Monthly Archives: December 2012

holiday thoughts

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December 27, 2012

Here we are, another post Christmas, pre New Year time. Christmas was fun. My friend Doug came to visit, bringing his guide dog, chumley. We had a restful visit. I worried that I didn’t get enough food, but he said it was okay. He’s vegetarian,a nd I am not, but after being friends for nearly 14 years, I’ve learned to cook for him in ways I can enjoy too.

He gave me for Christmas, a guitar, a new pair of comfy warm sweats and top in black and purple, a seater in deep rose, another sweater in burgundy and cream with a cream tank top for underneat-the sweater pattern has holes. music, he got me Sweet baby James by James Taylor of course, a double CD greatest hits of the Rolling Stones-funny, I didn’t like the Stones growing up, I mean seriously, Jagger can’t really sing, but as I’ve gotten older, I like them better. Also a CD with the Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A minor which also has an oboe and bassoon concerto and the soundtrack for the Hobbit Unexpected Journey. And the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables. mmmm. how manby versions do I have of Les Mis now? Never enough, really.

The dogs all got along well. I got one of my bad stomach aches on Christmas so by the time we went to my friends house, I wasn’t feeling too good. Didn’t eat and couldn’t eat yesterday. Ugh. Feel much better today though.

Now Doug and Chumley left to return to their home in Washington State, and I miss the hell out of them. Maybe i should move back to WA someday. after all, working at the job I have, working from home, I can live anywhere, time zone doesn’t matter much.

So, now i have a few days before returning to work. Need to eat today, feeling shaky from not eating for two days. Need to do laundry, clean the kitchen. Need to get back to writing What the Heart Wants.

Speaking of writing, since I don’t think i’ve posted anything here for ages about that. I submitted Haven to the publisher on October 5, 2012. I have not received an answer yet. tomorrow will be 12 weeks, and they said I should have an answer in that time. But I know they closed for a couple weeks at the holidays, so maybe I’ll hear soon after new year. I feel like everything in life is holding its breath till I hear yea or nay on that one. I love Haven and missed the characters so much I wrote a Christmas short story for my group, those who were my support during the writing. if haven gets published, perhaps I’ll expand it and publish it next year at Christmas.

What the Heart wants is a sort of sequel to Haven, focusing on a secondary character from Haven, someone who became so special she needed her own story in order to find her happy ending. i haven’t written on that story since around Thanksgiving, too much burn out from working 50 hours a week at my regular job and not sleeping well. sigh.

Anyway, I guess that’s it for this time around. I have more to say, but there is much to do in recovering from company, so time to take the dogs out and come back to do a bit of laundry, a little kitchen cleaning and other such boring but necessary tasks.

book review, The End of All Things

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Book Review
The End of All Things
By Lissa Bryan

Carly believes that she and the puppy, Sam, she rescued are the only survivors in her area to live through a terrible virus that has swept over the world, killing untold numbers of people. She meets Justin, another survivor, but can she trust him. Gradually, he shows her he is trustworthy, and they begin a trek from Alaska to a warmer climate, hoping to make it to Florida before the weather gets cold and threatens their survival. Together, with Sam—who turns out to be a wolf cub—a horse and a cat they rescue along the way, they make their way through a world changed beyond recognition, meeting other survivors, good and bad. How will they survive? Can humanity go on? What about future children? They face danger along with wonder and love as they try to figure out answers to these questions, particularly, how to live in a world without electricity, refrigeration or medicine.
I loved this book. I’ve read several post-apocalyptic novels, two of which I’ve enjoyed, The Stand and Alas Babylon, and The Stand is one of my all time favorite books. But Lissa Bryan’s entry into that genre is sure to become another much loved book. She gives us the devastation mixed with hope of other such books, but without the supernatural or weird elements of The Stand. As she always does, she creates vivid, believable characters, people you feel you could know and wish you could meet.
Carly, who doesn’t think of herself as courageous and yet finds strength in herself she wouldn’t have imagined. (Not to mention the delightful way she names her animals after Lord of the Rings characters.) Justin, who thinks he’s not worthy of being loved, who is one of the most endearing male leads I’ve read in a long time.
And of course, there’s Sam, the beloved wolf, who protects his “pack”, human, equine, feline and whatever else Carly decides to adopt on the journey. Shhh, don’t tell the humans, but I think Sam is my favorite character of them all!
I had to take a week after finishing this book, just to think about it and process it. It moved me deeply, and I knew I would never be able to find just the right words to say how much and why. One of the things I love is the humanity of this book. We don’t learn much of the gory details of the virus or follow the tragedies of characters before during and after the sickness. What the author gives us is a story of characters who are strong, who can survive and can love, even in the midst of heartbreak and a world changed forever. That’s why I love it so much, and why I’m still pondering it today and wishing I knew more and could see the world the survivors will create.

blog tour and giveaway for My Only by NK Smith

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Here I am back with another book review, and this one is incredible. Whatever you do, read this, and then enter the giveaway or go off and get this book. You won’t be sorry. For today’s entry, I have my review-I could have gushed interminably over this one-a guest post from the author and info about entering to win a copy at the end. Read on.

Book Review
My Only
By NK Smith

Okay, so I’ll just say this out front, if I’d realized before beginning to read this book, that it was a high school romance, I would most likely have declined the chance. I mean, I’m in my fifties, and high school was one of the five worst times in my life. I don’t generally enjoy high school centered books, unless there is something magical or paranormal about them, like Harry Potter or Twilight. And if I’d passed on this book I’d have missed maybe one of the best books I’ve read all year!
The story is told by Adam, a high school senior. He expresses all the insecurities of a high school kid, one who isn’t the popular sort. He has a twin brother, and in every way, Adam feels inferior to him in every way. His brother is one of the cool kids, a star athlete, who always gets the girl, any girl he wants. When Olivia moves in across the street, Adam falls hard for her, but his brother wants her too, and Adam believes he can never compete.
Adam thinks of himself as one of the geeks, not cool. He’s in the marching band, but not an athlete. He can never get the girls and the only reason the popular kids don’t pick on him is because of his twin. He never expects Olivia to show any interest in him. But these two kids, Adam, insecure and lonely, Olivia, free spirited and open develop a unique and special relationship that leaps off the page.
There is teenage angst, a betrayal that made me gasp and broke my heart, triumph, grief and hope, a depth of brilliant emotion that moved me in every part of the story.
When Adam thinks at one point, “loneliness is amplified when everyone you know is busy talking to everyone else but you.”, I got it, I understood exactly how he felt. Whenever I’m in a group, the fact that I can’t make eye contact to join in a conversation, makes me feel lonely, even in a crowd of my friends or family. So, I felt Adam’s longings, joys and hurt throughout the story. I was him. I wasn’t popular. I was too shy to attract boys even without my disability, I was good at things the popular kids wouldn’t consider cool. I longed for the unique presence, something incredible that Olivia brought into his life.
The characters in this book are vivid, bright stars, people you think you are or know or have known or could know or even could be. The best and the not so great in us all. I’ll never forget this book and I’ll think of it from time to time, imagine Olivia dancing somewhere, carefree and joyful, think of Adam playing the drums and growing into a hell of a man. And Aaron, who in spite of his outward confidence and cool kidness, is still a teenage boy trying to find his way into being a man, learning how to do the right thing.
I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read this book and that I didn’t let the high school aspects of it turn me away. Because in the end, overall, this is a story of us, of humanity, with events and feelings I can still experience today. It so much more than a mere high school romance story. For me, it was really the story of beginning to become all Adam had the potential to be. And the story of how we all were, who we all are, and who we can become. Do not miss this chance to read this book!

Author guest post
When asked to write guest posts, I often think about questions that readers have asked about my books, and one that sticks out for me are questions about what kind of thought goes into designing a cover for my books.
A lot of thought goes in to book cover design, not only from the author, but from the publisher’s art department. The Writer’s Coffee Shop’s Jennifer McGuire has done all of my covers, and I’ve never been disappointed. In the beginning, with the cover of Old Wounds, I think I wanted something all encompassing, grandiose. And Jennifer, bless her heart, tried to give it to me, and it just didn’t work. I’m not sure who finally found the picture we ended up using, but I realized simple is better after that.
Basically as an author, I have to boil the story down to something that can be portrayed in a symbolic way. Love, lust, greed, fear, misery, remorse, etc. Some novels are easier to do this with than others. It’s definitely a practice that gets easier with time. The more I think about the stories I write, the faster I am at identifying the core theme.
With My Only, I needed something that could portray first love, innocence, beauty, natural connection, and just a little bit of heartbreak. Tree carvings somehow cover all of those things, and while Olivia and Adam never scratch a heart in the novel, it still seems like a worthy symbol to sum them up. There is something very sweet and innocent in declaring your love by carving something permanent, likewise, there’s something very sweet and innocent to the relationship that develops between Adam and Olivia.
Now that I’ve learned some of the Adobe creative suite, I can provide Jennifer more visual information of what I’d like to see on the cover. So when we were ready to design my next release’s (the forthcoming Hollywood Lies) cover, the process was simple, smooth, and efficient, and I’m looking forward to replicating it again and again as more of my novels are published.
Fun Fact about me: I love connecting with people who love to read, so come visit me on Facebook ( www.facebook.com/NKSmithAuthor ), on Twitter (@NKSmithWrites), and on GoodReads ( www.goodreads.com/author/show/5358547.N_K_Smith ) .

And now, how to enter to win a copy of this book!
Please send a message to

[email protected]

put the book title, My Only, in the subject line, and your name and email address in the body of the message. I’m so excited about this book and want people to get excited to, so you have till the end of the day tomorrow to enter.

Enjoy!

book review and giveaway!

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Welcome to my blog, and if you’ve come here for the blog tour for Mary Whitney’s A Political Affair, read my review and Mary’s guest post then learn how to win a copy of this book. Enjoy!

A Political affair
By Mary Whitney

Stephen is a young United States senator, following in his father’s footsteps. Anne is an intern in his office. He’s liberal, and so is she, but she comes from a conservative family. It’s against all the rules for them to have a relationship, considering their positions, and yet, they do fall in love and must try to figure out how to deal with the inevitable consequences.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The main characters are really all around nice people. Stephen’s family though concerned about the possible effect on his political career, find fun and creative ways to help the romance along. Anne’s family feels her happiness is more important than politics. But of course the outside world wants to make something sleazy out of it and use the romance for their own political gain. How Stephen and Anne weather all the possibilities is what makes me love the book. The author grasps the intricacies of the political world, showing a realistic story of what could happen and how it could go so right or so wrong, and how just the whisper of a romance could cause an otherwise popular and honest politician’s career to collapse along with the negative effects it could have on Anne’s future.
And yet, this was not a story filled with the typical romance clichés. Nobody left the other for their own good, no ridiculous misunderstandings or storming off without hearing the other person’s side. I think that what I loved best was that these characters are two adults, and they act like it, working together. Throw in the political themes and you have one fantastic book. So often, political themed novels re about danger, spies, thrillers overall. I rarely find a lovely realistic romance story set against the high powered world of politics and with characters I don’t want to shake for their idiocy. You’ll genuinely like Stephen and Anne and you’ll want to know how their future goes and will read the last page wishing for more.

Mary’s guest post
After this bitter election, the one thing I think everyone can agree on is to thank god it’s over! If we’re lucky, it will be another eighteen months before we begin the next round of nasty television and radio ads. Personally, I’m just happy to be able to answer my phone again.
It’s hard to see anything romantic about politics. Mud doesn’t make anyone look or smell good. Even when we’re out of the nasty election cycle, if we do hear of romance in politics, it isn’t sweet at all. It’s usually something tawdry, where more often than not, innocent families are hurt because of a politician’s hubris.
Yet we’re all easily drawn to elected officials—even those we don’t agree with on the issues. We see beyond our differences with some because they’re charismatic, funny, and passionate, and occasionally good looking. Kennedy and Reagan are two who usually come to mind.
So why do politicians end up in sex scandals more than your average person? The simple answer is that they don’t get out much, plus they’re so egotistical they think they get away with anything. Many of them spend most of their time with their staff rather than their family or friends. They’re idolized and don’t socialize like normal people. So in the tight quarters of an office with staff who would go through fire for you, passions can flare.
Despite all of that, I love politics, and I relish a good scandal. In writing A Political Affair, I wondered what would happen if the affair was actually a well-intentioned one. What if the pair truly loved one another? How could they get around their situation and actually grow a relationship? And how would the public react once it was disclosed in the middle of an election? I hope I’ve drawn a story that plays that out, while poking fun at the political world. After all, making fun of politicians is always good time, and they definitely deserve it!

And now, how can you win a copy? just send an email to [email protected] with Political affair in the subject line and your name and email address in the body.
Good luck!