Foreword Reviews Spring Issue: Broken is “beautiful”
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Foreword Reviews Spring Issue: Broken is “beautiful”

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Foreword Reviews is the “library journal” of independent publishing. It’s a content-rich, beautifully put together magazine that’s published quarterly. The top of their Spring 2015 issue is emblazoned, “THE INDIE BOOKS WE LOVE” and this periodical means just that: they love indie titles. Foreword Reviews understands the value of independently published books and appreciates the quality of those independently published books with excellent production values.

It was with great delight that I received word, some months back, that my novel BROKEN would be reviewed and featured in Foreword Reviews. Not only that, but the editorial director politely wondered whether or not it was possible to get a jpg of the cover image, the painting upon which the cover is based.

In fact, Broken’s gorgeous cover is based on a painting by the extraordinarily gifted Roberto Ferri, an Italian figurative painter, and a hero of mine. Roberto’s work is utterly ravishing.

After a Skype session in Italian with my husband Sabin Howard (for whom Italian is his first language), Roberto graciously gave permission for me to use the painting for the book cover. He sent me a large file.

It was the one and only Gwyn Snyder who took that file and turned it into the book cover. And what a beautiful job Gwyn did! She’s so very talented.

So I happily asked Sabin to check with Roberto regarding Foreword Reviews featuring his painting, and he, again, generously gave permission.

The review of Broken is absolutely lovely. There’s a pix below. Allyce Amidon writes,

Slatton has created a beautiful, heart wrenching tale of humanity during the Second World War. …Slatton writes poignantly, with lyrical prose: “I have been shattered, the shattering is still with me. I am only shards now. There is no core.” This is a gorgeous philosophical treaty on right and wrong, the “why” behind impossible decisions, and what remains when everything is gone. Slatton guides the reader gently through to the end, all the more heartbreaking for its inevitability, imparting powerful, resonant themes as she goes.

Take a look online, and do consider a subscription!

 

Foreword REviews

Foreword Reviews

Sabin Howard Interview: Dialogues on the Drawing Book 2
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Sabin Howard Interview: Dialogues on the Drawing Book 2

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Sabin Howard Interview: Dialogues on the Drawing Book 2 is the second in a series of podcast/Youtube presentations.

My husband master sculptor Sabin Howard is working on a drawing book. This book will be entitled “Drawing: The Foundation of Art.” It’s really about the importance and value of drawing in the creation of art, and how drawing is a skill based on seeing.

This is an interesting interview, because it begins and ends with the personal, human viewpoint of the artist. In our first interview, Sabin discussed two elements in the making of art: the conceptual and the perceptual. In this dialogue, he explains the kind of art he is talking about: timeless art. He also talks about how he arrived at this kind of art, and mentions an awakening he experienced at the Medici Tombs in Florence when he was 14. He saw Michelangelo’s sculptures set into the architecture of the tomb and it elevated him.

Sabin relates the story of how he decided to become an artist. It happened one day, after he’d dropped out of college and was working in a woodworking shop in Philly. He spent a few days sweeping wood shavings and sanding wood and he realized that he wasn’t using his brain. He went to tell his boss that it wasn’t working out for him and he quit. He walked out of the shop and phoned his father–collect. When his dad picked up, Sabin said, “I’m going to go to art school.”

His dad asked, “How long is this going to last?” Then his dad hung up.

I don’t blame his dad, Sabin can be pretty frustrating. The irony is, of course, that art has lasted a lifetime–and since Sabin sculpts in clay and casts in bronze, his sculptures will last for millennia.

So take a listen or a look at the interview. And check out my podcast channel on iTunes, because the Dialogue will go live on it.

Listen here:
[sc_embed_player_template1 fileurl=”http://tracilslatton.com/sabindialogue2.mp3″]

Or watch on youtube:

Sabin Howard Dialogues

Maturing Whole: The beautiful books of David Richo (from the HuffPo)
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Maturing Whole: The beautiful books of David Richo (from the HuffPo)

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Maturing Whole: The Beautiful Books of David Richo was first run on the Huffington Post.

Years ago, while running an errand, I encountered a woman on the sidewalk whom I know. She and I each have reason to feel disgruntled with the other. When I glanced at her, I saw that she was, literally, shaking with rage. Her features were twisted and reddened with hate. Rage radiated out from her in palpable, caustic waves.

For whatever reason—not because I’m enlightened—her radioactivity didn’t scorch me. She was spitting mad and didn’t bother to hide it because she wanted me to feel it, but I witnessed it without taking it on. It’s something I’m usually not good at. But on that extraordinary day, I simply observed. I thought, “So that’s why all the spiritual teachers say to forgive. She’s suffering more from her hate than I am.”

It was an epiphany for me, who lives, imperfectly, a life seeking awakening. Looking at that woman, and feeling sorry for her, filled my mind with the keen understanding that there must be a better way. I even longed for it.

And what is the elusive better way? It must have something to do with maturity. That is, with mature compassion for self and for others, and with the realization that vengefulness is a blade that cuts two ways….

…

Healing is possible, growth is possible and wholeness and maturity are possible for those of us who want to be our best selves. We don’t have to live steeped in the poison of our early programming and the way it plays out currently in our lives.

David Richo’s books are field guides for the journey. Richo, whom I have never met, is a psychotherapist, teacher, and workshop leader in California. His website says he “combines Jungian, poetic, and mythic perspectives in his work with the intention of integrating the psychological and the spiritual. His books and workshops include attention to Buddhist practices.”

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.

howtobeadultcover2010

huffington-post

Sabin Howard Interview about His Drawing Book
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Sabin Howard Interview about His Drawing Book

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My husband Sabin Howard is a master sculptor. He’s currently working on a book called Drawing: The Foundation of Art. The drawing book is a kind of follow-up to our book The Art of Life, which was a photo-rich survey of figurative sculpture through the ages, from the very earliest times through the Renaissance and the Neo-classical periods until his work now.

Sabin is an exceptional draughtsman. With awe–because I know I could never do what he does–I watch him draw. He sits at our dining room table and focuses so fiercely that he doesn’t hear the rowdy dogs and rambunctious kid, the cell phone ringing and the front door banging open. He pours himself into his vision and his skilled hands with such intensity that it all fades away from him.

He knows what he’s doing, too. One of the things I find so fascinating about my husband is that he’s extraordinarily articulate about his work. Also about art in general. He tends to be quiet and soft-spoken until he launches into a discourse about art, both its history and its theory.

We talk about art all the time, and I think that’s one of the best things about being married to Sabin: our conversations about art. It’s these very conversations that led to our book The Art of Life, because he was speaking one day about his approach to sculpture and I said, “Sabin, people need know what you’re up to. It’s important.”

So now Sabin Howard is up to a book on drawing. The book is about how drawing is the basis of visual art. He has a lot of cool stuff to say about that, and I cajoled him into doing an interview with me for my iTunes podcast channel. He talks about the perceptual and the conceptual parts of doing art, and about the three great masters whom art students should study: Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael.

Listen here to the Sabin Howard interview or on my podcast channel.
[sc_embed_player_template1 fileurl=”http://tracilslatton.com/sabindrawingbookinterview.mp3″]

OR watch on Youtube

Dr. Jane Ely Guest Post: Coming into Balance book
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Dr. Jane Ely Guest Post: Coming into Balance book

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This is a guest post by healer and author DR. JANE ELY on the publication of her book COMING INTO BALANCE by Parvati Press.

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In my first book, Remembering the Ancestral Soul: Soul Loss and Recovery, I addressed the global epidemic of soul loss, defining it and interviewing elders who shared wisdom and insights. My new book, Coming into Balance: A Guide for Activating Your True Potential picks up the theme of soul loss bringing tangible skills for soul retrieval through recovering our true self by activating transformational change from the inside out. I wrote this book to provide a tool kit for personal transformation that is accessible for everyone. I am passionate about the subject because I practice the skills in the book everyday and I know they work.

One of the basic premises of Coming into Balance is that we are all responsible to change that which is out of alignment within us. The first act of self-responsibility arrives when we become aware of being uncomfortable or in pain, then move internally toward it exploring the deeper meaning of what is arising. External discomfort always relates to what is being activated internally and is a catalyst that opens opportunity for deep shifts and realignment within. Another principle of the book equally important is that when one person cleans up their debris it affects the whole—the entire collective consciousness of the planet moves forward with more light and clarity.  I introduce the concept of ecopsychology in the form of a universally recognized mandala known as the Medicine Wheel. The Medicine Wheel is a spiritual mandala found in many cultures most notably Native American Indian, Tibetan, Mayan, Celtic, Hindu to name only a few. The Wheel of Life reconnects us with the inherent, powerful intuitive sensate experiences of our body, mind, heart and spirit. We learn to activate the ‘insightful healer within’ which leads to self-discovery and a keener sense of awakened consciousness. The ancient wheel of spiritual evolution has four principles: Trust, Truth, Discernment and Faith, each direction of the Medicine Wheel reconnects us with a healing medicine. Using the Medicine Wheel as a template, we learn how to access our empowered higher self, connected to the soul agreements we made in our Life Between Lives. We get free from old “story” that keeps us stuck in the past to go beyond it into a state of awakened freedom. We find and activate the spiritual birthright or blueprint we have come here to live. We do this by practicing what I call ‘skillful means’ which are tools that change how we think, feel and act on a daily basis.

Ecopsychology is the practice of soul healing and of growing the soul to your next level of consciousness. Eco means the environment in which we are living, our internal and external ecology. Psycho means the soul in Greek. Ology means the study of and practice of learning. All together, ecopsychology is the daily practice of conscious soul evolution. Within the book skills, insight questions, exercises and graphics support you as you take the journey of self-awareness and transformation.

–Dr. Jane Ely

jane ely guest post
Interview of Dr. Jane Ely
[sc_embed_player_template1 fileurl=”http://tracilslatton.com/janeelyinterview.mp3″]

Book Candy Studios Rocks Book Trailers
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Book Candy Studios Rocks Book Trailers

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There’s always this single, immutable question, in a marketplace absolutely avalanched with books, print books and eBooks, both traditionally and independently published: How do I set my books apart so that readers know about my books and buy them?

How do I make my books stand out? How do I make my books appeal to customers?

There are a variety of ways to market and promote books. One way is book reviews on book review blogs. That helps to spread the word. Another way is book trailers.

I’ve been so fortunate to work with Book Candy Studios. They’re extraordinarily gifted at making book trailers. They care if authors are 100% happy with the trailers and they go out of their way to ensure quality. Book Candy Studios made a trailer for my novels FALLEN and COLD LIGHT, with the old covers. When I updated the covers to my novels in preparation for the third novel in the series FAR SHORE, Book Candy Studios contacted me and asked if I’d like an updated trailer. I jumped at the offer, and they updated their wonderful trailer, free of charge.

That kind of outreach to customers goes above and beyond the call of duty. It’s more than just professionalism, it bespeaks a deep pride in their work and a real caring for their clients. It is the hallmark of integrity.

What about the trailers themselves?–Well, they’re amazing.

It’s not so easy to make book trailers, you see. The trailer has to tease, intrigue, and delight, while also being visually gorgeous. A trailer has to hook a reader and affect her so that she wants to go right to Amazon or B&N and buy the book. A trailer has to trigger desire for the book being showcased.

Book Candy Studios did all that and more with the latest trailers they did for my novel BROKEN. See below.

book trailers