Leah Banicki's Blog, page 2

Doubts

We all like to label ourselves, with our professions and hobbies. It used to be the way people were named in some societies. My mother has a friend with the last name Wagonmaker. Not much of a stretch to guess what her ancestors were doing.
Maybe it's part of the creative persons persona but I have struggled over the years with who I am exactly. Singer, writer, geek are just a few of my labels. The pages would fill up with all the words I have to describe myself, some to flatter myself, others to be harsh. I am my own worst critic. I have had some evil critics in my day but none are worse than the doubter in my own head.On the verge of releasing a new project and really dragging my heels on the final steps.  I take turns giving myself pep talks and find myself tiring of it. There is no more time to talk. It's time to move. I know I am not alone in this, I am sure of it. Stepping back into my own discipline and going to set the doubts aside. Back on the path, going to finish one step at a time. 


So let's not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don't give up, or quit. - Galations 6:9 (The Message)






Online at: https://www.facebook.com/Leah.Banicki...

A brave woman at Walmart

There was a woman in line next to Jeff and I at Walmart, with two young kids, probably 4 and 2 yrs old. The young boy had a pacifier in his mouth but was anxious to help his mother put the groceries on the counter. Jeff and I told him he was a good helper. He wanted nothing to do with us, a little bit shy. His mom smiled at us weakly and we focused on our items to be loaded.
There was a woman behind us that piped into the conversation.
"He is too old for that pacifier!" She stated.
The mother turned while her groceries were being scanned by the clerk and picked up her shy son who didn't want attention.
She said so bravely."I know, he was over his pacifier awhile ago but since his baby sister died last month I think he has needed the comfort." Her eyes looked haunted. It broke my heart into a million pieces.
"I lost a sister too, I am so sorry." I said to the mother and the shy boy and the sister wrapped around her legs. The looks on their faces said it all. Just breathing in and out and going through the motions.
So proud of her for being brave and standing up for herself.

For those who always have to dive into having an opinion about something that is not their business. Please stop, and for a moment  worry about your own problems.

Praying for that young mother and her family tonight, knowing her long road to healing will be rough, but those two lovely helpful children can hold her tight through the journey.

A few verses to know by heart

Today's project: make a master list of Bible verses for my daughter to learn for homeschool. I started with...100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart by Robert J Morgan http://amzn.com/0805446826


I added a few myself but here is the first batch. Just 10 verses to get her started.  I found myself enjoying this assignment and found a few verses to add to my own memory. Feel free to join with me in celebrating the Word. 



Proverbs 3:5-6Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 15:1A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Romans 12:18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Ephesians 5:20Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Timothy 3:16All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
Romans 10:9that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

Galatians 5:22-23But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
1 Peter 5:7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Romans 12:12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Proverbs 1:7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Let me know if any of these verses are an encouragement to you. I just couldn't pass up sharing this. All verses were found on Biblegateway.com 
Leah BanickiMom, writer, homeschool teacher and wife. https://www.facebook.com/Leah.Banicki...

How to read Kindle on your computer - by Leah Banicki

Being a new author is a challenge but being a reader shouldn't be.

I have answered many questions from friends and family about ebooks and how convenient they can be. I personally have hundreds of ebooks and don't own an ereader yet. (Hoping for christmas.)


The main issue I have seen is that people don't know that You can download Ebooks to Your ComputerFor Free!
I will show you how. 
Step one: Goto Kindle Reading Apps Page
The page should look something like this!



Choose PC or Mac  but know if you have any of the phones above the apps are just as easy to use. 
the next page has the download button.
Just follow the prompts to download and load your application.
Once it is loading you can open the application. 
You can See the LIBRARY button and any book you select will look like this. :)
When you read you have the single or double page option (shown below)Can click on the sides or use Arrow Keys to go to the next page.

I love it because I can make the screen as big as I like. It works especially well for cookbooks.
The best thing about the Kindle App is that it's FREE.
There are a ton of free books available on Amazon.com as well as other sites. Like http://www.archive.org/  with thousands of out of print and rare books scanned and upload by libraries around the world.  It is a readers paradise.
I hope this helped to introduce you to the wonder of how easy ebooks could be for you. I will gladly answer any questions on my page on facebook. 
https://www.facebook.com/Leah.Banicki...
I am also an author but love getting people excited about using technology and enjoying it. 

http://www.leahbanicki.com/

Music & Writing

Just popping in to tell the world about what I have been up too. Just this year I published my first novel, Seeing the Elephant, by  Leah Banicki (me), but this journey has been an interesting one. 
My life in a nut shell... Leah the singer - doing commercials and voice overs since the age of ten, performing on every stage imaginable. Lead singer of a Christian Rock back that traveled around Michigan with some amazing people. (I got pictures of me in leather pants to prove it.)I love music, I truly do, it's in the blood. 

Writing has been another passion for me but was always in the background. It worked well for me while in a rock band, songwriting fulfilled that urge I had to fill up notebooks. But even in between times I have at least 30 stories started with ideas and characters floating around in spiral notebooks since I was a little kid. Just found one the other day from when I was a teen, two teenagers got stranded when a plane crashed on a desert island. Not very original, I laughed my way through my pages. Four years ago, everything changed. My hectic lifestyle of singing every other weekend in our local big church, working full time, and recording my own cd in my home studio came to a screeching halt. I got a parasite somehow, (still don't know how) called campylbacter, it nearly killed me. Food has not been the same since, neither has my health. Once the doctors figured it out and got rid of it, my body was broken. I spent an entire summer in bed. Three years later, still trying to learn how to eat and not be sick, not singing, not writing, barely living.  My family has been so supportive, loving me through the hard days. Sickness isn't pretty and chronic illness takes it's toll on everyone. Not just me. I read a book by a friend, Patricia Strefling, and was so inspired that I picked up my old beat up laptop hand me down and began writing again. A story that had been in my heart for more than a decade. battling my ever sick stomach and broken intestines, I took my ten years of research I had done and the story bloomed from the few chapters I had doodled over the last decade and fleshed it out to the adventure of my lifetime. 
The economy has hit my home in a big way in the last few years and my husband and I struggled along pinching pennies as I was sick at home the last three years, somehow feeling guilty for having found something I enjoy doing from my place on the couch or sickbed.  In a few years my life had done a complete turn around. It was very difficult to face for me some days, missing the stage, my health and livelihood, but having writing was a new direction for me to look for hope. 
Before I even finished the new stories started flowing in my head, sequels and other stories. Some hitting close to home, characters that have to face some hard situations before finding their happy ending.My struggle to find my health is still an active one. I feel lucky to have a few days in a row that I feel good enough to go out and about. I take it day by day. I am learning about the publishing industry from my perch here at home. I read everything I can afford and write and write and write. The thing I have learned that is most valuable this year that no matter where you are at you can do something. I showed my daughter that even from a sickbed you can reach people.  Holding my first book in my hand was a profound experience for all of my family. Even on the worst sick days I have hope. I have a story to tell, nothing can stop me. Be blessed,  Leah Banicki
My First BookGoodreads Giveaway

Some Good Clean Books

Being a writer today has it's challenges, especially for the self-published. Trying to put out a good book that people want to read has been a challenge for every generation. Putting out a good clean romance and getting it in the hands of readers is even harder. 
Certain genres of writing have gotten a lot of attention lately but I am determined to write my stories for the young and old alike. 
A good romance doesn't have to shock you with inappropriate actions to be a great novel. Jane Austen wrote amazing and captivating characters that kept our attention and stayed in our hearts for generations. Today I want to focus on a few books that you can recommend to your daughter, your friends and you own mother. 
Great stories with memorable characters, fun plots and romance. After all we know what we love to read, we should be able to have something clean and good to go to. Simple as that. 


Today wanted to promote two good clean Romance novels by amazing writers.


  The Bride Price - by Tracey Jane Jackson

Sophie Ford thought she was sleeping in the arms of her beloved husband, Jamie. However, she has woken to find herself in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 1863, without explanation as to how she got there, or where her husband is. She rejoices when a soldier, looking identical to Jamie, arrives. Can she break through Jamie's barriers and bring his memory back?


For the Kindle

For the Nook

or go to http://traceyjanejackson.com for the scoop on the entire Civil War Brides series.


She is a time travel romance specialist. Her books transport you with her memorable character and her great imagery. - Leah Banicki





 

Edwina - by Patricia Strefling Edwina is a small town librarian and loves her predictable lifestyle. But her stepsister Cecilia has other plans. As they are about to board a plane for Scotland, Cecelia is suddenly called away. Exhausted and alone in Edinburgh, Edwina collapses into the arms of a tall Scot. Anxious to meet his fiance, Alex Dunnegin whisks Edwina off to his castle and that's when the trouble begins.

For the Kindle
For the Nook

or go to http://www.patriciastrefling.com for news about all her books.


Patricia loves to tell stories about people so real you can live the story with them. From contemporary to historical her books are a pleasure to read. - Leah Banicki




I hope you enjoy trying out  new authors like I do. I found myself in a rut always going to the same authors and reading stories that seemed further and further away from interesting.


I am so glad I stepped outside my normal box and tried out some new and talented writers. It refreshed my love for reading. - I hope it does for you too.




Leah Banicki



If you write clean fiction and would be interested in being spotlighted on this blog email me at romanticsoul@leahbanicki.com


You can also find me on Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

Writing about Romance

 Writing About Romance
This newest WIP (work in progress) is a lot more about finding love than my first book. I am a romantic soul that gets pretty giddy about love, for me or anybody else.  I adore the little looks that happen between people when the sparks start to fly.
Tonight I am writing a dating scene and feel all the highs and lows with my characters as the scene plays out. I am loving the challenge of keeping my stories "sweet".  There are plenty of hot and steamy romances; I enjoy the sweetness before the spice in my writing. I am hoping my audience will too.
When I write these scenes I try to remember when I was first falling in love. That excitement/terror of it, the impatient times when you are certain you may perish before he makes a move or the fear that lingers when I missed the chance to say something and maybe he will start dating someone else. The simple pleasure of when HE first held my hand.(I still love it!)
The sweet torture it was to wait for that first kiss. Maybe it's just me but that is what gets me happy. When a book can remind me about what I love about love, it's bliss. 
Back to writing my novel,  just wanted to gush and share my thoughts.
Leah Banicki –
Author of Seeing the Elephant
 
Watch the Book Trailer for Seeing the Elephant

Leah Banicki - Book Trailer for Seeing the Elephant

I am recovery from foot surgery this week. It wasn't serious but stuck on the couch for three-four days was not my idea of  good time. The first day the pain was pretty intense so I took it upon myself to make a distraction project.

This is the result.


Seeing the Elephant by Leah Banicki
Book Trailer.  *made on my Mac*



Please pass it along and share with your book loving friends.

Support your Independent Authors

www.leahbanicki.com

Exerpt of Seeing the Elephant - Debut Novel

An exerpt from Seeing the Elephant by Leah Banicki

Setting 1848 - Oregon Trail
Snake River crossing...


Corinne was on the other side of the river when her horse Clover jumps at a sound and Corinne loses her seat. She goes flying and bumps her head and rolls for a second or two before she felt the water splash around her. At first she was dazed. Where am I?

The water is cool and the gurgling current under the surface was loud. She is swept along the river and breaks the surface once or twice to catch some air but is pulled under the current. She feels herself starting to panic as her lungs start burning. Her head bumps a rock and the thud is felt to her core. She is grabbing for anything, kicking her legs, and wanting to curse her skirts and petticoats for wrapping around her legs in such a moment.

Her hand reaches and finds a branch to grab. With what little energy she has left from her thrashing about she pulls herself up on a rock. She lies there for a minute without moving but to cough and breathe. Her head aches a bit from hitting something underwater. She lay there thinking of her friend Angela and her fall into the ravine. Secreting hoping her own fate in the wilderness turns out better.

She sits up slowly with a groan and observes her surroundings. There were tall walls on each side of the river. The crossing was a good place, this was not. Corinne stood on shaky legs and tried to climb the wall but the edges were a bit too smooth. There was no edge to grab. She looks down and sees the rock she was sitting on is covered in slime and a few mysterious spongy things that Corinne assumes are alive in some way. She decides to sit back down and ignore the slime. Her dress and petticoats are now filthy and clinging to her legs even worse than they were in the water. Corinne sighs and looks up to the edge, hoping to see someone looking for her. At the wagon crossing there is always a lot of chaos. How long will it be before someone notices that I am missing?

She thinks about yelling but with the headache that she was getting she figures to save herself the pain. She was not desperate enough to yell yet.

She is glad the clouds are moving in a little to block the hot sun. She has been sitting here on the slimy rock for more than twenty minutes according to her lapel watch. She has shaken the water from it and it still was ticking. She pins it back on her damp collar.

She hears a few far off gunshots and watches a torn up wagon come around the bend toward her part of the river. Corinne panics a second but sees the water pull it away from her perch and drags its twisted empty shell away. She has hopes for the family that they got out in time and says a prayer for whoever they were.
She was so focused on the wagon that went by that she does not hear the nearby voices. She pulls herself from her praying when she looks up and sees Clive and Lucas smiling down on her from the edge of the cliff.

* * * * *

I hope you enjoyed the snippet of my debut novel, Seeing the Elephant. A story of survival on the American frontier.
Now Available:AmazonOn your kindleOn your NookGoodReadsSmashwords
Seeing the Elephant - Free Samplewww.leahbanicki.com

New Bears Recruit -Does a Good Deed

My friend Jen Levell told me on the phone a few days ago about an amazing thing that was going to happen for her daughter. Joslyn Levell, 14 years old with spina bifida and wheelchair bound, got a date to the prom from a famous person.
I knew Jen had been struggling with helping her daughter cope with disappointment. As a mother we want to do as much as we can. Sometimes we can only love them through the hurt.

Dreams of dancing may be hard to swallow for  a girl in a wheelchair but asking 7 different boys to the middle school prom and getting told "no" might be a little more than hard to take. It would be devastating.

A chance meeting. . . and cinderella gets to go to the ball.


Read all about my friend's journey. From ESPN...
ESPN - Thomas makes fans dreams come true - ArticleI have cried with joy several times this week with Jen, Joslyn's mom, when she told me on the phone  about what was going to happen, also when I got the picture texted to my iphone and again when I read the story on ESPN website. Sometimes good things can happen. I feel lucky to be a witness.  Josyln, I hope for many more miracles for you, baby girl!