Where Writers' Ideas Come From

Hey all,

Another Friday has rolled around and today we have a great blog by the awesome, Joe Vadalma, who gives us a look into where he gets his ideas and how he brings his characters to life.  But before we get into that, let's take a closer look at Joe.  This bio came from SFFworld.com

I am a technical writer retired from a major computer company and am a voracious reader of all kinds of books, but especially science fiction and fantasy. I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, but have been living in a small town in upstate New York for many years. I am married with four children, ten grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. My hobbies, other than writing, are computer games and do-it-yourself projects. I have had many short stories published in internet E-zines such as The Fifth Dimension, SFF, Dark Moon Rising, Swords Edge, Aphelion, Writer's Hood, Martian Wave, and Planet Magazine.

This time around, Joe has something to say about how ideas come to him.  So join me in welcoming Joe Vadalma to my blog.

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People are always asking authors where they get their ideas. In my experience this varies with each writer and each piece of writing. With me, ideas seem to come from the oddest things, usually something a little peculiar or strange that I encounter. 

For example, in my humorous fantasy The Book of Retslu, there is a scene where Dorian, the protagonist, enters a tunnel marked with the words "Dead Man's Tunnel" and a skull and crossbones. Well, I used to travel a road that went under a railroad bridge. Because it was also a curve and the road was narrowed to one lane, many head-on collisions occurred when a car entered it from each end at the same time. As a result, someone had placed graffiti in the tunnel in large bold letters, "Dead Man's Curve" with a skull and crossbones beneath it. 

That gave me an idea for a character who must travel through a tunnel marked in such a manner. I thought, Perhaps my hero is lost; maybe he was enchanted by a sorcerer to always head in the wrong direction. This thought gave me Dorian, a naive youth, who on his way to a tournament to win the hand of a princess is enchanted by evil sorcerer Mordrake to cause Dorian to always take the wrong path.

My Morgaine Series of eBooks started while listening to that old seventies hit, Dancing in the Moonlight. I pictured the scene, a moonlit clearing in the woods and odd people, Wiccans perhaps, dancing in the moonlight. I thought, what if an ordinary woman should come upon such a scene. I wanted to make it a supernatural romance, so I decided that the love interest would be an immortal sorcerer posing as a psychic, and the woman who falls in love with him would be an ordinary woman. 

Of course, there had to be a rival, which was a witch, Morgaine. Then I got to thinking, if the sorcerer was immortal, sooner or later he would have to disappear since he would not age. In another novel of the series, I had him go missing. His love, of course, hired a private investigator to find him. In another novel in the series, I got to wondering how Morgaine became a witch. I also saw a picture of little men attending a university of magic. I had Morgaine step into that picture to learn to be a sorceress. 

In another of the series, I got my inspiration from The Book of Revelation in the Bible. My protagonists had to stop an impending apocalypse.  So you see, ideas can come from anywhere. All it takes is a little imagination to transfer something mundane or unusual into a scene, which in turn translates into characters (to be in the scene), background and an event. 

One thing leads to another, and soon you have story or a novel. 

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I know all too well how a chance meeting or a glance at a picture can springboard into a great idea for a novel.  After all, my Easter story, Here Comes Peter came out of nowhere.  I'm STILL trying to figure how I came up with that one!  LOL

Anyway, learn more about Joe and his wonderful work by checking him out at his website, which gives information about his novels, contains a free short and serial, and also an interesting blog.  http://papajoesfantasticworld.com

Hugs, and I'll be back on Monday with more fun and a special countdown to Christmas!

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

Christmas Blessings In Another Country

Hey all,

After the last few blogs I've done on the cultural differences between the USA and Macau, I've had a few letters from readers asking me if Christmas will be different for us over here.  So I thought today I'd do a short blog on a few of the things we have done the same...and a few things we've done differently.

Here is Macau the Christmas decorations are beautiful.  Very different from those in the states.  In the USA, there are lots of trees and twinkie lights everywhere.  In fact, I'd say lights and trees are the major decorations.  But here in China, they don't have the access to Christmas trees so they do something different.  And while they do lights, even those aren't the same as we do.

Instead of trees, we get to look at the cutest paper/plastic type of blow up lantern sculptures.  Most are are of pandas, which is, of course, China's big decoration over here.  They are wearing Santa hats, riding sleds, playing instruments and a hundred other different themes.  There are also puffy looking reindeer, Santas, elves and other Christmas characters.  All very Chinese and so much fun to look at.  And I'm told they will keep these up until the Chinese New Year in February.

And the flowers...they go crazy over here.  Poinsettias, mums, coleus, and many others, all in bright festive colors, line the streets, circle the decorations and dot the steps of all the casinos.  Live Christmas trees, the few I have seen are usually in the bigger hotels or casinos.  And I can't help myself.  I have to stick my face in them and inhale!  Ohhh...it smells so good!

The lights here are different as I said.  They use LED type lights and they are amazing.  They race, they drip, they sparkle and they glow in so many different ways it's hard to describe.  But the different displays are incredible and watching them come on at dusk, it finally feels like Christmas.  Here is Jonathon in Senado Square with icicle lights dripping overhead.  You can barely see the big blue Christmas tree flashing behind him.

Check out a few of these other pics.

 

 

And doing our regular Christmas traditions?  We're adapting them a bit.  There isn't any Christmas music on the radio over here, so we've had to use itunes to download enough to get us through.  I've got a few CDs, but you can only listen to Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas Story and the Beach Boys Christmas Album just so often before you want to hurl them out the window.  And since music stores are still something we haven't discovered here yet, the internet is a Godsend.

This evening we were able to enjoy a tradition we do every year.  We had to change it up a bit because of where we are, but overall, it was the same fun time we usually have.  Every year, no matter where we are, Jonathon and I love to go to some special place and have a coffee and a treat and just wander around.  We people watch, look at Christmas decorations and do some shopping.

This year we went to Senado Square which is one of the main tourist areas here.  We grabbed a holiday Starbucks coffee, and then, to our delight, we found a guy selling hot chestnuts.  Now that's a story in itself. The guy takes the chestnuts and puts them in this little cement mixer type thing over an open flame.  He cooks them that way and the scent drifting across the square is mouthwatering.  Then he pops them in a paperbag and hands them to you.  Fresh, hot and ready to eat.

We munched our way up to the Ruins of St. Paul and just sat down and people watched for awhile.  Again, the decorations were beautiful and for once it wasn't so crowded.  Teenage girls giggled and teenage boys strutted like peacocks trying to tempt a mate.  Tourists gawked and took pictures by the score.  None of which would come out since it was probably too dark.  LOL

There wasn't any Christmas music playing as is usual this time of year, but the sound of babies laughing and my sweet baboo whispering how much he was enjoying himself was music enough.  I loved the time we spent together, and although it isn't "the normal" Christmas celebration, it will be one I remember for the rest of my life.

Hugs and I'll see you on Friday with our latest guest blogger, Joe Vadalma.  He's got a great blog about how the smallest things can trigger an idea that turns into a wonderful new story!

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

You're Gonna Do What With Those Thngs???

Hey all,

Today we will continue with my on going, b-monthly (or so) series on the cultural differences between where I am now--Asia--and where I was born--the USA. I've got PLENTY of blog fodder I promise you so I'll probably be able to keep this up for as long as I'm here.

And in all honesty, sharing the pain (or pleasure) with you all is a big part of the fun.  It's like coming home and telling my kids, OMG, you are NOT going to believe what happened to me today!

So, sit back, grab a cuppa and enjoy what makes this country different from anything I've known before.

1. So, you all know Jonathon and I like to eat.  One of our greatest pleasures is trying new restaurants and tasting new and exotic foods.  (except baby pigeons--remember, NEVER going there)  And since we've been overseas so often, we're used to the slightly different ways you are served depending on the country you're in.  For example, when we were in the UK, we found the farther north we went, the smaller the glasses of coke got.  Is this a standard for that country?  Probably not, but it amused us none the less.  By the time we got to the far northern part of Scotland, we figured the waiter would be handing us a thimble filled with the drink.  LOL

And in Mexico, you learn very quickly NEVER to drink the water.  Montezuma's revenge and all that.  Bottled water or if you're lucky, at your hotel or casa, they will have a water purifier so you don't have to worry about nasty microbes that will give you the trots.

But I've learned too, the longer you stay in a place, the more acclimated your body becomes to the water.  Now I'm not talking about the really nasty bugs.  Haiti is an excellent example of water that is bad no matter how long you've been drinking it.  What I'm referring to is the natural stuff that is just there and as you are exposed, you just get used to it.

So, after several months of "acclimating", we don't worry so much about whether our ice cubes are made with tap water or even having that same tap water with our restaurant meals.  But what we do still scratch our heads over is when we are served warm water in a regular drinking glass.

That's right.  Instead of the nice glass of ice water we would get in the states, we are served warm, sometimes even hot water.  In the same drinking water glass.  At first we thought it was just really weak tea, but nope.  Water.  Then we wondered if they were going to bring us a tea bag or something to add to it.  Nope.  Just water.  We finally decided this restaurant was just weird, but then we found out a great many of them do it this way.  Whether it is a neighborhood cafe or the fancy-dancy restaurant at the top of the MGM casino, hot water with your meals is the way to go.

But why?  It took us almost four months before we came up with a reason.  Maybe those little microbes aren't as benign as we like to think and so they boil the heck out of the water to make it safe.  That would make sense, knowing how health conscious these people are.

Or maybe somewhere back in history some emperor or dignitary liked their water warm and so it became a trend.  Everyone jumped on the bandwagon and now no one can remember why they do it.  Sometimes the simplest explanation is the craziest one.

2.  So I was looking to replenish my supply of vitamin E pills at one of their local pharmacies.  But I discovered their pharmacies and ours are two very different things. If you go into a Walgreens or a CVS in the states you can get all kinds of things, plus whatever prescription you need, right?  Including vitamins and health needs.

Not so here.  While their pharmacies have some things, vitamins and suppliments are very difficult to find.  And when you do, they are outrageously expensive.  We actually have our kids ship them to us from Florida.  It's a quarter of the cost.  But that's all really beside the point.  When I asked for vitamins, (and believe me, that's a blog worthy experience all by itself) after the usual gesturing and language difficulty, I was sent to another place.  A Chinese pharmacy.  And those places are eye-opening.

In the window, they've got dead caterpillars on sticks.  (Why?)  Huge piles of fungi. (or is that fungus, I can never remember the proper term)  They've got deer antlers arranged neatly on a tray (poor Bambi) and some sort of fin shaped thing we never did find out what it was.  (obviously Willie never was freed here in Asia)

And once you get past those lovelies and are into the store proper, the vitamins you find are NOT Flintstones Multiples or One a Days.  Seriously, why would any one take tiger penis? For your manhood?  Is this the Chinese version of Viagra?  It didn't do anything for the poor tiger, now did it? 

I saw stuff I could only imagine in fantasy novels, including, and I kid you not, Extract of Kangaroo.  WTF?  How do they even bottle something like that?  What is in a kangaroo that I'd want in my body? The tail?  The hair?  How about their big feet?  Maybe it's like caffine and a natural way to make you bouncy?   LOL

3.  Since we moved to Macau, Jonathon and I have discovered we have a new skill.  I guess it's not a skill really, more like a super power.  One so special and amazing, I even wrote to Marvel Comics to see if they wanted to do a story about us.

We can turn invisible.

That's right.  When we are walking down the street, no one can see us.  It's fantastic, astounding and bloody annoying when they walk right over the top of you!

Seriously, they don't know we are there.  I mean, I'm taller than most Chinese and I dress pretty vividly in bright colors and clothes that can be a little flashy, and still, they'll mow me down without a second glance. 

At first we thought they were just being rude (and believe me, in all my travels, Chinese can be the rudest people I've ever met) but when we called them on it, the offender would apologize so sincerely we realized they weren't being rude this time.  They just didn't see us.

How can that be?  And why?  Is it because we're European?  White?   Foreigners?  They'll move out of each other's way, but when they are coming towards us it's like we aren't even on their radar.  We can literally stand still right in the middle of the sidewalk or hallway and they won't go around, they'll barrel right into us.  It's gotten so annoying we've taken on the attributes of a puffer fish.  When we see someone coming at us, both Jonathon and I swell up just to look intimidating.

But it's hard to intimidate when you're invisible.

And when they run into us, they are always so bloody surprised and shocked, I just wanna scream,  "I was standing right here!  Couldn't you see me?"  But since that would be losing my temper and losing face, which I talked about in my last blog, instead I just grin and do my puffer fish imitation and they flee my presence as fast as their little feet can carry them.  I may get run over on a regular basis, but I'm still mean enough to scare the hell out of them.

Just ask Jonathon.  *grin*

4.  Now this last one is something I've been wanting to share with you for a while now.  It's one of the hardest things I've had to get used to over here.  We ran into it in Singapore, flirted with it in China and here in Macau it is almost an everyday occurrence.

The Asian's are fanatics when it comes to keeping their public toilets clean.  In all my travels in this area I can only think of a couple places where the bathrooms where too icky to enter.  Most of the time, not only are they tidy, you can literally eat off the floor in them.

Most of this is due to the attendants.  That's right.  You heard me correctly.  A lot of bathrooms, especially in the bigger places, like hotels and casinos have people who do nothing but keep the bathrooms clean.  And while I appreciate that, how they do it is a little offsetting.

So here's how it goes.  You go in to use the toilet and instead of privacy, you'll find this Asian waiting for you.  In the ladies side, (Jon says it's much the same over in the men's bathroom, except they can watch you), you smile politely and scoot in to the stall to do your business.  And you hope desperately that someone else will come in so you don't have to be alone with the attendant when you finish.

Why?  Well, first of all, even though everyone KNOWS you do it, going to the bathroom is still a private thing, so knowing that someone is out there listening to you pee is intimidating, no matter how free and easy you may be.  I often wonder how the guys do it.  Pee into one of those urinals with the dude just standing there staring.  But the main reason I hate doing it is the guilt.  I swear these attendants all must be mothers because they have the whole guilt look thing down to a fine art.

Still don't understand?  Okay.  Let me explain.  I go in to go pee and I have to do my thing knowing this lady is out there listening.  That's bad enough.  But when you're done, you barely open the door to the stall and she's there.  Her black eyes gleaming with irritation and in her hand are these tong things and she snaps them at you, just like a bloody crab.

Oh, she's not after you.  The pinchers are for whatever mess you might have left behind in the stall.  A stray bit of toilet paper.  A gum wrapper.  Or heaven forbid, you dropped something more damaging onto the floor.  But she doesn't even wait until you quit the bathroom to clean up.  Seriously, I barely get out of the cubicle and she's pushing her way in to clean up.  Obviously, no germ is allowed to flourish and grow in her domain!

Which is all good and right except for the fact that the whole time she's in there cleaning, she muttering and snapping those pincers and by the time you shuffle out of the bathroom, you swear you'll never go potty again, you feel so damn guilty.  It's probably the reason so many people have bladder problems.  They're just afraid to go.

So there you have it.  The latest installment of cultural difference between the old and the new.  Please give me your thoughts and comments.  I love hearing what you all think of what I share.

Hugs and I'll see you on Wednesday,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

Bar Food and Real Food

Hey all,

Can you believe the year is almost over?  I sure can't.  It feels like we just got over here to Macau and now we're looking at Christmas.  Where did the time go?  Each week feels like it flies by, but in my case I sure look forward to Fridays.  

Because that's guest blogger day and today I have a fun blog by fellow Samhain author, Meg Benjamin.  She's got something to say about food and you all know just how much I LOVE that delicious topic.  But before we sink our teeth into that, let's get to know Meg a little bit more.

Meg Benjamin spent twenty-plus years teaching writing and Web design in South Texas before pulling up roots and starting all over again on the Colorado Front Range. Her comic romances are set in the Texas Hill Country in the mythical town of Konigsburg, which gave her a chance to sample some great Texas wine and some wonderful Texas food (research—it’s all research!).

Sounds awesome to me.  I'm always up for a little food and wine sampling.  LOL  So, let's see what else she has to say about sampling.  Whether it be food or a taste of love...  Please join me in welcoming, Meg to my blog!

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One of the supporting characters in Brand New Me (released December 7 by Samhain Publishing) is a chef named Clem Rodriguez. Clem is trying her best to convince her boss, Tom Ames (our hero) to start serving dinner at his honky tonk bar, the Faro. Now to some, this may seem wildly unrealistic—a honky tonk that’s also a gourmet restaurant. But this is the Texas Hill Country, and anything is possible.

Now the granddaddy of all Texas honky tonks, Gruene Hall, doesn’t serve food normally (although they have a few special nights where they do), but that’s because they’re surrounded by restaurants in Gruene, most notably the Grist Mill, which is right up the hill and will allow patrons to order to go. John T. Floore’s Country Store in Helotes, another legendary honky tonk, has a kitchen and prides itself on its steaks and enchiladas, both of which Clem serves too. The Luckenbach Bar and Dancehall in (where else) Luckenbach, Texas, doesn’t serve food, but you can bring some with you. Hondo’s in Fredericksburg (the physical model for the Faro) was a restaurant in its previous life and still serves good stuff (or at least it did the last time I was there). Try the Southwestern “Slobb” salad, which is my particular favorite. 

Clem does bar food too, but it tends to be different from the bar food you might look for normally—quesadillas with brie or nachos with gulf shrimp, for example. That’s not actually outside the realm of possibility in the Hill Country. One of the most legendary honky tonk roadhouses in the area, the Hilltop Café, is also a gourmet restaurant of some renown. You can dine on Cajun delicacies and listen to the band if the weather’s right (it’s a tiny place and the bands are sometimes outside). 

And there’s always the amazing PoPo’s in Welfare, Texas, although they now bill themselves as a “family restaurant” rather than a honky tonk. Still, PoPo’s started as a dancehall where bootleggers peddled their wares at a quarter a shot during prohibition. Even family restaurants come with a past in the Hill Country.

But, of course, you don’t go to a honky tonk to eat. You go to listen to the music and drink beer and dance. Mainly you go to a honky tonk to have a good time, something my hero and heroine definitely manage. Honky tonks may not be everybody’s first thought when it comes to food, but they’re great places to fall in love, and the setting definitely works this time around.

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I don't know about you all, but now I'm hungry!  LOL  Now, like Meg said, her lastest book is set in a bar.  She's given me the blurb for it, so check it out...

~*~

If any man wants more than a dance with her, they’ll have to get past him…

Deirdre Brandenburg has an MBA and a dream to become the coffee supplier for Konigsburg’s growing restaurant industry. What she doesn’t have is money, courtesy of her billionaire father’s scheme to make her come home. All she needs is three months until her trust fund kicks in. Until then, she needs a job.

Hiring the new girl next door is a no-brainer for ex-gambler Tom Ames. He’s already succeeded in making his bar, The Faro, a growing tourist draw. Deirdre’s beauty will pull in the locals—particularly every red-blooded male in the Hill Country. As he watches her transform from tentative business wonk to confident, sassy barmaid, he realizes he wants first crack at her heart.

When Big John Brandenburg sends Deirdre’s ex-boyfriend to drag her home, the plan backfires, leaving Tom’s bar in shambles and Deirdre kidnapped by a band of loony Texas secessionists.

Things are looking pretty bleak—except the good people of Konigsburg have no intention of giving Deirdre up, either. Even if it takes every Faro employee, every last Toleffson, and one cranky iguana to give the honky-tonk lovebirds a chance at forever.

Warning: Contains dirty dancing, hot summer sex, a honky-tonk makeover, and one nippy iguana.

And you can click here for an EXCERPT.

~*~

I so wanna read about the iguana!  LOL  I'm picking up this book as soon as it comes out! 

To learn more about Meg and all her work check out these links. She can be found at her WEBSITE as well as on Facebook,  MySpace and Twitter.  Meg loves to hear from readers—contact her at meg@megbenjamin.com. Brand New Me is her fifth title for Samhain.

You all have a great weekend.  I'll be back on Monday with more fun and games for everyone!

Hugs,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

Where Oh Where Have My Boobies Gone??????

Sung to the tune, How Much is That Doggy in the Window

I wanted to go on a diet,

And get myself healthy and strong

Lose weight from my hips, thighs and buttocks,

But something went horribly wrong.

Daily exercise helped get the lard off,

And good eating took care of the rest,

But a glance in the mirror sent me reeling,

What the hell has happened to my breasts?

How much is a breast augmentation?

To go back to a 36C?

How much is a breast augmentation?

I think I might get one for me.

I feel like I’m one of those women,

In National Geographic magazine.

Whose breasts hang down way past their stomachs,

Because there’s no fat in between.

Why did no one tell me of the danger?

Why is boob loss a secret that’s kept?

All I know is now I have to go shopping

Since not one of my old bras still fit.

How much is a breast augmentation?

To go back to a 36C?

How much is a breast augmentation?

I think I might get one for me.

My husband is one of those males,

Who drools over bodacious ta-tas

And though I know he will always love me

I think he is feeling the loss.

They say more than a mouthful is a waste.

That it’s no big deal being so flat.

But if I’d known that a diet would so change me,

I think I’d have held on to my fat.

How much is a breast augmentation?

To go back to a 36C?

How much is a breast augmentation?

I think I might get one for me.

Maybe I’ll spring for a 38 double D!

~*~

Okay....so it's not perfect, and before anyone goes crazy and all PC on me, it's just a parody.  A joke about how I feel about losing so much weight and most of it in my boobs.  So if me making fun of tiny tits offends you, you should probably stop reading now.  

Everyone still here?  Good. 

So what the hell?  I asked around once my boobs started to shrink, and I'm not the only one this has happened to.  I mean, I'm not flat.  (I just had to use that since it rhymed with fat.) LOL  But I did loose a whole bra size and it was very noticeable.  Especially if you lean over and you get that whole naked native woman look going for you.  Geesh.

Why can't I lose the weight in my stomach or thighs where I usually store it up?  My butt is okay as is my upper torso, but instead of targeting all those unflattering curves around the middle, the diet sucked the fat right out of my breasts.  I swear, it makes no sense.

My sweet baboo and I were laughing about it this weekend.  We wondered why can't doctors take the fat from your thighs and put it back in your boobs so you can keep the shape you want.  But then we decided it would be just my luck that the fat I put in my chest would slither back down to my ass, but in the meantime, my ass would have freaked over the fat loss and worked double time to make more.  So I'd wind up with even smaller tits and my thighs would rival a water buffalo.

*sigh*  So much for new ideas.

Would I get the breast augmentation surgery?  Sure, if I really needed it.  I don't have any problem with women who want to enhance their shapes.  As long as they don't stack themselves so big and pointy they are a danger in public. We don't want them putting out someone's eye with those things.  But other than that,  I think it's totally up to them. 

What I want to know is why, after all the scientific breakthroughs we have had, we can't do the simple things like cure the common cold and prevent breast loss.  The first is important to our overall health and the second, whether everyone wants to agree or not, is important to a lot of women's self esteem.  I'll admit it, it is important to how I feel about myself.

Am I going to gain the weight back so my ta-tas can bloom and grow?  I think not.  But as I lose these last five pounds I am going to watch closely with the measuring tape at the ready.  I think if I lose another inch, I may be checking out plastic surgeons and their pics of 36DD!  LOL

You all have a great hump day.  I'll be back on Friday with a guest blogger, Meg Benjamin!

Hugs,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

It's Not Easy Being Green!!!!

Hey all,

I've always loved Kermit the Frog.  He's one of my faves.  And this song is a great intro to today's blog.  It's not easy being green.

Now I'm not talking about the color.  Though I have seen some people who were green and shouldn't have been.  That drunk coming out of the bar who looks a little green around the gills.  Or that girl who was pretending to be the green Orion girl of Star Trek, but she was at a grocery store, NOT a Star Trek convention.

No, what I'm talking about is being green environmentally and today's post came from a commercial I saw over here in Asia.  They were talking about Electric Cars and how wonderful they are and how everyone should think on getting them.

Now, it's not that I don't agree.  I am all for saving the environment.  I recycle, I don't let my water run and I take buses whenever I can.  But to have everyone join in you have to make it easy to do, and with what I saw of the electric car, it isnt' easy. 

First off, did you see the price tag on those suckers? When they first came out, they were quoting over a hundred grand.  That price has dropped somewhat, but it's still higher than most average cars.  There are a few exceptions, like the new Nissan Leaf for 25,000, so it will be interesting to see how it goes.

And it won't be easy to "fill 'em up".  One of the commentators was saying, it's all very well and good if you are driving just to work and back, but what if you go on a vacation?  The Holiday Inn doesn't have plug ins.

My point is that being green isn't easy.  The cost of taking care of the planet vs not taking care of the planet is a difficult one to balance.  I'd love to eat organic foods, but I remember when my kids were growing up and we were on a VERY tight budget.  Buying organic, even at a special price was still too high for many of us to contemplate.  And all of you know that if you go to a grocery store you have to pay more for healthy cereal than those sugar packed kids cereals.  What's up with that?

When I worked at Disney, they had recycle bins everywhere.  They looked VERY environmentally conscious.  But I took out the trash and I can tell you all the deep dark truth.  It all went in the same trash compactor.  Trash, cans and bottles.  There was no recycling.  I think more than Pinocchio have been telling some fibs!

When I asked why I was told it was just too expensive to do.  And that is the problem I see overall.  Why is being green so damned costly?  Why does it cost more to recycle, when it is so absolutely necessary, than it does to toss it all in a landfill and forget it?

Over here there was a show that talked about a country in the middle east.  I think it was Pakastan, but I couldn't find the program details when I looked later.  Anyway, the people put specifically chosen trash on their roofs and when asked why, they said they were waiting for the day when they would need it again.  And it kept the house cooler or warmer depending on the season.  So we have the pack rat mentality actually doing good.

Now I'm a certified dumpster diver.  After living in Florida and furnishing our first house with "curb sales"(perfectly good furniture that is no longer wanted and so left on the curb), I have no problem with recycling of any kind.  The things people throw away are beyond me.  At his work, Jonathon says when they finish building a temporary anything, instead of keeping the perfectly good pieces of plywood for next time, they toss them out into the trash.  They buy new when they need it.

Crazy!

And there are NO curb sales here, so those wonderful pieces of wood go to the dump and are never used again.  So, why if Asians and the rest of the world are so concerned with being green, don't our employers, governments and anyone else in the know make it easier for us all to do?

Global warming, the greenhouse effect and all the other catch phrases will never mean anything if the average person can't afford to do the very basic things.  Seriously, people.  They tout the fact you can make underwear out of plastic bottles, but Disney can't figure out how to make recycling cost effective?  Something's Goofy over there! That's for sure!

Anyway, I'm done with my rant.  I'll bet you all have something to say as well, right? So be gentle and polite, but tell me in the comments if you think it's easy being green!

Hugs to all,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

AVAILABLE NOW - FROSTY...THE REAL MAN

Hey all,

Just a quick bit of blatant promotion.  LOL  Friday, my holiday book, Frosty...The Real Man came out at Aspen Mountain Press.  Filled with romance, hot sexy encounters, humor and emotion, it will be sure to make you sigh, smile, laugh, cry and grab your very own sweet baboo/babette. 

Someone asked me where the idea came from.  How did I come up with a snowman hero?  Well the credit for that goes to one of my fans, Cassidy McKay.  We were chatting on my list one day about me writing other holiday stories after my Here Comes Peter (due out on April 1, 2011) and Hot Tubs and Hot Hunks (due out February 11, 2011).  I wanted to do a Christmas story and we were trying to think of a unique character to work with.

Well, Cassidy came up with the idea of an anatomically correct snowman.  We all had a good laugh over the idea, but later I couldn't stop thinking about it.  I thunk and I thunk and in a blinding flash of inspiration (I credit the Christmas Spirit) Frosty...The Real Man was born.

Let's take a look at this #1 BESTSELLING book!

Here is the official blurb...

~*~

Amy is tired of being alone.  But she's even more tired of the men she's dated in the past.  She longs to find a man who will be loving and true to her. A real man.

When Givré, one of the many Christmas Spirits, is sent to Amy inside the snowman she created, he's given the assignment to be her date to the Winter Wonderland Ball.  And he is very pleased with his luck.  Amy is his dream woman.  Talented, beautiful, loving and very sexy.

But Amy doesn't believe her handsome Frenchman is a snowman, a spirit, or anything else... other than maybe a little crazy.  And even though she is very attracted to him, she can't bring herself to give into her feelings.

But Givré isn't going to give up so easily.  He's fallen in love with his artist lady and he'll do anything to make her understand it's her love that will melt his frozen heart.

~*~

And just for you...a excerpt different from what is on my website.  But go HERE first so you can see how our two lovers meet.  Then read the excerpt below...  (warning...NOT work safe)

EXCERPT

As if he heard her thoughts, he abruptly released her, his black eyes shining with need. “I cannot get enough of you. Je vous veux…I want you again!”

Sweeping their coffee cups off the table with a crash, Givré lifted her to the tabletop. “If you will not give me waffles,” he growled sexily. “You must give me something else.” Pulling open the tie of her robe, he spread it around her as he pushed her back to lie on the table.

“Givré,” she gasped, but his finger touched her lips to quiet her. 

“I wish to taste all of you, ma ange,” he murmured, his dark gaze caressing her face. “You will be my breakfast…no?”

Amy swallowed hard. Lying naked on a table was another thing she’d never done before, but the heat in his eyes told her he liked what he saw. Taking a deep breath, she leaned back and tried to relax.

Givré looked his fill. He had been too incapacitated to really see her in the shower, but his gut clenched when he saw how beautiful she was. Her long blonde hair had fallen out of its untidy ponytail, and now streamed over her slender shoulders. Eyes, the color of the blue Nigelle flowers he’d picked in the mountains above his home as a boy, stared up at him. “Love-in-Mist,” he said under his breath, remembering the English translation of the name. 

He traced his finger over her high cheekbones and full red lips, then smoothed over her stubborn chin. Unable to help it, he bent and kissed her again, reveling in the taste of her. She was addicting…like fine French café, and she was as sinfully sweet as expensive chocolat. The kiss deepened, his tongue stroking into her mouth to dance with hers.

Breathing heavily, he broke the kiss and leaned back. “I am not done looking,” he said hoarsely. “This,” he swept a hand down her trembling body. “This beauty I missed earlier.”

“Givré—” she protested.

“Non, ma ange.” He shook his head reprovingly at her. “You are très belle. And you are mine!” His hands stroked over her shoulders and down her slender, muscular limbs. He could tell she was an artist. Her arms showed her strength. He kissed each fingertip, one by one until she squirmed on the table. 

Grinning, he cupped her breasts in his hands. They weren’t large, but just the right size to hold. Using his thumb, he gently caressed her nipples, causing them to go pebble hard beneath his touch. She whispered his name, and desire flushed her cheeks.

“So soft. Like rose petals.” He traced his hands down her flat stomach to her slender, yet womanly hips. Her long legs hung over the side of the table, and his body tightened in a rush as he remembered them wrapped around him as he thrust into her.

“Ahhh, ma chérie,” he groaned. “I want to be inside of you, enjoying your silk tight around me. I was never closer to heaven than when I was loving you.”

Amy’s eyes filled at his words. He made her feel so special, so loved. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. “Then love me, Givré…I want you, too.”

His eyes darkened even more. “Non…not yet.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “I am still hungry.” Kneeling between her legs, he kissed up one thigh, and then the other. Her legs trembled wildly, but he lifted them to his own thighs. Then, capturing her gaze with his own, he kissed her naked mound.

She cried out. She was totally exposed yet completely safe. His eyes held hers as he began kissing and licking, gently separating the folds of her sex to lick the moist treasure he yearned for.

His own lust threatened to overwhelm him at the scent of her arousal. He beat it back into submission as he continued to nibble and suck at Ami’s nether lips. She was so soft, so smooth. There was no hair to bar his passage as he stroked his tongue between the soft, warm folds to the elixir that awaited him.

He shuddered. Her taste was as he knew it would be. Dark. Erotic. Sweet. Growling a little, he pushed open her thighs so he could feast more readily. She fought him, her hands going to his head, but he met her eyes as he licked her juices from his lips. “Trust me, ma ange. Let me give you this pleasure. I wish to taste you, to lick the sweetness from your body. It will give me much pleasure as well.”

Heat swelled inside Amy, bringing her close to climax from his words alone. His eyes were so black…like ebony stars burning with fire. She whimpered his name, allowing his head to drop back between her thighs, trusting him as she’d never trusted a man before.

His tongue licked up through her folds and curled around her clitoris. Her nipples prickled with need as he sucked gently. His hand smoothed up her thigh, and then his mouth moved away and his finger took its place, rubbing and plucking at her throbbing flesh. His mouth moved lower, his tongue flicking back and forth between the folds as if searching…searching.

Suddenly, his tongue stabbed deep within her dripping quim and she cried out, her hips arching off the table at the heat that shot through her. His thumb pressed against her clit, and his tongue swirled inside of her, over and over again until she screamed out his name and exploded. Heat and light shot though her like an electric shock, all centered where his mouth busily sucked and caressed. 

Her response almost did him in. Givré barely had enough command of himself to hold her down on the table and continue his ministrations until she was done shivering and crying out his name. When she finally lay still, trembling on the table, he stood and desperately pulled his sweat bottoms off. His cock pointed straight upwards, and her eyes widened when she saw it.

He prayed for control when her hand reached out and wrapped around it. “Ami...” he rasped out. “Be careful of what you do here.”

She looked at his erection with awe. “Maybe I am an artist.”

He choked out a laugh and covered her hand with his. “Oui, ma chérie, but now allow me to show you another kind of art.” Gently, he kneed her legs apart and stepped between them. “Put me inside of you, Ami. Show me you wish this joining.”

Amy smiled. So…he would let her set the pace. Gently, she stroked his penis, delighting in the hard softness of him. His indrawn breath made her stomach tighten again, and she wondered just how much she could stand. Slowly, she guided the head of his cock to her opening, allowing him to just rest inside the entrance. Her whole body tightened and her heart trembled. Then she looked at him, seeing the barely held control in the clenched jaw and heaving chest.

“Pleasure me again, Givré,” she whispered. “Show me why the French are considered such great lovers.”

*end of excerpt*

Well, I hope you enjoyed that!  I get hot and bothered and I wrote it!  LOL  For more information about this fun holiday book, head to my website HERE.  Or just go buy the book at Aspen Mountain Press, HERE.  And don't forget to send me a copy of your receipt.  You'll get a special free gift as a thank you!

Thanks, all.  I'll be back on Monday with a fun blog about being a greenie or a meanie!  LOL

Hugs to all,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

Setting up the Christmas Tree

Hey all,

Wow!  It's already another Friday on my blog. The first of the wonderful Christmas season and we open it up with a great blog about the holidays. Today's guest blogger is Myla Jackson, a fellow Samhain author who actually had me in tears with today's post.  But before we get into that, let's learn a little more about Myla!

Myla Jackson writes stories for Samhain Publishing, Ellora's Cave, Kensington and Avon.

Twenty years of livin' and lovin' on a South Texas ranch raising horses, cattle, goats, ostriches and emus left an indelible impression on Myla Jackson, one she likes to instill in her red-hot stories. Myla pens wildly sexy, fun adventures of all genres including historical westerns, medieval tales, romantic suspense, contemporary romance and paranormal beasties of all shapes and sexy sizes. 

When she's not wrangling words from her computer she's out snow-skiing, boating, riding her ATV or spending time with her family. She lives in the tree-covered hills of Northwest Arkansas with her husband of 20+ years and her muses— the human-wanna-be canines—Chewy and Sweetpea.

So, without further ado, let's see what Myla has to say about our upcoming holiday!  Please join me in giving her a big DREAMY welcome!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's been three years since we actually set up a Christmas tree. If we plan a vacation at Christmas, we rarely set up a tree and we've been gone for the past couple of Christmases. With one grown child half a world away in Guam, another 4 1/2 hours away in the same state and tied to his work schedule, we only one child at home and it's easier and cheaper to go places at Christmas with only three to fund.

So we've been snow skiing in Colorado, on the beach in Australia and just anything but staying home. But this year, we made a pact to stay home for Christmas (all bets off after Christmas, I'm feeling a ski vacation coming on).

My youngest daughter was bound and determined to put up a tree. I had a deadline to write to and she didn't. So she borrowed her dad's truck and drove to town for a real tree, complete with the fresh scent and all.

We spent the evening setting up the tree, stringing it with lights and then she and her boyfriend added the ornaments. I think it was at the ornaments part that I got all choked up. You see, I'm one of the mothers who keeps damned near every weird ornament my kids ever made for me. It brought back so many memories I had tears in my eyes. I miss my kids who are grown and gone and I miss my youngest being an innocent little girl with wonder in her eyes over Santa's visit.

Do I wish my daughter hadn't insisted on a tree this year? Hell no. Granted it isn't a tree worthy of Martha Stewart's show, but because of it I get to relive many Christmases spent with my family and be closer to them even when they are far, far away.

I hope you spend time at Christmas with your families. And put up a tree! It's worth all the hassle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*sniff*  This will be my first Christmas away from my children and Myla's memories hit me hard.  I too keep every ornament my kids made plus I bought each one of them a new one every year.  Even far away I can't stop that practice.  They're all getting a City of Dreams Casino Chip to hang on the tree!  LOL

Check out more about Myla Jackson and her work by visiting her website at http://www.mylajackson.com/.

And how awesome is this!  She and I share a release date.  My Frosty...The Real Man comes out today at Aspen Mountain, while Myla's novella BODY SNATCHERS comes out at Ellora's Cave. http://www.jasminejade.com/ps-8906-50-body-snatchers.aspx

So head on over and pick up both these great stories.  And I'll see you next week with a blog about how it's not easy being green!  *snicker*

Hugs to all,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams
http://cjengland.com/frosty/frostytherealman.htm 
http://cjengland.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/

How Many Have You Read???

Hey all,

This went around FACEBOOK a couple weeks ago and the question intrigued me.  I know I'm a total bibliophile and probably have read more than the average person, but I have to admit when I saw that the BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here, I was shocked.

Now, granted, I've never even heard of many of these and I think if they expanded the list to more like Harry Potter and less of the I-had-to-read-it-in-English-class-and-really-wanted-to-throw-up kind, the number would go up, but still...some of these ARE classics and  IMHO should be read and enjoyed by everyone.  So, have you read more than 6 of these books?

Let's find out.

Here are the instructions...

1.   Copy the list below into a word document to make it easy.  (You don't have to do this, but I tried going through the list and just counting each one and I kept messing up.) Bold those books you've read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started but didn't finish or you've read an excerpt of. Then, count up the ones you've read.  Do a separate count of the ones you started or have nibbled at.  Then tell us how you did in the comments below.

2.  Next, if you want to, give me a list of books you think SHOULD be on this list.  What books do you think the majority of people would enjoy reading or you think should be read by everyone.

Okay...that's it.  You can see my list below and what I've read and nibbled on.  I wound up with 55 full reads, which is a little over half.  Let's see what you come up with.  If nothing else, it's a good way to learn about some alternative reading material!

Ready?  Let's Go!!!! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1  Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien 
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry potter Series
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien 
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams 
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll 
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis 
34 Emma -Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert 
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Inferno - Dante
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens 
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker 
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White 
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl 
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, don't forget to leave your answers in the comments below.  Let's see if we can prove to the BBC that we are a more reading people than they figure!

I'll see you on Friday with another Guest Blogger!  Mila Jackson will be here to tell us all what's on her mind!  And don't forget to check out my FREE READ.  Macau is starting to look a little like a war zone.  LOL

Hugs,

CJ England  

Follow Your Dreams

http://cjengland.com/luckbealady/luckbealady.htm

http://cjengland.com

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CJsaysFollowYourDreams/