Tuesday Toolbox - Personalizing the Author & One Lovely Blog Award

Of course people read your books for the story on the page. But who you are as a person can affect whether readers will pick up one of your books or stop reading your books altogether. I've heard stories of authors who were rude, unkind, and even politically outspoken whose actions turned off readers who had previously loved their books. No author wants to build that kind of reputation.

You want to be an author who sounds so interesting and delightful in real life that readers just have to pick up her book because they're sure it will be as wonderful as the real person. (And then the book has to live up to the reader's expectations, but that's a blog post for another day!)

So, I'm going to illustrate this by pointing to the generous, wonderful and all-around awesome middle grade and YA author Sharon Ledwith who tagged me as a recipient of the One Lovely Blog Award. See, she's so wonderful you want to read her books just because she's great. No, seriously, you must, must, MUST head over and check out her amazing book The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis.

Now with my Lovely Blog Award comes the duty to reveal seven random facts about myself, and hopefully, one of these awesome facts will strike a chord with you and make you feel just a little more connected to me. Okay, here goes:

1. I save my dryer lint. I know--that's about as exciting as, well, lint. But I'm a good Boy Scout mom. Boy Scouts build great campfires. Dryer lint makes a great fire starter. So, there you go.

2. I write middle grade and children's chapter books under the name Sara Shafer. Who doesn't love to read about squirrels?

3. I love NASCAR, especially the team and competitor relationship drama. (Oh yes, NASCAR had plenty of relationship drama even before Danica and Stenhouse Jr. started dating!) I love the bad boys whose cocky mouths and breathtaking driving get them in tight spots, and I love talking smack with the people who don't agree with me. The only thing I don't like: drivers, crew members and fans getting hurt. Stay safe, ladies and gentlemen.

4. I currently write for three publishers: Contemporary small-town romance for Entangled Publishing, erotic romance for Decadent Publishing, and contemporary & paranormal (Wiccan Haus series) romance for Musa Publishing.

5. My favorite vacation spot is the beach. I can't get enough of the waves lapping against the shore.

6. Since beach trips are few and far between for me, long walks through the neighborhood (or, even better, through the woods) really help me clear my head, brainstorm story problems, and dream up new story ideas.

7. I'll be reading from my contemporary small-town romance Construction Beauty Queen at Lady Jane's Salon in Naperville, IL on Tuesday, April 2, 2013 at 7 P.M. Come meet me in real life, listen to a book sample, and let me know if you're sold on my books yet!