Sandra Cox's Blog, page 275

The Next Big Thing Hop

Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing This is a new kind of blog hop. It's a tag hop. I have to tag 5 authors who will post on October 31th. Then they tag 5 authors who will post a week later. So every Wednesday 5 authors will post the answers to ten questions. 
I was tagged by Barbara Ehrentreu, author of IF I Could Be Like Jennifer Taylor.
Barbara's link:http://barbaraehrentreu.blogspot.com/2012/10/ten-interview-questions-for-next-big.html#comment-form

Okay here's the questions:

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book? 'Currently,and I emphasize currently, Mer Girl

Where did the idea come from for the book? Good question. I'll let you know when I figure it out.

What genre does your book fall under? Crossover YA

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? If I ever get that opportunity I'll let you know

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? It’s not easy being a nerd by day and a super hero by night.  
Will your book be self-published or represented                                   by an agency? I'm not at that point yet, by right now, I'm thinking agency.  
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? I'm not there yet. Blush, blush.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? Another good question I don't have an answer for.
Who or What inspired you to write this book? My muse, of course:)

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest? Heroine's voice and eye color
Here's my five picks to blog about the next best thing on the 31st. This is always tough, because I'm never sure who would like to take part or who would hate it. So if you're one of the five and you hate the idea, feel free to ignore the hop.
1. Julia Barrett2. Mike Hays3. Jo Ramsey 4. Lynn Crain5.Anny Cook Whew. Done!

Political Buzz Word: Pivot

Pivot: 'A whirling about on one foot.' Dictionary.com

The above definition is the one I think about when I hear the word pivot. Don't you?
Example: "At the sound of the gunshot, he pivoted, every sense alert."

Another definition by Wikipedia, 'The point of rotation in a lever system.'

I was fascinated to find out there is political definition for pivot. Being the savvy readers and writers you are, you probably already know about this, but it only came to my attention recently. For those of you who don't: pivoting in a political debate is a bit like a tap dance. And if its truly successful, the audience is unaware of it. Its avoiding an uncomfortable topic by  smoothly redirecting the conversation to an unrelated strength of the speaker.

Example: When Bush debated Kerry in 2004 he was asked about job loss, Bush pivoted to education and his No Child Left Behind Act.

Seriously, don't ya love words?  

Psychology of The Sleep Position

Have y'all been reading about this? Apparently the way we sleep, echoes our personality.
The research was done by Professor Chris Idzikowski. Here are the results:
The Fetal Position ( legs drawn up, arms wrapped around a pillow): Sensitive and shy
Starfish (lying on back with arms and legs stretched out): Good listeners, unassuming, offer help to folks in need
Log (Sleep on your side with your legs stretched out arms down): Easy to get along with
Yearner (sleep on a your side with your arms out): Tend to be suspicious
Soldier (flat on back, arms at side): Reserved and quiet
Freefall(lying on tummy,  head to the side) Outgoing, but don't care for criticism. But then who does?
Hmm, what do you think? Do any of these fit you?

Rain and Weekends

wpclipart.com There is little chance that meteorologists can solve the mysteries of weather until they gain an understanding of the mutual attraction of rain and weekends.  ~Arnot Sheppard



I'll be back Monday.

Cat Burglar

A leonine scream of challenge echoed through the pines, bounced off rock, and echoed in my ears. Fighting the pain coursing through my vibrating body, I forced my aching neck to turn.The moon shown full on a beautiful puma, his lips drawn back, his tail lashing. He tilted his head and snarled. And the hits keep on a coming. Would I become beast fodder or puma silage?At the moment, I wasn’t in any condition to fight off either.For one brief moment, the cat looked directly at me. My breath caught in my throat. Those eyes were eerily reminiscent of the stranger in the restaurant. The man called Kylar. Then the puma turned his attention to the beast. His ears back, he roared another challenge.The beast threw back his head and responded; his mouth open, he howled at the moon. The sound sent chills down my spine. A spine that felt like it was breaking and re-forming. MINDER

Weight: Gaining It Or Not

I went to the doctor the other day for sinuses. Tis the season.
The only time I check my weight is at the doctor's office. I don't own a scale. I was certain I'd gained five pounds. My clothes just weren't fitting like they used to.  I stepped bravely on the scale and discovered I hadn't gained a pound. Must be the combination of gravity and age. Anyway to say I was surprised was an understatement. 
To recover from the shock I treated myself to chocolate and pizza.
Anyone else out there suffering from the tug of gravity?

At Least The Deer Wasn't Packing Heat

Halloween E Giveaway and VBT

I have a VBT at Downtown YA today. P. J. Sharon is blogging on her new release Waning Moon a dsytopian YA. If you're a dystopian reader and in the vicinity drop by and say 'hey'.

And at Night Writers we're having a Halloween E Book Giveaway. One randomly drawn entry will win a download of:
Sally's Answer by Jewel Adams
Crewkin by Rhobin Courtright (I've read this one. Very well written. I enjoyed it.)
Somewhere My Love by Beth Trissel
The Harvester by Lynn Crain
No Job For a Woman by Sherry Gloag
Vampire Island by Sandra Cox
It's easy to enter. All you've got do is stop by and put your name in the RaffleCopter.
~*~
Chrysrawr was a winner in the Whisper of a Witch contest. Congrats, Chrysrawr.
~*~
Upset, not paying attention, I turned and plowed right into the sexy stranger who'd been starting with so much interest at my necklace.
I hadn't even noticed his approach. Just goes to show how upset I was to have missed that.
I felt a leap of electricity when his arms circled me. Heat radiated through his thin silk shirt and trousers. My knees grew weak. I clutched at him. I started to rub against him and purr but caught myself in time. I choked back my rumbling.
"Are you alright? I didn't mean to run you down." His gaze bore into mine. I stared, mesmerized by those glittering amber eyes that so reminded of a cat's--a wild untamed cat.MINDER

It's The Weekend

I always give 100% at work: 13% Monday, 22% Tuesday, 26% Wednesday, 35% Thursday, 4% Friday. ~ Author Unknown

We made it. Enjoy. I'll see you--in the cyber sense--Monday.

~*~“So you’re saying a vampire can’t bite my neck, yet a monster can rip my heart out?”  Aurora Valente, MINDER 

VBT: Across The Winds Of Time

BLURB:
While on a genealogical research journey through the Midwest, Molly Hamilton impulsively buys a 100-year-old Victorian house in the middle of a cornfield, and falls in love with the house’s owner...the original owner, that is. Can he be a ghost? The handsome, intriguing attorney certainly feels solid—and somehow her soul knows she has always loved him.
Darius Ferguson has no idea how he has come to present-day Iowa. The last thing he knew, the year was 1880, and he had just buried his fiancée, who happens to look exactly like Molly. He cannot separate the two women in his heart—to him, they are one.
In spite of being drawn to him, Molly thinks Darius is unhinged. Darius wonders if he has joined his fiancée in purgatory. If time travel is possible, will love be enough to build a future together?

EXCERPT
“Molly, wait!” 
I froze in place for a moment.  It was definitely a man under the tree though I couldn’t see his face...and he knew my name. 
 “Do I know you?” I called in an unsteady voice.  It seemed, though, as if my words were taken by the wind.  Who was this man?  And how did he know my name?     
He moved away from the tree with a tentative step.  His clothing was formal—a dark suit and white shirt—as if he had just been to a funeral.  I hadn’t remembered seeing a canopy for a funeral on the grounds, but I wasn’t about to take my eyes off the stranger for one instant to confirm that suspicion.
I thought I saw a flash of white teeth from under his dark mustache, but he was still some distance away.  Golden highlights in his chestnut hair caught the sunlight, and my mouth dropped open.  He was undoubtedly one of the most handsome men I had ever seen in my life.  My stomach rolled over at the sight of him, though not with admiration of his good looks.  Cold sweat broke out on my forehead, and I put my hand to my mouth as if to hold back the morning’s breakfast...if I’d had any.
For here—in the flesh—was the man of my dreams.  Not just any dreams.  More specifically, my dreams of the previous evening.  Yet I couldn’t for the life of me remember ever seeing him before until this moment. 
“Be careful what you wish for,” I muttered behind the hand that covered my face.  
 “Molly, don’t be afraid.  I can see that you are.  I don’t want to frighten you.”  He took another step forward and held his hands up palms out...as if to show me he wasn’t armed, I thought hysterically, or to calm me down.  Either way, it wasn’t working.   




AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Bess McBride made her first serious writing attempt when she was 14. She shut herself up in her bedroom one summer while obsessively working on a time travel/pirate novel set in the beloved Caribbean of her youth, but she wasn't able to hammer it out on a manual typewriter (oh yeah, she's that old) before it was time to go back to school. The draft of that novel has long since disappeared, but the story is still simmering within, and she will finish the adventure one day soon.
Bess was born in Aruba to American parents and lived in Venezuela until her family returned to the United States when she was 12. She couldn't fight the global travel bug within and joined the U.S. Air Force at 18 to "see the world." After 21 wonderful and fulfilling years traveling the world and gaining one beautiful daughter, she pursued her dream of finally getting a college education. With a license in mental health therapy, she worked with veterans and continues to work on behalf of veterans. She writes romantic suspense, contemporary, light paranormal/fantasy and time travel romances and currently has eight novels published. She can be contacted through her web site at http://www.bessmcbride.com.

Links:www.bessmcbride.comhttp://willtravelforromance.blogspot.com/

The author will be giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to one random commenter during the tour. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-blast-across-winds-of-time-by-bess.html