In this third and last segment of our interview with Grant Overstake, he details the final steps he took to prepare Maggie Vaults Over the Moon for publication and distribution. Listen in as he discusses his experiences with book cover design, editing, Create Space and Amazon, and promoting through social media.
ABOUT THE STORYLINE
In the new teen sports novel,Maggie Vaults Over the Moon,author Grant Overstake retells the story of another amazing small-town athlete, Maggie Steele, a gutsy farm girl who pours her broken heart into the daring sport of pole-vaulting. The story climaxes at the Kansas State High School Track and Field Championships, the largest track meet in the nation, held atWichita State University‘s Cessna Stadium.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former Miami Herald Sports Writer, Grant Overstake, is a lifelong participant in the sport of track and field who competed in the decathlon for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. A multiple award winner for excellence in journalism, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is the author’s premiere work of sports fiction. Read more about Grant onhis website.
<>—<>
Many thanks to TheInn at Glenstraefor graciously allowing Keyhole Conversation to film the interview with Grant Overstake. Take a tour of this beautiful bed and breakfast inn here.
<>—<>
Subscribe to Keyhole Conversations while you’re here!
Writing is often thought of as a lonely vigil, but Grant Overstake, author of “Maggie Vaults over the Moon,” found this not to be true. In this Keyhole Conversations interview, he acknowledges those people who helped him along the way.
His novel, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon, has been endorsed by National Schools of Character as a story with a “positive character-building message for young people.” A former athlete and Miami Herald sportswriter, Grant has the experience needed to bring Maggie’s journey to life. Through pole vaulting, Maggie achieves both a physical and symbolic triumph over gravity. Set in Grain Valley, Kansas, this sports-related book has a depth people of all ages can relate to. Without a doubt, readers are sure to enjoy Grant’s novel of courage.
Watch the interview below as Bonnie Myrick and Grant Overstake discuss the inspiration for the novel and the people who encouraged and supported him, which he describes as believing mirrors that reflected back on him, and his novel is “…truth embedded with a capital T.”
ABOUT THE STORYLINE
In the new teen sports novel,Maggie Vaults Over the Moon,author Grant Overstake retells the story of another amazing small-town athlete, Maggie Steele, a gutsy farm girl who pours her broken heart into the daring sport of pole-vaulting. The story climaxes at the Kansas State High School Track and Field Championships, the largest track meet in the nation, held atWichita State University‘s Cessna Stadium.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former Miami Herald Sports Writer, Grant Overstake, is a lifelong participant in the sport of track and field who competed in the decathlon for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. A multiple award winner for excellence in journalism, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is the author’s premiere work of sports fiction. Read more about Grant onhis website.
<>—<>
Many thanks to TheInn at Glenstraefor graciously allowing Keyhole Conversation to film the interview with Grant Overstake. Take a tour of this beautiful bed and breakfast inn here.
<>—<>
Subscribe to Keyhole Conversations while you’re here!
Grant Overstake’s novel, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon, has been endorsed by National Schools of Character as a story with a “positive character-building message for young people.” A former athlete and Miami Herald sportswriter, Grant has the experience needed to bring Maggie’s journey to life. Through pole vaulting, Maggie achieves both a physical and symbolic triumph over gravity. Set in Grain Valley, Kansas, this sports-related book has a depth people of all ages can relate to. Without a doubt, readers are sure to enjoy Grant’s novel of courage.
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE
ABOUT THE STORYLINE
In the new teen sports novel,Maggie Vaults Over the Moon,author Grant Overstake retells the story of another amazing small-town athlete, Maggie Steele, a gutsy farm girl who pours her broken heart into the daring sport of pole-vaulting. The story climaxes at the Kansas State High School Track and Field Championships, the largest track meet in the nation, held atWichita State University‘s Cessna Stadium.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former Miami Herald Sports Writer, Grant Overstake, is a lifelong participant in the sport of track and field who competed in the decathlon for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. A multiple award winner for excellence in journalism, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is the author’s premiere work of sports fiction. Read more about his upcoming booksigning at Watermark Books and check outhis website.
<>—<>
Many thanks to TheInn at Glenstraefor graciously allowing Keyhole Conversation to film the interview with Grant Overstake. Take a tour of this beautiful bed and breakfast inn here.
<>—<>
Subscribe to Keyhole Conversations while you’re here!
Hazel Hart, award-winning novelist, reads a suspense-filled scene from Family History.
Picture this: A warm, sunlit day in March, temperatures hovering at 75 degrees–who wouldn’t be enticed to take advantage of such wonderful weather to shoot the vlog outside? We didn’t count on the camera’s tiny microphone picking up the chatter of children playing in the park and the blustering sound of the gusty Kansas wind.
Enjoy the reading. It’s worth the minor distractions that movie-making outdoors always brings.
WATCH THE VIDEO AS HAZEL HART READS A SCENE FROM FAMILY HISTORY, A SUSPENSEFUL- MYSTERY
ABOUT THE STORYLINE
A locked house and a strangled woman.
Town gossips say the sister did it.
Crystal Sands Marshall is furious. The local historical society has chosen another family as the subject for a book on the town’s beginnings. Crystal hires her own writer and then sets off to collect the necessary family records from her eccentric sister, Iris.
When Iris, who has not left the house since their mother’s death five years ago, fails to answer the door, Crystal breaks in. She finds Iris unconscious on the kitchen floor. Fearing her sister has attempted suicide, Crystal delays the sheriff’s investigation until she can search the house and dispose of anything that might set local tongues wagging. She discovers Iris’s diaries and learns her mother committed murder to protect the family name. As increasingly horrible secrets are revealed, Crystal is faced with the same choice: public ruin or murder.
Hazel Hart, a member of Kansas Writers Association and Kansas Authors Club, has won awards for her short fiction, including “Amanda Marie,” published in Kansas Voices, and “Confessions,” published in Words out of the Flatlands.
She has three published suspense novels, The Night before Christmas,Family History, and Possessing Sara and has co-authored two books of short stories, Dark Side of the Rainbow and The Edge of Nowhere, with Bonnie Eaton aka B.J. Myrick, which are also listed on amazon.com. Visit heramazon author page, watch her author video, and preview Family History, a suspenseful mystery.
Click image of Family History to read sample chapters!
Subscribe to Keyhole Conversations while you’re here!
B.J. Myrick of Keyhole Conversations interviews author H.B. Berlow about the creation of SWAN SONG. Berlow discusses the development of the characters, plot, and setting of his crime fiction novel.
View H. B. Berlow’s author page here. Check out his novel, Swan Song, a different kind of book by a different kind of author. You can preview the first three chapters of Swan Song on Amazon, but you’ll be hooked by the time you finish Chapter one.
Click image of Swan Song to read the chapters!
Subscribe to Keyhole Conversations while you’re here!
Author B.J. Myrick reveals the research involved in writing her historical novel, “Nelly of No Man’s Land,” which will be available on Amazon Kindle November 30, 2012.
Open the door to 1890 and travel with me through the pages of Nelly ofNo Man’s Land as I share the journey with you.
VIEW THE BOOK TRAILER
Read more about B. J. Myrick and her books at amazon.com.
Don’t miss Keyhole Conversation’s character interviews. Subscribe
Coming soon: In 1890, a pioneer family homesteads in Oklahoma’s No Man’s Land where they struggle to survive in a lawless territory.
Storyline: When the doctor gives NELLY DUNCAN up to die, her husband, WILL DUNCAN, moves the family to Oklahoma’s No Man’s Land in the hopes Nelly can regain her health. The territory—wild and dangerous–is filled with outlaws and disgruntled cattlemen who will kill or burn the settlers out to keep free range. Wolves and coyotes threaten their stock. To complicate matters, Nelly’s personal battle to regain her health is hindered by Will’s addiction to alcohol and infidelity. Take a look!
About the Author
Bonnie Myrick was born in 1932 in Atlanta, Kansas, to Scotch, Irish, and English parents. Her career as Art Educator spanned twenty-three years. Her first novel, “Out of Control,” is a paranormal suspense, and she partnered up with Hazel Hart to produce two short story collections of dark fiction, “Edge of Nowhere” and “Dark Side of the Rainbow.” Her historical novel, “Nelly of No Man’s Land” is scheduled for release in December. She is currently working on “Assisted Living,” a mystery. She has one daughter and lives in the Midwest.
Don’t miss Keyhole Conversation’s new character interviews. Subscribe
Congratulations to Gordon Kessler! His book trailer for Jezebel placed first in the Keyhole Conversations Halloween Book Trailer Contest.
The four criteria were the scary factor, plot, graphics, and sound. Jezebel received high marks for all three. Is there anything scarier than a growling dog’s bared teeth? This book trailer, produced by Goddess Fish, clearly depicts the plot through readable text that is enhanced with pictures and sound effects. The music varied with the shifts in mood as the calm of everyday life was shattered and the dogs howl struck fear in the hearts of all. Click on the book trailer below and prepare to be scared.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Gordon Kessler is a thriller novelist, living in the Kansas City metro area with his golden retriever, Jazmin (Jazzy Brass). He’s taught novel writing for several community colleges, worked over twenty years for the BNSF Railway, and is a former US Marine Recon Scout, Super Squad team leader, parachutist and troop handler.
His thriller novels Jezebel, Dead Reckoning, andBrainstorm are all in both paper and eBook. His latest men’s action/adventure thriller, Knight’s Ransom, was released early 2012. Four or five more in “The E Z Knight Reports” series are scheduled for release yet this year. These novels are about half the size of his big thrillers and are fast, fun reads.
Along with his fiction, Gordon’s published a book for writers, Novel Writing Made Simple; a great primer for beginners and an excellent refresher for the experienced wordsmith. He’s a founder and past president of the Kansas Writers Association, a sixteen-year-old organization of some very special people. Last year, he started a group to help support independent authors called the Indie Writers Alliance–another group of great people. A second book on writing, EBook Writing Made Simple! focuses on the actual writing of eBook novels, and how they can be crafted more effectively for the eBook novel reader rather than as a work written for the traditional publishing industry.
Keyhole Conversations scary Halloween Book Trailer contest closes on September 30, 2012. Be sure to get your entry in. You could be one of the the lucky winners. Not quite sure if your book trailer qualifies? Here is one example of a ‘scary’ book trailer. We’re even offering a special coupon code so you can get the eBook free. And be looking for another special Halloween offer of a free scary eBook next week.
KISS MUMMY GOODNIGHT
A Novella by Hazel Hart
A young woman inherits a mummy with instructions for activating its powers and making her every wish and dream come true. But then she learns the mummy has wishes of its own in KISS MUMMY GOODNIGHT.
Click here to download your free e-book, then enter the coupon code YD58H.The book will be free if the code is entered prior to completing checkout.
The coupon is good until Oct. 30, 2012.
CONTEST RULES
To be eligible:
Your entry must be in English and five minutes or less in length.
You must have the rights to the images and audio in the trailer with all credits listed at the end.
Your entry must be truly scary with elements of horror or the supernatural. Think Edgar Allan Poe to Mary Shelley to Stephen King.
Your entry must be received by 11:59 p.m. on September 30, 2012
This video is the second in a new three-part series on pitches that were filmed at theKWAmeeting when H. B. Berlow, our president, threw out a spur-of-the-moment challenge for members to pitch their books in one minute. Authors had ten minutes to prepare their pitch. They then allowed Keyhole Conversations to video their efforts.
Conrad Jestmore has published short stories, poetry and non-fiction in numerous journals and anthologies, and is a Past-President of the Kansas Authors Association. His first novel, River of Murder is available as an e-book from Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.Com, and the publisher, Smashwords.com. He has earned gainful employment as a welfare case worker in the mountains of northern California, an elevator operator when elevators still had them, a bartender, a paint warehouse stocker, a USO performer and a high school teacher. He is a Reiki Master and currently teaches Reiki classes and heals both humans and animals in his central Kansas Reiki practice.
About Darin Elliott
Darin Elliott works as a Laboratory Technician for Leading Technology Composites. Married for the past twelve years to his wife Misti, he is the father of three children and grandfather to one grandson (with another on the way). Darin writes in the science fiction and horror genres with a style reflective of Clive Barker and Philip K. Dick. Darin is pitching The Seraphim Protocol.
A standard pitch includes the book’s title and genre, a hook (point that grabs the audience), a cliff hanger, and an indication of where the book fits with others that have been published. All of this must be presented in one minute or less. Listen for these points as you watch the video.
Former Miami Herald Sports Writer, Grant Overstake, is a lifelong participant in the sport of track and field who competed in the decathlon for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. A multiple award winner for excellence in journalism, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is the author’s premiere work of sports fiction. Read more about Grant on his website.
