"Celebrate Libraries Contest"

Released (Book 1 in The Shapeshifters' Library series) 
has over 50 reviews on Amazon and 76 ratings on Goodreads. 
I’m so thrilled I’m celebrating with a big contest. 
Win one prize for yourself and one to share with your favorite librarian.

• For you - A book bag filled with books and swag.(Canvas book bag, T-shirt (size large), Fluffy dog puppet, Books: The Shapeshifters’ Library Book 4 – Reprinted, Heads in the Clouds, Relaxing the Writer book & CD, plus misc. swag: dog biscuits, real wolf fur, tea bags, etc.
• And for your favorite Library - Print copies of The Shapeshifters’ Library book 1-4 mailed to the library of your choice.

Why would your librarian love The Shapeshifter's Library series?

• A library filled with shifter librarians and human librarians with ordinary librarian superpowers.
• Library humor: RFID labels as a plot device, werewolf bookclubs, disappearing books, a children's librarian grows a tail, bookworm crisis, censorship of anthropomorphic books, a library janitor challenges a incumbent werewolf for town mayor, and more...
• Warning: Some humor is aimed at cat-loving librarians (this is a dog-shifter focused fantasy)

So, what do you have to do?

Only one thing!

Send me an email: amber@amberpolo.com 
Add the Subject heading: "Celebrate Libraries Contest" and tell me the name of your favorite library (the library I'd send books to if you were chosen as the random winner.) That's all and I'll pick a random winner.Contest ends: Midnight Wednesday, September 16th, 2015

Dear Library Lovers:
f
Even though this contest doesn’t require it, I’d still love library lovers and dog lovers to visit my website, watch my book trailer, and sign up for my newsletter.
f
And please forward to your friends and librarian friends,
f
Amber
 

Light urban fantasy for lovers of libraries and dogs!
Librarian dog-shifters and book-burning werewolves

Book 1 Released - Liberty and Chronus's story (Golden Retriever & Old English Sheepdog)
Book 2 Retrieved - Godiva and Cynerik's story (Chocolate Labrador Retriever & English Mastiff)
Book 3 Recovered - Bliss and Harry's story (White Greyhound & Werewolf-Dog mix)
Book 4 Reprinted - Pacifico and Atlandia's story (Chihauhua and white Werewolf)

50 Plus Reviews for Released!

 

I'm thrilled to see Released
has over 50 reviews!

To show my love of  reviewers, readers, and libraries, I'm celebrating by sharing my favorite outtakes.

And Coming Soon - Watch for a big giveaway and the chance to win prizes yourself and your favorite library.

Amber 

Outtakes from Released

When Released, the first in The Shapeshifter's Library series, was published some of my favorite librarian scenes fell on the Editing Room floor, perhaps because they lacked paranormal twists or because contained too much library humor. Some of that humor tickles librarians and serious library lovers more than readers entranced with dog-shifters and book-burning werewolves.

So, indulge me and let me share three of my favorite outtakes.

• Elsie Dustbunnie's Retirement Party (The original opening chapter of Released)
• In Released Liberty Cutter's staff think she has no life outside the library and encourage her to date. Readers loved her elegant dinner date with dreamy Gregory who (spoiler) turns out to be a shifter.
  
  But before that children's librarian Bliss D. Light convinces Liberty to go on three blind dates. The first two dates didn't make it into the book, BUT here they are:
• Date One (Liberty meets Rolf Grimm, an academic librarian for Sunday brunch) Sort of, based on personal experience.
• Date Two (A library salesman takes Liberty to a library conference and helps make her presentation a success.) Based on library vendor friends.

Prescott Library Displays Professional Writers of Prescott Books

Thanks to the Prescott (AZ) Public Library for displaying 85 books published by 36 members of the Professional writers of Prescott (PWP). Special thanks to the library for agreeing to add the books to their collections!

Photos and publishing biographies of each author are posted on the wall behind the books.

Thanks to PWP and especially President Jeannie Leighton; Secretary Carole Bolinski; Membership Chair Marian Powell; Bulletin Creator Susan Lanning; and Members Cathleen Cherry, Jessie Lincoln, Ronny de Jong, Connie Johnson and David Ganci for setting up this great showcase of books!

What a great way to show off local authors. 

On display for the month of December.

Libraries and Writers

Back in August I did an interview on The Library as Incubator Project blog. Their mission is to promote and facilitate creative collaboration between libraries and artists of all types, and to advocate for libraries as incubators of the arts.Their website features artists, writers, performers and libraries who exemplify the “library as incubator” idea as well as highlight resources that may be of particular use to artists and writers and provides ideas for art education opportunities in libraries with our program kit collection and practical how-to’s for artists and librarians.

Needless to say, their questions were not the usual ones bloggers ask. Thanks to them I needed to rethink the relationship between libraries and writers. Here's an excerpt from that interview -

Please tell us a bit about yourself (who you are, where you’re from, the type of work you did).
My first library job was in my fifth grade school library in Wisconsin. After I received my MLS from UW-Madison I worked in public, special, and university libraries all over the country and for library service companies building online catalogs and providing contract services. I’ve seen a lot of libraries from the inside.

What is/has been your relationship to libraries – as a reader, worker, and writer!
As a reader, writer, and researcher I’ve found each library a treasure of function and beauty. Now, as a full time writer and yoga teacher, I’ve become a library volunteer in a small town library and appreciate what a library building without a million volumes can offer.

Your book series, “The Shapeshifters’ Library” is set in/around a small public library in the midwest. Can you talk about how the library factors in to the series, and what inspired you to integrate the library so fully in to the story?

I wanted to write about libraries and tell a little about what goes on behind the scenes. And make it fun. In imagining The Shapeshifters’ Library series, I created two libraries, like Downton Abby, upstairs and downstairs.

The upstairs library is an appealing small town library, remodeled from an abandoned academy. Filled with brass, wood, and sculpture, the antique domed Shipsfeather Public Library also contains all the latest technology to serve the town. With a vampire look-alike YA librarian, a New Age chanting children’s librarian, and more, the community loves the staff and SPL does pretty well despite the town being run by library-hating bureaucrats.

In the levels below, traditional scholarly research librarians work tirelessly to discover clues to break the curse that locks them in. What makes these librarians a little unusual is that they are dog-shifters, descendants from an ancient race that have loyally worked as librarians and protected knowledge from their distant book-burning werewolf cousins. Though captive, they’ve created Zoogle an internet company bigger than Goggle, and a library services company able to install RFID codes that can track a book for miles.

I wanted to portray librarians as smart, resourceful, exciting, human, and most all dedicated. Notice, some dog-like characteristics. The werewolves, of course, are the villains. That’s my world and here’s my favorite quote:

Throughout history, just as many dog-shifter families are librarians, certain werewolf families destroy libraries. In whatever ways they can… Liberty [Cutter]’s eyes widened … She thought of all the negative librarians with minds closed to providing good service. “You mean every cranky, indolent, and downright nasty person who works in a library is a werewolf? That teacher in library school who turned every concept into an equation, the student assistant who mis-shelved the most popular books on purpose, and catalogers who create obscure subject headings? Bureaucrats who cut library budgets and hours? Parents who object to books containing any ideas not already in their own heads?”  (Released, 2012)

From a writer’s perspective, how do you think libraries can serve artists/writers even more effectively in their creative work?
All creatives need support, inspiration, and a venue. Libraries are in a perfect position to passively and actively supply all three. I am passionate about public art and feel permanent and temporary displays are needed in every library in some form. Passively, all libraries provide the research materials and media to explore creativity and support artists’ research needs. Actively, public libraries can provide a place for exhibits and invite artists into the library to offer programs to inspire children, teens, and adults to stimulate their creative souls. Programs by and for writers are a natural partnership. Also, I think the performing arts can have an exciting place in public library programing, especially in communities with limited cultural opportunities.

Writers often need “another place” to write. A place that’s not their home or a Starbucks’ corner. A place with comfortable chairs, quiet, wi-fi, and passable coffee. writers need access to the specialized worlds of research that the internet does not offer. And books. Art and history books and a depth of literary works, media, and databases unfold the heritage of the past and provoke dreams for the future. And staff to open all the doors.

As a writer, what would your ideal library look or be like?
My ideal library would have the quiet charm of an English manor house library (with more comfortable chairs), plus the excitement of a street fair, while providing the latest in technological access. It would have both an espresso machine and an Expresso Book Machine (for POD books), and an in-house café serving low cost healthy gourmet treats.

Amber Polo is the author of two Arizona romances, Relaxing the Writer (a book with lots of tips to help artists, readers, and even librarians relax), and a CD to teach anyone to relax and fall asleep faster than a boring book. Her award-winning Shapeshifters’ Library series is a cozy fantasy for dog lovers and library aficionados. Book 1: Released, Book 2: Retrieved, and  Book 3: Recovered.
Visit her website http://www.amberpolo.com/  to see floor plans of her imaginary library and find links to bios of some of her imaginary librarians.

Romance Novel Convention in Las Vegas (August 2013) & the RONE!

I love conferences, conventions, workshops, and expos. I especially appreciate the organization that goes into planning and pulling off an event with so much creativity and attention it looks as if it fell together flawlessly. 

As a librarian I loved library conferences: books, new technology, books, lectures and meeting new and old friends. Did I mention books? As a library consultant I loved setting up booths, standing for 3-5 days (well, not that so much), demoing the new technology, meeting new and old friends and clients, competitors’ parties, entertaining, and swag. Library sway was always great (did you know?).

I also exhibited at law library conferences, whose parties and swag were really over the top. The books - not as much fun.

When I was involved in the world of dogs I loved the organization of dog shows that allowed over a thousand dogs to enter a myriad of classes and on the show day, all show up at the right time and place, judging takes place and like a fantastical elimination contest, and the day ends with one dog judged Best in Show. (It’s not that simple, but it still is amazing.)

Since I started writing, I’ve never attended a big romance writers’ conference. I’d heard about the Romance Novel Convention in Las Vegas for authors and readers of romance (August 7-11, 2013) and considered it was close enough for me to drive, but dithered. When Released finalled in the RONE (Reward Of Novel Excellence) contest hosted by  the classy InD'tale Magazine, I was told winners would be announced at the RNC. I checked the RNC website and was impressed with the organization and raw creativity Jimmy Thomas put into this first ever event.

It seems to have all the elements of a romance writers’ conference. Nationally knows speakers, parties for networking, book fair, raffle, prizes, swag bags and swag tables. (The RONE contest itself was masterfully planned and executed and deserves a post to itself.)

But some aspects were not so common. Reasonable prices for the conference and lodging in the convention hotel. A very creative food package. Practical programs for writers and reader. Nationally respected speakers (Bob Mayer, Jennifer Ashley, etc.). A costume ball (with opportunity to rent costumes) A professional photographer for headshots. Romance novelist Virginia Nelson’s wedding (how romantic is that!). And movies for when you’ve talked yourself hoarse.

And oh yes, male cover models will compete for a “Mr. Casanova Competition” (how appropriate – Casanova was a librarian.) Yes Jimmy Thomas, the organizer and host is a cover model, a great businessman, a smart and generous man, and not bad-looking. And he does grace over 5,000 romance novel covers.

Brilliant promo idea - Authors may rent the cover models to have them learn and perform a scene from their book. 

And  - the awards ceremony!!!!!!!

And for you dog lovers:

I’d love to interview Mike O’Hearn (7-time Fitness Male Model of the Year and a Mr. Casanova judge) about his rescue dogs. After they were used on a photo shoot, he took them home rather than hove them returned to the pound. Awwwe….

Banned Book Week

It’s Banned Book Week - September 30th through Oct 6th

First published on 28 Sep 2012 by The Muffin - Friday Speak Out

It’s Banned Book Week - September 30th through Oct 6th!

by Amber Polo

Why should you as an author care? Your books probably will never be banned. Right?

The freedom to write and publish without censure is a gift to you from those who have worked hard to protect the rights of all writers. The authors of the Bill of Rights. The ACLU. And, yes, librarians. Those be-bunned creatures have protected your rights for decades. They didn’t have to love your work or even want to read it, but they understood that if censors were able to ban one book, all were in danger. They stood up in their libraries and in courtrooms.

As I wrote The Shapeshifters’ Library I reflected upon the freedom to read and the freedom to publish and what I, as a librarian, always took for granted. I incorporated the problems of libraries into a fantasy where noble dog-shifters protect knowledge from book-burning werewolves in a small Ohio town. I speculated on the many ways the werewolves among us have tried to curtail our knowledge. It became clear that banning and burning are pretty much the same thing. If a book is unavailable, it’s ideas are gone. If it never gets published, it’s unavailable.

Enter “Fifty Shades of Grey” into this year’s censorship discussions of what should be ripped from shelves and chained in the library’s basement. In a small library bookclub I facilitate, I asked a group of senior citizen-readers if they planned to read the book. We had a great discussion. One of the best comments was from a woman who said she would read it because she wanted to be able to discuss it with her grandchildren. 

Recently the San Francisco Public Library installed 18 privacy screens on computer terminals to shield from others what one person sees on the internet, be it porn or someone’s idea of porn.

Librarians don’t judge the reason you want to read. But they do have policies detailing their individual library book selection policy. Public money can’t be stretched to buy everything published. (Remember that when you expect a library to buy your book or accept a donated copy.) 

 

Celebrate Banned Book Week by reading a banned book. Check out these lists of the Top Ten Challenged Books for the years 2001 through 2011. I bet you find a couple of your favorites.

Visit your local public library and see what’s changed. Support your local library. And love your librarian.

Full disclosure: I have an MLS and have selected books for a public library. And I’ve listened to the first third of “Fifty Shades of Grey” in audiobook.

*********

More Thoughts -

Sometimes it's easy to imagine that the censorship of books like "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Leaves of Grass" are in the past. Have you seen the Idaho story of "Like Water for Chocolate"? These parents who described the book as filled with porn might be surprised at the books on their teenagers' cell phones.

Since I write about dog-shifter librarians who protect books fighting Book burning werewolves I found it interesting that National Dog Week preceded Banned Book Week. 
And you thought my stories are fantasy! :)  Amber Polo

So Celebrate!

Read a Banned Book!

Take a Treat to Your Librarian!

And Read to Your Dog!

 

Cecil - Character Interview

Cecil Miller 

Audio-visual Librarian, MA, MLS

Don’t ask me why I’m working in this town that would be the perfect setting for “Our Town.” It’s nice enough, but there’s absolutely no entertainment. After graduate school I took the job of AV Librarian to earn some money for my move to Hollywood. I want to be a director. My friends tell me I should try for a job in one of the studio libraries, but I’m still building my resume.

Here in Shipsfeather’s Library I curate the audio-visual collections. That means I select the visual media of all types, except for except for audiobooks and juvenile titles. All the formats that you have to listen to or view with some kind of device are my purview. Movies, TV shows, documentaries, educational videos, and music. My department also has computers for DVD viewing and one very old microfilm reader for film not available in any other format.

Library Director Liberty Cutter is great. I mean she encourages me to plan film series programs and create montages of classic films. Without a movie house, the poor people of this town are limited to movies on cable TV and streaming movies to computers and other small screen devises, but that is so lame. I feel my special job here is to introduce the screen gems of the past.

As you might guess I spend a lot of time watching movies. Besides the movie channels on my big screen TV, I travel to Dayton and Columbus and even Pittsburg and Cleveland for film festivals. I have a complete personal collection of Michael Moore films.

One more thing -– You’d be surprised at Liberty’s taste in movies. She loves fantasy, as do a lot of librarians (I won't venture a guess about that). But she also likes some movies made for children like 101 Dalmatians. Most surprising is her obsession with Disney’s Shaggy Dog. She loves that movie. I mean loves. Before she purchased her own copy, she checked it out so often we had to replace the DVD. Everyone has their quirks. The characteristics that make movie characters interesting also make librarians interesting. And this library is filled with quirky librarians. Maybe I should write a script…

There is something odd in this town... Just whispers, but I think there are shifters around. Now, that sounds more like a Hitchcock film. Impossible. Who'd believe small town librarians were really dog-shifters?

As soon as the next season of Ohio film festivals is over, I’m sending my resume to Lionsgate.

Favorite Reading: 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Steven Spielberg: A Biography, 2nd Edition.

Complete List of Characters 
in 

The Shapeshifters' Library Series

  Read 

Released (The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1)

to learn more about Cecil's library, the dog-shifters, and the werewolf book-burners.

In Print September 9th!