Cover Reveal: Spark of a Feudling, Part Three

          Wendy Knight, the prolific YA author of the Warrior and Feudlings series at Astraea Press, is doing an unusual cover reveal for her newest release. The cover has been split into puzzle pieces, and in order to see all the pieces, we, the readers must complete several tasks. The first three tasks have been completed, so we now have three pieces to the puzzle! Here they are:

Piece 1:

Piece 2:

And Piece 3:

Here are the remaining tasks that need to be done before we can see the entire book cover:

Task 4 - Get 50 shares on FB - again use hashtag #SparkofaFeudling 

Task 5 - 50 adds to Goodreads To Be Read list -https://www.goodreads.com/.../19076583-the-spark-of-a...

Task 6 - Get Wendy's Amazon author page to 100 likes (currently 87) -http://www.amazon.com/Wendy.../e/B00BWU9NBE/ref=sr_tc_2_0...

Task 7 - Join in on the Feudlings Discussion event on Facebook - We would like to get to 75 attendees. https://www.facebook.com/events/1385792431665296

Task 8 - Get 2000 likes for Wendy's FB page -https://www.facebook.com/AuthorWendyKnight

Task 9 - Get Wendy followers on Twitter - She has 847, but we want 900. https://twitter.com/wjk8099

In addition to seeing the new cover, you can win a free digital copy of the book! Simply complete one of the tasks described above and then leave a comment below telling me which task you did, and your email. One commenter will be chosen through random.org on release day, March 18!

Go forth and share, tweet, add, and follow!

Worry? Who, Me?

          What a week! More snow, and more hazardous driving. Thank goodness my mom is with my brother down south, so I don’t have to worry about her being out in this stuff! That leaves me more time to worry about my kids and grandkids. It just never ends, does it? I guess I’m a worrier by nurture. Definitely not by nature. You see, my mom is the Queen of Worriers, so growing up I took the stance that if she was going to worry about it, I didn’t have to. 

          That worked up to a point. Once I became a mom, the worrying gene kicked in. I still think my mom worries a lot more than I do, but I seem to have a much more difficult time falling asleep than I used to. During the day I don't worry much, but at night my mind doesn’t want to wind down because there’s always one more thing that I need to remember for the next day. Now that I’m writing a lot more and have several projects in various stages of publishing, I have more and more details to remember - more things to look up, more people to contact, more promo to work on. And then there’s my teaching, and my music, and my crafts and sewing…

          So I started writing lists. I’ve always had to-do lists, but now they’re more detailed. I write EVERYTHING down that I need to do, because it seems like I get so easily distracted that I forget lots of details. It seems like I’m always writing things down. As I write this I have two lists next to the laptop: one is my list of things I need to finish yet tonight (there are still five items left), and the other one is for tomorrow (three there so far).

          I’m not sure if I’m more productive or not, but it seems I sleep better when I write detailed lists. It might be because things are actually done - or it might be that crossing things off makes me feel like I can sleep without wondering what I forgot to do. And sleep is a wonderful thing.

Sewing/crafting: I seem to have an awful lot of panels around here! I made more napkins - I’d originally planned to keep these for future giveaways, but decided to send them to a fellow author Calico Daniels, who writes the Redneck Fabulous series for Astraea Press. I sent her this picture and she liked them, so I’ll pack them up for her to use as promo. I also managed to get a few more tote bags put together for her to send out with Astraea Press promotional items. So now, according to my list, I have to pack all this up and get it ready to take to the post office tomorrow!

Reading: I finished reading Zach’s Rebound Girl by Monique DeVere and wrote a review. Now I’m reading Savage Deception by R. T. Wolfe. Definitely a change of pace, going from contemporary light romance to hard core suspense. I’m hosting R. T. in April and need to have a review ready by then. 

Snippet Sunday, February 23, 2014

          Welcome back! I have one more snippet from Operation Rhombus, my short story contribution to the Valentine anthology from Astraea Press called Love and Diamonds. Absent-minded math teacher Paul Cramer picks up English teacher Ellie Hartwell for a special Valentine’s Day dinner:

          She grimaced when she stepped down from the car into a snowbank. Hopefully her dress shoes would survive. Too bad she hadn't worn her boots, but she hadn't wanted to carry them around.

          "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I should have dropped you off at the front door before I parked the car. Here, I'll make sure you don’t step into any more snow." Before she knew it he'd picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder, fireman style. Her head hung down and her hair flopped forward. What a perfect way to enter a fancy restaurant.

Here’s the blurb for Operation Rhombus:

          Valentine's Day is coming up and all Ellie Hartwell wants is to spend time with fellow teacher Paul Cramer, but he's too busy with his new project. It seems like everyone at Willow Run High School knows about Operation Rhombus and is rooting for his success. Ellie would be happy to offer her support, too—if she only knew what it was.

Operation Rhombus and fourteen other short romances are included in one volume called Love and Diamonds, available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other ebook outlets. 

Winter in Michigan

          What a week! We’ve had extreme weather conditions, going from six inches of snow on Monday to 40 degree temps and sunshine on Wednesday, and blustering 40 mile-an-hour winds on Friday. We’ve been fortunate in that all our loved ones made it safely to where they needed to be. 

          I’ve had some wonderful writing news: I FINALLY finished a historical novella I’ve been working on since the beginning of the year, and submitted it late Tuesday night. On Friday I received a contract for it! Searching for Lady Luck will be part of anthology of stories from EsKape Press authors. I’m so honored, and I promise to keep you all updated. 

          As far as my other goals, they’re a bit behind. 

          Sewing/crafting: I received my first card making kit in the mail and made those up (I love these all-inclusive kits - and I get to keep the stamps and ink pads to use later, if I so choose) and I finished some more Christmas napkins to use in December as gifts or prizes. 

          Reading: I finally finished The Smuggler Wore Silk by Alyssa Alexander. Wonderful, wonderful regency suspense. And there’s a sequel coming soon! Can’t wait. I started reading Zach’s Rebound Girl by Monique deVere. This is a bit different than my usual read, but I’m enjoying it. I promised to write a review so I’ll have it finished by tonight, if not tomorrow.

          Hope you’re all having a wonderful weekend!

Nook Giveaway for Samantha Combs' Wingspan

         

One of the advantages of working with a publisher is that there is a built-in connection between the authors. And when the publisher is also an author who understands that connection, the benefits are even greater! To promote the release of Samantha Combs’ new book Wingspan, EsKape Press is offering a Nook as an incentive for our readers to help promote her book by reading and reviewing it. You can also enter by sharing and/or tweeting about the giveaway. So easy! EsKape is also adding a $20 Amazon gift card to the already great prize.

If you want to know more about the book before reading, here’s the cover and blurb:

Chessa Dawning never thought she’d be the kind of girl who’d be on the run.  Yet, here she was, having left the only home she’s ever known, staying two steps ahead of the men chasing her and falling for a resourceful ex-criminal with colorful friends. And that was just this week.

Most of the time, Charlotte Lake can’t believe her life.  The reluctant leader of a rebel faction called the Ginger Nation, Charlie’s days are filled with planning surveillance, rescuing detainees, and exposing government conspiracy.  Surrounded by loyal friends and soldiers, she knows she can never reveal the true nature of her quest: finding her real father.

When a sudden twist in both their lives brings these two girls together, revelations about their past will make them rethink where they came from, and define their future in ways they never could have imagined.  

Not every scientific breakthrough is a gift.

Read Wingspan and enter! Even if you don’t win the Nook, you’ll have a fabulous book. You can get it on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or most ebook outlets.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Please Welcome Ginger Solomon

 I am so pleased to welcome Ginger Solomon here today. Ginger describes herself as a Christian, a wife, a mother to seven, and a writer—in that order (mostly). When not homeschooling her youngest five, doing laundry or fixing dinner, she writes or reads romance of any genre. She’s a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, president of her local writing group, and writes regularly for three blogs.

Ginger brought Cahri and Prince Josiah, the main characters from her new novel Once Choice, to  tell us about their book.

PK: Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?

Cahri: Never. I’m a boring missionary kid who decided to stay in the country where my parents served and died. I went to work, and came home to Stormy, my cat. Nothing in my life was book worthy. Even when the Bridal March began, I stayed well away from the limelight. I’d rather watch than be watched; consequently I’d rather read, than be read about. 

PK: What are your favorite scenes in your book: the action, the dialog or the romance?

Cahri (blushing): The romance. I want to forget some of the action, but I don’t think I will, ever. (she sobers then brightens) The romance, on the other hand, keeps me going. I’m a practical woman, but I enjoy a dance in the moonlight, or flowers for no reason at all. A few kisses from my love makes me forget all the bad things in the world.

PK: Did you have a hard time convincing your author to write any particular scenes for you?

Prince Josiah: Actually, there is at least one scene I wish she hadn’t written. I acted like a fool, and she had to go and put it out there for everyone to see. Maybe someone out there reading our story will learn from my mistakes. Maybe someone will learn not to jump to conclusions or assume that what seems to be happening is the truth. There’s this new show on TV in the US that talks about how easily our brains can be fooled by focusing on one thing and not seeing the whole picture. Since Ginger so brazenly put my foolishness before the world, I at least want God to use it to help someone else.

PK: What do you like to do when you are not being actively read somewhere?

Cahri: The same things I did when Ginger was stalking us as she wrote our story. I spend a great deal of time in the garden. I just love the garden. Sometimes Prince Josiah and I will go for a ride. Now that I have more responsibilities in the palace, I spend a lot of time in the office that Josiah and I share. Cook has even allowed me to invade her domain once in a while, as long as I don’t try to clean up after myself — which drives me crazy. I made the mess, why shouldn’t I clean it up? Oh, sorry, went a little off the question there. When it’s nice out, I’ll go swimming with Stormy. I’ll splash him, then he’ll climb out of the pool, acting all indignant like any cat. Next thing I know he’s jumping in right next to me, splashing me. He meows. I think it’s his kitty laugh. Sometimes Prince Josiah will join us, but Stormy doesn’t like him to come much, I don’t think. I get a bit distracted (she blushes, again), and don’t focus on him as much. He’s a very jealous pet.

PK: Do you like the way the book ended?

Prince Josiah: Well, one of Ginger’s friends commented that the romance at the end should have been drawn out a bit more, but I appreciated the privacy. After all, it was our wedding night and I really didn’t want any more interruptions. 

PK: Would you be interested in a sequel, if your writer was so inclined?

Cahri and Prince Josiah: Not for us. We think Anaya deserves her own book. Matthias too. But they’ve refused to share their stories with Ginger for the moment. We’ll keep working on them, though. Maybe one day.

PK: Thanks, Cahri and Prince Josiah! Here’s more about their story.

One Choice blurb:

Cahri Michaels is American by birth, but Belikarian by choice. Being selected to participate in the Bridal March forces her to give up the independent life she’s created for herself. She’s not ready to be anyone’s wife, much less to a man she doesn’t know.

Prince Josiah Vallis despises the centuries old tradition—the Bridal March—that is forcing him to choose a wife from fifty women. Why does it matter that he’s twenty-five and still single?

When Cahri and Josiah meet, sparks fly. Will it ignite a godly love that can see them through or will they be burned, never to be the same?

One Choice can be purchased at:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Astraea Press, and Smashwords

Ginger Solomon can be found at these links:

A Bed of Roses…Thorns Included

Writing Prompts & Thoughts & Ideas…Oh My!

Inspy Romance Blog

Facebook Author Page

Twitter @GingerS219

Pinterest

Snippet Sunday

          Here’s another snippet from my Valentine short story, “Operation Rhombus,” which is included in Love and Diamonds, an Astraea Press Anthology just out last week.

          Selecting her items took only a few minutes, and she turned toward the check out lane when her cart nearly collided with that of Lilah Bedford, the Home Ec teacher. 

          "Hello there, Ellie. Where's Paul?" 

          "He's out of town, picking up supplies for something called Operation Rhombus." 

          "Operation — oh yes, I heard about that. Great idea. I hope he's successful with it. Well, I've got to go. See you on Monday!" 

          Why has everyone else heard about Operation Rhombus except me? she wondered. 

Thanks for visiting! Love and Diamonds is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and most ebook outlets. 

Happy Day After Valentine's Day!

This has been a busy week for me! I hope you were able to to visit during the last three days while this blog was part of the Astraea Press Valentine scavenger hunt. It was so much fun working on this unusual blog hop with fourteen other authors. It seemed that no matter what was needed, someone was able to get it done and everything came together so well.

On Thursday night I joined other EsKape Press authors for a Valentine facebook party. We had over 100 people joining us for an evening of chatting, and getting to know our readers. All the authors had special things to give away, and there were lots of happy winners.

So now, it's time for me to get back into my routine - school work, studying my Japanese, and writing. I am ALMOST done with my historical novella. I'm really really hoping to finish it this weekend so that someone can read it. And then I'll submit that, and work on something else. The edits have come back to Stephanie Michels and me for our second Stitching Post novel, The Friendship Star Quilt.

As for my other goals:

Sewing/crafting - I went to another card making class at Christie Waite's home and made eight more beautiful cards for birthdays, new babies, sympathy, and just because. And I finished a few sachets just in time to give them away at the facebook party.
Reading - still plugging away at The Smuggler Wore Silk by Alyssa Alexander. Alyssa, if you're reading this, I'm not stalling off because I'm bored - really! I just am not getting things done quickly enough to sit down and enjoy it the way this book deserves to be enjoyed. But I WILL have it done by next week - or else I'll be way behind on my goal of 40 books for the year!

Searching for Diamonds, Finding Love

I suppose the word diamond has always evoked the memory of Marilyn Monroe's famous song from her movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. I've also had the privilege of viewing the Crown Jewels in London a few times, as well as some stunning pieces in Paris museums. So generally, my personal connection with diamonds has been as an outsider. Diamonds, in my world, are for the extremely wealthy and privileged.

Therein lies the glamour of diamonds. Other than my engagement ring and another beautiful ring my husband gave me for our fifteenth anniversary, I don't wear diamonds. Frankly, I don't wear a lot of jewelry. But diamonds are the traditional symbol of love. And this is the symbol of love that ties all all of the fifteen stories together in Love and Diamonds, the Valentine Anthology published by Astraea Press.

Each of us was challenged to write a short story for Valentine's Day. The only requirements: it had to be a romance, and it had to include diamonds. We could interpret that any way we wished. Of course, I wanted my story to stand out, so that it would be included. I didn't want the typical wealthy gentleman showering a woman with bling. So I started thinking about other types of diamonds. Like baseball diamonds. I love to watch baseball, but there are authors who are more into sports than me. And then there's the phrase "diamond in the rough." I could write a story about a tough character who suddenly transforms himself into a polished gentleman!

But time was short, and when that happens, you write what you know. I taught elementary school for many years, and in that setting, the word diamond is simply a shape. Could I write a story set in a school setting, using the diamond shape as a vehicle for my two characters to get together? Suddenly, my high school geometry kicked in, and I remembered that a rhombus can also be described as a diamond shape. And so my imagination conjured up Paul Cramer, a high school math teacher, who needs help to ask his girlfriend to marry him. His plan for executing this momentous endeavor is called Operation Rhombus. Here's what it's about:

Valentine's Day is coming up and all Ellie Hartwell wants is to spend time with fellow teacher Paul Cramer, but he's too busy with his new project. It seems like everyone at Willow Run High School knows about Operation Rhombus and is rooting for his success. Ellie would be happy to offer her support, too—if she only knew what it was.

Operation Rhombus and fourteen other Valentine stories are available now from Astraea Press! You can get it from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords and other ebook outlets!

Now it's prize time.

Six book bundles (each contains five ebooks from various AP authors) are offered. To get a chance at one of them, look back through this post for a certain word that might pop out at you (hint: it's on the roses and diamonds banner at the top of the page). When you know what my keyword is, click HERE to enter it in the secure form. Fourteen more keywords (and fourteen more chances to win) can be found by visiting the blogs of the rest of the authors below. Click on the picture below to find the links of the other participating authors.

The Valentine keyword scavenger hunt ends on Friday night, February 14, at midnight. Winners will be posted on the Astraea Press Facebook page on February 15.

Good luck!

Please Welcome Zanna Mackenzie

I'm so pleased to have Zanna Mackenzie here today. Zanna is a fellow Astraea Press author, and she is one of the fifteen authors whose stories are included in the Valentine Anthology Love and Diamonds which released last week. We'll celebrate that project in a blog hop beginning tomorrow. But today, she's brought two of her characters from her new release If You Only Knew. Let's see what they have to say about their story. First up is Zane, one of the new owners of the Carrdale Adventure Sports Centre.

Zane, If you could rewrite anything in your book, what would it be?

That’s an easy one. First, I’d make it so that I owned the Carrdale Adventure Sports Centre on my own instead of jointly with my business partner Matt. Second, I’d make sure Matt stayed out in Austria where he couldn’t cause trouble, instead of him coming back to Derbyshire to run Carrdale with me. If he’d stayed in Austria he’d never have met Faith again and wouldn’t have started making problems for Faith and I and our relationship.

Hmm. Yes, I suppose getting rid of Matt would have made things much easier for you. What is your least favorite characteristic your writer has attributed to you?

I’m an extreme sports instructor. I think nothing of hanging off a piece of rope half way up a cliff face; it holds no fear for me at all. What does hold fear for me though is getting involved in a relationship with a woman who makes me laugh, makes me want to kiss her, makes me want to fall in love her. Relationships terrify me and soon after meeting Faith I knew I was in way out of my depth, in terms of emotions. So, if I could change something about myself it would be that I had found a way to cope with all the stuff that’s happened in my past and move on from it, meaning being involved with Faith wouldn’t hold quite so many fears for me anymore.

That's quite introspective. What do you think your greatest weakness is?

I would say my greatest weakness is Faith. She brings me out of myself, makes me feel emotions I vowed I’d never let myself experience again. For Faith, I’m contemplating getting my head around things I never thought I would do or say again - and the whole thing has taken me far outside my comfort zone!

Let's give Faith Sutton a turn. Faith, Who was your first boyfriend and what do you like most about him?

My first real boyfriend was called Aaron. We were just kids, teenagers, we knew each other at school. I couldn’t believe Aaron was actually interested in me. He was one of the most popular boys in school, all the girls fancied him and all the guys wanted to be like him. One day the strap on my school bag broke and books and pens went everywhere. Aaron was walking past and he stopped to help me pick everything up. We got talking. After that, over the next couple of days, he came to sit with me in the cafeteria at lunch and he sat next to me on the bus home. We started dating. We were together for quite a while. We even chose to go to the same university, though on different courses. I did business studies and he did recreation management. Aaron was something of a daredevil; I loved that about him, though it also worried me. He was into extreme sports – climbing cliffs, abseiling, stuff like that. He always knew exactly what he wanted; he was going to run his own extreme sports centre one day. You could say that most of the momentous moments in my life relationship-wise happened with Aaron.

Interesting. What do you think is your strongest attribute?

I would probably say it’s my determination. I know my own mind. I know what I want. I know what I don’t want. At least, I thought I did. Until I met Zane. After what had happened with Aaron I swore I wasn’t going to get involved with another guy who was an extreme sports aficionado – it’s too dangerous. Though within days of Zane arriving in town he’d somehow managed to persuade me to change my mind on that front. I can’t help thinking there’s something going on with Zane though; something in his past he’s not sharing with me. I’m determined to find out what it is.

What’s your favorite thing to do on a rainy Sunday?

I don’t get much time off on the weekends as it’s the busiest time at the coffee shop I run; we’re usually swamped with hikers, climbers and mountain bikers wanting cakes and coffee on a Saturday and Sunday. When I do get some time off I love to pack a rucksack and head for the hills for a few hours of walking and escapism.

If You Only Knew is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and other ebook outlets.

Zanna Mackenzie can be found at her website, on Facebook, and on Twitter.  

Iris Blobel: the Beginnings Series

I'm delighted to have Iris Blobel back at Creative Hodgepodge! Iris was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland, London as well as Canada where she actually had met her future husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper has only recently emerged, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as their dog. Next to her job at a private school she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio

Iris has been busy, as the second of her "Beginnings" series was just released from Astraea Press. She's agreed to share a little bit about the book and what inspired her to write it.

When you cannot let go of a character

When I received feedback for my first book “Sweet Dreams, Miss England”, everyone was asking for a sequel. I kind of understood, because there are book series I really enjoyed and I liked that the author wrote more than just the one story. But when I was asked to do the same, I was at an utter loss.

Then I “met” Sophie and Mia Levesque, the two sisters from “New Beginnings” who’ve become almost family members in this household. After “New Beginnings” had been written I felt there was more I could write about the younger sister, Mia, and so I started “More Beginnings”. But Mia was still talking in my head, begging me for more, and I agreed to expand on her new friendship with Josh. “Fresh Beginnings” is nearly finished. It’s a hard story to write as the story is following our family trip through the USA we did last year. Once the photos are out for “research”, we have a little family gathering… reminiscing! J

But I’m way ahead of myself – sorry!

I’m supposed to tell you a bit about “More Beginnings”. Probably a mix of YA meets Contemporary Romance, it’s set six years after Sophie and Mia inherited a house in Hobart, and the now teenaged Mia is dealing with new emotions – her feelings for classmate Josh, her friendship with “babysitter” Zach and the new arrival of a baby in the family.

I loved putting her story on paper and I hope you’ll enjoy reading it.

More Beginnings:

It’s been six years since Sophie and Mia inherited a house from Clara Bellinger.

Life is good for the now teenaged Mia, even if she does have to deal with a dragon lady for a teacher. But then a man named Darren Schuster shows up in Hobart. Mia knows something is up when Sophie and Mark cut their weekend away short and rush home in the middle of the night. When Sophie won’t answer Mia’s questions, emotions run high, and Zach, the neighbour from across the road, confirms Darren’s identity to Mia. Disappointed, angry and feeling alone, Mia runs away.

Zach had been watching Mia for his friends while they took a much needed weekend away. When the late Clara Bellinger’s ex-husband, Darren, showed up, bringing Sophie and Mark home from their trip, Mia is filled with questions. But it’s Zach who gives Mia the answers she’s seeking. When she runs off, he must find her. He enlists the help of her teacher, Miss Peterson, and finds out that the ‘dragon’, is really more of a kitten.

~♣~ You can purchase More Beginnings at Amazon.com, Amazon.com.au, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and other ebook outlets.

~♣~ Iris Blobel can be found at her blog, on Goodreads, and on Twitter.

Snippet Sunday - February 9

I've just joined a group called Snippet Sunday. Members of this group post six sentences from something we've written. So here are six-ish sentences (one is really short, so I think the rules allow me to add another) from my latest release, "Operation Rhombus". It's a short story included in Love and Diamonds, available this week from Astraea Press:

"Yeah, where is Mr. Cramer, anyway?"

"He said he had to get some supplies for some school project," she told them.

"School project?" I wonder what project that would be," a girl to her right wondered.

The boy next to her nudged her. "Don't you remember? He was talking about it yesterday in trig class. Operation Rhombus."

"Operation Rhom— Oh yeah! I remember now."

Love and Diamonds is available at Astraea Press, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other ebook outlets.

Please come back on Wednesday for our Valentine Scavenger Hunt! All fifteen authors represented in the anthology are participating.

Baby Steps

This has been an extremely busy week for me. I really don’t mind—I’m happier when I’m busy. I love having something to look forward to in my day. BUT, I hate to drive on bad roads, and this has been an exceptionally bad winter for driving, especially last month. Last Saturday was my youngest granddaughter’s birthday party, and what should have been a twenty-five minute drive to her house took almost an hour. But once that was done, things improved tremendously and I was able to come and go with no problem.

Being busy has another drawback. When I’m gone, I can’t get a lot of my projects done. I’ve got a story that should have been completed and submitted long ago, but it’s still in the “tying it all together” stage. And my sewing output has really slowed, in part because I had to take my serger in to the shop. It’s skipping stitches, and I’d prefer that my projects stay in one piece!

Still, I’m plugging along. I’m making progress, although it seems like it’s baby steps all the time. I at least look at my writing project every day and try to edit at least a paragraph or two, or figure out what the scene needs to be more complete, or flow better from the previous one. I have my next sewing project planned and the fabric is all cut and laid out, ready to put together as soon as I get my machine back. And the book I’m trying to finish reading is patiently waiting on my devices (thank goodness the kindle app on my phone knows where I left off on my ipad!). I try to read at least a chapter a night, although there have been a few days when I got through only a paragraph or two. But it’s farther than I was when I started!

So like last week, I’m not going to dwell on what didn’t get done. Instead, I’ll rejoice that I got SOME things done. And I’ll plan on making more progress next week, and the week after, and the week after that.

And eventually, some of these projects will be finished.

This week's goals:

            Sewing: My serger is still in the shop. I did get one quilt top made during our Tuesday morning Quilt Guild workshop at church. BUT I'm happy to announce the release of Love and Diamonds, an anthology of love stories by fifteen Astraea Press authors – including me! Operation Rhombus was a fun story to write. And if

 you come back next week you'll have a chance to win a bunch of free books and other stuff because I'm participating in a special Scavenger Hunt. Watch for more details! In the meantime, you can purchase the anthology HERE.

            Reading: Still working on The Smuggler Wore Silk.  This is way too good a story to read in tiny increments. I'm going to have to finish writing my Jersey Shore book and get into reading Alyssa Marble's regency, because it's wonderful – according to my Kindle app I'm about 33 percent finished.