Greatest Moment As A Writer – Wendy and Charles Siefkin

Hi everyone!

We are blessed to have with us again the dynamic writing duo of Wendy Siefkin and her son Charles Siefkin! They are the authors of Kia’s Journey, which happens to be .99 right now!!

http://dld.bz/cHYHS

KR and TL: Have you ever had a moment, even if it was a split second when someone noticed you for the unique person you are or complemented you on a job well done? Do you remember what that feels like in your heart?

For both of us it was when the principal and the teachers were getting together to have an Individual Education Plan for his school year and the teachers and principal realized that Charlie had written the book and published it as well. Had set up websites and actually sold books as well. That was the day that one of the teachers was really impressed that we had come up with a cover, published it, marketing and everything that went along with it.

Mr. Kozak had brought his laptop and went to the amazon web page and looked at the book. He looked at the websites as well as our Facebook pages. He asked Charlie what all we had done and I was so proud to listen to him tell about the marketing we had done up to that point and what we had found that seemed to work best for us. Mr. Kozak and the rest of the teachers there were very impressed with what he had done and what we had done together.

I did remind Mr. Kozak that since Charlie was still a minor at the time for most of the process I had spearheaded the queries for agents and publishing houses as well. Together we discussed the options available to us with each company that happened to contact us back and made our decisions together. Finances played a very large part in what we could and couldn’t do. That is how we managed to stay out of quite a few of the vanity presses and other places that wanted money up front.
When the teachers and Mr. Kozak looked at us and had that look on their face of “they really did it.” That was our moment, one of our greatest compliments.

Wow! That is fantastic!! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing this wonderful, inspirational story with us! We wish you both the very best.

Here’s a synopsis of this awesome book:

Kai has been fighting for survival and trying to find a way rid the world of the disease his father created…

Kai’s father accidentally created a race of zombies and like a virus; it soon spreads throughout the entire world!

Kai comes across a young woman named Clover, who is part of a clan traveling across the United States to try to find what is left of humanity.

Clover is a part of a clan who has a secret of their own. Hiding among what is left of the human race, will Kai be able to handle the truth?

Kai and Clover are watching a meteor shower when their lives are changed forever!

Kai and Clover begin a heroic journey, fueled by the increasingly dim hope that somehow, the human race will have a chance to start over.

Wendy and Charles, we want to thank you both so much for joining us today. What an inspiration the two of you are.  We wish you all the best in the world and can’t wait for the next book to come out.

Here is where you can connect with Wendy and Charles:

Blog – http://siefkenpublications.blogspot.com/

Website – http://siefkenpublications.info/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/#!/SiefkenPublications

Twitter – https://twitter.com/WendyandCharles

Here’s where you can purchase this awesome YA read from Amazon:

http://dld.bz/cHYHS

Well, thanks for joining us today and we hope you will check out Kai’s Journey for yourself.  It is truly a wonderful book.  Oh, and did we mention?  It’s .99 right now!!  Woot!!

Blessings,

K.R. and T.L.

Please Welcome Author DeEtte Beckstead!

Hello everyone and welcome! We have a treat today. Author DeEtte Beckstead is here with us!  She is the author of Victory, a wonderful book about faith and courage.

~~~~”Victory, a town where the people love their country and their neighbors, but what happens when two visitors come to town? One comes with fear and control, slowly taking away the freedoms the people love. The other comes with faith. When darkness overtakes the town who will have Victory?”~~~~

DeEtte has only high praise for her book.  Here’s what some are saying about Victory:

“ Once you begin to read this book you won’t be able to put it down until you read the last page.”

“ It was a humble tale about how God helps good people prevail in uncertain times.”

“Very interesting characters and plot.”

Many five-star reviews echo the same as above.  And guess what?  For a limited time you can own this wonderful book for only .99 cents!! Here’s the link: http://dld.bz/c47Nm

Now, we thought it would be great to get to know DeEtte a little bit better.  It’s one thing to read her writings, and chat with her over Facebook; but we really wanted to get to know the real her.  Let’s jump in.

~~DeEtte, thanks so much for being with us.  Can you tell us what are you grateful for?

First of all, I am grateful that my Father in Heaven loves me, completely and unconditionally. I am His princess, no matter what anyone else or even I think of me. I am grateful to have my family. There have been many tough times, but we are still family. And I am grateful for my friends. I appreciate their support and concern.

~~Wonderful. We are thankful for the very same things.  Now, if you could change one thing about our world, what would it be and why?

This sounds like a question for Miss America contestants, of which I am definitely NOT one! Anyway, if I could change one thing about our world, I think it would be that people would be slower to jump to conclusions about others and would look at things from the other person’s point of view, looking more with their hearts and less with their eyes. Perhaps then people who be kinder and gentler toward one another.

~~We couldn’t agree with you more.  Much less judgement and a lot more grace.  Okay, next question. If you knew the exact date of your death down to the minute, what would you change about your life starting tomorrow?

Since no one is guaranteed even the next breath, I try to live each moment to its fullest, with the best I have at the time. Sometimes that isn’t much, but there are many opportunities to give to others and brighten their loads. Even a smile to someone at the bus stop helps.

I would carefully and thoughtfully think about all the people I have known and forgive those I haven’t, tell those I love how much they mean to me, and remind them God loves them unconditionally, even if they don’t believe in Him. Their unbelief doesn’t change the truth.

~~Beautiful words to live by, for all of us.  We love it that your faith is so strong.  If you could go back in time to when you were seven years old, what wisdom or advice would you pass on to yourself?

I would repeat my grandmother’s saying of “do your best, and angels can do no more.”  My best would be acceptable, no matter where it falls on any scale. If I got a C, and that was my best, it was fine. But, if I were capable of getting an A and got a C, I would be in trouble! And that doing one’s best should be a joyful thing, not something to be dreaded.

Don’t be afraid to be the unique person God created you to be. Remember the word of Benjamin Franklin: “Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What’s a sun-dial in the shade?”

~~Okay, we can tell that we would LOVE your grandmother!!!  And, what a great quote.  We’ll remember these wise words.  Okay, next one.  After a difficult day what do you do to recuperate? Does it work?

I like it quiet, perhaps with low lights. I like to watch old movies from the ’40s, ’50s, and ’60s, or listen to either classical or contemporary Christian music. I also like to crochet. If one of my little grandkidlets is around, snuggling with him or her is a wonderful way to recuperate! It works for me!

~~Sweet! We love old show and movies too.  And music, especially Christian, is really a mood lifter.  Alright, let’s see. Oh, how about this for our next question. When was the last time you helped someone who was desperately in need? What did you do? Was this person grateful?

I try to make helping others a daily practice. I guess it was my strong Girl Scout background of “do a good deed daily” that makes it easy for me to help others. Recently I offered to help a friend who was way behind on a project and it was causing her a great deal of stress because of a rapidly approaching deadline. She allowed me to help her. It was a simple job, but she didn’t have the time to do it right then. And yes, she was grateful.

~~Sweet! That is one thing that we both are so passionate about, helping other in need.  How awesome that you were able to be there for this friend and that the friend allowed you to help. Sometimes, that’s the hard part. Getting the person who has a need to accept what is offered.  Ok, something a little lighter.  What is or are the genres of your book or books?

Both are Christian fiction, paranormal. There are no ghosts, werewolves, or zombies, but there are demons and angels.

~~Great.  What made you decide to write in your particular genre?

It just sort of happened that way. Once I started writing, the story wrote itself. I am a Christian with strong faith, and it came from that.

~~Thank you for being a great guest today, DeEtte! Please share your bio with us, and links where readers can connect with you and your books.

           Author and blogger, DeEtte Beckstead started writing in 2007 when her son challenged her to get involved in the National Novel Writing Month, known by the acronym, NaNoWriMo. The manuscript sat untouched with several others until January of 2012 when a good friend encouraged her to seek publication. The Christmas Visitors is her first published short story, and her current novel, Victory is also her first.

            DeEtte spent much of her childhood playing the piano, clarinet, and guitar, reading, and making up stories. She was active in Girl Scouts, which gave her a  variety of experiences. While in college, she was on the University of Utah Synchronized Swim team, and taught winter camping and survival skills for Girl Scouts. She has spent many years working with people with disabilities.

Originally from the state of Utah, currently DeEtte lives in New England where she writes full-time and works on the editing team of Master Koda Select Publishing. Her other interests include swimming, crocheting, reading, traveling, history, and her grandchildren. In addition, this devoted mother of six and grandmother of twelve has been a concerned participant in dog rescue services for many years.  

Blog: http://deetteanderton.wordpress.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/DeEtteBecksteadAuthor        

Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/DeEtte-Beckstead/e/B00ADDW94Y/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

AuthorsdB page: http://www.authorsdb.com/authors-directory/66-deette-beckstead

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DBAnderton  

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2207218-deette-beckstead

Again, thank you so much for being with us today!  We are so excited that anyone can purchase your book for only .99 cents!  Wow, what a deal!  Here’s the link again:  http://dld.bz/c47Nm  And, DeEtte also has another book, The Christmas Visitors, and it is .99 cents too!  Crazy good deals going on here!  Here’s the link for it:  http://dld.bz/c47Qz   They are both on Amazon.

Blessings,

K.R. and T.L.