BACK ON TRACK!

 

BOOK REVIEWS

How often do you purchase something on Amazon and then after a decent amount of time you get an email from them asking if you would like to post what you think of the product? 

I get these emails all the time and usually try to respond by doing a short review, as it helps other customers with their decision on whether to buy the product or not.

Authors are especially grateful for any comments that their readers find time to make. Actually, it only takes a moment and you don’t need to give a long in depth review.

If the word “review” puts you off, don’t worry. You don’t have to be an expert at reviews. Your grammar doesn’t even have to be perfect! All you need to post are your honest comments about the book. This can be as short or as long as you wish.

Do bear in mind though with book reviews that the author will probably read your review. As my dear old author friend and mentor Jan Valpy used to tell her writers’ group - “when doing a critique remember to be kind to the soul of the writer!”

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HOW TO START AND RUN A WRITERS’ GROUP!

 

First meeting of The Bahamas Writers Group 

I formed the Bahamas Writers Group (BWG) in January 2003, thinking it would just be a few writers meeting monthly over coffee.

The group was a spin-off from my former writers’ website bahamaswriter.com  – the link now goes to my blog. You can find a lot of information from this in my writer’s guide, “How to Be the Best Writer Ever!”, available as an e-book and in paperback at Amazon and other online retailers. I cover Writers’ Groups in Chapter 6.

The BWG was born out of a little lunch in Caffé Caribe, Harbour Bay, Nassau, when four local BahamasWriter.com forum members got together for the first time, along with two vacationing forum members from Canada.  

The first actual meeting, consisting of nine members, was in the former Le Pasion café opposite Hoffer’s Shopping Centre, Cable Beach. But the BWG grew so much, eventually reaching about forty members (not all of the members attended each time, however), that I relocated our meetings to the former premises of New Providence Community Church, Cable Beach.

Second Meeting of The Bahamas Writers Group 

The writing goals that I established were:

To have fun writing; enjoy the camaraderie of fellow writers; motivate and inform each other as writers; improve the quality of our writing; have our work recognized locally and internationally; and to get published!

I did structure the meetings though. Prior to each meeting, I would put together an agenda, along with materials to be handed out. And I provided light refreshments at the meetings!

Here are two of the agendas (click each one to read):

By July 2003, I had become very busy with my family real estate business. The group was going so well, I decided they didn’t really need me to run it anymore and I let the members know. They were disappointed, but understood. During the July meeting, members voted that a team should take over. Eight members volunteered to be part of the new team! The group also voted to maintain the goals and policies of the BWG that I had set up.

We took a break in August and the BWG met again in September, with the new team in place.

I regret to say that the group eventually floundered after this, but nothing can ever replace the camaraderie, encouragement and fellowship from our meetings. I am sure other members, a few of whom sadly have since left this earth, felt the same.

So, if you would like to start a Writers’ Group, go for it! Although it can be hard work, it’s most satisfying and can motivate you to write more and get published.

Please note: None of my posts, articles, short stories or books are written by AI! They are written solely by me!

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"JUNKANOO" AT BAHA MAR!

A beautiful “Valley Boys” Junkanoo piece featured at the Baha Mar Resort this past Sunday. It’s absolutely amazing how many talented artists from all backgrounds in The Bahamas create these pieces.

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NO MONKEYING AROUND WITH THESE BOOKS!

Various hard-backed books, including some classics, are dotted around the seating area of the Monkey Bar in the Baha Mar Resort, Cable Beach, Nassau!

 

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NOVEL WRITING MEMORIES!

 

Wow! This old post about my first novel “Love at Sunset”, which became “Dangerous Devotion” (The Buchanan Mystery Romance Series”), popped up in Facebook Memories from July 4, 2014! -

“I finished writing Chapter Fourteen of my novel in the blackout last night, scribbling the final few pages of the chapter in a notebook by flashlight and then typing them up this morning after the power came back on. Have started Chapter Fifteen, so am almost half way through the book. Now I’m plotting out the rest of the story, so I can gradually bring everything to a satisfactory conclusion.”

"Dangerous Devotion" is available as an e-book and in paperback HERE!

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FREE FREE FREE! - BOOK OF “ECLECTIC THOUGHT-PROVOKING” SHORT STORIES!

 

At this sizzling time of year, I’m delighted to offer FREE downloads of my book of “Eclectic thought-provoking” Short Stories - "MOONBEAMS FROM THE SOUL: A COLLECTION OF FOURTEEN PROVOCATIVE SHORT STORIES”!

This short story collection is FREE through Tuesday, July 18, 2023.  "Moonbeams from The Soul" is also available in paperback (regular and large print) and Kindle Unlimited.

Many of my short stories have appeared in “The Lady” magazine, U.K. As New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman says: “Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner.”

Some excerpts from the short stories in Moonbeams from the Soul:

"Although she expected it, the sight of the devil’s mask made her gasp. The man had a whistle in his mouth and carried cowbells and maracas. She led the man across the room...." - from "The Merry Widow".

"I knew it was a mistake. I don’t know why I did it. Well, actually, I do know why. I’m no different from the other girls in my graduating class of that year...." - from "Love Made Me Do It".

"She wore shorts and a sleeveless top. Her hair gleamed in the sunshine. To him, at that moment, she looked even more beautiful in the daytime than she had in the moonlight...." - from "Queen Bee".

"The moles stared at me from some kind of solution in the jar! They looked like shrivelled raisons. I couldn’t drink any more coffee!" - from "The Palms".

Some Amazon Reviews of Moonbeams from The Soul:

"What a marvellous collection of stories. They will reel you in, entertain and refresh you, and have you eager to go on to the next one!"  

"I love FK books. They always leave you wanting more or dying to know what's next in the series."

"These are well-written stories with a twist. Fay Knowles is good at describing everyday life where you gradually discover that nothing is quite what it seems."

DOWNLOAD FREE AT AMAZON U.S.

DOWNLOAD FREE AT AMAZON U.K.

DOWNLOAD FREE AT AMAZON CANADA

DOWNLOAD FREE AT AMAZON AUSTRALIA

DOWNLOAD FREE WORLDWIDE

If you enjoy "Moonbeams from The Soul" and have time to leave your comments under Reviews on the book's page at Amazon or elsewhere that would be terrific. Thanks so much!

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