A new short story by ME! Only 99 cents!

Hey Everybody! I just published a short story on Kindle for fun, and here's the link to it. It's cheap, too! But a darn good story, I think. :) A love story with a dash of mystery and a hint of metaphysics, of course.

It's called "The Black-Sequined Dress" and if (unlike me) you can remember how to spell sequined, you'll find it on Amazon Kindle if you search for it. Or search for my name. You can actually read a free sample even though it's a short story! Here's the link:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Black-Sequined-Dress-ebook/dp/B00658TOI0
Don't have a Kindle device? No worries. Go to Amazon and download the free Kindle for PC or Kindle for MAC or Kindle for Whatever software and you can read it on another device. (I don't have a Kindle either so I use their software on my PC.)

I'd love to hear your reviews. You can post a comment below. Or even better (especially if you liked it), you can post a review on that empty review section on Amazon! :-D

Warning: You will find some promotional info at the end of the story about my novel *Cosmic Dancer.* It's what we authors must do. Hope you're not offended. You can always skip it, and I promise you will have already gotten your 99-cents worth of story.

Now about that Coffee-Break Tale ... of course it has an unusual back-story. It's me, right? So I was just sitting at a keyboard in California one day in 2003 when someone started telling it to me in my head. The subject matter couldn't have been further from my thoughts.

This was before Joseph and I moved back to the Midwest. It had been 30-some years since I'd lived in southwestern Michigan, and I never ever lived in Indiana. However, my grandfather came from somewhere in the southern reaches of Indiana. As far as I know, this isn't his story. Is it? And my mother's Amish and Mennonite relatives came from northern parts of Indiana, but this doesn't seem to be their story at all.

Yet it definitely feels as if the story were "dictated" to me by someone who needed the tale to be told. I still wonder if they weren't related to my grandfather somehow. And I haven't gotten past the emotions yet, which still affect me no matter how many times I've read it. (Joseph too.) My own story? No, I don't think so ... but ???

But if I say any more, I might give something away ... So--enjoy!

Four Fabulous Days with Energy Healer Donna Eden

GREAT NEWS!  An extraordinary experience this past weekend has convinced us to teach Survival Skills for the 21st Century™ again in 2012. Our class includes a variety of essential techniques. But what spurred the decision, after a four-year hiatus, was our attendance at a rare, four-day Donna Eden Advanced Energy Medicine class.

Called “Energy, Intuition, and Eden's Way," it was held at the incongruous Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. Following are pictures, thoughts, and anecdotes from this exciting weekend.

Writing the next "Law of Attraction"? Ten Tips for Publishing Your Book - Part 3

Now that you’ve digested Parts 1 and 2, let’s talk about marketing any kind of book, paper or electronic. I think the above covers the whole subject of book cover design very well. Make sure it's an eye-catcher, whether you hire a pro or do it yourself! (And that it looks good as a tiny thumbnail.) I chose this example, by the way, because it totally relates to something I say later on. Honest!

 Then we'll discuss ways to turn your paper book (or your Word files) into an ebook. And it's time to get a little metaphysical with Tip #10.

Lastly, I've got a bonus treat for you: a series of fun-but-wise videos from my author friend Kathleen Pickering and her friend Traci Hall: step by step video advice for aspiring novelists.

Writing the next "Law of Attraction"? Ten Tips for Publishing Your Book - Part 2

For Part 2 of my friendly discussion about how to publish a book in today’s crazy market, let's talk about self-publishing options. And here, we're talking about paper books:

Writing the next "Law of Attraction"? Ten Tips for Publishing Your Book - Part 1

These days everyone’s becoming an author. Heck, you’re all publishing all the time anyway (Facebook, et al), so you might as well write a whole book, right?

Well, it’s not quite that simple. But the publishing industry is heaving huge sighs of change and they’re echoing out to the public ear. Many people are beginning to think that now’s the time to produce and publish that book they’ve always wanted to write and now they’ll actually make money at it!Perhaps.

This blog post is for all those who know something of my editorial background* and have been asking me for advice about writing & publishing.

Who Are Your Astral Companions?

We spent a lovely Fourth-of-July weekend enjoying our own uncrowded fairy garden, Joseph’s gourmet cooking, and seven consecutive episodes of the BBC series, “Downton Abbey,” courtesy of Netflix streaming into our TV. We love that series, those characters, both “good” and “evil”!

But as Joseph pointed out this morning, the last episode contained a brilliant illustration of an important—nay, a vital energy principle: that of astral obsession.

Are You Gender-Neutral?

I recently caught a story on NPR’s website about a trend they termed, “The End of Gender.” The article pointed to evidence such as an androgynous Australian model who walks runways for both women’s and men’s fashion, parents raising a child in gender-neutral fashion to allow the fullest room for choice, and a J. Crew advertisement featuring a boy with pink toenails. Not surprised by this supposed trend, I instantly thought of three good reasons for it, viewed through my interdimensional lens: