17 Years

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 30 Comments


West Virginia has been invaded. Again. As predicted. 

Every seventeen years, Brood V Cicadas, emerge from their underground hovels and swarm all over our lush, green landscape. (*Click here to learn more ) 

Granted, it's a disgusting time of year...especially when walking in the dark and they crunch under my feet and leave gooey guts on my flip flops. 

(Yes, a flashlight would be a good idea, but let's be honest...I dropped out of Girl Scouts after the first meeting. Being prepared in the face of all situations is not my specialty.)

I also hate it when I find one of these critters hitching a ride on my shoulder. 

I'm not sure if this happen naturally, or if it's because I'm married to a big child who finds scaring the crap out of me hilarious. Either way, I often find one perched quietly on my shoulder, imploring me with his beady little orange eyes to offer him a salad and a bed in a houseplant for the night. 

Wait, what was I saying? 

Oh, yeah, these once-every-17-year swarms are disgusting, but they are also fun. 

Not because of the drippy squished guts, or the random hitchhikers. No, they're fun because they because they bring back good memories. 

My first cicada (AKA locust in WV common tongue) invasion was in 1982. My cousin, Ross, was visiting from South Carolina and to impress my girlfriend, he ate one of the creepy, gigantic creatures. So, when I tell people they have a buttery, creamy taste...I'm not going on personal experience. I'm quoting the culinary review of a boy in the midst of puberty with more hormones running than brain cells. 
The second invasion was in 1999. My boys were little then and hardcore bug freaks. On the first night the Cicada were out in droves, my husband and then three boys, ages 5, 3, and 1...went outside with flashlights and little plastic sand buckets to collect the bugs in all their forms- from the shelled larvae, the white newbie, and the black-bodied adult. I watched from the porch with one foot in the house, one out, protected by the screen door...just in case that bucket of bugs was tossed my way. 

Now, they're back...watching from every surface their sticky little feet can hang onto...as we go about the job of making a few more summer memories. 


Join the Goals Blog Hop Here!
Misha Gericke & Beth Fred host this monthly goal update. 

Here's an update on my balanced goals for 2016!

1. Lose weight. I lost a few pounds in the chaos of the last few weeks, but I haven't been exercising or paying attention to my diet. When pounds are lot that way, they're easily found, so I need to get back on track. 
2. Declutter rooms to declutter the mind. I haven't had a bunch of spare time, so what I've been doing is pick spot in a room- a drawer or a closet- and clean it out. It's amazing how addictive order can become. 
3. Publish two books. Swept Away is done. Now, I need to decide on the next project to work on. I have several ideas in my head, but I can't seem to find the words until one of them opens up and starts speaking to me.

Thanks to our hosts Lexa, L.G, and Tonja Drecker for this weekly good things check in! 

All the boys are home for summer vacation. All of our plan are set for the summer for vacation and a few weekend get-a-ways. Now, I'm broke, but happily looking forward to some family fun.

Swept Away is out, and so far, the feedback from readers is good. I can't help but hold my breath and pray in those first days! I'll gratuitously add the embed below...just in case anyone would like to check it out.

Available now!

30 comments:

Pomp and Circumstances

9:20 AM Elizabeth Seckman 48 Comments

All that gold filing in...
It’s been a busy week. Two of my boys graduated- one from high school, one from college.

First, there was Caleb's (Boy #1) Honors Medallion Ceremony.

Notice the sea of yellow gowns? That’s what graduates were supposed to wear. My son, because he had no intention of going through the regular graduation ceremony, didn’t buy a gown.

Once I realized the dress code for the ceremony also called for the gown, I felt awful. I asked Caleb if he wanted to ditch- just ask them for the medallion and get the heck out of Dodge. He said no. He came to go through the ceremony, and he was going through the ceremony. 

Personally, I’d have left. I don’t have that much gumption.


Caleb with President Gee. 

But he does. He’s pretty awesome like that.


Me and my brave little boy young man. 
That same night, his little brother, Carter (Boy #3) found out that he’d be Salutatorian for his graduation two days later. He had to write a speech ASAP and turn it in for approval. He asked me to help, but I was in Morgantown getting ready to watch his big brother. I told him to just jot something down, turn it in, and we’d polish it up after graduation practice. 

Carter printed out a copy of his speech for his teacher and shut off the computer...without saving. But he didn't worry. He was writing a revised version later and he knew the gist of what he planned to say. 
Carter giving his Salutatorian speech
So, after school, hours before graduation, we worked on a second draft. When he got to graduation, he had to go with the school approved original version. His teacher assured him it was good, but he was a little nervous. He hadn't even proof read that version. But I'm proud to say, he got up there and delivered that speech without a hiccup. 

 My kids are way more talented than me! 
My baby...Class of 2016

And that's it. Onto the next adventure!

This week was also busy with the launch of Swept Away. Here's a list of this week' blog tour stops!


Today you can find me...




Welcome Chrys Fey! She has a new book out and a book on sale. Chrys writes wonderful romances with a bit of heat and a whole lot of interesting characters! Since Chrys enjoys putting those characters in peril, I asked her...what are her favorite disaster movies? 

Chrys' Top 10 Favorite Disaster Movies:

1. Titanic
2. The Day After Tomorrow
3. 2012
4. World War Z
5. Twister
6. Jurassic Park
7. Volcano
8. Dante’s Peak
9. Meteor
10. Ice Age


Title: Seismic Crimes
Author: Chrys Fey
Series: Disaster Crimes Series (Book Two)
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Format: Digital and Print
Page Count: 282


DIGITAL LINKS:
Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon CA
NOOK / KOBO / All Romance eBooks

PRINT LINKS:
Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon CA
The Wild Rose Press


BLURB:

An Internal Affairs Investigator was murdered and his brother, Donovan Goldwyn, was framed. Now Donovan is desperate to prove his innocence. And the one person who can do that is the woman who saved him from a deadly hurricane—Beth Kennedy. From the moment their fates intertwined, passion consumed him. He wants her in his arms. More, he wants her by his side in his darkest moments.

Beth Kennedy may not know everything about Donovan, but she can’t deny what she feels for him. It’s her love for him that pushes her to do whatever she has to do to help him get justice, including putting herself in a criminal’s crosshairs.

When a tip reveals the killer's location, they travel to California, but then an earthquake of catastrophic proportions separates them. As aftershocks roll the land, Beth and Donovan have to endure dangerous conditions while trying to find their way back to one another. Will they reunite and find the killer, or will they lose everything?


HURRICANE CRIMES 99¢ SALE!



DIGITAL LINKS:
Amazon US / Amazon UK
Amazon CA / NOOK / KOBO
All Romance eBooks
The Wild Rose Press
  

                     Click Here For A Give Away!!!



Thanks to our hosts Lexa, L.G, and Tonja Drecker for this weekly good things check in! 

I want to give a special shout out and thank you to my blog tour hosts this week. It's great to have amazing friends.
Facebook Launch party for Swept Away was lot of fun. I tweaked the format a little to make things a little more interesting. Instead of a large give-away, I bought several small give-aways. At the beginning of each hour, I offered a give-away and left those open for twenty-four hours to encourage party goers to drop in at their leisure and scroll through the posts to sign up for the freebies. 


48 comments:

Bad Parenting Tip #2

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 40 Comments


While shopping for furniture, we met a lady from River- the town across the Ohio River from our hometown. You guys remember the town, right? They had the kids who stole our high school football signs and burned them? Then they went on to the next town and spray painted penises on that high school's sidewalks and band bus? If you don't, you can read the story here. 

Anyhow, my new furniture is red. I was looking for complimentary colors to it and the lady suggested grey. I told her that could never happen. We are Magnolia people. And a true Magnolia fan would never put River colors (red and grey) in their house. 

She laughed and said she heard New Martinsville people bleed Blue and Gold- so much so that some woman raised a huge stink over stolen signs.

I told her that woman would be me.

I'm am totally uncool and humorless.

When it comes to bad behavior.

Yes, I trust that kids will be kids, and they will do stupid things.

But when adults catch them being bad, it is incumbent upon us to kick their asses, figuratively, of course. 

I am fine with- "Kids will be kids,"

As long as it's followed up with- "Adults will be adults."

If you catch them, you punish them.

Not saying it has to be by firing squad, but never, ever blow off destructive behavior as appropriate or normal...well, unless you want more of the same.

So, that's the bad parenting tip #2: Be uncool and kick ass when necessary.

Thanks to our hosts Lexa, L.G, and Tonja Drecker for this weekly good things check in! 
Boy #1 graduated from West Virginia University.
Boy #3 will graduate high school on Friday.
I get my new furniture delivered on Saturday.
Boy #3 will be attending the All-State banquet on Sunday. He's 1st team football.


 Swept Away releases Monday! 







Title: Welcome to Sortilege Falls
Book Blurb:
Sixteen-year-old Grape Merriweather has just moved to Sortilege Falls and already she knows something isn't right. A small pack of teenage models, too beautiful for words, holds the town in their sway. The models have no plans on making Grape's life easy. But no matter how cruel they are to Grape and the other “Normals”, no one can stay angry with them for long.
Grape's life changes for the better, or so she thinks, when Mandy, the only “nice” model, befriends her. But that’s when the trouble truly begins. Mandy's friendship places Grape smack in the middle of a medical mystery that has the entire town on edge. One by one, the models fall ill from an incurable disease. Grape quickly realizes that the models' parents are hiding a secret, even as they watch their children die. To save her only friend, Grape will have to find the truth–and that means putting her life in danger.

Libby’s bio:

Libby Heily began writing after spending years as an obsessive reader.  She's written plays, screenplays, flash fiction, short stories, and novels.  When not spending time in made up places with invisible friends, she enjoys reading, running, hiking and performing improv in Raleigh, NC. 

Release Date: May 31st

Opportunity to win Free Copies:

Win one of five free copies via Goodreads! Contest ends June17!
  
Find Libby on the web:

Libby's Publisher’s Page
libbyheily.com
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
Amazon

Goodreads

40 comments:

Shiny and New

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 48 Comments


I'm getting new furniture. For real new, not the new-to-me variety.

I've had a lot of the new-to-me kind.

In my twenty-three years of marriage, I've gotten two sets of new furniture. This will be lucky number three. We started off broke, so our house was furnished with hand-me-downs from family.

Our first bedroom outfit was from my brother. I'm pretty certain he may have gotten in from a dumpster. I mean, when I asked, "Did you get this from a dumpster?" He said, "What the *bleep* do you care? It's free."

Needless to say, this is a pretty big deal for me. I got my coupon last August, and it's taken me this long to Pinterest, web shop, and calculate. I got a little worried that it would expire, so I had to pull it out and check the fine print. Fortunately, white and tacky were excluded, but the time frame for purchase was infinite.


Now, I'm excited. I'm going to toss the old stuff and leave the living room empty long enough to paint the walls and polish the floors.

Then I'll get the furniture.

It's going to be pretty, and clean...and people will want to sit on it...

And someone will eventually spill something on it.

That's similar to my the book launch I have coming up. As long as it's still in the planning, hopeful stage it's all shiny and bright. No bad reviews. No poor sales.

Then comes the worry that someone will spill something on it.

For the furniture, I got the fabric protection plan. Too bad there isn't a new book equivalent. A five-year protection plan from bad reviews and poor sales.

Hey, I may be on to something...

Thanks to our hosts Lexa, L.G, and Tonja Drecker for this weekly good things check in! 
There are so many good things coming!

I'm really looking forward to the furniture and the book. Life can't always be shiny and bright. Being a gal who likes antiques and patina, it's only the first spill that makes me cringe. After that? Well, that's life. It's meant to be lived.
We also have graduation coming up, and a party to plan.
And the boys are coming home for the summer from college.

Whew! Try not to be too jealous.



My current read!

It's not yet available for sale. I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy from Lee.

 This is a great book. Reminds me of the books I loved when I was a middle-schooler. Sort of like a Nancy Drew mystery without the hokeyness. Definitely a recommended read. 


Bio: C. Lee McKenzie is a 4 & 5 star reviewed author. Her greatest passion is writing for young readers. Sign of the Green Dragon is her third Middle Grade novel. Alligators Overhead and the sequel, The Great Time Lock Disaster were her first two. She has traditionally published four young adult novels: Sliding on the Edge, The Princess of Las Pulgas, Double Negative and Sudden Secrets.

Summary: When a wall of their cave hideout crumbles, three boys discover a skeleton, clutching a treasure map. They set off to trace the story of an old murder, but stumble into a modern crime, and confront ancient Chinese dragons. 


48 comments:

Being Busy

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 54 Comments

Okay, so I haven't been THAT busy. 
Let's be honest. There is a point during the process when you have to stop and ask yourself if it's all worth it. The writing, the editing, the marketing...all mixed together with all the real life stuff you've got to get done... 

It's a great ways to lose sight of your sanity.



My son once pointed out that I am trying to do a job that has no finite end. I could work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and still, I would not complete all that I want to get done. 

There have been times that knowledge almost drives me nuts. Makes me wish we were creations built to function on caffeine instead of sleep, so I could get more done. 



Since I've tried that and it's a total, flu-inducing fail, I've decided to simply pace myself. To give myself credit for the things I do get done. And of course, I will make my lists and try to triage the things that need done...things like the paying the electric bill and buying food for the kids. 

I suppose I'll get done what I can get done, and call that good enough. 




Thanks to Alex Cavanaugh and his awesome co-hosts for the May edition of the IWSG:
Stephen Tremp, Fundy Blue, MJ Fifield, Loni Townsend, Bish Denham, Susan Gourley, and Stephanie Faris! 

 Also from the IWSG team...
                                     Coming Soon!!!
Parallels: Felix Was Here
An Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology  
Enter the realm of parallel universes! 
What if the government tried to create the perfect utopia? Could a society linked to a supercomputer survive on its own? Do our reflections control secret lives on the other side of the mirror? Can one moment split a person’s world forever? 
Exploring the fantastic, ten authors offer incredible visions and captivating tales of diverse reality. Featuring the talents of L. G. Keltner, Crystal Collier, Hart Johnson, Cherie Reich, Sandra Cox, Yolanda Renee, Melanie Schulz, Sylvia Ney, Michael Abayomi, and Tamara Narayan. 
Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these ten tales will expand your imagination and twist the tropes of science fiction. Step through the portal and enter another dimension! 


Release date: May 3, 2016
$14.95 USA, 6x9 Trade paperback, 218 pages, Freedom Fox Press
Science Fiction/General ( FIC028000) and Fiction/Alternative History (FIC040000)
Print ISBN 978-1-939844-19-4 eBook ISBN 978-1-939844-20-0
Order through Ingram, Follett Library Resources, or from the publisher
$4.99 EBook available in all formats

“Pensive and manifold views into parallel earth not without a glimmer of hope.”
- Edi’s Book Lighthouse 

Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, two Facebook groups, and a monthly newsletter.
Amazon/ Barnes&Noble/ ITunes/ Kobo/ Goodreads/ Blog/ Thunderclap

54 comments:

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...