#RRBC Pay It Forward with author, Mary Schmidt @MaryLSchmidt #RRBCPIF

This is Rave Reviews Book Club’s Pay It Forward Day. Welcome fellow author and RRBC Member, Mary Schmidt.

ABOUT MARY SCHMIDT

Mary Schmidt, aka S. Jackson, grew up in a small Kansas (USA) town, and she lived in other states since then. At this time, she and her husband split their time between Kansas and Colorado (they loved the mountains and off road 4-wheeling). Traveling is one of their favorite things to do, and she always has a book or even three books that she reads, in the same week. Books were really her thing.

It seemed like every time she turned around she was obtaining a new library card due to the current one being stamped complete. Diving into a good book made any day perfect and you would be surprised at the number of books she read over and over. She drew paper dolls and clothes for them, and used watercolor as her medium when painting scenes, especially flowers.

She continued with art in high school exploring a wide variety of arts. The creative side of her loves to be an amateur “shutter-bug” and they actually have an online art gallery. In college she went into the sciences of all things and received a Bachelor’s degree in the Science of Nursing. Her nursing career was highly successful, and she hung up her nursing hat in December 2012.

Visit Mary’s Blog at When Angels Fly!

Mary’s Books

The Big Cheese Festival

In The Big Cheese Festival, we meet Stubby Mouse and his family and friends. We learn that Stubby Mouse has a secret, that he is being bullied by another mouse, simply because his tail is short. Read how Stubby Mouse stood up for himself, and how he ended the bullying, in this delightful story for children. Targeted at ages 4-8, the book is easy to read and perfect for home or classroom. Children learn how bad bullying is, and what they can do to help stop bullies! Stubby Mouse encourages children to take a stand against bullies, and always be kind to each other. This story illustrates how everyone is different and unique, and it is a delightful read with cute illustrations for both children and adults. Take a stand against bullying today!

Get your copy of The Big Cheese Festival.

Suzy Has a Secret

This book teaches a child, ages four to eight years-old, about personal safety and body ownership. Children learn how to identify who safe adults are in a child’s life. This book shows in positive and practical ways how parents, and educators, can talk to children about personal safety. Children learn about bad touch and good touch, and how their body belongs to them. Parents and educators can help children learn who the safe people are in their lives, and that they can always tell one of them about anything that may happen, and they aren’t comfortable about. Using little bug fairies and fairy houses, ensures that children aren’t scared when this story is read to them, or they read it on their own.

Get your copy of Suzy Has a Secret.

When Angels Fly

We often find ourselves daydreaming about what our futures will be like. This may be especially true if one lives in an environment most would consider less than desirable. Some are lucky to find their futures much like their childhood dreams. Others find the paths to their dreams strewn with hurdles.

Growing up, Sarah dodged her mother’s blows. She often hid in her room crying about her life. Still, she believes in her future and the happiness it can bring. In their book, When Angels Fly, authors S. Jackson and A. Raymond tell Sarah’s story – their stories. The authors use their journals to describe Sarah’s experiences of family dysfunction, strength, courage, faith, abuse, grief, and so much more. You’ll read how, like many, she attempts to escape from her mother’s abuse through marriage. And like many, she learns it is not a viable alternative. Then Sarah experiences a parent’s ultimate tragedy twice, the deaths of her sons, Joshua and Eli.

When Angels Fly is about much more than the telling of a family’s tragedy. It is also the story of finding faith after it has wavered. Most of all, it’s a story of love lost and found.

Get your copy of When Angels Fly.

Visit Mary’s Blog at When Angels Fly!

#RRBC ‘Pay It Forward’ My special Guest today is Author Jeffrey Von Glahn PhD. With his Non-Fiction book “Jessica: The autobiography of an infant.”

#RRBC Meet Author Nicholas Rossis!

Writing and Music

Here at the RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB,  we like to celebrate our fellow authors with a Pay-It-Forward day. That simply means that we set aside all of our self-promotions for one day and support someone else.

I couldn’t be more excited to introduce you to a multi-talented, multi-award-winning. dream-protecting author, Nicholas Rossis!

Nicholas has written everything from children’s books to fantasy sci-fi, to speculative fiction, to a writer’s resource guide.

The book I want to focus on today is Emotional Beats – How to Convert your Writing into Palpable Feelings.

I chose this book because it is such an incredibly valuable resource for me. It resides next to my computer and I often stop and refer to it when I’m trying to emphasize a particular scene or phrase.

In this book, Nicholas Rossis gives writers lots of options to choose from no matter the genre you write in. There…

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Jazz Baby: An Excellent Historical Novel by Author Beem Weeks

Diane Munier

I love a story told in the intimacy of first person. Jazz Baby is that tale. It’s Baby’s story as she moves into the jaded world of jazz. She’s gifted. Charismatic. To say she comes from nothing is an understatement. Her life is a continual theme for a jazz ballad. No wonder she can bring authenticity to her music, a realness that supersedes her attempts to cloak a gift in a misguided sense of self. Her innocence is preyed upon as her talent debuts, and still it all folds back into the gift that could destroy her as she gives.

The author, Beem Weeks, has been inspired with his own gift by the likes of Daniel Woodrell, Barbara Kingsolver, and Stephen Geez. It’s evident that he’s working his craft because I know what it takes to tap into a character’s voice and let it take over your head. Baby/Emily Ann/Jazz…

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Rave Reviews Book Club is Paying It Forward for Author @Mark_MGiblin

The Long and Short Stories of Life

Good Morning Readers!

Today, June 23, Rave Reviews Book Club is “Paying It Forward” by devoting this entire day to promoting others. It is with great pleasure that I present Mark Giblin, the author of the exciting, true adventure, Speed Bump Himalayas. The book details Mark’s mishaps and escapades during a journey to the Himalayas.

“Only go home when you’re half mad, half dead, or both.”—Mark Giblin

“It’s 1987, and Mark Giblin has just discovered the perfect escape from the brawling pubs and concrete towers of Thatcher’s Britain.
India: mountains, beaches, chaotic, crumbling cities and an endless scope for travelling mayhem. His mate – a young Sean Lock – joins him, but their trip starts badly.
Once Sean regains his senses after landing in steaming hot, pre-monsoon Delhi, the pair stumble through Kashmir and Nepal on a ludicrous quest for fun. But on a remote mountain track, Mark discovers something far worse than the boredom of English suburbia, and…

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Author Feature: Jan Sikes

Nicholas C. Rossis

This post is part of the Rave Reviews Book Club Pay-It-Forward; an initiative to introduce club authors to new readers. As Jan Sikes is a frequent visitor of my blog, it gives me great pleasure in introducing her to you.

Jan Sikes

Multi-Award winning author, Jan Sikes, began her writing career as a young girl. Her first work was singing gospel. She had an uncle whom she loved dearly, but he was an alcoholic and his drinking caused such family discord that, at times, resulted in him being banished from their home. So, she wrote a song about Uncle Luke finding Jesus. That is her first memory of feeling the passion deep down to her toes for writing and for music.

When her husband passed away in 2009, she thought someone would come along and write the story of his unique and inspiring life. She awoke one morning…

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Paying It Forward For #RRBC Member / Author D. L. Finn

The Indie Spot!

Today, I am taking part in Rave Reviews Book Club’s “Pay It Forward” day. What this means is, I am promoting a member of the book club here on The Indie Spot.

Now, here’s one of those interesting coincidences: The author I am promoting today is D. L. Finn, whose book, No Fairy Tale, is the book I just happen to be currently reading.

D. L. is an independent California girl, born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area. In 1990, she and her husband packed up their kids, dogs, and cats, and relocated to the Sierra foothills in Nevada City, CA.

To say D. L. is a reader is a major understatement. She immerses herself in all sorts of books, crossing genre lines that include romance, horror, and fantasy. With vivid imagination, D. L. has long treasured creating her own reality on paper. So, when the family’s move…

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Do you know how to micro-plot?

jean's writing

Hold on- no charts involved.

I know you’ve heard all about all kinds of plot points. Turning, climax, action, rising, falling, characters, conflicts, well you get the idea. However, for most of us, pantsters, plotter’s, or half-assters we are all looking for better and easier ways to get the job done.

So how about trying micro-plotting?

Yes, you heard right. I just added another plotting point to think about.

What is micro-plotting you ask?

Today I read an article by David Farland about micro-plotting and had an ah-ha moment. If you’ve read many of my posts you’ll know I just love those flashbulb moments.

If I understood David right it’s where you give the reader a reason to care about the characters. A micro-moment in the story. A sympathy point.

So if you feel like something is missing in your WIP, go back and add a note to make the reader care.

In mine…

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Review: Kindlepreneur’s Free AMS Tutorial & KDP Rocket

Nicholas C. Rossis

You may remember my recent post, Don’t Advertise With Amazon Until You’ve Read This. I mention there Kindlepreneur’s free AMS tutorial and KDP Rocket. Imagine my surprise when Dave Chesson, aka Kindlepreneur, contacted me shortly afterward to offer me a review copy of KDP Rocket. This was roughly at the same time that I was finishing his AMS tutorial, so I thought it would be a good idea if I reviewed both here.

Before we start, though, here’s a little extra to whet your appetite:

Amazon Book Description Generator

Dave offers a lovely freebie called Amazon Book Description Generator. This is a free tool that allows you to format your blurb in a way that makes it pop out. As Dave explains on his website,

Ever wonder why some book descriptions look nicer, have bigger words, and stick out more?

That’s because many self-publishers are…

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Do you know how to micro-plot?

jean's writing

Hold on- no charts involved.

I know you’ve heard all about all kinds of plot points. Turning, climax, action, rising, falling, characters, conflicts, well you get the idea. However, for most of us, pantsters, plotter’s, or half-assters we are all looking for better and easier ways to get the job done.

So how about trying micro-plotting?

Yes, you heard right. I just added another plotting point to think about.

What is micro-plotting you ask?

Today I read an article by David Farland about micro-plotting and had an ah-ha moment. If you’ve read many of my posts you’ll know I just love those flashbulb moments.

If I understood David right it’s where you give the reader a reason to care about the characters. A micro-moment in the story. A sympathy point.

So if you feel like something is missing in your WIP, go back and add a note to make the reader care.

In mine…

View original post 195 more words

Completing My First Draft: Three Things I’ve Learned

A Writer's Path

by Jennifer Kelland Perry

Two weeks ago today, I had a fabulous evening.

Late on that Friday afternoon, I typed the last word of the last sentence of the last chapter of my Work In Progress. It felt wonderful! What a sense of satisfaction filled me as I raised my glass of Cabernet and toasted to my awesomeness. What an accomplishment! I spent the rest of the evening, and well into the night, celebrating, mentally patting myself on the back and grinning like an idiot.

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