Tag: #atozchallenge

  • W is for Why Do I Prep?

    I grew up in Florida. On the coastline. Not sure If I really need to say more. I loved storms, watching the clouds roll over the waves and the lighting dance and crack in the sky. But then, I was a kid. I also remember my parents being a lot more worried about tropical storms. Especially ones that grew into Hurricanes and got to be named.

    2016-04-27 W pic 1

    Now I grew up in the years before we had males names and I know that dates me, but boy were those hurricanes real bitches. I would sit on the floor in front of the television and watch the weather forecast with my siblings on each side of me.

    2016-04-27 W pic 2

    I distinctly remember at least three times we had to evacuate further inland. We would have to get our backpacks that we used for camping. It was always half full, some camping supplies wrapped in a drysack sitting in the bottom. I thought my parent didn’t want to empty it and lose anything. Now I realize that probably held stuff more important than my polka dotted pajamas and favorite teddy. Mom had a big blue Rubbermaid tote with food that she’d take with us. Dad would have a tan plastic file box he’d carry as well. We never had to go to a public shelter, but a friend’s ranch so it was always an adventure.

    We were lucky and never got caught in one or lost our home. Many couldn’t claim the same. So yes I prep and watch the weather and worry a bit like my parents did. I guess that’s all part of growing up.

    2016-04-27 W pic 3

  • V is for Viking Swords & Fantasy World-Building

    Photo from http://www.coldsteel.com/
    Photo from http://www.coldsteel.com/

    Have you ever envisioned a certain weapon for your character that was so specific that nothing compared to it in reality? I faced that problem in my WIP, and it’s kind of like going on a shopping spree with an exact image of the perfect outfit…. I set myself up to fail. I had in mind an image of a large sword encrusted with gold and jewels. It needed to be light enough for my heroine to wield and perform some deadly choreography.
    I’m a panster, so I write first and research later. And when I discovered that the weapon I envisioned was a cleaving sword, I had a problem, because in real life this type of weapon is too heavy for my heroine to wield. Not to mention that all the gold and jewels I imagined adorning the sword are, well, heavy. So, after consulting with Rayne Hall during her workshop about choosing weapons for you characters, we decided on a Viking sword:


    But, do you know what I forgot? I’m writing fantasy…that means I can give magical elements to any weapon, I can make a cleaving sword light and I can make a dagger as heavy as a mountain. So long as I have an explanation and a solid world-building I’m good. And that’s the fun part about fantasy! I can play around with different things that have no connection in reality and mesh them together. I can play at being a surrealist, and have some fun. That’s the most important aspect of writing, right? And I feel inspired to try any kind of different combinations of weapons after visiting a Salvador Dali exhibition yesterday. There’s nothing more inspiring than basking in the creations of a great artist.
    So, now I’m working on the Viking/cleaving fantasy sword mesh. I was thinking…it’ll be as light as a Viking sword, with the strength of a cleaving sword, and it’ll grow poisonous ivy thorns on command. It may, or may not, grow a parachute out of the tip. AND, if someone uses the wrong command, the sword will melt into resin and will trap the amateur sword wielder inside. It might be fun to trap my heroine inside and see how she gets herself out of this blunder. 🙂

    What about you? Have you ever invented a weapon for your characters?

  • T is for Tastiness

    Can a Whoopass

    Okay, I’m not sure tastiness is a good subject title. But I’m ready for dinner. So sue me. And I didn’t get assigned the letter O but it is my own fault. I could have requested it. Then again, I wasn’t hungry at the time.

    ~shakes head~

    Anyway, my super secret subject for today is a food I have not yet gotten the pleasure of trying – Japanese okonomiyaki. But I want to taste so badly I can almost imagine a bite on my tongue. Read about it for yourself, if you’d like.

    You can check out the Wikipedia article here.

    If you took a peek, tell me if they don’t look delicious. Chinese egg foo young, even delivered to my Midwestern United States suburban door, makes my mouth water just thinking about it. The thought of adding dashi, squid, and cabbage to the batter only makes this more intriguing.

    Fortunately, I discovered a restaurant which serves okonomiyaki in Columbus, Ohio USA. Now I just need an excuse to head that way someday soon. I plan to call ahead, even, and make sure it’s on the menu that day.

    Do you like any cuisine that’s hard to find in your area?

    I’d like to read about any dishes you miss from your home abroad or haven’t enjoyed since your grandmother passed away. Food can be a powerful force of nostalgia. Wish me luck in making new memories…

     

  • S is for Sex Scenes and Story

    As a writer of Erotic Romance- although I may have to rethink my branding, because what was Erotic ten years ago, can be considered main stream now, it’s important to keep sex scenes creative and fresh.

    How do you do that?  One thing I always try and do is give my star couple their own thing.  By that I mean giving them an act you won’t find in another of my books.  I’ve written 10 books and it can get challenging, giving each couple their own fantasy or kink.

    I’m sure as I write more I am likely to double-up…no pun intended.   I think the most difficult thing I worry about as a writer of romance is the idea that you could begin to be predictable.

    Do Mystery writers worry about new ways of killing people?  Do action writers worry about fresh takes on fighting?  Maybe it isn’t just a romance thing.  I mean in a lot of ways the beginning is always the same.  Boy meets girl (or boy meets boy, girl meets girl, etc.) and they live happily ever after (or happy for now).

    Its the journey that changes with each story.   And maybe that is what readers really look for in a fresh take.

    Well fellow readers, what do you think is most important in a story.  Does everything have to be new?  Are you annoyed when writers seem to repeat things from story to story?

    ~Tina

  • Whoops! R Is For I Gotta wRite Something Quick!

    2016-04-21 R

    So, I have a cold.  I went hunting around in my archives for a funny picture and came across this gem, snapped by my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder.

    With friends like these, …

    Of course, it captures perfectly how I feel right at this moment, even though it was taken some time ago when I’d just gotten out of bed and was trying to do morning pages.  🙂

    Today is my day to post something crunchable having to do with the letter R.  I totally forgot until right now.  I shall endeavor to come up with something through my cold-medicine-induced fog.  Here, then, without further ado is the World According To Noony (on Cold Medicine):

    1. No, Boria, you do NOT need to sing me the song of your people at six in the morning.  Nor at seven.  Nor at seven-twenty.  I’ll get up at the last possible moment – meow – to – meowow – go to work – meeoooowwowowow – so I don’t need Felini in the Morning!
    2. Dogs take up entirely too much room on the bed when there’s only the two of you and it’s a queen-sized mattress.
    3. Cold medicine tastes yucky, but it keeps me from coughing.
    4. I cough the more I talk.
    5. I had THREE client phone calls – hack – scheduled – cough – for – wheeze – today.
    6. Tea is my friend.
    7. Don’t make a whole pot of caffeinated tea because you like the “hibiscus” part but forgotyoualreadyhadyourcoffeefortheday.
    8. The bus is late when I’m in a hurry.
    9. The bus is packed with people when I want to sit down because my head is pounding.
    10. It’s getting warm outside.  WEAR DEODORANT!

    (No, really, #10.  Please.  Yes, Mister Big Fat Dude, I’m looking at you.  And holding my nose.)

    And remember:  Zen mind, beginner’s mind.  Except when on cold medication.

    Thank you for joining us for the A-Z Blog Challenge.  If you’re blogging in the challenge, please leave us a link so I can come visit you too.  If you have a moment, please check out these other fine blogs:

     

    The theme on my main blog, Explore the Worlds of A. Catherine Noon, is The A To Z of the Zoo.  Join me as I explore Brookfield Zoo and finds animals, birds, and insects from A to Z.

    My theme on my Knoontime Knitting craft blog is Letterforms In Nature and the Built Environment.

    The theme at Noon & Wilder is The A To Z of Chicago.  Since I live here in the city and we have our Chicagoland Shifters based here, I figured I’d share a window into the city, Noon & Wilder style.

    The Nice Girls Writing Naughty have a new home, and we’re blogging in the challenge again this year.  Throughout the month you’ll be hearing from each of the Nice Girls, and during the RT Booklovers Convention from April 12th to the 17th, you’ll be getting live convention reports.  Join the conversation!

    The Writer Zen Garden’s brand new website is up and running, and we’re bringing you posts from me, Noony; my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder (the Wilder half of Noon & Wilder); the talented Darla M. Sands – a blogger in her own right, see below; as well as Grace Kahlo, Evey Brown, and author Tina Holland.  Check it out!

    My friends who are participating in the challenge (and if you’re not on this list, tell me and I’ll add you!):

    Write on, and Happy Blogging!

  • Q is for Writing Quotes

    One of my most recent addictions is Pinterests. I love browsing quotes and there are so many! Inspirational and motivational quotes for the days when I feel I need a boost to get into the writing zone. Funny quotes for the times when I need that laugh to keep me going through the next writing hurdle. And the advice infographics that help me when I feel a little stuck. There’s everything there, and I complied tons of boards. For the purposes of this post, I’m going to share only the memes I created.

    For every time someone tries to tell you to be a realist:

    Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars. ~Les Brown
    Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars. ~Les Brown

    For the times people ask you ‘why do you want to b a writer?’:

    I write because I don't know what I think until I read what I say. ~Flannery O'Connor
    I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say. ~Flannery O’Connor

    For the times when we need an affirmative boost of reassurance:

    If we had to say what writing is, we would define it essentially as an act of courage. ~Cynthia Ozick
    If we had to say what writing is, we would define it essentially as an act of courage. ~Cynthia Ozick

    My favorite writing quotes for when I’m feeling as if I’m not going to make it to The End:

    A writer is a writer, not because she writes well and easily, because she has amazing talent, or because everything she does is golden. A writer is a writer because, even when there is no hope, even when nothing shows any sign of promise, you keep on writing anyway. ~Junot Diaz
    A Writer is a Writer

     

    And if you’re looking for some more quotes, I have some on my website, on my Pinterest account, and if you feel like taking it to the next step I recommend Sarah Andersen’s funny webcomics.

    What about you? Do you have favorite writing quotes?

  • P Is For Prepper

    P Is For Prepper – by Rachel Wilder

    All right world I can say it – I’m a Prepper!

    So many people give me the reaction that I’m crazy. That I’m actually hoping something horrible will happen so I can break out my canned goods and emergency radio. That people should suffer around me so I can test to see if my batteries are really good for ten years.

    2016-04-19 P pic 1

    That is the last thing on my mind.

    But I watch the news. And it wasn’t always showing far away places and strangers like the tsunami and resulting nuclear meltdown in Japan during 2011. I remember seeing the aftermath of Katrina 2005, of talking to my brother while he weathered Superstorm Sandy 2012. Of my best friend telling me she almost got trapped in her car during  Snowapocalypse 2014.

    So awful things seem to always happen to strangers….until suddenly it doesn’t.

    It’s now you or one of your loved ones. A family member or good friend. Heck, even a beloved pet. Anyone can suddenly end up cold, or hungry or lost and homeless. The question is- are you going to look back and discover that you could have helped them or yourself with a little forethought and planning,

    You don’t have spend your life savings on things hopefully you’ll never need. Like this family.

    2016-04-19 P pic 2

    Though, if you look closely, they don’t look too worried about anything. But just get the most basic of extra supplies that will give you peace of mind. Is that three days or three weeks? That’s something you and your family need to think about and discuss.

    So in reality, preppers look more like this…

    2016-04-19 P pic 3

  • Things My Grandpa Taught Me – O for Orion

     

    I spent my summers on my grandfather’s farm, a truly rural place that seemed to be on another planet.  There were six street lights down the only paved road in town, one general store and a school house that combined kindergarten through ninth grades in two small rooms with twenty students.  There were 130 residents there Grandpa would say; if you counted the sheep and cows.

    I worked in his store during the day and made dinner at night while he and my grandmother worked the garden.  It seemed to me like a hard life for a twelve year old that had only done a few chores and then played with friends on previous summers but I was away from my parents and siblings on what seemed a grand adventure so I loved every minute of it.

    It was dark there at night and the stars were clearly visible in that huge expanse that loomed above the world.  After all the work was done Grandpa would show me a new constellation each night in his heavy astronomy book then we headed outside to find it in the sky above us.  He would turn on his huge flashlight and point out the designs so I could see them too and I was amazed as each night the sky seemed more familiar to me.

    My first constellation was Orion, three stars in a sort of straight line formed his belt, there were others around it that represented the warrior’s arms and legs and weapons.  The following nights I learned Canis Major and Canis Minor, his two hunting dogs that stood beside him as the three of them faced off against the rearing bull, Taurus.  That monster was clearly recognized by the red star that formed his eye.

    There were other constellations depending on the time of season, Scorpio, Draco the Dragon and Andromeda; but Orion was always the starting point; everything new was related to Orion’s position in the sky. It was our signpost, our go to before we struck out to learn any new constellations.

    It’s been years and Grandpa has passed, buried below that vast star-filled sky in rural Utah where I’m sure he gazes at the magnificent view of the constellations he loved each night.

    I seldom visit that small town anymore but even today, in the big city where only the brightest of stars are visible, I glance up and search for Orion.  It’s the landmark that lets me know that the world around me has changed but the heavens remain the same.  It acts like an anchor for me, a stepping off place before I explore and the light on the front porch when I’m heading home.

    And for that sense of peace I will always thank Grandpa.

  • N is for Nice Girls Writing Naughty

     

    Since I am not affiliated personally with the blog Nice Girls Writing Naughty, I feel it’s not inappropriate to promote the group. On the other hand our own very dear and talented team of A. Catherine Noon and Rachel Wilder are very justifiably represented. I can personally vouch that these two are both extremely nice. And they write some extremely delicious naughtiness.

    In case you had not guessed the novel content of these authors is erotica in various, glorious forms. To give fair warning, you may not want to open their home page at work. But I urge you to check them out if you like steamy romance.  Here’s the link.

     

    They even have a reading club in which various titles are discussed on a regular basis. I hope you’ll check it out!

    So, dear reader, what’s on your novel wish list? Personally, I’m looking forward to the next Noon and Wilder publication.

     

  • For the Love of a Library

    20150101_0009

    I didn’t like books at first.  I liked it when my dad read to me, but I didn’t read myself.  I learned how to read interesting books around age six, graduating from the boring “See Jane Run” types.  My mother had a set from when she was a child that were graded by year, and I read those.  But something was still missing.

    Then my father took me to the library and showed me how to find good books.  The first couple times, he picked for me and I couldn’t figure out how to do it for myself.  When I picked out books, they didn’t have the same “fun” that the ones he picked did – like the one about the cat who lived in a firehouse and was a hero.

    One day, I got determined and marched into the library at school.  I found Phyllis A. Whitney’s mysteries and that’s when it happened:  the inner worlds opened and I glimpsed the power and glory of books.  I’ve never looked back.

    Recently, two friends on an online writing forums shared how they pared down their book collection because their books were mostly ebooks now.  It unsettled me, deeply, because I adore my library.  I love the look and feel of the books, and I love coming home to the dining room/library.  In January of 2015 I went through on a massive project to re-classify and organize all my books (of which the above picture is only a fraction).  My husband and I have a lot of books.  While there may come a time where I cull the physical library, it will not be this day.  (Thank you, Peter Jackson, for that syntax [from The Return of the King, Aragorn’s speech to the Men of the West and the Riders of Rohan].)

    I even have a theme on this very blog called “A Writer In Her Library,” where I explore and ruminate on books, my books in particular, and share a little bit of my love for them.  In preparing for today’s post, I tried to think of something “Zen” to share, and thought of Lao Tzu, one of the Zen Masters.  Then I came across a small blue volume that I picked up at a used book sale for three dollars:  Simple Things:  Some Appreciations of the Small Joys in Daily Life from HOUSE & GARDEN.  It includes such essays as, “Salt,” by Aldous Huxley, and “The Coat Hanger,” by Aubrey Menen.  That’s why I like a physical library – one can wander in and, at random, pull something off the shelf that speaks to one.  I highly recommend you try it – if not in your own library, then at your local public one.  You’ll be glad you did.

     

    Thank you for joining us for the A-Z Blog Challenge.  If you’re blogging in the challenge, please leave us a link so I can come visit you too.  If you have a moment, please check out these other fine blogs:

     

    The theme on my main blog, Explore the Worlds of A. Catherine Noon, is The A To Z of the Zoo.  Join me as I explore Brookfield Zoo and finds animals, birds, and insects from A to Z.

    My theme on my Knoontime Knitting craft blog is Letterforms In Nature and the Built Environment.

    The theme at Noon & Wilder is The A To Z of Chicago.  Since I live here in the city and we have our Chicagoland Shifters based here, I figured I’d share a window into the city, Noon & Wilder style.

    The Nice Girls Writing Naughty have a new home, and we’re blogging in the challenge again this year.  Throughout the month you’ll be hearing from each of the Nice Girls, and during the RT Booklovers Convention from April 12th to the 17th, you’ll be getting live convention reports.  Join the conversation!

    The Writer Zen Garden’s brand new website is up and running, and we’re bringing you posts from me, Noony; my partner in crime, Rachel Wilder (the Wilder half of Noon & Wilder); the talented Darla M. Sands – a blogger in her own right, see below; as well as Grace Kahlo, Evey Brown, and author Tina Holland.  Check it out!

    My friends who are participating in the challenge (and if you’re not on this list, tell me and I’ll add you!):

    Write on, and Happy Blogging!