Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 10-31-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I've been writing a daily column since 2000, and book club reader Bonnie Roberge just may have been reading with me that long, because she remembers my column about a reader who wrote to me about changing the toilet paper.

Bonnie wrote: "Suzanne, I know you mentioned [in an old column] that one of your special roles in life was to change the toilet paper. I seem to be the one in my household who always gets that chore, but I think your gift and special role in life is just to make people's days a little brighter, and to make them feel treasured and special. You do a fabulous job of it. Thank you."--Bonnie Roberge

Thank you for the kind words Bonnie. I dug back and found the humorous TP column, and to make the day even more fun, I'm giving away a 20-roll package of Scott TP (my favorite). Don't be shy. It's a giveaway that everyone can use. To enter the TP giveaway send an email with your mailing address to [email protected]

I had an epiphany in the bathroom the other day and it reminded me of an email I received from a book club reader years ago. I'd written a column about finding my purpose in life, and the reader wrote to share how one of her life's frustrations, had also become one of her callings in life. Every time she used a bathroom she faced an empty toilet paper roll, so she'd have to change it, and it drove her crazy. "How could people be so rude? Use the last few squares and then not replace the roll?"

Even when this woman was on vacation touring a castle in Europe, and she had to use the bathroom--even there--she faced an empty toilet paper roll. But the TP gods shined down upon her that day and opened her eyes to the fact that everyone has assignments in this life, tasks they are asked to do to make the world run a little smoother, and one of her assignments was to change the toilet paper roll. So she joyfully accepted her assignment that day, and now whenever she faces an empty TP roll, she cheerfully changes it. "Though I do wish folks wouldn't hide the extra rolls," she said, "sometimes I have to do a lot of digging through bathroom cupboards and vanities to find the toilet paper."

Changing the toilet paper roll--someone's calling in life? Not too glamorous you might say, but aren't you happy that when you need it, someone's made sure it's there?

The TP gods were busy again the other day handing out assignments and I was on the receiving end. When Consuelo, the woman who cleans my house, cleans the bathroom, one of the special things she does is leave behind a fancy V-fold on the end of the toilet paper roll. Strange as it may sound, it makes me feel kind of special when I see the fancy fold waiting for me--like I'm queen for a day. So the other day after Consuelo left, when I looked over at the TP roll, I decided that from now on whenever I leave a necessary room, perhaps one of my "callings" is to leave a fancy fold behind. Kind of like paying for the car behind me at the tollbooth, the next person will undoubtedly smile and feel like queen or king for a day, too.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free copy of a fabulous seek-and-find book THE KIDNAPPING OF MONA LISA by Maayken Koolen; and the New York Times reviewed LESTER'S SWEATERS by K.G. Campbell; For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

AUTHORBUZZ: BANDWIDTH (Fiction) by Angus Morrison

The bookends of the first decade of the 21st century were essentially greed and terrorism. What happens when a CIA operative turned speechwriter, the sixth richest man in the world, the Russian mob, European technocrats, a graduate student with a big idea, a Swiss banker, a chain-smoking Belgian and a new kind of terrorist all set their sights on a new technology that could ignite the global economy? Find out in my debut novel, Bandwidth.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on BANDWIDTH to read more and to email author Angus Morrison, you'll get a reply.

 

Dear Reader Column 10-30-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author and today's guest columnist, Laura Griffin, is all dressed up and has a fun place to go this Halloween. No tricks, just treats today. Email Laura, say hello, and you'll be entered in her Halloween giveaway. She has three signed copies of her brand new book, SCORCHED. Email her at: [email protected]

Some families go all out for Christmas, but our family's favorite holiday is Halloween. Just picking out the pumpkins is a daylong event. We pile into the car and drive to a pumpkin patch in Marble Falls, Texas, where they have an amazing selection of pumpkins and gourds in every imaginable shape and size. This year in addition to our standard orange pumpkins, we picked out a few white ones--which my kids are now expecting me to carve into skull-shaped jack-o-lanterns.

After the wagon is loaded with pumpkins, we head over to the corn maze, where we chase each other through the eight-foot stalks. I love the maze, but it's always a little creepy getting lost in there. If you read the Stephen King story Children of the Corn, maybe you know what I mean.

Halloween night is the big event and everyone on our block gets into the spirit. People hang ghosts and spiders from the trees. Our bushes are decorated with orange and purple lights. Spooky music plays from speakers tucked behind headstones.

We drag a fire pit into the middle of the cul-de-sac and gather around with our lawn chairs as kids scurry back and forth for the pot luck dinner (our futile attempt to get some real food into them before they binge on candy).

Then we light our jack-o-lanterns, put our black cat safely inside the house where she won't be bothered by pranksters, and send the kids off trick-or-treating. When they get home, everyone dumps the candy in the middle of the table and starts bartering.

Halloween was never much of a deal for me growing up, but now it's a favorite tradition. And yes, I love to dress up, too!

What are your favorite Halloween traditions?

My new romantic suspense novel comes out Halloween week. The time of year seems appropriate because the book's heroine happens to be a forensic anthropologist, who unearths skeletons and analyzes bones to find clues for investigators. Sound creepy? It is, I guess, but I had so much fun researching this story.

I'm giving away three signed copies of SCORCHED.

--Laura Griffin
Email: [email protected]

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

* The following lucky winners will each receive a copy of Guest Columnist Shelle Sumners' new book GRACE GROWS and a companion soundtrack by her husband, singer-songwriter and Broadway actor Lee Morgan: Nancy Reynolds, Karen Terry, Ray Arnett, Pam Bean, Sheryl Hand, Pam Coughlin, Lauri Gaudet, Jenn Doyle, Diane Wittik, and Melissa Friedrich.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: REFLECTED IN YOU (Fiction) by Sylvia Day

Reflected In You, the sequel to Bared To You takes us deeper into the tumultuous and erotic relationship between Gideon Cross and Eva Tramell, exploring more of the dark issues that define them. Their love faces tremendous obstacles, but both are fighters as well as survivors.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on REFLECTED IN YOU to find out more about the book and the author, Sylvia Day. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 10-29-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Last week's column about Bessie was a favorite of mine and of readers, too.

From my Email Bag:
(If you missed last week's column about Bessie, go to: http://tinyurl.com/10-23Bessie )

"Morning Suzanne, ok, you did it. You finally broke me down and made me cry at work after reading your column about Bessie. I'm a grown woman with three almost adult children, but when I grow up, I want to be just like you. What a beautiful story about stopping and really appreciating your surroundings. I look so forward to reading your emails, that I save to read, until I have the time to really appreciate what you have in store for us. Thanks, it's so good to read with friends."--Regards, Denise Montanez

"Suzanne, you know I've been with you for years--reading with you every day--but today's story to me stands out and was beautiful. Thank you for sharing, and guess what, my grandma that lived with us while I was growing up, she was like my second mother. Her name was Bessie, too, loved the story!--One of your best fans, Sandi Hooks

"Dear Suzanne, today's column was wonderful! Thank you for sharing your conversation with Bessie and more importantly, thank you for having that conversation. I suspect it was as good for you as it was for Bessie. God bless you, Suzanne for all that you do."--Tami

"This has to be the most touching column of all that you have written. I read your column every morning with my coffee. Every person has a story, haven't they? Thanks for being the kind of person who would sit and listen to Bessie's."--hugs, Millie Lill

"Oh Suzanne...thank you so much for sharing Bessie with us. I had a 'Bessie' in my early life, her name was Bertha and she was my Grandma Birdie. She and your Bessie had much in common, and I so appreciate your bringing those memories back to me this morning."--I'm sending you my Hug, Judie Heller

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE SHORTEST WAY HOME (Fiction) by Juliette Fay

At risk for Huntington's Disease, Sean Doran chose never to marry or have children. But on a rare trip home from his work in Africa, he finds his aunt who raised him showing signs of dementia, leaving no one to look after his young nephew. Sean is soon reluctantly parenting the boy, falling in love with someone from his past, and realizing that leaving again will be harder than he thought...

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE SHORTEST WAY HOME to read more and to email author Juliette Fay, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 10-26-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Sometimes when I'm supposed to be working, writing for a purpose, instead my pen skedaddles across the page with pure nonsense, or insights into my soul.

Today, I'm sharing a page of notes (random thoughts), from my personal journal...

"I've always wanted to make it big, whatever that means. I think the problem is I've never really defined what 'big' is, and what it would look like. It's kind of ironic, because I know that my purpose here on earth is to do the little things. And I'm good at doing the little things. Maybe little things are really big things?

When the daughter heard the news that her mother was dying of cancer, at first she lived each day thinking, 'My mother is dying.' She'd repeat that thought to herself many times a day. And the daughter's days were very, very sad. Too sad. So she changed her thinking and started telling herself, 'My mother is living today.' Yes, her mother was going to die, but right now, she was alive. The daughter realized that letting herself grieve a bit ahead of time was good, but that she didn't want to spend the last days she had with her mother, seeing her through the eyes of death, but rather through the joy of life.

Sometimes I'm afraid to start writing because I'm afraid of what my heart might find. Sometimes I need a writing intervention. Call my sponsor and a group of friends show up, and they hold me in my chair until I've written useable words and ideas for at least 20 minutes. Because if I can get my motor running then it's not a problem to write. It's just getting going. Turn the crank, over and over again. I feel like a model T and the driver is ambivalent about whether or not to turn the motor over, because it looks like rain. Maybe he should wait and go for a drive another day.

I like to live a little bit on the edge. I even write on the edge. Most of my first drafts are written out long hand with a fountain pen. I've always thought the flowing ink had a bit of a writer's romance in it. It's a tool that makes me feel like a writer. But there's always a chance for disaster. If the ink gets wet, the copy may run and then the challenge is--can I duplicate the original words and thoughts?

Why do I insist on continuing to flirt with possible disaster? Want to use a fountain pen, but sometimes it drops a stroke in the middle of a word. It's a balancing act, just the right amount of pressure pen-to-page, or sometimes the ink completely disappears for a couple of letters and I have to go back and trace over the faint lines. Gee, maybe I need to clean this fountain pen?

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: ILLUMINATIONS (Fiction) by Mary Sharratt

Illuminations chronicles the life of Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), offered to the Church at the age of eight, entombed in a small room, and expected to live out her days in silent submission. Instead Hildegard's secret visions of the divine inspired her to break out of her prison and to liberate her sisters and herself from the soul destroying anchorage.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ILLUMINATIONS to read more and to email author Mary Sharratt, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 10-25-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Today's guest column "Against All Odds" is written by author Judith Marshall. Please welcome Ms. Marshall to the book clubs and enter her drawing. She is giving away two ebooks. You can reach her at: [email protected]

Take it away, Judith...

Against All Odds

In 2009, after more than two hundred rejections, I decided to independently publish my novel. Why? Because I believed in it--it was as simple as that. Not only did I believe it was a great story, but I could visualize it on the big screen. When I shared my dream of attracting the attention of a movie producer with people in the publishing industry and fellow writers, they thought I was crazy. Oh they didn't say so out loud, but I could tell by their thin smiles and nodding heads.

Undaunted, I purchased a block of ISBN's from Bowker, designed an imprint, set up a dba and purchased a publishing package from BookSurge (now CreateSpace). While waiting for the book to be released, I began to build my author platform. The first step was to establish a website. Next, I knew from networking with other authors, both traditionally and self-published, that I would be the only person to market my book. It would take lots of time, energy and some money to do this. I was prepared to spend time on the Internet in social networking, but how could I let the world (including Hollywood) know about my book?

After speaking to various book publicists and other expert resources, I decided to hire a marketing company to write and distribute a press release to over 1,850 local and national media outlets. The response resulted in a TV, several radio interviews, and some blog talk radio gigs. Not bad. But where was Hollywood? Once the book was released I got the idea to send the press release out again through one of the free distribution services, PR.com. Within a month, I received an email from a Hollywood producer saying she received the press release, thought the book sounded interesting and had ordered it on Amazon. I quickly responded offering her a free autographed copy. She read the book, loved it and sent me a 16-page option agreement, which I happily signed. A copy of the check I received is framed and hanging above my computer. The book is currently being adapted into a screenplay.

The bottom line is if you believe in your work, go for it. Don't let anything or anybody dissuade you. Passion and persistence can lead to success. See you at the movies!

About Judith Marshall: After leaving a successful career in corporate America as a human resources executive, her lifelong dream of writing was realized with the release of Husbands May Come and Go But Friends are Forever, winner of the Jack London Prize awarded by the California Writers Club, and Judith has just finished her second novel, Staying Afloat.

* Congratulations to the winners of Kaya McClaren's new book, How I Came to Sparkle, Barry Botsford, Janet Coughlin, Shawn Henline, Linda Hitchcock, Lois Needham, Jean Vallesteros, Michelle Moore, Pat Groshong, Shannon Allstott, Mary Robinson, Debra L Funk, Sharon, Teresa Napier, Ani Kendig, Michele Rybak, Bonnie Brown, Mary D., Barbara Lamb, Susie Rea, Gayle and Jane Dudly.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE SPANISH REVENGE (Thriller) by Allan Topol

In the follow-up to the highly acclaimed China Gambit, the daring Craig Page and the good-looking and resourceful Elizabeth Crowder, confront the nefarious Ahmed Sadi, who intends to inflict a blow on the Christian world and retake a portion of Southern Spain for Islam. The action moves between Paris, Morocco, Madrid, and Rome.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE SPANISH REVENGE to find out more about the book and the author, Allan Topol. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(NonFiction)
SAVING EACH OTHER by Victoria Jackson & Ali Guthy

(Thriller)
THE 7TH WOMAN by Frederique Molay, Anne Trager (translator)

(Thriller)
SPIES AND LIES: The Paradox by Frederick L. Malphurs

(Thriller)
THE SPANISH REVENGE by Allan Topol

(Fiction)
ILLUMINATIONS by Mary Sharratt

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader Column 10-24-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

If you have a question about writing, feel free to ask. I'm happy to reply. I can't send everyone a personal reply, but I'll answer writing questions in my column. To view past questions and answers, go to: http://tinyurl.com/WritingQ-A

After reading yesterday's column about my conversation with Bessie, who lives in assisted living, book club reader, Franisz Ginting emailed this writing question:

"Suzanne, how did you manage to remember the live conversations [quotes] with Bessie? Did you use a recorder, or did you memorize all of them instead?"--Franisz Ginting

(Suzanne replies:) After saying goodbye to Bessie, the minute I got to my car, I grabbed my notebook and wrote down notes and the handful of quotes I could remember from our conversation. There's a paper and pen in my purse, in my car, bathroom, on the nightstand next to my bed, and when I go outside to sit in the chaise and relax, I set a pad of paper and a pen beside me on the ground, just in case.

Writing isn't something I "do" when I sit down in front of my computer. Everyday I'm watching and listening, and making mental notes about things that happen, and the emotions I see on people's faces. I listen closely to what they say, but if I don't write things down immediately, I'll forget the details of the story and worse, I can't recover how I felt at that very moment. So it's not that I'm trying to actually write the story in my notes, but rather I'm jotting down sentences that will trigger past emotions.

I've even saved a phone call from a friend (yes, they gave me permission), so if I decided to write about their experience, I could go back and listen to them tell the story in their own words, and hear the excitement in their voice.

If you have a writing question, please send it to me at: [email protected]

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: SPIES AND LIES: The Paradox (Thriller) by Frederick L. Malphurs

Let me hear from you. Join in on the discussion for Spies and Lies: The Paradox. It's a story about espionage, politics, deceit, romance, ambition, smuggling, lies, and treachery. David Pearl, an outsourced former CIA employee, finds himself and his fledgling company in the middle of national security crises.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on SPIES AND LIES to read more and to email author Frederick L. Malphurs, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 10-23-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I saw her sitting outside on the porch in front of the assisted living center. There was an empty chair next to her and I knew it was waiting for me.

Meet Bessie.

I don't know how the conversation got started, but soon after "Hellos," Bessie was telling me stories from her childhood.

"When I was a girl we didn't wear shoes in the summer and every evening before we got ready for bed, my sister and cousins and I would sit side-by-side, our legs dangling down off the edge of the porch. A big wooden barrel nearby was filled with water. Daddy would dip some water into a pan, and one-by-one each of us would wash our feet before we went to bed. But when the pan filled with water got to me, Daddy would wash my feet for me.

Just a little bit envious of the special attention, my cousins and sister would ask, "Daddy, why are you washing Bessie's feet?"

"Because she's too little," her Daddy would say. Bessie smiled that little girl smile as she explained, "After Daddy washed my feet he'd scoop me up into his arms, carry me into the house and rock me to sleep." Bessie smiles so...when she talks about her daddy.

There were no phones. No cars. The doctor made house calls in a horse and buggy. So when Bessie's little sister became very ill, her daddy had to run to the doctor's home on the other side of town. "The doctor came in the house and my cousins and I were very, very quiet. It's the way we were brought up, you know."

When the doctor came out of the bedroom from seeing Bessie's sister, he told her father, "Your daughter has diphtheria. I'm going to have to quarantine this house for two months. And you're all going to have to get some shots." Bessie said she started crying.

"Why he had to mention a shot, I don't know," Bessie said. "I ran underneath the table. After the doctor finished giving shots to everyone else, he looked underneath the table at me and said. 'It's your turn Bessie.'

"I looked at my daddy, 'tell him I'm too little Daddy!'"

But her daddy leaned in under the table, "Bessie, I'm sorry we can't say you're too little this time, honey. You have to get the shot."

Bessie left school in the 7th grade because she wanted to get married and have babies. Pregnant four months after getting married, Bessie had another baby two years later, and another two years after that.

When she was pregnant with her first child, Bessie went to see the doctor, the same doctor who had taken care of her sister years ago. Instead of a horse and buggy, the doctor had an office now, and when Bessie told him she'd like him to be her doctor, he replied with a smile, "Are you sure you're not 'too little' Bessie?"

Bessie loved her mom and dad. They created loving memories for her, and taught her how to pass that love on to her own children. When Bessie couldn't live by herself any longer and decided to move into assisted living, each one of her three children invited Bessie to live with them instead. Not just a polite gesture, but a genuine, loving "Come live with me, Mom."

"You have your own family," Bessie told them. "Besides, I love the place I live in now. I get involved in everything and the people are so nice. I even paint. I didn't know I could paint."

At first, Bessie went to the painting class just to watch other people. But now even though her eyesight is failing her, she's able to paint what she feels in her heart, and she shares her paintings. "My room is filled with paintings, and my son and daughter have some hanging in their homes, too."

Bessie says she loves when folks come to visit, "Whenever someone comes to my room, no matter who it is, black or white or whatever, I always give them a hug and tell them 'I love you' before they leave. Stop by and let me show you my paintings."

"Bessie, it's a date. I'm looking forward to it. I have to go now. Can I give you a hug?"

"Goodbye Suzanne, I love you."

"Goodbye, Bessie. I love you, too."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE 7TH WOMAN (Thriller) by Frederique Molay Anne Trager (translator)

There's no rest for the elite Criminal Investigation Division as a serial killer preys on women in the French capital. Chief of Police Nico Sirsky races against the clock to solve the murders as they get closer to his inner circle. Will he resist the pressure?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE 7TH WOMAN to find out more.

Dear Reader Column 10-22-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I hope you had a wonderful weekend. I spent hours and hours working on a quilt, using vintage chenille squares I cut from old bedspreads. I don't really have a quilt design in mind, but sewing without a plan is how I've started every quilt I've ever made, so I guess I'm on the right track.

Please welcome author, Shelle Sumners, who's written today's column, "A Word, a Stitch, a Step." Shelle's giving away 10 copies of her debut book, Grace Grows. Send her an email, say hello (she will personally reply) and you'll also be entered in her drawing. Email Shelle at: [email protected]

Thanks for visiting the book clubs, Shelle,

I am drawn to marathon projects that require patience, perseverance, and sustained passion. So, like a lot of people who write novels, I also knit. When I'm not writing (because you do sometimes have to take a break), knitting allows me to talk to my family or watch Game of Thrones while sustaining a rhythm of creation.

I like to knit things with simple patterns that let me keep on for quite a while without having to stop to count stitches or read instructions. Scarves are great for this. I also like to knit hats, because they develop in a long, lovely spiral. I love spirals--they feel like little snippets of infinity. Socks are spirals, too. Right now I'm knitting a spiral that will officially become a sock just as soon as I curve around a few more rows and bind it off with a charming picot frill right above the ankle. Then I will briefly wallow in the satisfaction of completion, eat ice cream, and start knitting--all over again, from the tip of the toe--the companion sock.

Perseverance.

I often knit with multicolored yarn because I like the surprise, the spontaneity of watching a color pattern emerge. This is akin to the way a novel unfolds. When I write, I try to sink completely into this moment, on this page, with these characters, so that I understand their truth and know how to tell it. I think of this as being "in the flow." When I am writing in the flow, my characters astonish and delight me. The story unfolds magically. I laugh, and cry, and feel deeply this complex fabric I am creating.

As a writer and as a knitter, I sit down and do the work, again and again. Time passes, and with the accumulation of time and words, time and stitches, I have created something complex and unique. I have climbed a mountain.

One of my Grace Grows characters demonstrates supreme patience, persistence, and devotion to a person who is sometimes daunting but very, very worthwhile. This is what happens when you deeply love someone or something. You keep trying. You don't give up.

One day I hope to walk the Appalachian Trail, all 2,181 miles of it, one step, one moment at a time. How hard can it be?

Also, we're giving away 10 copies of GRACE GROWS! If you'd like to be considered for a chance to win, simply email your name & mailing address to me at [email protected] and thanks so much for your interest!

Email Shelle at: [email protected]

Shelle Sumners lives, writes, and knits in Bucks County, PA. Her debut novel Grace Grows is a Featured Alternate selection for Doubleday, Literary Guild and Rhapsody book club and is being published internationally. It has a companion soundtrack of phenomenal original songs that appear in the story, written and performed by her husband, singer-songwriter and Broadway actor Lee Morgan.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: SAVING EACH OTHER (NonFiction) by Victoria Jackson & Ali Guthy

The extraordinary journey of a mother and daughter who demonstrate how the power of love can transcend our greatest fears, while at the same time battling to find a cure for the incurable.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on SAVING EACH OTHER to read more and to email authors Victoria Jackson & Ali Guthy, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 10-19-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I had a lot fun writing my columns this week and readers seem to enjoy them. Thanks for writing, I appreciate it.

From my Email Bag:

"Oh, I love your columns! This one really struck home--at five pounds a year, I'm already years ahead of the game! It's true what your friend told you, because I have fewer wrinkles than my younger, skinny friends. But I also can't wear those stylish clothes they can.

Want to see what your face will look like in 15-20 years or so? Lay a hand mirror on a counter and lean over it. Gravity will give you a good indication of what is lying in wait for you. I did this in my 30's when I first heard about it, and haven't had the nerve to do it since!"--Marlene M.

"Dear Suzanne, paw prints on the counter reminded me of my own dear kitty, Koji. He crossed Rainbow Bridge in April and I do so miss "Bubbies" paw prints on the counter and all of his other antics...

When I read what Blaize had said about crossing your T's I immediately looked through the papers on my desk to see how I crossed mine. As I suspected, I cross them high. I will now probably obsess about them when I hand write something (which I do a lot), but it was fun checking them out. Thanks again for the laugh, the memories and the psychology lesson. It's great reading with you!"--Kathi May

"Suzanne, I have always loved your columns but that has to be one of the best columns of yours I have ever read. It made me smile and cry a little. It made me think of people in my life and the footprints they leave. All I can say is WOW and thank you. Now you have left a little footprint in my life."--Deb

If you feel like writing, I am always here. You can reach me at [email protected]

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free (signed!) copy of ALL ABOUT POOP by Kate Hayes; JOONIE AND THE GREAT HARBINGER STAMPEDE by Daniel Landes with illustrations by Ravi Zupa; RED THREAD SISTERS by Carole Antoinette Peacock; and UNPLUGGED by Laura Pedersen. For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

AUTHORBUZZ: DEATH IN THE FLOATING CITY (Mystery) by Tasha Alexander

Lady Emily Hargreaves travels to Venice in 1895, where she is summoned by an old nemesis desperate for help investigating the brutal murder of her father-in-law. To solve the present case Emily must first unravel the secrets of a long forgotten forbidden love that tore apart two noble Venetian families in the fifteenth century.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on DEATH IN THE FLOATING CITY to read more and to email author Tasha Alexander, you'll get a reply.

 

 

Dear Reader Column 10-18-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Little kitty footprints on my kitchen counter--they're not supposed to be there...it's a no-no for my cat Barry. Yet those little footprints make me smile and think of how much fun Barry brings to my life.

If the alarm clock in my bedroom reads two o'clock, but it's really five o'clock, it's "Paul time." Changing the time on Grandma's clock, it's the footprint my 5-year-old grandson leaves behind when he comes to visit. But I don't mind, because every time I have to reset the hands on my clock, I smile and think of my grandson. (Even though before I caught on to "Paul time" I was late for an appointment.)

"How high do you cross your T's?" It's a footprint that Blaize Clement, an author friend of mine, left behind and it drives me crazy every time I handwrite a note to someone and have to cross a T.

Before Blaize passed away she wrote a short book about crossing your T's. A psychologist earlier in her career, Blaize's theory, "The way you write the letter T is a coded message from your unconscious. If you learn to decipher the code, you'll know what you can expect from life. If you cross your T's high, you have high ambition and the necessary self-confidence to reach your goals. If you cross them low, you don't think much of yourself, and you don't expect to amount to much."

Blaize couldn't get her book about crossing your T's published. Every editor she submitted it to declined, reasoning nobody uses cursive anymore. But I'm living proof they were wrong. In fact, I think the book would have been a bestseller, because I can't get her theories out of my mind. Whenever I'm handwriting something, when I finish a sentence, I'm compelled to go back and double check--how high did I cross any T's? And if any top-of-the-stem crossings are too low, I add another line, and another, and another if needed. Consequently some of my T's look more like telephone poles, with multiple crosses headed towards heaven, but they make me smile and think of Blaize.

My cat's on the counter, my grandson's messing with the time on my clock, and an old friend is driving me nuts whenever I handwrite a note--footprints of love in my life.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

* I baked more cookies than I anticipated, so I drew another winner for the October Chocolate Chip Cookie Contest. Congratulations to Dorie Furman, your cookies are on their way, soon!

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: BLOOD SKY ZERO (Fiction) by J. Gabriel Gates

Every government in the world has been privatized and two massive corporations employ and govern everyone on earth. When May, the extraordinarily privileged daughter of the CEO, begins to examine the Company's warped practices, she is kidnapped by a group called the Protectorate. Now, May must decide whether to continue in her life of luxury and prosperity, or risk it all to join the terrifying battle to restore America's freedom.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on BLOOD SKY ZERO to find out more about the book and the author, J. Gabriel Gates. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(Fiction)
CRIMES OF REDEMPTION by Linda McDonald

(Fiction)
ALL THINGS NEW by Lynn Austin

(Fiction)
RUINS OF LACE by Iris Anthony

(Fiction)
BLOOD SKY ZERO by J. Gabriel Gates

(Mystery)
DEATH IN THE FLOATING CITY by Tasha Alexander

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader