Authors in Bloom Giveaway Hop!

Welcome, hoppers!

Now just because I only planted my first garden last summer, don’t think my post stop isn’t clearly the one you should read the most thoroughly and take to heart!

I have one stellar piece of gardening advice and here it is:

Leave. It. Alone.

Brilliant, right? Okay, maybe I should give a little background so you can appreciate the wisdom of those words.

I’ve had plants in my life. Lots, actually. And I’ve killed them all. Even my “indestructible” brain cactus grew some sort of fungus and died. (It may or may not be relevant that the rotting began after my cat ate a chunk out of the plant, but at least the cat went on to live a long and happy life.)

ANYWAY – last summer I finally identified the root (pun intended) of my planticide career: trying too hard. Every plant in my past passed because I over-watered, over-sunned, or over-thought it to death.

So when I began the garden, assuming nothing would make it, I planted a gazillion seeds and didn’t even dare hope for the best. But when I checked the pots days later, the seeds had magically ALL sprouted. And of course the first thing I wanted to do was, well, something. Water them, touch them, anything. But for once I decided to just leave them alone, and when I checked them again after the 2^nd week, this is what I found:

Unbelievable, right? I actually ended up with so many healthy plants that I couldn’t fit them all in my garden plot!

But don’t cue the happily-ever-after music just yet. (Although you shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that I reverted back to my murderous ways, either!)

This is the point where a self-proclaimed gardener extraordinaire threw in her two cents about which vines needed to be cut and which plants had to be moved. Sadly, after following her expert advice, 7 of my 8 beautiful young pumpkins died, along with all but one of my watermelons and my entire cauliflower and pea sections. 

If only I’d left them alone, I could’ve raked in cash hand-over-fist at a roadside stand instead of ending up back at the market purchasing the fruits of someone else’s labor. Or non-labor, really, which is what I now know is the key!

But wait - there's more than just free advice here today;
there are prizes, too:

My giveaway here at BWATE? is a set of 2 ebooks (the first 2 of my SOLID series): 

AND Dianne Venetta is giving also giving away an EREADER and a $25 gift card to start filling it up! (Winning one prize doesn't exclude from winning the other; you can win both.)

To enter BOTH giveaways:

Follow this blog and leave a comment/question,
along with a way to contact you.

Optional Extra Entries:

+1 Follow on Twitter

+1 Like Solid Series on Facebook 
+1 Add series to your to-read list on Goodreads

Winners will be chosen from the comments ACROSS ALL OF THE PARTICIPATING BLOGS, so here are the notable points:

1. Leave a comment here that includes your contact email address.

2. Leave a separate comment for each additional entry (i.e. follow the blog and leave a comment that you did so, then leave another comment once you follow on Twitter, a third once you've followed on FB, and a final one for the GR add, allowing up to 4 entries here).

3. Visit as many of the other blogs as you can, leaving comments with contact information there as well.

4. The hop runs from April 10th through the 19th; last day to enter is April 19th. 

Good luck to you all - Happy Reading and Happy Spring!

 Participating blogs:

		1.  Dianne Venetta (INTL)   2.  Rose Anderson   3.  Margay Leah Justice   4.  Catherine Chant   5.  PJ Sharon   6.  Darcy Flynn (US)   7.  Katharina Gerlach   8.  Amy Saunders   9.  DarcyholicDiversions/Barbara Tiller Cole   10.  Sheila Seabrook   11.  Mina Khan   12.  Caron Rider   13.  Lakisha Spletzer   14.  Christie Palmer   15.  Karl Fields   16.  Beverly Nault   17.  Shelley Workinger   18.  Samantha March   19.  Cat Lavoie   20.  Courtney Vail - Gotta Have YA   21.  Lisa Lim   22.  Candy Ann Little   23.  Lynette Sofras   24.  Boys on the Brink   25.  Dee S White (INTL)   26.  Patti Callahan Henry   27.  Elizabeth Allen   28.  Maria Geraci   29.  Linda Andrews   30.  Mary L. Laudien   31.  Edie Ramer   32.  Kate Copsey   33.  Kate Austin   34.  Best-Selling author Jennifer Conner   35.  Anna Patterson   36.  Bestselling Author Danica Winters   37.  Sharon Kleve's Romantic Ramblings   38.  Jennie Bentley   39.  Leanne Tyler   40.  Stacy Juba's One Stop Reading   41.  Gemma Juliana   42.  Kara Ashley Dey   43.  Dey for Love   44.  Sara Walter Ellwood   45.  Jennifer Lowery   46.  Summer Kinard   47.  Tracy Solheim   48.  Alexa Grace   49.  Teena Stewart   50.  Cynthia Vespia - Author of Thrills and Chills   51.  J.D. Faver   52.  Laina Turner - Being Fabulous is a Skill   53.  Lise Saffran   54.  Ninette Swann   55.  Jencey Gortney   56.  Kaira Rouda   57.  A Cozy Readers Corner