Altered is now available on smashwords.com. YAY! To view for pricing, please click the link or visit my website. Thanks!! http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/422341

Now that summer has come to an end, and we've said a very happy goodbye to heat and humidity, it's time for a change. I don't know how you feel, but whenever cooler temperatures start my day, I feel different. More energized and simply...happy. Look around and notice that people are smiling more and seem to be in a better mood. I came across a saying that I now think is my new way of thinking. "Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and start being positive about what could go right." Read it again, but this time slowly. Do you feel like it was meant just for you? I know I did. So many of us go through the motions of life being afraid of the "what if's" and letting it control our emotions. And yes, even the weather can contribute to this. Take the time today to breathe in the coolness of the season and a new way of thinking. Here's to many smiles and much happiness in your life!

As summer sets like the sun, so does another school year. One transition leads to another. And before I could let it really sink in, both my children are in their last year of school. Wait! I just called them children. Yes, they will always be my children. But in their eyes, one is an adult and one is right at his heels. Independence here they come! Having a senior in high school and a senior in college is both a blessing and a WHOA SLOW DOWN all wrapped and tucked inside a book sack. Strange how you can cry tears of joy and a bit of sadness at the same time.
How many of you have pictures of your little ones on their first day of preschool? Count me in too! All smiles with maybe a tooth missing. Yep, too cute and refrigerator worthy. I held that picture next to the current one this year and I can still see that little person hiding somewhere in there. But want to know what I really see? A job well done! It's not just about making good grades in school. It's the whole package.
So, to all of those kicking off another year of school, and let's not forget the parents that guided you every step, I say WAY TO GO! Keep setting goals and reaching them. YOU are the best part of our future.

It's been a while since I've blogged. And to be honest, I feel like an old friend as just come to visit...or at least come to say hey for a short bit of luck.

March 17th is St. Patrick's Day, and if you have a little green running through your veins like me, it's a good reason to smile. Most associate the day with wearing green, drinking green beer, going to a parade, and eating something green for good luck. Count me in for all of the above!!

Okay, here's a little trivia for ya:
Which two U.S. rivers are died green every year on St. Patrick's Day?
No, it's not any river green beer is poured in. It's the San Antonio River and Chicago River.

It's also a legend that if you wear green on this special day, you become invisible to leprechauns. You know, those sneaky little creatures who want to take your pot of gold. So whatever your treasure is on this day, or river you plan on turning green, I hope you find your LUCK OF THE IRISH and hold it close to your heart.

HAPPY ST. PARTRICK'S DAY EVERYONE!!

What's that I see?

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house,
the warmth from the fireplace was stirring about.

Some were sleeping, some were anxious just staring at the clock.
Then the child jumped up and yelled, "Santa's on our block!"

Everyone gathered at the window, hoping to catch a glimpse,
and with great surprise they saw Santa walking with a limp.

"What's wrong?" asked the child, with worry in his eyes.
"He's just tired," said the Dad. He really didn't know why.

Santa knocked on the door and they quickly let him in.
The child offered him his hand and led him to the den.

With a sack full of toys thrown over his back,
all the child wanted was for Santa to take nap.

No toys, no gifts would interest him tonight,
for he saw someone in need and wanted to make it right.

Many years had passed and the child was now grown.
Then one December night he sat with a child of his own.

He told him of the Christmas he helped heal a friend.
Not by medicine, or doctors, but by simply letting him in.

"Look at life with your heart," said the dad to the child.
"For that will never fail you, and always make you smile."

On November 10th, Heart of Louisiana held its annual luncheon at the beautiful Juban's restaurant. I'm going to let you in on a little secret...I WISH YOU COULD HAVE BEEN THERE!!!

Here's what you missed. Over 100 avid readers and fans mingling with 30 authors who are also avid readers and fans. Everyone eating, laughing, and winning great prizes. Yep, you read right...winning! And I mean in more ways than one. How could you not with a room full of people just like you, right?

The multi-talented, best selling New York Times (and the list goes on) author, HEATHER GRAHAM, was our speaker. Not only is she talented in the showing, not telling, of ghost stories...she's also that type of person you feel you've known forever. How does she do it, I wonder?

I've posted a few pictures below. But feel free to check out the HeartLa site for lots more https://www.facebook.com/pages/Heart-of-Louisiana-Baton-Rouge-Chapter-of-Romance-Writers-of-America/150635784936

Next year, I'm looking for you!!  Have a wonderful week everyone!



Some of the authors you missed. I'm somewhere in the back!

Me with Heather Graham.

Me with Diana Rowland author of the White Trash Zombie novels and many more!

I'll bet if you look in your photo album, you'd find lots of pictures of you dressed in your, at the time, favorite Halloween costume. Now...look a little closer. Real close as in close enough to see the candy in your pumpkin. Or maybe it's scattered all over the floor. Those were some of my favorite times.

Here's where you'll have to find a little trivia. In your stash, that I'm sure you didn't share with anyone, right? Okay, back to business. In your stash of goodies, you had the first wrapped candy made in America. Yep, that's right. The first! Can you guess what it is? Here's a hint. It's chewy, chocolatey, and oh sooo good.

One more hint. You probably already grabbed a few from your candy to give out on Halloween night. Remember, it's individually wrapped. Well, I'm sure the picture below gave it away, so I'll let you slide on this one. Have a safe and memorable Halloween everyone! And while you're unwrapping your Tootsie Roll, you're eating a bit of history.

Have you ever wanted to spend the day with a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author? Does the name Heather Graham sound like a good lunch date? Would you like to be surrounded in a room full of other authors and fans enjoying a wonderful lunch followed by a book signing where you can mingle with all your new friends? Oh come on...of course you do.

I'm personally inviting you to join me and be the envy of all your friends on November 10th in Baton Rouge, Louisiana at the beautiful Juban's Restaurant. For more information, ticket prices, and a list of all scheduled authors, click below. We're all looking forward to meeting you!!

http://heartla.com/luncheon/index.htm

It's hard to believe a full year has passed since the release of my debut novel Altered. I'm sure so many of you can relate to something in your life happening, and in your mind, you see it a certain way that fits you perfectly. What we imagine and dream up, most of the time, is not always as good as the real deal. So to all of you who supported me I want to say THANKS. You made reality so much sweeter. Without my family, friends, bloggers, my publisher, editors, fans, librarians, book stores, teachers, and everyone who just stopped by out of curiosity, Altered would still be rattling around somewhere in my mind, waiting to be published. Yep, I like the way things turned out much better!




Happy 1st Birthday!

Happy summer everyone!

Any plans tonight? I'll be the guest author on a blog talk radio show, Journal Jabber sponsored by The Eyes for Editing, at 8pm Central time, 9pm Est. You can call in at 858-365-5540, or log in at

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/journaljabber/2012/07/18/laura-burks--it-all-began-on-friday-the-13th.

Let's chat. It'll be fun!

WRITE...
W...What do I want to capture for my story.
R ... Reach a target audience.
I ...  Ignore bad comments.
T ... Treat your story as fiction and don't ignore real life.
E ... Each word matters -- and so do you.

If you're like me, summer is here and some daily routines are pushed aside and forgotten. Writing is one of them. I have to remind myself, as soon as I open my eyes because it's the first thing that pops in my mind, to not give up. That it's okay to take some time off and live in a reality world and not partially consummed in a fictional one. Yes, as a writer, and you know who you are, it's a real challenge to shut some voices off. What helps is knowing that you're not the only one out there that feels the same way. I guess that could apply to just about anything in life, right?

Here's the dilemma. How do you not let negative comments get in the way of you continuing to do what you enjoy doing? I read blogs and reviews often where those who are published get bad reviews. And you know what's even more frustating, when you read the review, most of them are so far off the mark. It's almost like the person skimmed over the words and never actually read the meaning. I'll admit, I've had a few myself. But I'm lucky I guess. It's only been two. Now watch me post this and ten show up today. Would that be bad karma or what?

I've decided it doesn't matter if you do what others expect you to. Do what makes you happy. Even if it means checking off the dream that came true and pursuing another one.

Have a great and safe summer everyone!

Have you ever read a book where some parts stay with you and really make you think? Well, that just happened to me. I recently read a book where the main character was able to get a glimpse of her mother in heaven where she saw her happy and reading a book. READING A BOOK? Yes, I thought that part was so sweet.

Here's my take on this. There are literally more books out there than we could count. Okay, maybe we could count them, but that part, I'd pass to someone else. But if there are books there to be read, I wonder which ones would make it, and which ones would not. For me, I'd like to think my grandmother would be holding mine. She passed years ago, but I felt her presence many days while writing ALTERED. If I could hear her, she'd probably tell me, in her spunky Italian way, "Laura, why did you work so hard. You just about drove your Granny crazy with worry." Then she'd smile and say, "I'm so proud of you. You did it. Now do something else that doesn't have you loosing sleep and not eating." If you know an Italian family, you'd know everything revolves around eating! :)

So here's my question for you. If you were granted a glimpse of a friend or family member who has passed and they were reading a book, what would you pick for them? Tough question, I know, but you do it.

Happy Reading Everyone! :)

I love it when I read blogs from people so passionate about books, reading, and authors that they spend countless hours supporting their work. It's through this fairly new social explosion that so many of us who write have a chance to get to know, not only the bloggers personally, but followers as well. Gotta love social media, right? Where else can you meet people all over the world and not have to worry about your hair and make-up, or if you're still in your p.j.'s?

Yes, writing today is traveling down a new road with the type of marketing and we have bloggers to thank for letting us tag along for the ride.

When you get a chance, please visit my website http://www.lauraburks.com/ and scroll down the first page under "Appearances on the web" and show some love to the bloggers who have been so kind to me. Some even host contest with cool prizes!

Today, I added a new blog - Golden Apple YA Book Reviews. When she reaches 100 followers, you'll have a chance to win. But I can't tell you what just yet. It's a surprise.

So to make an ever growing story short, THANK YOU BLOGGERS, for making life a little sweeter!

ALTERED is now available on the B&N site for Nook customers. YAY! It's great to be part of the family. Click on the cover for their direct link. Thanks! :)

I have to share this story because I think it's an eye opener.

Recently, I had the privilege of meeting a middle school student who reminded me of how any obstacle in our life we can overcome...and do it with style. This young boy is blind and partially deaf, and despite his challenges, stood in front of 100 hundred students to present a bill.

Now, for those of you who do not know, I work with the youth in my area and this is the time of year where they participate in a youth legislator program designed to learn the legislative process. It’s in this process that I see so many mature and shine with pride as they see their hard work pay off. It really is a lot of fun for everyone, including me. Yes, I’m a lucky girl!

Anyway, back to my moment. As all the students and teachers listened to him read from his sheet in Braille, I stood by his side watching from the podium. Again, lucky me!

Here’s where the build-up moment happened. When it came time to vote, he had no idea what was happening. I helped him to the front of the podium, choking back tears the entire time, and I told him every single person was standing for his bill to pass. Not one single person voted against. He had a smile from ear to ear. And as I looked out into the crowd of middle school students, I saw something incredible…compassion and a truly humbling experience. Do I believe that they all voted because of what they saw? No. He did an awesome job, and I do believe they made a decision based on what they did not see.

Some days you don’t know what will come your way, but if you look beyond what you see with your eyes, you'll be amazed how much more is waiting for you. Once again, I'm one lucky girl!!

Have a great week everyone!!

Some of you might think I'll start this blog talking about hitting the clubs on the weekend, right? Nope, not that type of clubing. Although those can be the topic of a great blog, I have another type that has proved to be more rewarding...and less of a headache the next day. Can you guess where I'm going with this?

Tonight, I was invited to dinner with a great group of ladies (The Baton Rouge Book Club) for their monthly meeting. Ah...now you know what type of club I'm talking about. And let me tell you, it can be just as much fun! They read ALTERED for February, and then we all gathered together for some interesting conversations. Questions flowed just as freely as the good food and wine. For me, it was exciting to learn first hand what drove them to certain scenes and kept them wanting more. Social media is nice, but it doesn't get any better than face to face contact.

This is the second book club meeting I've been invited to share my work, and I have to admit, I'm hooked. To see the look on someone's face when they're talking about their favorite character is priceless. And I thought I was the only one who could be that animated!

So to all of my book CLUBING friends, whether I've met you personally, or you've contacted me online...THANK YOU!  You are the reason I write with a smile.  :)



The Baton Rouge Book Club: back row...Susan Menard, Mary Speranza, Ellen Manint, Kirbye Hollier, Jenny Anding, Tammy Joseph. front row...Leah Shelton, Gina Zeringue, Laura Burks, Sarah Munn, and Lisa Lloyd