Twilight - My copy is still up for grabs!

I guess everyone has already read "Twilight." Or maybe my review convinced you not to waste your time. At any rate if anyone wants my copy the giveaway is still open - until Friday July 10. Just leave a comment telling me you'd like to read it. I'm not inundated with requests so you have a really good chance of winning.

On another note those who read, write, review or publish romance may find this of interest. 650 members of RWA have formed a group to create more awareness about digital publishing. A new blog has been set up. Please stop by to find out more.

Romance Writers for Change

My Writing Bookshelf - Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook by Donald Maass.

Last week I joined a new group and we're working our way through "Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook" by Donald Maass. I'm finding it very helpful so I thought I'd talk about the workbook today.

Donald Maass is the president and founder of the Donald Maass Literary Agency. He teaches writing workshops and he's written novels under pseudonyms. Besides the workbook he's written "The Career Novelist" and "Writing the Breakout Novel."

The blurbs all say the workbook builds on the success of it predecessor. I don't have a copy of "Writing the Breakout Novel." But I was told that the workbook covers the same topics and has the advantage of the exercises at the end of each chapter. I didn't feel like I was missing anything by not reading the book first.

The workbook is divided into three sections.
Part 1: Character Development
Part 2: Plot Development
Part 3: General Story Techniques

Each section is further divided into chapters with discussions, excerpts from published works and practical exercises.

I've only done the first three chapters and already I've made major improvements in my characters. This is a definite keeper.
Publisher: Writers Digest Books (June 14, 2004)
ISBN: 158297263X
Paperback: 240 Pages
Price: $19.99

Giveaway and Review: Twilight - Why I Don't Feel the Love

Jo, you are the winner of last Friday's giveaway for "The Notebook." If you email me your address I'll send it out asap. I hope you enjoy the book as much as the movie.

This week my copy of "Twilight" is up for grabs. Leave a comment and next Friday (July 10) I'll pick a "lucky" winner. Read my review below and see why I'm just not feeling the love.

What young girl doesn't love gorgeous, sexy vampires? Some of us older girls do too, so I really anticipated watching the screen adaptation of Twilight. Unfortunately for me it didn't live up to the hype. Its demographic was teenage girls and I admit I'm long past that stage. But because I usually find the book better than the movie I decided to read Stephenie Meyer's best selling debut novel, "Twilight." I guess I'm in the minority on this one. It just didn't do it for me.

Bella's mom goes on the road with her new husband, a minor league ballplayer. So Bella moves from Arizona to Washington State to live with her biological father. She's popular at her new school but the guy she's interested in, the gorgeous Edward Cullen, remains distant. There's a reason - he's a vampire. Bella finds out and isn't afraid of him, so they fall in love. But when rogue vampires target Bella it's up to Edward to keep her alive.

I enjoyed "Vampire Academy" and "Marked," both of which are marketed for young adults, so why did "Twilight" miss the mark? First off, the plot is stereotypical. Forbidden love - human girl falls for vampire - nothing new there. The action seemed like it was thrown in to relieve the repetition of the first half of the book. The characters are flat as pancakes. Bella is a klutz and Edward is hot. They fall for each other immediately, no developing romance to speak of. And what is this hundreds year old vampire doing in high school? The first person narrative does sound like the voice of a shy young girl, I assume that was intentional, but reading it was painful. Twilight has certainly struck a chord with a large segment of the reading population, but I'll be giving the rest of this series a pass.

Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers; Standard edition (October 5, 2005)
ISBN: 978-0316160179
Hardcover: 544 Pages
Price: $19.99

Gail Pruszkowski reviews for "Romantic Times BOOKreviews" magazine and her work has been published in the "Cup of Comfort" Anthologies.

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The I Believe Bunny by Tish Rabe

"The I Believe Bunny" written by Tish Rabe and illustrated by Frank Endersby is part of a new series for young children. Boys and girls can identify with the adorable bunny who will teach them how to put their faith into action. In this book Bunny teaches about the power of prayer.

Bunny comes across a mouse struggling to stay afloat in the river. The mouse calls out to him for help because she can't swim. Bunny wants to help but he's scared because the river is very deep. He uses a tree branch to reach out to the mouse but he starts to slip into the water. Bunny puts aside his fear and prays to God for help. His friends appear, together they rescue the mouse and Bunny knows that God answered his prayers.

This hardcover book is just beautifully done! The story is easily understood and will appeal to youngsters. The watercolor illustrations are enchanting and they complement the writing. Children will be entertained while learning a lesson about faith. I thought it was well done but I decided to get some expert opinions. I read it to my grandsons, who are four and two years of age. They gave it two thumbs up. Even better, they asked for a second reading.

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (July 14, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-13: 978-1400314768
Price: $9.99