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Revealing “Secrets Kept”

Let’s start off with a question today. How do you feel about mysteries? Don’t they make you feel… well… nosy? We have something in common then, because I’m the same way!

Here’s the thing… I have this friend, J. L. Mbewe, who is an AWESOME writer. She’s written a new book, Secrets Kept. Only problem was, I didn’t know much about it. And it was just killing me, because I really, really, REALLY wanted to know!

What? Wait for the release date?

Now, that’s just silly!

No. You see, since she and I are friends, I just knew she wouldn’t mind if I stopped by to snoop through her files borrow a cup of sugar. And while she was in the kitchen, I managed to  sneak into her office get lost looking for the bathroom. So, I sat down at her desk and hacked into her computer waited for her to get back.

With a curse, she will build an army. With the dagger, she will undo the last sacrifice. But first the sorceress must find the secret keeper.

That was the first little tidbit I found. Not enough for you? Fine. Here are some more details:

Torn from her homeland and thrust into a betrothal against her wishes, Ayianna learns her family has a deadly secret that now has her on the run. She joins forces with Kael, an embittered half-elf, and Saeed, an elderly High Guardian, to seek answers to her father’s death, the destruction of Dagmar, and the plains people’s bizarre behavior.

Ayianna discovers there is more at stake here than just her mother’s disappearance and her familial duty to her betrothed. The sorceress has cursed the plains people, and it is a race against time to release them before the sorceress resurrects an ancient evil.

Sounds great, huh? Wait! STILL not enough??? Too bad. I’m not showing you any more. I’m not.

Okay, I’ll do it. But only because you twisted my arm.

It’s the cover! Not bragging or anything, but I got out of there with the actual book cover!!! Here you go:

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Nice… and completely worth the restraining order! Now, I’m feeling super generous, and will share one other thing I’d planned to keep for myself. For the next day or so, you can sign up for a raffle…

a Rafflecopter giveaway

… to win this DRAGON BOOKMARK

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Just do me a favor. Don’t tell anyone I sent you. I’m in enough trouble already. Also… keep your eyes open. Secrets Kept will be released in the fall of 2013, and you won’t want to miss it!

Until next time.

~Laura

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Don’t Bother Getting Up… No. Really.

Bug harmed

I think today might be turning into one of THOSE days. You know what THOSE days are like, right? Things start out beautifully, and then, suddenly… WHAM-O! (Uh… for the folks who don’t know what I’m talking about, the “WHAM-O” is where something stupid happens that ruins everything, and makes you very sorry you even bothered to get out of bed.)

So, here’s the thing… It’s still early. That means it isn’t too late for me to cut my losses and end this day before things get out of hand. But, before I take such drastic measures, I will ask my readers to share their opinions. First let me tell you what happened…

When I woke up, it was like the perfect morning. The sun was shining. The birds were singing. I felt inspired by such beauty, and couldn’t wait to begin my day. So, I hopped out of bed, and got dressed.

Wow! Really? Got dressed?

Going to be real honest here. This is a big deal for me. Now that I work from home, I live in my pajamas over 75% of the time. It’s shameful… I know. But when several days go by without me finding a single reason to leave my house, it all seems like way too much effort.

But not today! Today I dressed, made some breakfast, poured coffee, and headed to my office for an early start.

I bet you’re thinking it all sounds pretty awesome. But do you hear it? Do you hear that creepy music building slowly in the background, telling you things are about to go terribly wrong? Yea. Me too.

Halfway to the office, I bumped into a doorway, and ended up wearing my breakfast. ~sigh~ This meant I had to go back to the kitchen, put everything down, change, and hand wash my shirt to remove all the stains.

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Did I get the stains out? (pic by LM Ritchie)

After trying again with the breakfast, I finally made it to the office. About to enjoy my first sip of coffee, I found this:

My morning, bug-infested cup of coffee. (pic by Laura Ritchie)

My morning, bug-infested cup of coffee. (pic by Laura Ritchie)

Upsetting? Yes… but not as upsetting as it was for the giant gnat. As you can see, he did not survive his kamikaze-style dive into my scalding hot coffee. But now that he has sabotaged my morning beverage, I am left with the question of what to do next. Should I risk further disaster by continuing my day, or hide under the blankets until tomorrow? Have you had one of THOSE days lately? Tell us all about it!

 Thanks so much for your vote. The life you save may be… well… mine!

Until next time!

~Laura

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DFW Writer’s Conference — A Place of Learning, Friends… and Cheese

Cheese-cropped

It seems like just yesterday that I hopped a plane to the great state of Texas, making my way to DFWWC, my very first  writer’s conference. After checking in, and picking up my goody bag, I had some time to kill before the first session. I decided to wander past some of the dealer’s tables. At the first table, a woman said, “Good morning, Laura.” Surprised, I listened politely to her sales pitch on the jewelry she was selling, staring at her the whole time, and wondering how she knew me.

It wasn’t until later I remembered I was wearing a name tag.

Yea… I can really be THAT blond at times.

So, I headed toward the first session, and passed several tables piled high with pastries. These became my morning drug of choice, as they were made available to attendees until almost lunchtime.  That’s right, folks. No carb left behind!

I attended sessions throughout both days—all wonderful, by the way. But, one of the best parts of the weekend was meeting, live and in person, so many of my fabulous WANATribe pals, like:  Piper Bayard, Donna Newton, Rachel Funk Heller, Julie Glover, Debra Kristi, Diana Beebe, Tamari Etherton, Melinda VanLone, Jenny Hansen… The list goes on and on, and I’m really sorry I can’t name you all!

Oh! I really should mention that I also met the individual who inspired me to go to this Texas conference to begin with…our WANA Mamma, Kristen Lamb! Yes, it was a lot of fun to stalk hang out with Ms. Lamb. Unfortunately, the pics I took of her at the conference didn’t turn out at all. Not to be thwarted, however, after the end of the weekend I tracked her like a rabid bloodhound took a drive over to her ranch. In retrospect, I’m thinking it might have been a good idea to mention, before yelling the word FREEZE, that I was pointing a camera at her, and not a loaded firearm.

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Kristen, it’s a Kodak digital, NOT a Smith&Wesson! (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

Okay… this whole “restraining order” thing is getting me off on quite a rabbit trail here. Let’s get back to the conference. Did I mention the buffet lunches they provided each day?  I don’t want to forget about those. But, the most interesting thing was the spread they laid out for the Saturday evening Cocktail Party—tasty treats—crackers and veggies, spreads and dips… and in case I haven’t mentioned it before now… there was cheese. And, when I say “cheese”, I mean LOTS of cheese! Don’t believe me? Take a look:

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A tray of cheese. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

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Another tray of cheese. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

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Still ANOTHER tray of cheese. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

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Yea… You’ve caught on by now. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

Now, here was my favorite cheese:

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The yummiest of the cheeses. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

And this brown cheese was my least favorite:

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Brown cheese, with tiny bits of real cheese hidden inside. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

And take a look at this little bite of ham.  What? NOT ham??? Nope. It’s just PINK CHEESE!

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The ham is a lie. (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

It’s safe to say that I would highly recommend DFWWC to anyone looking for an awesome writer’s conference. For me, it was a great experience. I had fun, learned a lot, connected with so many great folks… and I ate cheese. There was other stuff I could tell you about, but I think I’ll stop here. You don’t even want to get me STARTED on my asparagus story!!!

Until next time.

~Laura

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Thor, God of Thunder: MIA

When I got the message that Thor was coming, I was THRILLED. Have you kept up on this guy’s world tour? If not, check out this page over at Debra Kristi’s site, and find out what all the excitement’s about. But I have to be honest… In reading about his travels, you will learn that the god of thunder can be a little temperamental.

So, I did what I could to prepare my home, cleaning the entire place from top to bottom. Twice. And the second time, I scrubbed the floors with a toothbrush. Just to be thorough.

My husband and I moved out of the master bedroom, intending to offer Thor our most spacious accommodations. Then, we thought again. This was simply not enough for such a prominent guest. We decided to move the entire family into the basement to sleep on air mattresses, giving Thor full run of the upstairs.

Oh… and I bought a pricey cookbook called “Tasty Favorites of the Norse Deities”. After fully stocking our pantry, I was ready to prepare any dish that might please Thor’s superior palette.

Still, I wondered… Would all be enough?

At last, the big day arrived. Gathering around the kitchen counter, we all held our breath as my son opened the box, and…

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Wait! Where is Thor? (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

We stared, disbelieving. Other than some packaging materials, and a few strands of beads, we found the box to be completely empty! And then, I turned it over.

An escape hatch (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

An escape hatch (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

Gone… Thor was gone! In a panic, I ran to my car, heading straight to the post office. Demanding to be allowed inside, I searched every inch of the building, but found no sign of him. And I came to a heartbreaking conclusion… the mighty Thor was lost!

Questions filled my mind: What should I do? Where could he be? Will everyone blame ME for this mishap?

After sobbing uncontrollably for hours, I decided to attend my daughter’s baby shower. I had, of course, told her not to expect me, for fear of angering the god of thunder with our foolish mortal celebration. But, with Thor MIA, there was no longer any reason to sit around at  home.

I felt completely ashamed over losing Thor… yet I had promised to complete a post. Though not what folks expected, I had nothing else to offer, so I documented our little event. This was the cupcake tower:

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Yummy cupcakes (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

The gift table:

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Lots of gifts for baby (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

And a nice shot of my son and daughter:

The mommy-to-be and her brother (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

The mommy-to-be and her brother (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

With the shower all wrapped up, it came time to deal with my problem as best I could. I wrote a letter of apology to place in Thor’s empty box,

An apology to Thor's next host (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

An apology to Thor’s next host (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

and I taped it up tight.

Packing Thor's belongings (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

Packing Thor’s belongings (Pic by Laura Ritchie)

We are devastated that we didn’t get to meet Thor. I ask that you all please forgive me for messing up his world tour, and I hope Thor eventually makes it home safely.

~Laura

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No Place Like Home

Guess what? I’ve had the most amazing week. I attended the DFW Writer’s Conference last weekend, followed by a relaxing time with Kristen Lamb (Check out her website here.) and friends, at her lovely ranch. After my long trip, I have a ton of stuff to catch up on, but be prepared to hear all the details real soon!

In the meantime, I have a few minutes to give you a Friday laugh. Hope you enjoy! :)

Have a great weekend!

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Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better

I usually bring up topics that are all girlie, but that isn’t fair. So,  today let’s even things out a bit. Today, I want to talk about how tough guys are.

I mean, there’s a ton of guy-stuff  they can do better than us. Like punch things… grill outdoors… kill spiders. In the battle of the sexes, they prove to be stronger in many ways, including their tolerance for pain.

But, there is one thing they haven’t tried to do.

Recently, a Dr. Andrew Rochford  decided to conduct a little experiment, using himself as a guinea pig. He put himself to the ultimate test. Here’s what happened:

 

What do you think about Dr. Rochford’s experiment? The test built slowly to simulate real labor, but I’m curious about how those little zappers feel. If you put them on a woman who has experienced childbirth, would she agree that the “contractions” were similar to the real deal? One thing is certain… the doctor was able to quit whenever he wanted. Women are forced to complete the entire process, many accomplishing this without the aid of any pain medications whatsoever.

Do you think he gave it a valiant effort? Would you be willing to show him how it’s done?

Until next time!

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An Incredible Journey

Another Friday has arrived, and boy, am I ever happy about this one. I’m about to head out for the 2013 DFW Writers’ Conference.

Woo-hoo! Can’t wait to get there!

~does happy dance around the room~

Oh, dear. Please don’t get upset about this. I know you will all miss me terribly, but here’s a little something to help you get by until I return. This is one of my favorite videos. It’s insane. You’ll love it.

Have a fabulous weekend!

~Laura