Reading

Moonlit Valley Trivia

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Vintage Shirley Temple Doll - photo by M.A.D.

Vintage Shirley Temple Doll – photo by M.A.D.

Ever wondered what makes writers tick? That is a question with as many answers as there are writers. Well, the doll in the picture, a vintage Shirley Temple doll is featured in Moonlit Valley, in chapter The Key. The doll holds a secret, and this is the first piece of trivia – what is the secret?

If you read Moonlit Valley, and would like to get a free paperback copy for you or a friend, you can play along and answer the following trivia questions.  The first person to email me with the correct answers wins the copy.  You can email your answers to piny@theowlbookandcandle.com .

Here are the questions. Please, if you are playing along, answer them in the email, not here, just to avoid spoilers 🙂 Thanks. Contest ends on July 31st (2013) or when there is a winner (whatever comes first).

  1. What is the secret/clue inside the doll?
  2. What is Rose and Jeremy’s street address?
  3. How many steps to the library?
  4. What is the library’s street address?
  5. What is the name of the funeral parlor?
  6. What is the name of the Lake?
  7. What is the name of Dr. Angelou’s receptionist?
  8. What is the name of the egg market/store near Rose and Jeremy’s home?
  9. What is Olga Gartier’s ladies club/society called?
  10. Name the paintings at the library.

There you have it, the 10 trivia questions to win a copy of Moonlit Valley.  The first reader to email me with the correct answers gets it 🙂 Good luck and have fun playing!

Celebrating Turtle and Robot – Watercolors Friday

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This is our second Watercolors Friday, and I was just thinking about how much I loved watercolors when I was a kid (still do), even when I made a mess of water and pigment – Hey, I like that name for a blog “Water and Pigment.”  Getting back to what I was writing, childhood is a very magical time,  it should be, and as much as I  liked watercolors, I also loved reading, and following people around with pen in hand, pretending that I was an investigator (probably influenced by The Three Investigators).  This is why today, I want to celebrate a special blog – Turtle and Robot

Turtle and Robot is about children’s books reviews. The blogger (Jennifer Lavonier) reviews children’s books of all kinds and ages – from picture books, to board books, to books for early readers, middle readers, and young adults. She is a collector of these books, as well as a seller.  In her blog, she writes about those books that she loves. The blog has a very happy and lively design, representing the topic of children.  She talks about the books but also offers gorgeous pictures (the blog is a feast for the eyes) and tells you a bit about the author of the featured book as well.

I hope that you stop by this wonderful blog, especially if you have little ones, and want to know more about what is out there and get some new ideas as far as more great books for kids, as well as classics, and coming from a knowledgeable source, as this blogger has been in the field of children’s books for some time.

I hope that you enjoyed this post. Happy Watercolors Friday to all!

Awesome Blogs that I am Loving Right Now!

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From time to time, I like to share a post about some blogs that I am enjoying and recently have gotten to visit more often.  Topics range because I like a variety of content. Here are five favorites that I have enjoyed reading more recently.

  1. http://simpletombornhigh.com/ – I am enjoying this blog very much. Simple Tom brings something new every day, and he lives with zest and passion. You will certainly enjoy his joyful style, which is contagious 🙂
  2. http://gallivance.net/ – I enjoy this blog because it brings you a lot of visual impact with beautiful pictures of their travels, but the information is brought in a very real way, personal and entertaining.
  3. http://sheslosingit.net/ This blog is very informative and inspirational, if you are trying to get fit and live a better life.  The information is brought to you in a fun and real way, and you get to experience the blogger’s journey too.
  4. http://oldworldgardenfarms.com/ If  you visit my blog, you know about my love for farming and my intentions to move to a rural setting and start doing just that.  I love this blog and it has tons of how to do projects, and will certainly be very helpful in the near future.
  5. http://michelleproulx.wordpress.com/ I love the blog of this young writer. It is full of punch and energy, as well as videos and pictures of some of the most interesting moments of her journey. She always makes the topic fun and to the point.  You will enjoy it very much.

There are many more new blogs (for me) that I am enjoying, and some awesome blogs that I have read for some time. Maybe I will share those oldies on another post.  I hope that you get to visit these and enjoy them as well.

Peekaboo – Ramblings of the Spirit Front Cover

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So here it is – the front cover for my second novel Ramblings of the Spirit, Book 1 of The Dinorah Chronicles.  I hope you like it.  I went through two designs and finally, decided on this one.  Ramblings of the Spirit will be available by the end of this month (I hope) via Amazon and Smashwords, and via expanded distribution.  I will keep you posted.  Here is a blurb.

Dinorah Sandbeck, an introverted young librarian, resents her Human-Anarth origins and must find a way to fulfill her birthright duty, while keeping the secret.  As she learns the Anarth ways and follows the riddled teachings of an ancient tome, she falls in love and struggles to keep her secret. She must fight her archenemy Hael and The Other Side, but most of all, she must fight herself.  In this battle of Self, Love, and Duty, winning is the least of her concerns.

And here is a peek of the cover,

 

Cover for Ramblings of the Spirit (The Dinorah Chronicles) - Girl Image by Lunagirl Images. Design by Maria Antonia Diaz

Cover for Ramblings of the Spirit (The Dinorah Chronicles) – Girl Image by Lunagirl Images. Design by Maria Antonia Diaz

 

REMINDER – Don’t forget that tomorrow is the last day to enter for a chance to receive a free copy of Moonlit Valley.  Just like my Facebook page at the right side of this screen.  I will announce three winners on Monday. Cheers!

Look at What the Asteroid Brought – a Piece of the Moon

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I am just kidding; however, I am extremely happy to announce that Moonlit Valley is available through Amazon (US, UK, EU) in paperback or e-book (Kindle or PDF).  It will also be available via extended distribution through the Ingram, Baker & Taylor catalog, in about 6-8 weeks, meaning that you will be able to order it at your favorite bookstore.  I will be celebrating tonight, of course.  Here is the link to Moonlit Valley

You can also find it here – Moonlit Valley, and through Smashwords here for all of you who have ereaders in the ePub format (nook, apple, kobo…), Sony, palm, and other electronic formats.

This is a picture of the cover,

MOONLIT VALLEY

MOONLIT VALLEY

And the back cover,

back cover Moonlit valley

And a spread picture (because I’m so excited),

moonlit valley spread

Here is a bit about it,

Moonlit Valley

Rose Carrigan never imagined what awaited her when she left her New Jersey hometown to live in an old farmhouse located in a small southern town called Moonlit Valley.   After a series of mysterious clues and unfortunate events, once more, her world turns upside down. This time, the man who she loves, Jeremy Sandbeck, her irresistible and seductive husband, is the one responsible. When she discovers his identity, she must decide between love and destiny, defying the surreal world that she has discovered.  Jeremy struggles with love, and what he
thinks is his true supernatural and divine duty.

I hope you like it.  I will keep you updated.

2013 Reading Agenda

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"Study drawing shows the allegorical figu...

“Study drawing shows the allegorical figure of Romance nude. She bends her head to read a book on her lap. Romance was one figure in a painting, The arts, in the north end lunette of the Southwest Gallery in the Library of Congress’ Jefferson Building.” Graphite drawing (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Over the weekend, I started thinking about some of the books that I wish to include in my 2013 reading agenda.  There are tons of books that I wish to read, however, I included the ones that I have waited to read for some time or that at one point, have awakened my curiosity.  If time allows it, I will be adding a few more to the list, as I go.  Here are the ones that made it to the list.

January – Generosity by Richard Powers (This one was suggested to me)

February – The Lace Reader by Brumania Barry

March – A Lion Among Men by Gregory Maguire

April – The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King

May – Great Tales of Horror by H.P. Lovecraft

June – Secrets of the Freemasons by Michael Bradley

July – Aleph by Paolo Coelho

August – Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

September – Confessions by St. Augustine

October – The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham

November – The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald

December – Letters from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien

As an extra on the list I added Twilight of the Gods by Adam Pffefer.

As you can see, this list has some old, some classics, some new, and as far as genres, it is all over the place.  I like to mix things up a bit.  There are tons of classics that I would love to read, and some that I want to read again, and there are many new authors whose works pick at my curiosity and make it to the beginning of the list. Titles capture my attention, reviews not so much, since everyone has their own guidelines for reviewing as well as taste in what speaks to them or not.  Usually, I don’t go by reviews when selecting a book.  One thing that does influence what I select is format.  For some reason, I do not enjoy reading an e-book format; I prefer to have the real tome in my hands.  It is just not the same experience, for me.  Anything else, I can read on the PC, as long as it is not too long, but books, I like to experience as a whole.

Do you enjoy one format more than the other?

Reading Agenda

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Various antiquarian books, including Francis G...

Various antiquarian books, including Francis Grose’s Antiquities; this is one of the most popular images. If you want to use it, please copy it and host it on your own site. It’d be nice if you linked back to here, though. I still have the original image from the camera, if you want to experiment with colour balance. It’s 1712×1368 pixels. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I love books since I can remember, and to tell you the truth, I worry that there is not enough time in my lifetime to read all the wonderful tomes that I want to read. I try to read at least one book a month, the minimum. Right now, I am missing all the juicy tomes that are packed in several boxes in VA, for when I get to move.  Some very old, some new.  Vintage books are a passion of mine, although I don’t consider myself an avid collector – but certainly looking towards the future to start a collection of rare tomes.

The end of the year will soon be here and I have to say that I have thought about my next selection of books for the next five months.  I have a few books scattered around which I intend to finish before 2012 says goodbye.  So far, I have planned to read those but want to add two new books which I have waited to purchase, since I want to own them in actual presence and not electronic format.  One of them is “So Dark the Night” by Cliff Burns and the other is “The Mandolin Case” by Dr. Tom Bibey.  Can’t wait to get those.

So far, my 1 book a month agenda looks like this.

AUGUST – “The Mandolin Case” – Dr. Tom Bibey

SEPTEMBER – “So Dark the Night” – Cliff Burns

OCTOBER – “Count Lucanor” – Prince Don Juan Manuel

NOVEMBER – “The Nature Notes of an Edwardian Lady” – Edith Holden (this is a vintage book)

DECEMBER – “Finding Water” – Julia Cameron

I am starting to think about 2013 Reading Agenda, and will be sharing it with you, once completed.  Many times, I get to read more than one book a month, and that of course, bumps one book ahead of schedule.   Do you have any favorites that you want to read?  Any that you have enjoyed so much that you would like to suggest?  Your suggestions are welcomed.

You are What You Read

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How many times have you heard the adage “You are what you eat?”  The same can be said about reading.  You are what you read.  Whatever you feed your brain, that is the connection that you are promoting.  The connections that form in the brain are the result of the stimuli that we receive.  So, if we feed the brain garbage, we better beware, because that is the connection that we are forming.  Despite all our medical and scientific advances, much of how the brain works is still a mystery.  But we know for sure that the brain is making connections as we learn and receive more stimuli.

So when Rene Descartes – the philosopher – said, “I think therefore I am,” we can say that he was not only referring to the cognitive and thinking process, but for sake of this argument, of the possibility of becoming in the sense of what we feed our brains.  How does a college student become a physician?  By learning, reading, and studying to be one.  He becomes the information that he studied.

The possibilities are infinite.  By feeding our brain the right kind of information we become.  Take your goals into consideration.  For example, do you want to be in a better financial position?  Then, start feeding your brain the kind of information that will take you there.

We also read for entertainment. It relaxes us, and takes us to another world.  When is time to come back to reality the reading material that we choose to advance ourselves, is as important as the air we breathe.  Many of us use reading as an escape to reality, or a tool for learning, but it can be much more.  Reading can be a positive power of suggestion, a tool to make you achieve your potential.

So, next time you pick up that book (or magazine, or whatever) – are you feeding your brain a healthy diet?

Writer’s Wisdom 99

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Establishing the Identity of a Character

Characters give life to a novel.  How is that possible?  Characters are so powerful that readers identify with them, love them, hate them, dream of them, and can’t have enough of them.  How is that possible?

This is possible because characters have an identity and readers know that.  They have a name, particularities, character traits, and a distinct personality.  They have likes, dislikes, things they love and hate, challenges of their own, triumphs and battles, insecurities … – they are like the people who read them; they just are.

For a character to feel real it is important to establish his/her identity throughout the story.

Writer’s Wisdom 92

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When a Book Happens

When does a book happen?  I thought about that for a while.  Many writers have manuscripts piled, many rejected, others awaiting completion, others just waiting … stories waiting to be read.  This got me thinking, a story has been put into paper, in a way it has been told, even if it has not been read yet by many.  In that sense, a story brews in the writer’s mind and it is born once it is put on paper (or PC).  A book is more complicated than that.   A book is born when it is read – a book happens when someone reads it.  The story has been dormant for how many years it might have taken, and the simple act of reading awakens it.