Privacy Policy

This blog has not been in use since 2014. I have hidden all the comments. I have also removed the connect with me social media buttons as well as the newsletter subscription box, but since I'd like to leave this here for archive purposes here is my...

PRIVACY AND COOKIE POLICY

It is MELISSA MCCLONE policy to respect your privacy regarding any information we may collect from you or which you may provide to us, in the circumstances set out below. Accordingly, we have developed this privacy policy in order for you to understand how we collect, use, communicate, disclose, safeguard and otherwise make use of your personally identifiable information (“Personal Data”).

We will only collect and use your Personal Data where:

• we have lawful grounds to do so, including to comply with our legal obligations;
• we are performing a contract with you for our services; and
• we have legitimate interests in using your Personal Data and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.

For the purposes of the EU General Data Protection Regulation ((EU) 2016/679) (“GDPR”), we, Melissa McClone, are the “data controller”. If you have any questions about this policy or about how we use your Personal Data, please contact us via our contact details at he end of this policy.

This policy is effective as of 05/24/18. We review our privacy practices on an ongoing basis, and as such we may change this privacy policy from time to time. Please check this page frequently to ensure you are familiar with its current content.

1. Personal Data we collect via melissamcclone.blogspot.com aka Melissa's Diary (the “Website”)

Personal Data that you provide to us

We only collect Personal Data where you choose to interact with us on the Website in the
following ways:

• When you sign-up to receive free content (ebooks, newsletters), we collect: Email address, First name, Last name
• When you comment on the blog, we collect: Email address, name
• When you submit the contact form, we collect: Email Address, name, Any Personal Data which you provide to us in the free text box of the form.
• When you participate in a contest, promotion, survey or other site feature.

Data that we collect automatically

We automatically collect certain information when you visit our Website – such as the type of browser and operating system you are using, and the domain name of your Internet service provider. We do not link this information with any Personal Data.

We may also collect data automatically through our use of cookies on the Website. 

2. Use of your Personal Data

We will only use your Personal Data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we use your Personal Data to:

• process and manage your use of our website;
• respond to your questions, comments and requests;
• where you have opted-in to receive marketing from us, deliver communications that are
relevant to your preferences / may be of interest to you;
• improve our services and Website through analysis of information using Google Analytics.

3. Sharing of your Personal Data

We take your privacy seriously and will not share your Personal Data with others, except as permitted by applicable law or as set out below:

We share Personal Data as necessary with third parties who provide services or functions on our behalf and who require the information to provide those specific services to us. Please note that we have appropriate data privacy safeguards in place with third parties with whom we share Personal Data as described above and who are providing services or functions on our behalf.

The Website is hosted on the Blogger platform and processed by Blogger and is compliant with Google's Privacy Policy. Comments are also powered and processed by Blogger.

Melissa is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and affiliated sites. She also participates in the Apple iBooks Store, Barnes and Noble, and Kobo affiliate programs. When you click on a book or product link to one of these retailers, cookies are set and personal information is anonymously shared with retailer so she receives credit for any transactions. To read a retailer's privacy policy, click on their name above. 

This Website uses Google Analytics which is one of the most widespread and trusted analytics solution on the web for helping us to understand how you use the site and ways that we can improve your experience. To do this, cookies may track things such as how long you spend on the site and the pages that you visit so we can continue to produce engaging content.

For more information on Google Analytics cookies, see the official Google Analytics page.If you want to know more about how Google uses the data: https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites. Google's privacy policy is available at: https://policies.google.com/privacy/update

Embedded videos are provided by YouTube and they use the DoubleClick cookie. Their privacy policy is the same as Google's but they also have this about how data is used: https://policies.google.com/privacy/google-partners

4. COOKIES

As is common practice with almost all professional websites this site uses cookies, which are tiny files that are downloaded to your computer, to improve your experience.

This page describes what information they gather, how we use it and why we sometimes need to store these cookies. We will also share how you can prevent these cookies from being stored however this may downgrade or ‘break’ certain elements of the sites functionality.

We use cookies for a variety of reasons detailed below. Unfortunately in most cases there are no industry standard options for disabling cookies without completely disabling the functionality and features they add to this site. It is recommended that you leave on all cookies if you are not sure whether you need them or not in case they are used to provide a service that you use.

Disabling Cookies

You can prevent the setting of cookies by adjusting the settings on your browser (see your browser Help for how to do this).

Be aware that disabling cookies will affect the functionality of this and many other websites that you visit. Disabling cookies will usually result in also disabling certain functionality and features of the site. Therefore it is recommended that you do not disable cookies.

You can learn more about cookies and how to disable them at Cookies & you.

The Cookies We Set

When you submit data through a form such as those found on contact pages or comment forms on blogs cookies may be set to remember your user details for future correspondence or use.

In some special cases we also use cookies provided by trusted third parties. The following section details which third party cookies you might encounter through this site.

This site uses Google Analytics which is one of the most widespread and trusted analytics solution on the web for helping us to understand how you use the site and ways that we can improve your experience. These cookies may track things such as how long you spend on the site and the pages that you visit so we can continue to produce engaging content.

For more information on Google Analytics cookies, see the official Google Analytics page.

In the past we ran giveaways on the blog using third party widgets from Rafflecopter. Click on the name to see their privacy policy.

5. Keeping your Personal Data secure

We have implemented security policies and technical measures to safeguard the Personal Data we collect. We maintain physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that comply with applicable law, including the GDPR, to safeguard Personal Data from accidental loss, destruction or damage and unauthorized access, use and disclosure.

6. Retention periods for use of your Personal Data

We will use and store your Personal Data only for as long as necessary, bearing in mind the uses of your Personal Data as described in this privacy policy and otherwise as communicated to you. We review the Personal Data we hold at regular intervals and delete permanently or anonymize any Personal Data which is no longer necessary.

7. Children

This Website and our services are aimed at adults, and we do not knowingly collect any Personal Data relating to children aged under 15 years old. If you are under the age of 15, please do not provide us with any of your Personal Data, including your email address.

California Online Privacy Protection Act

CalOPPA is the first state law in the nation to require commercial websites and online services to post a privacy policy. The law's reach stretches well beyond California to require any person or company in the United States (and conceivably the world) that operates websites collecting Personally Identifiable Information from California consumers to post a conspicuous privacy policy on its website stating exactly the information being collected and those individuals or companies with whom it is being shared. – See more at: http://consumercal.org/california-online-privacy-protection-act-caloppa/#sthash.0FdRbT51.dpuf

According to CalOPPA, we agree to the following:

Users can visit our site anonymously.

Once this privacy policy is created, we will add a link to it on our home page or as a minimum, on the first significant page after entering our website.

Our Privacy Policy link includes the word ‘Privacy' and can easily be found on the page specified above.

You will be notified of any Privacy Policy changes:
• On our Privacy Policy Page

Can change your personal information:
• By emailing us

We honor Do Not Track signals and Do Not Track, plant cookies, or use advertising when a Do Not Track (DNT) browser mechanism is in place.

It's also important to note that we allow third-party behavioral tracking.

COPPA (Children Online Privacy Protection Act)

When it comes to the collection of personal information from children under the age of 13 years old, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) puts parents in control. The Federal Trade Commission, United States' consumer protection agency, enforces the COPPA Rule, which spells out what operators of websites and online services must do to protect children's privacy and safety online.

We do not specifically market to children under the age of 13 years old.

8. Access to and control over your Personal Data

You have legal rights under applicable law in relation to your Personal Data. You can ask the following questions, or take the following actions, at any time by contacting us via email [melissa@melissamcclone.com] or via our postal address:

• see what Personal Data we hold about you (if any), including why we are holding it and who it could be disclosed to;
• ask us to change/correct your Personal Data;
• ask us to delete your Personal Data;
• object to the processing of your Personal Data;
• ask us to restrict the processing of your Personal Data;
• withdraw any consents you have given us to the processing of your Personal Data; and
• express any concerns you have about third parties’ use of your Personal Data.

Fair Information Practices

The Fair Information Practices Principles form the backbone of privacy law in the United States and the concepts they include have played a significant role in the development of data protection laws around the globe. Understanding the Fair Information Practice Principles and how they should be implemented is critical to comply with the various privacy laws that protect personal information.

In order to be in line with Fair Information Practices we will take the following responsive action, should a data breach occur:

We will notify you via email within 7 business days.

We also agree to the Individual Redress Principle which requires that individuals have the right to legally pursue enforceable rights against data collectors and processors who fail to adhere to the law. This principle requires not only that individuals have enforceable rights against data users, but also that individuals have recourse to courts or government agencies to investigate and/or prosecute non-compliance by data processors.

CAN SPAM Act

The CAN-SPAM Act is a law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have emails stopped from being sent to them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.

We collect your email address in order to:

• Send information, respond to inquiries, and/or other requests or questions
• Market to our mailing list or continue to send emails to our clients after the original transaction has occurred.

To be in accordance with CANSPAM, we agree to the following:

• Not use false or misleading subjects or email addresses.
• Identify the message as an advertisement in some reasonable way.
• Include the physical address of our business or site headquarters.
• Monitor third-party email marketing services for compliance, if one is used.
• Honor opt-out/unsubscribe requests quickly.
• Allow users to unsubscribe by using the link at the bottom of each email.

If at any time you would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, you can:

• Follow the instructions at the bottom of each email and we will promptly remove you from ALL correspondence.

9. Change of purpose

We will only use your Personal Data for the purposes for which we collected it, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose. If you wish to have an explanation as to how the processing for the new purpose is compatible with the original purpose, please contact us.

If we need to use your Personal Data for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so.

10. Contact Us
Our full details are: Melissa McClone
Email for Privacy Questions: melissa@melissamcclone.com
Postal Address: P.O. Box 63, Lake Oswego, OR 97024

New Website!

My new website is live today so I disconnected this blog from my www.melissamcclone.com url. My web designer has moved all the posts from my diary here to my journal there, and that's where all the new stuff will be!

So, so excited and can't wait to hear what you think of my new home on the internet! See you at the new website! xoxox

A New Sale!

I'm adding a new romance genre to my writing...Inspirational! I'm going to be writing a novella called Picture Perfect Love for Zondervan's "Year of Weddings" series. Check out this listing in Publishers Marketplace:

I'm very excited! Hope you have a great weekend!

Dear Kitten

I love, love, love this commercial.



What do you think?

Christmas in June!

Ho! Ho! Ho!  I bet the last thing you're thinking about is Christmas with summer right around the corner!

Well, Tule Publishing Group's Montana Born Books decided to shake things up a little with a Christmas in June Promo! They've repackaged the Copper Mountain Christmas novellas and added a short story as well as recipes from authors! I want that cup of hot cocoa on the cover, how about you?

The Cowboys of Cooper Mountain Bundle is on sale for 99 cents. This is a five day Kindle Countdown Deal! So a limited time offer! It's only available on Amazon, but they do have free readers for other devices besides Kindles. Order a copy here!

What's inside the bundle:

A Cowboy For Christmas by Katherine Garbera
Christmas at Cooper Mountain by Jane Porter
Home For Christmas by me
Mistletoe Magic by me
Recipes from Montana Born Books, Southern Born Books & Holiday Books authors

A contest is part of the Tule Publishing Group promo with a great Grand Prize! Check this out and be sure to enter. You can comment, like and share by clicking here.

Merry Christmas in June!

How cool!

I finished the two manuscripts that I'd fallen behind on when I was sick. The second was sent in last night. Woo-hoo!

Celebration time!

Of course, my friend Gina was on it. She's in Barcelona at the moment and guess what she found in a bookstore there:

Seeing this made my day that much better!

The book is the Spanish version of Win, Lose or...Wed! Very cool to see one of my foreign translations on the shelf! Thanks, Gina! xoxox

Hope all is well! I'm back now! I just needed to finish the books which were the two biggest items on my To Do list!

Amazon Top 100

I got a nice Mother's Day present in addition to roses, a shirt from my youngest and homemade cards from the girls...

The Mother's Day Romance Bundle broke into the Top 100 at Amazon!

That's the highest I caught it. By the time I went to bed, the listing page hadn't caught up to the bestseller list. But here's what I woke up to: 

The bundle will be available a little while longer before disappearing. The 99 cents sale is over, but  $2.99 is still a bargain for twelve stories by eleven authors! You can get the bundle here.

Hope you had a nice weekend. My Mother's Day was full of family time. Mass followed by brunch at Biscuits. A little writing time on my own and watching the Amazon rankings! Then dinner at P.F. Changs. A lovely day!

Coming soon...

A new website design!

It's time.

This one has served me well, and I love it, but I've had pink and purple since my very first website back in 1999 (that makes me feel sooooo old!) and it's time for a change. I'm very excited!

Not exactly sure when the design will come on line. That depends on me, and right now, I have a book that must be finished ASAP since it's already overdue (though I have an extension) because of getting so sick. But I'll keep plugging away in my spare time.

Just wanted to warn you in case you come back in a few weeks and there's well, a new layout!

Hope you have a great weekend!

Cover Reveal!

Check out my lovely new cover for my upcoming August release from Special Edition, The Billionaire's Nanny. Would love to hear what you think in the comment section! Thanks!

Here's the back cover blurb:

TEMPORARY ASSISTANT…FULL-TIME FIANCÉE

Just when he thinks "problem solved," internet billionaire AJ Cole realizes he needs more than a temp. He needs a fiancée to show off when he returns home to Haley's Bay for the first time in ten years. His family has a habit of matchmaking, and AJ doesn't need the drama. But as soon as Emma Markwell agrees to his assignment, he learns that pretend love can feel oh-so real.

Once a nanny, Emma's played many games of make-believe. This shouldn't be any different—until a few hot kisses meant for show blur the line between fantasy and reality! AJ doesn't do commitment, but Emma has always longed for true love and refuses to settle for less. AJ can't resist a challenge, and soon, he can't figure out if he's just trying to get into her bed…or keep her from getting into his heart.

The book is available for pre-order from Amazon!

Mother's Day Romance Bundle

I'm so excited to announce that I'm part of a new release that just came out! Mother's Day Romance Bundle is a set of 12 stories from Tule Publishing Group that will only be available for a limited time for 99 cents!

The bundle is only available in Kindle format (i.e. Amazon), but there are free Kindle apps for many eReaders, phones, computers and the iPad.

Here's the cover blurb:

A selection of tasty treats put together especially for Mother's Day. From the ruggedly beautiful land that is Montana, come these tales of love and romance from some of the genre's best selling and award winning authors.

And the bonus is, they're entirely calorie free!
Happy Mother's Day! 

Some titles have been previously released (like mine, Home For Christmas) while others are being offered for the first time. You'll find stories from the Montana Born Books and Southern Born Imprints as well as a brand-new short from Jane Porter. Titles included:

Tempt Me, Cowboy by Megan Crane
Promise Me, Cowboy by C.J. Carmichael
The Sweetest Thing by Lilian Darcy
Christmas at Copper Mountain by Jane Porter
Home for Christmas by Melissa McClone
A Cowboy for Christmas by Katherine Garbera
What a Bride Wants by Kelly Hunter
Second Chance Bride by Trish Morey
Bet the House by Erika Marks
Sweet Home Carolina by Kim Boykin
A Mother's Day by Kaira Rouda
Sight Seeing by Jane Porter

If you're looking for an inexpensive gift (can't beat the 99 cent price!) for your romance-reading mom, look no further. Buy a gift copy from Amazon, have the certificate emailed to you, print and stick in a Mother's Day card! And yes, I have already done three of the four steps. Just need to buy a card!

For once I'm ahead of the game with Mother's Day. I'd purchased her other presents last month so this will be the perfect addition. She loves to read!

Enjoy and Happy Reading!

Fourteen

Finn trying on Olympic bling at swim clinic

My son Finn turns fourteen today. Hard to believe since he's always been my little boy. I'm in denial that he'll start high school in the fall!

He was a big baby 9 pounds 6 ounces. When he decided, he wanted to arrive there was no stopping him. I was ready to die (fully dialated in a little over an hour) and no one had any idea he was that big because Makenna had only been 7 pounds 15 ounces. Thank goodness he decided to show up a few days early or I'd been in real trouble!

Yesterday was bowling and the arcade at Big Al's. Today he wants Crispy Creme donuts (chocolate and glazed) for his swim team when practice ends today, a special dinner tonight and Dairy Queen ice cream cake for dessert. Very low key. Not sure if it's a boy thing since he's my only one!

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging. I'm still sick. I got worse towards the end of the week and went back to the doctor. Am finally on antibiotics and hoping this does the trick. I've lost another entire month to not feeling well. I want this to stop! Hope all is well with you!

Getting there...

Our fireplace

This was our first Easter since the kids were born that we spent just the five of us. Usually it's my family: my parents, my sister's family and whoever might else show up. But no one wanted our germs. I don't blame them. This crud lasts forever.

My dad said at least I wouldn't have to clean my house, but we did anyway. All of us pitching in to help as we felt up to it. We managed to get eggs dyed and the Easter decorations up on Saturday. The eggs had been boiled earlier in the day, and I was worried the dying wouldn't happen as the time kept slipping away. But it did, and so did the decorating.

We all still have symptoms, but four of us were healthy enough to attend Mass yesterday morning. A lovely service with the church full of white lilies. We saw a few friends who we hadn't seen in a few weeks, a combo of sickness and spring break, in our case both!

Of course as soon as you wake up feeling better, an hour or two later you crash again. So Easter naps became a new tradition. At least for me! But we're slowly getting there...as in getting healthy! I can't wait until that happens. Though I have a feeling the youngest still hasn't hit the worst part yet. Praying she doesn't!

The kids were up to the two egg hunts. One with the dyed eggs courtesy of the Easter bunny and one with candy filled plastic eggs later in the day. A few had change and the Golden and Silver eggs had dollar bills. They missed their four cousins being there, but still had fun. Hey, they scored lots of candy what's not to like?

A much quieter and relaxing Easter than usual, but that was okay. We celebrated the Risen Lord and spent time together. That's all we needed. I hope you enjoyed yourself this weekend!

Happy Easter!

Wishing you blessings and joy! Here's a video of Kelley Mooney singing her lovely adaption of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah. She received permission to rewrite the lyrics. Perfect for Easter. Worth a listen. Enjoy!

How Frozen Should Have Ended...

Loved Frozen, but this is hilarious and spot on about her parents' parenting...



What do you think?

Home

Home from spring break, but not only am I still sick, the family is also sick now. Will post trip report and pics as soon as I feel a little better!

Hope all is well where you are!

Spring Break Day 1 - The Hell Drive

Ever hear about someone's vacation going badly and then it kept getting worse? Well, that's how I feel right now. How bad has the first day been?

I just got home from the ER. My niece, who we thought had been car sick (she forgot that she takes Dramamine when going on long rides), was still throwing up when hubby took me to the hospital.

Can we have a do-over please?

I have no idea what tomorrow will bring. I'm not sure I want to know.

Hope all is well where you are!

Norwegian Elkhound Puppies - Astra's Second Litter

On deadline, but wanted to take time out to share these adorable Norwegian Elkhound puppy pics with you! These are from Astra's most recent litter out of our breeder Jan Herinckx in Hillsboro, Oregon. You might remember Astra from previous posts. Mackenna has shown her in juniors and the breed ring. Rose used her for 4-H.

Aren't the pups oh-so-cute? Hard to believe our Cato was little just a year ago!

Have you entered to win a Kindle Fire HDX?

I'm on deadline and trying to get a book finished. My son and I arrived home from his Sectional Meet last Sunday, and I buckled down. I haven't been online much or blogging. Sorry. With everything going on in my life, I fell behind on my word count and trying hard to get caught up. I posted about this contest earlier this month, but wanted to mention it again because there are only two days left to enter!

This month I'm taking part in a Kindle Fire HDX Giveaway! (or if preferred the winners can choose a $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 in Paypal Cash.)

Use the following link and scroll down until you get to the rafflecopter entry form:
http://www.iamareader.com/2014/01/march-kindle-fire-giveaway-sponsor-sign-ups.html

There's also a second giveaway (same prize) if you have a blog and post about this. Info for that is on the link above. You can enter until March 31, 2014.

Good luck! I hope one of you win! If you do, please let me know. Thanks!


Win a Kindle Fire HDX, Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash ($229 value)

This is a joint AUTHOR & BLOGGER GIVEAWAY EVENT!

Bloggers & Authors have joined together and each chipped in a little money towards a Kindle Fire HDX 7".

All New Kindle Fire HDX 7" Giveaway

The winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HDX (US Only - $229 Value)

Or $229 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

Or $229 in Paypal Cash (International)

Hump Day

Another week, another swim meet. My son and I will be heading north tomorrow to attend the PNW Age Group Sectionals. He qualified in two events (100 Back and 200 Back) so that means I will have a hotel room and lots of time to write. I plan to watch him swim then leave him with the team and get work done. I can't wait!

Of course, that means doing loads of laundry and folding today. I can now see the carpet but have at least three more loads I need to wash. I found piles of towels in the kids' bedrooms. I don't know why they can't go straight from swimbags into the laundry hamper. Oh, well... At least I know where they all went.

What are you up to today?

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Are you wearing green?

Rose woke up wanting to know if the leprechauns had been by yet. When the kids were younger we used to make traps for them. Those little sly ones never got caught but they would leave gold chocolate coins inside the cages!

Hubby took this at the start of the run.

Yesterday, my hubby and two younger kids participated in the Shamrock Run in downtown Portland. They had fun in spite of the ran at the start!

Very proud of the kids who do not run regularly. They did very well. Finn came in 334th overall out of 10K runners. He was 28th in his age group!  Hubby said he just sprinted away from them once the race started. Finn said he followed a guy who looked like he knew what he was doing to get around the slower crowds, then ended up running with a guy in his mid-twenties who encouraged him on! That was both kids' first 5K run! I hope they want to do more.

Hope you have a great day! Any big plans for today?