Catching UP!

Books that went to Press, or back to Press this week:

WENDELL & TYLER: ON THE ROAD! Open Road Series, v. 2, by James R. Kincaid

    This all originated with my mom, who had this idea that I should launch a voyage of discovery (my cool way of putting it) and spend the entire summer exploring the world outside me and the world within (whatever that means) by driving a luxury camper from Los Angeles to my Uncle Marshall’s in Atlanta. I am supposed to “court the unpredictable,” she says, “travel into the uncharted, the mysterious, even the frightening.”

Galleys that went out, are still out, or went out again this week.

THE SINS OF THE FATHERS, by A.A. MANN.  A Dora the D.R.E. Mystery, Vol. 1, by A.A. Mann

    As a Director of Religious Education at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in the border town of San Pequeno, Texas,  Dora meets many interesting and unusual people.   This time 

 she meets Death.

CEMETERY WALK: A Hannah Griswold Mystery, Vol. 3, by Robert Kanehl

   Walking in a cemetery can be peaceful and reflective, as long as you don’t hear voices. Hannah Griswold, however, does hear voices. Why are they calling to her? Why can’t she have a normal teenage life? 

Work began or Continued on the following:

A SCATTERED BRAIN by K. A. Wyant

 Trying to find your place in high school can be a challenging time in a young girl’s life, even more if you have a brain disorder. Being diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Chloe deals with the difficulties of trying to fit in with the right friends. Wanting to please them she gets into some situations leading to many disappointments. Chloe doesn’t see the destructive path she has made for herself or care about the consequences. With the end of the school year coming to a close can Chloe change things in time to graduate high school with her classmates or has she destroyed any chance of getting her diploma on time?

Cover subject to Change

SECOND GROWTH, by Joan L. Cannon

    SECOND GROWTH relates Serge Dziminowicz’s evolution as he learns to accept his own need for support. His career and marriage destroyed simultaneously by his father. Forced to leave New York, bereft of his wife and daughter, his reputation and his livelihood, he finds his second growth at last in rural Vermont, where he meets an existence unlike any he remembers. 

Cover Subject to Change

MINISTER'S CORPORATE ESCAPADES:The Rev. Castle series, Vol. 2, by Celine Rose Mariotti.

Rev. Castle is back with another cosy mystery.

A HEART DIVIDED: I Live in Two Worlds Series, Vol. 2, by DJ Swykert

   Maggie is torn between her powerful love for Tommie Stetter, and her deep and affectionate love for the abiding Jeremy Paull. Maggie is faced with a difficult decision, and against her own ideals, the teachings of the church and community, makes an unusual choice.

Cover  Subject to Change

NIBBLES by Elanvita Mufti

   A story of high school students facing a complicated future in Djakarta, Indonesia.

Cover Subject to change

HAIL MARY by C.M. Albrecht.

    When retired cop Harry "Bulldog" Drummond dies, his free-spirited widow Mary, suddenly freed from the Bulldog's strait-laced ideas, recruits a couple of gals from her colorful past and the girls go on a tear. Meaning
they create mayhem wherever they show up, much to the consternation of Mary's son, Creighton. Poor Cray just lost his job, he has a wife, two kids, two mortgages, a lazy dog and an old Chevy he was planning to replace with a new Jaguar. But the big raise he expected has vanished and so has his mother…along with his aging Chevy. To make matters worse, she doesn't even have a driver's license!  

Cover Subject to Change 

BLEEDING HEARTS: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 1

   Winner of the Stonewall Society's 2002 Pride in the Arts Literary Award in the Whodunit Category! 

REAP THE WHIRLWIND: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 2,  by Josh Aterovis. 
   Suicide, or murder? That's the question in the second Killian Kendall mystery. Will Smith suspects murder when an old childhood pal drowns, and asks his friend Killian for help in solving the mystery.

TRUTH OF YESTERDAY,  by Josh Aterovis

ALL LOST THINGS, by Josh Aterovis

CHANGE  OF WORLDS, by Josh Aterovis

Jack's News!

  by your Official Bookstore Cat, 
and Gossip Columnist

Celine will be doing a book reading, with copies for sale on hand. Of Course! ;)

Celine's planning an event at the Berry Chill in Shelton, CT, 

on Saturday, May 21st from 4-6 pm 

The Berry Chill is a yogurt place. (See? It doesn't have to be a bookstore.)

   She will also be selling some of the beaded jewelry that she designs herself as beading is a special

hobby of hers.  Best of all, Celine confides that she has already started doing publicity on the event

and Three of the newspapers in her area, The Shelton Herald, the Waterbury-Republican and
The Hartford Courant are all set to attend and write up the event.




   Celine confides that she is also working on getting local Radio Stations to attend. 



Way to GO, Celine! 

With admiration from your bookstore cat!













Also as Arline is working on the web site (Putting up new books and specials), like she does every 

month, I should mention that authors A. G. Case, Ed. D. and P.A. Papineau, Ed. D. are offering their 

title,  THE NEW NORMAL, on special this month for .99 per copy. The special price is only on our 

web site at writewords.com, but the special price begins today and will be available for the whole 

month of May. So be sure to tell your friends, they can only get it from US!




   I WILL say it has been an interesting week around here. Arline's computer caught something 

called a "Trojan Horse." Personally, I didn't see any ponies, around. But... she's still in shock.

So the less said on the Home .Front, the better.




    THANKS for all the news this week!  And PLEASE Authors, Share your News with me, so I have something 

good to tell folks about next week.

Just send an e-mail to arline@mail.com with 

 "News for Jack" 

in the subject line, and

I'll make sure it shows up right here

for all the world to see!

Return...

by Romona Hilliger

The scars of betrayal burn deep in his the soul of Hunter Kincaid. The tall, striking cattle king remembers, only too well, his teenage love--the girl who betrayed him.

After twelve years of bitter regret and remorse, Becky Carson has returned to Australia. It seems like an omen that she is back to conclude the sale of her legacy; a vast cattle property close to Hunter Kincaid’s. But is it also an omen that she must see him again?

Return -- writing tip

Question from the e-mail: 

I keep getting my books reurned. I don't think they even read the sample chapters and I'm awful at writng the synopsis. How do I write a GOOD synopsis? I tried the "Sum up what happens in each chapter" method and it's still 12 pages long.

Answer:
Synopsis writing is All Telling. It doesn't have to be "good writing," only accurate as to story. Traditionally, it should be in present tense. And it should start with the  "problen sttement" and tell the whole story, without getting lost in the details.

The first thing you need is the "problem statement." Once you get that on the page, the rest of the synopsis will write itself.

If there's no problem, there's no story. First you state your character's problem and then the story is about how they solve it, Or don't.

PROBLEM STATEMENT: Cinderella wants to go to the ball, but she has nothing to wear. 

What about the dying father, the evil stepmother, and the ugly stepsisters? What about how mean they treated Cindy?

That's all back story, It gets mentioned in passing, but it has nothing to do with the real problem so don't concentrate on those details.

Cindy wants to go to the ball, but she  has nothing to wear and no transportation! She weeps as her stepmother and stepsisters leave for the ball in the family coach.

A Fairy-godmother appears and solves the initial problem with a beautiful gown and glass slippers then sends Cindy off to the ball in a magic coach, warning her to leave before midnight or the magic spell will wear off. 

Cindy dances with the prince and falls so in love that she forgets the time.

When the clock strikes midnight, Cindy panics and runs away to find herself outside in the rain, wearing rags and one glass slipper.

The prince runs after her and finds the lost slipper. He vows to and marry the girl whose foot  fits the slipper. He travels throughout the kingdom looking for his love, without success. At last he comes to Cindy's house.

The step-sisters try to force the slipper on their enormous feet, almost breaking it. The prince sees Cindy in the corner, disregards her rags, and tries on the slipper.

It fits! They marry and live happily ever after.

Now that's the synopsis for a story you will certainly have heard before and it's only  seven paragraphs

Guest Blog: THE NEW NORMAL

Guest Blog from the Authors

   We are pleased and excited to offer e-book copies of The New Normal: a novel of Alternate Reality for $.99 during all of May, 2016. 

   We wanted to say thank you to all of the readers who have told us how our dystopian story was both prophetic and scary! With the direction that the world is moving in, readers were able to accept our premise that this is what the United States could possibly become.

   Even though We wrote The New Normal more than two years ago, some of the things that we wrote about are now coming true!  

   Another reason for the offer is to show that 2016 is the year (in the book) where our plot reaches its climax.  We want everyone to look at the story and say “It didn’t happen yet, but what about next year?”

   Regardless of your political leanings, The New Normal will give you a lot to think about.  

Enjoy!

A. G. Case and

P. A. Papineau

No Fee Writing Contest!

by Shel Damsky

    Two of the most terrifying words in any political district are "Planning and Zoning." Shel Damsky is back with more of his excellent legal high jinks. Prepare for adept lawyers, inept judges, and nefarious politicians—not to mention a corpse or so.

The Black Orchid
Novella Award

Mystery writers from around the world will want to check out this contest sponsored by the Nero Wolfe Society. The Black Orchid Novella Award is now accepting original, unpublished works of fiction from 15,000 to 20,000 words in length.

Deadline: May 31, 2016

Entry fee: FREE

Payment: $1000, and publication in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

For more information, please visit their website.

---

Catching UP!

Books that went to Press, or back to Press this week:

THE MURDER OF SECRETARY JUDD CANE: Adventures on Capitol Hill Series, Vol. 2 by Celine Rose Mariotti.

     If you liked The Kidnapping of Senator Andy Thompson, you’ll be excited to read The Murder of Secretary Judd Cane. This time Murder stalks the House of Representatives as Congressman Michael Rhodes is accused of murdering Secretary Cane .

DECRYPTING THE CACHE, by Jennifer Kirsch

   Treading through a shadowy woods didn’t rank high on my fun list. Yet I found myself surrounded by tangled tree limbs and hairy vines one Sunday evening. My new friend Dev crept along with me as we navigated angry roots, sprawling branches, and knotty trunks that resembled our knobby-nosed history teacher.

   We hoped to find a geocache. “You know,” I’d explained to Dev, “a hidden container you find using a navigation app.” But he’d wanted to see it for himself

Galleys that went out, are still out, or went out again this week.

A SCATTERED BRAIN by K. A. Wyant

 Trying to find your place in high school can be a challenging time in a young girl’s life, even more if you have a brain disorder. Being diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Chloe deals with the difficulties of trying to fit in with the right friends. Wanting to please them she gets into some situations leading to many disappointments. Chloe doesn’t see the destructive path she has made for herself or care about the consequences. With the end of the school year coming to a close can Chloe change things in time to graduate high school with her classmates or has she destroyed any chance of getting her diploma on time?

CEMETERY WALK: A Hannah Griswold Mystery, Vol. 3, by Robert Kanehl

   Walking in a cemetery can be peaceful and reflective, as long as you don’t hear voices. Hannah Griswold, however, does hear voices. Why are they calling to her? Why can’t she have a normal teenage life? 

Work began or Continued on the following:

THE SINS OF THE FATHERS, by A.A. MANN.  A Dora the D.R.E. Mystery, Vol. 1, by A.A. Mann

    As a Director of Religious Education at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in the border town of San Pequeno, Texas,  Dora meets many interesting and unusual people.     This time 

    she meets Death.

Cover subject to Change

SECOND GROWTH, by Joan L. Cannon

    SECOND GROWTH relates Serge Dziminowicz’s evolution as he learns to accept his own need for support. His career and marriage destroyed simultaneously by his father. Forced to leave New York, bereft of his wife and daughter, his reputation and his livelihood, he finds his second growth at last in rural Vermont, where he meets an existence unlike any he remembers. 

Cover Subject to Change

MINISTER'S CORPORATE ESCAPADES:The Rev. Castle series, Vol. 2, by Celine Rose Mariotti.

Rev. Castle is back with another cosy mystery.

Cover Subject to Change

A HEART DIVIDED: I Live in Two Worlds Series, Vol. 2, by DJ Swykert

   Maggie is torn between her powerful love for Tommie Stetter, and her deep and affectionate love for the abiding Jeremy Paull. Maggie is faced with a difficult decision, and against her own ideals, the teachings of the church and community, makes an unusual choice.

Cover  Subject to Change

NIBBLES by Elanvita Mufti

   A story of high school students facing acomplicated future in Djakarta, Indonesia.

Cover Subject to Change 

BLEEDING HEARTS: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 1

   Winner of the Stonewall Society's 2002 Pride in the Arts Literary Award in the Whodunit Category! 

REAP THE WHIRLWIND: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 2,  by Josh Aterovis. 
   Suicide, or murder? That's the question in the second Killian Kendall mystery. Will Smith suspects murder when an old childhood pal drowns, and asks his friend Killian for help in solving the mystery.

TRUTH OF YESTERDAY,  by Josh Aterovis

ALL LOST THINGS, by Josh Aterovis

CHANGE  OF WORLDS, by Josh Aterovis

Jack's News!

  by your Official Bookstore Cat, 
and Gossip Columnist

LOOK what Barbara Grengs sent me!

That was from her reading last Saturday!

She wrote:

   "I had a great reading last Saturday; I sold 32 books and had almost 50 people there. So I need to order a few more of the early Tobys."

There are six books in the Toby series and this is the last one, but SHHHHhhhh. Barbara is secretly working on a new book about grown-up characters.

Readings at the library are always a great way to get publicity.  They did a neat article in her local newspaper, too, with a picture and the cover of the book in color. I would have copied that, too, but it somehow disappeared from Facebook.

I confess, I'm not really good with FB.  AND I missed her birthday, too. So sorry for the belated birthday wishes, Barbara.  But we sure hope you had a Happy one. Say "Hi, to your dogs from JACK.

HEY, AUTHORS! Please let me know what everyone is doing... so I'll have some news for my column next week.

Just send an e-mail to arline@mail.com with 

 "News for Jack" 

in the subject line, and

I'll make sure it shows up right here

for all the world to see!

Hooray For Harriet!

Harriet Tubman

The Moses of her People!

   Authors Helen Chappell and Arline Chase were present in the Episcopal Church on High Street on the day Harriet Tubman was officially names a Saint of the Episcopal Church. 

A recent photo of the Church

   On that day in June the choir of the Center Street Church of God sang with joy, their black faces shining with pride. White members of the church, a few of them descendants of the slave holders of old who had once offered a collective bounty of $10,000 for Harriet Tubman's capture, were equally proud to honor her that day. VIPs and polititians of every stripe were also there, giving all present the glad hand.

   Harriet Tubman's history is honored in Canada. The Church of England calls her a Saint, yet few people in our own country know her name. But here, in her own land she has garnered little attention. 

   It's true that back in the '70s we saw her face, briefly, on a postage stamp, but her work for the Women's Movement, a life-long effort, has largely been ignored.

   For those who would know more of Harriet Tubman's early work  I recommend The Underground Railroad by William Still, but don't look for her name on the pages. At the time that account was written there was a large price on her head. Within it's pages she is only referred to by her code name, "Moses." 

   For those living on Maryland's Eastern Shore with an interest in genealogy, be aware that while Harriet Tubman had no direct descendants, but her parents, Hattie Green and Benjamin Ross had 16 other children. So Ross Descendants should all take pride on this day.

   It is interesting to note how many of the people that "Moses" led to freedom in William Still's book were named Ross. Harriet Tubman didn't set out to be a legend, or a saint. She was simply a woman, who believed in the rights of women, that all people should be free, and who wanted to help her family escape the "peculiar institution" of slavery.

Freee Beautiful all month!

I'm free!

Tell Everyone!

by Marshall Sanders

   Marshall Sanders's classic tale of a "dog's life" told by Beautiful Joe, himself. You will enjoy his observations about life, and the various humans he meets, as well as his awareness of the importance of love in the world.

Beautiful Joe's Favorite Cookies

Ingredients

45 m12 servings

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 cups all-purpose flour.

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
  
  

• 3 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons all natural peanut butter

Directions

Print 

• Prep
  30 m
• Cook
  15 m
• Ready In
  45 m

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease 1 cookie sheet.
2. In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat the egg together with the oil. Stir in the chicken broth and peanut butter stirring until peanut butter is absorbed into he liquid. Gradually add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, stirring to combine and make a soft dough. Working on a lightly floured surface, lightly knead dough. Roll out to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Cut into dog or bone shapes with cookie cutters. Place cookies one inch apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes or until firm.