"The endless vista of stars..."

The William Miller Sperry Observatory
Cranford, New Jersey

"Jeffrey would race upstairs, and hide out in his room for the rest of the night. He'd spend countless hours building his own telescopes from scratch, studying constellations and poring over books about the universe...anything to escape from the grim reality that festered downstairs.  As he tinkered with his telescope parts, he'd slip on his headphones and turn up The Ramones full blast to drown out the sounds of his wasted father yelling, sobbing and breaking dishes in a drunken rage.  Jeffrey would gaze out his bedroom window at the endless vista of stars and daydream about visiting space - where he imagined it must be peaceful, silent and completely safe from raving alcoholic lunatics."

-Quote from The Kabrini Message regarding main character, Jeffrey Driscoll.  

To be clear, the above refers to the background and childhood of main character, Jeffrey Driscoll...not Author, J.R. Egles.

Jeffrey Driscoll had a loving mother, but a "drunken bastard" of a father.  Author J.R. Egles was blessed to have two loving parents, Marie and Bob Egles.  In fact, as mentioned in the Author's Bio previously posted, when Joe built his own telescope, it was his Dad who helped him permanently install it in their back yard by pouring concrete and setting it into a base.

But although their families differ considerably, there are definite similarities between Jeffrey and Joe.  They both "built their own telescopes from scratch", loved studying constellations since childhood and spent their teen and young adult years "hanging out" at the observatory.

In the book, Jeffrey attends Princeton University on an astronomy scholarship.  For the record, that would have been the Peyton Observatory at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey.  You can check out Jeffrey's observatory by clicking on this link:
Petyon Observatory at Princeton University

In "real life", Author Joe attended Union County College and frequented The William Miller Sperry Observatory in Cranford, New Jersey.  It is probable that the very inspiration for, and origin of, The Kabrini Message was the many hours Joe spent at The William Miller Sperry Observatory.  Click on this link to visit Joe's observatory:
The William Miller Sperry Observatory

In addition to clicking on the above links, you may want to make plans to actually visit one or both of these observatories in person, to check out "The endless vista of stars..." for yourself, just as Jeffrey and Joe did!

Release Date Announcement! And...A Poem For Your Friday!

First, the release date has been announced by Etopia Press for "The Kabrini Message"!  It is...drum roll please...Friday, January 18th, 2013!

We FINALLY know the date of publication:  01/18/13

More info. will be released as it becomes available, but that's the publication date!

And now...a poem for your Friday. 

I Will Watch Over You

A drunk man in an Oldsmobile 

They said had run the light 

That caused the six-car pileup 

On 109 that night. 

When broken bodies lay about 

And blood was everywhere, 

The sirens screamed out eulogies, 

For death was in the air. 

A mother, trapped inside her car, 

Was heard above the noise; 

Her plaintive plea near split the air: 

"Oh, God, please spare my boys!" 

She fought to loose her pinned hands; 

She struggled to get free, 

But mangled metal held her fast 

In grim captivity. 

Her frightened eyes then focused 

On where the back seat once had been, 

But all she saw was broken glass and 

Two children's seats crushed in. 

Her twins were nowhere to be seen; 

She did not hear them cry, 

And then she prayed they'd been thrown free, 

"Oh, God, don't let them die!" 

Then firemen came and cut her loose, 

But when they searched the back, 

They found therein no little boys, 

But the seat belts were intact. 

They thought the woman had gone mad 

And was traveling alone, 

But when they turned to question her, 

They discovered she was gone. 

Policemen saw her running wild 

And screaming above the noise 

In beseeching supplication, 

"Please help me find my boys! 

They're four years old and wear blue shirts; 

Their jeans are blue to match." 

One cop spoke up, "They're in my car, 

And they don't have a scratch. 

They said their daddy put them there 

And gave them each a cone, 

Then told them both to wait for Mom 

To come and take them home.

I've searched the area high and low, 

But I can't find their dad. 

He must have fled the scene, 

I guess, and that is very bad." 

The mother hugged the twins and said, 

While wiping at a tear, 

"He could not flee the scene, you see, 

For he's been dead a year."

The cop just looked confused and asked, 

"Now, how can that be true?" 

The boys said, "Mommy, Daddy came 

And left a kiss for you. 

He told us not to worry 

And that you would be all right, 

And then he put us in this car with 

The pretty, flashing light. 

We wanted him to stay with us, 

Because we miss him so, 

But Mommy, he just hugged us tight 

And said he had to go. 

He said someday we'd understand 

And told us not to fuss, 

And he said to tell you, Mommy, 

He's watching over us. "

The mother knew without a doubt 

That what they spoke was true, 

For she recalled their dad's last words, 

"I will watch over you... "

The firemen's notes could not explain 

The twisted, mangled car, 

And how the three of them escaped 

Without a single scar. 

But on the cop's report was scribed, 

In print so very fine, 

An angel walked the beat tonight 

On Highway 109.

Guest Author, Theresa McClinton

Today's guest author is Theresa McClinton.  Before we begin, here is a brief author bio on Theresa:

 A long time enthusiast of things that go bump in the night, Theresa started her writing career as a journalism intern—possibly the least creative writing field out there. After her first semester at a local newspaper, she washed her hands of press releases and features articles to delve into the whimsical world of young adult paranormal romance.

Since then, Theresa has gotten married, had three terrific kids, moved to central Ohio, and was repeatedly guilt tripped into adopting a menagerie of animals that are now members of the family. But don’t be fooled by her domesticated appearance. Her greatest love is travel. Having stepped foot on the soil of over a dozen countries, traveled to sixteen U.S. states—including an extended seven-year stay in Kodiak, Alaska—she is anything but settled down. But wherever life brings her, she will continue to weave tales of adventure and love with the hope her stories will bring joy and inspiration to her readers.

Welcome, Theresa and thank you for joining us this morning!  Please jump right in and tell us anything you'd like us to know about you, your life and your career.

Hi Marie! Thanks so much for inviting me to your blog today.

My name is Theresa McClinton. I’m twenty-seven years old, live in central Ohio with my husband, three kids, and cat, Pepper. Yes, I know. I've got a lot going on. On top of all the normal chaos in my house, I’m also a young adult paranormal romance writer. Actually, that’s the calm part of my life.

I was never a big reader. In fact, when I was a kid, I would much rather someone read to me, rather than on my own. Why? It was a combination of several factors. The main one was that we moved around so much in my childhood, I barely had enough time to adjust to one school before we packed our bags and relocated to another. This pattern left me with less motivation to pick up a book, because all those big words were just too intimidating. I’ll tell you a secret. To this day, I am a terrible speller. (Thank God for word processors!)

But when we did settle down, it was on the glorious island of Kodiak Alaska. See, when my mom married my amazing stepfather, he had been living on Kodiak for thirty plus years. So instead of staying in Washington, where we didn't really have any reason to dig in our heels and stick around, we relocated. By then, we were used to it.

Fast-forward seven years, and I just completed my freshman year of high school. Again, we move, this time to North Carolina. Here is where my interest in reading and writing really sprouted and bloomed.

I’ll never forget sitting in English class, listening to my teacher talk about the subtle undertones in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. My eyes suddenly opened, and for the first time in my life, I saw the true potential in books.

Not just books, but stories. Epic ones. Stories so submerging, you forget to eat. Books that force you bring it to the bathroom because you can’t bear to set it down, but you really have to go! Stories that not only kept you completely entwined, but emotionally invested. I learned to love books, their characters, their stories, and I learned how to care if one of them was in pain. In fact, with some really fantastic stories, I've hurt with them.

Fast forward another two years, and I’m tearing through novels. Now I’m involved with my high school newspaper, The South Wind. Not only involved, but I’m a features editor and features reporter. Another year later, I applied for an internship at our local newspaper.

With my hopes high and my ears more wet than a baby seal, I waltzed into the newspaper, ready to tackle the project of becoming a real life newspaper reporter; the one with scarlet red lipstick and six inch stilettos.

Too bad that once I was done with my internship, I loathed journalism. On my last day, I passed through the double doors, walked across their oddly set parking lot, unlocked my little Toyota, and made a decision.

No more editor-in-chief breathing down my throat, no more writing about things I was deathly bored with, no more being assigned projects. I was going rogue. I was going to write novels.

Eight years of a crazy life later, here I am! Self taught, motivated, and completely in love with what I do, I get to play with my kids during the day, and weave paranormal romance stories at night. It’s the best life I could ask for. 

Be sure to check out Theresa's new book, The Stone Guardian, coming out this month!  Also, here is a list of links for Theresa, including one for the video trailer she did for The Stone Guardian and a link to all of the video trailers she has produced for other authors as well.  Theresa  is responsible for our fabulous video trailer for The Kabrini Message...which we hope to soon update to include our release date and cover photo!

Theresa's Links:

            Facebook:  www.facebook.com/theresamcclinton.author

Twitter:  Twitter:  www.twitter.com/t_mcclinton

            Pinterest:   www.pinterest.com/theresayaauthor

            Website:  www.theresamcclinton.com

Video Trailer for The Stone Guardian:  www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fN1JvOOntWw

All of Theresa's Videos:  www.youtube.com/user/100tmcclinton?feature=watch

Meteor Showers...And Other "Stars" To Watch This Week!

                                                                                                                                                                                             

Going to make this brief today...

The holidays are a very busy time of year, but take some time to LOOK UP this week!

Be sure to catch a glimpse of this!

Also this week:  Be sure to stop by on Wednesday and meet guest author, Theresa McClinton.  Theresa writes Young Adult Romance and I know you will love her!

http://theresamcclinton.com/

Among her many other talents, Theresa also composes videos and she is the one we have to thank for our fabulous video book trailer.  If you have not yet seen it, please check it out:

The Official Kabrini Message Book Trailer - click here

Theresa has done several other videos, too that you can see (LIKE, FOLLOW) by clicking on this link:

https://www.youtube.com/user/100tmcclinton?feature=watch

I am excited to say we have guest authors lined up for each Wednesday all the way into mid January so far and adding more each day.  The genres of each of these authors vary greatly - so it will be a very enlightening experience! 

The Voice on the Inside...

My favorite inspirational quote for any important goal:

"When the voice and the vision on the inside become more profound, clear and louder than the opinions on the outside, you've mastered your life." - Dr. Demartini

So true!

It doesn't matter in the slightest:

• What anyone else says, thinks or would do.
• What anyone else would do in your place.
• What anyone else would say, think or do..."if they knew".

That matters not at all!  Block it all out!!!  The only thing that matters is your focus, your commitment, your drive, your point of view.

When thoughts of "anyone in their right mind would (fill in the blank, but usually...'have given up by now'), threaten to creep in, stamp them out!  Tell yourself  it's not abut "anyone in their right mind"...it's about YOU!...lol...

Then repeat the quote to yourself...OFTEN.  As often as necessary - until it becomes second nature.  Make it your mantra.


Again..."When the voice and the vision on the inside become more profound, clear and louder than the opinions on the outside, you've mastered your life."






                   
                                                                                   The Way

To every man there openeth

A Way, and Ways, and a Way,

And the High Soul climbs the High Way,

And the Low Soul gropes the Low,

And in between, on the misty flats,

The rest drift to and fro.

But to every man there openeth

A High Way, and a Low.

And every man decideth

The way his soul shall go.

                                            - 19th century English poet, William Dunkerley, 

                                            writing under the pseudonym John Oxenham

                             

Guest Author, Dani-Lyn Alexander

When Jason and Leah both grab the last dollhouse in the city,
neither of them is willing to let it go.

They go in search of another dollhouse,
and both find more than they bargained for.

I am excited to announce that beginning today, each Wednesday we will have a guest interview! The first few we have lined up will be guest authors from a variety of genres.  

We are thrilled to welcome our first guest author today, Dani-Lyn Alexander!  

Dani-Lyn, tell us a little about yourself.

I live on eastern Long Island with my husband, three kids, ages twenty-one, thirteen and two (surprise!!) and three dogs. I have always loved working with children. I've worked as a dance teacher and choreographer, directed and choreographed several high school plays, and written a children’s chapter book that will be released soon. I've always loved to read, and have had a book in my hand since I was about three. When my youngest son was born and didn't sleep through the night, I figured I’d try my hand at writing. I loved it!

What genres do you write?

Paranormal and Contemporary Romance.

Tell us about your newest release and what inspired you to write it.

The Dollhouse is a short story, and was just released by Still Moments Publishing as part of the For the Love of Christmas Anthology. I was enjoying the fact that this year I didn't have a ‘hard to find’ gift that would send me running frantically all over Long Island on a futile search.

What other books have you written?

Trust and Betrayal is my first novel, and was released by Etopia Press in October. The sequel, Truth and Deceit, will be released in January. I also have short stories included in several anthologies; Dangerous Men, Dangerous Places, Haunted Shadows, and For the Love of Christmas.

Dani-Lyn, thank you very much for stopping by and for being our first guest author!  It is very inspirational to know that in such a relatively short time you have accomplished so much.  I assumed you'd been at this for years!  And as if that successful body of work in a span of less than two years were not incredible enough, you did it all while being a busy wife and mom with a new baby...amazing!

Thank you, it's definitely been a hectic two years, but it's been great! And, thank you for having me, it was a pleasure to be here.

Best of luck with all of your endeavors...including The Dollhouse in the For the Love of Christmas Anthology, released today. We will be sure to check out all of your work!

All of Dani-Lyn's books are grouped together on the amazon.com link, below.  I for one will definitely be ordering For the Love of Christmas today!

http://www.danilynalexander.com

http://www.facebook.com/danilynalexander

http://www.twitter.com/#!/Dani-LynAlexander

http://www.amazon.com/Dani-Lyn-Alexander/e/B007RT5RFU

The YIN & YANG of it all!

Even though The Kabrini Message was written by a male and is primarily science fiction, which is often (although certainly not always) thought to be a more male oriented genre, there is some irony in the realization that it has been an entirely collaborative female influence that has brought it to the published page.

I'm not sure what, if any, significance that has, but it's interesting and a little paradoxical.

Originally I was (only slightly) concerned that because the writer/editor I hired to "polish" the novel is a woman, there could be an impact on the smooth transition we wanted to achieve.  That was never an issue.

Additionally:

The original manuscript for The Kabrini Message was typed by my mom, Marie Egles - I believe on a real "typewriter", not on a computer!  She encouraged Joe and was the one that, I feel, led me to the envelope of loose pages in my attic.

When I found The Kabrini Message, Gwen Jones (Joe's wife) was the legal owner and had she not been on board with having it published, this would never be happening.  Gwen was also present and "a sounding board" throughout the entire time of the writing of the novel.

Amy Bell of WritePunch, Inc. edited and polished the manuscript.

Professional psychic and astrologer Pennye Scullin, gave great advice all along the way.

Theresa McClinton produced the fabulous video trailer.

Ultimately, Annie Melton, founder of Etopia Press is the publisher that signed The Kabrini Message for publication.

So not only was the whole male/female thing not a great challenge to be avoided, but, as it turns out...a very diverse group of women is exactly what was needed to literally bring The Kabrini Message out of the attic and into the world!

Incidentally, if you have not yet seen the video trailer, please check it out:
The Official Kabrini Message Book Trailer