Tag Archives: cheryl anne gardner

Jan 28 2012

366 of Me: Day 28

Yesterday, I mentioned free stuff received from my two Cheryl’s.  Sounds like a sitcom, don’t it?

Here’s what my 2nd Cheryl gave me.  A copy of her new book!  She even signed it.

It’s called And Death Dreamt Us.

Cheryl lives on the East Coast.  We have never met and have never spoken outside of emails or Facebook posts.

But I feel like she’s one of my closest friends.  We’ve shared our work with each other over the past few years, and as I’ve told her before, “She just gets me.” And I get her!  I’ve read almost all of her books, and can’t wait to read this one!

Thanks, Cheryl!

Did I mention she signed it?  ;-)

 

 

Jul 26 2011

Sit Down And Read This Review

Fellow author and dear friend, Cheryl Anne Gardner, posted a review of Are You Sitting Down? this past week.

You can read the full review here or at Amazon.

While I love the entire review and have read it about a dozen times by now, here’s my favorite part:

They say in a small town everyone knows everything about everyone else, and this story serves to debunk that myth. Here everyone knows what they think they know, and in reality, they only know what’s relevant to their own personal struggle, and their attitudes towards the secrets that they think they know are really just reflections of their own inner turmoil. No one really knows anything deeper about the other characters aside from the surface wounds, which is sadly true to life. We talk to the people in our lives, but we rarely really listen. We claim to “share” our most intimate feelings with a certain few, but we rarely tell anyone the unadulterated truth about anything. That realism and truth about the collective consciousness is driven home quite powerfully in this story.

As Cheryl mentioned early on, I thanked her in the back of this book for just “getting me.”  Cheryl and I have never met face to face and have never verbally spoken to each other.  Our communication has only been through email or Facebook. I’ve read three of her books though and she’s now read two of mine. But you know how sometimes when something just clicks and you know you’ve made a genuine friend?  I got that from Cheryl very early on in our correspondence.  And there have been few people like that in my life because I think there are few people like that out in the world for each of us.

Sure, we make lots of contacts throughout our lives.  We have friends, good friends, and best friends.  Heck, don’t you wish you could divide them into groups sometimes on Facebook?  But those genuine friends, those real connections, no matter how they are made are real.  And we know it when it happens. And I’m glad Cheryl is one of mine.  Her opinion is important to me, and her praise for my book made my day!  Like I said, she gets me.  And when someone reads my work and they connect with it the way I intended a reader to, I know I’ve done a good job.  I’ve written a good story.  And that means a lot to me.

Thanks, Cheryl!  Love ya!

Jul 21 2009

Books I’ve Read in 2009 Update: New Years Resolution

waitingforspringI just finished book 18 for the year in my New Year’s Resolution to read at least 25 books this year.  Like I’ve said, I know I always read at least that many, if not more, but this year I’m keeping track.  I’ve actually read more than this because I also read books for LLBR, but I’m not counting all of those because most of the time I don’t have a physical book in my hand.  I read the books on the computer.  So, my list is mainly composed of physical books I actually held in my hand and read, not counting 1 that I did read on the computer but not for the review site.  Want to check out my complete list for the year so far? Click here.

The book I just finished is R. J. Keller’s Waiting for Spring, but you’ll have to wait for my review.  I’ll be reviewing it in August for the review site.  I have to admit it’s not a book I would have picked up in a bookstore and bought for pleasure.  But that’s one of the joys of self-published books.  There’s a whole viral bookstore available to you that many bookstore shoppers will never see.  And I feel it’s my duty sometimes to tell people about those books.  It’s exactly why I read very little mainstream fiction.  Just take a look at my list again and count how many of those books you’ve ever heard of.

When I tell most people that I don’t read mainstream fiction, they always tell me I’m missing out.  I usually get Harry Potter immediately pushed into my face like the Bible because I love to tell people I have never read Harry Potter nor will I ever.  “You’re stupid and you’re missing out,” people say.  Well, guess what?  You’re stupid and your missing out too.  Harry Gilleland, LK Gardner-Griffie, Mark Zero, Kevin Bentley, Cheryl Anne Gardner, R.J. Keller, Kevin Sessums, Bob Levy, Anthony Policastro, Janis Letts….my list of authors  I’ve read this year can go and on….do you know who any of these people are?  If not, you should find out.  Because you are indeed missing out.

Look for my review of Keller’s book the 2nd week of August on LLBR.