Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Writers' Tips and Meet MG Author Ann Searle Horowitz

Welcome to Carpinello's Writing Pages!

We love bringing you new publications from author friends and introducing you to new authors. Authors here write childrens/MG/YA books, unless we are hosting special promos like Great Summer Reads 2020 which just finished.

Before we meet today's author, here are some Writing Tips from authors interviewed in 2019.


Keep persevering, write a little everyday and find people to read your books who will tell you the truth. It’s hard finding people who will point out the faults in your work...Sarah Sanchez, author of the MG fantasy The Portal Keeper.


Read a lot in your genre. Also, keep writing and finish your first draft. Even on the days that you will feel discouraged, just take a deep breath and don't give up...Flavia Labre, author of the MG adventure The Eighth Chamber.


And Now, 

Please welcome MG Fantasy author Ann Searle Horowitz to Carpinello's Writing Pages.


Here's a bit about Ann:

I was a high school All American swimmer. I’m also a mother of multiples. So no surprise when I admit to knowing far too much about goggles and the twin bond, both of which provided inspiration for Trident. When I’m not working on its sequel, I coach YMCA swimming, play team tennis, and hang out with my husband and three kids at our home just outside of New York City. As a young reader I could often be found in my basement fort, bingeing on Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys mysteries.

Why did you choose to write for MG?
 
My twin sons, who just turned 21, were huge fans of the fantasy-adventure genre. When they were in elementary school, they were ready for MG stories before they were capable of reading them themselves. I read the Harry Potter series and then Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance cycle (starting with Eragon) to them every night and became addicted to middle grade. I continued reading the genre after my sons were able to read it on their own. Writing it felt like the next logical step.

What types of books do you like to read, and what do you do when you are not writing?

I’m a voracious reader of all genres (usually two books going at once—one stays upstairs, one downstairs), but especially love psychological thrillers and mysteries: current mystery author faves include John Verdon, Camilla Lackberg, and Louise Penny.

When I’m not writing, I enjoy my job coaching a YMCA swim team, as well as playing team tennis in several leagues. I’m also an internet tech start-up advisor for a tennis app that’s about to launch worldwide, and a student of Tai Chi.

Tell us about Trident and how the story came to be.

Like many authors before me, I followed Mark Twain’s advice to “write what you know” with Trident.
Some story ideas came from people and experiences in my own life: Trident is about a competitive swimmer; its protagonists are twins. And Richard’s goal at the beginning of the book is to qualify for the Junior Olympics, which my son competed in during high school.

An important theme in Trident is pulled from my involvement as an athlete and as a coach: Positive affirmations. Athletes use these all the time to achieve out-of-reach goals. In Trident, Richard uses them to save his life.

But the story isn’t all about my experiences—not even close. Richard and his twin, Lucy, are named after characters from 50s TV sitcom I Love Lucy. And I definitely haven’t been attacked by a shapeshifter—yet.

Trident’s main story and setting inspiration came from two subjects that intersect right at my mythology nerd sweet spot: The Greek god, Poseidon, and the Lost City of Atlantis.

Although written for readers age 8-12, Trident is building an unanticipated but welcome adult following.

Here's a peek at Trident:


Twelve-year-old Richard Tomlin has almost given up on finding his dad. Instead, he focuses all of his energy on being the youngest swimmer ever on his team to qualify for Junior Olympics.

But everything changes when his new goggles transport him to the Lost City of Atlantis!

Confronting shapeshifters and dark magical forces, Richard channels his inner science geek and the power of positive thinking to stay alive. As he struggles to tame the magic of his goggles, his strong-willed twin, Lucy, finds a way to join him under the sea, and the siblings are thrust into the War of Generations.

To win the war—and save the planet—Richard must embrace his role in an ancient prophecy. Problem is, the prophecy appears to predict his own death. So what’s a warrior to do?

How do you go about researching for your stories?

For Trident, I re-read the myths of the Lost City of Atlantis and Poseidon that I had devoured as a middle school reader, read Plato’s dialogues that mention Atlantis, and sorted through conflicting theories penned by diverse scholars about the Lost City. I also read every picture book about Atlantis that I could get my hands on.

Have you written other books? If so, tell us a bit about them.

Trident is my debut novel. However, other published work includes essays in parenting magazines, and short stories for children.

What’s next for your writing? Are you working on a new story?

I started writing the sequel before Trident was published; the positive momentum carried me from one story to the next. But due to a last-minute change I made to the ending of Trident, I’m now re-writing early parts of the sequel, in which Richard’s sister, Lucy, has her own heroic adventure.

What advice do you have for other authors?

First, write short stories or articles to practice your craft, and submit them to print and online magazines; they have word count requirements that force you to become a better editor.
Second, write what you’re passionate about, and use your own life experiences to create authenticity.

Anything else you want readers to know?

Before signing off, I’ll leave you with some fun then-and-now trivia.

Then: Fishermen in the ancient world caught tuna with a (you guessed it) trident. Cool, right?

Now: People still believe that Atlantis was real. And people keep looking for it, somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.

Where can readers find you and your books?
Visit for short stories, trivia, events, and fun facts about Trident.



Trident:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

And on the shelves at Arcade Booksellers in Rye, NY.


Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Loving the Book's Blitz of The Shadow of the Tudor Rose by Wendy Leighton-Porter

Carpinello's Writing Pages is excited to welcome back MG author and great friend Wendy Leighton-Porter and her favorite book in her popular Shadows of the Past series. I can't say enough good things about Wendy's books. I'm sure you'll enjoy learning about The Shadow of the Tudor Rose.




A graduate of Exeter University in the early 1980s, I spent 20 years as a teacher of French, Latin and Classical studies, before a change of career led me to writing children's fiction. Currently residing in Abu Dhabi, I live with my husband and our beautiful Tonkinese cat.

The Shadow of Atlantis is the first in a series of time-travel adventures, featuring 3 children and a rather special cat called Max. I'm now working on the 17th book, The Shadow of the Great Fire. The series also includes several novellas that feature Max the talking Tonkinese cat undertaking solo adventures. As I take my young readers on a magical mystery tour through the past, I'm hoping that my love of history, myth and legend will rub off on them too.




In 1588, a plot to invade England and overthrow Queen Elizabeth the First is about to unfold. At this crucial moment in English history, four visitors from the future arrive in Elizabethan London. 

Twins Joe and Jemima Lancelot, together with their friend Charlie and their talking cat Max, embark upon their next journey into the past as they continue the search for their missing parents who are lost somewhere in the mists of time.

Finding themselves at the heart of a web of conspiracy, can the young time-travellers solve the mystery of the Tudor Rose?






Goodreads ~



Top Ten List:


1. I have lived in Abu Dhabi in the UAE for the past 6 and a half years. The next book in my series (number 18)  - The Shadow of the Shifting Sands -  is set out here.

2. Although I’m originally from the UK, my permanent home is in France. When we first moved in, we discovered we were sharing the house with a previous occupant – it’s haunted!

3. I became a full-time writer after a career of teaching French, Latin and Classical Studies, but at the age of 5, my dream job was to be Dr Who's assistant (a famous TV show in the UK) - I must have been into time-travel even back then!

4. If I could meet any famous figure from History it would be King Richard III – I’d like to know what really happened to his nephews, the two princes in the Tower.

5. I would dearly love to be able to time-travel. If I could choose just one place to visit, it would be the Ancient Roman city of Pompeii, on the proviso that I could escape before Mount Vesuvius erupted. 

6. I love Tonkinese cats. My feline hero, Max (short for Maximus), is a prime specimen of a large lilac male, based on my own cat.

7. I have a genuine phobia of snakes. When I encountered a snake in my living room in France, I think they probably heard my screams in the next valley!

8. I was once involved in a high-speed crash whilst riding a camel in Cairo … and, unfortunately, I had a party of my students with me to witness it, so it was quite embarrassing! 

9. I believe in being a lifelong learner. You’re never too old to learn, be it a foreign language or a new skill. I’m a recent convert to kayaking – I never realised how much fun it is. I’m still trying to get to grips with Arabic, though, despite being a linguist. It’s a hard language to master and I can manage a few key phrases, but it hasn’t helped that everyone speaks such brilliant English out here!

10. I love baking. Mince pies at Christmas time are one of my particular specialities, and I even won a pie-making contest for my French Onion Tart a couple of years ago! During the recent lockdown, I seemed to go into baking overdrive  - self-isolation has not been good for the waistline!


To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page

 


Friday, June 19, 2020

Great Summer Reads, Day 15, with Cheryl Carpinello

Carpinello's Writing Pages Presents the Final Day of the Great Summer Reads with, guess who? Me!! Remember, I'm the bookends of this event,  and I return now with more Arthurian Legend.

So, Enjoy Day 15!






I’m a retired high school English teacher. A devourer of books growing up, my profession introduced me to writings and authors from times long past. Through my studies and teaching, I fell in love with the Ancient and Medieval Worlds. Now, I hope to inspire young readers and those Young-at-Heart to read more through my Tales and Legends for Reluctant Readers set in these worlds—Ancient Egypt, Medieval Wales, and coming soon, a hair-raising adventure through ancient worlds in search of 5 rare Phoenix Feathers.

All of my books come with Free study guides and/or extensive Back-of-the-Book materials.

My husband and I love to travel. In 2008, we spent three weeks in Egypt traveling by local train from one end of the country to the other; in 2014, we spent three weeks in the UK driving over 1700 miles through England, Wales, and Scotland; and in 2016, we spent a week in Iceland. We’ve also traveled to Mexico, Jamaica, and Aruba. Our next big adventure will be to Greece and Italy.

When I’m not writing or traveling, our 4 grandkids keep us busy.



Facebook ~ Goodreads ~ 
Amazon ~
Twitter ~ Pinterest ~



Three Friends
Three Quests
Three Mysterious Predictions
Gavin, Philip, and Bryan bravely vow to clear their friend of murder by taking the Knight’s Oath and embarking on individual quests to save The Wild Man. In the end, each one faces their fears and even death in their determination not to fail.
And one will have to disclose the biggest secret of all.
Join Gavin, Phillip, and Bryan on their quests and share the adventures that await them in the land of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.

    




Top Ten List:

Favorites

1. Things I like to do when not writing:

I enjoy traveling—I will travel anywhere, any time; reading; spending time with my family; and working in the yard. I’m definitely not a housekeeper.

2. How I relax:

Sitting on the beach in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico!

3. My favorite color:

Blue’s always been my favorite color. It’s the color of my eyes, of the sky, and of the ocean.

4. My favorite drink:

Just can’t pass up a good margarita!

5. My favorite snack:

I devour nachos and Auntie Anne’s pretzels!

6. My your favorite movies:

Star Wars, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, and The Mummy. I’ve watched each of these so many times that I’ve lost track, and my husband shakes his head when he sees one on and says, “Really?” I just smile.

7. I am a night owl:

I don’t usually go to sleep until midnight, and now that I’m retired, I’m comfortable not seeing the sun come up in the morning:)

8. My favorite food:

That would be a smothered shredded beef burrito followed by coconut ice cream.

9. My favorite concerts:

Elton John, Sting, Paul McCartney, and Mumford & Sons.

10. If I could live anywhere, it would be in Colorado.

We have the best weather—All four seasons. I live next to the foothills, and a drive up in the Rockies is a cure for any ailment. I can see the world famous Red Rock Amphitheater from my couch, and if the wind is just right, we can hear the concerts. My immediate family is all here, except for one sister who lives in Texas, poor soul. In addition to being a retired teacher, I’m also a retired airline employee. So, when I need a change, it’s so easy just to hop a plane and go to the beach.




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 






Thursday, June 18, 2020

Great Summer Reads, Day 14, with Zina Abbott

 Carpinello's Writing Pages presents Day 14 of Loving the Book's Great Summer Reads with YA western writer Zina Abbott (aka Robyn Echols). Welcome back Zina and Robyn!


So Enjoy Day 14!




My name is Robyn Echols. Zina Abbott is the pen name I use for my American historical romance novels. I’m a member of Women Writing the West and Western Writers of America, and American Night Writers Association. I currently live with my husband in California’s central valley near the “Gateway to Yosemite.”
I love to read, quilt, work with digital images on my photo editing program, and work on my own family history.
I am a blogger. In addition to my own blog, I blog for several group blogs including the Sweet Americana Sweethearts blog, which I started and administer.




~ Facebook ~ Website ~
~ Amazon ~ Blog
Pinterest ~ Goodreads
 ~  Newsletter ~ Booklinker ~


Roslyn Welsh is sent by stagecoach to Junction City to marry a man with whom her aunt and guardian, without Roslyn’s knowledge, had been corresponding. His requirements for a wife were that she must be at least twenty-one years of age with a family Bible for proof, and she must have no children. Only, Roslyn is not quite twenty-one, she has a baby, and her aunt has no intention of sending the family Bible with her. The marriage prospect turns into a disaster. Stuck in a strange town with no money, she is told there is no work for a decent woman with a baby. To allow herself time to figure what to do with her future, Roslyn accepts an offer to ride the stagecoach to the Ellsworth B.O.D. Stagecoach station to help the stationmaster’s wife.
        Elam Stewart survived the American Civil War, but his left leg from above the knee down did not. With no home to return to and realizing there are very few people willing to hire a man with only one good leg, he’s convinced he has no future. While working as a day laborer in the local Junction City livery, he becomes intrigued by a visitor named Ross who is anxious to spend time with the horses. Elam discovers Ross’s secret. Then he learns where Ross intends to seek work. Even though he does not have a future, he does have a Spencer repeating rifle. He can have a purpose.
        Roslyn and Elam ride the same stagecoach to the Ellsworth Station on the Kansas frontier. Between resentments among the stock tenders, difficulties with animals that pass through the station, and the threat of attacks by the Cheyenne Native Americans, is there a future for Roslyn and Elam at the station? Or will their future take them on another stagecoach ride away from Ellsworth?
        Please look for my other two books in the Widows, Brides & Secret Babies series, Mail Order Lorena and Mail Order Penelope, that will be published this summer. The three stories are related and part or all of them involve  the stagecoaches and stations on the Kansas frontier in the late 1860s.




Top Ten List:

1.  My faith and attending Church
2.  My family
3.  Writing
4.  Reading books
5.  Dark chocolate (There is a symbiotic relationship between 3, 4, & 5)
6.  Road trips with my husband
7.  Attending writing conventions (6 & 7 are also related)
8.  Quilting
9.  Digital photo-editing
10.  Genealogy




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 






Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Great Summer Reads, Day 13, with Nichole Giles


 Carpinello's Writing Pages presents Day 13 of Loving the Book's Great Summer Reads with Fantasy writer Nichole Giles. I wonder if it's true that she's ridden a unicorn...!


So Enjoy Day 13!




Nichole Giles, author of the Descendant trilogy, and the Water So Deep series, has lived in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and Texas. 

She is a fan of all things paranormal and magical, and her dreams include raising a garden full of fairies, riding a unicorn, and taming the pet dragon she adopted at a local Convention. 

She loves to spend time with her grown children and two grand-babies, travel to tropical and exotic destinations, drive with her convertible top down—even when it rains—and play music at full volume so she can sing along.




~ Facebook ~ Website ~
~ Amazon ~



Caspian is looking for his mother. Snatched from the beach as a child and raised as a half-breed Mer-Prince in the long-lost city of Atlantis, his turn to rule is coming fast. Caspian learns that the Mer in Oceania have found a method to visit land—a practice forbidden in Atlantis—and later return to the sea. Unfortunately, the “magic” method involves poison so potent that only half-breeds with undamaged lungs can survive it. When his Sea King father forces Caspian’s engagement to a mermaid he can’t stand, Caspian decides it’s time to go in search of his human roots, and the woman who gave him life.

Elise has nothing left to lose, except the house she grew up in and a beat-up classic car her father had intended to restore. While her friends leave home for college and abroad, she’s stuck waitressing at The Sea Turtle, begging for enough hours to pay her power bill, and using her lunch breaks to place flowers on her parents’ graves. Not only is she not looking for love—she’s not even looking for friendship. Loss is something she knows too much of, and she can’t survive any more. But when she finds a mysterious stranger wandering the cemetery, she takes pity on the pathetic soul and brings him to her work where she can feed him a solid meal.

The innocent meeting turns into an unbreakable bond, and sets off a chain of events that leaves them both questioning their place in the world—be it land or sea—and discovering just how essential love and family can be.
     




Top Ten List:

10 Random Facts about Nichole Giles

1.I am the oldest of eleven children: two biological sisters, four biological brothers, and four step-brothers. 
2.I don’t like to read books that don’t involve some kind of romance, kissing scenes included.
3.I must have lived during the regency period in a past life, because I love corset-style dresses and costumes. For Halloween, I’ll probably dress up, even though my kids won’t. 
4.My favorite food in the world is steamed snow crab. Even better if it’s Cajun spiced!
5.Whenever I struggle with creating or writing, I like to go for a drive with my convertible top down. I’ve even been known to do this with snow flurries in the air. 
6.Nichole’s ultimate dream house: on a white-sand beach, with lots of windows, palm trees in the yard, a huge patio, and within walking distance to a number of friends’ homes. Also near great shopping. It should also have a dedicated library where I can write.
7.I have a growing collection of fairies and mermaids. Statues, paintings, miniatures, etc. I love to be surrounded by fantastical creatures.
8.When I was in high school in Arizona, my friends and I haunted a local hangout, where I became highly proficient at playing, and winning, air hockey. 
9.During my junior year, I had the opportunity to go to New York with my choir, where we sang in Carnegie Hall. We also toured the city, largely without supervision. #shenanigans
10.I have kissed a stingray, petted a shark, high-fived a sea otter, and hugged a dolphin, and spied seahorses and lobsters in the wild, but I have never wrestled an alligator or tried to housebreak a lion—and I don’t think I ever will. 
Thanks for hanging out with me for ten random facts. You can learn more about me and my books at www.nicholegiles.blogspot.com




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 






Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Great Summer Reads, Day 12, with Donna Hatch


 Carpinello's Writing Pages presents Day 12 of Loving the Book's Great Summer Reads with writer Donna Hatch. She is a love of all arts as you will see.


So Enjoy Day 12!






Multi-award-winning author of 25 best-selling Regency Historical Romances, Donna Hatch is a hopeful romantic and an adventurer at heart. Each book she writes is filled with wit and heart and plenty of swoon-worthy romance. Donna sings, plays the harp, and loves to ballroom dance. Her family, including six children and two cats, recently left their native Arizona for the Pacific coast of the US. No matter where they live, she and her husband of over twenty years are proof that there truly is a happily ever after.






Facebook ~ Website ~ 
Amazon ~
Goodreads ~ Twitter ~





The widowed Elise is a perfect English lady living within the confines of society for the sake of her impressionable young son. Her quiet world is shattered when she meets the impulsive and scandalous Jared Amesbury. His roguish charm awakens her yearning for adventure. But his irrepressible grin and sea-green eyes hide a secret.

A gentleman by day, a pirate by night, Jared must complete one last assignment from the Secret Service before he can be truly free. Elise gives him hope that he, too, can find love and belonging. His hopes are crushed when his best laid plans go awry and Elise is dragged into his world of violence and deceit. She may not survive the revelation of Jared's past...or still love him when the truth is revealed.

The Guise of a Gentleman is a wholesome Regency Romance, a.k.a. "clean" that explores finding one's true self, loyalty, honor, and trusting loved ones. With plenty of swashbuckling action, it provides a several good twists that play off of familiar situations and proudly proclaims the redemptive power of love. 







Top Ten List:

Donna’s Top 10 Favorite Things to do in the Summer
1. Go for long walks with a friend
2. Have a tea party
3. Go to the beach
4. Build sandcastles
5. Watch the sunset
6. Visit gardens
7. Make ice cream
8. Hike with my family
9. Play miniature golf
10. Read a good book
 (Actually, I love doing most of these in the winter, too.)





To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page