Does Your Family Suck?

Is that a question you've ever considered?

SOURCE

The future doctors, teachers, and politicians of this world are in school, developing and growing. I often wonder what it is they're learning and who it is that's filling their minds. Is it the system? The parents? Peers? Social media?

As a mother, I'm pretty sure I think about my little ones more than myself. I agonize over their struggles. I plan for their futures. I hope and pray what we're doing for them with our limited capacity will prepare them for the life ahead and that they will become strong, kind, successful individuals. Because they know someone loves and is 100% invested in them, they will hopefully have the confidence to reach their full potential. They have someone always available to hear what's on their mind or to ask questions. I am their first source of information.

BUT.

But, but, but...

SOURCE

We live in a world where everyone thinks both parents need to hold down a 40 hr or more work week. Why? For stuff. Stuff like daycare, sports, an extra car, evening programs and activities, music lessons, etc. Add in the HOURS OF HOMEWORK, parties, events... Who is raising these children? How much time do they actually spend with their parents? How can they have a decent conversation with the people who gave them life if they never have a quiet hour together? Who is shaping their character?

Let us ask instead, "Can I do without this?" "Is this just cluttering our lives?" Sometimes less is more. In the case of children and valuable time, less is definitely more.

Let's be wise. Let's raise the future.

This month I'm highlighting fellow authors from:

BUY NOW 

(Because waiting until later would just be silly.)

Last week we met the thrilling Hart Johnson and had an opportunity win her medical thriller, A SHOT IN THE LIGHT. Everyone who guessed her Truth or Lie game correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win their choice of an eBook or print copy.

The Game:

1. I began writing with Fan Fiction. In fact I wrote a Harry Potter alternative book seven prior to the release of Deathly Hallows that had such uncanny commonalities as Nagini turning into a woman, breaking into Gringotts to steal the Hufflepuff cup from a vault, and Snape's tears having magic powers that were central to the climax. I will never beat the last line of that story: “So spank me.” (Narcissa to Lucius as they finally made peace, having been estranged during the war).

2. When I was a senior in high school my best friend got a wild hair... or decided my mom was the only mom of one of her friends who could be talked into signing the permission form—one of those things—and we signed up for a skydiving lesson. We spent a full afternoon jumping off progressively higher things and rolling out of the fall so we didn't break an ankle or a leg, then we went up in a perfectly good airplane and jumped out.

3. In 2008 I had a conference in London. Through my early online interactions and writing experiences I was part of a writing group, a couple of my fellow members decided to travel at the same time so we could all meet our friend Tara who lives in Wales and we could travel a bit together after the conference, taking advantage of some of the things we had in common (mostly writing, Harry Potter, and Monty Python). The highlight of our trip was making our way to Doune Castle in Scotland and doing a few rounds of the French taunting...

The lie: #3. The conference was really in Glasgow and the Castle they did the French taunting from was Cardiff Castle in Wales.

Way to guess everyone! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Stephen Tremp!

Congrats, Stephen!

And now meet the author of WIN in the Parallels anthology and check out the short story she has up for grabs in the Truth or Lie game today:

Jake Martin stops to rest at Sarah's farm. Her circumstances stir up memories for Jake, and force him to consider the type of life he lives. Can he change his ways or is he permanently broken?

Get your copy HERE.

Ready to meet the author?

Sylvia Ney is a freelance writer, editor, and speaker. She regularly contributes to newspapers, magazines, and other anthologies. Some of her recurring publications include Southeast Texas Family magazine, Houston Family magazine, Southern Writer's magazine, and the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Sylvia is a member of the Texas Gulf Coast Writers and the Bayou Writers Group of Louisiana. 

You will find her madly munching on any cheese that comes with Mexican food.

To learn more, visit:  www.sylviacney.com

Sylvia gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Those who figure out the lie will go into my magic hat for the chance to win Sylvia's short story in eBook.

You have until Tuesday, May 17, at 2 p.m. EDT to guess. Be sure to come back for the answers on May 18, 8 a.m EDT.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Sylvia almost died as an infant, but became one of the first survivors of a rare birth defect.

2. Sylvia has ghost written for Nora Roberts.

3. Sylvia has held and played with a baby lion.

So sleuths, which is the lie? Who do you think has the most influence on kids these days? Did you have devoted parents who spent time with you? Do you have a favorite heartwarming story? Have you met Sylvia?

IWSG & Ten Pieces of Speculative Fiction You Don't Want to Miss

Are you excited today? I'm back!!! That's right. My vacation away from blogland is over. Shall I tell you what transpired in my corner of the world while I was away?

A little of this:

And a little of this:

And a little of this:

And some of this:

LOTS of this:

Even a touch of this:

And FINALLY this:

But not much of this:

Or at least, not as much as I'd have liked. Guess I was inspired to take that blogging break, eh?

SO on the quick and exciting end of the spectrum, yesterday was the big bad release day for

BUY NOW 

(Because waiting until later would just be silly.)

I contributed THE MIRROR PEOPLE to this anthology: Jak Ralston leads an ordinary life. Home, work, church. Repeat. Unremarkable in every way, except for one. Every day Jak stares into the eyes of a serial killer.

My review of the anthology:

5 STARS Rarely have I enjoyed an anthology this much. It engaged, took me to new places, and left me pondering. With most anthologies, I find myself skimming through some stories to get to the next. Not so in this case. Each stood on its own... (Read more)

It's the crazy times in life that make us appreciate the good. I'm super grateful for the outpouring of love I've seen over the last month, and though I'm frantic about writing deadlines, I feel solid in ways too innumerable to count. With the bad comes reflection. With the bad comes perspective. With the bad, we suddenly see the good in ways we never could have imagined. Here's to taking the punches of life and learning to truly appreciate those bandaging or bandages on our bruises. Take a moment and let your bandagers know how much you appreciate them today, eh?

Now it's giveaway time! I'm going to introduce one of the authors in the Parallels anthology, a woman who ROCKS to medical thriller world.

Last month L.G. Keltner (author of FELIX WAS HERE in the anthology) shared with us SELF HELP 101, along with two truths and a lie. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win an entire series of comedy stories.

The Game:

1. When I was 17, I got a chance to travel in Europe for three weeks.  The day before I left, I got up early to run errands.  Then I was too excited to fall asleep that night.  Combine that with an inability to fall asleep on airplanes, landing in Rome at 10a.m., and having an entire day of activities ahead, I was awake for approximately 60 consecutive hours.
2. When I was about 12, I was playing basketball at school.  I decided to make a half-court shot.  Not only that, I decided to do it while facing the opposite basket.  After all, I thought I stood no chance of making it either way.  So I took the shot and . . . I made it.  I turned just in time to see it go in.  I’m sure I could never under any circumstances pull it off again.
3. In college, Jamie Kennedy (Randy from Scream, comedian, etc.) did a stand-up routine at my school. On a dare, I asked him to marry me, and he asked me how much money I had.

The lie: #3. Jamie Kennedy did perform at L.G.'s school, and she actually did ask him to marry her. However, she wasn't dared to do it. She did it because she, for some reason she cannot fathom now, thought it would be funny. And he did ask how much money she had.  The answer was $10.

Way to guess everyone! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Christine Rains!

Congrats, Christine!

And now meet the author of THE THIRTEEN in the Parallels anthology (and one of her OTHER works, A Shot in the Light):

Sidney Knight, a freelance reporter, is at a motel on the Oregon coast. She takes a break from her writing to walk the beach and discovers hundreds of dead seagulls. She rushes back inside and calls her brother who works for the CDC. The bird flu has arrived and she wants to know what she should do. She ends saying at least she will get a flu shot, but his alarmed “No!” gives her chills.

She begins to dig into the statistics and realizes it is the deadliest flu year in many decades, what's worse, the shot seems to have increased the death toll. A Shot in the Light follows Sidney and a group of her friends as they first try to understand how this happened, then make an effort to expose those involved without getting themselves killed.

Set in an American where half the population has died, distrust is rampant and various police state efforts complicate matters, A Shot in the Light is a near future apocalypse thriller.

Get your copy HERE.

Ready to meet the author?

Hart Johnson is a social scientist by day, and plots murder and the apocalypse when the sun goes down. She has published a flu conspiracy trilogy (A Shot in the Light) and a cozy mystery series under the name Alyse Carlson. She has hopes to eventually support herself writing or take over the world, whichever works out first.

When someone tells her they are vegan, her first response is WHY WOULD YOU GIVE UP CHEESE!?

Her favorite cheese is brie but she is extremely enthusiastic about many sorts. She has two buddies in her neighborhood and collectively they are the Couch to Keg team. This was originally a misheard statement by another neighbor—they were doing the Couch to 5K and he misheard them; the name stuck a lot longer than the running efforts. Now they mostly watch great TV (currently Game of Thrones and Outlander) and drink wine accompanied by some CHEESE. In the off season, they also go to the Whole Foods Wine bar and typically get a cheese tray (the Spanish tray is the best—manchego, drunken goat and one other—but always ask after the daily special first).

Find her online HERE!

Hart gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Those who figure out the lie will go into my magic hat for the chance to win an their choice of the PRINT book (US ONLY, just the first book in the series) or the entire series via eBook.

You have until Tuesday, May 10, at 2 p.m. EDT to guess. Be sure to come back for the answers on May 11, 8 a.m EDT.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. I began writing with Fan Fiction. In fact I wrote a Harry Potter alternative book seven prior to the release of Deathly Hallows that had such uncanny commonalities as Nagini turning into a woman, breaking into Gringotts to steal the Hufflepuff cup from a vault, and Snape's tears having magic powers that were central to the climax. I will never beat the last line of that story: “So spank me.” (Narcissa to Lucius as they finally made peace, having been estranged during the war).

2. When I was a senior in high school my best friend got a wild hair... or decided my mom was the only mom of one of her friends who could be talked into signing the permission form—one of those things—and we signed up for a skydiving lesson. We spent a full afternoon jumping off progressively higher things and rolling out of the fall so we didn't break an ankle or a leg, then we went up in a perfectly good airplane and jumped out.

3. In 2008 I had a conference in London. Through my early online interactions and writing experiences I was part of a writing group, a couple of my fellow members decided to travel at the same time so we could all meet our friend Tara who lives in Wales and we could travel a bit together after the conference, taking advantage of some of the things we had in common (mostly writing, Harry Potter, and Monty Python). The highlight of our trip was making our way to Doune Castle in Scotland and doing a few rounds of the French taunting...

So sleuths, which is the lie? How was your April? Do you have someone to thank today for being there? Do you read medical thrillers? Have you met Hart?

Love or Hate Anthologies?

Do you like short stories?

When it comes to writers, it seems like they either go long, or go short. It's rare you have someone who's mastered the art of the short story and the full length novel.

I was always a long distance writer, but could totally appreciate the short story. About 8 years ago I was introduced to flash fiction. (Stories that are 100 to 1000 words long--a paragraph to 2.5 pages.) I was fascinated. It was also my gateway drug to the short story realm.

Fast forward a bit... This year I'm contributing to my 7th and 8th anthologies--one of which I'm super excited to introduce today! (Click on the BOOKS to see the other publications.)

Anthology #7 is one most of you have probably seen about the interwebs, but if not, here it is:

The competition was stiff to get into this anthology, and only 10 pieces were accepted. We (the 10 authors) have started a blog all about the awesomeness of speculative fiction. (Check it out!) We'll be participating in the A to Z Challenge there and may just blow your mind. (In a good way.)

For fun, I thought I'd share a teaser here today from my contribution:

The Mirror People

We think no one is watching behind closed doors, but what if they are? Meet the Mirror People. 

Excerpt:

Every day I look into the eyes of a stone-cold killer. Sometimes he’s straightening his tux bowtie before a fancy shin-dig. Sometimes he’s grinning madly while brandishing a knife. Sometimes he’s spattered in blood.

The point is, it’s my job to look into his eyes, day after day, unable to raise the alarm or warn his victims—like the middle aged woman he’s just finished off—because I inhabit the world on the other side of the mirror.

I’m Jak Ralston’s reverse identity, also known as Jak Ralston. His prisoner.

He wipes his blade clean having already sheared off his trophy, a finger, and turns away from the mirror to the mess of a hotel room. I relax. My shoulders ache from the tension. He is always intense. Always serious. Always angry. But not the explosive kind of angry, the cool, I’m-going-to-rip-your-eyeballs-out-in-your-sleep kind of angry (while he tells you how lovely you look in gray). He’s calculating. Terrifying.

I stand on the other side of the mirror, mimicking his movements like my life depends on it, because it does. Mr. Murder is my twid (twin identity), me in another realm, and if I break from being his reflection while anyone is watching (including him), we’ll both keel over and die. No matter how much I despise him, I’m not ready to die—like Susan, the mirror woman he’s just murdered in my realm. Facing her now, it’s all I can do not to slam my fists into the mirror and scream, but destroying myself won’t bring her back...

Coming May 3, 2016

Preorder HERE

 

Now let's award a WINNER!

Last week Alysia S. Knight shared with us AURORA RISING, along with two truths and a lie. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win an eBook AND a super cool bookmark.

The Game:

1. I’ve climbed to the top of the Sidney Australia Bridge.
2. Took my son on his first deer hunt. He shot a big buck and I did a controlled slide with a rope to lower the big deer over a 40 foot shale drop off because my son was afraid the antlers would break if we let it roll.

3. I’m preparing to climb Denali.  

The lie: #3. Alysia likes hiking but prefers warm weather--and she doesn't want to hike anything that steep.

Way to guess everyone! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Christine Rains!

Congrats, Christine!

And that's it for this week. There will be another fun Truth or Lie game next week for super cool prizes. Go check out the Parellels blog eh? Or order yourself an awesome anthology.

Do you read short stories? When was the last time you read an anthology? 

Silly Saturday: Wrapped up for the weekend?

Have you ever considered home schooling--for yourself, a friend, your kids?

I do home school my kids. Unfortunately my mom didn't hop on that band wagon until I was graduated, but I got to see the benefits first hand with my younger siblings. So when I say "Wrap up," this is where my brain goes:

But it could also mean this:

Image courtesy of Jim Whimpey

Or this:

Image courtesy of Miriella

This:

Image courtesy of Redstamp

Or possibly even these:

Images courtesy of Andres Por and Ben Raynal

But what it really means is this:

Jane Eyre meets Supernatural.

Alexia’s nightmares become reality: a dead baron, red-eyed wraiths, and forbidden love with a man hunted by these creatures. After an attack close to home, Alexia realizes she cannot keep one foot in her old life and one in this new world. To protect her family she must either be sold into a loveless marriage, or escape with her beloved and risk becoming one of the Soulless. 

Goodreads | Buy Now

Mystery Sentence Game: Unravel the mystery of the Moonless night! Gather all 8 hidden words from the excerpts and figure out the sentence to win a free copy of Moonless. Send your mystery sentence to crystal (AT) crystal-collier.com with the subject MYSTERY SENTENCE before December 10, 2013, and you will be entered to win one of 10 copies of MOONLESS—just in time for Christmas. Happy hunting!

Truth or Lie Game: It's Writerly Wednesday on STERIODS! (Minus the Wednesdays...and the steroids.) You have 6 chances to guess the lie and win a copy of MOONLESS. Each post has different truths and lies, so here's a chance to really test your human lie detector skills. Winners will be announced here December 11th. Are you a human lie detector?

SATURDAY:

The Mystery Sentence Game continues with Jessie Harrell and Excerpt #6. Are you playing the game?

Hart Johnson takes us to the heart of the matter with The Naked Cheese. 

SUNDAY:

Not convinced you should read Moonless yet? T.C. Mckee shares her review titled, "A Darker Mister Darcy."

E.J Wesley with Five Things to be Grateful For--Debut Author Edition.

Or check out all the fun you've missed HERE.

What's the first thing you think of when you hear the words, "wrap up?" And honestly, what are you feelings on home schooling?

Oh, and now sign yourself up for freebies. (You know you want to!)

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