Category: Dear Reader

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Dear Reader

Dear Reader #21

Dear Reader,

A year ago, we launched Mom’s Favorite Reads and I’m delighted to say we are still going strong 🙂

It’s been an exciting challenge to produce a magazine on a monthly basis and a great pleasure to work with so many loyal, talented and creative people.

We have featured some big names over the past year – check out our back issues for the full list – along with many exceptional newcomers. We have also showcased a number of young authors and their contributions have been a pleasure to read.

Stay tuned for our exciting Christmas and New Year plans. Meanwhile, here’s our Fall issue.

In our Fall issue…

Articles, short stories, recipes, travel, interviews, poetry, young writers, activities and book reviews. There is something for everyone in Mom’s Favorite Reads. Enjoy your copy, FREE, today!

https://issuu.com/momsfavoritereads/docs/vol-2_iss-10_momsfavoritereads

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Delighted to be featured on the Bendideia website 🙂 Check out the website, particularly if you love mythology, folklore and culture.

https://bendideia183292355.wordpress.com/cultural-awareness/europe/

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In Britain we are facing a General Election in December. Meanwhile, this week in the House of Commons, Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition, wore a green tie as a mark of respect for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy where 72 men, women and children died. With the relatives of the victims looking on from the public gallery the Conservative MPs laughed and mocked him and his tie. Make of that what you will.

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Thanks to Suzan, we are making excellent progress with the audiobook version of Victory. This story is based on a remarkable top secret assignment conducted during the Second World War.

https://hannah-howe.com/anns-war/

VICTORY AUDIOBOOK

Of course, it was Halloween this week. An amazing picture, the sun with its Halloween face, produced by active regions as seen in ultraviolet light.

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Local views this week.

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

Categories
Dear Reader Sam Smith Mystery Series

Dear Reader #20

Dear Reader,

This week, I stumbled across a link for the Humanists on Twitter. Out of interest, I completed their questionnaire and discovered that I am “100% Humanist”. This did not come as a surprise because Dr Alan Storey, one of the main characters in my Sam Smith Mystery Series, follows Humanist principles as a psychologist. I believe in Humanist principles because I think they are good for the world. Equally, I have no problem if people choose to follow a religion. As the late, great comedian Dave Allen used to say, “May your god go with you.”

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Many thanks to readers in France, Germany and Italy for supporting my Sam Smith Mystery Series with more sales in those countries this week. Also, many thanks to readers in Germany for placing my Ann’s War Mystery Series in the top thirty 🙂

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Views of Llanmadoc, a location featured in my Sam Smith Mystery Series.

More thanks, this time to Adriana for her wonderful translation of Invasion. I’m delighted that she’s now working on Blackmail, book three in my Ann’s War Mystery Series 🙂

ANN'S WAR INVASION PORTUGUESE

Authors I admire: Ronesa Aveela. Ronesa writes about mythology, in particular Bulgarian and East European mythology. I am fortunate to have a number of Bulgarian friends so Ronesa’s books are of great interest to me. I am also fortunate to count Ronesa amongst my friends, but I say without any bias that her books are truly excellent. Here are some examples. Please check them out.

Evidence of autumn. Our liquid amber, now a teenager, has held on to its green leaves longer this year.

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As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

Categories
Dear Reader

Dear Reader #19

Dear Reader,

Why do authors write? Apart from the elite 1% there is no money in writing, so unless you are in that 1% or churning out words to order money isn’t a motivation. Fame? Fame is shallow and does more harm than good. Some authors want to be famous, and good luck to them, but fame isn’t for me. Praise? It is rewarding when readers appreciate your books, look forward to them and write nice comments. Kind words mean a lot. That said, writing isn’t the best occupation if you are looking for praise. Even if you are a mega-bestseller the majority of people will ignore you or dislike your work. So, why do writers write? I believe it’s because we are blessed, or cursed, with story ideas and we need to express those ideas to find a level of contentment and peace of mind. We need to release our creative energy through writing. Of course, finding readers is rewarding and satisfying, but the main motivation and enjoyment comes from turning a blank manuscript into a story. There is something magical about creating a story that is unique.

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Chapter one of Snow in August, Sam Smith Mystery Series book sixteen is complete. Here’s a clue…

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Caerau Hillfort and the ruins of St Mary’s church, pictured, get a mention in chapter two of Snow in August, Sam Smith Mystery Series book sixteen. These landmarks are on the road Sam takes to her office houseboat.

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Chapter three of Snow in August, Sam Smith Mystery Series book sixteen, sees Sam at Caswell Bay where she meets her new client.

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Five more translations published this week, three in Spanish, one in German and another in Portuguese. Many thanks to my talented team of translators for all their hard work and for sharing my stories with the world.

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As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

Categories
Dear Reader

Dear Reader #18

Dear Reader,

I rediscovered Twitter this week. Like all of social media, Twitter is mainly a talking platform, not a listening platform. That said, I have found it useful for accessing information from experts who have greater knowledge about certain subjects than I have. Twitter, like all of social media, is not a good book promoting platform so I’m not sure if I will use it to any great extent. However, if you would like to connect there my Twitter link is on the sidebar.

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This week, we started work on the audiobook version of Victory. This will complete the Ann’s War series. The series is also available in a number of languages, with more to follow. I wrote the books as an experiment, which has turned into a great success. This has encouraged me to follow a similar pattern with my forthcoming Spanish Civil War series, The Olive Tree.

VICTORY AUDIOBOOK

The audiobook version of Escape is nearly ready for publication. It’s been a while since I wrote the story so I’ve managed to listen to it with fresh ears. I love the story. This has nothing to do with the quality of my writing, but is based on the remarkable series of true events that make up the story.

ESCAPE AUDIOBOOK

Many thanks to Graciela for her excellent translation of Boston, which will be available soon 🙂

BOSTON SPANISH

From my research… In 1939, there were more movie theatres in America – 15,115 – than banks – 14,952. More than 50 million Americans went to the movies every week and there were 400 new movies a year to watch. Annually, the movies were the nation’s eleventh-biggest business in terms of assets netting $529,950,444. Although synonymous with Hollywood, the financial aspect of the movies was controlled by New York.

Movie executives were amongst the richest rewarded, ranked second in terms of percentage sales and profits while leading actors and directors, on short-term contracts, could earn $40,000 a week. In comparison leading writers earned $350 – $1,000 a week.

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Bogart and Bacall

My appreciation of the classic movie North by Northwest https://hannah-howe.com/2019/10/09/north-by-northwest/

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Eva Marie Saint with Cary Grant in North by Northwest, 1959

As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx

Categories
Dear Reader

Dear Reader #17

Dear Reader,

This week, I completed the first draft of Snow in August, Sam Smith Mystery Series book sixteen. Snow in August is set in a small coastal village in wild West Wales, a new location for Sam.

Readers of the series might be in for a surprise when they start this story. I won‘t give the details away now, but the book will be available for pre-order later this month.

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Over the past year I have had the honour of being editor-in-chief of Mom’s Favorite Reads eMagazine. With twelve magazines published I would like to thank our talented group of contributors and the skill and dedication of our editorial staff. I’m very proud of our achievements with Mom’s Favorite Reads and look forward to scaling even great heights in our second year.

Here’s the blurb for the latest issue.

The September issue of our popular eMagazine!

In this Back to School issue:

Young Writers, Humour, Poetry, Travel, Short Stories, Puzzles and Articles including:

What is Adoption?

Power Animals

What is Happiness and How Can We Find It?

Read or download your copy FREE!

https://issuu.com/momsfavoritereads/docs/vol-2_iss-9_momsfavoritereads

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Delighted that Sandra, who translated the five books in my Ann’s War series, has offered to translate Saving Grace into German 🙂

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A lovely quote from screenwriter Ernest Lehman when discussing writing the script for North By Northwest. I am sure most authors will identify with this.

”Typical of a writer, I was stalling, losing myself in yet more research.”

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Sam’s Song is moving towards the top of the Amazon charts again this weekend , but I have mixed feelings about that in light of continued reports of workers being mistreated by the company. There is a brutally about Amazon that makes me feel increasingly uneasy about contributing to its profits.

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Photo by Tobias Dziuba on Pexels.com

“Clear as the dew it kindles on the spray

Across the shadows of each shelving lawn,

The rising sun, with low and level ray

Scatters the cold, grey phantoms of the dawn.

Like ghosts, they flee, like dreams expire

Within the elemental fire

Of our first calm October day.”

John Jay Chapman

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As ever, thank you for your interest and support.

Hannah xxx