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The Postcard Gets 5-Star Review from Readers’ Favorite
Honestly, it’s been a pretty rough 2019 for so many reasons, but seeing this review this morning from READERS’ FAVORITE put a big smile on my face. It’s when I read something like this that I know that despite all the work and effort it takes to be an independent author, it is all worth it in the end. Thank you also to my former student, now PR pro, Grace Clark, for the amazing cover photo, which helped earn us a perfect 5 score for the collection, from writing, storytelling, to cover design. Cheers! THE BOOK REVIEW Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers’ Favorite A postcard is more than just…
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Book Promotion with a Little Help From My Friends—and a Contest
As a university professor who primarily teaches writing courses, one of the best things about connecting my life as a teacher and my life as a writer is just how many times the two intertwine. Whether that intersection means writing a textbook or a book of fiction, I get the opportunity to show students that I indeed do practice what I preach. Today is another such opportunity. Having placed as a finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards book contest for 2017 with Inn Significant, I get the opportunity to use the skills students learn in public relations writing and produce and promote a press release about the award. Promoting…
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When Giving Criticism…
One of the most difficult things to do as a teacher, reviewer, friend, or critic is to provide meaningful and helpful criticism. When you offer suggestions or input into another person’s work, if you don’t like it or think it needs perfecting, you have a right to that opinion. However, there is a way to make remarks so that they do not become hurtful to someone. Society today—in the throes of social media—is way too quick in this world to judge someone harshly and say, “it stinks” or “it just doesn’t work” or “it’s not good enough.” In this season of love and charity, being kind to others does matter.…
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Four Things I Learned In Miami at the Readers’ Favorite Awards
* * * Sometimes when my students do an intense assignment, when they’ve completed it, I ask them to write a reflection, typically in the form of a reflective essay. When we sit in peace after we’ve experienced something, it allows us time to be creative and think about what it all meant to us. I’ve decided to do the same about my trip to receive the Readers’ Favorite Bronze Medal that my first novel, Beneath the Mimosa Tree, won for Contemporary Romance. Reflection #1: I am lucky. As I was flying to Miami, I had a few moments to consider what’s happened to the book since it launched in…
