I’m so excited that spring is finally here. Yes, March 20th is the first day of spring. Can you believe it? We’ve had a pretty intense winter, here in California, which is unusual for our part of the world. Endless days of rain, floods in many areas and where I live, an exceptional amount of snow to the point where I was snowed in for a few days. To celebrate and welcome the glorious months of spring, Reckless Beginnings ebooks are on sale.
🌾💐🌷🌹🥀🌸🌼 Spring Time Sale! All ebooks are on sale for a limited time for $0.99. 🌾💐🌷🌹🥀🌸🌼
Tammy Mellows wanted to be loved. For her, love was blind and she only saw what she wanted to see until it was too late. Now she must face impossible challenges to win back her life.
🌾💐🌷🌹🥀🌸🌼
Read what people are saying about the book.
I loved this story. It was amazing!! It totally captured me from page 1. After reading the first few chapters I was addicted and couldn’t put the book down. – Stewart Book Reviews
A very good page turner. The main character of the book is very well written and I felt so connected to her life, her choices and her pain and happiness. – Dana D
Reckless Beginnings has excellent character development, and Tina Hogan Grant does a fabulous job of showing the heartbreak of being involved with a drug addict. Compelling, heart-rending read. Couldn’t put it down. – Michele I. Khoury – Author of Busted
Hogan Grant has a great sense of storytelling and she succeeds in keeping readers engaged through each page of her gripping story. – Readers’ Favorites.
For a Limited Time, Reckless Beginnings is on sale!
I’m not sure when this crazy sale will happen again. All eBook formats of Reckless Beginnings are on sale for just $0.99.
Is there someone on your Christmas list who would love a copy of Reckless Beginnings? Grab your copy now before the sale ends. The perfect last minute Christmas gift. CLICK on a link below to purchase.
Reviews
REVIEWS
“Reckless Beginnings by Tina Hogan Grant is engaging and riveting, a well-written story injected with a lot of realism and pathos. Told in a strong and mellifluous tone, this is a story about family and a woman’s search to make sense out of the chaos of her life.” – Readers’ Favorites
“I read the book in a day and a half. A great book I couldn’t put it down. ” – Angie Hardy
“What a story to be told. Moments that are gut-wrenching, some that are comical, some moments where you just want to scream why are you doing that…. but in the end a very good page turner. The main character of the book is very well written and I felt so connected to her life, her choices and her pain and happiness” – Dana D.
An unexpected announcement – four days early but Reckless Beginnings is available for purchase.
Available in Paperback edition.
My book went live last night on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. No need to wait until October 4th you can BUY IT RIGHT NOW! Amazon UK is showing temporarily out of stock, but you can place your order now and it will be shipped when available, which I’m assuming will be soon.
FOLLOW THE LINKS BELOW TO PURCHASE
Amazon U.S.A
Amazon.co.uk
Contest – Win A FREE signed Poster of the cover
To celebrate the release of the book I want to give away a FREE signed poster.
If you purchase my book, send me a picture of yourself with my book to be entered in the drawing for a FREE signed 24 x 31 poster of the cover. (Note it will not be a hardback poster like the one in the picture, but it will be the same size. ) The little boy, by the way, is Jonathan. My best friend’s pride & joy 🙂
The contest is worldwide – Anyone can enter
You give me the right to post your picture on my site and my social media accounts when you enter this contest.
The clock continues to tick. Counting down the seconds, minutes, hours and days until release day is finally here. Yes, October 4th is the magic day. By the time this goes live, we will be at fifteen days until that anticipated day is finally upon us. It will be the day my book, Reckless Beginnings will finally be available to purchase. Wow! I can’t believe it. Can you?
Preparing for the launch and bringing awareness of the event has not been easy. It has involved numerous emails to bloggers, newspapers, podcast and TV shows. Sending out a press release to various target audiences. Booking a virtual book tour. (Due to begin October 1st and run for one month.) Organize book review tours. (due to begin, October 27th.) Plan a book signing event. (This will be at the Frazier Park library, Saturday, October 13th; 3:00 – 5:00 pm.) It has been an exhausting ordeal, but each day results from my efforts are beginning to trickle in.
My First Podcast Interview
I had my first podcast interview with The Thrillers & Mystery Podcast. I was somewhat nervous in the beginning. But the host was wonderful and eased me into the interview and made feel extremely comfortable. It went longer than I had anticipated, about twenty-five minutes, but I’m quite pleased with it. I didn’t feel rushed and got to say everything that I had wanted to say. You can listen to the entire interview below.
Interview with Voyage LA Magazine
I was contacted by Voyage LA Magazine last month and asked if I would like to do an interview. It was a written interview which was nice because I knew all the questions up front and there were no hidden surprises. I spent a few days, taking my time and thinking about my answers. The interview went live earlier this week. You can read the full interview by clicking on the image.
Upcoming Interviews
I have also been contacted by FOX 58 BAKERSFIELD NEWS to appear on the show. A date has yet to be set. But as soon as I have it, I will post it to the locals, so they can hopefully tune in.
HOMETOWN STATION AM radio 1220 of Santa Clarita has invited me to be a guest on the show. I will be appearing live on October 9th at 8:40 am.
A Newbie to Interviews
Before writing my book Reckless Beginnings, being interviewed about anything had never crossed my mind. My lifestyle didn’t require it. Now all of a sudden it has become a necessity. It’s an important method to reach hundreds, sometimes thousands of people and spread the word about my work. How quickly one’s life can change.
Like anything in life, the more you do something, the easier it becomes. I’m finding this with interviews. The first one I did, I was a nervous wreck, I felt I stumbled my words and even though I said a lot, I wasn’t saying what I had rehearsed before the interview. It’s quite a learning experience and one has to stay in tune with their mind and nerves and don’t let your nervousness run the show. With practice, you’ll begin to notice habits of nervous energy that need to be controlled. For me, it’s shifting in my seat, unable to sit still or tapping my fingers on the table subconsciously. Because of these habits that I’m unaware of at the time, I now sit on my hands while being interviewed. It works!
I will continue to pitch to the media even when the book is out. Promoting the book will never end. I have only just begun 🙂
If you know of any media outlets, (Podcasts, radio, tv, magazines, or newspapers) that may be interested in hearing about my book please send or post me a link and I will defiantly contact them.
Book Launch/Signing October 13th
Book Trailer
What is a book Aesthetic?The story behind the book
Launch day, (October 4th) is fast approaching. I can’t believe it’s only three weeks away. It’s hard to fathom sometimes, that a story I’ve created, babied and protected, will soon be available for the world to see. As nervous as I am, I have to say, I’m also extremely proud of myself and I wish my parents were here to witness this huge milestone in my life.
When I started this blog, (fourteen months ago. (Has it really been that long?) I wrote an article titled; It takes courage to publish your book. It was written, soon after I had signed the contract with my publisher and suddenly everything seemed so surreal. I am feeling the words I wrote even more so today. There are so many emotions that go into writing a book and this truly puts it all into perspective.
What inspired me to write Reckless Beginnings
Over the past couple of months, I’ve done a number of interviews on podcasts, websites and book blogs. The most common question was; What inspired me to write the book? A question I’m sure I’ll be asked, at future events. Then it occurred to me that I’ve not discussed this topic on my own site. So I think it’s about time.
Reckless Beginnings is women’s fiction based on True events that have happened in my life. Tammy Mellows, (the main character) is me. I wanted it to read like a story and not a memoir, (personal choice,) therefore, names, places and some facts about certain events have been altered.
I developed a passion for writing at the early age of fourteen. I think having an author for a father had something to do with it. It was around this time, one of my older sisters ran away and couldn’t be found. Unable to search for her, I became frustrated and began writing in a journal to gather my thoughts. My book begins with the disappearance of my sibling.
A few years later and with my sister still missing, chaos began to erupt in my own life. I was on a path of making hideous choices and in denial because I wanted the white picket fence and the perfect American family life and ignored any signs that may disrupt that dream.
I allowed my life to be dictated by a heroin addict, the father of my child. Believing that his needs were more important than mine, I got swallowed up in his lifestyle, losing my sense of direction, courage, and identity. Throughout the chaos, I continued to write in my journals.
During that time, I searched for books written by other women that found themselves in the same predicament as myself but came up short. I only discovered “How to” books, but they were not the voices I wanted to hear. I needed to know how they coped. What did they do? I wondered what their everyday lives were like; I yearned for some sort of connection with someone. I had so many unanswered questions.
I had an idea
That was when the seed was planted for my debut novel, Reckless Beginnings. But it didn’t happen right away. I tucked it away and continued to struggle with the battles in my life.
Twenty years later I still had not written the book, but the thought never left me. When my father suddenly passed away in 2010 and a year later I was diagnosed with breast cancer I began to think seriously about the book and began writing the outline. Eight years later it’s finally going to be published. (Phew.)
Writing it twenty plus years later was extremely difficult. It didn’t occur to me that I would have to revisit such a dark time in my life and allow all the emotions I felt back then to resurface, in order for it to show in my writing. At times it became unbearable and I had to walk away, regroup and attempt certain scenes a few days later or sometimes weeks later.
So why did I put myself through such pain?
While writing the story I gave myself the title; The Silent and Forgotten One and soon realized, anyone who is involved with an addict becomes such a person. You may ask, Why? It’s because over time we allow our lives to be consumed by the addiction. We become a shadow, believing their needs are more important than ours. we become afraid to speak, stand up for ourselves or make any kind of decisions to better our lives. It’s a lonely place and we only feel safe with ourselves and our own thoughts. We lead a double life, letting those on the outside believe everything in our lives is a bed of roses and yet in reality, behind closed doors we are living a nightmare.
When I couldn’t find any books written by others living such a life, I felt they should be heard and one should be written. I wanted to show the flipside of addiction. How it effects the significant other of the addict. Back then I was a victim, I now call myself a survivor.
I needed to dig deeper
I also needed to understand myself during that time. Why did I put up with the abuse, keep silent for so long and not leave right away? Most of it was because of fear but much of it had to do with denial and wanting what most normal families had. Writing the book helped me unravel all of that and I’m hoping it will help others come to terms with their situation and listen to a voice who has been there and find the courage to turn their lives around.
So there you have it. I hope this brings you some insight into the background of my book. Even though it was hard to write at times, overall I’ve enjoyed the journey and I hope you will enjoy the book.
Other articles about the book
What is a Book Aesthetic? And why I made one for my novelThe Synopsis of Reckless BeginningsPress Kit
I thought this day would never get here. My book Reckless Beginnings was submitted for publication in July 2017. Finally, after months of editing, tweaking, and many frustrations, I am able to reveal the cover to all of you that have followed me on this journey. Getting to this stage has been a long grueling 13 months. So with no further ado; HERE IT IS! Drum roll, please 🙂
So What do you Think?
I hope you like it as much as I do. I love the soft matt colors that capture the mood of the main character Tammy mellows, who finds herself at a crossroads in her life. Struggling to recapture her identity and make sense of the chaos that surrounds her. This image shows her contemplating the decisions she has to make and whether she will make the right one.
I would love to hear your thoughts about the cover in the comments below. Did it live up to your expectations? If you saw this cover on a bookshelf, would it captivate your attention? From looking at the cover, is it a book you would purchase?
More updates
Now that the cover has been unveiled it’s time to give you some insights on other projects that have been happening during the preparation of the book launch.
I’m a Luster Lexicon Winner
A few months ago Luster Lexicon ran a contest for their Writer’s Spectacle. A place where they feature eight winning authors on their site for a month. I decided to give it a go and submitted myself as a contender. A few weeks later I received the first round of detailed questions, submitted my answers and was elated a week later when I was informed that I would be moving onto the next round. Again I answered more questions and submitted my answers. A month went by without hearing nothing. Then over the past weekend, I was told I was one of the eight winners and I would be featured on their site.
It will go live on September 10th. Having never done an interview before, this is a nail-biting event for me. Wish me luck! If I’m able to post the interview here, I will do so.
Launch Party/Book Signing
The launch party/book signing event will be held at the Frazier Park Branch library. This is also where we hold our monthly book club meetings. I meet later this week to schedule a date. We are thinking somewhere around mid-October. Once confirmed I will post on the site. I hope to make it a fun event with raffle prizes for a kindle-white, gift certificates, book giveaways along with bookmarks, bags and other fun items. I’ll plan on doing a reading and make some time for discussion and questions. If you are in the area, come, join us.
Sneak Peek at the Prolog is Coming Soon
If you read the interview on Luster Lexicon, you probably noticed there was a little excerpt from the prolog of Reckless beginnings. That is a tiny piece. I will be posting the full prolog, only for my readers in about two weeks. So be sure to open those newsletters so you don’t miss it.
Virtual Book Tour
A virtual book tour is scheduled for the month of October with Goddess Fish Promotions. I am also a host for this site which is why you see the host banner. This tour will make 8-10 stops a week on different book blog sites which will include, interviews and giveaways, plus a 30-day promotion on Twitter.
Reckless Beginnings Book Giveaway
If you are a member of my newsletter, you are automatically entered in the drawing for one of the first signed copies of Reckless Beginners. The drawing will take place on the launch day – October 4th. If you haven’t signed up yet, here is the link. Win a free copy on Reckless Beginnings.
Good Luck!
A Big Thank you!
As the book launching day draws closer, I want to give a big thank you to all my supporters and followers who have been on board since day one. You are all amazing and I hope you enjoy my debut novel, once it reaches the stores. I hope to have some more updates in the upcoming weeks.