This week is Smashwords’ eleventh annual Read an Ebook Week Sale, and you can get a FREE copy of Coming Out of Egypt when you visit the site,

Yes, you read that right. Coming Out of Egypt, book 1 of the Egypt trilogy. But you have to hurry because the sale ends tomorrow. You can also pick up a wide variety of books discounted by as much as 75%. Remember, there are thousands of books, so if you don’t see the ones you’re interested in right away, keep searching until you find them. 

An encouraging review

If you have not yet read In the Promised Land book 3 of the Egypt trilogy, this 4-star review I received this week may help you make up your mind. Kathleen posted this review on Goodreads:

This book mainly follows the lives of two sisters, Marva and June. Marva is a nun who works in at Corpus Christi Home for Girls, and June is an aspiring lawyer. They experience both joys and difficult times as they deepen their faith and move towards God’s good plan for their lives. The stories of other characters are also interspersed in the book, and add a great dimension to the book. This is a good book for anyone who likes an interesting, sweet Christian story. I would recommend that you read the first two books in the series. Even though the story stands alone, I think I would have enjoyed it better with more of the backstory. 

So, if you decide to get Coming Out of Egypt free this weekend, then you can follow up with In the Wilderness,book 2 and In the Promised Land,book 3.

If you get any of these books, please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads. Also, to learn more about me and my writing, please sign up to receive my newsletter and other offers. Have a lovely weekend.  

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I never knew there was a day to celebrate grammar, but I’m sure you can think of any topic and there’s a day for it. I don’t always pay attention to these special days, but this one caught my eye, since as an author, grammar, good grammar, is what I live by. So, I checked this article in The Write Life written by Kathryn & Ross Petras.

The article has to do with whether it’s correct to start a sentence with “because.” Since it’s something that has bothered me a little, I looked at the examples they gave us and decided to compare them with the way I use “because” in my own books.

According to The Write Life , you can start a sentence with “because” but you must do it the right way. “Because” is a subordinate conjunction, meaning it connects two clauses, a subordinate clause and the main one.

They give this example:“Because I’m confused, I’m reading about starting sentences.”   Correct, as long as you don’t split it in two. Then the first clause becomes a fragment.

Another example: You can start a sentence with “because” in dialog. “Why can’t I stay out late?” “Because I say so.”

Or if you’re using it conversationally, as happens in a lot of modern novels.

A quick search in my first novel Coming Out of Egypt revealed 41 instances of the word “because.” So,
I’ll let you be the judge. Look at my samples and see the ones you think and the ones you think may be questionable then drop me a line with your opinion.

• She’d gone to the hairdresser yesterday only because she had to look presentable for work.

• “I will give my mother only the fish broth because she can’t eat no dumplin’.”
• “Because Marva said so …”
• Because of the state of decomposition of the body, the ceremony was short.
• Some women stay with a man because they can’t do any better.

Want to know more about Coming Out of Egypt? Just click on the link or you can check out the special deal on my Smashwords page at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/angie6 and use the coupon code WK23D to get your 75% discount. To find more great deals on books go to
https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos

If you prefer, you can get Coming Out of Egypt paperback now at the reduced price of $9.95. Use this link.

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While on my walk this morning, I came across a couple staring at something on a tree branch. As I drew nearer, the woman pointed to the tree and said, “Isn’t it amazing how God puts so much detail into everything?” I peered at the tree to see what she was talking about, and there was a huge spider caught in a big web. I agreed with her that God is a God of details. Then I saw she had her phone out. “Did you get him?” I asked. “I sure did,” she replied. So I got out my phone and took two shots. See one of them here.

As I walked away, the word “details” kept popping into my mind. I immediately thought of my writing. As fiction writers, it can be very easy for us to focus on getting our plot just right; working out the conflicts, all the little twists and turns and surprises, while ignoring the details. But its these little details that make the story come alive and make the reader feel she is in the story, not looking in from the outside.  Let’s look at the paragraph below from The Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George:

Warmth. Wind. Dancing blue waters and the sound of waves. I see, hear, feel them all still. I even taste the sting of the salt on my lips, where the fine, misty spray coats them. And closer even than that, the lulling, drowsy smell of my mother’s skin by my nose, where she holds me against her bosom …

Do you see, hear, feel and taste the details? That’s the kind of sensory experience you want to give your readers. This is not the same as clutter, which adds nothing to the story. If it feels cumbersome, it must go. But if everything fits into place, like the markings on a spider’s leg, then you are on to something. Like any craft, it takes practice, but eventually, you should get it just right.

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I will be taking my book Women For All Seasons on a virtual book tour from October 7 – 18.  I will also be giving away a copy of the book and downloadable excerpts to readers who visit the blogs and leave a comment. I will post all the details as the time draws nearer. Meanwhile, if you wish to jump ahead you can purchase a copy on Amazon from the link on your right, or from Smashwords at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/34069

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The term self-publishing carries with it a lot of negative connotations. As writers, we are led to believe that if you self-publish your book, you immediately brand yourself as “not- good- enough.”  Truth be told, most of the self-published books I have read have made me cringe, but some  traditional books also come in for my mental red ink.  With traditional publishers falling on hard times, editors are becoming more leery of taking on new names these days and are sticking with their tried and true authors. Occasionally, a new name makes it into the hallowed halls.

Knowing all this, I decided to take the plunge and self-publish my first non-fiction book Women For All Seasons which was released a few days ago. (more…)