Hit Me With Your Best Shot

And you'll see that like a weeble, I wobble but I don't fall down. Remember those little round bottom toys for toddlers? So cute.  They are appropriate for human comparison.  We get knocked down by life's one-two punches that are swung our way, or sometimes people try to bring us to our knees and we feel deflated.  For me, I need something brain stimulating to bring me out of a funk, which I've been about halfway in for a bit now. A very beautiful soul gently reminded me this week:  it is our choice.  We can allow the judgment and opinions of others to bring us down, or we can turn and walk the other way refusing to be affected by the world's fodder.  Smile, nod, and go on our way :-D   In that spirit, let's move on...

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Baby, What A Big Surprise

As much as I covet my exclusive relationship with Amazon, I have personal experience of their imperfection.  On two separate occasions, I've received an order of books only to find...it was not my books! I got another author's shipment, and I assume they got mine.  Makes me wonder what someone else who unexpectedly received something new to read thought of it, or if it got tossed.  I kept the ones I got, thumbing through them before adding them to the bookshelf. I'm not much into origami but it has a beautiful cover, and the one about how Greek mythology relates to the stars is a happy accident that is on the future to read list. Everything happens for a reason...


Another surprise...Foolishly, I had never downloaded one of my own books from Amazon so last week when I was offering it for free, I decided to see what one gets with a download.  Boy oh boy! It's amazing to me how that proof went through me dozens of times, and two other unbiased and cold read editors and still, there were some errors.  Needless to say, I am correcting that as well.  The downside to corrections is, once uploaded to Amazon with a new manuscript, the book is not available while Amazon checks it for accuracy.  

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Hello New Day

Inspiration...I find it in the simple things.  Music, of course. My dog's smile (Yes! He does!), the snow capped mountains in the breathtaking view behind where I live, a reflection of myself in the frigid water of the lake.  I do go look at the lake, I just don't go in it...for those of you familiar with my water phobia.  Maybe someday I'll try to overcome that, it's just not on the front burner at this time. I need to finish editing a book! 

What are the simple things you're doing today to enjoy and appreciate life? The Lhasa and I are going to make a dump trip today...I will definitely brew up something in the Keurig...I've got a stack of reading to catch up on, and...oh, yeah...back to editing "Back Track".  It will be done soon, I vow!  Right now, I'm gonna go put on a pot of bean and ham soup. It's overcast here in North Idaho today and some hot bean soup will help warm my rickety bones! Where's your inspiration today? Get some and report back! :) 

The first person to post artists to go with the headings which are song titles, gets a free book of their choice, autographed of course. Oddly and surprisingly, "LifeLoveLust" is selling on Amazon with next to no advertising. Perhaps there are other ramblers out there who appreciate some modern day poetry and prose.  

Hugs all around! Share them. It'll make you smile :)

Now playing: "Banditos" RCPM ~ "Live At Billy Bobs"

Musically yours, 

 *Hugs* ~ K






P.S. I have tried several times to correct fonts here, but I can only assume Blogger is having 'one of those days'.  I've noticed it before but it will correct itself after a while.  Nevermind...I give up! 

"Random Encounters" for "Nada"

Thanks to RCPM fan boarderb for this great song. The video is a little shaky, but the audio is perfecto! My daily connection to the music and the moral of the story is: You can't beat free! Nada. Nothing. Zilch. Zero pesos to download "Random Encounters" today at Amazon .  Download it to your e-reader, tablet, desktop...whatever you have to read on, it's free today! Enjoy :)

Please don't forget to click the "like" button if you haven't already. As mentioned before, the goal is to move up in the Amazon  rankings and every click whether it be on the "like" button and/or by downloading the e-book, helps move me up in the rankings. Mostly, I hope you enjoy the story.  Just a reminder...this is erotic romance. It starts out from the first page with a sizzling encounter and evolves into a tender love story about a women who, when the story begins is a little confused, then finds her way in the maze of emotions in life.  Let's move on...

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Once again, there is much conversation this past week on the internets :) about self-publishing.  We are still clearly greatly divided in our positions and there doesn't seem to be a middle ground. I've yet to encounter either authors or other professionals in the business (agents, editors, publishers) who don't have a staunch opinion either way.  People are either for, or against, and the bickering that goes back and forth is almost childish. It looks to me like the professionals are nervous.  They continue to disparage those of us who have taken the step to self publish instead of waiting for a publisher to pick us up and take a chance on our books.  The talk ranges from being impetuous and impatient, to writing rubbish that wouldn't have a chance with a publisher anyway.  The criticism citing poorly written to offensive content.  Content opinions aside (i.e., one person's trash is another person's treasure) I don't believe a poorly written book would make it anywhere!  People are not about to hype the story if they weren't able to understand it due to poor grammar, spelling, or point of view inconsistencies. There are many self published authors with success at Amazon . A good example: "A Howl In The Night" by JK Brandon. A self-published novel that is #10 in the Amazon rankings. It gives the rest of us hope that we might just appear on that first page of best rankings, which is definitely something to work diligently at achieving.  Poor grammar, spelling, or other negatives in a book won't make it past the first round, so I'm not worried about not making the cut for those reasons.  I write stories with engaging plot, likeable characters, and almost always have a happily-ever-after.  Some short stories are dark, but those will only be seen in my upcoming short story anthology which is currently taking a back seat to "Back Track".  Some poetry is dark and is available in "LifeLoveLust". As for "Back Track", I'm almost finished editing and then I'll be searching for a cover.

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It's a beautiful sunny day in the Pacific Northwest! I perfect time to get out with your e-reader and soak up some sun while taking in a great story and don't forget to give random hugs today! I met up with an old acquaintance yesterday while out and about and the hugs were warm and wonderful!  The Lhasa is out on the back deck taking in the morning sunshine with a dog nap. I may join him later with something soothing from the Keurig and a good book :)

Confidently yours, 

 *Hugs* ~ K

"More Than Words"

My fondness for combining music with prose is well known.  After all, music is prose. Lyrics organized with music in an expressive fashion. It's soothing and calming.  I admire those talented enough to put both words and instruments together. For now, I'll stick with just the words :)

 

Lines I wish I'd written:

"Once upon a midnight dreary, which I pondered, weak and weary" ~ Poe, "The Raven"

"I remember him as if it were yesterday, as he came plodding to the inn door, his sea-chest following behind him in a hand-barrow—a tall, strong, heavy, nut-brown man, his tarry pigtail falling over the shoulder of his soiled blue coat, his hands ragged and scarred, with black, broken nails, and the sabre cut across one cheek, a dirty, livid white." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson ~ "Treasure Island"  (I love long sentences!)

"The owner was a small nervous guy and he backed away into the point of the triangle and was standing with his backside against the cash drawer" ~ Lee Child, "Running Blind"

Poe is notorious for his epic prose, much of it dark just like his most notable "The Raven". Stevenson's "Treasure Island" is a staple in classic novel history.  Lee Child is a modern day rambler after my own heart. I love how he gives such eloquent description to set up the scene, yet with words that are easily used in everyday life.  No dictionary required.

"Death is life's stop sign"

"A few cops and media looking at KC like it was a hot day and she was a cold beer"

"Brackett had a hedgerow of gray hair that stood as erect as a regimen of eager recruits"

The above are just a few examples of some great writing by David Bishop in his novel, "The Beholder". David is skilled at painting a picture with words. I'm envious of those writers who can give the reader a vivid image with few words, as Poe, and also of those who write protracted, comma filled sentences that fills the mind with an unforgettable image, as in Stevenson. David Bishop does a little bit of both while conjuring up a plot that is edgy, the characters memorable, in a story which takes some macabre twists that will keep you turning the pages.  This is one of my highly recommended reads of 2012.  Get yours at Amazon and you can also visit David at his Facebook page to get to know more about a male author who so succinctly writes a female character, which I find is a most fascinating talent.  He also looks pretty normal for someone who writes such chillingly gruesome details of grisly murders.

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Giving It All Away

Why do authors give away their books on Amazon? We don't make any money on those that we offer for free, that's why they're usually for a short period of time, one day or possibly a weekend.  Through Amazon's KDP Select program, authors do get paid for those books borrowed through the KDP Select program, but on the day(s) we have a free day, we don't get paid for that, so why do it? Well... each download, whether on a free day or if the book is borrowed under the KDP Select program, or purchased at the e-book price, is tallied and the more downloads the book gets, it moves it up in the Amazon best sellers rank. What that does is, moves the book up on Amazons pages and is added to the 'items other customers buy' category, which all leads to more readers and more sales.  So, in the spirit of moving up in the Amazon listings, I'm offering "Random Encounters" free next weekend on Sunday, April 22. I'll give a little reminder before then so everybody can get their copy of a steamy, sensuous yet touching, romantic story of a woman finding her place in a most unusual fashion. 

Meantime, if you could visit my Amazon pages  and click on the "like" button for both "Random Encounters" and "Bright Lights, Money & Show Biz, Honey" I would be much appreciative.  It will help move the books up in the rankings.  If you are moved to download and read, that would be awesome too! :-D

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The Lhasa got me up at 6:00 AM on a Sunday to go outside.  He's now comfortably snoring on his blankie and here I am wide awake.  Guess I'll be productive and get chores done early.  That'll leave me some time to get the baseball game in  (Mariners are playing .500 ball!) then later get something cozy from the Keurig and curl up with some great reading. What are you doing today? Whatever it is, hug everybody! I will and am sending virtual hugs to you all as well. 

Relaxingly yours,

~ K

Happy Easter, ya'll!

"Even the losers get lucky sometimes"

 

That's from the fabulous Tom Petty, of course. I didn't win the big mega lottery this week, despite buying an extra batch of tickets. Isn't it a little bit fun to buy that ticket hoping against all hope that we could win even a share of that mega millions jackpot and what we would do with the money? I'm a pretty simple gal. Probably because I've never had a lot to spend, so I'm careful with it.  Getting a large sum of money, though...I might just splurge and buy myself something nice. I know...I read all of the odds of other things it would be more likely to have happen, but still...it's fun to dream, and you never know.  Somebody is going to win, and my ticket has just as much chance as the next person.  Since I didn't win this time, I'll continue toiling away as a starving artist writing more books, submitting to more agents, publishers and meantime, self-publish to get some satisfaction for my efforts and to share with you all.  Which brings me to my next topic...

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"Back Track" editing is coming along nicely. Grace Turner is a forty-something widow merely existing on a sprawling ranch in southwestern Colorado. In the two years since her beloved husband passed away from a quickly progressing form of cancer, she's let the ranch go. The depression of grieving left her lost and alone. Emerging from the dark days of grief, Grace awakens to the realization that it's time to get on with her life and start living again. Hiring someone to help with upkeep and maintenance around the ranch would be the first step to moving forward. Arranging her surroundings conducive to making a new life is a healthy beginning. The cattle needed to be driven to market. That isn't a job a woman can do on her own.  Not even a seasoned rancher like Grace. She needs a ranch hand experienced with horses and cattle drives. 

Juan-Carlos Martinez is a nomad ranch hand running from a gang lifestyle former past. That lifestyle took his best friend in a bloody gunfire, and he realized it wasn't a life he wanted to be a part of anymore. He wanders into Grace's neck of the woods in search of refuge as a ranch hand so he can camouflage himself from his past, and the people who were a part of it. He's been running...hoping to stay ahead of that past and the people he knows are tracking him. Grace hires him to help around the ranch and get the cattle driven to market. Working together to bring the ranch back to a respectable status, Grace and Juan-Carlos grow closer, and he knows he must deal with his past in order to hope for a future with Grace. Together, they travel back to Juan-Carlos' gangland territory just outside of Tucson to confront the kingpin and end the running so they can have a peaceful life. That's when the bullets fly - literally! They meet up with Juan-Carlos' old buddies and walk right into the middle of what appears to be a gangland ambush. The twists and turns their lives take from there is just the beginning of outrunning the past Juan-Carlos is so determined to escape. An edgy escape dotted with gunfire, helicopter surveillance and an illusion that proves things aren't always as they seem.

That's a little teaser of what "Back Track" is about. Originally written in 2006, I've been pondering self-publishing it for a while now.  I've had some setbacks health wise and haven't been able to sit here at this computer as much as I've wanted to the last couple of weeks, so it's not quite ready to print a proof copy as was my original goal.  I am, however, optimistic it will be very soon, hopefully in the next two weeks if arthur will give my hands a break and a little more free movement.  I've had folks ask me, why don't I just get someone else to type it on the keyboard for me? Well...I suppose that would be an option if I absolutely could not type anymore, but my writing brain doesn't work that way. If you've met me, you know I'm not so verbal. I'm much more chatty in writing. My verbal communication isn't nearly as articulate as my written form.  It's just the way my twisted brain works with sending the words to my hands, not my mouth. Anyone else out there with that eccentricity?

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Mean time, I'm still including a bonus of "LifeLoveLust"  at my website when you buy "Random Encounters" or "Bright Lights, Money & Show Biz, Honey" , or both.  I repeat this regularly as sales from Amazon for "LifeLoveLust" have been brisk of late and I want to be sure everybody knows it's free, when you buy one or both of my other books from my website. E-reader versions are available at Amazon, just use the links with the book covers to the left of the page here and it'll take you right to them. At .99 each, it's a pretty good bargain to give you an escape for a little while.  If you're a KDP Select member, they are free.  Enjoy! :)

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"This ain't no joke, you gotta know how to bend if you don't wanna get broke, to keep your piece in the big bad game, you know you gotta go a little loco...to stay sane" ~ Roger Clyne

Happy April Fool's Day! I'm not one for practical jokes, but I do get a kick out of hearing others experiences with them.  Give me a holler here and tell me about yours. I could use a chuckle or two. 

In true peace and love hippie-esque fashion...big hugs to everybody! I hope your first day of April brings promise of a spring filled with sunshine, love, and much peace in your world, wherever it be. 

Determinedly yours, 

 *Hugs* ~ K