Summer-time fun with Mark McQuillen, Wanda Luthman, From the Heart of a Bibliophile's Lair, Mo&#
So, it seems I’m a little behind in my blog posts, but it’s totally not my fault. It’s summer, there are tons of minions invading my house and yard and I have been trying to cope in the only way I know how… by writing and doodling. It’s my escape during the long, hot, and incredibly busy summer days that meld into one another. The heat hasn’t been too bad here on the West Coast of Canada, but let me tell you, when the pH in your pool won’t balance and you have four kids who claim to be melting…
>>>>>>Insert sprinkler and slide here <<<<<
Anyhow, while they slip and slide in the yard, I’ll share with you all just how busy summer has been for us so far. Now, let’s see, I’ve been working hard on edits for Valkyrie: Darkness Awaits with my co-author, Mark McQuillen, while he puts his pirate ship back together! Malice can’t sail without it! No joke, he’s actually refurbishing (Is that the right word?) a sail boat, and thinking up some awesome stories as he goes.
We’ve also been working on a side story in our author group, The Black Rose. We’ve spent so much time writing in the future, we had to stop a take a plunge into the past. Malice spent five thousand years in darkness and we figured it was time to shed a little light into her turmoil. We don’t have a cover for it, but it has a title (and a possible book two starting) … Into the Shadows takes us back to when Malice was first turned to the dark side and the trials she encounters along the way. We're having a blast and you'll find Into the Shadows in ebook and paperback formats soon enough!!!
Everyone knows that my favorite thing to do is doodle, and multi-award-winning children’s author, Wanda Luthman keeps me quite busy. From her dainty Unicorns and playful Turtles to her adventurous Cats and a lovable Flamingo named Franky, I get to create fun-loving scenes for the whole family to share. In fact, the wizard of children’s tales has once again brought us a heartfelt reminder from our best Flamingo-friend, Franky and I can’t wait for every parent to read it to their child. I’m not sharing the cover just yet, but I will share the latest promo I made for it! You can visit Wanda and find more of her children's stories here >>>> https://www.facebook.com/wluthman/
Where do Flamingos love to relax and laze the day away? In the water, of course! They love to hunt for shrimp and get a nice, cool, refreshing drink. You know what else they love? Peace, love and friendship, all of which you will find in this next project. Haven,
A Special Edition Anthology,
was put together be Indie Authors who wanted to show the world that peace, love, unity and friendship for all, still exist. It carries inside it the stories and poetry to remind us that we need to step back and take a deep breath. Enjoy life for what it is, celebrate with all around you.
Inside you will find a poem, written by me, called
Finding the Way.
A little reminder for all, that our voices are louder when we stand up, together, against the darkness. Here is the cover and a little promo I made for my poem.
All proceeds go towards helping the families and victims of the Christchurch, New Zealand Mosque shootings. You can find Haven on Lulu.com, here>>>>
http://www.lulu.com/shop/http://www.lulu.com/shop/mara-reitsma-and-cathy-lee-chopping-and-karen-gordon-and-natan-annabell-hansen/haven/paperback/product-24141319.html
These next two were side projects, cause we all know I like to help people out. The first is from a local Canadian musician known as Mo’Dirt and he’s been droppin some pretty hot singles for a while now. So, when a friend said he needed some help, I stepped in….
His latest single is due to drop soon and you can keep up to date on all his goods via his websites listed below!!!!
Facebook: https://facebook.com/modirt604
Website: www.Modirtmusic.com
You can also find him on Instagram!!!!
The second project was done for From The Heart of a Bibliophile’s Lair. She loves to read and blog about her favorite authors, and she had a wicked idea for a page cover but needed some help to see it come to life. Here are both the original hand drawn image she did, and the one I digitally enhanced for her.
You can visit her page here and check out all her awesome promos, blog posts and tidbits! https://www.facebook.com/BibliophileLAIR/
Aside from all of the above, I’ve been venturing out into new areas of doodling, taking my own hand-drawn creations and digitally enhancing them. I’ve managed to create a trilogy of abstract-ish book covers that I’ve posted for sale in my design group Covered by the Rose……
I had a lot of fun working on these and the other pre-made covers in my group. If you want to check them out, or know an author looking for a unique and 100% original work, send them to Covered by the Rose!
It takes a lot of work to get the cover just the way I like, but in the end, it’s totally worth it. Just look at some of the art that goes in to making one of these bad boys….
All in all, I love what I do. I’m not wasting time or bored out of my tree. It keeps me busy and it keeps those I live with, alive. I’m hoping to have a lot more to show you all next time, but until then, don’t forget to check out some of the links I posted. You’ll find some quality reads, interesting artworks and wicked tunes! It’s all about connecting, and I love what I do!!
Come visit me >>>>> https://www.facebook.com/groups/CoveredbytheRose/ Happy Reading, People Mara
