Monday, May 16, 2011

Guest Post by author Christine Nolfi and BOOK GIVEAWAY!


Christine's Bio:

Christine owned a small public relations firm in Cleveland, Ohio. Her articles and press releases have appeared regionally in Ohio. Her short story, Night Hour, appeared in Working Mother magazine.

Christine closed the firm fifteen years ago after she traveled to the Philippines and
adopted a sibling group of four children. She has been writing novels fulltime since 2004.
Treasure Me is the first book of the Liberty, Ohio series, available at Amazon:

The second book in the Liberty series, Second Chance Grill, will be released June, 2011.

Contact Christine at
http://christinenolfibooks.blogspot.com/
and christinenolfi@gmail.com

Q&A:

What was the inspiration behind Treasure Me?

Treasure Me is the only novel I’ve ever written that simply arose from my subconscious. I awoke one morning with this very amusing image of a young woman—a thief—dangling from a window trying to escape from the man whose pocket she’d picked. I’d already written Second Chance Grill several years earlier, and knew that this new book would also take place in the small town of Liberty. So the supporting cast was immediately in place: the town’s feisty matriarch, Theodora, who carries a Blackberry and a pistol; her nemesis, the fluttery Ethel Lynn, and all of the other characters who are an integral part of the town’s only restaurant, The Second Chance Grill.

What would you like readers to take away from the novel?

That “family” isn’t so much something we’re born into as something we create and nurture. The people you choose to love and who love you—day in and day out—are life’s only treasure.

You’ve written four other novels. Can you tell us about them?

Second Chance Grill will appear on Amazon in June. It’s a “prequel” of sorts depicting the love story of Dr. Mary Chance, the town’s doctor, and Anthony Perini, a single dad with a very precious daughter. Of course the feisty women of Liberty—including Theodora—will be featured. You’ll learn a little more about the “bad blood” between Theodora and Ethel Lynn. Their battle was “fur and feathers” in Treasure Me. In Second Chance Grill, they’re even wilder.

The third novel in the series, The Impossible Wish, will arrive on Amazon in late autumn. It’s the story of Birdie’s infamous mother, Wish Kaminsky. The hero and heroine of that novel are nothing like Birdie and Hugh: think “clutzy female scientist” and “Mad Greek.” And, heaven help us, the evil Wish kidnaps Theodora. Don’t make me give anything else away. I’m striving for laugh-out-loud comedy from start to finish.

The other two novels are stand-alone books that will appear on Amazon this summer. I’d tell you the titles but I keep changing them as I polish the chapters.

What are the pros and cons of releasing a novel in e-format?

I can’t speak for other writers; my greatest difficulty has been the allocation of time. Many hours are now spent promoting my novels. Those long, lovely mornings, when I woke at dawn and spent hours writing, have disappeared. At least for now.

The greatest benefit? Reaching out to readers directly. Receiving virtually immediate feedback. Already some of the comments I’ve received on Treasure Me have impacted the books I’m polishing, and my new work-in-progress.

Who is your favorite author?

It’s impossible to choose a favorite. Sue Monk Kidd, Nora Roberts, Fannie Flagg, J.K. Rowling, Toni Morrison, Sarah Gruen—the list of remarkable talent is varied and virtually endless. I’m not a “genre” reader. If a novel is good, it’s in my TBR pile.

What prompted you to start your writing career?

I can’t recall a time when I didn’t write. When my mother was alive, she swore I taught myself to read at the age of two. Now, I’ve met enough toddlers to know that’s unlikely.

Still, writing was always an obsession. I completed my first novel at the age of nineteen. Today the 600-page tome sits dusty and unloved in my basement. Later on, when I worked in PR, I was always striving to reach the day when I’d write fiction. In 2004, I decided it was now or never.

What led to your decision to self-publish?

After I finished my first novel I worked with two agents, each for about eighteen months. Random House was very interested in Second Chance Grill. A division of Penguin considered bringing out Treasure Me, and the other Liberty books, in hardcover. Then Wall Street melted down. The interest fizzled, and I decided to self-publish. By then I’d read enough success stories to realize that New York no longer had a monopoly on the publishing game.

If I may, I’d like to tell young writers: Believe in yourself. The world is made all the more beautiful by literature’s wide variety of voices. Find critique partners you can trust to help you nurture your distinctive brand of fiction. When you write that first draft, turn off your internal editor—it’s more important to get your idea down on paper. Later, revise. And revise. And revise until you’ve polished your manuscript to a diamond-bright brilliance.

Readers can reach Christine at http://christinenolfibooks.blogspot.com/



I recently read and reviewed this great read by Christine Nolfi, and she was kind enough to offer my readers TWO copies of her novel TREASURE ME. If you would like to read my review just go to: http://historicalfictionobsession.blogspot.com/2011/05/treasure-me-by-christine-nolfi-review.html

ALL you have to do to enter is:

+1 Leave your name and email...you must be a blog follower!

For any extra entries:
+1 Follow me on twitter
+1 Tweet my giveaway!









40 comments:

  1. I follow via GFC :)
    quixoticdreamer

    quixoticdreamer(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I follow via Twitter
    @quixoticweetzie

    quixoticdreamer(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tweeted

    http://twitter.com/#!/QuixoticWeetzie/status/69604795920547840

    quixoticdreamer(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Theodora sounds delightful as does the book from
    your review...
    I follow you publicly via Google Friend
    Connect. (windycindy).
    Many thanks, Cindi
    jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I follow you on Twitter!
    Again, many thanks to you...
    Cindi
    cmh512
    jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com

    ReplyDelete
  6. "Tweet!"
    http://twitter.com/cmh512/status/69609019878281216.
    Merci, Cindi
    jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Windycindy: We should all age as Theodora does in Treasure Me--with fire and sass!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have follow you on GFC (Ana) and Twitter (@anadudunk), I have tweeted too! ( http://twitter.com/#!/anadudunk/status/69690222601961473)

    arblossom [at] gmail [com]

    ReplyDelete
  9. I've heard great things about this book already. I've suggested it to my book club.

    Julie
    juliecookies(at)gmail.com

    GFC and twitter follower.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Julie S, thank you for suggesting Treasure Me to your book club. While writing the novel, I had a blast reading the comedic scenes to my critique partners. Nothing quite like making a roomful of women laugh at once!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thank you!

    I'm your twitter and GFC follower!
    FromOlya(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  12. Maggie

    whitesox36 (at) comcast (dot) net

    Thanks so much for the giveaway!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Joann Downie
    jbdownie5@yahoo.com
    gfc follower

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks for the giveaway!
    candace10[at]yahoo[dot]com

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks for the giveaway - I'm a follower via gfc.

    dancealert at aol dot com

    ReplyDelete
  16. So nice to see all of these comments for the Treasure Me giveaway!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I am a blogger follower
    I tweeted the giveaway.
    I follow you on Twitter.

    teakettle58(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  18. I'm a follower and thanks for considering me!

    Margaret
    singitm@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thanks for the giveaway! This book sounds like a fun read and I will definitely put it on my to-read list. I'm a follower: lisablyth@cogeco.ca

    ReplyDelete
  20. Lisa, thanks for putting Treasure Me on your to-read list.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I follow you as Nathalie Brault

    recupefashion@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  22. I'm a Twitter follower @aikchien

    aikychien at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  23. Following you on GFC as Christine Senter

    sapheyerblu AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  24. Following you on Twitter as sapheyerblu

    sapheyerblu AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  25. Retweeted about this giveaway here:
    http://twitter.com/#!/sapheyerblu/status/71249746794258432

    sapheyerblu AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  26. Thank you for the giveaway.

    I Follow via GFC (buddyt)

    Carol T

    buddytho {at} gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  27. Thanks for making the giveaway international!

    Name : Akshay Bakshi
    Email : akshay@akshul.com

    ReplyDelete