A friend sent me a text this morning as I was about to go downstairs My heart skipped a beat and I texted her back I hurried out of my room and, of course, when I turned, I dropped my phone on the top step. "Damn it!" I yelled watching the skidding and bouncing on the steps. It landed on the hardwood floor of the living room with a loud crash. Of course! I thought as I harried down the steps. It had to happen at the worst time possible. Now I have to call the ER on the landline and then it will take who knows how long to replace the broken phone. Then I heard a ping sound. I picked up my phone that didn't appear to be broken and saw that I got a text message. I stared at the words on the screen feeling utterly confused. Then a crazy though ran through my mind with lightning speed, my phone is texting me that it's okay!
Then I came to my senses, Don't be stupid! I scolded my imaginative mind for coming up with such a stupid idea, it's Eva... it must to be Eva... I took a closer look at the screen and there it was. Phew... it was Eva. I though feeling relived and burst out laughing. Thank you Droid for building such durable phone! Have you any stories when you thought you lost your marbles? Share it, so I won't feel alone LOL
0 Comments
One thumb downMy coauthor, Joe Bonadonna, and I were shocked and saddened to read this one star review on our book for middle-grade children that a customer posted HERE next to all 5 star reviews. "I was shocked to read offensive language in this children's book. I also thought that the book covered material not suited for the age group. I was confused at times at the simpleness of the language and then at times the advanced words that a parent or teacher would have to explain to a child reading this book. I think the authors need a heavy dose of editing." My first question was to Joe, "Did we piss somebody off?" (Yes, when I'm talking to friends, sometimes I do use mildly offensive language, but not in children's books) Joe was just as shocked as I was and we went into a lengthy discussion about what could this reader find offensive, but the only word we could come up with was "poop" that is mentioned in the book once. We couldn't figure it out which words she referred to as "advanced words" either because the story is written for middle-grade children, therefore, we didn't use "small words baby language" because kids in that age group have a pretty wide vocabulary and they're pretty capable of Googling words that they're not familiar with, which, in fact, prompts them to learn new words. Then we were wondering about what she meant by, "need a heavy dose of editing" because the story is well edited and even our "grammar nazi" friends couldn't find editing errors in the book. We are still puzzled but as good little authors do, we didn't and will not contact the reader to find out what made her write such a negative review about our book. However, Joe contacted customer service and asked them very nicely to read the book and if they find the one star review unwarranted, please remove it. Yeah, fat chance! He didn't even get a reply that at least would sound like a real person read his message and replied. Nope, he got the usual pre-generated reply that the customer service person just have to copy and paste. Anyway, although it bugs the heck out of both of us, nothing we can do about it. We lowly authors can't fight the big giant publishing sites. See? When I get angry, I tend to use bad words but it's okay to use it in my blog post for adults, right? Well, maybe I'll get a one star review for my blog post too... In contrast to this negative review, the book was also rated with six 5 star reviews: Six thumbs upI had such fun reading this "It’s a while since I’ve read a book written for children, and I was pleasantly surprised at the depth of sophistication there is, while still maintaining a tale suitable for the younger reader. The characters leapt off the page, acted naturally and, this is important for me as a reader, I felt for them, cared for them. There were distinct differences between the different stars in the book, both the real children and the mythical ones, well described and the writing flowed from page to page. I must also mention the illustrations, also delightful, although there were fewer towards the end of the book and I would have loved more of them. A great book to buy for your children or grandchildren." A new myth for middle-graders "It's no wonder "Three Ghosts in a Black Pumpkin" received a Golden Book Award and so many rave reviews this early in its career. It's modern fairy tale, built by two with a great ear for the way kids speak today. It's got all the "goo" and spooky characters you expect in modern kind's fantasy. And although it has all this, it is not as scary or traumatizing as "Bambi," a book and movie that traumatized me as a child. Golden Book Award Winner. Spooky, as I said, and funny, Pumpkin delivers heroic adventure for middle-graders. The characters Nikki and her impish cousin, Jack are iconic. They find a mysterious black pumpkin in the forest on Halloween. Soon enough, a talking skeleton, Wishbone, tells them how the ghosts of the Trinity of Wishmothers are trapped inside the pumpkin and can’t be freed without their wands. The children go on an adventure suitable for comics, tv, and even plushy animals. Kids on a quest who meet great paranormal characters and lessons to be learned." 5 Howling Halloween Stars! "Three Ghost in a Black Pumpkin: A Creepy Hollow Adventure by Erika Szabo & Joe Bonadonna is a Halloween Howling Hit! I loved this action packed scary tale from beginning to end and it will certainly engage young readers at home or school. The protagonists are Nikki and Jack, two cousins visiting Grandma's house on the eve of Halloween. While the two children go walking in the woods, they find a keystone, black pumpkin, and Wishbone, a talking skeleton. When Wishbone tells Nikki and Jack about the three Wishmothers who are trapped inside the black pumpkin, they embark on an exciting journey to find three magic wands, battle the antagonists, Hobart and his Tasmanian Devil, who are conjuring all sorts of hocus pocus mayhem in Creepy Hollow. So Nikki, Jack, and Wishbone enter a special portal transporting them to a place called Wormbelow to save Creepy Hollow. Upon exiting the portal they find themselves in a cemetery filled with pretty flowers, tall trees, and glistening spider webs. Wishbone explains the graves are empty because the spirits are free to fly around. Suddenly, Wishbone's friends appear, Catman and the beautiful Ghoulina. Wishbone introduces his friends to the children and they quickly update him on Hobart's plan to destroy Creepy Hollow. Fascinated by everything he sees, young Jack tries to take pictures with his cell phone to capture the incredible surroundings and creatures. Meanwhile, Nikki carefully listens to how Hobart has locked up the mayor of the town and taken charge of Creepy Hollow. Unfortunately, Creepy Hollow does not offer internet and cameras won't work in this mythical place much to Jack's disappointment. Previously, while Wishbone was dualing Hobart, he cleverly hid the three magic wands. Now, the clock is ticking until midnight when the portal closes and the children can return home for the five friends to find the three magic wands, free the three Wishmothers, and restore harmony in Creepy Hollow. Luckily, the three Wishmothers have granted them three magic wishes which they must learn to use wisely for the plan to work. Together the five friends will venture the Red Crow Forest, the Cave of Spooks, and the Tower of Shadows, battling every mythical creature along the way to save the day. This is book one in a series and I am already wondering what ghoulish adventures await this heroic team. As a teacher, I look for books that teach a good lesson and this one will not disappoint. I recommend this book for home or school libraries for children from ages 6 to 12. I gave it 5 Howling Halloween stars!" Delightful! "A blue stone and a black pumpkin found in the woods bordering cousins Nikki Sweet and Jack Brady’s grandmother’s yard transport the two children, accompanied by a talking skeleton wind chime, into the world of Creepy Hollow. They and their finds become central in a desperate attempt to save the town from the power hungry goblin, Hobart T. Hobgoblin and his ruthless accomplices by freeing the three Wishmothers from their imprisonment in the black pumpkin. Not only does this tale—perfect for ages six to young teens--entertain, it teaches important lessons on how to work with others to accomplish goals, how to face fear, the importance of safety, and how to make difficult decisions. A cast of endearing (and some not so sweet) characters, non-stop action and plenty of twists and turns engages and delights." There is magic in this story! "Three Ghosts in a Black Pumpkin is a book that will satisfy the hungry reader. It will not be disappointing. In our era, children are involved in the use of modern tools: cell phones, texting, taking pictures and posting them on face book. Many kids live an unfulfilled life. The children in this story, Nikki and Jack, are no different, but, there is an exception. They get caught up in a realm where they won't get bored. Not a dull moment! They meet mythical characters, witches, goblins, ghosts in spooky, creepy places. The children get involved in saving these creatures that are under spells. This story is intriguing and adventurous. It is engaging, well written and easy to read. You can sense the emotions, courage and fears. It teaches children and young teens a lesson in responsibility. As children reach a certain age, even though not mature, they can venture out into the world, make decisions with no adults supervision, learn to step out their comfort zone, and move through situations that requires their help. The rhymes in the vignettes and the illustrations give a special touch to the story. The authors, Erika Szabo and Joe Bonadonna, share a great talent and imagination when it comes to write children's stories. They take kids and young teens on a magical reading journey that will keep them glued to the pages. I recommend this book for young teens. It is the perfect story for Halloween time. It's like Cool Whip on a pie!" Venture, if you dare, into Creepy Hollow "Somewhere in space and time, across from Halloween, is the world of Creepy Hollow. It used to be protected from evil by the Trinity of Wishmothers. Now, though, they are dead and their ghosts have been trapped in a pitch-black pumpkin by Hobart T. Hobgoblin. The wicked Hobart (and his sidekick, Ebenezer Rex, the Tasmanian Devil) is now free to work evil on the land. On Halloween, twelve-year old Nikki Sweet and her eleven-year old cousin Jack Brady find a black pumpkin. Their immediate reaction is to bring it home and turn it into a jack-o’-lantern. Just as they prepare to fetch a knife, their grandmother’s silver skeleton wind chime Mr. Bonejingles warns them not to do it. The wind chime was once the mighty hero, Wishbone Jones, but he was reduced to his current state by Hobart’s dark magic. Only with the help of Nikki and Jack can he return home and free the Wishmothers from their prison. With a few magic words, Nikki, Jack, and Jones are magically transported to Creepy Hollow. Aided by Wishbone’s friend, Catman, and Goth Wishmother-in-training, Ghoulina, they begin a quest to find the Wishmother’s three wands that will take them to the Red Crow Forest, the Cave of Spooks, and the Tower of Shadows. Nikki and Jack are terrific characters. Their humorous bickering and genuine affection for each other make them very relatable. Wishbone Jones and Catman are good-natured foils for the snarky, sometimes cranky Ghoulina. Together, the band of heroes’ quick wits and courage in the face of deadly crows, evil Shadows, and wicked Spooks, will thrill anyone who picks up The megalomaniacal Hobart T. Hobgoblin is a great villain, who chews up the scenery every time he shows up. Though we never feel sorry for him, we learn enough about his past to understand him. Szabo and Bonadonna’s story crackles with action and excitement. Their storytelling moves with the speed of lightning, but never lets the reader get lost. The atmosphere is just spooky enough to be fun but never enough to be too scary. There are also some valuable lessons to be learned along the way. Nikki and Jack must figure out for themselves that while selfishness and greed can lead to a bad end, courage and self-sacrifice can help defeat evil. Szabo and Bonadonna weave this into the story with great skill. There’s only one real problem with THREE GHOSTS: not enough of Szabo’s delightfully weird illustrations. Combining photographs with painted (?) backgrounds, they bring Creepy Hollow and the characters stunningly to life. My favorite is of the dashing Catman, dressed in brocaded velvet. I’m unable to do justice to the wealth of detail and action Szabo and Bonadonna managed to pack into this short book. From the very first page, they catch the reader up and then don’t let go until the very last page. Any young reader with an interest in fantasy and adventure should probably like and I recommend it highly." Click on the book and read sample chaptersPlease let us know if you find offensive language, editing issues and inappropriate or too advanced words that are not suitable for middle-grade children. Joe and I will be happy to hear your opinion. Share your experienceAre you an author and had similar experience?
Are you a reader and you came across unreasonable reviews? Please share your experience with us in comment. Thank you! Gotcha!
Blinking PocketMy neighbor, Bob, moved to a nursing home shortly after he lost his beloved wife. At 92, paralyzed from the waist down, he was unable to live alone.
I always enjoyed Bob’s company, so I visited him often. On one occasion when I was walking to his room, I saw an old woman sitting in the chair by the wall across from Bob’s room. She looked up at me and said with a serious look on her face, “Your pocket is blinking.” Her stoic statement surprised me and then I thought, the poor dear probably has dementia. I smiled at her; she smiled back, and then she looked at the beautiful orange cat curled up on her lap, purring. The lady gently stroked the back of the cat and started humming. I turned toward Bob’s room with heavy heart thinking, it’s not fair. Life plays a cruel joke on us by the time we get old. When we should be enjoying the golden years, if we’re lucky to live that long get there, most likely we’ll lose most of our abilities to enjoy it with. I forced a cheerful smile on my face, knocked on Bob’s door. “Come on in!” I heard Bob’s raspy voice. I opened the door, walked in and took my sweater off. Bob invited me to sit in his pink, velvet covered armchair that was his wife’s favorite. I poured the cappuccino into delicate porcelain cups from my thermos and put the brownies I had baked for him, onto cookie plates. We talked for a while about books he read recently and music we both enjoyed. At 92 he remembered the past more vividly than what he had for breakfast that day, so as usual, he entertained me with stories of his childhood and his memorable days as a college professor. After an hour or so I noticed that Bob was getting tired, so I collected the empty cups and plates and washed them. As I was drying the cups and put them back in his china cabinet, Bob said, “Something is blinking in your pocket.” I looked over to the chair where I had put my sweater on, and I saw the rhythmically pulsating green light of my cell phone. It shone through the thin material of my sweater. I said feeling ashamed, “Bob, that lady across the hall told me but I didn’t pay attention. I’m so stupid. I assumed she had dementia just because I didn’t realize what she was talking about.” “Margaret? Oh, no,” Bob laughed. “Her mind is as sharp as a well-made Katana.” “I’m so sorry,” I apologized. “I should have known better.” “Don’t sweat it, kiddo,” Bob replied. “See you next week? Oh, could you bake some of your famous cookies, the ones you make with apricot jam and meringue on top?” “You bet! I’ll see you next Saturday.” He flashed a tired smile at me and pressed the call button for the nurse’s aid to help him to bed for his nap. On my way out I approached Margaret and said to her, ‘You were right! I just realized what you said, and my pocket really was blinking.” “Took you long enough,” she laughed and winked at me playfully. inked at me playfully. Thank you for reading my post! Please visit again, Erika M Szabo I got an email today offering book promotion for Indie authors in their online magazine. Let me tell you, my jaw dropped when I opened the email and looked at their prices. $250 (yes, two hundred fifty) for a quarter page ad for ONE book. Do you know how small is a ¼ of a page in an online magazine? They can fit a thumbnail size book cover with one buying link. Seriously? For $250? $500 (Yes, five hundred) for a full page ad for ONE book. Okay, at least they can fit a decent size cover with link and blurb. But for $500? Really? I never met any Indie author who could afford that. $3,700 (Yes, three thousand seven hundred) for a year that includes ONE book ad in six magazine issues. Well, I’m speechless! There is more… They don’t promote the magazines on a website or on social sites. They send out the link to (supposedly) 150,000 email subscribers. However, I seriously doubt that. So, for that much money, your thumbnail size book cover might be seen by a few subscribers. The truth is that the newsletter opening rate dropped to about 30% because the giants such as BookBub are leading this promo option. Readers are not that eager to subscribe to less known magazines. Want to know more? Readers subscribe because they want free books. Do you think it’s worth spending money to advertise your regular priced eBook in the newsletter? I don’t think so. For free books it’s fine (if you can afford the $600 with BookBub) because it increases book ranking. What is there for an author who can't afford high-priced marketing? Keep writing and wait for word-of-mouth advertising. I started writing children's books because...A friend asked me a few weeks ago, "Why did you start writing children's books? I love your awesomely unusual fantasy fiction novels. Why don't you continue writing stories like that?" I told her, "I decided to write children's books because when I was at a friend's house and her five years old daughter asked me to read a story for her, I was disappointed at the book choices she had on her shelf." As a young child, I truly hated it when the princesses in stories were always depicted as beautiful, dumb and helpless. The prince who was handsome and brave rescued them and they lived happily ever after. I asked my mom, "Why can't the princess kick the dragon's butt? Why is she laying there waiting for the prince? Isn't she smart and strong enough to get away?" My mom shook her head and said, "This is the way it is. The prince rescues the princess, and that's that." Mom loved dressing me up in pretty dresses and kind of parade me in church. God, I hated those bows she put in my hair and I could hardly wait to get home and take the itchy, uncomfortable dress and put my faded, ripped jeans on. My dad, maybe because he wanted a boy, encouraged me to get dirty while I helped him to fix the car, hammer nails when we fixed the fence, or dig a hole to plant trees beside him. He also taught me how to defend myself against bullies and stand up for myself and express my opinion. "You're a person," he always said. "It doesn't matter if you're a girl or boy, you're a person." Later on when I was a teenager, most of the stories written for kids were about brave and smart boys who met and helped pretty girls and puppy love developed between them. I was so happy to find children's books as an adult that were about smart girls who can stand up for themselves and don't need a boy's help when they're in trouble. I also found some books that were about girls and boys as equally smart, inventive and brave. These stories told children that it's okay for boys to cry and show compassion, and it's okay for girls to be themselves in ripped and dirty jeans playing soccer, and they don't always have to look pretty in ruffled dresses, be quiet and submissive as society expects them to be. But, when I looked at the little girl's bookshelf, I couldn't find any books that would boost her confidence, tell her that girls are just as smart, strong and brave, as boys. So, I started writing children’s books and using my artistic talent, I illustrate my stories.
Click and read about my children's booksFree books are good, but...
Let's not forget that the author pays the price for every free book. When my fantasy series The Ancestors' Secrets were first published, I was so excited that I ordered about 30 print copies. Then I noticed some formatting errors, so I changed the interior of the book and published it again, but I ended up with 30 books from the first print. So I took the books to work and gave them away for free. Everyone at work was happy and the books were gone within minutes, except one book that two coworkers fought over because both of them wanted it. To end the argument I asked them, "Which one of you like to read fantasy stories?" One said, "I only read steamy romance and vampire stories, but I want this book for my daughter." The other one replied, "I like movies and I don't read books." So I told this other woman, "If you're not going to read it, why do you want it?" She laughed and said, "Because it's free. Free is good, right?" I didn't ask any of my 30 coworkers if they liked the story or not, but for months they kind of avoided me and only two coworkers out of thirty told me that they read the books and loved the story. Yes, free is good, but... There are a lot of readers on social sites who attend events and win giveaway books, browse selling sites for promotional giveaways, or bluntly ask the authors for free copies. Do they read all the free books that are stored on their reading devices? This interaction with a reader made me doubt that. I did two giveaways when my audio books were published. I gave out free, promotional download codes for honest reviews. A reader won my book in the first giveaway and when I did another one two months later, she was selected as a winner by the random "winner chooser" program. She messaged me for the code and when I reminded her that she had the book already, she replied, "Oh, I forgot LOL." and I never heard from her again. Mind you, these giveaways were a "free copy for an honest review" but she didn't keep her promise to post a review for the free book, she didn't even bother listening to the audio book. It remains a mystery why she wanted the book twice if she wan't interested in listening to it even once. Moreover, this morning I had an interesting chat with a reader. She messaged me asking for a free eBook of my children's story, Pico The Pesky Parrot. She explained that the granddaughter of her friend loved the book, and she wanted it for her six years old grandson because she just got the iPad she purchased for him and wanted to give it to him with lots of picture books on it. I sent her the link to buy it on Amazon, but she replied that $2.99 is too much for an eBook for a young kid. You know what? At first I was tempted to give her a free book because it was for a child, but then I thought about it and said no. If she could afford paying $700 for an iPad and finds $2.99 book too highly priced, she has no respect for my work, and she doesn't care that I have to put food on the table from the money I make by selling my books. She doesn't care how many hours I spend writing the book, drawing and painting illustrations, and how much money I spend on editing and publishing. I made a decision not to give my books away for free anymore. I rather have three readers who respect my work and pay for my books than one thousand readers who just want a free book because they don't care how much work goes into it. Once upon a time before eBooks and audio books, I became a book hoarder. I loved the excitement of my trips to the bookstore, organizing the treasures I came home with, and of course, I what I enjoyed most, was reading. I categorized my books too, those books that made it to the eye level shelves after the first read deserved more than one read. Oh, the good old days :) Today, when millions of eBooks are published, the new kind of book hoarders are emerging. With so many books on the market, the authors are giving out complimentary books for review in order to spread the word about their books. The more reviews are posted on a book, the higher it gets on the book rank. The new kind of book hoarders download the complimentary books, and then, sadly, most of them forget about it. They get caught up in the frenzy of getting more and more books. They attend events, enter giveaways and some even go as far as messaging the authors asking for a free book. It happened a few times when I looked at the winners list in my events ad noticed that I sent them complimentary copies for review already. They never posted reviews, so I messaged them. One of my conversations with a reader after my event where I offered complimentary copies of my book: Me: "Hi, you are one of the winners of the complimentary book for review. However, your name is on my list showing that you received my magical realism book when I did a giveaway contest on my website two months ago." Reader: “Oh, yeah! I just checked my Kindle and have your book, but I read only romance and erotica. I don't like fantasy and such. LOL” Me: "I understand, but I'm just curious why you accepted my book when I sent it to you as a gift? The giveaway was clear that the complimentary book was for an honest review." Reader: "Hehe, because it was free." Me: I wanted to say a few things, but then I changed my mind and didn't send a reply. I think the book hoarders today don’t value books as much as the book hoarders did when only print books were available. They scroll through their ereader’s library and see the hundreds of books they gathered, but the value is not there. It is a row of books that they might never read because they’re busy getting more. They download books without selecting the ones they will actually read, just because they can get the books for "free". Books are not free. To write a book it takes months and even years when the author spends countless hours writing, re-writing and polishing the story to perfection. To publish a book takes a lot of work and money: The author or publisher pays for editing, book cover, formatting, ISBN, copyright registration and so on. Then comes the hard part, promotion. When the author or publisher gives out complimentary books, those books are not free. A lot of money went into producing the book that the new kind of book hoarder looks at as "just a free book on my Kindle" Readers, if you receive a complimentary book for an honest review, please accept the book only if you like the genre, you will read the book and post your honest review. Thank you! I write books. Writing is my work. I want to get paid for my work, just like everyone else. I have a family to feed, just like everyone else. Today I came across this blog post: Read the full post HERE According to the post, a reader sent this email to an author. I quote: "I really like your books. I think they are well-written and I enjoyed reading them. However, I have returned them all because you priced them at $0.99 to $2.99, and that is too much to pay for them. I can’t afford to pay that much for a book, even though I liked it. In the future, can you make sure you make all your books free so I don’t have to return them?" Those who want to cheat find the way Dishonest people read books from cover to cover and then return it for refund. It is possible to bypass the return policy rules on eBook publishing sites. The "do not copy" protection only gives false security to authors and make them think that their copyrighted books could not be copied or converted. The truth is that any Epub or Mobi file can be converted and copied very easily with a converter program. Dishonest people then read the book on their computer and not on their Kindle. The Kindle page indicator shows that the book was not read, so Amazon lets the reader return the book and pays the refund. Is it the honest way to read? Not in my book! Recently I gave out complimentary copies of my books for honest reviews. Why? Because the publishing sites don't show my books to potential readers until every book has a certain amount of reviews posted (I hear it from authors that it's about 50 reviews) and because very few readers bother to write reviews, I thought that readers who like to read and also like to write would post a few honest reviews. Well, most of them didn't. They tanked me for the free books and I never heard from them again. If you are one of the few honest, decent people who bought my books or received complimentary copies and cared enough to rate and review it, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. To those who think books should be free and that writing a book is not work: People don't go to the bakery and ask for free cake or go to a farm to pick up free chicken and vegetables. Why? Because cakes don't bake themselves from nothing, chickens and vegetables don't grow from nothing. The baker and farmer puts a lot of money and elbow grease into baking a cake, growing chicken and vegetables. Right? Books don't write, edit, format and published themselves for free either. It takes time (months and even years) and effort to write a book (long hours sitting by the computer), and to edit and revise several times, get the book professionally edited, illustrated, a cover designed, and the e-book formatted properly require a lot of money. Hundreds of dollars are invested very fast and the book is not even published yet. Then comes a whole lot more money out of the authors' pocket to market the book. FYI to this person who wants books to be free: I work hard, just like everybody else. I provide hours of entertainment to my readers with my stories. No, I don't write for freeloaders who enjoy the book and then return it for refund. I write for honest, decent people who respect my work and pay for the books they read and enjoy. And, just like everybody else, I deserve to be paid for my work. Pirate sites are stealing books, dishonest people are reading the books for free and authors don't get paid for their work. That is not right. It is not the American way. Proud people don't steal from others. Before you decide to download free books from pirate sites: Do you think they will give you a free book for nothing in return? Think again! They’re not good Samaritans; they’re thieves who want to make a quick buck! Yes, they let you download an authors’ hard work that they stole, but you will pay a lot more later. They’re clever, I must give them that. The pirate sites will either: Bombard your mailbox with advertisements Sell your email address to marketers Infect your computer with a spy cookie or worse that they hide in the FREE book that you download Moreover, you might unknowingly give the site permission to add a spy program to your computer Do you think your passwords or credit card information are safe? Think again before you download a FREE book from pirate sites! You will pay a greater price that the price of an eBook you'd pay on legitimate selling sites that protect your personal information! My BooksIf you decide to pay for my books, I salute you and thank you for your support. You work and get paid for your work, therefore you respect the work of others. If you can't afford the eBook or print prices and would like to read my books, please ask your local library to purchase them. My eBooks are available on Amazon and libraries can purchase the paperbacks from Ingram. Magical realism/fantasy novel seriesA reader said about the story: "This is the first time I read a book of this genre. It is particularly interesting the fact that many aspects of this story are based on facts, history and the magical essence of the Hun tradition. The beauty of the flower language, telepathically communication, chants and their rituals from Eastern Europe around 1500 years ago, bring the story to the present with the diary entries of the main character an educated doctor, Ilona. The flower of the Lotus represents the transitions of reaching maturity and the beginning for Ilona, to discover her power healing and in particular, the way she can slow time around her. The story contains also the romance scenes when the main character has a love interest, for Zoltan, who can time-travel, but with the limitations of the ancient law. The author maintains the rhyme of the story between past, present and future with a delicate style. I particularly enjoyed the chants and poetic expression at the beginning of some chapters." A reader said about the story: Ilona's journey begins exactly where Protected by the Falcon ended with no gaps or wondering what happened in between. I enjoyed the story line and diary entries by different characters to add perspective to things that were happening to all of them. Chosen by the Sword brought even more havoc to Ilona's life and those around her. She has many choices or decisions to make to keep the world from falling into chaos and the time between past and present brings a lot of change. More than half of Book 2 took place in the past where she had to find her legacy and accept or deny blessings bestowed upon her. When Ilona and her companions return to the present, things are not the same as when they left. I will not spoil the epic ending with hints, just say that everything happened the way it should have. A perfect story except for the few bad words which in my opinion were not needed and not suitable for younger readers even though they may hear it all the time! My children's booksA reader said about the book: "Pico the Pesky Parrot is an adorable story that teaches a strong message of compassion, community, and communication. Molly adopts her neighbor's parrot after Mrs. Santos must move a nursing home. All day long, Pico, shrieks, but Molly doesn't understand him. Then Molly is invited to go on vacation and she must make arrangements for Pico. A new family to the neighborhood agrees to take care of Pico, putting their daughter, Emma in charge of the bird. One day Emma and her friends discover Pico speaks Spanish and decide to surprise Molly by teaching him English. When Molly returns from her trip, she's overjoyed to hear Pico speaking English. I love that this book conveys so many positive messages for children and their families. The illustrations are beautiful and it is printed in English and Spanish on alternate pages giving the reader the option to read in either language. As a bilingual teacher, I am excited about sharing this book with my students and think it would make a wonderful addition to all school libraries. 5 stars for Pico the Bilingual Parrot!" A reader said about the book: "When Sandra’s much loved Grandma Rose starts to lose her hearing, whilst her parents become increasingly frustrated, and sad, little Sandra has a brilliant idea. You see grandma has problems hearing the right sounds, so she gets the words muddled, and so Sandra shows her grandma a picture of the thing she is talking about on her IPad. Grandma Rose and Sandra make the problem into a game by having fun and using a rhyming game. Then one day Sandra discovers a signing website… Soon grandma and granddaughter are learning how to sign together, and when they notice what fun their daughter is having, her parents even join in. Then one sunny day Sandra meets a little boy called Thomas who is deaf, he is sad and lonely because of his disability. Befriending him, he tells her he can lip read and soon he is no longer lonely, he is joining in with her friends, and teaching the other children how to sign. This is a lovely story which delivers important lessons in a wonderful way. Through Sandra’s acceptance of her grandma’s problem and positive attitude to overcoming the difficulties, the reader is taught valuable lessons about friendship, support and helping people with a disability fit into the community. I downloaded this with my Kindle Unlimited subscription as my grandchildren are hear and their granddad is hard of hearing. They loved listening to it, and we had fun together practicing the signing which is in the book. A real gem of a book!" Sandra enseña a su familia y amigos a comunicarse con personas con discapacidad auditiva.
Este divertido libro ilustrado lleva un importante mensaje para los niños, como aprender a no juzgar o burlarse de alguien sólo porque es diferente. La vida de algunas personas con discapacidad no es divertida y vivir con una discapacidad conlleva muchos retos, pero nosotros podemos hacer sus vidas más fáciles en vez de más difíciles. Cuando la abuela Rosa perdió la audición, Los padres de Sandra se sintieron frustrados y tristes. No sabían qué hacer y cómo aprender a comunicarse mejor con ella. Ellos intentaban gritar, cambiar el tono de voz o acercarse a su oído cuando se dirigían a ella, pero no servía de nada. Rosa podía oír algunos sonidos claramente, pero otros no podía escucharlos bien. Para ellos se convirtió en una lucha diaria poder comunicarse y empezaron a echar de menos las reconfortantes conversaciones de sobremesa. —Mira, abuela —le dijo entusiasmada—, puedo mostrarte las letras con mis dedos cuando no puedas escuchar lo que te digo. —¿Qué quieres decir con “mostrar las letras con tus dedos”? —la abuela Rosa preguntó. —He encontrado una página web para personas con discapacidad auditiva y explica cómo pueden comunicarse entre ellos sin hablar. Hay un signo para cada letra y cada número, que ellos pueden hacer con sus manos. Podemos aprender los signos juntas, y cuando no puedas escuchar el sonido, yo puedo mostrártelo —Sandra sonrió feliz. —Oh, creo que es una idea maravillosa, Sandra. —Los ojos de la abuela Rosa brillaron con entusiasmo— Pero parece un poco difícil, ¿tú crees que yo podría aprender los signos? —Por supuesto que puedes, abuela; y podemos aprender juntas. Y lo hicieron. Ellas demostraron que con amor, compasión y trabajando duro se pueden superar los obstáculos que conlleva la discapacidad auditiva. Yup, I would love to display a sticker like that! Who wouldn't?
There are so many books out there proudly displaying their literary award winner stickers. Of course, I would love to have a shiny sticker on all of my books and have a chance to brag about being an award winner author, but... here is always a but. Which contest should I enter? Are these award contest legitimate? Will it help my writing career if I would win one of these contests? Is it worth entering any literary contests just because they have an attractive website and promise recognition? . I wouldn't do that without a very thorough research on the prestige of the contest. Many writers enter literary contests hoping to be noticed by agents and publishers, a way to add writing credits, or promote a self-published book. This can definitely worth adding to your writing resume if the contest is sponsored by an organization with high standing in the publishing industry. I id some research to get a general idea about the real and fake award contests. I know that there must be a lot of fake contests out there, so I started my research with the scams. Here is what I found so far: There are very few of the hundreds of award contests out there has prestige that would make entering their contests worthwhile. Winning a contest run by an internet contest mill probably don't carry any weight with agents and readers because they may be aware that small contests are much less likely to have professional judging standards. However, we can't really label literary CONTEST MILLS scams with high entry fees and dozens of entry categories, since there usually are winners, who generally do receive the promise prize. But keep in mind that they conduct the contests with their high entry fees (anywhere from $60 to $80) with the sole purpose, to make money. However, because of the probable lack of rigorous judging standards (judges are rarely identified, and in some cases we can suspect that they may not exist at all), are unlikely to carry much weight and professional prestige. They promise much of the benefits that prestigious awards can bring to your career, and there’s even a nice trophy or a shiny sticker. Some of them advertise enormous prizes up to $15,000 for the winners, but if you read the fine print (usually hard to find on their website), you’ll see that the contest owner reserves the right to award prizes on a pro-rated basis. It means that the prize amounts are determined by the number of entrants, thus guaranteeing their profit no matter what. Similar to the contest mills are the AWARD MILLS that mostly focus on a small press or self-published authors, who face major challenges in getting their work noticed. Although there may be a real prize (money, gift certificates, consults with literary agents), winners are most likely receive little more than a shiny sticker and an announcement on the organization’s website. Contests by fee-charging publishers. Often the prize is a book contract, but winners don’t find out until afterward that the contract terms are restrictive, or that they must pay a fee for publication, or agree to pre-purchase large numbers of books. The most common of the fake contests I've found are those conducted by the vanity anthology companies. They publish anthologies of poems or short stories, which are NOT sold to the public, only to the contributors, so the writers are pressured to buy multiple copies. After about three hours of searching for the perfect award contest for my books, I gave up for now. I decided that I need to do a lot more research before I consider entering my books in any contest. My good friend gave me the best present today by sending me this picture with a heartwarming message, that made me cry with joy. It made me so happy to see two grown men reading my English and Spanish children's books and enjoying the story. Jeanne's husband, who is a hearing person, is learning to sign to communicate easier with his friend. Jeanne wrote in her email: I thought you should see this picture. You will notice my husband, on the left, trying to learn how to sign. On the right of the picture is our friend Jimmy. He is profoundly deaf, but reads lips and we communicate very well. I was sitting across the table with Jimmy's wife, Lucy, who is deaf, but can hear some and can speak fairly well. I can vouch for the fact that there is so much more to communication than speaking. We all fully enjoyed the book you wrote and Jimmy and Lucy commended you for the Spanish version, which they say was excellent as well. Apparently there are subtle differences in the sign for Spanish. Anyway, I wanted you to have this picture. You have written a wonderful story, with a great message! I meet a lot of wonderful people with some form of disability in my line of work as a nurse. It always saddens me when I see the difficulties their illness or condition cause and the ridicule and isolation they have to endure. I write fantasy novels, but I decided to publish these books for children about the hardship of hearing loss that is a vital part of good communication . As a nurse, sadly, I come across a lot of people with deeply embedded preconception or prejudice about disability, skin color, gender, ancestry, and so on. It is very hard for an adult or especially for an older person to change how they relate to others. However, if we can teach our children how to judge people by their personalities and actions instead of judging them just because they happened to be deaf, sitting in a wheelchair, have a different skin color or were born in a foreign county, we can raise a compassionate and unbiased next generation. I hid an important message to children in these English and Spanish picture books, how to learn not to judge, bully or make fun of anyone just because they’re different. The life of any disabled person is no fun and living with a disability has many challenges, but we can learn to make their life easier and not harder. ENGLISH Look, I Can Talk With My Fingers! A little girl teaches her family and her friends how to relate to someone who is hearing impaired. SPANISH Mira, ipuedo hablar con los dedos! Sandra enseña a su familia y amigos a comunicarse con personas con discapacidad auditiva. Pages from the English bookMy good friend, J.E. RogersMy friend, Jeanne, is also a children's book author.
She is, very cleverly, without sounding educational, introducing Australian wildlife to children with amazingly well-developed characters and fascinating, adventure filled story-line in her anthropomorphic fantasy stories. She manages the perfect balance of plot, tension building and conclusion with moral messages to keep the reader entranced and engaged. Her stories also teach children about true friendship, tolerance, the importance of family and dedication to a good cause. I can highly recommend it to middle-grade children, but as an adult I really enjoyed her stories as well. Visit her WEBSITE and read about her books and about the fasscinating Australian wildlife. Children learn from the behavior and reaction of adultsI meet a lot of wonderful people with some form of disability in my line of work as a nurse. It always saddens me when I see the difficulties, the ridicule and isolation they must endure because of their illness or condition. Children are not born prejudiced, they learn hate and intolerance from the world around them. They learn from the angry sigh and frown of the adult who gets annoyed when they have to wait a minute longer on line because the person in the wheelchair has difficulties reaching the counter. They learn from the disgusted smile on the face of an adult when they see an overweight person eating in a restaurant. They learn from the adult imitating a hearing impaired person's speech with sarcastic, ridiculing tone in their voice. I write fantasy novels, but I decided to publish this book for children about the hardship of hearing loss. This fun picture book carries an important message to children, how to learn not to judge or make fun of anyone just because they’re different. The life of any disabled person is no fun and living with a disability has many challenges, but we can help to make their life easier and not harder. When Grandma Rosa lost her hearing, Sandra’s parents became frustrated and sad. They didn’t know what to do and how to learn to communicate better with her. They tried shouting, changing the tone of their voices or leaning closer to her ear when they talked, to no avail. Rosa could hear some sounds clearly, but certain sounds she couldn’t hear well. It became an everyday struggle for them, and they missed the comforting family conversations at dinner time. “Look, Grandma,” Sandra said to her grandmother one day. “I can show you the letters with my fingers when you can’t hear what I say.” “What do you mean showing it with your fingers?” Grandma Rosa asked. “I found a website for hearing impaired people, and it explains how they can talk to each other without words. There is a sign for every letter and number that they can make with their hands. We can learn the signs together,” Sandra smiled happily. “Oh, I think that’s a wonderful idea, Sandra,” Grandma’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “But it looks a little difficult. Do you think I could learn the signs?” “Of course, you can, Grandma, we can learn them together. And they did. They proved that with compassion, love, and hard work, they can overcome the obstacles of disability together. Sandra and Grandma Rosa learn to sign the first word together Thomas is a bright young boy. He can't hear, but when he tries to talk, kids make fun of him. Sandra is happy that she can say "Hi" to him with her fingers. They become friends. This fun picture book carries an important message to children, how to learn not to judge or make fun of anyone just because they’re different. Available in English & SpanishClick on the covers to read more on the book pages
You're a great storyteller. Write a book - they said...
How much it's going to cost to publish it? They didn’t say… Thanks to easy self-publishing, nowadays anyone, whose dream was to be a published author, can see their book published in print and eBook. There is a positive, and there is a not so positive side of easy publishing. There are a lot of gems among self-published books with new ideas and fascinating stories that might have been rejected by publishers. Just to mention a few: Agatha Christie was rejected by publishers for 5 years. Her book sales are now in excess of $2 billion. The Harry Potter series was rejected 12 times. Today the sales reached 450 million. Dan Brown was told when he submitted The Da Vinci Code, “it is so badly written”. The book sales today reached 80 million. I never forget when we had to do a book report on one of the assigned books back in school, it was the War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Half of our class absolutely loved the book, and half the kids hated it. One girl asked the teacher why he assigned such a boring, stupid book, the other one hushed her saying, “You’re stupid and boring. This book is brilliantly written.” The teacher smiled and replied, “Now kids, today you’ve learned a valuable lesson. Everyone’s likes and preferences are different, but every writer who has the courage to put their thoughts and feelings on paper has something to say. And, eventually, every book finds its reader.” If you have something to say, say it. Even if only a few friends and family members will read it, you will leave a mark with your book, “I was here.” However, thousands of books are crowding the shelves written by writers who think that badly written, badly edited and formatted books are okay to be published. They don’t want to invest time or money to publish quality work; they publish a half-ass manuscript, just because they can, giving good indie writers a bad name. Those who invest months to learn the publishing process or invest money to publish a decent book are paying a high price. To edit and format a book and produce an artistic looking book cover requires skills and time. Therefore, the work cost money. However, with the rise of self-published books, inevitably, hundreds of author services are popping up every day too. The majority of them provide quality work, but some so-called businesses take advantage of the authors who has to rely on them. They charge very high prices and promise everything on their fancy websites, but their delivered work is questionable. Two days ago a new author sent me her manuscript. When I checked this manuscript, I was amazed at the lousy editing job. My editing program showed hundreds of errors in the 200-page book such as missing letters (he instead of the) duplicate words, misspelled words (tangeled instead of tangled) and so on. I contacted the author and asked if she had sent me the unedited file by mistake, she said no, that was the edited version. I advised her to contact the editor, because the manuscript was loaded with errors, she replied, “OMG! The truth is that I’m terrible with grammar, so I accepted all the corrections she made, thinking that she knows best, she’s an editor. And I just paid $600 that’s non-refundable after I accepted what she did. I guess I have to hire another editor.” I told her that as much as I read from the manuscript, the story is amazing and worth publishing, and I advised her to choose the next editor carefully. Another author asked me if I could take a look at her book. It was formatted by a fancy company for $400, and both the eBook and print were rejected by the publishing sites. She complained, but they only kept sending her the same email with uploading instructions. When I looked, the print had too narrow margins, too large illustrations that made the pictures shift and created empty pages. The eBook had empty lines and pages and no page breaks between chapters. I formatted her book for $80, and both formats were accepted by the publishing sites. My point is that a lot unqualified of people take advantage of indie authors. There are high school drop-out “editors” and people who give the least amount for a high price. My advice to indie authors: shop around. Ask published authors in forums or groups, and when you get recommendations, check the books the editor, cover artist or book interior designer worked on. It’s worth buying a book for a few dollars and see if they did a quality job on the book, or not. When you contact a book formatter or cover artist, have specific instruction what you’d like and see if they’re willing to work with you, or they just want to get the job done fast without revisions. Picking someone from the internet just because they have a fancy, professional looking website to work on your book is not a good idea. In this case, word of mouth recommendation is the best. The good old fashioned romance doesn't seem to be enough anymore... I’m fascinated by the huge success of the Fifty Shades of Grey novels, which is listed as contemporary romance, women's fiction novel. I didn’t read it, nor do I ever plan to read it. I looked at some statistics and reviews, that’s as far as I’m willing to go. The interesting fact is that the books sold 100 million copies, and about 58% of the readers loved it, despite the fact that, according to the opinion of many reviewers, the author justifies abuse and perverse relationship. This made me think. Perhaps most readers and movie goers are getting bored with regular romance novels and movies? Are readers abandoning the regular romance and more interested in erotica, kinky sex scenes, domination, deviancy and abuse? The more perverse the better? It really seems like to me, what else could explain the huge interest in these books? Romance authors usually don’t spell out every single move the lovers make, or every single thought that runs through their head while making love. Romance writers have their clever ways to trigger the reader’s imagination and send tingles to the right places at the right moment. Also, the majority of the books are well edited, the plots are fascinating and they provide hours of great entertainment. Romance authors don’t promote physical and mental abuse, or perverse sexual activity. However, it seems like most readers want more. They don’t seem to care about bad writing, grammar mistakes, limited vocabulary, or as my friend who read the first book put it, “This book seems like it was written by a sick minded, horny high school dropout teenager. I bet my shoelace has a wider vocabulary, and the story is nothing like a consensual masochistic- sadistic relationship, which is a role play. This story is sick and demeaning, and justifies physical and mental abuse.” Listing this book as contemporary romance really bugs me. By definition: "Contemporary romance is a subgenre of romance novels, generally set contemporaneously with the time of its writing. The largest of the romance novel subgenres, contemporary romance novels are set in the time when they were written, and usually reflect the mores of their time." Bestselling author Nora Roberts sums up the genre, saying "The books are about the celebration of falling in love and emotion and commitment, and all of those things we really want." Women's fiction (including chick lit) is not directly a subcategory of the romance novel genre, because in women's fiction the heroine's relationship with her family or friends may be as important as her relationship with the hero. The general definition, as embraced by the RWA and publishers, includes only the focus on a developing romantic relationship and an optimistic ending. Does the Fifty Shades of Grey fits into this genre? You decide, I didn't read it. Although not listed as erotica, let's see if this book would fit into the genre: "Romance erotica seems to be on the rise as more women explore this new subgenre. Erotica is a term used to describe scenes in the novel that are risqué but not pornographic." I doubt this book fits into this genre either. Are most readers getting desensitized and want more excitement than the good old romance novels usually offer? This made me realize how we became desensitized to horror movies in a relatively short time. When I was a teenager, I always had a pillow in my hands, so I could hide when the scary parts came on, in even mild horror movies. I’m not a big horror fan, but if a movie doesn’t gross me out too much in the first five minutes, and my friends say that the story line is good, I give it a try. When the Dexter series started, by then I was desensitized and watched him hacking people to pieces without a flinch. And, I guess I kind of developed a morbid fascination and watched the series. I also watched the Walking Dead, and I didn’t throw up or hid behind a pillow at the gory parts. Those movies are not my favorite, I’m still a hopeless fantasy fan, and when I occasionally read or watch romance, I like to use my imagination. However, it makes me think: Is the time near when the good old fashioned romance stories will be passé? Will romance writers be forced to incorporate whips, handcuffs, leather strips and gags into their stories? Will they have to make their characters scream in pain, bleed and be humiliated in order to meet the expectations of romance readers? I wonder… Is the future of romance includes handcuffs, leather strips, gags and other torture devices? The photo of the book cover was copied from Amazon
When she doesn't say a word, just smilesA short story by Erika M Szabo I visited a friend, Marie, a few years ago, and I noticed with surprise that everyone in her family was unusually polite and quiet. On my usual visits everyone was laughing, teasing each other and her ten years old son, Brian, was running around in one of his many hero costumes.
That day the tension was thick as honey in their home. We sat around the coffee table, had a light chat about everyday things. Brian sat close to his father on the couch and acted like a little angel. I felt the brewing tension ready to erupt from underneath the surface, and I was frantically searching for an excuse to shorten my visit. Marie sat across from me with a plotting cat expression and a slight smile on her face. Once in a while, she darted angry looks at her husband and son that lasted only for a fraction of a second. When Marie went out to the kitchen to put the coffee on, Brian whispered to his father, "Dad, we are in big trouble." "I know, son, because of that smile. You must remember this until you live. There is nothing more dangerous in the whole world than a quietly smiling woman. You never know if she's going to forgive you, or she's planning your slow and painful death until she comes to her final decision." "What happened? What's wrong?" I asked. "Well, we painted the kitchen while Marie was at work. We had such a great time and we even cleaned up by the time she got home, but as soon as she saw it, the silent treatment began. I don't know what her problem is." He sighed. I stood up and went out to the kitchen. Marie silently looked at me with a murderous look in her eyes, lifted her arm and pointed at the walls that were dark blue with big, yellow stars painted all over it. Trying to hide a laugh that was close to erupting from my chest, "They meant well Marie, give them some credit for the effort." "Oh, I will give it to them alright! They will pay for this for a long-long time. I specifically told them vanilla color, and look what they did!" she yelled with daggers in her eyes. "Okay girlfriend, we are having a girl's night out." Marie opened her mouth to protest, "Go get ready, no objection!" I ordered her firmly, so she turned and went upstairs. In the living room I told the boys, "I know you meant well, you had your fun too, but now to the store you go. Get vanilla color paint, and you will paint the walls and clean up the kitchen by the time we get home. Otherwise, you two will stay in the doghouse for a long time." The boys looked at each other, they stood up and stormed out the front door, holding each other's hand. You might ask: Was it right that she showed her disapproval so clearly? Is it going to break up a happy family? Will her ten-year-old son respect her less? Will father and son bond over this even more? Well, they're still a happy family. Brian just graduated from high school, Guy is devoted to his wife and Marie has her vanilla kitchen.
Watch a few short video about Hungary
I flinch when people pronounce or even write Hungary as Hungry.
Well, let me tell you that Hungarians are very well fed, and they're hungry when they go on a diet after a holiday feast. About the "Hungarian goulash" that is nothing more than elbow noodles cooked with ground beef and tomato sauce, I assure you that it's not Hungary's national food the "gulyas".
The gypsy music is part of the Hungarian culture, but there is so much more. Watch the videos below about Hungarian music, dance and my favorite composer, Ferenc Liszt
The Gabor sisters were not the only Hungarian born celebrities and famous people. Watch these videos, you will be surprised how many of your favorite actors and famous people and inventors were either born in Hungary, or the descendants of Hungarians.
I am proud to be an American, and also proud of my Hungarian heritage. People don't know much about this small country in Europe. They don't know the history of Hungary or where this beautiful country is located,
Usually goulash, gypsy music and Zsazsa Gabor pops into people's minds when Hungary is mentioned. Well, there is so much more to the place where I was born. I have to admit, I flinch when people tell me: Oh, Hungary is that Eastern European country Nope, Hungary is located in Central Europe.
About the Hungarian language:
It is a fact the the English is considered to be the richest of languages with a vocabulary of 600,000 to 800,000 words. But, I found this bit of interesting fact: In a book entitled Hungary, Essential Facts published by MTI Media Bank a journalist, Tamas Vladar, states that ''the Hungarian vocabulary is estimated to be between 800,000 and 1,060,000 words'' and, being an agglutinative language, ''computer analysis has shown that Hungarian has some 27 billion inflected, affixed words and word fragments''. Ancient Hun writing called "Rovasiras"
Thank you for taking time to learn a little bit about Hungary.
If you're in the mood for some reading after watching the videos, check out my "The ancestors' Secrets" series and read about ancient Hun legends that I included in this fantasy tale. Book 2 of the Ancestor's Secrets series is getting ready to be published.
According to the readers, book 1 is an easy read and enjoyable story. If you're interested in a fantasy story with clan secrets, magical abilities, time travel to the ancient past, see what the readers said in their REVIEWS You can read more about the series HERE
My motto had been all my life:
"I never choose an animal to be my pet, they always choose me to be their human." My neighbors have this adorable pig and guinea hens, but they love to hang out in my backyard. I'd like to think it's my personality they're attracted to, but I guess they love the treats too.
We have three bunnies, they're very shy, but I managed to take a quick picture of one of them. They're funny though, they have no clue that carrots or other vegetables are food. They eat only grass.
Even a vixen knew their baby's will be safe in my backyard. Read their story here:
https://www.authorerikamszabo.com/twenty-eight-tiny-paws.html My special furry friendsRead their stories in my short story collectionI'm not a very outdoorsy person and don't really have the "green thumb" my mom had, but I managed to grow some plants outside and in my kitchen window. I have no clue what is the name of this plant, I call it "good luck pot" My hubby urged me to throw out these cacti plants that I got from one of my patients, years ago. Well, being just "ugly corner pieces" for years, they surprised us with some beautiful flowers. The violets love my kitchen window, and my homemade bonsai tree loves it there too. This small needle pine sapling was dug up and chewed on by my neighbor's dog a few years ago, but I managed to save it with some surgical tape and planting it in a soup bowl. I don't know much about pruning bonsai, but it seems to be a healthy and happy midget tree in my window.
|
Categories
All
Children's booksSpanish books |