Heena Rathore-Pardeshi’s latest book is out and what a brilliant one it is! I was delighted to ARC read, and honoured to be asked to write an endorsement/review for this wonderful book.
My thoughts:
The Art of Storytelling by Heena Rathore-Pardeshi is just what I needed at this stage of my draft!
Superb.
Now, I have the tools and the motivation to complete my ambitious project.
It’s an inspiring, detailed, and well-researched book.
Heena’s love of storytelling mediums, both written and visual, coupled with her editing, reading, and writing experience, shines throughout.
With her generosity of spirit, there is a wonderful sense of paying it forward and a heartfelt intention that her readers will develop their unique writing skills to their fullest potential.
What an invaluable writing resource with practical solutions and examples for both new and more experienced writers to follow.
I highly recommend The Art of Storytelling wherever you are on your writing journey.
Robbie and Colleen are excited to share that the 2025 edition of Sunflower Tanka has published.
I’m delighted to have my poems, My New Friend, (Experimental Tanka Prose,) She Finds A Strength, (Garland Tanka,) and Discovering Loves Truth in Dreams, (Tanka Puente,) in the anthology. There were I believe a record number of contributors!
Well done to everyone who contributed to the anthology and to Robbie and Colleen for their fabulous hard work in bringing this all together.
Here’s the link to Colleen’s blog post. Do visit her blog:
You will find the book available in print, Kindle, and Kindle Unlimited.
They’ve kept their prices the same as last year.
The theme of “dreams,” was perfect for 2025.
They’re looking forward to 2026, and another wonderful year of writing syllabic together.
To purchase the anthology:
Here is the blurb:
Sunflower Tanka, edited by Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, is an annual anthology showcasing contemporary tanka, tanka prose, and experimental tanka.
Each volume brings together a vibrant tapestry of voices—both emerging and established—from across the globe.
For 2025, our theme “Dreams” invites poets to explore the symbolic language of dreaming, where metaphors blur the line between reality and imagination.
Dreams often serve as gateways to layered meaning, offering fertile ground for syllabic poetry.
This year’s contributors journeyed deep into their dreamscapes, opening portals to boundless creativity.
Through the timeless form of syllabic verse, they captured visions that transcend waking life, weaving poetry that resonates with mystery, wonder, and the infinite possibilities of the human imagination.✨ ✨
✨Robbie and Colleen want to thank each of you for helping us bring the craft of writing syllabic poetry into your hearts.
We’re so proud of all the hard work from our poets and the Tanka Tuesday community. We couldn’t do this without you.
Thank you.
Please share the publication news of this exciting new edition.
Reviews are an author’s dream. We thank you in advance for your reviews. ❤️🎅🏻
Robbie created a video for the 2025 Sunflower Tanka Anthology. She grabbed many magical lines from the submitted poetry, as she shares some of her amazing artwork.
Congratulations to wonderful supporter of the indie community, Sally Cronin, on her new book release. Pop over to her blog to read more about it! Links below.
Book overview
At age 41 in 1994 and weighing 330 lbs, Sally Cronin had two choices when she was told that she was unlikely to live to 45. Carry on eating or get her act together.
She chose to study nutrition and change the way she approached the food she ate and her other lifestyle choices.
Her first book, Size Matters, told the story of her weight loss of 154 lbs and shared the programme she designed to both lose the weight and regain her health. Now, thirty years on from the start of that journey, having worked as a nutritional therapist with hundreds of clients as well as acting as a health consultant on radio for several years and on her blog, she shares an updated version of the programme.
Weight loss is not just about calories in and calories out. It is about identifying the physical, emotional and mental attachments we have to food and developing a deeper respect for the fuel we require to be healthy. As well as exploring the many elements involved in healthy weight loss, she also shares the nutritional balance we need to achieve to prevent many of the lifestyle issues that accompany obesity.
This includes some easy to prepare recipes which provide nutrient dense dishes for the whole family.
In 2022, 2.5 billion adults aged 18 years and older were overweight, including over 890 million adults who were living with obesity. 37 million children under the age of 5 were overweight. Over 390 million children and adolescents aged 5–19 years were overweight, including 160 million who were living with obesity.
If you need to lose 10 lbs or 100 lbs you can adapt this programme to lose the weight healthily and to enjoy a better quality of life. Don’t be included in the statistics and start losing weight today.
Thank you so much to D G Kaye for sharing her excellent review of my new book of poetry.
Her 5 Star Review:
Mallon has created this volume of poems inspired by daily writing prompts and her observations and interpretations of the people and places she’s seen in her travels. She uses various poetic styles to showcase her thoughts in prose and poetry, including free-verse poetry for her longer pieces, which resonate with me most.
The sections are broken down into appropriate categories of poems. Many of the poems in the first section are written with food and drink as subject matter, with underlying tones of sensuality. Some of the poems also touch on holiday themes, love and discovery, love and loss, strangers, forgiveness, war, and nature. Much of the poetry is evoked with intimate and imaginative stirring of sensual images and others being quirky tales – as well as some with explicit sexual connotations. And an interesting spin I found with some of Mallon’s poems, that some were written from the male perspective.
I quite enjoyed this interesting twist on poetry story-telling, something very different than Mallon’s previous poetry. Here is a sampling:
Silhouettes
She is fair and I am dark.
Slight and I am robust.
.
We fill out together.
Completing our silhouettes.
.
As we explore each other.
Strangers a moment ago.
.
Now lost, unable to fade away.
.
Because we kissed the deepness
of each other’s shadows and stayed.
.
If you enjoy poetry that tantalizes and stimulates, you will no doubts enjoy Mallon’s poetry.
Thank you so much to Lizzie Chantree for this lovely post on her awesome blog celebrating my book launch of Do What You Love which is a little book of poetry, photography and flash fiction.
Lizzie is a wonderful author, and kindness itself. She does much for the writing community. Do follow her blog and facebook group.
In the celebratory release blog from Lizzie I share a poetic excerpt about a little fellow, Zog, who I looked after one day. He was the cutest dog. Pop over to Lizzie’s to read the blog at source.
It’s launch day for Do What You Love and today I am featured by two lovely blogging author friends, Ritu and Adele!
This is from Ritu… who is chatting to me over a book and brew… and sharing her review of Do What You Love.
Ritu: I’m back with a second edition! Today, I am thrilled to welcome an old blogging and writing friend who I have met in person. None other than the lovely Marjorie Mallon, one of my blogging sis…
Oh what a lovely book, filled with poetic gems and beautiful prose!
I felt a keen connection to the poems about her daughters and the autumn trees. Autumn is one of my favourite seasons. A lovely book with a personal touch.
I’ve known Adele a long time and Adele and I have collaborated in anthologies together, and Ritu and Adele both contributed to my lockdown project, This Is Lockdown. Even though I have not met Adele in person, I feel as if I know her. I recommend you connect with both of these wonderful authors.
Review Quotes:
The mix of poetry, flash fiction and photography is something M J Mallon does very well. She combines them as part of the journey and the adventure she leads us on. She is a very skilled author and this newest release is a joy to traverse.
I loved how her favourite poem from the collection is about my home from home Edinburgh…
Thank you so much to Linda Hill for this wonderful chat and review about my new book: Do What You Love. Do pop over to her blog to share in with some dim sum, cake and chit chat!
A small and perfectly formed collection about finding your way in life.
Do What You Love is simply lovely. Marjorie Mallon bases her collection on an iterative image of and conversation with the Fates as well as the concept of doing what a person loves and she affords the reader a personal insight into her life and family as she does so. I really recommend reading her author introduction in advance of the rest of the book because it sets the scene so beautifully.
Given that this is a very personal book, I was concerned that it would be too specific to the author. Not a bit of it. There’s a wide range in Do What You Love that encompasses poetry, prose and photography so that there really is something for every reader. I particularly enjoyed the variety of writing style. The first entry, Fragility Of Your Flame, feels very traditional in style, reminiscent of traditional fables and this is continued throughout the collection, giving balance to the shorter entries as the author imagines conversations with the Fates that enable her to reflect on her life and family.
There’s such a range of emotion in Do What You Love. Parents will experience the pain of letting go of their children even whilst they might be immensely proud of them. Marjorie Mallon illustrates love, joy, sadness, pride, the impact of nature on an individual and so much more. Her sense of place and history comes through with just a tweak of her pen and she so celebrates a childlike sense of awe and joy that she helps readers connect (or indeed reconnect) with their own happiness. I especially enjoyed the entries about trees because the author reignited my love of nature.
Do What You Love is a highly personal collection to Marjorie Mallon, but at the same time as giving readers a glimpse into who she is and where she has come from, she gently guides readers to contemplate their own lives, to live more positively and to appreciate each moment. This is such a wonderful message. and a much needed one in today’s world.
Thank you so much to Debby Gies for this wonderful 5 star review of my latest release, Do What You Love.
MJ Mallon has written a heartfelt book with memories, prose, and poetry, incorporated with stories of life, love, family, and nature. In some of her stories, she is in conversation with the fates: Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos, the three Moirai representing the cycle of life – birth, life and death, past, present and future. We will read shared conversations about meeting her husband, her homeland of Scotland, stories about children that grow up and leave the nest, and nostalgic stories of growing up with her parents. There are many beautiful images MJ intersperes amid her stories.
Stories from the heart is what I would classify this book – poignant moments that left indelible imprints on the author and will touch the reader, a reminiscing through life and new adventures. This book is a wonderful slice of life celebrated and spoken by the author through beautiful written words.
Debby Gies
Favorite Quote: Long lasting marriages must be friends…”
Thank you so much to Willow for this lovely review, and beautiful blog post about new book which is currently on kindle preorder, releases November 25th.
Review quote: I really enjoyed this very personal book by Marjorie, her past, present and her future, her family and her friends . The magic she finds in the every day, her love of insects, creatures and trees her love of life. Don’t be put off by the word personal, this book is so welcoming. I strongly recommend it to you all.
Many thanks for supporting me with the release of my new poetry collection The Hedge Witch And The Musical Poet. There have been fab reviews and awesome blog posts to celebrate the launch. I particularly appreciate it at a time when I have been busy. More about that below…
With the beautiful brevity of words in mind, I’ve chosen one sentence from each review to highlight:
A beautiful book inspired by, and a nod to, the mystical and the natural world around us. Ritu Bhathal.
A unique and beautifully written collection of poetry and fiction weaved magically together. D. L .Finn.
The author and poet spins words into gorgeous tapestries and descriptions which are heartwarming and quite gorgeous. Robbie Cheadle.
An insightful collection of whimsical poems and flash fiction centered around nature. Darlene Foster.
There are some wise words here from both Mallon and the trees about life in simpler times, stories about nature, childhood memories in snippets of flash fiction, as well as some whimsical Halloween tales. D G Kaye.
This is a collection to savour and to dip into when the technical world we inhabit becomes too demanding, or we are in need of a touch of magic. Sally Cronin.
What a collection of emotions this collection produces. There’s sadness, anger, love and everything in between among its pages. Richard Dee.
Blurb
The Hedge Witch & The Musical Poet is a collection of poetry and flash fiction celebrating the beautiful vulnerability of the forest kingdom. It begins with the poetic tale of the kind-hearted Hedge Witch, Fern, who discovers an injured stranger in desperate need of her woodland spells and magic. The sweet pairing learn from each other and through Fern’s guidance, Devin embraces the power of magic to leave behind his trouble past to become The Musical Poet. Poetry/flash fiction titles in section one of the collection include: The Hedge Witch & The Musical Poet, Rain Forest Love, A Forest Baby Boy, A Forest Baby Girl, A Modern Witch, Rock of Mine, Chester Don & I, The Network of Trees, More Trees Not Less, Two Boys Watching War, Mum Climbing Trees, Let’s Play, The Scorched Tree, Owl’s Holiday Home, A Man’s Holiday Home, A Child’s Excitement, The Teddy In The Woods, Run! The Organutans, All Hallow’s Eve Candy Girl The Forest Bash, Dreaming At Halloween, A Face on Bark, Golden Willow Tree, Rainbow – Parasol of Light, Lollipop Sunshine Tree, In Section two I pay tribute to the following poets:Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Evangeline, Ruby Archer, King Forest, Bliss Carman, Woodland Rain, Emily Dickinson, Who Robbed the Woods, Rupert Blake, Stopping by The Woods on A Winter Evening,Oscar Wilde, In the Forest. With my poetry: The Forest Weeps, The Forest King, Raindrops and Childhood Dreams, The Woodland Treasures, Winter Woodland Moon, Child Me.
And I have moved! Crazy that my moving out day happened to be the day of my launch – not what I would have wanted – but life is always full of unexpected surprises. Our house sale fell through first time and then took longer second time around! I am now looking to the next chapter of my life. which will be spent partly in the UK and partly abroad in Portugal. Exciting times ahead.
Still lots to do, lots to organise, and lots of writing plans too!
To my writing pals… I am
And hope you will be there with me step by step… word by word…
My next planned poetry collection will be Do What You Love, so if you are interested in an early review copy do let me know. Early review copies will be available fairly soon…
