Hi, everyone!  Yep, I am continuing my adventures in blogland today. I’m guest posting over at the Maverick Authors. My topic? Writing a trilogy.  Have I mentioned that I love trilogies? I’m like that poor guy from the Scream movies.  I like to spout trilogy rules to anyone who will listen to me–so come by and give a listen, er, read.   🙂

And the Maverick Authors–Lauren Dane, Megan Hart, and Anya Bast–well, these are three awesomely talented authors and they happen to be incredibly nice ladies, too.  (Thanks for inviting me to guest post, ladies!)

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Now, I’d like to talk a bit about giving. So, yes, this is an annual holiday giving post and yes, that does mean I may get a bit preachy–but I’ll try really hard not to go overboard. Promise.

Times are tough right now. No denying it. Every time I open the newspaper or turn on the TV, I hear about more foreclosures or job losses. Very tough times. So, when money is tight for people, that means this time of the year is even harder. Because although holidays are absolutely wonderful, if you don’t have money to buy a present for your child or if you don’t have money to put a Christmas meal (or any meal!) on the table, even the magic of the holidays will fall flat for you.

But because times are tough, people may not be able to give to charities as much as they have in past years. I know that I’ve seen an awful lot of empty Toys for Tots boxes this year.  When I see ’em, I think yeah, okay, maybe it’s just too early for donations. I hope I’m right about that. I hope it’s just too early and that those boxes will fill up. But like I said before, times are tough.

So, now we come to the giving part of my post. This is the part where I challenge you to give this year.  🙂  First, let’s start with some giving options that won’t cost you any out of pocket money:

1. Go through your closet.  If you’ve got clothes that you don’t wear, give them to the Salvation Army or Goodwill. If your kids’ clothes don’t fit, give some of them away.  No cost to you.  You’re cleaning up the clutter and helping someone else.

2. Check your cabinets. Do you have some canned goods that are just sitting there?  Something you bought but aren’t going to use? Donate ’em to the local food bank.

3. Don’t forget the animals. Want to feed a dog or cat? All you have to do is click this link.  Seriously, click it.  Free!

4. Do you have an elderly neighbor?  One who doesn’t get a lot of visitors but has a ton of leaves in her yard? Go by for a visit. Rake. Talk.

Now, yes, there are giving options that do require money, and I’m going to list just a few…

1. Those Toys for Tots boxes that I mentioned? If you can spare the money, why not pick up one present and drop it inside? The box won’t be empty then.

2. The Salvation Army Angel Tree program. I’ve been a long-time supporter of this program. When I was in college, I worked in the Angel distribution center and I got to see first hand the difference these gifts made. If you can afford it this holiday season, adopt a child.

3. Don’t forget the elderly.  My local Walgreen’s (I visit that store WAY too much) always has a tree up with names on it (very much like the Salvation Army Angel Tree but these names are for folks in the local nursing home).  These people don’t want expensive gifts. Usually they want socks or cookies–you can get these items in the store and turn them right back in at the register.  So easy and it makes such a difference. Because no one likes to be forgotten at Christmas.

Okay, there are many, many more ways to give. And if you’ve got a good one you want to share, please post it.

And that ends my annual giving rant.

I’m continuing my blogging adventures–today, I’m over at Bitten By Books and I’m guest posting about legends. Since the heroine of MIDNIGHT SINS is a succubus, you could say her story was most definitely inspired by an old legend. I’m giving away an autographed copy of MIDNIGHT SINS at Bitten By Books, so be sure to stop by for your chance to win!

Update: MIDNIGHT SINS is shipping from B&N.com now–thank you, Linda, for the head’s up!

Have you met Greta?  Oh, she is a great lady!  And a book lover–just like me!  Greta interviewed me for her blog I DO NOT WANT TO WAIT, I WANT THE BOOK NOW (love that name b/c I say that exact thing all the time).  If you get chance, check out the interview–we’re talking books, characters, and one commenter will win an autographed copy of MIDNIGHT SINS. (See, I told you giveaways would be coming!)

Greta–thank you very much for taking the time to interview me!

Before I get to my Monday Booking It post, I want to do a congrats shout-out to Zoe!  Yay, Zoe!  Her story, A SAFER LIFE, was selected for inclusion in the Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest.  Zoe has full details up on her blog (so definitely check it out). Now that she’s in the contest, Zoe needs votes to advance in the competition. So if you get a chance, please head over to the site and vote!  And congrats, again, Zoe!

Now…on to Booking It…

Years ago, I used to love going on searches for the “hard-to-find” books. I’d spend hours looking at the shelves in the used bookstores.  I had favorite authors that I wanted–you know, when you’re desperate to find the backlist books.  I wanted all the old Jayne Castle books. I wanted Diana Palmer’s initial releases. I wanted Anne Stuart’s early Harlequins. Ah…the hunt.

Today, hunting for the old keepers is a much easier endeavor. Generally, if I’m looking for one of those hard to find books, I’ll hop over to eBay and see what I can find.  Ebay has made the books much more accessible to me–a few keystrokes and I can generally find the books I want. But–

But sometimes I miss my old searches. They were fun, and, often, while I was searching for one book, I’d stumble across another book that seemed just as interesting.  The used bookstores in my area don’t carry the classics anymore. I think they just ran out of shelf space.  So when I go to those stores (and I still go often), I have to limit myself to books that are a few years old. (As opposed to 15+ years, LOL.)

Lucky for me, eBay doesn’t have a time limit–er, book publication limit?

But what about you?  Do you enjoy hunting for the older, keeper books? And what is the best book “prize” that you’ve ever found?

And thank you very to everyone who asked about my son! No fever today–sweet!–so I think he’s on the mend. I’m even going to try the ice cream temptation again soon.  🙂

So Christmas came early at my house. Well, kinda anyway.  My laptop died on me early Saturday morning. I knew its demise was coming–one of the hinges had broken off about two months ago so I had to prop the screen up, a good portion of the letters had worn away on the keypad, my buttons stuck, the battery would stay charged for all of 10 minutes…yep, I *knew* the end was coming. But I was sure trying to make the thing last longer! (I’d had that computer for just about 2 1/2 years.)

It didn’t last.

So, now, I’m typing on my brand spanking new Dell.  Thank you, Best Buy.   Now let’s just see how long this one lasts.

And in other news…the lovely Lauren Dane is running an awesome contest on her blog.  Lots of free books and fun! So check it out!

My son is sick so I have to run–oh, but I hate it when he’s sick. A two year old who is under the weather…poor baby.  When I can’t even tempt him with a vanilla ice cream cone, I know he’s feeling miserable.