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Featured Author Renae Wrich

August 28, 2023 by Renae Wrich in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as Featured author, Mac and Cheese, renae Wrich

A born and raised Minnesotan, Renae Wrich is a lover of hot dishes, lakes, and snuggling up with a good book on a cold winter day. Renae holds a B.A. in English from the University of Minnesota Duluth. She lives in a suburb of Minneapolis with her husband and two children (who love macaroni and cheese). Mac and Cheese, Please, Please, Please is her first book.

Visit her website at www.renaewrich.com to learn more.

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Make Goodreads Work For You

August 27, 2023 by marianne h donley in category Ages 2 Perfection Online Class, Online Classes tagged as Aged to Perfection Online Class, Diane K Peterson, goodreads, Online Class

Make Goodreads Work For You

Presented by: Diane K. Peterson
Date: September 1 – 30, 2023 (one month)
Registration Closes: September 16, 2023
Pricing: A2P Member fee: $20
Non-A2P Member fee: $30

About the Workshop:

Goodreads says it is “the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations.” With many millions of members worldwide it just makes sense for authors to go where the readers are. It is well worth the time and effort to create an effective and accurate presence on Goodreads. This class will show you how to take control of your Goodreads presence and use the power of Goodreads to build your readership. Are you a Goodreads Author? Does your profile capture the key elements of you? Have you connected your blog? Does the information in your book records make it easier to find them? Is the information accurate? How does Goodreads interact with Amazon? Should you advertise on Goodreads? We will answer these questions and more while we explore the many ways for authors to make Goodreads a strong part of their marketing plan.

About the Presenter:

Diane K. Peterson is a retired school library media specialist that promotes the romance novel industry as an researcher, speaker, and reviewer. Most recently she has been contributing information to the RomanceWiki to help build the history of the genre as well as reviewing romance novels for Novels Alive. Diane leads classes and workshops for authors and older adults (Osher program). A compulsive “fixer,” she uses her status as a Goodreads librarian to correct and improve book records and assist authors. Website: www.dianekpeterson.com

Click to Sign up

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Mother’s Mantle by Neetu

August 26, 2023 by Neetu Malik in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik tagged as family stories, love, mothers and daughters, Neetu

Mother’s Mantle

She wraps her child
in the old, soft mantle

though the child is
grown into a woman
she has raised
with gentle hands
and tender affection

her daughter shivers
as chill pierces through
holes in the aged fabric

a mother’s excuses
no longer explain
how they came to be
in the first place

through the tight weave
that could never rip.

Some of Neetu’s Books

Pennsylvania Bards’ Eastern PA Poetry Review 2023

THE POETIC BOND X

THE OCOTILLO REVIEW SUMMER 2018 VOL 2.2

THE POETIC BOND V

THE POETIC BOND VI

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My Search for Great Adjectives by Kidd Wadsworth

August 25, 2023 by Kidd Wadsworth in category Infused with Meaning by Kidd Wadsworth tagged as adjectives, Dune, Frank Herbert, Worldbuilding, writing

Why was the book Dune by Frank Herbert so successful?

Most people would probably say world-building. Herbert created a compelling futuristic world of suspensor lamps, stillsuits and blue-eyed spice-drugged Fremen, and in it he placed the unassuming Paul Atreides, the character every one of us, male or female, identifies with. But let’s dig a deeper, let’s “get into the weeds” as one of my professors used to say. I’m talking adjectives here. And yes, Herbert was a master.

“The woman was a witch shadow—hair like matted spiderwebs, hooded ‘round darkness of features, eyes like glittering jewels.”

I LOVE THIS SENTENCE!

“witch shadow”

She’s more than evil, she’s powerful. Or is she? Witches, even in the future, only have the power we give them. So, who gave her power? Ut oh, it turns out his mother did. She mated with his father on command. But it gets worse. His mother disobeyed the witch.

“matted spiderwebs”

This phrase feeds on the first. Spiderwebs hide in corners and under chairs. Nearly transparent, they are easy to miss. These words aren’t about her hairstyle. Herbert is telling us that her web, and his mother’s disobedience, has caught something—and his name is Paul Atreides.

“glittering jewels”

I confess. I stole this phrase. Yup. I used it to describe the eyes of a dragon. It screams EVIL.

Herbert’s wonderful adjectives aren’t limited to his prose. Consider some of the titles of his books:

The Godmakers

I like this one because it plays on the well known “Kingmakers.” I guess things are different in the future. They don’t just make kings, they make gods.

Whipping Star

I’ve got read this book. What the devil is a “Whipping” star?

My husband is an Alabama boy. He grew up on the gulf coast. His senior year, he and three others went stag to homecoming. On the way home they drove down to the beach to park and watch the sun come up. Not yet legal, they nonetheless were well supplied with beer. They popped a few open, loosened their ties, kicked off their shoes . . .

Waves, coming in the open car windows, woke them up. Nope, the car didn’t make it out alive.

Often my adjectives are like the story you just read—painfully predictable. A great book—or a great poem—helps me splash my readers in the face with borrowed gems. I am also learning to link my adjectives as Herbert did with “witch”, “shadow”, and “spider-web”, to create a picture within a picture. We not only know what the woman looks like, we know she is of the dark, moves in the dark, and more dark is coming.

Happy Writing!