I’m so excited. My novel, A Shadow in the Past, is currently sitting in 2nd place in the YA category at the Preditors & Editors Readers Poll. If you’ve not done so already, I would appreciate your vote. Help me make it to #1.
If you’ve already voted – Thank you! Follow the instructions here.
Celtic Connexions welcomes US author Jack Durish. He’s got a lot on his plate these days, so without further ado, I’ve put him in the hot seat to allow him to get back home as soon as possible.
What is the one book you want us to read (title, genre, and availability)?
Rebels on the Mountain: Historical Fiction available in all ebook formats on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iTunes.
What is your one sentence synopsis?
A childhood crush evolves into romance when Nick Andrews, a U.S. Army spy, reconnects with Lucia Comas, an American-educated mulata, in Cuba while he is there to unravel the diplomatic mess created by Fidel Castro’s revolution.
Who are the main characters and who would you like to see portray them in a movie?
Fictional
Nick Andrews: A U.S. Army Ranger and Korean War Veteran who has made a career of reconnaissance patrols behind the Iron Curtain – possibly portrayed by Stephen Amell.
Lucia Comas: An American-educated, island-born mulata, daughter of the second wife of don Carlos Comas, a Cuba sugar plantation owner, and love interest of Nick Andrews – possibly portrayed by Christina Milian.
Emma Regan: An American socialite whose husband, a retired pediatrician operates a free clinic on the sugar plantation she inherited, and sister to the don Carlos Comas’ second wife Sigourney Weaver.
Real
Fidel Castro: The charismatic leader of the revolution that overthrew the Cuban dictator, Fulgencio Batista – possibly portrayed by Jsu Garcia.
Che Guevara: The Argentinian doctor who became one of Castro’s most notorious lieutenants and his executioner following Fidel’s rise to power – possibly portrayed by Guillermo Diaz.
Ernest Hemingway: Nobel Prize winning author and Havana resident who mingled freely in the halls of power in Havana and purportedly supported Castro’s revolution – possibly portrayed by William Hurt.
Tell us about the story without revealing too much.
Nick Andrews uses the cover of a pleasure trip with friends, the Regans – a retired doctor and his socialite wife who own an estate in Cuba – to infiltrate the island from its halls of power in Havana to the rebel camp in the mountains at the eastern end of the island. Unexpectedly, he rekindles a childhood crush with the island-born niece of the Regans, and makes friends with a loyal Fidelista rebel. Romance, rum, rumba, and revolution layer themselves into a thrilling tale of intrigue, action, and suspense.
What inspired you to write this book and how long did it take?
I was slated to pilot a vessel from Galveston Bay to the Chesapeake, with a stop in Havana, when I was a young sailor, but the trip was canceled due to several factors including the fall of the Batista government in Cuba. I suppose that I never let go of the disappointment of missing that adventure. Thus, I followed events in Cuba closely and studied the history of the island and its people during the intervening fifty years. I spent another two years cataloging and studying my research, and another year and a half to write and edit the manuscript.
What other books have you written?
Dream Pirates – Fiction for young readers with impaired reading skills and new English speakers
WordPerfect: Creative Applications – Technical manual
Infantry School: A Soldier’s Journal – Personal memoir
Vietnam: A Soldier’s Journal – Personal memoir
Trifles: Literary Dessert – A collection of short stories to be published soon.
Which authors inspired you, your style?
Many including…
Ernest Hemingway: Voice
Mark Twain: Irony
Charles Dickens: Memorable characters
Where can we learn more about you and your books?
www.jackdurish.com contains my personal blog as well as my biography, a synopsis of all my books and links to them, and recommended websites for anyone interested in reading.
How can we follow you? Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc.
Twitter: @jackdrsm
Google+: Jack Durish
Is there anything else you would like us to know?
I am currently working on my second novel featuring Nick Andrews as a young soldier in the Korean War. Also, I have been posting to my blog a series of articles built from my research into Cuba with special emphasis on the love-hate relationship between the island and the United States. Most expect a change in US-Cuban relations when Fidel Castro dies, and Americans will begin looking forward to visiting this Caribbean paradise which has been off limits for so many years.
Thanks for stopping in, Jack, and sharing your story with us.
I know it’s only 27th December, but is 2013 going to come in like this? March is the month that’s supposed to go out like a lion, not December. This is the first time a a very long time, that I’ve missed work because of the weather. The last time was the 1998 ice storm. Thankfully, this is snow and not the wet, heavy stuff we got on the Friday before Christmas.
The snow started shortly before we went to bed around 11:00 last night and was well and truly accumulated when the son had to leave for work around 3:00 this morning.
Hubby did go to work this morning and called me when he arrived. The motorway hadn’t been plowed from Maitland east to Prescott and the on and off ramps hadn’t been touched. Since I have to work on New Years Day, it didn’t take a great deal of persuading to get me to stay home and use today as my day in lieu.
I finally ventured outdoors after 1:00 p.m. – first out onto the back step where I took this photo.
then out front so I could get my hat and mitts out of my car which was tucked safely away in the garage. The snow up against the garage door was deep enough that I had to cut out a section so I could step over it.
I could have been standing in the middle of the road when I took this. The snowbanks are well out into the road’s surface and cars can’t pass without one giving way by pulling over into the foot of a shoveled out driveway.
Jake was out front with the grandson and me while we took turns on the business end of the snow shovel. Earlier the dog wouldn’t set foot off the deck out back. But when I brought him in, the first place he headed was to the back door and into the yard.
Poor boy (and he’s a big boy) couldn’t get back up the steps. He stopped, circled in a number of attempts before he finally got almost all the way up the steps, then as his front feet reached the platform at the top, his back feet missed the last step and he was stranded. He’s back inside on his bed now – no worse for his experience.
We put our garbage and recycling out last night for this morning’s pickup but the garbage men haven’t come, probably can’t get out themselves so we may never see our garbage or recycling until containers until spring. Yikes!
Happy Christmas! It’s snowing here this morning making it look quite magical – that is until a gust of wind blows up, then it doesn’t look so nice, after all.
Yesterday’s wrapping marathon ended well after supper and the 4th gift bag I thought I had, well let’s just say, I didn’t have it anymore. At least I had a huge shopping bag from one of my favourite stores, so it was pressed into service. I just hope the recipient doesn’t think his gift came from there…
He’ll be disappointed if he does. Have a few other tricks up our sleeves, too. Enjoy your day with family and friends!
… by the chimney with care…
waiting for the arrival of the man with flair
not to mention his long, curly white hair
Shh… he’s arrived, sat on a barrel as his chair
Sneak in and see what what he has, if your dare
But remember, t’is the season to share…
And now my poem is over (thankfully, you say)
But before I bid my final adieu, if I may…
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Christmas Eve and I’ve flown to Portugal to meet up with YA and fellow Famous Five Plus author, Suzy Turner. Why not pop over to Suzy’s blog and see what we’re talking about?
But don’t lag about or you’ll miss the interview and won’t be home in time for Santa to come.
If you’re feeling so inclined, here are a couple of tweets:
YA author @suzy_turner talks to debut YA author @RobertsoKing over at http://ow.ly/ggVlB Drop on by. #FFP #lahe
Debut YA author @RobertsoKing stops by to chat with @suzy_turner http://ow.ly/ggVsd to talk about writing and other things #lahe #FFP
But in the office, it’s delightful…
Oh I really need to get a life.
Anyway, the end of the world was brought in with wet, soppy, snow here in my corner of Canada. One minute, we’re getting huge flakes – the next really fine ones, then back to the fluffy ones.
I snapped these two pictures with my phone’s camera.
Remember those fantastic stories we grew up with? Listening to our parents read them to us and then when we were old enough to read, reading them ourselves?
Snow White
Hansel and Gretel
Rapunzel
Cinderella
Rumplestiltskin
Snow White and Rose Red
There were many others but these were among my favourites as a child. What were yours?
Celtic Connexions is thrilled to host fellow 4RV author, Cheryl Malandrinos (writing as C. C. Gevry) to celebrate her A Christmas Kindness Book Blast.
A Christmas Kindness by C. C. Gevry
Eight-year-old Robert is eager to share his wish list with Santa at the mall on Christmas Eve. When he meets Glenn, who has only one request for Santa, Robert is confused over what he should do. Can he cast aside what he wants and ask Santa to bring his new friend a special gift?
Inspiration Behind A Christmas Kindness
How is it that children have the ability to reach out and help others in ways adults don’t always think to do?
One year, our oldest daughter–then only eight–went door-to-door in our neighborhood collecting money for Toys for Tots. Coordinated by the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve, this program collects new, unwrapped toys each year and distributes them as Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in our communities. This summer, my girls ran a lemonade stand so they could bring money to a local animal shelter.
Why don’t I think of doing such things? I guess it’s easier to write a check and send it in the mail. But what effort is involved in that? My children make it personal, and much more meaningful, by giving something of themselves.
With A Christmas Kindness, I hope to capture the generosity of a child’s heart–the way they look at the world as a place of endless opportunities to make a difference.
May you be blessed this holiday season.
Cheryl Malandrinos, writing as C. C. Gevry, is a children’s author and editor. She is a member of SCBWI. A Christmas Kindness is her first book with 4RV Publishing. Visit her online at http://ccgevry.com.
Pump Up Your Book and C. C. Gevry are teaming up to give you a chance to win some fabulous prizes!
$25 AMAZON GIFT CARD
1 COPY OF A CHRISTMAS KINDNESS
1 COPY OF LITTLE SHEPHERD
ENTER TO WIN!
Each person will enter this giveaway by liking, following, subscribing and tweeting about this giveaway through the Rafflecopter form placed on blogs throughout the tour. If your blog isn’t set up to accept the form, then after they visit your blog, they are directed to where they can fill out the form to gain more entries.
This promotion will run from December 17th – December 21st. The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter, contacted by email, and announced on December 24th.
Each blogger who participates is eligible to enter and win.
Visit each blog stop below to gain more entries as the Rafflecopter widget will be placed on each blog for the duration of the tour.
What a great way to not only win these fabulous prizes, but to gain followers and comments too! Good luck everyone!
A Christmas Kindness Book Blast Schedule
Monday, December 17
Carpinello’s Writing Pages
Celtic Connexions
WV Stitcher
Seasons of Opportunities
The Busy Mom’s Daily
The Book Connection
The Children’s and Teens’ Book Connection
George Beddingfield
Margay Leah Justice
The Story of a Writer
Janet K. Brown
Bluebell Books
Paperback Writer
Hollywood Daze
Writing Daze
Maureen’s Musings
Coffee & A Keyboard
If the form doesn’t work, you can enter at: http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2012/12/13/pump-up-your-book-presents-a-christmas-kindness-book-blast-25-amazon-gc-free-books/
Things went well today at All About Books Internet Cafe 
in Gananoque. Owner Debra Savoy, was a lovely and gracious hostess. We hit it off immediately and before the end of my time there, we agreed to a date to do it all again in 2013!
According to Debra, Saturdays are slow at her shop but traffic was brisk during my two hour time frame. There were the regulars who come for coffee/tea and a chat and folks off the street.
We had the opportunity to talk before people came into the shop about writing in general, my inspiration to write, my journey to publication along with some good “girlie” chat.
I took some time to pose for a picture with my book (hubby came along to take pictures in addition to fetch and carry). Suffice it to say, he was quite chuffed when the box of books was lighter on the walk back to the car.
My first sale of the of the day, and personalizing the copy for my wonderful hostess.
The afternoon went well. I sold 4 books and left a further 5 copies there. Debra assures me she’ll be able to sell them with no difficulty.
What can I say other than I’m chuffed to little mint-balls to make this contact!
I’m looking forward to returning on February 16, 2013 (weather permitting). Winter in these parts can be truly unpredictable but we’ve got plenty of time to work things out and come up with a game plan for my next visit.