Thursday, June 30, 2016

Happy Meteor Day!


By Nina M. Osier

   Explorer ship Captain Kate Landay is on her way home from what should be her final mission when she becomes caught up in a sector-wide coup. She is accused first of insubordination, and then of treason, for refusing to sacrifice her ship and her crew to cover up a superior officer's actions.

Cheese Ball I
Meteor Munch

Ingredients

2 h 15 m32 servings149 cals


Directions

Print 
  • Prep
  • Ready In
  1. In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, and dressing mix. Form into one large ball or two smaller balls. Roll in chopped pecans to coat surface. Decorate the top with pecan halves. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Christianity and Romance Novels

A Guest Blog by Christian Author
Anna Dynowski

Harmony Village Series, Vol. 2
by Anna Dynowski
It’s…A Matter of Faith.

Harmony Village, Ontario, isn’t your average town. It definitely isn’t Toronto. No glittering lights. No classy concert halls. No high-end boutique shops. Nothing. Yet, with ticket sales for performances and CD sales declining, ultra-modern pop singer, Arabella Bianchi, ends up there—thanks to her agent, who sends her to Harmony to “grow new fans in a different part of the country.” What this provincial town does have is a handsome, single, and very conservative pastor, Krystian Jasicki, who is unimpressed with the arrival of his “Christmas present” with the rock-star haircut, funky clothes, and a stud in her nose. He is even less enthusiastic with being volunteered to help the lady grow her fan base. Sparks fly. Personalities clash. And love is severely hampered.  Time is running out.

It looks like a job for…Cupid Cat, the rural community’s indomitable matchmaker. Will Krystian and Arabella fall in with his plans to secure a happily-ever-after in time for Christmas or will he have to bare his fangs to achieve the desired results?

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Summer Vacation and a Writing Tip.


by James R. Kincaid

Open Road Series, Vol. 1

Even their guidebooks – Worst Places to Eat, Wackiest Roadside Attractions, and Don’t Go Here! – offer no guidance. These two 16-year-olds are off on a summer-long road trip, Los Angeles to Atlanta, without any clear idea what they are doing, what they might run into, or what they might discover along the way.

They don’t even know one another. Wendell regards Tyler with uneasiness and something like lust; Tyler thinks of Wendell with curiosity and contempt, mostly contempt.

They are launched on this adventure (in a luxury motorhome, of all things) by Wendell’s mother, who supposes that a trip into the unknown – weaponless and clueless – will cause her son to flower. Tyler comes along to see if she can make it through without beheading, or bedding, Wendell.


Porn or Erotica? -- writing tip

Question: Thanks for answering my questions, from before. Maybe you can help again. As you may recall, I write steamy romances and have published some of them with Elora's Cave. A new member has joined our writers' group. And when I read a scene that I wanted help with, she didn't even wait for my questions, she just jumped right in and said, "That's just nothing but porn!"

I had opened my time by reminding everyone that I write erotica and was insulted by her reaction to say the least. The whole meeting degenerated into a long discussion of what porn is and isn't, while nobody seemed interested in that fact that erotica is a genuine form of literature.

Answer: An age-old question. I'm sorry they gave you a bad time. Given time to think, one of two things will happen. Either she will broaden her horizons, or will decide that your group isn't the place for her to develop her literary skills. All the others have heard you read before, have read your books, and have not objected in the past, have they? Just give them time to think, okay?

Evidence that erotica has long been a literary art form, comes from the dictionary meaning of the word: derived from classic Greek and meaning, "an artistic work having an erotic or literary theme." (Eros being the ancient Greek god of Love).

Pornography is defined by the dictionary as also coming from ancient Greek, and meaning, "writing about prostitutes" with the more modern definition given as "the depiction of erotic behavior (as in pictures or writing) intended to cause sexual excitement.

Erotica has also been know to cause sexual excitement, but that is only one element of its creation. Pornography has no value of artistry or eloquence.

My own definition -- which may not be the same as yours, or even the Webster's definitions shown above, is a little different than either.

To me, it's easy to tell the difference: Pornography denigrates women. Erotic writing glorifies them.

Sex scenes in pornography often involves degrading acts, violence, and the women are depicted as depraved and enjoying everything that is done to them, however repulsive or painful.

In erotic writing sex acts are between two people who really care about one another and who have made a substantial commitment, and the acts depicted are an expression, perhaps even a glorification, of the emotions they share.

I have read your work, both in your class, and in your books, and I'd have said some your books qualify as "erotic" but certainly not the alternative.

Monday, June 27, 2016

June Weddings

June is the Month for Weddings
the book below is only one in Anna Dynowski's 
Christian Series of Royal Weddings
Royal Hearts of Mondoverde Series, Vol. 3
by Anna Dynowski
Prince Lorenzo, the reluctant prince, has no interest in his title or inclination to carry out his duties. Not likely to ever rule Mondoverde, he has no desire to play at royalty, dodging the royal commitments with remarkable success. He’d much rather play with his prized horses. A champion thoroughbred racer with multiple trophies, he’s surrounded by fans, mostly female. But can he find a woman who will compel him to dismount and take up his royal duties, including marriage?

Freelance photojournalist Jana Landowski is hired by a leading magazine to do a special feature on Mondoverde’s equestrian prince. The single mom’s mandate, the editor informs her, is to show the world, through her pictures, the prince who shuns his royal status and not to become infatuated with him like every other female on the planet.


 Honeymoon Cookies of Mondoverde
Ingredients40 cals

Directions

Print 
  • Prep
  • Cook
  • Ready In
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
  2. Cream butter or margarine in a bowl, gradually add confectioners' sugar and salt. Beat until light and fluffy. Add almonds and vanilla. Blend in flour gradually and mix well.
  3. Shape into Crescent Moons using about 1 teaspoon for each cookie. Place on ungreased cookie sheets, and bake for 15-20 min. Do not brown. Cool slightly, then roll in the extra confectioners' sugar.

Friday, June 24, 2016

Catching UP!

Books Went to Press this week:
CREST OF LIGHT: A Collection of Poetry by Bobbi Sinha-Morey
   This new collection is the very best of Bobbi Sinha-Morey. It delves deep into the stuff of life as she explores what goes in the lives of others as well as herself, expanding her waters. She writes a bit about birds again, dives into the beauty of life, often touching upon deep inner joy and pleasant idyllic scenes of how she sees the world through her eyes. This time, through her own experiences and research, she writes about Utah where she and her husband pent a total of three weeks. From all her rock hounding and sight-seeing she digs up the beauty of Utah, and the ways of the Native Indians who once lived there. At times she does nature poetry in her delicate hand, and she'll still do her haunting poetry, and diving deep down to what she fears the most.


SCATTERED BRAIN by K. A. Wyant
   Trying to find your place in high school can be a challenging time in a young girl’s life, even more if you have a brain disorder. Being diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Chloe deals with the difficulties of trying to fit in with the right friends. Wanting to please them she gets into some situations leading to many disappointments. Chloe doesn’t see the destructive path she has made for herself or care about the consequences. With the end of the school year coming to a close can Chloe change things in time to graduate high school with her classmates or has she 
destroyed any chance of getting her diploma on time?

Galleys that went out, or went  out again, this week:
WANTED: ROYAL PRINCESS SHOCK AND AWE, Royal Hearts of Mondoverde Series, Vol. 4., by Anna Dynowski
   Prince Maximillian, the playboy prince, is having way too much fun with the ladies, young and old and everything in between, to keep his name clean. Incorrigible, he’s been synonymous with scandalous headlines since he turned sixteen. While his laughing eyes, smooth talk, and charming manner make him the darling of Mondoverde, or at least, with the female population, the Graziano royal family despairs of him ever settling down. But can he find a woman who will rein in his wild streak and fix his princely image?
HAIL MARY by C.M. Albrecht.
    When retired cop Harry "Bulldog" Drummond dies, his free-spirited widow Mary, suddenly freed from the Bulldog's strait-laced ideas, recruits a couple of gals from her colorful past and the girls go on a tear. Meaning they create mayhem wherever they show up, much to the consternation of Mary's son, Creighton. Poor Cray just lost his job, he has a wife, two kids, two mortgages, a lazy dog and an old Chevy he was planning to replace with a new Jaguar. But the big raise he expected has vanished and so has his mother…along with his aging Chevy. To make matters worse, she doesn't even have a driver's license!


Work began or Continued on the Following:
MINISTER'S CORPORATE ESCAPADES:The Rev. Castle series, Vol. 2, by Celine Rose Mariotti.
   Rev. Castle is back, with another mysterious adventure.
NIBBLES by Elanvita Mufti
   A story of high school students facing a complicated future.

A HEART DIVIDED, I Live in Two Worlds Series, Vol. 2. by D J Swykert
    Maggie is torn between her powerful love for Tommie Stetter, and her deep and affectionate love for the abiding Jeremy Paull. Maggie is faced with a difficult decision, and against her own ideals, the teachings of the church and community, makes an unusual choice.


WENDELL & TYLER:END OF THE ROAD, Open Road Series, Vol. 3, by James R. Kincaid
   The Journey Continues: This all originated with my mom, who had this idea that I should launch a voyage of discovery (my cool way of putting it) and spend the entire summer exploring the world outside me and the world within (whatever that means) by driving a luxury camper from Los Angeles to my Uncle Marshall’s in Atlanta. I am supposed to “court the unpredictable,” she says, “travel into the uncharted, the mysterious, even the frightening.”
SECOND GROWTH, by Joan L. Cannon
   Second Growth is about overcoming the past, about learning how to accept as well as how to offer help. A brilliant physician must find a way to heal himself — in spite of himself.
Cover Not Set
THE LIMITEDS, A Geocaching Mystery, Vol. 2. by Jennifer Kirsch
   Fourteen-year-old, Luke, dreams of spending July at Camp Unlimited, where campers explore cave networks, set off fireworks in pyrotech workshops, and sleep in tree house hammocks. But to get into the camp, Luke needs to demonstrate excellence in a sport, the arts, or school. More likely, he’ll end up at SURF, his town’s rec camp, where athlete’s foot, mildew, and warts plague the gym, bedbugs and lice infest the couches, and clumps of hair make frequent appearances in the burgers. When weird blobs start popping up on Luke’s computer, he’s too busy trying to complete his Unlimited application to notice. But when the blobs start looking like a secret, uncharted geocache, he and his friend Gabe follow their trail, only to find themselves battling superbug viruses and navigating labyrinths while on a quest to save lives.
 
 Cover Subject to Change 
BLEEDING HEARTS: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 1
 Winner of the Stonewall Society's 2002 Pride in the Arts Literary Award in the Whodunit Category! 

 REAP THE WHIRLWIND: Killian Kendall Mystery Series, Vol. 2,  by Josh Aterovis. 
    Suicide, or murder? That's the question in the second Killian Kendall mystery. Will Smith suspects murder when an old childhood pal drowns, and asks his friend Killian for help in solving the mystery.

TRUTH OF YESTERDAY,  by Josh Aterovis

ALL LOST THINGS, by Josh Aterovis

CHANGE  OF WORLDS, by Josh Aterovis

Jack's News!
  by your Official Bookstore Cat, 
and Gossip Columnist.
Hi Everyone,

Heard the Writers Bloc meeting went well. Everyone was congratuating Ann Foley on her minutes. They will be meeting again next month, on the third Sturday at one p.m. in the Wicomico County Public Library in Meeting Room 3, or thereabouts. Any writer on the Eastern Shore is welcome.  They are working hard on their new collection, too. This time it will feature Noir stories.
Aside from that, Spunky recovered, but she's still no fun. Sleeps a lot. Okay, I do read a lot, and I sing when Roger's playing his guitar. But my Real Job, a Bookstore Cat is to let everyone know what our author's are up to!
SO, Please be sure to send me ALL YOUR NEWS next week.  
Just send an e-mail to arline@mail.com with 
 "News for Jack" 

in the subject line, and
I'll make sure it shows up right here
for all the world to see!