Saturday, November 1, 2014

St. Louis Public Library Fact vs Fiction Panel

The Truth Behind The Novel


This past Tuesday night I had the honor to participate in a Fact vs Fiction panel at the Central St. Louis Public Library. Evenings like this one provide both the Author Panels and those in attendance a tremendous opportunity to listen to personal experiences and learn from them.  The Panel discussion proved to be very interesting and we learned valuable insights about applying fact gained from personal experiences and/or knowledge learned over time to fictional novels.  Each of the panelist shared various tid-bits related to their backgrounds and applying it to their respective works, such as Eric Leuthardt who shared fascinating information on neuroprosthetics and neuro research, and Chris DiGiuseppi who discussed the impact on Law Enforcement Officers when they witness tradagey and how to cope. Our moderator Kevin Killeen from KMOX did a great job surveying the Panel and interacting with the audience.  The host for this event was the Central St. Louis Library and was organized by Stacey Lewis, Senior Subject Specialist for the Saint Louis Public Library. We had a great time time and what I believe to have been a successful event – Thank you Stacey and the St. Louis Public Library.

About the Panel:












Our moderator Kevin Killeen joined the KMOX News Team in July 1995 and has worked since as a general assignment reporter, covering everything from crime, politics, fires, business, medical stories, and features. Since 2003, Kevin has had a humorous radio column called “A Whole ‘nother Story” that airs during morning drive Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Typical topics include “The Job Interview I Forgot I had a Poopy Diaper in my Coat Pocket,” “Life and Death of a City Pigeon,” and “What Desperate Men Buy at Walgreens on Valentine’s Afternoon.” Kevin has also written and directed over a dozen plays that served as the centerpieces for the KMOX Holiday Radio Show.

Eric Leuthardt, M.D. is a neurosurgeon and biomedical engineer as well as a recognized pioneer in neuroprosthetics. He is widely published in scientific journals and has received a number of scholarly awards in recognition of his contributions. Dr. Leuthardt is the Director of the Center for Innovation in Neuroscience and Technology at Washington University School of Medicine, where he researches brain-computer interfaces. He is ranked as one of the most prolific inventors in the world, with more than 800 patents either granted or pending. RedDevil4 is his first novel about a renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Hagan Maerici on the verge of a breakthrough in artificial intelligence that could change the way we think about human consciousness. Obsessed with his job and struggling to save his marriage, Dr. Maerici is forced to put his life’s work on the line when a rash of brutal murders strikes St. Louis.


 Sharon Woods Hopkins is a branch manager for a mortgage office of a Missouri bank and writes a mystery series featuring mortgage banker Rhetta McCarter and her '79 Camaro. In KILLERWATT” Banker Rhetta McCarter's ongoing Battles usually involve mortgage loans, federal lending regulations, threats of bulges on her butt, and her closet-drinking husband. But after one of her mortgage clients dies in a mysterious car accident, she stumbles upon evidence of a terrorist plot to wipe out the entire Midwest power grid.
Bill Hopkins retired as a judge and now
writes crime novels out of his home in Marble Hill, MO, about 25 miles west of Cape Girardeau. Last year, in “Courting Murder,” Hopkins introduced readers to Rosswell Carew of Marble Hill, a judge who dabbles in detective work. Now, Carew gets the starring role in “River Mourn” and opens in Ste. Genevieve, where Carew is looking for his young and attractive fiancĂ©. She’s pregnant — and is apparently a kidnapping victim.   http://www.judgebillhopkins.com/

Dr.Raymond Scott Edge is the author of several textbooks on health-care ethics and law (The Ethics of Health Care: A Guide for Clinical Practice). Since his retirement from university teaching and administration he has pursued his passion for regional history and culture. Flight of the Piasa and Witches of Cahokia re the first two novels of a fiction series based on actual Mississippi River archaeological sites and artifacts.

ChrisDiGiuseppi has over nineteen years in Law Enforcement at various levels up to and including Assistant Chief of Police. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and Northwestern University School of Police Staff Command.  Chris has weaved personal and emotional experiences into “The Light Brighter” where COPS meets The Ghost Whisperer in a novel in which Sixteen people will die on Police Officer Alan Crane's watch. But while tragic and untimely death is no stranger to the jaded ex-Marine, his newfound supernatural ability to lead these people to their spiritual fates sends him on a sensational and frightening saga that will ultimately answer: Why these sixteen? What do they have in common? And why has Alan been chosen to bring them to the light?

Warren Martin - As for myself, I served in the Army for 21-years, transitioned to business operations and later on business ownership. Still not knowing what I want to do when I grow up I have since transitioned to teaching business and leadership courses and also support and participation with fraternal, charitable, writing related organizations, and currently serve on the board of St. Louis Publishers Association.  My first fictional novel “Forgotten Soldiers” is a Cold War POW/MIA story that asks the question “What Happened to Jacob Walden,” and the trek of a Journalist who searches for answers about why Jacob Walden never returned home.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Five Star Review for Forgotten Soldiers



★★★★★ Another Five Star Review for Forgotten Soldiers
 – that makes 20 Five Star reviews

 Thank you to the Fans, Reviewers, Veterans, and everyone for your support and helping to keep the POW/MIA message alive “You Are Not Forgotten”

★★★★★Mind blowing truth and fiction, think about those who serve and thank god because we all Take our freedom for granted, thank all vets for their sacrifice.
 
★★★★★Great story, almost thought it was a true story…

★★★★★This novel could easily be made into a movie! There are twists and turns that could only be written by a soldier. I enjoyed the great detail the author lavished throughout the book. I was there and could see what he wrote which made it even more exciting!

★★★★★This book is truly captivating… Once I got into the book it was very difficult to put it down.

★★★★★This book is listed as Historical Fiction but reads like history, or as one of my teachers once told me: His Story.
http://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Soldiers-Happened-Walden-ebook/dp/B007WMQWGK/
 Get the E-Book at Amazon
http://mwsadispatches.com/

Monday, May 5, 2014

Writers Roundup


If you are in the Texas Oklahoma area this Saturday May 10th, 2014, stop by and visit the Writers Roundup being held in Gainesville Texas. I'll have a table there with 30 other Authors and will be in very good company.
( MAY 10, 9am to 5pm Gainesville, Texas - First State Bank Conference Center - 837 E. California St.)
NET PROCEEDS GO TO THE FRANK BUCK ZOO

Meet authors and celebrities at the 2014 WRITERS ROUNDUP and BOOK FEST in historic Gainesville, Texas. Authors autograph their books and talk about them throughout the day. Movie and TV Celebrities will be on hand to sign stills from their famous movies and TV shows.
Speakers will talk on writing and marketing .

        Key Note Speaker will be the author of over one hundred best selling novels with over 4.5 million books in circulation....LOREE LOUGH !
          Other speakers are T. C. Miller and  Amanda Thrasher 

AUTHORS COMING TO THE 2014 WRITERS ROUNDUP
LOREE LOUGH                     MIKE TRAHAN                     EMMA GINGERICH                     
T.C. MILLER                          AMANDA THRASHER          JOE HEWITT                    RITA DEAR
STEVE NEWMAN                  SHARI PARKER                     AUREL MIRCEA              DAVID McKOY
WARREN MARTIN                ELAINE FIELDS SMITH        PEGGY PATRICK            JAMES PATRICK
KEN FARMER                        RICH WEATHERLY               SUSANNAH CORD
BUCK STIENKE                     FRED FUNK                            BOB DOERR
DORAN INGRHAM              MICHAEL DRUXMAN          ANNA ALBERGUCCI     
ALEX CORD                          LAURA ECKROAT                 LYNN HALLBROOKS
SHARON SROCK                  KERI FRY                                TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF AUTHORS
  
CLELBRITIES ON HAND FOR PICTURES AND AUTOGRAPH   Click Here for Celebrity Page
Alex Cord - "Stagecoach", "Airwolf", "Grayeagle"           Michael Druxman - "Cheyenne Warrior"
Buck Taylor - (Artist) "Gunsmoke"                                  James Drury - "The Virginian"

Marshall Teague - "Walker, Texas Ranger", "Roadhouse"            
Anne Lockhart - "Battlestar Galactia"                               Cheryl Rogers - Roy Rogers daughter
Burton Gilliam - "Blazing Saddles"                                    Barry Corbin - "Lonesome Dove"
Dean Smith - Olympic Gold Medalist and Hollywood stuntman
James Hampton - "F Troup", "Teen Wolf"


 PictureKEYNOTE SPEAKER - LOREE LOUGH
1
00 award-winning books ... & counting and with more than 4,500,000 books in circulation, best-selling author Loree Lough's titles have earned numerous industry awards and 5 movie options. She splits her time between her home in Baltimore and a cabin in the Alleghenies (where she loves to show off her "Identify the Critter Tracks" skills). With the release of Guarding Alyssa (#3 in the "A Child to Love" series for Harlequin's new Heartwarming line), Loree will have 100 books in print, including reader favorites like The First Responders series and the Lone Star Legends series. Loree loves to hear from her readers and answers every letter, personally. Visit her at Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and www.loreelough.com!  
Loree Lough: "You'll laugh, you'll cry...you'll always remember a Loree story...."   www.loreelough.com

PictureAMANDA M. THRASHER
Author of Mischief in the Mushroom Patch, A Fairy Match in the Mushroom Patch, The Ghost of Whispering Willow - a ghost mystery, Sadie's Fairy Tea Party, and a YA novel, The Greenlee
Project and What If...A Story of Shattered Lives, part of the D.R. S.R. program for the Texas Municipal Education Center.  She conducts workshops, shares her techniques with school children of all ages, and works closely with her local Barnes and Nobles raising funds through Book-Fair programs. Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Progressive Rising Phoenix Press, an innovative publishing company founded by authors, Amanda stays busy.
www.amandamthrasher.com     www.progressiverisingphoenix.com
T. C. Miller
Picture T. C. Miller's twenty-four year Air Force career gave him the opportunity to live from coast-to-coast. It was during his assignment at Mather Air Force Base, California that he formulated the basic plot for his debut novel, BlackJack Bomber.
He is also an accomplished martial artist, and has studied Hakkoryu Jujitsu, since 1976. He operated
Kiyoshi Dojo, his school, for over twenty five years.
T.C. started writing as a pre-teen, and has authored newspaper and magazine articles, lesson plans, and advertising copy.  BlackStar Bay, the sequel to BlackJack Bomber, is scheduled for release in spring, 2014.
He is the founder of Coffee With the Author, a twice-weekly book-signing in the center court of Shawnee Mall, Shawnee, OK that features no charge to local authors to access mall patrons and sell their books. He was also instrumental in helping The Bean and Berry coffee shop establish The Book Nook within their store to sell books about Oklahoma, and by Oklahoma authors.
T.C. has been involved in sales and marketing for forty years, including teaching direct sales, formulating marketing plans, and managing sales operations. He and his wife travelled the U.S. for fifteen years as manufacturer's representatives.