Authors, Kai Strand & LA Dragoni

Three Times a Charm is a weekly feature that spotlights authors, illustrators, bloggers, agents, editors or promoters from the publishing industry. This week I’m excited to welcome, smack dab in the middle of her book release, author, S.R. Johannes. Shelli, tell us about yourself. S.R. Johannes lives in Atlanta Georgia with her dog, British-accented husband, and the huge imaginations of their little prince and princess, which she hopes- someday- will change the world. After earning an MBA and working in corporate America, S.R. Johannes traded in her expensive suits, high heels, and corporate lingo for a family, flip-flops, and her love of writing. You can find her hanging out online and visit her at srjohannes.com Shelli, congratulations on the release. Tell us about your beautiful new book, Untraceable . Everyone leaves a mark.  What would you do if yours was erased?   Grace has lived in the Smokies all her life, patrolling with her for...

Congratulations to blog followers Judy and Ricki! You've each won a signed copy of The Weaver. Thanks to everyone who entered. I LOVED reading what you are grateful for. Thanks for following the blog. Readers rock!

World of Ink virtual book tour stops in today to introduce us to author, Karen Cioffi. Let’s learn a little about Karen: Karen Cioffi is an advocate of education, reading, and the environment.   She loves how reading can spark a child’s imagination and bring him or her to new worlds and on amazing adventures.                         Along with writing children’s books, Karen is a ghostwriter and freelance writer, and has several nonfiction books on writing and book marketing. She has lived in New York City all her life, and two of her favorite sayings are: “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” American proverb “Be the change you want to see in the world.” M. Ghandi Karen is with us today to talk about her fantasy Walking Through Walls . Here is more about the book: Walking Through Walls is based on an ancient Chinese tale and set in 16th c...

Today’s Daily Grateful is family. I am grateful for both my immediate and my extended family. -For parents who provided me with a secure and loving upbringing even after their divorce. Who have always believed in me. Whose support I never question. Mom, I miss you more than I can say. -For my sisters who I know beyond all doubt will always do whatever it takes for me, my husband and my kids, if need be. Who make me laugh, a lot. Who aren’t ashamed to join me in a good sob-fest. Who make me laugh, a lot. (Yes, it needs to be repeated!) Happy birthday, Shell. -For the dozens (2 ½ of them, I think) of brothers and sisters-in-law who have provided stunning examples of family and who are so supportive and really, really fun! -For the scores of nieces and nephews, great nieces and great nephews who add depths of joy to our lives. Who consistently remind me how blessed I am to be a part of this amazing family. -For my children who continually inspire me, awe me with their...

If you’ve been reading my daily grateful posts, and you are a friend of mine, you’ve probably got your hand on your hip, toe is a-tapping and you’re saying, “Hey what about me!?” Well, with only today and tomorrow left of grateful posts, I’ve saved the best for last. Today my friends take center stage. I shout, I exalt, I’m as obnoxious as can be about how thankful I am for each and every one of you. Dicitionary.com defines friend as: a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard. LAME! That isn’t what friendship is. Friendship is hopscotch, jumping into a pile of leaves, kickball, late night admissions, high school football games, secret crushes, marathon coffee shop visits, rock concerts, road trips, weddings, baby showers, toasting promotions, kiddy parties, New Year celebrations, laughter, and loads of love. Friendship also includes copious tears, some terrors, some anger and a lot of forgiveness. I have friends who I’ve only kn...

As a young adult, trying to figure out how to deal with ever increasing pressure and stress, my mother said to me, “Just hand your troubles up to God.” My eyebrow arched, my lip curled and I said, “Huh?” She explained that when you feel your troubles are too much for you to deal with, hand them up to God. He will sort them out and hand them back as he sees fit. When you are ready and capable. He doesn’t solve them for you, but lightens your load so that you are better equipped to solve them yourself. If memory serves me right, I wasn’t able to figure out just how to hand my troubles up to God at that time. It wasn’t until another stressful time in my life when I remembered my mom explaining this elusive ‘hand off’ that I successfully did just that. I let go of the worry and the stress as I handed my troubles off, knowing that I’d still have to resolve each and every one of them, but all in good time. Even since my first successful experience I’ve been unsuccessful again. T...

Some people don’t have the capacity to dream. Perhaps they are lacking imagination, life experience or confidence. Regardless, they make their way through life living from one event to the next never striving for much more. I dream practically every night. I daydream. I sometimes spend far too much time in my dreamland. But I’m so thankful for the ability to dream. To hope. To set goals. To imagine a life with more of the things I love. I’m an equal opportunity dreamer. I dream for my husband, my kids, my sisters, my besties. I’m lucky because I don’t have many bad dreams, but I do have them. Yet, I’m thankful for them too, because they ground me. Help me see that my dreams should to stay tethered to reality in some small way to make the dream a possibility. I dream in French. Though I never became fluent in the language in the waking world, I will have entire dreams in French and I’m pretty sure I’m speaking it correctly as is everyone else. Most of my dreams are ...

Three Times a Charm is a weekly feature that spotlights authors, illustrators, bloggers, agents, editors or promoters from the publishing industry. This week I am pleased to welcome author, Jeanette Larson. Jeanette, tell us about yourself. Growing up I lived in many places but as an adult I settled in Texas. I still love to travel and have visited many countries and most of the states. I studied anthropology at the University of New Mexico, which was not the best degree for getting a job but was good background for working in a library. After marrying a guy I met at UNM, I moved to Southern California and got a master's degree in library science. While working in a library during library school I discovered that I loved children's and young adult literature and working with kids. After more than 30 years working as a librarian, I "took my pension" in early 2006 to pursue freelance work as a consultant, trainer, and writer. I also teach a couple of classes ...

Today I am so very, very grateful for and terrifically excited about book contracts. Because I recently SIGNED ONE !!! I am thrilled to announce that I’ve sold my middle grade novel, SAVE THE LEMMINGS! to Featherweight Press . A publisher of children’s and young adult fiction. When Natalie’s Texty-Talky invention makes her an overnight sensation, the media digs until they find a way to smear her goody-goody image. When her best friends start believing what they read, Natalie’s sunny spirit is pushed to its limits. How will Natalie stop the lies and win her friends back? And who will SAVE THE LEMMINGS? Look for publication in 2012. Stay dialed in by liking my author page on Facebook. Kai Strand, Author . Remember I love my blog followers as much as I love book contracts. Be sure to sign up for my Gratitude Giveaway . You can say you knew me when .  

This may seem random, but hopefully you will understand why I consider this important enough to mention by the time I’m finished. When I was young I had long hair. My mom used to put it in pigtails and tie a different color yarn bow around each one. The fat yarn that made strong bows. The colors always coordinated with my outfit. Then I got to “that” age where I didn’t care to take care of my hair. That age lasts a long, long time and I had short hair all those years. People would mistake me for a boy, which was sad after about age 12 since I’m also…um…curvy. By the time I figured out that I could take control of my hairy destiny, I’d lost all love of short hair. ALL love. I’ve had long or longish hair since. At some point two things happened. 1.) I realized how fast my hair grows, 6 inches per year. 2.) I realized there are little kids out there who need hair. As soon as I learned that there were children who had to go through life bald due to no fault of their own…I started ...

World of Ink virtual book tour stops into Strands of Thought this week to introduce us to picture book author, Jan Britland.   Let’s learn more about Jan. Jan Britland is an author and artist. She lives in Punta Gorda, Florida with her husband Bill. They have a bulldog named Madison, a parrot named Lola, three red-eared slider turtles named Sparky, Luigi and hale. And last but not least Goldie a pond fish. All of whom are portrayed in her stories. When she is not writing Children's books, she teaches oil painting to adults. You can reach Jan through her website, www.rodgerdodgerdog.com Jan currently has four Rodger Dodger Dog books published: The Adventures of Rodger Dodger Dog is a three story book following the adorable Rodger Dodger Dog as he meets a new friend, saves a stranded fish and battles the dreaded flea. Written in rhyme with action packed illustrations it is sure to delight your child. The Adventures of Rodger Dodger Dog, Ro...

Grand Tetons, WY I’m a bit of a Mother Nature junkie and I’m blessed to live in an area of this beautiful country where I can satisfy my craving for fresh air and beauty whenever the spirit moves me. In all honesty, I prefer to explore Mama Nat spring through fall, but even winter holds enticing situations for me. I walk a lot for exercise. My favorite conditions to walk in, by far, is when it is 32 degrees outside and snowing. The temperature is cool enough to lure you into pushing yourself harder because you don’t feel hot and sweaty, nor are your lungs burning from frigid, ice pick air. Not blowing snow, but that peaceful snow that floats straight down and muffles the sound of your footsteps until the world seems still and quiet, the only sound your heavy breathing. Canoeing Elk Lake The remainder of the year I love to explore mountains, deserts, rivers, lakes, meadows, tide pools, sand dunes, and forests. It never gets old. I love to tour by foot, by ca...

picture by Nancy Burton I am fiercely patriotic. I love our country and democracy. Silly things stoke my patriotism. Like, how our youth gather at midnight movies, such a display of passion and security. Black Friday. Even though I never participate, I love that it epitomizes our free trade economy. Big things flare my loyalty. September 11 th . Well, there’s nothing bigger than that. I have America The Beautiful and The Star Spangled Banner on my ipod. We fly the flag every day of the year (weather permitting). Tears well every time I see that commercial where the soldier receives a recorded book from his child. I may not always support my President’s policies, I may not always agree with a military action or a political movement of the people or a decision of the Supreme Court. But I always respect the individual persons behind all of it, because they are my fellow Americans who live free alongside me and who are equally responsible for the stewardship of this great countr...

I’m taking advantage of the Gratitude Giveaways Hop to share with you the things that I am thankful for. Today’s gratitude is education. Our public education system may not be fool proof, but it is a nationwide system that allows each child access to an education. It is chockfull of caring educators and administrators, often underpaid and under supported, who have the student’s education as their primary goal. I am grateful that there was never a question whether or not I would learn to read. I am thankful that I was raised in a household that valued education and therefore supported my efforts, encouraged my advancement and challenged me to learn even more. It is always good to strive for better, but be sure to be thankful for what is provided. Also be sure to visit my Gratitude Giveaways post and enter to win one of two signed books. Have you already read The Weaver? Then if you win, give your winnings as a gift to a child, gift it to a teacher’s classroom library, dona...