Authors in the Group?

[Wen-Szu]

Mony wrote: "I'm the co-author of "Walking for Peace, an inner journey",, the award-winning memoir of our 3500-mile, 13-country, 13-month walk for peace. ..."

Hi Mony,

Very inspirational journey. How did you and Alberto choose the destination of the walk? I'd love to do something like that but wonder if it is feasible with kids in tow...

Wen-Szu

[Mony]

Hello Wen-Szu!

I certainly wouldn't do this with kids in tow! We were walking along the side of the road mainly, not on paths or trails, so it would definitely be more dangerous if children were involved.

If your children are a bit older, you may want to consider walking the Camino to Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage path in northern Spain. It is very well marked, and well organized. I've walked that as well, and would be happy to pass along info if you're interested.

As for why Jerusalem? Well, it's mainly because I heard that the path there was called the Way of the Soul, and upon hearing that, something in me stirred and I felt that I needed to walk this path to better understand my own soul's purpose. It was at a time when I was looking for new direction in my life. I had quit my corporate career and embarked on a quest, a search for a life with meaning. And my travels eventually brought me to the Camino, where the inspiration came to embark on this walk for peace to Jerusalem.

I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have, Wen-Szu. I appreciate you getting in contact.

Take care,
Mony

[Beverly]

Hi everyone! My name is Beverly Magid, and I'm a historical fiction author and just released by second book, Sown in Tears, which follows a young Jewish woman living in the Pale of the Settlement in Russia, 1905. I love to travel and visited Russia while writing my book to find inspiration and historical context. For each book I write, I travel to its location, which keeps me excited to explore different times in history.

You can visit my website to follow my literary journey: www.BeverlyMagid.com

[Oz]

Welcome Beverrly, congrats on the new book. I am currently working on a historical fiction, Sunny's side. I am a freelance writer and own an SEO maerketing company that I run out of my home. This will be my second novel but the first one was of a different genre and has yet to be published. I feel it needs a little work, but i hope to publish this new novel first and would be interested in hearing more about your writing and perhaps your publishing experience. I look forward to checking out your site.
Oz

[Steve]

Just to let you know, Travel To The G-Spot -- The Guide Book is available for free download Oct 11-13 at

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007JPR40S
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007JPR40S

It's a very, very funny fictional memoir of a travel writer.

All best,

Steve

[Somi]

I'm Somi. I wrote a romance novel set in Lagos, Nigeria.

I live in Nigeria, I've never been anywhere else, but I love reading, I believe that through books I have been everywhere from ancient Egypt to modern day New York.

My Book is on sale on Amazon, but there is a sample available here on goodreads.

Please tell me what you think about it.

Always Yours

my website is at www.lagosromanceseries.com

[Steve]

Thanks to all 5,000 of you who downloaded Travel To the G-Spot last weekend. You made it an Amazon Top 100 Best Seller! Please post a review, share and tweet this news and please "like" the book at http://amzn.to/Q7FXIp (US) http://amzn.to/SU89mw (UK).

Thank you again!

[G.L.]

Hey guys! I'm so glad I found this group. I love reading about places and cultures all over the world. I'm Chinese-American and lived in Japan for a few years too so I especially like stories about living abroad.

I recently published my novel "The Sea-God at Sunrise," a historical novel about two Japanese fishermen rescued from a typhoon by an American whaleship in 1841 :) It's $0.99 on Amazon right now and an excerpt is up on Goodreads - please give it a try!

[Dee]

Hi everyone, glad I found this group. I wrote The Man With the Green Suitcase, a paranormal, mysery book.


Synopsis:

What does...

A prostitute,
A corrupt businessman, and
A disfigured young woman
Have in common with a mysterious, old
homeless man who carries a green suitcase?

The old man comes into people’s lives because it is
important for them to experience the visions that he is
somehow able to show them—visions that even he doesn’t
understand. But whoever he connects with will go through a
transformation that will change the course of their life,
for better or worse. The old man has no memory of who he is
or even what the suitcase holds.

This story is magical realism, realistic with paranormal elements,

a mystery that needs to be solved, and a man and woman who will

finally realize that they were meant to come into each other’s lives

and remain forever.

http://www.themanwiththegreensuitcase...
http://www.goodreads.com/deedoanes

Available on Amazon. Kindle 0.99 cents.
Paperback $19.99
http://www.amazon.com/author/deedoanes

Barnes and Noble Nook 99 cents
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/dee-d...

[Beverly]

Hi All,

My name is Beverly Magid, and I am a historical fiction author that loves to take my readers on a journey to a different place and time.

My newest novel, Sown in Tears takes you to 1905 Russia, where Jews are being attacked by Russian extremists. One woman must risk everything to survive with her children.

I would love any reviews or feedback! Thanks :)

[Anne]

Hi. My name is Anne Trager and I'm a translator and founder of Le French Book Hi everyone. I recently founded Le French Book, which is a digital-first publisher of "French books you'll love in English." We do crime fiction, thrillers, short stories and more.

Our first books are crime fiction and I translated the three that are now available: The Paris Lawyer, Treachery in Bordeaux, and The 7th Woman. I'm obviously a little biased, but our motto is "If we love it, we'll translate it." You get the picture.

Find out more about what we are doing at: www.lefrenchbook.com. You can sign up for free chapters.

[Jill]

Hi All,
I am an avid reader of travel related books and am happy to find this group. I am also an overseas educator and recent author and would love to mention my travel memoir here called HERE WE ARE & THERE WE GO: Teaching and Traveling With Kids in Tow. It is full of humorous, crazy, and sometimes scary stories about our first ten years of living and working overseas in four different countries and the culture shock that we experienced when we finally moved back to the U.S. It is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. My author page is www.facebook.com/JillDobbeAuthor. I would love any comments, reviews and/or feedback.
Thanks, Jill Dobbe, Author/Educator/Reader

[Ksenia]

Hi Everyone,

My short story collection Crossing The Border was just published and it's currently listed on the goodreads giveaway so please enter as five copies are available. The stories are set in Ukraine, one in Greece and a couple in the U.S. Many of them focus on the post-Soviet era in Ukraine. It's great reading about everyone's books.

[Jasmine]

I wrote a chick-lit mystery set in London and another in Rome,
I love mysteries set around the world, like Andrea Camilleri in Sicily and Henning Mankell in Sweden. [Not to mention James Ellroy in exotic LA]

[John]

I’m a newbie to GR and was delighted to find this group. Writers from a variety of countries, interesting posts, an emphasis on international settings, and a chance to describe your own books — what more could an author want?

To introduce myself, I spent many years as an exploration geologist, living in six countries outside the U.S. and working in about fifty. I now devote myself full-time to writing novels that incorporate some of the people, cultures, and places I’ve been fortunate to know. As an author, I have had two agents, fired them both, and decided to take matters in my own hands by self-publishing via CreateSpace. My three novels so far are Aphrodesia, Papyrus, and Tepui.

Aphrodesia is a mystery/suspense story that centers on fragrances. The hero, a perfume student whose nose is so sensitive he can smell when a woman is ovulating, creates a powerful aphrodisiac, only to be accused of serial murder when a counterfeit of his fragrance surfaces as the sole link in a series of passion-driven homicides. The story starts in Versailles (where I did much of my research at the world’s top perfume school), moves to New York City, then to Yemen, then the Côte d'Azur.

Published in October 2012, Aphrodesia has received excellent reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and Amazon customers. It’s available from Amazon in paperback and as a Kindle download at: http://tinyurl.com/by8wpnp It’s also available in paperback from B&N and other online booksellers.

Papyrus is an adventure/thriller set in Egypt and the Sudan. The heroine, a former freedom fighter in Eritrea’s independence war against Ethiopia, is working on her PhD thesis in the Cairo Museum when she accidentally discovers hidden writing on a papyrus written by Queen Tiye to her youngest son, Tutankhamun. The secret text shatters conventional wisdom about the origin of Egypt’s most utopian age and launches the heroine on a quest to find Tiye’s tomb. The modern (1983) story parallels the queen’s last voyage up the Nile, three thousand year before, to achieve immortality by being buried alive in a coffin of restorative oils.

Papyrus was a semifinalist in the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel competition. I plan to publish it in the spring of 2013.

Tepui is an adventure/thriller set mainly in Venezuela. The hero, a burn-scarred botanist struggling for tenure at UCLA, treks into the remote Venezuelan highlands in search of a plant thought to have died out with the dinosaurs. His guide is the long-lost journal of a 16th-Century Spanish expedition supposedly decimated by Amazons. Battered by the unforgiving wilderness and trailed by a deranged Dutchman who has sworn to slit his throat, he finally reaches the base of a sheer-sided, flat-topped mesa called Tepui Zupay, Devil Mountain, the forbidden place where the Spaniards met their doom.

In 2004, Tepui won First Place in the prestigious Pacific Northwest Writers Association adult novel competition. I plan to publish it in the fall of 2013.

You can read more about all three novels and see photos related to the stories at www.johnoehler.com

I apologize for the length of this post. If I’ve overstepped my bounds, please say so. I do promise in the future to be more brief.

[Chloe]

*clears throat, straightens non-existent tie, takes hardy shot of strong liquor*

Hello! My name is Chloe Stowe and I write romance. I've got 14 novels of m/m contemporary fiction published and, just this week, my first m/f historical romance was put out to press. (To Steal the Sunrise, published by Noble Romance)

My imagination has a tendency to wander. My latest m/m Christmas novel started off in San Francisco but somehow ended up in Uummannaq, Greenland. Don't ask me how that happened. I just follow where my characters lead... and, man, have they led me lots and lots of interesting places...

Marrakech, Morocco
Sao Paolo, Brazil
Iraq
Tristan da Cunha
Ancient Sumer

And that's just to name a few of the more unusual places my stories have travelled.

Close your eyes and pick a tale. Who knows where you will end up! *grins* I promise you it will be a lot of fun.

Please let me know what you think.

Thank you!

Chloe StoweTo Steal the Sunrise

[John]

From one newbie to another, welcome. As a woman who writes m/m romance, you're in good company with the likes of Annie Proulx. Congratulations on your recent successes.

I assume you're familiar with Laura Hillenbrand (author of Seabiscuit and Unbroken). Not your genre but in a similar personal situation to yours. If you've never checked into her background, you might find some camaraderie there. She's on FB and does respond to messages.

[Chloe]

Thank you for the welcome! I will definitely check out Laura Hillenbrand on FB. Camaraderie is a splendidly cherished and rare thing.

Thank you again for your words of welcome!

Sincerely,

Chloe Stowe

[Karen]

I live in Seville, Spain, and recently published a non-fiction book about expat life called Dancing in the Fountain: How to Enjoy Living Abroad. The reviews have been astonishingly kind. "I loved this book," wrote Lonely Planet. "I must have laughed out loud at least once in every chapter...The advice in the book is terrific." I love interacting with people interested in travel and the expat lifestyle, so I started a blog called Enjoy Living Abroad. For more, visit my website and travel blog, and join in the conversation!

www.EnjoyLivingAbroad.com

May all your journeys be grand adventures!
Karen McCann

[Jill]

Hi Karen, I look forward to checking out your book! I am also an expat and have lived in seven different countries by now. I also recently published a travel memoir HERE WE ARE & THERE WE GO: Teaching and Traveling With Kids in Tow. I have checked out your website and you can view mine on www.facebook.com/JillDobbeAuthor.
I love to talk and share stories with other expats around the world. I am also a huge lover of travel memoirs!

[Marius]

Hi, everyone,

My suggestion for a Round-the-World stop is Tokyo, Japan, and I'll help with a related book for entertainment:-)

I am the author of Simon and Hiroko, a dramatic love story located to a large extent in Japan, which has garnered several appreciative reviews and blog interviews, such as these.

I wish you'd take a stab at it too:-)

I lived two years in Tokyo and I enjoyed the place very much.

Cheers.

[Vickie]

My sister Loretta Jackson and I are authors of the Ardis Cole Series. Ardis is an archaeologist who travels to exotic settings to solve ancient mysteries and modern-day crimes. We are fortunate to have personally visited all of our settings--some would be risky traveling in the past few years. We have gone to Egypt, China, and Russia, to name a few places. Our Arla Vaughn series concentrates on Pre-Columbian treasures. Read more about our books on Author Central http://www.amazon.com/Vickie-Britton/...

[Diane , Armchair Tour Guide]

Vickie wrote: "My sister Loretta Jackson and I are authors of the Ardis Cole Series. Ardis is an archaeologist who travels to exotic settings to solve ancient mysteries and modern-day crimes. We are fortunate t..."

What a nice idea for a mystery series!

[Dinah]

For the England list, may I suggest my latest comic novel about a librarian trying to keep her marriage together using the lessons of ancient Chinese warfare learned in a London evening class?

Love and the Art of War

For the Switzerland list, may I suggest two of my novels set in the Geneva area?

A Visit from Voltaire and

Under Their Skin

Warmest wishes to all Goodreaders, and thanks to Diane as moderator,
Dinah Lee Küng

[Diane , Armchair Tour Guide]

Dinah wrote: "For the England list, may I suggest my latest comic novel about a librarian trying to keep her marriage together using the lessons of ancient Chinese warfare learned in a London evening class?

[bo..."

Thank you for sharing, Dinah!

[Marty]

G’day fellow travelers:

Although my Goodreads author page says I’ve been a member since 2009, I’m not sure how that happened. I didn’t truly become active until two days ago, when I set up my page.

Being that I’m the author of Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents and I perform a show called “Around the World in 90 Minutes,” naturally, your group caught my attention!

Here’s my bio:

Marty Essen is the six-time award-winning author of the book Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents. Following the release of his book, Marty transformed Cool Creatures, Hot Planet into a multi-media show, called “Around the World in 90 Minutes.” He has been performing Around the World in 90 Minutes at colleges and other venues since 2008. It has become the second most popular slide-show of all-time—behind Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” Marty’s show features exhilarating adventures, stunning photographs, and interesting discoveries from each of the seven continents. One part lecture, one part theater, one part slide show, one part comedy—it's the type of show where the audience has fun laughing at the stories, oohing and aahing at the photos, and then, when it's all done, they realize just how much they've learned.

Here’s my website: www.CoolCreaturesHotPlanet.com

One more thing: Since I’m a frequently booked college speaker, I will eventually have a show near you (if you live in the U.S.). The majority of my shows are paid for out of student activities funds, which means they are free to you! So if you’d like the opportunity to Travel Around the World in 90 Minutes on less than a shoestring, please check the schedule posted on my author page. And, of course, be sure to introduce yourself to me after the show.



Cheers!

Marty Essen

[Max]

I've recently published 'Three Continents Uncovered', a compilation of short stories spanning Africa, the Caribbean and India, with themes including corruption, international development, expatriate life, HIV/AIDS and politics. The novel also includes material set in Chile, the Falkland Islands, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, the UK and the US. My main objective was to provide insight into 'real' life in some of the world's most interesting and culturally diverse countries.

I'm not a natural salesman but, understanding that a link or two is OK, insert mine here.

http://www.discoverylogue.com/e-books...

Regards,

Max

[Yangsze]

Hi everyone,

I loved reading everyone's descriptions of their books! I'm a GoodReads author from Malaysia, and my debut novel, THE GHOST BRIDE, will be published August 2013 by William Morrow/HarperCollins in North America, and Hot Key in the UK/Commonwealth.

Li Lan, a young Chinese woman in lush, 1890s colonial Malaya, hopes for a favorable marriage. But the proposal she receives from the wealthy Lim family is for their dead son, who begins to shadow her mirror and her dreams. Set in the elaborate world of the Chinese afterlife, with its parallel ghost cities, paper servants, and monstrous bureaucracy, THE GHOST BRIDE is based on a peculiar historic custom amongst the Chinese in Malaysia called a spirit marriage.

Please come and visit me at my website http://yschoo.com/ where I blog about two of my favourite things -- eating and reading -- and suggest snacks to pair with different books.

Thanks, and happy Chinese new year!

[Anastasia]

Thank you for this topic.

During the last 120 years, wave upon wave of Middle Eastern immigrants have left their homelands in search of a more stable environment. To this very day, neither the immigrants nor the inhabitants of the countries that welcome them have shown much interest in each other. Yet surely knowledge can open us to understanding and empathy, building blocks of peace? My book "Let Us Not Live in Ignorance" is a multicultural novel that portrays the complexities, emotional turmoil, and the struggles of the transplanted as well as the deep joy that can be found by the opening of minds and hearts. It takes readers from Lebanon to Paris to Houston, Texas and back again.

As for myself, I am of Anglo-American and Middle-Eastern descent. That could be broken down further, obviously, but this is not a genealogy forum. I grew up watching both sides struggle within my own family and then realized that the very same struggles were being played out in other families, in society at large, and in politics across the world.

I hope that you will check out my book. It will be available free at Amazon this Sunday, February 17. I am seriously thinking of changing the cover design. Advice?

http://www.amazon.com/Let-Not-Live-Ig...

[Mirta]

Hello! Hola! Shalom! Pri-vet!

I am an avid historical fiction reader and now; I'm very happy to announce that I'm an author of a Creative Non-Fiction. (memoir/religion/multicultural)

With Love, the Argentina Family~ Memories of Tango and Kugel; Mate with Knishes speaks to the impetus of a family’s exodus to America; namely a Peronista government, a stagnant economy and an anti-Semitic culture. The family transform into jet-setters relentlessly traveling back and forth across the continents thanks to a mother that never stops crying about "The Argentina Family" and a father who works for Pan American Airlines.

The story unfolds in "die goldene medina" -America- sharing the insecurities and confusion of a young, immigrant girl faced with identity issues. As one brash classmate stated, "She is too white to be Latina, and too Latina to be Jewish."

Wearing out five passports before her twentieth birthday, she learns to deal with never-ending jet lag; dividing her life in between her adopted country and her native land. Almost inevitably, a long distance, whirlwind romance begins in the aftermath of Argentina’s “Dirty War.” Complications abound, including a frightening interrogation with the Argentine Police and an astonishing encounter at the American Consulate.

Follow the sometimes poignant, sometimes comical trials and tribulations of a young girl coming to terms with her Jewish heritage, her Argentine traditions, and her fierce American patriotism.

My author's page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...







With Love, The Argentina Family: Memories of Tango and Kugel; Mate with Knishes

[Anastasia]

Sounds like a wonderful read! Congratulations, Mirta!

[Yolanda]

I'm an American writer and the author of PORRIDGE & CUCU: MY CHILDHOOD, a YA novel. My second novel--THE HONEYEATER--is a contemporary women's love story set in the US, Panama, France, and Brazil.

(THE HONEYEATER is now available as a free kindle download, Feb. 17-18.)

My current and most recent blog is Y REID BOOKS? at www.yreidbooks.blogspot.com. It's a blog devoted to women writers and authors. I live/write in the USA.

[Suneeta]

Hi I am Suneeta Misra and I have recently published two books on Amazon. Both are set in India
"Rani of Rampur" and "Of Kings and Queens."
Here are the sites
amzn.to/125ScR7
amzn.to/XcTp2v

[Carmen]

Chris wrote: "Hi! My name is Chris Rakunas, and I am the author of Tears for the Mountain, a book about Haiti. In 2010 I went to Haiti on a medical mission trip to deliver 20,000 pounds of medical supplies to ..."

Chris, best of luck with the books. They sound interesting and very worthwhile.

[Carmen]

Hello, I'm Carmen Amato, the author of 2012 political thriller THE HIDDEN LIGHT OF MEXICO CITY, the EMILIA CRUZ mystery series set in Acapulco, and a blog about motive that was recently featured on the list of Top 100 Book-related Blogs to read in 2013. Find it here: http://carmenamato.net/blog/.

I've spent a number of years living in Mexico and central America. By setting my books in Mexico, I'm hoping to raise awareness of the toll the country's drug war has taken, especially regarding the plight of those who have simply disappeared.

In THE HIDDEN LIGHT OF MEXICO CITY attorney Eddo Cortez Castillo’s unexpected relationship with housemaid Luz de Maria Alba Mora becomes a dangerous vulnerability when he investigates links between the Minister for Public Security and Mexico’s most elusive drug cartel leader. As presidential elections near, Eddo uncovers a political double-cross fueled by drug money. The cartel answers with violence, forcing Eddo and Luz to each find strength, not only to survive but to defy Mexico’s rigid social structure.



With real characters, passion for the place, and brutal truth pulled from today’s headlines, The Hidden Light of Mexico City illuminates the fight for Mexico’s future.

The book has done well with reviewers, rating 4.8 out of 5 stars on amazon.com, with the most recent reviewer saying "I was glad she wasn't living there when the book was published. I was worried for her life. I love mysteries and Ms Amato has captured my heart with this novel."

The first book in the Emilia Cruz mystery series, CLIFF DIVER, is out now and the next book, HAT DANCE, will be released in July. Emilia Cruz is the first and only female detective on the Acapulco police force, a strong Latina woman in a squadroom that didn't want her and is still trying to break her.

In CLIFF DIVER, Emilia is forced to investigate the murder of a dirty cop, even as she becomes a pawn in a game of money and power played by the city's ambitious mayor and a union strongman with dubious motives. Amazon reviewers rate it 4.5 out of 5, with one reviewer comparing it to Jo Nesbo and nearly all saying they want to read all my books.



It is great to share on this thread and to see what books are out there that can take us to new places. If you know folks interested in Mexico, please direct them to my books. They'll get a trip to Mexico they won't forget. Just need to bring their own margarita!

[Dean]

Loud noises!

[Caroline]

Karen wrote: "I live in Seville, Spain, and recently published a non-fiction book about expat life called Dancing in the Fountain: How to Enjoy Living Abroad. The reviews have been astonishingly kind. "I loved t..."


Hi Karen - I will check out your book. I used to live in Madrid and really miss Spain. I always wanted to go live in the South. I'm from Ireland but I'm now living in Bogotá so your website enjoy living abroad really speaks to me!

My novel - set in Ireland and Bogotá includes a character facing the challenges and joys of living abroad as the Colombian character moves to Northern Ireland. You might like it.
Dancing with Statues
Caroline

[Caroline]

I am the author of Dancing with Statues - a mixture of mystery and love story set in Bogotá and Ireland. It's available from from all Amazon sites in paperback and kindle versions.

I recommend it for anyone interested in seeing a fresh perspective of Northern Ireland and Colombia. The book does not shy away from each country's troubled past but it does show how far they have come in recent years.

As one reviewer writes:
"Fast-paced book, beautifully written, great story, and interesting to learn more about Troubles in Northern Ireland and in Colombia. Loved reading this book and look forward to the author's next book -- hopefully soon! Truly an enjoyable read."


Here's a link to it on Amazon UK, but you can get it on all Amazon sites: http://amzn.to/15NbJ6V

Learn more about me, my writing and life in Colombia at my website:

www.carolinedohertydenovoa.com


Dancing with Statues
Caroline Doherty de Novoa

[Paul]

I'm pretty new here, but have published five books of nonfiction--all with Henry Holt and all except one vaguely travel influenced. The new one is just about to come out and is a history of the Mississippi River. The research took me all over the watershed, mostly in small boats. FUN.

Gotta run now, but will post up more about them eventually or I think they should be in my Goodreads Author profile??

[Sharon]

Hello!
My books are all out of print; they were published by HarperCollins 10-13 years ago, and translated into several languages. The first two were bestsellers in France, of all places!
The first book, Of Marriageable Age, is I feel the best of them, and I am currently revising it so that I can self-publish it as an ebook. It's amazing how many things I see that need improving -- it just shows I have developed as a writer, and that's good.

Here it is, in its first edition:



I'm really looking forward to designing a brand new cover for it.

It's a story of three intertwined characters, set in three different countries: India, Guyana, and England, over three decades. Though the three lives are far apart, they are actually interconnected, but you only find out how as you read along.

[Terri]

I'm happy to have found this group because you all share my interest in reading about the world. I'm running a book giveaway right now for my book that comes out May 1, Off The Beaten Page: The Best Trips for Lit Lovers, Book Clubs and Girls on Getaways. The concept, which you call all relate to, is to read about a place, then go there. It covers how to plan a successful "lit trip," and offers itineraries, reading lists, and my own essays about 15 U.S. cities.
For more reading and travel ideas, follow my blog, Off The Beaten Page Travel. www.offthebeatenpagetravel.com

[Caroline]

Terri wrote: "I'm happy to have found this group because you all share my interest in reading about the world. I'm running a book giveaway right now for my book that comes out May 1, Off The Beaten Page: The Be..."

Terri what a wonderful concept to bring together two great loves in one - literature and travel.

[Caroline]

Terri wrote: "I'm happy to have found this group because you all share my interest in reading about the world. I'm running a book giveaway right now for my book that comes out May 1, Off The Beaten Page: The Be..."

And by the way, if you ever want to add Ireland or Colombia to the book travels (and I think you should as they are both great places) then my book is set in both. Although I know you are spoilt for choice in those countries between Gabriel Garcia Marquez and all the great Irish writers which are too numerous to mention.


Dancing with Statues
Caroline Doherty de Novoa

[Terri]

Thanks, Caroline. I'll check out your book. My current book is US travel, but I'd love to do something similar with England/Ireland.

[Anastasia]

Hi! I am Anastasia Abboud, author of "Let Us Not Live in Ignorance." Available free at Amazon this weekend, April 6-7, it is the dramatic, eye-opening novel that negates Middle Eastern stereotypes and underscores the challenges of cross-cultural relationships. Spanning three continents, it is a timeless story of love.

http://www.amazon.com/Let-Not-Live-Ig...

[Gloria]

Hi, I am Gloria originally from Tanzania, lived in Ireland and currently residing in Germany. As a full time employee during day, I write during work breaks especially evenings/nights in the cosiness of my day bed. My genre is poetry, children's and memoir. See more at my website www.auntieglo.com

I also write photographic snippets for my blog at www.gloria-gonsalves.com, which I attempt to post at least once a month. The stories are about flower arrangements inspired by nature and a lawyer.

My children books involve a bunch of wonderful children. I am terrible at drawing and therefore seek help from them with prior consent from parents. That way we both win - they get to see their work in a published book and I get the satisfaction of having inspired them.

[Greg]

Hi, I'm Greg. My first two novels Gorillaland and Pirates are set in Africa - the Congo and Somalia respectively - and feature a safari guide turned adventurer doing battle with some pretty fearsome modern villains, such as Congolese rebels and Somalian terrorists.

I find exotic settings intoxicating, but only if the author manages to get under the skin and into the mind of the locals. That takes years of observation. One of the best examples of this is Anthony Burgess' The Long Day Wanes: A Malayan Trilogy

Avoiding cliches is essential when creating characters, yet exotic protagonists invariably suffer this fate. Africans in particular are often handled badly, or with kid gloves, as the assumption is that anyone living here must be either suffering or simple.

I try to avoid that in my writing, taking my readers down to the nitty gritty grassroots level, showing them how the old and calloused Africa-phile expat sees things, if not the African, and without a hint of white man's burden. I try and throw in a couple of laughs at the locals' expense too. Why not? They can take it.

I'm looking forward to getting to know some of you and reading your books. This group is exactly what I've been looking for. Happy literary travels everyone!

[Greg]

Beverly wrote: "Hi All,

My name is Beverly Magid, and I am a historical fiction author that loves to take my readers on a journey to a different place and time.

My newest novel, Sown in Tears takes you to 1905 R..."

Hi Beverly, how's it going?

[Greg]

Hi, Greg Cummings here, living in Uganda, guiding gorilla safaris and writing action adventure novels. http://talesfromtherift.blogspot.com

They say those who immerse themselves in foreign cultures become more creative, wherever they end up.

[Danielle]

Hi everyone! I live in Georgia right now, although I've also spent time all around the United States and in Scotland. I love traveling to new places...my most recent international adventure was in Cuba!

I've written 2 books, one of which is set in Mexico. I hope y'all will check them out!