Thursday, November 3, 2016

The Difference a Cover Can Make!

A New Chapter of "In2MInds" will be available soon, but I just couldn't wait to show you the cover of "In2Minds2" and the NEW cover for the previous chapter "In2Minds." These were done by the talented Sherry D. Ramsey. I can hardly wait for the release later this month! Compare it to the old cover. You will see why I am so excited *jumping for joy*




Old Cover



Monday, September 12, 2016

You Know Nothing...

I have been watching a lot of Game of Thrones over the past couple of month. In fact, I am now caught up having watched all five seasons available on DVD. So, when a couple of friends and I were chatting on Twitter yesterday, that line, “You know nothing, Jon Snow,” came to mind with regard to a possible title for one of the fellow author’s new books. He said no, but the other author suggested it would make a great title for a self-help book. I totally agreed – catchy and short – a perfect title.

Being an indie author, I thought, ‘what better subject then the marketing of indie books?’ However, also, like most indie authors, I work an eight to five job and do my writing and marketing during the early morning hours before work, lunchtime, evenings, weekends…you get the picture. I squeeze it in. So there will be no forthcoming book from me on marketing, but as you know, if you have been in the indie community, there are tons of books already written on the subject.

Saturday, September 3, 2016

Life is Good!

It doesn't take a lot to entertain Dad and me. We don't do a lot. He is 90 and his days of camping, picnics and even strolling, are over. He'll walk around the grocery store and then go sit on a bench while I check out.

For entertainment we go to the movies on the weekend and out to lunch or dinner. We are both light eaters, so if we order regular, rather than senior meals, we have leftovers for the next meal and I only have to cook one day of the weekend.

We have 'staycations.' We putter in the garden with little projects or change something in the house that we can see will work better a different way. We don't go on cruises, or fly to exotic places... our budget doesn't allow for such things. We treat ourselves to Netflix, Hulu and Amazon, so we always have something to watch. A couple of years back we saved up and bought a big screen TV. So life is good.

Sunday, August 21, 2016

What once was Old, made New!

I bought a porch swing for my mother about fifteen years ago. The manufacturer pointed out that you did not have to put a finish on it. They assured the buyer the wood would acquire a lovely gray patina.

I think those instructions were meant for a swing that was really residing on a porch. Our was under the eves of the storage shed. The wood took on a life all its own in the Pacific Northwest rains. It got a finish on it that looked very much like 'scabs' on an apple.

Over the years we power washed it. We finished it with deck finish. Eventually, this year, its right arm began to buckle and I did not feel it was safe any longer for us to depend on it not breaking with a load and dumping its occupants on the mosaic gravel-work below.

This is a picture of it off in the distance.

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Dull Fences, Bright Metal Art!

Over the years I have acquired some metal art pieces and hung them on our dull brown fence. 
This past month I took them all down, primed them and painted them with bright acrylic paint. 
To preserve them over the winter and through our rainy season I added two coats of gloss sealer.


Primed and ready to paint


The largest piece being painted
I did it on the glass topped dining room table
Clean-up was a snap, just used a razor blade
Painted one color at a time, waited for it to dry, then painted the next color


The same piece finished and hung on the fence
Nice thing is when the garden is not blooming the piece still will be

Here is the YouTube Video of the Garden Tour with the art hung.

Sunday, July 31, 2016

Online Book Club - 4 out of 4 Star Review for 'Shifting in The Realms'


Online Book Club is a Free Online Community for Book Lovers


OnlineBookClub.org is a free site for readers that has been around for over 10 years, before smartphones even!

They have a lot of awesome features for book lovers and a massive community of active members from all over the world.

Some of their most popular features include Exclusive, original reviews by their profession review team.

Official Review: Shifting in the Realms by Theresa Snyder

Post Number:#1 by L_Therese » 27 Jul 2016, 21:22
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Shifting in the Realms" by Theresa Snyder.]

"For reasons I have never been able to articulate, I am not usually a fan of vampire books. Shape-shifters are more appealing to me, so I took a chance on Theresa Snyder’s novella Shifting in The Realms. From the very first page to the last, I was happy that I did. I simply started reading and couldn't stop until it was over..."

To read the full review click "Shifting in The Realms"
"Shifting in The Realms" Available Everywhere


Sunday, July 3, 2016

Have you been waiting for just the right time 
to pick up copies of my books? 

NOW IS THAT TIME!

ALL of my books are 50% off during the Smashwords Summer Sale 2016 July 1-31st. This is exclusive to Smashwords and there are thousands of authors participating. Hop over and grab some great Summer Reading at a discounted price. Use Promo code: SSW50


Click here for my Smashwords page and a listing of all the great reads:

THE TWIN CITIES SERIES "Paranormal like a breath of fresh air in a genre gone stale."

THE STAR TRAVELER SERIES "Scifi reminiscent of Isaac Asimov & Robert Heinlein."

THE FARLOFT CHRONICLES "Fantasy beautifully written that children to adults can appreciate."

WE 3 "Memoirs that are heartwarming, funny & soothing to the spirit."


Thursday, June 16, 2016

Book Trailers using Photo Story 3 and Free StockMusic

Greetings all my author friends:

Recently, I was asked by a promoter if I could supply a book trailer for the "Shifting Books" in my Twin Cities Series.

I didn't have one and did not have a clue as to how to build one. So I went to our friend Mr. Google and found the program referenced above Photo Story 3. Once I showed the finished product to some friends one suggested the other program listed; Free StockMusic.

Together these two programs made two nice trailers, but you be the judge:

 

 

The first was made with the music supplied with the program.
The second with the 'Action Hero' music from the Free StockMusic site.

I do not consider myself a 'techie' person, so I think you all could use it. I have already passed it on to a few author friends and one just completed making her own. I have to find out how she managed to get a background behind her images that moves and morphs like ocean waves.

Here is the Photo Story 3 Tutorial I watched before I downloaded the program. Simple huh?

My advice? Get on the programs and play. Fun, and I think, lovely results. I will get better with practice.

My best to you all!


Sunday, May 1, 2016

Mother's Day - A Week Away!

Mother's Day is a week away and you are at a loss for that gift that says you love her... 
She has everything and you can't think of anything she really needs...

Give her something that will warm her heart, make her chuckle and know that you care about her.



What a reader said about "We 3"
(4.8 Star rating on Amazon)


Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
This book reminded me of my childhood favorites- Laura Ingalls Wilder and Understood Betsy- because of the focus on the everyday lives of a loving family. It is full of touching details. For example, when I read how Theresa and her father worked for years on the garden so that the ailing mother could see her favorite plants & flowers from every single door & window, a tear came to my eye.

It doesn't gloss over the tough parts of being a caregiver for aging parents- but the author's graceful sense of humor carries her through it all. Even though the topic of the book is aging, I'd say the book is more funny than sad. Reading it was a really soothing, peaceful experience for me. The book distracted me from my worries and made me thoughtful about the things that really matter in life.

I called up my mother and told her she should read this book immediately. My grandparents are getting to be the age where they need extra care. But even if you don't need this book for practical reasons, it's a very nice read for personal reasons. It makes you feel good.

Saturday, April 9, 2016

A Big Green Dragon!

I have very vivid, memorable dreams. The past two weeks during my waking hours I have been totally absorbed in editing a book for an author through my "Affordable Proofreading & Editing Service, LLC."

This morning prior to waking I had a dream my administrative assistant reminded me I was teaching a class from 2:00 to 5:00 and could not take a late lunch. He said it was called "Story to Picture."

Next thing I knew I was standing in front of my students saying, "Picture this... 'A big green dragon landed before me...' Now Picture This! 'The iridescent green dragon made it appear as though the whole of Emerald City had landed before me.' Now... you have a Big Green Dragon!"


Funny thing is, I am not even editing a dragon book, I am editing a general work of fiction.
Farloft seems to be playing with my subconscious.
Sigmund Freud would have had fun analyzing me.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Evergreen Air and Space Museum

Recently we went to the Evergreen Air and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. I found some really interesting planes and history to share.

First and foremost, The Spruce Goose lives at the museum. You cannot really appreciate it until you stand beside it or under it. It is larger than huge...if that is possible. Take note of the other planes in comparison.


This is a panorama view from the balcony. The hanger is literally dominated by this giant.

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

High Tea at 'La Tea Da' in Tillamook Oregon

Vacations are such fun, and are especially delightful if you find a new tea shop.

I recently had the pleasure of experiencing the best high tea I have ever indulged in at La Tea Da in Tillamook, Oregon.

You might ask yourself, 'A High Tea on the Oregon Coast? What's with that?' Well, ladies and gentlemen these folks know how to make the experience as special as you could possibly imagine.

 
Fresh and lovely.
The table is set with real linen clothes and napkins, water and Demerara sugar.
Silverware is miniature to suit the occasion.
(All items a must in my book for a proper presentation.)

Sunday, February 14, 2016

My New Friends at Yarn Story Factory

Art by Laura Walters

Recently I was approached by the wonderful folks at Yarn Story Factory. They had heard Farloft, my dragon, first audio book on his site and were intrigued. They wanted to do a podcast of part of one of Farloft's books.

I was skeptical. They said they were going to do it for free, with music and sound effects and help promote the book for sale. My skepticism was soon squelched.

Yarn Story Factory is a podcast of free audio stories for kids! Fairy tales, bedtime stories, and stories for road-trips! You can find them on all major podcast softwares. Their goal is to help inspire curiosity and imagination in children around the world! All the while, having fun doing so! They are a small team of dedicated Yarn Spinners.

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Chocolate Fest - 2016

I had such a lovely time yesterday, I thought I would say a few words about the Annual Chocolate Fest in Portland.

Thought you might want to see where our chocolate comes from. Here is how it grows on the trees.

They grow off the trunk like my columnar apple tree.

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Serialized Fiction - Declaration of #SerialSaturday

Back in the early 60s my Mom and Dad used to watch for the postman’s delivery of The Saturday Evening Post. This magazine always had a serialized story running in it. When my parents spotted the Post’s delivery they would make a beeline for the mailbox to see who would be the first to read the next chapter of the story.

In 1962 it was The Day of the Triffids. This serialized story went on to become a book and then had several turns on the big screen as motion pictures in 1963 and in 2009.

The Post is not the only one who has had success with short stories growing into books in print.

My friend, Carla Monticelli, posted her first book Red Desert as a serialized story on her blog prior to publishing it as a book. She has since built up such a loyal following that Amazon picked her book, The Mentor, up as one of their international translations into English.

I have personally posted several serialized Farloft stories on my blog which I have since published as books in The Farloft Chronicles. People who follow me on my blog will get a glimpse of the ‘first’ draft of some of my novels.

I have some very loyal readers (over 115,000 blog hits and over 1,500 weekly readers) who drop in to check out the latest chapter of my current story on my Blog. I post each Saturday, because it is important to be consistent in order to build a following. I shift between genres, Scifi, Paranormal and Fantasy.

There are several stories archived on the site: “Fur & Frost – A Dragon Love Story" (fantasy), "Yaltzee Shift" (paranormal) and "Planet Designation 014.666.2460" (scifi/fantasy smashup), among many others. The main blog also has a link to the scifi “Star Trader Updates” blog which features my kickass Star Trader, 3su, on her missions through the known verse.

So, I propose a designated day for serialized stories. I hereby declare Saturday #SerialSaturday and may all you story bloggers out there have as much success with your postings as John Wyndham, Carla and me.