Tag Archives: children’s books

Stanley & Katrina’s Book Blasty Tour

I’m thrilled to be the first stop in Stanley & Katrina’s Book Blasty Tour for the new book “The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals” written by Felicia Maziarz, which has already received a 5 Star rating from Reader’s Favorite.

My Reviewish Thoughts

Stanley the dog and Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge are the main characters and sort of authors of “The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals.”

Obstreperous means “resisting control or restraint in a difficult manner; unruly” or “noisy and disruptive.” I’ve been an English teacher and I had to look it up! What a great word. I wonder if that has been one of Stanley & Katrina’s Words of the Week yet. Anyhow…

The book is more a series of sassy and silly anecdotes about Stanley & Katrina’s lives and adventures instead of a full story. I found myself wondering how many of those stories had a little basis in fact, like the ones in my books. Some chapters are from the perspective of one of the characters, and some from an all-knowing narrator (who is occasionally corrected by Katrina von Cat). I loved it and can see why it is getting such great ratings. I will be posting one myself on amazon.com today. 5 stars from me as well!

Kimba wanted me to be sure to mention that she felt that Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge was horribly maligned and mistreated throughout the book, and clearly Stanley and the owners do not understand that Katrina is not only a famous ice skating cat from Europe but she is also an alien — like all cats — and deserves more respect. She hopes Katrina will be the only star of any future books. Felicia can take that all with a grain of salt, as I’m sure she does with all advice coming from cats.

I should also offer huge congratulations to Felicia because on October 1 she won the Silver Award from the 2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards in the “Best Book by Youth Author (Under 18) for her first book (she was 9 when she wrote it), The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets. Go Felicia!!

Celebrating

Stanley and Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge are celebrating the release of their second book, The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals, by hosting their very own “Book Blasty Tour”. Thank you for taking the time to visit this special stop along their tour and be sure to enter the giveaway!

About the Book

Title: The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals

Authors: Stanley & Katrina, Pet Authors

Year published: 2014

Number of pages: 106

Recommended ages: 10+ Independent Readers; 5+ Read-Aloud

Summary (Amazon): Cat and dog. It is a love/hate relationship. Stanley and Katrina are back to share more humorous glimpses into their exciting lives in their second book via short stories. Yes, the pets are at it again but this time compete in a slam poetry contest, visit a pet psychic, and much more.This cat and dog writing team makes you stop and wonder what happens at your house when you’re not there.

Book Preview Video

Click Here For The Video Preview!!

Amazon U.S. * Amazon U.K. * Amazon Canada

Barnes & Noble

The Buzz

“All the animal snippets are very funny. If you like animals and a good laugh, this is the book for you.” ~Carly K., Age 10

“Hilarious! Instantly became my favorite book!” ~Stephen E., Age 12

“You did it again! I loved reading about your crazy adventures!” ~Rachael S., Age 13

“Another one? How do they do this?” ~Stanley & Katrina’s owners

About the Authors: Stanley & Katrina

Stanley and Katrina are the pet authors of The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals.

Stanley is a three-year-old black Labrador/Rottweiler mix who does his best to ignore Katrina. Stanley enjoys snow, attention and turkey.

Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge is an eight-year-old grey tabby cat who loves her toy mouse.She enjoys treats, naps and bossing the dog around.

Neighbor Girl (Felicia) is the human who knows us (Stanley& Katrina) the best and helps us with everything. She loves writing, reading, acting, singing, reading gymnastics, doodling, reading, ice skating, painting, reading, doing computer stuff, oh… did we mention reading? She is the co-creator and co-host of “The Write Chat.”

You may visit the entire gang online at www.StanleyAndKatrina.com.

Twitter * Facebook * Google+

Pinterest * Goodreads * YouTube

* Free Printables For This Book! *

Kid Lit Printables has created fun and FREE printables for The Observations of the Obstreperous Animals and will be adding more in the future. Click here to view all available printables now.

Get the First Book in the Series Free

10/6 & 10/7/2014

The pets are offering their first book for free, via Amazon Kindle, the first two days of the Blog Tour. Click here to download Book 1 in the Stanley & Katrina series now.

Stanley & Katrina’s

Book Blasty Tour Stops(2014)

*Denotes Book Review Stops

October 6

Meg Dendler’s Site*

Mother Daughter Book Reviews*

Michigan Saving and More

October 7

The Book Lovers’ Lounge*

October 8

BeachBoundBooks*

Writer Side UP!

October 9

Amanda’s Books and More*

October 10

Spark and Pook*

October 11

The Squishable Baby*

October 12

Bookaholic Chicks

October 13

Education is Special*

Kid Lit Reviews*

October 14

Adalinc To Life*

October 15

Stitch Says*

We are the DinoFamily*

October 17

Talking Animal Addicts*

October 18

Jemima Pett, Author*

October 19

The Sassy Schnauzer*

October 20

Lobo’s Follies*

October 21

Hey, Miss Adventures!*

October 22

Bookworm for Kids

October 24

My Devotional Thoughts*

* $25 Book Blasty Tour Giveaway *

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card or PayPal cash (winner’s choice)

Contest runs:October 6 to October 31, 11:59 pm, 2014

Open: Internationally

How to enter: Please enter by clicking here.

Terms and Conditions: A randomly drawn winner will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest or any other entity unless otherwise specified. If you have any additional questions, feel free to send us an email at stanleyandkatrina (at) gmail (dot) com.

* This giveaway is sponsored by the authors, Stanley & Katrina.*

Book Birthday For “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge!!”

Today is officially the publication day and Book Birthday for “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge!” If you follow my blog, this book is not big news for you, and if you follow me on other social media you are more than aware that this is the big day. Book releases and Book Birthdays are not subtle events!

Click on the cover to get your copy from amazon.com now!

Personalized and autographed paperback are also available here at my website, so just look for the shopping cart on the right hand column or go to the Purchase Books page.

Today is also Samantha’s (aka Miss Fatty Cat) 9th birthday. She is not sure what all the fuss is about as far as the book goes, but she’s hoping for some extra food and love today. I’m sure “Leia” will take care of that. You can celebrate with special prices on “Why Kimba Saved The World” (FREE) and “Vacation Hiro” (99 cents) too.

Kimba is not too sure about this nonsense about a book that doesn’t have her image on the cover, but I have assured her that it is still all about her and the adventures that she has at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge. Convincing her that I should spend time on “Max’s Wild Night” where she will only be a side note is a different challenge altogether. Maybe we can distract her with Disney plush toys. Buzz Lightyear was waiting for me this morning on the floor outside my office, so he must have gone for a wild ride. To infinity and beyond, indeed!

I’m really grateful to the bloggers who have supported today’s book launch. I didn’t reach out to as many this time, but most that I contacted answered the call at one time or another in the process. Some have already posted reviews, and I’ve shared them. Today Chris at The Story Reading Ape share a nice interview with me and information about all three books, and Johanna Rae shared a separate interview at her blog. There are a couple of others scheduled that have not been published, so I’ll just have to share them when they come out.

Summer is busy with our guest house business, but fall is when the book tours and fun really get going. There is something nearly every weekend, and I’m so excited to get back out and share the Cats in the Mirror series face to face with new readers and talk with fans. On Sept. 20th & 21st, “Leia” and I will be in Joplin for the Cat Fancier’s show, and September 27th we will be at the Springdale Library for their annual author event. I’m sure I’ll be blogging about that cat show! I’m also participating in two blog tours for other authors this month. Stay tuned!

Jeep Festival Fun

Our first big spring event this year was the Jeep Festival on Holiday Island on Saturday, April 27th. It was the Holiday Island Chamber of Commerce’s first time to host this event–and a rainstorm came through for the beginning hour or so that may have kept some visitors and vendors away–but we were not dissuaded. Once the skies cleared, some every day and some amazing jeeps showed up, and we had a delightful time meeting new friends from the island area.

We spent the day under a giant helicopter. Can you see Kimba & Hiro?

There they are!

That helicopter and all of the Veterans statues and memorials around us made me think of my grandfather (WWI) and my father (WWII) and both of my nephews who are on active duty right now. Pat & Andy argue over who is crazier. Andy jumps out of airplanes, and Pat repels out of helicopters. Since you couldn’t pay me to do either thing, I think they should call it a tie. I’m grateful that someone is willing to do it and serve our country, so they both win.

It started out rainy and very chilly. The kitties and I wrapped up in the tablecloth, but the sun came out soon.

There were fun activities going on all around us. Even an old-style fire truck was available for kids (and cats) to play on.

One of the jeeps there looked like an old army jeep, but the owner said not a single part on it probably ever saw action. Ah well.

The owner thought we should all get inside for a photo too.

These jeeps were crazy and did all sorts of tilting and had wheels going every which direction. We kept expecting them to transform into a dinosaur. Kimba was glad it held still during her photo moment.

Lynn from Eureka Springs KESA 100.9 did a quick radio interview with me.

Lynn Worley from Eureka Springs KESA 100.9 fm did a quick radio interview with me.

Kimba thought she should get a few words in too, though she doesn’t know much about jeeps.

Kimba tried for a selfie with the helicopter. It was pretty impressive.

Overall, it was a fun day with beautiful weather. We even had the honor of sending off two copies of “Why Kimba Saved The World” with the Elk’s Club ladies for a part of their annual distribution to 700 first graders in the area. Happy to help!

It was also great training for our busy upcoming weekend at the War Eagle Spring Craft Fair on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (2nd-4th) from 8:00 am – 5:00 pm. This will be our first time participating there, so come out and say hi.

In totally unrelated news, I’m thrilled to have been featured by The Fussy Librarian on Monday of this week. She requires very tight standards for the books that are featured, and we love that “Why Kimba Saved The World” was considered up to snuff. “Vacation Hiro” will be featured separately on another date in the near future.

I’m also very excited that I have nearly mastered the InDesign program, and print formatting of “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge” is well underway! Once that is complete, Book 3 still needs another pass by my editor, and probably another pass or two by me and my tech writer mother, and then advanced reader copies (ARCs) will start to go out to reviewers who have already taken on the first two books and been so supportive. The plan is to have ARCs out in June! Then we start formatting for the kindle version, but that’s a whole ‘nother pile of fur for another day.

Hope you enjoyed our Jeep Festival photos, and be sure to check out The Fussy Librarian and sign up for her email recommendations!

FREE Books for Kids on Kindle April 17-21

In celebration of Kimba and Hiro’s 7th birthday on April 18th, both of my kindle books for kids will be free from April 17-21. I’ve never done a free kindle day before, and I don’t know when I’ll do it again, so be sure to grab an extra copy or share one of each with a cat lover or child in your life. These books would make great Easter gifts or just a special treat for anyone you think would enjoy these free books for kids.

Click here to get your free copies!!

I understand that not everyone enjoys reading on a kindle. I’m with you on that one. But giving away free kindle copies is the only way to be able to share thousands of books at no expense to the author. I’m forever putting freebies on my husband’s kindle (much to his dismay), and I’m getting better about reading that way–along with the stack of paperbacks on my beside table. Especially with a series, free kindle days are a wonderful way to introduce readers to books they wouldn’t find otherwise. We’ll see how it goes.

We are thrilled that BookBub has accepted “Why Kimba Saved The World” for an ad during this sale. If you are not familiar with their email promotion service, check it out here. I receive the middle grade promos and have found some great authors that way. They are very particular on what books they promote. “Kimba” was rejected several times before it was accepted. I think the Mom’s Choice Award helped push it through. Whatever the reason, this freebie promotion will go out to 20,000 middle grade readers through their service, and that’s super exciting. Kindle books for kids with low prices is such a great way to give them lots of reading options. It is the future, so we may as well embrace it. Free books for kids are always welcome!

I hope you have a wonderful and blessed weekend–whether you are celebrating Easter or Passover or just looking forward to warmer spring weather. And Happy 7th Birthday to Kimba and Hiro! It seems like only yesterday they were newborn kittens abandoned in a box.

Babies!!

Read An Ebook Week & Freebie

Freebie of “Why Kimba Saved The World” this week! In honor of Read An Ebook Week, I have put out a coupon code at Smashwords so you can get Book 1 of the Cats in the Mirror series for free. This includes gifting it to someone else. I tested the system today, and it is beyond easy. If you have the email address, you can send a copy out for free in about 10 seconds. It’s really that easy. Share the love!

Click on this link to go to the Smashwords page and get or share a free copy of Kimba’s book right now.

With this special week going on, I also decided to leave the .99 kindle sale for both of my books up at amazon.com through March 9th. Grab a copy of the award-winning books!

Click here for “Why Kimba Saved The World”

New book cover with Mom’s Choice Award in place.

Click here for “Vacation Hiro”

New cover with Mom's Choice Award in place.

New book cover with Mom’s Choice Award in place.

In other fun news, I had an interview posted recently at Between The Covers. Thanks, Anita! You can follow her at twitter at RacePointUS.

I am also really excited to be attending the Northwest Arkansas Writers’ Workshop meeting on Saturday, March 8, in Fayetteville. Last year’s meeting was fantastic, and I got some great ideas for “blinging” up my writing. That’s hard to do with middle grade books, but I was inspired to add almost 3,000 words of bling to “At The Corner of Magnetic and Main” that made it so much better. Can’t wait to see what I take home with me this year–along with a few new books from the authors present as well, I’m sure. The conference is free, so sign up and come on down!

The only other things going on around Serenity Mountain Publishing right now are the final revisions on “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge.” You know, this is the time where I over-think every detail and fuss and bother with commas until I go a wee bit mad. We are snowed in once again, so there’s not much else to do anyhow. Cover art is already in process, and I can’t wait to share it all with you in a few months.

Stay warm! Spring will be here someday, even if it feels like it never will.

Look for great sales at Smashwords and other ebook sites this week. Give indie authors some love and try one for free!

Silver Mom’s Choice Awards for Cats in the Mirror Series

So exciting! We just got the news that both “Why Kimba Saved The World” and “Vacation Hiro” have been honored with Silver Mom’s Choice Awards in the category of Juvenile Books, Ages 9-12, Series.

The Mom’s Choice Awards pride themselves in being a respected source for “excellence in family-friendly media, products and services.” I have heard traditionally published children’s authors express great pride at being honored with one of these awards, so it makes me extra-special-over-the-moon happy to have earned one as a self-published author. It’s just the kind of pat on the back that every author needs while they are working on the next book in the series!

And you can still get both books about these alien rescue cats for only .99 cents at amazon.com! I have not taken down the Valentine’s Weekend Sale because I want the Goodreads fans to have a full chance to hear about it and pick up a copy. In celebration of this Mom’s Choice Award, I’ll leave the prices at .99 cents until Feb. 28th. Click here to share a copy with someone you love today!

Author School Visits: The Branch School, Jan. 9, 2014

The Branch School

You can only imagine that I was super excited to make my first author school visit a few days ago at The Branch School in Houston, Texas. As a general rule, independently published books are not as in-demand for school events, so I don’t spend a lot of time trying to arrange this type of visit. And Houston is a long way from our home in Arkansas. But I was on vacation in Houston, and I have worked for The Branch School as a librarian and substitute teacher in the past, so we all knew each other well. The cards all fell into place at the same time to make this visit work out perfectly.

Besides the chance to visit with old friends, I was thrilled to find the students interested and attentive. The school runs from pre-kindergarten to 8th grade, so we broke up my talks into four age groups. With the older kids I could talk about writing as a career and even options they have right now for publishing and blogging. I loved sharing the This Kid Reviews Books blog of twelve year old Erik as a wonderful example of ways to share their love of reading and writing right now. With the younger groups, we talked more about finding the inspiration for writing and just letting the ideas flow. Some students were already enjoying writing stories and putting together book projects, just like I did at their age. “Keep all of it,” I told them. “You never know what it can turn into.”

Talking with the middle school students in Melcher Hall at The Branch School.

Not every author school visit can be this great. There is certainly an added bonus to working with a private school where parents and students are super-vested in education and appreciate the benefits of books and reading. They were supportive in buying copies of both “Why Kimba Saved The World” and “Vacation Hiro,” but more than that everyone was just welcoming and polite and involved. It certainly makes me want to take the chance on doing more school visits when the match is right. The second graders even made me a special drawing inspired by Kimba, using their pinkies to make paint prints around the frame. Priceless!

Second grade class at The Branch School and the artwork they made for me.

Art work by The Branch School 2nd grade class. Kimba looks very cool.

Talking with kindergarten and first grade. I think I was talking about how tiny Kimba and Hiro were when we found them.

Today has been a hard writing day. It can be tough to stay inspired when it is just you and the computer (and sometimes Kimba) day after day. No matter how many great reviews you get, one snarky critic can break your heart. In the end, it’s about those smiling faces who think Kimba is hilarious and enjoy reading about her imagined adventures. That is what keeps me going when I just want to chuck it all. Hitting the wall today I thought, “I should write that school visit blog and look through the pictures again. That will get me back on track.” And it has.

Signing books for students at The Branch School.

I loved watching new and old friends fall in love with Kimba and Hiro, and their stories, and I look forward to sharing Book 3 with all of them in the fall. Thank you, Branch School, for letting me share my books with your families…and for keeping me inspired to write more.

Kimba sings: cat video success

On Thursday, January 9th, I spent a wonderful day with four different groups of students from The Branch School during a visit to Houston, Texas. As a self-published author, school visits are not on the top of my focus list because they want more traditional authors, but I had many friends at this school from working there as a substitute teacher and temporary librarian a few years ago and was happy to accept their invitation to stop by. It was an absolute delight to see those familiar faces more grown up and make so many new friends. More on that visit later as I get photos in next week.

What was really hilarious was to watch a video of Kimba with the 3rd and 4th graders. It is one of my favorites of her, and it took many days of clandestine video monitoring to catch her in the act of stealing my stuffed Disney toys and carrying them around the house, singing. The first graders also watched it during lunch and were very excited to tell me about their favorite parts. All of them did a great impersonation of Kimba singing “Hello!” You can watch the video of Kimba carrying around my stuffed toys and singing right here. Be sure to have the volume on. If you have a cat anywhere in the house, I bet he or she will come running once the singing starts. As cat videos go, I think it’s right up there with the best.

I ran across this photo today from about the fourth day of my secret video taping mission. I think she’s on to my plan. Enjoy the video!

Kimba is not amused.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas From Kimba

Just a quick note to say Merry Christmas from all of us here at Serenity Mountain Publishing. This has been an incredible year with seeing both “Why Kimba Saved The World” and “Vacation Hiro” heading out into the world. 2014 is ready and waiting, and “Miss Fatty Cat’s Revenge” is up next, but I could not do any of it without my family and all of my new friends cheering me on. Thank you for being a part of this journey!

Merry Christmas and a Happy and Blessed New Year to each and every one of you!

Merry Christmas From Hiro

New Book Review and Wrap Up of Blog Tour

The last official stop on my fall blog tour is a book review for “Why Kimba Saved The World” at the blog of Erik The Great: This Kid Reviews Books. Follow this link to his nice review of “Kimba.” I love it when a review comes from a reader who is closer to the actual intended target audience of my middle grade books. Adult reviewers sometimes over-think the process. Kids will just tell you whether or not they liked it. In the end, that’s what it’s all about.

Erik’s blog is full of delightful reviews and commentaries on the books he has enjoyed. He has very mature taste for an 11 year old, so I’m glad he could still enjoy the simplicity of my book. I’m happy to be including him in my blogroll so visitors to my site can find his as well.

Erik says of “Kimba”: “The story is written very well and is appropriate for all ages. Ms. Dendler does a great job of getting the reader into the cat’s minds.”

I sometimes worry about how much time I spend trying to figure out Kimba’s thoughts, but at least it paid off for my books. She is sitting outside my office door right now, and I have no idea what she is plotting. A good bath and a nap are probably all she has on the agenda, but you never can tell with cats.

I hope you will visit the sites of all of the bloggers who were kind enough to do interviews and book reviews of either “Why Kimba Saved The World” or “Vacation Hiro” (or both!) as part of this Fall Blog Tour. There will be a few more reviews along the way with others who have not set firm dates, and I will keep sharing them!

Kimba, plotting something