Last night when I was getting ready for bed, I looked out our bedroom windows as I usually do every night. We have an outstanding view of a large valley surrounded by a luscious green hill care of the Texas Hill Country. We live out in the middle of nowhere. There are no city lights […]
What is the best advice you can give to ...
Howdy y’all! I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted any updates but I’ve been busier than I ever thought I could be! .and I’ve survived! I must tell you that after building a house, it feels quite excellent sitting behind a computer at my brand new desk. I’ve spent most of this year […]
Do author websites need a blog?
Today’s question is a popular one, primarily because blogging can be time consuming. If you are spending your writing time writing something other than books, are you utilizing your time effectively? Q. Do I need a blog on my author web site? How do I gain blog followers? A. I go back and forth on […]
Free ebooks to get the word out
Today I’ll be focusing on a very important question in regards to marketing, Free E-Books. You’ve spent a LOT of time writing your book – to give it away for free – is it worth it? Well that depends… Q. Have you found it effective to offer free ebooks to “get the word out?” A. […]
Children NEED their Imagination
One of the most inspirational and rewarding moments I’ve ever had when meeting with students was the day I showed a class of first grade students how important their imagination is. After reading a Hamilton Troll Book to this group of students we started talking about what it’s like to be an author – to […]
How to successfully market your book
Last week I wrote about how I was interviewed for a column titled, Author Questions FOR Successful Authors. That was not only an awesome feeling of joy, but humbling as well because someone considered little ‘ol me a success! Insert big grin here. Well after typing up my responses I realized this was incredibly helpful […]
Pet Cemetery | The Inspiration behind th...
Last year while driving to a trade show in Utopia Texas I passed by an old sign that said something to the effect of “Hill Country’s Oldest Pet Cemetery”. As I continued to drive on this very long winding Texas road I started thinking to myself how Stephen King ruined it for everybody. His book […]
Local Texas Author Wins 2 Award for Chil...
Press Release Texas Author Wins Two Awards for Children’s Cookbook Teaching Children to Make Fun Healthy Snacks with Easy Kid-Friendly Recipes August 3, 2017 – Kathleen J. Shields a prolific writer and award-Winning Texas Author announces the “Hamilton Troll Cookbook” a top-notch, educational children’s cookbook that has already won 2 awards (First Place Cookbook from […]
My Origin Story
This weekend I took the AME a marketing event for authors designed to increase your ability to make book sales. It was wonderful learning about so many new techniques… some of which you’ll see utilized in the coming months. That being said one of the classes discussed the importance of the origin story – the […]
National Poetry Month – Be Great!
April marks the month where schools, libraries, publishers, poets, and booksellers celebrate the importance of poetry in our lives. …So I didn’t want to let the month go by without posting at least one poem. Did you know there are 55 types of poetry forms? There’s a ballad, a couplet, an epitaph, free verse, haiku, […]
So many things, so much to say…
If I would have had the time I would have prepared quite a bit of news, but alas time slipped away from me, just as my grandfather did this past month. While the past 30 days have been quite emotional, those feelings were mixed. There was sadness blended with happiness, joy combined with grief and celebration jumbled […]
Are you ready for a Crazy Ride?
The night a red meteorite crash lands in the woods, Jared’s world gets turned upside down! A red-haired substitute teacher arrives from Mars, a red wolf begins terrorizing the neighborhood and red zits keep appearing on his face! Learning about constellations, Jared’s friends connect the dots on his face only to discover they make the […]
Rudy Rat’s wRap
Watch The Video Now! I am very excited to announce the release of the official Hamilton Troll Cookbook promotional video: Rudy Rat’s wRap! This fun rap song was written by award-winning author, Kathleen J. Shields, for illustrator Carol W. Bryant’s pizza wrap recipe. We hired Zach Swagger to perform the rap song and spent a […]
Why I Write
Survival… Sanity… When I was young, there were situations in my life that were not happy. To escape a negative situation, I’d write about a positive one. When I was being bullied and felt vulnerable and weak, I’d write about having a super power where I could be strong and take care of myself. When […]
Sisters in Anguish
Oh look at those shoes – oh my, they’re so cute! Look at those heels. I look so astute. The leather, the lace, the cloth and the buckles, I can’t wait to wear them – each lady chuckles. But lo – when you wear them, your head held up high. You’re feeling so proud […]
Which came first the Bean or the Bean Sp...
[column-third-1] [/column-third-1] [column-third-2-3] Here we go again… Working on a craft for the cookbook I once again was shocked to learn that bean sprouts came from beans. Yes, I know the name is a great factor in this explanation but I really had no idea that bean sprouts came directly from the bean. I thought […]
God is Like Ice Cream
Those who know me, know that I found God after my mother passed away. I knew about him, but didn’t really know him until the night a prayer group prayed for me. That night, God hugged me. He made his presence known to me for the first time in my life. Finally understanding, truly feeling God’s […]
Gilmore Girls Revival: How it should hav...
I just finished watching the Netflix Revival of Gilmore Girls and I, like many probably, cried many times throughout the shows. In fact, I bawled like a baby, sobbing at the end when Lorelai and Luke finally got married. I have a lot in common with the Gilmore Girls, raised by a single mother, having […]
We are like Squirrels
I was looking out back from the sliding glass window in Maryland and saw a couple of black squirrels going about their day. I don’t see black squirrels in Texas, at least not in my neighborhood. There we have grey squirrels. I know there are grey and black, have seen white albino and a couple […]
Life inside a Time Capsule
In case you don’t know, a time capsule is an air-tight container that is buried containing important items, with the intention of being opened at a future date. In the movie “Knowing” with Nicholas Cage, his son received a document from inside a time capsule that predicted the end of the world… cool movie. Why […]
Pineapples don’t grow in the ground?
The other day I saw a picture of a pineapple plant and was actually taken aback at the fact that a very large heavy pineapple grows on the top of this plant. For some reason I always thought that pineapples grew in the ground like potatoes or carrots or maybe on top of the ground […]