At long last a LiveJournal by Jeri Smith-Ready

Just got this message from the foster coordinator for Tails of Hope, the animal rescue organization we volunteer with:

We have a number of dogs in rescue right now and will NOT be taking in any more until some of these are moved. Please talk to people that are considering adopting, friends, neighbors and relatives. Please help these kids, because until they are in homes, we cannot save any others:

Ryan...nothing wrong with him except he needs to play... a family dog with kids is perfect – he’s good family dog and needs training.

( More, including pictures. Can you handle the cute? Can you? )

So if you live in Maryland, DC, south central PA, Delaware, northern VA, or West Virginia, and are looking to adopt or foster a dog, please consider one of these pups. For more information on the application process, visit Tails of Hope's adoption page.

Tails of Hope currently has 26 cats and 53 dogs for adoption. They are also always looking for new foster homes, other types of volunteers, animal sponsors (like Ciara in Wicked Game), and donations of all kinds.

And if you apply, tell 'em Jeri sent you!

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Now playing: Led Zeppelin - Black Dog
via FoxyTunes

Need some nummies? Tails of Hope, the animal rescue organization I volunteer with, is having a giant Bake Sale tomorrow at the Guilford Mansion in Frederick, MD, from 11am to 3pm. One of the people making goodies for the sale is a professional chef, so this ain't your average Bake Sale with Duncan Hines cupcakes (although those will probably be available, too).

If you're in the area, please stop by. I won't be there due to this annoying cold (what with the swine flu worries, I might scare people by sneezing and coughing), but Tails of Hope could really use your help. They had $9,000 in vet bills last month for the shelter animals in their care. Yeesh!

Here's a map to help you find it, as well as more information on this and other Tails of Hope events.

If you're not in the area, you can still help my favorite animal folks by helping them win a grant. It's super easy to do. I'll let Linda Junkins, our president, explain it:

The Animal Rescue Site is having another Shelter Challenge, and Tails of Hope has the potential to win up to a $20,000 grant! You can help by voting for Tails of Hope--today and every day--and by forwarding this to everyone you know.

To vote for us, simply click on the above icon, and then search for "Tails of Hope" in Maryland. You can vote every day until July 26, 2009. So program your PDA, set your alarm clock, tie a string around your finger--whatever it takes--but please don't forget to cast your daily vote!

Thanks for all you do to help our animals in need.

Since I don't have much time to volunteer these days due to book deadlines, this is one of the few ways I can help, by spreading the word. So please in turn help me by reposting the link and the voting instructions on your blog, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, or whatever.

Thanks and have a great weekend! If you go to the bake sale, tell them Jeri sent you. :-)

This year's Multiple Sclerosis Walk in Frederick, MD, was even better than last year's, in every way. First, thanks a million to everyone who donated. Fourteen people gave a total of $450 on my behalf, bringing our team total to $715, which my friend said was near the top of the fundraising list at today's walk!

The weather was gorgeous despite the high winds. The route took us through the park in Frederick and part of the prettiest sections in town. Plus, they fed us very well--bagels, coffee, italian ice, ice cream, pizza, pasta, and salad. Last year the crowds at the Towson walk were so huge we never got to eat. Sadness.

After the Walk, we meandered through downtown Frederick and did some shopping. Yes, I shopped. I even bought something for myself that wasn't food or an office supply (a cool little bag/purse just big enough for Fang, my new netbook--technically useful/tax-deductible but also very stylish).

Last but not least, I drew a name from all my donors to win a Bad to the Bone ARC, and the winner is...PiaVeleno!

Thanks again to everyone for your support. Tonight I shall sleep the sleep of happy exhaustion.

Dropping in real quick to let you know I'm guest blogging at The Book Girl today and throughout the weekend. We're talking about "quirky" characters in books, movies, and TV.

One lucky commenter will win his or her choice of a signed copy of Wicked Game or a signed Advance Review Copy of Bad to the Bone.

Gotta go get a good night's sleep now for tomorrow's MS Walk. Thanks to your amazing generosity, I'm now up to $375, a 50% increase over last year's donations! You rock! If you'd like to donate and be entered into a drawing for a Bad to the Bone ARC, you have through tomorrow to do so, and then I'll draw a name. The bigger the donation, the more chances you get.

I'll try to give a report on the walk tomorrow night, assuming I can still breathe.

---------------- Now playing: Anders Parker - Oh Monkeywrench
via FoxyTunes

First, the important stuff. Remember a couple weeks ago when I mentioned I was participating in the Multiple Sclerosis Walk this Saturday, April 4? And I offered to do a drawing from the folks who donated?

This year, I've raised $50, and so far my only donors are 1) my mom, and 2) one of my original Street Team members, both of whom already have an ARC.

Which is great news for you! If you go to my team page and give a small donation, say five dollars, you have a pretty good shot at winning. Plus you'll be helping to fight a devastating disease. My friend who captains the team lost his mom to MS, so it would mean a lot to him if we could get some extra help. Last year I raised $250 from the ARC contest for Wicked Game, and he was blown away by the generosity of strangers (well, strangers to him, and to me as well, in many cases).

Second I have a few more Wicked Game widgets for the Spread-the-Word contest, in which you can win a bookstore gift card and a Bad to the Bone ARC. These are nice and skinny, so they'll fit into a Blogger sidebar. Again, just click on the "Share" button and follow the easy-peasy instructions.

( Behold! Les widgets! )

More widgets to come, including for Bad to the Bone!

And don't forget the big iPod Shuffle/Visa Gift Card giveaway over at Bitten by Books. Go comment and be a winnah!

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Now playing: The Strokes - Hard to Explain
via FoxyTunes

Congrats to the winners of last week's giveaways. Sarah Kuhn from Twitter gave me the best name for my laptop. So introducing...
 

Grr, Fang says. Grr.

Fang is a Hewlett Packard Mini notebook, I guess what some people would call a "netbook." I love him. He's a tiny computer, but unlike most netbooks, the keyboard is 92% full-size, so I don't feel like Goliath typing on the thing. I still plan to use Tardy (my old laptop) for most writing, at least while at home.

The winner of the suggest-a-charity contest (in which I choose a charity to receive 10% of author royalties from Bad to the Bone) is Cory, who came up with what had to be the perfect animal rescue organization for this book: Rescue Ink, a group of tough guys in New York City who stop animal abuse by any means necessary. No, just kidding, their methods are totally legal.

Here's a New York Times article about them, and here are a few of their programs, including puppy mill awareness programs, outreach to elderly and children, animal housing construction, and dog-fighting prevention. You can see a ton of pictures on their MySpace page.

I mean, who would dare mess with these guys? Most people who abuse animals and children are freaking cowards, or they'd be picking on people who could fight back.

I had many wonderful suggestions for charities, which I'll list below, but Rescue Ink seemed particularly perfect for Bad to the Bone, for several reasons:

• Dexter the Vampire Dog might once have been a victim of abuse, possibly being used as bait for a pit-bull ring.
• Some of these guys remind me of Ciara's landlord Dean.
• Tattoos are a recurring motif in the book. One of them even provides a clue as to the bad guy's motive.
• The Rescue Ink guys combine compassion with major badassedness, kinda like most of my vampires.

It broke my heart not to pick some of the other suggestions, but I'll list them here to give them a wee bit of exposure:

• RSPCA Victoria, who is helping the thousands of homeless animals displaced and injured by the Australian bush fires.
• Canine Companions for Independence, an organization that raises animals to assist people with disabilities.
• Petfinder.com, a fantastic online resource helping adopters find new furry friends to share their lives. They also have a foundation that right now is helping animals affected by the floods in the Midwest.
• Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary in my favorite state to visit, New Mexico. They provide a home for wolves and wolf-dogs and also provide much-need public outreach and eduction.
• Rhode Island Veterinary Medical Association Companion Animal Foundation - They provide assistance to low-income families so they can keep their pets healthy, and keep them with them, period. Very important in these times of economic hardship.
• Hill County Paw Pals is trying to build a shelter in a rural part of Texas.
• Support Our Shelters (S.O.S.) - helps support ferret shelters in need around the world.
• United Animal Nations Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS) - UAN shelters and cares for animals displaced by natural disasters and other crises, such as criminal seizures and hoarding cases, in the United States and Canada.

OK, I'm getting sniffly just looking at this list. If you have a few extra dollars, please consider giving one of them a hand.

Thanks again to everyone who suggested laptop names and charities, especially Cory and Sarah! Stay tuned for biggest giveaway yet. Next time, it won't be just an ARC. Muahahaha!

(In the meantime, you can still enter the ARC giveaway contest at Jaci Burton's blog.)

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Now playing: The Who - Pictures of Lily
via FoxyTunes

Congrats to Fantasy Dreamer, who won last week's drawing for an ARC of Bad to the Bone!

For this week's Bad to the Bone ARC giveaway, I'm copying from my 2008 self and giving away two (2) in an effort to make the world a little less sucky.

1. MS Walk Donations
I’m participating in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society 5K Walk on April 4. If you donate to my team, I’ll put you in a drawing to win an ARC. It’ll be like a raffle: donate $5 and get 5 chances; donate $25 and get 25 chances (not to mention a warm feeling). Please send whatever you can to help overcome this devastating disease.

Deadline for entry: April 4

( Click for another way to save the world 'n' get stuff. )

Don't faint at having three blog posts from me in one day, but I thought I should post this bit since it wasn't that long ago that I was passing on the news of Realms of Fantasy magazine's closing. (Insert obvious Mark Twain quote about reports of their demise blah blah blah.)

It's not. 

Nice to hear good news these days.

Remind me to tell you about their review of Wicked Game someday.  It was part of a really interesting essay by Paul Witcover on third-wave feminism. 

No words can describe the way this day makes me feel, so as usual, I turn to music, reposting the playlist from another day:



Happy America, folks.

Sorry I've been slack on blogging lately. Actually, not so much slack, just really busy writing and taking care of my invalid dog (mostly the latter--she's a very demanding patient).

- A full fifty percent (50%) of "Storm Reaper" is now available on my publisher's website. The link there goes to the main page where you can access chapters 1-4 at will.

- You have one more day to enter two giveaways:

Lori Devoti's 30 Days of Vampires ends tomorrow, and so does the chance to win a signed ARC of Bad to the Bone (or a signed copy of Wicked Game, if you prefer).

Patrick Rothfuss's phenomenal fundraiser for Heifer International will end tomorrow. He's already met his new goal of $40,000 raised by fans and friends, which he will match, because he is a dude of the highest order.

I bought a goat (not for me, for a family somewhere in Foreign Lands) to celebrate a few things I'm grateful for this Christmas:

1. My husband still has a job. Two, in fact! And no, you can't have one. We need them both, because of #2.

2. Meadow had surgery the week before Thanksgiving to fix four ruptured discs in her back. She is recovering nicely and is no longer in massive amounts of pain and fear. It was really bad there for awhile. Her regular vet was starting to suggest that she be put out of her misery, and he was pessimistic about how well she would handle the operation and recovery. Mainly because, unlike her neurologist, he didn't have a clue what he was talking about. Pbbbttt! We'll be looking for a new vet pronto. More on that later, because I think it's important for all dog owners to be aware of the symptoms of ruptured discs and what to do in that event.

3. Um, can't tell you about #3 yet, so for now we'll put in a placeholder: the Ravens are having a spectacular season, despite the fact that they have a first-time head coach and a rookie quarterback. For the first time since, uh, ever, they have an offense that doesn't embarrass their terrific defense.

Where was I? Oh, a goat. So the least you can do (for the chance to win an ARC of The Reawakened and prizes much cooler, like the manuscript for Kevin J. Anderson's Batman/Superman: Enemies and Allies, the book where Batman and Superman apparently meet for the first time, and which won't be out until May) is pony up twenty bucks for some chicks. Or name your own donation amount in the white box.

Patrick's already met his 40K goal, but I bet if we get tons of people donating today, he'll raise it to $50,000. That's not a dare, just a hunch.

- Four more days to enter the giant Spirit Animal/Aspect of Crow trilogy giveaway. Details on the click-through.

Anyway, I'm pretty much giving myself permission these days to do nothing but take care of my dog and work on books in various stages of existence. So blogging has to fall by the wayside.

But as always, I'm active on Twitter. If I go off Twitter for more than 48 hours, just assume I'm either dead or held captive by a roving band of clown monkeys. If it's the latter, please pray for the former.

A couple of quick notes before I dive into my main project for the day, catching up on all my e-mail, MySpace, Facebook, etc. correspondences before they saturate my alveoli. (That's not as dirty as it sounds.)

This Saturday I'll be signing all my books (including the new one, The Reawakened) at the Waldenbooks in Cumberland, MD, along with several other local fantasy/science fiction/horror authors. If you're in the area, please come out and say hi. Do your part to keep the economy from imploding.

Fellow fantasy author Patrick Rothfuss is raising money for a wonderful charity, Heifer International, an organization that really makes a difference in the lives of ordinary people by providing them with livestock with which they can continue to earn a living. (Obviously, it's animals like goats and chickens and sheep, which can produce without being slaughtered.) He's matching every donated dollar, and the thermometer thingy on his donation page is getting redder and redder.

Patrick has a similar philosophy toward charitable giving as I do:

There are a lot of worthwhile charities out there. Important causes. Things I feel strongly about. But Heifer is my favorite. Here's why.

Let's say by some miracle I raised ten thousand dollars to help fight cancer, or Parkinson's, or Alzheimer's. While it would help the cause, it would just be a tiny drop in the bucket. Enough to help fund some lab's research for a couple weeks.

But we don't need to research a cure for hunger or poverty. We know how that works. Heifer doesn't just hand out bags of rice, Heifer gives a family a goat and teaches them how to take care of it. Then that family has a continual source of milk for their children. They can sell the extra milk to make money. When the goat has babies, they give those babies to other members of their community, sharing the gift.

Heifer helps people become self-reliant.

As part of his fundraiser, he's giving away fabulous prizes, which will eventually include an autographed Advance Reading Copy of The Reawakened. (I've been saving a couple just for this purpose.) Stay tuned to find out more. The giveaways run through December 11, I believe.

Questions? Click here to read all of Patrick's Heifer International-related posts. Then go forth and give goats.

I took a half hour out of my busy revision schedule to make a cross-generational, cross-genre playlist to psych you up to vote. I figured it was the least I could do, seeing as I kinda fell off the voter registration nagging routine.

Below the playlist are some more words that are important.







Go to Vote411.org to find out all the information you need about where and when to vote and what you need to bring to the polls.

And please, even if you think your presidential candidate of choice is sure to win or lose, VOTE ANYWAY. Be part of the process. Do your sacred duty as an American.

Besides, the people running for Senator, Governor, House of Representatives, School Board, Sheriff, and Dogcatcher all need your vote. Not to mention the bajillion ballot questions up for consideration.

And if you think you might have to stand in a long line, consider bringing a brand-new, very thick, truly awesome book, perhaps a book that prompted one reviewer to say, "Never have I read a trilogy that exemplifies the spirit of freedom in so meaningful and poignant a way!"

If you don't believe me about voting, listen to these people, like you did last time.






Happy Election Day.

I pledge to do my civic duty this election season, not by proselytizing on who you should vote for (Seriously, is anyone still undecided at this point? What are you waiting for, a neon sign from God?).

No, I'll do my duty by being a big fat noodge every day until the last state passes its voter registration deadline. I'll list the states every day (except today, because it's still open everywhere) whose registration is still open and highlighting those whose deadline comes the following day. 

This will require meticulous record-keeping on my part, not to mention creativity to come up with new ways to bug the pants off you about registering to vote.  I hope you appreciate my sacrifice, and show that appreciation by purchasing my upcoming novel The Reawakened, which is chock full of hot political issues like torture, military occupations, and pyrokinetics (setting stuff on fire with one's mind is the big sleeper wedge issue of '08--just wait and see).

Don't worry--it won't be painful. It'll be video-riffic, starting with today's entry, "Five Friends (Uncensored)." Enjoy!

As you probably know, this historic day, when Barack Obama will accept the nomination of the Democratic Party for the President of the United States, also marks the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. I highly recommend taking the time to watch it today, whether you've seen it before (like me, not since high school) or not.



And whatever your party affiliation, take a moment tonight to realize how far we've come as a nation. Be proud.

Then get up tomorrow and make the dream a reality. Because though our nation stands on the "warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice," there are still those who would slam the door.

Let freedom ring.

In case you weren't aware, Ann Aguirre is awesome (wow, that's 4 'A' words in one sentence--let's go for 'B's in the next sentence.  No let's not.).

Not only is she a fabulous writer, she does what she can to help others.  Right now she's holding a drawing for $150 worth of free books. 

How do you enter?  Simple:

1) Donate money to an organization helping the Cyclone Nargis victims in Burma/Myanmar.
2) Tell Ann about your donation.

More details on her blog.  If you have your own blog, please spread the word.

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Now playing: Little Milton - I Wouldn't Take Nothing For Your Love (live)
via FoxyTunes    read the word.

And you are...?

That's probably what you're thinking, since I haven't blogged (first I typed "blooged," which shows you how out of practice I am) in ten days. This morning I turned in the rewrite for The Reawakened (yes, you will cry buckets, but not until November) and found out I'll be getting the line edits back in ten days, before I've had time to forget what it's all about.

Line edits, basically, are when the editor gets a little more nitpicky than the first go-around (where he or she discusses major issues, such as character and plot and I dunno, maybe the fact that the manuscript is twenty-five thousand words too long, just as a fr'instance). The author makes changes as quickly as possible and sends back the manuscript so it can go to the copyeditor.

For both of my publishers, the line edits are done on paper, which means I write each change on the manuscript, and then the editor (or her lovely assistant) types in my changes. Some publishers are moving toward electronic edits, which I imagine involve Microsoft Word's comment and track changes functions (anyone with electronic edits, feel free to enlighten).

---

So, the latest updates:

( Click here for things more fun than edits )



I think that's it for now. As you can tell, I'm a bit fried. Tomorrow I'm thrilled to be doing an interview with Fast Forward TV. Wish me luck, and a complete lack of stuttering stupidity!

Congrats to Ruth Schaller, who just won a signed copy of Rachel Vincent’s Rogue! Everyone else, stop crying and go buy the book.

Coming up later this month we have Cynthia Eden, author of Hotter After Midnight, then in May there’ll be Jenna Black (Hungers of the Heart); in early June, Nancy Haddock (La Vida Vampire, which just came out today) and in late June, Stephanie Kuehnert (I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone).


ARCs FOR CHARITY

I still have a few Advance Reading Copies (ARCs) of Wicked Game, and it’s time I started using them for good instead of evil:

1. MS Walk Donations
I’m participating in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society 5K Walk on Sunday, April 13. If you donate to my team, I’ll put you in a drawing to win an ARC. It’ll be like a raffle: donate $5 and get 5 chances; donate $25 and get 25 chances (not to mention a warm feeling). Please send whatever you can to help overcome this devastating disease.

Deadline for entry: April 12

2. Royalty Donation
I donate ten percent of author royalties to a designated charity related to each of my books. For EYES OF CROW it’s Conservation International, and for VOICE OF CROW it’s the Wounded Warrior Project.

Send an e-mail to jeri@jerismithready.com (or just message me here on LJ) and suggest a music-related charity that should receive 10% of author royalties from Wicked Game. If I choose your suggestion, you’ll win an ARC! And again: warm feeling.

Deadline for entry: April 12

Note: I’m looking for a charity related to rock ’n’ roll that does some good in the world. Habitat for Humanity’s Musicians Village in New Orleans is a great example, but that project is almost complete (yay!).

Here’s an update on my Lucky Thirteen Giveaway ( Click for list of prizes and winners so far. )
I’m going into Deep Cave Mode between now and Friday, when The Reawakened is due. But on Saturday, April 5, I’ll be hosting the specialest guest of all.

Just one hint: the post won’t go up until after dark. He’s a daysleeper.