Shirley Harris-Slaughter, Author: RRBC’s Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” Week

Wow! I was selected to promote Shirley Harris-Slaughter again in this week’s Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” week for the Rave Reviews Book Club. Here is my original post from April 2015:

This week I am participating in the Rave Reviews Book Club’s Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” week during which RRBC members promote their fellow authors through a club selection process. Well, wasn’t I surprised to learn that I was being promoted by the very member I was asked to promote: Shirley Harris-Slaughter, and on the very same day! I first “met” Shirley by telephone, shortly after I was selected to be the RRBC’s first ever Spotlight Author. Talking to Shirley put me at ease before my podcast interview that was part of the promotion package I received as the first Spotlight Author. I must confess that I was won over even earlier when I saw Shirley’s beautiful smile in her author photo. That smile is symbolic of Shirley’s outreach to fellow authors, and I venture to guess, all the people who are lucky enough to inhabit her every day world. You can help me support Shirley by liking her Facebook page, retweeting my tweet of this post, following Shirley on Twitter and other social media, and buying and reading her book.

Today I “pay it forward” to Shirley Harris-Slaughter. Here she is in her own words.

Shirley Harris-Slaughter

My name is Shirley Harris-Slaughter and I’ve been a published author since 2007. My life plans never included becoming a writer. I was urged to write when I realized there were things going on around me, such as my community being shut down everywhere I looked and yet it seemed no one was interested in preserving our history. I never dreamed that I would be the “chosen one” to take on that task, but I was, and so after much research, sleepless nights and being shunned by those who didn’t want me to tell this story, OUR LADY OF VICTORY, THE SAGA OF AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY was born. Something that started out as just a timeline of events to honor the pioneers of this West Eight Mile Community, turned into a full-blown narrative history.
Like most Indie authors, I was struggling to get even a little recognition in an already over-crowded field. And then, I happened upon the RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB where I served for a short while on the Governing Board as the Newsletter Director. This club is all about supporting and helping authors. RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB is the brainchild of Founder and President, Nonnie Jules. She took the time to read my book and gave it an honest review. Since becoming a part of this awesome organization, I have been blessed with many opportunities which further profiled and brought recognition to my book. I have had such honors as being: the President’s Pick in the online Newsletter, a “WHO’S ON THE SHELF” Interview by Nonnie Jules, a #PUSHTUESDAY win and a week-long “SPOTLIGHT.”
Aside from being an active reader and writer, I am also a community-activist and from time to time, I lend my name to petitions to stop something or another, or I may even pick up the phone to call my elected Representatives, if that’s what it takes to get something accomplished. My latest campaign is about the potholes that are driving us crazy here in Michigan. I personally started a petition drive and am in need of 500+ signatures (preferably from the citizens of our great state) to make an impact. If you can’t sign for that reason, but know someone here in Michigan who can, please share this link:

Thanks for stopping by to learn more about me and you’re welcome back any time. You never know what I might have going on next!

OUR LADY OF VICTORY – The Saga of an African American Catholic Community is a compilation of memories, records, photos and interviews. The author recalls growing up in the legacy of Mother Anna Bates.
Follow the tale of the infamous wall…built to separate blacks from white residents and how it almost impeded the development of the area. It’s the story of a thriving Catholic community in spite of regressive government policies; on the verge of developing strong Catholic roots but doesn’t quite make it.
This is the Saga of an African-American Catholic Community. Don’t run from the information housed inside the covers of this book because the mere mention of black and white being divided makes you uncomfortable. Run towards this historical narrative because, whether black or white, yellow or brown, if we don’t know the history, we are surely destined to repeat it! I dare you to read this book and walk away unmoved!

Rave Reviews Book Club’s Spotlight Author: Maureen K. Howard

As the Rave Reviews Book Club’s very first Spotlight Author, I really love hosting for the blog tours of the Spotlight Authors. It gives me a way of paying back for the wonderful support I received when I was the lucky author and still receive today as a member of RRBC. Today, I host Maureen Kovach and Brigette Howard, a mother and daughter writing team, also known as Maureen K. Howard. Wait until you dig in to the first book in their Lake Erie Mysteries series! Looking for another great summer read? Look no further than this link to Sunny Side Up. To get things started, the authors have for you today an “interview” with their main character, Francine Orsini Egge. Then, have fun reading an excerpt from Chapter Two of Sunny Side Up.

Character Interview

~by Brigette Howard

Host: Welcome! Let’s get the easiest and most obvious question out of the way first. Who are we talking to today?

Francie: My name is Francesca Orsini Egge. Notice that my last name rhymes with ledge and not leg. People get that wrong all the time, but you can just call me Francie.

Host: Okay, Francie. Would you tell us a little bit about your family?

Francie: I have been married for twenty years to my wonderful husband Hammond. He is a lawyer and a really stand up kind of guy. We have two children, Beth and Ben; they are twins. They both moved off to college this year, so I’m suffering a little bit of empty nest syndrome.

Host: Is that why you spend so much time with your friend June?

Francie: I guess I never thought of that. I suppose I do like being around June and all of her shenanigans because it keeps my mind off of worrying about my kids.

Host: Speaking of shenanigans, tell us more about June.

Francie: June is my best friend, if people in their forties are still allowed to have best friends. We met while I was working as an intern to the Cleveland prosecuting attorney, and she was just starting her career as an investigative reporter for WCLV. Our paths seemed to keep crossing, and in no time we were socializing out on the town and living it up as two single career women would do. That’s also just about the time I met Hamm, and the rest is history so to speak. Look at us now. Still best friends, but with very different careers and lives than we set out for.

Host: How did you switch gears from a budding career in law enforcement to eventually heading the local college drama department?

Francie: After the twins were born, I loved being a stay at home mom spending my days with Beth and Ben when they were babies and then sharing in their youthful adventures, but I realized that I still needed something for me. I was endlessly directing impromptu plays the kids put on with their friends in the neighborhood, so I thought, why not try my hand at theater for adults. It started with just a few classes here and there when I could squeeze them in, but resulted in a degree in theater and a very fulfilling career as the drama department head in the same college where I had started out my classes.

Host: What do you like to do in your spare time?

Francie: I love to spend summers at my “Happy Place.” Hamm and I have a condo and a boat in Marblehead on Lake Erie. We spend our weekends there as often as possible. We enjoy taking the boat for short trips to some of the nearby islands. There are some great shopping destinations and really delicious food. Not to mention a wide variety of tempting adult beverages.

Host: Do you have a favorite food or drink that you would like to share?

Francie: Cheese for sure! It can be on food, in food, or just by itself, but everything is better with a little cheese. And of course, a nice glass of Pinot Noir also goes nicely with a cheese plate.

Host: I think that about wraps things up. And I’m getting a little cheese craving of my own right now. Thank you for stopping by to chat Francie.

Francie: It was my pleasure. Until next time, remember my favorite motto, “keep a drink in one hand, credit card in the other, and everything else will sort itself out.”

Author Bio:

Maureen K. Howard is the pen name of mother/daughter writing partners, Maureen Kovach and Brigette Howard. They both live in Findlay, Ohio. Maureen recently retired from a long career as a high school English teacher and now focuses her time on spoiling her three granddaughters, spending long weekends at the lake with her husband and their golden doodle, and making friends with fellow mystery writers and readers across the globe via social media. Oh yeah, she also writes books. Brigette works full time managing multiple national restaurant franchises. She enjoys taking her charcoal lab on running adventures and spends her free time reading, gardening with her husband, cooking, and planning the perfect murder.

Maureen Online:

Twitter: @mhowardbooks Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maureenhowardauthor Website http://mhowardbooks.wix.com/lake-erie-mysteries

Book Links:

AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/Sunny-Side-Lake-Erie-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B00Q79DB90/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1434554136&sr=1-2&keywords=sunny+side+up B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sunny-side-up-maureen-k-howard/1121262131?ean=9781634432887

 CHAPTER TWO

Did I leave my vibrator on? Oh wait, I don’t own a vibrator, so what was causing the riotous pile of clothes on my bedroom floor to buzz with such urgency? The mundane truth was that I’d switched my cell phone ringer off so I wouldn’t lose focus while trying to assemble my weekend wardrobe. Obviously that wasn’t working out so well for me.

I located the gyrating devil under some discarded tank tops and swiped the answer button on the screen just before the call was switched over to voicemail.  “Hello?”

“Francie! Is it a go? Did you get the hubby to agree to run us over to the island in the boat this weekend?”

“It’s good to hear from you, too, June. And no, I haven’t even gotten around to asking him yet. He’s downstairs whipping up one of his gourmet meals, and I sure don’t want to distract him from that. I was trying to figure out what I should pack. How do you prepare for freezing cold mornings, balmy afternoons, torrential downpours and high winds—and fit everything into one suitcase? At least I don’t have to worry about bathing suits. After the winter we’ve just had, the lake probably won’t warm up until August.”

“Sorry. I’m just anxious to get to the island. My editor is jumping down my throat to get this story in before the official start of the season.”

June’s passion was hard to resist. She was like that about everything she did—she took off running and didn’t look back. I could feel myself being lured in to the promise of fun and adventure. It wouldn’t be the first time.

My best friend was a freelance writer. She worked for a consortium of specialty magazines running the gamut from Fruit Aficionado to The Neighborhood Cigar, to my favorite, Lady Sings the Tools. Two years ago she gave up her high-profile job as an investigative reporter for WCLV, the major network news channel in Cleveland. After her divorce, she bagged up all her corporate outfits, chopped off her hair, and set off on a new career path that didn’t hamper her free spirit. Her new job now requires her to spend time with all kinds of interesting people from every walk of life instead of digging up dirt on the lowest of low-life criminals.

Recently, I even got to meet Christie Browne, the beautiful model, while June was working on a story about the latest beauty product the star was endorsing. In our enthusiasm to prove our support for the much-touted self-tanning lotion, we doubled the recommended amount as well as the recommended usage time. Our skin turned a frightening shade of burnt pumpkin, and wouldn’t you know it, I had to accompany Hammond to a formal dinner party given by his firm that same evening. June, on the other hand, was able to postpone her face-to-face interview, and by the time we met Christie, we both looked sweetly sun-kissed.  She got rave reviews on her piece. I got put on a prayer list.

“I get that you’re under a deadline, but if I don’t approach Hamm in just the right way, I’m fried. Let me call you back in a little while.”

“Okay, but let me know soon. If I don’t take this assignment, I’ll be stuck documenting the mating behaviors of ferrets for the next two weeks.”

“Paying It Forward” to Author Suzanne McKenna Link

As a member of the Rave Reviews Book Club, I participate in a wonderful program called the Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” week. Suggested by Bethany Turner’s generous support of her fellow authors and envisioned into a recurring program by the founder of RRBC, Nonnie Jules, this unselfish promotion of fellow authors is available to members of RRBC. It allows us to support other author members and to “pay forward” in a way that we know enriches us as human beings. How many of us get the chance to support others in a meaningful way on a regular basis?

Today, I “Pay It Forward” to Suzanne McKenna Link, RRBC member and author of Saving Toby, winner of the 2014 Romance Award from Double Decker Books. Let’s support Suzanne on Twitter (@SuzMckLink), Facebook, Goodreads, and of course on Amazon, where you can purchase her book. Looking for a good summer read? Here it is! And here is Suzanne in her own words.

Author Suzanne McKenna Link

I grew up in Bayport, New York, a tiny suburban town on the South Shore of Long Island somewhere between the Big Apple and the trendy Hamptons. The youngest of four siblings, I was very much a latchkey kid with lots of unsupervised time. I was a pretty good kid. (just ask my mother!) Alright, I wasn’t always so well-behaved, but I was a fairly quiet teenager who spent a lot of time writing letters, journals, short stories and poems.  Aside from writing, I enjoyed an assortment of artistic outlets. Photography and drawing, along with the written word, gave me a way to express myself. In school and at home, I developed a love for words and was often acknowledged for my writing ability. Rewarded with the desired laughter for the satirical humor of my short stories, and further inspired by good grades in writing classes, my passion for writing grew. I studied writing at community college (my first college experience), as an undeclared major.

I fell in love, married my soul mate and began a family. With the demands of a young family, I put aside my career pursuits and plowed through a plethora of interesting part time jobs and community volunteer positions. When my kids were school aged, I went back to school to pursue a career in graphic design (my second college experience). Just before I graduated with my second college degree, this one in graphic design (with honors *brag brag*), I landed a job with a small, family newspaper that strictly covers events in the local area. It’s an old fashioned, unassuming office that puts out three, weekly newspapers. Laying out the paper appeases my visual, creative side, and I simply love it. And what’s more, I adore all my wacky, diverse co-workers. Deadlines are inherently stressful, but I find myself laughing all the time, and it was at this job that I rediscovered my love of writing.  The two women editors of these newspapers are great advocates for new and undiscovered talent. Several years ago, I inquired about writing, and they put me to work. It was with their encouragement that I dove in and published my first pieces of writing. I learned a lot, and my writing grew stronger. In addition to my work in the production department, I continue to do freelance articles and photography work for them.  It took me several years to piece together my first full-length book, but now I have the full “novel-writing experience” under my belt – I personally handled the details of writing, publishing and promoting my work. And despite, the bad lighting, long hours and extremely poor pay, I am totally head-over-heels in love with the whole process. I enjoy hobnobbing with my new writer friends online and debating with them over writing styles and strategies. And while I can’t quit my day job, I not only dream of future writing successes, I expect them. I believe I am exactly where I need to be right now, and it’s a good good place to be.

TITLE: Saving Toby
AUTHOR: Suzanne McKenna Link
DATE OF PUBLICATION: Jan. 31, 2014
RETAIL PRICE: $14.95 US
(6X9 Paperback)
ISBN-13: 978-1432799854 
PAGES: 350
eBook ASIN: B00EV6K2AC
RETAIL PRICE: $1.99
BUY IT AT:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1gtAXzv
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1fJhjxG
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/1en3W6o

 

Rave Reviews Book Club’s “Pay It Forward” Week: Promoting Author John Howell

It is my pleasure to participate in the second Rave Reviews Book Club’s “Pay It Forward” week. This is a wonderful program conceived by Nonnie Jules, president and founder of the RRBC. On three days of this week participating author members do not promote themselves. Instead, they promote a fellow RRBC member or members. This week I am promoting John Howell, an RRBC member I first “met” through RRBC tweets. John is a great promoter and supporter of other members, and I am thrilled to be able to do for him what he does for fellow RRBC members. Let’s support John by visiting his website and his Facebook page as well as tweeting about his books. You can read the first chapter of My GRL  by clicking on the book’s cover at John’s website. I guarantee that you will be hooked. Then visit his Amazon page to purchase this engaging thriller. Here is John as he describes himself.

John’s main interests are reading and writing. He turned to writing as a full-time occupation after an extensive career in business. John writes thriller fiction novels and short stories. His story Cold Night Out won honorable mention in a Writers Digest Popular Fiction contest this year. He also won first place in the Kurt Vonnegut Kilgore Trout novel contest, celebrating Kurt Vonnegut as an author. His short story “Never Give Inn” was selected to be published in the Miracle E-zine fifth issue published in April.

John lives on Mustang Island in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of south Texas with his wife, Molly, and their spoiled rescue pets.

John’s debut novel, My GRL, was published by Martin Sisters Publishing (www.martinsisterspublishing.com). It is currently available on Amazon. Be sure to visit John’s author page. Here is a blurb from the back cover:

John J. Cannon, successful San Francisco lawyer, takes a leave of absence from the firm and buys a boat he names My GRL. He is unaware that his newly purchased boat had already been targeted by a terrorist group. John’s first inkling of a problem is when he wakes up in the hospital where he learns he was found unconscious next to the dead body of the young woman who sold him the boat in the first place. Further, John now stands between the terrorists and the success of their mission.

 

RRBC’s BETHANY TURNER “PAY IT FORWARD” WEEK! Shirley Harris-Slaughter

The Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” week is here again, and I was asked to promote an RRBC member I promoted a little while ago. So here is the same blog for your enjoyment!

This week I am participating in the Rave Reviews Book Club’s Bethany Turner “Pay It Forward” week during which RRBC members promote their fellow authors through a club selection process. Well, wasn’t I surprised to learn that I was being promoted by the very member I was asked to promote: Shirley Harris-Slaughter, and on the very same day! I first “met” Shirley by telephone, shortly after I was selected to be the RRBC’s first ever Spotlight Author. Talking to Shirley put me at ease before my podcast interview that was part of the promotion package I received as the first Spotlight Author. I must confess that I was won over even earlier when I saw Shirley’s beautiful smile in her author photo. That smile is symbolic of Shirley’s outreach to fellow authors, and I venture to guess, all the people who are lucky enough to inhabit her every day world. You can help me support Shirley by liking her Facebook page, retweeting my tweet of this post, following Shirley on Twitter and other social media, and buying and reading her book.

Today I “pay it forward” to Shirley Harris-Slaughter. Here she is in her own words.

Shirley Harris-Slaughter

My name is Shirley Harris-Slaughter and I’ve been a published author since 2007. My life plans never included becoming a writer. I was urged to write when I realized there were things going on around me, such as my community being shut down everywhere I looked and yet it seemed no one was interested in preserving our history. I never dreamed that I would be the “chosen one” to take on that task, but I was, and so after much research, sleepless nights and being shunned by those who didn’t want me to tell this story, OUR LADY OF VICTORY, THE SAGA OF AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY was born. Something that started out as just a timeline of events to honor the pioneers of this West Eight Mile Community, turned into a full-blown narrative history.
Like most Indie authors, I was struggling to get even a little recognition in an already over-crowded field. And then, I happened upon the RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB where I served for a short while on the Governing Board as the Newsletter Director. This club is all about supporting and helping authors. RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB is the brainchild of Founder and President, Nonnie Jules. She took the time to read my book and gave it an honest review. Since becoming a part of this awesome organization, I have been blessed with many opportunities which further profiled and brought recognition to my book. I have had such honors as being: the President’s Pick in the online Newsletter, a “WHO’S ON THE SHELF” Interview by Nonnie Jules, a #PUSHTUESDAY win and a week-long “SPOTLIGHT.”
Aside from being an active reader and writer, I am also a community-activist and from time to time, I lend my name to petitions to stop something or another, or I may even pick up the phone to call my elected Representatives, if that’s what it takes to get something accomplished. My latest campaign is about the potholes that are driving us crazy here in Michigan. I personally started a petition drive and am in need of 500+ signatures (preferably from the citizens of our great state) to make an impact. If you can’t sign for that reason, but know someone here in Michigan who can, please share this link:

Thanks for stopping by to learn more about me and you’re welcome back any time. You never know what I might have going on next!

OUR LADY OF VICTORY – The Saga of an African American Catholic Community is a compilation of memories, records, photos and interviews. The author recalls growing up in the legacy of Mother Anna Bates.
Follow the tale of the infamous wall…built to separate blacks from white residents and how it almost impeded the development of the area. It’s the story of a thriving Catholic community in spite of regressive government policies; on the verge of developing strong Catholic roots but doesn’t quite make it.
This is the Saga of an African-American Catholic Community. Don’t run from the information housed inside the covers of this book because the mere mention of black and white being divided makes you uncomfortable. Run towards this historical narrative because, whether black or white, yellow or brown, if we don’t know the history, we are surely destined to repeat it! I dare you to read this book and walk away unmoved!

Kathryn Hemmann’s Review of Second Quest, A Graphic Novel Based on the Legend of Zelda

Kathryn Hemmann, who teaches classes on Japanese literature, cinema, and popular culture at George Mason University, recently reviewed Second Quest, a graphic novel by David Hellman and Tevis Thompson based on the legend of Zelda, which has a loyal following among video gamers, and published by Fangamer in 2015. David is the son of Debbie and Jesse Hellman, friends and neighbors of ours in Baltimore. Given my age (I am of the Baby Boomer generation), you will not be surprised to learn that I am new to the world of video gaming and graphic novels. The only other graphic novel I’ve read was one that appeared in the New Yorker magazine, and truth be told, it didn’t appeal to me because the story line made no sense to me. Hemmann’s review of Second Quest, however, presents it as a nuanced exposition of a world that to me mirrors our own, albeit evolving, world, in which one’s personal quest for growth can be shackled by society’s expectations. Add to this, protagonist Azalea’s plight as a woman exploring places forbidden to females and you have a story that goes right to the heart of gender politics both in our real world and in the world of video gaming, which has focused on a young male audience to the exclusion of young females looking for strong role models. Hemmann also strongly endorses the artistic approach of David Hellman, but I’m not going to give too much away here. Read the review below and decide for yourself. As for this Baby Boomer, I am ordering Second Quest as soon as I finish writing this introduction.

Contemporary Japanese Literature

Title: Second Quest
Artist: David Hellman
Author: Tevis Thompson
Publication Year: 2015
Publisher: Fangamer
Pages: 120

Second Quest is a beautifully drawn comic that reimagines the Zelda mythos and explores just how bizarre it is that the Hylians consider themselves to be “the chosen people” who need to be “protected” from other races. What was Ganon really trying to do? Did Zelda really need to be rescued? Why is Link valorized for running around with a sword and smashing everything he encounters? What sort of cultural legacy does this create, and who suffers when outsiders are removed from historical narratives?

Of course, The Legend of Zelda is a keystone franchise of the global game industry, and licensing it is not cheap or easy, so all of the serial numbers have been filed off in David Hellman and Tevis Thompson’s interpretation. What this means is that Second Quest is accessible to…

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Rave Reviews Book Club Spotlight Author: Elizabeth Love, Author of Call of the Goddess

It give me great pleasure to host Spotlight Author Elizabeth Love, fellow member of the Rave Reviews Book Club and author of Call of the Goddess. Let’s give her our love and support on Twitter, Facebook, and Amazon. See her links below. If you don’t know RRBC, why not go to the Rave Reviews Book Club website to check out the benefits of membership. Tell them Elizabeth Love sent you! Here is Elizabeth in her own words.

Hello! I’m happy to be here today with my RRBC friends and supporters. If you haven’t heard of Rave Reviews Book Club, be sure to check it out. Find a great book to read or join and enjoy the support of fellow indie authors making their way through this big wide world of writing and publishing.

Continuing Education

It’s my belief that writers are naturally curious people. We love to learn about anything and everything. Personally, I love learning about a variety of subjects, especially in science and literature. We are inclined to read and research information that interests us, especially if we need it for our next novel.

Have you given much thought to learning more?

Last winter I found MOOCs. For those of you unfamiliar with MOOCs (I know I wasn’t), these are Massive Open On-Line Courses offered through universities, colleges, and even museums from around the world. Many MOOCs are free and open to the public and offer folks the opportunity to learn a variety of subjects from reputable professors and instructors. There are also specific courses designed to be used as continuing education for licenses and certificates, for a small fee. The choice of courses is almost limitless, and that’s just on one site I’ve used called Coursera.org. Arts, engineering, mathematics, and astronomy are just a few of the options.

Because these courses are open around the world, there is an opportunity to connect with hundreds of individuals with varying backgrounds and cultures, adding another dimension to the learning possibilities. Forums are a large part of each course, where you can ask questions and start a discussion. It’s easy to find like-minded individuals and share meaningful tidbits.

The courses vary in length from a few weeks to a few months. The course work often includes video lectures, some reading material, and quizzes. Certain courses also require short essays or submitting photos of projects that are evaluated by random peers in the course according to the course rubric.

I am salivating over the information possibilities. So far this year, I’ve completed courses on evolution, the origins of the solar system, paleontology, writing, and politics. Unfortunately, I failed miserably at astronomy, but I gave it my best shot. The beauty of these courses revolves around the ability to fail at the course but not lose anything in the trying. At this moment, I’m enrolled in Australian Literature and Everyday Creativity.

If you have a little extra time (sorry for that joke – extra time is a fallacy), search for MOOCs on your favorite search engine and see if anything strikes your fancy. You might be inspired for your next great novel.

~Elizabeth N. Love

Call of the Goddess by Elizabeth N. Love

Amazon Link: http://goo.gl/8pPUmR

About the Book:

On the faraway planet of Bona Dea, in a society forged by ancient settlers, trouble is brewing. Young psychic Axandra, never comfortable with her gift, is being forced to use it for the benefit of her people as ruling matriarch of the entire world and host to a powerful entity known only as the Goddess. Struggling with her fate, used as a pawn between warring factions, life for Axandra is almost too much to bear. Even the ministrations of her beloved companion, Quinn, may not prove powerful enough to overcome the stress threatening to destroy Axandra’s fragile soul.

About the Author:

Elizabeth N. Love is a native of Kansas who grew up on the prairie in rural small towns. From a very young age she enjoyed creating stories and poems and practices daily in the art of wordsmithing. She also enjoys other forms of art, such as drawing and making music. She is currently finishing Book Two in this series, as well as working on a paranormal romance, a non-fiction narrative, and a new sci-fi novel based on an alternate past. She lives near Kansas City with her family.

Connect with Elizabeth!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elizabeth-N-Love-Author/586497788065264

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bee_writerbee

Amazon Author: www.amazon.com/Elizabeth-N.-Love/e/B00JRM567O

Blog: http://writerbeeblog.wordpress.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/beelove

Quote for the Day – Ellen DeGeneres

A beautiful soul thought by Ellen De Generes from the blog of Natasha Guyot advises us to be who we really are–a soul on the earth for growth. Thank you to Ellen and Natasha.

Natacha Guyot

Have a lovely weekend!

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Rave Reviews Spotlight Author April Adams and Inspiration

 

It is my pleasure to host April Adams, fellow Rave Reviews Book Club member and Spotlight Author. April shares her thoughts about writers’ inspiration. We all need inspiration as well as practical support. I encourage you to show your support for April by following her on Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads. Pick up a copy of her book on Amazon. See April’s links below. While you’re at it, stop by the Rave Reviews website, a great place for authors and readers. If you join, tell RRBC that April sent you. Here is April in her own words.

April Adams

 

How Inspiration Strikes and What I Do About It

Inspiration is a funny thing. It can strike without warning. One minute, I’m sitting there watching my infant being awesome, and the next my mind is swirling with a story line that just sort of blipped into existence! I love those moments. I can understand how the concept of a sentient being called “Muse” came about. It’s almost like a sudden possession. It isn’t there, and then it is! Magic!

Everybody gets inspiration at one time or another. I think what sets apart the thinkers from the doers is just the action one takes when inspired. I don’t let one of those magical moments pass me by. I will stop what I’m doing while the moment is fresh and record it somehow. At times it’s just scribbles on a notebook. Other times I make a voice or text note on my phone. I capture them before they can flit away like shooting stars.

Not every idea I get is worth a novel. Some of them aren’t even worth a short story. At least, not yet. My first book, Shattered, sat in my brain box for a long, long time. Since I was sixteen or so, but it was just an embryo then. Over the years I gathered experience and skills until one day, while watching TV, all of the pieces just fell into place.

One line, spoken by the right actor at the right time, let all the swirling bits coalesce into a beautiful (if I do say so myself) story of epic adventure, tender romance, and magical creatures, with a special twist on the classic good vs evil plotline. Shattered is available through Amazon at http://amzn.com/B00CH3T0DQ in paperback, ebook, and audiobook. The trilogy is complete now, so you won’t have to wait for the next book. I hope you’ll give it a shot. It was definitely inspired.

 

Find me online!

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/April-Adams/e/B00CHRCD8G

Twitter:  @apriladamsnovel

Facebook:   www.fb.com/apriladamsnovel

Website:  www.writerapriladams.com

Goodreads:  www.goodreads.com/apriladamsnovel

 

American Heart Month: A Physician and Epidemiologist Shares the 20th Century History of Coronary Heart Disease

February is American Heart Month. Organizations, like the American Heart Association, hold heart-health workshops during this month, as well as events to raise funds for research into the number one killer of men and women in the United States. Coronary heart disease (CHD) was the focus of a good part of the research my husband, Roger Sherwin, a physician and epidemiologist, conducted during his 45-year career in medicine and public health. Therefore, I asked him to share with my readers the history of CHD, which increased dramatically in the earlier years of the 20th century and fell dramatically in the later years, as well as the causes of these changes.

 

It may surprise most Americans (including many physicians) to learn that death rates from heart disease in middle-aged American men and women were approximately equal at the end of World War I (WW I). Shortly after WW I death rates from heart disease in middle-aged U.S. males began to rise sharply, while those in women declined. With the benefit of hindsight most of the early increase in heart disease in men was attributable to cigarette smoking, a habit brought back from Europe by U.S. servicemen, and associated particularly with sudden death from CHD. Despite the popular image of the 1920’s “flapper,” cigarette smoking among American women did not become common until women replaced men in factories during World War II.

Only at the end of the decade following WW I were the terms coronary heart disease (CHD) and myocardial infarction (heart attack) coined and entered on death certificates. Interestingly, death rates from CHD in Japan did not rise despite even greater rates of cigarette smoking among Japanese men than among American men. Again, with the benefit of hindsight and a great deal of research, it became clear why Japanese men reacted to smoking differently from American men: There was a large difference in the dietary consumption of animal fat between Japan and other East-Asian countries on the one hand and Western industrialized countries on the other. This much greater consumption of animal fat in the West led to substantially higher levels of “bad” low density lipoprotein (LDL) blood cholesterol. It now appears that a long-term level of LDL above about 100 mg/dl is a necessary condition for the gradual development of life-threatening plaques in the coronary arteries (coronary artery disease), leading to coronary heart disease.

A build-up of plaque impedes blood flow

Another important change occurred after WW I. In addition to the increase in cigarette smoking, physical activity both at work and in leisure among Americans declined. Heavy manual work was now largely replaced by work assisted by self-powered machines. In leisure, the mass production of motorcars flooding American towns and countryside was also associated with reduction of physical activity—but with less difference between men and women.

In addition to cigarette smoking, lack of exercise, and high levels of LDL cholesterol, a number of other risk factors are known to promote CHD. These include obesity (often the result of lack of exercise), high blood pressure, and diabetes. All of these risk factors are potentially modifiable. Others, including age, gender, and family history, are important but not modifiable.

Following the U.S. Surgeon General’s report on cigarette smoking and health in 1964, based largely on studies conducted in men, American men began to quit smoking, but American women continued to smoke. By the 1980s, therefore, more American women smoked than men. Accordingly, death rates from CHD in American men began to decline in 1967 and have continued to do so ever since, while death rates for American women began to decline much later and much less. Some of the decline in both sexes is, of course, attributable to public health education about the modifiable risk factors, which led in both men and women to less smoking, more exercise, heart-healthy diets, and treatment for high blood pressure with the safe and effective drugs that became available in the second half of the 20th century. Equally important were the great advances in the diagnosis and treatment of CHD, including resuscitation, rapid hospitalization, coronary care units, stents, bypass surgery, and the first really effective class of drugs to lower LDL, the statins, which can lower LDL to levels previously common only in the Far East. Statins are, of course, equally useful in the prevention as well as the treatment of CHD.

Major signs and symptoms of coronary heart disease

While CHD was described and diagnosed in the first half of the 20th century, only in the second half was successful prevention and treatment achieved, mainly by recognizing and modifying the causes of the disease. If cigarette smoking is largely a 20th century phenomenon, it has been replaced by an equally serious health problem—obesity. Thirty years ago about one-third of the U.S. population was overweight and half of those met the stricter definition of obesity. Today two-thirds of the U.S. adult population are overweight and half of those are obese—a 100 percent increase in both categories. Obesity is a risk factor for CHD through at least four different pathways:  It leads to an increase in “bad” LDL cholesterol, a reduction in “good” high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and an increase in blood pressure; in addition, it is the primary modifiable risk factor for diabetes. Unless the “epidemic” of obesity can be controlled, we may well see rates of CHD cease to decline or even increase as the century progresses.

My thanks to Google free images for the educational illustrations.