Blessing or Curse is Now Out!

Blessing or Curse Collection - Five short stories about five very different people, with one thing in common: They all take a pill to be young again. How does that work out? Some happy endings, others not. Some nice characters, others not. This is a sequel to the thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, but dwells more on relationships than danger.

Available for $2.99 in the five story collection format at:

http://amzn.com/B00EMY1PWW

Or, if you wish, pick only one of the short stories at 99 cents:

WHO'LL MEND THIS BROKEN MAN

Desperation forces Consuela to order the Forever Young pill to cure her husband, Diego, from Parkinson’s Disease; but is the cure really a curse?

http://amzn.com/B00EMPREZ8

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING

Ezekiel, an African-American male, can't get it up for his lady love, Luana. Will the pill draw them closer together or drive her away?

http://amzn.com/B00EMPRDBI

WHAT I DID FOR LOVE

Strawberry blonde model, Sherri, sees her popularity fading, along with her looks. The pill can bring her fame and fortune, but what about love?

http://amzn.com/B00EMY1T3M

SUSPICION

Doormat, Dee Dee Marshall, takes a bold step when evidence points to her husband's infidelity. 

http://amzn.com/B00EMY1S8I

FOR THE LOVE OF DOG

Overweight Chicago Police Officer Walinski must pass a new physical or lose his job, along with his beloved canine partner. Can the young pill offer security, when danger lurks in the line of duty?

http://amzn.com/B00EMY1QVW

Coming Next is Always Young, the last of the Always Young Trilogy. 

Find all of Morgan Mandel's books at

http://www.amazon.com/author/morganmandel

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/morgan.mandel

Twitter:

@MorganMandel

Got My Edits Back

I received my edits back for Blessing or Curse, the sequel to Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, from Helen Ginger, my wonderful editor. Since this book has five separate stories, we were trying to figure out an easy way for readers to keep track of each of the stories.


I've decided to name each story with a phrase relating to its contents, then using chapter numbers for the different scenes.


Look below to learn the story names.



Who'll Mend This Broken Man

Too Much of a Good Thing

For the Love of Dog

What I Did for Love

Suspicion

Stayed tuned for more about Blessing or Curse. For now, I'm back to my edits!

Morgan Mandel
For excerpts and links to all my books, come on over to
http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com

The Cleanup

Blessing or Curse, the anthology sequel following Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, is now in my wonderful editor, Helen Ginger's hands, or should I say, on her computer.





Today, while I could, I did a cleanup of some neglected areas of the house.

That bunch of papers I said I'd shred someday, I finally shredded! I also switched around some of the clothes from winter to spring, threw out, sorted out, and arranged papers and miscellaneous stuff I for some reason seem to think I can't do without.

My desk even looks neat at the moment. Well, that never lasts!

Anyway, now I'll be set for when I get the edits back from Helen. Then, I'll be back in the writing groove and forsaking all other stuff! I still have the last book to write in the Always Young Trilogy, which will be called, Always Young. 

Morgan Mandel

http://www.morganmandel.com

Now is the Time

Now is the time for me to buckle down and get to my edits for Blessing or Curse. This is the sequel to my science fiction thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, and needs to get out!

Blessing or Curse has a smidge of science fiction, since no one has invited a pill to revert aging, but the main focus is about the relationships of 5 different people in 5 different stories. I've already checked my email, gone to Facebook, Twitter, and dabbled in other diversions.

I'll be signing off now and getting to work.

Here's the cover, in case you haven't seen it, or have forgotten what it looks like.

Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com

To Free or Not To Free

There comes a time when decisions need to be made. Is it better to enroll in KDP Select and offer freebies, or not?

So far, I've got Forever Young: Blessing or Curse still enrolled, as well as Girl of My Dreams.


I took my most recent romantic comedy, Her Handyman, off the program, but may put it back on later. I have mixed feelings about offering freebies. After a free event, I do get more sales, but then I wonder if some readers notice it's available free for Prime members, which means it will probably be free for everyone else for five days, somewhere along the line. That seems a double-edged sword.

Anyway, I'll see how the system goes, and learn if any other alternatives present themselves.

In the meantime, I'm not completely neglecting other sources, since two of my books, Killer Career, and Two Wrongs, are still available on all the Smashwords sites, as well as on Amazon.

For excerpts and buy links to all my books, you're welcome to check them out at:
http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com

Free Again - Friday, Saturday and Sunday!

If you aren't on Facebook and following my page, you may not know this -

Freebie coming up this Friday, Saturday and Sunday - April 5, 6 and 7

That's right - Forever Young: Blessing or Curse for Kindle/or PC will be free on those days. If you don't have a copy, be sure to click and get one before it goes back to its usual $2.99 price.

Here's the link: http://amzn.com/B006MO28CQ

I'm over halfway through the edits for Blessing or Curse, the companion sequel to Forever Young: Blessing or Curse .

Blessing or Curse contains 5 different stories about 5 very different people taking the Forever Young pill. Each story has some sort of romance, but is much more than a typical romance.

You'll see when I start sharing excerpts.

Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com

A Little At a Time

I'm getting things done a little at a time. Lots of year end/beginning stuff to sort out. I usually throw my bills into a folder each month. At the end of the year, then I figure out which ones I really need to keep. Most get shredded or thrown away. I could do this chore more often, such as every month when a new bill arrives, but what fun is that? Or, I could go paperless, but for some odd reason I like to see the bills right in front of me, though I pay them online. I guess I'm still half in and half out of the old and new ways of doing things.

I'm employing the same approach to my editing of Blessing or Curse, the sequel to Forever Young: Blessing or Curse. After a while, my brain freezes from too much thinking, and I have to stop and go to Facebook, or some other place to thaw it out.

Still, I'm getting there. Blessing or Curse has 5 stories in all, and I'm halfway through editing the third one. Hopefully, I can finish it today, then only 2 to go.

I'd hoped to have this book finished sooner, such as in December, but I underestimated the Christmas busy-ness. Lots of fun and un-fun stuff kept getting in the way. My target now is February publication.

Everyone will know if I make my goal, because I will spread the word far and wide!

A peek at what Blessing or Curse is about:

• Consuela's husband has Parkinson's. Will the young pill help him?
• Ezekial suffers from E.D. Will the pill cure his curse?
• Police officer, Mike, has let himself go. His physical is coming up. Maybe the pill will help.
• Dee Dee wonders if her husband is cheating. Will the pill make her more attractive? 
• Sherri's washed out as a model. Can the pill re-ignite her career?

Stay tuned for the answers!

Morgan Mandel

Check out all of Morgan Mandel's
books at http://www.morganmandel.com
or her Amazon Author Page at
http://amazon.com/author/morganmandel

Connect on Twitter at
@MorganMandel

Out of the Ordinary

I was thinking this morning about how my life is pretty ordinary. I do so many things out of habit. I get up around the same time each day, eat the same type of foods, even drink the same beverages. I walk the dog, with or without the DH, I log in, work and play on the Internet, then watch TV or a DVD in the evening.

That's only a small part of my routine, but you get the idea. Most of the time I don't deviate, except for when something extraordinary occurs. It doesn't take much to qualify for me, but sometimes the DH and I go to the American Legion's pancake breakfast once a month, or we go out to lunch, get a carryout, meet a friend for dinner, or go to an indoor winter event or outdoor summer concert.

Another departure from the norm is when we go on vacation, but even that isn't much out of the ordinary, since we always go to our cottage in Wisconsin.

I'm not complaining, because I like it this way. I'm not much for traveling the globe or partying all night.

Such ordinariness in a book would be so boring a reader would stop reading right away. A life-shaking event must occur as soon as possible to the main character(s) to pique a reader's interest. It's such a fast world we live in, most readers are not patient about waiting for the good part in a book. They want the entire book to be the good part.

So, we must find ways to twist and re-align our character's routines, then do so again and again, until our poor character almost reaches the breaking point, and only then offer relief.

The start in a romance can be meeting someone new or learning something new about someone who's already been part of a person's life. Then, countless obstacles and questions present themselves.

Jake, the handyman, and Zoe, the rich artist,  meet in my romantic comedy, Her Handyman, when her dog drops a toy in the toilet, causing a bathroom flood in the middle of the night. Jake and Zoe are attracted to each other, but they lead very different lives. Also, he's got a fiance, which presents a problem.

In a mystery or thriller, a real or perceived threat works, with or without dead bodies littering the landscape. In my thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, Dorrie's husband dies, she loses her job, and life is turned upside down. She's desperate and takes a pill to be young again. You'd think her life would be all rosy then, but it turns out even more problems present themselves. Soon she's got the villains and the law after her.

Those are a few examples from my books. Please share how change impacts the ordinary routine of one of your characters or that of another author's character. Or if you wish, mention how something out of the ordinary changed your own life.

Morgan Mandel

Morgan's current release is the romantic
comedy, Her Handyman,
at http://amzn.com/B0097EVXBK

Her current thriller is Forever Young: Blessing or Curse
at http://amzn.com/B006MO28CQ

Soon to come is Blessing or Curse, the sequel to
Forever Young: Blessing or Curse.

Morgan's Website: http://www.morganmandel.com
Twitter: @MorganMandel

The Line Up and Sneak Peek at Blessing or Curse by Morgan Mandel

Blessing or Curse
by Morgan Mandel

Since I'm in the last legs of finishing up Blessing or Curse before sending it off to my editor, Helen Ginger, I thought I'd share something about it, and a small excerpt, which may change in the editing process, maybe not.

What Blessing or Curse is:

Blessing or Curse is the sequel to the science fiction thriller,  Forever Young: Blessing or Curse. This book can be read as a standalone or part of the projected three-book series.

In the first book, the emphasis is on a 55-year old widow, who takes the young pill turning her back to 24. All should have been wonderful, but then she makes a discovery which has her fleeing both from the villains and the law.

Blessing or Curse, the new book, is chiefly a romance, with a smattering of science fiction, since no one yet has invented a Forever Young pill. It's broken into five separate stories depicting how the pill impacts the lives of five test market subjects, and whether or not their choice was the right one. These participants come from differing ethnicities, ages and classes, yet all have a reason to be young. The loved ones of these characters are also at some point in the stories impacted by the test subject's age reversion.

Here's the lineup of stories:

Desperation forces Consuela to order the Forever Young pill to cure her husband, Diego, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease; but will the cure become a curse?

Ezekiel, an African-American male with  E.D. difficulties, sends in for the young pill to prevent his lady love, Luana, from discovering he can’t get it up. Will the pill draw her closer or drive her away?

Strawberry blonde model, Sherri’s popularity is fading with her looks. The pill can bring her fame and fortune, but what about love?

Overweight Chicago Police Officer Walinski must pass a new physical or lose his job, along with his canine partner. Will the young pill provide security, when danger lurks in the line of duty? 

Downtrodden going-on-sixty housewife, Dee Dee Marshall, suspects her husband of infidelity, and will do anything to keep him, even take an experimental pill. What she really needs is self-confidence.

A Sneak Peak at the Consuela and Diego's Story: 

First Trial Run -  Albuquerque, New Mexico

Consuela & Diego Morales

Ah, the wonderful love they’d shared. Why must it end this way?

“Diego, eat,” Consuela Morales said, holding out a spoonful of puree to her shrunken, wheelchair-bound husband. His dry parched lips remained obstinately shut, his gray eyebrows furrowed. He wanted to die and she didn’t blame him. God help her, sometimes she wanted him dead too. Till death do us part seemed a long time to live with half a man.

Placing the spoon into the jar with a klunk, Consuela gazed morosely at her husband. Mamacita, God rest her soul, had warned her not to marry a man twenty years older, but the ripe, chestnut-haired Consuela had paid no heed, choosing passion over common sense. Diego of the raised eyebrows, straight black hair and cocky mannerisms had fevered her blood, making her come alive as no other man could.

She remembered the exact moment he’d strode into the basement of her friend, Isabella’s brownstone. As their eyes met, her heart raced beneath the confines of her ample breasts, almost drowning out the background sounds of New Year’s Eve TV reveling.

Quickly averting her eyes, she whispered to her friend, Isabel, “Who is that studly guy?”

Isabel glanced at the new addition and frowned in concentration. “Oh, that must Diego, Alessandro’s cousin. He broke up with his girl and asked if he could come with tonight. He’s hot, if you go for father figures.”

 “My father never looked that good his entire life. That man steams. I need to cool off some.” 

Hope you enjoyed the Sneak Peak. If all goes well, this book will be available on Kindle in December, fingers crossed!

Morgan Mandel

The thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, the first in the trilogy, is available at Amazon at http://amzn.com/B006MO28CQ. 

If you prefer humorous romance, check out Her Handyman at

http://amzn.com/B0097EVXBK

Morgan's Amazon Author Page: http://amazon.com/author/morganmandel 

Excerpts, Buy Links, All Venues of Morgan's Books:

http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com  

Pitch Your Book Is Back!

By request, today we'll do a Pitch Your Book session. How it works is simple. Just leave a short pitch a/k/a elevator pitch in the comment section. The shorter the better, or readers will get bored and skip over yours!

Leave a buy link and a website or blogspot link, if you wish, but don't clutter with zillions of links, or I'll have to cut yours, since it will spoil the continuity.

I'll pitch Forever Young: Blessing or Curse.

A 55 year old widow takes a pill to be 24, then makes a shocking discovery which has her fleeing for her life.

http://amzn.com/B006MO28CQ
http://amazon.com/author/morganmandel


OKAY, YOUR TURN

Pesky Little Details

All those pesky little details an author better get right, or else--

Late afternoon yesterday I noticed all our early blooming daffodils, both in the backyard by the kitchen window and by the fence, had fallen over. I thought that may have been due to the strong winds, but just in case it was from the heat, I gave the ones by the kitchen window some water.

This morning, both sets of daffodils had sprung back up, so my conclusion is they didn't like the heat, but revived during the night because it was cooler.

Daffodils do not usually bloom in Illinois this early, nor do forsythia bushes, green grass, and other tulips happen yet. We also don't usually have bees circling our backyard, ants on the sidewalk, gnats in the air, or mosquitos flying around, not to mention 80+ temperatures this early in the season. This year is an exception, which I've heard is due to a jetstream.

If you were writing a book with a setting near Chicago, Illinois, and the timeframe of March, unless you were specifically mentioning this year, all the things I mentioned above wouldn't be here. Instead, to ground your readers in a story, you'd mention snow starting to melt, or grass still brown, if you even see it peeking from the snow. The temperatures would typically be in the 50s, or if you're lucky the 60s.  You might see a few buds on the bushes, or daffodils or tulips beginning to come up, but not blooming. The insects would also be few and far between.

When I wrote Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, I had to check certain details also, such as when the rose bushes bloom, and when they're dormant, what the temperature is in Scottsdale, Arizona compared to Flagstaff, even what time it's sunset in that part of the country. Though I'd taken a trip to Scottsdale in April, 2011, and garnered much  information which proved useful, that didn't mean what I witnessed in April was typical for other times of the year in that area, or even in Flagstaff.

Fortunately, the Internet is a great source for learning such pesky little details. An author needs to get them right,  because, God forbid, if they're wrong, a reader will notice.

What other pesky little details should authors be aware of? Can you share any you've encountered when writing a book?

By the way, the thriller I mentioned, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, is on sale on kindle at 99 cents through March 24, 2012, after which it returns to $1.99.  It's also available at the regular price of $1.99 in other electronic formats, and is in print for $12.87.

Find excerpts and buy links to all of my books at http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com/
You're invited to check out my Author Central Page at: http://amazon.com/author/morganmandel

A Detour to My Tour Today

Just a short detour to my Blog Book Tour today for my romantic thriller,
Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, where my topic is: Are Your Friends the Same Age As You?

Please stop by at http://lesleatash.com/ and tell us about your friends.

Thanks,
Morgan Mandel

Give Us Your Book Pitches/Blurbs and Buy Links

Today, we're offering readers a sample of what's available. All you authors, please post a very short elevator type pitch (blurb) about your book and provide a buy link, so everyone can go out and get it. Only one each, please.

I'll start with mine. You knew that was coming. (g)

A 55 year old widow takes a pill to be young again, and may not live to regret it.

http://www.amazon.com/Forever-Young-Blessing-Always-ebook/dp/B006MO28CQ

Okay, now everyone that's an author jump into the comment section. And everyone that's a reader, get over there too so you can find something to read!

Morgan Mandel
http://morganmandel.blogspot.com/

Name One Method to Promote A Book

I've been on a blog book tour for over a month promoting my paranormal romantic thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse. That's because a tour raises Search Engine Optimization for a book and/or author, and in the process reaches out to other readers and authors along the way. I wouldn't think of releasing a book without going on a tour.

If nothing else, awareness of my new release is raised by my constant references to the tour on egroups and social media sites. Anyone I come into contact with online has to know by now I have a new release. Not only that, when I Google Morgan Mandel, many of the tour stops show up in the search.

What about you? Tell us one of your methods to promote a book. It can be the same as someone else's, if it's also your favorite.

IF YOU REMEMBER, PLEASE HIT THE PLUS SIGN - ANOTHER WAY TO PRMOTE!

Would you like to be young again knowing what you know now?
Forever Young: Blessing or Curse is now in Print, also on Kindle, Nook, other Smashwords venues.
See more buy links at http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com

Share Your Latest Review

New Review for Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, my Fountain of Youth paranormal romantic novel  -

Terry says, "I truly enjoyed this story, reading a few chapters each night just before falling asleep, and looking forward to my "story time" each night! Mandel's main characters are more than three dimensional,sharing their inner thoughts as the story develops. Her settings are very easily seen through the characters' eyes, and the story line itself is just far enough fetched to hold the reader's interest through the various twists and turns of the plot."

Link to entire review -

http://www.amazon.com/review/RIM90J160YAF9/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B006MO28CQ&nodeID=&tag=&linkCode=

That's my latest review. What's yours?
Show some of your review and the link in the comment section here. Don't post the whole thing, because reviewers don't like that.

Morgan Mandel
http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com/

Going on a Tour

I'm going on a tour soon. The great thing about this tour is I'll be out of the country, yet in it at the same time. That's right, thanks to the Internet, such miracles are possible!

In case you haven't figured it out, I'll be taking a blog book tour, also known as a virtual tour. I'll be visiting various blogs, and doing posts about these hot topics and more:

Are You Comfortable With Your Age?
What's So Great About Being Young?
When Did I Get Old?
What Are the Advantages of Growing Old?

Okay, maybe such topics don't seem too important to you right now. If that's the case, they will someday. (g)

Be that as it may, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse is not only for those who wish they were young again, but also for those who still are. More to follow, but if you can't wait, follow this link at Amazon and you'll find out more about my thriller.

http://tinyurl.com/6tsntn6

Thanks,

Morgan Mandel - http://morganmandel.blogspot.com/
Forever Young: Blessing or Curse on Kindle & Smashwords
Killer Career 99 cents on Kindle & Smashwords
Two Wrongs 99 cents on Kindle & Smashwords
Girl of My Dreams 99 cents- Kindle & Smashwords

Merry Christmas

The last few weeks have been hectic as I got my backlist books and then my new thriller, Forever Young: Blessing or Curse, ready for Kindle and Smashwords, and also tried to get ready for Christmas. I did get them all up and am still working on the getting ready for Christmas. I have made some progress on clearing my house clutter, and soon will be wrapping presents, so it appears the Christmas goal may also be reached.

Next, I'll be lining up reviews and going on a Blog Book Tour for Forever Young: Blessing or Curse. Full details will be available when they are available. In other words, I don't have everything lined up yet.

Going to relax and watch TV now, unless I fall asleep first!

Have a Merry Christmas!