Monday, October 10, 2016

CONTEST--A Chance to WIN Books and a Kindle Fire!


Today, I have a fun surprise that I’d like to share with you.

To celebrate the beginning of fall, I’ve teamed up with more than 50 fantastic regency romance authors to give away a huge collection of novels, PLUS a Kindle Fire to one lucky winner! 

The contest runs from October 10 to October 17, 2016.

You can win my novel Wicked Groom, plus books from authors like Tina Gabrielle, Brenda Hiatt and Cynthia Wright. 

The Wicked Groom:  What happens when two headstrong people agree to a betrothal when they've never even met and one of them is determined to break the rules?

Enter the giveaway by clicking here: http://bit.ly/fall-regency


Good luck, and enjoy!



Tuesday, October 04, 2016

FREE in October

October is Down Syndrome awareness month. To celebrate, I'm making Sophy's Story available as a free ebook for the month of October. 

Sophy's Story is a great children's book, even if your loved one doesn't have Down Syndrome or other special needs and at the same time it was created so children and adults like my 39 yr old son, who does have Down syndrome, can and might very well WANT to read it themselves.

There are other Sophy books and coloring books--if you're interested--and I have more about them on the Sophy Books page. For now, here's Sophy's Story with links to the major sites.





Tuesday, August 16, 2016

A Scandalous Bequest

It's been awhile since you heard from me. That's because of a little girl who has come into my  life--my grandchild. I've been just a tad busy enjoying the experience of becoming a grandmother. 

I've also been revising A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST, which was first published as a Traditional Regency by Signet in 1982 and was my 2nd Regency for Signet (Penguin/Putnam/Dutton/New American Library). It was written before the advent of the internet, which means there were lots of things it was difficult or impossible to research back then. I've had to make changes to the story based on what I now know was and wasn't possible back then.

I did more than that, however. A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST was written right after my daughter was born, when life was kind of crazy, and was, in addition, very much a product of its time. Well, times have changed and so, while trying to preserve the best of the original, I spent several months rewriting A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST to make it, I believe, a better book--especially for 2016. I hope all of you will appreciate those changes and also feel it makes the book better.

I'm excited to be able to say that A SCANDALOUS BEQUEST is on pre-order this week and will be "live" and download on August 22, 2016. It's also available right now in paperback from Amazon.


Amazon       iBooks       Kobo       Google Play    Paperback  Nook

Teaser for the book:

It wasn't supposed to be like this. Marriage wasn't supposed to be for sale. But sometimes life doesn't work out quite the way one expects . . . .

Felicity Lyford hasn't had an easy time of it. That's why she leaps at a chance at a London Season—even if it is because of a rather scandalous bequest. But can she protect herself from two of the most notorious rakes in London—Sir Anthony and Lord Eastcott—and choose a husband based on her head instead of her heart? 

Note: The Nook version at Barnesandnoble.com is the one option I cannot make available for pre-order but it WILL be available starting August 22, as well.

Monday, May 16, 2016

Writing Tips For Kids (And Adults)

A few years ago, I self-published a booklet of writing tips for kids. It was available only on Amazon for kindle. I always meant to revise and make it available more widely but until now I haven't had the time to do so but now it is available on the major sites and drastically revised. It's also available in print.

Note: Rather than issuing a new edition, I replaced the previous file on Amazon. Current owners of the book should be able to simply request the update. At least I hope so!

I should perhaps mention that it not only contains information about creative writing, writing reports and essays, etc. but also has a section on public speaking--because there are some simple tips that can make speaking easier and more compelling.

Perhaps you're wondering why it says (And Adults). As much as we want to, sometimes we don't have time to wade through long books about writing or public speaking and the material is as applicable for adults as it is for kids.

If you're interested, I hope you'll check it out. Here's the information:




Kindle    Nook    Kobo    iBooks    Google Play    Paperback 

Sunday, April 03, 2016

3 COLORING BOOKS!

In my last post, SOPHY'S STORY COLORING BOOK, I wrote about my Sophy Books and why they are so dear to my heart. Now there are 3 Sophy coloring books!

I've learned a lot and my keyboard has dents from my banging my forehead on it every time I got frustrated with the process, but the coloring books are finally here and available in print. I hope if you love dogs or if you have a loved one who loves dogs, is learning English, has a disability such as Down Syndrome (like my son) or autism or some other mental challenge, you will check them out.

On Amazon:








They match up with my Sophy Books like this:


SOPHY'S STORY

KINDLE    NOOK    KOBO    IBOOKS    PAPERBACK



SOPHY GOES TO DOGGY CAMP

KINDLE     NOOK     KOBO     IBOOKS     PAPERBACK



SOPHY GOES TO THE DOGGY DOCTOR

KINDLE    NOOK     KOBO     IBOOKS     PAPERBACK


Sunday, March 20, 2016

Sophy's Story Coloring Book

I've been busy the last few weeks. I've redone many of the covers of my Regencies romances. If you've seen the old covers, you'll see that I've retained enough that you'll recognize you've seen or read the book before.

I've also uploaded reformatted versions of all my Regencies because I want readers to have the best reading experience possible with my books.

And I've been working on a project dear to my heart. I've written before about my Sophy Books. (Sophy named after the heroine of Georgette Heyer's book, THE GRAND SOPHY.)  As I started to work on the next Sophy book for my 39 yr old son who has Down Syndrome, I realized I wanted to try something new--an experiment.

Experiments are fun and this one is teaching me a great deal. I took the photos and text from the original book, SOPHY'S STORY, and turned them into pages of a coloring book. If this works out, I'll be doing the same for SOPHY GOES TO DOGGY CAME and SOPHY GOES TO THE DOGGY DOCTOR.

If you're interested, I hope you'll take a look.



Laugh with Sophy as chases squirrels, gets in trouble for muddy paws or searches under the Christmas tree for presents. For dog lovers of all ages and capabilities, including those like the author's son who has Down syndrome.

Note: This coloring book is companion to Sophy's Story, the book. It uses the text and photos from the original book but turned into pictures that can be colored.

This is something of an experiment for me and I hope you will let me know what you think!

SOPHY'S STORY COLORING BOOK

Thursday, March 03, 2016

Beatles Medley All Together Now Music





Some of you know about my Sophy Books, designed for special needs readers like my son, who has Down Syndrome. This music video is from the All Together Now music group at the Katz JCC in Cherry Hill, NJ. I'm proud to say my son is in the video.

This video is an example of why I've created the Sophy Books (Sophy's Story, Sophy Goes To Doggy Camp, Sophy Goes To The Doggy Doctor and soon Sophy Takes Care Of Mom)--because our special needs loved ones are capable of far more than we often realize and I want everyone to have books they love to read, with characters who feel what they sometimes feel.

I'm also sharing this video because I'm so proud of my son and the others in this group!

Here's also a picture of some pottery my son made for me in his art class at the Katz JCC.









Wednesday, February 10, 2016

New Cover for The Wicked Groom

I've given my book, The Wicked Groom, a new cover. I will be experimenting with updating some of the other covers in the Westcott series as well.  Here's what the new version looks like:




Kindle          Nook        iBooks        Kobo 


Not completely different from the old one, just updated a bit. I also am thinking about making the Westcott series available in paperback. Stay tuned for information as we get closer to that happening!

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Book In A Week Online Writing Class Starts Feb. 1, 2016

Note: This is the only time in 2016 I expect to be offering the full 6 week class.

It’s the new year—are you ready to dive back into writing? Have you gotten stuck on the project you’re working on? Are you looking for a way to make writing easier and more intuitive for you? This class can help!

I believe Book in a Week—the way I teach it—is one of the best gifts I believe any author can give himself or herself. It's a chance to write better, faster and have more fun doing so. It's also a new way to look at the process of creating a book and discovering what process would be ideal for YOU.

Dates: January 31, 2016 to March 11, 2016
Cost: $95 ($50 if you've taken the class before) One time 10% discount if you bought my April Kihlstrom’s Book In A Week Workbook.

Deadline to sign up: January 29, 2016 (though I do sometimes allow people to sign up right up to the start of class IF there is room in the class)
Lessons: Everything is handled by email so you can do the lessons at YOUR convenience
Class size is limited.

Payment for the class may be made by check or by PayPal. To sign up send an email to aprilkihlstrom@yahoo.com with BIAW class in the header and in the body of the email please put: your name and whether you prefer to pay by check or PayPal. Also, please let me know if you have taken the class before and whether you have bought a copy of the workbook and are asking for the one time only discount on the class fee. (One of these days I will get a Paypal button set up on this page--if I can figure out how to set up the 4 different options--1st time, 1st time with discount, repeat, repeat with discount--that is!)

Note: If you do not get a response back from me, please try emailing me at april.kihlstrom@gmail.com. Unfortunately email does sometimes simply disappear into cyberspace.

Class Description: This class will take you through every step of the writing process—from beginning to brainstorm all the way through sending material out to be published. And it will help you discover who YOU are as a writer. You can participate as much or as little as you like in email discussions.

Weeks 1-3: This is when you do the prep work with lessons that are designed to get you thinking in new ways about your project. Among other things, I'll cover characters and book structure, imagery and use of names, POV and how to make sentence and paragraph structure work for you. If you choose, you can post answers and get help brainstorming ideas for your book but NO ONE is required to do so!

Weeks 4 and 5: Intensive Writing Weeks (February 20, 2016 through March 6, 2016 ) This is your chance to write better and faster than you ever have before, to discover what YOUR natural first draft will look like and ways to fit writing into your life that you may never have thought of before.

Week 6: Here's your chance to look at the experience of weeks 4 and 5 and use it to create a writing method that works for YOU and is tailored to your most natural writing style. We'll also look at how to revise your work in the fastest, most effective way possible and I'll be sharing some of my thoughts on query letters, synopses, etc.

Does BIAW work? Well, a number of people who have taken this class are now published or under contract and/or been finalists in or won contests with material they worked on during my classes.  One author had her book optioned for a movie!

Bio: April Kihlstrom is an award winning author of 32 published romance novels. She offers coaching to fellow writers as well as classes and workshops on writing and has spoken at many conferences including: the Romance Writers of America national conference (romance) and the East of Eden conference (non-romance).

Testimonials from students who have taken the Book in a Week class:

April's course always makes me take a good hard look at my characters, their motivations and what it will take to tell their story. Even better is the feedback she gives to responses.  She really makes me think!”--Anne McAllister

I had been stuck for 18 months on my book, writing next to nothing after the loss of a family member. I was desperate to get it going but couldn't seem to muster the enthusiasm. Your class was just the ticket.”--Robin Heart Shepperd

 “Through the series of questions that April asks she makes each author delve deeply into their character and story line. April's questions make you think about how your character's history, social standing, occupation, family position, and more impacts how they handle the various situations we authors toss them into. At the end of April's class you have a deep understanding of your characters that writing the story will be a breeze. “--Ruth A Casie

I so enjoyed every minute of April's class. First, she hands out the BEST lessons, they make you think and show you just how much insight April brings to her class, on writing, on writers, and on LIFE! Then she carefully answers all the questions online or privately and we all learned from everyone else too!  This class is really a fantastic jump starter for any book, idea, premise you might be struggling with.  I was unable to write but two days of the writing weeks and still got in over 10,000 words because the class allowed me to get to some truths in my work.  Hat's off to April for providing the inspiration and know how, and finally for her innate quality as a human study. If you are a writer - this is the class YOU need!”--Cheryl Rae


“I first tried "Book in a Week" when I wanted to start a new novel but was having trouble gathering ideas.  The process really jump-started my brain and my creativity and pretty soon the ideas were flowing!  Although I didn't finish the book that week, I wrote more than I thought possible and went on to finish the book more quickly than I ever had in the past.  That book was not only published, but nominated for a National Readers' Choice Award! Since then I have taken the class several times and it has always gotten me started with plenty of plot and character ideas; and has helped me to get my novels well underway!”--Roni Denholtz

Monday, January 04, 2016

Romance Reader Social February 13, 2016

Again this year at the Pflugerville Public Library there will be a Romance Reader Social. I love these events because I and my fellow romance authors get to meet readers.

As always, there will be crafts and refreshments and prizes! It's February 13, 2016 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Pflugerville Public Library which is at:

1008 W. Pfluger Street 
Pflugerville, TX 78660



I hope to see you there!