• my view,  writing life

    A Night Like This…

    Happy Friday!

     

    This has been quite the week. Well, quite the month. A total up and down roller coaster ride that I can’t seem to pull the brakes on no matter how I try. All of it will truly start to cause havoc on a girl’s head and stomach, not to mention her deadline. That said, I’m heading deep into the writing cave so I may be MIA for a while as I get the final scenes between… wait for it…. Samara and Mark my latest in, distress couple, ironed out and lov-ied  up.

     

    For this Friday though, I’d like to leave you with the lovely voice of Caro Emerald and her song A Night Like This. Doesn’t it just make you want to get away and party? Also the gorgeous photographer in the video would so make a fantastic Alejandro inspiration from Through The Lens. Have you looked on through yet? If not, just click to your right. Thanks!

     

     

     

    All the best,

    KMJ

     

    image fm here

  • my view

    Warm Up…

    Way to do double duty with this couch cover/dress combo. It my be a bit wild, but with the cold days we have this week I’m not mad at it. At least it’s warm. I’d have to add a shawl. What do you think, overkill?  Maybe that piece would be in a subtle chenille. LOL.

     

     

    Seriously, stay warm where you are. It’s getting dangerous out there.

     

    All the best,

    KMJ

     

    image fm here

  • my view,  TV,  videos,  writing life

    Fine Leather Goods…

    I’m so feeling the need for a Treat Yo Self day, even if that day is treating myself to a day in bed. But alas, I am under deadline so I don’t see that day happening for at least a month so I’ll be making due by living through Tom and Donna from Parks and Rec.

    If you had a day what would you Treat Yo Self to?

     

    Best,

    KMJ

  • happy holidays,  motherhood,  my view,  teens,  twins

    Float on, float on… Happy 19th Dear Twins

    Happy 19th Birthday Dear Twins!

     

    Now of course a big part of me wants to just spend today reminiscing and listening to Adele over and over, but  I won’t. Well, maybe just a few melancholy sniffles if you please.

    But then I will stop and smell the roses of the past 19 years…

    And tell you to eat all the cake both of your heart’s desire…

    And really enjoy this…

    And most of all… Don’t rush things…

    Slow down and make this a wonderful year full of family, love, laughter and joy,

    because what I do know is that time is going so fast that right now it does feel like you both are….

    Love you forever,

    Mom

    Images thanks to We Heart It all except the last. That would be mine.

  • authors,  interviews,  writing,  writing life

    A Writing Life… Interview with author Micah Persell

    I’m pleased to have on ye old blog a new writer friend of mine, and I’ve come to find out for myself a fantastic author, Micah Persell author of Of Eternal Life and Of Knowledge of Good and Evil , Books 1 and 2 in the Operation: Middle of the Garden Series. Now I’m not a huge paranormal reader, but I will say that Micah pulled me in right from the start with her fantastic descriptions of the frankly horrifying circumstances that her ultra-hot hero Eli found himself in. But wait, I think I’m getting a bit ahead of myself. I’m so excited coming off the end of Of Eternal Life. Slow down, Kwana, and let’s start the interview…
     Thanks so much for being here today Micah. Now can you tell us a bit about Of Eternal Life?
    Of Eternal Life is the first book in my series. It’s also the first book I ever wrote, so it has an extra special place in my heart. It follows the love story of Eli Johnson and Abilene Miller, but it’s also a suspenseful paranormal romance that focuses around what might happen if the government stumbled upon the ancient Garden of Eden in the Middle East. My theory is that we would turn it into a weapon, especially if it turned out that immortality was in the mix.

     Of Eternal Life is categorized as paranormal romance, but it does have some mystical and sci-fi elements. How would you categorize it?

    I’d love to categorize it as science fiction. A lot of scientific and medical research went into the making of Of Eternal Life. I think a lot of readers would be shocked to find out that the science in the book is all accurate. As far-fetched as it sounds to have an ancient tree’s fruit turn characters immortal, scientists have tested several methods of extending the human life, one of which is introduction of a substance that extends the Hayflick limit (the number of times a cell can reproduce before dying). I took their research and put a fictional spin on it.
     Wow real? That is so cool and interesting and a little scary. Now are you a Plotter or a Pantser? Can you please give us a glimpse into your writing routine?
    I started off as a pantser, but then Abilene’s best friend in Of Eternal Life, Dahlia Gutierrez, turned out to be the villain. Surprise! I turned into a religious plotter after that. Every single plot point in Of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was meticulously planned out. When I start a new project, I plot out all of the major turning points. Once I have a plot mapped out, then I write a first draft and revise, revise, revise until I’m moderately happy with the result. Then I revise some more 🙂
     Now for one of my favorite questions: Can you please tell us the story of your “overnight” success?
    I actually got “the call,” which for me was an e-mail, while on a field trip with my students. I’m a teacher in real life. It was a pretty special day, because I was able to share the news with the kids, and no one has a better reaction to good news than dramatic teenagers. I felt like a celebrity right away.
    I’m looking forward to the follow up to Of Eternal Life, Of Knowledge of Good and Evil; as a matter of fact I already have it on my Kindle. Can you tell the blog readers a bit about it?

    Well, even though Dahlia turned out to be the villain of book 1, I wasn’t ready to give up on her yet. Book 2 is her story. It’s a story of deep secrets and redemption. I’ve got to say, Dahlia is one of my favorite characters.
     What can we expect next from you?
    I’m putting the finishing touches on Emma: The Wild and Wanton Edition right now! I’m so excited about this book. It’s Jane Austen’s classic book, but with lots of steamy, steamy added in. Mr. Knightley and Emma definitely burn up the pages. Hopefully, it will come out some time in the spring.
     That sounds just wonderful and quite hot. Who doesn’t love Mr. Knightly?
     Thanks once again for being here. It was a fantastic treat, and I can’t wait to read more!

    You can find Micah on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, or check out her website for a special sneak peak of both Of Eternal Life and Of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

     

    All the best,
    KMJ

  • my view,  TV

    Just Wild About Maggie…

    I’m so happy that Downton is back for another season. All I could think as I watched this past week was if only I could be as witty and as quick with the comebacks as the Dowager Countess. What a fine sharp tong she has. Here are 10 of her best quips. Enjoy!

     

     

     

    All the best,

    Kwana

  • life,  my view

    It’s Monday…

    Time to hit the ground or the Underground running. Spotted this line while down by Wall Street this weekend. How New York is that and P.S. why have I never noticed these two next to each other before? I’m sure Jay Z has.

    Have a great week!

    All the best,
    Kwana

  • e readers,  gadgets,  my view

    Thinking and Reading in the Pink!

    On Christmas morning I got a gift from the family that brought the widest smile to my face. A long hinted at Kindle Paperwhite. I have and love my Kindle Fire but I find with all my night reading the Fire with it backlight technology has been a little hard on my eyes also I do like to read late into the night causing my DH to often wake and say are you still up?

    Since the Paperwhite came out me and my eyes have been lusting after it and its e-ink down-light technology that is easier on the eyes not to mention the 3G capabilities.  Well let me tell you just a few days in and I’m already in love. It’s compact and light weight and my eyes are breathing a sigh of relief.

    Now I’m not giving up my Fire. I still love it for its other features, my email, Netflix, Words with Friends and not to mention my entire cloud library is over there too, shared with the Paperwhite, but as a dedicated e-reader the Paperwhite is it for me.

    Now all that said there came the dilemma of a cover. I couldn’t have my Kindle going and getting scratched but the cover quest was something that could make a person like me crazy. Thankfully I had Twitter to go to for my answer. I ended up getting rave reviews for the cover that puts the Paperwhite to sleep and wakes it up when you open and close it.

    And going with my new theme for 2013 of brights for the New Year and taking my DD’s direction I decided to step out of my usual black zone and THINK PINK! Happy Reading to me! Hey at least my e-reader won’t go getting lost in the dark.

     

    What do you think? Are you feeling in the pink so far for 2013?

     

     

    All the best,

    KMJ