THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion

I have two blogs - http://jannashay.wordpress.com and
http://jannashay.blogspot.com

I do author promo primarily on these blogs. I'm a host with four hosting companies and also host for Entangled Publishing, a division of MacMillan Publishing. I also post book reviews.

If you have a chance, stop by and learn about new books and their authors.

I have two blogs at the moment.
"Sparta Reconsidered" (http://spartareconsidered.blogspot.com), and my "Author Blog" http://schradershistoricalfiction.blo....

The first is for people interested in Ancient Sparta and provides insights on various aspects of Spartan society. This week's entry, for example, was on helot society, highlighting that it was more complex than usually portrayed and provided opportunities for independence and wealth.

"Schrader's Historical Fiction" in contrast is about the process of writing, places where I have been inspired, reviews of my books and, currently, the material of my on-going project: Nine Tales of Chivalry. This week's entry was about "The Cradle of Chivalry: the Languedoc."

I have three blogs. One is an author website: www.PatriciaScholes.com. The second is a Christian website: www.LydiasRiversideChurch.com. The third is a preparedness website: www.WillowbarkTea.com.

Check them out. There are great things to search.

I have two blogs. One relates to my futuristic novels, which in part involve society facing problems we have left them, so the blog is fairly general. Recent posts look at the likelihood of finding alien life. The blog is at http://ianmillerblog.wordpress.com . My second blog is about what is happening in physical science, and what I think is right, and sometimes wrong, in the way science is being carried out. This is at http://my.rsc.org/blogs/84. Check them out. If nothing else, they are different from others.

Hi. I have two blogs.

http://marielavenderbooks.blogspot.com/ This is really just updates on me and my books.

http://marielavender.blogspot.com/ This is where I have guest authors, interviews, etc.

Hi everyone,
Today I am hosting fellow mystery author Edith Maxwell at my blog, who answered my interview questions. Find out how she recently solved her biggest writing challenge and more. In conjunction with her visit, Edith will give away a free autographed copy of her latest release, A Tine to Live, A Tine to Die, to one commenter. Please stop by!

http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/2...

Are you having trouble in this economy? Are you without adequate work? Is that one reason you are writing? These are my issues. So I wrote a book: Surviving Hard Times - A Livingbook, to address some of these issues. I have supplemented this book with a website: www.WillowbarkTea.com, for additional tips and tricks to get people through these times.

The electronically challenged might enjoy my blog about the usual social media angst for authors: http://williamdietrich.com/goggle-eye...

"Just do it" applies to so many things in life, including writing. Please stop in at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ and check it out.

ALSO, I'm on Scene of the Crime today and tomorrow. Today is a rather out-of-the-ordinary interview, which was a lot of fun and you can find it at http://www.kittlingbooks.com/2013/06/.... Tomorrow Cathy Cole will post a review of Bogey NIghts. Hope to see you there.

Thank you,

Marja

Hello, I have two blogs: Here For A Season was recently set up out of many requests as a place for me to post my poetry. I also have a regular writer's blog where I post many of my short stories. I am currently serializing a story from my Fantastic Literature collection titled Ghost Writer. Please stop by and be sure to leave a 'Like' and a comment.
Thanks, BJ
http://www.bjneblett.blogspot.com
http://www.hereforaseason.blogspot.com

"Luke Must Die"
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

Marja wrote: "As a writer, how do you portray sound effect? As a reader, what's your preference? Please check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ and let me know what you think.

Thank you,

Marja"

Marja. In my novella, Dry Bones, I tried to show the onset of the biggest earthquake ever. The C.O. of the Death Camp was in his office. He notices first that a paper is moving slightly on his desk. Then he sees dust motes dancing frantically and a noise, almost below the level of consciousness but it is, very slowly increasing, and with it the shaking. This is happening over a unspecified long time but the shaking gets worse and I try to describe, firs the perplexity, then the annoyance, gowing to unease and a growing unsettling edge of fear. Being military (a wounded veteran unfit for frontline service so relegated to commanding the Einsatz Commando SS in a Death Camp.) He puts the growing fear away, deciding that, as the Cmmanding Officer, he must act. The machine gun tower nearest his office is moving and the men manning the gun do not know what to do. Meanwhile the movement and the feeling of helplessness as everything is in flux increases. He leaps up the ladder to take command...

Roger wrote: "Marja. In my novella, Dry Bones, I tried to show the onset of the biggest earthquake ever. The C.O. of the Death Camp was in his office. He notices first that a paper is moving slightly on his desk..."

It sounds very suspenseful, Roger. Having been through many earthquakes, one thing I've noticed is I feel a little dizzy just before I realize what's happening. One time it sounded like a giant train was coming. It's quite an experience.

Thanks Marja. I like the idea of a giant train. That conjures up both a picture and the roar of the engine and the wheels. The shaking of the ground too, or the platform as the express rushes through the station.

Roger wrote: "Thanks Marja. I like the idea of a giant train. That conjures up both a picture and the roar of the engine and the wheels. The shaking of the ground too, or the platform as the express rushes throu..."

I heard the sound just before the earthquake -- like a train in the sky, so to speak.

Hello everyone. I just started a blog on GoodReads. If you read it, let me know what you think.

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

Authors need to learn all the rules about writing, and then be ready to break them. Check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ .

Thank you,

Marja

I don't have your traditional author blog. There are no articles about writing or author interviews. I post information, photos, and videos I find interesting that relate to the time and subject of my novel (late 1800s and Ireland). I hope the people that come to my blog feel comfortable and want to come back and find out about my latest post. If you want to take a peek you can find it here. Thanks. Judy Leslie.
http://historicalfictionbyjudyleslie....

I used to be taught that written and spoken English were different languages. This is true but only in part. When it comes to rhetoric there is something of an overlap. There is much we writers might learn from the great orators. The use of Onomatopea and Assonance for instance. Then there is the use of saying things in threes. Three is a magic word and number and puts so much more feeling, passion and power into a sentence whether it be in a speech or in prose.
Talking of prose there may be a difference between prose and poetry but the differences blur and break down when we use poetic type language and imagery again to emphasise many emotional states.
I find myself intrigued by the relations and cooperations between the muses. Take Opera for instance. Opera is not just a story put to music. The acting makes it High drama and the musice expresses and enhances the action, the pathos and the tragedy. Also of the commedy in the case of Rossini and some of Mozart. Carmen must be the supreme example. Whereas some operas are in danger of becoming a series of static tableaux with characters standing, sitting and still but singing. Verdi and Puccini may fall into this without a good director. Carmen, however is full of life, often violent action or spellbinding singing with frighteningly sinister movements as when Carmen sings Habanera and Escamilio sings his boastul and arrogant Toreador's Song. It is never still.
Thus as I see it the arts may merge into one glorious compound of spectacle and sound.
However I was disappointed with one glorious performance. There was a brilliant ballet with each of the entracts. Sadly I did not feel that the dancing there fitted in especially the gorgeously erotic dancing to the entract to Act three. The music was gentle but the audience had their attention on the stage engaged in highly suggestive romantic foreplay. Act three is a dark tragedy with Carmen's murder by Don Jose and the tragice dissolution of Don Jose's character. The preformance I allude to was a recent one by the Metropolitan Opera of New York. An otherwise peerless performance enhanced by the Flamenco Dancers of the Metropolitan during the scene in the Inn.

Garden Variety Giveaway: enter to win a variety of historical, Western romances from best-selling authors as well as other gifts, including a decorative wheelbarrow with artificial flowers ... http://janetsyasnitsick.wordpress.com...

C.J. Heck

I have three blogs:

http://cjswriterthoughts.blogspot.com/
http://memoirsfromnam.blogspot.com/
http://knowingwhispers.blogspot.com/

How do you get from a "family curse" to things happening to characters in books? Please check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ . Have a great day!

Thank you!

LAST DAY TO ENTER Garden Variety Giveaway. Enter to win a variety of historical, Western romances from best-selling authors, such as Rose Gordon, Ruth Ann Nordin, myself and others. The giveaway includes books as well as other gifts, such as a decorative wheelbarrow with artificial flowers, beach/book bag and two sets of earrings. Good luck!
http://janetsyasnitsick.wordpress.com...

Today I interview author Marilyn Levinson on my blog. Find out more about this prolific writer of mystery, romantic suspense, children's and YA books!

http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/2...

Hello!
After =years= of resisting the idea, I finally broke down last night and started a blog that I have dubbed The Maze of Twisty Passages. I've also linked it to my Goodreads author profile, and I maintain a similar themed fan page on Facebook.

Thanks for your attention!

Winners of Garden Variety Giveaway announced below on blog. Congratulations to all who participated and the authors involved. The Lord's blessings to you. http://janetsyasnitsick.wordpress.com/

Many books begin with a great hook. Have you ever thought about ending the book with a bang? Please check out The End on this week's blog at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ .

Thank you,

Marja

Hello; I have just made a promo or trailer of my books. Please look at it and let me know if it looks interesting enough to catch your interest. Would you buy them? Thanks Lyn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuxB4...
www.mystery-novels-lynmillerlacoursie...

Absurd drivel and political commentary ...

http://jdrachel.com/slow-bullets/

Lyn Miller wrote: "Hello; I have just made a promo or trailer of my books. Please look at it and let me know if it looks interesting enough to catch your interest. Would you buy them? Thanks Lyn
https://www.youtube.c..."

Lyn Miller wrote: "Hello; I have just made a promo or trailer of my books. Please look at it and let me know if it looks interesting enough to catch your interest. Would you buy them? Thanks Lyn
https://www.youtube.c..."

I enjoyed listening to you and thought you did a terrific job of explaining all the books in the series quickly. I found it interesting enough to take a second look at the books.

Promo trailers for my newest novel ...

http://bit.ly/11Klf6s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vciyk7...
http://bit.ly/19DtUhv

Your comments will be helpful. I am trying to get ground privileges here at the institution. Right now I'm in a padded cell with only a 5000-piece puzzle of the Milky Way.

Best-selling author Ruth Ann Nordin and I are writing a collaborative book where two women meet on a train. Each of us are writing our own novellas. My title is She Came by Train. Read an excerpt off link: http://janetsyasnitsick.wordpress.com...

Roger wrote: I find myself intrigued by the relations and cooperations between the muses. Take Opera for instance. Opera is not just a story put to music. The acting makes it High drama and the music expresses and enhances the action, the pathos and the tragedy.

Amen to that. This should probably go under books made into operas (movies), but Roger raised it here and so here goes. I would suggest three operas based on plays, all of which are in some ways more emotionally gripping and/or satisfying than the plays. Verdi wrote two of them, Otello and Falstaff (Othello and Merry Wives of Windsor). He had a genius librettist, which helped, in Boito, but I find both better than the plays, both of which I also love. Moussorgsky's Boris Gudenov is based on Pushkin's play of that name, which is almost unstageable. One needs to see Moussorgsky's version before Rimsky-Korsakov got his hands on it and made it "better" (there is an excellent DVD done by the Kirov in St. Petersburg). And then there is Die Meistersinger, which comes from nowhere but the mind of Wagner. But it otherwise satisfies Roger's criteria. It has lovely music, one loves the characters (even the repellent Beckmesser), it is funny, and the boy gets the girl in the end. The lead character, Hans Sachs, actually existed in the time frame specified, lived in Nuremberg, and was a poet. In the last scene, when he enters, the chorus greets him with a moving chorale, the words to which are by the real Hans Sachs. These are all available in good productions on DVD. Try them out and let me know what you think. Oh yes, and for those who have reached a certain age, we can take solace and find hope in reflecting that when Falstaff premiered, Verdi had just turned 80. Not just the young can create.

Quirky humor, social satire, and harsh political commentary ...

http://jdrachel.com/slow-bullets/

This week's blog discusses giving characters in books an extra degree of difficulty. Please check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ .

Thank you,

Marja

Today Terry Shames visits my blog to discuss the promotion treadmill and why she's ready to step off of it. If you're an author, how about you? Are you still racing on the treadmill or ready to take a break (I know I am!)? And if you're a reader, what's your impression of author promotion? Does it turn you off or are you happy to be alerted about potential new reads? Leave a comment on her blog post to enter Terry's contest for a free autographed copy of her book, A KILLING AT COTTON HILL.

http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/

Do you have dreams about the direction you'd like your life to take? Please check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ . Tell me about your dreams in your comments. : )

Thank you,

Marja

"A Love Story"
A story on M. Newman's Blog

http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_...

My 4th novel Blood Diamonds Conspiracy, a political thriller is available on FREE promotion at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CEOVGEO from July 19-21.

Get to know me and what I am interested in writing about by downloading your FREE copy.

Here are a couple of reviews about the book to stimulate your interest.

For someone not familiar with the works of Yvonne Crowe, this is an excellent place to start. While her book, The Magdalene Conspiracy, is considered her cornerstone book, this book might make a run at that title. I thoroughly enjoyed the read and recommend it to anyone wanting to read a book of real substance and quality. Here is your chance to catch a rising star. Dennis Waller author of Reflections.

I am a big fan of Yvonne Crowe's works. They are finely researched and paint an amazing picture both of the current situation in the lands she explores: as well as their geographical and political history. Here Yvonne takes a current and immensely sad situation in sub-Saharan Africa and builds a totally credible tapestry of how this situation may have arisen: as well as a glimpse into possible futures. Well worth a very-thought-provoking read. Mr. Duncan J Baker Shropshire UK.

Enjoy

My guest this week is Shirley Kennedy, who is changing genres and having a great time in the process. Please stop in and find out what's going on at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ .

Thank you,

Marja

Today fellow mystery author Meg Mims visits my blog to answer my interview questions. She's also running a contest for those who comment for an electronic copy of DOUBLE OR NOTHING, her new release. Please stop by!
http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/

Like a deer drinks water from a stream to refresh itself so should we. None of us can keep up a fast pace forever. We all need a break from our writing. ... http://janetsyasnitsick.wordpress.com...

Today fellow mystery author Patricia Smith Wood visits my blog to answer my interview questions. She's also running a contest for those who comment for an autographed copy of THE EASTER EGG MURDER, her new release. Please stop by!
http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/

If you have a moment to stop in, this week's blog is about old time villains and mysteries at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ . Hope to see you there.

Thank you,

Marja

Today fellow mystery/thriller author L. A. Starks visits my blog to answer my interview questions. She's also running a contest for those who comment for an autographed copy of her thriller, 13 DAYS: THE PYTHAGORAS CONSPIRACY. Please stop by!
http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/

Lilith (a short story)

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

This week's blog is about early attempts at writing and where we go from there. Hope you can stop in at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ and add your story to the mix.

Thank you,

Marja

Hi all,

Hope all is well. I have created some giveaways for my newest books!

Enter below for a chance to win a copy of my latest children’s book: “The Stuffed House”

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...

or here for a chance to win a copy of “Luki and the Rocket Power Shoes”

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...

or go to Amazon and check them out ☺

Happy Reading ☺

Jill

p.s. you can find my books on amazon or click below

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...+

Is there a relationship between photos and fiction? Check it out at http://blog.marjamcgraw.com/ .

Thank you,

Marja