Showing posts with label Left on the Edge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Left on the Edge. Show all posts

13 November 2014

Reader's Choice

 
Here are a few favorite quotes readers have selected:


For the next twenty minutes, there was no haunting past and no ominous future to cloud her thoughts. There was only right now. Left on the Edge

Pulling her arms back, she couldn’t find any courage to share the truth. Words couldn’t really do justice to the horrors she had just experienced. Taken in the Woods

“I am done living my life with secrets.” Speaking to her reflection, Autumn spoke the words that set her free. “I have nothing to fear from telling the truth.” Drowned by Fear

Finding friends is hard enough; losing them is even worse. Drowned by Fear

What is your favorite quote?

20 August 2014

Where to buy the Woodmere Trilogy?

Word has reached me that knowing where to buy the Woodmere Trilogy is unclear. This simply will not do. With the third and final book in the trilogy in it's final stages, knowing where to purchase the first two books is essential.

Only the new edition of the paperback is currently available:
It is important to note that new editions of Left on the Edge and Taken in the Woods are making their way through cyber hoops to major retailers right now.

https://www.createspace.com/4454686
Taken in the Woods (Woodmere Trilogy | Book Two)
https://www.createspace.com/4361420


Where to buy Left on the Edge:
Get a Paperback - Amazon | Createspace | Barnes & Noble
Get an eBook - Book Country | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Scribd | Kobo | iTunes

Where to buy Taken in the Woods:
Get a Paperback - Amazon | Createspace | Barnes & Noble
Get an eBook - Book Country | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Scribd | Kobo | iTunes

Check back for information on where to buy Drowned by Fear once it is released!
Tentative release will be in September 2014.

23 January 2014

Drowned by Fear

Photo taken by me,  Sarah Richards in Northern Minnesota
In the first book of the Woodmere Trilogy, Left on the Edge,
Autumn is haunted by memories. 
She believed her Uncle Mason was the culprit. 

Then in the Taken in the Woods,
she is faced with the reality her memories lied to her. 
The man she should be hiding from is called Nic Blaque. 

Lies also affected Craig life. 
Lies told by his own father, Hank and readily believed by his closest friends and most of the town. 
By telling the truth to Autumn he earned her trust and respect, and
Autumn finally told Craig the truth about her dark past when it caught up to her in the woods.

Can she learn to do the same with her parents before it is too late? 
Will her life have a happy ending or will she be Drowned by Fear?

24 September 2013

Never too old to dream.

This morning I dropped my son off at school, and then I head straight to the library to visit some old friends and make new ones as I pursued the books on the shelves.

What I encountered was so surreal that I broke the number one rule at a library.
 I squealed, loudly.



My debut book is on a shelf for others to read.
A dream I hadn't even known I was holding close to my heart had come true in that moment.

My second book, Taken in the Woods, is going to be published by October 1, 2013.
Now one of my dreams is to see it nestled next to Left on the Edge in the library.

These dreams are making me more motivated and energized to finish the trilogy than if I had drunk a whole pot of coffee. 

Dreams are amazing things.
Just because you grow older doesn't mean you stop having them.

The start of the Woodmere Trilogy begins with the main character Autumn celebrating her birthday.
"Happy Seventeenth Birthday, Autumn," Marion said. "Go on, make a wish.”
“I’m too old to make wishes,” Autumn retorted.
Leaning forward and holding her wavy reddish hair back, Autumn exhaled a small gust. I wish I could meet the man of my dreams this year, she thought before the last candle was extinguished.
(Taken from Left on the Edge)

As Autumn experiences in the Woodmere Trilogy,
dreams come true
in ways you wish for and in ways unexpected.

I first remember wanting to take care of sick animals when I was little.
My mom and dad informed me that was the job of a veterinarian.

Then I read an obscure book I picked up from the St. Charles Parish Library when I was in grade school.
Scrub Dog of Alaska by Walt Morey and it changed my mind.
I wanted to run in the Iditarod and own a dog sled team.

But like most childhood dreams there were complications.
No snow.
I was living in Louisiana.
No dogs allowed.
My mom is allergic to dogs.

I knew it wasn't going to happen, but that wasn't going to stop me from dreaming about it.
I filled page after page in my notebook in school (It was more fun than taking notes!) with drawings of mushers and sled dogs hard at work pulling loads of emergency supplies to people in need.

I never stopped reading.
I never stopped spending countless hours, days, years at the library listening to the stories come to life through my imagination as I read book after book

As my biography says, I have a Siberian Husky.
While I am not running medical supplies to those in need, the neighborhood opossums and squirrels have learned to stay away or become faster than a sled dog.
Neighbors have taken to thanking my dog with ham bones for riding their gardens of rabbits.

So in a way, my wish to help others with a sled dog has come true.
Like Autumn, it happened in ways I didn't foresee.

What were your childhood dreams? Have they come true? How have your dreams changed changed?

11 August 2013

Two secrets. One Friendship.

Autumn has avoided her uncle once again.
Will her past remain a secret she can forget again?

Craig understands Woodmere better than Autumn can imagine.
Will their friendship be destroyed before it begins by keeping his past a secret?

Two secrets. One friendship.
Will they learn from the past before it is too late?

The first five chapters have given a brief taste of what is to come.

Family. Friendships. Heart ache.
Which one of these is responsible for the tear on Autumn's face?

All of these questions are answered by reading the rest of the book.
Available online in paperback and eBook formats through major retailers.

Once you've read it, I look forward to hearing from you!
Who is your favorite character?
Mine is Craig.
What is your favorite moment and why?
This is a hard one. Many spring to mind: Craig in the locker room, Autumn's personal gym triumph, and the flight of a kite boarder. Beating all of these though is the 'son of a monkey' scene.
Best Quote from the book?

'Latin isn't dead, it is just for the enlightened and elite of society.'

Happy Reading!

25 June 2013

Red Pen of Editing.

I am excited to announce  
Left on the Edge is going to be re-released!

While I have done my best before originally publishing the first book of the Woodmere Trilogy, it has been brought to my attention the numerous typos and grammatical mistakes you, the readers, have found.

Syntax, weird typos and other grammatical no-nos are interrupting the flow of the novel.

The red pen of editing is being uncapped.
Left on the Edge is undergoing professional help.

Alex Stefansson, author of Paradise Squandered, has graciously agreed to polish up Left on the Edge.
The high caliber of his attention to detail when it comes to all things related to writing can be read for yourself on his blog, or in his novel.

Services exchange is being done.
My design and illustrative skills are going to create a new book cover for Paradise Squandered, while Alex makes the words in Left on the Edge sparkle with his brilliant grasp of the English language.

Being a designer for many years has taught me to accept my inadequacies like editing, while history has taught me to learn from them. So, I fully intend to have a professional editing eye look intently at Taken in the Woods before it is to be released. (This may effect its October release date, but I will keep you posted!)


08 June 2013

Moose Guide

The Chocolate Moose is a cafe.
A cafe has baked delights and espresso!

In Left on the Edge, Autumn learns how to make basic espresso based drinks from a guide Craig hands to her.

Now Craig is giving it to you!

The basic espresso based drinks explained are macchiatos, lattes, and cappucinos.
To make a mocha, you start with a latte then add chocolate to taste.

Make an espresso based cup of happiness, sit down and relax with a good book.
What better way is there to spend a day?

Feel free to print the guide and use it, but do not sell it for profit.

28 May 2013

Lunch with an Author!

What can be better than books? 
Books and coffee.
Books, coffee and pizza!

Come have lunch with me.
On Wednesday, 17 July 2013 at 1 pm, the Elk Grove Public Library has asked me to chat about my writing, illustrating and what motivated me to self-publish.

There will be a drawing for a giveaway of a paperback edition of Left on the Edge.

If you already have a copy of Left on the Edge, I will be willing to sign it if you want just bring it with you.

The Elk Grove Library has a copy of Left on the Edge in their catalog to be borrowed. (EGVPL Catalog)

So check it out and I hope to see you there!

Event Registration

28 April 2013

Paperback Sold on Amazon!

The last post I made was to say Left on the Edge was released as a paperback.
 It was being sold only through Lulu.com (Paperback Link), but not any more!



Amazon is now selling the paperback edition!

Lulu.com is the only place where I can control a discount.
Right now the paperback is 15% off on Lulu, but full price on Amazon.

 

04 April 2013

Paperback Release!

Left on the EdgeThe feel of pages turning, flipping as I close my eyes and inhale the words on the passing pages gives a happiness unachievable through technology. I have a nook, but nothing compares to the real deal. For that reason, I made a hard cover edition, but it was a first edition.
 
Today a paperback edition of
Left on the Edge was released!


This edition has undergone a typographic face lift. A sample chapter from Take in the Woods as now been included at the end to give a taste of what is to come.

There is only one place to find a paperback, on lulu.com.
For a limited time it is 30 percent off! 
I have placed a button in the right column, or you can click here!


09 January 2013

Officially a Nook Book!

Here I was writing the ending for the the next book in the Woodmere Trilogy, Taken in the Woods, when I received and email invitation from another author to download her collection of poetry. Since I have a Nook, not a Kindle I went to check for it on Barnes & Noble so I could pay her for a download. They didn't have it, but they did have something more exciting.

The kind where I involuntarily shriek.

The kind of loud outburst of exuberance which startles my dog into a fit of sneezing, and my napping son is no longer in bed but has come out of his room to check on his mommy.


Left on the Edge is now available through Barnes & Noble's Nook Bookstore!

Motivation to continue writing is high.
The desire to draw and design the cover for Taken in the Woods is making my fingers itch.

Back to work...
Work?
Can something I love really be called work?!

05 January 2013

On iTunes Bookstore!


During the publishing switch, the eBook was temporarily unavailable through iTunes,
but as of today Left on the Edge has returned to iTunes.

Search the store, but be sure to narrow the options by searching in 'Books'.

02 January 2013

Available for Nook, Kindle & iPad. Oh My!

Left on the Edge eBook has been re-Released!

I didn't know it was possible to get more excited over something than the manual grinder and coffee pot I received for Christmas, but I find as I sit on the sofa amidst the company of my sister and niece from California with my son and husky sharing a banana snack in the kitchen I have more than enough energy to power walk the miles through the woods next to my house to visit the elk.

It is now available in a number of eReader varieties: Mobi, PDF and ePub.
For the eBook ONLY I have changed publishers.
The hardcover is still available through Lulu.


To get a copy of this eBook in a format that suites your needs, please go to BookTango.

Within the month, I expect it to be available through major retailers.
As soon as I know when and where, I will post so you can be in the know as well.

Stay tuned!

26 December 2012

eBook Update

The eBook is no longer available through Lulu.com,
but will be available to a wider audience soon!

Many readers or potential readers have expressed the same problem to me.
"The file downloaded won't work in a Kindle."

What good is a book if people can't read it?!
I have looked into this problem and come up with a solution.

Technical answer is that the eBook file through Lulu is an .epub only. Like an iTune's music purchase not working in other devices because it is a .mp4 file, an .epub file works in Nook readers, but not Kindles.

Right now I am in the process of switching eBook publishers. Since the copyrights for the book and cover art belong to me, this should be a quick transition.

I will be sure to post updates as I get them on the status of Left on the Edge eBook, when it will be rereleased and through which retailers.

Stay tuned!

30 November 2012

What's Your Secret?

Everyone has a secret.
“Mental pain is less dramatic than physical pain, but it is more common and also more hard to bear. The frequent attempt to conceal mental pain increases the burden: it is easier to say “My tooth is aching” than to say “My heart is broken.”
~ C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
Without pain and sorrow, we wouldn't understand pleasure and joy.
As much as we don't want bad things to happen, they must in order for good things to exist.

One of my secrets: I'm afraid of failure. 

I am sure many people are scared of it, but I am truly terrified. To put everything on the line and wait to see what happens, whether you fly or fall when the line is cut terrifies me.
 
What helps?
A good question, but it should be Who helps?.

Many people can.
Those who care and only laugh with and not at you.
Those who talk with you and not behind your back.
For me, it is my best friend and husband who is unfailing and without judgement.

What's your secret? Who helps you?

25 November 2012

Cyber Monday Sale!

Thanksgiving has passed, and sadly all the pie is gone.
But Christmas is on its way with the promise of cookies and fudge!

After having worked retail on Black Friday, I personally do not participate in consumerism on that day.

Cyber Monday is tomorrow.
What better deal can be gotten than FREE?!

Left on the Edge in eBook format is still available for free on Lulu.com, Goodreads.com and iTune's iBookstore.

The hardcover is now as low as allowed at 30% on Lulu.com.
 
All I ask in return is an honest review, please.

18 November 2012

Thanksgiving Giveaway!

Thanksgiving is almost here: the food, the family, the football games.
What's actually important is in the day's name.
If you are really thankful, what do you do?
You share.
~ W. Clement Stone
So for the holidays, I am offering Left on the Edge (eBook) for free!
 
Whether by planes, trains or automobiles, traveling can be long and boring. 
 
Countless have been the trips I have made over the holidays to visit family. The hours passed pleasurably only with help from books.

I would like to help pass the time, cities or even states by offering you something free to read.
 
All I ask in return for sharing my work is for an honest review. On Goodreads, Lulu or even right here.

I wish all a Happy Thanksgiving and safe travels!