Author Yvonne Mason

My Books, writing tips and reviews

Yes I Can Write Something Beside Murder and Mayhem….

When Fates Collide and When Fates Collide Mardi Gras Bound

For those of you who have asked me two questions, Why don’t you write comedy and why don’t you write about bounty hunting since you are one. Well, the answer is here. I have don’t both with help from a fellow author and wonderful friend Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc.

We started a series last year titled When Fates Collide. The story line involves two of the most unlikely characters to ever slam into each other. Meet Alex Morgan- a no nonsense Bounty Hunter who has to constantly prove her ability in this male dominated world. She has no sense of humor- she only sees the jumper and her pick up. She has seen it all and heard it all. She always gets her man no matter what she has to do. Until she meets Hope Harrington.

Hope Harrington the name of Alex’s latest jumper master of disguises- can be anyone at anytime and uses aliases like a second skin. Alex finds Hope in a goth bar in Ybor City, slams her jumper to the ground and after handcuffing this person finds out that she is not who she was supposed to by.

Hope Harrington- the real one is a mousy secretary who finds her inner self trolling the goth bars in ybor city. Her life has been boring to say the least- She has a dead end job, no social life, and lives alone. She hates confrontation and she really hates Alex who has just humiliated her in front of her few friends. But she hates the person who stole her name even more. Against Alex’s better judgement she allows Hope to help her catch her jumper. The chase takes them from Ybor City to Key West in the middle of Fantasy Fest. The jumper changing faces like clothes.
Much to Alex’s chagrin Hope proves that she can hold her own and comes up with creative and unique ways of catching the jumper. Along the way the two unlikely pair encounter some of the people who have helped Alex on other jobs and Hope is not overly excited about them.

The second in the series which has just been released is titled When Fates Collide Mardi Gras Bound. Alex is on her way to New Orleans for a fun filled two weeks of Mardi Gras fun when she gets the call. A jumper has headed from Tampa to New Orleans. Her name is Marie Laveau. Alex is not happy. Hope is even less happy. She was looking forward to visiting a city she has never been to before. She is even less happy when she meets Alex’s contacts in the Big Easy.
The dialogue is written in fist person by both of the main characters. The back and forth will keep the reader laughing until they either cry or wet their pants. Alex with her sarcastic wit- Hope with her total disbelief that someone as smart as Alex is involved with the shady characters in her life. Hope teaches Alex and Alex along with her misfits teach Hope and in the end they get their man or woman.

Part of the dialogue borders on the vein of a Abbott and Costello routine. Throw in a few oddball characters and you have the makings of a comedy to beat all comedies. These two books are a must read simply for a belly laugh. Right now until Christmas both books are being offered on my online bookstore for 20.00 check out http://thebookattic.ecrater.com

October 31, 2011 Posted by | Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc and Yvonne Mason | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

A Deal That You Just Can’t Pass Up

When Fates Collide

When Fates Collide Mardi Gras Bound

I have decided to make my readers an offer they can’t refuse. My friend and fellow best selling Florida Author and I have started writing a series of books. The two main characters are Alex Morgan Bounty Hunter and Hope Harrington Secretary. The First in the series was When Fates Collide followed by our second release When Fates Collide Mardi Gras Bound. This series of books is comedy pure and simple. The books are told in first person by both characters and they will leave you the reader needing to change your clothes from so much laughter. In fact the second book Mardi Gras Bound comes with a disclaimer. Starting today and through Christmas I am offering both of these books on my online book store. http://thebookattic.ecrater.com/p/12747410/package-deal-when-fates-collide-and
This offer cannot be found any other place. Separately the books sell for 10.00 and 15.00 respectivly – If they are purchased together at my online store the cost is 20.00 plus shipping. This is a deal that you don’t want to pass up. They will be signed by me Go take a look, every one enjoys a good laugh.

October 29, 2011 Posted by | Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc and Yvonne Mason | , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

Do You Have Trouble Getting Your Kids to Read History Because They Say It Is Boring?…

A Voice From the Grave Audio

How many of us sat in your history class and held our eyes open with toothpicks because the class was so boring. So many dates, name, places, battles, and blah, blah – blah- Snore!
Well I decided to make at least part of history fun to read. How many of you know about Andersonville, Ga? I thought so. How many of you know about Andersonville Prison? Again, I thought so.
So before I tell you about the fun part here is a mini history lesson.

Andersonville, Ga. is located in south west Georgia. During the war of Northern Agression is was at the end of the railline which provided supplies and transportation for both the north and south. The decision was made by the powers that be to build a prisoner of war camp in Georgia becasue the prison in Virginia was overflowing, winter was approaching and there was no place to put anymore men. There was no way to keep the men warm during the winter that far north.
The ideal place was Andersonville. It was at the end of the rail line it was away from the fighting and the weather was not that harsh. However, they didn’t count on the seasonal rains, the mud, the lack of water, the destruction of the rail lines and supply trains or that Sherman would make his march to the sea destroying everything including crops, rail lines, supply trains and lives including those of his own army.
My release A Voice From the Grave takes the reader on a historic ride through the Battle of Chickamaga, the decision to make Andersonville the site of the worst prison camp of the south, and the men who were involved. However, the story is told with a twist. The history is factual down to the buttons and belt buckles of the union soliders.
The plot is fiction- but it could have happened. The setting of the story is factual, Andersonville does exist as does the musuem, the visitor center and the curator of the museum.

This book is exciting- and a learning experience one that will stay with the reader once they have turned the last page. It will soon be available in Audio

A Voice From the Grave

The Book is currently available on Amazon, amazon kindle, nook book, itunes, lulu.com and my online book store http://thebookattic.ecrater.com You the reader have the options to download to your iphone, ipad, ipod, computer and of course kindle or nookbook. When the audio book is released it will be in mp3 format and then you will be able to listen to it on your kndle, ipod, in your car on your computer and other devices with audio capablities.
There is no reason why you or your child should not love history.

October 29, 2011 Posted by | Books | , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

A New Venue to Purchase My Books…

Tangled Minds

Okay readers there is another venue where you can now purchase my books. That would be the itunes store. Below is the link for one of them

http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/isbn9781257456307

Currently there are four listed with the rest to follow. This is just another way you can order my books or give as gifts. You can buy an itunes gift card at your local store and the person you give it to can download to their computer or their phone.

October 28, 2011 Posted by | Books | , , , , , | Leave a Comment

Have You Ever Wondered How to Reach your Teen and Felt Like You Were Talking to a Brick Wall…

Tangled Minds

When I was a young adult my mother said that at times she wished she could bury her children when they became teenagers and dig them up again when they reached 30. The reason is teens and young adults go through a stage where they think they have all the answers to all the questions when they don’t even know the questions. It wasn’t until I had children of my own that I understood her feelings. It wasn’t until I had children of my own and heard them say the same things to me that I had once said to my own wonderful mother. One of them being, “But I want to make my own mistakes.” Well, my mother in her infinite wisdome allowed me to do just that and some mistakes I could never fix. I in turn allowed my children to do the same and some mistakes can never be fixed. Hopefully they can be learned from so as not to be repeated.
That being said, my book Tangled Minds is taken from real life experiences, that have been embelished for the sake of the fiction story. The crime in the book happened. It happened in Gainesville Georiga and the young man went to prison for 10 years for his part. My oldest daughter started having children at 16 years old and she refused to take responsiblity for her actions. She made some very bad decisions but not as bad at the character in the book.
The book has been compared to John Steinbeck’s Mice and Men. While fiction the story contains many life’s lessons.
Tangled Minds takes the reader on a journey traveled by Brianna Van Pelt a seventeen year old teen with her entire life before her. In on split second she makes a decision that not only stays with her- it leads her to other very bad and life changing decisions which spill over into bad decisions made by her son. It brings to mind the old saying, “the sins of the fathers are revisited on the children.”
This book while fiction holds nothing back and if read with an open mind while entertaining teaches many lessons that the young need to know. If you can’t talk to your teen, or if they just tune you out buy them this book. You as the parent read it first. There are lessons for you as well. Just becasue we do all we can to teach our children morals and give them a moral compass they don’t always use it. We can’t carry that guilt. It falls on them.
Tangled Minds, bad decisions, life’s lessons

October 28, 2011 Posted by | yvonne mason | , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

For Those of You Who Don’t Know……

Brilliant Insanity

For those of you who are not friends with me on Facebook, and I don’t know why you aren’t yet, and for those of you who are but don’t see my page all the time, listen up.

My book Brilliant Insanity is on Amazon Kindle best seller list and has stayed on there consistently since it was uploaded over two years ago.

If you enjoy reading stories about serial killers and especially serial killers with a twist then this book is for you. If you live in on the East Coast of Florida – especially near the Treasure Coast and have been to Archie’s on South Hutchinson Island then you will want to read this book. If you have ever been to Savannah or traveled on US1 between Vero Beach and Ft. Pierce then you want to read this book.

Brilliant Insanity is told in first person by the killer. He is smart- actually genius- manipulative- and different. He weaves his story with narcissism and glee. He makes his reader love to hate him and hate to love him. He has no remorse- but he wants understanding.

Brilliant Insanity was written while I was researching Silent Scream which is my true crime about Florida’s First Serial killer. The personality of my killer in Brilliant Insanity is close to Gerard Schaefer who killed between 9-34 young girls and women between 1966 and 1973.

Silent Scream A True Crime

Brilliant Insanity while fiction has the same traits as fact. Serial killers are narcissistic, sociopaths who really believe that what they are doing is okay. Most of them have an IQ that is on the genius level. They have no remorse and everything is always about them.

Even though Brilliant Insanity is Fiction there are lessons that can be learned from this book- Silent Scream is full of lessons as well as showing the reader the pain, torture, and suffering that Schaefer’s victims suffered.

All of my books can be found on Amazon Kindle, Nook Book, Lulu.com, Amazon and my online bookstore http://thebookattic.ecrater.com

October 28, 2011 Posted by | yvonne mason | , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

A New Offering for Those of You Who Buy My Books

Gift Certificates

For those of you who have no clue what that special person likes to read, but you know they would interested in my books I am now offering Gift Certificates. They are available on my online store at http://thebookattic.ecrater.com they come in $20.00, $40.00 and $50.00 prices. IF you need a different price you can let me know and I can set it up on the store site.
This is just another way for my readers and potential readers to be able to get my books easily. These little ditties make great stocking stuffers and the books when they are received will be signed by me.

It is getting that time of year when we run around all over town looking for that perfect gift. Let this year be different. Go to my online store and order books, or gift certificates for that special someone.

As a reminder all of my books can also be ordered on Lulu.com – Amazon Kindle and Nook book, some of them can be ordered on Amazon. But why would you not want a signed copy?

October 27, 2011 Posted by | Books | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

The Christmas Present Quandry

Every year there is someone on your Christmas list that you have no clue what to buy them. Every year you wonder through the stores, the mail order catalogs and the online stores scratching your head and mumbling to yourself wondering what you are going to get the person who has everything. Well, this year, fear not, your problem is solved. This is the year books are vogue. This is the year that books can be read on some many devices. This is year you can be a hero.
There are so many indie authors out there who have books just begging to be read, wonderful authors who write everything from inspiration to romance, to murder mystery to vampires to you name it – it is out there.
With so many of our favorite traditional authors dying off isn’t it time to try something new? Isn’t it time to try and indie author.
For those of you who have no clue what an Indie author is – indulge me a moment of your time. We are those authors who have chosen to publish and market our own work. We are those authors who are tired of being rejected by traditional agents and publishers who think our voice is not good enough. We are those authors who believe that what we have to offer is just as good if not better. We are not hampered by conditions set by traditional publishers. We don’t have to sell our soul in order to be published. WE have control of our book, our cover and our marketing. We can do what we want to – go to any event we want to and sign what we want to. We don’t have our books slashed to pieces by some unknown entity just because they want a certain word count. We write what we want to when we want to. We don’t have to mass produce dribble just because of a contract. We can take our time and produce quality work and a great story.
So that being said, back to Christmas. You don’t have to leave the comfort of your home. You can order our books from places like, Lulu.com, amazon.com, Barnes and noble and yes even nookbook and amazon kindle. Some of us even have our own online bookstores, such as http://thebookattic.ecrater.com
We can be found on facebook and other places. All you have to do is contact us and we are more than happy to respond. We don’t respond through an agent or other entity. When you hear from us it is real. If you want the book personally autographed to a loved one we do that to.
I am working on gift certificates so that your purchases can be made easier. I take credit cards at all my events.
We are the up and coming thing in books. Give us a try, I know you will like us. Check out http://yvonnemason.wordpress.com you will see many book reviews – these books are all written by indie authors.
Give something different for Christmas this year- give a book by an indie author.
Support free enterprise.

October 26, 2011 Posted by | Books | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

The Art of Writing a Review- And It Is an Art!

Any one can be a critic- But not every one can write a smart review!

For those of you like “Aspiring Book Reviewer” who feel the need to write reviews for books you read. There are several things one must be able to do in order to write a concise and intelligent review. One that doesn’t bash the author or their content simply because it appears to make the reviewer look “Important”. It doesn’t it only makes them look foolish and ignorant.
Lesson one- you are the reader not the author- Therefore you have no idea what the author was trying to convey in the book. You are not in the author’s head. You as the reader cannot “assume” what the author was or was not trying to convey. All you can do as the reader is relay what you took from the book. If you the reader got nothing from the book then you the reader read it with a closed mind and preconceived ideas of what the book was about. Wrong way to read a book. It retards your ability to get something out of the read.

Lesson Two- When you the reader opens a book- you the reader should understand that we do not live in a perfect world, in books written by humans, edited by human and produced by humans have errors. That is just the nature of the beast. Get over it. You the reader are human. If you truly are reading the book to take something from it for your gratification or experience then the rest is unimportant. I can’t tell you the books I have read that have errors. In fact I am reading one now by a very well known author and there are errors- So what!
It is not part of the review. Who cares. Move on. What I take away from my reading of that book is more important.

Lesson Three If you are going to review a book- DO NOT I repeat DO NOT bash the author. I book review should be what you the reader gleans from your experience in reading the work- not the authors writing, how they felt, what they felt or their point of view – Stop making the review personal. It isn’t personal. The author is entitled to their view just like you the reader are.

Lesson Four - There is always something good that can be learned from reading even a book that appears to be hard to read, or even boring. For instance, I am not into reading Stephen King, just not my thing. However, I did learn something by reading his work- I learned that less is sometimes more. However, I would never bash his work- I would never pretend to know what was in his head as he wrote. I would never assume that my opinion of his work is right or wrong- It is my opinion- And another person’s opinion is just as important. I would never ever bash him personally on a book review. I would never ever bash his work. That is his work and therefore it is important.

Lesson Five What ever you as the reader do – remember when you pick up a book to read it- That is something important to the author. They took the time, effort and their heart and soul to put words to paper. It is their craft- It is their dream and you the reader have no right to try and tear it apart. This could be caused by many reasons, but the one that comes to mind is the “aspiring book reviewer” has dreams they don’t know how to fulfill – Maybe they want to write and don’t know how. Or Maybe they were put down earlier in life and don’t have any positive in their life. Jealously comes to mind.

Lesson Six – Every book written has something in it that can be learned if the reader reads it with an open mind. Every book has a purpose – And every book is not for every reader. Case in point. A romance reader is not going to enjoy a murder mystery. A goth reader is not going to enjoy a love story. People who choose to write reviews should keep this in mind when they read books. If you are a romance reader and try to read a murder mystery or a true crime you will not enjoy it unless you open your mind to the difference of the work. Just because you don’t read that type of book don’t trash it on a review if it is not your thing. That is not a true review.

Lesson Seven No two writers write alike. That is the beauty of being human. Each writer has their own style and none of them are wrong. Even in true crime – Each true crime writer brings a different perspective to their work. So if you are a reader of true crime and Ann Rule is your favorite author and you read someone else’s work and it doesn’t read like hers don’t trash it because it is not “what you expected”. Please that is like drinking tea after drinking coke- there is no comparison.

In the end there is more to a book review besides just putting down words because you want to be an “aspiring book reviewer”. It is a craft just like writing. It take forethought, and planning not just bashing, and sentences that bring nothing to the table. If you didn’t get anything out of the book that was positive then you didn’t deserve to read it.

Hopefully this will help those of you who read for the right reasons and you can write informed reviews without being nasty, opinionated. Remember- the writer’s reason for writing may not be your reason for reading. The writer’s thread of purpose may not be your purpose-

Lastly think about how you would want to be treated if it were your work!

October 23, 2011 Posted by | writing workshops | , , , , | 8 Comments

This Review is even funnier than the last one- Especially when the author Calls themself “An Aspiring Book Reviewer” Really?

Okay here is another lesson in a person need for their fifteen minutes of fame. They apparently know more about writing and true crime than me. I would love to know where they got their education from.
And they apparently don’t like true crime- have no clue as to what writing true crime is all about and obviously doesn’t understand how it is written. They also have no clue as to why I wrote it the way I did. So once again for the uniformed, the cronically stupid and the just plain idiots let’s try this again. I will break it down in language even a three year old can understand.
This”Aspiring Book Reviewer says “The author has no sense of plot or story telling.” Seriously? You obviously were not reading the same book I wrote- either that or you didn’t read it you just didn’t understand it. There is a story and a plot and it is not badly written. You the reader need to have an understanding of the time period, the criminal justice system and the innocence of that time- Obviously you have none of the above. For your information this book is used all across the country to teach about serial killers. So you are the one with problem.
Next the “Aspiring Book Reviewer states,that is reads like a trial transscript- Really how did you guess, it wa supposed to, it was a big part of the story. No overall structure or sense of story- what planet are you from.
Then this “Aspiring Book Reviewer asks why I ask so many questions? Well – it makes the reader think. Apparently that is a big problem for you. this is not a love story. It is a serial killer.

Now lastly- the “Aspiring Book Reviewer said this is the first book they have ever wanted to stop reading- My response is good- you don’t deserve to remember the girls. You don’t understand what happened nor care. You have no clue as to why the story was told the way it was or the purpose of the story. Obviously you wanted a sweet love story and happily ever after- Real life doesn’t work that way. Serial killers don’t work that way.
When I am told by the victims families thank you for writing this book- I could care less about your aspirations of being an “Aspiring Book Reviewer,” Just a little point of interest if you keep writing idiot reviews like this one you will never make it. Last but not least is sounds a whole lot like the one Mr. Barry Albag wrote almost word for word. Sounds like he is trying to blast my site with his nasy words.
So for all of you who don’t like the facts, don’t understand the facts, don’t understand the criminal justice system especially at a time when Serial Killing was in its infancy- want a watered down version of what happened, have no intention of remembering the victims and those who were involved in these horrific crimes then don’t read this book- The victims don’t need you. For those of you who want to know what happened and why- want to know the facts and how the case was solved and the mechanics behind it want to remember the girls then read this book- If you want to know the history of serial killing in Florida and how it was handled read this book. As for this insane review- Consider the source.
“Not only was this book badly written, but the author has no sense of plot or story telling skill. It reads like a trial transcript: he said…, she then said…, then the judge ordered… There is no overall structure or sense of story. However most annoying was the rhetorical questions asked ad nauseum throughout. Does the author not know any other plot device? This is the first book that I have considered to STOP reading, so that I can find a better book about the killer Shaefer and his horrible yet fascinating life. Don’t waste time or money on this book.”
by Aspiring Book Reviewer – See all my reviews

October 23, 2011 Posted by | Reviews | , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

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