M.J. Fredrick's Blog, page 46

Movies and TV

I was very disappointed last week when Netflix sent me What’s Your Number?, a romantic comedy that was way down my queue, instead of the next Game of Thrones DVD. So I popped it in as soon as I got home, thinking to send it back ASAP.

I. Loved. It. It was adorable. Anna Faris played a character who is appalled to find out that not only has she slept with more men than the national average (according to Marie Claire) but also more than her friends. She declares the next man she sleeps with will be here husband. When she gets drunk and sleeps with her boss, well, she can’t marry him. So she decides maybe one of the men from her past will be suitable. She enlists the help of her OMG gorgeous neighbor to help her track down all her exes. Her neighbor (played by Chris Evans, who I never ever looked twice at before but is going to play my cowboy’s brother in the sequel because DANG) is pretty slutty himself, and she agrees to help him escape his various entanglements if he helps her.

Naturally they fall in love and she holds him off because of her number.

It’s a really adorable movie. Some ridiculous moments, of course, but adorable.

In TV news, I’m enjoying the new show Scandal, about the powerhouse lawyer that powerful people turn to when they get in trouble. I love the storyline they’ve given her that makes her vulnerable. Not sure how I feel about her right hand man’s story, though. (I’m terrible with names. Hers is Olivia Pope, I think, not sure what his is. He was in LOST, played the guy in the hatch. 3 names. Henry?)

I’ve watched 2 episodes of Missing because I LOVE Ashley Judd, and I love a good spy story, but like EW wrote, where can it go? It has to have a limited run, because she has to find him, right? If it’s one of those 12 week series like that show about the wedding on an island, the one with the serial killer, loved that show, forgot the name, then it will work. But I don’t see how it can continue season after season.

I’m enjoying the heck out of GCB. I know the characters are over the top, but it’s funny and bright and makes me happy.

The season finale of JUSTIFIED: OMG. O. M. G. Poor Raylan. I’m glad all my favorite characters survived, but poor Raylan. I love father-son stories, but wow. Also, what, 8 months until a new season? Too long!

This week, Raising Hope has its season finale, Revenge comes back…and I’ll barely have time to watch!

Goals for the Week of my BIRTHDAY!

I know, I’m getting too old to be so excited about my birthday, especially when my digits are rounding up to a scary number. (When the kids ask me how old I am, I give them a math problem. Like, “I started teaching in 1989 and I was 23.” or “The tens place and ones place of my age today add up to nine. Next week they’ll add up to ten.”) But I am, and I’m planning a party where EVERYTHING will be from Pinterest. This means a lot of work this week, plus I need to keep the house up, and there’s a lot going on, so I’m taking Wednesday off. I wanted to take Friday off, but I’m only going to have my Friday classes 4 more times! This week, then three times in May. I thought about taking Thursday off, since my Thursday classes are so far ahead, and I could maybe get more food prep done, but I’m in charge of handing out tutoring snacks on Thursdays, and also, my last class on Wednesday makes me nuts. So.

This week:

1) BIG grocery trip. BIG. The store was closed last Sunday so we have to restock our normal stuff, and buy stuff for the party. I’ll probably have to run by another time for fruits and veggies, though.

2) Mail taxes. I’ve never been this late, but then, I’ve never had to pay this much!

3) Dentist. Again. Yeah.

4) A school concert. Not put on by me, thank goodness, but I recruited one of my students to be in a community choir and I need to go watch her, since she was the only kid from my school who signed up and I feel bad about that. The worst thing–I come all the way across town to go to the dentist, then have to go all the way back for the concert. Maybe I should postpone the dental appointment….

5) Dinner with Cindi and Robert Friday night so we can celebrate my birthday.

6) Arts and crafts show on Saturday. I’m trying to beg off, because, well, I need to COOK. But part of me wants to go. Of course. It will be hot and crowded.

7) Cook. I’m making flautas and tacos, corn salad and potato salad, cupcakes, ice cream bowls and jalapeño appetizers. I’m baking sugar cookies and decorating Nutter Butters to look like flip-flops. See why I need a day off?

8) Keep up house. I fell a little behind, but I should catch up.

9) Write? I really hope so!

10) Exercise!

Think I’ll make it?

 

College Admission

So my son found out yesterday he got into UT Austin. He’s 20 and finishing up his associate’s degree at the community college. He’d applied to UT out of HS, but his grades weren’t enough, thanks to him slacking off freshman year. Yes, that counts. So he tried UTSA, didn’t care for it, went to San Antonio College and loved it. He’s worked on the paper the past 3 semesters, editor this semester, and that was enough to get the attention of UT when he applied again.

We’ve been a bit anxious, because others have heard who applied after him. He was accepted to UNT, and I was getting anxious that he’d be moving so far. (I KNOW. I was 20 when I married. He’ll be 21 this summer. Still.) So he called yesterday from school.

I got a phone call around 4:15 from him. He told me to hang on, then came back on the line and asked if we were both there. He’d called his dad, too, and put us on conference call to tell us. “I have some news,” he said, and I knew.

I’m elated for him, and terribly sad at the same time. My first impulse was to run to the store to buy everything with a UT logo (and there are a LOT, here in Texas.) But then…

I’ve known this time next year he wouldn’t be here. That at Christmas he’ll probably just come for the weekend and go back to college with his friends. He may even have a job. That this was probably our last spring break together. But damn, typing that has me all teary. My husband says this is what we work for, what we hope for from the moment he’s born, that he will grow up and be his own man. He’s always been independent, he isn’t around much these days, but it’s hard.

And part of me is a little jealous. I didn’t go away to school. I went to UTSA, lived at home until I married, never had that independence. I’m glad Josh is getting it–and I love my life, but I think I’d be a little tougher if I’d gone out on my own.

So I cried for a bit, then went out and bought some UT gear.

Mine:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His:

Introducing Indie Author Lucy Francis

Lucy and I have known each other for EONS, and I'm so happy she's jumped into the indie publishing field. One thing I've noticed about this indie venture–it makes people EXCITED to be writing again!  I read this book and it's marvelous, so please comment for your chance to win!

Without further ado, here's Lucy.

 

What was the inspiration for this book?

It started with a bit of a dream that I remembered upon waking: a man and a woman in costume, at a party. She sat on his lap and kissed him, then took off before he got her name. I thought, after such an opener, that it would be a pretty spicy book, but she insisted there was no way she was going to sleep with him. Of course, I had to ask why…and the book went from there.

What's next for you?

I'm putting the finishing touches on Finding Refuge. Travis runs a construction company and is desperately trying to keep his addict brother from self-destructing. Andri is trying to rebuild her life after an engagement gone wrong. It's angsty and emotional, but it's been really satisfying to help these two come together and love each other through the difficulties. It's the second in the series started by Mending Fences, and many of those characters appear in Finding Refuge.

When you're procrastinating, what do you do?

I am the queen of procrastination. Social networking, email, checking blogs and message boards can all keep me busy for hours. If that fails, there's always housework or gardening.

How many books in your TBR pile?

Um…which one? I have separate TBRs on my Nook, in my Kindle cloud, and stacked in various rooms of my house! I don't even dare hazard a guess of how many there are, because that would mean facing the amount of money I've spent creating my TBR mountain range.

What's your biggest guilty pleasure?

British television. Everything from the BBC newscast to the talk and game shows. My Doctor Who fandom knows no bounds. Oh, and I try to hide my chocolate-covered cinnamon bear supply from the family.

Name 3 of your favorite things.

Only three? Well, besides the obvious "hubby" and "kids"…

The forest I planted in my front yard, which keeps the house cool in the summer and serves as a home/feeding station for scores of wild birds. It rejuvenates my soul.
Horses. Can't help it, I've been a horse girl since I was tiny.
Irish step dancing. It's complicated and getting the steps translated from brain to feet isn't easy, but it's enormously fun to do. Plus my teen daughter does it with me!


Where can readers find you?

At my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/lucyfrancisauthor

At my blog: http://www.lucyfrancis.net

Or on Twitter: @LucysKissyBooks

More Pinterest Success

The other day I mentioned I was working on a Pinterest inspired project. Here's the project:

Here's what I did:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And for Easter, I made this cake:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These little nests (recipe HERE): Also, that's the pan I got at the Starving Artist Show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And these tortilla wraps (may repeat for my birthday party–recipe HERE)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can see why I didn't get much writing done this weekend!

Goals for the Week of Easter

 

This week is a LOT calmer. Well, after I get everything ready for today, that is. I should be home most days at a reasonable time. The big question is, will we have a lot of students tomorrow? We used to have Easter Monday off because so many travel on Easter weekend, but we haven't for a couple of years and end up with about 20% of the kids missing.

This week:

Celebrate Easter with the family
Read friend's new story
work on cowboy story
Enjoy a normal week at school
Shower for one of the teachers after school
Get the house in shape–I've let it slide this week while getting Bluestone up.
Get back into the exercise regime. I was good week before last, but not last. Will need it after the Easter celebration.

Fan Fic Vs. Inspiration

 

Everywhere you look on blogs these days, someone's talking about 50 Shades of Grey. The overnight success aspect, the media's fascination with it, the fact that it was once fan fiction.

This is the thing that I've been talking about with my husband, the fan-fic thing. A lot of writers are really upset that this was once fan-fiction and is now making money hand-over-fist.

Now, I've not read the book, and I only read the first Twilight book (took me 6 weeks, oh my God). But people are upset that E.L. James took Stephanie Meyers's characters and put them in her own book.

Here's the thing. I've been inspired by other media, and while I've never published my work as fan-fiction, some of it is very clearly inspired by shows I watch and movies I see. In fact, one of the first things I wrote (for myself) was a new ending to one of my favorite books, because I didn't feel like the heroine deserved what she got. What I loved about that new ending was that I understood the characters enough that I could write them well, in their own voices. I found it recently and was once again amazed that these secondary characters sounded so true to how the author wrote them.

Anyway, that's not what this is about. It's about being inspired and what is fan fiction and what is not. I know I'm not the only person inspired by shows and use those as a jumping point for my own writing.

Most obvious is A Ghostly Charm, my only paranormal, wherein the hero is a ghost tour leader who doesn't believe in ghosts until they start showing up. The idea was actually based on a dream I had about Dean Winchester leading ghost tours at Halloween to make extra money. Mal is very close to Dean in looks and attitude, though he has a different backstory and a different sidekick. (I wrote another paranormal, but it is way WAY too close to SPN for me to publish it.)

Alex in Breaking Daylight is very similar to Alex Karev from Grey's Anatomy in looks and attitude, though he has a different backstory and is a soldier instead of a doctor.

Gabe and Peyton from Hot Shot? Doug Ross and the pediatrician intern that Maria Bello played, taken from the hospital and dropped on a mountainside.

Something to Talk About was a mash-up of Virgin River and Gilmore Girls, both of which I was obsessed with the summer I wrote it. Heck, in my head, the diner where Ellie worked was Luke's Diner.

So my thing is, when does it stop being inspiration and start being fan fiction? I feel like I made my own characters, but I did have those characters as a jumping point.

Have you been inspired by TV? Or are you like Nora, who never has an actor in mind lest she use the actor/character instead of making her own?

FWIW, I'm using Geoff Stults in looks only. He's not Walter from The Finder. I only wish I could get him to lighten up a bit like Walter!

The Winner of Rayne Hall's Book Is….

Cynthia Woolf! Cynthia, contact me at mfechter @ gmail. com and let me know what format and where I can send it. Thanks for coming by!

 

Busy weekend here–writing and cleaning today, arts and crafts show (shopping, not showing) and Easter prep tomorrow, and Easter Sunday. When I was a girl, we weren't allowed to have the TV on until Good Friday night, and we spent the afternoon in church doing the Stations of the Cross, so I'm feeling a little guilty working on the computer this AM! Have a lovely weekend, y'all, and I'll check back in Sunday.

Introducing Indie and Traditionally Published Author Rayne Hall!

I've also gotten to know Rayne through the Indie Romance group. Her books are more dark heroic fantasy with romantic elements, which is fine by me! Please comment for a chance to try her for yourself!

1. What was the inspiration for this book?

What if a man wants to atone for his dark past, but the darkness won't let go of him? What if he needs forgiveness for the unforgiveable? What if he seeks to protect women from evil, and the evil is part of himself?

2. What's next for you?

I'm writing the next book in the series. I'm also editing anthologies of fantasy and horror stories; the current project is Bites – Ten Tales of Vampires.

Plus, I'm teaching online workshops for authors: Writing Fight Scenes, Writing Scary Scenes, Writing about Magic and Magicians and more.

3. When you're procrastinating, what do you do?

Reading – in bed, in the bathtub, on the beach.

4. How many books in your TBR pile?

As a rapid reader, I consume twenty or more books every day, so I have 'read' rather than 'to be read' piles. They rise like stalagmites from every surface in my home. Fortunately, e-books take up less space.

5. What's your biggest guilty pleasure?

My pleasures harm no one, so why should I feel guilty about them?

6. Name 3 of your favorite things.

Books, belly dancing, banana ice cream in the sun.

7. Where can readers find you?

Physically: I live in a Victorian seaside town on the south coast of England.

Electronically:

On Twitter @raynehall

E-mail rayne_hall_author (at) yahoo (dot) com

My Amazon.com author page:

http://www.amazon.com/Rayne-Hall/e/B006BSJ5BK/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

A list of my online classes for writers is here:

https://sites.google.com/site/writingworkshopswithraynehall/

 

More from my Pinterest Hit List

I'm absolutely addicted, guys. There may need to be an intervention. But I had to share some more of the great things I've found:

First, things I've done at school:

The kids and I are both fascinated by the marbling of the paint. It's messy as hell, though. You fill a pan about an inch thick with foam shaving cream, then dribble paint over the top in a random design. Then press a piece of paper (I'm using manilla paper cut in an egg shape) into the shaving foam, peel out of the pan, squeegee the foam and paint off and it leaves a cool design.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We made these, too, by using markers on a coffee filter, then spritzing with water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, of course, the food.

I'm a HUGE fan of McD's strawberry lemonades, though I try to limit myself to one a week. This recipe popped up this AM and I made a special trip to get lemons (had strawberries). It's pretty good, but they're not kidding about pouring it immediately onto the strawberry mixture. The lemon mixture separated very quickly (also, I used the lemon rinds for ANOTHER idea for homemade cleanser. I will let you know about that in 2 weeks!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last week when The Vegetarian was in Corpus for a conference, I made these enchiladas. They're a bit of work, but they'll make your tongue slap your brains out, they're so good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And lastly (for now) corn on the cob. We had it Friday and will probably have it again tomorrow with the cheese enchiladas I'll be making. Roast the corn, spread mayo, sprinkle cilantro and white cheese and chili powder and squirt with lime. Usually around here we eat this in a cup, but this seems a bit healthier.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned–I'm working on a project now, and I have more planned for Easter Why yes, I SHOULD be writing!