Chloe Holiday's Blog, page 2
July 2, 2023
Working like a dog
Crazy summer, since I returned from overseas! Here in the rainy Pacific Northwest, one must hustle to get outdoor projects done in the summer, before the interminable rains hit again in the fall. Plus, I had a deadline for the goats!
Perhaps “working like a dog” isn’t the most appropriate term, since dogs have the sense to lie around and daydream when it’s hot. Guess I’m “working with less sense than a dog!”
I did have time to join Emma Palova for her wonderful podcast, For the Love of Books, and we discussed Fly Boy. Tune in here if you’d like to hear an excerpt and a fun discussion! (And don’t forget you can read / hear the audio version of Fly Boy through your library–just ask!)
Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday weekend!
The post Working like a dog first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
May 8, 2023
It’s a…ShroomHenge?
For the mom who has everything…”Hey, Mom–I got you this fungus!”
We had to have some trees close to the house taken down, and decided to try to make lemonade–or rather, Lion’s Mane–out of that particular lemon. It’s always fun to try something new, mushrooms are delicious, and this type isn’t going to be mistaken for a deadly Amanita. There’s some interesting research about this type in particular increasing Nerve Growth Factor, which possibly might work to help prevent dementia.
The simplest way to grow mushrooms outside is to inoculate hardwood logs, like the maple and cottonwood we just happened to have lying around, after the tree-cutting carnage. What you do is slice them into short segments and put the “spawn”–it looks just like quinoa–in between the pieces as you stack them in a shady spot, then water and wait. It was an easy setup, rather than a mess, though the logs wanted to slide off, since the spawn works like mini ball bearings. To counteract it, we connected our upright “totems” with lintels, so we really do have a mini ShroomHenge. One can also grow Lion’s Mane indoors in special bags. Lots of places sell the spores; I got mine here. (affiliate link) I’d been prepared to wait for months to a year, but I already have babies peeking out of the cracks! Apparently, once they get going, the fruiting might go on as long as seven years–certainly more cost-effective than the capsules I’ve tried.
What do YOU get the mom who has everything?
The post It’s a…ShroomHenge? first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
March 11, 2023
Get Helios Free Today! And some thoughts on AI.
Today you can get Helios free, with Konstantinos, the OG! Get it on Amazon, or use this affiliate link to score Gus a little more kibble. Here’s the link, though it’s also “free” for those with Kindle Unlimited.
Prefer “wide” stories? It’ll be available everywhere via audiobook before long–it’s in the editing stages now! In case you’re wondering, while for stories, “editing” means fixing plot holes, adjusting paging, enriching details, tweaking characters, and weeding out repetition, typos, etc, it means something else for audiobooks. That includes removing any double-takes (if the narrator flubbed a line and immediately did a re-do), sniffles or breaths, stomach growls, cords banging, and other extraneous noises. Then comes taming any hissy S sounds, removing any clicks or other mouth noises, and a proof-listen of the whole thing–that alone will be over ten hours!
“Why not just use the new AI and be done with it, Chloe? That would save hours and lots of money,” you say. “Then we could have all your works NOW in audio.”
I get that, but the AI voices are just not there yet for ordinary speech, let alone with accents or emotional inflections. I can’t imagine AI not botching Birgitte’s accent in Desire in Deutschland. If you listen to the sample, you can get the feel for it. I know some authors are using ChatRPG to even help them come up with plots and help write their books!
To each his own, but for me, it’s sort of a “red pill” vs “blue pill” thing, or perhaps akin to cell phone use—people used to get them to use “only for emergencies” and over time, it’s become routine to . I can either do nothing but chase the money on that slippery slope of “how much AI is acceptable to use?” One other facet is that while the AI is learning all the time, it “learns” from other works, soap operas, text conversations, and other sources, so its suggestions can be just plain nuts, or at best, very cliche.
My choice is to Just Say No to AI. I’d rather have a story I can be proud of, than to know that I’m taking credit for something I didn’t do. My works are and will always be 100% Human.
I think Konstantinos would approve. “Let us speak no more of it.”
The post Get Helios Free Today! And some thoughts on AI. first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
March 1, 2023
So it turns out I am a thief AND murderer! 😮
Last night was the finale of February’s mystery festival, and it turns out that I am a thief AND murderer?!!! So I’m not only a villainous villainess, but a murderous murderess!
This was a really fun experience–none of us “suspects” knew ahead of time if we were guilty or not. It was fantastic to meet so many wonderful, creative people, including Mark Love, whose interview of me can be found here. If you want, you can see the replays of any/all the episodes through this link.I read twice, and had a couple of confessions, including the last night.
No newsletter today, being as how I’m not only in jail, but busily sending loot to the winners (I gave away 2 signed paperbacks as well as audiobooks for A Boy & his Dog, Fly Boy, and Desire in Deutschland! Check out those stories and others here.
Now that the festival is over, I’ll be back on the straight and narrow, busily writing again.
The post So it turns out I am a thief AND murderer! 😮 first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
February 17, 2023
Gone to the Dogs: Writing K9s in Fiction
Tomorrow is the day! This Saturday, 2/18, I’ll be teaching a class for RWA’s COFFIN (College of Felony & Intrigue) for their Kiss of Death series! It’s designed for mystery/thriller writers. It’s at 7 am my fime; 9 am Central. https://www.rwakissofdeath.org/workshops/
I hope it’ll be helpful for folks, and perhaps inspire others to share some of their knowledge. I’ll be teaching Ka-Blam & Ka-Blooey: Firearms & Explosives, Dead as a Doornail: Medical Forensics, and Realistic Action Scenes as well.
Attendees will also have an early chance to sign up for ARCs for my non-fiction series–more to follow on that!
Look at Baby Kodi, all grown up!
The post Gone to the Dogs: Writing K9s in Fiction first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
February 12, 2023
Join me tonight for a live reading and a chance to win a signed copy of Finders, Keepers!
Hey, gang! I’ll be reading a snippet of Finders, Keepers tonight at the Mystery Festival! Register here at least 15 minutes beforehand to be eligible to win a signed copy! Attending the previous events is not a requirement, though if you’re interested in solving the mystery (for a chance for more prizes, including my audiobooks), all the previous episodes can be viewed on the Pages Promotions website, including my earlier reading from A Boy & his Dog. It’s at 7 pm Eastern time!
Hope to see you there!
The post Join me tonight for a live reading and a chance to win a signed copy of Finders, Keepers! first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
February 8, 2023
Spicy Valentine Reads!
Just in time for Valentine’s: a spicy new collection of reads! Check them out here.
The post Spicy Valentine Reads! first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
February 6, 2023
Free reads and some book money!
Valentine’s Day is coming up! Time to fill your e-reader with lots of wonderful stories! Check out these from Book Cave, and a chance to win an $80 gift card!
The post Free reads and some book money! first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
February 3, 2023
A chance to win a signed copy of A Boy & his Dog tonight!
This month, I’m participating in an online book festival mystery! Each night, two authors read a short segment from one of their stories and give away a signed copy. Tonight, I’m reading from A Boy & his Dog. It’s at 7 pm Eastern Time; here’s the link to sign in (one must register by 6:45). https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAuceygqT0pHt1qt65bt8iEyOlbrqZjj0B5
Here’s the schedule for the month and more info (I’m reading Finder’s, Keepers on the 12th). Other prizes include audiobook codes for Finders, Keepers, A Boy & his Dog, Fly Boy, and Desire in Deutschland! You can read about them here:
Website https://www.pagespromotions.com/2023-fingerprint-casebook.html#/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/indiereads
Schedule: https://www.pagespromotions.com/2023-event-schedule.html#/
The post A chance to win a signed copy of A Boy & his Dog tonight! first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
January 18, 2023
Culture Shock, Germany: Baby Issues
Photo by Taisiia Shestopal, Unsplash
So, if you’ve read my other four posts, you know that I wanted a crock pot, which seemed a necessity between the short hours of German stores, which closed for lunch, and the tiny refrigerators. But my biggest challenge wasn’t food for us grown-ups. It was how to manage with a six-week-old baby. I wanted to continue to nurse him, if possible, but I had to return to work.
So, there I was in a German medical supply store, looking at a machine the size of a small suitcase, trying to explain why I needed the breast pump. The two women’s faces were full of sympathetic pity at first, assuming that the child had a cleft lip or some other difficulty. But then, when I reassured them, “Oh, no, no. It’s just that I’m returning to work,” their expressions changed to surprise, perhaps even revulsion.
“Why are you breast-feeding him after two years?” they asked.
“Two years? He’s only six weeks old,” I said, perplexed. Why had they assumed he was two?
They gasped in unison. “You have to go back to work now? How barbaric! Here, a mother gets two years of maternity leave.”
I braced for their judgment, but instead, they tsked in sympathy, and went out of their way to help me. I left lugging the giant beast of a pump, worried anew about babysitting options, with my time almost up, as well as what else would be so very different here.
Luckily, the military network is tight-knit, a lifesaver. The wife of the pathologist set us up with a wonderful lady–or perhaps I should say ladies, since the household contained not only the woman but her mother and oma–and we were set, not only for my son but later my daughter, in another two years.
In Desire in Deutschland, I’ve tried to capture that early feeling of being new in a foreign country, as Lieutenant Lee makes his way, the tricky way that assumptions can make life difficult when interacting with folks in another nation, and how ultimately, people are kind and accepting.
Want to read it? Get it through Amazon (this affiliate link will net Kodi more puppy chow at no cost to the buyer), everywhere else, or ask your library for it!
Want to listen to it? Get it through Amazon,
direct from the author, everywhere else, or ask your library for it! Folks have already borrowed it as far away as Australia!
The post Culture Shock, Germany: Baby Issues first appeared on Chloe Holiday.
