Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 09-30-16

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

It's difficult to put into words what an amazing vacation my husband and I had in the Smoky Mountains this year. But I think my pictures and the little stories with them will say it for me.

I hope you enjoy my picture postcard....

http://www.emailbookclub.com/photo/vacation2016.html

Maybe my photos will inspire you to remember a favorite vacation. It could be the topic of your entry for this year's Write a DearReader Contest. The deadline is coming up quickly. You really should enter. You don't have to be a writer. This contest is all about writing for fun. Cash prizes, read last year's winning entries, rules and such, you'll find it all at: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

P. S. I'm anxious to read your entry.

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

Dear Reader Column 09-29-16

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

"I started reading your column and it was as if you and I were in the same room."

It's one of the most cherished compliments I've received from a book club reader. I'm not good in groups. I'm the wallflower who feels uncomfortable circulating around the room. But sit me down one-on-one with someone and the magic of conversation and friendship sets in.

And I want you to know that it feels as if you and I are in the same room when I read the emails you send, and as I read each Write a DearReader Contest entry, so please keep sending them. The deadline is approaching, so set some time aside to write today.

Fran W. a reader at the book club, emailed to welcome me back from vacation...

"You didn't have any pictures from your trip? Last years pictures were fabulous!"

Pictures are on the way, Fran. I am putting some together to share. Thanks for asking.

You don't need to be a writer to enter this year's Write a DearReader Contest. It's writing for the fun of it. To read last year's winning entries and information about the rules and deadline, and cash prizes go to: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

* Congratulations to the winners of The Invisible Library by Guest Author Genevieve Cogman: Lolita M., Caroline V., Julie E., Bob S. and Michelle C.

And congratulations to the winners of The Cat Sitter and the Canary by Guest Author John Clement: Louise P., Kelly B., Marilyn W., Donna N. and Kristen K.

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserves your attention:

(Mystery)
DANDELION DEAD by Chrystle Fiedler

(Thriller)
SHADOWS OF THE STONE BENDERS by K. Patrick Donoghue

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

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

 

Dear Reader Column 09-28-16

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

Shellie Rushing Tomlinson says she is, "...a Jesus-loving, humor-gathering author, speaker, radio host, and down-home Southern cook who believes the best meals come with the story." And she shares her tasty stories in her cookbook, Hungry is a Mighty Fine Sauce.

Five copies of Shellie's southern cookbook, Hungry is a Mighty Fine Sauce are waiting to be given to book club readers. Email, say hello, welcoming her to the book club, and you are automatically entered in the drawing. Email: tomtom@allthingssouthern.com

Welcome to the book club author Shellie Rushing Tomlinson ...

I've been a true blue bookworm since I was a little girl growing up on the end of a dirt road in rural Louisiana, miles from the town where we attended school. As much as I loved summer vacations, those months held one serious drawback for my word loving self. No access to the school library!

Thank heavens for the East Carroll Parish Book Mobile! Twice a month, that traveling library from nearby Lake Providence, Louisiana, lumbered down our country road bearing a precious load of words. To this day I remember how it felt to open that door and step out of the heat and humidity that marks our summers, and into what I considered air conditioned heaven. I wasn't fond of the bookmobile's six books checked out per child rule, but I soon found a way around it. I'd do chores for my sisters in exchange for their allotted books, since they weren't fired up about reading, anyway. Score!

My book addiction grew with me and fueled my heart's secret dreams. I would become a famous author/photojournalist who would travel the world and write amazing things that would inspire people everywhere. And then life happened. A certain adorable blond graduated college and returned to our hometown just as I was graduating high school. The Blonde, also known as Phil, turned my heart into mush and my plans on their head!

We've been married 35 years this past August. We live, love, and farm thirty minutes from that country road of my childhood. We have two amazing kids who grew into awesome young adults, met and married their own true loves, and have since presented us with five of the cutest grandkids ever.

Oh, and I might not be inspiring the world, but I do sling words out far and wide, as an author, speaker, and radio host known as The Belle of All Things Southern. Right now, I'm giddy with excitement over my newest "baby," a storytelling cookbook called Hungry is a Mighty Fine Sauce. And get this--five days out of seven a big brown truck lumbers down my long driveway and delivers a stack of free books to me from publicists hoping to secure their author an interview on my radio program! I think that's a wondrous thing. That word hungry little girl with the hoot owl glasses, growing up at the end of that dirt road--it would've been beyond her wildest dreams.

--Shellie Rushing Tomlinson

Five copies of Shellie's southern cookbook, Hungry is a Mighty Fine Sauce are waiting to be given to book club readers.
Email: tomtom@allthingssouthern.com to enter the drawing.

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

 

Dear Reader Column 09-27-16

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

Twelve days in the Smoky Mountains. What a fabulous vacation! But I have to confess, a lot of what my husband and I did on vacation, were the same things we do every day at home. We brought our hobbies along with us. My husband took his bass guitar apart and packed it in his carry-on luggage, and I had my sewing machine shipped to our cabin. To an outsider, it might seem like "same old, same old," so why even leave home? But I'm here to tell you, sitting in front of huge cabin windows, high above the trees, looking out at the Smoky Mountains, makes sewing a quilt a memorable vacation experience.

We did leave our cabin sometimes to go walking on the mountain's gravel roads. There aren't many people living year round on Baines Mountain, where we stayed, most of the cabins (huge, fancy houses) are rented to folks like us. But on one of our walks, we did meet the couple who live year round at the very top of the mountain. So when we go back next year, we'll already know our neighbors.

I didn't do much writing while I was on vacation, but I hope you did. Have you entered this year's Write a DearReader Contest yet? If you haven't, come on, get going. It's a writing contest for the fun of it. Simply tell me a story. Ideas?

The best caramel apple you've ever eaten. (I ate three when I was on vacation. They were absolutely, positively the best caramel apples I've ever eaten. The owner of The Chocolate Shoppe in Bryson City says he'll ship caramel apples to me.)

Write about your best-ever vacation, or maybe your worst?

Brag a little, write about something you're proud of doing.

My dream childhood would have been...

The lessons I've learned about shaving.

Things in my life that I wish I could get a do-over.

I'm a little quirky when it comes to...

The best advice I ever got was...

The deadline is approaching, so please get busy. Read past winning entries, this year's cash prizes, rules and deadlines, go to:
http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

Have fun! And thanks for entering this year's contest.

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

It's so good to be back,
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: SHADOWS OF THE STONE BENDERS (Thriller) by K. Patrick Donoghue

Ancient myths, mystical stones and murder. World-renowned scientist, Anlon Cully, leads a dangerous chase to unravel the secrets of mysterious artifacts discovered by his murdered archaeologist uncle--before the ruthless killer strikes again!

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on SHADOWS OF THE STONE BENDERS to find out more about the book and the author, K. Patrick Donoghue. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 09-26-16

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

What a great vacation! A great, big thank you to all of the Guest Columnists, who filled in for me while I was in the Smoky Mountains. I know you enjoyed reading their columns just as much as I did.

A special thank you to everyone who has already sent in their entry for this year's Write a DearReader Contest. I sure am enjoying reading them. If you haven't sent in your entry, there's still time. Find all the information you need, and read the winning entries from last year at: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

My regular column will return tomorrow.

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: DANDELION DEAD (Mystery) by Chrystle Fiedler

Nature's Way Market & Cafe owner, Willow McQuade is catering a party at Pure, a new organic vineyard, owned by her ex-BF, TV producer Simon Lewis, and his partners David and Ivy Farmer. The wine flows freely, until Amy, Ivy's twin sister is murdered! But the poison was actually meant for David. Who wants him dead? A rival vintner? Or someone closer to home?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on DANDELION DEAD to read more and to email author Chrystle Fiedler, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 09-23-16

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

Tell a story, win some cash, buy some new shoes or a fishing pole, impress your friends and family. Sound like fun? It could happen to you, but first you need to enter my annual Write a DearReader Contest. You don't need to be a writer to enter. The contest is for writing fun. To read last year's winning entries and information about the rules and deadline, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

An Ohio native, Tiffany McDaniel, today's guest author, is inspired by the rolling hills and buckeye woods of the land she knows. She is also a poet, playwright, screenwriter, and artist. The Summer that Melted Everything is her debut novel.

Please take a moment and welcome Tiffany McDaniel to the book club... authortiffanymcdaniel@yahoo.com

The Loss of a Friend

It is easy to rage against mortality. I've known you since I was a kid of twelve and now nineteen years later this friendship is having its grand conclusion. Not by choice. You have not returned to health. You are so thin now you are fallen by a crossing shadow.

I take your picture. I know I don't have enough photos of you when you were well. When you were young and happy. If this is the last sunset coming upon us, give me back the sunrise to start again.

Friendship allows for truth, love, and impossible infinity. When we were young, did you not think we would live forever? Death is for everything, and now we know it is for us. If death is an end to suffering then perhaps it is welcome. No, not welcome in your case because you loved life so. Accepted. That is what death is.

What intimacy death and dying brings us. I still think in some small miracle you will be brought back to health. You will come to represent an extraordinary blessing. You will be someone going nowhere but back into the folds of what we call togetherness. As if in a dream we break the clutches of the grave and we rise above the dirt-line to run the roads of the old hometown and perhaps another Halloween when we first met. Shall we re-enact that October 31st? Go back to the beginning when we were kids and therefore be far from this adult end.

Nineteen years is a long time. Longer would be perfect. Can we join forever as mortals? Endure with these skeletons and stalk the expanses of this earth like we will never end?

I know you don't want to go. I don't want you to go. I asked you could you stay long enough to see my book published. You did. You will not stay long enough to see more published, no matter how much we try to lengthen the day. Why can we not change everything to a hundred happy ways?

I never thought I would see you dying. Living. That is what you did and did so well. Every day a golden forecast set on impulse and feel. Your eyes once so sharp to the surroundings, now you look out at the world with a tired strain holding the truth none of us can bear.

After you're gone, every single June will be mutilated and October will be a cold stain. After you're gone, white rooms will be impossible to live in. Tears alone will stain them with black streaks and rage, yes, rage against mortality because we are old enough to know that even friendships are seized by the last night and in that last night one friend will be asked to bury the other, the heart disturbed by the breaking of that very thing while in the infinite linking of this sphere with the next you will know you have been everything to me. My dear friend, you have been everything.

--Tiffany McDaniel

Email Tiffany, authortiffanymcdaniel@yahoo.com

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

KIDS BUZZ: This week, loads of book fun and buzz for middle graders and teens. Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free copy of TRUTH OR DARE by Barbara Dee and GOING GEEK by Charlotte Huang. For a chance to win, say hello to the authors and more, go to: http://www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

 

Dear Reader Column 09-22-16

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

I'd like to introduce Ms. Nic Joseph, a Chicago-based mystery and suspense writer. As a trained journalist, she has written about everything from healthcare and business to aerospace and IT--but she feels most at home when there's a murder to be solved on the next page. Her debut suspense novel, Boy, 9 Missing explores the ramifications of revenge, justice, and the aftermath of a terrible night in the lives of two families.

There are three copies of Boy, 9 Missing in today's giveaway. Email: nicolelanettejoseph@gmail.com

Welcome to the book club, Ms. Nic Joseph...

Nic Joseph, author of BOY, 9, MISSING, on coyotes...

I think you can learn everything you need to know about people from the way they react when they think they're being chased by a coyote.

I live in a neighborhood called Andersonville on Chicago's north side. It's known for its diverse dining options, stroller brigades, vintage 3-flats and Puppet Bike performers.

In recent years, though, Andersonville and a few surrounding neighborhoods have also gained a bit of notoriety for something else entirely: coyote sightings.

One evening in 2015, my then-boyfriend and I were walking home when he spotted one across the street.

"Whoa. Coyote."

He said it just like that. I immediately picked up my pace while he slowed down to admire it.

"What's he doing?" I asked.

"Nothing. Just standing there, watching us."

I never actually looked across the street. I'm not even sure I could tell you what a coyote looks like; in all honestly, I think I pictured a cartoon wolf. But that simple description was enough to turn my power walk into a clumsy, terrified jog.

Suddenly, the coyote let out a crisp, two-toned, made-for-the-movies howl. It was so good, I think the moon applauded. We saw the animal running toward us at the same time. Knee-high, brown, furry and charging at us at full speed. I screamed and raced toward my front porch; the animal followed, climbing the steps behind me. The howl, the image of the motionless creature, it was all too much, and I drowned out the sounds of my boyfriend as he yelled from the sidewalk.

"It's okay! It's just a dog. He's scared, too!"

I made it inside and watched through the glass as my boyfriend led the dog away, called 311 and teamed up with a neighbor who also had a small, terrified pup. The neighbor agreed to keep the stray dog in the safety of his fenced-in yard until animal control arrived.

To this day, we tell that story with embellishments on both of our sides. He says that as a suspense writer, I should be ashamed of myself; I say he'd be the first to die in a B-grade horror movie.

But all that aside, we learned a lot about each other that night, and it's probably part of the reason we're getting married next year.

I learned that when he thinks he's being chased by a coyote, he's able to remain calm, level-headed and take care of those around him.

He learned that when I think I'm being chased by a coyote, I know how to haul ass.

--Nic Joseph

There are three copies of Boy, 9 Missing in today's giveaway.
Email: nicolelanettejoseph@gmail.com

* While I'm on vacation this week, I'll be catching up on my "to read" list including reading some of this year's entries for the Write a DearReader Contest. I really look forward to reading your entry. Cash prizes, rules and deadlines, along with last year's winning entries, read all about them at: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserves your attention:

(Fiction)
UNCHAINED: An Eternal Guardians Novella by Elisabeth Naughton

(Fiction)
WILDER by Rebecca Yarros

(Fiction)
WALLFLOWER BLOOMING by Amy Rivers

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

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

Dear Reader Column 09-21-16

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

My task today is to introduce our guest author, Erika Swyler. I just have to start by sharing the ABOUT ME paragraph Erika submitted. She had me laughing at the very first line.

ABOUT ME...
Erika Swyler Erika Swyler holds a useless degree in Experimental Theater and English Literature. Born and raised on Long Island's north shore, Erika learned to swim before she could walk, and happily spent all of her allowance at traveling carnivals. She collects odd jobs and hobbies, from baking and photography to bookbinding and calligraphy. Erika lives on Long Island, NY, with her husband and a petulant rabbit. The Book of Speculation, one of last year's hottest books (now available in paperback), is Erika's first novel, and is rooted in her love of circus, carnivals, and small seaside towns. She can beat nearly anyone at Whac-A-Mole.

In the spirit of fun Erika Swyler is giving away "several" copies of The Book of Speculation. Email: erikaswylerwrites@gmail.com

Please welcome author Erika Swyler...

Getting to know people can be a binary game. Chocolate or vanilla? Dog person or cat person? Sometimes I fall into one category or the other, but mostly I'm option three. Chocolate or vanilla? Pistachio. Dogs or cats? Rabbits.

The pistachio thing? It's a great flavor. More people should be on board with it. Put a little pistachio in your day.

The rabbit thing? It started early. I don't remember a day of being alive when I didn't want a pet rabbit. I woke each morning with a single desire: to get my hands on a rabbit. My strategy was targeted whining, which while brilliantly executed, proved ineffective. My parents' response was to send me to my room and dock my allowance. Not only was I sad and lacking a rabbit, I was sad, lacking a rabbit and broke. It was about responsibility. My mother knew what I did not, getting a pet for a child is really getting a pet for the parent, and she was done cleaning up after little animals.

I was twenty-one--an adult--when my mother gifted me a rabbit. Biscuit was white but her ears, feet, nose, and tail were soft gray. If there are twenty kinds of perfection, she was all twenty plus three. But I had no idea what to do with a rabbit other than to want one terribly. For days I stared at Biscuit as though she might reveal my exact purpose in life. She did not. She just wanted hay and banana treats. But we learned. I learned that my job as a human was to wait hand and foot on this tiny beast, who would be disgusted with me no matter what I did. She learned that occasionally socializing with the human resulted in treats.

There's something wonderful about having another little being around, one who knows you are ridiculous. Cats? They cope well enough without me. Dogs? They love just a little too much for me to trust them. But rabbits, oh. Winning the trust of a prey animal is difficult, but worth it. Rabbits are grumpy old men from the day they're born. They're your Great Aunt Mabel who has had it with everything. Rabbits need you. And they love you, in own their time and in their own way, which isn't a bad way to be. And when rabbits yawn, it proves that the world is made for laughing.

In a game of cats and dogs, I remain forever rabbits.

I love hearing from readers. Feel free to drop me a line at erikaswylerwrites@gmail.com.

--Erika Swyler

Also email Erika, erikaswylerwrites@gmail.com for a chance to win a copy of The Book of Speculation.

* I hope you enjoyed reading today's guest column. If you're one of the winners, or your entry is an honorable mention in this year's Write a DearReader contest, it will be featured as a guest column. Cash prizes, rules and deadlines, along with last year's winning entries, read all about them at: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: WALLFLOWER BLOOMING (Fiction) by Amy Rivers

Ever have that one friend or relative that pulls you into doing things you might never have done yourself? That's Val's problem. When her cousin Gwen decides to run for mayor against the towns' biggest political bully, Val reluctantly agrees to help. Her carefully crafted world is injected with political chaos and unexpected romance, leading Val to reconsider her life choices and all the things she's held as true.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on WALLFLOWER BLOOMING to read more and to email author Amy Rivers, you'll get a reply.

KIDS BUZZ: This week, loads of book fun and buzz for middle graders and teens. Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free copy of TRUTH OR DARE by Barbara Dee and GOING GEEK by Charlotte Huang. For a chance to win, say hello to the authors and more, go to: http://www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

 

Dear Reader Column 09-20-16

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

I'm on vacation today and my good friend Marshall Cook (Marsh) graciously offered to write a guest column. Sit back and relax. Marshall is one of the all-time great story tellers.

Welcome to the book club Marsh...

Sometimes the important stuff isn't on the to-do list...

A half hour until dinner time, and I'm pushing to finish a tricky layout for my newsletter.

I'm retired--sort of--but I'm still rushing. I no longer teach full time for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, but writers never really retire. I still edit and publish an online newsletter "for writers, their enablers, and those who love the magic they make," still write novels, poems, and essays, have created and host a radio show called Writers and Their Words, teach in the Odyssey Project (a credit college humanities course for adults below the poverty line)...

I'm doing things I love and have always wanted to do. Still, they all take time, something I never seem to have enough of.

So when the doorbell rings downstairs, my first reaction is annoyance.

For years I taught seminars on stress and time management. I've written books about it. (One of them even got me invited to appear on the Oprah Show as an "expert de-stresser.") I got interested in the subject the way a person with an ulcer researches how to avoid getting another one. I've had to learn how to be productive and stay sane at the same time. (One of my books is called Slow Down and Get More Done.)

When my wife Ellen answers the door, she finds an elderly lady and a younger man, perhaps in his 50s or 60s, neither of whom she's ever seen before.

I arrive in the living room just in time to hear the woman say, "I'm Theresa. This is my son, Jim. Does Marshall live here?"

I'm about to get the biggest, most wonderful surprise I've had in a very long time.

Theresa is my cousin. She still lives in New Jersey, near where Dad grew up. We've exchanged Christmas cards and occasional letters for decades but never met. Her son, Jim, lives in Northern Wisconsin, selling the beef he raises as a second career after the Air Force.

I've only known one aunt, two cousins, and one sibling--and three of them have died, leaving me and Cousin Susie. Meeting a new cousin and her son is a stunning revelation. I still get weak in the knees writing about it.

We swap stories, share laughter and photographs, and try to pack a lifetime of catching up into a drop-in visit. I give them a copy of the book I wrote about my dad, Theresa's uncle George, and some of my other books. I feel the joy and wonder of actually having these dear people in my living room. Time goes by much too quickly, and soon they must leave. The hugs we share will have to last forever.

I'm overwhelmed with joy. The newsletter layout and dinner haven't gone anywhere. The world hasn't slipped off its axis because I didn't stick to my self-imposed deadline.

It's a lesson I've had to keep relearning over and over. Yes, we can "manage" time to some extent and keep from stressing ourselves to death. But so often, the best and most important things in life aren't on the to-do list.

For them, we must always make time, for they are the times we will remember and cherish always.

Marsh

P.S. If you'd like to check out my newsletter, go to the archives at: www.continuingstudies.wisc.edu/writing/extra-innings

For information on the Odyssey Project, see:
www.odyssey.wisc.edu

* Tell a story, win some cash, buy some new shoes or a fishing pole, impress your friends and family. Sound like fun? It could happen to you, but first you need to enter my annual Write a DearReader Contest. You don't need to be a writer to enter. The contest is for writing fun. To read last year's winning entries and information about the rules and deadline, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: WILDER (Fiction) by Rebecca Yarros

I'm thrilled to share my new novel with you! This swoony, standalone romance about a sexy, reckless X Games medalist and his stubborn tutor is sure keep you up late and leave you with a smile!

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on WILDER to find out more about the book and the author, Rebecca Yarros. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 09-19-16

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books,
"meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader,

(Suzanne is on vacation this week.)

Let me tell you about the time my husband and I were on vacation in the mountains and a huge, I mean gigantic, bear was on the back deck of our cabin, looking through the flimsy, kitchen screen door... Think about something that happened to you, write down the first line, and before you know it you'll have finished your entry for my annual Write a DearReader Contest. You don't need to be a writer. Just have fun with it. To read last year's entries, and information and the rules, cash prizes and deadline, go to: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2016/index.html

Please welcome today's guest author, Cindy Woodsmall, a New York Times and CBA best-selling author of eighteen works of fiction and nonfiction. Her connection with the Amish community has been featured in national media outlets such as ABC's Nightline, the Wall Street Journal, and a National Geographic documentary on Amish life. Cindy and her husband reside near the foothills of the North Georgia Mountains.

Enjoy Cindy's guest column and be sure to enter her book giveaway. The book giveaway is a little different this time: two readers will be winners and they'll each receive two books, Ties That Bind and Fraying at the Edge. Email: cindy@cindywoodsmall.com

Music with a Destination

The earth has music for those who listen.
--George Santayana, Philosopher, 1863-1952

If life experiences are thought of as music, we would probably agree that the earth is filled with all kinds of music and that we move to the beat of it. If we pause to listen, it seems as if melodies are flowing from every direction. Starting at a very young age, we're moved by the sound. If we like it, or think we're supposed to follow it, we travel toward it, which enables us to hear it more clearly and feel its pulse within our hearts.

The notion of beautiful music stirring us to follow it to a specific destination is a beautiful concept. The trouble is that we easily hear music that isn't ours. Perhaps the music is coming from our parents, schools, and a religious or non-religious upbringing that heavily influenced what metaphorical music we heard or thought we heard.

It can take years to realize we're moving to someone else's music. It can take even longer to begin to hear our own music. Jim Rohn once said, "You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight."

Most of us can think of an example from our own lives of when we listened to the wrong music. Or perhaps we played our own music too loudly, trying to herd others in the direction we thought they should go.

One of the beautiful aspects of getting older is that we are much more likely to recognize when someone is blaring their music in our ears, trying to convince us their sounds are the ones we're meant to follow. As we age, we are more likely to allow our music to take us wherever it leads, to a destination that allows us to feed at least a part of our soul.

When we read novels, we are listening to the music in fictional people's lives. We know the sources of the music and why each character listens to it.

I write books with Amish settings, probably because of the many pieces of music I came away with due to my connection with the Plain community since childhood.

All parents play certain pieces of music for their children, and this is often especially true of Amish parents. They play their music loudly and cut off as much access to outside music as possible, trying to direct their children to listen only to the beat of the Amish drum.

But the earth has music for those who listen.

And one of the joys of my life is listening for the music in the lives of the Amish--both real and fictional.

--Cindy Woodsmall

Be sure to enter my book giveaway. I'll choose two winners, and each person will receive two books, Ties That Bind and Fraying at the Edge. Email: cindy@cindywoodsmall.com

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

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is PERCHANCE TO DREAM: Selected Stories, by Charles Beaumont. Start reading now and don't forget to enter the drawing for your chance to win a Penguin tote bag: http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=drclassqqxqZ1AFE3FA745F&c=CLASSICS

AUTHORBUZZ: UNCHAINED: An Eternal Guardians Novella (Fiction) by Elisabeth Naughton

The Eternal Guardians are near and dear to my heart, and I'm thrilled to have this novella included in the 1001 Dark Nights collection. After Prometheus was introduced in book six, I knew he had a story of his own to tell. The growing tension between the mortal and immortal world has reached a breaking point. Whether Prometheus likes it or not, he'll soon be forced to choose sides. His decision is only that much more complicated when he meets a bewitching female who stirs desires in him he didn't know he still possessed.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on UNCHAINED to read more and to email author Elisabeth Naughton, you'll get a reply.