A Novel Adventure – Page 10 – Jenn J McLeod

Posted on 25/01/2017 by Jenn J McLeod — 2 Comments

Author V.K. Black and Campfire Tales

When I found out a fellow Aussie author was hitting the road for five months to travel the country in I remember saying, “Oh, the places you’ll see!”

That author is V.K. Black and she’s taken her experiences and turned them into a series of short stories called Campfire Tales. So, what’s VK have to say?

You were so right, Jenn. Incredible, wonderful places. Kakadu, Litchfield Park, Broome, Uluru, a helicopter flight over the Bungle Bungles, whales, off South Australia – spouts everywhere.

The office looks familiar, V.K. I have a similar one right now, but in Victoria.

The photo of me at our table is when we were camped next to a river in the Pilbara. Nice office, huh? That notepad on the table contains the first draft of Campfire Tales, which is the anthology of short stories I was writing as I travelled around Australia.

And now—drum roll please—they’re published!

Tell us about the book.

Campfire Tales follows the adventures of Ellie and Michael, a young honeymooning couple, as they travel around Australia. Most co-incidentally, Ellie and Michael follow exactly the same route around Australia that we took. All of the stories in this anthology were inspired by little things that happened, snatches of conversations we heard, and people we met.

About Campfire Tales

Hawaii? Paris? Goodness, no. On their honeymoon, Ellie and Michael travel around Australia in their battered old land cruiser, sleep in a tent, and don’t mind at all that their air mattress is always flat the next morning. They encounter a gunman at a remote campsite, help a woman dealing with emotional abuse, and meet the warring owners of an amazing caravan.

Our very-much-in-love couple make love, fight, make up, and meet people from all walks of life during their incredible adventure. So sit back with your thermos of coffee (or a glass of wine, if you’re more like Ellie and Michael) and follow our happy couple’s adventures around Australia.

Where to get the book

Available for 99 cents from Amazon and Kobo. More Buy Links can be found on V.K. Black’s Website.

OMG! Huge news. Massive. Something I’ve never done before.

I’m driving over the border into Victoria!

It’s a first. I’ve never even been to Victoria — unless you count flying into a conference in a Melbourne hotel and flying out again.

To get this far south from Coffs Harbour, the J and I have been traversing some pretty serious hills. We don’t like hills. We particularly dislike hills that include skinny roads and narrow bridges. (Narooma, for example. We did not like that bridge much, but the town was very pretty.) I’ve discovered that the Princes Highway (did you know all these years I’ve thought it was the Princess Highway?) presents more twists and turns than a Jenn J McLeod plot?

We were ‘tempted’ to stop in Eden (NSW’s most southern coastal town) so we did. We were very weary (and extremely wary of snakes and apples in Eden). But we needed to regroup and prepare for the BIG crossing. We also had to eat all the prohibited fresh fruit and veggies because apparently, we take them over the border. (Of course, we washed them down with wine, as grapes are also on the prohibited list.)

So, it is a first. Wish us well for the last leg as we prepare to tackle a border crossing into unknown territory and take up our first Victorian property sitting job as of Saturday.

Some things we found en route:

Oh, and the tiniest of libraries (run by Milton volunteers)

Speaking of weather…

Can someone tell the south coast… It’s December, for Pete’s sake!

Why do I have the car heater on today?

NSW we love you and we will be back, but first there are places to see and people to meet, libraries to conquer and small towns to visit.

Posted on 02/12/2016 by Jenn J McLeod — 6 Comments

How to buy a book when it’s not in stock.

You might have guessed already, but with so many new authors being published, and established authors putting out a new book each year — ie more fabulous books to read — this readers’ boom can be the author’s bust. Therefore I thought the topic worth sharing.

Book retailers have limited shelf space so they are unable to stock every book all the time. Many books sell out and are not always replaced — even the big sellers, like House For All Season, for example. It was #5 best-selling fiction debut in 2013 but you’d be hard pressed finding a print copy because retailers have had to make way for all the other great books coming out.

So how do you buy a book when it’s not in stock? (And you know about it from the author’s backlist (that little list of titles inside the front cover.)

ASK.

Walk in, or ring, or email your retailer and they’ll order it in for you. (You want to read it. They want to sell it, and the author wants to know you enjoyed it.)

Same goes with the library? Does the book constantly have RESERVES on it? Maybe they’ll buy in another copy. Is it only in print only and not accessible as an ebook for you to borrow? There’s an option! How can you make it happen?

ASK.

Walk in, or ring, or email your local library. Librarians love to help readers.

Too easy really! There’s always Aussie online retailers of PRINT books with massive warehouses, so try Booktopia and Boomerang Books.

Yes, you may need to be patient while the order is processed, but you know good things do come to those who wait.

Now, can you help me spread the word? Oh, and let me know how I can get an ice cream when I am about 100 km away from a shop!