I'm in the Spotlight!

Yet another Thursday is upon is, folks! :)

Today, I want to share something with you. I am currently in an author spotlight, so I figured I'd share my interview and video with you! :)




What inspires you to get out of bed each day?

It’s not so much inspiration as much as it is the three dogs waking me up as they claim they are starving to death at 6 a.m. LOL.



What do you do to unwind and relax?

I do some woodworking, wood furniture refinishing and such. It can be hard work at times, but it brings about a zen-like state for me, and I feel almost as emotionally satisfied working on a wood piece as I do finishing a story.



Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

In this current age of publishing, the industry is overflowing with books and authors. It can be very difficult to sell yourself as an author when you are one small fish in a very large and very crowded ocean. I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but I am unlike any other author you’ve read before. My stories are character driven. What you will experience is an intimate, emotional experience that stays with you. You’re not going to get a lot of flash. No car explosions, no gratuitous sex. What you get are genuine, personal, touching, heart felt, emotional, cerebral stories.




Loving Her, The Series, Volume 1


In this series of stories, we meet a group of loving friends and couples. Each member of this group is diverse in personalities and abilities, but they are tied together by the common denominator – love. from Chelle Cordero, Combining Passion & Suspense


The Model


She’s exotic. She’s beautiful. She’s talented. She’s unique. She’s Stephania. A young successful model who started from nothing, she has experienced all the ups and downs of life. Never one to be kept down, she persists through life’s trials and reaches for the fairytale ending she has always hoped for. Stephania’s emotional journey is the fourth story in the Loving Her series.


The Mechanic


Linda – her name means beautiful… After facing rejection from her parents because she is a lesbian, Linda didn’t feel beautiful… she felt lost and alone. As a skilled mechanic, Linda built her business… Her love life was a different matter. Until Katie… Together they survived, and together they would face their future, finding hope and joy neither ever expected.


The Cop


Donna White is one tough cop. Behind the badge, though, is a very sweet, sad, sensitive soul. Truly a woman alone, Donna is simply trying to navigate her way through life. Who is Donna? She is dedicated, determined, distinctive and deep. Donna’s rich and touching story is second in the Loving Her series.


The Ballerina


A southern, redheaded, pickup driving lesbian ballerina? You bet! Meet Liz: a southern belle with flair. Vivacious, eclectic and graceful, she is unique to say the least. The first in the series of Loving Her stories, Liz’s story is the kind that stays with you long after you’ve closed the book.


Imperfect


Carol Mathers, in her mid-thirties, a highly sought-after IT guru in St. Louis. She has built a great life for herself with her partner, Alexandria, even though the two face prejudice as lesbians, and as an interracial couple -fighting tragedy and sometimes, triumphing amidst the chaos…


Impeccable


Carol — abandoned – waiting… for what, she couldn’t know. She couldn’t see that there was more life waiting for her. Carol is forced to face the demons of her past as well as begin to face life without Alex. Struggling to make sense of it all, Carol experiences her new life and all of the highs and lows that come with that life.


Unbreakable Hostage


Lareina Oliveira; she wants to share her passion for math. So it is back to school for Lareina… a tough Ph.D. program. A classmate is captivated by Lareina’s beauty and intelligence, and despite her repeated refusals to his attentions, he kidnaps her! Only her determination and wits can save her…


Amnesie, a short story


What happens to love when life changes? Two women in love, one debilitating change…


Trajectory, a short story

Joe Davis has spent the last four years of his life behind a scope as a sniper for the Detroit PD’s SWAT Team. A fateful call sends Joe and his team deep into the Detroit Ghetto; and reminds him that there is more to life than what’s on the other end of his gun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9cI_eH2WtM&feature=youtu.be

Do you really want to read my books?

Happy Thursday gang! The weekend is almost within our grasp!


Today, I want to be brutally honest with you. I want to talk about why my books suck.


Actually, they don't. LOL. Comparatively speaking, the ORIGINAL Loving Her kind of sucks, but the new ones are some of my best writing to date. I have been told that they are good, and quite honestly, I think they're fairly good myself. Are they the greatest literature ever written? Probably not. I like them, but I'm not an ego-maniac.


But, you see, I suck. I suck at shameless self-promotion. Yes, I want to get my name out there. Yes, I want you to read my books. But...can't the work just speak for itself?


Unfortunately, the writing world is inundated with writers and books. Self-published, indie, small-press, big-press...there are a lot of us out there. It can be very difficult to sell yourself as an author when you are one small fish in a very large and very crowded ocean. I couldn't sell a furnace to an Eskimo if my life depended on it, let alone try to convince you that my books are the greatest thing you've ever read.


It doesn't help that my books don't involve any exploding cars or gratuitous sex. My stories are character driven. The are genuine, intimate, emotional, personal, touching stories. They are stories that stay with you long after you close the book. The characters, their relationships, their lives resonate with you because they are real.


So, how do I push these books? How do I sell myself and my work? Honestly, I'm not 100% sure. I do the best that I can. I know there are better ways for authors to promote their work, but I also don't want to come across as some pompous ass who thinks their work is the best thing since sliced bread.


So, if you could do me a favor and please just read my books. I'd really appreciate it! :)

Happy reading!!!

P: Poetry

In my younger days, I loved writing poetry. Poetry was a wonderful outlet for me and I think I wrote poetry well. My staccato voice and love of powerful words found a great home in poetry.

When I divorced, my sole request was to have all of my belongings returned to me. Unforunately, my ex-husband did not fulfill my request. Instead, he held on to a few of my most prized possessions including books I had been published in and my beloved blank journal in which I wrote my poetry.

I have not written poetry since. That was thirteen years ago.

Thirteen years of no poetry. In fact, it was at that point that I had really focused my attention on the sciences and any writing I did was non-fiction. Facts were my life; creativity eluded me greatly.

In 2006, I began writing fiction just for myself. I enjoyed it tremendously. Pushed by my publisher, I submitted it and have been writing fiction ever since.

Still no poetry, though.

That is until recently.

A dear friend of mine is a writer in The Netherlands. She recently discovered the Dutch form of poetry known as Elje.

An Elfje is a Dutch poem of consisting of 11 words. The stanzas are broken down such as this:

1
23
456
78910
11

So it's one word, then two, then three, then four, then back to one.

I don't know why, but something about Elfjes appealed to me. They weren't intimidating. They seemed like a fun form of poetry.

There are rules for writing these, but I (along with my friend), have decided that rules are simply meant to be broken! :) I have no idea what the rules are, I just write them as I see/feel fit.

And they are. Since I started, I have written several elfjes (I average about one poem per day). I cannot describe how cathartic these poems have been for me. They free me, cleanse me, heal me. Most importantly, they challenge me. It's a new genre. There are so many ways to write these, so many different ways to express one's self just through elfjes. I simply love enfjes!

Poetry takes on many forms and are a wonderful way to express oneself. I highly suggest writing in any form of poetry that appeals to you. Elfjes are just one wondeful form of self expression. :)

Inspiration and Aspiration

Good Thursday morningm y'all! 'Tis almost the weekend!!!! ;)

So this morning may be a bit of a repeat of an older blog, but it's still gonna be a good one. I promise. :)



Writers teach and inspire each other simply by our work. Different voices, various perspectives all help us to grow and improve our craft. I can list numerous writers that have inspired me and who have helped me to grow and improve as a writer.



There is one, however, who created the highest level to which I aspire. That writer is Grant Nieporte.

Mr. Nieporte wrote a movie which I consider one of the most well written stories ever, Seven Pounds.




Seven Pounds is so original, so beautiful, so powerful. It is cerebral, emotional, cathartic. In my humble opinion, it is the perfect story.



Nieporte met someone who inspired him to write the story. He met someone he called, "one of the saddest people I've ever met in my life". He did not give a name, but he described this person's eyes, their aura, their body language. This person was involved in a horrible accident which left seven people dead.



Nieporte then takes that and uses that as inspiration to write Seven Pounds. What he does is create a new story from this one person's true story. He weaves new characters, new emotions, new actions and a new ending. What he crafted was a true masterpiece.



That's what I want to create. I want to write stories that touch people. I want to craft a story that is realistic, unqiue, beautiful, inspirational, emotional.



I think it's important for all of us to aspire to new things in our various ventures in life. Stagnancy is never a good thing. So, we set goals for ourselves and we work towards them. Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we exceed even our own expectations and yes, sometimes we miss the mark. But as long as we move forward, we never truly fail.



This is me continuing to work and write in the hopes that one day I can craft a story that will touch you in the same way Seven Pounds touched me.

Happy reading, everyone!!! :)

Guest Blog Author K'Anne Meinel

Good Thursday morning, everyone! Today, we have a guest blogger! :)


Please help me welcome author K'Anne Meinel as she talks about her book, Sapphic Surfer! :)



Welcome, K'Anne!

Why don't you tell us a little about your book, Sapphic Surfer? :)

Ashley is a Midwestern girl who is enjoying the life in Southern California. She learns to surf, a lifelong dream that wasn’t possible in Illinois. Now she meets professional surfer Willow Samuels who becomes a good friend to her. How good isn’t really apparent until she realizes there is a mutual attraction. Can a virgin such as Ashley cope with the feelings that are building inside her for the famous surfer? Can a Midwestern girl with all the morals and hang-ups ingrained in her overcome them to actually enter into a Sapphic romance with this woman?

Ashley is conflicted when she realizes she is having feelings for her famous friend Willow. When Willow makes a pass at her she realizes that her friend is gay and attracted to her, how can she overcome a lifetime of ethics and values that just might destroy the happiness that Willow offers her?



Sounds very interesting! What was the inspiration for a story like that?



When I began to write SAPPHIC SURFER I wanted to create a story that told of first times. First time love, first time sex, first time feelings, a lot of firsts. The characters are young and have their whole lives before them. Ashley has to deal with an attraction to her good friend that is something that would not be acceptable in the atmosphere she was raised in the Midwest. I myself have had to deal with that.



I also wanted to show California in the 80’s when I lived there. I used the area of Huntington Beach and the townhome complex because I actually lived there for over a decade. I in fact bought a townhome three miles from the beach at 19 while working at The Federated Group; it was a crazy and exciting time. Using personal experience makes a story such as this more personal, believable, and touching. Fans frequently write me because they have been to these places, have had similar experiences, I’ve even been known to accidentally write their life stories.



Struggling with your morals and ethics when you are brought up in a strict Midwestern family can be difficult but the attraction you feel for someone makes you question those things. Not that they are wrong but neither are the things you are feeling that makes you take a step back and think about what you actually believe and want out of life. Essentially these morals and ethics never go away, they are an intrinsic part of you, instead the experiences of meeting someone that challenges them makes you a different person, hopefully for the better.



Someday I might continue on the story of SAPPHIC SURFER but I want to travel to the locations myself…a good excuse anyway to visit the exotic locations I mentioned in the story for future reference and great ideas! ;-)~



Wow! Thank you so much for sharing that with us! :)

Lastly, K'Anne, where can readers find outr more about you and your book?


Sapphic Surfer:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005LVQM46



To see my books and biography: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/kannemeinel



and on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&search-alias=digital-text&field-author=K%27Anne%20Meinel




Like me on Facebook to keep up on my books and stories: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/KAnne-Meinel-Fan-Page/162171377151506

Thanks so much for joining us today, K'Anne!

Happy Thursday and happy reading to everyone! :)

Amnesie

My newest short story. I highly recommend it! ;)

What happens to love when life changes? Two women in love, one debilitating change...

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/143499

Bragging Rights

I had a regular blog post all set for today, and I will return you to your regularly scheduled programming next week. ;) And now for something completely different. ;)

For you see, this week both Imperfect and Impeccable got 5 star - er, buggie - reviews from buggie4book.com! Needless to say, I am a tad excited.

And so, here are the links and a few excerpts from both reviews. Enjoy! :)

Imperfect:
http://buggie4book.com/2012/03/03/imperfect-by-l-e-harvey-review/

"This book was a wonderful read. I would read it again and tell people about it. I would give this book a 5 hands down I felt like I knew the people in the book. Gave me a new out look on gays. This book will show you that we are all the same and love is love is love.
Very glad I got to read and review this book." -Mellisa Neal, buggie4book.com

Impeccable:
http://buggie4book.com/2012/03/05/impeccable-by-l-e-harvey/

"LOVED LOVED LOVED this book! I read both books and cried like a baby in the end of the last one. I had to put the book down so I could stop crying long enough to finish. I give it a 5 I loved both books. L.E. Harvey is a wonderful writer who knows how to word stuff so people can understand and really think about what they just read. I will read these books again for sure no questions ask. The people in the book you feel like you know them. That is what I call a damn good book." -Mellisa Neal, Buggie4Book.com


Happy reading!!!!! :)

Impeccable

The day I have been waiting for (for my entire life) finally arrived last weekend.


No, I'm not pregnant.

No, I'm not married...yet. ;)

Impeccable was released over the weekend!

I have been squealing with excitement like a piglet! It's just freaking awesome!

Impeccable is out in e-book formats right now, and always the good author that I am, I have the buy link on the the home page of www.leharvey.com




What is so special about Impeccable?

What isn't?





Seriously, Impeccable is the sequel to Imperfect that no one saw coming. It's ironic, because I thought it was at least pretty clear that the story wasn't done with Imperfect, and yet so many readers were floored that there was a sequel! LOL. There is and you can now read it (and get the FULL story)!

Imperfect and Impeccable were both written during dark times in my life. What's interesting is that they were very therapeutic for me. As much as I wanted to touch my readers, writing these two books touched me. That I could be impacted by these books astounds me. Not to sound egotistical, quite the contrary. I have never thought myself an incredible writer, so to be surprised not only by the story but by how it impacted me surprised me! Maybe I'm a bit better than I thought! LOL.

Both Imperfect and Impeccable surprised me in a lot of ways. Without giving it all away, those notes were not originally supposed to be tied to the person they were tied to. Things happened in Imperfect and I never quite knew why. As I wrote Impeccable, it all just fell into place. I did NOT plan it that way. It just happened. Lastly, I knew the basic end to Impeccable but how I actually close the book is as much a surprise to me as I think it would be to anyone else. I love that as a writer, I just go with the story and end up just as surprised as my readers! Life is not planned out to a "t," why should a story? The journey is a part of what makes a book great!

That being said, the journey in both Imperfect and Impeccable is emotional; it is trying; it is triumphant; it is cerebral; it is spritiual; it is fun; it is somber. It is incredible. If you are looking for a story that will truly touch you, look no further, my friend. There is a reason why I say this set will touch your heart and change your mind.

So, go download your copy of Impeccable today! I PROMISE you, you will not be disappointed!

Happy reading!

Not Accepting the Status Quo

Greetings, dear readers! I apologize for the tremendous gap in between blogs. Some of you may be aware that my life has taken some incredible twists and turns over the past few months. But, I am back on top and ready to conquer the world AGAIN! ;)



One of the things that I have noticed since moving to this rural area is just how much people, at least around here, are willing to just accept things as they are. I don't know if it's because they don't know any better/any other way of living or if they truly are satisfied with how things are.



For example, there are people around here who will travel up to 3 hours just to go to their vet. Seriously? Seriously. These people may not be the majority, however, the majority around here averages anywhere from 20 min to 1 hour. Now, we're not talking 1 hour stuck in rush hour traffic, people. We're talking regular, open road, 55 mph driving. But that's the way it is around here. There is just nothing here. Things are so spread out, you have to travel. And most people around here simply accept that.



Me? Not so much. I'm a city girl. I'm used to vets and Starbucks on every corner! LOL. In all seriousness, though, I still struggle with the sparseness of life around here. I can't and won't settle for life this way simply because I know of a better way to live (city life, or at least suburbia).



That applies to everything in my life. Not one to just accept the fact that NY didn't allow marriage equality, I made sure my voice was heard. Then NY passed the marriage equality bill. Now, I know it wasn't all due to me. That's not my point. My point is, I didn't accept the status quo and I helped to bring about a positive change.





I do the same with my writing. There are too many imperfections in this world. I realize that we will never fully fix them. but I can still mke sure I help to bring about more positive change by not accepting the status quo in my writings.





In Loving Her, there is not one character who doesn't fight to bring about change in her life one way or another. None of those women will settle for the status quo. They are strong and fiesty. They want more. And you know what? They get more, all because they would not accept life just as it is.






In Unbreakable Hostage, Lareina does not accept her life as a captive at all. Had she settled and just accepted things as they were, there would be no story! She refused to settle, and you get a great suspense story as the result!





In Trajectory, Joe does not settle for his job. He realizes that his status quo is something far greater and darker than he can stand. He brings about changing his whole life by not accepting the dark, morbid life he leads.






In Imperfect (and the up-coming sequel, Impeccable), neither Carol nor Alex accept things as they are. If they had, Carol would never own her own company. Alex would never get sober. They never would have been together due to their own issues, as well as the bigotry an inter-racial lesbian couple faces. But they push on. They challenge themselves and the world around them to see more, to do more, to think more. The end result are two beautiful and powerful stories of love, change, devotion, heartbreak, family. There is tremendous change within these stories, but they also bring about tremendous change in the reader as well!



I, personally, simply cannot accept things as they are. I cannot accept prejudice of any kind. I cannot accept intolerance. I cannot accept the fact that people still label other people. So I don't. And I use my writing as a tool - a vessel - to help others see and hear what I see and hear. For them to think. To be challenged. You never know. Wanting more than the status quo could just be the greatest thing since sliced bread! ;)

VBT Author Spotlight: DR. J. Sivak

Good Wednesday and Thanksgiving Eve morning, everyone! :)


Today, we have author and MD, Dr. J. Sivak with us,


discussing his book, When Can I go Home? This is very touching, so I ask that you please help me welcome him here today. I think you'll enjoy what he has to say. :)


I first started writing When Can I Go Home? back in 1989 when I was in my last year of medical school. That was about a year after my mother died from Alzheimer's disease.
The book is a memoir about my mother's futile struggle with the disease. After she passed away I had a tremendous need and sometimes furious drive to record the journey in a timeless and permanent way. As a teenager, I had been my mother's primary caregiver for a few years , as the disease progressively robbed her of her cognitive abilities, personality and her very essence. At the time writing about it was very cathartic.
The disease process is profoundly isolating for families and I wanted to scream out and tell the world. That element is there in so many Alzheimer's memoirs. Unfortunately the issue of isolation has not improved in our society and much as we like to pretend it has in the last thirty years since my mother was diagnosed. At that time most people had not heard of Alzheimer's disease and of course now it is a household term, but as a society we are still ignorant and terrified about it till it affects our own family. The isolation is still there.
The book is a bit unusual or even paradoxical from an Alzheimer's memoir point of view in that It presents a dual perspective. First is a family caregiver specifically a teenager son, which is a bit unusual and at times even bizarre, since that is not the prototypical demographic of a caregiver. The other perspective is a clinical one from a physician. I have treated thousands of patients and their families affected by many psychiatric and neurological problems including many Alzheimer's victims. The clinical information is broken down and translated for the reader.
So you essentially have these two very different points of view sort of flip-flopping but sort of coming into what I hope is a harmonious symmetry. The third aspect of the book is an underlying and ongoing commentary on all the relevant sociological and psychological issues this book interfaces with. Such issues as the state of health care delivery, being a doctor, and the aging population are addressed and sometimes not in a very convenient way for those that need to hold onto pretense and prejudice for security. For example as a society we really don't treat the aging population with the honor and dignity they deserve. We are pretty much obsessed with youth and appearance. We also have a lot of bias toward the medical profession if not at times completely vilifying the field. So in that sense speaking candidly about things albeit my opinion yet based on experience may open the readers eyes, on some issue conversely it may propel some to try to look the other way even more. It's not always politically correct, but it is a memoir and it is honest. It is sort of visceral, some people will cry some will laugh some will get more angry, it makes you feel first, then think.
The manuscript was hard to finish, it lay dormant for some fifteen years, I never had an ending. Even after the death of an Alzheimer's victim, there is never an ending for the five million families affected by the disease. something hit me, after all these years. We are all universally humanly connected by this disease process, and I had the clarity to finish this book.
I love writing, but most of my energy and creativity is spent in my day job. I am currently working on a novel about psychiatric residency. Fiction is obviously a much different prospect than a memoir but it taps a different part of your brain and soul to create something like this compared to a memoir.

Joseph J. Sivak MD
www.niagarapress.net
http://alzheimmers.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/When-Can-I-Go-Home/357170603956
twitter @whencanigohome

Falling in Love...Again!

I'm actually writing this ahead of time as I have a crazy morning ahead of me. Two hour drive before my muscle biopsy. I have waited thirty years for this procedures and the answers it will bring, so I am nervous. I need to be focused in the morning. You won't be reading it till I'm on my way to the hospital, but nonetheless, it's being written now. :)




I've come a tremendous way in Impeccable today. Far more than I ever could have expected. And as usual, I went to my default: looking at pictures. I'm a very visual person. I found two new pics of the actress I have in mind for Alex, and it was as if I was Carol falling in love with her all over again. These pictures are stunning. This woman is breath-taking. It was a moment. As if I wasn't driven enough, seeing those pictures made me want to write any more. I had to write for that beautiful woman.




So, I did. A few thousand words later, I am extremely happy with my progress, and this book.




If those pictures didn't cause me to fall in love with Alex again, I'd be in some serious trouble. I look at Carol and I see myself. I can look in the mirror a million times a day. That does not bring inspiration. Love, devotion, pain, anger - EMOTIONS are inspiration. Falling in love with Alex again made this book real, and it made her real.





I think that people often wonder about the imaginary friends we writers have. No one can see or hear them, except us. We are the only ones who hear their voices, feel their emotions, know their dreams. We're the only ones who know they exist, until their story is finally in print. But they're real. They are extensions of ourselves. If they're not, then there is no story. If you feel no love, no hatred, no anger, no pain, then your book has no spine. Literally. We, as humans, are emotionally driven creatures. We need those emotions to understand the world around us. We need those emotions to ooze from our words and touch our readers. Our emotional attatchments to our characters must be real. Our characters must be real, otherwise our story will not be real. If our story is not real, then these are nothing more than meaningless words and letters on paper or on a screen.





Have you ever seen a foreign language like Russian or Greek? The symbols are very foreign to us, but you know they must mean something, right? Well, if there is no emotion or reality behind our characters and stories, all we're looking at are foreign symbols that make no sense to us. That is a world I do not want to live in! I want to know. I want to understand. I want to feel. And I want you to do the same.





And so, I leave you with this: a good book is not one that uses fancy, flowery language. A good book is one that makes you sweat; it makes you cry; it makes you scream; it pisses you off; it makes you laugh; it makes you think about long after you have closed it. That means it was real, and it was good.

Happy reading! ;)