Sheila's Guests and Reviews

Once upon a time I'd read interviews with different authors and think "Oh, I want to be them." I wanted to be famous enough to be interviewed. I wanted to have enough books in print to answer "Which book are you most proud of?" I wanted enough book reviews to make answering "What's the harshest you've ever had?" non-trivial. And I wanted to have a writer's life so I could say what's best and worst about it. Then I self-published some books. I answered interview questions about "Why did you choose to self-publish?" and somehow, "Because no-one was accepting my submissions," didn't feel like much of a reply. Then I got some books e-published by Gypsy Shadow. "Why did you choose to epublish?" "Because that's what my publisher does..." Then Divide by Zero came out with Stonegarden.net... So now I'm a real, published author with a real print book in real bookstores, but I'm still ...

My favorite trilogy was the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy--maybe the mathematician in me just got hooked on the idea of a trilogy in five--it certainly wasn't my ancient languages side anyway (though I did do Latin in high school--honest I did). But now the world's full of trilogies, series and sagas. I'm still dreaming one of my Hemlock prequels might make it into an anthology, or maybe my Hemlock trilogy, now threatening to grow into an Adamsian five, will find a publisher. D'you suppose actually sending it out would help? Or maybe finishing writing it? Still, my Five-Minute Bible Stories Series is growing healthily and I'm almost ready to send book six (the first New Testament book) to Cape Arago. I hope they'll like it... And, of course, I'm still reading, though stomach bugs, bushes flattened in the rain, and copious amounts of shopping, cleaning and yardwork have rather held me back. And, of course, the first book I'm posting a review fo...

Today I get to interview Laura Eno, author of the Carienna Chronicles, the Kingdons of Chandra, and so much more. You can find my reviews of some of her books by following these links: Raven , Wraith (books 1 and two of the Carienna Chronicles), My Enchanted Life , Prophecy Moon ... I love her short stories too (you'll find on in the collection Long Live the New Flesh, reviewed here ), and I'm delighted to welcome such a prolific author to my blog. So... This is my burning question after enjoying Raven and Wraith; do you know at the outset that you're going to do a five-book series, or do the ideas grow as you start writing? That's really a humorous question for me. I've always wanted to write a series but I get hit with "oh, shiny!" at the end of each book and sucked into a swirling vortex of the next idea without continuing on. After awhile, I decided I wasn't really cut out for series writing and started accepting my standalone fate. ...

I went shopping in a bookstore just before Mothers' Day and my husband told me to pick out a book for myself. As some of you know, I read a lot, but mostly they're books that people have asked me to review--lucky me, since I love reading! But there's something special about picking out a book to read just for me--not that I won't review it just the same since otherwise I'd probably forget I'd read it. The new paperbacks shelf had the latest Alexander McCall Smith book from the Number 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. But that was already wrapped and waiting as a gift for Mothers' Day. My eyes were drawn to the book next to it though. The cover had a border, just like the McCall Smith book, and a picture rather like a water-painting, just like earlier books in the series. In face, at first sight, I thought perhaps Mma Ramotswe was riding again. But no. This book, with a label underneath declaring "For all lovers of the Number 1 Ladies' Detecti...

Today I get to welcome two authors, Marlene Mitchell and Gary Yeagle, to my blog, but first let me introduce them and their books while I wait for them to arrive. I've often wondered how authors work together, so I'm really looking forward to meeting them here. And the books look fascinating... About Marlene Mitchell: Originally from St. Louis, Marlene makes her home in Kentucky now. A mother and grandmother, Marlene has a wide range of interests including watercolor and oil painting, yet writing has always been her passion. That comes through loud and clear in her wonderful novels! These novels reflect a genuine sincerity with very strong characters to which her readers can relate. To quote Marlene: “It took me a long time to start writing, but now I can’t stop. The stories just keep on coming.” About Gary Yeagle: Gary Yeagle was born and raised in Williamsport, Pa., the birthplace of Little League Baseball. He grew up living just down the street from the...

Did you know it's USA National Children's Book Week? And here I am writing and rewriting my next book of children's Bible stories (published by Cape Arago Press) . It's so easy just to tell the familiar story, and so much harder--also more satisfying--to find an anchor that might make kids relate and repeat, and maybe even learn from it. Still, the collection's growing, and I hope to have at least one more book completed soon. Meanwhile, Delilah Dusticle , which I reviewed a while ago (click here for my review of Delilah Dusticle ), is free to download via Amazon this weekend (Saturday 18 th  to Monday 20 th May), and I'm happy to be part of the promotion party. Maybe Delilah will eradicate some dust and cobwebs for me... Delilah Dusticle is a short story that has been enjoyed by young people and adults alike. The story has been described as heart-warming, captivating, delightful and fun. "I loved Delilah, I loved Abi, I loved reading...

Today my blog is hosting one of the character's from L. Andrew Cooper's dark fantasy, Burning the Middle Ground . Meet Mr. Winston Beecher, writing here about Fathers and Spiders . [A guest post by L. Andrew Cooper, writing as a character from his horror novel Burning the Middle Ground ] Fathers and Spiders by Winston Beecher Nothing brings out those paternal feelings like seeing a boy so damaged that no amount of fathering, no amount of care, could possibly bring him back from…, well, from that . Some reporter once asked me whether I knew when I walked into the McCulloughs’ house that day that my career would “be forever changed.” Well, here I am, five years later, still a deputy in the same town. Don’t get paid all that much better for having been in the center of the McCullough Tragedy, national news, all that, you know, 10-year-old-girl-shoots-parents-can-we-have-gun-control- now stuff, which is bull-stuff, if you don’t mind my saying so, because we have...

So... The promotion's ended and the books were "sold." Now I'm just waiting (trying not to plead) to see if anyone liked them enough to buy more in the series. Meanwhile I'm reading, writing and researching books seven and eight (which might be called gathering seeds for story-starts). And I'm wondering why May keeps getting older while I still feel lost in February. Even the weather's betraying me--summer's arrived, which is very nice, both sunny and warm, but doesn't really do wonders for my catching up on overdue reading lists since I keep weeding flowerbeds instead. Ah well. Here are some books I was due (mostly) to read in April, with apologies, and with reviews... Starting with a few short reads... Sleeping Beauty, A modern fairy tale by John Phythyon , is exactly what it says--a very modern fairy tale. Blending the greeds of corporations and parents with the innocent hope of a young man staying true to the girl he loves, it sets the horr...