A New Language for Life by Dr. Louis Koster

In his new book A New Language for Life: Happy No Matter What!, Dr. Louis Koster shows you how to transform your life from a place of higher awareness, to trust yourself and life, and experience an overall sense of peace and well-being—no matter what.

Why did you feel compelled to write A New Language for Life?

Louis: I was humbled by my experiences. There is no other way of saying it. I felt entrapped by the circumstances of my life and at some point realized that there was nowhere else to go. I knew that the way I viewed the world had to change. This was my defining moment. I realized that if I considered life as fundamentally good, I may as well trust what was occurring in my life as fundamentally good, rather than condemning it. I made then and there a commitment to be happy and content, no matter what the circumstances of my life. This commitment became a passage of awakening and higher awareness that allowed me to transcend the circumstances of my life and reclaim my capacity to manifest my life. I then became willingly compelled to share this message of awakening and inner peace with others.

Why would someone want to read A New Language for Life?

Louis:  Entrapment in our circumstances is the human experience without exception at some point in a person’s life. In A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What!, readers are invited to dwell in two powerful affirmations–The Choice and The Insight, which by its own unique design, open up a passage of awakening and higher awareness without changing anything about the circumstances of your life. The Choice andThe Insight release being from its entrapment in language and allow readers to experience an authentic freedom to be and be present again to the true joy of life.What makes A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! so appealing is the simplicity of its passage. A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! is attractive, since the title of the book is attractive and captures people’s immediate attention.

Is there a particular timely nature of the subject area?

Louis: We live in an era of unprecedented change and are trapped in cycles of crises. In depleting the resources of our planet, we may lose the fragile web of life that sustains us on planet earth. There is more at stake in being happy than our individual happiness, since a commitment to being happy brings about a sense of oneness and perspective to our experience of life. Readers learn that our default way of being is insufficient to deal with our current issues and concerns and that true survival of the human race is only possible inside of oneness.

Are there specific benefits from reading your book?

Louis: Dwelling in the affirmations of the book, The Choice and The Insight, the reader experiences an authentic freedom to be in whatever circumstance they find themselves in life. A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! shows how you can defeat day-to-day depression, struggle and unhappiness, or any ordinary bad mood.  A New Language for Life shows you how to weather the winds and storms of life from a deep and abiding source of inner peace.  Some of the benefits that workshop participants of A New Language for Life report are less resentment and more peace.  After the workshop, they were less preoccupied with other peoples’ opinion about them and the freedom to just be.  Participants felt less immobilized and consumed by the circumstances in their lives and were able to give attention to what really matters in their lives.

Describe the audience for your book.

Louis: The book is for anyone who is in transition in life and has a sense that there is more to life than what they are currently experiencing. The book is for anyone who is committed to a life beyond struggle and suffering, a life beyond a sense of entrapment by circumstances. The book allows you to empower yourself through the challenges you are facing in life. You are led  to a place where you start to trust your own experience of life and begin listening to your own truth again. The book offers a way to reconnect with the essence of your being and a way to live according to your true nature.

What personal experiences led you to write A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What!?

Louis: In essence, the idea for the book came to me by making the distinction between being, and the “I,” and by recognizing being as a separate, but invisible reality, the only reality that is in keeping with our true nature, despite what our senses, or the “I” tell us that we are. In hindsight, each event in my life has been an integral part of a journey of trusting myself and life, which allowed me to free myself from my self-imposed limitations, realizing that I am much more than what defines me, and come to an authenticity of being.

How do you see A New Language for Life making a difference for people?

Louis: A New Language for Life is a message of peace and oneness. A New Language for Life is a message of a higher awareness. A New Language for Life  allows you to live a life that is wholesome. A New Language for Life shows you how to defeat day-to-day depression, anger, and unhappiness, or any ordinary bad mood. A New Language for Life, shows you how to weather the winds and storms of life from a deep and abiding source of inner peace.

Where do you see the messages in A New Language for Life going?

Louis: I see A New Language for Life  becoming part of our daily conversations. People may see in A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! a simple and elegant design that allows them to release themselves from the entrapment in language and start living their lives in a way that is more wholesome and in an alignment with the true nature of their being.

What do you see is the relevance of A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! in today’s society?

Louis: The innate nature of being is kindness. How to get in touch with that and how to maintain that in the face of life’s daily occurrences, is the challenge. A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! could aid people who are already participating in some spiritual practice to stay centered in their being. Now is the time. Now there is a window in the experience that people have of our current times, an opening to look beyond the horizon of what they see. Apart from personal enlightment, there is a narrow window in the next couple of years to change the way we view ourselves and each other to sustain our fragile life on planet Earth.

How do you see A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! is in keeping with other spiritual teachings?

Louis:  Anyone who has been dwelling in the possibility of A New Language for Life, Happy No Matter What! will recognize similarities with Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Taoism. This book aligns with other spiritual teachings, in fact enriches other spiritual teachings.

What people, philosophers have influenced you in writing this book?

Louis: I was influenced by the philosopher Martin Heidegger, by Albert Einstein, and Krishnamurti, who all from their own unique perspective dwelled inside of oneness. I am inspired by the message of peace by the Dalai Lama. I have a deep respect for the wisdom of the pre-Socratic philosopher Parmenides, who spoke about unveiling the truth of oneness.

How has writing A New Language for Life influenced your personal life?

Louis: It allowed for my wife and I to have an extraordinary relationship. It allowed me to live a peaceful life. It allowed me to be more caring for my patients and be in touch with what really matters for them. It allowed me to step a little outside the classical paradigm of practicing medicine, which is predominantly evidence-based, and return to the art of medicine, where true caring makes a difference. It allowed me to have a great relationship with my brother and appreciate his great wisdom. It allowed me to just be grateful for the privilege of being alive.

Who were your biggest teachers?

Louis: My biggest teachers were my parents, my brother, and my wife and daughter. They kept me straight.

What are your other interests?

Louis: Spending time with my family, traveling, reading and language. I am currently studying Arabic, and welcoming any opportunity to practice speaking Spanish.

Who are you favorite authors?

Louis: My favorite authors are historical novelists like Gabriella Garcia Marquez, John Steinbeck, George Orwell, and Ernest Hemmingway.

To find out more about Dr. Louis Koster, visit his website: http://www.louiskoster.com/

Karen Schwind

Karen Schwind is a proponent of current trends in publishing, including e-books and self-publishing, and has started her own micro-publishing house, which published her début novel, Her Life as She Knew It.

Hi Karen, please tell everyone a little about yourself.

Karen: I grew up in a small town in Georgia and have lived in Georgia most of my life. I graduated from the University of Georgia and taught English in a private high school and then Truett-McConnell college for a number of years. Over the years, I would write and at one time helped edit and write for The Conspirator, a small magazine that turned out to be more than the sum of its parts: at least five people who worked on it have now been published. I kept writing over the years despite working full time, and when I saw what was going on in indie publishing, I said, “This is it!” and jumped in.

When did the writing bug bite, and in what genre(s)?

Karen: I suspect that, like most writers, reading wonderful books throughout my childhood created my desire to write. I wanted to move others as I had been moved. Unlike some of my friends, I didn’t read adult classics at the young age of ten or eleven—or so they claim! Instead, I read the very best age-appropriate novels—The Hobbit in seventh grade, for example. Maybe that’s why my first desire was to write YA fiction, which I did. I wrote a horrible fantasy novel and then another that wasn’t quite so bad. I moved into adult fiction while I was in graduate school and deeply influenced by early twentieth-century writers, especially Fitzgerald and Eliot.

All art forms can be deeply moving. Films have certainly contributed to my being bitten by the writing bug, though their contribution came later than that of books. I loved going to the movies when I was a child, of course, but I was probably eighteen when I began to see film as a literary art form. Over the years, I noticed that the films I see over and over all have the theme of redemption: To Live and the Lives of Others come to mind. Characters being redeemed does not ensure a happy ending in the sense that comedies do. The difference is that works that focus on redemption take into account the suffering from which redemption emerges. But I do think that films have contributed to and fed my desire to write.

When you started writing, what goals did you want to accomplish? Is there a message you want readers to grasp?

Karen: When I started writing the first time, I think my only goal was to write something that moved people. Young and unfocused, I look back and realize that I didn’t have that much to say. Now, I do have something to say and worry that I’ll say the same thing in every piece I write.

The younger me often dreamed of disappearing into other worlds where I could become anything I wanted to be. Of course, what I wanted to become depended on the book or movie I was in love with at the time. For a while I wanted to live in the Upper West Side of New York City so that I could join the Jets and dance like Natalie Wood (West Side Story).

I think my ability to completely lose myself in both books and films led to one of my major themes, characters’ desires to find a new world where they could reinvent themselves. This theme is really an American theme—it’s the idea that the entire nation is founded on in some ways and can be found in Huck Finn and The Great Gatsby, to name only two works.

I always manage to turn the theme back around, though, for as the cartoon character Ziggy says, wherever you go, there you are. Part of what feeds my version of the theme is the discovery of me and many of my friends that as we get older, we come to cherish many of the very things we wanted to run away from. It may also emerge from the Southern idea of place, a meme if you will, found in Southern literature and storytelling as far back as you would care to go. I guess one of my major themes is more about returning than running away and the belief that we don’t invent ourselves completely because we are products of our childhood, as well as the times in which we live.

Briefly tell us about your latest book. Is it part of a series or stand-alone?

Karen: Unveiled Faces, as I’m now calling it, is about a young married couple and their friends struggling to make it through 1932, the toughest year of the Great Depression. One thing many people don’t know about this period of history is how many Americans emigrated to Soviet Russia, as they called it. At that time, America seemed to be falling apart, while reporters and writers traveling to Russia told grand stories about the Soviet Government and its five-year plan. Henry Ford built a plant in Leningrad and Americans who moved there played baseball in GorkyPark. In my novel, Peter and his best friend Jake are convinced that Soviet Russia is on the right side of history, while Peter’s wife, Vermilion, a Southern woman from Georgia, is aghast at the idea of leaving America. Meanwhile, another desperate young couple, Dan and Nancy, get mixed up with gangsters who deliver bootleg to the Village. Peter and Vermilion—their struggles and decisions—are at the heart of the novel, but the narrative also follows Jake and Dan and Nancy.

I hope Unveiled Faces will be a series. Having finished the first draft a couple of weeks ago, I’m working on the rewrite. When I complete this novel, I think I’m going to write some shorter works to complement it and then perhaps work on another novel about the same people, maybe a sequel to show what happens to Peter and Vermilion.

What’s the hook for the book?

Karen: In Her Life as She Knew It, Caroline walks to town against he father’s wishes (remember that it’s 1919 in the Southern United States) and gets a job working for Billy Taylor, a young man who has just returned from World War I and who used to be engaged to Caroline’s now-deceased best friend. The newspaper he opens becomes the catalyst for trouble as Caroline uses her column to spread gossip and dig up town secrets.

Who’s the most unusual/most likeable character?

Karen:  Caroline is the narrator and protagonist. Many readers mention Billy, however, Caroline’s partner in crime so to speak. He grew up on what we in the South used to call the wrong side of the tracks and yet managed to win the heart of the most popular girl in town, Jenny. When Jenny dies of the Spanish flu, Billy loses his place in society. He doesn’t return to his former position at the lowest rung on the ladder because he flew planes in WWI and so gained respect, but he  no longer gets invited to the best homes, if you know what I mean. He’s kind of dark and mysterious. I think people sympathize with him.

Do you have specific techniques to help you maintain the course of the plot?

Karen: I’ve been focusing more in plot, really working to write short stories and my latest novel with tight plots. Julie Cannon, a friend of mine and fellow writer, recommended The Weekend Novelist but Robert J. Ray and Bret Norris. Not one to follow systems slavishly, I’ve jumped around in it but have found many of their techniques and ideas to be very helpful. One question they and others ask is, “What does the character want?” The answer to that question drives the plot even in non-genre fiction. The first thing I had to do when I began the rewrite for my work in progress is clarify what my characters wanted. I thought I knew and did in part. But I had to dig deeper and pinpoint the exact desire that drives them and creates the conflict.

Do you have a specific writing style? Preferred POV?

Karen: I want to grow with each of my works. I wrote Her Life in first person because Augusta Trobaugh told me it was easier than third person, in which I had written a novel that I liked but couldn’t quite make work. It’s in a closet somewhere. For my current novel, I’ve moved to 3^rd person because I think you can do more with it. I want to show several perspectives, so I’m using limited omniscient. The challenge is moving between perspectives while maintaining the narrative voice. Reading an interview by Ann Patchett in which she discusses her own movement from 1^st to 3^rd person made me feel better about my early attempt at 3^rd. I thought, well if Patchett has to work her way into it, then I certainly feel no shame.

Share the best review (or a portion) that you’ve ever had.

Karen: I’ll share the one I put on the cover of Her Life.

Her Life as She Knew It is a beautiful and heartfelt Southern story about the ways in which the past we hide from ourselves emerges no matter what we do to stop it. Debut novelist Karen Schwind takes us deep into the thoughts and feelings of a young woman in 1919 who deals with betrayal on several fronts. Crafting a memorable setting that feels historically authentic, Schwind portrays Caroline McKee’s longing for an idealized childhood, as well as her response to betrayal, in tender, nostalgic ways. Schwind knows this world/this memorable time in America’s history, she understands why we need to keep secrets from ourselves, and she shares it all in her lyrical language.”

-Julie L. Cannon, author of Truelove & Homegrown Tomatoes

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

Karen: Readers can learn more about my books by checking out Amazon, where they’ll see reviews and can read part of Her Life as She Knew It. To be honest, if they want to read Vermilion Wanted to Go to the Movies, a short story that’s kind of a character study I wrote to develop the protagonists for my current novel, they should go to Smashwords if they have Kindle or any other ereader site. Amazon won’t let me give the story away, so I sell it for .99 there, but it’s free everywhere else.

To get information on other works and events, including a couple of sections from my work in progress, they can go to skoobpress.com.

Links:
Her Life as She Knew It:
Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/her-life-as-she-knew-it/id419795853?mt=11&ls=1
Kindle: http://amzn.to/P5RdKJ
Nook: http://bit.ly/TsFCkd
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/34591
Vermilion Wanted to Go to the Movies: FREE at http://bit.ly/qGRAVB
Twitter: @Skoob_Press
Blog: www.skoobpress.com
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/mRUP0E

Thank you for joining us today, Karen.

Karen: Thank you for allowing me to participate.

D.K. Christi Interview on Dames of Dialogue

On Wednesday, October 17th, Dames of Dialogue posted an interview with D. K. Christi. With kind permission, the interview is posted here:

Welcome to Dames of Dialogue, D.K. Tell us about your latest work, “Mother and the Class Reunion,” a short story in the international anthology, Forever Families, published by Mandinam Press and shortly available in ebook at Amazon.com.

D. K. Christi: Recently, this favorite short story theme about a loving mom engineering a summer romance for her adult daughter was printed in the third of Mandinam Press’s Forever series: Forever Friends, Forever Travels and the recently released, Forever Families. All three anthologies are collections of international stories by authors from across the globe writing in every genre. It’s great company. “Mother and the Class Reunion” is loosely modeled after a personal experience with a twist.

Sounds like not only an interesting but fun read, D.K. Can you share a little bit about what you’re working on now or what’s coming next?

D. K. Christi: I have one manuscript waiting for approval with L & L Dreamspell, The Bamboo Ring, a story of exotic lands through the eyes of a woman in love. I also have a work in progress, Escape to Love, a period romance and adventure in the South from the Civil War era. It is based on a young soldier’s love triangle discovered after he escapes from the heinous Elvira prisoner of war camp in New York by organizing a tunnel crew of POWs. He returns to battle at the southern lines after many misadventures along the way and then back to his southern home after the war ends to face love lost and the challenges to rebuild the south and his own dreams.

Wow. Both sound intriguing. As a Southerner, I especially like the concept for Escape to Love. What is a typical writing day like for you?

D. K. Christi: There are few typical days. I write about four hours a day; however, it is split between short stories, novels and articles for the local Southwest Florida Spotlight , www. swspotlight.com , a print and online news magazine. When I have a deadline, I am known to spend up to a week with only naps in order to finish a novel or a story. Nothing else gets done. I also write for Examiner.com and Suite101.com in addition to other freelance articles, grant writing and media releases.

I really wish I had more self-discipline and could devote more time to writing. I do enjoy reading your articles, D.K., and don’t know how you do all that you do. When you’re writing, who’s in control, you or the characters?

D. K. Christi: The characters tend to take control of the novel and their behaviors take on a life of their own. They may take the story in a different direction than planned. Neev became the heroine of Ghost Orchid; but she was not in the original story outline. Her birth and story came from the development of a back story for another main character. Neev’s physical attributes, intelligence and personality were born from the genes she inherited from the original, planned characters. She literally came to life between the covers of Ghost Orchid, a haunting story that rises in the mist of the haunting and exquisite Everglades.

Now, that’s interesting, especially since I really liked the character Neev. Who are your favorite authors, the ones you read when you should be doing something else? Why do they appeal to you?

D. K. Christi: I prefer historical literature, the complex and romantic novels of the 19^thcentury. They appeal to me because they tell so much about the world at that time and how the romantic heart fit in that environment. It is a romantic though difficult era in which to live; but the wealthy class had leisurely comforts and occupations that make today’s technological existence seem cold and distant in comparison. Human relationships at that time are infinitely interesting and entertaining, shedding so much light on the human condition.

Oh, I agree. Promotion is a big — and usually the most hated — part of being a writer. Can you share a little bit about how you promote?

D. K. Christi: My most successful promotions are talks at organizations about the sex, myth and magic of the ghost orchid. The interest generated leads to book sales. The pre-publicity also generates sales and more live engagements. I love public speaking and gain energy from an enthused audience. My talks are generally a bit interactive. I would enjoy expanding public performances.

I’ve found it not only makes speaking easier but is more fun when there is interaction with the audience. Who or what has been the biggest influence in your writing career and why?

D. K. Christi: My muse is a person I loved with all my heart and soul at one time but who became more of a ghost as time went by, still reading my writing and encouraging me to continue but not part of my real life. My best writing was under his influence and incorporated many of his suggestions. I often thought we should co-author, but it never quite happened. Without my muse, my writing is more essays and less romantic. My dad wrote stories for my son. He played classical and honky tonk piano and wrote music and poetry. He encouraged my writing. He died young; I had just begun writing my first novel, Arirang: The Bamboo Connection.

It’s sad your dad didn’t live to see you published. I’m sure he would have been so proud. What do you consider the single most satisfying aspect of being a writer?

D. K. Christi: Sharing my writing with someone who enjoys the story and wants more is quite satisfying. I also like the chance to create – to bring a story to life from words alone. I like being able to take the thoughts in my mind and put them on paper. That process seems to set me free. I am quite introspective with a mind that’s analyzing life all the time. Moving some thoughts to paper opens space. As a photographer uses a camera to capture a picture, I use words.

Love that answer. Who were your favorite authors as a child? Have they influenced your writing career in any way?

D. K. Christi: Grace Livingston Hill was the most influential in my young life. Her stories of sweet young Christian girls whose moral perfection led them into the arms of their prince charming for happiness ever after – that was what I wanted for my life. I thought if I could become an author, that would lead to that conclusion. Instead, I believe Humpty Dumpty seems more my story, often broken and never quite put back together again.

I think a great many of us fall under the Humpty Dumpty category, D.K. Where do you find inspiration for your writing?

D. K. Christi: Emotions are an integral part of existence: love, hate, joy, depression and more affect how life is felt and lived. My inspiration comes from events and thoughts that become bigger in my mind; they take on lives and emotions of their own. An example is the simple blooming of a rare and endangered ghost orchid at Corkscrew Swamp on my birthday that inspired my mystery novel, Ghost Orchid. To anyone else, it was a flower that opened and was beautiful. For me, it is a perpetual gift on my birthday that encompasses many stories from all those who discover this exquisite flower for themselves. People travel on quests from around the world just to see the ghost orchid that only grows in Cuba and the Everglades.

I never knew of its existence until your book and was quite taken with not only the story you told but the ghost orchid itself. What are major themes or motifs in your work? Do your readers ever surprise you by seeing something else in your stories than you think you wrote?

D. K. Christi: Amazon.com editors beautifully captured the themes: “Themes of friendship surviving tragedy; love conquering adversity and the triumph of the human spirit over the hardships of life serve to uplift and inspire.” Add a dash of mystery and a dash of adventure in exotic and foreign locations. I was thrilled when Darryl Saffer, an award-winning environmental filmmaker read Ghost Orchid and identified with the confusion of an adopted child who longs for knowledge about birth parents. He provided the beautiful trailer with his original flute music and video to help me share the themes of Ghost Orchid with the world.

Oh, and he did such a beautiful job. What are your thoughts on the standard writing advice, “write what you know”?

D. K. Christi: Sometimes, writing about what you don’t know provides a research challenge that might open a new perspective. I write about real emotions and places I know and shape characters and stories around them. The characters in the short stories published in Forever Travels and Forever Families are people a reader might actually know, people who might step out from the pages and say, “hello.” Neev in Ghost Orchid smiles from the pages of any fashion magazine or points a camera at the flower itself at Corkscrew Swamp. My characters are real enough to touch. The places capture the reader’s imagination and desire to experience for themselves. The only fantasies so far in the pages of a D. K. Christi story are in the imaginations of the characters or in the mystery of that illusive, ethereal ghost orchid plant.

Lovely answer. Have you bought an e-reader? What is your overall impression of electronic publishing?

D. K. Christi: I read on my smart phone and my netbook; I don’t need an e-reader. I believe electronic publishing will become even more real time and exotic. At some point, I think as a person writes, a person across the globe will be reading their words. The importance of producing a perfect first copy will grow. At some point, there will be direct electronic communication from author to reader, bypassing any “publication” except to storage and retrieval systems. The relationship between authors and readers will be important. Reviewers may gain in importance as publishers disappear. Print book machines may be available perhaps in kiosks for those who want a printed copy. Software applications will be more sophisticated for authors, providing online editors in real time and automatically recording a script copy at the same time as a print copy.

I can see that world hovering just over the horizon, D.K., and find the changes in the publishing industry exciting and innovative. I look forward to what the future holds.

Thanks for joining us today, D.K., for an informative, interesting interview. For more information about D.K. Christi:

http://dkchristi.com
Ghost Orchid book trailer by Darryl Saffer
WGVU National Public Radio interviews D.K. Christi
Southwest Spotlight

Forever Families Anthology

This is the third book in the Forever series. In 2008, Forever Friends, an anthology of short stories and poems written by writers from all regions of the world, proved to be very successful and so led to the second book in the series, Forever Travels, in 2010.

Four years on, the revival of the short story continues, especially with all the new forms of electronic reading devices and the increasing number of online e-book retailers. There has never been a better time for readers and writers of short stories. As with the previous two anthologies, the attraction of this collection of work lies in its diversity and variety of genres: from non-fiction to creative non-fiction and fiction. With such a wide choice, there is something to entertain every reader. The length of the stories varies from concise to extensive. Every story, whether short or long, offers a unique look at family life. While some are poignant, others raise a smile.

The seven sections that make up the book take the reader through the joys of a happy childhood to the sadness of a death in the family, with fond family memories, faithful family pets, risky family business ventures, eventful family weddings and the ups and downs of family life in between. So, find a comfortable chair, sit back and enjoy the diversity of reading experiences in Forever Families.

Now available on Amazon

I have set up a Facebook page for Forever Families.  Please join the page, follow the comments and add your own. Click on Like below to join this page:

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Upcoming Book Tour

Coming soon! Interview with Dr. Louis Koster on October 29th as part of the 2012 Virtual blog tour announcing the release of  A New Language For Life:  Happy No Matter What!

2012 Virtual Tour Itinerary for 

A New Language For Life:  Happy No Matter What! 

by Louis Koster

www.louiskoster.com/virtualtour

October 13
Tour Itinerary at Stephanie Barko, Literary Publicist Blog
Tour Itinerary at Literature & Fiction Blog
Highlighted Title Listing at Independent Publisher
Review by Irene Roth at Blogcritics

October 14
Review by Irene Roth at Roth’s Book Reviews

October 15
Review by Laura Strathman Hulka at Readerwoman Blog

October 16
Review by Dr. Grady Harp at Powell’s
Interview and excerpt at Book Promo Central

October 16 – October 29
Three international ebook giveaways at Library Thing

October 17
Podcast with Big Blend Radio

October 18
US paperback giveaway at Curled Up With A Good Book
Interview at Curled Up With A Good Book
Review by Barbara Bamberger Scott at Curled Up With A Good Book

October 19
Review by Viviane Crystal at Crystal Book Reviews and at The Best Reviews

October 22
Interview at Alpha Chick

October 23
Review, video & excerpt at Spiritual Lounge

October 24
Excerpt at Your Awakened Self Blog

October 25
Review by Helen Gallagher at New York Journal of Books and at Open Salon

October 26
Author essay, excerpt & giveaways at One Story At A Time

October 28
Podcast with Where Am I Going Radio

October 29
Interview at Literature & Fiction Blog

October 30 – November 12
Three US paperback giveaways at GoodReads

October 31
Review by Christine Zibas at Digital Journal and at Bookpleasures

November 1
Review by Irene Conlan at The Self Improvement Blog and at Ezine Articles

November 2
Review by Gloria Oren at Gloria’s Corner Blog

November 5
Excerpt at Night Owl Reviews Blog

November 6
Interview by April Pohren at Blogcritics

November 7
Interview by Cheryl Malandrinos and giveaway at The Book Connection

November 8
Podcast with Conversations Live Radio

November 9
Videos at Preview The Book, Flickr, Photobucket, & Daily Motion

November 12
Review by Darin Godby at Luxury Reading and at Book Blogs Ning

Writing Contest: Scintillating Starts

Enter Writer Advice’s New Contest: SCINTILLATING STARTS. Grab and hold us with your opening paragraphs.

Deadline: October 15, 2012.

Details at www.writeradvice.com 

If your opening is shared on Writer Advice, you’ll be able to tell prospective agents, publishers, and book buyers that you were one of the winners of Writer Advice’s First Scintillating Starts Contest.

B. Lyn Goodwin, Writer, Advice Managing Editor
Author of You Want Me to Do What? Journaling for Caregivers
www.writeradvice.com