Winslet, Book Signing, Yes to NaNo and Back-of-the-Book Blurb # 84

          Winslet is in the doggy hospital... again. Chronic diarrhea continues. While we were in for a vet appointment for a recheck on her white blood cell count, she became quite unstable--right before our very eyes. Walking around like she was either drunk or she'd had a stroke (she's only 3), her left front and back leg were visibly weak/nonfunctioning. We rushed her to an emergency care facility. She'll be there at least for the weekend.

         Winslet, in case you're not one of my 1.3 readers, is a foster dog from Turkey. When we took her to the emergency place, one of the techs came in with a disposable gown and said, "I'll come back in my gear." Our rescue president and I wondered what she was talking about. Would she return decked out in SWAT boots and body armor? WITH? 

         She then came back in the same way she was before, in a disposable gown, and she had another tech with her (who was also wearing a disposable gown). She said, "I'm wearing this because we're from a foreign country." My eyes widened, full of questions. What country were the two of them from, and why did their country of origin necessitate a disposable gown? When she said, "We don't know what Winslet might have picked up in Turkey," I couldn't help it.

        I had to say, "Oh, so when you said, 'We're from a foreign country,' you meant she's from a foreign country." I hate when people use "we" and "we're" like that.) She tried to claim that was not what she said, but both of us heard it.

         If you're free and in the St Louis area, come to the U City Half Price Books store. From 11-3 there will be a few Chicken Soup writers (Linda O'Connell, Pat Wahler and myself) signing books. Bring a canned good in and enter a drawing for a $50 gift card.

        My NaNoWriMo word count is 9,347. That's probably a third of the way. I'm semi-pleased with how it's going so far. Hopefully, when I post next week, I'll have progressed a bit more.

 And now onto the business of the book blurb...

         Look at the photo below. That is the cover of your book. You choose the genre. Is it a coffee table book of fashion trends? Is it a photo collection of mentally-ill patients and their clothing choices? You decide.

        Write an enticing blurb--150 words or less. (The title doesn't count in the word count.) Blurbs are those enticing bits that prod you into buying the book. Sometimes they're on the back cover of the book. Sometimes they're on the inside front cover. What they always try to do is lure you into purchasing the book. 

          Lisa Ricard Claro was the original creator of this writing challenge. She moved to Florida, and is too busy to host a weekly book blurb. Her first romance novel, Love Built to Last, just came out as an audio book.  She's quite busy these days. She's busy trying to figure out how many hours a beach lover and writer can resist the beach as she toils away at her writing.

          
          Okay, back to book blurb stuff.
     

          Include your blurb in a blog post. Include a link to this post. Also, link your post to Mr. Linky. Mr. Linky is easy. If you've never done it, you'll be impressed with how simple he is. And then, check out the other blurb(s). It's interesting to see the different directions writers take, given the same photo.

           Here's the book cover, along with my blurb:

Little Miss Dynamite

Little Imelda was a miniature keg of dynamite and she was a triple threat. She could sing, dance and act.

Mrs. Markohs tried to rein in her enthusiasm, but it was impossible. Whenever she saw an ad for a kids’ beauty pageant, this stage mom was frothing at the mouth to get Imelda’s application filled out.

Unfortunately, a monster was in the making. As Imelda racked up trophies and blue ribbons, she got more demanding.

“Use Evian water to make my koolaid, not that crap tap water!”

“Ugh. A brown paper sack? Put my lunch in a Birkin bag.”

“No ‘Super Cuts’ for me. Take me to get a $200 haircut.”

Even her mother can see Imelda is getting a bit unreasonable.

Will she be able to bring her daughter back to earth? Or, will Imelda continue with her monstrous and demanding lifestyle? (143 words)

And for those few who are considering playing along, here is the book cover for next week:

Books Galore

     One of St. Louis' independent bookstores--the Book House--is having to move. Yes, it's a larger place and it's a better location (if they're able to snag the spot they're hoping for), but with multiple floors full of books (3), it's going to be a gargantuan task to move.

    However, they're still open, so if you're in the St. Louis area and want to check them out in their soon-to-be-"old" location, call ahead (if you're looking for a particular book) and head their way.

Three floors of books...It's a cool place, and no, the owners are not
whackadoo--they don't have the place all decked out for the
holidays all year long. This is a photo from last December's Chicken Soup
 for the Soul's book signing. At this book
signing, a rare sighting of the elusive "Val" occurred.

      And it's a building that's brimming over with character (the building is being torn down--it was built in 1863), so it's going to be a loss to the Rock Hill community...but not to the independent book store community because the Book House is moving to a place that is going to be bigger and better. 

      One of my favorite independent book stores I visited earlier this summer is Half Price Books in Kansas City. It's a huge expanse of used books and is meticulously organized. My son got me hooked introduced me to it.

      What is your favorite book store (and why) or what is a book you've read this summer that you are recommending? (I've read Joe Hill's NOS4A2, which is brilliant, if you like scary/creepy stories. I'm also still singing the praises for Leonard Pitts Jr.'s epic novel Freeman, and earlier this summer I read Hosseini's And the Mountains Echoed. All three I would give 5 out of 5 stars.)