Friday, November 8, 2013

Lily of the Springs

I feel this book, written by Carole Bellacera and inspired by the life of her mother, is important. 

Yes, it's a fun read, too.  It's delightful to be taken through various eras (the 1950's and forward) via the music playing on Lily's radio and the fashions she and her friends are wearing.  It's entertaining to imagine a very early Elvis concert as clearly as if you were there.  It's amusing to witness the culture clash when a rural Kentucky girl befriends a chic Californian.

But if you've ever seen a young person make a quick choice that you know will affect the rest of their life . . .

Or if you've ever shaken your head at the abused mother who stays with the father . . .

Or if you've ever been that woman, needing the motivation and the courage to get out . . .

You should read (or listen to) this book.  There is hope; there is always hope.




Available from Amazon in print format, as a Kindle edition, or as an audio book.

Also available in audio format from Audible.

And in audio from iTunes here: .



ACX

Are you the rights holder to a work of literature?  Are you interested in making that work available as an audiobook?

ACX (the Audiobook Creation Exchange) simplifies the process of connecting authors/rights holders to potential narrators and producers.  Once the work is produced and approved by the author, ACX provides distribution of the audio through Audible.com, iTunes, and Amazon.com.

My own narrator/producer profile can be found here.

https://www.acx.com/


Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Read-Along Apple Apps

In 2011 I had the pleasure of lending my voice to some read-along apps for children's books.  This is one of many services that Author Solutions offers to those who choose to self-publish through them.  Version 1.0 of these should have my narration; with version 1.1 the option of recording your own narration was added, along with, I believe, the ability to color in the pictures yourself.

Miss Kayla's Tea Party
iPhone app
iPad app

Sprucie the Whispering Pine Tree Who Wanted to Shout
iPhone app
iPad app

Peace at the Watering Place
iPhone app
iPad app
Book
(I recall this one as being particularly lovely; you know a child who would benefit from the prose/poetry of this book.  I'm sure you do.)

Party Animals Howling at the Potato Moon
iPhone app
iPad app

Adventures of Dolittle the BumbleBee in: The Danger Sensor
iPhone app
iPad app

Mind's Ear is 20, so French Quarter is $20!

This is so fantastic!  French Quarter was a sort of beginning for me, the first project on which I was totally dependent on my voice.  It took a few years (and some incidental projects) for me to say "yes, definitively, this is what I want to do!", but this is where "me in front of a microphone" began.



I still think on this project with happiness.  Joel and Dana of Mind's Ear Audio were (and still are) delightful people, and lovely to work with.  My fellow actors were excellent and wonderful and extremely talented.  I am still *so* proud to have had a part in this radio drama.

Do you like magic, crime drama, vampires, and romance?  Then you absolutely need to take advantage of the special 2013 pricing for this series!  Available through Mind's Ear Audio Productions.

Here's a tasty clip with George the Vampire, voiced by Chris Mills.  Chris now helps people look as creepy-awesome as he sounds in this scene:  Instant Monsters