Diana Rivers does it Again!

STOP PRESS! It's finally arrived! Today is the official launch day for Children of The Plantation.
Although you've been able to download your copy for the past few days - today is the ACTUAL launch day. So sit down and ease your feet from your shoes - slip into something more comfy and put your feet up. Half a glass of good red or chilled white by your side, the new mystery dram is here. If you're a Diana Rivers fan or even maybe not yet, then this is specially for you...please read on... you won't be disappointed...promise.

What is it with this female? Not being content enough after having a hectic and exciting time solving, The Assassin's Village murder and mystery in Cyprus, she decided to take a holiday in lush tropical Malaysia with her husband, Steve. (He's her long-suffering, patient soul-mate and lover.)

The pair checked into their country plantation hotel, luxurious and peaceful, the perfect place to relax and unwind you might think. All is going well until she is asked to take a look at some private memoirs in the possession of the hotel owner, the mysterious Miss Chalcot…

...At first Diana hesitates. After all she is on holiday and both she and Steve deserve a rest…but not for long. Miss Chalcot whets Diana’s appetite for mystery when she hints at past events; skirmishes with insurgent terrorists, illicit love and were certain deaths, murder or misadventure?

Diana meets, Children of The Plantation; a spooky child, a family saga set in 1950's and 1960's Malaysia leading to the present , mystery, unrequited love, unexplained deaths, and illicit sex - what more can our heroine ask for?

Children Of The Plantation

Prologue

Opening the kitchen door, she spotted a vixen standing near the refuse bin. Hermione clapped her hands, and it shot through the hedge at the bottom of the garden.

Hermione's heart was thudding in her breast as she considered what next to do. Casting a look around, she gave thanks that the clouds scudding overhead made it a dark night. This had to be done in complete privacy.

Giving herself a mental shake, she crossed the damp grass to the shed and picked up a spade. A clod of earth still clung to the sharp blade from where she had been digging in her vegetable patch earlier that afternoon. It seemed such a long time ago now. She paused, still not completely certain she was doing the right thing. Making up her mind, she walked over to the newly turned earth.

The air smelt fresh after the rain shower, and a light breeze blew the mixed garden scents her way while she dug. The hole was to be small but deep, especially as she had just driven the fox off. Satisfied, she stood back and peered down into the soft loamy material, a sorry place for such a pathetic bundle.

Sick at heart, but knowing they had no choice, Hermione laid down her spade and walked back into the kitchen. She picked up the tightly wrapped package and carried it outside; it weighed no more than a couple of pounds as she gently laid it down into the hole.

Covering it with fresh earth, she scattered pebbles around and knelt on the grass. Had there been any other choice? Whatever were they going to tell him when the time came?

About the Book. Children of The Plantation will be first published as an eBook and later as a paperback by Topsails Charter. As a special lead-in price (eBook) and a Thank You to my friends and followers it will be offered to you first for $0.99c for the first month. All I ask is (when you've bought your copy) if you have the time to please write me a fair review. Thanks!

About the Author.

Faith Mortimer was born in England. Her father was in the Royal Air Force and from the tender age of five, Faith learned the meaning of travel and living in different parts of our beautiful world. Faith now spends her time between England and Cyprus where she lives with her husband. She’s filled her life with different careers, Registered nurse, entrepreneur and writer. She loves the outdoors, acting and writing. She has written two other bestselling novels and a short story collection.           

Pure and Magical ~  Beautiful words.

When I gave my latest novel, Children of The Plantation, its final edit I came across a line I’d written that made me stop and think for a moment. The line goes something like this. “Some moments define us—define a place and time, who we are to ourselves and to each other.” Thinking about it I realised these moments we hang onto desperately, because they come unexpectedly, they are so fleeting, and if lost, we lose a part of who we are with them.

Planning my writing for that day, I considered how many memories would slip away during the course of my life, and realized how many of them would be memories that really mattered. Memories that define us and how much we would lose if we lost them altogether.

One memory came sharply to mind. My oldest child was about four or five years old, and he had been playing a childish game of doctors and nurses with his younger sister. They were dressed up in play clothes and fussed over a toy case containing plastic thermometers, bandages, swabs and a stethoscope. At the time I was still a practicing Registered nurse and I possessed a real stethoscope. Both children were fascinated by my shiny scope and I thought the oldest might like to hear through one that worked.  I draped the scope around his shoulders, fitted the earpieces into his ears, and held the stethoscope bell end to his heart, and let him listen. The picture on his face was enchanting as he grinned at me when I said, “That’s your heart.”

“Mummy can I hear yours?”

I put the stethoscope over my heart and he listened. He stood there, spellbound as an expression of wonder crept over his face.  I watched him, pondering at the serious look in his eyes. After what seemed a long time, he said, simply, “It’s beautiful.”

Just five years old, innocent and sweet. With tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat I realised he was hearing the music that had been his first symphony. He was hearing the sound of his existence before there was light or air, of which had been echoed again and again while I nursed him.

I don’t believe I’d heard him say those two words about anything before.

They were, simply, his words for that moment—for the two of us and who we had been to each other before we saw each other’s faces and who we were now.

How we see the world, changes in these defining moments, and it never goes back to the way it was before. For me, forever more, the words “It’s beautiful” will conjure the face of my five-year-old son, wide-eyed and stock-still, listening via my stethoscope to the beating of my heart.

Pure magic.

Children of The Plantation  available on amazon.com
amazon.co.uk
smashwords

Good Day everyone! Authors Mastermind: Round 1

Good evening and welcome to this edition of Authors’ Mastermind. My name is Faith Mortimer and I am delighted to welcome tonight’s contender. Could you please state your name and occupation?

Libby Fischer Hellmann, Author

Thank you. Now, can you tell us your chosen subject?
Crime fiction

Thank you. And now would you please answer the following questions on your chosen subject. You have a maximum number of 250 words on each question. If you do not know the answer, say pass and we’ll move on to another question. The total number of passes will be counted and deducted against your final score. Are you ready? Good then I’ll begin.

1. Ms. Hellmann how do you describe yourself; as a writer and as a person?
Energetic, curious, relentless

2. Do you do anything that would tell us you lead an interesting or indeed a crazy life?
George Harrison said 5 words to me, and Jack Nicholson propositioned me (when he was single… but he did that to almost every woman he met, I’m told) (Ed; no not me!)

3. Briefly, describe your journey into writing your first book and what or who inspired you.
Believe it or not, OJ Simpson was my inspiration. I was incensed at the way the prosecution botched the case, but at the same time I was enthralled by the world of forensics… and that case was the motherlode: the bloody glove, the shoeprints, the DNA, the blood spatter, the position of the knife… it introduced me to a new world. Four months later I started writing my first mystery.  I usually say the devil made me do it.

4. Are you working on anything right now?
A historical thriller about Cuba.

5a. Do you ever struggle with parts of the book you’re working/writing on?
Always. I struggle with the beginning, the middle, and the end.

5b. What is your next book about, and where do you get your ideas from? (-1 mark)
See above. And I get my ideas from the Idea Store. Don’t  you?

6. How would you define your writing working day? Give us some indication of where you work, and the length of time you spend on your project.
I used to be much more disciplined. But now, because I’m doing most of my marketing online, I’m a slave to the internet. Which has significantly cut down on my productivity. I try to write mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Sometimes I actually do.

7. Tell us about characterisation. How do you develop your characters? Do you feel they are important in the overall picture? Do you ever base them on real people?
I’ve only based one character on a real person – my best friend Susan, who died of breast cancer several years ago. It was strange. It was almost as if I knew she would die… she was the only person I ever transferred from reality to fiction. Now I know why.

8. What about the editing and redrafting process? When do you do this?
I do it all the time. I’m never satisfied. I would still be polishing my first novel if there hadn’t been a deadline. (I’ve published 8 now.)

9. How have you overcome any trials and tribulations of rejection?
Bitching about it to friends and family helps a lot.

10. If you were not writing, what would be your choice of employment?
I’d probably still be writing speeches, video scripts, and proposals. And training executives to be better speakers.

Thank you. Your score on your chosen subject is 9. (You answered both parts of Q 5 when only 1 was required, so you lost 1 mark for not reading the question properly – but an admirable score.)

Now for the General Knowledge section.

1. Which book(s) are you reading at the moment?
In the Garden of Beasts.

2. Name your five favourite authors.
James Cain, Kent Krueger, Val McDermid, Karin Slaughter, Robert Crais

3. Who, out of your five favourite people would you like to invite to dinner at your house. You will be doing the catering. What is your ideal menu, you would provide? (You must be able to cook this!)
Robert Crais and Kent Krueger… they wouldn’t mind if I ordered in. I am not a cook.(-1 mark)

4. Do any authors inspire you? If so, which ones?
The ones I listed above.

5. What things in your life would you love to do that you haven’t yet achieved. Your answer should NOT be ‘become a rich and famous author’. If you fall back on this answer, then 3 marks will be deducted from your overall score.
I’d like to see a film made from one of my books.

6. Describe your ideal day; working and leisure (only clean answers please).
I’d spend it at a private beach that has internet access.

7. What has been the most memorable thing that has happened to you in a, your writing career and b, in your private life (again, only cleans answers will be accepted).
Writing: When I read the first chapter of my first Ellie Foreman book to my writing group and someone said, “That was terrific. You found your voice!”

Private life: See below.
8. Are you a disciplined person in everyday life? How would/does this reflect in your writing?
Yes… and it is not reflected in my writing.

9. Do you keep a dart-board handy with rejection letters from Publishing House editors’ photographs pinned to it? If so, what is your highest score?
Don’t do that, but it’s a great idea.

10. What are your five desert island books?
The Postman Always Rings Twice, The Long Goodbye, A Place of Execution, To Kill a Mockingbird, A thesaurus

Tie-breaker question. Tell us the most outrageous/embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you. What were the consequences? A bonus of 5 extra points will be awarded to the best answer from contenders to the Authors Mastermind Crown.

Outrageous: Hitchhiked across the US with my boyfriend at the time. Got to the Nevada desert, with no water, carrying a backpack of 25 pounds, and finally wondered what a nice Jewish girl like me was doing there. When someone finally picked us up (after 6 hours) he asked where we were headed. My boyfriend said, “To Berkeley.” I said, “to the Las Vegas airport, please.” And I flew home to Washington DC.

Thank you. Your time is now up. You managed to complete all questions with no passes.

Your overall score is 18. This is an excellent score and we shall see how you do against the other contenders.

Well done and thank you for being my guest today.

Libby's books can be found on:
Amazon.com,
Amazon.co.uk
Website

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Well, that's summer over and done with. As soon as the 1st September arrives and the children are back at school it's time to make way for the autumn; leaves, rain, fog and colds!

This summer has been an up and down time. Early summer was amazing with some great sales, July was slower and quite frankly if I needed to rely on my August sales then I'd be a whole lot slimmer!

Needless to say I've been very busy over the past couple of months. In July I wrote a short story, (The Bamboo Mirror) which is about 9500 words. Following this I knuckled down and wrote a short story collection,Echoes of Life and Love which incidentally does include The Bamboo Mirror. This collection is about 25,500 words in all - and I've just added another to the same collection making it even more good value! I used to pooh-pooh short stories but actually they are a valuable tool. Where else can you get a good look at the different styles and content that your favourite author might write in? It is also a perfect exercise in which a writer can hone their skills, putting everything into a small piece of work; characters, good prose, description and an actual story.
So I'm a changed person ~ short stories are good!

Now we're into September and things have changed. My sales have picked up ~ yippee! ~ and already I've sold more this month than during the whole of August (9th Sep). So here's hoping that despite the coming colder and wetter months we all have some bright moments.

I've finally finished my new novel, Children of The Plantation. It's with my editor - who said and I quote, "it was a pleasure to read" -  and I hope to have it published either at the end of this month or early October. There will be a paperback edition to follow the e Format. I've included a very short excerpt here.

The book is set in the present, and the 1950's and 1960's. It focuses on a family drama; love, envy, mystery and a deep dark secret. All good stuff I believe! Hope you enjoy your quick read.
If anyone would like me to notify them when the novel is available then please simply fill in the comment form. All emails will be kept private.

Thank you

Children of The Plantation.   

Prologue

Opening the kitchen door she spotted a vixen standing near the refuse bin. Hermione clapped her hands and it shot through the hedge at the bottom of the garden.

Hermione’s heart was thudding in her breast as she considered what next to do. Casting a look around, she gave thanks that the clouds scudding overhead made it a dark night. This had to be done in complete privacy.

Giving herself a mental shake she crossed the damp grass to the shed and picked up a spade. A clod of earth still clung to the sharp blade from where she’d been digging in her vegetable patch earlier that afternoon. It seemed such a long time ago now. She paused, still not completely certain she was doing the right thing. Making up her mind she walked over to the newly turned earth.

The air smelt fresh after the rain shower and a light breeze blew the mixed garden scents her way while she dug. The hole was to be small but deep, especially as she had just driven the fox off. Satisfied she stood back and peered down into the soft loamy material, a sorry place for such a pathetic bundle.

Sick at heart, but knowing they had no choice, Hermione laid down her spade and walked back into the kitchen. She picked up the tightly wrapped package and carried it outside; it weighed no more than a couple of pounds as she gently laid it down into the hole.

Covering it with fresh earth she scattered pebbles around and knelt on the grass. Had there been any other choice? Whatever were they going to tell him when the time came?

WANTED

On Dead Tree Paperback or Alive in eBook!

For Having Way too Much Fun

Name: Tom Ryan

Age: 10

Physical Description: Too big for his britches, too tough for his own good

Distinguishing features: a scar in the shape of your nose on his right hand

Aliases: “The King,” “Tom Terrific,” “Hey Ryan,” and “Big Trouble”

Known to frequent: The Cherry Tree Hideout, Isaly’s, The Harris Theater, South Park Drive-In

To report a sighting, to read a sample, or purchase please contact A King in a Court of Fools

REWARD!

REWARD

Hours of enjoyment reading stories from the Book of Tom

Statement from Tom’s brother, Harry who chronicles Tom Ryan’s exploits

It’s been a while since I’ve seen it, but that’s how I remember the chicken scratch from the cover of Tom’s journal. Tom Ryan — he’s my big brother. He was in sixth grade at the time he started keeping it. He was ten and I was five. Sister Jeanne Lorette made him do it, he said. Tom thought it was punishment for constantly misbehaving in her class. He would say that. That’s how he was. I think she was just trying to help him express himself in ways more productive than his usual tough guy act.

Speaking of tough guy acts, I’ve always imagined that if Tom had the room on that composition book cover, he would have added:

You’re still reading, aren’t you? I warned you, but you couldn’t stop, could you, you nosey-baloney? Well, it’s too late now. And don’t bother wiping your prints off the book. I have my ways. And don’t try to hide either. I’ll find you.

Go ahead, keep reading, but once you know the secrets, it will be the last thing you ever read.

Tom was big on threats. That was his modus operandi. He was under the impression that it was the only way to get anyone to do what he wanted. So he picked on us a lot, but we all knew he was a softy deep down — all talk, no action. You know the type. I honestly don’t remember him doing anything really nasty to anyone, except kids who were picking on us. And I’m sure he felt totally justified in those cases because he was doing it for a good cause.

Of course, I can’t speak to his behavior once he moved on to high school. I saw less and less of him and the gang had, by then, disbanded. But before that, we were all part of his gang and under his protection, whether we wanted to be or not.

Tom’s journal is long gone. It’s unfortunate in a way. It would be much better hearing his story in his own words rather than from my memory of the events that took place that year. It seems like so many years ago. But I imagine like all the other evidence he wanted “lost,” he covered it with Testors cement and burned it when he moved on to the seventh grade. Or maybe he buried it in the side yard. We’ll probably never know. I’m sure he’ll never tell, and I doubt Mom and Dad will be digging up the yard any time soon to find it.

That leaves you with me to piece this together. You have to keep in mind that I was only in first grade at the time, so my reading skills were limited. Simple chapter books were easy, but not sixth grade Tom-ese. He used words I’d never heard of, words I found out later I was better off not knowing.

How did we get our hands on Tom’s secret journal? My other brother, Sam and I found it. We used to sneak into Tom’s bedroom despite the threat of the “Keep Out or Die” sign on his headquarters door. Or maybe it was because of that sign and the inherent danger involved in tempting fate. In any case, we’d play with the toys he never let us touch, we’d look out his window at the Ioli’s house across the street just like he did when he was preparing for a mission, and we’d rifle through his drawers looking for his secret stuff. That’s how we found it. He kept it hidden under a pile of shoes in his closet. It smelled like old shoes, too. That was cool, but the coolest thing? The journal was about us.

Tom was chronicling the adventures of his gang for Sister Jeanne Lorette. Every chance we got, we would sneak in, and Sam would read it to me or I would try reading to him. We had a blast with it. The way Tom described his adventure we couldn’t believe it was about us at first, but there was no doubt after several pages that this story was our adventure as seen through his imagination. And did he ever have an imagination.

So, if you’re willing to accept it on that basis and for what’s it worth, I invite you to enjoy the story of A King in a Court of Fools.

H. Ryan

About the book: A King in a Court of Fools, originally published as a serial novel, is Larry Enright’s second published work. It is humorous, nostalgic fiction about kids growing up in the 1950s and has been already enjoyed by ages ten through ninety-one. It is available in both eBook and paperback from Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. Click for details to Purchase or sample A King in a Court of Fools.

About the author: Larry Enright was born to Irish Catholic first-generation immigrants and raised in Pittsburgh. After college, he moved to the Philadelphia area where for the past 40 years he has filled his life with many careers including musician, teacher, programmer, researcher, and writer. He has written three other novels, including the best-selling Four Years from Home. Visit Larry Enright's site.

Featured Authors’ Mastermind  

Good day and welcome to this edition of Authors’ Mastermind and welcome to today’s  contender. Could you please state your name and occupation?
Thea Atkinson, teacher and writer

Now, can you tell us your chosen subject?
…dogs. I love dogs.        

Er, I was thinking more along the lines of literary works… Would you please answer the following questions on your chosen subject? You have a maximum number of 250 words on each question. The total number of passes will be counted and deducted against your final score.
Are you ready? Good then I’ll begin.

1. Ms Thea Atkinson, how do you describe yourself; as a writer and as a person?
I’d have to say I’m a discovery writer. I like to write to find something out: usually it’s how I feel about a subject, but sometimes it’s to see how characters evolve from a faint spectre to a fully clothed being that takes up head space. As a person, I’m probably way too selfish, way too lazy, and way too needy. I don’t sound so great, huh?

2. Do you do anything that would tell us you lead an interesting or indeed a crazy life?
Absolutely not. Not because I don’t, just because I have my reputation to uphold. I can’t possibly tell you any of those things.

3. Briefly, describe your journey into writing your first book and what or who inspired you.
My first book was so long ago. Teen romance. Ugh. My friends were asking me to finish a story and it turned into a novel. I passed it around. They liked it. I was hooked.

4. Are you working on anything right now?
Yes. I’m editing a novel I wrote a few years ago and I’m writing the first novel in a series to which Formed of Clay is the prequel.

5. What is your next book about, and where do you get your ideas from?
It’s about a girl with some really special powers. Lots of fun stuff ensues. Some really great writing, and some awesome plotline. I can’t tell you more than that. I wish the heck I knew where the ideas came from: I’d go pick them like fruit when I hit the writing wall.

6. How would you define your writing working day? Give us some indication of where you work, and the length of time you spend on your project.
I just try to get a scene done. That’s it. It could be anywhere and often is. Usually, it’s at my desk and it takes about a year to finish to my standard. Then the editing, and that’s to someone else’s standard.

7. Tell us about characterisation. How do you develop your characters? Do you feel they are important in the overall picture? Do you ever base them on real people?

Characters are everthing. Nuff said. If my brothers ever found out they were in every single one of my novels, they’d try to wring some money out of me, so no. they are not based on real people.

8. What about the editing and redrafting process? When do you do this?
I edit after the first draft is done. Only then. I rewrite and edit many times, but only after I’ve written the thing. This is because once upon a time I agonized over chapter one. For months. Writing, rewriting, critiquing, editing, cutting, writing, rewriting….you get the picture. Then when I was done the novel, I deleted it right out. Sigh. Wasted time.

9. How have you overcome any trials and tribulations of rejection?
Bah. I ignore rejections unless they offer me something useful. Sometimes they do.

10. If you were not writing, what would be your choice of employment?
Teacher. I love my job. Or philanthropist. Or photographer.

Thank you. Your score on your chosen subject is 10.
Now for the General Knowledge section.

1. Which book(s) are you reading at the moment?
Just finishing Sugar & Spice

2. Name your five favourite authors.
Only five? Hmm. Alice Munro. And some others. They all pale in comparison. (Ed -1 mark, I said name 5)

3. Who, out of your five favourite people would you like to invite to dinner at your house. You will be doing the catering. What is your ideal menu, you would provide? (You must be able to cook this!)
Curried mussels, Bruschetta, chocolate cake with boiled frosting. Yum. I’m drooling.(Ed -1 mark, I said name 5 people to invite not discuss the menu)

4. Do any authors inspire you? If so, which ones?
Alice Munro, Anita Shreve, Jane Urqhart, (because they are amazing writers) Amanda Hocking (because she’s managed to become a household name from self-publishing), Richard Lewis (who is a wonderful and imaginative writer), lots and lots of others.

5. What things in your life would you love to do that you haven’t yet achieved. Your answer should NOT be ‘become a rich and famous author’. If you fall back on this answer, then 3 marks will be deducted from your overall score.
Snap the ultimate picture and photoshop it to death.
Maintain a yoga routine for a year non-stop
Make a real difference to someone and never ever tell them that I was the one who sponsored them.

6. Describe your ideal day; working and leisure (only clean answers please).
Get up late, drink loads of tea, have the writing come like liquid, eat a scone or two, drink loads of tea, play with my dog, husband, and tease my eighteen year old daughter until she begs me to act normal, watch some television, read some great books, go to sleep without snoring. Sigh. The life. Oh, and I’d eat of course.

7. What has been the most memorable thing that has happened to you in a, your writing career and b, in your private life (again, only cleans answers will be accepted).
A: An agent called me to say she loved my writing. B: I can’t answer that because that has been very recently and it was not a positive experience.

8. Are you a disciplined person in everyday life? How would/does this reflect in your writing?
I’m a disciplined writer; not a disciplined person.  It means I usually reach my goals in writing. Of course, sometimes my goals are small: why torture yourself?

9. Do you keep a dart-board handy with rejection letters from Publishing House editors’ photographs pinned to it? If so, what is your highest score?
Of course! Doesn’t everyone?

10. What are your five desert island books?
First four books in the Outlander series and a blank book to write in. Ha! Cheated.

Thank you. Your time is now up. You managed to complete all questions with no passes.Your overall score is 18, an excellent score. We shall see how you do against the other contenders.

Well done and thank you.

                Thea Atkinson is a writer of character driven fiction; call it what you will: she prefers to describe her work as psychological thrillers with a distinct literary flavour. As in her bestselling novel, Anomaly, her characters often find themselves in the darker edges of their own spirits but manage to find the light they seek. She has been an editor, a freelancer, and a teacher, but fiction is her passion. She now blogs and writes and twitters. Not necessarily in that order.

Please visit her blog for ramblings, guest posts, giveaways, and morehttp://theaatkinson.wordpress.com/

or follow her on twitter   http://twitter.com/#!/theaatkinson

or like her facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Theas-Writing-Page/122231651163413

You can find Thea’s books on Amazon.com http://amzn.to/qcrtOe

Amazon.co.uk  http://amzn.to/o9tKLX