Author: Nikki Mitchell is the award-winning American author of the Middle Grade Portal Fantasy trilogy; Eleanor Mason’s Literary Adventures, and The Magic Shoebox Adventures.
She is a native of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and lives there with her husband, two children, two rabbits, three cats, and a dog. She is a proud member of the Upper Peninsula Publishers and Authors Association (UPPAA). As a mom of a child with ADHD and a sensory processing disorder (SPD), she continues to write fantasy tales with disabled characters, and characters with ADHD, anxiety, and Autism. Book Title: Season of Dragons - #1 in the Magic Shoebox Series Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy Book Synopsis: What would you do if you found a dragon egg at your bus stop? Ichabod Surname never imagined he’d be spending a Friday afternoon cross-country skiing with a grandma dragon—but that’s exactly what happens when he finds a giant egg on the way to school. For as long as he can remember, he has been at war with his siblings because he thinks outside of the box. He stays invisible at home and school, but for the first time in his life, he may be the key to restoring the weather and happiness in the village of Hasir. Can Ichabod and Gran fix what has gone awry and end the sibling war before Ichabod’s science teacher notices he is gone? --an enchanting fantasy about finding family, unexpected friendships, and the importance of being true to who you are.*The Magic Shoebox Adventure books feature: --easy-to-read chapters for all readers --ADHD representation --Fun adventure for the whole family Find The Book: https://amzn.to/3TWSyrz Visit Nickki’s Website: https://beacons.ai/nikki_mitchell YouTube: https://youtu.be/tbxBc-knT2g Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/8r63zsfb
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About The Author: Lisa Jacovsky currently lives in her hometown of North Brunswick, NJ. She works as a Child Development Specialist with Early Intervention. In her job she is able to help children under the age of three with cognitive and developmental delays, sometimes with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. She has been working in the field of applied behavior analysis for eight years and this is where she had inspiration for writing her very first series, Lets Talk!. Her hopes for this series are to simply inspire families and their children to be open to anyone no matter their differences. There will be six books in the series, with the fourth in production right now! Lisa has always loved writing and hopes to use this way of expression to show the beauty that is in Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Title: Happy Thoughts! Going To The Aquarium Genre: Children’s Book Synopsis: Emma is so excited to be going on lots of adventures with her best friends Harper and Jerry! She happens to have autism and talks differently than other kids but she has never let that stop her. In their newest adventure the friends are going to the aquarium for the first time. Narrated by Emma, she will take you on a journey of having to learn how to make a new friend even though she is very nervous. Sometimes she has anxiety when new people try to talk to her but with the help of her best friends, she learns how to get past it. Come along on this fun journey to the aquarium and hear it from Emma's point of view for the first time. Find The Book: https://amzn.to/3PI7A1V Visit Lisa’s Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/lisa.jacovsky YouTube: https://youtu.be/d_gCK7wtpsc Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/nffm446c
Today, we celebrate a new project coming to Kickstarter on April 1, 2024, with Louisiana Indie Author, Melinda Falgoust. In her new children's board book, "Church Da Surfin' Staffy," Melinda tells an endearing true tale of 'ohana (family) and malama (caring) through the eyes of a Hawaiian surf pup turned therapy dog. THIS EPISODE INCLUDES THE PUBLIC DEBUT READING OF THE BOOK BY THE AUTHOR! Title: Church Da Surfin' Staffy Genre: Children's Board Book Book Synopsis: When a lonely puppy named Church finds his "fur-ever" home on a surfboard with a boy named James, life is pretty maika'i (awesome). But when the local surf pup steps up to earn his official service animal rating, and starts working to help others overcome their fears and anxiety, it gets even better. This adorable and heartfelt true story celebrates the Hawaiian practice of malama (caring) and invites readers big and small to join Church's 'ohana - an ever-growing family around the world - all of whom share Church's happy philosophy: to face whatever life throws at you together with a smile and laughter. Follow this link to discover more about this extraordinary Kickstarter campaign and how you can support the important work of saving animals in shelters and lending aid to the victims of last year's Hawaiian wildfires. There are several levels of sponsorship for this project, each with its own limited, exclusive reward. But you'll want to act fast. The Kickstarter opens on April 1, 2024, and only lasts 30 days. Follow the links below to learn more about this amazing project and how you can help! Find The Kickstarter Page Here: https://tinyurl.com/2whuzzhj Find Church's Facebook Page Here: https://www.facebook.com/ChurchSurfs Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/CPUIuZD2C1k Listen on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/zhtjnthm About The Author: Jan Mau Hill was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her career was in advertising and corporate marketing before transitioning to be a full-time writer. She lived for decades in the beautiful Pacific Northwest which inspired the setting of her first book. Currently, she’s back in the deep-south where she tends to speak her mind and raise some Cain.
Book Title: Rock Genre: Young Adult Urban Fantasy Book Synopsis: Reputation Trashed. Labeled a Terrorist. No one said life was easy. In retrospect, seventeen-year-old Samara Yancy should not have taken the shortcut on her final exam. Her expulsion from The Guardian Academy forces her to look for work beyond the protections of her home on The Rock. A job on The Mainland seems like the answer to her problems. Working for Mages has a downside. Besides their magic, which can kill, Sam’s affiliation with them makes her the prime suspect in a terrorist attack. In order to clear her name, she must join forces with those who view her as the enemy. Lies and manipulation block her attempts to get at the truth. But all that digging unearths a family secret she never wanted to know. As well as discovering a powerful enemy who wants her dead. Sam is stuck between The Rock and a hard place, with no one to blame but herself. Find the Book Here: https://amzn.to/4aIFj42 Find Jan’s Website Here: https://janmauhill.com/ Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/33scr7w9 YouTube: https://youtu.be/HF9gZFa_Eq8 About The Author: Allison Spooner is the author of two collections of genre-crossing flash fiction, Flash in the Dark and The Problem with Humans, and has contributed to several horror and science fiction anthologies. The Lost Girl: A Neverland Story is her debut novel.
When she isn't writing, Allison loves reading, doing yoga, trying not to kill her plants, watching bad disaster movies, and spending time with her family in her home state of Michigan. The Lost Girl won the PenCraft 2024 Book Award for Literary Excellence! Book Title: The Lost Girl: A Neverland Story Genre: Young Adult Fantasy Book Synopsis: Can Neverland save Peter Pan's descendant? Angela, the great-granddaughter of Peter Pan, is dying. Doctors have given up hope, but her mother, raised on tales of a magical land of eternal youth, is not done fighting. In a desperate attempt to save her thirteen-year-old daughter, she sends a reluctant Angela off toward the second star to the right and straight on till morning. But Neverland is not the idyllic paradise Angela imagined. The landscape has lost its luster. The Lost Boys are aimless and desperate for a leader. The pirates are bored and ready for a fight. Led by an incompetent and erratic Captain Smee, they want Neverland for themselves and will stop at nothing to get rid of Angela. In this volatile landscape, Angela's promise to fight for her life is tested at every turn. Thrust reluctantly into adventure, Angela must navigate the treacherous seas of her own mortality, consider a future without her mother, and discover the difference between living and simply surviving. Neverland, with the guidance of her new friends and the echoes of her great-grandfather's legacy, could save Angela’s life . . . but maybe not in the way she expects. Find the Book Here: https://amzn.to/3TS1cb8 Find Allison’s Website Here: www.allisonspoonerwriter.com Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/y2kh99s8 YouTube: https://youtu.be/bv5u58EwY4I
Listener Advisory: Strong Imagery
About The Author: Jamie M Samland is a fantasy author based in Canton, MI, USA. He is passionate about creating vivid worlds and compelling characters that transport readers to new realms of imagination. Drawing inspiration from his love of storytelling, Jamie spends his free time playing board games, roleplaying with friends, and indulging in other hobbies like martial arts and home repair. When he is not writing, Jamie is often found lost in thought, dreaming up new and exciting stories to share with readers alongside his husband and their cats. Book Title: The Necromancer of Urbus: Book Four of The Chronicler's Awakening Series Genre: Epic Fantasy Book Synopsis: Cazlandt, the first of the archmages, seeks atonement. He travels to the corrupted realm of Urbus to discover a spell capable of reaching beyond the final curtain, to undo his murder of a friend seven centuries ago. Guided by a swordsman with his own haunted past and a talking, flying cat, Cazlandt travels across a realm of wraiths and shadow. Battling fragments of banished dark gods, daemon from the space between worlds, and the poisonous energy seeping into his mortal shell, he forges toward the world tree for a single, selfless act. Though maybe not the one he intended. In his third novel, author J. M. Samland's Necromancer of Urbus will suck you into a dark world to watch the spiraling path of his key anti-hero. Will Cazlandt find what he seeks? Will he make it out of Ubrus without taking a sliver of that cursed realm with him? Read Necromancer of Urbus, prequel to Realms of Terswood and The Chronicler's Awakening trilogy to find out! Find the Book Here: https://amzn.to/3SxHOzp Find J.M.’s Website Here: https://jamiemsamland.com/ Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/4sdxcnka YouTube: https://youtu.be/PXeK6t6xRe8
Listener Advisory: Violence, Graphic Imagery
About The Author: Jamie M Samland is a fantasy author based in Canton, MI, USA. He is passionate about creating vivid worlds and compelling characters that transport readers to new realms of imagination. Drawing inspiration from his love of storytelling, Jamie spends his free time playing board games, roleplaying with friends, and indulging in other hobbies like martial arts and home repair. When he is not writing, Jamie is often found lost in thought, dreaming up new and exciting stories to share with readers alongside his husband and their cats. Book Title: Seeds of Farsil: Book Three of The Chronicler's Awakening Series Genre: Epic Fantasy Book Synopsis: If you had the power to go back to undo the worst atrocities, or even a single failure, would you? Should you? Alishia, the Chronicler, grapples with this question and the consequences. Invaders wielding overwhelming magic bring the leaders of Poas to their knees. They come bearing an invitation to the rebirth of the realm and to witness as they assume singular rule. Lone, regent king of Dracon and king of the archmages, manages the fallout from his late aunt’s disastrous final moments and this father’s waning sanity, all while struggling to gather allies against this new threat. Should he fail, his enemies will rise to power and leave this nation to waste away in the frozen north. Alishia, the Chronicler, manipulates her power over time to flit across realms, but she must eventually return home. She arrives just as events are getting to their worst for Lone, leaving her with a dreadful test of her morals and how far she will take her budding power. Seeds of Farsil marks the last installment in The Chronicler’s Awakening series, though not a finale for the players involved. In a tale of love and loss, cosmic forces reach across time to bring Alishia and Lone’s reality to the brink of annihilation and press them to define what it means to achieve victory. Find the Book Here: https://amzn.to/47JuXyk Find J.M.’s Website Here: https://jamiemsamland.com/ Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/mr2vfbsz YouTube: https://youtu.be/L4y1lC_lAaY About The Author: Jamie M Samland is a fantasy author based in Canton, MI, USA. He is passionate about creating vivid worlds and compelling characters that transport readers to new realms of imagination. Drawing inspiration from his love of storytelling, Jamie spends his free time playing board games, roleplaying with friends, and indulging in other hobbies like martial arts and home repair. When he is not writing, Jamie is often found lost in thought, dreaming up new and exciting stories to share with readers alongside his husband and their cats.
Book Title: Realms of Terswood Book 1 of The Chronicler's Awakening Series Genre: Epic Fantasy Book Synopsis: An ancient scabbard holds immeasurable power to shape the future and reave the past. Lone, prince of the archmages, doesn't realize how close his world is to its end until his aunt's failing sanity forces him to set aside his thirst for adventure and struggle to hold his nation together. Daemon and the undead rise against him while he unravels a centuries-old plot too late to stop. His failure means the death of his family and the entire realm. Twenty-five years ago, Daelin was the sole survivor in the final battle against the necromancer Amer and terrors have plagued his every night since. He and his wife, Queen Teiris, thought they were going on a peaceful trip to honor the dead when a physical manifestation of the madness growing within Daelin forces them to flee alongside two mysterious beings as old as time. Find the Book Here: https://amzn.to/403pAb0 Find J.M.’s Website Here: https://jamiemsamland.com/ Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/2vd22v9h YouTube: https://youtu.be/LWgU6Nt_zIU Indie Authors write some of the most fascinating, engaging, and remarkable stories. But they aren't as easily discovered... so we're doing what we can to change that dynamic.
At the start of each month, we'll post a title and tell you a little bit about the book and the author. At the end of the month, we'll all meet in the Zoom Room to talk about the book and enjoy a discussion with the author. You'll get to ask questions, and learn about their writing process, influences, and other interesting stuff. This group is free to join, and all of the authors' books are available in print and ebook on Amazon and through other retailers. Check with your local library, too. If they don't have a lending copy, ask them to order it! January's Book Club Selection:
University professor Matthew Richter hates complications. Planning his every day down to the second leaves no opportunity for a social life, which he doesn’t feel the need for anyway. Jian Wei helps run his family’s business. The only thing he enjoys more than tormenting his parents and siblings with endless pranks is plotting his next trick on a certain uptight customer. Though so different, chance inexplicably draws them both to a World War II photography exhibit, and the aging photographer Milton Glass. Milton shares the story of two soldiers brutally cut down on the battlefield—which has haunted him for the better part of his life—and his suspicions that the soldiers shared a bond they never fully realized. Now, in the twilight of his life, Milton can’t help but wonder if Matthew and Jian share a potential bond of their own. Could they possibly be the same men from so long ago, returned for a second chance at being together? Milton can hope. Find the book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/48dyFky Find Kristoffer's Website: https://www.kristoffergair.com/ YouTube: https://youtu.be/49EgBS9rrng Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/5n97ekse About The Author: Tandi Thomas, a poetic soul with roots in Southeastern Kentucky, now calls the vibrant Metro Detroit area in Michigan her home. In the company of her cherished family and beloved pets, she finds inspiration in the every day moments. When she's not crafting mesmerizing verses, you can find Tandi lost in the world of literature, creating culinary wonders in the kitchen, dancing to the rhythm of life, and treasuring quality time with her loved ones.
Book Title: Sweet Surrender Genre: Poetry Synopsis: Embark on a captivating literary journey with "Sweet Surrender," a profound and deeply personal exploration penned by the talented wordsmith, Tandi Thomas. In this beautifully crafted collection of poetry, Tandi bares her soul, inviting you to join her on an extraordinary voyage of self-discovery, resilience, and ultimate empowerment. Within the pages of "Sweet Surrender," you will encounter the essence of a woman who has harnessed her inner strength and risen above adversity. Tandi's poetry resonates with power and choice, offering you a mirror to reflect on your own life's journey. As you navigate her verses, you will discover not only the raw beauty of self-healing but also the profound wellspring of compassion and grace that lies within us all. Find The Book Here: https://amzn.to/4b9lIdx Find Tandi’s Website Here: https://tandithomas.com/ YouTube: https://youtu.be/DgfyFw9YAME Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/2c7bx7ba |
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