Sunday, November 1, 2015


November 1, 2015

Now that all the little spooks have been at your door, let’s talk turkey.  Thanksgiving is upon us and it’s a time to start sharing more time with friends and family.  I hope the start to the 2015 holiday season is great for you, and that you find everything you want at the after Thanksgiving Day sales.

In this Issue:
Quote of the Month
Featured Author
Thanksgiving history, reads, food
Recipe of the Month
News/Updates
Reader/Writers Groups
Upcoming Book Signings
Coming Next Month

Quote of the Month:  Wherever you go, go with all your heart.Confucius (551 BC – 479 BC)

Featured Author:  Darlene Shortridge

The Inspiration for the Women of Prayer Series was life. Life with all its quirks, heartaches, tears, joy and laughter. Finding hope in the midst of pain. Finding a reason to smile regardless of circumstances. Giving people a reason to go on. That is what I was after.

Jessi, a young mom, has do the hardest thing asked of any parent—say goodbye. Mark, a young dad, so caught up in his own short comings he wants to end it all.
Mark sends his car into a tree after spending a little too much time bellied up to the bar. It never even crossed his mind Ethan, his four year old son, had been waiting for him in the back seat.
Jessi, a school teacher, gets the phone call that changes everything. Her life has been drastically altered. And not for the better.
Mark loses everything. His wife. His son. And the daughter he never knew he had.
When life goes horribly wrong, how do you forgive others? How do you forgive yourself? How do you keep breathing in and breathing out when all you want to do is crawl up under the covers and never wake up?
Until Forever is a story of hope and second chances. It’s a love story—between a man and his wife—and their Creator.


Where to Find Thanksgiving History/Treats:

History: 

Recipes/Treats:

Recipe of the Month:

Fresh Cranberry Relish

2 pounds fresh cranberries         
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup Grand Marnier liqueur  
1 orange, zested and juiced

Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor, pulse several times to breakdown the cranberries and incorporate the ingredients; it should still be a bit chunky. Allow the cranberry relish to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, so the flavors can marry. Serving Size: 12


Pa. Dutch Potato Filling

Ingredients:
  • 6 potatoes, boiled and mashed
  • 1 egg beaten (added to the mashed potatoes)
  • 1/4 c. each sautéed onion and celery added to the mashed potatoes
  • 6 pieces of cubed bread (any kind) mixed in with the potatoes.

Instructions:
1.    Bake at 350 deg. for 30 min. or until browned on top.
2.    Serve with gravy.

News/Updates: 

Do you love free books from great authors? Or are you an author with a 2015 publication? The National Reader’s Choice Awards (NRCA), OKRWA’s prestige yearly contest, is now open. Go to this link for more information on contest rules and signing up to judge: http://okrwa.com/contests/nrca/ 

Reader/Writers/Publishers/Agent Groups:

1.    Readers Yahoo Groups: You can find many, many different types of genre when searching for readers groups at YahooGroups.com.  Be sure to check them out at to see if they fit your needs. 
2.    Facebook Groups: There are thousands of FB groups for both readers and authors. Here are few examples:  My Sexy Saturday, Readers Rock!, Author Events Around the US, Global Book Promotion Group, and Kindle Unlimited to name a few.

Writers Groups/Organizations:  If you search the World Wide Web you’ll come up with many of these types of organizations.  I hope the list below gives you a start.

1.    Electronic Publishers Industry Coalition:  EPIC, the Electronic Published Industry Coalition, is a professional organization for published and contracted e-book authors. It was established in 1998 to provide a strong voice for electronic publishing.
2.    Romance Writers of AmericaAn international organization founded in 1980 with a main focus on writing romance. RWA has a yearly conference at a different location each year, as well as contests for yet to be published and published authors. A list of the RWA national and international chapters can be found here.
3.    Oklahoma Writers of America:  The Oklahoma Romance Writers of America (OKRWA) celebrates its 25th birthday this year! OKRWA meets the 3rd Saturday of each month at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in downtown Oklahoma City.
4.    Erotica Readers and Writers Association:  Dedicated to readers and writers of erotica since 1996, is an international community of women and men interested in the provocative world of erotica and sexuality. We host an active e-mail discussion list for readers and authors, a monthly newsletter, a Blog, and this website which serves as a resource site for original erotic fiction, articles and commentaries, calls for submissions, and publishing opportunities. If this is your first visit, please join us for a Tour of the Erotica Readers & Writers Association website.
5.    From the Heart Romance Writers:  The official name of our Chapter is From the Heart Romance Writers, Chapter #177 of Romance Writers of America. From the Heart Romance Writers started when several people realized there were a number of RWA members online who didn't have access to a local Chapter. 
6.    Writers Writehttp://www.writerswrite.com/
7.    For Writershttp://www.forwriters.com/groups.html
8.    Authorlink:  Authorlink is the award-winning online news, information, and marketing service for editors, agents, producers, writers, and readers. We serve more than one million unique visitors per year. Established in March 1996, we are among the longest-running and largest publishing and writing communities on the Internet.

Publishers/Agents:  Do you have a finished manuscript and not sure where to submit?  Here’s a list of publishers and/or agents guidelines to point you in the right direction.

3.    Agent Query
4.    Writer’s Net
5.    EPIC Publishers
7.    Harlequin

Upcoming Book Signings / Appearances:
©    3rd Saturday of Month:  OKRWA Monthly Meeting, OKC Museum of Art
©    April 13-17, 2016:  Romantic Times Reader Convention, Las Vegas, NV at the Rio Hotel and Casino

Coming Next Month:  Christmas and New Year’s Eve traditions, Christmas movies to warm your heart, plus stories to make you want to cuddle with your loved one.

With much gratitude, until next time…keep reading.

Maxine                
Spark your imagination and entice your mind
Be adventurous in your own mind
Take a journey into a new world and be inspired
Enjoy the pleasures of reading ~~
It does the mind and body good.





2 comments:

  1. Love your newsletter!!! Full of information and short but sweet. Definitely will be making the cranberry relish! And also checking out Darlene's featured book.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you Carla for your kind words. Hope you love the cranberry relish and Darlene's new book. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

    ReplyDelete