I just checked my MySpace account, and I’m up to 408 friends. I’m trying to friend fellow authors and readers who may enjoy either or both my adult romances and my young adult fiction. It’s a little more than 13 weeks until my first book, A Firefighter in the Family, hits shelves, and I’d like to be up to at least 1,000 friends on MySpace by then. So if you have a MySpace account (or know someone who does who might be interested in my books), zip on over to my MySpace page and add me as a friend. When A Firefighter in the Family is released on Sept. 9, I’ll draw a name randomly from among my MySpace friends to receive a free copy.

I’ve been working the past few days on some promotional efforts, casting a wider net online. The book business is so tight right now that authors have to depend on their own promotional efforts more and more to generate sales. To me, it’s important to do this in a smart way, taking advantage of as many no- and low-cost promotional alternatives as possible.

I already have a MySpace page, which I updated this weekend, and I’m going to check out Facebook and Bebo soon. I also just joined Goodreads, which is a social networking site with a focus on books. Hey, right up my alley! I joined their Authors program, so there’s now info there on what I’m reading, books I’ve ranked, my upcoming appearances, my books, etc. Check it out and “friend” me if it looks like a site you’d enjoy.

I’ll be keeping an updated list of all the sites I’m involved with on the Home page of my site.

I’ve written 96 pages since last Sunday, so by the time I finish working today I’ll have written more than 100 pages this week. No wonder my brain feels abused. I wrote 16 yesterday and could have pushed myself to write more, but after writing that many pages in so few days I took the evening off to rest and just veg. I watched the Katie Holmes/Marc Blucas (Riley from Buffy) movie First Daughter, last night’s episode of Stargate Atlantis — no Ronon in sight , and The Prince and Me 2: Royal Wedding. Yes, I’m getting into that YA state of mind since I’ll have to start working on YA #2 after I finish The Willow Creek Cafe and the line edits that are their way to me on A Firefighter in the Family.

Hey, anyone out there with a MySpace page? If so and you want to link to mine, you can see it in all of its Will Turner glory here.

Don’t forget to comment on the blog here before the end of the day tomorrow to be in the running to win the bag o’ books and other goodies.

Also, voting for the American Title contest is still under way for Round 4. My manuscript, OUT OF SIGHT, is one of the four finalists and I’d appreciate any votes. To read the entries and vote, visit this page.