Belanger Books Response to Coronavirus: Student Writing Activity and Weekly Free Sherlock Holmes, Solar Pons, and Children's eBooks
Dear readers,
As you know the Covid-19 Virus has upended life throughout the world. With many schools now closed for weeks, we wanted to offer an activity for students and parents alike to complete at home as well as free eBooks to help pass the time away at home. Each week for the remainder of March and into April we will have at least one eBook available for free on Amazon. The books will come from our catalog of Sherlock Holmes, Solar Pons, sci-fi, and children's books. This week, we have three FREE books. One is a Sherlock Holmes book, one a Solar Pons book, and one a story collection for children. Before we tell you the titles currently available, we want to let you know of a writing contest perfect for students and adults alike.
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson
Have you ever wanted to write a mystery? Ever wanted to have your writing published in a book read all over the world. Now is your opportunity!
Belanger Books is accepting submissions for a new anthology of mystery short stories for student readers inspired by the adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. The anthology is titled In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson and will feature stories by student writers as well as professional authors. Net proceeds will go to the Beacon Society to help them expose more students to the original Sherlock Holmes stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as well as newer stories about the great detective.
Requirements: All entries must be mysteries inspired by the Sherlock Holmes stories. The mysteries can be traditional Sherlock Holmes stories, modern versions of Sherlock Holmes, original detective stories with characters similar to Holmes and Watson, or anything in between. The stories just need to clearly be inspired by the Sherlock Holmes canon. Each submission should be at least 1,000 words in length , and be rated "PG" (i.e. suitable for a school library).
Authors retain the rights to their work.
Payment: Authors shall receive a paperback and electronic copy of In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson for letting us use their work in the anthology.
Due Date: All entries must be received by April 25th, 2020
Please send entries to mail@belangerbooks.com or to derrick@belangerbooks.com. Make sure to include your name (first and last), title of your story, story length, and attach your story as a word document. If you are a student also include your grade and name of your school. Writers included in the anthology will be announced in May. All authors will receive a complimentary copy of the anthology and will retain full rights to their stories. If you have questions please contact us at belangerbooks@gmail.com.
Free eBooks
These books are available for free on Amazon.com from March 16th - March 20th. Some of the books are for kids, some for young adults/ teens, and some are for adults. We made sure there is a book for everyone!
Book for kids
Award winning author Elizabeth Varadan's illustrated short story collection inspired by Camille Saint-Saëns' symphony.
Once upon a musical score, Camille Saint-Saëns was stumped. He was composing a piece of music to entertain his friends. An idea twinkled in his mind. A musical fantasy. Animals in a parade.
A tune beckoned. Camille inked in some quarter notes. The melody slipped away.
I must let this idea bloom, Camille thought.
He sat in the stuffed chair by the door and closed his eyes. Music and pictures swirled in his head: A tortoise waltzed. A peacock called. A lion stomped into a forest.
Soon Camille was fast asleep. He dreamed of animals in the zoo. He dreamed of animals far away.
Once upon a time, he dreamed…
Get this enchanting children's book by Elizabeth Varadan by clicking here!! (Note - This eBook will be available starting March 17th until March 21st. We apologize for any inconvenience.)
Book for Young Adult Readers
The First Ever Collection of Traditional Sherlock Holmes Stories Specifically Written for Young Adults!
Belanger Books is proud to present a new collection of over twenty traditional Sherlock Holmes stories written specifically for young adults -- including a brand-new MACDOUGALL TWINS adventure!
The story collection is written by professional writers such as David Marcum (The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes stories), Derrick Belanger (Sherlock Holmes: The Sign of Seven), Elizabeth Varadan (Imogene and the Case of the Missing Pearls), Will Murray (creator of Marvel Comics Squirrel Girl), Rob Nunn (The Criminal Mastermind of Baker Street), Robert Perret (Sherlock Holmes: Before Baker Street), Peter Eckrich, Dick Gillman (Sherlock Holmes, The Collector's Edition), Kieran Judge, and Derek Nason (Sherlock Holmes: Adventures in the Realms of H.G. Wells), as well as a variety of student writers. Plus an introduction by Shannon Carlisle, BSI.
The adventures in this collection had to adhere to Derrick Belanger’s “10 Rules for Writing a Sherlock Pastiche”. Holmes and Watson are as Doyle intended them with cases taking place in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, none later than the 1920’s. If you are looking for a fun, traditional collection of British mysteries then you will enjoy The Irregular Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
The proceeds from this book will be donated to The Beacon Society, a Sherlock Holmes Scion Society which gives grants to teachers, libraries, and Sherlock Holmes organizations to help introduce students to Sherlock Holmes.
Get this one of a king Sherlock Holmes story collection by clicking here. (Note - This eBook will be available starting March 16th until March 20th.)
Book for Adults
Jonas Fairlie set out from Frome, Somerset for London – but he never reached there. When his body was found not far out of Frome, Solar Pons’s address was discovered concealed in the lining of his hat. What was the problem he intended to lay before Pons? And who had killed him? These were the related puzzles laid before Solar Pons within hours of the discovery that Fairlie had been murdered.This novel featuring the Sherlock Holmes of Praed Street unfolds a complex and intricate mystery that not only taxes Pons’s ingenuity but puts his life in jeopardy at its climax.
In addition to Mr. Fairlie’s Final Journey, this volume includes the rare first Pons novel, Terror Over London, originally written when Derleth was a young man in the 1930’s, but lost in his papers until its rediscovery decades later. In the past, it has been extremely difficult and expensive to obtain, but now, thanks to the Derleth heirs and the August Derleth Estate, who still retain full ownership of both Pons and Derleth’s stories, it’s available in this new edition for the general public for the first time!
Get this wonderful collection of Solar Pons novels by clicking here. (Note - This eBook will be available starting March 16th until March 20th.)
We will have more free eBooks for you next week. We hope to read many entries for In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Happy writing!
P.S. - Don't forget to check out our current Kickstarter project (for older readers), Sherlock Holmes and the Occult Detectives.
The free e books offer does not work for the UK!
ReplyDeleteYes, they all work in the UK. I just went online and double checked. Here is the link to the FREE Solar Pons book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Novels-Solar-Pons-Fairlies-Adventures-ebook/dp/B07KSK7B27
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