Book Excellence Award
I’m honored to be one of the recipients of a Book Excellence Award for 2017. Check out the other great books here.
I’m honored to be one of the recipients of a Book Excellence Award for 2017. Check out the other great books here.
I am so honored to receive the 2017 Global Ebook Awards Silver Medal for my debut novel, Bishop’s War, in the Suspense Fiction category. Thank you to all the judges and to all who’ve helped and supported me throughout this incredible journey. I am truly grateful.
Richard Klu was kind enough to interview me for his blog and I hope that indie authors who are navigating the many challenges of self-publishing find it helpful.
I’m excited to announce that I’ve just received a Bronze Independent Publisher Award in the Suspense/Thriller category. Check out all the other amazing authors here.
I’m honored to be listed as on of the top 200 authors in the world by Richtopia. Read more about it here.
I’m very thankful and honored to be named the Book Reviewers Cafe Author of the Month. Check out my interview with them here.
At the IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America) Heroes Gala at Cipriani’s last night I sat and listened to the incredible speeches and testimonials from IAVA president and founder Paul Rieckhoff, General David Petraeus, the reigning Miss USA (and Army captain!) Deshauna Barber, and the gold star wife who brought everyone to tears when she described the day she was making care packages with friends to send to soldiers in Iraq when she was notified that her husband had been killed in combat that morning. Throughout it all the common theme was that veterans and their families need our help.
It’s great to honor our soldiers and thank them for their service and sacrifice, but it’s simply not enough. As IAVA board member Leslie Gelb stated, “With the exception of a brief period after World War II, American veterans have been consistently mistreated and neglected for 240 years!”
Every politician, Democrat and Republican, wants a photo op with a hero in uniform, but then they resist making the policy changes needed to give our veterans what they need and deserve.
So as we honor and thank the men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces, think about the 150,000 troops currently deployed overseas, think about the 6 soldiers who were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan this past week… and then pause and think about the 20 veterans who will commit suicide today because they couldn’t get the proper help and treatment that might have saved their lives.
There are a lot people fighting to change our policy of neglect towards our veterans and the IAVA is one of them. Paul Rieckhoff and everyone at the IAVA are on the front lines making a difference and ultimately saving lives.
You can too! Get informed. Get involved. Find out more here.
#VeteransDay #UnitedStatesArme
I’ve been blessed to have shared so many incredible moments with friends and family throughout my life, but last Saturday will always stand out as one of those unforgettable nights that I wish was recorded from start to finish so I could replay it over and over again. Here’s what happened:
Martin Sierra, a great friend and my personal hero, invited me to his house for drinks. (For those of you who don’t know, Martin is a fellow NYC LES native who joined the Army with his son in 2001. Since 9/11 he’s had multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded the Bonze Star as well as numerous other medals.) So I’m expecting a few beers and a couple of rounds of pool in his man cave, but when I walk into his house it’s packed with friends, family and Special Ops soldiers he’s served with and they’re all standing, clapping and cheering. When I realized that the applause was for me and they were all there to celebrate the success of my novel Bishop’s War, I literally stood there frozen. The moment was overwhelming and as I realized what Martin and his beautiful and amazing wife Pepsi had done for me, I had one immediate goal: Don’t Cry! Not only did they invite everyone there, they made poster-sized blow ups of the book cover (and my author pic!), they set up a table with microphones where Martin interviewed me and had me do my first book signing! Pepsi even hired a pianist and a bartender, and cooked up a spectacular feast.
No one has ever done anything like this for me before and my description doesn’t come close to capturing how special it was. It’s also very humbling to receive praise from these true heroes who selflessly serve our country and will soon be leaving home for another year.
Thank you Martin and Pepsi Sierra for giving me a night that I will never forget.
God bless you and may he protect you all while you’re gone and bring you home safe and sound.
I was just profiles by James Maher on the neighborhood blog EV Grieve. Here’s part 2. Read part 1 here.
I was just profiles by James Maher on the neighborhood blog EV Grieve. Read part 1 here.
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