Monday 31 October 2011

And the String Bridge Book & Music Blog Tour Begins ...

I can't believe it's been a year since signing that contract with Lucky Press. Tomorrow is the release date for my debut novel and debut album which seconds as a soundtrack to String Bridge. THIS. IS. SO. EXCITING!

Before I go into any detail about what you can expect to see on my blog for the next twenty days, I'd like to say thank you with all my heart to all you wonderful authors, readers and bloggers who are taking part in this blog tour. THIS IS EPIC.

150 of you have signed up to help promote my book and/or album. 

OH. MY. GOD.

From tomorrow, aside from showcasing each day's blogs according to the schedule below my posts (I'm hoping this blog tour will also bring more readers and writers together, other than just promote my book!), I'm going to start titling my posts with lines from String Bridge, and also use those lines as prompts for my blog post each day (you're going to learn A LOT about me over the next 20 days, with photos to boot!). In addition, I'm going to run a little contest.

Has anyone ever guessed the amount of jellybeans in a jar at a fun fair? Well, think of it as something as random as that.

Here's the deal for the 10-Day contest (open internationally):
  • You read the line in the title and guess which page it appears in String Bridge. (people who have read the book can not compete, sorry!)
  • You write your guess in a comment and make sure you're following this blog.
  • On Friday November 11th, the Amazon Chart Rush day, I'll announce the winner. The winner will be the person who first guesses a number CLOSEST to the page a line falls on (pg. 1-288) If you guess and comment on all TEN posts (from Nov 1st - 10th) you'll have ten chances at winning the prize, which is:

Signed String Bridge Paperback

Signed String Bridge CD (Melody Hill: On the Other Side)

Signed copy of Twisted Velvet Chains (my poetry book)

PLUS a random book off my bookshelf (we'll have a chat if you win, so you don't get a book you already own.)



Also, don't forget, that on the Amazon Chart Rush day, November 11th, if you purchase the book (either paperback or eBook) and then email me your receipt to jessica(dot)carmen(dot)bell(at)gmail(dot)com, you will automatically receive a free MP3 download of the soundtrack to the novel, entitled Melody Hill: On the Other Side.


Not going to be around on the 11th? Purchase String Bridge now via Lucky Press, LLC.
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And now to today's participants. The following are early posters so I'm directing you to their already posted posts, rather than just their blogs. So do me a favor, when you finish reading, please give their blogs a little perusal! :o)


Leigh T. Moore ~ (Review) (Today! October 31st) For some reason I didn't think there was much joy in String Bridge, but now I can see that there is, and what a great feeling to realize something new about your own work! Thank you so much, Leigh.

"Writer, editor, novelist, mom. New posts on Mondays & Thursdays. Leave a comment, make a suggestion, stay a while~"



Sharon Mayhew ~ (Review)  (Today! October 31st) In which she also talks about my poetry!

"I'm a mother, wife, former elementary teacher and writer. I'm an alumnus of the Highlights Foundation Summer Workshop and a SCBWI member. I usually post on Thursday. I read blogs most nights from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. instead of watching TV (unless Survivor is on). Thanks for stopping by. I'm looking forward to getting to know you."

Karen Jones Gowen(Review) (August 17th) Thank you, Karen, this review made my year! So much so that a snippet of it found its way to the cover of the book!

"I love to read and I believe in the power of books to change lives. My passion is to empower authors and promote literacy. Editor, WiDo Publishing. Co-founder, Celerytree.com. I blog (excessively) about writing, editing, and publishing issues. I tweet a lot. My published works are Farm Girl, a memoir, and Uncut Diamonds, a novel. House of Diamonds is scheduled for 2011 release by WiDo Publishing."

Renae Mercado ~ (Review) (October 26th) Renae is quite the YA reader (and writer) so I was very interested to see how she went with String Bridge, which is very far from what she'd usually pick up. I think I may have succeeded to please! :o)

"When I'm not busy with my two adorable kids, or teaching second grade, I write young adult novels and love to read."

Laurel Garver ~ (Interview) (October, 27th) In which we talk about the making of a book launch.

"Writer, magazine editor, professor's wife and mom to an energetic third grader. Indie film enthusiast and incurable Anglophile. I post Tuesdays and Thursdays (and sporadically on other days when the need arises).
I write young adult novels, literary flash fiction and poetry. I love smart, sassy characters and stories that delve into the dark places where heart and soul are tested and growing up truly begins."

The Secret Writer ~ (Interview) (October 28th) Drop by here if you're interested in learning such things as how I started playing guitar and my embarrassing trash TV habits *cough*.

"My real name is Calum and I live in the UK. I started writing when I was fairly young, but have only started to write seriously over the past number of years. I have written and had published, quite a few articles for a variety of newspapers, journals and corporate websites. I also recently have started to write and publish a number of book reviews. As my full time day job is involved in the field of healthcare, reading, writing and blogging is my best way of chilling out after a hard day at 'the office'!"

To see the full schedule, let me direct you to the STRING BRIDGE BOOK & MUSIC BLOG TOUR tab.


Please TWEET & FACEBOOK this post using #StringBridge!


PS: The winner of Friday's contest is L. Diane WolfeCongrats!  Yep. My feet were the ones in the blue shoes and only ONE person guessed correctly. 

32 comments:

  1. Sounds like you're off to a great start! :)

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  2. You are a star at networking. I'll be blogging, tweeting, and facebooking for ya.

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  3. Congrats, Jess!! This is so exciting! Best of luck with the launch -- and I'm looking forward to my (review) post tomorrow!!

    ((hugs)) Nicole

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  4. Congrats Jessica! So excited for you.

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  5. Hi Jessica .. the whole tour sounds great - 'cept it seems to have been going for ages - YIPPEE ...

    Brilliant offer .. and I'm so looking forward to meeting your fellow bloggers and seeing everyone's reviews of String Bridge and hearing the album ..

    A real smorgasbord - which I'm looking forward to enormously - cheers for now .. Hilary

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  6. This is going to be FUN!! Enjoy the ride. :)

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  7. Go girl go! This is so exciting. I won't be able to visit everyone, but I'll do my best! The contest sounds very creative.

    Denise

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  8. Get excited! Can't wait to post my review of your CD.

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  9. I can't believe it's been a year either! So proud of you.

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  10. Wooohooo!! Happy release day!!!! For some reason I thought String Bridge was releasing Nov 11 but now I see that's the chart rush. Congrats Jess- I know you've been awaiting this day for awhile and it looks like you've got an promotional army about to take over the month of November which is just awesome!

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  11. And the bottle of champagne has been smashed across the bow and the ship has been christened String Bridge!

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  12. Whew! So much to keep up with! This is so awesome, Jessica, and I'm SO excited for you! Especially tomorrow. *HUGS AND LOVE* You deserve ever smile on your face for the next 20 days. It may be a lot of work to get through a blog tour, but it's certainly a happy rush. :)

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  13. Happy release week. This is so exciting.

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  14. Got my Rush post all scheduled. I've been having troubles viewing video's - sometimes si sometimes no - so we'll see how it goes on the day.

    Good luck with the tour, and congrats on the release.

    .......dhole

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  15. Wow, congratulations!!! Very happy for you and I'm looking forward to following along on your tour, how fun. The book sounds fantastic. Happy Release Day and I wish you all the success in the world!!!

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  16. Yay for the launch of the tour! I am SO excited...
    Will check out ALL of these blogs today.
    xo

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  17. Awesome. You've worked so hard, and now here it is. What an amazing feeling! And there IS joy in the story--new beginnings and forgiveness.

    Have a fabulous month~ :o) <3

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  18. I absolutely loved String Bridge. Wishing you much success on your launch!!!

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  19. Awesome!! So happy for you! I know you are enjoying all these beautiful moments today and looking forward to reading all about it. :-)

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  20. Yay!!! Let the good times roll! :-)

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  21. My God am I in awe of your organisational skills! I wish you all the best. You deserve it!

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  22. 150 volunteers? Wow! I am impressed. I will be watching and cheering you on.

    Your table at Meilori's awaits if you need a place to collapse and just relax -- haunted jazz clubs can be healing -- sometimes. LOL. Only the highest sales! Roland

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  23. So exciting and wonderful!! Big congratulations on a fantastic accomplishment.

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  24. Congrats, Jess! So excited for you. Looking forward to rush day!

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  25. Page 22!

    Sorry, just practicing. :-)

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  26. Congratulations to you! Good luck with your blog tour.

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  27. Rush day sounds cool! I'll be crossing my fingers for you (and hoping that it comes out on Nook!) - and looking to RT that day! :)

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  28. Been a long time coming, but your day is finally near! So happy for you! And btw... I know exactly which part refers to the title but my kindle pages are a little different. I'll have to see if I can get a number for you. :)

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  29. Congrats on your book and album...how cool is that? Have a blast on your tour...

    p.s. ROFLING over arsenic.....too too funny.

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  30. Why have I only just discovered you Jessica? :)

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