Photo Opportunites
I apologize for missing my post last week. I went to visit my mom and assumed I’d have an internet connection on my laptop. Turns out I couldn’t get connected…at all. 
Anyway, today I thought I’d share some photos I took recently. This first shot is using a telephoto lens. Dragon flies usually don’t sit still for you. Click here to check out the pics…
Vacation visuals…
Thanks again to Ilona for filling in for me last week while I was on vacation. As I’ve mentioned before I love taking pictures of unusual things, so I thought I’d share a few that I took last week.
HEA always or sometimes?
I fell in love with romances when I was a young teen, and I know it’s because of the guaranteed happy-ever-after. Okay…so the build up of the romance was fun to watch unfold, too! To me, romance novels were like a best friend…dependable, comforting and definitely uplifting! As I grew older, I broadened my reading and now read in many genres. I enjoy the variation…and that’s definitely true of the types of movies I watch as well. I’ll watch horror, suspense, action adventure, romantic comedy and drama. I’m not much into military movies, but I LOVE a feel good sports movie. Pair the two and I’m ALL in, like Victory (with Michael Caine, Sly Stallone and Pelé).
But what about movies that don’t always end with a happy ending? I didn’t particularly like the theatrical ending in Descent (though I thought the movie’s setting was shudder-inducing and scary in a claustrophobic, vampiric kind of way). Nothing drives me crazier than to watch the characters go through so much physical trauma and torture to only fail to win in the end.
CLICK HERE to read the rest
The Groove is in the Heart
My latest ODD SHOTS post is up…
Last week I talked about action adventure films and somewhere in there I mentioned that The Last of the Mohicans had a great soundtrack, especially for writers. See, I have many writer friends who only write with iPods in their ears. They play any music and just write away. I can’t do that. I love songs and the meaning of lyrics too much to listen to music while I write. Ha, I’d be zoning out of writing so fast, too caught up in the lyrics to keep typing. What I’ve found I can write with are instrumental soundtracks (well, so long as I don’t start day dreaming about the scene in the movie where that song was played. LOL!)
Here are some of my favorite movie soundtracks: <—click here to continue reading.
Anticipation and Seduction Giveaway
I’m giving away a copy of Anticipation and Seduction on the ODD SHOTS blog…
ANTICIPATION AND SEDUCTION
Some romances are meant to be…
ANTICIPATION
What if the one-who-got-away…didn’t?
Deidre Nelson has never forgotten the man who stole her heart so effectively a decade ago. When circumstances bring her back to Ventura, Texas to look after her parents’ B&B, she prepares to face Jonas Mendez, the sexy wrangler-turned sheriff, with growing anticipation.
Deidre’s engaging smile and seductive gaze has haunted Jonas for ten years. But life’s cruel ironies pepper his past, leaving him guarded and wary. He vows to keep his interaction with Deidre strictly professional while she’s in Ventura.
But when vandalism at the B&B turns life-threatening, Jonas finds himself intimately involved with the one woman he has always wanted but never touched. As a decade of built-up anticipation becomes reality, suddenly the line between protector and possessor begins to blur.
SUSANNA’S SEDUCTION
Seduction can be spontaneous…
Susan Brennon never expected that running an errand for her future sister-in-law would land her a spur-of-the-moment date. When Michael leads her down a sensual path of seduction, she takes on the sexy Italian full-throttle, all the while keeping her heart under tight guard. Every person she’s formed a close attachment to has moved on. She doesn’t expect Michael to be any different.
From the moment he touches Susan, Michael Piccoli wants her. But as their relationship grows more physical, he finds that for the first time in his life he desires more than sex from a woman he wants the whole package with Susanna. Michael’s determined to break through the rigid hold Susanna has on her emotions. He’ll do anything to reach her, even if that means taking their relationship to a whole new level.
Two sexy stories that’ll make you believe in happy-ever-afters all over again.
Go HERE to enter for a chance to win. Just post a comment. I’ll do a random selection and post the winner on the ODD SHOTS blog on Saturday, February 13th.
Note: You must be 18 or older to win.
15 Degrees from Normal
Here’s my latest ODD SHOTS post…
I love a good dark paranormal story, be it paranormal romance or urban fantasy, adult or young adult. I like things to go wrong, to be twisted and unexpected. I like characters that are hard and hard to love, but ya know…I also love when an author adds some comic relief to all that darkness, especially in the form of a crazy, kooky or obnoxious character. I love it when I run across a rare laugh out loud moment in a book, especially when everything else is so tense and suspenseful. It gives my emotions a chance to regroup before I plunge into reading the next fight scene or action scene, etc.
Here are a few examples of the kind of characters I’m talking about…click here to continue
Glomming a series
My Odd Shots post is up…
I just finished reading a series I really enjoyed. Ironically, the first three books of this series sat on my TBR pile for months, even though I’d heard it was a good series and I would love it. But when I started reading the first book, I HAD to know what happened in the second and then in the third and yep, I went and got the forth book and gobbled it up too. In five days, I’d read the entire series and am now all caught up with everyone else who’s impatiently waiting for the next book to release. I’ve done this with another series as well…and er, with TV shows. I’ll get the entire first and second season DVDs and watch them back to back. Hmmm, I think I see a pattern here…instant gratification maybe? LOL!…Click here to read more.
Our Yin/Yang
My ODD SHOTS blog post:
One of the things I love about reading is the diverse characters we encounter. In each story, the protagonist has a problem/issue to resolve or a mystery to uncover, so the decisions and choices he/she makes determines the chances for success…or not. 
In order to find their way, the hero or heroine can either follow a methodical, logical path or wing it and follow their gut. Which is always a blast watching unfold in story, especially when the hero has to work with a heroine who has an opposite approach to problem solving (ie, one goes by-the-book and the other takes the willy-nilly, ‘throw it against the wall to see what sticks’ approach). Boy the sparks that fly! Makes for great entertainment. Hehe.
In fiction, it’s fun to watch these characters try to figure each others’ quirks out and learn to work together, but real life personalities are a bit murkier than fictional ones. For me personally, depending on the situation, I can be either ends of the spectrum. Sometimes I totally trust my gut, and others, I’m all about planning and precision…CLICK to read the rest.
Happy Thanksgiving and a short story!
My Odd Shots post…
Please forgive the late response. All my family is here and demanding my attention, not to mention my chauffeur services *sigh*. I’d be rich if I could charge for this service! Anyway, I just wanted to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and share a Thanksgiving story I wrote many (MANY) moons ago. Enjoy!
Something To Be Thankful For
Patrice Michelle
The bell tied to a string at the top of the glass door chimed, announcing Melanie’s entrance.
“Hello.” The dark haired man behind the counter called out.
“Hi.” She turned with a smile and approached the counter. “I’m looking for the owner, Rick Durant.”
A dimple formed in his cheek as he flashed her a bright smile. “That’d be me.”
He put his hands on the counter top and leaned forward. “What can I do for you?”
Melanie stuck out her hand. “My name’s Melanie King.
Rick clasped her hand in his. His firm grip caused a melting feeling to start in her stomach and drift all the way to her toes.
She continued, “I’m a friend of Joan Kerr’s. She sent me to you.”
“Oh?” His smile turned into a teasing grin.
A Pictorial Hobby
Latest Odd Shots blog post…
Ilona talked about what we do when we’re not writing. I take pictures. I do this because it’s calming and I think it’s fun and interesting to capture a moment to share. I don’t know when the photo bug got me, though here’s a funny story about me being a crazy picture taker.
During a vacation to Ireland (had dreamed of going for ten years!), my hubby and I stopped at this lovely restaurant in Galway to have lunch and wait out a short rain shower. It was in July (btw, the best time of the year to go…ie, usually sunny and in the 70s) and once the rain stopped, the sun quickly came out, casting a rainbow across the inlet right outside the restaurant window. I’d never seen a rainbow disappear into water quite like that. I could see every band of color distinctly, hitting the water like a colorful slide. So I jumped up and went outside to take photos (will have to post a pic here if I can find the digital file). While I was outside snapping photos, this older man leans over from his table and says to my husband in his Irish accent, “They don’t have rainbows in America?”
Here are a few fun pics.
On a stormy day, the dark sky and sun burning on the brilliant leaves were beautiful contrasts.
Click HERE to read the rest!
