Play & Book Excerpts
Find exclusive excerpts from books written by bestselling and first-time authors as well as experts in particular fields of interest. Excerpts from community plays are also available here. Thanks to all who shared their work. Click on image to view excerpt.
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NEW! Excerpt from: Dear Radiant One (GracePoint Publishing) by Phoebe Leona. This book shares vulnerable and honest interactions with emotion through letters that give you direct access to your own internal landscape. Phoebe provides specific practices that are an open invitation to explore your own vulnerability and the honest experiences of your emotional body. Author Phoebe Leona is a dancer, speaker, author, yoga teacher, and transformational guide who helps us feel more embodied through somatic, movement, and expanded awareness practices to become more empowered.
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Excerpt from: BAM...And Then It Hit Me (powerHouse Books) by Karen Brooks Hopkins. This is an inspiring memoir of her 36 years at Brooklyn Academy of Music, an iconic cultural institution and America's oldest performing arts center. The book has a sharp focus on concepts such as leadership, innovation, urban revitalization (including the transformation of Brooklyn from Manhattan Outpost to the coolest neighborhood on the planet), as highly successful cultural fundraising played critical roles in the colorful evolution of this world-class cultural juggernaut in the performing arts. Find a Q&A with Karen.
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Excerpt from: Seeing Eye Girl: A Memoir of Madness, Resilience, and Hope (She Writes Press) by Beverly J. Armento. In this emotional memoir, Beverly shares the coping strategies she invented to get herself through the trials of her young life, and the ways in which school and church served as refuges over the course of her journey. Breaking the psychological chains that bound her to her mother would prove to be the most difficult challenge of her life—and, ultimately, the most liberating one. This book was inspired by the many teachers who mentored her.
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Excerpt from: Art in the Time of Unbearable Crisis: Women Writers Respond to the Call (She Writes Press) by Stephanie Raffelock and Foreword by Brook Warner. In response to the multitude of global crises we’re currently experiencing, the authors of She Writes Press answered Stephanie's call to uplift. This sometimes comforting, sometimes devastating, but universally relatable collection of prose, poetry, and art about living through difficult times like these is the result. Topics include grief and loss, COVID-19 and war in Ukraine.
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Excerpt from: SHE (Believed She Could So She Did) (Positively Powered Publications) by Deborah Cole. Deborah's book introduces 35 women in Texas who have by design or by circumstance come to create and/or lead companies. These women, from diverse ethnic and educational backgrounds all started with a dream or an idea. With the innate talents and determination to succeed, they have grown businesses of all sizes. Their collective advice uncovered, "If I can do this, any woman can."
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Excerpt from: The Understory: A Female Environmentalist in the Land of the Midnight Sun (Be Free Be Wild Press) by M. E. Schuman. Passion and peril are intertwined in this true tale of the author's drive to make the natural world a better place; she found her greatest hindrance not in physical challenges but in human adversaries. Michelle Schuman is a Certified Senior Ecologist and Professional Certified Wetland Scientist. She has signed an option agreement with HTWIP Productions for a screenplay.
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Excerpt from: Magician of Light (She Writes Press) by J. Fremont. This story illuminates the dark side of jewelry designer René Lalique’s life while spinning a suspenseful tale of twisting fates. An enthralling love story filled with historical intrigue and overshadowed by the unknowable. "Magician of Light is a memorable story of historical intrigue, jeweler René Lalique, and the relationships that inspired his art. This is a compelling, engaging tale of historical intrigue, and Fremont’s characters are immersive." (Booklife Reviews by Publisher's Weekly)
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Excerpt from: Fern I Coppedge: One Woman's Struggle for Equality in the Art World (West Highland Publishing, LLC) by Les and Sue Fox. In 1990, the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania celebrated Fern Coppedge's work with an exhibition titled "A Forgotten Woman." Accompanied by a 48-page catalogue, which included beautiful images and a summary of Coppedge's life, this exhibition left Les and Sue wishing someone would reveal much more about the extraordinary life of this turn-of-the-century woman (1883-1951). So, they decided to take up the challenge.
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NEW! Excerpt from: Crazy to Leave You (Lake Union Publishing) by award-winning author Marilyn Simon Rothstein. Forty-one years old, the last of her friends to marry, and down to a size 12, Lauren Leo is in her gown and about to tie the knot. There’s just one thing missing: the groom. What lies ahead is the road to self-acceptance and at long last feeling worthy. With a new way to measure love and success, Lauren chucks her scale―and finds a second chance in the most unexpected place.
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NEW! Excerpt from: Smart Woman's Guide: The Money Belief Formula (Herfinance Club) by Susan Diamond. Susan explains that millions of women are held back by internal money blocks that prevent them from achieving their full financial potential. This book will help you identify and release those blocks so you can move forward with confidence and clarity, and finally, achieve the level of financial empowerment you desire. You will gain a clear understanding of how your unique money story has been impacting your relationship with money - for better or worse.
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Excerpt from: Date Smart (Familius LLC) by Carla Marie Manly, Ph.D. Sometimes we have HUGE expectations for the ideal relationship, but dating isn’t about being perfect or catching the perfect partner; it’s all about creating compassionate self-awareness and stronger self-esteem. Self-discovery is key to healthy relationships. Carla explains that your life will change when you discover how to date strong, date fearlessly, and date smart. Carla also contributes her expertise publicly as a speaker and through top-notch media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, NBC, The New York Times, and many others.
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Excerpt from: Senior Sociopaths (Anderly Publishing) by Donna Andersen, author of Lovefraud.com. This is the first book to examine antisocial behavior in the over-50 crowd. This is a far bigger problem than anyone realizes. In America, 14 million people over age 50 could be diagnosed with antisocial, narcissistic, borderline or histrionic personality disorders, or psychopathy. They live among us, scamming and abusing almost everyone in their lives. Senior Sociopaths is based on surveys of nearly 2,400 people who lived through the damage inflicted by these disordered people over age 50.
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Excerpt from: Neglect (Arcade Publishing) by bestselling author Kim Wozencraft. This is a the story of a young mother at war on two fronts: first as a soldier in Afghanistan and then upon her return to rural Granite County, New York, where one terrible mistake threatens her family and her sanity. After a nearly fatal night of despair, she is swept up into a vast and indifferent bureaucracy that threatens to take her children from her—forever. Neglect is a profound story of mother love. Kim is also the author of the international bestseller Rush, adapted into a film starring Jennifer Jason Leigh.
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Excerpt from: Feeling Fate (She Writes Press) by Joni Sensel. This grief memoir has a paranormal twist, which explores how a dark intuition magnified Joni’s love and gratitude in the time she and Tony had together before her premonition came true. Faced with evidence of a grand design alongside her grief, she’s torn between faith and skepticism. While she’s nearly undone by the pain of her loss, she eventually discovers that a sassy imagination and the irrational insights of the heart can both defeat despair and transform her grief into meaning.
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Excerpt from: America Calling: A Foreign Student in a Country of Possibility (She Writes Press) by Rajika Bhandari. This memoir is both a deeply personal story of Bhandari’s search for her place and voice, and an incisive analysis of America’s relationship with the rest of the world through the most powerful tool of diplomacy: education. "Bhandari's informative memoir is for readers who want to understand how interconnected the world really is. Bhandari is a very talented writer, knowing that in a sea of data there is no better life raft than the telling anecdote." ~ Kirkus Reviews
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Cooking with Marika (Delicious Nutrition) by award-winning author and nutritionist Marika Blossfeldt. This is a cookbook and nutrition guide in one. Integrating the wisdom of Eastern philosophies with the knowledge of Western science, Marika gently guides the reader to a deeper understanding of how food affects our entire being. She teaches us how to strengthen immunity, restore and maintain a healthy digestive tract, prevent inflammation and lose weight—without counting calories, dieting or deprivation. Marika is also the author of ESSENTIAL NOURISHMENT: Recipes from My Estonian Farm.
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Excerpt from: A Way Back to Health (She Writes Press) by Kelley Murray Skoloda. WIthout experiencing any symptoms, Kelley received a shocking diagnosis: colon cancer. This memoir reveals how surprising lessons paved the way for her recovery. She offers practical advice for those who find themselves in a similar situation, and illuminates how personal stories can powerfully motivate and heal. In addition to telling her own story, Kelley also features examples of how other, amazing survivors have learned to manage, survive and thrive in the face of cancer.
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Excerpt from: The Black Girl's Guide to Healing Emotional Wounds (Nvision Solutions) by Nijiama Smalls. Nijiama is all too familiar with the suffering of Black girls and shares her personal journey of uncovering the origin of Black girl trauma while also addressing the ongoing process of healing and recovery from wounds caused by past hurts. This book provides a prescription for healing in the form of a soul-cleansing process. She hopes that readers are set free to live the life God has planned for them. It’s time to heal and end the suffering.
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Excerpt from: Crazy: Reclaiming Life from the Shadow of Traumatic Memory (Koehler Books) by Lyn Barrett. This unforgettable memoir explores how the author was knocked off course by a family crisis that triggered her inner world to crumble. Her diagnosis of multiple personality disorder, now known as dissociative identity disorder, threatened her life as she knew it, her family, and her future. With the knowledge that DID is a coping strategy young children use to protect themselves from chronic trauma, Lyn embarked on a journey to discover her true self.
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Excerpt from: Blooming in Winter (She Writes Press) by Pam Valois. When Pam Valois met her in the 1970s, Jacomena (Jackie) Maybeck was a model of zestful, hands-on living and aging, still tarring roofs and splitting logs in her seventies, and Pam was a young working mother trying to carve out time for creative projects. Jackie became her mentor. Decades later, when Pam and her husband bought Jackie’s home, she realized that she knew little about her mentor’s fascinating life. What had shaped and supported Jackie in living “at full tilt” until her death at ninety-five?
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Book Excerpts: 2021
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Excerpt from: Venus Genius: The Female Prescription for Innovation (New Degree Press) by Fabienne Jacquet. This book explores innovation from different perspectives: historical, scientific, sociological, cultural and practical — all through the feminine lens. It addresses the shortage of women in innovation and how important it is to address this as a first step to inclusion. Fabienne created INNOVEVE®, a consultancy in innovation with a mission to transform innovation by embracing feminine energy.
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Excerpt from: Messenger (Warren Publishing, Inc.) by Liz Keller Whitehurst. This book tells the story of twenty-something journalist, Alana Peterson, who is convinced she's found her big break when she meets Messenger, a mysterious old woman who delivers life-changing messages to seemingly random people all over New York City. Liz is also author/creator of the serial podcast MESSENGER: A NOVEL IN 16 EPISODES, which she launched in 2020.
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Excerpt from: Creatrix Rising: Unlocking the Power of Midlife Women (She Writes Press) by Stephanie Raffelock. Through personal stories and essays, Stephanie highlights the past fifty years in which women have gone from a quiet strength to a resounding voice. She invites us along on her own transformational journey by providing probing questions for reflection so that we can flesh out and bring to life this new archetype within ourselves. She is a popular guest on podcasts, where she inspires women to embrace the strength and passion of their personal story.
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Excerpt from: Love in Any Language: A Memoir of Cross-Cultural Marriage (She Writes Press) by Evelyn Kohl LaTorre. This memoir illustrates the trials and joys in the blending of two cultures. Evelyn relates how her early life in Montana prepared her for living in Peru, but not for marriage to someone who must learn a new language and employable skill before he can support his family. However, she had learned how to be strong and determined to meet most challenges and opportunities that came her way. This is the second of two memoirs Evelyn has written.
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Excerpt from: Fierce and Delicate: Essays on Dance and Illness (West Virginia University Press) by Renée K. Nicholson. Renée's professional training in ballet had both moments of magnificence and moments of torment. In this book, Renée looks back on the often confused and driven self she had been shaped into and finds beauty in the small roles she performed. Moving on due to illness, she discovered that she retained the lyricism and narrative of ballet itself as she negotiated life with rheumatoid arthritis. This is a book about the world of professional dance and living with chronic disease. It's about being shattered yet realizing the power to assemble oneself again in a new way.
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Excerpt from: Reading the Signs: A Schoolhouse Mystery (DIO Press Inc.) by Bette Ann Moskowitz. This is a gripping mystery about betrayal and love, truth and lies, abuse and power, sound and silence. What are we to do when words push their way past our own determination not to speak them? Taking place in a small beach town on Long Island, New York, Sylvie Fried, an expert reading teacher, comes up against challenges in her personal life and in the work she does in Rose Elementary School and her customary confidence is suddenly not there, yet finding solutions may be a matter of life and death.
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Excerpt from: Stand: A Memoir on Activism. A Manual for Progress. What really happens when we stand on the front lines of change. (New Shelf Press) by Kathryn Bertine. As a former ESPN columnist and professional cyclist, activism wasn't even on her radar in 2008 because she was busy trying to get to the Beijing Olympic Games. She pondered, "Why aren't women allowed at the Tour de France?" With unabashed honesty, irreverence, vulnerability, history, humor and authenticity, Kathryn's memoir-turned-manual on activism takes us behind the scenes of what really happens when we stand up and fight for what we believe.
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Excerpt from: The Sudden Caregiver (Tangible Group) by Karen Warner Schueler. Karen became a sudden caregiver when her late husband was diagnosed out of the blue with stage IV cancer. In this book, she enters the complicated world of the informal, unpaid, sudden caregiver, offering guidance, resilience, and, yes, a roadmap – a rational approach for planning what is, essentially, unplannable. Karen is also president of Tangible Group, a coaching and consulting firm which focuses on leadership development and caregiver well-being.
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Excerpt from: Joyful, Delicious, Vegan: Life Without Heart Disease (She Writes Press) by Sherra Aguirre. In this empowering guide to healthy eating, Sherra shares her own story of reversing hypertension and other heart disease symptoms, despite a long family history. She presents current knowledge about the effectiveness of a plant-based diet in reversing disease, and she offers up recommendations from two world-renowned cardiologists who have demonstrated results with patients for many years.
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Excerpt from: Flipping the Bird (Self Published) by Margarita Meyendorff. This is an anthology of 30 short pieces and one screenplay - stories of defiance and impudence in the face of injustice, both public and private. "Reading Flipping the Bird is like a good long sit-down with a fascinating friend. Meyendorff has a light touch, yet her fearlessness extends into deeper waters like mother/daughter alienation and connection and social justice. ~ Ann Craig, Bluestone Press
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Excerpt from: Fortunate Daughter: A Memoir of Reconciliation (She Writes Press) by Rosie McMahan. This is a story about how the author begins to heal after experiencing childhood sexual abuse. This first-person narrative offers the reader a portrait of misery, abuse and hurt, followed by an examination of the difficult and painful task of healing - a journey that, in the end, reveals the complicated and nuanced nature of true reconciliation.
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Excerpt from: What to Say Next: Successful Communication in Work, Life and Love with Autism Spectrum Disorder (Tiller Press) by Sarah and Larry Nannery. Sarah reflects on her personal experience living as a professional woman with autism spectrum disorder. This guide offers timely advice for anyone on the autism spectrum looking to successfully navigate work, life and love. However, the advice and tips, particularly those concerning the workplace, may be applied by anyone struggling with office politics, protocol and communication difficulties.
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Excerpt from: The Red Kitchen: A Memoir (She Writes Press) by Barbara Clarke. This memoir describes the journeys of the author and her mother who ultimately, and in very different ways, come of age, find the loving parts of their early relationship, and start living their best lives. Barbara has been a member of several literary organizations. She lives in Bellingham, WA.
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Excerpt from: Kicking and Screaming: A Memoir of Madness and Martial Arts (She Writes Press) by Melanie Gibson. This memoir shares Melanie's life-changing journey from troubled, lost soul to confident taekwondo black belt. Readers who are interested in learning more can find Melanie's blog at Little Black Belt where she shares life lessons. This is Melanie's first book.
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Excerpt from: Sorry I Haven't Texted You Back (Andrews McMeel Publishing) by bestselling author and award-winning activist Alicia Cook. This is a poetic mixtape dedicated to those who struggle or have struggled with their mental health. Divided into two parts, "Side A" holds 92 poems, titled as "tracks," and "Side B" holds the "remixes," or blackout-poetry versions, of those 92 poems. The book includes the evergreen themes of love, grief and hope. Alicia was a guest on the February episode of Sanctuary's Coffee & Conversation.
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Excerpt from: Young People of the Pandemic (Independently Published) by Nancy S. Nelson. This book presents an intimate glimpse into the psyche of American youth living through the COVID-19 pandemic. A diverse group of young writers from across the country illustrates what it is to be a member of Gen Z in a divided country attempting to conquer the greatest crises of our time. With resilience, bravery, wisdom, honesty, and humor, these young writers tell their stories.
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Excerpt from: Talent: A Novel (Koehler Books) by award-winning author B. Lynn Goodwin. While struggling with the news that her older brother had been listed as MIA in Afghanistan, Lynn's teen protagonist desperately tries to find a way to stand out and fit in while simultaneously dealing with grief. This coming-of-age story takes you through a journey filled with universal challenges and dilemmas that many teens face, no matter what their particular situation has in store.
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Excerpt from: The Positive Mindset Journal: Conquer the Stress of Self-Quarantine (Independently Published) by Camille Hoheb. A daily journaling practice can help you see the best in others, yourself and your world during challenging situations. This journal provides a guided self-discovery journey with thought-provoking prompts and creative exercises to help see your life in a positive light.
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