2012 Ebook Challenge

I'm joining this Challenge for next year I've just discovered Smashwords an have already gotten quite a few books douwnload to the good old iPad

Check it ot at Workaday Reads

The 2011 E-book Challenge was hosted by The Ladybug Reads. She has decided not to host it for 2012, and I was the lucky lottery winner who gets to host it. That's right, there was so much interest from people wanting to host it that she had to hold a lottery.

Challenge Guidelines:
1.This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
2.Anyone can join, you don't need to be a blogger. If you don't have a blog, feel free to sign-up in the comments. You can post reviews to any book site (i.e. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Goodreads, etc).
3.Any genre or length of book counts, as long as it is in ebook format.
4.You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5.When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the E-Book Reading Challenge.
6.You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7.Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.

Levels:
1.Floppy disk - 5 ebooks
2.CD - 10 ebooks
3.DVD - 25 ebooks
4.Memory stick - 50 ebooks
5.Hard drive - 75 ebooks
6.Server - 100 ebooks
7.Human brain - 150 ebooks

At the beginning of each month there will be a roundup post for you to add your reviews for that month. If you forget, feel free to add your reviews in the following month. Any reviews submitted will be entered into the draw for that month.

Yes, there will be draws every month for participants. As long as you are signed up below, every review you add to the monthly roundups will get one entry into the giveaway for that month.

There will also be a grand giveaway at the end of the year for eveyone who achieves their goal level (or higher). There may be different prizes for different levels, but that is not decided yet. If you are an author and want to contribute to the monthly or grand prizes, please contact me.

Newly Discovered – Smashwords

I just recently discovered Smashwords when I was participating in the Blog Tour de Troops sponsored by the Indie Book Collective.

They were offering free books for the Veteran’s Day Weekend and for each comment you got a copy of a new book, but a copy of the ebook was sent to the troops also. It was a great way to support the troops and get some new and possibly good books also.

I want to thank the 10-13 authors a day for participating and helping to support the troops. I got several new books from new authors now a I a good reason to use my new iPad. I’ve been sending books to the troops for several years myself, but now everything is electronic.

Here is a list of the books I was able to catch:

A Grand Murder by Stacy Verdick Case
Without Mercy by Belinda Boring
Blood Oath by Belinda Boring (out 11/20)
Cinderella’s Secret Diary by Ron Vitale
The Keya Quests: Three Souls Destiny Bound by Glenn Skinner
The Keya Quests: The Battle for Shivenridge by Glenn Skinner
Dance of the Winnebagos by Ann Charles
Thrown Out: Stories from Exeter by Jennie Coughlin
Murder At The Rocks by Jill Paterson
Epsilon: Broken Stars by Erin Klitzke
Office Politics (Harper & Lyttle Book 1) by Sharon Gerlach
The Secret Dreams of Sarah-Jane Quinn (Harper & Lyttle Book 2) by Sharon Gerlach
Getting Well for The First Time by Paul Rice

Guest Blog - The Christmas Village by Melissa Goodwin

Finding Your Inner 10-Year-Old
Melissa Ann Goodwin

I have a black and white picture of my fifth grade class hanging in my office. We’re sitting straight-backed and bright-eyed at our desks. We look smart and well-behaved, except for Robert, who has a smirk on his face and his very own row - for good reasons - close to Miss Cronin’s desk. We are 10 years old, full of possibilities and promise.

This photograph reminds me of something very important. It reminds me of who I really am. When I was 10, I knew exactly what I liked and didn’t like; what I dreamed of, what I loved, what excited me, what scared me.

I loved to read. I loved school. I liked those little troll dolls with the crazy orange hair. I liked my best friend Priscilla, cats, gathering chestnuts, Rex Trailer, hot dogs, going to the beach and playing dodge ball. I hated liver, eggplant, scary movies, and mean people. I loved walking home from school and writing stories in my head. By the age of 10, I already knew that I wanted to write the kind of books that I loved to read.

As I got older, I veered away from what I knew when I was 10. What other people said and thought began to carry more weight. There were norms about the path that life should take. I’m not alone – this happens to almost everyone. We get new ideas and we try new things. There’s nothing wrong with that. But later, many of us find we’ve wandered rather far from what we think of as our “true selves.” We feel empty, burned out and lost. We say that we “need to find ourselves again.” That expression implies that we once knew who we were, but have forgotten! When we feel this way, what we really need to do is rediscover our inner 10-year-olds.

But how do we do that? Well, here are a few ideas that may help:
• Close your eyes and picture yourself at age 10. Who was your best friend? Your mortal enemy? What did you do after school? What games did you play? What did you want with all your heart to get for Christmas that year? What subjects did you love – and hate?
• Write it all down.
• Spend five minutes every day remembering the details of your 10th year. When you remember something new, write that down too.
• Find a picture of yourself at that age and put it on the fridge. Every day, ask the person in the picture what he’d want to do today if he was in charge of your life. Consider doing it!
• Re-read a book or watch a movie that you loved as a kid, and remind yourself why you loved it.

If you think there is something you should be doing with your life, but you’re not sure what it is, remembering what you loved at age 10 can help you find your way. No matter what kind of work you do, it can only be enhanced by asking your inner 10-year-old to help. She knows your true essence and can help you tap into the deep well of expression that is uniquely you. Invite your 10-year-old self back in, and see if you don’t find a renewed sense of wonder and playfulness in everything you do.


Here is the trailer for her book


Author Bio

Melissa Ann Goodwin is a native New Englander, now living in Santa Fe, New Mexico with her husband, artist J. Richard Secor. She has written extensively for Fun for Kidz, Boys’ Quest and Hopscotch for Girls. She was a regular feature article contributor to the Caregiver's Home Companion for more than five years. Her work has appeared in Guideposts’ Angels on Earth, Caregivers’ Home Companion, Caring Today, The Lutheran Digest, The Peak Magazine, The Andover Townsman, and the Martha’s Vineyard Gazette. Her poetry took 10th prize in The Writer’s Digest 2010 annual competition. The Christmas Village is her first novel.

Author's Websites:

Melissa Ann Goodwin


The Christmas Village


FaceBook:


Twitter: @GoodwinMelissa

Note:

here is the link to Amazon


Link to Smashwords