I've moved!

Hello everyone!

I've moved to a new blog...please come and say hello.   Please click  HERE.  It will really make me TRULY happy if you follow me there as well!



BIG HUG to all!!!

My Blog Critique is up at Laura's

Hello everybody!  Laura has critiqued my blog! Yay!!!! (Sorry, Laura, I can't help it, I've got to use the exclamation point, LOL!)

Please head over and see what Laura has to say about Conversations with Self, what's good about it and what I need to change from a marketing perspective.

Please click HERE


Thanks so much, Laura!

Happy Holidays to all!

To all my friends, I will not be blogging from today until after New Year.  A very Merry Christmas to those who are celebrating and the Happiest New Year.  Most of all, I wish everybody peace, prosperity and health.

See you in a week or so!

Deja Vu Blogfest: My imaginary friends...

Today is the Deja vu Blogfest Day!  Hoorah!

I thought I'd re-post something that I wrote in year 2007, the year I started blogging. Why this one?  It's because in this post, I wrote about my imaginary friends which I still find amusing to this day. This is the story behind my blog title, Conversations with Self.  


And no, I did not exaggerate the story.  I did talk to imaginary friends...which worried my father.

Hope you enjoy reading it!


******


First posted on 08 May 2007

I don't know why, but for some reason, I tend to reminisce a lot about my childhood these days. Last week, it was Caroline (my doll) I was reminiscing about so I wrote about broken toys and then somehow found a way to connect it to broken dreams, etc. This time, though, it's all about this part of my childhood when I had imaginary friends. If you witnessed my childhood, you would probably think I was a looney. But think...children do have imaginary friends, don't they? Or was it only me? (Widens eyes and looks around)  Oh, no!

Anyway, let me tell you about some of these 'friends' that people never saw...or some probably did but never knew that they were my friends. One of them was that reflection in the mirror. yes, oh, yes, call me a nutcase, but I did talk to myself in the mirror! I would really converse with the other 'self.' And she talked back to me! Only, it was also me talking, of course, who did you think it was? I used to do this very often that I overheard my Dad saying to my Mom, 'Don't you think we should take our daughter to a Psychiatrist? I am getting worried.' My Mom, who was so used to seeing me talking to my toys, said nonchalantly, 'Oh stop that. She's just playing. Children do that all the time.'

Yes, I said toys. I did talk to my toys (although I didn't have much, really) - I remember talking to Caroline while she was behind that glass. What a pity. I could only talk to my doll behind a glass! (will post her story soon) I also talked to my paper dolls which I made myself. They lived in an improvised dollhouse. I used matchboxes as furniture and my dollhouse was a corrugated box, sometimes I used a cigarette carton. Ahh, a child's innovativeness. I wonder where did it all go? I don't seem to have the same creativity now that I am older. But that's another narrative. I think I can only produce rubbish now...and perhaps children? 

Hold it. That's not all. There is something far more special than that beautiful (oh ha!) reflection in the mirror that looked like me (Har! Har Har!) and my dolls. There were lizards as well. Yes! That's right, those tiny crawling creatures with moderately elongate body and tapering tail...some might have another name for it, though. They are sometimes called wall or house lizards. Other times they are called house geckos. But let me just call it that. Lizard. At night, I developed this routine to converse with them before I'd fall asleep. There was one time, if I remember it right, when my Dad came home late from work. Remember that in those days, there were no mobile phones...(and telegrams came after a week, not the promised next day delivery...so if you'd send it, you'd arrive at your destination before your telegram). When Mom started to get worried, I would listen to the clicking sounds of the lizards. Tsk, tsk, tsk. I would close my eyes and converse with them. 'Is - my - fa - ther - safe?' One Tsk is equivalent to a syllable. Of course, I would interpret the Tsk-Tsk to what I wanted to hear, what did you expect? Funny, huh?

All these imaginary friends come to mind now that I am away from home. I have forgotten them a long, long time ago and never spoken to them for years - if I ever did that at my age, I would probably be in a mental institution.

Isn't it a universal truth that from the day we were born, we already have the need to communicate? A baby's uttering of its first word is always a milestone, a breakthrough that all mothers rejoice in. I have read somewhere that there was an experiment done by experts where they formed two groups of babies. The first group was cleaned and fed but no one ever communicated with them - verbally or otherwise. The second group was cleaned and fed...and carers communicated with these babies. After a period of time, it was discovered that the second group of babies grew faster and were healthier than the first group. This experiment only proves that we do need to communicate. It is this uniqueness that sets us apart from other creatures.

This is most probably the reason why I am writing this piece. There is the internet now to communicate to practically everyone and anyone in the world. My friend, Rosemarie, was right in telling me that blogging helps. It would like to thank her for being an inspiration to create my own blogsite...(and to Makis for introducing Blogger to me). It sure eases boredom and makes me think. It fills my need to communicate.

So, this time, I don't have to stand in front of the mirror or listen to the clicking sound of the house lizards (there isn't any here, anyway) or get dolls. I only have to sit down and immerse myself in the world wide web. It does help.

PS: I will understand if you think that at an early age, I showed signs of a mental disorder - talking to lizards and all  - but don't worry, I don't bite. Aha-ha-ha-ha!!!

Friendship Celebration Winners!

I'm announcing the winners today!  But before I give you the results, I'd like to thank the sponsors of the books I'm giving away for their generosity and most of all, their friendship:

Talli Roland

JC Martin

Theresa Milstein

My sincerest thanks wrapped in a big HUG to you all!

Now the winners! 

Lucky (paperback) by Alice Sebold goes to:

L'Aussie Denise

The Breath of Fresh Air (paperback) by Erica James

goes to:

Sharon Mayhew

Build A Man (e-book) by Talli Roland

goes to:

Golden Eagle

The Doll (e-book) by JC Martin goes to:

Gemma

Unidentified (paperback) by Rae Mariz goes to:

Robyn Campbell

Floral Writing Set goes to:

Cortney Pearson

Congratulations!!!

You will receive an e-mail shortly about your prize.  Yayyy! to you all!!!

Wait! Before I say goodbye, have you been to JC Martin's blog?  She's announced the winners to her Birthday Blow-Out!  Here's the link:  JC Martin, Fighter Writer.

Have a fab Sunday, everyone!

Hello You! You're my friend...and I'm celebrating You! ❤

Friendship Give-aways for Thanksgiving!


"...Was my only chance at friendship here destined to be thwarted at every turn?"- Sophie Mercer, Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

I have met a lot of wonderful people in my life, some of them became very very good friends.  There were, however, many thwarted friendships as well.  There had also been on-line friendships that began well...and ended up really bad.  I'd like to think they are ones that are never meant to be.

Why am I mentioning the thwarted and the unpleasant ones?  Because  I believe life shows us these undesirable things sometimes to let us focus more on the good!  It has made me appreciate more what I have!  This is why, I'm celebrating all the friendships I have in my life!

This message is to thank all of YOU:  Blogger friends, fellow writers and readers out there who have always been there for me.  Whether or not I have something worth reading, you are always there.  I often find myself unable to write anything worthy of posting and yet you keep coming back.  Again and again.

So, please let me tell you.

I heart  ♡♡♡ you all.

I'm celebrating Friendships!! YaY!

This Thanksgiving (in the UK, we don't celebrate Thanksgiving but I'd like to join my my friends in USA and in other parts of the world who are), I'd like to take the opportunity to tell you how grateful I am for each one of you. You know who you are.  I'm so glad that we crossed paths, that we are on-line buddies and that ours is the kind of friendship that has not been thwarted.

As a sign of my appreciation and lurve and with the help and generosity of friends who are donating books (massive thanks!), I'm giving away:

From the Author of Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold.
This is her memoir.

A Breath of Fresh Air by Erica James
A story of finding love again after a tragedy from
a Sunday Times Bestselling Author

An e-copy of Build a Man - donated by the author, 
the Bestselling Novelist Talli Roland
She is also the author of The Hating Game and Watching Willow Watts
Big thanks, Talli!

An e-copy of The Doll by J.C. Martin
A delightfully creepy novellete and a must-read for any horror-lover!
Donated by Author J.C. Martin
Big thanks, J.C.!

A YA dystopian novel by Rae Mariz
This will be sent by mail to one of the winners within the USA only
Big thanks to my friend Theresa Milstein for this book!


and I also have:

A beautiful floral Writing Set with 20 sheets of writing paper and 10 envelopes
plus I'm including some surprise treats inside!

Come on, I know you want them!  It's easy, you can do one, a combination or all of the following:

1.  share this on your Facebook wall - 1 point
2.  share it onTwitter - 1 point
3.  post a link on the side bar of your blog - 2 points
4.  write a blog post about it - 3 points

Please leave me a comment telling me what you've done and which books above you like in order of preference...and don't forget your name and e-mail address so I can let you know if you are one of the winners!

This ends on 30 November 2011, 12 midnight UK Time.  Winners will be announced after 30 Nov.

All giveaways, open internationally.  The Unidentified by Rae Mariz is open within the USA.

I'd love it if you follow me but it is not necessary or a requirement to enter. Sharing the news is to let others know I'm celebrating them, too.  Thank you so much for being here ❤ 

♥♥♥BIG Thanksgiving Hugs!♡♡♡

Hometowns and Settings

Does your hometown influence your writing?

The ever-so-adorable Theresa Milstein is with me today with a guest post to promote Fangtales.  Her short story 'Allured' is included in this YA anthology.  Theresa spent time thinking about setting when writing her piece, so she thought she'd share her perspective on how our hometowns shape us and frame our writing.

Here's Theresa:

“It’s a suburb of New York City where moms drive oversize silver trucks to Starbucks and most kids play soccer whether they want to or not.  It’s the kind of place where kids are trained from birth to compete.  In everything.  School, sports, friendship, clothes. . .you know, everything.”

- D.J. MacHale, Morpheus Road: The Light

My blogging buddy, Jessica Bell wrote a recent post asking the question:

What's the first wonderful aspect of your hometown that comes to mind when you think about it? And does it make you feel nostalgic?

Just 1 aspect and 1 hometown?!  

How about 10 aspects and 2 hometowns?


Until age 9, I lived in New York City.  This is my childhood list:

Soot snow mountains

Fire hydrant sprinklers – watching on

X-rated movie theatre ‘round the corner

Giant Catholic Church, opposite direction

Friends and neighbors from everywhere in the world

Walking everywhere and noisy elevated subway

Dark school with caged stairways and paper towel ceilings

Parks with cement cause scraped knees

Crowded and noisy, horns and double-parked cars

Independence with caution

For the rest of my childhood, I lived on Long Island.  If I hadn’t lived in NYC first, this list might be different. If I write it from my teen years, it would also be different.  This is my childhood list:

Sameness of big houses and people

Mowing lawns and lawn pride

Mandatory soccer

Cars drive everywhere

Bicycling through lazy summers

Playing video games at the bowling alley

Backyards with sprinklers 

Basements with toys

Inhaling greenery from flower and vegetable gardens

Designer jeans

Though these places are only an hour drive apart, the contrast is great.  Being a city kid and suburban kid are like two different beasts inside me.  My childhood experiences help me write city and suburban characters.

Kimberley Griffiths Little writes about life on the bayou in The Healing Spell and her soon-to-be-released Circle of Secrets.  I wouldn’t have the faintest idea what that life is like there if I hadn’t been introduced to that world by her:

“I sit in the prow of the motorboat, worms jiggling my gut the whole way, fat and sassy on all that cake I just ate.

When we get to the swamp house, I watch my daddy tie the rope around the dock piling, get my suitcases out, and set them on the scraggly lawn.  Wind moans through the giant cypress trees surrounding the house, making the Spanish moss float in the air like mermaid’s hair.”
- Kimberley Griffiths Little, Circle of Secrets

Recently, I read Touch Blue by Cynthia Lord in one sitting.  Because she spent time on an island in Maine, she could bring that tiny world realistically to me, as I sat in on the Charles River in Cambridge, overlooking the Boston skyline.

I’ve mentioned before that I can make up anything in the world in my books, but I like my setting to be based on a place that I know.  I must know the physical ground to ground my book, no matter what other fantastical elements exist.  The places I’ve lived have had a profound impact on me as a person and as a writer. And knowing a place helps me bring authenticity to my pieces.  But I need to take it further like other authors who know their settings enough to make them  character-like – Carl Hiaasen and Kate DiCamillo, for example.

Where we’ve lived is so much of who we are.

In November, I’m going to post an interview with Jessica Bell about her upcoming book, String Bridge.  She explains how living in Australia and Greece has influenced her writing.

Can you list aspects of your hometown?

How did where you grew up influence your writing?

Which books or authors do wonders with setting?
Links you might want to use:

My blog:  http://theresamilstein.blogspot.com/

Fangtales: 

Barnes and Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fangtales-berni-stevens/1105876583?ean=9780956036360&itm=1&usri=fangtales

Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Fangtales-Berni-Stevens/dp/0956036368/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317157075&sr=8-1

The Door Swung Open

Rachel Harrie is hosting the First Campaigner Challenge. 


Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title.  It can be in any format, including a poem.  Begin the story with the words, "The door swung open."  These four words will be included in the word count.


Here's my attempt:


The door swung open.  Alice did not even hear it when it shut as she bowed down her head, staring at her jeans and her hands still clasped together in between her legs.  She felt a hand on her shoulder.  Startled, she looked up to see Adrian.  His face was flustered and sweaty.  He knew.  He didn't have to say a thing.  They just looked at each other.


She was the one who broke the silence.  "He's gone,"  she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks.


He nodded with eyes closed and sat next to her.  Adrian could hold it no longer.  He covered his face with his hands and sobbed.  Alice wrapped an arm around him, leaned on his shoulder.  And she wept, too.  


The suffering was over.  Their only child was finally at peace.

The Third Writers' Platform Building Campaign

Have you heard about the third Writers' Platform Building Campaign?  If you haven't, this is to let you know that Rachael Harrie of Rach Writes is running it from 22 August to 31 October 2011.  Please check it out.

For more details, here's the link to Rachel's blog:  Rach Writes

See you there!

I have been interviewed!

Yay, would you believe? I have been interviewed!

Please go over at Deirdra's and have a look :)

Please click HERE.


Not a very long post today.  Just sharing with you about my interview.  Hugs!

Wednesday Fun - I've been tagged!

I have just learned that I've been tagged by Author Jessica Bell last month!  Yes, last month! Can you imagine how bad I am that I have not read it???  So if I have not visited your blog for awhile, forgive me.  It's not only you.  I have noticed quite recently that a few of my followers are 'unfollowing' me, maybe they think I've forgotten them because I have not been commenting for awhile.  That's sad.  Believe me, I have been trying.  I am! I really am! Just can't keep up, lovelies!  Eeeeeeekkkk!!!

*Calming self down*

*Breath in.  Breath out.*

Shall we continue? Jess tagged me so here's what I need to do:  I have to answer the following questions and follow the instructions and tag five lovely bloggers.

Do you think you're hot?
Are you referring to my body temperature? I can assure you, it is normal. Hehehe.


Upload a picture of wallpaper you are using at the moment.
This was taken in 2008 when husband and I went to London with our two good friends, Jemima and Orren.  I loved those two days with them. This shot was taken by Orren and it reminds me so much of how much fun we all had.

When was the last time you ate chicken? 
Last week.  I made chicken/pasta soup.  


The songs you listened to recently?
I Finallly Found Someone by Barbra Streisand and Bryan Adams.  I loved the film, Mirror Has to Faces and it was on TV a few days ago....so I thought I'd listen to the 'theme song' on youtube.

What were you thinking as you were doing this?
I need to sleep.  Yes, I do.  I really do.  ZZZzzzzzzzzzz.

Do you have nicknames? Yes

I am called:
Len by everybody
Leni by family and closest friends

Tag five bloggers and state the reason why:


Theresa Milstein - because she's a lovely friend.  It always makes me smile when I get an email from her.  She is always so kind and helpful to me, always has the answer to my questions.  She's a great friend and a talented writer. I heart her! 


LindyLou Mac - for all her book reviews which I love and look forward to reading.


Glynis Smy - she's been a blogger friend since I began blogging and I did not even realise she's always there to visit my blog, even when I had no followers!


Lisa Stowe - she believes in me and my writing and that is huge.  Her words of encouragement are something I hold on to when I get really down and I feel like I write crap.


Jessica Bell - tagging you back, Jess! She's such an inspiration to me.  I cannot think of anything she can't do - she writes novels, poetry, she sings (and she's got an angelic voice!) and she edits, too! Not to mention her good looks! I think when the Universe distributed talent and all things good, she was in the front row!


******


The winner of the Book Give-away is Ycel Zaleta!!!  I will be posting/mailing the book soon! Congratulations!


******

This is why I love him

I don't want to get all mushy.  I have no right to be, unless it's Valentine's Day, but it isn't.  But then this is just so nice I'd like to share it with you.  So never mind if it's all mawkish, ha!

Sometime ago, I was in the car with my adorable husband.  One thing I will admit in this post - I am very clumsy.  So what do you do when you are clumsy? Of course - spill something on anything whenever you can!  I spilled Coke over my shirt and my trousers and on the seat of the car.

Husband laughed.  I don't know why he finds me so comical when I do this.

Me:  "Oh, God.  Sorry.  I spilled softdrink on the car seat! Shoot!"

Husband:  *Still laughing*

Me:  "I think I ruined the seat cover."

Husband:  "You are really funny, you."

Me:  "Aren't you angry?"

Husband:  "For what?"

Me:  "Well, I think I ruined the seat.  This will stain..."

Husband:  "It's only a car seat.  My wife is more important than a car!"

He laughed again and held my hand.

Isn't he lovely?  This is what I keep in mind when things aren't as good as the good days.

My adorable hubby doing what he loves:  birdwatching.

PS.  Yes, I wiped the seat dry.  And luckily, it didn't stain. :)  But on my white shirt, it did.

Where are you summer?

It's been wet and raining!  The only thing I wish right now is for the sun to come up again!  So I'm staring at this photo:

and the plants on my windowsill:

Let's just say that inside my head, it's summer!!!! Arrrghh.

Hope it's sunny where you are! x

Tiny Dancer and Fascinating Females

I've got to share some exciting news!!!

One - My short story, Discovering the Gift, will be included in a Tiny Dancer anthology, published by Literary Mix Tapes.  I am very thrilled to tell you that two lovely ladies are also writing for it, Theresa Milstein and Jessica Bell.  Theresa told me about the anthology and I'm really very chuffed that I got included!

And two - My non-fiction piece, Moments, is going to be included in a book project, Fascinating Females.  And do you know that Michelle Alba-Lim is still looking for participants for this book project?  Yes, she still is! For those who are interested, please see details below.  Thank you, Theresa for helping spread the word.

I'm now inviting anyone who has a fascinating story or article to share, to send it to fascinatingfemales@yahoo.com.

You may write it as a mini-biography, a snapshot, or a vignette. You can write about your adventures (or misadventures) in Mensa, Rotary, Toastmasters, the Red Cross, WOVI, ASTD, SHRM, IAC, the military, or any organization/s (or movements) you belong to. You can write about your life as a wife, a mom, a sister, a girlfriend, a daughter, a student, etc., or you can write about a single defining moment in your life, and so on.

Note that fascination, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder, so what you may consider as a humdrum, boring life may be fascinating for others.

You will retain full copyright to whatever gets published, and can have your articles published again anywhere.

Articles can be anywhere from 1-4 pages of letter size (8-1/2 x 11), double-spaced, font 12, Times New Roman.

You may write in first person or third person (whichever you prefer). You may opt to use a pseudonym if you wish.

Please email me at fascinatingfemales@yahoo.com if you have any questions or suggestions.

Looking forward to seeing some fascinating articles in my inbox very soon!

Michelle Alba-Lim

Michelle is also on Facebook.  

Thank you all and have a wonderful Friday!!! 

*****

I have a book give-away!

Please don't miss my book giveaway - Starring in the Movie of my Life by Laurel Osterkamp, please click here to see my post.  The book is a finalist for Chick-Lit and International Book Awards (Women's Fiction and Young Adult Fiction).  To see more details, please visit Laurel's website and Blog.

A Chat with Author Laurel Osterkamp

I know I've been quiet again for the past week or so.  Been busy again. I hope all of my blogger friends in the USA had a happy fourth of July! And to my friends in Canada, hope you all had an exciting celebration of Canada Day!!!

As promised, I am back with another blog interview with the lovely author, Laurel Osterkamp.  Check it out how she attempted to get published by a mainstream publisher and how she grew impatient but ended up happy to be independently publishing her own books.  I've enjoyed this interview and learned a lot from Laurel.  I hope you enjoy it, too, and pick a thing or two!

Hello, Laurel, welcome to my blog! I am very pleased to have you with me today! 

Len: What was your job before you became a writer?

Laurel Osterkamp (LO) - Actually, my primary job right now is as a high school teacher. But my dream is to one day make enough money from writing that I can focus only on that.

Do you remember the first writing piece you’ve written?

LO - When I was little I wanted to be an actress, so I wrote a lot of plays. I remember writing something about three girls at boarding school. I’m sure it was God-awful!

What was your first published work? (Was it a short story, an essay, a poem?)

LO - Well, maybe this doesn’t count, but my writing obsession began when the comedy sketches I wrote were performed. I used to do comedy-improvisation, and I began to enjoy writing for the groups I performed with more than actually performing with them. Then I did an adaptation of GlenGarryGlenRoss, called GwenHairyGwenGloss, and it was set in a beauty parlor with an all female cast. It got a lot of attention, and it was loads of fun!

What was your first published novel?

LO - Following My Toes

(Find out more about Laurel's books on her Blog - http://laurelosterkamp.blogspot.com/)

Did you struggle to get published? Can you tell us your experience on getting published?

LO - I made an attempt to get published by a mainstream publisher, but when it didn’t work out right away I grew impatient. I also had an agent agree to take me on, only to never hear from her again! Now I’m happy to be independently published, because the industry is changing so quickly with the emergence of e-readers. So much more is possible now, and it’s nice be in control of certain decisions, like pricing. 

Do you want it quiet when you write or do you prefer some kind of music in the background to help you concentrate?

LO - I love to listen to music. I often make itune playlists to coincide with the theme or story of whatever I’m working on.

(Thank you, Laurel, for sharing with us a photo of your work space!)

Let’s talk about your latest novel, Starring in the Movie of my Life – how long ago was it when you began to write this novel?

LO - Gosh – I guess it’s been about five years!

Can you tell us about Starring in the Movie of my Life?  What is it about?

LO - To put it simply, it’s about two very different women who want to be saved by the same man. Ultimately, they have to learn how to save themselves.

Did you have to research to write the story?

LO - I read some articles by men about how women propelled them to cheat on their significant other. That’s how I crafted Melody’s “five step plan” to lure Nate away from Samantha.

How did you create your characters?  Are they real people?

LO - I usually start by giving them a heroic quality, like being extremely compassionate or a survivor. Sometimes I’ll think of friends or family to help inspire these characters, but ultimately they’re always fictional.

Do you see yourself in any of your characters in this particular novel you’ve written?

LO - Not so much. I realized when I was done writing Starring in the Movie of My Life that Melody and Samantha are total opposites… the ying to each other’s yang. I share qualities with both of them, but I’m also very different from each of them too.

Do you have a favourite character in Starring in the Movie of my Life?

LO - I love Samantha and Melody equally. Even though a lot of readers think Melody is a bad person, I respect her strength and intelligence. So choosing which one I like better would be like choosing between my children. Ha ha. That’s silly, isn’t it?

(Len: I agree, Laurel.  It is.)

Are you working on any other projects right now?  If so, can you tell us about them?

LO - I’m working on a novella that will hopefully be available soon. It’s about a girl/woman who loves political campaigns. Four different occasions in her life are visited: the prom, a wedding, a funeral, and a baby shower. It’s called Campaign Promises.

(Len:  Sounds another interesting story, Laurel!)

Do you have any tips to share with aspiring writers out there on how to get published?

LO - Only this: Remember that the industry is changing more and more every day. There is no easy route, and there are pros and cons to whichever path you decide to take. Figure out which path is right for you, and don’t give up when you’re confronted with obstacles, because you will be!

Thank you very much, Laurel.  It’s been a pleasure to have you on my blog. Do you have anything else to add?

LO - Len, thanks so much for having me!

*****

It has been a pleasure, Laurel.  Thank you for your time.  To all my writer/blogger friends, I invite you all to visit Laurel's Blog - please click HERE.

She also has a blog tour!  You can check all participating bloggers on Chicklit Plus Blog Tours promoting her latest novel, Starring in the Movie of my Life, don't miss it, please click HERE.

Signing Back In!

I'm back!

I am so glad to be back!  It feels like forever not blogging! Pfffffft.

It's all been sunshine over here.  Well, that's lying.  It hasn't been all sunshine.  It's been erratic - raining, sunny, raining, gloomy, nippy, sunny again.... - but we've been having lots of brighter days and it's been really lovely!  Hope you are enjoying the summer, too.

Due to my absence, my interviews with writers and authors also had been delayed.  So I better get my bum in gear and get them posted!

I'm hoping to be able to visit all your blogs in the next few days now that I have some time all to myself.  Thank you for being patient with me.

How's been life treating you?  How's your writing?

I have not abandoned you

Just a quick message for everybody.  Sending my apologies if I haven't been to your blog and have not left a message or made my presence felt.  Not even a smoke signal.  I know I'm such a pain, ugh.  It's been a very busy time for me.  I'm quite stressed at the moment.  Oh don't worry, everything is fine.  Just been pretty hectic.  I cannot keep up.   But trying my best to.

I will be active on the internet as soon as I am able.  Please know that I have read all your recent comments and I appreciate your time and your presence on this Blog.  Thank you soooo much for all the support and the luuuurrrvvee.  And yes, please let me say this - I am missing all of you.  I miss blogging.   I miss reading your posts.  I miss it all.

I promise I will return.

For now, I bring the curtain down.  Only for another week or so, hopefully.

Hugs to you all my lovelies! ♥♥♥

Heartfelt Gratitude

I'd like to thank you for all the lovely and heartwarming comments you have left on my last post.  It is truly heartfelt and I really really appreciate them.  Thank you also to those wonderful people who sent me emails. I feel so blessed, so lucky to have found such beautiful people like you.  The world is indeed a better place because of you, all of you.  So, thank you.

The bad days are over, thank God.  My son goes back to school tomorrow.  I'm looking forward to spending the week having a regular routine again.

Lastly, I'm sure you have heard the bad news about Japan.  My heart also goes to all the people of Japan.  A good friend of mine lives in Chiba.  I'm glad to know she and her family are alright and I keep praying and hoping that they will continue to be safe.  Hugs to you, Menchu, Hiro, Yuuna and Yuuki.

Not a big post today.  I will be returning with a surprise author interview soon.

Stay safe, blog friends.

What was the lie?

Hello fellow crusaders and bloggers! *Waves*

It's been awhile...five days!  Yes I have not blogged for five days.  I've been a busy bee so I hope you all forgive me :)

No big post at the moment but just to say thank you to all of you who came and left a comment on the First Crusaders Challenge! A little bit of good news - I have now followed all of the crusaders.  I mean, all of those who can be followed! Whew.  At last.  It's fun meeting all of you and I'm looking forward to getting to know you all and reading more of your blogs! ☺

Now, the lie?  Oh my God! Almost all of you guessed it right! Ha ha ha!  Yes, I love donuts to bits. My favourite is Bavarian flavour but I can't find any over here where I am.  So sad.  The rest of the things I said were all true.  Hmmm, yes, including the G-strings.  Hate them.  I don't know why they were invented.  They don't support or cover anything, do they? They are just strings! ☹

I hope you are all having a good weekend!  Now have to cook dinner ♨

First Crusader Challenge!

Here is the First Crusader Challenge!!! Thanks to Rachael Harrie for coming up with a cool idea!  


Today, I will be telling you:


one secret
one lie
one interesting quirk
one annoying habit
one of my best character traits, and
one of my favourite things in the whole world. 


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Here goes:


I love to sit by the sea, listening to the sea waves, in the summer of course, and read a book.  I'd love to stay there for hours, just relaxing.  With no interruptions.


I don't wear G-strings.  It hurts.  It actually feels like a metal blade slicing my bum.


I hate donuts.  Especially Bavarian flavour.  Totally.


My other half loves to playfully bloviates.  I find it really funny.  I think when he gets funny, it brings out the funny side of me, too!


My husband studies birds. I'd like to ask him what fuliguline is.  Problem is I don't like going out in the cold just to watch birds.  But I do like them. Yes, I do!


When house cleaning gets to me and it gets really annoying, I rabbit a lot, then husband disappears.


**********************


I may have revealed something about me that isn’t strictly true, can you guess what it is?


Don't forget to visit the others and see what secrets they've revealed!  Click here to go to the list.