Vicki Batman's Blog, page 46

Travels and Book w #author Bobbi Lerman #holidaybook #Tuscany #Europe #Christmasbook #MFRWorg

Travels and Book with
Bobbi Lerman

I’m not a sports person. I’m not a craft person. I’m a traveler. That’s my passion and has been since my mother my mother and I read The Secret Garden together when I was around eight years old. I begged her to take me to Mary’s secret garden in the wilds of Yorkshire. When she told me that was not possible. I replied with, I’ll get there. You wait and see. I never did find Mary’s garden, but the beauty northern England will stay with me forever.
   My favorite line: “Life is a journey; are you packed?”  One of my main core beliefs: Travel opens the mind and heart. 
  I’ve had a passport before a driver’s license. During my final year in high school when everyone was researching colleges, I had the TWA departures from Boston memorized. Yes, I ended up going to art school before dropping out for a year to go live on a kibbutz in Israel and backpack around Europe, explaining to my homebody, and perplexed parents how traveling was the best classroom in existence.  Although the act of travel has never been featured in one of my stories. Well unless you count time travel and then my holiday novella Providence featured in Season of Surprises meets that criteria. However, my travel experiences, memories, the images of places, people and conversations I’ve had and overheard are embedded in my brain for eternity and are an ongoing inspiration to my writing.  
Legendary matchmaker, Tillie has one last heart to mend before retiring, but Miriam and Mike may be her hardest match ever. Can she summon the magic one last time to bring the enchantment of love long given up back to life?  Tillie studied the two women as they opened their menus chatting nonstop with each other and with the elfin waitress now bringing their waters. Tillie almost laughed out loud at the sight of Dahlia impersonating a waitress just to get a close-up look at the next assignment.   A look at either woman was not a necessity for her. Mother and daughter looked a great deal alike and though the younger sat with her back to Tillie, she didn't need to see Molly Stein's face to know she and her mother shared more that a set of ever-changing, stormy, sea blue eyes or the same burnished copper shade of hair. She didn't need a close up look in Miriam Stein's eyes to see what lay hidden behind them. Despite the woman's outward cheeriness and rosy approach to life, Miriam Stein harbored a soul-breaking sadness with her heart.
   Tillie hoped her latest apprentice was up to the job. Dahlia's first, and, if all went as planned, Tillie's last. She hoped the girl wouldn't be a disappointment like her predecessors. Though if her instincts were right, this one possessed a real talent. Still, maybe she should have warned her little elf that the Stein matriarch would likely turn out to be a most difficult mission.   No matter. Tillie know she couldn't turn her back on the woman. Boca and her long-awaited retirement would have to wait until Tillie wakened Miriam's sleeping heart for one last chance at love.   Find Season of Promises at:  AmazonFind Bobbi at: Scribblers Ink
I love to travel, too, Bobbi, but didn't have much money for it when younger. Now, Handsome and I go everywhere. Where is your favorite spot?

Handbag and Book w #author Melodie Campbell #friends #coachhandbag #accessories #MFRW org #Rssos

Handbag and Book with
Melodie Campbell

I lost a dear friend recently to cancer.  Just before she died, she gave me this fridge magnet:  "Easily distracted by Shiny Objects."
Yes, Susan knew me well.  When I saw this Coach handbag on sale (Coach!!) I needed to buy it.  It's my Susan handbag.  It helps me smile through the tears. 

When fashionista and television celeb Gina Monroe goes home to attend the funeral of her late grandmother, the last thing she expects to encounter is murder. And the reading of the will is anything but fashionable as unanswered questions arise. Who is the dead woman in the woods behind the family house? And why is she dressed in Milano designer clothes?  When another murder occurs, Gina makes a discovery: What's more treacherous than navigating a pack of society matrons at a designer sale?  Stalking a killer...  Gina kept to the path and slowed her pace to a walk as she entered the clearing that led to her grandmother's property. Someone was sitting on the bench by the back fence.  She moved forward and then smiled. "Aunt Mandy! Tony will be pleased. When did you get in?" Aunt Mandy's eyes were wide and fearful. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.  "What's wrong?" Gina noticed Tony standing just a little ways off and there was something at his feet. A pile of something red. "Gina, don't come any closer," he warned. His voice was like gravel. She moved as if something pulled her forward. She took in the gold purse, the red dress on the twisted female body and farther off, the baseball bat streaked with blood.  "Gina," Tony pleaded.  Far away, she could hear her own voice screaming. 
Find A Purse to Die for:  Amazon
Find Melodie Campbell at: Website

I love your story about how you found your handbag, Melodie. I bet your friend is smiling over this.
Readers: have you bought something to commemorate a special time in your life?

Craft and Book w #author Rachel Brimble #knitting #hobbies #crafting #MFRWorg

Craft and Book with Rachel BrimbleI absolutely love to knit! Most evenings you will find me in front of the TV, glass of chilled white wine beside me and my knitting in hand. This is when I am the most relaxed and I fell into this blissful state completely by accident. 
 My mother is an expert knitter, although she doesn’t do so much these days. She was good enough that she would make up sweaters for designers in the US and get paid for her expertise.  






When I was young, she taught me the basics of knit and purl but I soon lost interest. It was only in my thirties when my mother in law asked if I could knit that I decided to try again. Within days, I was addicted and haven’t stopped since. I always have some project or another in hand…I even took my knitting to Portugal on holiday this year.   The burgundy cardigan is the first project I ever completed and since then I have made these cardigans for my two daughters whose friends love them so much, have now asked me to knit for them too. The blue top became known as the knitting project from hell…but I was determined to complete it, lol! 
How can she forgive him for what he didn't do?  Photographer Izzy Cooper feels as frozen as her pictures. Trent Palmer might be the hottest firefighter in Templeton Cove, but she can never face him again. Not after he failed to save her brother… 
Looking up, she held up a finger toward him as though asking him to wait for her. Surprise turned to pathetic relief as she jogged across the sand, her long blonde hair swinging back and forth in its ponytail. As she got closer, the more Trent tensed. It had been over a week since he’d seen her. The beach party a bigger disaster than he could’ve ever anticipated. She came up the steps toward him, tucking some fallen hair behind her ear. He noted the way she tried to smile for him, but it didn’t quite meet her eyes. “Hi.” He pushed his hands into the pockets of his work trousers. “Hi.” Slightly out of breath, she exhaled through pursed lips and stared into his eyes. “I think I owe you an apology.” She might as well as said she loved him. The pleasure that jolted through him probably wouldn’t have been any less powerful. He dragged his gaze from hers to look blindly toward a spot over her shoulder. “For what?” “For the way I spoke to you at the beach last week.” She sighed. “Won’t you at least look at me? You know apologizing doesn’t exactly come as second nature to me.” He turned. The trepidation and pleading in her gaze teemed with the blush at her cheeks, tugged at his chest. “I get it, Iz. It’s fine.” “What do you get?” “You need to blame me for Robbie’s death. You’ll only ever look at me and see a firefighter now. The man who couldn’t save your brother. You’ll never just see me. A guy who really likes you.” 
Find your Saved For The Firefighter at: Amazon
Find Rachel Brimble at: website
Rachel, what a lovely cover! Firefighters are so cool. What make you want to write about them?

Handbag and Book w author Rochelle Weber #organizedlife #accessories #VA #MFRWorg

Handbag and Book with
Rochelle Weber 

I bought my purse at K-Mart before it went out of business. It was designed by Jaclyn Smith and I love it because it has a lot of zippered compartments that allow me to organize the things I carry. The compartment in which I carry my cell phone is large enough to get it out easily when it rings. There’s a nice, large compartment where I can carry info about my books, one for my Kindle, one for meds/makeup, and most importantly, there’s a compartment I can use as a wallet with slots for IDs, credit cards, cash, coupons, a smaller zippered coin purse, etc.   It’s worn and the strap is getting shorter because it’s broken and I’ve had it fixed two or three times. I can’t find another purse like it, and I don’t know what I’ll do when I absolutely cannot use it anymore. I’ve looked and looked and not found anything that gives me the level of organization this purse does.
Kristen Jensen, a Navy veteran, tips the scale at a crippling three hundred pounds. In desperation she asks her VA therapist if she can go into addictions treatment with the guys where she meets Sean. With black hair, blue eyes, and a perfect body she figures the reason he’s speaking to her is that she’s the only other person in the room. The Haystack told their lead singer, Sean Wesley, to get clean or get out. But none of the big-name clinics worked. Sean’s a Desert Storm vet, so they send him to a VA in the middle of nowhere. When he meets Kristen the first day, he thinks it’s tragic such a pretty girl’s trapped in a huge body. And her honesty, intelligence, and bravery are even more impressing. Sean’s drawn to Kristen, but she’s had decades to build layers of defense. 
Sean Wesley went into the snack room to help himself to coffee and a roll. He’d probably gain weight while he was here without his personal trainer and weight room. He’d been a fat kid—always the last to be chosen for games, and stuck in right field when he did play. He’d been saved from a life of obesity by a growth spurt in his late teens, a judge who gave him a choice between jail and the Marines, and switching addictions from food to booze and then cocaine. 
By rights, Sean shouldn’t be at a VA facility. Celebrities like him usually got sober at places like the Betty Ford clinic or Hazelden. Actually, he’d come from Betty Ford, but he’d still felt shaky so his manager, Don Nelson, had done his homework. Danville, Illinois, was in the middle of nowhere. The program was different, based on Rational Emotive Therapy, and Sean was a veteran. While he made too much money to be treated at the VA, there’s money and then there’s money. Sean had money—the kind that opens doors and breaks down barriers. The kind that makes even the Federal Government say, “We’ll see what we can do,” and then do it. 
So here he was in the middle of a cornfield in bum-fuck Illinois at a shabby old VA hospital. An enormously obese woman came into the snack room interrupting his reverie, and Sean thought, That could’ve been me. What a shame—she’s so pretty.” * * * * Kristen noticed the table of goodies and the drop-dead-gorgeous man perusing them in the break room when she went in there to put her lunch in the refrigerator. “Want one? I heard they send ’em over every morning. I guess they’re yesterday’s leftovers.” That’s right. Offer sweets to the fat lady. She managed a tight grimace. “Thanks, but I’m here because I’m a food addict.” She held up her orange. “I’m Sean.” He prob’ly wouldn’t give a fat chick like me a second look anywhere else. Still, what is it about men with black hair and blue eyes that makes me go all mushy? “Hi.” “I’ve heard of food addicts, but what makes ya call yourself that?” “When my kids were little, I left them without a babysitter while I went to the store and wrote a rubber check for ice cream and M&Ms. I’d say I’ve been about as desperate for my fix as any addict or alcoholic.” “Wow! Yeah, I guess so.” He held the door for her as they exited and then followed her into the Day Room.  Find The Thin Person Inside at: MIUP Find Rochelle Weber at: Website

Rochelle, I noticed your bag is compartmentalized, very organized. When you buy your next handbag, will you look for the same kind?

Top blogger at Romance Lives Forever for October is me! #RomanceLivesForever #MFRWorg #Rssos #cancerwon'twin

Writing & Book





Sometimes, words escape me and I have few today as I was named top blogger at Romance Lives Forever. Owner Kayelle Allen asked me to blog about cancer. I went to Handsome and asked if I could continue to tell his story, his after story, about how this disease has affected him and our family. He said yes.


In case you missed, here's the link to our story. For some, it is scary. Be glad there are no pictures of all the surgeries, the stitches. Read it. Share it. Tell about it. And let me know.


Thank you, Romance Lives Forever!




And just in case you want to read my work, here's two romantic comedies for you to check out:





Amazon e-book: https://www.amazon.com/Temporarily-Insane-Hattie-Cooks-Mystery-ebook/dp/B01JBSHE0K/




Amazon e-book: https://www.amazon.com/Season-Promise-Merry-Holly-ebook/dp/B01LQUP9AS/ 

Recipe and Book w Ann Everett #sweetthangs #cooking #recipe #MFRWorg

Recipe and Book with Ann Everett
When I started writing the first book in my Tizzy/Ridge Trilogy, Laid Out and Candle Lit, I knew I wanted to include family members as characters because I have some colorful relatives!
In real life, my sister and I go by the names of Pattiecake and Sugarpie, so to put us in the story I figured with those monikers we needed to be bakers or pole dancers. Since I made us younger with bigger boobs, working a pole wasn’t out of the question, but in the end, I decided on bakers.
Then I had another brilliant idea. Why not write a companion cookbook to the series? Especially, since many scenes take place in Sweet Thangs Bakery with the owners serving up wit and wisdom right along with all those baked goods. How hard could it be? It’s just recipes. Right? No plotting, pacing, character development, dialogue, bedroom scenes…and no threads to tie up to make sure the story ends right!



I already had the recipes. My sister and I had been baking them for years so it wasn’t like I had to create all of them from scratch. I figured assembling and formatting 60-75 dishes should take me about six months. Easy—peasy…right?
NOT!
FOUR years and FIFTEEN pounds later, I finally got the book published. Turns out, it takes a long time to prepare each dish and photograph it! Plus, I ended with an assortment of over 130 luscious cakes, yummy cookies, sweet salads, delectable pies, scrumptious candy, and delightful drinks!
At the time, CreateSpace didn’t offer a hardcover option, so I went with IngramSpark. That experience is a whole ‘nuther’ story. If anyone is thinking of publishing a cookbook and has questions, please contact me and I’ll be happy to share what I learned.
But today, I’m sharing a simple cookie recipe with just 5 ingredients.
Pattiecake McAlister and Sugarpie Monroe cook up delicious confections at Sweet Thangs Bakery. These recipes are from the kitchens of real life sisters, Pattie Ball and Carol Mayfield.

SALTINE TOFFEE COOKIE: Simple…fast…delicious…5 ingredients
4 ounces saltine crackers
1 cup butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
¾ cups chopped pecans

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Line cookie sheet with foil for easy cleanup, then lay saltine crackers on sheet in a single layer. In a saucepan, combine the sugar and butter. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick or burn. Remove from heat and pour over saltines and spread to cover crackers completely.
Bake for 5-6 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of crackers. Let sit for 5 minutes, then spread melted chocolate with spatula, and sprinkle chopped nuts over the top. Cool completely and break into pieces. Ebook copies, for a limited time, are currently $2.99:   Amazon


Print copies, soft or hard cover, can be ordered at: Ann Everett Website
Ann, I'm so impressed with your work--a cookbook related to your book. Congratulations! So what is your favorite recipe?

Halloween and being a Princess #Halloweencostumes #giveaway #MFRWorg #Rssos

When growing up and Halloween came around, my sisters and I had to make our costumes, not buy. No way would my mother waste money on costumes to wear only once.




One summer, my friend and I were roaming the neighborhood and came across a yard sale. What caught my eye? A very beautiful blue dress with blue embroidery and yards of matching tulle for the underskirt. The price? Very affordable. I went home and cracked open my piggy bank and returned to the sale where I purchased the dress.




So Halloween comes around and I wore the dress. I truly felt like a princess.




Nowadays, I go as myself because I am married to a superhero. LOL. Yes, it's kinda cheating.



Perhaps, you might want to enter this rafflecopter for lots of great giveaways from tons of good authors:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Or perhaps, you're looking for a fun book to read! If so, try Temporarily Insane, a romantic comedy mystery by yours truly:
Amazon ebook   Amazon PB    TWRPPB   B&N ebook    Kobo    iTunes
What is your favorite all time costume you wore for Halloween?






#Romance Your Autumn Nights #Giveaway #MFRWorg #Rssos #RB4U #TWRP #kindlereaders

Welcome to the Romance Your Autumn Nights Kindle Giveaway! I’m delighted to be participating in this exciting festive event. Check out all the prizes that are up for grabs.


PRIZES
GRAND PRIZE – Kindle eReader + $25 Amazon gift card
1st PRIZE – $50 Amazon gift card (2 winners)
2nd PRIZE – $25 Amazon gift card (2 winners)
3rd PRIZE – $10 Amazon gift card (2 winners)
4th PRIZE – $5 Amazon gift card (2 winners)
5th Various swag items (5 winners – US only)


You can see the full Rafflecopter below this post or visit this LINK
And did I mention Facebook party on October 27? Just us then at: HERE for more chances to win! I'll be posting at 5pm est, 6 cdt. And I have a nice giveaway to add. Other authors will be dropping by .












Hope to see you at the party, and good luck with the main event!a Rafflecopter giveaway




Here's what readers say about Temporarily Insane: This series is definitely worth reading the characters are fresh and enduring and they hold this book together perfectly. The writing, the plot, the characters all draw this book together and leave you wanting more. When this story ended I wanted more, wanted it to be longer, wanted Allen and Hattie together do many wants not enough book. I can’t wait to see what’s next for this series because whatever it is it will be great. 


Want to dive into some romantic comedy fun? Find Temporarily Insane at: Amazon ebook Amazon pb  B&N  kobo  Newsletter

Creating Book Covers with Charlene Raddon #MFRWorg #Rssos #newbook #westernromance

Writing & Book with...Charlene Raddon A book cover shouldn’t be only an image; it should be the essence of the story within the book. When a reader looks at a cover, they should be able to ascertain the genre and at least a hint of what the story is about. This is a huge challenge for the cover designer, particularly if the story is historical.




For several years now, I have been creating book covers. I’ve learned a great deal about the tricks of the trade; how to make the models blend into the background, how to make them look natural, and appealing. Most important, I try to create my covers so they almost tell a story by themselves. My hope is that they will speak to the viewer and invite them inside the pages within.




Of course, I’ve done my own covers. My favorite is Taming Jenna, a historical western set in Utah. The heroine, Jenna, is a Pinkerton Agent assigned to bring in a train robber she can only identify by a scar on his bottom. Jenna tracks him to a Utah canyon, pulls a gun on him, and make him drop his trousers.


Jenna isn’t the usual heroine. Losing her father at a young age and having to care for her mother and raise herself created a woman determined to be able to out-cuss, out-shoot, and out-think any man. She dresses like a boy and fears nothing, except marriage. 
 


My challenge for Taming Jenna’s cover was to show Jenna’s character. To do that, I picked an image of a woman dressed in jeans and a gun belt. Her eyes reflect her determination to succeed. Why didn’t I show Branch, the hero? If I ever re-do the cover, I might do that. But Jenna is a loner, who thinks little of men and wants nothing to do with them. So showing her alone seemed appropriate.
 


Naturally, I show her in mountains similar to those in Utah, and of course, she had to have a horse. 
 


The hero, Branch McCauley, is humiliated when she gets the drop on him. Finding out he’s the wrong man, she skedaddles, but Branch goes after her. As a bounty hunter, he happens to be after the same outlaw. He wants revenge, and to learn what she knows about the villain.
 


The story is a fun series of ‘I catch him,’ ‘you catch him,’ and ‘we catch him together.’ Too often for Branch’s comfort, Jenna gets the best of him—until she takes a bullet and he has to take her to his family in Park City for doctoring.  There, she learns what a family should be like, and feels the first flush of attraction for a man.
So much for trying to be friendly, Jenna thought. What now? She clenched her knees together to still their shaking and swallowed the knot of fear in her throat.




"Look." McCauley shifted his weight to one leg. "Why don't you put your gun away and have a sit? I might know something about the hombre you're hunting."




Hombre. Sounded Spanish—like Mendoza. Had to be him. She needed to get his six-shooter away from him. Surprise seemed the best means. She squeezed the trigger of the .44 Starr. The bullet kicked dirt onto the man's scuffed boots. He jumped and let out a yelp as though she'd set his feet afire.




"Dammit, kid, going up against me won't get you anything but a six-foot hole in the ground."




"Shut up and toss over your gun, or I'll turn them boots into sieves. ’Course, my sights might be a bit off." She raised the muzzle toward his groin.




"You made your point," he growled and unbuckled his gun belt. He tossed it over.




Instead of the fancy weapon she might have expected a gunslinger to own, a plain Colt lay at her feet. No ivory handle or engraved barrel. Only an ordinary .44 Peacemaker, crafted and worn for one reason—to kill. The thought did funny things to her innards.
 


"All right," she said, getting back to business. "You aren't going to like this, mister, but I don't know any other way to be sure who you are. Drop them trousers to your ankles."




"Do what?"



Find Charlene at: Website
Find Taming Jenna at:  Amazon




What kind of covers appeals to you--ones with real people posed? or graphic?


 

author @VickiBatman - #handbag and #book : I made a handbag and you could too #MFRWorg #RLF #Rssos #RB4U

Handbag and Book


Before I began writing in earnest, I was bitten by the jewelry bug. I made all kinds of bracelets, watches, pins, and yes, cigar box handbags.
My dad picked up cigar boxes to store clock parts in as he repaired old clocks and there were a lot of parts. Every now and then, I'd rummage through them and find ones I thought would be sturdy for a handbag. Handsome helped me add the eye hooks and I made the handle. The interior is just as interesting as the exterior:


I suppose I could have added felt or a mirror, but I didn't. It's attractive all by itself.


Does Hattie carry handbags? Of course! Here's a sample from the romantic comedy mystery, Temporarily Insane:


To complete my ensemble, I carried a red leather handbag, a designer knock-off.
I raced to my bedroom, flung my handbag with bamboo handles on the bed.
I could save up and treat myself to my favorite accessory: a new handbag. Now, that is money well spent.
Find out more tricks at: Amazon ebook Amazon pb  B&N  kobo  Newsletter

Do you like to read books and discover familiar elements like styles of cars, favorite foods, handbags?