Miscellaneous Monday – Storm in a Teacup

Miscellaneous Monday – Storm in a Teacup

I haven’t done an idiom in some time, so I thought I would return to the fascinating world of idioms on this lazy Monday. Idioms are sayings that make little sense from a practical standpoint, but mean something in common language. Storm in a teacup is not one of the more used idioms, but is common enough that just about anyone who speaks English natively should know it. Storm in a teacup is the concept that a small matter is…

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Progress- Sort of

Progress- Sort of

Image by Azmi Talib from Pixabay A number of months ago, I mentioned that I had embarked on rewriting one of my early books, Hidden Desires. In a massive case of misplaced hubris, I foolishly claimed I could have it ready before Christmas. In case any of you haven’t noticed, I missed. By a lot. It is now mid-March, and I am less than half of the way through. The further I have gotten into this manuscript, the more changes I’ve made to…

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The challenge of historical fiction

The challenge of historical fiction

Image by Mystic Art Design from Pixabay As an author, my genre is Historical Romantic Fiction, specifically Pride & Prejudice variations. As I’ve said in previous posts, I went through a steep learning curve, which is only now levelling off, to a certain degree. I confess to suffering some envy regarding my brother Jann’s apparent ease when it comes to crafting stories. Of course, he’s been writing professionally for more than a decade, while I six years under my belt. Unfortunately, cancer and…

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What’s Up Wednesday – The Trouble with Outlines

What’s Up Wednesday – The Trouble with Outlines

I know I have spoken of the outlining process before, but I have recently had an experience with outlining that I feel it is worth discussing. As I have said before, outlining can be the most fickle part of the writing process. There are times when I outline like a demon, going through an entire novel’s planning in the space of a few days, while other times I can look at an outline for hours and not put a single…

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Funny Friday – Writing Jokes

Funny Friday – Writing Jokes

For this edition of Funny Friday, I thought I’d pull out some funny one frame cartoons for your enjoyment. So pull up a chair and get ready to laugh (or groan!) And, of course, everyone’s favorite! And finally, a little Pride and Prejudice humor! Happy Friday everyone! I sourced all these images from various pages on Pinterest.

Trivia Thursday – Happy Leap Day

Trivia Thursday – Happy Leap Day

As today is auspiciously February 29th, I thought I would do a post on Leap Years and how they reconcile our reckoning of time. Simply put, Leap Days are usually added once every four years, extending the month of February to 29 days. The reason for this addition is that the length of a year, defined as the amount of time it takes for the earth to revolve around the sun, is slightly more than 365 days–365.2425 days to be…

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Welcome to The Dead South

Welcome to The Dead South

Image from https://www.inyourpocket.com/krakow/the-dead-south_24759e Meet The Dead South, a folk-bluegrass band from my hometown. My son sent me the link to this song without telling me about the band, but the majority of  video was obviously shot in and around Regina, Saskatchewan. That got me curious, so I had to find out what was going on. They formed in 2012 and have been together, for the most part, since then. Take a listen to this, it is well worth a few…

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Thoughts on Marriage

Thoughts on Marriage

Today is the forty-eight anniversary of my marriage. My wife and I are at the stage of our union where we are both retired and satisfied with our lives. I am, at least, and I believe she is also. That’s not to say that we’re content to sit on our duffs and let the world go by. We still have hopes and dreams that won’t come to pass by themselves. She’s given me four beautiful children, who have graced us with…

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Trivia Thursday-Regency Fun and Games

Trivia Thursday-Regency Fun and Games

Francesco Bartolozzi, 1787, Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (GMII): Image in the public domain. Wikimedia Next Monday is Family Day here in Alberta and in keeping with the spirit of that holiday, I thought I’d present a few of the games children played in England during the Regency period. Although the names are different, the games these youngsters played are similar to what I and my friends found to amuse ourselves. Games like skipping rope and spinning tops were popular…

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Bingley’s Indignation – Publication Announcement

Bingley’s Indignation – Publication Announcement

As promised, Bingley’s Indignation is now available on Amazon Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and Paperback, with a Hardcover version to follow. If you have not already seen it, here is the cover, the blurb, and a link to the book. Enjoy! Trouble between friends erupts when Fitzwilliam Darcy informs his friend, Charles Bingley about his complicity in keeping him away from Miss Jane Bennet the previous winter. Darcy, determined to be honest with his friend, never considered the possibility that Bingley, mild-mannered…

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