Hot Mess: A Practical Guide to Getting Organized by Laurie Palau - Book Tour and Giveaway

About the Book

Most of us have too much stuff and not enough places to put it. Combine that with our hectic modern lives, and you’ve got a recipe for clutter catastrophe. Luckily, help is at hand. Hot Mess: A Practical Guide to Getting Organized can show you how to simplify your life—and get control of your stuff.

In this new guide to streamlining and organizing your belongings, your house, and your life, author and expert Laurie Palau gives you all the strategies you need to clear your clutter once and for all. This comprehensive book offers clever storage ideas and decorating tips, but more importantly, it shows you where your clutter comes from and how to change your approach. This makes it the definitive how-to for dropping all the dead weight that’s been keeping you stressed and anxious. Just follow the hacks, tips, and strategies Palau clearly outlines, and you’ll soon be sipping a vodka martini in your beautifully tidy living room.

Whether you’re naturally neat or a total chaos magnet, this informative and amusing guide takes an approach to organizing that’s as unique as you are. Let this witty little handbook be your new secret weapon in the war on disorder!

Excerpt

When my older daughter first started school, she would get off the bus, have a snack, and immediately start her homework. That’s what I always did as a kid, and it made sense that she would follow in my footsteps.  I never really gave it much thought until my younger daughter started school.  She would come off the bus utterly exhausted. It was a struggle to get her to unpack her backpack, let alone start her homework. Some days she would actually fall asleep within minutes of walking in the door. Naturally, I wanted her to get her homework done, not just for her sake, but for mine. I fought with her to sit down and do it immediately. I never took into account she had ADHD and needed to decompress after sitting in school all day. Homework that should have taken 30 minutes was taking upward of two hours.

After months of battles and tears (hers, not mine - I preferred wine), I finally had my light bulb moment: I realized she goes into a valley in the afternoon. I never factored in her peak productivity time, only mine. I discovered that if I gave her time to chill out and relax for an hour first, she would come back more focused and less combative.

We all know when we are at our best, and when we are basically just going through the motions.  Decluttering and organizing take both mental and physical strength, so being cognizant of your peak productivity time (and that of those around you) is an important part of the process.

Guest Post

Writing Tips for New Authors by Laurie Palau

Many people have the desire to write, but getting started is easier said than done. There are two types of writers, literary authors and industry experts. As an industry expert who spent 7 years in the blogging world before publishing my first book, I quickly learned that there are some major differences between blog and book writing. Below are 5 tips for the new author:

1. Create an Outline. When I first started, HOT MESS: A Practical Guide to Getting Organized I was all over the map.  I was used to writing short articles approximately 300-500 words, and each week was a completely different topic.  However, when you write a book, it has to flow.  Jumping from one topic to another is not going to fly. The best way to stay on task is to follow an outline.

2. Hire an Editor.  You know your content, but it takes a fresh set of experienced eyes to critique sentence structure, punctuation and all of the countless details that go into making your book a cohesive piece of work that is both meaningful and professional.

3. Know your Audience. In the immortal words of Rick Warren, “it’s not about you.” I can’t tell you how many people write a book to check it off their bucket list.  Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with that, but if you want to sell books and make an impact, you need to know your audience and what problem you are going to solve.

4. Market, Market, Market.  Writing your book is one thing, but selling it is another. Unless you have a big publishing house backing you, chances are you are going to have to do some PR and marketing to get the word out there. If that’s not your wheelhouse, hire someone who can get your messaging out to the masses.

5. Have a Call to Action.  What do you want people to do after reading your book?  What’s the message you’re sending?  Whether you want them to hire your services, or buy your next book, the key is to be clear in what you want from your audience, and make sure you deliver.

About the Author

Laurie Palau is the founder of simply B organized, host of the weekly podcast, This ORGANIZED Life, and author of the book HOT MESS: A Practical Guide to Getting Organized available in paperback and kindle on amazon or Barnes & Noble.
She is a go-to Organizing Expert whose advice has been featured in The New York Times Parenting Section, Family Circle, and Home + Table Magazine.  Laurie can also be seen sharing tips on the CBS Philadelphia’s Morning Show & WFMZ in Allentown, PA. Whether speaking or working with clients Laurie is authentic, relatable, inspiring, and highly entertaining.
When not organizing the world, Laurie can be found at home in Bucks County, PA with her husband Josh, 2 girls (Zoe and Logan) and 2 dogs (Jeter and Oliver).  She loves coffee and Tito’s Vodka (not together), and in her spare time she is actively involved with The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which raises money for Pediatric Cancer Research.

Visit www.simplyBorganized.com for a complete list of service offerings including free organizing checklists, links to her podcast, blog and social media.

Giveaway

Laurie Palau will be awarding a FREE 30 minute phone consultation to help address specific organizing challenges to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Unringing the Bell by Judy Higgins - Book Tour and Giveaway

About the Book


In the small town of Goose Bend, Pennsylvania, people don't forget. Especially something as sensational as 12-year-old Jacob Gillis burning down the town. Nineteen years later, Jacob returns, hoping for redemption. Instead, he finds himself entangled in a murder investigation. The prosecutor, taking advantage of Jacob's involvement with the victim's beautiful sister-in-law, threatens Jacob with loss of career and reputation if he doesn't play by his rules. Only by outwitting the prosecutor can Jacob save his future.

Excerpt

When Jacob Gillis was twelve years old, he burned down the town of Goose Bend, Pennsylvania. The fire didn’t actually consume the entire town – only two blocks of the four-block business section went up in flames – but when the folks in Goose Bend spoke of the incident, they persisted in saying that Jacob Gillis, abetted by his friend Charlie Garrett, burned down the town.

Jacob watched Laskey walk back to the Sequoia, his limp barely detectable, and for the thousandth time he wondered why his friend kept what had happened to his foot a secret. But there were some places Laskey didn’t go – formidable Laskey with his gruff manner and hard-muscled body. He was a private person and sometimes a grizzly bear, but he had a goose-down heart which he tried like heck to hide. But Jacob knew.

Laskey grasped the arms of his chair and pushed his feet hard against the floor to contain himself. For a brief moment, the thought had rushed through his head that a jail term for assaulting a DA would be worth enduring for the pleasure of smashing Inglehook’s head against his desk.

Laskey squared his shoulders, turned around, and looked Jacob in the eyes. “Don’t get yourself in a mess, Jake. Extrication isn’t always possible.” He started for the door. 

“Give back the painting,” he called over his shoulder. “And Jake,” he paused and twisted around. “Don’t ever mistake pretty wrappings for the quality of the gift inside.”

Guest Post

BACKGROUND OF THE BOOK

One morning, quite a few years ago, I woke up with the idea for a murder mystery in my head. I had just begun to find a little time to begin trying to do what I’d always wanted to do: write. I didn’t yet know that writing was a craft that had to be learned like any other– music, painting, dancing. I thought writers simply sat down in front of a computer or with pen and paper and the story poured out, ready to read, ready to publish. Years later, it comes as no surprise that my first efforts to write this murder mystery didn’t work. 

Shortly after I realized that my story wasn’t going to work, I sold my house, and moved to the Middle East (Qatar) for eight years. In my spare time I began work on a novel about a girl living in South Georgia in 1956. I got up at five and spent an hour writing before I went off to my teaching job at Qatar Foundation. 

When I moved back to the United States and settled in Kentucky, I had the backbone of a novel. I finished it up, named it The Lady, and submitted the rough draft to the Amazon Breakout Novel Contest. (This was in 2012 when it was still a contest; Sadly, Amazon abandoned the contest, replacing it with a contest that’s more about the popularity of the author than the quality of the book). When I got over the surprise of being named a finalist, and with my new found confidence, I decided to pull out the old murder mystery idea that I had abandoned. An attorney that helped me with some of my legal questions involving the plot suggested the name Unringing the Bell. 

The story is set in the small town of Goose Bend, Pennsylvania where “people don’t forget, especially something as sensational as Jacob Gillis burning down the town.” I added elements to the story that weren’t there before. Thirty years ago, two boys accidentally set fire to the small town where I lived in Pennsylvania. I decided to include a similar incident in my novel, making Jacob and friend the two culprits. Jacob returns to Goose Bend at the age of thirty-one. He’s now an accomplished environmental attorney. His greatest wish is to redeem himself of the accident. Instead, he does just the opposite, entangling himself in the murder investigation when he becomes involved with the beautiful sister-in-law of the victim.

 My own son’s father died when my son was in the second grade, so I made my protagonist, Jacob Gillis, lose his father, at the age of ten. The best friend of Jacob’s father, Detective William Laskey, steps in to act as surrogate father to Jacob. I have dedicated this book to all the young men who grew up without fathers and to the mothers who raised them. 

Meanwhile, a friend told me a story about what the male students in his high school class did regarding the senior prom. I was so intrigued with the story, that I decided to weave it into Unringing the Bell. This story is the source of conflict between Jacob and the beautiful sister-in-law of the murder victim. 

After laying the story aside for so long, I was ecstatic when an agent liked it enough to offer me a contract for representation. He also suggested that I make it part of a series. Thus: Bucks County Mysteries. The second book in the series, Bride of the Wind, has come out at the same time as Unringing the Bell. I’m looking forward to writing the next book, Death by Oboe, based on the relationship between a mother and daughter. Death by Oboe will be a dark, dark novel.

To receive a publication notification, sign up for my publication newsletter at buckscountymysteries.com.

About the Author

Judy Higgins was born in South Georgia where she grew up playing baseball, reading, and taking piano lessons. To pay for her lessons, she raised chickens and sold eggs to neighbors. She attended Mercer University for two years, and then Baylor University from which she graduated with a BA in German. She received her MA in German literature from The University of Michigan. After teaching German for several years, Judy decided to become a librarian and earned an MA in Library Science at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania.
Judy’s life took an exciting turn when she left her teaching job in Pennsylvania to be Head of Library at the Learning Center School of Qatar Foundation. She lived in Qatar for eight years, enjoying the experience of living in a different culture and traveling to exotic places during every vacation. Recently, she returned to the United States and lives in Lexington, KY. Judy has two children, Julia and Stephen, two children-in-law, Jim and Erin, and four grandchildren: Kyle, Jon, Karina, and Addy.

Judy’s first book, The Lady, was a finalist in the 2012 Amazon Break-out Novel Award. The first two novels of her Bucks County Mysteries, Unringing the Bell and Bride of the Wind are available March 1, 2018. The series is set in an imaginary small town in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Call me Mara, the story of Ruth and Naomi, is scheduled for publication in March, 2019.

In addition to writing, Judy’s passions include travel, tennis, elephants, and playing the piano.

http://www.Judyhigginsbooks.com

http://www.Buckscountymysteries.com

http://www.Callmemara.com

http://www.Judyhigginslady.com

https://www.facebook.com/judyhigginsauthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudyHBooks

https://www.amazon.com/Unringing-Bell-Bucks-County-Mysteries/dp/0692998853/  

Amazon author page URL: https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Higgins/e/B00FZQOZPU

Barnes and Noble Author URL:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/unringing-the-bell-judy-higgins/1128014473

Giveaway

One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

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Nadia's Heart, Part Two by Wendy Altshuler - Book Blitz and Giveaway

About the Book


In Nadia's Heart, Part One, amnesiac Nadia knew that something was wrong, so she went in search of her missing heart. What she encountered has only brought more questions: about her origins and her ties to the people of the Land of Silence. She learned that her heart was indeed removed, and that her memory was erased by an evil Voice. But why? Now Nadia and her glowing-eyed companion, Georgeonus, must help recover the stolen hearts of the children of the Land of Silence. In Part Two, they will do battle against the evil Voice and travel to frightening places. They receive help from a powerful Witch and Wizard, and Nadia gets her heart back—but it's not at all what she expected. Can they rescue the stolen children's hearts in time?

Excerpt

From Chapter VII: The Nether Regions:

“Mabel,” said Nadia, “how did you get down here? Did Georgeonus and Holofernes make it? Are they okay?”

Mabel smiled patiently, helping Nadia to step away from the table.

“Oh, I suspect they’re fine now” was her reply.

“But—”

“Come,” she said, turning. She pulled her wand from her pocket, pointed it at the cloth, and the wrap sewed itself into pants and a belted tunic.

“But—”

“We cannot linger here,” Mabel warned, turning to walk briskly.

Nadia caught up to her. “Aren’t we in the canyon?”

“No, Nadia.”

“Then where are we?”

“We are in the Otherworld. We mustn’t linger!”

Nadia did not press the matter, but followed Mabel closely, striving to keep up. She had the feeling that they were neither in the underworld nor in a canyon. She remembered the ice castle constructed by the Voice. It seemed so long ago now. In that castle, when her thoughts perceived that perhaps it was not there at all, it would come into and out of view, disappearing before her. It was the same with this canyon. This time, she perceived her own illusion. When it faded, all she could see was light.

“Take my hand, Nadia!” said Mabel urgently, in a tone which alarmed her, and in a moment Nadia’s hand found Mabel’s, which clutched hers back. Mabel’s other hand came around Nadia’s waist and drew her close, and suddenly they were being sucked through some type of funnel. It was not comfortable; it felt dangerous, and there was great pressure all around penetrating Nadia’s cells.

About the Author

Wendy Altshuler is a writer-producer who explores myth in new media. She writes fantasy novels and creates works in stop motion animation.  Her credits include award-winning screenwriting and WGA-accredited representation. With a degree in psychology and a Master of Arts from Columbia University, Altshuler documented the work of international choreographers and wrote and produced regional programming. Her short plays have been performed at Boston Playwrights' Theatre, at regional schools and most recently, Puppet Showplace Theatre. Altshuler's young adult book series has been hailed as "emotionally moving, uplifting and wholesome," and "spirited and haunting. . .with much symbolism and beauty."  

Website: http://arborgate.net

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/waltshuler/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sirtwosays

Buy Link: 

Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Nadias-Heart-Part-Two-Adventures/dp/153972977X

Giveaway

Wendy will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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