Guest Post

HAVE A BOOK TO PROMOTE? Lyrical Pens welcomes guest posts. Answer a questionnaire or create your own post. FYI, up front: This site is a definite PG-13. For details, contact cjpetterson@gmail.com cj

Sunday, December 18, 2022

Winding down . . .

 
cj Sez:  I’m winding down as quickly as 2022 is …


§§

  Is your gift shopping complete? Are your decorations all up? My answers are yes and no. I have some wreaths and garland on the walls, but there is a new, rambunctious kitten at my house, so there is no Christmas tree in my home this year. 

  Instead, I've decided to pull together some non-breakable items to hang on the cat’s climbing tree. I got the idea off of Facebook (mine is not up yet).

§§
 
  Lyrical Pens is taking the rest of the year off, but please know that I am sincerely grateful for all of my readers. Thank you from the bottom of my heart . . . See you in 2023!

I pray your Christmas and New Year’s celebrations

 are filled to the brim with the love of family and friends.



The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace. 
                                                                           
Numbers 6:24-26
 
cj

§§
 
  Dancing with Daddy is my true short story in the anthology Christmas Through a Child’s Eyes.

Buy It Now


 
As I remember the dance today, I can still smell the aroma of his aftershave and feel the coarseness of a morning beard against my cheek as he whirled me around the kitchen.


  This anthology of several authors' precious Christmas memories is available on Amazon (free on Kindle Unlimited) at the time of this post.




Follow me on . . .           
Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6

 

Sunday, December 11, 2022

Introducing . . .

cj Sez: This holiday season  . . .

§§

  A favorite “shop local” bookstore of mine that carries my books is The Haunted Book Shop, which is owned by Raven award-winning author Angela Quarles. 

How pretty !
  An avid reader, Angela writes books she'd like to read—laugh-out-loud, smart romances that suck you into her worlds and won't let you go.

  In addition to carrying the works of national and international popular authors, The Haunted Book Shop has books written by many of my fellow Mobile Writers Guild members. Here are a few:


Carrie Dalby Author




Candice Marley Connor (books available now)

   If you can't come on down to browse the shelves, you can support this Indy book store by buying on-line. To order, contact The Haunted Bookshop here: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us 

  Interested in having a signed book by one of the authors? This is how to request one: After you choose the book you want, select “shipping” then add it to the cart. When you check out, scroll all the way to the bottom of the screen to find a text box labeled “Add a note for the seller.” That’s where you request a signed copy. We’ll be happy to run by the shop and sign the copy before it’s shipped.

§§

  But wait, there’s more . . .


   Each of the anthologies is a two-fer—you get a variety of wonderful stories to read and part of the proceeds go to benefit a worthwhile charity. (Note: I have a short story in each anthology.)

   These ebooks are available for 99 cents at the time of this post . . . Get all three for $2.97 !! 

§§
 
  That’s it for today’s post. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.


Happy Reading! 

cj 

➜ Follow me on . . .           
➜ Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page
➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6

 


Sunday, December 4, 2022

What piques your interest in a book?

cj Sez: Books make great gifts


Question: What piques your interest in a book?

  cj Sez: As an author and reader, the first thing that catches my eye when I’m looking for a book to read is the cover. It will be someone or some art that I can relate to in a personal way. Then I read the back-of-the-book blurb that gives me a snippet of what the book is about. If my interest is still piqued, I scan a couple of first pages then flip to a couple of pages in the middle of the book. (I check the middle to see if the excitement I found at the beginning sags. No one likes a saggy middle.) Like every reader I know, I rifle through books on shelves (physical or electronic) many times before I make a final selection.

  How about you? When you’re in a bookstore or library, what piques your interest in a book? 

  Exciting ups and downs, i.e., conflicts, must always be in the story to hold my attention, but I’m not interested in grabbing for tissues. I don’t want to cringe at something a character says or does, even if it really does happen in real life. I believe I have enough grief going on in my life and don’t want to cry while reading. I’m drawn to strong heroines and hunky heroes…they don’t have to be young, wild, and good-looking, but they do have to be likable. (And for me, the villain has to be villainous, but I also look for a hint of sympathy for him.) I want the heroine/hero to win and the story to end with a promise of something positive for the good guys. That’s the story arc I want to see and what I like to write. 

  What is your preference . . . lots of delicious narrative or sassy and deep point-of-view dialogue?

  Follow-up question:  Who are your favorite authors? What about their writing appeals to you? 

  I tend to like stories with great dialogue and character narrative. Robert B. Parker, James Lee Burke, and Elmore Leonard are some of my favorite authors. They produce great story content and write wonderful repartee. I want to get most of the story’s sense of place, characterization, emotion, and plot from the action and the dialogue (see the Burke dialogue below). I also appreciate humor, even in some of the dark scenes.

“The evening sky was streaked with purple, the color of torn plums, and a light rain had started to fall when I came to the end of the blacktop road that cut through twenty miles of thick, almost impenetrable scrub oak and pine and stopped at the front gate of Angola penitentiary.” 
― James Lee BurkeThe Neon Rain  (the first title in his Detective David Robicheaux series)

What keeps you reading?

  Obviously, plot and content of any good book are de rigueur to keep my attention, but after those two requirements are met: I like a strong, smart heroine, an equally smart and incredibly attentive hero, and, hopefully, I find a perfect ensemble of characters. (Caveat: I get thrown out of a story if there are more than a few gremlins that have snuck past the editors.)


§§

   If you tried the NaNoWriMo challenge, I hope you met the goal you set for yourself—whatever the number. Now go rest a while.

§§
BUY NOW 
Ebooks available for 99 cents at the time of this post

   Each of these anthologies is a two-fer—you get a variety of wonderful stories to read and part of the proceeds will go to benefit a worthwhile charity. (Note: I have a short story in each anthology.) 

§§

 That’s it for today’s post. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.

cj

  No inflation here: THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA, my fast-paced, exciting suspense/thriller ebooks, are now low-, low-priced at $2.99.

P.S.  The Haunted Book Shop has signed paperback copies of my books in stock. TO ORDER, contact The Haunted Bookshop here: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us  

 Happy reading! 

➜ Follow me on . . .           
➜ Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page
➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6