June 2011 Blog Posts (433)

This is awkward.

In the past, online and in person with fellow lesbreaders, I've had attaladys and gold stars galore for Melissa Bank's The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing. The upshot of my hallelujah refrain was, as I remember (it's been a while), that it made a perfect palate-cleanser book, one that managed lighthearted without sinking into the bastardized low of brainless and sappy. It…

I am a big fan of the work the Toyeman does, kind of hard not to be once you read some of his work: The Dribbles The Squirrel Series, Zorza, Intangibles Series, and the Toye Box Collections of Children’s Stories. His work covers different genres and age groups; I love the versatility, heart and passion his work contains. Zorza is a great example of what he likes to do and how he does it. This is actually a prequel to the first Zorza digital short story and gives us the…

This morning was an excellent reminder of how our plans can be sidetracked. I went to my car to go to work, the usual morning routine, but when I opened the door I noticed that my dome light was a little dimmer than normal. Hmm. Okay. Turn the ignition, dash lights up with a weak glow, but the engine will not turn over. Two things go through my mind: one, I'm  going to be late, two, how is this going…

This blog post is all about watching and listening to poets ...

Here is the link, to the links :)

AUDIO POETS

Traffic in D.C. metro is one of the worst in the country- if not the worst. Using the Metro is not a practical option when going to my office in Alexandria- so I, like hundreds of thousands of other work-a-bees, hop on the freeways to make the 10.8 mile stretch.

On a typical morning the alarm wakes me at 5:00 a.m. to begin a forty-five minute workout. I am in the shower by 6- out by 6:05 (I am part of the military community so our family adheres to three minute showers), hair…

I really don’t know why or how, but I have gotten a slew of deep, thought provoking novels lately, “Tribulation Point”  is another one. I want to get right to the synopsis of the novel:

“Abandoned at birth, conceived from a vicious assault on her mother, left on the steps of an orphanage, Precious must also face many other trials from her past. Teased and mocked by the children in the orphanage, she is called "half-n-half." She finds her first love only to lose…

Once in a while I think I find a gem, something maybe some people have seen, but really hasn’t found the audience it deserves yet. “The Lost Queen” is one of those works.   It as a YA novel, is part of The Empyrical Tales series, and it is fun , innovative and flat out well written. Yeah how do I really feel about it huh? Here is what is between the covers on this:

“Zandria and Olena continue their adventures in the land of Empyrean. Zandria discovers a magical…

Writing Romance

A week long event hosted by Reading Between the Wines & Secrets of a Book Lover.…

Hi Everyone,

Please read my new interview with Kindle, and also check out the new look on my website!

http://kindle-author.blogspot.com/2011/06/kindle-author-interview-cv-smith.html

http://mysite.verizon.net/ressbmks/

Thanks, Cindy

University of Pennsylvania Professor and Senior Associate Dean Ram A. Cnaan has dubbed Advancing Nonprofit Stewardship Through Self-Regulation the 'bible' of nonprofit managers, boards and students. By studying the core issues of the nonprofit sector, and providing note-worthy solutions, this useful, go-to guide is essential reading for those new to serving on a nonprofit board, or for organizations facing similar challenges.…

When countries have an existing violent or poverty-stricken track record, how do they protect themselves from a natural disaster? Focusing specifically on Sri Lanka and Indonesia, Dual Disasters by Jennifer Hyndman describes what happens when "man-made" and "natural" disasters meet; and how the tsunami's arrival from 2004 shifted the goals of international aid, altered relations and accelerated or slowed peacebuilding efforts.…

If you want to know all about the civil society sector in India, then The Politics of Collective Advocacy in India is the book for you. This book included lavishing detail and provided a weath of information on the tools that activists use to overcome obstacles and the traps used to frame and politicize. The book introduces and examines a number of organizations and movements to identify effective tools that civil society actors use to achieve positive change. I reccommend this book…

Wish to Hek Reviews: Universal Studios, Orlando

     I’m releasing my inner geek here. I know I normally write a review about books in this blog but I wanted to change it up somewhat.  If you want a cool, different from the norm book, read the oldie but goodie, My Bondage and My Freedom: The Autobiography of Frederick Douglass.  It is devastating to read how a slave was treated back in the early history of the U.S.  As a teacher I like to keep up with some…

Another day, another dime. And various other cliches about climbing back on the treadmill and getting back to it. Today may not be my most brilliant entry, as I didn't sleep well and still haven't completely woken up, but the point of this blog is to prepare myself for my writing day, so away we go.

Seeing as the mental gears aren't all clicking together just yet, I thought I'd take an opportunity to dip back into the same …

Some, though not all of my friends here, will know that in addition to my writing, I'm also a dedicated dog lover, rescuer, and owner of a number of rescued dogs of varying breeds. I'm delighted that Sonar 4 Publications, the publisher of my forthcoming novel Behind Closed…