Books Screenplay Reviews

Authors Sandra Hamilton Welch and Danny L Welch announce the release of ‘Unruffled Courage’
Rockbridge, OH (PRWEB) November 05, 2012

In their new book “Unruffled Courage: The Adventures of American Patriot Benjamin Hamilton and a Cherokee Maiden Named Moonglow” (published by AuthorHouse), authors Sandra Hamilton Welch and Danny L Welch tell the story of the life of one of Sandra’s ancestors.

Benjamin S. Hamilton is a mountain man-turned-soldier fighting in the American Revolution. He narrowly survives the Battle of Kings Mountain, but is later taken captive by a renegade band of Cherokee braves. Benjamin is taken back to the Cherokee village, where he soon befriends a woman named Moonglow. He promises to marry her, and the two plan their escape, fleeing just before Benjamin is scheduled to execution by running the gauntlet. The couple, now free and together, build a new life together, building a family of 10 children and living in a log cabin deep in the hills of eastern Kentucky.

An excerpt from “Unruffled Courage”:

“Ben sat motionless, watching the outline of someone walking toward him on the same narrow footpath he himself had taken earlier. Closer the person came. Closer. Ben could now see it wasn’t Joe, but rather an Indian, small in stature, and carrying a basket. Fearing detection, Ben unsheathed his tomahawk and hunkered lower to the ground, opening his mouth slightly to keep his breathing inaudible. He remained absolutely still, becoming one with the fauna and flora. The forest gave the appearance of having returned to its primeval splendor with the waterfall as its main focal point.”

Danny and Sandra wrote the book to give readers a story about true courage in the face of great adversity, as well as a glimpse into American history. “The novel is a well-blended mix of history, adventure, suspense and romance,” says Danny. “Anyone reading the book will find something to enjoy.”

About the Author
Sandra Hamilton Welch in the AuthorHouse Author read more here.

As artists, we have choices. There are very few rules that apply across the board. We can create highly realistic paintings, or perhaps more expressive paintings, or paintings that have very little basis in reality, including those that are totally non-representational. We can record color as we see it or as we’d like it to be. As pastel artists, we have even more choices. We can use a wide variety of pastels, strokes, surfaces, and techniques to create many different looks. The choices we make form the framework of our individual style, our signature as artists. Any subscriber to The Pastel Journal realizes how varied the medium of pastel can be. For the experienced artist, these articles are stimulating, offering possible ways to experiment with alternative approaches. For the beginner, the panoply of choices can be overwhelming. Painting is primarily an intuitive process. But intuition is gained through study and experience. Part of my impetus in writing this book has been to create a more structured approach to help those fairly new to the medium understand its many possibilities. The book is aimed at all levels of pastel artists. Beginners will find a wealth of helpful information and intermediate artists will gain insight into how to take their work to another level and develop a style. Many advanced artists teach pastel; the organization of ideas and the exercises included should be of assistance. I offer a variety of suggested approaches and sometimes make up terminology to describe my experiences with the medium. The instructions in the book are based on my preferences and the guidance that I offer my students. The diversity of styles and techniques evident in the paintings of contributing artists should make it clear, however, that there are many ways to successfully work in pastel. Having acknowledged the many possibilities, I want to note a few musts. Representational paintings must be well-drawn. Poor drawing skills cannot be overcome with lovely color or great technique. Likewise, paintings must have strong compositions, regardless of whether they are realistic, abstracted, or non-representational. Values must be properly interpreted to produce strong compositions and to use pastel to its full effect. And finally, pastel paintings must sing! Whether the applications are light and airy, or rich and painterly, it should be clear that the artist is in control of the medium and is using it to produce his or her desired look. For years I have resisted suggestions that I write a book. As a landscape painter, I knew that there were more authoritative books already available. And the growing popularity of pastel has led to so many resources, including online blogs, a biennial convention, and the wonderful Pastel Journal, mentioned above. What could I add to this? My personal training in pastel has been from weeklong landscape workshops with some of the leading pastel painters in the country. As a teacher in a community college, I am not teaching a particular style nor focusing on specific subject matter. Some of my students work with the landscape, but others do portraits or figurative work, while others prefer still life, or work abstractly. In dealing with this mixture, I’ve realized that there are different ways to approach one’s use of color, and this formed my first idea for creating a book. Furthermore, as a teacher, I’ve spent time experimenting with different surfaces, pastel brands, and techniques in order to make suggestions to students to help them find the look they want to achieve. I do not teach students to paint the way I do, but instead, try to share my experience and help them develop their own individual style.Read more

“When people feel free to speak with authenticity – from their heart – without fear, their workplace becomes a place inspired by shared purpose,” says Cynthia Mary Heelan, author of the new book, “Heart at Work: Stories about Speaking from the Heart at Work” (published by AuthorHouse).

The result of speaking with authenticity, explains Heelan, is greater productivity and a higher quality of performance. “During my years as a college president and since, facilitating dialogue on college campuses, I have observed people who are allowed to speak plainly and who participate in decision-making. I have seen the energy in a room of 500 people soar from low morale to high expectations as employees focus on some story of a peak success in their organization and then work together with a shared sense of purpose to expand that success and co-create an even more successful future. I wrote this book, because I’d like every organization to have the opportunity to experience this high.”

Increasing numbers of today’s workers hunger for a sense of deeper purpose in their work lives, yet not many organizations engage in the kind of dialogue described in this book. Too often when people leave for work in the morning; they leave their personal truth lying at the bottom of their hearts, or at their kitchen table, and they close the door on them. At the same time, every organization, experiences the pressure to be creative, productive and effective. Leaders do not understand the most important thing they can do to be more creative, productive and effective as an organization, is to unleash the truth hidden at the bottom of the hearts of their employees.

“‘Heart at Work’ illustrates that when individuals, including leaders, bring their hearts to work, they create a space for others to do the same,” says Heelan. “Then, they can reinvent their organizations and co-create their future by engaging the hearts and voices of some of the most creative and innovative minds available: their own workforce.” A few strategies are actually proposed in “Heart at Work,” as processes for engaging heart and voice, including Appreciative Inquiry and Retreats for Renewal and Wholeness or for Courage and Renewal®, in addition to other activities Read more

http://www.authorhouse.com/► AuthorHouse Author Bruce Kimmel says that "Marketing is everything." When he published his first book in 2001, a time when social media was unheard of, he went to his old high school and posted on discussion boards. This sort of amateur marketing sold him almost 700 books. The first social media ad he put up was on MySpace on the year 2002. But today, with Facebook and Twitter, he said, "It's a lot easier to get word out." He also recommends hiring a publicist, an AuthorHouse Marketing Service he took advantage of that landed him on the ABC News Show

To view Bruce Kimmel's books, click this:

http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/AdvancedSearch/Default.aspx?SearchTerm=kimmel

Transcription: 

Marketing is everything. Classmates. You know they have discussion boards for your class, and because these books were about L.A., and this very specific neighborhood, and the schools I went to, I posted there: "Hi, I'm Bruce Kimmel, I don't know if anybody remembers me but I wrote this book and it's a love letter to us, and the neighborhood, and the schools, and the teachers. There were the places we used to go to." 

I must have sold 700 books that way and that's unheard of in the self-publishing in 2001, unheard of in 2002.   Read more