Goodreads giveaway winners and Wee Care Community Outreach program

Well, I have to say that I am pleasantly and wonderfully surprised by the final results of my goodreads book giveaway. There were 546 entries altogether! This astounds me and makes me incredibly happy.

I wanted to say congrats to the two winners, H.D. and Gary. I won't use last names because I didn't ask for permission to post their information. I sent the books off yesterday. I hope they enjoy them!

I also sent another book off yesterday. I donated it to a woman who entered my giveaway and sent me a very nice  email about my book. Her name is Savannah Lowery and she is the founder of a non profit organization called Wee Care Community Outreach, Inc. based out of Dalton, Georgia. I was intrigued by what she and her family are doing and I asked her if I might share some details about her work here on my blog. The following are excerpts from her goodreads page as well as the emails I received from her.

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When I win books, after I read them I donate them to the small non profit organization which I founded. We have 3 literacy awareness programs and each book helps to promote literacy among at-risk lower income children who can not afford books as well as patients recovering from illnesses, surgeries, and injuries while they stay in the hospital. 

We accept youth-YA books for our childrens program. (We offer children free books to help promote literacy. These children are lower income and families who can not buy books)

We have a program which lends books to patients in hospitals recovering from surgery, illness, or injury. Often times patients are by themselves for long periods of time. We believe that books take patients minds off of their pain and healing. Books take their minds to creative places and allow the body to heal faster.

Lastly, we accept books for fundraising for our programs. At times other things are needed to run the programs (books shelves, stationary products, etc-BUT we do NOT pay anyone who helps with our programs, everyone volunteers their time). We use books donated for fundraising to help us with the purchase of more books, supplies, and etc. 

If you would be interested in donating, please send us a message or ship books directly to us. Books can be sent to:

Wee Care Community Outreach, Inc
C/O Dawn Lowery
2873 Wells Drive
Dalton, Georgia 30721

Our direct email is: everythingunderthemoonwv@gmail.com

Find us on facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wee-Care-Outreach-Corp/379506468796582?fref=ts

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Savannah enters many book giveaways on goodreads and then donates the books she wins. I know that she asks authors to donate their own books, but book donations from anywhere are helpful. I chose to donate a copy of The Color of Thunder to Savannah after doing further research about Wee Care Community Outreach and when Alabama Skye is published, I will send her a copy of that one as well. I can't even count how many times a book has helped me. If I can be a part of that, I'm all in.

Only two more days left for the goodreads giveaway!

Just a reminder...my goodreads giveaway ends in two days! 312 readers have entered to win one of two signed paperback copies. If you're interested, enter quick!

Here's the link:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17194440-the-color-of-thunder

Alabama Skye...second novel coming soon!

            I am not exactly sure when this second novel will be ready to publish but my goal is to have it out by the end of 2013. I have just completed a synopsis for the book and wanted to include it here.

When tragedy befalls Cheney McGillvray, she decides to pack up and leave her beloved home on Scotland’s Isle of Skye. She travels to the beachfront town of Kelby on Alabama's gulf coast and appears unannounced on her sister Meara's doorstep with a plan not only for her own future but also for that of her niece.

Greer, fresh out of culinary school and two months pregnant, takes the advice of her headstrong grandmother Sarah, and agrees to a partnership with her aunt. Together they transform Sarah’s beautiful old home into a proper Scottish B & B right in the heart of America’s southland.

Both women realize the time to face their pasts has arrived in the weeks before they are to open Gannon’s Glen. Cheney finds it difficult to hide the darkness of her past when she begins suffering from debilitating nightmares that bring Greer to her bedside at night and a hurricane sweeps in more than stormy weather. News of the destruction of his childhood home brings Greer’s high school sweetheart and their unresolved relationship back into town. Although they are nearly strangers separated by a forty year age gap, Cheney and Greer lean on one another as they come to terms with their lives and realize the possibilities of their futures.

Sprinkled with humor and colorful descriptions of both the Gulf Coast and that of Scotland’s Inner Hebridean Islands, Alabama Skye is a story about the strength of four generations of women who believe that when things go wrong the ones who stand by you and the ones who lift you up without flinching are the ones you call family.

I am very excited about Alabama Skye. I will keep you posted on its progress here as I get further along in the manuscript.

There is still so much going on for my first novel, The Color of Thunder. Thanks so much to those of you who have left me reviews on Amazon. Reviews are incredibly important to authors so please, if you've read the book and haven't left one, I ask you kindly to do so. You will have my eternal gratitude.

150 people have signed up to win one of two autographed paperback versions of The Color of Thunder on goodreads so far. If you haven't yet but want to, follow this link and enter. The giveaway ends on April 15th. Please enter! Tell your friends to enter!

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/48734-the-color-of-thunder

The weekend is coming up. Hope you all have a good one!

Goodreads giveaway starts today!

Okay, it's begun! If you're interested in winning one of two autographed paperback copies of The Color of Thunder, please visit my page on goodreads.com to enter. 

Here's the link:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17194440-the-color-of-thunder

You can also reach it by clicking on the Enter to Win button to the right of this post here on my blog. Please enter and tell your friends to enter! Remember...I have no say at all in who wins the two copies. Goodreads runs the entire giveaway and lets me know at the end whom I need to send the books to. The giveaway runs from April 1st through April 15th.

Good luck!

Win an autographed paperback of The Color of Thunder!

Hello, all!

Wanted to let you know about a giveaway I'm doing through goodreads. I have two autographed paperback copies of The Color of Thunder available and between April 1 - April 15, you can enter to win one of them. Below find the link to the giveaway, (this may not be the only link...it's not actually up and running for two more days but you can surely get there from here.)

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/48734-the-color-of-thunder

You can also click on the Enter to Win button to the right underneath the Goodreads Book Giveaway here on my blog. (Just look to the right.)

I hope many of you enter! I am not the one who determines the winners...that's all on goodreads. I will sign the books and simply mail them out once the giveaway is over. Please enter!

A few tidbits about the paperback...

I took the cover photograph while on a road trip in South Carolina. Of course the sky wasn't purple...that I added while playing with the picture later. Also, the author photo on the back cover was taken by my hubby while we were on a family trip to one of our favorite castles here in Germany. I wrote the text on the back cover and my publisher, Xlibris put it all together. I am quite proud of the way it all turned out. I hope you like it, too.

Great new blog for new authors

I belong to a couple of different writing groups through Google+. The other day I received an email from one of the members who has spent a great deal of time and energy compiling a list of newly established writers and is inviting them to become a part of a directory he's created on a wordpress blog. I happily took him up on his offer and wanted to send out the link here:

 http://establishingwriter.wordpress.com

The blog is beautifully put together and I am happy to be a part of it. I am listed under fiction. Please go check this blog out and visit some of these new author's webpages. I know they'd be grateful that you did.

New reviews on Amazon

I have received some wonderful reviews from readers on Amazon. Check these out:

The Color of Thunder is a slice of heartfelt American history that comes to life. It spoke to me about a time, generation, and location I previously knew very little about. The author J.C Wing, gave life to the journey of a young girl named Faith Lindsay raised in Mississippi from 1946-1965. The details in the book are written so that we the audience experience every detail- I could actually feel the hard pew underneath me, the hot southern sun shining down on me, and taste the southern cooking. You live the responsibilities of our heroine to be a dutiful daughter, loving sister, and a fighter against civil injustices. It’s funny; we always think that things were simpler long ago. We live in a high-tech world living at a fast pace and this book shows us through its passionate and relative writing that growing up is never easy and each generation has struggles. We all have to worry about family expectations, choosing right from wrong, and what we would do if we witnessed civil injustices and how those decisions/actions would shape the people we want to become. The heroine Faith does all of that and more. Reading about her journey is thought-provoking, emotional, and above all else… meaningful.

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Having grown up in the South during the 60's, I can tell you that Ms. Wing has captured the essence of Southern family life during the 50's and 60's. Her vivid descriptive palette places you in the middle of not only the Linsey family, but into the very feeling of the conflicts Southerners experienced during those turbulent times.

Well done. 4.5/5 stars

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I loved this story of the old south. I love the descriptions JC gives about the characters and the scenery. I feel like I am right there alongside the characters in their every day lives. This is an awesome first book by the author. I can't wait to read more from her!

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This is a wonderful read. I love books that take you to a different place and this one does it. Great debut novel!

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Thank you to all that have read The Color of Thunder and to those of you who have reviewed it. I am still offering free e-book review copies. Let me know if you're interested.

Googling myself

Yep, it's true. I googled myself. Forgive me. I was curious. This is what I found...

Did you know that there is a restaurant in La Feria, Texas named JC Wing Co.?

It's true. They serve chicken wings, burgers and sandwiches...and it looks like a place I'd really like to have dinner sometime.

There's also another company that shares my name. They make aircraft models, which makes sense.

I also found something else that was pretty cool...maybe you'd like to check it out.

http://authors.xlibrispublisher.com/in-the-news/xlibris-author-j-c-wing

I didn't know this particular article was out there. See? It never hurts to google yourself. At least once in a while.

Book upload available now on goodreads!

I'm hoping I've done everything the way I need to in order to make it possible to download The Color of Thunder from my goodreads author page. I believe there is an excerpt of 20% of the book...which takes you into chapter 8. From there you can buy the rest of the book if you're so inclined. Remember, the ebook version is only $3.59 for Nook and $3.99 for Kindle. A book for the cost of a trip to Starbucks? That's not too bad. :)

Here's the link:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17194440-the-color-of-thunder

Click the "dowload e-book" button to the right of the book cover and there you go.

(Some of the formatting is a bit different than my original copy, but I know from firsthand experience that the Kindle ebook is laid out beautifully.)

This blog now has 930 page views. Thanks to everyone who has checked in. Please come back and visit me again!

Free e-book copies of The Color of Thunder!

Yep...I'm giving away ten free copies of my book...but there's a catch. I need a review on both Amazon and on Barnes and Noble in exchange. What do you think?

I have two versions of the e-book available so if you're interested, let me know which one you want. EPUB is the version all of you Apple users will need. It's also what Nook readers use. MOBI is supported by Kindle. Remember, you can download a Kindle app and read on your computer as well. 

If you feel like reading a free book then giving me a couple of reviews, please let me know. Either leave a comment on the blog or send me an email at: 

jcwing.novelist@gmail.com

Thanks everyone!

Come visit me on facebook

Hello!

Just wanted to let everyone know that I now have an author page on facebook if you'd like to come and check it out. Here's the link:

www.facebook.com/jcwing.novelist

I got a shipment of all my author's copies yesterday. Very exciting! For anyone who has read it, or plans to read it, I'm in desperate need of reviews on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble. It only takes a minute to do and I'll be eternally grateful to you for it. Thanks in advance!

Review copies of The Color of Thunder

Hello, all!

I'm writing this post in the hopes that some of you might know some staff or freelance journalists reporting for newspapers, magazines or radio and/or television stations. As a self-published author, (and one who is not currently living in the United States) I need all the help with publicity that I can get. The following is from my publisher, Xlibris, on the guidelines for those people qualified to receive free copies of The Color of Thunder for review.

Please make note of our policies regarding review copies:

If you receive a request from a reviewer, simply forward their e-mail or have them contact us by email at MarketingServices@Xlibris.com or ask the requesting media to notify us of the request via telephone. 888-728-8467 ext. 7605.

Requests must come from members of the working media: either a staff or freelance journalist reporting for a newspaper, radio station, television station, or magazine.

Of course, we will be happy to provide free review copies, background info, interviews, etc. to any member of the working press who inquires, whether they respond to releases sent by us or those sent by you. 

Any assistance I am able to receive I am absolutely grateful for. Let me say "thanks" in advance! As of today my blog has gotten more than 700 page views so I know someone out there is keeping tabs on my progress. Again, THANKS!

I'm a featured author on the official Xlibris blog!

I was contacted a little more than a week ago by someone with Xlibris who wanted to feature me as a promising author on the official Xlibris blog. This was an honor that I gladly accepted. To be featured on the blog, a writer normally has to send in an entry and hope they are rewarded a spot. I was incredibly proud to have been invited.

Please check out the article at the following link:

http://blog.xlibris.com/

Please share this via email, Twitter and any other social networks and help get this article out into the public for many people to see! Thanks, everyone!

Author's discussion - February 7th

Hi, all!

I am taking part in an author's discussion at Vogelweh Library on the Vogelweh base on Thursday, February 7th from 4 pm to 6 pm. I have been asked to come and share my experience with self-publishing and will be able to take my book with me where I can self promote a bit and talk to some soon-to-be authors as well as others who have already been published.

I'm looking forward to it!

New event coming up!

The details are a bit sketchy here but I am excited to announce that I am going to be a part of an author's discussion on the Vogelweh base on Thursday, February 7th. I don't have all the details as of yet, but I have been asked to give my perspective on the pros and cons of self publishing. The library itself cannot advertise The Color of Thunder or promote it because it has nothing to do with the 86 FSS, (the 86th Force Support Squadron.) We are playing by the military's rules here...but I will be able to bring my book, talk it up with the guests that are there and advertise myself a bit. Plus I get to talk about my writing...which is pretty darn cool. This will be the first time I've talked about The Color of Thunder with a group....I'm both a bit nervous and very excited all at once. 

For those of you who don't know...I am an American living in southwest Germany. My husband works on Ramstein Air Force Base so marketing my book here has been nearly impossible. Fortunately for me, Xlibris is doing a lot of publicity for me in the states and I will do what I can from here.

This is exciting for me! I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out.