Friday, October 28, 2016

Book Feature: On Top of the World by David Lamb


We're happy to host David Lamb's ON TOP OF THE WORLD (UNTIL THE BELL CHIMES) virtual book tour today at My Bookish Pleasures!  Please leave a comment or question for David to let him know you stopped by!

Title: ON TOP OF THE WORLD (UNTIL THE BELL CHIMES)
Author: David Lamb
Publisher: Woolly Mammoth Books
Pages: 240
Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Contemporary Romance/Multicultural/Humor/Satire

2016 BEST FICTION-Pacific Book Awards. FROM THE FUNNY AND NATURALLY BRILLIANT DAVID LAMB, award-winning playwright of the New York Times celebrated play, Platanos Y Collard Greens, comes a modern spin on Dickens' classic tale that perfectly combines humor and romance in a story re-imagined for our digital, consumerist age.  This version of Scrooge and Belle is familiar, yet unlike any you've come across before. Scrooge, or rather Scrooje, is music's biggest superstar, with one hundred million albums sold, fifteen million devoted YouTube subscribers, two and a half million Facebook likes, and twenty-five million fanatical Twitter followers known as Scroojites. Belle, is a legal shark who gulps down her opposition voraciously and whose beauty and stunning figure causes traffic accidents as she zips through the sidewalks of Manhattan stylishly adorned and taking no prisoners.   They never imagined being music's most powerful couple, but that's exactly what happened when Belle fell head over heels and gave the Coke-bottle glasses wearing, plaid and stripe attired, scrawny, biggest nerd on her college campus the ultimate makeover, turning him into a fashion impresario whose style sets trends from Milan to NY Fashion Week and who can be seen courtside at the NBA Finals sporting a perfectly-fitted cashmere suit.   Then it happens. Belle realizes too late that she's created a chart-topping monster as Scrooje's ego explodes and he starts acting a fool.   Now, it's been three years since they ve spoken. But tonight at Hollywood s biggest red carpet event, with the whole world watching, they'll be given a second chance.   Will Scrooje listen to the ghostly-advice of Marley, his best friend since the fourth grade, who at the time of his untimely drowning at his Brazilian poolside birthday bash was as big a star as Scrooje? Will Scrooje finally do right by his number one artist, Cratchit, a genius comedian, who Scrooje invariably rip offs every chance he gets?   And with twenty-five million viewers tuned in will Scrooje finally shed his ego, jeopardize his image and declare his love for Belle, the one he betrayed and let slip away?   Second chances don't often come around. Will Belle even give him a chance?   Mixing heart, soul, bling and romance in a fresh, original satire about race, class and celebrity worship Lamb establishes himself as one of the most talented and amazing writers today. And leaves no doubt that the Pacific Book Awards chose wisely when they selected On Top Of The World as the year's Best Fiction.

Purchase Information:

Amazon | iTunes | B&N


Book Excerpt:
The devil doesnt wear Prada, he wears Sean John and I was the idiot who taught him how to shop.
That was what I got for reading Frankenstein in college. Id been turned into a mad scientist without even realizing it. Just my luck, I was a math major and the one literature course I took had tricked me into creating a monster.
When I first met Scrooʝe, helike most humans with XY chromosomeswas a fashion emergency. Awkwardly walking around campuslost, desperately in need of a haircut, and for some strange reason wearing glasses so big he looked like an owl hunting for prey. He was just plain pitiful.
But I have to confess, from the moment I saw him my heart sang a happy song and I couldnt look away. Something between us was magnetic.

Hey, what can I say, I was always the kind of girl who liked rescue projects. When I was eight years old, I turned my familys garage into a makeshift animal shelter, and damn near gave my father a heart attack when a hungry pack of strays rushed at him as he pulled into the driveway.
So naturally, one look into Scrooʝes sad puppy dog eyes and I felt right awayhe was the one.
Before I knew it, we were college sweethearts and best friends. Of course, I had to clean him up, but after a few months under my tutelage everyone noticed his transformation. They saw that with his gorgeous toffee skin, deliciously full lips and sexy broad shoulders he was the cutest boy on campus.  Pretty soon I had girls telling me I needed to start a makeover service.
That was how it all started. Who could have known that a simple makeover would unleash the devilish genius of the sweetest, shyest, most socially awkward boy Id ever met, and transform him into musics biggest superstar with an ego the size of Texas yet more fragile than an egg yolk? And a whole lot messier! Not me.
Without a doubt weve traveled a long crazy road together. Scrooʝe was the first boy I gave my heart to. Our relationship went from me rescuing him in college, to him rescuing me in law school, to our emergence as musics power couple. He was the artist/entrepreneur, and I was the best lawyer love could buy.
And now, were strangers.
Its been three years since weve seen or spoken to each other, and sometimes, against my better judgment, I find myself thinking about him and feel a smile creep across my face. 
This morning was one of those times when my thoughts turned to Scrooʝe. Normally Id tell myself off for not letting go, but today I gave myself a break. After all, it isnt every day that you might not just run into your ex, but do it live on television at Hollywoods biggest event.
“Everything’s gonna be fine, girl,” I told myself as I contemplated everything that could go wrong if we ran into each other at The Awards. I was especially dreading an untimely re-emergence of my long-standing klutz curse.
My whole life, Id been jinxed with inopportune clumsiness. As the ring girl at my parentsvow renewal, I stumbled, fell in the grass, and lost the rings. As a tiny ballerina, I was the best in my class, until the day of the recital when I went tumbling down like Humpty Dumpty.
Now with the whole world watching, I simply could not afford such an embarrassing spill.
As I sat in the back of a sleek limousine on my way to the ceremony, gazing up at the L.A. skyline, nervously checking my hair in the mirror for the dozenth time in half a dozen minutes, I tried to push down the queasiness threatening to erupt from the pit of my stomach. The last thing I needed was to step onto the red carpet covered in this afternoons lunch. The paparazzi would surely have a field day with that one.
Well, like I said it was exactly three years to the day that I stomped out of Scrooʝes life, but tonight we were both nominated for Awards. I knew God worked in mysterious ways, but now I was convinced she also had a sense of humor. 
I never thought Id be nominated for anything, but life had other plans. After we broke up, I quickly discovered that the best cure for PTRS—post-traumatic-relationship-stress—was writing. By the time I finished hammering those computer keys, I was author of an award-winning, best-selling, drama-filled, tragically comic novel that Hollywood just had to have. Now here I was nominated for an Award as one of the producers of the years biggest movie.
Once word got out that I was nominated, I was immediately blessed (or cursed depending on your view) with a merry-go-round of opinions. From my hair to my makeup to my shoes to my dress, from my eyebrows to my voice, to making sure I didnt have ashy kneeseveryone had an opinion. Normally I was unflappable, but with so many people giving so many conflicting opinions I was suddenly a nervous wreck. Finally, I stopped answering the phone because I couldnt take any more unsolicited advice. If someone did manage to reach me on the phone, before they could even say a word Id say, No, I dont know what Im going to wear, and no, I dont know how Im doing my hair,before abruptly clicking off. Unbelievable, Russell Simmons can show up without a tie and wearing sneakers, yet still be a style icon. But let a woman have one eyelash out of place and itll be the lead on the evening news.
Two nights before The Awards, I tried to veg out with an episode of Soccer Moms From Hell. But before I could lose myself in the drama, my cell phone buzzed with a text. Oh, come on!I yelled, throwing my hands up unnecessarily dramatically. Then I looked at it. It was from my father. He wrote simplyBe you.
At least there was one man in the world I could still count on.
Two days later, on my way to The Awards I tried to wrap my head around the idea that Id soon be standing on the stage with millions watching. This was not part of the plan. I was a behind-the-scenes kind of gal, not at all attracted to the limelight. So, as I pulled up to The Awards, my nerves fluttered in my stomach like butterflies. But despite my anxiety, when I last checked the mirror I didnt look too shabby. Thank God, Michelle Obama isn’t the only one who looks perfect in a Carolina Herrera gown.
As I climbed out of the limo and walked the red carpet, waving at the crowd gathered to cheer on their favorite artists, I thought about everything that had led up to this moment and even though I was anxious on the inside, on the outside I smiled as if I werent the least bit concerned all while praying for two thingsplease, dont let me fall in front of all these people, and please, please, dont let me run into Scrooʝe.
  About the Author
 
David Lamb is a native New Yorker, born and raised, bitten with the writing bug since he was in elementary school and had handwriting nobody could decipher. Like Charles Dickens, David grew up a poor boy in the big city who found that the pen really is mightier than the sword. In middle school Lamb’s hero was David Lampel whose velvet voice could be heard reporting the news over David’s grandmother’s radio. Whenever he heard him on the radio, David would substitute Lamb for Lampel and pretend he was delivering the news. Sure that he was destined to be a famous reporter David was happy to go to a high school with a journalism program. Like most kids, by the time he finished high school he had a whole new career in mind. After high school he went to Hunter College and majored in Economics because he wanted to be cool like that college kid who came to speak at his last year of high school. He was an Economics major, he was dressed sharp and above-all the girls thought he was the man! So like any unreasonable high school boy fueled by overactive hormones David figured if he majored in Economics they’d think he was cool. After finishing college David went on to law school at NYU, but all the time writing was still his heart. While working as a lawyer by day, at night he transformed into a writer and eventually wrote and produced the award-winning hit off-Broadway romantic comedy Platanos Y Collard Greens. Being a writer and having the chance make people laugh out loud while challenging them to think about the world around them, and inspire each of us to believe in the power of love and our own ability to overcome life’s challenges is a great gift that David truly enjoys and thanks you for allowing him to share with you in On Top Of The World (Until The Bell Chimes).

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS

http://www.pumpupyourbook.com

 

Authors To Watch: Jenny Jaeckel, author of 'For the Love of Meat'





Jenny Jaeckel grew up in Berkeley and Ukiah of Northern California, has lived in Mexico, Spain and currently lives in British Columbia with her husband and daughter.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from The Evergreen State College, a Master of Arts in Hispanic Literatures from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She is a certified interpreter and translator, and has taught Spanish at three universities. She is the author and illustrator of three graphic memoirs. For the Love of Meat is her first book of fiction.

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS





Title: For the Love of Meat
Author: Jenny Jaekel
Publisher: Raincloud Press
Pages: 162
Genre: Short Stories/Light Romance/Historical

For the Love of Meat combines whimsical and surreal illustrations with engaging, intimate encounters that explore the depths of human experience. Unique and diverse in setting, and with touches of magical-realism, these nine stories will tug at the strings of the wandering, romantic heart, setting it delightfully ablaze.

In Wander the Desert, Sister Aurelia, a nun from the early 20th century, finds herself stranded in the Mexican desert with nothing but a few cobs of corn and a stray horse who becomes her faithful companion. In Stumble and Fall, we meet Dara, a young Londoner hungry for adventure who, unwilling to settle for the safety and comfort of home, travels to Vancouver, city of immigrants, where a handsome stranger entices her to take a leap into the unknown. The Two explores the tender bond between two young growing up in 1940s Philadelphia, who are as inseparable as light and shadow. As one of the girls tragically becomes ill, the impact on the other shows how true connections of heart and spirit are not bound to time and place. And Mémé, set in Haiti in the 1800s, is told from the stunning perspective of a slave who, as a child, witnesses the brutal murder of her mother, and survives through her connection to her brother and the natural world.

Jenny Jaeckel’s compelling storytelling takes us across the world and through the ages, with remarkable insight and soul-moving moments, when paths cross and time unfolds. Her language, imagery and attention to detail plunge the reader into these memorable lives, soaking us in tales of adventure, courage, love, loss, longing and all the hope in between. 

Purchase Information:

Amazon | B&N


Tell us a little about yourself.

I’m a writer and illustrator from (the hippie communes of) Northern California, currently living in Victoria BC with my partner Chris and our 11 year old child Asa. I really love books, both reading and creating them, and my biggest creative heroes are writers and graphic novelists. My comics colleague Josue Menjivar once said, as we sat at a table at a comics arts festival in Vancouver, “I want to go around to every artist here and ask them: why do you do this?” Seriously, why do we do this? I don’t have an answer, but I ponder the question a lot.  


When did you begin writing?

I suppose I began writing with some seriousness when I was 25, and as a craft it’s been evolving since. I’m 45 now and it took me a long time to feel like I had some maturity as a writer, and it also took me a pretty long time before I felt like I had something of substance to say. I was a book-oriented person from very young, but I was definitely no early bloomer as a writer.

Describe your writing process. Do you plot or write by the seat of your pants? When and where do you write?

My stories generally begin with some kind of seed, an idea or an image, a character in some kind of setting. I go in with an inner flashlight and try to see what else is there, and from there another clue emerges, or an event. I try to get to know my characters by feeling around. As I get to know them and their world a plot emerges. Then usually the plot shoots ahead and I go stumbling along behind, trying to catch up until I get to the end, and, boom! The story is written. Then I go over it from start to finish (since I often write scenes out of order) and fix it up. Then, just before I send it to one of my editors or my publisher, I wonder: Does this suck? Because at that point, even though I have believed the story was good all along, I have no idea!

Can you tell us about your most recent release?

My newest book is a collection of nine short stories with random illustrations called For the Love of Meat. It’s a bit of a trip around the world and through time, since the stories take place in seven different countries and three different centuries. Each story is unique, but they all share elements of theme, sometimes magic, sometimes humor, and all reflect turning points in the lives of the characters.


How did you get the idea for the book?

I always think in terms of whole books, so when I started writing the stories for For the Love of Meat, I wanted to play with some similar themes. Readers might notice references to the Mediterranean in several stories, bits of magic showing up in odd places, and pivotal moments in the lives of the characters. Each story, though, began with a different idea, such as something I once saw when travelling, a snippet of a dream, or just a random image that floated up in my mind.


Of all your characters, which one is your favorite? Why?

It’s funny how characters become like intimate friends. Perhaps my favorite in this book is Nelie (short for Cornelia) Hubbard, a young African American girl living in Philadelphia in 1949. Nelie is gifted with something like the second sight, and in the story she is possibly about to lose the one person she is closest to in all the world. She has an exceptionally loving family, though, which carries her through the experience. She is a very special person and she plays a very special role in her family and community.


Which authors have inspired your writing?

Edith Wharton, Merce Rodoreda, Toni Morrison, Eduardo Galeano, and J.D. Salinger, to name a few. They are (or were) absolute masters of their craft, geniuses of imagination, and incredible social observers/commentators. I bow at their feet, and just try to learn from their work.


What projects are you currently working on?

I am currently working on a novel, House of Rougeaux, about members of one family in generations that range from the late 1700's to 1964, and takes place in the Caribbean, Montreal, New York and Philadelphia. It is historical fiction, which has required a lot of research, but magical too, and the individual stories tie into the larger familial story.

What advice would you offer to new or aspiring authors?

Go for it! Also, seek out other writers to talk to and trade feedback with. It’s really helpful to have peers who also want to do this strange thing called writing, whether that’s a class, a group, or just one other person. Writing buddies unite!


Thursday, October 27, 2016

When Johnny Doesn't Come Marching Home by Marian Small



We are happy to bring you Marian Small's WHEN JOHNNIE DOESN'T COME MARCHING HOME blog tour!  Please leave a comment to let Marian know you stopped by!


Title: When Johnny Doesn’t Come Marching Home
Author: Marian Small
Publisher: Friesen Press
Pages: 341
Genre: Memoir

First-time author Marian Small’s WHEN JOHNNY DOESN’T COME MARCHING HOME does for World War I what Tom Brokaw’s THE GREATEST GENERATION did for World War II.

Written as a memoir of her father, WHEN JOHNNY DOESN’T COME MARCHING HOME expands to pay tribute to the generation that fought in the trenches and on the battlefields of what has been called the “forgotten war.”

Employing an inherited cache of her father’s letters home, his diary of the war, and voluminous family and historic photographs, Small, at age 89, has scrupulously created a narrative rich in vivid, sometimes heartbreaking detail of First Sgt. John Small’s experiences on the front lines and as a returning wounded veteran.

As a young man touched with the “spirit of adventure,” John R. Small enlisted in the Ohio National Guard in 1916, when he was 20 years old. He was first sent to Gen. John J. Pershing’s command on the Texas/Mexican border in pursuit of the legendary revolutionary and bandit Pancho Villa. When America entered World War I, in 1917, Small was mustered into the Army and promoted to sergeant. His unit was sent to France in 1918. Among his personal possessions was a diary given to him by his wife, Mary. He made almost daily entries during his time witnessing and enduring the horrors of the war.

John Small was severely wounded by a high explosive during the Meuse-Argonne campaign. His legs were badly mangled. After six months in hospitals in France, he was sent home. “At the tender age of 23 years, Johnny didn’t come marching home,” says Marian Small.

Although John Small’s incredible story took place nearly 100 years ago, it is still relevant today as American troops continue to be deployed around the world in harm’s way. WHEN JOHNNY DOESNT COME MARCHING HOME is certain to appeal to military history buffs, veterans, their families and friends, and readers who enjoy a compelling tale.

Marian Small believes that her book is unique “in that every word is true as told by Johnny in his diary or in his letters as narrated by me. I do not believe it can be compared to any other World War I war story that I have read or that has been written.”

Readers are sure to agree with her.

For More Information

  • When Johnny Doesn’t Come Marching Home is available at Amazon.
  • Pick up your copy at Barnes & Noble.
Book Excerpt:

LETTERS to MARY
August 1: Worked hard all day taking over and assigning more men to my Platoon sector. Aeroplanes continually flying over our dugout. A few shells went over early in the evening. Wrote letter to my wife this night while lying on the floor of my dugout with only a candle to light the darkness.
***
August 1st, 1918 — Somewhere in France
My Dear Wife: It has been several days since you last heard from me, and now, while waiting for ‘mess’, I will endeavor to keep you acquainted with the experiences I am allowed to tell you about. I say ‘experiences’, Honey, for since I last wrote to you, they have been many. War has vividly impressed them in my memory and I will never forget them. I will be able to tell you all when I come back to you, free from all the privations which we soldiers have to encounter. We will live and love all over again.
I have been on the go since I last wrote to you. We left our station and marched through shell-torn towns, up and down hills, and reached a place where we stopped to camp at three in the morning. Everyone was almost dead from the long march in the dark. To tell you the truth, ‘War is Hell’, emphasis on the ‘Hell’.
We lay in the Camp undercover, not allowed to march in the daytime on account of enemy aeroplanes. We left this Camp in the evening at 8:30 and, with the heavy load we each had to carry, hiked again in the night with aeroplanes flying overhead and bombs bursting everywhere. Six hours later we reached our destination.
When we set out on these marches, we never know where we are going. We are now in the trenches, I know not where.
From here, my experiences and love for adventure grew and I will relate only parts of it since we are severely censored now.
The first thing that I took notice of was the crack and roar of the heavy shells passing overhead. Honest, I never felt so lonesome as then for our little cottage in
Camp Sheridan.

About the Author


Marian Small was born in Cleveland, Ohio; she has been writing for most of her life. She began her 25 year business career as a secretary, a cashier and manager of a Detroit mortgage company, and as an Operations Manager of a Florida stock-brokerage firm. She moved to Beverly Hills, Calif. with her the 10-year-old son from her first marriage and became the Administrative Assistant to a Vice-President of the Regional Office of the same brokerage firm, which entailed frequent stints within the Wall Street office.  She married again in 1973, at age 46. She and her husband shared a 34-year long marriage before they divorced. After surviving breast cancer and minor strokes, Marian resumed writing at age 86 and has been writing ever since.

For More Information

Book Blast: Spaces Between Notes by Kristina M. Sanchez



Inside the Book


Title: Spaces Between Notes 
Author: Kristina M. Sanchez 
Publisher: Amazon 
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Nikolai Amorosa is one of those men’s men. You know the type—allergic to feelings, couldn’t have a heartfelt discussion if he tried, which he never did. Then, he lost his voice, and any chance of communication went out the window.

Unable to speak or otherwise interact with anyone, Niko’s anger was off the charts. It could’ve been worse; he could’ve been in jail. Instead, he found himself doing construction on Carys Harper’s house. Carys talked—a lot—both with her voice and her hands. She was also at the beck and call of her deaf little brother, Benny, which drove Niko nine kinds of crazy. Not that he would’ve said anything, even if he could.

Something else that drove him crazy? Carys was stubborn. She wouldn’t let him wallow. More than that, she seemed to hear all the things he couldn’t say. She understood him like she understood music. She heard what existed in the spaces between notes. She knew that sometimes silence screams the loudest.
buying-links

Amazon

Meet the Author


Kristina Sanchez is a lifelong insomniac whose creative career began when she used to make up stories about Bugs Bunny in her head while the rest of the house slept. She’s a Southern California native who can frequently be found at Disneyland because it’s easier to park there than go to the beach, sadly. Although writing is her first passion and only love, she finds fulfillment working in social services with the county of Orange. Currently, Kristina is the mother of a grumpy old man-cat named Mutt and a strange flight risk named Sirus Blackcat, who is, indeed, a black cat.

You can find Kristina easily enough on most social media platforms, where she will share her viewpoint on all the taboo subjects: religion, politics, and Supernatural, with the odd cat video thrown in for flavor. Prolific. Opinionated. Nerdy as all get out. Have fun, because you can bet she will.
visit

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK

_______________________

Participants

Confessions of 'Transgression' Jannette Fuller


Jannette Fuller loves spending time with the Lord and her family. She's a fangirl of everything lovely, and always tries to see the best in everyone, except for the villains in her YA series Ambrosial Acres.

When she’s not blogging or writing her latest article, she listens to sermons while sweating away unwanted calories, cleans the house until it sparkles, laughs at the silliest things, and enjoys the outdoors, especially her daily walks through the enchanted forest.

Of course there’s more to be said, but then her bio would end up being a memoir.
For More Information
About the Book:


Agent Yagil faces the fight of his calling as a Guardian Angel. His newest assignment is going to take every bit of perseverance and patience he has.

Seventeen year old Amber Reynolds is looking for some freedom and independence from her rigid lifestyle. Going behind her parents’ back, she takes a part-time job at the renowned inn located within Ambrosial Acres.

As Agent Yagil watches over Amber, he discovers things are not what they seem. Despite its wondrous beauty, Ambrosial Acres hides a dark and supernatural secret.

Between Amber’s new coworker crushes, her menacing stalker, a mysterious online stranger, and the evil agents out to lead her down a path of self destruction, Agent Yagil struggles to keep her safe. To keep her from using her freewill that will bring harm to herself--and others.

Will Agent Yagil succeed?

Or will his shortcomings get in the way?

Transgression is available at Amazon.

Tell us a little about yourself. 

I’m a wife and mother, and the author of Transgression (my debut novel). 
When did you begin writing? 

I started writing about seven years ago. During my enrollment at Liberty University (online) an unexpected passion led me down another path. After reading all the Twilight novels by Stephenie Meyer, I desired to write my own book, even though I’ve never taken creative writing classes, majored in English, or had any knowledge pertaining to the world of writing and publishing.
Describe your writing process. Do you plot or write by the seat of your pants? When and where do you write? 

Actually, I do both. I guess you can say I’m a hybrid: pantster/plotter. When I do plot, I do so by using bullet points, making sure to insert major events, locations, and then filling in all the details once I start writing. What really helps me, though, is creating character profiles and making a timeline so that all the events are in order, helping the story flow the best it can. I usually write in bed or in the living room.
Can you tell us about your most recent release? 

Sure, I’d love to. Transgression is a YA novel infused with mystery, suspense, and supernatural elements. It’s also the first in a series: Ambrosial Acres. The story is based on freewill and the consequences of one’s choices. It portrays the evil forces (both spiritual and mundane) that try to persuade humans to sin. In this case, seventeen-year-old Amber Reynolds is being persuaded by the agents of disobedience, lust, deception, and fear.
How did you get the idea for the book? 

I got it from the Bible, which talks about spiritual warfare, and how supernatural forces war against our souls. I used my own struggles and limitations of depression, anxiety, rejection (bondage) to write the story as well. 
Of all your characters, which one is your favorite? Why? 

I love them all, but Agent Yagil (Amber’s guardian angel and the POV of the story) and Trent are my favorite. They’re so much fun to write because of their charm and wittiness. The Bible talks about a cheerful heart being good as medicine, and Agent Yagil and Trent never fail to lift my spirit. They make me happy.
What was the most challenging aspect of writing your book? 

Everything about writing is hard to me. But the hardest part for me is the first draft, after that, the rewrites and edits are much easier to deal with.
Which authors have inspired your writing? 

C.S. Lewis, Frank E. Peretti, Mandy Fender, Nadine Brandes, Jackie Castle.…
What projects are you currently working on? 

Delusion (Book Two in the Ambrosial Acres Series).
What advice would you offer to new or aspiring authors? 

The thing that helps me the most to improve my writing is by reading ALL the time. I read in the genre I write, but I also venture out, finding myself captivated by other genres as well: high fantasy, historical romance, and dystopian. The other keys to ensure a completed manuscript is to write as often as you can, be patient, and write for yourselfnot for the market or for others. In my opinion, it’ll cause you unnecessary stress and make you second-guess yourself, wondering if it’ll ever be good enough. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great WONDERFULwhen others are inspired, encouraged and entertained by your writing, but there will be those who are not. And that’s okay.
My final piece of advice: Write with passion and be consistent. YOU CAN DO IT! :)

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Book Feature: Dowsing and Ley Lines by Gerald Chatfield

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Inside the Book:

dowsing-and-ley-lines
Title: Dowing and Ley Lines 
Author: Gerald Chatfield 
Publisher: iUniverse 
Genre: Reference 
Format: Ebook

This book contains information on dowsing for beginners and advanced alike. It provides information on how to find and follow more than five hundred ley marks across the south of the British Isles. It also contains unique insight on how shadow ley lines are connected to time as we measure it in minutes and hours. Also answers as to why the legendary figure of the Long Man of Wilmington is positioned where he is on the South Downs. There is also information on both Woodhenge and Stonehenge.

Giveaway

Gerald is giving away a $25 Gift Card!

 
Terms & Conditions:
  • By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
  • One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Gift Certificate to the e-retailer of your choice
  • This giveaway begins October 24 and ends on November 4.
  • Winners will be contacted via email on November 5.
  • Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Feature: Nearest and Dearest by Caroline Jolly



 

Inside the Book:


Title: Nearest and Dearest 
Author: Caroline Jolly 
Publisher: iUniverse 
Genre: Humorous 
Format: Ebook

Effie McIver has been living quietly on her own since the break up of her marriage to Jack who left her for her best friend. A visit to the doctor leaves her feeling restless and she experiences further disturbance during a visit to her daughter's house. These events lead her to conclude that something must be done to change her life. With the help of her friend Susie she decides to venture into the uncertain world of dating. Here she encounters a variety of people and situations, hilarious or humiliating, in her search for a new partner. The search takes place against the backdrop of her increasingly complex relationship to her daughter Cathy and her family. Meanwhile, on the dating front, she meets Oliver, a widower and a 'no hoper' who through persistence and a degree of change enters Effie's social life. A cluster of circumstances precipitate her into a shocking crisis within the family which slowly evolves, with the help of friend Susie and the keeping of a diary, towards a resolution. The mood of the story is essentially light, compassionate and humorous, as Effie explores her strengths and obvious weaknesses both as an older woman negotiating the choppy waters of dating and also as a parent managing her relationship to grown up children.

Meet the Author:
Caroline Jolly was brought up in Scotland, studied in London and East Africa, and works as a psychotherapist in private practice in London where she now lives.  

Giveaway

Caroline is giving away a $25 Gift Card!

 
Terms & Conditions:
  • By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
  • One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Gift Certificate to the e-retailer of your choice
  • This giveaway begins October 24  and ends on November 4.
  • Winners will be contacted via email on November 5.
  • Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule

October 24
October 25
October 26
October 27
October 28
October 31
November 1
November 2
November 3
November 4