First I was a lover of words. Then a lover of books (because books are word-holders!) Then a lover of writing (because I could make more word-holders–an unending supply!) So, for me, the reading came before the writing. It doesn’t always come first anymore, but I can’t imagine being a writer apart from being a reader. Reading gives me so much more than just a story. I learned grammar from reading. (It was out of fashion during my decades in California public schools.) Which means that I learned how to construct sentences correctly, and how to know when I’m breaking the rules for effect. (See how I began my sentence? And see how I abused that poor comma?) During times when I’ve had “grader of papers” in my job description, I always felt like I could peg the readers and non-readers by Read more…

I am very excited to bring two of my author buddies onboard today. Laura Elliott and I first met through SCBWI, and I’m getting to know Cheri (who is also a downhill ski racer–oh, yeah, baby!) thanks to Laura! The two are going to share some thoughts about where the e-book market is heading. At the bottom of the interview, you’ll find an excerpt from Cheri’s novel, ARTEMIS RISING. Enjoy! Ladies, take it away! Laura asks: Cheri, where do you think enhanced books are headed next? [Music? Videos? Scratch n’ Sniff? Hee-hee!] Cheri says: Ebooks will eventually be fully immersive. Even the writers will be writing TO the medium and planning the interactivity into the writing itself. Remember those old choose-your-own-adventure books when you were a kid? Well, interactive ebooks will be those books on steroids. Just imagine reading a Read more…

There are several giveaways of some-to-all of my books happening right now.  See how happy this makes me? (Okay, maybe it’s the hanging at Starb’s with friends that made me happy . . .) At Amy’s site, I discuss my nerdliness. Giveaway of trilogy (ends tomorrow-with excellent odds!!!) Over at Fisher’s, it is Why YA? And a trilogy giveaway (ends tomorrow-with good odds!) You should also check out Pamela’s site for another trilogy giveaway and her reviews and a post by me! (ends in 4 days–cool site altogether for non-book reviews!) And Suzy really needs you to stop by, as her giveaway is so fresh there aren’t any entries yet! (ends in a weekish) Finally, definitely go see Anna who interviews Sam! How cool! You’ll want to check it out. (With trilogy giveaway.) I’m thrilled to still have some listings in breakdown categories on Amazon’s Top Read more…

I bought a dresser today. I know, I know: big deal. But here’s the thing. It kind of was a big deal. When my husband and I first married, we were both grad students and dirt poor. I brought a bedroom set into the marriage, and that was our only furniture for years. We made bookshelves from cinder blocks and pieces of 1×8 planks of wood because, really, bookshelves weren’t optional for us. We shuddered at the expense, which could have bought us a week’s worth of Mac-n-Cheese and hot dogs and Cheerios. Before too long, we bought a “do it yourself” wooden table with a drawer which was big enough for both of us to use as a study desk if we sat kitty-corner. Then came a long stretch of no furniture until we had our first kid. Friends Read more…

I’ve been thinking about my beginnings as a writer, and I realized I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Louisa May Alcott. Her book, LITTLE WOMEN, was the first novel-length work I ever read to myself. I was eight and seriously too young to catch everything that was going on. I even managed to miss that one of the main characters had died, and I had a huge argument on the bus one day with a friend who knew The Truth. But there were things that sunk in deeply and nourished me for years. Jo’s love for books told me it was okay to love them as deeply as I did. Her sister’s comparative indifference to the printed word told me most of the people in my life would likely not feel the book-fever. And her love of writing? Read more…

Hey Reader Kinfolk, Here are today’s opportunities to register for giveaways connected with the Official Unfurl Blog Tour: Enter to win a signed ARC of Unfurl here on my blog. (ends 2 days) Enter to win an e-copy of Chameleon here on Heather’s blog. (ends 13 days) Also, I have a guest post over here at Emily’s blog about history and fiction. And lastly, thanks A TON to those of you who helped spread the word about my free day on Amazon. I had 5400 downloads in 24 hours. That’s a lot of Rippler! Hugs, Cidney

It’s here! The official beginning of the Official Unfurl Blog Tour! And I’m kicking it off with a BIG BANG! Today, from 12:01AM ’til midnight tonight, RIPPLER will be free at Amazon.com. Yes, that’s right–FREE! Please spread the word! ‘Cause when it’s over at 11:59PST tonight, it’s over. So head over to amzn.to/rippled and for goodness’ sake, tweet to your BFFs about this one. But Wait! There’s more! For the next 36 days, I’ll be hopping all over the blog-o-sphere giving interviews, doing guest posts, receiving reviews of Unfurl and giving away over a hundred kindle-copies of my books! Yes, you read that correctly. Thanks to my new best friend Rafflecopter, (see my commercial break below) most of the host sites are doing giveaways of the trilogy. Every day. Yeah. It’s big and I can’t wait. Since some of you would probably Read more…

Bringing out the third in a trilogy is very, very, (very) exciting for me! And that means I need to spread the excitement. Share the love. Give stuff away. Would you like an ARC of Unfurl and a signed bookmark (swag from Chameleon/Rippler events)? You’re in luck! Fill out the Rafflecopter form below (you may need to press “read more” to make it show up.) Then sit back and wait to see if you’re one of three lucky winners! This giveaway is in addition to the Unfurl Official Blog Tour Stops where I’ll be giving away complete kindle versions of The Ripple Trilogy every day from January 10-February 14. (You’ll want to check back for a special Valentine’s Day giveaway!) Hope you’re feeling the love! a Rafflecopter giveaway <a href=”http://rafl.es/enable-js”>You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway</a>.

For those of you who are writers, or considering writing, I cordially present: my year in scribbling. For the rest of you, this will probably be deadly dull, and I advise finding a more interesting website, post haste. January Fresh back from a fab Big Sur Workshop with ABLit. Inspired. Instructed. I eradicate thousands of words from WIP thanks to great advice from Jenn Rofe and Mary Kole. I am introduced to several of my bad author-ly habits, and I send them packing. Yay! I realize I don’t know where my WIP should begin. *Is annoyed* I join kindleboards and lurk watch the Writer’s Cafe with interest. February WIP is looking thin and fit thanks to December/January weight loss program. I still fear I haven’t found the correct beginning for my story, but I go with one I think might work. Now a Read more…

Wishing you a very, very happy season of holidays, whichever you celebrate. For my fam, it’s Christmas, although you might hear the occasional Hanukkah greeting, depending on who is around and how closely the two holidays fall any given year. I wanted to send a little something out to say thanks for following me this year, so today, December 25, you can download a copy of Rippler from Amazon absolutely gratis! Er, free. Sir Walter’s been hanging out in my head again. (Yes, he also knows and can speak in Latin.) The special will end sometime around midnight Pacific Time, so head over while the getting is good! With wishes for “Peace on Earth, Goodwill to mankind,” Cidney