Casi McLean's Blog, page 57
September 1, 2015
Goodreads Giveaway
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Beneath The Lake
by Casi McLean
Giveaway ends October 05, 2015.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
August 29, 2015
Coming Soon ~ Authors Bare All
Heads up, fans and friends. You ask and I listen. Mark your calendars for September, 7th, 2015––the launch date of my new website segment, Authors Bare All. This portfolio will feature published authors baring their souls sharing intimate ideas about life, love and in-your-face character analysis. Every Monday and Wednesday, Casimclean.com will feature a new author.
Hey, who knows more about love, life and character traits than professional writers who spend their lives writing romance, internal and external conflict, and resolution. So come join us, ask questions, and get to know your favorite authors through this interactive site.
August 25, 2015
Beneath The Lake: Trailer
Feel the Energy… Beneath The Lake
A ghost town submerged beneath Atlanta’s famous man-made Lake Lanier reportedly traps victims in a watery grave. But when Lacey Montgomery’s car spins out of control and hurtles into the depths of the icy, black lake, she awakens in the arms of a handsome stranger, in a place she’s never heard of—thirty-four years before she was born.
The desperation to find her way home dissolves as Lacey falls in love with a town destined to be erased from the face of the Earth, and Bobby Reynolds, the man who vows to protect it. When Bobby suddenly disappears, Lacey must tangle with treacherous bootleggers and discover the key to the mysterious portal before time runs out and leaves the star-crossed lovers to wander forever through a ghost town buried beneath the lake.
#Moonshine, #NASCAR ,#bootleggers, #TimeTravel, #Suspense, #HistoricalRomance, #LakeLanier, #NorthGeorgia, #LakeLanierHistory
August 19, 2015
Did You Know
Did you know that Lake Sidney Lanier, Georgia’s famous man-made lake, is deeper than the Statue of Liberty is tall. The depth at Buford Dam is 211 feet.
The lake took five years to reach full pool submerging entire towns, homes, bridges, old county roads, and smaller lakes like Lake Warner, which was located at Riverside Drive and old Chattahoochee Park.
Some of the displaced residents met the Army Corp Of Engineers with guns loaded, determined to defend home that had been passed down for generations.
August 18, 2015
What Inspired Beneath The Lake?
A portion of the grandstands of Gaineville Speedway, once submerged under Lake Lanier in Gainesville, Ga., remains near the shoreline Monday, Dec. 17, 2007. As a record drought continues to take it’s toll on the 38,000-acre man-made reservoir that supplies more than three million residents with water in metro Atlanta and north Georgia, the receding shoreline is revealing more than antique beer cans and other assorted garbage. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
A town that time forgot––the eerie lore attached to a rural area that sleeps beneath Atlanta’s famous man-made lake, Sidney Lanier, fascinated me. Homes, churches and businesses still linger beneath the surface.
And Looper Speedway, a half-mile dirt track where bootleggers competed with their souped-up cars, bared its cement stands in a recent draught. The moonshiners of the 1940’s added built-in suspense, not to mention the birth of NASCAR.
There’s a Lady of the Lake who haunts the ghost town too––the lore is creepy. Swimmers get trapped among the deadfall of sheered-off trees and town remains until they join her in her watery grave. Even expert divers get tangled beneath the murky surface, hence the lake’s unnerving label: Lanier never gives up its dead. The inspiration haunted me, begging for a story to be told.
What a perfect setting for my romantic time-slip suspense series. Why time-slip? Ever since my childhood imagination discovered Madeleine L’Engles, A Wrinkle In Time, the idea of time travel intrigued me. And Lake Lanier, a man-made lake with mesmerizing history presented a plausible theory: what if the explosions required to excavate the lake induced a seismic shift and, given enough energy, could open a portal to a different dimension or a rip in time. I loved the possibilities.
The birth of Lacey Montgomery evolved through my young adult love for Jude Deveraux’s A Knight In Shining Armor, a time-slip novel of course, and her endearing Montgomery family, with the hope my writing honors her inspiration. The character Lacey’s persona, inspired by my high school friend, Hilary Johnson, slipped perfectly into position. A lawyer, discouraged with defending criminals, yearned to help honest people in trouble, and some of her finer qualities naturally became part of Lacey––but the dysfunctional relationships came from my own personal experiences.
Once these elements entwined, Beneath The Lake blossomed the energy grew into a life of its own.
Book two, Beyond The Mist, picks up where the first story ends incorporating two minor characters as the new hero and heroine. Any guesses as to who will pick up the ball? Hmmm… maybe a contest is in the works. What do you think? Any guesses about who the main characters will be in Beyond The Mist?
Casi McLean
January 28, 2015
Beneath The Lake
I’m excited to announce that my new novel, Beneath The Lake, will be released this summer by Wild Rose Press. Beneath The Lake is a time slip historical fiction inspired by the eerie lore and town ruins that lie beneath Atlanta’s man-made lake, Sidney Lanier. Here is a snippet of the synopsis:
When Lacey Montgomery’s car spins out of control, she hurls into the depths of an icy, black lake. She awakens in the arms of a handsome stranger, in a place she’s never heard of . . . thirty-four years before she was born. When the 2012 lawyer tangles with the 1949 hunk, fire and ice melt into a stream of sweltering desire as Lacey tries to save a town destined to be erased from the face of the earth, and the man who vows to protect it.
May 31, 2014
For My Subscribers
Dear Casi McLean Subscribers,
This month I’m giving my new Destiny novelette series to my friends for FREE . . . People say the best things in life are FREE––love, laughter, inspiration, intrigue. I agree, so during the entire month of June, Amazon Kindle will run a FREE sale on my new novelette series, Destiny. You can download each book to your e-reader absolutely FREE. The novelettes will alternate every 2 to 3 days throughout June so don’t miss out on this fabulous DEBUT AUTHOR EXPOSURE marketing blast. Why? We hope when you get a taste of my writing, you will be hungry for the release of my new novel, Beneath The Lake!
If you like my stories, please take a moment to share a comment on Amazon. Thank you all for your support!! Enjoy a unique vacation read on me!
Thank you, Casi
After Midnight (Destiny) [Kindle Edition]
Prominent heart surgeon, Sierra Norton, performed minor miracles on a daily basis, but never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she would live one. From the first moment she opened the tiny chest of three-year-old Brooklyn MacArthur, she’d…
AMAZON.COM
A Gift For My Subscribers
Dear Casi McLean Subscribers,
This month I’m giving my new Destiny novelette series to my friends for FREE . . . People say the best things in life are FREE––love, laughter, inspiration, intrigue. I agree, so during the entire month of June, Amazon Kindle will run a FREE sale on my new novelette series, Destiny. You can download each book to your e-reader absolutely FREE. The novelettes will alternate every 2 to 3 days throughout June so don’t miss out on this fabulous DEBUT AUTHOR EXPOSURE marketing blast. Why? We hope when you get a taste of my writing, you will be hungry for the release of my new novel, Beneath The Lake!
Convergent goes on sale tomorrow!
If you like my stories, please take a moment to share a comment on Amazon. Thank you all for your support!! Enjoy a unique vacation read on me!
Thank you, Casi
Convergent (Destiny)
Prominent heart surgeon, Sierra Norton, performed minor miracles on a daily basis, but never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she would live one. From the first moment she opened the tiny chest of three-year-old Brooklyn MacArthur, she’d…
AMAZON.COM
February 25, 2014
How to Transform Your Circumstances
If you’ve read anything I’ve written, you probably know that I believe there’s an inner fire in all of us, and when we can tap into that flame, our lives will thrive. My guest blogger today lives that vision and helps other people to live their dreams.
Alan Allard is a former psychotherapist with 20 plus years experience helping individuals and organizations unleash their hidden potential. He has a unique ability of helping people realize that we all have it, but few of us find it and let it loose.
His clients have included companies such as Lucent Technologies, The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Brickman, American Cyanamid and Ashford University. Alan has trained employees from companies such as Lockheed-Martin, Boeing, Kraft, The F.B.I., The U.S. Marshals Service, Hershey Hotel, Marriott, The Chicago Tribune and American Red Cross.
Alan has been quoted in media outlets such as the New York Times, The New York Post, The California Executive, The CBS Interactive Business Network BNET.com, and People Magazine. He is a frequent guest coach expert for www.womenworking.com.
I hope you enjoy his post as much as I did. And if thou do, please take a moment to LIKE my blog on Facebook. Thanks,
Casi
Several of my clients have found new career opportunities in the past year after long periods of struggle. Others have reconnected with their spouses or life partners and others have rekindled long lost dreams. I thought I would share three lessons they learned along the way.
We can create our own circumstances:
We hear all the time how bleak the economy is and how scarce jobs are. If we’re not careful, we can get hypnotized by our circumstances: “I don’t have an M.B.A (or college degree) “I am too old,” “I’ve always been overweight, I’ve tried everything and nothing works,” “It’s tough getting a job when you don’t have one,” “My history of job-hopping makes it impossible for me to get interviews” or “I can’t find another job that will pay me what I’m making now–I should stay where I am.”
If we don’t have a clear and magnetic vision for what we want, it’s easy to be hypnotized by our outer circumstances and begin to believe what we see to be “rock solid reality.” You have to give your brain and subconscious mind something to move towards—something that inspires and motivates you into action. Do you want your circumstances to change? Begin by changing where you focus your attention–shift it from your current circumstances to a vision of the best reality you can imagine for now.
As within, so without:
Our outer circumstances reflect our inner world. If we want something better, we must first imagine what that would be like and nurture that vision. Stephen R. Covey, Ph.D., taught that all things are created twice. First there is the mental creation and then there is the physical creation. Does that sound a little “woo woo” to you?
If so, let’s keep this simple. If a sales professional has five sales calls in a row that end up with a “No” and he or she expects the same thing to happen on his or her next sales call, do you think that will impact how they relate to and communicate with their next prospect? If so, does our thinking, our beliefs, our expectations and our mental movies impact our ability to create the circumstances we want in life? Maybe the principle of “As within, so without” isn’t so “woo woo” after all.
The bleaker the circumstance, the more need to let the “light” in:
In life, we can either focus on the darkness or the light. The tougher your challenges, the more light you need to shine on them. We can’t do that perfectly and we can’t do it all the time. There will be moments, sometimes days that we get lost in the darkness of certain beliefs and emotions. We’ve all been there and know what that’s like. That’s when our vision seems distant and far away and just unbelievable.
How do we let the light in? By becoming aware of the light within. We have to choose to do that and then we have to practice “letting the light in.” There were times in my life when I didn’t want to do that. If you are there now, that’s okay. Accept yourself without criticizing yourself for being where you are. Let the light in by being compassionate and accepting of yourself.
Be honest with how you are feeling and what you are thinking. Open up and share it with someone who can listen, empathize–without trying to “fix” you. That lets the light in. It’s a beginning. From there, you will begin to see other ways to let more light in. What light? Love. Faith. Vision. Love yourself and others, have faith in yourself know that others want to help you succeed, and begin to picture a future where you are learning, growing and thriving.
Alan Allard, Coach, Speaker and Trainer
Be sure to check out Alan’s newest e-book, “Seven Secrets to Enlightened Happiness.” Here is the kindle format link on amazon.com.
Please don’t forget to LIKE my blog on Facebook. Thanks,
Casi
December 18, 2013
The Spirit of Christmas
Christmas . . . already? Where did the year go? How will I ever get everything done in time? When I scratch something off from the top of my list, several more appear at the bottom.
Click here to view the embedded video.
But I don’t mind the chaos. I love this time of year. The holiday’s bring out the best in people. Smiles from strangers, random acts of kindness, benevolence, faith, hope and love, the spirit of Christmas, like a whisper from God, warms our hearts.
Christmas has been called the season of love. A time when thoughts turn focus from normal routines of daily agenda to a kinder and gentler humanity, when tempers calm and aggression yields to generosity. At Christmas, the warmth of the human spirit radiates its glow throughout the world. The homeless are given shelter, the hungry are fed, tots get toys, but the loveless go unnoticed. Their plight invisible, they slip through the cracks, fade into the crowds.
There’s a difference between lonely and being alone. For many, this season reminds them of a lifetime past or loved ones they’ve lost. They may be elderly, homeless, destitute, or simply a lost soul who drifts through the holiday rush unnoticed––someone’s parent, child or forgotten friend. If you could put a smile on their face, would you spend the time or money to touch their heart?
In our busy lives, sometimes it’s hard to keep in mind what’s truly important. Who we are inside, how we live and what we teach our children. This season of love, reach out to friends and family, but try to remember the lonely too. It’s a hard season to bear when a person sees love all around, but feels empty inside. The loveless suffer in silence.
And to all of those who are sad this holiday season, just take a moment and look around. You don’t have to look very far to find someone less fortunate than you. Reach out and touch someone’s life. It just might rekindle a spark in your own heart.
Tonight as I watched an episode of NCIS and heard the words of a song that inspired this blog post. A special thank you to The Alternate Routes:
Nothing More
To be humble, to be kind.
It is the giving of the peace in your mind.
To a stranger, To a friend
To give in such a way that has no end.
We are Love
We are One
We are how we treat each other when the day is done.
We are Peace
We are War
We are how we treat each other and Nothing More
To be bold, to be brave.
It is the thinking that the heart can still be saved
And the darkness can come quick
The Dangers in the anger and the hanging on to it.
We are Love
We are One
We are how we treat each other when the day is done.
We are Peace
We are War
We are how we treat each other and Nothing More
Tell me what it is that you see
A world that’s filled with endless possibilities?
Heroes don’t look like they used to, they look like you do.
We are Love
We are One
We are how we treat each other when the day is done.
We are Peace
We are War
We are how we treat each other and Nothing More
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPEY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE!!!!
Casi
