I couldn’t decide at first whether to jump for joy or reign in my excitement when another writer, Dierdre Eden-Coppel, sent me her “Fantastic fantasy writer” blog award. My inner voice tells me my blogs aren’t that good, although I always try to add some wordplay fun. So with a skeptical attitude I checked out her blog athttp://astorybookworld.blogspot.com/. Now I'm a convert.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a professional writer illustrator who’s farther along the road to publishing than I am, and with a much more developed platform. She does agent and author interviews, always in demand for writers. And she really does give out attractive awards she designed to people whose blogs she enjoys, different awards for different types of blogs. Even if she does all this to publicize her own illustration talents, which are pretty impressive, it’s a mutually beneficial arrangement and very clever marketing. I could learn a thing or three, maybe a few hundred things, from Dierdra. 

She even has a waiting list, in the thousands, of people signed up to read her books when they come out. She’s got more followers by sweet enticement than I’ve eaten chocolates this month. That’s a lot. Excuse me while I wipe my chin. It’s August in Florida, and even those candy coated chocolate pieces melt on my mouth, not my hands. Go figure, or eat chocolate.

Yes, I’m brown-nosing here, but let’s redefine that term to mean smelling chocolate so close up as to earn the mark of fine chocolate connoisseur. This type of brown-nosing is what every author must do to attract readers. To tempt the finicky ones, maybe my book should come with a chocolate cover instead of a chocolate moose and gummy bears inside. Brown-nosing aside, I need to heat up my platform to the melting point of chocolate until the whole world shares it.

Since my blog advertises “Care for a cause and have pun doing it”, you might as well make winning my first blog contest your cause. With visions of chocolate melting in the mail, I've added another prize offering. Now I'm giving one free $10 box of chocolates (US shipping only) or a $10 gift card (wherever shipping costs under $5), winner's choice on both, by random drawing. The contest closes at midnight US Central time September 10, 2011, so I can hold the drawing on September 11, a day I can't forget.

Here’s what to do, one entry point each:

1. Like my author page on facebook: Sher A. Hart

2. Like my website: www. sherahart.com. You only need to click the like button on one of the pages.

3. Follow this blog: http://sherahart.blogspot.com/. 

4. Share the same blog on either facebook or twitter or both (tell me your id).

5. Optional: Link to my blog from your blog or my website from your website (tell me the URL). If you're another writer who gives writing help and want your author website link included on the "Read and Write Right" page of my website, email me your info using the "Contact and Interact" page of www.sherahart.com.

6. Leave a brown-nosing comment on either blog with which things you did, your point total and email address so I can email you if you win. 

Disclaimer: This writer takes no responsibility for the use of prize chocolate. Chocolate consumption should be done in moderation. Eat responsibly and do not drive while under the influence of chocolate. This message paid for by the choco-lick book advertising council.