Showing posts with label #writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #writing. Show all posts

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Aquila et Noctua a historical novel - New Release

By P. J. Mann


There is a new release on Mann's house, and that doesn't just mean that I have written a new novel, but I have also experimented something new, a historical fiction.

Aquila et Noctua (The Eagle and the Owl) comes from a story I wrote many years ago and brings me back to one of my loves in life: History, and particularly the history of Ancient Rome. 
The story tells about a young slave, Saul, coming from Jerusalem, and the complicated relationship he will develop with his masters and with the other slaves, who will become a sort of surrogate family; the one he lost once he was enslaved.
Once again, like in my debut novel "A Tale of a Rough Diamond," we have the themes of envy, jealousy, conflictual relationships within the family, and wisdom.
Wisdom is depicted in this case like the Noctua (Owl), and like in nature happens, the owl is going to bring wisdom, with sudden chaos.
The Aquila, (Eagle) represents the Roman Empire and the family who will purchase Saul. 



There is going to be a Release party on my Facebook page: 
It is scheduled for Sunday 1.9  at 10:00 AM EDT and there will be other authors to help me celebrate the release. If you have more questions about this new release this is the right time to have them answered.


EXCERPT:
The sun shone brightly in the sky on that late summer day. The successful campaign in the territories of Palestine brought new glory to the Empire and filled every corner of the city with celebrations.
The massive military action, planned by Emperor Hadrian, had brought about the final defeat of the rebellious Jews in the third Jewish revolt.
Jerusalem was renamed Aelia Capitolina in honor of the victorious emperor and as an ultimate humiliation to the rebels. The prisoners were sent all over the Empire to be sold as slaves while the Roman generals and commanders were decorated in the public square of the Forum.
It was a joyful period throughout all of Rome, and it should have been no exception for Marcus Tiberius Numida. However, something weighed heavily on his mind and alienated his soul from the revelry.
He wandered through the streets of Rome, not paying attention to where he was going until he found himself in the slave market in the Forum.
Several specimens of males and females, crammed into cages, peered from between the bars, waiting to be yanked out and pushed to line up behind the merchant. Their eyes revealed fear and confusion
Each merchant touted the good properties of each slave they were selling, wildly gesticulating to underline their words to attract customers, as crowds of curious people and potential buyers gathered around.
The sobs of the waiting slaves and the clang of their chains against the bars, combined with the din of the curious onlookers and the raucous voices of the merchants. The stench of bodily fluids melded with the scent of food that was sold in the square.

To pre-order the novel, please follow this link:


I hope I have attracted your attention and see you soon at the release party!
Stay tuned!

Monday, July 22, 2019

Why I Write for Children

Why I Write for Children 


Writing for children is important to me because I want children to develop the same love of books I had as a child. A love that doesn’t fade with time. Children’s books create lifelong readers; readers who eventually buy adult books.

I began my love affair with words many years ago. Some of my fondest memories are being read to as a child, visiting the library, and discovering the ability to read by myself. I still have worn copies of favourite childhood books, such as The Bobbsey Twins, Little Women, Black Beauty and Anne of Green Gables; and revisit these old friends from time to time. Books and children go together like toast and jam, in my opinion. Since I never show up without a book as a gift, my grandchildren call me, The Book Gramma.

It´s not surprising then, that I love to write for children.

While writing for children can be fun, it isn´t easy. It requires removing yourself from the adult world and think like a twenty-first century kid. Fortunately, I like to hang around kids, listen to the words they use, observe the gestures, the looks, the trends. I also enjoy reading current, children’s books to see what sparks the interest of today’s young people. Children notice things adults wouldn’t and could care less about things adults think are important. It’s necessary to get into their head space. And guess what? While I’m writing, I get to be a kid again - and I love it!

The main character in my first book, Amanda in Arabia-The Perfume Flask, is a Canadian girl who wishes for travel and adventure on her twelfth birthday. The next day she gets a ticket to fly to the United Arab Emirates to visit her aunt and uncle. There she has an adventure of a lifetime. One young reader said to me, “I want to know where Amanda will travel to next.”  That motivated me to write Amanda in Spain-The Girl in The Painting. 

I had so much fun writing about Amanda, her travels and escapades that I continued by writing Amanda in England-The Missing Novel.

While doing a presentation at a school, one student asked, “Why doesn´t Amanda stay in Alberta and have an adventure?”

I replied, “That´s a great idea,” and consequently wrote Amanda in Alberta – The Writing on the Stone. 

Kids are always giving me ideas. I often quote things I overhear them say in my stories. They can be so clever too. Often wise beyond their years.

I recall taking the ferry to Vancouver Island one summer weekend. It was packed, mostly with families. I was pleased to see many of the children, and some of the parents, reading books. I knew that those kids would grow up to be readers and most likely read to their children one day. Studies have proven that children who are read to at a very young age, even as babies, are more likely to be successful in school and in life.

I have written two more books in the series, Amanda on the Danube – The Sounds of Music and Amanda in New Mexico – Ghosts in the Wind.  Book seven, Amanda in Holland – Missing in Action is about to be released in September of 2019. I am currently working on book number eight and have ideas for others. I have to keep writing, as my  fans are expecting more of Amanda’s Travels.

Although it is a lot of work, it brings me much joy to write my books as I know these fans will grow up with a love of reading and buy adult books soon. Writers of children’s books help create readers for life. It’s an important occupation and one I am happy to be a small part of.

Children who read, become adults that think.


Darlene Foster has always been a dreamer of dreams and a teller of tales. Following her dreams, she’s a well-travelled author of the Amanda Travels series featuring a spunky young girl who finds mystery and adventure everywhere she visits. Darlene divides her time between the west coast of Canada and the Costa Blanca, in Spain where she lives with her husband and entertaining dog, Dot.

Friday, July 19, 2019

A few considerations about positivity



”Never let go of your dreams.”

We might have seen or heard this sentence thousands of times yet, either we are too busy with our everyday life, or we are literally bombed by similar good phrases that we don’t stop and think about the meaning of such a simple statement anymore.

When generally, I need to give my best wishes to someone I love, I generally say:

Shall your destiny fulfill all your dreams, except one.

You might say, why? Why would I ever want that person not to have all her/his dreams fulfilled?

Because dreams are the fuel of our life, the energy that makes up wanting to face the day. They are the light we aim at in our darkest moments, the sparkle in our eyes, the thought that makes us smile, the force that despite the tiredness makes us increase the pace of our run to reach the finish line.

Thinking about it, conceiving a dream is like receiving a pair of wings, and the strongest the desire that attracts us to it, the bigger are the wings we create.

Think about the happiness of grabbing that dream when you achieve it.

Yes, it might even last forever, but we will miss that force; that spark that ignites our run in its direction.

Once we have it, we are at peace, and whether this is absolutely fine, the feeling of aiming at something that seems to be just there, but we can’t reach it quite yet, is fairly addictive.

We are motivated to keep on going just for the sake of that dream.
Now, of course, I am not talking about those dreams of tranquility, stability, economical safety, health. Those are basic requirements for a happy life, not just dreams.

Those are the ones I wish to be fulfilled.

Yet, I wish that little devil of a dream, which is not a question of life or death, rather it’s something even superfluous, will ignite your will and make your life an endless journey where for once you don’t enjoy the end but every single minute of it.
Besides, happiness lies in the wait of an event to happen, rather than the event itself, and the same applies to dreams.

Therefore, if there is something you are aiming to, and it seems you are never reaching it; perhaps that is the dream you need to feel alive to make your morning brighter, and the food tastier, and your darkest moment less dark.

For this reason, I wish you to keep one dream in your drawer, always there at your availability when you need to smile or to be reminded about the prize.

Thursday, May 16, 2019

Deadly Deception -Insomniac-

By P. J. Mann

This is the second book of the trilogy Deadly Deception. As we say bye-bye to Ethan Jackson who was the main character of the first book of the trilogy, we are going to meet new friends, which will entertain us with their personal vicissitudes.

Here is the blurb:
Something keeps Laura Jefferson up at night. Maybe it’s the Boston traffic, maybe the sounds of the city outside her apartment window, maybe the stresses of day to day life. Whatever it is, when she’s offered a radical treatment at a secluded hotel, she doesn’t even hesitate.

But while the hotel is perfect, the grounds idyllic, and Dr. Wright and his staff friendly and eager to help, it isn’t long before Laura’s fellow patients begin acting strangely, some even dropping out of the program altogether, disappearing into the night. As Laura loses chunks of time, a detective arrives, and the questions at the heart of the hotel begin to unravel.
Continuing the trilogy, Deadly Deception -Insomniac- draws closer to the mystery of Dr. Wright’s research, and the lies behind Laura’s perfect night of sleep.

Excerpt:
He took out his notebook and started to write some notes about what his feelings were. That was a sort of self-psychoanalysis or a way to understand himself and to get a better grasp over the triggers that take over a serial killer.

Although with just one murder on his conscience, he could not consider himself a serial killer, he knew from the very beginning that the need to step into murder was feasible.

“There are things that I still fail to understand about the feelings of being an assassin, of planning and eventually executing a murder. Something for sure is the powerful effect it has on the conscious.
Like a heavy curtain, it is able to obliterate any other feelings like compassion and empathy. When I think about the process, my brain gives priority to what gives me some sort of pleasure. It is like it’s trying to push aside the feelings like regret, fear, compassion, and empathy, emphasizing the pleasure I can get from the power of choosing the fate of another human being.
It feels like I am no longer a fellow human, but a sort of super being that has the power and right to decide who is going to live and who instead has to die.
This is a sort of trigger I might use with my patients, to help them in their fight against the murderer inside them…
Sometimes to cure a monster, you need to become a monster yourself.”

He shook his head and hoped that nasty story would have come soon to an end. “If I get out of this alive, I promise to leave the country and peacefully enjoy my life.”
He took a deep breath and switched off the lights hoping to find some rest.

Links to the book:
Follow the author:
amazon author page: www.amazon.com/author/pjmann

Saturday, June 2, 2018

Book Cover Contest #OurAuthorGang

Book Cover Contest June 2-9

THE WINNERS ARE ANNOUNCED ON THIS PAGE:
https://asmallgangofauthors.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-winners-of-book-cover-contest-at.html

THE VOTING IS CLOSED



Hello everyone! Welcome to our first friendly Book Cover Contest!
Thank you, authors, for submitting so many amazing book covers, and thank you, readers, for voting for the best covers.

The Author Gang members: Erika, Grace, Mary Anne, Joe, Ruth, Toi, Chris, Lorraine, Nicola, and Rebecca. Click on our pages on the menu bar and read about us.

Grace volunteered to host the Cover Contest submission on her Facebook page, and Erika, our designer (Okay, they call me boss, but I'm not bossy at all. Right guys?), organized the event. At the Author Gang, everything is done as a group, and our motto is: "All for one and one for all." Yeah, we stole it from the Musketeers, but it really fits our group and group work.

The voting begins today, June 2nd.
On Saturday, June 9th, one winner of each main genre (nine winners) will receive a beautiful "Best Book Cover Award" badge that may be added to your cover, and the books will be in the spotlight on our blog for one week.
(We combined fiction and non-fiction into one group because only one non-fiction book was entered)

VOTING RULES:
Comment on this post with the TITLE & GENRE of the book you like most and tell us what you like about the cover. 
If you like more than one cover, vote for each book separately.
Your vote will be disqualified if you add more than ONE book title per comment.
Authors voting for their own book is unethical.

NAME OUR MASCOT:
This handsome fella is our Author Gang's virtual mascot of the cover contest. We can't decide on a name for him, so we call him Stopthat or Dontchewthat because he just has that kind of eager to please, goofy face.
Give our mascot a fitting name and win a prize.


In comments write NEW NAME and add the name you choose for our mascot.
The Author Gang will vote for the best name and one winner gets a prize:
If you're an author, Erika will design a GIF for your books, similar to the ones on the sidebar for the Author Gang authors. 
If you're a reader, your favorite author will get the GIF for their books.










FICTION & NON-FICTION
Because only one non-fiction book entered (the 12th book in this category) it would surely be a winner having no competition. Therefore, votes for the non-fiction book will be counted with the fiction books.





























 




 

VOTING RULES:
Comment on this post with the TITLE & GENRE of the book you like most and tell us what you like about the cover. 
If you like more than one cover, vote for each book separately.
Your vote will be disqualified if you add more than ONE book title per comment.
Authors voting for their own book is unethical.

THE WINNERS ARE ANNOUNCED ON THIS PAGE:
https://asmallgangofauthors.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-winners-of-book-cover-contest-at.html

THE VOTING IS CLOSED


COMMENTS

Erika M Szabo

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
THE VOTING IS CLOSED.
The votes left in comments after 6pm ET June 9th will not be counted!
The winners will be announced Sunday, June 10th, before noon, ET.
Thank you authors for submitting so many amazing book covers, and thank you readers for voting for the best covers. It's been a great contest and the Author Gang is excited to count the votes and announce the winners.
Good luck everyone!
+
1
2
1
 
 · 
Reply

Erika M Szabo

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
So many great covers, good luck to the contestants!
+
3
4
3
 
 · 
Reply

Susan Hawthorne

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
So exciting, but Fiction (was listed originally as General Fiction) and Non Fiction are lumped together? It's a little confusing. And I'd think the covers would be strikingly different?
+
1
0
1
 
 · 
Reply
 
Susan There was only one non-fiction book entered so there is no competition. Therefore, the votes for the non-fiction book will be counted with the fiction books. I think the word Fiction covers general fiction :) When covers are not entered in even numbers to each genre, we have to improvise to be fair
 
That makes sense but the page lists fiction with nothing under it, then
nonfiction with several books listed below it. Perhaps if you listed it as
Fiction and Non Fiction it would work better.
I don't actually recall non fiction being listed as a choice?

Μαρία Βερμίσογλου via Google+

8 months ago (edited)  -  Shared publicly
 
Ψηφίστε το εξώφυλλο που σας αρέσει. Vote for your favorite cover:
Mine is in the Fantasy section prior to last. The cursed girl - Maria Vermisoglou.

https://asmallgangofauthors.blogspot.com/2018/06/book-cover-contest-ourauthorgang.html?spref=fb
+
1
0
1
 
 · 
Reply

Betty Olsen

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Paranormal:  Deathly Darkness by Victoria Zak
Love this cover-the colors stand out so much.
 
 · 
Reply

Khaled Talib

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Division: Sci-Fi Books: Intense, thrilling, action-packed.
 

Khaled Talib

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Nine Lives: Sci-Fi Books. Sinister, riveting.
 

Khaled Talib

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Amanda in New Mexico: Children's Books. It's intriguing and mysterious.
 

Khaled Talib

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Feather of the Blue Heron: Fiction and Non-Fiction. The cover's design and color are calming.
 

jr wirth

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Losing Time-- a bit of intrigue in the cover
 
 · 
Reply

Toi Thomas via Google+

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
It's almost over. Get your votes in now... I'm so excited!
 
 · 
Reply

Susan Hawthorne

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Horror
The devil's Lieutenant
It looks spooky, but I like the cheeky look on the man's face as he turns to look at us, that grabbed me.
 
 · 
Reply

Susan Hawthorne

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Paranormal
The Veiled Path to Destiny
Again I like the Ethereal quality of this cover, it draws me in.
 
 · 
Reply

Susan Hawthorne

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Romance
Dancing with Armando
Love the Ethereal look of this cover
 
 · 
Reply

Susan Hawthorne

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Fantasy
The Namarielle
I love the reflection in this cover
 
 · 
Reply

Christelle Barbe

7 months ago (edited)  -  Shared publicly
 
I like the cover(fantasy) Nyasia A. Maire- The Heretic's child. I just love the white and gold it's a beautiful cover makes me want to read it
 
 · 
Reply

Dyrkus Conradus

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Forgotten Soldiers by Neal Sayatovich - Fiction
It's simple, yet powerful, and holds meaning true to the story.
 
 · 
Reply

Author Anna Applegate

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
I love The Witch’s Touch Cover BY Rosie Wylie-Owen. The book lit up the way it is fantastic and the front is perfect for the genre!!!
 
 · 
Reply

zoran Bencic

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Horror: Jelena Hrvoj- Perunika. Because it is original and scary, when i see ithow i am not sure to read.or not.to.read because i am.afraid what i will.find. New dog name : Lacky
 
 · 
Reply

Chris Weigand via Google+

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Only a few more days to vote for your favorite covers.
 
 · 
Reply

Peggy Collins

7 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Deadly Darkness by Victoria Zak. The deep colors create an intense picture of the story.


Advertise with us