Readin N Writin with Patricia

Book Buzz: A Noble Groom by Jody Hedlund

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Recently widowed Annalisa Werner has the feeling her husband was murdered but can’t prove it.

Alone with her young daughter in 1881 Michigan, she has six months left to finish raising the money needed to pay back the land contract her husband purchased, and the land is difficult to toil by herself. She needs a husband. With unmarried men scarce, her father sends a letter to his brother in the Old Country, asking him to find Annalisa a groom.

For nobleman Carl von Reichart, the blade of the guillotine is his fate. He’s been accused and convicted of a serious crime he didn’t commit, and his only escape is to flee to a small German community in Michigan where he’ll be safe. He secures a job on Annalisa’s farm but bumbles through learning about farming and manual labor.

Annalisa senses that Carl is harboring a secret about his past, yet she finds herself drawn to him anyway. He’s gentle, kind, and romantic–unlike any of the men she’s ever known. He begins to restore her faith in the ability to love–but her true groom is still on his way. And time is running out on them all.

Read an excerpt here.

REVIEW

A Noble Groom is Jody Hedlund's best novel yet In this her fourth book, Hedlund tells the story of a widowed peasant farmer who meets an escaped fugitive, a nobleman passing himself off as a farmer.
during the the early settlement of Michigan.

Annalisa Werner is in need of help following the tragic, unexpected death of her husband--a well-meaning but ill-fated farmer and gambler. Carl Richards, nee Carl von Reichart, son of the insidious Baron von Reichart, has been accused of a crime which he did not commit and sentenced to death. When he flees Europe, he lands in America and onto Annalisa's farm.

The love story that develops between Annalisa and Carl is poignant and touching. She has no idea who Carl truly is, and he has no intention of staying to help any longer than it takes her intended groom to arrive. Except she is drawn to Carl in ways she was never drawn to her husband, and he can't quite bring himself to leave. The danger of Carl's identity being discovered as well as of Annalisa possibly losing her farm to an unscrupulous businessman trying to get his hands on her land loom ever present. The romance and suspense both move at a steady pace, drawing the reader in and keeping the pages turning. The unique setting and theme, that of the noblemen of Europe vs. the immigrant settlers of the U.S., particularly in Michigan, makes for an interesting historical lens through which to enjoy Hedlund's increasingly fine prose. I especially loved that even when I thought I knew how the story would play out, Hedlund added additional twists, at least one of which I suspect few readers will foresee, heightening the reading pleasure.

I've read all of Hedlund's novels because she never disappoints and I look forward to the next one.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jody has written novels for the last 20 years (with a hiatus when her children were young). After many years of writing and honing her skills, she finally garnered national attention with her double final in the Genesis Contest, a fiction-writing contest for unpublished writers through ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers).

Her first published book, The Preacher’s Bride (2010 Bethany House Publishers), became a best seller and has won multiple awards.

Since then she’s gone on to publish numerous best-selling and award-winning books. To read more about her writing journey click here for Part 1 and here for Part 2.

Learn more about Jody Hedlund and her books at her website, http://jodyhedlund.com/ While there, check out her highly respected blog for those interested in knowing more about the publishing process and a behind-the-scenes look into a relatively new author's life.

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- May 18, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 18 May 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Join me in congratulating the Emma Award winners from the 2013 Romance Slam Jam!

The Lee & Low 2013 Award is open for entries. This award is given annually for a children's picture book manuscript by a writer of color. The contest encourages writers of color to submit their work to a publisher that takes pride in nurturing new talent. Past winners include Bird by Zetta Elliott and It Jes' Happened by Don Tate.

Looking to improve how you write dialogue? Dr. Dennis Hensley offers several ways to punch up story dialogue.

Layering Conflict. The four layers of conflict and how using them can help you through the middle and end of your story.

How will you protect your intellectual property after death? Who Will You Trust? Wills in Author Estate Planning from author Susan Spann

Scandal has come to a season's end-oh, yes, I'm a HUGE fan--but So You Think You Can Dance is underway. On deck for this weekend is a little reading, a lot of writing. No baking--did that for this week already, having made a cheesecake from scratch for my son's 18th birthday, my first ever cheesecake. If I can take a picture before the family starts devouring it, I'll post it.

Happy Readin' N Writin'!

Teaser Tuesday: Poison by Jordyn Redwood

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 07 May 2013 17:02:00 +0000

"Keelyn's stomach squirmed like an octopus trapped in a fishbowl. Its slimy, cold tentacles slithered out and seized her heart and lungs, making it painful to inhale. John backed up, a sneering smile on his face, as he approached her on the landing. " -- from Poison by Jordan Redwood (Kindle version)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- May 6, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Mon, 06 May 2013 17:51:00 +0000

A few quick tidbits to share...

RT Booklovers Convention took place last week in Kansas City. Workshops ranged from "Re-inventing the Modern Day Romeo" to "The Pros and Cons of Digital Self-Publishing." RT's website has a series of blog posts summarizing each workshop which can be found here.

4 Reasons Why You Still Need a Printed Book, Even If You Have an E-book. Obivous answer to me, is that although it may feel within the writer community as if everyone is reading ebooks, they're not. I'll let author Monica Carter Tagore shed light on the other three.

How Many Copies Make a Self-Published Bestseller? Author Denise Kim Wy goes "Behind The Story: Interview from 20 Self-Published Authors Who Made It BIG".

B&H Publishing announced a new direction for their fiction line requiring a tie-in to other B&H brands. Author contracts have been cancelled and the executive editor is leaving. Agent Steve Laube provides an interesting perspective on the changes at B&H--and what all traditional publishers require in order to continue to survive.

Did you enjoy Cinco de Mayo? I'm told Americans are more into this celebration than Mexicans. Mother's Day, a couple of mom birthdays, my oldest turns 18...lots of stuff on the horizon this month.

And I'll be "speed pitching" again on Wednesday. Say a prayer!

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- April 29, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

It's time for Brenda Novack's Annual On-Line Auction for Diabetes Research. Novack and her supporter auction things for readers, writers, others...whatever you might imagine. Along the way there are daily special auctions and prizes for auction buyers. It's a huge event that grows more successful every year. Check it out and bid on everything from a basket of books to a full manuscript critique to a once-in-a-lifetime, dream experience.

eChristian, a new source for Christian media--books, audiobooks, videos, and more.

Looking especially for a short read? ThinReads, a new online source for e-singles, offers reviews and author interviews to go with bestseller lists pulled from Amazon.

Can a man write historical romance? Author James Scott Bell did, and discusses his process and co-authoring journey.

Zondervan has launched a new YA imprint, Blink.

We've just come through tax season, and with spring in the air, you might be motivated to get your papers in order. How Long Should I Keep Old Documents? I'm always asking this question, and this article provides the most comprehensive advice I've seen.

What does e-reading do to your brain? There have been articles on this before, but Scientific American recently examined this question. Seems e-reading might inhibit reading comprehension. I know I retain way less about what I read on my Kindle than I do of what is read in print format. Don't know why, just know that it's true.

Author James Scott Bell illuminates "How to Write A Short Story"--what is it and what is it not?

Cover Bands Don't Change The World

Harlequin Blaze is sponsoring a writing contest. Editor Kathyrn Lye talks about How to Become a Harlequin Writer.

Amazon has sold over 5,000,000 Kindle singles since 2011. Read more to find out what makes this particular Amazon publishing program successful.

What NOT to Do When Beginning Your Novel: Advice from Literary Agents -- This is one I've definitely bookmarked for help with my editing clients. Sometimes they need to hear it from someone other than me.

Finishing up an editing job, then heads down writing for the next month. Trying to find a rhythm between editing gigs and writing my own stories, but I enjoy both. I'm reading a lot less which means I'm more picky. Fewer book reviews. Used to operate like time was forever, but since this last birthday, I've gained clarity. Trying to fill my time with things I truly deem important. And I'm longing for a day at the beach, something uber important to my psyche.

What's on your reading or writing agenda?

The Reader as Co-Writer?

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

One theme that permeates writer conversations today is that of bad reader reviews. Books are awarded 1- and 2-star reviews from readers sometimes for seemingly no rational reason. The price was too high. A short story or novella mislabeled as a novel. Wrong genre.

What does any of that have to do with the quality of the writing and whether it was an engaging story?

But then, there are times when readers say, "It wasn't believable" or "This would never happen in real life" or "The characters/setting/plot (fill in the blank) weren't likable."

When writers get feedback like that, more thoughtful even if still not completely transparent, is the reader's dissatisfaction the writer's fault?

Or is it, at least in part, the reader's fault?

Way back when in elementary school, I learned about something called "suspension of disbelief". I thought that was the coolest concept. It meant anything, anything could happen in fiction because fiction wasn't real. It didn't have to be realistic, it just had to make sense within the context of the story.

Some of the best stories, films and TV shows I know required a complete suspension of disbelief, e.g. The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, Back to the Future, Frankenstein, Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Jurassic Park, The Twilight Zone, I Dream of Jeanie, Bewitched, etc.

Look at some of today's biggest hits: Twilight, Harry Potter, Walking Dead, Revolution and every action-hero, comic book-based flick you can name.

So when readers say a story isn't "believable", are they saying they want their fiction to be more realistic--in which case, maybe they should read more true stories or non-fiction--or are they saying the writer didn't make the story threads believable within the context of that story?

Author K. M. Weiland wrote a blog post, "Helping Writers Become Authors: Why the Reader Is Your Co-Writer", that touches on this notion just a bit and inspired me to write this post.

Do today's readers seek a tad too much realism in their fiction? Are they less willing to suspend disbelief and accept something otherwise unbelievable within the context of a fictional story? Is it harder to suspend disbelief depending on the genre, like more realism required in romance and less in science fiction?

What Makes for Good Women's Fiction?

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:57:00 +0000

NovelCrossings interviews five women's fiction authors--Susan May Warren, Beth Wiseman, Deborah Raney, Katie Ganshert, and Denise Hildreth Jones--to explore the definition of women's fiction, favorite themes, favorite settings, and these writers' favorite women's fiction authors.

Here's an excerpt:

NOVEL CROSSING: What to you is the definition of “women’s fiction”?

DEBORAH RANEY: I always think of there being two definitions of “women’s fiction.” The broader definition is simply any novel that is written to an audience of mostly women––romance, romantic suspense, historical romance, etc. may all fall into this broader arena. But narrowing it down, women’s fiction is contemporary fiction that explores the many facets of a woman’s life and relationships, and the issues women face today.

The One Success Habit You Can't Do Without by Dr. Fred Ray Lybrand

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 13:36:00 +0000

Dr. Fred Ray Lybrand

and the book:

The One Success Habit You Can't Do Without

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (August 17, 2012)

***Special thanks to Rick Roberson for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Fred Lybrand is a communicator and father of five who has been married for over 30 years and has the diverse combination of having formally studied law, speech communications, systems thinking, linguistics, writing, theology, marketing, structural dynamics, leadership/management and the human personality.

As the author of six books and a number of articles and co-founder of TrimTab Solutions (an energy industry consulting firm), Lybrand is currently focusing on the challenging puzzle of human productivity and high performance. The One Success Habit is his newest contribution to help individuals and organizations become more productive without yielding one ounce of being human. His client list includes the United States Air Force, State Farm Insurance, Valero, Chick-fil-A, Pioneer Natural Resources, Encana, Marathon Oil, Rose & Associates, Protrader, Burlington Resources, AcuFocus and Silver Creek Oil & Gas.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Organization, productivity and good habits all appear to be part of successful endeavors. However, many of us don't know how to use these to reach our goals with true success. Dr. Fred Ray Lybrand, motivational speaker, writer and "human behavior expert," with his newest release, The One Success Habit You Can't Do Without (Kauffman Burgess Press, February 2013), continues with his warm, witty conversational advice that brings fresh clarity to the age old question of how to get organized...get moving...and shift our actions towards a new level of daily success. .

PRODUCT DETAILS:
List Price: $11.97
Paperback: 130 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (August 17, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1478326301
ISBN-13: 978-1478326304

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

What is Success to You?

A few years ago ‘de-motivator’ posters became all the rage. The idea was to send a message while offering a dark kind of comfort. Here are a couple of my favorite captions as best my memory serves;

If at first you don’t succeed…maybe failure is your thing

Perhaps your life is just to serve as a warning to others

The first had a dejected baseball player sitting on the bench, and the second had a half-sunken barge in the middle of the ocean. Almost immediately we all get the importance of success, but think a little deeper…

Why Does Success Matter?

On the surface, success matters because failure is so bad.

It does seem that most people operate with this kind of thought in the back of their minds somewhere. You know, it’s simple. If you don’t have money, friends, a lover, and stuff…life will be awful. Then again, I’ve worked with people over the years who fret over their money, are frustrated with their friends, want to get away from their lover, and are pretty bored with their stuff. In this kind of circumstance we find the first key to succeeding. Success is always relative. Success is always a ‘compared to what’ phenomenon. Success is driven by, and dies by, comparison. Are you a success? According to whom or according to what standard?

Honestly it just gets down to definitions.

Toward a Definition of Success

Clear definitions can solve all kinds of problems, especially conflicts.

Just definitions either prevent or put an end to disputes. -Emmons

Isn’t that true? Haven’t you seen an argument suddenly stop because someone said, “Oh, I thought you meant...” The debate was in full motion because the facts were not clear.

Now think about success. What is your definition of success? How will you know when you get there? On any particular project or subject matter, how can you know a single step to take unless you’ve defined what success for that thing will be?

It isn’t just for ‘big picture’ things either. The definition of success can matter for any item. How much money do you need to be a success? How much money do you need to be able to give away to be a success? Does it matter if the money is on paper, or do you need to be able to get to it? Change it to family---What does it mean to be a successful father, mother, or child? Is your children’s success a part of your definition of success? If they fail do you also fail?

Most of the time we have not done the most basic of things---we have not defined our terms. Here are a few ways to ask the question for your own benefit.

What does success mean to me?

When will I know I’m a success?

How will I know I am a success at home, the office, in friendships, in love, etc.?

Is there an area I have already succeeded in that I can learn from? What was my definition of success?

It is high-time you define success in order to know what you are doing and why you are doing it. If you fail to sit down and clarify your own definition of what it means to be a success, then you have no real way to organize your actions or know when you’ve arrived. That may be the reason you have never defined it…if you don’t define success, then you can never fail. Quite a strategy you have there, but there is one problem: Just because you never fail, it doesn’t mean you have succeeded! Having no enemies doesn’t mean you have lots of friends. You can still just be alone.

Thoreau’s point that most people die with the ‘song still in them’ comes to the essential point of definition. If you haven’t admitted you want to sing a song, or haven’t admitted that the song is a ballad---well, then the song will stay inside till you die. If you won’t start working on your definition of success, then quit reading this book and throw away your library on the subject. Nothing happens without a definition.

In many ways definition is more useful than vision. Defining a successful outcome of a meeting, a project, a business, or a life, can take care of the vision issue. Honestly, isn’t a definition of a successful outcome the real vision you need?

My Definition of Success

It seems only fair for me to give you my own definition of success.

Frankly, this definition is a composite of elements I’ve found to be crucial through the years. Parts may be plagiarized, but it isn’t intentional. In the history of the literature and the years of reflective reading, some of these things get so often quoted we think they are original with ourselves. If you show me who said what (from Epictetus to Napoleon Hill to Billy Graham), I’ll be glad to note the reference. In the meantime, here’s how I frame the word

SUCCESS:

Success is achieving what is meaningful to me through the use of my best talents; without violating the rights or freedom of others and without offending God.

Well, there is a lot here, so allow me to make a few comments on each part as it might relate to you.

Achieving what is meaningful to me – Essentially this is about getting what you genuinely want or desire, but it considers how meaningful the accomplishment is to you as an individual. When you create a result that you want you are basically successful. Yet, we often don’t feel it because it wasn’t meaningful to begin with. The starting place is to let go of what everyone else is demanding (or you imagine they are demanding) in order to learn to be true to yourself. If it isn’t meaningful to you, then why create it?

Through the use of my best talents – Maybe you can create the results you want through your lesser talents, but I wouldn’t bet on you. ‘Nature’ has certainly designed you for something, or given you capacities to use in particular ways. These capacities need development in order to become skills. It is your love for the activity that allows the 10,000 hours you will invest to become a true master. Yet, even starting out, you are better than most people at certain things without much practice. These areas are where your talents live…and on balance, they are the means through which you will succeed.

Without violating the rights or freedom of others – If you destroy people (or their property) on the way to success, you are still a big fat failure. Sorry for the moralizing, but that’s the way it goes. What goes around comes around. You will reap as you sow. The Golden Rule is true. Attempting to manipulate and control others is tantamount to lying and cheating, which on any plane is failure. The reason manipulation amounts to cheating is that you are effectively removing the other person’s choice when you manipulate…unless she can say, “No,” then her answer is never a legitimate, “Yes.”

Without offending God – Now, this is clearly added because it is unique to me and my life orientation. If you are an atheist, scratch this part. Then again, if you are an atheist you don’t think you can offend God since He doesn’t exist--- so, you might as well leave it in! For the rest of us who believe in a Creator who is sovereign over all of His creation, it seems wise to take into consideration His standards. This doesn’t have to be a set of rules, but it does mean that at least on the level of conscience we would be wise to stay decent in His eyes.

Well, create a context for my succeeding. What I pursue and how I feel about it really makes sense with this definition. The definition also helps me consider (or reject) possibilities that come my way.

Your Definition of Success

How about you? What is your definition of success?

Why not take a moment and write down something on a scrap of paper? If you don’t define success, how will you know if you ever make it? How will you know if the steps you are pursuing will get you to what you really want in succeeding?

Pardon the illustration, but I remember asking my father, “When did you first realize you were a man?” He thought for a moment and said, “It was when I went home from college and smoked in front of my parents.” Even as I write this I want to stress that I loved my dad and learned a mountain of valuable insights from him. However, on the definition of being ‘a man’, that’s about as silly as it comes. It certainly never organized his life like a better definition might have, and it certainly didn’t give me what I needed as to direction. My 4 sons all memorized a definition I heard from Robert Lewis during a trip to Little Rock. “A man is one who rejects passivity, accepts responsibility, leads courageously, and looks for the greater reward.”

It has been a joy to watch my sons all check, challenge, and cheer for one another as they’ve grown toward manhood. Definitions can make a huge difference.

Don’t underestimate the importance of working out your own definition of success; it will guide you toward wherever it points. Choose carefully, but choose now and improve it tomorrow.

The Need of the Moment

The need of the moment is for you to get started on a definition of success.

In a writing course (see it at www.advanced-writing- resources.com) I developed to help others overcome the same crippling fear of writing I had, I explain that writing occurs in three stages:

Get Help

Make It Great

The idea is simply that most of us try to write something great from the moment we find pen and paper. The truth is that you can’t start with perfect.

You can start with OK, however. Honestly, can you write an “OK” definition of success? Your definition of success should be nothing fancy and nothing to publish; just something OK.

Can you write that kind of a definition? Of course you can, and then you can get help with it. Show it to a trusted friend or two and see what they would add or take away. Play with it over a few days or weeks. Read it aloud and see what you think. Your definition can be a living thing and may take new shapes over the years. Nonetheless, your definition will give you a starting place.

Of course, it would be easier just to copy my definition down on a 3x5 card and reflect on it. I may have already saved you the time and hassle. Regardless, please make sure it is your own definition because you ‘own’ it.

Now, having a great definition of success is still meaningless unless you finally embrace one thing…

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- April 15, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 16:54:00 +0000

Tablets have overtaken e-readers in popularity, according to the latest BISG Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Reading survey.

Not sure how long the sale will last, but Harper Collins is offering a bunch of best-selling women's fiction titles for $1.99.

Amazon to launch a cover creation tool for self-published and KDP authors.

In my editorial travels, I'm frequently asked, or questioned about, why I remove--or add--commas. Editor Alicia Rasley does a great job in this blog post talking about comma splices.

Another thing that often pops up is the repetitive use of gestures, or use of the same phrases repetitively to describe them. Here's something to help with that: Body Language: An Artistic Writing Tool.

With all the newly self-published authors, what's become of the slush pile? Author Dean Wesley Smith tackles this in his latest installment of The New World of Publishing: A New Slush Pile.

I've begun using the writing software, Scrivener, and I'm really enjoying how easily it enables me to organize my writing forward, but I just learned of a free online tool for writing organization that offers similar features and some might like to try: Hiveword.

Barnes and Noble is relaunching its self-publishing arm. No longer PubIt!, the repackaged service is now called Nook Press

Isn't the bear cute? I'd rather think about him than taxes today.

Lots of editing and reading and writing. All three.

What are you reading? How's your writing?

Teaser Tuesday: The Air We Breathe

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 12:45:00 +0000

"She flinched, shrinking into her center, folding up, a magician’s handkerchief stuffed into the cup made by his hand, pushed in by his pointer finger, and then, when he shook his hand open, it had disappeared. That’s what happened when Tobias—anyone—prodded her for more information, for feelings, for something she couldn’t do." -- from The Air We Breathe by Christa Parrish

Hands down The Air We Breathe is the best book I've read in a while, certainly one of the best books I've read this year and perhaps in some time. Christa Parrish can really, really write. I mean who describes steady rain as jellied air, and you immediately know and visualize what she meant. Worse, you wish you'd thought of it?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- April 7, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Combining my love of books and waning reality TV enjoyment, did you know the ladies of the Real Housewives franchise have written a total of 14 books?

I still like reality TV, but I'm much more circumspect about what I watch. Pretty much stick to high quality cooking shows like Top Chef, Iron Chef, Hell's Kitchen (I know, questionable given Gordon Ramsey's antics) or Next Food Network Star; music shows like The Voice, Sunday Best and American Idol; dancing shows--correction, one dancing show--So You Think You Can Dance; and an occasional choice of my kids, like American Ninja Warriors. Pretty much shows where people are trying to accomplish something that is or moves them toward achieving their dreams.

Moving on...

What is the most important character emotion? Love? Hate? Anger? Desire? No, frustration. Creating Emotional Frustration In Your Characters.

Sales of used ebooks? Not so fast. Court rejects doctrine of First Sale, which impacts possible sale of used digital content, including music and ebooks.

What's In A Name? That's the name of the novella contest from Boroughs Publishing. Writers must submit 25,000 - 40,000 word novellas based on a song title, which is also the title of their novella. Deadline is May 31.

Harlequin Cleared in Royalty Case.

Looking for a good read? New April Christian Fiction releases from ACFW Authors.

Author CJ Lyons talks Amazon KDP Select: Is It Worthwhile for Authors?

Writers get a lot of unsolicited writing advice. I've certainly got enough to fill my walk-in closet. So I really liked author/editor Edie Melson's take on Unsolicited Writing Advice You Should Never Follow. Could have written this one myself.

In light of the Amazon/GoodReads announcement, if you're looking for an alternative site, here's a list of six possible bookish alternatives.

I love newspapers, although it's been years since I've subscribed to a print version of one. I still read them, though, mostly on my smartphone where I've been able to sample content from multiple papers. But they're making it harder... A Majority of the Biggest Newspapers In the Country Now Have Paywalls.

Editing, reading, and writing. I'm playing around with Scrivener in earnest because I've reached a point in my pen-and-paper version where I feel like I need to get it on the computer. But before I start creating multiple Word docs, I thought I'd give Scrivener a try. A host of writers I know swear by it and having gone through the tutorial, I can see why.

What are you Readin' N Writin' this weekend?

GoodReads: Will It Still be Good for Readers Under Amazon?

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

So the HUGE news of last week was that the social media site aimed at readers, GoodReads, was being bought by Amazon.

Amazing coup for the owners of GoodReads. Certainly they will make out well, probably never imaging such a thing when they began. I'm definitely not one of the reading haters angry that they dare to take advantage of an wealth-building opportunity such as this one.

Amazing coup for Amazon. A lot of readers, self included, were shying away from Amazon when it came to finding new books and reading book reviews. First, Amazon has acted quite capriciously with regard to book reviews, even going so far as to remove reviews from their site if they are written by published authors. Wuh? Authors are not supposed to read and have an opinion about books? Does the fact that they are published make their opinion less meaningful or trustworthy? In fact, Amazon should worry about all the book bloggers who write reviews after cozying up to authors and publishers and receiving free copies of books. Some bloggers (not me) find it difficult to be critical of books by authors whom they've befriended and/or have received at no cost. But I digress...

Interesting, perhaps dicey, proposition for authors. GoodReads is known for book promotions, by both traditionally published and self-published authors, sometimes sponsored by the publisher but often sponsored by the author. Will the ease of promotion and willingness to promote change now that GoodReads will be owned by one of the largest booksellers/rising publishers in the industry?

What about readers, the target user of GoodReads? How will this purchase work out for them? Now there's the question. Of course no one knows and there are opinions all over the spectrum from doomsday to celebration.

When it comes to ebooks, at least Kindle ebooks, this is a good thing. Tight integration should make it easy to find and purchase ebooks from Amazon. For authors of ebooks not published by Amazon or of print books, I'm not so sure. Will Amazon be gallant and give equal purchase opportunity to other booksellers? Somehow, I can't imagine that, so Nook owners and other readers may find that they are suddenly at a disadvantage for sales. What about authors who wish to promote their ebooks not published by Amazon?

What about the integrity of book reviews? Reviewers over at GoodReads don't mind saying whether they like or dislike a book, but because it's been pretty separated from book buying, there doesn't seem to be the same level of snark and maliciousness, like when reviewers offer 1 star reviews because the book was outside their normal genre or the publisher forgot to disclose that it was actually a short story or they thought it was priced too high.

Time will tell whether GoodReads remains a good thing for readers. I'd moved away from Shelfari, a product also know owned by Amazon, and begun tracking what I was currently reading and expected to read, with a link back to my blog on GoodReads. Not in the mood to find another book site so I'll see how this goes.

Let's just hope it doesn't go south.

When Memories Fade by Tyora Moody

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

How do I let go of my past to receive God’s future for me?

Angel Roberts has embraced her new faith, but past memories remain fresh. When her beloved grandmother suffers a stroke, Angel sets out to investigate a mystery that has created family tensions and lingered since she was five years old. What happened to her mother?

She teams up with investigative reporter, Wes Cade, a man obsessed with his Alzheimer stricken grandfather’s remaining memories. As Angel lets her guard down with Wes, his determination to get the story could push her to the edge. Is his interest in her or the story?

Angel must conquer her fears to find the truth. Unknown to her someone close is working feverishly to stop Angel from unlocking the truth of what really happened to her mother. Who will win?

BOOK TRAILER

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Serving up a creative mix, flavored with FAITH

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. — 1 Colossians 3:17 NIV

Tyora Moody is an author and entrepreneur. Her debut novel, When Rain Falls, was released March 2012 (Urban Christian). This is the first book in the Victory Gospel series. The second book in the Victory Gospel Series, When Memories Fade, will be released in April 2013 (Urban Christian).

Deep Fried Trouble, the first book in the Eugeena Patterson Mystery series will be released June 2013.

Tyora has coined her books as Soul-Searching Suspense. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and American Christian Fiction Writers. She served as a judge for the Christy Awards for three years.

She owns and operates TywebbinCreations.com, a design and marketing company. For over twelve years, she has worked with authors, small business owners and non-profit organizations to develop their online presence. For free tips, how-to guides and ecourses, visit DIYwithTy.com.

When Tyora isn’t working for a client or doing something literary, she enjoys spending time with family, catching a movie on the big screen, traveling and when the mood hits her, baking cookies.

Visit the author online at TyoraMoody.com.

BOOK REVIEW

This was my Easter weekend read. Given that the book is about shedding the past in order to be able to move forward, I think it was appropriate.

Angel Roberts has a past that keeps her bound in dissatisfaction and even anger. Her mother was abducted when she was a little girl, on her birthday, at that. She's working on a documentary about her mother, an up and coming singer now missing over 20 years, which leads her to want to find out answers to the many questions she has.

Wes, the news reporter, is naturally curious. So a story with loose ends, like that of Angel's mother, piques his interest, when he stumbles upon it while researching the disappearance of another youjng singer from this same community--and finds some similarities between the two cases.

Tyora Moody twists and turns this plot into a literary pretzel. Some things can be predicted, as is always the case in a whodunnit, but some cannot, which is true of the best whodunnits. Moody paints her characters with realistic brush strokes, and I enjoyed how this novel tied into her prior book, When Rain Falls, but not too closely. When Memories Fade is less of a sequel and more of a continuation into the lives of the people in and around Victory Gospel Church, and it's an entertaining read.

WHEN MEMORIES FADE BOOK GIVEAWAY

Please leave your comments on this blog post. You could win a copy of When Memories Fade.

Three (3) copies will be given away during this tour.
There will be a GRAND PRIZE - All the books in the Victory Gospel Series (When Rain Falls and When Memories Fade) will be included in a special, customized Thirty-One Gift Bag - https://www.mythirtyone.com/prjoy/

Purchase the Book Online at:

Amazon.com

BarnesandNoble.com

For More Information

Visit Tyora Moody online at her website, www.TyoraMoody.com, or on her Facebook page, www.facebook.com/AuthorTyoraMoody

View the blog tour schedule at: http://tywebbinvirtualevents.com/PZFpn

Double Teaser Tuesday: Daughter Of Jerusalem

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 15:40:00 +0000

So I typically post my teasers the night before. Why did I wake up this morning and realize right away that I'd "teased" today's book a few weeks back? So this Tuesday, it's DOUBLE Teaser Tuesday.

Here's the second tease for the day:

"I believe I heard about every battle that Judas ever fought and every campaign he ever planned. If anyone else had dwelled on these military details, I would have found it tedious, but I loved to look at the fire that came into Daniel's eyes and the flush that rose into his chees as he related the heroic deeds of Judas and his brothers." -- from pg. 20 of Daughter of Jerusalem by Joan Wolf (ARC).

That's Mary Magdalene speaking., half sister of Lazarus and of Martha. I love when authors imagine the stories around the Biblical stories, infusing one with the history of the other and the other with faith-filled imagination.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Teaser Tuesday: Better For Us

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

"If Ryla was truthful with herself, she would admit that she hadn't thought much about how this would affect Jaylen if things didn't turn out the way she planned. Her daughter would be crushed. But she was the one who pushed Noel out of their life, so now she had to do everything in her power to bring him back." -- from pg. 106 of Better For Us by Vanessa Miller.

Another feisty heroine from author Vanessa Miller. This is book 2 in her For Your Love series. I enjoyed book 1, but I'm enjoying book 2 more. I don't know whether that's because it's the height of basketball season--my favorite time of the sports year!--and hero Noel is a former NBA player, or it's just a good story.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- March 30, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

I'm far from caught up on news in the blogosphere, but I didn't miss this one. Amazon bought Goodreads, the book-focused social media website. Many readers considered Goodreads a wise alternative to Amazon, especially given how Amazon has been treating book reviews of late, but now...? Amazon also owns Shelfari and a stake in LibraryThing. Are they trying to own everything on the Internet centered around books?

A word on the acquisition from the GoodReads founders, Otis and Elizabeth.

Poor Barnes & Noble...

The finalists for the 2013 RITA Awards have been announced. This is the first year that I don't think I've read even one of the nominated books, but I'm sure they're all still great reads.

Grand Central Publishing is accepting manuscripts between 8,000 and 100,000 in word count for its Forever Yours imprint. No agent required.

Trouble creating your characters--or understanding the one's you're reading about? Character Archetypes 101 from author/character therapist Jeannie Campbell.

Authors think about copyrights to their work. But what about to images and graphics, and what to do if you think someone has infringed on your rights? 5 Top Legal Issues for Authors and Self-Publishers.

Here's one of those grammar things that comes up a lot in my editing services: Colons and Semicolons: A Tutorial.

So You Want to Use Song Lyrics in Your Novel? 5 Steps to Getting Rights to Lyrics.

How to Subvert Cliches from author Jessica Bell.

Have your story just about polished? RT Book Review's monthly Where to Submit Your Manuscript.

My oldest got his driver's license this week. Legally, he could have done so two years ago, but he wasn't in a hurry and neither were we. Just another step toward his departure for college this summer...

Reading (not so much anymore), editing and writing.

March Madness! Who's in your Final Four?

And Easter. Celebrating the life, death and resurrection of Christ. I've enjoyed experiencing it anew through my children as we've explored the Scriptures together to learn the story of Easter week.

Happy Easter and Happy Readin' N Writin'!

Teaser Tuesday: Friendship Bread

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 17:50:00 +0000

"She felt the wall go up almost immediately, everybody fading into the background--her husband, her sister, her parents. She couldn't believe that Livvy had let this happen, and even when she started to accept that it may not have been Livvy's fault exactly, she couldn't believe that Livvy had been the past person Josh had seen before he died." -- from pg. 124 of Friendship Bread by Darien Gee

Something sad has happened to Julia's family and that something threatens to tear them apart. But the people of Avalon and a little Friendship Bread look to make all the difference.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- March 16, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Many things ebooks...

Used ebooks? More of a possibility than many realize. Patents have been filed and legal battles are already underway regarding the resale of digital content. What Happens to Publishers and Authors If a Used Ebook Market Becomes Legal?

Seems there's been a bit of a kerfluffle with Random House and new contracts for digital content. I missed the original shot over the bow, but bowing to pressure from Science Fiction Writers Association, Random House will now offer a choice of a revenue sharing model and a traditional contract which includes advance and royalties. In a rare move for the publishing world, Random House released an overview of the terms of their new contracts.

But I'm up to speed now, due to this lengthy--but well worth the read--post from James Scott Bell, an attorney as well as author who always gets to the heart of matters in publishing without all the emotion, Field Report from the E-book Revolution #3: The New Equilibrium. He not only touches on e-book contracts and pricing, but also the disappearance of mid-list authors, hybrid publishing and the rediscovery of stoic joy. (You have to read it.)

When you write, do you tend to plunge into dialogue or narrative? Do you forget to establish the setting of the scene? Establishing Shots That Reveal Character from author C. S. Lakin

Author Bonnie Grove explains Why You Shouldn't Talk About Your Novel, which I agree with. But you should talk about your writing in general. Keeps it front and center on your mind and in your priorities. Just not the specifics of your story...

J. A. Konrath, not a Harlequin author but a self-publishing phenom who many writers respect, takes on Harlequin by answering the survey questions it recently sent out to its authors, some of who are friends of Konrath. Interesting questions, interesting responses.

Finally, Guy Kawasaki, author of APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur--How to Publish a Book, is doing a free webinar this coming Wednesday entitled "How to Become a Bestselling Author".

Spring is in the air! Don't you agree?

Happy Readin' N Writin'!

I Met Him In The Ladies' Room by Michelle Stimpson

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Today's Wild Card author is:

Michelle Stimpson

and the book:

I Met Him In The Ladies' Room

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (January 17, 2013)

***Special thanks to Michelle Stimpson for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michelle Stimpson is a national bestselling, multi-published author. She lives just outside Dallas with her husband, one kid left in the nest, and their weird dog.

Visit the author's website at http://www.michellestimpson.com/.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION

I Met Him in the Ladies’ Room is a fun, faith-filled novella that revisits the foundations of Christianity with humorous, light-hearted wisdom and wit.

Product Details:

List Price: $6.49

Paperback: 102 pages

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (January 17, 2013)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1482002337

ISBN-13: 978-1482002331

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Christmas was the only “religious” thing we did as a family, if you could call what we did religious. Somehow, a six-pack of beer and a stolen Atari system under the tree seemed to detract from the sacred nature of the celebration.

How did I know it was sacred? They cancelled school for it. We also got out for Thanksgiving and Good Friday, but those two never quite caught on in my family.

So, years later, when my roommate Stephanie printed off a vacancy announcement from a local church which stated one of the requirements for employment was Applicants must have accepted Christ as personal Savior and be committed to continuous spiritual growth I yelled at her, “Did you read this part?”

What part?” Stephanie asked, plopping herself down on my bed. Snatching the paper back from me, she pushed her jet-black hair behind both ears and took a second look at the post.

“This part right here," I punched the paper to point out criteria number six, "about being a Christian.”

She grabbed my hand and inspected my fingers instead of the job description. “You need a manicure.”

In protest, I folded my hands beneath my armpits. “Get serious. I’ve got less than a year to get a job and get myself established.”

What kind of job do you expect to get with nails like these?” She smirked. “Gardener, maybe? Ditch-digger?”

I returned her smirk with what I thought was one of my own, but I’m sure it looked more like a smile. Stephanie, ever-cheerful, had jokes for everything. She also had good looks and a rich, functional family—attributes that totally escaped me. No wonder people like her were in love and engaged. The only wonder was how we ended up best friends and how she’d all but supported me since we graduated from junior college. Now that she was getting married to Ricardo, I had to be a grown-up. We’d both have to be grown-ups, we gathered. For her: no more running to Daddy. For me: no more running to Stephanie. Hence, my dire need for steady employment.

Stephanie re-read the requirements and then announced, “Kerri, you can so be a Christian. It’s not that big a deal from what I can tell. You believe in God, right?”

Yeah, me and every other heathen,” I joked.

Stephanie smacked the papers on the bed, straightened her back, and walked me through her rationale. “Didn’t you, like, go to church when you were little?”

“Nnnnnope,” the word slid out of me.

“Okay,” she said with a clap of her hands, “Did you ever say bedtime prayers?”

“Aaanck.”

“Get baptized?”

“Strike three, Stephanie, I’m out. You can’t just be a Christian. You gotta, like, take all these classes and stuff. You remember Danny?” I referenced an ex-boyfriend of mine who wasn’t necessarily spiritual but was definitely a repository of useless information. “He said you have to get this kit and memorize volumes of prose and drink wine before you can become a confirmed Christian.”

Stephanie’s perfectly shaped eyebrows shot up an inch. “You’ve had wine! And remember that Catholic wedding we went to? We drank wine there.”

I am not a Christian, and I am not going to fake like one just so I can get a job. I might as well be…a politician or something,” I said.

Fourteen days and six job rejection notifications later, I found myself running for the office of “Writer/Editor” at one of the largest churches in the Dallas area. Sure, my conscious bothered me. Actually, it did more than bother me, it harassed me. So much that I’d added “Become a Christian” to the top of my list of “Things to Do Today” every day for the last week. I never quite got around to it though, since I couldn’t get in touch with Danny for the books or the wine to get the job done.

When the lady from the church called to confirm the interview, all I could do was hope like crazy I wouldn’t have to take some kind of Christian-test as part of the screening process.

As I waited for my potential boss to call me beyond the reception area, I browsed the church’s magazine rack. Each issue boasted the picture of a distinguished, deeply brown-skinned man with the salt-and-pepper hair one only gets with years of wisdom. His wife, clad in an elegant dress suit, was equally impressive. Stephanie would say she was quietly wealthy.

They were, upon further inspection, pastor and wife of Wesley Street Bible Fellowship; Pastor and Mrs. Scott. I had done some research about the church online, but the picture on the webpage didn’t do them justice.

I flipped through one of the magazines, still awaiting my interview, and came across a brief clip entitled, “How to Accept Christ as your Personal Savior.” My heart screeched to a halt. Yes! I’d found it! I breezed to the bottom of the article to find the kit-ordering information. There was no time to lose. If I could order the kit before the interview, I would only have to tell a partial lie about this whole “being a Christian” thing. As long as my Christian kit was on the way, I was half-way home.

I jumped from the cushy chair and approached the office secretary. She slung her floppy bangs away from her eyes and asked, “Yes?”

“Sorry to bother you, but where’s the ladies’ room?”

She pointed to the left. “Around this corner – two doors down.”

“Thanks.”

With the magazine still in hand, I entered the bathroom and rushed into the first stall, determined to break this secret code and find out how I could get my hands on the information. There had to be an 800-number or something! I re-read the clip in its entirety, slowly this time. Was it really that simple? Say this prayer and then – POOF! –bad stuff be gone, you’re a Christian?

It cannot be this simple.

Whatever. If this is what they wanted, this is what they would get. I searched the bathroom with my ears, and when I determined there was no one else around, I whispered the printed prayer:

Jesus, I come to you as a sinner, confessing my sins, and asking for your forgiveness. I believe you died on the cross for my sins, you rose again, and you are now seated at the right hand of God. I invite you to come into my heart and be my personal savior. Amen.

Then I waited. I don’t really know why or what for, I just waited. After a few minutes, I realized I was probably waiting to be struck by lightning for doing such a bad deed. I didn’t know much about God, but I figured it was pretty safe to say that He didn’t like phonies. Who was I kidding? I couldn’t take this job. Not like this. Not if I didn’t really mean what I’d said.

I guess that was the part that got me – how could I believe in something I didn’t really understand? Who exactly was this Jesus dude? If he died and then got back up again, did that make him an angel like Grandpa Skeeter? When Grandpa Skeeter died, everyone said he turned into a guardian angel. In life, he always carried a .45, which, I supposed, made him a prime candidate to be guardian of something or another.

Who said I was a sinner, anyway? Okay, I had bad credit, but that was all thanks to a former boyfriend who convinced me to add him to my cell phone plan and co-sign for a Nissan. Never mind that I couldn’t even drive it because it had manual transmission. No, I wouldn’t classify my credit score as sin. I’d just been plain old stupid.

I heard the bathroom door swing open and listened as a pair of pumps stomped two steps inside. “Miss Dalee?”

“Yes,” I answered.

“Are you okay?”

My mind scrambled back to reality. “Yes, I’m okay. I'm just…finishing up.” I reached behind myself and flushed the toilet for effect. Not quite sure what effect I was going for.

“Mrs. Trenton will see you now.”

“I’ll be right out.”

Time to lie? Or not? I stepped out of the stall and into a forced meeting with myself because the wall-length mirror was now directly across from me. My deep brown hair swung low at my cheekbones, accenting a sharp V-chin and nearly overpowering my face.

Stephanie always said my hair was too big for me, as were my feet. Everything in between the two hadn’t changed much since the seventh grade. Makeup helped to bring out my hazel eyes a little, but Maybelline and Max Factor can only do so much. My only “interview” suit swallowed me and probably would have overcome me if I hadn’t pinned the skirt at the waist.

The woman staring back at me was…well, I didn’t really think of myself as a woman. A woman has confidence. Wisdom. Girth. This girl in the mirror felt as insecure and silly and painstakingly skinny as I had ever been, only now I could safely add dishonest to my list descriptors.

“No,” I said out loud to myself. This was as good a time as any for a pep talk. I stepped up to the glass and gave myself a what-would-Stephanie-say? lecture. “You prayed the prayer, you wanted to mean it…you just don’t know what it means. They can’t count off for that. You’ll find out what it means later. Now, build a bridge and get over it ‘cause you need this job, girlie.”

I didn’t know what to say next, so I quoted my favorite line from The Lion King. “It is time.”

What Do Your Bookshelves Say About You?

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Author Jody Hedlund asked an interesting question in her post, Bookshelves Talk. What Do Your Bookshelves Say About You?

Since I have no books on bookshelves, that says something in itself. Rather, books are stacked around me--near the bed, in the closet--and packed in boxes, suitcases...whatever. It's not that I don't care about my books, but I've moved a lot in recent years and bookshelves became less important. But you would find lots of Christian fiction, AA fiction, books on health and weight loss, and inspirational non-fiction with a few writing craft books, biographies, cookbooks and miscellaneous genres thrown in.

My kids have a host of books--and they actually have a bookshelf--mostly fantasy, comic books, school required reading, super heroes, science subject matter and drawing books. Of course there's the Harry Potter series and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. (Yes, I've read both, loving the first and not so patiently allowing the latter to grow on me.)

Growing up, there was a bookshelf in every room except the bathrooms. Literally. In the kitchen, there were cookbooks, of course. In the living room, there were coffee table books, dictionaries, encyclopedias and books of general interest, books you might share with company.

In each of the bedrooms were books directed toward the inhabitant's reading interests. I had the Winnie the Pooh novel, Harry the Dirty Dog, the whole series of The Happy Hollisters, the Little Women series (yes, there's actually a series of books), Gone With the Wind, The Good Earth, Little Princess, the Ramona series, and some Nancy Drew.

As I got older, my shelves were filled with textbooks, lots of popular fiction from Danielle Steel, Jackie Collins, James Michener, Judith Krantz, Toni Morrison, Howard Fast, and African American non-fiction, like Manchild In The Promised Land, The Autobiography of Malcolm X and Roots. But I pretty much read whatever I could get my hands on, including my mother's literary novels and my brother's Tom Clancy and Robert Ludlum books. He turned me on to The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder and it was one of the best books I'd read up to that point. Beyond that, I was known for reading the dictionary and the Baptist Standard Hymnal. Like I said, pretty much anything.

What does all that say about me? Simply that I love to read, I think.

What do your bookshelves hold...and say about you?

Teaser Tuesday: Better For Us

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:44:00 +0000

"We'll plan the wedding for late September, sometime around the twenty-fourth. We'll do it up, invite our family and friends, and then as I am standing in front of the preacher waiting for you to recite your vows, you scream something like 'I just can't do this,' and then run out of the church like somebody just snatched your purse and you're trying to get it back." -- from pg. 89 of Better For Us by Vanessa Miller

I haven't read a word of this one yet. I'll finish up my current read today and dive right into this next book. Doesn't that teaser make you wonder how a romance with this kind of drama could ever survive?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page (in the comments or via link to your own blog)

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Reading anything interesting? (Even if you don't post the meme, psot a comment to tell us what you're reading!)

Reader/Writer Tidbits -- March 11, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 20:42:00 +0000

Whew! So much going on as I transition from one day job to another. I haven't quite kept up with the world of publishing as much as usual so I'll keep this very brief.

But there are some interesting things going on...

Digital BookWorld talks about The Future of Romance Ebooks, in particular, focusing on Harlequin, the king of romance in print, but looking not so royal when it comes to ebooks. According to DBW, "Harlequin, the largest and most prominent publisher of romance books in the world, might be getting left behind." Harleuqin faces competition from the explosions of indie romance ebooks, a lawsuit over ebook royalties, and an increase in ebook royalties to keep up with self-published ebooks.

Ebook prices continues to be a hot topic. Forbes asks, "Is $8.00 Too Much for an Ebook?"

I'm amazed at how quickly I've become immersed in Kindle reading...and want less to do with physical books. This from a dyed-in-the-wool-gotta-have-a-printed-book person. I find myself wanting review books in e-book format, and reaching for my Kindle--actually getting perturbed when I have to read a printed book--more often than not.

Has this been true for you, e-book readers?

I'm still not crazy about licensing e-books vs. owning them.

This is what I was doing over the weekend...

Oh, how I love college basketball! It will only get more exciting as Oldest Son gets his shot.

What's doing in your neck of the reading and writing world?

Reader/Writer Tidbits - March 2, 2013

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Seems Amazon is discouraging it associates from promoting free e-books. Too many free book promotions and they won't get the royalties they earned for the month. How is that even legal? What's next? Telling readers they have too many free book downloads and can't download anymore for the month...or permanently? Authors, publishers and book distributors need and want to get paid; readers want and need to find good books and get them for a reasonable price. Free promotion is but one spoke in a big wheel.

Keep an eye on this one...

Author and journalist Sharon Tubbs is offering the Move Forward Writers 1.0 Workshop for writers seeking publication to share information about types of publishing, developing your writing skills, shaping your message, working with an agent and more.

Music industry mogul Clive Davis, on the heels of the release of his memoir, The Soundtrack of My Life, shares his favorite music books.

Not much this week because I'm in transition on the day job. Leaving the old, heading to the new.

I'll be back soon!

Happy Readin' N Writin'!

2013 Black Christian Fiction Authors on Parade: Sherryle K. Jackson (w GIVEAWAY)

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Long time writer Sherryle K. Jackson is a multi-published author, speaker and teacher. Jackson's writing style has been compared to Terri McMillans, as she pens relationship stories that reflect "an honest commentary on her life with Christ."

Jackson's debut novel, Soon and Very Soon, was released in 2007, the story of two pastors who court and marry, then have to deal with the ministry's response to this unusual coupling.
Since then, she's released The Manual, Soon After, the sequel to Soon and Very Soon, and Taylor Made.

For her literary contribution, Jackson has been a Black Christian Book Distributor Best Seller and a Black Expressions Book Club pick. She also received the EDC Creations Best Book Award in 2008 and 2001. Jackson has served as a panelist at the Faith and Fiction Retreat and also is a member of Christian Authors on Tour. A member of Delta Sigma Theta, the romance-minded writer was married on Valentine's Day, has won a blue ribbon for quilting, and collects black memorabilia.

Her fifth novel, The Land of Promiscuity, will be released later this year, followed by Path To Promise. Jackson also has plans to publish her first anthology, Weary and Will, a collection of true and ficitonal accounts of the Bible's most beloved but hard to live by Scriptures, under her own banner, Holy Ghost Writing.

Here's a blurb for The Land of Promiscuity:

Her biggest sin was her squandered promise.

Death of her mother and town martyr, Madame Ava Lucas brings Rebecca Lucas back to a land she would rather forget where she reunites with the only one man who has dared to love her as a true friend. Fifteen years later, that man, William Donovan is now the assistant Pastor of Grace Apostle Methodist Church adjacent to her family’s home estate. He’s devoted to helping Rebecca heal old wounds and rediscover her passion when she returns home. What they do not expect is in settling her mother’s estate that they would unearth a generational curse that threatens to dismantle their carefully built love affair.

The Land of Promiscuity is a crazy twist of unrequited love that will leave you wondering whether there are circumstances that make it impossible for even love to survive

Deals with generational curses and forgiveness

A teacher by profession, Jackson hosts an annual Write Away weekend, an intensive writer's residency held the first weekend in October.

Learn more about Sherryle K. Jackson and her writing via her website, www.sherrylejackson.com, and connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

SHERRYLE K. JACKSON IS OFFERING 1 COPY OF ONE OF HER BOOKS TO A COMMENTER. LEAVE A COMMENT WITH EMAIL ADDRESS TO WIN.

The 2013 Black Christian Fiction Author Parade:

Feb 19 -- Wanda B. Campbell

Feb 20 -- Monica Carter Tagore

Feb 21 -- Linda Leigh Hargrove

Feb 22 -- Michelle Lindo-Rice

Feb 25 -- Shelia Goss

Feb 26 -- Shelia Lipsey

Feb 28 -- Vanessa Davis Griggs
Mar 1 -- Sherryle K. Jackson

Thank you for coming to this year's Authors on Parade. See you next year!

2013 Black Christian Fiction Authors on Parade: Vanessa Davis Griggs (w GIVEAWAY)

noreply@blogger.com (PatriciaW) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Today's featured author on parade is Vanessa Davis Griggs.

A prolific author, Davis Griggs hails from Irondale (home of the Whistle Stop Café and Fried Green Tomatoes), a community just outside of Birmingham, Alabama. In 1996, after 18 years in corporate America, Davis Griggs' writing career began with the publication of Destiny Unlimited, a fantastical inspirational story likened to The Wizard of Oz, filled with colorful characters and heartwarming messages. Destiny Unlimited was enjoyed by old and young alike.

But then Davis Griggs began to pen stories about adult relationships, starting with The Rose of Jericho and hasn't looked back. Since then, she's written Promises Beyond Jordan, Wings of Grace, and her current Blessed Trinity series, beginning with Blessed Trinity and continuing through the eighth book in the series, her most recent release, The Other Side of Dare. In addition, Davis Griggs has published three other standalone novels: Ray of Hope, Redeeming Waters and Forever Soul Ties.

Davis Griggs's writing awards have been many, including an EDC"On the Shoulders of Giants" Faith Based Books Best Book Award; 2004-2005 Jasper Outstanding Achievement Award; March 2006 recipient of The Greater Birmingham Millennium Section National Council of Negro Women Inspiration Award; 2007 recipient of the Arts and Letters Award from Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Birmingham Alumnae Chapter; 2009 BCCN1/BCBC Bestseller's List, 2011 BCNN1 Bestselling Christian fiction, and the latest, a 2012 Best Multicultural Fiction nomination for Forever Soul Ties (winners to be announced May 2013). Later this year, Davis Griggs will be a featured author for the 2013 National Black Book Festival in Houston, TX in October.

The Blessed Trinity series follows the membership of the Followers of Jesus Faith Worship Center, pastored by dreadlock-wearing, Holy Ghost-filled Pastor George Landris and his non-nonsense wife, Johnnie Mae Landris, and their community. The series continues with Strongholds, If Mercy Serves, Practicing What You Preach, Goodness and Mercy, The Truth Is the Light, The Other Side of Goodness and the recently released, The Other Side of Dare:

When a battle of wills threatens to tear a family apart, a child shall lead them--straight to a shocking secret. Will they betray their faith--and each other--to keep it buried?

After seven years of marriage, Paris Simmons-Holyfield and her husband, Andrew, are still childless. Now Paris is determined to adopt orphaned nine-year-old Jasmine Noble. Trouble is, Jasmine's in the custody of ex-stripper Gabrielle Mercedes. Worse, Andrew is vehemently against the idea--and he's not alone. Paris's father, Lawrence Simmons, a powerful politician, has vowed to shut his daughter down. The only man to even dare be on Paris's side is shady Darius Connors. Unemployed and not quite out of the dog house with his wife, Darius is more than happy to help the beautiful, vulnerable, yet undeterred Paris. . .

Paris has her suspicions about why her husband and her father are so opposed to the adoption. But the reality is far more scandalous than she imagines. To get to the bottom of it, she'll have to deal with blackmail from the last person she ever expected--and battle Gabrielle, who'll fight with everything she's got--including the truth. Soon, all involved will learn just what's on the other side of dare. . .

I had the opportunity to review The Other Side of Goodness and The Other Side of Dare, and, along with Davis Griggs's fans, eagerly await the July 2013 release, The Other Side of Divine.

Having said all of this, the most important thing Vanessa wants you to know is that she is a child of the Most High King. Known for her frequent and numerous Facebook posts offering words of encouragement and inspiration, Davis Griggs is sometimes called "God's Cheerleader".

Learn more about Vanessa Davis Griggs and her books at her website, www.vanessadavisgriggs.com or by connecting with her via her Facebook page.

The 2013 Black Christian Fiction Author Parade:

Feb 19 -- Wanda B. Campbell

Feb 20 -- Monica Carter Tagore

Feb 21 -- Linda Leigh Hargrove

Feb 22 -- Michelle Lindo-Rice

Feb 25 -- Shelia Goss

Feb 26 -- Shelia Lipsey

Feb 28 -- Vanessa Davis Griggs
Mar 1 -- Sherryle K. Jackson

VANESSA DAVIS GRIGGS IS GIVING AWAY 1 COPY OF ONE OF HER BOOKS. LEAVE A COMMENT FOR A CHANCE TO WIN

Come back each day for a chance to win a book for these talent Christian fiction authors. Be sure to leave a comment with your email address so that we can contact you when you win!

NOTE: Yesterday's post for featured author Shelia Lipsey was incorrectly titled as if for today's author Sherryle K. Jackson. My apologies to both Ms. Lipsey and Ms. Jackson. Ms. Jackson's post will appear tomorrow, March 1st.