Ryshia Kennie's Blog, page 25
March 11, 2013
You Won What? - The Liebster Award
Today I was considering what I would
write about. There's been a lot of gloom
this year from weather to that of the more bad news variety and just one too many
funerals. But, unfortunately, that's life. Still, I was striving for motivation today, struggling with it actually. I thought maybe I'd give my blog a new face and with
fingers poised over the keyboard to begin that, I was waylaid when I
found I'd been awarded the Liebster Award! Now that was motivation! The blahs slid right off like a cheap coat as I discovered my award all decked out in loveable pink.
So thank you Murees Depree who is the face behind the fantastic blog Daily Drama of An Aspiring Writer,
for awarding me with the Liebster Award.
What is the Liebster Award? It's an award given to up and coming bloggers with less than 200
followers to show recognition and support.
The Liebster Award Rules
1. Thank the blogger who presented you with the
Liebster Award, and link back to his or her blog.
2. Answer the 11 questions from the nominator;
list 11 random facts about yourself, and create 11 questions for your nominees.
3. Present the Liebster Award to 11 bloggers,
who have blogs with 200 followers or less, whom you feel deserve to be noticed.
Leave a comment on the blogs letting the owners know they have been chosen. (No
tag backs.)
4. Upload the Liebster Award image to your blog.
Congratulations and Happy Blogging!
And before I collect my award I must answer the questions that Murees provided below:
What
is the worst job you ever had? In high school I had a job in the kitchen of a hospital. It was hot, gloomy and clean up was disgusting. I lasted a grand total of three days before throwing in the tea towel.
What is your favourite snack? Theater popcorn - not the kind you get at the grocery store but the popcorn that can only be bought at the theater.
What
is your favourite TV series? I honestly don't have one.
Who
would you like to meet? (Person could be dead or alive) My paternal grandfather
If
you could be any animal, which would it be? A dog but only if I
could be my dog. I don't know if there's a more spoiled dog on the
planet.
What
are you most grateful for? I'm grateful for my health and for the health of everyone I care about.
What
do you hate? I hate petty people. Maybe not so much hate as dislike.
Do
you include exercise into your daily routine? I walk every day and in the summer I ride my bike and sometimes roller blade.
Do
you like animals? I love animals, well most animals. I admit I'm
leery of the ones that might consider me a light snack.
What
is your favourite season? Summer
What
is your favourite food? ice cream
Eleven random things about myself:
1. I'm usually awake before sunrise
2. Halloween trumps Christmas
3. I make fantastic dog biscuits
4. I walk at least a mile a day
5. I love dogs
6. I don't like rice pudding or tapioca
7. I love a warm rain
8. I read two or three books at once
9. I love being on the road - whether by plane, car, etc.
10. When at a loss for what to do - I'll go to the library
11. I've never ridden on a skidoo
And here are the bloggers I've nominated for the Liebster Award:
Lisa McManus Lange - lisamcmanuslange.blogspot.ca
Tiffany T Cole - tiffanyrambles.blogspot.ca
La Gradiva - postitletterario.blogspot.it
Cerian - rookieromance.blogspot.co.uk
Amy Jo Ehman - homefordinner.blogspot.ca
Rebecca J Clark - shywriters.blogspot.ca
Shelley Banks - latitudedrifts.blogspot.ca
Trish Jackson - romanticreviewramble.blogspot.ca
JeffO - doubtingwriter.blogspot.ca
Lee - leezamloch.blogspot.ca
Marcia Colette - marciacolette.wordpress.com
And the award winners questions:
1) If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be?
2) What are you reading right now?
3) What do you love about blogging?
4) What would you rather have, a dog or a cat?
5) Have you ever been lost?
6) What's your favourite colour?
7) Coke or pepsi?
8) How long have you been blogging?
9) What's the worst thing a stylist has ever done to your hair?
10) Would you ever jump from a plane?
11) There's a storm coming in - which would you prefer, rain or snow?
Blog Tour Alert - Today's Monday and I'm out visiting again. My blog tour with Fatal Intent continues with a stop today, Monday, March 11 at Wicked Readings by Tawania. I'd love to see you there, the more the merrier. The prizes continue and every stop leads up to the grand prize at the tour's end. So stop by and leave a comment.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
March 6, 2013
Time Travel As Winter Sputters
I was thinking that winter is finally yanking in the reins and while snow and cold hasn't let up I can see the start of a sputter. And that sputter reminded me of a trip, a trip full of characters. Yes, it's nostalgia time. Hold back the sighs, darn it as we reel back a few years:
One thing that still holds true - The fun thing about travel is tripping on the unexpected, the unfamiliar
and the best way to do that is meet the locals. That holds true
anywhere. No matter how short a distance you travel.
Footprints in the snow
A jaunt to Minneapolis in these days of ultra security
makes a winter trip between two cold regions a challenge. I'm used to
packing much lighter but it's a trick to figuring out how to go
lighter. Boots, coats, mitts all take room and all need to be divested
in security lines and stowed in tight plane seating. Taking less is an
option but winter storms are unpredictable. By our 9:30 a.m. arrival in
the U.S. it felt like evening, I was having serious empathy for
parents with toddlers, although my ears were still ringing from the
toddler who cried and screamed the entire flight. That same little boy
was now smiling sweetly a passenger or two ahead of me.
While I was writing this post I stumbled on an incident at a border
crossing that only emphasized that some jobs may just be ideal for a
writer. Fiction often falls out of real life and at a border crossing
there's no busier intersection of lives. Click here for more.
But I digress, I finally made it through the immigration line - having
as usual chosen the wrong line. The slowest one with an immigration
officer who bellowed angry orders to frustrated travelers at regular
intervals. When it was finally my turn, it was like I was facing a
different man. A man wearing a smile and with the parting words; "Have a
good trip hon".
Hon? Not a term you'll hear casually thrown out north of the U.S.
border at least where I come from. But soon it's also not the only time
I hear hon. I assume that this is part of the local lingo except I
never hear the term again after leaving the airport. Is it possible
that the airport is a culture unto itself? Or I just don't look like
hon anymore?
It was before leaving the airport that we met a true
lover of winter. A woman at the shuttle desk told us how other
travelers had questioned her sanity for remaining in such a cold
climate. Then she asked us how we liked Saskatchewan winter and then
preceded to tell us about all her winter adventures in Minnesota from
ice fishing to ski dooing. She glowed as she told us about them. I
A Farm in Minnesota
have to admit, I kind of admired her adventurous winter spirit for
despite my place of origin, winter just isn't my thing. Since leaving
my toboggan days as a child, those chilly little flakes haven't held
much appeal. I mean snow is pretty, for about twenty-four hours or
until you get stuck driving your car to the local convenience, take your
pick. On the upside, as my mother says, it keeps crime down - why?
see, I knew you'd bite - too cold to go outside and all the criminals
stay indoors. That's her
theory. I believe she's also been known to
say that it keeps tempers at a minimum - no one's blood can heat up in
sub zero temperatures. And if you believe that I'll give you a hotline
to more Momisms.
We're in Laura Ingalls Wilder territory now at least during her time On the Banks of Plum Creek
- from Little House on the Prairie fame and not the Michael Landon TV
version, for those of you who didn't devour the original series as
children. Laura really had a knack of making winter look romantic.
Sorry Laura, not even for you.
So fast forward to the hotel where there's a shuttle to the Mall of America.
But from my hotel window I could see Macy's, an anchor store, across
the parking lot. Now I'm puzzled, why the need for a shuttle except
maybe for the old or infirm. So we inquire about bus times and mall
access, thinking that one might have to walk around the gigantic
structure to enter and thus the necessity for a shuttle. And when
hearing that's not the case inquire if there was an undetected reason
for us using the shuttle. "No, ma'am (another term not much heard north
of the border), it depends where you come from and what kind of cold
you're used to. Some of our guests take the shuttle because it's too
cold or to bring their shopping back," he replied in his easy southern
drawl. I bit back my questions that begin with where he might be from
as there was no hint of Minnesota in that accent and assured him that we would walk across the parking lot.
But it was on our departure from that hotel when things got
interesting. A conversation began with the inevitable question, "Where
are you from?" This time there was no need to tag Canada to the long
enough already Saskatchewan.
This time I heard for the first time; "Oh, I've been there." But it
was his next comment that really made the conversation interesting,
"Drove from Regina to Saskatoon - expected to see more road kill. I was
surprised I didn't see any at all. Was it the wrong time of year?
Rewind - what? Road kill?
For
a moment I was at a loss. For one, I'm a city girl and for two, I'm an
animal lover. Road kill just isn't in my reality. But a comment like
that definitely had to be explored. So here's the scoop:
According to this local hotel manager, the roads of Minnesota are
littered with dead animals in hunting season. Not shot but run over,
and lots of them. I think he expected, because Saskatchewan is less
populated and a similar prairie landscape, that we'd have the same or
more. I assured him that even in hunting season there wasn't a lot of
road kill. And it usually takes a much longer trip to see wild life of
any kind - usually live. A coyote or two, some antelope or deer - all
still breathing and usually loping in the distant fields, and maybe as
far as road kill, on a busy day, a lone squashed skunk or deer was about
all you were going to see and often, thank goodness, not even that.
So after a discussion about live versus squashed viewing, we went on our
separate ways.
Winter Highway, Saskatchewan
Somehow I don't think road kill is going to make it to the list of
things to see and do in either Minnesota or Saskatchewan. Although I
should never say never. And for those of you with a more macabre bent
or a slightly twisted sense of humour, check out Road Kill Recipes.
The world is a big place and it's littered with interesting characters.
Any characters in your recent travels both near and afar? Or do you
have another take on road kill? And please, not another recipe.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.comhttp://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
One thing that still holds true - The fun thing about travel is tripping on the unexpected, the unfamiliar
and the best way to do that is meet the locals. That holds true
anywhere. No matter how short a distance you travel.
Footprints in the snow
A jaunt to Minneapolis in these days of ultra security
makes a winter trip between two cold regions a challenge. I'm used to
packing much lighter but it's a trick to figuring out how to go
lighter. Boots, coats, mitts all take room and all need to be divested
in security lines and stowed in tight plane seating. Taking less is an
option but winter storms are unpredictable. By our 9:30 a.m. arrival in
the U.S. it felt like evening, I was having serious empathy for
parents with toddlers, although my ears were still ringing from the
toddler who cried and screamed the entire flight. That same little boy
was now smiling sweetly a passenger or two ahead of me.
While I was writing this post I stumbled on an incident at a border
crossing that only emphasized that some jobs may just be ideal for a
writer. Fiction often falls out of real life and at a border crossing
there's no busier intersection of lives. Click here for more.
But I digress, I finally made it through the immigration line - having
as usual chosen the wrong line. The slowest one with an immigration
officer who bellowed angry orders to frustrated travelers at regular
intervals. When it was finally my turn, it was like I was facing a
different man. A man wearing a smile and with the parting words; "Have a
good trip hon".
Hon? Not a term you'll hear casually thrown out north of the U.S.
border at least where I come from. But soon it's also not the only time
I hear hon. I assume that this is part of the local lingo except I
never hear the term again after leaving the airport. Is it possible
that the airport is a culture unto itself? Or I just don't look like
hon anymore?
It was before leaving the airport that we met a true
lover of winter. A woman at the shuttle desk told us how other
travelers had questioned her sanity for remaining in such a cold
climate. Then she asked us how we liked Saskatchewan winter and then
preceded to tell us about all her winter adventures in Minnesota from
ice fishing to ski dooing. She glowed as she told us about them. I
A Farm in Minnesota
have to admit, I kind of admired her adventurous winter spirit for
despite my place of origin, winter just isn't my thing. Since leaving
my toboggan days as a child, those chilly little flakes haven't held
much appeal. I mean snow is pretty, for about twenty-four hours or
until you get stuck driving your car to the local convenience, take your
pick. On the upside, as my mother says, it keeps crime down - why?
see, I knew you'd bite - too cold to go outside and all the criminals
stay indoors. That's her
theory. I believe she's also been known to
say that it keeps tempers at a minimum - no one's blood can heat up in
sub zero temperatures. And if you believe that I'll give you a hotline
to more Momisms.
We're in Laura Ingalls Wilder territory now at least during her time On the Banks of Plum Creek
- from Little House on the Prairie fame and not the Michael Landon TV
version, for those of you who didn't devour the original series as
children. Laura really had a knack of making winter look romantic.
Sorry Laura, not even for you.
So fast forward to the hotel where there's a shuttle to the Mall of America.
But from my hotel window I could see Macy's, an anchor store, across
the parking lot. Now I'm puzzled, why the need for a shuttle except
maybe for the old or infirm. So we inquire about bus times and mall
access, thinking that one might have to walk around the gigantic
structure to enter and thus the necessity for a shuttle. And when
hearing that's not the case inquire if there was an undetected reason
for us using the shuttle. "No, ma'am (another term not much heard north
of the border), it depends where you come from and what kind of cold
you're used to. Some of our guests take the shuttle because it's too
cold or to bring their shopping back," he replied in his easy southern
drawl. I bit back my questions that begin with where he might be from
as there was no hint of Minnesota in that accent and assured him that we would walk across the parking lot.
But it was on our departure from that hotel when things got
interesting. A conversation began with the inevitable question, "Where
are you from?" This time there was no need to tag Canada to the long
enough already Saskatchewan.
This time I heard for the first time; "Oh, I've been there." But it
was his next comment that really made the conversation interesting,
"Drove from Regina to Saskatoon - expected to see more road kill. I was
surprised I didn't see any at all. Was it the wrong time of year?
Rewind - what? Road kill?
For
a moment I was at a loss. For one, I'm a city girl and for two, I'm an
animal lover. Road kill just isn't in my reality. But a comment like
that definitely had to be explored. So here's the scoop:
According to this local hotel manager, the roads of Minnesota are
littered with dead animals in hunting season. Not shot but run over,
and lots of them. I think he expected, because Saskatchewan is less
populated and a similar prairie landscape, that we'd have the same or
more. I assured him that even in hunting season there wasn't a lot of
road kill. And it usually takes a much longer trip to see wild life of
any kind - usually live. A coyote or two, some antelope or deer - all
still breathing and usually loping in the distant fields, and maybe as
far as road kill, on a busy day, a lone squashed skunk or deer was about
all you were going to see and often, thank goodness, not even that.
So after a discussion about live versus squashed viewing, we went on our
separate ways.
Winter Highway, Saskatchewan
Somehow I don't think road kill is going to make it to the list of
things to see and do in either Minnesota or Saskatchewan. Although I
should never say never. And for those of you with a more macabre bent
or a slightly twisted sense of humour, check out Road Kill Recipes.
The world is a big place and it's littered with interesting characters.
Any characters in your recent travels both near and afar? Or do you
have another take on road kill? And please, not another recipe.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.comhttp://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
March 4, 2013
Escape It All
Well, last night we were hit with a winter storm. Highways were closed after a spate of vehicles hitting the ditch. This morning I woke to a world whose blanket of snow just settled a few inches deeper. Winter isn't ready to give up its stranglehold on the prairies just yet. So, I was kind of anxious to leave the snow world behind to go visiting. I'm on tour today with Fatal Intent. So if you're in the mood to escape the weather, or anything else in your life - or maybe you just want to talk books, come on over to Lisa Haselton's blog where I'm spending the day. Visit, hang out and get entered to win a prize or two. In the meantime let's head somewhere warm and without snow, deep in the pages of Fatal Intent.
Somewhere in the Borneo jungle:
Aidan moved vines back, exposing his face. They only had to look in his direction.
He was so close he could have reached out and touched her. She was delicate, out of place here in the midst of this wilderness. Her skin, even beneath the sweat and exertion-stained flush, was fair. She wasn't built to be here, she was too slight to survive, too weak, too...
She glanced up. A frown immediately seared her face.
"Who the hell are you?" she snarled.
He bit back a smile. She should have screamed. She hadn't. All tiny limbs and fragile beauty, and yet she attacked first.
He let his gaze rove over the group, refusing to be corralled by her attack.
One of the men looked panicked, the others seriously stressed. He shifted his spear to his other hand and waited, taking the warrior advantage of time and observation. The silent often learned much about the enemy.
"Put that down." She gestured to his spear.
His fingers loosened for a millisecond before gripping the spear tighter. Was she out of her mind? Green, innocent, and totally forest-illiterate, but she was feisty.
Feisty? She was seething, hot, absolutely pissed--about what, he wasn't sure. Her anger didn't make much sense. Nothing about this afternoon made much sense.
Hope you enjoyed that little diversion from the real world.
Now I'm off to dig a path in a snowbank or two.
And you - any snowbanks standing in your way?
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
February 25, 2013
On Tour Today
Where does time go? Yesterday I picked up a friend who it seemed, only just left and is already returning after a tour of Ecuador. And Valentine's Day well - that's already behind us. The good news, and in a year that has begun with a spate of bad news, the good is really welcomed....let's start with the advent of spring, only weeks away now. Yes, hard to imagine when you have six foot banks outside any window in the house, but it's true and I'm counting days.
The other good news? I'm on tour again today with Fatal Intent. It's part of a tour lasting into May. I'm taking Fatal Intent over to Christine Young's Blog today. Again, there's a chance to win an e-copy of my first book From the Dust, for one commenter. And comment and your name is also entered for the grand prize at the end of the tour - the movie East of Borneo and a autographed copy of From the Dust. Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.comhttp://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
February 7, 2013
Piracy? Think Yellow Snow
I was out walking Rourke this morning, as I do most mornings and I noticed how the pristine white landscape can be so easily marred by just a twig or gravel or... yellow snow.Yes, yellow snow.
You all know what that's about, all you dog-lover people and even those of you who are not and just curse all us crazy dog walkers - you know too. I mean we can scoop the dog poop, but the yellow snow, well there's nothing we can do about it marring the landscape. It's just there, usually - maybe conveniently, depending on what goes on in a dog's mind, at a high traffic corner or at the end of a meticulous and well-shoveled driveway and there's nothing you can do about it. Except either shovel it away and put it somewhere less conspicuous or wait for the next snow or spring melt. It's ugly and it really wrecks that expanse of glorious white that stretches for miles or until the next patch of yellow.
Yellow snow - kind of as delightful as book piracy. Yes, for the first time that I know of I've had a book pirated. Now that all sounds like some sort of exciting thing like in the swashbuckling days of Blackbeard but I'm pretty sure if you'd been there back then you wouldn't find the pirates any more exciting than the modern day pirates off the coast of Africa. But I've veered somewhere into the waters of the Indian Ocean when what I was really talking about was my book. Yes, it was pirated and at first I didn't really believe this might have happened. Surely this was wrong, surely this was a mistake.But you know, there it was the evidence glowing atop my cursor. There was no denying it was my book - so I sent my polite please take down letter with gritted teeth and waited. I sharpened my sword while I waited and... no, what? You're telling me I don't have a sword? How else am I to fight pirates?
But turns out these pirates were reasonable and Fatal Intent is home safe and sound. Now, the yellow snow issue, well that's still a problem. I think I may have to wait until spring on that one.And you? Any yellow snow in your day?
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
February 4, 2013
Another Day Another Tour Stop
I'm so used to snow and cold that today I trucked outside with my ski pants on, heavy duty mitts etc. etc. Fast forward twenty minutes, I'm sweating and just a little hot when the temperature is only hovering in the single digits below zero and I'm dressed for the double duo twosome of cold weather. Yep, a little overdressed today.And - I'm touring today. Another chance to enter to win prizes both today and the end of the tour. Just pop over and leave a comment, about the book, a question you might have or even a friendly hello. It's on from now until, well midnight I suppose - unfortunately I'm not sure what time zone so the sooner the better. Check it all out at Books and Other Spells. I promise the proprietor of that site runs a friendly, helpful site.
So anything out of the ordinary in your life?
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.comhttp://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
January 28, 2013
Virtual Tour - Blog Hop Monday
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If you've been paying attention to my website you know that since the release of my latest book FATAL INTENT, I'll be hopping from blog to blog pretty much one a week from now through until May. Follow along and leave a comment and you'll be entered for a chance to win the grand prize - a DVD of that vintage movie, East of Borneo and an autographed copy of From the Dust.
Today
Today I'm at Realmantic Moments and at Where Fantasy Meets Romance where a comment at either or both sites, will also enter you for a chance to win an e-copy of From the Dust. C'mon over and keep me company for awhile.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
January 21, 2013
Fatal Intent - An Excerpt
Chapter One
She saw
him floating headless through a mist of tears.
Even the
river’s roar was not enough to mask her scream, as overhead the Borneo midday
sun skidded a brilliant reflection across the river’s surface.
Garrett
clapped her hand over her mouth and squinted against the bright sun. As if that
would shift reality or change the fact that all that stood between Malcolm and
anonymity was the San Diego Chargers logo on his torn, water-soaked T-shirt. Instead,
tears washed her vision.
Malcolm’s
smiling face—his smiling, missing face. She choked and her foot slipped,
bringing her dangerously close to the riverbank, and the body.
Brush crackled and something screeched, the sound
harsh and loud in a place where there was never silence. It would have sent
chills through the uninitiated but it was only an insect, an oversize bug—an
insect that might not be classified, identified. There were so many and that
was what brought her here. But now her guide was dead, headless. That thought
alone was preposterous even when the evidence lay in front of her. She wanted
to weep. She wanted to run. But it was up to her to get her team out of here. She
needed another focus before panic clouded everything.
I hope that's intrigued you to go out and get a copy. At $2.99 I think it's a fantastic deal.
Available at Barnes and Noble, Nook, Amazon, Smashwords and other online bookstores.
You notice - this is the first blog post I've done, possibly ever, without a picture!
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
Fatal Intent - Prizes - And a Tour Stop
The tour starts today - it's actually all pretty exciting despite the bone chilling temperatures out here on the prairies. I'll be over at Long and Short Reviews today. It's the beginning of a virtual tour with Fatal Intent - details of the overall tour are at my website. Stop by comment and you'll have a chance to win an e-copy of my first book - From the Dust. Over the course of the tour one commenter will be chosen to win the grand prize - a signed hard copy of From the Dust and a DVD (region 1) of the movie, East of Borneo.
Check it out - it all starts today at Long and Short Reviews.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.comhttp://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
January 17, 2013
Death and Romance - Fatal Intent
This week my latest book, Fatal Intent releases.
“The fast-paced and highly dramatic plot is extremely fresh . . . Fatal Intent combines mystery with romance, a romance which is unusual and unique. 5 Stars.”
—Gayani Hathurusingha for Readers’ Favorite
Readers of Sandra Brown and Laura Griffin are going to embrace the novels of hot new romantic suspense writer Ryshia Kennie.
An expedition into the Borneo rain forest is a once-in-a-lifetime chance for entomologist Garrett Cole. It’s this trip that could finally make her a star in her field. But when her team’s guide is found dead and headless on the banks of the river, Garrett’s dream trek suddenly becomes a nightmare. Lost in the heart of the jungle, she must fight to maintain her composure while leading a panicked team of scientists to safety.
When sexy and rugged Aidan arrives in the jungle looking as if he belongs, Garrett has no choice but to accept his help. But Aidan is more than she bargained for—a man of few words and fewer answers, as comfortable in the jungle as the mysterious native tribesmen. And as the days pass and passion flares between them, Garrett wonders if Aiden’s good intentions are just another of the jungle’s illusions.
In a land rife with predators and a killer still on the loose, can she trust the one man who claims to be their rescuer?
Available at B&N for Nook and also available at Amazon, in the iBookstore, on Smashwords, All Romance Ebooks, and Kobo.
Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com
http://ryshiakennie.com
https://twitter.com/#!/ryshiakennie
