How to Become a Book Magnet
I've posted several times about prizes, and in particular books, I've been lucky enough to win. The most recent book I mentioned winning was The Italian's Blushing Gardener by Christina Hollis - a fresh take on the whole Mills and Boon millionaire thing, with a lovely, reclusive landscape gardener for a heroine, a refreshingly rural setting and of course the requisite sexy hero with dark shadows in his past. Since, then I also got lucky in an online contest for a copy of Sky Purington's Heart of Vesuvius and a $10 ebook voucher - enough to buy several novellas I'd been drooling over for a while.
Having reviewed several of the books I won, it struck me the other day that blog readers might be just as interested to know how the heck I do it. Just why do I keep getting lucky where books are concerned? And it generally is books, although in the past I have been lucky enough to win a pair of jeans... oh, and a holiday, in a writing competition. But mostly, I win books.
Which makes sense, because I love books. I read a lot of books. I hang out with other people who read books. I talk to readers and writers in real life and on facebook, and I comment on their blogs. So if there are free books going, I generally know about it. And if you hang around with readers and writers long enough, and enter enough competitions, sooner or later you're going to get lucky.
Bottom line: if you want it enough, love it enough, think about it enough and talk about it enough, sooner or later, it'll probably show up in your life. Which shouldn't surprise anyone who's read or watched 'The Secret.'
A word of caution, though. Once you've started the process, it can be tricky to stop. The other day I cleared two bags of books off my overloaded shelves and took them off to the charity shop. Then I went to lunch with a writer friend who'd just been having a similar purge, and handed me a big bag full of her recommendations. Which was lovely - but now my shelves are groaning again!
Having reviewed several of the books I won, it struck me the other day that blog readers might be just as interested to know how the heck I do it. Just why do I keep getting lucky where books are concerned? And it generally is books, although in the past I have been lucky enough to win a pair of jeans... oh, and a holiday, in a writing competition. But mostly, I win books.
Which makes sense, because I love books. I read a lot of books. I hang out with other people who read books. I talk to readers and writers in real life and on facebook, and I comment on their blogs. So if there are free books going, I generally know about it. And if you hang around with readers and writers long enough, and enter enough competitions, sooner or later you're going to get lucky.
Bottom line: if you want it enough, love it enough, think about it enough and talk about it enough, sooner or later, it'll probably show up in your life. Which shouldn't surprise anyone who's read or watched 'The Secret.'
A word of caution, though. Once you've started the process, it can be tricky to stop. The other day I cleared two bags of books off my overloaded shelves and took them off to the charity shop. Then I went to lunch with a writer friend who'd just been having a similar purge, and handed me a big bag full of her recommendations. Which was lovely - but now my shelves are groaning again!
Nice blog, Stephanie! You make some great points. I'm starting a new blog promo run in May that will hopefully intro readers to lots of wonderful authors and give readers a chance to win a ton of great prizes. For more info, email me at Skypurington@live.com! Cheers!
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