Friday, September 25, 2015

Setting for Bleeding Willows

Growing up on the south side of Chicago, I remember hearing tales of devil worshippers heading to Bachelor's Grove Cemetery to pay their respects to Satan.  It creeped me out, yet I was also very curious and wanted to investigate.  This autumn I've decided I will visit the cemetery and will update when I do.

I did NOT take these photos. They come from this website: https://brothertom.wordpress.com/category/graves/

But this abandoned and haunted cemetery has inspired the setting for Between the Bleeding Willows, my current work-in-progress novel.  Cassidy, the main character, lives in Homer Glen, IL, as I did growing up. She will find her life forever changed when she wanders into the cemetery. Welcome to Bachelor's Grove!



Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Happy Fall! Here's a teaser from Bleeding Willows

I love fall, absolutely the best time of year in my book.  The trees are painted different colors, the air is crisp and cold - leaves you cuddling in your favorite sweater or blanket.  So to celebrate the First Day of Fall and the half way mark in my new MS Between the Bleeding Willows...here's the last bit written from Chapter 12.  Where will we go from here????

******

“Thanks for everything Casper.  You’ve been amazing.  Oh, here’s your book back, I didn’t have time finish it.”
“No, keep it – you need to finish it, it’s a great story.”
“Are you sure? I hate for you not to have it.” He put the book in my hand and closed my fingers around it.
“I’m sure.” I leaned over the table and gave him a hug. We cleaned our plates and walked to the Center – he had his arm around me and I knew I would miss this feeling of closeness, would miss my friend Casper.
The Center was dim, lit with candles along the wall –peaceful. We entered the room and saw Jackson, Killian, Angeline, and Lena staggered along the room walls. Lena still looked pale and pained but it would probably be a few days before she perked up – if she was getting better.
“Step into the circle please.” Casper left my side and took a place along the wall.  There was a circle of white crystal powder, possibly salt, in front of Angeline. Angeline looked into my eyes, “Are you ready Cassidy?” She was so beautiful and powerful – I could feel her energy when I was this close to her.
“Yes.”

She smiled and then dabbed her forefinger on an amber bottle and then rubbed woody scented oils in symbols on my arms and forehead. “Good, your energy is ready this time – we won’t be needing that Killian.” Killian set down the needle that they injected into my neck last time. “Now, close your eyes and lose yourself here.” She rubbed the center of my forehead. “Go where your mind takes you and let your body become feather light – carrying you on your journey.” I heard her voice, I saw darkness, my limbs disappeared from my body – light as a feather floating down, down…..down….


Thursday, September 17, 2015

This Is THE Book You Should Read This Weekend!

Need a Read for this weekend that will 
make you laugh and cry?



It's not your typical teenage romance...


Get Rarity today and fall in love with the book that others are raving about.

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Have You Seen This Girl? Flocksdale Files #1


HAVE YOU SEEN THIS GIRL? 
Author: Carissa Ann Lynch
Series: Flocksdale Files #1
Publisher: Limitless Publishing
- SYNOPSIS -
Wendi Wise is a troubled young woman who snorts her breakfast through a straw and spends more time in rehab than in the real world… 

Her life is seemingly out of control.

But now she has a plan.

That plan involves a sharp set of butcher knives. 

She's going back to where all of her troubles began…

Flocksdale.

Wendi was lured away from a local skating rink, at the age of thirteen, and held captive in a place she calls 'The House of Horrors.' Dumped off blindfolded on the side of a dirt road, Wendi soon discovered that she was addicted to the drugs they fed her while she was captive. 

Too scared to go home, and having a new habit to deal with, she hopped on a bus, vanishing from the family she loved. 

Vanishing from Flocksdale…

The town of Flocksdale is littered with fliers with a grainy image of young Wendi, and the words 'Have You Seen This Girl?' written below. 

Now, eight years later, she's on a mission—a mission to find the mysterious house from her youth and the monsters who dwell inside it.

“This is the end, beautiful friend, the end…”



- PURCHASE -
★ Paperback: http://amzn.to/1Q6FAhr
- Available for FREE with #KindleUnlimited -

- BOOK TRAILER -

- TEASERS -


- ABOUT THE AUTHOR -
CARISSA ANN LYNCH

Besides my family, my greatest love in life is books. Reading them, writing them, holding them, smelling them…well, you get the idea. I’ve always loved to read, and some of my earliest childhood memories are me, tucked away in my room, lost in a good book. I received a five dollar allowance each week, and I always — always — spent it on books. My love affair with writing started early, but it mostly involved journaling and writing silly poems. Several years ago, I didn’t have a book to read so I decided on a whim to write my own story, something I’d like to read. It turned out to be harder than I thought, but from that point on I was hooked. My first and second books were released by Sarah Book Publishing: This Is Not About Love and Grayson’s Ridge. I’m a total genre-hopper. Basically, I like to write what I like to read: a little bit of everything! I reside in Floyds Knobs, Indiana with my husband, three children, and massive collection of books. I have a degree in psychology and worked as a counselor.

- SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS -

Tour brought to you by:

Friday, September 04, 2015

2 Author events this week - all are invited!

Please join me at these two fun author events! All are welcome!

Heavenly Sent Book Promotions
Multi-Author Scavenger Hunt 
Taking place throughout 9/4-9/11
Hunt, solve riddles, win prizes, and uncover new authors – all are welcome!


And...
Saturday evening I'm taking over Jennifer Cleary Roche, Author page!  My time slot is from 9:30-10PM.  I'll talk about my inspiration for Rarity, have a contest and a chance to win a $25 amazon gift card AND a chance to win a signed copy of Rarity!  Come join the fun!

Epic End of Summer Celebration for 500+ Likes 
9/5 from 7pm-midnight EST




Wednesday, September 02, 2015

Bitter Sweet! Need a new read...I got one for you!


https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nfnx3gKCiKk/VZSIjsNxeCI/AAAAAAAAAO4/T94a9LXAv-E/s640/BSbanner.png


★★#OneClick★★

Bitter Sweet by Author Jennifer Labelle is available on Amazon!


https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kk_Wxh6VlYc/VZSJQCJ4YEI/AAAAAAAAAPI/HElh65Yq-Fw/s320/bittersweet.png
#oneclick →→ http://amzn.com/B00YYFVIDK
Publisher: LIMITLESS PUBLISHING

★✯ SYNOPSIS ✯★

An accident on a rain-slicked highway leaves Jenna Baker alone… 

Jenna is scarred, confused and vulnerable after surviving an accident that took her husband’s life. After a year of mourning Tyler and struggling to raise their son on her own, Jenna’s best friend whisks her off to fulfill her lifelong dream of visiting Ireland. She never dreamed her trip would include a self-appointed tour guide in the form of a sexy Irishman with piercing blue eyes and a smile that promises to fill her empty heart. 

Brady Connelly is irresistibly drawn to the lovely, broken Yank… 

As the weeks pass, Brady comforts and supports Jenna, convincing her to live and chase her dreams. His attraction to her grows and their chemistry ignites, but Jenna isn’t sure she’s truly ready to move on. How can he convince her to release the past and take a leap of faith…with him? 

The impossible happens, and Jenna’s world is thrown into chaos… 

Tyler is alive and re-enters Jenna’s life, burdened with guilty secrets. Jenna knows she has to try to make things work between them, if only for their son’s sake, but she’s blessed—or cursed—with vivid visions of Brady. The visions begin to consume her and leave her questioning her sanity and the bittersweet nature of her marriage. 

Jenna’s dreams of Brady become her lifeline as she questions the boundaries of fantasy and reality. 
Is her one hope for happiness waiting for her somewhere across the sea? 

https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fq9rSrxhNoE/VZSJcznfBEI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/eG6bj1fHlkM/s320/BSavailable.png

★★★★

EXCERPT:

“Tyler, wait.” She was breathless, and self-consciousness swept through her as he undressed her. Her body wasn’t the same since the accident. She was thinner from the horrible hospital food and being in a coma. She had scars from her surgery, and she was still tender in other spots, even though she didn’t look half as bad as when she’d first come to.

“What is it, Jenna?”

She blushed and felt a little silly all of a sudden. Since when had she ever been shy with him? The answer was never. “I’m different now,” she whispered. “With the scars, it’s probably not going to be very pretty to look at.”

He didn’t answer. Instead he continued to undress her until she stood before him completely nude. “Come with me.” He moved her in front of a long mirror and lifted her chin so she was forced to look at herself. “You’re beautiful, Jenna.”

His lips were close to her ear, and his breath was warm and soothing. It gave her a chill as she leaned into him. “I’m glad you think so.”

“You’re trim.” He continued trailing his hands from her hips up to cup her breasts. “And perky, perfect. God, Jenna, your breasts are just right the way they lay in my hands.” He tested their weight in each as he fondled them, stroking his thumbs
across her hardened peaks.

“Tyler, don’t stop.” Breathless, and weak in the knees, she leaned into his embrace while he teased and tweaked her nipples. She reached back to stroke him, but he moved to stand in front of her instead.

Starting with her feet, he gazed up her entire body with lust. Once he reached her eyes again, he said, “The scars are still healing and barely noticeable. You’ve been through hell, and you’re still so damn sexy.”

★★ Meet the Author ★★
Jennifer Labelle

Jennifer Labelle resides in Canada with her husband and three beautiful children. After her third child she became a stay at home mom. In her busy household Jennifer likes to spend her down time engrossed in the stories that she creates. She is an active reader of romance (especially historical), mystery and anything paranormal. With an education in Addictions work she's decided to take a less stressful approach in life and hopes that you enjoy, as she shares some of her imagination with all of you.

Find her on Facebook
And Twitter



https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-31Z5F_N7DNo/VYrXGjGyTaI/AAAAAAAAADA/bjhp_MOsQ2Y/s1600/logo.jpg
Best wishes,
Jennifer

Tuesday, September 01, 2015

Our Stories of Strength review & interview!

Having a child that was diagnosed with a rare disorder, Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, has been a life changing experience.  One of the challenging aspects of being diagnosed with it is finding a support system, people with like minds who face similar challenges.  We find support in online groups and within our personal family but outside of that, it can feel pretty isolating.  Recently a book entitled Our Stories of Strength was released - it too has helped us feel not alone in our journey.

Our Stories of Strength is a fascinating book that I hope all doctors, med students, teachers, therapists, and patients with silent disorders pick up.  It is a collection of personal stories from patients that are challenged with various types of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.  The stories are not depressing but rather show how each patient overcame the difficulties they faced - how they rose above a diagnosis and it's limitations.  The stories are told by children and adults - the editing is spot on, and the photos and drawings make the stories that much more endearing.  The book is an enjoyable collection of the strength of human beings in the face of physical and emotional challenges.  You do not have to have EDS to benefit from this book, it will encourage strength in all who read it.



Pick up Our Stories of Strength, it's an inspirational eye opener! http://amzn.com/B00X8TG60I

I had the chance to interview the creators of this anthology.


Tell me a little about your book:

Our Stories of Strength - Living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome was an idea to share good news stories of those who were living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and who found ways to persevere. Because I sit in the middle ground of volunteer work with EDNF, working in the medical field & also my own personal experience, I felt like so much of what was known to those who were newly diagnosed, was scary, sad and depressing. However, I knew that there were many other stories like mine, stories from so many others who were also living well with EDS and felt like they needed to be shared. I couldn’t help but think that if these stories were shared, that those who were feeling hopeless, depressed and overwhelmed, would feel a sense of hope, strength and determination to persevere.


How long was the process of creating this book? (from first concept to published book)

I met Mysti via twitter in May 2104 when I was recruiting for the EDS Ride for a Cause. In July, we had been talking back and forth via twitter and then over the phone. It was one day while sitting in my car in front of my house that I said, “We should write a book!” I suggested that we marry her experience as a writer and my experience working within the EDS and medical communities, as well as our joint passions for health and wellness, and create a book that shared these good news stories that we both knew existed - including our own.

In October of 2014, we began working more consistently on our idea, as well as putting together an overall business plan of how to approach the EDS Community. In November, we started recruiting for stories and I asked Dr. Francomano if she would write the forward. In January - Feb. 2015, we launched our website and became more active via social media. We also decided to make Our Stories of Strength a series of anthologies and discussed other titles in this series.

In April, we applied for our LLC, while also finalizing all story submissions. We also contacted other people who are community leaders for quotes to include on the back of the book and worked closely with Kristi on refining the cover design.

We were blessed to have several people devote their time and experience to this project, including Kristi who also lives with VEDS and is an incredible graphic designer and a professional editor, who helped edit the entire book before publishing.

Our deadline was always May, in order to publish in conjunction with EDS Awareness month. The digital version of Our Stories of Strength - Living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome was published on May 8th - hitting our target deadline. The print version was published one month later in the beginning of June 2015.

In total, we worked consistently for about a year from idea to publishing. We are have been and continue to actively recruit for all 40 titles in the Our Stories of Strength anthology series.


What has been the biggest struggle in making this book come to life?

Our biggest struggle by far was learning to pace ourselves and learning how to balance pushing ourselves when needed, while also accepting that as long as we are taking baby steps, we were still moving forward. To look back and remember all that we personally went through (taking care of our kids, our own health struggles, other jobs & more), it’s amazing to that we still made our deadline.


What have you enjoyed the most about creating this book?

Personally, I’ve enjoyed seeing an idea coming to life and validate the very reasons I felt that sharing these stories was so important to our community. I’ve also enjoyed meeting and talking with everyone who submitted and all others who are working to make a difference in our community. We really are stronger together.


Do you have plans to create more books? If so, do you have your next one in mind?

See question number 2. As of right now, it seems that our next anthologies will be our Gastroparesis, Dysautonomia/POTS and Fibromyalgia anthologies. We also have a number of stories submitted for our second living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome anthology; however, we would also like to do an anthology focused on Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. With each anthology, we partner with a non-profit within that community and we have activity been in discussions with people within the various chronic illness communities that we are recruiting for (i.e. thyroid, chronic pelvic pain, chronic pain with kids, mast cell activation disorders, etc.).


What was your biggest influence/support for your book?

For me, my biggest support and influence has been all those who I’ve worked with within the EDS community, my own children and the physicians who devote their lives to caring for us. Dr. Francomano has been a huge sense of support for me for a number of years, as has Dr. Streeten from University of Maryland, Dr. Pocinki & recently, Dr. Afrin. Shane and Lauren at EDNF have also been incredibly supportive over the years. And of course, I couldn’t do any of this without the support of my husband. He’s never questioned anything that I’ve done, why I want to do it and the importance of it.

I’ve also been blessed to be included in other EDS projects - both healthcare providers and other members of the broader EDS community. 


Have you heard positive feedback from readers about your book affecting their lives in some way? I would imagine that you will hear some of that as your stories are inspirational.

Yes and Yes! We’ve received incredible feedback from those within the EDS community, those who submitted stories, those outside of the community and from various healthcare professionals. It’s been quite humbling.


If you won the lottery tomorrow and suddenly were $5,000,000 richer, what would you do with your money?

Not look at my bank account for a year and have someone else manage it. ;) I would take a huge deep breath and continue to do all that I do now, only from living somewhere near the beach. For me, money isn’t about quitting work, it’s about being able to do what you love and love what you do every day. Working provides purpose, direction and a sense of responsibility — all things I think are crucial for children to learn as they grow up. Life isn’t given to you - it’s earned. No one owes us anything and one thing I’ve learned that is that, you can never take anything for granted. Anything an happen. Anything, to anyone and at any time.



Thank you Kendra and Mysti for creating this much needed book and for taking the time to be interviewed! Here are some helpful links and info to follow the work Kendra is continuing:






Kendra Neilsen Myles
Principal & Owner
Mediterina Medical Solutions
EDS Patient Solutions
240-687-7791
Co-Founder & Editor
“Our Stories of Strength”
Our SOS Media, LLC

www.ourstoriesofstrength.com

Our Stories of Strength - Living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is NOW AVAILABLE!
http://amzn.to/1dZuUE3
Digital:http://amzn.to/1AUiGRZ

Our Stories of Strength website: www.ourstoriesofstrength.com
Calls for submissions: http://ourstoriesofstrength.com/2015/05/01/call-for-submissions/

Additional titles just released! More to come soon! http://ourstoriesofstrength.com/2015/06/11/additional-titles-seeking-submissions/

Writer for Personal Blog: Strength/Flexibility/Health/EDS

www.sfheds.com

Bio link: http://strengthflexibilityhealtheds.com/about-kendra/

Connect:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kendra.Neilsen.Myles

And:
-https://www.facebook.com/strengthflexibilityhealtheds?ref=hl

- https://www.facebook.com/EdsSolutionsLlc

- https://www.facebook.com/OurStoriesOfStrength

- Our Stories of Strength - Living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome book fan page: https://www.facebook.com/OurStoriesOfStrengthLivingWithEDS

Instagram: @SFHEDS & @EDSPatientSolutions

Pinterest: @EDSPatientSol

Tumblr: Actvfaith3/StrengthFlexiblityHealthEDS

Twitter: @SFHEDS, @KNMyles, @EDSPatientsol & @StrengthStories

Or, visit sfheds.com for the latest on living a healthy and active life with EDS.

Other projects:

- Wellapalooza 2015 is here! http://strengthflexibilityhealtheds.com/2015/07/28/wellapalooza-coming-2015-and-newsletter-sign-up/

- Moving Naturally with Hypermobility seminars: http://movingnaturallywithhypermobility.com/

- 2nd Annual "EDS Ride for A Cause” on November 15th, 2015 at Zengo Cycle in Bethesda, MD: https://www.facebook.com/events/814063915305731/ **All proceeds benefits EDNF**

**AUDIO TOUR With Giveaway** Cross by D.A. Roach

Abibliophobia Anonymous Book Reviews: **AUDIO TOUR With Giveaway** Cross by D.A. Roach : Title: Cross Author: D.A. Roach ...