Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 08, 2013

World Donkey Day = FREE BOOK!

It's World Donkey Day, and, if I had been more organized, this would have been FREE today - but it is FREE TOMORROW! If you love donkeys you will love this book. Book 2, Search For Bluebird Blue, is so close to publication you wouldn't believe it - but no donkeys are neglected around here, so everything book-wise takes me longer than I expect it to...

http://www.amazon.com/Search-Hunting-Little-Shoppe-ebook/dp/B00ATFMXPG/ref=la_B004KI0QS4_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1368029575&sr=1-8


And the resident donkeys say:

 

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Blog Hop: My Next Big Thing

Nancy Peacock, author of Life Without Water, Home Across the Road, and A Broom of One's Own, tagged me for this blog hop. You can read her essays and find out more about her on her blog, Marginalia.

My Next Big Thing:

1)      What is the working title of your book or project?

The Girl Who Was Never Not Broken

2)      Where did the idea come from for this book or project?
 
A song I heard in the TV series McLeod's Daughters. It took me awhile to track it down online and purchase it for my iTunes library, and I listened to it for several months, maybe close to a year, before the story began to come. The song, Last of the Happy by Eva Trout, seemed to be the soundtrack to a novel that had not yet been written. And for whatever reason, it picked me to write it.

3)      What genre does it fall under, if any?

Literary suspense.

4)      If applicable, who would you choose to play your characters in a movie?

This question often pops up in interviews and blog hops. Having lived and worked in Hollywood, I know how unlikely it is that I would ever get to choose the actors for a project based on one of my books. So I don't even think about it. All I can say is that if they pay me enough money, they can cast anyone they want to in the roles. If Javier Bardem was involved, that would be just fine with me.

5)      What is the synopsis of your manuscript or project?

A young woman leaves Needles, California when her father is jailed, she thinks for writing bad checks, and a mysterious man comes looking for her to ask questions. She drives south, meets a young cowboy in a bar over dinner, and drives him to the ranch near the border of Arizona where he works. What begins as a quick visit to ride a horse turns into a new life. She falls in love with the horses, the work, and especially with the woman who takes care of things and feeds the cowboys. Shug quickly becomes the mother Ava Lee never had.

But Shug has a son who is involved with running drugs and stolen horses across the border, and he falls in love with Ava Lee. Ava Lee's father is not in jail for writing checks but because he witnessed a UFO fall into the river outside Needles - he is in custody because he won't cooperate with CIA agents, one of whom happens to be Shug's other son Tag. Tag is assigned to track Ava Lee and finds her living on the ranch where he grew up, the daughter his mother never had, and getting quickly pulled into his brother Dixon's life of crime.

6)      Will your book or story be self-published or represented by an agent?

This will be the second "Borderland Book" published by my imprint, November Hill Press.

7)      How long did it take you to write the first draft?

It is still in progress.

8)      What other book or stories would you compare this to within the genre?

I'd say Cormac McCarthy's Borderland Trilogy and Ellen Gilchrist's novels.

9)      Who or what inspired you to write this story?

It grew from that aforementioned song!

10)  What else about the book or story might pique the reader’s interest?

It addresses the issue of horse slaughter, which is something I don't think the average person knows much about.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Coming soon from November Hill Press!




 My newest book! 


I love the cover - the King of Zen himself in what I call the Tree of Life Bay photo, taken by dear husband who has done so many gorgeous portraits of Keil. 


What you don't see are that his hooves send down roots to the center of the earth, grounding me, and his energy soars right up to the sky and takes mine with it.


Which is what this book is all about!







Saturday, January 14, 2012

continuing with my January book blow-out

Leaping into 2012 with free book promo going on nearly every weekend!  This weekend it's claire-obscure. Free on Amazon.

And remember: if you like what you see on the product page, click the like button. If you enjoy the read, go back and leave a review. Those things do matter for authors and sales.


Sunday, January 01, 2012

and meant to say: new year's gift!

I meant to add that The Meaning of Isolated Objects is free through January 4th on Amazon. GO HERE to read and pick up your copy.

Happy New Year!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Keith Cronin's terrific novel, Me, Again, launches tomorrow!

Check out the book trailer. This is one of those books I have waited for and can't wait to read.

Sunday, March 06, 2011

signs that might be omens

As usual, writing group weekend kickstarted me into high gear and I'm thrilled to report that I am close to getting my next adult novel, Signs That Might Be Omens, up on Amazon.

Although not part of a series per se, Signs is the second book in what I think of as the "Claire Quartet."

In claire-obscure, we meet Claire in her early twenties, during one very difficult and life-changing year. In Signs, time has moved forward 20 years, Claire is in her early forties, and we discover that there are two sides to every story, synchronicities connect people whether they know it or not, and horses can and do play a pivotal role in the resolution of old trauma and the shift into schwung.

In my mind I have always visioned four novels when I think of the character Claire. In addition to the two I have already written, I suspect there is a novel that looks at Claire's childhood, probably from her eyes, although I recently realized there might be a neighbor who tells that story, giving us yet another perspective on her life. A view from the outside in, perhaps.

And there is another one not yet written that I jokingly think of as the AARP Claire novel. Which is misleading, since I also think this one might also be subtitled: Claire Hits Middle Age and Goes High Speed, Low Drag.

She's the kind of late blooming woman I suspect might find her fire late in life. We will see.

Right now, it's Sunday afternoon and I am perched on my bed with laptop continuing the writing weekend as it rains, gusts, and goes light and then dark and then light again outside my window. 

Monday, February 28, 2011

Sheaffer Donkey reviews Jane's Transformation!

My dear friend Sheaffer has reviewed Jane's Transformation!  What a treat to get his hoof stamp of approval.

You can READ IT HERE.

And of course, if you want to read the book itself, just click on the book cover on the sidebar to your right. Or do a search on Amazon.

Thank you, Sheaffer!!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Jane and the Magical Pony School are cantering up the rankings!

As of earlier today, The Magical Pony School: Jane's Transformation hit #8 in its Kindle category and #41 in its category overall! 

I'm so grateful to those of you who have already bought it - don't forget to review the book on Amazon if you enjoy the read, and keep passing the word. This is so exciting for me.

It is time to take a writing retreat and get my first draft of Book Two: Fiona and the Waterhorse!

Monday, February 14, 2011

oh, happy days! donkeys and dust circles

It's been so wet and so mushy here for so many weeks... but finally, after some sunshine and temps above 60, with a little wind to help with drying things out, I noticed yesterday that Rafer Johnson and Redford have been able to construct not one but two dust circles in the back field!

In case I missed it, Redford followed me out the back trail with the muck barrow and rolled in one of them while I stood and watched. It amazes me how the circles are so perfect in form, and how fine and soft the dust gets after only a day or two of donkey rolling.

The perfect texture for maintaining a donkey's coat, and also creating a lovely little dust cloud that can only mean one thing: there's a donkey in full roll!

Between Salina shedding, donkey dust circles, and sunshine, we are having a lovely start to what looks like a beautiful week here on November Hill.


*******

And over the weekend, book one in my Magical Pony School series, Jane's Transformation, was in the top 100 titles in its category on Amazon both Saturday and Sunday! It has slipped down some today but hopefully it will sell some more and climb back up. The top 100 titles tend to get more attention, so I'm hoping it hits that magic number again and eventually stays there awhile.

I appreciate any and all support from readers here in helping get the word out about this series. While I feel the same way about my adult fiction, these magical pony school novels are very special to me and I really want them to do well out in the world.

Over the next month or so I'll begin some focused marketing, which includes getting myself Skype savvy so I can make myself available to book and reading groups. Keep me in mind if you'd like your group to read a book and have the author visit via Skype for a discussion. I love to talk as much as I love to write! :)

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

The Magical Pony School, Book One: Jane's Transformation

It's finally here!  The first book in my middle grade fiction series is up on Amazon as an e-book - you can see the cover and click over to Amazon from the sidebar to your right.

The product description is not up yet - that usually takes a little longer to go up, but I'll give it to you here.

Jane loves ponies and riding, and after a lesson one day in which she rides a circle and suddenly feels total harmony with her sometimes difficult pony, she goes home to discover that she has been invited to attend the Magical Pony School. The book opens as Jane and her fellow first-year students are getting ready for the Winter Solstice ceremony - a very special event at the Magical Pony School.

Things don't quite go as planned - and Jane soon finds herself on the adventure of a lifetime, where she encounters wild pigs, shapeshifting creatures, bugganes, dwarves, an odd bitter woman, and finally, a black mare with one eye and two donkey guardians who lead her to the most important part of her journey: saying goodbye to her father and letting go of the need to be perfect.

The Magical Pony School series is a good read-aloud for younger children, an "advanced" chapter book for early middle graders, a quick read for older middle graders or avid readers, and will appeal to both girls and boys - there is magic, adventure, and a fair amount of Celtic lore. For readers who ride, there is classical riding and a focus on partnership, not domination, over our equine friends.

This is also likely to be one of those books horsey moms and grandmoms will enjoy.

Fiona and the Waterhorse, book two in the series, should be out before summer.

If you read this and enjoy it, I encourage you to review it, talk about it, and spread the word!

Monday, February 07, 2011

nearly a week without a post? unprecedented!

Well, except for when I go on hiatus.

It's just been really busy here. Cody is completely recovered from his abscess. We had a ton of rain. The local weather station posted a story that our area is still in severe drought. I invite anyone needing water to come siphon off our excess.

Friday the wonderful H. came to massage Salina, with even better response this time. Although we were having light rain that morning, I put the geldings out of their stalls and opened up the arena so they could experience footing without mud. Within minutes the three of them were trotting and cantering around, including Cody. Keil Bay looked ready for at least a second level test. Meanwhile Salina nuzzled my hand with her lips and alternated between closing her eye and chewing as H worked. Rafer Johnson was highly indignant that while he earns the massage money, someone else gets the massage!

And this was writing group weekend. D. arrived and we hit the ground running. On Saturday we went into town and ended up discovering a steampunk gallery and coffee house that has been there for 9 months and I didn't even know it!  The young woman who owns and runs it turns out to be a home schooler who moved down here and is following her dream. And while I know not very much at all about the steampunk genre, I admit I was intrigued by the artwork and the toys and the ambiance.

Even with all the exploring we did on Saturday, the weekend was wildly productive. I finished my final edit on The Magical Pony School: Jane's Transformation. It's the first book in my middle grade series, and at any moment it will be available on Amazon!

I'll do a big announcement when it's live there, but for now, I'm just thrilled that this book is so close to being out in the world. A secret: although it's aimed at early middle grade, I suspect moms and grandmoms of middle graders and younger pony girls and boys might also enjoy the story.... :)

We're back in the 50s as we begin the week and once again I am in hopes of major drying out happening. Between grooming the mud and walking in it, I am just plain tired of soggy, wet earth. The donkeys have nowhere to take their dust baths, and I think even the most deeply-rooted trees have had their fill.

And that is all I can say because I swore after seeing some fellow bloggers' photos recently that I would never complain again!

I hope we all start the sweet shift to spring, soon.