Blog Lover's Holiday Giveaway & MG Book Spotlight: God Love You, Chester Blue

For the month of December, I'm hosting my very own Bookish Holiday Gift Ideas for 2012, offering up suggestions for you to share as presents with your family and friends.

'Tis the Season to be given, right? What better way to give than to participate in I Am a Reader, Not a Writer's giveaway fest co-hosted by Maryann of Chapter by Chapter?

You're correct. There is no better way for this writer/blogger. AND look at the surprise I have for you: a review of the sweet book I'm offering up! 

Bookish Holiday Gift Idea #2: 
Sweet, innocent, and kind are a few adjectives I'd use to describe my next MG feature.

Title: God Loves You, Chester Blue
Author: Suzanne Anderson
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Harry and George Press
Released: June 24, 2012
Pages: 132

I'd like to thank the author for providing me with a copy of her book for review.

Favorite Line/Passage: Miss Millie stretched out her arms and embraced all the beauty she saw in the sky above her head. She silently thanked God for creating such a beautiful universe where anything was possible even when it seemed impossible. 

Description: What if when you most needed help, a blue bear appeared with a note from God? One night, Miss Millie of Blossom, Ohio turns her face to the stars and asks God for help. The next day, a package arrives on her doorstep containing a blue teddy bear and a special note. Over the course of a year, this remarkable blue bear travels across the country, showing up just when he’s needed most. During his journey, Chester Blue helps a young girl trying to impress her big sisters; saves a sailor caught in a terrible storm; reunites two constantly fighting brothers; helps a cowboy become a rodeo clown; and aids a father and daughter in bonding after divorce. If you ever needed a message from God, it's here.

NIGHTSTAND WORTHY

My Splats: A journey of miracles, hope, and trust that will stay with you long after.

This story is a chronicle of a special teddy bear, who unwittingly travels with family after family, person after person, and somehow finds all in need. He casts light on peoples' troubles, clearing their vision to see through their despair. 

Miss Millie is a sweet elderly woman able to reflect on past blessings, see a void in today, and hope, pray, wish, and dream for a better day. But her small town's hustle and bustle slowly moves away, leaving the town practically lifeless and her Fix It Teddy Bear Shop forced to close, she can't seem to see the light anymore.

Through the mystical appearance of a blue bear, Miss Millie and others are given hope and reason to keep forging ahead, striving for a new day. Chester Blue is a bear of miracles. He shares life lessons with the reader like perseverance, kindness, understanding, and patience.

The writing is simple yet holds a poetic quality - a great read-aloud for younger kids and a wonderful on-my-own read for MG fans. This story would make a wonderful Christmas present, and a perfect time to share Chester Blue!

For more, please visit Chester Blue and Author Suzanne Anderson on their Website. 

Simply ENTER for your chance to WIN a print copy of this wonderful book!! Winner will be announced Dec. 11th.
Good Luck, everyone!

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The NIGHTMARE Collection Tour

Today I'm kicking off my Bookish Holiday Gift Ideas for 2012! For the month of December, I'm going to be offering up suggestions for you to share as presents with your family and friends.

Bookish Holiday Gift Idea #1: Monday Madness brings us some manic and mania with a hint of nightMARE....

A legend is hungry tonight. 

A child monster will get its first taste of blood in Nightmare at the Freak Show. Four friend will enter the forest on December night, but only one can survive in Once Upon a December Nightmare. Almost ten years after Cassie's December nightmare, the monster awakens to hunt again in Nightmare Ever After.

Publication Date: November 17, 2012

Cover art by Nicemonkey at Dreamstime.com. Cover design by Aubrie Dionne. Bookworm logo for Surrounded by Books Publishing created by Cherie Reich.

Please welcome Cherie Reich - self-proclaimed bookworm, writer, freelance editor, book blogger, and library assistant living in Virginia. Her short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies. Her e-books include the horror series Nightmare, a short story collection with authors Aubrie Dionne and Lisa Rusczyk titled The Best of Raven and the Writing Desk, the futuristic space fantasy novelette trilogy Gravity, and The Foxwick Chronicles, a series of fantasy stories. She is a member of Valley Writers and the Virginia Writers Club. Visit her on her Website, Blog, Twitter, Facebook, & Goodreads.

Hi Cherie! It's great to have you on Writer's Alley. How did you begin writing?

I used to role-play and write Harry Potter fan fiction, but a character named Yssa, who was the Phoenix Prophetess, really inspired me to write. She started as a character from a Harry Potter role-playing game and involved into her own character with her own background and story in a fantasy world of her own. After three years of daydreaming about her and the other characters in the story, I had to write it.

The person who kept me writing, though, was Christine Rains. We knew each other on the Harry Potter role-playing games, and each week I would send her a chapter of The Phoenix Prophetess. Without Christine's support, I don't know if I would've kept writing.

What are your thoughts about self-promotion, author platforms, and the ever-changing publishing world?

Self-promotion is like being on Survivor. You don't want to push too hard or you'll make yourself a bigger target, and the tribe will vote you out. You don't want to do too little or the other players will think of you as a weak player and vote you out. You have to find the right balance for you. What do you enjoy doing? How do you want to portray yourself? Writers don't have to be on every single social media outlet. Find what works best for them and run with it. The key is balance and finding your niche for your author platform to work along with your self-promotion.

As for the ever-changing publishing world, it's an exciting time to be an author. We have so many more options to get our work out there in front of readers.

You mentioned social media. Let's focus on one aspect of that arena, your blog. Tell us a bit about your experience with blogging.
I started blogging on May 29, 2009 because I heard that was a good way for an author to network. I mainly blogged about my writing at first and then moved on to talking about books and helping other authors. Right now I blog mainly on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and have themed days.

I started blogging for the same reason. Thanks for joining us, Cherie, and best of luck with The Nightmare Collection!


Giveaway:

Cherie is giving away prizes to two lucky people. The prize packages are open internationally and include: a signed copy of The Nightmare Collection, a signed copy of Gravity: The Complete Trilogy, and a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

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The Nightmare Collection is available in ebook format at Smashwords, Amazon US, UK, DE, FR, ES, IT, JP, Nook, Nook UK, Kobo. Available in print format at Createspace, Amazon US, UK, DE, FR, ES, IT.