Another Dream & a Chance to Do Something to Help - Weekend Writing Warriors / 8sunday / 05/01/16

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior and Snippet Sunday round. Every week writers post 8-to-10 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

& check out the

Facebook Snippet Sunday group

A long, long time ago I shared a few snippets from my Paranormal Romantic Suspense, Karma Visited (only 5) - and we didn't get a full taste of this story. Since I am working on a sequel and revisiting the story for myself, I'm sharing more with you and soaking up your comments.

Do you believe in karma? Annie Furman has a gift that allows her, while she sleeps, to visit people in their time of need - but who will be there for her when she needs help? Undersheriff Dave Turner is investigating a series of home invasions and homicides. He has no idea that solving this case will lead him to the woman of his dreams.

Two weeks ago (sorry I missed last week) Annie overheard her husband plotting "something" in the town, but she doesn't know the specifics yet. That night while sleeping she has another dream of a disaster, this time there are children to be saved. Frantically she wakes and tries to piece together clues in order to help.

Creative editing alert!  Here are ten lines... 

She stared at the ceiling and tried to remember everything she had seen. The license plate on the crashed car was the same color as hers, and it was nighttime… there was a number by the highway.

She closed her eyes and focused on the memory as hard as she could. When Annie was sure she had enough information, she got out of bed and left the room to use the computer.

It worked, Annie was elated, it was the first time Annie had been able to do something to help.

After she made the phone call she forced herself back into her dream and watched while the first responders removed the parents’ bodies from the car. They had to in order to reach the children in the back. The toddler was still unconscious. The baby reached towards her again, but no one else could see her standing there.

   ~~~~~

For more WeWriWa Snippets, go to: 

www.wewriwa.com

My life changed after I died.

It’s not like I had any special powers.

They just didn’t understand me.

They underestimated me.

I had a gift.

Buy Links

PayHip (pdf)

Kobo

Smashwords (multiple e-book formats)

Amazon (Kindle)

Amazon (Print)

Amazon (Audio)

Payloadz

Apple iTunes

Nook

~~~~~

It's Passover!

Yes, I missed last week, mea culpa, but I didn't get things posted early enough before I had to go offline. This week I will be back to read and all by Sunday.

But the holiday (which will have just ended by the time this snippet posts) has been absolutely wonderful - I wrote about it this past Monday on this blog
(go see Moments of Memories ~ #MondayBlogs)
One thing that always strikes me odd is that the first few days of the holiday are always so frantic and with two Seders there seems to be so much to the holiday. And then, once the Seders are over, the rest of this 8-day holiday just flies by. Even with holiday cooking, it goes so quickly.

Passover has always been my favorite holiday, I love the total transformation of my kitchen (special dishes, cookware, flatware and more that are used only this one week each year). /when I was just a child growing up I never knew exactly how much work it took since my mom and dad took care of most of it - now it falls on my shoulders (hubby and kids do help), but it is totally worth it.

What is YOUR favorite holiday and what makes that one so unique?

Writer Prompt Wednesday ~ April 27, 2016

Welcome back to my almost-weekly feature, just for fun.

On Wednesdays I am going to post a random picture I find online 

(and yes, I will make sure not to violate any copyrights)

and I will ask everyone to contribute to a "story" by adding a 

sentence in the comments.

Be sure to read the comments before yours so that we actually 

write a continuous story inspired by the picture.

Got the plan?   Good.

Here's this week's picture:

I'll start:

I knew that I would find peace at the end of my journey,
but it seemed so very far away and I was so very, very tired.

Ok, now it's your turn —
add your sentence below

...and be sure to come back next week!

Moments of Memories ~ #Monday Blogs

You’re standing at the stove and preparing a holiday dinner, suddenly all you can see in front of you is an image of your mom in front of her kitchen stove preparing the dinner for the same holiday many years earlier. Memories of a childhood long ago spring to the forefront unexpectedly, welcomed by your heart and met with a tear on your cheek.

It’s Passover in our home and I prepare the Seder for a family gathering each year. Our table is filled with our children and their spouses, close friends and assorted siblings (varying each year depending on individual schedules). Good and plentiful food, so many traditional recipes… we take turns retelling the story of the Exodus when the Hebrews fled Egypt. Four questions asked and answered, the bitter herbs remind us of tears, the sweet charoses to remind us of the mortar used to build the pyramids, and Shmura Matzoh to remind us of the haste that our ancestors left Pharoah’s land.

The plates on my Passover table were my mother-in-law’s, the Seder plate was my mom’s, the Haggada story belong to all the generations. L’dor v’dor, from generation to generation, we are commanded to retell the story as if we were living it ourselves. There’s laughter as we “personalize” the tale.

Inevitably we each bring our memories to the table, some different and some shared. The older generation laughs about the Seders we shared with our parents. The younger generation remembers a few years before when they dressed up to re-enact the Passover story. And every delicious bite of our festive meal is spiced with the sweetness of happy times.

One day our children will share their memories with their families, a few tears will stain their cheeks, laughter will surround their table, and the sweet memories will once again be welcomed as new ones are made for future generations.

People Hear What They Want to Hear ~ #MondayBlogs

Why is it that two people can listen to the exact same thing and yet hear totally different things?

Don’t worry about answering, it’s a rhetorical question.

People tend to read into difficult words rather than merely taking them at face value. “That dress really looks nice on you. It’s got a very slimming effect.” — Oh no! Does that mean I look fat? — Instead of accepting what is probably a very genuine compliment, suddenly there are tears, hurt feelings and probably anger. And that is how arguments start.

Everybody hears what they are open to hearing based on their experiences and beliefs. Politicians get to say a lot of sometimes “nothing” and yet every speech will be met with cheers and jeers based on what the listeners WANT to believe. I WANT to believe that all my financial woes can be solved by a single act of a new shopping complex and the revenue it would bring to the area; I DON’T WANT to believe that giving up my brand new shiny car will help solve global warming. The politician says the new factory which will open up jobs will be the best thing and scrubbers will be installed in every smokestack — if I need a job, I’ll hear the opportunity of a new business; but if my child is an asthmatic the words that will be loudest to me will be “scrubbers in every smokestack” and depending on my level of trust…

We tend to listen selfishly with our own interests out front. We are afraid to accept, or hear, anything that might make us question the beliefs we’ve been loudly professing. We’ll attend a campaign speech to “listen” to the words of our favorite candidate and we are rarely disappointed. We focus on the things we want to hear and all the rest is just background noise. Almost everybody in the crowd does the same thing and it’s easy to get swept up with the emotional response, cheering and clapping. When the speech is over we turn and clap each other on the backs for a job-well-done as if we were the ones receiving all of the approving applause. Later when we are asked what was said, suddenly all we can remember are the good points that we agreed with, and we might not even remember the exact words, we just repeat the very things that drew us, right or wrong, to this candidate.

It’s frustrating when we are trying to get our message and meaning out there and someone is just not listening to the words. Chances are, though, we might be doing just the same thing. Selective hearing? Biased hearing? It’s a collective problem.

Psychologists tell us that we need to train ourselves to not only listen, but to listen from the other person’s point of view. If you can argue FOR an opposing view you wind up expanding your mind. And maybe it won’t make you change your mind but it will certainly allow you stronger belief in what YOU want to hear.

A Little Reconnaissance ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 04/17/16

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior and Snippet Sunday round. Every week writers post 8-to-10 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

& check out the

Facebook Snippet Sunday group

A long, long time ago I shared a few snippets from my Paranormal Romantic Suspense, Karma Visited (only 5) - and we didn't get a full taste of this story. Since I am working on a sequel and revisiting the story for myself, I'm sharing more with you and soaking up your comments.

Do you believe in karma? Annie Furman has a gift that allows her, while she sleeps, to visit people in their time of need - but who will be there for her when she needs help? Undersheriff Dave Turner is investigating a series of home invasions and homicides. He has no idea that solving this case will lead him to the woman of his dreams.

Annie is going though the motions of being a "dutiful wife" even though it doesn't earn her any "Brownie points" from her bullying husband and overbearing mother-in-law. I skipped ahead several pages — in this scene Scott has brought home an unexpected dinner guest and expected Annie to be a good hostess. After dinner Scott takes his friend (Bill) into his office for a private conversation. Annie's mother-in-law is distracted by a phone call from a friend. Annie is in the kitchen making coffee...

Creative editing alert!  Here are ten lines... 

She needed something to use against Scott as insurance, she had to know what they were talking about. Annie scraped the scraps into the trash, took the filled plastic bag from the wastebasket and opened the kitchen door quietly.

She was quiet as she dumped the bag into the outside garbage can and then continued walking towards Scott’s office window. She was thrilled to see that it was open a crack. 

“…now we can go ahead with the project,” Scott was talking, “with the money the pipeline is going to bring us, we’ll cash in.”

“I’m going to make sure nobody else stands in our way. This may be a small town now, but it's going to be big once that mall opens and we’re going to own a big piece of it.”

Annie heard the clink of glasses.

“We’re on our way brother.” 

   ~~~~~

For more WeWriWa Snippets, go to: 

www.wewriwa.com

My life changed after I died.

It’s not like I had any special powers.

They just didn’t understand me.

They underestimated me.

I had a gift.

Buy Links

PayHip (pdf)

Kobo

Smashwords (multiple e-book formats)

Amazon (Kindle)

Amazon (Print)

Amazon (Audio)

Payloadz

Apple iTunes

Nook

~~~~~

Just thrilled to announce

El Último Pecado

Por Chelle Cordero

FINAL SIN by CHELLE CORDERO is
NOW AVAILABLE IN SPANISH!

Final Sin was an Honorable Mention in the Fiction Category of the NY Book Festival & a Pushcart Prize nominee.
EMSWorld recently wrote about Final Sin & its sister book Hyphema.

El Último Pecado by Chelle Cordero
FREE PREVIEW from Noisetrade
El Ayudante del Alguacil, el Comandante Jake Carson está a manos llenas… la investigación de un homicidio múltiple brutal, un hijo lleno de problemas y una exesposa rencorosa. Conoce a la joven paramédica de espíritu libre Julie Jennings. Cuando Julie se convierte en el objeto de una obsesión, ambos estarán en peligro…

El Último Pecado Links

 Apple

Kindle

Kobo

Scribd Subscription  Service

NookAlso Available through:3M, Baker and Taylor, Follet, Overdrive, Gardners, Chegg, StreetLib, and Google Play

Measuring Success ~ #MondayBlogs

How do you measure a person's success?

Some folks measure success based on money and material possessions, how high their salary is and how expensive the car that they drive is. Other's measure success by a person's title, are they THE BOSS, have they risen through the ranks of a corporate ladder, do they have multiple degrees...

While there is no denying that money and what it can buy is nice, and it certainly is impressive to see diplomas from highly ranked schools adoring an office wall - I think success has a lot to do with RESPECT.

I've seen people who have caught the eye of large philanthropic organizations for their beneficent accomplishments and for all of the GOOD that they have put into this world. I've seen parents whose offspring adore them and use them as role models. I've seen spouses who stand by their mates even when things seem hard because they believe in one another. I've seen people who wake in the morning and look forward to contributing to their world. And I've seen people who actually like themselves.

...and the funny thing is that money and education isn't unique among these people, they are a mixture of financial standings and not all of their "smarts" come from the classroom.

Truly successful people are not locked into someone else's idea of success, they don't try to "fit in" by having houses better than their neighbors, or cars that shine, or wear labels on their clothing. Successful people may have to count their pennies, they may wear store-rack clothing, they may have gone to trade school instead of college, or they may even get their hands dirty while they work. But they are respected by their peers, by their family and by themselves.

They know how to be happy.

There is certainly nothing wrong with "having it all", but success is not a dollar figure or a designer label. And something else about truly successful people, they don't look down their noses at others.

How do you measure success?

The breakfast table ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 04/10/16

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior and Snippet Sunday round. Every week writers post 8-to-10 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

& check out the

Facebook Snippet Sunday group

A long, long time ago I shared a few snippets from my Paranormal Romantic Suspense, Karma Visited (only 5) - and we didn't get a full taste of this story. Since I am working on a sequel and revisiting the story for myself, I'm sharing more with you and soaking up your comments.

Do you believe in karma? Annie Furman has a gift that allows her, while she sleeps, to visit people in their time of need - but who will be there for her when she needs help? Undersheriff Dave Turner is investigating a series of home invasions and homicides. He has no idea that solving this case will lead him to the woman of his dreams.

This is the next morning at the breakfast table, Annie spent most of the night cowering in the bathroom after her nightmare of the girl dying in a burning apartment.

Creative editing alert!  Here are ten lines... 

Scott bit into his English muffin and chewed loudly, “what were you doing in the bathroom all night?”

She noted that there was no concern in his voice, he was annoyed that she had disturbed him.

“I… had a bit of a stomach ache,” she lied.

Shortly after they were married she had one of her nightmares, Scott offered comfort up until the point she trusted him enough to tell him about her belief that the dreams were real, then he laughed at her instead of listening.

At Scott’s insistence his mother moved in with them a few months later, he told his mother about the dreams, they both laughed at her.

He looked at her over his coffee cup, “you better not be coming down with anything, I expect you at that fundraiser tonight no matter what.”

Scott was running for a seat on the town council; he wanted his future constituents to see an ideal marriage, a devoted family man and adoring wife. He demanded she participate in this deception or he would reveal her mental problems and have her institutionalized.

“Don’t forget to make those cupcakes,” Scott drained his cup of coffee and then made a face, “I’m lucky no one expects you to make the coffee, this is crap.”

She reminded herself that she was just biding her time, she just had to find a way out before he could stop her and lock her away, if she failed she knew she would never get another chance.

   ~~~~~

For more WeWriWa Snippets, go to: 

www.wewriwa.com

My life changed after I died.

It’s not like I had any special powers.

They just didn’t understand me.

They underestimated me.

I had a gift.

Buy Links

PayHip (pdf)

Kobo

Smashwords (multiple e-book formats)

Amazon (Kindle)

Amazon (Print)

Amazon (Audio)

Payloadz

Apple iTunes

Nook

~~~~~

It's #NationalUnicornDay

"The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast
with a large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead." (Wikipedia)

Unicorns are traditionally associated with magic, dreams and possibilities. It is said to be a magical animal that walks between invisibility and visibility, it's beneficent and healing, and it is a strong, powerful animal. If you are lucky enough to be one of the rare individuals to see a unicorn, you are inspired to find your own purpose and meaning, you will be guided towards your destiny. A unicorn will challenge you to put aside your fears and your limitations and go beyond what you even knew you could do. Even when you don't realize that the unicorn is there, you will suddenly find meaning in the symbols in your life and that will be the unicorn's doing. The unicorn will help you find balance and peace in your life.

Here's a picture to help you find YOUR unicorn today...

"Spotting a Unicorn is like catching a falling star."

Writer Prompt Wednesday - April 6, 2016

Welcome back to my new weekly feature, just for fun.

Every Wednesday I am going to post a random picture I find online 

(and yes, I will make sure not to violate any copyrights)

and I will ask everyone to contribute to a "story" by adding a 

sentence in the comments.

Be sure to read the comments before yours so that we actually 

write a continuous story inspired by the picture.

Got the plan?   Good.

Here's this week's picture:

I'll start:

Guess who is coming to dinner?

Ok, now it's your turn —
add your sentence below

...and be sure to come back next week!

You're so vain - NOT ~ #MondayBlogs

I hate to drive. There, I said it. I can and I have, but as far as I am concerned driving is an evil necessity when you live in Suburbia. I am lucky because hubby usually doesn’t mind being the main driver in the family (besides I have a lousy sense of direction, thank goodness for GPS), but that means I am relegated to his busy schedule.

I made plans to attend an event down by my sister’s place and he isn’t available to take me. So I decided to be a big girl and take care of my own transportation. I looked up the directions on line and noticed the options… car or mass transit. Woo-hoo, maybe I wouldn’t have to drive after all! (and I LOVE train rides)

Sweet daughter, after offering to go out of her way and drive me all the way down there (an hour and a half!) just to turn around to come home to tend to her own obligations, finally consented to “go over” my transportation plans with me. She made me promise to call her along the way if there were any problems.

We reviewed the train I get on and where I make the transfer. LOL, not sounding much like a big girl yet (she travels fearlessly wherever); I asked where I pay for my ticket and mentioned the price I had seen. Not only was it convenient, it was actually economical.

She paused and then said, “Uh, mom, are you interested in the senior discount, I mean do you mind?”

“There’s a senior discount?” I asked wondering how much more appealing this trip could sound.

She gave me the price, about HALF of what I thought it would be. Heck, I am not too vain, I am a proud card carrying member of AARP. So I am taking my little round-trip, carrying an overnight bag, and looking forward to the visit.

…finally acting like a big girl!

By the way, by the time this posts on Monday, the event will have been yesterday: if you don’t hear from me this week, I probably got lost…

Time to catch her breath ~ Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 04/03/16

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior and Snippet Sunday round. Every week writers post 8-to-10 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

See more at the
WeWriWa blog

& check out the

Facebook Snippet Sunday group

A long, long time ago I shared a few snippets from my Paranormal Romantic Suspense, Karma Visited (only 5) - and we didn't get a full taste of this story. Since I am working on a sequel and revisiting the story for myself, I'm sharing more with you and soaking up your comments.

Do you believe in karma? Annie Furman has a gift that allows her, while she sleeps, to visit people in their time of need - but who will be there for her when she needs help? Undersheriff Dave Turner is investigating a series of home invasions and homicides. He has no idea that solving this case will lead him to the woman of his dreams.

Annie just woke up from her "nightmare". (Scott, mentioned here, is the man she is married to.)

Creative editing alert!  Here are ten lines... 

Scott muttered a curse word into his pillow, her gasp disturbed his slumber; Annie slid quietly from the bed and padded barefoot down the hall to the guest bathroom.

She locked the door behind her and sat on the closed toilet seat fearful of waking the other occupants of the house. She thought about her nightmare, only it wasn’t just a nightmare, not hers anyway; somewhere some young girl had just died in a burning apartment and there was nothing Annie could do to save her.

Annie had these types of dreams ever since she was a little girl, ever since the night she was napping in the back seat of the family car, her parents’ lively laughter and conversation soothed and comforted her; suddenly her mother screamed, her father yelled, and Annie was tossed in the back seat, she remembered sobbing and screams and pain, and then nothing.

She woke up in a hospital bed and heard nurses talking how she was pulled from the wreckage just before the car exploded; she had burns and damaged lungs, and a head injury.

Many weeks later Annie went home, not to the childhood home filled with happy memories of her parents, but to an elderly great-aunt and uncle. One day she overheard her aunt whispering to a neighbor that Annie had died on the operating table and the doctors managed to bring her back. She couldn’t understand why she had been able to come back from the dead but her mommy and daddy couldn’t.

When her nightmares started no one understood why she would wake up screaming, hospital counselors told her aunt and uncle that she was just reacting to the loss. Soon everyone was convinced that her nightmares were all spawned by the trauma of her parents’ fiery car crash and they not so patiently dismissed her concerns for the strangers she claimed were in danger.

   ~~~~~

For more WeWriWa Snippets, go to: 

www.wewriwa.com

My life changed after I died.

It’s not like I had any special powers.

They just didn’t understand me.

They underestimated me.

I had a gift.

Buy Links

PayHip (pdf)

Kobo

Smashwords (multiple e-book formats)

Amazon (Kindle)

Amazon (Print)

Amazon (Audio)

Payloadz

Apple iTunes

Nook

~~~~~

There was an interesting article this week The real life nightmare of sleep paralysis and it made me think of the "most rational explanation" about what Annie experiences as she travels in her dreams. I feel the article is too dismissive. In the article scientists explain Sleep Paralysis Nightmares as imagined, but... In my novel Karma Visited, Annie "travels" in her sleep during dreams in what is actually Astral Projection (out of body experiences), Studies on Out of Body experiences also describe sleep paralysis when the "body" wakes while the Astral self is out of it.

What do YOU think?