Come in from the Summer Heat and Enjoy Some Wonderful Podcast Interviews

Writers in the Sky July Podcasts Offer Information on Author Services and Conversations with Writers Who Create with Emotion

Nashville, TN, June 26, 2009—The Writers in the Sky podcasts for July will feature interviews that provide information about services that may prove helpful to both new and experienced authors, as well as conversations with authors who have new thought-provoking releases that will leave the listeners thinking. The month begins with a poet who has developed her printed work into audio book format and incorporated wonderful family music and memories in the process. The next week features a business owner who develops internet marketing plans for authors and who can share great ways to take advantage of online opportunities. The following Friday will bring an interview with the “Book Marketing Maven” who works with authors, bookstores, and small publishing companies in promoting non-fiction publications. The focus of the interviews changes when WITS talks with a veteran poet, whose work has been published in multiple languages and been taught in high school and college classrooms, about his new collection of work. Finally, July comes to a close with a controversial and timely book in which an experienced missionary discusses how one conversation with a jihadist changed his perspective on religion and global conflicts.

The July series of podcasts will begin on July 3, with WITS owner Yvonne Perry interviewing Janet Riehl about her audio book Sightlines: A Family Love Story in Poetry & Music. This four-CD compilation is a follow-up to her book Sightlines: A Poet’s Diary, which was published in 2006. Through these new CDs, Janet shares her works of poetry in her own voice. There is great personal meaning to the pieces, as they were all written about family members or places that are close to her heart. Intertwined with the poetry are musical selections performed by her father and others. Together, the components of Sightlines: A Family Love Story in Poetry & Music come together to form a beautiful testimony to the love of family. Janet will be discussing the inspirations behind her work as well as the reason that she decided to create this audio book. For more information about Janet Riehl or to purchase Sightlines: A Family Love Story in Poetry & Music, please visit CD Baby.

The podcasts continue on July 10 when Yvonne Perry interviews Marlive Harris. Marlive is the owner of GRITS.COM Literary Service, is a company that offers online promotional campaigns for authors. Her website also features reading communities for adults and children. As a former teacher and school librarian, Marlive brings a wonderful perspective to the literary world. Over the six years in which GRITS.COM has been in existence, Marlive has helped many authors through book clubs, podcasts, virtual book tours, and other outlets. During this interview, Marlive will discuss what her company can offer to authors, bookstores, and small presses. To learn more about Marlive Harris and her services, please visit http://www.thegrits.com/.

Take a mid-month break and tune into the interview that Yvonne Perry will be conducting with Dana Smith. Dana is the “Book Marketing Maven” who specializes in book marketing for nonfiction publications. She has published a series of ebooks that together form the Savvy Book Marketer Guides. The featured topics are Selling Your Book to Libraries, Successful Social Marketing, and Promoting Your Book Launch. Dana brings fifteen years in the publishing industry and a degree in marketing to her writing and consulting. Therefore, she has the experience to help authors cater a book marketing plan to their specific publishing, marketing, and distributing. Dana and Yvonne will discuss how the Book Marketing Maven may be of help to you! To learn more about Dana Smith and her business, please visit her website.

On July 24, Sarah Moore will discuss the book New and Selected Poems with poet John Yamrus. This collection includes work that dates back to 1985, as well as sixteen pieces that are being published for the first time. Over his forty year career as a poet, John Yamrus has had over 1000 poems published. He also has produced sixteen books of poetry and two novels prior to the release of New and Selected Poems. This year marks his second consecutive nomination for the Pushcart Prize for Poetry. His poetry has been discussed in classrooms at both the high school and college level. Please join this conversation as John Yamrus shares some insight into his poetry, which takes an honest look at the world in which we live and challenges other writers to think outside their comfort zone. To learn more about New and Selected Poems, please visit the Amazon website.

The month of podcasts ends on July 31 with a conversation between Sarah Moore and author Aaron Taylor. Aaron will be sharing information about his book Alone with a Jihadist: A Biblical Response to Holy War. This book stems from a meeting that Aaron had in London with a jihadist named Khalid. For Aaron, who had been raised in charismatic church and was already an experienced missionary, this one encounter transformed his perspective on religion and world affairs. Aaron uses Alone with a Jihadist: A Biblical Response to Holy War to share his belief that Christians are taught by Christ to follow a path of pacifism when dealing with earthly disputes. During the interview, Aaron will discuss his ideas in more details as well as share the work he is doing to put this theory into practice. Alone with a Jihadist: A Biblical Response to Holy War will be available for purchase in August 2009. Please visit Aaron’s website at http://www.aarondtaylor.com/ to learn more.

“There are so many great services out there for authors who are looking for new ways to market their work and the podcasts this month will provide insight into a couple of these businesses,” shares Yvonne Perry, owner of Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services, which produces the podcast. “I also think the conversations we have with the featured authors will let our listeners in on some new books that are emotional and lasting in their impact.”

About Writers in the Sky: Writers in the Sky blog, podcast, and newsletter is a three-fold production filled with information about writing, publishing, and book publicity created by Yvonne Perry as part of Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services (http://writersinthesky.com) Listening to Writers in the Sky Podcast on a computer is easy. Go to http://yvonneperry.blogspot.com. On the right sidebar there is a list of archived shows. Click on the interview you would like to hear and it will open a post that has a link to the audio file.