DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013

SHELF   UNBOUND
WRITING   
COMPETITION

AWARD   
WINNERS
68 SEPTEMBER 2010
what to read next in independent publishing
Fact or fiction?
Science or con job?
The Myth Makers,
The dark, new novel from John Crawley

The invention: was it real or a

hoax? Fact or fiction? Were the
men who created it scientists or
con artists? Only five people in the
world know for sure. A nd two of
them are dead.

Journalist Jack Lawrence traces the

orig ins of an old myth back to the
men who claimed to have created a
perpetual motion machine. A nd by
merely uncovering the dusty facts of
their past, Jack and his colleagues
at a dying daily newspaper are
placed in harms way.

Some people will g ive anything

to get the story. Others will do
anything to keep that story from
seeing the light of day.

w w w.johncrawleybooks.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and Lulu.com.
 staff

Margaret Brown fo u n d e r a n d p u b l i s her

Anna Nair e d i to r i n ch i e f What to read next?

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what to read next in independent publishing

Photo: Laser 3.14
IN THE SHADOW OF Rated #1

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 december/january contents

DEPARTMENTS

shelf unbound
* 4 a note from the publisher

24 page views
WRITING COMPETITION

AWARD
35 pageturners

42 photo essay

WINNERS 70 poetry

* 73

74
staff picks

small press reviews

8 winner: the last death
of tev chrisini 76 last words
by jennifer bresnick
77 contributors
12 finalist: no cure for the past
by rick halpern
Cover photo by Wolfgang Josten, Wojofoto:
http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=wojofoto
14 finalist: mourning and celebration:
jewish, orthodox, and gay
by k. david brody

16 finalist: an illegal president

by pat lawrence

18 finalist: where are you from?

an anthology of asian american writing
by valerie katagiri

20 finalist: saltwater taffy

by eric delabarre
what to read next in independent publishing
a word from the publisher

W
SERIOUSLY GREAT

e launched the Shelf Unbound Writing

Competition for Best Self-Published Book
with the idea of featuring the winners in this issue and waving the
flag for excellence in independent publishing. The first response was
an email from a noted book reviewer asking what in the world was I
thinking, considering that he has never seen a self-published book
worth reading. I told him I was confident we would find at least a few
seriously great books.
And then the entries started coming in. From all over the country, and
all over the world—Israel, India, Africa. From all kinds of people, in all
manner of genres: mysteries, thrillers, biographies, children’s books,
romance novels, poetry, religious and inspirational books, photo es-
says. As I and our judging panel began reading these books, I realized
that I had, after all, been wrong. Quite wrong. For we didn’t have just
a few seriously great books, but hundreds of them. To the more than
800 writers who entered our competition: Thank you for the privilege of
reading your works. It was a joyful and enriching experience. And to the
doubting reviewer: Sir, have I got a to-be-read list for you!
The winner of our competition is 26-year-old Jennifer Bresnick for
her debut novel, The Last Death of Tev Chrisini, a Tolkien-esque epic
fantasy. It is a book that basks you in the pleasure of reading it, which
I highly recommend that you do. Congratulations, Jennifer!

Margaret Brown
publisher

Like what you read? Click on any

book cover to purchase from an online
bookstore, or click on the publisher
website for more information.

4 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 A psychological thriller and thought-provoking discus-
sion about the meaning of life. This book is definitely
going on my list of favorite books of all time.
— Kathy Schneider, NetGalley

it io n e r - a n ew p
p h ic al prac t
p h il o s o s li g ht
Eric is a r but
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m o u s . S h e wants emotions.
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anHed faisn’t rich, but his old s t y le s a r
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ISBN 978-1-935670-94-0
See reviews on Amazon.com

Dialogue is razor-sharp. Hilarious, incisive observations

about all things great and small.
— Robert Bidinotto, author of the bestseller Hunter
 feature 2012 writing competition

AWARD
WINNERS
8 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
the shelf unbound writing competition
for best self-published book

UNBOUND 9

Photograph: Sharyn Broomhead, www.flickr.com/shazdor

 winner

THE
LAST
DEATH
OF
Winner of the Shelf
TEV Unbound Writing
Competition for Best
CHRISINI Self-Published Book
Jennifer Bresnick’s enchanting Tolkien-
esque epic fantasy The Last Death of Tev
Chrisini captivated our judges from page
one and held us in thrall through its con-
JENNIFER
clusion 467 pages later. We fell in love
BRESNICK
with the story and its characters and with
Bresnick’s assured literary tale-spinning.
We talked to the 26-year-old author
about her debut novel.

8 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
Tev Chrisini is a soldier who can’t
die, caught in the middle of a war
that won’t end. When a temporary
truce is called, he is chosen to guide
an envoy to the peace talks. But
when a young woman in his care
flees with a wanted murderer, Tev’s
mission suddenly changes course,
setting him on a race against dark
forces to recover a legendary book:
one that holds the secrets of his
past—and the keys to his future.
—Jennifer Bresnick
Shelf Unbound: How did you come up
with the idea for this novel?
Jennifer Bresnick: It started out as an act
of desperation five minutes after midnight
on November 1, 2009. I had finally worked
up the courage to participate in my very
first National Novel Writing Month, but I was
completely stuck for ideas. I’d never written
a novel before—I’d never written any fiction
longer than a ten-page short story for a col-
lege class—and I was entirely convinced I
couldn’t do it.
I was about to forget the idea all together,
actually, when I started browsing my book-
shelf for inspiration, and opened up to a
random page in a book about military his-
tory. The phrase “there was always a war”
jumped out at me, and all of a sudden there
was a vision in my head of the world I wanted
to create, as well as the basic premise of the
book. That phrase became the first line of
my novel, and the story followed from there.
Needless to say, I didn’t get much sleep that
night (or many nights after).
Shelf: Who are your literary influences?
Bresnick: I’ve been a die-hard Tolkien fan
since the third grade and I’ve worn through
more than one copy of The Silmarillion, which
probably says a lot about me. My other fan-
tasy influences include Terry Pratchett, with
his wickedly sharp sense of humor, and
Tad Williams for his epic world-building and
perfect sense of character. If you notice a
bit of Regency flair in some of my work, it’s
because Jane Austen and especially Pat-
rick O’Brian are some of my all-time favorite
authors. I love history, and I try to infuse as
much historical and sociological realism as
possible into my made-up worlds. But I can
only ever hope to be a fraction as adept as
O’Brian when it comes to weaving meticu-
lously researched details, humor, action, and
heart into my work.
Shelf Unbound: I’m sort of stunned by
how perfectly you structured the ebb and
flow of the plot, given that this is a long
book AND your first one. How did you go
about creating this somewhat complicat-
ed, multi-story plot, and was there a lot of
editing of the story sequences?
Bresnick: I love stories with a lot of differ-
ent plot threads, because they’re usually so
UNBOUND 9
 winner
good at creating suspense and turning any
story into a bit of a mystery. When every-
thing comes together and you get that “Aha!
I knew that’s what the grandmother’s neck-
lace would be for!” moment near the end, it’s
really satisfying both as a reader and a writer.
The most challenging part of having multiple
plots was making sure the timing worked out,
considering most of my story involved journeys.
Everyone was traveling to different places at
different rates, and it did get a bit confusing. I
ended up drawing a big calendar on a couple
of pieces of paper awkwardly stapled together,
and plotted each character’s timeline in a dif-
ferent color to keep track of it all.
Then I discovered that there’s some really
great storyboard software out there, and I felt
a bit silly for getting my colored pencils out.
But sometimes there’s just no substitute for
scribbling on paper. The whole construction
of the book was a learning process for me,
and it was only with many rounds of editing
that I got it into the shape that I wanted.
Shelf: Why did you decide to self-publish?
Bresnick: Originally, I only published a Kin-
dle version of The Last Death because I
wanted an easy way to allow some of my
friends to read it. I used to be very, very shy
about sharing my work, and it was a big step
for me to make the book public. I had no
expectations that anyone would be interest-
ed. But then I started getting some positive
responses from family, former teachers—
even strangers. My downloads picked up,
10 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
and I began to get some comments on my
blog. Suddenly, readers out there in the wild
were enjoying and embracing something that
was deeply personal to me. It became a way
to connect with people on a level I had never
experienced before, which was both surpris-
ing and gratifying.
I began to learn more about book pro-
motion and how easy it was to publish in
print—easy if the fickle formatting gods are
on your side, at least. I decided to produce
a paperback with CreateSpace, and I’m
very happy with the results. Even if it never
becomes anything more than a hobby, I’ve
never been happier.
Shelf: What are you working on now?
Bresnick: Right now, I’m working on a pre-
quel to The Last Death, called The Spoil of
Zanuth-Karun. It’s set in the last days of the
Empire when everything is starting to fall
apart and the problems that Tev encounters
are just starting to take shape. You’ll get to
learn a lot more about where Tev comes
from, and he does make a couple of cam-
eos. I hope it will be available in the spring
of 2013.
I may come up with a few additional stories
about Tev’s adventures during his long life.
Some of the characters Tev encounters get
a similar treatment in a companion novella
I wrote, called Treason’s Choices. You can
read all about my current state of creative
affairs on my website, at www.jenniferbres-
nick.com.
There was always a war. 
The teams sometimes rearranged themselves, and land would change hands when one player’s
fortunes dipped particularly low, but somewhere, for some reason, there was always a war. 
After close to seven hundred years, most of the participants were finding it hard to keep up. 
The great empire of Zanuth-Karun had fallen, Umre and Agan were no more; Gidan had long
since claimed neutrality, roundly denounced as a cop-out by all sides. 
Untold thousands of kings, generals, and heroes had gained the dubious immortality that
comes from being killed in interesting ways.  The original grievances were all but forgotten,
wearing down the fervent patriotism of centuries ago into a comfortable, familiar antagonism:
a predetermined set of countries to be steadily and continuously despised.
Somewhere north of the Schism Line, just past the edge of the clearing in the dense pine for-
est where his regiment was camped, a soldier named Tev Chrisini reluctantly pushed the dice
across the makeshift yasho table and let Neidril take his turn.
“Are you sure, sir?” Neidril asked. “If I get more than a ten, there isn’t a way you can make it up.”
“Just finish the round,” Tev replied, gesturing for him to continue. “I can cover it. Don’t
worry,” he added when the man looked at him doubtfully.
“You didn’t last time.”
“Yes I did. And I would have sooner, if she had just listened to me,” Tev replied, smiling a
little as he remembered the incident in a little border town a few months prior. The innkeeper’s
wife had chased him out of the building, screaming and throwing a chicken at him — a live,
squawking, terrified chicken — when she thought he was about to run out on a large debt to
her husband.
He had no intention of doing so, of course, but she had been so furious over the possibility
that his explanations were worthless to her. It hadn’t been his proudest moment, trapped in a
corner, fighting to get control of the livid, flailing bird as the woman searched for more poultry,
but it had been pretty funny.
But he wasn’t surprised that he was losing again, and badly. In fact, he thought, he ought to
be used to it by now, since he was fighting for Kialdar again, and Kialdar wasn’t doing quite
as well as it could have hoped.

From The Last Death of Tev Chrisini by Jennifer Bresnick. Excerpted with permission. All rights reserved.

UNBOUND 11
 finalist

THE START
THE SHELF QUESTIONNAIRE
Jessie gazed around her office,
obviously struggling with where to
start. She released a long, slow sigh
and turned to me with a mix of res-
ignation and fatigue written on her
face. “You know I deal with difficult
personalities all the time, Vin, but
a piece-a-work came in yesterday
morning who took weird to a whole
new level. Just thinking about him
gives me the creeps.” She crushed
her cigarette in an ashtray already
brimming with unsmoked Camels.
She held my gaze as she picked
up her phone and punched a but-
ton. “Liv, can you bring us some
coffee, please?”
I had met Jessie soon after start-
ing to work with Nate Nussbaum,
my old boss, and mentor.

THE PLOT
P.I. Vin Hardin’s former boss, mentor, and
the closest thing to a real father he’s ever
known has been murdered. The brutality of
K. DAVID the assault makes it look personal, but Nate
BRODY was 75 years old and already retired eight
NO CURE FOR THE PAST years. Who could possibly hate an elderly
man that much and why kill him now? It
BY RICK HALPERN makes no sense. With the aid of his attorney/

12 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
friend, a sweet 10-year-old who walks his dog,
THE WORK
his morbidly obese and acerbic researcher,
his laconic and deadly Korean backup, and a Every weekday, for hours, unless life intrudes.
homicide detective who owes him a favor, Vin
is drawn deeply into not only Nate’s past to find
THE TIP
the killer, but into his own troubled past as well.
I think it came from Michael Chabon, though
others have said much the same thing. This
THE GUY
isn’t an exact quote, but… “It takes three
P.I. Vin Hardin grew up in a series of foster things to succeed as a writer: talent, luck,
homes without a mother or father figure in and discipline, and the only one you control
his life. These formative experiences, plus is discipline. So sit down and write.”
tragedy as an adult, have shaped who he has
become. Over the years he’s found refuge
THE FUTURE
in jazz and Tecate and a commitment to his
work. He’s standup and honest though he I’m working on the next in the Vin Hardin
can tend toward the melancholy. series. Vin is hired to prove a dead man inno-
cent of a crime for which there is overwhelm-
ing evidence he did, in fact, commit. Vin
THE SPOT
thinks it’s a fool’s errand, but he soon discov-
The story is set mostly in the San Fernando ers much more than anyone bargained for:
Valley, part of Los Angeles County. I chose drug smuggling, fraud, extortion, crooked
it partly because I grew up there, so I was politicians, and more murder.
familiar with it, but more because it’s a place
full of contradictions and diverse enough to
THE AUTHOR
provide numerous possibilities.
Rick Halpern splits his
time between fiction and
THE PULL QUOTE
screenwriting. “I live in
“The morphine helped a lot.” Maine. I’m married. We
have a daughter each.
I write—that’s what I
THE CONCEPT
do,” says Halpern, who
I had been thinking about stakes that pene- received his MFA in Cre-
trate to the heart and pushing loss to its limit. ative Writing in 2004.

UNBOUND 13
 finalist

An interview with
Shelf Unbound
Writing Competition
for Best Self-Published
Book Finalist K.
David Brody
MORNING Mourning and Celebration is the author’s
imagined life story, had he been

AND
born 100 years before his time, in
his grandfather’s Polish shtetl ( Jewish
village) as a gay, Orthodox Jew.
CELEBRATION No choice about being gay. The
hero, Yankl, eventually has a love
JEWISH, ORTHODOX affair with a study partner that is
AND GAY PAST & PRESENT discovered by the local rabbi. The
consequences are drastic. Yankl
escapes an arranged marriage by
fleeing his village and earning a
living as a gifted violinist. His is a
story of courage and survival. At the
K. DAVID end of some chapters, the protagonist
BRODY
has conversations with the author,
comparing conditions then and now.
— K. David Brody,
www.mourningandcelebration.com

14 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
Shelf Unbound: Yankl’s story broke my standing is that contemporary Orthodox
heart. How did you come up with the idea? Judaism still condemns homosexuality, so
K. David Brody: I was sitting in my living room, I’m wondering how you personally have
cogitating. I realized that I have witnessed gay dealt with this conflict?
liberation from the time that homosexuality Brody: Contemporary Orthodox Judaism
was illegal, to gay marriage in Canada. Indeed, may still condemn homosexuality, or at least
I was part of the struggle, having successfully the act of same-sex love. However, in a
sued the government of Quebec for same-sex Statement of Principles first published in July
couples’ right to receive the survivor’s pension, 2010 and signed by over 70 Modern Ortho-
should one of the partners die. The thought dox rabbis, homosexuals are accepted as
came to me: how would I have survived had I created in the image of God. The Statement
been born as my grandfather in his shtetl, but also endorses acceptance of homosexuals
as a gay man? Suddenly, Yankl, the hero of as full members of the Jewish community.
my book, appeared in my imagination, my gay I believe I was created in the image of God.
ancestor. I asked him to recount his story, and The Statement of Principles is a very pro-
that was the source of my novel. gressive document, although it does not go
far enough. It does not recognize the validity
Shelf: How do you think he squared the of same-sex love.
condemnation implicit in the religious In over 3,000 years of existence, Judaism
teachings of his upbringing with his own has always adapted to changing social val-
self-acceptance? ues and to reality. Homosexuals are a reality
Brody: Yankl was obsessed with his sexual and have already been integrated as clergy
urges and his agony in feeling different. I by the Reconstructionist, Reform and Con-
believe he would have given anything to servative branches of Judaism. Over 3,000
change his orientation, and I endeavored to years of prejudice against gay men and
explain that in the book. He prays to God to women will not disappear in one generation.
be able to change. However, like me, he had I believe our time will come. Meanwhile, who
to face reality. For years, Yankl felt lonely I love is nobody’s business but my own.
and alienated, so when Velvel eventually
comes on the scene and returns his love, Shelf: Was writing the novel cathartic for
any thoughts about their relationship being you in any way?
wrong fade into insignificance. Brody: Yes, writing this novel was not only
cathartic for me. It was as if my characters
Shelf: You imagined Yankl as a version of were channeling through me. The book is a
yourself about 100 years ago. My under- plea for understanding and acceptance.

UNBOUND 15
 finalist

THE SHELF QUESTIONNAIRE THE START

Strolling toward his minivan with
8-year-old Jack and 6-year-old Denise
in tow, Congressman Paul Garrett
suddenly felt the uncomfortable pres-
sure of something hard being shoved
into the small of his back. As he jerk-
ed his head to figure out—what the
hell—the pressure intensified.

THE PLOT
An Illegal President: A Novel is about the
strangest and most bizarre escapade of
young congressman Paul Garrett’s life.
As the book opens he is mysteriously kid-
napped, which triggers an adventure that
ultimately catapults him to the brink of cap-
turing the pinnacle of political power: the
presidency of the United States of America.
Powerful and sinister worldwide forces are
responsible for the diabolical plot that thrusts
Garrett into the sweepstakes of presidential
politics. With his life threatened, his children
endangered, and his wife terrified, Garrett is
forced to make decisions which will forever
change his future, and the political future of
K. DAVID America hangs in the balance.
BRODY
AN ILLEGAL PRESIDENT: A NOVEL THE SPOT
Our book is set in Washington, D.C., New
BY PAT LAWRENCE York City, and Bristol, Wisconsin. Since the

16 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
story revolves around a presidential cam-
THE FUTURE
paign, the powerbroker characters operate
primarily out of D.C. and New York. We have another suspense thriller in the
works, tentatively titled Long Shadows. The
story is about harrowing events in the lives
THE PULL QUOTE
of the ancestors of our two main characters
“Always expect the unexpected, especially which now profoundly affect their lives gen-
when you least expect it.” erations later.

THE CONCEPT THE SITE

With the November presidential election at www.patlawrence.net
hand and the corruption that surrounds poli-
tics and politicians, the topics were obvious
THE AUTHORS
for a novel at this time.
We are the husband
and wife writing team
THE TITLE
of “Pat” Adsit Burke
We actually had two titles in mind. We and Daniel “Law-
settled on An Illegal President: A Novel after rence” Burke—ergo:
submitting both of our working titles to a Pat Lawrence, pseud-
handful of our friends and readers and ask- onym. We began our
ing them to vote. writing partnership in
2007 penning mur-
der mysteries for our
THE WORK
entertainment enter-
One of us writes in the morning and then prise, Murder by Design. Next we graduated
transmits that section electronically to the to a two-act comedy stage play, Squirrels
other who reviews, revises, and improves it in the Attic, which is regularly performed in
in the evening and then electronically sends select midwestern venues. We began our
it back to the first for the next day’s work. novel writing career in 2011; last year we pub-
lished the suspense thriller Jarred Into Being.
We reside in Wisconsin where we dutifully
THE TIP
serve as the staff to our two handsome Eng-
Write every single day. lish Bulldogs, Diesel and Emmett.

UNBOUND 17
 finalist

w
An interview with
Shelf Unbound
h
e
What does it mea
n to be an Asia
twenty-first cent
n
ury?
r
e wa f
hrr
American in the
America, cliché
d stereotypes about A
In mainstream r
e eo
asexual
model minorities,
Asian people as ladies, perpetual
sexual dragon e

Writing Competition
techno-geeks, hyper Peril “threats” continue to
foreigners, or Yellow are frequently concealed

r m
persist—though
they
ally correc t slogans like colorb
lindness Y
behind politic
and diversity.
o
logy of Asian u
ey ?
From?: An Antho
Where Are You viewpoints. The
ican Writin g challenges these on Asian
Amer
writings and art
in this anthology
envisi
politics on our own F

o
ty, culture, and
American identi
terms, through
our own experience
s and unique r
o

for Best Self-Published

perspectives. s,
personal essay

u
Incorporating a
divers e range of
s, art, and other
work, m
stories, critical
this anthology
article s, poem
seeks to express
the truth of our
lived
that
?
Asian America
es and to give voice to an
realiti y.
inalized by societ
is frequently marg —
e Are You From?
our book—Wher by
The very title of expre ssed
on prejudice often
questions the comm icans are alien
e that Asian Amer ,
the majority cultur In the words of Lawson Inada
USA.
or foreign to the we come from—
where

Book Finalist
peopl e where
we want to tell
we're really from.
Writing
of Asian American
An Anthology

$16.00 Thymos

Valerie Katagiri
WHERE In mainstream America, clichéd
stereotypes of Asian people as

ARE YOU model minorities, asexual techno-

geeks, hypersexual dragon ladies,
perpetual foreigners, or Yellow Peril
FROM? “threats” continue to persist. In
Where Are You From?: An Antholog y of
AN ANTHOLOGY OF Asian American Writing, we challenge
ASIAN AMERICAN WRITING these viewpoints. The writings
and art in this anthology envision
Asian American identity, culture,
and politics on our own terms,
through our own experiences and
unique perspectives. This anthology
VALERIE expresses the truth of our lived
KATAGIRI
realities and gives voice to an
Asian America that is frequently
marginalized by society.
— Valerie Katagiri

18 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
Shelf Unbound: Where did the idea for
this book come from?
Valerie Katagiri: On July 22, 2008, Thymos,
an Asian American activist organization in
Portland, Oregon, invited Oregon Poet Lau-
reate Lawson Inada to be a guest lecturer for
one of their events. Inada began the discus-
sion about activism by asking participants to
draw a diagram showing the various places
they had lived and how their diverse journeys
had finally brought them to Portland. Inada’s
simple exercise sparked the initial inspiration
for this Asian American all-volunteer com-
munity book project. Our anthology includes
a diverse range of the unique, poignant,
controversial, humorous and entertaining
perspectives of Asian Americans from vari-
ous parts of the United States.
Shelf: Tell us about the meaning of the
book’s title.  recognize that Asian Americans live complex
Katagiri: The book’s title, Where Are You
From?: An Anthology of Asian American Writ-
ing, echoes the common prejudice expressed
by the majority culture that Asian Americans
do not belong or “fit” in America. Some
people have trouble believing that Asian faces
can also be American. Being asked where we
come from is both frustrating and irritating to
Asian Americans whose families deserve to
be credited with having lived in this country for
many generations, helping to build it through
their contributions to business, medicine,
education, science, the legal profession, poli-
tics, the military or as fathers, mothers, and
children—roles that other non-Asian Ameri-
cans fill throughout their lives. Asian Ameri-
cans were instrumental in Hawaii’s sugar
industry. They were significant in the building
of the transcontinental railroad that eventually
helped America become economically pow-
erful. They have been in the United States for
a long time. But because Asian Americans
are still being asked where they come from,
they are sharing their various answers through
this book with the hope that a better under-
standing of Asian Americans will decrease
the racism, prejudice, and discrimination that
still exist. This anthology will also serve as a
historical record of who Asian Americans are
at the beginning of the twenty-first century.
Shelf: What do you hope this book accom-
plishes?
Katagiri: The writings and art in this book
lives. Before the civil rights era, Asian Ameri-
cans endured race riots, internment, and
other forms of overt prejudice and violence.
Most recently, racism against Asian Ameri-
cans often involves cultural stereotyping,
social marginalization, and racial “Othering.”
This kinder, gentler version of the persis-
tent anti-Asian sentiment found throughout
American history distorts perceptions of
Asian people today and is one of our most
potent enemies. Asian American activism
must seek to counteract both visible and
invisible forms of racism against our group
as well as other minority groups.
UNBOUND 19
 finalist

THE SHELF QUESTIONNAIRE THE START

The soles of his boots slapped
against the wet cobblestone streets
of Jackson Square. In the distance
behind him, a steamboat chugged
up the Mississippi River carrying
goods to the north. It was 1823, and
tonight, history would be written.

THE PLOT
Set in the seaside town of Port Townsend,
Washington, during the 4th of July week-
end in 1972, Saltwater Taffy  is a Middle
Grade  adventure novel  following the lives
of five “tweenage” friends as they uncover
a treasure map once belonging to the ruth-
less New Orleans pirate, Jean Lafitte. The
discovery thrusts them from one treasure
hunting adventure to the next as they try to
out-wit, out-think and out-maneuver every-
one from a one-legged junk yard man and
an overbearing town bully, to the creepy
old man living at the top of the hill.

THE PULL QUOTE

“ 
“Today was a great day.  In fact, the whole
K. DAVID summer had been the best summer of our
BRODY lives and one we would never soon forget. It
SALTWATER TAFFY was a time of baseball, adventure and salt-
water taffy. And love, of course. Because in
BY ERIC DELABARRE the end, that’s what life is really about. Love.”

20 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 THE CONCEPT THE FUTURE
After spending seven seasons on Law & The book has already been adapted into a
Order and surrounded by murder, mayhem script and we’ll begin filming in August 2013.
and the latest “story ripped from the head- Saltwater Taffy has two sequels in the Idea
lines,” I felt I was using my creative talents Folder, but the main focus is making the
to feed the machine buying culture of Hol- screenplay for the film the absolute best it
lywood, which is infatuated with fear, doubt can be. 
and worry. To me, this is the lowest vibration
of humanity.  I was looking for a story that
THE SITE
was based on the struggles of growing up
and coming of age.   www.whatagreatbook.com
Our children are basing their self-worth on
how many friends they have on Facebook or
THE AUTHOR
what brand of clothing they wear.  I believe
that if we are able to teach our children to Eric DelaBarre is
look inward more than they look and pay an award-winning
attention to the “surface mind of fitting in,” author, filmmaker,
we will begin to heal this great country of speaker, and best-
ours. Obviously the mess we are in cannot selling ghostwriter
be fixed in the boardrooms of America. The for Random House/
change we seek will take place in the class- Harmony Books.
rooms of America. The more we teach our Eric began his
children to listen to their heart compass, that career with Univer-
sal Studios on NBC’s mega-hit drama Law
inner ping of love, the more they will grow up
to be confident young men and women.   & Order. His work has been sold around the
world and showcased on HBO, Cinemax,
Showtime, Starz/Encore, USA Networks,
THE TIP
and NBC. He is past president of the Boys
There was one rule for the writing staff on & Girls Club Council of Santa Monica and
Law & Order: Be ruthless on your own work travels the country talking to kids about lit-
before you show it. If a scene isn’t driving eracy and their potential in life. He lives and
your story, propelling your plot or causing works in Santa Monica, California with his
your characters to change, then CUT, CUT, wife, Julie DelaBarre, and their one year-old
CUT.   daughter, Emery.

UNBOUND 21
 feature

8 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013

Photograph: Laser 3.14

recommended reading

PAGE
VIEWS UNBOUND 9
page views

Trophies and Tradition:

The History of the Big Ten Conference by Christopher Clouser

T
he growth of college football in the of Yale, Harvard, Princeton, and Penn met to
western states was amazing. Amos do this. The changes that took effect outlawed
Alonzo Stagg’s Chicago eleven traveled two dangerous formations, the flying wedge and
to Toledo to meet Michigan for the first time in the V-formation. Other rule changes altered
1892. In 1893, Yale and Harvard contested the the length of the game and defined which offi-
Big Game in Chicago. Soon afterward Chi- cials were responsible for particular components
cago announced that of the game. These
their annual contest changes promoted one
with Michigan would of the great elements
be a Thanksgiving of collegiate athletics,
Day tradition. North- the innovation of new
western University and strategies.
Lake Forest College Stagg was perhaps
also saw a dramatic the greatest innovator
increase in attendance the game ever saw. In
at their games. This 1894 he implemented
opened the eyes of the what was called a mass-
University of Chicago interference play or,
to other possibilities. as we refer to it now,
Promoting their foot- blocking. Another inno-
ball program could be vation was the five-man
a very lucrative ven- offensive line. Stagg
ture for the university. also developed the
While the game onside kick, the snap
grew in popularity one from center to a stand-
thing alarmed many ing quarterback, and
ofK.the universities, the raw brutality of the
DAVID the lateral pass. In that year Stagg introduced all
sport. A few institutions threatened eliminating
BRODY of these new ideas against archrival Michigan in
squads from competing on their grounds. The the annual Thanksgiving Day game.
dictate was to mitigate the danger for those
involved, or else. From Trophies and Tradition: The History of
Eighteen ninety-four saw the first real effort to the Big Ten Conference by Christopher Clouser.
provide more safety to the players. The Big Four Excerpted with permission. All rights reserved.

24 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
WAKE UP
Deep within our own Unit-
ed States Government
and elements within and

AMERICA
outside our nation, there
appears to be an insidi-
ous plot to destroy our
Christian heritage and

Before it’s our American way of life.

This will never happen as

too late!
long as our citizens are
armed as provided for in
our Constitution. Unfortu-
nately, most citizens are
A Decision Paper immersed in their day-to-
by Col. Ellis D. Bingham, day activities to provide
for their families and do
USA, Retired not have the time to sift
through and analyze the wealth of information provided by modern
technology. Those that have the time to
monitor the internet and other media are
flooded with information, much of which
is disinformation. This causes uncertainty,
fear, worry and stress on our citizens. This
Decision Paper puts together seven situa-
tions that, if not acted upon and corrected,
will destroy this great nation. All nations
should realize that if America as the world
knows it is destroyed, the free world will
cease to exist.

Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com., and BooksaMillion.com

page views

Living with B: A College Girl’s Struggle

with Bulimia and Everyday Life by Stephanie Caprini

O
k, fine. I don’t have issues. I have an dered, my eyebrows scrunched together.
issue. It’s called being fat. It’s called I “When you fight with yourself, does the
live with a crazy little person in my voice fighting back sound like your voice or
head feeding me self-deprecating thoughts so no?”
much that it actually I finally gave up on
makes me crazy. Well, fully naming the thing.
it actually just makes I called it B because
me bulimic. Or, well, I B and bulimia started
make myself bulimic, with the same letter,
because I’m the one and B on its own could
who actually does the be whichever gender
binging and purging. I wanted. However, I
B doesn’t stand there told myself B was a
and hold my hair back guy because, let’s face
while I puke. So, real- it, I’m a girl, and I
ly, I’m the one who’s like guys. It seemed
making myself crazy. logical that it would
So, there again, all be the opposite gender,
the blame gets put especially because I’m
back on me. always worried about
God, this sucks. how guys view me. B is
“So when you have my externalization of
these internal conver- the issue, and it’s a boy.
sations with yourself, Sometimes.
are you feeding your- I think.
self negative thoughts, Whatever, this
orK.
is DAVID
the voice of some- is complicated and
oneBRODY
else feeding you makes my head hurt.
negative thoughts?” Jake had asked during
my third therapy session, when it was starting From Living with B: A College Girl’s Struggle
to become clear to him that I was seeing him with Bulimia and Everyday Life by Stepha-
because of an eating disorder. nie Caprini. Excerpted with permission. All rights
“Huh?” I stared at him completely bewil- reserved.

26 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
Outsmart the
competition.
Train your brain to become
a better leader.

“Packed with the latest

research findings,
conveyed in an easy,
engaging style. This is
information to juice up
creativity, jumpstart
productivity—do
anything you do with
your brain better. ”
—Daniel Pink,
author of A Whole New Mind and Drive

Order today!

Visit triplenickelpress.com for more creative business solutions.

888.369.3179
UNBOUND 27
page views

The Business of Wanting More: Why Some Executives

Move from Success to Fulfillment and Others Don’t by Brian Gast

N
ew York’s LaGuardia Airport, August hundreds of thousands of dollars annually and
2, 1994. I’d just boarded a United sitting on public stock holdings worth millions.
flight to Colorado Springs, as I’d At thirty-four, I had it all. Well, all the things
done nearly every other Friday evening for the I ever thought I wanted — a nice house, great
past two years. Typical- cars, luxurious vaca-
ly, I flew to New York tions — and money, still
or Boston on Mon- in the bank. I was living
day or Tuesday and the American business-
returned home after The Business of person’s dream. And I

Wanting
several packed days of was miserable.
meetings with financial Not one to wallow,
news reporters, current I decided to examine
and prospective share- what was going on. I
holders, and security
analysts.
I dropped into a
window seat in first
class. To decompress,
MORE took a pad of paper
from my briefcase and
wrote down what I had
and was grateful for: a
happy marriage, good
I ordered a vodka tonic Why Some Executives Move health, a decent balance
and plugged the head-
phones into the armrest
from Success to Fulfillment between work and time
off, a lucrative career,
jack. I don’t remember and Others Don’t a very active social life.
what was playing, only ... Yet I still felt an enor-
that tears were sud- mous emptiness inside.
denly streaming down B RIAN G AST “Why am I not happi-
my face. “What’s going er? If I’m so successful,
on?” I thought. “I’m
K. DAVID why am I so unfulfilled?
theBRODY
tough financial guy, What’s wrong?”
the one who keeps his cool in any storm. Cry-
ing is for sissies, babies, not guys like me.” From The Business of Wanting More: Why
I was the CEO of one of the fastest-growing Some Executives Move from Success to Fulfill-
telecommunications services companies in the ment and Others Don’t by Brian Gast. Excerpted
world. I was the company’s mouthpiece, earning with permission. All rights reserved.

28 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
Ever
wonder
underperforming
why

employees get
so much attention?

“When great employees

take on all the extra
work, others learn
they don’t need to try harder,
because there are no punishments
for slacking off and no real benefits
for going that extra mile.”
—Shifting the Monkey

In Shifting the Monkey, Todd Whitaker

shows you why focusing on the best
employees first is crucial for the success
of your business.

2012 Small Business Book Awards

Management Category Winner

Order today!
Visit triplenickelpress.com for more creative business solutions.
888.369.3179
UNBOUND 29
page views

Catula: by Melissa Haas

The Misadventures of Dracula’s Cat www.catulathebook.com

K. DAVID
BRODY

30 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 How can a pint-sized,
self-avowed word nerd
master otherworldly
forces when she hardly
has the wherewithal to
master calculus? That’s
exactly the conundrum
for Ariel Robinson,
a college freshman
at Montana State
University who’s been
lured to Montana by
feuding Fallen Angels
in search of the Coveted
Piece of Home.

Siren Song: Book 1 of

the Siren Song Trilogy is
author B.A. Blackwood’s
first of a trilogy of
“Think Twilight meets The Hobbit with a wildly inventive, humor-
strong heroine and a dash of humor ... a smart
inflected young adult
fantastical foray into the surprisingly human
world of the Fallen Angels.” fantasy novels starring
fallen angels who
Available on roam the earth, and
and all eBook retailers the unsuspecting who
happen across their high-
www.bablackwood.com flying paths.
UNBOUND 31
 feature

PAGE-
TURNERS
8 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
novels of mystery and intrigue

UNBOUND 9

Photograph: Daisy Benson

How much would
a father sacrifice
for his child?
Attorney Dani Trumball has just six weeks to save the life of George Calhoun,
who’s scheduled to be executed for a crime he claims was never committed.

“Unintended Consequences is an
engrossing, well-conceived legal
thriller. Most enjoyable.”
— Scott Turow, NY Times bestselling author of
Presumed Innocent and Innocent

“This one will grab you by the neck

from the very first page!”
— Steve Hamilton, Edgar Award-winning
author of Die A Stranger

“Unintended Consequences is a
gripping legal thriller. A page-
turning, compassionate, and
thought-provoking debut.”
— Sharon Potts, author of The Devil’s Madonna

w w w.mar tigreen.net
34 Winner of the Royal Palm Literary Award/suspense, thriller category.
DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013

Available at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com

 pageturners

SHAKEN AND STIRRED

SPIE S, PI’S, BA D GU YS, AN D OTHER POE-TENT MI X E S
by Stephanie Caprini

ALLAH’S REVENGE
by Peter Barber

THE MIX: Terrorists, nanotechnology

weapons, and an English detective.
A SWIG: “In his makeshift laboratory
in a bombed-out Israeli medical facil-
ity, Dawud dipped his hand into a small
glass vivarium and selected a white rat
with an orange stripe spray-painted on
its back. He held the wriggling rodent
by the tail, swung it away from the cage,
and squirted two puffs from an asthma
inhaler into its face. When he was sat-
isfied that the mist had dissipated, he
LUST ON THE ROCKS
returned the rat to the vivarium, setting by Dianne Venetta
it next to its brother. The rats touched
noses and sniffed each other before THE MIX: Sexy attorney, revenge, jus-
recommencing their search for escape.” tice, and, yes, lust.
THE TAB: www.petebarberfiction.com A SWIG: “I want you to consider Victor
Marin for the Perry case.”
Samantha Rawlings stiffened, and
forced her fingers to finish removing the
dark fuzz of lint from her cream linen
skirt. With cool precision she settled
both arms along the wide fabric arm-
rests of her chair and locked her atten-
K. DAVID
tion onto her boss, Raul Martinez. “Not
BRODY necessary, Raul. It’s covered.”
“He has experience in the area.”
”As do I,” Sam replied, wondering why
he would suggest involving a new hire
on the firm’s powerhouse complaint.
THE TAB: www.diannevenetta.com

UNBOUND 35
 iPlot
AN APPLE A DAY
DOES NOT KEEP in
CONSPIRACY AT BAY
the debut novel by Lord R. Benson

S et in London and Australia, iPlot is a mystery thriller in

the style of Lee Childs.

Carla Moore was Australia’s first female Prime Min-

ister. However, just eighteen months into her reign,
she was on the verge of dying. Initially hailed
a hero, her fall was quick. She was now the
most unpopular Prime Minister ever. Her
methods had earned her the nick-
name ‘Carliar’. Many wanted her
removed. But would any go so
far as trying to kill her?

When Derek and Beth

Rosengold inadvertent-
ly picked up someone else’s
iPad going through Heathrow
airport security, the material he
discovers leads him to believe its cor-
rect owner must be involved in the Prime
“This debut thriller by Lord R. Benson is, Minister’s mystery illness.
simply stated, terrific, first-class entertain-
ment. It is well plotted and well paced,
The iPad leads them on an intriguing journey, that
with believable characters and mounting
takes over their lives and holiday, entangling them in Aus-
suspense throughout...One looks forward
tralian Federal police operations, political back-stabbing,
with great anticipation to the next thriller
by Lord Benson.” attempted murder and suicide.
— R. Dixon Smith, Amazon (5 stars)
Lord R. Benson’s novel is highly topical and technology led,
“I thought this was a very good first novel an unmissable modern thriller.
by this writer. With a plot that twists and
turns it keeps one guessing all the way to AVAILABLE NOW ON
the end.” ISBN 9781780883663 (pb) / 9781780883670 (hb) /
— Cookie, Amazon (5 stars)
9781780887548 (eBook)
“Complete page turner. Fantastic read!”
— L Christie, Amazon (5 stars)
www.lordrbenson.com
“Lord Benson writes in a cinematic style.
Perhaps this book will be made into a film.”
— Tsavvy, Amazon (4 stars) Like Us on FaceBook Follow Us on Twitter
36 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
DEATH NOTICE
by Alicia Dean

THE MIX: Obituary columnist, troubling

typos, attractive detective, and a serial
killer.
A SWIG: Before I found out that a mur-
derer was using my obituary column to
forecast his kills, my biggest concern
was the promotion my boss/ex-lover,
Adam, had promised me.
I’d been writing obituaries for the
Northland Chronicle for two years, but
that was about to change. Today, Adam
was promoting me to the crime desk, PILATE’S KEY
something I’d wanted since leaving my
job at the Kansas City Star.
by J. Alexander Greenwood
I’d given up a coveted career as crime
THE MIX: Key West, murder, pirates,
reporter because I was in love, and
and a sexy cop.
because Adam swore that when the
A SWIG: A lifeless eyeball stared at
crime desk came open at the Chronicle,
Juan from the deck of the sloop. Juan
it was mine. Two years, and one very
looked away from the dead man’s face
bad break-up later, the position had
and focused on securing three diving
opened up.
belts to Yves Marchand’s nude body.
THE TAB: http://aliciadean.com
Juan’s back ached, and he thought
perhaps he had pulled a muscle tus-
sling below decks with the Frenchman.
Rising to his feet, he groaned. The
sloop deck pitched lightly in the calm
waters off Duggan’s Key, but he still felt
sick. Juan vomited, covering the mutely
outraged body of Marchand with his
partially digested lunch.
“Sorry, jefe,” Juan said. He wiped
his mouth on his sleeve and positioned
himself between the cabin wall and
Marchand. He dug his right heel into
Marchand’s stiff right side and pushed.
THE TAB: www.PilatesCross.com

UNBOUND 37
 DEAR AGENTS AND NON SUBSIDY PUBLISHERS
You can call it contemporary crack,
new adult or a thriller

I call it Dust Pan Girl

A completed and professionally edited manuscript.
(71,000 words)

It all starts on this bridge and it’ll end on this bridge.

From there the story jumps back 4 days.
The daughter of a struggling baker is stabbed in
BOOK ONE PUPPETS
the dark by her own deranged father.
JAMES FOX She lives because she carried in her coat an
old metal dust pan.

Read the first 2 chapters on The story quickly makes the news and brings to
town a con man of unquestionable skill.
the Dust Pan Girl Facebook Page
He exacerbates the situation to make money.

JAMES FOX
jamesrfox.foxorchards@gmail.com

38 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 SHADOW OF GUILT
by Samuel Jay

THE MIX: Neglected husband, dissat-

isfied wife, and a vengeful arsonist set
on murder.
A SWIG: Dressed in a dark sweatsuit,
his face and hands blackened, Alex
Hassan slowly dropped to one knee
in the treeline of moon-made shadows
well behind the big Georgian Colonial.
Reaching into a canvas gym bag, he
put a glass coffee pot of brake fluid and
PRIMARY RUBBER: chlorine on a bed of pine needles along-
THE FLAT TIRE MURDERS side him. The silent mixture rocked and
glistened inside its prison, eager for an
by Charles A. Turek explosive escape.
Hassan was on a knoll that put him
THE MIX: Hard-boiled PI, sexy client, at eye-level with the second floor of
murder, and a nod to Raymond Chandler. the mansion. He raised the binoculars
A SWIG: Not enough rain or too much. strapped around his neck and looked
The eternal lament of the Iowa farmer into a lighted bedroom, rolling the focus
played across the radio like a sympho- bar in his fingers until he could clearly see
ny to spring. The agribusiness report on the shapely bare back of Betty Keller.
KSOY may as well have been a dirge. THE TAB: www.samueljaynovels.com
Either it was too wet or too dry. Too
much rain meant too much production,
leading to too low a price at the elevator
and farms going bankrupt. Too little rain
or flooding meant no production and
farms going bankrupt. The weather, for
Iowa farmers, was never sunny. Police
Sergeant Arnie Whitaker thought about
this as he listened to the ag report and
looked for some reason to reconcile the
farmer’s carping about a dry May with
the fact that the Army Corp of Engi-
neers might have to dynamite a levy
and flood farmland.
THE TAB: www.paginationbooks.com

UNBOUND 39
 A SORORITY OF ANGELS
A revenge thriller by Gus Leodas

A Sorority of Angels brings together the unique stories

of five women working as aides to influential diplomats.
Each woman is embroiled in a dangerous, violent
scheme of personal revenge. The effect is immediate
and dramatic. The interesting premise makes for an
entertaining read with more than one unexpected turn.

KIRKUS BOOK REVIEW

AN AMAZON BEST SELLER

Available at Amazon.com www.gusleodas.com
 OCKHAM’S RAZOR
by William Barrett Burton

THE MIX: Pharmaceutical scientist, big

money, big politics, murder, and mystery.
A SWIG: The Bayshore freeway felt
more like a parking lot than a highway
as the morning commute moved for-
ward inches at a time. The heavier than
normal traffic forced the reality of the
situation – she would never make it to
the office in time for the meeting.
“Damn,” she mumbled, turning down
the volume of the drive time talk radio.
CODE NAME RUSTLER She speed dialed her admin and got
voicemail. “It’s Dagney. I’m stuck in
by Douglas E. Sipple traffic on 101. Push the staff meeting a
and Charles T. Wolstenholme half-hour. Let the team know. Oh, and
extend the conference room reserva-
THE MIX: Cold War, sunken nuclear tion by thirty minutes. Thanks.”
sub, defection, deception, romance. She scanned through the list of
A SWIG: Colonel Zelta Rensky, Russia’s recent voice mails. There were two
resident expert on nuclear submarines from her best friend, Sandy; one last
and submarine warfare, brushed her night, another this morning.
short, neat, auburn hair from her eyes THE TAB: www.williambarrettburton.com
as she leaned back on the overstuffed
sofa in the office of the Soviet Minister,
Nicholas Karenev.
Her slender fingers traced a seam
in the maroon leather sofa as her eyes
moved anxiously about the office.
What’s keeping him? She nervously
slipped her foot in and out of her right
shoe. Let’s get on with it.
Her mind raced, quickening her heart-
beat as she considered what lay ahead.
Did the months of planning pay off?
Would Karenev allow her to go to Cuba?
THE TAB: www.facebook.com/black-
labpublishing

UNBOUND 41
 feature photo essay

Laser 3.14: Are You Reading Me?

“In the new generation of Amsterdam street artists one man

stands out for his literary landmarks: Laser 3.14 is bringing
pure poetry back in the streets.”
—Hugo Kaagman

Lebowski Publishers | www.lebowskipublishers.nl

www.laser314.com
Gallery representation | www.thegarageamsterdam.com

42 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
A chance viewing goes a bit like this:
you are walking along the street mind-
ing your own business and you come
across one of Laser’s pieces written
on a wall. You read it and the short
narrative makes you think about life,
the simplicity makes you laugh and
wonder why you hadn’t thought of that
yourself, and then the words stay with
you as you walk away along the street,
continuing your journey that had been
interrupted by a moment of pure prose.
What more do you want from street
art? What more do you want from art?
What more do you want from life?
– King Adz, from Laser 3.14: Are You Reading Me?
UNBOUND 43
Photograph:
44 D E C E M BHanzo
ER/JANUARY 2013
UNBOUND 45
Photograph:
46 D E C E M BLaser
ER/JA3.14
NUARY 2013
UNBOUND 47
Sips Card puts short fiction and po-
etry into local coffee shop venues
around the country. We are a pub-
lication run by artists, for artists.
Each card contains a QR code,
loaded with a short story, or set
of poems, from an independent
writer, meant to last as long as
a cup of coffee. Our passion is
to share the work of other art-
ists with likely readers. Visit
www.sipscard.com
for more information.

Call for submissions: We are accepting

short fiction and poetry submissions for
our October 2012 issue from August 1st
through August 31st. Guidelines can be
found at www.sipscard.com/submit.
 BOOK
Fish House The End of
THE END OF
You probably haven’t met a woman

THE END OF SUNSHINE STREET

by Stephen Dougherty Sunshine Street
like Judy before - described by

SUNSHINE
some as a female Ripley. A working-
class woman living in Palm Beach

 
with her millionaire husband,
she’s outwardly normal but copes
A novel

B
- in her own unusual way - with a

STREET
hurricane, an overcrowded house,

urned out,
a workplace accident, and an
unfaithful husband. Readers will be by Johanna C. Hunt
intrigued as they try to figure out

widowed, Alex Cole

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missing luxury yacht. try, I think you will enjoy it.”
—Shirley Priscilla Johnson, Author/Reviewer
“..a poignant, humorous delve into life, with much
to think about - recommended.” “A strong pick for contemporary fiction collections.”
—The Midwest Book Review —Midwest Book Review

www.stephen-dougherty.com
Available at Amazon.com. Available on Amazon.com and Kindle.

For What Is Sacred The Hunt For

by F.J. Harmon Moby Dick
by Brian G. Spare, PhD

T he obsession
of Muslims and
Jews for religious and I
t’s the most
readable Moby
political dominance of Dick! A story of
Palestine is exploited yesterday rewritten for
by the mastermind today’s reader. From
of the 9/11 attacks Nantucket ’round
to exact revenge. He Africa to the Sea of
entangles his nephew Japan, Ahab stalks
of Israeli-Muslim his foe Moby Dick
parentage and the Israeli Prime Minister in his in a mad quest for vengeance. “... To the last I
plot. This story spans two continents, leaving a grapple with thee ... thou damned whale ...” Set
scathing scar in Haifa and targeting the sleepy sail now in The Hunt For Moby Dick.
town of Smithville, NC.

www.fjharmonbooks.com Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,

Available at Amazon.com iBookstore, Sony, eBookPie, Copia, Baker &
and BarnesandNoble.com. Taylor, and Gardner’s.
 BOOK
He Only Died Twice
by Chris Elgood
T he second of a
trilogy about Nshila
Ileloka, consultant
assassin. Born in a
remote African village,
she is befriended by
a witchdoctor. Higher
education in England
wins her BA and MBA
degrees. Under cover of a legitimate business she
removes evildoers by cleverly mixing witchcraft Appalachian foothills. Father Bob’s turmoil
and science. In this book UK Security hires her to turns gritty and exuberant in a working-class
eliminate an otherwise untouchable villain. world of sinners and saints as he searches for
redemption.
www.chriselgoodbooks.co.uk
Available at Amazon.com and Kindle.
Crispin Scales and
the Golden Pearl
by Ruby Blessing
C rispin Scales and
the Golden Pearl
is the first installment
in an exhilarating
fantasy series for
8- to 12-year-olds.
With a twist that will
drop your jaw to the
floor and charming
supernatural
characters both boys and girls can imagine as
their best friends, Crispin Scales is the children’s
series we’ve all been craving.
www.crispinscales.com
Available at Amazon.com
and BarnesandNoble.com.
Broken Collar
by Ron Mitchell
T he Catholic Church
reassigns Father
Bob to the steel mill
village and people of
his youth. He struggles
with longings for both
the heavens and the
heart. His past loves
and relationships
resurface in these
www.ronaldgmitchell.com
Available at Amazon.com, Bottom Dog Press,
BarnesandNoble.com, Kindle and Nook
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to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
In the Morning Light PETE DELOHERY Lamb to the Slaughter
by Patricia Robbins
Lamb to the Slaughter is a novel about love and courage, sin and redemption.
by Pete Delohery

LAMB TO THE SLAUGHTER

“Iron” Mike McGann, 32 years old, is facing the twilight of his prizefighting
career. Desperate for his future, he has refused to honor his promise to his
wife to quit the ring and start a family. In despair, his wife, Madge, is leaving
him.

A
Rufus “Hurricane” Hilliard, Mike’s next opponent, is the most menacing

story of hope, of
presence in prizefighting. He has won all 22 of his fights by knockout and
is said to be a former enforcer for something called The Black Mafia. But
Don’t miss this
behind Rufus Hilliard’s menacing ring presence lives a man nobody knows,

lives well lived and

a complex man who despises his own image. Unexpectedly left alone before
his bout with McGann, Rufus “Hurricane” Hilliard is forced to confront the
rare treat.
past that haunts him and the future he dreads.

the choices we make Charles “Charliehorse” O’Connell, Rufus’s cornerman, has been terrorized
by a mob kingpin to sabotage him. O’Connell, who is an alcoholic and a
compulsive gambler, blames himself for the ring deaths of two prizefighters.
 One of the nicest
in the face of tragedy.
Trapped in a moral crisis, Charles “Charliehorse” O’Connell must finally
confront his “Cardinal Sin.”
Rufus “Hurricane” Hilliard vs “Iron” Mike McGann, just another fight
surprises I have had
“Beautifully written,
shown on The Continuous Sports Network, but by the time it is over the
lives of these and many others will be forever different.
this year. Delohery
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DELOHERY
LAMB TO THE
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nightmares of an
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while fighting wholeheartedly for the future. professional prize fighters. Colorful characters
Some books stay with us forever; In the Morning become memorable as each emerges from the
Light is one of them.” chaotic disorder of their respective lives to stand
firm as men or die trying. I loved this book and



so will you. —Stringer Literary Services

www.patriciarobbins.com
 
FACEBOOK LINK www.petedelohery.com
Available at Amazon.com, Kindle, Available at Amazon.com, xlibris.com, and
BarnesandNoble.com, Nook. BarnesandNoble.com.

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Harry
by Maximillian
Emmenegge

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BarnesandNoble.com Nook.
 BOOK
tHRe3 September Woods
by T.J. Connor by Linda Florke Woods
September
By Linda Florke

A fter winning a
big case, Trey,
a young attorney,
A young girl is
A young girl is abducted by a danger
abducted by a
prisoner. She vows if she survives h
to right the wrongs the only way she
dangerous escaped
In the aftermath of her nightmare, h
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restored by one person who surprisin
center of her world.
vicious motorcycle if she survives her
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escape the situation. With the help of an unlikely In the aftermath of her
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enforcer, Trey gets back on track, extricating is restored by one person who surprisingly
himself from the gang—or so he thinks. becomes the center of her world.
Read how one girl achieves triumph over
“A compelling moral tale.” —Kirkus Reviews tragedy.

www.tHRe3.net
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and the iBookstore. and Trafford.com.

Scrappy Cupcake Hippo in the Stable

Angels by Mark Trodd,
by Kristah Price illustrated by Steve
Hallam

W hen Angeline
opens a
scrapbooking shop in H arriet the hippo
is captured by
a small New Zealand Roman soldiers and
town, four women are taken to Jerusalem.
drawn to Wattle Lane She escapes with
Keepsakes for widely the help of a friend,
different reasons. hides in a stable in
Through friendship, food, and scrapbooking, Bethlehem, and witnesses the arrival of the wise
each learns to confront her fears and understand men. When Jesus is taken to Egypt, to get away
what is important in life. But can the Scrappy from King Herod, Harriet follows Him to get home.
Cupcake Angels help Angeline overcome her
own greatest fear and fulfill a lifelong dream?

www.kristahprice.com www.hippointhestable.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com and
Abbott Press, and all major online booksellers ebooks.faithwriters.com
 BOOK
The Path of the Fallen
by Dan O’Brien
S et against the
backdrop of the
tundra and a world
desperate for hope, the
journey of a young man,
E’Malkai, will come to
define a realm that has
been broken by an evil
that does not sleep. A
bitter betrayal, and the inception of war, forces
E’Malkai to confront the past and undertake a
pilgrimage that is his by birthright. Follow him on
his journey and be transformed.
http://thedanobrienproject.blogspot.com/
Available at Amazon.com.
Robin’s Blue, a Novel
by Pam Alster
 
G et a jump on
your weekend or
vacation with this juicy
book! Robin’s Blue is
an addictive epic about
a suburban girl turned
high-class call girl, set
against the disco ’70s
through the Reagan-era ’80s.
 “Robin’s Blue” is a brilliantly vivid time capsule
of blank generation ’80s decadence fused with a
poignant and sensitive coming of age tale that’s
totally timeless.
—Erik Himmelsbach, Contributor, L.A. Times
www.robinsbluethenovel.com
Available in Paperback and Kindle at Amazon.com.
Road to Tomorrow
by Mary Metcalfe
A ndrea Garrett fears
for her life. Leaving
her children with her
twin brother, she flees
home just before her
husband returns from
Iraq. After falling asleep
at the wheel near
Boston, her life takes
on new directions when strangers step in and
help her find a way out of her abusive marriage
and be reunited with her children.
www.lakefrontmuse.ca
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and Chapters/Indigo.
Captain No Beard
—An Imaginary Tale
of a Pirate’s Life
by Carole P. Roman
C aptain No
Beard and his
pirate ship set sail
for a voyage of the
imagination with his fearless crew: First Mate Hallie,
Mongo the Monkey, Linus the lion, and Fribbet the
frog. Normally a boy, his cousin, and three stuffed
animals, once they board his bed their world
becomes a magical vessel sailing the seven seas
on dangerous and exciting adventures! 

Winner of the Kirkus Star of Merit.
www.caroleproman.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and Createspace.
 BOOK
The Ladies in
the Pool
by Patricia Stanley
P icture the college
prof in her
cashmere sweater set,
pearls and sensible
heels, in control of her
environment, on top of
whatever issue—but
a heart beats under
that tailored façade,
and if it leads her unwisely astray, what are the
consequences? These unsentimental, sometimes
amusing short stories about career women are
open-ended for the readers’ speculations.
www.pstanleybooks.com  www.yadij.com
Available at Amazon.com
and BarnesandNoble.com.
Scrolls of Darkness
by Paul Henry Johnson
Scrolls of Darkness is a fast-
paced adventure that will
keep you enthralled and leave
you wanting more.
Independent Reviews:
5.0 Stars: “Exceptional read.”
—Shirley Johnson, senior reviewer
5.0 Stars: “Awesome book.”
—Athena L. Nagel
5.0 Stars: “Terrific book.”
—Don Cook
(See more five-star reviews and read a preview
of the book at Amazon.com).
Available at Amazon.com.
I Love You Dead
by Yadi J.
W ho do you turn to
when the person
you believe killed your
father is the District
Attorney and your twin
sister’s husband is a
dirty cop who is in the
DA’s pocket? Stan has
just discovered that his
father did not die in a
car accident. And he has little time to warn his
sister Mady, before they find him.
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and CreateSpace.
An Illegal President:
A Novel
by Pat Lawrence
A
sinister force thrusts
Congressman Paul
Garrett into the madness
of presidential politics.
Who or what is behind
the fantastic conspiracy;
more inexplicably—why?
With his life threatened, his children endangered,
and his wife terrified, Paul is forced to make life-
altering decisions which will forever change his
future, his marriage, indeed, his entire existence;
and the political future of America hangs in the
balance.
www.patlawrence.net
BOOK TRAILER LINK
Available at iBookstore, Amazon.com, and
BarnesandNoble.com
 BOOK
The Highlander The eBay Plot
and the Werewolf by Charles A. Salter
by Tadgh Faolan

I n this compelling

L on is crossing dramatization of the

enemy territory, never-before-told true
on the run from story of how military
English soldiers after scientists used eBay to
his clan is attacked help foil a developing
and destroyed. Elliot dirty bomb plot, national
is told by the church security is in jeopardy.
he must die, as he has reached adulthood and Major Brad Stout picks
is now deadly to humans. Can the highlander up on the trail, but can
and werewolf help each other to survive or is it he prevent a weapon of mass destruction in the
inevitable that they end each others lives? nation’s capital before it is too late?

www.tadghfaolan.com www.tatepublishing.com
Available at Amazon.com and Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
AllRomanceEbooks.com and Parable.com.

The Dionysus Learning to Live

Connection with Fritz
by Liz Cowan by E. Rawlins

A n interrupted after-
hours pharmacy
robbery results in the
5 Stars: “Spirited,
Philosophical and
Beautiful.”
murder of a pharmacist
and his wife. “Just as Fritz, the feisty
To catch the brutal yet irresistible Maltese
killer a respected Dallas puppy, drew author E.
detective poses as a Rawlins into a pet store
male stripper at Club Dionysus. one day so that she would take him into her life,
While the investigation links the destinies of Fritz called to me to read his story. I couldn’t put
the detective and their daughter, an investigative it down. Through this fast-paced, bumpy ride
reporter, the plots twists and turns will keep the we follow the life of an opera singer while Fritz
reader guessing until the end. amuses us and teaches important life lessons.”
—Caryn Hartglass
www.learningtolivewithfritz.com
www.facebook.com/lizcowan.author Available at Amazon.com, iUniverse.com, and
Available at Amazon.com. BarnesandNoble.com.
 BOOK
A Thousand Mama’s Shoes
Bayonets by Rebecca Elswick
by Joel Mark Harris

U pon returning “…Mama’s Shoes is an

from Afghan- absolutely wonderful
istan, journalist John novel, its setting an
Webster discovers Appalachian coal town,
a gang war in his its characters so vivid
backyard. Now he they’re practically
must find a way jumping off the page.
to survive in this There’s conflict
Canadian warzone-or aplenty—between
die in the crossfire. mother and daughter, truth and lies, rich and
The need for redemption may be stronger than poor, past and present—as 13-year-old Sassy
the need for survival as John Webster finds determines who she really is.”
himself on his most dangerous assignment yet. —Lee Smith, author of twelve novels
including On Agate Hill.

www.joelmarkharris.com www.rebeccaelswick.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and Chapters.com. Books-a-Million, and Abbott Press.

Of Saints and Archimedes’ Claw

Sacred Shadows by Theodore Morrison
by Jason Dean Homa, MD

A s the world
unknowingly
teeters on the edge,
A fter his mentor
disappears from their
lab, professor Finn McGee
one man reluctantly is abducted by government
possesses the ability agents and forced to
to save it or let it decipher bloody clues. Only
crumble and collapse Finn knows the true power of an ancient artifact,
into chaos. Angels, an antigravity device dating back to Archimedes,
demons, vampires, even the Devil himself they were studying. And he soon discovers his
conspire against him as Sebastian Sane, neither mentor may be lost in time.
particularly good nor evil, struggles to find a
reason to save himself and the world that doesn’t “Homa marries the sci-fi techno-thriller with
know he exists. philosophy and theology.” —ForeWord Clarion

www.theendshallcome.com http://archimedesclaw.authorsxpress.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com
Kobo Books, Books on Board, and iTunes. and BarnesandNoble.com.
 BOOK
Maggie May Bronze
by Marvin Gray by B. B. Shepherd

M arvin Gray’s past

has returned to
haunt him. Fifteen years
W “
e all make
assumptions every
day … And things, very
ago, he had a love affair often, are not at all what
with a beautiful Playboy they seem. As high-
centerfold, Maggie school freshman Allison
May Esquivel. Now, adjusts to a new home
Marvin must rescue her and school, she finds two
and their teenage son, new loves: a beautiful boy and a golden horse.
Josh, from the Salvadoran criminal gang MS-13.
The investigation also forces him to confront “ … will likely keep readers looking for the next
demons from the Salvadoran Civil War, a life of entry.”
alcoholism and failed relationships. —Booklist Online

www.MarvinGray.org www.theglisterjournals.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and Bangkok Books. and IndieBound.

Playing at Love Tropical Temptation,

by Ophelia London A Novel
by Susan LaDue

W hen it’s glee vs.

gridiron, can
love level the playing K risten Maroney
is living the good
field?
Fifteen years life in the tropics. She
ago, Jack broke owns her own beach
Tess’s heart. Now, wear boutique, dates
on opposing sides of a hot casino manager,
a fierce budget cut and watches TV with
at the high school her Lab. But all that
where they both threatens to change when her friend Amelia’s
teach, the stakes husband starts to behave strangely. Kristen
have never been higher. Torn between what it starts asking questions and that lands her
takes to win and bring them together, they test and her boyfriend in the jungle near a band of
boundaries and find love. ruthless men who have nothing to lose.

http://ophelia-london.blogspot.com www.susanladue.com
Available at Amazon.com Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and BarnesandNoble.com. and Smashwords.com.
 BOOK
That Which Flows
As One
By William M. Kaufman
E xplore one
family’s struggle
to find love. Bette is
only concerned with
securing her own future
and raising her social
status. But her recently
fatherless daughter,
Sarath, stands in her way. Can Sarath escape
her mother’s grasp and finally find happiness for
herself? Discover what happens as one woman
struggles to overcome her abusive past and
experience true love and family.
www.williammkaufman.com
Available at Amazon.com.
Skinny the Cat and the
Magic of Kindness: The
Cure for the Common
Curmudgeon
by Donna Rawlins
C at lover, people lover,
dog lover. It is about
the kindness one can
give in life. The story of a
scrawny rescue cat who
shares a secret that can
change the world: how to love with unwavering
persistence. A funny, captivating tale complete
with heart-warming photographs. Learn how to
practice a new verb—“to skinny.”
http://skinnythecat.com/
FACEBOOK LINK
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
the iTunes Store, and eBookstore.Sony.
The Humanity of
Medicine: The Story of
Mark E. Ellis, MD
by Lynn Hamilton Ellis
T he true story of a young
man, who in 1968 at
age 18, defies the odds of
a deadly cancer diagnosis,
survives a brain operation
and five years of intensive chemotherapy, and
lives to become a beloved and visionary cancer
physician. Take the journey, and experience his
remarkable life, just as it evolved for him.
“Masterful. Poignant. An inspirational story told
with warmth and humor.” —Wickham’s Grant
Ladies’ Book Club of Williamsburg, VA
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.co,
and the iBookstore.
*
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Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
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introductory ad rate for this section is
$250/quarter page as seen here.
Contact publisher Margaret Brown
to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
Lost in Infinity
By Travis Besecker
“...will leave you
questioning everything
you thought you knew
about your world.” ...
LOST IN INFINITY is a
fictional psychological
mystery hidden
in the journal of a
chronic insomniac with
apeirophobia. Guided by his own splintered
subconscious, follow the narrator as he slowly
slips into madness searching for the meaning to
life, existence, time and the universe beyond.
www.apocalypsecoming.com
Available at Amazon.com
and BarnesandNoble.com.
A Happy Healthy You
by Mary Johanna
McCurley, et al
G uidance for
women over 35
who are beginning
physical and/or
emotional transitions
that can affect
their happiness
and balance for the
rest of their lives.
Five professional
women—two medical doctors, a psychologist,
an exercise physiologist, and an attorney and
certified life coach help empower women during
the aging process, combat disease and improve
overall health and well-being.
www.ahappyhealthyyoubook.com
Available at Amazon.com.

*
t so
me-
TRI WORLDS
It’s Time to Think
hat
and
TRI WORLDS // GIL MULLEY

as a Species
by Gil Mulley
Special Advertising
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nar-
ited
It’s
are
our WORLDS S pecies survival and
planetary integrity
can be assured if we Promote your book in Shelf Unbound
It's Time to Think
as a Species
human beings begin in our new Special Advertising
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tive
ons
his

to think as a species. Section for Authors. Each issue of

GIL MULLEY
Ideals of nationalism,
endless economic
growth and divine salvation—current traits of
American society—have dwindling relevance
on a planet with finite resources. TRI WORLDS
thinking argues for a new social order based on
human sameness, sustainable development and
natural system integrity and replenishment.
www.redfeatherpublishing.com
Available at Amazon.com.
Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
than 125,000 people in the U.S. and
57 countries around the globe. Our
introductory ad rate for this section is
$250/quarter page as seen here.
Contact publisher Margaret Brown
to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
15 Twitter Tips for The Kingdom of AIDS
Authors & Other by Marie-Louise Abia
Grownups  
by Renee’ Groskreutz
& Andi Reis F ather Baba received a
few confessions from
people suffering from AIDS.

A uthors, here’s
a chuckle while
you learn more
about using Twitter
for your marketing
platform. This back-to-
basics, step-by-step
handbook and tutorial gives the digital newbie
author, creative or small business owner both
inspiration and preparation for marketing on
Twitter, from the best twitter handle for you to
tweet-length advice from other authors.
www.ralphsdesignanddeli.com
Available for Kindle on Amazon.com.
Bound to keep secret any
confession, he had never
betrayed his commitment.
But when the weight of
the human conscience got the upper hand over
his priestly obligations, hours before his death
he broke the Seal of Confession, disclosing
the secrets to a publisher who then made the
confessions public under the title Welcome to
the Kingdom of AIDS.
Éditions Dédicaces, www.dedicaces.ca
 Available at Abebooks.com, Smashwords.com,
Biblio.com, and Lulu.com. 

*
A Passion for Prying
by Nancy Mangano

H igh heels are a

must for sassy
private investigator
Natalie North. Her
specialty? Busting
adulterous partners.
And while no one
can catch a cheating
husband faster,
Natalie is ready for a
bigger challenge. When a murder-suicide takes
place at a nearby diner, Natalie has a chance
to prove herself. A Passion for Prying is a spicy
read packed with witty humor and a touch of
the risqué.
www.nancymangano.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and major bookstores.
Special Advertising
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Promote your book in Shelf Unbound
in our new Special Advertising
Section for Authors. Each issue of
Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
than 125,000 people in the U.S. and
57 countries around the globe. Our
introductory ad rate for this section is
$250/quarter page as seen here.
Contact publisher Margaret Brown
to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
A Collector of
Affections: Tales from
a Woman’s Heart
by Judith Glynn
A seatmate hello on
a flight to Madrid
becomes an affair for
middle-aged Leah
and Miguel when they
land. They continue
back home, despite
him living with a woman and her vow to stop
dead-end romances. When he faces a life-
threatening diagnosis and she dreads attending
her daughter’s wedding alone, they confront the
magic of travel and a life apart.
www.foxpointpress.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and Smashwords.com. Also available in Spanish.
Bloomin’
Boomers: Pop
Culture Legacy
of the Vanguard
Baby Boomers
by Sandra Lee
Scott
P erfect gift for Baby Boomer family members,
friends, and colleagues born 1946 - 1964.
Features leading-edge Baby Boomers—Diane
Keaton, Dolly Parton, Cher, Cheech Marin, Linda
Ronstadt, Oliver Stone, Tommy Lee Jones,
Suzanne Somers, Sally Field, Patty Duke, Jimmy
Buffett, Steven Spielberg and many more.
Includes nostalgic overview of world events and
pop culture for past seven decades.
www.bloominboomers.com
Available at www.bloominboomers.com and
Amazon.com.
The Warszaw
a Harry Braham novel
Express
by John M Bushby
The Author of Shadow Soldiers by John M. Bushby
I
n 1918, as the
World War ends, a
X PRESS very deadly conflict
R S Z AW E between Bolsheviks
WA and fascists evolves.
THE American air ace
Harry Braham, is
caught in the midst
of the battle. From
Paris to Berlin and
Warszaw Braham fights spies and the Red Army
to help a new nation survive.
Available at Amazon.com.
*
Special Advertising
Section For Authors
Promote your book in Shelf Unbound
in our new Special Advertising
Section for Authors. Each issue of
Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
than 125,000 people in the U.S. and
40 countries around the globe. Our
introductory ad rate for this section is
$250/quarter page as seen here.
Contact publisher Margaret Brown
to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
My Teacher’s Rocking Chair
Password Confessions
By Jim LaBate by Delbert “Delby” Pape

om is a college
junior who’s
in love with his
T n 23 short stories,
Pape shares the
journeys of an eclectic
I
professor, Margaret group of characters
Cavellari—who is hot! from across the United
In addition, she’s kind, States who face difficult
funny, and interesting. decisions, learn valuable
And a great teacher. lessons, and embrace
So when Tom all the spontaneity of life. Themes of family,
discovers her password, will he read her e-mail, trust, loyalty, and curiosity make Pape’s stories
look at her files, or go into her gradebook? Find relatable. Although fiction, they could, in reality,
the answers when you read this contemporary have happened...maybe to someone like you!
novel from Mohawk River Press.

www.rockinchairconfessions.com
www.mohawkriverpress.com Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
Available at Amazon.com. and iUniverse.com.

Commandment
FICTION/fantasy/epic “A wicked generation seeketh a miraculous sign” - Matt. 16:4 Dominion
m, “On this rock I build my church, and the gates of Hell
shall not prevail against it.” Matt. 16:18
by
W Daryl Chestney
ith its gleaming basalt towers, austere cathedrals and reclusive
temples, the city-state of Grimpkin is the bold embodiment of
by Daryl Chestney
civilization. Its history is as hallowed as its statue-ringed Forum and
its citizens as sober as the slate-hued sky.
An anxious traveler has been drawn into the district.

L L
She is an Acaanan, one of a dark-skinned

g
akif has at last people infamous for their fascination with
the occult. But to Grimpkin’s robed patri-
cians she is only a shabby, scheming pariah.
akif is an
unearthed a Acaanan, one of a
f The Acaanan is convinced that lost within
the sprawling district hides an icon of
ancient and elemental dimensions.

Rare Earth Stone,

Mystery enshrines the relic but many
believe that it is an agent of doom
whose shadow haunts Grimpkin’s
scarred consciousness.
dark-skinned people
n
but harnessing its The Acaanan has staked her for-
tune on unearthing the relic
and bringing its truth to light.
infamous for their
secret proves to be fascination with the
But all her efforts are fruit-
less until one evening when,
e
at wit’s end, she stumbles into
a possible path. To find it she

o
thorny. To sort it must decipher a bizarre code
that conceals a lost world of
the macabre.
occult. She is hunting
out, she must visit for an ancient icon
mysterious magma within the city-state
pits, solicit advice of Grimpkin and has
from an ancient figure staked her fortune
haunting the ruined city underneath Grimpkin, on bringing its truth to light. Then she stumbles
and brave a distant shrine with an unspeakable across a bizarre code that holds the secret, one
past- all while avoiding a mysterious agent that is buried within a world of the macabre.
tracking her.

www.darylchestney.com; www.maldiveria.com www.darylchestney.com; www.maldiveria.com

Available at Amazon.com, Atlasbooks.com Available at Amazon.com, Atlasbooks.com, and
and Darylchestney.com. Darylchestney.com.
 BOOK
Vera Kara’s Family, Being Anti-Social
Picking Up the Pieces, by Leigh Cunningham
Again!
by Agnes Hannes
M ace Evans
is single

T rue historical
biography. Vera’s
Grandfather was
at thirty-eight.
When her much
unloved older sister,
Brewmaster to Czar Shannon, declares
Nicholas. They encounter hair-raising events that Mace is anti-
escaping through Siberia. Rebuilding, the Karas social, she embarks
endure the good, the bad and the ugly of life on a journey to
in Peking, China. In 1942, Vera’s husband is understand her
reported dead. Before the communists march condition; whether she was born that way or
in a handsome Marine from Texas whisks Vera if it is the accumulation of thirty-eight years of
out of harms way.  Vera experiences life’s joys/ unfortunate encounters with other humans and
sorrows with three good husbands and one dogs. Gold medallist, Chick Lit, 2012 Readers
extortionist she finally outsmarts. Favorite book awards.

Available at Amazon.com, Nook, Kindle, and direct at www.leighkcunningham.com

aghannes@verizon.net. Available at Amazon.com.

*
Future Tense
FUTURE TENSE
by Eddie Upnick

W hen you
combine a near
future world outlook
Special Advertising
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with a science
fiction twist you get Promote your book in Shelf Unbound
Future Tense. “Eddie in our new Special Advertising
Upnick’s novel is Section for Authors. Each issue of
EDDIE UPNICK
a funny, intelligent, Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
and thought-provoking page-turner. This writer’s than 125,000 people in the U.S. and
creativity is off the charts! A great read.” 40 countries around the globe. Our
Fans of fast-paced plots that intertwine history, introductory ad rate for this section is
romance, and fantasy will love Future Tense. $250/quarter page as seen here.

Contact publisher Margaret Brown

www.EddieUpnick.com to reserve your space.
Available at Amazon.com and Createspace.com. Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
Also available as an audio book, paperback, 214.704.4182.
or on the Kindle.
 BOOK
The Greeks of
Beaubien Street
by Suzanne Jenkins
G rowing up in a
Greek household
in Greektown, Jill
Zannos doesn’t fit in.
A Detroit homicide
detective, she’s planted
in the traditions started
by her grandparents, while dealing with crime in
the city. She’s a workaholic with no girlfriends,
an odd boyfriend, and an uncanny intuition.
The Greeks of Beaubien Street is a tale of a
family grounded in old world tradition, seeking
acceptance in American society.
www.suzannejenkins.net
Available at Amazon.com.
The Passerby
by Thomas Ray Crowel
E leven-year-old Trudie
Brice is strangled to
death in her home two weeks
before Christmas, 1986. The
crime goes unsolved. Twenty
years later, writer Ray Krouse
is looking for material for his next book and is
mysteriously drawn to the little girl’s gravesite.
Can Ray convince the killer to step forward and
confess? Inspired by true events, The Passerby
has all the twists and turns of a cold case
murder investigation, but with an entirely unique
and powerful ending.
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
Smashwords.com, KoboBooks.com,
the iBookstore, Diesel.com, PageFoundry.com,
and Baker-Taylor.
Ockham’s Razor
by William Barrett
Burton
W hen her
employer
inexplicably cancels
the lifesaving project
she heads, Dagney
Hamilton is swept
into a mystery driven
by powerful, unseen
forces. With billions
at stake, big business and big politics will
stop at nothing—including murder—to silence
her. However, Dagney is more than up to the
challenge of solving the mystery, fighting back
and winning against all odds.
www.williambarrettburton.com
Available at Amazon.com.
*
Special Advertising
Section For Authors
Promote your book in Shelf Unbound
in our new Special Advertising
Section for Authors. Each issue of
Shelf Unbound is distributed to more
than 125,000 people in the U.S. and
40 countries around the globe. Our
introductory ad rate for this section is
$250/quarter page as seen here.
Contact publisher Margaret Brown
to reserve your space.
Margaret@shelfmediagroup.com
214.704.4182.
 BOOK
For Love & Liberty
by Stephen M. Grimble
S tephen M. Grimble’s
provocative, page-
turning novel, For Love &
Liberty, is a political saga
for our time—a love letter
to America wrapped in a
cautionary tale. This is the
perfect antidote for every
intelligent American who
may be apathetic about or ignorant of politics,
history, and the Constitution, but who believes
in liberty and wishes to secure its blessings to
posterity. Freedom Fever: Catch It!
www.stephengrimble.com
Available as hardback, paperback, and e-book at
Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Wasteland
Books, and BooksaMillion.com.
Rendition
by Albert Ashforth
A n espionage
thriller told against
the background of
America’s secret war on
terror, a war in which
after 9/11 there have
been no rules. Albert
Ashforth, a former
military contractor,
takes the reader behind the headlines to tell the
story of Alex Klear, a veteran intelligence officer,
who finds himself at the center of an international
conspiracy aimed at destroying the United
States.
www.oceanviewpub.com
Available at Amazon.com.
Nowhere Yet
by Edward Cozza
F ormer friends and lost
loves reconnect on
a lively, soul searching
weekend in Palm Springs.
Each discovering they hold
hopes long forgotten, each
carrying fears that the best
times of their lives may have already passed. The
mending of emotional fences takes them further
than they thought possible. Rekindled feelings
and new awakenings show them some paths not
previously considered.
www.edwardcozzawriter.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
eBookit.com, the iBookstore, KoboBooks.com,
the Google bookstore, Diesel-ebooks.com, and
soon at the Sony bookstore.
Mana
by Asher Tensei
Eurich’s world is on a
seemingly imminent
collision course
with Chaos, due to
a weakening barrier
between Earth and
another world that has
been hidden for millennia, causing Eurich’s
universe to turn upside down. New moons have
appeared in the sky, panic is rippling through
everyone, and Eurich is the only one with the
power to fix what’s gone wrong.
www.ashertensei.com
BOOK TRAILER LINK
Available at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.
com and soon at Google Play and Paperback.
 BOOK
Shadow Dragon 16 Ways to Fix (or
by Lance Horton we’ll never fix) Public
Education

I n this spine-tingling
mystery thriller, FBI
by Harlan Hansen PhD

victim specialist, Kyle

Andrews, is sent to
snowy Montana to help
investigate a series
of bizarre and brutal
murders. There he
meets grieving reporter, Carrie Daniels, and the
two suddenly find themselves caught between a
frightening conspiracy and a mysterious, deadly
presence. Someone—or something—is on the
loose on Shadow Mountain.
www.shadowdragon.info
BOOK TRAILER LINK | FACEBOOK LINK
Available at Amazon.com, BN.com,
the iBookstore, and Google Play.
A must-read for
parents and
educators, advising:
more effective new
teacher training,
upgrade principals’
dismal training, eliminate tenure, reform
current pay policy, more in-school staff
development, implement true merit pay plan,
train paraprofessionals, clean up early childhood
education, broaden the curriculum “teach” kids
how to behave, a real home-school partnership,
early work-related curriculum, early service-
related curriculum, strong national effort.
Available as print and e-book at Amazon.com.

Oceana: a love story Shadow Soldiers

a novella by cc lindh by John M. Bushby

Oceana: a love story is

a poetic novella about
I n 1939, as war
descends on
Europe, an American
two athletes and their becomes involved
love for each other and in trying to save
their respective sports: refugees from the
Oceana is a lifelong Nazis. From Havana,
surfer and Guy is a to Berlin, to Lisbon,
golf pro from England. ship owner Rick
Though their time together is brief, like the land Kasten outraces the
and sea, Oceana and Guy come to define and Gestapo to get his
transform each other. 2012 Pinnacle Award/ passengers safely into American waters. With
Best Novella National Association of Book the help of a mysterious Hungarian woman and
Entrepreneurs. members of the newly formed OSS, Kasten
weaves his way through a tangled web of intrigue
and danger.
www.oceana-alovestory.com
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
Ebooks.com, and iBooks. Available at Amazon.com and Lulu.com.
 BOOK
The Way of the Master Mr. Bob the
by Steve Burns MR. BOB Chicken Engineer
THE CHICKEN by Robert Hargreaves

M urder and betrayal

in ancient China.
Returning home, Yuen
ENGINEER
F or most
Americans, the
name Vietnam brings
Meng Ji is reunited up memories of
with his mentor, Master war and politics: An
Confucius. His first American war and
task is to investigate American politics.
the brutal murder of a Little attention is
dignitary from the Qi given to the country itself, its people, and 1,000
province. Set in the year 518BC, this is a story of years of Vietnamese history.
murder and betrayal with detailed insights into This same blind spot has led us into Iraq and
the customs and philosophies of ancient China. Afghanistan, but my own personal story is of
Vietnam, and chickens.
Available at Amazon.com, Amazon.org.
uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.es, Amazon.it,
BarnesandNoble.com, Landmarkonthenet.com,
Tower.com, Wheelers.co.nz, and nbcindia.com. Available at Amazon.com.

Diary of a Dieting Chased Across

Madhouse Australia
by Paige Singleton by Reynold Conger

Smart, sassy, overweight

secretary Rowan Faine
A merican tourists
do not realize
that documents
navigates a mad world critical to a terrorist
of demanding lawyers, bomb plot are on
wacky co-workers and their laptop. The
dysfunctional families. terrorists chase them
When Rowan’s best across Australia.
friend gives her a copy of Diary of a Dieting They attempt
Madhouse, her world changes forever. Learn more burglary, shooting,
about Rowan’s diet in the second part of this sexual seduction, ambush and a high speed car
collection as author Paige Singleton and friends chase (on the wrong side of the road from the
introduce an amazing plant-based diet plan. American’s perspective). The Americans find
themselves running for their lives.

www.madhousediet.com 
www.Congerbooks.info
Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
and all major online booksellers. Xlibris.com, ChasedAcrossAustralia.com
 BOOK
A Tale of Two Sisters
by Sheryl St. George
A rollicking, riotous
look at two women
who have the gift of
making life as ridiculous
as possible at every
turn, St. George’s book
is a smile-inducing
tonic for anyone in the
need of a laugh or even
just a sense that they are not alone in facing life’s
more incomprehensible moments.
Full of good-natured laughs and familial
warmth, A Tale of Two Sisters is an extraordinary
gift that will teach you how to enjoy life and
laugh at all of its misadventures.
FACEBOOK LINK
Available at Amazon.com and on Kindle.
Changing Behavior
by Georgianna Donadio
I mmediately transform
your relationships with
easy-to-learn, proven
communication skills and
experience new levels of
fulfillment, collaboration and
intimacy. Developed and clinically researched
for over 30 years by relationships expert Dr.
Georgianna Donadio. Winner - 2012 Indie Book
award; Awarded 5 STARS by ForeWord Clarion,
Changing Behavior is recommended by Kirkus
as “a top-tier psychological self-help manual …
[a] strikingly original case for the transformative
power of receptiveness.” 
 how long will that last?
www.changingbehavior.org
BOOK TRAILER LINK
Available at Amazon.com and on Kindle.
Out of His Mouth: A
Love Letter from Fred
Williams as Told by
Logan Rogers
by Robert Logan Rogers
I magine you just
finished fishing on the
Sea of Galilee. Here is
the next morning’s buzz.
“He was walking on the
water and then Peter
joined Him!”
Fred Williams is a modern day Peter. Wherever
he goes, gemstones appear in his meetings.
Gold dust manifests. Water turns to wine. Manna
comes from heaven. Oil fills jars.
Enjoy this eyewitness account!
Available at www.createspace.com/3768626
or Amazon.com and Kindle.
The Mimic’s Own Voice
by Tom Williams
“The Mimic’s Own Voice is
as close to a perfect book
. . . as I have read in many
moons.”
—James Greer,
author of The Failure
and Artificial Light
In his novella, The Mimic’s Own Voice, Tom
Williams welcomes you to the world of Douglas
Myles, professional mimic, where comedians
dominate the entertainment landscape, and
Myles becomes the most famous of them all. But
Available at Main Street Rag Publishing Company:
http://www.mainstreetrag.com/TWilliams.html
and BarnesandNoble.com.
The Association of Independent Authors (AiA) is
a global not-for-profit membership organization
representing, advancing, supporting and encouraging
self-published (independent) authors. Our membership
spans five continents, with directors based in the USA,
Asia, Australia and South Africa.
The role of the AiA is to guide, educate, support, encourage
and unite authors who have chosen to self-publish.
Our Body of Knowledge (BoK) is a comprehensive resource on all aspects of self-
publishing and running a small business—today’s authors must understand the
business side of publishing (sales, marketing, promotion, legal and financial issues)
and how to sell a book in a global marketplace.  

Our vision is that independent publishing will be the preferred, first choice, for
all authors.

Our mission is to create a culture of excellence, teamwork and professionalism

in a community environment where sharing and collaboration benefits each
individual member and independent authors as a whole. 

Annual membership subscription (Associate,

Member) US$50. Affiliate level is free. Come
join us! (Mention promo code SHELF to receive
an additional three months membership for the
annual subscription of US$50.)

www.independent-authors.org
 poetry

Annie, Again

Some nights
when I don’t dream of old fears:

I can’t remember where I parked my car

I’m unprepared for a final exam
I missed the last train out of Vienna

sometimes
I dream an old love.
She smiles
as though we hadn’t parted
years before.
Her blonde hair even lighter
with streaks of silver,
I am bewitched again.

Some mornings
I wake smiling.

From A Step in Time by Ruth Steinberg. Reprinted with

permission. All rights reserved. www.ruthsteinbergpoetry.com

70 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 poetry
A Moment of Bliss

Crumb Quilt Poems

There are ten sparrows and one robin
in my birdbath. Overnight rain filled it
with cool, clear water, and they love it.
Scorching hot days have left them hot
and dusty. I fill it daily, but it soon
becomes a cement sauna as the
relentless sun evaporates the water. The
robin is the self-appointed bossy queen.
She attempts to maneuver the others
from their bathing, but the sparrows
outnumber her and refuse to be
diverted. As I watch from my window I
am reminded of children playing in a
puddle, the sheer joy of being alive on
their faces. A svelte Baltimore oriole
Kay F. Klinkenborg

has joined the melee—Striving to

maintain dignity, but unable to resist
the pure delight. They have all flown,
and the water level is reduced by half,
Deanna L. DeLong

while the sidewalk is covered with

water resembling raindrops. They have
returned to the work of nest building
and feeding young birds, but for a few
moments they experienced the bliss
of a summer rain, cool water, and From Crumb Quilt Poems by Kay F. Klinkenborg and Deanna
random splashing. Perhaps I shall look L. DeLong. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
for a puddle myself.

—Deanna L. DeLong

UNBOUND 71
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xt in independen
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COW’S CAN’T JUMP
“C ow’s can’t jump ... but
they can swim,” begins
this charmingly illustrated board
book with an inspiring can-do
message. It’s a great book to
read out loud, and it exposes
early readers to new vocabulary
(canter, scurry, sloth) in a simple
context. And once you and your
child have read it so many times
you’ve got it memorized, you’ll
be glad there’s a sequel, Cow’s
Can’t Quack. —Anna Nair
Cow’s Can’t Jump by Dave
Reisman, illustrations by Jason
A. Maas, www.jumpingcow-
press.com.
on our shelf
DAKOTA GOLD
A n old-fashioned yarn with
enough outlaws, buried
gold, and danger to keep middle
readers intrigued from start to
finish. When the MacKay kids,
Rob and Marlo, overhear the
Clint Sharndo gang boasting
about their latest exploits, they
take it upon themselves to find
the gang’s stolen loot, leading
them on a dangerous mission
along the Missouri River. Part
STRUFFEL EXPLORES
Hardy Boys, part Little House
on the Prairie, Dakota Gold is a
treasure.
—Margaret Brown
O ne of a series, Struffel
Explores finds the ador-
able young bear helping his
Dakota Gold by John Ander-
son, www.tatepublishing.com.
forest friends one by one, from
splashing Sofie the loon to cool
her off to carrying twigs with
Brady the beaver. These happy
tales are short enough to leave
you wanting more—which you
get, as each book contains
two complete stories. Readers
who fondly remember their
Little Brown Bear books will be
delighted to meet Struffel.
—Ben Minton
Struffel Explores by Susan M.
Maithya, illustrated by Lowell
Hildebrandt, http://struffel-
series.authorsxpress.com/
about-the-author/.
UNBOUND 73
small press reviews

Casual Day at the Crazy House

by Helen Mallon

www.hellenwmallon.com

I
n her latest stand-alone short story, Casual Day at the Crazy
House, Helen Mallon deftly explores issues of family, race, mad-
ness, and acceptance all in the space of a few thousand words.
The story follows a teenager named Olivia as she struggles with the
knowledge that her father isn’t quite right. In fact, he’s so not-quite-
right that he lives in the family’s bathroom and refuses to leave
for fear that he might die. Adding to Olivia’s stress is her mother’s
apparent nonchalance at the situation—she thinks it’s just a matter
of bad feng shui—and a racist grandmother who speaks in ironi-
cally affected Quaker “plain” speech that laces her language with
“thee’s” and “thy’s.” Meanwhile, graduation is looming, and Olivia
is fascinated with a girl named Katy. To say her life is complicated
is an understatement, but what teen’s life is ever simple? Indeed,
the complications in this particular teen’s life will ring true to many
young readers, while Mallon’s sensitive treatment of her characters
and their issues lends emotional depth to the proceedings.
We all want to be accepted, Mallon’s story stresses, and we all
want to be normal—but sometimes the only way to achieve both of
those goals is to recognize that we’re all abnormal outsiders in one
way or another. To put it another way, what we have in common is
that we’re all different.

—Marc Schuster, www.smallpressreviews.wordpress.com

Shelf Unbound Contributing Editor Marc Schuster is the author of

The Grievers, The Singular Exploits of Wonder Mom and Party Girl,
Don DeLillo, Jean Baudrillard, and the Consumer Conundrum, and,
with Tom Powers, The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: The Discerning
Fan’s Guide to Doctor Who. He is the editor of Small Press Reviews,
and his work has appeared in numerous magazines and journals
ranging from Weird Tales to Reader’s Digest. When he’s not writing,
Marc teaches writing and literature courses at Montgomery County
Community College in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.

74 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 a war…”
“There was always

The Last Death of Tev Chrisini

Winner of the Shelf Unbound
Writing Competition for
Best Self-Published Book

“An exceptionally well-built world...

the sheer depth was done brilliantly.”
—Fantasy Book Review UK

“Jennifer Bresnick’s enchanting Tolkien-esque epic fantasy

The Last Death of Tev Chrisini captivated our judges from
page one and held us in thrall through its conclusion 467 pages
later. We fell in love with the story and its characters and with
Bresnick’s assured literary tale-spinning.”
—Margaret Brown, Shelf Unbound magazine

Available on and
W W W. J EN N I FER B R E SN I CK .CO M

UNBOUND 75
 TAG LINE

“ Everyone has
to scratch
on walls
somewhere or
they go crazy.
”
— from In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje

76 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
 december/january
JENNIFER BRESNICK is a 2007 graduate of Mount Holy-
oke College with a major in history. Born and raised on Long
Island, NY, she now resides in the Boston area, fervently
avoiding all discussions about professional sports. When she
isn’t writing down the conversations in her head to give them
an appearance of respectability, Jen enjoys crocheting silly
animal hats, being creative in the kitchen, and on a complete-
ly unrelated note, putting out kitchen fires. She is currently an
associate editor for a healthcare technology website.
K. DAVID BRODY, born in London, worked at Radio-
Canada, Montreal, and moved to Israel in the early 1980s.
Back in Montreal, he worked as a freelance translator. An
active member of Montreal’s first gay Jewish group, he
founded the second, Yakhdav (Together). In 2002, after
an 8-year legal battle against the Quebec government, he
won the right of same-sex couples to the survivor pen-
sion, following the death of his partner.
STEPHANIE CAPRINI’s first novel focuses on the truths
and realities of what it is like living with and trying to
recover from an eating disorder. She worked to complete
her book after deciding the genre needed a story that was
refreshingly fun yet honest. While based on her struggle
with bulimia, the story is fictional. She is also published
in Coq&Bull magazine, the International Business Times,
and her blog, www.truthsc.com.  school: It was here where he met the brother of Harakiri,
CHRIS CLOUSER is the author of three books and lives in
Noblesville, Indiana. His other works include The Midwest
Associate: The Life and Work of Perry Duke Maxwell and
A Month of Saturdays: A Guide to Indiana’s Public Golf
Courses. He has also contributed to three other books and
had several articles published nationally.
ERIC DELABARRE is an award-winning author and film-
maker who began his career with Executive Producer Dick
Wolf on NBC’s mega-hit Law & Order.  He is a longtime
member of the Writer’s Guild of America. Before writing
his own works, Eric was a ghostwriter for Random House/
Harmony Books. Eric lives and works in Santa Monica, Cal-
ifornia, with his wife, Julie, and their two-year-old daughter,
Emery.  www.whatagreatbook.com
BRIAN GAST is an author, speaker, executive coach and
corporate team alignment expert. Brian was the co-found-
er and CEO of three telecom companies. He specializes in
helping leaders navigate personal and professional transi-
tions and find greater levels of fulfillment in the process.
contributors
MELISSA (MISSA) HAAS had her first book professionally
published while still in high school. In 2001, she debuted at
the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. as a pianist,
though her educational background actually belongs to the
realms of science and math. Over the past several years, most
of her time has been consumed by cystic fibrosis and accom-
panying adult-onset complications. The gravity of frequent life-
threatening situations has proven that writing, whether pub-
lished or unpublished, is a very fine example of time spent well.
RICK HALPERN graduated with honors a long time ago
from the University of California at Berkeley, majoring in
Theater Arts. He received his MFA in creative writing in 2004
from the Stonecoast at USM where he studied with Dennis
Lehane. Since then he has been splitting his time between
fiction and screenwriting.
VALERIE KATAGIRI is an award-winning author of several
Writer’s Digest entries. She has been a monthly contributor
to a senior newspaper in Portland, Oregon, and is currently
ghost-writing a parenting book as well as working on a
book of her own.
LASER 3.14’s passion for graffiti began as a kid in the early
‘80s, greatly inspired by early Amsterdam writers like Ego,
Dr Smurry, Dragon, Tarantula. In ‘84 he attended graphic
who taught Laser the ins and outs of tagging. Around the
early 1990s, he began sketching and producing comics,
illustrating, and writing poetry. Towards the end of the ‘90s
he ran into an artistic impasse and felt the need to re-ignite
a creative spark. As a result, he went back to his roots:
graffiti writing. It was at this point he began to utilize the city
as his canvas and turned his poetry into street art.
PAT LAWRENCE is the husband-wife writing team of
Pat Adsit Burke and Daniel Lawrence Burke—ergo: Pat
Lawrence. They began their writing partnership in 2007
penning Murder Mysteries for their entertainment enter-
prise, “Murder by Design.” An Illegal President: A Novel
follows on the heels of suspense thriller Jarred into Being,
published a year earlier. Pat and Daniel reside in Wisconsin
where they dutifully serve as staff to their two handsome
English bulldogs, Diesel and Emmett.
Shelf Unbound is published bimonthly by Shelf Media
Group LLC, 3322 Greenview Drive, Garland, TX 75044.
Copyright 2012 by Shelf Media Group LLC. Subscriptions
are FREE, go to www.shelfmediagroup.com to subscribe.
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 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013

SHELF   UNBOUND
WRITING   
COMPETITION

AWARD   
WINNERS
68 SEPTEMBER 2010
what to read next in independent publishing