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Showing posts with label mystery authors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mystery authors. Show all posts

Monday, May 2, 2016

Guest Blog & Book Tour: Interviewed By God by Beth Banning



Title: Interviewed by God - A Journey to Freedom

Author Name: Beth Banning

5 Things I Know for Sure

  1. When I meditate in the morning I have more energy than when I don't. How do I know this? Because of all the "low" energy days that I've experienced lately when I've been "too busy" to meditate.

With Interviewed by God just having been released there are so many things to do: write blog posts, keep up with social media, create business cards, plan book launch parties, and 1001 other things. With everything there is to do in relation to getting my book "out there," my meditation schedule has been a little more dicey than usual. But as I write this (yet another) blog post, I'm remembering that meditation is one thing I know for sure helps me keep going. So I'm recommitting to my daily meditation schedule right now.

  1. When I follow my inner guidance, my life is more peaceful, fun and interesting than when I try to "figure everything out" and make all the "right" decisions. While on my journey that I write about in my new book I've learned that there are no "right decisions" there are only opportunities for telling the truth about what you know and what you want.

What I mean by this is that I always know exactly what I want, what the best decision is for me, and the only thing that keeps me from relaxing into acceptance of this is the idea that I have to figure everything out by myself and that there is the possibility of making a wrong decision.

  1. When I consciously connect with God (what I call my source of inner wisdom) each day, I feel more grounded and connected to everything and everyone than when I don't. None of us are meant to be alone or feel lonely, and when I turned my attention to my connection with God, my life changed. Now I'm never alone.

  1. Ask for what you want. My dog has got the right idea about asking for what she wants. I don't know about you, but every dog I've ever had knew how to ask for what they wanted. When they want to go out they barked, when they want to eat they let you know it, and when they want you to pay attention to them they don't hide it. don't But what I love most is that they are never offended, discouraged, or depressed if they hear NO. They just go ask the next available person or come back and ask you again later. I love that!

  1. It's much easier to write when I stop thinking about it and just start doing it. It took me five years to write my new book and when I realized I was going to need to start writing blog posts again I was a little worried. But when I stopped thinking about it and just sat down and started writing, the words flowed out just fine. "Don't think - just do." - Horace :-)



New Favorite Recipe:
My beautiful talented assistant brought me some of these grain-free muffins and I thought I was in heaven. :-)

Coconut Flour Banana Muffin Recipe

Ingredients
3 ripe, mashed bananas
1/3 c coconut oil
6 eggs
2 tbsp of coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c coconut flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 c of finely shredded coconut
1/3 c mini choc chips (Enjoy Life brand is dairy free)

Directions
Combine bananas and coconut oil. Mix well.
Add eggs, coconut sugar, and vanilla and whisk until eggs are combined.
In separate bowl, stir together dry ingredients.
Add to wet ingredients.
Add chips and shredded coconut and stir in.

Transfer batter to greased mini muffin or mini loaf pans and bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.



Author Bio:

Beth Banning is a best-selling author, inspirational speaker, and spiritual catalyst who lives in California with her husband, their cat, and their six pound poodle. She was born in New York City and from a very young age could sense the feelings of people around her, felt kundalini energy running through her body, and experienced other unusual events that she didn't understand. The well-meaning adults in her life told her she was depressed and that these experiences were just her imagination. Growing up in this cloud of ignorance and disbelief, these gifts were buried and unable to flourish and so she was left confused and lonely.
As a young adult she recognized the same sense of confusion and loneliness in others and became passionate about helping people better understand themselves and those around them. Later in life she took this passion into her work with her husband Neill and co-founded Focused Attention, Inc. She has written numerous books, co-created the Pathway to Personal Freedom, and the Art of Conscious Connection Seminar Series.
After many years of integrating this consciousness shifting work into her own life and teaching it to others, she experienced a profound reconnection with God that turned her life upside down. This radically changed the way she perceives the world and functions in it. Beth now lives her life guided by her inner source of divine wisdom. She is committed to helping others discover this for themselves and fully experience the essence of who they truly are.

Author Links - 





Book Genre: Spirituality
Publisher: PuddleDancer Press
Release Date: September 1, 2014




Book Description:


Interviewed by God is an account of Beth Banning’s journey of spiritual awakening—her conscious connection with God and the lessons she’s learned along the way. From a very young age, Banning experienced phenomena that could only be called extraordinary: she’s received messages from spirit animals, felt kundalini energy awaken in her, and experienced dimensional shifts in her awareness that have allowed her to witness what only a few have seen. She was visited by totem animals, took ritualistic baths, and visited shamans and healers; she experienced ecstatic states and received messages; her ego mind began to battle against her higher mind. As she experienced her spiritual journey, a small voice within guided her. With doubt as her constant companion she continued to follow her inner promptings, which led her to higher levels of truth about her connection to herself and the world and reality as we know it. Written in a format in which the author is “interviewed by God,” the book is meant to be a mirror for the reader to reflect their own experiences back to them, and a gentle guide for those who are at the precipice of an extraordinary adventure and are either scared to jump or who hunger for answers and understanding.


Excerpt One:

Interviewed by God
Chapter 2, What is REALLY Real?
Pg. 11

God: Are you ready to get going?
Beth: I'm not sure why I'm writing about any of this. Who's going to care?
God: There are many people who are having experiences similar to yours and they're embarrassed or think it's all their imagination and are not allowing these experiences to blossom. There are others who are right at the precipice of these extraordinary, life-changing experiences, but they are pushing them away. These people need to know they're not alone and what they're experiencing is actually more real than what they thought was true.
Beth: They need to know that there is more to life than they are told about, is that it? They need to know that the world is much richer and more wonderful than they ever imagined.
God: Yes, it's time for people to know just how much more there is to life. You've already begun the process of transformation, and your experiences can help to guide them. I've heard you say you have had many unusual experiences. What do you mean by this?
Beth: Over the last four years, many things have happened to me that are outside the realm of ordinary human life. They come in different forms. I may feel them, hear them, or see them, but they are nothing like my previous day-to-day existence. Research has showed me that these types of experiences are not completely uncommon. On one hand, knowing that others have had similar experiences helped me at times when I thought I was going crazy. On the other hand, I mostly found that saints, eccentric geniuses or gurus in India were the ones having these experiences. There were only a few stories involving ordinary people like me.
God: So what has changed in your life over the last few years?
Beth: In short, I have gone from wanting to know everything, understand everything and control everything in my life, to a place of peacefulness and acceptance to a degree that I've never known. I don't mind now when plans change, or someone else thinks they have a better idea about how to do things. And I don't have to agree with or understand exactly what someone is talking about in order to hear what they're saying and be able to empathize with them. My whole being has shifted. As I continue to have these unique experiences, they change me and how I perceive the world in incredible ways. I've gone from an almost compulsive need to "know" everything to an acceptance of just what's going on in the moment, and a sense of calm trusting about the future.











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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

What Advice Parents Can Give About Diversity by Charles A. Taylor (Book Tour & Giveaway)




Title: Lakeside University Cover Up
Author Name: Charles A. Taylor
Advice for Parents to give their kids entering into college about diversity
by Charles Taylor 

First and foremost I would hope that parents would tell their kids that diversity benefits everyone. It is something to be celebrated, embraced and not feared. But let’s take one step back and assume that parents have already had this conversation with their children long before they entered college. I know that’s being overly optimistic but just for a moment let’s pretend that parents are having these serious conversations with their kids. Here’s what I hope they are telling their children to help prepare them for the new world they will face.

Son/daughter,

Acquire Cultural Competency Skills

I’m sending you off to college with the expectation that you will engage intellectually and socially with all types of people. I don’t want you to live your life in fear of others. I want you to become culturally competent and that’s different from just being tolerant of differences.

Tolerance has no healing power in society. It means little more than leaving one another alone. It leads to indifference, not understanding. Besides, no one wants to be just tolerated-we all deserve to be celebrated! Red, black, brown, yellow or white we’re all precious in God’s sight. When all of the cream is allowed to rise to the top, the butter is bound to be better.
Cultural competency is what you’ll need to understand others’ points of view and to replace tolerance with. Cultural competency is the ability to engage people in ways that respect and honor their culture. So take advantage of any opportunity you get to learn cultural competency skills.

Understand that both Diversity and Inclusion are needed

Remember that the true definition of diversity is broad enough to include all of us and takes into account differences in religion, race, gender, disability, sexual orientation and other areas of differences. But diversity by itself is nothing without inclusion. An inclusive college intentionally creates a culture and fosters a welcoming environment where everyone is valued for the skills and talents they bring to the table and where they are involved and empowered in decision making. Diversity describes "the who we are" – while Inclusion describes "the how and what we hope to become." They are related yet distinct concepts. Advocate for both!

Know that Diversity Benefits Everyone

Son, remember that we’re all connected. I need you to understand that when the environment on campus is improved for some students, it’s improved for you as well.

Let me give you an example--One of the things that the federal disability act did was make campuses more accessible for disabled students. Students in wheel chairs no longer have to worry about opening doors—all they have to do is push a button and the door swings open. What that means is that any student who has his/her hands full can push that same button. Although the automated doors were designed to benefit students with disabilities, they in fact benefit everyone including you.
When you improve the environment for some students, you improve it for all students. When a critical mass of black students was admitted to our colleges during the 60s, for the first time in this country, many working class white students were allowed in too. Diversity benefits everyone or as Jesse Jackson says, “a rising tide lifts all boats.”

Learn about your classmates histories

Daughter I want you to learn about your classmates histories and their stories and I want you to share yours. We are all products of our history, and in these histories we carry our DNA, all the time, passed on to us through generations. To deny this history, is to deny part of ourselves, our beings, for indeed we are very much shaped by the history lived by our forebears.

Diverse racial and ethnic groups have a different history in the United States, and therefore traveled very different paths to becoming part of the American Society. Lumping all minorities together is tantamount to stripping them of their collective histories, rich cultural heritage and unique experiences.

Consider the history of the U.S. as composed of multiple narratives, where glory for some might have meant poverty, disenfranchisement and oppression for others. I encourage you to search for the historical truth wherever that search might lead. You see daughter the world that you will inherit will be vastly different from the one that I grew up in. It is your generation that will have to find a way to live in peace in our multicultural world.

Parents can make a difference

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if parents had this type of conversation with their kids? I’m confident that if they did our campuses would be transformed overnight. If there was ever a place where students should be encouraged to leave their comfort zone, that place has to be a college campus. Institutions of higher education can be described as laboratories for learning. Students have multiple opportunities to explore, debate, engage, date, visit, room with—you name it—with people who are culturally different. We should encourage them to grow and to expand their knowledge about others. That is what college is all about.

You see I believe that parents must set an example. They must not only believe they can make a difference, they must choose to do so. Given the changing demographics in this country diversity is one of our greatest challenges, which also makes it one of our greatest opportunities. Diversity enriches the educational experience, promotes personal growth and it’s simply the right thing to do.
Parents can play a vital role in planting the seeds so that someday diversity and inclusion are just taken for granted. But they must start the conversation to make that reality possible.


Author Bio: Dr. Charles “Chuck” Taylor, author, speaker and diversity expert is currently a professor in the school of education at a Midwestern college. Although he has written and edited over 10 books, this is his first novel. Chuck has also written a full-length children’s musical, a highly acclaimed documentary on the Milwaukee, Wisconsin civil rights movement and continues to serve as a national consultant to college campuses in the areas of racial diversity and inclusion. Please visit his website for additional information: http://drcharlestaylor.com/about/

Author Links - 




Book Genre: Mystery Thriller
Publisher: Roar Enterprises, Inc.
Release Date: January, 2012


Book Description: A cross is burned in the yard of two black Lakeside University students. When campus
officials call the incident a harmless prank, both black and white student organizations, launch a series of protests to force the administration into conducting a full investigation.
Instead, the administration devises a divide and conquer scheme to create a rift between black and white students. Feel the tension mounting as the students react to the Administration’s response to the incident. As black students turn up the pressure, the campus stands on the verge of a racial explosion. Campus leaders must find a way out of the crisis so they seek the help of Dr. Wendell Oliver, the country’s leading expert in diffusing racial tension.
Watch Dr. Oliver as he masterfully guides the feuding students into looking beyond themselves on a weekend retreat that is filled with action, danger, sexual attraction, and racial conflict. Discover the hidden lessons that students learn about friendship, betrayal and forgiveness. Follow the love story as the plot unfolds. Experience this roller coaster ride of emotions for yourself! Learn the secret behind the cross burning as the leading character Gloria finds her voice.

Students come to realize that the cross burning is more than just about racism. Its wicked flames shed light on corrupt cops, complicit college administrators and misguided attitudes that point to a major cover up. When students finally piece the puzzle together, justice is served but it comes with a steep price. Lakeside University will never be the same again.


Excerpt One:

Enough was enough. Dean of Students, Todd Severson stormed into President David Horning’s office and slammed the door. “Sir, we need to do something!” Severson said, lowering himself into the chair across from Horning’s antique desk. “Your divide and conquer strategy is backfiring—we have to do something and do it fast, or this university will explode!”
President Horning glanced up from his coffee. “That’s a bit dramatic, Todd, don’t you think?”
Severson leaned forward in his chair and pressed his palms against the desktop. “A black student has just been attacked!” he said. “Classes are being disrupted. The police are running themselves ragged, trying to keep everything under control. Now we have threats of a major civil rights demonstration being held on our campus!”
Horning looked at Severson and frowned. “Why don’t you just calm down,” he said. “We’ve weathered crises before. This isn’t any different.”
Severson stared back, his jaw askew. “Sir, I beg to disagree! We may have been able to smooth things over in the past, but this is very different. This could turn violent—even more violent than it already has become. And it's just a matter of time before the media plasters this mess all over the front page.”
Before Horning could respond, his phone rang. As he reached to answer it, Severson stood to leave. “Hold on Todd. Let me get this. This might be the call that will get us out of this damn mess,” Horning said, as Severson paced the floor.
***

Three Weeks Earlier
It was a cool, cloudy Sunday night in early autumn. Two figures huddled in the shadows next to a small house, near the Lakeside University campus. They set to work quickly, and soon a sharp chemical odor drifted through the air.
“Man, this shit really stinks,” said the first one, muffling a cough in his gloved hand. “Are you sure this will work?”
“It has to,” said the second. “You heard what they said. We’ve got to take care of this tonight.” “Okay, okay,” said the first. “Just light the damn thing so I can make the call and we can get the hell out of here!”
***
Inside the small house, Lakeside University student Ashante Melashe was working on a recording for her broadcast engineering class. Just as she hit the record button, the shrill ring of the telephone echoed through the house. "Oh, no!” she moaned, “I forgot to turn off the ringer!” She pushed her chair back from the table. “Well, that’s another sound bite down the drain."
"I'm coming," she grumbled as the phone continued its loud summons. "Hello?"
"Look outside,” said a gruff, male voice. “You’ll see how we feel about niggers at Lakeside University."
"What did you just say? Who is this?"
"Just look outside, bitch."
“Is this some kind of joke?” Ashante asked, but the only answer was the dial tone.
Shaking her head in disgust, she took a deep breath and stepped out into the front yard. The shock of the flames sucked the air from her lungs in a choked gasp. A strange smell burned her eyes and throat. She stood frozen, glaring at the blaze of bright red and orange fire burning against the cold, black starless night.
Then the realization hit her with as much force as if someone had kicked her in the stomach. Suddenly she knew what she was staring at: a huge cross, whose wicked flames lit up the yard and filled her with soul wrenching horror.

  "Oh, my God," Ashante whispered. 





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Sunday, July 28, 2013

Free Kindle Download: Buzz Kill by Teresa Trent (July 25 - 28)




Kindle Free Days

July 25 - 28


Buzz Kill
by Teresa Trent


Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release Date: July 2013




Book Description:


Betsy Livingston is planning a wedding so what could go wrong? After publishing a recipe for homemade calamine lotion in the newspaper, the ladies in the community church make a large batch. Everyone loves the stuff until someone in Pecan Bayou is found dead after using it. The town points to Betsy and she starts rethinking her whole career as a helpful hints columnist. Now she must clear her own name in between dress-fitting, cake-tasting, and all those things that turn a bride into a bridezilla. Is Betsy at fault or could there be something else that leads her down the aisle to murder?





Excerpt:

“Okay now, let’s see.” Mr. Andre lowered his head, revealing the roots of his mousse-spiked, bleached hair. He wore a dark maroon suit with a matching jewel-toned silk shirt unbuttoned midway, showing sparse hair on his skinny chest. “Do you have a photographer?”
“Yes,” I ventured.
“No,” Aunt Maggie cut in. “She has some guy who shoots kiddie team pictures.”
“Oh my.” Andre circled something on his clipboard. “No photographer.”
“And you’ve gone for a wedding cake tasting?”
“A tasting? I think I already know what vanilla and chocolate tastes like by now.”
Andre shook his head as if I were a child. “No, my dear. You will be pleased to find out there are other flavors like white amaretto, champagne – girl, you can even get peanut butter if that’s what floats your boat. So I take it you haven’t had a cake-tasting session?”
“You would be correct,” I replied.
“I see.” He circled another line. “And your flowers?”
“She’s using Lenny Stokes, and she’s already put a deposit down,” Aunt Maggie said.
Andre grimaced.
“I see. I’ll need his number and address so I can get in contact with him to put him on my approved vendors list.” He circled another line. “And what is the venue?”
“We are going to have the ceremony at the community church.”
Andre’s eyebrows raised as he nodded and smiled. I had finally done something right.
“Do you have any kind of documentation on this?” he asked.
“Not officially, no,” I said. “I have talked to the pastor about it, though and he says it’s open. We live in a small town, Andre. Documentation isn’t always required.”
“Mr. Andre,” he corrected.
“We just don’t have the same kinds of waiting lists like there are in the big city.”
He clutched his hand to his chest. “Well, that’s a relief.”
“And your invitations?”
“We weren’t going to send those out until mid-January. We were afraid people would lose them. I have them ordered.” Mr. Andre’s eyes slanted toward me. “Well, they’re not exactly ordered, but I do have them picked out.”
A pause hung in the air as Mr. Andre summoned up the strength to go on. “Are you sure we’re planning a wedding and not some kind of country barbecue where they cook a pig over a spit?” He clasped his hands together in front of him to emphasize his point. “You are in crisis mode, Madame Happy Hinter.”
I gulped. So maybe, just maybe, I hadn’t nailed down enough of the details. I felt a tear escape onto my cheek. Andre, used to overwhelmed brides, reached over to a satin-covered tissue box and slapped it down on the table in front of me.
“Dry your eyes, sweetie. We’ve got work to do,” he said. “You should know what a lucky girl you are. I just removed myself from a wedding on the same day. No one – I repeat, no one – does a wedding like Mr. Andre, but even I have my limits on troublesome brides and monster mothers. As fate would have it, I’m yours.”
He walked over to a filing cabinet and pulled out a large white leather binder. Mr. Andre’s picture was on the front, and underneath that, “Weddings Exclusively by Mr. Andre” was embossed in gold lettering.
“I don’t care what religion you are,” he said. “This, lovey, is your new bible. Carry this with you everywhere and fill it with notes, questions, business cards, quotes and everything – I mean everything – that has to do with your wedding. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” I said and saluted before I could stop myself. Aunt Maggie broke out into a laugh, but Mr. Andre turned quickly, fixing his eyes on her. She quickly stifled her reaction and stood up a little straighter, becoming just another draftee in the world of white satin.




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