Monday Lateness

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Silver James

I’m not sure of making the suckitude less but I shall endeavor. 😆

Yes, It’s Monday–the last Monday of the month, in fact. Where did June go? And the year is almost half over? Yikes! So…

There was a weekend. I did a little yard work Interesting, right? Yeah, I know. The glamorous life of a romance author. Said life is on-going. I’m going to get my Muse in gear this week. No. Seriously. Stop laughing! 😉

As to what I did over the weekend, beyond putzing in the yard, I listened to a couple more books in the Guildhunter/Archangel series by Nalini Singh. The latest book comes out in July and I wanted to catch up on the whole story arc. Nalini is amazing when it comes to weaving multiple threads into her series. I want to be her when I grow up. (Yeah, yeah! I know I’m almost old enough to be her mother…) Anyway, I’m currently on ARCHANGEL’S SHADOWS which means I’m almost done. Next up will be a read of Jennifer Lyon’s SAVAGED DREAMS.

I don’t want to talk about the Cardinals. I have a big ol’ sad there. They did manage to beat the Pirates last night so there won’t be a sweep but dang… Also, TCU, the last Big 12 team in the College World Series went home Saturday. At least they got to the semi-finals of the CWS and made Florida work for their spot in the finals. LSU also beat #1 seed Oregon State to play in the finals. Geaux Tigers!

TV. Lawyer Guy and I watched a movie. A zombie movie. Set in the Alps. With extreme snowboarders. *squints eyes shut* What has been seen cannot be unseen. “Attack of the Zombie Lederhosen.” It was…like a trainwreck. We couldn’t look away. In fact, we stalled dinner to see the end. I…have no words. And no excuse.

That’s my update for today. Now it’s time to sort through email (I didn’t even turn on the computer yesterday!) and then I have to knuckle down. Today’s writing goal? A full chapter on Tucker’s story and at least a scene each on my other two projects. Daylight is burning far too fast for me to stay lazy!

What did y’all do this weekend? And what’s on your agenda for this week? We’ll compare notes when it’s over. 😆

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Friday Sinema: Encounter

Posted on June 23, 2017 by Silver James

Yeah…back to putting the sin in “sinema”…. I want to write this book! Just sayin’…

Have a great weekend.

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Baby Steps

Posted on June 22, 2017 by Silver James

Back when I was a kid–like all kids do–I dreamed about what my life would be like when I grew up. At various times, I wanted to be a dancer, an actress, a cop, a bureaucrat, and a writer. I danced (not professionally). I acted (semi-professionally). I worked for a police department as a technical investigator–and for a fire department. I was a bureaucrat (in the state court system). And now I’m a writer. Not bad for one lifetime. Each of those careers began with the dream–with baby steps along the path so I’m not too surprised this message from the Universe resonates.

The baby steps in the beginning of a journey, Silver, always seem inadequate compared to the brilliance of the dream that inspired them. This is natural. If the dream wasn’t so far “out there” and dazzling, it wouldn’t be worth dreaming! Just don’t be led to think that the physical ground you cover with your baby steps is all that they accomplish. Because for every mortal step you take, another cog in a giant wheel behind the curtains of time and space advances, and with it 10,000 new possibilities.

Better than Star Trek,
The Universe
© http://www.tut.com ®

And you shall wonder, Silver, at what you ever did to deserve so very much.

This idea works not only in life but in my ultimate dream–that of being a published author. Each story starts as a dream and then with baby steps–in the form of words and sentences–I work to create something new out of gossamer threads of inspiration, out of dreams. And yeah…it’s better than Star Trek. 😆

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Wednesday Words: Innocence of the Innocent

Posted on June 21, 2017 by Silver James

Another Hump Day to get up and over. Today’s #1lineWed theme is **INNOCENT or INNOCENCE**. I found one instance of those words in my current Penumbra Papers WIP. I keep vacillating on the title. I’m currently toying with ECHOES AMONG THE STONES. Anyway, this is Roman’s story. For those unfamiliar, Roman is the gargoyle Sentinel who acted as Sade’s bodyguard when she was a child. Now he is the Legate of New Orleans, a neutral authority in a city wide-open to Magicks and Mundanes alike. Here is the opening salvo of the book:

Chapter 1

Destinies are a dime a dozen and Fate is the biggest bitch of all. The thought drummed against Roman’s psyche like the rain tapping against the striped awning above his head. He toed a chunk of what appeared to be granite lying next to the curb, blocking the water running along the edge of the street. Two feet away, a stone head appeared to be crying as raindrops stained the face.

Roman, a gargoyle Sentinel and the Legate of New Orleans shoved his hands deep into his pockets to keep from wrapping them around the neck of the human who stood, quaking in his boots, before him. The young man opened his mouth to speak but one withering look shut him up again.

The sound of leather slapping against humid air wasn’t enough to distract Roman from his perusal of what appeared to be a shattered statue, nor did he look at the gargoyle who settled onto the sidewalk nearby.
“Roman.” Crevan, leader of the Sentinels stepped up beside him.

“I don’t recognize him, Le Vieil.” That bothered Roman on a deep, visceral level. There was a time when he’d known all of his brothers.

“He was young, barely out of the Refuge.”

“Why was he in my city?”

Crevan turned steely eyes on Roman. “Your city?”

“Yes, Le Vieil.” Roman used Crevan’s title but his tone was so dry dust should have puffed from between his lips. “New Orleans is mine.”

The unfortunate human chose that moment to pipe up. “Please, sir,” the kid whined. “I don’t know nuthin’ about this. I’m innocent. It wasn’t my idea.”

“There is no innocence, not even in death.” The words were out before Roman could stop them. He shackled his anger. Truly, it wasn’t the human’s fault. He stared at the broken remains of what had once been a gargoyle—one comparable to the mental age of the cowering youth in front of him.

Crevan cupped the human’s face in his huge hands and held the kid’s gaze. Silence slithered around them, along pewter tendrils of magic. “There,” Crevan eventually said. “It is done. He’ll take no memory with him and I have what he once knew.” His craggy face, when he turned to face Roman, was drenched with grief.

Roman instinctively knew the verdict. “We have to hunt.”
***
Do any of you have any innocent words to share? A character still cloaked in innocence? SHARE!!!

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Tuesday Treats: Coconut Snowball Cake

Posted on June 20, 2017 by Silver James

Today is the Summer Solstice and with about three weeks to go before America’s Independence Day, I think this recipe is a good one to share. So, for a 4th of July picnic, or just a good ol’ summertime dessert, how about a Coconut Snowball Cake??!!

Prep Time: 15min.
Total Time: 2hr. 10min.
Servings: 16 servings
What’s inside a snowball? More snow. What’s inside this coconut-flake-covered snowball cake? A berry colorful surprise, which can also be fun for a birthday boy or girl!

What You Need
1 pkg. (2-layer size) white cake mix
1 pkg. (3 oz.) JELL-O Berry Blue Flavor Gelatin
1-1/4 cups cold milk, divided
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed
1-1/2 cups BAKER’S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut

Make It
Heat oven to 350ºF.

Prepare cake batter, in 2-1/2-qt. ovenproof bowl sprayed with cooking spray, as directed on package; scrape side of bowl. Add dry gelatin mix and 1/4 cup milk; beat until blended.

Bake 55 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in bowl 10 min. Loosen cake from side of bowl with knife; invert onto wire rack. Remove bowl. Cool cake completely.

Meanwhile, beat dry pudding mix, sugar and remaining milk in medium bowl with whisk 2 min. Stir in COOL WHIP. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Place cake, flat side down, on plate; frost with pudding mixture. Cover with coconut.

Y’all haven’t met Zoe Parker yet. I’m in the process of writing her romance with Tucker Tate. But when I saw this recipe, I knew it was something she would bake–and yes, this treat will show up in a scene in the book. 😉

If you’re intersted, you can get full details for the recipe HERE.

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Mid-Summer Monday

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Silver James

Tomorrow is the first day of Summer, also known as the Summer Solstice, and/or Midsummer’s Eve. Don’t ask. I have no answer. One of my favorite works by Shakespeare is “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” and Midsummer’s Eve plays a large part in my second published book, FAERIE FIRE.

So, I took a week off from blogging. Part of me missed it. Part of me didn’t. *shrug* Still, nice to be back. So, to catch up, since Monday is a “follow-up” post… 😉

TV and Sports: My Cards are giving me a big sad. 😦 And I’m doing more reading/listening to books than catching up with shows on TV. I think it all goes to a general ennui that’s settled into my head over the past couple of months. This, too, shall pass. I hope.

Reading: I’ve glommed onto a few new releases from favorite authors. I finished up a marathon re-listen to Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series in preparation for the release of SILVER SILENCE. OMG! This book is going on my Best Book of the Year list. Haven’t been many to make the list so far. Because BEARS! Well, bear shifters (changelings in Nalini’s world), to be precise. I ❤ the Bears! I laughed through probably 90% of the book, despite some serious goings-on in the world. I sniffle-cried a couple of times and the ending (a slight cliffhanger on one thread which left me with my heart in my throat and sad) left me loving Silver Mercant, her Bear, and the new direction of the world. Now I have to wait a long time to get the next installment. *sigh*

The Gang gathered yesterday at Hideaway Pizza to celebrate Father’s Day. We lost my dad over 20 years ago but I miss him every single day. We lost Lawyer Guy’s Dad over 10 years ago and I know the boys miss him every day. We were lucky to have them both. LG and his brother remind me of both men, and that’s a very good thing.

Time to knuckle down this week. I’ve been looking at deadlines and thinking “Ah, no sweat. I have plenty of time.” Yeah…no. I need lots of new words today and every day. I’m getting an early start today. How about the rest of you? Early start or putting it off? 😉

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Friday Free-for-all: Links of Awesomeness

Posted on June 9, 2017 by Silver James

Friday has once again rolled around. In my odd moments of procrastination, I did a little web surfing because I’m all lazy like that. Here are four links that made me laugh out loud–one time scaring the cat, and twice scaring the cat AND the Newfies. I’m issuing a Liquids Alert for this post. Don’t drink and guard your electronic devices. Have a 🙂 day and a 😀 weekend!

You’ll want to friend this Australian police department on FB for their DAY IN THE LIFE posts–too funny!

Person on the street interviews of moms, in front of their kids, about things their kids don’t know about them. NEVER UNDERESTIMATE YOUR MOM…

I shouldn’t have laughed as hard as I did at these REALISTIC FAMILY PHOTOS. Bloody brilliant and hysterically true.

A comedian walked into the Los Angeles Zoo, and posted these unauthorized but hilarious ZOO SIGNS behind.

And last but not least, there’s passive office behavior and there’s agressive office behavior and then there’s truly funny passive-agressive office behavior as evidenced by these OFFICE NOTES.

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Wednesday Words: A New Hope

Posted on June 7, 2017 by Silver James

I hope everyone is having a perfectly hopeful Hump Day because as you know, hope springs eternal, there’s a new hope in Star Wars and…okay. I’ll stop now. In case I haven’t hammered it home yet, today’s #1lineWed theme is **HOPE**.

Today, mine are from the rough draft of Red Dirt Royalty #8, as yet unnamed, which is Tucker’s story. Tucker is in eastern Tennessee looking at some new talent for Bent Star Records. Here’s hoping he knows what he’s in for. 😉

****
Jerking the wheel, Tucker cursed and fought gravity but kept the T-bird between the lines. He blinked at the car that passed then pulled away from him. Was that a Trans Am? He laughed out loud. It was. It was a freaking Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am. Covered in paper flowers and trailing beers cans. Good grief. Then something white and filmy flew up through the open T-tops on the Trans Am. He watched, fascinated, as the backwash from the car sent the thing soaring. Tucker slowed and downshifted, paying more attention to the material sailing toward him than he was the road.

A truck hit its air horn, and for the second time, Tucker jerked his car back into the correct lane—just in time for the white material to snag on his radio antenna. He slowed further, reached over, and grabbed the lacy thing. It wasn’t until he had it in his hand that he realized it was a wedding veil. Complete with a sparkling, plastic tiara. Yeah, that gathering had definitely been a wedding and evidently the newlyweds were in a real hurry. He accelerated back to the speed limit and wondered if the groom had the bride in his lap while he was driving, then hoped they wouldn’t wreck.

Twenty minutes later, he spotted a cloud of smoke just over the crest of a hill. Crap. He hoped his wayward thoughts hadn’t jinxed the couple. Tucker slowed down as he hit the top. Halfway down, the Trans Am was pulled off to the side of the road. Oily black smoke poured from the exhaust pipes but he didn’t see any flames. The thing had probably blown its engine. As he edged his car closer, he caught sight of a woman wearing a white dress. She had the frothy skirt hiked up around her thighs as she kicked the car with her white western boots. She glanced up—briefly—then went back to kicking.

Tucker pulled over and parked in front of the Trans Am—out of the choking smoke. He looked around for the groom, but it appeared the bride was alone. Curious. He got out and as her curses washed over him, he approached with a bit of trepidation. Apparently, the woman was not happy with the entire male gender. Taking his life and manhood in his hands, he stopped out of kicking distance.
****
Go forth, find and share your hopeful words.

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Tuesday Treats: New York Cheesecake Cookies

Posted on June 6, 2017 by Silver James

I saw the picture and my tummy went YUM! Haven’t tried them yet but I’m going to. With only 12 cookies, they won’t stick around very long so the temptation will be over in a hurry. 😆

New York Cheesecake Cookies
Prep time: 20 min
Cooking time: 15 min
Ready to eat in 35 min
Serves 12

Ingredients

1 1⁄4 cup graham crackers, finely crushed (1 sleeve)
1 cup flour
1 1⁄2 tsp baking powder
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1⁄2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg, separated
3 oz cream cheese, softened
1⁄4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp lemon zest
1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, flour and baking powder. In a medium bowl, beat together the butter with the brown sugar using an electric hand mixer. Add the egg white and beat until well combined. Add to the graham cracker crumbs and blend until just combined.

In a separate medium bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese with the granulated sugar, egg yolk, lemon zest and vanilla until well combined. Set aside.

Using a small ice cream scoop, scoop out the cookie dough and place on a nonstick or parchment lined baking sheet. (If you do not have an ice scoop, then measure out the dough into scoops of about 2 tablespoons.) Flatten slightly, pressing your thumb in the center of the ball to create a small bowl shape. Repeat with the remaining dough. Spoon the cream cheese into the indents in the cookies.

Bake until the filling is barely set and the cookies are lightly golden, 12 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes on the baking sheets before removing them and cooling completely on a wire rack.

Recipe originally inspired by Food Network with 4-star rating and 20 reviews. (According to the website where I found this one. CLICK HERE for the whole story.) These make me want to grab a cup of coffee and a good book. I think I’ll read NIGHT FIRE, because I suspect Smoke might just wolf down the whole batch. 😉

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Monday Musings in June

Posted on June 5, 2017 by Silver James

When I get caught up in finishing off one of my self-pubbed books, I tend to forget which day of the week it is so the meme I used today is very apropos. The good news is, NIGHT FIRE is live on Amazon and as all the other Nightrider books had come off Kindle Unlimited, I put them all back on. In late August, all the books come off at the same time and I’ll probably go wide distribution with them. A lot will depend on royalty received between then and now. It’s always a tightrope as to whether to go wide, loosing the pages-read funds. My wide sales aren’t really as good as what I make on Amazon. *shrug* This is one reason I’m slowly doing the compendium volumes of the Moonstruck books. I can take those wide while leaving the individual novellas, under different ISBN numbers, enrolled in KU.

Okay, enough business. Reading…or in my case lately, listening. I paused in my re-listen of Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series because two books I’ve been waiting for both released on the last day of May. Figures, right? 😆 Anyway, I did a quick listen to Ilona Andrews’ BURN FOR ME then rolled over to WHITE HOT, book 2 in the Hidden Legacy series. The 2nd book was total awesomesauce! Then it was Christine Feehan’s SHADOW RIDER listen as a refresher and now I’m listening to SHADOW REAPER. I’m liking it better the first one. There are a few irritations both books share, but the stories and characters are interesting enough to keep me from more than the occasional roll of eyes. Next up? Back to the Psy-Changelings because SILVER SILENCE comes out later this month. Yay!

TV/Sports: Because here lately, they are one and the same. Regular TV hasn’t much held my attention and even when I sort through what I have on the DVR? Yeah…not even NCIS calls to me. This makes me have a big ol’ sad, let me tell you! But in the long run, that’s okay. I’ve always been a reader and lived in my head/imagination so as long as I have books, I’m happy. My Cards are running hot and cold which makes me have a sad. I’ve also been glued to the Women’s College World Series. The finals are today. It’s a battle between top-seeded Florida and defending national champs, #10 Oklahoma. Go Big Red!

Writing swings back to contemporary this week. I’m stepping out of the dark with my Wolves and heading to Nashville to work on the misadventures of Tucker and Zoe. It’s kind of a madcap adventure for our two mismatched lovers. Upcoming projects include another book in Susan Stoker’s Special Forces world and Roman’s story this fall.

That’s it for my round-up. What’ about y’all? How was your weekend? What’s on tap for your week?

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