Meet Vancouver Author, Karen M. Magill

In the tradition of Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze, author, Karen M. Magill gives us a peek inside of a paranormal love-story in The Bond.  In the book’s intriguing story, Karen confirms for us that every cloud has a silver lining, to quote the popular cliché, a mindset that is personified in this remarkable woman/author.

As fellow members of the Facebook group called Master Koda, Karen and I are recent cyber-friends.  Even so, one of the things I have learned, as well as admire, about her, is that although she lives with a challenging health issue, not a hint of self-absorption is to be found in her writing, or in her living, that I have been able to detect, at least. 

It is my pleasure to withdraw my fingers from my keyboard now and to welcome Karen to the page:     

Tell us…who are you…where do you live…what do you do on a daily basis?

My name is Karen Magill and I am a paranormal author.  I live in the beautiful city of Vancouver, Canada and since I am on disability due to multiple sclerosis, I spend my days doing whatever I want!

What do you like to do when you aren’t writing and/or promoting your book?

I like walking – I put on my headphones, grab my cane and camera and out I go.  I love to walk around the city and take photos of historic places or buildings.  Then I come home and post pictures in my blog, the Vancouver Vagabond – http://karen-magill.blogspot.com – and write the history of what I have seen.

Give us an overview of your book.  In what genre is it classified?  What is the source of its title? 

The Bond, A Paranormal Love Story is the tale of how two people can have a physical bond in a unique way.  A man in Toronto and a woman in Vancouver are hit by identical cars at the same moment in time.  Both people have an out of body experience and meet each other while their spiritual forms are floating.  They unite and when they part to return to their bodies, each takes a piece of the other with them.  This makes them true soul mates and gives them a powerful bond.

How is your book different than others of this genre?

I think the difference comes from the manner in which the couple meets.  Not only that, I tried to make Laura and Julian real people.  I wanted most of what happens in their lives to be something that most people could relate to.

What inspired you to write it?

Actually, I was just looking for a different way for two people to meet.  I have always believed in the powers of the supernatural and this just seems like such a plausible way for two to meet.

How did it happen that you wanted to become a writer?

I have always written, ever since I learned to put words together.  My grandmother was a published author.  Whenever I was lonely or depressed as a kid, I would escape into an imaginary world.  I started writing more seriously when I was around eighteen but, as is the case with most artistic people, I had to find a good paying job to support myself.

In 2000, I woke to find myself partially paralyzed and nine days later, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.  At the time, I worked for the Canadian federal government – a job that had taken me a year and a half to get – and I was determined that I was going to take some time off of work then to go back. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen that way.  I went back after five weeks off but the MS just kept getting worse.  My specialist and I made the decision that I should go on disability.

To be honest, I didn’t originally see this as an advantage.  I was devastated.  I was only 35 at the time, and what was I going to do with the rest of my life?  It took a few months, but I began to see the MS as an advantage.  Once I got the financial situation straightened out with insurance and pensions, I realized that I had been given an excellent opportunity.  I may have MS, but now I could follow my lifelong dream of succeeding as a writer.

I researched other areas of writing such as copywriting and writing for musicians, but novels are where my passion lies.  So writing novels is what I do.

What advice do you have for aspiring, or new, writers?

Don’t give up and don’t try to make anyone else’s career yours.  If you hear all the success stories of others, don’t expect that to be your path.  And don’t get discouraged if success takes longer than some.  Oh, and get a good editor!

Where can people buy your book?

The eBook of The Bond is at http://goo.gl/EtzSs on Amazon.  The paperback can be accessed at http://www.amazon.com/The-Bond-Paranormal-Love-Story/dp/1411615026/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1345130395&sr=8-3&keywords=karen+magill   

Do you have any works in progress, and if so, give us an overview. 

My next book, Missing Flowers, is going to be published soon by Saga Books.  Missing Flowers takes a character - the psychic - from The Bond and moves her to Vancouver.  The psychic dreams about women being murdered and ends up getting together with a police detective to solve the case.  This book unites historical fact with the paranormal to create an interesting story.

Thank you, Karen for giving my readers an opportunity to get to know you.  I wish you the best of luck with your writing endeavors.

The following are the links to the paperback and eBook versions of Linda Lee Greene’s most recent novel, GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Other-Angels-Linda-Greene/dp/1897512562/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338336762&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Angels-Guardian-Chronicals-ebook/dp/B0087AS9QW/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1338916890&sr=1-3

An Engaging Historical Treasure

A loaf of bread,
A jug of wine,
And book reviews,
Especially five-star book reviews are what I live for these days.

"Is this what your life has reduced to?" my rational mind says.

But listen to this -- to what Iris Park of Allbooks Reviews says:

Guardians and Other Angels: An Engaging Historical Treasure

Linda Lee Greene’s recent novel, Guardians and Other Angels is an interesting bundle of tragedies and triumphs taken place during the Great Depression and World War II. I strongly recommend this book definitely to an older audience or to young adults that are interested in (Great Depression and) war history. Although this novel was a very captivating one, I feel it’s not diverted towards children due to the emotional, personal drama that occurs in it.

Inspired by a true story, Guardians and Other Angels is a recollection of experiences of two American families during the Great Depression and World War II. The story mostly surrounds a lady named Mary Evalena Caplinger (Lena). The novel is full of love, sadness, joy, and other heart-wrenching emotions that the reader would feel as they venture further into the plot. Throughout the pages, the book contains many authentic letters that are written by the characters, immediately making the novel more intriguing and private to read.

Linda Lee Greene really sculpts the characters. As I was reading, I felt connected to them in some way, as if they were real people that I knew personally. I also appreciated how Greene decided to tell the story in a fictional manner, as I thought it would not have been as fascinating if it was completely non-fiction. The novel was nicely wrapped up at the end and it was finished with finality, giving me a sense of satisfaction once I completed reading. I really enjoyed this read; it truly exhausted my heart and played with my feelings.

Linda Lee Greene is a wonderful author and also an award-winning artist, who originated from Ohio. Besides Guardians and Other Angels, she has also co-written Jesus Gandhi Oma Mae Adams, an Amazon best-seller. She is a loving mother of two and also a grandmother to two grandchildren. Linda Lee Greene currently resides in Columbus, Ohio.
Reviewer: Iris Park, Allbooks Review Int. www.allbooksreviewint.com


Such praise!  Such praise!
I could live on this for days and days.

"Get a grip!  A grip!" my rational mind implores me.

But instead I eat a jug of wine,
And drink a loaf of bread...tee hee,
And hold my breath for the next five-star review. 

http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Other-Angels-Linda-Greene/dp/1897512562/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338336762&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Angels-Guardian-Chronicals-ebook/dp/B0087AS9QW/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1338916890&sr=1-3

Introducing Author, Arlene R. O'Neil

Never have I published back-to-back postings on my blog, but this one carries with it a sense of urgency, not only for the benefit of my readers, but also for the author to whom it will introduce you today.

Arlene R. O’Neil is another of my author friends with whom I correspond on the Facebook group of Master Koda, and the good news is that her wonderful book, Broken Spokes is available free on Amazon in its eBook version until midnight PMT tonight.  Please read on to get the scoop on Arlene, as well as how you can take advantage of this great offer and add this book to your eBook library: 

Tell us…who are you…where do you live…what do you do on a daily basis?

My name is Arlene R. O’Neil.  Originally, I am from Connecticut but moved to South Carolina 2 1/2 years ago to escape the cold weather and to finish writing my second book. I live on a 3 ½ acre farm and have five goats and two black Labradors as pets.  There is never a dull moment on a farm, so when I am not writing, I spend my days feeding, cleaning, refilling water troughs, mending fences, mowing and tending to a small garden.  I am also an editor and proofreader.

What do you like to do when you aren’t writing and/or promoting your book?

The little free time I have, I enjoy sitting in the goat pen playing with, or brushing, my kids, or playing fetch with my dogs.  I try to keep my brain working by playing Words with Friends on Facebook and keeping up with changes and posts about my friends.  Sometimes I help a friend with chores on her 200-acre, full functioning cattle farm, and other times we go for short horseback rides.  Due to some physical limitations, I am not as active as I would like to be, but this is where my writing brings comfort.  I do have a son in the Army and enjoy collecting items to send to him and his unit when they are deployed.  Doing donation drives at Christmas for deployed troops is something I look forward to.

Give us an overview of your book.  In what genre is it classified?  What is the source of its title? 

“Broken Spokes” is a combination of broken bones, broken bike, and broken spirit.  An autobiography, it tells the story of my life and how an accident, and its results, changed not only my physical being but my emotional state as well.  Unintentional negative messages from childhood carried in to adulthood... messages I am still working to discard.  My words speak to those who have gone through similar circumstances and after reading my book, they realize that they are not alone.

Also included in “Broken Spokes” are chapters of my life with an amazing black Labrador named Little Bit.  Although blind, he influenced my life in so many positive ways and taught me balance.  Little Bit also was my comfort and my sanity during my son’s multiple deployments, which are also mentioned in my book.

How is your book different than others in this genre?

I think what makes “Broken Spokes” different is that my main goal in writing it was to help others, to let readers know they are not alone in their struggle through the positive messages I incorporated into my book.  So many identify with the little girl in the book and watch as she overcomes every single obstacle placed in her way.  It is a book of hope, of triumph over tragedy.  

What inspired you to write it?

Belonging to several blind dog sites as well as military support groups, I found myself writing short stories on these sites.  For years, people told me I had talent and I was not sure if that was true or that they were just being kind.  As the years passed and the compliments continued, I began to believe that maybe I did posses a certain flair for writing and decided to try my hand at writing a book.

How did it happen that you wanted to become a writer?

As a child, I remember writing short stories, plays, and poems.  I honestly cannot remember a time when I wasn’t creating something.  I have three briefcases filled with stories that I have saved through the years.  In 1986, a poem I wrote called “Memories” appeared in an anthology called “Our Forgotten Graces.”  This was my first experience being published and it was the start of my professional writing career.

What advice do you have for aspiring, or new, writers?

Write!  If this is your passion in life…write!  Never let others have a negative influence in your work.  I write for me because it is what I love.  If something I write touches just one person, I have reached my goal.

Where can people buy your book?

“Broken Spokes” is available in paperback or Kindle at www.amazon.com and also from my publisher, www.sagabooks.net

Do you have any works in progress, and if so, give us an overview. 

I have several works in progress.  My next book, “Army Life and Deployment Through the Eyes of a Mom” will be published by Saga Books as soon as I am finished writing.  This book will detail the past eleven years of my son’s Army career and will serve as a guidebook for all military parents.  Not only will it tell of my personal experiences, but it will also list suggestion on how to deal emotionally with the different aspects of a Soldier’s life from basic training to multiple deployments.  It is my hope that this book will offer needed support to parents.

My next book will be the amazing life story of Little Bit, a totally blind black Labrador who grew to become a Therapy dog and an ambassador for Blind and Handicapped animals.  Through my writing, Little Bit is known all over the world and there is a memorial fund in his honor in Connecticut.

After that I plan to write “The Pages of My Life,” a compilation of everything I have written with a short paragraph explaining what was going on in my life at the time.  This will contain humor, tragedy, and some thought-provoking articles.

By then, I am certain to have enough material for a few more books!

“Broken Spokes“ is available to download free from now until 12:00 pm PMT, Wednesday, August, 15^th. The following is the link to the Kindle version on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Spokes-ebook/dp/B00507FRGU/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&qid=1315320072&sr=1-1

Below is the link to the paperback version:

http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Spokes-Arlene-R-ONeil/dp/1897512163/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315320072&sr=1-1

My professional page on Facebook can be viewed at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Arlene-R-Gallo-ONeil/271244249572408

Linda Lee Greene’s current book GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS is available at http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Other-Angels-Linda-Greene/dp/1897512562/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338336762&sr=8-1

Introducing Author, Dominique Goodall

I am instituting a new feature of my blog.  On a regular basis, it will be my pleasure to welcome a guest whose own writings or words in the form of answers to interview questions will be the major content of the postings.

            Today it is my pleasure to introduce Dominique Goodall, a young author currently living in London, England whose acquaintance I have made through an association of authors, editors, publishers, etc. on Facebook called Master Koda.  The members of the group offer one another support in promoting their books, as well as in just about every other aspect of life. 

Dominique, welcome, and thank you for this opportunity to present you to my readers:  

Thank you, Linda.  Before I tell you all what started off the amazing book that I’ve written, let me tell you something about myself first.  My name is Dominique Goodall, and I…I am a wolf addict.  It’s something I admit to freely, as one should when they know they have a problem, but unlike other people, I don’t just admit to my addiction, I drown myself in it frequently. I rarely go out without finding something new to buy that I know will sooth the little wolf, howling inside my heart.

If you were to walk into my room, you’d find yourself in the midst of a wolf paradise. I have numerous statues, ornaments, pictures, plaques, plates, slate images and even teddies.  I am smothered in tattoos and planning a lot, lot more.  I even paid out ££££’s to get a dog that looked like a wolf, just so I could feel more at home.

Therefore, is it such a shock to discover that Echoes of Winter is not only a book about wolves but was also inspired by wolves? Everything about the book features wolves, in various states of being and in many different lights. They are helpless, weak and yet strong, an adversary and proud pack-mate.

Now for what really started Echoes of Winter off, other than the wolves which rule my life from such hidden depths.

I was watching a program about dogs and how puppies form in the womb before birth.  Already an amazing program (I knew the technicalities, but I’d never actually witnessed the images that I was able to see)…they decided to delve into the depths of just how we came to have wolves at our sides in their many guises and various sizes now.  I got four paragraphs down that night before the dreaded Block jumped into place.

And then the next morning, after a good night’s sleep, it had dropped back in place and left me the chance to not just write, but to have fourteen pages done that day.  Once I’d hit 15,000 words, the block was back in place.  I think I went sixteen months before I could write another page…and then a wonderful woman named Jennifer Don encouraged me in November 2012 to try NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).

Jennifer, I really have to thank you here.  We met in the most unusual of places and found a kindred spirit with each other, wolves and poetry in common.  Without you, Echoes of Winter wouldn’t have been completed within the 6 months it took me to add another hundred thousand words to it and complete at least the first part of Convel’s tale.  Convel, Teira…even Tikaani, the tricky minx…they would never have had their story told in full had it not been for you, the program NaNoWriMo keeping me in order so I had to write properly.  (And in case you don’t know, Convel, Teira and Tikaani are characters from Echoes of Winter.  All three are wolves.)

Dominique Goodall is the author of the soon to be released Echoes of Winter, book one in the “Seasons of the Wolf” series and a self-confessed wolf addict.  Echoes of Winter has a tentative release date of December, 2012.  She has currently been published in two anthologies by Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing and is currently working on becoming better known by sending manuscripts to as many different anthologies as possible.  Living in the UK isn’t her ideal situation, although being close to London can be good for her ‘addiction’ to wolf stuff.

            

At 22, as much as she hides it, she never will be able to count her wolf stuff--there’s nothing left for her to be able to collect without her own home.  She’d love to spend time with a real wolf, as well. Mostly because wolves are the one thing she adores.

She can be found on Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/DominiqueGoodallAuthor

Friended on Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/WaterSinger

At her blog; http://dominiquegoodall.wordpress.com/

Or on Twitter; @DomGoodall

You can also like “Echoes of Winter” here; https://www.facebook.com/EchoesofWinter

And amazingly, there is even a book trailer for your viewing pleasure! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kix63EXBW50

The online exhibition of Linda Lee Greene’s artwork can be viewed at www.gallery-llgreene.com,

Information about and excerpts from Linda’s current and future books can be found at booksbylindaleegreene.gallery-llgreene.com. 

By clicking onto this URL, you will be taken directly to the “buy” page of Linda’s novel, GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS - http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Other-Angels-Linda-Greene/dp/1897512562/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338336762&sr=8-1

Illness Put Me Asunder for Awhile

Hello Everyone, In the early days of July, I fell ill.  An adjustment in one of my medications was required, and as a result, I am feeling almost nornal again, with the added bonus of regaining the energy to slowly return to my normal routine.  Unfortunately, one of the areas that suffered the most neglect was my blog.
       I have many postings planned for this month and the months to come, but today several items on my "TO DO" list are taking precedence in my mind.  Therefore, I thought I would send you images of some of my paintings that are appropriate for the season with the hope that will bring a bit of happiness to your day.

      
I will be in touch again soon.  Blessings, Linda