Saturday 26 September 2015

Big Book News... John Searancke has a spectacular new release!!! #RPBP


I have some amazing book news, my talented friend John Searancke has a new release. Take a look and be sure to share the news!


http://smarturl.it/Prunesebook

Prunes for Breakfast 
ebook available NOW!!

 http://smarturl.it/Prunesebook

John Searancke


Prunes for Breakfast 
by John Searancke
This is the story of John Searancke's parents, told mostly from the side of his father, Eddie Searancke, from the time of his calling up in early 1940 to his release from a prisoner of war camp in Germany in 1945, thence his return to England to try to pick up the pieces of his old life. Nothing could ever be quite the same afterwards. The letters take readers through five captivating years, telling of the ups and downs, the plots and counterplots, as Eddie rose through the ranks to end his war as a captain, elevated to that rank in the field as his troops faced the formidable might of the SS Panzers. The letters also reveal where his battle came to an abrupt end, in an orchard surrounded by the enemy and captured after a series of bloody skirmishes as the British army spearheaded its way from the beaches of Normandy. The journey as a prisoner across France and Germany in a truck, with comrades dying each day, may be as hard to read as it is to tell, particularly when a new life and new harsh rules had to be learned and rigidly enforced in a prison camp in northern Germany, the final destination. This is written as part memoir, part fictionalised retelling and partly in letter format; John draws together all sources to recreate the five years of war and hardship that the letters span.

New Release on Amazon

Friday 18 September 2015

Authors unite for MacMillan Cancer Support Worlds Biggest Coffee Morning #RPBP




On 25th September, it's time for the MacMillan Cancer Support World's Biggest Coffee Morning. I will be co-hosting a coffee morning at The Coach House in Neath, South Wales. However, to maximise the money we hope to raise for this good cause, which is very dear to my heart, we are putting together some giveaways and competitions in association with some of my fellow authors who have donated ebooks for our event.



The MacMillan Cancer Support message:

The World’s Biggest Coffee Morning is Macmillan’s biggest fundraising event for people facing cancer. We ask people all over the UK to host their own Coffee Mornings and donations on the day are made to Macmillan. Last year alone we raised £25 million and this year we are aiming to raise even more.
DONATE now!






Contributing authors to date:

Shirley Ledlie - Naked In The Wind & The Unexpected Pilgrim
Jacky Donovan - Simon Ships Out
Robert Fear - Fred's Diary 1981 advance copy of the second edition
Jackie Parry - Of Foreign Build & A Standard Journey
Susan Joyce - The Lullaby Illusion
Ann Patras - Into Africa
Victoria Twead - Chickens, Mules and Two Old Fools & One Young Fool in Dorset
Frank Kusy - Too Young To Be Old
Sandra Staas - Aventuras in Spain  a memoir
Tony James Slater - The Bear Who Ate My Pants, Kamikaze Kangaroos, Don't Need The Whole Dog & Can I Kiss Her Yet?
Julie Freed - Naked
Janet Givens - At Home On The Kazakh Steppe
Cherry Gregory - The Girl From Ithaca, The Walls Of Troy
Sarah Jane Butfield - Ooh Matron, Glass Half Full, Two Dogs and A Suitcase, Our Frugal Summer in Charente

Would you like to win an ebook copy of one of these?





                     







                       












VISIT,  LIKE and SHARE our official Facebook page to enter the first giveaway prize draw!!!

















Authors: If any of you would like to get involved by donating an ebook simply email me a jpg cover image and a mobi file copy of your book.
Readers: You can help by liking/sharing the Facebook posts, taking part in the competitions, etc., and donating via the DONATE button at the top right of this blog page.

Thank you for reading and be sure to watch for updates, and giveaways over the coming week.
Please share or tweet this post to increase exposure for this very deserving cause.

Sarah Jane



Wednesday 16 September 2015

Ooh Matron! Soundtrack - the winners take us back to 1980s in style! #RPBP





On 14th September, I released book one, Ooh Matron, my new nursing memoir in The Nomadic Nurse Series, with a Facebook Launch Party. This was my first attempt at a social media party and I admit to being somewhat nervous, not least in case no one interacted with me throughout the day. As much as I tried to prepare, the reality was that I made it up as I went along responding to the party-goers and the atmosphere created as they started to join in.
The result was over 16 hours of music, movies, fun, competitions and book sales!

One of the competitions set was to help me compile a soundtrack to accompany, Ooh Matron! A nursing/medical memoir set in the 1980s. The eighties theme proved very popular and, as a result, there were over 50 entries!
It has taken me some time to go through the threads to short-list one song from each year between 1981 and 1987.
The winners are the party-goers who nominated the song, so here we go:

The Soundtrack to Ooh Matron!

1981 = The Best That You Can Do (Arthur's theme)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4rT9C5aV5A
Nominated Charles Bradley Cross

1982 = Africa - Toto
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTQbiNvZqaY
Nominated by Rachel O'Flynn

1983 = I'm Still Standing - Elton John
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHwVBirqD2s
Nominated by Samantha Parker

1984 = You're The Inspiration - Chicago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQmqU7OF-TI
Nominated by Susan Joyce

1985 = The Power of Love - Huey Lewis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkAVfsw5xSQ
Nominated by Shontae Brewster

1986 = A Kind Of Magic - Queen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0p_1QSUsbsM
Nominated by Julie Haigh

1987 = (I've had) The Time Of My Life - Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNnbffydhVw
Nominated by Martin Papworth

If your name appears on the list contact me on Facebook to claim your ebook!

Thank you to everyone who visited, took part or sent their best wishes, before and after the party. The level of support has been outstanding and very humbling. I hope you enjoyed the celebrations and for those who now have a copy of Ooh Matron! I hope you enjoy the first part of my nursing journey.

http://bit.ly/OohmatronAWS

5.0 out of 5 stars Just what the doctor ordered! 15 Sept. 2015
Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
Having recently worked within the NHS, I was immediately drawn to this memoir by an accomplished author of the genre. Once started I found it difficult to put down, easily captivated by this collection of amusing, poignant, but overall honest accounts of the author’s adventures and misadventures as a young nurse in the 1980’s. Beginning as a naive 16yr old we follow this young girl as she steps into the world of student life, bedpans and hypodermics. There were lots to fondly identify with as the author captures the period perfectly. I laughed out loud at the hilarious antics, and was sobered by the genuine emotional moments that all health professionals will recognise. This is a book that will make you laugh and cry and you’ll feel better for it - The perfect prescription.

An entertaining, amusing read – just what the doctor ordered!




Friday 11 September 2015

Breaking News! Final days of introductory price memoir Ooh Matron! #RPBP


With excitement building for readers who have pre-ordered, for me it was anxiety, until today. The first Advance Reader Copy Review went live on Goodreads. 
5 stars from an experienced reviewer and big medical memoir fan, Julie Haigh, who is very well-read in this genre! Only a little bit of pressure there then to get it right :)



5 stars *****

Ooh-it was great! I LOVED it!

I've read all of Sarah Jane Butfield's previous memoirs about moving abroad to Australia and France and really enjoyed them. I must say, I do have a soft spot for medical memoirs-I love them-and I certainly LOVED this! Even in the early section, I was feeling eager to read it, it was catching my interest immediately. I was due to start work and had to keep nipping back for a quick look at 'just a bit more' before I had to go. The book starts where Sarah Jane is just sixteen, it's the early 80s and she begins training to be a nurse. There's quite a bit of introductory matter before it gets going-but I still found this enormously interesting and relevant-eg. the explanation of the title, and the review from an advance reader makes it sound so tempting too-you just have to read on! There's quite a trip down memory lane with the mentions of the Carry On Films. I loved getting to know the young Sarah Jane after having read all her other books set in more recent times. This is a really refreshing change hearing about her earlier life. It's packed with info about the tasks the student nurses did, the things they learned. Later, there was more nostalgia-I had forgotten about this TV series-General Hospital! Next subject covered is student nurse life-and partying! Some very helpful links are included to explanations of things-eg the Australian lift-and a YouTube video link to illustrate this also-what a great idea. I love the rhyming chapter title-and there are a few chuckles here, their antics! Next, she worked on the geriatric ward as part of her training. There's a great insight into the tasks she had to do serving her time district nursing. Here are mentioned the various bowel procedures! Many times in this chapter I was thinking: oh yak, oh no, oh my goodness-the things she had to do! A very interesting chapter. I also enjoyed the bit of history about the area which tied-in. Next placement is at a maternity hospital. There is such an amusing scene, I loved how this was written, a lovely chapter with a chuckle at the end. A really feel-good read at this point. Obviously, with this profession, there are harder times too. Oh, I really enjoyed this! Just my sort of book. It's been really interesting to hear about the different and varied medical fields she's worked in. So varied, more placements include caring for patients who have attempted suicide, on the operating theatre site suite and on the children's ward. Practical jokes are played on the students, Sarah Jane was on the receiving end of a few of these. We get to hear about workplace affairs-I love behind the scenes books like this! An excellent inclusion is a chapter written by Sarah Jane's step-daughter, Claire, who has just completed training as a nurse and she gives a comparison of how it is now to go alongside Sarah Jane's experiences in the 80s. A period of training and working in the A & E brings some aarrrggghhh tales! I like how she explains things as she goes along AND includes a glossary at the end as well of quite a few medical terms/diseases etc. I've read quite a few medical memoirs so I'd heard and knew most of these but I think it's a good idea to have this for people who haven't read many or any of this type of book before. An assortment of amusing, interesting, surprising and emotional stories. A pleasure to read. Her best yet!

How do we celebrate this new series? With a party of course!

OOH MATRON! Launch day party takes place on Monday 14th September, be there or be square. 
We have lots of fun and prizes lined up! Join in now, on the link below, as there will be some pre-party activity and chances to win copies of 'Ooh Matron!' and other books.





Until release day, you can pre-order your copy for £2.99 or £1.99 
Find the links to all the pre-order bookstores on my author website link below.


What's it about?

Sarah Jane has no career aspirations, all she wants is to leave school, work as a cashier at Woolworths and get married. Then everything changes and she finds herself wearing a fluorescent pink uniform and studying to get into Nursing School. What inspired this surprising change of direction? What happens when she leaves home to live in a garrison town with a housemate who is a party animal? The big question being, is she really cut out to be a nurse? 
Let's start at the beginning with Sarah Jane as a sixteen-year-old country girl, a bit old fashioned but who has a mischievous sense of humour and who suddenly decides she wants to be a nurse! 

"This funny, yet poignant nursing memoir has Sarah Jane's trademark honest writing style which shines through in every story she tells. From starting her student nurse training in Essex to coping with patients in happy, sad and heart-breaking situations. It gives you a young woman's view into the realities of entering the world of nursing in the 1980’s. A highly entertaining and informative memoir which was able to take me from laughing out loud to having welled tears of empathy." S. Brewster 

Enjoy some 1980s nostalgia