B is for Become, Becoming, and Buffy

Buds becoming flowers (Source)

"What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you BECOME by achieving your goals" ~ Henry David Thoreau 

I just discovered this quote while looking for material for the challenge and it really spoke to me. It's not an exaggeration to say that I've become a different person since I started blogging and writing regularly. The whole experience has enriched my life in ways that mean more than any monetary reward ever could, and I would never want to go back to who I was in the past. 

When I decided to do this challenge with favorite quotes I didn't intend to use more than one quote per letter or to include things like favorite lyrics or tv quotes, but when I set out to write this post it reminded me so much of one of my favorite Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes that I couldn't help expanding the post a bit. 

I've mentioned before that I absolutely loved Buffy and it's the reason I fell in love with the mythology of vampires and wanted to write a vampire novel myself. So how does that fit in with this post? 

I think some of the best episodes of the series, and honestly some of the best episodes of tv I've ever seen, were the second season's final two hours, entitled Becoming Part 1 and Part 2. The episodes also have some of my favorite quotes, which both relate to the theme of this post. 

Whistler: The big moments are gonna come, you can't help that. It's what you do afterwards that counts. That's when you find out who you are.

Angelus: No weapons... no friends... no hope. Take all that away and what's left? 

Buffy: Me. 

That last one is one of the best "you go, girl" scenes that I've ever seen. :D 

Have you experienced defining moments or achieved goals that have helped you become who you are? 

Polar Day tour weekly wrap-up & the last day to get The Turnagain Arm #free

In what has become a broken record for me, I got swamped this week with real world work and fell way behind on my blogging. One of these days I will surely get back on a regular schedule, at least I hope so!

But for now I wanted to share links to all my posts for the first week of my tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. And for the record, I think Goddess Fish is fantastic! I have really enjoyed working with them and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone interested in setting up a blog tour. Their prices are reasonable, they are organized, and they do exactly what they promise.

Here's a wrap-up of my tour stops this week. Thanks to all the hosts who were so generous in opening up their blogs to me!

Monday: Character interview with Polar Day antagonist Jamie Dzubenko at Unadbriged Andra's

Tuesday: Ten Things Most People Don't Know about Me at Long and Short Reviews

Wednesday: Interview with Booklover Sue (Sue asked what kind of book I've always wanted to write and it was a treat to be able to say I actually did what that very thing!)

Thursday: Interview at Yeah Books! Blog where we discuss who I'd love to cast to play Aleksei & the short story I'm working on for the next anthology put out by our Untethered Realms group.

Friday: Another fun interview at Kit 'N Kabookle which has to be one of my favorite blog names ever and a visit to SBM Book Obsession where I talk about the inspiration behind my characters and my long-time love for Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Visit any of these wonderful sites to enter to win a $25 gift card. The giveaway will continue next week during week two of my tour travels!

I also posted at our Untethered Realms blog this week about my discovery of Russian witches and my love of all things history.

And I've offered the Polar Day prequel The Turnagain Arm free all this week on Kindle. Today is the last day to get a free download so if you are interested just click here.

It's been a crazy week and I apologize for once again managing to get behind on my blog reading and commenting. That's something I am determined to catch up on next week. I'm disabling comments as I have not had time to keep up with those but thank you to everyone who stops by here and who has stopped by during the week!

For now, I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend ahead and a Happy Valentine's Day!

Halloween Treat: The Turnagain Arm Free on Kindle

I love vintage postcards! :D

I'm hosting my own little Halloween party and offering The Turnagain Arm for free on Amazon today and tomorrow. Get your free copy here!

If you have time to share about the promotion on Twitter or elsewhere I'd really appreciate it!

Happy Halloween!

Giveaway Reminder, a Blog Award, and a Free Book!

Just a reminder that the deadline to enter my Sixth Month Anniversary Giveaway is Saturday, June 11th, at midnight, Eastern Standard Time. If you want to enter for a chance to win an Amazon gift certificate or some great vampire books, just leave a comment here. Thanks to everyone who has already entered or commented in the thread!

Also, I was thrilled to win a giveaway myself earlier this week. Amy at The Ramblings of Amy gave away some copies of her book They Walk, which is the first in a trilogy. I haven't had the chance to start reading it yet, but I've no doubt it will be great, and I was very excited to win a copy of the book. So I wanted to send a big thank you to Amy, and encourage everyone who is not already familiar with her blog to check it out!

Thanks are also due to L. Carroll at Lor Mandela. She was kind enough to surprise me with The Irresistibly Sweet Blog Award, even calling my little home here "the cat's meow." :D I am very grateful and appreciate the award so much. Lor Mandela is another great blog and I would encourage everyone to take a look if you are not already a follower.

So thank you again to Amy and L. Carroll for bringing smiles to my week with these great surprises!

Happy weekend, everyone! :)