Swept Away

Angie: I wanted to share with you a unique style of book for young adult readers. Nicole O'dell first dedicates the book to her own children because she wants them to have the influence of good books as they grow up. But the way Nicole writes the stories is exactly what young adult readers will love. She lets them explore ideas through friendship with the characters. These characters explore both good and not so good choices. The interactive concept comes into the story in the last three chapters where the reader gets to live out an opposite ending to the books. Just love this. I think the stories are fun, interesting, and with well developed story lines. YA readers will love the ability to peek into an alternate reality when they read through to a different outcome. Fun, fun, fun with a bit of maturation tossed in the mix. Swept Away is the book I had the opportunity to review and present to you, but the publisher has also provided a little teaser for the other books in the series as well as a question/answer section with Nicole. Read on. I hope you'll enjoy :-)

Introducing Nicole O'dell

Author bio:

She writes. She talks. She reads. She changes diapers. Nicole O'Dell is a mom of six--including a set of toddler triplets who may or may not be potty trained sometime in 2011. Jury's still out on that one. She is the author of a bunch of YA books, including the popular Scenarios for Girls interactive fiction series and the upcoming Diamond Estates Series, 10/11. She's also the host of Teen Talk Radio at www.choicesradio.com. You can find her books and links to all the fun social stuff at www.nicoleodell.com.

About the book:

Swept Away

In High Stakes, seniors and best friends, Amber and Brittany, are neck and neck in a good-natured com- petition for a car being given away by a local business. In Essence of Lilly, sophomore Lilly Armstrong is always looking for ways to escape the confines of her unhappy home. She “invents” youth group activi- ties just so she can hang out with her boyfriend, Jason—the only one in Lilly’s life who makes her feel special. What happens when Amber and Lilly are faced with making difficult choices? How will they handle the risky business? Readers help Amber and Lilly make the difficult decisions and see how their choices create consequences with life-altering results.

Risky Business:
In Magna, Molly Jacobs gets hired at the ultimate girls’ clothing store and her friends—even the popu- lar girls in school—are envious. In Making Waves, sophomore Kate Walker has decided to try some- thing new this year. She secures a spot on her school’s swim team but soon becomes obsessed—with practice and making it through the championships with flying colors. What happens when Molly and Kate are faced with making difficult choices? How will they handle the risky business? Readers help Molly and Kate make the difficult decisions and see how their choices create consequences with life- altering results.

Dare to be Different:
In Truth or Dare, Lindsay Martin and her friends begin playing a game at sleepovers, and it all starts as harmless fun. . .until the dares become more and more risky. In All That Glitters, high school fresh- man Drew Daniels wants to be as different from her twin sister as possible—new haircut, new clothes, new friends. . .and a boyfriend. What happens when Lindsay and Drew are faced with making difficult choices? Will they dare to be different? Readers help Lindsay and Drew make the difficult decisions and see how their choices create consequences with life-altering results.

Trailer Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kW13j07rGDM

Defending Glory by Anne K Albert

I'd like to introduce you all to a lovely romantic suspense writer. She has one book out and the second coming out very soon. Please enjoy an excerpt by Anne K. Albert from her book, Defending Glory.

~Angie

About the book: Defending Glory

Suffering from survivor's guilt and unable to resume his career with the FBI, Mac McKeown moves to northern Minnesota to start over as a general contractor and forget that fateful day that changed everything. When he discovers the body of the man who ended his career on Glory Palmer's property, along with a warning for her to leave while she still can, Mac realizes his past has come back to haunt him and an innocent woman's life is in danger. He vows to keep her safe during construction of the retreat, but can he protect his heart as well?  

Also available on Kindle

EXCERPT 

“All the wiring's ruined,” the fire chief replied. “And the little that can be salvaged is woefully out of date. It wouldn't meet code even if it could be repaired.” He rhymed off the names of three local firms he recommended for the job. 

Glory and Mac thanked him and followed him outside to his truck. Silence reigned as they watched the vehicle disappear around a clump of cedar trees and down the lane. 

She climbed the porch steps slowly, as if her feet were made of cement blocks, slumped into a deck chair and gestured for him to join her.  

“This isn't good, is it?” she said. 

“According to the fire chief it could've been much worse.” Mac explained about the leaking roof. 

“I suppose I should be thankful for small blessings, but right now I'm finding that very difficult to do. We're already two weeks behind. One week due to the murder, and now another because of a suspicious fire. Everything scheduled to take place this week is once again on hold. Not a lick of work can be done without electricity, can it?” 

“I'll do my best to get an electrician on site this afternoon.” 

She tapped the toe of her sandal on the wooden deck. “I'm afraid we've got another problem.” 

“What's that?” 

She pulled a small fridge magnet from her pocket and handed it to him. “I found this on my car door this morning.”  

In bold neon letters, it displayed the telephone number of the Piedmont Island Fire Department. Printed in black permanent marker along the bottom were three words. 

I warned you. 

Buy link for Defending Glory: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0045JL61E 

Visit Anne's website: http://www.AnneKAlbert.com 

or her blog: http://anne-k-albert.blogspot.com 

BIO : Anne K. Albert is author of the romantic suspense Piedmont Island Trilogy series. DEFENDING GLORY, first book of the series, was released in September 2010. PROTECTING GLORY, second of the series, will be available August 2011.

Are you intentional?

How was your day?

Some days seem to be filled with productivity and others, well, they kind of get away from me. Yesterday was one of those. No matter how hard I tried, I felt like the day was slipping into the sea of lost causes.

Frustrated, I reworked my to-do list and tried again. But to no avail. At the end of the day I realized part of my problem was fatigue. I'd been going and going faster and faster until my day was no longer productive but frenetic.

Today I did much better. Then it started to feel overwhelming again. So you know what I did? I intentionally took the afternoon off. I took from about 2:30 p.m. until well after dinner and just relaxed. The shocker came. Yep, yep, yep. When I pulled out the work I needed to finish, I did the same amount in less time.

As I look back over the last few weeks, I can see the pattern. Every time I pushed too hard, my productivity went down. Now I'm refocused. Not on all that has to be done. That's on the list. I'm refocused on taking intentional time off to revitalize and refresh.

Will you take intentional time off? What would that look like? How can you plan for it?

Angie

I called Him Dancer by G. Edward Snipes

Love endures all things... What a perfect theme for this novel. As Raquel continues toward her dream of Broadway, her lost love tumbles in the gutters off broadway. But God's plan is a bit more than Broadway for both of them. Eddie Snipes offers us the opportunity to travel with Michael from lost to redeemed and to understand that God's love is never too far away and we are never too bad for God to love us. You'll love I Called Him Dancer.

What can a teen do to earn some money now?

Guest article from Carol Topp:

Here are some ideas for a micro business a teenager can start this spring:

• House cleaning: Offer to tackle large jobs like washing windows, moving furniture, etc. Many people are grateful for a young, strong teenager to help them with heavy lifting. What is easy for you might be very difficult for them, especially if they are an older person.
• Routine house cleaning: Some customers need regular house cleaning and may hire you on a weekly or monthly basis. Don't wait for them to ask: offer to come weekly or twice a month and see what they say.
• Attic cleaning: Offer to help people do a job that they put off, such as cleaning an attic.
• Garage cleaning: A big job that can earn you big bucks!
• Yard cleanup: Offer to trim bushes, pull weeds, plant flowers and spread mulch to spruce up a yard.
• Car and van cleaning: People spend a lot of time in their automobiles and their cars and vans need frequent cleaning. Melissa gladly paid to get her van cleaned inside and out every week because her four children could really make a mess in it. You can make some cash by offering to clean a van inside and out.
• Organize. Organize a house, playroom or garage. Charge the customer for any bins, tubs and labels that you purchase for them and then add on the value of your time. Take before and after photos to use on your advertising fliers.
• Declutter: Do you love HGTV shows on organization? You might be able to find someone to hire you to declutter their house like you see on TV.
• Garage sales: Advertise, organize and run a garage sale for your neighbors. Get several neighbors to participate together and really earn the bucks!
• eBay sales: Offer to sell your neighbors' stuff on eBay and take a cut for yourself. Combine the decluttering, garage sale and eBay tasks into a full package to help your customers profit from their excess stuff.

(This is an excerpt from Carol's article. Full article available at docstoc.com)

Carol Topp, CPA advises teenage business owners though her Micro Business for Teens book series. Carol’s day job is accountant to business owners, and she enjoys teaching teenagers to succeed beyond their dreams. Students appreciate how she shares what they need to know in clear and helpful lessons. Her website is MicroBusinessForTeens.com

About the book:

With unemployment rates high, the teen population is finding it harder and harder to find work. Adults are competing for the same minimum wage jobs. But there’s an alternative—starting a microbusiness. What is a micro business? It is a very small, one-person business that you can start easily and quickly with what you already know or own. No money needed, low risk and no debt! Students can spend as much time running a micro business as they wish and can even close it down during busy times. The best advantage for teens to own a micro business is that it not only brings in extra cash (often more than imagined), but students end up learning a great deal about business, money and themselves. It may lead to an entrepreneurial life or at the very least, prepare students for higher learning opportunities.

Starting a Micro Business will help teenagers earn money while learning how to start their ownbusiness. A micro business is simple to start, usually home-based, low risk, educational and easy for a busy student to run. This book offers ideas, a business plan, starting with no debt, pitfalls to avoid and resources to get a teenager started making money running their own micro business.

Have Teens? Starting a Micro Business for Teens!

Wow, where was this book when I was a teen? Where was it when I was raising six kids?

Starting a Micro Business for Teens is the best thing to hit the market for parents since...well, you get the picture. I'm so sold on this book by Carol Topp! She's got a quick, easy to read and easy to understand style. It pops off the page with fun examples of what a normal American teen can do to earn extra money. But what it really does is set up a teen for success.

I found a workbook on Amazon too. She also has a Micro Business for Teens website. I'm so impressed at all the tools she's put in the hands of our smart, capable, and able young people. I'm also thrilled because I don't think it's a book a teen would toss aside as too complex or even boring. It's such a fast read. It drew me in and surprised me. I really did expect a dry litany. Instead I found vibrant ideas and excellent advice.

Do you have a teen who wants to show what they're capable of achieving? Do you have a school library you could share this book with to help kids? Let's do all we can to prepare the next generation of leaders by feeding their curiosity and ambition in a healthy way now.

Thank you, Carol Topp, for taking the time to care enough to write this book.

Stop by tomorrow (4/11/11) for some tips, Carol's bio, and comment to be in a contest for a grand prize give away.

Angela Breidenbach, Speaker/Author
Creative Cooking for Simple Elegance
Gems of Wisdom: For A Treasure-filled Life, Journey Press

http://www.AngelaBreidenbach.com website
http://www.GodUsesBrokenVessels.com blog
http://www.christianspeakersservices.com/angela-breidenbach-christian-speaker-author.html

The Power of a Thank You Note

Rough day?

And the sigh is as long as the face.

Then the unexpected happens. It's not related to this day. It's not related to the events of the week or even the month. It's a surprise from something forgotten. A kind turn given and forgotten.

A thank you note shows up in the mail.

The day brightens.

For a moment, your mind flickers back to that tiny deed. It was nothing. It didn't cost much time or effort.

But somehow, you touched a life enough to warrant a thank you.

The blessing? The sense of appreciation shows up on the day you need it most. The day you feel like life is just a little too hard. Challenges just a little too big for you.

But God knew. He knew when He nudged you to say yes to a small deed that meant the world to someone else. He knew you'd need that encouragement that minute. God prepared a special angel kiss way before you knew you'd need it.

The power of a thank you note isn't the words, oh they are often very beautiful and inspiring. The power of a thank you note is attitude altering, affirming, and awesome. It's stunning how enriching that powerful note can be.

Do you send thank you notes? Did you ever think they might actually be a gift set up by God for the person receiving it? Is it possible God is working through you when you send a thank you note to speak encouragement right into the soul of someone?