Category: Free

CLARINDA CLOUD and JOHNNY'S ADVENTURE MAKES READING FUN by Jodi Desautels are Free on Kindle 3/5-3/7 2015

3/5/2015

Hello everyone! Today, I am happy to announce that two of my children's books are FREE on Kindle today, tomorrow, and Saturday (3/5-3/7 2015).

Clarinda Cloud

CLARINDA CLOUD is an adorable little cloud who changes colors as her feelings change. The book is a great resource to practice and discuss the identification of basic feelings and colors. It also has repetitive text and whimsical illustrations to encourage early readers.

Best for ages 2-5

Johnny's Adventure Makes Reading Fun

JOHNNY doesn't like to read. By the end of the story, with the help of Mom, that all changes. The book is a great resource for parents, grandparents, daycare providers, and early educators for young children who don't like to read. However, it is great for all children. After all, you are never too young for an adventure.

Best for ages 4-7

CLARINDA CLOUD and JOHNNY'S ADVENTURE MAKES READING FUN are both meant to be positive books with a role model for good outlooks and mental health, as well as educational. They are meant to be fun and relatable.

If you have one of the books and like it, please consider letting me know by writing a review.

Just as a reminder, if you are interested in purchasing a signed copy, feel free to contact me. I am also available for author visits, virtual author visits, book signings, guest speaking, and workshops. Thank you.

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Jodi Desautels Promotes Herself, Her Books, Her Websites, and Her Links

5/14/2014

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Hello everyone. I decided that I would market myself and my books today. I haven't done it in quite a while. So, I thought I would take a moment to tell you what I am up to now a days.
I currently have three published books as you can see from the poster. I hope you will check them out. I am also running a chance to win one of my books OR get ONE HOUR of FREE ONLINE TUTORING. You can check out DUO Education's Learning Blog for more information.
Speaking of online tutoring, now is the time to sign up for extra help during the summer. Don't let your child fall behind or lose skills during the summer. Sign up now!
I currently post three blogs a week. I have this author blog, DUO Education's Learning Blog, and Story Starters and Writing Prompts. I hope you will check them out each week.
I am still working on a new schedule for myself, as well as new ways promoting myself and my work. If you have any ideas, I am happy to hear them. Also, in case you don't have them, here is a list of my links. I hope you will get in touch. Thank you.

My Links:
Websites:
www.AuthorJodiDesautels.com
www.ClarindaCloud.com
www.DUOEducation.com

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/jodi.desautels.author.illustrator.educator
www.facebook.com/Author.Illustrator.Educator.JodiDesautels
www.facebook.com/pages/DUO-Education/421960901218609

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/J_Desautels

Google+:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/108130827656213063141/posts

About.me:
http://about.me/jodidesautels

Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/jodidesautels/

Author Page on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Jodi-Desautels/e/B00B4BXUS8

Sell Links:
Clarinda Cloud:
http://www.amazon.com/Clarinda-Cloud-Jodi-Desautels/dp/1482010607

Clarinda Cloud Activity Book:
http://www.amazon.com/Clarinda-Cloud-Activity-Book-Desautels/dp/1490399011

Johnny’s Adventure Makes Reading Fun:
http://www.amazon.com/Johnnys-Adventure-Makes-Reading-Fun/dp/148398835X

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Reflections, Ponderings, Giveaways, and Announcements

12/11/2013

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“This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.”
~William Shakespeare

Hi everyone! I have been doing some reflecting and pondering lately. Maybe it is because I have been answering interview questions for a few people who will be interviewing me on their blogs. More than likely, it is just the way I am. I like to reflect and ponder.
I have thought about how I have grown as a writer, illustrator, formatter, marketer, and person from when I first started a little over a year ago. (Well, I started as a person a little longer ago than that.)
I have met quite a few kind people along the way who have been willing to help me, encourage me, advise me, promote me, etc. We have shared, chatted, brainstormed, and helped each other. I have truly built friendships along the way.
In the beginning I was a beginner in all of it. Today, I still consider myself a beginner as I am still fairly new to the field. Yet, I am feeling more confident in the field and more experienced. Maybe, I could even consider myself in the intermediate level!
I have made quite a few changes along the way. Recently, I changed the cover to one of my books, "Clarinda Cloud," to make it more eye catching. I didn't think of that as much in the beginning. Yet, the importance of cover designs means more to me now and my illustrating skills have improved.
In the beginning, I also "liked" pages and shared things by other authors without considering my target audience, the family friendliness of my sites, or the quality of the things I was liking and sharing in hopes that other authors would return the favor. Yet, I have decided to be more discriminate in what I share or like. I want to "know" more about the things I like or share, so I can really stand behind them. I try not to say anything I don't mean or know about a book or author any more.
I still hope to be able to share, like, and promote books and authors. There are many wonderful books and authors out there. I just want to make sure that I am being honest with my shares, likes, and promotions. And, just because I don't recommend a book, it may not be that it is a great story. It may be that it has some errors in it. Sometimes if there errors were fixed, I would happily give a glowing review!
I am currently thinking of ways I could help encourage quality work in 2014 and beyond. I have thought about possibly offering a proofreading service for children's/MG/YA authors. If I don't do it myself, I have thought about creating a network and offering referrals to other wonderful people who do author friendly services such as editing, proofreading, formatting, PR work, illustrating, cover creations, etc. I have also thought about creating a "write and publish your own children's book" class or mentoring program. (Yes, I am only at the intermediate level with this, however I am an experienced educator. And, often times people will choose people just a little ahead of them in the progress to support them, so that they feel the supporter "knows how they feel and what they are going through" because he or she was there not long ago.)
Research and considerations are in progress for these things now. I would like to get your feedback and ideas. Also, if you would be interested in joining the network, please feel free to contact me.

Notes and Announcements

*Please check out the latest interview of me. It is by Fiona McVie and she did a wonderful job! Thank you, Fiona!
*Along with all of this reflecting and pondering, I have been thinking about how I could make my sites better. I would like your help there as well. For mainly that reason, I am offering a giveaway contest on my blogs. For more information and a chance to enter, please follow the links the posts on the following sites. I am hoping this chance for you to win a copy of "Clarinda Cloud" will be a win/win for both of us.
~DUO Education Learning Blog
~Clarinda Cloud's Feeling Blog
~What is New with Jodi Desautels?
Good luck!
*I am having a giveaway for my ebooks on Kindle on December 17th and 18th. That means you will be able to get the Kindle edition of "Clarinda Cloud" and "Johnny's Adventure Makes Reading Fun" will be free on those days. Taking advantage of free giveaways on Kindle is a great way to decide if you want to buy the softcover, give the author a review on the book, or have it for trips and in the car. (I don't particularly like the idea of ebooks for children, but they do have their uses.)
*Also, I am going to be co-hosting (with Virginia Wright) the "2nd Annual Author Christmas Giveaway" event on Facebook on December 17th. You are all invited! It is a great way to "mingle" with authors online, ask questions, get answers, play games, win books, etc. Many authors are expected to show up.

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Author Interview with Angie Harris about her Book: "Momma's Little Helpers", Announcements, Clarinda Cloud Contest, and Shout Outs

12/4/2013

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Hello everyone! Today I am interviewing a fellow Vermonter! Yay for us Vermonters! LOL! Okay... please welcome fellow Vermonter and fellow author/illustrator, Angie Harris.

Angie, please tell us about yourself.
a.    I wear many hats on any given day…I am a wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, daughter, friend, confidant, and a counselor. During the day, I am an IT tech and facilitator at a high school, along with many other titles and descriptions… And by night, I am a friend to all who need me. Somewhere in the middle of all of this, I find time to write and indulge my inner child—who can be a bit bratty at times. Wink… wink. ;)

What is the title of your book?
a. Momma’s Little Helpers

Please tell us a little about your book.
a.    Momma’s Little Helpers is a wonderful little story about five young girls who embark upon some great adventures to rally support for their sick mother.

What inspired you to write this book?
a.    Honestly, this book was never meant to be written as a story which I intended to share…It was meant to inspire my mother as she was struggling to overcome lung cancer.

Which of your characters is your favorite and why?
a.    That would have to be Misty…her character has some great scenes. And because these characters are all representative of my sisters and me, I was able to easily imagine Misty and how she would react within the story. For her small size, she was brave and courageous and fought a great battle with a leprechaun. But truthfully, Misty (my sister) remains a child at heart and always will. I made her parts within the story so colorful because I knew how hard she would laugh when I read it to her—and boy did she!

What is your hope for your book?
a. Only that it keeps doing as well as it has up to this point. It has been received very well and has surpassed any expectations that I had for it. Just a few short weeks ago, Momma’s Little Helpers was bestowed the honor of receiving a B.R.A.G. (Book Reader Appreciation Group) Medallion! What a wonderful honor and completely unexpected. A friend had submitted the book for review and it passed all their judging panels and was awarded the Medallion.

What genre do you write?
a.    I like to challenge myself and try to write in as many different genres as possible. Currently, I have written children’s books and YA books within the fantasy category, but have mixed some of them with science fiction and love writing poetry.

How long have you been writing?
a. Since I could hold a pencil…I know…cliché…but also true. I have always been a bit of a story teller and always will be. It is part of my nature, part of who I am and how I express myself. Sometimes I share what I write, and sometimes I don’t. I write for pleasure and sometimes as a means of therapy.

What is your favorite way to promote yourself and your book?
a.    I would have to say that would be doing book readings. While it can seem a bit intimidating at first, I have always had my most rewarding experiences reading and discussing the books I have written.

What is your favorite place to market your book?
a.    Twitter

Do you have other books? (Feel free to list them.)
a.    Yes. I have written two novels in my YA fantasy series The Gates of the Realm, The Realm and Vanya’s Quest. I have also written two other children’s books for another series called Monster Feet. Monster Feet was actually self-published and gained some decent attention in a very short time. About three months after its publication, it was contracted by a publishing house. Sue’s Deep Sea Adventure is the second book in that series and has not yet been released.

Is there a message, a lesson, or a moral to your story? If so, would you like to share it?
a. There are many messages hidden within the pages of Momma’s Little Helpers. The girls exhibit teamwork, compassion, support of a loved one during times of need, selflessness and even courage. As the pages turn these five girls deliver many different messages to their audience.

Do you make your own covers?
a.    So far, I have for all of them except for The Realm.

Do you have a blog or website?
a.    Yes. http://www.angieharris.weebly.com

Are you a morning person or a night person?
a.    Morning.

Ugh... a morning person. Not me. I am more of a night owl. But... it must work for Angie, because I know her and her writing. I like her books! And, I am so happy for her! Thank you for sharing, Angie!
Having a BRAG medallion is a wonderful honor for an indie author. If you are an indie author and want to know more about the BRAG medallion, you can go to their website at www.bragmedallion.com.

You can connect with Angie Harris on:
Facebook
Twitter

You can also find "Momma's Little Helpers" on Amazon.com.

A New Cover and a New Contest

Wonderful news! "Clarinda Cloud" is getting a new cover! What do you think? I got to thinking that my original cover may not be eye catching enough. I hope to get it changed this week. It will be down for a day or two during the transition. But... after...it will be the same great book.... just with an even better cover!
There is also a new "Clarinda Cloud" contest...the last one of the year! You can have a chance to win a free copy by just answering two questions...you can pick from the questions on this site and my other blogs:

Clarinda Cloud's Feelings Blog
DUO Education Learning Blog

Here are your questions:

1. Please explore the site. What would you like to see offered for readers or authors on this site?
2. What kinds of books and on what topics would you like to see more of for children? Why?

A winner will be chosen from the people who answered at least two questions at the end of the month or beginning of next year. If nobody answers at least two questions, I will donate a book to someone or some place. If you win but would prefer a book to be given elsewhere, please let me know. (U.S. addresses only at this time, please.) Thank you. Good luck!

Announcements and Shout Outs

*I am now giving shout outs and promoting other authors more than I have in the past. I try not to give the impression that I know more about a book or author that I really do. If I know about an author or book, I try to say so and give a more specific shout out. If I don't... I try to make it fairly noncommittal! But... I am happy to help other authors. As all my sites are family friendly, I do not promote R-rated or X-rated. If you are an author, please feel free to contact me. There will be more information on this to come, so please stay tuned!

Here are the shout outs for today:
*Author Staci Stallings gave me this shout out to post... "Wonderful story of love, faith & forgiveness" DEEP IN THE HEART by Staci Stallingshttp://www.amazon.com/Deep-Heart-Staci.../dp/B005LVVIIG
*Children's author/illustrator Karen Deming also wanted a shout out. I have seen some of her illustrations. Nice work! You are see her site here.
*I would also like to give a shout out for author Bill Hillman. (Bill's work history includes much more than being an author.) He is turning his book into a movie. "Quigley's Christmas Adventure" is now in the funding stage.... you can find out more here. (I am so excited about this, because Clarinda Cloud will be making an appearance in this movie.)

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Sandra L. Portman Guest Posts about How to Make Interactive Ebooks

11/27/2013

1 Comment

Hello everyone! I would like to introduce to you, children's author, Sandra Portman! She has some interesting information on how to make e-books interactive for children. I can't wait to try this out! Thank you, Sandra!

Now that I am retired, I get to play and do things I couldn't do while I was raising a family and working. I guess it's not so much that I couldn't do them, but there never seemed to be enough time and I really wanted to concentrate on my children and my husband. I worked long hours and I spent most of my free time cooking and baking fresh food for the family.

Now that I have "all the time in the world," I wanted to explore my childhood love of reading and writing. Back then, I spent a lot of time with friends making up stories and games for our never-ending list of clubs. I don't remember why this was so important to us, but we always had a new club for some new adventure or hobby. We even made invitations for the new club and went through the neighborhood inviting other kids to join.

My second venture into writing for children came with a new series for pre-school children. I wanted to explore the use of interactive functions within digital books. I could just imagine the fun kids would have choosing the correct answer and clicking on a button. All I needed was bright, colorful pictures ad buttons. Starting from birth, these books could start out with just the pictures from which the kids would learn subliminally.

This would have been a nice series of books for each stage of learning up to kindergarten, but I thought it would be much more fun to have all the books in one volume. Each of my children had a favorite book during those years that they wanted to read all the time. As parents, we quickly become bored and tired of the favorite book, but they don't.

To take advantage of this favorite reading habit of young children, all I did was extend the early concepts to take advantage of the levels of learning from birth to age four. This meant children would have their favorite book with all their favorite pictures that grows with them.

There are two books in the series to learn the numbers and the alphabet. Each book has four levels of learning:

Birth to age one: The goal is to respond to pictures by copying sounds and pointing and patting the pictures.
Up to age three: Answer questions, identify pictures, and attempt to read with "pretend reading."
At age three, children are ready to read by themselves, and perform activities for longer periods of time.
Age four is when children begin to recognize familiar signs and labels, and make up silly phrases and rhymes. At this age, most children can count to ten.

Developing the Books

I don't use fancy software or tools when writing my books. All my books are written using Microsoft Word. In this series, the first two levels mainly use pictures and pointing to introduce children to the concept of numbers and the alphabet. In "Learn the Numbers," level 3 is used to teach children to point to each number in a collage of numbers and say the number.

In level 4, children are introduced to counting. They are presented with multiple pictures on a page and given a multiple choice answer. To answer the question, they press the correct button that corresponds to the number of pictures. If the correct button is pressed to answer the question, they proceed to the next question. If the answer is not correct, they are given the opportunity to answer the question again.

To create this type of book, it's easiest to create a data flow showing where you will take the reader when a button is used. You have two choices, a correct and an incorrect answer. These will be defined in the document with the Insert: Bookmark feature and the Insert: Hyperlink feature. These features are added after your book is completed. Whether you're creating an interactive fiction book or an interactive non-fiction book, create the appropriate headings for the functions. These headings will be used for linking.

Bookmark Feature

The bookmark feature will be used as the target - it's where you want to link to. It's the destination for the reader after they click on a link in the book. The first step is to tag the chapter or section headings in the body as bookmarks. The links are added later.

In my "Learn the Numbers" book, each multiple choice answer must lead the reader to a function; either the answer is correct or it is not. One answer will take the reader to a new section for the next question; the other two buttons will take the reader to the error message section.

Go to each chapter or section in your document, highlight the title, and click on Insert: Bookmark. Give your chapter/section a name and click add. Bookmarks cannot have spaces or odd characters. As an example, if you are adding a bookmark for the title, "This is Question 3," you can create a bookmark for "ThisIsQuestion3," or "this_is_question_3."

Linking to Bookmarks

In my example above, I have a multiple choice answer with three buttons. For each button, highlight the button, right click and select Hyperlink. When a new box opens, click on "Place in Document" on the left menu. You will now see your bookmarks listed in the main window. Select the bookmark to be used and click OK. Repeat this process for all the bookmarked chapters/sections in the document.

Testing Your Links

This is the tedious part, but must be completed to ensure all the links work. Click on each link and make sure it goes to the correct location. If it jumps to the top of your document, it means you are not linking to a valid bookmark. Make sure you're not linking above or below the target destination.

The last step is to test for hidden bookmarks, which can corrupt your document. To locate them, click on Insert: Bookmark and click on the Hidden bookmarks option. Try turning it off and on look for any bookmarks that start with an underline, such as "_Hlt30xxxx" Click the name of the hidden bookmark, then click the delete button on the right to permanently delete it.

Interactive Fiction Books

My new series, "Nathan, Family & Friends" are fiction stories around 2K words. In 2014 I am going to explore the use of interaction to have the reader decide where the story should go. For example, what happens to a character when different choices are made? This simulates real life and will help children learn to think before taking actions which could negatively affect their life.

Sandra's blog: www.sandralportman.com

You can also find her on her social media sites at:
Facebook
Goodreads
Twitter
Pinterest

Here are images of Sandra's books. You can press on the images to see them listed on Amazon. You can read the reviews, read the descriptions, see the rankings, and even purchase your own copies.

Notes, Announcements, and Shout Outs

*There is still time to win a copy of the "Clarinda Cloud Activity Book." You can find out more information on how to win on this post. Also, Clarinda Cloud reveals more hints as to where the waterfall is on her new "Clarinda Cloud's Feelings Blog."

*I forgot to tell you, Clarinda Cloud has her own blog now! She is going to blog every Wednesday, just like me! Her blog is about feelings. Some of her blogs will be children's books promotions by talking about the character's feelings. If you are interested in having your children's book promoted, please contact me.

*I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and a Happy Hanukkah this week!

Shout Outs

*My friend, Virginia Wright, has a book titled, "The Chrismas Secret." It is a wonderful children's story with a great Christmas message. Press the link to see the book on Amazon. Maybe I can even get her to guest blog for me here, so you can get to know her better.

*This shout out is for someone who can greatly help authors. It goes out about Choice Social Media Management. Marie Anne is very helpful! She has helped me quite a bit this week!

*My friend, Joyce Van Kirk, has an adorable little book titled, "The Six Forest Friends." The little animals are so cute! And... the message of friendship is a breath of fresh air!

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Where in the World is Clarinda Cloud?... And Clarinda Cloud as a Spokescloud

11/6/2013

5 Comments

Hi everyone! Last month I started a monthly giveaway from now until the end of the year. Nobody guessed where Clarinda Cloud was, so I will be donating a copy of "Clarinda Cloud" to a library. By the way, she was at Hartman's Farm Stand in Sheldon, Vermont. (Please stop in, if you are in the area. They have great produce. And, no, I am not related nor do I get paid in anyway for saying that.)
Time for another book giveaway contest! As you can see the "Clarinda Cloud Activity Book" is Photoshopped into a picture of a waterfall. Which waterfall is it? Do you know? Where in the world is Clarinda Cloud? Please comment your answer for a chance to get a free copy and if you don't know, please just comment the name of the elementary school, daycare, library, or children's counselor in the U.S. where you would want me to donate it if nobody guesses. (U.S. addresses only at this time, please.) Good luck!

What Else Have I Been Doing?

What else have I ben doing? I am glad you asked. LOL! I have been promoting Clarinda Cloud as spokescloud for Anti-bullying and Bullying Prevention issues.
There is so much bullying these days. Clarinda Cloud wants to help... and so do I! We are trying to raise awareness and give ways to prevent bullying.
October was "Anti-bullying and bullying awareness month." During the month, I created some posters like the one shown here featuring Clarinda Cloud. Please go to www.ClarindaCloud.com or www.DUOEducation.com to search for them. And, if you know away that Clarinda Cloud and I can help, please comment below or contact me. Thank you!

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After Labor Day Giveaway

9/4/2013

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Hi everyone! I am doing an "After Labor Day Giveaway!" I am hoping to catch the back to school people as well as the end of summer crowd. Both "Johnny's Adventure Makes Reading Fun" and "Clarinda Cloud" will be free on September 3rd and 4th on Kindle.
This is a promotion to try to get bring awareness to me as an author and to my books. As a relatively new author, my name is not widely known. Yet, I seek to change that.
Authors are in a unique profession where after long, hard work of writing, editing, formatting, promoting, marketing; that products are often given away for free or greatly reduced, just to gain awareness. It doesn't seem fair. Yet, that seems to be an industry norm.
Please, if you like a book... mine or anyone else's...tell a friend. Help spread the word. Maybe write a note to the author. Write a review. Share the author's posts about their work. Talk to your local library and book store about carrying the book. Talk to schools, libraries, and book stores about author visits.
Reading is important! I hope you enjoy my books! Thank you!

Here is an update since I started writing this post yesterday. This giveaway is my most successful yet. I also got a kind review by a few people. I would like to feature this one by author Lorieen D. Henry:5.0 out of 5 stars Identifying Feelings September 3, 2013
By Author Lorieen D. Henry
Format:Kindle Edition
Great Book! My daughter really enjoyed the book. I appreciated the way the author helped to address feelings. I'd recommend this book for 2-6 year olds.

Thank you, Lorieen! Please press here to visit her site! (I like to reward people who help me!) Thank you again!

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CLARINDA CLOUD and JOHNNY'S ADVENTURE MAKES READING FUN by Jodi Desautels are Free on Kindle 3/5-3/7 2015

Clarinda Cloud

Johnny's Adventure Makes Reading Fun

Jodi Desautels Promotes Herself, Her Books, Her Websites, and Her Links

Reflections, Ponderings, Giveaways, and Announcements

Notes and Announcements

Author Interview with Angie Harris about her Book: "Momma's Little Helpers", Announcements, Clarinda Cloud Contest, and Shout Outs

A New Cover and a New Contest

Announcements and Shout Outs

Sandra L. Portman Guest Posts about How to Make Interactive Ebooks

Notes, Announcements, and Shout Outs

Where in the World is Clarinda Cloud?... And Clarinda Cloud as a Spokescloud

What Else Have I Been Doing?

After Labor Day Giveaway

Jodi Desautels

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Jodi Desautels… bringing you books that are inspirational, educational, and relatable!