This is a great idea from The Bookshelf Muse. Go check out what all the writer love is all about this week HERE. Not only are they nice enough to put this event on, they’re giving away awesome stuff too!
What have you done nice for your favorites in the writing biz lately?
Posted in Books, Life, Reading, Uncategorized, Writing
Tagged Random Acts of Kindness for Writers, RAOK, The Bookshelf Muse
Posted in Life, Uncategorized
Tagged Poll Question, Sesame Street, U.T.I.S, Useless Theoretical Information Society, Yoda
Fill up your Kindle and get your children reading this summer with these 15 books, free on Kindle only on April 19 during the Give Your Child A Kindle Book (or 15 of Them!) Promotion. Save this page, come back on Thursday the 19th, and scroll down the list, which includes picture books, middle grade novels, and young adult books spanning a range of topics from sports, to paranormal, to historical, to educational. Selected books include the Florida Historical Society’s Best Children’s Book, and books that have been recommended in Best Books for Young Teen Readers Grades 7-10 and in an edition of Children’s Book of the Year. The authors have been published by houses such as Scholastic, Dell, HarperCollins, Simon Pulse, Avon, E.P. Dutton, Millbrook, Lerner, and St. Martin’s Minotaur. Adult readers will find much to enjoy on this list also. Some of the titles will be free for a couple days, but the entire list is just guaranteed free on the 19th. We also have two bonus books in multiple e-book formats, compatible with Nook, Sony and more! You’ll find the list of novels for older tween and teen readers first, followed by picture books and books for younger readers, and then our two bonus novels.
Please click on the title to follow the Amazon buy links.
NOVELS
Download Dark Before Dawn by Stacy Juba – When teen psychic Dawn Christian gets involved with a fortuneteller mentor and two girls who share her mysterious talents, she finally belongs after years of being a misfit. When she learns her new friends may be tied to freak “accidents” in town, Dawn has an important choice to make – continue developing the talent that makes her special or challenge the only people who have ever accepted her. “A special book that should not be missed.” Fresh Fiction
Download Face-Off by Stacy Juba – Brad’s twin brother T.J. has gotten himself out of the fancy prep school his father picked for him and into the public high school Brad attends. The whole school is rooting for a big double-strength win…not knowing that their twin hockey stars are heating up the ice for a winner takes all face-off. Included in the reference guide Best Books for Young Teen Readers Grades 7-10.
Download Charlie Woodchuck is a Minor Niner by Dalya Moon - It’s 1988, and Charlie Woodchuck is the most minor of niners. At thirteen, she’s the youngest girl at Snowy Cove High School, and so clueless, she wore leg warmers and acid-wash jeans on her first day. Big mistake! Almost as big a mistake as signing up for a boys-only shop class. Doy! Just when she thinks the first week of high school can’t get any more weird, Charlie discovers she may be adopted.
Download Away from Whipplethorn by A.W. Hartoin – Tiny fairies. Huge adventure. Matilda is about to get what she’s always wanted, and it’s a bad thing. Being a babysitter isn’t much of a dream, but Matilda is anything but average. She’s half a centimeter tall, invisible to the human eye, and hearing-impaired. In her life, adventures are in short supply, but there is a emergency list for her first job. The only problem; humans aren’t on the list.
Download The Worldwide Dessert Contest: Enhanced Multimedia Edition by Dan Elish - Pancakes that turn into trampolines, attacking caramel apples, roller-skating pies, are all a part of The Worldwide Dessert Contest: Enhanced Multimedia Edition by Dan Elish, a lip-smacking middle grade fantasy with an original musical score by a Broadway veteran embedded alongside the text! After losing to a cheat for the past eleven years, will chef Applefeller finally manage to nab the prize?
Download Practice Cake: A Romantic Comedy by Dalya Moon – There’s one thing Maddie Bird (18) finds more tempting than red velvet cake: her coworker, Drew. All it takes is one of his sly winks or a playful hip-check by the cooler, and she’s incinerating the cookies. Her boyfriend would not approve. When a reality TV crew descends upon the bakery, her simple summer job gets even more complicated.
Download Savage Cinderella by PJ Sharon – Eighteen-year-old Brinn Hathaway has survived on her own in the Northwest High Country of Georgia since she was left for dead in a shallow grave by the man who kidnapped her as a child. When a young nature photographer, Justin Spencer, catches the wild girl on film and the two form a tentative friendship, Brinn must decide if coming out of hiding is worth the hope – and the danger-that may await her.
Download Ashlyn’s Radio by Wilson Doherty (Norah Wilson and Heather Doherty) – When circumstances force 17-year-old Ashlyn Caverhill to move to her grandma’s in Maine, she’s PO’d. Although it boasts the hot Caden Williams, she thinks Prescott Junction is the deadest place ever. She may be right. Not only does a ghost train roll through at night, but the Caverhill-cursed radio Ashlyn finds foretells that she’ll board it! With Caden’s help, she must find a way to escape her fate.
Download Captain Morgana Mason by Dorothy Francis – Gramp falls ill. Morgana and her younger brother, Seth take charge of the family’s sponging business, using their small boat to hook sponges from the sea and sell them. Housekeeper, Goldie, adds humor and wisdom to the tale. You’ll root for Morgana as she seeks her strengths and grapples with the adult world. The Florida Historical Society voted this book as the best Children’s Book of its year.
Download Dark Ascension: A Demon Anthology by N.R. Wick – Keep a flashlight handy. This collection of short stories for young adults is sure to draw out whatever’s skulking in the shadows. From supernatural entities, to crazed monsters, to disturbing discoveries, evil is lurking ’round every corner. Delve into the dark recesses of this creepy book… if you dare.
FOR YOUNGER READERS:
Download Teddy Bear Town Childrens E-Book Bundle by Stacy Juba – Immerse your child in the gentle world of teddy bears with three picture books in one download. Each story is fully illustrated with simple illustrations of teddy bear families. Includes The Flag Keeper, Victoria Rose and the Big Bad Noise, and Sticker Shoes. The Midwest Book Review on The Flag Keeper: “Excellent educational book filled with information all American children should know.”
Download Doctor: Discover Series Picture Book for Kids - Who likes going to the doctor? Who wants their child to grow up to be a doctor? Whether you’re looking to alleviate anxiety or plant the suggestion early, DOCTOR features 25 full-color photos of of doctors, nurses and medical equipment. Like other titles in the Kindle Kids Library from Xist Publishing, DOCTOR has been formatted to take advantage of the Kindle, Kindle Fire and Kindle apps for phones, tablets and computers.
Download Einstein The Lazy Kitty by Renae Rae - This 30-page story is inspired by Renae Rae’s real-life lazy kitty. Einstein The Lazy Kitty, combines rhythmic writing and colorful illustrations to make this a short, fun book for all ages but it was designed with your toddler and early reader in mind.
Download Time to Get Ready, Bunny! by Brenda Ponnay - It’s time to get ready, Bunny! Bunny? BUNNY? In this charming little book, author/illustrator Brenda Ponnay has artfully depicted the morning routine of so many families. Whether your little one would rather stay in bed, play with toys, or try on every outfit in the closet, this book is sure to resonate with parents.
Download Grammar Candy by Katrina Streza – Have you ever wondered what exactly an adjective was? Drawn a blank when your child asked for help with English grammar homework? In GRAMMAR CANDY, the second book by educator Katrina Streza, Danny and Sam are back for another candy-filled learning adventure. This time, they’ll turn a grammar lesson into some sweet fun when they visit Mr. Candor’s Candy Shop and learn about nouns, pronouns,
adjectives, verbs and more. For candy-loving kids in grades 1-3 (and their parents too)!
BONUS BOOKS: Available in multiple e-book formats compatible with Kindle, Nook, Sony and other e-readers.
The Younger Days by Mike Hays -
In the beginning, Boy Smyth has a dull Missouri farm life and a burning desire to be an outlaw like his hero, Cole Younger. In the end, Boy Smyth has five dead bodies and two burning buildings at his farm and the most feared man in the United States crying outside his front gate. And that desire for the outlaw life? It’s purged completely from his system. Download free on April 19 from Muse It Up Publishing.
The Pea Soup Poisonings by Nancy Means Wright - To get into her brother’s Spy Club, Zoe must walk a high narrow beam over rusted farm machinery and then discover who poisoned Granny Fairweather’s pea soup. She has 5 days to find the culprit. Can she do it? Winner of an Agatha award for Best Children’s/Young Adult Novel. Download free on April 19 from Belgrave House.
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I wrote a book. Seriously, I did. It is a book for the upper middle grade (10-14 year old) boy crowd, but I think anyone can enjoy it. I know it may be a bit surprising to some of you, but it’s true. A bit of a shock similar to the time I gave a pre-game speech using Luke 11:23 as the theme, only to have just one player respond with, “Coach, you read the Bible?”
Yes, it is true. I read the Bible AND I write. I had an idea, I scribbled it down, it rattled around in my head for several years then I wrote all 25,500 words down in just the right order. A series of rejections, followed by a series of fortunate events, finally landed a contract with MuseItUp Publishing, who released it as an ebook on March 9, 2012.
Now that the ebook is out, I have to also become a salesman. It is the way of modern publishing; part writer, part editor, part marketer, part sales. I am not a salesman. Sure, I want as many people to read the book as humanly possible, but I am not a salesman. Never have been. I hated going house to house hawking fund-raisers as a kid. As a 13-year old, I refused to sell candy bars for the school’s summer baseball program. Wouldn’t do it. My coach that year was also in charge of the fundraising for the baseball program. He told me I HAD to sell candy bars or sit the bench. I refused. I sat the bench. I was a pretty good player, but I wouldn’t budge on my position. I sat the bench. I am not a good salesman.
I stunk at trying to sell our summer conditioning program to the kids. I couldn’t bring myself to Tony Little-ize a sales pitch to the kids. Fortunately Coach Lane stepped in and was able to convince kids to come, he sold it much better than I ever could have. My part became to sell the results through action and work. Show up, work hard and you will notice a difference in your body in two weeks. Once they gave the program a chance, they liked the results and came back day after day.
So, here’s the sales pitch. Try the book, give it a chance and you (or young people you know) may like the results. And priced at $3.50, it is actually cheaper than one of those World’s Finest chocolate bars or boxes of pastel-colored, candy-coated almonds.
You can find the ebook at these places:
And here’s a giveaway of an ebook copy of THE YOUNGER DAYS. Leave a comment here or at my THE COACH HAYS page, to respond to the question below. A winner from the respondents will be randomly selected on April Fool’s Day, 2012.
Question: What was the worst, most hated, most despised thing you ever had to sell as a kid?
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Book giveaway, Books, Mike Hays, Reading, The Younger Days, Writing
THE YOUNGER DAYS book cover by MuseItUp Publishing cover artist Kaytalin Platt
I am very happy with it. So cool. For the first time, it feel like all this is really, actually going to happen and wasn’t purely in Mike Hays imagination land.
Posted in Books, Reading, Writing
Tagged Cover Art, Kaytalin Platt, Mike Hays, MuseItUp Publishing, The Younger Days
Posted in Books, Reading, Writing
Tagged Book Trailer, Mike Hays, The Younger Days
