Author Blogs

Excellent thoughts about making your writing relatable here. “Write what you know” is about feelings *and* experiences, not just the latter. Novelty Revisions Some of the best stories I’ve written started out as fictional retellings of things that had actually happened to me. Stories morph over time, of course, and what starts out as a close reflection of your reality usually transforms into something a lot more … dramatic. But writing things that hit close to home makes the whole process different somehow. It’s so much easier to insert yourself into that world, to think about the things your characters are thinking about. To feel what they are feeling, and convey those feelings with nothing...

Hi, everyone. As we approach Halloween, I thought it would be fun to share this piece by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Enjoy! Original link

As my part in a group competition, it’s my day for sharing information. I am too daft to reproduce the page as it should be, but you can win books and a gift card for $50 to spend on anything you like on Amazon. Do remember, if you click on a name to subscribe to … Continue reading QUICK EXTRA Original link

My novella  Look for Me Under the Rainbow  about the killing of harp seal pups in Canada and the group of environmentalists and activists trying to save them is still competing in two contests . It would be a great help if you could spread the word because you can only until October 26  vote for the semi-finals of the AUTHORSdb Cover Contest 2018 for Look for Me Under the Rainbow. This is why it needs as many as possible  VOTES NOW . In another TCK Publishing contest for the book of the year, Look for Me Under the Rainbow is on the second place in YA and Middle Grade category. It needs 48 votes to take the leading position! Do you think we can do it together? Can you help Danny become a lead...

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US Once a lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth, her only hope of surviving the scandal that threatens to engulf her is to escape England for a fresh start in the New World, where nobody has ever heard  of the Duchess of Somerset. I'm pleased to welcome author Jenny Barden to The Writing Desk: Tell us about your latest book Thank you for welcoming me to your blog, Tony.  My last book out was The Lost Duchess centred on the ‘Lost Colony’ of Roanoke and England’s first attempt to found a permanent settlement in North America. What happened to the colony remains a mystery, and my novel explores one possible explanation for its apparent disappearance.  It follows t...

Hi, everyone. Today, I’m honored to welcome visitors from the Dark Visions blog tour! As you saw in yesterday’s post, the anthology is sitting at number 1 in its category, and I’m very excited to be able to call myself a best-selling author at last! Today’s sample is from my award-winning short story, “Ghosts of Tupelo,” which was selected for the anthology. The action takes place at the Elvis Presley Birthplace Center, in Tupelo, Miss. I get tired of explaining to people that my mom is sick. I wish things were different, but I’m old enough to know that’s never going to happen. I used to get really mad about her illness, but I don’t anymore. I’m almost fifteen years old, practically grown up...

REVIEW BY ALLAN KRUMMENACKER 4 – STARS “An Eerie Blend To Satisfy Horror Enthusiasts…” Mix one part voodoo, one part devil worship, three parts darker side of human nature and you get “The Haunting of Gospall”. The author does a wondrous job of blending these three elements into a intricate yarn that transcends the high seas. He starts us off with a brilliant opening scene upon the SS Gospall in the 1800’s, showing a keen insight of what sailors and captains faced on the open waters during one of the more contentious periods between England and France.  We’re introduced to characters we come to admire and care deeply for, both in the 1800’s and the present, as the tale unfolds and a mystery ...

Amazon have been at it again. So, both Queen Victoria and I are not amused. I have now developed a virtual shrug of the shoulders when I notice a review of any of my books has been deleted. I have come to the conclusion there is nothing to be done. I can’t identify the review. […] The post Queen Victoria and I Are Not Amused! appeared first on Stephen Bentley . Original link

You may recall that my award-winning short story, “Ghosts of Tupelo,” was selected for the Dark Visions anthology. Dark Visions released this past Monday, and as of today is #1 in its category on Amazon. While my preference would be for wide distribution, I’m not the editor/publisher. To buy your copy via Amazon, please click through here . Original link

Hi, everyone. This week’s book is a “whodunnit” with a bent that’s perfect for the season. Swamp Spook by Jana Deleon My rating: 5 of 5 stars I eagerly awaited this book’s release; the “Miss Fortune” series is some of the most fun I’ve had with books in a long while. In this case, the timing for a fun Halloween tale couldn’t be better. In this book, Fortune has her PI license and is settling in as well as can be expected in Sinful. She’s even agreed to play one of the characters in the annual Halloween hay bale maze: the executioner. She’s spent an hour or so beheading a prop in the maze … but when she comes back from her break, it’s been replaced with an actual, decapitated body. Needless t...

Friends and followers. This is well worth the read, which is why I am posting on my blog today. Rabbi Dov Fischer makes good sense. Who is Rabbi Dov Fischer? Rabbi Dov Fischer is an attorney and adjunct professor of law, a Senior Rabbinic Fellow at the Coalition for Jewish Values, congregational rabbi of Young Israel of Orange County, California, and holds prominent leadership roles in several national rabbinic and other Jewish organizations. He has been Chief Articles Editor of UCLA Law Review, clerked for the Hon. Danny J. Boggs in the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and served for most of the past decade on the Executive Committee of the Rabbinical Council of America...

News of an exciting box set now out on pre-order and the royalties got to charity so it’s well worth supporting. These are never before published stories! 21 Novels, not short stories, All in one AMAZING SET!!!! This is a Limited Edition Collection of Romantic Suspense, Mystery & Thrills and it is available for pre-order … Continue reading DON’T MISS THIS ONE! Original link

A NOTE TO AUTHORS AND READERS Today I want to tell you a little about the RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB, where I have been a member since 2014. RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB is a virtual book club made up of authors and readers. Authors know that in today’s hyper-competitive book market it’s difficult to get your books noticed, let alone promoted, marketed and sold. Readers know that there are so many titles available that it’s difficult to tell what books are worth their time. According to Bowker, the world’s leading provider of bibliographic information and management solutions designed to help publishers, authors, and booksellers better serve their customers, the number of independently-published books...

A lovely review, calling out my “Ghosts of Tupelo.” Thank you to the author! M J Mallon YA/Paranormal Author This second installment of The Box Under the Bed series, Dark Visions, is filled with strange and creepy stories sure to keep your heart racing. Enter into a dark world of the macabre, the mystical and the malevolent, featuring 33 spine tingling tales that just may keep you up at night. Edited and compiled by Amazon bestselling author Dan Alatorre, this anthology of horror stories brings together the minds and pens of twenty seven authors: 34 stories by 27 authors. A few bestselling authors on that list, and quite a few prize winning authors. Prologue: Now Comes Death, part one 1. The...

Hi, everyone. My local chapter of the RWA is having a silent auction to help support speaker honoraria, etc. There are some exceptionally good author services up for auction, among other goodies. Click here to check it out and place your bids! Original link

It’s been a few months since Book Three (The Lost Years of Billy Battles) in the Finding Billy Battles Trilogy was published, so I want to remind my followers to check out the book if you haven’t already. I would also appreciate it if you would write a review on Amazon or elsewhere if you have read this final book in the trilogy. For those who don’t know about Book Three here is a little background along with some comments from readers who have already read the book. About the lost years of Billy Battles: The year is 1914, and the world is in turmoil. In Europe, the Great War is raging. In Asia, bloody insurgencies are in progress against the colonial powers of Europe. In Mexico, a bloody re...

My second novel, Dangerous Alliance, will be released soon by Solstice Publishing. Stay tuned for more info!

Hi, everyone. I learned the sad news yesterday of an acquaintance’s passing. Joreth was an amazing chef at whose restaurant we dined many times, but he was also one of the finest ballroom dance partners I’ve ever had. In honor and memory of Joreth Toropov, here is Teresa Brewer’s “Till I Waltz Again With You.” Original link

TRAVEL – PRAGUE Most of the statues first put up on the Charles Bridge between 1600 and 1800 have met a sorry end due to wind and weather, but they are being restored. One statue in particular is of St John of Nepomuk. There are all kinds of stories about him – and it is rumoured … Continue reading BETS AND BEGGARS Original link

I’ve found myself experimenting with stories recently, which is a bit surprising since I’ve been writing on and off for most of my life and haven’t typically been too experimental. But lately I’ve concocted three different experiments. First, I wrote a story in an unusual style. Rather than the narration and dialogue that typify most tales, “Testimony” is a science fiction tale told as a condemned prisoner’s appeal to a planetary governor. More unusual still, due to a nefarious form of espionage technology, the condemned has no memory of events and must rely upon the testimony given by others to construct his defense. Second, by way of illustrating the writing process, I wrote two stories, r...