Good morning! I got a later start than usual because I spilled a full tumbler of water on my desktop. My cursing scared the cats. My desktop is a little crowded, so I was quickly moving items to the floor before I ran for a towel. Then because the desktop was clean, I got out the Old English and gave the desk its annual “oiling.” I had to toss a couple of notepads, and I’m drying some photos with paperweights to flatten them back out. I don’t need that kind of excitement. Isn’t it sad that soaking my desk constitutes excitement in my life?

Anyways, work is coming along. I didn’t get to write any new pages yesterday, but I made great progress on an editing job. I also played with paint, which was my day’s shining highlight. I’m sharing one of the results below. Sorry, I know you’re readers and would rather hear about books, but this is my blog and my life. So there! 🙂

Open Contests

1. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: A Phoenix Rising from the Ashes — Hannah Elias (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest! Happy World Pangolin Day! — Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Sunday Tarot (Contest) — Win a hand-painted bookmark!
4. Gabbi Black: Romances Around the World! (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
5. Little Update, Minimal Whining, and Giveaway Reminder! — This offer ends soon! Everyone, pick up your free copy right now!
6. Sliding-Puzzle Challenge: Woman Fleeing Dragon (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift certificate!

I promise not to share my art every day, but I’m at the start of the 100-day challenge, and I’m excited!

#100DayProject — Day 2

Broken hand…splint in the way…what could I do? I decided to get out the Gelli plates and used my daughter’s wilting flowers to smash into paint and see what I could get. I love this. The picture doesn’t do it justice. There’s so much detail in the chrysanthemums’ petals. Plus, there’s glare from the overhead light, so you can’t really see the depth of color (magenta, Indian yellow, cadmium orange). For most of my monoprints, I only plan to cut them up for collaging, but I’m tempted to cut a larger section of this to glue to a piece of thick art paper and frame it. But it will need a title. Any suggestions? 

UPDATE: The winner is…Becky Byers!
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I’m coping with the hand. I’ve been doing a ton of edits. Yesterday, I finished another chapter of Mica! So, while I’m slow, I’m also steadily getting the work done.

I also decided not to throw in the towel for the #The100DayProject—that annual art challenge I so love. I decided my weakened, hobbled right hand could be an asset and tried this…

They are “twinchies”—two-inch squares—and used a dip pen (plus a blower bulb on the second one) and acrylic ink to draw these squiggly, shaky flowers. So, Day 1 is done! Woot!

I decided I’d give another kind of puzzle a try. Just to switch things up. And it’s easy-ish to operate, but challenging like a Rubik’s cube to move the puzzle pieces to the right places. See the grayed square? If you tap on any regular square around it, those two pieces will change places. The numbers tell you the order the pieces should be in. So, good luck. I got three in place before I had to take a break. I’m leaving that screen open so I can come back to it and not start all over again!!

So, today’s contest? Play with the puzzle. Then in the comments, 1) tell me how many pieces you got into the right place before you threw up your hands, and 2) whether you want me to give you this kind of puzzle again sometime. I’ll choose a random commenter to win a $5 Amazon gift card! Have fun!

UPDATE: The winner is…Misty Dawn!
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When The Wild Rose Press put out a call for steamy romances set in foreign lands, I took note.  A good friend suggested I write one about Canada.  I was like, uh, hang up…aren’t we almost like America?  As I sit, mere miles from the US border, I feel the weight of our neighbor the south—the politics, the entertainment, the sports teams…

She checked, and yes, Canada isn’t part of the 50 states, so go for it!  I knew I had to write about my favorite city, Vancouver.  I’d already set a book in the Vancouver film industry, so I took a couple of characters I knew, created some new guys I hoped readers would fall in love with an, under my penname Gabbi Grey, wrote the gay romance novella Valentino in Vancouver.

Meanwhile, I had the opportunity to get to know some of the other Passport to Pleasure authors.  They set books in Cairo, Sorrento, Scotland, the South Pacific, and London.  Recently, more books have been added—Ireland, Deutschland, and, excitedly, another Canadian stop. Some of the writers are US-based, while others are international, like myself.  We all bring a flavor of the exotic to our readers.

I enjoyed writing Valentino so much that I knew I wanted to do another book.  I’m happy to share my cover and my new story with you today!  Bonding in Buenos Aires comes out March 15^th and I hope you’ll snag a pre-order copy today. As you can see, it’s an MMF menage with plenty of action – in all forms, if you know what I mean.  I also bring some of my Gabbi Black Vancouver BDSM world from my In Their Eyes trilogy.

Thanks for checking out my tale of international (steamy and hot) novellas.  For a chance to win one of your choice, let me know – where would you like to see a book set?  Random winner will be chosen in the coming days.

And thank you, Delilah, for letting me talk about this great series with your readers.

Bonding in Buenos Aires

From a ménage of friends to forever lovers.

Argentinian Joaquin Perillo met MacKenzie and Kimberly at a cybersecurity conference two years ago. Another conference in Houston and video chats sealed his attraction for them both. Now they are visiting him in Buenos Aires, and he has so many plans for them—in and out of bed.

Canadian Kimberly is a security analyst by day and a Domme at Vancouver’s premier BDSM Club Kink at night. She can’t wait to see her men again so she can whip them into shape.

Texan MacKenzie is a computer geek who spends all his time with code. That is until he meets the beguiling Kimberly and the fun-loving Joaquin. Suddenly, he’s ready to break out of his self-imposed exile.

The triad have ten days to enjoy their ménage before they have to return to their prospective countries.  Because their relationship can’t cross borders or become permanent…right?

Book Links:
Universal link:  https://books2read.com/Buenos
Amazon US:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BS6VGGWX
Apple Books:  https://books.apple.com/ca/book/bonding-in-buenos-aires
Passport to Pleasure series: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09WYVTPKM

About Gabbi

Even though Gabbi Black is a firm believer in happy endings, she makes her characters work for it in every romance she writes, no matter what the genre. From contemporary to BDSM, they are penned early in the morning in her home in beautiful British Columbia while her trusty ChinPoo dog keeps her company. She also writes gay romances as Gabbi Grey and contemporary small town romances as Gabbi Powell.

Author Links:
Website:   https://gabbiblack.com/
Newsletter sign-up:  https://sendfox.com/gabbi
Bookbub:  https://www.bookbub.com/profile/2763198834
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/authorgabbiblack/
Facebook (page): https://www.facebook.com/Author-Gabbi-Black-106666354460589/
Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.ca/authorgabbiblack/boards/
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/GabbiAuthor

UPDATE: The winner is…Wendy H. Vest!
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I’m attempting get back to as close to normal this week as possible, starting with Sunday being my planning day. Before I begin, I always shuffle my favorite tarot deck and choose a card to represent the week.

There was no shuffling, of course. I cut the cards again and again, then chose the top card. I revealed the Queen of Pentacles. Pentacles, again. Hmmm. So, I study the card. She’s pretty and voluptuous. Mature. She holds a gold pentacle in one hand and grapes in the other, so I can assume she likes her comfort. Is she supposed to be me? I’m not wealthy, but I live comfortably. Is she offering the grapes to others? I offer my “grapes” to my friends and family. So, what does it mean for me? Perhaps the week is about seeking and sharing comfort with my family. I like that thought.

Now, I’ll check the book. This is the Lydian queen Omphale. She purchased Heracles in a slave market. He was a rough barbarian, and she coaxed him into wearing rich clothes and enjoying the “comforts” she provided. She shared her largesse freely with him. So, my reading falls in line with the book’s. I’ll continue with a limited work schedule while my hand continues to heal and enjoy time spent with the family. I’ll pop for takeout and coax them into some sort of entertainment—a movie night, perhaps? We’ll chill. So, back to my calendar…

So, my question to you is do you have some sort of weekly practice that helps you sort out your week? Do you open your journal or planner and jot down appointments? Do you check the local theater schedule or make reservations at a restaurant? Do you own a tarot deck to help you “meditate” or divine your week? Comment for a chance to win a hand-painted bookmark!

UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen Airey!
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Don’t know what a pangolin is? It’s a medium-sized mammal that looks like an anteater wearing armor. They live in Asian and Sub-Sahara Africa. Why do they have a day all to themselves? Their numbers are dwindling, and conservationists want to shine a light on these homely little creatures. Don’t know what one looks like? Solve the puzzle!

Solve the puzzle then tell me how you’re going to spend this very special day for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift certificate!

I’m being lazy today. Saving keystrokes. I have an editing job to finish today. Two to start tomorrow. I’ve given myself a break from having to type full sentences of my own for another week. Hand is losing some of the swelling. Using my middle finger now. Chicks are getting big and are very chirpy. If ever you write a horror story, keep that incessant sound in mind. 🙂

1. Who is she? (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win a FREE book!
2. Word Search: Rain by any other name… (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win a hand-painted bookmark!
3. Puzzle-Contest: New family additions… — Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Health and Book Release Update, and a Question (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. *whine-whine-whine* (FREE Story) — EVERYONE! Get your FREE story now!
6. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: A Phoenix Rising from the Ashes — Hannah Elias (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…bn100!
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