NEVER DOUBT HAPPY

Recently, I stumbled upon an interesting article: Can You Be Happy For 100 Days In A Row? At first I thought, Of course I can! What a ridiculous question! but then I read further. The phrase Every day submit a picture of what made you happy! jumped out and tackled me before I could navigate away. As the reality of the commitment the site was asking me to make sunk in, I realized that I couldn't even name one thing that made me happy in the past week. Except for sleep. Being able to shut off the stress of the day by simply closing my eyes made me downright ecstatic. I figured I'd better get on this stat.

I will be posting on my own site, in my own way. Sometimes I will share a picture, but other times it may be an anecdote or just a phrase. Every day, for at least 100 days, I will share something that made me happy - really happy.

This is my journey to happiness: 

DAY 6:

Some days I find myself doubting my talents and that's rough. But somehow, everything always works out, and just when I least expect it, someone comes along and reminds me that I am enough. 

Thank you Martin Olson, for taking a chance on my work and then being kind enough to tell me (from Facebook about my short story, KAFE CASTRO): "Well-crafted fluid funny intense pro high IQ writing for sure. I really loved it and look forward to read more when I'm past this deadline. Congrats on reaching a point when everything you write is quality. Very bold confident work, really loved it." 
  
As I worked on my new book today, these words kept me going. It made me happy to think he laughed as he read KAFE CASTRO. Making people laugh is one of my greatest joys.

CF Winn is the award-winning author of The COFFEE BREAK SERIES, a quirky group of short stories meant to be read while on break or in the waiting room of the doctor’s office. Her first novella, SUKI, has been grabbing hearts and hugging souls all over the United States. 

You can now order SUKI in paperback at http://hopress-shorehousebooks.com/cf-winn/  or at BOOK REVUE, one of the nation’s largest independent bookstores, by email at info@bookrevue.com Learn more about SUKI at BOOK REVUE. 

CF Winn is the founder of Winning! Publications, a firm specializing in editing and promotion services for authors. Her latest project is the just released Trailer Trash, With a Girl’s Name, a hilarious and heartwarming story of a boy saddled with a girl’s name and forced into a nomadic existence. Order it now: http://www.amazon.com/Trailer-Trash-With-Girls-Name-ebook/dp/B00IX0MIAO 

 

 http://www.gofundme.com/577n90

LIFE IS LIKE A BLANKET OF SNOW...

...be careful where and how you step...

It's that time again. The weather is warming up and we are slowing down, just in time to crack open a brand new list of beach reads. Welcome to my first summertime pick:


OCTOBER SNOW by Jenna Brooks        

About The Story: 

Josie spent twenty years as a battered wife, dying for a hero.
Now, she's dying to become one.

Josie Kane is a "difficult" woman, a pure enigma - one who survives her abusive husband by honing her unnerving talent for playing mind games: she knows exactly how to manipulate a bully.
Finally divorced, she thinks the abuse is over, and she's free.

She's wrong. And her cynicism is building.

Josie works with battered women, trying to rescue them from a fate similar to hers. But on the night that yet another battered woman is murdered by her husband, pining for a hero as she dies in Josie's arms, her cynicism becomes a quiet, simmering hatred.

Her one remaining refuge is in her bond with Maxine and Samantha, the two friends whom she loves like sisters. When Samantha becomes pregnant by Jack - an abuser who makes known his intentions to use the baby as a weapon of control - Josie's hatred ripens to a vengeful fury.

She sets out to take on one more batterer, manipulate one more bully... And she lures Jack into the crosshairs of the ultimate mind game.

Her friends are convinced that she intends to rid Samantha of Jack.
They're right.

But with Josie Kane, as always, there's a twist.

With her friends helpless to stop her - and with Samantha hanging in the balance - Josie squares off with Jack in a life-and-death, winner-lose-all battle of wits to determine which side will win Sammy's future.

And this time, there will be a hero.

The Review:

I have to start this off with a warning: OCTOBER SNOW is not for everyone. The story opens with a violent, gut wrenching death - a scene that grabbed hold of my heart and attention, and lured me in. If you do not have a strong stomach, you may not be able to handle the graphic descriptions of the violence inflicted upon the innocent.

As you can imagine, the life of a battered woman is not an easy one. This book offers the perspective of the victims and their families via a cleverly woven tale of friendship and the many faces of love. The writing is smooth, honest, and - when appropriate - even humorous. I was especially impressed with Ms. Brooks' ability to hypnotize me with the charm and allure of the small town, making me wish I could step outside my door and visit some of the local businesses, while chatting with a few of its inhabitants. I found it sad that the beauty she created in her descriptions of the landscapes was merely a cover for the ugliness that goes on behind some closed doors.

But not all is grim in OCTOBER SNOW. The friendship of the three main characters, Jo, Sam, and Max is the basis for a support system that everyone should be lucky enough to have. And the love story between Sam and Dave is what great movies are made of.

The beginning of the book is a bit slow at times, mired down by coffee drinking and day job hating, but stick with it readers. Once it picks up, this story does not disappoint. I give it four and a half bookmarks, dipped in justice. Be sure to have tissues on hand as Jenna Brooks claws at your soul, daring you not to feel anything for the complex characters she expertly creates on the pages of this novel.

I can't wait to read the sequel, AN EARLY FROST.

Click here to learn more about the author and to order your copy of OCTOBER SNOW: http://www.amazon.com/Jenna-Brooks/e/B00AFNY6JS

I invite you to read OCTOBER SNOW and then join the discussion here. What did you think of the story? Have you known anyone like any of the characters? How would you have handled the situation between Sam and her ex, Jack? I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

MORE GREAT BOOK CLUB PICKS BY INDIE AUTHORS: 

SUKI:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/06/summer-reading-book-club-week-1.html 


WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/06/friends-dont-let-friends-read-alone.html?showComment=1430071350264

MY TWO FLAGS: 

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/07/i-am-master-of-my-words-captain-of-my.html?showComment=1430071350264


TRAILER TRASH, WITH A GIRL'S NAME:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/10/you-know-youre-modern-day-trailer-trash.html

MOORE THAN MEETS THE EYE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/09/theres-always-another-story.html

WELCOME TO HEIDI:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/06/welcome-to-must-read.html

KAFE CASTRO:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/08/why-are-you-so-serious-do-it-kafe.html

BROKEN ANGEL:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/09/broken-angel-review.html

DEJA DREW:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/08/deja-drew-excerpt.html

THE GAZE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/05/gaze-by-javier-arobayoyay-or-nay.html

PGB:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/05/javier-robayo-author-of-gaze-steps-in.html

HAUNTED HOUSE, HAUNTED LIFE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/10/haunted-house-haunted-life.html

CF Winn is the award-winning author of The COFFEE BREAK SERIES, a quirky group of short stories meant to be read while on break or in the waiting room of the doctor’s office. Her first novella, SUKI, has been grabbing hearts and hugging souls all over the United States. 

You can now order SUKI in paperback at BOOK REVUE, one of the nation’s largest independent bookstores, by email at info@bookrevue.com Learn more about SUKI at BOOK REVUE. 

CF Winn is the founder of Winning! Publications, a firm specializing in editing and promotion services for authors. Her latest project is the just released Trailer Trash, With a Girl’s Name, a hilarious and heartwarming story of a boy saddled with a girl’s name and forced into a nomadic existence. Order it now: http://www.amazon.com/Trailer-Trash-With-Girls-Name-ebook/dp/B00IX0MIAO 

SUKI Got A FaceLift!

No matter how much we like to pretend we don't, all writers have one. A baby. It's always the favorite; a specific work that means more to us than the rest.


If any of you have read my Facebook posts, or my Tweets, you are aware that my baby is my novella SUKI. If you have already read the book, then that statement means even more.

This particular story took twenty years and a few overhauls to create...I'm sure Joan Rivers is shaking her head in agreement...that's right girl. Sometimes we need more than one try to make it happen...but don't worry Joan, at least you've got your jokes to fall back on.

When I started writing it, I was in my twenties and we grew together. I've changed, and so has SUKI. I'm proud to say that my "baby" has grown into a healing mechanism for many and the catalyst for a discussion that is long overdue.

We are entering into our third printing together, so I have decided to celebrate SUKI's evolution by allowing another one of my babies - my son, Max Lee, an up and coming artist, and the closest thing to a business partner I have - to offer his interpretation of the story as the new cover.

As I write this, I remind myself that Spring is just around the corner and so is Prom season. My daughter, my 17 year old "baby", is picking out dresses for the occasion and it seems fitting that SUKI get the chance to wear something pretty too:

I proudly offer you my son's work, a cover so beautiful that it inspires a thought: Great Creative Vision is the new Botox when it comes to changing your look.







TO PURCHASE:

You can now order SUKI in paperback at BOOK REVUE, one of the nation’s largest independent bookstores, by email at info@bookrevue.com or by calling (631) 271-1442.
Learn more about SUKI at BOOK REVUE http://www.bookrevue.com/localauthors.html

As an e-book: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BJVSHPE
Print copies can be ordered at:
http://hopress-shorehousebooks.com/cf-winn/
LIKE SUKI on FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/SukiByCfWinn


Check out more Max Lee art at:
http://instagram.com/maxwell___lee# 

and

http://instagram.com/maxwellleesart#

BROKEN ANGEL: A Review

"I know what you are and what you will become. I know that your life will be as mine, pointless and without hope. I have seen your dreams and none of them will be realized. You will die alone, as we all do."

How many of us have felt this way at one time, or are feeling this way right now? Those few lines capture the despair of this brilliantly written piece. BROKEN ANGEL by Gary William Murning taps into the darkness that lies within all of us. For most, it only dares to show itself sometimes, but for the boys turned grown men in this story, the darkness is like another member of the family. It haunts Tom every day, and the nameless main character wears it like an accessory, spinning it into inspiration or using as fuel for hatred; at his mother, at his own insecurity...

The first line of the story: "I was eight when I saw the woman swan-dive like a broken angel from the thirtieth floor of the Caeson Building." traps the reader immediately, holding him a willing hostage in the psyche of the main character. We ride the memory as if it is our own because we have to. The author taps into our darkness and an immediate kinship is formed with the tortured souls on the page. We all have one event that sticks to our insides...sometimes changing us for the better, but sometimes not. It's all about perception.

Having been touched personally by both alcoholism and suicide, this short story stirred up many emotions. Mr. Murning shows such insight on the part of the survivor,that this reviewer has to wonder if he himself has seen such tragedy in his own life.

BROKEN ANGEL is a must read for anyone who thinks and feels deeply. I give it five bookmarks dipped in tears...for those who feel hopeless and lost.

It is available on Amazon for Kindle or Cloud Reader: http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Angel-ebook/dp/B0058TUE8Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347204653&sr=8-1&keywords=broken+angel+gary+murning



MORE GREAT BOOK CLUB PICKS BY INDIE AUTHORS: 

SUKI:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/06/summer-reading-book-club-week-1.html 


WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/06/friends-dont-let-friends-read-alone.html?showComment=1430071350264

MY TWO FLAGS: 

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/07/i-am-master-of-my-words-captain-of-my.html?showComment=1430071350264

OCTOBER SNOW:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/06/life-is-like-blanket-of-snow.html?showComment=1430071350264

TRAILER TRASH, WITH A GIRL'S NAME:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/10/you-know-youre-modern-day-trailer-trash.html

MOORE THAN MEETS THE EYE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/09/theres-always-another-story.html

WELCOME TO HEIDI:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/06/welcome-to-must-read.html

KAFE CASTRO:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2013/08/why-are-you-so-serious-do-it-kafe.html

DEJA DREW:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/08/deja-drew-excerpt.html

THE GAZE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/05/gaze-by-javier-arobayoyay-or-nay.html

PGB:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2012/05/javier-robayo-author-of-gaze-steps-in.html

HAUNTED HOUSE, HAUNTED LIFE:

http://simplystick.blogspot.com/2014/10/haunted-house-haunted-life.html






CF Winn is the award-winning author of The COFFEE BREAK SERIES, a hilarious group of short stories meant to be read while on break or in the waiting room of the doctor's office. Her first novella, SUKI, has been grabbing hearts and hugging souls all over the United States.

You can now order SUKI in paperback at BOOK REVUE, one of the nation’s largest independent bookstores, by email at info@bookrevue.com or by calling (631) 271-1442.
Learn more about SUKI at BOOK REVUE http://www.bookrevue.com/localauthors.html