B.B. Shepherd's Blog, page 21
December 25, 2012
Christmas Greetings and Wishes
Okay, I owe you guys big time, but it’s Christmas, so the most I can do right now is spread some holiday fun and wish you peace, safety, and happiness for the new year.
First, if you’ve played Portal, these characters will be familiar. And if not, that’s okay. I think you’ll still enjoy the video:
The first time I heard Gaudete it was by an old British folk-rock band, Steeleye Span. There are no good videos of them though, and I LOVE Libera boys choir and found this by them. They do a beautiful version of Gaudete:
Finally, you need to full-screen this one, or look it up on Facebook as it only embeds as a small screen here, but this is a great flash mob type choir, beautifully sung and executed.
I’ll be back soon. Merry Christmas everyone!
December 1, 2012
Added Bronze Chapters at The Glister Journals
This is a very quick update to let you know that there are added chapters over at the main Glister Journals website. Chapters Five, Six, and the beginning of Seven of Bronze are added. They are also now in PDF format and downloadable to read at your convenience. I will probably get them posted here too, eventually. For now you can access them here: Bronze chapters.
I hope you enjoy them!
Note: All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Bl...
November 29, 2012
Added Bronze Chapters at The Glister Journals
This is a very quick update to let you know that there are added chapters over at the main Glister Journals website. Chapters Five, Six, and the beginning of Seven of Bronze are added. They are also now in PDF format and downloadable to read at your convenience. I will probably get them posted here too, eventually. For now you can access them here: Bronze chapters.
I hope you enjoy them!
All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Blue Publishing.
The Glister Journals: Bronze can be purchased through any bookseller, or purchase now at Amazon.com
Reviews for The Glister Journals: Bronze
More Glister info and chapters at the book’s website here: theglisterjournals.com
The chapters can also be read here at the top of my blog. (and also in a menu in the sidebar!)
And please “Like” us on Facebook!
November 21, 2012
Still Thankful . . .
I can't believe I haven't posted since September. Time has gone by so fast! I've been writing a lot--I actually got about nine pages of the second Glister Journals novel written just today--so that is my excuse. There are still so many things I'm working on; things for the series' website especially. I plan to get some more chapters up there and here before Christmas. I still have some blog posts that need finishing too, but would like to get something out for Thanksgiving.
I thought I'd revi...
November 20, 2012
Still Thankful…
I can’t believe I haven’t posted since September. Time has gone by so fast! I’ve been writing a lot–I actually got about nine pages of the second Glister Journals novel written just today–so that is my excuse. There are still so many things I’m working on; things for the series’ website especially. I plan to get some more chapters up there and here before Christmas. I still have some blog posts that need finishing too, but would like to get something out for Thanksgiving.
I thought I’d revise my Top Ten Things I’m Thankful For list from last year, but in looking it over, I realize that I don’t need to change a thing. Everything there is still true–nothing to add and nothing to take away. So I’ll share some videos with you instead. My Thanksgiving gift to you. 
First, something ridiculously cute to put us in the right mood:
Second, a much anticipated (by me!) movie:
Next, an awesome video game in development which I’m supporing on Kickstarter (go check it out!) This is the latest video update:
And finally, since I ended the last Thanksgiving post with Switchfoot, I will end this one with them too. I think I shall make it my Thanksgiving blog tradition. Whether you celebrate in a special way or don’t celebrate at all, have a wonderful day!
All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Blue Publishing.
The Glister Journals: Bronze can be purchased through any bookseller, or purchase now at Amazon.com
Reviews for The Glister Journals: Bronze
More Glister info and chapters at the book’s website here: theglisterjournals.com
The chapters can also be read here at the top of my blog. (and also in a menu in the sidebar!)
And please “Like” us on Facebook!
September 16, 2012
Another Thank You . . .
…to everyone who entered my International Goodreads giveaway. My goodness, there were people from all over, which was very exciting to see. In the end the books went to Argentina and Portugal. Again, I wish I could hand out more books for free, but they cost me too much! I am very open to providing books for giveaways on established book blogs, however, so don’t hesitate to contact me about it.
If you haven’t already, I hope you will read the first chapters here or over at The Glister Journals website to see if you like the writing and might be interested in the book. I still plan on adding a chapter (or three) there, but not the whole book.
And I’m sorry I’m so behind on my blog posts. I have two I need to finish with more art and music. I think about it all the time, but work (the paycheck job) has kept me busy and I’ve actually been WRITING! Yay! I sure look forward to giving out some kind of date, but I’m still quite a way away from that.
I hate to leave you without at least some music though. Here’s a band I’ve just recently been introduced to that I’m liking a lot. A lot (thanks, David!) I really like their own music, a nice blend of melodic alt/rock with metal edges…just up my alley. Great vocals too. But this is a cover of a song that might be more familiar to you. Though I don’t care for Mumford & Sons myself, I love this particular track and the way they perform it. I’ll be looking forward to see where these guys go and I’ll be buying the album too. So check them out and give them some love!
All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Blue Publishing.
The Glister Journals: Bronze can be purchased through any bookseller, or purchase now at Amazon.com
Reviews for The Glister Journals: Bronze
More Glister info and chapters at the book’s website here: theglisterjournals.com
The chapters can also be read here at the top of my blog. (and also in a menu in the sidebar!)
And please “Like” us on Facebook!
August 11, 2012
A Quick Word of Thanks and Future Giveaways
(Apologies for neglecting this blog site; I've got quite a bit of catching up to do! In the meantime, if you're curious about what's been going on, come on over to Glistering at Wordpress; same blog, different format, and I've been posting semi-regularly there. The main thing that you've missed is the wonderful artwork I've been posting. This can also be seen at my new Tumblr account: Glistering.)
A huge Thank You to Goodreads members who have added my book to their "to-read" lists. Thank you...
A Quick Word of Thanks and Future Giveaways
A huge Thank You to Goodreads members who have added my book to their “to-read” lists. Thank you also to everyone who entered the Bronze giveaway there and congratulations to the winners! Your books will be on the way soon. The response was wonderful. I wish I could just give away copies to everybody. I hope you will visit the website where you can read the first chapters to see if you like my style, the characters, etc. The chapters can also be read here on my blog. Please be aware that it is a realistic novel, not paranormal, is character driven, and is long.
I have posted a new giveaway on Goodreads specifically for those outside the United States, United kingdom, Canada, and Australia. A full list of the countries involved can be found on the giveaway page. If you are interested in participating in the giveaway and your country is NOT listed, please let me know on my Goodreads page and I will add it!
There will be more giveaways through the book’s website which will be announced there, theglisterjournals.com, through The Glister Journals Facebook page and here through my blog. I will also list any giveaways through other bloggers at these sites, so keep in touch!
I am very intersted in doing giveaways, interviews, etc. through individual book blogs, so if you have an established blog and are interested, please contact me!
Again, thank you so much for the interest and support. It means a lot!
All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Blue Publishing.
The Glister Journals: Bronze can be purchased through any bookseller, or purchase now at Amazon.com
Reviews for The Glister Journals: Bronze
More Glister info and chapters at the book’s website here: theglisterjournals.com
The chapters can also be read here at the top of my blog. (and also in a menu in the sidebar!)
And please “Like” us on Facebook!
August 4, 2012
Artwork, Road Trip, Music (Part Three)
Yes, I know it’s taking me weeks to write up a trip that only took me days, but what can I say? I’ve really been very busy and tired too!
I would just like to mention first (especially for those of you following over there) that The Glister Journals giveaway is still on over at Goodreads. Four hardbound copies of Bronze will be given away there. You can sign up HERE. Yes, I really like the look of the giveaway widget on my blog and the book’s website, but it only shows as script on the Goodreads site, which is very strange. So I’ll put the widget at the end of this post so it doesn’t mess it up!
On to ART!
This week I am featuring the third of the pieces created for me by Katelynn Chambers (a.k.a. Nettlebeast)
This is not my favorite, though I love the ‘feel’ of it if you know what I mean. I just don’t see Dave at all like this. He also looks much too young here. But I love the freedom it projects, and the colors and technique are beautiful, as always.
I’ll be posting the last of Katelynn’s pieces soon. Guess who it is?
On to the Road Trip:
DAYS THREE, FOUR, FIVE
My time spent with my loved ones was precious, quiet, and (I hope) understandably private, so I’m not going to dwell much on it other than to say I enjoyed it immensely. There were a few things that stood out so I’ll touch on them.
The first day, after having slept in a little, was mostly taken up by a tour of the area. I had been once before, quite a few years ago, so some places were at least vaguely familiar, but the whole area is absolutely beautiful. Blaine is the northernmost town off highway 101, on Drayton Harbor, about 25 miles west of the Cascade Mountain Range, and about half an hour from Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada). I would certainly classify the surrounding areas as rural, though the southern community known as Birch Bay has both a quaint seaside feel and the resort area, Semiahmoo, has a golf course and spa, as well as the harbor.
Unfortunately it is now necessary to have a passport to go back and forth over the border. This seems fair considering our (the USA’s) stance on Mexican border crossings, but is rough for those of us who would just like to revel in a bit of British/Canadian culture and perhaps have a sausage roll. I can see I’m going to have to get my paperwork in order before I return.
One of the things that stood out to me while I was there, was the emphasis on peace. Indeed, several of the roads leading off the 101 near the border are “Peace Portal” roads. A welcome sign at the northern entrance to Blaine informs you proudly that it is the Peace Arch City. And right there, as you enter that fair city, is Peace Arch Park, a wondrous place where magical things happen. Like peace and stuff. I came this close to exploring the park, but didn’t. I wasn’t sure if I’d be accosted somewhere in the middle with demands for my passport. And then where would I be? Hauled off to Canada and never heard from again! Perhaps it would spark an International incident and put our precious peace in jeopardy. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. There’s an anthem for heaven’s sake. Just add it to the list of things to do the next time I visit when I’ve got my paperwork done.
On the second day, I took my trusty bicycle (which had weathered the trip on the back of my car nicely) and parked at the end of the Semiahmoo Parkway, a lovely area of easy, mostly paved trails that extend through the Semiahmoo Spit to the small harbor. There is a resort and spa there, but check the reviews carefully before you reserve a room.
Now, this was a momentous day for me. I don’t know exactly how long it had been since I’d ridden a bicycle, but long enough so that I couldn’t remember. Actually I think it would be safe to say that the last time had been over half of my lifetime ago. That’s long enough. Not to mention how impossiby out-of-shape I am. So it was with a little trepidation that I mounted and, wobbling slightly, began my ride.
Guess what…it’s true! That old saying about doing things you think you’ve forgotten because it’s been so loong? Just like riding a bike!
I was glad I had brought my camera along. The weather was hazy and cloudy, so visibilty at a distance wasn’t great, but it was cool which I appreciated more.
I had been made aware that there were bald eagles in the area and sure enough, as I reached the marina there was one perched on top of a pole. This is a zoomed shot…I wasn’t that close to it, but it was cool anyway.
Wild flowers were abundant too. I took more pictures, but don’t know what happened to them. 
This is Semiahmoo marina. Not particularly impressive or quaint or even picturesque, but quite nice, especially with the mountains on the horizon (looking north or east).
And one more reminder of the great friendship and love between our country and Canada.
Yes, I’m so comforted to know we are at peace with them. Now if we could just work on that with the rest of the world.
I’ll cover the other two albums I mentioned in (I promise)shorter posts soon, but I’ll leave you with a Black Keys song as there is so much good stuff on that album (El Camino). Hope you’re not easily offended…
LOL. See you soon!
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Goodreads Book Giveaway
The Glister Journals
by B.B. Shepherd
Giveaway ends August 11, 2012.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
All original text and materials by or commissioned by B. B. Shepherd are copyright 2012 to China Blue Publishing.
The Glister Journals: Bronze can be purchased through any bookseller, or purchase now at Amazon.com
Reviews for The Glister Journals: Bronze
More Glister info and chapters at the book’s website here: theglisterjournals.com
The chapters can also be read here at the top of my blog. (and also in a menu in the sidebar!)
And please “Like” us on Facebook!
July 12, 2012
Goodreads Giveaway -- July 2012
First of all, apologies for neglecting this blog site; I've got quite a bit of catching up to do! In the meantime, if you're curious about what's been going on, come on over to Glistering at Wordpress; same blog, different format, and I've been posting semi-regularly there. The main thing that you've missed is the wonderful artwork I've been posting. This can also be seen at my new Tumblr account: Glistering.
I will be getting all that content over here soon, but in the meantime I'd at least...
