Do Holidays Make You Happy? Or Give You The Blues?

Just now I'm sitting here thinking that Christmas is very close and I'm somewhat ready. The tree is up and decorated, the house is decorated. Some of the gifts are wrapped. I still have a few things to get...



The holidays are a happy time. I still have kids who believe in Santa and the year ended on a far better note than it started on. My husband lost his job of 20+ years last January and now, recently, he's got another -- better -- job even if the pay is a less. But it's been a challenging year. So there is much to be grateful for. Pluse I get time off. A gift because I pretty much work 7 days a week.



And there is much yet to do. Field trips, school plays, visits to folks you don't see for the rest of the year (isn't that terrible?), shopping, wrapping. Christmas costs you and the economy is making things hard on everyone...



You're happy. You get the blues.



Why is that?



How do you stay happy through the holidays? Do you shrug off the stress and pressure stuff? What shortcuts do you have? What works for you? Should I just forget all the unpleasant stuff and have some Godiva and a beer?



Share! Desperate minds want to know! LOL



Let me know what you think. Speaking of field trips, I'm on one today with both my kids so I'm not ignoring you. I'll be back in the early afternoon and promise to answer all your posts and give stuff away. I've got books. I've got stuff for authors too. =)



Thank you to the guys for giving us this spot on this fabulous blog. =)



Happy holidays all!



Tina Pavlik

The Romance Studio ~ the romance genre today

http://theromancestudio.com/

3 Winners Announced!

Happy Holidays!

I wish all of you and your families a happy, healthy and safe Holiday Season!



Congrats to the three winners of the Thanksgiving Contest! This contest was open only to newsletter subscribers. Because this contest was so popular, the next contest will also have 3 winners and is open to newsletter subscribers. Details will be in the next newsletter scheduled for December 18th, so join the yahoo newsletter list so you can enter! (Just send an email to: Sally_Painter_Paranormal_Books-subscribe@yahoogroups.com that's all )


The entrants for the Thanksgiving Newsletter Contest had to respond to the following scenario:

A demon has marked you for its own. You now have a red aura emitting around your body that lets other demons know you're taken, but you're not going quietly. You must hide from demons. What are the three things you must do or take with you to ensure you survive? Be creative.

Prizes: 3 autographed books awarded: 1 book to 1 winner: Reunited, Book 1 of Gargoyles Seduced, Midnight Treat, featuring To Kiss a Gargoyle and TTGBITN VI, featuring Dream Lovers of Gargoyle Castle.

Here are the winners' responses (all of the answers were fun and creative, so I'm glad it was a random drawing because it would have been impossible to pick from such great creative responses.

Gayle O. Won Reunited:
1. I would drink a lot of Blue Hawaiians to change my aura to purple
(red +blue = purple). They would then think I was royalty and not
Bother or harm me.
2. I would have a shotgun with plenty of silver bullets to shot them
In the head. Hey, it works for Zombies so it must be worth a try.
3. I would take my set of encyclopedias and read from them incessantly
Creating my own demon filibuster. Hopefully the sound of my monotone
Voice going on and on and on will bore them to death, put them to
Sleep or have them leave me alone as they don't want to hear my voice
Going on and on and on for hours on end. :)

Maggie J. Won TTGBITN VI:

1. Go to the beauty salon. Must look my best when on the run.
2. Whip
3. Lots of chocolate















Crystal B. Won Midnight Treat:

1. A magic cloak to cover me and hide my aura
2. A sword blessed by a priest
3. A Blackberry with all loyal contacts on speed dial to help me battle the demons

Big Hugs and Congrats to the winners and to everyone who entered!

Wanna dream lover?

Then you really need to read Dream Lovers of Gargoyle Castle. This book has everything! A fascinating story, romance and lovers who make you eager for their love to succeed.


But don't take my word for it ... See what Literary Nymphs Reviews has to say...

"Sally Painter knows her gargoyles. Each of her men is always sexy and willing to go that extra mile in and out of his mate's bedroom. Tessa and Amy have different personalities that keep the tale interesting and flowing, with very few bumps along the way. While each is determined when it comes to the project, they approach love differently. Tessa seems to fall in love with falling love, while Amy wants proof before committing. Their yummy dream lovers will truly make you want to join the mile high club. Dream Lovers of Gargoyle Castle is a great addition to the gargoyle stories, and will be a great read for those who enjoy paranormal erotica."

If you haven't picked up your copy, scoot on over to Ellora's Cave now and snatch one up!

Okay, our question for today...

We're all there. Gas and food prices are high. As many as one out of 10 people are out of work. The economy is possibly the worst of our lifetimes.

Still, part of the beauty of the romance genre is that it offers us a happy ending guaranteed escape from it all. Right?

So my question to you is this: how do you select what you will read?

Do you stick with your favorite authors?

Do you stick with your favorite publishers?

Do you stay with just vampire erotic, sweet historicals, M/M...? What's your vice?

PRIZES? Yeah, we'll do them. I'll pick out one winner to receive a crisp new print copy of The Year of Living Shamelessly by Susanna Carr.

Any authors who post will get one free year of featured membership at TRS. Yeah, this is a serious offer. LOL

Be sure to enter our book-a-day giveaway today and every day for a chance to win books: http://theromancestudio.com/bad_form.php

Can we (The Romance Studio) come play at your blog? If so, please email me at tina.pavlik@gmail.com.

Thank you!

Tina

The Romance Studio ~ the romance genre today
Psyche Designs - http://psychedesigns.com

Reader and Fan Video Contest!

Romance readers -- we're having a contest! Make your own video supporting the romance genre! We did one above to promote TRS. (Come on! You can't do WORSE than that! LOL)

Promote your favorite books, your favorite local bookstore (that would be cool!), your favorite author, etc. Tell us how you smuggle books on family vacation. Show us how you pick out what to read. How many ebooks until your reader explodes? How many print books will fit into your clothes dryer? Be original!

The Rules: (because you know we have to have some!)

1. All videos must be uploaded to YouTube.com and meet all of their submission requirements BEFORE being submitted to TRS for our contest.
2. Videos CANNOT contain nudity (unless it's the guy and/or gal on the cover), profanity, or contain any material or language that could be taken as insulting to any group regardless of religion, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, planet, or anything else.
3. Be creative!

When?

Video entries will be accepted starting today (11/5/09) with a deadline of midnight EST on Tuesday, November 24, 2009. All approved entries will appear right here on our front door page. Voting will be open to the public and will be held from Wednesday, November 25, 2009 - midnight, EST Monday, November 30, 2009.

Prize:

The winner will receive a $50 gift card from Amazon and be interviewed at TRS about their video! The winner will be announced in the 12/1/09 issue of Studio Notes (that's our bi-monthly newsletter) and announced on our site on 12/2/09.

How do I enter?

Send the link or embed code of your video entry at YouTube.com by email to Katie Raines (click on her name for the email form). If you have any questions, you can contact Katie, Tina, or Holly at our Contact Us page. Thank you!

Thank you to our Veterans!

Happy Veterans Day and thank you for to all who have bravely served our country. Thank you!

Tina Pavlik
The Romance Studio ~ the romance genre today

$25 Amazon Gift Cert Winner and Next Contest!

Congrats to Pamela S., who won my Halloween $25 Amazon Gift Certificate. Pamela emailed me today that she'd already used the gift certificate! Thank you all who entered. I enjoyed reading your entries and comments. You're such great fun!

The next contest for November is a Thanksgiving Contest that will have 3 winners. I'm giving away 3 autographed books:


Reunited


Midnight Treat


TTGBITN VI

Contest Scenario
You've been marked by a demon and bear the red aura for all demons to see. It's just a matter of time before the demon claims you. You're on the run.

What are the 3 things you take with you or do?

Details on how to enter are in the Current Contest File Folder in my newsletter yahoo group. If you aren't currently a subscriber, you can easily join by sending an email

*This contest is open only to my newsletter subscribers as a holiday treat.