Pamela Schloesser Canepa's Blog, page 78

I’m Going to be on BlogTalk Radio

I’m going to be on another BlogTalk Radio show! Sat., 1/14, at 1:00 Eastern or 12 CST.  It’s all through the Rave Reviews Book Club. Check here for info: http://ravereviewsbynonniejules.wordpress.com/rave-waves-blog-talk-radio/beyond-the-cover-with-host-

marlena-smith/                            Sat., 1/14, at 1 pm ET or 12 CST, tune in to Beyond the Cover BlogTalkRadio show, where I discuss my second sci-fi novella!  Use this link Saturday to access the online talk show: http://bit.ly/2iXj43u

#weekendcoffeeshare A New Year’s rollercoaster

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If we were having coffee today, I’d tell you how I don’t like rollercoasters anymore.  They make me feel whiplashed.  Well, whiplash (a metaphorical kind) is what my life gave me this last week.From watching a rented movie New Years Eve to time spent in an ER New Years Day, to spreading news of my first book now in paperback, I don’t think normal is meant for me.  Even keel?  I have to try hard to maintain it these days.

I am so grateful that through this last week that I’ve had the support of my mom, my significant other, and my church family.  Because New Year day was horrible, getting a call from Shands hospital that my son had been in a bad car accident.  They couldn’t tell me anything else, so I went down there.  And sat, and waited, for at least an hour before someone could tell me his status since nurses and doctors were really busy in the ER.  Let me tell you, that hour is the worst.  Shands is the leading trauma center in our city.  I knew that, and it made me even more worried, not knowing the extent of the accident.

Finally, I got details, and when I saw him they had him sedated and in a neck brace.  I worried about his state of mind.  The next day, when he was in a regular room, he was awake.  Thank God! A day later he was discharged, and he has a concussion.  Considering all of my worries, we are blessed that he got nothing worse.  My writing this week has been seriously affected by this event;  I didn’t work on any writing projects or add to any flash fiction challenges, but I did post a free verse poem that acknowledges the process and pain of a fellow traveler in the ER that day and my struggle of being between two places, grief and relief.  https://pamelascanepa.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/10117/

After resting at home a day,  he went back to work, and so did I.  That evening, I got an uplifting piece of news.  The work I did over Christmas break paid off!  I had gone into KDP at Amazon and converted my first ebook into a paperback.  I had to re-do it a few times, and then after hitting publish, it took a few days to go “live.”  My mother ordered one, and I wasn’t telling anyone until I saw that the finished product was presentable.  It was a lot of hard work to figure out the formatting and their requirements; formatting is not my forte.  But I persevered!  It looks good! I think I should have gone with a smaller trim size (or whatever it’s called).  My mom’s excited because many of her friends love reading but don’t have a Kindle.  Therefore, my writing is getting into the hands of more people, which excites me immensely!  You may view or purchase the paperback of my sci-fi romance, Made for Me, at  http://www.amazon.com/dp/1520250215, and here’s what it looks like:

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I had kept getting error messages about the text possibly getting cut off at the edges.  Well, it’s all there!  It was nice to get some good news after all that went on this week.  While I was a little down about not being able to work on any current writing projects, this came up and reminded me:  “Pam, this is who you are and what you do.  Nothing can take that away.  Rest if you need to, and then come on back to it.  You’ve achieved many things so far, and when ready, you’ll continue.”   That’s my self-talk to get me through the rest of the year.  *sighs with relief.

[image error]  Weekend Coffee Share is hosted at parttimemonsterblog.com and is a community effort shared by bloggers worldwide, where we share our insights, our comings-and-goings of the week, latest projects, or anything else under the sun.  Join the chat and add your link at parttimemonsterblog.com, while visiting some of the other posts.  I have met all types of writers and creative types through this effort!

 

1/01/17 Waiting. #freeverse #poetry

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Purgatory

Is the hospital waiting room

On New Year’s day.

News does not arrive, so I wait an hour.

Then wait some more.

A woman in the next room howls with grief.                                                                                      Her son is gone.

Her shock rings in my bones.

And I am stuck in between two places,

praying my emotions will soon soar with relief, yet feeling her pain.

I still wait.

A mother does this for her child…..              Still hoping the news is good,

I will go to the bowels of grief and unknowing for you, if that is the place to find you

Every time, when one time is too many to bear.                                                                            Even when torn apart, only to be pieced back together,                                                              these pieces of my heart.

I pray they won’t be broken again                                                                                                            while raising my chin to the heavens in thanks.

 

New Year’s #weekendcoffeeshare 12/31, Care to Share a Morning Walk? Glimpses of Morning Miracles, 2016

[image error] Our “decorated fern,” on a misty Dec. morning.

The Weekend Coffee Share is hosted at parttimemonsterblog.com, and since I am being ambitious about a new year and looking back at what was good in 2016, let’s do something different and just walk to the coffee shop!  It’s right down the road.  The sweet, cream laden latte will be our reward for the exercise!  Even have a danish if you so desire!

If we were having coffee, I’d tell you about things that happened for me this year, about how I got inspired, and maybe, I’d show you some pictures of some my best morning walks.  The year started with me in a sad and anxious state, but that’s a whole other story. For now I’ll just tell you that there was, and always is, light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.  I’d started seriously writing in Nov., 2015 and just kept on, despite, and to the betterment of, my emotions.  Along that and other tools in my kit, these morning walks became a practice of greeting each new day as a miracle, for one cannot fathom just how many scientific feats have conspired to bring about a rising sun.  God and Science are things I can’t fathom yet affect me in so many ways.  I pray that I will never take such a miracle as a new day for granted, no matter the weather, and that the New Year enables me with the ability to continue enjoying it.  I wish the same for you, my friend!  All photographs presented here were taken in 2016 and are my own, representing my morning walks or meditations with my coffee.  Happy New Year!

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Many of these morning walks were inspired by my dog anxiously pawing me or staring me down for a walk outside.  And look at the beauty I have witnessed because of it!  Other photos are from morning beach walks in the summer and my morning view with coffee in Warm Springs, Ga. Each photo here represents my area in the Southeast and our weather patterns, from sunny to foggy to post-Hurricane Matthew.  I hope you have enjoyed these glimpses!  I hope you’ll walk with me again sometime in 2017, and please forgive what the humidity will do to your hair. 

Sci-fi Ebook on .99 promo! Seeing Through Sampson’s Eyes, #scifi

 

 

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Download Seeing Through Sampson’s Eyes for just .99! Ends 1/03. http://amzn.to/29sMhAA #scifi #ebook #.99 (In the U.S., but will be on promo in UK starting tomorrow).

It is rare that I post a blog entry two days in a row, but I wanted to share this with you all.  You see, I felt more at home writing this story, as it didn’t have to stay in the confines of a romance genre.  I would love to have this work seen and read by many more people.  You’ll love following Norrie to see where she goes!

#flashfiction Friday Fictioneers, “The Road Less Taken.”

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Photo credit: PHOTO PROMPT Shaktiki Sharma

Cassie stepped off the curb.  “Wait!  Wait!”  A male voice called.

She bristled.  Please, no, not when I’ve made it this far.

A young man approached another young woman next to her.  “I’m sorry,” he said, and embraced her.  Ah, true love.  Or not.

Close call, she thought.

Lord knows, it took enough nerve to get her this far.  She couldn’t stay any longer.  Something in her would die if she did.

The bus, a $50 fare, would get her on her way fast.  Back home.

“Merry Christmas to me,” she whispered, boarding the Greyhound bus, backpack in hand.

~99 words.

Each week, Rochelle Wisoff-Fields-Addicted to Purple hosts Friday Fictioneers where we’re challenged to write a piece of flash fiction in 100 words, more or less, based on the picture above.  It is awesome, in this blogging community, to see the many different responses that are generated from one prompt or photo.  I encourage you to create your own and click the InLinkz button to add it to the Friday Fictioneers responses!  While you’re at it, go to Rochelle’s link above and check out some of the other Friday Fictioneers’ responses!

An InLinkz Link-up

#weekendcoffeeshare Merry Christmas/Hannukah!

[image error]Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Welcome to my #weekendcoffeeshare, hosted by parttimemonsterblog.com!  If we were having coffee today, I’d tell you that the fact that today is both Christmas and Hanukkah is an astounding, symbolic uniting factor for our world, something we so desperately need right now!  Instead of focusing on differences, we should focus on what unites.  And because the coffee is so good and the coffee shop music so enlightening, I would truly feel this.  I am, at heart, a true optimist.  Sure, I fight negative feelings at times, but I always believe it is a battle worth fighting.

I’d also tell you that I’m still writing, though I told a friend the other day I felt very unfocused right now.  (I did, but that was a work issue.  My job challenges me so much right now).  Yesterday, I added 500-600 words to my latest full manuscript.  That’s a big deal, because it tipped me to over 48,000 words and I’m closing in on 49,000.  I won’t accept any less than 50K.  I allowed myself to extend beyond November, but I won’t allow stopping short.  (Get the Seinfield reference?):)  I did another flash fiction story; you can read it at https://pamelascanepa.wordpress.com/2016/12/23/flashfiction-this-time-shortstory-fffawchallenge/  I also discovered some new uses for the Author’s Den website.  I have never felt successful there, but they are showcasing Christmas poems and stories right now.  What’s a girl to do?  Write a Christmas poem and tag it as such!  So I did, and people have been responding to it! (This is after I figured out the Author’s Den password).  I also got all Christmas gifts wrapped yesterday, slacked around a bit, read a little, watched the IT Crowd, begrudgingly renewed auto insurance, and crashed, fatigued by 10 p.m.  Anyhow, here is the Christmas poem, as it reflects on my feelings of this season:

Christmas is in the Heart

copyright 2016

Gifts are wrapped,

hair is done

I’m ready for the arrival

of the chosen one.

To celebrate,

I’ll wear my best dress,

but it doesn’t really matter,

I must confess.

I’ve gotten all caught up

and I’ve lost sight

of the things most important

on this Christmas night.

Did I open my heart gladly

to someone in need?

It matters more

than the glitter on my tree.

And if I decided

that I could take time

to chat with a friend,

perhaps the joy is mine.

So if I am haphazard

with the wrapping of gifts,

decorating the tree,

or fulfilling each wish

Please understand

I, in my own way, take part

Christmas isn’t in the wallet,

but in my heart.

Friends, I wish you all the joy this holiday season can bring, whether from your family,  a loved one, a fuzzy dog or cat, or the joy you may bring to another unexpectedly.  Thank you for stopping by!  Please also visit http://parttimemonsterblog.com to see the other #weekendcoffeeshares and to submit your own as well!

#flashfiction “This Time,” #shortstory #fffawchallenge

Photo courtesy of Joy Pixley.[image error]

The trail was long and her legs were weary.  Did I do the right thing?  She wondered.  Sure, I had to stand up for myself, end the madness.

A buzzard screeched above.  At least he wasn’t hovering around her.  Soon, it would be dark.  I’ll make it, she kept telling herself.

Ahead, she saw bushes and brush, and beyond them, a silhouette of more bushes and brush.  Where is that darn road?  I should be there soon.  Good thing I wore the comfortable shoes.   She looked down at her reliable Chucks.

The view up ahead looked foggy, like confusion.  It looked hazy and a little like the loneliness she felt.  No, that wasn’t it.  It looked like warrior’s freedom.  It was her release from the man who got behind the wheel drunk and risked both their lives regularly.

His command:  “Shut up or get out!”

Her response this time? A slammed car door and hasty footsteps.

©Pamela Schloesser Canepa

The Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers Challenge calls for a short story of no more than 150-175 words in response to a photo prompt.  I encourage you to join the challenge or peruse other flash fiction responses at http://flashfictionforaspiringwriters.wordpress.com/2016/12/19/fffaw-challenge-week-of-december-20-2016/ .

I find it fun to see how different minds will respond to the same prompt.  Thanks for reading!   I know it’s awfully short, as necessary, but do you get a sense of closure?

Treat yourself! #free #scifi #ebook Today only! 12/22

[image error]Made for Me, Book 1, sci-fi romance

Described by one reviewer as “Delicious brain candy,” this futuristic sci-fi novella is free on Amazon Kindle today only, 12/22.  Download your free copy and get to know these characters and their unique romance.   Enjoy free, and please leave a review! Universal link: http://bookgoodies.com/a/B01DZ5230G

Thanks for your support!

Guest post: Pamela Schloesser Canepa

[image error] Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.  From Kathy: I’ve met many fellow writers this past year, and am thrilled to share my blog space with some of them. Please take time to read Pam’s post below! And just a few reminders: …

Source: Guest post: Pamela Schloesser Canepa