Monday Checklist

Posted on January 25, 2021 by Silver James

I made a list to get ready for today. It’s a pretty simple list.
1. Coffee ✓
2. Coffee ✓
3. Coffee
4. Write

I made a little progress over the weekend on the WIP. See, this witch popped in and needed to be rescued, which Roman and Caleb obligingly did. From a barge. On the Seine. Near Notre Dame. Why? I have no clue. Oh, I know why they saved her–they’re the good guys. I just have no clue why she showed up in the first place. But before that can happen, I have to get Sinjen and Sade through a scene involving sexy bits and then she needs to take off while he’s in the day sleep and fly to Paris, though I can’t send her on the “red eye” like I’d sketched out because that would mean flying at night and Sinjen being a vampire means he’d be awake and the whole point is for her to take off without him knowing she’s taking off and…like d’uh! See? Sade isn’t the only one have trouble navigating a meaningful relationship with a vampire. 🤣 Anyway…I plan on working on that today. After multiple cups of coffee.

Stormy came to visit on Friday. He was on virtual school. Baseball Boy had in-school classes. Only took Stormy to work on Wednesday. Not sure what they did with him Friay but he came over on Friday after his Zoom class meeting so Only could go to work and actuallly…you know…work! He and his Big Daddy had fun. At one point, they went to Hobby Lobby to look for either a model to build or a STEM project kit. They came home with…rock-em-sock-em robots, Samarai and Knight version. Don’t ask. They had fun. That’s all that matters. The hightlight of the day, for me, was when Liam decided he was hungry for lunch and came to tell me. I was working on a scene and he stood beside my chair, staring at the monitor. I had the Scrivener program open. And then this happened:

Stormy: Jammie?
Me: Are you hungry now?
Stormy: Yes. *intently staring at the screen* Jammie?
Me: Yes?
Stormy: *in a breathy voice filled with awe* Are you writing a BOOK?
Me: Yes. That’s what I do. *picking up a paperback copy of TWICE THE TEMPTATION sitting on my desk* See? I wrote this one.
Stormy: Huh!

And then he headed to the freezer to pick out the happy face chicken he wanted for lunch. It was the highlight of my whole week.

Yes, it was slow week. No sports. No real TV worth noting. I did discover that there is a sort of prequel spin-off series to a series that I once enjoyed very much but stopped reading for…reasons. Anyway, I grabbed that book and enjoyed it very much. Now I’m doing a relisten of the first couple of books in the original series. In case you’re curious. the new book is THE EMPORER’S WOLVES by Michelle Sagara, who wrote the Chronicles of Elantra series. WOLVES centers on who I thought was one of the most compelling secondary characters in the series, Severn Handred, and it runs sort of concurrently with the prequel novella and the first book of the CoE series. I hope the next book, if and when it comes out, continues in the same vein, rather than taking on the elements of the series that caused me to stop reading around book 13. Any, it’s fantasy. With magic, dragons, aerians (winged beings), leontines (anthropomorphic lions), Barani (sort of a cross between immortal elves and fae) and other interesting folk, along with humans. Also, the worldbuilding is amazing!

And that’s it for me. Time for more coffee and then new words. I’m way behind schedule on this book. I let Real Life bum me out and I can’t afford to to that. What’s on your Monday list?

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Friday Sinema: Dragon Age

Posted on January 22, 2021 by Silver James

Since I’m in a “dragon state of mind”–thanks to Nikos making waves for Sade and Sinjen, I thought I’d share one of the first Linsey Stirling videos I ever watched. Enjoy your Friday, beware of dragons, and have a great weekend!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Journey

Posted on January 21, 2021 by Silver James

When you have a career in the “arts,” you are always waiting for The Call™. When you’re in the beginning of a relationship, you are always waiting for A Call™. When you are out of work and applying everywhere, you are always waiting for Any Call™. 2020 was a year when Life got put on hold, or the line was busy, or no one picked up on the other end. This message from the Universer has been tucked back in my files for a bit. I’m not sure this is the right time for the message but considering the world right now? I think maybe it is.

When you finally get that call, meet that person, walk that walk, and live that dream, Silver, do you think you’ll even care that there were a few dark and scary moments in a journey that made them all possible?

Trust me, you won’t even remember.

Keep walking,
The Universe
©www.tut.com

And, Silver, won’t you be glad you never settled for less?

Why should we settle for less? We should demand the best of ourselves and expect the best of those around us. These are dark and scary moments but we need to keep putting one foot in front of the other. If we don’t move forward, we stagnate or fall behind. I plan to keep walking. Actually, in the words of an old Yellow Pages commercial, I’ll “let my fingers do the walking.” I have a calling–to write stories to entertain folks. Each of you has a calling. Chins up. Shoulders square. It’s time to walk the walk and get back on the road of our personal journeys. The past is done. The future will bring whatever it brings. I can only affect the little space that I occupy and to do that effectively, I’m going to answer my call to arms. Because, you know, the finger bone is connected to the hand bone and the hand bone is connected to the arm bone and I need all three to type. 😉 Who’s calling you?

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Wednesday Words: Double the Fun

Posted on January 20, 2021 by Silver James

Another Wednesday. I’m ignoring TV today, preferring to get lost in new words for my WIP, with occasional forays into the words of favorite authors. Today’s #1lineWed theme is **DOUBLE**. How many of you are singing (or humming) the old Doublemint Gum jingle? 🙋🏼‍♀️ This snippet is fairly self-explanatory. At least I hope it is because truthfully? I’m not exactly sure what the Scooby gang is up to…
****
The gargoyle, feet planted on the sidewalk, partially sat atop the wall along the Pont de la Tournelle Bridge, his back to the view of Notre Dame Cathedral tourists lined up to see. Today, the walkway remained mostly empty. The cathedral, home to the Gargoyle Sentinels, had been partially demolished in the battle against the rogues. Seeing the magnificent architecture hidden by a spiderweb of scaffolding hurt in a way he couldn’t explain.

“You are sure he is here?” Roman asked the werewolf standing next to him.

Caleb’s eyes were focused on a barge making slow headway up the Seine. “Pretty sure.”

“Why would the dragon come to Paris? Athens is his demesne.”

“Where’s Sade?” Caleb glanced up in time to catch the change in the gargoyle’s expression as understanding washed over the other magick. “Yeah. That’s why.”

“Where is Sinjen?”

“That’s a good question. Back in Washington, I guess.”

“Washington and not Chicago?”

“Don’t ask, Roman.”

“Because you do not know or because you do not want to be in the middle?”

“Yes.”

“What about the fae?”

Caleb let out a long-suffering sigh. “You know Ariel won’t keep his nose out of this once he catches wind of it.”

“Of course not. We will bring him up to speed once he arrives.”

Caleb returned his focus to the barge, his action catching Roman’s attention.

“What do you find so fascinating down there?”

“There’s a witch on that barge. Casting a spell.”

Roman concentrated, eyes narrowed on the barge. “There is, yes.”

Caleb turned a sharp gaze on Roman. “Your witchling?”

“No. Verity is with Crevan.”

“Then who?”

“We should find out.”

Huge, leathery wings unfolded as Roman shifted into his real form. With one hard down beat, he lifted into the air and sailed out over the water in pursuit of the barge. Caleb raced across the bridge and scrambled down one of the bridge abutments to the walkway lining the Seine. He loped past moored barges, his eye on the prize. Suddenly, Roman halted in the sky hovering before turning around to double back in the opposite direction. The werewolf slowed.

“Stay with the barge!” Roman shouted as he passed. “Guard the witch.”

Guard the witch? What had Roman discovered that he didn’t know? Still, he trusted the gargoyle so he turned on the speed. Even in human form, he could run with the wind. He reached the Pont de Sully bridge ahead of the barge. Using a moored canal boat as a springboard, he vaulted onto the suspect houseboat. The cloying odor of fresh magic invaded his nose and lungs but he ignored it, focusing instead on the scent of fear wafted up from below deck.

Two burly men emerged, mirror images of each other. “Talk about double trouble,” Caleb muttered. The good news—they were human. The bad—one held a gun to a girl’s head. That’s when he caught the hint of sparkling glitter behind the man with the weapon.

“Better late than never,” he called out.
****
Three guesses as to who just showed up. 😉 Writers, any double words you want to share? Readers, what would you double up on, given the opportunity?

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: Beignets

Posted on January 19, 2021 by Silver James

As most of you know, one of my favorite places in the world is New Orleans. And one of my favorite places to sit and watch the world go by is the Cafe du Monde just across the street from Jackson Square. People stand in line to grab a table during the busy times so I always tried to time my visits for off-peak hours so I could sit, drink my cafe au lait and indulge in their marvelous beignets. Surprisingly, they aren’t that hard to make at home. Messy, but not hard.

A French Quarter tradition since 1862, Cafe Du Monde beignets are probably the most famous beignets in the world.

Please Note: I’ve been asked by the website where this recipe was posted to remove the details. If you are curious, please click on the link below. Sorry for the confusion. Also, please note that the photo is my own, taken by me at Cafe du Monde. 

The typical serving is three beignets heavily topped with powdered sugar on top.

On a side note, this recipe came from Todd Wilbur and he gives a step-by-step instructions, including pictures at his site so CLICK HERE to check it out. Now, as most of my readers know, I have a character named Sade Marquis who is a human FBI agent caught up in a world filled with Magicks. Like someone else we all know– –Sade spends a lot of time in New Orleans. In fact, she’s first introduced in THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC, which is set in New Orleans. And like someone else we all know, she hangs out at Cafe du Monde and a bar and restaurant called Deja Vu. I’m in a Sade frame of mind since I’m currently working on Book 5 in the Penumbra Papers series and Mardi Gras happens in about a month, so I’m also thinking about NOLA. Haven’t read the book? You can grab it from most on-line retailers. Just click on the title or the cover and head over to Books2Read to find the link to your favorite store. FYI, readers get to meet the “Scooby Gang”–a werewolf, a gargoyle, a fae, a dragon, and get a peek at a very sexy vampire. If Urban Fantasy and/or paranormal romance is your thing, go for it. If not, just enjoy your beignets and cafe au lait while you pretend to be in New Orleans. Anyone else love it down there?

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Same Ol’ Monday

Posted on January 18, 2021 by Silver James

Are we sure it’s 2021? I mean, I have new calendars up and they all say January 2021 but…I’m starting to wonder. Still, I’m keeping my head down. And my mouth shut. There’s so much I want to say but the people who need to hear the message will either ignore it or “kill the messenger.” 🤷🏼‍♀️ Moving on.  

Stuff happened last week. Not much, but a few things. Sadly, I let current events get into my head, which got in the way of writing. Not gonna let that happen this week. Head down. That’s my motto. I got a few words written and did some backtracking. And some…frontracking. I know that isn’t a work, but it should be. Anyway, As y’all know, I’m a Puzzler. I’ve written scenes that occur in the last book of the Penumbra Papers series. I reread them. Wow. And there’s a line I need to insert into a scene in the current WIP. My brain works in wild and wonderful ways sometimes. When it works. I saw a meme the other day that said: I’m constantly questioning my sanity. It’s the only thing keeping me sane. Anyone else feeling the same? Goal for this week: Head down, new words.

I’m tired. Insomnia is a total PITA, especially when it cozies up and wants to be BFFs. Some mornings, there isn’t enough coffee in the world. This might be one of them since I also have to make a grocery run. Blerg. Jake has an earache so I’ll probably leave him home. That makes both of us sad.

Not much to report on TV, except I stumbled into a marathon about sinkholes. “Sinkholes, Buried Alive”? I never was sure of the title but dang if it wasn’t fascinating.

This time of year is a sports desert around here. I don’t do basketball and not a current fan of the NFL. I’d be counting down to Pitcher/Catcher but with the Chinese Beer Flu still rampant, baseball might be a pipe dream too.

I’m almost done with my relisten of Anne Bishop’s The Others series. It’s not for everyone and the books are either much beloved or DNF’d. I’m sort of tickled by some thoughts I’ve had this time around but unless someone has read the series and understands my headspace, discussion wouldn’t make much sense, but yeah, I’m sorta smug about it for…reasons. Anyway, do you have a comfort-read book, series, or author?

And…moving on to today’s duties. Life is what it is and whatever is going to happen will. Or not. There are words to write, books to enjoy, and groceries to buy. Can you guess which of these I’m really looking forward to? 😉 Hope your week is a good one.

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Friday Sinema: Let’s Dance

Posted on January 15, 2021 by Silver James

We can laugh, cry, scream and yell. Or we can dance. It’s Friday. I vote for dancing. And this unlikely dude has the moves! Have a great weekend, y’all!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Sight

Posted on January 14, 2021 by Silver James
I’m trying to ignore reality. Oh, I know it’s there. And the noise of it all buzzes around my brain making me well aware of the chaos and insanity that’s out there. Call me an ostrich. I’m content at this point in time to keep my head down and hope this all blows over and more intelligent minds can figure out how badly they’ve screwed up. ALL of them. If not, the rest of us will stumble along. Still, I hope because of messages like this that filter down from the Universe…
 
There are no accidents, Silver.

If it’s appeared on your life’s radar, this is why: to teach you that dreams come true; to reveal that you have the power to fix what’s broken and heal what hurts; to catapult you beyond seeing with just your physical senses; and to lift the veils that have kept you from seeing that you’re already the person you dreamed you’d become.

And believe me, that was one heck of a dream.

Tallyho,
The Universe
©www.tut.com

There are no accidents, Silver.
 
In these troubled times, I’m hoping that there is a purpose to this mess because yeah, accidents do happen even when the Big U is watching. In the meantime, I’ll be doing a lot of this. Dreaming, that is. What are y’all dreaming about?
 
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Wednesday Words: From Both Sides Now

Posted on January 13, 2021 by Silver James

Guess what? I finally wrote Chapter 1 in the current WIP. Of course, I already have 23K words written on the project. I just figured it was time to start the story in the right spot, which took awhile to figure out. Then came today’s #1lineWed prompt which gave participants a variety of suggestions for the theme. **POSITIVE – NEGATIVE** **PLUS – MINUS** **REAL – IMAGINARY** and for SciFi fans **MATTER – ANTIMATTER** As I had notthing that fit, I took up the challenge for the opening to Chapter 2.
****
Sade and Caleb sat in identical chairs in the reception area outside of FBI Director George Bailey’s office. His secretary, a tiny woman with knowing eyes, ignored them. Caleb slumped in the uncomfortable chair, eyes closed. Sade stared at the nameplate on the front of the desk. ALICE COOPER. She tried making different words out of the letters, without success.

The intercom on Alice’s desk buzzed and the director’s voice boomed, “Send them in.”
The two agents pushed out of their chairs and trudged toward the door that opened into the inner sanctum. It opened with a whisper. Someday, Sade would figure out just what sort of magic the director’s right hand wielded. She made sure Alice didn’t see the side eye flashed her way.

The door swung shut behind them and the two sank into only slightly more comfortable chairs arranged in front of Bailey’s desk. The dark surface always reminded Sade of an aircraft carrier. The director tapped an index finger on the one piece of paper on that massive desk.

“Not much of a report.”

Sade sat up straight, balanced on the front edge of the chair. “Not everything is black and white, sir.”

He arched an eyebrow. “Next you’ll talk about plus or minus and other shit.”
Yeah, the Old Man was not happy. “On the positive side, Agent Jones and I are still breathing and we have photographs.”

“And the negative?”“The perpetrator or perpetrators blew up the evidence, along with our official vehicle.”

“Your suspect?”

“Don’t have one.”

“It’s my understanding that the hand print in the minivan belonged to Clan Kholikikos’s Drakon.”

Sade glanced at Caleb. He offered her a look that spoke volumes—like “what was I supposed to do,” “I had to tell him,” and “the dude did call and distract you right before the mortar attack.” She returned her gaze to her boss and said, “According to Agent Jones, it did.”

“You have an alternative explanation?”

She wondered if she looked as shifty-eyed as she looked. “Maybe.”
****
I hope that whets your appetite for what happens in the opening chapter. Plus, progress! Writers, any words with those themes? Readers, are you feeling positive or negative today? 😉

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: Taco Bake

Posted on January 12, 2021 by Silver James

Sometimes, a body just need the comfort of mac-n-cheese with a bit of spice. I’m a huge fan of Mexican food, even if it isn’t exactly traditional though I’ll eat more than my share of traditional goodness. 😉 

Total Time: 40 Min.
Prep Time: 20 Min.
Cook Time: 20 Min.
6 servings (1 cup each)

Find a casserole that wows with this Taco Bake Casserole! Mac and cheese and traditional taco ingredients are a match made in casserole heaven.

What You Need
1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. (1 oz.) TACO BELL® Taco Seasoning Mix
3/4 cup BREAKSTONE’S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided
3/4 cup TACO BELL® Thick & Chunky Salsa

Let’s Make It
1 – Heat oven to 400°F.
2 – Prepare Dinner as directed on package. While Macaroni is cooking, cook meat with taco seasoning as directed on package.
3 – Stir sour cream into prepared Dinner. Spoon half the Dinner mixture into 8-inch square baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with layers of meat mixture, 1 cup shredded cheese and remaining Dinner mixture. Cover.
4 – Bake 15 min.; top with salsa and remaining shredded cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

Kitchen Tips
Tip 1 – Healthy Living: Save 60 calories and 9g of fat, including 4g of saturated fat, per serving by preparing with lean ground beef, BREAKSTONE’S Reduced Fat or KNUDSEN Light Sour Cream, and KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Cheddar Cheese.

Tip 2 – Special Extra: For extra crunch and flavor, bake casserole as directed, topping with 1/2 cup coarsely crushed tortilla chips along with the salsa and remaining shredded cheese.

There’s a video so be sure CLICK HERE to watch and get all the nutritional details. And today, I’m celebrating the release of FIGHTING FOR ELENA in audio book form. I’m excited. Elena is excited. Pops is excited. Also this is shhhh moment. Don’t tell her mama, but Elena admits to fixing this when she wants something easy, filling, ooey-gooey and still with a taste of her heritage. Her biggest fear is that her mama or one of her sisters shows up when she fixing or serving this dish. They all make everything from scratch–including salsa so this is all on the down low. 😉 If y’all want the audio book, it’s only $7.49 if you already own the Kindle edition. The links all go to the Amazon Kindle page and you can navigate from there so click on the title above or on the nifty little “ad” meme I made.

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