FAME! I'm gonna live forever...

...I'm gonna learn how to fly *high*!

:P

I got my first taste of pseudo-fame today on the telephone. To tell this story, I've got to go back to the beginning. A few months ago, I had quite the spread in our local newspaper, the Hillsboro Argus. Just about a week ago, I had another article printed up, a press release on THE WOLVERINE AND THE ROSE's debut in bookstores nationwide.

Now that you know the backdrop, our story can begin.

I got a random email out of the blue from a fan who happens to live in my town. She told me that both of my local libraries carry my books. One of my friends then decided to confirm that story by going to the library and checking things out for herself. And in so doing, she checked out ON EAGLE'S WINGS. (Thank you Megan!) :P

Now, I never once contacted these libraries myself as some local authors do to beg, plead, and otherwise cajole them to carrying their books. In fact, I have an author friend who donated her books to the library, only to see them a few weeks later on *sale* on their $2 used book rack. OUCH. Guess they didn't like her book THAT much... *shudder*

Anyhow, so I'm thinking to myself that I should give the library(ies) a call and see if it's okay for me to come in and sign their books. My friend Megan said they had an "Oregon Author" sticker on them--perhaps having a signature as well wouldn't suck. I remember being a kid and living in Carson City, NV, fawning over the autographed copies of David Eddings' books on the shelves. (He writes fantasy). His biography in those books said he lived "out west" or something, but I highly suspect Mr. Eddings lives/lived in or around the CCNV area. **Ooo, hey, I was right! According to Mr. Eddings' Wikipedia page, he DOES live in CCNV! Damn! I should have looked him up in the phone book... If you're reading, Mr. Eddings, please note that THE WOLVERINE AND THE FLAME was dedicated to you in part, for kindling my love of fantasy when I was but a wee lass.... **ahem** Sorry, folks, where was I? I'm still reeling from having it confirmed that the man I adored reading as a child actually lived in the same town I did back in the day...

So anyhow, I'm on the phone with the Main Hillsboro Library, and I get transferred to the Head Reference Librarian who seems genuinely excited to talk to a local author. He asks my name.

"Rebecca Goings," I say.

"Oh, you're that gal in the paper! The one who writes fantasy?"

**crickets**

"Uh, yeah. Yeah! That's me!" Becka sheilds the receiver with her hand and squeals while jumping around the room like a madwoman.

"Someone told me just the other day to call you and see if you wanted to come in to do a presentation in our meeting hall--I don't know if you do that kind of thing, but maybe we could set something up and maybe, you know, sell some books." The Head Librarian waits patiently while Becka breathes into a paper sack.

"A presentation?" I say, once I pick myself off the floor. "Sure. I can definately do that. Sure. Definately." Dear God, do I sound like Rainman?!? "I'd love to come in and speak at your library." Head rush. HEAD RUSH!! Becka's temples are pounding from the excess of blood pooling in her flaming cheeks.

"Great!" the Head Librarian says with a smile in his voice. "Let's get together next Wednesday. You can sign our books and we'll discuss the presentation at length then."

In trepidation, I ask, "You don't mind if I bring my FOUR kids, do you? I've got quite the brood, but they're good kids." Think he believes that?

"Oh, no problem! We'll meet in our youth section and they can have fun."

I love this guy.

"Wonderful! See you then!"

*click*

**Becka faints**then wakes up to email all her friends**

~*~*~

Okay, so what have we learned? We've learned that A.) press releases can and DO work to get your name in front of important people. B.) Librarians DO pay attention to these kinds of things, looking for local authors to support. C.) If you ever do a press release, bring it to your library's attention so you can give a talk and have a sweet booksigning afterwards.

Advantages of a library booksigning over one at a bookstore:

* You give an actual talk, so all eyes are on you.

* Members of the community are there to see you specifically, so you're the star of the show.

* Did I mention you're in the spotlight? No hoping and praying people will stop at your table instead of giving you dirty looks or asking you if you know where the bathroom is.

* After your soul-stirring lecture about the joys of publishing, those in attendance can come and take a look at your books.

* You've left a much bigger mark on these people's psyches than you did at the bookstore, and they'll remember you on your next book's release.

Now, the big question is this. Do you think they'll give me a library card while I'm there?

:P

...FAME! I'm gonna live forever, baby remember my name...Remember...Remember...

~~Becka

http://www.RebeccaGoings.com

Thursday Thirteen #20 ~ 13 Reasons to Read IN YOUR ARMS

Well, I admit, I'm just throwin' this 13 together this week. I totally wasn't prepared for it. Looked at the calendar and said, "IT'S THURSDAY?!" So I figured, why not spotlight an older book and give it a little promo?

13 Reasons Why You Should Read IN YOUR ARMS.

1.) Do you love cowboys? 'Nuff said.

2.) It's currently my favorite historical Western.

3.) Marcus McCaide is a yummy tortured hero. Very swoon-worthy.

4.) There's some humor, as you can't be serious 24/7.

5.) IT'S IN PRINT!! :D Finally. But don't tell my publisher I said that. lol

6.) The awesome reviews! Like this one that's conveniently posted in a themed pic:

7.) It's set in the great state of Texas. Woohoo!

8.) The love scenes are filled with intense passion and deep longing.

9.) This book has been endorsed by Diana Bold. Yay!

10.) The cover is awesome.

11.) I made a sweet book trailer (shh, I won't tell if you won't tell...)

12.) This book is still sellin' strong, even though it was released in April of '06. Find out what all the buzz is about. :)

13.) Guaranteed to pull your heartstrings, and perhaps sniffle just a wee bit. :D

~*~

And there you have it! Thirteen reasons to read my historical Western, IN YOUR ARMS. I hope you enjoy it!

~~Becka

http://www.rebeccagoings.com/

~*~

THE WOLVERINE AND THE FLAME IS NOW AVAILABLE!!

So, I updated everywhere... Bebo, Myspace, Gather, my author loop The Magic of Romance, Samhain's Yahoo loop, even FaceBook. But not the Babble blog. Since when has this blog become the red-headed step-child? Why is Babble the last place I go for news? Perhaps because I figure whoever actually READS these ramblings must also know me from other "hot spots" around the 'Net and already know. But for those of you that haven't heard, **Becka lifts the rock you've been living under**

THE WOLVERINE AND THE FLAME IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE!

YES, I'M YELLING! lol

This book was a long time in coming, but I finally get to share with my fans how my trilogy ends. I've gotten a LOT of curious inquiries if this will be the end of Lyndaria. In my personal opinion, Lyndaria is too cool a place to just have three books to do it justice. :P But I currently have no plots planned out. WatFlame was the last of the three stories I'd originally plotted back in the day, but that doesn't mean I don't have many other plots I could easily do.

IF I ever journey back, I have a bajillion choices of what I can do. Do I want to explore the Silver Sea? The elven kingdom? Do I want to continue with the Wolverines? Or with the dragons? Or do I want to go back and write a few of the "backstories" I elude to in the books? (such as Arianna's grandparents' love story or Sir Cederick's "off camera" romance).

For those of you who've read this series, or even just one of these books, where would YOU like me to take this series now that "The Legends of Mynos" are finished? If you post something that is an important plot point, write SPOILER!! in your comment, please. And for those of you who haven't read this series, please note there might be spoilers in the comments, so read them at your own risk.

But I do ask the fans... Where should I go next in Lyndaria? What would you like to see me write a story about?

~~Becka

SQWEEEEEEE!!!!!!

It took 20 years, but the wish that 13-year-old girl made so long ago has finally come true.

BELIEVE IN YOUR DREAMS!!!

~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

This week, I'm featuring a man I only saw in passing briefly on the cover of some magazine. Haven't done much TV watching this week (except to watch America's Got Talent - CONGRATS, TERRY!! :D). But I know I've never featured this man before, so I thought what the heck? Who did I pick? Mr. George Clooney.



George is one of those men who get better with age, like Sean Connery. You see younger pictures of George and think, eh... You see older pictures of George and think HEY...



What's up with that? Is it the fact that men who are sexier as they age had baby faces as young men? I think that might be it in part. Watching George in his early acting gigs, such as on Roseanne, when he was the love interest for Jackie... Or when he was on ER (back in the days when I watched that show...) But now, he's got the salt & pepper hair and the laugh lines that really define his look.



He's transcended his old "geeky" persona of the early '90's, and kind of become somewhat of a throwback to the golden age of Hollywood. He reminds me of Gregory Peck or Cary Grant nowadays... Hmm. Maybe it's just me. :P

Congratulations, George Clooney. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!



~~Becka

Thursday Thirteen #19 ~ Thirteen Correct Pronunciations in The Legends of Mynos

This week, I'm going to be posting some correct pronunciations in my fantasy realm of Lyndaria, to celebrate the recent PRINT RELEASE of The Wolverine and the Rose, Book I of my three book series. :) Each pronunciation has a part in bold, to signify the syllable with the emphasis.

Let's get started!

1.) Mynos - pronounced "Mai-noce." When I was in school, kids used to call him "my nose"... uh uh. It's NOT "Mee-nos". It's not "Mee-nose" or "Mee-noce" or "Min-ose", it's "Mai-noce", long "i" sound on the first syllable, long "o" on the second syllable.

2.) Arianna - pronounced "Ahr-ee-ah-na". It is not "Air-ee-ann-ah".

3.) Geoffrey - pronounced "Jeffrey", but I'm sure you knew that already. :)

4.) Lyndaria - pronounced "Lin-dahr-ee-ah". NO "Lin-dare-ee-ah" here.

5.) Malnan - pronounced "Mal-nen".

6.) Estriel - pronounced "Es-tree-el", emphasis on the first syllable. Not "Es-tree-el".

7.) Kaas - pronounced "Kahs", NOT "Kass".

8.) Iruindyll - pronounced "Ear-oo-in-dill"

9.) Djendorl - pronounced "Jen-dor-l" (silent "d")

10.) Marynville - pronounced "Mare-in-vill"

11.) Aeryn Island - pronounced "Air-in" Island.

12.) Stollinshire - pronounced "Stahl-in-shire".

13.) Meiri - pronounced "Mear-ee", NOT "Mai-ree".

And there you have it! If you've read the series and are unsure of a pronunciation, just ask, and I'll tell ya! I know a lot of times, the author's pronunciation and what you read to yourself just don't sync up. If that's the case, tell me how YOU thought one of these words were pronounced! :D

~~Becka

Dude, I'm So Baked!

Recently, I've picked up baking. No, really. I love it. However, I wouldn't have started this shocking trend if it hadn't been born out of necessity.

My family's surname should be "Sweettooth". Forget this "Goings" nonsense. From now on, I'm going to be writing under the name "Becka Sweettooth." Seriously. On any given day, usually right after DH sets down his dinner plate (as we eat in front of the TV most nights), he'll ask me what's for dessert. Normally, it would have been some ice-creamy-sandwichy-cookie-brownie concoction I purchased at the local S-mart. (Shop smart. Shop S-mart. You got that?!?!?!) **if you recognize that movie quote, give yourself 1,000 Campbell points.**

Anyhow, all these dessert-y items were being consumed in mass quantities. Yes, we're fatty-fatty-2X4's over here and proud of it. **Ahem** Have you SEEN the size of my family? And I'm not talking girth, here folks, I'm talking sheer numbers. A package of Chips Ahoy cookies, for example, can be consumed within a couple of days. So you figure, a package of cookies is about $3.50, give or take.

A package of flour costs about the same, however, you can get many, many dozens of cookies out of it--if you bake them yourself. At about that time, I had what Dr. Phil (or is it Oprah?) calls a "lightbulb moment" right there in the grocery store. "Self," I said, "It's about time I did something about this horrid grocery bill." Taking a look, I realized a lot of it was going toward dessert-y items.

Huh.

Okay, okay, I can hear you, ya know. Why not just cut out the sweets all together?

**GASP!!** Then I'd ruin this figure I've been working my whole life to obtain! lol Seriously, I can't live without my sugar fix. But this post isn't about the 100 pounds of junk food Becka packs away in a year, it's about baking. Moving on.

So I go to Costco and I come to their baking aisle and I see this GIANT bag of flour and this HUGE bag of sugar and a GINORMOUS bag of brown sugar. All bags were in the $5.00 range. Compare this to the $3.50 bag o' flour at S-mart (Safeway, for those of you not paying attention), this was a good buy. And since I'd endeavored to begin making my own dessert-y items from now on, I purchased said bags.

Now, to top all this cookie-brownie-cake baking I've been doing lately, I figured heck, if I've got the flour, might as well buy yeast and make bread! LOL I have a bread machine, and I've had it for about 10 years. (Dayam, has it been that long?!?) Anyhow, I couldn't remember EVER using the dough cycle. I'd always just made the full loaves in it. My philosophy of old was "Who'd want to use just the dough cycle when you have a fricken' BREAD MAKER that could just make the entire loaf for you?"

But I have since seen the light. You see, storebought rolls at your local bakery might seem like a good buy. But over time, when you buy them again and again, costs can add up. Yes, we also like to eat rolls and biscuits with our dinners. So I cracked open my bread machine cook books and found some awesome bread dough recipies for rolls. I also made my own calzone crust one evening. (Use chicken broth instead of water in the recipe. You'll thank me later!)

But the bread machine comes in handy because I hate the mixing/kneading of the dough, not to mention the rising of it. But in the machine, you put in the ingredients, wait about an hour and a half, and all you need to do is make rolls and pop in oven. Voila!

All this baking started when I wanted to learn how to make my own jam. Now, I've devolved into some 19th century (or 1950's) mom who actually BAKES for her family. LOL DH asked me the other night, "What's gotten into you? **Not that I'm complaining...**" Heheheh... I do enjoy making bread and desserts and jams. I just love the fact that I can throw things together in my kitchen and they come out as some cool concoction I can eat! And 9 times out of 10, they taste a million times better than storebought.

And truth be told, my kitchen doesn't even get that dirty. As long as I start my baking with an empty dishwasher, I'm good to go! And the family LOVES it. With my satchels of sugar and flour, I should be set for many, many cookies, cakes and calzones to come. :)

~~Becka

Come and Post on Mavens Monday!

As you may or may not know, myself, Donica Covey, Phyllis Campbell, and Ciara Gold are in a writing troupe known as the "MAGIC MAVENS". We even have a blog and a newsletter.

BLOG:

http://magicmavens.blogspot.com

NEWSLETTER:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MagicMavensNewsletter/

We're starting a new feature on our blog called "Mavens Monday", and every Monday, we'll be holding a conversation about any topic under the sun. Our topic for our first official "Monday" is our new look and what to expect from the Mavens in the future. So stop by our blog:

http://magicmavens.blogspot.com

Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and yak for awhile. We'll be checking back frequently throughout the day to keep the conversation going. :D Stay tuned every Monday for a new discussion topic!

~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

A little late in coming, but here nonetheless! I cannot tell you how insanely busy I've been lately. My poor blog has been suffering! :( BUT, it did take me most of the weekend to figure out who I would post as my hottie. I thought I might do an "old timey" hottie feature with Hotties from yesteryear. I might still do that. But I did indeed find a good man for my Hottie this week. Anyone watch the show "Eureka" on the SciFi Channel? If so, you'll recognise this man. Mr. Colin Ferguson.



By now, y'all know I'm an Uber Geek (echo echo). Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I love the SciFi Channel. (Except for those SciFi original movie cheesefests. Has anyone actually *watched* Mansquito? LOL) SciFi has an AWESOME original show called Eureka, about a town in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon rawks!) that is home to geniuses the gov't wants working on super-secret high-tech out-of-this-world projects. There's only one person in town who's not a genius. The local sheriff. You guessed it, played by my Hottie.



And of course, this makes for some highly comical moments. :P I just love this show. It's so quirky and original. If you haven't watched it, you might want to start from the first show. In fact, this show went on hiatus between the first and second seasons for almost a YEAR, and fans didn't know if SciFi cancelled it or not. SciFi, being infinately cooler than Fox, decided against canceling the show, and brought it back in July '07 after going off air in Oct. of '06.



And thank God they did. I mean seriously, wouldn't you want this man in your living room every week?!? :D I've always had an affection for blond men with blue eyes, and Colin has both in spades. And his smile is so infectious, you just wanna smile along with him, regardless of what he's smiling at. Seriously, if you don't watch Eureka for Colin, at least watch it because it's a darn cool show.

Congratulations, Colin Ferguson. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!



~~Becka

Champagne Books 24 Hour Beach Party!

Come and join the authors and readers of Champagne Books for a 24 HOUR Beach Party on the Coffeetime Romance Yahoo Group!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karenfindoutaboutnewbooks/

There'll be chatting, contests, yakking, schmoozing, laughing, jokes, fun, strippers... :D Threw that last in to see if you were paying attention. LOL But hey, you never know!

Come and join us! It starts at 5pm EST / 2pm PST until 5pm EST / 2pm PST on Saturday. So why wouldn't you pop in for a bit? Don't make me hurt you... :P

See you there! Remember:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/karenfindoutaboutnewbooks/

~~Becka

Thursday Thirteen #18 ~ Thirteen Reasons Why I LUV Being an Author

This week's list is comprised from reasons why I love being an author. :)

1.) I love to create. I've drawn pictures, crocheted, done crafts, gotten into baking (recently), and I love to write. The whole creative process from beginning to end, from plotting to inventing characters, to throwing situations at them.

2.) I love being published. Obvious. Many writers out there aren't as lucky. To them, I say Never Give Up, Never Surrender!

3.) I love seeing my book covers. After writing the book, it's always a rush to see your finished cover. It's what will sell the book, or at least get someone's attention. And seeing a representation of your story on the cover is a wonderful feeling.

4.) I love actually writing more than one book. A lot of people say they have One Big Novel in them that they want to write "someday". Writing a book is no easy feat. Anyone can string words together, but it takes an author to tell a story worth reading. I liken writing a book to "painting with words." If you can make your reader forget that they're reading a book and immerse themselves within your world, then you've done your job.

5.) I love promotion. Yes, some of you are gasping, I can hear you. :P But I do love it. I love "getting out there" and talking to the readers, and yakking about myself or my books. LOL I always look forward to trying bigger and better things and getting my name recognized by more and more people.

6.) I love the royalties. This one is a given. :) Royalties are oh-so-handy to have. Hehehe...

7.) I love that I can actually see my books on bookstore shelves. How AWESOME is that?!?

8.) I love that my books are stocked in my local libraries (yes, plural) and I didn't even have to bribe them! In fact, I found out by accident from a fan that they were even on the shelves. SWEET.

9.) I love all my author friends and all their unique books. I'm truly happy that I found e-publishing. It's not at all "traditional" like the New York houses. You can actually find some strange and awesome stuff out there!

10.) I love the fact that people actually WANT my autograph. Used to be the only ones who wanted that were the people who collected the bills... lol

11.) I love being at the same publishing houses as some of the biggest names in electronic publishing. Makes me feel all the more "established" as an author.

12.) Big name New York authors know who I am because of the circles I... circulate. :) Dean Koontz, Piers Anthony, Nora Roberts, Lori Foster, Paula Quinn, Christine Feehan... (I wonder if they're fans? LOL)

13.) I love being able to re-read my books and never get tired of them. Sometimes I'll read an older one and think, "I wrote this. Damn, I'm GOOD!" Hehehe... No big head here. Nope, not at all. :P

And there you have it. Thirteen reasons why I LUV being an author!

~~Becka

Lost Lake, Oregon, Perhaps One of the Coolest Places on Planet Earth.

As promised, PICTURES! :D My second camping experience was awesome. Yes, folks, I've only ever been camping twice in my life, as my parents were not outdoorsy, nor were my friends, and I was never a member of any cool clubs or groups. Sad, I know. My first experience I had a baby, not even a toddler. And I had no idea where anything was packed, so I'm frustrated, DH is yelling at me to find the damn calamine lotion, and the baby is eating the dirt. Yay camping.

The second experience was MUCH better, in part because my children are well beyond "baby" stage, and also because we literally parked our car and set up camp. Ah, car camping. Gotta love it. I am so not into hiking. You goin' hiking? Have fun. Me and my fat @$$ are going to stay right here where we can breathe. LOL

Lost Lake is at the foot of Mt. Hood, which I'm sure you know by now if you've been following my blog. It's so awesome because it's sooo gorgeous. My hubby has a telephoto lens for his camera to take far-away shots, and I was having trouble "fitting" the mountain into the pictures because it was TOO DAMN CLOSE! :P Observe the mysterious Mt. Hood:



Now that's purdy, I don't care who y'are. This shot was taken by the hubby on our trek around the lake. It has a trail that goes all the way around, about a 4 mile jaunt. Yes, I went on this hike, but only because it was FLAT and SHORT (relatively). No hills to climb, no endless walking. You know you'll be done in a couple hours (because there ain't no "power walking" with the Goings clan, thank you very much).

On this hike, we found a private cabin in the woods that had its own private dock. I hadn't seen that on our day trip to the lake, and it was sweet, all tucked away behind the foliage. No one was in the cabin, as it appeared as if they were renovating it at the time, but we did stop and sit on the small dock and take some pictures. This one I took because I loved all the shades of green:



It makes the water look swampy, when that is NOT the case at all. The water is as clear as a bell, and in fact, when we went out on the lake, you could see at least 100 feet down to your shadow on the bottom. Of course, me with my "water phobia", I didn't lean that far over the boat to take a look-see. Yes, I'm terrified of deep water and have a stigma of having water going over my head. It really freaks me out, so when I'm on the water, you rock the boat at your own damn risk. Seriously. LOL

This next shot I took because I adored the contrast and the beauty of all the colors together. It was a gorgeous day with white puffy clouds. I stopped on the trail to take a picture of a fallen log when I realized, "Wait, look at these colors!" So instead of focusing on just the log, I got a bit of the sky in there too. This is probably one of my favorite shots I took:



In this next shot, you can see my hubby's epic canoe. That beeyotch is 20 ft long. I took this picture from a rowboat our friends had rented. That's my good friend Val, all my kids, Simone, Hannah, Levi & Miriam, my DH at the back, and his faithful pooch Abe. Yes, the dog goes canoeing. Yes, the dog has a life jacket. Yes, the dog really would jump out into deep water and kill himself swimming. Hence the life jacket.



And finally we have a candid shot of the Goings campsite. In this pic, you can see all of our friends having a good time, huddled around the campfire in the early morning hours. That is our friend Kelly makin' bacon over the fire (mmm, it was good...). That's me on the log with the blankie on my lap. I look pissed off when in reality, I was fricken' cold, and seriously considering going back under the comforters we'd brought in our tent. LOL



You can see the stairs that led up to our Big Red Van on the road. The only sucky thing about this trip was the slight walk to el banyo, as it was about 100 yards away. Not that far, but far enough when you Really Gotta Pee. We brought along a makeshift potty, a 5 gallon bucket with a potty seat attachment. You go into a trash bag, then throw it away. Pretty handy during the middle of the night. It's so dark, no one can see you going. But we didn't use it during the day because the campsites are so close together, people would definately see you in all your glory. :P Thankfully, el banyo didn't stink to high heaven. That was another reason why I hated camping trip #1. That potty was toxic. This one, not so much.

Word to the wise. If you go camping in the woods in the mountains near a glacier-fed lake, it doesn't matter if it's the height of summer in August. Bring some damn winter clothing items. Holy crap, it was cold! My poor kids were popsicles! Of course, it was nice and warm out on the lake, so that was appropriate for shorts and whatnot, but back within the cover of the trees, better have your sweat suit on complete with hoodie, gloves, and thick, warm socks. Good Lord!

;P

~~Becka

I'm Back and Better Than Ever!

Yes, I'm back from my camping trip and I've chosen a winner!

Congratulations to PAT S. for her winning entry into my impromptu camping story contest! (Please see comments on the "Camping is In-Tents" post). Her entry was about a BEAR that SAT on her SISTER in their TENT. ACK! That still gives me the heebeejeebees... LOL All I could envision was my own family and our "National Lampoon's Camping Vacation" antics. :P My kids woulda been screaming, I would have been freaking out, DH stumbling over the air mattress, our dog trying to save the day...

Mass chaos, folks. :P Therefore, that entry deserved the win. LOL

Pat S., please email me at rebeccagoings@gmail.com for your ecopy of my book PROMISE ME FOREVER. Congrats again!

I had a BLAST camping, and I'll be back soon with stories and pics once my DH posts them so I can steal them. Heheheh...

WooHoo!

~~Becka

Camping is In-Tents!

Nyuk nyuk... Nope, I didn't make that title up, although I wish I had. Check out this cute pic I found:



Yup, that's right, the Goings clan is going camping this weekend. For four days, babeee!! That's one of the reasons why I haven't blogged lately. I've got a shite-load of... shite to do. I mean, my gawd. It's like planning an African safari.



ACK! You think I'm kidding. We'll be in the "rough" for four days. Six people. One dog. One big PITA. LOL No, really, we'll have a lot of fun, it's just a lot of planning.

And not just our family is going. Our good friends the Howlands will be joining us, as well as the Siglers, the Farnsworths, and many other random folk. Mostly a few family members and significant others. It's gonna be a B~L~A~S~T!! Where are we going? Why, remember that trek to Lost Lake I told you about a few weeks ago? We decided we wanted to actually stay longer than a few hours. So we're going to camp out!



Ain't Mt. Hood beeyooteeful? Ain't no way I'm ever hiking the thing (as it's an evil hiker-eating mountain), but it's gorgeous to look at from afar. :)

Lost Lake is aptly named. This place is the epitome of "out-of-the-way." If you don't know where you're going (ie, print out a freakin' map), you WILL get lost. I'm not sure if that's why they named it such or not. But I'm betting YES. LOL

But this is going to be FUN! I haven't been camping as often as my DH, and this doesn't even "count" as roughing-it, as there is a convenient store nearby. This is more "car camping." Get out of your car, set up your tent. Which is good, because I always seem to break a limb whenever I go hiking... Don't ask.

So, what does this mean for Becka's Babble? It means I won't be around to blog this weekend. :( But hopefully next week, I'll have some great pics and stories to share. If I think of a Hottie between now and this evening, I'll post him. Otherwise, you'll just have to be satisfied with Matt Damon until I get back. ;)

Woohoo!



~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

This week's Hottie is a man we've all known and loved for years. He won an Academy Award 10 years ago for an original screenplay he'd written with his good friend, Ben Affleck. He's always had the "boy next door" charm, that is, until he started doing the Bourne Identity movies, then he turned into a traffic-stopper. Literally. LOL And that man is Mr. Matt Damon.



I've always fancied sandy-blond men, and Mr. Damon is no exception. I fell in love with the Bourne movies, and I'll tell you right now, I cannot WAIT to see the third one. In fact, my B*E*A*S*T* series was kind of modeled off of them, as I'd once said, "They're like the Bourne Identity movies with shifters!" LOL



But I decided to give my Hottie title this week to Mr. Damon because of this article I read on MSNBC yesterday. Apparently, his good friends George Clooney and Brad Pitt have both been chosen as the "Sexiest Man Alive" by People Magazine, and they're campaigning for Matt to be chosen as well. Good for them, I say! LOL So to "help" Matt along, I thought he might need a little boost (emphasis on the *little* heheh...).

Mr. Damon was also honored recently by getting his very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He mentioned walking that sidewalk in the "olden days" thinking *someday...* I love stories like that. You went out and grabbed hold of your fame, Matt. You should be very proud of yourself. :)



Because he's a great actor, because he's got the looks, because he does cool movies, because he has a lovely family, and because he seems like an all-around great guy, he deserves to be featured on my blog. Congratulations, Matt Damon. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!



~~Becka

IN YOUR ARMS is Now in Print!!!

My historical Western romance, IN YOUR ARMS, is finally out in PRINT!!

Click here to order! :D

I'm so excited about that! I can't wait to get myself a copy... LOL Woohoo! Many thanks to Champagne Books for not kicking my butt in my campaign to bring this book to print. LOL My publisher has said she's gotten many an email from people these past few months. *Ahem*. What?

LOL Those of you who love this book, get it now! You can finally hold it in your hand. My favorite historical Western! :D YAY!

Oh, and PROMISE ME FOREVER is out too, in eBook. :P That's my new release for Champagne for August. Go check it out!



~~Becka

Thursday Thirteen #17 ~ Thirteen Reasons to Pre-Order THE WOLVERINE AND THE ROSE on Amazon.com

This week's 13 is blatant promo. LOL My book, THE WOLVERINE AND THE ROSE, is now up for pre-order on Amazon.com, and you can find it here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1599986280/ref=cm_arms_pdp_dp/104-7529024-7360730

1.) IT'S ON FREAKIN' AMAZON.COM. Need there be another reason? :P

2.) You've already read THE CRYSTAL OF MYNOS, the free read prequel to this series found at: http://www.RebeccaGoings.com/TheCrystalOfMynos.pdf

3.) I've had the idea for this story for 20 years. So there's some nostagia going on.

4.) If you love dragons, you'll LOVE Mynos. He's a dragon-shifter, written before I even knew what a "shifter" was. When I began this book, I thought, "It would be cool if my dragon could use his magic to change into a man." Who would have thought by the time I had this published, everyone would be writing dragon-shifters?

5.) If you like Medieval-esque sword & sorcery, you'll like this book.

6.) If you ever wanted a little more romance to go with your fantasy, you'll like this book.

7.) It's got a kick-ass cover.

8.) It's one of my favorite books ever.

9.) It's the first book in a sweet three-book series entitled The Legends of Mynos. Sure, each book is about a different Wolverine, or knight of the king, and each book has it's own contained plot. But there is an overarching plot of the dragons that you'll be excited to read about as well.

10.) The entire series is finished. If I happen to die tomorrow, you'll still be able to read the series without interruption. LOL

11.) If they make a movie, you'll be able to say you've read the book.

12.) It's on sale on Amazon until its release date of August 21st for 32% off!!

13.) It's published with Samhain Publishing, a house that is truly going places, who's just signed a sweet deal to become Kensington Books's newest imprint! AWESOME!

And there you have it, 13 reasons why you should Pre-Order THE WOLVERINE AND THE ROSE on Amazon.com!

~~Becka