Musa Publishing

Sharon Ledwith shares her Chocolate Banana Split Dream and her New Book!

Posted on November 14, 2013November 14, 2013 by Lisa Orchard

Hello everyone! I hope all is well with you. I’ve got awesome author and great gal pal Sharon Ledwith here today. She’s sharing her yummy desert with us! Take it away Sharon!

View Chocolate-Banana-Split-Dream.jpg in slide show

Legend-dairy Chocolate-Banana Split Dream…

In my book, Legend of the Timekeepers—the prequel to The Last Timekeepers series—my adolescent characters Lilith, her BFF She-Aba, and an annoying goat-herder named Tau are transported from the Black Land through the seventh Arch of Atlantis, and travel back in time to Atlantis one hundred years before its final destruction. There, Tau finds that he has an insatiable taste for a strange, long yellow fruit he’s never seen before. Fortunately for us, this long yellow fruit—a.k.a. bananas—are readily available at our local markets, and used in some wicked-awesome recipes. The following recipe is easy to make and only takes twenty minutes to prepare, and is a great pick for families to create together on those rainy, fall afternoons:

What you Need:

30 Oreo Cookies (or generic brand), finely crushed (about 2¼ cups)

6 Tbsp. butter, melted

1 pkg. (250 g) your favorite brand of Cream Cheese, softened

¼ cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cold milk

3 cups thawed your favorite brand of Whipped Topping, divided

4 bananas, sliced

2 pkg. (4-serving size each) of your favorite brand Chocolate Instant Pudding

3¼ cups cold milk

1 third cup maraschino cherries, halved

¼ cup chopped toasted walnuts

2 Tbsp. chocolate syrup

What You Do:

MIX cookie crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of 13×9-inch dish. Refrigerate until ready to use.

BEAT cream cheese, sugar and 2 Tbsp. milk in medium bowl with whisk until well blended. Stir in 1 cup Whipped Topping; spread over crust. Top with bananas.

BEAT pudding mixes and 3¼ cups milk with whisk for two minutes; spread over bananas. Let stand five minutes or until thickened; cover with remaining Whipped Topping. Refrigerate four hours.

TOP with cherries, nuts and syrup just before serving.

Did I forget to mention that this yummy dessert serves twenty-four of your closest friends? That’s a good thing, seeing as Tau has a big family! Now, while you’re waiting for this dessert to set, why not partake in an afternoon of cozying up on the couch with a good book?

There is no moving forward without first going back.

Lilith was a young girl with dreams and a family before the final destruction of Atlantis shattered those dreams and tore her family apart. Now refugees, Lilith and her father make their home in the Black Land. This strange, new country has no place in Lilith’s heart until a beloved high priestess introduces Lilith to her life purpose—to be a Timekeeper and keep time safe.

Summoned through the seventh arch of Atlantis by the Children of the Law of One, Lilith and her newfound friends are sent into Atlantis’s past, and given a task that will ultimately test their courage and try their faith in each other. Can the Timekeepers stop the dark magus Belial before he changes the seers’ prophecy? If they fail, then their future and the earth’s fate will be altered forever.

Sharon Ledwith is the author of the middle-grade/YA time travel series, THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS, available through Musa Publishing. When not writing, researching, or revising, she enjoys reading, yoga, kayaking, time with family and friends, and single malt scotch. Sharon lives in the wilds of Muskoka in Central Ontario, Canada, with her hubby, a water-logged yellow Labrador and moody calico cat.

Legend of the Timekeepers Buy Links:

MUSA PUBLISHING ׀ AMAZON ׀ BARNES & NOBLE ׀ SMASHWORDS ׀ KOBO ׀ APPLE

Learn more about Sharon Ledwith on her WEBSITE and BLOG. Stay connected on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, and GOODREADS. Check out THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS TIME TRAVEL SERIES Facebook page.

Guest Author, promotion, Teen

Please Welcome Sharon Ledwith as she shares her Time Travel Series with us!

Posted on September 19, 2013September 19, 2013 by Lisa Orchard

Hello everyone, I hope all is well with you! I’ve got fellow author and great friend Sharon Ledwith here today and she’s sharing her Time travel series with us, and also giving us a little history lesson on Atlantis! So, without further ado…take it away Sharon!

Atlantis101…

No lost continent has a more powerful hold on our imagination than Atlantis. In fact, each generation has felt the need to search for the truth of its roots. Presumably, Atlantis was a flourishing island empire located in the present-day Azores. Or do the remains of this mystical place lurk deep under Antarctica’s ice cap? There’s also the possibility that remnants of this advanced civilization are buried under the marshes of Spain. Whatever the truth is, theories abound, and stories about Atlantis still flourish to this day. So much has been written about this legendary country that it was hard to lock down the information I needed to create my middle-grade/young adult time travel series. It was a challenge for sure, but I managed to find a handful of resources that allowed me to craft a master plan for the book series.

The oldest and fullest surviving account of the great island’s rise and fall was provided by the Greek philosopher Plato, who lived from about 428 to 348 BCE. In his seventies, Plato composed two dialogues (the way he wrote out his philosophy) called Timaeus and Critias based on information passed down by word of mouth through his relatives, and a Greek statesman named Solon, about the lost continent. It was gleaning through Plato’s numerous descriptions about Atlantis that I knew I had collected enough information to form a blueprint of what this mysterious place would look like for me and my readers.

Through Plato’s story of Atlantis, I gained an incredible amount of data on the people, their appearance and lifestyles, what was important to them, the architecture, their influences, the way they used and manipulated energy, and even about the final destruction. Too much information filled my head, until I sorted out what I could use to form the basis of my first story, The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis and the prequel of the series, Legend of the Timekeepers.

I’ve always had an insatiable interest in this mysterious country. In fact I, like Plato, believe that Atlantis did exist. How about you? I’d love to hear your comments!

Author Info:

Here are Sharon’s books!

Tagline/blurb for The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis:

Children are the keys to our future. And now, children are the only hope for our past.

When 13-year-old Amanda Sault and her annoying classmates are caught in a food fight at school, they’re given a choice: suspension or yard duty. The decision is a no-brainer. Their two-week crash course in landscaping leads to the discovery of a weathered stone arch in the overgrown back yard. The arch isn’t a forgotten lawn ornament but an ancient time portal from the lost continent of Atlantis.

Chosen by an Atlantean Magus to be Timekeepers–legendary time travelers sworn to keep history safe from the evil Belial–Amanda and her classmates are sent on an adventure of a lifetime. Can they find the young Robin Hood and his merry band of teens? If they don’t, then history itself may be turned upside down.

Tagline/blurb for Legend of the Timekeepers:

There is no moving forward without first going back.

The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis Buy Links:

MUSA PUBLISHING ׀ AMAZON ׀ BARNES & NOBLE ׀ SMASHWORDS ׀ KOBO

Legend of the Timekeepers Buy Links:

MUSA PUBLISHING ׀ AMAZON ׀ BARNES & NOBLE ׀ SMASHWORDS

Learn more about Sharon Ledwith on her WEBSITE and BLOG. Connect with Sharon on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, and GOODREADS. Check out THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS TIME TRAVEL SERIES Facebook page.

Thanks so much Sharon for sharing your new release with us! I’ve definitely got it on my TBR pile! 🙂

Fantasy

Interview with Sharon Ledwith author of The Last Time Keepers Series

Posted on September 6, 2012September 6, 2012 by Lisa Orchard

Hello Everyone! I hope all is well with you! I’ve got Sharon Ledwith here today answering some questions about herself and her new series! Take it away Sharon!

What inspired you to write a Time Travel Book?

I’ve always loved the time travel genre. I guess what got me back to thinking about it was reading the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. I haven’t read them all yet, just the first four thick books because the series is quite an investment in time (no pun intended!). When I pondered the idea of writing for young adults, I went with what I loved. Plus, I had a dream in 1998 where I saw seven arches, and there were seven people (five kids, two adults) with crystals in their hands, walking up to these arches. It definitely had an “Indiana Jones”feel to it. So, I thought I’d challenge myself and write a novel—a series—that would appeal to my son, who at the time was the target age of my audience, so I imagined the arches I saw vividly in my dream as time portals. And the rest is history – pun intended!

Who is your favorite character and why?

Really? That’s like asking who is your favorite child! Woot! Okay, if I had to pick one, I’d have to say Treena Mui, only because she’s a lot like me humor-wise. I used to crack off like her when I was a kid, so I guess it comes naturally. I wish I had her sense of confidence back then!

Why should readers read your book?

I think The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis is a timely book. I believe kids need to read what my characters have got to say. That everyone has a purpose, a talent, a gift to be shared with the world. That we all have the power of choice, and we create our reality. And that we really do need to pay attention, and then take action in our lives to make our dreams come true.

Tell us a little bit about your writing process.

You would ask that, Lisa. I have many notebooks and pads and sticky notes at my disposal. I also have a file full of ideas. I guess I start with the characters and build the story around them. The characters, my characters, must carry the story to completion, give readers closure. It’s a must. In order to do this, I begin writing out character tracking sheets (stats on characters appearances, clothing, likes and dislikes, etc.) which have served me well throughout the writing process. Then the fun begins. Research, research, and more research. When you’re writing time travel, you’ve got to know your facts to create the fiction. I love this part of the journey too. Only when I have enough facts, and I feel my characters are fleshed out sufficiently, then I begin to start the novel. Sometimes I’m a panser (writing by the seat of my pants), sometimes a plotter (outline entire storyline)—it all depends on the tone of the book and where my imagination directs me.

What’s next for Sharon Ledwith the author?

Currently, I’m working on the prequel to the Last Timekeepers series, entitled The Legend of the Timekeepers. I also have a completed manuscript of the second book in the series entitled, The Last Timekeepers and the Dark Secret, but there’s the fun job of revising it into Jordan Jensen’s point of view. I’ve written a master plan for the series with possible titles and premises, and I’m in the process of putting all this information together in a series guidebook, so I’ll be one busy gal!

Fun questions:

Tell us something that no one else knows about you.

Well my hubby and I used to own a graphic trade company called Box Office Graphics in the early 80s to 2004. I enjoyed every aspect from thumbnail to final product, but the technology grew so fast you had to keep up or get out. We had our fill in 2003 and sold in 2004. I was very grateful for that time in my life and learned so much about the aspects of owning a business, which is one of the hats an author has to wear.

What kind of books do you enjoy reading?

Silly question! Time travel, but also like a broad range of reads, especially self-help non-fiction, and paranormal romance, some dystopian, and young adult fantasy. Presently, I’m reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (finally!) and finishing The Tempest by Julie Cross.

Who’s your favorite author?

I would have to say Diana Gabaldon, but I like Rick Riordan just as much. Both are very different authors who write in different styles but each have to do a lot of research for their books.

What’s your favorite guilty pleasure?

Single. Malt. Scotch.

If time travel were actually possible, where would you go?

That’s an easy one. Atlantis. I believe it was a real place and not a myth. I’ve done too much research to know this. My gut tells me Atlantis existed. However, I wouldn’t want to go back there when things, let’s say got little shaky and wet, for the Atlanteans!

Sharon Ledwith is the author of the middle-grade/YA time travel series, THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS, available through Musa Publishing. When not writing, researching, or revising, she enjoys reading, yoga, kayaking, time with family and friends, and single malt scotch. Sharon lives in the wilds of Muskoka in Central Ontario, Canada, with her hubby, a water-logged yellow Labrador and moody calico cat.

Here’s the Blurb for The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis: