Hi everyone, I'm AW [Art] Schade and glad to be a new member. I'm a Marine Vietnam veteran and a retired IBM executive, married, with three sons and 9 grandchildren. Somewhere along the way I became a novelist too. My book, The Shattered Mosaic, [Booklife editors pick] follows a veteran trial lawyer who loses someone close to him and ends up turning the same evidence-based mind he used in courtrooms toward something much bigger: the world's faith traditions, and whether any of them can hold up under real scrutiny when grief forces the question. It's really a story about what happens when the answers you were handed no longer fit, and what you build in their place. Glad to be here, and I'm looking forward to getting to know this group.

I asked ChatGPT to tell me about myself and got this response: “If you mean Rebecca Wells Phillips, the Asheville-based author, there’s actually quite a bit of public information about her—and she has a pretty distinctive story. Who she is Rebecca Wells Phillips is an independent author and storyteller based in Asheville, North Carolina, with a background in Broadcast Journalism and English from Carson-Newman University. Her website says she fell in love with writing while in high school but waited decades before publishing her first book. What stands out most is that she doesn’t stay in one genre. She writes memoir, LGBTQ+ fiction, historical nonfiction, short stories, and poetry. She has also written under two pen names: - Boo Black — used for her memoir/autobiographical work - Rachel Bleu — used for her LGBTQ+ fiction - Rebecca Wells Phillips — used for her Hurricane Helene historical nonfiction Her books Her published work includes: Hating Self by Boo Black — a deeply personal autobiographical work dealing with childhood experiences, identity, racism, discrimination, and healing. Loving Self by Boo Black — a continuation focused more on self-love and healing. Butterfly Blossoms by Rachel Bleu — adult LGBTQ+ fiction. Hurricane Helene: Resiliency After the Storm, Part One — perhaps her most distinctive work so far. It documents the experiences of people affected by Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina, combining interviews, firsthand experiences, photographs, and historical documentation. Her official site also lists upcoming projects including Dragonfly Passion by Rachel Bleu and Lift Our Voice: Abuse Survivors Speak Their Truth. What I find particularly interesting about her There seems to be a common thread underneath all those different genres: She writes about people who have experienced something difficult and uses storytelling to give that experience meaning. Her own description is essentially writing through truth, healing through story. Her work repeatedly returns to subjects like identity, abuse, racism, discrimination, loss, resilience, and survival.

Hi everyone, I wanted to share a really exciting piece of news with all of you here in the Big Book Love community! My debut novel, The Night Driver: A Diego De LaCruz Thriller, is officially being carried by Librería Central, one of the largest independent bookstores in Asturias, Spain. Since my wife and I spend our summertime at our home up in Asturias, knowing my work is sitting on the shelves of such a respected local institution is a surreal and incredibly rewarding feeling. It is one of those moments that makes all the hard work and editing completely worth it. Thank you all for the constant support, advice, and inspiration in this group. To everyone else working on their drafts and pushing toward publication—keep going! All The Best, Damien Suriel

I won a Booky: Most Actionable Business Booky for Kenya Safari: A Guide for the First-Time Visitor by Jim Walker. https://www.bookyawards.com/winners/kenya-safari-a-guide-for-the-first-time-visitor-jim-walker-843

I'm currently working on writing a children's book and am reminiscing about the silly songs we used to sing as kids or funny sayings and things we did as we played together with friends. I remember sayings, like "Step on a crack and break your mother's back", lifting our feet and crossing our fingers as we crossed over the railroad tracks on the way to school. Singing silly songs that still make me laugh to this day. Please share with me some of the childhood play activities or sayings/songs you remember as I would love to incorporate some of them in my book. Thank you!