Earlier this month, my awesome CP Jennifer Faye tagged me for a Sunshine Award. The fact that I’m just now getting around to sharing it is all on me, not Jenn.

The Sunshine Award is a lovely sunny flower that bloggers give to other “bloggers who positively and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere.”

As with most awards, ‘The Sunshine Award’ comes with a few simple rules:

(1)     Thank the person who gave you the award in your blog post.

(2)     Do the Q&A below.

(3)     Pass on the award to 10 – 12 deserving and inspiring bloggers, inform them and link to their blogs.

Rule 1.

Thanks for thinking of me, Jenn. How did you know I needed to write a new post to keep my writing blog from dying a slow, agonizing death?

Rule 2. Q&A

Favourite Colour: Starting out with a toughie, I see. It’s so hard to pick just one, as my favorite changes with my mood. Sometimes, I love deep, forest green. When I’m feeling dramatic, I love the red/black combo. But I guess if I have to choose just one, it’s purple. My college colors were purple and white.

Favourite Animal: Yikes. Another hard one. If I say “dog,” my cats will get huffy; if I pick “cat,” my dog Cocoa will pout. How about I go with “panther” instead? Panthers are so sleek and graceful.

Favourite Number: Not 13, that’s for sure. I have an aversion to that one, which makes me very nervous for what this year holds. I’ll say 9, because the multiplication table for 9s was easy to learn once my dad showed me the trick.

Favourite Non-alcoholic Drink: I’d like to be able to say H2O — but I can’t. Give me an ice-cold Diet Dr Pepper any day. (I know it’s not good for me, but it’s one of my few vices.)

Facebook or Twitter: They both have their purpose, and I love — and hate — both of them equally. I love that they give me a chance to share my thoughts, make new friends and keep up with everyone’s news … but I hate how they siphon time away from writing. I have precious little free time as it is, and sometimes I look up from the computer to find I’ve frittered it all away farting around on the internet.

Your Passion: Umm, can I steal Jenn’s answer to this question? She wrote:

I have two. Reading and writing. And please don’t ask me which passion came first. It’d be like answering the age old question of which came first the chicken or the egg. I love them both.

I know exactly what she means, and I’m not sure I could answer this one any better. I love to read, although now that I spend most of my free time writing, I don’t do as much of it as I’d like (witness the stacks of books on every available surface).

Giving or Getting Presents: That depends. It’s fun to find just the right gift for someone I love … but I’m not sure anything beats receiving a hand-picked gift. It doesn’t have to be anything big or expensive, just a little something that says, “I was thinking of you.”

Favourite Day: Any day I don’t have to go to my day job (which is really a night job, since I work from about 3 to 11 p.m.). Currently, that’s the weekend — a real Saturday/Sunday. But in the past, I’ve had Wednesday/Thursday/Friday off, and Sunday/Monday.

Favourite Flower: Daffodils. I’ve loved bright yellow daffodils since seeing them grow wild on the hillsides of England as a student at Harlaxton College in 1992. We also had a patch of them in our front yard when I was growing up. Tulips, which also grew in my yard, are a close second.

Rule 3.  Spreading the love.

Not sure I can think of 10 to 12 folks to pass this along to who haven’t already been tagged, but here are six I’d like to nominate:

Amy Raby, one of my Starcatchers sisters who I’m sure is busy. Her debut novel, “Assassin’s Gambit,”  was released earlier this month.

Jamie Raintree, fellow NaNoWriMo veteran and good friend. Check out her web serial, “A Song for Butterflies.”

Karen McCoy, The Writer Librarian. Karen is in my RWA chapter, NARWA, and her enthusiasm is contagious. She also edits the chapter newsletter.

Susie Haught, another fellow NARWAn who writes women’s fiction. Her blog is fantastic, and funny.

Gwen Hernandez, another of my Starcatchers sisters and resident Scrivener expert. (She wrote the reference book  “Scrivener for Dummies.”) She also recently wrote a blog post titled “My Big, Scary Goal” that set the wheels in my brain turning.

Ashlyn Macnamara, another fellow Starcatcher (Golden Heart class of 2011). She writes Regency historical romance described as “A dash of wit, a hint of wicked.” Her debut, “A Most Scandalous Proposal,” is available now; “A Most Devilish Rogue” comes out in August.