So this blog is all about fun and promotion for my book, Winter's Captive. A writer friend of mine, H.H. Laura, has challenged those of us in her writing group to the 777 Writer's Challenge.
All this means is that I take seven sentences from page seven or seventy-seven and post them here in my blog. Then I post links to all the other writer's I wish to challenge.
Here we go:
From Page 7:
Gary grabbed me by the arm and shoved me through the side door of the van, onto the floor.
He drew the gun out of his pocket and ran the barrel back and forth along my cheeckbone.
His blue eyes were like those of a doll--glassy and lifeless.
From Page 77:
The frost line was well up the inside of the door.
I decided that a long, thin carving knife would have to do, and gathered up most of the other items.
I didn't relish the thought of handling the bloody meat with my winter gloves.
The tool shed provided the saw and the tarp.
Did I write these lines? Sometimes I think when I write I'm channelling. When I read back, I even surprise myself.
Okay fellow writer's, I've shown you mine, now show me yours.
H.H. Laura
Chrissy Peebles
Jayde Scott
Patricia Puddle
Irene Kueh
Monday, April 29, 2013
Monday, March 4, 2013
REFLECTIONS
Today I'm in a reflective mood and I'm going to talk about life. A little generalized perhaps, just a little philosophical observation on my own existance that could possibly apply to yours.
My family spans five living generations from 1922 to the present time, with the youngest family member at one year of age and the eldest at ninety-one, spanning ninety years, from a great-great grandson to a great-great grandmother. I have always been a person who looks forward to the future and rarely looks into the past. I just don't want to miss anything. Other than a bad first marriage that led me into writing, it's not that I don't have many happy memories of my childhood or youth. I do. But I have always found it depressing when other people reflect back to their teen years or twenties, and believe them to be the good old days, wishing they were here again. Living in the past means we're missing the present and by not looking to the future, we could be missing out on a great opportunity. I would never want to stagnate and not enjoy what's offered now.
Recently, I have found myself being more nostalgic about the past and it bothers me because I want my past to stay as fond memories and not become a part of my everyday thinking. So I decided to question myself as to why the past keeps slipping into my present. Self examination found me the answer.
It's my generation. Yup...that's it.
My mother is the only one left in the first generation of my living family. I am in the second generation, having reached the age where once my dear mother has passed, my generation is next. I remember when I was thirteen years old and the legal age at that time was twenty-one. I thought I'd never get there and believed I would die before I ever became an adult...twenty-one was just so far away. So twenty-one came and went fortyish years ago. Where did the time go?
I'm living in a generation where rarely does a week pass, someone I know has lost a relative or a friend. Ours is the generation where it all comes home to roost. What happens in our lives is very much dictated to by health, lifestyle and acceptance of the inevitable...death.
We're all born to die!
Ouch...that sounds pretty harsh. But it's reality. And it makes one reflect on the past...and now that I understand my nostalgia, how do I deal with it? By deciding on what I want to do with the rest of my life. This hasn't been a quickie thing that suddenly happened. It began I believe about four months ago when I made the decision not to pursue a wonderful position with a huge pay jump. At that time, lifestyle was the deciding factor and it has snowballed from there. A series of events in my family has forced me to take a good look at my life and make the biggest decision of all. In five months I will be retiring from the work force, allowing me a stressfree lifestyle and one where I can dedicate myself to my writing. Working at my writing will be through choice and not because of financial necessity. Yes...becoming a pensioner will curb some of the activities my husband and I have become accustomed to doing at the drop of a hat, but we will have "enough" to live a comfortable lifestyle.
Living a healthy, stressfree life has become our mission statement. We can't cheat death, but we can make choices that could push it further down the road. Life is a series of journeys, with the journey being more important than the destination. I'm back looking forward to the future, ready to embrace many more journeys....just sayin'.
Recently, I have found myself being more nostalgic about the past and it bothers me because I want my past to stay as fond memories and not become a part of my everyday thinking. So I decided to question myself as to why the past keeps slipping into my present. Self examination found me the answer.
It's my generation. Yup...that's it.
My mother is the only one left in the first generation of my living family. I am in the second generation, having reached the age where once my dear mother has passed, my generation is next. I remember when I was thirteen years old and the legal age at that time was twenty-one. I thought I'd never get there and believed I would die before I ever became an adult...twenty-one was just so far away. So twenty-one came and went fortyish years ago. Where did the time go?
I'm living in a generation where rarely does a week pass, someone I know has lost a relative or a friend. Ours is the generation where it all comes home to roost. What happens in our lives is very much dictated to by health, lifestyle and acceptance of the inevitable...death.
We're all born to die!
Ouch...that sounds pretty harsh. But it's reality. And it makes one reflect on the past...and now that I understand my nostalgia, how do I deal with it? By deciding on what I want to do with the rest of my life. This hasn't been a quickie thing that suddenly happened. It began I believe about four months ago when I made the decision not to pursue a wonderful position with a huge pay jump. At that time, lifestyle was the deciding factor and it has snowballed from there. A series of events in my family has forced me to take a good look at my life and make the biggest decision of all. In five months I will be retiring from the work force, allowing me a stressfree lifestyle and one where I can dedicate myself to my writing. Working at my writing will be through choice and not because of financial necessity. Yes...becoming a pensioner will curb some of the activities my husband and I have become accustomed to doing at the drop of a hat, but we will have "enough" to live a comfortable lifestyle.
Living a healthy, stressfree life has become our mission statement. We can't cheat death, but we can make choices that could push it further down the road. Life is a series of journeys, with the journey being more important than the destination. I'm back looking forward to the future, ready to embrace many more journeys....just sayin'.
www.junebourgoauthor.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/June-V-Bourgo-Author/272429469479146#
https://www.facebook.com/pages/June-V-Bourgo-Author/272429469479146#
Sunday, February 3, 2013
"HOW DO I DECIDE" by RACHELLE GARDNER
Rachelle Gardner is an agent with Books and Such Literary
Agency, representing both fiction and non-fiction.
I have followed her blog for a long time. I find her posts informative, honest, and extremely helpful as a newly published author.
Rachelle has written four books to help authors on their publishing quest. Recently, the first book was released as an e-book. She formed a marketing team (which I have the honour of being included in) to help spread the word about her books.
As an author who followed the traditional route and found a publisher for my first novel, I recently found myself considering the self-publishing platform for my second project. Rachelle's first book, ``How do I decide (A Field Guide for Authors) provides a clear, concise view into traditional vs. self-publishing and it has helped me make my decision.
As an agent who works in the traditional field, but is using the self-publishing field herself, I believe she offers up an unbiased view of both sides of the publishing world. Her easy to use charts, where the reader answers posed questions, forces the reader to look into themselves. Based on the readers answers, Rachelle then offers her opinion as to whether they may be suited best to self-publish or go the traditional route in publishing. Any writer, published or unpublished will find this book helpful whether in making a choice as to which direction to take or to reinforce the decision you may have already made.
The book is short, concise and comes with my recommendation.
Click here to check out her book on Amazon.ca.
Follow Rachelle at: http://www.rachellegardner.com/
To my fellow writers, keep on
keeping on writing!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Friday, January 4, 2013
2013
A new day, a new month, a new year.
Just checking in to wish all my readers a happy and prosperous new year.
My 2013 has started at a low point, so it can only get better LOL. First off, we had a great Christmas Day at my sister's house in Vancouver area. My mom came from the care home and my sisters and family celebrated our get together, one we haven't had for a few years. We are so grateful to have had this day with Mom who was having a 'good' day. We will cherish the memory.
Then came the accident. As the household headed to bed, my husband turned at the top of a steep stairway to say his goodnights, and facing back to the stairs, took a step out into mid-air, missing the top step. Fourteen stairs later, he found himself at the bottom lying on a tiled floor. Three broken ribs in his back and a punctured lung had him in the hospital for the rest of the holidays. My 'me time' to be spent finishing my sequel to "Winter's Captive" grew wings and flew away. My days were filled with hospital visits. But I am so grateful it wasn't worse.
The initial prognosis was that he would require surgery to repair his broken ribs and a tube in his lung, but he fooled everyone and started to heal on his own. New Year's Eve found me by his bedside watching Mr. Bean. A quiet and light-hearted evening, although it hurt him to laugh.
We arrived home to find our sewer had froze. Our water pipes into the house are heated so no worries there. So while hubby laid in bed feeling useless, I dug out the snow, removed the skirting, and crawled under the house to place a heater under the house to thaw the pipe. I trudged out a few times to adjust the heat temp as the breaker kept blowing. Then realized I needed to use a different outlet.
By this time, my jeans were snow-covered and frozen solid. I felt like Georgia Charles, my heroine in Winter's Captive. I sucked it up and stopped whining. The pipe finally thawed and all is well in our home.
When accidents like this happen at this stage of our lives and at our ages, it makes one reflect on just what we are doing, where we are heading, and think that maybe it's time to make the changes we have been talking about for awhile.
So my husband and I are heading into 2013 with a renewed, grateful spirit, determined to make the changes we think are for the best in our lives.
On a personal note, I WILL finish the sequel and get it published. Time to put some thought into novel number three.
To everyone out there, make 2013 your year to do the things you want to do and if you write, keep on keeping on writing.
Just checking in to wish all my readers a happy and prosperous new year.
My 2013 has started at a low point, so it can only get better LOL. First off, we had a great Christmas Day at my sister's house in Vancouver area. My mom came from the care home and my sisters and family celebrated our get together, one we haven't had for a few years. We are so grateful to have had this day with Mom who was having a 'good' day. We will cherish the memory.
Then came the accident. As the household headed to bed, my husband turned at the top of a steep stairway to say his goodnights, and facing back to the stairs, took a step out into mid-air, missing the top step. Fourteen stairs later, he found himself at the bottom lying on a tiled floor. Three broken ribs in his back and a punctured lung had him in the hospital for the rest of the holidays. My 'me time' to be spent finishing my sequel to "Winter's Captive" grew wings and flew away. My days were filled with hospital visits. But I am so grateful it wasn't worse.
The initial prognosis was that he would require surgery to repair his broken ribs and a tube in his lung, but he fooled everyone and started to heal on his own. New Year's Eve found me by his bedside watching Mr. Bean. A quiet and light-hearted evening, although it hurt him to laugh.
We arrived home to find our sewer had froze. Our water pipes into the house are heated so no worries there. So while hubby laid in bed feeling useless, I dug out the snow, removed the skirting, and crawled under the house to place a heater under the house to thaw the pipe. I trudged out a few times to adjust the heat temp as the breaker kept blowing. Then realized I needed to use a different outlet.
By this time, my jeans were snow-covered and frozen solid. I felt like Georgia Charles, my heroine in Winter's Captive. I sucked it up and stopped whining. The pipe finally thawed and all is well in our home.
When accidents like this happen at this stage of our lives and at our ages, it makes one reflect on just what we are doing, where we are heading, and think that maybe it's time to make the changes we have been talking about for awhile.
So my husband and I are heading into 2013 with a renewed, grateful spirit, determined to make the changes we think are for the best in our lives.
On a personal note, I WILL finish the sequel and get it published. Time to put some thought into novel number three.
To everyone out there, make 2013 your year to do the things you want to do and if you write, keep on keeping on writing.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
...TIS THE SEASON OR IS IT?
It's been awhile since I posted and my first thoughts were to sum up my year like I did last year.However, it seems to me a little self-centered to focus on me in light of the horrific events in Newtown, Connecticut. And it is hard to be in the spirit of Christmas without feeling guilt.
Living in a small village, I can imagine how hard this season will be for the residents of Newtown. Even those parents whose children survived, know the parents whose children did not. The children who survived have lost classmates and close friends. Some have lost relatives and neighbors. How do they act as if all is normal and celebrate the holiday season?
News stations, TV talk shows, radio talk shows, e-news, newspapers..everyone is talking about Newtown. Conversations about the incident quickly turn into debates for gun control and more stringent security, with talks of arming teachers (a thought that truly frightens me).
As a writer, I have always tried to stay apolitical and avoid taking a strong stand on the side of anything. My choice has always been to side-step controversy. I have never been a good debater, unable to push my voice forward and command the audience's attention. Today, I make an exception. Here on my blog I'm the speaker with no one to challenge me or out yell me. So I'm taking a stand.
I don't blame lack of gun control for what is becoming too common a tragedy. Gun registration keeps the honest people honest. The bad guys aren't going to register their guns and they don't buy them at a gun shop. If someone wants a gun for a bad deed they know where to get them underground. I also don't believe arming teachers is going to solve anything. First of all I can't see the average teacher wanting a gun, and unless they are outfitted with semi-automatic weapons, their hand guns will just be pea shooters in comparison. Teachers are a caring, supportive breed of human beings whose mission is about helping our children become better adults through education, social interaction, and mutual respect. For most teachers, this fundamental core of their nature would deter them from wanting to carry a gun, let alone shoot to kill...and shoot to kill they must if taking on a dysfunctional shooter determined to kill them.
The issue is a social one, full of complexities such our lack of support for victims of mental health; our obsession with the "American" dream; we're losers if we don't have enough money, aren't pretty or handsome enough, aren't famous, aren't educated enough, or don't have enough "toys". What's wrong with being a good person, who lives by the golden rule and treats those as they would like to be treated. There's a lot more satisfaction in being the best human being you can be as opposed to accumulating "things".
My thoughts are full of compassion and healing energy for the people of Newtown, Connecticut.
Just sayin...
Living in a small village, I can imagine how hard this season will be for the residents of Newtown. Even those parents whose children survived, know the parents whose children did not. The children who survived have lost classmates and close friends. Some have lost relatives and neighbors. How do they act as if all is normal and celebrate the holiday season?
News stations, TV talk shows, radio talk shows, e-news, newspapers..everyone is talking about Newtown. Conversations about the incident quickly turn into debates for gun control and more stringent security, with talks of arming teachers (a thought that truly frightens me).
As a writer, I have always tried to stay apolitical and avoid taking a strong stand on the side of anything. My choice has always been to side-step controversy. I have never been a good debater, unable to push my voice forward and command the audience's attention. Today, I make an exception. Here on my blog I'm the speaker with no one to challenge me or out yell me. So I'm taking a stand.
I don't blame lack of gun control for what is becoming too common a tragedy. Gun registration keeps the honest people honest. The bad guys aren't going to register their guns and they don't buy them at a gun shop. If someone wants a gun for a bad deed they know where to get them underground. I also don't believe arming teachers is going to solve anything. First of all I can't see the average teacher wanting a gun, and unless they are outfitted with semi-automatic weapons, their hand guns will just be pea shooters in comparison. Teachers are a caring, supportive breed of human beings whose mission is about helping our children become better adults through education, social interaction, and mutual respect. For most teachers, this fundamental core of their nature would deter them from wanting to carry a gun, let alone shoot to kill...and shoot to kill they must if taking on a dysfunctional shooter determined to kill them.
The issue is a social one, full of complexities such our lack of support for victims of mental health; our obsession with the "American" dream; we're losers if we don't have enough money, aren't pretty or handsome enough, aren't famous, aren't educated enough, or don't have enough "toys". What's wrong with being a good person, who lives by the golden rule and treats those as they would like to be treated. There's a lot more satisfaction in being the best human being you can be as opposed to accumulating "things".
My thoughts are full of compassion and healing energy for the people of Newtown, Connecticut.
Just sayin...
Monday, October 8, 2012
WORD ON THE STREET..FREE EBOOK AT LIBRARIES...HAPPY THANKSGIVING..SO MUCH TO SAY
So last weekend, my hubby and I travelled to Vancouver for the Word on The Street Book Festival. It was so much fun, great weather, lots of people, a few sales. I wish it could have been more for the other authors I represented at my table for our common publisher. Most people wanted to support the only BC author and I appreciate that. It was a wonderful experience. I talked to so many people about publishing, writing, ebooks, and finding that right publisher. And I noticed this week that visits to my webpage and my blog site have increased big time, as well as sales increased on Amazon Canada.
Our table was set up close to the main live stage which entertained us all with music, story telling, poetry, and readings from the BC Book Award winners. I was representing my publisher, Asteroid Publishing, Toronto, so I offered up books from other published authors of Asteroid's as well. See picture below. All in all a very positive atmosphere, and even ran into an old neighbour from Gibsons.
Our table was set up close to the main live stage which entertained us all with music, story telling, poetry, and readings from the BC Book Award winners. I was representing my publisher, Asteroid Publishing, Toronto, so I offered up books from other published authors of Asteroid's as well. See picture below. All in all a very positive atmosphere, and even ran into an old neighbour from Gibsons.
Preparing my table
***
For all of you ebook lovers out there, you now can get a free ebook download from your local library of my book, Winters Captive. If your library says they do not have it, tell them they can obtain a downloadable copy from EBSCO and Overdrive. Some American and Canadian Libraries already have it available.
Rachel Coldwell, a local rancher gives us this to ponder and I think it is so fitting for Thanksgiving: If you've food in the fridge, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep..you're richer than 75% of the world. If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace..you're among the top 8% of the world's wealthy. (Hmm...) If you woke up this morning with more health than illness..you're more blessed than the million who will not survive this week. If you've never experienced danger of battle, loneliness of imprisonment, agony of torture, or pangs of starvation..you're ahead of 500 million people in the world. If your parents are still alive and still married..you're very rare, even in Canada. If you hold up your head with a smile and are truly thankful..you're blessed because the majority can, but most do not. If you can hold someone's hand, hug them or even touch their shoulder..you are blessed because you can offer a healing touch. If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing as someone is thinking of you and you're more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving and pass this along to remind others how blessed we are.
***
Finally, it is Thanksgiving weekend for Canadians and I would like to share the following with everyone, Canadian or not. It says it better than I can.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving and pass this along to remind others how blessed we are.
Keep on keeping on writing.
www.junebourgoauthor.com
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