Category Archives: Uncategorized

Why Hate Isn’t The Answer

Being from originally from St. Louis, I have been watching the events in Ferguson carefully.  I worried from the very beginning that no matter what the grand jury verdict was, violence would erupt in the streets of Ferguson.  Why did I feel that way?  Because the protesters in Ferguson didn’t want the truth, they wanted justice for an imagined wrong, and no matter how much evidence was presented that might  justify the shooting, they would never believe that Michael Brown deserved any part of it. Continue reading Why Hate Isn’t The Answer

Coming soon!

Okay romance fans get ready for a wild ride!  The unique humor of Constance Kirk is coming to Kingsmuir Press.  If you haven’t experienced her raw wit and unique voice in the literary world you are in for a treat.  Her newest novel Appeal is due to hit bookstores and e-readers sometime in January.  More details coming soon a bit closer to the release date!

You’re Lucky, and don’t you forget it!

Sometimes I dread Monday mornings, it means I have a whole week of deadlines, editing, rejections etc. ahead of me.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my job, but sometimes I envy my slightly diva friends who married well and have never had to work a day in their life.  Their kids are grown now and they complain of boredom, condemned to spend the rest of their life in Plastic surgeons offices and beauty salons, all in an effort to keep up their looks so that their husbands won’t be tempted to run off with a younger, prettier woman.

Seems like a lot of work right?  Well they think their life is pretty hard, but what is the cost of all that beauty?  I think sometimes we forget that everything we indulge in here in the US has a slightly tawdry background in a country where it’s people are hurting for money and will do just about anything to ensure that their family survives.  I ran across this article on the internet this morning and found it fascinating.  I have never had hair extensions before, but know many who have.  Next time you head the to salon for extensions think about the poor woman who had nothing else to give for her family. https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/the-real-story-behind-where-your-hair-extensions-come-101266901210.html

Fall Is Here!

The leaves are turning, the nights now have a bit of a chill in the air.  Everywhere you look you can find goodies made with pumpkin, lattes, scones, pies, ice cream.  The list goes on and on.  There are a lot of reasons that fall is my favorite season, but fires in the fireplace are my favorite thing of all.  I stack floor pillows on the hearth and grab my Kindle and read all evening long. Continue reading Fall Is Here!

Book Tour Highlights

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Jean mingled with friends and fans at Webster University .
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Jean with husband Gary at the St. Louis County Library’s Star Catchers Gala.
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Gary Stanberry with author Craig Johnson.
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Jean and husband Gary mingling at the St. Louis County Library’s Star Catchers Gala.
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Jean and husband Gary taking in a late season Cardinals baseball game against Milwaukee.

A book tour is a high point for any successful author and Kingsmuir Press author Jean Marie Stanberry just returned from a very successful book tour in her home town St. Louis, Missouri.  St. Louis has suffered in the press recently with tales of racial tension and protests in the township of Ferguson but when one of their own is back home in the spotlight St. Louis has a way of welcoming them with open arms. Continue reading Book Tour Highlights

Fast Update for a door, by Jean the Queen

What can you do when you have ugly hollow core doors and don’t have the budget to replace them all?  Get creative!  My husband and I plan on eventually replacing all our hollow core doors, but unforeseen hits to our budget mean not right away.  Most of the doors we will sand down and re stain a darker color to help disguise their ugliness, but I had another idea for our pantry. Continue reading Fast Update for a door, by Jean the Queen

DIY Adventures-Refacing a fireplace

Anyone who knows me, knows that when my husband and I have a project, we will at the very least, attempt to do it ourselves.  After a bit of trial and error we do know our limits.  For instance, we try to avoid large concrete projects and my husband Gary is not allowed to paint.  Other than that, we will try just about anything at least once.

Our latest project involved refacing our fireplace.  We built the fireplace when we moved into the house almost ten years ago.  It is a gas fireplace and it was meant to augment our aging heating system and conserve space over the home’s previous heat source, a large and unwieldy wood stove which was not only dirty, but because of allergies, I had bronchitis most of that winter. Continue reading DIY Adventures-Refacing a fireplace

Book Excerpt: “Blood, Sweat and Fears”

Looking for an epic late summer read? Why not pick up a copy of Jean Marie Stanberry’s “Blood, Sweat and Fears”. This action packed drama has been racing up the Amazon charts and intriguing readers all over the world with it’s unique writing style and dual viewpoints.

We hope the following except will wet your appetite for all the intrigue this story induces. “Blood, Sweat and Fears is the first book in the “Heart of a Phoenix” series and it is available at Barnes and Noble and Amazon and on all major e-readers.

“Unfortunately, dinner that night turned out to be a complete fiasco. Alexander was seated with the “stars” at the front of the cafe, wedged between Marika and Maria Gastineau, an alcoholic, bulimic mess of a woman who seemed to have her heart set on seducing him. Continue reading Book Excerpt: “Blood, Sweat and Fears”

Still waiting for the truth in Ferguson

I try to stay out of political firestorms but this one has hit too close to home and gone on way to long. The media is pushing the story that an established Ferguson Police officer, who is white, shot an 18 year old black man for no apparent reason.

Let’s think about this shall we. All police officers know that if they discharge their weapon at all, let alone if they actually shoot someone, a full investigation will ensue. They know if they want to keep their job, the discharge of their weapon must be justified whether or not they actually shoot someone. If they actually shoot someone the scrutiny will be more intense and require more justification, thus most police officers just don’t go around shooting people just for the hell of it.

Continue reading Still waiting for the truth in Ferguson

Book Signing

Good news for all our fans of Jean Marie Stanberry living in the Midwest. She will be returning to her Alma Mater, Webster University in St. Louis for a book signing event. Jean is one of Kingsmuir Press’ hottest authors right now and we are very excited for her fans in the midwest to get a chance to meet her in person.

Jean is author of the hit romance “Laying Low in Hollywood”, a blockbuster post apocalyptic thriller, “One World United” and her two most recent works are part of her new “Heart of a Phoenix series. “Blood, Sweat and Fears” and the “Illusion of Order”. Continue reading Book Signing