Smorgasbord Blogger Weekly – #Interview Janice Spina – Darlene Foster, #Copyright Hugh Roberts – Deborah Jay, #Reviews Mae Clair, #Antigua Carol Taylor, #Focus Gwen Plano

A selection of posts I have enjoyed during the week and I hope you will head over to enjoy in full.. thanks Sally.

The first post is an interview hosted by children’s author Janice Spina and Darlene Foster. Both write award winning books for the younger generation and well worth heading over to enjoy.

Interview an author with Author Darlene Foster!

It is always a sincere pleasure to welcome a fellow author to Interview an Author on Jemsbooks.blog. Today, please help me welcome talented author, Darlene Foster.

Thank you, Darlene, for stopping by today to share a little bit about yourself and your books. I am excited to have you here! The floor is yours! 

Head over to find out more about Darlene and her books: Janice Spina interviews Darlene Foster

This next post is a must read for those of us who share images and other blogger’s posts as reblogs. Hugh Roberts hosts author Deborah Jay and adds his own blogging insight too.

Why I Was Threatened With Legal Action After Reblogging On WordPress – A True Story And Guest Post by Deborah Jay

If you’re a blogger who has ever used or still uses the reblog button to share other bloggers’ posts, I urge you to read this post.

Likewise, if you use photos or images in your own posts that are not your own or do not come from a genuine website that offers free images and photos, this post is a must-read.

Early 2021, during the lockdown, I had a nasty shock.

For me, the lockdown was terrific – I live in a farmhouse in the Scottish Highlands, with gorgeous gardens, have a horse and a pack of rescue dogs, and for once, I could legitimately stay at home and not travel for work. This also allowed me to sit and write without feeling like I was short-changing some other part of my life.

What I had not expected, however, was to receive an email from a law firm accusing me of copyright infringement on a photograph I’d displayed on my blog back in my earliest blogging days, somewhere around 2013.

To add insult to injury, it wasn’t even a blog post I’d put together myself, but a collection of inspirational photos on a friend’s blog, which I’d reblogged!  

Head over to read the post and ensure that you are taking care when sharing external posts to your blog: Hugh Roberts hosts Deborah Jay

The next post is from author Mae Clair who shares her recent reviews… delighted to be included…

Happy Groundhog Day! In Pennsylvania, where renowned weather forecaster, Punxsutawney Phil resides, temperatures have been frigid and winter has overstayed its welcome. I know those to the north of us (recently clobbered by Winter Storm Kenan, a nasty nor’easter) must be especially sick of the chilly/snowy/windy/icy season.

I just saw Phil has seen his shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter. May I just say: “NOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Sigh.

On the plus side, if you are stuck inside due to winter’s wrath (or even if you’re not), I have three short reads certain to keep you entertained. My reviews are below, but be sure to click the Amazon links to read the blurbs. Eventually, when I catch up on reviews, I’ll start sharing blurbs again. In the meantime, may I recommend . . .

Head over to enjoy Mae’s reviews: Reviews for January

Carol Taylor shares the wonderfully exotic but simple cuisine of Antigua and Barbuda with amazing seafood, vegetable dishes and fruit unique to the islands. A fascinating post.

Welcome to my new A-Z where I will be looking at the countries of the world, their food and national dish or their most popular dish around the world…by this I mean some dishes are eaten in many countries as their fame has spread around the world…I have Chel to thank for giving me some ideas from which this one took shape…Thank you Chel x

Antigua and Barbuda is an independent Commonwealth country comprising its 2 namesake islands and several smaller ones. Positioned where the Atlantic and Caribbean meet, it’s known for reef-lined beaches, rainforests and resorts…plus mouthwatering cuisine.

When you are surrounded by the sea…lobster, red snapper, conch, mahi-mahi, shrimp are always freshly caught and plentiful…sounds wonderful to me…

The food can be spicy…but even so, locals add an extra splash of spice with “Susie’s Hot Sauce”…I love coming across these local sauces…this sauce is made by a small cottage business yet it is internationally renowned for its huge taste…even Amazon sell it!

The National Dish of Antigua and Barbuda is Fungee and Pepperpot…

Head over to discover more about these islands and their simple but exotic cuisine: World Cuisine Antigua and Barbuda

Colleen Chesebro shares her January book reviews for Shehanne Moore, John Howell and Deborah Harkness and highly recommends.

Colleen’s Kindle: January 2022 Reads, @ShehanneMoore, @HowellWave, @DebHarkness 

I’ve been exploring the Kindle Unlimited offers on Amazon, and I’ve not been disappointed! This has become an affordable way for me to feed my voracious book reading habit. For book reviewers like me, this is an excellent way to read books. It’s also a great way for authors to up their readership and still get compensated for the read. If you have your book available through Kindle Unlimited… thank you! Now, let me introduce you to some novels I absolutely loved!  

Head over to read the reviews: Colleen Chesebro’s January Reviews

And the final post this week is by Gwen Plano writing for Story Empire and in this post explores the research that claims that the human attention span has dropped to the alleged length of time as a goldfish… Intriguing and I know Gwen would love your feedback on short stories and novellas.

The Rise of Short Stories

photo from Canva

Hello SE friends, Gwen with you today, and I’m going to share a discovery.

Over the holidays, I read several novelettes and novellas. They were perfect for my busy pre-Christmas activities. I downloaded six or more of these books and when I found an hour or two, I’d escape into a lovely romance, an adventure, or a bewitching mystery. Because of the brevity of the read, these books were perfect for drawing me into the holiday spirit. Instead of just worrying about my busy to-do list, I could dream.

Most of the books I read in December had a Christmas theme. I suspect you might have read several as well. Novelettes and novellas were everywhere present and this realization got me wondering. Could it be that these shorter stories are growing in popularity?

Head over to read this interesting post and add your thoughts: Gwen Plano on short stories and the human attention span

Thanks for dropping in today and I hope you will head over to enjoy these posts in full… thanks Sally.