Little Shepherd VBT Day 17

The final stop of November's portion of the Little Shepherd VBT is at Coffee and a Keyboard, where Vanessa provides her thoughts on the book. This is what she starts off by saying, "Little Shepherd is an enchanting story!" You can read her entire review at http://vrleavitt.com/?p=936

My virtual book tour will pick up again on Monday, December 5th.

Wishing you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving.

Little Shepherd VBT - Day 16

Does it seem a bit silly to include your own blog during your virtual book tour? Probably, but I hate empty spots in a tour. They glare at me every time I glance at my schedule, taunting me to do something about it.

I've now been on tour for 16 days. Book promotion is a tough gig--even when you know what you're doing. This year, I decided to tour for two months instead of three. I'm glad I did, because we had that awful snowstorm at the end of October and I was without power for a week. By tomorrow, I think I'll finally be all caught up.

So, what's different about touring this year versus last?

• I'm not checking my Amazon stats. Last year I tracked my stats daily until Christmas. It was fun-especially when Little Shepherd reached their bestsellers list in its category multiple times. It's not that I don't care now, it's just not something I feel is good to focus too much on. I would rather focus on writing.
• I reached out to more reviewers that I didn't know. Luckily, the majority of the feedback on the book remains positive. It's tough to ask a totally objective person to review your work, but it's a necessary part of book promotion.
• I'm not running huge giveaways. Last year I put together gift baskets to raffle off at the end of my tour. I think smaller prizes at the end of each month instead of two large prizes at the end of the entire tour schedule would have made more sense. I didn't find the giveaways increased the number of comments on my blog stops or greatly influenced readers to purchase the book.

I love book promotion, and I love helping spread the word about great books. I think the sheer number of blogs I run and contribute to can attest to that. I hope you enjoy following me along the tour trail. If you've purchased Little Shepherd, I would love to hear your thoughts. You can always reach me at ccmal(at)charter(dot)net.

Wishing you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving.

Cheryl

Little Shepherd VBT - Day 15

Today I am sharing my mother-in-law's recipe for Kourabiedes, which are Greek sugar cookies. Author J Q Rose has a month long feature running that offers her readers some great recipes. If you would like to read about this traditional cookie that is usually made at Christmas time, please visit at http://jqroseauthor.blogspot.com/2011/11/recipe-cheryl-malandrinos-greek-sugar.html

A wonderful thing J Q Rose did was compile all the recipes that will be featured this month into a recipe collection. This PDF contains recipes from authors such as:

• Kathleen S. Allen
• Roseanne Dowell
• Dianne Hartsock
• Heather Haven

and more! Fifteen authors are sharing their holiday traditions with you!

If you would like a FREE copy of the Good Eats, Great Reads Recipe Collection, please email me at ccmal(at)charter(dot)net.

Interview on the 400th Episode of A Book and A Chat with Storyheart

I had the distinct honor of being a special guest on A Book and A Chat tonight. Today was Barry's 400th episode, which is very exciting. I hope you'll listen a bit to our interview--though I keep saying I am going to stop saying, "you know" every time I have one of these and when I listen in afterwards all I pick up is the millions of "you knows."

Enjoy!

Listen to internet radio with A Book and a Chat on Blog Talk Radio

Little Shepherd Reviewed at Christian Children's Book Review

A few months ago I sent a copy of Little Shepherd to Christian Children's Book Review. They were kind enough to write up a review on November 10th. Here is some of what their reviewer had to say:

"I like the author showing Obed at work. He hears the wolves howl, scans the hills for danger, shivers in the cold, and warms himself by a fire. That sets the mood for the reader. The shepherds show great faith by leaving everything behind and immediately heading to Bethlehem. I also liked the description of the manger scene and Mary and Joseph."

You can read the entire review at: http://ccbreview.blogspot.com/2011/11/little-shepherd.html

Little Shepherd VBT - Day 14

Inkyblots is a blog that talks about writing--something you know I love to chat about. You can find my article on setting goals that work for you there today at http://www.inkyblots.com/set-goals-that-work-for-you-by-cheryl-c-malandrinos/

I'm also interviewed today by Dorothy Thompson at Examiner, talking about another one of my favorite things: Christmas! Our interview appears at http://www.examiner.com/publishing-in-virginia-beach/decking-the-halls-with-children-s-fiction-author-cheryl-malandrinos

Hope to see you there!

Little Shepherd VBT - Day 13

Today I had the pleasure of having Little Shepherd reviewed by a blogger I met through a networking site. Here's part of what she had to say:

"The Little Shepherd is a sweet Christmas book about Obed, a very young shepherd whose father has just given him a flock of sheep to guard. But Obed's first night guarding sheep is not an ordinary night."

Hope you'll stop by Shaky Mommy and read the entire review at http://shakymommy.blogspot.com/2011/11/little-shepherd-childrens-book-review.html