I'm very happy to announce the release of Ellen Meister's book,
Secret Confessions of the Applewood PTA.
When a Hollywood location scout comes to Applewood, Long Island and announces that the local elementary school might make the perfect backdrop for an upcoming George Clooney movie, the PTA’s decorum crumbles like a cookie from last week's bake sale.
Enter Maddie, Ruth and Lisa, three women who become the glue that holds the project together...and wind up forming a bond of friendship stronger than anyone had imagined.
A good thing, too, because each of them is about to come apart. Maddie Schein, an ex-lawyer trying as hard to fit in as she is to save her marriage, gets knocked off balance by Jack Rose, an old college friend hell bent on seducing her. Ruth Moss—rich, sexy and outspoken—has more to give and less to enjoy than most people think. Indeed, since her husband's stroke left him embarrassingly uninhibited yet completely impotent, she's more of a caretaker than a wife. And modest Lisa Slotnick, a loving parent who wants nothing more than to fade into the scenery as she tends to her children, must deal with the humiliation of being thrust before the spotlight by her scandalous, alcoholic mother.
When these three get together, a powerful alliance is forged. But is it strong enough to overcome the obstacles to getting the movie made in their town? And will their friendship be enough to mend their hearts and homes? Join them as they reach for the stars...and try to pull off a Hollywood ending of their own.
About the author: A Long Island PTA mom herself, Ellen Meister is no stranger to the scandal and drama of the carpool set. Add a background in writing ad copy and short stories—as well a stint as editor of a literary magazine—and the result is a novelist as dedicated to nuances of language as she is to a storyline that delights on every page.
Meister lives on
Long Island with her husband and three children. She writes, she swears, she sings, she dances … all from the front seat of her minivan. This is her first novel.
Learn more about Ellen at her website
Want to read an excerpt, click here
Buy it now at Amazon.com
Labels: applewood, ellen meister secrets, guest, PTA
Christine's latest book,
Return to Zandria, sequel to
Talisman of Zandria, will be released July 28, 2007 so we have an exclusive here, folks.
Here's the blurb:
Ivy Peterson was not ordinary. Ivy was More-Than-Ordinary because once she found herself in a very special place and had a very special adventure.
But Ivy was far too old for fairy tales...wasn’t she?
It has been three years since Ivy recovered the Talisman of Zandria, and her life is very different. She is no longer the shy young girl who chased a fairy through a magic gate, but a teenager, concerned with clothes, friends and school. She has nearly forgotten about the special world that exists on the other side of a thin magical veil.
But they have not forgotten her.
Now a crisis is brewing in Zandria, and only Ivy can help. They implore her to come to their aid, and Ivy’s memories of adventure pull her once again into the enchanted world of mermaids, dragons and wizards. Reunited with old friends, and bringing a new one along for the ride, Ivy must now lead them into the wilds of her own world, and not only keep them safe but stop an empire from falling into the clutches of evil.
Would you like to read an excerpt? Click here
I had an opportunity to ask Christine a couple of questions.
How has writing affected your life?
It really hasn't affected my life...it's sort of taken over! I spend most of my free time now writing, and other things have been pushed aside - home projects, my son's scrapbook, cleaning...LOL. I would much rather write than clean my house.
I've also developed a good freelance career as a re-writer. I take books that have been translated from other languages and clean them up so they read properly for an American audience. I get to work from home, so that's been a blessing.
What are your writing goals?
Oh, to be able to write books for a living and not have to do anything else. I love substitute teaching, and I love the freelancing work - I've been incredibly fortunate to have both in my life, and they allow me time to write my own books, but being able to concentrate solely on my books would be wonderful. I want to have a large readership, too, which is what I think most writers want. I would, well, I wouldn't kill, but you know what I mean, to have the amount of readers that J.K. Rowling has, or Jane Yolen, or Tamora Pierce. That's really the goal.
What's one thing you'd wish people would ask you and don't?
Oh, my, let me think about that one a minute. I guess I would have to say that no one asks me about my school visits. Everyone asks about what I like to read and where I get my ideas and all that, but no one really asks me about the author visits. I do have a program that is geared toward about grades 4-7, and I talk about being a writer - what kinds of things writers write, and where I do get inspiration from, and all the stuff everyone asks me about all the time. But it's really one of my favorite things to do, because I find that children are really interested in talking about writing, even if they don't like to actually do it.
That, and my favorite food. No one ever asks about that. Cheesecake. I love cheesecake.
Labels: Children's author, Christine Norris, guest, LBF Books
Today, I have a guest on my blog. Kim Robinson, the author of The Roux in the Gumbo. She's on a Virtual Book Tour and we were lucky enough to get her to stop here. Here is the rest of Kim's Virtual Book Tour schedule.
Kim Robinson was born in raised in Compton, California. She has survived everything that life threw at her and now lives in Allen,Texas, with her husband and three kids. When she's not sewing, writing, cooking and watching movies, Kim is a motivational speaker, sometimes bringing the crowd to tears with her moving personal accounts of the background of her life.The Roux in the Gumbo is an emotional and inspirational look into the lives of a family that opens
their door and hearts on every page. Spanning the years between 1800 to 1997, The Roux in the Gumbo’s story is told through one of the main characters before her passing; the remainder is accompanied by the memories of family members and friends. Based in Louisiana, with all its flair and Southern culture, it describes the experiences throughout history, contributing to the shaping of generations. In spite of the obstacles and struggles that life brought their way, these characters persevered with unity, love and laughter, due to a strong familial support system that carries universal appeal.For more information on Kim, please visit www.kim-robinson.com. You can pick up your copy of The Roux in the Gumbo at Amazon. I had an opportunity to ask Kim some questions.
VICKI: How has writing affected your life?
KIM: Ha Ha good question. Compared to my old life I think writing has been very therapeutic for me. In writing The Roux in the Gumbo I found out so many things that happened in my life had happened to my ancestors. It all stops with me, now that I have the information that I need to inform my children of what not to do, the abuse stops with me. I guess that leaves the question of what abuse? I was raped by a preacher at the age of five and for thirty years I would not go to church or say the word God. He stayed out of my house and I stayed out of his. With no religion I went the other way, I was a madam, callgirl, drug dealer and drug addict for over a decade, until I met a man that made me feel like I was better than that. My grandmother had a vision and told me I should write, she said, "One day this is going to feed your family." I didn't pay enough attention to my grandmother's vision. But now I remember all of them in the book about her life, and I have my own visions now.
VICKI: What are your writing goals?
KIM: To write things to educate people on history, abuse, drugs, religion, and spirituality through my own negative experiences. In my books I tell it like it T.I. is and don't hold any punches no matter how painful the experiences are.
VICKI: What's the one question (and answer) you wish people would ask and don't?
KIM: One question that a lot of people ask me is, "How can you tell people that you were a prostitute." God doesn't have any secrets and he wants me to do things to help and inspire others. I feel obligated to share my past because that is just what it is, "My past." The questions that people don't ask is "How can I help people who are still living in pain, and abusing themselves."
I think that if most people had to go to the street to survive they wouldn't, they would starve to death, or get killed. If you see a homeless person, a prostitute, a drug addict ask them what you can do to help them. The twenty dollars you give to that hooker may be the same twenty dollars that stops her from getting her throat cut or going home to an abusive pimp, or put the food in her babies mouth that she is trying to get.
VICKI: Thank you, Kim, for being so forward and honest in your answers to my questions. I wish you much success with your Virtual Book Tour and good luck with your writing.
Labels: abuse, author, book, drug addict, guest, homeless, inspirational, Kim Robinson, prostitute, The Roux in the Gumbo, Virtual Book Tour, write, writing
4 comments links to this post