March On Washington 50th Anniversary

On Wednesday, August 28, 2013 America will celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington, forever altering the course of American History. Although many may believe the March to be the brainchild of Dr. King and the Southern Christian Leadership Council (at least I had), it was organized by A. Philip Randolph, leader of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and political activist.

Growing up in the 70's, I always fantasied what the March must have been like for those fortunate enough to attend. I have missed major events in my adulthood, such as the President Obama's inaugurations, due to either financial limitations or obligations at home. In my novel La Rose, Book I Le Baton Chronicles, 24 year old Julian Charles Chamberie also suffers the same misfortune. An activist in the Civil Rights Movement, Julian is summoned home to New Orleans by his 116 year old Great-Grandmother Lela Chevalier Roberts on the eve of the March on Washington. Although furious with his grandmother's request, Julian skips the March and returns home to visit her once more, expecting her to die soon.

Available on Amazon.com

As the March on Washington challenged the collective conscience of America, Lela  challenges Julian.  In preparation for his end time role as the Keyholder, Lela transports Julian through time and space to the La Rose Plantation in 19th century Louisiana,  reacquainting Julian with his life as Lela's father and slave owner, Augustus Chevalier. Lela captivates Julian's mind, soul, and spirit with her oral narration of the story, compelling Julian to examine his own inner turmoil, wounds, and strongholds which have dogged him across several lifetimes. Yet, Lela not only wishes for Julian to come to terms with his past life, but to learn how deal with the Archangels and Fallen angels who have battled for control of him throughout the centuries, and who continue to do so,  seeking take hold of the Chevalier Family for all time. With her account of their family history, Lela offers to Julian the opportunity to take hold of his true purpose in life and his freedom.

If you wish to learn more about the March on Washington and upcoming events commemorating the 50th anniversary of the March, please visit http://50thanniversarymarchonwashington.com/events/.

La Rose, Book I Le Baton Chronicles is available on Amazon.com.

Cocktails With Janice Ross

Check me out on B

logTalkRadio.com with Janice Ross, author of Damaged Girls Series. she's promoting new authors like me. 😁 @LaFleur2009: RT @JGRWriter: Tune in for Saturday Cocktails w/ @LaFleur2009 on 8/10/2013 8:00 AMEDT #BlogTalkRadio  http://t.co/9glCjdVusC

Hey World! Living Life through Social Media

Designed by Claudia Ross

Social Media is now my second job; writing is my third.

My schedule, you may ask?

Work: (incl. travel to/from work): 730am - 730pm
Social Media: 7pm - 9pm (oh, there's intermittent Candy Crush mixed in)
Writing: 9-11pm
Candy Crush: 1130-1145pm
Bedtime: whenever


I have a full day.

I'm learning how to manage it all. I love Twitter. FB is OK. Instagram and Picasa I'm still learning. LinkedIn is cool. Not sure what Pintrest is all about? I guess it's like Picasa and Instagram? Ugh. Google +, I'm still figuring that one out too.

I downloaded something called Pocket (formerly Read It Later) to my IPad. It sounds cool. You can save articles, etc to Pocket and read at your convenience.

Buffer is an app that reveals peak hours/times when your followers are line. This will be great once I learn how to use it.

TweetCaster is an interface for Twitter. I like it. Tweets come in lightning quick, shiny front end. You can get stats on everything! Cool.

Do you have any tips on how you manage your social media activities? I would love to here them.

Here are some links if you would like to learn more about the apps I've discovered:

http://bufferapp.com/

https://tweetcaster.com/

http://getpocket.com/

Comic Con 2013

Every year I try to attend ComicCon. In 2012 I was working in Seattle, so I missed the event. However, I'm happy to say that I made it to the 2013 Convention; and I wasn't disappointed.

I haven't been able to score any tickets since 2011, so nowadays I just go down to the convention center and walk around, taking in the sights and sounds. There is plenty to see! But this year was different for me. For ComicCon 2013, I had my two books to plug: Dorothy Jones A Jazz Age Trip Through Oz and La Rose, Book I Le Baton Chronicles. Yay!!! Every year since 2010, I would always tell myself, 'Next year, I will plug my book at ComicCon.' My 'Next Year' came July 20, 2013.

Dressed as "The Rose," a character from  my book, I took to the the streets of ComicCon and handed out pluggers. I met so many cool and interesting people. It was a fun day and I enjoyed mysellf.

Check out the rest of my photos on Picasa!

Releasing Control

In March, 2013 I published my first novel, Dorothy Jones A Jazz Age Through Oz.

Between December, 2012 and the time I published it, I placed a lot of pressure on myself to get it done. I would read it again and again; however, when I arrived at the chapter entitled "Emerald City," I would lose interest. I just assumed I was tired of reading the story. Yet, I never tired of reading the first chapters of the book. I published the novel and received good feedback on it. 

One Saturday in June, I awakened at 4am in the morning. Needless to say, I wasn't happy. Saturday was my day to sleep until 11am, not sit up in bed before the rooster crowed! I lay back on my pillow and all I could think about was Dorothy Jones. In my mind, I flipped through the book, laughing at most parts until I arrived at "The Emerald City." It was then I accepted the inescapable fact I did not like the end of my book!

I got out of bed, turned on my laptop, and spent the next two days re-writing the end of Dorothy Jones. By magic, different themes, sayings, characters and incidents within the story began to tie together and make sense. I republished the eBook that Sunday night.

Was it a surprise to me I didn't like the ending of the story? Not at all. When writing the story, I wanted Dorothy Jones to be a short story; something I could submit to contests. So, I stunted Dorothy's growth. Instead of allowing the story to take the course it desired, I forced it into the direction I wished it to go. Now that I've allowed Dorothy Jones to be the novel she desires to be, I love to read the entire novel, again and again.

Have you ever experienced this phenomenon in your writing? I would love to hear about how you learned to release control.