K.C. Kendricks's Blog, page 98

A New Chick for Wisdom

February 7, 2013

There's happy news today. Wisdom, the 62-year-old Laysan Albatross cited as the world's oldest bird, has a new chick! I first read about Wisdom in March of 2011 (read the blog here ) and have followed news about her every since. Knowing she's still isn't huge in the overall scheme of things, but I think it joyous news.

Wisdom has already lived nearly twice as long as most birds of her species. She was first tagged with a simple metal band way back in 1956 by a U.S. Geological Survey researcher. The man was in his 40's at that time so she may outlive him.

Since Laysan Albatross' mate for life, it's safe to assume she's outlived all but the last of her mates. Maybe it's those younger males she's finding that are keeping her happy. She's hatched five chicks since 2006.

Read today's story at this link .

Way to go, Wisdom. Stay with us.

KC Kendricks
http://www.kckendricks.com

Huh. Why didn't I see this before?

Time flies, or at least goes very fast

January 31, 2013
The first month of the new year is all but past. With just a few hours to go until February, I'm trying to figure out where the heck January went. I looked at my calendar, which is much like a diary, and found only a few things worthy of recording. What did I do with the rest of the time?
I do have a day job, so there are those fifty hours a week (including travel time, etc.). And there was the New Year's holiday to recover from. Desert Snow released on January 6th and along with that came the obligatory promotion rounds.

Oh, yeah. Promotion. I bought an INSANE ad package dirt cheap at The Romance Studio for 2013. I did spend some time gathering information for that. Crap. I gotta go look at the TRS schedule and fill in a few blanks.

January saw me at two online chats. One at TalkingTwoLips and the other at LoveRomancesCafe. They were quiet affairs, but both were an opportunity to drop a few excerpts for the lurkers.

I bought a new love seat. The new piece of furniture inspired a small fit of decorating. I actually dusted off the sewing machine to make a few new slipcovers for some throw pillows. (What's with the buying stuff, anyway? It's not like I have money! If I had money I wouldn't leave the house to go to work every day, would I?) 

We celebrated a couple of birthdays and anniversaries in January. That was nice family fun.

The edit of the upcoming Catching Fireflies was completed just this past week. (Look for it to be on sale the last weekend in February.)  I signed up for the 2013 A-Z Blogging Challenge. This will be my third year in a row for that. Since I knew I was signing up, I did prepare the first several blog entries and load and schedule them. It's good to be a little bit ahead of the game.

Pinterest finally caught my interest. I went and joined. It gives me something to play with during the day when I'm doing the "hurry up and wait" on the higher-ups at work. I'm sure you know what I mean. Like everywhere else you can find me on the Internet it's the .com/KCKendricks.

I do a bi-monthly, as in every other month on the last Sunday, column at Brenda Williamson's "An Eclectic Author" blog. I got that in on time.

And the biggie - I've almost completed the manuscript that concludes the story of Ian Coulter and Rick Mohr which began in Double Deuce .

Huh. Maybe I didn't waste the entire month, after all.

KC Kendricks
http://www.kckendricks.com

Six Sentence Sunday: Where it all began

January 27, 2013

I'm sorry to see the end of Six Sentence Sunday, having come to it late in its run. It seems fitting this last Sunday to go back and visit where it all started for me, with the beginning of Surrendered Victory.

His hand brushing mine excited me beyond anything I’d ever known. Large, tanned and callused, his were the hands of a man who earned a living with them. Like the rest of him, his fingers were long and strong, possessing a muscled elegance. Short, neat nails belied his trade, that of a carpenter. I shivered as his hand found mine, hidden from public view between our torsos and the bar, and he trailed those well-tended fingernails lightly across my palm sending me his teasing invitation.
“What do you say - come back to my place for a while?"
SURRENDERED VICTORY http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/SurrenderedVictory.html 2008 Amber Heat Wave WinnerISBN 978-1-60272-283-5
KC Kendrickswebsite at: http://www.kckendricks.com blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
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Family is

January 25, 2013

I’ve been busy lately with a number of projects - the release of Desert Snow, trying to finish the current WIP, and let’s not forget gathering everything in preparation to file my 2012 tax return. But yesterday evening we all took time out to celebrate my mom and stepdad’s anniversary.

Looking back, the last twenty years passed in the blink of an eye. I was happy for my mother when she remarried after being a widow for so many years, but I worried, too. My stepfather is a great guy, but he’s nothing at all like my Dad. I’m constantly amazed at how my mother married two so completely different men.

Dad was a quiet man who only spoke when he had something to important to say. My stepdad will sit and chat about any topic you choose. The saving grace of this is he’s very open about admitting when he doesn’t have a clue on a topic. And when he doesn’t have a clue, off to the Internet he goes to find out. He loves to learn new things and in this we are alike.

I remember my Dad through the lens of my childhood and youth, and maybe because he was “Daddy” those memories are a little rosy. I think that’s the way it should be. Every girl should be so blessed with a Daddy who pulled her around in the snow on a sled and in later years taught her how to change the oil in her car.

My stepfather I came to know as an adult with only one common denominator - a love for my mother. Forging an adult kinship with him was difficult at first because we were total strangers and suddenly we were family. I didn’t know it twenty years ago because we were strangers, but he was just as determined as I was that we find a place together that did not include the word “Daddy” unless we were talking about my father.

I’ve come to know him as a kind, caring and generous man. Smart, too. His love for my mother is absolute. He doesn’t brag about it, but he spoils her every day of her life. And sometimes it’s difficult for me not to laugh at them - with love, of course. I tell my best friend some of their antics and she sums it up best - “They’re so cute together.” Yes, they certainly are.

Today I’m back to work - or rather I’m supposed to be working on year-end statistical forms - but instead I’m pondering on something my stepdad said last evening. It’s something I want to remember in my stories and I think it sums up what we all search for.

Freddie Mercury was right when he said we all want to find somebody to love, but that’s only the beginning of it. My stepdad nailed it. No flowery speeches, no brave promises or boastful posturing. Just a simple statement that drove straight to the bottom line. He said he’d take care of my mother, no matter what, for as long as he was able.

Just the way my Dad would have done.

KC Kendricks
website: http://www.kckendricks.com

(The picture above is titled, "To Infinity." Very fitting for family.)

Small kindnesses still exist

January 11, 2013

These days, we're bombarded by negative news reporting, so much so it's easy to believe that decent, friendly people no longer exist "out there." But nice people are still here, and one of them lives in my hometown. 

My house is almost thirty years old and I'm still decorating, trying to create the perfect nest. All that remains of the house of thirty years ago is the kitchen cabinets. Every wall has been repainted and every floor has gone from vinyl and carpet to hardwood, tile or laminate. (So much easier for my partner to navigate without carpet so it's not all by choice, but I have no regrets.) Over the past five years, the house has taken on a cream, maroon and chocolate brown color scheme. 

Except for the sofa. It was green plaid and I decreed it had to go, and go it did last weekend. Now I have a pretty little chocolate brown love seat just big enough for me and the cat. But since one thing always follows another when restyling one's nest, I decided the cornice covers needed to be updated. Last evening, I went to the local fabric store and found the perfect pieces to update the look of the windows, make simple curtain panels at the dining room window, a matching table runner and re-cover a few throw pillows all in the current colors. I call my style a relaxed modern country in case you're wondering.

At the cutting table, I asked the salesclerk if any coupons were available. Regrettably she said no, and that's when a total stranger offered me a kindness. She had an app for the coupon on her phone, and since I run Android, I couldn't get it. This lovely girl offered me the use of her phone with the scannable coupon when I checked out and saved me almost forty dollars. I thanked her and she simply smiled and walked away. I didn't even get her name. 

There are nice people left in this world, people who do a kindness just because they want to. 

Thank you so much. 

KC

New! Desert Snow this Six Sentence Sunday

January 6, 2012

This Six Sentence Sunday I'm showcasing my new release, Desert Snow. How new is it? It's new today! 

Is it about snow? Heck no! It's about an unexpected meeting at the Palm Springs White Party! I wrote a line where our hero compares all the men in white to snowflakes - each unique and beautiful - and I knew Desert Snow was the title. 

So here's a six sentence tease, and a link here to read the full excerpt and purchase the book at Amber Allure.

_*_*_

“I wouldn’t want to come across as easy.”

His left eyebrow lifted. “Not a word I’d use to describe my take on you. I think I’ll get a few more drinks into you and see if you’re more agreeable to some fun.”

I grinned at him. “You give a guy my age too many drinks and the only fun you’ll get will be listening to him snore.”

*_*_*_*

DESERT SNOW
ISBN-13: 978-1-61124-368-0
Contemporary gay romance available now at
http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/DesertSnow.html

KC Kendricks
website at: http://www.kckendricks.com
blog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
mailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeys
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1989106.K_C_Kendricks
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Kc-Kendricks/1439574042
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kckendricks

Cocktails!

December 29, 2012


I'm very excited to announce I have an article in Cocktails Fiction & Gossip -eMagazine! Here's the link to check out the mag: http://cocktailsmagazine.wix.com/fictionandgossip#!issue-14

There's a lot more than my article in there so go take a look. It's very well done!

KC

2013- No Retreat, No Surrender

December 26, 2012


It's easy to settle into a reflective frame of mind as cold Winter wraps her arms around my world.  The old year is ending - which is better than the world ending as many feared. The New Year is a mere handful of days away, and I feel it pulling me forward. But for me, going forward means keeping one foot grounded in the past. I believe the past made me the person I am today and it's important to always remember where I come from.
But this blog is about the part of me that embraces being a writer, not those other sides of me that are partner, daughter, cousin, friend and co-worker. That part that is writer is only ten years old - or is it? I’m a life-long reader so perhaps every book I’ve ever read was research, or at least I like to think so.
The year just past, 2012, was a year of “rest” for the author side of me. There are various schools of thought about scaling back, not that I put a lot of stock in them. The author is the single most important thing about a book - any book - and the trick is knowing how to nurture that element.
So just where was the author in 2012? With family, for the most part, and loving it. Did me a world of good, too. Writing is the Solitary Art. It’s just the writer and all those words ready to be plucked out of the air to form thought. Is the finished product the accomplishment, or is it the work itself? For the sake of this particular blog entry, I’ll take the side of the finished product.
What did I, the writer, accomplish in 2012? This leads us to the New Year, to the undiscovered country of the future. What lies ahead? Will the author continue several popular series, or forge into virgin territory? Not to admit to being in a holding pattern to echo 2012, but the answer is both.
Look for Desert Snow the first weekend of January 2013. No, it’s not about snow. In fact, it has nothing to do with snow. The story takes place at the Palm Springs White Party. Palm Spring = desert. Thousands of guys dressed in white - like snowflakes, each unique and beautiful. Ergo - Desert Snow. (I like the title and I’m the author so allow me to have my own way for once, okay?)
Expect another Sundown and Fallon story in the New Year, this one more light-hearted than River Walk. Our shapeshifter flees his responsibilities for his first-ever vacation and Fallon has his hands full, as usual. Private investigator Ian Coulter is back with a case of a cyber-stalker turned real-life stalker. Ian turns to Rick for help.
There’s a possibility of a new Marionville couple as part of an upcoming PAX. The story will be written and submitted by September 1, 2013, but it’s up to the powers that be at the publisher when it will come out, but to the writer, it’s a 2013 project.
A new project I’m very excited about is, um….can’t tell you the title for fear some enterprising so-and-so will steal it. Really. It’s happened before. Can’t trust anyone. Anyway, I’ve had this one on the back burner and it’s simmered to the boiling point. It’s time to get it written. There are a few more ideas taking shape, but will they be for 2013 or 2014? I’m not sure yet, and I know better than to force them into the light. The story will come in the proper time.
Where I’ve been and where I’m going. A glance into the past and a vision for the future. And between the two is a “now” full of contentment. I’ve made choices, good and bad, that guide my way. I’m right where I need to be to welcome the New Year, and I’m ready. No retreat, no surrender.
Will you step into 2013 with me? 

KC 
http://www.kckendricks.com

The Story Behind the Story: Doors of Time by KC Kendricks

December 17, 2012Doors of Time is now available at Amber Allure http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/DoorsTime.html One of the biggest blessings in my life has been living in a small community. Life in the country has made me who I am today. Maybe city slickers would consider me a “hick” because I still ride my bicycle and I still play in the creek, but simple country pleasures are deeply ingrained in my way of life. That's not to say that we don't have our share of culture. There are several larger towns within easy driving distance of my home. In fact the District of Columbia and Baltimore, Maryland, are each about an hour and a half drive away, depending on traffic.
When I was growing up, my parents were more than willing to drive my girlfriends and me into town on Saturday afternoons for a movie, and the place we frequently went was the Maryland Theatre. My friends and I were bad moviegoers- we talked a lot - and I’ve noticed teenage girls haven’t changed much since the 1970s. But all that aside, the Maryland Theatre was a special place for all of us.
I remember the day in 1974 the Maryland Theatre burned. Living on the side of the mountain way we do, we could see the smoke as it blanketed the town. A few quick phone calls to relatives living in town got us the story on what happened. An arsonist did the dirty work in the night. We weren't sure how badly the theater was damaged but as it turned out the fire had burned to the front of the building. What came after when the building sat empty and open to the elements was just as destructive as the blaze. For all intents and purposes the Maryland Theatre was gone.
But now remember when I said what a blessing it is to live in a small community? A local funeral director bought the building to save it from being demolished for the one million bricks the structure held. A community group got to work on restorations, and in 1978 the Maryland Theatre reopened in all her neoclassical glory and she remains open to this day. She is now home to the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, and the Barbara Ingram School for the Arts, as well as hosting musical productions and shows such as Ron White's Comedy Tour.
The creative process is often a mystery. I don't know why I thought about the Maryland Theatre when I sat down to plan the story, Doors of Time. But like with many of my stories all I needed was that one little kernel for the characters to spring to life. So there's a little bit of real life in this one, and at the heart of it sits the old movie house and the echoes of friendships forged that have lasted a lifetime. I hope you'll enjoy Doors of Time.
*_*_*_*
Doors of Time by KC Kendricks
Calvin Lawson arrived in Clear River to rebuild bridges with his ailing father, not hook up with Emory Fleming, although being an honest man, he has to admit Emory’s on his mind. But first things first, and before he goes looking for his boyhood friend, he needs to find a restoration project to generate personal income so he’s not sponging off his father. Gutted by an arsonist, the Clocktower Theatre, affectionately called the Time by everyone in town, is in dire need of his special skills. 
As an on-the-air journalist, Emory Fleming is making a name for himself and getting noticed. He’s back in Clear River at the local network affiliate, preparing for the move up to a major market in a few years. When Calvin Lawson rolls back into town, Emory’s stunned. The old pal he worked with at the Time kept a big secret - he’s gay. All the fantasies Emory had as a teenager about Calvin suddenly become real as he and Calvin reconnect and quickly become lovers.
Calvin’s planned restoration of the Clocktower Theatre may not be a practical possibility. He has to secure a lot of funding to do the job properly, and money is tight everywhere. When Emory’s big break comes faster than anticipated, Calvin sees only one option - step aside so Emory will accept the job he’s always wanted. It doesn’t take Emory long to figure out why Calvin walked out, and put in action a plan to win him back before the doors of time close between them permanently.
DOORS OF TIMEContemporary gay romance Available now at: http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/DoorsTime.html
KC Kendrickswebsite at: http://www.kckendricks.comblog: http://www.kckendricks.blogspot.comTwitter: http://www.twitter.com/kckendricksmailing list at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/betweenthekeysGoodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1989106.K_C_KendricksFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Kc-Kendricks/1439574042MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/kckendricks