Back To School Blog Tour: Day 5

I’d like to wrap up the blog tour by saying a big thank you to all of the participating authors for joining this annual event. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the different featured authors this week.

Please feel free to visit the blog/websites of participating authors to find out more about them:

• Marcy Blesy-Monday, Sept. 12
• Phillip Gibson -Tuesday Sept. 13
• Erin Liles -Wednesday Sept. 14
• Sandra Anderson-Thursday Sept. 15

Plus, here is a list of additional blog posts that appeared on participating blogs this week:

An interview with Martine Lewis on Erin Liles’s blog:

https://editperfectword.com/2016/09/15/martine-lewis-author-of-the-grey-eyes-series/

For an interview with me, Tiffany Turner, head over to Sandra R. Anderson’s Blog:

http://www.sandrarandersson.com/2016/09/back-to-school-blog-tour-interview-with_12.html

Teaching Tips on Philip Gibson’s Blog:

http://www.wordbywordseries.com/blog.html

SO, TODAY IS THE LAST CHANCE TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAYS/PICK UP DISCOUNTS AND FREEBIES!

GIVEAWAYS and DISCOUNTS

Here is one last shot at the list of freebies, discounts, and giveaways during the blog tour. All discounts, freebies and giveaways will be running through the blog tour dates: 9/12-9/16.

1. Win a $25 shopping spree on Amazon! Link to the Rafflecopter giveaway link here!
2. Download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!
3. Philip Gibson’s Graded Word For Word Reader 1 & 2 Free
4.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018ZQQ98C
5. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019J1U2RQ
6. The Lost Secret of Fairies: Discounted to $0.99
7. Win a notebook set, bookmarks or the book Tinker Bee by Erin Liles: http://erinbethliles.weebly.com/blog/back-to-school-blog-tour-giveaway

Thanks so much for joining myself and the other Indie children’s authors this week. I’ve enjoyed hosting the Back to School Blog Tour again this year. I can’t wait to celebrate the 5th Annual tour next year. Sign-ups will begin in August 2017.

To all of those teachers and students out there starting the 2016-2017 school year, best of learning to you all! Have a great year!

-Tiffany Turner

Back to School Blog Tour: Day 4

We’re already up to Day 4 of the blog tour. I hope you have been enjoying the daily featured authors. There has been a wide range of books, from Middle Grade to Reading instruction readers, to a picture book. Today, I share with you the author of a fabulous Middle Grade reader, Sandra R. Anderson. She is the author of Konrad and the Birthday Painting. She is a mother of two boys who fortunately have yet to show any interest in art. They are too busy catching Pokémon.

After several years of translating other people’s books by day and reading tons of children’s books every night at bedtime, she decided that she had some stories of her own to tell. She first got started by taking a course in writing for children at the cultural center Näs, right next to Astrid Lindgren’s childhood home.

She writes books for children and for grown-ups and anyone else who likes stories that are about something more than at first glance. She still works as a translator. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, baking, and Postcrossing, although not simultaneously. She is an accidental stamp collector and keeps forgetting to water her potted plants, particularly when she’s working on a new book.

I had the chance to ask Ms. Anderson about her thoughts on writing, her favorite school memories, and what she is up to right now.

Sandra R. Anderson is the author of Konrad and the Birthday Party available on Amazon.

1) Who was your favorite children’s author and how did they influence you?

I was the type of kid that read everything I could get my hands on, so I couldn’t name just one. I loved the classics, wandering around on that deserted island with Robinson Crusoe and exploring the oceans with Captain Nemo, but I also solved mysteries alongside Nancy Drew and the Hardy boys, discovered smugglers and hidden treasure with the Famous Five and slept with my feet on the pillow and baked gingerbread cookies on the floor with Pippi Longstocking.

I honestly can’t imagine the person I would have grown up to be if I hadn’t had all of these characters in my life as a child and am eternally grateful to the authors who created them. They opened my eyes to other people’s lives and experiences and made me see things differently. They broadened my horizons and made me a far better person than I would have been otherwise.

2) What is your most memorable school moment?

The best time I ever had in school was when I lived in Norway for a few years and went to school in a tiny school building with the sea on one side and tall mountains on the other. One time the entire school (not that many kids, perhaps 60 or 70 in all) rode a bus to the next valley over and then went on skis back over the mountains. Eating my school lunch at the top of a mountain is a memory that I will treasure forever.

3) Do you have a writing routine? Share what works for you.

My best writing gets done really early in the morning, before the rest of my family wakes up. I’m an early bird and often wake up at 4 or 5. When everything is quiet, and the whole family is tucked away in bed, that’s when I can give my undivided attention to the characters in my stories and go on adventures with them. That said, if that wasn’t an option, I would write with blunt crayons on wet napkins up in a tree in the middle of a hurricane. Sometimes a story just needs to be told.

4) Was there anything in school that was difficult for you?

Sure. I’m not very good at a lot of things. I’m pretty good at reading and writing, but that’s about it. When it came to the more practical subjects, I was all thumbs, and I am still capable of burning a salad or sewing a shirt to my trousers if I try to replace a lost

button. But the thing I found most difficult in school was the social aspect, the unwritten rules that govern the playground. We moved a lot, so I was always the new kid, always failing to fit in.

5) What is writing to you in one sentence?

The magic that allows us to see the world through someone else’s eyes, explore places and situations that would otherwise be out of reach, and be anyone we want to be.

6) What projects are you working on right now?

I’m writing the next book in the Artworld series, of course, to find out what Konrad gets up to now that he has discovered an exciting new world inside of paintings. I’m also working on a science fiction story for ages 9 and up and have a coming of age saga for the same age group on the back burner. I  like to work on several different projects simultaneously, to avoid writer’s block, but there are only so many hours in a day, unfortunately. I also write for grown-ups under a different pen name, and have a few projects I’m working on there, as well. The most urgent is a ghost story that I hope to have done in time for Halloween.

To connect to Sandra R. Anderson, find her at:

Her website: www.sandrarandersson.com

Her Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/AuthorSandraR

 

BOOK REVIEW: KONRAD AND THE BIRTHDAY PAINTING

Sandra R. Anderson writes a brilliant fantasy world in this Middle Grade Book available on Amazon.

***** Five Stars

Konrad and the Birthday Painting is a fast and fun fantasy adventure for middle graders. Konrad, a second grader, finds some mysterious glasses that allow him to look into a painting in the school office that, by chance, is like a map of the real school. He witnesses the taking of the Fifth Grade field trip funds, and has to stop his friend, Casper from being blamed for the theft.

Along the way, he discovers that the glasses work on other paintings at a nearby museum. This introduces him to the virtual world of “Artworld”. Will he want to come back to reality once he discovers this amazing new place?

This is a real creative fantasy that plays with the concept of the real world and a virtual world. I love stories that play with a fantasy world just on the edge of the real world. Anderson does a brilliant job of creating the world and the tension that Konrad has to struggle with. He has to think about his family still in the real world, and make a choice between the two. With wisps of Narnia, I recommend Konrad and the Birthday Painting to readers that love to play in fantasy worlds.

As part of this week’s special discounts and giveaways, you can download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!

**The giveaways are still up and going. Here is a list of all the books on discount/free and the big $25 Amazon Gift Card giveaway.

**Also available on Amazon.

GIVEAWAYS and DISCOUNTS

Here is the current list of freebies, discounts, and giveaways during the blog tour. All discounts, freebies and giveaways will be running through the blog tour dates: 9/12-9/16.

1. Win a $25 shopping spree on Amazon! Link to the Rafflecopter giveaway link here!
2. Download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!
3. Philip Gibson’s Graded Word For Word Reader 1 & 2 Free
4.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018ZQQ98C
5. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019J1U2RQ
6. The Lost Secret of Fairies: Discounted to $0.99
7. Win a notebook set, bookmarks or the book Tinker Bee by Erin Liles: http://erinbethliles.weebly.com/blog/back-to-school-blog-tour-giveaway

For an interview with Martine Lewis on Erin Liles’s Blog, LINK HERE! 

Come back tomorrow for the final post to wrap up this week of Back to School celebration!

 

 

Back to School Blog Tour 2016: Day 3

The blog tour continues with today’s featured author, Erin Liles. Ms. Liles grew up in Northern California. In her twenties, she moved to Austin, Texas where it’s brutally hot in the summer, but life is a bit more relaxed. She graduated from Texas State University with a degree in sociology, and after almost ten years working in family literacy and early childhood education, she took the plunge into writing and later, freelance editing.

Erin spends most of her time with her husband, kids, and pets. I had a chance to ask Erin about her opinions on writing, about some school memories, and what she will be working on next.

Erin Liles is the author of Tinker Bee, a delightful picture book available on Amazon.

1) Who was your favorite children’s author and how did they influence you?

As a kid, I loved Walter Farley’s Black Stallion series. I still have my original books on my shelf (thanks for saving them, Mom and Dad!). As an adult, I love Kevin Henkes picture books and Laurie Halse Anderson’s YA.

2) What is your most memorable school moment?

I most remember my teacher writing lovely comments in the margins of the stories I wrote at school. They said things like Great imagination! and Terrific story! I always felt encouraged to write more.

3) Do you have a writing routine?

Share what works for you. I find that writing first thing in the morning works best for me. That way, I’m fresh and clear-headed (especially after my morning coffee!), and I don’t have to worry all day about when I’m going to get it done because it already is!

I write my drafts on Scrivener. For me, there’s no better way to organize the chaos of ideas flowing through my head, and I only have to switch screen views to see my plot all laid out for me.

4) Was there anything in school that was difficult for you?

Math! I still cringe at the subject when I’m trying to help my kids with their homework.

 

5) What is writing to you in one sentence?

I’m taking a writing course with Professor James Hynes, and he tells a story of his high school English teacher who once told him, “Fiction imposes order on the chaos that is reality.” That sums it up pretty well for me because writing means taking a chaos of ideas, picking the most important of those ideas, and corralling them into a logical, meaningful story.

6) What projects are you working on right now?

Right now, I’m working on a YA ghost story and a middle grade adventure.

***Here’s a chance to win a pen and notebook set, bookmarks or a copy of her new picture book, Tinker Bee. LINK TO GIVEAWAY HERE!

For more information on Erin Liles, follow this link to her blog/website.

BOOK REVIEW of Tinker Bee by Erin Liles

Tinker Bee is available on Amazon as a Kindle Unlimited picture book.

Tinker Bee is a dazzling picture book  about a bee that wants to be different. She wants to be a fairy. No matter where she turns, people are trying to get her to do things the way other bees do. She’ll have none of that. She does things the way she’d like, as a fairy. Then, one day, someone comes along and ruins their best pansy patch. Tinker Bee is off to solve the problem. Her unusual idea saves the day, and it took her fairy wand and imagination to do it.

Kids that love fairies are going to be enchanted with this book. It teaches some of the vocabulary with associated with bees like waggle dance. Plus, it does it all with a charming moral that being yourself is as important as others excepting you as such. The illustrations are beautiful, with cheerful and bright colors that would be part of a bees world. I recommend this picture book for kids 3-8 years old. It would make a great gift for any child learning to read or getting their first Kindle or ereader.

**** Four Stars

Tinker Bee is available on Amazon. It is a Kindle Unlimited title. It is listed for $0.99.

Link to purchase book: https://www.amazon.com/Tinker-Bee-Erin-Beth-Liles-ebook/dp/B01GLM3KQ6

Watch the book trailer on YouTube:

**The giveaways are still up and going. Here is a list of all the books on discount/free and the big $25 Amazon Gift Card giveaway.

GIVEAWAYS and DISCOUNTS

Here is the current list of freebies, discounts, and giveaways during the blog tour. All discounts, freebies and giveaways will be running through the blog tour dates: 9/12-9/16.

1. Win a $25 shopping spree on Amazon! Link to the Rafflecopter giveaway link here!
2. Download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!
3. Philip Gibson’s Graded Word For Word Reader 1 & 2 Free
4.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018ZQQ98C
5. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019J1U2RQ
6. The Lost Secret of Fairies: Discounted to $0.99
7. Win a notebook set, bookmarks or the book Tinker Bee by Erin Liles: http://erinbethliles.weebly.com/blog/back-to-school-blog-tour-giveaway

For an interview with me, Tiffany Turner, head on over to Sandra Anderson’s blog HERE!

Back To School Blog Tour: Day 2

Welcome to the second day of the Back to School Blog Tour. The featured author today is Philip Gibson. He is a teacher and author that has more than 35 years’ experience teaching English to children and adults in 7 countries. Mr. Gibson spent the next 30+ years traveling the world teaching English to children and adults of all nationalities.

He now lives in Laos where, for the past 12 years, he has been researching, writing, and improving his Word by Word series of illustrated, graded readers for English-speaking children learning to read and children learning English as a second or foreign language. Mr. Gibson continues to teach, to write, and expects to be able to make the complete 12-book series of books available during the course of the next few months.

I was lucky enough to interview Mr. Gibson, and get his take on his school memories, favorite children’s authors, and what writing means to him.

Philip Gibson’s Word By Word series teaches English reading to ELD and early readers.

1)   Who was your favorite children’s author and how did they influence you?

The earliest books I remember enjoying were the first books in the Ladybird Key Words Reading Scheme.  In the U.K., they were known as the Peter and Jane books.  I believe in the U.S. a similar series known as the Dick and Jane books were widely used during the same time.

Those books used a systematic, step by step introduction of key words alongside attractive colorful illustrations.  The books are now criticized for their lack of phonics emphasis as well as old-fashioned, 1950s cultural stereotypes.  They are now largely ignored and out of print.  However, they did make learning to read an easy and rewarding process and certainly did the job for me and those of my generation (now in our 60s.)

So now I am developing a new, 12-book series of illustrated early readers using a similar, but updated, format.  This new series contains not only systematically introduced sight words, but also phonic emphasis at every stage.  They are also culturally appropriate for the modern age. The first 8 books have now been completed and are available.  I have made the first two e-books permanently free so that parents and teachers can try them out at no cost.

2)   What is your most memorable school moment?

I remember when I was 5 or 6, a classmate coming over and looking at a page I had been writing on.  She expressed surprise that I had filled the entire page.  It had never occurred to me that I might be more advanced in reading and writing than my classmates.

3)   Do you have a writing routine? Share what works for you?

I write every day, usually between midnight and dawn when everyone is sleeping and the house is quiet.

4)   What is writing to you in one sentence?

Writing to me is about trying to put out something into the world that will be of actual practical benefit to people… especially children.

The Word By Word Readers Collection bundle is available on Amazon.

Today, his Word by Word series is featured. As a teacher of 18 years, finding a useful and engaging reading program is important. Mr. Gibson does this while instructing the difficult points in learning English. This is a great series for beginning English learners of all ages. The first two books of the series are FREE! Plus, you can also get the first several books in a bundle HERE! The series is great for teachers and parents to work with their children.

Book 1: Lee and Pat – http://amzn.to/1Nh0M3Q

Book 2: Lee and Pat Like to Play – http://amzn.to/1QAcTwZ

WORD BY WORD readers bundle-https://www.amazon.com/Word-Readers-Childs-Introduction-Reading-ebook/dp/B01BQUCBYK

See all the readers and collections at his website – http://www.wordbywordseries.com/

**As with yesterday, the giveaways are still up and going. Here is a list of all the books on discount/free and the big $25 Amazon Gift Card giveaway.

GIVEAWAYS and DISCOUNTS

Here is the current list of freebies, discounts, and giveaways during the blog tour. All discounts, freebies and giveaways will be running through the blog tour dates: 9/12-9/16.

1. Win a $25 shopping spree on Amazon! Link to the Rafflecopter giveaway link here!
2. Download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!
3. Philip Gibson’s Graded Word For Word Reader 1 & 2 Free
4.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018ZQQ98C
5. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019J1U2RQ
6. The Lost Secret of Fairies: Discounted to $0.99
7. Win a notebook set, bookmarks or the book Tinker Bee by Erin Liles: http://erinbethliles.weebly.com/blog/back-to-school-blog-tour-giveaway

For an interview with me, Tiffany Turner, head on over to Sandra Anderson’s blog HERE!

Back to School Blog Tour 2016: Day 1

It’s here! The blog tour starts today. We start out with a feature on a fabulous author, Marcy Blesy. She is a published author of over ten children and young adult books and short stories. By day she runs an elementary school library. By night, she writes up a storm for children. She has written a book series called Evie and the Volunteers. Here is her take on her school memories, volunteering, and writing for children.

1)   Who was your favorite children’s author and how did they influence you?

Marcy Blesy is the author of Evie and the Volunteers: Animal Shelter. It’s available on Amazon.

I loved Beverly Cleary books as a child. There is something very endearing about Ramona.

2)   What is your most memorable school moment? 

In third grade every student got to be the VIP for the week. Each student in the class wrote a special page about the VIP that the teacher put in a VIP book. Talk about a self-esteem booster! Plus, the VIP got to keep a Ziggy water globe on her desk during the week.

3)   Do you have a writing routine?

Share what works for you. I work fulltime and have two teenagers with busy schedules. I write when I can and I’ve learned that that’s okay!

4)   Was there anything in school that was difficult for you?

I never was a fan of science. Chemistry—ugh!

5)   What is writing to you in one sentence?

Writing is a therapeutic way of tapping into myself while developing a character, flaw and all.

6)   What projects are you working on right now?

I just finished book 3 in the Evie and the Volunteers series, for ages 9-12. Book 4 will be a winter project.

**Here is a link to Marcy Blesy’s Amazon Author Page to check out all of her fabulous books.

Book Review of Evie and the Volunteers: Animal Shelter Book 1

Evie and the Volunteers: Animal Shelter is available on Amazon and as a Kindle Unlimited title.

Evie and the Volunteers: Animal Shelter is a heart warming book that is the start of a series that will teach children the meaning of volunteering. It starts with Evie, a girl getting into all sorts of trouble. Unsure of why her veteran Dad has returned to the hospital again, she lashes out turning irresponsibility into a new art.

But when her mother comes up with the punishment to volunteer at the local animal shelter, her world changes when she learns what it is like to care for another. You’ll be cheering her on as she tries to add another furry member to her family and is stopped at every turn. It take her father’s return to solve everything.

This is a great book to share with your child the responsibility of giving back to the community while going along with Evie’s inner journey.  I really enjoyed this cute story that teaches that you can open your heart to others and heal yourself at the same time.

**** Four Stars Middle Grade Reader

LINK TO AMAZON:

https://www.amazon.com/Evie-Volunteers-Animal-Shelter-Book/dp/153522147X

 

GIVEAWAYS and DISCOUNTS

Here is the current list of freebies, discounts, and giveaways during the blog tour. All discounts, freebies and giveaways will be running through the blog tour dates: 9/12-9/16.

1. Win a $25 shopping spree on Amazon! Link to the Rafflecopter giveaway link here!
2. Download a free copy of Konrad and the Birthday Painting HERE!
3. Philip Gibson’s Graded Word For Word Reader 1 & 2 Free
4.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018ZQQ98C
5. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019J1U2RQ
6. The Lost Secret of Fairies: Discounted to $0.99
7. Win a notebook set, bookmarks or the book Tinker Bee by Erin Liles: http://erinbethliles.weebly.com/blog/back-to-school-blog-tour-giveaway

For an interview with me, Tiffany Turner, head on over to Sandra Anderson’s blog HERE!

***BOOKMARK and come back daily to see more featured authors, book reviews and fun!

Back To School Blog Tour 2016: Coming Sept. 12-16

Plans are underway for the Back to School Blog Tour 2016.

Save the dates: September 12-16. Get ready for giveaways, free and discounted books, interviews and reviews from participating authors. It’s going to be a fabulous way to kick off the 2016 school year.

Participating Authors and Featured Day:

• Marcy Blesy -Monday, Sept. 12-Giveaways links posted
• Phillip Gibson -Tuesday Sept. 13
• Erin Liles -Wednesday Sept. 14
• Sandra Anderson -Thursday Sept. 15
• Wrap-up/Last chance for giveaways-Friday Sept. 16

**Come back in a few days for further updates. Everything begins September 12!

Back To School Blog Tour: Slots Still Open

Back To School Blog Tour 2016 is Sept. 12-16.

Greetings everyone. Plans are underway for the 4th annual Back To School Blog Tour coming up on Sept. 12-16. All week, authors will be featured with interviews and reviews of their books. Giveaways are also in the works. So, please stop by on Sept. 12 for a week of fantastic children’s literature to start off your school year.

Plus, there are still some slots open for this event. If you are an Indie children’s author and are interested, please email me at: tiff@tiffmester.net. Let me know you’re interested, what type of children’s book you have, age level, and any promos you might be interested in doing. Authors can set up their own giveaway, and I’ll be promoting the links. I’ll also be setting up a Back To School Blog Tour Giveaway that everyone can put on their blogs. The deadline to get back to me is Aug. 25.

To all the teachers and students going back to school over the next few weeks, have a fun and safe return. Happy reading!

-Tiffany Turner

$0.99 Children’s Books For Summer

The deals are on! 19 children’s books are on sale for $0.99 for the next two days through the website Lazy Saturday Reads. Several of the authors have been featured in past events on my website including Rachel Elizabeth Cole, author of “The Rabbit Ate My Homework”. Get your summer reading off to a good start. Load up for the Fourth of July weekend.

Here is the link: http://www.lazysaturdayreads.com/promo

Enjoy!

**Come back for another set of deals at the end of June. Happy Summer Reading!

Summer Reading Discounts Through June

Summer reading was always something I encouraged when I was teaching. So, it’s something that I think is important, and I’m going to try my best to support that idea. To make it easy for you to read this summer, or help your child read, I’ve lined up to participate in two promos through the month of June. Look for the Crystal Keeper Chronicles to be on sale for $0.99. Plus, several other children’s books will be linked and listed along with mine for free or at a discounted $0.99. The first promo starts this weekend June 18-19. Look for more information starting on June 18.

***The next promo will be June 28-July 1.

**Each promo will be featuring different children’s books along with mine. It should give a boast to any summer reading list. Happy reading! You all come back this Saturday. See you then!

Winners Announced for Tartan Day Drawing from 4/2/16

Greetings everyone! First off, I’d like to thank everyone for coming out to see me at Tartan Day in Fremont, Ca last weekend. It was a fantastic showing of fans and new readers. I enjoyed meeting everyone and signing your books. I completely sold out of the first book in the series. Which is great to hear. I have to order new books for my upcoming events. So, thanks for all the support and love you showed me at Tartan Day.

Now, to the exciting news. Time to announce the winners in the Tartan Day Drawing. Those of you that stopped by and entered, thank you. For those of you that marked the box to join my mailing list, you have been added. All other non-winning entries have been shredded. A big hardy thank you for coming by and visiting the booth. I hope you got your Tartan Favor and are wearing it proudly. I went through about 50 favors being passed out at the festival. It made my day to see people smile.

And now for the winners in the drawing:

Winner of a $25 Amazon Gift Card is: Charles V.L.

Winners of a Crystal Pendant:

1. Heather B.
2. Barr L.
3. Danika

**Congratulations to all of the winners of the drawing. They all have been notified by email, and will be receiving their prizes by mail.

If you missed me at Tartan day last weekend, I’ll be selling my crystal pendants and books 2 and 3 in the Crystal Keeper Chronicles at the Fantasy Fair in downtown San Jose this weekend, April 9 and 10. It will go on ran or shine. It’s a chance to bring out the cloaks. Come enjoy all sorts of fairies, pirates, steampunk, and renaissance fair experiences. I’ll be selling with a partner of mine that also sells stone jewelry and specializes in amber. Look for the sign that says “AMBER” on the top of the tent.

Hope to see you there!