It's Been Over a Year!

I haven't blogged in forever.  That's because my life is not interesting enough to blog about.  You know what I do?  I read, I watch TV, I work, I raise kids, I go to junior high and high school football games, I go to church, I go grocery shopping, I do laundry, I go to the library, I watch movies...that's it.  That's all I can think of that I do.  I LOVE to read, though.  And as my kids are growing up and frustrating me, I find that I read more and more as an escape.  I LOVE reading romance novels.  Don't snicker at me.  I never read them, either, and now I'm thoroughly addicted.  Here's what happened:

A couple of years ago I was talking to my friend Sarah King.  I said something like, "I wonder whatever happened to Ali Johnson" or maybe she said, "Guess who I ran into?"  I'm not sure which.  Anyway, it turns out Sarah ran into Ty Johnson, Ali's younger brother.  They talked about where Ali is and what's she's doing.  Ali is now writing historical romance novels.  I had never read a historical romance before and didn't really know what I was getting into, but I loved Ali in high school.  I thought she was so cool, and although we lost touch, I was happy to hear she was doing well.  I immediately went to her website (http://www.alissa-johnson.com/) and ordered her first three novels online.  I read them out of order, which I have a bad habit of doing, but I really really enjoyed them.  At that time, there were only the three with two on the way.  After the three, I was totally hooked, but there weren't any more yet.  What was I going to do now?  I needed more historical romance! Since I was new to the genre, I had no idea what was out there.  What I learned after becoming a rabid, borderline obsessive fan is there is  A LOT out there.  Here is a list of my favorites, in no particular order, and just off the top of my head.  Since no one will probably read this, I won't be hurting anyone's feelings. 

Julia Quinn
Alissa Johnson
Eloisa James
Grace Burrowes (I've emailed Grace back and forth a time or two and she is the best) 
Kresley Cole (best paranormal romance series ever)
Lora Leigh (this was my first foray into erotica romance, I even had to Wikipedia some stuff)
Shannon McKenna (her McCloud brothers series is great)
Madeline Hunter
Charlaine Harris
Diana Gabaldon
Lynsay Sands (I don't really like her paranormal, but I love her highlander series)

So, that's what I've been doing.  When I find an author I really like, often through free Kindle books, I will work really hard to get everything that author has written.  It's hard because the other thing I'm doing these days is saving money and paying off credit card debt.  (If you sit near me at work or know me at all, this is one of the things I talk about obsessively)   I don't have extra money to buy books. (http://www.daveramsey.com/)  So I get books a couple of different ways. 

http://www.paperbackswap.com/ and http://www.bookmooch.com/ are two websites where you list books you are willing to part with.  If someone wants your book, you mail it to them.  You pay the postage.  They get the book, you get a credit.  If you see a book you want, you request it and that book owner pays the postage to send it to you.  It is an awesome way to share books with others and get books you want for your collection. 

There's also a used bookstore in Tontitown AR called Once Upon A Time Books.  You go to their website at http://www.onceuponatimebooks.com/ and search their database.  If there is a book you want, you can request it and ask to "hold at location".  I haven't paid more than $1 for any of the books I have found there.  The owners are so nice and led me and the kids to a kids book sale recently.  All of those books were on sale for .75.  They have sales for area teachers all the time, too.  It's such a great place. 

Other than that I always look at Goodwill and the Samaritan Shop in the area.  Rogers also has the Friendly Bookstore which is a used bookstore whose sales raise money for the Rogers Public Library. 

Then, of course, there is the public library.  I'm very lucky in this area because my Springdale library card gains me access to books in every library in Washington County, except Fayetteville.  But as a Washington County resident, I can have a Fayetteville library card, too.  AND as a Springdale resident, Rogers library will let me have a free reciprocal card.  Since I work in Rogers, that is super handy.  Between all of those local libraries, I have an amazing selection of books. 

The Kindle is amazing, too.  They offer so many free books.  That's how I discovered Grace Burrowes (http://www.graceburrowes.com/) and she is now one of my absolute favorites.  I hope she's making millions of dollars with her writing because she is amazing. 

Do not scoff at these writers.  Do not say, "Anyone can write a romance novel."  If you believe that, I would like for you to please write one.  These women are so smart and kind and friendly and dedicated.  They are also very supportive of each other, which surprised me at first.  I mean, shouldn't they all be competing against each other?  Shouldn't this be a cutthroat business with so many writers trying to get their work published?  Maybe it should be, and maybe deep down they all hate each other.  But as an outsider looking in and seeing these women supporting each other on their Facebook pages and Twitter accounts and publisher's blogs and other author websites, they are a tight-knit community who wish each other well and ask their fans to support their fellow authors.  It's really neat. 

Maybe next time I blog, I'll think of something I'm really interested in.  Ha!