Tag Archives: challenge

Announcement, Book, Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies

My First Recipe Book Giveaway!

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Let’s try something NEW!

Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies
Wanna guess who’s my hand model?

From time to time I’ve seen other authors online do book giveaways.  These fine folks set up little competitions, and in the end someone wins something from their library of books — YAY!  I became an author four years ago, so I figure it’s about time I give it a try …

What’s at stake?  A copy of my debut recipe book — “Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies”!  This book features over 50 proven recipes including cookies, biscotti, coffee, some breakfast items, and other comfort foods.  It also has 3 of my original compositions for Highland bagpipes … somehow I suspect most people get use out of the recipes.

Allow me to clarify a few things up front …

To enter my book giveaway you must e-mail me your answer to the following challenge.  I will put your e-mail address on my book-release notification mailing list.  I dislike mailing lists — and I figure you do to — so I will only e-mail if …

  1. You won — YAY!
  2. To notify you of my book releases (obviously!), &/or …
  3. If there is something I think you really need to know.

Later, if you want to get off my book-release notification list — no problem — just email me and ask!  Oh, and I have to say, please give everyone else a fair chance — only e-mail me with one answer to the challenge, and only message me from one e-mail address.  I will disqualify anyone I find sending in multiple answers … so … don’t do it … or at least don’t get caught … but come on, play fair and let’s keep it fun!

Also, I have no intention of starting a news letter.  I will not be emailing people weekly or daily or monthly or yearly — those drive me bonkers!  I’m busy enough publishing a free recipe of the month as it is.

My Upcoming Books

I am working to release 5 (yes, five) new books with the following release goals …

  1. Thanksgiving / Xmas / New Years cookie recipe book — September 2022
  2. 2020 Recipe Of The Month Keepsake book — October 2022
  3. 2021 Recipe Of The Month Keepsake book — November 2022
  4. Scot / Irish recipe book — February 2023
  5. 2022 Recipe Of The Month Keepsake book — March 2023

Enough with all of that — The Challenge!

The following picture is from my
April 2022 Recipe Of The Month
… and it has an error in it!

Granola Bars ingredients
Expand the picture — look close!

Find the error — or what you think is the error — and e-mail me with your answer.  If you give me the right answer, your name / e-mail address will go into a ‘hat’ (figuratively speaking) with the other correct entries.  At the end of April 2022 one of these entries will be drawn along with a few runners-up.  I will e-mail and notify the winner — I will wait 7 days to hear back from this individual as to where to mail their book and if they want their copy signed (and so-on down the list of names drawn).  I intend to further announce the name and city of the winner on social media after making contact by e-mail.

If this goes well … I just might do more giveaways in the future!

What if I just want to get on your new book notification list, Don?

Great — no problem!  Just e-mail me with a note saying that you would like to be added to my new book notification list — and … Voilà!

What if I don’t win?

Let's Bake Cookie Squares and Biscotti!CONGRATULATIONS!  You have the opportunity to grab a copy of my FREE SAMPLE e-book “Let’s Bake Cookie Squares and Biscotti!” — available through most major e-book retailers!  Within this fabulous first free e-book edition are 2 recipes from Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies.  You will also see a step-by-step photo section that guides you through a few processes that some folks might find a little more tricky.  Check it out!

Watch here on WhidbeyIslandBaking.com for further updates on my upcoming books along with my Facebook and Twitter online locations.

Announcement, Book Presentation, e-Publishing, Product, Public Appearance, Update

Update on All Points of Interest

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Things Going On & Things Coming Up!

March 19th, 2019, Tom Trimbath and I will take the floor again at the Langley Public Library to give our “Self-Publishing: From Inspiration to Publication” presentation. If you’re anywhere between considering writing and publishing a book or close to completion, check the WIBC events page and put us on your calendar. Coupeville and Freeland libraries here on Whidbey Island have also been talking toward hosting events including and in addition to Self-Publishing: From Inspiration to Publication.

Tom and I are looking for additional locations and avenues to present this topic and help authors along their paths.  Here’s video of our October presentation — I also made an audio recording which I intend to post somewhere online ASAP.  The video stopped about an hour into the evening, however my audio recording captured the whole night.

After completing and publishing “Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies” in both paper book and e-book forms last Fall, I didn’t take a break — I rolled right in to my next 2 book projects! One is a cookie recipe book which I’m quite excited about, the other is a bagpipe sheet music book for a veterans organization I’m honored to be a part of. While I am working on both, the sheet music book has taken the lead as I am aiming to have it published come spring — somewhat more specifically, June.

No-no — it’s a good thing — really ……. I think. 😉

Now that things are getting stabilized with pivoting WIBC from being a production baking company to writing & publishing books, yours truly is on the hunt for a day job.  Lately I’ve reworked my resume so it is in fit fighting form and I have gotten a few interviews line up with interesting looking local employers.  At the same time, I’m working on my infamous truck to further get it into fit commuting form.  Since buying it I’ve done a lot of needed repairs; while it is currently in good shape, there are these last few projects to address so it is less likely to create interruptions as I re-join the traditional workfarce …. er, I mean, workforce.

And now, further on the audio front …

Three things I’m excited to tell you about!

A year ago I started looking into becoming an audio book narrator.  I developed a solid initial understanding of the industry and ways to get into it.  This interest is still in me, however I have had higher priorities.  I plan to narrate my own books and others — first though I need to get things stabilized with my day job.

I’ve said a few times recently that I have 4 recordings ‘in the can’ for my experiential recording project Archive Of Resonance.  I’m getting help with the audio now  and intend to (er, finally) complete each album as time allows — if I can get all of these put together and published through Amazon this year, great, if not then no big deal … they’ll get done when they’re supposed to.

LASTLY And Not Leastly …
In my superhero persona as BagpiperDon, I have taken on a personal challenge!  An online bagpipe school called Dojo University has put forth an activity that bagpipers may take part in For FREE.  I’ve known about Dojo U for years, heard nothing but good things about them, and would LOVE to make use of their services.  They produce various Free materials which I have been gratefully using in the mean time — chiefly e-articles and some videos.  Lately I’ve been taking part in the “Dojo U 100 Day Bagpipe Challenge“.  The primary part of the challenge is for pipers, in their individual practice, to assemble their pipes and practice one tune (any tune) a day for 100 consecutive days …. and if you miss a day, you have to start over.  I see the object of this as not so much to work on one’s playing ability as it is to develop discipline.  Today will be Day 017 for me — only 083 days to go!

Thanks for keeping up with me!
~ Don

Announcement, Author, Book, Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies, Product, Progress, Publication

My Book PUBLISHED & Shirts Available!

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WHOO — WHAT A WEEKEND!!!

Make Your Own Darn Good Cookies by Donald P. ScobyNearly 3 years of work and a number of speed-bumps along the way, and my debut recipe book is finally PUBLISHED.  I finished the submission to Amazon on Friday and Saturday morning it had GONE LIVE!!!  I was part way through breakfast when I found out the news — then the web and my phone EXPLODED with activity.  Congrats on getting published, questions about my book, someone bought a copy, someone else wants 3 signed copies as Xmas gifts, keeping up with the comments, posting on Facebook and Twitter …. and about 4 or 6 hours later things calmed down and I turned to find the rest of my cold, uneaten breakfast sitting next to me.  Really, coffee shouldn’t be treated that way.

Later that day my new WIBC Logo/URL t-shirt when live on Etsy via Stitch 6 To 6.   Within the next hour the first shirts were ordered! book

Things stayed busy, and come Saturday evening I got some time to make my new Author Profile on Amazon and update my website. book

It took me a while, but I finally figured out where and how to order copies of my book.  I’m getting about 60 on this first go-around.  I have around 20 people to give copies to who contributed to the project and were amazingly supportive along the way — I am grateful to get reminders of how incredible people can be*.  There are also two people seeking around 5 copies each (WOW!) for Christmas gifts — 10 copies already sold!
* One among them is this guy — Tom Trimbath!  He also has an impressive collection of books he’s written available here.

Yeah, things started moving pretty quick — and finally, now … late Sunday evening, I’m getting to make a blog post about the highlights of what’s gone on.  It’s been an amazing ride so far — testing my stick-to-it and gumption, giving me challenges to use my resourcefulness to resolve, and numerous new things and lessons learned — I love this stuff!  And now…? book

Now I go from being a writer to being a published author. book
Now I get to work on converting the manuscript for my book into an e-book — and likely an audio-book too, narrated by yours-truly!
Now I remember that I need to get new business cards made.
Now the pivot of WIBC from being a company that makes food to being a company about good food and people connecting with people is complete. book

And now … now I go to bed and get some sleep!

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