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  • New Reviews for Servant of a Dark God

    Here’s what a few reviewers have to say about Servant of a Dark God.

    “Engrossing debut. . . .  Readers will be rewarded with a thoroughly enjoyable fantasy adventure.”

    ~Publishers Weekly

    “There are moments of cliffhanger suspense and scenes of tender compassion. Terrible things happen, but powerful good rises to meet the challenge, though this is no “and they all lived happily ever after” kind of story. Face it, a fantasy novel that pulled me in so thoroughly, has to be good.” Full Review 

    ~ Jennie Hansen, Meridian Magazine columnist

    “Compelling…will grip readers from the onset.” Full Review 

    ~ Harriet Klausner (probably the most prolific book reviewer in the world: Time, WSJ)

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  • Gelukkig Sinterklaas!

    I’ve got about 20 folks in The Netherlands and Belgium who visit this site regularly. I just wanted to say I hope you wonderful kaaskops and frites find your shoes full of good gifts this Sunday! 

    For those who don’t know, folks in the low lands celebrate Sinterklaas on the 6th of December and Sinterklaasavond (Saint Nicholas eve) the night before.  The name is a contraction of Sint (Saint) Niklaas (Nicholas). Yes, the real Santa. In America we give gifts on Christmas. But the Dutch and Belgians do gift giving on Sinterklaas. Christmas is a more religious celebration.

    However, Nellie and I figure we can catch Santa coming at the first of the month AND going at the end (no need to miss any opportunity for presents), so, of course, we will be putting our shoes by the door Saturday night. Hopelijk zal Sinterklaas niet stilletjes ons huisje voorbij rijden.

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  • Books for Breasts!

    James Maxey loved met and loved a woman named Laura. She told him she had breast cancer. He didn’t care. Later when the disease advanced, he offered to marry her. She turned him down, but not because she didn’t love him back. The disease progressed.

    His posts about this experience are tender and poignant. When you read them you will rejoice. You will sorrow. And you will think about life.

    He begins like this:

    She was dying when I met her. We met through online personal ads, and she wrote me saying that she liked the philosophy I had sprinkled through my post. I don’t even recall what it said, really–something about finding humor and hope even in down times, I think. And she told me she’d been through some down times. She’d fought breast cancer, her husband had left her when she was diagnosed with the disease. This might send other people into a spiral of despair and self-pity that they could never pull out of. But, she hadn’t surrendered to her worries and woes. She bested them, and went on to live a terrific life. She had gotten a butterfly tattoo–it was her symbol of transformation. The time of her cancer and her divorce were when she had been drawn into her cocoon. But she’d emerged with wings.

    Here are the five I would read. They’re short. So take some time. Savor them.

    1. Laura Kathleen Herrmann
    2.  Laura and the Flowers
    3. Laura’s Snow
    4. Cancer on the Comics Page
    5. One Year

    When you finish, you might then want receive a free book of his in exchange for a donation (of any size; yes, even for just one buck), to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer foundation. To make a donation vist his Books for Breast webpage.

    Then live and love while the sun shines. And be glad.

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  • |

    Workshop: The 3 Things You Must Learn to Write Killer Stories

    Where: Salt Lake City at CONduit 

    Date: Saturday, May 24, 2008

    Time: 2 PM – 4 PM

    I had tons of great feedback from the last workshop. It seemed to be helpful to quite a few people. There are a number of other good workshops for writers going on before and after mine that you’ll want to look into as well.

    For more information go to the CONduit website.

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  • SERVANT in Raley’s grocery in California

    It’s official. SERVANT is in grocery stores outside of Utah. Saber2gecko saw and purchased a copy in a Raley’s grocery in the San Francisco Bay area then very thoughtfully posted that fact here. That chain has 144 stores. So not only is that great news for the book, but it also just plain rocks. I lived in that area for a few years.  I love it down there. To know my book is circulating in the stores I used to shop is cool. Welcome to the Grove, California.

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2 Comments

  1. John,

    I’ve enjoyed your site. That Dewitt Jones video is great, I saw it once years ago. I was at the Life, the Universe, and Everything Symposium last week, and attended your address on writing killer stories. I was wondering if I might get an electronic copy of the handout you had there. I was at the back, and we ran out. Thanks.

    Austin
    austinmcraig@gmail.com

  2. Austin,

    That video is great. Worth watching at least once a year. I love it.

    There’s a PDF of the handout on the site. Just click on the “Writers” category in the sidebar and scroll down–you’ll see it.

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