I am so happy to introduce you to a wonderful author, blogger, mommy, and teacher - Cindy Vine. Cindy is currently touring with her latest release - C U @ 8. She's been receiving wonderful reviews during her tour, and I know you're just going to love her!

Welcome Cindy!

Coping with criticism

Critical Friends

Wherever in the world you live, there will always be someone around who feels it their duty to point out exactly what it is you did wrong.  Some people are just hyper-critical, criticising everything from the way you do your job to the shoes you wear.  They see themselves as being ‘well-meaning’ and ‘honest.’  The truth is that they have a low self-esteem and only make themselves feel better when they put someone else down.  When your book is published, all your critical friends will crawl out of the woodwork and be there to support you with their well-meaning comments and honesty.  Don’t let what they say get you down.  Use their criticism as a tool to develop yourself.

• Reflect on what they said but don’t brood on the negative parts.  Be honest with yourself and look for the grains of truth and open your mind to them.  What can you change or do better next time?
• Forget about your ego and be grateful enough that your friend cared enough about you to say what they said.  Don’t attack the messenger.  Hear them out and address any issues that might be raised.
• Ask questions and ask for examples.  Don’t storm off and lick your wounds in private and build up resentment; rather initiate a discussion so you can clarify what they are saying in your mind.
• Walk away if you are angry and have a tendency to over-react.  You don’t have to initiate the discussion immediately.  Thank them for their comments, and when you feel calmer think about what they said and then initiate a discussion.
• Avoid turning yourself into a victim and taking everything to heart.  While there will probably be some truth in what they say, it might be couched in assumptions, speculations and exaggerations and their perspective of things.  Use your common sense to differentiate between what is constructive criticism and what isn’t and don’t lose your perspective.

Reviews

When you put your book out there you will get reviews.  While we wish we get only positive reviews, the reality is we’ll pick up some negative reviews as well.  Even best-selling authors pick up negative reviews.  You can’t take negative reviews as a personal attack and don’t ever contact the reviewer and enter into a debate with them.  You just have to develop a thick skin and let it go.  What you can do is take a look at the criticisms and see if any of them are valid and are areas you can work on and improve.  Be honest with yourself.  But rest assured that because we are all unique individuals with different likes and dislikes, your book will not appeal to everybody.  Some people might be reading a genre they do not normally read, which means they are not your target audience.  You can’t take it personally, but you can learn from it.

Do your kids ever really leave?

Fenella Fisher and Suki Rabinowitz are middle-aged single mothers whose children have left home and started on their own lives and careers. But Suki’s son Josh is a cocaine-addict who supposedly fathered a baby on a visit to the UK; and Fenella’s daughter Kirsty has just been dumped and is feeling miserable. Fenella and Suki decide they need to step in to help their children and hatch a plan to sort out Josh’s mess and find Kirsty a suitable man, with some hilarious consequences. After interviewing prospective husbands for Kirsty at Waves Restaurant and Bar, they discover that a good man is hard to find.

Purchase Links: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007N60QAI

Publisher:  Createspace

Release Date:  March 2012
Book Genre:  Chick Lit/Women’s Contemporary

A teacher, writer, mother - Cindy Vine was born in Cape Town, South Africa and has lived and worked in many different countries around the world. She currently resides in Tanzania at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro. Cindy has three children, two of whom have already left home. Writing and reading has been a passion of hers since she was a young girl.

Websites:  http://cindyvine.com ; http://cindy-vine.blogspot.com ; http://facebook.com/cindyvinefanpage ; http://twitter.com/cindyvine ; http://cindyvine.hubpages.com

Cindy, thank you so much for sharing with us today. 

Follow Cindy's Tour:

August 6 - Introduction at the VBT Cafe' Blog
August 8 - Author Fav Recipe & Fun Facts at Writing Innovations E-zine
August 10 - Guest Blogging at AZ Publishing Services
August 14 - Review & Guest Blogging at Jersey Girl Book Reviews
August 16 - Review & Ebook Giveaway at Books, Books, and More Books
August 18 - Interviewed at Mass Musings
August 20 - Guest Blogging at Cafe' Creations
August 22 - Guest Blogging at SheWrites Blog
August 24 - Interview & Giveaway at The Bunny's Review
August 28 - Guest Blogging at Wise Words
August 30 - Interviewed at BK Walker Books Etc.