There are days when words just flow and last Sunday was one of them. This week's writing prompt popped into my head as I sat down last Sunday morning and wrote 1600 words on my latest novel in-progress.
Prompt: He eased the door. . .
Remember, the purpose of these writing prompts is to boost your creativity and to have a little fun.
Write as much or as little as you can and have fun!
Share whatever you come up with back here.
Fall is my favorite season! All that wonderful crisp air, the bonfires, snuggling up in a cozy sweater and the vibrant colors of fall just give you the warm fuzzies.
Probably one of the best parts of fall are the mums. Their sweet smell and their bright colors and varying shapes are amazing. Just what we need to add some life while the trees go to sleep and drop their leaves.
This weekend I went mum crazy. I planted yellow, pink, and red mums along with two baby lilac trees, and lily bulbs that will bloom next summer in my retaining wall in the front yard. To protect and entertain the flowers I put my big bunny sitting in their with them. 
In addition to adding a little whimsy to my yard, I put some new mums in the flower boxes on the railings of my porch and deck then planted others into the various front and back yard gardens. It looks as if a painter came by with a paint brush and added a splash of color to my outdoor area. Oh yeah, that's Mayhem in the door window looking out at me.
Yesterday I even picked up a couple of bails of hay and placed them inside this old bucket that my neighbor gave me an I repainted. On top of those bails of hay I added two mums, two pumpkins, and another little bunny. Now every time I drive up to my house I am greeted by smiles of mums.
I took one of the bright pink mums, the kind that look like they have daisy petals, planted it into a hand-painted terra cotta pot that a friend gave me, set it next to an old tree on the side of the yard where people drive by, and set another set of bunnies who like to read next to it. Now when people drive by they are greeted by fall.
If we could just hold back winter and keep fall for six months I would be a very happy camper.
How creative did you get with this Wednesday's writing prompt?
Wednesday's writing prompt was: She aimed the loaded weapon. . .
What did you come up with? Here's mine.
She aimed the loaded weapon toward her face then moved it so it pointed at her mouth and stared at it expectantly as if it would explode in her hands at any moment.
You can do this.
Her hands shook and she tightened her grip. Eyeing the cocked and loaded weapon held in her shaky grip, her mouth suddenly went dry. She swallowed, trying to gain her courage.
The rush of blood echoed in her ears and pulsed against her fingers as her heart tried to hammer its way out of her chest.
Come on. You can do it.
Just get it over with.
Wetting her lips with the tip of her tongue, she ordered herself to close her eyes and pretend it was a lollipop.
Writing prompt Wednesday is an exercise in creativity without thinking. Well, that's how I describe it. [GRIN]
I give you a partial sentence and all you have to do is finish it. Or you can write more! Write a paragraph, a page, a chapter. Whatever your creative mind comes up with and your fingers can type.
It's a terrific way to break writer's block or get your creative juices flowing.
When you do this exercise don't think, just write what pops into your head and have fun. And don't forget to share what you come up with.
Today's prompt is: She aimed the loaded weapon. . .
Have you ever read a book where it is obvious that the writer did not do his or her research? Did it turn you off from reading further or did you get past it?
There are many editors that will do the research to verify something mentioned in a novel is fact or fiction. Even if the novel is a work of fiction publishers and readers prefer to see some string of fact in the writing. This is why we, the authors, do our research.
My latest research has engaged me in the "right to bear and keep arms" as afforded us in the Second Amendment of the Constitution. (okay...I had to look that up)
On Saturday mornings for about 8-weeks now I have been getting up and packing what can only be termed a small suitcase, and driving to Weare, NH for pistol shooting lessons with Gunnery Sergeant Mike Stevens, USMC Force Recon Retired otherwise known as 'Gunny'.
Seriously, could you ask for a better instructor?
Mike is is the owner of Classic Armorer and a no holds bar, tell you like it is instructor who is very serious about what he teaches and who he teaches.
My very first class Gunny taught me how to handle a pistol, how to tear it down, how to clean it, and how to put it back together.
It wasn't until after those first lessons of the day that we walked down to his outdoor shooting range. There, Mike coached me on 'range etiquette'.
I have to wear protective eyewear, a shirt that covers my upper body so a hot bullet doesn't hit and burn my skin, and protective 'ears' that muffle the gunshot sound but allow me to hear his instructions, and always keep the weapon aimed down range.
With the weapon unloaded, the magazine loaded with target ammo, and all safety gear in place, I walk to the 21-foot line in front of a paper target.
Why a 21-foot line?
According to Gunny and the FBI, the average distance in a gun fight is 21-feet.
With my unloaded .380 Bersa held at my side and the clip in my opposite hand, I wait for Gunny's command.
The first command is "Ready on the line." This phrase tells me to load my weapon and stand in the shooting position he taught me with the gun aimed at the target.
"What is the shooting position?"
Your feet are about shoulder-width apart, your upper body is tilted slightly forward in what Gunny describes as "arrhhhhh", and your shooting hand is up at eye-level. Then you take your free hand and place it under and wrapped around your shooting hand so it acts as a pedestal to help control the weapon. This is known as the pedestal hand. The arm attached to your pedestal hand is slightly bent at the elbow for cushioning the recoil. Your head is tilted enough to site down your shooting arm and eye the site at the end of your pistol to the target. At this point, your finger is NOT on the trigger.
Now I wait for the next command.
The second command is "Fire on the range." This phrase is the command to fire when ready and for me is usally followed by Gunny saying, "Squeeze and breathe." Apparently I hold my breath. Not a good thing as it makes my muscles bunch up and therefore my aim will be off and the recoil will not be cushioned.
How am I doing?
Shooting takes practice to be able to hit the target in a skilled and consistent manner and an instructor with integrity to teach you how to not only shoot the pistol, but to teach you how to care for and handle the weapon in a safe and responsible way. This is why a friend of mine recommended Gunnery Sergeant Mike Stevens, USMC Force Recon Retired.
Stay tuned as I continue my lessons and research with Classic Armorer.
This morning I broke my usual mode of staying away from my computer and decided to check my email. When I did, I received a wonderful surprise. The cover art for my next novel was at the top of the list. Woot!
Not only did my publisher send me the art work she designed, but she also sent me a wicked nice compliment. I hope Linda forgives me for sharing it with you all, but I can't resist so read the next line.
"PS - I wanted to tell you that I enjoyed this story the most of all your books!"
Isn't that a terrific warm and fuzzy to wake up to?!
Short blurb for NEVER TEMPT DANGER:
She never thought of her “gift” as special, more like a curse.
As the one man who accepted her “gift” slid the diamond ring onto her shaky finger, Maureen saw his death flash in her mind an instant before the bullet struck. With his blood on her hands and a government research project in the balance, Maureen (Gilly) Gillman does the only smart thing she can. She disappears. If there was one thing Maureen had learned, it was Never Tempt Danger.
Special Agent Lucas Danger knows Maureen Gillman better than any other man. Assigned to find Gilly and her military robot prototype, Lucas discovers that his past has caught up with him. When the woman he loves collides with his secretive past, Lucas has to open his mind as well as his heart to save Maureen.
Who will get to her first?
As a writer if you want to write a realistic story (even if it is fiction) you do your research. You research clothing of the 18th century. You investigate military black sites when writing about the CIA and human intelligence. Writing a story on baseball? Then you’ll probably find yourself at a baseball game, maybe even trying to sneak into the dugout to sit on the bench with one of the hotties hugging wood.
I recently began doing research on my own family’s history. Let me tell you…there are a whole lot of story ideas that can come from your own family closets. Heck, the freaky names alone will give you a good laugh. I have an Antipas Gilman in my family tree. Antipas? Is that short for antipasta? What about Minnie Moon Markusen? Seriously! Does that not sound like a woman who would sit across the room and spit into a spitoon?
My great-grandparents on my father’s side helped build the town of Anthon, Iowa and even had a run-in with Frank and Jesse James. How cool is that?
OH! Anthon, Iowa is also the town where the tallest man is buried at 9 feet 2 inches. What a great tidbit you could throw into a story or tell your children one day.
So how do you do this family research?
In the case of family history, and that is the focus of this little blog post, it is a lot of talking with family members and internet research.
Whatever you do, don’t believe everything your family states unless they have it in writing. That sounds so terrible, but it is true. For the longest time, I understood my great-grandfather on my mother’s side to be Tom Gillman. Well, when my grandmother did a little digging into paperwork, we discovered that his full name is Joseph John Thomas Gillman.
Back to family history exploration. First, let’s start with where can you create your family tree as you go along?
There is a website called http://www.geni.com that is absolutely free. Yes, you can pay for the professional version but it is not necessary if all you want to do is input names, dates, relationships, images of the relative. One nice feature of this site is that you can share it with your relatives so they can add other relatives and information to help your project along. You can, of course, purchase family tree software like Family Tree Maker.
Now for the actual research. Many people have asked me which sites I joined or subscribed to, which equates to fees. Are you kidding me? No, you can do this without a cost.
There are websites such as http://www.familysearch.org that allow you to put in a name and possible dates of marriage or birth, the location of where they may have lived, who their spouse or parents were and then hit search and check the results. If other people have been doing research on the same line you will sometimes find that the family and/or pedigree information is available.
Note: Be cautious of giving too much detail because you could be absolutely wrong. For example, my great-grandfather’s last name has always been spelled Gillman, but in fact the name has been modified or misinterpreted down the line from what it was when the family came from England. In the states it started as Gilman. In England it was spelled Gylman or something like that. Use soundex when possible.
Remember I said don’t believe it until you see it in black and white? Well, perfect example is a birth date or place. Be open to the fact that the year could be plus or minus a couple of years.
Other sites you can use for researching family history. http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ Search the surnames, the trees, the archive lists, the forums, message boards. None of those require you to pay a fee to do your investigation.
What you will find is a string of other people asking the same questions as you about the same people and who may have actually found the answers. If you’re real lucky, as I was, you may actually find someone who has half of a family branch already documented. If that happens, be sure to send them off an email and thank them for their effort. I sent Fred Cohoon an email thanking him for identifying so many of my relatives on that branch and offered to send him more information from my family that he did not have documented at the time. What a great way to meet long lost and/or unknown relatives.
http://www.ancestry.com/ is great for searching names and getting an idea of when someone may have been born or died, and where if you are unsure, and even possibly tell you the name of a parent or spouse. To go any further will cost you a fee. I have not gotten that desperate yet.
A truly wonderful site that will lead to other sites is http://www.usgenweb.org. The USGenWeb Project is a group of volunteers working together to provide Internet websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States. Part of my family is from Iowa so I went to http://iagenweb.org/. USGenWeb is non-commercial and fully committed to free access for everyone. There is even a WorldGen project so you can search across the globe. http://www.worldgenweb.org/.
USGenWeb is a where I found some very good information about relatives because I could search by state. I could search obituaries, state census data, old newspapers like http://iowaoldpress.com/. Talk about great fodder for fantastic fiction!
Don’t forget that these long since deceased family relations have to have been buried somewhere. Yeah, a tad morbid I know, but. . .it’s a starting point to find names and dates and another point for searches. Try http://www.findagrave.com/ to search for a grave. Most states have a grave site for you to search such as http://iowagravestones.org/ and http://utahgravestones.org/.
http://www.genealogy.com/index_r.html is another site that you can do name searches on and has some great forums where you can once again follow other people’s efforts in tracking families. Link for forum searches is http://genforum.genealogy.com/.
I will tell you now that this kind of research is addictive. You will find yourself in front of your computer with 5 minutes to spare before you have to pick up the kids from school doing any number of search combinations to find that one name that has eluded you. Watch out! You may just forget the kid at the bus stop.
Ultimately, when you find out that your family branch came from Barbadoes and helped build a town in Iowa, or that a bunch of them sailed over on a ship from England to be early settlers and the family behind Gilmanton, NH then all sorts of ideas will start to run through your head. If nothing else, you will learn way too much about your family along with reading some very interesting stories of not so well known relatives.
Have fun and happy hunting!
There is nothing like stepping back from a project, taking a deep breath, and letting the air whoosh out of your lungs as a sense of accomplishment slides into your heart and a wide grin tugs at the corners of your mouth in satisfaction.
Late last night I stood back from my front porch after three days of physical labor and felt this rush of pride swell in my chest as my eyes focused on what I had accomplished. I transformed my porch from this plain wood thing to a place I want to sit after work with a cool drink and watch the world go by.
What do you think?
I stained every piece with this beautiful mahogany flame color and all the spindles and kick plates are a white primer followed by a white stain. Gorgeous if I do say so myself. Now my deck and porch have similar looks and I feel a symmetry going on.
Next up is to finish sanding and staining the driveway retaining wall.
What gives you a sense of accomplishment or satisfaction?
Catch me and 49 other local authors, poets, illustrators at a BOOK SALE!
TODAY (August 26) from 4 PM until 8:30 PM
The Johnson Auditorium
HAVERHILL PUBLIC LIBRARY
99 Main Street
Haverhill, MA 01830
Can you imagine so many local area artists in one spot? You won't want to miss it!
See you there.
My youngest nephew, Brandon, turned 21...oops! I mean he turned 12 yesterday. Don't want him to grow up too soon.
With red hair, blue eyes that glitter with mischief, and a grin that makes you forget your words, Brandon is a nephew any Aunt would wish for and love dearly.
This Aunt has loved Brandon since the moment my sister told me she was pregnant with him. I remember sitting around with my sister and brother-in-law and other friends and family tossing out baby names. When we hit on Brandon it was as if he reached out from his mother's tummy and snapped up the name because we all knew that he was Brandon.
Isn't Brandon a great name for an Irish bartender who I cast him as in my fourth novel? :-) Wait until you meet him in print!
Brandon loves to read a good book, but can't sit still for very long either. Hmm...that must be a family trait. He's an active guy who right now is into baseball.
Brandon is the next writer in the family. How cool is that?!
I am so proud that he wants to draw pictures with words and put them on paper for others to read and enjoy.
Please give a big birthday shout out to Brandon!
I don't know about you but it's the little things in life that make me smile. You know, the things that you don't think about until it happens and then a grin spreads across your lips and your heart trips a little lighter.
Perhaps you come home from a long day at work and find your trash cans pulled up next to your garage so you don't have to trek back down to get them.
One of my favorites is when my neighbor hollers down the road and yells, "Chocolate pie!" Yes, Donna makes the best sugar free chocolate pie ever. I will literally and did this past Saturday drop everything and jog up the street to get some pie.
It's someone holding a door open even when your hands aren't full. It's a complete stranger offering to share his umbrella so you don't get soaked walking into the office.
Maybe you receive a quick phone call from a friend just to say "Hi."
As a writer, one of the things that makes me smile is when someone I gave a book to tells me her mother stole my book from her and is halfway through it and loving it.
What little things put a smile on your face?
As I pumped gas into my car this morning, I glanced down and noticed a penny lying on the ground. The first thought that ran through my mind was a childhood adage.
Do you remember "Find a penny, pick it up, all day long you'll have good luck"? Do you pick it up?
Do you ever take an evening stroll and find yourself avoiding cracks in the sidewalk? Is it because of the phrase "Step on a crack, break your mother's back"?
What other childhood sayings do you remember? Which ones do you swear are true?
All of those M's describe the wine mystery event that took place at Zorvino Vineyards last Friday, August 13th.
Thanks to authors CJ West (wrote the mystery for the evening), Vincent O'Neil, Stephen Rogers, the staff at Zorvino Vineyards, and Sandown Chief of Police Joe Gordon, the 200 plus people who attended Mayhem Over Merlot Mystery event had a blast! 
The event consisted of great food, a terrific wine tasting, a mystery or thriller book, and a fun-filled, interactive mystery where the patrons had the opportunity to play sleuth for an evening. 
Check out some of our wannabe detectives in action!
Yes, that is a real police officer interrogating the suspects. Check out that guilty look on Ken's face as Chief Joe puts the screws to him.
Do you see the way Chief Joe is turning up the heat when he interrogates me? I tell you I was feeling the pressure.
Our murder victim - CJ West in his ghostly look.
Do you see the guilty looks on the faces of our murdering criminals? Yup, they are wearing real handcuffs.
If you missed this event, don't worry. There will be another!
I have recently fallen in love with walking the Windham Rail Trail. This morning I decided to walk it from Salem to Windham then have breakfast at Windham Junction.
At about 2 miles into my walk I had to slow my pace because I ran into a few friends.
Can you think of a better way to start your Sunday than to walk on a path through nature enjoying the sights and sounds and encountering a few geese?
On my return walk I didn't run into new friends, but I did see the geese left their calling cards all over the trail. Wasn't that nice of them?
I didn't run into any more feathery friends. I did, however, listen to a couple of ground squirrels AKA chipmunks having a rather heated argument. Of course, they stopped chattering when I chuckled.
Then I heard this strange noise in the pond/swamp that was a tad eery. It sounded as if the Loch Ness Monster or a Slestak was rumbling beneath the lillie pads, moss, and brown water.
I kept looking for the creature that made the fire-breathing dragon noise and made the tiny hairs on my arms stand at attention, but alas, I did not find the culprit. Maybe next time.
I've recently been doing some research into family genealogy and as part of that my parents have pulled out a few newspaper clippings, letters, etc. to help me find more information. Yesterday, as my father rummaged through papers, he found a poem he had written when I was 2 years old.
I hope it touches you as it touched me. I'm glad to know writing runs in the family.
D is for all the Devine joy that she has brought to us
Or the Devil in her eyes.
E is for all the Eternal happiness that we can only hope she can have
Or Every mischievous deed she can do.
N is for how Naïve all children are
Or how Nice her mother wants her to be.
I is for all the Intensity she puts into her playing
Or how Inviting she is to hold.
S is for how Shy we all want our little girls to be
Or how silly they really can be.
E is for Everything that little girls are to their fathers
Or Everything that my little girl, DENISE, is to me.
This is a great topic for a Thursday morning and one I couldn't resist. As I dressed for work (blech!) I riffled through my closet and stared at the garments hanging around like tormenting critters teasing, "Pick me." "No, you don't want to wear that." "Dang! You have no clothes to wear."
Yes, my closet houses talking clothing.
After sifting through the sweaters, shirts, blouses, etc., the prefect top jumped out at me and screamed, "Are you kidding, I am the sexiest thing!"
How could I resist the peachy-colored silk, sleeveless top? I mean seriously, I've got this great tan going (if I do say so myself) and when I slid the silk over the top of my head, saw the color against my bronze skin, I thought, "Wow! I like this."
I finished dressing in a pair of jeans and heeled-sandals then to top off the look, I added a little lip gloss that is the same peachy color as my top. Can I just say, I looked at myself in my mirror and definitely thought, "I look hot!"
Is it because of my clothes?
Let me see if I can show you more. I get in my car to drive to work (way too early), flip in a Keith Urban CD I recently picked up and bopped all the way into the office. Sitting in my car in typical Boston traffic on a hot, hazy morning, I could not help but sing at the top of my lungs, do a couple of shoulder shimmies, and drum the steering wheel. Okay, maybe I even did a little upper body boogie. You could not see my butt shake.
Is it my clothes? If this were winter and I was dressed in a sweater, jeans, and boots, would I still feel sexy?
What do you think?
Is there any outfit that you put on that makes you feel sexy?
Is it because her computer died, her network went haywire, she has nothing to write about, or because she is a magnet for mishap?
My father claims that if I didn’t have bad luck, I would have no luck. I am inclined to agree. About a month ago, disaster struck at about midnight on a Monday night/Tuesday morning.
The smoke detectors woke me up and sent me flying through my house like a mad woman. I ran up and down stairs while the shrill sound of those alarms rang in my ears, telling me there was a fire somewhere. I just didn’t know where.
While the cats bolted for the highlands, I searched every nook and cranny of my home for fire. It wasn’t until I looked in the basement twice that I noticed smoke coming in from between the garage door and the door frame. When I finally managed to get the door unlocked, I swung it open and was greeted by a wall of black smoke.
Yeah, yeah, I know. I was not supposed to open the door. But when you are in a panic you kinda don’t think like a sane, rational person, you kinda go with whatever will prevent you from losing your home. You see, the garage is directly under the main part of the house.
My first response was to gasp and suck in the toxic dust…which would later prove not a good thing. I tried the light switch and nothing happened. I thought the power had gone out. Nope, that’s how thick the smoke was. I reached around and hit the garage door buttons. One of the doors went up and that’s when I heard but still could not see the fire.
I turned and ran back upstairs to the third floor for my cell phone and on the way back down dialed. As my bare feet hit my back deck, I was screaming into the phone, “Fire! House is on fire!”
“What?” the groggy voice asked on the other end of the line.
“Fire! My house is on fire!”
Then I heard CLICK and the line was dead.
No, I did not dial 911. I called my neighbors, my heroes. AGAIN. They called 911.
It wasn’t until I rounded the corner of my yard that I saw the 8-foot flames then heard my neighbor Kenny hollering for me as I ran into the garage, opened the other door and tried to pull out anything flammable and explosive. Gasoline cans, push mower that was already burning, riding lawnmower, snow blower, etc.
Kenny was helping me pull stuff when I looked up and said, “Hose!”
I ran and got the hose, which of course, was attached to a plant chemical. Sheesh! I managed to get that off and handed Kenny the hose.
I won’t give you all the details, but suffice it to say in spite of 8 foot flames and smoke as dark and thick as mud, Kenny, Donna, and I got the fire put out before the fire trucks, EMT vehicle, fire chief, and police cars arrived with sirens blaring and lights flashing.
My lecture for the evening came from a firefighter who asked, “Who called 911?”
I pointed a finger at Donna. “She did.”
“Who did you call?”
“Her.”
“Next time, little lady, you dial 911 first.”
“Um, she is on speed-dial and you never even crossed my mind.”
The firefighter gave a little chuckle then sobered and narrowed his gaze on me. “Next time dial 911 first.”
“Yes, sir.” I wanted to salute him, but I held back.
Physically I am fine. My neighbors and I all burned our hands, but those healed quickly. Ice is an amazing medicinal treatment. That and a cold beer bottle. The smoke inhalation affected my lungs for a period and made my voice sound a little like Kathleen Turner, but alas, that sexy, raspy voice has gone away.
For those of you wondering, “Where the heck did Denise go?” Now you know.
Thank you for the phone calls, the emails, and the notes. I appreciate everyone’s caring and concern. Please know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth, that every day I want to write, but this little calamity has kept me busy.
Instead of life imitating art, art will imitate life. Think of the fodder for my fiction.
I am an author and I have to keep reminding myself of that. No, seriously. Yes, I love to write. I'm a writer. It's because of the words and the images you can draw on a page.
Then I receive an email from a reader who expresses her joy in my story and my heart does this little leap, bounce and quick spin before thudding back into place. Yippee! This is when I know I am an author.
Earlier in the week, I received a message about a great book review from Intense Whisper (Robin K) on my first novel, IT HAPPENS IN THREES, which I shared in a previous blog post.
On Saturday, I not only received an email from a reader, but a reader who is also an author. Joyce Sterling Scarbrough, sent out an amazing review of the very same novel that Robin just reviewed.
I just have to say I was floored to read her review and honored she took the time to share her words, not just with me but with my publisher's loop and on Amazon. It's an amazing, squishy feeling that makes your tummy quiver inside like a bowl of jelly when another author heartily endorses not only your story, but you as a writer.
I emailed Joyce Saturday morning and asked her if she would mind if I shared her review and posted about it on the blog and here is her response. "Post it anywhere you want to, Denise. I will be proud to have my name associated with such a great book and great writer!"
So, without further lip-smacking by me, take a look and see what Joyce had to say about IT HAPPENS IN THREES. Tell me if this wouldn't make you feel like there was more than one Santa Claus.
"This book is like an action flick, erotic love story, romantic comedy and crime drama all rolled into one! I love it when it's obvious that the author knows what she's talking about, and that's definitely true in this case. The technical and procedural details are spot-on and startlingly realistic, and the sex scenes are white hot! Throw in vivid descriptions of to-die-for locations and some of the snappiest dialogue around, and it makes for one enjoyable read. Looking forward to more!"
Can you believe all that?! Joyce must be a writer.
Wait! I'm not done yet. Add to that Gina Leuci's (author of A Lesson in Love) comment to Joyce's review.
"Joyce
Your review of Denise's book is spot on. Eloquently said."
Here is the thing you need to know about Gina. She is one of the few people who read and critiqued pieces of the manuscript before it was published.
Check out Joyce and Gina's books and tell them I sent you and while you visit their blogs, tell them I said, "Thanks."
Picture me, yes me, the funny redheaded blonde who loves to write and can barely squeeze it in unless. . .wait for it. . .she goes to her local watering hole, Margaritas, with her laptop and no WIFI, has a couple of "girlie" beers as a friend refers to them, and writes her fanny off. Okay, I wish it was that easy to make a fanny disappear.
Wait! That's not it. I get home, decide to log onto the computer and the first thing I see is a Facebook posting of a review by Robin K of my first novel, It Happens in Threes. And WOW! Now picture said redheaded blonde doing a dance around her house with every dang window open for the world to see.
Yes, all my neighbors, that's a dancing girl in that fishbowl of a house.
The truly funny part is that I had literally just hung up the phone with my longtime friend who has been the inspiration behind my stories and the person who Connect the Dots is dedicated to. Talk about timing!
Could there be a better compliment than this? "I do not know if a book could be written more perfectly for an easy escape of reality. Denise writes so eloquently. Her characters flow across the pages, enriched by well written landscapes and interplay. I loved being able to experience the paradise of Florida and Hawaii through the heroines eyes. The setting so entrancing I could taste the salt of the ocean and feel the warmth of the sun. I actually approached my husband about vacationing where we could scuba dive."
Robin ends the review with this. "This book is vacation anyone can afford!"
Okay, yes, I love knowing someone has enjoyed my stories. What can I say? I'm an author. OH! I can say that.
Thank you Robin for the wonderful review and I hope the winner of the bookgiveaway loves it just as much.
See Robin's full review and enter to win a copy of IT HAPPENS IN THREES at http://intensewhisper.blogspot.com/
Please drop by Robin's blog and leave her a comment.
Prompt: The bigger man. . .
This is an interesting prompt because you know right away that there is more than one man in the character's line of site. Will you mention the other guy or will you just show us the big man? I look forward to seeing what you come up with.
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