Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Lucky Summer!

I've had a really good run of luck this summer. I've won several prizes from the blogs of fellow writers. It's such a thrill to come home & find out I've won a prize, and then even more exciting when the prize arrives at my house. Definitely a great way to brighten up a busy June, July & August! I thought I'd share pics of my winnings - not to drive you crazy with envy - but to point you in the direction of some very generous and fabulous bloggers. Check out their links - these are some mighty fine people!


From Shannon Whitney Messenger over at Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe, I received a signed ARC of Archvillain by Barry Lyga & some assorted Barry Lyga swag. AWESOME! My kids at school are going to love this book! If I let them get their hands on it that is... :)

Next from Courtney over at Southern Princess sent me a book from the Book Depository - just because she was happy Elena Johnson got herself a book deal! What a sweetie! I chose The Ruins of Gorlon - the first in the Ranger's Apprentice series. This one will be a great read aloud for my classroom.

Then Lindsay (aka Isabella) at Adventures in Writing had a 100 followers contest. I won that too! The lovely Lindsay sent me a copy of Hex Hall, a great notebook and chocolate!! And, yes, the chocolate package is completely full in the photo, why do you ask?? :)

And that wasn't all! Martina & Marissa at Adventures in Children's Publishing had a terrific contest to find some Underappreciated YA novels. I was one of the winners there as well! They wrapped all the goodies in the cutest pink polka-dot gift bags. I won a copy of Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater! The ladies were kind enough to include blody lotion, balt salts and chocolate. The chocolate must have disappeared somehow - I can't seem to find it for the photo. Hmmm. That's odd. :)

The wonderful TK Richardson over at My Writing Masquerade had a blog party celebrating the release of her novel Return the Heart. I won a prize package filled with goodies: a bright yellow mini tote bag, Lindor truffles, breakfast coffee, a cupcake scented candle, a journal from World Market and a Root Beer scented pencil!

Then I won a copy of Carolyn Brown's I Love This Bar over at Mason Canyon's Thoughts in Progress. If you haven't visited Mason's site, you really need to hurry over asap. Mason has tons and tons of terrific give-aways.

Then Renae Mercado at The Siren's Song had her first ever contest. The prizes were an ARC of Immortal Beloved, Pretty Little Liars and The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner. I won that one too!!!

Elana Johnson had a contest to celebrate the fantabulous WriteOnCon. I won The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk - one of the presenters at the Conference!! Woohoo! :) Another great book for me and my students!

On the same day, Lisa Jackson's Without Mercy arrived in my mailbox. I won this one at Donna's Book Pub - she had an interview with Lisa & I was lucky enough to win the book! Awesome :)

That's Part 1. Yes there are more, but I won't drag this post on any longer. :) Remember to check out these fabulous bloggers - you won't regret it!

How's your luck been lately??

141 comments:

Jennifer Shirk said...

WOW! It's like Christmas in August! LOL!
Congrats on all those great reads!

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks Jen - it really is! And it'll probably take until then to read them! :)

DL Hammons said...

Dang...that's a lot of booty!!! You go girl!! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks DL - isn't it awesome? :)

Mason Canyon said...

First, thanks for mention and congratulations on your wins. I'm excited for you just seeing the photos. It's always fun to get a package in the mail filled with wonderful books and related items. Happy reading.

Mason
Thoughts in Progress

Jemi Fraser said...

Mason - it sure is!!

You're such a sweetie for hosting all the give-aways you do - it's so exciting!

Mari said...

Wow, you won *loads* of contests! I won two and was already giddy, lol.

I hope you'll have a great time with your gifts, and if you're not tired of winning, there's another possibility at Randomities, where I'm hosting a b-day giveaway. ;)

Here's the link: http://bit.ly/bday_giveaway

Have fun dear!

storyqueen said...

Are you lucky or what??? Wow!

I didn't know you were a teacher...me too!

Shelley

Mary@GigglesandGuns said...

Cheez, I'm impressed with your winnings but the fact that you read with your class is what blows me away. My 4th gr. teacher did that and opened me up to books I might not have read.
So are you leaving writing to read full time or what? lol Like that will ever hapen.

Theresa Milstein said...

All I can say is, WOW. Congratulations to you! I'm sure your chocolate box is full - I won't ask.

I've won some sweet stuff in the past several months. An American Express GC, a Borders GC, an apron, several books, and a skeleton pendant.

Julie said...

Okay, it's clear you are a winner (not that I am surprised), but that's more than I've ever won in my entire life! I am green with envy. Congrats! :)

Summer Ross said...

Congrats those are wonderful gifts!!

Sage Ravenwood said...

I stopped entering book giveaways for awhile, my TBR pile fills a whole towering bookcase. Not to mention the overflow 4ft. pile besides my desk. In the past my luck has gone pretty well. Sounds like you had a fantastic run of luck this summer. Congrats and happy reading. (Hugs)Indigo

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

You were lucky, I too won a prize a book by Patricia Stoltey called The Desert Hedge Murders.
Will certainly check out blogs in the future.

Yvonne.

Laura S. said...

Wow! Jemi, you should really play the lottery. You seem to be on a lucky streak! Congrats on your winnings and enjoy!!!

Lisa_Gibson said...

Wow, you are a lucky little diva! I'm envious. Although, I've won some pretty terrific stuff too. I need to have my own giveaway soon and share some of my good fortune. Hope you're doing well. :)
Lisa ~ YA Literature Lover

Lola Sharp said...

Damn girl! You totes should play the lottery! You are on a lucky streak indeed! And well deserved. It's all that good karma. :)

Chocolate and books. Heaven. :)

Love,
Lola

Karen Strong said...

You got a lot of loot there Jemi! You've been pretty lucky. I need to you to lend me some of your lucky charms for the Fall. Ha.

Shelley Sly said...

Congrats! Those are some incredible books -- many of which are on my To Read list! Go you!

VR Barkowski said...

Way to roll, Jemi. Congratulations! No worries about you running out of great books to read - or chocolate. :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Mari - thanks! It's been quite the roll! :)

I've had a busy week and haven't caught up yet - I'll pop on over :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Shelley - thanks!

Teaching is the best job ever... well unless I could write full-time :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Mary - exactly! Not going to happen :)

I've always read aloud with my classes - the kids love that time! You can introduce them to so many books they wouldn't try otherwise!

Jemi Fraser said...

Theresa - thanks!

You've been lucky too - those are some fabulous prizes!!

And that chocolate just mysteriously disappears - strangest thing :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Julie - I know! I usually don't win anything! Ever!

Becoming a blogger has definitely made me a luckier person - who would have though! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks Summer - I'm enjoying them all! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Karen - it has been amazing :)

And yes, entering usually increases your odds - who knew?? :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks Indigo!

My TBR pile is ridiculous! There are so many wonderful books to read and just not enough time! Maybe it's time to give up sleep :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Yvonne - I saw that you won that one from Patricia! I'm looking forward to reading that one as well :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Laura - thanks!

The joke around here is that if I'm in on the lottery ticket we might as well throw the ticket away - there's no chance of winning if I'm part of it :) Apparently that not-lucky streak doesn't apply to books!

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks Lisa - It's been amazing! Like nothing I've ever experienced before :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Lola - a little piece of heaven indeed!! :)

I actually have zero lucky with lotteries! It's become a standing joke how unlucky I am. So this is really odd :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Karen - lol :) I'm always willing to share the luck! Strange thing is I usually don't have any!!

Jemi Fraser said...

Shelley - I know! Isn't it amazing! So many great books - I've read a few so far, but time is something I don't have excess of :)

Jemi Fraser said...

VR - thanks :)

And as long as we have books and chocolate, life is very, very good! :)

Southpaw said...

Woot that's a lot of loot!

Jemi Fraser said...

Holly - I know! Isn't it great! I wonder how long it'll take me to read it all... :)

Unknown said...

Look at you with your good luck (um, I'm sending your book out tomorrow!!). Have you bought a lottery ticket yet?

Jemi Fraser said...

Mary - It's crazy isn't it? I never usually win anything! This has been wonderful! :)

And I can't wait for the Paretsky book!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Wow, you won all that? I'm stunned!

Jemi Fraser said...

Alex - me too! I NEVER win things! People don't really want me in their lottery pools. This has been an amazing summer :)

Anonymous said...

You must have a lucky gene in your body somewhere. I never won a book in any contest I've been in. That's okay. I'll buy books and help authors out. Maybe do a review on my blog too.

Stephen Tremp

Terry Stonecrop said...

Wow! Congratulations. You must run out and buy a lottery ticket somewhere!

Helen Ginger said...

Good gracious, you are covered in prizes and books. Yay!

JournoMich said...

That's a lot of winning! I won something at Mason's blog, too...And join my Happy Birthday Blogfest for a chance to win over at SouthernCityMysteries!

Michele
Emily Dickinson biographer on SouthernCityMysteries

Jemi Fraser said...

Stephen - you're right - I'm normally not a lucky person at all! So it's been a great summer :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Terry - you'd think that would be a good idea, but my luck NEVER transfers to the lottery department!

Jemi Fraser said...

Helen - it's lovely, isn't it? :) I've been having fun!

Jemi Fraser said...

Michele - thanks! Mason has a TON of great contests, doesn't she :)

Roland D. Yeomans said...

You haven't had some luck. You've had an avalanche of luck. And you only posted some of it. I'm impressed. Roland

Anonymous said...

Boy did you get a haul! You HAVE to let me know how that Jackson novel is. Seriously. Although I still have Absolute Fear sitting on a shelf UNREAD because she's the only author I've read since Mary Higgins Clark that has freaked me out such that I can't sleep while the bad guy is out there lurking! Congratulations on your wins!

Jemi Fraser said...

Roland - that's it! An avalanche indeed! I've never had a lucky streak before in my life so it's been lots of fun! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Kimberly - Thanks :) It's been FUN!

I'm a little afraid of the book too! She's a great writer, but I think I'll need to read it in the mornings :) I love Mary HC's stuff too!

NENSA MOON said...

Woww.. congrats, Jemi!! You're so lucky!! Got so many wonderful books!!
Hope you could enjoyd them..

nensa

Alix said...

Wow! You're on a winning streak, hope you've bought a lottery ticket!

Enjoy shiver I loved it.

Jemi Fraser said...

Nensa - Thanks so much!

I've read a few - but it'll take me a while to finish them all!

Jemi Fraser said...

Alexa - I finished Shiver - it really was good! I didn't know it was a werewolf book until I started reading - it was a surprise and a good one :)

Elliot Grace said...

...my luck this summer? Up and down like a back country road littered in potholes, and culminating with the news of getting a new superior at my cursed dayjob...whose pin number is, believe it or not, 666.
I kid you not:) Hello Autumn!

Jemi Fraser said...

Elliot - YIKES! I'm going to try sending you lucky vibes through the online magical waves. Sounds like you need it more than I do!! Good luck with that superior! :)

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

You're a winner! But we knew that already. :) Congrats on all your good luck, Jemi!

Jemi Fraser said...

Elizabeth - awwww - thanks! What a sweet thing to say :) Thanks so much!

Arlee Bird said...

Well, I must say, that's quite an impressive take. Looks like all of your commenting has paid off.

I had a winning lottery ticket last week-- I won a dollar.

Lee
Tossing It Out

Jemi Fraser said...

Arlee - You're such a sweetie - I think maybe you're right! :)

If I won $1 in the lottery I'd probably faint - I never win in the lottery!

Erinn said...

DUDE! You kick ASS at contests! You got some pretty sweet stuff!

Jemi Fraser said...

Erinn - thanks!

Definitely some great stuff - just not enough time to read everything just yet! :) Did manage to make most of the chocolate disappear though!

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Holy loads of prizes, Batman! I soooo wanted to win that copy of Archvillian from Shannon - lucky ducky!! :-)

Kathi Oram Peterson said...

Wha-hoo! You have had a lucky summer! You've got the power. :)

Ann Best said...

Congratulations on all your winnings! That is so exciting.

Last week I won a second book from Mason Canyon. There are so many giving bloggers! This is such a great community and I'm pleased to be part of it.

Thanks for coming into my blog. I always enjoy "seeing" you and reading your comments.
Ann

Jemi Fraser said...

Shannon - I know! I still can't get over how many I've won - it's so not like me :)

I am completely a lucky duck!

Jemi Fraser said...

Kathi - thanks!

I couldn't spot the Stone Traveller though!

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks Ann!

You're right - this blogging community is amazing - kind, generous and so much fun!

It's a true pleasure visiting your site as well! :)

Stephanie Thornton said...

Wow- you have been having good luck!

I've won a couple of contests lately- I love getting books in the mail!

Olivia J. Herrell, writing as O.J. Barré said...

Woohoo! Way to go girl! Congrats on all your booty. And thanks for being such a great blogger commenter friend to us all.

~that rebel, Olivia

Anonymous said...

Wow Jemi, you're having one lucky summer! I've seen a few of your wins on my teens book shelf. I'm sure your students are going to love your choices!

Jemi Fraser said...

Stephanie - I sure have! It's been amazing.

It's so exciting to get books in the mail! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Olivia - thanks so much - it's been awesome!

And you're so welcome - it's fun to visit everyone :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Lynn - thanks!

I think the students are going to be thrilled with all the new loot! :)

Unknown said...

Wow! Looks like Christmas came early!!! Congrats on all the awesome stuff!!!! Hex Hall is one of the best books ever!!! I loved it!!!

I won an ARC copy from Amy Holder and a $25 amazon gift card (of course already used)!

Jemi Fraser said...

Jen - it sure did! Thank you :)

Hex Hall was great - a very fun read!

I'm glad to see you've had some luck too! It doesn't take long to spend those Amazon cards does it? :)

Carolina M. Valdez Schneider said...

Goodness, Jemi! Look at all your loot. Congratulations! What a fab, winning summer you've had!

Matthew MacNish said...

Dude! I love the Ranger's Apprentice series (I'm only on book two though) lucky you!

Jemi Fraser said...

Carol - thanks!

It has been a great summer in many ways - and this is one of them :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Matthew - I'd heard a lot about the series but hadn't read it. LOVED this book. I think that will be the first book I read aloud in class this year :)

Natalie said...

Holy smokes, you ARE lucky! I love the RANGER'S APPRENTICE books. I'm reading book 5 right now. They're super fun.

Jemi Fraser said...

Natalie - I know! I loved the first book - can't wait to pick up the next one! :)

Talli Roland said...

Dear Lord, that is one productive summer all right! Wow! Go Jemi - you deserve it!

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks so much Talli!

It's been an amazing summer :)

Lua said...

wow- you did have a lucky summer :) My summer was mostly packing, reading and complaining about the heat! Congratulations on all your wins Jemi.

Jemi Fraser said...

Lua - I know! It's been an amazing summer!

And I've done my fair share of complaining about the heat too! Thanks :)

Lisa Gail Green said...

Congrats!! Wow - that is a lot of luck! Maybe it will spread around.. :D

Jemi Fraser said...

Lisa - I hope so! I've been sending lucky vibes out through the airways so we'll see :)

RosieC said...

Geez, girl! How is it that you win everything? I'm excited that I've won three things all summer! Congratulations, and forgive my jealousy (especially of Shiver! Hmph!) ;)

Jemi Fraser said...

Rosie - I have NO idea! I'm most usually not a person who wins anything :)

Shiver was really enjoyable! I'm looking forward to see what she does in Linger!

Julie Musil said...

What a stack of prizes! Love it. I've won a few books this summer, too, which is awesome. Looks like we'll both be doing a lot of reading!

Jemi Fraser said...

Julie - isn't it great? We've both got our work cut out for us finishing all those books - but it's really great work!

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

I see chocolate!!! You lucky thing you!
Congrats on your your fab prizes. I love this blogging community!

Jemi Fraser said...

Lynda - you do! Sadly none of it remains at this point in time :)

You're right - this is such an amazing group of people! Love 'em :)

Cruella Collett said...

Wow - that IS a lucky summer! Congratulations!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

That's a good haul, Jemi! I actually managed to win three books this summer - and I never win anything!

Jemi Fraser said...

Cruella - I know! It's been an amazing summer. Thanks!

Jemi Fraser said...

Diane - In the 'real' world I never win anything - EVER! This has been bizarre. Wonderful, but bizarre :)

Congrats to you on your wins as well!

Stina said...

Wow, and I thought I won a lot of books through the blogs. You definitely out did me. :D

I won Shiver from Isabella. It's funny reading the British version with the spelling we're SUPPOSED to use in Canada. I enjoyed it so much, I bought Linger (which I'm reading now).

Jemi Fraser said...

Stina - I know! It's been quite the amazing summer! :)

I didn't realize they had one with the 'correct' spelling lol :) I really enjoyed Shiver as well - haven't got to Linger yet as this TBR pile is pretty large...

Elana Johnson said...

I am beyond stunned at your luck!! Congrats! Hope your transition into school goes well. :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Elana - Me too!! It's been wild! :)

Thanks - I'm excited, nervous and just slightly depressed that the new year is almost here! :)

Jessica Bell said...

Wow! You're on a roll! Maybe you should come and check out my contest! If your luck's still alive, you won't regret it! ;o)

Jemi Fraser said...

Jessica - I know! It's really been a wild summer! Sounds good :)

Eric W. Trant said...

Dadgum, girl. You need a spreadsheet to keep track of all your stuffages.

That and a personal assistant. I assume you have at least one assistant, because I don't know how you keep up with so many blogs!

- Eric

Jemi Fraser said...

Eric - lol :)

It will get harder next week when I'm back to school - I'm going to have to make a schedule of some kind in order to cope!

Thanks!

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

Hi Jemmi, if you go to my blog there is a little something for you.

Yvonne.

Jemi Fraser said...

Yvonne - you're such a sweetie! Thanks - I'll pop on over :)

Anonymous said...

Oh YAY! Winning is so much fun :)
I had a run of winning loads ... but lately haven't had time to enter.
Love the generosity of fellow bloggers / social media etc
xx

erica m. chapman said...

Awesome wins! Great books in there ;o) I've won a few times myself ;o) Writers/Pub community are so thoughtful and generous!!

Enjoy!

Jemi Fraser said...

Michelle - winning is fun!!

Bloggers rock - so generous! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Erica - there are some really amazing books! I haven't read them all yet though... :)

We're part of a hugely amazing community!

Aubrie said...

My goodness, you've been lucky! Congrats on all those super duper prizes!

Jemi Fraser said...

Aubrie - I know! It's been a really amazing run for me - especially since I rarely win anything! :)

Connie Arnold said...

That's a wonderful bunch of gifts you've won! I have won a free book several times on different blogs, and it really is fun!

Jemi Fraser said...

Connie - it certainly is! This blogging community never ceases to amaze me!

Thanks so much for dropping by :)

Sharon K. Mayhew said...

Congratulations! You won't have to buy any new books for at least two weeks!!!!

Jemi Fraser said...

Sharon - lol :)

It may be even longer than that - school's starting & I'm back to crazy-fun chaos! :)

Jackee said...

Congrats, Jemi! :o) And yes, you have one more prize coming toward you--that darn overweight notepad thing is finally making its way past customs. LOL!

Have a wonderful weekend, friend!

Anonymous said...

You're so lucky! Those are awesome goodies.

Jemi Fraser said...

Jackee - Yikes! It's ridiculous what gets held up at customs! I once had an order from a clothing company returned 4 times before they finally let it across - nuts!

Thanks again - and I hope you enjoy your weekend too!

Jemi Fraser said...

Medeia - They really are incredible goodies! I'm not usually a lucky person when it comes to winning things so this has been amazing!

Thanks :)

Beth Zimmerman said...

Congratulations, Jemi! You have been abundantly blessed! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Beth - thanks! You're completely right - and in so many ways in my life :)

Patti Lacy said...

Congrats! This is really a great blog, Jemi.
YOu have just the right mix of fun and announcements and news...and your personality!

Blessings, dear one.
Patti

Jemi Fraser said...

Thanks so much Patti! What a kind thing to say :) You made my day - Thank you!

Kimberly Franklin said...

Lucky, lucky you!! :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Kimberly - I know! It's been amazing - unbelievable in fact! :)

Private said...

Wow! You must be very lucky!

Jemi Fraser said...

Alexandra - that's the thing - I'm usually NOT lucky at winning things! But books are obviously different :)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Julie Dao said...

Look at that haul!! I am jealous! You are one lucky lady. I think it's time to buy a lottery ticket ;)

cleemckenzie said...

You are the queen of SWAG! Congratulations. I agree with Julie. Run do not walk to your nearest store and buy that ticket!

Jemi Fraser said...

Julie - I know!! It's been amazing - sadly it hasn't translated into cash yet!

Jemi Fraser said...

Lee - It's been really amazing! I WISH it could translate into those lottery tickets - but that's much more like a donation than a chance at winning :)

Patricia Stoltey said...

Winning stuff is excellent! Congratulations, and thanks for the links!

Patricia

Jemi Fraser said...

Pat - it sure is - especially when it doesn't happen all that often! Enjoy the links :)

Glynis Peters said...

Wow Jemi, your bookshelves will be groaning. Well done :)

Jemi Fraser said...

Glynis - thanks!! :)

My bookshelves are definitely jam-packed!