UPDATE” The winner is…Tamye Whitener!
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For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, 1) solve the puzzle, then 2) tell me how the pieces all work together in a story! Your idea doesn’t have to be long or good. Just have fun!
BlogMonday, September 7th, 2020
UPDATE” The winner is…Tamye Whitener! For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, 1) solve the puzzle, then 2) tell me how the pieces all work together in a story! Your idea doesn’t have to be long or good. Just have fun! Sunday, September 6th, 2020
Don’t miss out! Enter or download today!
Saturday, September 5th, 2020
The next Hot SEAL, Wedding Edition story is here—and it’s a secret baby story! I know that, if you try one of our Hot SEAL stories, you’ll want to read them all! The latest release is Teresa Reasor’s Hot SEAL, Taking the Plunge! Get your copy today, and then sit back and enjoy! All Hot SEAL, Wedding Edition book links are below! Hot SEAL, Taking the Plunge
More Hot SEALS! Order/Pre-order now!Hot SEAL, Bachelor Party by Elle James Hot SEAL, Decoy Bride by Delilah Devlin Hot SEAL, Runaway Bride by Cat Johnson Hot SEAL, Cold Feet by Becca Jameson Hot SEAL, Best Man by Parker Kincade Hot SEAL, Confirmed Bachelor by Cynthia D’Alba Hot SEAL, Taking the Plunge by Teresa Reasor Hot SEAL, Undercover Groom by MaryAnn Jordan Friday, September 4th, 2020
I may have talked about this here before, so forgive me if I have. I got to thinking one day after seeing so many conversations on social media among authors not wanting to tackle the topic of the lockdown because we like to write romance, and how do you handle romances and settings where people intermingle with their communities and meet the loves of their lives when so many of us are having to self-isolate. I mean, how do couples find each other in the middle of a lockdown? As well, we like to write stories that lift people up. How do you lift people up tackling a real-world issue when so many are grappling with depression and loneliness due to the current pandemic? Well, I talked to author friends online, and we came up with this idea for a series of short-short stories, just 1,500 to 2,500 words long, that we want to offer for FREE to readers. Our passing-time-in-a-pandemic gift to you. Authors will be hosted on my Collections website—that site that’s not all about me, but rather all about the anthologies I put together and the authors who contribute to them. We’ll all share promo duties to get the word out when a new story arrives. You might want to subscribe to the Collections site so you don’t miss a single FREE story. Just a thought! While you’re enjoying these short freebies, of all different heat levels, be sure to check out the authors, too. They’re a talented bunch. I bet you’ll find some new authors you’ll be eager to follow. So, let’s start with the first of the stories coming your way… SUBLET — Part 1 by Reina TorresClick on the cover to head over to the Love In Lockdown webpage! Thursday, September 3rd, 2020
I probably don’t have to tell you that there’s a pandemic going on, particularly if you live here in the States. Our response has been lackluster and has caused trauma for countless thousands of people here – families directly affected, communities shuttered, jobs lost, and a constant barrage of bad news. It makes it hard to write. Sometimes, it makes it hard to do anything creative. I don’t have any big solutions. I’m not sure there ARE any right this second. What I can say, is that, sometimes, when we can’t solve something, we have to think outside the box about how to sit with the discomfort and dark emotions we’re feeling. Avoiding them isn’t helpful. There’s a saying in trauma recovery: there are two traumas – the initial event, and what we do with it. And that latter point can make all the difference. If you’re feeling that you or someone you care about has had a negative outcome from trauma, whether from coronavirus or some other cause, there is help. Seek out a licensed mental health counselor and get treatment. Psychology Today has a great therapist finder, here. One solution that is highly effective for people experiencing Post Traumatic Stress is mindfulness. It seems like it’s everywhere now – meditation courses, articles, advertisements for apps. But mindfulness is more than just sitting still and counting your breaths (though that is immensely helpful all by itself). It’s about being totally engaged in the present moment, focused on whatever’s immediately at hand. And weavers have known this for centuries. Getting into weaving isn’t difficult and doesn’t need to be expensive. Yes, purchasing yourself a countermarch loom will set you back multiple thousands of dollars. But that’s not a beginner’s loom, not by a long shot. There are very affordable rigid heddle looms available and a growing body of books and online courses regarding how to make some really cool stuff with them. But my favorite for when I’m too stressed to even count, let alone work on a larger loom, is the pin loom.
Popular in the 1920s clear up to the 1940s, pin looms are generally small. This one is a modern version called a Zoom Loom, made by Schacht Spindle Company. They create a fully finished piece of fabric, in this case four inches by four inches. These squares can be pieced together in countless ways – like quilting, for example, or to make clothing such as shawls, jackets, and sweaters; purses; and even little plush toys. I inherited two pin looms from my mother when she died. I don’t recall ever seeing her use them, but I went through a very intense period after a cross-country move and started to play with them. I found a group online that focused solely on pin loom weaving (which is different than potholder looms, those plastic toys we played with as children and that have had a resurgence probably for similar reasons as the Zoom Loom). I find it calming because to weave a basic square requires no counting or extra concentration. If you want to make textured patterns it’s absolutely possible, but that does require extra focus. And sometimes, I just can’t bring myself to focus that hard. It’s like my brain is overwhelmed from other outside events, and it’s enough to just wind the yarn onto the loom and to weave a little square. And sometimes, it’s by weaving ourselves back together using simple tools like this that we begin our own process of healing. Trauma is intense. Healing is possible. I am making the Fox Purse from a book called Zoo Crew, by Deborah Bagley. Check it out, there are some seriously cute projects in there. About the AuthorA. Catherine Noon is a bestselling author, writing instructor, and creative entrepreneur based in Bellevue, WA, in the Pacific Northwest. When she’s not writing, she’s weaving; and when she’s not weaving, she’s knitting. And when none of that happens, she likes to blog. Join her all month for “Self-Care September” – a blog series dedicated to using creative tools to solve the quarantine blues. acatherinenoon.com | noonandwilder.com | writerzengarden.com | knoontimeknitting.com
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2020
No dirty connotations, here! If you’re like me, you’re happy to see the middle of the week because it means the rest is a downhill glide! And if you saw my note on FB, I did promise you a much cuter pic to enjoy if you found your way here… Tuesday, September 1st, 2020
UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen Airey! It’s the first day of September! I checked the weather forecast. This week, if weather permits, will likely be the last week I can comfortably swim in my pool. Some years, I’ve been able to stick it out until mid-October, but with temperatures going down steadily (we’ll have a high of 68 degrees around the 10th!), I have to concede the battle. I love the first of the month. My bank account is flush ( 🙂 ), and I have a lovely plan mapped out that doesn’t have any chicken-marked changes on it, yet. If you read yesterday’s blog, you know I have plenty to do, but I won’t let any negativity take me down today. It’s a bright, shiny new month! To start your month right, how about a puzzle and a little game? Puzzle-ContestFor a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me a story… Doesn’t have to be long or be any good. Just have fun! Open Contests!Enter while you still can!
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