Aaron Lazar: Healey's Cave

TITLE: Healey’s Cave: a Sam Moore Mystery
AUTHOR: Aaron Paul Lazar
PUBLISHER: Twilight Times Books
DATE OF PUBLICATION: August 15th, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-60619-162-0
PAGES: 267
GENRE: Paranormal Mystery

Sam Moore's little brother vanished fifty years ago. No body. No answers. What Sam has is a boatload of guilt, since he failed to accompany Billy on his final, fateful bike ride.
While digging in his garden, Sam discovers a green marble with a startling secret—it whisks him back to his childhood, connecting him to Billy. Thrust back and forth through time, Sam struggles to unlock the secret of his brother’s fate.

When the FBI investigates remains found nearby, Sam learns of a serial killer with a grisly fifty-year record. Sam’s certain it’s Billy’s killer. But what’s worse, his grandson fits the profile of the murdered boys. Will the killer return to Sam’s town to claim his final kill? Can Sam untangle the truth in time to save him?

Aaron Paul Lazar writes to soothe his soul. The author of LeGarde Mysteries and Moore Mysteries enjoys the Genesee Valley countryside in upstate New York, where his characters embrace life, play with their dogs and grandkids, grow sumptuous gardens, and chase bad guys. Visit his websites at www.legardemysteries.com and http://www.mooremysteries.com/.

Aaron, welcome to the blog and congratulations on the release of Healey's Cove. Tell us a little about yourself.

Hello, Susan. It’s great to be here. Here are a few facts about me:
· I’m first and foremost a husband, father, and grandfather. I love nature, kids, animals, classical, blues, folks, and sixties rock music, French Impressionist art, gardening, cooking, and photography. Oh, and I guess we ought to throw in reading and writing into the mix!

· I’m from New England, but have lived in the beautiful Genesee Valley region in western NY, near the Finger Lakes since 1981. Many of my books are set in the lush fields, woods, gorges, and gardens of this region.

Oh, I'd love to visit the Finger Lakes. I've driven near them but didn't get a chance to stop.

· I’m a lot like my two main characters, Sam Moore (MooreMysteries.com) and Gus LeGarde (LeGardeMysteries.com). My characters are similar to my father, who was a classical music professor, pianist, massive gardener, and a great chef. Therefore, we’re all kind of a bizarre and interesting amalgam. ;o)

· I believe that readers can enjoy a thrilling ride with a tale told in a relatively wholesome way, versus gratuitous gore and meaningless sex. Although some people like that. LOL. Not that I don’t have a few juicy scenes between Gus and his new wife – after all Gus goes through, I figure he deserves some loving!

· I’ve written ten LeGarde Mysteries, three Moore Mysteries, and am also currently writing book two from my Tall Pines Mysteries series (not yet submitted to publishers)

· I love to connect with my readers and can be reached at: aaron.lazar@yahoo.com.
Here are the books that are under contract for publishing, for the first two series. The rest are in the queue or waiting to be submitted until the time is right.
LEGARDE MYSTERIES

DOUBLE FORTE' (2004)

UPSTAGED (2005)

TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON (2007)

MAZURKA (2009)

FIRESONG (2010)
MOORE MYSTERIES

HEALEY'S CAVE (just released)

ONE POTATO, BLUE POTATO (2011)

FOR KEEPS (2012)
And here are a few awards plus my website addresses.
Preditors&Editors Top 10 Finalist * Yolanda Renee's Top Ten Books 2008 * MYSHELF Top Ten Reads 2008 * Writers' Digest Top 101 Website Award 2009 & 2010
www.legardemysteries.com

www.mooremysteries.com

www.murderby4.blogspot.com

www.aaronlazar.blogspot.com

http://www.aplazar.gather.com/
And here are a few credentials:
My columns and articles have appeared in numerous publications, including Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine, Absolute Write, Mystery Fiction, and Great Mystery and Suspense magazine. I’m also co-owner on a Writer’s Digest Best 101 Websites blog, www.murderby4.blogspot.com. I’m well versed in self-promotion, and have an extensive marketing plan that includes frequent appearances at book clubs and library events, and promotion on my award-winning websites and blogs. In addition, I exclusively sign and sell books at Heron Hill Winery overlooking Keuka Lake, in Hammondsport, NY.
Oops, you said tell us a “little” about yourself. LOL. Sorry about that!

 That's fine.
What books came along at just the right time to influence your reading/writing?

Although I’d written lots of stories in high school and college, and had been known as “an engineer who can write,” by my peers during my career at Kodak, I was actually a very green writer. I had a great deal to learn as far as fictional technique and skills were concerned. My pages were populated with ungodly adverbs and I allowed myself to go on for too long in poetic narrations. I used the past perfect (“had” structures) ruthlessly, until a mentor pointed out that there was no need to stutter my prose with so many “hads.” (see more about this in how-to writing advice articles posted at http://www.aplazar.gather.com) Stephen King’s On Writing, was one of the most helpful writing books I read, although I also loved For the Trees by Betsey Learner. Both came along just at the right time!

What are your writing goals?

I originally hoped to write a hundred books before I die. And by that, I meant one hundred GOOD books. So far, I’m on my fifteenth novel, and at the rate of a couple of books per year, that means I need to live to be ninety-nine and a half. It’s a great goal – I hope the Good Lord lets me get there with my brain still working properly. That’s the key!
Seriously, though, my goals have changed a bit since I started meeting my readers. I’ve discovered readers who told me my books “got them through chemo,” or “taught them to be better fathers,” or other such heart-stopping comments. I think if even one of my books has affected one person on this earth that way, I’m happy to say “I’ve made it.” I don’t need to be a household name to have achieved that worthy goal.

Tell us about Healey's Cave. Is it available in print and e-book formats?

Healey’s Cave is available in all formats. The ebook/Kindle version is orderable now, and the print book is pre-orderable through Barnes and Noble now at a great discount and at Amazon, etc and brick and mortar bookstores. Also, I have print books on hand for those who want personally autographed copies.

And here’s where Healey’s Cave came from:  I blame the book on my wife. I was minding my own business, wrapping up the fifth novel in the LeGarde Mystery series, when she turned to me and said, “You need to write a book from the killer’s point of view.” I laughed out loud. I’d always written in first person, from a man whose character was diametrically opposed to villains. He was a good man, a man I admired and wanted to share with the world. Sure, he had his faults, but how could I switch from that kind of mindset to the inner thoughts of a killer?
Dale reads Stephen King and James Patterson. She loves psychological thrillers and even a little horror. Not like me with my relatively wholesome mysteries that skirt around the gruesome details of murder.
I put aside the thought until shortly thereafter, while rototilling my garden, I unearthed a green marble, a cat’s eye. I held it in my hand and wondered about the little boy or girl who lost it. I imagined how neat it would be to be able to hold the marble tight in my hand and have it whisk me back in time to the boy’s life. I’d be able to see what he saw, walk beside him, and maybe witness some horrible crime. And what if the villain was still alive today? What if he was my next-door neighbor?
That was all it took to dislodge me from the LeGarde Mysteries for a few months. With my wife’s urging, I gave into the desire to create a new world. I didn’t expect it to turn into another series. But it did.
This is book one in the green marble series, otherwise known as Moore Mysteries. And yes, I blame my wife for the whole thing.

How does your environment/upbringing color your writing?

Much of my books’ environments match my own. In Double Forté, I used the stark beauty of winter in the Genesee Valley as a backdrop. In Tremolo: cry of the loon, I summoned my memories of lakeside summers in Maine. In Mazurka, I used all the tastes, sounds, scents and experiences from a stint in Europe. I find whenever I go to a new locale (Adirondacks, Thailand, etc.) that the area inevitably ends up in my books. A sense of place is very important to me, and I integrate it into my stories at all times.

After hours of intense writing, how do you unwind?

I love to wander in my gardens, cook feasts for my extended family, take photos of the beautiful Genesee Valley and Finger Lakes here in Western NY, and take long hikes at Letchworth State Park.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

I maintain two author websites: http://www.mooremysteries.com and http://www.legardemysteries.com. The latter has more info on it including events, etc, as I’m just now building up the Moore Mysteries site. Readers are also welcome to contact me at aaron dot lazar at yahoo dot com with questions or to order personally autographed copies. You can read scads of articles about writing, life, and more at
http://www.aplazar.gather.com/, and I’m part owner in a writers’ website: http://www.murderby4.blogspot.com/.

Thanks for dropping by, Aaron. Don't forget to give your wife the money when it rolls in.

LOL. Susan, thanks for having me here today!

A weekend of remembrance

Like many of you, I attended a touching memorial to 9/11 victims and the families they left behind. I'm very patriotic and it shows. I love this country and I love my family and friends, so this weekend became a time to reminiscese about family and friends who touched my life--for many years or only a fleeting moment--and I'll never be the same.

I often bring memories into my writing, and even though I write about child abuse and killers, I actually had a wonderful wholesome childhood with two great parents who loved me and taught me about God, the Golden Rule, and a multitude of other things that have made me who I am. God created me and they molded me.

I thank God for each one of them, many no longer here, who provided unconditional love but let me spread my wings and find myself. If I'm fortunate enough to write many more books, there will be pieces of me in each one.

Can you find me?

Ahhhhh, that's part of the mystery, isn't it?

Available in print, ebook, and Kindle formats

Shawn Oetzel's Dying Moon

My guest today is Shawn Oetzel, author of Dying Moon. Shawn, welcome and tell us a little about yourself.

I am a father of three great kids – two of which are now teenagers, and one overprotective pooch named Hemingway! When not writing I work as a Probation Officer in Illinois. I am a big sports fan – especially Chicago sports. I have been writing pretty seriously for several years now and hope to one day be able to write full time.

What books came along at just the right time to influence your reading/writing?

Terry Brooks’ novel The Sword of Shannara was given to me the summer my mother got remarried. I was staying with my dad at the time and a neighbor loaned me the book because I played Dungeons & Dragons. That book got me through a tough summer of transition and got me hooked on the fantasy genre. I devoured every fantasy novel I could get my hands on after that, and still to this day I look forward to the release of Mr. Brooks’ new novels like it was Christmas Morning.
Later in life on a whim I picked up Thomas Harris’ book, Red Dragon which really opened my eyes to the thriller and crime fiction genres.

What are your writing goals?

My only real goal is to be able to write full time. I would love to be able to support my family with my writing. I do have this fantasy though of one day walking into a Barnes & Nobles and seeing someone pick a book of mine of the shelf.

What is your most rewarding experience during the writing process?

There is absolutely no feeling like being informed that something I have written has been accepted for publication. The desire to recapture that moment of pure happiness is what drives me to better myself as a writer.

Tell us about your latest book. Is it available in print and e-book formats?

Dying Moon is a speculative fiction tale. I it mixes the fantasy and crime fiction genres. I always wondered what would happen if somehow my two favorite genres were somehow combined and Dying Moon is the answer to that question.
The story focuses on and Elf, Kalen Or’wain and his exploits in Los Angeles where he is sent to stop a rogue Elf from completing a ritual that will turn the moon into a weapon of mass destruction. Along the way he is helped by an enigmatic FBI Agent and an LAPD Homicide Detective. Together these three race against time to stop Kalen’s enemy from unleashing a genocidal magic against the Elven race.

Where do you write? When? What do you have around you?

I tend to write in the evening when my household has settled in for the night. I like to pop in a movie for background noise while I am writing. I write everything out on legal pads which I know is different from most. I find if I am sitting in front of a monitor I freeze up and cannot seem to get the creative juices flowing. So, I write everything out on a legal pad and then type it up at a later time. The only thing I have to have is a glass of ice cold Dr. Pepper.

Any current projects?

I am currently shopping around a full length novel titled The Agency. It is a stand-alone novel that follows the story of one of the characters from Dying Moon. It is more commercial fiction and has a little of everything. Fans of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child as well as Dan Brown and the movie "National Treasure" along with the Arthurian Legend will enjoy The Agency.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

Fans can follow me on Twitter and Facebook or they can email me with any questions or requests.
twitter.com/shawn_oetzel

facebook.com/shawn.oetzel

Oetzel73@gmail.com

 

Mark Ozeroff's Days of Smoke

My guest today is Mark Ozeroff, author of Days of Smoke. Welcome, Mark. Tell us about your latest book.

DAYS OF SMOKE looks at war and Holocaust through the eyes of Hans Udet, a flyer involved from the earliest days with Hitler’s air force. Across battlefields raging over much of Europe, Hans progresses from naïve young fighter pilot to ace of increasing rank and responsibility. But unfolding events pit Hans’ love of the Fatherland against his natural compassion for humanity, after he saves a young Jewish woman from brutal assault. As growing feelings for Rachel sensitize him to the so-called “Jewish problem,” Hans is torn between his sense of duty to Germany and mounting disdain for its Nazi leadership. Rachel is the unlikely bridge between his two warring halves.

I’m pleased to announce that DAYS OF SMOKE has been awarded this year’s Gold Medal for historical fiction, by the Military Writers Society of America. The novel also earned the Golden Quill Award, from the American Authors Association.

Congratulations!

Thanks, Susan. DAYS OF SMOKE is available in both print and e-book formats. Print copies can be purchased from Amazon or your favorite bookseller, while e-books are sold by Fictionwise (coming soon on Amazon in Kindle-compatible EPUB). Paperbacks and e-books are also available through the publisher, Asylett Press.

Mark, how did your environment/upbringing color your writing?

I was raised by parents who greatly respected the written word. We always had children’s books around, but we three boys gravitated early toward our folks’ bookshelves. In doing so, the entire world opened before our young eyes. The importance of reading was driven home to us from the start – not only are we still avid readers, we’ve all written books.

I was also exposed more directly to the lessons of history. I paid close attention to the WWII stories told by some of my parents’ friends. Our neighbor, Jack, was a Navy veteran of the Pacific theater (he inspired my older brother to join the Navy, where Dave eventually reached the rank of Captain). Jack was also a pilot, and he strongly influenced my lifelong interest in historical aircraft.

I knew another friend of my parents first as a soft-spoken haberdasher. But I later learned that Sam had seen the elephant – he turned out to be northeast Ohio’s most decorated combat veteran of the war. This tough hombre had earned practically every award short of the Medal of Honor as a forward artillery observer, one of the war’s most dangerous jobs.

I learned a valuable history lesson in temple, at the tender age of seven. I was fidgeting around in my seat when I noticed a strange thing; the woman to my left had writing on her arm. When she caught me staring, the woman eased the sleeve of her dress down to conceal the crudely-inked number. After the service ended, she caught up to us in the parking lot, asking my folks for permission to gently explain how she’d come to bear this tattoo. Thus, I got a nudge toward understanding what happened to more than eleven million Jews and gentiles at the hands of the SS.

Though I hadn’t an inkling at the time, I was already doing research when I listened to these stories. The lessons remain firmly rooted to this day.

What books came along at just the right time to influence your reading/writing?

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD was one of the very first books I chose from my parents’ bookshelf, when I started reading adult novels at the age of twelve. Harper Lee absolutely blew me away then, and she does to this day – her novel remains the purest example of artful writing I’ve ever run across. Not least of the lessons I learned from Lee was that fiction can sometimes tell a more profound truth than history.

I also discovered THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS at a young age, which is the best flying book I’ve ever read. This aeronautical masterpiece planted images in my mind that remain to this day. No one has ever evoked the spirit of aviation better than Charles Lindbergh, a fact which struck me anew while standing below his aircraft during a recent visit to the Smithsonian.

In later years, my brother Barry (a talented novelist in his own right) recommended author Gary Jennings. Barry was right – AZTEC and RAPTOR are among the most imaginative works of fiction I’ve ever come across. Very few authors can subtly twist history with Jennings’ skill, and put the reader into such a state of excitement. More than any other writer, he inspired me to write in first person.

Where do you write? What do you have around you?

I write in a hangar – I have aeroplanes around me. I use the word aeroplane intentionally, as my serendipitous residence is almost as much museum as it is airport. My “roommate” is a 1952 Cessna 195 sporting a Jacobs radial engine – not only is she a real looker, she belts out wonderful engine song as well. All manner of aircraft call this field home, from biplanes to business jets.

How cool!

Early in my time here, I was writing a scene in DAYS OF SMOKE involving a dogfight between a Russian Polikarpov and a German Messerschmitt. I was wrapped so completely up in this scene that it took me a while to realize the sounds I was hearing weren’t entirely produced by my imagination. I ran out on my balcony to see a Grumman F4F Wildcat diving on the field, making high speed passes down the runway. The hair on back of my neck stood straight up, as I beheld the final sight of many a Japanese soldier being strafed during WWII.

But it’s not just the airplanes that make this place interesting, it’s also the pilots. Many of them have had colorful flying careers, and you never know who you’ll meet. While working on the section of DAYS OF SMOKE which takes place in the Soviet Union, I stumbled across Gunther Rall, who was visiting to help publicize an art auction being held here. General Rall was Germany's third ranking ace, credited with an astonishing 275 aerial victories. He flew the same type of aircraft – over the same area of Russia – as my protagonist, and he generously shared with me the mindset and experiences of a top German ace. A writer in my position simply cannot get luckier.

How do you develop characters? Setting?

I cannot work from outlines. I develop my characters and settings while writing the first draft. These developments stem from the way characters fit together, interact with one another. For example, I originally intended Rachel to be a one-scene character. But she blossomed before my startled eyes into my protagonist’s love interest, a driving force in DAYS OF SMOKE. It’s a curious process for me to watch one of my own stories unfold – sometimes I’m as surprised as the reader later is by the way things develop.
I often use people I know as inspiration for characters. In the young adult novel I’m currently working on, I base the two eight-year-old main characters on my three nieces, using many of their individual traits and characteristics to produce two composite personalities. I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with my nieces as they grew up, and their influence upon this novel is strong.

At times, serendipity takes a hand. I was researching Nazi mass-murders in Ukraine for a pivotal scene in DAYS OF SMOKE, when I stumbled across a brief description of the destruction of Pochep, the village from which my grandfather had emigrated in 1923. I knew I had to write about this, keeping in mind all the while that these doomed people were relatives and friends of my direct forebears. I became obsessed in the two weeks it took to create just nine pages. I awoke one night at 3:00AM after a vivid dream about an infant victim, and I fired up the computer to get it down while everything was still fresh in my mind. While this process could be disquieting at times, the result had greater impact than any writing I’ve ever done. Inspiration can come straight out of the blue – one just has to keep an open mind.

Do you think your writing has improved since your first attempt?

I’ve always been able to write pretty well, which is a good thing – otherwise I’d never have made it through grade school, let alone grad school. What really improved was my editing, largely thanks to my writers critique group, the Word Weavers. They taught me to show rather than tell, to pare my words down to the essential, to focus only upon that which drives a story forward. My first draft is always rougher’n eighty grit sandpaper, but with enough attention to detail I can smooth it down nicely. If I were to give budding writers one piece of advice, it’s to find a good writers critique group.

Sometimes, one has to hack away with a machete to find the right path. For months I endlessly reworked the first few chapters of DAYS OF SMOKE, but could not find a satisfactory voice. In frustration, I made a list of my favorite novels and began to reread them. I think I was on the first page of the first novel when I finally put two and two together – most of my favorite authors write in first person. In third person SMOKE lacked immediacy, but in first person the story had real authority. I may be slow on the uptake, but if I batter at my mind long enough, realization will get through.

What are your protagonist’s strengths? Flaws?

Hans Udet is not lacking in courage, as befits a professional soldier. He has physical attributes – coordination, eyesight, reflexes – which come together to make him an excellent combat pilot. But above all my protagonist is a moral man, intelligent and contemplative. The implications of what Hans witnesses in the middle years of the Third Reich are not lost on him.

That said, early on he is capable of being unduly influenced by his superiors – he’s occasionally and briefly swept up by the rhetoric which led the entire German nation astray. He also comes to rely too much on alcohol to relax him, after his exposure to combat. And he can be impulsive, too, a trait which lands him in trouble from time to time. I tried to make Hans believable – he’s got some undesirable personality traits which round him out as a human being.

Any current projects, Mark?

I have many back burners on my writing stove, but two take precedence above the rest. IN THE WEEDS is another story wrapped firmly around aviation. Part of the novel is set in Vietnam, where my protagonist Slats Kisov serves as a Forward Air Controller. FACs flew unarmed Cessnas at low altitude, directing fighter-bomber attacks and artillery fire in some of the war’s most dangerous missions. Slats returns to the US a changed man, one determined to “live a life of harmless banditry from the cockpit of an airplane,” using the exceptional low-and-slow flying skills honed in battle.

This novel was inspired by a quirky autobiography I read in high school, OLD SOGGY NUMBER ONE. The author was a seat-of-the-pants aviator who, among his many aerial exploits, used a biplane to smuggle liquor from Mexico into Texas during prohibition. Slats Rodgers’ book inspired me to start writing IN THE WEEDS, a novel about the modern-day equivalent. I enjoy writing about people that many folks might see as anti-heroes. But they’re not, really – they’re moral people who just also happen to be Nazis, smugglers, or poetry-spouting bulimic Cuban marijuana farmers.

THE BACK OF BEYOND is a young adult novel which, like my debut book, takes place during the middle years of the Third Reich. It looks at the burgeoning Holocaust through the innocent eyes of two little girls, one Christian and the other Jewish. In fact, one of the children is a minor character from DAYS OF SMOKE. It’s quite a challenge to write about so horrific subject for such a young audience, but I believe that lessons about hatred need to be passed on to coming generations.


Well, this has been very unique and interesing, Mark. I wish you the best with your writing.

Diana Raab: Healing With Words

DIANA RAAB, MFA, RN is truly my special guest today. She's the author of

HEALING WITH WORDS: A WRITER’S CANCER JOURNEY and she's a cancer survivor.

Welcome, Diana. Please tell us more about yourself.

I am a memoirist and poet and author of eight books. I teach writing in the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program and at various conferences around the country. I am a member of the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA), the Author’s Guild and Poets &Writers. My award-winning writing has appeared in numerous national publications and anthologies.

I was born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens, New York. In 1977, I earned my BSc. in Health Administration with a minor in Journalism from Cortland State University. I then pursued a nursing degree from Vanier College and worked as Director of Nursing in Montreal, Canada. A year later I received a positive pregnancy test followed by my obstetrician’s prescription for bed rest. I resigned from my position as nursing director and became a freelance medical writer which resulted in over 300 published articles to my credit. While on bed rest, I chronicled my experience, which evolved into a self-help book called, Getting Pregnant and Staying Pregnant: Overcoming Infertility and High-Risk Pregnancy which has been in print since 1988 and has been translated into French and Spanish. In 1992, it won the Benjamin Franklin Book Award for Best Health and Wellness Book.

In 2009, the book was updated and reissued under the title, Your High Risk Pregnancy: A Practical and Supportive Guide in collaboration with Errol Norwitz, M.D., Professor, Yale University School of Medicine and Co-Director, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Yale New Haven Hospital.

After recovering from breast cancer in 2001, I returned to graduate school in Spalding University’s Low-Residency Program. My thesis became the foundation for my two memoirs, Regina’s Closet: Finding My Grandmother’s Secret Journal and Healing With Words: A Writer’s Cancer Journey. Both books have received stellar reviews.

Congratulations on the accomplishments. This is an inspiring journey, indeed.

I have three books of poetry, My Muse Undresses Me (2007), Dear Anaïs: My Life in Poems for You (2008) and The Guilt Gene (2009). I am also editor of the anthology, Writers and Their Notebooks (2010) with a foreword by Philip Lopate. I am married and have three grown children, Rachel, Regine and Joshua.

My website is http://www.dianaraab.com.

What a busy lady you are!

Is there a message or common thread in your writing?

I suppose the most common thread in all of my writing involves journaling. My mission is to inform others about the healing power of writing because of how much it’s helped me the past forty-five years. My mother gave me my first journal at the age of 10 to help me cope with my grandmother’s suicide. Therefore, I learned at an early age to find solace in the written word. I believe capturing observations and memories before they vanish is vital to one’s health. Most, if not all of my published work, whether memoir or poetry has originated on the pages of my notebooks.

Tell us more about your latest book.

Healing With Words: A Writer’s Cancer Journey is part memoir and part self-help book. It shares my experiences of having had two un-related cancers in five years (breast cancer and the rare form of bone marrow cancer, multiple myeloma). In lieu of allowing cancer to destroy my life, I have allowed the experience to empower me. I embraced the cancer experience and turned a negative into a positive by creating this book. My hope is to inspire others to share their own story. At the end of each chapter are writing prompts and blank journaling pages. In addition, the book also has extensive appendices for tips on writing.

Since early childhood, I have drawn strength from the practice of journaling. Over the course of the past forty-five years, my journals have provided a safe haven and platform to validate my feelings. I really enjoy sharing this passion with others.

How do you promote yourself online and off?

Unlike when my first book was released in the 1980s, that authors must now be very aggressive in marketing their own books. I do all that I can to promote and expose myself online and in person using every oleaddirected my way. Marketing is a 24-hour occupation. For Healing With Words: A Writer’s Cancer Journey, I have a Facebook page and a link on my website. In addition, I am on two virtual book tours which run for June, July and August. I have also hired two part-time publicists to follow up on certain leads. I am trying to plan some special events and lectures for October, breast cancer awareness month. I enjoy teaching journaling and memoir workshops a nd doing book signings, all which help to promote my book. In addition, my administrative assistant sends out news releases and postcards announcing my book to magazine editors, agents, cancer and writing organizations. Whenever there is a request for a review copy, I try to send it out immediately and make sure to include all the necessary PR materials.

Where do you write? When? What do you have around you?

I have a writing studio which use almost every day. On the bookshelves are writing reference books as well as my completed journals and other inspirational titles. I also collect antique typewriters which are interspersed on my book shelves along with framed photos of my family.

Where can listeners learn more about your books and events?

I am very accessible online. My website, http://www.dianaraab.com summarizes all the places where I can be found.

EARLY REVIEWS:

"Though I am a professional writer, it's hard to find words for the admiration I feel for Diana Raab and her inspiring true story: Healing With Words. Time after time, Diana articulates incisively the thoughts and feelings that convey hoped-for meaning and encouragement. She is a woman who knows what it is to live fully in the face of mortality. She will add value to the life of every person who reads this book. That she includes the creative impulse to write and the solace offered by contemplating the beautiful as a vital part of human existence resonates at a spiritual level for me.”~~Sena Jeter Naslund, author of AHAB'S WIFE and ABUNDANCE, A NOVEL OF MARIE ANTOINETTE
***
“One woman's story, beautifully told and inspiring to those for whom journaling will ease a breast cancer diagnosis.”~~Barbara Delinsky, New York Times bestselling author of UPLIFT: SECRETS FROM THE SISTERHOOD OF BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS
***
"Healing With Words: A Writer's Cancer Journey by Diana Raab offers unique therapy for cancer patients. Raab is a registered nurse, author, mother of three and happily married woman. Her compelling and inspirational book reflects her two episodes with cancer over several years. She expertly tells her story and captures the reader with her feelings, frustrations and fears that overwhelmed her from diagnosis of breast cancer through reconstruction and recovery through her subsequent bout with multiple myeloma.

Descriptions of her personal journey are accompanied with powerful poetry and journal entries she wrote at various stages. What is unique about this book is that its messages are universal. Any cancer patient or survivor can relate to and learn from what she experienced.

Included in the masterfully written book are writing prompts to encourage the readers to write about what is happening or has occurred in their lives.

As a college writing professor, I give Diana Raab an A+ for her writing. As a two-time cancer survivor who has taught Writing for Wellness classes for patients at City of Hope Cancer Center for eight years, I congratulate her for her significant contribution to the field of writing-to-heal techniques.
Her book is a must-read for any woman diagnosed with breast cancer.”~~Julie Davey, author of
WRITING FOR WELLNESS: A PRESCRIPTION FOR HEALING

“Diana Raab has shared her breast cancer journey with an honesty that is truly compelling. Anyone receiving a cancer diagnosis should have Healing With Words ,A Writer's Cancer Journey to turn to time and time again for comfort and guidance. I highly recommend it!”~~Beverlye Hyman Fead, Legislative Ambassador and Hero or Hope for American Cancer Society and author of I CAN DO THIS
***
“Healing with Words is a riveting memoir which follows the author's journey through two cancer discoveries in eight years. Within the first thirty pages tears filled my eyes as I felt Diana's pain and rebellion to enter a new life, a new world. The book's structure allows the reader to find her own words to write beside Diana's enlightening story which enlists it as a personal journal. Her poetic flavor of writing with lines like, "My cancer diagnosis became like a stir-fry of emotions cooking inside me," stretched my writer's mind and urged me to post my own note to my computer screen which was gleaned from this book, When it hurts--Write harder.”
~~Barbara Sinor, Ph.D., author of AN INSPIRATIONAL GUIDE FOR THE RECOVERING SOULD AND TALES OF ADDICTION: STORIES FROM THE SOUL
***
“As a cancer survivor myself this book touched parts of my soul I thought I'd forgotten about. Ms. Raab did a phenomenal job at writing a memoir while including the reader in her journey. I knew I was in for a great read when I teared up during her Introduction. This will be an invaluable tool to those currently battling cancer or loving someone going through it. It enlightens, inspires and even gets us standing up and cheering the author on her fight. I have always admired those who can go through turmoil and use positive, proactive ways to carry them to tomorrow. Beautiful job and beautiful words. Thank you, Ms. Raab--you'll help many.”~~Chynna T. Laird,author of LILY WOLF WORDS
***
“Diana’s book, Healing with words: a writer’s cancer journey documents two processes for her readers. One in eight women is afflicted with breast cancer. I am one of the remaining seven who wonders and worries when and if one of my breasts will be invaded by the cancer that she so thoughtfully and realistically explains at each stage of the assessment, diagnosis, treatment and surviving process.
Even though Diana is a medical professional she documents this process also as a women, daughter, friend, wife, and mother using words juxtaposed with journal questions, entries and poetry. One such poem, A women’s life, utilizes 37 verbs to describe our many developmental stages. One of these identified verbs is writing.

Writing is the second process and gift that Diana shares with the reader. For any individual surviving a trauma there needs to be strategies and tools that can be utilized to help the individual move from feeling like a victim to knowing that they are a survivor. Diana’s shares how writing impacted her journey but also makes suggestion for readers to use writing as a process that can help to increase feelings of strength and personal power.
This is a thoughtful book that will touch the hearts of women and those who love us.”~~Theresa Fraser, MA

Diana, thank you so much for this most inspiring story. I appreciate your letting me interview you to coincide with the recent release of Killer Recipes, a cookbook. Killer Recipes is great family recipes submitted by mystery writers all over the country: hence, the title. We had fun renaming the recipes to fit the "mystery" theme. However, the real idea behind Killer Recipes is not only to promote each writer who submitted a recipe but also to donate all proceeds to cancer research so that we can annihilate cancer in our lifetime. 


Diana, thank you for being a part of this promotion, and again, continued great health and happiness!

Available in print, ebook, and Kindle

http://www.amazon.com/

http://www.lldreamspell.com/ for quantities

Michael McCarty's Hell of a Job

Michael McCarty popped in for a visit today. Michael, it's a pleasure to be interviewing you. For readers who are new to your work, give us a short biography.


Michael McCarty: I am a writer. Short enough? [Laughs]

It can be longer than that, silly. Go on.

Michael McCarty: I was a former stand-up comedian, musician, freelance writer and managing editor of a music magazine. I was married last Halloween to my girlfriend Cindy. I have a pet rabbit named Kitty The Bunny. I am the 2008 David R. Collins’ Literary Achievement Award winner from the Midwest Writing Center and a three times Bram Stoker Finalist from the Horror Writers Association.

Seventeen of my books have been published so far. By the end of this year, I will have my 20th book published and that is all since 2003. People call me “prolific” – but that is a polite word for insane [Laughs].

I write fiction and nonfiction and some of my more recent titles include Esoteria-Land, A Little Help From My Fiends, Liquid Diet: A Vampire Satire, Rusty The Robot’s Holiday Adventures [co-written with Sherry Decker], Fallen Angel [co-written with Amy Grech], and A Hell Of A Job.

My upcoming titles for this year include Professor LaGungo’s Classroom Of Horrors [co-written with Mark McLaughlin] and Masters Of Imagination.

Wow! You really are in...eh...prolific. Tell us about your latest books. Are they available in print and e-book formats?

Michael McCarty: My very latest books are A Hell Of A Job, a short story collection from Damnation Books and the kid’s book Rusty The Robot’s Holiday Adventures [co-written with Sherry Decker].

A Hell Of A Job is 25 short stories and is available as an e-book and trade paperback. Rusty The Robot’s Holiday Adventures is available as a trade paperback. The storyline for Rusty: Is what would happen in the future if a robot, which was ancient technology, was found in a brave new world? The book is set sometime between 25 and 50 years ahead of the present.

Do you have a philosophy about writing horror?

Michael McCarty: Writers and editors always say: “You need to grab a reader with a hook.” I use meat hooks. [laughs]

I like to mix a lot of genres together. Probably my love of horror comes from reading a ton of different genres as a kid and growing up reading Dean Koontz novels. He likes to genre hop, too.

I try to write the most entertaining tales possible. I haven’t heard any complaints yet or demands for money back, so I guess I’m succeeding.

Any current projects?

Michael McCarty: I am currently working on a sequel to Liquid Diet: A Vampire Satire, Masters Of Imagination, interviews with 25 horror, science fiction and fantasy writers and filmmakers including Ray Bradbury, Laurell K. Hamilton, Linnea Quigley, Joe Lansdale and more.

Impressive!

I am also working on Conversations With Kreskin which is an interview book with The Amazing Kreskin and a secret novel project with Joe McKinney and Jody R. LaGreca.

Is there a particular sub-genre that appeals to you most within horror?

Michael McCarty: I really like vampire novels and zombie movies. I’ve written a vampire novel that I’m shopping around, and my novel Monster Behind the Wheel does contain a lot of zombies. That book is going to be re-released next year from Medallion Press as an e-book, which Mark McLaughlin [the co-author] and I are really excited about.

I also like the sub-genre of humor and horror. I like to mix laughs and fear in one story.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

Michael McCarty: I have lots of sites, where people can find out about my books and myself.

I am on Facebook under “Michael McCarty – Davenport, Iowa.” Other sites:

www.myspace.com/monsterbook

www.myspace.com/ottochurch

http://www.mcfarlandpub.com/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-4631-5

http://www.mcfarlandpub.com/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-3497-8

http://www.damnationbooks.com/book.php?isbn=9781615721177

http://khpindustries.com/wordpress2/?page_id=61

http://bearmanormedia.bizland.com/id6.html

http://skullvines.com

http://merchantskeep.com

www.horror-mall.com

www.genremall.com

https://www.horror-mall.com/FALLEN-ANGEL-by-Amy-Grech-Michael-McCarty-Digital-Edition-p-20562.html


Michael, thanks for the colorful interview. Wishing you great success!

Michael McCarty: Thank you, God bless and Godspeed.

Thomas C. Almond

Thomas C. Almond, author of Goodbye, Kiev is my guest today. Welcome, Thomas, and tell us more about yourself.

I was born in Spokane, Washington. I worked 27 years as a firefighter for the city of Portland, Oregon after serving 4 years in the U. S. Coast Guard. My beautiful wife Olga I met in Dnepropetrovsk Ukraine and we live in the Bend/ Sunriver, Oregon area.

I have had a desire to write for a long time and finally found the time to pursue this when I retired from the fire department.

What are your writing goals?

I want to write books that make people think and feel their emotions. I like to write in a style like I am sitting in your living room telling you my story.

Is there a message in your writing you want readers to grasp?

Goodbye Kiev is a story about love and commitment. I hope readers will put themselves in the place of the main character and think what they might do in a similar situation.

I also wanted to provide the reader with some information about Ukraine, a country I think many people in America do not know much about.

Goodbye Kiev is a powerful story in an interesting setting. All reviews of Goodbye Kiev have commented on the emotion and power of this story which one of my goals in writing it.

Tell us more about your book.

It is a fictional love story that the idea came from some real life experiences. An American man and a Ukrainian woman meet through an international marriage agency, fall in love and plan to marry. But after his return to the States she begins to appear to want to end their relationship. He does not understand why and eventually returns to Ukraine to try to find answers and save their relationship. This return trip will test his love and commitment repeatedly.

How did you develop characters? Setting?

Many of the characters are based on real people I have known. The settings are where I have lived in America as well as Ukraine.

How do you determine voice in your writing?

I like to write as if I am telling this story to you in person.

Where do you write? When? What do you have around you?

I wrote Goodbye Kiev at home and while in Ukraine. I found great inspiration to write Goodbye Kiev while in Dnepropetrovsk Ukraine, which is the setting for much of the story. I often went out to different locations around the city and wrote. I also wrote a small part of it on an airplane coming home from Ukraine.

Any current projects?

I am currently working on a sequel to Goodbye Kiev.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

My website is

http://thomascalmond.webs.com/

Here can be found latest information and a pictorial review of Goodbye Kiev as well as some stories about my time in Ukraine. You can also purchase books from my website at some of the lowest prices you will find anywhere.

I am also on many sites such as Books In Sync, Cold Coffee, iFIGO Village and Book Masons.
Thank you for this opportunity to communicate with interested readers about Goodbye Kiev.

You're certainly welcome. Continued sucess!