Monthly Archives: November 2017
VBT – Depression in Later Life
About the Author
Dr. Deborah Serani is a psychologist in practice over 25 years, an associate adjunct professor at Adelphi University and a TEDx speaker on the subject of depression. She is also a go-to expert on psychological issues. Dr. Serani is the author of the award-winning books, Living with Depression, Depression and Your Child: A Guide for Parents and Caregivers and Depression in Later Life: An Essential Guide published by Rowman & Littlefield.
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About the Book
Title: DEPRESSION IN LATER LIFE: AN ESSENTIAL GUIDE
Author: Dr. Deborah Serani
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Pages: 286
Genre: Self-Help/Psychology
BOOK BLURB:
The geriatric population, defined as men and women 65 years and older, is the fastest growing population in the world. Little attention has been given to the mental health of the aging, and often treatable disorders are overlooked entirely. Depression is one of the leading mental disorders in any age group, but among the elderly, it is often viewed as a normal part of aging. But it’s not. Depression at any age requires attention and treatment.
Depression in Later Life is a go-to guide that introduces readers to depression among the aging and elderly. It looks at both sufferers who’ve been diagnosed in their younger years as well as those with a new diagnosis, and reviews the symptoms, the diagnostic process, treatment options including alternative and holistic approaches, and long-term care for those experiencing mild, moderate, or severe depression. With real stories throughout, the book illustrates the many forms depression can take, and Dr. Serani offers a compassionate voice alongside practical advice for sufferers, caregivers, and families.
BOOK IS AN AWARD WINNER: 2016 Gold Medal Winner, Psychology, Foreword Review https://www.forewordreviews.com/awards/books/depression-in-later-life/.
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Book Excerpt
What is Late-Life Depression?
I know depression because I’ve endured it my entire life. I had it as a child and it worsened as I became a teenager. And it still lingers in the margins of my life at age 55. For me, depression was a chronic illness that left me in despair and frighteningly unaware of its grinding misery. I didn’t recognize the symptoms – and neither did any family or friends. In fact, as my depression worsened as a college student, I sank into a featureless existence, either awake in a fatigued haze or sleeping the entire day away. Gradually, the bitter brine of depression flooded my mind with hopelessness. I didn’t care about the future and I couldn’t find purpose in the present. It didn’t occur to me that anything was out-of-sorts, short-sighted or even peculiar as my thinking became more corrosive. When I attempted suicide at age 19 with a handgun, it felt right. It felt comforting.
Of course, looking back, I was in deep emotional and physical pain and believed I found a way to make it stop. But it wasn’t a healthy choice. I was making a decision from an incredibly distorted reality. Luckily my plan was interrupted and I immediately got help. I began intensive psychotherapy and discovered that I’d been living with dysthymic disorder and that it escalated into a major depressive episode. Having both these disorders was called a double depression, and I learned how to replace the quiet agony of my illness with tools to live a more meaningful life. The experience I had with talk therapy was so life-changing and life-saving that it inspired me to become a psychologist. I combined my personal experiences with depression with my training as a clinician and became an expert in mood disorders. I realized that my personal experiences with depression offered enormous insight to those who sought treatment with me because I know the talk and I walk the walk.
In the 45 years of personally living with depression and the 25 years of professionally treating it as a disorder, this is what I’ve learned:
Depression doesn’t care if you’re rich or famous, poor or homeless.
It doesn’t care if you’re young or old.
Or if you’re ordinary or superlatively gifted.
Depression cuts across social economic status, is found in every culture and in every country around the world.
Depression will drape its chokehold over men, women and children – and thinks nothing of how it decays your mind, siphons your soul and crushes the glimpse of possibility, hope and freedom at every turn.
Depression is not an experience that fades with the next sunrise or can be shaken off with a newfound attitude. It won’t be cured by tough-love. Or rectified by ignoring it. You can’t snap out of it or will it away either. And if you try to minimize its wrenching hold on your health, it’ll root itself even deeper. Depression can’t be ranked alongside adjectives like blue, sad, dejected, down, melancholy or unhappy. Those words just won’t do… because they don’t even come close to describing what depression feels like.
Depression demands you to see it for what it truly is – an illness. And while it’s a serious illness, it is treatable. The key to success in living with depression is early identification, consistent treatment and planning to manage your illness.
Defining Depression
Depression is a complex illness that significantly impacts the way you feel, think and behave. According to the World Health Organization, depression involves feelings of worthlessness, decreased energy, hopelessness, poor concentration, negative thinking and disrupted sleeping and eating patterns, just to name a few. The most predominant of these symptoms is a depressed mood, and because of this, depression is classified as a mood disorder. Sometimes called affective disorders, mood disorders are the most common mental illness, touching over a hundred million people worldwide. Mood disorders aren’t the result of a weakness of character, laziness or a person’s inability to buck up and be strong. Mood disorders are a real medical condition.
The Geriatric Population
It’s important to know that depression can occur at any age, but in this book, we’re looking at depression in later life. Specifically, the geriatric population – which are individuals 65 years of age and older. Sometimes referred to as seniors or the elderly, geriatric citizens are the fastest growing population in the world. In America, alone, the baby boomer generation now makes up over 50 million of the senior population. With people living longer, and the combination of medical advances and technology improving the state of healthcare, the senior population is expected to soar to 72 million by the year 2030. More specifically, The US Census Bureau reports that in the next 45 years, people over the age 65 will double, and people over the age 85 will triple. And now more than ever, centenarians, people 100 years of age and older, are not just reaching these amazing ages, but living richly textured lives.
While gerontology, the study of the aging process in human beings, has brought insights about the physical, emotional and social needs of this population, little has been done to train geriatric health professionals. In fact, 97% of medical school students have no training in geriatrics, and the rate of doctors graduating with a geriatrician degree are lower now than ten years ago.
Even geriatric psychology, or geropsychology, the specialty that focuses on the mental health of the elderly, isn’t gaining the kind of traction needed to help those living in their golden years.
This makes identifying and treating depression in later life difficult. But with the help you get in Depression in Later Life, you’ll be equipped to see the early warning signs and know where to get help.
Book Trailer:
VBT – Stone Circle
Kate Murdoch is an accomplished painter turned author who has remarkable life story which started in one Australia’s darkest periods. Kate was born 10 weeks premature in the Queen Victoria Hospital in Melbourne in the early 1970s. She remained there for 3 months after being left by her young unwed mother before being adopted out through the hospital program. The social values of Australia during the 1950s-1970s looked unfavourably on children born outside of marriage. With 85-90% of Australians identifying as Christian at this time and sex outside wedlock viewed as sinful by the church – unmarried mothers often found themselves at the mercy of social criticism and ridicule. It became common in Australia for the babies of unwed mothers to be adopted and at its peak in 1971-72, there were almost 10,000 adoptions. Since then, rates of adoption have dropped massively, and over the last two decades have stabilised at around 400-600 children per year. While it is difficult to know the exact number of adoptions over this period – its legacy is thought to affect 1 in 15 Australians.
Having always been aware of her adoptive background, Kate, like most of us, began questioning her identity in her teens. She finally met her mother at 18 but it wasn’t until she was 31 and pregnant with her first child that she finally met her biological father who was unaware of her existence. In 2012, her personal journey inspired her to begin to write. Her new historical fiction novel, Stone Circle came to life at this time after she had a vivid dream about an old man and two boys on a stretch of water in a canoe.
The book is a beautifully imagined work of historical fiction. The characters and themes are very reflective of Kate’s own life, exploring class, rivalry, spiritual growth and identity. Stone Circle is the story of a boy endowed with psychic powers who is apprenticed to a seer in 16th century Italy.
Press Release:
Author’s own search for identity inspires book about love and family
Melbourne: 17th November 2017 – In the early 1970’s author, Kate Murdoch was born 10 weeks premature in the Queen Victoria Hospital in Melbourne. She remained there for 3 months after being left by her young unwed mother before being adopted out through the hospital program. Kate was extremely fortunate to have been assigned two exemplary people to raise her, both of which would have a huge impact on the person she was destined to become. The social values of Australia during the 1950s-1970s looked unfavourably on children born outside of marriage. With 85-90% of Australians identifying as Christian at this time and sex outside wedlock viewed as sinful by the church – unmarried mothers often found themselves at the mercy of social criticism and ridicule. It became common in Australia for the babies of unwed mothers to be adopted and at its peak in 1971-72, there were almost 10,000 adoptions. Since then, rates of adoption have dropped massively, and over the last two decades have stabilised at around 400-600 children per year. While it is difficult to know the exact number of adoptions over this period – its legacy is thought to affect 1 in 15 Australians.
Having always been aware of her adoptive background, Kate, like most of us, began questioning her identity in her teens. Although she was in a family where she was greatly loved, she was markedly different. Her creative talents surfaced in high school and were recognised with an art award in her final year. After school she went on to study a Bachelor of Fine Art at Monash University. She met her mother at 18 but it wasn’t until she was 31 and pregnant with her first child that she finally met her biological father. It was then that all the questions about her creativity were answered. He was creative and a successful musician. Kate’s struggle with identity and the beginning of her spiritual journey through the study of reiki, in 2012 inspired her to begin to write. Her new historical fiction novel, Stone Circle came to life at this time after she had a vivid dream about an old man and two boys on a stretch of water in a canoe.
Kate says, “I’m so looking forward to sharing this book with readers. This has been a long deeply personal journey and it is wonderful to finally be at this point. As the book reflects, I’ve always identified strongly with European sentiments and I think this is why I have become so preoccupied with European settings in my novels. I decided to set this book in the Renaissance period because at that time there was a lot of exploration into alchemy and I knew that the old man in my dream was imparting a knowledge of some kind to the two boys. I hope this book reminds readers that the only constraints are those that exist in our own minds.”
The book is a beautifully imagined work of historical fiction. The characters and themes are very reflective of Kate’s own life, exploring class, rivalry, spiritual growth and identity. The book follows the journey of a young Antonius who is sent off to work to support his family after his father dies. He finds employment as a servant in the Palazzo Ducal, home of Conte Valperga. Sixteenth-century Pesaro is a society governed by status, and Antonius has limited opportunities. When a competition is announced, Antonius seizes his chance. The winner will be apprenticed to the town seer. Antonius shares first place with his employer’s son. The two men compete for their mentor’s approval. As their knowledge of magic and alchemy grows, so does the rivalry and animosity between them. When the love of a beautiful woman is at stake, Antonius must find a way to follow his heart and navigate his future.
The book encapsulates so many aspects of Kate’s own life and her choice of the Renaissance period is one clearly made by a painter turned writer. Her years exhibiting and modelling in Australia, Asia and Europe have given her a broad understanding of the global village that is the world today. Her protagonist breaks out of his own societal expectations and class limitations, due to his talent and good character – which is highly reflective of her own personal journey.
This book will appeal to lovers of historical fiction, mythology and fantasy. Kate will be launching the book on Wednesday 6th December at Page 8 in Hampton.
About the Author:
Kate Murdoch is a Melbourne-based writer and artist. She exhibited widely as a painter both in Australia and internationally and was a finalist in many prize shows before turning her hand to writing. In between writing historical fiction, she enjoys writing short stories and flash fiction. Her short-form fiction is regularly published in Australia, UK, US and Canada. She also writes for her blog at https://kabiba.wordpress.com/.
Kate’s second novel is Stone Circle, a beautifully imagined work of historical fiction. An earlier version of Stone Circle was widely-acclaimed on the HarperCollins UK website, Authonomy, where it was chosen by the editors as the “one to watch” and ultimately ended up ranked 16th out of more than 10,000 manuscripts.
Kate Murdoch is available for interview. For media enquiries or to request a review copy of the book please contact, Aisling Gilhooly – Publicist on M: 0424 520 345 or E: aisling@aislingenterprises.com.au
The book is available for purchase for $AUD22.95 from December 1st through Amazon, Book Depository, Booktopia and Kobo.
Reviews for Stone Circle
“Murdoch presents a delightful romance, feathered with light touches of fantasy. The development of her love triangle is gratifying, and even secondary characters offer stark dramatic moments…” – Kirkus Reviews
“Kate Murdoch’s characters are so greatly human, that it’s easy to sympathise with them: to cheer them on during hard times and to admonish them for being foolish. Her characters’ interactions with each other and their individualities helped shape the book into something wonderful; at the same time she excels at pacing the story with her characters, all within a framework designed to help readers understand the world of seers and alchemy she has created.” – Readers’ Favorite (5 Stars)
“Kate Murdoch’s STONE CIRCLE is a stunning historical fantasy debut set in Renaissance Italy, packed with rich imagery, well-developed characters, and an enthralling plot. The execution of the love triangle is both captivating and refreshing, weaving love, jealousy, and rivalry into a complicated but realistic story of one young seer’s journey into alchemy and adulthood. I can’t wait to read more by Kate Murdoch.” – Madeline Dyer, author of the Untamed series
‘Stone Circle is a tale of 16th century Italy, but not as you have ever read about it before. This history is enlivened by a famous seer, his beautiful psychic daughter, two smitten apprentices, magic rituals, shape-shifting birds, evil brewing and true love, a thrilling combination that hooked me from the beginning. Kate Murdoch’s fabulous writing is full of vivid sounds, sights and scents that pull us into the scene, expressed in inspired word combinations that are a joy to read. A wonderful, entertaining book.’ – Gail Cleare, USA Today bestselling author
VBT – NADYA’S WAR
About the Author
C.S. Taylor is a former Marine and avid fencer (saber for the most part, foil and epee are tolerable). He enjoys all things WWII, especially perfecting his dogfighting skills inside virtual cockpits, and will gladly accept any P-38 Lightnings anyone might wish to bestow upon him. He’s also been known to run a kayak through whitewater now and again, as well give people a run for their money in trap and skeet.
His latest book is the historical fiction, Nadya’s War.
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About the Book
Title: NADYA’S WAR
Author: C.S. Taylor
Publisher: Tiny Fox Press
Pages: 300
Genre: Historical Fiction
BOOK BLURB
Nadezdah “Little Boar” Buzina, a young pilot with the Red Army’s 586th all-female fighter regiment, dreams of becoming an ace. Those dreams shatter when a dogfight leaves her severely burned and the sole survivor from her flight.
For the latter half of 1942, she struggles against crack Luftwaffe pilots, a vengeful political commissar, and a new addiction to morphine, all the while questioning her worth and purpose in a world beyond her control. It’s not until the Soviet counter-offensive at Stalingrad that she finds her unlikely answers, and they only come after she’s saved the life of her mortal enemy and fallen in love with the one who nearly kills her.
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Book Excerpt
Seven of us zipped through the overcast sky, a dozen meters beneath the cloud layer. Gridnev flew lead and a girl named Tania from First Squadron flew on his wing. Alexandra and I cruised next to them about thirty meters away. I pictured myself as a modern version of my ancestors who rode into battle on horseback, courageous and strong. If only they could see me now, sailing through the air to drive off the invaders. I wondered if they’d be proud or jealous. Maybe both.
The four of us escorted a flight of three Pe-2s from the 150th High-Speed Bomber Regiment across the snowy landscape. That unit was led by Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Polbin who I’d heard was quite the commander. I’d also heard he enjoyed music and sang well, like me, which made me think we’d get along—even if he was a die-hard communist and loyal to Stalin.
The twin-engine Peshkas flew nearly as fast as our fighters, something I was grateful for. I’m certain the three crew members inside each bomber were thankful as well, since unlike the German Heinkels and Stukas, these planes were tough to catch for any aircraft. That being said, I was glad I was in my Yak-1. I wouldn’t have wanted to fly one of those bombers at all, no matter how prestigious they were. They were still big targets, and far less nimble than the fighter I had. I prayed we’d keep them safe.
All the Pe-2s, however, did have fresh, winter paint jobs. Their off-white and tan colors hid them well in the surroundings, and if I wasn’t paying close attention, I’d even lose sight of them from time to time. Their target was a rail depot the Germans were using to bring in supplies and troops headed to Stalingrad. Obliterating it would disrupt logistics and force the Luftwaffe to keep it safe once rebuilt.
With luck, the Germans wouldn’t spot the Peshkas until the bombs were already dropping and they were headed home. I fantasized about how easy of a mission this could be as we went deeper into enemy lines. Those thoughts almost turned into dreams as the drone from my fighter’s engine combined with the dreary sky nearly put me to sleep, despite the digging pain in my arm.
“Tighten up, Little Boar,” Gridnev called out over the radio.
My eyes snapped to the formation. I’d drifted away from the bombers by a good fifty meters sideways and at least that in altitude. I glanced over my shoulder to see Alexandra off to my right. She’d stayed with me even as I wandered. “Reforming now. Thought I saw something below and wanted a better view.”
The Inspiration Behind ‘Nadya’s War’ by C.S. Taylor
Some nameless, late night many moons ago, I was doing what I do best when trying to write, namely surfing the web and finding every excuse—and inventing a few more—I could to not look at MS Word and actually type something out. Somewhere between articles telling me that “These ten unexpected, cuddly things will kill you” and “which type of mason brick are you?” I stumbled upon an article dealing with the Night Witches and was mesmerized.
For those who know little or nothing about them (and most don’t) the Night Witches were a group of female pilots in the Red Army Air’s 588th night bomber regiment during World War 2. The group was one of three all-female regiments that had been put together by Major Marina Raskova, a national heroine at the time and a fantastic pilot. The young women of the 588th flew the Po-2 biplane, which was made in the late 1920s and was really only good for training and crop dusting. It wasn’t a combat aircraft by any stretch of the imagination. But they flew it nonetheless to drop bombs on the Germans. They got the name Nachthexen (Night Witches) by the Germans because the girls quickly learned to cut their engines just before they went on a bombing run, so they were completely silent until the bombs exploded.
Fascinating stuff, I thought, and something that deserved a book or two. Also, since I love flying and in a prior point in my life, I was intent on flying for the USMC, I thought writing a book that centered around the Night Witches seemed to be a great idea.
So with that thought in mind, I began fleshing out a plot and characters, but the more I did my research into the Night Witches, I realized that their sister regiment, the 587th (who flew the Pe-2 medium bomber), met my needs in terms of the story better. So I shifted my focus to the 587th and kept at it.
I kept at it for a few weeks and soon discovered that some of the historical characters I wanted in my book didn’t survive the timeline I was after as the 587th didn’t see combat until 1943. And since I was writing historical fiction, I couldn’t exactly have one of them pop up in the story when he or she was supposed to be dead.
It was about that point when I realized I really wanted more dogfights in my book overall, and thus, settling on the 586th fighter regiment was an easy choice. My decision to go with the 586th was reinforced even more when I realized that there weren’t any books on these women at all, at least on the historical fiction side. There were a few dealing with the Night Witches and some female pilots who were in male units, but the 586th was untouched, which is very appealing as a writer.
So with the 586th firmly settled, it was just a matter of changing a few things from my rough outline because my main character, Nadya, was going to be a fighter pilot and not a bomber pilot.
Building Nadya as a real person took a lot of work, and the details of her life came from a variety of sources, mostly interviews that had been recorded with surviving members of the 586th, 587th and 588th.
The stories I read were not only from the pilots, but the navigators, bombardiers, mechanics, and ground crews, and I drew a lot of inspiration from all of them as their tenacity and bravery was nothing short of legendary. I really wanted to capture that with Nadya’s War with not only Nadya herself, but with all of the supporting characters, too. Most of all, I wanted to ensure that Nadya was crafted in such a way that her story would slide neatly in between all the others I read, not overshadowing any of them in terms of what she goes through, heroics, etc., but accurately mirroring what each young woman in all three of these regiments dealt with day in and day out.
I like to think I managed to pull that off. Hopefully readers will agree.
Book Blast – Free E-Book Promotion
Free e-book Promo of “She’s Not So Ordinary”. The horror novel by C.A.Milson & J.D.Rebel.
Free promo runs from November 25th to November 29th 2017!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009D820A8
VBT – The One Apart
About the Book
Title: The One Apart
Author: Justine Avery
Genre: Paranormal
Only one obstacle stands in his way of enjoying a normal life. He remembers—every life he’s lived before.
Tres is about to be born… with the biggest burden any has ever had to bear. He is beginning again—as an ageless adult trapped in an infant body.
He and his teenage mother face life filled with extraordinary challenges as they strive to protect, nurture, and hide how truly different he is. But Tres alone must solve the greatest mystery of all: who is he? The answer is linked to the one question he’s too afraid to ask: why am I?
In his quest, Tres discovers that all is considerably more interconnected and dynamic than he could ever imagine—and fraught with far more danger. He cannot hide from the unseen threat stalking him since his birth.
Life as he knows it—as all know it—is in peril. And Tres is the only one aware.
Author Bio
Justine Avery is an award-winning author of stories large and small for all. Born in the American Midwest and raised all over the world, she is inherently an explorer, duly fascinated by everything around her and excitedly noting the stories that abound all around. As an avid reader of all genres, she weaves her own stories among them all. She has a predilection for writing speculative fiction and story twists and surprises she can’t even predict herself.
Avery has either lived in or explored all 50 states of the union, over 36 countries, and all but one continent; she lost count after moving 30-some times before the age of 20. She’s intentionally jumped out of airplanes and off the highest bungee jump in New Zealand, scuba dived unintentionally with sharks, designed websites, intranets, and technical manuals, bartered with indigenous Panamanians, welded automobile frames, observed at the Bujinkan Hombu Dojo in Noba, Japan, and masterminded prosperous internet businesses—to name a few adventures. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree that life has never required, and at age 28, she sold everything she owned and quit corporate life—and her final “job”—to freelance and travel the world as she always dreamed of. And she’s never looked back.
Aside from her native English, Avery speaks a bit of Japanese and a bit more Spanish, her accent is an ever-evolving mixture of Midwestern American with notes of the Deep South and indiscriminate British vocabulary and rhythm, and she says “eh”—like the Kiwis, not the Canadians. She currently lives near Los Angeles with her husband, British film director Devon Avery, and their three adopted children: Becks, Sam, and Lia. She writes from wherever her curiosity takes her.
Avery loves to connect with fellow readers and creatives, explorers and imaginers, and cordially invites you to say “hello”—or konnichiwa.
Twitter: @Justine_Avery
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/JustineAvery
Book buy link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076B7RDWY
Giveaway
Book Excerpt
The One Apart by Justine Avery – Excerpt
Tres felt his body abruptly drop around him with overbearing weight, encapsulating him once again.
The mental images, the overpowering memories, finally faded. Only an ominous stillness remained.
Every cell within him began to twitch, infusing with energy—even as he felt immobile. Every joint, tendon, and bone ached under the pressure of being alive.
A deep sadness engulfed him. He pondered possible reasons. And, just as quickly, he was distracted by the presence of his own simple thoughts.
Thoughts. He realized his own thinking.
This mind—certain of its own newness—desired to explore, feel, do, be. Tres opened his eyes—tried to open his eyes. He found his eyelids fused shut.
He opened his mouth. Thick, warm syrup seeped inside his swallow. Intense fear washed over him, even as he knew exactly where—and how—he was.
Oh, no.
Tres was aware, more aware than any had ever been. In this moment, he knew everything—and yet, nothing.
He was beginning again.
Book Blast – Li Bai’s Shadow
Title: Li Bai’s Shadow
Author: Lee J. Mavin
Pages: 216
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: ASJ Publishing
It appears I have undoubtedly been mysteriously transported to a young child’s bedroom, her name is Caitlin and she is of course very fond of my poetry. However despite this unusual occurrence I miss my homelands, dreadfully. This dry and scorching hot city, that she calls Sydney is beyond any distance I can comprehend, but I have always been a traveler, so I am contempt with the path I have stumbled upon. Her mother has faded into the shadow, so I must guide her, keep her safe and share a glass or two of good wine. It is rather odd that her father behaves like I don’t exist, it is at the very least disrespectful, doesn’t he know who I am? Why I am none other than the world’s greatest poet to have ever lived, Li Bai and my words have been etched in history and sang throughout the ages with the guzzling of wine. Yes indeed, I have informed and educated the girl on the most important pleasures of the world, to drink wine whenever one desires to, though she is still a youngling, it is rather amusing to watch her chant my poems in a drunken stupor. Together we will drink and recite my old rhymes and perhaps not long after I will figure out how to get home.
Available from Amazon, Kindle and other online retailers.
Author Bio
Lee J Mavin is the author of The Students Sold Us Secrets volumes One and Two (He’s working on volume three now) and The Intergalactic Custody Battle. He holds the annual Students Told Us Secrets short story competition for ages 12-18 and he has also taught Japanese, Chinese fiction, ESL and creative writing from primary to territory levels. He lives in Sydney with his wife Grace, who has been married to for ten years and his two children Declan and Charlotte. He previously lived in Shizuoka, Japan and Shanghai where he discovered the poet Li Bai and also taught English. Since then he has completed his Masters in Creative Writing and continues to teach ESL in Sydney to adults from all corners of the globe. Lee J Mavin enjoys reading horror, fantasy, science fiction and poetry. He normally selects books by new authors he hasn’t heard of, regularly in these genres as he believes in supporting indie authors all over the world. When he is not busy discovering the next Stephen King he often dwells over lines of ancient Chinese poetry and debates post-game NBA statistical analysis. He tries not to spend too much time online and reads and writes between ESL lessons whenever he can. Strangely enough, he is also a pretty inexperienced driver, having just got his license to drive a few years ago. Though he doesn’t let the monotonous Sydney traffic frustrate him too much and is always thinking about a new plotline and a new character.
Links:
Scam Alert – Naga City
C.A. Milson 