#ExcerptWeek – A Hundred Tiny Threads by Judith Barrow

August 4, 2017August 3, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 52 Comments

This morning, I’d like to welcome Judith Barrow, who is sharing an excerpt from her latest book, A Hundred Tiny Threads, which is now available for pre-order. I know you’ll enjoy this one, and will remember to share hither and yon, as you can. Thanks so much, and thanks, Judith, for taking part in #ExcerptWeek. Welcome!

SYNOPSIS

Gritty family saga set in Lancashire in the 1900s and Ireland at the time of the Black and Tans.
Winifred is a determined young woman eager for new experiences, for a life beyond the grocer’s shop counter ruled over by her domineering mother. When her friend Honora – an Irish girl, with the freedom to do as she pleases – drags Winifred along to a suffragette rally, she realises that there is more to life than the shop and her parents’ humdrum lives of work and grumbling.

Bill Howarth’s troubled childhood echoes through his early adult life and the scars linger, affecting his work, his relationships and his health. The only light in his life comes from a chance meeting with Winifred, the daughter of a Lancashire grocer. The girl he determines to make his wife.

Meeting Honora’s intelligent and silver-tongued medical student brother turns Winifred’s heart upside down and she finds herself pregnant. Bill Howarth reappears on the scene offering her a way out.

~~~

EXCERPT FROM A HUNDRED TINY THREADS

… Brought back to Bill the distant memory of the day his father died.

Wilfred Howarth had given Bill a beating that morning for not getting up when first called and had promised another when he returned home after his shift. He’d said he was getting Bill used to an early rise because the following day would be his thirteenth birthday; the day he was to follow his father down the mine as a putter. It didn’t bother Bill; he’d always known that pushing the small wagons along the metal plates through the workings to the passages where the horses could be hitched up to them was to be his lot in life.

Bill remembered hearing the thump and rush of running feet on the cobbles outside his house at the same time he heard the warning siren from the mine. He’d run with the crowd before even knowing what was happening; seeing with the strain on the faces and the hearing of the sobs and cries of the women and children around him that life in the village had changed forever.

‘What’s ’appened?’ Bill caught the arm of a woman.

‘They say there’s been a flood.’ Her eyes were wild. ‘My three lads are down there. What am I going to do? I have two more bairns to bring up. Their da’s already gone; killed in that explosion last year.’ She grabbed his sleeve before dropping to her knees.

Pulled down with her Bill looked around for somebody to help the woman but there was no one; they might as well not be there for all the notice paid to them.

He dragged her to her feet. ‘C’mon. Unless we get to the gates we’ll never know who’s safe and who’s still down there.’

The management had closed the gates. The cries of despair soon changed to shouts of anger in an effort to discover what had happened. When a grey-faced man in a suit approached the crowd the silence was instant. He held up his hand to quiet them, an unnecessary gesture, before he spoke.

‘From what we can gather there was break through to an old abandoned mine that was flooded. We know some of the men are safe—’ He waited for the cries of relief to abate. ‘But we don’t know how many yet.’

Then a huddle of men, bowed, silent and trailing a thin stream of black water behind them, appeared, walking towards the gates.

Bill knuckles grated together as the woman’s gripped his hand. And then she screamed. ‘Eddie!’ She looked at Bill and laughed; a high-pitched noise. ‘That’s Eddie, my eldest.’ Then turning she shouted, ‘Where’s your brothers.’

As the young man came closer Bill saw the white tracks cutting through the black of coal dust on his face.

‘Gone, Ma. They’re gone.’ He shook his head, bewildered. ‘There was so much water–water and thick mud. One minute we were working together and then all this water came flooding through and they were gone.’

She fainted. The manager unbolted the gates and the crowd surged around her, pouring into the yard before milling around in sudden confusion. The man’s blank gaze fastened on Bill in a blink of recognition. ‘Your da was with ‘em.’ He nodded, his voice trailing away. ‘He’s gone too…’

Bill thought his feet would never move from the spot he stood in. Then he turned, jumped over the lifeless form of the woman and ran for home, shocked by sense of release and freedom that coursed through him.

He tumbled through the doorway of the house.

‘Didn’t you hear the siren?’ He held his side against the pain of the stitch.

‘I did.’ Marion didn’t lift her head from staring into the small fire in the grate. ‘I reckon someone would tell me sooner or later what‘s happened.’ Now she did look at him, her eyes narrowed. ‘And here you are.’ She slowly moved her head up and down. ‘Here you are. You’re going to tell me he’s gone, aren’t you?’

Bill nodded, a succession of small bobs of the head. ‘Yeah. The mine—’

‘I don’t want to know. All I want you to know is that you’d better make sure you’re ready to take his place as wage earner in this house.’

It had taken months to recover some of the men’s bodies. But never Wilfred Howarth’s.

~~~

Judith Barrow, Author

Judith Barrow, originally from Saddleworth, near Oldham, has lived in Pembrokeshire, Wales, for thirty eight years.

She has BA (Hons) in Literature with the Open University, a Diploma in Drama from Swansea University and a MA in Creative Writing with the University of Wales Trinity St David’s College, Carmarthen. She has had short stories, plays, reviews and articles, published throughout the British Isles and has won several poetry competitions. She has completed three children’s books.
She is also a Creative Writing tutor.

She says:-
My next book, A Hundred Tiny Threads, is the prequel to the trilogy and is the story of Mary Howarth’s mother, Winifred, and father, Bill. Set between 1910 & 1924 it is a the time of the Suffragettes, WW1 and the Black and Tans, sent to Ireland to cover the rebellion and fight for freedom from the UK and the influenza epidemic. It is inevitable that what forms the lives, personalities and characters of Winifred and Bill eventually affects the lives of their children, Tom, Mary, Patrick and Ellen. And so the Howarth/Pattern trilogy begins.

You can pre-order A Hundred Tiny Threads here:

Amazon.co.uk: http://amzn.to/2ss6dtX
Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/2hch4Vo

Reach Judith here:

https://judithbarrowblog.com/

https://twitter.com/barrow_judith

https://www.facebook.com/judith.barrow.3

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Judith-Barrow/e/B0043RZJV6

#ExcerptWeek – Words We Carry by D. G. Kaye

August 3, 2017August 2, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 61 Comments

Thanks for your generous invitation to share an excerpt of our books here on your blog Marcia. This excerpt is from my nonfiction-self-help book, Words We Carry – Essays of Obsession and Self-Esteem.

~~~
Book Blurb

“I have been a great critic of myself for most of my life, and I was darned good at it, deflating my own ego without the help of anyone else.”

What do our shopping habits, high-heeled shoes, and big hair have to do with how we perceive ourselves? Do the slights we endured when we were young affect how we choose our relationships now?

D.G. takes us on a journey, unlocking the hurts of the past by identifying situations that hindered her own self-esteem. Her anecdotes and confessions demonstrate how the hurtful events in our lives linger and set the tone for how we value our own self-worth.

Words We Carry is a raw, personal accounting of how the author overcame the demons of low self-esteem with the determination to learn to love herself.

~~~

Words We Carry – Excerpt
NEGATIVITY AND JEALOUSY

It’s a fact that negativity underlies our fears, and our guilt can play a big part in lowering our self-esteem. All of these traits connect with our levels of confidence, our strength of character, and our wellbeing. When we’re constantly berated and not placing ourselves in positive circumstances, our energies are drained, which can hinder our ability to maintain a positive outlook on life.

Our fears can cripple us, holding us back from living our lives to the fullest. If we can take a moment to assess the things in our lives that aren’t fulfilling us, and acknowledge what we feel is holding us back from what we wish to attain, we can begin to do some damage control. But if we choose to live our lives in the same unhappy patterns we’ve grown accustomed to without bothering to figure out the root cause of our problems, those problems become nearly impossible to overcome.

Sometimes facing our demons is hard, but that’s the only way we can grow and become stronger. If we choose to remain complacent in our unhappiness, we become trapped there, and many people’s lives remain stagnant because they fail to recognize why they’re unsatisfied. It’s all about taking the time to stop and listen, paying attention to the things that bother us instead of surrendering to them. If we can learn to take charge of ourselves and dig deep within to confront our fears and the injustices we face, we’ve made a great start, and we can then begin taking action to resolve our issues. We have to make a positive out of the negatives in order to become happy and emit our positivity, attracting similarly positive people into our lives.

Many women tend to surround themselves with negative people, resulting in damaging effects to their state of mind. We not only have the ability to inflict our own negativities, we sometimes find ourselves existing in negative surroundings because of the people we allow into our lives.

Take our moods, for example. Have you been in a great mood but found yourself in a conversation with someone who complained about everything, unable to show any happiness for any of the good things you share with them about your life? This type of negative force sucks out our enthusiasm like a leech.

This negative power can also linger from childhood. As children, we experience negative forces from incidents such as being reprimanded by a parent. In those moments when a parent is disciplining us, we immediately recoil and begin to feel inadequate about ourselves. If our actions are not explained to us with kindness, we’re inclined to shrivel back in fear, a fear created by the negative approach used to rectify our wrongdoing. Incidents such as these are the beginnings of allowing negativity to steer our emotions.

The critics, naysayers, and unhappy people we allow into our lives have the ability to drain our good energy, leaving us feeling unoptimistic, as though they have let the air out of our enthusiasm. The influence of negativity becomes the barometer for our moods. People who constantly live under this umbrella of negativity get so used to it that they may not even realize where their happiness has gone. They’ve simply adjusted to living that way.

~~~

D. G. Kaye, Author

D.G. Kaye is a Canadian nonfiction/ memoir writer who writes about life, matters of the heart and women’s issues. She writes to inspire others by sharing her stories about events she’s encountered, and the lessons that came along with them. D.G. loves to laugh, and self-medicate with a daily dose of humor. When not writing intimate memoirs, you’ll find D.G. writing with humor in some of her other works and blog posts.

Buy D. G.’s books here:

Words We Carry
Conflicted Hearts
MenoWhat? A Memoir
P. S. I Forgive You: A Broken Legacy
Have Bags, Will Travel

Reach D. G. Here:

My Website
Author Page
Goodreads
About me
LinkedIn
Facebook
Google
Instagram
Pinterest

Twitter: https://twitter.com/@pokercubster (Yes, there’s a story)

#ExcerptWeek – Chicken Shift by D. Avery

August 2, 2017August 1, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 25 Comments

Poet D. Avery is sharing two of her poems with us this week, and I’ve decided to start with this one, from her collection, Chicken Shift. Poem #2 will be along later in the week. I know you will all enjoy this one, and will share it far and wide!

~~~

When Comes the Time

When comes the time, a road’s the place
The destiny some hens embrace
Chickens rise and leave the nest
To make their dreams manifest.
Their sojourn can’t end unless it begins
So they head out to look within
Pilgrims of regenerate faith
These chickens cross, they go with grace
They cross a road, they pass that test
Continue on their illimitable quest
Till comes the time when they stop, content
They know themselves and where they went.

~~~

D. Avery (196?-20??) has long been a compulsive poet. Despite a very important day job educating public school children, she is often distracted by this compulsion, as well as by life’s great questions, such as “Kayak, or bike?” Though she has come to realize that nothing difficult is ever easy, she believes that it’s all good.

Buy Chicken Shift Here:

On Amazon: Chicken Shift
On Lulu: Chicken Shift

Reach D. Avery Here:

Blog
Twitter: ‪‪@daveryshiftn

#Excerptweek – Silly Willy goes to Cape Town by Robbie Cheadle

August 1, 2017August 1, 2017 / robbiesinspiration / 38 Comments

SW book 1 cover

Silly Willy goes to Cape Town is a light hearted and humorous story about going on holiday with two small, and very different boys. The story is told through the eyes of Cautious Craig, an eight year old boy, and includes hilarious accounts of his views on life with his naughty younger brother. The story is for children aged 7 to 12 years old.

The book includes recipes and instructions on how to make five fun children’s party cakes as well as instructions on how to make the various illustrations, made out of fondant, in the book.

The blurb

When the George family go on holiday to Cape Town, Cautious Craig cannot believe what he has to endure at the hands of his naughty and wilful younger brother, Silly Willy. Willy throws tantrums at the most embarrassing and inappropriate times, causes a commotion on the aeroplane and tries to steal a chameleon from Butterfly World. What is a poor older brother expected to do in these situations?

Extract from Chapter 1: At the airport

We all had to walk through a funny doorway. Mom, Willy and I all walked through the doorway quickly and with no problems. The doorway made a huge beeping noise when each of my Nana and my Dad walked through. It turns out that my Nana has titanium hips. Very interesting, I wonder if she was a superhero before she was my Nana – metal hips sounds like some kind of super power to me. Dad had forgotten his pen knife in his pocket. He had to give it to the man at the doorway who took it away forever. Mom was cross because she had given Dad that pen knife as a special Christmas present and now it was gone.

After that, there was more walking through the airport to get to the waiting area for our aeroplane. Willy was tired of walking and started falling over so that Mom ended up half dragging him for a few steps every five minutes. She didn’t like this at all, her mouth got very straight and she “looked like a thundercloud”, as Dad commented. Easy for him to say things, I suppose, as he wasn’t the one pulling along naughty Willy. After what seemed like absolute ages, we reached the waiting area for our aeroplane. The other passengers were already standing in a line, waiting to go through the gate and get on the bus that would take us all to our aeroplane. The gate wasn’t a gate at all. It was just an open doorway which we walked right through. I was glad that we didn’t have to wait for very long before getting on the bus. I was feeling very tired and thirsty.

Chapter 1 includes instructions on how to make the boy on the suitcase.

Purchase Silly Willy goes to Cape Town

https://www.amazon.com/author/robbiecheadle

http://tinyurl.com/zdokqjr

Follow Robbie and Michael Cheadle

Blog: robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15584446.Robbie_Cheadle

Facebook: @SirChocolateBooks

Plus.google: https://plus.google.com/105609586198905397891

Twitter: @bakeandwrite

#ExcerptWeek Reminder

July 31, 2017July 31, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 11 Comments

Just wanted to remind everyone to use the Hashtag #ExcerptWeek in your post title, and to include both your name and the name of your book there, too. It will help people find you. Also, don’t forget to use #ExcerptWeek as your category, and to list some tags to help others find the post, too. For instance, your name, the title of your book, the category (Romantic Suspense, Fantasy, etc), and anything else suitable that might make this post pop up during a search of the blog.

We want to get as many folks learning about you and your work as possible. Now go forth and have a great Excerpt Week.

#ExcerptWeek–Excerpt from Legends of Deceit by Rebekkah Ford

July 31, 2017July 31, 2017 / Rebekkah / 11 Comments

Legends of Deceit - Amazon

Immerse yourself in a magical world where fairies and werewolves exist alongside each other and an ordinary, foul-mouth 22-year old college student named Haven Evergreen is destined to rule.

Fans of fantasy and paranormal will be captivated by this thrilling and spellbinding new series by Rebekkah Ford.

*This excerpt is the tail end of the first chapter from Legends of Deceit*

Our ranch style house was nestled in the center of a grove of trees at the end of the street, away from the other houses due to my father purchasing two lots on either side. We liked our privacy, and my father loved his workshop on the south side of the house. I was glad to be home, looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. I noticed all the lights were off, including the one on the porch. Mom always left it on when I was out after dark. How odd. Maybe they went to a movie I guessed as I pulled into the driveway. I turned the headlights off and cut the engine.

Silence.

The air was even still.

My stomach dropped.

Something wasn’t right. I could feel it in my gut. I stepped out of the car. A thick, earthy concrete scent engulfed me—a sign of rainfall. As I approached the front door, I reached in my pocket for the pepper spray, pulled it out, and opened the front door. “Mom. Dad. I’m home.” The whole house was dark. I pulled my cell from my pocket and turned the flashlight app on so I could see. There was a lingering burning smell like burnt plastic. I crossed the short hallway, the bright beam from my cell pointed straight ahead, brushing over the family pictures on the wall. I stepped into the kitchen that branched off to the left and flipped the switch on and off several times.

Nothing.

What the . . . ?

“Mom, are you home?” I called, moving my phone in front of me so I could see. Ick. There must have been a dozen dead flies on the tiled floor, reminding me of the ones in the abandoned farmhouse. I stepped around the island in the center of the room. The toe of my shoe caught something. I tripped but grabbed the edge of the counter while jerking my cell down, illuminating the floor. I screamed and jumped back. In an instant, my throat tightened and the tears flowed. “Noooo!” I quickly backed across the room and collapsed to the floor. My heart raced and broke all at the same time. With shaking fingers I dialed 9-1-1. Several sobs escaped my lips.

“Nine-one-one. Can I help you?”

My shaky fingers fluttered to my lips, the tips pressing on them.

“Can I help you?”

“I’m Haven Evergreen and . . . and . . .”

“It’s okay. Take your time.”

My heart split in half, and I bawled. “I . . . I . . . I just came home from Vegas and f-f-f-found my mom in the kitchen . . . on the floor . . . without her head.”

What readers are saying about Legends of Deceit:

Grabbed me from the first page! I found it impossible to put down. ★★★★★

I loved this story! The characters are well developed and I didn’t want to stop reading! Rebekkah Ford is a wonderful storyteller. I’m looking forward to more in this series. ★★★★★

Author Bio:

Rebekkah Ford is an award-winning author who writes paranormal, fantasy fiction. She believes her fascination with the unknown derives from her childhood. When her parents were married, they were the directors of the UFO Investigator’s League. They also investigated ghost hauntings and Bigfoot sightings in addition to extraterrestrial cases. Rebekkah’s upbringing, knowledge, and experiences with the paranormal world, along with her colorful imagination, aid her in creating her stories.

Rebekkah has an irreverent sense of humor, and she believes having a dirty mind makes boring conversations more interesting. 😉

Grab your copy today!

Amazon US–>http://amzn.to/2u0qAwt
Amazon UK–> https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07374MKJ3/
Barnes & Nobleà https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/legends-of-deceit-rebekkah-ford/1126635394?ean=2940158583926
Smashwords–>https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/732091

Stalker Links:

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Rebekkah-Ford/e/B00896OMB0/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6180865.Rebekkah_Ford
Landing Page: Author Rebekkah Ford: http://rebekkahford.com/
Blog: http://themusingwriter.blogspot.com
Facebook Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/RebekkahFord2012
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RebekkahFord
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/rebekkahford/
Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/102242636096208798568/posts
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorrebekkahford/?hl=en

Join Rebekkah’s newsletter. Get sneak peeks on what Rebekkah is working on, top secret information, exclusive giveaways, and much moreà http://rebekkahford.us7.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=06bbb5773fe9e17e6ba0e860e&id=51f0af6e94

Thank you Marcia for creating excerpt week. I’m excited to read everyone’s creative work. 🙂

#ExcerptWeek The Chocolatier by Brenda Scruggs

July 31, 2017July 31, 2017 / Brenda Scruggs / 4 Comments

I would like to thank Marcia for this excerpt week. I look forward to seeing all the great talent and interesting books that will be posted.

new Chocolater cover.jpg

Chocolate has a reputation of healing a broken-heart. Swirl through the pages of this sweet romance of two unlikely people, one a chocolate heir and the other not fond of chocolate, to see if chocolate holds true to its reputation.

Charles Riviera an heir to a chocolate empire was perfectly content as Director of Marketing over Riviera Chocolate until, he literally bumps into Charlene Callaway. Would she melt his heart like heat melts chocolate?

Charlene Callaway finds herself far from home after finding her fiancé with another woman on their wedding day. The move had its challenges especially when she goes to work for a Chocolate Company and her new handsome boss.

When Charlene is abducted, her only thoughts were of Charles, The Chocolatier.

Excerpt:

“So, you like chocolate, I assume,” Charles asked.

Charlene’s thoughts twisted in her mind and she tried not to fidget. “Do I lie or tell the truth.” She paused and remembered honesty is the best policy. She looked him in the eye to appear confident. “No, not really. But, it’s the type of job that I feel qualified in doing and I believe I have a lot to offer this company.”

Charles held his brow as it wanted to rise in surprise. She wasn’t fond of chocolate. What woman doesn’t like chocolate? He interrupted. “So, you don’t like chocolate, that’s odd.”

“It’s not that I don’t like chocolate,” she answered, as she slightly shrugged. “I’m just not fond of chocolate. And, I realize this could hamper me getting the job but honestly, I don’t see it being a problem since I meet all the requirements of an assistant. I’m a hard, dedicated worker and feel I can be an asset to this company. I will give it my best and as you can see, I had been an assistant in a big-name oil company in Bartlesville for several years.”

Charles leaned forward and rested his hands on the desk, now he was very curious about her. She knew how to promote herself for the position, her portfolio was impressive, and she had experience. But, what surprised him the most was her honesty about not liking chocolate. He leaned back in his chair thinking she met all the requirements and had determination or else she would have left with the coffee accident but not a chocolate lover.

A challenge whisked through his thoughts. This would be good for him personally. If he could convince her to fall in love with chocolate, then he had accomplished being the best Sales Marketer he could be. He closed her portfolio and stood buttoning his suit jacket. “Be here tomorrow. I want to show you something.”

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/brendascruggs-author

Website: brendascruggs.wordpress.com

Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B06Y22VDYT

Instagram: @brendascruggs

BUY LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Chocolatier-Brenda-Scruggs/dp/1542569028/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1501503433&sr=8-1-spell

#ExcerptWeek Update!

July 31, 2017July 31, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 14 Comments

You guys are GREAT! I’ve gotten many, many more emails from folks wanting to take part in Excerpt Week than usual, and I’m NOT complaining, believe me. Just wanted you all to know that, if need be, I’ll extend this event another week, to be sure everyone has a chance to take part. I can’t wait to see what all you plan to share!

Thanks so much!

#ExcerptWeek – Poem from Summer Magic by Marcia Meara

July 31, 2017July 30, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 26 Comments

The first half of this little book contains a series of poems featuring my Wake-Robin Ridge hero, MacKenzie Cole, as a boy of ten, exploring his beloved North Carolina mountains each summer, with his dad. The second half contains poetry about Life. And Love. (Hence the line at the bottom of the cover. 😀 I’ve chosen to share one of Mac’s poems, since the Perseid meteor shower can be counted on to show up right around August, every year. I hope you enjoy it.

Look Dad, he cries,
Look how many!
I see a hundred,
Maybe a thousand!
I see them, too,
Dad says,
And together, they laugh,
Delighted!
Joy shared,
And excitement
Doubled.

Come see the meteors,
Dad said, as he
Shook him awake
Just before dawn.
He crawled from the tent,
Rubbing his eyes,
Then staring in wonder.
With the sky still a midnight black,
And bright stars wheeling overhead,
The fireworks came.
Racing toward Earth,
One after another,
The Perseids.
The miracle of hot August nights.
A late-summer light show
That electrified his soul.
His young heart transfixed
By the sight of the universe,
Lit with streamers
Of flame.

A meteor shower,
Dad tells him again,
But he knows nothing
So beautiful has a name
So ordinary.
Stars, he thinks, pulled loose
From the fabric of the sky,
And flung toward earth,
Trailing silver and gold,
And bringing pieces of Heaven
To those watching below.

He holds up his hands,
Cupped reverently,
To catch one of his own.
To be blessed by
This summer magic.
He holds his breath, waiting
For the illumination
Of his soul to begin.
Falling stars,
Falling from the
Summer sky,
For him.

Since my bio and photo are already on display in several places on this site, I’m going to skip that, and just share a couple of lovely reviews, instead.

“What beautiful, sensory poems! In Summer Magic, Marcia Meara writes that “Sometimes I think I’m drowning in a sea of words . . . Words have the power to make us laugh and cry . . . They lift us up in joy or slam us to the ground in misery . . . Amazing things, words.” And her beautiful poems use words to do just that. When I read the poems of Mac at Ten, I’m there with that little boy, not just seeing, but feeling it all––the magic of a sunrise, the fun of collecting treasures, the beauty of a meteor shower, the freedom of a carefree summer.”
~Elizabeth Vollstadt

” . . . a perfect read for a languid summer’s day or a long weekend like this one. Taking a breather from grilling and eating, reading the book is like dangling your toes in a cool, rippling brook. It’s not just her poems that reflect the childhood joy of plunging into cool green waters from a “Rope Swing,” or the ‘drip-drip’ of “Showers” on a rainy day that will give you that creekside, summer experience. “Summer Magic” the first poem, and the one that gives the book its title, is awash in words that conjure summer. My favorite lines from the poem:

There! A thin curve of molten red!
A far away sliver of fiery light
Breaks the horizon.”
~SUMMER

You can download Summer Magic here.

The Perseids

#ExcerptWeek Is Coming Up Again!

July 28, 2017July 28, 2017 / Marcia Meara / 45 Comments

It’s here again! Yep, starting Monday, 7/31 and running through Sunday, August 6, it will be #ExcerptWeek here on The Write Stuff. A lot of you know how this goes, but for those who don’t, this is your chance to share an excerpt from one of your published books or a work in progress, with your Book Blurb, Author Bio, Buy Links, and Social Media Links. It’s a great chance to tell everyone why they should buy your book, so don’t miss out!

If you are already a contributing author on this site, feel free to post at will, on any day that works for you. And you may post more than once during the week, though only once a day, please. If you are not already a contributing author, you will have to email me to find out how to take part. My contact info is in the Menu at the top of the page under About/Contact Me.

Whether or not you decide to participate by sharing one of your own excerpts, we do ask that you share the excerpts of others, please. The whole purpose is for us to help each other get the word out about our books and books-to-be. This is always such a fun time, seeing what others have written, and helping share their work. Hope LOTS of you take part, otherwise, you’ll be reading a ton of MY excerpts! 😀 I do intend to post a couple, but hopefully, there will be so many posted by others, I won’t have to fill in any gaps.

As an aside, I won’t be posting any of my usual features the week, so as to allow lots of space for you guys.

My only restrictions are no political, religious, or erotic content. If you aren’t sure, email me, and I’ll guide you.

Other than that, have fun! We are all waiting eagerly (dare I say with “bated breath?”) to read your work, and to share it far and wide! Roll on, Monday!!