Susan Lower's Blog, page 5
January 13, 2019
Reflections of Italy: Vatican City
On the second day of our tour to Italy we headed to Vatican City. As many of you may know, it didn’t take us far from Rome to step over into Vatican City. I wish I could have taken photos of Michelangelo’s paintings on the ceilings of the Sistine Chapel, but it was not allowed.
I can however share these ones with you:
The ceilings of the hallways are beautiful. What looks like it is 3D is painted. 
Even the floors are decorative 
Old Maps hang down one side of the wall. 
Tapestry of biblical scenes line another wall
Can’t get enough of these beautiful ceilings. Be careful if you stop to stand and look up as crowds of other people come from behind you and you have to keep moving forward! Of course, it wouldn’t be a day in the Vatican if we didn’t go promptly after for some good food and gelato to end the day. Next week, the next stop in our trip is Assisi. One of my favorite stops on our tour of Italy! If you like Medieval little villages, then you’ll understand why it was one of my favorites.
January 6, 2019
Reflections of Italy: Rome
First I just want to say, sometimes we say we’ll do things, and sometimes we save up because we want something and we lose patience. It took my husband and I almost fifteen years to save for this trip.
As a writer I’m told not to “tell” but “show”, so I hope you enjoy as we rehash this adventure over the next several weeks. You can tell us if it was worth it. We already know it was. 
December 30, 2018
After The Holidays
Dear Friends,
At the beginning of 2019 I made a list. One of the things on my list was to take a trip to Italy. My husband and I have been saving for this trip for almost fifteen (15) years. We were blessed to take that trip this past November.
We started in Rome and ended in Milan over an 11 day period. It would be hard to share this experience with you in just one blog post. I loved the history of all the places we went, and yes it sparked a lot of story ideas. You can see here I was writing on the bus between destinations. (I know it looks like my journal is upside down, but I’m right handed so it was turned this way for me to write.)
Over the next several weeks I’m going to be posting about the places we visited on our trip as part of a new series of “Slower Sundays” I’d like to start.
In keeping with my theme last year, 2019 isn’t going to be any different. I’ll be continuing to choose FAMILY FIRST as my New Year goal/ word.
It’s helped me to become more focused, not only in my family life, but in my writing life,too. I have several new releases for you coming in 2019 – both sweet romances and MG/YA adventures.
May the new year bring you happiness, health, and hope.
December 3, 2018
December Book Give Away
Tis the season for giving!
Anyone else in the holiday spirit?
This month, one lucky reader will win a free signed copy of Forgotten Reins and a matching book sleeve!
Yes I made it!
Here’s how it works.
In order to be eligible to win, you must be a newsletter subscriber. That’s it. Just be a subscriber. If you’re not signed up you can sign up for my newsletter here. You’ll also get a free copy of my YA novella Emma’s Dilemma.
I’ll be announcing the winner on December 15, 2018, so be sure to open your email that day.
Stay warm! Brrr… It’s December!
Susan
August 28, 2018
The Thimble Bride
Release Day!
Book 2 in the Bride’s of Annie’s Creek is here!
Read it along with the series or as a stand alone.
Callie Fox and J.D. Fudora wedding date has been set, and so have their plans to move back east for J.D. to pursue his ambitions as an inventor to build steam powered locomotives. Then tragedy strikes the little mining town of Annie’s Creek, North Dakota. Callie is torn between leaving her friends and helping them in their time of need, or going away with the man she’s loved almost all her life. When speculation of one of J.D.’s gas lighting systems is to blame for the incident in the mines, a lot of folk turn their back on him. He tries to push Callie into moving up the date of their wedding and heading out east sooner rather than later. Rather than prove to Callie it is best to leave Annie Creek, J.D. is shocked when Callie calls off the wedding. J.D. will have to prove to the town his steam driven machines had nothing to do with the incident in order to win Callie’s love back, but can Callie say goodbye to all she loves in order to choose a future with J.D.?
June 19, 2018
Steampunk World of Priceless – Guest Author Janeen Ippolito
This month I’m happy to introduce you to urban fantasy and steampunk author Janeen Ippolito and a special behind the scenes post on the world building of Priceless.
History, Shifters, and Superpowers – Making the Steampunk World of Priceless
The world of Sekastra came about as a mash-up of some of my favorite things: history, shifters, and superpowers.
History
I’ve always loved history, so when I set out to put the stories of The Ironfire Legacy into a fantasy world, steampunk was at the top of my list. Getting to play around with Victorian concepts in a new way makes my nerdy, timeline-loving heart happy. To make it more fun, I decided to create four city-states to exemplify the core values, and then added different historical “subcultures” to the steampunk framework.
The Scepter of Commerce is the most modern city, with a slice of a sort of Roaring Twenties feel. The Scepter of Knowledge has a 1700s throwback Enlightenment feel, with lightning-rod experimentation and men in breeches and stockings. The Scepter of Pleasure has the most classic steampunk feel with a dash of clockpunk, and the Scepter of Industry has an industrial revolution, sooty aspect to it. This world building keeps things fresh over the course of a series and also gives me plenty of fun themes to build into each story.
Shifters
Of course, I had to add in dragons. After all, I already had airships zipping around hither and thither, so what better to challenge them in a war than fire-breathing dragons? Some steampunk authors are a little strict about keeping strange creatures and magic out of their worlds, but I think exploring fantasy can be part of the fun! So dragons got added into the mix, in all their reptilian splendor. After that, I figured unicorns would be fun, so they showed up in Priceless. I opted for these races to be shifters, because then I could more easily have intercultural issues between beings with very different worldviews. I have a degree in cross-cultural studies and reconciliation, so this exploration makes my heart happy.
Superpowers
Most individuals in the land of Sekastra have Talents—innate abilities that are out of the norm. I’m a huge fan of superpowers, so I enjoyed the idea of creating a society where that was typical. I also wanted to think beyond the usual superhero tropes of super strength and super speed. I had fun making up random, odd, and useless superpowers that people could have. In Lawless, there’s a military officer whose Talent is being able to detect the color of any object by touching it. Not something you can really use to save the world! Nula Thredsing, the protagonist of Priceless, has the ability to taste the value of others. It’s very useful as a politician but leaves her as normal as any human in a firefight. Dragonshifter Tiers Sunscaler was born without a Talent, which he believes is a genetic abnormality. But is it…or is there a more nefarious reason for his Talentless state…
You’ll have to read to find out!
Janeen Ippolito believes words can (and should) transform worlds. She writes urban fantasy and steampunk, and creates writing resources, including the reference book World Building From the Inside Out and the creative writing guide Irresistible World Building For Unforgettable Stories. She’s an experienced teacher, editor, author coach, and is the leader of Uncommon Universes Press, a small science fiction and fantasy publishing house. She’s also the cohost of the podcast Indie Book Magic. In her spare time, Janeen enjoys sword-fighting, reading, pyrography, and eating brownie batter. Two of her goals are eating fried tarantulas and traveling to Antarctica. This extroverted writer loves getting connected, so find her on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and at her website: janeenippolito.com
May 23, 2018
Privacy Policy Update
This Friday, May 25, new data privacy laws — the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) — take effect across the European Union. These laws provide consumers with more control over their personal data.
This includes authors, and I wanted to let you all know that I’m aligned with the spirit of the GDPR for a safe and secure Internet. Your privacy is important and by design whenever possible, I do not collect and store personally identifiable information. For the personal data I do collect, ( your name and email for my newsletter and blog subscription) I am committed to your right to privacy and to being transparent about how and why this data is stored.
To meet the new regulation requirements you can find my new Policies and Procedures page here.
May 1, 2018
Get Blast Off FREE this week on Ebook
This week on Amazon, book 2 of the Planet Mitch Series: BLAST OFF is Free on ebook.
May 1 – 5, 2018
Be sure to download your copy and tell a friend or two.
School will be getting out very soon and you’ll want to add this to those summer reading list! If you haven’t read the first book yet, THE LOST STAR, it’s just 99 cents on Amazon for the Ebook.
Download it Here!
April 9, 2018
A Time For Transformation
If you’ve ever gotten stuck in a ditch, hit the gas, and watched the mud fly while realizing you were going no where, then you’ll appreciate today’s post.
Last week, I shared my post over on inspire a fire on Intentional Timing.
Which is why, as the snow melts and spring awakens, I am reminded that we are constantly revolving. We were created with purpose and to fulfill that purpose we must become intentional in what we do and who we are becoming.
Some of us already know where we are headed with goals and desires for accomplishments. Some of us are still experimenting and trying to figure it out. Some of us are afraid to change, to try again, to fail one more time.
It’s all part of our transformation.
Which is why at this stage of my life I’m going to be working toward rebranding over the next few months. Being busy is exhausting and least productive at times. We run around ourselves and by the end the day is gone. With the change of seasons comes a change in perception.
I’m going to start being more intentional, focused, and productive in achieving my dreams and fulfilling my purpose.
As part of the rebrand, I’ll be creating a new group on facebook and while you’ll still find me on twitter and instagram, my focus will be my family, my readers, and my writing.
Thank you all for your support in the upcoming weeks during this transformation. I pray you, too, will make the changes needed in this new season of your life to go forth and be more intentional.
