Raleigh NC Workshop WRITE NOW! 2014 Registration is open

Registration is now open for Write Now! 2014, to be held on Saturday, May 3, 2014, at Wake Technical Community College Northern Campus in Raleigh, NC.

That’s the same campus as previous conferences – but a brand new building! Starting in 2014, Write Now! will be held in Building E, which boasts a state-of-the-art amphitheater that seats more than 250 in a comfortable stadium-seating design; a secondary meeting room that seats 60; and an atrium with tables and seating for 100, which will allow you to sit with old friends and make new ones during registration and lunch.

This will be my first time attending this conference and I am looking forward to the workshops as well as the speakers. Breakfast and lunch is included, and I will be signing books, too!

SIGN-UP NOW!

For all the information

you need, please

CLICK HERE!

 

This all-day conference, held on the beautiful campus of Wake Tech North (just off I-540 Ext 18) is sponsored by the

TRIANGLE AREA FREELANCERS of which I am a member.

 

 

 

Nancy Lee Badger



'London Calling' or How I Found My Muse by Elena Dillon

My guest is Elena Dillon and she has some tips for readers and writers:

London Calling

I don’t really get “Writer’s Block” in the traditional sense. At least I didn’t think I did.  Before this past October if I needed to write something I could sit down and write something.  Whether it was usable writing is a whole other matter but I could put something on the page. 

Then my kids moved out.

Instant empty nest.

And I had shoulder surgery that was much more painful and difficult to recover from than I’d thought it would be.

And my friend of twenty one years who I’d been praying for and going to chemo and doctor appointments with for a year and a half took a really bad turn. Her cancer had advanced and it was obvious she had very little time.

And the words left. No warning. Not even a “Call me when it’s over.” With everything that was going on in my life you’d think I wouldn’t have had time to worry about the writing but in the back of my mind I could hear this niggling little voice.

What if the words never come back?

I slapped that voice down more than once during my three month hiatus.  During the holidays when everyone asked when my next book was coming out.  At night when I couldn’t sleep because rolling over in bed was a process with a healing shoulder. And at my RWA chapter meetings when well-intentioned friends wanted an update.

Then in January my husband had to travel to London. Again. He asked me to go with this time since he really hates extended business travel and he would be there two weeks this time. He was nice enough to arrange a first class ticket with his miles. Lovely.  I was finally off pain medication and ready for an adventure. 

At first I didn’t attempt to write. I went with the intention of just enjoying myself.  I visited a friend I hadn’t seen in over twenty years and we laughed like we were teenagers again.  I walked around the city while my husband worked.  I drank tea. A lot.

Then it happened. I sat down at the computer and like magic the words were back. Flowing onto the page like water. I wrote about 10,000 words in two days and did a ton of revision on the manuscript that had been sitting on my computer for three months. The manuscript I had almost hit delete on because I the words had been lost and the work seemed overwhelming.

Whew. I’d found my muse.  The cheeky minx had packed herself up and moved to London for the duration.  I’m going to keep a closer eye on her from now on.  Got some writer’s block? Take a trip. Go somewhere new.  Even walk around the block.  Don’t forget the tea, it makes all the difference.

What’s next for you?

My next book in the Breathe series in coming out soon. Looking like May. I’m still trying to decide on a title. 

BOOK BLURB for Looking Like May

Chandler Raines and her dad are on the run. Never staying in one place for very long. It’s just not safe.  When they arrive in Lafayette, Louisiana, Chandler quickly realizes this is the place she wants to call home. Friends, a cute boy and competitive cheerleading have her taking dangerous risks to have the life she always wanted. Risks she promised she wouldn’t. 

When a video goes viral, a decision has to be made. Stay or run? Will the evil that’s chased them for the last four years catch up to them? When Chandler’s past comes screeching into the present she’ll have to sacrifice everything to keep what she loves safe.  But will it be enough?

How can my readers buy your book?  

Not on sale yet but you can sign up for my newsletter here and you will be the first to get an excerpt and notification of when it goes on sale. You will also receive an excerpt of my first two books right to your mailbox. Here are my Buy Links for Breathe:

Amazon

Audible

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Smashwords

Apple iTunes Bookstore

A little bit about the author 

Elena Dillon lives and writes in a suburb North of Los Angeles.  She has never lived anywhere besides California which is probably a good thing since she hates being cold and is terrified to drive in the snow. She loves being a wife and a mother to her three kids and an English Bulldog, although really the bulldog is the fourth child who has never matured beyond the toddler stage.

A self proclaimed nerd, she has been writing since she was a child. She has only recently, however, come out of the closet about this to her family and friends.  They now understand better, but not completely, why she talks about characters in stories as if they are real people.

You can find more information

about Elena Dillon at:

Website    Twitter   Facebook  

Goodreads

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

Eileen D - Audio and ebook

Emily W - print copy

Anna W - ecopy

Donna S - ecopy

How Do You Celebrate the Spring Equinox?

Are you tired of cold, dreary weather? Snow and ice are 'pretty', but not when roads are impassable, wires and trees fall, and your nose reddens. Spring is nearly here! Actually, it technically begins with the vernal equinox, which this year will be March 20, 2014 at 12:57 P.M. EDT. Although I live in central North Carolina, aka America's south, I cannot wait until warm days, budding trees, and flowers bloom even more. We have already experienced a couple of 70+ degree F days, but wind, rain, and cold keep bouncing back.

I already knew that the word equinox is derived from the Latin words meaning “equal night” meaning that days and nights are approximately equal, all around the world. The Sun rises and sets due east and west. At the equinoxes, the tilt of Earth relative to the Sun is zero. It really is extraordinary that for one special moment, the Earth’s axis neither points toward nor away from the Sun. 

Since many of my books include characters that use witchcraft, or 'witchery', in their lives, I looked into what this special day means. Many meanings can be found while researching, so I instead wanted to express the following:
Traditional foods eaten in celebration: dairy foods, nuts from pumpkins, sunflowers, leafy green veggies, sprouts.
Flowers gathered: violets, olive, gorse, jonquils, peonies, iris, and daffodils (my favorite!)
Some burn incense such as strawberry, jasmine, and rose. I also hear that the gemstone, Jasper, is exceptionally powerful on this day.
* some info derived from http://wicca.com/celtic/akasha/ostara.htm

Nancy Lee Badger
*Check out the books in my Highland Games Through Time series, where witches meet their destined mates! Available in eBook and print everywhere!

Calling All writers-Meet me in Raleigh NC at the WRITE NOW! Conference!

Registration is now open for Write Now! 2014, to be held on Saturday, May 3, 2014, at Wake Technical Community College Northern Campus in Raleigh, NC.

That’s the same campus as previous conferences – but a brand new building! Starting in 2014, Write Now! will be held in Building E, which boasts a state-of-the-art amphitheater that seats more than 250 in a comfortable stadium-seating design; a secondary meeting room that seats 60; and an atrium with tables and seating for 100, which will allow you to sit with old friends and make new ones during registration and lunch.

This will be my first time attending this conference and I am looking forward to the workshops as well as the speakers. Breakfast and lunch is included, and I will be signing books, too!

SIGN-UP NOW!

For all the information

you need, please

CLICK HERE!

This all-day conference, held on the beautiful campus of Wake Tech North (just off I-540 Ext 18) is sponsored by the

TRIANGLE AREA FREELANCERS of which I am a member.

Nancy Lee Badger

Irish Oatmeal Cookies by Nancy Lee Badger

HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY
Here is a recipe for IRISH Oatmeal Cookies (okay, they are not strictly Irish, but when you use Irish oatmeal, they are Irish)
1 stick + 6 Tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar (I use Splenda Brown Sugar)
1/2 cup sugar (I use Splenda)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

My favorite sugar-free breakfast food

1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups uncooked oatmeal, quick or old fashioned (I suggest McCann's, but not the instant packets you see here)
I also add about 1 cup raisins (optional but yummy)
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat butter and sugars on medium until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat well. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a bowl and mix well. Add to the egg and sugar mixture. Mix well. Add oatmeal and raisins. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons on ungreased or parchment paper-covered cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Cool 1 minute then remove to a wire rack. Cool and enjoy your St. Patrick's day treat!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Coming soon!

TO ALL MY        
IRISH-CELTIC FRIENDS!
Nancy Lee Badger

What is a MadMan MacKeefe? by Elizabeth Rose

Thanks Nancy, for having me as a guest today. 

*I love to host other authors so you are welcome. Also, since I have read the prequel to these three books, I've been hooked. NLB

Simply put, a MadMan MacKeefe is a Scottish Highlander who is out of his mind. He does crazy, dangerous things, has odd pets, unique looks, and most likely demons in his head making him crazy as well.

*...and his crazy eyes that don't match are part of his mysterious past! NLB
 

Let me explain further. My MadMan MacKeefe Series starts with the first of three friends from the same clan in Onyx – Book 1. Now, Onyx MacKeefe is actually the dead brother of the girls from my Daughters of the Dagger Series. I say dead, because he has these spells where he looks like he’s dead and his heart slows and sometimes he even stops breathing. The spells are brought on by anxiety, and actually, he had one right when he was born. He also has two different colored eyes, and back then they thought of this as being a demon or being cursed. So as a baby he was put into a box and ordered to be drowned in the sea. Yeah, that’ll make anyone crazy, not to mention he travels with a Scottish Wildcat.

And then there’s his good friend, Aidan MacKeefe in Aidan – Book 2, who is also out of his mind. He is guarding the real Stone of Destiny for the Scots, and using it as pillow to have prophetic dreams. He has a pet squirrel that sits on his shoulder.

That brings us to my brand new release - the third friend, Ian MacKeefe in Ian – Book 3. This man has inner demons haunting him. He sees a vision in the Samhain fire - the ghostly face of a man he’s killed and buried three years ago. And this is the night that the veil is lifted and the dead can come back to life.

Research: I always like to put a holiday into my novels so people can see what it was like back in the 14^th century. Actually, Halloween – or All Hallow’s Eve, or Samhain as it was first called, was a pagan holiday to begin with. The powerful church didn’t like that, and made it into a Christian holiday that we know as All Saints, and All Soul’s day. And the children used to go door to door begging for soul cakes, carrying carved-out gourds with faces in them, lit by a candle inside in order to ward away demons and keep themselves safe. Hence, the first trick-or-treating and jack-o-lanterns.

I also loved researching the Stone of Destiny for Aidan. This was the ancient coronation stone used by the Scots. It was supposedly stolen by the English back in 1296, but since Scotland never attempted to get it back, the theory is that they had the true Stone of Destiny hidden away and the English stole a fake. This is the basis of my story.

Ian – Book 3 is my 29^th book. I have been writing seriously for about 20 years, and have five print books from years ago. Then of course, I went back to the real world to be able to pay my bills, and then last year I lost my job. That was actually a good thing, as that enabled me to have time to start putting some of my novels into ebook form and publishing them as an Indie author. I love working for myself – well some of the time. As I am a true slave driver, and push myself past what I believe I can do. While maybe a third of my books were already written from years ago, I started writing new ones as well. In the past year I have Indie-published 28 ebooks.

I love writing medieval as well as paranormal novels, but I do have some contemporary novels and short stories as well. Anyone wanting to read excerpts from any of my books can do so by visiting my website at http://elizabethrosenovels.com.

I also want to say that I do have a degree in art and this inspired me to create my own bookcovers as well as my own booktrailers. Of course, being away from the computer for so many years took its toll, but I delved right into photoshop and figured it out myself even though my two boys told me I could never do it. Great motivation, huh? Please stop by my website to see my booktrailers, as I am very proud of the way they turned out. You can also find them on You Tube or on my Amazon profile page.

My books can be found on Amazon as well as some on Smashwords   Barnes and Noble and Goodreads.

Here is an excerpt from my new release, Ian – Book 3:

“Dinna hate me, Kyla. Ye have te understand thet nothin’ can e’er happen between us.” Ian’s words said one thing but his body was saying another. Why did he have his arm around her, pulling her closer, if he was trying to push her away?

Still, his words sounded so final and she wondered for a moment if she was just fantasizing again and there was really nothing between them after all. Mayhap her expectations were set too high and she shouldn’t get her hopes up. Not when it had to do with Ian MacKeefe. She was confused, but had to know for sure.

“Somethin’ already has happened between us,” she said, turning and looking up into his eyes. The firelight danced off his sun-kissed skin and the whole moment would have been special if only he would drop the walls between them.

“Nothin’ happened,” he said, as if he truly believed it.

“Ye kissed me, Ian MacKeefe, and if ye say ye felt nothin’ between us then I say ye are the biggest liar I’ve e’er met.”

“I didna feel anythin’.”

She blinked once, then twice, not believing he was really acting like such a dolt. She had to make him admit that he was lying. This may be the only chance she ever got.

“Prove it,” she challenged him.

“What do ye mean?”

She raised her chin and looked him straight in the eye. “Kiss me again, and if ye can honestly say thet ye feel nothin’, then I swear I’ll leave ye alone and ne’er mention it again.”

He laughed then, and the brightness of his smile as well as the deep, rich rumble in his chest vibrating against her, about drove her from her mind. Damn, why did he have to be so desirable?

He lowered his head and looked up from the corner of one hooded eye. One side of his mouth twisted wryly as he answered. “I dinna want te play games, lassie,” he said in a voice so soft it was almost a whisper.

And when he removed his arm from around her shoulders and started to move away, she decided she didn’t want to die without feeling Ian’s lips upon hers one more time. She daringly took hold of his shoulders and reached upward, pressing her lips firmly against his before he could object.

Links:

I enjoyed being a guest today, and I invite everyone to stop by my facebook page as well as my website, and be sure to sign up to receive my blogs in order to get updates on new books, as I have new releases all the time.

Here are the links once again:

Facebook

Website

Amazon

Smashwords

Barnes and Noble

Goodreads

Elizabeth Rose