As an attorney and civil justice advocate, author Mark M. Bello draws upon over 40 years of courtroom experience in his Zachary Blake Legal Thriller Series. A Michigan native, Mark received his B.A. in English Literature from Oakland University and his law degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. After working extremely high-profile legal cases, Mark wanted to give the public a front-row glimpse of what victims face when standing up for justice. Combining his legal experience and passion for justice with a creative writing style, Mark not only brings high-quality legal services to his clients, but captivating novels to his readers. When Mark’s not writing legal and political novels, he writes and posts about fairness and justice in the civil justice system on his website, Legal Examiner and NotFakeNews. In his spare time, Mark enjoys traveling and spending time with his family. Mark and his wife, Tobye, have four children and 8 grandchildren. To learn more about Mark and his work visit www.markmbello.com   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION: About Happy Jack Sad Jack and His Social Justice/Safety Series for Kids Bullying Talking about sensitive issues with kids Working with an illustrator Writing for Kids Up next for Mark Bello - other books in the series   HAPPY JACK SAD JACK Jack has always been a very happy little boy. But when he starts kindergarten, he discovers he is different than the others. For the very first time, he is bullied—Happy Jack suddenly becomes Sad Jack. What should Jack do? Should he tell an adult? His parents? Would his teacher or principal understand? What can they do to help? As parents, we want certain things for our kids. Mainly, we want them to be happy. Can today’s kids celebrate their differences, or are they doomed to fight over them like generations before? Jack’s school community learns an important lesson as attorney/author Mark M. Bello presents Jack’s compelling story in rhyme, beautifully and dramatically illustrated by Melinda Falgoust: “People are different in color, shape, size.Ears, noses, mouths, and different shaped eyes.Different races, and genders—more, too.Christian or Buddhist, or Muslim or Jew.But there’s one thing in common we all have in this place.We are all valued members of this human race.” Happy Jack Sad Jack: A Bullying Story is a must read for all children and one your child will never forget.  

Kristin Bloch first began rhyming words together at a very young age. Soon these words expanded into poems and stories that enchanted family and friends. A compilation of those writings was recently released in her first book, Walk Through a Field of Flowers. Kristin works full time and has earned an MBA degree from the University of Phoenix. Kristin is also a certified personal trainer and certified Pilates instructor, teaching several classes each week. Scatter Seeds of Kindness is her second book.   You can Learn more about Kristin Bloch and her work on her website at KABlochauthor.com   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION: About Scatter Seeds of Kindness and the inspiration behind the story. Learning about the power behind words at an early age Writing poetry vs. prose The stages of life that most influence her work Poetry reading What's next for Kristin Bloch?   SCATTER SEEDS OF KINDNESS Scatter Seeds of Kindness presents a new collection of poetry from K. A. Bloch, the author of Walk through a Field of Flowers. Her poetry explores a wide variety of themes, such as memories and how they impact our life, the passage of time, stereotypes within society, and bullying. She also includes fun and lighthearted poems designed to bring a smile to your face and shares her struggles with trying to practice kindness and not always succeeding. Sometimes raw and vulnerable, sometimes light and humorous, these verses encourage you to be kind not only to others but also to yourself. This poetry collection presents personal life experiences and thoughts set in verses and provides the inspiration or motivation behind each poem. Scatter seeds of kindness Wherever you may go. Reach deep inside your heart And scatter them to and fro. Scatter seeds of kindness And bring a few to share. You never know when you'll find the chance To show someone you care.   CONNECT WITH KRISTIN BLOCH: WEBSITE: https://www.kablochauthor.com/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/KABlochauthorINSTAGRAM: @kablochauthor TWITTER: @KABlochauthor 

As an attorney and civil justice advocate, author Mark M. Bello draws upon over 40 years of courtroom experience in his Zachary Blake Legal Thriller Series. A Michigan native, Mark received his B.A. in English Literature from Oakland University and his law degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. After working extremely high-profile legal cases, Mark wanted to give the public a front-row glimpse of what victims face when standing up for justice. Combining his legal experience and passion for justice with a creative writing style, Mark not only brings high-quality legal services to his clients, but captivating novels to his readers. When Mark’s not writing legal and political novels, he writes and posts about fairness and justice in the civil justice system on his website, Legal Examiner and NotFakeNews. In his spare time, Mark enjoys traveling and spending time with his family. Mark and his wife, Tobye, have four children and 8 grandchildren. To learn more about Mark and his work visit www.markmbello.com   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About You Have the Right to Remain Silent and the inspiration behind the story. A departure from his signature work Introducing a vibrant new character  Incorporating his family cookbook into his latest thriller About The Blake Lewin Family Cookbook of Traditional Jewish Recipes and his motivation for publishing. Great food, great family stories.   YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT Expect the unexpected in this whodunit legal crime thriller, the 8th installment of the Zachary Blake Legal Thriller Series, featuring all your favorite series characters and one brash, exciting newcomer who gives Blake all he can handle."Zachary Blake has become one of the greatest leading men in a series in my own personal library. Considering I read too many books to name, that's saying something. With this latest and greatest suspense, I once again got to sit on the edge of my chair and enjoy Zack, his adventure, his need and passion to see justice served, and the charismatic cast that appears every time I pick one of these up. If You Have The Right to Remain Silent is representative of the quality of books coming in our future, 2022 is going to be one heck of a year for readers.” —Reader Views   THE BLAKE-LEWIN FAMILY COOKBOOK OF TRADITIONAL JEWISH RECIPES Hi folks, Mark M. Bello, author of the Zachary Blake Legal Thriller Series here. Family, ethnic identity, holidays, and food are vital components of the Jewish experience. The delightful family recipes contained in this book have been handed down, l'dor v'dor—from generation to generation by precious family members from both sides of my family, some still with us, others of blessed memory. Somehow, despite tremendous adversity and tragedy, the Jews and Jewish family traditions have survived. Mitch pacha is important to me—I am who I am because of the influence and contributions of my family. My Jewish identity is also why I am so passionate about social justice—as you may have noticed, most Jewish holidays celebrate events in history when those in power tried to kill or harm the Jews. They failed, hence, holiday celebrations. Hopefully, these recipes will now endure, a lasting tribute to cherished family members and memories. I hope you enjoy this book, the delightful family stories woven between the delightful recipes, and the recipes themselves. If you happen to be Jewish, you will, no doubt, recognize many of these dishes. Perhaps your own family has created a special version of one or many. If you are not Jewish, hopefully the stories and recipes will, in some small way, help provide an better understanding of or connection to the Jewish experience. Either way, thanks for indulging my family memories as transmitted through my fictional character, Zachary Blake, Detroit's King of Justice. L'Chaim—To Life! Let's Eat!   CONNECT WITH MARK BELLO! Website: https://www.markmbello.comFacebook: @markmbellobooksTwitter: @markmbelloInstagram: @markmbellobooks

Recently awarded a Gold Medal by Reader Views 2021-22 Literary Awards in the Mystery/Thriller category, writing started for Gary D. McGugan after a 40-year career in the world of business. He’s worked in supermarkets, sold appliances, distributed motorcycles, launched an automobile dealer network, and provided financing to help businesses grow. Every industry was very different from the other. Each company had a distinctive culture and character, but all were units of large corporations with operations around the globe. Travel has always been a large component of his business roles and he’s now visited more than 650 towns and cities in more than fifty countries for either business or leisure. Experts say we should write about things we know best. In Gary’s case, those subjects are business, travel, and people. As an author, his goal is to entertain readers around the world — one at a time. For more information about Gary D. McGugan and his work visit https://www.garydmcguganbooks.com.   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About A Slippery Shadow and the inspiration behind the story Character creation/development and readers' favorites Surprising twists and turns Travel and the influence of such in his work Marketing and book sales via bookstore signings and meeting readers Upcoming projects   A SLIPPERY SHADOW Snatched from her private jet, crime-boss Fidelia Morales barely escapes with her life. Now she wants revenge. But her gang of criminals is thrown into chaos as dozens of key operatives suddenly disappear.Howard Knight—Fidelia’s former lover and accomplice in her latest heist—walks free from the same plane only to flee in a desperate quest to escape TheOrganization. He too is hounded by menacing encounters.Both become entangled with massive Multima Corporation led by SuzanneSimpson. Amid a global pandemic, this powerful CEO scrambles to fill crucialexecutive roles while dealing with bizarre threats and mysterious interference on three continents. All seem connected and threaten her empire.With breath-taking reach and bewildering influence, is it possible an unseenand elusive Shadow can pull strings to manipulate people, companies, criminalorganizations and governments?   CONNECT WITH GARY MCGUGAN! Website:                     https://www.garydmcguganbooks.comMonthly Blog:           https://www.garydmcguganbooks.com/rendezvous-blogFacebook:                  https://www.facebook.com/gary.d.mcgugan.booksTwitter:                      https://twitter.com/GaryDMcGuganInstagram:                 https://www.instagram.com/authorgarydmcgugan

I grew up in Barnegat NJ, and had a Huck Finn childhood, surrounded by woods, streams, and meadows. In the 1950s, 1200 people lived there. I have two younger sisters, Laura and Liza, both now professionally accomplished, with kids and husbands. Our Dad, a merchant seaman for most of his life, had a small business raising lab mice for companies like Squibbs and Merck. He was an amazing story teller, a great little league coach, and a town character. Mom was from the mountain region of North Carolina. She graduated from college, was a teacher and taught us kids to read early. Dad lost the business and returned to sea and we moved from Barnegat to a North Jersey suburb when I was 13.  I ran track and cross country at Northern Highlands Regional High School in Allendale. In 1969, I attended the University of Kansas on a small track scholarship, where I studied and graduated with a double major BA in Economics and History (and also met Liz, my ex-wife and now friend.) We moved from Kansas to Salt Lake City, then to Eugene Oregon, where Liz and separated and divorced. During that time, I worked as a laborer, a forklift driver, landscaper, and other jobs while I wrote quite a few short stories, a couple of plays, and began my first novel about college life, (from which I incorporated large chunks into my SwiftPad Trilogy).  I taught myself land surveying and associated Civil Engineering, then worked in the field and in the office for Eugene Public Works. I met Mary, and began to study Chinese at the University of Oregon, and then was invited by my language instructor and friend Qi Xinghua to teach English in Xian China.  After six months, Mary joined me. In 1986, we moved to Beijing where Mary studied Chinese and worked at the US Embassy's school and I taught at the Foreign Language Institute. Two years later, we returned to the US, broke, with son Zach on the way. I got a job in a Florida strip mall computer store.  On the job, and with self-study, I learned computer hardware, software, networking, IT security, ‘hacking’, and other associated technologies. I changed jobs every few years, and wrote intermittently, mostly on my China novel “Farewell the Dragon”. Thirty years later I retired from IBM, and wrote “The SwiftPad Trilogy.”   For more information on Lee Barckmann and his work, visit www.barckwords.com.    TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About Farewell the Dragon and the inspiration behind the story Spending time and teaching in China Incorporating a mystery and fiction inspired by real events Book Awards Reading and Reviewing Books What's Next for Lee?   FAREWELL THE DRAGON In Farewell the Dragon, Nate Scheutt, American, 35, is pulled into a politically charged murder investigation when he stumbles onto the bodies of two young Europeans on a prestigious Beijing university campus. Gradually Nate discovers the case is entwined with an international quest for a small stone tablet, (a stele) that might contain the key to ancient China's long-lost link with the West. In the 1980's, old Beijing's walls and hutong alleyways were disappearing, victims of Deng Xiaoping's proclamation 致富光 荣!(To get rich is glorious!). While juggling teaching English, his business, (and women), Nate seeks refuge at the bar on the roof of the Friendship Hotel with a legation of self-imposed exiles from the both sides of the Cold War. There he enters a netherworld of sex, spies, strange religion and the hidden history of China's Cultural Revolution.

Jan Phillips' quest has taken her into and out of a religious convent, across the country on a Honda motorcycle, and around the world on a one-woman peace pilgrimage. She is the founder and Executive Director of the Livingkindness Foundation, which created a Learning Center in Nigeria and supports anti-racist creative projects by black women in the U.S. Jan is the author of eleven award-winning books and a thought leader who bridges spiritual intelligence, evolutionary creativity, and social transformation. She has taught in over 25 countries, and has published work in the New York Times, Ms., Newsday, People, Parade Magazine, Christian Science Monitor, Spirituality and Health, Science of Mind, National Catholic Reporter, Sun Magazine. Still on Fire: Field Notes from a Queer Mystic is her first memoir. For more information about Jan Phillips and her work visit her website at www.janphillips.com.   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About the book and her inspiration for writing it. Being Gay. And Catholic. And Suicidal Experiences in the Convent Religion vs. Spirituality Marginalization and Homophobia What is a Queer Mystic? What's next for Jan Phillips?   STILL ON FIRE: FIELD NOTES FROM A QUEER MYSTIC Jan Phillips was a devoted Catholic who wanted nothing more than to be a nun and who joyously entered the convent at 18. Two years later, she was dismissed for “a disposition unsuited to religious life, with excessive and exclusive friendships.” She was lesbian. She had always known it. “It was being homosexual that made me want to kill myself [at 12]. As far as I knew, there was nothing worse than being queer. They were perverts, sinners, hated by God, hated by just about everyone. Lezzies, bull dykes, fags, queers, lesbos―all damned, and there I was, one of them.” Still on Fire is a memoir of religious wounding and spiritual healing, of judgment and forgiveness, and of social activism in a world that is in our hands. Phillips traveled the globe on a one-woman peace pilgrimage, raised the consciousness of women, faced her privilege on a trip to India, and is working to dismantle structural racism. Her The Livingkindness Foundation supports schoolchildren in Nigeria. “Any spirituality that does not bring about more justice, more social awareness, more right action in the world is a lame and impotent excuse for faith … My action for justice is my spirituality.” Over the years, Phillips created a life of love, service, community, and prayer. She evolved her understanding of God and came to see herself―and all of us―as the light of the world. “Had I not been born gay … my heart would not have broken in half, would not have opened itself to Love Supreme, would not have been tenderized by life’s bitter pounding.” She tells the story of her life with humor and compassion, sharing her poetry, songs, and photos along the way.

The founder of Values of the Wise, Jason Merchey is also a philosophical thinker, master’s level psychologist, proponent of the research ideal, social critic, author / essayist / blogger, and a student of the tradition of arts and letters. Growing up Jewish in a suburb of Los Angeles, he grappled with sociocultural, familial, religious, psychological, and self motivation issues that led to much of the insight he has today. After junior college, he earned a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in psychology and social behavior from the University of California Irvine, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa for excellence in liberal scholarship. Jason went on to earn a master’s degree in clinical psychology from California State University Fullerton. Having moved to San Diego, he obtained thousands hours of experience counseling clients of all types. It was in that capacity that Jason became intrigued by and began to study wisdom, values, and ethics. The Values of the Wise™ website (www.ValuesoftheWise.com) and book series were born as ways to lead not only himself but also his clients to find the insight, consolation, and wisdom from great quotations representing our intellectual heritage. Jason lives in the Hendersonville, NC area with his wife and pets. He has earned a graduate certificate in philosophy and ethics from Harvard University Extension. Learn more about Jason Merchey and his work at www.ValuesoftheWise.com.   TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About the book - "Wisdom: A Very Valuable Virtue that Cannot be Bought" What is wisdom? Lack of wisdom and the consequences in America and around the world Research, including 1,500 quotes referenced in Wisdom Important takeaways What's next for Jason Merchey?   WISDOM: A VERY VALUABLE VIRTUE THAT CANNOT BE BOUGHT Wisdom is not for sale no matter how much money a person has! But it CAN be developed and improved. Improving your understanding of wisdom will certainly lead to living a better life! This new book will help you live a life that harnesses the power of philosophy, critical thinking, and applied psychology. These things are not as complicated as they may seem and indeed have the potential to increase your wisdom. Greater wisdom leads to improved personal growth, happiness, and success.  

B.A. Bellec’s debut novel, Someone’s Story, won the Reader Views Reader’s Choice Literary Award for Young Adult Book of the Year. Someone’s Story is a young adult coming-of-age book and has seen good support over Instagram, YouTube, and Goodreads. One of the aspects that makes Bellec’s projects unique is he includes musicians in his novels and then he actually produces the songs as his book goes through the editing stages. Bellec was born in Richmond, BC, and raised in Langley, BC, before settling in Winnipeg, MB. His first adventure was a career in Finance, where he spent 15 years developing his business skills. His highest achievement was the Certified Payroll Manager designation. He currently still consults with businesses on their systems and processes. Over that period of time, he also attended Lights Film School where he started to nurture his early creative abilities.  A self-starter always interested in research, he taught himself many of the aspects of storytelling through reading books, screenplays, and material online. Whenever he found an inspirational piece of art, he quickly went to the source to find the story behind the artist who created the work. It took many years after attending film school for him to finally combine his creative skills with his life experience and tell these stories he had been holding back. Some of his favorite creative people: Lukas Rossi, Justin Furstenfeld, Peter Jackson, Stephen Chbosky, J.K. Rowling, and Stephen King.  During COVID-19, Bellec started a YouTube channel and was awarded a grant from The Canada Council for the Arts. He also pounded away on the keyboard to bring his second novel, Pulse, from his imagination to the page. TOPICS OF CONVERSATION About Pulse and writing in different genres The creature Cover art and working with Midnight Comics Music and the original song, Perduto Reader Views Literary Awards Sponsorship and more...   Pulse is a multi-POV dystopian sci-fi horror thriller set in 2040, centered around a corporation, a creature, and a music festival. Think Fyre Festival, Black Mirror, and X-Files combined. The story deals with themes of capitalism, consumerism, business, politics, pandemics, climate change, activism, and technology while bouncing between a diverse group of characters sure to entertain almost anyone. The book is already being praised for its fantastic use of horror, engaging world-building, and genre-bending approach utilizing some screenplay-like formatting. This is the first entry in a new series with the sequel well underway.  B.A. Bellec writes with a unique, modern, minimalistic approach. He is the author of Someone's Story, his award-winning debut novel called a masterpiece by multiple reviewers. Never afraid of a challenge, Bellec switched genres to bring you this dark vision that simmered in his mind for years.  In addition to writing, Bellec also creates music. You can find it on his YouTube channel. Follow him on social media or at www.babellec.com to stay in the loop on new projects.