Tuesday Treats & Titles: Turtle Dump Cake

Posted on March 31, 2026 by Silver James

Who loves Turtles? 🙋🏼‍♀️I’m talking about the ooey-gooey pecan-y chocolate-covered caramel-filled candy. Okay, actual turtles are kinda cool too but this is Tuesday so that means treats. And a title. If turtles are your secret delight, you should try this cake. Just sayin’…

Turtle Dump Cake

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
Bake Time: 30-35 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 10

Ingredients

  • 1 (3.4-ounce) box chocolate instant pudding
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1 (15.25-ounce) box chocolate cake mix or chocolate fudge
  • 1/2 cup caramel sauce or syrup
  • 1 (10-ounce) bag dark chocolate chips divided
  • 1/2 cup pecans chopped
Directions
  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Coat a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
  • In a large mixing bowl, add the instant chocolate pudding mix and the whole milk and whisk until the pudding dissolves and thickens, about 1-2 minutes.
  • Add the cake mix, the caramel sauce, and 1 cup of the dark chocolate chips to the pudding mixture and stir until combined.
  • Evenly spread the batter into the prepared baking dish.
  • Sprinkle the chopped pecans and the remaining dark chocolate chips on top of the batter.
  • Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with some moist crumbs clinging to it, about 30-35 minutes. The sides of the cake will be puffy and slightly pulled away from the sides of the pan.
  • Serve.

Leigh Daniels was an arson investigator down in the Dallas area. The last person she ever suspected she’d hook up with is Brian “Smoke” Jenner, arsonist, outlaw biker, lone wolf. In more ways than one. Should I mention that I made myself cry when I was writing some scenes in this book? It would have been nice to have a Turtle Dump Cake handy for snacking. It’s guaranteed to make things better–which is why Leighy always keeps the incredients on hand. Turns out her Wolf has a sweet tooth. You can read their story by clicking on either pic with the cover or here on the title, NIGHT FIRE. After you click, you’ll bebop over to Books2Read where you can find your on-line bookseller of choice. And now, I’ll ask once more…

Who loves turtules? 🙋🏼‍♀️

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Last Monday Mashup

Posted on March 30, 2026 by Silver James

So. I’m convinced that Mercury was in retrograde all last week. I spent at least a part of each day fighting with some facet of technology. There is a reason I am a technophobe, despite my conversations with Copilot, Grok, and my Google-fu with internet searches.

Due to one set of problems, we now have a new smart TV in the bedroom. I’ve yet to decide whether to move the bedroom smart TV to my office or just leave my “dumb” TV there. I’m very disappointed in Samsung. The bedroom TV is newer than the office TV but it’s glitching. I’ve done all the resets, updtates, and other fixes recommended. The screen still hiccups, freezes, pixelates, goes to black screen, sometimes individually, sometimes in order, sometimes various combinations. The thing is, it doesn’t always do any of that. I’ve put up with it probably far longer than I should have because deep down, I’m cheap. Walmart ran a big sale over the weekend and we got a 43″ (the biggest the TV cabinet can hold) with most of the bells and whistles, delivered same-day for under $200. So I hit buy yesterday. Due to getting it set up with all the passwords, etc., my afternoon was pretty much devoted to that, ie. no writing. Best laid plans and all that.

I did manage the laundry. That’s a win in my book.

Still doing the marathon relisten to Larissa Ione’s Demonica/Four Horsemen series. I’m hung up on the 5th book. Not sure why it’s not grabbing me as it always has before. My plan is to finish it, read the Four Horseman books then skip to Reapers book because evidently, the events in REAPER set up things for the new spin-off with the next gen kids getting books.

No soccer this weekend. Not sure why but with the weather swinging between winter and summer within 24 hours, just as well. I did watch a lot of softball. My OSU Cowgirls did well, even coming from behind to win. The Cowboys baseball won too. OU softball split their series with LSU. Evidently, the STL Cardinals are winning but I couldn’t swear to it because we still can’t watch their games without buying their $99 streaming package. Dear Pro Sports, y’all are really screwing things up with the broadcast rights. Just sayin’.

This is going to be a crazy week. LG has MD appointments that require a driver. We have Kid chauffeur (Only and Stormy) duties. I need an admin assistant to keep me on track.

Not much else going on around here. What’s going on around your neck of the woods?

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Friday Sinema: Triple Threat

Posted on March 27, 2026 by Silver James

Happy Friday. Sometimes, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Just sayin’… Have a great weekend, all!

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Don’t Know

Posted on March 26, 2026 by Silver James

Since I messed up the title on Tuesday’s post and had to go back and fix it, I should probably totally confuse people and label this post TUESDAY THOUGHTS. I won’t, though. As I’m actually typing this on Wednesday (see why I get confused without copious amounts of coffee?), I am attempting to lose the headache I achieved on Wednesday morning. See, I have glaucoma and as a result, there’s significat damge to my optic nerves. The left eye is legally blink. I can see shapes and colors but not real distinguishing features–like text, pictures, etc. If I get my head in just the right, I can make out part of the first letter on the biggest row of an eye–at least enough to say whether it is curved or straight. The right eye is technically 2025/2030, or there abouts. That said, there are also blind spots in its vision. This is one reason I’ve gone almost exclusively to audio books. And yes, I am making a long story longer. I have real trouble with text. There are ways–allegedly–to make text thicker and/or “framed” so the letters are clearer. Copilot (Microsofts AI) and I spent four hours Wednesday morning trying to find a workaround because some versions of Windows 11 have done away with the easy way. Don’t get me started. This is not the first time I’ve tried to do something only to discover that what I wanted to do USED to be available in older versions but no longer is. Anyway, I gave up. and another day I’d planned on spending with Ariel’s Dang Book hit the dumpster. Headaches and frustration over tech are imagination killers.

So anyway. This missive from The Universe dropped into my inbox yesterday. I finally read it after I’d gotten through about 100 emails. And it struck a chord. Just becuase. So I’m just going to drop it here and let it stand. Y’all make of it what suits you.

Yes, Silver, it’s true…

There are so many things you don’t know. Things, quite frankly, that you can’t know.

About the magic, the unseen, and the miraculous logistics that can so swiftly change your life.

But then, Silver, one needn’t learn the mysteries of the wind to sail effortlessly around the world either.

Actually, you got a pretty good deal.

Land ho,
  The Universe
©www.tut.com 

P.S. Besides, Silver, isn’t it enough to know that in some forgotten time, together we shared these secrets? That even now, our march through eternity continues? And that before you know it, we’ll laugh like rolling thunder once again?

I’m really ready for some the magic. How ’bout y’all?

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Wednesday Words: What’s a Little Chaos Among Friends?

Posted on March 25, 2026 by Silver James

Here we are at another Wednesday. And once again, I’ve managed to create some new words. The following snipppet is something of a spoiler but not too much. Hopefully, y’all will have forgotten the details by the time I get around to getting this puppy out there in the wild. Here’s the prompt from last week’s Thurday Threads: *“Do you know what chaos is?”* The scene happens…well…at least half-way through the story. Or thereabouts. Stuff keeps happening that needs to happen and the story gets longer as a result. I don’d even want to think about editing this sucker. Why yes, I am doing mental muppet flails, why do you ask? Gotta finish the dang thing before that can happen. Right? Right! Anyway, here’s your weekly dose of words.

****
Titania erupted from the chair where she’d been lounging and stalked across the room. Everyone there was a predator in one form or another. Werewolf. Dragon. Master vampire. Human FBI agent, who was both armed and dangerous. It was Sade the fae queen stopped in front of.

“Do you know what chaos is?”

Sade snorted. “I’ve lived in the middle of chaos since the day I was born.” She angled one finger toward Titania. “My turn. Chaos happens every time one of you meddles in my world. When the Veil ripped and gave your kind free access to my world, everything went to shit. That is the essence of chaos.

Titania flushed, her eyes sparkling with angry magic. “Your world? Who died and made you queen?”

A slow smile curved Sade’s lips but her green eyes were as hard as broken bottle glass. “I could ask you the same question but you slept your way onto the throne.”

Before any of the men could move, Titania had her long, spidery fingers around the human’s throat. Then, inexplicably, her grip loosened and she released Sade.

“They don’t cost as much as silver bullets and I have a full magazine of iron ones.” She glanced down at the small round hole smoking in the silk of Titania’s blouse. “I’m done with you, your majesty. Your bitch sister has Ariel and the girl. You can help me get them back or get the hell out of my way.”

Titania growled. “Then why are we still standing here?”
****

There weren’t many participants last week so there was only a winner and then the judge very kindly gave his opinion of all the rest. This is what he had to say about the above: As always, I love the characters, and they always feel like a Crime Noir vibe set in a fantasy world. It’s romantic in it’s energy for adventure. Every time I get a boost like this, I can stifle the inner demons that whisper in my ear about how sucky this book is. Encouragement is a good thing. I haven’t managed to write every day so far but I have written so…progress! I’ll write more today and more tomorrow and hopefully on Friday too. Weekends tend to be Real Life Days™️so I’m playing them by ear for now. How about the rest of you? Writers, you’ve got the prompt. Writers and readers, don’t let the whispers get lodged in your head. Get out there and do your stuff! That said, what stuff are you doing?

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: Spring Moon Hershey Kiss Cookies

Posted on March 24, 2026 by Silver James

Easter is coming and when I saw these cookies, I smiled. They looke like Easter eggs or spring flowers. And who doesn’t love Hershey’s Kisses, especially when they come with cookies? This recipe is a little more work invovled than many I share but I think they’d totally be worth the effort in an Easter basket or displayed on the table.

Hershey Kisses Springtime Thumbprint Cookies

Ingredients & Directions
Yields: 36 cookies
Prep: 1 hr. 
Bake: 9 min. 
Total: 1 Hr. 9 Min.

Ingredients
36 HERSHEY’S KISSES Milk Chocolates
6 Tbsps butter or margarine, softened
1⁄3 cup packed light brown sugar
1⁄4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1⁄4 tsp baking soda
1⁄4 tsp salt
 food color in desired color or colors
 decorating sugars to match cookie color
1⁄3 cup ready-to-spread vanilla frosting or your favorite homemade vanilla frosting

Directions
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Remove wrappers from 36 HERSHEY’S KISSES Milk Chocolates.

2. Beat 6 tbsps butter, 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup granulated sugar in large bowl until well blended. Add 1 egg, 1 tbsp milk and 1 tsp vanilla. Beat until well blended. Stir together 2 cups flour, 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp salt; add to butter mixture, blending thoroughly.

3. Divide dough into separate bowl for each color desired. Add desired food coloring to each bowl, mixing until color of dough is uniform. Form 36 equal balls (about 1 inch). Roll each ball in the matching sugar color. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Gently press thumb into ball forming indentation.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool slightly; remove from pan to wire rack. Press thumb again into each indentation if needed. Cool completely.

5. Divide and tint 1/3 cup vanilla frosting to match cookie colors. Place about 1/2 teaspoon vanilla frosting in each indentation. Press 1 HERSHEY’S KISSES Milk Chocolate onto each cookie.

Tip: Frosting alternative: Instead of matching frosting color with cookie colors, try mixing things up like yellow frosting on purple cookie, pink on green, purple on blue, etc.

Here’s the LINK to the Hershey website in case you want more info about the recipe. In looking for a character and a book to share, I realized that I don’t have Easter festivities in any of my books. I came up with Annie, Sean/Boomer’s mate from WOLF’S MOON. She’s like the “neighborhood mom”–always baking cookies for the kids. And teaching Hannah how to cook. Well, attempting to teach Hannah, anyway. If you haven’t read WOLF MOON, why not? And if you haven’t, I’d suggest skipping straight to MOONSTRUCK: LIES. If you grab the compendium books, you get more bang for your buck–ie. more books plus bonus material that is only published in the compendiums and at a lower cost that buying each book individually. All you have to do is click on either pic or any of the titles and you’ll zip over to Books2Read where you can find your favorite on-line book seller. What about y’all? Anyone have a favorite Easter/Spring cookie?

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Monday Madness in March

Posted on March 23, 2026 by Silver James

Keep reminding me that it is March and the fact that the weather is more like July. It’s crazy. And no, I do not believe in climate change. The records that are being broken date back to the early 1900s. I mean, like 1907 statehood dates.

Last week wasn’t exactly chaotic but it was busy. Sticking with the weather, we went from winter to summer which came me the excuse to use one of my favorite memes on X. It’s a simple one, just words on a white background. The message:

Oklahoma: Mother Nature, you cannot fit all seasons into one week.

Mother Nature: Here, old my beer!

It’s both funny and true. Also, our heater went out again on Sunday night. Luckily, our HVAC dude was available first thing on Monday. Turns out that the fan motor was not the only motor that needed replacing. The good news is, the heater should now be good to go for a good long time.

Anyway. In other news, I made it to Wallyworld without too much hassle. Thanks to PITA Pup demanding that there was something awful and threatening in the backyard at 5:30 a.m., I was up and out early. Oh, the backyard intruder? A branch that fell from the pine tree. He “killed” it and then tried to bury it. And speaking of PITA Pup, I’ve decided he’s seen too many cat memes and videos. You know the ones where cats duke it out with rolls of toilet paper? I’ve never had a cat that played with TP. And I’ve had a LOT of cats in my life. Toby is making up for that, I guess.

Thursday, Jake and I went to Ace to get birdseed with a detour to Starbucks. We’d just gotten home and offloaded when I got a text from the optomitrist. My new glasses came in early. Jake and I jumped back into the car and headed out to pick them up. It’s nice to sit back in my desk chair and be able to read the monitor.

Saturday, we were up and out early again. Stormy had the early soccer game. He played well and his team won. Yay. Sunday was laundry. Sadly, there wasn’t much writing done but there was a little. Now that I can work more comfortably, I’m hoping that Iffy will finally focus andhelp me finish Ariel’s Dang Book.

In book stuff, I’m apparently doing a marathon relisten to Larissa Ione’s Demonica series. I snagged two of her newest releases in a spin-off on sale and it’s been quite awhile since I read/listened to the originals. They’re sexy fun and Larissa has a touch when it comes to making demons into good guys.

No real plans for this coming week. Yeah, the usual run to Wallyworld but no appointments so I don’t have to really adult. That means, if I can get focused, I should get some serious writing done. The operative world is should. Every time I make such plans, Real Life throws curve balls. So, no plans, just hopes. Anybody got fun stuff going on? Read any good books? How’s your weather? I’m nosey.

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Friday Sinema: Irish Dance Off

Posted on March 20, 2026 by Silver James

To finish off this week of thing both Irish and magical, I bring you the “birth” of Irish dancing. Oh, it had been around for ages and was popular both as a social event and as a contest–at least in Ireland. But with this first performance of RIVERDANCE, it became an international phenomenon. RIVERDANCE hit Broadway and stages all over the world for years. Michael Flatley eventually moved on and created LORD OF THE DANCE. The tour came here one year and Only and I went, thanks to a pair of tickets LG bought me for my birthday. That show was even more magical than RIVERDANCE. But I wanted y’all to share in that magical first moment…on a stage in Dublin, as an interval act of the Eurovision contest. They weren’t even competing but they stole the show. I hope you enjoy…

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Magic

Posted on March 19, 2026 by Silver James

I’m not sure why but I’ve always considered St. Patrick’s Day to be magical. Okay, to be honest, I’ve always thought everything Irish holds magic. That’s one reason my first book, FAERIE FATE was set there. It’s the reason so many of my Wolves have Irish ancestry. Needless to say, I’m celebrating Paddy’s Day all week. This message from the Univere is most apropos and it’s something we should all remember.

Oh yes, Silver, yes indeed!

Today you’re going to be enveloped by the magic.

It will be in the air you breathe, the sounds you hear, and the sights you see.

Play off the moments in-between the moments, look into the unseen, and hear your angels.

Feel it, enjoy it, but most important, use it!

It’s already begun,
  The Universe
©www.tut.com 

P.S. Silver, inhale it. Close your eyes, count to three. Exhale… and notice how the magic stays with you.

Okay, everyone. Inhale and hold it. Close your eyes. Count to three. Exhale. Open your eyes and see the magic around you. Fun, right?

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Wednesday Words: Take Care of Business

Posted on March 18, 2026 by Silver James

Happy Day After St. Paddy’s Day. Sticking with the Irish theme, I introduced a new character…well, sort of. I’ll explain later. In the meantime, I was awarded an honorable mention in last week’s Thursday Threads flash fiction challenge. The “Let me take care of [it/you/them/that].”prompt is sort of fun this week becuase it’s multiple choice. Here’s the prompt: *“Let me take care of [it/you/them/that].”* I chose the “it” entry. Also, today’s snippet has more than the alloted 250 words in the challenge. I cut some for the contest, put them back for this. Once again, I’m not quite sure where in the timeline this scene falls though it is a bit after Aisline and Ariel have met and spent some time together.

****
The orange cat lay still, a touch of blood staining its muzzle. Aisling stood over it, eyes filled with tears. “I didn’t mean to scare it.” Her voice quavered over the words. “Then that car… It just…out of nowhere…”

Ariel touched her shoulder. “Come away, love.”

“No, I can’t just…leave—” A sob swallowed the rest of her words.

“Let me take care of it.”

“You didn’t even like it!” There was heat in her voice now.

How did he explain about the cat? Carla edged up beside them. Did the witch know? He couldn’t decide. She put her arm around Aisling’s waist and eased her back from the street.

“Come with me, Aisling. He’s right. Let him take care of it.” She gave him a telling look behind Aisling’s back. She knew.

“But…”

Ariel whipped out a silken handkerchief, sank to one knee and covered the cat with the soft material. “I’ll be gentle, Aisling. I promise.”

Carla, speaking in hushed tones, ushered Aisling back to the big house. Ariel watched the place warily. He didn’t believe in sentient dwellings but this place might convince him that he was wrong. Once the two women disappeared inside, he sat back on his heels.

“And just what are you up to, you big faker?”

One green eye peeked out from underneath the handkerchief. “You couldn’t let her weep over my broken body?” The cat sat up.

“Why are you spying on her?”

“I’m a pooka. I don’t need a reason.” The fae twitched its tail, uncomfortable beneath the Seelie fae’s gaze. “Fine. She’s special. We need to keep her safe.”

“From who?”

“Everyone.”

Ariel agreed. “We will.”
****

Okay, now I can reveal the new character, who isn’t totally new–just in a new form. I didn’t want to spill the little surprise as to who…or what…the character is. And that’s also where the Irish comes in–pookas are Irish critters. Those of you familiar with the series might remember the pooka who appeared in Caleb’s book, THE DEVIL’S CUT. This is the same critter, though in a different form. See, I used Loki as a “model” for the cat Sade bumps into in GHOSTS AND THE ANCIENT STONES. I’d planned on using Pete as a model in another book. Then he unexpectedly crossed the Rainbow Bridge. Still grieving–and yes, I still miss him terribly–I put the idea in a mental drawer. I doodled around with different ideas for last week’s snippet and then, I just knew where Pete belonged. Anyway, he’ll pop up again in this book. Maybe this was the missing piece I needed to get the story put together. We’ll see.

Anyway, If you are interested, I’ve linked the two books mentioned. Just click on the titles. In the meantime, I’m hoping for more new words this.

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