Tag Archives: Blogiversary

Blogiversary Guest Ainsley Wynter: Sliding Into 2021 and Leaving the Ghosts of 2020 Behind

Hi friends! I’m very pleased to welcome [back] Ainsley Wynter to our blogiversary celebration! (Especially since 😬😅 I still owe her a review… reviews?) And seriously – I think we’re all in on this topic, yeah? [I think … it might be important to note that she sent it to me on January 4th…]  So without further ado, Ainsley!

SLIDING INTO 2021 AND LEAVING THE GHOSTS OF 2020 BEHIND
By Ainsley Wynter

Kissed at Midnight by Ainsley Wynter book coverAs the door closed on 2020, I was one of the people who slid out without saying much of a goodbye. At midnight on New Years Eve I sat on the couch with my kids and husband and watched the ball drop—twice, since I live in the Midwest—and then went to bed. I did that heroine thing of holding a breath that I didn’t know I was holding. Some time later on the morning of January 1st, I carefully blew it out. Maybe 2021 wouldn’t be a total shitshow. Maybe we could leave some of the awful in the past year behind. Continue reading

Blogiversary Guest Jody Wallace: Cats Are As Perfect As Books

Hi friends! I can believe it less than you, possibly, A LITTLE BIT TART, A LITTLE BIT SWEET HAS TURNED 10! I put out a few calls on social media asking for people to help celebrate, and the wonderful Jody Wallace was all over it, so a big thank you to Jody! <3 She’s also got some pretty amazing prizes up for grabs, so read till the end. Yes, every guest post in January will have a giveaway! (And some of the other ones too …)  We’re starting out 2021 right here at ALBTALBS! So without further ado … Jody!

Cats Are As Perfect As Books

Curled up PipLimecello told me I could write about whatever I wanted, so let’s talk about cats. Specifically, our new cat, Pip. She’s five pounds of sass and attitude, and we have not yet fully integrated her into our household of four people, one bearded dragon, and two dopey dude cats and two old lady cats. First we maintained a general ‘getting a shelter cat healthy’ quarantine and now we’re having to maintain a ‘turns out the sad little shelter cat has a ton of attitude once she feels better’ quarantine. Continue reading

We’ve Hit Double Digits! AKA ALBTALBS Turns 10!

Happy 2021! We made it! Limecello here. 

Hi friends! I’m writing this as I watch the game. There are less than 5 minutes left. I “opened” this post just as the game started so … my emotions have been ALL OVER the place. Which … is kind of how A Little Bit Tart, A Little Bit Sweet has been since its inception.

The past few years, if you’ve stuck around, you know have been slow. For various reasons. First and the biggest being blogs are a “bygone” thing … but also there’s just … a lot going on here with the crew. I’m a mess. Others in the review crew have a lot going on. At least one of us is still in school.

So! I really wanted to thank you for sticking with us! <3

I’m really going to try to post at least a BIT more regularly. Definitely Aidee and Babs are really consistent with providing reviews. Faster than I post them. 😬😅 So there’s that to look forward to.
I’d like to revive the Smithsonian Heritage Months … we’ll see how that goes. (If anyone would be interested in participating, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!)

As a thank you, nearly every post will include a giveaway this month. All the guest author posts will, definitely. And you know what? SO WILL THIS ONE!

I want to be clear, anyone is always welcome to enter any A Little Bit Tart, A Little Bit Sweet giveaway. Sometimes there will be US-only giveaways because of location, or different prizes… and/but here’s one for the authors. I’ll do a 50 page beta read of anything you send me. I might do more, but I promise to read and comment on at least 50 pages. I tend to edit as I go, so you’ll get that too. I’ve beta read and edited for NYT and USA Today best sellers in the past, and was the editor-in-chief of a law journal.

Comment on this post, and throughout the month … I’ll be drawing a name at the end of the blogiversary. If you’d like me to do a beta read, drop a comment here and if you want, the gist of your story. The winners will as always be drawn randomly to keep things fair.

Anyway, thanks for sticking around, I hope you win a prize or two, and you’re also always welcome to write a guest post or review!

*ETA: As some clarification … Please add in your comment if you want to enter the beta read giveaway. I’m going to assume everyone who has already commented is a yes, just in case, unless I personally know the person or they tell me not later … but anyone after 6 PM on Saturday, January 2nd, please indicate whether or not you’re interested in the beta read. Thanks!

HNY: Welcome 2020! ALBTALBS Is Old As Shit!

… So that title is pretty indicative of my mood.

But! Before we get there – Happy New Year, Lovelies! <3 🎉🎊🍾🥂

ALBTALBS turns 9 this year. (I guess there are a few posts from December 2010 but … whatever those were kinda tacked on I think so we’ll just go with January 2011 being the official start so I can [hah!] perhaps plan some sort of big blogiversary bash for next year. >.>)

It’s been kinda a rough year for Team ALBTALBS, and Babs is our (only) rockstar reviewer. Shout out to Babs, who is the absolute best.

The rest of us are, uh, gonna try to do better. (Honestly our baseline shouldn’t make it that difficult … >.>)

And now … I didn’t talk about the Cristiane Serruya plagiarism mess last year because I felt like so many other people had covered it better. And I believe it was right before I was put out of commission for a few months. There was the “Cocky”™ mess … as well as a number of other trademark messes … But if you don’t know about what’s happening with RWA … the last time I read it (last week?) Claire Ryan had one of the best timeline/summaries. I’d also like to note – I’m not calling it “drama” or a “kerfluffle” because this isn’t some whatever shit. It’s serious on multiple levels – the racism, the implosion of a major professional organization … the multiple (unending it seems) levels of bad actions and bad actors…

So yeah. We’re just gonna truck along. Hopefully blogs make something of a comeback. And hopefully A Little Bit Tart, A Little Bit Sweet is along for that ride.

Thanks so much for sticking with us! <3 I often wonder if I should just shutter the whole thing. But for now … we’ll be here. I’d love to know if you’re still here with us too. <3

ALBTALBS Celebrates Our 7th Blogiversary with a $7 Ad Spot Sale

Hi friends! So, as you see, ALBTALBS turned 7! No real giveaways or other celebratory things planned for now. … If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know my “try too hard” … died? (A while ago…) Also I’ve had … you know… *gestures expansively* a lot going on. And because this is a question I see still … “What is ALBTALBS?” … ALBTALBS = A Little Bit Tart, A Little Bit Sweet. The name of this site. 😀

I’m really trying to bring ALBTALBS back though, with more regular posting, and I’ve got an awesome review crew and help and just, major shout out to N.R., Babs, Karen, Aidee, and Mary. [We may not be the most prolific, but we are stalwart!]

So anyway, for now, the most celebratory thing I’m doing is offering a month of ad space for $7. This will be the lowest price offered, and is good through January 15th. (Normally ad spots are $15/month.) If you’re interested, please let me know. Space is limited. Continue reading

Blogiversary Guest: Luanna Stewart

Hi friends! Can you believe it? ALBTALBS is five! Five! I know! We’re limping along here, and I’ve got a bunch of fun guests this month. I also have to say I LOVE this post and OMG COOKIES. Thank you, Luanna!!! She’s kicking off all the wonderful festivities with delicious treats.

I’ve asked everyone participating in the blogiversary festivities to come up with a list of “Top 5” or “5 Favorite” or just anything remotely related to the number 5. 😀

My Five favourite cookie recipes:

Yes, it’s the season for New Year resolutions. But I’ve never met a resolution that hasn’t failed. Whether it’s to eat less, or exercise more, (or vice versa? I suppose there could be people who need to put on weight and slow down) I generally get to late January and my willpower goes on hiatus. Continue reading

Let’s Talk Books!

RiseSo my friends, “Best of” lists are popping up everywhere … and this year I’m jumping on that train again. I was the first to do “most anticipated” lists … but I can’t handle that these days. I’m still working on documenting all the books I’ve read this year in GoodReads. We’ll see how that goes.

What I want to know is – what books have you read this year that you would recommend? Or what authors?

I’m planning on doing a “top ten” list at some point … but like Wendy said – what if I read a favorite book on December 31?? So, I’m holding off until the new year. 😀

[And if anyone would like to or be willing to help me celebrate ALBTALB’s fifth blogiversary in January please let me know!] <3

Blogiversary Guest: Elizabeth Andrews

Hello my friends, and happy weekend to you! I can’t believe this is the last day in January. How nutters, right? Time has been zooming by as usual, but we’re still on … blogiversary! In fact, today we have newbie (to ALBTLABS) author Elizabeth Andrews! As she hasn’t been here before I hope you’ll show her lots of love. 🙂 In fact, she responded to a twitter call about posts, and look how it all worked out. Plus she has all the bases covered, so there will be no more commentary from me! So without further ado … Elizabeth!

First of all, I’d like to thanks Limecello for hosting me today. Happy blogiversary! Here’s to many more!

I’ve been pondering celebrations. There are so many reasons for them: anniversaries, weddings, new jobs, retirement, births, birthdays, holidays. Heck, I’ve been known to celebrate just having a day off from my Evil Day-job. Continue reading

Blogiversary Guest: Fiona Lowe!

My doves I am so happy to be writing this post and not doing anything else! If only I could turn playing with you all into a career. Alas, this is a money pit instead of a money maker. But I guess that’s why they call things a labor of love, yes? >.> Ahem. ANYWAY – no downers here! Today we have Fiona Lowe! Whee! To my shock, she’s a first time ALBTALBS guest! Everyone give her a really super warm welcome! Now, Fiona’s got all the good stuff – giveaway etc – covered, so this is the last you’ll hear from me! 😀 Yay copy and paste! 😉

Sing Happy Birthday, blow out the candles! Happy 4th blogiversary to Limecello! Continue reading

Blogiversary + Teaser Tuesday Exclusive Excerpt: Ahead in the Heat by Lorelie Brown

Hello darlings!!! I can’t believe January is coming to a close. Meep! So, I’m glad everything has continued on as scheduled, and fingers crossed for a fabulous 2015! Along those fabulous lines, we have our good friend Lorelie Brown with us today, sharing a very tasty excerpt of her newest release Ahead in the Heat (which just came out on January 6th). Whoo! Enjoy! <3 Continue reading