Category Archives: colorado independent publishers books

Truly Committed to the Indies

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“The follow-your-gut mentality of the entrepreneur has the potential to take you anywhere you want to go.” ~ Bill Rancic 

Today, I’ll tell you about my ride to Telluride over the weekend. What gorgeous scenery and a charming town, also. 

 Did you know that Telluride is home to the American Academy of Bookbinding? http://bit.ly/s29fjg. Although the Academy was not one of the primary reasons I visited Telluride, I found out a lot about this village that made me understand why it was recently awarded a grant from the Creative Colorado Industries. http://bit.ly/fXkoNC. 

One of the reasons I visited was to take a look at  Between the Covers. It is a quaint, well-stocked bookstore, well arranged from floor to ceiling. As soon as I walked into the space,  I noticed the Indie Best selling books, front and center. Proudly displayed and identified as such. They were not hidden away, as in many bookstores, like the black sheep of the family. Instead of the NY Times list of best sellers that you usually see in bookstores across America, prominently displayed was the Indie List of top independently published, hard covers and paperbacks. IBPA (Independent Book Publishers Association) Award winning books were displayed with full cover out rather than with spine only. I was so glad to see it. This bookstore takes selling indie books seriously – it was so refreshing! 

I got a head start on my Christmas shopping for my favorite filmmaker in the family. Between the Covers Bookstore has a nice variety of books on cinema and movie production. I didn’t bypass the nice selection of books in the language arts section without noticing it was at the heart of the store, in the middle. 

Just as we were ready to leave the bookstore, I spied a sign that caught my eye. It read “We prefer being a community partner much more than a showroom.” 

“How apropos!” I thought. This bookstore obviously embraces and is proud of being a partner in the community of independent booksellers and publishers.” Take a peak into Between the Cover’s website. Follow this link http://bit.ly/QK8K5F.   

Next week, I plan to return to this fulfilling small town of  Telluride in my blogging writing. I want to tell you more about the grant it received from the Creative Industries of Colorado. Follow this continuing blog series on Telluride, next week!  

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com .

Gem Stone Village Discovered

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“I’m also looking for gems that the average reader might have missed.” ~ Terry Windling

“My, oh, my, isn’t it gorgeous?” I said to my husband and son, as we drove into Ouray, Colorado on Saturday. “Didn’t I tell you, Mom?” my son said “that’s why I said you have to come see it.”

Ouray, nestled between high, high peaks in the San Juan Mountains is called “Switzerland of America©.” The “alpine-like” village is a gem. Outstanding ice climbing and summer rock climbing and the healing hot springs are just a few reasons that this little town is so busy with tourist activity.

On Saturday morning the center of town was the starting place for the Imogene Pass half marathon. Fifteen hundred runners faced a challenging course that climbed from altitudes of 7,700 elevation to 13,000, over an unpaved mountain pass from Ouray to Telluride.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the relief and pride I felt as my saw my son cross the finish line after running seventeen grueling miles. It takes guts and grit to tackle it. He did well for himself, finishing 14th in his age group. But, he said many of his competitors were “seniors who looked older than the mountains and really put him and the younger people to shame.” I noticed that as I watched.

Ouray has so much going for it! Well cared for Victorian buildings, art galleries and quaint little shops, the Ouray Hot Springs, and charming bed and breakfasts, historic hotels.

It was second Saturday Art Walk, and we made the rounds. We stopped into Buckskin Booksellers. They have a large and outstanding collection of books of regional interest on Colorado, Western history and of geological subjects such as mineralogy, mining, fossils, rock hounding and the like.

I also noticed some outstanding art books scattered in different retail establishments throughout town. You could not help but notice them because some were like tomes – oversized, beautifully crafted, filled with magnificent images. I spied John Fielder’s Ranches of Colorado http://www.johnfielder.com and books on the Art of Howard Terpning. 

Many notable movies were filmed in Ouray County. My son Marc’s interest in visiting Ouray was more than just to run in a footrace. As a filmmaker, he was interested in seeing the settings of these movies:

Our visit to Ouray was a perfect stop along the way of a fun and fulfilling weekend. I’d like to return some day to further explore this area. It is located near where four states – Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah come together. There is a lot more to see such as Twin Peak Falls, and more to do than I ever realized.  For more information, visit this website http://www.ouraycolorado.com/.

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, author of Gift of a Lifetime:Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Storymakers have Deadlines

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“A dream is a goal with a deadline” ~ Napoleon Hill  

Time is running out! Rocky Mountain Public Broadcast System’s (RMPBS) writing contest for sixth, seventh and eighth graders will be accepting submissions until October 12th. There is only one month left to wrap up those stories. Parents and teachers, encourage your students to  write and participate!

The winners will enjoy having lunch with local radio personality and Colorado authorDom Testa and finalists will also win prizes. Dom Testa is a pretty neat guy! I’ve had the pleasure of hearing him speak several times at the Colorado Independent Publishers Association (CIPA). His Big Brain Club supports creativity in students, making excelling as a student “cool.” For more information on this 50l(3) C foundation, please visit this link. http://bit.ly/OjxLoQ.

To obtain a copy of the rules of the Storymakers Contest and a submission application, please visit this link. http://bit.ly/OUGUXH.

Good luck to all students and remember your child can not win if they do not participate!

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Headed Between the Covers

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“The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.” ~ St. Augustine

 I am ready for a little traveling. Where am I headed? To Between the Covers Bookstore. http://bit.ly/NaKzRg. Where is that? In a “box canyon” in a place called Telluride, Colorado; where the mountains soar to altitudes of almost 13,000. According to Wikipedia, “a box canyon is a small ravine or canyon with steep walls on three sides, allowing access and egress only through the mouth of the canyon.” The bookstore co-owner is like me, a Baltimore transplant, who has ended up in the West. 

I suspect at certain times of the year, when large shipments of publications are delivered, Between the Covers Bookstore, feels as if it is a box canyon, until all the books are shelved. There is a certain book that I will be searching for at this bookstore that would come in handy on days when I struggle to put down my digital devices and stop working. This two minute video, shot last February, gives a quick glimpse into the book I am looking for.  http://vimeo.com/37703165.  

The video is courtesy of film editor, visual effects artist, independent filmmaker Marc R. Leonard. http://marcrleonard.com/editing.  Thank you, Marc, for a little insight into Telluride in the other season, winter.

Telluride is, from what I understand, a neat little “artistic town” and very scenic! It is home of the Telluride Film Festival.  http://www.telluridefilmfestival.org/. 

Our trip to Telluride will be timely. My husband and I will watch our son run in his first half-marathon, which goes over Imogene Pass – seventeen miles of climbing and running, traveling from 8,000 ft in altitude to 13,000. The boy has energy, I tell you! It’s time to play catch up and see what else he has been doing.

Come on back next week. On Film Friday, we will be featuring a new Disney movie that both adults and children, who enjoy Celtic legend, may enjoy seeing. Have a good weekend, everybody.

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Creative Bookselling

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“The ladder of success is best climbed by stepping on the rungs of opportunity.” ~Ayn Rand

On Friday evening at the Bookworm of Edwards, I and two others presented an evening writer’s workshop on marketing books. We focused mainly on e-marketing/social media marketing, selling books through public speaking and placing books in retail and bookstore environments. The discussion led to other ideas for creatively finding potential book buyers.

The morning after the event I visited the Minturn Market, a fresh-air shopping experience . I noticed a booth filled with children’s books from Osborne Publishing, a U.K. company. Must be a local distributor is in the area. I tried to approach the vendor, but, the booth was too crowded.

Just as I was ready to leave the market area, I noticed a woman folding tee-shirts. As I walked by she asked me “Whether I was familiar with the Burrow Race?” I admitted that I wasn’t; I was a visitor to the area from Steamboat. She said the tee-shirts were being sold in conjunction with the annual Burrow Race that goes up the mountain and the sales of the shirts were to support literacy; a program of the Avon-Vail Libraries. http://bit.ly/Rbl52C. That explained my sightings of borrows  with packs on their backs wandering around about town.

Literacy and books surround us in our daily lives, and we never know where we will find opportunities to sell books of regional interest. There is a book that has created “buzz” in the Vail, Colorado area. It is called Women of Vail – Those Who Walked This Bridge 1962 – 1970  Click on the title for more information and ordering.

Where is the book being sold? According to the Vail Daily, it is available at the Minturn Market, however, this seasonal market is coming to an end in two more  Saturdays.

“Women of Vail” would make an excellent Christmas present for those who know and love Eagle County, Colorado.

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, author of Gift of a Lifetime:Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Artistic Community Brings Commerce

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“If you have only two pennies, spend the first on bread and the other on hyacinths for your soul.”–Arab Proverb 

“Hello, Minturn! I’m back!” I thought to myself on Saturday morning, as I entered the little village just off I-70. The first time I frequented this town, nestled near the glitz and glamour of Vail, and the not yet built Beaver Creek Resort, was in the mid 1970s. That evening, I visited the Minturn Saloon, infamous for its Mexican cuisine. I had traveled there with my entire family, and another from Maryland, to Eagle County for a ski vacation.

Minturn is still small. If you blink, you can miss it. But now, it is doesn’t look like a ghost town of total wrack and ruin. Many of the bungalows and cottages have been artfully painted. There were eye-catching large buckets, planters and window boxes of brightly colored flowers everywhere – attractive. Now there is some commerce going on – I was shocked at the transition and you can see the modern day influences in this town.

Author Bill Burnett writes about the historical background of this old mining town in his independently published book  Minturn, A Memoir. https://www.bookwormofedwards.com/aff/SueLeonard/book/v/9780977113620

Saturday morning I had come to see the Minturn Market; I had read about it. Arriving a little early, at 8:30am,the vendors were still setting up, so I took myself on a walking tour of the village. By 9 am people began arriving in large numbers. This popular, weekly, summertime open-air market even requires a crossing guard on Main Street. The morning was delightful; I visited with artisans of all kinds selling their wares. I came home with a large loaf of “oh so fragrant” lemon, white chocolate bread that I had sampled and loved, and a unique, hand knit scarf  by Venda, that fit my fancy. I knew it was a scarf I couldn’t create myself.

Just a few of the notable business establishments that have opened in this eclectic little village are:

  • Scarab – An oriental rug and tribal arts store  http://www.thescarab.com/
  • The Yarn Studio – a wide and interesting selection of yarns for fiber arts crafting
  • Holy Toledo – a fashionable, boutique consignment shop located in  an old church http://holytoledo.co/
  • Mountain Pedaler, a bike shop
  • Gemini Gardens – a floral shop with gifts and home decorating accessories
  • Four or five coffee shops and restaurants

It was such a fulfilling weekend; I explored and enjoyed my own company. So tomorrow, I will blog about some of the ideas that I and my cohorts talked about on Friday evening, because they spilled over into my visit to Minturn. 

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Story Woven with Nostalgic Images

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Where were you during the Vietnam Era?

I just read the newly-released book Cottonwood; a satisfying read on many levels. Author Tom Dawson effectively crafts a story of two men who served together during one of our country’s most painful periods, the Vietnam era. The ties that bind them are their war experiences; they become life long buddies.

The author intertwines the culture of the ‘Nam era” into the storyline, which filled me with nostalgic images of my own, as a person whose adolescence came during the late nineteen sixties and seventies.  I could also relate, on a certain level, to some of the frustrations and attitudes that the main characters, Tom and Sam, carry about today’s technological era.

As a woman, I appreciated how through good dialogue, the author showed that the two comrades, Tom and Sam, communicate differently. The  truthfulness with which Dawson writes about the issue of men and aging was refreshing and honest. It is a story I didn’t anticipate liking but I really look forward to reading more from this author.

Dawson’s book is available through Amazon in soft cover and also as an e-book edition. To order this publication, please follow this link.Cottonwood

To read more about Tom Dawson, the author and war correspondent, follow this link. http://bit.ly/Ng0Srt. Don’t miss out on his blog and comic art, he calls “Pieces” on his website.

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Local Authors in the Limelight

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“If you could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint.” ~ Edward Hopper

Saturday was a day of great fun for me as a person who works in the independent publishing industry. The literary community of Steamboat Springs, Colorado came  out from behind their computers and into the limelight at the Written Arts Festival. I am aware of the fact that we do, indeed, have a growing population of independent publishers in this community. Nearly thirty were gathered; some having just published their debut novels, while others have more than one book published.

Panel discussions added interest to the event. “How should history be portrayed in writing?” was a subject that drew differing opinions from the authors. In the opinions of some, there is an obligation to write stories true to history; while others contend that history can be written from different perspectives.

Other authors specialize in fiction writing. The panelists in this genre seemed to agree that authors draw, to a certain extent, from personal experience and background which often gives them the basis of the story. Then the storyline “is pushed in different directions,” sometimes ending in a total surprise, even for the author. One panelist mentioned how her deeply felt spiritual beliefs influences her writing and a prolific romance writer admitted that individuals she encounters inspires her characters.

Sites, smells and visual landscapes also influence writing. A third group of panelists discussed how stories are crafted from experience in travel as well as from their rootedness in community. Place plays great significance in our identity as people and as writers. Local issues are often brought into books of regional interest.

The event culminated with an interview of a very talented poet and the Home Ranch owner, Ann Anderson Stranahan. Words, when used with the right cadence and meter makes music, she said. When Stranahan was asked  if “her poetic images come to her in black and white or in color?”

“Vividly and suddenly, perhaps as in a photographic image, rather than an oil or watercolor,” was her answer.

The Bud Werner Memorial Library http://www.steamboatlibrary.org/ and the efforts of their staff made this inspiring event possible. Also, the support of the Steamboat Arts Council http://steamboatspringsarts.com/and Off the Beaten Path Bookstore’s  http://www.steamboatbooks.com/ handling of the bookselling allowed the authors to visit with potential book buyers and answer questions.

I would have liked to have mentioned each of the authors individually, in this blog writing, but there were too many. I did get around the room to talk to each of them briefly. Thanks to all who participated and coordinated the Written Arts Festival. It was encouraging for anyone who is contemplating writing and publishing a story.

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, author of Gift of a Lifetime:Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected.

Telling Stories about Community

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In every community, there is work to be done. In every nation, there are wounds to heal. In every heart, there is the power to do it. ~ Marianne Williamson

Have you ever noticed that every community has its own unique “characters?” You know, people who are known to everyone in town, in all social circles. North, south, east or west, all neighborhoods have their own quirky people.

Author Sandy St. Clair offers a panoramic overview of the culture and climate in “Ski Town U.S.A.” in her new novel “Living with Miss Scarlett.” A real mountain resort town that she writes about, Steamboat Springs, Colorado, is where locals describe their community as a place “where the odds are good but the goods are odd.”  Click here for info & ordering

This book is about two mismatched widowers whose lives converge in “the Boat” and leave you laughing and weeping at the spirit with which they rebuild life together in a town of diverse people. Many women will relate to the plight of the two main “characters,” Sissy Rawles, a Dallas socialite and Ali McDaniel, an Iowa housewife.

Although the story is set in a tourist town in the Rocky Mountains, readers may feel as if they have met the characters before. Perhaps similar to a person who has drifted into their own life, has found they liked it and stayed put. Or akin to someone who has journeyed through on the pathway of life, managing to leave their mark on the hearts of hometown residents.

This delightful read, Living with Miss Scarlett, is available in e-book format through all major e-book retailers.

Sandy Eshbaugh St. Clair is also the author of The Cookbook for Non-Cooks published in 1984 by Workman Press.Click for info and ordering

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Community of Writers in Steamboat

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“Writers will happen in the best of families.”  ~ Rita Mae Brown

This week is the All Arts Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Art, in all kinds of mediums, will be represented. Performance artists, visual artists and culinary artists will be involved in this five day event that runs from August 14 to August 19th. For more information, please visit this link http://bit.ly/QsiJPR.

In 2012, the literary arts have been added to the annual event with A Festival of Local Authors. Stop by the Bud Werner Memorial Library on Saturday, August 18th from 10am to 2pm in Library Hall. Book signings along with panel discussions on writing history, writing the outdoors, telling stories in novel form, poetry reading and conversation is on the agenda. Book selections from the local writers will be on sale ranging from poetry, to publications of regional interest, to non-fiction to fictional stories – something for everyone.

The Steamboat Springs Art Council, Steamboat Writers Group, Off the Beaten Path Bookstore & the Bud Werner Memorial Library have teamed up to bring together 27 Yampa Valley authors and  publishers.

Indeed, there is a growing population of writers in Steamboat and the surrounding county. Some have been traditionally published while others have jumped on the Fast Track with Independent Publishing.

To learn more about how you can turn your dreams of becoming a published author into reality, there is a 18 minute webinar available through the Colorado Independent Publishers Association that will give you insight and perhaps pique your interest in going forward with your aspirations. http://bit.ly/oIkV2g.

Keep your eye on this website, All Things Fulfilling. We will continue to feature a growing number of authors who come to the Steamboat area seeking inspiration for their writing. Click here if you want to know more about Steamboat and the surrounding area.

This blog brought to you by Sue Batton Leonard, author of Gift of a Lifetime: Finding Fulfilling Things in the Unexpected and www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.