Sheila's Guests and Reviews

  Today I'm meeting  Melkart Rouhana   o n my blog, introducing his book  Greatness is NowHere Self improvement from the prince of positivity; consultant to the likes of Ritz-Carlton. Greatness is NOWHERE shares a roadmap that will guide you to find greatness and lead your people to ultimately unleash their potential and, in the process, impact the future of our world. Not just for business leaders; applicable to those who lead families, sports teams, volunteering and other groups.  I suspect my dreams of greatness may be long gone, but I'm fascinated by Melkart's background and I'm sure you will be too. So... my first question for you, Melkart, is where did you grow up, and where do you live now? Melkart: I grew up in a beautiful Lebanese village, Beit-Mery, in Mount Lebanon overlooking Beirut floating under us like a splendid river. Beit-Mery, deriving from Aramaic, means “The House of The Lord”. In this village, I learned to dream big, amongst...

  Today I get to meet an author who grew up where my son went to college. Yay!  Olivia Swindler   is touring the internet with her book,   Cynthia Starts a Band An easy breezy novel, full of pop music and descriptive writing, from “Olivia in Paris.” Eleanor Quinn lives a life most young girls dream of. She’s the lead singer of a wildly successful band, dating the most beautiful man in America, and in love with her life on tour. She pours her heart into every song she writes and genuinely enjoys connecting with fans. So, when she disappears after her fiance’s fairy-tale perfect proposal on stage, the world is shocked. Worse yet, he starts telling interviewers that Eleanor is crazy — possibly even a danger to herself and those around her. As the weeks go by, the world wants to know: Who is Eleanor Quinn really? So Olivia, I know you grew up in Spokane Washington, but where do you live now? I currently live in Grenoble, France.   Cool! And did you always k...

Meeting a fellow mathematician/author! 1   Today I get to welcome author Arthur Swan to my blog with his latest book, the Encanto . It's cool to meet a fellow mathematician/author, so... I hope you'll enjoy our conversation.   Where did you grow up, and where do you live now?             I grew up in Wilson, a small tobacco town in eastern North Carolina. I now reside in Los Angeles. DiDid you always want to be a writer when you were a child?             As a very young child, I had plethora of career ambitions ranging from garbage man (the guy who rides on the back of the truck, not the one who has to drive it) to veterinarian. I also recall wanting to be a biologist for a few years and a musician.  I know we share a background in math and science, but what fi rst inspired you to write?             I...

NEW RELEASE! HAPPY BOOKDAY! FAERIES & WARRIORS! This series has it all: Kings, Captives, Faeries, Warriors, Princes, and Traitors. Even Sasquatch! How can you resist a tagline like that. I wouldn't have resisted, but this year has been so crazy with all my various hospitalizations. But I'm well now, so maybe I'll get to read it now. I've certainly enjoyed many other of Dana Pratola's books. Here's what the author says: ~~It's not your mother's Christian fiction.~~ God gave me a passion to write Christian Romance. These books don’t contain explicit sex scenes, but my characters have real desires, struggles and choices to make. A lot of the time they make the wrong ones. No subject is prohibited, but good always triumphs and God is glorified. In my personal life, He has also blessed me with a wonderful husband and three dynamic children, all of whom are destined to make wide, colorful splashes in this world. We share our New Jersey home with three ...

 Today I get to welcome author Paoline Milana to my blog, with her book Committed. After reading a little about the book and author, I realize why this could be such a readable and important book, so look below for places where you can buy it, and please enjoy this note from the author. Thank you for visiting my blog, Paolina. SHIFTING THE SCRIPT OF INSANITY By Paolina Milana My mom and my younger sister were both diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. From the age of about ten, my life and that of my family revolved around mental illness. In my early twenties, when my father died, I took on the role of primary caregiver. I kept secret from the outside world the fact that insanity had taken root in my family tree, and I was tasked with tending its garden. As strong as I was and as much as I appeared a success from the outside looking in, I struggled to stay sane while surrounded with madness. The story I was living, the beliefs I held, the shame I felt nearly did me in. I had to sh...

  Today I'm delighted to welcome author M. D. House to my blog, to tell about book 2 in her Barabbas series. At this point, I'm eager to read both book 1 and book 2, as I'm sure you will be too. But first, please would you tell us a little about how and why you're writing this series? By the time of Book 2 in the Barabbas series, Barabbas, the prisoner released in exchange for Jesus, has accepted Christ and joined himself to the body of the church. The second book,  Pillars of Barabbas, seeks to imagine how  how he continued his progress. But did you come to visualize his path? My original plans for Barabbas have evolved in surprising ways. To a large degree, I, too, have been led on a journey of discovering possibilities, seeing things I hadn’t contemplated before. That evolution occurs as I study the history—including the New Testament of the Bible—and continually try to place myself in the full milieu of that time period, recognizing how similar thos...