Showing posts with label guest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guest. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Interview with Shelly Frome, Author of Fast Times Big City

Fast Times Big City by Shelly FromeFast Times Big City by Shelly Frome

Publisher:  Boutique of Quality Books (Feb 6, 2024)
Category: Manhattan Mystery
Tour dates: February 26-March 25, 2024
ISBN: ‎ 979-8886330267 Available in Print and ebook, Approx. 330 pages

  Fast Times Big City

Description Fast Times Big City by Shelly Frome

In a bind, Bud Palmer finds himself at the crossroads when just about everything was on the verge. Like most people, Bud Palmer felt this was just another day. Though the era was drawing to a close, he assumed his life as a sports columnist in the subtropics, in keeping with the benign fifties itself, would go on as predictable as ever. But that particular autumn morning he was thrust into a caper that was totally beyond him, forced him to leave Miami and take the train to Manhattan, and suddenly found everything in this restless "Big Apple" was up for grabs, on the brink, at a dicey turning point.

Interview with Shelly Frome

'Suzie: Please tell us something about ‘Fast Times Big City’

Shelly: It was a chance to return to the accessible New York City of my youth, not as a would-be striving actor this time but as a more mature character buffeted by a greater scope of obstacles. In effect, Bud Palmer finds himself in a bind, at a crossroads where everything seemed to be on the verge. I guess you could call it a  historical fifties caper

Suzie: I always enjoy looking at the names that authors choose to give their characters. Where do you derive the names of your characters? 

Shelly: Somehow the name has to be just right within the setting and given circumstances  in order to feed my imagination. For instance, I needed someone who had been jarred loose from the coziness and conformity of Miami of that era to take on the never-ending beat and tinge of danger prevalent in the “Big Apple” of that time.  I needed a Bud Palmer to be caught in a bind totally beyond his comfort zone.

Suzie: How completely do you develop your characters before beginning to write?

Shelly: Once I have the names right I know all about them, what they’re capable of and how they may respond under pressure. For instance, I know that Bud is clean-cut, was the vice president of his class at Miami High some seven or so years ago, always complied with the repressive rules of that day and age and would have to let all that go in order to take on this dicey task and truly find himself. All told, what I’m after are three dimensional characters, replete with an inner and outer life and potential contradictions, who come alive and give the story the sense of an act of becoming or, if you like, self-generating.

Suzie: Which actor would you like to see playing Bud Palmer?  Why?

Shelly: Tom Hanks when he was in his early thirties. Because he could easily pass as a  clean-cut, nice guy of that era. Moreover, underneath it all, he is quite sensitive and has the potential to run the gamut of whatever he might encounter in the “big city,” evolve and survive.  

Suzie: Tell us about your cover. Did you design it yourself?

Shelly: I took a segment of my late artist friend’s painting “Times Square” of that era and requested simple lettering in white.  

Suzie: What draws you to the mystery genre?

Shelly: It’s never just another day. There’s a significant disturbance that throws everyone off balance. How they cope, the aftermath of each encounter never fails to surprise me. In effect, I discover something akin to the truth about things—something I’d never encounter on the news or by observing safe and predictable behavior.

Suzie: When did you first have a desire to write?  How did this desire manifest itself?

Shelly:  As you’ve probably surmised, to me what passes for everyday life seems to take place on the surface. It’s more or less safe and predictable which, I guess, is by design. Once in study hall at Shenandoah Junior High in Miami back in the day, I found myself writing cliff-hangers, surreptitiously passing them around and discovering my classmates kept wanting more. “And then what happened?” they all wrote.

Suzie: What writers have you drawn inspiration from?

Shelly: Hemingway, Salinger and Ray Bradbury to name a few from a list of at least a dozen.

Suzie: What do you do when you are not writing?

Shelly: Since my wife suddenly passed away, I just interview provocative people for the local paper, take jaunts with Baxter my golden doodle, attend church once a week, etc. But, to tell the truth, I’m always writing even in my dreams. Sometimes I feel like paying money for a way to get writer’s block so that I can get a good night’s uninterrupted sleep. Which reminds me of something a noted playwright once told me. He had this acquaintance who was always pestering saying, “How’s the story going?” The response was always, “It’s coming along.” One day, when the playwright couldn’t take it anymore he shouted, “It’s finished, okay? Now all I have to do is write it down!”   

Suzie: What are you currently working on?

Shelly: I’ve begun a story about a handyman who keeps his distance, appearing on the surface as the proverbial strong, silent type, who is fast approaching the age of sixty. Lately, he has this empty feeling he’s squandered his life, and is suddenly beset with the plight of a young newlywed client whose husband has suddenly gone missing. The working title is “Charlie and the Blue Ridge Caper”.   

Suzie: Thanks again and good luck with ‘Fast Times Big City’, as well as your future endeavors.

Shelly FromeAbout Shelly Frome

Award winning author, Shelly Frome is a member of Mystery Writers of America, a professor of dramatic arts emeritus at UConn, a former professional actor, and a writer of crime novels and books on theater and film. He also is a features writer for Gannett Publications. His fiction includes Sun Dance for Andy Horn, Lilac Moon, Twilight of the Drifter, Tinseltown Riff, Murder Run, Moon Games, The Secluded Village Murders and Miranda and the D-Day Caper. Among his works of non-fiction are The Actors Studio: A History, a guide to playwriting and one on screenwriting, Shadow of the Gypsy is his latest foray into the world of crime and the amateur sleuth. He lives in Black Mountain, North Carolina.

Website: http://www.shellyfrome.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shellyfrome
Twitter: https://twitter.com/shellyFrome

Buy Fast Time Big City by Shelly Frome

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Giveaway Fast Times Big City by Shelly Frome

This giveaway is for 2 print or ebook copies, open to the U.S. and Canada only. This giveaway ends on March 26, 2024 midnight, pacific time. Entries accepted via Rafflecopter only. a Rafflecopter giveaway

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 Fast Times Big City by Shelly Frome

Thursday, June 8, 2023

It’s Not All About You by Elisabeth L. Morrissey: Review, Interview

It's Not All About You by Elisabeth L. Morrissey
It's Not All About You: Living with a Transsexual Spouse or Partner by Elisabeth L. Morrissey 

Publisher: Thursday Night Press, an imprint of DX Varos Publishing (May 23, 2023)
Category: LGBT, Self-Help, Relationships, Non-Fiction
Tour Dates May 23-June 15, 2023
ISBN: 978-1655065-870
Available in Print and ebook, 273 pages

  It's Not All About You

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment by Karuna Das: Review, Guest Post

Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment
Sex, Drugs, and Spiritual Enlightenment (but mostly the first two) by Karuna Das 

Publisher:  DX Varos Publishing (March 28, 2023)
Category: General Fiction, Fictionalized Memoir
Tour Dates: April 4-21, 2023
ISBN: 978-1955065764
Available in Print and ebook, 280 pages

  Sex Drugs and Spiritual Enlightenment

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

Stealing the Selkie’s Heart by Ella Rose: Guest Post, Review

Stealing the Selkie’s Heart by Ella Rose
Stealing the Selkie’s Heart (The Selkie Seas, #1) by Ella Rose

Publisher: Lightning Platypus Press, (July 19, 2022)
Category: Paranormal Romance
Tour dates: November 3-23, 2022
ISBN: 979-8985603811
Available in Print and ebook, 286 pages

Wednesday, July 13, 2022

Inseparable by David Kruh

Inseparable by David Kruh
Inseparable: An Alcatraz Escape Adventure by David Kruh

Publisher: DX Varos Publishing (June 21, 2022)
Category: Historical Fiction, Action/Adventure
Tour dates: July 6- 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-1955065504
Available in Print and ebook, 325 pages
  Inseparable


Description Inseparable by David Kruh



Tommy knew the right thing to do was turn them in to the cops. But that wasn’t the adventurous thing to do!

What happened to the three men who escaped from Alcatraz prison in June, 1962? Did they meet the same watery fate as dozens who preceded them into the cold San Francisco Bay? There is credible evidence two of them – brothers John and Clarence Anglin – not only survived but lived for years in South America. Inseparable is a fictional account of how a 13-year-old boy named Tommy helped them to freedom.

Tommy O’Conner was an only child whose mother, a widow of the Korean Conflict, had been left to make it on her own. She passed her independent, sometimes lonely spirit, to her son. But Tommy was also, in many ways, no different than other boys his age who dreamed of adventure. Then, one June day in 1962, his daydreams were interrupted by the real thing when he came face to face with John and Clarence Anglin – two of the Alcatraz escapees – and made the decision which would change all their lives.

Blessed By the Best by Brian Dawkins- Review, Guest Post

Blessed By the Best by Brian Dawkins


Blessed by the Best: My Journey to Canton and Beyond by Brian Dawkins, Michael Bradley (Contributor)

Publisher: Camino Books, Inc; 1st edition (August 30, 2021)
Category: Memoir, Football Biographies, Sports, Inspirational
Tour dates: June 27-July 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-1680980257
Available in Print and ebook, 256 pages

  Blessed By the Best

Description Blessed By the Best by Brian Dawkins



Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in 1996, Dawkins fought to elevate not only his own game but that of his entire team. He sweat, bled, and dominated through sixteen season in the NFL all the way into the Hall of Fame, but not for a moment did he believe his strength alone brought him that glory. Every step of the way the Lord had his back. From coaches that wanted to break him to defeats and bitter lessons in humility, his career is a testament to his faith and an homage to the countless people that helped him along the way.

In the wake of his success, Dawkins comes forward to describe his journey to become one the best safeties in the NFL. Physical training wouldn’t cut it. Blessed by the Best follows Dawkins trials to train his mind and faith along with his skill. As a nervous kid from Jacksonville, he never dreamed of one day standing in front of a crowd to accept that golden jacket. But one way or another, he made it. Dawkins tells his story straight, unafraid of exposing his own weaknesses; his over competitive spirit that takes losses to hard, the tunnel vision that estranged him from his kids, and the self-doubt that plagued much of his early years. Triumphs, pitfalls, love, and struggles Dawkins shares them all, not for himself, but in gratitude of those who have helped him along the way.

“I had been blessed by the best. First, that meant the Lord, who has blessed me with so much. It also meant all those people and things around me that I believe were the best for me. Maybe they weren’t the best for somebody else. Your best may not be my best. That’s fine. Everything that has happened to me has been to bring out the best in me. Even the toughest, hardest times in my life were the best things for me. If I hadn’t gone through them, maybe I wouldn’t be the person I am today.”

“This is not a football book. It has football in it, but this is a life tool,” Dawkins told Heavy. “These are things that I have gone through in my life, that others have taught me.”

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

Evita and Me by Erika Rummel: Guest Post, Review

Evita and Me by Erika Rummel


Evita and Me by Erika Rummel

Publisher: DX Varos Publishing (May 24, 2022)
Category: Historical Fiction, Crime, Women’s Literature
Tour Dates June 21-July 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-1955065320
Available in Print and ebook, 384 pages
  Evita and Me


Description Evita and Me by Erika Rummel


Evita Peron’s jewels are missing. Only three people know that they are in a vault in the Swiss Alps; Evita’s corrupt and brutal brother Juan, her bodyguard Pierre, and a teenaged girl Mona, her newest protegee. What happens if two of them team up?

Like Eva herself, Mona comes from a broken family and has to make her own way. Perhaps that’s why the two women feel close. Evita is at the pinnacle of success but already in the grip of a fatal illness. We see her life through the eyes of Mona and Pierre, two people she trusts — and who betray her in the end. Or can theft and murder be justified?A story of love, adventure, and murder.

Friday, June 17, 2022

Dragons In My Classroom by Barbara Kennard

 

Dragons In My Classroom: A Teacher’s Memoir by Barbara Kennard

Publisher: She Writes Press, (June 14, 2022)
Category: Memoir, Educator Biographies, Mid-Life Management, Inspirational
Tour dates: June 15, 2022-July 15, 2022
ISBN: 978-1647423650
Available in Print and ebook, 224 pages


Description Dragons In My Classroom by Barbara Kennard


As a young book lover with dyslexia, Barbara found the solution to her reading struggles in Miss Gluding, her first-grade teacher, who showed compassion for her student’s plight—and knew how to help her. From that time on, Barbara knew what she wanted to be: a teacher, just like Miss Gluding.

Unfortunately, Barbara also had some bad teachers in the years that ensued—including her sixth-grade teacher, an exacting woman who called attention to Barbara’s learning disabilities in front of classmates. Still wanting to follow in Miss Gluding’s footsteps in 1964, Barbara vowed she would be a better one than her sixth-grade teacher; instead, however, she became very much like her, with unattainable expectations for her students and herself. After seventeen years in the teaching profession, she realized she had to either change her teaching style or change careers. By providence, right as she stood at this crossroads, she was offered the opportunity to teach overseas at The Dragon School in Oxford, England, for a year—an opportunity she jumped at.

In the year that followed, Barbara would rely on her faith in God to give up a lot of what she knew about teaching and learn to do it differently—ways that wouldn’t have room for her perfectionism. In short, she would have to begin again.
Advance Praise Dragons In My Classroom by Barbara Kennard

“In this memoir, an English/dramatic arts teacher recounts a pivotal year at the Dragon School in Britain as part of an exchange program. . . . engaging and thought-provoking. . . . will be of special interest to aspiring as well as seasoned teachers. A well-crafted account about the search for greater flexibility when confronting life’s inevitable challenges.”—Kirkus Reviews

“ . . . engaging . . . This book is an endearing testament to the power of personal growth and reflection in one teacher’s incredibly rich professional life.”—StoryCircle Book Reviews

“In this memoir, Barbara Kennard so expertly captures the array of experiences that teachers encounter—the high and the low, the heartwarming and the hilarious. During her year teaching in Oxford, she comes to learn a new way of approaching both her classroom and her life that makes for an incredibly engaging read. Teachers everywhere will love this book.”—Nadine Kenney Johnstone, writing coach and award-winning author of Of This Much I’m Sure: A Memoir

“For any who struggle to distinguish between perfectionism and a yearning to grow into the fullest version of who God has created us to be, this book is a balm. Barbara Kennard writes candidly and compassionately about the people and places that taught her about self-acceptance and mercy. Her love of great writers and her appreciation for those she teaches and those who teach her shine through in vivid prose and engaging stories. Kennard is a lifelong educator. With humor, honesty, and self-awareness, this book invites readers to learn lessons alongside her about forgiveness, surrender, grace, and love.”—Dr. Jennifer Howe Peace, coeditor of My Neighbor’s Faith: Stories of Interreligious Encounter, Growth, and Transformation and Interreligious/Interfaith Studies: Defining a New Field

“The story of Barbara Kennard’s quest should inspire anyone who feels a calling to seek patiently for the best way to answer it and put it into play. This wise memoir should also remind us that although perfection can never be attained, we stand to have a lot of fun in the pursuit.”—David Smith, author of Be a Teacher: A Memoir in Ten Ideas

Thursday, March 3, 2022

Suzie's Review and Author Guest Post: Time and the Tree by Róisín Sorahan

Time and the Tree by Róisín Sorahan
Time and the Tree by Róisín Sorahan


Publisher: Adelaide Books, NY (September 6, 2021
Category: Literary Fiction, Fantasy, Modern Fable, and Self-actualization
Tour dates: January-February, 2022
ISBN: 978-1955196635
Available in Print and ebook, 282 pages




Description Time and the Tree by Róisín Sorahan


A modern fable about the nature of time and the quest for happiness.

It’s darkly funny, deceptively simple, and a necessary read for testing times.

In this gripping philosophical tale, a boy awakens beneath a tree in a forest in summer. He is soon joined by Time and his slave, a withered creature hooked on time and aching to disappear. The story evolves over the course of a year as a host of characters are drawn to the Tree for guidance. The unlikely cast grapple with choices and grope towards self-knowledge in a world where compassion is interwoven with menace. As the seasons bring great changes to the forest, we watch the child grow while the trials he faces mount. Then the time for talk and innocence passes as the forces of darkness rally, threatening the lives of his friends.

Lyrical, honest and heart-breaking, Time and the Tree confronts readers with a unique perspective on the challenges life presents. A wise and hopeful book, it is uplifting and unsettling by turns.

Thursday, February 3, 2022

Suzie's Review and Author Guest Post: Square Up by Lisa Dailey

Square Up by Lisa Dailey
Square Up: 50,000 miles in search of a way home by Lisa Dailey

Publisher:  Sidekick Press, (March 30, 2021)
Category: Memoir, Travel, Family Travel, Adventure Travel, Grief
Tour dates: January 17-February 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1734494556
Available in Print and ebook, 272 pages

  Square Up

Description Square Up by Lisa Dailey


Have you ever wished you could run away and leave your life behind? Born on the “Day of the Wanderer,” Lisa Dailey has always been filled with wanderlust. Although she and her husband had planned to take their family on a ’round-the-world adventure, she didn’t expect their plans to come together on the heels of grief, after losing seven family members in five years. 

Square Up shows us that travel not only helps us understand and appreciate other cultures, but invites us to find compassion and wisdom, heal from our losses, and discover our capacity for forgiveness, as well as joy.

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

Suzie's Review and Author Guest Post: Finding Sisters by Rebecca Daniels

Finding Sisters by Rebecca Daniels
Finding Sisters: How One Adoptee Used DNA Testing and Determination to Uncover Family Secrets and Find Her Birth Family by Rebecca Daniels 

Publisher: Sunbury Press (September 14, 2021) 
Category: Non Fiction, Memoir, Genetic Genealogy, Adoption, Family Reunion, Extended Families 
Tour dates: January-February, 2022 
ISBN: 978-1620065587
Available in Print and ebook, 125 pages
  Finding Sisters by Rebecca Daniels

Description Finding Sisters by Rebecca Daniels


Where does she come from?

Who are her genetic parents?

Who is she?

Does she even want to know?

With almost no information of her genetic heritage, adoptee Rebecca Daniels follows limited clues and uses DNA testing, genealogical research, thoughtful letter writing, and a willingness to make awkward phone calls with strangers to finally find her birth parents.

But along the way, she finds much more.

Two half-sisters.

A slew of cousins on both sides.

A family waiting to be discovered.

With the assistance of a distant cousin in Sweden and several other DNA angels on the internet, Daniels finally comes face to face with her birth mother just months before her passing. Join in on this author’s discovery of family and self in ‘Finding Sisters: How One Adoptee Used DNA Testing and Determination to Uncover Family Secrets and Find Her Birth Family.’

Thursday, September 2, 2021

Thursday, June 17, 2021

City of Deadly Dreams by Elyse Douglas Book Tour with Guest Review

 City of Deadly Dreams by Elyse Douglas


City of Deadly Dreams: Mystery by Elyse Douglas 
 Publisher:  Broadback (May 1, 2021) 
Category: Hard-Boiled Mystery, Private Investigator Mystery 
Tour dates: May 31-June 30, 2021 
ISBN: TBA 
Available in ebook,  250 pages 

City of Deadly Dreams