Hearts of homes and stories #writing #writinglife #love

This summer, I have been in the process of moving, which has involved all sorts of surprises. Packing my belongings seemed like it would be a relatively tame and easy part of moving house. As I was steadily putting clothes and dishes in boxes, it occured to me how much of my possessions were unnecessary. There are the items that collect dust but have no real function, there are the furniture pieces that have lived their lives and need to be retired somewhere else, even though I thought that maybe one day, I would sand the thing down and repaint it. In all honesty, I won’t, though. At least not in this decade.

Getting rid of trashloads of things and seeing the empty spaces left behind made me feel unexpectedly lighter and freer. Though I haven’t been able to do much writing over the past few weeks due to tons of boxes and unforeseen problems with plumbing and furniture deliveries and other disasters, the freeing feeling of getting rid of excess stayed on my mind. When I get back to writing, I will start applying the strategy of getting rid of unnecessary parts that don’t serve the story with even more ruthlessness than ever before.

The paragraphs I was attached to because of a clever phrase or poetic construction? Gone if they don’t truly serve the story in some way. Scenes that described the scenery in great detail? Deleted if they can’t make me feel some significant way about those details. I will begin extracting words with precision, especially from the flash fiction and short stories I have in progress. But I can’t cut away everything small or that doesn’t seem necessary or functional because, as I realize after looking at folders of art work my children made over the years as well as the painting my husband and I bought years ago using a gift card that was a wedding gift, that a story and a home both need a heart to survive. Some of what makes a heart beat is in the memories or the small things that may collect a bit of dust but make me smile whenever I see them.

 

If you’d like to follow me on social media for my latest book information and excerpts, poems, contest info, book recommendations, and other fun stuff, you can find me at:

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Go for it!

 

Last month, I riffed about my upcoming 25^th anniversary of being a published author. It was in December of 2001 that I signed a publishing contract for my first novel, the romantic spy thriller “Memories Die Last.” It introduced a CIA spook named Nick Seven, who walked away from the dark underworld of espionage after settling a personal score and now lives in Key Largo, Florida with a former co-worker from Barbados named Felicia. The character resonated with readers, and he’s still going strong 25 years later. Nick may be my favorite creation, but I haven’t limited my imagination to his exploits alone.

 

I like to try new things with my writing. I become bored easily and if I don’t flex my creative muscles, that malaise will find its way into my stories. I think this is why I switch between mystery/thrillers and romantic comedies. It puts my brain in offense mode, and challenges me to take chances. My dislike of cliches also keeps my mystery readers on their toes. I’m really happy when I come up with a unique “Gotcha!” or last-minute “Aha!” twist that catches people off-guard. One of my followers pointed out that in many of the mysteries, I write a sort-of climax three-quarters of the way through, then follow it up with a bigger finish. I wasn’t aware I was doing this, but he pointed it out in online reviews as “the Tim Smith double climax.” I haven’t taken out a patent on that yet.   

 

In one of my early books, “The Vendetta Factor” (Nick Seven series), I went retro by using chapter titles. Since it was an old school pulp fiction-style crime thriller, it seemed like a good fit. The fact that no one had used chapter titles in fiction for thirty-odd years increased my desire to flaunt current trends. My first romantic comedy, “Anywhere the Heart Goes,” took the title thing one step further. I began each chapter with a quote about love and relationships, to set the mood. Some of the quotes were funny, while others were poignant.

 

The Vic Fallon private eye mystery “Lido Key” pushed my limits regarding adult content. I had the female lead enjoying an intimate relationship with her cute Latina housekeeper, and both of them are attracted to the hero. The heroine is also a former lap dancer turned rich trophy widow who is being blackmailed because of her past indiscretions. It’s probably the steamiest story concept I ever came up with. During his investigation, my hero encounters a sleazy strip club owner and a famous tough guy writer with a taste for booze and women. It’s a low-down noir concept with a cast of characters to match. I think Mickey Spillane would’ve been impressed.   

 

Speaking of characters, that’s another area where I color outside the lines. I like creating personalities that are unique and memorable. I pay attention to people and take note of their fashion statements, physical characteristics and speech patterns. My realistic caricatures have almost gotten me into trouble when someone is convinced that I based a character on them or a mutual friend. This is patently false, because my characters are fictional composites, and it says so in the front of the books. What people want to believe beyond that is up to them. 

 

I like to see how many fireworks I can set off during interviews, and I have a lot of fun when I can get a laugh with my responses. It plays into something I learned a long time ago—any publicity can be good if it gets people talking about you. As proof, search the name Kardashian and see what pops up. It also verifies that I don’t take myself too seriously. One blog interview I did nearly cost me an invitation to a family reunion, though, because a relative was embarrassed by my answers to some of the questions. They dealt with my thoughts on certain fetishes, and I felt obliged to give outrageous answers.  

  

The biggest limit-pusher for me was becoming a published author in the first place. I had reached a crossroad in my life, and was feeling restless. I recalled an idea for a story I had always wanted to tell, and challenged myself to either write the damn thing or stop talking about it. I only pursued publication after being encouraged by family and friends. The second-biggest risk was my decision to write under my own name. Since my stories contain some hot romance, I sometimes think that not adopting a pseudonym was a mistake.

 

It’s time to start the next phase of this journey!

 

Tim Smith is an award-winning bestselling author of mystery/thrillers and contemporary romantic comedies. He is also a freelance writer, blogger, and editor. He can often be found in the Florida Keys, doing research in between parasailing and seeking out the perfect Mojito. His author page is Tim Smith/AllAuthor 

 

 

Beam Me Up, Scotty

 

https://www.longandshortreviews.com/miscellaneous-musings/wednesday-weekly-blogging-challenge-for-september-2-2026/

The Long and Short Reviews prompt for September 2 asks for one sci-fi item or ability that we wish really existed.

Here is some music to enjoy while we ponder the possibility.

https://odysee.com/@AncientRealms:e/CNV07:0?r=76byLTy8eLwNnT413RLsdZmfY9RfvBgE

Conversations with the Time Keeper.

My choice is the transporter from the Star Trek universe. I also include a mini review of Star Trek the Motion Picture free of charge.

Boy howdy, would I love it if I didn't have to drive 65 miles at 65 miles an hour to go to Costco. It would be so handy if my family and I could just step into our home transporter room and arrive in Costco's transporter room seconds later. Then when we were done shopping, we could just beam back home with our haul.

I should specify that I want the transporter from Star Trek the Original Series. I've never understood  why they crapified the transporter in the first Star Trek movie. The one they had during the three seasons of the show never turned anyone into an unrecognizable pile of meat. I was looking forward to this movie so much, and the transporter horror scene was not an auspicious start.

Despite the multitude of problems with the movie, I enjoyed it overall and would watch it again. I give it three stars because I was thrilled to be reunited with my favorite characters and the special effects were awe-inspiring. However, the writers were so enamored with depicting the concept of man merging with (attractive female) machine that they didn't seem to care whether the rest of the story was cohesive and engaging. 

Visit me at naughtynetherworldpress.start.page

World Gone Dark series release by January Bain

 Good Morning to you and Happy September!

It's been another grand month since last we met. Fall is my favourite season and it's come in so lovely and inspiring this year. The weather is perfect, unlike the rainy June and July we had that prevented certain activities like building on our rural property. Now we're catching up and it feels darn good! I trust your summer has gone well and you're looking forward to the change in weather.

My biggest thought at the moment in my recent book release: 

                                               Race the Chaos

The book came out a few days ago from Rough Edges Press, and is the third book in my World Gone Dark series. I made a little video to share:

If you would like to check it out further, here's the link: Amazon

The apocalypse didn’t just take the lights. Now it’s hunting them.

The heat is relentless, water is running out, and something is moving through the dark hollows of Kentucky that has no interest in mercy. When escaped tigers stalk the forests and the Rebel Sons MC strips the town pharmacy bare, Burgundy Mackenzie faces an impossible choice: let her sister Poppy die, or go to the one man she can’t afford to owe again.

Frost Hellebuyck has always kept the club’s violence at arm’s length. But agreeing to help Burgundy pulls him into the MC’s brutal hierarchy deeper than he ever planned to go…and deeper than he can easily walk back from. Far from home, Auburn survives a savage betrayal on the lawless roads and finds an unexpected ally who may change everything, and Cormac, finally free of his murderous traveling companions, presses toward home through fire and ruin, making choices that would break a lesser man.

Then the ham radio crackles with something worse than any storm: Mycosis-A, a deadly ancient plague unleashed from the melting Greenland ice, is spreading. The collapse was just the opening act. In a world gone dark, the most lethal enemy yet is invisible…and there is no race fast enough to outrun it.

I wish you a fond adieux until next month!

Hugs, January

Storyteller

The Intimacy of Audio

Image courtesy of Pixabay

Lisabet Sarai

A few days ago I received an email from Jim Loftin, who runs WordWoozePublishing. I’ve been working with his company for at least five years now. They’re responsible for all currently available audio editions of my books.

Jim identified about twenty-five of backlist my titles that he wanted to bring out in audio format. I laughed and told him him was perhaps too ambitious, given that he has to find a human narrator for every book. (I’m proud to say that WordWooze does not use AI voices.) We agreed on a somewhat scaled back agenda to start with. Still, I was pleased that he thought he could sell more of my stories in this form.

To be honest, I do not personally enjoy listening to audio books. I don’t like to wear earphones in general; it makes me feel cut off from the environment and a bit vulnerable. Nevertheless, I know that there are some “readers” who will only consume books in audio form. I’ve gotten messages from fans eager to know when, or whether, the next book in a series is going to available as an audio book. They’d read (i.e. listened to) the earlier volumes; they didn’t want to switch to ebook or print, even if they had to wait.

I guess I can understand why people enjoy listening to books. After all, our ancestors told stories around campfires for thousands of years before writing was invented. We are primed, perhaps, to listen and imagine. Before television, radio dramas were incredibly popular and perhaps dangerously compelling. (If you don’t know about Orson Welle’s 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast, find out more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds_(1938_radio_drama)

Words paint pictures and summon emotions, whether we read them on the page or have them whispered in our ears. Modern methods for consuming audio books make the experience particularly intimate. No one else knows what you are hearing or what you are imagining. The advent of ebooks provided a new level of privacy; with no covers or titles visible, others cannot easily tell what it is you are reading. Audio books are even more private; it is, after all, possible that the person next to you could look over your shoulder at your Kindle. Nothing comparable threatens your privacy with audio books.

Anyway, the communications from Jim motivated me to review my current audio offerings. I discovered that my website was sadly out of date with regard to audio links. In additon there was no way for my readers to tell which titles exist in audio format.

I’ve now remedied this. Readers can visit my master book page, https://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html and choose from a wide variety of categories and genres. I’ve now added “Available in audio format” as one of those categories, updated the set of books for which this is true, and tested all the buy links.

I discovered that I currently have sixteen titles available in audio, including my full Toymakers Guild series. So if you like to listen to your stories, go check out the new information. 

 

 

And if there’s some other title that you’d really like to listen to... email me at lisabet [at] lisabetsarai [dot] com and let me know!

Speaking of email, I’ve switched to a new bulk email provider and updated my VIP subscriber list. As part of this process, I’ve created a new sign-up page. The link is here: https://lisabetsarai.eo.page/kqyq4

If you’re not already a VIP subscriber, why not sign up today? Everyone who joins has the opportunity to download a free copy of my paranormal romance The Eyes of Bast – one of my most popular titles.

Thanks! See you in October, since there’s no September 31^st!

Read Armour of God by Steven A Coulter #MMRomance #SciFi #LGBT

  

Armour of God

Key Words: 

MM Romance, LGBTQ, SciFi, Religious Fiction

Synopsis:

Gods. Grifters. Lovers. Saints. 

As the U.S. prepares to abandon democracy in favor of theocratic rule, a groundbreaking discovery by Japan’s JAXA space program on a deep space asteroid threatens to unravel the very fabric of faith.

With powerful figures vying for control, American journalist Daniel Duboce and Japanese scientist Hideo Saito must navigate a treacherous landscape of ambition, betrayal, and unexpected love. And, as they confront the implications of the asteroid's findings, they grapple with their identities and the stakes of exposing a truth that could ignite violence and threaten their lives.

As alliances are tested and the forces of dogma clash with the pursuit of knowledge, Daniel and Hideo are faced with a daunting decision: to reveal the truth and risk everything or to remain silent and protect those they hold dear. At the intersection of love, faith, and the fight for a future where truth prevails, the question remains: what price are they willing to pay for freedom?

Get It Now:

Universal

https://books2read.com/Armour-Of-God

Free Sample

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/5foq7c3nks

-----

Who am I?

Steve writes speculative fiction. He explores issues of consequence embedded in fast-paced adventure, exotic settings, nasty bad guys, reluctant heroes, and the audacity of love. His work is enriched by his varied careers – soldier, teacher, journalist, state legislator, corporate executive, and library commissioner. He has a BA and MA in Journalism and was a Lambda Literary Fellow in 2008 and 2013, later spending two years on the Board. He lives in San Francisco with his husband, Greg. They favor bittersweet chocolate.

Stalk Me

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Join My ARC Team here

WATCHING THE EARL by Lexi Post is now on preorder for only 99¢ for a limited time!

 WATCHING THE EARL (Courting a Curious Lady: Book 6) by Lexi Post is available for a 99¢ preorder, but only for a few days.

Amazon | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA

She’s ruined. He’s lost it all. A perfect match?

Lady Georgina is devastated. The lord who said he loved her, ruined her, then married another. Now her parents are desperate to keep her situation private by marrying her off to the first willing man no matter who it is. But even then, everything depends on her keeping her shame a secret…and she’s never kept a secret in her life.

Lord Philip Durham has lost it all on a sure bet. Desperate to save his father’s legacy and keep his situation hidden, he agrees to marry a woman with a large dowry. Discovering she’s also ruined only makes him more determined since it’s fitting penance for his past failings. Being forced to make a life with her, and thereby raising his family’s reputation, will satisfy both of his goals.

However, Lady Georgina appears to have goals of her own, including digging into his awkward family dynamics and returning to London for the remainder of the Season. As she becomes more confident, she seems to rise from the ashes of her old life like the mythical Phoenix. But can he avoid being burned or will her transformation bring him down in flames?

Releasing September 25th

Catch up on all the Curious Ladies

About Lexi:

 Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of romance inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan Poe's short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she's read, studied, and taught wonderful classics.

But Lexi's first love is romance novels so she married her two first loves, romance and the classics. Whether it’s sizzling cowboys, dashing dukes, hot immortals, or hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a “whole lotta story.”

Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her two cats in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and you’ll never see her without a hat.

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