Promote Your Book Party!

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Hello to everyone! I want once again to offer an opportunity for all writers who follow this blog to share information on their books. It can be very difficult to generate publicity for our writing, so I thought this little effort might help. All books may be mentioned, and there is no restriction on genre. This includes poetry and non-fiction.

To participate, simply give your name, your book, information about it, and where to purchase it in the comments section. Then please be willing to reblog and/or tweet this post. The more people that see it, the more publicity we can generate for everyone’s books.

Thank you for participating!

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Celebrate and promote your writing! Shout it out to the world! Let everyone know about your work!

Feel free to promote a new or an older book!

I hope this idea is successful, and I hope many people share information on their books!

I will continue to have this party every few weeks.

Gallows Hill can be found here in ebook.

Gallows Hill in paperback can be found here.

An interview about Gallows Hill can be found here.

Please follow the following links to find my novel:

ebook

Print book

Thank you!

The book trailer:

Maledicus:Investigative Paranormal Society Book I

My radio interview:

interview

 

Available on Amazon

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Quotations From A Generation of Lost Leaders

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“If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.”

                                                                      John F. Kennedy

 

 

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“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”

                                                            Martin Luther King Jr.

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Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.

                                                                     Robert F. Kennedy

French On English: A Guide To Writing Better Essays by Charles F. French–Part of the Lehigh University Celebration of Authors

I was honored to have been included in a lovely event this week:   Harvest of Ideas: A Celebration of Lehigh Authors reception hosted by the Friends of the Lehigh University Libraries.

This was an annual recognition of Lehigh University faculty, including adjunct faculty, who have had works published and placed into the library collection. The event itself occurred in Linderman Library’s  Bayer Galleria, which is a room of stunning beauty. In the photograph, I am standing in front of a fireplace that was once a functional heating system. The wood paneling and bookshelves that fill the large space complete the extraordinary atmosphere of the room.

In addition to a wonderful spread of food and drink, the faculty books were put on prominent display on tables along the main wall of the room. I am honored to have my book on writing essays included.

I was also delighted that a jazz combo of Lehigh undergrad students performed during the event, and they were excellent! These young adults sounded like they had been performing jazz for many years. I closed my eyes, and I imagined an old, smoke filled room with such musicians playing!

It is always a wonderful feeling to receive recognition such as was given here, so I offer my thanks to the Friends of the Lehigh University Libraries, the staff who prepared everything, and the wonderful librarians! Thanks to all!

Gallows Hill can be found here in ebook.

Gallows Hill in paperback can be found here.

An interview about Gallows Hill can be found here.

Please follow the following links to find my novel:

ebook

Print book

Thank you!

The book trailer:

Maledicus:Investigative Paranormal Society Book I

My radio interview:

interview

 

Available on Amazon

 

Libraries and Bookstores of the Lehigh Valley, PA: Linderman Library at Lehigh University

I mentioned a little over a week ago that I was beginning a new series on libraries and bookstores of the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, and I am finally making the first entry in that series. My beginning piece will feature the beautiful Linderman Library of Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA.

Linderman Library is the humanities library, and it is my favorite place on campus. I earned my M.A. and Ph.D. in English Literature at Lehigh University, and this extraordinary abode of books is a comforting and inspiring place to work. I have spent many hours doing research and writing in this safe haven for book people.

Linderman Library has many places to work, including a long reading room, which feels like something out of Hogwarts from the Harry Potter books, many nooks with desks, and one of the best features of the library–the rotunda. Several levels of books fill the outside circle, and a winding metal staircase goes from the first to the third floor.

One of the most beautiful features that is often missed is the dome that caps the rotunda. It is one of striking beauty,  and made of stained glass. If you have the opportunity to visit Lehigh University, you should go to Linderman Library, visit the rotunda, and look up at the dome!

I am fortunate to live in an area with so many bookstores and libraries, and I was doubly fortunate to attend a University with a humanities library that is not only filled with thousands of volumes of books and journals, but also it is beautiful. The very nature of its architecture encourages students to study in its comfortable environment.

I will continue this series on libraries and bookstores in the Lehigh Valley, PA soon.

 

Quotations on Honesty

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“Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters”

                                                               Albert Einstein

 

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“Truth never damages a cause that is just.”

                                                              Mahatma Ghandi

 

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“You should not honor men more than truth.”

                                                           Plato

My Writing Progress: An Update by Charles F. French

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It has been quite some time since I have done a post about my current writing progress, so I thought I should do one right now.

I have just finished the first draft of my second book on writing; this is a bit ironic because it is about helping writers complete first drafts. The plan is to have this book out in the fall of this year, so I still have much work to do on it.

I am also a bit into the second draft of my as yet unnamed fantasy/horror novel set in South Dakota.  I hope to have this revision done this year.

Finally, I am finishing putting the last touches of polish on my YA ecological post-apocalyptic novel The Ameriad: The Monastery of Knowledge so that I can submit it to several agents who expressed interest during the 2018 Writers Digest Conference this summer.

Gallows Hill can be found here in ebook.

Gallows Hill in paperback can be found here.

An interview about Gallows Hill can be found here.

Please follow the following links to find my novel:

ebook

Print book

Thank you!

The book trailer:

Maledicus:Investigative Paranormal Society Book I

My radio interview:

interview

 

Available on Amazon

New Series: Libraries and Book Stores of the Lehigh Valley, PA

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As a resident of the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, with Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton being the largest and most well known cities in the area, I feel that awe are blessed with an abundance of libraries and bookstores in this area.

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There has been much talk about readership slowing down, but I do not think that is true. I have heard statistics at the Writer’s Digest Conference this summer that approximately one million books are published every year. This number itself can vary widely depending on the source; for example, the website Worldometers says over 1,800,000 have been published this year.

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Additionally, the number of independent bookstores continues to rise. According to Statista, the numbers have increased from 1,651 in 2009 to 2,321 in 2017. These numbers indicate clearly a desire for books to be read.  Certainly publishing continues to  change, but readership exists.

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In the Lehigh Valley, PA, an abundance of libraries and bookstores serve the population of just over 700,000 people.

This post is an introduction to the series; in following posts, I will focus on a particular library or bookstore. I hope you enjoy them.

Works Cited

https://www.statista.com/statistics/282808/number-of-independent-bookstores-in-the-us/

http://www.worldometers.info/books/