Expand Your Readership With The Public Library!

 

I wanted to share some info with my fellow indie authors. Self-e, is a terrific program, which helps authors connect with new readers, by making their books available through the public library. I have had success with this system, and two of my titles are currently available as ebooks through the Queens Public Library, in New York. So, if you’re an indie author, and you have published an ebook, you may want to consider using this program. Here is a direct link to their website: https://selfe.librariescreate.com/self-e/

FYI: you will need to fill out a short form, which includes agreeing to their terms and conditions, entering your name, email, state and name of your local library, and uploading a copy of your ebook (ex, PDF), and info about the book (ISBN, etc). Best of luck to everyone!

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Monday Blog: Symbols and Witchcraft in “The Witch of Fulton Lane”

It’s Monday, so it’s time for the Monday Blog. This week, in honor of Emo Month, I wanted to talk about the use of symbols and witchcraft in The Witch of Fulton Lane.

We’re surrounded by symbols. Some of them are obvious, while others are not easily recognizable. One of the most misunderstood symbols, is the pentacle, the star inside a circle. In Fulton Lane, Dylan wears a pentacle around her neck for protection. This is NOT an evil symbol. If the star was inverted, that would be associated with the devil, or Satanism. Here’s a fun fact: the symbol on Converse high-tops, is a pentacle. Give yourself a moment to absorb that.

Witchcraft is an important part of Fulton Lane. Dylan is a witch, and she does cast a few spells throughout the story. She also performs tarot card readings, and speaks with the dead. Don’t worry: I didn’t throw a bunch of random information into this story. I did my homework for this one. I wanted to incorporate witchcraft into this story, not just for entertainment purposes, but because I wanted to cast a positive light on the subject. People tend to fear the unknown and the things they don’t understand. I hope, after reading this book, people will become more interested in learning about the subject, rather than simply dismissing it as evil.

Next week: Erin’s Emo Playlist!

Valentine in Queens Public Library

 

This is pretty big for me: 2 of my ebooks are available on Queens Public Library’s website! So, if you have a QPL card, you can borrow 2 of my ebooks!! How cool is that! Here’s a link: http://www.queenslibrary.org/search/apachesolr_search/nicole%20woolaston?filters=tm_a:nicole%20AND%20tm_a:woolaston

I’m working on adding more titles to their collection, but to have 2 so far, ain’t half bad!

woolastonentertainment.com

Monday Blog: A Vigilante, A Witch, and An Update

 

Greetings, everyone! Monday Blog time! This week, I wanted to discuss Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold, The Witch of Fulton Lane, and provide an update about Righteous.

Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold

If you’ve been keeping up with the previous blog entries, you may have been wondering, “Is that all she’s going to say about Valentine 5?” Fear not! I’m going to talk more about it, right here. When I first introduced Val Entienne, she was on a road trip to save her father. She wanted to find him alive, but if he was dead, she was going to avenge his death. Val ended up helping Melinda St James, a fourteen-year-old girl whose parents had died, and was on her way to live with her grandparents. Instead, she joins Val on her trip to L.A., and ends up living with her afterwards. This is where Val’s real adventure begins: she gets into a fight with a mob boss, shoots a few people, and puts her life on the line to keep her friends and family safe. She even travels to Italy, and learns about the history of the Entienne family. So, after all of the fighting and shooting and killing, between meeting and befriending hitmen and accepting her place in the Syndicate, how does the story of Valentine end?  It ends the only way it can end: with a bang. There’s a difference between reputation and action; a legend and the truth. The final book, brings everything full circle.

The Witch of Fulton Lane

I had been wanting to write this book for a very long time, but other books stood in the way, and I wasn’t even sure of where or how to start. Finally, I figured, time’s a-wasting, so I needed to get started. I’ve been into astrology, the paranormal, and psychic powers for years. I’ve had many readings done, and I also read tarot cards. So, there’s a little bit of me in the main character, Dylan Maycriss.  Dylan is a witch, and I’m not just name-calling here. She is a Wiccan, is a believer in the occult, and, as you will read when the book comes out, she does have supernatural powers. But what Dylan can do, won’t be the heart of the story. Of course, you’ll have to wait until the book is available to see what I mean.

Update on Righteous

I don’t want any of you to think I’m shelving this book forever. Between Righteous, The Witch of Fulton Lane, and Valentine 5, I was stretching myself way too thin. Plus, I have a few side projects I’ve been working on for other people. In order to give Righteous the attention it deserves, I thought it would be best to postpone working on it until January 2018. This way, I’ll be able to give you the best version of the book I can possibly give, instead of rushing through it.

Until next week folks…

Monday Blog: Emo Month!

 

Hello, good readers! Welcome to the first Monday Blog for the month of October. This month’s theme, is Emo Month. Why? Two reasons: Halloween is coming, and I’m currently working on my first supernatural book, The Witch of Fulton Lane.

So, why emo Month? When people think of October, they may think of Halloween. I know I certainly do. Halloween happens to be one of my favorite holidays. I’m a little Gothic, a little punk and a little Emo, so the holiday is right up my alley. Some people wander into a craft store, look at the Halloween decorations, and think, “Oh! Halloween decorations!” Me, I think, “Oh, regular decorations!” I changed the Woolaston Entertainment WordPress site to a Gothic theme for the holiday. Ah, who am I kidding: I’ll probably just leave it that way, holiday or not!

Most of this month’s blog posts will focus on The Witch of Fulton Lane. I will release little samples of the book throughout the month. I hope you like it. Also, I’ll share links to websites and places related to the theme of the book.

A sample chapter is available here: https://woolent.wordpress.com/2017/09/13/preview-the-witch-of-fulton-lane/

See you next week!

#emo #Halloween

Monday Blog, Part 2: Valentine 5

I released the first Valentine book in 2010, seven years ago. Here we are, in 2017, and the final book in the series is complete. Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold, is now available on Amazon, and soon, it will be available on other websites. I had some difficulty, deciding how to end this series, but I believe anyone who reads it, will be pleased. Val has changed over the course of this series. She started out as a wild young girl with a pair of handguns, and became a young woman, whose primary concern is protecting her family. She’s met some interesting people along the way; some of them good, some of them bad. Each of them has helped her grow in some way, and I like to think, she was able to return the gesture.

I do have an idea for another spin-off series for Valentine, but if I decide to write it, it won’t be for at least a year.

 

Halloween is coming, and so is Emo Month!!!!! See you next week.

#newfiction #woolent #valentine

 

Monday Blog, Part 1: Mentorship

During the course of your life, you may come across certain people who inspire you. You may come across people who take the time to look out for you, offer advice, etc. For me, two people stand out very clearly: my mother, June Parris, and my Creative Writing teacher from high school, Tracy Rice-Weber.

Ever since I was little, my mother always encouraged me to be creative. I did a lot of writing, so she supplied me with plenty of notebooks and pens. I did a lot of drawing, so she always bought art supplies for me. When I decided to give animation a try, she bought a video camera and a light box, and let me experiment. She never told me I couldn’t do something, and even though money was tight, she always found a way to help me get what I needed.

When I reached twelfth grade, I took a Creative Writing class, for the very first time. It felt good to be in a class with other writers and creative types. Mrs. Rice-Weber, my teacher, encouraged all of her students to try new styles of writing, including poetry. She gave me an opportunity to submit work to, and work on the staff of the school’s literary art magazine, Polaris. Thanks to her, I earned an award for my work, along with an academic letter.

I do have one more person I’d like to mention. I never had the opportunity to meet her, but she did encourage me, in her own way. The late Octavia Butler, is one of the most well-known Black women authors of science fiction and fantasy. In fact, reading her work, inspired me to write my upcoming book, The Witch of Fulton Lane.

Do you have a mentor? Has anyone encouraged you to dare to be great? If so, take a moment and thank them.

 

#mentors

Sometimes You Have to Surrender…

Whenever I find myself dealing with a challenging situation, I pause. I weigh my options, and try to decide how best to proceed. Every now and then, I simply surrender. By surrender, I don’t mean give up. What I mean, is I accept the fact that there are forces greater than myself at work, and that I might be making a simple situation more complicated than it needs to be. I learned this when I started teaching myself to play the guitar.

I’d sit with Johnny D, my Johnson acoustic, in my lap fumbling over the strings and doing my best to play chords, and failing miserably. I decided to put guitar playing aside for awhile, and didn’t try again for a year or so. I bought my first electric: a Fender Starcaster I named Jack, and was determined to try again. I even went to a professional guitarist for lessons. I took a few lessons (I could only afford a FEW), then tried to teach myself. I could play a few chords, but struggled to get through a song. Then, one day, it happened.

I surrendered. I took a deep breath, and told myself, what I was doing wasn’t that damn complicated. I’m an intelligent person, who learned to drive a car, had a command of the English language and had used my skills to write, illustrate a publish several books. So, there was no reason why I couldn’t play the guitar. I literally looked at Jack, and said out loud, “I’m turning over my control, to you. To you, and the universe.” Then I started playing, and got through My Chemical Romance’s “Desert Song”, without messing it up.

I’m not the world’s greatest guitarist, but I’m not the worst, either.  Over the past few years, my skills have greatly improved. I’ve taught myself 20 chords, and I want to learn more.  The simple act of surrendering, really helped me. There are things in life we cannot change or control, and once we accept that, things become so much easier.

Monday Blog: Summer Reading

Hello, everyone. Welcome back to the Monday Blog. This week I wanted to share some of the books I read over the Summer.

Just Another Girl’s Story: A Memoir on Finding Redemption by Laura Eckert

I really enjoyed reading this book. The author has a bold and amazing voice, and I appreciate the fact that she doesn’t make excuses for the mistakes she made. Instead, she OWNS them. This is a very courageous story of how a person can make mistakes in their youth, but they can learn from them and turn their life around for the better. It’s an encouraging story for anyone facing difficulties, such as addiction.

Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azerrad

Since I’m into punk, I really enjoyed this one. There is a ton of background information about some of the earlier punk rock bands, such as Black Flag, The Minutemen, and Husker Du . It was interesting to read all about the early 1990’s DIY scene. If you’ve read Please Kill Me, you’ll definitely love this book.

Cursed Legacy (Aeterna Chronicles #1) by Anna K Lane

I’m a fan of sci-fi and fantasy, and this book has a great story and likeable characters. A seventeen-year-old boy living on the planet Levitor takes a simulated test in order to earn a position in the “Control Center”. However, something goes wrong during the test, which sets off a series of events, and leads him to wonder about his past and his true identity.

I’ve read other books, too, but these three really stood out this summer.

Next week, I’ll discuss the importance of mentorship, and Valentine 5.

Monday Blog, Posted Wednesday: Updates

Hello, everyone! Welcome back to the Monday Blog. September 11 was Patriot Day, so I decided to postpone the Blog for today (hence, why I am posting now). This week, I just wanted to share a few updates.

Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold

I’m finished with all of my editing, the cover art is ready, so all that’s left to do, is publish the book! This is it, folks: the end of the Valentine series. The final chapter. Val vs Rafferty. I sent the manuscript to Create Space, so once it meets their approval and I read through the author’s proof, I will release the book for sale.

 

Comic for Bethel’s Bear Facts

As I mentioned last week, I’m working on a special project for my High School, Bethel High, in Hampton, VA. I’m drawing a series of comics for the newspaper, “The Bear Facts”. Each will be centered around a theme for Bethel. Right now, I’m thinking of using Jon and Olivia from Our Lady of Righteous Rage, as high school students. I’m working on other ideas as well.

Changes to the website

If you’ve visited woolastonentertainment.com lately, you may have noticed a few changes. Copies of first editions of my books are for sale via Paypal, and the prices of paperback and ebooks are now posted on the site (not sure why I didn’t think of that before). I will make other changes as they become necessary.

 

The Witch of Fulton Lane

I’m working on a new book, which will be a supernatural story, with a touch of drama. It should be available by the end of the year. As Halloween approaches, I release more info about the story and the characters. This is going to be very different from anything I’ve ever written, and I hope you enjoy it when it’s available.

 

Previews

I have previews for you!

The Witch of Fulton Lane:

https://woolent.wordpress.com/2017/09/13/preview-the-witch-of-fulton-lane/

 

Valentine 5: The Queen’s Fold:

https://woolent.wordpress.com/2017/09/13/preview-valentine-5-the-queens-fold/

 

Donations

Donations are in the mail! Yeah!

 

Until next week…