My Book Cave Group Promotion: Warm Up Your Winter

The website, My Book Cave is doing a group promotion for several of my friends' books, and I was lucky enough to get my book, Felicity~ A Sparrow's Tale,included in the group! All the ebooks are free for a limited time, so hurry and check them out, and get a free copy! I haven't read them all, but I have read Loyalty's Web by Joyce DiPastena, Lay Me Down by Tamara Hart Heiner, and House Without Lies by Rachel Branton, and those three books are extremely good! Loyalty's Web takes place in medieval times, Lay Me Down is a sad/happy YA, and House Without Lies is a contemporary story about a young woman trying to help teen girls escape abuse.  Here is a link to these books, and others: https://mybookcave.com/g/c40b3f90/  Happy Reading!

Forrest Carter's The Education of Little Tree

The Education of Little Tree (c) 1976 Forrest Carter

The Education of Little Tree, by Forrest Carter, follows the character Little Tree from the time he is five years old on through a number of years as he lives with his grandparents during the Great Depression, and Prohibition.

The story is in chronological order, but doesn't have much of a main theme or plot to it, which works perfectly for the book. There isn't a main story goal, just bits and pieces from Little Tree's life with his grandparents. Each chapter is like its own little short story. Some of them are sad, some serious, and some laugh out loud funny, especially the story that includes Mr. Chunk and Mr. Slick.

The book does have some swearing in it, but only mild swearing.

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

The Hobbit (c) 1937 by J. R. R. Tolkien

I have just started reading The Hobbit again by J. R. R. Tolkien with my seniors. And while I've lost count of how many times I've read it before, it's a book I haven't yet gotten tired of reading. I enjoy Tolkien's light-hearten language, the way he sometimes speaks in first person and talks directly to the audience, and
the encouraging story behind it all.
Bilbo is a quiet hobbit who is very content to stay at home, and doesn't want to go on any adventures, thank you very much. "Nasty, disturbing things! Makes one late for dinner!" Yet still, he finds himself off in the wild with Gandalf and thirteen dwarves, doing things he never expected he'd do, and finding courage he didn't think he had.
I enjoy the story of The Hobbit partly because of the fun, fantastical adventure Bilbo has, and partly because of what I learn from Bilbo. People can move out of their comfort zones. People can confront frightening things, and not back down. People can stand up to bullies. And most importantly, that those bullies, whether they're dragons, orcs, or anything scary, can be beaten.

Rachelle Christensen's "Top 10 Proven Secrets to Writing a Brilliant Novel"

Rachelle J. Christensen, Author

I just read a fantastic blog post by fellow writer Rachelle Christensen. She is the author of several novels, including The Soldier's Bride, which won a Kindle Scout Award, and Diamond Rings are Deadly Things.

Just recently, she published a blog post titled "Top 10 Proven Secrets to Writing a Brilliant Novel". It sounded great, so I followed the link. The blog post is awesome, with 10 different but equally helpful ideas on how to write well and productively. She also included quotes from successful writers, an editor, an agent, and even a writer's spouse! (I love Jenn Savage; that was my favorite!)

Follow the link, which goes into more depth with these great tips:

#1 READ!

#2 Overcome The Fear of Mistakes

#3 Develop a Core Belief in Your Writing

#4 Work Hard

#5 Attend Writing Conferences

#6 Treat Your Writing as More Than a Hobby

#7 Join a Critique Group or Find a Mentor

#8 Finish Your Novel

#9 Keep the Balance in Life & Writing

#10 Keep Writing and Be Brave

Great tips and ideas! I really liked #4. It's important to remember that greatness doesn't just happen. Regardless of what you do, Working Hard will help you achieve your goals.

Happy New Year!

For me, 2016 was a pretty good year. My son graduated from high school, and left on an LDS mission to the Philippines. I got a contract signed with Trifecta Books for my book, The Shores of Bountiful, which is slated to come out in March (with much better editing, and a much better cover) and I got another MG book published, Felicity and the Fire Stoppers, which was nominated for a Whitney Award!

I look forward to 2017, and I wish everyone will have a safe, happy, and prosperous year!