Kate Collins's Blog, page 61

It's all about the friendships

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

It's great to visit friends you haven't seen in a while, and that's who I feel about The Lotus Bay Mysteries. I wish I could visit all my characters more often, but when you're juggling five (or is it six?) series, it gets hard.

But I have a soft spot on The Lotus Bay Mysteries, and that's because they're a a little different than my other more traditional cozy mysteries. There's something a little more edgy about the crimes, and the spotlight is thrown on the four (and possibly five) women entrepreneurs and their relationships.

Things aren't necessarily good among them in this next outing, A REEL CATCH (out August 3rd). They're tested. And it isn't the established friendship between Tori Cannon and her BFF, Kathy Grant, that's in trouble. They may bicker a bit, but there will never be any real problems between them.

But what about the friendships they have with Kathy's contractor, Anissa Jackons? How about with Noreen Darcy, the part-owner and short-order cook for The Bay Bay. And what secrets does Lucinda Bloomfield, the richest woman in the county have to hide?

Here's the official description:
Swans Nest Inn is about to open, and Kathy Grant solicits her BFF, Tori Cannon, to help spruce up her property at the marshy end of Lotus Bay, only they didn’t count on finding a body. Who was he? What’s his connection to their friend Paul Darcy? Meanwhile, two entrepreneurs with vast business ties are interested in helping Tori reopen the Lotus Lodge, and their real motives are as murky as the bay after a storm. Will Swans Nest open on time? Will the Lotus Lodge reopen at all?

A REEL CATCH will be available on August 3rd. It's available for pre-order right now!

Kindle US  |  Kindle Worldwide  |  Nook  | iBooks  | Kobo

The book will be available in print and (crossing fingers) audio on August 3rd, too.

Chalk it up

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

I watch a lot of Youtube videos on a variety of subjects. I like to watch DIY ones, especially about furniture refinishing. These days, a lot of DIYers are using chalk paint. Hmm. That sounded interesting. No sanding!  YAY! But man, have you seen the price for a quart? It can be as expensive as $30+!!!

What do to? I went to Etsy and found you could get sample pots of paint. I got five of them for $20. Of course, I got charged $7 for shipping, but they arrived in less than a week and I wasn't sure what to do with them. The site didn't show you the colors, just listed the names, so I chose what I thought would be "cool" colors. The ivory and sage green work best for me.



So far I've done three projects.  Yeah, no sanding. But what they don't tell you is that you need to do at least three coats of paint for everything. And then they have to be sealed with either wax or some of polyurethane product. Hmmm. For the first one, I decided to distress the little picture frame. It's plastic and looked way too shiny.



(FYI: This little framed piece of lace in the frame is about 5 inches across -- and it hangs on the nail that supports my calendar.)

Here's the second project.



Again, the frame was resin, and I just didn't like how shiny they were. I decided not to distress these.

I did one more project but it got scratched (I should have put more than one coat of the varnish on) so I have to start over on that one.  (It's the lid to a large glass (square) jar. I painted it sage green to make it look older and it worked. But like I said, now I have to start over.)

So, what do I think of chalk paint? It's a pain in the butt to use. It's time consuming, it has to be sealed or it scraches right off. Right after I bought the paint, I saw a blog post from a woman who is gutting and revamping her house (by herself!!!) and she wrote a long treatise on why she doesn't like/use chalk paint. I could have saved myself a lot of time if I'd found that blog post first.  But now I have all that paint and I feel obligated to use it up.  Oh, and by the way, a little goes a L-O-N-G way.

I've got a gold mirror (also plastic) that I thought I would like, but never did. I'm going to paint it ivory and distress it and I'll bet I still have a lot of paint left. How eager am I to start that project? Not so much. But it will be done later this summer. 

Last weekend I bought a little shelf. It was in pretty rough shape, but I scrubbed it clean, bought a can of spray paint, and now it's very cute and will house some of my cookbooks.

Wow.  Spray paint is a lot easier to use. The paint hardens and is good for years and years. (Oops -- sorry. this is actualy the before picture. I forgot to take the after.)

So, what's your latest DIY project? Did it come out the way you thought it would?

Meet Cupboard Maker Books Adorable Cats!!!

by Karen Rose Smith

I had the most fun at a bookstore book signing than I’ve ever had. Cupboard Maker Books in Enola, Pennsylvania, is an adoption center for cats.  Castaway Critters in Mechanicsburg is a cat rescue organization.  Cats that are rescued are placed in foster homes.  Then the book store manager at Cupboard Maker books (Michelle) houses a few until they’re adopted.  There is a screening process.
About the cats...  My husband and I are cat parents to 5 inside cats and 2 outside felines that are still feral.  So our house is full.  But there were two cats up for adoption I would have loved to bring home.
Walter, gray and white, is a friendly male who came to sit on the signing table with me.  After smelling my hand, he decided he could be affectionate.  He is ready for adoption.







Hope, a multi-colored tabby, stole my heart and my husband’s.  She’s 6-8 months old.  She was found on the streets of Harrisburg after she had a litter of kittens.  She needed to gain weight before being spayed and is now at a healthy weight.  She’s soooo affectionate.  While I was signing, she jumped in my lap.  For much of the book signing, she sat on my husband’s lap at the back of the store. She also stole my pillow and didn't want to climb off before we left.

Squeeky is a store cat who lives at Cupboard Maker all the time. 





Princess, a Persian who thinks she owns the place and travels across the catwalk above the bookshelves, is definitely royalty and also a permanent resident. She looks like a little lion. 

If you are ever around Enola, PA, stop in at Cupboard Maker Books and enjoy a totally different bookstore atmosphere. And adopt a people-friendly feline!

Guess what section this photo was from!

Off the Vine

Now that summer is here it’s time for farmers’ markets. Every community in the area has their market day where you go to the local square, church parking lot, community center etc to pick up local grown produce on a certain day of the week. I just love these markets! Saturday is the big market day around here and some markets are bigger than others. Here in Cincy we have Findlay Market that is open all year round with covered stalls inside a building that sell local meats, pastries, pastas, oils, fish, sausage. But come summer there is an outside area for local farmers to sell their wares. And they sell everything! There are the usual veggies but they also sell plants for your garden, homemade soaps, breads, pastries, butters, pies honey...love the local honey...and the like. If you like homemade items this is perfect. The pies are always with locally grown fruits and the breads etc are fresh and crunchy.I love this part of the markets but for me the big reason I buy is the locally gown organic veggies. They are right off the vine or stock and right to you. I wish I planted a garden of my own but the deer would have it leveled in one day. To keep them away I would have to spray with all kinds of goop and who wants to eat that!
So what about you? Do you have a fave farmers’ market you go to? What is you fave thing to buy? The corn on the cob is amazing! The tomatoes are fab! The apples, peaches, plums are so good that I always eat them going home in the car. Are you a farmers’ market fan?

Dyeing Up Loose Ends

by Maggie Sefton






Just a reminder----the new Kelly Flynn Mystery will be available on July 7th.  DYEING UP LOOSE ENDS.  It's the 16th in the mystery series.  :)  

SHOULD WOMEN SUFFER FOR FASHION?

by Mary Kennedy                                       
                                                                   

Kristen Stewart walked barefoot on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival. Why? Was it because her shoes hurt? No! She was protesting the "no flats" rule laid down by the film festival organizers. 

Why should women suffer for fashion? Have you seen some of the insanely high heels by top designers? Take a gander at these beauties...                                                                             
 Who would design something this awful? Who would wear them? 
                                                                                  
I guess the bigger question is, are they even "wearable?" Could anyone walk in these, or even stand in them?                                                                                     
One model admitted that she couldn't really "stand up" in her new heels and had to be carried around at a photo shoot.  If she had to be carried at a photo shoot, how could she ever wear them in the real world? The "objects" on the model's feet in the next photograph, don't really bear much resemblance to shoes, do they? I can't imagine her standing or walking in them.
                                                                                     
You'd think we would have progressed from the days when Asian women bound their feet.

I'm glad Kristen Stewart made a statement by walking barefoot in Cannes. Will it have any lasting effect on designers and their ridiculous creations? No idea, but at least she tried.
Mary Kennedy

In Paperback on Tuesday!

  by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett


I know a lot of you have been waiting for Booktown #11 to come out in paperback. Well, Tuesday is the day!  Not only that, but the publisher will drop the price of the ebook edition on the same day. You can't go wrong!

Here's the description:

Tricia Miles, mystery bookstore owner and amateur sleuth, is in for a surprise when her ne’er-do-well father, John, comes to town—and promptly becomes a prime suspect in the murder of a woman with her own scandalous past. Even Tricia’s faith in the old man is shaken when the Stoneham police break the news that her father is a known con man who has done jail time. From merlot to murder, Tricia is determined to clear the family name before another body shows up and ruins Stoneham’s first—and highly anticipated—wine and jazz festival.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books A Million |  Chapters | Book Depository | IndieBound

Kindle US | Kindle Worldwide | Nook | iBooks | Kobo

Recipe for Cinnamon Scones

by Karen Rose Smith



When I developed the cinnamon scone recipe for my latest cozy release, MURDER WITH CINNAMON SCONES, it became a favorite.  I've made it multiple times.  I hope you like it too!



Daisy's Cinnamon Scones
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2 cups all-purpose flour1/3 cup granulated sugar plus 2 tablespoons1 teaspoon cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon in dough and 1/2 teaspoon mixed with 2 tablespoons sugar)1 teaspoon baking powder1/4 teaspoon baking soda1 teaspoon salt8 tablespoons (1 stick) grated unsalted butter (I let it sit out 5-10 minutes before grating)3/4 cup cinnamon chips1/3 cup ground pecans1 large egg3/4 cup reduced fat buttermilk
In a large mixer bowl, stir together flour, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add grated butter to flour mixture and beat it in.  Stir in cinnamon chips and pecans.   In a separate bowl whisk the egg with the buttermilk, then mix into flour dough with mixer.  Scoop out eight large scones (I use a 1/4 cup scoop or measuring cup with handle) and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment.  Sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar mixture.  Bake 17-19 minutes at 400 degrees until golden brown.








MURDER WITH CINNAMON SCONES on Amazon
MURDER WITH CINNAMON SCONES on Barnes and Noble

Bloom where you are planted

When guests come to town there’s always the question of what do we do that’s truly and unique Cincy, something that we have here that they don’t have in their neck of the woods. First off there’s goetta for breakfast. Goetta is German ‘cause Cincy is oh so German. It’s a combo of pork and oatmeal and spices and sound gross and everyone loves it. My husband used to make it and with a name like Kruetzkamp it was part of his genetic makeup.  Cincy also has great barbecue. I know, I know, everyone has barbecue but there’s this place called Montgomery Inn that has fantabulous BBQ so we always take guests there for dinner.Cincy also has Skyline Chili not to be confused with Texas chili. This is spaghetti topped with chili sauce (special secret chili sauce to be sure) and topped with shredded cheese. This is affectionately called a three-way and an acquired taste. It is a Cincy tradition to take your offspring to Skyline for his or her first three-way and get a pic of the occasion for the family album.We also have the Cincy Reds for baseball so we catch a baseball game at the Great American Ballpark that is really just that...a bit of new and a taste of the old. And we have King’s Island an amusement park that is a ton of fun and there’s a Purple People Bridge that connects downtown Cincy to Northern Kentucky and only for pedestrians.Cincy and Northern Kentucky are like a city in itself. Heck the Cincinnati Airport is in Northern Kentucky...try explaining that to people. They get off the plane and it says Kentucky and here they thought they were flying into Cincinnati! We also have a place called OTR...Over the Rhine that is now the hip trendy place of micro breweries, eateries, art galleries, and a city market called Findlay Market that’s been around for about a hundred and fifty years or so.And we have a terrific symphony and playhouse in the park and we have the Cincinnati Bengals that are always fun to watch...usually. JTo give guests a taste of all this I take them on a Segway tour of the downtown area of city where you buzz around on your Segway and you can see all that I talked about here in about ninety minutes. I looooove riding a Segway! It is so much fun! Next week I’ll take you on a tour of Mackinac Island complete with map. You can see where Evie Bloomfield has landed after she leaves Chicago and winds up on the island of no cars, no malls, not much wifi, cell service and lots of bikes, horses and fudge.So here’s the thing, if I came to your neck of the woods where would you take me? Where would we go so that I got a true appreciation for where you live, the heritage of your city?Love where you land!Have a good day.Hugs, Duffy

Springtime Back-and-Forth

by Maggie Sefton



Boy oh boy, we're getting smacked around by rapidly changing weather here in Northern Colorado just an hour north of Denver.  Of course, this Springtime "back-and-forth" happens
frequently in this area.  However, it usually happens earlier---in April and early May, for instance.  And to be honest---there really is no accepted "usual" here in Northern Colorado.  One of the things that make this area so attractive is that very variability of the weather here.  The old motto---"If you don't like the weather, just wait a minute.  It'll change"---is definitely true in this area of the country.


I thought I'd also use today's Cozy Chicks Blog to alert Cozy Chicks readers and friends  of an important date for  Fiction Fans.  One of the biggest and best conference/conventions for all lovers of fiction will be held on July 26th through July 29th in Denver, Colorado.  Right in my backyard, so to speak.   I'm talking about the RWA Conference/Convention.  Check it out at   www.rwa.org.  


This large gathering of readers and writers usually attracts over 600+ writers every year.  So----it's a great way to personally meet fiction authors.  This conference/convention is also usually  held in very large, major cities across the United States every year, such as New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Houston, Texas.  So, this year I'm guessing  there will be a slightly lower attendance of fiction fans than usual.  That works to the advantage of first-time conference attendees, because the crowds will be slightly less and easier to manage..  So----check your calendars and see if your late July schedule has some wiggle room.  Another treat:  this conference also has free-for-attendees breakfast buffet which is more than generous, shall we say.   It's truly banquet worthy.  :)