Category: General Topics

Book Review Registry – OPEN

Guess what??

a. Had a birthday a few days ago. Totally in the 30s club now.

b. Totally is my new favorite word.

c. I got my PC back.

d. OK OK. I’ll get to it….

….The book review registry is open!

I just have one more book that I am finishing and one more to start from the old list so I am gonna go ahead and open the registry again. I am looking forward to some good summer reads.

I do have a few added rules this time around. When I first implemented this registry last year, I had no idea it would take so long to get through the list. This time around I am only taking on a few reads and I’ll be a little bit picky. Not only am I making room for the book clubs I am apart of but I also totally overwhelmed myself the last time. I took on too many books in a quest to be helpful. That won’t happen this time. I have to put myself at the top of the list.

This helps you as well. A shorter reading list for me means the registry will close early but also open early.

Here’s how it works:

(1) Register your book on THIS form. Its very important that you do so. Do not email me asking me to review your book. Do not send me your book and do not send me all the books in your series at one time. Register every book you’d like me to consider through THIS form. This is important because:

a. It secures you a spot in line if I decide to read and review your book

b. It keeps this process organized for both of us. (Wait, is that kinda the same as what I already said?)

(2) Books registered through THIS form does not guarantee you a review. Again, registering your book does not automatically mean I agree to read your book. If the book looks interesting I will email you for the first Chapter of your book for consideration.

(3) After registering please wait for my email. Stalking my email won’t make this go any faster.

(4) If it looks like a book I want to read I will request your first Chapter. If you already posted your first Chapter on your blog somewhere a link to that post is good too.

(5) If your first chapter is totally enticing and I must know what happens next, I will agree to review your book. You must gift me a copy in exchange for an honest review. (No Word Documents please)

(6) Please be patient as I read the book. Constantly emailing me won’t make me read any faster.

(7) Reviews of 3-5 will be published on this blog, Amazon, and Goodreads.

Please read the form for more information on my Book Reviews. This time around I am looking forward to seeing more African American / Black Lit books submitted!

That’s it!

Please read through my guidelines on the form carefully before submitting a book for review. Remember, Register HERE for consideration.

8 Things to Keep in Mind about Your Introduce Yourself Interview

  1. There are 50 questions to choose from. MIX THEM UP and remember that they do not have to be in order. (..because I’m gonna like, mix them up anyway)
  1. When asked what skill you WOULD LIKE to master, be creative. For instance, I would love to learn to play the piano. Stuff like that. (I really would like to learn to play the piano)
  1. Do put some thought into your answers. Give us something interesting and write in complete, detailed sentences. Remember that you’re a storyteller so showcase your personality. I had the opportunity of being interviewed by Best Selling author Dan Alatorre recently. If you are unfamiliar with how text interviews are structured, you can check it out HERE for an example of the format.
  1. RESPOND TO COMMENTS. As a guest on this blog you are only going to get out of it what you put in. Be sure to check back in for comments and questions left for you on the page. When leaving a comment, check the “notify me of new comments” box. It will subscribe you to the comment thread. You’ll get an email every time a new comment comes in. (You can unsubscribe from the thread at any time if it gets overwhelming.)
  1. Share Your Post. Re-blog, pingback, or post it to your blog however fits you and share it on social media. (I think re-blogging is best but any kind of sharing is appreciated.) Again, you are only going to get out of this what you put into it. I can only do so much. (*rewind*) I CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH. Be sure to look out for my emails with the post link BUT DON’T DEPEND ON IT ENTIRELY. Be sure to FOLLOW THIS BLOG and to check in for when your post is published according to the day we have agreed upon. Check in also periodically both on the day of and throughout the week for any commentary left for you on the table. At the end of the day the success of your interview is up to you.
  1. Send high resolution book covers and author photos you’d like me to include in the post. *Send images that belong to you, are of your books or are of you personally*. Google Images or Unsplash images will not be accepted for this feature. We want to see you or your books. I can also not include images if you’d like.
  1. Once you’ve sent your questions in for the interview follow this blog. That will help you to not only see when your interview comes up (aside from me sending you the link) but you can also support the interviews of the other authors.
  1. Support the interviews of other authors. Its not just about you. That said, support the other authors who are featured here. Like and comment on their interviews, share their post, purchase their books if they interest you and follow their blogs. If you support another blogger they may also support you.

What is Introduce Yourself? How can you get involved? New author? Learn more HERE.

Intention

It is the soul of our reasons why and the breath of purpose. It drips from our thoughts and can be smelled through the pores in our actions. Intention is the unseen fabric of the heart; the thing that either manifests dreams or turns them into nightmares. What will be is dependent upon its reason for creation. Intention is foresight. It marches ahead of now and reveals the future of an action. Are we cold hearts or warm ones? Bloody hands or clean ones washed in genuine? Intention is genuine and does not lie. Invisible though it may be it floats alongside us still and like a shadow reveals what is real versus what is being portrayed. A helpmate and a companion, intention is rib. Intention is Eve. Intention is by the side of action, the soul of our reasons why and the breath of purpose. The question is not what you will do. The question is, what’s your intention for doing it?

I’m Still Here

Just so you know, I have not fallen off the face of the Earth. I miss you guys!!

And, I’ve still been reading your blogs, commenting, liking, and sharing on Twitter and all that good stuff. I just have not been blogging but I am in tune. I don’t think I’ve spent this much time away from the blog since I’ve started! What in the world is going on?

A lot actually. Some good and some not so good. I definitley have a lot on my mind but let’s talk about the good.

Let me get you up to speed:

Blog Posts – I have some articles written up and saved in my files so I have still been writing and will have plenty for you soon. We’ll also get back into the usual blog segments, Black History Fun Facts, Throwback Jams, etcetera.

No laptop – You are not going to believe it but I have been traveling and left my laptop in Memphis! Here’s how it happened: While leaving my in-laws, I saw the bag in the trunk of the car  and thought the laptop was in it instead of checking to make sure it was. Long story short, I won’t get it back until next week sometime so all those blog post ideas we just talked about are uhh….stuck in Memphis.

Introduce Yourself – This thing is growing! I think I may put a listing somewhere so you can see what dates are available. Would you like that? Authors? Right now I am booking for August. (Wait, no. There may be one more slot left for July) That’s just how much it’s grown! Because of this, despite my absence, you can look forward to being introduced to a new author and his/her work every Monday. Those are scheduled to go out so even if I am not around you’ll get those. (This feature also introduces established authors as well or authors who are not necessarily new.)

Travels – So, where did I go?? Out the country? Nope. I wish! I went to Chicago and Memphis but I’ll give you the short version.

Ethiopian Diamond

In Chicago, I sat in on a Lecture presentation at the Dusable Museum of African American History, visited some family and ate at the Ethiopian Diamond restaurant downtown for the first time. (Despite growing up in Chicago I’ve never eaten there.) For those of you who have never been or have never had Ethiopian food, the style is like a community where everyone at the table eats with their hands from a large platter of food (see image). While everyone can order their own food, it is all on the same platter and designed to be a sociable experience. I can honestly say there were no looking down at the phones. There were a few of us so we were at different tables and at my table we had three large platters. On the bottom is a flat, round stretchy pancake-like injera bread with the other dishes on top in a circle.

These dishes include a combination of several stews like key wat (beef stew), tibs (lamb, beef or goat cubes which is what I had), ground beef (those beef patties or whatever you call them were delicious), and several types of lentil and split pea and tomato stews. You basically tear off pieces of the bread and use it to scoop up food you want to eat. Don’t just stick your hands in like I did at first lol. All in all, I enjoyed the food, the tangy flavor of the injera, the stews, salads, and of course, the quality family time.

Coffee – Speaking of which, the restaurant let us take home a container of coffee beans! Hubby and I had fun roasting them ourselves the other day. It was easier than I thought. Just brown them in a cast iron skillet (don’t put anything in it) and once they brown to your liking (dark roast, etc) grind them up in a coffee grinder and bam, coffee.

20170518_170010

I thought it would be stronger since we made dark roast but it was flavorful nonetheless.

Self-Publishing – Is it worth it?

Authors! Don would like your feedback! Check out this post.

“This post calls out to those of you that are authors. I’m trying to open a dialogue and share my experiences in an effort to see if we have a commonality in our goals and how we get there.”

Unknown's avatarDon Massenzio

authorThis post calls out to those of you that are authors. I’m trying to open a dialogue and share my experiences in an effort to see if we have a commonality in our goals and how we get there. I am always torn on  this blog to identify as an author who is selling books. That’s why I started it, but it has evolved into something much more.

horn

I am someone that is extremely reluctant to blow my own horn. Building myself up is not one of my strong points. In fact, people who know me will tell you that I am the first to put myself down in order to diffuse others’ attempts to do so.

3

This past April marks three years since I jumped feet first into the self-publishing arena. Has it been all rainbows and unicorns? Not exactly. Have there been times when I’ve given up hope…

View original post 600 more words

Editing Mock-Ups in Photoshop (In 12 Steps)

I didn’t plan on sharing this but as I was editing some mock-ups I thought it would be nice to share what I am doing.

I am not a professional photographer, and I don’t always have a chance to take professional images. Therefore, I love using free mock-up templates to create professional images of my books. I am learning Photoshop also because if I can master it, I can also start to create my own book covers! (OK, that’s a far way off but a sista can dream).

But, while I am finagling (am I the only one who thinks finagle is a funny word?) around with this, I decided to put together a quick tutorial on what I am doing for those of you who use Photoshop. It’s super easy and if you have Photoshop, you should be able to get started right away.

Note: I’m not a professional “Photoshopper” and have instead found my own way of editing mock-ups because this way is easier for me but there are lots of other ways to do this.

Step One

Get Photoshop. You can get Photoshop CC for as low as $10/month. For me it’s worth the money because I use mock-ups often. However, there is a free trial you can use for seven days if my memory serves correctly. http://www.adobe.com/ (There are also plenty of free ways to create 3D images. I use Photoshop because the quality of the images is top notch.)

Step Two

Once you have Photoshop, find a free mock-up that you like. Be sure the license allows you to use it. Most of them do as long as you don’t try to sell the mock-up as your own. You can find some great ones at http://covervault.com/

Step Three

Download a mock-up you like. I’m going to use this one.

Step Four

Click on the zip file and double click on the Photoshop file to open it.

OK so you can pretty much change anything on here to make it your own. Eliminate the background, upload your own images, change colors, etc. But…

I’m just gonna show you how to change the book covers.

Step Five

Go to the side panel here. Let’s start with the front book cover. Click on the arrow next to Front Book, scroll down to front cover and double click on the space where the front book cover is…right where my arrow is.

It will bring up the mock cover here..

Step Six

File > Open > Find the cover (or image) you’d like to use on your computer and click on it….and

Screenshot (601)Screenshot (602)It will open in Photoshop. When it does, unlock it at the bottom. If you don’t unlock it, you cannot edit it.

Step Seven

Click on your cover and drag it to the mock layer.

Step Eight

This one has lots of special effects I don’t need. If ever you don’t want something in the image you can either delete the layer or hide it. Click on the eye next to the layers to hide them. I want to hide the mock-up text and other things…

If you did it correctly it should leave only your cover and look like this (below)…if you look at the layers next to where my marker is you will see that the eye is closed. This means I am hiding these layers so they don’t show.

Step Nine

As you can see, when you move your cover to the layer (see step seven) it will be too big. On your MAC click command T to highlight it to resize. On PC click ctrl T. Now just resize it to fit the space.

Step Ten

Save your resized cover. File > Save as (save it under a name you will recognize. You will need to remember where you saved it.)

Screenshot (621)Screenshot (627)

Step Eleven

Go back to the panel and right click in the space next to the front cover.

Step Twelve

If you did it correctly, it should bring up the box below…where you see replace contents, click on that.

When the box opens, find your saved image from Step Ten and replace the mock image with your own.

And that’s it!

For the back cover follow the exact same steps:

  • Click on the arrow next to back cover.
  • Double click on back cover
  • File > Open > Choose the image for your back cover
  • If it’s locked, unlock it
  • Click and drag your cover to the mock layer (you can’t move it if it’s locked)
  • Hide any layers you don’t need/want
  • Resize image > Command T (MAC) or Ctrl T (PC)
  • File > Save as to your PC
  • Back to the panel, right click in the space next to the back cover > Replace contents
  • Find saved image > place

The last thing you will do when you have both the front and back cover done is to File > Save as > PNG

You’re done.

Renaissance: The Nora White Story Book One. July 15, 2017. yecheilyahysrayl.com