Vicki Batman's Blog, page 42

Psst. I have a secret #JustYouandMe #boxedset #romanticcomedy #MFRWorg

There are some secrets in my writing.

Oh yes. Some readers may pick up on them. A name. A place. A pet. A car. Those things do infiltrate. And many other authors do the same. It's fun, like an inside secret.

Soon, my romantic comedy short story, "Raving Beauty," will be published in the Just You and Me boxed set. I'd written this story several years--that's the truth--ago. And I knew the story was special and needed to be published in a special place. And surprise! surprise! surprise! I dropped in some of my secrets.
What if the love of your life was in front of you all along?  Authors: Nicole Morgan  Desiree Holt  Jacquie Biggar  Ashlyn Chase  Dalton Diaz  Brenna Zinn  Kate Richards  Liz Durano  Deelylah Mullin  Vicki Batman  Tierney O'Malley  Caitlyn Lynch  Fiona Miers  Cate Farren  Krista Ames Here's a few secret teasers from "Raving Beauty:"

Beauty pageant
Torn Ligament
Pink polka-dotted pajamas
Romper

Interested in more? VBG 

For more fun, preorder your own copy for 99cents at: Amazon


Feel like sharing a deep dark secret?

#Handbag and #Book : #MaryFranceshandbag #dressingforchurch #MFRWorg #JustYouandMe

Handbag & BookA Sunday handbag is always special. I pulled out this beautiful creation:


I have to say the picture doesn't do this Mary Frances bag justice. This one is larger than most of hers which is nice. I don't have to pare down the lipstick and extra stuff. But I only carry it on special occasions. As you can see, there are velvety flowers with satiny green leaves. Pale bronze beads decorate the petals. Then there are beaded strands looping over it. The background is black. The handle and closure are intricate. It does come with a beaded shoulder bag handle, but I opt out of using it. This one should be proudly looped over one's arm and carried.

I found my Mary Frances bag in Las Vegas on a sister's birthday trip. I'd never ever spent that kind of moola before. But I have no regrets.

What kind of handbag do you splurge on?


What else can be a splurge-how about Just You and Me, a boxed set chocked full of great romance.. All the fun is at: Amazon

Freaky Weather Follies #MFRWorg #whatsupinyourneighborhood #winterblues

When we think of winter in North America, we think cold—right? At least for most of us, and even then, there’s the weird stuff like the blizzard a while back in Georgia. Usually, the days are cold here, the heater is on to warm my feet, a light wool sweater, long sleeves. When going outdoors, I add a coat layer, gloves, and a scarf.


  This year has been so different. What I described above was the norm until we hit mid-Jan. But no snow or ice, just a scare. A big rain and little drizzle stuff. Since, we’ve been experiencing early Spring, despite the groundhog’s prediction. Leaves from the bulbs are pushing through the ground. The shrubs and fruit trees are budding. My early predictor is my flowering quince which has been blooming for three weeks now—with bees.Doesn’t seem normal. I still want some exciting stuff. A good snow. A few gray days for snuggling on the couch with a good book. Movies on the telly. Blankies on the lap. Kids home from school and playing.I do have to remember what happened to me long ago. One Sunday morning, I drove my sister and friend to work. There was a drizzle and light ice, but nothing seemed significant. I took the loop on the turnpike and bam, rammed the center median. Seems on April 2 there was an ice storm. Sooo unexpected. And there’s not been one that late in the year since.Mother Nature definitely has her own ideas.  In case there is cozy-on-the-couch weather, be enticed with the holiday anthology, Season of Promises, which features my romantic comedy short story, “The Littlest Angel.” Find the fun at: Amazon
 

Travel and Book with Linda Tillis #romance, #TrentonNewJersey #caregiver #MFRWorg

 
Travel and Book withLinda TillisWhen I retired the first time, it was after twenty years as a Crime Scene Investigator with the local Police Department. It had been a rough twenty years and my husband finally sat me down and told me the job was slowly killing me. So, after so many years of shift work, long hours, and traumatic cases, I retired.  He knew I needed time to heal, both mentally and physically, so he bought me a good camera, and told me to go out and take photos of living things.  We started taking long drives, and I did a lot of nature photography. During one of these trips we passed through a rural town called Trenton, Florida.  
He mentioned that his father was born there, so naturally I was interested. I slowed down and was delighted when I saw a quilt shop. (a weakness of mine) But this was not just any quilt shop. It was housed in an old Coca Cola bottling plant, built in 1925. The building had been restored, and housed a lovely little café, a beautiful, well stocked quilt shop, and numerous antique stores. 
 When I started writing “A Heart Made For Love” it seemed only fitting that the “rural” setting would have to be Trenton. 
A Heart Made For Love is the story of a young woman’s journey, from victim to victorious, which leads her to discover her own inner strength as she aids others in finding theirs.  Mae Hinton’s mother’s untimely death leaves her the caregiver to her family in rural Florida in 1903. At seventeen, her faith in her Lord is tested when she is attacked by a band of roving miscreants, led by handsome but bitter, Langford Hardwick.  She embarks on a mission to help other women overcome their similar plights. Before she knows peace, she will meet her future husband, encounter bigoted ministers, well-to-do hypocrites, and men who have higher regard for their livestock than their women. When Hardwick reappears, she must decide whether she will handle it, or if vengeance truly belongs to the Lord.  Find A Heart Made for Each Other at:  Amazon  Find Linda Tillis at:  Facebook

Featuring Armaan Dhillon #mystery #thriller writer #MTW #MFRWorg

TODAY’S guest for Mystery Thriller Week is Armaan Singh Dhillon, author ofA Nazi War Criminal In India  WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO WRITE? In general, I think it was just the love I had towards writing. I’m one of those who feel that writing can move people to a great extent. Both in Positive and Negative direction. It goes for movie screenwriting as well as for a novel or any book. A good story can go bad if the writing is not up to the mark and a mediocre one can reach good heights if words and writing is done by someone who feels the story, words. Someone who knows how to write a sentence in a way which will leave a big mark in the mind of the reader for a very long time. Writing is a free tool and can be used for almost every decision. All the laws, amendments etc are first written down and then followed. Writing has the power to put the world upside down 
WHAT DREAMS HAVE BEEN REALIZED AS A RESULT OF YOUR WRITING? Satisfaction that you get from writing a book. I remember when I had just started writing my book, I used to think about fame, money etc. all the materialistic things that exist was in my mind. But it was after my book got published that I was content with the satisfaction of just getting my work out there in the public. There's a sense of self-respect. People also see you with respect. I think that's the best reward of being an author. So having published a novel was a dream which has now been realized.  HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF YOUR BOOK? “A Nazi War Criminal In India” is my first book. Nazis have always fascinated me. Although I strongly believe that whatever they did during their regime was wrong and I condemn it, but the way they controlled everyone, their uniforms, banners, salute and their way of acting towards an issue was just unique and different which mesmerised me. The movies that I have watched related to Nazis have always made me want to write something of my own. So relating Nazis to India was a big task, but I worked on it for a very long time and came up with this story. And I do believe that I have done justice to the whole concept of my story.

   Be aware of your surroundings. Check whether the person you are friends with seems suspicious to you or not.     21st July 2011  I was tired, exhausted and my mind didn’t seem to work at all. I stared down at the cigarette grasped effortlessly by my fingers. I debated with myself whether or not to smoke it, but eventually gave in to my craving for that nicotine hit and decided to light it in just a bit. I didn’t even realise that I had reached my college after walking for 15 kilometres on an extremely sunny day. I looked up consciously for the first time since I started walking from “that” house. I was sweaty and thirsty. There were a few acquaintances who said “Hi” and “Kaisa hai Rohan Ahluwalia” to me, to which all I could respond was, with mere expressionless stares. I saw a board which said that the renowned film director ‘Ayush Mehra’ is visiting our college to present a motivational speech.  FIND AUTHOR  Armaan Singh Dhillon at: Author Central Page FIND A Nazi War Criminal In India AT: Amazon
Armaan, you mentioned World War II movies that fascinated you--can you tell me some of them?

#MysteryThrillerWeek continues with Paul Parker #militarythriller #financialcrimethriller #Marine #MFRWorg

TODAY’S Mystery Thriller Week AUTHOR IS:  PAUL RUSSELL PARKER III ofAll In:  The Globe Trot Shuffle,
a Military, Financial Crime Thriller   HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF YOUR BOOK? I came up with the idea for my book when I was a US Marine during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.  We heard that other Americans found large amounts of money or gold in palaces and we wondered what we would have done if we found hidden currency.  We never would have taken any, but we did spend many evenings discussing how we could have smuggled it home if we did ever cross that line!  WHAT DREAMS HAVE BEEN REALIZED AS A RESULT OF YOUR WRITING? My dream of seeing my name written across the cover of a book has been realized!  I see my novels on my bookshelf and I still can’t believe it.  I’ve always wanted to write a book, and now I’ve done it.  WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU SOLD YOUR FIRST BOOK? The first time I saw a sale on my Amazon report page, I nearly leapt for joy!  I called my wife over and told her that someone is reading my book on their eReader; my book!  I couldn’t stop smiling.  I spent the whole afternoon trying to imagine who bought it, and wondering how much they were enjoying the story. 

A team of US Marines make a discovery of a lifetime in one of the dictator’s palaces during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.  They embark on a deadly journey across the globe to make good on it. 
A line of green military vehicles slowly drove down the road.  They couldn’t tell if they were driving on a dirt path, or on a real road.  The vehicles were swallowed by a red sand storm that looked like something out of a science fiction movie.  It felt like they were at the bottom of a murky river, surrounded by predators just out of sight.  Predators ready to strike. “I can’t see a fuckin thing,” Diaz said.   The HMMWV’s engine, and the howl of the wind made it hard to be heard.  Holding the steering wheel with one hand, Diaz tried to wipe the sand gathering on top of his goggles.  Warden knew he had to reassure Diaz, because they were all under a huge amount of stress.  He just didn’t know what to say to sound convincing.  But he’d try his best.       “Shit Deez….  Just maintain speed and distance  FIND AUTHOR PAUL RUSSELL PARKER III AT:  Website
FIND All In:  The Globe Trot Shuffle at:  Amazon
Paul, do you plan on continuing to write military thrillers or some other genre?

#MysteryThrillerWeek with #author ChristinaHoag #MFRWorg #tattoos #plottingideas

TODAY’S GUEST IS AUTHOR CHRISTINA HOAG author of Skin of Tattoos, a gangland thriller   WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO WRITE? I won a prize for “writing interesting stories” when I was six years old so I think writing was something I was born with. I was also a voracious reader so that made me want to write books when I grew up. In high school, I discovered journalism - a career that would pay me to write! I wrote short stories on and off until I really focused on my childhood goal of writing novels about a dozen years ago.  ARE YOU A PLOTTER OR PANTSER? A bit of both. I like to know where I’m going so I have a loose outline to avoid writing myself into corners. That said, I change stuff as I go all the time. Having at least a mini-outlines, even covering just the next chapter or two, helps to get you started when you sit down at the computer every day so you avoid wasting time wondering what comes next.    HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF YOUR BOOK? I went El Salvador back in 2000 to do a magazine story on gang members deported from Los Angeles to San Salvador, which most of them really didn’t know because their families had emigrated when they were infants with the result that they belonged neither in El Salvador or in the United States. Their story resonated with me. I could relate to them because I had moved around the world as a child, so I also feel I don’t really belong anywhere. Although my novel is not about deported gang members; it’s the tale of rival homeboys in L.A., the book was inspired by those interviews in El Salvador.
Los Angeles homeboy Magdaleno is desperate to get out of gang life, but if he does, he stands to lose everything – and everyone - he loves.  Night in L.A. can be heavy as a medieval cloak or it can sparkle and crackle. It can burn you with its current, protect you or betray you. It can be like a jaina with a wet pout and curves that clap into your cupped hands. Tonight L.A. was just heavy; swimming in sweet syrup heavy. I stood on the sidewalk and breathed in a lungful of darkness. For the first time in twenty-six months and thirteen days, I was free to go to the corner store and buy a Snickers. At least that was my excuse for slipping out my first night home, in case anyone asked. But they didn’t. Moms and my sisters went to bed, my brother Frank wouldn’t be home til the next day and Pops was working his night job. I bolted.   The quietness rang in my ears like I’d been punched upside the head. I had to listen to find noise. It was there. A siren whooped, a car door slammed, but they were faded, comfortable noises like a pair of old jeans. Noise wasn't up close like in lockup with all its yelling, buzzing, clanging—the constant rumble of hundreds of angry vatos. And it was dark. No lights blaring into every little crack of privacy all the time.  Find author Christina Hoag at: WebsiteFind Skin of Tattoos at: Amazon
Christina, you mentioned you moved all over the word--can you share where else you've lived?  

#MysteryThrillerWeek #author Miriam A. Averna #thriller #mystery #MFRWorg

TODAY’S  #MysteryThrillerWeek author is
Miriam A. Averna, writer of No Cure for Fear   WHAT TYPE OF MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?  I listen mostly to Indie and Rock but if a song has a catchy tune, be it Taylor Swift or Rudimental, then I will undoubtedly add it to my playlist.  WHAT DREW YOU INTO WRITING THE GENRE YOU DO?  I love thrillers, always have done.  They say you should write the genre you've read the most and I certainly have.  My favorite thriller writer is Blake Crouch - love his ideas!  HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF YOUR BOOK?  It was actually during a Creative Writing class.  The teacher held up a newspaper article on thieving apes on a down-trodden housing estate and then my mind went off on a tangent.  Happy to report there are no apes in my finished book! How far would you go to save a loved one?  How many other lives would you risk in the process?  ‘If we’d wanted the best we would’ve approached your brother.’  
That was a knee in the stomach for Ralph. ‘You're good at what you do,’ a pause before she continued, ‘but your brother is, well, much better.'  This wasn’t news to him, but she didn’t have to deliver it so cuttingly and with such nonchalance.  ‘Your brother is moral, ethical, everything that you, conveniently for us, are not. You were the right ‘fit' Ralph.' she said, using her fingers to indicate speech marks.  He hated how she seemed to relish putting him down, but the lump now lodged in his throat stopped him responding, allowing the onslaught to continue.  Unaware of the torment within Ralph, she went on ‘No, we wanted someone with questionable scruples and unabashed determination, someone desperate, if you will.' Dr Ripley looked directly into his eyes.  Ralph's mouth was dry, his palms sweaty. He tried to swallow but couldn't.  ‘We know your history, Ralph.' said Dr Ripley, flatly. 
He knew exactly what the doctor was referring to. Something he was certain at the time would inevitably shape his future. How she’d come to learn of it was what unnerved him the most. Recalling the methodological approach that he’d taken to cement his future in biomedicine, simultaneously shattering that of his lab partner, he raised his chin slightly, knowing his actions to have been nothing other than justified. His lips formed an arrogant smirk as he cleared his throat. ‘It was natural selection,' he retorted, ‘collateral damage, if you will.’ 
FIND AUTHOR   Miriam A. Averna at:  Website
FIND No Cure for Fear at: Amazon

Miriam, I love how the article in your creative writing class jumpstarted your story. Did your head go BING! when you began?

#MysteryThrillerWeek w P. J. Lazos author of an #ecothriller #MFRWorg #amjournaling

TODAY’S Mystery Thriller Week author is  P. J. Lazos,
author of the Eco Thriller "Oil and Water."   WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO WRITE? I remember writing things down in a journal when I was quite young before journals were even a thing.  I made little cards for my friends and family and wrote notes in them, telling them how much I appreciated what they did or my thoughts on things that concerned them, the world, or whatever I was into at the time (even then, I couldn't keep my opinions to myself).  When I was ten, my mom signed me and a friend up for an oil painting class and I loved it so much that I put writing aside for about thirty years and dabbled in various mediums such as drawing, oils and acrylics, photography, and other things.  When I moved to Central PA in 1994, a friend took me along with her to a writing class. I fell in love with writing all over again and have been at it ever since.  WHERE DO YOU DO YOUR BEST WRITING? In the morning, when the house is quiet and no one is up, with the exception of me and the cats, I sit at the kitchen table and drink coffee and stare out the window to the woods and farm field beyond.  It's a bit of heaven.  Second best writing spot is on Amtrak. I have a long commute.   ARE YOU A PLOTTER OR PANTSER? Definitely a pantser (although I think the word should be "pantster" with the extra "t", like prankster).  I start with a general idea, knowing roughly where I'm going and what the resolution will be.  Then I do the research which always changes your ideas because you learn things you didn't know, and then, I follow my characters down whatever paths they wish to take and I see what I've got at the end, fixing all the mistakes in the rewrites. It's so much more fun to let your characters wander than it is to tell them what to do. 

  Oil and Water is a "taut, timely, ecological thriller" about oil spills and green technology "that will have you turning the pages faster than blades in a wind farm."  Marty Tirabi sat on a stool aside his drafting table, an aluminum pie plate in each hand. His eyes were closed, his spine erect, his breathing slow and regular, his conscious mind sitting on the pinnacle of present awareness. At the exact moment Marty’s consciousness shifted, sliding across the threshold from beta to alpha to delta like a single-base hitter stealing home, Marty’s grip slackened, and the pie plates clattered to the floor. He woke with a start and stared, wide-eyed, at the back wall of the barn where It sat, all the while scanning his interior databases for a revelation that refused to be retrieved. 
Marty rubbed his forehead. This was how Thomas Edison had done it, mining the gem-rich ground of his subconscious by bringing himself to the brink of sleep, then pulling back with a start for a third-party observer’s view. The results of Edison’s efforts were the light bulb and one thousand and ninety-two other patented inventions, but Marty’d be damned if he could get Edison’s process to work.  FIND AUTHOR P. J. Lazos at: Website
FIND "Oil and Water"  AT:  Amazon
P. J., I have never heard of an eco thriller before. What guided you to write one?

#MTW author D. M. Barr #eroticmystery #RealEstate #thriller #MFRWorg

Mystery Thriller Week continues with D.M. Barr,
 author of Expired Listings, a psychological thriller
 with satiric, romantic and erotic elements.  
  WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO WRITE?  I love being read. I love knowing I've entertained people, made them laugh and maybe changed their mind about something or helped them with their business (I used to be a marketing/business magazine writer.)     WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU SOLD YOUR FIRST BOOK?  It was ironic because the first book to sell was the second one I wrote. The first one, I spent so much on editing, cover design, etc., and queried about 150 agents and 50 publications before I got my agent and some book deals. This second book? An erotic romance novella, no professional editing. I put together some short stories I'd written and sent it off to Loose Id for the hell of it. I received an answer in a week! I was in Atlantic City for the World Tavern Trivia National Finals and had just arrived at a restaurant for lunch when I opened the email. I shrieked and spent the rest of the lunch in a daze. I was going to be published—as a FICTION writer!    WHAT IS THE FIRST BOOK YOU REMEMBER READING?  I read the Honey Bunch books as a child (they were already old but I'm sure I'm dating myself.) I loved them. There was one where Honey Bunch wanders off and ends up in an orphanage and then they take the orphans to an amusement park where they had full access to the park and Belgian Waffles. At least that's how I remember it and this was way before all-access passes existed for amusement parks. It stayed with me. 
  
"Glengarry Glen Ross"meets "50 Shades of Grey" with a body count.  Real Estate can be murder!    The first “What the fuck?!” is always the sweetest. The impassioned pleas and expletives that follow have their own particular charm—it’s true—but nothing beats that first moment when the chloroform wears off and prey senses predicament.   The makeshift dungeon is brightly lit for my viewing pleasure, but not my guest’s, whose blindfold ensures both darkness and disorientation. The closed-circuit camera captures the delicious onset of adrenalin dump: the tensing muscles, the primal struggle against the leather ankle and wrist restraints, the mounting desperation as the brain registers there is no give, no escape. Ah, yes.   I turn up the speakers, return to my overstuffed recliner, close my eyes and savor the serenade of screams, the verbal pageant of anguish that fills my cozy viewing chamber. It’s orgasmic, this frantic, intoxicating journey from indignation to resignation, marked by hoarsened throat and slackened struggle.    FIND AUTHOR D.M. Barr at: Website  FIND "Expired Listings" AT: Book

Dawn, your author photo features you wearing a mask. What is the mask for?