Authors, Kai Strand & LA Dragoni

Welcome to Three Times A Charm. I love to introduce readers to people involved in children’s publishing. Today we have middle grade author, Marie C. Collins joining us. She’s going to talk a little about her book. But first tell us a little about yourself. I’ll share a few pieces of me that relate to my Secrets of Farbookonia series. First, I am guilty of extreme house envy. I covet big old Victorian homes. They call to me with their turrets and window seats and attics. They intrigue me and comfort me. Their paneled walls, old portraits, and butterfly collections reek of stories. Since I was a child, it’s been clear to me that life is just better inside these houses. And so book 2 of my series – my work-in-progress – is set in one. Second, like my character Anne, I have a very active dream life. I have had several dreams set in the same Victorian house of my own design. I don’t know what it would look like on the outside, because inside, its corridors seem to go on forever...

I don't know about you, but one of my pet peeves as a reader is when it isn't clear that a book is 1) part of a series and 2) what order to read the series in. I have stopped reading a series because I've had to work to hard to figure out which book is next. Amazon is making it much easier to find that information. First off, they've added the series information directly under the book information. See how when you are on The Weaver's page on Amazon, it shows all the books in the series? This is especially helpful when the author and publisher didn't expect the book to become a series (as in the case of The Weaver) so you didn't indicate anything about additional books in the first one. The second very helpful information is when you click through to the series page. For example, I looked up my book, Polar Opposites. It shows that it's the second book in a series, so I click through to the series page and I'm provided with buy links for a...

Today I welcome Deirdra Eden to Strands of Thought. She's here to talk a little about her new release, Hidden Fire . Take it away, Deirdra. There are terrifying things in the world. Perhaps there is truth behind the tales of the monster in the closet and under the bed. They are the creatures in the dark places that wait for us to let down our guard. Stories and parallels have been used since the beginning of time to teach children and adults how to fight what they can’t always see, or worse, the big bad wolves who pretend to be grandma. The Watchers is another tale of good vs. evil, with mythology based on supernatural beings from the Apocrypha. Although it is a fantasy similar to the types of fantasies you would enjoy in a Tolkien or C.S. Lewis tale, The Watchers takes places in this world and weaves through historical events while remaining relatable for the modern reader. The Watchers, like everyone on this planet, have been given gifts and unique talents to battle d...

Welcome to Three Times A Charm. I love to introduce readers to people involved in children’s publishing. Today we welcome back YA author, Melanie Hooyenga. Melanie visited Strands of Thought before with a great guest post. (I’ll put the link at the bottom so you can re-visit it.) She’s going to share a little about her series. But first, Melanie, can tell us a little about yourself? I first started writing as a teenager and find I still relate best to that age group. I’ve lived in Washington DC, Chicago, and Mexico, but have finally settled down in my home state of Michigan with my husband Jeremy. When I’m not at my day job as a graphic designer, you can usually find me attempting to wrangle my Miniature Schnauzer Owen and playing every sport imaginable with Jeremy. I love the image I have in my head of you wrangling Owen. Those small dogs can be bossy! Now, can you tell us about your series, please? I LOVE the covers! The Flicker Effect trilogy is contemporary YA...

As a teenager in Southern California, one of my favorite summer past times was getting a tan. My friend and I would catch a ride with her sister to her sister's work early in the morning. She worked close to the beach. Then we'd hop on a bus for the rest of the trip. We'd get there so early in the morning, the fog hadn't burned off yet, but that was okay because we'd be able to pick out the ultimate spot on the still empty expanse of sand. While the seagulls cried and the waves shushed in and out, we'd get to work forming our beach beds for the day. The first bed, we scooped out a deep ditch into the sand where our bottoms would rest, building the sand we removed into a pile of high behind our heads, and a smaller swell under our knees. The second bed would be flat except for a "pillow" made from sand for when it was time to turn over and tan our backs. We slathered on tanning oil, the distinctive coconut scent lifting into the constant wind. We...

I'm excited to have Wendi Nunnery visit Strands of Thought. She has a shiny new release, The Best Kept Secret , that she's here to talk about. Take it away, Wendi! Thank you for having me on the blog today, Kai! I’m so excited to be here and share a few thoughts with you guys on The Best Kept Secret . The Best Kept Secret , as you know, is a young adult novel, and I’ve received a few odd looks when I tell people this is the kind of book I wrote. Sometimes those who are unfamiliar with young adult novels tend to believe that the subject matter is light and fluffy, or perhaps even immature, because of the target demographic. They don’t seem to understand why I would want to write for this particular genre. At least not at first. In recent years, young adult books have been making a dramatic shift from vampires and werewolves back to the daily struggles that teenagers face in an attempt to connect more personally with readers. Among the day-to-day issues like sc...

Be sure to visit the grand master Alex Cavanaugh Purpose:  To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting:  The first Wednesday of every month is officially  Insecure Writer’s Support Group  day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time. Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter hashtag is #IWSG The awesome co-hosts today are  M. Pax,   Tracy Jo, Patricia Lynne,   Rachna Chhabria,   Feather Stone,  and  Randi Lee!  Please visit their blogs & say hi! First, I just want ...

THE DARKNESS WITHIN Release Day Celebration Hosted by MMSAI Tours June 2nd ABOUT THE BOOK The   Darkness   Within The Monster Within #2 Author: Kelly Hashway Publisher:  Spencer Hill Press SYNOPSIS: After dying of cancer at seventeen and being brought back to life by an evil witch who turned her into a monster, Samantha Thompson thinks she's finally gotten past all the tragedy in her life. Now she's part of a coven of good witches who are helping her and her boyfriend, Ethan Anderson, learn to use the powers they received from other witches. Aside from the fact that Sam and Ethan are still in hiding from their old lives--the ones they had before Sam was brought back to life--things couldn't be better. Sam and Ethan are inseparable. What could go wrong?  Magic.  Ethan's magic came from a witch who'd turned as evil as possible, and though his coven thought he'd be fine, the more he uses his magic, the stranger he starts acting. The mag...

Today we welcome Sophie Goochild the main character of Disenchanted. Sophie is here to answer a few questions about her story. First, let’s find out a little more about Disenchanted. Descended from a powerful Wethersfield witch, sixteen-year-old Sophie is struggling to hide her awkwardly emerging magic, but that’s the least of her worries. When a dangerous thief tries to steal her mysterious heirloom necklace, she is rescued by the one person she’s forbidden to fall for, a descendant of the man who condemned her ancestor to hang. He carries a dark secret that could destroy them both unless Sophie learns how to tap into the mysterious power of her diamond bloodcharm. She will have to uncover dark secrets from both of their families' wicked pasts and risk everything, including her soul to save them from a witch's true love curse, but it will take much more than that. - Welcome Sophie! Thanks for visiting with us today. We’ll start things off easy. How old are you? ...