Nicholas Forsythe is a self-proclaimed bookworm, and proud to be so.  References to his favorite books are littered throughout The Proper Bearing, and they are as tied to his life as our own dear stories are to us.  To honor and celebrate the impact books can have on a person's life, I'm giving away what I'm calling Nick's Private Stash: three of his favorite books and a few things to help make your own little cosy reading corner.

The package will come with the following, lovingly wrapped:

• The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
• The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
• Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien
• A tin of loose-leaf Twinings Lady Grey tea
• A silicone tea strainer shaped like a strawberry (as pictured)
• A package of KEDEM orange-flavored tea biscuits
• A teacup and saucer (not as pictured), made in England

To enter ... simply comment here on this blog post!  Leave me your preferred method of contact: email, or private message via Twitter/Instagram/Facebook.  (I received some feedback which said Rafflecopter was confusing, so we're going the easy route here.)  Due to shipping costs, this contest is only open to United States residents (sorry, my international friends!).  The deadline for this contest is September 17th, and a winner will be drawn on the following day during the online release party!  Until then, please spread the word about both contests, and good luck to you all!

Hello, Readers!  You may remember that as part of the celebration of last year's In The Cards, I created and gave away a piece of artwork.  This year, I'm continuing the tradition!  The Proper Bearing contains many pivotal scenes, but the image which seemed a natural choice was one that another character creates:

 The original was done with Chameleon pens on 9x12 Bristol, and I will be mounting it on black mat board. In my art shop, Gifts of Awen, this would sell for $60 ... but you've got the chance to own it for FREE!  All you have to do is enter the giveaway over on Rafflecopter!  You even have chances to gain extra entries in the raffle by helping spread the news about The Proper Bearing on social media or following me ... and if you haven't bought my other two books yet, you'll get super extra entries by doing that.

The deadline for entries is September 17th.  

Good luck to everyone who enters!  I hope you'll join me next week for the second​ giveaway! 

For many months now, I've had a place-holding cover for The Proper Bearing floating around my website.  It had the most basic element I knew I wanted: a vine-covered wall, reminiscent of stately old school buildings.  But it wasn't enough.  I knew it needed something more: something which hinted that The Proper Bearing is more than just a standard coming-of-age tale.  So I went prop hunting. 

There's a particular item of significance which helps drive the plot forward after its inciting incidents, and I had a very clear picture of it in my mind... so I went antiquing.  I'm lucky enough to live within walking distance of an amazing antique store.  The Laconia Antique Center was converted from an old Newberry's department store, right down to the still-functioning soda counter.  I could lose hours in there - and have! - but going with a specific item in mind made things a little easier.  Soon enough, I found what I was looking for, along with the vintage postcards I used for my new marketing material.  

​Some careful lighting and a little dance with Photoshop later, I may now happily introduce you to the final front cover of The Proper Bearing, and along with it, the magical artifact known as The Dawning Urn...

As the New Year is upon us, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking: not about goals and resolutions, but about progress.   A lot can happen in a year, especially when you’re an author.  I have a friend who started out the year scribbling between customers at a retail job, and now she’s proudly freelancing enough articles to work from home and focus on her own writing.  Another friend is set to self-publish her first novella this February … and of course, this past fall saw the publishing of From the Desk of Buster Heywood and the completion of the first draft of In The Cards. 
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More than that, I’ve grown to be part of an amazing community of writers on Twitter: writers who hold one another up and cheer through every victory, no matter how small (finding just the right word) and provide support in the face of hardship, no matter how large (a precious baby girl’s medical bills).   If there is one thing that 2015 has proven to me, it is that authors can do anything… and most of us do it for very little or nothing at all, in between what my friend Gracie calls the #JobToSurvive.  It’s a precarious balance to keep, for sure … and if you ever find yourself weighed down by it, feel free to reach out to me.  I’ll just point you toward groups like The WANA Tribe and the #2bitTues Twitter crew, and we’ll keep you afloat.  

As a fitting end to the year, I thought I’d close 2015 with a little giveaway!  If you sign up for my newsletter before the end of the year, you’ll be entered into a random drawing to win a copy of “Writer With A Day Job” by Aine Greaney.  It’s an awesome book with a lot of tips, hints, and exercises that are helpful no matter what your #JobToSurvive might be.   
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Just click here to sign up, and I’ll add your name to the list.  A winner will be chosen via Random.org's list generator and notified via email on Saturday, January 2nd.  Good luck, and happy writing!