Tag Archives: children’s fantasy series

Mar22

Interview with Ron Crouch

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Ron Crouch is the author of the Beyond Belief series. The second book in the series, “Beyond Belief: The Adventure of Zombie Island” will release on March 31, 2021. Pre-orders available now.

I am a sucker for a good zombie book. I also remember teaching all the different genres when I was a teacher. October was the “Spooky” genre month, but I found many students reading them all year long. If you have a child that enjoys the “Spooky” or horror fiction genre, I think I’ve found the right author for you.

Ron Crouch is a child psychologist that loves to write and help kids critically think. He is writing a series of middle grade novels and the second will be released on March 31. With a love of fantasy as a kid, he brings alive a gripping and humorous world kids can get lost in. I had the chance to talk to Ron Crouch about his childhood reading memories, favorite author, writing routines and what projects he has planned in the future.

  • What is your favorite memory from reading as a child?

Ron Crouch: My favorite memory from reading as a child was the joy of stumbling onto a really good series and realizing that there were many more books to read.

  • Who was your favorite author and how did they influence you?

Ron Crouch: I loved Lloyd Alexander and I read every book he published. I finished them sometime between the ages of eight and fourteen. When I took up writing myself, I found that although my settings and characters are very different, and my use of language in much more modern, I still had the same love for quests, adventures, and tall tales.

  • Do you have a writing routine? Share what works for you.

Ron Crouch: I work as a child psychologist during the day, so my writing routine starts early, usually before 5AM. I try to fit in all my writing before I leave for work at the hospital each day. Luckily, I’m an early bird by nature and find that I am most creative in the hours before the sun rises.

  • What subjects would you like to write about in future projects?

Ron Crouch: The Beyond Belief book series is for middle grade readers, and I would like to finish the series with five books. But beyond that I would like to write nonfiction for parents. In particular I would like to help parents in their efforts to teach their children how to think critically in our current misinformation age.

  • What is writing to you in one sentence?

Ron Crouch: For me, writing is a way of contacting like-minded people and offering them a sense of belonging in a world that might not value them and support them.

“Beyond Belief: The Adventure of Zombie Island” is Ghost Adventures meets the Goonies. Kenai is an ordinary kid that just happens to be a paranormal investigator. With his sidekick Tinkerbell, an AI drone, he has gone after ghosts in a haunted theater, run from herds of jackalopes, and gotten lost in underground bunkers. But in this book two of the series, he finds himself somewhere he’d never imagine: stuck selling door-to-door products for the Happy Day pyramid scheme. But there seems to be something wrong with the company. Can he find out what is behind the sinister business before the zombie thugs find him?

“Beyond Belief: The Adventure of Zombie Island” is the second book in the Beyond Belief series. It is available starting on March 31, 2021 and is currently on pre-order at Amazon.com.

If you’d like to start the Beyond Belief series with book one in preparation for the release of book two, here is the link to it. Start with “Beyond Belief: The Adventure Begins” HERE.

Both titles are in the Kindle Unlimited program.

For more information on Ron Crouch and his other projects, please visit his website at:

https://raisingaskepticalkid.com/.

Dec28

Crystal Keeper Series After Christmas Sale on Smashwords

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I’ve listed the first book in the series, The Lost Secret of Fairies, as a FREE ebook on Smashwords just in time to help ring out the old year. The next book in the series, The Lost Secret of the Green Man, is on sale 50% off at $0.99. The After Christmas Sale will be going on from December 25, 2017 – January 1, 2018.

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The Lost Secret of Fairies will be on sale for FREE from Dec. 25-Jan. 1, 2018!

This is all in anticipation of the upcoming book, The Lost Secret of Time. It will be the fourth and final book in the Crystal Keeper Chronicles. Currently, I’m in the middle of revising the completed manuscript. The release date is looking good for Spring 2018. I’ve been in contact with the artist to complete the cover, and my editor has it on her calendar. Everything is in preparation.

I am SO PROUD to be finally bringing you this last book. It has been a long time in coming. With my being ill back in December 2014, this last book almost wasn’t written. But after the physical therapy, and surviving a heart attack, pneumonia and septic shock, it seems almost a miracle to finally be nearing the completion of this last book. I’m so looking forward to all of you being able to read it. There will be more to come as we near the release date. So stay tuned, and be sure to follow my blog for all the updated info.

But I do have to warn you. Brewford, the cat sorcerer, is telling me that he wants a book of his own to finally set the record straight. He wants a book of his own to tell the stories of his 800 year old lifetime adventures. Something tells me, he may get his wish. But how about you let me know. If you’d like a book told by Brewford explaining his adventures over 800 years as a cat sorcerer, let me know in the comments below.

And to you and all my fans and followers, a very Happy New Year and best wishes in 2018!

-Tiffany Turner

May17

UPDATE: The Lost Secret of Time: Final Book in Crystal Keeper Series Due out Spring 2018

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Working cover for the last Crystal Keeper Chronicles book, The Lost Secret of Time. 

I wanted to give everyone an update on the progress of the last book in the Crystal Keeper series, The Lost Secret of Time. I’m proud to announce that there has been a schedule set up for it’s completion. It is outlined, and has 9 chapters of the 14 written thus far. It’s scheduled with my editor for the end of October, and I’ve been working hard with the help of Camp NaNo to get it completed.

I have to thank all of my fans for your patience. I know this one is taking longer, but sometimes life throws things at you that can’t be planned for, like a heart attack, going septic in the hospital and having acute pneumonia. I’m just happy to still be alive and be around for a second chance to finally complete the series.

I also have to mention I did try to end the series with the third book, but the characters WOULDN’T let me. They insisted that the story carry on. So, that is why the third book ends the way it does in a cliffhanger. There was just more story to tell.

Plus, once I wrap up this series, I’m planning a prequel in which Brewford, the cat sorcerer, will be the main character. There are a lot of things hinted about his past in the series, and I want to write a prequel that explains it all. So, the ending of the Crystal Keeper Chronicles won’t be the end of Wanda’s fairy world. It will continue in other forms.

It has been an amazing ten year journey so far. I’m sure many of you fans have grown up waiting for the books to be written. If anything, you’ve learned that writing is a process and takes time, an average of two years per book at least. The biggest thing that a reader needs to possess is patience for your favorite books. I know your pain. I’ve gone through the same thing with my favorite authors, Anne McCaffrey, Anne Rice and Mercedes Lackey. I think the secret is having LOTS of favorite authors so you can switch between them between new book releases. It’s how I cope. 😉

Until then, take care, and I hope you enjoy your other favorite authors until the new and last book in the series is released next Spring. Stay tuned for fun summer reading activities and giveaways. Have a fabulous summer.

-Tiffany (Mrs. Turner)

 

May26

Update: The Lost Secret of Time is Coming!

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Tiffany Turner in the hospital ICU Dec. 2014

Tiffany Turner in the hospital ICU Dec. 2014

Greetings Crystal Keeper Fans! I’ve been rejuvenating my efforts to get back into the swing of writing. As always, life has thrown some curves at me. And they were some pretty big curves. There were a lot of changes in education, namely the Common Core, that has made it difficult for me to keep up with all my writing and still give all my efforts in teaching. Transitions are really hard in education, and this has been the worst and most difficult that I’ve seen in my career.

Then, I got blindsided by illness in December 2014. I got pneumonia and ended up in the hospital. While there, I went into Code Blue and cardiac arrest. Basically, I almost died, and the doctors were trying everything to help me pull through. I also had the complication of septic shock and the discovery of a heart blood clot. So, it was discovered that I have cardiomyopathy, a heart failure condition where my heart isn’t pumping enough blood to the rest of my body.

My monitors in the hospital.

My monitors in the hospital.

This has made it difficult for me to do much else but get better. I’ve been on medical leave from teaching, and I’m taking a year of absence to get my health back. The bonus of all the health issues is that as I start to feel better, I can start writing again.

So, over the next year, I’ll be working on The LOST SECRET OF TIME and finishing the Crystal Keeper Chronicles. I’ve always intended on doing so. But sometimes life just throws you a curve ball, and you have to adapt, pick yourself up, brush yourself off, and keep going.

Resting in my hospital bed Dec. 2014.

Resting in my hospital bed Dec. 2014.

All the encouragement is always helpful and appreciated. I’ve got a start on THE LOST SECRET OF TIME, and signed up for Camp NANO in April to make progress on the book. Things are underway, and I’ll be sure to give you updates as I move through the process. As for now, I’ll be continuing with featuring more Indie Authors once a month, and will try to get back into doing Indie writing posts to help out other authors.

So, hug your parents, kids, and pets. Positive thoughts can do so much. You just never know what path will lay before you. And with writing, everyone is on a different writing journey. I’m glad to be sharing mine with you.

Take care!-Tiffany Turner (Mrs. Turner)

Update: April 20, 2019

Since I wrote this post, I have spent a few years getting back my strength, getting into a writing routine, and returning to teaching with limited hours. I’m currently working for a private education tutoring company and going back into schools teaching after school workshops in Science, Math and Reading. Life it is a bit different now, but I am proud to announce I finished and published the last book in the Crystal Keeper’s Chronicles, The Lost Secret of Time. I’ve also been speaking on different Self-Publishing panels at local cons, working diligently on my romance pen name, Marilyn Vix, and continue to keep healing as I feel I’ve been given this second chance.

It just shows that no matter what happens, don’t give up. You can’t just throw in the towel, but think hey, what can I do with what I have now? Focusing on my writing and the support of my family and friends have made it possible to keep going, and of course, keep writing. If I’ve learned anything from all this, it’s to not let what life throws at you stop you. Keep moving towards your goals, and you can do anything.