LUCK OF THE IRISH

It's been a while since I've blogged. And to be honest, I feel like an old friend as just come to visit...or at least come to say hey for a short bit of luck.

March 17th is St. Patrick's Day, and if you have a little green running through your veins like me, it's a good reason to smile. Most associate the day with wearing green, drinking green beer, going to a parade, and eating something green for good luck. Count me in for all of the above!!

Okay, here's a little trivia for ya:
Which two U.S. rivers are died green every year on St. Patrick's Day?
No, it's not any river green beer is poured in. It's the San Antonio River and Chicago River.

It's also a legend that if you wear green on this special day, you become invisible to leprechauns. You know, those sneaky little creatures who want to take your pot of gold. So whatever your treasure is on this day, or river you plan on turning green, I hope you find your LUCK OF THE IRISH and hold it close to your heart.

HAPPY ST. PARTRICK'S DAY EVERYONE!!



What's that I see?



Wish You Could Have Been There!

On November 10th, Heart of Louisiana held its annual luncheon at the beautiful Juban's restaurant. I'm going to let you in on a little secret...I WISH YOU COULD HAVE BEEN THERE!!!

Here's what you missed. Over 100 avid readers and fans mingling with 30 authors who are also avid readers and fans. Everyone eating, laughing, and winning great prizes. Yep, you read right...winning! And I mean in more ways than one. How could you not with a room full of people just like you, right?

The multi-talented, best selling New York Times (and the list goes on) author, HEATHER GRAHAM, was our speaker. Not only is she talented in the showing, not telling, of ghost stories...she's also that type of person you feel you've known forever. How does she do it, I wonder?

I've posted a few pictures below. But feel free to check out the HeartLa site for lots more https://www.facebook.com/pages/Heart-of-Louisiana-Baton-Rouge-Chapter-of-Romance-Writers-of-America/150635784936

Next year, I'm looking for you!!  Have a wonderful week everyone!



Some of the authors you missed. I'm somewhere in the back!




Me with Heather Graham.



Me with Diana Rowland author of the White Trash Zombie novels and many more!

Halloween Candy Trivia...just for you!

I'll bet if you look in your photo album, you'd find lots of pictures of you dressed in your, at the time, favorite Halloween costume. Now...look a little closer. Real close as in close enough to see the candy in your pumpkin. Or maybe it's scattered all over the floor. Those were some of my favorite times.

Here's where you'll have to find a little trivia. In your stash, that I'm sure you didn't share with anyone, right? Okay, back to business. In your stash of goodies, you had the first wrapped candy made in America. Yep, that's right. The first! Can you guess what it is? Here's a hint. It's chewy, chocolatey, and oh sooo good.

One more hint. You probably already grabbed a few from your candy to give out on Halloween night. Remember, it's individually wrapped. Well, I'm sure the picture below gave it away, so I'll let you slide on this one. Have a safe and memorable Halloween everyone! And while you're unwrapping your Tootsie Roll, you're eating a bit of history.

A Special Treat!

Have you ever wanted to spend the day with a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author? Does the name Heather Graham sound like a good lunch date? Would you like to be surrounded in a room full of other authors and fans enjoying a wonderful lunch followed by a book signing where you can mingle with all your new friends? Oh come on...of course you do.

I'm personally inviting you to join me and be the envy of all your friends on November 10th in Baton Rouge, Louisiana at the beautiful Juban's Restaurant. For more information, ticket prices, and a list of all scheduled authors, click below. We're all looking forward to meeting you!!

http://heartla.com/luncheon/index.htm

Happy 1st Birthday ALTERED!

It's hard to believe a full year has passed since the release of my debut novel Altered. I'm sure so many of you can relate to something in your life happening, and in your mind, you see it a certain way that fits you perfectly. What we imagine and dream up, most of the time, is not always as good as the real deal. So to all of you who supported me I want to say THANKS. You made reality so much sweeter. Without my family, friends, bloggers, my publisher, editors, fans, librarians, book stores, teachers, and everyone who just stopped by out of curiosity, Altered would still be rattling around somewhere in my mind, waiting to be published. Yep, I like the way things turned out much better!




Happy 1st Birthday!



LET'S CHAT TONIGHT!

Happy summer everyone!

Any plans tonight? I'll be the guest author on a blog talk radio show, Journal Jabber sponsored by The Eyes for Editing, at 8pm Central time, 9pm Est. You can call in at 858-365-5540, or log in at

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/journaljabber/2012/07/18/laura-burks--it-all-began-on-friday-the-13th.

Let's chat. It'll be fun!

BREAK IT DOWN.

WRITE...
W...What do I want to capture for my story.
R ... Reach a target audience.
I ...  Ignore bad comments.
T ... Treat your story as fiction and don't ignore real life.
E ... Each word matters -- and so do you.

If you're like me, summer is here and some daily routines are pushed aside and forgotten. Writing is one of them. I have to remind myself, as soon as I open my eyes because it's the first thing that pops in my mind, to not give up. That it's okay to take some time off and live in a reality world and not partially consummed in a fictional one. Yes, as a writer, and you know who you are, it's a real challenge to shut some voices off. What helps is knowing that you're not the only one out there that feels the same way. I guess that could apply to just about anything in life, right?

Here's the dilemma. How do you not let negative comments get in the way of you continuing to do what you enjoy doing? I've read reviews and comments from those who are published getting unfair and bad reviews. And you know what's even more frustating, when you read the review yourself, most of them are so far off the mark. It's almost like the person skimmed over the words and never actually read the meaning. I'll admit, I've had a few myself. But I'm lucky I guess. It's only been two, and even those weren't bad. Now watch me post this and ten show up today. Would that be bad karma or what?

I've decided it doesn't matter if you do what others expect you to. Do what makes you happy. Even if it means checking off the dream that came true and pursuing another one.

Have a great and safe summer everyone!