I've Moved!!!

I loaded up the moving van and headed over to www.kimhornsby.blogspot.com
visit me over there and see what I'm spewing about this week.
If you're looking for a good book I invite you to www.beachreadauthors.blogspot.com

Kim

Too Confident for a Rock Star?

I teach a course on Public Speaking self-confidence called 'Channeling Your Inner Rock Star"
Here's a short story I wrote about my own lack of confidence while teaching the course, one Saturday...

As I gazed out on the audience of attendees who came to ‘Channeling Your Inner Rock Star’ and I cautioned my listeners how to avoid reading the audience too closely, I realized that the group in front of me looked more bored than a group of supermodels at a class about humility.

I almost broke a sweat as I worried about how the women in front of me were receiving what I said. Am I being too confident about self-confidence? Not confident enough? Can they tell I’m worried that I’m not helping them enough? Am I simply feeding my desire to be watched, by doing this class? To be loved?  Accepted?

I stopped myself. Be confident. Assume they love you, Kim.

I followed my own advice and believed that they were praising the day they saw my name on the workshop lineup. It’s what you should do in a situation like this.

My audience on Saturday was a small group, given that the AVON live-stream online chat was five feet from our door (with cupcakes), but I was pleased at the turnout. I’d been prepared for one or two. Having been in the Bellevue Hilton bar years before, when we’d added to our group of cocktailers a gal who didn't have anyone attend her workshop. “Oh dang,” we’d said with glasses of chardonnay, “join us and you can do your workshop on us.”

Not my workshop though. I had attendees! After all, it was only 11 am. These pioneers had waded through a Cherry Adair chat and Avon loving bodies to get to the door of the workshop that would teach them how to channel the most confident, most engaging side of oneself in the new days of self- promotion. These gals had put off other incredibly helpful classes to see if I could offer some insight to confidence. All I needed was one person in the class to need me. To need the confidence to do their own PR work.

I raged on. And it was magic.

After the class, the person who I thought was most likely to run for the door in boredom, approached me with a story to break my heart--to make this reader want to champion for her, to read everything she’s written. And, I wondered what, in an audience of writers who worry about self confidence, was I expecting to see? The writers who attended my class, gave me confidence that there are many ways to support, to love and to champion for the women who have left the safe path to write novels. And that we totally rock. You totally rock. Just the fact that we write books, hoping to entertain and enlighten... I love us.

Singing ‘We are the champions, my friend...”

And now, in an effort to Channel my inner rock star, here is my new signature to show I’m social-media savvy...

12 Authors-12 Free Books for Christmas!

Looking for a good read over the Winter Break? Here are 12 FREE DOWNLOADS by 12 very different authors. Pick your favorites or download them all and mix genres!
No need to thank me, readers. You're welcome!
Kim

Ancient Rome Historical

BUY
VOWS OF REVENGE by J.F. Ridgley (J.F.Ridgley’s Website)
After her patrician husband sells her to a fate worse than death, Aelia must learn that in Amalfi you live by your heart, not by Rome’s laws.

Paranormal Romantic Suspense (Novella)

BUY
ADRIENNE’S GHOST by Leah St. James
FBI agent and psychologist investigate the murder of an FBI recruit and come face to face with the victim’s spirit.

Suspense Thriller

BUY
THE GOOD DAUGHTER by Diana Layne (Diana Layne’s Blog)
Payback is a bitch…

Contemporary Romance

BUY
LAST FIRST KISS by Lori Leger (Lori Leger’s Website) (Lori’s Cajunflair Blog)
Her daughters want a daddy…She wants her old life back…All He wants is the three of them…

Paranormal

BUY
THE SLAYER’S WIFE by Tenaya Jayne (Tenaya Jayne’s Blog)
Best friends turn into deadly enemies for the love of one woman.

Erotic Paranormal Romance

BUY
HER DRUID TEMPTATION by Trish F. Leger (Trish Leger’s Website)
Prequel to Trish’s awesome Amber Druid series.
He’s always been her temptation…Will she finally give in?

Contemporary Romance

BUY
QUOTABLE by Kathy L. Wheeler

Regency Historical

BUY
MISS MERRY’S CHRISTMAS by Callie Hutton
The duke fired the annoying governess; his mother re-hired her as a companion. Now she’s driving him crazy.

Gothic Mystery Novella

BUY
LADY IN THE MIST by Alicia Dean (Alicia Dean’s Website)
A psychology student takes a job caring for a mentally unstable young man on a remote coastal island and becomes embroiled in a deadly mystery.

Gay Paranormal Kink

BUY
JOURNAL OF A LYCANTHROPHILE by Fierce Dolan
When the kink most forbidden is the monster that satisfies.

Romantic Suspense with Paranormal Elements

BUY
THE DREAM JUMPER’S PROMISE by Kim Hornsby (Kim Hornsby’s Website)
A broken promise has consequences…



BUY
BOUND BY DECENCY by Claire Ashgrove (Claire Ashgrove’s Website)

Posted in Kindle Giveaway and tagged Callie Hutton, Claire Ashgrove, Diana Layne, Fierce Dolan, J.F.Ridgley, Kathy L. Wheeler, Kim Hornsby, Kindle, Leah St. James, Lori Leger, Tenaya Jayne, Trish F. Leger, Winter Frost | Leave a Comment

I'm Publishing a Book!!! Finally.

Okay, so I'm an expert now on getting a book published and I'd like to share my experiance with y'all. (My new favorite word).
The Wild Rose Press editor Ally Robertson read my book, previously known as Goldy and the Bayers, but now known as Necessary Detour, and loved it. So much that she went straight to the committee and had them check it out before mentionning this to me. Then she offered me a contract. It was squee-worthy. I tried to get an agent while I waited for PUblisher #2 to finish reading the MS but decided to sign on with TWRP when pub 2 declined. Several agents declined representing me too which makes me all the more loyal and appreciative to TWRP because of their foresight. (Ally).
I'm in edits with my editor, a phrase I never tire of saying, and have an awesome cover for the book. I love what the artist has designed for the story, all but my hero's scrawny arms but maybe we can feed him some protein powder before the book comes out.
I'm tweaking the first fifty pages to get them down to the first thirty pages and have put off self pubbing The Dream Jumper's Promise until I get this one farther down the road.
I'm still in Seventh Heaven on Cloud Nine, 24/7. Very excited and happy and glad.
Two of my critique partners have self pubbed now and I'm next. My labor day plan is being pushed back to whenever, due to summer, kids, dogs, work and life getting in the way. Necessary Detour will be out in February and The Dream Jumper's Promise should preceed that by a few months. Riding coatails and all that, I hope.
Fingers crossed, as always.
KIm

Dastardly Day Jobs

I haven't posted for a long time because I have a dastardly day job. As well as my full time job as a mother and my more-than full time job as a writer, I now work at a certain department store that starts with an M and ends with an 's. It's the perfect job for me, as part time work goes, but it's a stretch, reporting to work for 25 hours a week and leaving my family to fend for themselves.
I get to choose my own schedule, basically, the people are nice to work with, mostly, the work is easy, for the most part, and it's been wonderful getting a pay check every Friday, completely. I get to escape the mom routine and just be a person who sells clothes to other women and that is, in some respects, a welcome relief. I'm making a bit of money for taking a break from my messy house and all the demands of living with dogs and kids. The downside is that the puppy has chewed holes in our walls, the house smells like puppy pee pee, my friends have all but forgotten me, my children are lonely, laundry litters the upstairs floor, meals are often previously frozen, the backyard lawn is so long that I can't see the dogs when they go out there and I'm tired all the time.
The up side is that my children are getting more independant, I'm happier and we have a small pay check for groceries and kids' lunch money. I believe in white light and positive energy and while I was transforming from a depressed housewife and down on her luck writer to a working gal, one of my novels got recognized and I am going to be a published author in a few months! Whoot whoot.
Lately I've been going from Cloud Nine to Seventh Heaven and when I wake up in the middle of the night worrying about money and life, I remember that I am going to be a published author. This was a dream I dearly wanted to fullfill and now that I'm on the verge of self pubbing The Dream Jumper's Promise, I receive a contract offer from a legitimate press. Talk about 11th hour.
So in summary, I got a $9 job, work 25 hours a week and at the 11th hour I receive an offer and am now on cloud 9. I'm in 7th heaven.
More later...

Applying for Entry Level Jobs in Mega Companies

I just finished the Target Employee Questionaire and am astounded at the questions that the Huge companies ask nowadays. "IF you saw someone stealing, would you report them?" "Do you question loyalty in friends", "Is the color blue something you trust?" Ughhh! I just want a job so that I can buy my kids Christmas presents and go to Nicaragua in January to help really, super-poor kids. But no. I have to go through the indignity of a job application that asks about being convicted of anything or doing time, at the age of 54 to find out if I'm worthy of being a barista at Starbucks.
I did not get accepted at Starbucks. They said they'd call on Halloween day and they didn't. I think because I told them it was a busy day at my house that day, the 2nd interviewer must've given me a bad report. I hate it when I have to tell the truth. If they'd only known what I could potentially offer the drive- through, they would've snatched me up in a second.The Starbucks application took 2 hours out of my life, the interviews took another 2 and they didn't even call me to say "you are too old to work here." As a matter of fact, both interviewers, who were under 25 (i'd bet my life) were late for interviews, asked exactly the same questions off a clipboard and bordered on rude. I could teach them a thing or two about HR but...
What did they want?  A future CEO? Or someone who follows rules accordingly?
Onwards -  I just finished filling out a Target application and although I don't look great in red shirt and khaki pants, I shall rally if they need me. Kids need Christmas ...

Long Time, No See -- I've been Submitting

I thought I lost this blog forever. It's been a cyber hell over here but I"m back and confident enough to post to see if it sticks. Kinda like cooking spaghetti.
This fall I've been working like a