Hello, lovelies! It gives me great pleasure today to host Patrick A. Roland and his new book, “The Sparkle King”! For other stops on his Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.
Be sure to make it to the
end of this post to enter to win a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!! Also, come back daily to interact with Patrick
and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks for stopping
by! Wishing you lots of luck in this
fabulous giveaway!
The Sparkle King
by Patrick A. Roland
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GENRE: Autobiography / Memoir
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BLURB:
In
2014, Patrick lost his partner, Pack, suddenly and without warning. As he
struggled to come to terms with this, he was faced with homophobic prejudice
from his partner's family. In horrendous emotional pain and feeling desperately
lonely and depressed, he started to use recreational drugs heavily and hit rock-bottom
whilst on a trip to Las Vegas.
After
being diagnosed with bipolar disorder and getting clean from drugs and alcohol,
Patrick thought his fight was over. However, this was not the case. Life had
many other obstacles in store for him but this time, he knew how to be strong
and he knew he had God on his side for support.
This
inspiring and emotive true story shows how anyone can overcome the hurdles life
presents them with, if they just have faith and focus on their inner strengths.
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EXCERPT TWO:
I’ve
been sober for nearly four years now. It is here that I have stepped into the
power of who I really am. I now allow myself to sparkle. It is in this space of
love and light that I’ve fallen in love with the man I really am. And that
means I protect myself from pain. Yes, it still finds me. Life is life. Life is
hard. Pain is an unavoidable byproduct of it. But it is not allowed to ruin me
anymore.
Because
I now stand firm in the power and strength of my sparkle, I get to work on pain
the minute I feel it start to seep into my body. I used to let it hang out,
take over and basically encompass me. Now I let it in just enough to feel it.
That way I am reminded that I need to heal it, so that I can move on and keep
growing in the direction of my dreams. Pain gets in; light comes out.
That
doesn’t mean it doesn’t get overwhelming. For a few weeks at the end of last
year, it seemed like everything was falling apart: a dishonest publicist stole
money from me and almost ended my literary career. But the power of my dream
and my desire to share the gift of my sparkle overruled his act of sabotage. It
just made me work harder.
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GUEST POST:
What I’ve Become
I’m a survivor.
Writing those words still feels new to me because I spent 40
years being a victim.
When
I made the decision to get sober at 40, I also made the decision to shift my
perspective. Now that I see myself as a survivor, I see that life - no matter
how difficult it can get - is actually beautiful.
I
didn’t choose to be all the things I am - overweight, gay, bipolar, drug
addict, widow, abuse survivor - but I did choose to lean into them and own them
because when I do so, I take away the power all of those things used to have
and give it back to myself.
The
greatest lesson I have learned from this book and the two that came before it
is that I am much stronger than I ever thought I was; and it is the pain we go
through that creates an amazing, almost magical power that makes us become who
we are really supposed to be. That’s why I will not run away from, shrink back
from or hide from any of the things that I am. I choose to embrace them,
because in doing so, I embrace myself. I stand in my truth, and I love the
person that I am because of all these things that could be perceived as ugly.
The ugly truth about me is that all my imperfections are perfect because they
comprise my sparkle, and it is that light from within that I created from the
darkness thst used to surround me that shaped a survivor.
This
book came about just like my last one did: because of a storm. But what was
really happening in that storm is that God was washing away what no longer
served me. So the next time a friend dumps you, someone wrongs you financially,
you get fired from a job, someone you love gets sick or when a hoped-for
relationship doesn’t work out, remember it happened because it’s not supposed
to. Remember something better is coming. Remember you deserve better. And
always remember that it hurts - and it’s ok if you need to feel it because
doing so actually heals it - but that pain is going to create new power that is
occurring so you can level up and be more than you ever thought you could be.
Because I believe in you and you are a survivor too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR BIO:
Patrick A. Roland is a
gay, bipolar, ex-drug addict, widowed abuse survivor and the author of three
great books. His first, Unpacked Sparkle: a Story of Grief and Recovery, kicks
off his journey of sobriety and self-love following the death of his partner,
Pack, in January 2014. This book was published by Az Publishing and is
available on Amazon.
His
second book is a children’s book called Sparkle On! This book is about a gecko
who is constantly constant bullied but chooses to fight this with love.
His
new book, The Sparkle King, keeps the sparkle flowing as Patrick finds his way
through several fear-inducing experiences by constantly choosing faith to
overcome them in long-term sobriety.
Patrick
lives in Phoenix, Az. He is a peer support at a mental health clinic, where he
helps others just like himself. He’s also earning a Master’s in Addiction
Counselling at Grand Canyon University and is taking care of his elderly,
terminally ill parents. He wants you to know you can do anything you decide to
do if you love yourself.
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CONNECT WITH PATRICK:
Website:
Website:
Publisher’s Website:
Email:
patrick@unpackedsparkle.com
Facebook:
Twitter:
Pinterest:
Instagram:
LinkedIn:
Goodreads Author Page:
Goodreads Book Page:
Amazon Author Page:
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BOOK BUY LINKS:
Amazon Kindle eBook:
Amazon Paperback:
Barnes and Noble Paperback:
The Book Depository Paperback:
BAM! Books-A-Million Paperback:
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
Patrick will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC
to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this
blog. This does not cost you anything,
it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored
by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish
Promotions. Prizes are given away by the
sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish
Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Who is your favorite literary charachter?
ReplyDeleteHolden Caulfield or The Pigman - The Sparkle King
DeleteI liked the excerpt, thank you.
ReplyDeleteAlways fun to hear about another new great book. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI see a lot of myself in you.. I'm also a survivor of abuse. I am so sorry you went through that. We've both overcame it!! I love the sound of this book!! Sounds adorable!!
ReplyDeleteThank you - The Sparkle King
DeleteI don't; but I didn't have plans for the first three either... so we shall see what happens. - The Sparkle King
ReplyDeleteThanks all for your support - The Sparkle King
ReplyDeleteBeautiful cover and title. But more importantly your story sounds so inspirational!
ReplyDelete