Lil' T Stepped Outta Her Box- 1st #Writers Meeting #TuesdayswithTaryn #birdsofafeather

Hallee Bridgeman & Heather Sunseri

Yep, my world is expanding. And YES, I called myself Lil' T.

Taryn stepped outside her box on February 15th and attended her very 1st writers meeting. I belong to the Kentucky Independent Writers. I once belonged to the RWA Kentucky Romance Writers Chapter (KYRW), but I never attended any meetings because I live 2 1/2-3 hours drive from there and even though the meetings were every OTHER month, I didn't drive or have my own transportation at the time, and I didn't want to feel I was putting my spouse out to drive me up there, so far out of the way. Plus I was certainly scared spitless (yes, I'm minding my mouth, but not sure how long that will last. Haha!)

Donna McDonald & J.M. Madden

I missed out on a LOT and I'm aware of it in a way that's almost physically painful now when I look back on all the years I spent hunkered down in my self-inflicted isolation.

I  missed out on a lot of craft lessons, networking, and interaction that is so important to an author. This may be a solitary career choice, but when you have a group of like-minded authors, striving toward similar goals and dreams, it makes this journey that much easier. I hate to say it, but I regret all that wasted time, keeping to myself except via the internet. I could seriously kick my own ass for being so foolish as to think I could still get the same strengths out of it, just by being in touch.

Me and Kallypso Masters (and her assistant Charlotte)

And now that's going to change. When I started writing in 2006- or I should say, when I picked my writing back up in 2006 and began writing prolifically and in earnest because I HAD to get the stories out, I thought I was stepping outside that box and becoming bolder in who I am.

It wasn't until this past year though, that I feel I've really begun to find my courage, my bravery, to be who I am, to write what I want and to start thinking about ME for a change. Sure I was writing, but I was still hiding myself away and sure, there are authors who do not socialize or interact out there and there are stereotypes of authors like that, but I enjoy the company of my kind. We are birds of a feather and I find myself now flocking toward them, needing this more than I ever thought possible.

Katherine L Logan

Getting my driver's license has helped me in more ways than I can begin to fathom and now that I've attended my first meeting, I see that I need more than the isolation that I have subjected myself to for all these years.

I need the energy that comes from being in a group, talking, brainstorming, discussing all the things that are pertinent to us authors who, though we're taking "independent" routes to fulfill our dreams, still gain so much from the friendships and interactions with others who are also taking this same road.

Debi Warford, Laurel McKinley Keller,
Sharon Ray, Jesse V Coffey
Seraphina Donavan & Bruce McDonald II

I came away from the first meeting feeling rejuvenated, excited, proud of my small accomplishment of shaking off the fears that have held me back, stunted my growth and found myself inspired to move forward that much more.

I've been working on Love By Design. Edits are done, yet again. I need Beta Readers, but need to find those who are unbiased but trustworthy.

I'm also trying to throw myself back into the world of the living. That means blogging, sharing posts through Triberr, and I'm trying out using Google+ more often than I have been, especially as hard as Facebook makes it to share from my author page. What you can't find on Facebook, I'm hoping to making easily available to view (free) on Google+.

So.... in the meantime... I really need to get to work reading through and editing on Love By Change (Book 2 in the Love By Series and I still need to finish writing Heart of the Surf- the 4th and final book in the Pryce of Love Series. You can find out more about each of the books I'm currently working on via my Works In Progress page on my website and if you go exploring on my website, you can also find out how to sign up for my Newsletter of Love, which I will send out when I have new and exciting things to tell you about my upcoming releases.

Me & my Scrabble Buddy & fellow writer Robyn Peterman

FRIDAY SPOTLIGHT: #KYAuthor @LaramieBriscoe & her #HeavenHillMC #Series #Indie

Awesome fellow Kentucky Independent Writer, Laramie Briscoe recently released her first book, Meant to Be. With the release of Out of Darkness- BOOK 2 in the series, Meant to Be is currently FREE, so go on and get it and get hooked!! I know I'm looking forward to some down time so I can get started on them too.

MEANT TO BE Book 1 in the Heaven Hill Series
(CURRENTLY FREE on AMAZON! Click image above to find both books.)

Single mother.
Laid off factory worker.
Drug runner for the Heaven Hill Motorcycle Club.

When Denise Cunningham is served with foreclosure papers on her birthday it’s the last straw in a long line of bad luck. Sitting and crying about things has never been how she solved her problems, but this time she decides to do just that. A phone call interrupts her pity party and changes the course of her life forever.

Loyal brother.
Grease monkey mechanic.
Vice President of the Heaven Hill Motorcycle Club.

William Walker Jr., known as Liam to his club, needs a new recruit that is just naïve enough and desperate enough to do what he asks without question. When Denise Cunningham lands in his lap, he decides to hire her - not because he wants to, because he has to.

Neither are comfortable in their new roles, but he needs help and she can’t stand to lose anything else.

As bullets fly and a local Bowling Green, KY reporter works to bring the club down, Liam and Denise find themselves getting closer to one another. When the stakes get high and outside forces try to keep them away from each other, they have to decide if they really are meant to be.

OUT OF DARKNESS Book 2 in the Heaven Hill Series
NOW AVAILABLE!

Ex-News reporter.
Rape survivor.
Former enemy of the Heaven Hill MC.

Meredith Rager’s life completely changed the night she was attacked by an unknown person. Once a vibrant force that threatened everything about Heaven Hill, she is now under their care. The only place she feels safe is inside their compound. When she decides to take back the part of her life that her rapist took away, she discovers secrets that once again could tear the club apart.

Orphan.
Formidable force of nature.
Loved member of the Heaven Hill MC.

Tyler Blackfoot came into the world a John Doe. An orphan from the moment that he took his first breath, the only thing anyone knew was his Native American heritage. For most of his life, he’s been alone – except for the club that has taken him in as their own. When he rescued Meredith, a protective side of his personality came out that he never knew he had. Protecting her means everything – even when he discovers danger might be closer than either of them thought possible.

Together, the two of them are trying to make a life for themselves. Against everything they have, they’re hoping to see the light that will lead them out of darkness.

HEART OF MERCY~ #author @CCMarksWrites #NewRelease #dystopian #YA

Charlie Little exists in a dangerous world. Her best chance of survival is to disguise herself as a boy and guard her secrets well. Yet just when things can’t possibly get worse, they spin completely out of control.

With Zeke and her sister Star by her side and the fresh memory of Thomas’s kiss still on her lips, she narrowly escapes the horrid plans of Jonas Bannon, a monster of a human being. Forfeiting the safety of the community, they leave and begin the search for the city of Mercy, the one secure place Charlie knows. However, as she struggles to reach her sanctuary, doubts creep in that anywhere is truly safe. If the Draghoul don’t get them, the human scavengers just might, and the assumption Mercy will be a place of protection could be the most dangerous risk of all.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Nearly a year ago, I had Young Adult author, C.C. Marks by for a Tuesdays with Taryn Q&A and talked a little bit about Mercy and Edge of Mercy, her Intro and 1st novel in her young adult dystopian series. Well, she has recently released the 2nd book, HEART OF MERCY and I've already started reading it.

Doesn't she have GORGEOUS new covers???

I absolutely LOVED the story thus far and I'm eager to get back with Charlie, Zeke and her baby sister Star as they journey out of the community and toward the city of Mercy, where Charlie hopes to find safety and sanctuary for herself and her sister.

If you love young adult futuristic romance and adventure, this is definitely one to check out! 

 Click below on image to go to C.C. Marks' Author Page

Tuesdays with Taryn #NewRelease from @halleeb A MELODY FOR JAMES #ebook #Indie

Another exciting debut from a fellow Kentucky Independent Author! Check it out! 

 A Melody for James, Part 1 of the Song of Suspense Series.

(click image above to buy on Amazon!)

Melody Mason and James Montgomery lead separate lives of discord until an unexpected meeting brings them to a sinister realization: unbeknownst to them, dark forces have directed their lives from the shadows, orchestrating movements, keeping them singing solo. Fire, loss, and bloodshed can’t shake their faith in God to see them through as they face a percussive climax that leaves hearts forever changed.

 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Solitary strangers meet during a stormy stopover.
Hours later, their hearts hum a harmonious duet.

Melody Mason has the hottest female voice in the country music scene. But the cheers of all her adoring fans across the world mean little in the absence of the handsome stranger who rescued her years before.
Widower James Montgomery has never gotten the singing heiress he encountered during an unscheduled airport layover out of his mind. Years later, their paths cross in the most amazing circumstances. They know God brought them back together for a purpose.

Reunited once more, sinister forces threaten to destroy their newfound happiness. Uncannily, they learn they share much more in common than they could ever fathom. The couple must work in close concert, placing all their faith in God as they solve the deadly mystery that ties their lives inexplicably together time and again.
Fire, loss, and bloodshed can’t shake their faith in God to see them through as they face a percussive climax that leaves hearts and lives forever changed.

A Melody for James, coming this Saturday-

June 15th!

You can find out more about Hallee and her other books at her
WEBSITE and BLOG
Follow her on Twitter
Find her on Facebook
Also available on
Smashwords

Thursdays with Taryn Welcome @LaramieBriscoe NEW #RELEASE #KYAUTHOR #Indie #BowlingGreen

(Click image above to check it out on Amazon!)

Please check out MEANT TO BE- the debut Book One in fellow Kentucky author Laramie Briscoe's new Heaven Hill Series!

Blurb:
Single mother.
Laid off factory worker.
Drug runner for the Heaven Hill Motorcycle Club.

When Denise Cunningham is served with foreclosure papers on her birthday it’s the last straw in a long line of bad luck. Sitting and crying about things has never been how she solved her problems, but this time she decides to do just that. A phone call interrupts her pity party and changes the course of her life forever.

Loyal brother.
Grease monkey mechanic.
Vice President of the Heaven Hill Motorcycle Club.

William Walker Jr., known as Liam to his club, needs a new recruit that is just naïve enough and desperate enough to do what he asks without question. When Denise Cunningham lands in his lap, he decides to hire her - not because he wants to, because he has to.

Neither are comfortable in their new roles, but he needs help and she can’t stand to lose anything else.

As bullets fly and a local Bowling Green, KY reporter works to bring the club down, Liam and Denise find themselves getting closer to one another. When the stakes get high and outside forces try to keep them away from each other, they have to decide if they really are meant to be.

Find out more about Laramie here-

BLOG

FACEBOOK PAGE

Tuesdays with Taryn~ @AuthorAJewell DEBUT #release SHINE ON! #Indie #KentuckyAuthor

Please help me welcome to Tuesdays with Taryn
Allison Jewell,
Kentucky Author of  
SHINE ON
(NOW AVAILABLE, click link above) 

Allison Jewell lives in southern Kentucky with her husband, two sons, and dog. When she isn't hard at work on her next novel, she can be found doing one of her favorite things: watching her older son chase the puck at the local hockey rink, secretly eating her mother's homemade brownies, hanging out at home listening to records with her husband, or making up silly songs with her younger son. Before becoming a stay-at-home mom and writer, Allison worked as an elementary school teacher and education consultant.

Shine On is Allison Jewell's debut novel. She is currently editing the second book in this series, Rise and Shine. Rise and Shine is set to release in July 2013.

Emmie Talbot is a quintessential good girl.

Smart, Southern, Kind
Church Goer
Small Town Seamstress
Aspiring Teacher
And
A Misguided Moonshiner

Emmie's sole purpose in life was taking care of her moonshine loving step-father. When he is killed in a fiery crash on their farm, she is left alone and frustrated with a mountain of debt. Working as a seamstress for a crazy-old-coot shopkeeper is not the kind of life she had imagined for herself.

The curious events that surround her step-father’s death send Emmie on a quest for answers. Answers that lead to a dangerous secret tucked away on her property. Stumbling on a moonshine still was an unfortunate event for most folks in the hills of Kentucky. She was lucky not to have been shot on the spot. Emmie saw hope in the steam escaping the curved copper pipe of "Ole Maizy". However, a series of mishaps put her front and center in a local moonshine war.

In the midst of chaos, Emmie is befriended by an attorney recently transported from Chicago. Silas McDowell is a man seeking some answers of his own. In an attempt to find a little roaring twenties glamour in the small town, he introduces Emmie to the underground world of Speakeasies and Blind Pigs. Loyalty, lies, and murder conspire to push Silas and Emmie together or rip them apart. Cloaked in secrets and unsure whom to trust, Emmie must decide to drown in darkness or find a way to Shine On.

#Tuesdays with Taryn with Abigail Keam @AbigailKeam

Tuesdays with Taryn

Abigail Keam

What book(s) most influenced you as a writer?

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

Double Indemnity by James M. Cain

Jim Chee mysteries by Tony Hillerman

The Hounds of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle

St James version of the Bible

Cat On A Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

Poems by Emily Dickerson

Anything by Edgar Allen Poe

Interview With A Vampire by Anne Rice

The Red Pony by John Steinbeck

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown

I have read nothing in the past ten years that have influenced me like these magnificent works. 

What book do you read over and over again?

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

Tuesday Trio-

1)      Movie- Gilda with Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford

2)      Music- The early Sun recordings

3)      Decadent Dessert- My mother’s devil food chocolate cake with marshmallow icing

What’s the most interesting or bizarre bit of trivia you’ve learned from researching for a novel?  Native Americans sold American and English captives to the French as slaves. 

Novel on your Nightstand:

Who/what are you currently reading?

The Kentucky River by Thomas Clark

Whom would you cast as your Main Characters/Hero/Heroine if your book became a movie? Oh dear!  Most people suggest Kathy Bates but I always think of Julianne Moore. 

Death by Bourbon Blurb (click image below for Amazon Kindle or Print)

Life takes a dramatic turn for Josiah when she witnesses a death at an engagement party for guess who . . . Matt. Matt? Yes, Matt.

Charming socialite Addison DeWitt falls into a fit after taking a sip of brandy. That would be upsetting enough, but Josiah is sure it is murder. However, no will believe her except for Lady Elsmere and Meriah Caldwell, the famous mystery writer. The three of them conspire to bring the murderer to justice. It turns out the suspect is always three steps ahead.

To make matters worse, Josiah’s daughter, Asa, decides to move to London, Franklin leaves town and Jake starts singing a different turn. Josiah doubts her ability to meet the future alone. Maybe it’s time to sell the Butterfly and move to Florida with the rest of the old folks.Biography

Ms. Keam is an award-winning author of the Josiah Reynolds mysteries, which are set in the Bluegrass.
“Death By A HoneyBee” won a Gold Medal Award from Reader's Favorite in 2010. 
“Death By Drowning”, her second novel, also won a Gold Medal Award for Best Mystery Sleuth in 2011. 
Both books were listed as finalists on USA Book News “Best Book List 2011”.
“Death By Bridle” was released spring of 2012.
“Death By Bourbon” will be released October 1st , 2012.
The Josiah Reynolds mystery books have been described a “quirky, funny and clever.”

Josiah Reynolds is a middle-aged beekeeper, who sells honey at the local farmers’ market in downtown Lexington, Kentucky. She lives in an iconic house, called the Butterfly, on the palisades of the Kentucky River.

Reviews of the Josiah Reynolds mysteries can be read on Ms. Keam’s website, www.abigailkeam.com 
Born and bred in Kentucky, Abigail graduated with Distinction from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Middle Eastern Civilization. She then went into private business and kept bees as a hobby. 

Ms. Keam has won sixteen honey awards at the Kentucky State Fair and was the first recipient of the Barbara Horn Award, given to those scoring a perfect 100 for a beekeeping-related entry at the Kentucky State Fair. In 2004, Ms. Keam traveled to South Africa to study beekeeping in Africa.  

Miss Abigail is a member of the Bluegrass Beekeepers Association, the Kentucky State Beekeepers Association, the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen, and the National Society of Arts and Letters. She is a past board member of the Lexington Farmers' Market and Women in Agriculture boards. Also past president of the Friends of the Lexington Farmers' Market, Lexington Rape Crisis Center and the Lexington Art League.

She lives in Fayette County along the Kentucky River in a metal house along with her husband and various critters. 

 Abigail's books can also be found at

Barnes & Noble

Abigail's Website

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#ThursdayswithTaryn with Fellow KY #author Michael Embry

Thursdays with Taryn

Michael Embry

Please help me welcome my fellow Kentucky author, Michael Embry to Thursdays with Taryn and find out more about his recently released short story collection, Laments.

 

What book(s) most influenced you as a writer?

I suppose the biggest influence was Ernest Hemingway. I liked his short sentences and carefully chosen words. Most of my favorite writers are from the first half of the 20^th century including John Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and William Faulkner. As I’ve grown older, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for Mark Twain. Of contemporary authors, I like John Updike, Anne Tyler, Richard Ford, Sue Grafton, Elmore Leonard, Cormac McCarthy, and John Irving (and many others). 

If you read books more than once, which ones do you tend to read over and over again?

 I must admit that I don’t read books over and over. I may go back and read a passage, chapter, or excerpt, but I find that there are so many books to read and so little time, so I move on to another book. I do go in cycles about what I read. Sometimes I’ll read mysteries, then move on to romances, then to biographies, etc. I like variety.

Tuesday Trio-

1)   Movie- Citizen Kane

2)   Music- The Moody Blues

3)   Decadent Dessert- Red Velvet cake

What’s the most interesting or bizarre bit of trivia you’ve learned from researching for a novel?

 When writing “A Confidential Man,” I learned that chemical compounds can be broken down on clothes to determine a brand of whisky.

Novel on your Nightstand:

Who/what are you currently reading? “All the Living” by C.E. Morgan.

Whom would you cast as your Main Characters/Hero/Heroine in any of your stories if your book became a movie? (doesn’t have to be actors)

Since my novels generally feature older characters, David Strathairn and Meryl Streep would be my choices to bring them to life on the silver screen.

Blurb-

Sometimes best intentions become laments over time. A coach uses harsh discipline on a sensitive player he wants to become a leader. A father wants his son to learn responsibility so he suggests he join the military. A mother hesitates to help her daughter because of moral issues. A friend tries to protect a widow from harm’s way. These stories and more delve into actions that don’t always turn out as planned.

Available at the following-

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

Createspace

Michael Embry was born in Louisville, Ky. He spent more than 30 years as an award-winning journalist, working for Kentucky newspapers in Madisonville and Lexington; a national news service with stops in New York, Milwaukee, Lexington, and Louisville; and as editor of Kentucky Monthly magazine.

Embry graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a journalism degree. He also has 45 hours in graduate work in special education.

He has written three non-fiction sports books (as Mike Embry, five novels and a short-story collection. His latest book, released Aug. 10, 2012, is titled "Laments." His novels are the young adult "Shooting Star," murder/mystery "A Confidential Man," and contemporary mainstream "Foolish Is The Heart," "A Long Highway," and "The Touch."

Embry is listed in Who's Who in America and is involved with the Kentucky Book Fair in Frankfort, Ky. He has served as a judge in the Kentucky Literary Awards contest. He is also a member of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and U.S. Basketball Writers Association. He is listed in Who's Who in America.

He lives with his wife, Mary, and Yorkie, Baxter, in Frankfort.

You can learn more about Michael at his

WEBSITE
BLOG