Feline Friday: Cats Who Read

One of the things I do when I get a book by a favorite author (besides jump up and down for joy) is post  a picture on Twitter. With a cat, because otherwise it's kind of boring. Here's a few of my recent "happy" reads.

I just got Jim Butcher's newest Harry Dresden book! I've been waiting for this one since the minute I finished the last one! YAY!

But I have to finish reading this first. (I know--no cat. Sorry.)

 Other things I've read this year (you'll see I love a wide variety of genres, from fantasy to paranormal romance to urban fantasy to woman's fiction to contemporary romance, plus a few not represented here). All these are by authors I like so much I buy (not just read) every book they put out.

And, of course, there was this :-)

 Now that I have a Kindle, it makes putting these pictures up a little more challenging at times. But when author (and Betty) Tawna Fenske put out a call for pictures of her newest release in the wild, I decided that Samhain would have to be wild enough.

Who are your favorite authors? What are you reading now?

COVER REVEAL!!! Wickedly Wonderful

I just got the final cover art for WICKEDLY WONDERFUL, the 2nd book in the Baba Yaga Series. It isn't even up at Amazon or Penguin yet, so I get to share it with you here first!

Remember, there is a different Baba Yaga protagonist in each book, so the Baba Yaga for Wickedly Wonderful looks completely different (as does her Chudo Yudo, a magical dragon disguised as a Very Large dog). Unlike the first book, which took place in upstate NY, this one takes place in CA, on the Monterey Bay.

Meet Beka and Chewie!

What do you think--do you love it as much as I do?

The book isn't out until December 2nd, but you can preorder now at Barnes and Noble and Amazon

Here's the book summary:

Known as the wicked witch of Russian fairy tales, Baba Yaga is not one woman, but rather a title carried by a chosen few. They keep the balance of nature and guard the borders of our world, but don’t make the mistake of crossing one of them…

Though she looks like a typical California surfer girl, Beka Yancy is in fact a powerful yet inexperienced witch who’s struggling with her duties as a Baba Yaga. Luckily she has her faithful dragon-turned-dog for moral support, especially when faced with her biggest job yet…

A mysterious toxin is driving the Selkie and Mer from their homes deep in the trenches of Monterey Bay. To investigate, Beka buys her way onto the boat of Marcus Dermott, a battle-scarred former U.S. Marine, and his ailing fisherman father.

While diving for clues, Beka drives Marcus crazy with her flaky New Age ideas and dazzling blue eyes. She thinks he’s rigid and cranky (and way too attractive). Meanwhile, a charming Selkie prince has plans that include Beka. Only by trusting her powers can Beka save the underwater races, pick the right man, and choose the path she’ll follow for the rest of her life…

 Are we excited yet? (I feel a giveaway coming on...)

What I Did on my Summer Vacation

Okay--it isn't technically summer, and three days isn't actually a vacation, but it is likely to be as close to one as I get this year, so here's what I did over the three-day Memorial Day weekend...

Saturday was Work Day. First I cleaned the house (including the upstairs cat room, which doesn't get much attention over the winter when it is cold up there). I always clean on Saturday mornings, but I did a deeper job than usual this time and managed to get some of those "clutter spots" cleared up too. I'm getting ready to start work on a new novel, and I do my best work when the house is clean and free of too much clutter (it is never perfect). Then I went to the locally-owned garden center and picked up the last of the plants for the garden, including tomatoes to replace the tomato plants that got walloped by a late frost (BOO), along with some herbs.

With my friend Ellen's help, I got the last of the garden in (except for the broom corn seeds and some flower seeds, which I still have to figure out placement for).

And I discovered about a gazillion pollywogs in my garden pond!

Sunday was another work day. I finished writing up a Mystery Proposal for a New and Different Project. (I could tell you what it is, but then I'd have to kill you.) I can't go into specifics until I find out if the proposal is accepted or not, but I can tell you that it is for something I have never done before, and I'm kind of excited by the possibility...

Then I went outside to rescue the front flower beds from the weeds. Here's the large bed on the right, after it got cleared out. (If you look closely, you can see my supervisor sitting in the window.)

 Here's the smaller bed on the left (which, ironically, actually has a lot more real plants in it, although a lot of that greenery is weeds, too). I ran out of steam, so that one is still waiting for me. Oh, the joy.

Here's a close-up of Angus, doing the tough job of keeping an eye on me while I work.

The rest of Sunday was spent making jewelry, since I wanted to get a bunch of new items in for the summer before I dive into the writing.

Freshwater pearls, mixed gemstones, fluorite with a chaorite dangle, sugalite, rose quartz & cloisonne

Fluorite chunks, aventurine, lapis, and lots of lapis earrings

It probably doesn't look like much, but that's about ten hours of work there. (A little bit of it got done Monday night.)

Monday was mostly a fun and relax day. I did take care of a few small tasks in the morning, but then I went over to my friend John's house and he cooked us up an amazing BBQ (he's a great cook--can I just say "bacon-wrapped onion rings"?) and we both ate WAY too much. The weather was just perfect; sunny and high 70's with a little breeze, and it felt wonderful to sit outside and enjoy it after the long, bitter winter. The we went inside to digest and watch Frozen, which he's seen  multiple times and I hadn't gotten around to yet. It really was a lovely as everyone had been telling me.

All in all, it was a good weekend. Yes, I worked my butt off for much of it, but a) many of the things I worked at were things I enjoy doing and b) I was able to tick some pretty major items off my "to do" list, which means I feel way less overwhelmed. I got to spend time with friends, and be outside. All in all, I have no complaints.

I hope you had a nice weekend too (whether or not it was a holiday where you live). Tell me, what did you do this weekend?

Feline Friday: Not Happy

SIGH. For some reason, the poll doesn't seem to be working--I don't know why. So have a look at the list of possible prizes I might give out to promote the Baba Yaga books, and tell me which ones you'd like the most. (I'm NOT happy with you, Blogger.)

Happy Memorial Weekend to those in the USA, and happy weekend to everyone!

 Magic, not happy at being disturbed in her hiding space under the table

 Samhain, not happy that she had to have her subcutaneous fluids (to treat her chronic renal failure)

 Minerva (with Mystic further down), not happy about me bothering our breakfast relaxation with picture taking (they're lying on my stretched out legs)

Angus, who is just confused.

I hope you have a happy and undisturbed weekend!

New Poll, Baba Yaga Book Promo Questions, Reminders

Okay, folks...it is hard to believe, but the Baba Yaga novels will be out before we know it (the novella comes out August 6th, Wickedly Dangerous will be out September 2nd, and Wickedly Wonderful on December 2nd. So I'm starting to plot and plan how I'm going to handle promo and giveaways and contests, OH MY!

Bounce! Bounce! Bounce!

If you look at the top of the page, you will see that I put up a new poll, asking people what kinds of contest prizes they would like the best. You can choose more than one, and if whatever you want (bookmarks, for instance) isn't up there, you can add it in the comments here. Obviously, I will only have a few Advanced Reader Copies to give away (I think I might get 10 or so, but I'm not sure) and it will be some time before I get copies of the actual book. I'm not sure how soon I'll start the actual giveaways, but I'm trying to figure out what goodies to order now...

Also, I will be taking down the "Buy Now" button for signed copies of The Witch's Broom on May 26th, at the end of the long weekend, so if you want one, this is your last chance. Thanks to all those who ordered one from me already. Of course, you can always just use the link above to buy one from Amazon. (And, you know, boost my sales back up in to the top 100... Just sayin'.)

Don't forget to join me on the radio on Thursday 22nd, 9-10 pm EST at Blessed Be Gardens where you can call in and chat with me, or join us via chat room (the link is on the page) and/or listen via computer. I'll be giving away a signed copy of The Witch's Broom to one lucky listener!

I hope to talk to some of you then!

Big Happenings: Radio Event and Giveaway on Bitten By Books

I'm going to be on  the radio live this Thursday night from 9-10 pm EST at Blessed Be Garden's Radio Show -- you can join in by calling in or using the chat room Here ya go--the chat room!

Blessed Be Garden is a cool shop and so much more, run by a couple of very nice ladies named Krista and Andrea.They're strangely excited by the idea of having me on their show... I hope a few of you get a chance to stop by and say hi--you can actually hear my voice and everything!

Here's the event poster

Next Thursday on BLESSED BE GARDEN.......

I'm also taking part in a HUGE giveaway for Rachel Smith's amazing blog Bitten By Books. It is the blog's six year anniversary and she is doing six big days of giveaways, including prizes from really cool authors like Jim Butcher, and smaller (but also cool) folks like me. Today's prizes include a KINDLE FIRE! And I believe that you have 4-5 days to enter each day's contests, so it isn't too late. I don't know exactly which day she'll be giving away my prize pack, but I can tell you that I sent her...(wait for it)
Signed copies of the new Witch's Broom book, Everyday Witch A-Z, Everyday Witch A-Z Spellbook, and Everyday Witch Book of Rituals PLUS one of my handcrafted necklaces. You don't want to miss a prize pack like that, do you? No, I didn't think so!

Rachel was kind enough to invite me to do TWO events later in the year to celebrate the release of the two novels, so I definitely wanted to help her celebrate the anniversary of my favorite review and contest blog. Go check it out!

What an exciting week!

Addendum: As requested, the Necklace of the Week that I posted on Facebook, for those of you who aren't on there. (The stone is aventurine, in case you were wondering.)

 

A Reader's Broom

No, this is not a special broom covered with books. (Although, HEY!)

One of my readers sent me a note last week, telling me that she was enjoying her copy of The Witch's Broom but...

I've been reading your wonderful book about broom lore, but I suddenly came across something that is disturbing to me. "Never carry a broom across running water." Why??? The reason I ask is because I live on a sailboat for 6 months each year and traverse the coast of Maine and the Canadian Maritimes. The water runs fast in the ocean. I was going to make myself a small besom for the boat, but then I read this broom lore in your book and now I don't know if I should?

 I wrote Sharon back and told her not to worry--all those bits of old lore are just that, old lore--many of which contradict themselves. I certainly didn't see any reason why she couldn't have a special besom for her boat. I also added that I'd love to see pictures of the broom when it was finished, and she kindly sent me pictures of the entire process, along with permission to share. Thanks, Sharon!

Here's what Sharon said about making the broom:

 I will be making my new boat besom from aged Sable Palm leaves (I live in Florida when I'm not sailing) on a piece of bittersweet vine (collected on my sister in law's 200 year old Mass farm).  I love the twist of the vine and it's a very dense, hard wood.

I just LOVE the fact that my book inspired Sharon to make her own broom (since that was one of my goals, to inspire people) and that she made it out of materials and based on a theme that suited her own particular needs. Thanks for sharing, Sharon!

Has anyone else been inspired to make a broom? If you haven't made one yet, are you planning to? If so, I'd love to see it what it is done!

In fact...maybe I should have a contest. People could send me pictures of brooms they make, and the one I like best could win something cool...what do you think?