Clash of the Titles Turns Four and Celebrates with Amazing Giveaways!

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Happy Birthday,

Clash of the Titles!

Can you believe Clash of the Titles is FOUR years old?

It hardly seems possible.

Four years ago this month, COTT's arena opened for its first Clash, and it's been going strong ever since! Hundreds of Christian authors have competed, and 58 have left victorious. Each author has earned a special place in our hearts, and we at COTT find it an immense privilege to promote Christ through their work.

Join us this week as both COTT champs and COTT staff celebrate these four, amazing years together!

Over the next four days, our generous champions will be giving away 61 of their books.

Sixty-one!

We've divided those books into four giveaways--one for each year God has blessed us!

(See below for today's list.)

Each participant has myriad opportunities to enter the four drawings,

but there will only be FOUR WINNERS.

Will you be one of them??

Find out at Clash of the Titles on Tuesday, September 23rd!

Drawings will be open until Monday night,

September 22 (midnight PST).

Until then, it's free rein on entries.

Don't miss out on the fun!

Below, you'll find the four links, one for each giveaway. 
See the Rafflecopter at the end of each article for your entry options.

GIVEAWAY ONE
GIVEAWAY TWO
GIVEAWAY THREE
GIVEAWAY FOUR

Best wishes!

Whatevah Wednesday: Mugs

Yep, mugs.

My coffee cup collection is very dear to my heart.  I didn't set out to "collect" mugs.  It just sort of happened.  They each are special for different reasons and make me feel a certain way when I use them.

I drink at least one cup of coffee every day. There's something about wrapping your hands around a warm cup and swallowing down a hot drink that makes me go "ahhh!"  Actually, I think I enjoy the idea of coffee even more than coffee itself, if I'm honest. The feeling of having a moment to myself to relax is embodied by a cup of java.


So here is a photo of some of my favorite mugs.  I have more favorites but they wouldn't fit in the shot.

 
On the top row is my COTT mug.  I love this mug because not only do I really like Clash of the Titles, I love the group of women I work with.  We each have a mug like this with our name and title and I think of them, and of how blessed I am to be part of this group, every time I use mine. I always wonder if one of them might be drinking from hers at the same moment. (Are you?)

The next one is my cocker puppy mug.  We have two cocker spaniels--Chloe and Reese--and I grew up with a cocker (Sammy), so this cup just makes me smile.  Isn't it cute?

That photo mug was made in December of 2009 and I adore it! Every member of my family smiles at me from that cup whenever I drink from it, and I always smile back.  Everyone is changing so quickly and I enjoy holding onto "the way we were" in the form of a coffee cup.  I look at it much more often than an album.

The penguin mug was a gift from my daughter Amy, and she was so excited to give it to me.  It's adorable, but more importantly, she is adorable and I love her to pieces.

Next up: Paris!  I haven't been to Paris personally but my husband brought this back for me.  I always pretend I am sitting in a cafe, looking out at the Tower, when sipping from this mug.  It inspires me.

The Colosseum.  Ahhh, Rome.  Now Rome I DID get to visit. Trip of a lifetime!  This one also inspires me, a great mug to use while writing.  The emotions invoked when standing in the colosseum, reflecting on the Christians who gave their lives there, are readily recalled when I hold this cup in my hands.  Everything about that amazing trip is now attached to this mug--the Trevi fountain, the Cat Park (ask me sometime), the guy playing the fiddle on the sidewalk, the cafe we frequented during our visit. 

And last on today's list is the coffee cup I painted a year and a half ago featuring Trevor's footprints. He was 3 months old and it was our wedding anniversary.  Mike painted an AMAZING plate of Michaelangelo's The Creation Of Adam.  I may not have his lofty skills but I love love love my mug.  Inside, the bottom says "Good Morning".  So I get a friendly greeting (lol), a memory of painting with my husband, and a memory of Trevor's little baby toes.

These all make me smile and when I write, they help me start from a good place.  Of course, sometimes my coffee goes cold when my fingers get to flying, but it's the thought that counts. Speaking of "thoughts", look for my post Friday about 5 things writers can learn from coffee!

What about you?  Do you like coffee mugs or some other smiley collection?

Don't forget! Elaine is giving away a copy of A Road to Deer Run to one of you and the drawing is still open! Ways to enter:

1) Leave a comment here or here
2) Refer friends (must mention you)
3) Tweet or facebook a link to this giveaway
4) Follow my blog
Please tell me in the comments what entries you qualify for. And don't forget to leave your email address.

Social Media Monday: Elaine Cooper

Last week I told you I'd be introducing you to some of my online friends.  People I have met by networking through social media. Today we are spending time with the beautiful Elaine Marie Cooper, author of The Road to Deer Run.  Elaine has the most infectiously sweet spirit and is someone you definitely want to know. I encourage you to take this opportunity to introduce yourself. =) She is offering a free copy of her book to one of my awesome readers so be sure to check the deets at the end of the post. 

Everybody, meet Elaine:

Hi Elaine! I'm so excited to be interviewing you for my blog. Since being your hostess on COTT, I've known you'd be someone I wanted to keep in touch with. Thanks for taking the time for this!

Tell us a little about yourself. 

I’m a Christian, wife, mother of two grown sons, Grammie to triplets, author, magazine freelance writer, and blog writer for www.thebarndoor.net and ReflectionsinHindsight.wordpress.com. I am a retired registered nurse who loves to learn about history. I also enjoy singing Praise & Worship and listening to Revolutionary War era music. Crocheting and cross stitch beckon at my fingers and hot, caffeinated tea beckons my palate. My favorite Bible verse is Proverbs 31:8-9. And no, it’s not about the Proverbs woman! =)

We met through Clash of the Titles. Can you share with my readers how that came about?

Last fall I became familiar with Clash of the Titles through Facebook. They were looking for sponsors to advertise on COTT and I was looking for ways to promote my book. Through COTT I became Facebook friends with some of the staff and connected with other blogs as well. It was a domino effect of connecting! I did not know you, Michelle, until you chose my (anonymous) excerpt for competition. Not only did it lead to winning a COTT championship, but it led to getting to know you better! A win-win! And thank you for this interview, by the way.

You are always welcome. =) I know you were very excited to find out you'd been chosen for a Clash, and your enthusiasm made me excited too! What was your reaction to my first email?

I think I was MORE than excited! My husband couldn’t figure out what was “wrong” with me as I opened the e-mail saying my excerpt was chosen! Lol. My reaction was sheer joy and excitement. Being chosen was affirmation to me that there was worth in my writing.

There sure is--your book went on to win your Clash and also was recently honored at an event in LA. What was that like?

The two honors were received within one week’s time, and I was in a dream world of disbelief. My award from the Los Angeles Book Festival was an Honorable Mention in the Romance category and I was able to fly to LA to receive it, accompanied by my son and daughter-in-law who live in Southern California. I truly felt honored and humbled as I dedicated the award to my daughter Bethany, who passed away 7 years ago from cancer. Had she lived, she might have been the one receiving awards for her inspiring and dynamic prose. But no one was more surprised and excited by winning these back-to-back awards than me.

Sounds like a successful debut to me! What part has social media played in your journey?

Although I reluctantly started using Facebook “kicking and screaming,” social media has honestly been the key to successfully marketing my novel. It has connected me to authors, readers, bloggers, bookstores, organizations, contests, and numerous other connections to promote my book. I honestly am not sure how successful my marketing strategy would have been without using Facebook.

You should know what you're talking about, with almost 1700 Facebook friends! So tell us about this award-winning novel.

The core of The Road to Deer Run is a love story set during the American Revolution. It involves the unexpected discovery of a wounded and dying British soldier on the farm owned by a family of Patriots. The oldest daughter from the farm, Mary Thomsen, discovers him barely hanging onto life. Despite her hatred for the British—the enemy responsible for her brother’s death in the War—Mary’s heart of compassion is stirred and she decides that her Christian responsibility is to provide him comfort in his illness. This of course causes havoc in the household as the family becomes a party to providing comfort to the enemy. Despite the tension between their political beliefs, barriers are slowly broken down between the soldier (Daniel) and Mary as affection begins to bloom. Decisions need to be made as tensions grow and forces that oppose their relationship loom on the horizon, threatening to disrupt everyone’s happiness.

Elaine, I can't thank you enough for visiting my blog today. You are one of my dear friends and I'm blessed to know you. =)

 
Readers, Elaine has offered a free copy of A Road to Deer Run to one fortunate follower!  Ways to enter:

1) Leave a comment
2) Refer friends (must mention you)
3) Tweet or facebook a link to this giveaway
4) Follow my blog

Please tell me in the comments what entries you qualify for. And don't forget to leave your email address. 

Faces of Social Media

Social media is social. Wild concept, eh? But it’s true. We read time and time again that plugging into an online social network is a must for the aspiring author. But some of us groan. Some of us resist. We don’t have time to comment on a bunch of random blogs. We don’t feel like hocking ourselves to faceless masses. We certainly don’t get that twitter thing—I mean, who wants to read what I had for dinner and why do I care if you are at Starbucks? How on earth will that help me sell books or get a contract?  Well, it won't.  Not with that attitude.  Your investment must be in people.

There are several great articles making the case for social media—the whys and hows of successfully developing a platform and “voice” through Facebook and the rest. This one assumes you’ve read all that already. (And if you haven’t, I have provided some great links at the bottom of the post for you to check out later!) This piece is to show you the proof in the pudding.

Over the next few months, I am going to introduce you to some of the wonderful women I have met through social media. You see, it’s not about having the most glamorous blog or leaving the wittiest comment. It’s not about blasting your WIP (that’s work-in-progress) stats to the virtual universe and hoping a bunch of people will care and become your groupies. It’s about making real connections with the people behind the keyboards. And I have formed some very special bonds with the most beautiful people I never would have known if not for the internet. I can’t wait for you to get to know them too.

Next week, I’ll welcome Elaine Cooper to my blog to meet you all. Please make her feel welcome (I know you will!) Each Monday thereafter will feature another visitor for you to get to know. Some are published, some aren’t. But we are all on this same journey, finding Adventures in Writing. Mark your calendars!

AND the early bird gets the worm…

Elaine has been gracious enough to offer a FREE copy of her award-winning book, The Road to Deer Run, to one lucky reader of my blog! You can start dropping your name in the hat this week by sending people this way. For every new subscriber you refer, you get an entry into the drawing. So make sure they use your name when they pop over and introduce themselves. They’ll get an entry too, of course. And they can, in turn, refer friends as well. Your name will go in the hat just for tweeting or facebooking about the giveaway too, just send me the link to your tweet/wallpost. During Elaine’s visit, entries are given to each commenter who joins the conversation. So there are plenty of chances to win.

See you soon!

Awesome articles:

Jody Hedlund: Where Should Authors Focus Their Limited Marketing Time?
and: 3 Reasons To Start Blogging Before A Book Contract

Michael Hyatt: Social Media Framework
and: 7 Ways To Build Your Online Platform From Scratch

Book Giveaway!

Ok buddies of mine- I have an opportunity and a favor to ask of you! The precious Roseanna White is hosting another book contest (I recommend following her blog for lots of opportunities to win books as well as great author interviews) and I really want to win this one! If you would be so kind as to visit and leave a comment mentioning I sent you, I would be very grateful! You'll be entering yourself to win too, of course! The book this time is Hope's Promise by Tammy Barley. Her first book, Love’s Rescue, landed on ChristianBook.com’s best-selling historical fiction list. Hope's Promise is the second in the series. Check it out and read the interview- you'll be eager to read the book too!

Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day!