Riley Murphy's Blog
January 24, 2021
WHAT IS ROMANCE?
I’ve said before that romance every day starts in the morning and ends when you go to bed.
In terms of a story, it starts with the first line and never really ends. Why? If you’ve done your job as an author correctly, the reader and even the author will be in love with those characters that carry you through to either imagining their happily ever after, or the friends they traveled the pages with getting their own stories. But what makes romance a romance?
*I’m eyeing you*
You got any ideas?
It’s not just about a lover-like relationship. Remember when I said some of the best romances in history were the new ones between countries, the people, their leaders or animals getting along? Remember the Pandas in the eighties? No? They introduced the American one to the Japanese and a whole era of Panda love was born.
The union brought in a connection we hadn’t had before.
So, what I think it is – don’t laugh – I think it’s energy. Plain and simple. The thrill, the newness, the exhilaration of looking forward not back. The smiles and laughs. Oh, there’s work and serious stuff too, but what keeps the unshakable buoyancy of a romance afloat is the ‘happy’.
Sometimes you need to anchor that flight or sail with some sad, but for the most part I’d be confident believing that the sad has no way to get in when the happy creates a good barrier of energy to keep it out.
Probably why I romance the day right when I get up. I have no expectations, but I’m always happy to greet the morning, rain or shine.
*Leans in to whisper*
Rainy days are my fav. It’s a good day to write. Well...and, the car gets washed, I don’t have to water the plants, and those solicitors knocking at my door are nonexistent.
You see?
What’s not to fall in love with?
What’s your definition of romance? Strictly a couple or do you broaden your horizons with a concept that was never meant to be defined by two lovebirds?
As always, thanks for stopping by!
Riley
July 13, 2018
FURNITURE SHOPPING ANYONE?
So, there we were at the store looking for living room furniture for the condo, when…
*Looks right at you*
I hear the word “No.”
So, you have to imagine I did a double take. A triple take, and then I was checking my purse for a thermometer, because surely my husband did not countermand my design choose.
Yeah, this never happens. Not on account of me being the designer guru or anything. I tend to think it has to do with him not giving a rat’s butt about the décor.
As long as it’s functional, comfortable and something he can wear in. He likes to make his preferred seats his, you know?
So, where was I going with this? Well, I’ll tell you. I figured I’d give him the benefit of the doubt and see what happened. Here’s the conversation.
This is me, after I get over my shock and decide to roll with the upper-cut. “No? What, don’t you like the color? We can change that.” Not that I planned to, or anything, I just wanted to feel him out.
“I don’t know. I don’t like it.”
Kinda broad, but okay. We moved along, and I see another couch set. A small sectional. “What about this one?”
He affected a face and sighed. “No.”
When we made the rounds of the store and he’d literally said no to everything I pointed out, I threw up my hands in mock defeat. “We’re reached the end of the road, buddy. This is where we came in and you didn’t like anything.”
To which his eyes lit up when he said, “I liked a couple of things.”
There’s me. *Blink, blink*
Then I looked around at a loss. “Um…where?”
God love him. Seriously, I mean he walked to the left and slapped a hand down on a coffee table that was too big. Did I mention that we were looking for light beachy tones and this was almost black? No? Well, yes it was. Bless his little heart. He said, “I like this one.”
Then he marched past me going left. “I like this couch.”
*Leans in to whisper* It was a couch and half. It even had an XL on the sales tag. So, in terms of it fitting into our small condo? Yeah, no.
“I think this is a good design.” He walked to an end table that I thought was a bistro table of some kind, until I realized it was meant to go with humungous couch. Only it was in a teal color instead of a sand color.
“And I think these are interesting.”
I looked at the lamps he was pointing to and I didn’t know what to say. Speechless never happens to me, so I tried to find a positive here. One little—nope, couldn’t do it. “Are they supposed to be animals or is that a cactus?”
It was hard to tell. They were free-form something or other. Coulda been a giraffe or the cactus I mentioned. Hell, they could have been stylized brown waves that were supposed to be forever parked on one’s end table to remind a person, or possibly your guests, not to pollute the oceans.
Bottom line? They weren’t going to be parked in my house.
I tried my best to sugarcoat my displeasure. “I’m sure if we were doing a brown theme, or even a beige one – as those two shades go together, the lamps would work. But with beachy shades…?”
“Wet sand is brown.”
Yeah, and so is a wet blanket. I guess I was being one because, for the life of me, I just couldn’t get excited about the yellow couch that was the size of the condo, end tables that could double a bar-tops and lamps that looked better suited to go to a wood carver for his next project than to win prized positions on my end tables.
Meh, it wasn’t until we got back into the car without buying anything that it hit me. I never bring him furniture shopping with me. What the hell was I thinking?
Clearly, I hadn’t been…
Anyone else have a husband story?
As always, thanks for stopping by!
Riley
February 12, 2018
FEB 15th WE ARE DOING IT!
This is going to be awesome!
I’m going to be a sponsor of this event and it’s going to be fun! Easy & did I mention prizes? I will follow up with details in three days. Mahawaaaa! Can’t wait!
Thanks for stopping by,
Riley
February 7, 2018
February 3, 2018
Let’s Play: The Mysterious Laundry Challenge…Oh, And We Have A Giveaway Winner!
Okay, have a look at these precious Honey laundry finds.
*I shall pause here to reflect*
For those of you who are new to Honey’s laundry “specialness”, let me fill you in.
The man is a collector. Don’t ask me why. To this day, I still have fond memories of us sitting together around the campfire when we were younger, drinking beer and shooting the breeze with our friends – while I’d watch him peel his brew labels off, and stuff the paper bits in his pocket.
*Side-eyes you*
Always thought this was because he didn’t like to litter. But, well, as you can see, the man collects these work-related smalls. A screw, or nail, or…?
Yeah, I don’t want to spoil the challenge, so let me ask you this. After examining the group of items in this latest treasure trove of laundry findings, what item doesn’t belong?
Come on, look harder. You have to see what I see.
*Points right at you* Exactly! The bobby-pin. *frowns and drums fingers* Now, what do you suppose the man was using that for? Picking locks? I hope not. It’s not part of his job description. But, then, neither is collecting these little bits-and-bobs I’m stuck pulling out of the dryer on laundry day.
Those annoying clink, clink, clink, clink sounds as the dryer turns? They drive me nuts…and, funny enough, they give me nuts, and bolts, and—you get the picture. 
January 24, 2018
What kind of soup? And The Last of Our Build-a-Giveaway!
January 19, 2018
Madame Who????
First, here’s another teaser of Stolen Treasure! I love these guys! Bernie, at first blush, may seem like an innocent, but she’s got some tricks up her sleeve. Poor Payden, it takes him a while to figure out he may be in over his head. Heh.
This one will be released on the 23rd of this month! Then it’s onto Raging Fire. Already the hero and heroine of that story have captured me.
Oh, and did I mention that I’m currently working on contemporary romance too? Remember Naomi and Master X? It’s their story. That should be out in March.
*Looks right at you*
I’ve got a lot of catching up to do after the arsenic poisoning debacle. Fortunately, I’m feeling much better and my most recent tests indicate as much, so it’s all good. Yay!
Now onto a slice of Riley’s life…
The first thing I’m going to share—that cracked me up, was a Honey story. *waves hand at you and rolls eyes* Yeah, I know, no surprise there, but stay with me. This made me laugh.
There I am the other night, sitting next to the guy as he’s going on about something. *Shrug* Could have been a documentary thing, or, it could have been a work thing. Point is, I wasn’t paying the least bit of attention, so when he looked at me as though I was supposed to respond, I blinked and then deflected.
Instead of giving him a reply I didn’t have, I asked, “Hey, did you get the mail? My test results might be in the pile.”
I really didn’t expect them to be in there, it was too soon, but Honey is anxious about this kind of stuff, so my devious plan worked. He forgot about me giving him the answer I didn’t have, and got up. “No, I’ll go check the box now.”
*Insert me twirling my handlebar mustache here* I SO love it when a plan comes together. 
January 13, 2018
Stolen Treasure *Coming Soon*
Stolen Treasure is book 2 in my Mate Quest series.
This is a reverse amnesia story.
To avert a catastrophic and world-altering event, he must pull a fast one on his mated soul when she wakes up after being in a car wreck.
Instead of helping her remember the single past life she hasn’t forgotten, he convinces her of a steamy married reality with him that they never had.
This is Payden and Bernadette’s story.
I guess I should mention that this hero can sneak into his heroine’s dreams. Good thing, since he needs to seduce her, before she finds out what he did….because, you know, the reason might not be enough to outweigh the deed. *Bites bent knuckle, and cringes* I sure hope he’s charming enough…
January 10, 2018
The Spear of Destiny!
I kid you not! Last night Honey and I were watching Jeopardy and he’s killing it with the correct answers. *Insert me not impressed at all here*
Actually? I do, but jest. I really was thinking the guy was doing great. Unfortunately, he thought so too.
*Looks right at you* I really hated that, but what can you do?
Ooh, Ooh, *raises hand in air and does the puppy dogs eyes at you hoping to get picked to share* Pleeease let me tell you!
Thanks. Okay, here goes…
It’s simple. You just deny, ignore, and then deny again. Here’s the conversation. Mind you, this is after he got a bazillion right on Jeopardy, just saying. State of mind is everything during our discussions. Heh. And watching Jeopardy would explain the topic we arrived at, because Mr. Trebek was looking for the mountain that erupted to bury Pompeii.
Honey got that one right, Vesuvius, but it was easy – so, I just ignored him. See? Simple. Then Honey switched the station to a show I have a hard time watching. Two guys digging up a beautiful island to find treasures? *sigh* Dang, when are men going to realize the island is the treasure?
Anyway, when I complained to Honey, he tells me they are looking for religious artifacts.
*Lifts a brow at you* And that’s different? I could go into the heated discussion we had about the Knights Templar, but I won’t. Suffice it say, that Honey thinks those guys rocked because they stood up and protected all manner of things – and I happen to like them because they were warriors who believed in something greater than themselves. Hence, me thinking that the items they supposedly kept safe and then hid so that they’d continue to remain safe – should stay hidden.
Honey? Not so much. Here’s the conversation.
Honey is staring at my profile as I don’t want to look at him. I was a little miffed, and I wanted him to know it. He knew it alright. “So, what you’re telling me, Ms. Smarty-pants, is that they should stop digging?”
And at that exact moment in the show, one guy finds – after laboriously sifting through a whole bunch of dirt he dug up – a piece of pottery that was the size of a quarter…maybe.
*Pulls down my glasses and steadily eyes you*
Let me repeat that. After digging up a whole pile of dirt for some time, the “excavator” -and I use that term loosely, found a piece of glazed pottery that was the size of a quarter. He shows it to their expert who gives it a cursory look and declares that it’s from the 1700’s.
There’s me *blink, blink* How could he possibly know? And the excavator must have read my thoughts because he asks, “How do you know that?”
That’s when I hear the expert say, “I can tell by the glaze.”
Seriously? It looked like – and probably was – someone’s broken coffee mug, but whatever. I turn to Honey ready to tell him how insane this show was – when he laughs out loud. Even he got how ludicrous it was that the “crew” was speculating about who may have owned it.
After we added our two cents in about that – I suggested Captain Hook, and he said Captain Morgan would be more fun
