Thursday Thirteen – 13 Fun Things to do in a Blizzard

We didn’t have a White Christmas this year, but we did get a huge blizzard over December 26 to 27th which is what prompted today’s Thursday 13: 13 Fun Things to do in a Blizzard!

1. Sleep.

2. Start a fire in the fireplace.

3. Start a fire in the bedroom.

4. Read a good book.

5. Write a book (hopefully good).

6. Sleep.

7. Make a nice soup or stew to chase away the chill after # 8.

8. Shovel. Yes, it can be fun to be out there with the snow coming down and the chill nip in the air.

9. Make some hot chocolate or hot apple cider.

10. Sleep.

11. Write some more because you are under a horrible deadline.

12. Take some pictures (see below).

13. Enjoy the day off from work!

Take a moment to share some of your favorite things to do during a blizzard!

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others’ comments. It’s easy, and fun!

Wicked Wednesday – Deleted Bit from STRONGER THAN SIN

STRONGER THAN SIN Paranormal RomanceThere’s an interesting discussion by Keri Stevens over at the Carina Press blog. Keri is talking about her latest release, STONE KISSED, and what she does with those scenes that need to get cut.

It’s just part of the revision process that sometimes you, or more often an editor, chops scenes from a book. In STRONGER THAN SIN I dropped a number of scenes which showed Liliana interacting with the Carrera family even though I hated to do that. I loved Mick and Cat from SINS OF THE FLESH and thought you might like to see what was happening with them as well as the other Carrera family members. Unfortunately, as much as you love those scenes you need to understand that you have to focus on the main characters and not distract readers with old characters.

But I do know that many of you asked about the other Carreras and I appreciate that you grew that attached to them that you didn’t want to see them go. Believe me, I didn’t either and that’s why I’m going to be offering up a number of deleted bits featuring the Carrera family from the various SINS books

So here goes! This scene was originally in STRONGER THAN SIN, but it really didn’t portray Liliana as a woman capable of making her own decisions although it reinforced the importance of family to Liliana. To add action, I replaced it with a scene where Liliana and Mick are jogging and Liliana realizes she is being followed. In the new scene, although Mick offers his help, Liliana decides to go it alone to avoid bringing any more trouble into her brother’s already complicated life.

If you can’t see the excerpt below, you can click here to read it!

Stronger Than Sin Deleted Bits

Guilty Pleasures Monday – Snowed in!

Between a stomach bug and at least 14-16 inches of snow, I’m not going anywhere today. Of course, that had me wondering which gorgeous men I’d like to get trapped with in a blizzard (besides hubby). So here are my top five men to help heat away a wintry blast.

    1. Tom Selleck
    2. Josh Holloway
    3. Ben Affleck
    4. Johnny Depp
    5. Brad Pitt

So how about you? Who would you like to share a snowy winter day before a blazing fire?

Wishing you all the best!

Every year my family and I go to Manhattan to see the sights of the Christmas season. I love walking around, seeing the windows and other holiday decorations. This little video I put together for you has some of the photos that we took on our annual jaunt.

I’ll be away for a few days getting ready for the Christmas holiday! I hope you all have a wonderful and Merry Christmas and will be back on Monday.

If you can’t see the video below, you can click here or cut and paste this link into your browser:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJRy7O_ugB0

The Lights of Love

There is just something about Christmas lights that brings joy to my heart. They are so festive and full of fun. I love to see kids faces lighting up as they gaze upon the wonder of seeing all the colors in the night sky.

There is one house on the way home from the train station that even has the lights timed to music that plays on a FM signal that they broadcast. Just seeing that house on the way home says that it’s Christmas.

Now I know that there are those who say it’s a waste of energy and that the lights are not about the Christ and yes, I do understand both of those points.

But if people put up these lights to share their love of the Christmas season and if they enjoyed doing so with their families and if they bring other people joy with these lights, isn’t that in part what Christmas is all about? Love, sharing and joy?

So on that note, take a moment to check out these photos of some really amazing Christmas light displays. Just click here or cut and paste this link into your browser:
15/12/2009: Lights of Christmas

Holidaze

I have to apologize! Today is Guilty Pleasure Monday, but I am in the midst of working on a book that’s due and prepping for Christmas Eve and totally forgot it was Monday.

I’ll be back tomorrow morning!

Hope you all are having a great holiday season so far.

Fun Friday – Hallelujah Chorus Flash Mob!

It’s always fun to be pleasantly surprised and today’s Fun Friday is just that. Watch what happens as a Hallelujah Chorus Flash Mob erupts at a local mall!

If you’ve got some other fun things to share, just leave a link below to something you think we might like to see.