Da-dah, da-da-da-da… Is the song in your head now? You can thank me.
We’re excited here. Three of the kids are back in school today. We’ll see how long that lasts! Thankfully, our school enacted a mask mandate. For now, the house is quiet, and I’m hoping I’ll have more “me” time to do all the things I need to do…like write a dang book by the end of the month, edit four projects, and make some art.
I’m one of the “artists” (cough, gag) who will be showing in town in October at the art festival. Still don’t know how they selected me. I mean, we have some seriously good artists in this area. I hope to fill up my 10×10 space inside my tent with pieces people might like to hang in their house (I’d be thrilled to appear in someone’s bathroom!).
I have some older pieces I can use, but I’m trying to produce more. It’s been very slow-going. Like, only two new pieces so far. Want to take a look?
I made this one last night. I love it. Yeah, it’s all beige-y, but it works for me. It’s a water-doodle (watercolor and pen).
This one was done with soft pastel sticks.I had so much fun with it. Working with pastels makes me feel like a kid in kindergarten making a big mess.
Anyway, this is what I’ll be doing in the evenings after I finish work for the next two months.
Do y’all have any big projects in the works? Answer for a chance to win a hand-painted postcard from me. 🙂
I love writing stories, and taking photos of nature is how I refill my muse. Nature’s beauty is inspiring.
I enjoy the gorgeous flowers of summer, which are a beautiful backdrop for photos of butterflies.
Each day when I head out on my morning walks, I never know what animals or birds I’m going to see.
With dragonflies gliding through the gentle wind currents or resting on dried sticks, they seem to be soaking up the summer sun.
At the pond, the newborn chicks have hatched and are flying about, with a myriad of flowers swaying in the breeze along the shore.
It’s always a treat to see the red-eared slider turtles. I usually find them basking on logs in the sun, enjoying the summer day. Take care, and enjoy the rest of your summer.
Contest
ONE winner will be drawn from everyone who posts on my guest blog post about, ‘Nature ‒ Muse Inspiration!’ on Delilah’s blog between 15 August 2021– 22 August 2021, and will win a signed copy of His Woman.
About the Author
A retired Navy Chief, Diana Cosby is an international bestselling author of Scottish medieval romantic suspense. Books in her award-winning MacGruder Brothersseries have been translated into five languages. Diana has spoken at the Library of Congress, Lady Jane’s Salon in NYC, and appeared in Woman’s Day, on USA Today’s romance blog, “Happy Ever After,” MSN.com, Atlantic County Women Magazine, and Texoma Living Magazine.
After her career in the Navy, Diana dove into her passion – writing romance novels. With 34 moves behind her, she was anxious to create characters who reflected the amazing cultures and people she’s met throughout the world. After the release of the bestselling MacGruder Brothersseries and The Oath Trilogy, she released the bestselling The Forbidden Series.
Diana looks forward to the years of writing ahead and meeting the amazing people who will share this journey.
Our family is very serious about celebrating the seasons and holidays. We have garden flags for EVERYTHING. My daughter hangs signage she makes with her Cricut and decorations inside the living room. Summer is still here, but we’ve already had the conversation about what the kids will dress as for Halloween!
In early September, she will be eager to put out all her decorations, including my contribution—a tree filled with Strangling fairy ornaments. Something else I collect. I currently have twenty of them. Isn’t this one cute?
I’d love to hear whether you decorate or have some family tradition to mark the holidays. And have fun with the puzzle!
Puzzle-Contest
For a chance to win your choice of a download from among my many books, tell me when you start your Halloween prep or whether you do anything at all!
Tagged: game, jigsaw, puzzle Posted in Contests!|9 People Said|Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: Misty Dawn - Colleen C. - Debbie Caswell - bn100 - Delaine McLafferty -
It’s been a busy week, and I didn’t have time to review ALL the songs you ladies previously mentioned on my first request for playlist recommendations! So, here’s one more chance to win another $5 Amazon gift card! All the Queen songs were spot on, BTW. I’m thinking AC/DC, too. (“The Jack” is my fave!).
This one’s quirky and fun and perfect for the start of a workout (which for me is all about housecleaning—don’t you dance with the vacuum cleaner?). Thanks to Christine for reminding me this song exists!
Tagged: music Posted in Contests!, Real Life|9 People Said|Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: Mary Preston - Jennifer Beyer - ButtonsMom2003 - Angel M Shaw - pat -
For us, today’s all about kids’ open houses. We have four children in the house, so mama will be heading into town three times to take kids to meet teachers and pick up schedules and school T-shirts. We had good news yesterday that our kids won’t be the only ones wearing masks! I know some locals are upset about that (I’ll never understand why, but I won’t get into the politics). All I care about is that three of the kids will be able to resume in-person instruction, somewhat safely, or at least, more safely. The three oldest are already vaxxed. We’re praying the youngest will get hers this fall, so we don’t have to be quite so fearful for her safety.
It’s weird to me the things people get upset about. I don’t get it. Maybe it’s because I’m an Air Force brat and an Army vet. I’m pragmatic. I understand duty. I remember getting a mystery shot while I was stationed in the Middle East during the Gulf War. Turns out it was for anthrax. Did I balk? No, I rolled up my sleeve.
But I said I wouldn’t get political, and I think maybe I already have, but I hope you know it comes from a good place. I love my family. I want them to live long, healthy, happy lives. And I’m beyond excited for the kids being able to return to school. Yes, we managed to thrive through at-home schooling for the first year-and-a-half of the pandemic, but it was draining, too. My dd and I are ready to get back to having some “us” time to catch up on so many things we haven’t had time to pay attention to because we’ve had kids underfoot who required supervision and entertainment 24/7. As much as we love them, we’re hoping the mask mandate will enable our schools to stay open rather than having multiple, roving lockdowns for COVID spread.
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Please, no rants. I’m just really curious how other folks are preparing for the new school year! Are you upbeat? We’ve had fun shopping for school supplies and clothing!
Nothing gets my engines revving as a romance reader like a super determined (and often grim) hero chasing his wily passionate female through obstacle-strewn terrain.
There are twists and turns, near misses, danger, and the thrill of the hunt. The more she evades him, the more frustrated he becomes and the hotter the capture scene will be. We know once he finally places his hands on her, his hands will be ALL over her. (Fans my face.)
Delilah Devlin crafts this emotional buildup extremely well in Cage, her first Montana Bounty Hunters story. Cage, her hero, is hunting Elaine, his ex-wife. And she gives him a great and wonderfully steamy chase.
Taelyn, the heroine of Baring Grudge, my brand new cyborg romance release, makes Grudge, the cyborg hero, pursue her also. Their game of predator and prey spans the entire universe.
She wants him. Badly. And she senses he wants her with the same fervor. His brilliant blue eyes glow when he looks at her. His body reacts to her proximity.
But she also believes he plans to deliver her to the Humanoid Alliance, the baddies, a cruel and harsh organization she has been stealing from and tormenting in other ways. Those beings, if they find Taelyn, will torture and kill her.
There will be repercussions for being caught.
That is part of the thrill of reading about these hunts. They have consequences.
We realize it won’t be all gentle touches and soft words when the hero finally secures the heroine. The sexy times will be explosive (especially in the case of bomb-loving Grudge) and rough. She will be punished in some way.
There will be repercussions for the hero also. And conflict. She is his heroine yet he has a duty to fulfill. Will he choose love or honor?
What is your favorite romance that features a chase or a hunt between the love interests? What prompted that chase?
Baring Grudge
No one in the universe is more determined
than a cyborg warrior tracking his female.
Grudge, a C Model cyborg, has been assigned a mission – safeguard a Humanoid Alliance space station for his kind. Honor was once all he had, and he is determined to fulfill his duty.
That resolve is tested when a tiny human female enters the space station and sets the prettiest little explosives the warrior has ever seen. She is Grudge’s genetic match, the one being manufactured for him. He wants to touch her, kiss her, claim her in all ways, but first he has to stop her from blasting him into the next galaxy.
Taelyn has a self-appointed mission—to destroy every battle robot the Humanoid Alliance has ever manufactured. A huge gray-skinned, blue-eyed cyborg warrior with mismatched arms won’t prevent her from achieving her goal. She’ll escape him, leaving destruction in her wake.
Before she departs, she’ll experience one toe-curling moment of hatred-edged passion with her handsome foe. She’ll show him how skilled with detonations she truly is. He will have his universe rocked.
Then she’ll disappear.
Her cyborg, however, has no intention of ever letting her go.
Baring Grudge is a STANDALONE Cyborg SciFi Romance set in a dark, gritty, sometimes-violent universe.
It features a determined, damaged warrior, an equally resolute human female, and an explosive game of predator and prey played across galaxies.
USA Today bestselling author Cynthia Sax writes steamy Cyborg, Alien and Contemporary Romances. Her stories have been featured on TV, in Star Magazine, and numerous top ten lists.
Sign up for her dirty-joke-filled monthly newsletter and visit her on the web at www.CynthiaSax.com.
Finally! I won’t go into what’s going on with Amazon and me, but Sleeping With The Enemy is finally out! If you previously had it on pre-order, that pre-order was cancelled (again, not going into what happened—Grrr!).
It is a SHORT STORY, and just an introductory taste of the Dark Realm world. It is FREE, and will remain so, in Kindle Unlimited and only $0.99 if you’re not a subscriber! Be warned: It’s a PARANORMAL EROTIC ROMANCE! Hope you enjoy it!
A lone rogue vampire mingles among his hunters in a blood bar, undetected…until a beautiful woman snares his attention. Suddenly, he’s running, leading her on a chase until she corners him, stake dangling from her slender fingertips. Now he has a couple of choices: play it sexy or safe?
