Useful information for everyone at a time when social media rules the scene.
Keeping up with social media can feel like a full-time job these days — and for many it is. Posting your content on Twitter and Facebook during specific hours, and keeping things evenly spaced out, means that you need to tend to your profiles pretty often.
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I am working on this very cool challenge. Thank you Becky Due for this prompt. Due to recent happenings in my life, I had to look up the meaning of the following words:
apostille
accession
Watch for the story behind these two words.
Join us at Fallasburg this Sunday for book signing of Shifting Sands Short Stories.
Come and chat with the author Emma Palova, who has a lifelong passion for history. 
Daily Post prompt Bury with book excerpts from Shifting Sands Short Stories
By Emma Palova
Not only am I buried with all the tasks around marketing my new book of short stories, but one of the early stories “The Temptation of Martin Duggan” touches on burying one’s miseries.
We often would like to bury a lot of things, and some of them we actually do in meaningless stockpiles. However, sometimes we need to refer back to them, and dig out some parts of the past.
The main character professor Martin Duggan in the story “Temptation of Martin Duggan” finds himself in this position as he confronts the major conflict in his life: and that is his son Joe.
As soon as the daylight broke, Martin grabbed a spade from the garage. There was still morning dew on Rose’s mauve tulips, as Martin started digging a hole in the middle of the garden. Soil and tulips were flying around as Martin dug deeper into the earth.
Along with the brown soil, Martin was also exhuming his suppressed past longings. He intended to bury in the hole all the role models, present and past, including the model of himself.
He ran back into the den. Rose couldn’t sleep all night long. Courageously, she went after him into what used to be his pride, his office. She looked at the rampage Martin left. Little tears, tiny like the dew drops on the destroyed mauve tulips, rolled down her swollen cheeks, as she watched the man she once had loved.
There were broken pieces of furniture scattered all around along with the broken window pane. There were blood stains on the white carpet and some of the papers.
“Martin, stop. Are you crazy?” Rose cried.
Yes.”
Martin was stuffing his books, notes and computer perforated paper into black garbage backs. He filled six bags with equations and solutions. He tied the bags up neatly and ran back into the garden.
Martin, stop, you don’t what you’re doing,” Rose cried helplessly.
He threw the garbage bags into the hole and threw dirt on top to cover them up. He worked diligently, all sweating. He made a neat mound, and stomped on it to level it.
He grabbed again the axe and wanted to chop up the pretty Danish teak furniture in the living room, he only stopped for a minute in front of the oil painting of the Dutch windmill.
“Stop, I am going to call the police,” Rose said. “Don’t you dare turn on me, you crazy fool.”
Rose walked boldly toward Martin and took away his axe. She pushed him into a chair. Martin was panting, exhausted. He was all flushed and couldn’t breathe.
The book Shifting Sands Short Stories is now available on Amazon at:
Emma’s book signing is this Sunday, July 16 at the Fallasburg one-room schoolhouse from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Everyone is invited.
Come and chat with the author in the beautiful historical setting of the 1850s pioneer village of Fallasburg.
Ask the author questions about the egotistical characters in the short stories.
Copyright (c) 2017. Emma Blogs, All rights reserved.
Do a home project you’ve been avoiding daily challenge from author Becky Due
I really love this challenge, because of my book Shifting Sands Short Stories I have put on hold everything from my garden to my cooking. I need to step out of the creative space of the book, and complete the tasks in the real world. It is a very hard transition, that works both ways.
Any creative person can attest to that it is extremely hard to enter the creative space of a project.
And it is equally hard to leave it.
The whole creative process is much like being on the other side when you’re enjoying a good book or a good movie, you don’t won’t to leave it behind.How do you feel about this?
Join in the discussion and also #AsktheAuthor, add your review.
Here is a link to reviews and stories discussion on Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/18669446
You can add the book to your bookshelf using the Goodreads icon in the sidebar
Currently discussing Shifting Sands Short Stories, Tonight on Main
Author Emma:
I think the first story “Tonight on Main” is the most mysterious out of the bunch, followed by the Death Song.
Illusion
Illusion plays a big role in both stories.
Reviews
Tonight on Main is a story that puts side by side the deception in the soul and heart of the old and the anticipation in the eyes of the young. We see several contrasts happening at the same time, the exposed sins in the thoughts of the old women and the innocence of the young boy. The fast paced and noisy main street and the slow nonchalantly unveiling card game on the table. Once in a while one of the old women resurfaces from her sea of nostalgia to bring everyone back to reality with a simple phrase, later proven to be fateful, which goes ignored. Hard to say if purposefully or by simple oblivion. The card game continues as the women sink deeper into their memories. Everyone is attached to the past and no one wants to live in the present as portrayed by the decaying porch and old curtains on the window. In the end, we find out that feelings like jealousy and the need for revenge burns strong in the human heart.
Copyright (c) 2017. Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
Pick your biking adventure at your pace this Sunday @Fallasburg through the beautiful countryside.
Ask the author, Storyteller 2017
In this series following the release of the Shifting Sands Short Stories collection, I answer questions about the stories, characters, me and my writing career.
By Emma Palova
I’ve been on the other side of an interview only twice in my life. That is if I don’t count job interviews. As a reporter, I’ve interviewed thousands of people for newspaper and magazine stories over the years. I’ve always been very comfortable at asking questions, in person or over the phone.
The subject didn’t really matter, unless it was a personal issue of officials resigning under duress.
Recently, Tim McAllister interviewed me for the local paper the Lowell Ledger about the Shifting Sands Short Stories book release. I wrote for the paper for many years as the lead reporter. The article “Ledger reporter pens book of short stories” came out on July 5.
It was a great interview that resulted in a great story. And I am grateful for that. Thank you.
An interview is like a Bridge to a destination. A good interview is a firm bridge to a good story with a firm foundation. It is a lot like the physical structure that connects two places.
Here is a picture of one of my favorite bridges, and that is the Fallasburg Covered Bridge built in 1871. It has been connecting people with the Fallasburg pioneer village for the last 146 years.
And because everything is connected, my book signing on July 16 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. will be held at the Fallasburg one-room schoolhouse museum. Everyone is invited into the historic setting, that well fits the premise of the short stories set in hometown Midwest America.
The only other time I was interviewed was when I became an USA citizen in 1999 in a naturalization ceremony at the Gerald Ford Museum, along with my daughter Doc Emma.
And now I have found out that I am equally comfortable on the other side of the interview. That is answering questions about my new book Shifting Sands Short Stories, me and my writing career.
I love the interaction with my followers, friends and family.
Just yesterday, I got this question:
“What is your favorite story in the book?” asked my daughter-in-law Maranda.
I love this question. I used to ask artists the same thing.
“What is your favorite painting?”
I use the analogy of releasing the book to releasing your child into the world, after he or she graduates. You nurture them or the book idea for years. Then you work it into a book, and release it to the world.
“You’re kind of sad, and it’s also a highly emotional situation that you did everything you could possibly do,” I said.
The entire world around the publication of the book is different from anything else. I had to write it down on a piece of paper:
“Don’t treat this like everything else you’ve done in life, because it’s different.”
The difference is mainly in the novelty and the complexity of the entire publication process from the inception of the idea to holding the actual book in your hands.
“I got shivers for you when we got your book in the mail,” said Maranda.
I couldn’t have said it better.
Thank you all for making this possible.
Ask the Author, Storyteller 2017 to be continued
The book is available at https://www.amazon.com/Emma-Palova/e/B0711XJ6GY
Copyright (c) 2017. Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
We had a great Fourth of July in South Haven on the beach of Lake Michigan.
Always working on this one.
authoremmapalova 