A lot of exciting things are happening in the publishing world. Writers have more chances today to be published than ever before. This is a good thing and could be a bad thing. While we are guaranteed we can be published through E Books if we can master formatting and uploading of our material, that doesn’t guarantee we’ll get readers.

Many of you on this list are writers, many of you are loyal readers. So I’m tellin you both this. If you find a writer whose work you like, get online at Amazon or Barnes and Noble and give them a review. Writers, this will help you because when you write a review you can link back to your own books if they’re on either of these sites. Readers, it will insure that the quality books come to the top and remain there. In the end the reader is in charge of what books succeed and which ones fail.

The past year has found me busy learning to format and publish to Kindle and other E Book formats. I began with Smashwords where I published eight short stories in four editions which I priced at .99 cents. These are available at Smashwords and Barnes & Noble.

This gave me the courage to continue and format my first novel, a western historical romance from my backlist. Originally published in 1997, Trail to Forever became Dream Walker, named for Rachel Keye, who walks in dreams where she can soothe disturbed spirits. She is a descendant of a revered Cherokee witch, Bone Woman. This becomes important when Rachel meets Daniel Wolfe. She walks through his nightmares and rescues him from the spirits that haunt him. But can he protect her from the evil Doakes, who pursues the couple as they travel by wagon train west on the Cherokee Trail. Dream Walker is now up as a Kindle edition and can be purchased from Amazon. Check out my website to read the first chapter and use the direct link to buy Dream Walker. If you like it, please post a review on Amazon.

Plans now are to publish the remaining back list to Kindle. Once that’s completed, I hope to learn how to put them on Nook and all other E readers. Wouldn’t you know each one has a different format and upload system.

For those of you interested in learning more about how to publish to Kindle, if I get enough requests, I’m going to do a workshop at Ozark Folkways here in Winslow on Saturday, Oct. 1 to teach how to do it. It will require that you bring your computer with at least three chapters of your manuscript on board so we can go through the proper formatting and uploading to a free program called Mobi Creator. If we have time we can also work with Smashwords where short stories, articles and novellas are easily published. You’ll not find a cheaper workshop than this. $25 for the day with lunch on your own. More about this will be posted on my blog at vbrotherton.blogspot.com in the near future. So please be sure to let me know if you’re interested as soon as possible.

My first original E Book, Stone Heart’s Woman, will be released later this year from The Wild Rose Press. It will be both an E Book and a print. To read more about it plus an excerpt, go to my website, which I just finished revamping. Check it out, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

You, my good readers are the first to learn about another E Book release: My first paranormal, Wolf Song, is with SynergEbooks. I have no idea when it will be released, but I’m really excited about it. This is a mainstream paranormal. No werewolves or vampires. You’ll adore my wolf and his shapeshifter human. A new twist on men who become wolves and women who love them. Watch for it. If you’re interested in doing a review of this book prior to publication, my publisher is looking for you. Let me know and I’ll send you a copy to read.

I’ll be at the Fayetteville Public Library on Sept. 10 taking part in a panel discussing this new publishing phenomena. See for information about this year’s Ozark Writers Live program.

Don’t forget Ozark Creative Writers in Eureka Springs October 6, 7, and 8. Check out their website for info on registering. Ozarks Writers League meets again August 20 and then on November 18. Keep an eye on their website for speakers scheduled.

Hope you all have a great summer. Keep in touch. See you soon, I hope.

Best Wishes to all, Velda Brotherton