Pamela Q. Fernandes's Blog, page 21

40 All Saints Day And All Soul’s Day

As so you are, so once were we and as we are so will you one day be.” Charles Johnston on All Soul’s day

Charles Johnston is a father and husband in Phoenix, Arizona. His conversion journey has taken years, as he felt God pulling him toward His Church but he resisted until he couldn’t take it anymore. He gave in and fell in love with His Church.  He blogs for ‘Now that I’m catholic.wordpress.com’.

In this episode, Pamela talks to Charles about All Saints Day And All Soul’s Day.

He explains:

-How these days came into being

-The reason we need to be purified before God

-Why we pray for souls

-How Halloween is related to All Saints Day.

All Saints Day And All Soul’s Day

Charles and I planned to do only All Soul’s Day and I guess we were somehow led to do All Saints Day as well. It turned out to be super interesting because Charles explains the very meaning and purpose for both these special days.

He also laments Halloween and what it’s turned into along with many of our Christian holidays. What I learned from this week’s episode was how we long to be pure for God. And how avoiding sin is the only way we can ensure we go to heaven.

His statement which is the motto for the Knights of Columbus, “Time flies, remember death,” struck a chord with me.

I also absolutely loved his thought that at each All Soul’s Day mass, we need to consider ourselves attending our own funeral mass. This is what it will feel like. Somber and pensive.

All Saints Day is a day of obligation. And consider All Soul’s Day to pray and intercede for your own departed souls. Also pray for the souls of those who don’t have anyone to pray for them.

We do a special rosary where we chant, “Jesus and Mary, I love you, save souls” on all the beads of the rosary. Do as many as you can. Offer a mass for your own soul and gain an indulgence.

ENJOYED THIS PODCAST?

We hope you enjoyed this podcast. Check out our podcasts on Building a Good Marriage and Fellowship. If you liked this podcast, like us, leave us a comment and share our episodes on social media with those who may benefit from it. If there is a particular saint that you would like to hear about us, tell us and we’ll add him or her to our future episodes.

We are on iheartradio, Stitcher, Itunes, and tunein.com.

We’d love to hear from you. Please rate us so that our podcast reaches out to the people who need to hear it.

 

 

 

The post 40 All Saints Day And All Soul’s Day appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

I can make your 3D Book Mockup

3D mockup mayhem? I’ve released STARTING OVER last week. And everyone asked me about the gorgeous cover and the 3D BOOK MOCKUP. Did I tell you STARTING OVER is free?

3D BOOK MOCKUP CINDERS OF CASTLEREA

Well, over the last few days I received a lot of asks about my 3D  book mockups.

3D Mockups look beautiful when you use them for social media and on blogs. You can take a look at mine. So to help authors, I’ve decided to help out and create a 3D mockup of your book especially with the iphone and ipad for 5$. Yes only 5 bucks.

3D BOOK MOCKUP STARTING OVER

If you want a complex picture with a book with an iphone like above, get in touch with me.

Here’s what you need to do.

Give me your cover, a high def one. Let me know if you want a particular background or if I’m free to choose my own.
Send me your blurb and genre.
Then choose if you want an iphone, ipad, a book or a combination of all three.
I’m not a fan of a lot of texts in 3D mockups, because no one reads them. But I could add it in if you want.

3D BOOK MOCKUP OF CINDERS OF CASTLEREA

If you need me to create a 3D mockup, then please follow my link on fiverr.

WHY AM I CREATING 3D BOOK MOCKUPS?

Graphic designers charge a whole of money for the  3D book mockups. And it shouldn’t be that expensive since they’re so easy to make. And that’s why I’m making them for practically free.

I get it, if you’re creating a mockup for an ad then you should get the graphic designer to do it for you. Let’s face it, most of us indie authors, don’t have 100-200$ bucks lying around just to splurge on an image when that could easily go into marketing a book.

I can do this for all genres except horror and steamy books. So if you want a 3Dbook mockup, reach out to me on fiverr and I can create them for you! No more expensive stuff!

Like my 3D book mockups? Let me know!

The post I can make your 3D Book Mockup appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

My Sweet Fall Romance “STARTING OVER” is out now!

Finally, after long and patient weeks “STARTING OVER” is live on a number of sites. I’m still waiting for a few more booksellers to have it up and I’ll bring it to my home page!

You must have noticed the falling leaves and all the little hints I’ve been dropping about the book. So it’s finally here and has some awesome reviews. It will be up on netgalley, too on the 1st of November!

Here’s the book cover!

STARTING OVER

Here’s the book trailer of STARTING OVER!

The best news of all for all of my readers, is that I’ve made this book free. You heard it!

Here’s the book blurb

Cara Wallace is stunned to find Nathan Reynolds back in Henderson County. His sudden arrival brings to the fore unresolved questions of what might have been.

How could she unwrite the past?

How could she undo the mistakes?

How could she unlove him?

Nathan Reynolds can’t understand why Cara chose to stay in this small town. How could she sacrifice her career, her future and their love for a small run-down cottage in the middle of nowheresville?

Whatever her reasons, Nathan intends to find out and start over again!

STARTING OVER IS FREE ON ALL SITES

STARTING OVER

I guess this is my way of saying thank you to my readers. Painting Kuwait Violet has had such amazing reviews! Therefore, I wanted to say thank you to all the people who read and review my books!

In my previous post, I did talk about what happened with Starting Over and how the publishing company that took it on closed down. Consequently, somehow the stars aligned, my gorgeous cover came into being through Les and the wonderful video through Lumen5 happened. 

All in all, I’m so grateful to Roane Publishing and Terri Rochenski for taking me on. I would have never written Starting over if it weren’t for their competition.  Yet, despite the ups and downs, now that the book is out, I’m really excited to hear what you readers have to say about STARTING OVER!

GET YOUR FREE COPY NOW!

ITUNES BARNES & NOBLES KOBO SCRIBD 24S PLAYSTER ANGUS & ROBERTSON AMAZON BIBLIOTHECA OVERDRIVE

Don’t forget to read and review my book on any of these sites and Goodreads.

Additionally, let me know what you think about the book, the cover and trailer. I loved writing STARTING OVER. It’s a second chance romance that made me cry while I wrote it. It’s about fall and love. Autumn is my favorite season and so this book is like my homage to the season I love!

In particular, I will dedicate all of November to how I wrote STARTING OVER. Additionally, I’ll share a few sneak peeks of reviews and other things that will happen. I’m hosting a few giveaways and so there’s going to be love in the air this fall!

In the meantime, download the book (IT’S FREE) and if you want more free books sign up. Most of my subscribers know that I give away free books all the time.

Look forward to hearing from you!

Cheers!

The post My Sweet Fall Romance “STARTING OVER” is out now! appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

Q 25 How Can Doctors Become More Right-Brained & Creative?

“How can  a doctor become more  right-brained and creative?”

 Doctors can be right-brained!

Doctors are often considered people who use their left brain more than their right brain. The left brain is associated with logical and analytical thinking. However, the right brain is associated with artistic and creative abilities.

I’ve talked about having hobbies and having a work-life balance in many of my previous posts. Often, I’ve recommended not just doctors but people in 9-to-5 jobs to use their creativity. This is especially for those people who use little to no creativity at work.

Ask doctors to create a PPT on the same topic and you see a variety of colors, ideas and styles. It’s so evident that they’re all talented and have a creative side to them. I feel engaging the creative right brain is cathartic, especially if you’ve had a trying day at work.

THE EVIDENCE FOR RIGHT BRAINED DOCTORS

Dr. Caroline Wellbery and Dr. Rebecca McAteer of the Georgetown University School of Medicine published an essay in the journal Academic Medicine.

They proposed a curriculum for an eight-week “arts observation seminar” which encompassed poetry, photography, and descriptive writing,.

I say we don’t need any research. Take a look at Tess Gerritsen. She’s the author of the famous Rizzoli & Isles books and is a pathologist. Other authors like Ilene Wong, a surgeon and anesthesiologist, Carol Casella, have taken to writing books. Like me!

Then there’s Scott Carle, an occupational physician who paints and you can even watch him paint one of his masterpieces live. Another painter is Dr C Michael Gibson, an interventional cardiologist, who finds time to crate beautiful artwork. I follow him on Twitter and he’s such a talented and passionate physician who’s funny and smart.

Chip Thomas, a physician, has been an exceptional photographer. His photographs of the Navajo nation are deep and arresting. Victor Wahby is a musician and Founder & Maestro of the Medical Musical Group Orchestra. Dr Mark Seraly sculpts and his pieces are very sought after in the art world. These are just a few example of people who are creative and practicing doctors.

So how can you engage your right brain?

Doctors and the right brain

FIND WHAT YOU LOVE

Before you start thinking what you should take up. Look back at your own life. An art class, or photographs, something that you loved. All of us took minor classes during our junior years in school or college. It could have been a sport. Don’t think what can make me more money. Think what is it that I love to do and go for it. This is something you could do everyday without ever getting bored of it. I can write and create stories everyday and I would never be bored.

FIND WHAT FULFILLS YOU

You could do a lot of things you love but in addition to that does it fulfill you. Fulfillment is a feeling where you feel you’ve achieved your purpose in life. I like playing the piano but writing and hosting my podcast fulfills me. It makes me believe that this is why I’m here on this planet. I was born to do this.

FIND WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY

Right-brained activity could be as simple as going fishing. Does it makes you happy? Does it bring a smile to your face? When you do it, do all your worries melt away and does excitement tingle your skin?

CUT OUT EXTRAS

Cut out the extra crap in your life. We spend hours on mindless television or long commutes. Are there any time wasters in your life? Cut them out and use that time to focus on this new creative activity that you love. At one point of time I was watching, three hours of TV per day! 

39 Why Your Rosary Is A Spiritual Weapon

Mary is a Trojan Horse in the spiritual world and when she comes in, it’s game over! – Peter Howard on the Rosary

Peter hails from New Jersey . . .  so you know you can trust this guy! He now lives in the mountains of northern Idaho, residing with his beautiful wife, Chantal, and their five beautiful children. Peter is an expert in the teachings of Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, Mariologist, Catholic entrepreneur, renown international speaker, author, professor, theologian and co-founder of Heroic Families (HeroicFamilies.com) and aromaRosary Wellness (aromarosarywellness.com).

Peter has spoken at national, diocesan and family conferences in the United States and Philippines; the United States Air Force Academy; the Apostolate for Family Consecration; diocesan and parish retreats and he has been featured on Catholic television and radio programs such as EWTN, Catholic Answers Live, the Patrick Madrid Show, CatholicTV, Shalom World, Radio Maria and Relevant Radio. Dr. Howardhas served as a professor of theology for the Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation (avila-institute.com) and the School of Spiritual Formation of the Marian Servants of the Incarnate Wisdom.

Peter Howard

Dr. Howard earned his Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas [Angelicum] in Rome, Italy. Dr. Howard‘s theological expertise lies predominantly in Mariology and the teachings of Venerable Fulton J. Sheen. Peter is a member of the International Marian Association and author of the 2015 book: The Woman: The Mystery of Mary as Mediatrix in the Teaching of Fulton J. Sheen. Dr. Howard is passionate about evangelizing families and forming “360 Catholics” who are holy, healthy and free. Check out his podcast at 360Living.live.

In this episode, Dr. Peter Howard tells us why we should pray the rosary.

He explains:

-What is the rosary?

-The miracles that have taken place with the rosary

-How the rosary is a spiritual weapon

-Why you must make it a part of your daily life.

Your Rosary Is A Spiritual Weapon

When I chanced upon or should I say  wasdivinely led to Peter’s post on Catholic Exchange, I didn’t know he was scholar on Mary. I was so caught up with the miracles that I didn’t think much of it. In the past I believed the Rosary as an instrument of peace and breezed through it without thinking. I was very lukewarm about it.

But after recording this podcast with Peter, I’ve got a new passion for the Rosary. The argument that convinced me was when Peter says, Hail Mary full of grace…. when those words were uttered all of heaven stops to listen to Mary’s response. It is also the moment the Word becomes flesh and that same power is manifested every time we say it.

Chanted Rosary CD

I have to admit, I have new belief in the power of the Hail Mary scripture. In fact, when I went to the 7pm mass last week we had no electricity. And for a 25,000 strong parish, there are lots of people outside and inside who have no clue what goes in the church without the speaks and the monitors. So I took a cue from Peter’s mom and his podcast, and said 1, just 1 Hail Mary. Lo and behold, five minutes later the lights came back on and we heard mass in peace.

Now for every Hail Mary I meditate and take people’s intentions to our Blessed Mother. Because I am convinced in its power.

Miracles Of The Rosary

Peter talks about the miracles of Mary’s Rosary in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Most important of all is the miracle of his own father, going through near death and recovery with Mary’s help. It really brought tears to my eyes. Peter says the winter is here, the world is going mad and the only solution is to bring people to Jesus through the rosary, one family at a time. I couldn’t have said it any better.

For the next chapter of my life, I’ve sensed the Lord call me to pray for marriages and families and with this spiritual weapon, I’ve started to pray fervently for marriages.

“If there were one million families praying the Rosary every day, the entire world would be saved.”

-Pope St. Pius X

I hope you can share this podcast and bring one family at a time to the table of the rosary. Even if you say just one decade each day, Peter says it’s the best weapon in spiritual warfare. Why not give it a try?

If you would like to get in touch with Dr. Peter Howard, you can reach him at any one of these sites: HeroicFamilies.com,  aromaRosary.com & aromaRosaryWellness.com.

Aroma Rosary

ENJOYED THIS PODCAST?

We hope you enjoyed this podcast. Check out our podcasts on St. Maximilian Kolbe and the Discipleship of Mary. If you liked this podcast, like us, leave us a comment and share our episodes on social media with those who may benefit from it. If there is a particular saint that you would like to hear about, tell us and we’ll add him or her to our future episodes. Next week we’ll be talking about the rosary!

We are on iheartradio, Stitcher, Itunes, and tunein.com.

We’d love to hear from you. Please rate us so that our podcast reaches out to the people who need to hear it.

The post 39 Why Your Rosary Is A Spiritual Weapon appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

Character Expressions with Actress Eleonora Micali

Character expressions are my weakness. When I write, I do get hemmed in by them. I’m currently editing Stumped and my editor Melody Miller, has been putting ellipses everywhere so that I could change my expressions. How many times have “eyes widened” or “tears streaked down?” Too often in my manuscript.

So I decided to interview an actress who really gets character expressions. After all, actresses have to portray the same emotions with different expressions.

Who is Eleonora Micali?

PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

38 THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY

“Mary shows us that there’s an insep arable joy in following Jesus.” Dr. Matthew A. Tsakanikas on the discipleship of Mary.

THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY

Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas

Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas is Chair of the Department of Theology, Christendom College, Front Royal, Virginia. His doctorate was from the Pontifical University of the Lateran’s John Paul II Institute for Marriage and the Family, Rome. He has taught for Benedictine College, Saint Meinrad Seminary’s Permanent Diaconate Program, and Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity.

In this episode, Dr. Matthew A. Tsakanikas talks to us about the discipleship of Mary.

He talks about:

-Mary’s difficult life

-Mary as the new Eve

-Mary as the Ark of the Covenant

-The meaning of the rosary and her apparitions

This episode was sponsored by NOAH’S Event Venue. They rent out beautiful and spacious venues to church groups. Find out more about them here: www.NOAHSEventVenue.com/church

THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY

I have to say it was hard finding guests to talk about Mary and her discipleship. Whatever side you’re on, let’s not forget that Mary bore Jesus. And that’s something even Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas reminds us that if the ark of the covenant made of stone was holy, how much more the ark that held Jesus in the flesh.

I reached out to Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas through his post on Mary. He’s also written on Orthodoxy, worship, and Saint Augustine. And he was so enthusiastic about talking about the discipleship of Mary. There were nuggets of wisdom that I’d long forgotten about Mary.

One of the things he said that truly touched me was about darkness and light.

“We must cling to Jesus. We have to continue forward into the light which is so bright that it can seem like darkness. Mary is a model of walking in the light.”

He has so much more profound wisdom to share about how it sometimes feels like God has abandoned us and we can pray and ask our Heavenly Father to take this cup away from us. In those times, like Mary and Jesus, we must also finish with “Thy will be done” and not “My will be done!”

He explains why apparitions happen and how Mary asks us to meditate on her life entwined with her son. Through all this he says that the discipleship of Mary was hard. She didn’t have an easy life. Yet, she trusted God and her son took every form of humanness to save us.

Finally, he also mentions why it’s important to train and shape young people in christian fellowship.

If you would like to get in touch Dr. Mathew Tsakanikas, then you can contact him at the Christendom College.  It’s a Catholic liberal arts college offering a time-tested and rigorous education that develops the student’s intellect in a powerful way.

ENJOYED THIS PODCAST?

We hope you enjoyed this podcast. Check out our podcasts on St. Augustine and Fellowship. If you liked this podcast, like us, leave us a comment and share our episodes on social media with those who may benefit from it. If there is a particular saint that you would like to hear about, tell us and we’ll add him or her to our future episodes. Next week we’ll be talking about the rosary!

We are on iheartradio, Stitcher, Itunes, and tunein.com.

We’d love to hear from you. Please rate us so that our podcast reaches out to the people who need to hear it.

The post 38 THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

PAINTING KUWAIT VIOLET: Themes

Themes. I knew I had to do this post because people keep asking about these characters. Especially people who have never lived outside the Middle East.

But first here’s the trailer.  This time I just did it myself because getting a storyboard ready and having someone who understood the Middle east was going to be hard. I wasn’t sure they’d get it right. Tell me what you think about the trailer.

Then there are the various themes. I’m going to share a few issues that often come up in middle east fiction. Check out my list of middle east fiction, if this is a genre you’re interested in reading.

Themes in PKV

THEMES
War

Its quite obvious when you live here, somehow your life is touched by war. Every member state of the Middle East has seen this in the past or continues to do so at present. Kuwait saw two Gulf wars. And I’ve chosen to highlight the first war. I grew up and fled Kuwait with my family and remember that time vividly. Kuwait was practically reduced to rubble by the time it ended. the beach clean up of oil took decades and even today parts of the country still mark the evidence of what happened.

Polygamy

It’s a known fact that men are allowed to take up more than one wife. Sad for the women. I mean for die-hard believers in the “one true love” concept, it does hurt. But this is accepted in this culture. Sabah has a hard time with this and that’s where the trouble begins.

Unequal Opportunity for Women

Kuwaiti women got the right to vote in 2005. That’s how nascent their suffrage movement is. With that followed the right to hold elected office. But it’s an uphill battle since society is still patriarchal and business is still part of the old boy’s club. And that’s why Sabah & Violet find it so hard to build a business.

WORKER’S RIGHTS

You have no rights, especially if you work as a domestic. In fact President Duterte was quite vocal about this issue which granted his citizens special rights. Most contracts are written in Arabic. As maids, Tintin and Violet are hard-pressed and have to second-guess their boss. Lots of reviewers have commented on how they loved the interaction between the maids. They’re like a pseudo family within the confines of these homes. And as much as I’d love to dedicate more pages to this, this book does show that you can build a family with strangers when you’re far from home.

STIGMA OF THE DOMESTIC

The term dignity of labor isn’t understood here. If you’re a domestic worker, you’re something of a lesser human being. This is quite evident when Sabah’s son first comes home from the US. His attitude is quite telling and that’s the general perception of domestic workers throughout the region.

BRIDE MONEY

Here, instead of a dowry, men have to pay the women’s family bride money in exchange for their daughter which is why GCC brides are very expensive.

BLOG TOUR

Painting Kuwait Violet is going to go on a blog tour. It will run from October 8th – October 22nd 

 

To be honest, it’s my first time doing a blog tour. And I’m super excited. My book spotlight page is here. 

So now you have a little more about the themes in this book. There’s a lot of this book that I edited/ took out to sharpen and tighten the pace. Aliya’s weight loss journey, Violet’s childhood and Tintin’s own backstory.  I hope despite that you enjoy the book given all the unbelievable stuff you find in these pages.

 

 

 

The post PAINTING KUWAIT VIOLET: Themes appeared first on PAMELA Q. FERNANDES.

Winds of Change in Publishing

Publishing is a subjective business. Yesterday, I received an email from Roane Publishing. Along with many other authors, the publishers have graciously reverted rights back to all the authors.

37 Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone

“The reason we’re doing this is not for our pew, but for Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for us.” -Matthew Peaslee on building vibrant parishes and stepping out of our comfort zones.

Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Matthew Peaslee is a resident of the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he works as the associate editor of the Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper. He has been in the position for almost two years after a career in daily newspapers in Ohio and West Virginia.

Matthew Peaslee

Peaslee is a Youngstown, Ohio native where he attended Catholic school. He went on to earn a journalism degree from West Virginia University in 2011. Peaslee is happily married to his wife of three years, Erin. They are devout Catholics, avid baseball fans, and proud parents to a morkie puppy named Jordy.

 

This episode was sponsored by NOAH’S Event Venue. They rent out beautiful and spacious venues to church groups. Find out more about them here: www.NOAHSEventVenue.com/church

GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

This is easier than you think and especially in parishes where people have been set in their ways.  This podcast was super easy to do. Journalists really make good guests on the show.