Book Giveaway

I have copies of my latest story, available for those of you who follow this blog and would like to read it in exchange for a review. To obtain a copy simply email me at; matthewsmaria92@yahoo.com

This book has been structurally edited, edited and proofread so it will be interesting to receive some feedback about it. It is set in County Cork and though both characters are from completely different backgrounds, Mark is a city lover, Anne is a country lover, they are attracted to each other, but his belief he should sell his family home which was recently inherited sparks a challenge in Ann; to prove to him that he would be better off keeping the farm and house.  Who will win or who will compromise?

Romance

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A new project and a great new cover

With little time for writing these days, I have been editing or working with editors (to be more truthful).  Love Struck, is a contemporary romance story. While the book is being edited and structurally worked on, my friend Constantinos Karentzos has been busy.

This is what we have finally decided on.

Please let me know what you think.

Romance

The Question about GDPR

I believed, that the GDPR new regulations are simple. How wrong am I?

After attending a course, we are now shredding our way through every file in the building (at work).

Data is everywhere and we are all affected because we hold onto telephone numbers and email addresses, forever. To that end, I now believe that I should contact everyone on my blog email list and ask for their consent to hold onto their email address.

Why do I want your email address?

To contact you, if and when I get a book published that will be worthy of anyone’s attention. And to alert readers or potential readers/reviewers that it is on sale at €0 or .99cents.  For example:

So if you do not wish me to contact you about a book offer. Please let me know in the comments box below and I will delete/ wipe/remove your email address from my contact list.

 

On a much brighter note – Bob is fighting on and still swallowing pills but wagging his tail and making the most of life.

#Dementia

This one word is putting fear into me. My dad has vascular dementia and we are learning how to deal with another curve ball that life is throwing at us. No one is left unaffected by this horrible condition.

It is odd how often we live in blind ignorance until we are thrust into a situation and then we learn we are only one small unit amongst thousands who are learning how to cope with this condition.

I did not inherit his great intelligence and it is this intelligence that we now see fading behind a mask of sorrow and fear that he is learning to deal with. Dad was never an emotional man, he was always the calm voice of reason. The solid base. Now, this base is quivering under the multitude of questions he and we face.

So I am turning to all readers to ask for tricks and tips on how to lighten his load. His apologies are becoming more frequent, as are some silly incidents, i.e.,

Open the fridge door to discover all of the dinner dishes stacked (unwashed on the shelves).Open the  hot stove / oven door to find items of clothing sitting on the shelf being baked.

 

The washing machine last week was lined in white plastic, which I resorted to hoovering, the flakes to remove them.

Our solutions include:

We have posted notices on doors etc listing the what to do when leaving the house.

There are notices appearing on microwaves, seats, notebooks, computers as we try to make things easier for him to cope.

Remove all evidence of bills paid, as he worries about money which he no longer understands.

Have a series of carers in the house at meal times and as often as we can, we arrive in ones to nudge and coax him into a sense of normality.

So, again I appeal to all who read or notice my strange rambling blog all pieces of advice big and small will be chewed on, thought over and acted upon.

So why post a picture of a sunflower? To give us all something sunny to look forward to, especially as Bob is asleep, again.

Where did I get the idea for my first childrens book?

  The Runaway Schoolhouse, or the idea for it, simply didn’t appear in a light bulb moment. It sort of crept up on me. I was working as a Children’s Athletics Development Officer for 20 hours a week. I was part of a team of three. I loved the three years that we travelled the highways and byways, (some of them in circles as I frequently got lost) to promote kids to get active. The three of us were and still are passionate about the advantages of taking exercise no matter your age. Anyway, the most frequently heard comment on a Monday morning from a class of kids, was, “I wish I didn’t have to come to school.” I heard it so often that I began to play with the idea of what would happen if they arrived but all was not as it should be.

Until one day I casually asked, “what would you do if the school was not here when you arrived!”

The look of disbelief, followed by pure joy at such a possibility,  was enough to convince me it was a mad idea, but mad enough for a book.

And so it began a three-year stint of writing, editing, sending out letters searching for an agent, publisher or any passing alien to show an interest in my whacky book.  And it is a little crazy.  Here is an excerpt:

CHAPTER 4

CLEARIE was learning to make the most of every moment. He liked sitting on the smooth sand but a tiny part of him envied those with fingers and toes because he longed to experience the tickling feeling of sand and water. Still, he reasoned, this is an adventure.

He didn’t like the conversation between the adults who remained outside discussing the “problem.” They considered taking him apart and carrying his bricks back onto the hillside or getting a giant crane to move him. Both methods sounded nasty to him.
He tried to ignore them by concentrating on the sound of fish jumping in the water and birds hopping about on the sand; but he found that their loud voices carrying on the wind, made it impossible.
You would think with all their education they would question WHY I moved.
He waited to see what would happen next.
To his amusement, Mrs Brown got on her knees beside his front door to peer at the gap beneath his floor. He wondered if she were silly enough to think he had grown feet! When she stood she realised her knees were sandy and complained loudly about the horrible, gritty feeling. Clearie wondered what gritty felt like.
At breaktime, he noted that the children, unlike the teachers, were barefoot on the beach, but they put their shoes and socks back on their feet when they went back to class.
Clever children, silly teachers, he thought.

 

Maria’s Kindle Deal

Starting today and running for seven days Moving On is on Kindle deal on Amazon.com 

The first two chapters are available on Bob’s site to read. The links are: Chapter 1

And Chapter 2

For readers, writers or those who prefer Author.

Writing tips from author and pop culture writer Jennifer Keishin Armstrong.

via Advice from Bestselling Author Jennifer Keishin Armstrong — Discover

Help, tips and advice sought – Please.

We, (Sara and I) have been invited to visit a local school and talk to the class of  8 year old pupils about writing and illustrating. The children have been reading our book and have each done a project on it, so I am looking forward to the visit though, I am a wee bit wary. I mean, I have been in classrooms with kids of this age before and you have to be ready for anything. So, with that in mind, I have loaded up on goodies (paint sets, brushes and sketch pads, along with a giant bucket of marshmallows).

What else do you think I need to bring?

The Runaway Schoolhouse

My books of 2016

I love to read but most people do. My taste is wild and whacky as you can see from the list below. Now I am looking for a good thriller to read next and am open to suggestions, though I do love romance and romantic comedies, and Jane Austen is my most re read author. Though there are a few of the books listed below that  I really enjoyed and I would love to read more works written by the author.

The Memory Box
by Eva Lesko Natiello

Sovereign’s Wake (In The Absence of Kings, #1)

by Lee LaCroix *

Before the Door Closes: A Daughter’s Journey with Her Alcoholic Father

By Judith Hall Simon – I found this book both informative and revealing in how compassionate Judith was.

War Brides

by Helen Bryan *

I really loved this book and recommend it to all women who love reading about this period in history.

The Witches

by Roald Dahl /  Another favorite author of mine. His adult stories are dark and vivid.

The Seventh Seal (The Chronicles of Daniel Stone, #1)

by A.J. Dobbs * Yes I must read #2

Regarding Anna

by Florence Osmund *

Why Does My Book Not Sell? 20 Simple Fixes

by Rayne Hall

The main reason why I am currently looking for a proof reader.

Beetlebrow

by Ben Parker *

Mane of Redemption

by Aaron D. Brinker *

Every Body’s Guide to Everyday Pain

by Ya-Ling J. Liou *

Following the authors advice my husbands aches and pains are fading and he is back exercising once more.

The White Seahorse

by Eleanor Fairburn

The Last September

by Elizabeth Bowen

Sweet Sorrow

by Tricia Drammeh *

Magic Edge (Dragon Born Alexandria, #1)

by Ella Summers * Yes I must read #2

Bentwhistle the Dragon in a Threat from the Past

by Paul Cude *  Yes I must read #2

Anti Aging – Stop That Ticking Clock: Natural Ways to Staying Healthier Looking Younger

Lord of the Abbey (Lords of Avalon #1)

by K.R. Richards  Yes I will read #2

When Love Takes Over

by Caroline Grace-Cassidy

If you have read a really good or funny book please let me know and I will seek it out to read.

So ..I have written a book for kids, what next?

The simple answer would or should be, write another one. And there are five or six books written but not edited sitting in a neat queue somewhere in my desk.

However, I am stuck on the marketing and shouting about the first one.

If I constantly blog about it, – am I seeming too pushy? I dither on this question. But you guys are truthfully the only ones who read my ramblings, and for that I am extremely grateful.  So please let me know if I am pushing it a bit.

Blogging, twittering, FB and G+ are very time-consuming events. Which limits time for other important stuff. The only one in my house who loves to see me head for the computer is – Bob.

He assumes his best-loved position. Sorry there are two:

Everyone else groans, (including Ellie) as they know I will be superglued to the seat until I have set up x amount of promotional posts.

And lastly for today my promotional push is:

The Runaway Schoolhouse is on Kindle for €0.99 ($0.99) for the next week, in the hope that a few reviews will float or clunk (be thrown) my way.

The purpose of the reviews for me is to help discover the fate of the other books gathering dust in my desk. Do I continue to publish or simply to blog?