UPDATE: The winner is…Colleen C!
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Hello Delilah!  Thank you for welcoming me here today!  I’m happy to share news about my latest anthology project.  Love on the Range has brought together a group of authors writing cowboy and cowgirl stories.

I admit, when I first heard of the project, I wanted to sign up.  My friend asked me if cowboys were my brand.  Naturally, I admitted, nope! I didn’t sign up for the anthology and I moved on.

A little niggle in the back of my brain kept poking up and saying: FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).  I really wanted to be part of this project.  My mind started wandering.  What did I know about people who worked on ranches and farms?  What kind of farms are there in my area? (I have a series based near where I live — I like to keep things simple.)  Then I remembered I had created a therapy ranch in my town, where clients spent time with the horses and the therapy dog and started to open up about their struggles and issues.

Okay.  My lead therapist and her sister, the manager, dressed in jeans and ran a ranch…but this wasn’t the type of ranch I assumed other authors would write stories about.

Then it hit me – what if someone who worked on a range visited my “ranch?”

I had my story.  I had a therapist living a very happy life.  She was good on her own with her (sort-of) therapy dog, Rex.  She had friends.  She considered her coworkers at the ranch like family.  She didn’t need someone in her life…but then she met Will.

Will’s a real cowboy.  He works on a ranch in Alberta.  He’s visiting his sister in Mission City, British Columbia, at Christmas, which also happens to be the anniversary of his beloved wife’s death.  A misunderstanding lands him in therapy at Healing Horses Ranch.  Now, he’s not Avery’s client, but there is a spark nurtured by Avery’s friends.  A party brings the two together, and Christmas magic happens.

This is a cute story where a misunderstanding leads to love.  I sent it to the anthology people.  They had space.  A Touch of Cowboy had a new home.  Will doesn’t give up being a cowboy — just in case you’re worried.  Sometimes, life can take us in a different direction, and it’s amazing.

Anyway, I hope you snag a copy of Love on the Range as it’s available only for a limited time.

Thanks for hosting me, Delilah.  I’d love to give away a $5 Amazon gift card to one lucky commenter.  What’s your favorite setting for a book?  Or, what setting would you love to see more of?  Random will select one commenter for a prize!

Love on the Range

From Montana mountains to Southern plains, there’s nothing more romantic than a lonesome figure and the girl who can tame a wild heart…or is it the other way around?

From mountain men to wild child women and snowed in cabins, read these stories of courageous hearts fighting for each other through harsh odds…and always finding each other.

Authors:
Wynter Ryan
Amy Stephens
Angelica Kate
Sophia Vincent
TB Mann
Harper Michaels
S L Hollister
Bonnie Poirier
Cynthia Terelst
Chele MacCabe
Francis Black
Jane Poller
Annee Jones
Heather Scarlett
A.R. Bell
Sonja Flowers
Sofia Aves
Anna Allen
Ellis Worth
Gabbi Powell
T S Simons
Chelle Pimblott

The anthology will only be available for a limited time.

Links:
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/tnrc2024loveontherange
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CP25J549
Add it to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/202756938-love-on-the-range

Gabbi’s story: A Touch of Cowboy

Avery Stinson’s work at Healing Horse Ranch has been her lifeline against loneliness, whether it’s the counselling she does, or training her rescue dog, Rex. Sure, she sometimes dreams of finding her special person, but if her work’s going to be her whole life, it’s at least valuable and fulfilling. She loves seeing their clients leave with more confidence and hope than they thought possible.

She really hopes Will Dupont, a new arrival seeing one of her colleagues, can have that kind of success because the man’s heartbreak is almost palpable. When they find themselves together at the Christmas party, Will opens up about his personal tragedy, and Avery’s drawn to the brave, quiet, stoic cowboy. He’s not her patient. Getting closer isn’t really against the rules. As day follows night and Will begins to heal, Avery begins to wonder, can they have a happily ever after this Christmas, or will the call of the wide-open range a thousand miles away prove too strong for Will to resist?

About the Gabbi Powell

Gabbi Powell has been a lover of romance since she first put pen to paper in the eighth grade to write her first romance.  She writes her novels while living in Beautiful British Columbia with her trusty ChinPoo dog a as companion.  She also writes gay romances as Gabbi Grey and contemporary dark erotic BDSM novels as Gabbi Black.

UPDATE: The winner is…Deb Brown!
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International Panic Day is a “mock” holiday meant to give people a day to intentionally de-stress.

I’m all for that! Well, I’m all for another odd holiday and all for destressing! How ’bout you?

I thought making a list of ways I like to destress would be fun…

1. 🐈 Pet a pet
2. 📻 Listen to music
3. ☕ Drink a cup of tea
4. 😮‍💨 Breathe
5. 🧘‍♀️ Meditate
6. 🏊‍♀️ Swim!
7. 👭 Spend time with friends
8. 🚶‍♀️ Go for a walk
9. 👩‍⚕️ See a therapist
10. 🏝️ Get away from it all!

The last two aren’t things I generally do, but I was struggling to get to 10! I also managed to fit in a puzzle for you all since so many of you enjoy them!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then add to my list of 10 or tell me which items on my list you use!

UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen McCall!
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June 17, 1965: On this day in history, Bob Dylan recorded…

You either love him or hate him. And sometimes, you’re not even aware you love him.

My SIL says his voice scrapes like nails on a chalkboard. My daughter, who is a singer herself and hyper-critical of many current artists, adores Bob Dylan for being real and raw. I’ve loved him since he first appeared on the music scene in the sixties. Yes, I’m that old. Along with the Beatles and the Stones, whom I’ve loved forever, there was Bob Dylan, whose music I played when my dad brought me home a guitar from one of his many trips to Asia during the Vietnam War. “Blowin’ in the Wind” was one of the first things I learned to play. I loved music and poetry, and Dylan’s work was both.

There are songs you probably don’t even know are his. “All Along the Watchtower” will forever be associated with Jimi Hendrix, but Dylan wrote it. If you loved the movie Hope Floats, you remember that gorgeous love song, “Make You Feel My Love” that Garth Brooks sang. Adele covered that song more recently. Yup, Bob Dylan wrote it. You’ve heard Eric Clapton’s “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door,” right? Again, Bob Dylan wrote it. That’s just a slice of great covers of his great songs.

But everyone’s heard Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone.” Can you imagine the 1960s without it?

Anyway, I have Dylan’s greatest hits I pull out every now and then when I’m feeling nostalgic. My favorites include these titles which I had to snip and slaughter to fit into the puzzle. Hope you enjoy it. For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me whether you’re a Dylan fan and which song you love the most!

My faves are in the puzzle in no particular order…

1. Like a Rolling Stone
2. Blowin’ in the Wind
3. It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding) (This one’s so cool, like Folk-Rap!)
4. Make You Feel My Love
5. All Along the Watchtower
6. Just Like a Woman
7. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall
8. Tambourine Man
9. The Times They Are A-Changin’
10. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door

UPDATE: The winner is…Beth!
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Do you sometimes wake up with a goal you can’t shake?

I watched a trailer for a movie yesterday and got so excited about it that I messaged the link to my daughter for her to watch. She never replied. So, I take that as she’s not excited about the idea. But how can she not be?! A giant shark in the Seine, IN PARIS?! It’s going to be epic!

Okay, so it’s not as over-the-top as the Sharknado movies (has there ever been anything as gonzo?!), but I can see the possibility of a fun movie night. When the Sharknado films came out every summer for all those years, we made the releases a big event. We’d binge-watch the preceding movies and hunker down with finger-foods and popcorn, our attention glued to the screen. They weren’t meant to be great art, and they weren’t, but oh what fun they were. I have the same reverence for The Meg movies. I just love shark movies and Shark Week. Summer isn’t summer without watching some new shark-disaster movie.

So, this morning, I awoke determined to watch the new movie tonight. I’m pretty sure I can talk the 15-year-old and the 10-year-old into watching with me. We’ll get a huge tub of popcorn and dim the lights. Under Paris will be watched!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me whether you love shark movies like I do. Have you watched Jaws, the Sharknado movies…Shark Tale?

UPDATE: The winner is…Charlene Whitehouse!
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Yes, it’s another weird holiday! And such a fun one!

First, raise your hands! How many people here own a sewing machine? Do you own more than one?

We have…three?…in the house. One I purchased. One my daughter brought when she moved in. Another I inherited or was given. It’s been so many years, I don’t remember!

Now, tell me, when was the last time you used yours?

I used mine last when my dd challenged me to make some handkerchiefs for men. We had an idea we would make them using material with superhero patterns then give them away to the cops my SIL works with. We made two. If you can imagine it, we had to look up a YouTube video to remember how to thread the machine! It’s sad because I made clothes with mine back in the day.

So, why do people celebrate the sewing machine? It was an agent of change. No longer did women have to spend long hours to make their family’s clothing or mend their husband’s sleeves. They had an efficient way to take care of that task, which gave them more leisure time—to do what? Maybe dream of doing things outside the home… Yes, a sewing machine can be considered an agent of women’s empowerment! Do you see my Rosie the Riveter arm flex?

It’s Friday. It’s a holiday. Now, I’ll have to figure out how to celebrate. No, I’m not pulling a sewing machine out of a closet. 🙂

Answer the questions I posed above for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Dana Zamora!
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Y’all said you wanted more puzzles, so…

I’ll be out of pocket today. I have a doctor’s appointment in Little Rock and will be away from my desk. I posted this early, so you’d have something to play with while I’m gone. Hope you enjoy it!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me what he’s hunting. I always enjoy what you come up with!  

UPDATE: The winner is…ButtonsMom!
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No excitement around here. We’re awaiting a part for the pool to see if it will fix our filter problem. Then we have to go back into wait mode while the pool clears to a sparkling blue. The summer will be half over before I get to do my daily swims! In the meantime, the only excitement we’ve had is the news that a dollar store is going out of business. With 75% off sales, my daughter is going into hoarding mode, buying up enough shampoo, deodorant, and pet food and treats, to keep us going for a year or two—no exaggeration. She heard rumors of a 90% off sale coming next Monday, so you know she’ll be scraping what’s left off the shelves to bring home. She’s also said she plans to be parked in front of the store when the doors open. They have AC. Good for her! She does love a good sale, and the 10-year-old has the fever, too. She came away with an astonishing amount of Squishmallows  and hair products.

But back to the contest…

As a way to solve my book-hoarding problem and make room in my bookshelves, I’m continuing my Clear My Bookshelf Giveaway! I have a ton of my books, collected over my 20 years of publishing. So, rather than consign them to the burn barrel I thought maybe a bunch of giveaways would be fun. As the first couple of giveaways seemed to garner a lot of interest, I’m happy to offer more opportunities for readers to win a signed copy of one of my old books! Check to see who the last winner was! It may have been you!

So, for a chance to win a randomly chosen by me (I might say, do you want a western, an erotic novel, or a paranormal?) book, which I will of course sign and fill with a bookmark and a postcard, painted by me, tell me whether you love to shop a good sale!