Voices of Nature Blog Tour

Stars Above (alouette)

Starry nights shine bright
Thousands of wee lights
Constellations light the sky
Darkness shows contrast
While clouds have gone past
Suspended in time up high

Pisces and Leo
Taurus and Virgo
Constellations light the sky
Sagittarius
Libra, Pegasus
Worlds of tiny lights float by

©2014 Poetry by Pamela, all rights reserved.

This is just a sample of the poetry you will find in Voices of Nature. There are dozens more poems for you to savor.

You can buy it here for only $.99 for Kindle – it also available in paperback ($7.19) on Amazon.

Poetry gives voice to what the eyes see and the heart hears.

Inspiration exists all around us. Beauty can be found in the laughter of a child or the blooms of a tree. Poems are one person’s interpretation of the world seen through their eyes and felt in their heart. Poetry is soul food – plain and simple.

Voices of Nature is a collection of poems that reflect the inherent splendor of nature all around us. This book utilizes a variety of poetry forms to paint word pictures.

One review said “The sheer variety of styles in this poetry book is amazing. Haiku, triple haiku, acrostic, rondeau, and so many others. Even better is that they explain the poems in the back, which is a great service to the curious reader.

Each poem is clear and paints a perfect picture of nature. Though, I have an odd feeling that both poets were tired of winter since that had the most amount of poems out of the season sections. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but I did love the ‘Thunder and Lightning’ acrostic for the imagery and ‘New Day’ for the complicated style and bringing an odd sense of serene closure to the book.

I would highly recommend this poetry book. Even if you’re not into poetry, the pieces for every season will probably have you going ‘I thought the same thing.’

Pamela previously released a collection of love poems titled Dreams of Love with several five-star reviews. She has been writing for a short time, but pours her soul into her poetry.
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Kirsten collaborated on a collection called Hope’s Flight.
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This is a collection created by two poets – Pamela B and Kirsten A.
Both women enjoy exploring various topics and poetry forms. Many forms are represented in Voices of Nature (along with a short description of the forms for your convenience). Buy Voices of Nature for only $.99 today and experience the wonders all around us.

Ten Things Not to do with On-Line Dating

Here is the 42nd installment of Ten Top Lists of What Not to Do by Marie Ann Bailey of 1WriteWay at http://1writeway.com and John W. Howell of Fiction Favorites at http://johnwhowell.com. These lists are simu-published on our blogs each Monday. We hope you enjoy.

 

OnlineDating

Top Ten Things Not To Do When Signing Up With an Online Dating Service

10. When signing up for an online dating service, do not use your old high school senior photo in your profile. If you do, at best, your future dates might forgive you for being somewhat more overweight and wrinkled than your photo suggests. At worst, you might get sued by future dates for emotional and psychological trauma especially those who thought they were going to date an 18-year-old.

9. When signing up for an online dating service, do not say that you live in a foreign country because you want to appear exotic. If you do, at best, your future dates will be relieved to find out that you actually live within driving distance of them and they don’t have to pay exorbitant sums of money for a first date. At worst, your dream date who really does live in the country you claim to live in will out you to everyone else in the service and you will have to change your profile and your identity and actually move to a foreign country.

8. When signing up for an online dating service, do not claim to be a great cook when you still can’t make a decent peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If you do, at best, your future dates will prefer to dine out anyway and will never find out your lie. At worst, your dream date will wind up in the ER after you actually try to prepare a romantic, home-cooked meal for your first (and now last) date.

7. When signing up for an online dating service, do not inflate your educational background so you can appear to be more intelligent than you apparently are. If you do, at best, your future dates will not be interested in your opinion on the Dunning-Kruger effect anyway and you’ll be saved from having to present yourself as an example of it. At worst, your profile will be tagged as someone who suffers from the Dunning-Kruger effect which you will find frustrating since your last name is not Dunning nor is it Kruger.

6. When signing up for an online dating service, do not minimize your educational background to appear to less intelligent than you really are because you are afraid of intimidating anyone. If you do, at best, your future dates won’t be interested in degrees anyway just as long as you can enjoy conversations with each other. At worst, your future dates will look like the cast from “My Name is Earl” or “Duck Dynasty.”

5. When signing up for an online dating service, do not claim to be fluent in any language when all you can say is “Hello” and “Goodbye” in that language. At best, all your future dates have the same native tongue as you, but no foreign language fluency so they get excited when you say “Bonjour” and “Adios” in the same sentence. At worst, your dream date will be fluent in the language you claim to be fluent in (let’s say, French, for fun) and invite you to a romantic getaway to Paris where the best you can do is say “Bonjour” to everything anyone else says to you, with the result that two hours into the romantic getaway, your dream date leaves you at a café with just your French-English dictionary to help you find your way home.

4. When signing up for an online dating service, do not claim to not have cats when you do just because the dream date you picked out is allergic to cats. At best, you never get together with your dream date but the second best date not only asks you out but also happens to like cats (and then you live happily ever after). At worst, your dream date comes to your place for coffee and, within five minutes, develops red, itchy eyes, sneezing and coughing fits, and a facial rash, even though your cats are not in your house because you had them boarded. All of this results in you being on the hook for your dream date’s trip to the ER and allergy medication as well as the boarding fees for a date that went nowhere.

3. When signing up for an online dating service, do not use a glamour photo for your profile, even if your friends insist it will get you more dates. At worst, all your future dates also use glamour photos so no one can complain when none of you look glamorous in real life. At worst, see the worst case scenario for #1 and then double it.

2. When signing up for an online dating service, do not present yourself as a social butterfly when in fact you get panic attacks when you have to speak to more than one person at a time. At best, your future dates will be flattered when you say you prefer evenings alone so you can get to know them better. At worst, your future dates will think your Howard Hughes profile is creepy since they assumed you loved the party life and eventually leave you to your evenings alone as a party of one.

1. When signing up for an online dating service, do not pretend to be anyone but who you really are. At best, you will find someone who will actually like you for yourself and you will make some new good friends. At worst, you’ll be stuck with a revolving door of dates but no relationships. (On the upside, that could be fodder for some good stories.)

The meaning of fight

A wonderful tribute to the spirit of America

Cayman Thorn's avatardrinkswellwithothers

Boston Strong The Boston Marathon, aside from being the oldest marathon in the world, is also one of the most celebrated. It begins on Grove Street in Hopkinton and slinks across Ashley, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton and finally Brookline, before finishing up on Boylston Street. The twenty six miles and three hundred and eighty five yards is a living testimony to the spirit of a town whose muscular resume was indisputable long before a slogan rallied an entire nation.

The finish line is a ten minute cab ride from Logan; the airport out of which American Airlines flight 11 departed with Mohamed Atta and eighty seven innocent souls aboard on September 11th.

A couple hard scrabble towns separated by 218 miles and whose rivalries run the gamut- from political families to baseball allegiances- became united under the banner of a flag that will always matter more than the differences. Two proud cities…

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Janice Ross – Rave Reviews Spotlight Author

Jumping Ship CreateSpace

Jumping Ship Book Description

The year was nineteen seventy-five. Barren couple, Pearl and Edward Riley stumbled upon a newborn baby girl. Her cries could only be heard by a true mother, which Pearl immediately became. Bundled up with their new child, they discovered a parcel of artifacts and a scribbled note that read: Sakkara. Pregnant seamstress, Petrina Dugal, became a runaway at the age of twenty-six. She ran away from a brutish husband, Roger, and a well-loved South American home in Georgetown, Guyana; at the heart of her rebellion – an enigmatic lover named Michael Chen. Pet and Mikey, as they became affectionately known, allowed love to blossom in front of her police officer husband and an intrusive community. Were they not aware of the dangers? Or did the pursuit of love trump obligations?

Sakkara Riley grew up with two loving parents – adoptive parents to be exact. She never knew the circumstances surrounding her discovery, until the age of sixteen. She embarks on a journey.

Jumping Ship is an introductory novella to the Island Hopping Series. There are 7 planned books – representing each of the islands that Sakkara will visit along the way.

*****

Excerpt

The couple made necessary strides to not be too obvious in their conspiring. So, rather than take the most logical passage, a straight shot stroll became a sendoff march amongst the community. Mikey led the way, while Pet appeared to tag along from a mere three to four feet behind him. Her mind wandered on every possible issue. Luckily, the rainy season came twice for the year – around May to June/July and November/December to January. Their escape could’ve been wet and miserable.

At one point, they drifted towards the Seawalls, and she became elated at the opportunity to bask in the last bit of breeze she was to experience from its waters. She would never again enjoy flying kites along the path, nor taking a lonely Sunday afternoon stroll with murmurs and wafts. Their migration was a reminder that this would no longer be the case. In a daydream state, she took in the dry aroma of sand and seashells. The wind tousled at hair beneath the makeshift bonnet. Her eyelids dipped as a natural reaction to the Atlantic’s enticement. Pet’s senses guided her towards the path that Mikey was setting before her. His steps were urgent, yet steady; even his khaki’s swish-swoosh rubbing became a romantic melody. Her hips commenced twining in accord, while future-realities shattered her present circumstance. The delicate creature was spellbound.

When Mikey’s cool dodge to the right went unseen, within seconds Pet rammed into an oncoming fellow side-walker. All she was able to fully comprehend was the shimmery, jet-black combat boots – the very type that decorated her husband’s feet. The sharp edges of dark-colored pant bottoms swayed slightly against the stranger’s slender legs – a memento to Roger. She feared facing the ultimate tormentor. Her head remained low, while her hand unconsciously sought the entrance to the dark, silk wrap. Pet’s precious life and a delicate throat were in jeopardy. Tears rolled down her cheeks and cooled almost immediately. The breeze increased. A set of deep, honeycomb fingers attempted to pull away her facial shading.

Suddenly an arm gripped her waist and redirected her up Lamaha Street, and away from exposure.

 

* * * * *

 

Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXYR2j7i2Ds

 

Embedded code:

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JR Full Length

 

Bio

 

Janice Ross was born in Guyana, South America and migrated to the USA in 1980. Although her citizenship certificate now reads the United States of America, she considers herself a citizen of the world. Sure she has not physically been around the world and back, but she’s travelled in her mind and dreams.

Janice is an author. She enjoys writing about social issues and personal experiences. Janice’s debut release was entitled Damaged Girls. She uses the three books in that series to detail the effects of different forms of abuse, discussing issues that are known to be taboo. Her next release, Jumping Ship, is a dedication to her country of birth and an introductory novella to the Island Hopping Series – due out in 2014. It’s poised to be a colorful and emotional experience of life, love and family. As of present, she is also a contributor to a short story collection – Just Between Us, Inspiring Stories by Women. And lastly, Loving Nate is a novella about the realities of losing one’s self to love.

Janice enjoys reading. And is drawn to stories with distinct characters that she can love or hate, characters she can form alliances with or characters that she can swear off and despise. She is also weak for a good cultural tale, preferably in the form of historical fiction. Janice loves to be taken off guard by clever language and settings.

Janice is also a devout supporter and promoter of other authors through social media. She hosts a weekly show, Cultural Cocktails, on the largest social radio network, Blog Talk Radio.

 

You can connect with Janice on

Website: www.culturalcocktails.com

Talk show: www.blogtalkradio.com/culturalcocktails

Blog http://jgrwriter.wordpress.com &

http://myculturalcocktails.wordpress.com

 

Twitter https://twitter.com/JGRWriter

FaceBook https://www.facebook.com/Cultural.Cocktails

&

https://www.facebook.com/jgrwriter?ref=hl

 

Google+https://plus.google.com/104579627944902429382/posts/p/pub?partnerid=gplp0

LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/pub/janice-ross/58/691/894/

 

 

 

Friday is Haiku Day

Today is known affectionately on Fiction Favorites as Haiku day. It is also the last day of the work week and a day we all look forward to having completed. It is also a day when we can take a moment to reflect on the previous week and take stock of what we have accomplished. Of course we need to be pretty sure of those things we put down on the accomplishment side of the ledger. One of the things I accomplished this week is a complete set of photos of my FJ 40. In order to do this, I had to put the roof and doors back on. The roof is no small feat since it weighs close to 400 pounds dripping wet. Now you may ask, why a full set of photos of your 1978 FJ 40 Land Cruiser? Well it is a sad day, but a day I knew was coming for the last year. It is now time to sell my beloved FJ.

I’m not selling her because I’m no longer in love. No far from it. I am selling her because I no longer have the time to pay attention to her as she has become accustomed. She sits for weeks with no-one to play with and talk. Her terminal rust is not getting any better and I have no time to treat the condition properly. Her heart keeps beating and she gets worn down since she must be driven routinely or her sensors and systems begin to malfunction. She becomes deflated with the lack of use. In short, I have another lover, my writing, with whom I am totally committed and it is not fair to her to stay with me.

I originally got her as a project car and did a lot of work to put her on the road. Now I must turn to other things and set her free. Oh yes the Haiku, I almost forgot. It’s titled Goodbye.

Goodbye by John W. Howell

Together is good,

One absent the other not . . .

A new day is here.

004

How about you. Do you look back and evaluate your week?

Wednesday Story Day

camel

 

The mid-week rest period is here. It is time to take a breather and prepare yourself for the rest of the week push. It is kind of funny how a small rest while engaged in some trying work can give you a second wind. This is really true of writing. I know after a few hours pounding the keyboard I am ready for something little different. Sometimes I take a break from the novel (third in the series) and do a little story. This is actually how story Wednesday came about. After two days of dealing with protagonist angst, it is really quite nice to let the brain rest and allow a story to flow where it may. After that exercise it is nice to return to the problem of the day with a new outlook. I’ll bet this works in other than writing situations as well. Try it and if your boss catches you writing a short story explain it is in lieu of a coffee break.

This week’s story is about a person who is in the situation described above and caught by the boss writing a story. It is titled: Caught. Hope you like it.

 

Caught by John W. Howell © 2014

“So Al what are you doing there?”

“Uh . . . I’m just relaxing a minute.”

“Relaxing? It looks to me like you are writing something with a number two pencil no less.”

“Well yeah Frank. I’m writing a little story.”

“A little story? You are writing a story? About what?”

“Oh it’s about the office.”

“You have time to write stories? You know I’m still waiting for the Dilbert contract.”

“Yeah I know. I should have it to you by this afternoon.”

“Well that will be good considering it is two days late. Let me ask, will you be done with your story by then?”

“Oh it’s all finished.”

“All finished? Can I read it?”

“Why would you want to read it?”

“Well the way I look at it, you wrote it on company time and therefore it by rights belongs to the company. I represent the company so I have a right to read it.”

“I was using my coffee break time.”

“You union Al?”

“No.”

“Then coffee break time does not officially exist. It is a custom not a right. Hand it over.”

“It’s kind of personal.”

“Al?”

“Here you go.”

“Alright let me see. Humm the story opens with you coming into work. You grab a cup of coffee. More break time huh Al? Then you go to your cube. Boy this is exciting. Then your boss comes in and catches you writing a story. This sounds like real life Al. He demands to see the story. Uh Huh. While reading the story a large black shadow creeps up from the floor and surrounds the boss whose name is Frank. Geeze Al this is crap. Let’s see where was I? Oh yes here it is. The boss calls the work crap and then the large shadow . . .”

“Go ahead Frank. Then the large shadow does what?”

Rosie Amber’s A to Z Challange and Stephen C Spencer Campaign

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Rosie Amber – An English Author Who supports other Writers and who also Writes Book Reviews is doing a wonderful thing on her support of the A to Z Challenge. She is featuring a book a day the title or author’s name begins with the letter for the day. Here is a link to the letters A through K. Here is her post on the letter L. 

I am happy she is featuring My GRL under the letter M. You can visit her blog HERE and check out today’s M.

In addition to the A to Z feature, Rosie (who is quite selfless) is also calling for support Operation Mallory, a group of very kind people have been working behind the scenes to re-launch books by author Stephen C Spencer who has cancer. Rosie asks  you to go to her post read it, share it and if possible get involved with the promotion of his books. You never know what the future holds and one day it might be you in need. Go here to read Rosie’s post: http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-55W

So I’m helping spread the word, here is a link to Sean Campbell’s blog where news of the campaign can be found 90 Days Novel. Please help all you can with re-blog, tweet etc. Also her book would be a good idea to get.

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Thank you for helping and Thank you Rosie for the feature on My GRL and for  doing everything you can to help authors in every way possible.

 

We’re gonna need a bigger VOTE!

If you haven’t voted yet. Please do.

Kevin Brennan's avatarWHAT THE HELL

Indie-Author-Land

I learned last night that Yesterday Road is one of the twelve finalists in the literary category of Indie Author Land’s contest: The 50 Self-Published Books Worth Reading (2013/14). Now it’s time to vote for the winner in each category.

I need lots of help here, kids. There are a couple of formidable titles on the literary list, books that received many more nominations than mine did, but I think we can make a good showing if we each get just about everyone we know to vote. See, you get five votes in each category, and, diabolical fiend that I am, I’m assuming the counter sees each computer it tags with a cookie as a different person. So vote from home. Vote from work. Vote from your phone. Vote from your mom’s computer. We want an army of voters to put Yesterday Road over the top!

This is the page…

View original post 125 more words

Top Ten Things Not to Do at Opening Day of Baseball

 

Here is the 41st installment of Ten Top Lists of What Not to Do by Marie Ann Bailey of 1WriteWay at http://1writeway.com and John W. Howell of Fiction Favorites at http://johnwhowell.com. These lists are simu-published on our blogs each Monday. We hope you enjoy.

a opening day

 

Top Ten Things Not To Do When Attending the Opening Day of Baseball

10. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not dress like you would at the playoffs. If you do, at best, some Good Samaritan will loan you a coat. At worst, you might need to be treated for hypothermia, frostbite, or both.

9. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not sit in an uncovered seat even if you consider yourself a bleacher bum. If you do, at best you might just get rained on. At worst, you will get caught under a ton of snow or hailstones and will require rescue by the ski patrol.

8. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not start a fire to keep warm. If you do, at best you’ll be pressed by a bunch of strangers all trying to get warm as well. At worst, the league just might present you with an invoice for $100M to replace the stadium which burned to the ground before the end of the game.

7. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not think brandy will help keep away the cold. If you do, at best, you may only forget where you came in. At worst, you might see yourself on the nightly news being dragged off the field by several policemen while you yell “Hey ump, you blind?”

6. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not think you can hide from your boss since you told a fib about where you would be. If you do, at best your boss will be in the next row and you’ll have to spend the entire game hunkered down and quiet so you don’t get his attention. At worst, it will be your luck to be featured as the fan of the day on the nightly news which your boss never misses.

5. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not attend the game with anyone of the opposite sex without telling your significant other. If you do, at best you will run into a neighbor who will wonder who is with you which will remind you to text your significant other so there will be no unpleasant surprises when you get home. At worst, the giant gametron will catch you both sharing a laugh and will surround you with one of those annoying hearts demanding that you kiss which, if you do because you both indulged in the brandy of #7, will be featured on the nightly news your partner never misses.

4. When attending the opening day of baseball, as a company team building function, do not force everyone to join you in eating a bag of peanuts just because it is mentioned in the song. If you do, at best, you might have problems with co-workers at work the next day. At worst, you might be named in a class action suit by those who are grossly allergic to peanuts.

3. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not bring a mitt thinking you will catch a ball. If you do, at best, people will think you’ve lost your mind. At worst, you may be the subject of an intervention by family members concerned with your ability to grasp reality unless you actually catch a ball.

2. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not root against the home team. If you do, even if you like the visitors, at best you will have some grumpy people around you. At worst, you could find yourself wishing you had a warm towel to go with the ice cold beer on your head.

1. When attending the opening day of baseball, do not think the players can’t hear your insults from the stands. If you do, at best you might get a classic gesture from one of the players that implies you should be mated. At worst, you might encounter a phalanx of very big players in the parking lot all interested giving you a personal remembrance of the game in the form of a bruise.