New England Publishing Conference

More information on this conference can be found at: www.ipne.org

More on Walker Author Tours

My name is Jennifer Walker, and I am a published author (Bubba Goes National and Bubba to the Rescue), a full-time freelance writer (http://www.authorjennwalker.com), the owner of Walker Author Tours (http://services.authorjennwalker.com) and President of Your Document Professionals (http://www.yourdocumentpros.com). In between all of that, I also find time to ride my horse, an Arabian stallion named Solo (http://www.capthansolo.com) and pursue my passion for Argentine Tango, West Coast Swing, and Ballroom dancing. Whew! Am I a busy girl? You bet. How do I find time for it all? I'm not exactly sure, but being self employed gives me a lot of flexibility, and that helps a ton.

Walker Author Tours is a virtual book tour venture I've been working on for almost a year. It took me months to gather bloggers willing to participate in virtual tours, figure out how the tours would work to give authors the best value for the money, and build the website. However, it is all finally up and running, and we are running our first tour this week! Stop by the Elements of the Soul tour page (http://services.authorjennwalker.com/2011/02/05/elements-of-the-soul-book-tour/) to check out some of the stops. The tour will run for two weeks, so you'll get a chance to read reviews from a variety of readers, as well as interviews with the various contributors to this eclectic anthology of short stories and poems.

I'll be stopping by Feathered Quill 's blog from time to time to share book news, let you know about great new books to read that come through Walker Author Tours, and muse about my life as a full-time writer. Have questions for me?  Feel free to comment, and I'll try to get back to you!

Friday Finds

Friday Finds is hosted

by Should Be Reading

Unprotected Love A serial killer is on the loose stalking and murdering young male hustlers and depositing their bodies at New York City riverside locations. The predator displays his prey by reverentially laying out each body like the deceased in a casket and decorates them by placing wrapped condoms in their mouths. Lieutenant Denny Delaney, the celebrated detective who brought down the dreaded terrorist, Felix the Cat, heads the NYPD special ops squad investigating the homicides. Experts school him into the arcane world of johns and hustlers, and Denny gets to know and care for one hustler named Tim who alters his life. Denny's wife Monny runs a popular web blog and receives scary e-mails from someone who knows far too much about the serial-killer case and the Delaneys' private lives. Denny has to deal with dead-end leads, police department infighting, and while assigned TDY with the FBI, he gets personally involved in a suicide bomber case, and with some provocateurs who seek to reignite the Felix hysteria. This is the third book in the popular series about this Manhattan detective that began with the thriller Nine Lives Too Many. Get ready for one of Rooney's absorbing reading odysseys full of surprises, an epiphany or two, and some fascinating revelations into Denny's libido.

The White Devil Joe Hill’s Horns meets Donna Tartt’s The Secret History in this bold new thriller from Justin Evans, author of the critically acclaimed A Good and Happy Child. When seventeen-year-old Andrew Taylor is transplanted from his American high school to a British boarding school—a high-profile academy for the sons of England’s finest—his father hopes that the boy’s dark past will not follow him from across the Atlantic. But blood, suspense, and intrigue quickly surround Andrew once again as he finds himself struggling with a deadly mystery left unsolved by a student from Harrow School’s past—the enigmatic poet Lord Byron.

Devil Wind Outspoken, brash New Yorker Sammy Greene needs a second chance. Fired from her job as a Washington TV producer, her midnight to 3 am show "Sammy Greene on the LA Scene" at a small progressive radio station soon has Sammy ruffling the feathers of a popular Orange County Congressman. And everyone is listening.December, 1999. 10 days before the new millennium. Already on edge with Santa Ana "devil wind" fanning fires threatening to engulf the city and Y2K looming, Sammy's callers imagine Armageddon - the perfect setting for a rogue CIA operative to manipulate fears as cover for his deadly plot.A young woman's burned body identified as the wayward daughter of old friend, Gus Pappajohn spurs the ex- campus cop to join Sammy in what may be a murder investigation, along the way exposing the seamy underbelly of Tinseltown. If Sammy's not careful this time, someone will make sure she's off the air for good.

Ghost Huntress Book 5: The Discovery After some time off, Kendall’s ready to begin ghost hunting again. But her life is still in flux. She misses Patrick, her new love. She needs to find a photographer to replace Taylor. Plus, she may have discovered who her real father is, but to be sure, she has to convince his family she’s not a fake. And then there’s a certain doll that seems to be out to get her and her friends. A doll? How could that be? Unless, perhaps, it’s not just a doll. Maybe it’s a vessel containing the soul of a man so evil in life, not even death could stop his reign of terror. This could be Kendall’s most terrifying and deadliest encounter yet.

Tasting the Universe: People who see colors in words and rainbows in symphonies What happens when a journalist turns her lens on a mystery happening in her own life? Maureen Seaberg did just that and lived for a year exploring her synesthesia. The wondrous brain trait is often described as blended senses, but in Maureen's quest, becomes much more: a window to creativity and the divine. Join her as she visits top neuroscientists, rock stars, violinists, other synesthetes, philosophers, savants, quantum physicists and even Tibetan lamas in her journey toward the truth.

Inside New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Brenda Novak has penned over 40 novels. A two-time Rita nominee, she's won The National Reader's Choice, The Bookseller's Best, The Bookbuyer's Best and many other awards. She runs an annual on-line auction for diabetes research every May at www.brendanovak.com. To date, she’s raised over $1 million. Brenda considers herself lucky to be a mother of five and married to the love of her life.

Killing Me softly Charles Fox has composed more than 100 motion picture and television scores, among them the themes of many iconic series, including Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Love, American Style, and Love Boat. Twice nominated for the Academy Award and a two-time Emmy winner, Fox has also written music for the concert hall and the ballet. Among the hundreds of songs he has written is the Grammy Award-winning 'Killing Me Softly with His Song,' a number one record in just about every country in the world, by two different artists: Roberta Flack in 1973 and the Fugees, 20 years later. In this memoir, Fox recounts his development as a musician, beginning with his formal music education in Paris. From letters he wrote home between 1959 and 1961, Fox recounts his studies under the tutelage of the most renowned music composition teacher of the 20th century, Nadia Boulanger, whose influence Fox carried throughout his entire professional career. Following his return to the states, Fox describes the cornerstone events of his musical and personal life. He reflects on the highlights of his career, working with some of the greatest names in entertainment, film, television, and records, including Jim Croce, Barry Manilow, Lena Horne, and Fred Astaire. Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004 and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Composers & Lyricists, Fox's memoir is a compelling story of a musician and composer whose work continues to entertain and inspire listeners around the world.

Princess Zaara and the Enchanted Forest A captivating and magical tale, Princess Zaara and the Enchanted Forest, by children's author Umbreen Asghar is the sort of tale that sparks the imagination and fuels a child's curiosity. With lavish, highly stylized illustrations by Diane Lucas, this beginning children's book introduces a curious Spanish princess named Zaara. She's seven and the only thing she wants in the whole wide kingdom is to explore the forest that is just beyond her empire, so when she gets a chance, she jumps at it. She discovers that the forest is all she has ever heard or dreamed about, and there in the mesmerizing dark folds, keeping her royal lineage a secret, she makes friends. They're a curious lot. There's Morgan the Giant, Elvin the Elf, Banji the Bear and Tiffany-Annabel, all who bring something special to the group. When an evil wood spirit puts a spell on her new pals, Zaara shows courage and tenacity befitting the best sort of princess-the kind that is a friend first.

The Lone Sap State

The Lone Sap State - by Amy Lignor of The Write Companion
 Leaving the world of Yankee”dom” behind - tired of the ridiculous amounts of snow that made us into depressed, Vitamin-D deprived zombies - my daughter and I set out on the road to explore new destinations and meet interesting, exciting people. One of the most educational parts for me during our adventures was learning early on, that although we are all Americans, per se, the people, culture and societies are very different as you travel North to South and East to West. The way children are raised differs from town to town and coast to coast with generations that have gone before leaving behind very specific ways of doing things. Take education for example. I have to tell you…I have no clue why phonics came into being. I suppose there are a ton of studies out there that show you it’s easier for a child to learn by sounding a word out like l-e-fant, but then the child has to learn it all over again anyway in order to spell the word correctly in the first place. Seems a little odd to me. Wouldn’t it be easier to learn how to spell it right the first time? I mean even the word phonics isn’t spelled phonetically…so you figure it out.
 
As my daughter and I moved from north to south, I slowly began to realize odd things such as the south seems to still be riled up by the Civil War, beginning with the fact that they still refer to the time period as The War of Northern Aggression.  I never debated the Southerners on this point. Seeing as that I’m Northern and completely filled with aggression, it seemed fair.
 
Don’t get me wrong. I loved the South. We had so much fun there and met an enormous number of unique, unforgettable people. Our Southern Experience first began when my daughter spied a sign off I-40 in Tennessee. There was a town just sort of sitting there beside the highway called Bucksnort. Now Bucksnort is a very small village - like the kind I was born in, actually. Where everyone knew everyone’s name, business, etc. and even when they didn’t actually KNOW it, they made it up. Bucksnort had no post office and its claim to fame was that a couple of wrestlers called it home. My daughter absolutely loved this town. In fact, she begged to get off the highway in order to see the village and for years after begged me to go back to ‘Bugsnot.’ (Don’t take this as a jibe, people. This was a five-year-old and that’s just the way she read it…phonetically perhaps?)
 
Moving on, we finally settled for the first time in the "Big D."  Dallas, Texas was a fantastical place in the eyes of a child - like Oz. The big buildings, the highways filled with traffic, and the huge Reunion Ball blinking on and off at night as if it were a beacon to all us vagabonds calling us home. Dallas encompasses years of our lives that were filled every single day with something different. There, I found out the definition of "being as angry as a ruptured duck." I was once asked where I was from - replied, "New England," and watched a strange confused look cross the questioner’s face who then said, "That’s funny…you don’t sound British." I was also sat down by someone who explained to me, as if I was a three-year-old needing a guiding hand, that Dallas and Fort Worth were definitely NOT the same area, even though the airport is most definitely called DFW. I was educated on the difference between the high society of Dallas and what she referred to as the ‘horse-people’ who settled the Forth Worth area. By the way, to be fair, a gentleman from Ft. Worth referred to the people of Dallas as a "little slower" than the rest of the world - so opinions were many. And I will always remember the time in the Texas stadium when my daughter made sure, in her loudest voice, that everyone there knew I was a 49’ers fan. (How we survived that day…I’ll never know.) I rolled my eyes a great deal, furrowed my brow a lot, but ended up absolutely loving the citizens who crossed my path. These colorful characters were just what a boring Northern girl filled with aggression needed to be exposed to. Not to mention, the polite manners - with a please, thank you, excuse me - which were always delivered with a shiny smile and a bright and happy ‘y’all’ made me truly wonder how the Texas-Cheerleader-Murdering Mom ever came into being.
 
When we left the area, we wanted to take something that would always remind us of the laughter and fun we had there. Entering a mall filled with tchotchkes (chach-KEEs)…see the phonics there? I stumbled across something that really fit. Picking up a shot glass, I adjusted my glasses and focused on the familiar star imprinted in gold. Underneath the iconic symbol was written, "Thank you for visiting the Lone Sap State." I still have this item, and when I look at it I think back to all those characters. I nod my head and miss those good-hearted people who definitely had their own way of getting across their ideas. I always give them the benefit of the doubt, though. After all…perhaps it was just phonics gone awry.
 
Next Week: An Ode to Fathers

Walker Author Tours

Walker Writing Services announces a new service for writers – Walker Author Tours

FOLSOM, USA – Walker Writing Services announces an exciting new service for authors: Walker Author Tours. Virtual book tours are the wave of the twenty-first century, an effective and affordable way to get the word out about new books. Walker Author Tours offers this alternative to the traditional book tour for a bargain price.

The Walker Writing Services website, http://services.authorjennwalker.com, has a Pre-tour Checklist, Tips for the Author and a full description of the details of what the virtual book tour entails. The virtual Walker Author Tour includes a multi-pronged approach to raising the visibility of new books. It includes a tour page created for the author, a personalized tour graphic, press releases posted through various press release sites, and promotion on Facebook and Twitter. The tour itself includes stops all over the Internet in the form of book reviews, author interviews, and guest posts on book-related blogs, where, typically, the information will remain searchable for years to come. 

Walker Author Tours provides personal service and support throughout the process, keeping the author comfortable and informed. Through this service, the details of the book tour are completely customizable for the individual author. There are several packages available for a range of budgets. Additional services, including completely personalized author websites and professionally produced book trailers, are available for purchase.

It takes continuous promotion to keep the word out about a book and drive sales. Walker Author Tours is a resource aimed at authors’ particular needs for a price that fits a range of budgets. For more information, visit http://services.authorjennwalker.com.

Shopping at Borders

How depressing!  Yesterday, on a family trip to the local mall, we stopped at Borders.  I was curious because while looking for parking spots upon our arrival at the mall, several people were holding big signs - "Borders - Going Out of Business - Everything Must Go!"  I wanted to check out the sale.

Apparently, the "Going Out of Business" sale had been going on for a week or more.  Many sections of the store were empty, others had books and other things thrown all over the place.  The cute little corner coffee shop was shut down and all sorts of fixtures were scattered about, with bright orange price tags on each.  Literally everything was on sale.

How sad.  Another book store chain dying.  I'd like to think this means rise to the "Mom and Pop" small, local book stores that have taken such a hit in this internet age, but I suspect it simply means more power to the Internet sellers.  It wasn't much fun walking through that Borders although I admit to picking up a few books I was interested in at great prices and yes, I bought a "fixture" - a solid-oak table top book display that will make a great addition to my table display at book signings.  But I will miss trudging down to our local Borders to check out the newest arrivals.  Whaddya think - is Barnes & Noble next?

Friday Finds is hosted

by Should Be Reading

Finding Faith The Great Depression played no favorites-a fact that thirteen-year-old Faith Covington finds out when her father loses his job and she and her mother are transplanted from their upscale neighborhood in New York City to a farm in the Pennsylvania wilderness. As Faith struggles to learn a new way of life-and ultimately to figure out who she is, her faith is challenged by new customs and by a plot she stumbles upon that threatens the whole community. How will she respond when she comes face to face with racism, persecution, and greed? Will her faith hold up? She'll have to dig deeper, pray harder, and take more chances than she ever thought imaginable to discover those answers.

Rambling Squirrel A whimsical story about a young squirrel and his journeys outside his home. Beautiful, full color illustrations captivate the reader and the storyline is peppered with amazing squirrel facts.

Lessons from the Mountain In this strikingly honest book, McDonough shares the story of her overnight transformation from a normal kid in a working class, Irish Catholic family, to a Hollywood child star. She reveals intimate memories of life in and around that idyllic Virginia farmhouse (really a Warner Brothers back lot in Burbank) - sneaking off to steal candy from Ike Godsey's store; developing crushes on guest stars; trying to crack up cast members during takes; and, most of all, forming a tight-knit second family who played, worked, hugged, and squabbled together. But in the years that followed the show's long run, as McDonough tried to reinvent herself, she found herself battling depression and personal insecurities amplified by her celebrity. Gradually she gained the courage to stand up not just for herself, but - in true Waltons tradition - for others, taking on a new role as an activist for women's body image issues.

Mothers and Daughters When a box of Iris's belongings arrives on Sam's doorstep, she discovers things about her mother she never knew - or could even guess. But she is puzzled by much of what she finds.

The Last Martin There's always a Martin. One Martin. Martin Boyle already has plenty to worry about. His germaphobic mother keeps him home from school if she hears so much as a sneeze, and his father is always off somewhere reenacting old war battles. Julia, the most beautiful girl in school, won't even speak to Martin, and the gym teacher is officially out to get him. Which is why Martin really doesn't need this curse hanging over his head. On a trip to the family cemetery, Martin wanders among the tombstones of his ancestors and discovers a disturbing pattern: when one Martin is born, the previous Martin dies. And---just his luck---Martin's aunt is about to give birth to a baby boy, who will, according to tradition, be named Martin. Martin must find a way to break the curse, but every clue seems to lead to a dead end. And time is running out.