Josh’s Comments (group member since Jun 17, 2010)

Josh’s comments from the Q&A with Josh Lanyon group.

My general news is that I've finished my first full-length book in a year? 11 months? Too close for comfort. It was an indulgently long and leisurely process and I actually had a blast writing Mystery at the Masquerade.

Of course, I can't take this long on every book--not this year, but after this year, we'll see. I find that I really enjoy having time to think.

Actually I did try to make sure there would be plenty of time to savor the writing in this year's schedule, but a ghost from the past showed up and now I'm stuck finishing a project for a game company that I thought had been abandoned. UGH.

We've had five days of swimming this month--which have been heaven.

The SO and I have started a "whole foods" diet and that's having some amazing results health-wise. We never seem to stop eating, but we're steadily losing weight. It's kind of nutty.

(In fact, we do eat a lot of nuts.)

The wee dogs are fine. Marlowe is an angel from heaven. Spenser (and his voice) continues to defy me and get bigger and bigger.

And that is pretty much ALL the news.

Jordan wrote: "Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to let you know that we have a tie right now for our March 2021 read! Voting ends on the 28th, which is only in a couple of days, so if you haven't taken the chance yet..."

Uh oh. And here I have a new book out! :-D

ABE Books sent an alert for a book that I've been hunting for well over a decade. So even though I don't really read much in the way of Mills and Boon romances these days, I HAD TO HAVE IT.

If just to have scored a book so very scarce.

1974's A MAN CALLED MALLORY. I don't think it ever made it into US publication. But Jane Donnelly was a favorite of my mother and my sisters and me way back in the way back.

I haven't actually started it yet, but I hope to soon.

Meanwhile, I've started

I would not have bought the book if the edition I'd seen had this cover, which would have been a shame because so far it's a very charming and competently executed cozy mystery. I'm loving it.

Teal wrote: "Marge wrote: "Don't anyone waste your time recording or reviewing the books from the Winter Wonderland Prolificworks giveaway. Some asshole GR librarians are going through and deleting every fricki..."

What is the particular rule that is being violated?

The best thing about today...

The first weekend of the Biden Harris Administration. :-)

Antonella wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Country (and western in the US) dancing was IMHO the easiest PE option. It was very popular at my school for that reason. This was my favourite.

https://ceilidhdanceband.scot/how-..."

<3 <3 <3 I love that.

My teen years were spent learning Scottish Highland Dance and Scottish Country Dancing. :-D

One thing I've come to realize though is that there is no argument or line of reasoning that can change the minds of people who have a different agenda.

You will not convince people who were elected to destroy the government to suddenly become conscientious governors.

You will not convince people who were elected so that they could gain money and power, to suddenly care about the people who they represent (other than the donor class).

That's the dispiriting part.

Fox news is not going to give Biden a fair shake. It's naïve to imagine they would. And so all their viewers have no idea of what's happening really. They thought the big news on Wednesday was a fire in Spain.

Antonella wrote: "Jordan wrote: "WOOT!"

Exactly ;-)

And of course there are all the others 16 - as of yesterday - already anticipated and decisive executive orders, like joining again the World Health Organisation..."

I feel that I did nothing last week but watch TV and sob in relief.

It's been cathartic, let's put it that way.

Antonella wrote: "Alison wrote: "It's still surprisingly (and scarily?) current."

Thank you for remembering this day.

I have to confess that till 30 years ago I thought in my naïveté that after MLK and the civil r..."

I thought the same thing.

For most of my adult life, I truly believed racism was a thing of the past--or maybe something that happened in the deep south--OR maybe the occasional aberration (based on the things my African-American friends and employees sometimes ran into). I really thought that it was impossible that "normal" people could think or feel this way.

But after Obama was elected?

Jesus.

It was like someone had lifted up a rock and we all got to see the repulsive, malignant creatures squirming and wriggling there.

And from then it's only been made more clear they were only hiding, they didn't feel safe sharing their true thoughts and beliefs. But now? Now they not only feel safe, they feel righteous.

Josh wrote: "Alison wrote: "It's Martin Luther King, Jr Day in America. And what a state this country is in.

Here's a complete video of his "I Have a Dream" Speech from the March on Washington on 28 August 19..."

I shouldn't have said that, I should qualify because I don't think we are sliding backwards. I think we are having to deal with the last stubborn stains on our democracy--and its difficult to eradicate without destroying some of the fiber.

Alison wrote: "It's Martin Luther King, Jr Day in America. And what a state this country is in.

Here's a complete video of his "I Have a Dream" Speech from the March on Washington on 28 August 1963.

https://w..."

Oh my gosh. I was thinking the same thing. I'm not sure I've seen his entire speech from beginning to end, since I was a kid. And let's face it, most of it would have gone over my head. It was so moving and so heart=breaking to think that in some ways, we're sliding backwards.

Karen wrote: "Meanwhile, while this country was going crazy... my mother spent 12 days in the hospital and was moved to assisted living two days ago.

My mom went into a steep decline right after the first of th..."

Karen, I haven't read to the end of the thread, but I hope you're feeling a little better now, that you've had some rest and a chance to absorb some of what's happened in such a short span.

Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "Maggie would make a great murderer because she is such a dizzy person. No body would think she was capable of planning and carrying out a murder."

Exactly. And we know she is emotional and passionate.

Mymymble wrote: "It shocks me so much the alleged killer by thrown fire extinguisher of Officer Sicknick was a retired fire officer with a son in the police who said in a blue lives matter rally six months ago: "Th..."

One of the most terrible things about mobs and mob violence is people get sucked in who would ordinarily never dream of committing acts of violence. It's a kind of aberration--people swept up in the hysteria of the moment.

Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Marge wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Here's one story of a very heroic Black police officer who taunted a gang of rioters to lead them ..."

It's especially difficult to reconcile those behaviors from someone who claims to be Christian. No one with even the most rudimentary familiarity with Jesus could think that He would be okay with these policies--from separating migrant children to letting families lose their homes to letting nearly 400,000 people die from Covid.

Talk about comfortable lies people tell themselves...

Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Marge wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Here's one story of a very heroic Black police officer who taunted a gang of rioters to lead them away from the unlocked senate door behind which leg..."

Yep, it's kind of fascinating watching those who sold their souls for political gain reaping what they've sown. Did they really think that monster could be controlled?

Mymymble wrote: "Marge wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Here's one story of a very heroic Black police officer who taunted a gang of rioters to lead them away from the unlocked senate door behind which legislators and staf..."

I detest Pence, but that kind of violence is insanity in action. That's not how Democracy is supposed to work. Granted, a lot of these lawmakers don't like how Democracy works, but I don't think Pence is of that breed.

Marge wrote: "Josh wrote: "
Ah. How very stupid to put an expiration date on so many of these giveaways though. The sure sign of an amateur. ;-)..."

Especially with so MANY books! I decided to download only tho..."

Yeah, trying to get people to sign up your newsletter in the context of a ginormous giveaway is a no-win, IMHO. You get a ton of people who download and then soon after unsubscribe. What you want are readers who read your book, decide they liked it, and THEN subscribe. Then you have a real chance of keeping them engaged.

Marge wrote: "Mymymble wrote: "Here's one story of a very heroic Black police officer who taunted a gang of rioters to lead them away from the unlocked senate door behind which legislators and staff were shelter..."

Horrifying that it would come to this.

Jordan wrote: "Josh wrote: "Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "The first person to go would be the house cleaner and prehaps her sister. Both of them must have upset everyone in that village!"

Yes to Doris.

The ..."

:-D :-D :-D

I'm handicapped by not finishing the book. I'd have to tweak everyone's motives and backgrounds!

I do usually start with deciding who my killer is and then working backwards. :-D