your book, it's uniquely you. It will be finished when it's finished. Stop letting your doubts win and have fun with it. Be you."
And once again, my husband grounds me with reality and a no nonsense pep talk.

As many of you know, my husband passed away in June. It wasn’t very nice of the stinkbrain and I’m still mad at him (yes, I’m kidding) but I’m doing okay.

This old status has special meaning for me today since this particular project is finally headed to press. It turns out he was right. Sometimes I had to dig pretty deep to find those creative bones, but they never completely abandoned me. And, as long as I remembered to have fun with it things worked out the way they were supposed to. I’m extremely grateful to have been blessed with a husband who fully supported the flake that I am and my need to create and write even when the results seemed less than ideal.

Thanks dear, I’ll see you on the other side.
Oh, and do I need to remind you to be nice to your mother? :)

Re-kindling My Joy

If you know me, and you know my writing, you know I tend to be rather eclectic. I could probably be a much better writer if I stuck to one type of prose, but that’s not part of my nature and turns what I love to do into a job instead of a joy. Yes, money and success are important parts of feeling fulfilled as a writer, and though you will probably never see my name on the best seller lists or even my tag line on most of what I write, I am happy with the amount of money and success my writing brings me. Were I to change who I am and how I write I’d lose out on my ultimate agenda: joy. I write for three reasons: money, challenge and joy. Of the three, joy is the most important. I take on projects based on their value to me in those three areas. Some things I write are simply because the money is decent. Some are because the challenge of seeing if I can pull it off intrigues me. Some are embraced because I know it will be good for my soul. My current adventure falls into the challenge and joy categories. I’m hoping the money will follow, but it’s not guaranteed. The thing about writing for joy is— there are certain forces who really don’t want you to experience such pleasure because it lifts your spirit and draws you closer to God. That certain someone will find ways to try and stifle your joy, faith, and commitment because it does not fit his agenda. Meany. That’s what happened with my current project. I’d been happily engaged in it, then realized that my “playing” wasn’t making the progress I needed to meet promised deadlines and stretch myself as a writer. Enter worry, stress, and stumbling blocks of all kinds. Have you ever noticed that when you’re on the right track the road can suddenly turn very rough? Yup, that was me. I started pushing for the business aspects of the project and forgetting the reason that I’d taken it on. Not the pride of a finished project, but the joy of the project and being able to convey that to the end-user and spark their own joy. While deadlines and accuracy are extremely important, those cares should not stifle the spirit of the project. I had been pushing myself this past week to both finish the book and find a solution to yet another stumbling block carefully placed in my way. I thought I was up to the challenge and plugging ahead and doing fine. Then, I noticed something when I went back to edit the work for that week. You know what? Most of it stunk. Yep. It was rote words and empty phrases with a complete absence of joy. Needless to say, I’ve missed my deadline- a very rare occurrence over my 10 year career. There was a specific time frame that would have been optimal for getting this book on the market, but what good does that window do if I’m not sharing my best work with the reader? Not much. I had to step back and decide that the spirit and longevity of the final project were more important than getting it done. And, guess what? Once I refocused on that part of things, the joy rather than the drudgery, my stifled creativity is responding with little sparks of new and interesting light. It’s a beautiful thing. Yes, I’ve let a few people down and had to admit my short-comings. It may have some negative outcomes for me to deal with. It may mean this particular project never sees the light of day. I’m going to have to take that chance. This project is about lifting my personal spirit and sharing that experience with the reader in order to lift their own happiness. If I’m not conveying that, I’m not doing the job I set out to do. So, send your joyful and good vibes this way, ‘cause I’m writing, come what may.

She's Alive!

Well, sort of.
I have been spending a lot of time lately trying to re-create and re-invent myself to fit the curve balls life has thrown me. These nasty pitches have, unfortunately, taken quite a toll on my personal confidence and creativity. (as noted by the previous post and resulting silence)
It's been a lot like constructing Frankenstein's monster. The pieces come from some very strange places some times, and often don't look like they'd fit at all, but they are gradually coming together.
Am I the same person I was a year ago? No. Am I a better me? I hope so.
Am I writing again? Gradually. It's not an easy process but my creativity, whimsy, and spiritual wells that my writing draw upon are slowly refilling and showing signs of life. No big thunderstorms and lightening bolts yet- but it's coming.

Could You Ever Walk Away?

Have you noticed how quiet this blog has been lately? Yup, me too. I feel bad about it, I really do, but every time I try to figure out what to post I come up blank.

That’s pretty much the problem with all of my writing recently. And by recently I mean the past, um three years? That’s just a guess. In reality it feels like a lifetime. I used to love writing. I couldn’t wait to get to my computer every day and spew out all the thing that had been circling around in my head since the last time I’d been able to sit down and write. I loved the challenge of even the most mundane assignment. Now, not so much.

Without going in to great detail suffice it to say that things have changed for me over the past few years. A bunch of little things combined with a few big things have caused a big part of me to “die” so to speak. It’s just not there anymore. I can’t access a big part of who I used to be. At first I just mourned the loss and tried to push through it. It didn’t really work. Everything creative that I’ve tried to do has been awful. Beyond the normal awful for a first draft stage. I’ve procrastinated every nonfiction and technical assignment until it couldn’t be put off any longer then felt that I wasn’t exactly putting my heart, or most of my mind, into what came out on the page for those assignments either. It wasn’t my best work.

I thought maybe I was taking on too much. I’ve whittled away most of my clients and stopped looking for new assignments, giving myself permission to write just because I want to write. It hasn’t worked. In the last few months I’ve been trying to find new ways to stimulate the creative side of my brain: visiting museums, taking art/craft classes, picking up my sewing supplies. Nope. So far that hasn’t worked either.

I don’t feel like a writer any more. I just feel empty. Is a writer still a writer if they can’t write? If I’m not a writer who am I?

Could you ever walk away?

Gluten-Free Cooking Made Easy by Susan Bell

What happens when you give six women/families with gluten allergies copies of Gluten-Free Cooking Made Easy: Delicious Recipes for Everyone by Susan Bell? Six very happy tummies.

Compliments of Walnut Springs, my friends and I were able to taste-test this new cookbook and I have to say with great pleasure that the cookbook was a resounding success! Hurray Susan Bell and Walnut Springs Press!

So let’s get right to the point. The food was yummy, we found a few typos and slip ups in the ingredient lists, but on the whole we were extremely pleased with the recipes and the resulting fabulous dishes. Hands down winners? The Best Waffles and the Angel Food Cake. Mmmmmmmmm. For people who normally have to go without or eat cardboard, need I say more?

What else is there to like? It isn’t just baked goods. (Okay, I know my description above kind of sounded that way, but I promise it’s full of a variety of great dishes.) If we had to tear ourselves away from the bread products, the stir fry, fajitias, cheesy halibut, creamy ramono chicken, taco soup, sweet pear pork chops and chicken pasta salad also got happy nods of approval.

Gluten-Free Cooking Made Easy: Delicious Recipes for Everyone is a great introduction to the weird world of gluten-free living. The food is wonderful and fairly easy to make. Having a resource like this can make things a little less discouraging. One woman used it as a reference to go through all her “old” family favorites and figure out how to easily adjust them for her daughter-in-law’s diet restrictions. Another just simply threw out all of her old cookbooks she was selectively sifting through and proclaimed Gluten-Free Cooking Made Easy: Delicious Recipes for Everyone to be the only cookbook she needs or uses. It really can feed the whole family without the bread-tolerant members even noticing a difference. Heck, my autistic son gobbled down the chocolate chip cookies without blinking and believe me, it’s very hard to pull one over on him!

I have to admit when I first looked through the recipes I was a little discouraged. The ingredient lists to duplicate a wheat flour can feel a little daunting. I’m a very lazy cook, so it might not bother (and didn’t seem to) anyone else. What I’ve found though, is the recipes are usually simple enough outside of the ingredients that I can kind of do a “make a mix” approach with the flour ingredients. I simply measure twice, cook one set of ingredients and the other set of ingredients in a Ziploc bag so it’s a little easier the next time I’m craving that awesome angel food cake. Did I mention we really liked the angel food cake? And the waffles? And the zucchini muffins? And the blueberry muffins? And the rice bread?

Hungry yet? Yep, me too. So, if you’ll excuse me I haven’t gotten a chance to try the brownie recipe yet and I can hear it calling to me.

StarScout Rising: First Trail by Gary Darby

When I first received StarScout Rising: First Trail by Gary Darby I have to admit my thoughts went along the lines of “boy, that’s a thick book” and “jeepers, that’s a creepy cover”. It took me a while to get over my intimidation to find out it was a pretty decent book.
Here’s a little bit about the book from Amazon:
From the last frontier, Space. A must-have, out of this world adventure! Star Scout Rising, First Trail by Gary Darby is a thoughtful, awe-inspiring, and spine-tingling Sci-Fi mystery that follows a young man named Del Baldura during his quest for knowledge, truth, and discovery in the distant future of human and alien kind. This story has it all superb background, surprises, mystery, love, futuristic technological possibilities, bizarre life forms, and a hero trying to make sense of his duty and loyalty, his current leadership responsibilities, and his search for truth about part of his and his family's history. Volume One of a three volume set, Darby hits a grand-slam with this first novel. Smart and thought provoking. Volume Two due out in 2011.

There’s plenty of action and high-interest intrigue in this book. There were moments that made me giggle and others that made me bit my nails. I also liked the mix of characters—old and young, male and female. I liked the way the friends stuck up for each other and stayed together even when it would have been easy to go a different road. Better than that, I liked that the story was clean and unabrasive. There were none of those "icky" bits that you wonder why they really needed to be there in the first place. This is one book you won’t have to worry about handing over to your Sci-Fi loving teen.

What didn’t I like? Eh, there were a lot of different character and subplots going on. I sometimes had trouble keeping it all straight and didn’t get as much closer at the end as I would have liked (yes, even for a series). I should also mention the editing could have been better, but it wasn’t completely distracting. Unless it’s bad enough to hinder my reading I don’t judge a story by how clean the copy ended up being.

I don’t know that you could get a reluctant boy reader to pick StarScout Rising: First Trail up since it is so thick, but I ‘m betting you could hand it to any teen boy who openly enjoys Sci-Fi and not see him for a couple of days as he hides under his covers reading. Hurray for clean reads which cater to teen boys!

Have You Heard?

The Whitney Award Finalists have been announced. That means the 35 "best books" by LDS Authors for the year 2010 have been decided.

Whether you qualify to vote on the best of the best, I'd encourage you to find spots in your reading time to include these books. There are some amazing titles on the list.

Don't believe me? Check out the finalists for yourself!

http://whitneyawards.com/wordpress/2011/02/01/the-finalists-have-been-announced/

Meg's Melody by Kaylee Baldwin

Meg's Melody by Kaylee Baldwin is a sweet and satisfying romance. However, it wasn’t a “fluff” story either. Yes, we know who will ultimately end up together, but the journey to get there has more substance than, “Do you like me? Check yes or no,” types of details.

Meg seems to have the worst luck in men. She seems to attract the ones who don’t want to treat her very well, and worse, she begins to believe that’s all she should expect. Is it any wonder she has a hard time recognizing a good man, and the potential for a beautiful, uplifting relationship when it comes along?

I could understand exactly where she was coming from, and I think most young readers will be able to as well. The situation she finds herself in is a common one. Sometimes it felt like she was overcoming her problems a little too easily, but mostly the accomplishments were appropriate and believable.

I highly recommend Meg's Melody for the older teen/young adult scene who are beginning to take a closer look at what they’d like in a future mate. This book offers some non-confrontational food for thought wrapped up in an engaging love story package.


Kaylee is running a contest! Whomever comments a the review post on any of the blogs in the tour, will be entered into a drawing to win a copy of Meg's Melody.

January 10th
Shanda at LDSWBR
http://ldswbr.blogspot.com/

January 11th
Tristi Pinkston
http://tristipinkston.blogspot.com/

January 12th
Jolene Perry
http://jolenesbeenwriting.blogspot.com/

January 13th
Shaunna Gonzales
http://shaunnagonzales.blogspot.com/

January 15th
Taffy Lowell
http://sweeterthantaffy.blogspot.com/

January 17th
Heather at Fire and Ice
http://fireandicephoto.blogspot.com/

January 18th
Marsha Ward
http://marshaward.blogspot.com/

January 19th
Alison Palmer
http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/

January 20th
I am a Reader Not a Writer
http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/

Rebecca Talley
January 21st
http://www.rebeccatalleywrites.blogspot.com/

The Peasant Queen by Cheri Chesley

After what felt like a slow start in the first few chapters, I had a great time reading The Peasant Queen by Cheri Chesley.

Take a beautiful, intelligent girl from a farm in the middle of nowhere, add a far off kingdom at war with its neighbor and you’ve got the basic plot of a dozen fantasy novels. That said, The Peasant Queen is a romantic fantasy that can definitely hold its own among the most popular of those YA titles.

Krystal is a farm girl whose family has betrothed her to someone who is in no way her equal. In a desperate attempt to figure out how to get out of the marriage she considers running away. But the tables are turned slightly when she’s kidnapped instead. She’s not really sure why she’s there or what will be come of her. The reader isn’t sure either, but the whole attitude with which Krystal faces this unexpected challenge made the whole book for me.

Despite the nature of her arrival in the new kingdom, Krystal is anything but a victim of circumstance. She is a heroine extraordinaire and the kind of girl I’d want my own girls to learn a thing or two from. She’s strong, capable and determined. There’s no damsel in distress in this story and I loved that about it.

Did I have any issues? Eh- I’m one of those that take issue with having a heroine that every male character alive seems to fall in love with. Cheri did a good job of weaving it together in a believable scenario, but I would have been more comfortable if the bad guy’s motivations were more clearly self-love and wanting what he couldn’t have rather than showing actual *love* for her. Yes, it made him more human and all that good writerly stuff, my skeptical mind just didn’t want to buy into it. Sigh.

I’d highly recommend handing The Peasant Queen off to a tween or teen girl in your life. For the good story, but more importantly, for the positive messages about what it can mean to be a woman of strength come what may.

Who's at the Door? by Dan Harrington

I have to say I found Who’s at the Door? by Dan Harrington veeerrrrry interesting. This is a memoir about Dan’s time coming to know the Mormon missionaries and the messages they share. I truly enjoyed his perspective and seeing things from an “outsider’s” point of view. I’m grateful for people like Dan Harrington who have a healthy craving for spirituality as well as an even healthier esteem for religions and their benefits to all walks of life. Who’s at the Door? was well-done, respectful and spiritually uplifting.

I pray every missionary can have a “Dan” experience. There are people out there who are ready to hear the gospel for many different reasons. Not all of those people will end up in the waters of baptism. There are even more people out there who have no interest in learning about our religion and some of them aren’t very nice about it. I hope there are enough good people that our young men meet along the way that treat them with respect, friendship and love even when they are agreeing to disagree.

Who’s at the Door? makes a quick Sunday afternoon read and great food for thought in a Family Home Evening. It’s an interesting look at how what we say and do as we share our beliefs with others affects both ourselves and our friends. We tend to fall into two categories where missionary work is concerned. We’re either very skittish about the whole thing or completely zealous about it. This is a great way to find a happy medium and remember the most important part of missionary work—love, friendship and acceptance for those we talk to.

Who’s at the Door? is one of those books that had me thinking about who I knew that I could recommend it to the minute I finished. That earned it a few extra bonus points as well. Anything I didn’t particularly like? No, surprisingly it didn’t have many whiny complaints from me. I actually would have liked it to be a little longer and go more into some of Dan’s experiences sharing his interest and concerns about the church with others as well as what he learned investigating other churches along the way.

Thank you, Dan, for sharing your insights and beautiful spirituality with the world.

The Star Prophecy by Joan Sowards

Have you ever had a “feeling” about something, or known a secret that seems to just bubble up inside of you and take over every part of your life until you see it through? That’s the dilemma Enoch, from The Star ProphecyThe Star Prophecy by Joan Sowards, faces. He knows something with every fiber of his being and is compelled to do something almost everyone around him laughs at him for.

Enoch has heard the prophecies about the coming of the Savior, the signs surrounding His birth. But it’s not enough for Enoch to wait for the prophet’s words to be fulfilled when the Savior will come to visit the Nephites. Enoch is determined to return to Jerusalem to welcome the new born Jesus Christ himself. It’s his life’s dream and he will see it through even if it costs his life.

From the back cover:

Most people laugh when they hear of Enoch's dream of returning to Jerusalem to find the infant Messiah. Even Enoch's future father-in-law mocks him when he asks for a postponement of his long-awaited wedding to his beloved Rebekah. A few take Enoch seriously - the shipbuilder Omnihah, Enoch's teacher David, and the prophet Nephi.

Five years before, a Lamanite named Samuel had stood on the wall of Zarahemla and prophesied that "five years more cometh" and the Christ would be born in Jerusalem. Time is running out! Enoch knows he must set sail across the great waters in search of his dream - to see the face of the Messiah.

What an amazing tale of faith and love for the Savior. Joining Enoch on his journey of faith was a beautiful experience. Though the ending was fairly obvious to me from the beginning, I thoroughly enjoyed the reading ride it took to get there. Oh, and I love the cover, too. Don't you?

Any whiny moments? A couple of places where I felt the story “jumped” ahead, rather than flowing through a smooth transition to the next scene. Not anything negative, just moments where I found my brain saying, “wait, I wasn’t done here yet,” or “what? Did I miss something?” I guess I just wanted a little more to the story.

Yes, The Star Prophecyhas a Christmas theme but it isn’t overwhelmingly or sappily (yes, I’ve decided that’s a word) so. It’s just a beautiful story that you’ll find appropriate for any Sunday afternoon, Christmas season or not. This is one that will appeal to young and old alike. Thanks, Joan Sowards, for bringing this tale to life.

The adventure begins with the blog tour
for
The Star
Prophecy by Joan Sowards

We will be giving away THREE copies of The Star
Prophecy.

It's easy to enter.
1. Visit the fabulous reviews and leave a comment letting us know why
you're excited to read The Star
Prophecy. Remember to include your email address.
2. If you tweet about the blog tour, or post about it on your blog or
facebook, leave the link in the comments section and you'll receive an
additional entry.

Good Luck! Entries close at midnight (MST) on January 28.


January 10
I Am A Reader, Not A
Writer

January 11
Totally Tina

January 12
Peggy Urry

January 13
Tangled Words and Dreams

January 14
Kaylee Baldwin

January 17
Of Writerly Things

January 18
Writers Mirror

January 19
Bonnie Gets a Say

January 20
The Blessing of Family
Life

January 21
Anna del C. Dye's Blog
Renee S. Clark

One More Chance

If you are still looking to get your hands on one of my novels, you can pop over to my friend Karlene's blog and enter to win one. Tons of other cool prizes offered today but that's the catch- you only have until midnight to get entered so go! go! go!

Remember, you can read the first chapter of both novels here.

http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/price-of-gold-first-chapter.html
http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/prodigal-son-first-chapter.html


Happy blogaversary Karlene!

Winning Mr. Wrong by Marie Higgins

Well, Winning Mr. Wrong by Marie Higgins was a cute little book. Don’t expect any deep thought, only a light romance with a couple of giggles thrown in for fun.

Charley seems to be very unlucky in love. Try as she may, she doesn’t appear to be able to get a guy to stick with her for more than a few months. Sometimes she blames them, sometimes she blames herself. But one thing is clear: she needs to change her approach to love if she wants cupid’s arrow to stick forever.

Enter Max and Damien. Max is an old high school crush who seems perfect for Charley. Damien is the typical playboy next door neighbor: Italian and very cute but very much not what Charley is looking for. Funny how he always shows up and saves the day though. . . .

When Charley runs across an internet article on how to get a guy to like you, she’s all for it and knows just the target. Max will be head-over-heels in love with her before he even knows what hit him. Probably literally.

So what’s this magical “get your man” advice? It involves:

Dark chocolates
Hard-to-find gifts
Compliments
A night on the town
Tall buildings
Funny movies
Mending his clothes
Surprise intimacy
Great memories, and
I love you in a note

Now, I must admit, I rolled my eyes when I saw the list. Maybe it would actually work, maybe not, but I’m not exactly married to the typical male so it seemed a little out there to me. You’ll have to judge that for yourself.

How was the actual story line? Light and fluffy-the way a good romantic comedy should be. It was an okay read for me, but I suspect if I handed it to my almost 17yo the house would rock with giggles. That’s actually who I’m going to recommend Winning Mr. Wrong for. To me it really spoke to those teenage angst years of wanting to catch a certain guy’s eye only to find out he wasn’t such a good catch anyway, and learning who you really are before you can really be part of a solid relationship.

Hurray for Prizes! (Take Two)

I promised I'd be back to host my friend Tristi's month long giveaway a second day, and here we are. So.... hop over to her blog and find out how to enter to totally awesome prizes compliments of me! This time you can win copies of my two novels. (They're great stuff, I promise.)

Remember, you can read the first to chapters of the two novels here.

http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/price-of-gold-first-chapter.html
http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/prodigal-son-first-chapter.html
Good luck!

Hurray for Prizes!

Today is my day to host my friend Tristi's month long giveaway. So.... hop over to her blog and find out how to enter to win mucho prizes compliments of me! Translation: win my Primary books (yes, all 9of them).

Later in the month you'll have a chance to win my novels. Remember, you can read the first to chapters of the two novels here.

http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/price-of-gold-first-chapter.html
http://alisonpalmer.blogspot.com/2010/11/prodigal-son-first-chapter.html

Good luck!