It's Good to Be the Queen!

3:30 AM Elizabeth Seckman 47 Comments

I'm headed for the beach! While you're reading this, I'm packing and hopefully not forgetting the important things like my laptop...or the camera. We forgot the camera last year, fortunately everyone in my family has a phone with a camera, so we have pictures.

So, while I am away, please welcome Annalisa Crawford. She has a new book out that honestly looks and sounds delightful. I got mine in the mail last week, and I can't wait to read it. Knowing Annalisa, a treasure of literary surprises awaits me.

Annalisa asked me for a question she could answer, so I asked...

Who was the best British Monarch past or present, and why?

Oh gosh, this could be a long answer…

Growing up I was intrigued by the Victorian Era. Queen Victoria was 18 when she succeeded to the throne, loved her husband so passionately she went into permanent mourning when he died, was a queen and empress, and oversaw the most amazing changes in social and industrial history. It was an amazingly romantic story.

However, these days, knowing more about her—about her less than happy marriage, and her almost loathing of her children—I’ve kind of changed my mind. She doesn’t come across as a very nice woman.

Instead, I choose our present queen, Elizabeth II. She too appears to love her husband very much and has seen a huge leap in social and technological advances during her reign. At 90, she’s still active in her royal duties, and has a great sense of humour. Just check out her involvement in the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony!

I’m not a flag-waving, queuing-up-at-5am-to-meet-her Royalist, but I like the tradition and sense of identity that the Royal Family gives us.

You. I. Us. is a collection of vignettes, small scenes which hint at the story beneath.

Annalisa has taken that idea to another level, because she asked 15 bloggers to ask her one question each, creating small insights into her life and writing.

You. I. Us.

Publication date: June 10, 2016
Genre: Short Stories (Single Author)

Amazon // Barnes & Noble // Book Depository // Kobo // iBooks // Nook

In You. I. Us., Annalisa Crawford captures everyday people during poignant defining moments in their lives: An artist puts his heart into his latest sketch, an elderly couple endures scrutiny by a fellow diner, an ex-student attempts to make amends with a girl she bullied at school, a teenager holds vigil at his friend’s hospital bedside, long distance lovers promise complete devotion, a broken-hearted widow stares into the sea from the edge of a cliff where her husband died, a grieving son contacts the only person he can rely on in a moment of crisis, a group of middle-aged friends inspire each other to live remarkable lives.

Day after day, we make the same choices. But after reading You. I. Us., you’ll ask yourself, “What if we didn’t?”

About the author

Annalisa Crawford lives in Cornwall UK, with a good supply of moorland and beaches to keep her inspired. She lives with her husband, two sons, a dog and a cat. Annalisa writes dark contemporary, character-driven stories. She has been winning competitions and publishing short stories in small press journals for many years, and is the author of Cat & The Dreamer and Our Beautiful Child.

www.annalisacrawford.com

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. Vacation is always a challenge. We'll see next week!

2. Declutter rooms to declutter the mind. Slowly clearing stuff out. Taking more boxes to Goodwill in the morning.

3. Publish two books. Vacation is always a great time to daydream and plot.

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

I'm on vacation!!!

I will celebrate that!

I'm also doing a book signing while on the island (many of my books are set on the Outer Banks)

If you happen to be in Duck, North Carolina, stop by and say hi!

Wednesday June 29th from 2:30-4:00 PM
Island Bookstore - OBX
1177 Duck Rd Ste 21, Duck, North Carolina 27949

47 comments:

Bubble Wrapped

1:02 AM Elizabeth Seckman 34 Comments

My babies. Wonderful in spite of my mess ups.

Last week, my niece shared this blog post, Excuse Me While I Lather My Child in this Toxic Death Cream, by Sarah Kallies on Facebook. It's a tongue and cheek piece about a serious issue- debilitating parental worries (or how the world drives you freaking insane with rules and warnings).

I got a good grin out of the post.

It was so true. Parents can break down with worry.

My first son was my trial child. Poor guy. I was petrified to take him out of the house. Every time I took him out, there was a constant barrage of strangers ready to say hi to him. I was aware from watching news reports that most people don't wash their hands properly after using the bathroom, hence they were all probably hepatitis infected.

Or so I convinced myself.

So, he was six weeks old (evidently the magical age of immunity) before I took him on an outing to somewhere as loathsome and dirty as a mall. By this time, it was the end of May. A day where the thermometer reached low eighties, with a slight breeze...a breeze that could give an improperly dressed infant pneumonia. So, I put him in a snowsuit.

Later that day, I noticed he was covered in a red rash. I rushed him to his doctor- the whole time feeling immense guilt for bringing my sweet child out into a world filled with microbes and diseases. My doctor told me to take the damn snow suit off the baby- I was giving him prickle-heat rash.

I felt like a horrible mother.

I was reading all the books. I was addicted to Dateline and every news story that involved killer nannies or freak things that may cause a child harm.

Basically...I was trapped in the sunscreen conundrum. Apply too much or the wrong kind and you'll give your kid weakened bones or cancer. Don't apply, you get horrid burns and cancer.

From Deep Friar blog.For more laughs, click here!

The problem is, we live in a world that bombards us with a plethora of information and opinions.

It can make a worried brain melt down to a puddle that leaks out through the tear ducts.

I know. I've been there. Done that. Still got the tear stains on my tee-shirt.

Then one day, I had a thought: what was worse for my kids- the occasional parenting screw up, or the constant vigil of perfection?

Was I, with my constant worry, going to create more problems than I would by chilling and allowing them to eat a few toxic chicken nuggets?

It was then I decided: My kids. My rules.

I did things that would make squeaky wheels scream.

I let them drink Mt. Dew.

I fed them at McDonalds.

I let them play video games. Even the violent ones.

I let them listen to Eminem and 50 Cent.

I let them pull movie all-nighters and never set a summer bedtime.

But I loved them. I taught them to trust in God. I listened to the advice that suited me. I ignored the stuff that didn't. And best of all...I stopped sharing my life with overly-opinionated people.

You see, I once had a woman give me a condescendingly high-arched brow and a lecture on the evils of salt when I added the poison to my kid's popcorn.

Yeah, yeah...salt is bad, but I explained to her the risk/ reward ratio of the situation...popcorn is so much better with salt, therefore worth the risk.

She wrote me off with an eye roll and never tried to help me again.

Thank God.

So, as I read Sarah's post, I thought- poor woman. I should send her a note and tell her-

It's obvious you love your babies. Tell the world to go to hell and raise them the way you want. You know better than anyone else what your children need or don't need. Trust yourself. Take a deep breath and relax. Enjoy these years. They go by in a flash. I'm pretty much at the finish line of child raising. I did it my way and I made mistakes. But I have great kids. And in the end, that's all that matters.

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

Took Carter (Boy #3) to WVU for his new student orientation. He got enrolled in his classes- a schedule that consists of chemistry, biology, and calculus on top of his Honors classes. It's good to know my kids were blessed with bigger brains than their parents.

Conner (Boy #4) is learning to drive. I've been making him accompany me on all my running around town. It's so nice to have a personal driver!

The beach countdown has begun! Thirteen days until saltwater therapy time. I am usually able to get writing time in on vacation, so double yay!

34 comments:

A Little Inspiration

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 53 Comments

Top 10 Inspirational Quotes

By the wonderful Lori McLaughlin!

Thank you, Elizabeth, for having me over!!

Doubts. We all have them. Whenever we reach for our dreams, they sneak up on us and blindside us with words of our own inadequacy. We're not good enough, smart enough, talented enough. We can't possibly do whatever it is we want to do. Whenever those doubts start whispering in my ear and dragging me down, I go for some positive reinforcement. These are some of my favorite quotes that never fail to pick me up and get me going again.

1. "When we believe, all things are possible." ~ Based on Mark 9:23 of the King James Bible (Jesus said unto him, "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.")

2. "If you can dream it, you can do it." ~ Walt E. Disney

3. "It always seems impossible until it's done." ~ Nelson Mandela

4. "Do or do not. There is no try." ~ Yoda

5. "You don't always need a plan. Sometimes you just need to breathe. Trust. Let go. And see what happens." ~ Mandy Hale

6. "Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway." ~ John Wayne

7. "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." ~ Mark Twain

8. "A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because its trust is not on the branch but on its own wings. Always believe in yourself." ~ Unknown

9. "You have galaxies inside your head. Stop letting people tell you you cannot shine." ~ Unknown

10. "A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms." ~ Zen Shin Talks by Sensei Ogui

These quotes always inspire me. What quotes inspire you?

******

Tara Triannon is no stranger to trouble. She's yet to find an enemy her skill with a sword couldn't
dispatch. But how can she fight one that attacks through her dreams?

With her nightmares worsening, Tara seeks answers but finds only more questions. Then her sister, Laraina, reveals a stunning secret that forces Tara to go to the one place Tara's sworn never to return to. Her troubles multiply when Jovan Trevillion, the secretive soldier of fortune who stole her heart, is mentally tortured by an ancient Being intent on bending him to its will. And worst of all, the Butcher — the terrifying wolf-like assassin she thought she'd killed — survived their duel and is hunting her again.

Hounded by enemies, Tara sets out on a harrowing quest to discover the true nature of who she is, to come to grips with the new volatility of her magic, and to defeat the evil locked in a centuries-old trap that will stop at nothing to control her magic and escape through her nightmares.

Amazon Barnes & Noble Kobo iBooks

Lori L. MacLaughlin traces her love of fantasy adventure to Tolkien and Terry Brooks, finding The Lord of the Rings and The Sword of Shannara particularly inspirational. She's been writing stories in her head since she was old enough to run wild through the forests on the farm on which she grew up.

She has been many things over the years – tree climber, dairy farmer, clothing salesperson, kids' shoe fitter, retail manager, medical transcriptionist, journalist, private pilot, traveler, wife and mother, Red Sox and New York Giants fan, muscle car enthusiast and NASCAR fan, and a lover of all things Scottish and Irish.

When she's not writing (or working), she can be found curled up somewhere dreaming up more story ideas, taking long walks in the countryside, or spending time with her kids. She lives with her family in northern Vermont.

Website/Blog Goodreads Facebook Google+ Pinterest

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

Swept Away got a couple of great reviews from fellow authors. Stephanie Faris, Crystal Collier, Jessica Kile, and Susan Swett Swiderski. These ladies left such nice reviews, I am just beside myself. All of these ladies are so very talented in their own writing, I take their praise to high credit.

I dedicated Swept away to our fellow blogging buddy, Jo Wake. Jo has been so giddy, it has made publication of this book as exciting as the first.

Seriously, the support from fellow authors and bloggers has just been the most amazing part of the writing process.

53 comments:

Drive Block: An IWSG Post

6:00 AM Elizabeth Seckman 48 Comments

Last week, I was whining- as usual- about just how hard writers work for so little money.

I told my son I figured I sold more books out of the trunk of my car than anyplace else. I told him when I imagined the writer dream, it didn't include making parking lot book sales like some sort of desperate crack dealer who can't get the word of mouth running in her favor.

My son (Boy #2, Cole, the redhead), said, "Yeah, I bet that's what that guy who owns Under Armour thought."

Kevin Plank was the special teams captain for the University of Maryland Football. Tired of soaking wet cotton apparel, he decided there had to be a better way.

UnderArmour Philosophy

In 1995, he started designing his alternative to the cotton tee.

The end result was a shirt that stayed dry in the hottest heat. He shared those shirts with teammates and a few friends playing in the NFL. He got their feedback, applied their suggestions and soon brought to the market a revolutionary product.

He maxed out his credit cards and set up operations in his grandmother's basement, selling his product anywhere he could- even from the trunk of his car.

A year later, he made his first team sale to Georgia Tech for his fledgling company, Under Armour.

And the rest is history. Under Armour rivals all sports manufacturers.

He did ask for validation. He didn't ask for approval.
He just went to work.

Would you like to win an autographed of my latest book, Swept Away?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Swept Away

by Elizabeth Seckman

Giveaway ends June 11, 2016.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Thanks to Alex Cavanaugh and his awesome co-hosts for the May edition of the IWSG:
Murees Dupe, Alexia Chamberlynn, Chemist Ken, and Heather Gardner!