what is it with expectations?
do you have some?  or are they created out of the pressures amongst all our loved ones and friends?
are we our own enemies or friends?
who is the hardest task master, thy self or thy loved one's?

Life is HARD no matter what way you look at it, so why not just treat yourself kindly, you are your own friend!

today has been wild, oh so wild
and that's just dealing with people everywhere, 'tis that wonderous time of year :-)
I don't mind really, well once I get home in one piece :-)

What about you?

WOW! Where did today go too?
How did I happen to meet every single crazy person out there whether driving or in the shops or cues?

It's CRAZY out there, of course less than a month 'til Christmas...but I will admit I do love the pandemonium, there's something so exciting about it all, the faces, the rushing around, the brightly colored parcels and children, wow they are hyped :-)

a simple kiss...that is all and yet it transforms our world into another stratosphere when it happens

how small a word for such a huge and complicated physical and mental reaction!

I simply LOVE surprises don't you?
It doesn't have to be much of anything, just something that someone did to surprise me, lately a wonderful review is all I need to send me to the moon and back.

Life is for enjoying and right now I'm topping it with whipped cream!

what is it that makes people so hateful? is it 'cause life isn't going their way?
they feel the need to rain on someone else's parade?
I don't understand all the vitriolic comments that are viral everywhere even in some adverts and on TV!

if someone or something is annoying you by all means talk to the person or company but why act so hurtful to everyone else out there who is busy living their life?

have you ever wondered what would have happened had you not met THAT certain person?
not gotten involved?  not fallen in love?  would life truly have been ALL that different?

I believe life lets us meet and make mistakes for a valuable reason, of course it may never be understood or at best appear most confusing...life is certainly ever changing and to truly enjoy and live it, we must adapt and change...

tonight as I decide to head off to my bed early, I stop and think of how utterly cold it is outside...then I think of the thousands upon thousands that are homeless each and every night, I sit down and wonder, why are they? what happened in their lives that made them feel it safer to be on the streets than in a home somewhere, anywhere?

sometimes life hurts...the heart bleeds, the soul cries

time is so precious and rare, so many hours in a day and yet not enough, I find myself even wondering when was the last time I turned to loved one's and said I LOVE YOU, looking them in the eye, with all the rush and hub bub of Thanksgiving and now Christmas it's time, time to stop, stand still, breathe deep and just sit and enjoy...

DESIRE
what comes to mind?
Is it lust or love?
Is it worth all the heart ache or is there heart ache involved?

The third book in my series has been born, right now I can reveal the characters, Lotus Forsythe and King Casimir Adonis.  I'm getting excited now the characters are starting to breathe life into the story.
This book is the foundation for the whole series so I'm very excited to share it with you all.

I sometimes sit and wonder where people's priorities are?  do they even have any?
Wandering around some of the shops this past few days I've been amazed at what people find important verses what SHOULD be important, surely love for one's friends are family are utmost in our minds?

what is it about people that they feel the need to criticize others?
do they not realize other people are NOT them?
what works for them doesn't necessarily work for others?
can we all not be different with different tastes and diversities?
I like to be me, I am different from you, does that bother me?  Nope not in the slightest I enjoy a debate, I enjoy heated discussions, it makes me feel alive and I value learning new things from someone else's perspectives!

let's treat each other nicely, let it go, smile, breathe deep and be happy being in your own skin, celebrate YOU!

ach what a day!!! It's been actually a LONG few days come to think of it, what about where you are?
I am wore out and trying hard to think up my new characters traits :-)
It's not as easy as it would seem!
What makes a character believable, loveable and realistic!

Time for reflections and time to thank, thank the universe for creating this very moment in which we all can appreciate what we have in our lives to date...thankful for the lessons when things didn't work out quite as we wanted them to, thanks for new opportunities to discover and learn...

Life is in its very essence mysterious, days you plan end up falling by the way side.
But that's OK, life is meant to be challenging, trials are meant to teach us things, it's up to us to sit and learn from these lessons...some choose to learn others moan and cry about how unfair life truly is.

Bring it on I say!

is a black cat magical?  is a black cat scary? is a black cat anything other than a black cat?
I love black cats, I find them zany, mysterious and truly I believe they have powers beyond our understanding, cats that is, not just black cats, they are just COOL :-)

some days you just have to create your own sunshine!

 Yes I believe this to be true, life has a habit of throwing confusion with a heady mix of despair and anger in the path you are treading upon.

Instead of curling up and giving up I choose to create my own happiness, it's by far a hard task but worth it, it doesn't cost money, it won't lose you a friend, instead it will give you peace of mind and hopefully heart.

Take a deep breath, let it go and do something to please yourself, in turn it will make others happy to see you happy!

Thanksgiving...being from Ireland and moving State side this is a relatively new holiday to me!
What does it mean, literally a traditional holiday going back to the Pilgrims and Native Americans, the Pilgrims started celebrating Thanskgiving after the Native Americans showed them how to survive in their new world.

I am thankful for all of you, for all of your support, as a new author it means the world to me, eternally grateful!

what was your favourite book as a child?

Mine was A Great Expectation by Charles Dickens, I completely lost myself in Dickens world and was blown away at how detailed he was in his descriptions, each character I felt I knew somehow...

so my second book A Grave Desire is in editing, based in WW II I have to admit I was totally captivated and horrified all over again, it was like being back in school and learning the raw facts for the first time, how can fellow man do such things to each other...the sad thing is, it could easily happen all over again, everyone seems so caught up in their own world and the lives of their loved ones on a daily basis that someone half clever, half crazy and half full of egotistical drive could slot in and rule the world through a country that no one is paying attention to...Africa...for example...worries me!

have you ever had a day where everything you touch falls?  everything you try to do on time falls behind, the elevator door closes as your walking in and every traffic light you hit turns RED!

sigh, yes one of those days, but in all of this, I noticed I was able to check off my list and figure out what I need to do...maybe there is a reason for it all happening...

Interview with Jamie Salisbury - women's fiction author

I'd like to introduce you to a dear author friend of mine, Ms. Jamie Salisbury who was kind enough to grant me this interview during her very busy schedule and release of Tudor Rubato the second book following the very successful Tudor Rose, which I totally recommend you read first! Also just released in time for the holidays is the fantastic BOX SET just screaming to be bought and read!!

1 Jamie, what is the single most defining moment to date in your writing career?

Hmmm, just one? I would say it would have to be when I saw my first book for sale on Amazon. That was pretty amazing for me. I was now living my dream of being a published author.

2 What is your favorite character that you created and why?

Hmmmm - that's a tough one. I am torn on which one to choose!

3 Do you find a piece of yourself in your characters? Explain please?

Yes, I think any writer is going to find some piece of themselves in their characters. You, as the writer may not see it at first, but it's there, no matter how minute that thread is there between you and your character.

4 In all the books you've read, what is your favorite book to date?

I honestly can say I do not have a favorite book because every time I say that another comes along that I like even better. I do however, love classics. 

5 In your latest series which brother is your favorite and why?

Amadeus without a doubt! He's just special. . .

I would like to perhaps once I'm finished telling Amadeus and Zara's story to go back in and do one on Angus (who has a large part in the sequel I'm working on) and another on Amadeus' oldest brother, Damien. I'd like to focus on Damien and what he was like before he had his stroke, and how he influenced Amadeus.

6 How has your life impacted your writing, or has it?

I'd like to think that it makes me look at things a little differently. I'm always looking at a lot of things like "Well how could I make that into a story". That and the fact that it takes up so much of my time - which I love!

7 Being an accomplished photographer, does this transfer over into your writing style?

To some degree. I look at things  with a little more detail and from different angles like I would in photography. 

8 What piece of advice would you give a "new" author?

To write, to always keep writing. It's your dream and you can do it, but you have to keep writing.

9 Do you regret being an indie published author, explain please

No, never!  I've never regretted becoming a indie published author. Sure I don't get the "big bucks" or all the publicity a traditional publishing house can crank out, but then I wouldn't have control of my work if I was with one. Being an indie published author I am in charge of what I write, when it is published, where it is distributed, whether I want print books or not (NOT). I decide what my cover is going to look like. I decide everything. When I first went into this it was because eBooks were (and still are) the hot new thing. It opened up a whole new frontier for writers, still does. There are some fantastic authors out there, whom we wouldn't have ever heard about if they weren't indie published.

10 What writing piece are you working on now?

A couple of things. . .I'm working on the sequel to Tudor Rubato, which is titled Tudor Ritenudo. I also have the sequel to Timeless Sojourn almost finished, along with the final installment of my Perpetual historical cowboy series. And if that's not enough to work on, I have a couple stand alone projects in various stages of development or writing!

11 What makes you get up everyday eager to write?

Ah, trick question! I don't get up eager to write every single day, but I do write. Some days it is with passion, others not so much. A lot has to do with the world right around me, a lot has to do with what I'm writing. I may need a jump start if I'm in a difficult scene or I may need to put it down and get out and recharged. Then other times, there is so much passion I cannot wait to get back into it - or I don't stop until I've finished.

12 Do you believe in true love? Does it influence your books?

I would like to believe there is such a thing as true love.  As in most things in my life, I'm a skeptic. But yes, I'd say that it does influence my books. Because as a writer if it's not actually happening in my real life, I can simply write about it in my books and dream.

13 What genre have you not written that you would perhaps consider?

Paranormal, fantasy, sci fi. I have dabbled a bit at trying to write a paranormal book, but it's sitting because I'm not sure if it's silly or if it has potential.

Jamie I'd like to thank you so much for taking time out of your hectic schedule and talking with me, it's an honor to have you as my first author to interview on my blog, I think your books are incredible, your characters come to life from the very beginning and I found myself completely in love with Amadeus!  Good Luck in your future endeavors! 

 
To contact or view any of Ms. Salisbury's releases here are her links:
Jamie Salisbury

Women's Fiction Author

Timeless Sojourn 

Timeless Wayfaring (coming early 2013)

Tudor Rose 

Tudor Rubato

Perpetual Love

Perpetual Emotions 

Blood Lust

Blog: http://www.jamiesalisburyauthor.blogspot.com

Website: http://www.jamiesalisbury.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jamie-Salisbury-Womans-Fiction-Author/202978499741542

Romance Novel Center: http://www.romancenovelcenter.com/jamiesalisbury

Twitter: @JamieRSalisbury

It's in a kiss, a look a stare...
It's in their touch, their hug and their hair...

can it all truly start with a "look" a simple stare from the distance?
I believe it can, that one simple look, draws you in, hooks you to them forever...
is it love?  or is it lust?

was it some sort of magic or enchantment?

Sexiness, who has it?
Is it a real tangible thing or is it something in our head when we meet someone and our heart skips a beat?
Is it attitude?
Is it love?

SEXINESS, do you have it?

someone asked me today why my Vampyres are "nice"
Yes they are "nice" but deadly, make no mistake they are not the glittery friendly kind that you are used to seeing on the latest movies, mine have suffered immensly and have to work through their heart felt pain
To me a Vampyre it he epitome of angst and hardship in today's society the latest vampyres out there not so much!

Well as I sit and contemplate my last book in the series I've decided to make my first A Grave Exchange available FREE on amazon on the 23/24 of November as a THANKSGIVING gift to ye all, from me to you.
I'm excited to share my book with everyone and I feel it important to make it available to everyone, so ENJOY and let me know :-)
The second book A Grave Desire is being edited and will be up the beginning of December :-)  Shhhh, it's my favorite and last the last book in the series A Grave Hope soon after Christmas can ye wait???

HUGS my dear sweet friends, on later

so after all the hype this past month I finally sat down and watched Felix Baumgartner free fall back into the earths hemisphere.
I saw in total awe I must admit, the video taping was incredible and I found myself holding my breath the few seconds before he jumped, what total fear he must have had, how did he push himself over that last barrier to jump.
I ask myself are we all like Felix or are there only a very few who dare to dream and dare to jump?
I hope when I'm old and grey sitting in a rocking chair somewhere that I can look back and smile and say I was the one who dared to be bold, dared to be true...dared to jump!

what inspires you?  what moves you to the point of tears?
is it a book or a film, is it music or a poem?

it's amazing how we can be utterly transfixed by words or music...

funny how a wee song can influence a story line...tonight while writing my new book, the third in the series this is playing around and around in my head, Lotus my character looks like the above character.

tonight I'm smiling with my bowl of ice cream and hot fudge sauce, why?
I'm listening to eighties music thanks to a dear friend for putting it in my head.
What was your favorites?
mine?

Who is Dracula?  Who WAS Dracula?  Does it really matter?
Was he truly the evil vicious pyscho killer or an extraordinary man who went above and beyond for his small town defending them to the death?
Sigh, Dracula is an enimga roughly based on the real life persona of Vlad Tepes 
 otherwise known as Vlad the Impaler!

So much has come to pass about this legendary man, and yet so little is truly known about him, without Vlad my characters would never come to life or death as the case may well be :-)

This weekend I'm on a reading spree all over again, back to Vlad's routes, I owe this man a lot!

 To appreciate the story of Vlad III it is essential to understand the social and political forces of the region during the 15^th century. In broad terms this is a story of the struggle to obtain control of Wallachia, a region of the Balkans (in present-day southern Romania) which lay directly between the two powerful forces of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire.

 
 

It's Saturday!  Time to throw my arms into the air and squeal, time to kick back and let it all go
and I will, once I stop smiling knowing yet another book I've finished :-)

Of course that means tomorrow I start on A Grave Hope!  What will it be about?
Well I will tell ye all this...18C England, a young Chinese woman comes of age into her adopted family, they are hosting her reaching of maturity party, the highest bidder will be able to have young Lotus Forsythe.

Of course this means disaster doesn't it...will Lotus be saved or live in an unspeakable cruelty, after all not many men back then were used to beautiful Chinese women.  Who will save her?  Will she be saved?

 

 

night time is my favorite time in a 24hr period.  It's a quiet peaceful and magical time, looking out the window into stark blackness makes my heart beat a little faster...so much unknown out there, yet people idly choose to ignore.

a big collective sigh here, why?
I've just sent my second book off to the editors, it's out of my hands :-)
It's called A Grave Desire, based in WW II in a concentration camp, it stole my heart while writing it, it's totally beautiful, I biased of course, recommend it, but first please do read A Grave Exchange @ Amazon!!!

I've just finished my WW II book called A Grave Desire soon to be released and sadly I've come to the horrid conclusion that YES another World War will happen repeatedly, why?
Lessons were not learned, people have not changed, greed and corruption are in abundance today.
It's not LOVE now it's what can you give me NOW!

Today we may say aloud before an awe-struck world: "We are still masters of our fate. We are still captain of our souls."  Winston Churchill.

What is it with time?  We think we have oodles of it or not enough!
We put our watches on in a near religious fervor each and every day...are we truly afraid to miss something or not be included in something?

Time stops for no one...we must live our lives as if this is truly our last minute on earth.

have you ever heard a piece of music that truly turns you on, that makes your blood boil, that makes your body break out into a quivering mess?

This wee piece tends to do this to me, why I can't truly say, but I take what enjoyment comes my way, life is truly simple, enjoy the ride!

do you think you attract fate or do you create fate for yourself?
can you avoid fate?  Or are you destined somehow to fall into your fate?
today I sat for the longest while contemplating the above...is there truly such thing as fate?
I believe so most adamantly, how can we not believe it?

So much more lies out there we do not know, we do not perceive but if we don't kid ourselves and just accept things start happening, truly wonderful things...

Who says life is fair or indeed unfair?
Is it truly meant to be either way? Who says?
Day in and out, morn 'til night more often than not that is what we hear, "Life's not fair for me", or "You are so lucky!"

What is it with your life that you think it should be one way or the other?
I always thought life was for living, to experience both the good, the bad and the down right ugly.

Life would be tremendously boring if each and every day we woke up with the sun beaming in our windows, the birds chirping and our beloved fur baby wagging it's tail waiting doe eyed at the end of the bed with the newspaper all fresh and crisp.

Tonight I'm huddle up with a wee kitty that has a broken leg, so I'm feeling mellow, I sit here and see how precious our lives are, how fleeting a time we have on this planet, I wonder what to do to make it memorable and to show loved one's how much they mean to me, have you lately told someone what they mean to you?
In the blink of an eye it can all go so very wrong...don't waste precious time

...do you ever get completely overwhelmed by the words of a song, do you ever feel like someone reached inside your head and stole your very thoughts?
that's why I love music, it bypasses the heart and purges the soul, the very place we hide from others, we don't dare share our soul, what if...what if someone actually agreed with what we really thought or worse cast us off like a two day old fry!

What is it with the weekend that brings out the "crazy's" in everyone?
I could not believe how wild and weird some people were today and that was just driving!

Then sadly in the humane society I volunteer in, wow, people dumping animals for no reason, I'd understand if you were having a hardship feeding the animal but that many no!  You just took an animal and passed it up when you decided it didn't suit your furniture, didn't suit your lifestyle, what I don't understand is, how can you look into that animal's eyes and say I've had enough of you...how?

Am I the only one that believes an animal is for it's life span?  It gives you unconditional love, how precious is that?  That's what we all want anyways!

Time stands still for no one, it makes me wonder how much of what I want to achieve will be possible?
Have you ever written down a list to do, have you gotten everything done on that list that day?
What about your life time list?

'tis Friday we made it, life is good, well almost good, well ok right now painful, sickness is not a good look on me :-)
This weekend is jam packed full of everything I swore I would get accomplished throughout my week, now it just transfers to the weekend, lovely.
Off I go to the first of the appointments right now, wish me luck!

This song has always been one of my favorite's, why?
I always find myself asking similar questions to the lyrics, can't we just for a little while, just STOP.
Just sit a while and listen to each other or do nothing at all together?
Is life really THAT busy that we can't just sit a while, be amongst loved one's before it 's too late?

Tonight I realize how words are like stones and while I portray myself as being bulletproof I know I am anything but...let's all take note and reach out for others, we all hurt, stick and stones...

What is LOVE that compels us to lose sight of who we are, to placate the other person in our world?
Is LOVE fleeting or real?
Can there truly be a place in today's society for something we can't tangibly touch or explain?
Are feelings healthy or egotistical?

so today I was reminded by a dear friend what it's like to say GOODBYE!
It is one of the worst experiences imaginable, even if it's for a short while, vacation or forever, moving on!

The heart is breakable and to say goodbye cements that very deal, it hurts, the heart bleeds it's a muscle and I believe a small piece dies off, like a rose tree left undernourished...

is it so wrong to want to be in a country that votes for someone who will celebrate the diversity of it's fellow country people?  one were you can marry whoever you so desire so long as it's love, where you can be rich or poor, any color, but let live happily and at peace, not stressed and hide yourself away because you have a different religion to others?
is it so wrong?  is that why all the candidates today are at best bland and play it safe? 
promises? why is an adult allowed promise the country he wants to preside over lies and will never fulfill his obligations?
sad...so sad...it's a sad, sad situation

...while the voting is ticking along at a fast pace tonight I sit here and shake my head, do any of these people truly care about us?
I for one don't think so and yet we vote for them, is there not a better solution out there than placing our trust in people that will stab us in the back as soon as they are in?

It's sad, so sad...

after a wicked evening I have come to the conclusion life is what ye make it, not what comes to you, but what ye make of it!

 

Monday, Monday, ye just have to come crashing in on my wild dreams and kick me all day while down, how was your Monday everyone? 
Life sure likes to push you uphill only to leave you free fall once there...'tis all about the climb

It's that late hour, the hour where all the nocturnal animals come out to play, what are you going to read tonight?  Wait, what's that outside your window, do you hear it, thwack, thwack, thwack.
Dare you go look?  Dare you put your foot outside of it's cozy coccoon the blankets?
Thwack, thwack, thwack...

If you were given one wish, one wish gauranteed to come true, what would you wish for?
A wish for yourself?  A wish for your family or friends?  A wish for a secret you have never told to a soul?

What would you wish for?  Could you make just one wish?

right now I'm in the middle of writing a very very HOT love scene, this song is playing around in my head, goose bumps all over, what puts you in the mood?

ahhhhhhhhhhh Saturday so good to have you here, a day where we all can sit back for a  wee while and reflect on all we've done and of course all we still need to do, however it's also a day for relaxing somewhat...tonight of course WRITING :-)

Now off to scrape the cupboards bare and find something to eat, what would you like?

what is it with driving and texting?
it's an epidemic of late!  I counted today one person texting and for fifteen seconds he did not even throw a glance up to the road!!!  How many people he could have killed :-(
have a beautiful weekend, but stay safe!

'tis FRIDAY, yes it's FRIDAY, can I hear it pounding down the door? 
FRIDAY I have missed you, that means tomorrow is zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz day for a few hours ahhhh :-)

Friday you are a true LOVE :-)

Is there such a thing as SCANDAL anymore?
Are we over stimulated with TV and radio and FB now?

What would shock you to hear?
I'm sadly doubtful anything...

...well yet again another day is almost over, did I get everything I needed to do done?  No not even close but I realize there is only so much we can all do on a given day, if we kid ourselves and try to do more we burn out, we get grumpy we forget, we drop things, life is hard why make it harder?

Night :-)

and why seems I'm on a rant tonight is it that if someone DOES open a door for you they keep texting and don't even give you eye contact!!!
RUDE do not open the door for me if you can't look me in the eye at the same moment, sigh, ok now I'm off my podium

soooooooooooooooooooooooo what is it about all these reality TV programs?
Have we not enough reality in our lives already?  This to me is not TV or what TV should be about!
I don't find it entertaining in the least, I want something that rivets me to the spot from start 'til end, sighs and shakes my head