Whoever said you can’t buy happiness forgot little puppies.- Gene Hill

One of my yearly pleasures is watching the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. This year was no exception as I sat admiring the beautiful animals and picking my favorites. Unfortunately, I have way too many favorites!

Kudos to Best In Show winner Ch K-Run’s Park Me In First. Uno is the first Beagle to win best in show in the history of the competition!

  Uno was ‘on’ last night, projecting the aura of a champion! The crowd went wild each time he made a circle of the ring. We’ll be seeing a lot of Uno over the coming year.

Uno was actually my second choice for BiS. I was cheering for the winner of the Terrier group–Ch Hidalgo at Goodspice. Was a cutie–who I though was also projecting a great image. But, as with everything, there can only be one winner.

 **Tough or not, most dogs can lick the entire family**

 I’m a doxie lover so can’t resist adding a picture of the long-hair who was second in the hound group. Ch Solo’s Drag-Queen SL (love the name!) She’s quite the lady, huh?

It wasn’t that long ago it was rare to see a female winning best in group. This year five of the seven group winners were girls. Woo hoo!

The most difficult part of watching the dog show is the commercials. Pedigree brands are doing a wonderful job with their *Dogs Rule* campaign–aiding in adoption and providing food and necessities to shelters. Just choosing to buy Pedigree for your dog will increase the donations. Check it out at www.dogsrule.com. Anyway, those commercials…i want to bring home every one of those puppies! Yep, I’m the person you hear sobbing during the scene in Disney’s Lady and the Tramp when the pound dogs are singing about home. Sigh.

My household recently increased with the addition of two Shelties. Brother and sister, Sean and Constance are sweet. well-behaved dogs who love everybody. Even the cat, who does nothing but hiss at them. I’ll post pictures when I gst some uploadable! 

I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me they are the role model for being alive. - Gilda Radner

“You can’t build a reputation on what you’re going to do.” - Henry Ford     

 In one form or another branding has been used to show possession by all civilizations. Hieroglyphics from tombs in ancient Egypt show workers branding cattle in 2000 BCE. Throughout history brands have also been applied to humans, at times to prove possession, but more often as a sign to others of punishment, occupation or belief. Today, branding is used as a form of body art.     

   (thanks to thDevil’s Rope Museun for the brand collage)  

Not my style, and not what I want to talk about today.   As consumers we’re inundated with brands, both for products and the places we purchase those necessities from. Because of this type of branding we know what we’re getting when we shell out a buck—or more. Companies count on us remembering their brands, and coming back for more. 
 Branding in the writing world—why should authors be any different?
 Branding for authors–having a phrase or design that will allow readers to instantly know who you are or what type of book they’re holding in their hands–is a hot topic in the writing world.                                                                                                                               {symbol for my new series-                                                           Children of the Triad} 
 Some authors have a stylized design to represent them or a series they’ve written. Nora Roberts’ monogram instantly alerts readers to a newly published work. Authors struggle over creating a ‘tag line’, a short phrase that will represent their work to the reading public.  My own *romance with a sparkling twist*  took more thinking time than a whole chapter of a work in progress. Even the way my name is presented is my brand—using the *  and no capitals (yes, this is a nod to e. e. cummings) is memorable.

  For the most part, however, authors are their own brand–Nora Roberts, John Grisham, Steven King. Creating works of similar genre and reader satisfaction nurtures author identity that the readers recognize and comes back to.  Hopefully over and over again.
   This kind of author branding isn’t new. Fans of Dickens waited impatiently for the next installment of a tale. His name was enough to bring readers to the newspaper. Just as a play by Shakespeare brought patron to the theatre. Ah, even now, don’t cha just hate waiting for the next book from one of your favorite authors? 

What’s the best way to create your own author brand? That’s easy. No, you don’t need to fret over a string of words describing your work—though that can be a satisfying exercise and look great on your business cards. The key is—listen closely now—write the very best books you can. Telling folks I write romance with a twist doesn’t do anything for me—unless I have the sparkling fiction to back it up. 
 Okay, so writing a book isn’t easy. It’s work. Hard work. A long, winding road.
 But once you find your own sparkle, readers will be anxiously scanning the shelves for your next work! 
 Reader loyalty. That’s what it’s all about—isn’t it?
           

I need a little help with my one handed typing.  Maybe this guy can help!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wako_HgXo24