Keeping Track of All the Books You Read By Connie Vines #WritingTips, #BWLAuthorBlog, #Tips for Readers

 If you are like me, you read so many books/ebooks during the year.

Fiction, nonfiction, cookbooks, craft books, and in my case, manuals and instructional materials.

I struggle to recall what print books are shelved in bookcases and what paperback novels I have scattered around the house. 

How difficult can it be, you scoff.

The closet in my office is a bookcase. Floor-to-ceiling, which takes up one entire wall of the room. Plus, the 4 additional standing bookcases in numerous other rooms.

And then there are the eBooks. I own a Kindle, a Nook, and an Apple tablet, which house the works of my favorite fiction authors, and sample reads.

You can see where this is leading....how many times have I re-purchased a book?

I'll give you an example. There is a western novelist (who shall remain nameless); books have always been must-reads for me.

There was one novel (I can't recall the title, which was part of the problem 😉). I purchased the original hardbound via a book club, then a paperback version. A few years later, the book was republished with an updated cover (paperback and hardbound). 

Yep. I bought them all. (remember, this is only one case in point.) since the books were new, my father received a hardbound copy on his birthday, and several paperbacks were given prizes at the local library fund-raiser event.

Lists, log books, etc., were a real pain and never foolproof. 

📚

It was quite by accident that I located a free app. Book Buddy.

The reviews were glowing, so I decided to give it a try.

I paid a small fee for additional storage because I was uploading so books.  

Why do I love this app?

I can track who I've loaned a book to, my reading status on each book, my next read,

Favorites, Series Titles, books I've donated (my personal tracking addition),

You simply scan the ISBN, and all the info uploads. 

If it's without the current 13-digit ISBN, you snap a picture of the cover and add some information.

It's also available on my phone. This will be a great help when I'm Christmas shopping this year!

Remember to check out all of BWL's November and December new releases! Get those stocking stuffers early--there are only 26 shopping days...📅 🎅🎄

BWL has a BIG sale on Smashwords: Connie Vines.

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Connie's BWL Author Page: https://bookswelove.net/vines-connie/

Happy Reading!

Connie

Connie Vines's Blog and links

Books as Holiday gifts – by Vijaya Schartz

 

Vijaya's latest release.
 Find it HERE

Whether it’s a stocking stuffer novel, a kindle gift sent to a friend faraway, or the wrapped gift of a complete paperback series, if you know the favorite genre of the avid readers among your family and friends, books make wonderful gifts.

Maybe it’s the story they talked about but never got to buy for themselves. Maybe it’s the new release in a series they started and loved. Or you can surprise them with a book you enjoyed and want to share with them. In any case, it’s becoming simpler and easier than ever to gift books.

You can do it from your laptop or phone, order online from your favorite retailer, and have it shipped or emailed. It takes little time and effort. It will be appreciated on cold, snowy, or rainy days.

Going with a reliable publisher, like BWL Publishing, will ensure it’s a quality book. Other ways to select a good book is considering the author’s track record. Award-winning authors usually deliver consistent quality reads. You can also read the ratings and reviews shared by other readers on the retail sites.

The most difficult part of this process is selecting the right genre and the right titles. Find out if you friend likes cozy mysteries, romance, action/adventure, Historical novels, fantasy, science fiction, or a mix of genres.

I write in many genres and also like to mix them. From contemporary romance to realistic Celtic legends, to space opera and science fiction, including even felines in some of my stories. But each author brings his or her personal touch to the writing, and if you like an author in one genre, chances are you will like that author’s other writings as well.

Here are some suggestions from my popular writings:

Curse of the Lost Isle series (Celtic legends – Edgy medieval)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

Chronicles of Kassouk series (Sci-fi romance)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

Azura Chronicles series (Set on another planet – includes cats - androids - romantic elements)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

Byzantium series (Set on a space station - cats – action - sweet romance for all ages)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

Archangel twin books (Aliens and angels in a contemporary setting)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

Romance (rated R)
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo

 

Happy Holidays with books!

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author
Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats
http://www.vijayaschartz.com
amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo - FB 

A short trip away--Tricia McGill

Find all my books on my BWL author page

My next book is due out in December, and I await its publication date with trepidation—as always. Because I lost my little dog not long ago, I decided it was time to go on a short road trip before I considered whether to get a new companion or not. The original idea was to take the ferry to Tasmania for the umpteenth time as my next work in progress will be set there and I figured it would be worth another visit to Port Arthur, site of the penitentiary where my book will begin. Unfortunately, as the ferry terminal has changed locations the trip to Tassie had to be abandoned, for the available dates did not fit into my travelling companions’ time-table or mine.

So off we went instead along Victoria’s Great Ocean Road. The last time I made this trip was quite some years ago, in fact 22 years, and I was amazed at how our southern coastline has changed through the years. The coastline is slowly but surely eroding and falling into the sea. Where once we could leave the car in the carpark and walk a few paces to take in the view, now the road has been relocated so far back from the coast that it involves a long trek. This is the same wherever you go along Australia’s southern coastline.

Some visitors to our country may have taken this road trap, perhaps to view what was once the Twelve Apostles and is now drastically reduced in numbers—or perhaps lovers of surfing would hone in on Torquay. It still remains one of Victoria’s most scenic drives in parts. 

On the way back inland, we had a surprise when we spotted a koala sitting in the road. The poor chappie looked slightly dazed, and we wondered if perhaps he had escaped the floods that are currently sweeping through our country. Of course, we stopped with the hope of encouraging him/her back into the trees, and soon two other carloads of travellers had stopped with the same idea. To our complete surprise the creature decided to climb up one man’s trouser leg and cling to his shirt. Eventually the man was able to place the koala on the trunk of a nearby tree. We can only hope that it returns to its favoured habitat safely. The numbers of these little creatures are in such decline every one saved is a blessing.

My Web Page

Remembrance Day

  https://bookswelove.net/martin-paula/ 

Remembrance Day

 Earlier this month, Remembrance Day was observed in the UK and in many Commonwealth countries. It commemorates the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month – 11am on November 11th 1918 – when the guns fell silent along the Western and Eastern fronts in Europe. An armistice had been signed, and the Great War had ended, after over four years of the bloodiest warfare ever.

There is an almost cruel irony in the fact that the first and also some of the last shots of the war were fired within fifty metres of each other in a small village called Casteau near the Belgian town of Mons which I visited several years ago.

On August 22nd 1914, a British cavalry troop, the 4th Dragoon Guards, were involved in the first skirmish with the Germans at Casteau. During this short battle, Captain E Thomas fired at the enemy, and killed a German cavalry officer.

Over 4 years of conflict later, on the morning of November 11th, 1918, a Canadian Infantry Battalion were on the trail of retreating German soldiers, and after firing their final shots, they stopped firing at 11 o’clock at the village of Casteau.

In between those first and last shots in this small Belgian village, hundreds of thousands lives had been lost in the trenches and battlefields on the Western and Eastern fronts.

                                                                         1914 Dragoon Guards Memorial           1918 Canadian Memorial

In 1915 Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian medical officer, wrote a poem after presiding over the funeral of a friend who died in the Second Battle of Ypres:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row, 

That mark our place; and in the sky 

The larks, still bravely singing, fly 

Scarce heard amid the guns below. 

The reference to the red poppies that grew over the graves of fallen soldiers in France and Belgium led to the poppy becoming one of the world's most recognized memorial symbols for soldiers who have died in conflicts.

In Britain, a Festival of Remembrance is held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on the Saturday nearest to November 11th. It commemorates all who have lost their lives in conflicts. Part concert, part memorial service, it concludes with a parade of representatives of all the armed forces as well as the uniformed volunteer organisations. Once they are all in place in the large arena, there is a two minute silence, and thousands of poppy petals are released from the roof. It is said there is one poppy petal for each person who has died in conflicts during and since the First World War.

The following morning, a memorial service is held at the Cenotaph in London’s Whitehall, and at the same time, similar services are held at hundreds of war memorials in every part of the country, and also wherever British troops are serving overseas.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years contemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

(Lawrence Binyon)

Find me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/paulamartinromances

Link to my Amazon author page:  author.to/PMamazon  

 

Be Kind to Yourself by Joan Donaldson-Yarmey

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.bookswelove.com/donaldson-yarmey-joan/
 

Writers are sometimes hard on themselves when it comes to their writing. As a writer I can be my own worst critic. One moment I think I am writing something great and the next it will seem like the most boring stuff. Sometimes I look at other writer’s books and wish I could write like them.

Over the years I’ve tried to keep to the following rules. These might help any new or experienced writer.

No. One: Remember every writer, whether a best seller or a working-hard-at-becoming-a-best-seller, started their very first book with a blank page.

No. Two: Don’t try to write your novel in one sitting, or one month, or even one year. Give yourself time to enjoy the experience, to change the story line, if need be, as you progress, and to get to know your characters. I attended a romance writing course and the speaker, who wrote for Harlequin, said you should know everything about your main character, even what type of toothpaste she uses.

No. Three: Sometimes, now is not the time to write the book you’re sure will be the next great best seller. Sometimes you need to put in more time learning the craft, like how to write good dialogue, how to flesh out your characters, and how to decide which is the best location to set your story.

No. Four: It is nice to have a set schedule for writing, whether it’s from 5-7am before work, 8-10pm after the children are in bed, but sometimes that won’t always work. Some authors write twenty minutes here and there throughout the day. Some try for two hours Saturday morning and an hour Wednesday evening. Find what works best for you and try to stick to it as best you can.

No. Five: Whatever language you write in, make sure your language skills are up to par. I write in English and all my life I knew that when a person nodded their head, they agreed and when they shook their head they disagreed. In some books I’ve seen where the character shook their head yes and nodded their head for no.

No Six: Try to have a separate space for your writing even if it is a corner in your dining room or bedroom. That way when you are there you know you have replaced you mom or dad hat, or your friend hat, or your working hat with your writing hat.

No. Seven: Back-up your work whether it be on a thumb drive, or the cloud, or even an email to yourself. I’ve read of many writers who have lost whole chapters or multiple chapters due to their computer crashing. Don’t let that happen to you.

No. Eight: Most of all be kind to yourself. Not every word you write is going perfect, not every story your write is going to be a masterpiece. But each time you finish a project you can tell yourself: “You Did it!!Good Job!!”