2021-04

Author L.A. Thompson knew she wanted to be a writer at a young age. She longed to create worlds and characters that would draw people in and transport them to another time and place, which she achieves in her novel Isle of Dragons.
L.A. loves fantasy and witchcraft and by combining those elements in her stories with different historical periods, she creates a world that's in an industrial era caught between technology and magic, exploring the two's unique interplay.
 
TOPICS OF CONVERSATION
Writing Fantasy
Creating characters from a place of want vs. need
Adding elements of innovation 
Plotting vs. letting the characters take the lead
What's next?
 
ISLE OF DRAGONS
Watch steampunk technology and high fantasy witchcraft clash in this heroine’s fast-paced, epic journey to rescue her father from dragons and reveal the evil secrets of the noble court.On the run from the royal army in a giant mechanical centipede, sixteen-year-old Jade Sol embarks on a dangerous adventure to help her father escape from the Isle of Dragons—a land of untamed magic that some believe only exists in myth.When Jade is cornered by soldiers, a mysterious witch named Miria Atkins rescues her, calling on spirits from a magical realm to channel their mystical energy into light and matter. Jade begs Miria and the sorceress’s mechanist brother, Dan, to join her quest.The siblings resist at first, but their hearts soften when they hear of her father’s fate. Their own parents had attempted an expedition from Vansh to the Isle of Dragons years ago and never returned. Together, the trio of young heroes journey across the feudal countryside trek across the sea to become the first humans to reach the elusive Isle of Dragons.
 
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Holly Brandon breaks free from her analytical side to produce Life in the Chastity Zone. Holding a PhD., M.S., and B.S. in Civil Engineering, Holly is best known for her published works in the Journal of Earthquakes, Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Vibrations, and Earthquake Science.
Unbelievable as it may appear, many of the scenes in Life in the Chastity Zone are based on true-life experiences. Holly invites readers to follow Chastity on her crazy and hilarious adventures in her search for love and happiness. With more to come, Life in the Chastity Zone is the first in an unforgettable, brand-new Chastity Zone series.
 
Topics of Conversation
About Life in the Chastity Zone
Those crazy stories!
Letting the character take the lead
Comparing men to buildings
More to come in the Chastity Series!
 
Life in the Chastity Zone
Thirty-year-old Chastity (Chase) Morgan has always dreamed of her fairytale life—the perfect career, wedding, marriage, family, and on and on. A structural engineer, Chase is brilliant in her line of work, but keeping to her moniker, she is as chaste as they come. Although she doesn’t know the first thing about love and dating, everything changes when she meets Grant Stevens. Wedding bells appear to be right around the corner until he unceremoniously abandons her for another. Derailed but determined, Chase has to find a way to move on. Little does she know that sinister plans are at work to squash her hopes and dreams. While a psychic medium comes to her aide, it’s uncertain whether or not Chastity will follow the clairvoyant’s advice. Only time will tell if she’ll choose between throwing away her virginity and diving full force into the dating world, or clinging to her fairytale life plan.
 
CONNECT WITH HOLLY BRANDON!
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Read the Reader Views review of Life in the Chastity Zone

Sandra Brown-Lindstedt was born and raised in Chicago and moved to Portland with her three children when she was thirty-three. After working as a medical secretary for many years, she decided to go back to college and her my degree graduating  from Lewis & Clark College in Portland Oregon with bachelor's degrees in Theater and English.
She’s also worked in New York, on stage productions, art and design. She’s won two first place short story awards and three poetry awards, publishing the work in literary journals. She’s written and directed numerous plays in the US and in Sweden. Sandy resides in Sweden with her husband. Life of a Firefly is her first children's book.
 
Topics of Conversation
About winning several awards for her debut book.
Inspiration behind the story.
Writing for a young audience.
The sequel to Life of a Firefly
Advice for emerging authors
 
Life of a Firefly
This award winning children's book, is both fun and exciting. It's written for kids of all ages to build strong character and help boost their self esteem. Girls as well as boys will see themselves in almost every situation that Sandy finds herself in, when she and her firefly go on amazing adventures that captures the imagination. As she continues on her incredible journey, each person she encounters teaches her another lesson about friendship and family.
This beautiful collection of moral stories will remind children, no matter how bleak a situation may look, a little faith and a firefly, can take them a long way. It also gives children of color a mirror of strong characters that look like them, and others a window to experience the African American community in a whole new way.
 
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Michael Devendorf served as a chief executive for a national organization and crafted corporate communications for the business community and the workforce. He traveled from coast-to-coast meeting fascinating people and visiting remarkable places presenting his message on company culture to audiences that included industry leaders and political figures. Those events have fallen into the crevices of his mind and sometimes crawl their way out to influence his writing today. Captivating storytelling that clings to the soul has always been his passion. After years of letting life and career get in the way, he chose to step away from business and technical writing to devote himself to creativity instead. Michael is inspired by writing about juxtaposing emotions and provoking the reader with stories that defy strict categorization and blend genres. In addition to writing, he is a passionate animal welfare advocate. He and his family split their time between Dallas, Texas, and northern Wisconsin.
 
Topics of Conversation
Inspiration behind the storyline
Writing from the female perspective
Building a story with juxtaposing emotions
A twist you won't see coming
Research and writing
What Michael likes to read
His next book
 
DECIDUOUS
It has been ten months since forest conservationist Sienna lost her daughter in a tragic home accident when she was the only other person around. Kira's death transforms Sienna into an overprotective mother to her son. But then Kai dies under similar circumstances. Desperate to keep from losing her mind, if only to preserve the memories of her children, Sienna climbs into the treehouse where Kai took his last breath. 
While meditating to connect with him, terrifying images of a "mother tree," a nurturing hub tree Sienna studied in an isolated meadow near their lake house, corrupt all memories of her kids. No longer a majestic, colorful sentinel, the tree menaces her with its limbs draped in leaves that morph into skeletal hands. As Sienna's thoughts fester, convincing her that her children's deaths were not simple accidents, those around her try to persuade her she must be guilty of harming Kira and Kai, even if she can't remember. Anxious to unveil the terrible truth hiding in her psyche, Sienna instead finds herself in very physical danger as secrets come to light.
 
Connect with Michael Devendorf!
Website: https://www.michaeldevendorf.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Michael.A.DevendorfTwitter: https://twitter.com/mikedevendorfInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikedevendorf/
Read the Reader Views review of Deciduous