Synopsis
I want to tell you how great my life was. How I lived without regrets. With constant laughter. Without any tears. I want to tell you how I lived each moment to the fullest. How each breath I took was fresh and full of life. With eagerness. Without any fear.
I want to tell you all of that, but then my story would be masked with lies and not worth telling.
My life didn’t start until I left my past. And I left everything. My mother, my friends, my name.
My new name, the name everyone knows me by is Erin Lewis.
Four years after finding the courage to leave her hometown in Alabama, Erin is finally happy with where her life has led her. Not only is she secure in her environment, but the relationships she has formed center her, making her forget how damaged she once was. Before she can fully settle into her new life, her past crashes into her present, unraveling a set of events that destroy the very foundation she has built her new life on.
Talk about an emotional breakdown. I think I had one while
reading this book. It was absolutely one of the most beautiful stories I’ve
read this year. It will touch your heart and give you so much faith and hope.
It’s that wonderful.
I absolutely loved and adored Erin. She went through so much
in her life, it was heartbreaking. I looked up to her strength she never once
gave up even when the depression and darkness started to take her over. She
still tried to find the light and the positive in everything. Her past will
break your heart. I was so glad that she had such amazing friends who became
her family and showed her that not everyone in life will let you down.
Trent is one of the most amazing men. You will instantly fall
in love with him and be so grateful that a man like him found Erin. He was
there for her through everything and even when he wanted to give up because of
Erin’s past holding her back he still couldn’t love anyone else.
Trent and Erin’s story is beautiful and will touch you in
every possible way. I never once wanted to put it down even while I was bawling
my eyes out. Yes you will need plenty of tissues for all of the sadness in this
book, but it’s so worth it. It’s a wonderful book. I loved it. You will fall in
love with Erin’s little sister as well and there situation will have your
emotions all over the place.
Meet Yessi Smith
Author
I’m a Hispanic living in South Florida with my redneck husband
from Texas and our “half breed” son, who is actually the reason I started
writing again after years of celibacy. My son loves stories, but not the kind
you can read in an existing book. No, he’d rather make up a story, complete
with our own illustrations. So, thank you, Son, for igniting a flame I had let
go out.
I also live with two dogs: a neurotic Border Collie we call
Nitro and a midget Rottweiler named Nisa.
I have always found my sanctuary at the beach and in music and
writing. I wish I could write rhymes so I could become a famous rapper, but
rhyming is completely lost on me.
Author Interview
What inspires your writing?
Anything. I live a lot in my
head and I love making up stories for strangers that pique my interest: who
they are, what they’re doing, and, because I have a flair for the dramatics,
what they’re hiding or running from. Within minutes I’ve constructed they’re
whole life story, sometimes with a HEA.
In Life’s A Cappella, music is a common theme. What artists have
impacted your life the most?
Definitely Pink and Eminem. My
mind is always on the go and rarely ever rests. Pink and Eminem are my go-to
artists when I want to escape from my brain for a little while.
What character in
Life’s A Cappella do you like the most and what traits do you find you share
with this character?
Cam is my favorite. She’s the type of person that wakes up
every morning and lives it to the fullest. She’s a people person, doesn’t care
what others think of her, and is loyal. She’s funny and a bit unpredictable and
actually made me laugh a couple times.
The one thing Cam and I have in common is our optimism. Life
takes brutal twists and turns, but the most important thing life has taught me
is not to let the bad things beat you down. Stand tall, proud of your scars and
the lessons you’ve learned.
Have you always aspired to be an Author?
Always. From the moment I
learned how to write, you couldn’t find me without those black and white
composition books. I’d draw out comics (I’m horrible at drawing and my grandma
still has those books to prove it), write screenplays I’d want my family to act
out, interview strangers, and write stories nonstop.
In writing Life’s A
Cappella, did the characters take over the storyline, creating their own paths,
or did you create an outline in advance, and stick with it?
They took over ME!
Every moment, they were demanding I listen to them so my husband bought me a
little black notebook for me to write in that I keep with me at all times. It
is full of the different paths my characters wanted to take. I’d let them guide
me, but there are several chapters I wasn’t happy with and deleted entirely.
Cam was my biggest surprise, but once she told me what her fate was, I couldn’t
back out, no matter how much I fought with her.
It’s weird for me to call them characters in my book because
they took over my life so completely. I dreamt about them and spoke to my
family and friends about them as if they were real breathing people. I know
them intimately and it’s been hard to let them go.
I’ve started an outline for my next novel to help me get in
a new person’s frame of mind, but I find its hard to stick with the outline.
Life is unscripted, without an outline or directions on where we should go. I
like to write not knowing where I’m going. I like the unknown, even when it
leads you down paths you would rather not have traveled.
Do you
have another career?
I do. I am Human Resources and
Crewing Manager for a company that owns 7 vessels that transport fuel
throughout the Bahamian islands. So in other words, my job mainly comprises of
me bossing around 60+ men.
Describe your support system during your journey.
My husband, Derrick, would be my
biggest supporter and motivator. He has read every word I have written since I
was in college and published my first article in a dog magazine. After some
success and a lot of failure, I stopped writing altogether. Derrick always
encouraged me to keep trying, but even though I published a few things, the
rejections devastated me. I put everything into what I write and each rejection
felt like a personal attack on me. A few years ago, he started pushing me
again, but this time towards publishing independently. After reading a few
indie authors, I realized that I had never let go of my dream, so here I am
trying again, but this time the success isn’t as important as the journey
itself. My husband is proud of me and, more importantly, I’m proud of myself.
My family has had to put up with
me shoving my stories down their throat since I was young and my mom especially
has always encouraged me to go after my dreams. Although I can’t find them, my
grandma says she still has every composition book I’ve ever written in and is
demanding the first autographed copy of Life’s A Cappella even though she can’t
speak English.
My friends are amazing and have
helped me immensely as beta readers and/or as motivators. As far as friends go,
my greatest supporters have been Madelyn, Tashaune, Pia and Lissette. In fact,
while I was doing this interview, Pia sent me a message telling me how proud
she is of me and how she’s been telling me I should write since grade school.
Did you experience any challenges along your journey?
Just a few (note sarcasm). While trying to juggle the
demands of my 6 year old son, a full time job and writing was difficult, my
biggest obstacle was myself. I have doubted myself, been led the wrong way and
deleted chapters, gotten discouraged and stopped writing a few days at a time.
And then after it was done, promoting the book was far more
difficult than I imagined. I didn’t follow book blogs and hadn’t befriended
other indie authors so my connections were nonexistent. The day Ty posted on Facebook
about being an author’s Personal Assistant and handling the promotions side of
the business, I swear I heard angels singing.
Name your TOP TEN favorite Authors and Books:
In no particular order:
1. Memoirs of an
Imaginary Friend – Matthew Dicks
2. The Fault in our Stars – John Green
3. The Passage Series – Justin Cronin
4. Expired Regrets – Megan Smith
5. Tuesdays with Morrie – Mitch Albom
6. The Notebook – Nicholas Sparks
7. The Way Series – HJ Bellus
8. The Help – Kathryn Stockett
9. Hunger Games trilogy – Suzanne Collins
10. Happenstance – MJ Abraham
Excerpts from Life’s A
Cappella
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Our A Cappella (A Cappella 1.5) Cover Reveal
Releasing February 7, 2014
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Our A Cappella (A Cappella 1.5) Cover Reveal
Releasing February 7, 2014
Five months after their
wedding, Trent struggles with the strain of juggling work and family life as
Erin furthers her education, getting a Master's degree in Nursing. All Trent
wants is one weekend alone with his wife to reconnect but Erin's focus is adamantly
elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Nate, Erin's
oldest friend and brother, has formed an undeniable bond with Tonya that he is
reluctant to pursue because of his own inner demons.
Will love be enough?
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