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Guest Blog Post: How a Corgi Supercharged My Writing Life by Regina Buttner (Author of “Down a Bad Road”)

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I have never been dogless. When I was a child, my family had a succession of pooches of various breeds. As an adult, my kids and I adopted a string of dogs, including two incorrigible beagles and a lovely golden retriever named Juliet.

After my children were grown, I decided to trade the cold winters of upstate New York for the endless summer of coastal Florida, where I could enjoy the sunshine and write more books. There was a hitch, though—faithful Juliet disliked hot weather, so my son gladly took her in.

Being dogless gave me the freedom to pursue new pastimes in my new home: paddling my kayak, exploring the beaches, and planning my next novel. But then, an emptiness hit me. No damp doggy nose nudging me awake in the morning, nobody wagging their fanny off in greeting when I arrived home. My beach walks were solitary, and the space next to me on the couch was sadly vacant when I curled up to read in the evening. My writing suffered, too. With all the disruption of moving, the daily writing routine I’d worked so hard to cultivate was in danger of falling apart.

What to do? I wasn’t sure at first. Then one day, while sorting through my boxes, I came across a photo of a house I’d lived in twenty years ago. I recalled the wintry day when my young family moved in. The driveway was so long and narrow that the moving van had to park on the road, and the crew schlepped our belongings up to the house by hand. The cheerful driver wasn’t fazed though, because he had a secret power hidden inside his truck. “Mind if I let my dog out to play with yours?” he asked, and of course I agreed.

Next thing, a little dude named Edgar came bounding through the gate. He had short, stumpy legs, a ridiculously long back, and tall, pointy ears like satellite dishes. Where his tail should have been, there was only a fluffy pair of buns that resembled oven-browned loaves of bread. Edgar launched himself across the snowy backyard like a ping pong ball on steroids. “He’s a corgi,” his owner informed me, and I was instantly smitten.

As I sat there with my memories, a realization dawned: I need to get a dog. A month later, I acquired Pekoe, a 10-week-old Pembroke Welsh Corgi, and all heck broke loose. Having a puppy forced me to rise with the birds in the morning, for urgent potty and walkies. The vet had warned me that corgis tend to think they’re the boss of the world, so I worked diligently on Pekoe’s obedience training. Needless to say, she wasn’t too psyched about the whole doing-what-you’re-told thing, but I persevered. I developed a daily routine with a healthy blend of play time, training and naps, and structured my writing time around it.

The discipline of a daily schedule worked wonders with my pup, and it also jump-started my stalled writing life. The four basic commands I taught Pekoe—COME, SIT, STAY, FETCH—were essential to her training; and in a happy coincidence, I found they could be applied to my writing as well. 

Take COME, for instance. When the muse knocks, the writer must come to greet her, or risk her disappearing into the dreaded maw of writer’s block. Then there’s SIT. Your book won’t get written if your butt is traipsing around town, instead of at home in that desk chair where it belongs. And once you’re seated at the keyboard, you must STAY. Silence those pesky notifications and close the door, because it’s writin’ time! The last command you must master is FETCH. Your book ain’t gonna write itself, so let’s get after it! Clamp those needle-like puppy teeth around your story, give the muse a ferocious growl, and don’t let go until it’s done.

I’m happy to report that Pekoe has grown into a happy, healthy, and reasonably obedient corgi who only occasionally indulges her fantasy of being the supreme leader of the universe. With plenty of loving care, I hope to have Her Royal Corginess by my side for many more years and books to come. If you’d like a glimpse of Pekoe’s life of leisure, she’d be delighted to have you follow her on Instagram at #pekoecorgi.

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About the Author

Regina is a registered nurse-turned-writer who was raised in beautiful upstate New York, where she spent many happy years exploring the winding back roads and scenic hiking trails of the Adirondack mountain region. She recently traded the snowy northern winters for the tropical breezes of the Sunshine State, where her favorite pastimes are kayaking among the mangroves, strolling the gorgeous beaches, and attempting to teach tricks to her boisterous corgi. 

Learn more on Regina’s website or follow her on Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads or BookBub. 

You can read more about the book (and read a preview!) by going to: https://www.amazon.com/Down-Bad-Road-Regina-Buttner-ebook/dp/B0BSN7F7KT. 

Add Down a Bad Road to your Goodreads TBR list or purchase a copy at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Bookshop.org.

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Blog Tour Calendar

May 29th @ The Muffin

Join us as we celebrate the blog tour launch of Down a Bad Road by Regina Buttner. You’ll have the chance to read an interview with the author and win a copy of the book.

https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com

May 30th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog

Stop by author Anthony Avina’s blog to read his review of Down a Bad Road by Regina Buttner. 

http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com

May 31st @ Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews blog

Join Lisa for an interview with Regina Buttner.

https://lisahaselton.com/blog/

June 1st @ World of My Imagination

Stop by World of My Imagination to read Nicole’s review of Down a Bad Road. 

https://worldofmyimagination.com

June 4th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog

Revisit author Anthony Avina’s blog to read “How a Corgi Supercharged My Writing Life” by Regina Buttner. 

http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com

June 5th @ A Lit Life

Stop by A Lit Life read Stephanie’s review of Down a Bad Road. 

http://www.alitlife.com/

June 7th @ Sue Edwards’s blog

Visit Sue’s blog to read an interview with author Regina Buttner.

https://suebe.wordpress.com/

June 8th @ Michelle Cornish’s blog

Read a guest post from Regina Buttner about cultivating writerly discipline.

https://www.michellecornish.com/blog

June 9th @ Reading is My Remedy

Check out Chelsie’s Instagram where she’ll review Down a Bad Road.

https://www.instagram.com/reading_is_my_remedy

June 10th @ World of My Imagination

Stop by Nicole’s blog where Regina Buttner is a guest for “Three Things on a Saturday Night.”

https://worldofmyimagination.com

June 12th @ Reading is My Remedy

Stop by Chelsie’s blog to read a guest post by Regina Buttner about disguising your friends and family in your stories.

https://www.readingismyremedy.wordpress.com

June 13th @ Michelle Cornish’s author blog

Join Michelle as she reviews Down a Bad Road.

https://www.michellecornishauthor.com/blog

June 14th @ Create Write Now

Visit Mari’s blog to read a guest post by Regina Buttner about growing up old-school Catholic and daring to write about it!

CreateWriteNow.com

June 15th @ The Knotty Needle

Join Judy for her review of Down a Bad Road.

http://knottyneedle.blogspot.com

June 16th @ Mindy McGinnis’s blog

Stop by Mindy’s blog to read “A Humorous Look at NOT Dating After 50” by Regina Buttner.

https://www.mindymcginnis.com/blog

June 16th @ From the TBR Pile

Join Kari as she reviews Down a Bad Road. 

https://fromthetbrpile.blogspot.com/

June 18th @ Lady Unemployed 

Stop by Nicole’s blog to read “How Joining a Professional Writers Organization Transformed My Writing Career” by Regina Buttner.

Welcome to Lady Unemployed!

June 21st @ Life According to Jamie

Join us as Jamie reviews Down a Bad Road. 

http://www.lifeaccordingtojamie.com

June 22nd @ Sue Edwards’s blog

Return to Sue’s blog to read “From Nurse to Writer” by Regina Buttner.

https://suebe.wordpress.com/

June 23rd @ Nikki’s Book Reviews

Read Nicole’s review of Down a Bad Road.

https://nikkitsbookreviews.wordpress.com/

June 24th @ The Faerie Review

Stop by The Faerie Review to read a spotlight of Down a Bad Road. 

https://www.thefaeriereview.com

June 25th @ A Lit Life

Return to A Lit Life to read a guest post from Regina Buttner about how a visit to the Stillwater Hotel in Upstate New York inspired the setting for Down a Bad Road. 

http://www.alitlife.com/

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Guest Blog Post from Author Donovan Hufnagle, author of “Raw Flesh Flash: The Incomplete, Unfinished Of”

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Publishing is just another trial as part of the writer’s journey. When we cross the threshold from the known world into the unknown world, answering the call to adventure, entering OZ, Wonderland, the Athenian Forest…into our dreamworld, “somewhere over the rainbow,” we follow the yellow brick road, follow gold bricks in the form of words to counter the white space on the page and, perhaps, in our life. The perfect word(s). This word and not that word. We pass through the abyss, reach the Emerald City, and eventually come back home. But before we can reach the city, earn our gift, tap our heels together, and share it with the known world, the trial of publishing confronts us. 

Publishing is not the end of the journey nor is it a gift. When my first book, Sunshine Special, was published, I thought the world would change. It didn’t. I did, however, reach a revelation…publishing isn’t the key to a magical door that opens a garden of poppies and avenues. When my current book, Raw Flesh Flash: The Incomplete, Unfinished Documenting Of, won a publishing contest and was published by Uncollected Press, I understood that the work had just begun. And I think understanding is crucial. Writers, especially poets, should understand that there may be many times we hear the word NO. It feels personal. It’s not. But when you write and write, edit, and write some more then finally build the strength to submit your work, placing your work on display for someone to just cut it open until it bleeds seems pretty damn personal to me. And, simultaneously, impersonal, since most of the time you receive a cookie cutter rejection from the publisher like they didn’t even bother to read it. 

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On a side note, if you receive a personalized rejection, cherish it. 

Understand that publishing is a business like any other business and your success as a writer is not dependent on publishing. I just received a rejection through Submittable just the other day for one of my poems. I place it in a folder titled “submissions,” forget it and move on. Publishing is not an enemy; it is just a necessary hurdle along the way. 

My advice, then, is to keep writing, and one day you may become published (if that is what you are striving for).  It will feel good. It will be exciting. Someone out there appreciating your work as much as you do. Your hard work will finally be on display for others. You can stop plucking rose petals, wondering if they love you or if they love you not (maybe). Also, understand that the journey is not over. You will need to work just as hard for the next thing, to conquer the next trial. 

It took a long time for me to truly think about publishing—decades. As a younger poet, I wasn’t that interested in publishing. I would submit a poem here or there. But it wasn’t until I crafted my art to a point where I wanted, no, felt like I needed to share it with more than my wife that publishing seemed like the next logical step. So, I put my stuff out there. Scary and exciting. I received rejections. Dejected. I received acceptances. Elated. Some won contests. Some still have never seen the light of day. 

I am at a place, now, in my writing career that I know my talents, I know my successes, and they don’t depend on those publications. But it sure does feel nice. My writings are like my tattoos, on public display for all that I encounter, simultaneously, holding a personal meaning no one else will ever know, unless you ask. Every writer’s journey is unique; some trials along the way may come easy, some may never be conquered, but know the real gift is that you wrote something, you created new, you crafted art for a world where the “dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.”

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About the Book

Donovan Hufnagle has assembled a careful poetic ethnography of tattooed bodies and the stories that they tell. Just as the tattoo inscribes meaning on the body, this book elegantly reveals the stories that only the body can tell. It is a book that connects tattoo adorned bodies to a profound human truth: we are each other’s mirrors, and the artful inscriptions of our bodies connect us to each other in ways that transcend political and social divides. This is an urgent book that does what only the best poetry can do; it opens spaces for conversation, connection, and healing.-Kristin Prevallet, author of “I, Afterlife: Essay in Mourning Time”.

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About the Author

Donovan Hufnagle is a husband, a father of three, and a professor of English and Humanities. He moved from Southern California to Prescott, Arizona to Fort Worth, Texas. His new poetry collection, Raw Flesh Flash: The Incomplete, Unfinished Of, is a poetic scrapbook of interviews, poetry, and documents about the universal narrative of tattoos. 

He also has three other poetry collections: The Sunshine Special, a “part personal narrative, epic poem, and historical artifact;” Shoebox, an epistolary, poetic narrative about Juliana’s “past and present, love and lack, in language that startles;” and 30 Days of 19, inverted Haiku poems juxtaposed to Trump tweets, capturing the first thirty days of the Covid 19 quarantine. 

Other recent writings have appeared in The Closed Eye Open, Tempered Runes Press, Solum Literary Press, Poetry Box, Beyond Words, Wingless Dreamer, Subprimal Poetry Art, Americana Popular Culture Magazine, Shufpoetry, Kitty Litter Press, Carbon Culture, Amarillo Bay, Borderlands, Tattoo Highway, The New York Quarterly, Rougarou, and others.

http://www.donovanhufnagle.com/

Writing Journey Over Six Books (and 25 Years) by Jeannine Hall Gailey

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Preamble

I started writing poetry when I was a kid. My mother let me borrow her college poetry textbook (circa 1969), and so I learned about T.S. Eliot, e.e. cummings, poetic forms, metaphors, and such things way before we would get around to them in school. I won a couple of poetry recitation contests in 5th and 6th grade, and the prizes were the collected works of Emily Dickinson and Carl Sandburg (I still have both). I think the first book of poetry I bought myself was the collected Edna St. Vincent Millay, when I was about 11.  

My first degree was in Pre-Med Biology. I meant to become a doctor—but I took creative writing classes on the side. When I graduated, my immunologist told me there was no way my health would allow me to complete medical school, as grueling as it was in the early nineties. So I decided to set my sights elsewhere. Soon I started my MA in English, where I was introduced to formalism, deconstruction, and other -isms (and made some good friends). When I graduated, looking to be able to support myself, I took a job as a technical writer. I was still writing poetry, but not seriously trying to publish, until a health crisis struck and I had to quit my tech job. My husband suggested pursuing my earlier dream of being a writer. 

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Starting my Journey as a Poet

I tried out some local writer’s conferences (on scholarship) and seriously researching the literary magazine scene, volunteering for a few local literary magazines, and sending out work. I put together enough published poems for a chapbook, and got it published—my first little collection of poems, called Female Comic Book Superheroes.  I applied to a few low-residency MFA programs, and started one, taking a semester off in the middle for (once again) health issues. During that off semester, I sent out my first book manuscript and had it accepted, which was Becoming the Villainess, published by a (then-brand-new) press called Steel Toe Books in Kentucky.  The chapbook and book were considered “speculative” poetry at that time, not very common—poems about video game characters and superheroines were not common in the mainstream literary magazines, certainly not represented in the prizes. So I was a little out there. But it had a very positive response from young people, which I was very happy to see. If you can’t read and enjoy a few poems about comic book story arcs or mythological women turned to dragons when you’re young, then when can you?

Journey from First Book to Sixth

I felt very lucky with that first book—I had some modest success for a very new small publisher and a very small new poet. I was still able to travel more easily back then—making 20-hour car trips between Western Kentucky, Akron, and upstate New York. 

Now that I’m on my sixth book, Flare, Corona, with a great publisher, BOA Editions, I’m a little older, with a little more in terms of health challenges (MS among them), and I’m not physically able to do what I used to. However, with the pandemic, I learned some new skillsets—photography and gardening among them—and I read a lot. During the first months of the pandemic, I tried writing a few personal essays – and got them published in Salon. This book is the most vulnerable and more autobiographical than all my previous books. My previous books: Becoming the Villainess, She Returns to the Floating World, and Unexplained Fevers, I frequently wrote in persona—characters from mythology, fairy tales, anime, and traditional folk tales. In Field Guide to the End of the World, I created a fictional character navigating a fictional apocalyptic landscape (though it didn’t feel fictional in 2020!), so at least there was a little differentiation between the main speaker and myself. In Flare, Corona the speaker is essentially me, describing some incredibly difficult experiences. I had to figure out a way to write these poems in a way that was direct but felt comfortable. I found myself writing a kind of “mutant sonnet” as well as prose poems—forms that helped me hold difficult subject matter in place, so to speak. Some themes from previous books return—a supervillain perspective on coronavirus, apocalypse poems, writing about growing up in Oak Ridge and its radioactive contamination—and those poems allowed me to, for instance, address what I refer to in the book as “the plague years” in a way that felt real and not cliché. 

I’ve learned over the 20 or so years of publishing poetry books that one of the best things about the poetry world is making friends with the people in it—my publishers were, to the person, excellent human beings, and I consider many of them real friends and I truly grieved when I lost one of the them to cancer. I am very lucky to now have a bigger press—BOA Editions, who published some of my poetry heroes, like Dorianne Laux and Lucille Clifton—take my latest book, and I really am enjoying working with them as the book comes out into the world. Kindness to people becomes really important, and supporting other poets and writers as we go through our literary life is something I cannot recommend enough. I’ve been doing poetry book reviews for 20 years, and even if there is little monetary reward in it, I’m happy to have done it. Meeting friends I’ve made at a conference or a reading twenty years ago remains a great pleasure, even if I can’t travel as much as I used to. Community is important as a structure to support you and a structure to support other writers. 

My work itself continues to evolve—as I play around with form, and language, and persona. My next book must be impacted by the last few years, but I don’t want it to be purely about that, and may also involve some of the ideas that appeared in Flare, Corona—the desire or will to survive despite difficult conditions. There will probably be dragons in it.

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About the Author

Jeannine Hall Gailey is a poet with multiple sclerosis who served as the 2nd Poet Laureate of Redmond, Washington. She’s the author of six books of poetry: Becoming the Villainess, She Returns to the Floating World, Unexplained Fevers, The Robot Scientist’s Daughter, Field Guide to the End of the World, winner of the Moon City Press Book Prize and the Elgin Award, and the newest, Flare, Corona from BOA Editions.  She has a B.S. in Biology and M.A. in English from the University of Cincinnati and an MFA from Pacific University. Her work appeared in The American Poetry Review, Ploughshares, and Poetry. Her web site is www.webbish6.com.

Guest Blog Post and Blog Tour for Author A.K. Holubek’s “The Empath and the Soldier”

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The Empath and the Soldier

Guest Post

Thanks for the opportunity to talk a little about my new book. In this post, I’d like to discuss one of the central themes of The Empath and the Soldier and where it originated. 

Growing up, I was obsessed with the movie Stand by Me. As a lonely tween and adolescent, I longed, almost ached, for the kind of friendship shared by the four main characters. In the middle of my fourth-grade year, my dad had moved us from Indiana, where I had multiple close friends, to Colorado, where I had none. For some reason I had quite a bit of trouble making new friends in our new home, and for many years I was a lonely, reclusive kid who spent hours either reading or creating imaginary worlds. So the camaraderie between the four boys in the movie was a glimpse into a world I felt I was missing out on.

Actually, looking back, I can guess why making friends was so difficult for me. I think even my pre-pubescent self knew that I was different from other boys. And it wasn’t just that I didn’t care much for sports and loved musical theater. Deep down, I knew that somehow my feelings for other boys were different than what they felt for me. I also knew that these feelings would be considered grotesque by other kids my age. I kept my distance from everyone else in order to keep them from finding out who I really was and because I didn’t think they’d like me anyway. Who wants to be around a gay kid who’d rather watch The Sound of Music than a football game?

In junior high and high school, I did hang out with people, but I never really was myself with them. It was more like I was playing the part of a typically straight, male teenager. With other boys, I pretended to like girls and be interested in “typical boy stuff.” But I wasn’t very good at this pretense, so I mostly kept quiet, earning a reputation as the tall, quiet guy who was maybe a little boring, but at least harmless.

I felt much more comfortable with my female friends. At least with them I didn’t have to feign excitement for things that were of no interest to me. But still, I held some part of me back. I was certain even they would think less of me if they knew who I truly was.

It wasn’t until my senior year of high school and into college that I finally began to make friends with whom I felt I really belonged. People who I somehow knew would accept all of me, not just a filtered version. Eventually, I came out to these friends and my instincts were proved correct; they didn’t think any less or any different of me. 

It would be impossible to adequately describe the absolute elation and contentment I felt after finding a group of friends that fit me. I finally had a crew, a squad, that I could count on, and who counted on me. I finally had what the kids in Stand by Me had. These friendships would become the benchmark against which I would measure all future friendships. I won’t call anyone a real friend until I reach the same level of comfort with them that I felt with my first group of close friends.

Finally finding “my people” in high school was such a significant point in my life, that I made it one of the central themes in The Empath and the Soldier. In the book we see the main character, Tyrran, really start to blossom as a person after finally finding a group of people with whom he feels he can relate. It’s through them that he learns self-confidence and gains self-esteem because they value him for who he is.

When I tell people about books that inspired my novel, I usually mention other fantasy books like Lord of the Rings or even the novels of Jane Austen, upon which the book’s setting is modeled. But I often forget to mention that, outside all the fantastical elements and the Bridgerton-esque backdrop, this novel is really about friendship, inspired by books and movies like Stand by Me, but also by my own experiences. One core message I hope readers take away from The Empath and the Soldier is that there’s a group out there for everyone, and if you’re at a particularly lonely or friendless point in life, know that you can and will eventually find people that fit you. It may take some time, but they’re out there. 

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The Empath and the Soldier - A.K. Holubek

A.K. Holubek has a new MM Regency period fantasy book out, The Unconventionals book 1: The Empath and the Soldier. And there’s a giveaway.

The situation seemed hopeless. But Tyrran couldn’t pretend to be ignorant of the danger and just wait for his home to disintegrate around him.

As a Favored male, Tyrran belongs to a select group of men born with one of the Four Gifts, a blessing usually reserved for women. Quiet, introverted, and filled with self-doubt, Tyrran has always struggled with living up to the responsibilities that come with being Gifted. Still, he had managed to achieve the near impossible — admission to the prestigious Lyceum Institute in Corvit, the Coarian Sovereignty’s bustling capital city. With this success, Tyrran’s future seems clear: the best education, a position in a Temple, and, one day, marriage to a young man of good fortune.

That is, until sinister forces intervene to shove him down a much bleaker path. Tyrran’s plans are thrown into upheaval when a deadly attack reveals the existence of an insidious evil festering within the ranks of the Sovereignty’s elite.

Now, he must use the privileges afforded him as a Lyceum student to uncover the secrets of a corrupt government. Targeted by relentless assassins and trying to ignore his growing attachment to the handsome exchange student Adwin, Tyrran must gather trustworthy allies to face the dangers that threaten to tear apart his nation and his home.

Bridgerton meets The Magicians in this fantasy novel about the importance of confidence and the strength of friendship.

Get It On Amazon

Giveaway

A.K. is giving away a $20 Amazon gift card with this tour:

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Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b60e8d47280/

Excerpt

The Empath and The Soldier meme

At that moment they stopped suddenly, startled by someone crawling out of the pond almost directly in front of them. The someone turned out to be a man—an East Silacian, Tyrran noted right away, due to his black skin. He was shirtless, wearing only white tights, and he looked about Tyrran’s age. He was shorter than Tyrran and his chest, stomach, and arms were muscular—sculpted was the more appropriate term, his skin stretched tight over every muscle. His physique was compact rather than large, he had deep brown eyes, and his black hair was cut close to his head.

Tyrran had always suspected that the Silacian reputation for beauty was exaggerated, stemming from the inferiority complex Coarians held towards Silacians, whose empire was much larger, wealthier, and more advanced than the Sovereignty. But if Nyri and this man were any indication, then their reputed good looks were understated if anything.

“Good morning, soldier,” the man said, addressing Lena as he wiped water from his face with his hands. He spoke the Common Tongue with a sophisticated accent that sounded very similar to Nyri’s.

“Good morning, Adwin,” Lena replied, looking puzzled. “Did you, uh, fall in the pond?”

“Not at all. I was just going for a morning swim.” He smiled as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

“In public? In the middle of campus?”

“But of course. This appears to be the closest body of water to our college. However, by your expressions, I assume Coarian notions of decorum discourage public bathing. I did swim wearing my tights, since I know public nudity is frowned upon.”

He may as well have removed them, for what little use they were in covering his nudity. The material clung to his skin, revealing bulging leg muscles as well as other bulges that Tyrran was making a concerted effort not to stare at.

“We do tend to prefer bathing in secluded areas,” Lena said. “Spaces set aside for bathing. Like the bathhouse next to the Barracks House, for instance.”

“I did try the bathhouse, but the water is heated. Quite uncomfortable on a warm day like today. Do you suppose I shall be sent packing back to Silacia for this breach of conduct?” An impudent grin spread across his face.

“It’s early enough that I’m sure no one but us has seen you. Though I do suggest you put the rest of your clothes back on soon. Where are they, by the by?”

“My clothes? I left them further down the trail. In truth, I was swimming about the pond for exercise rather than for bathing, then I saw the two of you and thought to come greet you. And now I think I have finished with swimming. Would you mind accompanying me to fetch my clothes?”

Tyrran could see that Lena was annoyed by the request and had every intention of replying in the negative. But Tyrran didn’t want Adwin to be offended, so he quickly spoke up.

“We would be happy to.”

That earned him an evil look from Lena.

Adwin offered his arm to Tyrran. “Adwin Mekalbe, at your service.”

Tyrran grasped his forearm, “Tyrran Kens, at yours,” he replied, trying to keep his voice from squeaking.

“I assume you do not attend the Military College,” Adwin continued, as the three of them resumed walking along the trail.

“No, I’m at Roothe College. Lena and I are friends from Temple Academy.”

“Ah, yes. In Hifield City. I am truly sorry about the attacks. I do hope you were not directly affected.”

Author Bio

A.K. Holubek

The moment A.K. Holubek stumbled across a ragged copy of The Fellowship of the Ring in his elementary school library, his life changed forever. The rest of his childhood, his adolescence, and even his college years were spent living only part time in the real world. He much preferred spending time in the fantasy lands of his imagination than in the reality of life as a closeted gay kid. As real life got better, he left his fantasy worlds behind. But a few years ago, those worlds called him to return, and to share his created worlds with others who might also need a place to escape. He now endeavors to carry out this mission from his home in Baltimore, supported by his husband and two ridiculous cats.

Author Website: http://theunconventionals.com

Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/andrew.holubeck

Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/akholubek

Author Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theunconventionalsbooks/

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Guest Blog Post: What are Women Willing to Sacrifice for Freedom by Norma Watkins (Author of In Common)

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What are Women Willing to Sacrifice for Freedom

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In the mid-twentieth century, women were encouraged to sacrifice freedom for marriage, and discouraged from ever sacrificing that marriage for freedom. I have written about both.

Growing up in the South, we noticed the rules early: white people ruled over Blacks and men over women. My father certainly ruled our house; we feared his anger and obeyed his commands. By we, I mean his three daughters and our mother (whose cardinal sin became not giving him a son). 

During the years covered in my novel In Common, men had careers and women did not, or at least proper white women in northeast Jackson, Mississippi, did not. Women were to serve by supporting their men, making sure a drink awaited when they got home, along with a nice, hot meal, and obedient children. Support meant not bothering the man with trivial household problems or asking for money. It meant not getting in the way of his work, his dinner, or his rest.  

Bookbaby.com helps independent authors bring their creative vision to the marketplace. Sell eBooks online in the biggest retail stores.

Properly brought up young women absorbed these lessons. We were sent to college primarily to find a man like our fathers, one who would go out and earn the living. In return for the great freedom of staying home, we were to keep quiet, run a good house, and give birth to at least one son. We were not to complain of boredom or purposelessness. 

In my novel, two extremely capable women, Lillian and Velma, (Lillian could run an entire hotel; Velma was a superb secretary), sacrifice their talents for the love of a man who hardly appears to notice. Today, their choices look absurd, but we forget how little agency women possessed in those days. A married woman could not get a credit card in her own name, nor own property, or serve on a jury. If she complained too much, she could be declared a hysteric and institutionalized.

My first memoir, The Last Resort, is about one young female’s quest for freedom. The protagonist (me) looks for it initially by following the rules: find a man, marry him, give birth. In each instance, the promise of freedom turns out to be hollow. The man (in the middle of the civil rights troubles) is not the tolerant person she’d believed. Marriage brought a boring, poorly paid job and equally boring, unpaid household chores. Childbirth freed her from the job, but exponentially increased the chores.  

In the end, she gives up home, husband, children, and reputation in exchange for autonomy—the freedom to think, and enough education to acquire a job she loves. The sequel, That Woman from Mississippi, shows the consequences of that bolt for freedom. 

Literature (and life) are filled with far more dire sacrifices than mine. Saint Agatha, a high-born Sicilian beauty, lived during Roman rule in the middle of the third century. The Prefect wanted to possess her, but she refused his advances. She desired only the freedom to remain chaste and devote her life to the church. Outraged, he had her breasts torn off and she was sent to a dungeon to die. According to legend, the Lord sent an angel to heal her. Hearing this, the furious governor had Agatha dragged over hot coals until she died. In Sicily, February 5 is St. Agatha day, and bakeries sell breast-shaped buns in her memory.

Freedom is a moving target. Be careful of your choices.   

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Book Summary

Lillian Creekmore grows up at her family’s popular rural spa. She successfully runs an entire hotel, yet longs for a husband. Then she meets Will Hughes.

Velma Vernon accepts life on a small, struggling farm until a boy she barely tolerates proposes marriage. To accept means duplicating her parents’ hard life. Alone, she leaves for the city and triumphs, not as a wife, but by being the best at her job. Velma is content until the most beautiful man she has ever seen walks into her office.

This moving and darkly humorous novel follows the intertwined lives of women willing to surrender everything to a man.

Publisher: Black Rose Writing

ISBN-10: 1684339235

ISBN-13: 978-1684339235

ASIN: B09V1NNLSZ

Print Pages: 595 Pages

Purchase a copy of In Common by visiting Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Bookshop.org. Make sure you also add In Common to your Goodreads reading list.

About the Author

Raised in the South during the civil rights struggles, Norma Watkins is the author of In Common and two memoirs: The Last Resort, Taking the Mississippi Cure (2011), which won a gold medal for best nonfiction published in the South by an independent press; and That Woman from Mississippi (2017). She lives in northern California with her woodworker husband and three cats.

You can find her online by visiting her website or reading her blog.

https://twitter.com/normascribble

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Blog Tour Calendar

February 13th @ The Muffin

Join us as we celebrate the blog tour launch of In Common by Norma Watkins. You’ll have the chance to read an interview with the author and win a copy of the book.

https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com

February 15th @ Michelle Cornish’s blog

Visit Michelle’s blog to read about good food as reward and vengeance by Norma Watkins.

https://www.michellecornish.com/blog

February 18th @ A Storybook World

Join Deirdra as she features In Common and shares a guest post from Norma Watkins about writing truths about people who might be hurt by them.

https://www.astorybookworld.com/

February 20th @ Lisa Buske’s blog

Stop by Lisa’s blog to read a guest post by Norma about civil rights and growing up in the South during Jim Crow.

https://www.lisambuske.com/

February 22nd @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog

Join us today for author Anthony Avina’s review of In Common.

http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com

February 24th @ Fiona Ingram’s author blog

Stop by Fiona’s blog to read a guest post by Norma Watkins featuring a look at how women were treated in the South pre-feminism.

https://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com

February 25th @ The Book Diva’s Reads

Visit Vivian’s blog for a feature of In Common by Norma Watkins. You’ll have the chance to read an excerpt too!

https://thebookdivasreads.com/

February 27th @ Mindy McGinnis’s blog

Stop by Mindy’s blog to read a guest post about bad sex.

https://www.mindymcginnis.com/blog

February 28th @ Seaside Book Nook

Join Jilleen for a spotlight of an excerpt of In Common by Norma Watkins.

http://www.seasidebooknook.com/

March 1st @ The Mommies Reviews

Join Glenda as she reviews In Common and shares a guest post from the author about sharing the hard stuff.

http://TheMommiesReviews.com

March 2nd @ The Frugalista Mom

Join us for a guest post from Norma Watkins on how you are unique and irreplaceable.

https://thefrugalistamom.com

March 4th @ World of My Imagination

Stop by Nicole’s blog where Norma Watkins is a guest for “Three Things on a Saturday Night.”

https://worldofmyimagination.com

March 5th @ A Wonderful World of Words

Visit Joy’s blog for a feature of In Common by Norma Watkins.

https://joyffree.blogspot.com/

March 6th @ Life According to Jamie

Join us as Jamie reviews In Common

http://www.lifeaccordingtojamie.com

March 8th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog

Revisit author Anthony Avina’s blog to read “What are Women Willing to Sacrifice for Freedom?” by Norma Watkins.

http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com

March 9th @ The Knotty Needle

Stop by for Judy’s review of In Common.

http://knottyneedle.blogspot.com

March 10th @ Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews blog

Join Lisa for an interview with Norma Watkins.

https://lisahaselton.com/blog/

March 11th @ Reading in the Wildwood Reviews

Join us today for Megan’s review of In Common.

https://www.wildwoodreads.com

March 12th @ Jill Sheets’s blog

Stop by Jill’s blog to read her interview with Norma Watkins

https://jillsheets.blogspot.com/

Guest Posts: Forks in the Road: Investigating my own writing process By Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler

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I write how I read, in multiples. I typically have several writing projects going on at once, usually a picture book, middle grade, and a YA (and then the occasional non-fiction piece for work). Switching between genres helps keep my brain fresh. If I have been working on one piece for a while, and writer’s block looms, I switch to another project for a while to maintain momentum.

The variance in my approach to writing picture books versus novels isn’t necessarily intentional, but rather the formats of the genres lend themselves to different paths. Of course, every author must discover their own writing groove, and the following is what works for me. 

Picture Books 

Picture books are recommended to be 1000 words or less, with the emphasis on or less. To keep focused, I have to be methodical. The limited word count requires every word to have purpose. After the idea hits me, I list all the page spread numbers first. I favor writing picture books in short bursts, mirroring the brevity of the picture book’s page length.

First, I determine the climax and hook and which page spread the climax will fall. Of course, this spread is moveable, but I like to have a target to build toward. My current books all contain back matter, as they are addressing facts about the natural world and yoga. I calculate in the back matter to my page count, as to not go over the recommended page length. All of the back matter is referenced or connected to the book content, so I ensure to use consistent terminology through the book. 

Also as illustrations are involved, I think about which pages lend themselves to full page spreads and which are single-page illustrations. Having a vision for the overall book concept helps me to balance the text. Of course the editor might suggest moving things around, but my picture book editor likes for me to have some vision for the illustrations before we start.

Picture books consist of many moving parts!

YA Novels

With picture books, I tend to write more than required and then cut back on the unnecessary details; however, with novels I do the opposite. For the first draft, I focus on assembling the skeleton, which for me means dialogue and the major plot points. I add descriptive details and the “color” in subsequent drafts. 

For novels, I have the exposition, climax, and resolution determined first, and then figure out how to get there. After writing the exposition, I formulate a timeline of major plotline events. I never know how many chapters a book will have until it’s finished.

I prefer to write novels in longer strides, so if I don’t have at least time to knock out a chapter I wait and work on something else. When I get stuck, I take a break (notice I said when and not if, blocks happen to every writer). Often my breakthrough ideas come when I’m doing something else, like driving, gardening, and particularly after teaching a yoga class!

Understanding your typical patterns will help you to be a more efficient and productive writer; however, most importantly, know how to take a quality break. 

When Daddy Shows Me the Sky (picture book) from Belle Isle Books, released 11.19.21

Whispering Through Water (YA) from Monarch Educational Services, released 1.4.23

When Mama Grows with Me (picture book) from Belle Isle Books (releases Summer 2023)

Instagram: @rebeccawwheeler_author

Twitter: @RWW_author

www.rebeccawwheeler.com

Publisher: Monarch Educational Services, L.L.C

ISBN-10: 1957656052

ISBN-13: 978-1957656052

ASIN: ‎B0BCCW8T54

Print length: 265 pages

Purchase a copy of Whispering Through Water on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.org. You can also add this to your GoodReads reading list.

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About the Author

Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler was raised in West Point, a small town in the Tidewater region of Virginia. From the moment she submitted her first short story to a young author’s contest in second grade, Rebecca knew she wanted to be a writer. Her love of writing led her to earn a BA in English and an MEd in English education. She spent several years as a high school teacher, during which she also developed a passion for mental health advocacy. Rebecca completed an MA in professional counseling and now works in the school-based mental health field and as a college adjunct psychology instructor. Rebecca also teaches yoga for the young and the young at heart, and she likes to infuse yoga and breathwork in her counseling practice wherever she can. 

She believes the most valuable use of her time is teaching youth how to love and care for each other and the world around them. Her stories share her focus on positive relationships and a love of nature. Rebecca now lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her husband, two children, and two spoiled Siamese cats.

Whispering Through Water is her first YA novel and second book. Her picture book When Daddy Shows Me the Sky was released November 2021. You can follow Rebecca on Instagram @rebeccawwheeler_author and www.rebeccawwheeler.com.

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Blog Tour Calendar

January 9th @ The Muffin

Join us as we celebrate the launch of Whispering Through Water by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler. We interview the author and give away a copy of the book to one lucky reader.

https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com

January 10th @ Mindy McGinnis’ blog

Visit Mindy’s blog to read Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler’s guest post about things she’s learned about the author and editor relationship.

https://www.mindymcginnis.com/blog

January 10th @ Rockin’ Book Reviews

Visit Lu Ann’s blog for her review of Whispering Through Water. You also have the chance to win a copy of the book!

Home

January 11th @ Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews

Visit Lisa’s blog for an interview with author Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler.

https://lisahaselton.com/blog/

January 12th @ Author Anthony Avina’s Blog

Join Anthony as he shares his thoughts about Whispering Through Water.

https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/

January 13th @ A Storybook World

Deirdre features Whispering Through Water in a book spotlight.

https://www.astorybookworld.com/

January 14th @ Just Katherine

Katherine treats us to an excerpt of Whispering Through Water.

https://justkatherineblog.wordpress.com/

January 15th @ Reading is My Remedy

Join Chelsie for a review of Whispering Through Water.

https://readingismyremedy.wordpress.com/

January 16th @ One Writer’s Journey

Sue shares a guest post by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about how her graduate program in counseling helped her write fiction.

https://suebe.wordpress.com/

January 18th @ Word Magic

Fiona spotlights Whispering Through Water by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler.

https://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com/

January 19th @ Book Reviews From an Avid Reader

Visit Joan’s blog for her insights about Whispering Through Water.

https://bookwomanjoan.blogspot.com/

January 21st @ Life According to Jamie

Visit Jamie’s blog for her thoughts about Whispering Through Water by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler.

https://lifeaccordingtojamie.com/

January 24th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog

Join Anthony as he shares a guest post by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about her different processes when writing young adult versus picture books.

https://authoranthonyavinablog.com/

January 26th @ World of My Imagination

Nicole reviews the book Whispering Through Water.

https://worldofmyimagination.com

January 27th @ Storeybook Reviews

Come by Leslie’s blog and read her review of Whispering Through Water.

https://storeybookreviews.com/

January 28th @ Reading is My Remedy

Cheslie shares a guest post from Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about gardening.

https://readingismyremedy.wordpress.com/

February 1st @ Beverley A. Baird

Join Beverley as she reviews Whispering Through Water.

https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com/

February 2nd @ Celticlady’s Reviews

Check out a book spotlight of Whispering Through Water. A must-read book to add to your collection!

https://celticladysreviews.blogspot.com/

February 2nd @ Knotty Needle

Visit Judy’s blog and read her review of Whispering Through Water.

http://knottyneedle.blogspot.com/

February 3rd @ Beverley A. Baird

Visit Beverley’s blog again for a guest post by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about growing up in a small town.

https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com/

February 5th @ The Mommies Reviews

Join Glenda as she reviews Whispering Through Water by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler.

https://themommiesreviews.com/

February 6th @ One Writer’s Journey

Sue will be interviewing Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler. Learn more about this prolific writer!

https://suebe.wordpress.com/

February 7th @ Liberate and Lather

Join Angela as she reviews Whispering Through Water. She also shares a guest post by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about simple things to do at home to be more eco-friendly.

https://liberateandlather.com/

February 9th @ Chapter Break

Julie interviews author Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler about books, writing, life, and more. 

https://chapterbreak.net/

February 10th @ From the TBR Pile

Visit Kari’s blog for a review of Whispering Through Water.

https://fromthetbrpile.blogspot.com/

February 11th @ Boots, Shoes and Fashion

Visit Linda’s blog for an in-depth interview with author Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler and her book Whispering Through Water.

https://bootsshoesandfashion.com/

Guest Blog Post: The best writing/life advice by K.E. Bonner

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Preop is a hive of activity at 6:45am. Metal charts clink, heart monitors beep, and a mingled aroma of betadine, hand sanitizer, and rubbing alcohol wafts through the air. Nurses, aides, mid-levels, and doctors side-step one another as they check orders, see patients, and sign consents. 

“Hi, I’m Karen, and I’ll be your anesthetist this morning,” I say as I enter the preop bay. An elderly man is lying on a stretcher. He answers my questions and I turn back to the chart to double check his paperwork. 

“Young lady,” he rasps, and reaches out his liver-spotted hand out.  I take it. Wrinkles crisscross his face like a cracked desert landscape. “I need to tell you something.” 

After a long career in healthcare, I’ve learned to listen to my patients. Our eyes lock and he squeezes my hand.  

“You will never be able to accomplish everything that you want to accomplish without a life of sobriety.” An impulse flickered between us, an undeniable shared action potential. 

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“Okay,” I nod, taken aback. Why would he say this to me? Did I look like a heavy drinker? 

His matter-of-fact way of speaking stayed with me. There was no possible way that this man knew that I was struggling to accomplish my goals.  At that point I’d been writing, editing, and re-writing my first novel, not to mention that I was working long shifts at the hospital, raising two young children, and struggling to keep my marriage and our finances together. I wasn’t a heavy drinker, a few glasses of wine over dinner to unwind after a long day. What did he see in me that compelled him to speak his truth? I chewed on his words but wasn’t ready to quit drinking, yet.

One Sunday morning I lay in bed with a large bottle of Gator-aide praying for the nausea and pounding headache to recede. It was my day to write, and I could barely lift my head from the pillow. This hangover is a waste of my time, I fumed. I thought about my adoptive mother, and how she steadily drank herself into dementia. I spent most of that day on the couch lamenting the loss of the most precious thing that I possessed: time. I couldn’t write while I was drinking, and my hangover rendered me completely useless. This was the beginning of me developing a distaste for alcohol. 

Clarity followed sobriety. My energy skyrocketed, I was writing more consistently, and better. I reasoned that I’d unknowingly been in a constant state of dehydration. My scale started a downward trend as I began to exercise, which increased oxygenation to my brain, and increased my energy even more. I began to see how much time I had wasted by drinking, and to understand that I had been self-medicating with wine. 

Most people are not ready to hear my patient’s words, and in truth, it took me ten years to process and act on them. These days I drink half a glass of wine on special occasions, but I write every day. Time is precious and limited, make every effort to use your to the fullest.

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About the Author

K. E. Bonner, author of Witching Moon,was always the first kid to sit down during a spelling bee. It wasn’t until she was an adult that she was diagnosed with dyslexia, which explained why she always had to study three times harder than her peers. Being dyslexic taught her perseverance and kindness, her two favorite attributes. She lives in Georgia with her husband, two sons, and two dogs. When not writing, she loves to read, swim, explore new places, and meet fascinating people. If you have a dog, she would love to scratch behind its ears and tell it what a good pup it is.

Learn more about K.E. Bonner on her website or follow her on Instagram @kebonnerwrites. 

You can purchase a copy of Witching Moon on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.org. You can also add Witching Moon to your Goodreads reading list.

Blog Tour Calendar

December 19th @ The Muffin
Join WOW as we celebrate the launch of K.E. Bonner’s blog tour of Witching Moon. Read an interview with the author and enter to win a copy of the book!
https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com


December 20th @ Mindy McGinnis’s blog
Stop by Mindy’s blog to read “Release the Idea of Getting Rich or Published and Focus on Your Craft.” by K.E. Bonner
https://www.mindymcginnis.com/blog

December 20th @ Rockin’ Book Reviews

Join us as Lu Ann reviews Witching Moon.

http://www.rockinbookreviews.com

December 21st @ All the Ups and Downs

Join Heather as she spotlights Witching Moon. Enter to win a copy of the book!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/


December 23rd @ Michelle Cornish’s blog
Visit Michelle’s blog to read her review of Witching Moon.
https://www.michellecornishauthor.com/blog

December 24th @ A Storybook World
Join Deirdra as she features a spotlight of Witching Moon.
https://www.astorybookworld.com/

December 27th @ Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews blog
Join Lisa for an interview with K.E. Bonner.
https://lisahaselton.com/blog/


December 28th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog
Join us today for author Anthony Avina’s review of Witching Moon.
http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com

December 30th @ Author Anthony Avina’s blog
Revisit author Anthony Avina’s blog to read “The Best Writing Advice I Received” by K.E. Bonner. 
http://www.authoranthonyavinablog.com


January 4th @ Bev Baird’s blog
Join us on Bev’s blog as she reviews Witching Moon.
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com

January 5th @ The Knotty Needle
Stop by for Judy’s review of Witching Moon.
http://knottyneedle.blogspot.com

January 6th @ Bev Baird’s blog
Meet us back at Bev’s blog for “Ideas are Everywhere” a guest post by K.E. Bonner.
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com


January 6th @ Look to the Western Sky
Join Margo as she reviews Witching Moon by K.E. Bonner.
https://margoldill.com/

January 7th @ Chapter Break

Visit Julie’s blog where she interviews author K.E. Bonner about her book Witching Moon.

https://chapterbreak.net/

January 9th @ Sue Edwards’s blog
Visit Sue’s blog to read “Magical Realism Surrounds Us” by K.E. Bonner.
https://suebe.wordpress.com/


January 10th @ Celtic Lady’s Reviews
Visit Kathleen’s blog and read her review of Witching Moon by K.E. Bonner.
https://celticladysreviews.blogspot.com/

January 10th @ World of My Imagination
Stop by Nicole’s blog where K.E. Bonner is a guest for “Three Things on a Saturday Night.”
https://worldofmyimagination.com


January 12th @ Life According to Jamie
Join us as Jamie reviews Witching Moon. 
http://www.lifeaccordingtojamie.com


January 14th @ Boots, Shoes, and Fashion
Join Linda as she interviews author K.E. Bonner.
https://bootsshoesandfashion.com

January 15th @ Fiona Ingram’s author blog 

Stop by Fiona’s blog to see her spotlight feature of Witching Moon. 

https://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com

January 16th @ the Freeing the Butterfly blog
Visit Freeing the Butterfly to read “Life is Short, Do What You Love” by K.E. Bonner.
https://www.freeingthebutterfly.com/blog

January 18th @ Jill Sheets’s blog 

Stop by Jill’s blog to read her interview with K.E. Bonner. 

https://jillsheets.blogspot.com/

Guest Blog Post: WHY A JOURNALIST WROTE A MEMOIR – ACROSS CONTINENTS by Ira Mathur

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In writing this memoir, I combined my two loves, journalism and creative writing.

The journalist’s task is to find the dark corners of the world of injustice and sadness and illuminate them. The bigger job is to be the watchdog of democracies, to ensure there are checks and balances in governance on behalf of the people.

If there is one thing it taught me is that humans are essentially the same. Everyone is looking for a way to survive the dark days of our mortality and the trials of being human, whether they are gangsters who end up getting shot at 20 and buried with gold chains down to their stomachs; or priests who have lived ascetic lives; or indeed, families around the commonwealth navigating the damage of Empire.

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It was with this understanding that I began to write a memoir.

As an immigrant to Tobago, where my parents moved when I was a child, and later to Trinidad, I felt the past was being cut away from me.

My son was born, and I had begun forgetting words in Urdu and Hindi. As an immigrant to Trinidad, I started feeling the past was being cut away from me. I wrote it to remember the past and understand the present of the glittering islands of Trinidad and Tobago, where my parents moved when I was a child. 

As I wrote about my experience as a journalist, somebody who chronicles the events that shape a country, I realised that my past was not unique. My grandmother told me how my ancestor was brought from Uzbekistan to put down the mutiny in India in 1856. As a recruited member of the British Army, he was forced to shoot his fellow Muslims, something he regretted till he died. I began making connections. It was also the story of colonial islands in the new world, where people were stripped of language. The narrative continued with my parents travelling to Trinidad and Tobago, which also has a complicated history of colonisation by the French Spanish and English. That interested me – how the personal can be so political, how the unravelling of one family living under decades of colonialism can echo a crumbling empire.

The overall theme of the crumbling Empire is relevant, especially now; after the death of Queen Elizabeth 11, we can see how similar post-colonial worlds are. The history of brutality was identical. In India, we grew up with stories of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar Puja when General Dyer ordered the British 

Indian Army to open fire on over a thousand unarmed, nonviolent protestors, Churchill’s active role in perpetuating the Bengal famine, or the signs my mother remembers in exclusive clubs that read “No Dogs or Indians” and the sly inroads of the East India Company. In Trinidad, as in much of South America, there is the brutal history of slavery, indentureship and genocide of millions of native Indians. In India from 1765 to 1938. the British got an estimated 45 trillion U.S. dollars’ worth of goods like textiles, rice, iron, and timbre, not to mention jewels from the Raj, which are housed in 

British museums today. Similarly, Caribbean islands like ours were looted for sugar and cocoa. It’s a shared history of exploitation.

 When my grandmother left India to join our family in Trinidad, she told me stories about a vanished India of the British Raj. She told me of generations of women born into Muslim Indian princely families of Bhopal and Savanur. I had to infer the calamity upon her life when my mother broke hundreds of years of tradition and understand why my grandmother disinherited my mother for marrying a Hindu army officer.

There were unanswered questions. I wondered why my grandmother ended up alone and penniless despite all her privileges- born a princess into Indian royalty, beauty, and musical talent. 

As I wrote the story, the puzzle came together. I began to understand how patterns are created in how we treat our daughters and how that damages the people we love. At my grandmother’s funeral, I was aware of how incongruous this was, a woman born in colonial India dying in the new world so far from everything she grew up with and knew. It was a way of bringing tother the old and new worlds and introducing the question of how and why this happened. How did a princess of the Raj die in Trinidad? 

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The colonial idea that subjugation, cruelty and even corporal punishment can be justified for the greater good filtered down to how people in colonies viewed their children.– how neglect, abandonment or abuse is passed on to their daughters and that pattern is continued. 

Migration is also a very personal issue. At the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth, dozens of security guards were of South Asian origin. According to an Indian Ministry of External Affairs report, 32 million Non-Resident Indians live outside India, overseas Indians comprise the world’s largest overseas diaspora, and over 2.4 million Indians migrate overseas yearly. Our family was just one in this ocean of movement. So the themes aren’t heavy, but 

illustrates how politics always becomes personal and affects families.  

When I wrote it, I did not expect it to resonate with so many people across continents. Michael Portillo for Times Radio was moved by the story of Poppet, the child in the book. Anita Rani of Times Radio was moved by the story of migration. The Observer found it was reminiscent of the times of the Raj in India, which has connected India and Britain for generations.

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About the Author

Ira Mathur is the author of Love The Dark Days – a Peepal Tree published a memoir on the emotional ruins of Empire on three generations of women set in Trinidad, St Lucia, India and the U.K., bookended with a weekend with Derek Walcott. Love The Dark Days was selected as a UK Guardian Best Book of the Year 2022 ( Memoir and Biography)

Mathur is an Indian-born Trinidadian multimedia journalist and columnist with a body of writing that includes over 800 columns over 20 years. (www.irasroom.org) She was longlisted for the 2021 Bath Novel Award for Touching Dr Simone. (Out in 2023)

Mathur studied creative writing in London with The University of East Anglia/Guardian & the Faber Academy with Gillian Slovo, Maggie Gee, and James Scudamore. In 2019 Mathur was longlisted for the Johnson and Amoy Achong Caribbean Writers Prize. She holds degrees in literature, law and journalism. 

Purchase on Amazon U.K.: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-Dark-Days-Ira-Mathur/dp/1845235355#detailBullets_feature_div

Purchase on Amazon U.S.: https://amzn.to/3YaoVmH

Second Chances: A Midlife Romance Series Book Two by Lisa Battalia Review

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I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

As their heated encounters grow more frequent and tensions rise while struggling to balance exes, kids, and work, a more independent Lori seeks to find her second chance with Brandon in author Lisa Battalia’s “Second Chances”, the second book in A Midlife Romance series.

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The Synopsis

Second Chances continues the story of Lori and Brandon’s bicoastal romance. Their sexy, fun weekends, crisscrossing the country to see each other, are bookended by the challenges back home. For Lori, that’s a new home, job search, divorce proceedings, and conflicts with her teenage kids. With newfound confidence, helped by Brandon’s skills in the bedroom and as handyman, cop, and father, Lori revels in a budding independence. Still, there’s no avoiding that their time together is scheduled around the competition (exes, kids, and bosses). Brandon’s aversion to risk, his loyalty to his daughter, and Lori’s increasingly complicated life in Maryland all loom as potential, insurmountable obstacles, and Lori fears that shuttling between disparate worlds will break her. After a particularly empowering sexual encounter, Lori finds the courage to ask for what she wants-a second chance to build a brave new life with Brandon-but taking that risk could mean losing everything.

The Review

The author did not let up on the passion for this second outing in the series. The heat and romance that the characters brought to life were still very palatable on the page, and the atmosphere was thick with both tension and eroticism to seek the erotic romance fans out there. The coast-to-coast setting was felt even more strongly in this outing, as it came with more emotional weight as the stakes rose to all new heights in this novel.

To me, the heart of this story was not in the character’s passions, but in their growth overall. The author found a way to strike a healthy balance between the eroticism and the emotional romance aspect of their relationship quite evenly and allowed the reader to dive head-first into the hills and valleys of their relationship overall. The way the author honed in on what so many middle-aged people deal with in romances, from ex-spouses and wary children to work details and living arrangements, the story felt more realistic and relatable to a great number of readers out there, and still held onto the passion that made the first book so memorable.

The Verdict

Heated, thoughtful, and entertaining, author Lisa Battalia’s “Second Chances” is a great second entry into the erotic romance duology that the author has crafted and a passionate romance to get lost in. The relatability of the characters grows exponentially here, as does the emotional weight of their journey together. The twists and turns in their love story will have readers hanging onto the author’s every word. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Lisa Battalia is an attorney in the field of gender equity and a writer. She is the mother of two newly launched young adults; a lifelong east-coaster who recently launched her own new life on Whidbey Island, WA. 

Her other novels and short stories can be found at www.lisabattalia.com.

Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/lisabattalia/

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Now, here is an Exclusive Guest Post from author Lisa Battalia

A Letter to My 50 Year-Old Self,

Take a breath; you’re going to survive; it’s all going to be okay. 

I know you can’t even imagine it but your teenage son, at 24, will call you every week, just to chat, and to tell you how much he appreciates you; and your daughter, just like him, will follow her own path. It won’t look anything like the carefully, curated, unyielding path of so many of the suburban kids around them. They will flounder, deeply despair of what they have lost when your divorce rocked their world and left them feeling utterly without control. With your help, though, with their strength your consistent love has nurtured through all the years leading to the brink, they will be fine.

Yes, you will be on your own again. But you have been on your own before. You are competent; more than that you are smart. Someone will hire you even though you’ve been out of the workforce for so many years; meanwhile Obamacare will pass and you will have health insurance. You will re-learn how to pay the bills and buy a car and apply for a mortgage. You will not — that grotesque, irrational, yet encapsulating fear — eat cat food in your old age. You will shepherd what you have — diminished, cut by half, the practical result of a marriage… a family… a life ended formally, properly, the papers and signature lines all lined up correctly, except the one question they left out: Did you want any of this to happen? 

The surprise will come: Your resources will grow as you lean into abundance. The ironic abundance that arises because you are forced to recalibrate: After the earthquake, teetering on that ragged edge left in its wake, absorbing an emotional wreckage that feels so much more diminished than the tidy division by half the lawyers conjured. Can I be more? Truer to my subjugated dreams, values, and deepest desires? What are those anyway after so many years of “being” for others, giving to others?

The shock will follow. You will be happy again. Not right away, and not without loneliness and despair, but happier than you ever imagined. You will have reimagined a new life — literally transporting yourself to a new location, a place of peaceful beauty. A life of Independence, creativity, joyful in its re-connectedness to family, friends, and… love.

None of this is to say you can skip the hard work that lies ahead, but, my most precious advice, strap in and enjoy the ride.