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Editing by Ellie

Geri Clouston
How to Be a Better Writer #1: Don't Count on Spell-Check Greetings, authors! I'm Ellie, an editor by day and a voracious reader by night, and I'm thrilled to be a new member of the indieBRAG blog team. Each month, I'll be sharing tricks and tweaks you can use to shine up your writing. I've been reading books for indieBRAG for quite awhile and have discovered so many talented authors this way. But sometimes it's hard to ignore my inner writer-editor so I can relax, have fun and just read (I'm sure you can agree!). Sure, it's annoying, but that little voice has led me to some helpful insights into how we can all improve already good writing. One biggie has to do with spelling. Not the basics; more like spelling 2.0. Poll your Facebook buddies about their biggest writing pet peeves, and you'll see a lot of gripes about there/there/they're or to/too/two. Makes perfect sense. Homonyms -- sound-alike words that mean different things -- are tricky stuff. Even so, readers tend to notice when they're misused. Your book could have a fantastic storyline that uses an impressively diverse vocabulary, but if you flub on words like the ones above,…

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BROKEN PROMISES-JOE PERRONE JR.

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Joe Perrone Jr. When the body of Maggie McFarland, an 86-year old widow, is found among the rubble of the once-famous, landmark Artemis Hotel, leveled by fire nearly seventy years ago, residents of Roscoe are shocked. However, it is not the location where Maggie is found, but rather the manner of her demise that has everyone puzzled. For it isn't a heart attack that has felled her; nor has she suffered a stroke, or taken a fatal fall from a porch. Her life has not ended so uneventfully. Maggie has been killed by a bullet to the heart, fired from a pistol at close range. Who would possibly want to kill this kind, gentle woman, known throughout the area as one of the best trout fly tiers within a hundred miles of the famed Beaverkill River? That is the mystery that confronts Matt Davis in Broken Promises, one of the most baffling cases of his career. Stephanie: Hello, Joe! Thank you for chatting with me today and welcome. I'm am so delighted to hear that you have won the B.R.A.G. Medallion for a second time. Your story, Broken Promises sounds thrilling and I do love a good…

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Authors' Chat

THE YEAR GOD’S DAUGHTER-REBECCA LOCHLANN

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Rebecca Lochlann Rebecca Lochlann began envisioning the epic tale that has become The Child of the Erinyes series at a very early age. Getting it into the world has become her life's work, although she didn't exactly intend it to be that way. Her goal for the series is to create a new myth: one that offers the same flavor and unique magic as the Greek classics, yet which will interest modern readers. She has always believed that deities will sometimes speak to us through dreams and visions, gently prompting us to tell their lost stories. Stephanie: Hello, Rebecca! Thank you for chatting with me today and congrats on the B.R.A.G. Medallion. Please tell me a little about your book, The Year-God's Daughter. Rebecca: Gladly, Stephanie, and let me thank you for this opportunity. I was over the moon to be awarded the B.R.A.G. Medallion. What an honor! The Year-god's Daughter kicks off my Child of the Erinyes series, a story that begins in the Bronze Age, on Crete and the Greek mainland, and ends in the near future. It follows the lives of the three main protagonists, along with their supporting characters, through time, as they…

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Authors' Chat

Martin Crosbie’s views on Interviews!

Geri Clouston
  "What's your favorite color?""Do you have a pet that inspired you to write your book?""Is there a food that you need to eat in order to create?"These are all actual, real questions that interviewers have asked me. I have a real concern that the interviews posted on sites and social networks are in danger of becoming so mundane and ordinary that the only people reading them will be immediate friends and family of the author. Try reading some interviews and decide for yourself. Compare the answers and you'll see similarities. Think about sporting events for a moment. You know the interview that the player gives after the game and talks about everyone giving one hundred and ten percent, or, when she or he mentions that although she or he scored the winning goal it was all about the team winning. Those are noble thoughts but they're sterile. I'm bored of them. I want to know what the player, or author is really thinking. Unfortunately, that has become quite difficult.There are no shortages of places where authors can procure interviews and promote their work. We're very fortunate. From this very site - B.R.A.G. to fine sites like Indies Unlimited and…

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DAISY: BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE- JANIS KEARNEY

Stephanie Hopkins
Author interview with Janis Kearney Janis F. Kearney, publisher, author, oral historian and literacy advocate, is one of 19 children born to Arkansas Delta sharecroppers, and cotton farmers. She graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a B.A. in Journalism, and completed 30 graduate level hours at UA Fayetteville, and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, in public administration, and Journalism. Kearney went to work for Civil Rights legend Daisy Gatson Bates' award-winning Arkansas State Press in 1987, as Managing Editor. In 1988, she became Publisher/Owner of the Newspaper. In 1993, she took a sabbatical from the newspaper to work with the Clinton Administration in Washington, DC, where she served in the roles of: White House Media Specialist, the White House; Communications Director, US Small Business Administration, and Personal Diarist to President William Jefferson Clinton, the White House Oval Office Staff. She was selected in 2001, for a two-year W.E.B. Du Bois Fellowship at Harvard University's Center for African and African American Studies; in 2003, for a two-year appointment as Chancellor's Lecturer at Chicago City Colleges; In 2005, for a two-year appointment as Humanities Fellow at Chicago's DePaul University Center for the Humanities; and in 2007, a…

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Authors' Chat

Gratitude- A Simple idea we all know about

Geri Clouston
grat•i•tude Noun the quality or feeling of being grateful or thankful: He expressed his gratitude to everyone on the staff. Synonymsthanks, thankfulness, appreciation, gratefulness. A simple idea we all know about I was contacted by a reviewer recently who mentioned how seldom he gets any gratitude for the time he takes reviewing a book or interviewing an author. Quite honestly, I was taken aback with this lack of simple politeness. I believe that whether a review is good or not, you as an author should thank the reader for taking the time and, in some cases, spending the money to consider your book. Although this will not necessarily change their minds about your writing, it might make them consider giving you another chance with your next book! When dealing with the "uglies" out there, one response is all you need to make. No need to get into a discussion with someone who does not like your work. Remember, they are entitled to their opinion even if it does not please you. Thanking a reviewer who gave your book a positive review will most likely encourage them to mention you more often, and word of mouth is what makes a book…

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THE WINTER CHASER -CHRISTOPHER HOLT

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Christopher Holt Stephanie: Hello Christopher! Thank you for chatting with me today and congrats on the B.R.A.G. Medallion What an honor. Tell me a little about your book, The Winter Chaser. Christopher: I wanted to write a true dystopian novel. By that I mean an adventure story set in the future but in reality it is a social commentary on the present age. Stephanie: How did you come up with the idea for your story? Christopher: By being observant. For instance when travelling around London in the bus I eavesdrop on conversations. I always carry a small notebook and record current trends in language, fashion, the rise of "isms", and new dogmas, especially in health and political correctness. All these I extend into parody. Stephanie: Why did you choose the 2301? And how do you visualize the world in that time? Christopher: 2301 is sufficiently far ahead in the future to give conjecture a free hand but not so distant as to become fantasy. It is still in historical reach of my so-called Template Year 2000. Stephanie: In your book description you say, "Brit Modern idolises youth, sex, perfect physiques and celebrity culture." Which is pretty much…

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Authors' Chat

THE MOURNING AFTER – ROCHELLE B. WEINSTEIN

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Rochelle B. Weinstein Rochelle B. Weinstein is an author, speaker, blogger, and former entertainment industry executive. Her highly acclaimed debut novel, What We Leave Behind, is for any woman who has loved and lost and wondered what could have been. Her second novel, The Mourning After, most recently received the honor of a B.R.A.G. Medallion. Weinstein lives in North Miami Beach, Florida with her husband and twin boys. She is currently writing her third novel based in the mountains of North Carolina. Visit her website or follow her on social media. Stephanie: Hello Rochelle. Thank you for chatting with me today and congrats on winning the BRAG Medallion. Please tell me about your story, The Mourning After. Rochelle: The Mourning After is a tale of childhood trauma, family dynamics, and unspeakable tragedy. It speaks of bravery, acceptance, and above all, hope. Fifteen-year-old Levon Keller is wedged between his golden boy older brother, David, and Levon's younger sister, Chloe, who battles a rare illness, glycogen storage disease (GSD). Levon changes the lives of everyone around him when he is blamed for being behind the wheel of a car that accidentally kills David, whom Levon idolized, admired and adored.…

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Authors' Chat

Strange Metamorphosis-Paul Monk

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Paul Monk Paul C.R. Monk was born in Exmouth, Devon, grew up in the south east of England then spent over 20 years living in France with a 3-year stint in Spain. Monk is a qualified linguist and has been writing scripts and storyworlds for videogames for over ten years and has authored an interactive language learning course. Influenced by the works of naturalist Jean-Henri Fabre, Monk has been an entomology enthusiast for many years. A former resident of the house of Villeneuve where his novel is set, he now lives in England with his French wife and their three young sons. Stephanie:Hello Paul! Welcome to Layered Pages and thank you for chatting with me today. I hear a congratulation is in order for winning the BRAG Medallion for your book, Strange Metamorphosis. Please tell me about your book. Paul: Well, first of all thanks for having me here. I'd also like to thank IndieBRAG for the honor. It is not only rewarding but stimulating to know that your book has received approval from such a rigorous reading group. About the novel, a boy facing a difficult life decision is magically turned into a bug by a…

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Authors' Chat

A PASSION FOR VENGEANCE- PATTY HENDERSON

Stephanie Hopkins
Author Interview with Patty Henderson I'm a Tampa, Florida native and still live in beautiful, Palm tree-lined South Tampa. I got hooked on mystery and supernatural literature after I read Edgar Allan Poe in junior high and soon after, discovered Gothic Romances. The dark side still fascinates me and I lament the loss of some of the old style literature of the greats in the genre. I'm a firm believer in the romantic gothic element. I write Gothic Historical Romances. So far, there are three, THE SECRET OF LIGHTHOUSE POINTE, CASTLE OF DARK SHADOWS and my latest, PASSION FOR VENGEANCE. These are total homages to the old paperback Gothics available at drugstores, department stores, grocery stores and every place paperback books were sold in the 1960s and 1970s. In my Gothic books, though, the girl gets the girl and the sex is much steamier! I've also written four books in the Brenda Strange Paranormal Mystery Series, THE BURNING OF HER SIN, TANGLED AND DARK, THE MISSING PAGE and XIMORA When I'm not writing or thinking of plot lines in my head, I love spending time with my family friends, coffee shops, fine wine and enjoying being out in the weekend…

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