Sheila's Guests and Reviews

I made it! I finally finished my short story in time to enter Second Wind Publishing's competition. The theme was spring or renewal and there are lots of really great entries. Click here-- http://secondwindcontests.wordpress.com/2011/12/30/ark-by-sheila-deeth/ --if you want to read mine, and here-- http://secondwindcontests.wordpress.com/contest-entries/ --for links to all the entries. Enjoy! (And please wish me luck!)

I used to ask way too many questions as a child, though surely not as many as my own children. My Gran would silence me by saying "'Cause y's not z," and my Granddad would ask, "How long's a piece of string?" I'm hosting a Second Wind Publishing discussion on Facebook and Goodreads where I ask how long's a novel, novella, novelette, short story, etc... and invite you to to wonder where dribbles and drabbles and chapters and  blurbs fit in. I think my biggest conclusion so far is I'm still not sure if my e-book's a short story or a novella, but I'm convinced I'd find it harder to sell as a short story. Somehow short, and pay real money for it, don't quite fit together. But what do you think?

Sometimes I wonder if being self-published really qualifies me as a writer. But I know Pat Bertram's a real writer, and I love her first two books, More Deaths Than One and A Spark of Heavenly Fire . Pat's third book, Daughter am I , has just been released by Second Wind Publishing and it's high on my Christmas List - maybe after you read this it'll be high on yours too. I'm truly honored to have Pat posting to my blog today, and truly inspired by the piece she's written. Thank you Pat. When I asked Sheila what topic she’d like me to talk about, she said she’d like to read how I got from where I was before to where I am now, and what advice I would give those dreaming of following. So here is the travelogue of that journey. Daughter Am I is about a quest, so it’s fitting that during a blog tour to promote the book I should talk about my personal quest as a writer. Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by a...

I went to Rose City Romance Writers this morning as a guest of Minnette Meador , but everyone made me so welcome I felt like everybody's guest. They're a wonderful group - so encouraging, so fun, and with such a vast range of experience. Of course, the bit Minnette hadn't warned me of was that I'd have to stand up and introduce myself. So who am I, I wondered? I've been calling myself a wannabe writer for so long but I suddenly couldn't find the words. After all, I'll soon have three short stories in print. Doesn't that mean I sort of am a writer? They applauded my successes and I felt great, then they asked me what I write. There's a mystery story , a science fiction tale , and a trio of historical pieces ; and there's the two women's literary novels (unpublished), the middle-grade/young adult series (likewise), and the Christian books (self-published, with more coming soon.) I've not done a very good job of branding myself there, so ...

Three posts in one day! This is surely a little excessive, but I really can't help it. I'd like to shout it from the mountain tops except it's too far to drive at this time of night. So I'll just post it here... My story won in the Second Wind mystery contest , and will be appearing together with other stories by new and established authors in their Murder in the Wind anthology. I won! I'm going to get another story published. So thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you who voted for me, for your votes and for your kind comments and encouragement. I really enjoyed reading the other two finalist's stories, and I'm just over moon at my good fortune. Thank you. And thank you Second Wind.

Minnette Meador writes the Starsight and Centurion books, among others, and is a really fun author, as well as a fellow inhabitant of Portland Oregon. She invited me to join textnovel.com to read her new thriller, the Bell Stalker, so hot off the press it’s not even written yet, and I’m certainly enjoying the experience. But you have to be a member to read, and the first thing they asked when I joined was did I want to join their competition too. They said their stories have to start with a synopsis, and I thought it might be good practice. But I couldn’t think of anything to write so, with kind permission of Pat Bertram and Second Wind Publishing , I’ve reused my entry from Pat’s More Deaths than One contest, and am now trying to turn it into a novel. If you’ve not read More Deaths than One you really should. It has the most amazing premise—a man finding an obituary for his mother when she can’t possibly just have died. In Pat’s novel, the man’s mother died twenty years ago, and ag...

I entered Second Wind Publishing’s “ Murder in the Wind ” competition, and my short story is one of three short-listed for inclusion in the anthology. Now I just need to garner some votes and I might get published in the same volume as Pat Bertram and other favorite authors… Well, at least I can dream. So, if you want to read three really fun murder mysteries, just follow the link, or go to secondwindpublishing.com and click on "mystery contest." All three stories are printed together on the page, and there’s a place for you to vote down at the bottom. Second Wind are really great about voting in their competitions—they don’t ask you to join anything or offer up your firstborn or other valuables. All they want is your email so that one lucky voter can win a free copy of the book! So, happy reading, and please vote for one of us: “Distractions” by Deborah Watson “Jack” by Sheila Deeth “Lady Blue” by Carla Damron

I won the SecondWind competition for Pat Bertram's new book, More Deaths than One . Many thanks to those of you who voted for me. And you can see my winning entry at http://secondwindpublishing.com/bertramcontest.html . I'm looking forward to reading Pat's book, which sounds really interesting. Meanwhile, if you're looking for an Easter book, please visit http://stores.lulu.com/sdeeth , and preview Easter! Creation to Salvation in 100 words a day . I'd love to read what you think, here or on Lulu.

Second Wind Publishing is running a contest based on Pat Bertram’s book, More Deaths than One. The three finalists are posted at http://secondwindpublishing.com/bertramcontest.html , and I’m one of them! Please follow the link to read the entries, and please vote. Thanks!