Insecure Writer’s Support Group, Black Adam Review, and November Movie Preview

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

The awesome co-hosts for the November 2 posting of the IWSG are Diedre Knight, Douglas Thomas Greening, Nick Wilford, and Diane Burton!

November 2 question - November is National Novel Writing Month. Have you ever participated? If not, why not?

Yes! I participated in 2010. It was right after the release of my first book, CassaStar. And during NaNo, I wrote most of the sequel, CassaFire. (I didn’t finish until mid-December, but I did win at NaNo.)

I also participated in a June event, BuNo I believe it was called. I didn’t win, but I wrote a good chunk of what would become CassaStorm.

So, I do recommend them for anyone needing a deadline or some real motivation!

The IWSG Goodreads Book Club selections for November are:

Black Adam Movie Review

The film is good, what you’d expect from a superhero movie, and it just falls short of great.
I liked Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam.
I also loved seeing Hawkman and Dr. Fate. Pierce Brosnan was an excellent choice for the latter. Some reviews say the Justice Society is in it too much – I didn’t think so.
It tries to be a crowd pleaser, sometimes too hard. But it does deliver on all levels and with the great special effects you'd expect.
I enjoyed it though and recommend it to any superhero, DC, or Justice Society fan.
Don’t go in thinking it will subvert your expectations – it’s exactly what you think it will be.

November Movie Preview

Here are the theatrical releases for October. Descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snark provided by me.

2 –

The Monkey King: The Legend Begins
Director: Soi Cheang
Stars: Donnie Yen, Chow Yun-Fat, Aaron Kwok
The Monkey King: The Legend Begins is the re-imagined version by Hollywood of the film The Monkey King: Havoc in Heavens Palace, the origin and birthplace of The Monkey King Story.
It was shot back-to-back with the sequel – The Monkey King II: Electric Boogaloo.

11 –

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Director: Ryan Coogler
Stars: Angela Bassett, Tenoch Huerta, Martin Freeman, Danai Gurira
The nation of Wakanda is pitted against intervening world powers as they mourn the loss of their king T'Challa.
I tried to avoid spoilers but the shapely Black Panther suit gave it away…

25 –

Battle for Saipan
Director: Brandon Slagle
Stars: Casper Van Dien, Jeff Fahey, Louis Mandylor
A Surgeon defends a hospital from invading enemy forces in the Battle of Saipan during World War II.
Somebody thought doing a war movie with a low budget and B and C list actors a good idea. Make sure you thoroughly destroy all expectations before seeing it.

Are you participating in NaNo? Did you see Black Adam? Any movies catch your eye this month? It’s slim pickings…

What Constitutes Quality Blog Content? Plus All I Want for NaNo (Everybody Sing!), Movie Trivia Answers, and Ninja News

I’m welcoming J. A. Bennett today to tell you about a couple amazing things that are happening in conjunction with NaNo. I’ve participated in NaNo and visited the site often, (I wrote CassaFire during NaNo 2010), but I had no idea what the organization was doing for the writing community.

All I Want for NaNo

I first heard about NaNo WriMo three years ago shortly after I started blogging. I thought people were nuts for even attempting to write 50k in a month. Yet, I couldn’t pass up the chance to try it out for myself. Since then, I’ve done NaNo (including camp NaNo) 4 times--this November will make 5.
Because of this, I’ve spent a considerable about of time on NaNoWriMo.org and they’re doing some amazing stuff for people. I have a 14 yr old cousin who went to LTUE last year because NaNo came to his school, and he decided he really liked writing. If that isn’t awesome, I don’t know what is.
In these past three years I’ve felt awful for not giving back when NaNo has been doing so much for writers everywhere. That’s why I decided to write an anthology with a few awesome friends and donate all the proceeds to NaNoWriMo. Since the stories are about Christmas, we’re doing a bloghop entitled “All I Want for NaNo”.

I wanted to kick things off today on Alex’s blog with the Twelve days of NaNo (make sure you sing along)—

On the Twelveth day of NaNo my critique partner gave to me:
Twelve pens a scratching
Eleven beats a beating
Ten backed up hard drives
Nine pages of notes
Eight sprinters sprinting
Seven new ideas
Six hours of writing
Five thousand words
Four plot bunnies
Three metaphors
Two awesome hooks
And a climax that takes place in a tree

The bloghop and book release are taking place on November 1st. Please join us!
On November 1st post what you want for you NaNo and put a buy link to The Spirit of Christmas Anthology, as well as the blog hop code in your post. Get as creative as you like, pictures--flash fiction--video, think outside the box.
Get all the information and the code HERE at JA’s blog.

Congratulations to the contributing authors and good luck to all NaNo participants!
Now to go find that tree…

Ninja News!

Available Monday, October 22nd!

Just in time for Halloween, here's the cover of the latest installment of E.J. Wesley's Moonsongs series, Dragon's Game! (New Adult - speculative - Novelette)

Add Dragon's Game to your Goodreads shelf. And for a limited time, you can catch up on the entire Moonsongs series for just .99 cents (regularly $2.99). Moonsongs Anthology 1 (books 1, 2, & 3) is on sale October 15th - 20th at Amazon and Barnes and Noble

Available now – Courage by Carrie Butler!

Rena Collins never thought she'd long for the past…

Buy it now at Amazon
Also, you can pick up the first book in the Mark of the Nexus series for free through Friday - Strength

Chicken Soup for the Soul - It's Christmas was just released and includes "The Treasure Hunt" by LD Masterson.



Congratulations to all three authors!

Movie Trivia Answers!

1 - “When there’s no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth.” (1978) - Dawn of the Dead
2 - “Be afraid… Be very afraid.” (1986) - The Fly
3 - “Smile, you son of a b____!” (1975) - Jaws
4 - “I will not be threatened by a walking meat loaf!” (1981) – An American Werewolf in London
5 - “Who’s laughing now?” (1987) – Evil Dead II
6 - “Mrs. MacNeil, the problem with your daughter is not her bed, it’s her brain.” (1973) – The Exorcist

What Constitutes Quality Blog Content and What About Hits?

Monday Arlee Bird tossed out a post about being respected as a blogger, most viewed posts, and what makes a post go viral. The comments were just as interesting and went off in several new directions. It sparked some thoughts in me (which can be dangerous) and I thought I’d continue a few idea streams here.

When it comes to page views and viral posts, I’ve blogged long enough that I know what topics are going to generate the most attention. (I know which ones are likely to kick my comment count over two hundred as well.) However, when it comes to page views and hits – I don’t really care! That’s why I don’t have a stat counter. They aren’t accurate anyway. And what does an extra five thousand views really do for me? I don’t get new followers or new people commenting, nor does it do anything for my book sales. Blogging is about community and friends – you guys – not about racking up the page views anyway.

(You want impressive when it comes to blogging? Someone led me to a blog that had 58,000+ followers and each post racked up 5000 comments (the maximum allowed) in one day. And as far as I could tell, it wasn’t someone famous, and the posts weren’t anything out of the ordinary. Heck with page views – that’s just amazing!)

Another aspect discussed was what makes for valuable blog content. Is it information? Controversy? Thoughtful, reaction-inducing posts? I guess it all depends on what you are looking for in a blog and what your goals are with your own.

As you know, I post a variety. My bio on the left states my interests up front, and it’s those things I usually discuss. I feature a variety of things, just so there is something for everyone. (If you come here and can’t find something on which to comment, then I am at a total loss.) It’s rarely anything like this or something that would stir up controversy. This blog is about fun. As it reflects my books and my writing, as I write light space opera, it’s a good fit.

And it’s by no means easy. It takes me two – three hours to put together a post. I put forth the effort because I want to present the best to you guys, my readers. You guys are important – you’re my friends, and that trumps all. And once I get through this month, there will be a little less promo and more cool Ninja stuff here

So there you have it. And I promise never to cop out on a post and slap a kitten photo up just to get hits. (Unless Pat’s cat Cassie poses as a Ninja for Halloween…)

Are you participating in NaNo this year? (Did you sing the song for JA?) Stoked about the new books? Get any of the trivia correct? And are you happy with your blog? What content matters to you? Do you care about page views? What matters most to you when it comes to blogging?

Conquered the NaNo!!!!!

I am captain of the world!

Not to be confused with king of the world – that’s from Titanic.

No, I am Captain Alex of the Starship NaNoWriMo!!!

That’s right – after twenty eight days of hunt and peck typing, I managed to complete the NaNo challenge. I ended yesterday with 50,975 words, well over the target – and with more of the story to write. (And probably a lot to re-write as well!)

Several of my NaNo buddies are also big winners – congratulations to Hart, Falen, Jen, Lola, Clarissa, Lynda, Jemi, Emily, Golden, Charity, Pk, Melissa, Brad, and Anna.

And a couple are so close! Go Ellie and Ted!!! You can do it.

Thanks to everyone who’s stuck with me during November while I devoted several hours a day to writing instead of blogging. (And of course a big thanks to my wife whom I intend to lavish with attention after ignoring her for a month.)

Ninja Alex is back! Captain Ninja Alex…

And one last round of my Twitter Stardate NaNo updates. Live long and prosper!!

Stardate #nanowrimo 19.6 Caught Riker & Troi naked. Said she sensed danger. In Riker's pants? Not buying it... 31551

Stardate #nanowrimo 19.9 A bunch of the ship just fell off and nobody likes me... word count 32276

Stardate #nanowrimo 20.8 The Borg tried to assimilate Justin Bieber. Their ship exploded. I call that a win-win! 34232 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 22.7 Kicking Ferengi butt and taking names! Nog went first. He's small - easy to punt! 38085 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 23.9 Why does everyone on the bridge giggle when I give the orders for saucer separation? 40451 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 24.6 The allure of an evening pass off-world is too great! You have the Bridge, Number One. 41320 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 27.3 Must've been a wild party. Discovered Odo & Kira in my closet and Morn under my bed. Creepy. 44466 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 27.8 Warp 9 through a wormhole! Scotty, the engines can't take it no more!! 48,596 words as my hands falls off into space

Stardate #nanowrimo 28.6 Kirk and Picard were but amateurs. I am Captain Alex of the Starship NaNo! 50,975 words - I win!!

Movie Awards, Fantastic Friday Writers, and Stardate NaNo Updates.

First a quick reminder that the Movie Awards voting is tomorrow, November 20! I’ve been nominated for Best Sci-Fi Blog and the Gold Movie Blog awards. Go to The Movie 411 to cast your vote. There’s several categories and some of my blogging buddies are also nominated. (So feel free to vote for them instead!)

Today is another edition of Fantastic Friday Writers! I invite your to check out my Fantastic Friday Writers partners - Elizabeth Mueller, Anastasia V. Pergakis, J. D. Brown, and Deirdra Eden Coppel - for their take on this subject.

What inspires my science fiction/fantasy mind to write?

Because it’s a world beyond our own! I write for the same reason I watch movies and read books – to escape. I want to go somewhere beyond the confines of our current life on earth, though. I want to see other worlds; experience life through new races; witness different situations and technology. Yes, many of the struggles are similar to our own, but I identify with them more because they occur in a setting other than here. My curiosity drives me to envision and create a unique world, one unseen by others. I want to boldly go where no man has gone before! (You just knew that was coming, didn’t you?) I am inspired by what I see in other books and in movies of my genre. It’s exciting and new. I want to continue that journey of discovery!

If you are a science fiction or fantasy writer, why? What inspires you?

And now for the Stardate NaNo updates!

Stardate #nanowrimo 12.6 Trouble in transport. Ferengi Ambass. arrived inside out. And he exploded. Cleanup in Transporter Rm1! 19165 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 14.9 I faced the Kobayashi Maru and won, baby! 24,123 words!

Stardate #nanowrimo 15.9 Lt. Barclay has gone missing and no one cares. 25,107 words!

Stardate #nanowrimo 16.9 Hot green aliens are dancing all over the bridge - and I can't stand up. Word count 26,637

Stardate #nanowrimo 17.9 Data told me my skin is as smooth as an android's butt. I'm afraid to be alone with him now... 28,446 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 18.9 Connected the dots on Jadzia Dax's body. Funny, I expected more than a space pony... 30272 words

Look for a Harry Potter review this weekend. And don’t forget to vote at The Movie 411 on Saturday!

Blogfest, NaNo, Award, and Ask Me if I'm Naked...

I’ll get to that naked thing in a minute…

Jeffrey at World of the Scribe is hosting a Thanksgiving Blogfest on November 24! Visit his blog for details.

Still plugging away at NaNo – hit 26,637 last night. I’m on target, which means I’ll be one of those frantically trying to input my 50,000 words the evening of the 30th. But I’ve really hit my stride with this one and concocted some great twists.

Thanks to everyone who comes by here even when I slack on blogging! And big thanks to those of you who’ve purchased (or plan to purchase) my book. I really appreciate all the support. I don’t know about the other chains, but my publisher said Barnes and Noble is stocking CassaStar, which is cool!

Now about asking me if I’m naked…
Well, you can ask, but the answer is no!
However, I thought I’d give everyone a shot at a little Q&A with Alex. Whatever you want to ask about me, CassaStar, or my current project. (And if I get so much as one water question, I’m blaming you, Lee!) So go ahead! Make my day...
Just remember, I’ve already answered – I am NOT naked! Not right now, anyway. Later tonight, that’s a different story. (I’m married – it’s legal!)

And finally, Yvonne at Welcome to my World of Poetry gave me the Wholesome Blogger Award!

I’d like to pass it along to some wholesome bloggers who’ve continued to come by here even while I’ve lagged in my blogging and commenting due to NaNo:

Ellie Garratt She’s an awesome young lady and a fellow NaNo writer. She even had time for a blogfest this month!
Melissa at Through the Looking Glass Another awesome lady – and she’s hosting a Christmas holiday blogfest, so check it out.
Jai at Jai Joshi’s Tulsa Tree She’s a new blogger friend but never fails to comment and share. And Jai’s a really amazing writer!

There’s so many more of you, but I’m supposed to be writing!!

Remember, hit me with your best question - I can take it!

Movie News and a Review

Two big movie releases this weekend.
I chose to see Unstoppable.
I think I made a wise choice.

Staring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine and directed by Tony Scott, Unstoppable is about a runaway train carrying toxic chemicals.

And the title fits perfectly!

This movie is fast, relentless, and never stops moving. It's the ultimate roller coaster ride. One critic called it "Perfect popcorn entertainment."

This movie does not break new ground nor is it perfect as a dramatic film. But you don't go to see Unstoppable expecting Oscar performances and a deep, thought-invoking plot. You go for the action!

Scott does an excellent job with the action - once things begin to roll, about ten minutes into the movie, the pace never lets up. The director maintains a high level of tension until the very end. And despite all of the crashes and explosions in the preview, there's really very little destruction and death. It's presented in a thrilling but realistic manner. Nothing appeared impossible or implausible.

The actors do a good job. Denzel is Denzel, full of charisma, and Chris Pine's character starts out as unlikeable, but grows over the course of the film. Rosario Dawson does a great job as the station manager working with Denzel and Pine.

And with any Tony Scott film, you have amazing visuals. His shots of the countryside, not to mention the trains, are fantastic. You see that speeding train from every angle possible - and from underneath is the wildest!

You want a fast-paced action flick that's not dumb? Go see Unstoppable!


In other movie news, Hollywood Spy posted a trailer for next year's Battle: Los Angeles and it looks both chilling and amazing. Looks like that alien invasion movie might live up to its hype!

Speaking of hype, have you read some of the reviews for Skyline over at Rotten Tomatoes? They're funny! Critics compare it to a SyFy original movie, a trip to Kmart, and just below a Roger Corman film. Said it made Independence Day look like a second coming of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Ouch!

If any of you ventured out to see it, let me know - was it really that bad?

Ultimately, I think it's a shame the studios chose to push Skyline instead of Monsters. Guess they felt tons of special effects would do better than a slow-paced, smaller film. I'll say it again - if it's playing near you, check out the sheer genius of Monsters. Critics of Skyline may claim that film making is best left to filmmakers, but the director of Monsters proves them wrong.

Time to write! How's everyone else doing with NaNo? Some new ideas hit me this morning and I'm ready to rock.

Talli's Blogsplash and Stardate NaNo

With Skyline's poor reviews (creatures are cool, characters and storyline suck) I might just catch Unstoppable tonight. So look for some kind of movie review this weekend.

Talli Roland’s Blogsplash!

“On December 1, the e-book version of The Hating Game will launch ahead of its UK hard-copy launch next year! On release day -- December 1 -- I'm looking for bloggers (and Tweeters and Facebookers) to help with a Blogsplash to spread the word!”

Talli’s an awesome young lady (and a cutie) so sign up for her Blogsplash if you haven’t already.

Still moving forward with NaNo at about the same speed. I should still hit 50,00 words even with my slow typing, but my main goal is a workable manuscript. Since I’m pausing and pondering as I write, my pace is about 1000 words per two and a half hours. Okay, some of that’s because of my two-finger slow typing. However, I’m happy to say Byron is now really frustrated thanks to the other main character. (Who happens to be an eager and stubborn young woman. Aren't they all?)

And for those of you who’ve missed my Twitter updates, here’s a recap of this past week’s progress:

Stardate #nanowrimo 5.5 Spent morning slacking on Holodeck with Fallout. Kicked some butt. Commencing to write once more.

Stardate #nanowrimo 5.6 Commotion in Ten Forward demands my attention. Word count holding at 6832 until my return.

Stardate #nanowrimo 5.9 Ah, the allure of Ten Forward... Where was I? Data, word count please! Stop petting Spot. 8025? That works for me!

Stardate #nanowrimo 6.8 Damn Betazoid weddings. Too much nakedness! (Hart would approve though.) A total of 9537 words as a result.

Stardate #nanowrimo 7.9 20,000 words this weekend! Wait a sec - I've been on the Holodeck the whole time? Only at 11284? Curse you holodeck!

Stardate #nanowrimo 8.6 12283 words so far. Data's Spot created a stir earlier, but the feline was captured. Ship is also now Tribble-free!

Stardate #nanowrimo 8.9 13357 - ahead of target! Borg tried to assimilate the NaNo site, but I got through with my total before it happened.

Stardate #nanowrimo 9.6 Feeling famished... must find nourishment... can't go on...

Stardate #nanowrimo 9.9 Gorn challenged me to a death match. Talked him down to best of three in Foozball. 14881 words

Stardate #nanowrimo 10.8 Gorn's upset - I beat him at Foozball. What a baby. There's no crying in space! Word count 15678 so far...

Stardate #nanowrimo 11.5 17452 words. Unfortuantely we've docked at DeepSpace 7 and the allure of a free day is too strong to ignore...

And I stopped last night at 18,001 words...

I Saw RED!

And no, I'm not referring to the old Warrent song.

Yes, I finally saw the movie RED. Megamind's reviews continued to plummet and Due Date looked more like a NetFlix rental.

RED

From the IMDB: When his idyllic life is threatened by a high-tech assassin, former black-ops agent Frank Moses reassembles his old team in a last ditch effort to survive.

RED is a very funny movie. The characters are great and had their own humorous lines. The gang pulls off some clever stunts, not slick and cool like in the Ocean movies, but smart and sometimes desperate tricks.

There's some great action scenes, especially one at an airport that involves Malkovich taking down a woman with a bazooka. (She called him old man!) The pacing is slower than an out-and-out action flick, though. Sometimes it's a little too slow. But overall, RED is a fun ride with a lot of laughs.


I also read an interview with Monsters writer-director-effects-film crew, Gareth Edwards. Did you know that movie was filmed for only $15,000? Edwards took a small crew on location and filmed the whole thing for $15,000. (Another $500,000 was racked up during editing and processing.) The stars often ad-libbed their own lines and were a real life couple, now married. Many of the extras didn't even know they were being filmed for a movie, which added to the realism. I am now really impressed with the movie!!

I'm still on target with NaNo. And now I must get back to screwing with Byron's life. Yeah, it's a guilty pleasure!

How's everyone else doing with NaNo? Anybody see Megamind or Due Date?

"Fantastic Fridays," News, and My Star Trek NaNo Experience

I was asked to join a group called the Fantastic Friday Writers. Rather than taking turns posting on our group blog, we are posting every other Friday starting today! The five of us will blog on a topic pertaining to fantasy and science fiction, with links to one anther’s blogs.

I invite your to check out my Fantastic Friday Writers partners - Elizabeth Mueller, Anastasia V. Pergakis, J. D. Brown, and Deirdra Eden Coppel.

And if you’re visiting from one of these ladies’ blogs, welcome! I’m a movie lover, tech geek, and author of the just released CassaStar. I’m Alex the Blogging Ninja!

NEWS

Ellie Garratt is hosting a blogfest - Top Ten Films They Should Have Made! On the 9th November tell us all about your top ten alternate actors and actresses, and the films you wanted to see them in and why.
You know I can’t pass up a movie blogfest!

Jessica at The Alliterative Allimorph is holding a 400 Followers Giveaway – Amazon gift cards! Visit her site to enter and tell her congratulations.

NANO

And I’ve been keeping track of my NaNo progress on Twitter. Since I’ve apparently amused a few of you with my updates, here’s the week so far:

Stardate #nanowrimo Day 2 One page in 1 &1/2 hours. 2168 words now. Damn I type slow. The crew's going to lose faith and revolt...

Stardate #nanowrimo Day 2.5 - 3179 words achieved, just shy of the mark. Worf has restored order - no mutiny of the crew in sight...

Stardate #nanowrimo Day 3.3 - 4003 words, but I've been captured by Romulans and forced to endure meetings. Word count stalled until rescued

Stardate #nanowrimo 3.7 - Escaped Romulan torture meetings unscathed. Okay, a few minor boredom scars. Able to write once more!

Stardate #nanowrimo 4.2 Evil Romulan boss wants me to do real work. Where's Spock? Someone put the Vulcan grip on this guy!

Stardate #nanowrimo 4.5 Klingons demanded head of evil Romulan boss. The decision was not difficult. Permission to write again!

Stardate #nanowrimo 4.7 Have achieved warp speed - 5783 and still writing! Number One, you have the Bridge.

Oh, and I finished last night at 6428 words - close to target. Of course, one of my buddies is almost to 50,000. Overachiever.

NaNo, Surprise Video, Movie Review, and Award

Two days of NaNo and I can already tell my hunt and peck style of typing is going to be a problem. (You think?!)

I hit 3179 words last night and sent out a couple Twitter messages regarding my progress. Each one begins as a Stardate log. Maybe when I’m finished I’ll post a few here. It’ll be like my account of Sharktopus. Maybe more painful…

This was a total shock! I found this through a Google Alert on Monday – Ali Cross did a video review of my book on YouTube! Complete with space battle sound effects. It’s really sweet and inspires me to make the next book even better.



Is she not cute? Go give her a hug for me! Oh wait, read the rest of this post first…

Movie Review - Harry Brown (From Netflix)

You may not be familiar with this small film but it packs a vicious punch.

When a crew of drug-dealing gang members takes the life of his only friend, Leonard (David Bradley), retired Marine and widower Harry Brown (Michael Caine) decides to take the law into his own hands -- but his old-school training might be overmatched. Helmed by first-time feature director Daniel Barber, this gritty vigilante thriller set in England.

Gritty is definitely the word that sums up this little gem. It plays out like the British version of Gran Torino, however Harry takes it to the next level. Slow and methodical but never dull, Harry Brown will stir your inner vigilante who, upon seeing numerous horrors, finally decides he's had enough. I found the film compelling and the work of Michael Caine to be understated and powerful. Check it out if you are comfortable with a film that turns very violent at times.

Colene at The Journey gave me the Irresistible Blog Award! Does this mean I’m charming? Or just my blog? Either way, thanks Colene!

Passing it on to:
Rayna at Coffee Rings Everywhere
Yvonne at Welcome to my World of Poetry

Because I can’t go a day without visiting these two awesome bloggers!

Okay, back to writing…

November Blogging, NaNo, and Winner!

It’s the first of November - less than two months to Christmas! And yes, I’ve already begun my Christmas shopping. I hate waiting until the last minute...

Today is also day one of NaNoWriMo and a whole month to complete the sequel to CassaStar. (No, I’m not starting a new project, just completing one already in progress.) Time to complicate Byron’s life in ways he can’t even imagine!

The downside is that I’ll have to cut back on my blogging time. I feel bad, because so many tell me I’m such an awesome commenter, but I won’t be able to visit as many blogs in November. I’ll limit my blogging to one hour a day; a little longer on the weekends. While that may seem adequate to some of you, my average blogging time is three to five hours a day. Ouch. Big cut!

I’ll continue to post about three times a week, and covering far more than just NaNo, too. (Fridays will be a special event - you’ll see why very soon.) I’ll visit everyone who comments here and as many of my buddies as possible during that one hour limit.

So don’t think I’m being a big jerk if I only visit your site once or twice a week! I’m really going to miss the time I spend online with my friends. And so many were just awesome during my book release. Of course, I want word of CassaStar to continue to spread, but bottom line, I’ll be thinking about you guys.

And you’re probably wondering about the winner of my giveaway! Names went into a hat (actually a box) and the winner is…

Old Kitty at Ten Lives and Second Chances!

Congratulations!!! I know you’ve been dying to drool over some manly men…

Thanks again for the support last month. You guys rock! And I can’t wait to spread your awesomeness in return!

Spunk, NaNo, and SUCK

Bet that post title makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Today’s tour stop – Spunk on a Stick’s Tips - with a post entitled “Window into the Soul.”

Thanks again to those who commented at yesterday’s post at Confessions of a Watery Tart. If you didn't, feel free to add your snark to the rather long list.

And I need a little help with this NaNoWri Mo thing. Everyone is talking about NaNo and ‘buddy me’ – but most of you aren’t using your names! So, I’m having trouble finding everyone. If you are participating, please leave your NaNo name in the comments so I can find you. I am listed under AlexJCavanaugh

I still hope to see RED at some point! In the meantime, I leave you with this review, courtesy of NetFlix.

SUCK

A band finds their popularity growing as members turn into vampires.

Rob Stefaniuk wrote, directs, and stars as the lead singer. He even wrote the band’s music, which is actually not bad. Malcolm McDowell is Eddie Van Helsing, and all sorts of musicians make appearances in this film, including Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop, and Henry Rollins. Alex Lifeson (from the awesome band RUSH) is a Canadian border officer and Moby is a headbanger who enjoys raw meat thrown at his band during performances. (I guarantee you've never seen this side of Moby. Ever!)

With an 80’s vibe, SUCK is very quirky and original – and a lot of fun!

NaNo, Giveaway, MIA, and Award

I’ve signed up for NaNoWriMo! I intend to use that time to complete the sequel to CassaStar. If anyone wants to be my ‘buddy,’ I am HERE



One of my virtual tour stops is giving away a copy of CassaStar! See Scribbler to Scribe for details. And Mesmerix created a really cool post for it, too. (Less than two weeks - I'm getting nervous!)

And one of you asked about a countdown widget!! It's in place now, but I don't remember who asked me. Sorry!

MIA!
Has anyone heard from Cassandra Jade? She’s not blogged in two weeks.
And, does anyone know what happened to Mr. Stupid? He’s not blogged in two months!!

And finally, Yvonne at Welcome to my World of Poetry gave me the “Go Away - I’m Writing” Award. (Please don’t go away though!!) Thanks, Yvonne!

I’m passing this on to three ladies who I know are either writing or revising right now:
Ali Cross
Karen Walker
Justine Dell

Anything I missed?