Purrs of Wisdom ... Words to Live By

◊ PURRS OF WISDOM: Enlightenment, Feline Style by Ingrid King

◊ Paperback: 141 pages

◊ Genre: pets, animal care, essays

◊ Publisher: Passion Fruit Press (June 5, 2016)

◊ Language: English

◊ ISBN-10: 1633532895

◊ ISBN-13: 978-1633532892

SYNOPSIS:

          Ingrid King explores our relationships with cats by combining her professional expertise with compassionate insights into how cats can inspire, soothe and even help heal us. In Purrs of Wisdom, King artfully delivers pearls of wisdom celebrating all our relationships, feline, human or otherwise. You’ll want to savor each chapter and purr-haps revisit those that strike a personal chord.

This book is based on a collection of essays from the author’s blog, The Conscious Cat, that deals with lessons in conscious living. Believing that cats come into our lives to teach us, the author shares tidbits of wisdom highlighting this theory.

As you read through this charming book you can’t help but feel yourself relax a bit. There is something calming about the author’s approach to writing and sharing her insights into how felines impact our lives. Taking lessons from cats, King explains how we can help our health by stretching as our feline friends do and just enjoying the moment rather than over worrying ourselves about what might be.

The book is jammed packed with information and helpful tips, but can be read in just a short time. In addition to the advice, the author has added adorable color photographs of various cats throughout the book. You can’t help but smile looking at the angelic faces of some of these furry four-legged babies.

You don’t have to be a cat owner to enjoy the knowledge this book has to offer. Thought, the author does point out the book is best enjoyed with a cat in your lap. After reading the book you might even be inclined to add another cat or two to your life.

PURRS OF WISDOM might just help you see the world from a different perspective resulting in a more relaxed lifestyle.

Purrs of Wisdom: Enlightenment, Feline Style by Ingrid King, Passion Fruit Press, @2016, ISBN: 978-1633532892, Paperback, 141 Pages

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this book was sent to me by the author. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

WORDS TO LIVE BY: Creative Hand-Lettering, Coloring and Inspirations by Dawn Nicole Warnaar

◊ WORDS TO LIVE BY: Creative Hand-Lettering, Coloring and Inspirations by Dawn Nicole Warnaar

◊ Age Range: 8 – 12 years

◊ Grade Level: 3 - 7

◊ Paperback: 128 pages

◊ Genre: Crafts, Hobbies, Children’s

◊ Publisher: Walter Foster Jr. (March 1, 2016)

◊ Language: English

◊ ISBN-10: 1633221008

◊ ISBN-13: 978-1633221000

SYNOPSIS:

          With step-by-step, hand-lettering lessons and spectacularly illustrated coloring pages, artists of any age can create beautiful works of letter art.

Words to Live By is a unique combination of inspirational quotes, hand-lettering tips and techniques, and fun coloring pages. With easy step-by-step lessons in the art of hand lettering and illustration, artists of any age can learn to create beautiful works of letter art. Also included are 24 inspirational perforated coloring pages that can be personalized and displayed, framed, or given as gifts.

Looking at the book cover, one might think this book is a step-by-step guide to learning hand-lettering. It’s not, but it gives you the basics on which to practice and to develop your own unique style.

The book is designed to inspire you to create on your own. While the author gives some basic techniques and tips to practice, she encourages readers to develop their own unique style by practicing again and again. She urges readers to ‘just create’ as they try their hand at lettering.

The book is nicely designed with several challenges, blank pages for sketching, and a vast array of projects to try. Readers can learn to do DIY postcards, DIY magnets and DIY bookmarks to name a few. There are also numerous coloring book pages where readers can use their imagination to bring them to life with pen and/or paint.

WORDS TO LIVE BY will inspire you and help stimulate your creative side. The book may be geared toward youngsters, but adults will find their inner child coming out as they doodle to unwind after a stressful day.

Words To Live By: Creative Hand-Lettering, Coloring, and Inspirations; Walter Foster Jr.; @2016; ISBN: 978-1633221000; Paperback; 128 Pages 

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this book was sent to me by the publisher in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I do so appreciate it. Have you experienced the adult coloring book phase yet? What about bullet journals? Do you find yourself doodling why you think? Doesn’t the cover of this book just make you smile?

Accessories to the Rescue

GO PUCK Portable Cellphone Battery Charger

With the hectic schedules we all keep these days everyone can use a little help so a few accessories to the rescue is just the ticket.

Thanks to Ivanka and the wonderful folks at OmniiDeals, I had the opportunity to review several of their products that have made my life a bit easier.

GO PUCK 5X Portable Cellphone Battery Charger

◊ Man-Made Materials

◊ Mountable and Wearable, put the power securely where you need it

◊ Dual USB output: Standard and Rapid Charging at up to 2 Amps

◊ Pocket Sized for Portable Power Anywhere

◊ 4 LED State of Charge Indicator

◊ Rugged Design – Shock and Vibration Resistant

◊ Product Dimensions: 1 x 3 x 3 inches

◊ Shipping Weight: 6.6 ounces

By most standards I have an old cellphone – it’s two years old. It’s an Android and I’ve had problems keeping it charged for over a year.

I’ve tried a number of portable chargers but found them more trouble than useful. I always had to make sure I had my original phone charging cord with me. But 95 percent of the time the charger would be dead because the on button had gotten pushed in my purse.

Can charge 2 devices at the same time

When the GO PUCK Portable Charger arrived I was happy to see there were no buttons to push. You just plug the cord in the charge and to your phone and it’s on. Major point in its favor.

Next I decided to try charging my phone with the cord that came with the charger. (The charger comes ready to use, btw.) Image my delight when the phone actually charged. I no longer have to remember to take the original cord along. Another huge point in GO PUCK’s favor.

The charger is lightweight and easy to carry. It recharges my phone in a timely manner without either getting hot to the touch. It can charge my phone twice before it needs to be recharged or it can charge two devices at the same time. GO PUCK is easily recharged using a generic wall adapter (not included).

Overall, I’m extremely pleased with this charger and do highly recommend it as it works on a variety of devices. It would be nice if it came with a small bag of sorts to carry it in, but that just an extra I’d like and doesn’t impact the charger’s overall performance.

FTC Full Disclosure – I was provided the items mentioned above by OmniiDeals. However, the post was written solely by me and all opinions are my own given honestly and freely.

Writeyboard Monthly Calendar

Writeyboard Monthly Calendar

◊ ORGANIZE ANYTHING with this convenient whiteboard for work or home schedules. Perfect for college dorm, kids' chore chart or homework list; even use in the kitchen for menu planning! At a glance month view with writable block space.

◊ EASY INSTALL IN SECONDS with no wrinkles or bubbles. Peels from paper and sticks onto walls smoothly and easily. Adaptive foam backing creates a smooth writing surface.

◊ CLEAN SIMPLE REMOVAL: Just unpeel from wall and roll up for true portability with this simple to use technology. No sticky residue or mess!

◊ CELEBRITY BACKED INNOVATION from Mark Cuban of Shark Tank. EZ install and removal for on-the-go mobility. Great dry erase markers erase with ease. Eco-Friendly.

◊ RE-WRITABLE AND DURABLE for repeated use. No need to constantly replace cheap whiteboards.

Unique way to ship

Needing a calendar to keep track of events and activities is a must to keeping organized. The Writeyboard Wall Calendar is perfect as it allows you to make changes to your schedule with little effort and no mess.

The calendar comes packaged in a decorative plastic tube resembling a marker which protects it from damage in shipping. A dry eraser Squegge comes with it. Measuring 3 feet wide and 2 feet tall, the calendar gives you plenty of room to plan each day’s events.

The calendar is made of good quality, durable plastic. The backing peels off easily and is simple to press onto a wall. It can be removed effortlessly. The smooth writing surface makes it easy to erase. The calendar is perfect for home, office and/or school use.

FTC Full Disclosure – I was provided the items mentioned above by OmniiDeals. However, the post was written solely by me and all opinions are my own given honestly and freely.

Writeyboard Re-Fillable Low Odor Premium Dry Erase Markers Eco-Friendly, 4 Pack

Writeyboard Re-Fillable Premium Dry Erase Markers

◊ QUALITY FIRST: Chisel-tip for smooth writing. Erases cleanly from all whiteboards. Low odor.

◊ CELEBRITY BACKED INNOVATION brand with Mark Cuban of Shark Tank.

◊ EASY USE AND REFILL means NO messy experience or reduced writing quality.
 ◊ ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY: Reloadable, refillable cartridges mean less plastic waste in landfills and less wasted money.

◊ 4 PACK OF PREMIUM MARKERS Writeyboard whiteboard cleaner and additional cartridges sold separately.

Having a good set of dry erase markers is essential to making a dry board work. The Writeyboard Re-Fillable Low Odor Premium Dry Erase Markers do a great job.

The markers are easy to hold and have a chisel tip which allows you to write in both thin and thick styles. The ink flows smoothly and has very little smell. The colors are vibrant. The markers are refillable making them eco-friendlier.

The markers come in a small plastic carrying case with snap closure. They work perfectly with the Writeyboard Monthly Calendar making for a great combination in keeping organized.

FTC Full Disclosure – I was provided the items mentioned above by OmniiDeals. However, the post was written solely by me and all opinions are my own given honestly and freely.

Thanks for dropping by today. I hope I’ve tempted you to check out these products in an effort to become more efficient and organized. What accessories do you use that make your life easier? Have you tried a portable cellphone battery charger yet?

Candidate for Murder {+ Giveaway #Vote4Gnarly}

I’m delighted to be participating in the iRead Spotlight Blog Tour for author Lauren Carr’s latest release, CANDIDATE FOR MURDER.

As part of the tour, you have the opportunity to win a Fire Tablet (open internationally). To find out more about this unique giveaway, please see the end of the post.

Here’s a description of this entertaining story.

It’s election time in Spencer, Maryland, and the race for mayor is not a pretty one. In recent years, the small resort town has become divided between the local year-round residents who have enjoyed their rural way of life and the city dwellers moving into their mansions, taking over the town council, and proceeding to turn Deep Creek Lake into a closed gate community—complete with a host of regulations for everything from speed limits to clothes lines.

          When the political parties force-feed two unsavory mayoral nominees on the town residents, Police Chief David O’Callaghan decides to make a statement—by nominating Gnarly, Mac Faraday’s German shepherd, to run as mayor of Spencer!

          What starts out as a joke turns into a disaster when overnight Gnarly becomes the front runner—at which point his political enemies take a page straight out of Politics 101. What do you do when you’re behind in a race? Dig up dirt on the front runner, of course.

          Seemingly, someone is not content to rest with simply embarrassing the front runner by publicizing his dishonorable discharge from the United States Army, but to throw in a murder for good measure. With murder on the ballot, Mac Faraday and the gang—including old friends from past cases—dive in to clear Gnarly’s name, catch a killer, and save Spencer!

Lauren joins us to answer some questions about her writing. Welcome, Lauren.
 
Where do you write?

Lauren:

I have a writer’s studio on the top floor of my home. It is my space. No one is allowed in it because in my studio—I am completely me—the good-the bad—the messy.

Translation: When I write, I only write. That means I don’t pay attention to dust on my desk or the ringing of the phone. My husband is a former navy officer who sees every speck of dust. So he’s not allowed to enter my studio—because then he would have a stroke and I’d have no one to go out to get food.

Is there a specific ritualistic thing you do during your writing time?

Lauren:

I wouldn’t call it ritualistic, but I do have a tendency to get lost in my book when writing. I mean I can even lose sense of time.

In today’s tech savvy world, most writers use a computer or laptop. Have you ever written parts of your book on paper?

Lauren:

Back in the nineties, before laptops, I would write outlines for my books on yellow notepaper. Rarely would I refer to them. The writing of the outline helped me to sort out the plot in my own mind.

Actually, you would be surprised by how many writers do write in longhand. I once took at survey of the students in a writing class I taught. Half of the students write in long-hand. Me—my handwriting is so bad no one would be able to read it if I wrote in longhand.

What do you think is hardest aspect of writing a book?

Lauren:

Timing. I write full time. However, even so, it is difficult because when I really get going at a certain spot in a storyline and the words are flowing freely, reality will come crashing in. I’m in the middle of a pertinent scene or shootout and suddenly, it’s six o’clock in the evening, I have people bleeding out on the streets, and I’ve taken nothing out of the kitchen to cook for dinner.

Seriously, not only is it frustrating, but it is those types of interruptions that can cause the type of mistakes in continuity that readers may pick up after the book is released. For example, in Kill and Run, in one scene, one reader noticed that Jessica sat down twice during a conversation without standing up before sitting down the second time. 

I have no choice but to blame my family for picking up this nasty habit called eating. It wouldn’t be so bad if they knew how to cook.

What do you know now about writing that you wish you knew when you first started out?

Lauren:

Being an author is a business—treat it like one. When I first started getting published, my husband, who is my business manager and has a law degree in business law, kept telling me that this is a business. He wanted receipts and when I would be offered a personal appearance I would be so excited—until he started asking questions like, “How far away is that? How much gas are you going to use getting there? How many books do you expect to sell? Are we going to make money or lose money?”

I considered him a wet blanket. After all, I was an author—an artist! Once, I accepted a speaking engagement at a library that was over five hours from my home. I drove five hours there in the pouring rain, spoke to a full house. They were so engaged and had so many questions, I was there twenty minutes longer than expected. Then, they all rushed out to borrow my book. I sold one book. I didn’t even make enough money to pay for the gas I used traveling there and back.

Now, I do treat my writing and book promotion like a business. I rarely make public appearances because I get more promotion for my time spent online via blog tours and guest blogs. I’m still an artist—an author, but I’m also a business person.

Do you have any marketing tips you could pass on to indie authors?

Lauren:

Think of marketing as one of those chores that’s all part of the business—not an option. In every profession there are things that you have to do because it is part of taking care of business. Lawyers have to keep up on new laws—otherwise, they could make mistakes that will land their clients in jail. Doctors have to deal with insurance companies and forms or they won’t get paid for their services. 

Authors have to deal with marketing or readers won’t know about their books and if readers don’t know about their books, they won’t buy them. If readers don’t buy your books, then you won’t make money. 

A best-selling author told me to spend one hour a day working on marketing—using social media and the Internet. Within a year of taking her advice, my books started making best-sellers’ lists and I am now in the top-100 police procedural authors on Amazon. I now spent three-four hours a day working on marketing.

What are you working on now?

Lauren:

By the end of summer, September 2016, Lovers in Crime will see the third installment for that series, Killer in the Band. Fans of the Lovers in Crime and the Thorny Rose Mysteries will get to know more about Joshua Thornton Jr (J.J.), Murphy’s identical twin brother and Joshua Thornton’s eldest son. 

J.J. has graduated at the top of his class from law school and is returning home to spend the summer studying for the bar exam. However, to the Thornton’s shock and dismay, J.J. decides to move in with Suellen Russell, a lovely widow twice his age. The move brings long buried tensions between the father and son to the surface. When a brutal killer strikes, the father and son must set all differences aside to solve the crime before J.J. ends up in the crosshairs of a murderer.

In November, fans of the Thorny Rose Mysteries will see the second installment for that series, A Fine Year for Murder. 

Thanks for stopping by Lauren and sharing your writing habits with us. It's always interesting to see how a story comes about.

 

Author Lauren Carr

Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries. The twelfth installment in the Mac Faraday Mystery series, Candidate for Murder was released in June 2016.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, son, and four dogs (including the real Gnarly) on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

For more on Lauren and her writing, visit her website and connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

You can also find out more about Lauren by visiting the following blogs participating in her tour.

June 20 - Working Mommy Journal - book spotlight / giveaway

June 20 - My Journey Back - book spotlight / guest post

June 20 - Books for Books - book spotlight / guest post

June 21 - Christy's Cozy Corners - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

June 21 - fuonlyknew - book spotlight / giveaway

June 22 - Book Crazy Scrapbook Mama - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

June 22 - Book Reviews Nature Photos - book spotlight / author interview

June 23 - Writers and Authors - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

June 23 - Rockin' Book Reviews - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

June 24 - bookmyopia - book spotlight / guest post

June 27 - The Travelogue of a Book Addict - book spotlight / giveaway

June 27 - Nighttime Reading Center - book spotlight

June 28 - Stranded in Chaos - book spotlight / giveaway

June 29 - Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin' - book spotlight

June 29 - The Autistic Gamer - book spotlight

June 30 - Katie's Clean Book Collection - book spotlight / giveaway

June 30 - Tea and A Book - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 1 -     Brooke Blogs - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 1 -     Cheryl's Book Nook - book spotlight / giveaway

July 4 -     Ali - The Dragon Slayer - book spotlight / giveaway

July 4 -     Book and Ink - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

July 5 -     New Horizon Reviews - book spotlight / author interview

July 6 -     Jaquo Lifestyle Magazine - book spotlight / guest post

July 6 -     Library of Clean Reads - book spotlight / giveaway

July 7 -     T's Stuff - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

July 8 -     Words And Peace - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 11 -   StoreyBook Reviews - book spotlight / giveaway

July 12 -   Carole's Book Corner - book spotlight / giveaway

July 13 -   Cassidy Salem Reads & Writes - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 14 -   Christa Reads and Writes - book spotlight

July 15 -   Bound 2 Escape - book spotlight

July 18 -   #redhead.with.book - book spotlight / giveaway

July 18 -   Puddletown Reviews - book spotlight

July 19 -   100 Pages A Day - book spotlight / giveaway

July 19 -   A Mama's Corner of the World - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 20 -   Mystery Suspense Reviews - book spotlight / guest post

July 21 -   Heidi's Wanderings - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 22 -   3 Partners in Shopping - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 25 -   Celticlady's Reviews - book spotlight / giveaway

July 26 -   A Soccer Mom's Book Blog - book spotlight / giveaway

July 27 -   Reading Authors - book spotlight / giveaway

July 28 -   Deal Sharing Aunt - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

July 29 -   Jessica Cassidy - book spotlight / author interview

Now here’s a book trailer for CANDIDATE FOR MURDER for your viewing pleasure.

This is a tour-wide giveaway. The winning prize is a Fire Tablet with 7 inch display, Wi-Fi, and 16 GB. The giveaway is open internationally. The winner will be the person to use #Vote4Gnarly most often between now and when the giveaway ends on Aug 5, 2016.

To enter, just click on the Rafflecopter widget below and follow the instructions. The widget may take a few seconds to load so please be patient.

Thanks for stopping by today during this spotlight. What are your thoughts on entering a dog as a candidate for an election? Have you ever heard of unusual candidates being nominated to run for an office?

a Rafflecopter giveaway