A to Z Theme Reveal

Okay kids. It's the day you've all been waiting for! It's time for my A to Z theme reveal!

This year's theme is...

The Good Pirate, Robert!

This is a current WIP (work in progress). It is my first shot at a fantasy-type story.

I want to give you a little background on this. Robert was the name of a bird we had. We have a few birds, including a pair of Lovebirds. They had had clutches (babies) in the past, but Mom (CJ) hadn't laid any eggs in a few years. That is until last summer.

She laid 7 eggs, 4 of which were viable. All 4 of those hatched. Unfortunately, we lost one pretty early on. The other 3, however, seemed to be thriving.

Robert was one of those babies. He had a brief encounter with one of our dogs. He survived, but there was obvious brain damage. Within hours, though, he showing us how tough and resilient he was.

One of the "symptoms" he showed was that he kept his right eye closed (he was able to open it after some time, but it seemed that he preferred to keep it closed). So I always said that he looked like a little pirate. That's where things kind of took off.

Daily, I shared pictures and videos of him and his siblings as they grew up. His siblings developed more quickly than he did. For example, when they were learning to fly, he was still learning to climb. Nothing kept him down, though. He was so determined; he seemed so bright and happy.

One night in September, I went to get him for his evening feeding, and he was dying. We're not sure what happened. We can only assume it is somehow related to the trauma and injuries. Perhaps he threw a blood clot, we don't know. It was a devastating loss.


Robert was such a happy guy, and when I announced his passing on Facebook, I was floored by the number of people who were saddened. People I had never met - people from around the globe who were touched by this little baby Lovebird. At that point, I knew his life wasn't in vain, and that there was something greater to him. That was when I began writing his story.


This book is not complete, in fact, it is very much still a rough draft. I want to use this month to honor Robert, to share his story, and to help this book improve.


So please join me in this fun and unique journey.

Trust me, you're gonna love it!

See you April 1!

Prepping

Hi kids!

I want to let you all know that I am prepping for this year's A to Z challenge, as I have done for the past few years. I'm also doing a second, independent one in May. In doing so, I will not be blogging during the month of March, so that I have time to get all of my posts perfect for the challenges. You will hear from me on the 21st when I reveal my theme for the official A to Z Challenge.

Until then, happy reading!

Blog Hop Tour

Hi everyone!

Today, I am part of a blog hop tour.

My name is Lauren Shiro.



I write contemporary LGBT fiction.




I was invited to answer these by author K'Anne Meinel. You can find out more about her and her infinite list of titles at http://www.kannemeinel.com/


ABOUT ME: I've been writing my whole life. As a kid, I had much more fun staying up in my room writing "novels" than playing outside. At the age of 14, I was published nationally for the first time. Since then, my work has been found in newspapers, magazines, online, in books and text books. I love writing, both fiction and non-fiction alike. When I'm not writing, I spend my time working as a licensed veterinary technician, and I enjoy hobbies from wood working to roller derby.




CURRENT PROJECT: I just finished a full-length novel, Candles on the Spinet.


Military couple Darryl and Corinne Richards purchase their first house. With Darryl’s army career coming to a close, they feel ready to settle down in Louisville, Kentucky. With impeccable timing, Darryl is sent on one final tour, leaving Corinne to live in this new house and new city alone.
Overwhelmed, Corinne becomes reclusive, living a quiet, boring life with her cats as she adjusts to her new surroundings. The problem is: someone or something does not want her life to be quiet or boring. And then there’s the creepy piano in the basement…
A series of strange experiences and events triggers Corinne to dig deeper into her home’s history, and herself. As Corinne learns of the people and past of her home, she also learns some new skills, and she learns about who she really is.
There is more to that creepy, dilapidated piano and that house that Corinne could ever imagine. Through highs and lows, twists and turns, she realizes the importance of placing candles on the spinet.

Candles on the Spinet is due for release this fall!


My current project is a story called Life, Upside Down.

Chantal Thompson is a strong, independent general contractor. She's the kind of person that's always going. A terrible accident suddenly brings her to a screeching halt. Unable to move, she is forced to reevaluate her life. She needs to come to terms with her past, accept her current situation, and look towards the future. It's amazing how slowing down your pace can completely change your perspective on life.


WHAT MAKES MY STORIES DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS IN THE SAME GENRE?: My stories are character driven, rather that plot driven. It's not to say there isn't a plot. My stories connect you deeply with the characters. You see their perspective, you feel their feelings, you experience their story. My books are deep, emotional and very cerebral.



WHY DO I WRITE THE STORIES THAT I DO?: I write my stories with a hope of creating positive social change. My tag line is "Stories of Love without Boundaries." In my stories, you will see me challenge racial lines, social stereotypes, and common prejudices. My books are very much a means for me to create. Personally, I create with intention. In this case, my intention is to help shatter the accepted social norms and to send a message of love, acceptance, and equality.



HOW DOES MY WRITING PROCESS WORK?: I like to think of myself as an organic writer. I go into each of my stories with a basic premise. As I work, I just let the words, people, and events come to me. There have been many times where I have been surprised by what comes out. I like going with the flow and allowing my stories to create themselves. Inspiration can come anywhere and at anytime. I try to keep a pen & paper on hand so I can jot down notes if I'm not able to get to my laptop right away.



WHO'S NEXT ON THE BLOG HOP? I happily pass the torch to a good friend and a great writer, Chelle Cordero. I've known her for years, and her work never ceases to amaze me. She is an author for all readers! Her blog is at http://chellecordero.blogspot.com/ You can also find out more information about her at http://chellecordero.com/




Thanks so much for joining us on the blog hop! Happy reading!!! :)

Writing Weekend Warriors

Happy weekend, y'all! :)




I know it's the weekend! I'm just changing it up! ;)





This weekend, I am doing the Weekend Writing Warriors 8 Sentence Sunday. So come join us in the fun that is #8sunday! ;)

Click www.wewriwa.com for more information and to see other 8 Sentence Sunday posts.



Here are 8 sentences for my upcoming novel, Candles on the Spinet:



Corinne sat in the bare living room with the front door to the old house wide open. The screen door made a pitiful barrier between her and the raging thunderstorm outside. The light, sweet, crisp scent of rain tickled the back of her nostrils with each gust of wind. The rain was more than welcome, though. The humidity had finally died down and there was even a slight chill in the air. Drenched green leaves danced and twirled on just the other side of the door.

Surrounding Corinne was a sea of boxes. Her whole life was contained in the plain brown parcels. Pictures, memories, books, sentimental items: indeed, her entire existence was covered in bubble wrap and contained in the boxes she had clearly marked.

Happy Reading!

A to Z

Hi gang!

This year, I am going to try something completely new. This will be quite a challenge for me, but my new year's resolution was to grow, challenge and improve myself as a writer, so here we go!

Starting next week, I am beginning the A to Z blog challenge. It's a blog hop of sorts with one major challenge: save for Sundays, writing a blog post every day in the month of April and each post must pertain to a letter of the alphabet. The calendar is as follows:

Week One:
April 01, Monday - Letter "A"
April 02, Tuesday - Letter "B"
April 03, Wednesday - Letter "C"
April 04, Thursday - Letter "D"
April 05, Friday - Letter "E"
April 06, Saturday - Letter "F"


Week Two:
April 07, Sunday - BREAK
April 08, Monday - Letter "G"
April 09, Tuesday - Letter "H"
April 10, Wednesday - Letter "I"
April 11, Thursday - Letter "J"
April 12, Friday - Letter "K"
April 13, Saturday - Letter "L"


Week Three:
April 14, Sunday - BREAK
April 15, Monday - Letter "M"
April 16, Tuesday - Letter "N"
April 17, Wednesday - Letter "O"
April 18, Thursday - Letter "P"
April 19, Friday - Letter "Q"
April 20, Saturday - Letter "R"


Week Four:
April 21, Sunday - BREAK
April 22, Monday - Letter "S"
April 23, Tuesday - Letter "T"
April 24, Wednesday - Letter "U"
April 25, Thursday - Letter "V"
April 26, Friday - Letter "W"
April 27, Saturday - Letter "X"


Week Five:
April 28, Sunday - BREAK
April 29, Monday - Letter "Y"
April 30, Tuesday - Letter "Z"


Am I up for this? I don't know. But I am willing to try. I want to improve as a writer, and there is no better way to do that than by something like this.

My theme will be creativity and the arts. As a person who grew up in and appreciating all art forms, I didn't want to limit myself to one medium. So, I will be discussing the arts in their various forms and creativity.

I hope you like all of my posts and I hope I can win this challenge! :)

So, until Monday, happy reading! :)

Love is Blind Blog-A-Thon

I am of mixed race. I don’t necessarily look it, but my heritage includes white, black and indigenous. I grew up in a major metropolis, going to school with children of all races, colors and religions. So, when I began writing my two-set story (Imperfect and Impeccable), I had no idea what I was getting into when I joined a black woman with a white woman.
I have friends in interracial relationships, and I myself have had friends and lovers of all backgrounds and races. The thought of an interracial relationship was (and still is) normal to me. It didn’t faze me. I really didn’t think it was an issue. I just thought I was writing another love story.
Then, the story began to write itself. Suddenly, I was seeing the world through black and white glasses. People were suddenly defined by their skin color, not by their character. It was a very eye-opening experience to write about prejudices that were completely foreign to me. I actually learned a lot by writing this story.
I learned what it was like to see people from a different perspective. I started to see the labels: black, white, gay, straight. Now, I am not justifying the categorization of people. It’s just that some of my characters labeled other people and I wrote words and dialogue that you would never hear me say.
Being the colorblind person I am, I made sure to counter that with words and dialogue that were my own. Words that showed our humanity. Words that expressed acceptance, not just tolerance. Words that would help my prejudiced characters – and potentially even readers – see people for WHO they are rather than WHAT they are.
My tag line is, “stories of love without boundaries.” For me, love knows no gender, no color, no religion. Love is love. It is a connection between two people. It is the connection between their souls, not their skin. When I write, I write stories about people. What they look like has nothing to do with who they are. They are simply people in love.
I love writing about love. And honestly, I love writing about people from all walks of life. I love diversity, I love humanity. I will continue to write stories about people: white, black, Asian, Hispanic, Middle Eastern – you name it! It doesn’t matter to me what my characters or my readers look like because in the end, we are all simply human.

For more information about Imperfect and Impeccable, as well as my other works, please visit the following pages:
Website: www.leharvey.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/leharvey77
Twitter: @leharvey77
Please feel free to e-mail me at: leharvey77@gmail.com

One lucky reader/commenter will be chosen at random to receive a FREE e-book copy of both Imperfect and Impeccable! Leave a comment and you may just get chosen! ;) Good luck and happy reading!

And the winners from the blog hop are...

First off, I would like to thank EVERYONE who participated in the blog hop. It was a tremendous success thanks to all of you! :)

It was great to "meet" you all! I hope to see all of you again soon! :)



And now, without further ado...

The winner of the free E-book copies of Imperfect and Impeccable is "Savannah." Congratulations!!! Enjoy the books! :)

And the big winner of the free Kindle is...

Michelle Bledsoe!

A big congratulations to Michelle!!! :)

Again, thank you all so very much for joining us!

Please stay with us as we do give aways from time to time, so you never know...You could be the next winner! :)

Happy reading!

Friday the 13th Blog Hop

The Hop STARTS at http://briclarkthebelleofboise.blogspot.com
and she will display the link to the next stop in the Hop in her post. Each blogger will do the same, so you'll be visiting every link in the Hop's chain. If that host is offering a giveaway on his/her blog, go ahead and enter to win their contest
Next: www.AuthorSRClaridge.com/BlogHopPrizeEntry.htm Or www.FeelingTheFiction.blogspot.com
Contest: One random reader's name will be selected by leaving a comment and they will win a FREE e-book copy of Imperfect and Impeccable!


You made it! :) This is the last stop on the hop!

Hi everyone and welcome to my blog, The Writings and Ramblings of a Philadelphian. My name is Lauren Harvey, I write under the name L. E. Harvey.


I write,

I ramble,

and yes, I am a Philadelphian.

Since today is Friday the 13th, I want to discuss something very strange...and a tad frightening! ;)

As a writer, my background is in non-fiction. Historical non-fiction, scientific papers, newspaper, magazine and textbook articles...if it was a boring regurgitation of information, I wrote it!






As a side project, strictly for myself, I began writing a series of intertwined short stories. When my publisher got word of this "project," she asked me to see them. Incredibly hesitant and nervous, I submitted my stories. Next thing I remember, Loving Her was published.

Now, here's where it gets...interesting. You see the more I was challenged to write fiction, the more fiction I wrote. I began to develop a voice and to improve my craft. I found that stories and characters came flooding to me and I was simply a vessel to put those stories and those characters' lives on paper.

I wrote stories and about people that simply came to me. I always considered it inspiration. That is, until...

It started happening to me. As my own life began to play out, I discovered that it incrediby paralleled my stories. It could easily be said that I simply wrote about my experiences. I kinda did, except that, my experiences came AFTER the stories had been written.







I cannot begin to describe just how frightning this actually was. Now granted, there were no chainsaw massacre killers knocking on my front door or anything like that.

But things that I could not have planned or forseen suddenly became true.

Imperfect and Impeccable were the most "prophetic" of my books, if you will. But really all of my books are a glance into my past, present and dare I say, my future.

Forget tarot cards,

forget fortune tellers,

forget the magic eight ball.

If I want to know my future, I just have to crack open one of my books!






Strange?

Absolutely!






Scary?

I think so.






Appropriate for Friday the 13th?

Undoubtedly!






Does it make you want to read Imperfect and Impeccable? I sure hope so! ;) One of you will be lucky enough to win free e-book copies of Imperfect and Impeccable! The link to the entry form is at the bottom of this post! ;)




Good luck and happy reading!

Ok, now that we're all done hopping, don't forget to fill out the contest entry form at www.AuthorSRClaridge.com/BlogHopPrizeEntry.htm Or www.FeelingTheFiction.blogspot.com