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Monday, August 29, 2016

Summer's End

The end of summer is near.  I can feel it in the air.  I know so many people that wait for the coming fall and winter with excitement and glee.  I see the leaves changing colors and falling to the ground as the start of the hell that you all call winter.  The flowers are turning brown and wilting away leaving stumps of death behind.  The grass has been browning for a few weeks now, thanks to the wonderfully scorching hot sun, but even that will begin to shrivel up and die away. I am not ready for it.  Not that I’m ever really ready for the coming cold and rain and sleet and ice and snow and wind and and and.  Yes, I’m being a bit dramatic.  I don’t think anyone realizes how much I loathe the winter here in Ohio. 

So I am trying to come up with things to do INSIDE that will take my mind off the weather this fall and winter.  I am making a list.  I will be getting back to my painting.  A bit more learning over the winter and a bit more time to focus on it, will be nice.  I will finish up my drafts of several novels sitting on my desk.  Did I really say several?  Yes, I did.  It’s awful.  I have three novels sitting ready to move at this very moment.  I just haven’t.  That’s a start for me.  What else is there but to watch tv and clean?  I’m thinking on it. 


Labor Day is next week, which in my mind is the beginning of the end of the glorious warmth and sunshine for at least six months.  Oh the horror of it all!  How do you all while away the winter months?  I need some ideas.

Monday, August 15, 2016

Guest Post - Rebecca Besser

Today I want to welcome, Author, Rebecca Besser, to my blog.  She has a new book out this week, titled, Nurse Blood that we would like to share with you.


Rebecca Besser resides in Ohio with her wonderful husband and amazing son. They've come to accept her quirks as normal while she writes anything and everything that makes her inner demons squeal with delight. She's best known for her work in adult horror, but has been published in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for a variety of age groups and genres. She's entirely too cute to be scary in person, so she turns to the page to instill fear into the hearts of the masses.






Nurse Blood Summary (Limitless Publishing):

Sonya Garret roams the bar scene hoping to steal the heart of an unsuspecting victim—literally…

Sonya, better known as Nurse Blood, is part of a team of lethal organ harvesters who seek out the weak to seduce, kill, and part out for profit on the black market. When Sonya meets Daniel McCoy, a young man recovering from a broken engagement, he’s just another kill to line her pockets with quick cash.

Agent David McCoy vows to find out how and why his twin brother Daniel disappeared…

Daniel’s body hasn’t been found, and the leads are slim to none, but it won’t stop David from dedicating his life to solving his brother’s case. When the evidence finally uncovers the shocking truth that Daniel’s disappearance is linked to organ harvesters, David knows his brother is most likely dead. But he’s determined to stop the villains’ killing spree before they strike again.

One last harvest is all Sonya and her team need to put their murderous past behind them…

A family with the rarest blood type in the world is the only thing standing between Sonya and retirement. David McCoy and the FBI are hot on their trail, though, and multiple targets make this the most complicated harvest yet. Will David unravel Sonya’s wicked plans in time to avenge his brother and save an innocent family? Or will Sonya cash in her final kill and escape for good?

Murder for profit stops for no man when you’re Nurse Blood.


Nurse Blood Excerpt:

Prologue:

The air inside the nightclub was hazy from smoke machines. Flashes of colored light cut through the swirls in beat with the pulsing music that shook the walls and the floor. The atmosphere was alive with movement―a mass of hot, swaying bodies bent on enjoying the moment. A monster waited in the depths of the darkness to bat her pretty eyes at someone and make them her prey.

The door of the establishment swung open to give way to three eager young men looking to have a good time and celebrate. The trio was instantly surrounded by dancing women. They made their way through the press of bodies to reach the bar.

Daniel forced himself not to scan the crowd for his ex-fiancée, April. But she was the least of his worries, as the real danger was a face he wouldn’t recognize.

Roy got their drinks while Hank and Daniel stood at a balcony that overlooked an even larger dance floor below. The smoke was thicker down there, and there were more lights. The dancers looked like they were paying sensual homage to their deity. The air was tainted with the aroma of perfume and alcohol; it burned the men’s nostrils and fueled their excitement for the revelry to come.

Daniel took a moment to text his twin brother, David, to let him know where they would be celebrating their shared birthday. He received a text back from David saying he was still an hour away.

Roy joined them with three shots and three cold bottles of beer, passing one of each to his friends. They downed the shots in one swallow before turning their attention to their beers.

Dave will be here in an hour or so,” Daniel announced after downing his shot.

Awesome—we’re gonna have a great time!” Hank yelled over the music.

As Roy took a drink of his beer, a petite, slim blonde grabbed his waist from behind. He jumped in surprise and turned, recognizing the young woman.

She tucked a finger into the front of his jeans, smiled at him, and tugged him away from his friends toward a table with another girl.

Roy looked back over his shoulder at his friends and shrugged.

That’s Lynn,” Hank yelled to Daniel. “They’ve been seeing each other for a while. And that’s her cousin Trisha—you don’t want to go there.”

Daniel nodded and looked around. The warming effect of the shot was spreading through his body, relaxing him. He felt less paranoid about running into April.

While he was looking over the crowd, a woman caught his eye. She was a tall, slim brunette, and she was beautiful. She was standing alone at the end of the bar. He watched her for a few moments, and when she looked around, their eyes met.

He smiled and looked away.

Hank noticed Daniel’s mild interest. He knew what his friend had been through recently and why he was gun-shy with women.

Go for it!” he yelled, nudging Daniel. “Have some fun!”

Daniel looked at his friend, took another swallow of beer, glanced at the woman—noticing she was still alone—and shrugged.

Hank laughed and gave Daniel a shove toward the bar, causing him to slam into two people who happened to be walking past. When he turned to them to apologize, he came face to face with the very woman he was hoping not to run into: April. The man she was with was leaning on her with all his weight while she struggled to hold him up.

Daniel’s heart clenched in his chest and his lungs seized up for a moment. He felt his hand tighten around the neck of his beer bottle. He wanted to slam it over the other man’s head, but he managed to restrain himself. He didn’t want her to know how much the sight of her with another man hurt him, so he put on a brave front.

Excuse the fuck out of me,” he said with a sadistic smile, raised the bottle in the air like he was toasting them, and then took a big swig of the brew. He was pleased with the shocked expression that spread across April’s face at his harsh greeting.

They didn’t say anything to Daniel, but focused back on each other and moved around him and deeper into the establishment.

Daniel glanced over to Hank, who was grinning from ear to ear.

He smiled at his friend, nodded, and forced himself to put one foot in front of the other until he made it over to the woman at the bar. While he walked he pretended not to notice that April had glanced back at him several times as she guided her drunken man to a table where he could sit down. He was determined to show April she wasn’t the only woman in the world. He was going to prove to himself and her that he was over the breakup.

Hi, I’m Daniel!” he yelled when he reached the woman, leaning toward her a little so she could hear him as a new song started to play.

Grace!” she yelled back.

They smiled at each other.

The couple chatted for a while about nothing important, since it was too loud to carry on a serious conversation, and ordered drink after drink as they stood at the bar. Daniel’s emotional tension eased little by little with every drink. He became more and more relaxed, and friendlier and friendlier with Grace. Before he knew what was happening, they were pressed up against each other while they conversed so they could hear each other better.

Let’s get out of here,” Grace said. She kissed him and reached down between them to rub his crotch.
Normally Daniel would be shocked and uneasy by such a gesture so soon after meeting a woman, but he’d had enough drinks not to care about how respectable she was or wasn’t being.

He nodded in agreement and looked around for his friends, frowning.

I have to tell my friends I’m leaving,” he said, taking a step away from Grace.

Oh, don’t worry about it,” Grace said, rubbing his crotch again. “They’ll figure it out. Besides, you can call them later and they can pick you up from my place.”

That sounded reasonable so he followed her out to the parking lot. The night was clear and felt cool after the heat from the population of patrons inside the nightclub.

They stumbled together through the parking lot and paused to make out, pressed against the side of her car for a couple minutes before they finally separated their bodies to get in.

Daniel had the passenger’s side door open and was about to climb inside when his cell phone beeped, notifying him of a text. He stopped, stood up straight beside the car, and pulled his wallet out of his back pocket by mistake. He reached into his other back pocket and extracted his cell phone. He frowned and squinted to focus on the tiny, bright screen that said David was only a block away.

What are you doing?” Grace asked.

I can’t go with you,” he said with a sigh. “Sorry. I—”

He felt a sharp pain in the side of his neck. He reached up to figure out what had hurt him and spun around at the same time, dropping his cell phone and wallet to the asphalt parking lot.

Grace was standing behind him holding an empty syringe.

I’m sorry,” she said, “but you have to come with me.”

He tried to shove her away, but his limbs wouldn’t do what he wanted them to. His legs gave out from beneath him as the world blurred into a black blob of nothing.

***
Grace shoved Daniel’s tall frame into the passenger seat when he started to fall, smacking his head on the door frame. She quickly picked his feet up from the ground and spun him so she could get him all the way into the car.

She heard laughing as a couple made their way through the parking lot a few rows over, so she didn’t take the time to pick up what Daniel had dropped.

Grace shut the passenger door and ran around to the driver’s side of her car. She scanned the parking lot as she pulled out, not seeing anyone close-by. She’d been careful, watching for people as they’d headed outside, but the distant couple had snuck up on them. Luckily they hadn’t come close enough to see what she was up to. She tensed slightly when she had to pass another vehicle as she pulled from the lot out onto the street, but the man was looking in the opposite direction and didn’t even glance their way.

Once she was out of the parking lot and a couple blocks away, she pulled out her cell phone and called Roger.

Hey,” she said into the phone. “I have fresh meat…”



Where to find this book:
(Nurse Blood goes up on the Limitless website for pre-order Aug 13th and officially releases Aug 23rd.)
Limitless Publishing “Coming Soon” Link: http://www.limitlesspublishing.net/product-category/pre-orders/


To learn more about Rebecca visit her Website, or find her on FacebookTwitterGoodReads, and/or follow her Blog!


©Rebecca Besser & Limitless Publishing, 2016. All rights reserved.

Monday, August 8, 2016

Writing Time – Life Struggles

I always have huge plans.  I want to get up early and go for a run.  I want to spend two hours a day writing or editing or working on something writing oriented.  I want to make a nice dinner and have it all cleaned up by Seven so that I can go for a walk. 

These things never happen the way I set out.  It all starts off harmless enough.  I can’t get my butt out of bed early to save my life.  I’m tired.  My grand plans of going for a run are more funny than anything as I don’t actually like to run.  I should and I need to get off my butt a bit more, but I’m tired.

Then the idea of finding two whole hours to dedicate to writing – well that is just laughable.  I work a full time job to pay the bills.  So that cuts out 45 hours a week right off the top.  I am a mother so between mom chores and running back and forth to activities, you can cut out another 20 hours of the week right there, maybe more…depending on the time of year it could be a lot more.  Then there is the fact that I am a wife and homemaker so cut out another 15 hours right there doing household chores such as laundry and cleaning and cooking.  Some days I’m lucky to check my writers email let along focus on any real writing or editing or whatnot.  So sad.  I hear all the time how if it’s important you make time.  I’m seriously trying.  The things that take up my life aren’t cutable.  They aren’t “wants” they are “needs” of the family.  You can’t really cut out a need.  You simply can’t. 

Then there is the idea that I want to cook a good fantastic meal.  Yeah, that doesn’t happen either as I end up with like 45 minutes to cook in and you can’t do a wonderful exciting meal in that amount of time.  No you can’t.  So you get stir fry or fried chicken or grilled something or other. If you are really lucky, I crock potted something and that is actually a pretty fancy meal now and then, but I have to be awake enough in the morning to get that going before my life starts hacking away at the day.    

I love life.  Well, most days if we are being honest.  Some days suck, but that’s life.  If I could change anything what would be it be?  Nothing.  I love and I am loved by my family.  I have a full and fulfilling life that sometimes takes me away from other things I want to do, but what would I give up?  Not one thing. 

I am editing.  Slowly and surely, but only about half an hour to 45 minutes a day, but I am editing.  It’s all good. 

Tomorrow I am getting up early and maybe not going for a run, but I could go on a bike ride instead?  Don’t laugh too hard at me.  I am sure when the alarm goes off early I will hit snooze and berate myself all day long for not getting up, because again, I’m tired. 


Have a great week.  Next week I will have Author, Rebecca Besser on my blog.  Make sure to come over and visit, comment, or share.  

Monday, August 1, 2016

The End of Summer is Near

Yes, it really is.  Once I start seeing back to school commercials and sales on paper and pencils, I know it's time to get back to the job at hand, which means, blogging.

So how I have been spending my time?

1.  We went with the Tiny Dancer to Nashville to compete at our Nationals.  Sadly, I am not a fan of Nashville.  I didn't have a great time.  There wasn't much to do with a teenager other than shop and go to a few attractions.  Granted the Johnny Cash Museum was pretty good, but that was the highlight of the trip.  The hotel (The Gaylord - FYI) was kept so dang cold that everything felt wet and damp.  I went outside in the 100 degree heat just to dry off and warm up.

2.  We took a weekend trip out to Boston where I spent a fun day in Salem.  We did all the touristy things such as troll all the witch crafty stores and went to the museums.  It was a good day.  I had a Tarot reading and all in all it was good.  I was told that my day job is killing my creative side so I need to look into making some changes.  That was weird as who out there knows me as a writer or creative?  I enjoyed the trip even if it was a little quick and way over commercialized.

3.  The Tiny Dancer was accepted into a training program with the Joffrey Ballet Company.  She's been with them a while now.  I am ready for her to come home.  I know its all in the reach for training, but I miss my girl.  Horribly.  She's learned many things, including how to do her own laundry, and how to have fun while doing the chore.  She's a hoot.



She also sent me a few fun shots just to lighten my day.






School starts back up in 17 days.  She has schedule pick up day next week.  I need to get her re-fitted for jeans that fit, (Those Darn Legs!) and find some shirts for her that are not Twenty One Pilots.  I think her entire wardrobe right now is TOP shirts, a bit too short jeans and Nike Pro Shorts.  I will be broke soon.

But now that summer is coming to an end soon, I am back working and working hard.  The third book in my A Howl in the Night series has been fully drafted and is now being edited.  It will be in my publishers hands asap as I have several readers clamoring for it.  I will be back blogging weekly now, so stay tuned.

Have a great week.
ctny