In Remberance of 9-11-01

With the anniversary of September 11th a day away, I thought I would share an article I wrote right after that fateful event. May God bless all of those who protect us from the many evil inhabitants of this world.

What Was It Like When…?

by

Keith Bettinger

I enjoy studying history. I watch the history channel, read the tomes of Stephen Ambrose, and love to read historical novels. I am a baby boomer, a member of the generation that came to be when our heroes returned from World War II.

When I read about the attack on Pearl Harbor I wonder what went through the minds of the American public as they heard the news that the American Military had been attacked. I wondered what it was like to be suddenly pulled into a war. My mother can still tell me stories about rationing, food and gas coupons, and friends going off to war. Every community has a memorial to those friends and heroes who did not return.

The war of my generation was a long and protracted one. It too has many heroes that are now growing gray. It was not like World War II. It had been around for years, and slowly swallowed up the youth of the United States. Our veterans were not treated with the respect they deserved. The Viet Nam war did not answer for our generation the question, what was it like when Pearl Harbor was attacked.

Now we have our answer. On September 11, 2001, terrorists stole our aging innocence. On that day, America was plunged into a new war; probably different than any other it has ever fought. This time our military was not the only target. Symbols of American pride were destroyed. Along with the twin towers went thousands of civilians working in many different occupations, while they tried to secure the American dream. Stolen from us along with all those civilians are the heroes of the New York City Fire Department, the New York City Police Department the Port Authority Police Department and the military and civilian personnel at the Pentagon, who went into the burning buildings to rescue people while others were fleeing for their lives.

In the history of law enforcement and fire fighting, losses of these staggering proportions have never been seen before. The losses from this horrific event took more lives than those lost during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Baby Boomers, who wanted to know what it was like when Pearl Harbor was attacked and America was plunged into war, now have their answer. The "other" generation can tell you where they were on December 7, 1941. Many generations can tell you where they were when they received the news that President John F. Kennedy was killed, and now we all will remember where we were on September 11, 2001. We now know what it was like when the United States was attacked and plunged into war. It has happened to us. May God Bless America!

Keith Bettinger

Secretary - Public Safety Writers Association

keithbett@cox. net

keithbettinger@ policewriter. com

Author of: Fighting Crime With "Some" Day and Lenny

Author of: End Of Watch

Winner of 16 awards for writing

Guest post by Wanda Snow Porter

Author Wanda Snow Porter


WandaSnowPorter.com

whimsicalpublications.com

Spurs for José, a young adult novel, will be released by Whimsical Publications on Nov. 1st.

An unforgettable journey based on true events, Spurs for José brims with action and excitement. It is a coming-of-age story, not just for one young Indian vaquero, but also for California as it becomes the thirty-first state of the United States.

In the fall of 1846, when José Rodriquez turns twelve, his papa says next spring he must help tame Rancho Grande’s wild colts. He knew this day would come. For on the Alta California rancho, being a vaquero and training horses was his family’s tradition. Vaqueros’ horsemanship and roping skills were legendary and their lives full of danger. Many vaqueros had been killed or crippled while riding the mustangs. Did he have enough courage to ride the wild ones and measure up to his papa’s expectations?

Worried, José decides only luck will help him be fearless enough to ride the wild colts, luck he will get from a pair silver spurs and chaps made from a brave bull’s hide. But he has no money. How can he buy silver spurs? Then the Mexican-American war starts. And a few days before Christmas, Colonel John C. Fremont’s battalion camps on Rancho Grande and everything changes.

Spurs for José excerpt:

Pedro sat beside José, opening his palms toward the fire to warm his cold hands. “I hear Tomas is making you chaps from the bullhide. He says the bullhide is lucky, but it is unlucky. The bull fell first, so he didn’t win. No, I wouldn’t want chaps made out of the hide of the loser. Those chaps will be cursed.” Pedro’s dark eyes glared at José.

He glared back at Pedro. “The bull was brave and his hide will have magic power. Tomas said the chaps will be lucky.”

“What would Tomas know about luck? Look at him. He is crippled. How do you think he got that way? He was cursed. That’s how, cursed and unlucky.” Pedro stood and spit in the fire.

José stood, too, clenching his fists. “Nobody asked you.”

Pedro pushed his face into Jose’s. Even though he was older, they were the same height. He grabbed José’s hair and jerked his head back. José struck out with his fist, punched Pedro’s jaw and knocked him backward onto the ground. Then he jumped on top of him, and they wrestled in the dirt.

“What is going on?” José’s papa asked as he and Uncle Miguel pulled the two boys apart, lifting them to their feet. “You two settle down. You need to work harder if you have energy to waste on fighting. Go get more wood for the fire. Right now, go!”

The boys glared at each other as they dusted themselves off and went together to collect wood. They didn’t speak as they carried armloads of wood back to where the men sat warming themselves. José was angry. Pedro had put doubt in mind. Was the bullhide really cursed?



Wanda’s Words About Writing

I never planned to be a writer, but when teaching horseback riding, I wanted to make a list of safety rules for my young students, but decided a story would be more fun for them to read and make it more likely they’d remember to be cautious around horses. That short story ended up in an anthology entitled, Along the Way: Our Unique Relationship With Horses. Published for the benefit of young dressage riders, the payment for my story was one copy of the book. When it arrived in the mail, I opened the package. What a thrill. My story was among those of famous authors like Charles De Kunffy and Jane Smiley. This hooked me on writing for young people and inspired me to write and illustrate the Burro Picture Books Series published and sold by the Dana Adobe Nipomo Amigos at danaadobe.org.

As a docent for Dana Adobe, I research California history to help school kids learn what life was like on a California rancho 150 years ago. My interest in history, experience as a riding teacher and horse trainer inspired me to write Spurs for José. After I finished writing about José’s adventures, it was strange. Though he is a fictional character, José became so real to me that I searched for a record of his death or grave site, without any success. Sadly, as with many Native Americans, if he had really existed, I mostly likely will never know it. But when I sit on the veranda next to Dana Adobe’s thick walls, built long ago by Chumash Indians, it’s easy to imagine his ghost lingering there. I believe that’s what motivated me to tell José’s story.
 

Puppy Love

My New Adventure with Sully Mc Ferguson

New puppies are so adorable! They look cute when they sleep, they’re amazingly fluffy, and of course, there’s the puppy breath. What no one seems to talk about is the training part of having a puppy; the cleaning poop off the new carpet; finding torn up and eaten $80 shoes; the relentless barking at 3 a.m.; or having to constantly be policing them from consuming all small and inedible objects.

I say all this because I have a new puppy myself. His name is Sully. He is a mix of a shih tzu and a long haired dachshund. Sully is the cutest and funniest looking little thing ever. We got him free from a couple who had an accidental litter from their own shih tzu and dachshund. They were all sweet, but Sully really stuck out with his personality and pretty markings. After snuggling in my roommate’s arms for about 20 minutes, it was decided, this little guy was going to be the new member of our family. So, we brought him home that night.

Sully quickly became the heartthrob of the neighborhood! He demanded attention from everyone that passed by. And everyone was more than happy to give it to him. He was only two pounds when we got him, but he was able to stop people and animals more than 50 times his weight. He made our home a lot more fun with him running around and playing his vast amount of toys we bought him.

Then it happened… he started peeing and pooping all over the place. It wasn’t too bad because he was so small -- and so were his messes. But then the frequency of his little ‘messes’ started to become overwhelming. Sully didn’t help with the clean up either by biting onto the cleaning rag when we were scrubbing or he tries to hide his messes in unlikely places. Sully also started barking in the middle of the night for no reason, not to go to the bathroom, outside or anything. He was driving us nuts!

Slowly, he started learning different commands. Sully now knows sit, hold or stay, and thankfully, quiet but only sometimes. There is still a lot to learn, like going potty outside, but it’s all a work in progress. It’s a lot of pain but a lot of awesome at the same time. So, what is the moral of the Sully story? If you want something worthwhile it takes some crap to get there, literally.

Author’s Bio

Kristine writes for ReadingGlassesShopper.com during the day, and in her spare time, she watches TV religiously. In between episodes of her favorite shows Kristine loves to bake, write poetry,

and walk her new puppy.

kesser@oneclickventures.com





Sleepy Sully









Sully





More Author News!

P.I. Barrington let me know that she has a new short story out in the April issue of Suspense Magazine.com. It is titled, "The Cougar's Tale."

Here is the link:

http://suspensemagazine.com/

This magazine is new to me, but I went and checked it out. It looks great.

One reader said.

"Interviews with the best in the business
(Stephen King and Janet Evanovich!),
presented in a stylish format that—like a great
suspense novel—keeps readers like me turning
the pages. I look forward to every issue!”

If you go to the link you can download four free issues.

Way to go Pat!

Tomorrow's No Limits

My two guests for my show on Blog Talk Radio are Ginger Simpson and Kathryn Rose.

Ginger is a multi-published author in many genres. One of her latest releases is story that takes place inside of a women's prison. It's on my To-Be-Read list.

Kathryn Rose's latest book is, A Parent's Guide to Facebook.

Facebook is a great social network, but there are somethings parents should be aware of. Kathryn covers them in her book.

Please come by and listen to what there two talented women have to say.

The show airs at 3:00 PM Pacific Time. Here is the link to the show.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/rrradio/2011/04/14/rrw-no-limits

Some radom ramblings.

I'm reading a book titled Blue. A great one by the way. Part of the story is about a fantasy world that the girl and her father invented. The neat part is the world they invented became real and the story also is about what is happening in their created world.

It really made me think about all of the books and short stories I'd started and never finished. The problems I'd left unsolved. The characters I'd left in danger because I'd written myself into a corner, or just became bored with them. I even felt a twinge of unease.

As authors we are a bit like gods. We decide what our characters will or won't do. We put them in danger, make them happy, make them cry.

What if our worlds did go on once we turned away from them? What would we think when we stepped back in and saw that things had progressed, maybe in a way that we didn't care for, the wrong guy got the girl. So and so, didn't get the promotion he'd worked so hard for, or the dragon did eat the princess? Do we try again to take control, bend their stories to our will

I haven't finished reading Blue, so I don't know how that story ends.

How about your stories. What do you think has happened in your worlds since you wrote, The End. An intriguing thought, isn't it.

Great News from Carolyn Howard-Johnson.

I'm always delighted to pass on wonderful news. Just drop me an email with your announcements.



Local Author Short-Listed for the Eric Hoffer Prose Award





World Wide Web—Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s short story “Truth, Fiction, Denial: A Big Bass Story” is a finalist for the Eric Hoffer Prose Award where it will also be considered for inclusion in Best New Writing, edited by Christopher Klim.



Klim says, “Finalists are a very small group of stories from among thousands of submissions.” Winners are announced in early fall of 2011.

Howard-Johnson is an award-winning novelist and poet; her fiction and poetry have appeared in literary journals nationwide and she is listed as a poet with Poets & Writers magazine. She was named Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment by the 43rd and 44th Districts of the California Legislature. She speaks on Utah's culture, tolerance and subjects relating to writing and publishing and has appeared on TV and hundreds of radio stations nationwide. She is also is an instructor for UCLA Extension’s Writers’ Program. Her Web site is www.howtodoitfrugally.com and she blogs at Writer’s Digest 101 Best Websites pick, www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com .

Learn more about the Eric Hoffer award at www.hofferaward.com.

Learn more about Best New Writing at www.BestNewWriting.com.

Promoting eBooks

While visiting another blog, I read where an author was frustrated because they didn't know how to promote their eBook. Nothing to sign etc. So I'm throwing it out to all of you. If you have your book out as an eBook, how have you promoted it?

Or, what is your opinion on eBooks?

Have you read one? How? Do you have an e-reader? Which one? Would you read an eBook?

On another list I saw where eBooks are having an anniversary. They been around now for 40 years. So I think maybe they are here to stay.

I read my first eBook at least twelve years ago on a Rocket reader. I loved that old reader. It had a backlight so when the lights went out I could still read. Now I have A Sony, and have been thinking about moving up to one that can does color.

Anyone here tried the Literati? I've seen one at Kohles.

Friday I am speaking to some sixth graders about being an author. I'm sure the subject of eBooks will come up.

Loved these books.

I am always happy to discover an author new to me. The past months I've been ecstatic. I write reviews for a mystery, online magazine and was sent three books to read. They have all been good, but one I loved. It's merry, merry Ghost by Carolyn Hart.



The main character is a ghost with...well...spirit. Baily Ruth although happy in heaven, is aching to get back to earth and to help those who need it. Unfortunetly for Bailey, she can't seem to stop breaking the rules...when she feels it's called for.



I loved her. And will be looking for other books where she is the star.



On a totally different note. I've also discovered Joan Hall Hovey, wow can this lady keep you up at night with her stories.

You can't go wrong with any of this lady's titles. I'd have to say Chill Waters, is one of my favorites.

Also Jamie Hill writes great suspense novels. Her characters are a bit on the gritty side, but I loved them.

And I can't forget Ginger Sampson. She doesn't disappoint either.

I've got a deal for you!

Okay, here it is. I'm an avid reader. Love to find new authors. Ice, the suspense novel I co-wrote with Randolph Tower is available now, in both print and as an eBook.

If you will buy a copy of Ice, I'll buy a copy of whatever book you would like me too.

Buy Ice in print, I do the same. Buy Ice as an eBook and so forth.

So what do you say?

Post Blog Jog Day.

It was a great day. Not only did I discover some great new blogs, I had almost a hundred folks jog by and gained five new followers.

It's a chilly morning, well chilly for the central coast of CA, only 41 degress, yes I can hear some of you groaning.

My husband's home now for a week. I guess that will give me some idea of what it will be like in a couple of years when he retires.

That's going to take some adjustment on my part.

How have the rest of you dealt with it?

Randolph and I had sent Ice to LL Publications. We didn't receive an offer of a contract yet. But Zetta Brown sent us a wonderful email listing the strong and weak parts of Ice, along with an invitation to submit again. So that's what we are working on.

I'm not happy with what is goign on with Dancing With The Stars. I know it is a popularity contest also, but at least in the past years the winner was the best dancer...this year it's looking like a farce.

I haven't decided if I will bother to watch tonight, or not.

Blog Jog Day!

It's here. I hope you are having a great time visiting the other blogs. Next on your jog should be...

Me vs. My Muse http://mevsmymuse.com/

Contact Roxann Conger roxann@mevsmymuse.com.

Isn't that the way all writers feel at times...it is us versing our stubborn muse on some days.

Blog Jog Day is tomorrow.

Come out and jog with us. You just might find a blog you want to follow. And discover some ways to make your's stand out.


You can start with mine and follow the link to the next blog.

Blog Jog's Coming!

Last years Blog Jog was great.

It's time to do it again! This fall season event has been scheduled just before the holidays so if you have products or books to promote you have a better chance of sales.

Participating may bring to you . . .

*More unique visitors to your blog
*More subscribers
*More comments
*More inbound links
*More followers
*More exposure and sales
*Grow your daily hits

All which look great to Google, Yahoo, Bing, and the other search engines!

If you want to include your blog in the job, please e-mail Carol at chipanugget@gmail.com

A Spiral of Echoes--EPIC eBook Finalist

I am so excited. A Spiral of Echoes is a finalist in EPIC's eBook Contest. Now we wait until Eppiecon to see if it is a winner.

No LImits

Don't miss my blog talk radio show today if you are looking for frugal tips on marketing and promoting.

Also will have some intriguing insights concerning modern day Gypsies.

Here is the link. The show airs at 3:00 PM Pacfic Time today.


http://www.blogtalkradio.com/rrradio/2010/08/12/red-river-writers-live-no-limits

Red River Writers Live--No Limits

On my upcoming August 12th show I have two outstanding guests, Carolyn Howard Johnson and Sonia Meyer.

Sonia is a fiction author with a passion for the plight of modern day Gypsies. I look forward to finding out how she became involved with them.

Carolyn has written three books dealing with frugal promoting, editing and her latest making Twitter work as a marketing tool.

She will be sharing some of her best tips with us.

All the fun begins at 3:00 Pacific Time. Here is the link to the page on Blog Talk Radio.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/rrradio/2010/08/12/red-river-writers-live-no-limits

Stop by and give us a listen. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

Great Review for A Spiral of Echoes

This is posted on both The San Francisco Book Review site and the Sacramento Book Review site.

A Spiral of Echoes
Filed in Romance on July 23, 2010 with no comments
By Barbara M. Hodges, Maggie Pucillo
Chalet Publishers, $16.95, 306 pages

After Isabelle discovers her husband’s death and his latest lover, she withdraws, and goes on a quest to find herself on her own terms. Despite badgering from her friends, she treks back to her beloved Baja, Mexico, to escape the hectic life of her past, to rejoin and reconnect with her original love — weaving and nature. As the story advances, the reader is in for a treat. A ghost and a handsome volcanologist distract Isabelle.

The two authors have coordinated an introspection seldom seen. Theirs is a study of a woman’s escape from the tradition of roles to find her inner self. She gradually learns the importance of time passage, allowing her feelings to connect with the ocean and animals around her. The authors share a brilliant glimpse of the inner thoughts of a woman discouraged by those close to her, while inspired by a rediscovery of her connection with nature.

Although Maggie Pucillo appears to be new on the scene, Barbara M. Hodges has penned five other novels, each focusing on a different literary approach. With a flowing vocabulary, the authors enjoy a style that pulls the reader into the prose and doesn’t let go.

Reviewed by D. Wayne Dworsky

The Golden Rose

The Golden Rose is one of the few contests that allows entrants a high submission page count. Since most agents and editors request partials with a query, our contest affords the best opportunity for a real-world critique for your potential submission. Many of our finalists receive requests from the final judges and many of those have gone on to secure agents and publishing contracts. In addition, all entrants receive:


Three comprehensive critiques from the first round judges. Judges are highly encouraged to make detailed, constructive comments explaining their scores.

Score sheets are returned to entrants in time for them to revise manuscripts before the Golden Heart entry deadline, allowing you time to polish your entry based on informed feedback before you enter.

Category finalists get one week after notification of status to review their entries before they are sent to the final round judges thereby increasing the potential of a full request.

First Place Winners in each category will be offered a free chapter membership. In addition each first place winner will receive a one-of-a-kind handcrafted rose pendant necklace.

All finalists receive a beautiful certificate they can proudly show off their placing as well as a lovely banner for their websites.

Winners will be announced on the RCRW website and in the Romance Writers Report (RWR).

The top score overall wins a gorgeous, gold-plated American Beauty rose.
CATEGORIES & FINAL ROUND JUDGES

Contemporary Series - Susan Litman, Editor, Harlequin

Single Title Contemporary - Megan Records, Editor, Kensington

Historical - Emmanuelle Alspaugh, Agent, Judith Ehrlich Literary Management

Paranormal, Fantasy, and Futuristic - Alexandra Machinist, Agent, Linda Chester Literary Agency

Romantic Suspense - Kristin Sevick, Editor, Tor

Young Adult - Andrea Somberg, Agent, Harvey Klinger, Inc.

Novel w/Strong Romantic Elements - Amberly Finarelli, Agent, Andrea Hurst & Associates


Full Details are available at: http://www.rosecityromancewriters.com/contest.html

Wisdom Cards

'Loving myself and thniking joyful, happy thoughts is the quickest way to create a wonderful life.'