Toi Thomas's Blog, page 72

#IWSG April 2014: No post

Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click the image to learn more or sign up.

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I apologize for not being able to post something more appropriate, but I’ve recently lost a loved one and am focusing on spending time with family. Please, if you happen to stumble upon this post, go visit some of the other blogs participating. There is always something special to experience.

Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share inspiration and support.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: IWSG Tagged: Alex J. Cavanaugh, encouragement, friends, insecure writers support group, Toi Thomas

Dance of the Goblins by Jaq D Hawkins

image provided by author

Book Title: Dance of the Goblins -new expanded 3rd edition

Series: The Goblin Series

Author Name: Jaq D Hawkins

Publisher: Golbin Publishing

Reading Level: mid-grade to adult

Genre: fantasy

Content Rating: PG

Available Formats: paperback, ebook, audio- coming soon.

Number of Pages: 241

Purchase Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Smashwords (all e-formats) |

Lulu (paperback)

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The Blurb

They say that the earth shifts on its axis every 200,000 years…

When the planet shifted, most of the surface dwellers were destroyed. The few pockets of survivors were left without technology and little supplies, but they built a simple feudal society on the rubble of the city.

Meanwhile the creatures in the deep places moved closer to the surface, taking over the old underground transport tunnels abandoned by the humans. Their own Shamanic way of life had survived only by staying out of sight of the humans who habitually killed what they did not understand.

Five generations of humans passed and the descendants of survivors settled into a way of life that was simple but satisfying, until one day a man wandered into one of the old tunnels…

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Excerpt

The man alternately fought his bindings and tried to appear aggressive to the goblins, as much as a captive with arms and legs bound might do. He puffed out his chest, shouting threats one moment and in the next he would shrink from the prodding, looking pathetic. Haghuf had little taste for such sport, and had just about decided to retreat quietly and leave them to it when the human suddenly saw him standing in the arch of the cavern opening, quiet and still as the stone.

‘You! Are you the leader here?’ shouted the man with all the authority he could muster. Haghuf didn’t answer right away. Slowly, he strolled towards the man, looking at him curiously as if he had never seen such a creature before. In truth, he had seen very few up close in his lifetime. He preferred to keep it that way.

Everything in the room seemed to stop as Haghuf examined the prisoner, crouching down slowly to look him in the eye as was the custom among goblins when engaging an enemy. The human’s chest heaved with quick, shallow breaths. He licked his lips nervously, caught up in the moment of suspense while he waited for an answer. Haghuf turned his head to look at the creature sideways, first one way then the other. Then at last he spoke in his low, gravely voice, slowly and deliberately in the man’s own tongue.

‘We have no leader. We are all one kind here.’

The human’s eyes darted from one goblin to another. His expression exposed his utter bewilderment at the concept of a leaderless race.

‘But surely someone must be in charge?’ he cried, almost desperately. Haghuf again took his time in answering.

‘We are not like you. We do not glory in having power over our own kind.’ Haghuf turned to walk away. Then as an afterthought added over his shoulder, ‘Or imagining that we do.’

‘What shall we do with him?’ shouted one of the goblins.

‘Kill him,’ Haghuf answered flatly, just as he passed back through the arch.

Haghuf chuckled to himself as he walked out of the side cavern. It didn’t matter to him whether the goblins behind him took his suggestion or not. His amusement came from the knowledge that to the human who could not comprehend non-authority, it would have sounded like an order from a superior.

Click here to see a 5 star consumer review of this book by Diane Rapp.

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The Author

image provided by author

Jaq D Hawkins is a published writer with 10 books in publication in the Mind, Body, Spirit genre published by Capall Bann Publishing, as well as four Fantasy novels in print and E-book; The Wake of the Dragon, Dance of the Goblins, Demoniac Dance, and, Power of the Dance, published by Golbin Publishing.

Information on all titles can be found through her website at http://www.jaqdhawkins.co.uk

Samples from various projects occasionally appear on her blog at http://indiewritenet.com/jaqdhawkins/

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Guest Posts, Samples Tagged: author, book, Dance of the Goblins, ebook, excerpt, fantasy, fiction, guest post, Jaq D. Hawkins, promotion, reading, sample, The Goblin Series, try this

The “Writing Process” Blog Tour

I was introduced to this lovely tour by a very powerful writer and friend, Glynis Rankin of Imaginings . She challenges me as writing to dig deeper into my soul, but I’m saving that for another post. Be sure to visit her contribution to this tour and see what she has going on…

And now, down to me. ;)

What am I working on?

I’m currently working on two independent projects. I’m in the editorial phase of publication for the second book in my Eternal Curse Series. I’m hoping to make alternations after receiving feedback from two beta readers before submitting to an editor.

I’m also working to complete the first draft of my first work of contemporary fiction, a romance entitled It’s Like the Full Moon.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

The fact that none of my work seems to fit neatly into any specific genre is an indication of how unique it is. I don’t want to give the impression that I’m writing ground breaking material that is setting new precedents, but I am doing things in my own special way which seems to ruffle a few feathers.

I’ve been told that my tales of romance aren’t typical, that my sci-fi is daunting, that my paranormal is truly relevant, and that much of my work has strong spiritual undertones. This is all true, however I fear some will be left with a misconception of my works. Not all of my writing is deep, but a lot of it is. Some of my stories have strong religious ties, while others focus more on the human condition.  Some of my work is purely for entertainment.

I don’t know if my readers are ready for some of the works I’ll be presenting in the future, but I hope I have enough time to ease them into it.

Why do I write what I do?

I don’t know if it can be classified as OCD, but I feel compelled to tell the stories created in my head. It’s one thing to write them down, to share them with friends, but to have them published and presented to the masses is something else entirely. My works haven’t made it to any bestsellers lists yet, but I feel a sense of comfort knowing that someone may stubble upon one of my stories and connect to it in some way.

Ultimately I want to entertain people with stories that, hopefully, make them laugh, cry, swoon, and even shiver with fear…But don’t jump to conclusions; I don’t have the mindset to write horror or erotica.

How does your writing process work?

While creative is key, I go into my writing with strategic precision. I know my weak points and rely on the skills of others to clean up my work and make it presentable, but I have a unique voice that I refuse to have altered.

Typically when I write a story, this is what happens:

-Idea and notes

-More notes and outline, and outline

-Character and setting outlines and profiles

-Transition notes and plot development.

-Writing, writing, reading, editing, writing, reading, reading, editing, writing, reading, editing, editing

-Then others finally get to see it for feedback

Who’s Up Next

-L.A. Little, author of Deadblood and soon to be many more.

The Ways, The Methods, & The Tools | @LALittle12*

-Andrew Hess, author of The Phoenix Blade Project Justice:  Writer’s Revolution

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Author Insights, BlogHop-Promo Tagged: Andrew Hess, author, blogging, books, Eternal Curse: Battleground, genres, Glynis Rankin, It's Like the Full Moon, L.A. Little, process, promotion, The Writing Process Blog Tour, Toi Thomas, wip, writing

My Geekdom 10: The Big Bang Theory

Pins from Pinterest that inspire me and indulge my geekness. http://pinterest.com/toinette_thomas/thats-hot/

Please do not copy this image. Click this image to visit Pinterest and share, share, share :)

I love that geeks have come into their own. I can’t believe that it’s actually cool to be a geek now, at least on TV. It’s funny to me that there are millions of people who adore The Big Bang Theory TV show, but don’t actually follow the interests of its star characters. While there have been an increase in the number fanatic fanboys and girls, it seems to me that a lot of people just like the idea of being a geek…and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Again, there’s no rocket science (Hope Sheldon isn’t reading; Lol.) to the notion that comic books, video games, cartoons, and so much more have influenced my writing, but there’s so much more to my geekdom than fandom. If there’s no academic or intellectual processing involved to piggy back your fandom, well then, you’re just a dork and probably better off in the long run…

Now don’t get all wound up, remember “geek” and “dork” are positive terms now. Some of my best friends are dorks, even my husband; he doesn’t over think his fandom. I’m no super genius, but I have a love for science and an average to above average intellect that I use to over analyze things. My husband and I share our fandom and we love each other for it. I’m his geek and he’s my dork.

The whole point of this notion of geek vs dork is that while I’m influence by my world of fandom, I’ve also done my research. Facts make fiction more believable. Without a foundation in truth, as a writer, I wouldn’t be able to effectively bend the truth to expand my stories. With the Eternal Curse Series, I have researched fact, fiction, doctrine, mythology, opinion, and more. I am a geek and I do my homework.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: My Geekdom Tagged: author, blogging, Eternal Curse, fad, fandom, geek, inspiration, Pinterest, process, research, smart, Toi Thomas, try this, tv, writing

Sample Sunday: Reprieve

Apologies.

There will be no sample today and I will be a bit scarce with my posts and replies to comments this week. Anything that has already been scheduled will go up for your enjoyment, but that’s all.

I have recently learned of the loss of a relative and am taking time to spend with family. I will return to regular schedule as soon as I can.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

 

 

Filed under: Uncategorized

ToiBox Blog Weekly Recap 03/29/14

Check out my Recent Posts links to see what I was up to this week.

I started out this week with Sample Sunday 38- Eternal Curse: Giovanni’s Angel, chapter 5.3

On Monday, I shared a post from Mira’s Closet, and then…

I shared the book, Purple Snowflake Marketing by Lillian Brummet.

On Tuesday, I added to my Character files the preferences for Sheldon.

On Wednesday, I posted my monthly Blogdom.

On Thursday, I shared A Day in My Life.

And yesterday, I posted a simple Friday Forecast and then shared my review of Martian Chronicles.

-Today I’m working and I’m not happy about it, but that’s life.

-No Adventures in Blogging today, but I’d love for anyone who might be in the mood to offer me some feedback…How am I doing at this whole blogging thing? Any insight, questions, or comments would be greatly appreciated.

-I hope you’ve enjoyed yourself this week and enjoy a very pleasant weekend.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: author, biography, blessings, blogging, books, character, culture, discussion, entertainment, fashion, geek, interviews, journal, life, likes, lists, reading, reviews, sample, wip

Review: Martian Chronicles

Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

I give this book a 4.

When reading this book for the first time, one has to take into consideration the period in which it was written. Bradbury’s creativity and ingenuity for space travel politics, cultural qualms, and concerns of human adaptation to space travel more than make up for the lack of technical terms and factual depictions of Mars.

These are individual accounts of trips to Mars all pulled together and retold as one chronicle of the human experience on Mars. We are giving a chance to view the human effect on Mars from multiple points of views including: disgruntled Martians, welcoming Martians, eager exploratory humans, refugees, and so much more.

This isn’t just another fast paced invasion story. The Martian Chronicles deals with of the philosophical concerns of visiting other planets and the effects of encountering an alien race. As much as I adore this story and enjoy the kooky spin the Martians and their world bring to theses matters, this story could have been told using any number of indigenous tribes right here on earth, but then there wouldn’t be as grand a feeling of exploration or adventure.

Reading story after story of how the human and Martian worlds have collided, reminded me of how it felt to watch The Twilight Zone when I was a kid. Some of it is a bit scary, but mostly it’s mysterious and thought provoking. This is one I’d definitely recommend to any sci-fi fan and maybe even a few fantasy readers.

While there is truly something here for everyone, I don’t know that everyone would be up for it. In any case, I’d say this is a family friendly read that dad would thoroughly enjoy.

This review has been posted to GoodReads.

If you’d like to obtain a copy of this book, try these links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: "the system", aliens, books, drama, family, fantasy, fiction, humanity, invasion, life, reviews, romance, sci-fi, spec-fic, war, wealth

Friday Forecast : 03/28/14

Highlighting interviewees, guest posters, my standard weekly posts, and whatever else I can think of, going into the next week.

Sample Sunday

My Geekdom, The Writing Process Blog Tour, and a guest post by Jac D. Hawkins

Character Files

Insecure Writers Support Group post and a guest post by Jac D. Hawkins

WIP Update / Writer’s Creed

Friday Forecast followed by an author interview with author, Jaq D. Hawkins

Weekly Recap and possibly another Adventures in Blogging Post

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Today I share my review of The Martian Chronicles.

Not sure how this weekend will play out. We’ll just have to see.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: author, blogging, interviews, life, reviews, sneak peak, try this, writing

A Day in My Life: Mar. ’14

You may or may not find this surprising, but as a writer I’ve never been much of a journaler (I like making up words). I’ve always kept writing, sketching, and poetry notebooks, but I’ve never really liked writing about myself. This monthly post is my attempt at rectifying that and is an opportunity for me to get a little personal, as I share a single event from my life.

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March 2014 – Bling

There is so much going on, and not going on, in my life right now. I’m in a weird place. I’m struggling to promote a book no one seems to be interested in buying. Everyone just wants me to give it away. I’ve been overlooked and ignored by so many and yet I keep a smile on face and act as though all is well.

In spite of my feelings, I make a point not to hurt others with my sorrow.

I try to be loving and supportive to my family and friends whenever possible- in the end, I always feel better when I’ve done something good for someone else.

My sister and her friend, a new business partner, have started an online jewelry boutique with a unique twist. It’s called, December 10. I recently had the pleasure of going to a party in horror of this endeavor. The food was wonderful, the laughs were plentiful, and the jewelry was economically priced and dazzling. It was a good time!

  

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: Listography-Top5-MyLife Tagged: biography, December 10, family, jewelry, life, social interaction, support, Toi Thomas

Blogdom Feb. 26-Mar. 26, ’14

Oh boy, do I have loads to share from my Blogdom (my personal realm of the Blogosphere)!

You may want to bookmark this and come back to it a few times. Good stuff here.

(Feb.26-Mar.26, 2014)

Book Reviews

-From Reading and Writing Urban Fantasy…, Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

-From BIBLIOBETH, BETH AND CHRISSI DO KID-LIT 2014… THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS…

-From MyBookAddictionReviews, Review~ Poison Town by Creston Mapes

-From Blogging for a Good Book, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, by Rae Carson

-From The Between, The Between Review/ Desert Son

-From Book Bunny’s Burrow, Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris

-From BOOK PASSION FOR LIFE, Wicked Satyr Nights (The Cursed Satyroi #1) by Rebekah Lewis

-From The Between, Review/ Heart of Eternity

-From The Thousand Lives, Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Interviews

-From Alana Munro, …In-depth Interview with the Author and Illustrator of Goo and Spot…

- From Goodreads, Debut Author Snapshot: Daniel Levine

- From SEARCHING THE CLOUDS, An Interview With Author Lynette Noni!

Book Trailers

-From Mark Pryor, Series Trailer

-From Chronicle Books, Tiny Tokyo Book Trailer

- From Ephelants, Vampires Are Us by Margot Adler

Short Stories & Excerpts

-From 4writersandreaders, MEET “SPOTLIGHT” AUTHOR: Bruce A. Borders

-From STORYWRITE, Where There’s a Will

-From Kim Talks Books, Guest Post: Stacy-Deanne’s Captivated Book Blast

-From Reading Addiction Virtual Blog Tours, PROMO: Insight by Jamie Magee

-From 300 STORIES, 211. I DID IT ALL BY MYSELF

-From The Manicheans, #Past memories

-From Green Wizard Publishing, The Night Porter – An Extract

-From Anneque G. Malchien, Cheerful Short Story: Padma and Kanti

Writing

-From The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, 10 Signs You Might Be a Professional Writer

-From Live Write Thrive, Make Me Like Your Protagonist or I’ll Stop Reading

-From Writers 750, Should Authors Give Away Free Books? (more about publishing than writing)

Blogging

- From Creative Writing with the Crimson League, How to Blog To Improve Your Creative Writing

-From Writerland, How to Back Up Your Blog

Marketing

-From MYRIAD SPHERES, Is This Literally the Worst Thing an Author Could Do?

-From Mike Wells Official Website, Why Audiobooks?

-From The Between, The Perfect Pitch

-From Tricia Drammeh, Book Promotion Etiquette

-From RED WEBSITE DESIGN BLOG, 12 Steps to Create the Perfectly Optimised Webpage

-From IWSG, Where to Advertise Your E-Books – Discounted, Free, and Otherwise

News

-From Gigaom via Digital Book World, Amazon-owned Audible lowers royalty rates on self-published audiobooks

-From Amazon, 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime: Readers’ Picks

Movie Reviews, Trailers, & More

-From Derrick Ferguson, THE LEGO MOVIE

-From MOVIECLIPS Trailers, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Official Extended…

-From hollywoodstreams, ‘Veronica Mars’ Trailer

-From Blogging for a Good Book, The Returned (2012)

-From MOVIECLIPS Trailers via Candy Coated Reality, Heaven is for Real Official Trailer #1

-From hollywoodstreams, ‘The Art of the Steal’ Trailer

-From Derrick Ferguson, 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE

-From The Geek Twins, 7 Controversial Black Directors Who Should Make a Sci-Fi Film [List]

Entertainment

-From Audio SeXXX, Moon Shine

-From Of Musings and Wonderings, Can’t Keep A Good Thing Down… [TV]

-From MUNGAI AND THE GOA CONSTRICTOR, International Polar Bear Day – February 27th 2014

-From The Masquerade Crew, This is a lousy 1 star review…

-From Memnon TeZe Zaahir, Lupita Nyong’o Epic Speech on Black Beauty……

-From Shelf Awareness, And the Bookish Oscar Goes to… 12 Years a Slave

-From INTERESTINGLITERATURE, Five Fascinating Facts about Children’s Literature

-From Being Jazzybeat Chick, … Silences by Richard Jackson ~ Accompanied by Nat King Cole – Lush Life…

-From Rita Robinson, In Praise of Criticism

-From Nilofer Merchant, Does Doing a TED Talk Make You Famous?

-From Felicia’s Melange, “Tiger Lily Doesn’t Equal Human Torch” plus a very long rant

-From You Tube, International Day of Happiness: ‘Happy’ Dances Around the World

-From vlogbrothers, 18 Great Books You Probably Haven’t Read (I like his enthusiasm.)

By including links to these articles, reviews, interviews, etc…I am not endorsing the opinions of these bloggers and writers, but am simply sharing the highlights of my blog reading experience.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Filed under: WWWWednesday-Blogdom Tagged: blog roll, blogging, books, interviews, links, movies, news, reviews, Toi's Blogdom, trailers, try this, writing