Posts I loved this week

It may be March but it’s still freezing and snowing around here. Thank goodness the blog posts rock. They cheer me up and keep me going through our endless winter. A huge thank you to everyone for their fantastic contributions!

A post that definitely caught my attention was The Most Anticipated (and Likely Best) Books of 2015 from Gawker Review of Books. Incredibly, the authors are all women!

I loved this post on Decluttering. It has 10 Creative ways to do it and I loved the ideas. A huge thank you to Becoming Minimalist!

Looking for a good laugh? Check out this post by Norm 2.0 where he lists the 7 reasons he hates listicles. I laughed out loud. Sooo good!

I’m always on the look out for tips on blogging. Here are 5 to make blogging easier! A huge thanks to ProBlogger for that great post!

Hilarious, check out this post by Pecked to Death By Chickens, 31 Reasons You Made Your Preschooler Cry. So true and just so good. A huge thank you to Pecked to Death by Chickens for that wonderful post!

On that subject, here’s a post with 10 Tips for writing Posts Faster from She Owns It. If you’re still eager for more, here’s a great post with 39 Blogging Tools from Buffer Social.

The #1000Speak on Compassion might be over but Just Gene’O is organizing a way to keep the idea growing organically. Check out this post at Just Gene’O and add your link!

Not only true but definitely very funny, this post on How to Survive a Relationship with a Writer made me laugh out loud. A huge thanks to The Writing Chimp for that gem and to Mishka Jenkins for referring me to it!

For the dog-lovers out there, this post is for you from one dog-lover with an intuitive mind in The Silent Eye.

Another funny one, You Know You’re a Writer When made me laugh out loud. Those great pictures didn’t hurt either. A huge thanks to Happy Messy Life for that hilarious post!

Are you trying to market your book and you find it painful? Check out this post from Writers In the Storm with 4 Pain-Free Tips to Market your Book.

A great new blog I just discovered, Ronovan Writes has a great initiative for Wednesdays (BeWow – Be Wonderful on wednesdays) along with great posts with blogging tips. A huge thanks to Natacha Guyot for finding and sharing this great blog and while you’re reading, check out her blog news here!

A fantastic step-by-step description of the writing process from Winter Bayne, this post made me want to take down notes. It’s part 3 bu with two other parts also filled with great tips. A huge thanks to Winter Bayne for those great tips!

#1000Speak is not done, there’s a blog (here) and you can find them on Facebook (here). This month, the focus is bullying. Find out more from this great post by the Qwiet Muse.

Just because she’s right, and puppies do make everything better, check out this post by Rose B. Fisher. Awwww…puppies!

Finally, a couple of bookworms reading away,

(credit:thebewildered20somethingwriter.wordpress.com)

Pay It Forward Friday: Mishka Jenkins

Pay It Forward Fridays came from this post by Emily Guido. The idea is to feature a blogger or author on Fridays and give them a little shoutout. Anyone goes as long as they’re interested.

I’ve received an incredible amount of support from bloggers, authors and people I’ve met on line who didn’t know me and were just very kind, supportive souls. And, when I read that post by Emily Guido, I thought: time to give back.

I loved this quote from Emily’s mother:

“I cast a couple of pieces of bread on the water and the waves bring me back a ham sandwich.”

Karma is a beautiful thing.

Today I’m focusing on Mishka Jenkins.

She says of herself:

“Mishka Jenkins lives in the UK with her family and fluffy muse, a rough collie named Harliquin, who she couldn’t write without.

Mishka has a penchant for writing love stories in a variety of exciting genres, and plans to keep writing them for as long as she can type.”

When asked for advice to aspiring writers, she says: “Write. Ignore what anyone else says, what the ‘rules’ say you should do to be a proper writer, what is currently popular.

Write what you want, what makes you happy. That is what is most important and will keep you writing.”

I love that advice.

Mishka is a prolific writer. She’s the author of not one, not two but five awesome books!

Blurb:

“Successful businesswoman Alex is content with her life in London, and any ideas of romance have been left on the back burner. But when her fairy godmother, FG, waltzes into her office one morning announcing she has come to help Alex rekindle a passion for life and love, she is about to check herself into therapy!

The fairy godmother’s incessant wand-flicking soon lands them in the isolation of the Scottish highlands, where Alex’s next client, Mal Ross, not only stirs her professional interest but her romantic ones too.

Tasked with the enormous challenge of turning a historic castle into a flourishing hotel, the pair must work closely together whilst attempting to avoid the awkward situations the rom-com obsessed fairy godmother keeps forcing them into.

But the path of love is never smooth, no matter how much magic you throw at it.

‘The Magic Spark’ is a light, enjoyable read, full of fun and romance.”

Blurb:
“The bond of love can conquer all, but only if it is accepted. 

Prophecy states that three champions imbued with the best virtues of the mortal race: heart, strength and soul, will be the ones to save them all from an enemy which threatens to steal the life from their world and those who live upon it.

These three, along with their scribe, his bond mate, and an overly sarcastic oracle, must set off on a journey which will take them through forest, city, swamp and mountain. On this quest they activate the magical stones which charge the only weapon powerful enough to defeat Tildar and his cult of Dwell.

Yet the closer they draw to journey’s end, the more it seems that it is not the evil which will be their downfall, but the fear of a champion unwilling to accept the bond of their destiny.

Prophecy of Stones is a tale of adventure, love and magic.”

Blurb:
“Stolen away from her humdrum life, Imogen is thrown into a dark world where the creatures from tales are not only real, but rule the realm.

Vampires.

In this world of dark, moonlight is Imogen’s only source of safety, but the moon’s glow reveals a lot more than she ever realised. She soon learns her heritage and bloodline are what put her in danger, and the reason these vampires are keeping her hostage. But with a father who doesn’t even care enough to call, how was she supposed to know?

Held captive by the vampire leader, Bane, and his brother, Caden, Imogen must find a way to keep herself alive. Yet, the longer she remains, the more she wonders whether those she feared are the ones she should trust, as new truths continue to shine through.

When Bane shows Imogen that life in a world of dark can be more enlightening than her own sunlit realm, it seems that, though he may have stolen her from home, she risks him stealing her heart as well.”

Blurb:

“An exquisite wedding gift. A husband whom she loves. A Jester who she craves. A Kingdom in peril.

After receiving a beautiful emerald amulet at the celebrations of her wedding, new Queen Marie finds solace in the stunning, yet strange amulet. A warm comfort that fills the hole that her husband has left with his distance at her every affectionate touch.

That is until the new Jester arrives, his presence fuelling in Marie an instant burning need.

The more she finds herself drawn to the enigmatic man, the quicker she realises he is anything but the fool.

Marie must make a choice, one that could not only affect her marriage and her life…

But her entire Kingdom.”

Blurb:
“Ancient Rome is a dangerous place, in more ways than one.

Captured by slavers, distraught but determined Sabina is thrust into the world of gladiators. Disguised as a man, she struggles to remain undetected whilst navigating through her new life.

But love forces its way into her focus again and when a haunting figure from her past remerges, the couple’s fate is to be decided in the Heart of the Arena.”

Incredibly talented, Mishka has her own Newsletter and makes her own book covers!

I actually can’t remember how or when I first met Mishka but I’ll never forget how kind and genuinely supportive she is. An amazing author, you can find her at her site: A Writer’s Life For Me.

Posts I loved this week

A wonderful week of posts. Check out these beauties!

From The Written Word Remains…I read this lovely post on rereading favourite books. It’s one of my favourite activities and couldn’t help but agree with the author. Great post!

The beautiful photograph is only eclipsed by the incredible writing in this insightful post by Just Ponderin’.

A fantastic post by Kristen Lamb on getting an awesome plot and ready for Nanowrimo.

The Write Practice has this great post on how to create Character Sketches using Scrivener and I absolutely loved it. Awesome post!

November is coming and everyone’s already excited about Nanowrimo. Like Winter Bayne with her usual humour shining in the post.

This awesome post on First Drafts by Mishka Jenkins made me feel so much better because it not only let me know I’m not the only one who struggles with them but she also shared tips and steps on how to move forward.

If you’re stuck like me and need help getting going, check out this post on 11 Novelist-Tested ways to defeat Writer’s Block from Writers Helping Writers.

Super-cute, check out this picture of a baby turtle being carried by mom. A big thank you to Spanishwoods for making me smile with that lovely post.

If you’re considering starting a blog but want to do it with a group of writers, check out this post by Madeline Iva on just that subject from Romance University.

A huge congratulations to Sourcerer, a very talented blog who has just acquired a new contributor, the brilliant, saucy Infinitefreetime. Very, very exciting!

For those who love quotes, these are specially for writers from Jen’s Thoughts.

Finally, here’s a little bit of cuteness to end the post!

(credit:zwallpaper.biz)

Kindle and Smashwords: Formatting Tips

A fantastic post full of awesome tips and how-to’s. I can’t thank Mishka enough for writing this one!

A Writer's Life For Me.

I’ve had a few emails from people asking about when I publish my books on Smashwords if they go through the ‘Meatgrinder’ and how do I do it.

I have to say I’ve never had a problem with Smashwords and all my books have gone through first time with no trouble. So, instead of copying and pasting the answer to reply to the emails, I thought I would do a blog on it.

Please note that these are just some of the things I do to get my books through Smashwords and Kindle, don’t take it as fact! I highly recommend reading both Kindle’s guide and Smashwords style guide in order to better understand the process.

This is a comparison of the same manuscript (my newest release, The Magic Spark) put through Smashwords (on the left) compared to Kindle (on the right).

Kindle Formatting:

– Justified alignment.
– Max…

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Two bright stars

We got two exciting, brand new books this week. Check them out!

Skylights by Luther M. Siler.

Blurb:

August 15, 2022: the Tycho, the most advanced interplanetary craft ever designed by the human race, launches from Earth on an expedition to Mars. The Tycho carries four passengers, soon to be the most famous people in human history. 

February 19, 2023: The Tycho loses all communication with Earth while orbiting Mars. After weeks of determined attempts to reestablish contact, the Tycho is declared lost. 

2027: Journalist Gabriel Southern receives a message from a mysterious caller: “Mars.” Ezekiel ben Zahav isn’t talking, but he wants Southern to accompany him for something– and he’s dangling enough money under his nose to make any amount of hardship worth it.  

SKYLIGHTS is the story of the second human expedition to Mars.  Their mission: to find out what happened to the first.

It’s available on Amazon here and on Smashwords here.

 

The Magic Spark by Mishka Jenkins.

Blurb:

Successful businesswoman Alex is content with her life in London, and any ideas of romance have been left on the back burner. But when her fairy godmother, FG, waltzes into her office one morning announcing she has come to help Alex rekindle a passion for life and love, she is about to check herself into therapy!

The fairy godmother’s incessant wand-flicking soon lands them in the isolation of the Scottish highlands, where Alex’s next client, Mal Ross, not only stirs her professional interest but her romantic ones too. 

Tasked with the enormous challenge of turning a historic castle into a flourishing hotel, the pair must work closely together whilst attempting to avoid the awkward situations the rom-com obsessed fairy godmother keeps forcing them into.

But the path of love is never smooth, no matter how much magic you throw at it.

It’s available on Amazon here and on Smashwords here.

 

Two brand new books from two very kind people who happen to be amazing authors. Why don’t we send them a little love and help promote their books?

Posts I loved this week

A ton of excellent post this week as we say goodbye to Summer and hello to Fall. Check out the beauties below!

If you’re looking to submit to a literary agent, check out this post from one of them with her best tips on Romance University. Then stick around the site to enjoy this great post by K.M. Weiland on tips to make your love story an epic love story.

Avoiding the dreaded info-dump is crucial for a good story. Here are three essential questions for a better backstory on The Write Practice. And this fantastic one on writing villains.

Joe Bunting promises that this exercise will get you unstuck every time you try to write and can’t. I have to say I tried it and it worked–at least for me.

If Mondays get you down, go over to DBCII for some inspiration. Starting next week, he’ll post writing prompts from books he has. Check out this great idea here.

When I don’t write, I worry about my book and when I write, I worry about making mistakes, so I worry about my book! This post on the Tiny Buddha on how to relax was just what I needed to read.

Sooo excited because I was certain we might not get it but Outlander is coming to Canada. A huge thank you to Penny Dreadful for letting me know and for reviewing it!

If you’re into Westerns, check out this post by Amy Alessio with seven fantastic Western romance reads for you to check out on Romance University.

Five ways to increase your productivity while you’re not writing by Chuck Sambuchino from Writer’s Digest.

Just for fun, this post had me in stitches. So funny by Suzie81 Speaks.

This one has great inspiration with quotes by those who’ve achieved great things on Jen Owenby.

If you’re writing a query letter, check out this post on how to write a killer blurb on Writer’s Relief.

Here come the categories. Again, keep in mind they’re just for fun.

* Best Achievement of the Week – To D. Emery Bunn for completing his book Darkness Concealed.

* Best Short Piece of the Week – A definite gem, this one‘s by Mishka Jenkins.

* Best Rant of the Week – to Infinitefreetime, for this one.

* Best movie Review – to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire by Natacha Guyot.

* Most Unusual Tips for Writers – This one needs a word of warning. Some tips are truly…disturbing, from the Thought Catalog.

* Best find of the Week – Very cool. You type in three words and it generates 5 blog topics for you. Check it out here at HubSpot.

* Funniest Post of the Week – What not to say to a mom with a Colicky Baby by Outmanned. Never had a baby colicky or otherwise, but I still laughed out loud.

Review: Prophecy of Stones

Prophecy of Stones is the latest novel by Mishka Jenkins. It’s a story of an ancient prophecy and of a group of reluctant heroes. It’s a journey for the characters in more than one sense. They change, grow and we get to see them do that.

The writing was fantastic. The characters are funny and consistent. Fully fleshed out, they had histories, personalities, stories and even voices that were unique to them. The book changes perspective with the chapters, so it allowed the reader to really understand them.

The descriptions of the places were wonderful and vivid. I felt like I was there.There are twists and turns on their journey and they encounter delightful, fun cities and dangerous forests with terrifying creatures.

I loved that there were characters who had made huge sacrifices and were still paying for those choices. I loved that there were some who had made choices they regretted. They weren’t perfect, the world wasn’t perfect and that made it believable and real.

I loved the love story in particular. It wasn’t the usual ‘boy meets girl and they love each other’ story. This was a tale of second chances, of growth and reconnection, of trying hard and sacrificing for loved ones.

An epic tale, with love and magic, Prophecy of Stones delivers. If you’re into fantasy or romance, this would make a fantastic read.

 

 

Note: click on cover to go to site.

Indie Book Haul

Loved this post! I’ve read a couple of those books and couldn’t agree more with the talent of the authors. Thank you for the list, Callum!

Callum McLaughlin

Support Indie Authors

I live for the day when indie and traditionally published books sit side by side on bookshelves, with readers choosing stories based purely on their appeal rather than their origins. Until then, it’s no secret that gaining exposure as a self-published author is hard and I, as one myself, am always happy to help support others. In light of this, here is a brief roundup of some of the indie books I have read over the last few months or so as well as links to the author’s blogs or websites where you can find more info and links to buy, etc.

S.R. Carrillo
– The Soul – A book about good and evil; angels and demons; light and dark. The writing style is so immersive and the interaction between the lead characters is one of the most interesting dynamics I’ve read in a long time. It’s…

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Monday Morsel

Monday Morsel is a little twist I put on the bookish meme Teaser Tuesdays hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. It works just like Teaser Tuesdays…except it’s on Monday. 🙂

Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other Monday Morsel participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

“”Thank you,” she muttered, tucking her hair behind her ear and hastily shuffling away to seat herself next to Kai.

“You’re welcome,” he replied, every nerve stinging at her apparent desperation to be away from him.”

From Prophecy of Stones by Mishka Jenkins.

 

Note: click on the cover to go to the site.

Posts I loved this week

Though it had its losses, this week in posts was absolutely awesome. Check them out below!

I love diverse, complicated characters. Here‘s a great post on how to create those nifty, deeply layered personalities in your books by Nicohle Christopherson in Writerology and, before you leave the site, check out this other post. It’s got tips on how to take a character who appears nice and move them over to the ‘nasty’ side of things with just a slight personality change. Awesome post by Skye.

Super-interesting and certainly a stand out post, I loved this one by Alianne Donnelly because it was gutsy, eloquent and full of passion.

Robin Williams passed away this week and this particular post about him was so beautifully written that it moved me to include it here. It has incredible poetry and wonderful prose from I Am not the Batman.

7 reasons why writing a book makes you a champion, what a lovely message by Now Novel.

Just an indulgence on my part, this post has 50 weird town names in Canada you won’t be able to pronounce from Reader’s Digest! Hilarious–at least to me.

A fantastic blog by a wonderful person, Gene’O is reorganizing things. I’m so excited because I know there are good things coming our way on this blog, Just Gene’O. Just look at what he’s planning!

Great tips for your blog posts, this one is from Jeff Bullas and his site is oozing with awesome posts on how to improve traffic.

Yet more reasons to switch to indie publishing from an author who’s been traditionally published, Eileen Goudge, via Jane Friedman.

A lovely twist on waiting so that it becomes a gift. I needed to read this post by Robin LaFevers in Writer Unboxed because I hate waiting.

I don’t have a publishing contract, I simply envy those who do, but this post is for those of you who do because there are hidden dangers inside those contracts. This is a post on what to look for in your contract by Susan Spann a pro on Writers in the Storm.

From Hannibal Lecter to Jaws, the villain can make or break a story. This post is about creating a fantastic one for your story on Live Write Thrive.

A great post on images and where to get them by Jamie Lee Wallace on Live to Write – Write to Live.

If you write historical fiction or romance, you might want to check out this post on No Wasted Ink. It has a great list with explanations of each site and what they can give you.

Maybe it was the coffee, but this post has some of the best tips for breaking Writer’s Block  I have seen. A huge thanks to Succeed at Writing for this post!

A list of 12 things every indie author needs to know by Knite Writes. I knew some of them but others were complete surprises.

A great post by Mishka Jenkins, it has four different ways of creating a plot with their pros and cons.

Writing tips from J.R.R. Tolkien that are not only wise but uplifting. I loved this post from Writers in the Storm.

Finally, a huge congrats to Winter Bayne, a fantastic author, on her publishing contracts and her new look!