D.G. Kaye's Blog, page 132

Happy Blogiversary to me! – jessicanorrie

This is a short post in gratitude to Jessica Norrie who has nominated my blog with a ‘Blogger Recognition Award’. As I’m currently over my head in catching up with life and working on several projects, I don’t have the time to participate in this challenge, but nonetheless, I certainly want to thank Jessica and acknowledge her kindness for nominating me for this award.

 

I’ve only connected with Jessica in recent months, but am already enjoying her prolific blog and highly recommend that you visit her blog, particularly this post of hers I’m linking to here because she’s got a fun promo going on right now! Enter for a chance to win her book or a chance to have your writing critiqued by her HERE 

 

Source: Happy Blogiversary to me! – jessicanorrie

The Abandoned Boob Chronicles by Jeri Walker – GoFundMe

 

Well the old ‘C’ monster has struck again! ‘C‘ is for cancer in this case. ‘C’ is also for the callous and cruel effects, treatments and upheaval this disease can wreak on one’s life.

 

Friend and editor/writer/blogger, Jeri Walker has recently been diagnosed with the ‘C’ beast and has started a gofundme page, asking for any help, small or big,  if anyone may find it in their hearts to donate for her health and living expenses. Please read Jeri’s post below.

 

The Abandoned Boob Chronicles: Entry 01

I keep fighting, and life keeps throwing obstacles. At forty, I’ve joined ranks as the one in eight women who receives a breast cancer diagnosis in their lifetime. Two years earlier, my husband of sixteen years abandoned me. And for good measure, add an entire life lived in the shadows of a bipolar mother. Cancer? Bring it on. I’ve got this. Life has schooled me well.

Asking for help is at best awkward and at worst torturous for a fiercely independent soul such as myself. But that’s exactly what I need—whether it be as positive vibe giver, reader of my words, social media sharer, or financial contributor. Feel free though to go all in and do all of the above! The success of this campaign depends on it.

What I can give to you is my tale. It’s not just a story about breast cancer. This diagnosis has only provided the structure for framing my narrative. Truth is indeed stranger than fiction, and it’s a long damn story. I’ve hedged for years over what I should be writing. It’s time for me to do what I do best, which is write about life as I know it in hopes of connecting with others. Authenticity is my superpower. What’s yours?

In future updates, I will share the details of my diagnosis and treatment. I will do so in narrative nonfiction fashion rather than in the informative approach of this first post. I’ll start with how my love discovered the lump via a handful of playful morning boob, and also tell you about the out-of-body experiences that transpire the night after being infused with Adriamycin. It’s safe to say chemo derived from soil fungus does some trippy stuff to one’s mind and body.

As the owner of Word Bank Writing & Editing , I make a modest living. When my ex got into a taxicab and never came back, I had many choices to make. Rather than return to teaching high school English, I hustled to take on more editing clients and keep myself afloat. For the first time ever, I began this year with projects booked three months in advance. This persnickety breast cancer diagnosis has changed all that. . .  Please continue reading and consider making a donation while you’re HERE

 

 

Source: The Abandoned Boob Chronicles by Jeri Walker – GoFundMe

Guest Author Feature – Uvi Poznansky – Dancing with Air

Today’s guest author I’ve invited over is Uvi Poznansky with her latest book, Dancing with Air, Book 4 in her Still Life with Memories series.

 

Uvi is a bestselling, award-winning author, poet and artist. “I paint with my pen,” she says, “and write with my paintbrush.” Her romance boxed set, A Touch of Passion, is the 2016 WINNER of The Romance Reviews Readers’ Choice Awards.

About Uvi:

Education and work:

Uvi earned her B. A. in Architecture and Town Planning from the Technion in Haifa, Israel and practiced with an innovative Architectural firm, taking a major part in the large-scale project, called Home for the Soldier.

Having moved to Troy, N.Y. with her husband and two children, Uvi received a Fellowship grant and a Teaching Assistantship from the Architecture department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. There, she guided teams in a variety of design projects and earned her M.A. in Architecture. Then, taking a sharp turn in her education, she earned her M.S. degree in Computer Science from the University of Michigan.

She worked first as an architect, and later as a software engineer, software team leader, software manager and a software consultant (with an emphasis on user interface for medical instruments devices.) All the while, she wrote and painted constantly, and exhibited in Israel and California. In addition, she taught art appreciation classes. Her versatile body of work includes bronze and ceramic sculptures, oil and watercolor paintings, charcoal, pen and pencil drawings, and mixed media.

 

 

 

 

 

Get this book on Amazon! 

 

The Blurb:

Serving on the European front, Lenny longs for Natasha, the girl who captured his heart back home. He writes bogus reports, designed to fall into the hands of Nazi Intelligence. To fool the enemy, these reports are disguised as love letters to another woman. This task must remain confidential, even at the risk of Natasha becoming suspicious of him.

Once she arrives in London, Lenny takes her for a ride on his Harley throughout England, from the White Cliffs of Dover to a village near an underground ammunition depot in Staffordshire. When he is wounded in a horrific explosion, Natasha brings him back to safety, only to discover the other woman’s letter to him. He wonders, will she trust him again, even though as a soldier, he must keep his mission a secret? Will their love survive the test of war?

In the past Natasha wrote, with girlish infatuation, “He will be running his fingers down, all the way down to the small of my back, touching his lips to my ear, breathing his name, breathing mine. Here I am, dancing with air.” In years to come, she will begin to lose her memory, which will make Lenny see her as delicate. “I gather her gently into my arms, holding her like a breath.” But right now, during the months leading up to D-Day, she is at her peak. With solid resolve, she is ready to take charge of the course of their story.

Dancing with Air is a standalone WWII romance, as well as the fourth volume of a family saga series titled Still Life with Memories, one of family sagas best sellers of all time. If you like family saga romance, wounded warrior romance, or military romantic suspense, you will find that this love story, twisting and turning through its marital issues, is a unique melding of them all.

Now, let us get to learn more about the multi-talented, Uvi Poznanski

 

You’re such a talented artist – a painter, sculptor and author, please tell us how you manage to write so many books and run regular promotions while managing to paint, sculpt and tend to daily life?

I heard somewhere that time was invented so that everything doesn’t happen all at once, and to me this is a useful idea. So when I write, I see myself as standing on the shoulders of my former self who has created an earlier art piece that created the idea for the writing.

For me, art and writing serve as inspiration for each other. For example, in the last couple of weeks I published not one, not two, but six books–all of them art collections (by world renowned artists.) Curated by me, these collections are arranged moment by moment in the story of David. They served as a basis not only for study courses I conducted in a university setting but also as the inspiration for my trilogy, The David Chronicles. Seeing how artists depict each moment in the story, sometimes from contrasting viewpoints, inspired the three novels: Rise to Power, A Peek at Bathsheba, and The Edge of Revolt.

I know you have many of your books now in audio. How are you finding the audience response to audio books? Would you say it’s worth your time for the ROI to keep making audio versions for your books?

It’s definitely worth my while to produce the audiobook editions of my books, not only because it gives me a unique opportunity to partner with gifted, creative narrators who breathe life into the characters, but also because it offers my readers an additional way to become immersed in the story.

To me, creating an audiobook is exhilarating, starting from the very beginning: the audition process. For my novels The Music of Us and Dancing with Air, my narrator, Don Warrick, gives voice to a young, adventurous marine, to his beautiful girlfriend, to her overbearing Mama, and to a host of other characters, painting the contrasts that heighten the drama in this novel. His talent is more than living in the skin of each character–it is getting to the core of each character, to the innermost fears and aspirations.

I’ve read he The Music of Us and thoroughly enjoyed it, part of the now 4 book volume in the Still Life series. Is the latest book, Dancing with Air the last of this series, or will there be more books?

Yes, I’m currently on the third chapter of the next novel in the series. Very excited about it! I haven’t settled on a title yet. Perhaps it’ll be, The Girl with the Red Beret.

So stay tuned…

The Still Life with Memories series focuses on the romantic love story of Lenny, a World War II vet and Natasha, a piano concerto prodigy, and their relationship in the present facing Natasha’s diagnosis of Alzheimer’s while Lenny’s flashbacks tell us the story of their lives during wartime. Was there something in particular that prompted you to include Alzheimer’s disease in the storyline?

For a long time I had this idea of creating a series around the events in the life of a unique family. The characters had to have not only a compelling voice, but they had to see things in an entirely different light, which would create contrasts and conflicts, as each one of them comes from a different background and has different passions, needs, and aspirations.

The first book I wrote, set in the 1980’s, was Apart from Love. In it,  Natasha was inflicted with early onset Alzheimer’s and has already declined. Her character demanded that I give her a voice, so I leapt a generation earlier, to the 1940’s, so we can witness her brilliance in her youth, and witness the love between her and Lenny. This is how The Music of Us and later, Dancing with Air came about. Framed by the present, where Natasha has declined, her past seems even more brilliant.

I know you also have written books in a different historical fiction series, The David Chronicles. What about writing historical fiction fascinates you?

I love writing historical fiction, which requires complete immersion in the era. I have always been fascinated by the life of David, and taught a course in art history about it, comparing and contrasting the ways artists across cultures and centuries depicted each moment in the story. The material I collected for this course, combined with my first-hand knowledge of the landscape of the country, gave me the perfect background to write the story.

Now a word of warning: The David Chronicles is not a religious treatise. It’s a secular story. Don’t expect Sunday school teaching. It is described in the voice of David, a flesh and blood, ambitious man, accused of being a traitor and admired for being a hero. He is a man of contrasts, a poet and a killer at once. This, by design, is a modern story, providing a lens through which you may view the political leaders of today.

Please tell us a little about Dancing with Air.

In 1970, Lenny can no longer deny that his wife is undergoing a profound change. Despite her relatively young age, her mind succumbs to forgetfulness. Now, he goes as far back as the moment he met Natasha, when he was a soldier and she—a star, brilliant yet illusive. Natasha was a riddle to him then, and to this day, with all the changes she has gone through, she still is.

 

Excerpt: 

“Digging into the past, mining its moments, trying to piece them together this way and that, dusting off each memory of Natasha, of how we were, the highs and lows of the music of us, to find out where the problem may have started?”

To their son, Ben, that may seem like an exercise in futility. For Lenny, it is a necessary process of discovery, one that is as tormenting as it is delightful. He often wonders: can we ever understand, truly understand each other—soldier and musician, man and woman, one heart and another? Will we ever again dance together to the same beat? Is there a point where we may still touch?

Can you please share an excerpt with us from Dancing with Air?

Scores of men lined up. Each one in turn presented his printed Programme to her, asking for an autograph.

One said, “Natasha Horowitz, I just love your music.”
“I’ll never forget your name, as long as I live,” said another.
And another one said, “You remind me of my girl, back home.”
Joining the line I had no idea, at first, if she caught sight of me. Natasha gave a nod here, a word there to her fans, asked each one of them for his name, scribbled a short greeting, and signed it for him. Then, as I drew nearer, she took a step back and exchanged a quick look with Mrs. Babcock.
With a flash in her eyes Natasha asked, under her breath, “Did you tell him where to find me?”
“Who, me?” said the woman.
Turning away from her she said, this time out loud, “I suppose the whereabouts of a performer are no secret, so what took you so long?”
Astonished at her remark I looked at those who stood ahead of me and those who stood behind. Then I asked, “Who, me?”
“No, not you,” said one. “Me! Me! How about me?”
And another one asked, “Who, him?”
And a third one chimed in, “That guy, you mean?”
To which Natasha said, “I do.”
And to me she said, “It’s too late for us, Lenny, don’t you agree?”
And I asked, as if I had no idea why she would resist me, “Late for what?”
“For love to start all over again.”
“You’re wrong, Natashinka.”
“Am I?”
“I’m here just in time, to ask you one thing.”
“Which is what?”
I handed her the Programme, which I had just snatched from the next person in line, and said, “Will you sign your name for me?”
She asked, “What name shall I sign?”
“Natasha,” I said, “Kaminsky.”
“You know that’s not my name.”
“Not yet. But soon, it will be.”
I knelt before her, opening my arms, my heart.
“Please, do it, Natasha,” I said. “It’ll be a great honor for me.”
Then I dug the gold locket out of my pocket, and offered it to her. She opened it, uttering a cry of amazement.
“Oh! It’s you, it’s me,” she breathed. “And look, there’s no tear.”
“Well,” said Mrs. Babcock. “D’you like him?”
And Natasha said, in a soft tone, “I do.”
And I said, in a tone that was even softer, “I love you, sweetheart, and I always will.”

In a heartbeat she bent over, heat surging between us, and before I could utter another word, kissed me long and full on my lips.


Author Links:
 
Blog
Art Site
Amazon author page
Facebook author page
Goodreads author page
pInterest
@UviPoznansky

The David Chronicles:

Novels:
Vol I Rise to Power ebook print audio
Vol II A Peek at Bathsheba  ebook print audio
Vol III The Edge of Revolt ebook print

Art Books:
Vol IV Inspired by Art: Fighting Goliath
Vol V Inspired by Art: Fall of a Giant
Vol VI Inspired by Art: Rise to Power
Vol VII Inspired by Art: A Peek at Bathsheba
Vol VIII Inspired by Art: The Edge of Revolt
Vol IX Inspired by Art: The Last Concubine

Still Life with Memories:

Vol I My Own Voice ebook print audio
Vol II The White Piano ebook print audio
Vol III The Music of Us ebook print audio
Vol IV Dancing with Air ebook print audio
Vol I+II Apart from Love ebook print audio

 

Thank you so much for coming over today Uvi, to share your writing insights about the book and series. I have all the books in this series and look forward to eventually reading them all.

Free Authors Tools: Blurb Preview & Yasiv | Nicholas C. Rossis

Nicholas Rossis is sharing some excellent info about two handy author tools he gained insight about using italics and bolding our blurbs when entering them onto Amazon, and a site where we can check what other books Amazon links our books to. I highly recommend to bookmark this very interesting article for future reference when you will be venturing to publish another book.

 Free Author Tools
“I have two useful (and free) author tools to share with you today, courtesy of authors John Logsdon and MM Jaye respectively.

Amazon blurb preview

Author Central’s formatting toolbar

I’ve often shared on this blog my support of Amazon. Despite its occasional missteps, the company has leveled the playing field for Indie authors and is busy changing the publishing industry on a daily basis. It is consistently client-centric in its approach and has invested heavily in making the shopping experience as pleasant and flawless as possible.

 

Which is why I can’t fathom why it’s so hard for it to build a proper, user-friendly blurb builder.

 

In effect, there are two separate ways of posting your blurb: the first is to do it through your book details on KDP. This has the  benefit of allowing you to use some basic . . .” Continue Reading 

 

Source: Free Authors Tools: Blurb Preview & Yasiv | Nicholas C. Rossis

The Return of D.G. Kaye – Flight Manifesto

 

Some of you may have read my book, Have Bags, Will Travel , and could consider this post as a little side chapter to that book. And for those who haven’t, you will find a detailed accounting of my flight home from Phoenix, Arizona.

 

 

My usual bag of tricks worked in preparation for airport packing strategy 101:

 

Hub had limited me to three bags between us instead of the allowable four. Although I’m not sure why he was so adamant because I became the lifter and schlepper of all bags. We were each allowed one carry on bag and one personal item. Said personal item for me is my purse, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t put whatever I needed in it, mainly another purse. I’d also brought with an extra folding bag for another carry on we may have needed for our return. Hey, it was regulation size and after all, hubby doesn’t carry a purse so surely he was allowed another ‘personal’ carry on item.

 

Each suitcase is allowed up to 50 pounds weight. I had purchased my new trusted mini scale to weigh the bags before setting off to airport to avoid unpleasant surprises once the bags were ‘officially’ weighed. As it turns out, each of my three bags came in weighing 49.5 pounds. What a miracle. And thank goodness I brought that extra carry on, for a good 10-15 pounds weight of gifts I’d purchased.

 

I also had with me a huge plastic shopping bag with handles. This baby I use to put the extra carry bag inside along with coats, cowgirl hat, water bottles and any incidentals that wouldn’t fit my purse, just until I got to the boarding gate to avoid having to carry all that extra stuff. I know that big plastic bag would be a huge flag to boarding attendants, so for boarding purposes, the carry on comes out, the coats and hat get put on, and all other incidentals get thrown in wherever they may fit. Smaller purse had already been neatly tucked into bigger purse (okay, maybe it was a tote bag, disguised as a purse), where all other items that didn’t fit the smaller purse went : sunglasses, phone, kindle, notebook, water bottle, jewelry roll, make-up pouch, two masks, and some other crap. Smooth boarding!

 

Once on the plane, the hackers and sneezers begin their symphony of song. Besides the fact that I can’t stand the sight of blood, I know I couldn’t be a surgeon because I spent the better part of the flight adjusting my mask so I could breathe properly avoiding the fog up of my glasses. Hub and I had previously inhaled our Colloidal Silver spray in our mouth and nostrils as instructed by the naturopath, before boarding to prepare to fight off the germs circulating the airplane. (We weren’t interested in a repeat of last year’s return when we contacted influenza on the airplane.)  I felt secure with the Colloidal Silver circulating my throat and nasal passages and almost hesitated to wear the dreaded mask until Mr. Winnipeg sitting two seats away by the window began his sneezing and coughing repertoire and other sickies soon followed suit. I didn’t dare eat and barely took sips of my bottled water for fear of staying out of the mask too long. So I remained fussing and pulling at the mask to breathe with ease, already surrendering myself to odd looks from other passengers, where I no longer cared about their wondering looks about what disease it was that I may have had.

 

I caught my other seat mate, Miss Badly Glued on False Eyelashes, glancing at me, peeking through the corner of her eyes while on her Ipad. Her questioning eyes wondering why I was wearing a mask. I finally positioned my mask in a bearable position when I had to lift it when the stewardess passed by asking if I’d like to purchase anything from her cart of microwaved meals to eat. As I did so, I couldn’t help but wonder if the various orange marks from my lipstick had stained the mask and left their mark on various parts of my face as I politely declined her offer.

 

Mr. Germy Winnipeg in his shorts and sandals ( what’s up with these diehards wearing summer attire coming home to winter?), sat by the window and decided to shut the shade as the plane took off, keeping me from having my last arial views of the beautiful Arizona mountains. He was yapping to Miss False Eyelashes in the middle seat about having to fly all the way to Toronto just to connect and fly west back to Winnipeg. The lady in front carried her tiny poodle in a bag on her lap as she flapped away about how small the ‘doggy toilet’ area was in the airport and that she expected it to be much bigger so her dog could run around at leisure before the flight. Really?

 

The stewardess later came by to bring us our customs declaration forms to fill out, my favorite part . . . Not! I’d kept the receipts as I’ve learned to do, from my many purchases of various shopping ventures, but had yet to sort them out, and took them out of my purse to calculate and write down the value of goods I was bringing back on the customs form. I’ve found this procedure to be helpful, by keeping all receipts in hand to hand customs officer if asked what I purchased, showing I’m organized with receipts in hand, it somehow makes my claim more certifiable. (I may accidentally on purpose omit some receipts.) I thought nothing of my method of receipt accounting when I felt Miss False Eyelashes watching me and my thick wad of receipts when she uttered her first words to me, “Oh, you’ve been busy.” Sheesh! That’s what I get for minding my own business!I turned my head around to acknowledge her comment with my smiling eyes while my mouth stayed tight under wraps.

 

Poodle lady in front was driving the stewardess crazy with dog questions and poo issues. I tried hard not to listen. Hubby slept most of the four hour flight home, cramped in his seat, waking to the sound of each cough and sneeze echoing through the plane, turning his head to look at me to ensure I had my mask on.

 

 

I kept busy reading on my kindle and drafting this post in my trusted  ‘Professional Day Dreamer’ notebook to document the flight home. Miss False Eyelashes kept eyeing my writing through the corner of her eyes as she continued crushing candy on her Ipad. It’s a good thing my handwriting is atrocious, I thought, as I couldn’t help but wonder if she was wondering if she was about to be put into my story.

 

We were almost ready to land after a last 20 minutes of frantic turbulence when I decided I should use the washroom before having to wait in customs lines and for baggage to come out. I took the opportunity to go when there was nobody in line and the seat belt sign was still on from the rocky ride. The stewardess standing there warned me that I should be sitting as I warned her that I should be using the washroom. I won.

 

If any of you know my phobia about germs, you will know that my bladder has to be bursting before I’ll even consider using the germ infested airplane toilet. After watching half a plane load of passengers use the stall for the previous 3 1/2 hours, without going into great detail, I’ll just say that it was wet, cramped and sparse of toiletries in there. I lift the lid with toiilet paper, carefully pull down my pants to a grinding halt just before they reach my ankles so no part of my clothing touches the floor or bowl, and do the proverbial squat. As I get myself put back together and wash my hands, I discover no paper towels to dry hands. I become more grossed out thinking how many people have used this toilet and didn’t wash there hands because of no paper towels. How long were there no paper towels in this washroom? I wash my hands and rip off a long stream of toilet paper to dry them and then to open the lock and door handle with before disposing of it. I alerted the stewardess there were no paper towels and she nodded in agreement telling me she knew and they ran out. I shook my head in disgust and walked back to my seat wondering how they ran out. When did they run out? Aren’t they supposed to clean a plane after each landing and check supplies, especially ones which pertain to cleanliness?

 

The plane was finally approaching landing, My sister had told me that spring had come early the last week or so in March and they were already wearing sweaters. We sailed through customs. I handed the officer my declaration form and he didn’t so much as ask me one question this time. Usually I’m asked, what did I buy, how long was I gone for, am I carrying any liquor or cigarettes, bla bla bla. Nada. I handed him the form, he looked up at me, stamped the form and said, “move on.”  Hubby and I understand one another’s looks well. We looked at each other with questioning eyes, careful to never speak until we’re out of custom’s orbit for fear of microphones and/or cameras. We were both wondering if the quick pass through meant we’re good to go, or if the officer didn’t even bother asking a question because he automatically decided we should be further investigated.

 

We collected our bags with a porter in waiting to help us out, and when we got outside it was freezing rain. The limo took us home on a slow crawl through the snow covered and icy highway. I looked out the window questioning myself, Are you kidding me? I wasn’t away long enough to avoid winter’s wrath? I thought my sister said it was spring? Was this a Karmic payback for being away and avoiding most of winter? 

 

Once home, I called my sister. I asked her what the weather was all about. She told me it was payback for me, and I brought it on for having so much sunshine throughout the winter on vacation. Nature’s little joke. The next day was mild and rainy. By Sunday the sun was back and the temps reached the high 50s, and supposedly it’s supposed to stay that way.  Onward into spring!

Book OF The Month – P.S. I Forgive You – by D.G. Kaye @pokercubster – Hugh’s Views & News

I was delighted to be invited over to Hugh Roberts‘ blog when he chose my book, P.S. I Forgive You  for his Book of the Month Series.

 

 

Book OF The Month – P.S. I Forgive You – by D.G. Kaye @pokercubster

A warm welcome to Debby Gies, whose blog was recently one of my ‘must follow’ blogs of 2017. Over to you, Debby.

 

What is the name of your book and what inspired you to write it?

My latest book is titled, P.S. I Forgive You, and although it’s a standalone book, it was written as closure to Conflicted Hearts, which is about my journey from childhood through my adult life living under the psychological rule of my narcissistic mother. P.S. I Forgive You is about finding an understanding about what propelled my mother to act as she did, and my struggle to let go of the guilt inbred in me and discovering a path to forgive her upon her death, and myself for becoming an absent daughter.

 

How long did it take you to write the book?

I began writing P.S. I Forgive You a few months before my mother died in late 2014 while I was working on my other book, Have Bags, Will Travel, which I published first then finished P.S. I Forgive You in summer of 2016. It’s sometimes difficult to track timeframes in my writing because I tend to be writing two books at the same time. I like the versatility of working on two projects at once, just as I enjoy reading two books at the same time, allowing me to read or write depending on the mood and mindset I’m in.

 

Whom do you think your book appeals to?

That’s an interesting question, Hugh. Often we write books geared toward a particular audience. I intended to write the book for a mature, female audience . . . Continue Reading

 

Source: Book OF The Month – P.S. I Forgive You – by D.G. Kaye @pokercubster – Hugh’s Views & News

Sunday Book Reviews – What’s in a Name? and Gabby and the Quads

 

It’s April now and I’m back home! It’s back to work and with my Sunday book reviews!

 

I didn’t manage to get a tremendous amount of work done while I was away, but I did manage to get some good reading done while I worked on my tan at the pool, taking in the warm, desert sun.

I’m going to kick off my Sunday reviews today with a double-header, two books I’ve read and highly recommend, one by the talented short story teller, Sally Cronin – What’s in a Name? and another, Gabby and the Quads, by the versatile, multi-genre and compassionate writer, Tina Frisco.

 

 

 

Blurb:

 

There are names that have been passed down through thousands of years which have powerful and deep-rooted meaning to their bearers. Other names have been adopted from other languages, cultures and from the big screen. They all have one thing in common. They are with us from birth until the grave and they are how we are known to everyone that we meet.

There are classical names such as Adam, David and Sarah that will grace millions of babies in the future. There are also names that parents have invented or borrowed from places or events in their lives which may last just one lifetime or may become the classic names of tomorrow.

Whatever the name there is always a story behind it. In What’s in a Name? – Volume One, twenty men and women face danger, love, loss, romance, fear, revenge and rebirth as they move through their lives.

Anne changes her name because of associations with her childhood, Brian carries the mark of ancient man, Jane discovers that her life is about to take a very different direction, and what is Isobel’s secret?

 

My 5 Star Review:

 

Sally Cronin has an uncanny knack for pulling in her readers with her heartfelt short stories and often unpredictable endings.

Each one of these stories takes us in to some history of the characters and how their names were derived, and consequently, how their names affected or complemented their lives.

Names have meanings for the people who have chosen them, but sometimes, the people given those names aren’t always happy with their name.

I highly recommend this wonderful book of sensitive and intriguing stories by this wonderful author.

 

Visit Sally’s author page on Amazon to see all her books!

 

 

 

Get This Book on Amazon! 

 

Blurb:

 

Gabby is an only child who is about to become big sister to quadruplets! How will she handle this? Her parents decide on a unique approach to introduce her to and help her accept this awesome experience. Follow Gabby as she learns all about babies and the joy of loving.

 

My 5 Star Review:

 

This book is an absolutely wonderful story book for parents and little children alike. The author takes us on a little life lesson journey of a little child about to become the big sister to quadruplets. Frisco manages to incorporate important lessons for parents while demonstrating with her words and illustrations by subtly instilling messages about safety, sharing and compassion within the storyline. Her method of showing how the parents ready Gabby for the babies’ arrival, asking her how she would feel about being a big sister and a helper, encouraging the child to love her new siblings, easing her into her new role without being left to feel she is no longer ‘the only child’, but a necessary component to being a helper, a very important role as big sister.

If you have little ones, or about to become parents for a second time, I highly recommend this book as a guide to parents and an enjoyable and entertaining read with educational meaning and reference that is easily understood by young children.

 

Visit Tina’s Amazon author page to view all her books!

 

 

#Bookreview Have Bags, Will Travel: Trips and Tales — Memoirs of an Over-Packer by D.G. Kaye (@pokercubster) Therapeutic for travellers as it shows you it could be worse! – authortranslatorOlga

To finish off this week, I’m thrilled to share yet another new review for my book, Have Bags, Will Travel, reviewed by Olga Nunez Miret. Olga is a prolific author, blogger, translator, and book reviewer, so it was a wonderful surprise to find that she’d read and reviewed by book.

 

 

 

“Hi all: Today I’m sharing the review of a book by a fellow blogger who is not only the heart and soul of the party, but she’s always sharing and promoting the work of others. D. G. Kaye…”

My review:

Although I’ve been travelling more than I used to in recent years, mostly for family reasons, I cannot say I’m a seasoned traveller or one who knows all the tricks of the trade. I get annoyed by the queues at the airport, like most of us, and I always discover I’ve left something in my hand luggage that shouldn’t be there, even after checking.

Reading this book I realised that perhaps I shouldn’t complain. I am not obsessed with germs (thankfully), I’m not a big shopper, I don’t wear make-up and although I’ve managed sometimes to pack too many things, I haven’t had to carry three suitcases all by myself. The author of this very short book has all those things against her. She also remembers the good old days when travelling was more glamorous and the airlines weren’t so strict with weight limits and didn’t insist on packing the clients as if they were sardines. That for sure must add to the frustration, as at least quite a few of us have nothing to compare it with and know no better, only degrees of discomfort.

D.G. is a woman with a great sense of humour and writes the book as if she were sharing anecdotes around a table with some friends. She wonders why she always gets picked up for searching at the airport (she tries to go unnoticed but there are limits to her attempts at invisibility) and is happy to confess to her fears, her crazy shopping sprees, and her failed best-laid plans. Continue Reading , . .

Source: #Bookreview Have Bags, Will Travel: Trips and Tales — Memoirs of an Over-Packer by D.G. Kaye (@pokercubster) Therapeutic for travellers as it shows you it could be worse! – authortranslatorOlga

We are The World Blogfest #WATWB – What is Gratitude? Linky signup

 

I am honored to be part of this group, #WATWB – We are the World Blogfest, and today’s post is my contribution to share kindness and positive messages instead of dwelling on some the negativity and woes of the world and to remind us about how to feel inspired and grateful.

 

Gratitude comes in many forms and is observed by many in different manners. Most often, gratitude finds its way into our daily lives by some of the little things we may not have taken notice of until such a situation presents itself. For example – a near miss of escaping an accident or mishap, which prompts us to acknowledge gratitude instinctively when we blurt out, “Thank goodness I  escaped that”, or perhaps we’ll exclaim a few words of gratitude if somebody compliments us or our work and we reply with a “thank you'”in acknowledgement as we are gratified with the praise.

 

But what about gratitude for the every day miracles we receive? Many times in life, these overlooked gifts life gives us are often taken for granted. In a world where much instability and chaos exists for some of us, we tend to react sharply when we learn of something unpleasant or unjust, without hesitation, voicing our opinions on distress, hurt or anger. But how would it be if we flipped that around and gave praise for the hidden miracles in life we receive daily? This wouldn’t only spread around some positive energy universally, but remind ourselves about the wonderful tender mercies we have received in our daily lives that we sometimes forget to recognize.

 

Did you wake up today?


Did you eat today?


Do you have a roof over your head?


Can you walk?


Are there loved ones who care about you?


Are you doing what makes you happy?


Do you live in a democratic society?


Can you name one nice thing somebody did for you today?


Are you in good health?

We may not be able to answer yes to every question, but certainly there’s something in that list for everyone to be grateful for.

 

Often these fundamental parts of life are overlooked because we expect them to just be part of our daily life until something goes awry do we notice how detrimental and life-altering we can find ourselves without any one of these components of life that fulfill us and give us quality life. This is why I’m reminding us all to take a moment every day to acknowledge gratitude for the abundance we have in our lives. It doesn’t matter how we do it, just that we do it. We can thank our maker, thank a loved one, do or say something kind to someone, write an inspirational quote or blog post, whatever stimulates our positive vibe and makes us and others feel good is gratitude acknowledged.

 

We can’t always change the world or circumstances within it, but dwelling on the negative only breeds more of the same. With that said, if we chose to dwell on the positive things in life instead, we could breed more of that into the universe. And the universe is always grateful for all things positive sent its way.

 

This post is written for #WATWB – Please feel free to add your gratitude below in comments and if I’ve inspired you to want to be part of the Blogfest and you wish to contribute a positive message post, please click on the Linky addon below where you can link your positive message to share with us all.

 

Note: A Kindness Donation to share for all

I would just like to add a lovely gesture from Tom’s Blog – Beyond the Sphere where he has designed candles to bring us light with various shades and symbols and offers anyone to help themselves to as many candles as you wish to add to your blogs and/or sidebars. I’ve chosen this one:

 

#WATWB takes place every last Friday of each month. To be a part of this inspirational blogfest and add a post of your own, please click the Linky Tool List below to join in!

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Click here  to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

9 Ways To Avoid A Humiliating Public Failure At Your Book Signing Event | Dan Alatorre – AUTHOR

 

 

I had to share this post from friend and author, Dan Alatorre because Dan has some excellent tips here for authors on preparing for a book signing. Not all of us have done one live yet, and it can be quite intimidating for many of us who are used to hiding behind the screen and our books. But Dan has been getting some good experience at this, and besides informative, it’s always fun to read Dan’s advice, which always has some entertainment value because . . . well, that’s Dan!

 

9 Ways To Avoid A Humiliating Public Failure At Your Book Signing Event
March 26, 2017 Dan Alatorre AUTHOR

 

your humble host
You finally worked up the nerve to ask a real, live bookstore to have you sign books at an event!
Okay, you emailed them.
But they replied and now you have a signing event! Woo hoo!

Uh oh…

A real live event.With people.

Or worse, maybe with NO people.

I can hear your heart pounding from here. You’ve heard horror stories about signings. Nobody came. Nobody bought a book…

Yeah , that can happen. IF YOU DON’T PLAN FOR A SUCCESSFUL EVENT.

It can happen even if you DO plan. So what do you do? After all, for the most part you tend to be humiliation-averse.

Good thing I was here!

I have 9 tips for what you need to make your signing a hit, plus some bonus tips for before and after the event, and a few planning/social media suggestions.

The biggest thing to remember is: don’t act like getting people to the signing is solely the responsibility of the bookstore. In fact, assume they won’t get anybody there.

If you’re unknown to the masses, you can’t really expect people to line up to see you – unless.
Unless what?
Unless you follow these 9 tips. Come on, work with me.

Gleaned from my own prior blog posts,  10 Winning Strategies For Your Author Event and Should You Participate In A Book Fair? Three Points To Consider, and from “35 Ways to Make Your Next Book Signing an Event!” by Larry James, The Internet Writing Journal, January 2000

BEFORE THE EVENT – Days/weeks before

Go meet the folks hosting you. Shower and dress nice, the way you might for the event, and bring a copy of the book you want to push. This meeting is kind of an audition, even though you already got the gig. Stopping in to meet the manager/owner/person in charge, at a time that’s good for them, shows them in person how friendly you are and how well you’ll do for their store. CONTINUE READING , , .

 

Source: 9 Ways To Avoid A Humiliating Public Failure At Your Book Signing Event | Dan Alatorre – AUTHOR