Randomness Friday: Listen UP!

(Thanks Libby!)

I don't usually compare myself to animals, or in this case, bees, but I truly am as busy as a bee. I'm talking no fall break here with tons of test prep and homework a-plently.

But, you want to know the amazing thing?

God is showing himself so powerful and merciful in my life. It's incredible what He has done, and I'll never ever start doubting His power in my life, even if the results I get from tests, scholarship contests, or activity applications are not what I want.Who knows? It might just be what I need.

This year has been really amazing so far. I was a total mouse (there's another animal for you) for most of the time last year, but I'm really finding boldness and more friendliness as more time goes on.

Take two days ago. I was supposed to give a ten second speech in our class (because I'm the president. Who'd have guessed that, either?) about why we were having a party that day.

So I stand in front of the class and stare at the people in front of me talking, working on school, or already digging into the eats.

And I yell, "LISTEN UP, PEOPLE!"

Then gasp, "Whoa.... That was loud."

There were a few comments here and there like "You go, girl!", "There's a leader", "Okay...That was...loud. Really loud."

I never expected I'd experience this much growth in a year.

Thanks to God, school, and family, I hope there's a bright future out there for me. And I know I can accomplish my goals with lots of hard work and lots of grace from God.
~*~

The giveaway for Stephanie Morrill's book, Me, Just Different, ends this coming Monday, October 25! Be sure to enter for a chance to win this awesome book for teen girls. Click on the icon of the book in the sidebar or go here!
~*~

Do you ever have trouble finding the right words to say? It can be serious or laughable, but I seriously have trouble saying the right things at the right time.

I don't really struggle with the use of "Um" and "Like" but I just have times when I blank out when it comes to what to say! It can be pretty annoying...

But do you know that when a friend's going through a hard time, you can just be there for them?

Just go sit with them for a while, and if you can't find the words to say to them find the words to say to Him.

Prayer works, folks.
~*~

Last thing before class is dismissed. I know this has been a more serious RF than usual, but I hope you don't mind...

"Beautiful"- MercyMe


For those of you blessed with an actual Fall Break, enjoy it! Have fun and spend some quality time with God, family, and friends.

Blessings,

Tim Hawkins Video: On Nursery Rhymes...

Tim Hawkins always cracks me up. He's one awesome comedian.

Blessings,

Review of City On Our Knees

      
City on Our Knees by TobyMac with Todd Hafer and Rick Killian is an awesome compilation of inspirational true stories all with themes similar to TobyMac’s hit “City On Our Knees”. Some stories are about George Muller, Michael Oher (who The Blind Side is based on), William Wilberforce, and many others. In each section of the book, there is a two-page “blog” by TobyMac. 

I really enjoyed this book. It’s filled with awesome stories of people doing awesome things. From children with diseases raising an enormous amount of money to an athlete committing to keep herself drug-free, I absolutely loved every page of this book. It teaches lessons about unity, faith, and prayer. Fans of TobyMac, I believe, will really enjoy this book, but people who may not necessarily be big fans of tobymac will enjoy the real, amazing stories of the people of God in this book. I recommend it to families with teens. The writing style is easy to understand, and those who may not enjoy reading will enjoy these short (about four pages) true stories. 

One thing to be aware about is that there are two stories about ministries that help people trapped in the awful act of slave trafficking. The situation for many people in “the red light district” is briefly described. May not be suitable for younger children.

I recommend this book to adults and older teens. 

Specifics (from amazon.com):
~ Hardcover: 223 pages
~ Publisher: Bethany House (September 1, 2010)
~ Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.1 x 1 inches

Note: I received this book freely from Bethany House Publishers. I am not obligated to write a positive review- only a honest one.

Blessings,

Randomness Friday: Please, God? Please? Pleeeeeaaaase?

(Thanks Libby!)

I remember when I was little and wanted a puppy with everything I was... (Which wasn't much- I've always been Ms. Shortie)

Anyway, I would beg and plead my parents to get me a puppy. I begged and begged.

But God was gently and silently telling me "Wait." 

My friend got an adorable puppy... But I didn't

Still I begged my parents and God. Every week, without fail, I would ask for a puppy when my Wednesday night girls group asked for prayer requests. Soon, my teacher didn't even ask- she just put it up on the board.

God was again telling me "Wait- just a little longer. Just wait."

Then, one day, my parents made an aggreement with me.

They'd give me a puppy if I did well on a piano test and researched for the perfect breed of dog for our family and house.

Can you guess the rest of the story? :)

I was so amazed the day of the test. I walked out with the highest score for my teacher's students. I had played each music selection well, but not of my own power. God said yes!

I didn't get a puppy that day, but we did buy a puppy. We got her after calling about an ad in the newspaper and meeting the owner in the lot of a far away McDonalds.

We didn't expect to drive away with a adorable little puppy with us, so we hadn't prepared at all. But she was ours.

Though my sister claims the honor of first holding her, I got the privilege of naming her.

She's my Belle.

 Isn't God just AMAZING?
~*~

So, don't forget to enter the awesome giveaway with an autographed copy of Me, Just Different! See that icon to the right with the book? Just click on that to enter!

Or scroll down...

or click here...

You have many options. Choose wisely (namely, entering the contest!)
~*~

115.

That's a pretty big number, if you ask me. I am stunned when I think about all of you people who want to follow strange ol' me. ;)

Thank you all for clicking the "follow" button!
~*~

Blessings,

Interview and Giveaway- Stephanie Morril and Me, Just Different!

Today I am honored to interview Stephanie Morrill, author of the Reinvention of Skylar Hoyt series. She has also graciously agreed to a giveaway of an autographed copy of Me, Just Different, so stay tuned!

On to the interview! :)

Prism: Please tell us a little about yourself

Stephanie Morrill: I live in Kansas City with my husband and two kids. My husband was actually my high school sweetheart, which I think is one of the reasons I write for teens. I love reading, writing, and drinking coffee, so that's usually what I'm doing if I'm not changing diapers.

Prism: What inspired you to write about Skylar in your books?

Stephanie Morrill: When I started Me, Just Different (the first in The Reinvention of Skylar Hoyt series), my goal was to write about a main character very different than me. Previously all my main characters had been behind-the-scenes type of girls, same as me in high school. With Skylar, I wanted to explore writing about a girl who was more comfortable being the center of attention than she was sitting alone in her room.

Prism: Any advice to aspiring authors?

Stephanie: Tons. That's why I started www.GoTeenWriters.com, where I answer questions and post about various aspects of the writing craft.

Prism: Any plans for more books about Skylar? If not, what are your plans for future books?

Stephanie: So Over It is the last book that will be told from Skylar's point of view. It's possible I'll write a spin-off series with Abbie as the main character. It's also possible that Skylar, Connor, and others will make guest appearances in other books I write.

Prism: What is the coolest/funniest thing a reader has ever said to you?

Stephanie: I have a girl who sends me the craziest e-mails where, like, every word is a different color. And her sentence structure and grammar is so bad, it takes me about 10 reads to figure out what on earth she's saying.

And one of the coolest/most humbling thing a reader has ever said was at a book signing. And actually, it wasn't the reader herself. I was making conversation about how cool her name was when her dad shared that they'd driven an hour and a half that morning just to come to the book signing. Words can't express how touched I was by that. I almost felt guilty! I wanted to put the rest of the signing on hold so I could buy her coffee. Or a pony.

Prism: Congratulations! You now have a holiday named after you. What do people do on that day?

Stephanie: Okay, this is like my favorite interview question ever.

Well, I love food, so people totally feast on my day. I especially love a big breakfast, so they could do that.

And they should all read a really good book. Not a book they find boring, not a book they feel obligated to like, but something that makes them really turn the pages.

Then they should finish the day with really yummy coffee.

Hmm. My holiday sounds kind of boring. Okay, there should be fireworks too. And one of those moon bounce things that's big enough for adults too.

Prism: Favorite Bible verse?

Stephanie: It's always changing. Right now it's, "Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." 1 Corinthians 15:58b

A great verse for writers!

Prism: What do most people not know about you?

Stephanie: Hmm. I tend to be a pretty open person. So instead I'll say something that surprises people, which is that I didn't go to college. I never could find one I was excited about, so I kept delaying until "next semester," and then it just never happened. I can't regret this, though. I ended up with the exact life I wanted.

www.StephanieMorrillBooks.com
~*~

Now, are you ready for a giveaway of Me, Just Different? Enter to win an autographed and personalized copy from Stephanie Morrill!

How to enter:

Mandatory entry:
Leave a comment saying that you want to enter!

Addition entries:
(1) Become a follower of A Girl of Many Colors (or comment that you already are one)!

(1) Post about the giveaway and give me a link!

Please leave one comment per task on this post. Each task listed is worth one (1) entry. Entries must be put as a comment on this post, or I cannot count it.

When will the results be announced? 

After randomly selecting a reader on Monday, October 25, I will announce the winner of the giveaway on Tuesday, October 26. Be sure to spread the word so that others can join!  

If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Blessings,

Review of Me, Just Different!

Me, Just Different is book one in the Reinvention of Skylar Hoyt by Stephanie Morrill. One night changes everything for Skylar Hoyt. She has lived in the illusion of popularity and the cliche high school life, but her life suddenly crumbles as she realizes that changes need to be made for the better in her life. However, her parent's marriage is crumbling and her sister has persuaded Skylar to keep quiet about a huge secret. With tensions mounting between Skylar and her boyfriend and the quirky guy down the street, Skylar does her best to keep her famous cool attitude and pull it all together. But is her world falling apart to quickly?

The author writes with a realistic voice that pulls a reader into the story. I was literally turning the pages to see what would happen next. The pacing is absolutely perfect, I felt neither rushed or bored anywhere in this story. The heart of the characters is real and all work beautifully in this story. The situation that Skylar is in is not unlike what I know many teen girls go through every day. This book shows the power of faith, and I really appreciate that.

Some things to be aware of is that the world Skylar leaves does have some problems. These elements are all portrayed as wrong, and some elements include drugs, alcohol, smoking, and teen pregnancy.

I recommend this book to girls in their late teens.

Blessings,

Review for Free Books!

Welcome, fellow bloggers! Today I would like to share with you some publishers and publicity groups I review for and how you can review for them. You must have a blog, be able to write reviews, and be able to post the reviews on your blog and on a retailer site.

Let's jump right in, shall we?

One of my favorite book review programs is Booksneeze. Don't let the name throw you off- this is the book review program for Thomas Nelson Publishers. They periodically put up books or videos they have available for review and it's basically first-come, first-serve. You create an account and then pick the book you want to review. The book is sent to you in the mail, you read and review it on your blog and retailer site, submit the links to Booksneeze, and then you're ready to pick another book! Pretty easy, right?


~*~

Another popular review program is the one from Tyndale Publishers. It functions very similarly to Booksneeze, although it is updated less often and the books take longer to arrive. Your review also must be approved before you can get another book, which is unique to the Tyndale Reviewer Program. Also on a first come, first serve basis. I've gotten many of my now-favorite books from reviewing for Tyndale.


~*~

Although I have yet to join one of the blog tours from this publishing group, I know they have offered many awesome books in the past. Litfuse Publicity is basically a group of wonderful woman bloggers who are Christian. Books range from informational to historical fiction. The Litfuse group sends out e-mails every once in a while about new books you can sign up to review. Many of the tours have a limited space for people participating.


~*~

Another publicity group I review for is Glass Road Public Relations. They also send out periodical e-mails to reviewers. You simply reply to the e-mail and/or follow the instructions given on the e-mail.

Here is the link
~*~

Bethany House Publishers also offers a reviewer program. The system they use is a little different from Booksneeze and Tyndale. You sign up on the reviewer website and you will soon be contacted by them with periodical e-mails with each genre you signed up for. You simply click on the links under the books and they will be mailed to you!

Here is the link to the site.
~*~

WaterBrook Multnomah's Blogger Review Program has been in the process of updating, and the new and improved site is set to be in place sometime this month (October 2010)

~*~

NavPress publishers also has a lovely book review program. They generally feature nonfiction books, but I have seen several fiction books featured. All of the instructions are well-laid out on the website.

Click here to go there.
~*~

Another program for reviewing books is NetGalley. NetGalley features many books from many different genres and publishers. However, this book review program lets reviewers view e-books or Kindle versions of books to review.

Go here to go to the site.

~*~

Many of the other publishers I review for don't have very public review programs. It's surprised me how secret many of these programs are. Half of these programs I found out about because I started digging around the publishers site or searching the publisher's name along with "book review program". If I didn't find that, I contacted the publisher. I usually e-mailed them or used the contact form provided on the site. About 75% of the time you will find that the publishers will contact you in about three to six weeks about you being accepted to the program.

Blessings,

Where Do I Get Free Books In Exchange for a Review?

So, the question has been brought up several times how I got to review for some awesome publishers.

The answer?

Well, you're going to have to stick around to find out.

Info to come on Sunday!(Sorry, I have a pile of homework the size of my house)

Blessings,

Winner!

And the winner of the giveaway for the Healer's Apprentice is...

Sierra!!!!!

Congratulations, you have won an autographed copy of The Healer's Apprentice! Please send me an e-mail at girlofmanycolors *at* gmail (dot) com !

Thanks to random.org for generating the random number of 9, which is one of Sierra's comments!

 (for those of you who are wondering, I am not excluding anyone by putting "49" instead of "50". Mrs. Dickerson commented on the post and I didn't count that comment in the drawing. :) )

For those of you who didn't win- don't worry! You can have a chance to win another book next week! But my lips are sealed until then...

Blessings,

Review of In Every Heartbeat!

In Every Heartbeat by Kim Vogel Sawyer is the heartwarming story of three friends who find their way into the world. Pete, Bennett, and Libby have all just graduated from the orphanage, and they are now ready to begin college. All three pursue different interests, but their distance brings them even closer. Libby wants to be a renowned journalist who will be admired. Pete wants to follow God's will as a minister, and Bennett is studying to be an engineer, although all he wants to do is have some adventures.

The friends have their share of troubles (romances, putting a bully in his place, and baseball games), but the worst shock happens when Libby uncovers a terrible event in Pete's family.

Will the friends be able to stick together?

I absolutely loved this book. I wanted to keep reading until the very end. This was especially true with the first several chapters of the book. They were filled with unexpected things for me as a fan of historical fiction, and I really did enjoy it. Libby learns some important lessons about God, writing, and romance through this adventure. The writing style was enjoyable and believable. I applaud the author's use of different point of views to keep things interesting. The voices switch between Pete, Libby, and Bennett. I never got bored, confused, or annoyed with the switching. It gave more depth to the story, and I admire that.

I found no objectionable content in this book.

I rate this book five out of five stars. Bravissimo!

~Specifics (from amazon.com):
~Paperback: 352 pages
~Publisher: Bethany House (September 1, 2010)
~Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1 inches

Note: I received this book freely from Bethany House Publishers. I am not obligated to write a positive review- only a honest one.

Blessings,

Nearly Closing Time!

To be eligible for the giveaway, all entries must be submitted before 2 PM EST. I'm amazed at the number of entries, and I wish you all the best!

I will pick the winner by a random drawing at exactly 6 PM EST and announce the results as early as I can tomorrow.

In the meantime, stay tuned for a review of In Every Heartbeat by Kim Vogel Sawyer! To be posted soon.


Blessings,
 

Can It Even be Possible?

Look what I saw when I logged in today!

Thanks to all of my followers- you have totally made every day of blogging awesome and worth it.

A special thank you to Ariel and Maureen for being the 99th and 100th followers!

Blessings,


P.S. Don't forget to enter the giveaway. There's still time!

You Do Want a Free Book, Don't You?

Hey y'all! Just a reminder about the giveaway that ends on MONDAY, October 4. You can have the chance to win an autographed copy of Melanie Dickerson's The Healer's Apprentice!

Click on the picture to go to the giveaway post! :)

To read my review of this book, go HERE

Have a fantabulous weekend!

Blessings,

Randomness Friday: Wow...

(Thanks Libby!)

"Wow" is the only word I can say for the videos below.

Please watch all of it.





Biography from website (http://www.giannajessen.com)

Gianna Jessen does not quit. Giving up is not an option to her. Gianna has what she refers to as the "gift" of Cerebral Palsy. She weighed a mere 2 lbs at birth and the doctors said she would never be able to hold up her head, sit up, crawl or walk. She began to walk by the age of three years old with the help of leg braces and a walker.
Gianna doesn’t believe that her Cerebral Palsy takes away her life, but, rather, enriches it. . . she walks with a slight limp today and runs marathons. On April 30, 2005 she completed her first 26.2 mile marathon after running just over 7 hours and was presented with the coveted blank blank award! On April 23, 2006 she completed the London Marathon as well. She is now determined to run marathons all over the place, because she was never supposed to even walk!
Gianna understands the plight of orphans, being one herself. She was placed into the foster care system early on in life, eventually being taken into the loving home of a woman named Penny. Penny has been a mother to 56 foster children in her life. Gianna was later adopted by Penny's daughter, making Penny Gianna's grandmother. According to Gianna, Penny saved her life.
Gianna is a Christian. Her life was given to her by the grace of God. She shouldn't be walking, but more miraculous still; she should not even be alive. Gianna's biological mother was 17 when she had a saline abortion in her third trimester. Many Americans don’t realize it is legal to have an abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy. After being burned alive for approximately 18 hours in the womb from the saline solution, Gianna was delivered alive in a Los Angeles County abortion clinic. Her medical records state, "born during saline abortion"...this is what caused her Cerebral Palsy.

Blessings,