WINNERS OF OUR WORTH THE RISK CONTEST X 2

Big thanks to everyone who helped Robin Bielman and I celebrate our same-title books!! I had a wonderful time blogging these past two weeks and each and every one of your comments made me smile. I appreciate you taking the time to visit and hope you’ll continue to stop by – I love the company!


While we didn’t reach our ranking goal (I did get close!), you were awesome in helping us spread the word – thank you!!

Before I announce the winners of the $25 Gift Card, I thought I’d tell you what my lies and truths were.

Here are my truths:

Yes, I've met my country idol Tim McGraw. LOVE HIM!   I stood on line for 4 hours with two friends and shook his hand, spoke a few words and took a picture. He was signing his book in a bookstore..how could a writer resist that?

Yes, I am related to Italian royalty.  My grandmother's mother lived in a castle in Italy.  She was a princess and to avoid a pre-arranged marriage, she ran away with the chauffeur.  How's that for a real life romance?

The lie:  I don't have a clue about karate. Never took a class.  But now I wish I had (I guess it's never too late)

Robin's lie is that  – She is not related to Franz Gruber. But she's a fabulous writer who is Worth the Risk on reading her debut romance.  You'll love it!

If you guessed right, and a few of you did, you got an extra entry in our giveaway.

Lastly, Robin loved reading all the captions you guys came up with for Harry! They all rocked, but after deliberating with the hubby and youngest son, the winning caption goes to bn100 – “Is getting off the couch Worth the Risk?”

The WINNERS ARE:

Robin's random winner of  $25 Gift Card is also bn100! (I think those extra entries helped.) Congrats, bn! Please email her your gift card preference to robinbielman at gmail dot com and I’ll send it off to you.

The gift card winner on Charlene’s blog was Cathy P!! Congrats Cathy! Please send me your email addy and preference and I'll send you gift card out pronto!!

Have a wonderful week everyone!  We hope you had fun!!

Charlene And Robin

Top Five Ways You Know it's A Great Book!! by Charlene Sands and Robin Bielman

The Risky Release party continues...

(Play Robin's Caption Game HERE for 5 extra entries and post here too)

It’s after 2 AM, you’ve got work in the morning and you can’t put the darn book down.

I’ve done this too many times to count. One time, I stayed up until 4 AM. Before I started reading on my iPad, my hubby would wake up in the wee hours of the night and grumble at me to turn off the light already.

The author’s voice resonates with you from page one and you know you’re gonna finish the book pronto.

This happens to me when I pick up a Susan Elizabeth Phillips book, but I have come to expect that from her brilliant writing. I set aside at least 8 hours to read her book straight through. And if I can’t do that, then I settle for two 4 hour sessions. I don’t dare open the book, unless I have a LOT of time to read.

I was shocked that I got hooked so quickly on the Twilight series. I don’t read paranormal, much less vampires. But Stephenie Meyer’s words jumped out on the first pages with me and I realized I would read the entire series. The same thing happened when I read the first two paragraphs of the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.

The characters in the story stay with you for days and days afterward.

You can’t get them out of your head. They wander into your thoughts at all times of the day and night. Scenes play out in your mind. You can’t seem to forget them, no matter what. If the hero is magnificent, you’re daydreaming about him. Yes, that’s happened to me. I’m not ashamed to admit it.

There’s a charm and certain magic to the book that you don’t find in all stories, with all authors.

The book is something special. You’re in love, not only with the characters or the plot or the dialogue, but the story itself pulls you in and grabs you. If it were a movie, it might be Shakespeare In Love, or my favorite all-time movie classic, It Happened One Night. Now, that’s a story that has it all. It was made in black and white, but the story comes alive with such richness you tend to think of it in color. Charm and Magic.

After you read “The End” and put the book down, you wish you’d written it.

Yes, that’s so true for writers. When we read an exceptional book, we’re floored, thrilled and filled with admiration. And as we lust for more, we pray to the story gods, that one day we could tell a story so well.

Do you agree? How do YOU know you’re reading a great book? Post a comment here and on Robin's Blog  and be entered to win Gift Cards and e-books at our Risky Release Party contest.

Here are the details:

RISKY RELEASE PARTY AND A CONTEST "WORTH" ENTERING:

Robin and Charlene have the same titled books. Check our recent blogs for more fun contest stuff!

Post a comment during the this week and last week's blogs to be entered to win the gift cards!

Please spread the word about Worth the Risk. Help us achieve our goal of ranking on Amazon or Barnes and Noble Top 1000 books and one lucky commenter will win a Nook Color (Value: $149) or Kindle Fire (Value: $159) or gift card equivalent IF we do. (We need to rank in triple digits)

Mention our Risky Release Party on Facebook.

Tweet about Worth the Risk on Twitter

Post a review on Amazon, BN or Goodreads

Amazon for Robin's Book

Amazon for Charlene's Book

Like and Tag us on Amazon
Check out our books

Tell your friends about our books.

Sample FB or Tweet:


FB -- Win prizes @CharleneSands and @RobinBielman's Risky Release Party. You'll be entered to win $25 Gift Cards and an ereader. www.charlenesands.blogspot.com and www.robinbielman.com/blog/

Twitter-- Don't miss @CharleneSands & @RobinBielman's Risky Release Party & you could win an e-Reader! http://charlenesands.blogspot.com/ http://robinbielman.com/blog/

Contest Ends October 15th.

Thanks so much for being a part of our celebration!

Charlene and Robin

Butter Cookies - Can't Eat Just One! by Charlene Sands

As promised on Facebook, I am posting this wonderful and easy/peasy butter cookie recipe.  I know you'll enjoy!! 

1 Cup Butter  (use real butter of course)
6 Tablespoons Confectioner's Sugar
2 Cups Flour
1 tsp vanilla  (sometimes for added flavor I use almond extract)
1 Cup Nuts  (optional - though I never put them in- the cookie is delish without anything else)

Cream butter and for best results, let the butter soften naturally.  Do not melt over heat. 
Add other ingredients gradually until all incorporated.  (Do this without a mixer- the old-fashioned way with a spoon or spatula)   Knead well and roll into balls about the width of a quarter or more.  Flatten with fork. If batter gets sticky, add a little flour to fork. 

Bake in 350 oven on cookie sheet for 12 minutes (but check them after 8 min)
The cookie top will not brown. Check the bottom for browning. 
Let the cookies cool for a full 15 min or they will crumble.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar while hot.

Makes approximately 30 cookies. 
It's true.  You can't eat just one.  Enjoy!!!


***See our previous Risky Release Party Contest and be entered to win gift cards and ebooks!!

TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE by Charlene Sands and Robin Bielman

RISKY RELEASE PARTY CONTINUES
with Charlene and Robin

Happy Friday! In case you’re just joining us, we’ve been celebrating Worth the Risk.  Today, we thought we’d play a game. That crazy risky game where you try and be tricky…

We’re each going to list three statements about ourselves. Two of them are true and one of them is a lie. Guess which one is the lie and tell us in the comments. If you guess right, you’ll get an extra entry in our $25 gift card giveaway.  Oh, and be sure to comment on both our blogs and that counts twice. And check this weeks past blogs on Monday and Wednesday  for more ways to win. 


Charlene is up first:

1. I’ve met my all-time favorite country artist, Tim McGraw.

2. I am related to an Italian princess.

3. I have been taking classes for years and have earned a brown belt in karate.


Here’s Robin’s:

1. I’ve attended the Olympic games.

2. As a child I had the same recurring dream – that a flying dog was chasing me.

3. I’m distantly related to Franz Gruber, the man who wrote the music for Silent Night.




RISKY RELEASE PARTY AND A CONTEST "WORTH" ENTERING:

Post a comment during the next 2 weeks on our blogs on MWF to be entered to win the gift cards!

Please spread the word about Worth the Risk. Help us achieve our goal of ranking on Amazon or Barnes and Noble Top 1000 books and one lucky commenter will win a Nook Color (Value: $149) or Kindle Fire (Value: $159) or gift card equivalent IF we do. (We need to rank in triple digits)


Mention our Risky Release Party on Facebook.

Tweet about Worth the Risk on Twitter

Post a review on Amazon, BN or Goodreads

Amazon for Robin's Book

Amazon for Charlene's Book

Like and Tag us on Amazon

Check out our books

Tell your friends about our books


Sample FB or Tweet:

FB -- Play Two Truths and Lie Game and win prizes with @CharleneSands and @RobinBielman's Risky Release Party.  You'll be entered to win $25 Gift Cards and an ereader. www.charlenesands.blogspot.com and www.robinbielman.com/blog/

Twitter--  Don't miss @CharleneSands & @RobinBielman's Risky Release Party & you could win an e-Reader! http://charlenesands.blogspot.com/ http://robinbielman.com/blog/

Contest Ends October 15th.

Thanks so much for being a part of our celebration!

Charlene and Robin


P.S. Thanks so much to everyone who has already bought, read, reviewed, and/or added Worth the Risk to Goodreads. We're thankful for your support!!

(Be sure to leave your full email addy when you post on the blogs and let us know how you've helped!)
Stop by Robin's Blog too.

Top 15 WORTH THE RISK DATES

The Risky Release Party Continues with Robin Bielman and Charlene Sands



Both of us were lucky enough to marry our high school sweetheart. And both our guys are adventurous. So when it comes to dates—and between us there have been thousands—we figure we might have some expertise. 

Top 15 “Worth The Risk” Dates:

1. Swim with sharks. (Kidding. We just had to throw that in there.)

2. Spend the day at an amusement park and ride the rollercoasters. We realize this may cause some wooziness, but then you get to lay your head on your honey’s shoulder and lean into him (or her) while you walk around.

3. Take a hike. The less travelled path, the better. There are more opportunities to get frisky that way.

4. Go to the multi-plex movie theater spontaneously and watch the movie that’s playing right now. You may be pleasantly surprised.

5. Take a surfing lesson. It doesn’t matter if you stand up or not, the fun you’ll have trying will translate to fun when the lesson is over.

6. Eat dinner at a tiny little dive. The kind where you imagine the line is usually out the door and you have to stand to eat.

7. Go hot air ballooning. Okay, so neither of us has done this one, but we really want to!

8. Swim in a freezing cold body of water. Bonus points if there’s a waterfall. Just think how much fun you’ll have warming up afterward.

9. Rent a scary movie and curl up on the couch to watch it. In the dark. When you cling to your guy out of fear, he’ll be oh so willing to create different kinds of tingles.

10. Dive. Scuba or sky. We’ve only done one of these, but the other is on our bucket list. (Okay, it’s only on Robin’s.)

11. Park the car. View. No view. Doesn’t matter. Your eyes should only be on each other. Proceed at your own comfortable heat level.

12. Ride a horse and a cowboy (just kidding!) preferably on the beach, but mountain trail rides are very romantic too.

13. Wine taste at a local winery and enjoy the ambience or if you’re not in grape country, have a wine tasting party for two at home.

14. Kiss a frog…you never know, he may turn into your prince.

15. Read a Romance … together!! (it can lead to great things!)

How about you? Have you had a memorable “Worth The Risk” date?  Post a comment here and be entered.  See details below for more entries and a chance to win a Grand Prize.

RISKY RELEASE PARTY AND A CONTEST "WORTH" ENTERING:

Post a comment during the next 2 weeks on our blogs on MWF to be entered to win the gift cards!

Please spread the word about Worth the Risk. Help us achieve our goal of ranking on Amazon or Barnes and Noble Top 1000 books and one lucky commenter will win a Nook Color (Value: $149) or Kindle Fire (Value: $159) or gift card equivalent IF we do. (We need to rank in triple digits)



Mention our Risky Release Party on Facebook.

Tweet about Worth the Risk on Twitter

Post a review on Amazon, BN or Goodreads

Amazon for Robin's Book

Amazon for Charlene's Book

Like and Tag us on Amazon

Check out our books

Tell your friends about our books



Sample FB or Tweet:

Don't miss @CharleneSands & @RobinBielman's Risky Release Party & you could win an e-Reader! http://charlenesands.blogspot.com/ http://robinbielman.com/blog/

Contest Ends October 15th.

Thanks so much for being a part of our celebration!

Charlene and Robin


P.S. Thanks so much to everyone who has already bought, read, reviewed, and/or added Worth the Risk to Goodreads. We're thankful for your support!!

(Be sure to leave your full email addy when you post on the blogs and let us know how you've helped!)

Be sure to post on Robin's Blog too.

Remember all comments are entered to win $25 gift cards to Amazon or Barnes and Noble . And remember, leave a comment on both our blogs and that counts twice!