Laurel Anne Hill

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HeroRATs Arise! (by Laurel Anne Hill, Author of “Heroes Arise”)

HeroRAT in Training (photo by APOPO)

HeroRATs Arise!

In case you were wondering, this blog entry isn’t about my heroic, eight-foot-tall lizard person on the planet Thard.  No, today “Gundack the kren” makes room for some real-life heroes with four legs: HeroRATs.  HeroRATs are African giant pouched rats trained to sniff out buried, unexploded landmines and cases of tuberculosis (TB).

 On August 17, AOL News published my opinion piece about HeroRATs:  “Support your Local Hero Rat.”  Please use the following link to connect to my essay.
http://www.aolnews.com/opinion/article/opinion-support-your-local-hero-rat/19595717

Also, the communications coordinator at Apopo HeroRATs provided me with some updated information over the weekend.  The HeroRATs cumulative total for TB detection (cases missed by human screeners at some local hospitals in Tanzania) is now 964 patients.  This means that HeroRATs have increased TB detection rates at those hospitals by 44%, effectively preventing 14,460 additional people from catching the deadly disease.

Let’s give a cheer for HeroRATs!

Laurel Anne Hill (Author of “Heroes Arise”)
http://www.laurelannehill.com

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Warning to Earthlink “Free Email Service” Users

Warning to Earthlink “Free Email Service” Users

Do you have an Earthlink free service account?  You may wish to consider changing to another email service provider as soon as possible.  Recently, Earthlink cut off access to my email.  After at least a dozen long-and-dreadful phone calls to Earthlink technical services representatives in India, I learned that free service accounts can be cut off at any time and there is no way to retrieve emails or address lists. Yes, it really took that many phone calls.  The ordinary representatives did not know free service accounts existed so I had to be transferred.  All but two of the transfer attempts resulted in disconnects.  And when I asked for a phone number of a customer service representative in the United States, I was told that the Earthlink offices in the US have computers in them but no people at all.

So there you have it.  Earthlink free service account users beware!  As a matter of fact, I would question signing up for any Earthlink account at all.

For those of you trying to reach me, my website still connects to my old Earthlink address.  Wait a week or so before leaving a message on my website.  My web manager will have to make a connection change.  Or, if you know my old Earthlink email address, just substitute @yahoo.com for @earthlink.net.

Warm regards,

Laurel Anne Hill (Author of “Heroes Arise”)
http://www.laurelannehill.com

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Adapting Sideways© (www.adaptingsideways.com) has posted a cute and informative animated video on YouTube. 
The subject is point of narration.   Connect via their website or use the below link.

Adapting Sideways is the brainchild of Charlotte Cook, publisher and story editor, and Jon James Miller, award-winning screenwriter and novelist. They have adapted screenplays to novels and brought novelists to the level of polish needed to find agents and publishers. Adapting Sideways focuses on bringing to committed writers comprehensive strategies that take writers with stories to publishable novels.

Enjoy!

Laurel Anne Hill  (Author of “Heroes Arise”)
http://www.laurelannehill.com

Finding the Point of Narration

http://laurelannehill.com/255/

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What Really Happens at Science Fiction/Fantasy Conventions (Part 1)

I found them on Craig’s List.
So, a tribble, a shaman and Harry Potter walk into a bar…
Next we’ll sing the UC Berkeley fight song.
Yo, ho, ho and a bottle of “Rum and Runestones.”
Wow! I’ll put salsa on my apple pie again to get this dream.
And you’ve barely changed from high school, either.
I love going to the opera.
I did not walk into that bar.
When a vampire smiles at you, run for the nearest exit.
Oh, no! The IRS!

These photos are some of my favorites from RavenCon (Richmond, VA) and BayCon (Santa Clara, CA) in 2010.

Enjoy!
Laurel Anne Hill
Author of “Heroes Arise”
http://www.laurelannehill.com

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My Ocean Companion (by Laurel Anne Hill, Author of “Heroes Arise”)

Laurel Anne Hill, Author of Heroes Arise
Laurel Anne Hill

Are you a fan of the ocean?  Have you ever enjoyed–or wanted to experience–wading in ocean shallows, exploring tide pools, riding a wave and/or SCUBA diving beneath the surface?  Do you love the cries of seagulls or the smell of ocean breezes?  Does your significant other share your love of the sea?  If so,  please listen to my free podcast, “My Ocean Companion” (approximately ten minutes long).

“My Ocean Companion” relates a few of my many SCUBA diving adventures and describes the ache in my heart when I could no longer engage in that exhilarating sport.

Go to http://www.laurelannehill.com and click on the “Podcasts” tab.  All of my podcasts are also available for free on iTunes.

Enjoy!

Laurel Anne Hill
Author of “Heroes Arise”
http://www.laurelannehill.com