Yesterday I shared a video of my pup Chloe playing in the front yard with her birth mother. Very cute.
Here is what the backyard looked like for most of the day. Eight dogs and a bunch of kids. I’m sure all of them fell asleep the moment they got into the car to drive home. Ah, family get-togethers. There’s nothing like it. 🙂
Those two smaller dogs are three-month-old puppies. They certainly hold their own, don’t they?
Posted in Senseless Ranting
You might think I’m nuts, but when I invited my family to my house for Christmas dinner, I had them bring Everyone in the family. That included everyone’s four-footed children.
Twenty-six people and seven dogs over 50 pounds each (except for the puppies) Yes, chaos ensued for a bit. But those pups sure did appreciate it. they had a great time, and my Chloe was sad to see them all go.
The nice thing was that no one had to rush home to feed their dogs or let them out. My yard may never be the same, but who cares?
Here is a precious moment that came out of the event. This is my Chloe taking some time out away from the other dogs to play with her mother, Mitsy.
Chloe is the silver with the pink bows. And Yes, dogs do remember their birth mothers.
Posted in Senseless Ranting
Tagged bitch, blue, Christmas, Christmas dinner, daughter, Dog, Family, Holiday, Mother, Recreation, Santa Claus, silver, standard poodle
In the USA, we don’t really call it boxing day, but it is the day you take back all those boxes to the store… the day you get rid of the presents you didn’t want (Yes, I am looking at YOU Mr. Scrooge!)
Ha! The day after Christmas was the most fun for me when I worked in retail. I loved working the return tables. The lines were always out the door, and the day just flew by (yeah, I’m weird that way)
I’ve heard that in Europe, Boxing Day is the day that servants get to celebrate Christmas with their families. It is an old tradition handed down from long ago. Since servants had to serve their families on Christmas Day, they took the day after off to have their own Christmas. They called it “Boxing Day” because they frequently took home a box from their employer that either contained a present, or leftovers or other goodies from Christmas for their own Christmas take-two on December 26th. Sounds like fun to me!
Posted in Senseless Ranting
Tagged Boxing, Boxing Day, Christmas, Christmas day, Holidays, Scrooge, Shopping
It’s a given, right? We put up a Christmas tree hoping the Big Guy will visit. We put out cookies and milk, and carrots for the reindeer. Oh, yes, we like to bribe the big guy with chocolate chips, don’t we?
But there’s a little more to it than that. The Christmas tree is an extension of an advent wreath. The evergreen branches are a symbol of everlasting life. The lights we place on the tree symbolize Jesus, the light of the world. So what is a Christmas tree, then but a big old birthday candle!?
In some cultures, the tree symbolizes life itself. It is the light of faith, hope and love.
So remember on this, one of the most holy days of the year, to remember what really matters in your life.
It is the season of giving, but there is no better gift in life than family. Call someone you love today, and wish them a Merry Christmas. Give someone the gift of joy.
And for those of you reading this over seas, serving your respective countries to protect the ones you love at home… an extra special hug.
We appreciate you, and you are missed.
Posted in Senseless Ranting
Tagged Chocolate chip, Christmas, Christmas tree, Holiday, Jesus, Tree, United States
Don’t ya just hate it when your kid asks you a question and you think, umm, because we do, that’s why.
I never remember questioning anything when I grew up. We just did certain things at Christmas. I looked forward to it. But I never really asked “why”.
Did you as a lot of questions, or is this just a quirk of the new generation?
Anyway, this is the reason behind hanging a Christmas Wreath on a door, courtesy of our pastor. (I’ll paraphrase)
A Christmas wreath, in essence, is an advent wreath without the candles. it is a circle–without beginning or end, compromised of evergreen branches. It symbolizes God’s everlasting love for us, and our hope in everlasting life with Jesus.
Wow. Pretty cool, huh?
So next time you see a wreath on a door, take a moment to remember the true meaning of the Christmas season.
Posted in Senseless Ranting, Uncategorized
Tagged Christmas, Christmas Wreath, God, Holidays, Jesus, Wreath
Here’s a Christmas story with a twist for you. (Well, there’s a Christmas tree at least) Check out Book Three of the Whispering Woods series by Brinda Berry. Catch it while it’s hot!
Senior year should bring fun, friends and happiness. Not portals, treachery, and murder.
Seventeen-year-old Mia Taylor, gatekeeper to an interdimensional portal, wants nothing more than to heal from her romance gone wrong. Illegally falling for her co-worker Regulus had been a huge mistake. But when Regulus goes rogue to hunt down a murderer, Mia must forget her broken heart and use her unique abilities to save him.
Jingle Bells
I detested planned surprises.
I could read the expectation in the air from the shimmery orange vibe that glowed like a Cheetos binge gone bad.
A few months ago, my friends had discovered my secret. The secret I’d hidden so teachers and doctors wouldn’t treat me like an amped up sensory perception freak. So friends wouldn’t ask.
Synesthesia. The condition sounded like the name of an electronic punk band. I’d made the full round of emotions about my sensory perception and being able to find portals. First, I’d hid it like you hide an ugly rash. Later, I’d learned to trust my friends with my secret. I’d even embraced it.
Now, I was back to wishing for normal.
Working with Regulus and Arizona was like playing Pop Goes the Weasel—a surprise around every corner. And did I mention I hate surprises?
Give me predictable any day. Then I could be ready. It’s why I made sure I knew the contents of every box under the Christmas tree.
Hop on over to Amazon to pick up your copy of Watcher of Worlds
Posted in Marketing Madness
Tagged Christmas, Christmas tree, Holidays, Jingle Bells, Regulus, Synesthesia
Manuscript bloopers. Aren’t they a gas? I sometimes look forward to that first read-through after I’ve finished a novel, just to see the funny things I accidentally typed.
What’s even better is when I completely read over them and send the novel out to beta. Boy do my beta-partners get a blast out of that!
If you write at all, you’ve had your share of manuscript bloopers, whether it’s a novel, term paper, short story or newspaper article. Manuscript bloopers come in the form of misspelled words, incorrect words in wrong places, nouns doing odd things they can’t do, misplacement of words and dangling participles. Here are five examples of manuscript bloopers from my own writings. Go ahead. Laugh. I did. After I bonked myself on the head.
Marci laughed as Jason hip-bumped around the room, signing an old Aerosmith tune.
(Really? He signed a tune? Interesting.)
David shuffled to the bathroom and let out a long yarn.
(The imagery here is too comical for me. Poor David.)
Standing at the window, Eric’s hands rested on the sill.
(Don’t you hate it when hands can’t decide to stand or rest?)
Lily laid back and sighed as her eyes following her father around the room.
(I’d do a bit more than sigh if my eyes were out of their sockets and following someone)
“Where is that blasted hat at?”
(I NEVER place participles at the end of a sentence. Ever. It’s like a huge pet peeve for me, and yet I found one!! Agghhh. To tell you the truth, I think my son snuck in and added it when I wasn’t looking just to make me cringe and turn 10 shades of red. And yes, he would do that.)
Give you E-Reader a Christmas present. J.K. Ford’s One More Day Anthology is now on sale for just $3.99! Click here to BUY IT NOW!
About J.K. Ford:
As a young Army brat, Reader’s Choice award winner J. (Jenny) Keller Ford, traveled the world and wandered the halls of some of Germany’s most extraordinary castles hoping to find the dragons, knights and magic that haunted her imagination. Though she never found them, she continues to keep their legends alive. Her story, The Amulet of Ormisez, is available as part of the MAKE BELIEVE anthology. Dragon Flight, is part of the One More Day anthology. When not at her keyboard breathing new life into fantasy worlds, Jenny spends time collecting seashells, bowling, swimming, riding roller coasters and reading. She works as a paralegal by day and lives on the west coast of Florida with her family, three dogs, and a pretentious orange cat who must have been a dragon in his previous life.
Posted in Author Interview
Tagged Blooper, Christmas, David, Fiction, Florida, Germany, Manuscript, Reading (process)
From the title, you get the gist. Our MC is alone in love, and at the end she gets her man. Romance never has a surprise ending, does it? It’s probably the only genre where this is completely acceptable. It’s the journey to the couple getting together that is the fun.
So, let’s talk about the setting. Rochenski has a way of drawing you into her world in the first few pages, and never letting go. Be it the costumes, technology, language, or just the general feel of a world or time period, Rochenski nails it.
Normally for me, this would be a drag. I hate too much detail, but Rochenski is one of those authors who has figured out how to gently weave in the important parts of the world without slapping you in the face with laundry lists of details. You envision a character walking through a room and noticing things around her, or you travel down a dirt road in a swaying cart. The details are interspersed inside the action. Very well done. I like to read works like this on hopes that some of that setting flair rubs off on me.
If you are looking for a short, quiet historical I would highly recommend this. Adrenaline junkies would find the middle of “Alone No More” a bit long and uneventful, but this does happen in love sometimes… especially in an authentic historical setting. I would recommend this book for the setting in itself.
Pick up a copy of “Alone No More” for some quiet holiday reading (Only $1.49 on sale at the White Rose Web Site.) Everyone loves a sale this time of year!
Posted in Book/Movie Review
Tagged Arts, Fiction, Literature, Online Writing, Romance, Short story, Terri Rochenski
For the past 32 weeks, we’ve been discussing Guthrie’s 32 Rules to Writing A Great Novel. Here is a handy-dandy list of all the articles and links to them, all in one place.
This is a great time to review, especially if you are editing your manuscript.
Please let me know which one you found the most helpful, or if you think this guy is just off his rocker. 🙂
01- Writing is Subjective – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1yw
02- Oblique Dialog – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1An
03- Whatsa Strong Verb? – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1AK
04- Easy on the Adjectives – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1B8
05- Two for One is not always a good thing – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Bc
06- The shorter the better – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Cd
07- Once is enough, Thank you very much. – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Ci
08- Show, Don’t Tell – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Cl
09- Just the facts, Ma’am – The important facts – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Cp
10- Don’t be cute – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Eg
11- Sound like a writer, without SOUNDING like a writer – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1El
12- Who’s talking now? – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1El
13- Yep. Your Write. Ya gotta change it. – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Ff
14- Stop “saying” things – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Fk
15- They’re not psychic – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Fq
16- Come late, leave early – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1H0
17- Don’t dump on me! – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1H2
18- Goals, anyone? – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1HL
19- Don’t sleep with him/her – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1HP
20- Go ahead, torture ’em! – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1HR
21- The stinkier the better – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1HT
22- The long and short of it – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1IP
23- Stop being all proper – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Ke
24- Stop feeling! And no thinking! – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Kp
25- Don’t repeat the tense – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Kt
26- Cut your weakest player – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1Ky
27- Plant Vegetables, not information – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KD
28- Keep it to yourself, Jerk! – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KG
29- No happy shruggers – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KK
30- Pronouns. Tricky little suckers – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KM
31- Shoot him later – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KO
32- Forget about it – http://wp.me/p1HIMV-1KQ
Hello?
Who Are you?
Hi!
I’m Darlene Fredette.
I’m here to cook.
.
Cook? I don’t cook.
I’m an alien. Oh, and I interview people.
Yeah, but interviews are so Fourth of July. Christmas is coming.
Nobody wants to read an interview while you’re rushing about with Christmas shopping, wrapping gifts, and baking those delicious treats.
Instead of boring people with all that, I’m here to share a recipe that my heroine, Candy Cane, makes in my book “One Sweet Christmas”.
.
I’m not sure if I can do that.
I might get in trouble.
You see Jennifer…
Awe, don’t be such a blue Scrooge.
Let’s get cooking.
We’re going to make
Chocolate Mousse
Oh, that sounds yummy.
But last time I cooked I made a bit of a mess.
.
No worries!
It’s easy.
Here’s what we will need:
Ingredients:
4 ounces (120 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter, cut in small pieces
2 tablespoons strong coffee or espresso (optional)
2 large eggs, separated
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
4 tablespoons (60 grams) granulated white sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream (35-40% butterfat content)
.
Got all that?
.
.
.
Umm, I think so.
.
Great! This is all we have to do…
Directions:
In a medium-sized stainless steel bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate, butter, and coffee. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for a few minutes. Then whisk in the two egg yolks. Cover and refrigerate while you whip the egg whites and whipping cream.
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), whip the two egg whites with the cream of tartar until foamy. Gradually add two tablespoons of sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form, yet the whites are still glossy and not dry. Set aside.
In another bowl, whip the heavy cream, remaining two tablespoons sugar and vanilla extract until soft peaks form.
I love this part. It reminds me of the fluffy mountains on Mars.
Hey, do you want to talk about your book while you are here?
What’s is about?
It’s going to take more than a few pieces of chocolate to fill this
Scrooge’s heart with Christmas cheer. Luckily Candice Cane has a whole shop full…
Candice Cane is not proud of the way she acted
after her last encounter with Jackson Frost. Sure revenge was fun, but it’s
left Jackson standing, angry and looking for answers, on the welcome mat in her
chocolate shop. Now he’s after some revenge of his own.
Jackson returned to his small hometown for one
reason and one reason only…so he’s not sure how he’s ended up in a Santa suit in the middle of a chocolate shop, at the behest of its beautiful owner,
instead of high-tailing it back to the city as fast as he can.
Sounds like fun.
So, she’s made this recipe?
She sure has. Hey, can you get that chocolate mixture out of the refrigerator for me? Thanks. Now gently stir a couple of spoonfuls of the beaten egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, and then fold the remaining whites into the chocolate mixture, gently but thoroughly. Fold in the whipped cream.
Spoon the chocolate mousse into six individual serving dishes or glasses. Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours. Serve with additional whipped cream, fresh raspberries and/or shaved chocolate. Makes 6 servings.
Oh!
This is delicious!
.
.
See, I told you.
And very little mess.
It was pretty easy.
But do you think we should be worried about the chocolate that sprayed on the ceiling?
Nah.
She’ll never notice.
Have a blue Christmas!
.
About Darlene Fredette : An avid reader since childhood, Darlene loved to put a pencil to paper and plot out stories of her own. Her writing is a combination of contemporary romance with chick lit flare, and a main focus as a plot-driven page-turner. When Darlene isn’t writing, editing, or reading she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter, and Yellow Lab.
Where to buy One Sweet Christmas: http://www.escapepublishing.com.au/product/9780857991058#
Stalk Darlene here:
Web Blog: http://findingthewritewords.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DarleneLF
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DarleneLF
Posted in Author Interview
Tagged Candy Cane, Chocolate, Chocolate mousse recipe, Christams recipe, Cook, Cream, Home, Mousse, Tablespoon, Whipped cream
Jennifer M Eaton 