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Featured Authors of the Month: Bethlehem Writers Group

December 1, 2018 by in category Featured Author of the Month tagged as , ,

Featuring Bethlehem Writers Group | Featured Authors | A Slice of Orange

 

Featuring Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC

 

The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), founded in 2006, is a community of mutually supportive, fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories, spanning a range of genres including: children’s, fantasy, humor, inspiration, literary, memoir, mystery, paranormal, romance, science fiction, women’s fiction, and young adult.

BWG has published five anthologies. Each anthology has an overall theme—broadly interpreted—but includes a variety of genres, and all but the first anthology include stories from the winner(s) of The Bethlehem Writers Short Story Award. Their first anthology, A Christmas Sampler: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales (2009), won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best Anthology and Best Short Fiction.

Besides anthologies and yearly writing contests, the group publishes a quarterly literary journal, The Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and hosts twice monthly writing workshops and a critique groups for local members.  You can see the schedule of BWG meetings and events, including author signings  here.

A CHRISTMAS SAMPLER: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales
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About A Christmas Sampler

Christmas is a time for love, laughter, and wonder. A Christmas Sampler: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales, is an award-winning compilation of twenty-three Christmas stories commissioned by the Bethlehem Writers Group to capture all of Christmas’s myriad possibilities.

Paul Weidknecht’s “Those Things Remembered” is about a long-time mall Santa who realizes he has forgotten a child’s name. Courtney Annicchiarico believes against all evidence that she is pregnant in “Mis-conceptions.” Hilarity reigns in Headley Hauser’s explanation of a bachelor’s Christmas traditions in “A Modern Single Holiday.” In Carol L. Wright’s “You Better Watch Out” a small-town lawyer takes on a mystery when Santa falls from her roof three weeks before Christmas. In “Walter and Stella,” by Ralph Hieb, Walter finds himself dead on Christmas Eve, but refuses to leave his beloved alone for the holiday. And in “The Perfect Gift,” Emily P. W. Murphy explores that moment in a relationship when one partner is ready for marriage, and the other seems not to notice.

This premier anthology also features stories by Jeff Baird, Carol A. Hanzl Birkas, Cindy Kelly, Jerome W. McFadden, Stanley W. McFarland, Sally Wyman Paradysz, Jo Ann Schaffer, and Will Wright.
These heartwarming, hope-filled, and hilarious tales will delight readers of any age.


Next up for BWG

BWG is working on their sixth anthology, Fur, Feathers, & Scales: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Animal Tales. 

In connection with this anthology, they are hosting The Bethlehem Writers 2019 Short Story Award. The 2019 Short Story Award will open on January 1, 2019.  The theme will be Animal Stories,broadly interpreted. Stories of 2,000 words or fewer about WILD ANIMALSPETS, or IMAGINARY BEASTS will be welcome (so long as an animal is an important character or element of the story). The winner will receive $200 and may be offered publication in the above mentioned upcoming anthology. The 2019 guest judge will be John Grogan, best-selling author of Marley & Me.

 

 

 

 

 


 

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Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author

November 29, 2018 by in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as , , ,

Geralyn Corcillo | Featured Author | A Slice of Orange

 

Gerayln Corcillo Featured Author

 

When she was a kid in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Geralyn Vivian Ruane Corcillo dreamed of one day becoming the superhero Dyna Girl. So, she did her best and grew up to constantly pick up litter and rescue animals. At home, she loves watching B&W movies, British mysteries, and the NY Giants. Corcillo lives in a drafty old house in Hollywood with her husband Ron, a guy who’s even cooler than Kip Dynamite.

Geralyn is not only an author of romantic comedy and women’s fiction novels, novellas, and short stories, she is also an avid and eclectic reader. You can read her book reviews here on A Slice of Orange, in her monthly column Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh . She loves to connect with readers on Facebook and Twitter—drop her a line or leave a comment here.

 


A DRAKENFALL CHRISTMAS
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Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author

November 21, 2018 by in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as , ,

Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author | A Slice of Orange

 

Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author

 

When she was a kid in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Geralyn Vivian Ruane Corcillo dreamed of one day becoming the superhero Dyna Girl. So, she did her best and grew up to constantly pick up litter and rescue animals. At home, she loves watching B&W movies, British mysteries, and the NY Giants. Corcillo lives in a drafty old house in Hollywood with her husband Ron, a guy who’s even cooler than Kip Dynamite.

Geralyn is not only an author of romantic comedy and women’s fiction novels, novellas, and short stories, she is also an avid and eclectic reader. You can read her book reviews here on A Slice of Orange, in her monthly column Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh .  She loves to connect with readers on Facebook and Twitter—drop her a line or leave a comment here.


QUEEN OF THE UNIVERSE
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Thanksgiving with Kat Martin and Pecan-Raisin Stuffing

November 8, 2018 by in category Spotlight tagged as , , ,

Thanksgiving with Kat Martin | A Slice of Orange

 

Thanksgiving with Kat Martin

&

Raisin-Pecan Stuffing

 

Since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I thought it might be fun to talk about my second favorite holiday (after Christmas), Thanksgiving!

With its glorious red, yellow, and gold colors, Fall is my favorite season of the year.  Then in November, on Thanksgiving day, we have a big family gathering.  We cook a huge turkey stuffed with old-fashioned dressing and serve it with mashed potatoes, giblet gravy, candied yams, fresh vegetables, hot dinner rolls, and pumpkin or pecan pie for dessert (or both!).

We start in the morning and cook all day, then sit down to a table filled to overflowing with the goodies we have been blessed to prepare.  We have kind of an open-door policy for friends and neighbors—anyone who, for whatever reason, hasn’t got a place to go that particular year.  It always adds a fun element to the get-together.

Since I love this holiday, I thought I would share a favorite recipe a dear friend gave me.  It’s been so long ago, making it every year has become a family tradition.  The best part is that every year when I read Sally’s recipe card, see her handwriting in fading blue ink, I think of the friend I haven’t seen in years.  Cooking her dish makes me appreciate her friendship all over again.

So here it is.  I hope you like it as much as we do.

 

PECAN-RAISIN STUFFING

 

Cook turkey neck and giblets in pan of boiling water until done (about 1 1/2 hours).

1 can chicken broth

2 cubes butter

1 can sliced water chestnuts and juice

1 small can sliced mushrooms and juice

1 small can of olives (drained)

1 whole apple chopped (peeling off or on)

1 medium onion chopped

1/2 cup of pecans

3/4 cup of raisins

1 egg (optional)

1 box stuffing mix (cornbread or regular)

 

Peel cooked turkey meat off neck and set aside.  Chop remaining cooked giblets and set aside.  (Leave some for turkey gravy.)  Pour can of chicken broth into large saucepan.  Add sticks of butter.  Bring to a low simmer.  Add turkey.  Add mushrooms and juice, water chestnuts, sliced olives, chopped onion, chopped apple, raisins, and pecans.  Beat egg and add to mixture.  Simmer until onion and apple are cooked.

 

In large missing bowl, place both packets of stuffing mix (I usually buy 2 boxes so I can add a little extra to achieve the right consistency)  Pour chicken broth/giblet mixture over stuffing a little at a time, stirring as you go.  Add thyme, sage, salt and pepper to taste.

When you are finished, stuff your turkey (stuff the old boy, my friend’s recipe card says), or grease 9 x 13 inch backing pan, load stuffing into pan, and bake for forty-five minutes at 350 degrees.

When you take it out, you will have a great, old-fashioned raisin-pecan stuffing for your table that I hope will become a family tradition.

And since it’s November, I hope you will watch for my new digital novella, WAIT UNTIL DARK, the prequel to my upcoming Maximum Security series that starts with THE CONSPIRACY, out January 22nd.

 

Till then, happy Thanksgiving!  Kat.


Kat Martin | A Slice of Orange

Photo by Juan Carlo, Ventura Country Star

New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara where she majored in Anthropology and also studied History. Currently residing in Missoula, Montana with her Western-author husband, L. J. Martin, Kat has written sixty-five Historical and Contemporary Romantic Suspense novels. More than sixteen million copies of her books are in print and she has been published in twenty foreign countries. Her last novel, BEYOND CONTROL, hit both big lists … NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST as well as the USA TODAY BEST-SELLING BOOKS LIST. Kat is currently at work on her next Romantic Suspense.


WAIT UNTIL DARK
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Geralyn Corcillo Feature Author for November

November 7, 2018 by in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as , ,

Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author | A Slice of Orange

 

Geralyn Corcillo Featured Author

 

When she was a kid in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Geralyn Vivian Ruane Corcillo dreamed of one day becoming the superhero Dyna Girl. So, she did her best and grew up to constantly pick up litter and rescue animals. At home, she loves watching B&W movies, British mysteries, and the NY Giants. Corcillo lives in a drafty old house in Hollywood with her husband Ron, a guy who’s even cooler than Kip Dynamite.

Geralyn is not only an author of romantic comedy and women’s fiction novels, novellas, and short stories, she is also an avid and eclectic reader. You can read her book reviews here on A Slice of Orange, in her monthly column Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh .  She loves to connect with readers on Facebook and Twitter—drop her a line or leave a comment here.

Catch a Falling Star is Corcillo’s only romantic comedy to feature an alpha hero (she tends to write beta heroes.)

When TV star Wendy Hunter is about to have her most closely guarded secret viciously exposed by the paparazzi, she desperately tosses out a juicy bone to distract them: she announces her engagement to southern high school football coach Colin Scott. One problem. She’s not really engaged to him. In fact, she barely knows him. Um … barely. But will one unforgettable night last year be enough to get him to go along with her charade? To Wendy’s surprise, Colin agrees … as long as she plays by his rules.

Keep scrolling to read an excerpt …

 


CATCH A FALLING STAR
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From Catch a Falling Star

 

“But what about a ring?” Becks Astie called. “You’re engaged, but I notice there’s no ring. Where’s the ring?”

Wendy kept her smile bright even as the reporters started murmuring their excitement about The Ring. She laughed as sweetly as wind chimes on the breeze as she leaned into Colin. But what was she going to say?

“It’s simple,” Colin announced, kissing her on the head. “I’m—”

“He’s going to make me one!” And Wendy gave a little hop of glee. “Isn’t it too exciting?”

“Make you one,” one of the reporters echoed. “You mean, like, out of scrap metal? Or wood?”

Wendy managed to turn her hysterical giggle into another trill of laughter. “No, I mean he’s going to design it himself. Nobody knows this, but … Colin loves to design jewelry. It’s how he relaxes.”

Wendy braced herself for a pinch or a poke from Colin, but he just pulled her closer. “It’s true,” he said, smiling like a goofball as he squeezed her shoulders. “But Wendy is so into Hello Kitty that it’s a challenge getting the whiskers just right. And I still haven’t decided on the best stones for the bow.”

The front sidewalk erupted with queries.

“Really, Wendy?”

“You’re going to have a Hello Kitty engagement ring?”

“Coach, can you post your designs online?”

“Has Wendy worn your jewelry designs before, Coach?”

Wendy turned to Colin and looked at him with a cutesy-fake-mad face. “Colin …”

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