Category Archives: Women’s Fiction

Blog Tour Visit #9: Entertainment Examiner

August 16, 2011 by Mara Purl

A lot is offered these days in the way of entertainment: a plethora of films, television shows, podcasts and, of course, books. How are we to wade our way through the ocean of offerings to discover something really good?

Mike Parker answers this question on a daily basis for his 7 million followers as Entertainment Editor for Entertainment Examiner. I’m his blog guest today, so that means I made the cut. Whew! An honor! It turns out he liked When Hummers Dream. Timely, too, because we found out today my new e-book has just slipped into the best-seller ranks for Amazon free e-books.… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #8: Art Biz Blog

August 14, 2011 by Mara Purl

“Art for art’s sake” is a phrase that derives from the nineteenth century French expression “L’art pour l’art”—meaning that the intrinsic value of art is the art itself, separate from any utilitarian function. Wikipedia goes on to explain a connection to “inner-directed” or “self-motivated” individuals.

Artists—and I use the term both specifically to mean those who create fine art with their hands, as well as those who practice and live by other art forms such as acting or composing or writing—most certainly have to be self-directed. For one thing, no one in their right mind would recommend the life of an artist to anyone who could happily do something else.… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #7: Reading Group Choices

August 12, 2011 by Mara Purl

Readers face a constant dilemma that seems to have two horns: one is struggling to find the time to read everything in the teetering stack of books on the bedside table; the other is choosing which books to read in the first place. After all, if we’re going to invest our precious time and money in a book, we really want to know in advance that’ll be worth it!

Well, no has yet come up with the solution for those of us with the teetering book stacks. But when it comes to choosing really GOOD books to add to your list, Reading Group Choices have fantastic resources to offer.… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #6: Lady Killers

August 12, 2011 by Mara Purl

What’s a nice lady like me doing on a blog visit to the site called The Lady Killers? Especially since the sub-title of the blog is “An unsuitable blog for women”? Well, the answer is I just couldn’t resist an invitation from the Top Mystery Blog 2010 Award Winner.

With 200 hits a day, 1,400 a week, 4,800 a month, 57, 600 per year, it’s obvious how they got their high Google ranking. How did they achieve such success? Well, maybe because their blog is a sophisticated blend of posts offered by fourteen mystery writers who take turns either creating their own offerings, or inviting guests to do so.… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #4: Flip Flops & FABS

August 8, 2011 by Mara Purl

One of the most appealing blog sites I’ve seen is one created by Kathy Holmes, www.FlipFlopsAndFabs.blogspot.com. Maybe it’s the big hat. Or perhaps it’s the big blue umbrella facing the ocean. I wanted to go there, and knew right away Kathy would be a kindred spirit.

Sure enough, we’re both California Babes, though Kathy now calls Las Vegas home. (You can take the woman out of California, but you can’t take the California out of the woman.) We share a big love for many regions of California, and take with us wherever we go a sense of what I call the “edge-thinking” that makes us independent and creative.… Read more

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A Hummer Hovers Near Your E-Reader

August 6, 2011 by Mara Purl

Hummingbirds are pure magic. Part helicopter, part jewel, they fly across thousands of miles from their winter homes to become an integral part of our summer. Their trilling songs and aerial ballets are a spice as sweet as the nectar they sip.

As far as I’m concerned, E-Readers are pure magic too. Now, instead of attempting to lug four books per flight, I carry one slim volume which inexplicably contains scores of titles, with no meaningful limit to how many volumes I can download.

Magic converges with magic for me today, as my first E-Book flies off the pages. When Hummers Dream is a short story that immediately precedes book one of my novel series, What the Heart Knows.… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #3: Romance Junkies

August 3, 2011 by Mara Purl

What fun to be featured today as a guest of Www.RomanceJunkies.com. Though they chose a tongue-in-cheek name, their elegant site reveals a multitude of cross-connected authors and readers actively engaged in every aspect of Romance Fiction.

Founded in 2003 by Kat Brown, the site now has 60 reviewers, scores of author links, ten categories, and 2,500 loyal followers who communicate with one another on a regular basis through forums, and 1 million hits per month.

A key part of the site is the Romance Junkies Blog, where I’m the featured guest today, www.RomanceJunkies.com/RJBlog/?p=1150, as are my new books When Hummers Dream (free e-book this month) and What the Heart Knows (hardcover next month).… Read more

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Blog Tour Visit #2: National Association of Baby Boomer Women

August 2, 2011 by Mara Purl

Today I have the distinct honor of being the featured guest at the National Association of Baby Boomer Women—www.NABBW.com. Director Anne Holmes (“Boomer in Chief”, as she’s titled) asked me a series of intriguing questions as the second stop on my national blog tour. You can find it by clicking the pink “BLOG” button in the upper right, or by clicking on this link. http://www.nabbw.com/blog/2011/08/mara-purl-launches-virtual-book-tour/. I’ll also be featured in Anne’s monthly newsletter at www.BoomerWomensWorld.com.

So what’s a Boomer woman? A woman born between 1946 and 1964. Why is this group of people so interesting? First of all, because we number 35 million.… Read more

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Launching the Blog Tour Boat

August 1, 2011 by Mara Purl

For authors, a book tour comes with the territory when a new book is released. Authors often fly from city to city in an exhausting tour-de-force, appearing on local talk shows, speaking to reporters, signing their new book at bookstores, and maybe visiting a few book clubs along the way. Traditional tours like this aren’t done as often as they used to be, what with budget constraints and new methods of marketing. Still—unless we’re also speakers—we authors don’t get out much! So we won’t be denied our fun. I’m looking forward to the wonderful in-person tour stops I’ll be doing next fall.… Read more

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