We’ve featured many of our award-winning authors and books on our blog recently. Today, we’re proud to announce the Outskirts Press authors that have made it into the finals of ForeWord’s Book of the Year Awards. ForeWord’s Book of the Year Awards program was created to spotlight distinctive books from independent publishers. The judges —working librarians and booksellers—review the entries based upon on their experiences with patrons and customers.
Here are the 2 finalists:
The winners will be determined by a panel of librarians and booksellers selected from our readership. Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners, as well as Editor’s Choice Prizes for Fiction and Nonfiction will be announced at a special program at the ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim this June. The winners of the two Editor’s Choice Prizes will be awarded $1,500 each.
Wendy Williams, the acclaimed Queen of Media/Queen of Radio recently featured an Outskirts Press author’s book live on the air. The book: MY TURN by Nathan Seven Scott.
Self-publishing authors, like any other author, often hope to achieve some level of notoriety for their work. The ultimate? Being featured on a national television show.
The praises Wendy gave the book can be found at the front of Nathan’s book video here:
Wow! That’s a pretty big deal. Because we know that many authors find their inspiration from others, we asked Nathan to share a little bit about his book and how he got his book into the hands of the Queen of Media. Here’s what he had to say:
OP: Tell us a little bit about My Turn. What is it about?
Hotshot reporter Courtney R. Knight lands the opportunity of a lifetime to head the social media division at a high-profile media firm. Drama, mystery and murder unfold when he gets caught up between rival moguls, a jealous ex-lover and a host of colorful characters amidst the electrifying backdrop of New York City.
OP: Why did you decide to write this story?
I’m a fan of the Showtime series Dexter. When I created this story, it was essentially a cross between my own hunger to become a successful media mogul infused with murder. I wrote the story to challenge myself. Once I got started, there was no turning back. My editor advised me to make it a trilogy, so I did and now I have two others in the works.
OP: What types of readers would be interested in this story?
Readers who will enjoy this story are people who want a fast paced page-turner about sex, murder and power.
OP: What is special about your book? What differentiates it from other books in the same category?
The book is special because it’s a new story. People who have read My Turn thus far have told me they have never experienced anything like it. The story allows readers to get a slice of what I call The Rotten Apple, New York City.
OP: Have you published any other books? Do you plan to publish more?
My Turn is my very first novel. The goal is to produce several other novels, after completing the trilogy.
OP: How did Wendy Williams get a copy of your book?
One day, I thought it would be a good idea to send Wendy Williams a copy of the book and as fate had it, she read it and the rest is history. I was excited to know that she thoroughly enjoyed it.
OP: What advice do you have for new budding authors?
Once I discovered that I could publish my own book through Outskirts Press, I knew that anything was possible. If I had to give any advice, it would be to put your best pen forward and write. Be sure to find a good editor and someone who believes in their story. Don’t be afraid to put your work out there because someone will read it.
OP: Congratulations on this exciting accomplishment, Nathan! We look forward to your next one!
Are you ready to become a media success story like Nathan?
As an author in this economy, you have to come up with creative ways to market a self-published book. While book tours are a great way to connect with your readers, they aren’t the most affordable method of promotion. However, technology has made it possible for an alternative.
Take note from self-publishing Outskirts Press author, Charles L. Fields, who is taking his latest book, Tainted Dish, on tour – a virtual book tour, that is. He will be featured on several blogs over the weeks and months ahead so keep your eyes peeled to learn more about him and his book.
Luckily for us, Charles was kind enough to answer a few questions as the tour was getting started so that we can give you a sneak peek into the mind of the creator of Tainted Dish.
OP: Tell us a little bit about Tainted Dish. What is it about?
CLF: This is the fourth in the Charles Stone series and finds the protagonist involved in murder, military industrial espionage and a bounty hunt through the Canadian Maritimes, Ireland and Europe.
OP: Why did you decide to write this story?
CLF: I had left out a lot of my island experiences out of my memoirs and wanted to draw on personal travel adventures to create a dramatic fictional situation for my protagonist Charles Stone.
OP: What types of readers would be interested in this story?
CLF: My Charles Stone series will appeal to adult readers who enjoy travel, adventure and mystery.
OP: What is special about your book? What differentiates it from other books in the same category?
CLF: This book is different because it employees a duel genre of both travel and mystery. The reader will not only be fully informed but taken for a thrill ride as well.
OP: Have you published any other books? Do you plan to publish more?
CLF: Yes. Many Lands Many Hearts-More than a Memoir Sentimental Me- A travel mystery involving the murder of a Border Patrol Agent Canyons of the Soul- A travel mystery involving confrontation with a sadistic Polygamist Mormon Prophet Broken Spirit-A travel mystery which lays bare the turmoil under the surface of paradise(Hawaii).
OP: Thanks for your time, Charles! We look forward to learning more about you as you visit other bloggers!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Charles L. Fields grew up surrounded by the seaside beauty of Rockport, Massachusetts and the artists who attempted to depict it. His varied and bizarre careers went from banana boat engineer to lobster dealer to chicken hatchery manager and include being an author, poet, sculptor and world traveler. These lifetime experiences enriched his published memoir, Many Lands Many Hearts and add realism and depth to his fictional writing. He is married and divides his time between Massachusetts and Arizona. This book follows Sentimental Me, Canyons of the Soul and Broken Spirit in the Charles Stone travel mystery series.
This author purchased the Virtual Book Tour marketing option, which allows self-publishing authors to connect with bloggers and harness the power of the blogosphere by taking their book on the “virtual road”. Learn more about this service by visiting your Publishing Center and reviewing the available marketing options.
Are you an author looking for help to market your self-published book?
Self-publishing a book is an exciting undertaking. Because we understand the dedication that is required to write a quality book, we like to feature our top authors each week so that you can get to know a little bit more about them and their book. This week, we are featuring La-Temus Marshall’s Race War.
In his latest book, self-publishing Outskirts Press author, La-Temus Marshall, uses the dramatic tale of two U.S. politicians trying to turn back the hands of time in America for their own racist agenda in a riveting fictional vehicle that shows readers the dangers of ever allowing racism and separatism to prevail.
Race War starts off not far from the reality of today. The American economy is in shambles. Crime and unemployment are at an all time high. Then, as things worsen, many cities move to the verge of anarchy. Blacks suddenly begin to blame whites for allowing America to lose its place as a world leader. Whites have already been blaming blacks for the decline.
Two U.S. congressmen hide behind this racial confusion and use their influence and powerful friends to stockpile weapons for the white race after a majority of federal lawmakers vote to change the Constitution, dissolve the United States of America and give each race its own territory.
As the blacks — themselves now armed – and the whites wage war against each other and start to take heavy casualties, a Chinese-Russian federation is quietly being formed. It begins to build its own armed force and to prepare for attack in order to take advantage of the disruption and take over what was formerly a unified, and impregnable America.
Race War shows that what makes America great is the appreciation of one culture and race for another. When Americans live and work together in harmony toward a common goal, the country is, in fact, indivisible, and freedom and justice can become available for all.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
La-Temus Marshall is a graduate of Sullivan University and recipient of the Who’s Who Among College Students and the 110 Percent award (now called Student of the Year). He began writing Race War after observing his daughter’s second-grade class, where the children played happily together regardless of skin color. Marshall’s mission is to eradicate racism in the United States, and he is a passionate advocate of the unity of humanity of all colors. He lives and works in the pristine, beautiful city of Lexington, Kentucky.
This author purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the Publishing Center.
Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?
We need help with something, and as we’ve did last year, we’re turning to our valued family of published (and soon-to-be-published authors).
If we get enough interest, we are considering adding a new Book Translation option to our already expansive suite of writing, self-publishing, and book marketing services.
This option would allow participating authors to work with a specialist on translating their book into another language. This would allow you to tap into global markets in countries such as Spain, France, Italy, etc.
Help us determine if this is an option you would like added to the Outskirts Press list of writing services by answering this quick poll:
Self-publishing a book is an exciting undertaking. Because we understand the dedication that is required to write a quality book, we like to feature our top authors each week so that you can get to know a little bit more about them and their book. This week, we are featuring Pamela Greenhalgh Hamilton’s Snow Day.
In her latest book, self-publishing Outskirts Press author, Pamela Greenhalgh Hamilton, tells of the joy of a snow day spent with spirited and loving grandparents and the warmth of a close family and activities that do not involve computers, video games or any other high-tech gadgets.
It had snowed all night and Tessa, Jake and Molly had slipped on their winter coats over their PJ’s so their mother could drive them to their grandparents for the day. Their young-at-heart grandma and grandpa spend the morning teaching them how to catch snowflakes on their tongues, make snow angels and pack a mean snowball. Afterward it’s an afternoon of baking sugar cookies, brewing warm cocoa and lighting a cozy fire.
“A light snow storm in early December inspired the story,” Hamilton recalls. “Little did I know that the storm was a precursor for the winter to come. The Shenandoah Valley had record snowfall and the area kids got lots of snow days.”
That snow storm reminded Hamilton of many of her activities as a child growing up in a snowy Massachusetts and the snowmen her father would help her build in their back yard. Those memories of close times with family – before the days of Mario Karts and tiny digital screens — inspired Snow Day and set the tone for the adventures Tessa, Jake and Molly have with their grandparents.
Although Snow Day is Hamilton’s first picture book, she is no stranger to the worlds of writing and journalism. Her fiction and nonfiction has been published in Hopscotch, the South Coast Insider, the Bristol County Baby Journal as well as other regional and national publications.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Pamela Greenhalgh Hamilton followed her childhood dream to become a writer when she swapped her career as an elementary school teacher for one as a journalist and public relations specialist. A recipient of recognition by the New England Press Association and the Council for Advancement in Secondary Education, her articles and fiction have appeared in regional and national publications. Originally from Massachusetts, Pamela now lives in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley with her husband Bate and three cats. Snow Day is her first picture book.
This author purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the Publishing Center.
Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?
She has no idea that the handsome young man with the perfect German accent was born with a West Virginia twang. Or that he is now an undercover American counterintelligence agent…
Self-publishing a book is an exciting undertaking. Because we understand the dedication that is required to write a quality book, we like to feature our top authors each week so that you can get to know a little bit more about them and their book. This week, we are featuring Rev. Jeffrey Fore’s Healing the Separation.
In his latest book, self-publishing Outskirts Press author, Rev. Jeffrey Fore, offers new insights on how to break the bands of isolation we have drawn around ourselves for “protection” and live fuller, more rewarding and more satisfying lives.
The world around us is a frightening one, Rev. Fore acknowledges. War, urban violence, economic strife, global warming all threaten us daily, but the “solution” that has been easy for many to adapt is to numb out these scary aspects of our living world. By doing so, we unfortunately also end up numbing out ourselves. We end up not only isolated from the world, but from our own selves, as well.
“When was the last time you looked into a mirror and really saw you?” the author asks. Healing the Separation is about that “you.” It is about the reader, personally.
In a sequence of eight short, intimate “conversations” with his readers, Fore shares personal stories from his own journey to help punctuate the inspirational message of this transformational guidebook. Readers will discover how they are responsible for literally everything in their lives, but discover also how this news can help them achieve each of their dreams.
They will also learn to recognize the true role of spirituality in their lives, learn how acknowledging a higher power in their lives can bring peace and understanding, and learn how to embrace the amazing power of forgiveness to bring a greater tranquility into their lives.
Reverend Fore offers a broad, non-denominational spiritual viewpoint in this valuable work and his conversations give an eye opening look at how “Truth” affects the daily lives of each of us, regardless of our age, gender, religion or cultural background.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rev. Jeffrey Fore is an ordained nondenominational minister though the Universal Brotherhood Movement, Inc., an interfaith ministry. He has worked in the field of human potential development for individuals and corporations. His work as a spiritual counselor has allowed him the privilege of experiencing this journey with individuals from many different cultures and belief systems. He lives in Atlanta, GA.
This author purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the Publishing Center.
Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?
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