by Marsha Ward
Agent Nathan Bransford has proclaimed this Writer Appreciation Week. It's a good idea, and I encourage you to implement it by showing your appreciation to your favorite writer, living or dead.
One way you can accomplish this, if your fav is living, is by seeking out their online presence and sending them a message of gratitude. Do they blog, have a Facebook, Goodreads, or Twitter account, book trailers posted on YouTube, or have a contact process on their website? Spread the love. Tell them how much you admire their work. Go to Amazon.com and make a comment on one of their books.
And that brings up books. Have you bought one this week? Go do it!
Showing posts with label gratitude. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gratitude. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
A Stellar Review
by Marsha Ward
Trail of Storms got another review that made me jump for joy. In fact, the reviewer, Jennie Hansen, who writes for Meridian Magazine, included her thoughts on the first two books in the Owen family series, as well.
Hansen begins by saying, "Trail of Storms by Marsha Ward is the third book in a western series featuring the Owen family that takes place during those first years following the conclusion of the US Civil War."
In between, she says some very lovely things, then ends thusly: "Historical and Western fans of either gender will enjoy this series from the compelling covers to the last word of this third volume. It's a series I'm glad I had the opportunity to read."
My reaction?
Trail of Storms got another review that made me jump for joy. In fact, the reviewer, Jennie Hansen, who writes for Meridian Magazine, included her thoughts on the first two books in the Owen family series, as well.
Hansen begins by saying, "Trail of Storms by Marsha Ward is the third book in a western series featuring the Owen family that takes place during those first years following the conclusion of the US Civil War."
In between, she says some very lovely things, then ends thusly: "Historical and Western fans of either gender will enjoy this series from the compelling covers to the last word of this third volume. It's a series I'm glad I had the opportunity to read."
My reaction?
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Trials of Trail of Storms
by Marsha Ward
I've had a novel in the works for quite a while, entitled Trail of Storms. It seems to me that this book has an important purpose to someone somewhere, because I've been undergoing various trials in getting it published. I believe in an Evil One who doesn't not want me to succeed.
Among the trials I've experienced this past month: pretty severe depression, problems with Internet Explorer crashing and finally not loading and having to convert to Firefox browser usage (including finding all my favorites and bookmarked sites), problems with the iUniverse site timing out during uploads then not opening the author section, my manuscript getting corrupted and my having to revise margins and insert tabs
FOR.EVERY.SINGLE.PARAGRAPH!
Also, having to re-center each chapter heading and every three-asterisk scene break, several late nights that wreaked havoc on my eyes, electrical power failures at crucial times, etc., etc., etc.
Oh, did I mention all my italics were gone? I had to compare the manuscript side-by-side with a previous version to find them, and I certainly hope I found them all.
Among the tender mercies of my Heavenly Father, I count my wonderful friends who have literally saved me from sliding into deep despair, a son who traveled over 100 miles to fix my leaking roof, and God's hand in keeping my Internet connection going during the 2 hour and 49 minute upload of the photo file. I know He had His hand in the works, because I kept hearing the ominous click that signals the modem shutting off, but the connection maintained a live status and the photo kept uploading throughout. Not three minutes later, I lost the connection.
!
God lives, and He loves His Children!
I've had a novel in the works for quite a while, entitled Trail of Storms. It seems to me that this book has an important purpose to someone somewhere, because I've been undergoing various trials in getting it published. I believe in an Evil One who doesn't not want me to succeed.
Among the trials I've experienced this past month: pretty severe depression, problems with Internet Explorer crashing and finally not loading and having to convert to Firefox browser usage (including finding all my favorites and bookmarked sites), problems with the iUniverse site timing out during uploads then not opening the author section, my manuscript getting corrupted and my having to revise margins and insert tabs
FOR.EVERY.SINGLE.PARAGRAPH!
Also, having to re-center each chapter heading and every three-asterisk scene break, several late nights that wreaked havoc on my eyes, electrical power failures at crucial times, etc., etc., etc.
Oh, did I mention all my italics were gone? I had to compare the manuscript side-by-side with a previous version to find them, and I certainly hope I found them all.
Among the tender mercies of my Heavenly Father, I count my wonderful friends who have literally saved me from sliding into deep despair, a son who traveled over 100 miles to fix my leaking roof, and God's hand in keeping my Internet connection going during the 2 hour and 49 minute upload of the photo file. I know He had His hand in the works, because I kept hearing the ominous click that signals the modem shutting off, but the connection maintained a live status and the photo kept uploading throughout. Not three minutes later, I lost the connection.
!
God lives, and He loves His Children!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
A Few of My Favorite Things (And a Chance to Win a $20 Barnes and Noble Gift Card)
My friend Kimberly Black recently blogged about a few of her favorite things. With Thanksgiving just around the corner I thought I’d follow suit. So here they are: a few of my favorite things in no particular order. And at the bottom of the list are instructions on how you could win a $20 Barnes & Noble gift card!!!
1. Dentyne Fire gum.
2. Nic’s Sticks nail polish pens-It’s like nail polish for writers! I’m much better at holding a pen than a brush, so I have these in pretty much every color including my current favorite-midnight blue
3. Sun Kill Moon-Perfect writing music. And my husband loves that the band name was inspired by Sun Kill Moon the boxer.
4. My pillow-top mattress and flannel sheets-Luxuries I’ll always be grateful for. My dad grew up very poor, and he never had sheets until my mom—his high school girlfriend—bought him his first set. The story still makes me cry.
5. My Gilmore Girls box sets-It’s hard to find a show you can watch over and over, but this is so genius, so intricate, that even after multiple viewings there are still things I miss.
6. Victoria’s Secret Pink sweats-I’m addicted. I wear them much more than jeans. I don’t care if Stacy and Clinton say you shouldn’t wear sweats out of the house.
7. My sister-She makes me laugh when I need to laugh, lets me cry when I need to cry, and still remembers playing Saved by the Bell with our Barbies and buying the first cassette tapes that were all ours: Debbie Gibson and Tiffany.
1. Dentyne Fire gum.
2. Nic’s Sticks nail polish pens-It’s like nail polish for writers! I’m much better at holding a pen than a brush, so I have these in pretty much every color including my current favorite-midnight blue
3. Sun Kill Moon-Perfect writing music. And my husband loves that the band name was inspired by Sun Kill Moon the boxer.
4. My pillow-top mattress and flannel sheets-Luxuries I’ll always be grateful for. My dad grew up very poor, and he never had sheets until my mom—his high school girlfriend—bought him his first set. The story still makes me cry.
5. My Gilmore Girls box sets-It’s hard to find a show you can watch over and over, but this is so genius, so intricate, that even after multiple viewings there are still things I miss.
6. Victoria’s Secret Pink sweats-I’m addicted. I wear them much more than jeans. I don’t care if Stacy and Clinton say you shouldn’t wear sweats out of the house.
7. My sister-She makes me laugh when I need to laugh, lets me cry when I need to cry, and still remembers playing Saved by the Bell with our Barbies and buying the first cassette tapes that were all ours: Debbie Gibson and Tiffany.
8. Pink Grapefruit-The Sunflower Shop (our area’s answer to Whole Foods) down the road has specials where they sell 10 for $1. I take my reusable totes and buy like 30 at a time and eat a grapefruit with every meal for ten days straight.
9. The Community Pool-Passes are only $13 a month, so I go a few times a week and enjoy the water and watching the tween birthday parties—complete with cute swimsuits, cute water tricks, and cute-lifeguard watching.
10. My hip hop dance videos-I love dancing, and this way the people in the class can’t see me, but I can see them!
So what are your favorite things? Write your answers in the comments and if we get the comment number up to 20 by the end of Thanksgiving day, the names of everyone who left comments will go into a hat, and we’ll pick a random winner who will win…a $20 Barnes and Noble gift card just in time for Christmas!
9. The Community Pool-Passes are only $13 a month, so I go a few times a week and enjoy the water and watching the tween birthday parties—complete with cute swimsuits, cute water tricks, and cute-lifeguard watching.
10. My hip hop dance videos-I love dancing, and this way the people in the class can’t see me, but I can see them!
So what are your favorite things? Write your answers in the comments and if we get the comment number up to 20 by the end of Thanksgiving day, the names of everyone who left comments will go into a hat, and we’ll pick a random winner who will win…a $20 Barnes and Noble gift card just in time for Christmas!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Technology is Awesome!
by Marsha Ward
When I read about Robyn's book trailer, then went to see it, I was awestruck at her accomplishment and thought I should go and do likewise - someday. I put the notion of doing a couple of trailers for my novels into the overflowing "to-do someday" section of my brain. Then I set out to find the Movie Maker on my computer so I'd be ready for "someday."
At first I couldn't find it. That must have triggered my "By dang! I'm going to do this now" contrariness quirk, so when I discovered that the software was indeed residing on my 'puter, I launched into a two-day stint of creativity.
Since I had some people check out my first efforts to portray The Man from Shenandoah on electronic video and got good suggestions to implement, and since my second version wasn't quite perfect either, I can't direct you to the exact location of my fledgling book trailer today. However, once I take my handy flash drive into town tomorrow and use my laptop at a free broadband hotspot so the upload doesn't take an hour like today's did, I'll come back here and add the address for youTube.
Besides, youTube is undergoing a scheduled maintenance.
--->youTube address for the Book Trailer is right here<---
In the meantime, let me tell you a bit of how I'm feeling in the aftermath of this outpouring of adrenaline.
I searched for the perfect words, the perfect music, the perfect images to convey the essence of The Man from Shenandoah. In all humility, I had help. This whole Internet thing--the ability to search a myriad of places for resources, the miracle of youTube and similar sites--is simply amazing. I must acknowledge, as well, that as I progressed through this process I had heavenly help. My heart is full of gratitude for the tender mercies I've received in my quest to do the best job I could.
When I began, I found a bunch of pictures that I thought would help sell my book. One by one I pared them out of the film. Instead, I used mostly titles set against a rich almost-maroon background that echoes the book cover. Review quotes are on a color that picks up the grays in the cover. Perfect grace brought me the image of a young red-headed pioneer woman in a red dress.
The first music didn't work for me. Then I found a piece that is lilting, haunting, evocative of the emotions in the novel. When I made my final cut and listened over and over as I watched the images flash by, I was astounded to notice that a certain melodic theme played as the girl stared at me, and it was repeated, more softly, at the sight of the book cover, The Man from Shenandoah himself. I realized that the pizzacato strings under the solo violin and the throbbing *bass viol lines accentuate the fact that these people traveled via animal power, with clip-clopping hooves an ever-present sound. Who would've thunk that a piece by the Baroque master composer Vivaldi would so well suit a tale of distressed Americans on the move to the West?
I didn't.
My soul is soaring.
Edited to add the youTube address.
*Yeah, it might be a cello playing, but my first impression was that it is a string bass, so I wrote it that way.
When I read about Robyn's book trailer, then went to see it, I was awestruck at her accomplishment and thought I should go and do likewise - someday. I put the notion of doing a couple of trailers for my novels into the overflowing "to-do someday" section of my brain. Then I set out to find the Movie Maker on my computer so I'd be ready for "someday."
At first I couldn't find it. That must have triggered my "By dang! I'm going to do this now" contrariness quirk, so when I discovered that the software was indeed residing on my 'puter, I launched into a two-day stint of creativity.
Since I had some people check out my first efforts to portray The Man from Shenandoah on electronic video and got good suggestions to implement, and since my second version wasn't quite perfect either, I can't direct you to the exact location of my fledgling book trailer today. However, once I take my handy flash drive into town tomorrow and use my laptop at a free broadband hotspot so the upload doesn't take an hour like today's did, I'll come back here and add the address for youTube.
Besides, youTube is undergoing a scheduled maintenance.
--->youTube address for the Book Trailer is right here<---
In the meantime, let me tell you a bit of how I'm feeling in the aftermath of this outpouring of adrenaline.
I searched for the perfect words, the perfect music, the perfect images to convey the essence of The Man from Shenandoah. In all humility, I had help. This whole Internet thing--the ability to search a myriad of places for resources, the miracle of youTube and similar sites--is simply amazing. I must acknowledge, as well, that as I progressed through this process I had heavenly help. My heart is full of gratitude for the tender mercies I've received in my quest to do the best job I could.
When I began, I found a bunch of pictures that I thought would help sell my book. One by one I pared them out of the film. Instead, I used mostly titles set against a rich almost-maroon background that echoes the book cover. Review quotes are on a color that picks up the grays in the cover. Perfect grace brought me the image of a young red-headed pioneer woman in a red dress.
The first music didn't work for me. Then I found a piece that is lilting, haunting, evocative of the emotions in the novel. When I made my final cut and listened over and over as I watched the images flash by, I was astounded to notice that a certain melodic theme played as the girl stared at me, and it was repeated, more softly, at the sight of the book cover, The Man from Shenandoah himself. I realized that the pizzacato strings under the solo violin and the throbbing *bass viol lines accentuate the fact that these people traveled via animal power, with clip-clopping hooves an ever-present sound. Who would've thunk that a piece by the Baroque master composer Vivaldi would so well suit a tale of distressed Americans on the move to the West?
I didn't.
My soul is soaring.
Edited to add the youTube address.
*Yeah, it might be a cello playing, but my first impression was that it is a string bass, so I wrote it that way.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
We're very grateful
Here is an update on Ink Lady Tamra Norton, who lives in the northwest Houston area. Her family also owns a rental property near Galveston. She was able to get a text message to a friend, and said: We’re STILL without power, but managing. Tell everyone HI for me.
Another friend reported about Tamra: Her rental got water right up to the front door, but is okay. They had some leaks in the house but no trees fell on the house or cars. They are currently boiling water and waiting for electricity to come back on.
We're very grateful that Marcia and Tami came through Hurricane Ike without loss of life or limb.
Another friend reported about Tamra: Her rental got water right up to the front door, but is okay. They had some leaks in the house but no trees fell on the house or cars. They are currently boiling water and waiting for electricity to come back on.
We're very grateful that Marcia and Tami came through Hurricane Ike without loss of life or limb.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Pet Peeves
by Marsha Ward I have a couple I want to mention here today:
1. Spamming commenters. I got hit six times on my blog this morning. Had to turn on the word verification in an attempt to discourage further blood-sucking attempts.
2. Tax season. The anxiety of gathering the records to prove to Uncle Sam's IRS minions that I don't owe any taxes is an annual burden I'd love to dump. However, as I stated in my gratitude journal today, I'm very grateful to live in the United States of America, even though I have to go through the yearly "dance of the paper-gathering" for the privilege.
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