Blog Archives
VBT – Amanda911
Amanda911
by Mark Schreiber
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GENRE: YA (crossover)
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BLURB:
“Sixteen-year-old Iowa schoolgirl Amanda Dizon may be the nation’s most unremarkable teenager, until she falls down a well and finds herself instantaneously transformed from irrelevant to influencer. Mark Schreiber’s sly, rollicking masterpiece, Amanda911, follows Amanda’s escapades and sends up the craven, fame-obsessed virtual culture of today’s adolescents. As insightful as Dickens and as innovative as Heller, Schreiber is the definitive satirist of the social media generation.”—Jacob M. Appel, author of Einstein’s Beach House
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EXCERPT
Falling down a well was both the best and worst thing that ever happened to my granddaughter.
She was a Disney princess to me, but a comic sidekick to her classmates, who’d never been
kissed by a boy—or I suppose by a girl—been asked to a dance, or chosen for any role in a school production that did not conceal her face.
Most people under twenty probably don’t know what a well is.
Haven’t seen one. Probably think it’s just something you say when you need to buy time, like like, or when someone asks you how you’re feeling, although I guess these days everyone says good or OK, or nothing at all, opting for an emoji instead. Do kids even talk anymore, in the crowded loneliness of their bedrooms? Did Amanda even scream when she fell down the well? Or did she just send a screaming emoji?
So, when millions of kids all over the globe saw the headline, they shared via social media:
Girl Plummets Down Well
More than plenty had to Google well to comprehend its meaning.
I’m sure she got at least half a million hits just from image searches that returned a picture of an oil rig in the North Sea. Geez, her international peer group must have thought, or words or emojis to that effect. A girl has fallen thousands of feet smack into a tidal wave. I hope she’s more Kate than Leonardo.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Mark Schreiber was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1960, graduated high school at age fifteen and began writing novels full-time. Princes in Exile, which explores a prodigy’s struggle to accept his own mortality at a summer camp for kids with cancer, was published in 1984 and made into a feature film in 1991. It has been published in ten countries, received two awards in Europe and was shortlisted for the Austria Prize. Carnelian, a fantasy, was published by Facet in Belgium. Starcrossed, a rebuttal to Romeo and Juliet, was published by Flux and translated into French and Turkish. His illustrated science book, How to Build an Elephant, was published as an Apple app by Swag Soft. He has written over forty books and received two State of Ohio Individual Writer Fellowships. For the last seven years he has been a digital nomad, living on four continents. He currently resides in Costa Rica.
Website: Amanda911.com
TikTok: @Amanda911
Instagram: @Amanda911
Twitter: @Markschreiber07
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Schreiber
Buy links:
https://pleasureboatstudio.com/product/amanda911/
https://books.google.com/books/about/Amanda911.html?id=Lzx3zgEACAAJ
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
VBT – BLACK FLAG JOURNALS
Black Flag Journals: One Soldier’s Experience in America’s Longest War
by Dennis Woods
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GENRE: Memoir
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BLURB:
The story of America’s longest war is complicated and difficult to convey, unless you were there. Dennis Woods was there. By following his stories in Iraq and Afghanistan, we can sense the enormity of his combat experiences. Originally written for his daughter, Black Flag Journals is taken from the author’s nine battle book journals. It covers his time from the fall of the Twin Towers through his last combat tour.
Black Flag Journals contains not just stories from the first war of the new century, but a day-by-day record of events that other veterans may use to relate their own experiences. All who enjoy real life stories, and followers of history will connect with this first person account of America’s longest war.
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EXCERPT
The flight we were on this morning was an ordinary, run-of-the-mill resupply operation. Its purpose was to service Afghanistan’s numerous small camps and bases. What it carried, though, was not ordinary or run-of-the-mill. What we were delivering was an unusual allotment of artillery ammunition and GELON mounts. Part of my mission on this trip was about to be completed. However, once in the air, I was given a new defensive challenge to solve.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
CSM Woods combat tours include;
Operation Urgent Fury, Grenada, 82d Airborne Division.
Operation Desert Shield / Desert Storm, Saudi Arabia – Iraq, 82d Airborne Division.
Operation Desert Fox 1998, Qatar, 5th Group Special Forces.
OEF 2 Afghanistan, 82d Airborne Division.
OIF 1 Iraq, First Armored Division.
OIF 6 Iraq, First Armored Division.
OEF X Afghanistan, 173D Airborne Brigade Combat Team.
OEF XIII Afghanistan, 191st Infantry Brigade
CSM Woods civilian education includes a Master of Education, (training & leadership) from North Central University, Prescott AZ, and a Bachelor of Science from Excelsior, Albany, New York.
Military education includes the United States Sergeants Majors Academy class # 58, Army force management course, Jump Master, Drill Sergeant, US Army Recruiter, Infantry Small Arms Master Gunner, Artillery Master Gunner, Amphibious Warfare leaders’ course (USMC), Anti-Armor Leaders course, Machine Gun Leaders course, Artillery Mechanics repair course, Small Arms repair course, Nuclear Biological Chemical defense, and all levels of air load planning and hazmat certification USAF.
CSM Woods awards include; one Distinguished Service medal, one Legion Of Merit,( 5) Bronze Star Medals, 5 Meritorious Service Medals, 4 ARCOM, 4 AAM, 1 Humanitarian service medal, 2 Armed Forces Expeditionary medals, Afghanistan and Iraq service medals. German Jump Master Wings, Qatar Jump wings as part of 5th Group, Netherlands Jumpmaster wings. Other awards include; Department of Defense “Inventor of the year” (2003) with 45 separate inventions. CSM Woods saved the United States Government over one Billion Dollars through cost avoidance. He is also the first recipient of the GRUBER award for an outstanding field artillery professional.
CSM Woods is credited by the US Army Smart Ideas program as the inventor of;
• The 105mm Howitzer night direct fire sight system M913 GELON.
• The 155mm towed Howitzer night sight system.
• The dual use day/ night direct fire sight reticule.
• The Dual optic MILES Laser trainer.
• The Urban Assault kit (PALADIN) improved crew protection, 155mm system.
On his most recent tour to Afghanistan, CSM Woods pioneered the first use of artillery training rounds in combat as a form of scalable fire support designed to limit civilian death and collateral damage. He is the author of, ‘Black Flag Journals One Soldiers Experience in America’s Longest War’, and numerous magazine, newspaper articles, including training pamphlets concerning Artillery, night vision, and combat operations.
Twitter: @djwoodswrites
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Dennis-John-Woods/e/B01KU91GFI%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15660793.Dennis_John_Woods
Koehler Book: https://www.koehlerbooks.com/book/black-flag-journals/
Amazon Buy Link: BOOK IS ON SALE FOR $2.99 DURING THE TOUR
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/black-flag-journals-dennis-john-woods/1124419537
Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Black-Flag-Journals-Audiobook/B08MBHSQQ9
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
VBT – SAY YES TO LIFE!
Say Yes to Life!
by Elliott Robertson
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GENRE: Self-Help
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BLURB:
Say Yes to Life provides you with seven keys to unconditional, abundant living. Each key opens a doorway to experiencing life as a gift.
This book will guide you to the depths of your heart where you long to celebrate life with a wholehearted “Yes!”
You will be led to a place of greater authenticity.
You will be encouraged to take joy in who you are.
Only willingness is needed to embrace yourself with gladness.
With your true Self in the driver’s seat and the ego in the back seat, life takes on a new vibrancy.
Now you are present to yourself, to your companions, and the cosmos. The mountaintop appears and beckons you into the fullness that has always been awaiting you.
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EXCERPT
Dear one, as you set forth on the new adventure offered by this book, give yourself permission to discover new facets of your multi-dimensionality. Allow yourself to vibrate on higher levels, closer to the mountaintop of joy without condition. Allow yourself to hear God say, “You are glorious!” Give yourself permission to say “Yes” whenever Source says “This is who you are.”
Never before has humanity lived in an age so ripe for transformation, happiness, harmony and cooperation.
Never before has the need for transformation been so apparent. Not that the need for transformation has never been so great; rather, the need has never been so visible. The darkness and impurities within the systems in our world are more visible and palpable today because we have entered an era of greater light.
Never before has the world been so prepared for a new arrangement of systems informed by integrity and compassion. Never before have so many people been poised for self-realization and the joy of living from integrity and authenticity.
This book is for those who long for the day when corruption will be replaced by the blossoming of goodness. It is written for those who want to see the flourishing of kindness throughout the world, through systems of commerce, governance, and medicine.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Elliott Robertson is a Happiness Coach. He holds an MA in Psychology and has been certified as a Happy for No Reason workshop facilitator. His articles have appeared in several magazines, including Science of Mind and Miracles Magazine.
CONNECT WITH Elliott Robertson
Elliott Robertson | Happiness Coach (elliottrobertsoncoach.com)
FACEBOOK – Pathways to Joy | Facebook
PURCHASE LINKS SAY YES TO LIFE: 7 KEYS TO LIVING FULL OUT FROM WITHIN
AMAZON.COM – https://amazon.com/dp/0228815584
AMAZON.CA – https://amazon.ca/dp/0228815584
INDIGO CHAPTERS – https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/say-yes-to-life-7/9780228815600-item.html
BARNES & NOBLE – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/say-yes-to-life-elliott-robertson/1135153695
BOOK DEPOSITORY – https://www.bookdepository.com/Say-Yes-Life-Elliott-Robertson/9780228815587
APPLE IBOOKS – https://books.apple.com/us/book/say-yes-to-life-7-keys-to-living-full-out-from-within/id1489384270
The book will be free during the tour.
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
Elliott Robertson will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Enter to win a $15 Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Interview With …..
Tell us about you as a person.
I’m interested in a wide variety of ways of accessing the wisdom of the Inner Knower. I have several decks of tarot cards. I’m interested in numerology and astrology, although my knowledge is intermediate at best. I’ve never practiced dowsing, but it interests me. The list goes on.
If you could hang out with one famous person for one day, who would it be and why?
I would love to hang out with Copernicus, the first scientist to place the Sun at the center of the universe instead of the Earth. This was a major paradigm shift. I’d love to glimpse some of his genius, to pick up some clues about how I can go beyond the conventional thinking of the day. I’d love for some of his creative spirit to rub off on me.
What’s the story behind your latest book?
I had completed writing a book—something not yet published—and I was still going to the café every morning on my way to work. I would open my notebook to a fresh page and write whatever came to me. For several days, I found myself writing a page or two on the theme of saying “Yes” to God. I was enjoying this, so I adopted it as a theme for a new book. The working title of Say Yes to Life was Say Yes to God. I like both titles.
What is your writing process?
My process varies depending upon what I’m writing. When I’m writing short fiction, it is character-driven and I’m sometimes surprised or in tears as I’m writing a scene, surprised by what a character is saying or doing, especially if it is out of the blue, something I didn’t see coming. When I’m surprised, or when I’m crying with the character who is in tears, I know there’s a chance some of the reader’s will also be surprised or have a cathartic experience. And what’s so cool is, these powerful scenes reveal the character with a greater depth than other scenes.
When writing nonfiction, I start by putting together an outline. Not a detailed outline, just the sequence of chapters.
When writing poetry, it sometimes happens like this: I’ve just gone to bed and from out of nowhere the first line of a poem comes to me. I turn on the light, get pen and paper, write down the opening line and as soon as that’s on the page before me I’m “given” another line, and then another, until the poem is complete.
Tell us about your main character:
My book is nonfiction. But I’ve broken the rules of nonfiction writing. I’ve included a character in the book, someone who helps shine a light on the themes in each chapter. The main character from Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s classic, The Little Prince—the aviator whose plane crashes in the desert—plays major role in bringing the messages in Say Yes to Life to life.
The aviator is a captivating character in The Little Prince because he has many aspects to his personality. Sometimes irritable and impatient; sometimes like a tender, compassionate father figure. Sometimes a good listener, sometimes not. I’m sure many readers like him because they can relate to him. When writing this book, I tried to portray him in the same way Antoine de Saint-Exupery had. He shows up in nearly every chapter of Say Yes to Life.
If your book was to be turned into a movie, who would play the lead role and why.
The aviator would be played by a younger version of Ian McKellen. McKellen was a superb actor before he became famous as Gandalf. In Say Yes to Life, the aviator is about 40 years old.
What are you working on next?
I have a bunch of ideas for articles and blogs. Something about stigmatization, for starters. This piece will explore the ways in which stigmitization has shown up over the years in America—the Salem witch trials, McCarthyism—and the ways in which it might be showing up in our world today—stigmatizing those who aren’t vaccinated, for example.
I’ve also started a piece on the need to be right about how the world is, and right about your beliefs about your identity. This can get in the way of the spiritual quest. But the goddess of playfulness can help us leave the need to be right behind.
What advice do you have for other writers who want to get the word out about their book?
Follow your intuition about which approaches might be best for you. Ask yourself what you feel most comfortable with. Some people love speaking in public settings, say, at the library. If that’s what plugs you into your passion, go for it. If not, find something that suits your personality.
What is your favorite book on your shelf right now?
I’ve been reading the opening chapters of The Sophia Code. I’m captivated. It’s very much a book for this new age of the divine feminine. A wonderful read for those interested in learning about female ascended masters.
Do you have any special/extraordinary talents?
I’m very intuitional. I’ve never done anything to develop my intuition, it just comes naturally to me. For example, shortly after discovering Alice Munro, the award-winning short story writer who lives in Canada, I started to get hunches every time her newest short story was in The New Yorker magazine. I would just have this psychic awareness come to me that if I went to the magazine store down the block and looked at the contents page, I’d see her name, she’d be in the current issue. And without fail, every time I had this hunch, it was a bull’s eye.
You are given the choice of one super power. What super power would you have and why?
I’d like to be able to reverse the aging process. I’d love to feel younger seven or eight years from now—and not only feel younger, but be physiologically younger.
List 5 things on your bucket list:
- Visit a country outside of the U.S. (specifics to be determined).
- Support more people find their path forward to realizing their greatest capacities.
- Find a place to live that has room for gardens so I can surround myself with flowers and grow my favorite vegetables in my backyard.
- Scuba dive.
- Learn how to play the piano or the organ.
Any final thoughts?
We live in an age when many people are trying to satiate their needs and desires by turning to shallow things. Comfort food, for example. I’m always interested in playing my small part in helping people gain greater self-awareness around this and, if they choose to, replace the shallow preoccupations with deeper, more powerful, more authentic ways of expression. As long as we are here on Earth, we may as well life full out from within.
VBT – The F.I.G. Mysteries
The F.I.G. Mysteries
by Barbara Casey
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GENRE: Mystery
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BLURB:
THE F.I.G. MYSTERIES
Dara Roux, abandoned when she was 7 years old by her mother. Exceptionally gifted in foreign languages. Orphan.
Mackenzie Yarborough, no record of her parents or where she was born. Exceptionally gifted in math and problem-solving. Orphan.
Jennifer Torres, both parents killed in an automobile accident when she was 16. Exceptionally gifted in music and art. Orphan.
THE CADENCE OF GYPSIES: Book 1
Known as the F.I.G.s (Females of Intellectual Genius), three high-spirited 17 year olds with intelligent quotients in the genius range, accompany their teacher and mentor, Carolina Lovel, to Frascati, Italy, a few weeks before they are to graduate from Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women. Carolina’s purpose in planning the trip is to remove her unusually gifted, creative students from the Wood Rose campus located in Raleigh, North Carolina, so they can’t cause any more problems (“expressions of creativity”) for the headmaster, faculty, and other students – which they do with regularity. Carolina also wants to visit the Villa Mondragone where the Voynich Manuscript, the most mysterious document in the world, was first discovered and attempt to find out how it is related to a paper written in the same script she received on her 18th birthday when she was told that she was adopted.
THE WISH RIDER: Book 2
When Carolina and the F.I.G.s return to Wood Rose, Dara decides that she wants to try to locate her birth mother when she learns that she might be living in New York City. Carolina, Mackenzie, and Jennifer accompany her and their search leads them to a secret dangerous shadow world hidden deep beneath Grand Central, constructed in what Mackinzie identifies as chevroned magic squares—N X N matrixes in which every row, column, and diagonal add up to the same number—and cloaked in the discordant B flat minor key music that only Jennifer can hear.
THE CLOCK FLOWER: Book 3
The three FIGs—Females of Intellectual Genius—graduate from Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women after returning from New York City where Dara learned why her mother abandoned her all those years ago, and they are now attending universities where they can further their special talents. This means they will be separated from each other and from Carolina, their much-loved mentor and teacher who is “one of them,” for the first time in their young lives. They vow to try living apart for one semester, in the so-called real world that doesn’t include the orphanage; but if things don’t work out, they will come up with another plan—a plan where they can be together once again. Dara is invited through Yale University to take part in an exciting archeological project in China. Jennifer, once again visualizing black and white images and the unusual sounds of another cadence that seem to be connected to Mackenzie, is engrossed in creating her next symphony at Juilliard. Mackenzie, because of her genius at problem-solving, is personally chosen by a US Senator to get involved in a mysterious, secret research project involving immortality that is being conducted in a small village in China—not too far from where Dara is involved with the archeological site. Once there, however, she finds herself facing a terrifying death from the blood-dripping teeth of an ancient evil dragon. Her best friends, the FIGs and Carolina, rely on their own unique genius and special talents to save her as she discovers the truth of her birth parents.
THE NIGHTJAR’S PROMISE: Book 4
Jennifer Torres, one of the three FIGs (Females of Intellectual Genius) who is a genius in both music and art, is the last to leave the closed rehearsal for her upcoming performance over Thanksgiving break at Carnegie Hall when she hears something in the darkened Hall. Recognizing the tilt of the woman’s head and the slight limp of the man as they hurry out an exit door, she realizes it is her parents who were supposedly killed in a terrible car accident when she was 15 years old. Devastated and feeling betrayed, she sends a text to Carolina and the other two FIGs—THURGOOD. It is the code word they all agreed to use if ever one of them got into trouble or something happened that was too difficult to handle. They would all meet back at Carolina’s bungalow at Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women to figure it out. As soon as they receive the text, because of their genius, Dara starts thinking of words in ancient Hebrew, German, and Yiddish, while Mackenzie’s visions of unique math formulae keep bringing up the date October 11, 1943. And as Carolina waits for the FIGs to return to Wood Rose, she hears warnings from Lyuba, her gypsy mother, to watch for the nightjar, the ancient name for the whip-poor-will.
In their search for “The Nightjar’s Promise” and the truth surrounding it, Carolina and the FIGs come face to face with evil that threatens to destroy not only their genius, but their very lives.
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EXCERPT
Excerpt from The Cadence of Gypsies
“Ouch! You’re standing on my fingers!” This from the petite girl with a long, blond ponytail, wearing a nightgown, most of which was pulled up between her legs and tied into a knot at her waist to keep it from getting tangled on the limb where she was perched. Somewhere above her the sound of a saw and splintering wood filled the darkness followed by a stream of profanity repeated in several foreign languages for emphasis.
“It doesn’t look right. It’s supposed to have a rim and a dent.” Clinging to a 12-foot ladder as she pointed the flashlight first this way and then that, the heavy-set girl wearing a nightshirt buttoned at the neck offered this with a slight lisp.
The girl with the blond ponytail giggled.
“What do you mean—dent?! Let me see that picture.” The tall black girl completely hidden aimed her flashlight toward the magazine that was being thrust upwards through the thick branches in her direction.
“And the top is supposed to be rounded—like a button mushroom,” the girl in the nightshirt added, the word “mushroom” sounding more like “muthroom.”
“That’s because it’s circumcised,” supplied the girl with the ponytail, from which she removed a small twig and a handful of leaves.
“Shekoo, baboo!” More profanity. “Okay. I know what to do.” The tall black girl disappeared back into the upper-most branches of the tall plant that was more tree than bush. After several additional minutes, the sawing, crunching, and clipping sounds finally gave way to the more gentle sounds of tiny snips. And then, silence.
“That’s it; everybody down.”
The petite girl, with the magazine that had been overlooked in the last confiscation and now wedged firmly under her armpit, started the perilous descent first since she was nearest to the ground, followed by the tall girl. The girl in the nightshirt eased her way down the ladder juggling pruning shears, a hand saw, and scissors. Once on the ground, the three girls stood back to admire their work.
“That is one honkin’ Peni erecti,” said the tall girl causing a fresh explosion of giggles. “Let’s get out of here.” After quickly rolling down the legs of her pajama bottoms, the tall girl grabbed one end of the ladder and, along with her two friends, lugged it and the other tools back to the shed that housed lawn maintenance equipment. Task accomplished, they returned to their rooms, and to their individual beds, careful not to disturb the other dorm residents, the floor monitors, their suitemates and, most importantly, their slumbering dorm mother, Ms. Larkins. Within minutes, they fell into a deep, peaceful sleep—the sleep of innocent angels.
It would soon be light; and Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women would start another day.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Originally from Carrollton, Illinois, author/agent/publisher Barbara Casey attended the University of North Carolina, N.C. State University, and N.C. Wesleyan College where she received a BA degree, summa cum laude, with a double major in English and history. In 1978 she left her position as Director of Public Relations and Vice President of Development at North Carolina Wesleyan College to write full time and develop her own manuscript evaluation and editorial service. In 1995 she established the Barbara Casey Agency and since that time has represented authors from the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. In 2014, she became a partner with Strategic Media Books, an independent nonfiction publisher of true crime, where she oversees acquisitions, day-to-day operations, and book production.
Ms. Casey has written over a dozen award-winning books of fiction and nonfiction for both young adults and adults. The awards include the National Association of University Women Literary Award, the Sir Walter Raleigh Literary Award, the Independent Publisher Book Award, the Dana Award for Outstanding Novel, the IP Best Book for Regional Fiction, among others. Two of her nonfiction books have been optioned for major films, one of which is under contract.
Her award-winning articles, short stories, and poetry for adults have appeared in both national and international publications including the North Carolina Christian Advocate Magazine, The New East Magazine, the Raleigh (N.C.) News and Observer, the Rocky Mount (N.C.) Sunday Telegram, Dog Fancy, ByLine, The Christian Record, Skirt! Magazine, and True Story. A thirty-minute television special which Ms. Casey wrote and coordinated was broadcast on WRAL, Channel 5, in Raleigh, North Carolina. She also received special recognition for her editorial work on the English translations of Albanian children’s stories. Her award-winning science fiction short stories for adults are featured in The Cosmic Unicorn and CrossTime science fiction anthologies. Ms. Casey’s essays and other works appear in The Chrysalis Reader, the international literary journal of the Swedenborg Foundation, 221 One-Minute Monologues from Literature (Smith and Kraus Publishers), and A Cup of Comfort (Adams Media Corporation).
Ms. Casey is a former director of BookFest of the Palm Beaches, Florida, where she served as guest author and panelist. She has served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991 through 2003. In 2018 Ms. Casey received the prestigious Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and Top Professional Award for her extensive experience and notable accomplishments in the field of publishing and other areas. She makes her home on the top of a mountain in northwest Georgia with three cats who adopted her, Homer, Reese and Earl Gray – Reese’s best friend.
www.barbaracaseyauthor.com
www.barbaracaseyagency.com
Amazon Author Page with Buy Links:
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
Enter to win a $50 Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway
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THE F.I.G. MYSTERIES
By
Barbara Casey
Interview
If you could apologize to someone in your past, who would it be?
When I was in the seventh grade I decided I wanted to be a tennis star. So in the afternoons after school my best friend and I would go to the tennis court near where we lived to play tennis. This amounted to dribbling and chasing the ball all over the court and not accomplishing much since neither of us knew what we were doing. On one particular afternoon my friend got the silly giggles and I got upset because she wouldn’t take the game seriously. I wound up hitting her over the head with my tennis racket. It didn’t hurt her, and we laughed about it afterwards, but I really should not have done that.
If you could keep a mythical/ paranormal creature as a pet, what would you have?
It wouldn’t be anything scary, so probably a unicorn. I even have a barn where it could sleep at night.
How do you keep your writing different from all the others that write in this particular genre?
I never read other books in the genre I am writing once I start working on a manuscript. I have a definite way of writing and a style that is my own. I don’t want to be influenced by other writers.
What are the best and worst pieces of writing advice you ever received?
I don’t remember any worst writing advice I ever received because I tend to ignore it. However, over the years I have received good writing advice, such as never give up, always make sure your manuscript has been edited thoroughly before submitting it to an agent or publisher, be open to constructive criticism from writers you admire, but believe in yourself and create what feels right to you.
Are the experiences in this book based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
Only the setting of Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women where Dara, Mackenzie, and Jennifer live is based in reality. When I was attending N.C. State University in Raleigh, North Carolina, I lived off campus and would drive by an orphanage each morning on my way to classes. It was such an imposing place, surrounded by beautiful landscaping. The image has stayed with me for years, and The F.I.G. Mysteries is the result of that memory.
VBT – HELL RAISING AND OTHER PASTIMES
Hell Raising and Other Pastimes
by Jayce Carter
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GENRE: Paranormal Erotic Romance
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BLURB:
Lots of people have told me to go to hell—I guess they finally got their wish.
I’ve finally accepted the fact I might not be entirely human, so you’d think life could give me a minute. Instead, I find myself sucked into hell at Lucifer’s demand, and I realize death is even more complicated than my life was.
I’m still searching for how to stop the missing spirits before it’s too late, and with no suspects other than Lucifer, I have to survive hell—where everything wants to kill me—so I can confront the devil himself. Not even my love life can be simple, though. Troy is terrified of his werewolf side hurting me, Kase and Grant are lying to me, and Hunter is keeping his own secrets. I know better than to trust anyone, especially the men who have taken over my life.
Get to Lucifer’s Court, find out the truth about the missing spirits, figure out exactly what I am, and try not to die along the way. Oh, and don’t fall in love with the men who will for sure break my heart and possibly get me killed.
Easy enough, right?
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EXCERPT
Hunter nodded, then tossed pieces of twine onto the table. “Rooms for the night. I’d say it’ll be better than sleeping on the ground, but they often rent these things by the hour.”
“Let’s just be glad they don’t have black lights here,” Grant said.
I nodded at the twine. “What’s with the rope? Does the bondage come complimentary? Come for the rooms, stay for the rope play?”
“You telling me you want me to tie you up, shadow-girl?” Hunter picked one up and reached across the table to catch my wrist. He tied it on me, the feeling of his strong fingers against me enough to make me wonder if the rooms might give us a second, spider-free, shot at sex. “These are enchanted to get us into the rooms. Think of it like a keycard, hell-style. We have four rooms, and the sigil on the bead matches the one on the door of the room.”
I twisted the string on my wrist. “There isn’t a bead on mine.”
“That’s because you’re approved for all the rooms.”
The statement sounded nice until math caught up with me and fucked me like it always did. “That means I’m not getting my own room, doesn’t it?”
Hunter didn’t even try to look sorry. “It isn’t nearly safe enough for you to sleep alone, shadow-girl. You’ll bunk down with someone else.”
“And let me guess—you’re offering?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Jayce Carter lives in Southern California with her husband and two spawns. She originally wanted to take over the world but realized that would require wearing pants. This led her to choosing writing, a completely pants-free occupation. She has a fear of heights yet rock climbs for fun and enjoys making up excuses for not going out and socializing.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaycecarterauthor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JayceCarterAuthor/
Website: https://www.jaycecarter.com/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jayce-carter
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jayce-Carter/e/B07Y4T7CHH
Amazon Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Hell-Raising-Other-Pastimes-Concerns-ebook/dp/B092JPHT6B
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/es/ebook/hell-raising-and-other-pastimes
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hell-raising-and-other-pastimes-jayce-carter/1139226451
Publisher: https://www.totallybound.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=71321
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
SHE’S THE ONE WHO CARES TOO MUCH
She’s the One Who Cares Too Much
(Book Two of the War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters)
by S. R. Cronin
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GENRE: Historical Fantasy
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BLURB:
Coral, the second of seven sisters, has been hiding her affair with the perfect man until her older sister can get her life together. But the perfect man is getting impatient and now she’s gotten pregnant. Coral decides it’s time to consider her own happiness.
But what does she want? The perfect husband turns out to be less than ideal. She adores the small children she teaches but the idea of being a mother fills her with joy. Meanwhile, her homeland is gripped by fear of a Mongol invasion and she can’t stop crying about everything now that she’s with child.
Then a friend suggests the ever-caring Coral possesses a power well beyond what she or anyone else imagines. Does she? And why is the idea so appealing?
When Coral’s big sister loses faith in the army and decides to craft a way to use magic to save Ilari from the Mongols, she decides Coral’s formidable talent is what the realm needs. Can Coral raise a baby, placate an absent military husband who thinks he’s stopping the invasion, and help her sister save her homeland?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
The wedding was only four anks away, and I’d wondered where I’d live afterward. I could stay with my folks, though married women seldom did so. I hadn’t figured Davor would look for a solution but he arrived one morning to announce he’d found a house for me he liked.
We rode to it slowly, in consideration of my pregnancy and the morning sickness that now lasted all day. When ee reached the cottage in the late morning. I loved it as soon as I saw it. It was small, but with a big covered front porch and large trees well cared for by a previous owner. Davor had hired workers to fix it up, as it had been empty awhile, and he was having furniture made to go in it. Furniture for me.
“Best of all,” he said “it’s less than ten minutes ride to your school. Do you think some of the older students, or perhaps your youngest sisters, would watch the baby for you while you teach?”
“You don’t mind if I keep teaching after the baby is born?” This was far better news than I expected.
“Of course not. I won’t be around much; you won’t need to care for me. And I’ve heard you’re uncommonly good with the little ones. I’ll put in a word, let them know how strongly I feel about your getting to use your talents. I think if I twist a few arms…” he gave me that charming smile, “… they’ll let you teach until you near your time to have the baby. Then you can come back after he’s born, whenever you’re ready.”
Well. This made my decision easier. I’d once thought falling in love with a man would be the most important thing in my life, but it now appeared Davor and I didn’t have to love each other for me to get almost everything I wanted. My own house. My own baby. A husband almost everyone else adored. The rare chance to keep teaching after my child was born. And my time to spend as I pleased.
Did it matter that I already knew our marriage would be a sham? It didn’t, at least not nearly as much as I would have guessed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Sherrie Cronin is the author of a collection of six speculative fiction novels known as 46. Ascending and is now in the process of publishing a historical fantasy series called The War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters. A quick look at the synopses of her books makes it obvious she is fascinated by people achieving the astonishing by developing abilities they barely knew they had.
She’s made a lot of stops along the way to writing these novels. She’s lived in seven cities, visited forty-six countries, and worked as a waitress, technical writer, and geophysicist. Now she answers a hot-line. Along the way, she’s lost several cats but acquired a husband who still loves her and three kids who’ve grown up just fine, both despite how odd she is.
All her life she has wanted to either tell these kinds of stories or be Chief Science Officer on the Starship Enterprise. She now lives and writes in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where she admits to occasionally checking her phone for a message from Captain Picard, just in case.
Author Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cinnabar01
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/46Ascending
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/5805814.Sherrie_Cronin
Amazon: www.amazon.com/Sherrie-Cronin/e/B007FRMO9Q
Author Blog: https://sherriecronin.xyz/
Book Series Blog: https://troublesome7sisters.xyz/
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RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY
S. R. Cronin will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
VBT – Jay Got Married
About the Book
Title: Jay Got Married
Author: James Robinson Jr.
Genre: Non-Fiction Humor
Jay Got Married consists of 9 humorous and, at times, poignant essays chronicling the ironies of everyday life in word and picture. Take for example the lead essay, aptly titled, “Jay got Married,” where I find myself mired in a horrendous dream.
In the fantasy, my aging father–dressed in his favorite Champion t-shirt with stains covering the front–marries my wife and I like he did 42 years ago but, this time around, the my 92-year-old ex-clergy dad forgets his lines causing me to coach him through the event with hints like: “ask for the rings, ask for the rings.” All the while, my best man sings Sonny and Cher’s, “I Got You Babe.”
Finally married, my wife and I end the ceremony with a kiss. But as I turn to exit, my eyes catch a glimpse of the bridesmaid who is no longer my wife’s best friend but now Gal Gadot from Dell Comics and Wonder Woman Fame. She is dressed in full Wonder Women regalia and looks totally shocked by the whole affair.
My mother turns to my father (now in the audience) with a quizzical look and says, “Dad, look at that bridesmaid. Isn’t that Superman?” She doesn’t get out much.
As we exit the church, and the bubbles fill the air–no one uses rice anymore—my wife ignores the limo and takes off on a sleek motorcycle, leaving me in the lurch—hence the cover.
Sure, it’s sounds crazy. But, in truth, isn’t the world of marriage crazy these days? In my case, what would one do when faced with the prospect of losing their beloved wife after 42 years? At age 67, would they remarry? Would they even want to remarry? These and other marital tidbits are discussed with humor and as much reverence as I could muster.
P.S. The author pairs up with Wonder Woman again in a final bit of photo wizardry Why? How? How are tricky copyright infringement laws avoided? Read Jay Got Married and find out.
Links
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jjrobinsonjr_author/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamesjr3?ref=bookmarks
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/James-Robinson-Jr/e/B0074O0QLI/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1
Get “Jay Got Married” from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1687046670/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i3
EXCERPT
CELEBRITY
Because We Need to Know
Who’s living with whom, who’s breaking up with whom, who’s having sex with whom? In the scheme of things, do we really need to know? Does the public really have the right to hear about the intimate details of the lives of the rich and famous? Well, guess what! You’re damned right, we do. It’s called celebrity. And they say that’s what famous people have signed up for. They may not have realized they were making a pact with the devil when they scribbled their name on the dotted line (You see, their eyes were all blurry with the prospect of fame and fortune.), but that’s what they did.
Had they read the small print, they would’ve seen the following:
“The public, including all the losers, bozos, Walmart dwellers…”
“…and sociopaths, whom I never would’ve come within ten feet of prior to success, will have all rights and privileges to my family, property, belongings, and garbage, should they choose to go through it.”
Translation: “Any member of the creepy public, as well as the paparazzi and my adoring fans, can get all in my shit any damn time they please, without so much as a Hello.”
I’ve never attained celebrity status, but I often wonder what it’s like. They say everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame, but frankly, that isn’t nearly enough. It could be wasted on some real bullshit. It could come when you happen to witness some “exciting” event. You may find yourself in the middle of a holdup or carjacking.
“Oh, look, there’s Sharon!” friends and family might say, as they watch the evening news. “They’re interviewing her about that drug bust over on Carson Street. Guess that was her 15 minutes. That’s it for her. Boy, that sucks.”
Sharon would reply, “Wait, that didn’t count! I want another chance!”
I’ve fantasized about my name being a household word. Remember when Kim Kardashian flashed that $4,000,000 ring on social media, alerting every criminal in the free world to the fact that it was there for the taking? Well, when she was gagged, tied up, and robbed in her French hotel room, celebrity status lost a bit of its luster for me. Kim thought her life was over and was shaken up for a long time. But it’s all a part of the superstar experience. And for me, the charm quickly reappeared when I found out that she is worth $100 million.
Sometimes I like the idea of fans approaching me and asking me for autographs or for photos with them. You know, these days, those in the cellphone generation ask celebrities for selfies. Such a request would make me feel good for the moment—the thought that these people like me enough to approach me and ask for my name on a piece of paper or to record my picture on an iPhone.
As an author, I have written my name on the inside covers of my books when asked, but it’s not the same thing. Being recognized and summoned for a signature is attention based on fame and notoriety, which is quite different.
Sometimes rock stars, rappers, and other music artists are asked by crazed female fans to sign their body parts. “Here,” a young girl might say, pulling down her top, “sign my breast.” I’ll never be asked to do that. But if it were to happen, and I did it, my wife would shove a dagger through my heart.
“James,” she would say. “Have you been signing women’s breasts?” I might gather the strength to nod. “I hate to do this, but…”
She would regret it afterwards.
VBT – Skin Deep
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Michelle Hanson will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Detective Sergeant Lena Evans gets recognized on the streets of her hometown of West Joseph, Ohio. She’s a reluctant local celebrity, having defeated serial killer Lathan Collins.
Now, as the one-year anniversary of the Collins case nears, four more women have been brutally murdered—and the killer is sending video footage of their deaths directly to Lena’s inbox.
The investigation brings Lena face-to-face with her past: the Collins case, her celebrity status, her lingering PTSD—and the first woman she ever loved, Special Agent Cait Porter, who’s just been assigned to the case.
The killer gives Lena five days to figure out who he is. But the closer she gets to finding him, the more likely it is that she’ll become his fifth victim.
Read an excerpt
The rattle of the restraint echoed within the room as I dragged my leg closer to my chest. The long chain scraped against the cement ground as I brought my knee under my chin. I gripped the sturdy cuff and squeezed at the hinge. The dim light reflected off the metal cuff, sending streams of light rays against the wall. I placed my thumb over the keyhole and pressed down. The small groove imprinted in my thumb, and I ran my index finger over the impression.
It was a standard cuff, the kind my department used when transporting convicts. It wasn’t easy to pick the lock, but it was certainly possible. All I needed was something to pry the lock with. A Bobby pin or a pair of tweezers. Anything flat and slender.
Instinctually, I reached for my gun—but it, along with the holster, was gone. My badge and cell phone were missing from my back pockets too.
I checked my pockets knowing it was pointless. If he took my badge and gun, then he took anything else I had on me. I slid my hand inside the breast pocket of my black blazer. Then in my pants pockets. I frisked myself in the hope that maybe there was something viable I could use. But nothing. I had nothing.
About the Author: MICHELLE HANSON is a writer, director, producer, and photographer. She writes detective novels so her degree in Criminology can be put to good use. Michelle is an avid fan of the horror genre, and spends most of her free time volunteering at a local theatre. Her photography has been published in newspapers and online magazines/blogs.
Michelle is the creator, director and writer of the supernatural lesbian web series, Red Rue. She also wrote and directed Gül Girl, and the upcoming psychological thriller, Veho (Fearopoly Films).
Michelle is married, and has two dogs and three cats. She hopes to see her novels turn into a movie or television show one day (Netflix, are you listening?).
Follow Michelle on:
Instagram: MLRED219 http://www.instagram.com/MLRED219
Follow her projects on:
Twitter: Fearopoly http://www.twitter.com/Fearopoly
Instagram: Fearopoly http://www.instagram.com/Fearopoly
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Skin-Deep-Michelle-Hanson/dp/1726435709
Amazon: Kindle edition: https://www.amazon.com/Skin-Deep-Michelle-Hanson-ebook/dp/B07GZXQ4X7
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/skin-deep-michelle-hanson/1129592321
Michelle Hanson will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
