I cannot believe that we have been home for over a week.. and a lot of catching up to do but I must thank D.G. Kaye, ..D.G. Kaye Writer Blog for her care-taking of the blog in my absence…. wonderful friend, to us all.
We have a big job starting tomorrow with a replacement fence being installed between us and our neighbour.. It will change the whole kerb appeal of the house and is the last major work of the renovations. A couple of rooms need a touch up and then come the spring it should be ready to be put on the market.
We have started looking, but as usual with us it is the house in the least expected location and not to the specifications that we planned! But that is what makes it so exciting.
It was our 39th anniversary on Friday and we indulged in our favourite food…stir fried prawns on avocado, steak and chips with mushrooms and bacon, followed by caramel ice cream. Oh and a couple of margaritas.
Here we are 39 years ago with the registrar who married us – at what was locally known as Bridge End Cathedral in Dolgellau, Mid-Wales. Many of you already know of our impulsive dive into matrimony after only knowing each other for six weeks and getting engaged on our first date. Here we are tying the knot.. photo courtesy of my father-in-law Geoff.
I still have my outfit although it is a while since I have been able to get into it… but getting there in time for our 40th next year… David on the other hand would still be able to get into his suit.
Anyway… on with the next year and last week’s posts.
As always I am very grateful for the wonderful contributions from regular guests and also to you for dropping in and sharing…
This week William Price King shares the life and music of jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman.
Welcome to this month’s edition of the Travel Column at the Smorgasbord. D.G. Kaye (Debby Gies)has chosen a not-so-well known little gem of a place, Puerto Peñasco, for a tropical escape in Mexico that she discovered while watching a destination show on TV.
Carol Taylorand I team up to share how you can become deficient in certain nutrients and how to prepare food to ensure you get sufficient.. this week a very important mineral that is often sidelined…Manganese.
With Thanksgiving at the end of the month, Silvia Todesco who is Italian, but now lives in America, shares a wonderful dessert that I am sure will be loved by all the family and guests..Ricotta, Almonds and Amaretti tart
Welcome to the weekly round up of posts you might have missed this week on Smorgasbord.
We arrived back from two weeks in the UK on Thursday in slightly rougher sees than we might have liked but you can expect this in November. My two sisters had been on the Ventura for a cruise down to Portugal and back and they certainly had much rougher seas than we did and in fact it made the papers when a passenger shared a video of the water exiting one of the swimming pools and flooding a lounge. Both my sisters are good sailors and very little seems to phase them… they thought it was a storm in a teacup!!!
Anyway, it has taken a couple of days to catch up online as I was off more than I was on during our time away. It gave me time to get some reading done and expect some reviews over the next couple of weeks. I also began plotting out the direction that the blog will take next year and how I can increase author and blogger promotions. There will be more reviews on a more regular basis and there will be a return of the Posts from Your Archives series for both new bloggers and those of you more established.
This week sees the start of the last major outside projects with the removal of the old broken down fence between us and our neighbour’s garden and a brand new post and concrete wall, making the garden fully child and dog safe for the next owners of the house.
A couple more inside jobs and then in the spring the house goes on the market and we shall be off further down the coast between Wexford and Waterford, two historic cities with a great deal of cultural appeal and great amenities.
Highlights of the coming week.
There will be the usual Cafe and Bookstore updates with recent reviews and several new books on the shelves. The Blogger Daily will resume and plenty of fun with afternoon videos and funnies.
Monday – The Travel Column by D.G. Kaye and this month Debby is taking us to the lovely not-so-well known little gem of a place, Puerto Peñasco, for a tropical escape in Mexico.
Tuesday – William Price King shares the life and music of jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman.
Wednesday – Carol Taylor and I join forces to share the mineral Manganese and some recipes to include regularly in your diet to ensure that you do not become deficient.
Thursday – our Italian food expert Silvia Todescoshares a wonderful almond dessert that would be perfect for Thanksgiving.
Friday– The Smorgasbord Christmas Book Fairkicks off with a selection of children’s books in the Cafe and the first of the guest posts. D.G. Kaye will be sharing her expertise in writing memoirs.
The Weekend – Another post from Mike Biles about Britain’s history and Allan Hudsonjoins me for the Sunday Author Interview. There will also be two more stories from my Flights of Fancy Collection.
Time for the review of this past week’s posts.
This week Mike Biles lifts the lid and reveals the truth about one of my favourite books and television series as a child..Lorna Doone…
My guest this week is multi-genre bestselling author P.C. Zick who shares the inspiration behind her popular Crandall Family Series and what we can look forward to later this year.
I have put together a pdf of the recent book marketing series so that you have all in one place. It is free and the content page and email is in the post.
It is remembrance Sunday and as it was Poet’s Choice this week on Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka challenge… I have written a double etheree ‘Young Soldiers’. I also wrote a Haiku for the header.
Welcome to the round up of posts that you might have missed this week on Smorgasbord.
On the news front I will be offline from this Thursday to Monday 28th October and for a few days in the first week in November. I have however left some posts for you… the regular book promotions and also some surprises.
Delighted to share the news of the start of a series by guest writer Mike Biles, author of A Bit About Britain’s Historywho will be joining us every Saturday until Christmas. His first post next Saturday is about the visit he made to author Rudyard Kipling’shome.
As Just an Odd Job Girl has now finished, I am starting a new serialisation, this time of my first short story collection from 2009, which has just received a lovely review. The first two stories from Flights of Fancy air next weekend.
And I would be grateful if you could pop in on Sunday when Eloise De Sousa will be my guest on the Sunday author Interview
I will be online again by Monday and will respond to any comments then… I will also catch up with any retweets etc on social media.
On with this week’s posts.
As always my thanks to the contributors and guest writers for the time and work that goes into preparing the posts for the blog and to you for keep coming back to read them.
William Price Kingshared the life and music of the renowned King of Swing, Benny Goodman.
Magnesium – Calcium’s BFF and a deficiency alertOne of the minerals that most people focus on is calcium (the last column) but it is in fact magnesium or the lack of this mineral in our diet that may be the contributory factor in many of the diseases that we suffer from, particularly as we get older.
If you are a regular visitor to the blog you will be familiar with Jessica Norrie and her Literary Column which ran in 2018 and has enjoyed a revival this year too. We also get to enjoy an extract from Jessica’s latest release – The Magic Carpet
This week in the Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 145 we are being asked to write in response to the photo prompt selected by last month’s winner of the challenge, Diana Wallace Peach.. I have composed a double Etheree – The Moonlight Concerto
In the UK according to overall cancer statistics from Cancer Research UK there were 363,484 new cases in 2016, and 164,900 deaths in 2017. There is now a 50% survival rate over 10 years but, 38% of cancers are preventable.
This week I am share the the impact on a child’s body of a high sugar diet and lack of nutrition in relation to their brain development and hormone production as they head into puberty.
In her finalpost Linda Thompson shares the sadness of loss. In this case when a relationship dies and we have to leave elements of our previous life behind. Thankfully most of us find another safe haven.
Welcome to the weekly round up of posts that you might have missed here on Smorgasbord.
There are a few things going on around this neck of the woods in the coming weeks, including a bit of break from routine for me as I head off to dog and house sit for my sister whilst she takes on the Bay of Biscay in November on a cruise!
I will make sure the regulars are posted and there is plenty to read on the days that I am traveling. I intend to do some work on writing projects when I am away, but the good news is that the current WIP is now moving into the formatting phase and I hope to have it available by early December. It is a bit of a departure from my usual short story collections as I also include verse and flash fiction. I will let you know more about it nearer the time.
This year’s Christmas promotion
I am also plotting this year’s Christmas book promotions and I will be sharing a post in the next week or so about the International Christmas Book Fair which will including some guest posts on writing from some of the authors in the Cafe and Bookstore, offering additional separate promotional opportunities.
In the bookstore there are authors from all around the world and I want to make sure that every author is promoted. You won’t need to do a thing.. although it would be great if you would share the posts. Look out for news of this promotional feature in the last week of October with a start date of mid-November.
My thanks as always to the wonderful regular contributors and guest writers who share their work with us here. And also to you for your constant support for the blog.
Time to get on with this week’s posts….
The Travel Column this month with D.G. Kaye, is in response to the tourist board of the Bahamas request for visitors to resume their holidays on the Islands, recently devastated by the recent hurricane. Tourism is the main source of income for the Islands and without it reconstruction will be severely hampered.
We are coming to the end of the re-run of Jessica Norrie’s Literary Column from last year, with one more to come at the end of November with some great gift recommendations.. In the meantime, Jessica who was reaching a milestone birthday at the end of last year, shared books that were released in the year of her birth.. It is an interesting exercise to check which bestsellers were released at the same time as you were! The link is in the post.
Robbie Cheadle rounds off her popular series on the York Chocolate Story with the conversion of the factory to make munitions and the production of high energy sweets for life rafts.
If you are offered the opportunity to do a podcast or radio interview then grab it.. but also do your preparation to make sure you are getting the right message across to encourage readers to buy your book.
My book review for Silent Heroes by Patricia Furstenberg.
I recommend that if you are unfamiliar with why and how the young men and women of our armies are involved in this conflict, that you read Silent Heroes. It is a way to honour their service, that of their canine brothers-in-arms, and the bravery of the Afghanistan population, trying to exist in a country torn apart by devastating conflict.
This week for Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 148 Colleen Chesebro has given us the prompt words ‘Empty and Space’ and I have selected the synonyms ‘Hollow and Distance‘ A butterfly cinquain– Rejection.
In Linda Thompson’sthird post, she explores the phenomenon that is the mystery of the missing sock.. it is rampant in our household too and I suspect from all the mentions online that it is now an epidemic…
This is the finalpost of Melanie Stewart who blogs at Leaving the Door Open: A Daughter’s stories about an aging parent.This week When The Money Runs Out
Ovarian cancer is one of the deadliest forms of the reproductive system. Karen Ingallsis an ovarian cancer survivor and therefore supremely qualified to write this article.. The post carries an important message about understanding how our bodies work and how we should be on the alert for anything that seems out of the ordinary.
The Obesity epidemic – Part Four– Finding a point to intervene in the life cycle – 7 – 14 – School Lunches This week I am going to cover, what I consider the best time to intervene in the obesity epidemic, to achieve the most effective results.
Welcome to the weekly round up with some of the posts you might have missed on Smorgasbord..
This week has been interesting with the tail end of Lorenzo and with two more storm fronts rolling in behind it. I almost got my wish for my own swimming pool right outside the front door but thankfully we had one sunny day in the week and another today to evaporate some of the moisture. I have decided that my arthritis in my knee is actually rust and am going to see if the DIY hack of using WD40 might help.
But I cannot complain as the tiny pansies that I planted along with the mini cyclamens are thriving despite wind and rain and they are clearly Irish born and bred.
The week’s continue to fly by and hard to believe it is October, until you go into the supermarket and see that Quality Street is back in tins, two for a tenner and frozen turkey’s are on special! They do draw the line at mentioning the ‘C’ word but any week now..
Anyway… here are the posts from the week and thanks to the contributors who give up their time and offer their expertise to us all.. and to you for your continued support.
This week William Price King shares the life and music ofBill Evans, American Jazz pianist and composer (1929 – 1980).
Author Robbie Cheadle has been sharing The York Chocolatestory with us, following her recent trip to the UK. The York Chocolate Series Part Four – Chocolate in wartime First World War 1914 – 1918
The series continues after the summer break with a look at the minerals we can become deficient in… this week we feature Calcium and Carol Taylorwhips up a couple of great recipes to make sure you and your family are getting sufficient.
It is my mother’s birthday today and she would have been 102. Goodness knows what mischief she would have been up to if still with us, but I have a feeling that she is probably with my father and has got him suited and booted and going to a dinner dance tonight. Happy Birthday Mollie Eileen (The Duchess) 1917 – 2012
Imogen heads off to the wilds of Cornwall to start working at Killbilly Hotel… with a very spooky welcome..Chapter Fifteen – Killbilly Hotel, Cornwall and a Gothic Welcome.
This week it is poet’s choice for Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 147 and since time is whizzing faster than I can keep up with… I thought I would remind you just what October is really all about…time to get prepared for the night of reckoning….The Spell by Sally Cronin
Despite the fact that it is very difficult to get the attention of the mainstream media, I still believe that you should make every effort to get your book noticed. If you have done everything right – well written, edited, formatted and produced either in print, E-book or both, then it deserves your best shot.
In her second post, Linda Thompsonshares her encounter with Donna C… who matured faster than her fellow schoolmates and had two elder sisters to give her a head start. Linda also has some wisdom to share on body image.. Thank you, Donna C., Wherever You Are
This is the third post ofMelanie Stewart who blogs at Leaving the Door Open: A Daughter’s stories about an aging parent. In this post, Melanie’s mother faces the loss of a friend who had become like a sister to her. Saying Goodbye, a Story of a Friendship
This is the third post fromPeter Mohan who blogs at Cheers, Govanhill . In this post witty observations on the absurdity of modern life. I’m not going to Polmadie at this time of night
The Female Reproductive System – The fertile years 10 – 50 years old. In this third part of the series on the female reproductive system a look at some of the health issues that might occur in the 40 years that it is active.
In part two of this series I looked at diet from two to seven years old with the emphasis on developing a healthy immune system in a relatively short window of time. This week I look at declining activity levels for this age group.
Welcome to the round up of posts that you might of missed this week on Smorgasbord.
September 29th each year is a very special date for us… and I thought I would share with you a fairy story that explains its significance.
Once upon a time there was a red-headed girl who was assistant manager in a hotel in a small hamlet in Mid-Wales. Bontddu ( the dd is th in Welsh and the u is ee so pronounced Bontthee) I mention this as my mother insisted on telling everyone that Sally was working in a hotel in Bonteedudu!
I had been there for 18 months and to be honest, the little time I had between shifts was spent either sleeping or walking (I had no car) to the two towns equal distance 5 miles each way. Dolgellau and Barmouth a delightful seaside resort with a long sandy beach.
I had been married before for seven years and that had foundered around the four year mark but dragged on for another three (I must have broken a mirror). I was quite determined that I was never getting married again after this experience, and to this end I still wore a wedding ring to deter any possible overtures I might have been lucky enough to receive.
On one sunny Snowdonia morning (rare at certain times of the year) I intercepted a phone call in reception from someone wishing to book two rooms for two weeks. I will admit that I was quite taken with the soft Irish accent of the man on the other end of the phone, and having reserved the two rooms, I put the receiver down and turned to one of the receptionists and uttered the famous last words ” He sounds rather nice, I think I’ll marry him!” Much hilarity ensued and a week went by.
On the day of the reservation I had been off for a few hours and returned to assume restaurant management duties. In those days I was required to wear a long dress in the evenings at dinner and guests were formally accompanied to their tables. It was not long before I identified the Irish accent as Room 40. Tall, dark haired and very handsome, a veritable Prince Charming. To be honest I was all of a twitter (not the 140 character kind) and during the course of my duties I enquired of room 40 if he had been given sufficient crackling….
To cut a short story even shorter. I arranged a number of meetings and dinners for Room 40, and two weeks went by without so much of flicker of interest from said resident. If not for the opportune intervention of a couple who were regular guests at the hotel it may well have remained a disappointing encounter.
They enquired, obviously in earshot of Room 40, if my divorce had been finalised. I replied that I had received that particular gift on my birthday back in February, and that I was officially free again. Well, talk about Speedy Gonzalez…. before I could say I was not that kind of girl, the next day I was taken out on my day off for lunch, treated to a Chinese Takeaway when I got off duty that night, and presented with a Celtic pendant for all my assistance..
There must have been more than MSG in the Chinese because I suddenly heard the words “I think there is only one thing for us to do, will you marry me”
I think my flabber must have been well and truly gasted because before I could laugh at this insane proposal, on our first date, barely past first name terms, I said yes.
That was 29th September 1980, 13 days after his arrival at the hotel and into my life. And forget the long engagement. He found us a flat in Dolgellau, posted the bans at the local registry office and 39 years ago on November 15th, we were married on a wild and blustery Welsh morning. Even more shocked than the bride where her parents, the groom’s parents and my boss.
After the proposal David left to get the flat organised whilst I went into the hotel for the normal busy Saturday. My boss was enjoying his morning coffee with the local paper when I announced casually I was getting married… “Who the hell to”…was the response and mine ” Room 40″
We have travelled the world together, lived in 17 homes both temporary and permanent, worked side by side and on occasion in separate countries. We have had our moments but they have been brief and usually down to me being a bit of a handful! We are best friends and have shared laughter, loss and humour, and somewhere I believe there is a very smug fairy godmother….
Time to get on with this week’s posts that you might have missed….
As always my thanks to contributors and guests who take the time to write such amazing posts, that are informative, entertaining and inspiring. And to you for dropping in and being part of the week.
Jessica Norrie is exploring books that are set on the coastline in various places around the world. I love the sea and hope that when we buy our final house it has a view of the ocean and all its changing moods.
The York Chocolate Series – Part Three – Chocolate in wartime Second Anglo Boer War 1899 – 1902 – In 1899, war broke out for the second time between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics in South Africa. In advance of Christmas 1899, Queen Victoria asked Cadbury, which held a Royal Warrant as suppliers of cocoa and chocolate products, to produce tins of chocolate to send to the British men fighting in South Africa as a gift..
Previously Imogen takes a temporary job selling advertising for a local paper and ends up running a very interesting section … selling personal services! Chapter Thirteen – Makeover and the art of buying a car.
Previously Imogen went into Central London for a much needed makeover and shopping trip, which brought to mind her friends escapades when buying a new car. She now moves on to a private school where she finds more interesting characters. Chapter Fourteen – Mayhew School for Boys and Girls.
Time for this week’s response to Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 146 and this week we are tasked with finding synonyms for the words ‘Fall and Give‘.. and I have chosen ‘Drop and Gift’..
Linda Thompson’s first post is a wonderful, nostalgic look back through the years to special family dinners and how it is so important that our elderly parents are given the opportunity to still feel useful in our lives. A Place at the Table for All
This is the final post from educator and author Pete Springer .I think most of us who have finished our careers allegedly to retire, find there are elements of our jobs that are missed, and in this post, Pete shares the ones that he misses the most about teaching. What I Miss Most About Being a Teacher by Pete Springer
This is the secondpost of Melanie Stewart, she is faced with a logistical nightmare to get on the road for a trip and deal with a sudden change to her 87 year old mother, Ginny’s cable set up. The Cable Debacle.
This is the second post fromPeter Mohan who blogs at Cheers, Govanhill as his alter ego .. Boy David. I selected this post as we head into the late autumn and we get visitors both of the garden variety and field.Footprints in the Butter – Cheers Govanhill.
The obesity epidemic and finding a point to intervene in the life cycle – this week the diet of two to seven year olds, can determine their health in adulthood.
Thank you so much for being part of the week here on Smorgasbord, and I hope you have enjoyed your visit.. please pop in again next week.. thanks Sally.
Welcome to the weekly round up of posts the you might have missed during the week on Smorgasbord blog Magazine.
You might have noticed that the round up has a new header. Apart from looking to give the post a bit of a freshen up, I also wanted to emphasise the theme that I have developed over the last seven years, of a magazine style blog with a wide range of subjects. You will see from this round up that there are a number of regular contributors and guest writers.
Currently on a fortnightly or monthly basis I am lucky enough to have William Price King (music column), Carol Taylor (Food and Cookery Column), D.G. Kaye (Travel Column), Annette Rochelle Aben(Numerology) and Silvia Todesco (Italian Cookery) and I write the (Health Column). Jessica Norrie wrote a wonderful (Literary Column) last year which I am currently repeating.
Do you have an area of expertise that you would like to share and promote your blog or books at the same time?
If you have an area of expertise that you would like to share here on Smorgasbord and can write a column of between 1000 to 1500 word every two weeks or once a month, then please get in touch. It could be care of elderly parents, Cooking by nationality – French, Indian, Chinese etc, Writing or Editing guidance, History of where you live etc.. contact me on sally.cronin@moyhill.com so we can chat about it..
If you do not have the time to commit to a monthly column, perhaps like baking, chocolate expert and author Robbie Cheadle, you might like to do a short series of guest posts.. Check Robbie’s latest post on The York Chocolate Story later on in the round up and get in touch if you would be interested in doing something similar @sally.cronin@moyhill.com
From sun tan to wellies
We have had a wonderful week weather wise and we were lulled into a false sense of security. I checked the ten day forecast which predicted rain for until after October 5th and beyond so exchanging my bikini (thank goodness there are no drones in the area) I legged it to the garden centre and bought all my wintering flowering plants, some new potting compost and dashed back to spend the afternoon changing out all the pots.
This may be the last recorded sunshine of the year! So this week I am just going to share this special moment, and the new mini cyclamens and winter flowering pansies.
Now on to the posts from the week, and as always a huge thank you to the contributors, this week William Price King, Carol Taylor and Robbie Cheadle with some special mentions. And also for your support every week and generosity.
And a special thank you to D.G. Kayewho devoted her regular Writers Tips post to all the three Cafe and Bookstore book marketing posts so far…What an amazing thing to do. Debby has been part of the support team for the blog for five years and every night, even when she is on her winter break in Mexico she comments shares all my posts from the day across her social media. Thanks Debby and sorry they are not real…
Carol Taylor shares the joys of soup which can be eaten whatever the weather as a starter or as a snack even as a main meal if it is a substantial one served with lots of fresh crusty bread or with the addition of rice or noodles as it is served here
Carol Taylor is another friend that I owe a bouquet of flowers to. Not just for the wonderful posts that she brings us throughout the year but also the support she offers every week by sharing my posts on her eclectic and fascinating blog. Healthy eating, conservation, Thai foods and cookery and down to earth commonsense. Next month it will be the second anniversary of the food column and I am very grateful for her generous contribution. Thank you Carol.
Part two of The York Chocolate Story from Robbie Cheadle.. not sure how much more temptation I can take lol.. find out more about The Terrys and the Cravens.
My guest this week is regular guest to the blog, author Darlene Foster who has recently released another book in her successful Amanda Travel Series. Later in the post she shares an excerpt from Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action
Twitter – New look and and step by step guide to Book Marketing useful functions.
As an author with books to market, getting as storefront on Twitter is important. It is a networking site and whilst you may not want to use for social media, it is great for connecting with other authors, reviewers, bloggers, all of whom are likely to be readers too. Here is a step by step guide to getting your books front and centre.
For this week’s Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 145 Colleen Chesebro has provided us with a photo prompt.. in a new twist the previous month’s poet of the week for the photo prompt gets to choose the image..This month that honour falls to Jane Dougherty. I have selected a #Tanka for this week’s challenge…Adrift
This is the final post from the archives of author and poet, Patricia Furstenbergwho as you can tell from some of her books is a dog lover. Children and pets can be magical and bonds are formed that ensure a child never feels unsafe or alone throughout their early years. In this post Patricia explores this in more details. Pets — Understanding Your Child’s Affinity Towards Animals (2018) by Patricia Furstenberg
This is the finalpost from the archives of author, fitness advocate and photographer Terri Webster Schrandt. In her post Terri offers four reasons to attend the next one you are invited to. Four Reasons to Attend a Blogging Conference (2017) by Terri Webster Schrandt
This is the final post from the archives of Jim Borden who blogs on‘Borden’s Blather’across a variety of topics. I know that my computer can be funny weird… frequently but have not so far seen it be funny ha ha! So I decided to end Jim’s short series for this season with this post. Can Computers be Funny? (2018) by Jim Borden
This is the third post from educator and author Pete Springer who began blogging in April this year. I am sure you will agree that he has made a fantastic start to his new project. Pete shares some incidents that could have been a lot worse if laughter had not been the outcome.. and there there is the mystery of the knocking in the pipes! The Importance of a Good Sense of Humor by Pete Springer
Delighted to welcome Melanie Stewart to the series.. In Melanie’s firstpost she shares some of the wisdom she picked up from author Judith Viorst who is almost 90 years old and the joy that her mother who is in her 80s, has found in following Tiger Woods…. Finding Joy in your 80s and 90s (2018)
This is the first post from Peter Mohanwho blogs at Cheers, Govanhill as his alter ego .. Boy David…I thought in this first post I would let Peter introduceGovanhill to you to set the scene for the other posts Thou shalt buy thy round
I repeat this series in particular every year, in the hopes that those who are new to the blog will find it interesting and useful. I worked with couples who were planning on getting pregnant and it was important that both understood how each other’s reproductive systems worked. Also if you know your body well, if something is even slightly different from the norm, it encourages you to have it checked out. The Female Reproductive System.
After 45 years of working in the food industry and then in the last twenty as a nutritional therapist, I explore where in the life cycle we can intervene to prevent the current obesity crisis.
Welcome to the weekly round up of posts you might have missed here on Smorgasbord.
I hope you have had a great week and certainly it has been fun and a little hectic around here. The weather was very autumnal and it seems that this next couple of days will be the last for quite some time for a bit of sunshine. We are thinking of all of you who are dealing with Dorian at the moment and hope that everyone is safe, whilst acknowledging that we might get wet in Ireland but never to the extremes that many of you have to contend with.
One of the tasks this week was to plan the autumn overhaul of the blog and put some new series in place to keep you entertained and informed. My intention is to focus the book promotions on the authors in the Cafe and Bookstore to increase their visibility on a more regular basis.
One of these is the new Sunday Interviewseries exclusively for authors in the Cafe and to kick it off and to show you how it is done… D.G. Kaye, Debby Gieswill be here next Sunday September 8th with her interview. I am now booking interview at the end of October and into November, so if you have a new book coming out then you might like to take advantage of this additional promotion. Details are in this link, including on how to get your books on the shelves of the Cafe and Bookstore in the first place.
Your regular contributors will be with us through the rest of the year – D.G. Kaye is here with the Travel Column tomorrow with another Caribbean gem, William Price King and the Music Column is back this coming Tuesday every two weeks, Carol Taylorwill have more recipes with a touch of Thai spice every second Wednesday and Silvia Todesco will be wowing us with Italian Cookery once a month.
I have some guest writers lined up and author Robbie Cheadle whose popular children’s series Sir Chocolate story and cookbook, is contributing a five part series on the history of chocolate…beginning Monday September 9th.
I also want to continue to support new and established bloggers by bringing back the Blogger Dailyat least two days a week if not more.
Help me promote you.
I would be grateful if you can help me out and hopefully give your books a boost by letting me know when you have a new release coming out. Some of you are doing pre-orders on your new books and I am happy to do the New Book on the Shelves promotions a week to 10 days in advance of publication date for readers to take advantage of any offers. I think that time scale adds a sense of urgency that encourages readers to buy whilst there is still an offer.
If you have a new review
There are 160 active authors in the Cafe at any one time and I do two review updates a week on Mondays and Fridays. It takes quite a lot of time to check each author and go into Amazon and Goodreads in search of a recent review and you would be helping me out if you give me a helping hand.
If you have a new review for a book that is on the shelves and are on Facebook, direct message me with the book title and I will do the rest, or you can leave in the comments on any of the Cafe and Bookstore posts. The posts receive on average 80 views and it does boost that if all the authors featured share on their own social media. It is free so all it takes is a little time and worth it if you make a sale or two.
Here is the link for the Cafe and Bookstore and you can check to see if you have your most recent review showing on your entry… if not let me know.
Another new series begins next week offering new bloggers whose blogs are 12 months or younger an opportunity to showcase their posts. Also a step by step guide to setting up your blog to be reader friendly. If you know any bloggers who are just setting out, then please pass this on to them.. thanks
The key element to all these promotion is you.. If you want to take advantage of my audience and blog and social media platforms, all you have to do is ask.
Now on with the posts from the last week.
As always a huge thank you to everyone who contributes, participates in the Archive post series and to you for dropping in and leaving a comment or sharing.. It is appreciated.
Annette Rochelle Aben shares the universal energy we can expect in September that will impact us all to one degree or another..
A took a look at the ‘Quoted’ following of one of the paid for promoting book sites when they approached me on LinkedIn a couple of weeks ago, claiming to put my book in front of 200,000 potential readers.. what I found was considerably less that across their website and social media.. in fact they fell over 198,000 short!
Goodreads is another great platform to have your books centralised and where anywhere in the world can review your books, whether they have been bought from Amazon, been given as a gift or borrowed from the library. Getting your author page set up step by step.
I have been reading a series over the last few months and am now reading the fourth David Slaton novel. I am reviewing the first in the series,The Perfect Assassin by USA Today Bestselling author Ward Larsen, as I cannot recommend the books enough…
In the last of the summer festival series, some of the music from the movies that have become iconic hits.. On Wednesday William Price King returns with more musicians in the spotlight.
This week’s Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 142 offered the prompts ‘Character and Wild’.. with our choice of synonyms. I have selected ‘Protagonist and Primitive‘ in a double etheree.
This is the first post from the archives of author, fitness advocate and photographer Terri Webster Schrandt. I chose this post to kick off Terri’s series, since I need a severe kick up the backside with regard to fitness..I need to do better…Perspectives on Fitness (2014)
This is the first post from the archives ofJim Bordenwho blogs on ‘Borden’s Blather’ across a variety of topics –Wellness Wednesday: Take a Two-Minute Walk Before You Read This (2015)
This is the second post from the archives of the eclectic blog of writer Marilyn Armstrong and I have selected this one from 2014 because I think most of us have a favourite, stand out year. Marilyn’s Favourite Year – 1969 (2014)
This is the second post of author Antoinette Truglio Martin who began blogging in 2018.. I am going to share four posts from her archives that were part of her A-Z challenge last year. Since my downfall is and has always been food….I enjoyed browsing Antoinette’s challenge. Now who does not like a hamburger….
This is thesecond post fromauthor and designer, Valentina Cirasola who has three blogs all under the same roof to enjoy.Friday Fashion Blog Home Designs Master Blog and The Good Life Blog. I have chosen this post as it shares the creativity of the young designers of tomorrow, some as young as 14 years old. Artistry in #Fashion (2016)- Valentina Cirasola
This is the second post from the archives of Anne Copeland, writer of nonfiction articles, books, and poetry, as well as a mixed media and fiber artist. Fashion Sense More of Who I Will be Today (2018)
This is the second post of authorEllen Hawley who has enjoyed a wonderfully varied career before leaving the United States to settle in Cornwall. I love Cornwall and its unique place in our history and also its determination to retain its language and customs. So I thought you would enjoy this post as much as I did. A Cornish mile and a Cornish saint (2016)
Thank you again for all your support this week and I look forward to hearing from you should you wish to participate in any of the current or future promotions.. Sally.
Welcome to the round up of posts that you might have missed on Smorgasbord this week.
New series – Sally’s Cafe and Bookstore – Book Marketing.
As part of my career I have been responsible for both sales and marketing departments in Advertising and telecommunications. I took my experience across to publishing in the 1999 when selling the services of a self-publishing company in Canada and then with our own authors from 2004 for our publishing company and with regard to my own books. The principals of selling a product are the same whatever the industry and one of the key elements is to find your buyer first.
I will cover that in part three of the series as I felt that I should address an issue that has cropped up several times in the years and certainly more so in the last few weeks that I have been promoting authors here on Smorgasbord, and being a key selling element for books, I wanted to address first.
This week I featured the Amazon Author Page and is importance in selling books. Far too often I am asked to add an author to the Cafe and Bookstore and I find that they either have no Author Page or there are books missing, no biography or photo. Also that even when those elements are included there are missing books.
I am missing books because of a very frustrating anomaly. As an author in Ireland, and independent, not through KDP, Amazon has interpreted the rules on VAT and have demanded that we register for VAT even though print books are not subject to that Tax here. And even if it was, most of us do not reach the 37,500 Euro threshold for registration (only wish I did!). So we took my print books down and I sell them locally through bookshops and at events. So you will only see my Ebooks available which is the majority. For me that is fine as that still allows me to sell my books to a global market, and to be honest most international sales prefer Ebooks as they are less expensive and don’t incur post and packaging charges.
However, for an author not faced with that issue it is important to have a central selling point for your books…and a link that you can give out on your blog, social media, email signature, business cards etc.
I have been asked why it is necessary to have an Author’s Page on Amazon if authors already have a presence on book promotion sites where their covers, blurb, reviews and a link to Amazon are featured.
The answer is that like my Cafe and Bookstore and Goodreads, they are book marketing sites not selling sites, so the reader still has to go through a two step process.
That is not to say that they do not provide a valuable service in identifying your books to potential reader (be careful of how much you are paying for the privilege) Goodreads are free as is the Cafe and Bookstore but others will charge.
When the potential readers click on the buy link to Amazon, it is a good idea if they go to a central selling point for several reasons, the most important being is that they don’t just see one book, they see all of them. And they may well decide to buy more than one book, especially if the book they clicked on is one of a series with two or three books before it.
Also, having an established author page with all your books, bio, photograph, rss link to your blog establishes enhances your credibility as an author.
I hope you will read the post and I have taken screen shots of the various steps to give you a guide to the process. If you do not feel confident enough to create the page yourself, then ask someone you are happy to share your Amazon password with and who is computer savvy to follow the directions.
Also I am happy to pop in and take a look at your Amazon Author Page and offer some suggestions as to how you might create a stronger selling message.
New series. Sally’s Cafe and Bookstore Book Marketing – Part one – a step by step guide to setting up an Amazon Author Page – an essential selling tool.
Just a reminder of the new Sunday Interview series beginning Sunday 8th September exclusively for authors in the Cafe and Bookstore. If you are not already in the bookstore there is a link in the post that gives you the details..
My thanks as always to the wonderful contributors to the blog and you will be delighted to hear that William Price King will be back from his summer in the Alps above his home in Nice, to share more musicians who have impacted the industry in the last 50 years.
Let me see if I can whet your appetite…Chicken and parmesan meatballs with a creamy lime and caper sauce…an iconic dish in Thailand called Pad Thai…
Two more chapters from my novel Just an Odd Job Gird.. and Chapter Three is all about the interview with the employment agency and some fun and games in Imogen’s first job.
The final letter home in August 1986 as I would be going to the UK for two weeks and then we began extending our Sunday telephone calls. This post covers are trip to Barbados, and you don’t want to know where that sand went!
This is the final post of Debbie the DogLady who lives in Toronto, Canada and posts about travel, music, life and of course dogs. I have chosen four of her dog sitting adventures to share with you and in this post we meet Muskoka a labrador with a taste of cigarette butts and socks…
This is the final post from Marsi, who with her husband Robert, embarked on a four month journey west.This post only has one photograph, but I thought it would make an amazing prompt for a bit of fiction…..35mm Film Photography – One Hit Wonders: Tumbleweeds in Thompson Springs, Utah by Marsi
In the final post from L.T. Garvin for this series, I have selected this on some of the excuses given and also predicaments some crazy criminals get themselves into. Crazy Criminals (2015) by L.T. Garvin
For the lastpost in this series from the archives of author Claire Fullerton, I have selected one of her book reviews. Claire is prolific reviewer and always brings out the best in both book and author…The Stolen Child by Lisa Carey reviewed (2017) by Claire Fullerton
This is the final post from the archives of Smitha Vishwanath who shares poetry, wonderful travel posts and life experiences on her blog. I have chosen this poem for the last post in Smitha’s series, not just because it is beautiful, but also because it won the Certificate of Outstanding Performance from Asian Literary Society. Dewdrop- The Love of the Wind (2018) by Smitha Vishwanath
This is the final post from author K.D.(Karen DeMers) Dowdall’s archives and she also has some news, with The Captain’s Witch, her latest book being released on September 1st. I have chosen one of Karen’s book reviews as her last post as I thought the cover was very striking. A Review of The Starling by Kathy Lauren Miller (2017) by Karen DeMers Dowdall
This is thefirstpost from the archives of the eclectic blog of writer Marilyn Armstrong. I selected it as it gives some background to the title of both her blog and her book. As writers we are inspired by experiences, images, people, emotions and the list goes on. I thought this was very special. The 12-Foot Teepee (2012) by Marilyn Armstrong
This is thefirstpost of author Antoinette Truglio Martin who began blogging in 2018.. I am going to share four posts from her archives that were part of her A-Z challenge last year. Since my downfall is and has always been food….I enjoyed browsing Antoinette’s challenge. A is for Artichoke.
This is the first post from the archives of Anne Copeland, writer of nonfiction articles, books, and poetry, as well as a mixed media and fiber artist. I have selected this post as I found it profoundly moving and inspiring. The Day in the Life of a Child (2018) Anne Copeland
This is the firstpost from author and designer, Valentina Cirasola who has three blogs all under the same roof to enjoy.Friday Fashion Blog Home Designs Master Blog and The Good Life Blog. I have chosen this post to start Valentina’s series as I found this ritual fascinating and will be trying the technique with our next bottle of cheap red plonk… plus I do like fennel to eat.Is There A Trick in Fennel And Wine? (2011) -Valentina Cirasola
This is the first post of authorEllen Hawley who has enjoyed a wonderfully varied career before leaving the United States to settle in Cornwall. Weather – The Beast from the East (2018) by Ellen Hawley
We have now worked our way down to the liver and in the surrounding area you will also find some other vital organs, the pancreas, gallbladder and the intestines.
Welcome to the the post on the blog for the week that you might have missed.
Firstly, I mentioned last week that there would be a new Sunday Interview beginning soon.. and the promotional post went out today. All authors who are currently on the shelves of the Cafe and Bookstore are invited… and there is also an opportunity for other authors to join them after their initial book promotions. I hope you will take a look at the post and take advantage of the opportunity to promote your work.
Secondly…Nothing much of note going on around here on a personal level, as the weather has been autumnal and we have had a lot of projects on. I am also offline during the mid part of the day working on my WIP.. which has now turned into 4 WIPs… I just can’t help myself!
As always my thanks to the contributors who bring such interesting content to the blog, and of course to you for supporting and sharing so brilliantly.
Jessica Norrie asks the questionCan your protagonist be too old to be interesting?And offers some examples of books where the protagonist’s age is a key element of the story. BTW.. Jessica is undergoing eye surgery and will be back to respond to any comments in a few weeks.
This week for Colleen’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge 140 she has given us the prompt words ‘Light and Dark‘ and I selected the synonyms ‘Fair and Night’ As last week I paid tribute to the dogs in our lives.. this week I thought the least I could do was pay homage to our cats. Double Etheree – A Cat’s Life by Sally Cronin
I hope you will enjoy my flash fiction in response to Carrot Ranch Flash Fiction Challenge by Charli Mills This week the prompt was sweet jam… and here is my 99 words, no more no less. Strawberry Jam by Sally Cronin
Those of us who have books available on Amazon and other online book sites, particularly ebooks are also vulnerable to pirates, and Debby Gies, D.G. Kaye, shares an interesting possible action we are taking to enable this. Felony or Flattery? #Copyright Infringement and Content Scraping
This is the third post from Marsi, who with her husband Robert, embarked on a four month journey west. I will be sharing posts from their trip in addition to other posts in their archives. In this post Marsi takes us to the other Las Vegas…in New Mexico.With Film Camera in hand, I Explore Quirky Las Vegas (New Mexico) by Marsi
This is the third post from the archives of author Claire Fullerton, and I have selected another of her pieces on life in Ireland as I am sure you will enjoy as much as I do. The Thing about Galway (2016) by Claire Fullerton
This is the third post from author K.D.(Karen DeMers) Dowdall’s archivesKaren features guest posts and I have selected this one as even writers such as myself, with bad habits…. will find it useful. Ten Tips for Proof Reading and Editing (2017) by Karen DeMers Dowdall
This is the third post from the archives of Smitha Vishwanath who shares poetry, wonderful travel posts and life experiences on her blog. This week I am sharing one of Smitha’s favourite posts about family and returning to her roots.
A Few of My Favorite Words 2017 by Elizabeth Gauffreau Do you spend much time thinking about your favorite words, calling each one to the forefront of your mind so that you can explain to yourself once again just how much that word delights you and why?
This is the final post from the wonderfully varied archives of poet and authorRitu Bhathal. This week I have chosen the celebration and lessons learnt by Ritu when she lost two stone back in 2017… a great reminder of how you can lose weight healthily. #Weightloss #HealthyEating – 13 Tips I Learned Over The Last Year 2017 by Ritu Bhathal
This is the final post for author Chuck Jackson and I have selected a book review that he wrote for Educated, a memoir by Tara Westover Educated by Tara Westover
This is the final post from retired librarian and author Cathy Cade, who has been blogging since early 2018. I thought that now you have been introduced to Cathy we might find out more about her in this post, where she was awarded the Sunshine Blogger Award.
This is the last of the posts this series, from the archives of author and poet Joy Lennick, This post by Joy, written in 2013 is on the subject of poetry and explores the distinctions between what is considered serious poetry and that which is written by us mere mortals! Serious poetry is art but is it too elitist? 2013 by Joy Lennick
Last time I looked at the structure and basic function of the liver and in this post I want to cover some of the conditions that can effect this major organ.
There have been some studies that have identified that there is an increase in nutritional deficiency in the diet and here are three articles that are worth reading. Including A physician’s warning on the keto diet – Doctor Shivam Joshi
I hope I leave you dancing around your office with the partner of your choice… thanks for dropping in and I look forward to seeing you again next week..Sally
official site by Mira Peta. This page is about me, but I create it for YOU. I love traveling and I like to enjoy small things. Get inspired and enjoy life!
“Ruffled feathers and endless squawking over a minor difficulty is typical of a crow’s life. I lean back on the counter and realize that could be my line….”
Illustration Kathleen Holdaway Swain
