Heather Marie Adkins's Blog, page 11

Linda Welch – Never Too Late

Never Too Late
Linda Welch

When I published the first two Whisperings paranormal mystery novels, I created an icon to use on Facebook and Twitter. The picture is of Whisperings lead character, Tiff Banks. It seemed a good way to advertise my product at the time. But no matter how often I say she is not me, I am not a tall, slim, blond young woman, many obviously don't believe me. Response to the avatar has amused me over the years. You wouldn't believe the comments, compliments, and odd comments I think were meant as compliments. Many of them were a hoot. I knew I'd eventually have to come out of the identity closet and say, hey, look here, this is me, not the long-haired cutie.

Then Cheryl Shireman asked me to contribute to the Indie Chicks anthology and also asked for a photo. This is the perfect opportunity to set the record straight. If you want to know who Linda Welch really is, read on. . . .

I'm going to tell you something I don't think you know.

I haven't been a "chick" for many a year. I'm a couple of months shy of 61. I have been married to the same man for 39 years. We have two sons and four grandchildren. And you thought I was a tall, slim young thing, didn't you. I am what is called a late bloomer and I'm writing this for other old biddies who had a dream and let it pass them by, or think they are too busy, or it's too late to fulfill their dream. I don't mean just writing, but any dreamed-of achievement you hide in your heart.

I was born in a country cottage in England. My father was a restless man, so we often moved and never had much money. I remember days when only Dad had meat on his plate at dinner, but we never went hungry. We had vegetables and fruit from the garden, eggs from the chickens. Times were hard, but we children never knew that. We were loved. When Mum and Dad met during World War II, Mum was a privately educated "well-bred" lady. I doubt I will ever meet anyone as smart as my mother. At 88 years, she is still as sharp as a tack. Dad was a countryman to the bone. He had many artistic talents he didn't pursue until later in life. When he did, he excelled at them. I like to think some of their intelligence and talent rubbed off on me.

So much has changed, in my life, in the world. I hold memories of my childhood close. I won't let them fade. One day, I will write about them.

I had a good basic education, first at a village school, then an all-girls school, but I left at 15 (at that time the legal age in England) and worked first as a telephone operator before I went into office occupations. I did not see authorship in my future.

But I have always daydreamed. Often, I recreated the same daydream multiple times, constantly elaborating.  I did not realize I wrote books in my head.

I began writing words on paper in my mid-forties, but it was a hobby. Somewhere along the way, I thought, Could I publish this? and then I'd like to publish. But I talked myself out of it. Authors were young men and women who decided they wanted to write at a young age and worked to improve their skill their entire life. They went to college and university, they had degrees in writing, creative writing or journalism. I was inexperienced; I didn't have their dedication or education. Anyway, I had a husband to support, children to raise and part-time jobs to supplement the family income. I didn't have time to write and send queries, synopsis or sample chapters to agents.

In 2008 I discovered the Lulu publishing platform and took the plunge. I published the space opera Mindbender and science fiction Galen's Gate. I subsequently unpublished them, with every intention of revising and republishing. Some copies are still floating around out there somewhere. However, Tiff Banks, who had been swimming around in this murky thing I call a brain for several years, chose to come out and play. She took over my life. She became my second skin.

When I think back to why I did not publish until in my fifties, I realize it had nothing to do with inexperience or lack of education. I was not ready. I had to marry a dashing young American airman, leave my homeland, raise two sons, spoil four grandchildren, live and work with Americans and become entrenched in the way of life. I was not ready to write Along Came a Demon until I came to the mountains of Utah, stood looking over my mountain valley, and knew, "this is it. This is where Tiff lives. She knows the bitter cold and snow of winter, the harsh heat of summer. She knows her city and the people inside-out. This is Tiff's world, and now, I know who she is."

Then the hard work began. My education was strictly "King's English." I wrote formal letters, contracts and legal documents at work. I had to take the starch out of my writing. Research didn't help. It seemed that each time I read an article or blog about word usage, in particular overuse and what to avoid, the next book I read was a best-selling novel by a best-selling author who broke those rules. And having decided to barge into my life, Tiff was very positive about how she talks. She's a born and bred American, a slightly snarky, slang-wielding gal who speaks to the reader on a personal level, individual to individual. I had to use a style that practically screamed "you can't do that!" in my ear every other sentence.

I published the first Whisperings novel for another reason: Nobody seemed to believe in my writing. Not friends, relatives, friendly acquaintances. I think they supposed a 58-year-old with no education in the literary field, who suddenly came out of the woodwork and decided to publish, must be a "vanity publisher" who wanted to force poorly-written books on readers. When I said I wrote fiction, I got blank looks, followed by, "that's nice. Now, as I was saying. . ."  Nobody wanted to read my work, not even my sweet husband. But he enjoyed urban fantasy and I thought he'd like Tiff Banks. So in a way, I also published for him.

I published Along Came a Demon in November 2008. It was supposed to be a stand-alone novella, but readers wanted more and Tiff obliged. Along Came a Demon became book one of the Whisperings series of paranormal mysteries. I published the sequel, The Demon Hunters, in November 2009. In 2010 I added material to Along Came a Demon to make it a full-length book and at the same time made small changes to The Demon Hunters to reflect those in Along Came a Demon. I published book three, Dead Demon Walking, in March 2011. Being a wordsmith, I should be able to express my joy each time a reader tells me they love my books, but it truly is beyond my powers of description. Now, when someone asks me what I do for a living, instead of telling them I am a part-time administrative assistant and adding (hesitantly) "I also write fiction," I say I am an author. When I fill out a form that asks for my occupation, I proudly write "author" in the little box.

Mary Wesley published Jumping the Queue at age 70 and went on to write ten best sellers until she died twenty years later.

Harriett Doerr was 74 when she published The Stones of Ibarra.

Laura Ingalls Wilder published her Little House on the Prairie series when she was in her 50s.

Mary Lawson was 55 when Crow Lake was published.

Flora Thompson is famous for her semi-autobiography Lark Rise to Candleford, published when she was 63.

Age is irrelevant. You are never too old. For anything.

***

This is one story from Indie Chicks: 25 Women 25 Personal Stories available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. To read all of the stories, buy your copy today.

Also included are sneak peeks into 25 novels!

My novel, Along Came a Demon, book one of the Whisperings paranormal mystery series, is one of the novels featured.

All proceeds go to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

***

Find Linda online!

Linda on Amazon USA for Kindle and paperback.

Linda on Amazon UK

Linda on Barnes and Noble

Linda's Website

Linda on Smashwords

Whisperings on Facebook

Whispering books are also available in e-book formats from Apple, Diesel, Kobo and Sony.

Lizzy Ford – The Phoenix and the Darkness

The Phoenix and the Darkness
Lizzy Ford

I've been running from The Darkness since I left home at the age of 17. I escaped a

broken family to the military, found it unwelcoming to creative non-conformists but fulfilled my

commitment. The first man I dated was a drunkard who suffered from post traumatic stress

disorder; the second raped me. The rest of my time in the military was a blur of men, the

different places I lived and The Darkness stalking me. At the end of my tour, I set my world on

fire to keep the Darkness away, abandoned everything and everyone, and emerged from the

flames like the mythical Phoenix. I ran home to Ohio. I didn't stay long and continued onward

to New York, where I reinvented myself for a very brief period of contentedness.

It didn't last. Darkness, fire, rebirth, and a few years, men and states later, I ended up in the

arms of yet another unworthy man. I followed him to DC, bore the mental abuse, and tried to

tell myself this was the best life would ever get.

I took a job in a field I didn't care for and ended up running from job-to-job-to-job, unable to

find a place where I was happy. I was hit by a drunk driver at 26, leaving me with a long lifetime

of constant pain. I had a miscarriage, gave all my money to the unworthy man and couldn't pay

my bills despite the good job. I moved from Virginia to Maryland and back to Virginia, unable to shake the pursuing Darkness. Finally, I put all my belongings in storage, ready to set my word

afire and flee once again.

I worked up the nerve to ditch the dysfunctional man, but before I could run far, I met the

man who would become my first husband. He wanted normal things: stability, house, family. I

convinced myself if I had these things, the Darkness would be gone. He needed a mother, not

a wife, but I married him anyway and prayed it was enough.

It wasn't. I set my world afire once more, and I fled him, too. I put everything I valued in my

truck, grabbed the dog, and left. Away from DC, the east coast, everything I owned, my first

husband. I ran to Texas to a new job and divorced the first husband. Yet again, I was reborn.

Soon after, I met my soul mate. Some part of me knew I couldn't keep running if I wanted to

keep him. I turned around to see if The Darkness still chased me. After fifteen years of running,

The Darkness was closer than ever.

I told the man who would become my second husband to stay away from me – I was

dangerous. He saw The Darkness, and he saw me.

You're brilliant and beautiful. I love you, Darkness and all, he said. But if you don't deal

with it and accept the fate for which you were put on this earth, you'll be consumed by it.

I couldn't yet face the Darkness even with his support, but I could see how wrong my path

was. My path wasn't a career I loathed, and it wasn't ignoring my true gift: writing. So I worked

full time and wrote full time. I found true joy for the first time in my life, but The Darkness got

too close. I ran away from that job – the only job I'd ever remotely enjoyed. This time, I kept my

only ally in life – my guardian angel and partner.

I took a new job in a new state. With my husband and my writing, I saw The Darkness

recede, and I grew happy. Instead of looking over my shoulder, I started looking into the future.

I vowed to run towards something instead of away from something. I wasn't just reborn – I was

alive for the first time in my life.

And then, this past summer, I tripped. The Darkness swallowed me. As in one of my

upcoming novels, The Darkness turned me inside out. I couldn't go to work and could barely

leave the house. It pinned me beneath it, and the more I tried to run, the heavier it got.

Everything I'd run from in life was there: my near-poverty upbringing; the breaking apart of my

family when I was a kid; my struggle with my weight and social anxiety issues; with finding

acceptance at any job; with men and dysfunctional relationships; the pending financial disaster

I'd been building; fear of failure and ending up as miserable as my parents. I thought I'd

suffocate, until the Darkness spoke to me.

You can run again and risk losing the man you love, or you can face me and be happy, it said.

I want to be happy, I replied.

Then do what you must.

It's not that easy. I'm scared.

Sometimes life only gives us difficult choices, but you still must choose. I am a part of you. You must accept me and deal with me before you can move on, it said.

I thought hard as I looked at all the things I'd accumulated that were bankrupting me

financially and emotionally. I looked at what made me happy in life: my husband and my

writing. I saw how I'd hurt my most precious treasures – and myself – by setting my world on fire

whenever The Darkness got too close.

This is gonna hurt, I told The Darkness.

Not for long, it said. You only have to do this once.

In that moment, I made my choice. I would face The Darkness within me, no matter how

hard it was. I loved my husband too much to hurt him more, and I was sick of being a coward.

I took a leave of absence in early September to deal with my past as well as the depression

and anxiety that have haunted me my whole life. Writing has always been my solace and my

passion. Through it, I'll heal the world I broke and my own soul, and become the partner my

husband deserves.

The Phoenix will be reborn once more, not of fire, but of Darkness, and will emerge stronger

than ever.

***

Lizzy is one of my friends and also a member of my group, The Indie Eclective.  She is an AMAZING writer — I'm currently reading her recent novella release "A Demon's Desire".  I recommend her work.  I'm happy to have her in my life as an inspiration not only to women (through the above story) but as an inspiration to be a better writer.  I told her a while back that I wanted to be Lizzy Ford when I grew up lol.

Lizzy Online:

Website: http://www.guerrillawordfare.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LizzyFordBooks
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/LizzyFord2010
Google : https://plus.google.com/b/106728579413949863215/pages/getstarted#106728579413949863215/posts
GR: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4558309.Lizzy_Ford
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Lizzy-Ford/e/B004XTTYOC/

Lizzy's featured novel in the Indie Chicks anthology is "Damian's Oracle", the first in her War of Gods trilogy.

The "War of Gods" series by Lizzy Ford is a paranormal romance series depicting the ongoing struggle between good and evil – and the immortals and their human mates who are caught in the middle.  The first book, "Damian's Oracle" (released October 2011) is the story of the White God and his Oracle, the cool beauty, Sofia.  The second book, "Damian's Assassin," (released November 2011) is about the White God's assassin and the woman who heals his heart and body.  The third book will be released 02 Dec and tells the tale of the White God's chief immortal and the mysterious, beautiful Magician he risks his life to protect.

Damian's Oracle (currently free on Amazon)

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Damians-Oracle-War-Gods-ebook/dp/B004JN0KHM/

BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/damians-oracle-lizzy-ford/1029664032

iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/damians-oracle/id416014301?mt=11

My holiday season… ACK

I'm probably going to be very absent from the blog for the next month or so.  Not that I haven't already been very absent to begin with.

The ebook formatting has taken off!  I have daily work now and my client list is steadily growing.   I'm hoping to see my client list grow ever more.  The reality that the formatting could become a career I enjoy seems closer than ever.  My formatting website, in case anyone drops by and wants to know, is http://cyberwitchpress.com

I'm also muddling through to finish "Mother of All", the first book in my Hedgewitch mystery series.  I have an appointment with a new line editor, Sarah Billington, on December 10th!  I'm aiming for a Solstice release on the book.  We'll see if I can make it happen.

It's almost Thanksgiving.  I can't believe how time has flown.  I'm ready for some of my family's delicious food.  I'll be in a food coma that night.  I really don't have anything else to say!  I'm taking a break from the formatting tonight to get some writing done.  Bon soir!

Spotlight – Me!

I am INSANELY busy lately.

I am currently in the middle of several formatting jobs and editing/beta-ing jobs, as well as trying to finish my witchcraft mystery novel.  I feel like all I do is sit in front of this computer!  That's why the blog has been seriously quiet lately   But, I love it, so it's completely worth it.

Let's see, what's new in my world…

The Indie Eclective's Holiday Collection is officially live at Amazon!  9 stories from 9 talented authors just in time for the holiday season.

My Pixel of Ink ad did pretty well.  For the 24 hours of the ad, I sold 60 books.  So, I didn't make back the money I spent, but I got some much needed exposure that could possibly pay off in the next few weeks if people like The Temple and tell their friends!

My baby sister turned 16 last week.  ACK.  Gotta clean out the sawed-off and prepare myself.

My little brother will be 7 next week.  It feels like only yesterday he was a baby.  Now, he's Rain Man smart and wayyyy too intuitive for his own good.

I'm currently reading Jack Wallen's My Zombie My, the second in his I Zombie trilogy.  Never thought I would be a fan of post-apocalyptic zombies, but I am lol.  I'm also trudging through some editing books to fine tune my writing.

This week is my turn to be in the spotlight for the Indie Chicks Anthology.  I'm listing below all the places my story from the anthology is posted–at the blogs of the other ladies involved in the project.

Talia Jager

Cheryl Shireman

Christine DeMaio-Rice

Dani Amore

Michelle Muto

Sibel Hodge

Anne Allen

Sarah Woodbury

Linda Welch

Mel Comley

Christine Kersey

Danielle Blanchard

Katherine Owen

Cheryl Bradshaw

Donna Fasano

Suzanne Tyrpak

Instead of just the story, a couple ladies have done some creative things on their blogs that I want to highlight.  Christine DeMaio-Rice is a fashion mystery writer, so for her blog I used a website called Polyvore to create an outfit set of what Vale was wearing during the first climactic scene of The Temple.  Check it out here.

My good friend Shea MacLeod has done a special Mythos Monday post on the Wild Hunt, which is featured in my debut novel The Temple.  She's also doing a giveaway of the ebook if you stop by and comment!

And finally, Cheryl Shireman interviewed me at her blog.  It's a short 5 question interview on books and reading!

And that's all she wrote.  Back to formatting!

The Temple at Pixel of Ink

The Temple is being featured today at Pixel of Ink, one of the largest bargain book blogs. SQUEE!!!

Shéa MacLeod – Knight in Shining Armor

Knight in Shining Armor

by Shéa MacLeod

It's strange how long a bruise can last.

Long after the physical evidence is gone, the muscles remember.  A raised hand or an angry voice, and the body flinches away.  The mind tries to forget, bury the pain deep … but the scars are forever.

It didn't start that way, of course.  He said all the right things.  Did all the right things.  When I was sick he took care of me.  When my car broke down he fixed it.  I thought I'd finally found my knight in shining armor.

What I'd found was a nightmare.  The minute I was hooked, everything changed.  It started with the name calling, the blame, the bouts of rage.  As time passed, he turned increasingly violent.  It was always my fault.  I was useless.  I'd never be anything.  Do anything.  Accomplish anything.

If I tried to fight him, he threatened to destroy everyone I loved.  To ruin their lives.  Stupidly, I believed him.

He was always sorry after.

You might ask why I didn't leave.  It's a fair question.  But until you've been there, until you've lived through that, you have no idea how messed up a woman's head gets when she has to live through that day after day.  There is no such thing as confidence, self-esteem.  You learn to live with the overwhelming conviction that this is all there is.  You have nowhere else to go.

That's the very worst part of abuse.  Beyond the bruises and the emotional scars.  The absolute knowledge that this is the way you will live.  And most likely the way you will die.  You don't deserve anything else.

In a way, I was lucky.  I had something else.  A secret weapon, if you will.  I just had no idea back then how powerful that weapon was.

I could write.

All through those nightmare years I wrote.  Not about what I was living through, but about something else.  An imaginary world where I would escape, where I was strong.  A place where I kicked bad guy ass.  A place where I was my own hero.

Prophetic?  Perhaps.

The writing kept a spark of something alive in me.  My soul?  Hope?  Who knows.  But one day, that tiny spark of something flared up.  I couldn't take another minute.

I had nothing.  No money.  Nowhere to go.  But I walked out that door and never looked back.

Nobody rode in on a white horse to save me.  I saved myself.

It was a very long uphill struggle to get healthy again, but through it all I kept writing.  Writing had always been my passion, now it was my salvation, too.

Through writing I regained my sense of self.  I grew strong.  Stronger than I ever had been before.  Words poured from me as my mind and body healed itself.  Slowly but surely I recovered.

It's nine years later and that life seems like a distant nightmare.  The woman I was then could never have dreamed of the life I am living today.

The writing has never stopped.  It just moved with me, changing zip codes.  I now write in a sunny room in a Georgian townhouse in London, England.  I have self published two novels and am about to publish the third.  My stories, while sometimes holding a dark edge, are still full of hope and my readers love them.  I am now selling enough that I can stay at home and write full time.  I made my dreams a reality.

Guess what?

You can, too.

The day I walked out of that abusive relationship was the day I became my own hero.  That one action changed everything.

If you or someone you know is in an abusive relationship, please visit the Hot Peach Pages for a list of agencies all over the world who help women living in domestic violence.

http://www.hotpeachpages.net/

No woman deserves to be abused and mistreated.  It's time to say NO to violence.

It's time to be your own hero.

Find Shéa online at http://sheamacleod.wordpress.com/

A man without a past.

A woman without a future.

A world destroyed by monsters.

All that's left is hope.

In Rain Mauri's post-apocalyptic world there are no shades of gray when it comes to survival. Until she meets a Dragon Warrior and discovers nothing is as simple as it seems.

Together, Rain and the Dragon Warrior must uncover the truth behind the nightmare their world has become. Their quest will put them in the crosshairs of a ruthless enemy, but with her determination and his skill, they might just save their race from destruction. If they can save each other first.

Dragon Warrior on Amazon

Dragon Warrior on Smashwords

Shéa MacLeod is one of my close friends from the Indie Eclective.  She is an amazing woman and an extremely talented writer.  She's also written (and writing still) the Sunwalker Saga, a Buffy-esque Vampire series.  I've read the first, Kissed by Darkness, and will be reading the second, Kissed by Fire soon!

***

"This is one story from Indie Chicks: 25 Women 25 Personal Stories available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. To read all of the stories, buy your copy today. Also included are sneak peeks into 25 novels! My novel, DRAGON WARRIOR, is one of the novels featured. All proceeds go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer."

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Indie Chicks is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Is Your Life Whispering to You?

A Guest Post by Cheryl Shireman

The blog tour has ended.  So has October and the season of Samhain ghoulies.  I'm getting back on track with not only writing my own novels, but my ebook formatting service, as well.  I've picked up some amazing return clients, including Sheila Horgan, author of  the Tea Series, and Dani Amore, a crime novelist who is also a part of the anthology Cheryl will be talking about in this post.  So, I turn it over to Cheryl, Indie Chick wrangler…

I believe life whispers to you and provides direction. I call that life force God. You can call it whatever you want, but there is no escaping it. If we are open, and brave enough to say yes, life will take us in directions we never expected, and you will live a life beyond your wildest dreams.

Those whisperings often come in the form of a "crazy" idea or a nudge to move into a certain direction that seems odd or silly or daring. Then there is that moment when you think, Well, that's weird. Where in the world did that come from?

 

And then there's the second moment, when you have to make a choice. You can dismiss the crazy notion, and probably even come up with a dozen reasons why it's a bad idea. You don't have the time, the money, or the resources. Besides, who are you to do such a thing? What in the world were you thinking? So, you dismiss the idea. We always have that option – to say No.

But it comes back – that whisper. Sometimes again and again. But if we are practical, and safe, we can squash the notion until it is almost forgotten. Almost.

 

Such a notion came to me a couple of months ago. I began to think of an anthology composed of women writers. An anthology that would be published before the rapidly approaching holiday season. The title came to me almost immediately – Indie Chicks. It was a crazy notion. I was working with an editor who was editing my first two novels, and was also in the middle of writing a third novel. Working on three books seemed to be a pretty full plate. Adding a fourth was insane.

 

But the crazy notion kept coming back to me. It simply refused to be dismissed. So I sent out a "feeler" email to another writer, Michelle Muto. She loved the idea. I sent out another email to my writing buddy, J. Carson Black. She loved the idea, too, but couldn't make the time commitment. She had just signed with Thomas & Mercer and was knee deep in writing. I took it as a sign. I didn't have the time for the project either. Perhaps after the first of the year, when final edits were done on my own novels. I dismissed it, at least for the present time. I'd think about it again in another couple of months, when the timing made more sense.

 

A week later I surrendered, started developing a marketing plan for Indie Chicks, and began sending out emails to various indie writers – some I knew, but most were strangers. I contacted a little over thirty women. Every one of them responded with enthusiasm. Most said yes immediately, and those who could not, due to time commitments, wished us well and asked me to let them know when the book when the book was published so they could be part of promoting it.

 

One of the first writers I contacted was Heather Marie Adkins. Earlier this year, while I was browsing the internet, I came across an interview with Heather. The interviewer (oddly enough, Michelle Muto) asked Heather, When did you decide to become an indie author? Heather's answer was:  About a month ago. My dad had been trying to talk me into self-publishing for some time, but I was hesitant. One night, I sat down and ran a Google search. I discovered Amanda Hocking, JA Konrath, Victorine Lieski; but it was Cheryl Shireman that convinced me. This is the field to be in. I was shocked (Astonished! Flabbergasted!). I had no idea that I had ever inspired anyone! To be honest, it was a bit humbling. And,okay, yes – it made me cry. So, of course, I had to invite Heather to be a part of the anthology. Heather not only said yes, but she also volunteered to format the project – a task I was dreading.

 

As Heather and I exchanged emails, I told her about how I had been similarly inspired to become an indie writer by Karen McQuestion. My husband bought me a Kindle for Christmas of 2010. Honestly, the present angered me. I didn't want a Kindle. I wanted nothing to do with reading a book on an electronic device! I love books; the feel of them, the smell of them. But, very quickly, I started filling up that Kindle with novels.

 

One day, while looking for a new book on Amazon, I came across a title by Karen McQuestion. I learned that McQuestion had published her novels through Amazon straight to Kindle. Immediately, I began doing research on her and how to publish through Kindle. I had just completed a novel and was ready to submit it through traditional routes. Within 48 hours of first reading about McQuestion, I submitted my novel, Life Is But A Dream: On The Lake. Twenty four hours later, it was published as an eBook on Amazon. Within another couple of weeks it was available as a paperback and through Nook. Did I jump into this venture fearlessly? No! I was scared to death, and I almost talked myself out of it. Almost. The novel went on to sell over 10,000 copies within the first seven months of release.

 

As I shared that story with Heather, another crazy notion whispered in my ear – Ask Karen McQuestion to write the foreword for Indie Chicks. Of course, I dismissed it. We had exchanged a couple of tweets on Twitter, but other than that, I had never corresponded with McQuestion. It was nonsense to think she would write the foreword. I was embarrassed to even ask her. Surely, she would think I was some sort of nut. But, the idea kept whispering to me and, with great trepidation, I emailed her. She said yes! Kindly, enthusiastically, and whole-heartedly, she said yes. Karen McQuestion had inspired me to try indie publishing. I had inspired Heather Adkins. And now the three of us were participating in Indie Chicks, that crazy whisper I had been unable to dismiss.

 

The book began to develop, and as it did, a theme began to form. This was to be a book full of personal stories from women. As women, one of our most powerful gifts is our ability to encourage one another. This book became our effort to encourage women across the world. Twenty-five women sharing stories that will make you laugh, inspire you, and maybe even make you cry. We began to dream that these stories would inspire other women to live the life they were meant to live.

 

From the beginning, I knew I wanted the proceeds of this charity to go to some sort of charity that would benefit other women. While we were in the process of compiling the anthology, the mother of one of the women was diagnosed with breast cancer. Almost immediately upon learning that, Michelle Muto sent me an email. Hey, in light of *****'s mother having an aggressive form of breast cancer, can I nominate The Susan G. Komen foundation for breast cancer? I mean, one of our own is affected here, and other than heart disease (which took my own mother's life), I can't think of anything more worthy than to honor our sister in words and what she's going through. A daughter's love knows no bounds for her mother. Trust me. I know it's a charity that already gets attention on its own. But, that's not the point, is it? The point is there are 25 'sisters' sticking together and supporting each other for this anthology. I say we put the money where the heart is. We had our inspiration. All proceeds would go to the Susan G. Komen foundation for breast cancer research.

 

The stories started coming in. Some were light hearted and fun to read. But others were gut-wrenching and inspiring – stories of how women dealt with physical abuse, overwhelming grief, and a host of bad choices. It was clear; these women were not just sharing a story, but a piece of their heart. I felt as if I were no longer "organizing" this anthology, but just getting out of the way so that it could morph and evolve into its truest form.

 

Fast forward to just a few days before publication. Heather was almost done with the enormous task of formatting a book with twenty-five authors. We were very close to publishing and were on the homestretch. That's when I received an email. An unlikely email from someone I didn't really know. Beth Elisa Harris and I were involved in another indie project and Beth sent an email to all of the authors in that project, including me. She attached a journal to that email. For whatever reason, Beth had been inspired to share a journal she wrote a few years ago. She cautioned us to keep her confidence and not share the journal with anyone else. I tend toward privacy and don't tend to trust easily. This is a HUGE step for me. I've only read it once since I wrote it. Intrigued, I opened the journal and began reading. It dealt with her diagnosis, a few years back, with breast cancer! Before I was even one third of the way through the journal, I felt I should ask Beth to include this journal in the Indie Chicks anthology. It was a crazy notion, especially when considering her words about privacy and trust. We didn't even know each other, how could I ask her to go public with something so personal? I tried to dismiss the notion (are you noticing a pattern here?), but could not. I wrote the email, took a deep breath, and hit send. She answered immediately. Yes. Most definitely, yes.

 

Indie Chicks: 25 Women 25 Personal Stories, with foreword by Karen McQuestion and afterword by Beth Elise Harris, is now available through Barnes and Noble and Amazon. The book includes personal stories from each of the women, as well as excerpts from our novels. And it began as a whisper. A whisper I did my best to ignore.

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What whisper are you ignoring? What crazy notion haunts you? What dream merely awaits your response? I urge you, say Yes. Live the life you were meant to live. Say yes today.

Stories included in Indie Chicks:

Foreword by Karen McQuestion

Knight in Shining Armor by Shea MacLeod

Latchkey Kid by Heather Marie Adkins

Write or Die by Danielle Blanchard

The Phoenix and The Darkness by Lizzy Ford

Never Too Late by Linda Welch

Stepping Into the Light by Donna Fasano

One Fictionista's Literary Bliss by Katherine Owen

I Burned My Bra For This? by Cheryl Shireman

Mrs. So Got It Wrong Agent by Prue Battten

Holes by Suzanne Tyrpak

Turning Medieval by Sarah Woodbury

A Kinky Adventure in Anglophilia by Anne R. Allen

Writing From a Flour Sack by Dani Amore

Just Me and James Dean by Cheryl Bradshaw

How a Big Yellow Truck Changed My Life by Christine DeMaio-Rice

From 200 Rejections to Amazon Top 200! by Sibel Hodge

Have You Ever Lost a Hat? by Barbara Silkstone

French Fancies! by Mel Comley

Life's Little Gifts by Melissa Foster

Never Give Up On Your Dream by Christine Kersey

Self-taught Late Bloomer by Carol Davis Luce

Moving to The Middle East by Julia Crane

Paper, Pen, and Chocolate by Talia Jager

The Magic Within and The Little Book That Could by Michelle Muto

Write Out of Grief by Melissa Smith

Afterword by Beth Elisa Harris

Indie Chicks is available for your Kindle on Amazon and your Nook on Barnes and Noble. You may also read it on your computer or most mobile devices by downloading a free reader from those sites.

Stop by our Facebook page –  http://www.facebook.com/IndieChicksAnthology

Follow our Indie Chicks hash tag on Twitter!  #IndieChicksAnthology

 

Wrapping up the Blog Tour!

Yesterday, I did an awesome interview over at Alan Nayes' blog where we focused solely on my literary drama, Cause & Effect.  Alan was one of my beta readers for that book and seemed to really like it!

Today, I was interviewed by the Queen of Parody, Pj Jones over at her Squee Your Pants Funny blog.  We talked about witches and Samhain, both subjects with which I lurrve, of course!

And to round out my 2011 Samhain blog tour, tomorrow I will be guest posting at author and friend Talia Jager's blog about my worst Halloween EVER.

Blog Tour Stops I've Forgotten to Post…

 

I missed posting about a couple of days on my blog tour this week… because I am an airhead, coo coo ki choo.

Monday, I posted about witchcraft in Young Adult literature at Julia Crane's Blog.

Wednesday, I posted about witchcraft and Samhain at Shea MacLeod's Blog.

Both REALLY good posts!

Day… 8? I have no idea. Eep.

On this day something-or-other of my Samhain Blog Tour (I just woke up.  Still receiving coffee intravenously.  It's like day 8, maybe?  I can't keep up.) I have a fantabulous review of The Temple at Michelle's Book Briefs!  I just guest posted there on Sunday, and now she's given me a glowing review and Four Gavels! (4 stars).  YAY!  I'm floating around the house.  You may find me near the ceiling.