Goodreads Giveaway

Until November 24, I'm offering a giveaway of my book "288 Chances" on Goodreads, a free website for book lovers.  Goodreads is like one large on-line library that you can wander through at your leisure, finding and reviewing books by your favorite authors, and meeting up with other like-minded souls who enjoy writing and reading as much as you do.  You can list and track books that you're reading and see recommendations for books that others are enjoying as well.

And if you haven't already read it, I would like to recommend a book that I reviewed on Goodreads, and one that I highly recommend to ANYONE who has ANY desire to write ANYTHING.  Stephen King's book, "On Writing, a Memoir of the Craft", might be the most interesting, at times entertaining, but most of all straight-talking, informative book on the craft of writing that I've ever come across.  I enjoyed it immensely and learned a lot from this master-craftsman, the master-craftsman, himself.  I highly recommend checking this one out.  You'll be glad you did.

Enter to win one of (5) signed copies of my book, which will be mailed out to you once the winners have been chosen at random by the good folks at Goodreads. 

Follow this link to sign up for (1) signed copy of my book, Goodreads Giveaway.  Do it today.  I do hope you win and I hope you enjoy!

Signing off for now,

Brenda  :)

On The Shelf

It's beyond rewarding whenever I see my book, "288 Chances", on the shelf at a Barnes and Noble bookstore.  It's thrilling, but so surreal at the same time.  Even after going through the whole experience of writing, re-writing, editing and finally, submitting a fnished manuscript to be published, to see the end result - out there and available to readers everywhere - is surreal indeed.

There I am! Right there. That' s me.      

I love just being surrounded by books, all books.  I can easily spend a couple hours on a Saturday afternoon, just browsing through row after row, seeing the familiar names that we all know and admire.  I see the names of the already established and much sought-after authors, publishing yet another much-anticipated book, one their readers can't wait to buy up as soon as possible.  You have to respect the years of hard work and the undisputable talent that has afforded them that kind of success. 

But I'm most interested in the first-time authors, or those that are just beginning to make a name for themselves in the publishing world. I believe it takes equal amounts of "courage and en-couragement" for a writer to take that leap.  A leap into the unknown, sharing so much of themselves, opening the door to not just praise and reward, but just the same, criticism and rejection.  Those are the writers I like to look for - and watch.  The ones who have so much of value to say and share, but will never have the fame or recognition of many of the most successful writers and authors of our time. 

Then again, there's a really good chance that's not why they wrote and published a book in the first place.

So there I am, in the very same neighborhood as such distinguished authors as Dr. Phil and Jane Pauley.  Again, may I say surreal?

Signing off for now,

Brenda   :)

My Speaking Engagement at Readers Conference

As the author of my book "288 Chances:  Reflections on Everyday Life, One Word, Five Minutes at a Time", I was invited to be a presenter at the 2014 Iowa Reading Association Conference in Ames, Iowa, on June 25, 2014.  I met some wonderful people there and saw first-hand all the good work that this group of teachers, educators and dedicated individuals do to promote literacy. 

I was honored to have been extended the opportunity to share my passion for writing, to share my experience in the writing and publication of my first book, as well my opinion as to the importance of literacy for all, the ability to read and write, for even the youngest readers. 

My program was entitled "Write to Express, Not Impress",  based on the idea that I’m a reader who became a writer. I’m convinced that a love of reading, the passion to both read and tell a really good story, are essential in every writer, professional or otherwise. I wrote in the dedication of my book, “I write because I can and because I have to.” I say that because, for me, it’s a privilege knowing I can write any time I want to, and I have to write any time I can.

 

Here is an excerpt from my program.  "But writing to impress, while it might showcase a skillful command of language and sentence structure, the words may end up sounding pretentious and uninspiring to some readers. If the end goal for the writer is publication of their finished work, my hope is most published authors would tell you that writing and publishing are not about ego and self-promotion. A writer writes because they have to. And publishing one's work should be more about the satisfaction that comes from finishing something you started, from dedicating yourself to doing the hard work and seeing it through to completion. Admittedly, publication is validation that someone recognized the worth and value in words which you wrote. But I can't stress enough. Write to express, not to impress."

I thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience and would gladly participate again.  I received some valuable feedback and received several interesting questions from those who attended my presentation. 

My book was also available for sale at the Barnes and Noble Booth set up at the event.  A booksigning was scheduled immediately after my prestation and I was honored to sign books for those who purchased my book at the conference or brought their book for me to sign.

My thanks to those who extended me the invitation, and for their kind words of encouragement leading up to the conference.  This was my first public speaking appearance, and while it did take many months of hard work and preparation, choosing my topic, writing my program and the PowerPoint presentation that accompanied my talk, I would do it again - in a heartbeat.

Signing off for now,

Brenda  :)