Sandra K. Marshall, Author of Mystery Romance

http://www.sandramarshallblog.blogspot.com

http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall/

2012-01-22T12:01:00.000-06:00

Are You and Your Spouse on the Same Schedule?

Years ago when we firstmarried, my spouse and I spent all of our time together. We worked at the same place, and had the samehours. We were seldom separated from oneanother.

As we aged, my hubby requiredless sleep and I found it necessary to get more rest. I’ve always needed more siesta time. My husband used to sleep as much as me, butwith age he can’t.

Now, he goes to bed by 8 or 9at night, and I’m never in bed before 10:30 p.m. and sometimes much later. He’susually up between four and six in the morning, and I get up at seven thirty most days, unless I stay up very late.

My hubby likes to be on thego all the time and he wants me to go with him. Since, I’m an author I want to stay home and write. We compromise so both of us get what we wantsome of the time but not always.

What differences in yourschedule do you have to work out with your spouse?

Anyone who has my ebooks canrequest a personalized inscription from http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/SandraKMarshall.

Check me out on Facebook andTwitter: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556and http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Have a great week and see younext Sunday.

Sandy

Are You and Your Spouse on the Same Schedule?

2012-01-22T08:57:00.002-06:00

Years ago when we first married, my spouse and I spent all of our time together. We worked at the same place, and had the same hours. We were seldom separated from one another.

As we aged, my hubby required less sleep and I found it necessary to get more rest. I’ve always needed more siesta time. My husband used to sleep as much as me, but with age he can’t.

Now, he goes to bed by 8 or 9 at night, and I’m never in bed before 10:30 p.m. and sometimes much later. He’s usually up between four and six in the morning, and I get up at seven thirty most days, unless I stay up very late.

My hubby likes to be on the go all the time and he wants me to go with him. Since, I’m an author I want to stay home and write. We compromise so both of us get what we want some of the time but not always.

What differences in your schedule do you have to work out with your spouse?

Anyone who has my ebooks can request a personalized inscription from http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/SandraKMarshall.

Check me out on Facebook and Twitter: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556and http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Have a great week and see you next Sunday.

Sandy

http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall/

Do You Have A Dream?

2012-01-15T00:01:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow is Martin LutherKing Day. His words, 'I have a dream'have gone down in history and will always be remembered. Those words apply to all of us. Everyone should have dreams and some of themshould be fulfilled.

When I was a kid, I thought Iwanted to be a spy until I read about some of the things they did to spies. I wasn't into torture like having yourfingernails, eyelids and worse removed. I dreamed of traveling, and I lucked out in getting a job with anairline so that dream came true.

I thought horses were wonderful, and Ieventually got one of my own. Although,I gave him up a few years later when my hubby gave me a choice of him or thehorse. He was afraid I was going to gethurt, and he didn't want to be married to a vegetable.

I loved reading, and Ithought I might be able to write. Hubbywanted me to try. In fact, it really washis idea, but I began to dream of becoming an author, and I made it. Now, I have a dream of writing a classic thatwill be remembered through the ages. Making the New York Times top ten list is not enough for me. Smile.

What is your dream? If you have one, go for it. You won't make every dream come true, butmore of them will be fulfilled if you try.

Have a great week. See you next Sunday.

Best always,

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.amazon.com/author/sandramarshall http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/SandraKMarshall
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall
LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sandy-marshall/1a/851/a04

Do You Keep Up With Technology?

2012-01-08T00:01:00.001-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Technology is forever changing. Just when you think you know how to do something some bright person comes up with a new idea. To be honest with you even though technology is helpful I’m at my limit to learning more. I think. But maybe not.

Recently, I was shown the latest cell phone and it could do everything I could do on my computer and more. There were so many apps on that phone. The person showing it to me had an app for directions to any place he wanted to go. That phone had every app any person would want to have. I’m trying to figure out how apps might help me.

I think I did great just learning how to blog and make a website. I can even size photos, but do I really want to do all this? No! I just want to write and forget all of this other stuff.

On top of all this, my hubby decided to change our server. So for the last three days, I’ve been trying to change my email address on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Yahoo groups, Google, Yahoo, Ning groups, LinkedIn and Blogger. I know I’ve forgotten some places. Maybe, it will cut down on my emails. Grin.

Technology may be great but it causes me more work. How do you feel about technology? Do you keep up, or not?

Have a great week. I’ll see you next Sunday. In the meantime, feel free to visit my author page at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/sandramarshall If you want a Kindlegraph for any of my books go to http://kindlegraph.com/requests to request one.

Sandy

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Did You Celebrate the New Year?

2012-01-01T09:16:00.000-06:00

Hi Everyone,

I'm a little late getting here today. No, I wasn't up at midnight to ring in the new year. Unstead, we started out early yesterday going for breakfast, and we were out all day until about 5:30 p.m. (not late at all) celebrating the end of 2011.

2011 was a horrible year for many people. I can't begin to tell you all the horror stories I've heard, but they are chilling. In 2012, I hope there is some relief in sight for everyone in the world.

I'm wishing you a happy, healthy and wonderful 2012.

Best Wishes,
Sandra K. Marshall
Author Page on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/sandramarshall
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.sandramarshallblog.blogspot.com
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
My Space - http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall
Twitter - SandraKMarshall
LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sandy-marshall/1a/851/a04
Good Reads - http://www.goodreads.com/skmarshall

Sorry, There isn't A Blog Today

2011-12-18T11:03:00.000-06:00

Hi Everyone,

First, I want to apologize for problem with the discount code at Eirelander Publishing for their sale. I don't know what happened but hopefully they'll have it fixed sometime in the future.

Just in case, you're one of my followers who visits every Sunday, I want to let you know there won't be one today. I have a head cold, and it's keeping me down. Will be going back to bed now.

Thanks for understanding. See you again sometime after the 1st.

Sandy
http://www.amazon.com/author/sandramarshall
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-catalyst-sandra-marshall/1029908390?ean=97
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/addiction-sandra-k-marshall/1019317561?ean=29
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-fools-fool-sandra-k-marshall/1105647158?ean=

All Books on Sale at Eirelander Publishing

2011-12-11T09:06:00.000-06:00

Hello Everyone,

My publisher, Eirelander Publishing, is having a holiday sale today ONLY. Every book on their site is 75% off. You can pick up The Odyssey Trilogies: The Catalyst, Addiction and The Deceived including my contemporary romance, A Fool's Fool. Just use code S852S10 at checkout. Sale runs until midnight tonight! http://www.facebook.com/l/SAQGMRbCVAQEbD2SY4wiizfAXDm28O2Yt6tmwpnQrINmlbA/www.eirelander-publishing.com Great time to fill that e-reader!

Go have some fun. Enjoy!

Sandy

http://www.lindalaroqueauthor.blogspot.com

Cruelty to Animals

2011-12-03T23:05:00.000-06:00

Hi Folks,

If you've been reading my blog for a long time then you know my hubby and I are lovers of animals; domestic or wild.

Recently, there's been a lot of news on television about cruelty to animals. Last summer there were a couple of little dogs who were tortured and set on fire. Just this week, there was a beautiful black and white cat who was killed and skinned. The killer took the white spots of the hair with him.

I can't imagine what kind of person who can do this to an innocent animal. I'm not getting into the psyche of someone like this in my blog. I'll save this for a book.

The owners of these animals are devastated when their pets are harmed and mutilated. If it were one of my kitties, and I caught someone hurting them they would be very sorry.

Midnight, our little black cat is a talker and a prancer. She talks, swirls forward and backward to watch you to make sure you are following her. And did I say she keeps talking the whole time? lol

Dory, our little tortie, hardly makes a sound. She only gets excited when she sees squirels or another cat. She can be ferocious, but she's tiny.

As you can see these two little girls like each other and are like sisters. One minute they're playing and the next they are fighting. Grin. These two like to sleep at the bottom of our bed.

Remember to always protect the weakest in our society be they animals, children, women or elderly.

Take care until next week. You can find me on Facebook; Twitter; MySpace and there's many more.

See you next Sunday. Have a nice week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Author, Linda LaRoque

2011-11-27T07:26:00.001-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Welcome my good friend Texas author, Linda LaRoque.

A retired teacher who loves West Texas, its flora and fauna, and its people, Linda’s stories paint pictures of life, love, and learning set against the raw landscape of ranches and rural communities in Texas and the Midwest. She is a member of RWA, her local chapter of HOTRWA, NTRWA and Texas Mountain Trail Writers.

Briefly take us on the journey with you – when did you start writing and what hurdles did you have to overcome to get published? I started writing seriously in 1991-92. I've always been an avid reader and after finishing a book made the comment to my husband, "I think I could write one of these books." He said, "Well, why don't you?" I took up the gauntlet and started When the Ocotillo Bloom. Since I was teaching school at the time, it took several years to finish the story. After probably 5 rewrites, many workshops and critiques, it was published by Wings Press in 2007. Do the math. That's 15 years.

What’s been the greatest contributing factor to achieving your goal of publication? Determination.

What has surprised you the most about being a published author? The amount of work involved.

How do you come up with your story ideas? Some evolve from dreams, others ideas are triggered by stories on the history and science channels, or those I hear from friends. Every once in a while one just pops into my head.

Do you have a favorite author? Yes, there are too many to list and have varied depending on my age. Though I love to read romance, I also enjoy mysteries and suspense.

Tell us a little bit about your next book? Will it be a romantic suspense or some other genre? The book I'm working on is a romantic suspense set along old Route 66 in New Mexico. My husband and I have driven the entire old Mother Road, except for a few small stretches that we hope to catch soon.

What did you do when you got the call? You know the one saying they wanted it. Grin. I couldn't celebrate too much as my husband was in the hospital 26 miles away and we couldn't go out. Of course I did email all my friends, relatives, and my mentor.

Would you like to tell us about your release? How did you come up with the idea? A Marshal of Her Own, a short time travel set in 1890s Texas, is a sequel to A Law of Her Own. I had so much fun writing the first story, I decided to write the second, which has led to the third, A Love of His Own. It's under contract with The Wild Rose Press but I don't have a release date yet.

Could you give us a blurb and an excerpt of your story (just a short one)? I'm sure my readers would love to read a little of your story.

A Marshal of Her Own – Blurb and Excerpt

Blurb:

Despite rumors of “strange doings” at a cabin in Fredericksburg, investigative reporter Dessa Wade books the cottage from which lawyer, Charity Dawson, disappeared in 2008. Dessa is intent on solving the mystery. Instead, she is caught in the mystery that surrounds the cabin and finds herself in 1890 in a shootout between the Faraday Gang and a US Marshal.

Marshal Cole Jeffers doesn’t believe Miss Wade is a time traveler. He admits she’s innocent of being an outlaw, but thinks she knows more about the gang than she’s telling. When she’s kidnapped by Zeke Faraday, Cole is determined to rescue her. He’s longed for a woman of his own, and Dessa Wade just might be the one—if she’ll commit to the past.

Excerpt:

Dessa stood still and watched as they conversed. Something stank to high heaven about this entire situation. Why were the cops chasing robbers on horseback? It’s not like Fredericksburg was that isolated. She glanced at the captured men. The boy moaned, and she made a step to go over and help him. The Marshal spun, and the expression in his eye froze her in place.

“He needs first aid.”

“He’s fine. The Doc will tend to him when we get to the jail.”

“You could at least call 911 and let them patch him up for you.” She nodded to the man lying so still with his eyes closed. “Your other prisoner doesn’t look so good. He’s going to die on you if you don’t start CPR or get him some help.”

“Lady, no one is going to hear a yell from out here. Never heard of any 911 or CPR.” He propped the hand not holding the shotgun on his hip and threw her a disgusted look. “Are you blind? That man is dead, shot through the heart.”

Her head swam for a moment, and she struggled not to give in to the sensation and faint. She drew in deep gulps of air. “Well...well..., what about the coroner and the meat wagon, not to mention the CSI folks? If you don’t get them to record the scene, how are you going to cover your butt? The authorities might say you shot him in cold blood.”

He looked at her like she’d sprouted an extra head. “I don’t know what the hell you are talking about woman. No one will question my authority. I’m the law in this county. Now, be quiet, or I’m going to gag you.”

A Marshal of Her Own will be available now at The Wild Rose Press, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.com and other online book stores. It is the sequel to A Law of Her Own available at The Wild Rose Press, Amazon.com, and Barnes and Noble.com and other online book stores. I’m awaiting a release date for A Love of His Own, the third story in the Prairie, Texas series.

My release contest for A Marshal of Her Own began November 9th. I’ll be giving away this vintage rhinestone typewriter pin. To enter the drawing, go to my website or blog and sign up for my newsletter. Don’t forget to verify your email address. If you already receive it, email me at linda@lindalaroque.com with A Marshal of Her Own contest in the subject line. Contest ends December 15, 2011.

Leave me a comment or ask a question today and you’ll be entered into a drawing for an ecopy of A Law of Her Own.

Also, today’s blog post is part of 2 blog tours—this one for A Marshal of Her Own and starting December 4^th, one for Born in Ice. Follow along each day and leave a comment to be entered into the grand prize drawing and learn about my Born in Ice contest.

The Blog Tour schedule will be posted on my blog and website. It will last 25 days and the Grand Prize is a Kindle. Leave a comment each day and your name will be entered 25 times. Pretty good odds, huh?

Thank you for having me on your blog today, Sandy!

Tomorrow, Nov. 28^th I’ll be on Celia Yeary’s blog at http://celiayeary.blogspot.com/ talking about A Little History on Feed Sacks.

Happy Reading and Writing!

Linda LaRoque

Writing Romance With a Twist in Time

www.lindalaroque.com

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tinyman#!/linda.laroque

http://twitter.com/#!/LindaLaRoque

It's always a pleasure to have you visit, Linda. I hope all those who read your post will try your books out. I have enjoyed many of them myself.

Until next Sunday have a good week everyone.

Sandy

http://wwweirelander-publishing.com

What Are You Most Thankful For?

2011-11-20T00:17:00.001-06:00

We have just a few days left before we celebrate Thanksgiving. It's a day that we give thanks for whatever we are thankful for.

I'm thankful to have a husband and family who love me. I'm grateful I'm not living on the streets instead I have a house to live in, especially during the cold of winter and heat of summer. I'm blessed to have food to eat and not to know what hunger is like.

Last but not least, I'm thankful to be born and to live in

America

. I could not have achieved what I have here in any other country.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Best always,
Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Remember Our Veterans Every Day

2011-11-13T07:16:00.000-06:00

Hi Everyone,

This past Friday, we celebrated Veterans Day. This one day a year everyone comes together to support our men and women who served in our armed services.

It's not enough. We must support them every single day of their lives. So many of our military come home in body bags, without their limbs, with brain damage and they can't return to their old selves. Some of these men and women don't have the support of their families; all they have is the V.A., and if they let them down then there may be no one to help them.

For those soldiers who return home after killing and seeing friends blown up; it's almost impossible to return to normalcy without support somewhere. Some end up homeless and never find their way back.

The men and women who do return home seemingly unscathed will never be able to forget the events they participated in or watched unfold before their very eyes. They may talk about these events or not, but those events will be remembered even though they try to forget.

Today and every day here is a URL to go to and click on their button to help feed our veterans. All you have to do to get a reminder every day is ask for it. My good friends, Joe Hobbs and Sherri Ferguson do this faithfully every day, and I thank you for it. Joe was very handsome in his uniform as a young man. http://www.theveteranssite.com/tpc/ERV_111211_VET

Thank you to all of those who serve our country. You and your families give so much, and I appreciate all you do.

Sincerely,

Sandra K. Marshall

http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Sometimes Life Throws You a Scare

2011-11-05T18:42:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Over a week ago, my husband had a colonoscopy done. A spot was found, and the doctor took multiple biopsies. In face, he nearly scraped the whole thing off. It was scary for us because the doctor said it could be colon cancer, or it might be an ulcer. The doctor took hubby off of aspirins in case it was an ulcer.

The doctor wanted a closer look at the area, so he ordered a CT scan with dye. This showed a spot on his lung, but we aren't too worried about it. This week, we found out the biopsy came back negative. We were thrilled to learn it wasn't cancer. He does have to have another colonscopy in a couple months to make sure he has healed inside.

Thank you for listening to my story. I just had to share because it ended so well.

Sandy AKA Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Trick or Treat

2011-10-30T08:26:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Tomorrow is Halloween. The question I'm asking today is do you ask the kids who come to your door to show you a trick before you give them a treat?

When I was a kid, we had to perform before we got our treats. I have to admit we received better treats than just candy. We used to get wrapped up homemade cookies and pop corn balls and apples along with candy.

Since, we usually had a foot of snow or more, we often were invited in for hot apple cider or something warm. The homes we went to were in a farming community, and it was safe to accept homemade items. Also, we went to town if the weather wasn't too bad. That's where we got most of our candy, sometimes it was homemade.

Happy Halloween everyone. Come by and tell me what your halloween was like when you were young.

Have a wonderful week.

Best always,
Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

October is Breast Cancer Month

2011-10-22T20:24:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I don't think there is a person in the world who hasn't come in contact with someone with cancer. Just in my family alone, we have had to deal with several different types of cancers.

This month is Breast Cancer Month, and I'm going to give you a link where you can click to help women get mammagrams for free. It won't cost you a penny, and you might save someone's life.

Go to http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2

I hope you have a wonderful week. I'll see you next Sunday.

Best always,
Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

A Fool's Fool

2011-10-15T21:45:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Today, I'm posting the first chapter of my short story, A Fool's Fool. I'm also having a contest and only those who have read the book will know the answer. Or someone might guess right. Smile. To answer the question send an email to sandy@skaymarshall.com. This story is based on something that actually happened on a dance floor and anyone who knows my husband will have a pretty good idea of what he told his daughter to do about it. Smile.

The prize will be a digital copy of A Fool's Fool.

Kathy O'Reilly walked softly behind Norm Jokes as he crept up the aisle between the cubicles, making sure he didn't know she was near. It was obvious he was planning to sneak up on someone to either scare or do something worse.

          Norm was as obnoxious as any guy she'd ever met, but for some reason her friend, Allyson Metzl, thought the joker just needed attention. Uh oh—Norm sped up, and she saw the reason why.
          Allyson stood just a few feet away, waving her hands as she leaned in a cubicle to talk to a co-worker. Her friend’s back was to him; Allyson's long dark hair covered the derrière of her diminutive figure.
Her pal had just gone through a divorce, and was feeling frail. There was no way Kathy would let anyone hurt her friend again. Kathy called out,  "Allyson."
          Allyson wheeled around, her mouth opened in a big O when she almost smacked into Norm.
          He put his hands on Allyson’s shoulders. Don’t move so suddenly. You almost knocked me down, and I would’ve fell on top of you.‛ He glanced over his shoulder at Kathy.
          With an inward laugh, she joined them. "Stopped you from being an obnoxious ass.‛ She watched him, knowing by his grin that he’d enjoyed himself. "You're going to get into big trouble one day." His right eye ticked knowing he'd been caught in the act. Too bad fellow.
          "Did someone want me?" Allyson asked; her black lashes fluttered as she glanced between Kathy and Norm.
          His face reddening, Norm stuttered, "I wanted to tell you how pretty you look in your outfit."
          "Thank you for noticing, Norm." Allyson peeked up at him. "It's new."
          The skunk, he hadn't even noticed her friend's lime green outfit until he needed to get his ass out of a jam. "Allyson, I wanted to talk to you a moment."
          "Uh, I'll leave you two to it," Norm muttered.
          Kathy glared after him as he slinked toward his office. He had nerve pretending to have noticed Allyson other than her butt. She hoped her friend didn't fall for his Mr. Nice Guy act.
          Allyson's cherry red lips turned up, laughing she showed perfect white teeth and her milk chocolate gaze focused on Kathy. "The way you're scowling at Norm he must've been up to no good."
          "He almost got you, but I managed to save you."
          Allyson laughed, her eyes sparkling. She shook her head, her long straight hair swaying from side to side. "Thanks, but who knows? Maybe I would have liked it.‛
          Her friend hadn’t dated since her divorce, and she constantly defended Norm to the other girls in the building. Why? Kathy couldn’t understand unless Allyson secretly had a crush on him. Kathy hoped not, because in truth, the man terrorized all of them. They were afraid to say anything for fear of losing their jobs. Luckily, she wasn’t in the same circumstance since she worked for the head boss.
          "Next time I’ll let him get you." She grimaced. "You need to get out more if that guy interests you." He almost pinched her friend’s bottom. He liked to pinch the other girls and play pranks on them.
          "Now you’re just being mean." Allyson’s perfect white teeth chewed her bottom lip. "I think he’s cute."
          "To each their own, but something has to be done to stop him from picking on all the women."
          Allyson giggled. "I might be able to help. We could play a trick on him. April Fool’s Day will be here soon and it would be an appropriate time to do something to him."
          "Great. I would like nothing better than to get revenge on the skinny runt."
          Her dark brows rose and Allyson asked, "Has he done anything to you?"
          "He better not or I’ll make his life miserable." If Norm ever pinched her, she would bring a harassment lawsuit against him and the company, Gagsters, Incorporated.
          "You won't do anything to hurt his feelings, will you Kath?" Allyson’s brows knit together slightly.
          Well, on second thought not against Gagsters, just Norm. She didn't want to hurt her boss, Jason Barrone. As his administrative assistant, Kathy was treated courteously and as an equal. Not only was he a perfect gentleman, he was a very handsome one. She liked his cleft chin and green brown-flecked eyes. Besides, he often told her he couldn't do without her— she was his right arm.
          For some reason, she was drawn to Jason even though normally, she went for the tall, dark, and dangerous bad boys. Jason was the exact opposite with his light brown hair streaked blond from the sun. The one time she accidentally bumped into him he was solid as a rock and just as dependable.
          A veil lifted from Allyson’s face and a light shone in her eyes. Her friend’s hound dog nose twitched on the scent of a mystery. She’d better say something quick.
          "Feelings. I doubt if Norm has any, he's such a dope. His antics have to be stopped." She leaned toward Allyson with her hands fisted, but at the widening of her friends eyes, Kathy drew back, took a deep breath, and relaxed her hands.
           "You know the other girls won't step out of their cubicles when he's around, and when they go to the lunchroom or bathroom they're constantly looking for him over their shoulders."
          Allyson nodded. "I know. Some of the younger girls have even talked to me about it."
          "Then you’re completely with me on this?"

"I have an idea of something we can do that would get the message across without hurting him."

          "What?" Kathy watched excitement build on her friend’s face.
          "I’m an artist. I could make a poster to put in his office or hang overhead somewhere."
          Smiling, Kathy said, "Okay."
          "Later. My phone is ringing." Allyson hurried away to answer the call.
         Kathy wondered what kind of drawing Ally would come up with. She hoped Norm could take a joke. After all, he dished out plenty of them. It was time for him to have some pranks pulled on him. Besides, it was going to be April Fool’s Day in a week.

* * * * *

Jason stood in the doorway of his office pretending to read some papers while covertly watching the women scurrying excitedly from one cubicle to another. They whispered for a few minutes, giggled, and looked nervously around as if afraid of being caught.

          He'd been traveling on business for a month, and when he came back from his trip he’d noticed a difference in the office. He’d watched the women for days and the ringleader appeared to be assistant's friend, Allyson.
          His gaze turned to Kathy, noting the freckles sprinkled across her pale cheeks while a couple more dotted her nose. She tried to hid them with makeup, but he thought they were cute. She seemed immune to the activity outside her window.
          Ever since she'd started working for him, he'd wanted to grab a handful of the thick red, blonde-streaked hair that fell around her shoulders. He wanted to rub his face in the strands. Whenever he was near her he would inhale her fresh citrus scent, and he wanted to get closer to her, nibble on her neck, and see what she would look like naked.
          There was something about this matter-of-fact woman that fascinated him. She drew him to her on a sexual level. He couldn't help wondering what she was like away from work or in bed.
          She looked fantastic in anything she wore but this top fit her lovely shaped breasts like a second layer of skin. Would the buds be pink or brown, he wondered.
          Kathy raised her head and turned to look intently at him. "Do you want something?"
          Oops, he'd been caught staring. He gazed into her topaz eyes then turned to look out her window before saying, "I'm wondering what the girls are up to."
          Her eyebrows rose and her head tilted to one side. "What makes you think they're up to anything?"
          Ah ha, he'd surprised her. She glanced at her desk, and he realized he was right, she knew more than she would admit. "They're all abuzz about something. Kind of like a bunch of busy bees in their hives."
          Lowering her chin, she gazed at him with a smile on her lips and in her light yellow-brown eyes. "Well, you know a special day is coming up for us."
          "Ah." Jason leaned more comfortably against the doorframe. "You're referring to April Fool’s Day." Just as he thought, they were planning a practical joke for one of them, either Norm or himself. He hoped it wasn't his friend.
          Jason didn't know how Norm would react to someone pulling a stunt on him. He'd always been a jokester. He used it to defend himself against school bullies and to hide the fact that he didn’t have a normal family. If he thought they were tormenting, him, he'd get even.
          Kathy nodded her head. "The girls thought it might be time to take a more active part developing pranks, and what better way to start than on April 1st?"
          "Just as long as no one gets hurt," he said, turning back into his room. Jason knew Norm was sensitive, even though he didn’t show that side of himself at work. He needed to understand that other people might have those same feelings.
          "Oh, not likely," she said.
          Her annoyed tone warned him that there was more going on than Kathy was telling him. He just hoped it was nothing that required him to fire someone.

* * * * *

Kathy watched Allison sketch swiftly at a worktable by the sliding glass doors, sunlight streaming in through them. She leaned over a large piece of pale pink paper sketching a pig snorting around a bunch of females.

          Sticking the pencil between her lips, she gazed at the caricature with Norm’s face. She giggled, dropped the pencil as she gasped and giggled again.
          Kathy laughed. "It’s a perfect likeness of Norm." Shaking her head, she added, "I’m not so sure we should do this. I don’t want you to get fired."
          "I’m not backing out now, Kath. This is the one all the girls chose, and it really is the nicest one." Ally giggled. "I was afraid they’d pick the one of the stallion mounting the mare."
          "No, you didn’t draw something like that." She covered her mouth laughing as she watched her friend nod her head. "Well, I’m glad everyone had sense not to pick that one. We would all get fired then."
          "I have some other ideas, too. If I can get them drawn in time, I might use one of them instead of these." Picking up the pencil, she drew a tail on the main caricature. "Since I’m the artist, I get the last say in what I display."
          Allyson would put her plan in place in two days. Kathy knew Allyson planned to wait until everyone left work. She would hide in the bathroom until Jason left then place the picture on Norm’s desk.
          With her thoughts on Jason, she remembered how his gaze on her had warmed her body while he’d watched her. She’d caught his reflection in the window and caught him off guard when he’d thought she didn’t notice him staring at her.
          What had he been thinking? She hoped he wasn’t suspicious of them. He was certainly curious about what the women were up to. Could all of them be terminated? Jason was a nice guy, but he must have limits.
          Originally, the plan was to have all the women sign the poster. She’d changed their minds because she didn’t want anyone to get into trouble. If the worst happened, she would take the blame for the whole episode rather than have Ally or one of the others get fired.
          Kathy could think of any number of ways this could go wrong. If Norm was as sensitive as Jason claimed, he could be hurt. She just had an intuitive feeling this little joke would backfire on them.

Remember if you want to enter the contest all you have to do is email me at sandy@skaymarshall.com. Good luck everyone.

See you next week.

Sandy aka Sandra K. Marshall
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

How Many Friends Do You Have?

2011-10-09T09:18:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

On one of my loops, a lady lost a friend of twenty-five years, and she was devastasted at losing someone who had been a special part of her life for so long.

This made me start thinking of my own special friends. I got to thinking about how long we've been friends and some of us go back a long ways.

Mary Ellen and I met as sophmores in high school and have never lost touch with one another after over fifty years. She lives in Canada, but we talk to one another four or five times a year.

Janice, I met in high school, too. Even though we were friends there; it was my sister who brought us together again a few years ago. We keep in contact through email and get together once in awhile. We've known one another over fifty years.

Pat worked as a nurse's aid at Lawrence Memorial Hospital with mom. One day, mom brought her home one day to meet us so Pat would have someone her own age to be around. We always keep in contact by seeing, emailing or calling one another. It's been fifty years since we first met.

When I first started working at TWA, I met a special person named Perkie, and we later became roommates. We worked together, partied and lived together. One of the nicest people you could ever meet. We have remained friends for over forty years. We never lose touch even though she lives out of state.

Another long time TWA friend is Linda B. The stories I could tell you about Linda would have you laughing. She was one of my party friends when we were younger. We still get together frequently, and we've been friends over forty years.

Also, Susie was another TWA party friend when I was younger. We talk a couple of times a year and send letters. We've been friends over forty years.

Linda H. is another old TWA friend that I keep in contact with, but I didn't meet until almost ten years after I started my career at TWA. We have been friends for over thirty years and still keep in contact.

There are many other friends, some newer that I keep in contact in with, but we don't have as much history. The closest friends in my life have been my mother and sister. They keep me grounded.

Now, I have men friends including my husband but for this blog I'm only talking about women friends. Smile. These are the ladies, I have shared a lot of history with and I would miss them terribly if they weren't here.

Do you have friends you keep in contact with no matter what happens in your lives?

Have a good week everyone.

Best always,
Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

There is no post today

2011-10-02T09:22:00.000-05:00

Hi to those of you who come to visit my blog every Sunday. I will not be blogging today. We are having our roof replaced due to hail damage we received a few weeks ago.

They've already started hammering and thumping everywhere, so it will impossible to get anything done today.

Thank you,
Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

New Book Cover

2011-09-25T08:55:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

We've had a couple of sunny fall days here in the mid-west, but next week it will turn warmer again.

This is my new book cover for A Fool's Fool. My publisher decided to separate the two stories in Fool Me Twice. My story can be found at Eirelander Publishing, http://www.eirelander-publishing.com, Amazon on Kindle and Barnes and Noble on Nook.

Here is a blurb:

Pranks are carried too far.

Kathy O'Reilly, a strong-willed woman doesn't allow men to walk over her or anyone else. When one of the co-owner's of Gagsters, Norm Jokes, is allowed to get away with playing pranks, she speaks up to her boss.

Jason Barrone, co-owner of Gagsters is attracted to his assistant and will not allow his best friend to cause him to lose her. Jason wants them to be friends because he doesn't want to have to make a choice of who goes and who stays.

For those of you who would like to read more you can click on the title of my and read an excerpt at my website, or go to my publisher, Amazon and Barnes and Noble to read even more.

Thank you for visiting my blog today.

Best always,
Sandra K. Marshall
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Computer Burnout

2011-09-18T09:15:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Today, I'm talking about computer burnout. This is something a bit new, but for those of us who spend a good portion of our time on the computer it can happen.

Writing, promotion, sales and nearly everything else is done on the computer these days. I'm a writer, and I haven't written a word for at least six weeks. Why? One word says it all--email.

I haven't been on email since last Monday, so I know I have hundreds of emails. Most of them, I can delete but even that takes time. Some of them I want to read, but I should just delete all of them and start over again fresh.

I have made a real effort to keep up with my blog, but even it has been difficult because I hate my computer right now.

Does anyone else have a love-hate relationship with their computer?

Thank you for listening to my rant this week and please come back next Sunday.

Best always to all my readers.

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Do You Remember Where You Were on 9-11-2001?

2011-09-11T08:37:00.000-05:00

Good Morning,

Today is 9-11, ten years later after one of the worst terrorist acts on our country. Do you remember where you were on that day?

On 9-11-2001, I had just finished breakfast for my husband and myself, cleaned up the dishes, poured myself another cup of coffee. I turned on CNN to catch up with the news while warming up my computer before starting to write.

In moments, I learned about the hi-jackings of at least two planes and there were thought to be more. I watched the first plane hit the first tower in shock, and I yelled at my husband to turn on CNN. A few minutes later, I saw the next plane hit the other tower.

Stunned by what we were seeing, we watched and listened to the news in silence. We heard about the other planes and our fear grew not knowing where they were headed. By then loved ones were getting calls from their family members on the hi-jacked planes.

We heard about the plane that crashed into the Pentagon and the brave people on flight 93 who gave up their lives to save others. For days, I watched the news and heard about the brave firemen and policemen who helped to save others and all of the many people who came to help.

I wept at the scenes I saw. I asked why like many others. I was proud at the way the people of our country pulled together. I pray, we never have anything like 9-11 happen on our soil again.

Already, our children are being taught about the date 9-11-2001 in our schools. This date will be a part of our history forever.

Bless our country, The United States of America.

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Happy Labor Day

2011-09-04T08:17:00.001-05:00

Hello Everyone,

First, I want to tell my contest is up at Coffee Time Romance & More. You can find it, along with my new book cover for A Fool's Fool, here:
http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/ContestPage.html Thank you for visiting and entering to win some goodies. There are several other authors who have contests posted for the month of September as well.

Now, for my question of the day: Do you think our country has become more service oriented than a manufacturing country?

Bless America and the people in our country.

Have a great holiday!

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Would You Evacuate If Told To?

2011-08-28T00:08:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

This year has been a bad one for tornadoes, and it looks like it's going to be the same for hurricanes. Tornadoes hit around my area so much this summer that I cringed every time we had a tornado warning. There's no way I wouldn't take a threat like that seriously.

In New York City, a reporter was speaking to a person who had decided not to evacuate. The reason he gave was that Bloomberg had messed on winter storm and was trying to make up for it by exaggerating the seriousness of Hurricane Irene.

My question to all of you is would you go to a safe place if told to?

That's all for this Sunday. Have a great week.

Best to all of you.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Do You Come Back to Read Responses to Your Comments?

2011-08-21T07:29:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone,

The reason, I'm asking this question is because I'm curious to know if it's even necessary to leave a response to those who leave a comment.

Another question, I have for you is do you read the comments after reading the blog? I personally find many of the comments more interesting than my blog.

Thank you for reading. I'll look forward to reading your comments on this topic.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Should Social Security be considered an Entitlement?

2011-08-06T19:47:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I don’t know about you, but for months I’ve been listening to the politicians talking about Social Security being an entitlement program. Its made me furious. I started paying into Social Security at sixteen and have paid into it ever since. Of course, I’m entitled to Social Security benefits, but the politicians make the word entitlement sound like a dirty word. They try to make everyone believe the people who draw entitlements are free loaders and not responsible hard working folks.

It’s no wonder seniors are upset by their elected officials. Below is a definition of entitlement.

Definition of entitlement by Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary: 1a: the state or condition of being entitled: Right b: a right to benefits specified by law or contract 2: a government program providing benefits to members of a specified group; also : funds supporting or distributed by such a program.

Okay, so Social Security is an entitlement, so why is the word being smeared and used in such condescension? Below is a little history about how Social Security was started.

The Social Security Act was signed by FDR on 8/14/35. Taxes were collected for the first time in January 1937 and the first one-time, lump-sum payments were made that same month. Regular ongoing monthly benefits started in January 1940.

Medicare was passed into law on July 30, 1965 but beneficiaries were first able to sign-up for the program on July 1, 1966.

Under the 1935 law, what we now think of as Social Security only paid retirement benefits to the primary worker. A 1939 change in the law added survivors’ benefits and benefits for the retiree's spouse and children. In 1956 disability benefits were added.

Keep in mind, however, that the Social Security Act itself was much broader than just the program which today we commonly describe as "Social Security." The original 1935 law contained the first national unemployment compensation program, aid to the states for various health and welfare programs, and the Aid to Dependent Children program. (Full text of the 1935 law.)

Social security earns interest. By law, the assets of the Social Security program must be invested in securities guaranteed as to both principal and interest. The Trust Funds hold a mix of short-term and long-term government bonds. The Trust Funds can hold both regular Treasury securities and "special obligation" securities issued only to federal trust funds. In practice, most of the securities in the Social Security Trust Funds are of the "special obligation" type. (See additional explanation from SSA's Office of the Actuary.)

The Trust Funds earn interest which is set at the average market yield on long-term Treasury securities. Interest earnings on the invested assets of the combined OASI and DI Trust Funds were $55.5 billion in calendar year 1999. This represented an effective annual interest rate of 6.9 percent.

The Trust Funds have earned interest in every year since the program began. More detailed information on the Trust Fund investments can be found in the Annual Report of the Social Security Trustees and on the Actuary's web pages concerning the Investment Transactions and Investment Holdings of the Trust Funds.

Much more information can be found at: http://www.ssa.gov/history/hfaq.html

Yes, Social Security is an entitlement program. It covers a huge amount of programs under its umbrella. Should there be some cuts? I’m not going to answer that question because I don’t know. No one can afford cuts, but something has to be done. I do believe our government should stop using Social Security for every program they can come up with. In my opinion, social security and Medicare should not include welfare and some other entitlements under its umbrella.

I’m not against helping people, but I just think welfare should be under some other program. What do you think about our social security? Frankly, I don’t think social security is the problem.

Have a great week, and I’ll see you all next week.

Sandy

The Flawed Hero

2011-07-24T07:34:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

What is a flawed hero? He is a man with flaws. Simple! Everyone has flaws even our men. Even a hero in story if people are to relate to him.

In Webster’s Dictionary flawed means this: 1a. A defect in physical structure or form 1b. An imperfection or weakness and esp. that detracts from the whole or hinders effectiveness (vanity was the flaw in his character)

In the stories, I write none of my characters are flawless. I need to know my characters flaws and strengths before I start a story. All movies and television shows have flawed characters the same as books.

One of my favorite shows, Covert Affairs on the

USA

channel has a flawed hero named Auggie. Auggie is with the CIA, and he works with agents in the field from his desk. He’s a computer nerd and he feeds information to the heroine who is out in the field. Sometimes, he even appears beside the heroine to help her. Auggie has two flaws, he’s blind and he’s a womanizer. Being blind doesn’t stop him at all with the women or from doing his job. Women are attracted to him because of his appearance (good looking), but doubly so when they realize he can’t see them.

One more thing about Auggie, he is not able to do everything that a person who sees can do, but his other senses are heightened, so what he does do is realistic. One thing this program does is show that a blind person isn’t necessarily helpless.

Another show, I enjoy is White Collar. The hero is a con man, and he’s been in prison, but he’s released to the CIA to help solve other white collar crimes. His flaw is he’s a con man (grin), but he has another one. He lost a woman, and he kept hunting for her until last season he learned the truth about her. Now, he’s moving on, but he’s got a secret, which could bring his life down again. He has decisions to make, and I hope he makes the right ones.

I’m going to use one of my books, The Catalyst, as an example of a flawed hero. His name is Walt. Walt is strong, was in the CIA but now works as head of security at a riverboat casino. He has been in love with the casino owner since she was a kid, and he has never married or gone on with his life because of her. This is his flaw to remain in a time warp waiting for her to come to him. True, she’s married, but what hero doesn’t take control, or is he right to wait. Patience is a virtue, isn’t it?

Jake, the hero in Addiction, is judgmental. He doesn’t like alcoholics and doesn’t believe the heroine can change. As the story unfolds, he grows to understand there are other reasons for the way she is, and vows to protect her from the serial killer who is after her.

In The Deceived, Mike has a lot of baggage going back to the loss of his parents. It is the reason he became an FBI agent. He works alone since he lost a partner he’d been involved with on a case.

Sometimes, the hero has minor defects in their character and often they have more than one. To make our characters real, we must give them characteristics of real people. We give them strengths and weaknesses to deal with just like we do in our lives.\

Until next Sunday, enjoy your week.

Sandra K. Marshall

Twitter - @SandraKMarshall

Contest, Contest, Contest

2011-07-16T17:01:00.003-05:00

2nd Annual Christmas in July _TWO_Contests!

Ends July 31st at Midnight.

We only snail mail items to the

U.S.

and Canadian addresses.

CONTEST 1: (Open to readers/unpublished writers, industry reps - NOT published authors unless you're already a RBRU Yahoo group member) Prizes: Amazon/Barnes & Noble $125.00 Gift Certificate, Christmas ornaments, decks of Ellora's Cave/Blush playing cards, RBRU hats, tee-shirts and tote bags.

To enter:

1. Join RBRU yahoo group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/romancebooksrus

2. Visit http://romancebooksrus.blogspot.com. Click on each of the 20 bloggers names left sidebar) to visit their sites. Find the name of one of their books along with the names of the hero and heroine. COLLECT THE 20 BLOGGER NAMES, BOOK NAMES, AND HERO AND HEROINE NAMES. (If a blogger has two pen names, only do one). In ONE email message, send all this information to contest.rbrus@gmail.com

CONTEST 2: (Open to everyone, including published authors) Prize: Amazon/Barnes& Noble $25.00 Gift Certificate.

To enter:

1. Join RBRU Chat group at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rbruchat

2. Become a Follower at our blog: http://romancebooksrus.blogspot.com

Don't you think we have fabulous gifts to offer? We hope you come and enjoy.

Thank you for visiting. Have a good week until next Sunday.

Sandy

http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Are We Proud Americans?

2011-07-09T21:09:00.000-05:00

Hello Everyone,

I’m a proud American. I love my country. Yes, we have problems. Compared to other countries our troubles could be considered small. That being said people in other nations live in really poor conditions. We are having difficult times, but if we pull together like families in the fifties did instead of fighting one another, we’ll pull through like we always do.

Monday was July 4^th, our independence day. We celebrate our independence once a year. I happened to watch CNN news showing emigrants becoming U.S. citizens across the country. It was such a heartwarming scene to watch them raise their hands to become a legal member of our country. I listened to the reasons why they came to the United States. Many of them left horrendous circumstances at home and came to America to start a new life, a new beginning.

These people believe in our country more than many of those who were born here. Americans have become complainers, and we have that right only because of the country we live in. We are able to say and protest against anything we want to.

The wonderful United States of America was founded by emigrants. I have Dutch, German, English and I’ve heard there’s some French in my genes. I hope that these new citizens never become as disgruntled as we have become.

I want to welcome all legal emigrants to our country. I hope you never become disappointed with us, and you always believe in our land as much as you do now.

Sincerely,

Sandra K. Marshall, Author

Happy July 4, 2011

2011-07-03T11:18:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

July 4th is the day, we Americans celebrate our independence from

Britain

. This is the day where carnivals spring up all over the country and fireworks are lit. Families get together for barbeques, hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad and baked beans along with all the condiments.

After the eating comes the fun. Usually, we'll play baseball, touch football, or go to the pool. This is the way it was when I was a kid. Today, things may be a little different since so many kids play on Play Station or Nintendo or computer games of some sort. Whatever we do, we celebrate our freedoms.

On this day, we must remember our boys and girls in the military who aren't at home to celebrate with their families. We must remember all the ones who are still fighting for our independence.

Here is a uTube video that expresses my sentiments: http://www.youtube.com/v/ervaMPt4Ha0&autoplay=1 I have been to this URL, and I believe this video was made by a fifteen year old girl named Lizzie Palmer.

Warning: You'll need a hankie for watching.

I want to add my thanks to our armed forces for fighting for our country. Once again here is a link to go to click on to help our veterans for free: http://www.theveteranssite.com/tpc/ERV_070311_VET

Huge hugs to all of you.

Best always,

Sandra K. Marshall

http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

Interview With Author, L. J. DeLeon

2011-06-25T21:51:00.001-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Today, I would like to introduce urban fantasy author, LJ DeLeon. To me urban fantasy is a cross between science fiction and fantasy, but that's me. Ms. DeLeon has led a very interesting life.

Bio: LJ DeLeon is an Army brat and a world-traveled former CIA Intelligence Analyst who has seen enough of this world to appreciate other worlds. Working for the CIA was great training for writing fantasy, paranormal, and futuristic romance—and understanding the warrior mentality. Amazing how real life and fiction overlap. Honor is the ultimate seduction.

1. Briefly take us on the journey with you – when did you start writing and what hurdles did you have to overcome to get published?

I am an avid reader. When I was stationed at the US Embassy in Switzerland, I read a book that wasn’t just a wall-banger but the kind you wanted to burn in the barbecue. Not knowing better, I said, “I can write better than that!” A year later, I had a completed book. I printed it, read it, and used it to line the cat’s litter box. Then I set about learning how to write fiction. I joined RWA, flew from Switzerland to Chicago to attend my first conference, took every craft workshop they had, and then wrote and wrote and wrote some more.

2. What’s been the greatest contributing factor to achieving your goal of publication?

My husband. Halfway through writing my first novel, I got an idea for the second and started to write it. My husband had me print it out “so he could read it.” Once he had the papers in his hand, he hit the delete button and took my back-up disk. Remember when we had disks? He said, “You get this back after you’ve finished your book. If you don’t finish the first one, you’ll never finish a novel because you’ll always get another idea in the middle of the book you’re currently writing.” He was right.

3. What has surprised you the most about being a published author?

How the pressure increased. I’d always known that authors did their own marketing and had edits, et cetera. The pressure to write the next book surprised me. I had to treat writing like a business. My fans also let me know they are fast readers and want me to write faster so they can get the next book in the Warriors For Light series or The Turner Chronicles. Fans are the true pressure and for them I am grateful. Every time I hit a block, I pull out their letters and read them for inspiration.

4. How do you come up with your story ideas?

I’m a news junkie and I get a lot of my ideas from it. I know it sounds strange, but I watch the news and think, what if? I’ve also always read Fantasy and Science Fiction. So my first inclination is to put a what if into urban fantasy romance or futuristic romance. The key to all my writing is: Honor is the ultimate seduction.

5. Do you have a favorite author?

Now that is mean. I have so many, but I’ll give it a stab. I love Ilona Andrews, Nalini Singh, Allan Cole (anything he writes), Marjorie Liu, among a large number. I’ve also discovered a couple of new indie authors KH Lemoyne and LW Herndon.

6. What did you want to be when you grew up at the ages of 6, 13 and 24?

At six, I wanted to be an explorer. At thirteen, I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer. I was with a swimming team and went to the Junior Olympics. At twenty-three, I was married to a career army officer, who later joined the CIA, and was traveling the world, fulfilling my desire to become an explorer and learning about other cultures.

7. Tell us a little bit about your next book? Will it be a romantic fantasy or some other genre?

They will be urban fantasy like the three books out in the Warriors For Light series. They will be shorter than the first two books in the series Warrior’s Rise & Dragon Child. They will be closer in length to Absolution.

8. Would you like to tell us about your release? How did you come up with the idea?

My next release will be Defiance. It’s due out late July or the middle of August 2011. This story is a shorter one. It is about a major secondary character, Raziel, King of the Seraphim and when he met his mate, Leila. It tells the story of their love match, jealousy, a fight for power, and Beliar’s and Asmodeus’ fall from grace. (I plan to bring out one or two of these shorter books per year of secondary characters. Some of them will be under twenty thousand words.)

Sophie’s Challenge & Kate’s Army will be released late November or early December 2011. These books are part of the main Warriors For Light series arc. You meet Sophie and learn about Kate in Dragon Child.

9. Could you give us a blurb and an excerpt of your story? I'm sure my readers would love to read a little of your story.

Blurb for Warrior’s Rise

For Fae-human half-breed Deva Morgan, life as she knows it changes on her thirtieth birthday. One moment she’s a barkeep, the next she is a warrior fated to save Earth from the Dark Lord and his demon hoard. Shunned by both her races, she faces a danger-filled quest with few allies. Too bad her powers haven’t fully emerged or stabilized.

For Deva it is life or death, on-the-job training with her companion, Padraig O’Neal, a Fae warrior with a shadowed past. Can he quiet the storm raging inside her, help her harness the growing power within her, and provide a barrier between Deva and a fatal outcome? Will their love be enough to save Deva and stop the Dark Lord’s demons from entering Earth?

Excerpt of Warrior’s Rise:

This is the second scene from Warrior’s Rise. Padraig is a Fae warrior who has been sent from Otherworld by the queen to train Deva. This is after Padraig and Deva killed two Fomorii demons.

     For the past hour, Deva had watched Padraig. Everything about him telegraphed, Come near me at your own risk. Yet his swirling silver eyes hypnotized and captivated her, and she couldn’t keep from tracking his movements.
    His intimidating six-foot-six muscled swimmer’s build warned he could take on all comers. A long black leather duster covered his matching vest, pants and black boots that came almost to his knees. They looked like shit-kickers, but she knew they weren’t. Something about them triggered a memory. Silver-blond hair, pulled back in a queue that fell halfway down his back, displayed his regal features in sharp relief.
   The man moved around her bar, silent, like a wraith. Not a whisper from his clothing or footfalls. Her dad moved the same way in Fae-made clothing. As beautiful as Padraig’s movements were, this man was more deadly than a Black Mamba.
    Just a few hours ago, her biggest problem was reining in Mark and Jamie when she’d shouted at them over the music that the table was for pool only! Chastened, they had backed away and raised beer bottles in her direction. In contrast, the co-ed beside them had flipped her off.
    Dressed in jeans, wife-beater t-shirts and scuffed boots, they looked like they’d just come in from a ride on their hogs. Their leather jackets hung on the coat hooks by the door. To norm females, they were attractive bad boys you wanted to reform. Just by walking into a room, they drew every unattached woman. Their brindle hair set off ice blue eyes that danced in delight when looking at any woman.
    Gorgeous werewolves and Steve, her missing wereleopard. A witch, Druid and two mages, or magicks as they like to be called, and a gargoyle. “Monsters,” if one believed human norm fiction. “Warriors For Light” to the Tuatha de Danaan. But Deva simply called them Family.
    Now her biggest problem was safeguarding them all. Unfortunately, she suspected that task was bigger than she could handle.
     Sighing, she forced a smile as Padraig slid onto the stool facing her. Thank the Goddess for the plank of wood between them. Otherwise, she’d embarrass herself by yanking free that leather tie and running her fingers through that long, silky hair.
    “Well done. I was surprised at your ease using the shotgun.”
    As his tongue moistened perfectly sculpted lips, she gripped the counter to keep upright and clinched her teeth to keep from mimicking his action. The weakness in her knees she couldn’t control. His voice flowed over her like warm honey begging to be licked off.
    “My drink?”
    She jerked herself back from her fantasy, reached into the cooler, retrieved another longneck and smacked it onto the bar it on front of him. “I’ve been training for this moment since I was twelve. After eighteen years, I hope I’d be able to take on a demon.”
     “Practice is different from ending an actual life, even that of a Fomorii, especially when it wears a human face.”
     Frowning, she rubbed her shaking hand against the side of her leg. Until the moment she’d pulled the trigger, she hadn’t been sure she could do it. He was right. Killing someone, even a demon, was different than lopping the head off a pumpkin scarecrow.
     She’d always been a healer and a seer at witch level, but three months ago she began changing. Mutating. Now her ability exceeded that of an Earth seer, maybe even one from Otherworld, and that scared the crap out of her. Something caged inside her clawed toward freedom, savage in its demand for release. A tsunami of power was building, waiting, biding its time to break free and erase everything in its path.
     Her eyes lifted and met Padraig’s glacial stare. His words, while comforting, hadn’t touched those frigid silver-gray eyes that broadcasted danger, stay away. He seemed to understand the conflict she’d experienced with her first kill. Perhaps he would be useful after all.
     Damn! What was it about this bad boy that drew her?

Contact information:

For the full first chapter of all my released Warriors For Light and Turner Chronicles books go to my website htttp://www.ljdeleon.com and look under books. This site also has free short stories.

For my blog and information about the Warriors For Light series go to http://www.warriorsforlight.com

Thank you for being with us today, LJ. Your books sound as exciting as your life. May your stories be a huge success. I've enjoyed getting to know you better. I wish I'd known you sooner, I would have liked to have followed you around the world when you were with the C.I.A. Smile.

Until next Sunday, have a great week.

Sandy

Pictures of the Missouri River

2011-06-18T20:01:00.003-05:00

Hi All,

Before, I get started with the purpose of my blog, I want to wish all the father's out there, Happy Father's Day.

Next, I want to tell everyone I will be blogging all day, at Coffee Time Romances blog on Monday the 20th at this URL: http://coffeetimeromance.com/CoffeeThoughts/

Okay, now what I'm really talking about today. There are so many things going on in the world these days, but I'm going to talk about the cities and towns along the Missouri River. The little town I live in is a suburb of Kansas City, and we have been warned of a flood in our area. Gates have been opened to release the water up North of us. Two levees have broken and released more water, and it's headed our way.

My town has done all it can do to prepare for this flood. Some of the businesses in our downtown area have gathered their things and moved them to safety while others can't decide whether to wait longer and hope the water doesn't reach them. It's a quandary for everyone who lives in the flood zone.

Here are some pictures my husband took at the Missouri River this week. The river was high then, but it has rained since the day these were taken and more rain is on the way.

In the above picture, the Corp of Engineers is working on the river. The top picture is a bit deceiving because the width of the river is much greater. We were standing on the Missouri side and on the other side is Kansas.

Here is another picture. You might be able to tell how muddy the river looks. That's how it got the nickname of the Mighty MO or Muddy MO. In these pictures it looks like the river isn't moving, but once again it's appearance is deceiving because the current underneath is very strong.

I feel for all the people who are going through floods, fires, hurricanes and any kind of disaster. With so much going on in the world, I can't understand why so many people try to hurt others. People need our help and not our criticism. You would think, we would work together instead of against one another.

Before I go, I want you to know I have been updating my website, and if you have time take a look at it. http://www.skaymarshall.com

Until next Sunday, take care and have a safe week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publisher.com

Did I Over React?

2011-06-11T22:31:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Earlier this week an incident happened that I may have over reacted to. I'm going to tell you about it to see what you think.

I was in the checkout lane at a local store chain. Hubby was sitting comfortably on some lawn furniture waiting for me to check out. There were four people in front of me and a couple behind me.

When I stand in line anywhere I start making out my check and put everything on it except for the amount. The line moved slowly because everyone had a lot of purchases, and the little boy and girl in the cart in front of me were getting antsy. I was talking to their mom a bit and smiling at the kids and talking to them.

The couple behind me were speaking to each other in Spanish, so I didn't pay any attention to them, since I didn't understand them. One member of the party was talking on the cell phone, but the girl was darting around tapping him on the legs. When they started getting loud and crowding me, I glanced behind me and noted the male had his phone pointed my direction. At this time, I realized they weren't carrying any items to buy. That is when I became concerned because they had been behind me almost the whole time I had been in line.

Hubby came walking up because he'd become worried that they might be trying to get my purse, which was lying in the cart. The couple disappeared right after my husband appeared.

When we got to the cashier, I told him I suspected they were trying to get a picture of my check, and my husband told the cashier what he thought. The young man took what we told him seriously and called his manager. The manager came right away to talk to us, and we explained what we thought might be going on.

The manager immediately checked the security cameras, but since we were so far back when it happened it wasn't caught on tape. My husband was able to give a description of the couple, and the manager said he would walk around to see if he could spot them. Both, hubby and I believed they had left the premises.

Worried, we immediately went to our bank closed out our checking account leaving just enough money there for outstanding checks. We opened another checking account transferring most of our money to the new account.

We, also, had some direct deposits going into our account that had to be changed. It was a hassle, but our credit union was wonderful to work with and took care of everything for us. Both our credit union and the store chain took this matter very serious.

Now, to why I'm wondering if I over reacted; I have no way of knowing what this young couple was up to. Were they trying to get my purse or get information from my check? I have no way of knowing for sure. There actions were enough to arouse suspicions in both me and my husband.

Hubby told me I should have turned around and told them to back off. Instead, I tried to ignore them.

What would you have done in this instance?

Thank you for reading. Until next Sunday have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Things On My Mind

2011-06-04T22:22:00.003-05:00

Hello Folks,

Today, I'm writing about the things I have been thinking about. The first item on my mind is this week I celebrated my sixty-seventh birthday. It's something I would rather not celebrate since it only means I am getting older. When I was young time passed so slowly, but when you get my age the time starts to fly by. Many of my friends and co-workers have died; some of them older than me and others were younger. Yes, it's time to start thinking about one's mortality at my age, and if it weren't for my birth date, I wouldn't give it a thought. After all, your age is just a number, and in my mind I'm still young and able to do all the things when I was thirty. Don't I wish? Smile.

The next thing on my mind is Dory, my tortoiseshell cat. Dory has been sick all week. We took her to the vet on Tuesday because she was throwing up. It had been going on for a couple of weeks, but I had thought it was because she ate fast and didn't chew her food good. She didn't throw up all the time, just a few times a week. The vet gave her a shot, Penicillin, and some hairball medicine. Last night, she started sneezing and coughing. This little girl loves to play, but she hasn't played for a couple of days. We took her to the vet again today. The vet took x-rays and found her stomach is very full, which apparently is unusual. We were told to cut back on her food and instead of giving her hard food to give her soft food. Since, she's never liked the soft food that wasn't an option. We aren't giving her as much hard food. Also, the vet put her on Amoxicillin, since we thought she might be allergic to Penicillin. That hasn't helped the sneezing and coughing, so we may need another trip to the vet on Monday. We love this little fur ball, and we want her well.

Has anyone been watching the Casey Anthony murder trial? I seem to have become addicted to this trial. I have known lots of different kinds of liars in my life, and some even very much like Casey. However, none of them ever murdered their children or anyone else. Not to say Casey murdered her daughter because at this time Casey's only alleged to have committed the crime.

Why am I so interested in this trial? The answer is multifaceted. The little girl, Caylee Anthony, was only two years old about to turn three. Who wouldn't want justice for the little cutie. I find the dysfunction of the Anthony family fascinating. When I was young, I wanted to be a lawyer, so this could be another reason for my attention to this trial. Am I studying the participants in the trial to use as characters in a book? That is always a possibility. To be honest, I think I have become involved in watching this case for the psychological reasons. I want to know what makes people do the things they do. Why are these people like they are?

These are just a few of my thoughts this past week. I want to thank those who visit my blog every week and those who are first time visitors. Have a wonderful June month, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Memorial Day Tribute to Our Military

2011-05-28T22:34:00.003-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Monday is Memorial Day, and I want to express my gratitude to our military for putting their lives on the line to protect our freedom and our country. You are always in my prayers.

I know everyone would like to help veterans but money is tight these days. Here is a way to help without it costing you anything. Go to The Veterans Site at http://www.theveteranssite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=10and click on give. You can ask for a reminder every day to make sure you're giving more than just once. I do this every day to help our veterans. It takes only a few seconds a day. My good friend, Joe Hobbs, does this, too, and I'm sure any veteran will want to do this.

Also, at this time, I want to say something about the horrific weather, tornados, floods, mud slides and hurricanes that have attacked our country along with man made disasters. Our National Guard has been called up in these instances to help at all these locations.

Thank you and have a Happy Memorial Day while we remember the family members we have lost and those who have given their lives for our country.

Until next Sunday have a good week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Do You Skip Scenes When You Read a Book?

2011-05-14T22:43:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

One day, I was talking to a friend on the telephone about what my sister said about my book, Addiction. My friend told me there are parts of a book she skims. I didn't think to ask her what part because I was too stunned? lol

My first thought was why buy a book and skip any part of it? Then, I thought about it some more. I had just finished reading a NY Times best seller, and I remembered reading some parts of the story quickly to get to the action. I love to read romantic suspense, mysteries and espionage, but when they put in more than a sentence or two of setting, I tend to pass over them. I want to find out what is going to happen next.

Other people skip love scenes and some skim over description of characters if there's too much. Anything that is excessive readers tend to skip over.

Have a wonderful week, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

Mother's Day

2011-05-08T08:47:00.003-05:00

Hello Everyone,

If you visit my blog today, I thank you. Happy Mother's Day to all of you mother's out there.

Mother's Day is always a bit sad for me because my mother died April 4th, 1998, of ovarian cancer, and I still miss her. She was a fantastic little lady who was always there for her children even when it was inconvenient for her.

I remember all the times coming home from being out on a date and waking her to tell her all the details about the guy. For some reason, it was never on a day when she was off work, and had to get up at 5 a.m. Poor mom, she put up with it and listened to what I had to say and often gave great comments. Smile.

Many afternoons, after she came home from work, she played bad mitten with us. She allowed us to have parties at our house. The guys loved her and would always get her up to dance. Many of them were in the military and missed their own mom's, and so my mom became their mom away from home.

There is so much more I can tell you about my mom, but I would go on and on. Smile.

Love you, Mom.

Have a great day and a happy week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

Review of Addiction

2011-04-30T22:45:00.005-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Okay, I normally wouldn't do this but I thought my sister was honest in her review. However, it was just her opinion, and I would love to have others comment who have read Addiction. Below is what she said about Addiction:

"I stayed up until almost midnight to finish the last 70 pages of your book. You did a great job telling the story. It was interesting and held my attention. BLANK (I took this part out because she gave away the killer in this part of the review) Basically, what she said is that I was clever. lol The only parts of the book I didn't really care for were the way too graphic for me raunchy sex. The romance was missing. I enjoyed the story though. You have come a long way in your writing. Congratulations."

Is this a good review? Well, it depends on how you look at it. lol I certainly won't pick up any inspirational readers and maybe I won't get the romance readers. Not unless you like raunchy sex. Wink! But then I might pick up some men readers because men like raunchy sex. hehehe

Other reviews can be found on Amazon and at these links:
http://bkwalkerbooks.weebly.com/1/post/2009/12/-read-review-of-addiction-by-sandra-k-marshall.html

http://ddrreviews.blogspot.com/2010/01/addiction-by-sandra-k-marshall.html

http://www.nightowlreviews.com/nor/Reviews/Vee-reviews-Addiction-by-Sandra-K-Marshall.aspx

That's it for this Sunday. Have a great week.

Sandy or Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Mistakes, I Made In an Old Book

2011-04-23T20:54:00.003-05:00

Happy Easter Everyone,

Can you remember hunting for Easter eggs as a child? I do, and I remember it being sunny, but we're going to have rain. Smile. I hope you have a bright sunny day planned with family and friends whether it's raining or not.

Last week, I told you I would tell about the mistakes I made on a book I wrote eleven years ago set at the old TWA overhaul maintenance base and tell you why it never sold. There were so many things wrong with The Beast Within that I have had to rewrite most of the story so far, and I'm not finished. There are pieces I'm able to save, but not a lot. I'm only a fourth of the way finished with the first revisions.

I'm not going to tell you everything that is wrong with this story because they are far too numerous to mention. Besides, you only need to know the big mistakes I made.

Number one mistake I made was to put in way too much detail about the work being done at the overhaul base. Only people who work at an airline facility would have the faintest inkling of what I was talking about in that story. Most readers would be bored after just a few pages and toss the book in the trash. I'm removing everything that doesn't move the story and characters forward. Only what pertains to the story will remain.

Some of you may wonder why I made such a huge error. I did it because I knew too much about the inner workings of an airline maintenance base and not enough about writing a story. Not many people know about moc tags, planning, scheduling, mods, air directives, dampers and airline parts.

When I removed most of this kind of stuff my story was shortened a bunch. That tells you how much jargon about the maintenance was in there. Most of it was unnecessary. Smile.

Some other things wrong with this story is that my characters weren't very likeable because they didn't show enough emotion. I needed to get deeper into their thoughts so the reader understood the characters and empathized with them. Hopefully, I'll be able to fix these problems.

The transitions weren't smooth and I did some head hopping in points of view. This was something I knew and thought I had fixed before but that wasn't the case.

These are just a few of the problems that I need to fix. The book will need at least three revisions before I can start resubmitting it, and then there are no guarantees the story will go to contract. If it does go to contract, I'll have three more revisions.

Starting on Monday, I'm at the Tiki Hut blog from April 25th through May 1st - http://www.AuthorIslandTikiHut.blogspot.comif you would care to visit. I'm having a contest there and the prize is a $15.00 iTunes gift card.

Have a wonderful Easter weekend. See you next week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Rewriting A Book

2011-04-16T21:28:00.004-05:00

Hello Everyone,

First, I want to tell you I had a great time at the writer's retreat. Worked a lot, went to workshops and ate way too much. Smile. We laughed and visited with friends and even got in some walking. Yay! After all the food, we needed the exercise.

I'm posting my blog early because hubby and I are meeting some friends in the afternoon for lunch and then going to a late mass for Palm Sunday.

Today, I'm going to tell you about a book I wrote over eleven years ago. I started writing THE BEAST WITHIN while I was still working at Trans World Airlines and finished it after I retired.

I sent query letters out and received requests for either a chapter and synopsis, a partial (a synopsis and three chapters) or the whole manuscript. I was so proud of this book, and I knew I would get a contract with it.

THE BEAST WITHIN was set at the T.W.A. maintenance overhaul base in Kansas City, and I was thrilled at the response to my query letter until the big R's started coming in (Rejections). Some of them were kind but most were form rejections that didn't tell me what was wrong.

For me this book was the best I'd written to this point. But eleven years ago that wasn't good enough. To be honest the query letter was better than the book, and that was why I received so many requests for my story.

A couple of months ago, I picked up the manuscript to read because I wanted to see if it was as good as I had thought. I read the first fifty pages shaking my head the whole time wondering how I could think I'd written such a great story. After those pages, I went back and started marking through everything that needed to come out and rewriting the story.

I have changed the name of the book to Rumbles, Rumors and Lies. Out of ninety-two pages, I've eliminated forty pages so far. Next week, I will tell you what I did wrong to have to completely rewrite this story, and it won't be an easy task.

You can find my anothology Fool Me Twice at http://www.eirelander-publishing.com, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords and AllRomanceEbooks.

See you next Sunday. Have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com http://www.sandramarshallblog.blogspot.com Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556 My Space - http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall Twitter - SandraKMarshall LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sandy-marshall/1a/851/a04 Good Reads - http://www.goodreads.com/skmarshall

No Post This Weekend

2011-04-07T16:06:00.005-05:00

Hi Everyone,

For all of you who drop in faithfully to read my blog every Sunday. I want you to know I'm not posting anything because I'm going out of town, Friday, for a writer's retreat and won't be back until late Sunday.

Have a great week. I'll be back next Sunday.

Hugs,

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/

Diversity: Do You Have More Than One Publisher?

2011-04-03T08:23:00.006-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I am an author, and I've had books published with two publishers. My first publisher closed due to health problems, but there are many reasons why authors change publishers.

Some change because there editor leaves and the new editor is not as enthused about the author's work. Sometimes, an author will change genres, and there publisher doesn't publish that genre so the author moves on. Then there are editors and authors who butt heads, which causes that editor to drop that author. If an editor thinks an author is getting stagnant she/he might get dropped. An author may be offered more money at another house, so she moves there. There are many reasons for leaving a publishing company.

I'm old school and have a tendency to be loyal to those who are loyal to me. After all, I worked for the same company for 36 years before retiring, but does that work in the publishing industry? There isn't much loyalty out there these days between companies and employees. Our young people tend to move a lot, and it's usually for the money.

Do you know of any other reasons an author would move to a different publisher than the ones I've mentioned?

Have a great Sunday, and I'll see you next week.

Hugs,
Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/
http://www.skaymarshall.com/

Review of Tainted By Temptation

2011-03-27T07:27:00.007-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Today, I'm doing a review of a book I just read. It's a gothic historical in the tradition of the classics such as Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre. The title is Tainted by Temptation by Katy Madison.

I was drawn into this story to stay until I finished by the sufferings of these characters brought about by their peers. It showed me that in this respect our lives never change. There will always be those who will try to push you down no matter what your circumstances in life are. As Lucien and Velvet fight their own battles of the innuendoes voiced against each for different reasons, they learn to trust one another.

This is a wonderful story, but is not for children because unlike the classics Tainted by Temptation does have love scenes in it. If you have teenagers you have discussed sex with, they can probably be allowed to read it. This is just a discretionary note. Tainted by Temptation can be found at all local book stores and Amazon.

Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Hugs,
Sandy

http://www.skaymarshall.com/

Pseudonyms

2011-03-20T09:09:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone,

I'm blogging about pseudonyms because I want to get your thoughts on a new name. When I first started writing, I tried to figure out a new name for myself. I came up with Alice Walker, my mother's middle name and maiden name. LOL Guess what? There was a very famous author with that name. I tried other variations, but none of them seemed right.

I kept trying to figure something out, but everyone said you don't want to use a name at the end of the alphabet, or your books will be placed at the end of the shelves for that genre. I don't have to worry about that problem any more because my books aren't on shelves. They are on digital sites.

The reason, I have started thinking about using a pseudonym again is because there is a children's author out there with the name of Sandra K. Marshall. Another author writes about addictions. Our books are being placed together at Amazon and Good Reads, which is very confusing for my readers. There are probably other places that are doing the same thing, but I haven't looked.

What do you think? Should I change my name, and what should it be? How do I come up with a name? What about S.K. Zinn-Marshall, K.A. Walker, or something not even related to me? There are an awful lot of Sandra K. Marshall's out there who aren't authors. lol

Then I have to worry if my readers will follow me, or not? Worry! Worry!

On to another topic, Fool Me Twice is up now at Amazon.

Thank you for listening to me rant a bit.

See you next Sunday, and I hope all of you have a great week.

Hugs,
Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Release Day for Fool Me Twice

2011-03-18T13:29:00.006-05:00

Hello Everyone,

I've had nothing but trouble with this blog today, and I finally realized it's because I saved it as a draft, and so when I published it the blog showed under last Sunday's blog. Anyway, here it is.

Author, Sandra Sookoo, and I have written short stories for Fool Me Twice being released today at Eirelander Publishing.

My story is, A Fool's Fool, and here is tag line and blurb.

Pranks are carried too far.

Jason Barrone, co-owner of Gagsters is attracted to his assistant and will not allow his best friend to cause him to lose her. He wants them to be friends because he doesn't want to be forced to make a choice of who goes and who stays.

This story is a contemporary romance and very different from my usual stories.

Blurb for Remembering Andy:

Devastated after finance dies in Iraq, Claudia Foster packed up her life and moved to the city of Indianapolis. She wants to lose herself in the noise, sights and sounds of a place so foreign from her upbringing that nothing could remind her of her guilt surrounding Andy's death. But fate has other plans.

Daniel Sorenson has put all thoughts of his brother Andy's death from his mind just to get through the day yet running into Claudia again stirs up all the hidden feelings he has struggled so hard to hide. How can you love the girl who was supposed to marry your dead brother?

As the two share their grief, they also share something deeper: laughter. But is it enough? Or will they spend their whole lives simply remembering Andy and never embrace the love that could be theirs if only they could have the courage to reach for it.

Sandra is a writer of romantic fiction. Her portfolio includes historical, contemporary, sci-fi and paranormal romances in full length as well as shorts. She loves to blend genres, spice them up and often times will add humor as well.

When not immersed in creating new worlds and interesting characters, Sandra likes to read, bake and travel. Her favorite place to spend vacation hours is Walt Disney World. It's where dreams come true and the soul can play. When she's not writing, she's keeping things interesting at the Believing is Seeing blog or spending time with her husband.

You can write to Sandra at sandrasookoo@yahoo.com, visit her website at http://www.sandrasookoo.com/ or look her up on Facebook and Twitter.

I'll be back at my usual time on Sunday. I hope everyone had a happy St. Paddy's day.

Fool Me Twice can be found at http://www.eirelander-publishing.com http://allromanceebooks.com/product-foolmetwice-525509-149.html and Smashswords

Sandy

More Miscellaneous Tidbits

2011-03-13T08:48:00.013-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Today, my blog is going to be very short. I had something else planned for today, but as usual my plan didn't work out, so I'm just going with flow.

My first tidbit is to let you know my new book is being released from Eirelander Publishing on March 18th instead of April 1st. Fool Me Twice is a duet, and my story is titled A Fool's Fool and the fellow author, Sandra Sookoo, has a story titled Remembering Andy. There will be more to follow in a future blog. You can see the bookcover on the left side here.

I'm sure all of you have been glued to your televisions this past week. The castastrophe in Japan has all of us concerned on many levels. I had tears in my eyes over the loss of almost an entire town. As if an earthquake and a tsunami aren't enough they are faced with an explosion at a nuclear plant. I haven't had time to listen to the news on that, so don't know how bad that is yet.

One more thing, did you remember to set your clocks ahead? I didn't. lol

That's it for this week, folks. I'm hoping to post an early blog on March 18th.

Sandy

http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/

Facebook

Review of Cattitude by Edie Ramer

2011-03-06T01:50:00.005-06:00

Hi Everyone,

I stayed up late tonight because I was reading Cattitude. This is a fun, cute story with just the right amount of suspense in it. Where else could you read about a woman and a cat changing bodies. lol It has many surprising twists to them, and Edie does a good job with her characters.

There were a few things I found wrong like the names of a couple of characters were switched a couple of times, but I still knew who the characters were, so I didn't stop reading. Some missed words and a couple of times where a word shouldn't have been there, but none of these things made me stop reading.

All in all, Cattitude is a good story, and I would recommend it because it made me want to keep turning the pages. This author is only going to get better. She writes with passion.

Buy links are UK Amazon, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Smashswords
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cattitude/dp/B0040ZN224/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293935559&sr=8-1-catcorr

http://amzn.to/9srOfi

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Cattitude/Edie-Ramer/e/9781452469898/?itm=1&USRI=cattitude+by+edie+ramer

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/22350

That's it for this week, but I'll be back next Sunday. Have a great week.

Sandy

http://www.skaymarshall.com/; http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/; Facebook

The Gamblers Superstitions

2011-02-27T09:32:00.005-06:00

Hello Everyone,

Is everyone tired of winter yet? Well, today, I'm giving you a break from the snow, ice, sleet, wind, slush, mud and whatever else you have in your winter. A couple of weeks ago, I visited a blog and they talking about superstitions. My first thought was this ties in with The Odyssey Mysteries trilogy I wrote. There's no group of people more superstitious than gamblers. Ha!

Here are a few of the more common lucky or unlucky symbols and objects that gamblers think give them an edge. Wink! For starters, the rabbit's foot (remember the old movies where the gambler rubbed his rabbit's foot?), some believe wearing the same article of clothing such as hat or jacket brings them luck, a figurine, and wearing red underwear (red is considered the color of prosperity and good fortune).

The number eight in Asian culture is lucky because the word for eight in Chinese is similar to the word prosperity. Four is an unlucky number because the word in Chinese is pronounced like the word for death. In Asian cultures, flowers are considered good luck and water is a sign of prosperity and plentiful luck.

Some gamblers hold their cards or throw their dice a certain way. Don't tap someone on the shoulder when they are playing--that's considered bad luck. Don't sit cross legged when gambling, you will cross out your luck, and don't drop a card on the floor during a game.

Some other popular superstitions are it's unlucky to enter the casino by the main entrance. This superstition started when MGM in Las Vegas was themed after the MGM film studio and the main entrance was the mouth of the lion. Many players considered it a double curse to walk into the mouth of the beast along with the fact that it was the main entrance to the casino.

Many gamblers believe $50.00 bills are unlucky and will not accept being paid with them. Some people regard the $2.00 bill as unlucky. Never count your money while you are playing is a common belief. Kenny Rogers even immortalized this concept in his song the Gambler. Singing or whistling while gambling is considered bad luck.

Some guests at a hotel casino may ask the dealer or some other guest to not look at them because they believe it brings them bad luck. If you're a high roller, you can even ask to have a new dealer if the player thinks the one at his table is causing him bad luck.

Professional poker player, Johnny Chan has a lucky orange and poker star, Annie Duke, uses math and skill. Duke has a degree in cognitive science and a master's degree in math and probability. She says she encourages superstitions in other players because then they play badly. Former baseball player, Giannos, carries a red envelope he received as a gift 20 years ago. Some people believe it's lucky to set the dice a certain way, but Giannos just picks them up and throws them.

Did you know that some casinos in Vegas even keep the items on their property that many of the high rollers believe are lucky. For instance, the MGM Grand keeps a lucky frog figurine on property for one high roller so his lucky charm will be waiting for him.

Next, is the superstitions of the slot player. Wink! Now, I'm really shaking my head. Slot machines are a game of chance but not to some people. lol Some people think it has to do with the temperature of the coin that you put in the slot. They think the hot coin tricks the slot machine into paying out, while others think it's the cold ones. Some think if you stand you'll win more and others think if you are too relaxed at the slot machine you'll lose. lol

Others think that the casino is watching your every move and if you are winning a lot they cause the machine to quit paying out. If you're losing they will cause you to win so that you stay longer. Casinos do not have the power to change the slot machine. This is why they have regulators who check the slot machines for tampering. There are those who believe if an operator comes along to interrupt their play to inspect the slot machine that they are setting it to lose - not true, and also against the law.

Often people believe the newer casinos and machines pay out better than those that are older. There are many slot myths out there, and here are the more common ones.

Slot machines have a set pattern or sequence of spins that can be determined through careful and intense study. Not true -- there is a random number generator numbers which generate millions of combinations of numbers a minute. Whether or not you win this time, the first time, the last time, your chances of winning are the same each and every time. You could play for three hours and the next person walks up and wins. This doesn't mean they got your win, they just got lucky.

Someone just sat down where I left and hit a big jackpot. If I would have just stayed longer, it would have been mine. For this to be true, you would have had to push the spin button or pull the handle at exactly the same split micro second that the other player did. Any change in timing yields a different result.

I have played this machine for 5 (or 8 or 20) straight days and haven't hit the jackpot. It has to be ready to hit any time now. The odds of hitting the jackpot are exactly the same on the first spin and the fifteen thousandth spin. Slot machines are never due. Remember that all of the percentages are based on millions of spins, and for a player to even 500,000 spins at 500 spins an hour he or she would have to play for 1,000 hours. And even that is no guarantee of a jackpot.

That slot machine jus paid out a big jackpot. I'm not going to play it because it has to make up for the big win. Remember that slot machines are designed to average a certain payout percentage over millions of spins. The short term means nothing so a machine that just paid out a jackpot has the exact same odds before and after the jackpot.

Slot machines pay more often if I only bet one coin at a time. The mechanism that runs the slot reels, whether they are real or videos, doesn't know how many coins you put into the machine. It will produce the same spin whether you play one or max coins.

Casinos control when jackpots will be hit. The random number generator in the slot machine determines when the jackpot will hit. The casino can't control this in any way.

I have a better chance to hit a jackpot when the casino is busy. While this is true, the reason for this is that more people are playing. For example, let's say a machine hits one time out of every 1,000 spins, if the machine gets 200 spins when the casino is slow and 800 spins when it is busy, which time will it more likely hit?

All information for this blog came from Slots Hero, http://www.slotshero.com/slots/myths; Slot Machine Fan, http://www.slotmachinefan.com/slot-machines/tips/superstitions.htm; Gambling Superstitions at About.com and Pressing your luck in Vegas and Vegas Superstitions. You can find all of these and more by searching Google.

This week, I earned ninth place for my blog in Bold eZine. I was very flattered to win such a high spot with them.

I hope you have found my blog of interest today. Until next Sunday, have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com; http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556; http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Stylish Blogger Award

2011-02-20T07:43:00.005-06:00

Thanks to Annie Nicholas for awarding me the Stylish Blogger Award. You may visit her site here.

According to the award, I have to tell you seven things about myself. Yikes!

1. I have traveled in Egypt and there is so much history there. I could spend all my time
traveling.

2. When I was a kid, I loved picking peas out of the garden and eating them.

3. My husband made me make a choice between him and my horse, when he saw my
horse almost kick me in the head. He didn't want to be married to a vegetable.

4. I love to read but rarely have time to any more, since I'm a published author.

5. I have two cats named Dora and Midnight. It was a year February 18, 2010 when our
cat, Maxie, died. My dh and I still miss him.

6. I love the mountains, the ocean, the forest, the desert, and everything about our earth.

7. Colorado is a beautiful state, and I love to go there to visit my sister and her family.
We have so much fun together.

If you haven't seen my YouTube videos yet be sure to take a look:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jvpp21_WME and http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=e684nldayz0

Have a great week everyone. See you next Sunday.

Sandy

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954456

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sandy-marshall/1a/851/a04

A Real Life Story

2011-02-13T07:27:00.008-06:00

Hello Everyone,

Please welcome a dear friend of mine, author, Marianne Stephens. Marianne writes both fiction and non-fiction. Today, we're going to discuss her latest release, a non-fiction book titled, GUILTY SURVIVOR: MEMOIRS OF TAMERLA KENDALL.

SKM: Marianne, I'm curious to know what prompted you to write this book?

MS: Thank you for having me here today, Sandy! A friend knew I was an author and that Tamerla was looking for someone to write her story. After talking to her, I felt she had a fascinating story to tell.

SKM: Did you meet this lady?

MS: I met Tamerla almost three years ago. Started meeting with her to gather information and take notes…also tape-recorded our sessions. It took two years to gather information and write her story…longer than I’d planned…because I ended up having lots of medical issues/surgeries for most of the first two years.

SKM: Is it easier to write non-fiction than fiction? How long did it take you to write this book?

MS: It took longer to write this, only because of my medical problems. In a way, it’s easier to write nonfiction because the facts are there and that’s what you follow. You still have to be creative in organizing the facts into story form. Then again, in a way it’s harder than writing fiction…can’t be as creative with the story and characters.

SKM: Marianne, tell us a bit about Tamerla Kendall.

MS: Tamerla had a fascinating upbringing and job experiences…model, hairdresser, college student, etc. Her past helped her when war came, since she needed to be self-reliant and find the courage to remain in Sarajevo in the hopes of saving her family restaurant business. Someone without inner strength would never have stayed. Every experience made her stronger, but still vulnerable to hurt and heartache. She’s a busy, active woman, now living in the US as a citizen and hoping to earn a college degree as she works.

SKM: List where we can find you/your books.
Marianne Stephens (mainstream romance and nonfiction)/April Ash (erotic romance)
http://www.mariannestephens.net/
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/profile.php?id=1518319389
http://www.aprilash.net/prilash.net/
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/profile.php?id=1683746739
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/romancebooksrus
http://romancebooksrus.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/AuthorMarianneS
http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=62849416&trk=tab_pro
http://alldayallnightromancedivas.blogspot.com/
My Books:
http://www.secretcravingspublishing.com/MarianneStephens.html
http://www.jasminejade.com/m-310-marianne-stephens.aspx sminejade.com/m-310-marianne-stephens.aspx
http://www.jasminejade.com/m-441-april-ash.aspx
http://www.breathlesspress.com/
ALSO:
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks, OmniLit, Book Stand

SKM: Do you have a blurb or an excerpt you would like to leave for my readers?

MS: Here’s my press release:

She looks like any woman you see rooting for her son at a sporting event or shopping for groceries. Yet, Tamerla Kendall's past includes masquerading as a United Nations soldier and riding in a tank in order to cross Bosnian War (1992-1995) checkpoints to visit family...and facing interrogation by the police because someone betrayed her trust.

Another dangerous trip had her switching cars and drivers to get through checkpoints, done to get her daughter to the safety of family outside the war zone in Sarajevo...only to return and find her home torched and family restaurant robbed. Her daughter, brainwashed by her father, believed she'd been abandoned by her mother, causing years of heartbreaking separation and non-communication.

With either trip, she risked getting caught, arrested, or shot. And, with each trip, came the critical decision to return to Sarajevo to save the family restaurant business. Each day presented the challenge of finding supplies on the Black Market or by bartering with the military to keep her restaurant operating.

"Guilty Survivor - Memoirs of Tamerla Kendall" by Marianne Stephens, presents the memoirs of Bosnian Croat, Tamerla Kendall...now Kansas City resident and US citizen. Grenade bombings of her restaurant, cleaning blood off the streets and buildings after random attacks, and witnessing people dead and dying, convinced her she'd be able to shoot the gun she'd bought for protection. When a gun was pointed at her head and her family threatened after the war because she'd married an American, Tamerla made the crucial decision to move to the United States.

SKM: This sounds like such a wonderful and heartbreaking story, Marianne. I wish you the best in getting Tamerla's life story out for everyone to read.

Have a good week everyone and see you next Sunday. Yay! The snow is melting. Grin.

Have a loverly Valentine's Day tomorrow.

Sandy

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1496954556

http

Do You Like Social Media?

2011-02-06T10:00:00.001-06:00

Hi Everyone,

There are social media's like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace to name a few. Do you prefer these places to keep in contact with family, friends and for making new friends? Or do you prefer email, or even receiving mail through the postal service?

For me, I still love to receive real Christmas, Valentine, birthday and thank you cards more than eCards for those occasions. The reason I do is because they are more personal and if it says something special I'll keep them. Yep, I'm a pack rat when it comes to cards.

Do you like social media and is it important to you? I'm an author, and I mostly use places like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter to promote my books. For the last few days, I've read blogs that address how to use social media for promotion. I've learned that I'm doing it all wrong.

What am I doing wrong? I'm not participating on these sites, not even on my home page. You should join a few groups you're interested in. I do belong to a few groups, but most of them I have not stayed in contact with. Sometimes, I post promo on my books or let everyone know I have a new blog post. That is a no-no if you don't stay around to chat.

Time decides if I can stay around to chat even a few seconds. I have a love-hate relationship with social media. Because of social media I don't have to go away from home to promote my books, but it still eats up a lot of time

Social media can be a blessing or a curse. What do you think?

Until next Sunday, have a great safe and warm week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com; http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Charities

2011-01-29T21:36:00.005-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Money is tight. We all know that. Most of us are tightening our belts and trying to think of ways to conserve. Anyway, I know I am. If we still have our homes, jobs, food, and enough money to pay our bills then we are the lucky ones.

During the holidays there are always charities like the Salvation army, Harvesters, Toys for Tots and various other organizations asking for help. All year long, we are bombarded with notices from cancer organizations needing money, churches, City Union Mission and so many more.

Do you give? Who do you decide to give to? We want to help everyone but there's only so much one person can do. I want to give to St. Jude's, cancer organizations, help feed the homeless, prevent child hunger, give to Save the World, to literacy, food pantries and many others.

Hubby and I give to three or four different organizations, which has been cut way back compared to what we used to do. We've had to cut back like everyone else. At the same time, we know how lucky we are. We are truly blessed because we have our home, furniture, heat, lights, food and enough money to get by on.

We still try to help others when we can. I have found a way to help several organizations just by clicking on a button using my computer. It only takes a few seconds every day to click on these organizations. I'm an animal lover so the very first one I started with was the Animal Rescue Site at http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/tpc/ERA_012711_ARS. Once you're in there you can click and then vote for the animal rescue site near you.

Once you finish you can click on the other sites found across the top of this site. Click on: Hunger, breast cancer, child hunger, literacy, and rain forest. This doesn't cost you a penny and you feel good because you're helping someone. I have the animal rescue site send me a reminder every day, so I won't forget. Thirty seconds out of your life every day and you're helping six organizations at no cost to you. I hope some of you will join me and help.

Have a great week and stay warm and safe.

Sandy

http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/

http://www.skaymarshall.com/

Interview With Hero, Mike Mercer

2011-01-23T08:05:00.007-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Welcome Mike Mercer, FBI agent extraordinaire to my blog today. A few weeks ago I interviewed Melanie Dubois, the heroine in my book, The Deceived. Some of the people commented wanted to learn about the hero. He's a quiet, handsome fellow, but I did convince him that he needed to open up more, or he wasn't going to have a following for his story.

SKM: Mike, I understand you were raised by a Wicca Witch in the bayous of Louisiana. Is that true?

MM: You like to attack, don't you?

SKM: Hey, no fair, I'm interviewing you and not the other way around.

MM: Humph!

SKM: Okay, we'll get back to that later. What do you think about a certain honey-
blonde by the name of Melanie Dubois?

MM: What am I supposed to think?

SKM: I'm asking the questions. Don't you think she's pretty, nice body, or do you think she's just a nuisance?

MM: I would say she's all three. Mike pauses. Also, she has a good heart. She cares
about others.

SKM: Ah, we're getting somewhere now. Does Ms. Dubois attract you physically?

MM: Well hell, I'm not dead.

SKM: No you aren't. She fans herself, and says, All you Elvis fans remember what Elvis looked like when he was young. Mike has the sideburns, and he's lean but he
has a few more inches than the real one and brown eyes. I forgot to tell you, he can sing Elvis songs. Okay, so you do like Melanie Dubois.

MM: He shrugs and looks down. She's hot. He looks back up. She's in trouble and
doesn't even realize it.

SKM: Are you going to save her?

MM: That's my objective along with catching the bad guys.

SKM: Back to the first question: Were you raised by a Wicca Witch?

MM: Yes. He crossed his arms and glared at me.

SKM: Would you care to elaborate?

MM: No. It's personal.

SKM: Where were your parents.

MM: That's off-limits.

SKM: Oh, come on, Mike. You said you would open up. Silence! Okay, one last
question, do you believe in Wicca magic?

MM: No. Well, maybe. I would use anything that would help me to save Melanie, but
wouldn't know if magic worked or my own endeavors. Mike stands. I've got to go.

SKM: Standing, she shakes hands with Mike. It's been a pleasure to talk to you today.
I'm sure your fans learned more about you today through our discussion.

MM: Humph. More like an interrogation. Realizing, he's being grumpy, he smiles,
pearly white teeth showing. Sorry, if I seem grouchy. It's because I just came out of a coma.

SKM: Oh my goodness, tell me what happened.

MM: Another time. Maybe!

SKM: Well folks that's all I could get out of FBI agent, Mike Mercer. She watched him walk away while admiring his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs.

That's all for today. I hope you enjoyed my interview with Agent Mercer. Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Sandy AKA Sandra K. Marshall,
Author of The Catalyst, Addiction and The Deceived
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

What Do You Like or Dislike About Winter?

2011-01-16T08:41:00.004-06:00

Hi Everyone,

You're probably wondering what I'm going to write about on this topic. Well, you aren't the only ones. Grin. For the last few days, I have been saying over and over, I hate winter. Of course, the thought spawned this topic.

I don't like cold, so I don't like winter, but I do think the snow and ice in winter is a beautiful wonderland, so that means I like it. Well, I like it if I am not out in it. Looking at winter is fine but having to get outside to shovel the driveway, sidewalks or to drive in the stuff is not fun.

In the winter, I've always hibernated like a bear by not getting out other than when I had to go to work. As soon as I got home from work, I liked to curl up with a blanket, a good book and a cup of hot tea or hot chocolate. See winter sounds better all the time.

When I was a kid I loved sledding in the snow, but that was a long time ago. Smile. I don't like going downhill on a sled anymore or walking back up the hill. I like to watch out the window from inside my nice warm home when kids slide down the hill. They laugh and holler looking like they are having so much fun and it is a joy to see.

I like it when carolers come to the house to sing while standing in the snow. Of course, I stay inside my nice warm house to listen. Often, we would invite the carolers in for some hot beverage to warm them before they went to the next house. There were times when I was even one of the carolers.

At different times of our live we enjoy the opposite of what we used to like. Tell me some of your favorite things about winter and those you dislike as well.

Thank you for visiting today. Have a great week, stay safe and warm.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Interview with K.T. Bishop

2011-01-09T11:36:00.013-06:00

Hello Everyone,

I want you to welcome my good friend and fellow author, K.T. Bishop. He's the short guy with boxer, Roy Jones Junior. What a pair they make. LOL I'm so glad to have you here today, K.T., but you don't know what you're in for because I'm one nosy broad, and I have lots of questions for you. Grin!

Before we get started, what is your beverage of choice?

Mr. Pibb or Mountain Dew. I don't want you to get dry mouth. Hands him a Mountain Dew, and then they relax against thick cushions on the couch.

Tell me a little bit about yourself, K.T.

I've written my entire adult life. For the past 18 years, I've worked as a sportswriter at a newspaper on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I've won a few awards, including being part of a Pulitzer prize winner.

SKM: What made you become a multi-culture, sports romance writer?

K.T.: Since I was a teenager, I've always wanted to write a book. Once I wrote the first one, the feeling never went away. I've written 13 books, and seven will be published by the spring of 2011.

SKM: That's wonderful news, K. T.. Congratulations! Was there any person who inspired you to write these stories? I think they are unique and not widely accepted by the publishing industry.

K.T.: Picking Cotton came from a girl that I didn't know. The football team wanted to date her, but she left after one year. She was one of the most beautiful girls I ever saw. The College Love 101 series was loosely based on my sophomore year of college. The summer of 1990 meant so much to me.

SKM: Beautiful cover, K.T.. Since you have three threads, sports, multi-cultures and romance, in your story is it hard to weave them together?

K.T.: Not really, because athletic events usually produce beautiful love stories. For example, a star quarterback always ends up with the head cheerleader. What about a cheerleader and nerd getting together? The dynamics exist for romance in sports, and I try my best to find it.

SKM: Where do you get the inspiration for your books?

K.T.: When I lived in Florida, three nieces (ages 2, 5, and 8) always interfered with my thoughts. Just as I was about to begin a chapter or start another book, they demand I take them to the park or for ice cream. The time away gave me a new perspective on what I was writing at the time.

SKM: Where do you think the publishing industry is headed? Do you think some day
there will only be eBooks or something even more modern? For instance, we might
be able to say the name of a book and the words appear in the air for us to read. lol
You know something very futuristic. Snort!

K.T.: In five years, E-books will have taken over. Print books are slowly becoming obsolete, as we speak. That's unfortunate for someone like me who just got into this business. I just love the smell of a print book, makes you feel legit.

SKM: What's the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you?

K.T.: When I was playing high school football and my pants fell down in front of everyone (teammates, opponents and fans) to see.

SKM: LOL I had something similar happen to me, but that's for another time. Since you write love scenes have you ever had sex in a public spot? lol I'm putting you in the hot seat now. Wink!
K.T.: My junior year in high school just ended. It was a rainy, thunderous Saturday morning in June. This girl, who had this huge crush on me, dropped by my house. I sat in her car. She wanted me to kiss her. My lips touched the groove of her neck and cheekbone. She did the same to me, but wanted our lips to touch. We connected and she grabbed my hardened cock. We made love in her silver Chevette.

SKM: Whoa! I just never understand how girls could make out in a car. To me there wouldn't be much enjoyment to having sex there. Well, lets move on. What did you want to be when you were growing up?

K.T.: Napolean was one of my heroes and I wanted to rule the world like him. I admired Napolean for overcoming his shortness to dominate the world for a short period of time.

SKM: All the short people I know want to rule the world. lol What are you working on now, K.T.?

K.T.: I am real excited about 2011, where my Love Holiday Series will be coming out. You know how time flies, Thanksgiving will be here before we know it.

SKM: Yes, time does fly. Tell us where we can find you?

K.T. Here are my sites: http://redrosepublishing.com/books/index.php?manufacturers_id=100; http://www.ktbishop.webs.com/

K.T., thank you for coming to chat with me today. I've enjoyed getting to know you even better than before. Smile.

K.T.: Hope I didn't come away thinking that I need a psychiatrist. I always love the time and chance to promote my books.

SKM: Oh come on, I'm not that tough that I would drive you to need mental health help. Snort!

Below, you'll see some more covers of K.T.'s books. By the way, I think all of your covers are beautiful. These are just a few of the books, K.T. has written, and I hope some of my readers will be interested in them.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. Good luck with your stories, K.T. I forgot to tell you that I have a couple of your books. Once, I've read them I'll do a review at this site.

See you next week, folks.

Sandy AKA Sandra K. Marshall
Author of The Catalyst, Addiction, and The Deceived
http://www.eirelanderpublishing.com/

Book Review for Lying Eyes by Amy Atwell

2011-01-02T09:47:00.000-06:00

Happy New Years to all of my wonderful followers and friends. Two thousand eleven will be a great year.

Remember a few weeks ago I interviewed Amy Atwell at my blog. Well, after all the holiday celebrations I took time out for myself and read her book. What a roller coaster ride it was to read. I mean that in a very good way.

What better way to start out the new year than by reading a book. Last night, I started reading Lying Eyes by Amy Atwell and stayed up until 12:30 this morning to finish this really intriguing and funny story.

The setting is the magnificent glitz of Las Vegas showing some of the seedier sides of the town. The characters are so well delineated you know each one instantly when they show up.

You couldn't ask for a more elaborate schemer than a magician named Cosmo Fortune. He's a con man from the very beginning. He has three grown daughters that don't know about one another until there father is missing, and they are brought together to try to save his ornery skin.

You can imagine the havoc the knowledge of half-sisters play when the heroine, Iris Fortune, learns of their existence. Throw in an undercover operative named Mickey Kincaid, his contact, the bad guys and you've got a great story. Oh, I forgot to mention Iris's Russian relatives (she didn't know about them either), an overweight white rabbit named Edgar, and one of the sister's can communicate with the rabbit. I can't tell you anymore, but there's a whole lot more.

There are laugh out loud moments in Lying Eyes, and it kept me turning the pages. The story is definitely a keeper on my Nook eReader. Also, there are going to be stories for each of the other sisters to come. I'm going to be eagerly awaiting their releases.

Here are the buy links:
Carina Press
http://ebooks.carinapress.com/F4545497-9153-490F-887E-A67BFD5A31C5/10/134/en/ContentDetails.htm?ID=%7B71CE2B73-9576-4C3A-A7C7-54DBDED4EB7A%7D

Barnes & Noble
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Lying-Eyes/Amy-Atwell/e/9781426890765/?itm=2&USRI=lying+eyes

Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Lying-Eyes-ebook/dp/B004774YO0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1288704344&sr=1-1

Happy and Healthy New Year to all.

Sandy AKA Sandra K. Marshall
Author of The Catalyst (soon to be released again), Addiction and The Deceived
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.twitter.com/SandraKMarshall

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-19T09:33:00.003-06:00

Hi Everyone,

This will be my last blog for the year. My next blog will January 1, 2011.

This time of the year is extremely hectic, but I'm going to take a little time to think of my blessings. Things, I'm grateful for: my husband's continued eyesight, the food we eat, the roof over our heads, our families and our friends.

All of these things remind me of all the ones who don't have these things.

Tell me what you are most grateful for.

Also, for those still shopping for Christmas or gifts for the new year remember the Kris Kringle Kontest. You can click on the Santa Claus icon on the side of my blog to enter the contest.

I wish all of you a wonderful, peaceful holiday season.
A blessed Christmas to all, and a happy 2011!

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

Pumpkin Bread

2010-12-12T08:23:00.004-06:00

Hi Everyone,

My blog is going to be short and sweet because all I have for you today is a pumpkin bread recipe that I just love.

Pumpkin Bread

3 1/2 cups flour 3 cups sugar

3 t soda 1 cup crisco oil

1 1/2 t salt 4 eggs

1 t cinnamon 1/3 cup water

1 t nutmeg 1 can pumpkin (15 oz.)

1 t ginger 2 t vanilla

1 t cloves 1 cup black walnuts

Use 3 1 pd. orange or coffee cans, grease and fill half full. Makes three loaves. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until done. I have also used bread pans for cooking.

Have a great week, and I'll try to get here next Sunday.

Sandy

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=14954556

Miscellaneous Tidbits

2010-12-05T07:21:00.008-06:00

Dear Readers,

Today, I'm just going to ramble. I have a horrible headache and my neck has been stiff and hard to turn for five or six days, so I'm not feeling up to my best. That being said, I'll attempt to write a blog for those who are my faithful followers.

On Friday, my dear hubby celebrated his 75th birthday, and I had a surprise party for him, which didn't turn out to be a surprise. lol One of his old friends called to talk to me. My hubby answered the phone and this friend asked to talk to me immediately instead of talking to my dh. Of course, dh recognized this old co-worker's voice and became suspicious when he didn't visit with dh. lol Sorry, Glassy, just had to tell on you. Grin.

Later when dh questioned me about why this friend wanted to talk to me and not to him, I tried to distract him with the information that another friend of theirs had Parkinson's. Dh said he didn't remember said friend (it's true the memory is the first to go. lol) Without thinking (something else that goes) I said I hope you don't say that to him when you see him. Oh yeah! He was suspicious then for sure. This was about three days before the party and the next day another old friend not realizing it was a surprise called to say he was going to be at the party with his wife. lol The cat was out of the bag for sure then. Ha! Ha! David got you.

Who was to blame for this fiasco? Me! I sent email invitations to everyone and for the RSVP I put our telephone number instead of my email address. Yep, I'm still kicking myself over it. In spite of everything, the party turned out great and hubby had a surprisingly good time. He doesn't like crowds but he enjoyed this bunch.

Saturday, I went to my RWA chapter, MARA's Christmas party and had a fun time. We had plenty of food and camaraderie. Everyone brings a $20.00 gift, and pick numbers for the order in which we get to select a gift. If someone has a gift you would like to have you can take their gift or select a new one to open. Once a gift has been taken three times the third person gets to keep it. It's a lot of fun. I selected a Jim Shore Christmas ornament of a snowman with cat. For those of you familiar with Jim Shore's work you know how excited I was to get it.

One last little tidbit for you. Did you know that the only people in the Bible who celebrated birthdays were the pagans? Oh, you're going to say, what about Christ? There's not a word about Christ celebrating his birth in the Bible. Instead, the wisemen came from afar to celebrate their king and no one really knows the actual date he came, nor how old was the Christ child. We have made it about his birth. I'll be eager to hear what kind of responses I get about this info. lol

I'm still suffering, and now I've made all of you endure my ramblings. Hopefully, next Sunday will be back to normal. Have a great week, while I go off to a trigger point therapist.

Oops, I almost forgot to mention that one of my readers read my romantic suspense, Addiction, and she really liked it. She shared it with her whole family, and they all liked it. Thanks, Bev. That's the best present of all.

See you soon,
Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/
http://www.skaymarshall.com/

Contest! Contest!

2010-11-28T07:54:00.009-06:00

Don't you just love contests? Here's a biggie with lots of wonderful prizes.

Kris Kringle's Kindle (& More) Kontest! Contest starts 1 Dec. and ends midnight ET 31 December. Sorry, but we only ship to US and Canadian residents. We're giving away a new Kindle and other goodies from Santa's bag of surprises! Totes, hats, tee-shirts, ornaments and more could be yours! To enter, you need to do TWO things:

1. Join "Romance Books R Us" at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/romancebooksrus. If you're already a member, great! PLEASE NOTE: WE'RE NOT ACCEPTING MORE PUBLISHED AUTHORS FOR MEMBERSHIP AT THIS TIME. The contest is open to ALL our current RBRU members and any readers/industry reps/unpublished writers who join NOW.

2. Visit the the participating authors and their URLs listed on our blog under the Kris Kringle KINDLE (and more) Kontest message at: http://romancebooksrus.blogspot.com/ , and answer their questions. SEND A LIST OF ALL PARTICIPATING AUTHORS AND ANSWERS TO THEIR QUESTIONS IN ONE EMAIL TO: _contests.rbrus@gmail.com_

Here's my question: What does Melanie Dubois detest? Hint: Books

Thanks for visiting today. Remember you can't until the 1st, or your answers will be deleted. Be sure to get your answers in by December 31st. Have a great day and see you next Sunday.

Sandy

http://eirelander-publishing.com/

Interview With New Author, Amy Atwell

2010-11-20T20:41:00.011-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Today, I want to introduce you to a dear friend, Amy Atwell. We have shared the journey to publication together, and I'm so happy for her because her first published ebook, Lying Eyes, was released from Carina Press this month. This wonderful woman has more energy than ten people, and I'm so jealous of her. lol I belong to one of her GIAM groups and it's a fantastic place to be if you're a serious writer.

Amy's Bio:

Amy Atwell worked in professional theater for 15 years before turning from the stage to the page to write fiction. She wrote non-fiction projects for Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the National Park Service, Virginia Tech and Georgia Shakespeare Festival and has had two plays commissioned and produced. She now gives her imagination free rein in both contemporary and historical stories that combine adventure and romance. An Ohio native, Amy has lived all across the country and now resides on a barrier island in Florida with her husband and two Russian Blues. Her debut romantic suspense novel, Lying Eyes, is available at Carina Press.

Briefly take us on the journey with you – when did you start writing and what hurdles did you have to overcome to get published?

I wrote stories, songs and poetry from a very young age. In high school, I took creative writing instead of composition. But I started seriously contemplating writing with an eye on publication in graduate school. Of course, thinking it and doing it were very different things. In 2000, I finished my first manuscript. By 2005, I’d written two more and had a dozen others started. My mom died very suddenly that year, and that set my writing back. I finished a book a few months later, but then all but stopped writing for nearly 18 months. It wasn’t until late in 2007 that I got serious about it again.

What’s been the greatest contributing factor to achieving your goal of publication?

Honestly, knowing I was never alone in this quest to be published. I’m so fortunate to have made dozens of friends with other writers around the globe. So many have helped me, and I’ve been proud to do what I can to pay it forward. In 2004 I started a writing community for goal-oriented writers. (http://www.writinggiam.com) Not only have I watched many others (including Sandy here!) sell, but the group helped hold me together during the dark times.

What has surprised you the most about being a published author?

How much time everything takes! Many authors who are print-published have a year or more between when they sell the story and when the book comes out. I’ve had a 5-month turnaround. Suddenly, my website seemed old-school, and I’ve been engulfed in “social networking.” Add in three rounds of edits, extra scenes to be written for the book, cover art and copy for marketing, and I realize I’m not just an author, I’m an entrepreneur. I can only hope one day I’ll have a staff, but so far, the cats don’t seem willing to help.

How do you come up with your story ideas?

That’s the easy part for me. I come up with ideas all the time. I keep a document saved on my computer with character names, situations, locations, impressions of anything I’ve seen or heard and general conflicts. I love all types of stories, so I’ve written historicals and contemporary comedies as well as suspense. I got the idea for Lying Eyes from the Eagles’ song title. I thought it would make a fun name for a high end costume jewelry shop. Then I added a jewelry designer, a thief with a secret, set it in Las Vegas, and then Cosmo the magician showed up and, well, you get the idea.
Do you have a favorite author?

I have a bunch. Georgette Heyer, Dick Francis, Tom Clancy, E.B. White, Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie, Alexandre Dumas, Jules Verne, Susan Wiggs, Jill Barnett and Elswyth Thane.

What did you want to be when you grew up at the ages of 6, 13 and 24?

Hmmm, at the age of 6 I probably wanted to be a veterinarian. At 13 I longed to own a horse farm and train horses. At 24, I was planning a career in professional theater stage and production management. I can safely say I never aspired to “grow up.”

Tell us a little bit about your next book? Will it be a romantic suspense or some other genre?

I’m working on another Vegas romantic suspense/comedy titled Cheating Hearts, which is the sequel to Lying Eyes. I even have a trip to Las Vegas planned to attend the National Finals Rodeo as part of my research for Stealing Kisses, which will wrap up the trilogy. But my other project is a mainstream historical set during the Wars of the Roses. It borders on “creative nonfiction” since it features mostly real characters and events from history.

What did you do when you got the call? You know the one saying they wanted it. Grin.

I have the dullest Call Story imaginable. My agent called to let me know we had the offer. I was thrilled to know that Carina wanted the story, but we also still had two other submissions out. Eventually, we opted not to wait on both those responses before accepting the Carina Press offer. But it always felt like there was another step in the process. The contract, the edits, the marketing questionnaire. Honestly, the day it all came together for me was the day I saw my cover art for the first time. I cried tears of joy. It’s a great cover.

I can certainly see why you love this cover, it's gorgeous.

Would you like to tell us about your release, Lying Eyes? How did you come up with the idea?

In Lying Eyes, a Las Vegas costume jewelry designer discovers her illusions of a satisfying life can't hold a candle to true love when she forges a dangerous alliance with a hot thief to try and rescue her aging father Cosmo, a tricky magician who's disappeared and left behind nothing but a mystery of stolen gems, a carload of Russian relatives, an overfed rabbit, a hired gunman, and two sisters she never knew she had. You can also check out the full back cover “blurb” on my Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/amyatwell.author under the Discussions tab.

I mentioned some of the ideas above, but once I settled on the notion of the title, and then came up with the other two titles, and then Cosmo the crazy magician appeared, I started threading it all together into one trilogy. The original concept was based loosely on Charlie’s Angels. I wanted three women characters who didn’t know each other that well to have to work together to find Cosmo. Like Charlie, Cosmo wasn’t intended to be seen “onstage.” Well, Cosmo changed that theory when he showed up in the first scene.

Here is a blurb from Amy's story, Lying Eyes:

Her jewels were real, but her life was fake.

No-nonsense jewelry designer Iris Fortune yearns for a normal life. But life as Vegas magician Cosmo Fortune’s daughter is anything but normal, especially since dear old Dad is also a scam artist. When Cosmo’s latest scheme goes awry and he pulls a real-life disappearing act, Iris is left holding the bag.

Now Iris must be a master of illusion—play the poised partner to her politician fiancé while trying to save her father and stay out of reach of Mickey Kincaid, the sexy thief who claims he's only after her jewels.

Detective Kincaid is deep undercover and seeks Iris out because of her connection to Cosmo—he never expected to be so drawn to her. While working with Iris to find the elusive conman, Mickey learns a killer has Iris in his sights, and he must do everything he can to save her, without blowing his cover.

Mickey's put his life on the line before, but never his heart—and now he’s not sure which is more dangerous…

Could you give us an excerpt of Lying Eyes? I'm sure my readers would love to read a little of your story.

from Chapter Two

Releasing a frustrated huff, Iris pushed her work lamp out of the way and climbed off her stool. Her fingers ached as she slid the magnifying goggles from her face and blinked a few times to bring her vision back to real-world size. Wow, she’d been at it for over an hour. Usually focusing her energy on her work relaxed her, took her to another place. Today was a lost cause—this latest Cosmo crisis was a nightmare.
Worst of all, she couldn’t reach him. Cosmo always answered his calls or returned them as soon as possible. She’d left a message last night when she got home and another this morning after that detective had left the store.
“Iris, telephone!” Ginny, her perpetually cute assistant, stuck her head in the doorway of the store’s design studio. Seeing Iris free, she brought the cordless phone, her hand over the mouthpiece. “Someone named Mickey, and he sounds positively sinful.”
“Give me that.”
Ginny handed over the phone and waited until Iris pointed her to the door. With a laugh like some invisible fairy tickled her, she shot back out to the sales floor.
Iris waited until she was sure she was alone. Not that she had anything to hide. “Iris Fortune.”
“I hear the police visited you this morning. Guess your dad’s really MIA, huh?”
Her heart fluttered at the rich timbre of his voice. “What do you want?”
“What did he say when he called you last night?”
“Who?”
“Don’t play dumb. Cosmo called you on your cell at the party last night.”
She recalled the glass of red wine and Mickey’s intense dark eyes watching her from the shadows. Squaring her shoulders, she perched on her stool. “You were spying on me.”
He laughed. “Don’t sound so outraged. Every guy in town would be spying on you if he had the chance. Now, what did he tell you?”
“He didn’t call, and I have no idea where he is. And if you keep harassing me, I’m going to tell the police about our little conversation last night.”
“No chance. If you were going to spill it about me, you would have done it already.” He sounded too cocksure of himself for her taste.
“How do you know I haven’t?”
“You wouldn’t be threatening to if you’d already done it.”
She pursed her lips, but said nothing.
“And you won’t give me up because—” Mickey’s voice dropped low. “Because, Iris Fortune, deep down, you’re worried about your dad. He may not be much, but he’s all the family you’ve got. You want him back, but you’re afraid he’s gotten himself into something so bad, the police won’t help him. You’re already thinking you might need ol’ Mickey here to help you out.”
“I am not.”
“No? Then think about it some more. I’ll look in on you later.”
“Later? Like tonight? I don’t know where I’ll be.” Recognizing the quickening of her pulse, Iris aligned her design tools into a neat row on the worktable.
“Doesn’t matter. I’ll find you.” The phone clicked and went dead.
“Damn.” Iris set the phone down with more force than she intended. She wasn’t sure whether her frustration stemmed from his threat to ruin her evening again or that he’d ended their conversation so abruptly. Neither reason was a good sign.

Amy, your blurb and excerpt sounds great. I'm dying to read Lying Eyes and the whole trilogy. I bought it the first day it was released. I haven't time to read it yet, but I've moved it to the top of my to read list. I wish you huge success in your writing career. Thank you for coming to visit me on my blog today.

Thanks so much for all your help--and inspiration along the way. Truly, it's been a joy watching other GIAMers get published. I'm pleased to be joining the ranks.

If you would like to learn more about Amy feel free to visit MWF every week at her blog, What's the Story?: http://www.amyatwell.com/blog and every other Tuesday at Magical Musings: http://www.magicalmusings.com/.

Here are the buy links:
Carina Press
http://ebooks.carinapress.com/F4545497-9153-490F-887E-A67BFD5A31C5/10/134/en/ContentDetails.htm?ID=%7B71CE2B73-9576-4C3A-A7C7-54DBDED4EB7A%7D

Barnes & Noble
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Lying-Eyes/Amy-Atwell/e/9781426890765/?itm=2&USRI=lying+eyes

Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Lying-Eyes-ebook/dp/B004774YO0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1288704344&sr=1-1

I hope you voracious readers out there read Amy's book, Lying Eyes, and add her to your list of favorite authors. Smile.

Until next Sunday, have a great week and a Happy Thanksgiving.

Sandy

http://eirelander-publishing.com/

Interview With Melanie Dubois

2010-11-14T09:21:00.004-06:00

Hi Everyone,

Today, I'm interviewing Melanie Dubois, the heroine in my latest release, The Deceived.

Question: Melanie, you are a 5' 4" blonde with blue eyes, is there anything you wish different about yourself?

Answer: Yes, I would like to be more like my sister, Jolene, especially her height (6 feet) with brown hair and eyes. I hate being short.

Question: But your sister is a recovering alcoholic why would you want to be like her?

Answer: I just want her appearance and her mellow temperament not her addictions.

Question: What is all this mess with your mother?

Answer: I'm trying to figure it all out. Not sure where it will lead.

Question: Is it true that your mother had an affair, and you are a product of that liaison?

Answer: I don't know, but I'm going to have a DNA test to find out the truth of the matter.

Question: Didn't your father tell you that your mother had an affair?

Answer: Yes.

Question: Do you believe he told you the truth?

Answer: I did when he told me as a teenager, but I don't know anymore.

Question: How will you feel if your father lied to you?

Answer: Hurt! Very hurt.

Question: How did you get involved with the group picketing the casinos?

Answer: I talked to the leader and decided their goals matched mine, so I asked to join.

Question: Are you afraid of the scar faced man?

Answer: I wouldn't want to be caught alone with him.

Question: What do think of that hunky board member, Mike Mercer?

Answer: Hmm. I wouldn't mind losing my virginity to him. Laughs! He's so hot.

Melanie, thank you for letting me interview you today. I hope everything turns out well between you and your mother now that your father is gone. It would be nice to see you find some happiness.

Thank you. I hope so, too.

If you wish to learn more about Melanie visit my website, http://www.skaymarshall.com/books Buy link for The Deceived

Until next Sunday have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

Factor V Leiden: Blood Clots

2010-11-07T10:39:00.004-06:00

Hi Everyone,

You may think there isn’t a problem discovering blood clots, but you’re wrong. If you don’t read my story someone in your family or a friend could develop this problem and the doctor’s might never find out what caused it.

Here’s my story: I was in my late fifties when I started having blackouts or drop attacks as many doctors call it. What would happen is that I would black out hitting the floor, and come to a few seconds later. I went to my primary care doctor, the one who’d found out I had fibromyalgia and peripheral neuropathy, and didn’t think I was crazy every time I had some new health issue develop.

The very first thing she thought of was blood clots, and I was sent to a cardiologist, who ran the usual tests on me. You know the ones, EKG, Stress test, checked my arteries, blood tests, etc. Nothing showed up. Everything was just fine. My doctor didn’t give up. She kept trying other things, but nothing was found.

A bit of time went by, and I had three blackouts in one night. I had gotten up in the middle of the night and coming back into the bedroom I dropped like a ton of bricks and scared my husband to death. I thought I had just bumped into the door and fell because I came to so fast.

Hubby didn’t have time to get back into bed before I hit the floor again. This time he made me lie still for a few minutes before getting up, and then he helped me up. We went into the bathroom to see if anything was bruised or broken. While looking me over I dropped again, but he caught me before I hit the floor this time and laid me down gently.

It didn’t happen again that night. The next morning I got into my primary care doctor and my husband was able to give her more details about what happened. All along she’d been thinking it had something to do with clots, but she wanted me to see an eye specialist at K.U. Med Center to eliminate one more thing. They both decided I should have a test for Factor V Leiden.

Factor V Leiden is inherited from your parents, it can come from both or just one. There are two forms of Factor V Leiden, one is Heterozygous factor V Leiden and it’s found in 5 % of the white population and is most common in people of Northern European descent and in some Middle Eastern populations. The homozygous form is found in fewer than 1%. Factor V Leiden is less common in the Hispanic population and is rare in Asian, African, and Native American populations. However, remember rare doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

Factor V Leiden is treated with blood thinners or anticoagulants but not for long periods of time. In my case, I take three milligrams of folic acid and one aspirin a day, which was decided by both my primary care doctor and the blood specialist she sent me to. Since I started that regimen I haven’t had one black out.

I wasn’t the first person in my family who had these blackouts; my mom’s sister, Aunt Lucille, had these, and her doctor never found out what caused the problem. It took away her independence. Even I wasn’t able to drive for one year because of the fear of blacking out at the wheel.

What was happening to me is that little pieces of blood would form together in the artery blocking the blood flow to the brain, and I drop to the floor. It only lasted a few minutes because the blood flow coming behind it would force those pieces through.

The reason I’m blogging about this issue is because I have learned of another person outside of my family who is having blackouts and her doctor has not been able to find the reason for it. I believe this is a common occurrence. I was lucky that my doctor was a true detective, and she never gave up looking for the cause. I'm hoping with all my heart that this blog will help someone.

My information has come from the American Heart Association and my own experiences. I not only want to thank my doctor, Dr. Karladine Graves, but I want to thank my hubby for helping me so much during that time.

Thank you for reading. Have a great week, and I’ll see you next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com/
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/
http://www.twitter/SandraKMarshall

Cat Superstitions

2010-10-31T10:37:00.004-05:00

Happy Halloween Everyone,

We all know there are many black cat superstitions. Many people believe it's bad luck when a black cat crosses their path but there are some who believe it's good fortune. lol What do you think?

Some people in Germany believe a black cat crossing their path from right to left is a bad omen while from left to right, and the cat is granting favorable times to you. In Italy some believe if a inky feline lays on a sick person's bed, death will follow. In China, some believe black cats are harbingers of famine and poverty. Lavtvian farmers that find black kitties in their grain silos dance with joy because they believe these felines are the spirit of Rungis, a god of harvests.

In Japan, black cats crossing your path will probably make you smile, and think that good fortune is on its way. In Scotland folks believe finding black kittens sitting on their porch is a sure sign of riches and happiness to come.

Some people around the world believe that there is a single white hair to be found on a black cat and you pull it without getting scratched you'll be in a long, happy and prosperous marriage.

There are superstitions surrounding cats of other colors, too. For instance, dream of a tortoise shell cat and you will be lucky in love, dream of a ginger cat and you will be lucky in money and business and dream of a black and white cat you'll have luck with children. There are many others.

In ancient Egypt, where cats were first domesticated about 3,000 years ago, cats were considered sacred. One Egyptian god in particular, Pashe, was not only cat-headed but was attended by cats. Some believed that the life-giving rays of the sun were kept in a cat's eyes at night for safekeeping.

Ancient Hebrew folklore tells of an incident in the Ark that resulted in the creation of the first cats. Apparently, before the flood there were no cats but there was a pair of lions and there was fear the shaggy beasts would attack the other animals, so Noah prayed to God for a solution. God answered by putting the lions into a deep sleep. When one problem was solved, another arose. The Ark was overrun with mice. Noah knelt and prayed for a solution. God suggested that Noah whack the sleeping male lion on the nose. He did, the lion sneezed, and out of his nostrils came the first pair of cats. The rodent problem was solved.

Another version of the creation of cats comes from the Christian tradition. Apparently the devil, in one of his periodic attempts at creation, was trying to make a man. As usual he failed miserably and, through his bungling, ended up creating the first cat. (Unfortunately, the poor animal was hairless. One cold day St. Peter happened upon the poor animal shivering in a doorway. He had pity on it and gave it a fur coat.)
I used to dislike cats intensely and the reason I did is because I saw a cat kill a pigeon when I was young. Yes, I was a bird lover and still am, but now I understand why that poor cat did what he did. He was a stray cat without a home, and he was trying to survive.

No matter the mystique surrounding cats and black cats in particular, most owners of black cats consider themselves lucky and blessed to have one. It's a blessing to own a cat, black or not. Smile.

Some information on cat superstitions found at Essortment and at Maxellah.tripod. There is so much more out there so don't be afraid to Google cat superstitions. Also, I blogged about black cats at Romance Books R Us on the 29th at http://www.romancebooksrus.blogspot.com and at Paranormal Romantic at Noon on the 30th, http://www.paranormalromantics.blogspot.com

A gentle reminder to get out and vote.

Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://sandramarshallblog.blogspot.com

CONTEST JUDGING

2010-10-24T09:19:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone,

For the last month, I have been judging contest entries for my local RWA chapter. Three times a year, I judge in contests. Soon, I'll be judging the Golden Heart contest, which will be coming up soon. It's the most prestigious contest for unpublished writers along with the Rita's contest for published authors. Both are contests offered by RWA, Romance Writer's of America, an organization with over ten thousand members world wide.

Judging is a job that takes time and patience if you are going to do it right. I'm only going to tell you about my local chapter contest (MARA), although, I'm also a member of the Wisconsin chapter. Contest entries send in a manuscript with a synopsis of no more than thirty-five pages. The contest coordinator sends the entries along with a score sheet to our members. I received nine this year because we had 97 entries and all of mine were sent through email to the contest coordinator, so I read mine on the computer.

While reading the manuscript, I make comments directly in the content of the manuscript using blue font, and I also mark words in yellow if they are overused. Another thing I start marking my score sheet for the different things, I'm looking for, such as beginning hook, pacing, characterization, emotion, dialogue, narrative, action, and how they pertain to the characters and story.

Every item on the score sheet may receive a score of one to five (1-5) with a possible total point score of 250, which I didn't give this year. There were a couple who came close, and they may very well be finalists in our contest. I hope so anyway. When I judge entries I'm routing for them all the way, and I am so sad when they can't make it.

After reading, commenting and scoring our entries, we write a one to two page critique for the author. In this instance, I pick the biggest problems (two or three at most) to write about. I like to give examples how to correct these trouble areas if I feel this will help the entrant understand what I'm telling them. The reason I do this is because reading the terminology is not always enough for beginning writers.

Most of all, we encourage these budding authors to continue writing and learning their craft. It takes time to learn even the basics. Even published authors continue learning more of their craft.

To all those authors out there who aren't published yet I have three words to say to you: Don't Give Up.

Until next Sunday, have a great week.

Sincerely,
Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com; http://www.skaymarshall.com; http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall

The Name Stephen

2010-10-17T11:14:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Today, we are going to have a bit of fun. I'm going to tell you all about the name, Stephen. lol You might wonder why I picked this name. Well, it's because every Sunday when I send out a message about my blog I find more first names of Stephen for men in my addresses than any other male name.

Stephen comes from the Greek word 'stephanos', meaning 'garland; crown'. Stephen is also the name of the first Christian Martyr whose feast is celebrated on December 26th. Namesakes include Stephen Fry (comedian), Stephen Hawking (physicist), Stephen King (author).

In my dictionary it says Stephen ca 1097 - 1154 king of England (1135 - 54), so I'm not sure just how far the name Stephen goes back. It is recorded in the New Testament of the Bible, book of Acts that St. Steven died a martyr.

Do you have a Stephen in your life? Do you like the name Stephen for a male name? Do you think Stephen represents a hero in your life? Is he handsome, strong and tender; a take charge kind of guy?

Tell me about your Stephen. I have known Stephen's, Steve's of all types. Some are dark-haired and brown-eyed, and others were blond and blue-eyed. All were great guys, but I don't have a Stephen in my family, so tell me about yours.

Have a great week until next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn-marshall

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

2010-10-10T00:44:00.001-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I know, you're saying she wrote about ovarian cancer last month and now breast cancer. This is serious folks, and I intend to write about it. The Big C has been around a long time, and it's way past time to eradicate it. The whole shebang, all of the different kinds of cancer should be erased from our lives.

Why can't the researchers find a way to prevent cancer then they won't have to find ways to treat people once they have the Big C. Preventive measures should be developed as well as ways to kill the cancer after it's in your body. I know the researchers have come a long way, but isn't there a way to remove a cancer gene from our bodies stopping the chance of cancer? Obviously not since in my research I found nothing. They say diet is important in preventing cancer. Oh, and if you're overweight you're a candidate for breast cancer. Bummer! I've gained a lot of weight.

This is one disease that I want eradicated more than any other. I have had so many friends and family members suffer from these diseases that I'm just sick of it. There is no rhyme or reason to why a person may get breast cancer or any other cancer. Most times there isn't a family history of cancer, although the risk is even greater if you have a history of cancer in your family. Then again, many people with a history never get cancer. It's no wonder the research community is stymied.

Thank you for listening to my rant on this subject. For all of you who are battling breast cancer, I pray a cure is found in time for you, or that you will go into remission without fear of it returning.

Until next Sunday, have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.skaymarshall.com; http://www.eirelander-publishing.com; http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall

What Do You Want In an eReader?

2010-10-03T09:17:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Do you know what you want in an eReader? I don't have one yet, but I do know what I want.

My eReader is for reading only. I don't want to do anything else but read with my eReader. When I read it's escape time. I don't want an Ipad where I can get the news, internet, music, email, etc. Leave me alone, I want to read. Do you understand?

Something else I want is an eReader for under a hundred dollars or less (preferably around $50.00) with wonderful formatting that will not mess up when it's downloaded. I don't want the battery to die and take away all the books I paid good money for when I bought and downloaded them.

Next, I want an eReader where I can buy my books anywhere I want to. I don't want Kindle because I have to buy all my books at Amazon. I don't want a Sony where I have to buy a book at the Sony store, and I don't want a Nook, so I must buy books at B&N. I don't want my choice taken away from me. I want to go anywhere to buy a novel. It's my right.

Okay folks, what do you want?

Until next Sunday, have a great week.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com
http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall

September is Ovarian Cancer Month

2010-09-26T11:06:00.006-05:00

Hello Everyone,

For those of you who may not know it September is Ovarian Cancer Month. Some of you will remember that my mother past away April 4, 1998 from ovarian cancer, and you'll know this is a subject near and dear to my heart.

Ovarian cancer is called the silent killer for a very good reason. The disease is not usually caught in the early stages due to the fact that most symptoms can be attributed to other causes.

The types of ovarian cancer are 1. Epithelial ovarian tumors; 2. Germ cell tumors; and 3. Stromal tumors, but within this group are other types of cancer. One of these is called primary peritoneal carcinoma and the reason I'm mentioning it is because it looks like epithelial ovarian cancer and it can be found in women without their ovaries.

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail here about ovarian cancer, but I do know anyone who has a family history of colon cancer, breast cancer can also get ovarian cancer. I could go on forever about this cancer and others, but I'm not going to. You can go to the American Cancer Society for any information you like to find.

Here are some signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer: 1. Abdominal pressure, fullness, swelling or bloating; 2. Pelvic discomfort or pain; 3. Trouble eating or feeling full quickly; and 4. Urinary symptoms such as urgency (always feeling like you have to go) or frequency (having to go often).

Other symptoms of ovarian cancer can include:

1. Persistent indigestion, gas or nausea
2. Unexplained changes in bowel habits, such as constipation
3. Changes in bladder habits, including a frequent need to urinate
4. Loss of appetite or quickly feeling full
5. Increased abdominal girth or clothes fitting tighter around your waist
6. Pain during intercourse
7. A permanent lack of energy
8. Low back pain
9. Changes in menstruation

These symptoms can be caused by other conditions than ovarian cancer.

My niece, Kristin, has been walking in the Susan G. Koman cure for breast cancer for several years. Her mother-in-law died of breast cancer after a battle of five years or more. In many cases cancer can be cured if caught early enough, so I recommend that all men, women and children be diligent in working to stop all cancers.

Much of this information has come from the American Cancer Society and Mayo Clinic except for the personal comments I have made. My title September is Ovarian Cancer month is linked to the Mayo Clinic for those of you who wish to learn more about this disease.

Thank you for your time. Enjoy today and tell those you love that you love them. See you next Sunday.

Sandy

http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/

Do You Watch Advertisements and Do You Have a Favorite? Plus Blogmania Winners Announced.

2010-09-19T11:12:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone,

First, I'm going to name the winners of my Blogmania contest, and then we'll get to my question.

Drum Roll Folks, here is the list everyone has been waiting for:

1st prize: Amber in Canada

2nd prize: Tracy P

3rd prize: Sabrina Shields

4th prize: Ginn7

5th prize: Allana 890

Congratulations to all the winners. I have sent out emails to all of you and all you have to do is reply back with your snail mail addresses.

Back to my question, I know a lot of you guys watch the commercials during the New Year's Day games, so your favorite is probably from that day.

Usually, I switch channels during commercials but there's one that I have been watching lately. Why does this commercial fascinate me? First of it's an airline commercial with lots of class. It reminds me of the old days when people used to dress up for flights around the world. It's the Korean Airline commercial, it tells a romantic story, dreams of a far-off land and it is first class all the way even on the wings of a plane. Smile. It's quality advertising, which we don't see a lot of anymore.

I'll be waiting eagerly to learn about your favorite.

Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday.

Sandy
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com/
http://www.skaymarshall.com/
http://www.myspace.com/s_zinn_marshall

Blogmania

2010-09-14T23:16:00.004-05:00

WELCOME To BLOGMANIA !
My Blog is #125 out of 169 Blogs

You've arrived at exactly the right time to explore lots of new blogs, all of which, ARE HOSTING A VERY SPECIAL BLOGMANIA GIVEAWAY (For Two Days Only--September 15th and 16th)

These numbers will allow you to keep track of which blogs you've visited and how many are left to visit. Why not take a moment to make a list of numbers 1-169, and check off the blogs as you go.

Here are my prizes and rules for my blog. 1. Anyone who enters my contest needs to become a follower. 2. Leave a comment with some way for me to get in touch with you if you win.

Here are some of my prizes:

1. Christmas Basket ( can be used to decorate as well)
a. Large snowman
b. Two magnetic backed message pads
c. Several snow capped pine cones
d. Snow men tree ornaments
e. Candle and holder
f. Other candles and ornaments

2. Fall Basket
a. Three scented candles

3. Thanksgiving Basket
a. Large pumpkin
b. Pumpkin scented candle
c. Spice scented Candle
d. Small Turkey decoration
e. One magnetic backed message pad

4. Beverage basket
a. Mug
b. Fair Trade Coffee
c. Fair Trade Organic Earl Grey Tea
d. French Vanilla Purple Mountain Coffee
e. Hazelnut, Raspberry and Mint hot chocolate
f. One magnetic backed message pad

5. A bag full of goodies heehee
a. Emergency Signal (multi-function lantern)
b. jewelry (earrings and matching necklace)
c. note cards

After you enter this giveaway , don't forget to hop on to the next one - there are over $38,000 in prizes to enter to win!

Use this link:

http://www.simply-linked.com/listwidget.aspx?l=8fc84dfc-d47d-4984-b945-54251c21bf73"

Have fun shopping and good luck everyone.

Sandy