California Dreamin' or The Love of Muscle Cars and Chop Rods

I should be writing. Well, I am writing, but my husband and I took a detour tonight to go visit some eye candy of the motor vehicle kind. What an event. I'm sure, while I'm pounding away at the words, hubster will be back drooling and counting his pennies. That man deserves a hobby and a nice older vehicle, and we've had several. We still have the pickup he used to ride to school in some 60 years ago. Not that it runs.

But boy do these bad boys run. Beautiful as stock cars. Beautiful chopped and made into works of art, certainly not cars. The love of muscle cars and custom rods is as American as Apple Pie.

I am actually at a loss for words. So I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Sharon is working on Book 3 in the SEAL Brotherhood, a fast-paced Amazon Best-Selling series. Marliss Melton, famous for her SEAL Team 12 stories, said, "Sharon reads like rich chocolate."

SEAL Brotherhood Boxed Set No. 1 Here At Last

So excited to bring you my first Boxed Set No 1 for the SEAL Brotherhood series. Just went on sale today at Amazon. There is a special introductory price too. Now you can read the prequel and the full length novel for less than the price of the novel alone.

Enjoy. More exciting news later.

Sharon

Author Inverview: Jerrie Alexander

Today I'm pleased to welcome Jerrie Alexander. She's a new romantic suspense author to me. Hope you enjoy another great RS writer. Welcome, Jerrie.

Sharon, thank you for hosting me today. I look forward to visiting and will be around all day.

What genres do you write and why? Anything interesting about how you got started? 

My first love has always been romantic suspense. I tried my hand at a couple of contemporary romances. Both will forever stay hidden. So for now, I'm sticking with what I do best, which is killing people. Hypothetically, of course)

I can't remember a time when I wasn't interested in writing. Majored in journalism but my desire to embellish quickly turned me to fiction. Life, love, family, and career intervened, and I wouldn't change that for the world. In fact, I think it helped me when I buckled down and concentrated on writing.

Do you like writing in series, or single?

I have two singles out and a short story on the way. I enjoyed writing them as singles. But I've had a number of requests from readers who want the secondary characters to have their own happy ending. I've written book one and two of the Lost and Found, Inc, series. Book one, Hell or High Water, is in the edit stage. I have to admit, I love writing the series.

Did you get “the call” or did you get the call to “go Indie?"

I sold to a small press first. The Green-Eyed Doll, The Last Execution, and Someone To Watch Over Me are published by The Wild Rose Press. But it will be Indie for me going forward. I like the idea of being in control of my schedule, covers, editing, and publishing!

Who is your favorite character you've created? Why?

Boy, that's a tough one. May I use the no name dog from The Green-Eyed Doll? I don't plot so it didn't surprise me when a stray mutt wandered up and befriended my hero. He'd eat the sheriff's food but wouldn't allow him to touch him. That dog wound up playing a significant role in the book.

Do you find it easier to write the bad boys or the good boys? I'm assuming both are heroic, but which ones are more fun to write?

Bad boys for sure! I love writing a hero who has a troubled past and inner demons to overcome. They're hotter, more dangerous, and a lot more fun for the heroine to tame. Or at least she'll try to tame him.

What about the heroines? Do you find it easiest to write the bad girls or the good girls?

I haven't written a bad girl. Not yet. :) My heroines have been through hell in one form or another and are stronger because of their experiences. They wind up in trouble, but don't always rely on someone else to come save them.

If you could have a date with one of your characters, which one would it be and why? Where would you go?

Not fair! I love each one more than the last while I'm writing them. I'd take any of them and head to the beach. Warm water, white sand, and a sexy hunk...I'd be happy.

If you could go to a desert island with two companions, who would you bring? What would you do there? What would you bring if you could bring anything?

You said go to a desert island as in voluntary, not that I'd be stranded, right? So immediately, Gerard Butler popped into my mind!

Okay, I'd take two well trained SEALS. Which by the way, I was fortunate to work with a young man who was a SEAL. He's my go to guy on anything that shoots or blows up!

I'd bring a working satellite phone, replacement battery, snorkeling equipment, and enjoy myself.

Pretend you have just sold your 100,000th copy of one of your books. What will you do to celebrate?

I'd buy my husband a new bass boat. Can you believe those things can cost 40K? It's like buying a SUV. He'd be over the moon excited to replace his boat with a new one.

Tell us something about you that most people wouldn't know or guess about you?

That once upon a time I sang lead in a band. We played Lions Club dances, proms, etc. It was great fun and will always be a good memory.

Who are your favorite authors/books?

Linda Howard's Death Angel!! That book will forever and always be in my collection. And Cherry Adair, anything she writes is great. My guilty pleasure is historical fiction by Elizabeth Hoyt.

What are you working on now?

I am 23K words into a new romantic suspense. Working title The Last Tear Drop. I read an FBI profile about erotomania and it peaked my interest. This is way past having a stalker. To prove himself worthy, the villain kills anyone he thinks causes the object of his affection trouble. But when he discovers she's never going to love him, he feels betrayed and all hell breaks loose!

Excerpt: The Last Execution

Ethan turned his head sideways as he studied J.T.’s face. Wide eyed, the boy pointed at the scar with his index finger. J.T. wasn’t surprised. The kid was probably curious.

            “How’d you get that?”

            “A piece of shrapnel—” He paused and considered Ethan’s age. “I was in the war. A bomb went off and a piece of metal smacked me in the face.”

            “Does it hurt?”

            “Not anymore.” J.T. marveled at the innocence in Ethan’s eyes.

            “Can I touch it?”

            “I guess so.” J.T. breathed in and waited. Ethan hesitated, leaning closer.

            “I’m not supposed to talk about your scar.”

            “Who said?”

            “Mama.”

            “It’s okay. I won’t tell.”

            J.T. turned his head to the side. No one had outright asked to touch the constant reminder of a day when his best friend caught the worst of an IUD. Hell, people shied away from his right side. Except Leigh, she looked him square in the face. He lay still while Ethan poked a finger into the scar a couple of times. After a few seconds of investigation, the kid cupped the scar with his small hand and patted lightly. The oddest thing happened to J.T.’s heart. It swelled inside his chest and then clenched.

            “Mama said you were a brave soldier.”

            Alien emotions swirled through J.T. and an unexplained urge to hug Ethan put a weird lump in J.T.’s throat. Unable to cope or understand, his mind raced for an idea, anything to end the moment.

The Last Execution blurb:

To survive, she must put the past behind her. To love, she must learn to trust.

Homicide detective Leigh McBride's first assignment with the FBI brings her face-to-face with a past she's tried hard to forget. And when her temporary partner, a cynical ex-marine, lights a fire in her she thought long-extinguished, her darkest secret is threatened.

Scarred both physically and emotionally, Special Agent J. T. Noble is a man of few words. He prefers to keep people at a distance—until he meets Leigh. He's attracted to her strength and drawn in by her secrecy. But in their line of work, secrets can be deadly.

When the killer they are hunting aims his vigilante justice at Leigh's past assailant, the fine line between right and wrong blurs. To heal the past—and find their future together—Leigh and J. T. must learn that only through trust and forgiveness can love grow.

Jerrie Alexander bio:

A student of  creative writing in her youth, Jerrie set aside her passion when life presented her with a John Wayne husband, and two wonderful children.  A career in logistics offered her the opportunity to travel to many beautiful locations in America, and she revisits them in her romantic suspense novels. 

But the characters went with her, talked to her, and insisted she share their dark, sexy stories with others.  She writes alpha males and kick-ass women who weave their way through death and fear to emerge stronger because of, and on occasion in spite of, their love for each other.  She likes to torture people, make them suffer, and if they’re strong enough, they live happily ever after.

The author of THE GREEN-EYED DOLL, THE LAST EXECUTION, and soon to be released, SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME, Jerrie and her husband live in Texas. She loves sunshine, children’s laughter, sugar (human and granulated), and researching for her heroes and heroines.

Social media links:

http://www.jerriealexander.com - website

http://www.jerriealexander.com/category/blog/

http://www.twitter.com/jerriealexander

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jerrie-Alexander /121521571355959?ref=hl

http://www.goodreads.com/jerriealexander

http://pinterest.com/jerriealexander/

Buy links: The Last Execution

http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Execution-ebook/dp/B00BK9QU9K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365245740&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Last+Execution

Buy links: The Green-Eyed Doll

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=jerrie+alexander+

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-green-eyed-doll-alexander-jerrie/1113957378?ean=2940015802665

http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=The+Green-Eyed+Doll

T is for Traveling Home

I'm sitting here at the Kansas City Sheraton reflecting on the last week of meet and greets, craft workshops and meals with friends. Some of these people I've known for years on the internet. Some are new friends in every sense.  What a remarkable week of expanding my boundaries, and keeping some boundaries in check.

It won't be hard for me to go back home. I miss my husband, my writing corner, my gardens, the sunshine and that beautiful space that I call my sanctuary, where all the beautiful stories are created. I'd forgotten how much my routine, my sense of place and belonging was to me -- and I'm not complaining. Just noticing how I miss the things I have and do every day. That great old country song comes to mind, How Can I Miss You When You Won't Go Away?

My travels have exposed me to people I would not ordinarily sit and talk to. And we're all storytellers, so the stories are rich. We have new projects planned and this year will be a first for me with hopefully three nice collaborations. I'll be in three collections. More to come.

I'm reminded about what I do because of all these fantastic posters plastered around the lobby, the Mezzanine, and wrapped around the elevator doors. but I miss the two story living and dining room at my house, with the windows reflecting sunsets, and the three beautiful ledges of hand blown glass we've chosen. I am very much about the place. And my place feels like a church. The music I play echoes throughout the house, especially when I am all alone. If I'm not brought to tears every hour, my writing isn't good enough.


I need my fix of the familiar so I can bring all the great success and ideas home and tend them in my writing garden.

It's only been eleven months since I've been able to really call my writing income enough to live on. And last night I got to sit with and talk to people who have done that ten, maybe thirty times over. Wow. Not about all the money. I think about all the fans, the people who got to read such compelling stories. I got to talk to another Indie writer this week who actually has sold 100,000 copies a day for almost a whole month. Excuse me while I bow.

One day, I'll have one of these cool elevator wraps. I'll be flooded at a bookstore signing. I'll have a fan page with 20,000 people on it. But I'll still be the same lady who likes to get dirty in her garden, who writes the kinds of stories I would like to sit down, cuddle up with, and fantasize about. The reality of what I do during the day gives me this fantasy I've earned.

I'll be finishing the A-Z Challenge and, just like Vince Lombardi said it, "I never lost a game, I only ran out of time." My A-Z Challenge will end sometime this week.

And that's okay.

I think this link still works:  Don't forget to catch the other A-Z Blog participants by clicking here.

S is for Shakespeare

S is for Shakespeare…in Middle School

Today I’m proud to allow my daughter, Jaime, post the “S” for Shakespeare. She is a 7^th and 8^th grade English and Humanities teacher, and loves her work. Her kids are working on Shakespeare.

Shakespeare’s death day, his exact birthdate unknown, was the other day – April 23^rd, 1616. I maintain he was an Aries, although I’ve no physical, metaphysical, logical or otherwise relevant proof…I maintain he was an Aries simply for the fact that prior to 2010 Shakespeare and I had a long and disharmonious relationship. Did I mention I’m an Aries – stubborn, strong-willed and logger-headed (all three words that mean ‘stubborn’). Simply put, I hated everything Shakespearean because I couldn’t understand it.

However, after a Bachelors degree in History, a Masters degree in teaching and several years teaching English, I’ve come to know, respect and, to a degree, love the bard. Regardless of whether or not you are a fan, there is something to be said for his ability to turn a phrase and insult people with wildly hilarious and totally inappropriate language.

Finding myself teaching middle school this year, I harkened back to my days as a hormone raging, acne prone, uncomfortable and irritable teenager. As I said before, I loathed Shakespeare simply for the fact that I just didn’t get it, and despite my protestations, I still had to read Romeo & Juliette, Hamlet and something else I’ve blocked out completely…I suppose the memories were just TOO bad.

Rather than repeat my high school experience, I decided to approach Shakespeare on his own turf – he likes to turn a phrase? HA! By George, we will, too! Thus the Shakespearean Insults were born. Each day my 8^th graders come to class, I give them a new insult, today’s: Fie, fie you counterfeit cloak-bag, you puke stocking! They feverishly work for 2 minutes trying to figure out what it means – for some of them this is the only 2 minutes of the entire day when they will actually do work. We share our insults on the whiteboards at each table, and I read every one of them aloud. Now…being in middle school, they’ve naturally figured out that I’ll read just about anything, thus the following responses have left my mouth:

-       You are a puss infested toe on a hawt summa’ daaayyyy.

-       You are a donkey’s fart hole.

-       You are a stinky fart under my foot.

-       You are a drunken farting man (it seems this table likes farts).

-       Go away you drunken butthole.

We really do have fun with these insults – the conversations we have are pretty hilarious:

“Gleeking means?” I asked two weeks ago. 

“Spitting!!”

“Close…when you spit on someone you are….”

“Spitting?!” 

“No, you are teasing and taunting them.” I receive a few nods and ‘ah’s.’ “Now, brazen-faced means what?”

“Brazen!”

Backstory…three weeks ago a friend of mine visited our classroom. One of my students took class-time during this lesson to ask the question… “is he your boyfriend?!” Deciding this was a perfect time to address ‘brazen’ I used her as an example. 

“When Y (Insert student name) asked me ‘is that guy your boyfriend?!’ she was asking in a totally brazen way. She was unashamed, unembarrassed and shameless, right?”

“Huh, so she didn’t really care if it would embarrass you, so she just asked?” someone clarified. Apparently, this example totally made sense…I’m so glad my personal embarrassment has led to some sort of learning. 

“Yes…it’s sort of like when I walk in here and say, ‘man I’m sweating sooo much’ and then show you the sweat marks on my shirt,” I reply, using yet another example from my personal life.

“Yeah, we get it hambone…just don’t do that again.” Hmm…

“Flax is…”

“A seed!” Star pupil X. “And a wench is a babe or a hoe…so she’s a seed hoe! No wait, a seed prostitute!” 

I roll my eyes…“well in a manner yes, but no. Why can’t you just say ‘seed babe’?” We discussed the thing to death, and discovered that by taking out the word ‘flax’ the insult totally made sense: Gleeking, brazen-faced flax-wench = A taunting/joking, shameless babe.

I’ve had entirely way too much fun teaching the language aspect of Shakespeare, and I think my students have as well. I suppose it’s an effort to reach those kids who, like me, just didn’t get it. But, what’s emerged from this is a group of highly intellectual, critical thinking, button-pushing 14 year-olds who can insult you using awesome language like it’s nobody’s business. In doing this, I feel I’ve addressed most of the “I don’t get it” types and have engaged them in a way that I would have wanted to learn, in a way that I would have totally been hooked to old English and atrocious sentence structure.

For all the wonderful things we do, unfortunately being a teacher, there are so many things we have to do in a day – “we wear a lot of hats” as we say in the staff lounge. It is doubly unfortunate that during any day, because we are pulled in so many differing directions, we cannot devote the time and our energies to each and every student who needs that one-on-one connection for understanding. There are young adults who, like me at that age, don’t understand, won’t ask for help and are simply content to carry on, ignorant. Sometimes it’s easier to do that then to ask ‘why’ or ask for help.

So, I’ll end with a shameless plug! Go talk to your children, your grandchildren. Find out what they are struggling with, find out what they don’t know…and then TELL US! E-mail us, call us, drop in to our offices and pester us! When it comes to education, there’s nothing more important than our own. As mom says, “the squeaky wheel gets the grease,” and just think back to a time when you were too scared to ask for clarification. Had I been willing to embrace the radtasticalness of Shakespeare, I might have had an entirely different love affair…

Don't forget to catch the other A-Z Blog participants by clicking here.

QR Codes

Back to finishing up the A-Z Blog, and welcome back.

Here's what Wikipedia says about QR Codes:

The QR code was invented in Japan by the Toyota subsidiary Denso Wave in 1994 to track vehicles during manufacture. It was designed to allow high-speed component scanning. It has since become one of the most popular types of two-dimensional barcodes.

Unlike the older one-dimensional barcode that was designed to be mechanically scanned by a narrow beam of light to extract data, the QR code is detected as a 2-dimensional digital image by a semiconductor image sensor and is then digitally analyzed by a programmed processor. The processor locates the three distinctive squares at the corners of the image, and uses a smaller square near the fourth corner to normalize the image for size, orientation, and angle of viewing. The small dots are then converted to binary numbers and validity checked with an error-correcting code.

You can create your own QR Codes by clicking one site here.

At my local Starbuck's, you can wait for your latte and scan listings of houses for sale in Santa Rosa. You hold up your phone, point and click. A smart broker has QR Codes displayed at the window just past the pickup counter. Quite brilliant. No wasted time for busy people on the go.

I'm waiting for the day when you can click on a QR Code and get transported to someplace sunny and warm. Beam me up, Scotty.

Don't forget to catch the other A-Z Blog participants by clicking here.

P is for Petaluma, P Town, Butter and Eggs Days and all things Sonoma County

Welcome back to the A-Z challenge blog and the world of wonderful bloggers. There are over 1500 other writers who are doing this month-long challenge to do a blog for every letter of the alphabet. As you can see, I'm a couple of days behind. But, like everything else in life, I go for the thrill of getting things done last minute. Adrenaline junkie over here. Yes, even with my writing.

Petaluma is a great little big town. This weekend is the Butter and Egg Days parade, where one year my husband dressed up as a chicken and rode on the back of a convertable, waving to the crowd, alongside a judge candidate, who lost. That probably has more to do with the costume than the candidate.

Petaluma is most recently known for its Little League team who came home winners, got a parade worthy of returning veterans, personal escorts by the Oakland A's, and a lot of good old regular folks congratulating them on a job well done. They won everyone's hearts, even though they were defeated by Japan.

Petaluma is a decent town with nice old buildings looking like Mayberry USA. American Graffiti was filmed here. Peggy Sue Got Married too (they actually filmed a scene on our front porch in Sebastopol).

Every year there is a Peggy Sue car rally that closes down the main drag (yes, when I was early married, my husband and I used to tool down Petaluma Boulevard, and 4th Street Santa Rosa, just like in American Graffiti). It is a rally that rivals some of the ones in Reno I've been to. Very few professional collectors, mostly firemen and construction workers and their kids fixing up hot rods, spending way too much money on chrome and paint, and generally having fun. The stuff of life.

I'm really lucky to be living here in beautiful Sonoma County. Petaluma

is truly one of its treasures. A city that remembers the past as it launches into the future. I mean, isn't it great that a town would give a parade to a bunch of 10 year old boys?

Maybe I'll see you there this weekend at the Butter and Egg Days parade. We'll get sunburned together.

Don't forget to catch the other A-Z Blog participants by clicking here.