Maria E. Schneider

You can find several of Maria's short stories online in such fine magazines as: Coyote Wild Magazine, www.AnthologyBuilder.com, TownDrunkMag.com and Over My Dead Body.

She writes cozy mysteries, fantasy, paranormal mysteries and has her pen ready to write a ghost story in the near future.

Visit Maria at her blog: www.BearMountainBooks.com.

Website: http://www.BearMountainBooks.com
Blog: http://www.BearMountainBooks.com

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Jeffry Hepple
Latest book: The Way of All Soldiers. Published on May 29, 2011.
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Shayne Parkinson
Latest book: All I Want. Published on August 19, 2010. (5.00 from 13 reviews)
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• Smashwords Style Guide on Aug. 30, 2009
  
  Good stuff and essential reading if you want to upload a book! Thanks for writing down the details in such a compact form.
  
• The Timing of Love on Sep. 12, 2009
  (no rating)
  Well written horror/dark fiction flash fiction.
  
• If Only on Sep. 12, 2009
  (no rating)
  Cuuuuute. Good formatting (although there is a stray number 2 at the end?) and good editing. Bit of silliness here; nothing wrong with that.
  
• On the Great Wall of Texas on Sep. 12, 2009
  
  This is a very well-written, political irony piece. I admit, it grabbed my attention--which side of the issue...there's some...let's call it global warming thrown in for good measure. I imagine it was written to make people think a bit--It resonates. But if you don't like polarizing issues, this may not be for you. Cleverly done piece.
  
• Close Shave on Sep. 12, 2009
  (no rating)
  I don't like horror, but this is well-written and well-formatted. It is, as the description promises, rather gross (not an overdone thing, just horror.) It is...every boy's nightmare.
  
• You Better Run on Sep. 12, 2009
  (no rating)
  A quick read, kept me turning the pages. There's some minor issues with characters talking followed by a capital: "Blah, blah." She said, instead of-- "Blah, blah," she said. Sometimes an action other than speaking also follows the speaking part, "Blah, blah," she walked away. It wasn't noticeable until the last page. The story moves along quickly so the minor anomalies are easy enough to ignore. I'd classify this as horror, rather than suspense. If you like a good vampire scare, this qualifies.
  
• Everybody Loves Squirrels on Sep. 12, 2009
  (no rating)
  A rather bizarre story that reads like an essay (there is no conversation at all--no speaking parts.) This story should clearly be filed under horror, rather than adventure. The "payoff" feels like a cheat since there are no horror elements until the end; merely a tale of growing old with a few eccentric ideas. There is no building of tension so that the reader has a sense of climax. There is really no foreshadowing. The story for me was a sad essay, rather than a twist of fate.
  
• DEAD(ish) on Sep. 13, 2009
  
  This story was okay, although I'm not fond of changing POV in a novel...and less so in a short story--but that is a personal preference. The cursing got in the way--too much of it, distracting. The formatting/editing was of good quality in this read.
  
• Quest for the Simurgh on Sep. 22, 2009
  
  This book is well-edited and well-formatted. It's a cross between YA and a children's story. The concepts are such that it's YA, but things are simplified in some places, and thus it reads for an even younger age (8-9?). Some of the problems presented are quite simple as are the solutions. (Do we accept a girl even though she is a girl, do we trust our friends, do we forgive them and so on.) In some cases, challenges are solved so quickly it is more what I would expect from a young children's book. For example, the children decide to go on a quest--to achieve this they have to make up excuses or lies. This part would have been more believable had they simply run away because some of the scenes didn't ring true at all (especially that of Parvis. I don't believe with his background he would have taken the route he did--nor do I believe his father would have allowed it). The descriptions and mythology are handled quite well and in good detail. The unusual characters and the various legends were a big strength of this book. However, it is here that I am not certain a younger child would remain engaged because some of the detail spans several pages. The world that is created is quite magical and intriguing in several scenes. The children in this story reminded me a bit of the Boxcar Children with a spiritual/mental challenge. Each child is given a challenge in the book, but there is not as much depth here as I would expect with a YA. In a normal quest, you would expect a YA to face a challenge that had grown throughout their lives--so perhaps a person who had always been tempted by gold/riches, would have to face that down. This story did not have such a background with every character. When it did have "past doubts" it was not as well-developed as I would have liked. I would have liked to see the self-doubts early--and then have to see them faced down. Although I don't know quite where this story fits age-wise, it is well-written and mildly entertaining. The pace could have been faster, especially in the beginning. The early scenes were used to "setup" the story and the personalities. While done well, I think it could have been done more effectively during the journey. They served a purpose, but were slow. I think the characterization was good for a children/YA, but not good enough to make the cross to adult (some YA are very good crossovers into adult; this is more a crossover into childrens). The most interesting thing about the book is the legends and unusual beasts; these were imaginative and fleshed out well.
  
• Fatherly Love on April 02, 2010
  
  Nary a wasted word or wasted moment, this book grabbed me from the first page and drew me in to the very interesting mystery that unfolded. At first I thought Barker, a used-to-be-a-reporter, might be one of those loser investigators who drank too much and ended up with luck and too many hangovers, but the story came through. While Barker threw back more than a beer or two, he had the better qualities of my favorite pulp fiction heroes. He's a stubborn sleuth, intent on earning his pay and solving his case. He may be the cliched loyal tough guy, but he follows his heart when it comes to loyalty. This is a fast-paced, well-written tale, perfectly formatted and proofed. Well-done. Highly recommended for an entertaining afternoon read.
  
• The Ultimate in Women's Self-Defense. on May 16, 2010
  
  Self-defense is comprised of two parts--mental and physical. The author rightly spends significant time discussing the mental preparedness. Why? Because some women will never practice the physical techniques described in the book. Many women will never take a class. This book has several chapters dedicated to things ANY woman can do to prepare for an attack: Think about ordinary objects as weapons. Be aware of your surroundings. Have a PLAN in case of a break-in or an attack. Think about things you can do to prevent all of the above. I've had some training, and this book was a VERY GOOD refresher. There were several ideas I hadn't heard or thought of. This is a good book for any woman thinking about taking a self-defense or karate class. It's hard to walk into a karate class because it's a CLASS with other people who will witness your clumsiness, your lack of aptitude...and in general, can be kind of embarrassing. This book pretty much lays out the types of exercises you'll be doing, the things you will learn and why. If you want to practice at home before joining a class, it provides plenty of instructions. If you, like me, want reminders or refreshers, it's an excellent guide. If you're elderly, young, disabled, small, weak--this book has techniques, ideas--and confidence builders. On the downside, the pictures demonstrating the techniques are at the END of the book, rather than with the instructions. I didn't know this and had some trouble picturing which defense/technique was being described. Since I've had some training I was always able to figure it out, but the pictures are worth a thousand smacks to the side of the head. There were a few sections where the bolding of paragraphs ran on longer or wasn't there (chapter headings) but that really only meant nice DARK text! I know that in training, repetition is everything, but especially in the intro and first two chapters, some of the info was repetitious; some chapters could have been tighter. Later in the book the reminders/hints/repetitions were much more natural and the pace picked up. There are some heartwarming tales, some harrowing tales, some good examples and some that didn't quite capture a real life situation. I suspect that the author has never walked alone in a dark parking garage--or maybe I'm just terrified of dark parking garages. He did the job though, in this example and others--providing good examples and reminders that can be readily applied. I enjoyed the sections near the end where three other experts gave their advice. Even though the advice mimicked that in the book, it was interesting to read the advice/experience of other instructors. Much of self-defense is a mindset and the strength of this book is the reminder to take self-defense seriously. It is in the idea of empowerment, the teaching that you can fight back, that you can be better prepared and that we all should be prepared.
  
• The Angel of 1776 - A Novella on Jan. 10, 2011
  
  As a general rule, I'm not too keen on historical fiction. I do dabble in reading it now and then, but I can't compare this to anything else I've read, no doubt due to my own failure to read enough of it. Obviously I had heard the names in the story (General Washington anyone?) and had a semblance of the actual history, but the daring feat of historical fiction is to bring the characters alive. I was not immediately convinced by the characterizations; it took more than a quarter of the novella. But. Once the characters had me, I was completely captive; I needed to know what happened. As a person who rarely reads history, a list of the characters and a short paragraph of their known roles would have been helpful--once I cared about the characters, I would have found this an interesting appendix. Or perhaps as I was reading, I would have dipped to the back to check--a map of where these people belonged in the history of the story/time of telling. Never mind my lack of education, the story itself was well-told. One thing history books fail to do for me is bring alive the sacrifice, the desperation...the very deaths of the people. Historical fiction, when done well, gives a more complete backdrop--it shares emotions, setting, smells, heat and in this case severe cold. It captures the sudden emptiness upon the death of a worn soldier. This novella does what dry history does not; it painted just how badly Americans wanted freedom, hated taxes, and how many wanted a fresh start. It also reminded me that war--all war--pleads for Divine Intervention. This novella showed the desperation of the Revolution and how on many, many counts, it probably should not have succeeded--perhaps it really was nothing short of a miracle that it did. And while there may be myths embedded in the facts, there was also the very real picture of lazy politicians/leaders who could not believe anyone would be bold, brave or determined enough to fight for anything at all. Those in leadership positions believed too much in their own comfortable lives, their own power and the status quo--mostly because they were quite happy with it. Such beliefs are a dangerous but common failing, one that human nature falls for again and again. I wish books like this had been used to supplement the teaching of history when I was in high school. While it does blend facts and fiction, it has a powerful impact.
  
• Backlash: A Novelette on May 22, 2011
  
  I've read some of Nancy Fulda's short stories before; this one is every bit as stellar. Backlash grabs your emotions and doesn't let go until the last page. I felt the pain, the desperation, the hope. These characters want to survive and you'll be right there with them, hoping for a miracle. *Highly* recommended. This novella was a definite page-turner. There are interesting sci-fi elements, but it's the characterization and plot that really make it shine.