Take A Moment . . .

As a romance novelist, I write about a lot of body parts -- really!  When I talk about my female characters, breasts are usually a very important feature.  And of course we all know that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

See how cleverly I brought that together?

Anyway, I found a site that allows you to just click to support FREE mamograms for women.  No running or walking, no reaching for your purse.  Just a click of your mouse and you can help women who might otherwise remain undiagnosed to receive a lifesaving mamogram.  The link is visible -- all you have to do is take a moment.

I did.

Free Mamograms
 

6 Reasons Atlanta Made Amazon.com Top 20 Most Well Read Cities in America List

This summer Amazon.com announced its list of the Top 20 Most Well-Read Cities in America. Atlanta placed 20.

Why did Atlanta make the list?

1.  Vibrant Book Club Culture

Atlanta has a vibrant reading culture. In every county you can find bookclubs meeting in libraries, coffee shops, winebars and hosting their own events. RAWSISTAZ Book Club has its annual RAW Affair in September, the National Book Club Conference meets here every year in July, and many more.

 

2.  Book Events Galore!

a. The AJC Decatur Book Festival is the  largest independent book festival in the country. Last year some of the most popular authors in the country were there like Jonathan Franzen and Emily Giffin. (Shameless plug. You can meet me[Miranda Parker] there this year. The DBF doesn’t just work the 3 day Book Festival it hosts year round literary events. This month they hosted a dinner with NYT Bestseller Kim Severson.

b. The Georgia Center of the Book is the state affiliate of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Dekalb County Library is its host and sponsor. It funds some of the best literary events in the city. June is going to be an incredible month with Tayari Jones and  Mary Doria Russell visiting.

3. Reading and Reader Hot Spots.

I’ve spent many date nights at Barnes & Noble Peachtree Starbucks.  The Grounds Coffeehouse is a nice place to listen to author readings.  The now gone Vino Libro (Wines and Books) was a great hot spot for readers and wine connoisseurs. There are also nice spots for poetry reading and spoken word artists like Hank Stewart’s White Linen Affair.

4. Popular Authors in Resident

• Emily Giffin
• Pearl Cleage
• Kathryn Stockett
• Joshilyn Jackson
• W. Dale Cramer
• Natasha Trethewey
• Karen White
• Karin Slaughter
• Jelani Cobb

5. Independent Bookstore Haven

Atlanta also houses nationally recognized independent bookstores like:

• Foxtale Bookshoppe
• Blue Elephant
• Outwrite
• Charis
• Medu
• Little Shop of Horrors
• Eagle Eye
• Acapella,
• to name a few

6. Strong Reading Initiatives

a. Atlanta’s R.E.A.L. Men Read is a great organization and mentoring program for Atlanta Public Schools

b. Literacy Volunteers of Atlanta is an organization that assists with adults with learning to read.

I’m sure other cities have a great reading culture. These are just my reasons why Atlanta made the list. What should I add?

To Read More  about Amazon’s Top 20 Most Read American Cities list Click  here.

Six Days Until The HOT GIRLZ Party! 10/29/11

We're doing a daily countdown on Facebook to celebrate the upcoming release of the sequel to HOT BOYZ, called HOT GIRLZ. This is actually my first sequel and I'm very excited about its debut. The final title in the trilogy comes out in October of 2013, called L.A. HUSBANDS AND WIVES.

I hope you check out the HOT GIRLZ on Saturday, 10/29/11 - the title is available in trade and ebook format on Amazon. It's time for the wives to tell it all and it's hot! Thanks!

GA Peach Guest Author - LM Blakely

We're happy to announce our newest guest author - GA Peach LM Blakely will join us for our event on 11/19/11 at the Central Library in Atlanta - Central Library Event Link. The Peach Divas are looking forward to mixing and mingling with her, and are honored to have this talented author sign with us!!

LMBlakely is a native of Albany, Georgia – a “military brat” who has traveled and resided in the Philippines, California, Oklahoma, Okinawa, Japan, New Mexico and Florida. She currently lives in Atlanta, GA and is studying for her Bachelors in Network Management. She found inspiration to write by journaling, playing different instruments, and composing ballads. Music was her first love and she had aspirations of becoming a songwriter. Her love for writing and her vivid imagination blossomed until her passion changed which resulted in her earning the title of “Author.”

She is the author who introduced Niqi, Chance, Tiffany, Denim and Shay from the Wikked Chronkicles. She is currently working on several projects as well as the upcoming follow up to Wikked. Don’t sleep on LM, if she’s quiet, she’s busy writing. She will surely entertain her readers with her titles. She can go from one extreme to the next, plus she is quite versatile writing in any genre. Ms. LM, will leave you surely entertained and wanting more.

For more information visit LM Blakely

HOT GIRLZ Book Video

Twenty (20) days and counting until the release of Hot Girlz, the sequel to Hot Boyz. This is my first sequel and I'm so excited! Wanted to share the new book video that my son did for me. I'm smiling ear-to-ear - enjoy!

It's all a blur!

Help! What has happened to my eyes? I have five pair of reading glasses, two that are hiding from me (guess I need my glasses on to find them) and three that I have either on my desk, in my purse, or on my nightstand. I'm far sighted - I can see the very top of the roof across the street and tell you if there's a dime or a nickel on the third shingle from the right. But close up - please!

My granddaughter actually reads the price tags for me when we shop - how sad/cute is that? Now, I am glad to have my eyes and my sight and I'm happy to be able to see at all, far away especially - I don't need glasses when I drive, so yes, I am blessed. I love my eyes.

Don't get me wrong.I just can't help but to wonder if I would need to rummage through the dollar store eyeglass section (1.75 to 2.00) as often (and yes, I have gone to the eye doctor for prescription glasses, I lose those, too) if I weren't a writer. Also, these days we all use computers so much and the strain we put on our eyes is worse than ever.

I watched a report on CNN that said young children are in need of glasses at a younger age now because they're playing games on small screens and using computers. We use our cell phones and that adds to the problem. And yes, we're reading books on devices, many on screens that are smaller than actual books themselves.

After four to six hours of writing (sometimes more) I force myself to stop and give my eyes a rest. My eyes can get red and dry, so I use eye drops often, but my eye doctor told me that our eyes can get addicted to the drops and we shouldn't use them too often. If we do use drops, the artificial tears type brands are better.

So, this post is a way of checking in with my fellow writers to see if I'm in the minority on this or not. I've had great 20/20 vision for years - this just started about six years ago, though it is also true that I'm no spring chicken so maybe this would've happened anyway.

All of you young folks who laugh when grandma pulls out her spectacles, beware! You, too, could one day have five pair, three that you can find and two that are hiding from you! I'm just saying!

Authors, don't sit too long, stand up and stretch out those legs, and don't stare too long, give those precious eyes a rest!

Ciao