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Review of Night’s Redemption by Stephen Bentley
Night’s Redemption: A Detective Matt Deal Thriller Book 5 Night’s Redemption tells the story of a small-town lawyer who risks everything to seek justice for an innocent man, like Atticus Finch in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Night’s Redemption is set in current-day Montana, whereas the setting of ‘Mockingbird’ is 1960s Alabama. Ignorance, fear, greed, and corruption are still trying to control people’s lives. Jimmy Grant left the life of a biker gang member in Florida where his handle was Night. With help from the FBI Witness Protection Program, Jimmy flees trouble in Florida to become a lawyer in Cut Bank, Montana. Jimmy assumes a new persona as…
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Winning and Losing Writing Competitions
Revised Originally published May 19, 2022 My favorite poet Emily Dickinson sent her poems to The Atlantic Monthly Magazine in 1862. Editor Thomas Wentworth Higginson promptly rejected them. Emily suffered deeply from the rejection. What did Emily do when she received the news that the editor was not interested in her writing? She wrote even more poems! Emily turned something negative into something good. The communication between the editor and writer turned into a relationship based on poetry that lasted for many years. If there’s a chance the winner might only receive a virtual pat on the back, why do people enter writing competitions? They might lose. Sending your writing to…
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author's life, Awards, Books, Contests, Female Poets, Poetry, Poetry blogs, Rejection, the writer's life, writing
Winning and Losing Writing Competitions
Originally published May 19, 2022 My favorite poet Emily Dickinson sent her poems to The Atlantic Monthly Magazine in 1862. Editor Thomas Wentworth Higginson promptly rejected them. Emily suffered deeply from the rejection. What did Emily do when she received the news that the editor was not interested in her writing? She wrote even more poems! Emily turned something negative into something good. The communication between the editor and writer turned into a relationship based on poetry that lasted for many years. If there’s a chance the winner might only receive a virtual pat on the back, why do people enter writing competitions? They might lose. Sending your writing to a…
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Let’s Go to the Museum! Writing Challenge #2
Monthly Writing Challenge For this challenge, you will write an original poem, blog post or brief story using a prompt of a painting, sculpture, drawing, photography or art exhibit which I’ll provide each month. You will have a month to post your poem/story on this blog. You can also post your challenge responses on your own website or blog if you link back to my blog. Read and comment on others’ writing. Get feedback. There is the possibility of being included in a literary journal that I’m starting. I opened my own publishing company. Bookplaces Publishing website will be finished soon. Automat, 1927 by Edward Hopper Automat was first displayed…
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Where In the World Am I?
When I tell people that I live in Mexico, the most common remark is “It must be fun to sit on the beach all day!” “So you live in Mexico City?” is another question I get. Cancun is a popular vacation spot so people ask if I live there. “Our cruise stopped in Puerto Vallarta. Is that where you are?” No, I don’t sit on the beach all day. There’s not a drop of water around here. No way would I live in Mexico City. It’s too big, too crowded and the air is horrible. We are going on a short trip there soon, but just for three days. Tony…
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December Roses
Red, orange, white, yellow, pink, fuscia, peach. My mother-in-law loved flowers and roses were her favorite. Since she loved all colors, she planted whatever seedlings she found. My husband and I visited her for years so I watched those rose bushes from the beginning. I helped her water a little but she really didn’t like to be bothered with another person while she tended the flowers in her garden. I might carry a bucket from the well to her so she could refill her metal watering can. It wasn’t one of those things with a long spout to gently water plants that you would buy in a garden store. No,…
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Delilah: The Frontier Romance: A Western (A Colorado Western Saga Book 1)
The novel is set in the Colorado mountains in 1882. I thought the author described the mountains and characters in an excellent way. I was able to envision all the scenes of this story. Delilah is a tough young woman who was recently released from a two-year prison sentence for killing her step-father who had abused and murdered her mother and sister. She goes to stay with an older woman, Abbey, who had protected her in prison. Delilah stays for a while, but decides she must go check on the family property that had been looked after by a caretaker while she was in prison. Abbey wants a better life…
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Blog Tours, Book Launch, Contemporary, New Books, Psychological Thriller, Reviews, Suspense, Women's Fiction, Young Adult
Blog Tour for We Have Shadows Too by Nicole T. Smith
Hello! I am happy to take part in Sunflower Publishing’s blog tour for author Nicole T. Smith. Her book We Have Shadows Too was a pleasure to read and I’m glad I got the chance to review it. Here is a copy of my review. We Have Shadows Too is the story of Rella Cooper, a woman who moves from Colorado to California after getting her architectural degree. Even though she’s leaving behind her mother, brother and sister, Rella is excited to move because that will give her a new beginning and a chance to live on her own. Rella continues to experience severe headaches and other physical symptoms in her…
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The Corner Coffee Cafe
Today is the letter “C” on the A-Z Blog Challenge. An image of a coffee shop immediately came to mind when I knew I was going to write today’s blog. I visited a place with this name in Scotland, Mexico, Canada, Chicago-they are everywhere. They’re all the same. Only this one was named Corner Coffee Cafe. Only the weather is different, or the surroundings. Inside the tables, chairs, booths, counter and display cases are like all the other cafes. The espresso machine. Paper cups. “Should I leave room for milk?” Writers occupy the tables. Every one of them look up at the same time when a customer walks in the…
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Blooms Buds and New Beginnings
Today is letter “B” in the A-Z Blog Challenge http://a-zchallenge.com Every morning I go outside to check the progress of my vegetables and flowers. Two weeks ago I planted tomatoes and green beans. I have five small plastic pots in which I filled with dirt three-fourths full. I made four holes in the surface of the dirt and dropped one seed in each hole. Do you know how tiny each seed is? I’m sure most people have eaten a tomato in their life. If not, you’ve likely seen one. I always remember a girl in fifth grade who yelled in rage one day at lunch when she found a…
