Thanks to Mariah E. for this lovely 5-star review of Horseshoes and Hand Grenades on Amazon and goodreads: "Horseshoes and Hand Grenades tells the story of overcoming abuse, friendship, and understanding. This story represents a lot to me as a woman. Dealing with sexual abuse is always hard, especially when reading about it. However, Stevens … Continue reading HAHG’s “Very Powerful Message”
At some point in life, some people stop being self-conscious talking about themselves and speak more publicly in hopes of helping others. I have reached that point. I realized this after recording an interview for Darlene Corbett's wonderful podcast, Tap Into the Power of U. One reason I chose PR as my initial career was … Continue reading Don’t Let the Trauma Define You
The Horseshoes and Hand Grenades Blog Tour continues with a review of my Contemporary Women's Fiction story on Savvy Verse & Wit in the U.S. We then jump across the pond to the U.K. where Book Inspector hosts my guest post. Book Review on Savvy Verse & Wit Savvy Verse & Wit writes about Horseshoes … Continue reading HAHG Blog Tour: Day 6
This reader review of my book Horseshoes and Hand Grenades is from a few weeks ago, but I'm just now finding time to post it. (I've been moving.) I completely respect the reviewer's different take on modern sexuality, and appreciate that the story of Astrid and Shelby resonated with her. Here's her review: Great read … Continue reading “Horrifying at the Right Moments”
Ramona, host of "Ramona Interviews" on WCCA-TV, conducts a lively, fun and thought-provoking interview as I found when taping this segment about my new novel Horseshoes and Hand Grenades recently. Here are a few comments made by Ramona in the course of the interview (paraphrased): It was easy to read. I didn't feel depressed when … Continue reading “Ramona Interviews” S.M. Stevens
So honored to have a guest post appear on Funky Feminist, a site full of insightful and timely observations about everything from gender equality and race to facing your fears about menstrual cups. And kudos for the awesome graphic they posted with the article, which I have borrowed for this post. My guest post on … Continue reading Guest Post on Funky Feminist
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, from the Horseshoes and Hand Grenades family! If you are a victim of sexual harassment or assault, like the characters in my novel, I encourage you to acknowledge that your experience "counts" and you deserve to heal, if you haven't already. No matter the "severity" of what happened, a line was crossed … Continue reading Happy Thanksgiving!
Overt sexual harassment in the workplace may be decreasing but sexism or gender bias is increasing, The Boston Globe reported a few weeks ago in an article titled “Women facing ‘massive increase in hostility’ in workplace, #MeToo-era study says.” Reporter Katie Johnston wrote that the subset of men who feel threatened by the increasingly loud … Continue reading With Sexual Harassment, Almost Counts
In today's post for Book Launch Week, here's the first of many excerpts I'll be publishing to give you a glimpse of the plot for Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (and hopefully encourage you to buy it). In this short but telling bit, Shelby is musing... I was twenty-two when I let the memories in. They’d … Continue reading Excerpt: Shelby Remembers
Doing a live radio interview for "The K-Zone Lunchbox" with Travis at WPKZ-Radio (105.3 FM/1280 AM), in Fitchburg, Mass., last Friday was a blast! It was my first chance to talk about Horseshoes and Hand Grenades on the radio, and Travis was an amazing interviewer. I've sat in on many a radio interview over the … Continue reading #HAHG Radio Interview from the K-Zone “Lunchbox”