Meet and Greet: Diana Symons

Hi! My name is Diana Symons. I write fiction for both kids and adults. Today, I’d like to talk about my children’s book called Where the Jewels Are. It’s a story set in the Land of Wonderful and the castle of the Great King. The Princess is a very beautiful, very spoiled young lady. I’m afraid she’s doesn’t quite appreciate everything that she has. In fact, she actually wants more. She’d love to have a jewel as beautiful as a star in the sky, so her father sends her on a journey to find just what she’s looking for. She just doesn’t know yet that what she really finds is an old friend, a real jewel.


It was actually an accident that I came to write this story. Some time ago, I realized that I had forgotten my best friend’s birthday. Unfortunately, I was laid off from work with no money so I brainstormed what I could do for her. I decided to write her a fairytale and I gave her a hand bound copy of Where the Jewels Are. After that, I realized that there were more stories from the Land of Wonderful so I kept writing. In all, there are ten stories, but this is the first one in print.

Currently, I am writing an adult novel about a society living in fear of its Great Temple. They’ve been told that any who go to the temple would die. But one young man doesn’t believe the wives’ tales and discovers that the temple is a portal to God Himself. Unfortunately, that discovery unravels the very fabric of the society and only those who truly believe will survive. The working title is called The Temple.

For more info on what I’m up to or to follow my blog, FaceBook, or Twitter, go to www.dianasymons.com.

Where the Jewels Are is appropriate for kids 8-10 years old.

©2010 Janalyn Voigt, author of novel books

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**Janalyn Voigt is an Amazon Associate and benefits when products are purchased at Amazon through links from Book Readers Central.

Meet and Greet: Max Elliot Anderson

Book Giveaway Drawing (details below).

Max Elliot Anderson grew up as a reluctant reader. After surveying the market, he sense the need for action-adventures and mysteries for readers 8 – 13, especially boys.



Using his extensive experience in the production of motion pictures, videos, and television commercials, Mr. Anderson brings the same visual excitement and heart-pounding action to his stories. Each book has completely different characters, setting, and plot.


Seven books have been published, with an additional twenty-eight manuscripts completed. Young readers have reported that reading one of his books is like being in an exciting or scary movie.

Dear Reader,
 
My wife and I are the parents of two grown children. When they were small, I used to tell them original stories nearly every night. I’d made up a couple of characters and called the stories "The Harv and Marv Dumb Guy Detective Agency." The trick was, Harv and Marv only pretended to be dumb, and that threw off the bad guys. The way Colombo used to solve his cases might make a good example.

But I grew up hating to read, one of my worst subjects was English, and my father published over 70 books during his lifetime. I never read any of them while I was growing up. So how does a guy like me end up writing over thirty-five manuscripts and publish 10 books? Read on.

The title of my new book is Lost Island Smugglers. It’s book #1 in the new Sam Cooper Adventure Series which was something new for me. I write action-adventures & mysteries for readers 8 – 13, especially boys, that girls love reading too. Sam Cooper is a true series, while all of my other manuscripts, and published books, each contain different characters, settings, and plots.

I’ve just submitted my second story to the Guideposts incredible prayer series. One of my stories, "Two Circles of Angels," was published in book #2 of this series. There will be two more books in the Sam Cooper Adventure series. The titles are Captain Jack’s Treasure and River Rampage. More stories are planned for the series.

A second publisher will release Barney and the Runaway later this fall. After that they plan to republish my first seven books which include Newspaper Caper, Terror at Wolf Lake, North Woods Poachers, Mountain Cabin Mystery, Big Rig Rustlers, Secret of Abbott’s Cave, & Legend of the White Wolf.

Following these titles, we’ve signed an option for another sixteen titles. So I’ll be spending a lot of time working on revisions.

As I indicated earlier, I grew up with little interest in reading. My work in film and video production have taken me down a path of more visual expression. I read for information, but I still don’t read much for enjoyment. I do read an occasional book so I can review it on my blog. Recent examples would include Big Nate, Horrid Henry, the Fred Bowen Sports Stories series, Hardboiled Detective by Nate Evans and others, Rime Soldiers by Robert Gould at Big Guy, Daniel X by James Peterson, and others.

For my own reading recently, I’ve finished Wild at Heart by John Eldredge.

There are a number of ways that readers can find more information about my books. These include my Author Web Site "Books For Boys" blog, http://booksandboys.blogspot.com/, Twitter http://twitter.com/marketpl and Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/max.e.anderson

Books can be purchased directly from me when readers are interested in autographed copies. Requests for more information should be sent to mander8813@aol.com My books are also available on Amazon and other online sites, and because they are distributed by Ingram, they are available in any bookstore, though they may need to be ordered.

Book Giveaway Drawing: Leave a comment to this post to be entered in the drawing for a free copy of Lost Island Smugglers. Please include a way to reach you online or your entry will be ineligible. Entries will be accepted until this Wednesday at midnight (Pacific Coast time/United States). The winner will be posted on this blog this Friday.

To receive notification of future giveaways, book reviews and interviews, subscribe to this blog's feed or sign up to receive posts by email. 

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Whistlestop Wednesday Book Review: The Imaginary Journeys of BJ and Dobbin by Betty J Riordan

I had the help of a young volunteer in reading this book for review. She met me each night in her "jammies," eyes aglow in anticipation of a treat. We'd snuggle, and then open the book. It was not enough for my reviewer-in-training to have BJ and Dobbin read to her. She must, instead, become BJ by reading her lines. I had the job of portraying the many other characters, which included Benjamin Franklin, Sacagawea, Christopher Columbus, Betsy Ross and the like. Every chapter led to discoveries as young BJ, astride her trusty steed, Dobbin, embarked on a new and exciting adventure. When, at the end of each chapter, Mother tapped BJ on the shoulder and reminded her it was time for bed, my young volunteer followed suit without complaint.

I recommend this book highly for young readers who will embrace BJ and Dobbin while learning in an entertaining way about figures from American history. I must thank Betty J Riordan for writing such a work of quality. I know one young reader who looks forward to reading more in the series.

Amazon Purchase Link 

*A complimentary copy of this book was provided to Book Readers Central for puposes of review.