A new issue of our ezine ( issue #14) is online. News, entertainment, celebrity features & book cover design tips are waiting for you.

http://issuu.com/bloggertime/docs/nov_14_trailblazers___social_change

 

Omar Tyree sends a message about Ebook Nation. Please watch this crowd funding video clip.

I can relate to the cost associated with publishing books. I believe in this campaign, especially because it will help expand opportunities for other authors, too. Omar Tyree is one of my favorite writers. If we value books, it would be wonderful if the writing community could benefit from more crowd funding support.

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-ebook-nation-the-new-matrix

Scientist & author Tallis Piaget intertwines messages for the African-American community, in his novel, 'Black Boogiemen.'

By day, Tallis Piaget works as an analytical protein biochemist. Additionally, the St. Louis based scientist authored 'Black Boogiemen,' which was released in 2011. His book addresses problems in the African-American community. I welcome Tallis to The Nook today.



Andrea: What is 'Black Boogiemen' about? What is the significance of the title?

Tallis: The book is about a group of men who form a covert group called the "Black Boogiemen". By attacking the economic structure, revamping the educational system, and removing the drug dealers/gang bangers, these "Black Boogiemen" convert the inner cities of American into Utopian Societies.

The title refers to the idea of the boogieman being ever present. Whether he is behind the bushes, under your bed, or inside of your closet, he is always watching. So everyone must be on there best behavior or the Black Boogiemen will come and get you.


Andrea: Is your book fictional? Who is your target audience?

Yes my book is fictional. Though I've received rave reviews from all walks of life, I guess my target audience is anyone that desires to read a book in which black America repairs their own social issues without begging for help from the government.


Andrea: How is the topic, sagging pants, tied into your book, 'Black Boogiemen?'

Tallis: One aspect of repairing a damaged neighborhood is instilling pride in the youth. Sagging pants represents a serious lack of pride. We must teach our boys that their appearance can help damage a neighborhood.  Sagging pants are also a gangsters uniform, so if a citizen wants to remove the gangsters from their neighborhood, they must eradicate all vestiges of the gangster's persona including the attire.  


Andrea: Have young readers shared feelings about sagging pants? If so, what have they shared?

Tallis: The view changes. Before reading my book the youth feel sagging pants is merely a fashion statement, and it doesn't hurt anyone. After reading my book, they all understand that showing their backsides in public is an embarrassment to themselves and their families. Most of my young readers not only changed their views, they also changed their dressing style. They now wear the pants around the waist as they are meant to be worn.

Andrea: Campaigns to pull pants up are being launched in various cities and towns. Do you feel that it's an effective solution to reach those who let their pants sag, or do you offer additional suggestions?

Tallis: The current campaigns are futile. They are attempting to force kids to pull their pants up without providing a reason. This will never work. Kids must be informed as to why their pants should be worn properly, otherwise they will rebel all other abrasive approaches.


Andrea: What motivated you to write 'Black Boogiemen?'

Tallis: My major motivation for writing "Black Boogiemen" was frustration.  I don't know about the rest of black America but I am fed up with our current state.  Tired of seeing us in last place at everything. Tired of watching black America wait for some savior. Tired of black America expecting the government to fix our social woes. Tired of such an exorbitant murder rate within our communities. Really tired of us perpetuating all of the negative stereotypes and basically keeping ourselves shackled. This book is a breath of fresh air. It presents a black American culture with power, honor, class, and a united culture. People need to hear about that, then maybe they will believe it possible.  

Andrea: What feedback and/or accolades have you received?

Tallis: Honestly, I only hear two things. Either, "This is the best book I've read," or "This is ONE of the best books I've read." My point, I have received nothing but amazing reviews. I guess the people really wanted to see black America under a new looking glass.

Andrea: What two suggestions would you give to young men about the importance of staying away from negative influences?

Tallis: Number one: Simply put, negative influences will choose a path for you.  You want to choose your own path.

Number two:  Negative influences will never allow you to become the great and powerful man you are meant to be. A man will never achieve his greatness following negative influences.

Andrea: Where can your book be purchased?  Tallis-piaget.com(prefered), Amazon.com, BarnesnNobles.com.

Your website and social media information: tallis-piaget.com, blackboogiemen/facebook, Blackboogiemen/twitter

Do you like poetry and erotica? Rated H (Hot) interview with Ainsley Burrows, founder of The Sweet Spot, CEO of BurrowsInk.

Ainsley Burrows is a Brooklyn based, full-time artist. He is the founder of The Sweet Spot, and CEO of BurrowsInk. Mr. Burrows studied Accounting and Economics in college, before making a drastic career change to pursue his passion.

Andrea: What was a milestone in your career?

Ainsley: I was the face of Guinness in 26 countries, during The Guinness Greatness Campaign (TV AD).

Andrea: How and why did you start writing and performing erotic poetry?  

Ainsley: I started when I was in college. I think it had to do with the challenge.  Erotic poetry, or should I say good erotic poetry, is the hardest kind of poetry to write.

Andrea: What is a day in your life like? (Is your endeavor full-time?)

Ainsley: I am a full-time artist. I do all different types of writing. I also paint. I also run maybe on of the biggest poetry companies in the world.  BurrowsInk is the company that produces The Sweet Spot. The Sweet Spot is up and running in 17 cities across the United States and Canada. So a typical day starts of with BurrowsInk business, such as phone calls, emails, ordering flyers and tickets, getting venues confirmed, booking and speaking with artists. I meet with possible sponsors, and also converse with possible vendors. I try to finish most business by about 2:00 or 3:00 PM.  When it is a day that we have a show, things are a little different.  I have to get all I have to do done while preparing for a show. It also entails travel and organizing. Luckily, I have a solid team that makes sure things are where they need to be, and people are where they need to be, when they need to be there. In the evenings I normally go out to promote if I am in NYC, or I stay home and write. I am always working on a writing project, be it a novel or a series of poems, a play or a movie script. I am always writing.

Andrea: Did anyone ever discourage you, when you made a decision to pursue something nontraditional?

Ainsley: My family was not happy with the decision. I was in a MBA program. The second semester of my first year, I had an insane car accident in which the car rolled over 5 times. After the accident, I decided to leave school. I can't really remember anyone of consequence being supportive, but inside I knew what I wanted, so I focused on being the best artist I could be.

Andrea: Who has been your biggest influence?

Ainsley: I have tons of influences. I listen to all types of music and absorb all kinds of art. I was on the road for about ten years, just traveling and performing. I used to spend at least three months of each year in Europe. During that time, I performed in a different city almost every night. I think most of those travels influenced my world view and the art I create. I go to a lot of museums because I believe the past has it lessons. I go to see live music because I think live music is one of the most honest forms of expression.  I read the poetry of all my peers; it keeps me grounded and fueled.  I fall in love every ten minutes. I can't explain that one to you, but I do.

Andrea: What is The Sweet Spot, who is your target audience, and what do you want attendees to take away from the experience? What can people expect from a Sweet Spot show?

Ainsley: The Sweet Spot is a POP Erotica event. POP Erotica is a term I coined. Our target audiences are people who are tired of the night life and who are looking for an alternative form of entertainment, people who want to go out but they don't want the whole club atmosphere , and people who want to be fully engaged. We want people to walk away thinking The Sweet Spot was one of the best experiences they have ever had. We want them to walk away thinking, "I have to tell someone." And in general that has been the reaction we get from people. Beyond the scenes of the experience, we started this event seven years ago to provide a safe place for people to express their sexuality and not be judged. The Sweet Spot is a JUDGEMENT FREE ZONE. We are looking into a different ways to get the show to as many people as we can. We are constantly expanding into new areas. We are looking at setting up shop in Europe and Africa. We have a few offers on the table. However, sometimes the timing has to be right. We are also looking at doing a TV show around the event. We have a Sweet Spot Book which should be coming out in the Spring, and we are constantly looking for ways to make the show bigger and better.

Andrea: Please briefly share about how you began writing books. What is the name of your latest one?

Ainsley: Novel writing is the next logical step from writing poetry. I have two published novels so far. I am working on my third as we speak. My latest is a POP EROTICA novel called 'Bang Bang Bang-A Summer of Sin in Brooklyn.'

   

Andrea: I heard that you'll be back in the Maryland area on November the 8th. Please share details.

Ainsley: Yes. We will be back in Baltimore on November 8, 2013 at Paparazzi.

Andrea: How can readers keep up with you online?

Ainsley: You can find me at: https://www.facebook.com/ainsley.burrows

@ainsleyburrows on Twitter  & Instagram

www.artburrows.com

www.sweetspotnation.com


Links to purchase Ainsley's books or products:


https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=C63BYBVCUBVK4


Ainsley's Toronto performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlufCakOy1E


The Guinness video:

http://vimeo.com/8766972

I met Ainsely earlier this year. He is an extremely talented artist. I wish him the best with his endeavors! Please note the address of Paparazzi:


407 E. SARATOGA STREET
BALTIMORE MARYLAND 21202
BALTIMORE , MD 21202 USA


You may visit www.sweetspotnation.com  for more details.

5 fab tips to write a novel in 30 days during National Novel Writing Month.

Although I have taken some time away from penning novels, I tend to keep manuscripts on hand. The hard part for me is usually revising them, not writing initial drafts. After working as a freelance ghost writer who was required to turn in finished manuscripts after authors didn't finish them,  I grew accustomed to developing a very disciplined mindset. I signed a document guaranteeing that I would deliver a manuscript by a specific date. At the time, these assignments were far more difficult than writing my own novels. They were completed for mainstream publishers who were depending on me to do whatever I said that I would.  After that, I began working as a content editor. My job was to tear a story apart, then suggest how to make it a stronger read, before it left my hands to proceed to the next editor. So, if you have the first novel writing jitters, the tips that I offer are mere suggestions to help jumpstart your 30 day mission. By no means is this list complete.

Housekeeping:
Will you be writing your novel for fun, to submit to a publisher, or to self publish later? I always ask why a person wants to write a book. For those who want to submit to a publisher, word count is an important detail. Does the publisher require a 70,000 word minimum?  Is an agent required? Things like these are important to know, while developing a plan. Genre can also play a part in the submission guideline component.

Before ferociously banging out a novel in the making, take a deep breath. Some days may only entail writing. Others may involve preparation, too.

1.Define your setting, characters and background information. Consider taking time to tend to details that could present conflicts later. Where will your story place? Who will be your antagonist and protagonist? What time period does the novel cover? From which POV will a story be told? These are examples of critical details that can strenghten or weaken a storyline. Slow down and hammer down the frame of your writing house, even if you are in a hurry. It can be extremely difficult to generate dialogue if your characters don't feel real. Your soul should know them in a familiar way. Achieving a balance of showing and telling may be easier to achieved if you feel connected to personalities of characters that you create.

2. Decide what the conflict of your fictional story may be. How will it be resolved? What event is climactic? Conflicts have resolutions. No character is all good or all bad. Encountering a problem or experience can dovetail with what territory the author covers in each chapter. Every scene should intrigue the reader. Pace yourself as the story unfolds.

3. Take time to fact check. Fiction is fiction, but an element of reality may help to keep your readers engaged. Be careful that descriptions and places align whenever they are mentioned. When writing is rushed even things like character names can be confused. Create a system to track what you say along the way. If Scottie has red hair and a lanky frame in chapter one, Scotty should not have black hair and a pot belly in chapter nine. This may sound silly, but errors like these can be common when a new novelist sits at a computer for hours.

4. Create some sort of outline, even if it is an informal one. It's often easier to know where you're going in a story if it's written down. It's nearly impossible to remember everything. Create a reference tool that you can revisit when needed.

5. Keep in mind that your goal is to get your thoughts down on paper first. You can edit the bulk of your work later. You will likely write and revise many rough drafts. 30 days is just a starting point; not the end of writing your masterpiece. Don't expect a perfectly executed story all in one shot. Overcome the fear of writing by doing it. If you're not as disciplined as you would like to be, a challenge such as this can help remedy the procrastination blues.

Good luck with your writing goals. Don't worry about writing what you think people may want to read or hear. If you're participating purely out of comittment to bask in your personal glory of fabulousness, the challenge is really all about you. I have faith that you will meet your goal.

The Nook


Read Omar Tyree's interview about writing.

Delia J. Colvin stopped by to discuss The Sibylline Trilogy (Oracles Series) and the story behind her writing life.

As the spooky Halloween air clears, Delia Colvin heats up November with a personal story about her writing life, and news about her series. We hope that you enjoy this special Friday morning interview!

Andrea: Can you briefly explain your health challenge that led to your drastic career change?

Delia: After day surgery, I was at home resting when I suffered from a massive number of  pulmonary embolisms: blood clots that moved through my heart, nearly stopping it and then spattered onto the wall of my lungs so that despite my breathing, oxygen was not getting into my body.

I didn't believe I was going to live more than a few minutes. Suddenly I realized that I was born a storyteller and my "someday I'll find the time" had run out. I vowed that if I lived, I would change that.

Still, life is busy and it was exactly one year later when I acted on it. I was driving into D.C. when an epic storyline popped into my head in a matter of seconds. Three weeks later I had completed the rough draft to my first novel. A year after that all three novels (over a thousand pages) had been written, edited and released...and I was a bestselling author! Wow!

Andrea: Many people dream of being a full-time writer, but it's not always financially feasible for them. Did your spouse immediately support your desire to bring your dream to fruition?

Delia: Timing is everything and for me the timing was extraordinary!  I was about to change positions in Air Traffic Control but was working twelve hour days. We knew there would be a brief time between the change of positions, but I wasn't there yet. So I wrote on my iPhone while walking the mile to work, while driving, while eating.

Because no one had ever read my stories, it took a tremendous amount of courage to allow my daughter, Jen, and husband, Randy, to read them.  Randy is not a fiction reader and I didn't expect that he would like it. It was a very rough draft. But within a few pages, he leaned forward and I could tell he was engaged. I saw every turn of events lit in his eyes.

After reading Chapter Five he said, "Forget Air Traffic Control! You were born to write!" Since then I've been a full-time novelist. It's not always been easy, but it has been a beautiful life.

Andrea: How long have you been writing, how many published  novels have you written, and have you received any awards or accomplished personal milestones since you began?

 Delia: I've been writing all my life. I began telling stories at three years of age and I knew that was my future. But I allowed "practical matters" to dominate my life.

 With writing, marketing and all of the travel that I do, I haven't yet taken the time to enter the books in contests. Still they've won several minor awards.

 There have been, however, several major moments for me: Since last Christmas (when most Indies shut down their advertising due to massive competition), Book One and Book Two became Amazon bestsellers and dominated the lists. They've remained on those lists almost every month since.

 Also, The Last Oracle, Book Three was released in September and became not only a bestseller, but one of the rare selections for Amazon's "Hot New Releases"! To top that off, it is also ranked the #1 best rated bestseller (with Book Two coming in #2 in some genres).

 But for me the most rewarding acknowledgment was the emails and letters I received after release of Book Three asking me to continue the series. One reviewer wrote that they cried for thirty minutes after reading the last pages of Book Three, because they weren't ready to leave the world created in the novels. That was a wow!

 Since then I've decided to continue the series and I'm writing Book Four now.

Andrea: I read that you were initially not a big lover of Greek mythology? If that is correct, has it influenced your highly respected writing in any way now?

 Delia: I never decided to write Greek mythology and I'm not a fan as it rarely has a satisfying ending. Still it is an integral part of the storyline and I've enjoyed the research. For me I use the research for historical perspective on the story.

 Andrea: How did you come up with the concept of  The Sibylline Trilogy (Oracles Series)? For readers who are not familiar with the trilogy yet, can you briefly explain what it is about, and if the meaning of the name is symbolic?

 Delia: The novel takes place in modern day Manhattan and Italy and has a strong romantic element, like Outlander. The concept is that the main characters are oracles (sayers) created by the Greek god Apollo. A female oracle was often called a sibyl and sometimes a sibylline oracle (which is also the name of a book of prophesies).

 The oracles were given immortality. But for some reason the main character, Cassandra/Valeria isn't. Her soul mate, Alex, is cursed with visions of her various deaths, as she reincarnates only to die by her twenty-seventh birthday. This time Alex is determined to change all of that with the help of the small family of remaining oracles.

 Andrea: What genre do you consider your trilogy?

 Delia: The challenge with genre is to find your readers and present it to them. I originally called it Fantasy. But because there's such a strong romantic thread in the series, I've shifted it to Romance sub-genres. I've been calling it Paranormal and Mythology. Recently the former chief editor from Harper Collins called it "Smart Women's Fiction". However, I do have many men that also read my books.

 Andrea: You did your homework on the publishing industry, turned down an attractive book deal, but still managed to become a best-selling author. Do you intend to keep self publishing? If so, what two pointers would you give an aspiring writer about the publishing business?


Delia: The world of publishing is changing at a very rapid pace. I've never been adverse to going the traditional route. But as a new author I felt the need to have a successful track-record of sales.


My two pointers would be to 1) Put out a professional product! Write the very best book you can write and then get professionals to help take it to the next level. 2) Take a marketing course from a legitimate source. My recommendation is the inexpensive, but phenomenal courses offered by Melissa Foster and Fostering Success.

 Andrea: I also read that you wanted readers to experience historically accurate scenes in your novels.  C. Kerenyi, a researcher on ancient Greece, seemed to be a great resource for you. How important is detailed research in your writing regiment?

 Delia: You know, it's quite easy to say, "It's fiction. It doesn't require accuracy." But for me I wanted accuracy and had many arguments with myself when I had difficulty resolving questions. Mr. Kerenyi's books are quite brilliant and they sit in hard copy next to my thesaurus and dictionaries.

 Andrea: Do you favor happy endings in your stories, and do both men and women read your work?


Delia: I do prefer a happy ending--or at least a satisfying ending. I want readers to feel an arc of emotion and come away feeling good.


As far as readers, most of my marketing is to women. But a surprising number of men seem to enjoy the books.


Andrea: As a writer, what would you say is the most important part of executing emotion in your storylines?

Changing emotions is vital to a story. I want readers to feel a full range of emotions throughout the books and to feel a continuous thread of tension. As far as executing those emotions in a story, I seem to have an internal meter that tells me, "Oh something needs to happen here!"  But in the end, if I don't feel the emotion, I re-write it until I do.


Andrea: I write because_______. It makes me feel ________!

Delia: I write because that is who I am. It makes me feel like alive! (note: in fact, my husband will attest that I am not a very pleasant person when I haven't written for a few days.)


Delia's website: www.deliacolvin.com

Her Amazon link: bit.ly/Sibylline

Contact Delia at DeliaJColvin@gmail.com.

Join Delia's Goodreads discussion group: bit.ly/DeliaColvin


It was a pleasure learning more about Delia. I wish her continued success with her writing endeavors. 




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