Wednesday Words: Show and Tell

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Silver James

This week’s prompts from #1lineWed and #ThursdayThreads sent me to the back burner where I pulled out my files on the Cajun Wolves. Beau and Luc are deputies in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, which encompases part of New Orleans and towns sowth of the river. Beau is the easy-going one with the boyrish charm and an annoying penchant for guady NOLA-style Hawaiian shirts. You know, like gators or Tabasco Sauce bottles instead of flowers. Anyway, his heroine is, as yet, unnamed. I do know that she’s the principal/headmistress of a high school for gifted students. She’s buttoned-up, practical, and no-nonsense, ie. the perfect foil for Beau. Anyway, our prompts this week are: **AS IT: Happens. Came to be. Were. and “I would tell you if I could.” The original snippet was 249 words (and I “won,” as picked by the guest judge!) and starts with “I’ve never understood why people enjoy getting scared silly.” Everything before that and some in the middle were added during edits for a total of 468 still-first-draft words. Hope you enjoy.
****
“The school is not haunted.”

Beau watched lights in an upstairs hallway flicker on and off. “If you say so, cher.”

“I say so. The building is old, even for New Orleans. That means the wiring is too. I’ve been petitioning the board to allocate the money for upgrades.”

A lower floor window illuminated for a moment. The light looked like a candle or small lantern passing across the space. “That didn’t look electrical to me.”

She snorted. “Please don’t tell me you are the superstitious type.”

“Okay.” Since she demanded he not admit it, he decided to keep it to himself.

“I’ve never understood why people enjoy getting scared silly.”

Beau looked at her as if she’d sprouted a second head. His gaze was so intense she fought the urge to reach up to check.

“Ah, cher. What’cha don’t know can hurt chu.”

“I don’t believe so. Knowledge is power. It’s things we don’t know that can frighten us. That sound outside your window? If you don’t get up and look and confirm it’s just a tree brushing the side of her house, you’ll lay there in bed and conjure up all sorts of ridiculous scenarios.” She turned her head to look up at him. “Seriously, think about it. Monsters aren’t real.” At his narrow-eyed expression she hastened to explain. “Horror novel and movie monsters don’t exist. Human monsters? Well, yes. It seems like there’s one on every corner. My point is, why do people think it’s fun to get scared by stuff like haunted houses.”

“We live in N’Awlins, cher. How can y’not believe?” He was skeptical that she didn’t—at least just a little. At the same time, her mention of lying in bed distracted him by sending all the blood in his brain rushing south.

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes because that was something only teen girls like her students did and she was long past that stage in her life, she said, “Believe in ghosts and things that go bump in the night? Of course I don’t. They aren’t real.” She emphasized each word in her last statement.

He studied her a long moment. “So you truly don’t believe in monsters?”

“Not the kind you mean. All figments of the imagination.”

“I wish that was true. As it happens, things that go bump in the night often have teeth and claws.” He would know, being one of the fanged and furry.

She sputtered out a laugh. “Like rougarou? No such thing. Men don’t turn into wolves.” She realized he was serious. “Wait. You don’t really believe in that stuff. Do you?”

He turned and walked toward the school’s front entrance. “I would tell you if I could,” he muttered. “But you aren’t ready.”

Sadly, he wasn’t sure she would ever be. What the hell was a moonstruck Wolf to do?
****
This one’s for you, Dawn. 😉 Writers, feel free to jump in if you feel inspired. New words are new words, right? Readers and writers, do you like to be scared? It’s the spooky time of year. Any plans to visit a haunted house–real or fake?

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If It’s Tuesday…

Posted on October 18, 2022 by Silver James

I did not want to brain yesterday. Nor was I particularly fond of having to adult. Therefore, I dealt with a headache, no creativity, and next to no iniative. I did manage to polish a few pages before giving up. Some days there’s just not enough caffeine in the world. Therefore, as I usually set up a post the day before, this one is basically nonexistence. Therefore, I leave you with a meme. You’re welcome.

And yeah, yeah. I know. With all those therefores this sounds like a proclamation. So I’m making it one. I’m takin’ the day off. Just sayin’… What would you proclaim today?

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A Third of Mondays

Posted on October 17, 2022 by Silver James

Have I mentioned that this October has FIVE Mondays?!?! Monday people are celebrating. The rest of us are just getting by. Lots of coffee, my friends. Lots of coffee. The days are getting shorter. It stays dark until almost 8 o’clock these mornings. All too soon, we’ll be facing the dreaded DST time change. At least it also means cooler temps. I’m a moderate when it comes to weather. 50-60s at night, no warmer tan mid-70s during the day. That’s my comfort zone. Oh, with the occasional nurishing amount of rain.

Speaking of, we did–finally!–get some rain Sunday night. Thunderstorm blew in hard and fast, lasted about an hour, dumped some rain and moved on. Not near enough but I’ll take it! Anything is better than nothing.

Sports is a depressing topic. Stormy had a bye soccer week. My Cowboys lost in like quadruple OT, my Cards were knocked out of the play-offs early and I don’t really have a dog in this show but…baseball and hey, that Mariners/Astros game going 18 innings was crazy Saturday night. My heart goes out to the catchers! That’s worse than catching a double-header because you usually get at least a little break between games.

I was going to make those easy cinnamon rolls again but the store has been out of the Grands Cinnamon Rolls. I bought a double pack of the regular ones and may give that a try. Now that cooler weather is here, I’m all about the comfort food–meaning ooey-gooey warm and yummy.

In reading news, I finished up my marathon of Jayne Castle’s Ghost Hunter/Harmony/Rain Shadow series. The newest release, SWEETWATER & THE WITCH, is a fun addition. I picked up another book through Hoopla and while it’s quirky and different, I haven’t quite sunk my teeth into it. Probably a good thing since I should be proofing my own book, huh.

In writing news, my snippet was picked as the winner of last week’s #ThursdayThreads flash fiction challenge. The expanded version will be up Wednesday for inquiring minds. New words are new words. I truly do need to get UNDER THE ASSASSIN’S MOON finished and published so I can get back to CROSSFIRE, MOONSTRUCK MAFIA: BOSTON, and my Cajun Wolves. I’ll get on that once I’m back from Wallyworld.

No stalling that trip this week. With the change in weather, I need to stock up on some things like sour cream, pasta, and other fall-type staples. On that note, I suppose I should close so I can hit the road, Jack. With Jake. Of course. Hope y’all had a good weekend and that this week will be good to you. Later, gators.

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Friday Sinema: Boot Camp

Posted on October 14, 2022 by Silver James

Okay, I realise this is an Instagram video but it’s short, funny, and stars two of my favorite celebrities–Peyton Manning and Luke Bryan. I’m NOT a fan of award shows for lots of reasons but I’d be tempted to watch because of these two. Anyway, a little silliness to start your Friday. Have a great weekend! Psst: If there’s no sound, click the muted speaker button at the bottom of the video.

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Timing

Posted on October 13, 2022 by Silver James

The Universe has a point today. Most writers tend to take things seriously. This is true even of those who write humor. Comedy is a serious business. Sometimes, we writers get so serious about things we get wrapped around the axle. You know what occurs when that happens, right? Things come to a screeching halt. That, in and of itself, is not necessarily a bad thing either. Sometimes, we need to stop and think things through because the big U is right.

You don’t have to take everything so seriously, Silver.

Life isn’t black and white, answers aren’t always yes or no, and absolutely nothing has to happen today.

Act when you’re ready. Be led by your feelings. And the next time someone wants to fit you into a box, just tell ’em that your jeans are in the wash, your angels are at the mall, and Oprah’s on the other line.

Fuzzy as dice,
The Universe
©www.tut.com

You’re a spiritual being, Silver, on an eternal quest in a love-adventure you get to design. Do it your way.

Yeah, not sure I wouldn’t leave Oprah on hold but whatever. And good thing I have more than one pair of jeans and that my angels like the mall because I don’t. 🙄 But I’ve learned this in both life and my career. The message works for both. Sometimes, the answer is maybe. Sometimes, you look at shade of gray. There’s nothing wrong with sitting still, doing nothing because if nothing happens, it doesn’t happen. As writers, we develop our own process. None of us fit in a box. But we darn sure need to feel so that our words can pass those feelings along to our readers. And now I want a karaoke machine so I can belt out that iconic Frank Sinatra hit…you know the one. C’mon, all together now. Sing it with me… 😉

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Wednesday Words: It Really Is Working

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Silver James

Cold front blew in early this morning. Yay! We got a smidgen of rain yesterday which is better than nothing. Who’s ready for some new words? Once again, I took two prompts and combined them. I’ve expanded the original 250 words because…yeah. Still, this is a first draft and bare bones so bear with me. Our prompts today are…drumroll please… In this corner, from #1line Wed **REALLY IS –  Particularly. Emphatically. Beyond credulity.** And in that corner, our contender from #ThursdayThreads, “How does it work again?” Y’all know how this works by now, so here we go…
***
The time had come. Kin couldn’t run from it any longer. She deserved to know all about him.
“Just spit it out, Kin. Whatever it is.” Meg had no clue where this was going. Well, she thought she knew where it had been going and then the dang man went all cold and business like and stopped kissing her. “This whole ‘we need to talk’ thing puts a girl off. Fast.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “Puts a fella off as well. Still, ’tis the truth, lass. There are things about me y’need t’know.”

“You’ve killed people.”

He slow-blinked at that. “Aye.”

“And you have no remorse.” Another slow blink and a head nod. “You forget who my dad is. You are a soldier, Kin. If you didn’t go around killing innocents, then what’s the big deal?”

“Ah, lass. If t’was only so simple.” She gave him a narrow-eyed look but he forged on before she could interrupt him. “I’m not like other men. Human men,” he hastened to add. “I’m a Wolf.”

“And that is?”

“Just what it is. I’m a wolf shifter.”

“It’s not Halloween, Kin. This isn’t funny.”

“I’m deadly serious, lass. It’s a genetic thing. I was born with wonky DNA that allows me to shift into a wolf.”

Meg rubbed her temples. And here she thought she’d finally met a good guy, who was stable and kind and sexy as all get out. She muttered under her breath. “What’s wrong with this picture?”

“You don’t believe me.” Kin spoke emphatically and managed to keep his voice steady. He knew this wouldn’t be easy.

She folded her arms over her chest, giving him a narrow-eyed glare. “This really is silly.”

All right. So he hadn’t been particularly subtle. And true, his claim might be a bit beyond any sort of credulity, but he had spoken the truth. And now it was time to get serious. He would not woo her or seduce her into his bed until she knew the truth of him. “This is not a joke, lass.”

“That’s good, because I’m not laughing. Are you seriously telling me that you are a werewolf?”

“No, I’m telling you that I am a wolf shifter. Werewolves only exist in the minds of writers and movie makers.”

“Still not buying what you’re selling.”

He reached over his head, grabbed his shirt and stripped it off. Kicking off his books, he went for his belt buckle and fly next.

She backed up a few steps, concerned now. “What are you doing?”

“Show and tell, love.”

Meg let out a startled gasp as he stripped down and then she covered her mouth and backed into a corner as his body twisted, bones crunched, skin sported thick fur, and a wolf emerged. The animal stood in front of her, panting a little, nose raised as it tested the air.

“Holy shit.” Moments later, a naked Kin once more stood before her. “How? Why?” She was too dumbfounded to get any other words out.

“It’s in the DNA. Scientists call the little bugger the lupi versi pellis gene. It’s attached to the Y chromosome and it’s rather rare, even for a recessive gene.”

She closed her eyes against his very calm explanation and shook her head. “I’m hallucinating.” That got her a boisterous laugh so she opened her eyes. “Okay. One more time for the dummy in the class. How does it work again?” she demanded, still not quite believing her eyes.
****
There it is, the big “reveal” which is sort of a spoiler but not really becasue all the Wolves shift for the firts time in front of their mates. It’s just a matter of when and how and there’s way more to this scene so don’t be afraid to read it. By the time I’m done, it’ll be further expanded, stuck in the appropriate spot in the story and you’ll read it then and go, “Oh! Yeah. I sorta remember this scene.” 😉 Okay, writers, you have your prompts should you choose to use them. Share if you want. Readers, what “contraption” have you had to read and reread the instructions to figure out how to make it work. You never know when I might “borrow” the idea and slap it in a scene. Have a good one, y’all!

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Tuesday Treats & Titles: Comfort Food and Reads

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Silver James

Well, I was on a roll for a few weeks when it came to hyping a new release and pairing a yummy recipe with one of the characters in the book. I still have one book to get polished and released and it wasn’t in time for today’s post. The weather is finally turning around here. We haven’t turned on the AC in over a week. I swiitched summer linens for the winter set (tradining a chenille bedspread for a microswuide comforter) and I actually feel like cooking. When it’s hot, heating up the kitchen is not really high on my wish list. As I was making my grocery list, LG and I discussed some of the dishes we like that we haven’t had in a long time–since…like…early spring when it was still cool outside. One of the first things he mentioned was Swedish meatballs. Talk about easy but still yummy. What is more comforting than a creamy sauce, meat, and noodles. Okay, grilled cheese sandwiches and hot soup ranks up there too. Anyway, I fixed Swedish meatballs last night. And it was pretty yummy. And yes, I will share the recipe, such as it is. I’m often a “scratch” cook, meaning I add a bit of this, a dab of that, and don’t really measure. I do, but I use the “cup” of my hand for herbs and spices.

Ingredients
1 cup beef stock

1 cup heavy cream

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 t. dried rosemary, crushed, or more to taste

1 T. dried parsely

12  frozen cooked meatballs per serving, thawed and warmed

1/2 package wide egg noodles or dumplings – I use No Yolks Dumplings

Directions
1 – Prepare noodles according to package direction. I use about 1/2 of the package for 2 servings.

2 – Whisk together stock, cream, flour, soy sauce, rosemary, and parsley in a large saucepan over medium heat until smooth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes.

3 – heat meatballs in a no-stick frying pan coated with nonstrick cooking spray.

4 – Stir in warmed meatballs, and continue cooking until meatballs are heated through, about 5 more minutes.

5 – Taste and adjust seasonings before serving. You might want to add salt (or pepper–we don’t do pepper).

6 – serve over noodles

That’s the food portion of the post. Now, let’s talk books. I have questions for you. I’d love if you’d answser them but at the very least, think about them. If you were stranding in a mountain cabin in a blizzard, what series of books would you want to find in the bookcaseh? What is your Chicken Soupl Book? (That one book that you pick up to read when it seems like the world is falling apart around you.) What book always makes you laugh? What book always makes yoiu cry? See? Tough questions, but I’m all about comfort today. I mean snuggle fleece blanket, curled up in a cozy chair, favorite warm drink at your elbow, reading enjoyment. To go along with that wonderful comfort food you had for dinner. I could be perfectly happy with several different series on the shelf–Ilona Andrew’s Kate Daniels or JD Robb’s Eve Dallas/In Death. I’d lean tward the latter because there’s over 50 books to keep me occupied. 😉 My go-to book has always been NAKED IN DEATH. I’ve read it like 20 times. No. Seriously. I may not read the next book in the series but when no other book holds my attention, I can always count on NiD. Okay. The newxt questions are tougher because I’m really having to engage my memory. I always laugh when reading any of Shelley Laurenston’s Honey Badger books. As for a book that always makes me cry…That’s a tough one. There have been books that made me cry while reading them. I actually went back and scrolled through the 1700+ books I’ve listed on Goodreads. And came up on WILD COUNTRY by Anne Bishop, part of her The Others series. It occurred to me that I didn’t always relisten to it when doing a marathon because I always cry. I’m sure there are a few others, but that’s the first one I tumbled across that I saw the title and immediately teared up thinking about it. Don’t get me wrong. I love the book and the series but that one yeah. So, what about y’all? Favorite chilly weather comfort food and books?

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Monday Once More

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Silver James

Why does Monday keep comeing around? It’s like…you kow…programmed or something. 🤣 So we’ve reached the second Monday of the month. However, this is one of those cursed months (it IS October, after all) that has FIVE Mondays. Yes. You read that right! I know, I know. I’m a writer. I don’t work Monday thru Friday, nine to five. Or eight to five with an hour for lunch. Still, I worked for a lot of years and there was never a way to get around a Monday morning. Except with coffee. Coffee always helps.

There was a weekend. Let’s start with sports, of which there is good news and sad news. Good news, Stormy’s soccer game went well and while he played defense for the whole game, he played his position well and his team won. My OSU Cowboys also won! Yay. OU, on the other hand? It was ugly. There are reasons for their very bad, terrible, horrible record this year. Still… And the saddest news of all is that my Cards went 2 and done in the play-offs. Their season is over. I’ll wait to see who ends up in the series. We usually watch. There are some underdogs we could root for.

I did a little writing. Not much. And UNDER THE ASSASSIN’S MOON is not ready for release. It happens. Stormy was here for 3 days last week and trust me, playing Monopoly with him seemed far more important. 😉

In reading/listening updates, I’m about to finish my marathon relisten of Jayne Castle’s Ghost Hunter/Harmony/Rain Shadow series. I started the latest book, SWEETWATER & THE WITCH, yesterday. It’s a fun one. Heck, the whole series is fun. She’s tied historical, contemporary, and SciFi into a group of series, all tied together. It’s amaxing worldbuilding with interesting characters and a very different set of paranormal rules. Good stuff. Not sure what’s next for me once I finish this book.

Our weather is finally feeling fallish. I’m exicted because it means I can start cooking again. Tonight is Swedish meatballs. I’m also planning for shepherds pie, and either spaghetti or chili. There’s nothing better than comfort food on a chilly night. There’s a reason Fall is my favorite season. Summer means it’s too hot to really cook. We do lots of things in the microave so the kitchen doesn’t heat up.

That’s it for me. I’m off to Wallyworld and Ace for people foods and bird seed. When I get back, it’ll be time to open up UNDER THE ASSASSIN’S MOON and start reading, proofing, and polishing it. It’ll be up at some point over the several days.

What about y’all? Good weekend? Good books read? Good food eaten? TV shows watched?

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Friday Sinema: Granny Rock

Posted on October 7, 2022 by Silver James

Okay, this one popped up in YouTube shorts and after watching the 1 minute version, I had to find a longer video. This is ALL kinds of awesome! Her grandkids think one of two things–they have the coolest granny ever or they’re too embarrassed to show their faces. Me? I think she rocks! Have a great weekend.

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Thursday Thoughts: Universal Happy

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Silver James

Sometimes, I’m reading my message from the Universe and I’m thinking one thing and then BAM! The Universe has something completely different in mind. Problem is, once I get an idea stuck in my head, it stays until I explore it. Upon examination, I often smile and think to myself, “Self, this is a good idea. Let’s be happy about it!”

Every single minute of every single day, they’re there, Silver.

They may be hidden behind circumstances, people, or light poles. Challenges, closed doors, or lost keys. Camouflaged, dovetailed, or whispering. Purring, kissing, or hissing. But more often than not they’re lying about in the open, under a clear blue sky, in plain view. Absolutely. Guaranteed. You’d throttle me otherwise.

10,000 reasons to be happy.

Jumanji, baby –
The Universe
©www.tut.com

Silver, how many do you see now?

So what am I talking about today? Ideas. Ideas make a writer happy. Without them, we’d be mired in writer’s block, which is a sucky place to be. Trust me on this. As writers, we never know where an idean will crop up. It could be in any of the places mentioned above by the big U. And have been, in my experience. I never quite know when an idea is going to tap me on the shoulder and say, “Hey there! We need to talk.” When I’m lucky, the ideas make sense, slot right into my WIP and I write merrily on my way. When luck isn’t exactly on my side, I fall into a rabbit hole but I’ve learned. No idea, no nudge from the Muse is wasted. If you could see all the Post-It Notes tacked to the bulletin boards lining the walls of my writing cave, plus all the scribbled notes on my whiteboards taking up the rest of the space, you’d understand. And to the Universe’s point, all of this makes me happy. What’s making you happy today?

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