And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.

- Sylvia Plath, via Rose

Me to my alarm clock this morning: I’m sorry I think you have the wrong number…

The next episode of Twenty-Somewhere will be posted later this week, when I’m done freaking out about this:

Kristan,

Thank you for participating in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. We received thousands of submissions and were impressed with the incredible talent and creativity demonstrated by participating authors this year. We are happy to inform you that you have been selected to move forward in the contest.

Now that you’re a Quarterfinalist, Amazon customers can read, rate and review your excerpt while your manuscript is being reviewed by Publishers Weekly. Last year, tens of thousands of reviews were written by customers and fellow contestants giving authors valuable feedback on their writing. You can find your excerpt on Amazon.com via the following link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001UG3AIM, and access the main contest page where all entries are located at www.amazon.com/abna.

Good luck!

(Emphasis added by me, because that’s what it looked/felt like when I read it.)

While I go lie down and try to recover from the shock, PLEASE GO RATE/REVIEW ME! And though I’m not explicitly asking you to give me high ratings just so I can move forward in the contest and possibly achieve my wildest dreams, I will say that you could always rate your support of me and then tell me what you really think via email… (COUGH COUGH)

Omgomgomgomgomgomgomg…

UPDATE: To clarify, Amazon also has special reviewers reading my Full Manuscript, and their evaluation combined with the 2 reviews of my Excerpt and the ratings/reviews I get from the public, will be used to decide whether or not I move forward.

So to help me, please download (for free) the Excerpt, and then submit a rating & review. The higher the rating, the more points (or “votes”) I get as part of my equation.

I would also love to know your feedback, whether you want to post it publicly or just email me privately.

Again, thankyouthankyouthankyou! (And yes, I’m still bugging out.)

We just got back from a St. Patrick’s Day barbecue at our friend’s place, where Riley got to play with two other pups. In other words, I just endured 3 HOURS OF THIS:

Needless to say, Riley is currently passed the f-ck out.

But I do love that moment right before the video ends, when Riley gives me a look like, “Hehehe… Think I should go after her?”

Because he will lick your face.

(“Eeewww!” “Grooooossss!” I know, I know.)

In preparation for a Girls’ Night I’m hosting at my place in a couple weeks, I told my friends that they’d have to watch out because Riley is a big licker. They said they were looking forward to it. I said, “No no, you have no idea how much this puppy licks. He licked Andy’s face 178 times!”

Eyes wide, Kate asked, “In a week?”

I laughed. “In a 2-minute span.”

It’s their nightly ritual.