The Blank Canvas offers solid advice for everyone who struggles with artist's block or other problems of creative expression, including: drawing subject matter from unexpected sources, mining one's daily visual responses for images, overcoming self-doubt and criticism, making choices when torn between several ideas, and getting started on assignments.
When Marcy Gregg awoke from a coma, 13 years had vanished from her memory. She was 30 years old; she thought she was still 17. She didn’t recognize the man who introduced himself as her husband. She stared at pictures of the three children they said were hers, trying desperately to remember them, but her mind was blank. Terrified and confused, Marcy did the only thing she could think of: she faked it. She told the doctors she was starting to remember and bluffed her way through visits from friends and family. Against all odds, it worked: she was released to a home, family, and life she should have known intimately—but seemed to be a stranger’s. How was she going to pull off the biggest acting challenge imaginable—and would her memories ever return? Ghost Boy meets What Alice Forgot in this amazing true story of a woman who lost herself and tried to fight her way back on her own—but who found unexpected beauty in hope, faith, and second chances.
No matter who you are, no matter how bad things look, you can rebuild your life. In 2012, Craig Stanland made a choice that would cost him everything. After he had exploited the warranty policy of one of the largest tech companies in the world for almost a year, the FBI finally knocked on his door. He was arrested and sentenced to two years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $834,307 in restitution. He lost his wife, his homes, his cars, his career, and even his identity. He wanted nothing more than to die. Blank Canvas is a meditation on our remarkable capacity to rebuild and reinvent our lives. Through powerful storytelling, Craig proves that our greatest adversities do not have to be the end. Sometimes, they can be our greatest beginning.
Renowned abstract artist, the curmudgeonly octogenarian Giles Paumen, is the head of a family of artists, each of whom he considers less talented than himself. His son Laurence is a conceptual artist and lecturer, code for the fact that, unlike his father, he cannot paint at all. However, granddaughter Sophie has inherited the genes and is making a name for herself as a painter of massive portraits, not that Giles would ever dream of expressing a positive word about her work. When a new national art prize is announced, each of the Paumen's secretly enters, the prize galvanizing them to embark in a new direction. Giles will complete a landscape honouring his wife who has recently died. Laurence heads to Uluru intending to capture the true spirit of Australia in this most iconic of outback locations. And Sophie decides to portray the malevolence lurking beneath the benign exterior of that most awful of men, the chauvinist. What none of them predicts is that they will all become embroiled in an art fraud which threatens to undermine their reputations and devastate their careers. Here, the truth of their narcissistic and insecure personalities is revealed as the underbelly of the art world is exposed in all its ugly, and hilarious, glory.
When a car accident changed the trajectory of his life at fifteen, Sam Braga set out to find his own way in the world. It never occurred to him he'd find home in Fairfield, Colorado, working with a childhood friend at a tattoo shop, and the legal guardian of a gorgeous little girl who was abandoned by her mother at birth. Sam has his life organized exactly the way he needs it. Maisy, work, and his found-family. There isn't room for anything else. Especially when DCS gets involved and tells him that his disability might interfere with his petition to finally adopt the little girl he's been raising. Sam might be lonely, but he just doesn't have room for love.Niko Pagonis tells himself he's not using the small town of Fairfield as an escape, but who is he kidding. When his NHL career ends two minutes after it begins, Niko flees the East Coast in search of somewhere to settle. He finds home in the form of his accounting firm and his gym buddies who never abandon him on leg-day. Eventually, however, it's not enough. Niko craves connection, and above all, he wants to feel like he belongs. He stumbles onto the unlikely family at Irons and Works, and more than that, he finds himself in the path of the gorgeous single-dad who has made it clear he has no plans to fit Niko into his routine.But things aren't always that simple, even when both men try to make them that way. A misguided offer of friends with benefits turns into something else, and both Sam and Niko know they're flirting with disaster. Still, neither one of them can seem to stay away from the other. Will they find their way through the mess before someone gets hurt? Or will it all come crashing to the ground.Blank Canvas is the second book in the Irons and Works series. Each book contains an individual storyline with no cheating and HEA.
High schooler Akiko has big plans to become a popular mangaka before she even graduates, but she needs to get much better at drawing if she ever wants to reach her goal. Looking for an easy fix, she signs up for an art class, thinking all her problems will soon be solved. She''s in for a surprise: her new instructor is a bamboo sword-wielding taskmaster who doesn''t care about manga one bit. But maybe this unconventional art teacher is just what she needs to realize her dreams!
His scarred hands are the gentlest I've ever known. If only life were a fairy tale where Beauty got to keep her Beast... Every morning I wake up and remind myself I am not my past, but beneath my drab clothing hides a secret—proof of the abuse I suffered at the hands of my possessive ex, tattooed on my skin in a lurid reminder of everything I've survived. I'm alone and in hiding, trying to rebuild some semblance of a normal life. I didn't expect healing to come in the form of a rough ex-con whose rage drives him in ways I'll never understand. Ivan's scars are on the inside—a wounded soul like me. But day by day, this gentle giant proves to me that there are second chances in life, and he deserves them as much as I do. And maybe finding each other will finally allow us to pick up our broken pieces and make something beautiful and new... This high-heat romance is an emotional tale of survival and contains strong themes of past domestic/sexual abuse. Please see reviews for details. Praise for Under Her Skin: "A dark and emotional tale that will make your spine tingle as well as your heart."—SARINA BOWEN, USA Today bestselling author of Bittersweet "The perfect romance...a hint of danger, a whole lot of spice, and an HEA you believe in."—ANNE CALHOUN, award-winning author of Under the Surface "Emotionally riveting page-turner."—Publishers Weekly STARRED Review "Incredibly sexy, heartbreaking, and intense."—Kirkus STARRED Review
Akiko has finally achieved her dream of becoming a manga artist! She's almost ready to fully immerse herself in the wonderful world of shoujo when Hidaka-sensei approaches her. Just what does he want?
"Anders has created wonderful variations on the beauty and the beast theme and the damsel-in-distress trope, a greatly tormented hero, and a powerful mix of menace and romance." —Booklist He thought he was beyond saving. A cop turned undercover gang member turned...whatever he is now. He thought no one would ever see him as anything but a beast. Until he found her. Until she changed everything. Undercover cop Clay Navarro left the Sultans biker gang a changed man. Its ringleaders may be awaiting trial, but he wears the memory of his time in that hell tattooed across his skin. He figures he doesn't have space in his messed-up life for anything gentle?not now, maybe not ever. Besides, what woman could possibly want the man he's become? Dr. Georgette Hadley is drawn to the damaged stranger's pain, intimidated but intrigued by the warmth that lies beneath Clay's frightening exterior. She thrills at the way he gentles at her touch...and under his rough hands, she burns with a passion she never thought she'd know. But when the Sultans return looking for revenge, Georgette finds herself drawn into the dirty underbelly of a life forged in violence...that not even her touch may be able to heal. Blank Canvas series: Under Her Skin (Book 1) By Her Touch (Book 2) In His Hands (Book 3) Praise for the Blank Canvas dark romance series: "A dark and emotional tale that will make your spine tingle as well as your heart."—SARINA BOWEN, USA Today bestselling author of Bittersweet for Under Her Skin "The perfect romance...a hint of danger, a whole lot of spice, and an HEA you believe in."—ANNE CALHOUN, award-winning author of Under the Surface for Under Her Skin "Emotionally riveting page-turner."—Publishers Weekly STARRED for Under Her Skin "Incredibly sexy, heartbreaking, and intense."—Kirkus STARRED for Under Her Skin "Gripping [and] emotionally satisfying."—Publishers Weekly STARRED for By Her Touch
"Anders excels at creating sympathetic characters who will win the reader's heart."—Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review The rules are simple: Never speak to outsiders.Never yearn for something more. And never, ever seek the pleasure of a stolen kiss...or a whispered promise that with him, she can finally be free. Abby Merkley has been a member of the Church of the Apocalyptic Faith since she was a child, and there's no way out...until her darkly handsome, brooding neighbor defies the rules and takes her into the safety of his arms. He should frighten her, but everything inside Abby thrills at Luc Stanek's rough manners and shockingly gentle touch. He excites her, ignites her, leaves her shaken and wanting more. But evil men follow in her footsteps, and it may take more than one fierce beauty to defend her loving beast. Blank Canvas series: Under Her Skin (Book 1) By Her Touch (Book 2) In His Hands (Book 3) Praise for the Blank Canvas dark romance: "A dark and emotional tale that will make your spine tingle as well as your heart."—SARINA BOWEN, USA Today bestselling author of Bittersweet for Under Her Skin "The perfect romance...a hint of danger, a whole lot of spice, and an HEA you believe in."—ANNE CALHOUN, award-winning author of Under the Surface for Under Her Skin "Emotionally riveting page-turner."—Publishers Weekly STARRED for Under Her Skin "Incredibly sexy, heartbreaking, and intense."—Kirkus for Under Her Skin "Gripping [and] emotionally satisfying."—Publishers Weekly STARRED for By Her Touch "Anders has created wonderful variations on the beauty and the beast theme [with] a greatly tormented hero, and a powerful mix of menace and romance."—Booklist for By Her Touch
