Friday Sinema: Sea Chants

Posted on January 16, 2026 by Silver James

As many of you know, I’m a big fan of Celtic music and since sea chanty tunes are often derived from Celtic tunes, it’s a no brainer than I clap, tap, and bob along. Add in the action here, and what’s not to enjoy? FYI, I’ve been sailing on the ocean twice–once from NYC to Southampton, England and the other a 10-day cruise in the Caribbean. I hit rough weather both times and I can absolutely attest that what you are watching is NOT faked in some. I literally HAVE been there, done that, and managed not to toss my cookies all over the T-shirt. TGIF and have a great weekend.

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Hunch

Posted on January 15, 2026 by Silver James

So. Real Life is being contrary. I had every intention of being productive this week and then RL stepped up to the plate and kept laying down sacrifice bunts, flies, and yesterday, a home run. For the other side. I had a hunch on Monday that the best laid plans were not going to come to fruition. Today is Thursday. I have a hunch that things aren’t going to change. The Universe sort of agrees.

Hunches, instincts, and intuition are priceless, Silver, because they throw you into action.

Right?
The Universe
©www.tut.com 

P.S. They do throw you into action, Silver? Right??

Yeah, right, Big U. Action. I’ll get right on that once I figure out what action to take. For those not aware, LG’s truck caught fire yesterday morning. As he was driving at highway speeds on one of the interstate loops around the city. Luckily, an alert trucker signalled him and he managed to pull off onto the right of way. He and his passenger grabbed some stuff and got out after calling 911. Luckily, the nearest fire station was close by. They got the fire out before there was much damage to the exterior. Sadly, under the truck and the engine compartment? Not so much. I went to pick them up, we did some truck-related stuff, then LG dropped me off at home so he could get his buddy home. That’s a different story. Anyway. We’re waiting on the insurance company to decide if they’re going to repair the truck or total it. Yippee. And I have to people again today. So, my answer to the Universe is, “Yo, Universe! When are things gonna smooth out so I can do some positive action-type stuff? Huh? I’m waiting…”

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Wednesday Words: We Call That A Clue

Posted on January 14, 2026 by Silver James

Guess what?! New words for today. Sadly, they are the only new words written since last Thursday. Y’all know why. Anyway. Along with the new words is the announcement that they won an honorable mention in last week’s Thursday Threads. The prompt is: *“There was no blood or body.”* I think from previous snippets that y’all know there are murders in the WIP. All I know about where this snippet is in the timeline is that it’s after Sade arrives to investigate them, finding Ariel and Nikos already there, hence her calling Caleb to assist, who then calls in Sinjen. Fun times, right? Here it is, for what it’s worth.

****
There was no blood or body but the scent of death sullied the air. Caleb glanced at Sade. “I can shift but not sure it’ll do any good. There was a body here but that’s the only scent.”

“What does that mean?”

“Like I should know?” The werewolf toed the flattened grass. “The body was here. Evidently, it just…poofed.”

“Bodies don’t just poof, Caleb.” Sade turned her attention to the Fae standing silently at her side, and stilled. Ariel’s face looked like it had been carved from white granite. “Ari?”

“It’s not her,” Caleb blurted. “Hell, Ari. Sorry. It’s not Aisling’s scent.”

The stark fear did not drain from Ari’s expression. In a voice as somber as the tomb they stood in front of, he said, “Are you sure this one was dead?”

“Yeah, buddy. I’m sure.”

Sade touched Ariel’s arm. “Will you tell us what’s going on?”

His gaze locked on the spot at their feet, Ari shook his head. “I can’t. King’s orders.”

“I call bullshit on that.” Sade whipped out her cell phone but snake-fast, Ari’s hand intercepted hers.

“No. You can’t call him.”

“Watch me.”

“No, Sade. I forbid you.”

“You are so not the boss of me, Ariel Daione. How ’bout I call Titania instead. She owes me.”

“That depends on what you call me, Sade Marquis.” The Queen of the Seelie Court stepped up beside them.

“Well, hell,” Sade muttered. “We are so fu—” Caleb surreptitiously kicked her shin. “Screwed,” she finished lamely.
****

There you have it. I have hopes of more and better words this week. I’m still sad and still missing Pete. I still look for him whenever I open the door to the garage. I still reach for him when I wake up in the night. I probably will for quite some time. Years of habit are hard to break. He was a good cat. And he was totally a cat. And yes, I will figure out a way for him to appear in a book. Writers, write. Readers,what do you think Sade would like to call Titania? 😉

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Tuesday Tidbits: *sigh*

Posted on January 13, 2026 by Silver James

So. I’m late. That’s because I’m actually composing this post on Tuesday morning. Even though I slept in (6:40 a.m. instead of before 6), it’s still dark outside. My headache says that’s good. Anyway, I normally set up my blog post the day before or if I’m really energized, I’ll do several. But, usually, just the day before. Except I had to unexpectely people yesterday. It wasn’t bad peopling. I got to spend a bit of time with one of my favorite people in the world (Stormy) but it was a “glitch in the routine.” The older I get, the more *off* I get when my routine is inerrupted. Anyway.

I have some decisions to make. About some of my older books and some of the new ones. The newer two are “out of production” at the moment. For reasons, the rights were returned to me. I can republish them after some fairly serious revisions. Which is why they are currently out of the market. The older books? Well, I probably should have asked for my rights back a few years but I was content to just sail along and let them be. The only thing they would nees is new covers. But, I have to write the official letter, wait for the rights to be reverted, then for them to be taken off all the sales outlets and then I have to go through the process of republishing them. I’m not sure I’d recoup enough in royalty to pay for all that. I know exactly how much tine and energy would need to be invested. And that’s the crux right there. Not the time so much but the energy. I don’t have a whole lot of that at the moment.

Then there’s the dang WIP. My Scrivener icon sits there on my monitor tool bar taunting me. Ariel’s story needs to be told. I want to tell it. But. Ariel is strangely sullen. Aisling can’t decide if she’s a deer in headlights or the Morrigan. Iffy is off playing mah jong or pickleball or something. And I sit here in the dark (well, semi-dark since I have the desklamp on and my computer screen glows like the Las Vegas Strip), wondering what the hello kittyam I doing.

And now y’all knolw why I set these posts up beforehand. That said, I guess it’s time to go have some fun. After I sift though the 100 junk emails to find the 4 important ones, at least look at social media and the blogs I follow, and pray that the coffee I’m drinking will make this blasted headache go away. Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

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Monday All Over Again

Posted on January 12, 2026 by Silver James

Well. Okay. So there was a week and a weekend. There’s good news and bad news. Well, sad news anyway. Let’s start with the positive.

Medical update: As I’ve mentioned before, I made a deal with my PC doc to undergo three tests in order to avoid one test that involves all such of things that are yucky. The alternative was less invasive and done at home. I did it over the holidays. The results came back negative/normal and I shouldn’t have to do another for 3 years. Yay. Good to know the insides are good. The other two tests involve “squishing the girls” and doing a bone scan. Those tests were scheduled for last Friday afternoon, back to back. The radiology department called Friday morning to reschedule the mammogram because their machine was on the fritz. So. That one has been rescheduled for later in the month. The bone scan was easy peasy and didn’t take long at all. Results are in. I have a less than 0.01% chance of suffereing a hip or bone break in a fall. I have good bones, but I pretty much knew that going in. So yay. In other good news, my opthomologist (eye surgeon) is pleased. Pressure in both eyes is normal (this is a good thing for glaucoma

The sad news is that Pete crossed the rainbow bridge Friday afternoon. I found him when we got home. I knew he was gone but when I stroked him one last time, he let out one final breath. I think that was for me, him telling me that it was okay I wasn’t there, and that he’s off to new adventures across the rainbow bridge. I miss him. Bed time is hard. Waking up in the night is hard. I didn’t realize how much comfort he offered when I’d wake up. I’d reach over, pet him a few times, then my hand would settle on his back and we’d both go back to sleep. We buried him out in the island in the spot where he’d sun himself, a spot I can see from my office window. Needless to say, the weekend was pretty me being sad and a little weepy.

I had plans to write. Yeah…that didn’t happen. I did finish off the book I was listening to, Jayne Ann Krentz’s THE SHOP ON HIDDEN LANE. If you’re a fan of her Arcane books, this is a new series set in that world. It was fun and there’s a really cool dog. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series. Maybe today new words will come.

There was supposed to be a Stormy soccer game on Saturday but due to a scheduling SNAFU, no match. Kind of a bummer.

Last week was full of peopling with doctor appointments. I finally decided to do something I swore I wouldn’t do–order groceries to be delivered. It was easy peasy and my groceries came sacked exactly like I’d do them in the self-checkout lane. Yippee. LG teased me that I was getting agorophobic. I’m not. It’s not the outside, it’s the people! I wonder if there is a name for wanting to avoid people? Anyway, this coming week is quiet. I will grocery shop at some point. I’m relistening to a Suzanne Wright book because the next “new” book I want drops on the 20th.

How was everyone else’s weekend? I hope there was good stuff in your lives.

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Friday Sinema: Going to the Dogs

Posted on January 9, 2026 by Silver James

One of my favorite accounts on X is We Rate Dogs. They have a foundation to helps pay medical bills for strays, promote adoptions, have cool swag (Tell Your Dog I Said Hi), and post videos of cute dogs doing cute stuff and then they post a count down. Here’s the first one of the year… Happy Friday. I’m writing this weekend. Or else! We’ll see on Monday. In the meantime, “Who’s a gooood dawg?”

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Miracle

Posted on January 8, 2026 by Silver James

If New Year’s Day hadn’t fallen on a Thursday, this is the post I would have posted to greet the new year. Maybe. I mean, it didn’t pop up in my inbox until January 1 and since I tend to set up my post the day before because…reasons.* Anyway, it comes a week later but I’ve been working on this since January 1.

*The reason being that I haven’t had enough coffee to do more than just scroll through email first thing in the morning.

Performing miracles, Silver, isn’t a matter of doing the impossible, it’s a matter of re-imagining the possible.

Tallyho,
The Universe
©www.tut.com 

P.S. Consider, Silver, people once thought double chocolate was impossible.

I’m a writer. Therefore, logic says that I’m creative and have an imagination. And, therefore, I need to use it. Reading the Big U’s message last week made me stop and think. In doing so, I realized that not only had I sunken into a slump, I continued to trudge along that wallow. to say I disappointed myself in 2025 is an understatement. In self-preservation, I decided to adopt a rather laissez-faire attitude about things–a que sera sera philosophy. And yes, I am hearing Doris Day singing in my ear. That translates to “What will be, will be.” And there I was early on January first thinking this. Until I opened my email from the Universe. I read it. I started to delete it and then I read it again. Performing miracles, Silver, isn’t a matter of doing the impossible, it’s a matter of re-imagining the possible. I’m the first to admit that I need a miracle where my writing is concerned. And yeah, things appear pretty impossible. But I’m a writer. I DO have an imagination. All I have to do is use to re-imagine the possible. I can do this. I don’t need a big miracle, I just need a series of small ones. It’s like writing a book. One word at a time. I got this.

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Wednesday Words: You Look Familiar

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Silver James

Due to the placement of the holidays on Thursdays last year, there were no Thursday Threads to tug. Luckily, I had a Christmas story to share for the one and the next Thursday was New Year’s Day so…hey, Happy New Year. That said, it meant no fresh words for today. At least not from the flash fiction challenge. Instead, I went in search of inspiration and found a phrase that sparked a scene between Aisling and…someone.   The prompt is: *”Have we met before?”*

****
Aisling stared at the elevator then glanced at the door marked “Stairs.” Not that she was claustrophobic. It wasn’t the size of the elevator that made her nervous. No, not at all. It was the chance of something going wonky. Well, not just wonky but flat-out wrong. Like the car getting stuck between floors. Or the cable unraveling and the lift falling down the shaft gathering speed before smashing into the concrete at the bottom of the sub-basement.

She turned her head to stare at the closed doors. Was it true or just an urban legend that if you were in a runaway elevator and you jumped up and down so that you were in the air when it hit bottom, you wouldn’t be hurt. Or hurt as bad. She resolved to look that up on the Internet. She was a research librarian after all. Besides, it was only three floors. That was what? Forty feet? Or so. No far at all. She’d survive. Maybe. Probably.

The doors opened and she stepped forward blindly, her thoughts distracting her. She bumped into something solid. That was warm. And…solid. Eyes wide, she stared at a soft gray linen shirt, open at the collar, with softly tan skin of a masculine chest showing. She raised her head, gulping as her gaze followed a strong jawline and stopped on silvery green eyes the color of an antique jade vase. And oh, the twinkle of amusement in them made her gasp.

Aisling became aware of two things—strong hands gripping her upper arms and an overwhelming sense of déjà vu. The words spilled out of her mouth before she could think about them. “Have we met before?”
****

There it is, boys and girls. A little free writing to get me back into the swing of things. Today I shall write some more words–hopefully. I’m still reading through the story so far plus my notes and getting reorganized, but while doing that, I’m also working on expanding unfishined scenes–grouping them together, writing transitions, and creating chapters. I will conquer this beast! In the meantime, writers, if the prompt inspires you, steal away! Readers, if you bumped into a fictional character getting off an elevator and you asked them this question, who would it be?

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Tuesday Titles: What’cha Readin’?

Posted on January 6, 2026 by Silver James

Due to circumstances, I wasn’t on the computer much for any length of time until it was late and dark outside. Meaning if there was going to be a new post for today, it needed to be short. And sweet. Hopefully. When they dilate my eyes, it’s like 6 hours before I can see the fine print. Anyway.

I finished off the Devon Monk Ordinary Magic series yesterday. Thank goodness for audio books! As most of you know, I “read” almost exclusively by listening to audio books. I’m legally blind in my left eye and I do my best not to strain my right so I can keep it for reading/editing what I write, and for beta reading a few very select friends. Anyway. I loved the series and binged right on through all the books. But…there are threads. UNTIED THREADS! At the end of the last book. There’s a rumor that there will be at least two more books but no schedule on when that is going to happen. Anyway, I loved the series. Ordinary, Oregon is far from ordinary and the characters are delightful. Even the vampires. If cozy paranormals are your catnip and you haven’t tried these books, I recommend them. I listened to the Graphic Audio adaptations using a full cast. Fun stuff. But I want more. Hence my dilemma.

The next new release I’m looking forward to doesn’t drop until later this month. This means I need a book to listen to. I have weird tastes. Which means I never know what is going to catch my attention. So now I’m tossing it to you, friendly readers. What’cha readin’? Are you enjoying it? What’s it about? What are you liking–or not liking–about it? I need suggestions and if something catches my eye, hopefully I can find it in audio. I’m depending on y’all! Bring me your suggestions!! ASAP!!!

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First Monday of the Year

Posted on January 5, 2026 by Silver James

Well…all righty then. Mid-week holidays. Confusion. Chaos. *flail* Okay. Not really. All is good. The “Lost Week” is done. Christmas past, New Year chugging along. And here it is Monday once again. It might be the 5th day of the month but it is techinically the first day of work for many. Except retail. Or health care. First responders. Okay. Only for people in offices and schools. Oh, and writers. Our work is never done. 😉

New Year’s Eve dinner was really fancy–pepperoni pizza and cheesy bread from Little Caeser’s. Yum! New Year’s Day was easy peasy. We did nothing. Jake had had a bad night. He has PTSD–yes critters have it too–and anthing remotely sounding like gunfire sets him off and there were a lot of boomers in the neighborhood. Jerks! Lots of time spent petting, hugging, and soothing him. Luckily, Toby was fine. Pete was fine but Loki was worried about his soul brother. Yes, he and Jake are that close. At one point, Jake was up on the couch with LG and Loki jumped up on the arm. LG watched as Loki *petted* Jake with his paw. At that point, Pete, Toby and I were sleeping in the bedroom and missed it. The Kids had stuff to do so no family time. We watched football and ate chili.

In my week off, I binged on Devon Monk’s Ordinary Magic series. The books are set in Ordinary, Oregon, a small town on the coast. A small town where supernaturals live and gods vacation. The MC is Delaney Reed, chief of police. I classify them as cozy paranormals. There is a LOT of humor. And a pink unicorn that is not what she seems. At all. To say I enjoyed them all is an understatement. Sadly, I am now done and I have to find something else to read. Any suggestions?

I’d actually planned to get back into writer mode this week. Then I looked at my calendar. I have to people. Multiple times. Today, I’m off to my eye surgeon for a six-month check-up. Full blown. Which means dilation and all the visual acuity tests. Fun times. Not. Well…sort of. I love my doc. He is all kinds of awesome and has amazing staff. But it will take most of my morning and then I’ll have to wait for my eyes to readjust before I can get on the computer. In my head, I was planning to do a read of the ol’ WIP and all the dangling scenes to refresh memory and get them in some sort of timeline/plot order. So now, that’s my goal on Tuesday. After I run errands. And then Friday, more medical stuff. My PC doc and I made a deal. She’d let me do the at-home test for one procedure if I’d do the bone density and smush-the-girls-ogram. So I did the mail-in thingy and Friday, I have the other two back-to-back. What a way to bookend my week.

There’s not much else going on in my world. Just the same ol’, same ol’. I’ll see what tomorrow may bring. What’s up with you?

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