Goodbye To The Patriarch

My dad passed away this morning around 2:00 a.m. The Patriarch of our family--our oldest male--is gone.

My sister called at 6:30 and asked how I was doing. First, a call at 6:30 in the morning is never a good sign. Then for her to start out this phone call with a "how're you going?"... Then she broke the news, which was what I had been expecting but it was still so hard to hear.

As I sit here and type this, crying, I think of what my dad meant to me and how I feel about his death.

I feel a lot of regret--regret that he was such a hard man to know. He didn't show his feelings, didn't seem to take much interest in what was going on in his children's lives. Only once in the six years that I've lived in Arizona had he initiated a phone call to me to see how I was doing. One day out of 2,190. One of my sisters-in-law has often commented how much he missed out on really knowing what interesting and funny people his kids were.

Yet he'd drop everything at a moment's notice and go help someone who needed it.

My brother G and I were planning on flying home on Saturday anyway to spend time with Dad (the plan was to see him before he got worse). But with congestive heart failure, he just didn't hang on long enough. Now we'll be going home on Saturday, but we'll be going to his funeral.

I'm gonna give my mom an extra long hug when I see her while I cry like a baby in her arms.

I'd appreciate any extra positive thoughts and prayers you can send our way.

With all that being said, this will be my last post until I return from Ohio. I'll be checking messages/email, but I won't be blogging again until Sunday December 10th.

See you then.

New Review For DRAGON'S BANE

4 Angels!

"Everyone has heard the story of Cinderella, her prince charming, and the delightful fairy godmother that helped Cinderella find her happily ever after. Dragon’s Bane, however, picks up where Cinderella left off with the continuation of Adara, Cinderella’s fairy godmother. Adara is a wonderful fairy that totally commits herself to those in her charge. Ruarc is an utterly intoxicating man that will leave readers wishing they had one just like him in their happy ever after. With each turn of the page, this reader was impressed with both the captivating tale Sherrill Quinn has spun and the passion that Ruarc and Adara find with each other. The various magical aspects in this story are wonderfully told. Dragon’s Bane is a great little fairy tale that readers will enjoy."

Read an excerpt or buy.




"You're never too old to become younger." ~Mae West

One Down, One To Go

Last night I finished my self edits on my dragon shapeshifter novella, Dragonfire, for Amber Heat, and sent it off to the editor for consideration. This story is full of arrogant, sexy dragon men and two feisty sisters that don't let them get away with anything. Already have a response from the editor--contract's in the mail. *G* Dragonfire will be part of the first Beast Master Pax due out in February.

I also typed THE END on the second Praetorians book for New Concepts. (Although I still haven't come up with a title for the darn thing yet.) I was shooting for it to be 40,000 words (a short novel, but a novel nonetheless) and it came in at just under 36,000. I have to put it past my critique group, which will take several more weeks as we only share about 25 pages at a time. Well, those are the rules, anyway, but my gals have been so supportive they've been letting me submit much more than that at a time. Which worked out fine over the last couple of months because I've been the only one submitting anything, but a couple of the others are working really good stories up and will be sending stuff out for us to critique, so I can't load up everyone with all my stuff. Darn it. But what that means is that my editor at NCP won't see this until after the first of the year. Which is all right, except...

I'm getting ready to work on a quickie for Ellora's Cave that's due February 1st. (My critique partner Suz and I are going to brainstorm it over shrimp--and maybe a margarita--at Red Lobster this afternoon.) But that story will only be 15,000 words, so it's, er, a quickie. I should be able to write it fairly quickly, and they should be able to critique it, er, quickly. LOL

Oy. Can you tell I keep my critique group hopping? They've been so fantastic to me, and I'm very, very thankful for them.




"You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you." ~Ray Bradbury

Another Review For OBSIDIAN'S FLAME

4 Stars!

From Morgan at Just Erotic Romance Reviews:

"I wasn't prepared for the racy cat and mouse energy between (the characters) that I found particularly thrilling. Trey is the dangerous type--sexy dangerous, that is. He is an impressive being and I was filled with awe as his presence graced the pages of this book. His smooth confidence was almost more than I could gleefully bear as I witnessed his slow caress of breaking Sam down. Sam is as fiery as her abilities... Together, they are a hot pair... With an exciting plot, plenty of twists and turns, and moments that are pure sexual bliss, Obsidian's Flame is one sci-fi hero story that is too good to pass up."

Read an excerpt or buy.





"She's the kind of girl who climbed the ladder of success...wrong by wrong." ~Mae West

Another Lazy Sunday

Lazy Sundays are my favorite, especially when I can look at something like this:


Aye carumba! Talk about lickalicious!!




"So many men... so little time." ~Mae West

Life Is About Changes

In the past several years I've had some major changes in my life:

• I quit my job in Ohio and moved to Arizona--without another job lined up.

• I decided to make a career change and focus on writing, so I sold my house and quit my job.

• I started back to work part-time 10 months later (somewhat as planned).

• My dad was diagnosed with colon/rectal cancer. We don't expect to have him with us much longer.

• My part-time job is going to full-time because my boss's last (unexpected) day was the day before Thanksgiving.

I had known I would have to go back to work full-time. Actually, I'd expected to be working full-time by now--the plan was to stay at home for one year and focus on writing and getting myself established, then I'd go back to work full-time (cuz I need the bennies). And I'm kicking against reality less and less. *sigh* Guess it's finally sinking in. LOL

The trick is to accept change and deal with it positively. I try not to worry about things over which I have no control, and try not to worry about how/if things will work out. God always seems to have a path open for me.

Case in point: When I moved to Arizona without another job lined up, I began working at a large credit union 3 weeks after I arrived in town. A year and a half later, I was Assistant Vice President of Human Resources (later renamed/promoted to Vice President) with a nice salary that enabled me to buy a 1531 square foot, 3 bedroom + den house. The sale of the house 3 years later enabled me to quit that job and try my hand at this writing gig. Then, about a month and a half before I'd planned on starting to submit my resume out there to see what kind of day job I could find (because I was realistic enough to know I'd not be able to support myself with my writing, not yet, anyway!), my old boss from the credit union called and asked me to come work 1 day a week, helping her organize the HR department at the company where she'd just started working. And except for the first week or so, I've worked no less than 2 days a week. Now, about 3 months before I'd planned on *really* looking for a full-time job, I have one.

If I'd worried about things, it would've increased my blood pressure for no good reason.

And my dad? All I can do for him is pray, which I do all the time. He'll be 80 in just a few weeks, so he's lived a good, long life. But, of course it's still hard to think of him not being around. When he's gone, that'll be another change in my life, something that will subtly change who I am.

All I can say is, when life hands you a change, embrace it. What other choice do you have?





"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power." ~Alan Cohen

Gotta Love Those Cowboys!

No, not those cowboys. I'm talkin' 'bout a cowboy like this:

Sing along with me (to the tune of I Love Paris):

Oh, I love cowboys in the springtime. I love cowboys in the fall.
I love cowboys in the summer when they sizzle,
I love cowboys in the winter when they drizzle.

I love cowboys every moment
Every moment of the year.
I love cowboys.
Why, oh, why do I love cowboys?
Because...


Okay, tell me why you love cowboys!




"Why don't you come up and see me sometime ... when I've got nothin' on but the radio." ~Mae West

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fox Finally Came To Their Senses

You know, I wasn't going to blog about this because I didn't want to give OJ Simpson one more sound bite of publicity. But, here I am. Only to say...

THANK YOU FOR NOT PUBLISHING THIS @#*%@#$! BOOK, AND FOR NOT AIRING THE @*%&#*! INTERVIEW.

If you've visited my blog before, you know I am not an advocate of censorship. I think everyone has a right to write a book and have it published. The minute you start censoring what we can say or write, things come very close to dictating what we think. (Remember Nazi Germany?) I can choose to not read something I think I might find offensive.

But the fact that OJ had the cajones to write "if I did it, this is how I would've done it" is just jaw-dropping unbelievable to me. He's thumbing his nose at the police, the DA's office, Nicole and Ron's families and the overall sense of decency most human beings seem to have. Let's just say, for a moment, that he really is innocent of the crime. Why in the h**l would he do this to his kids?!?

Oh, wait. I forgot. Kinda lost my head, thinking he gives a rat's ass about anyone except himself. And, of course, he could put his confession up on a billboard and nothing would happen to him because of double jeopardy--he's already been tried and found not guilty of their deaths.

But to write a book...! *shaking my head*

THEN to have the woman who interviewed him say she did it to put closure on her own past abuse? Oy. Give me a f**king break. Just say it. You did it for the money or the publicity or both. I have greater respect for someone who tells the truth than someone who tries to make their motives seem somehow noble. And sometimes, even the most noble of motives fall flat if they're backing something so wrong.

Thank you, Mr. Murdoch, for pulling the plug on both the book and the interview. I tell you, I was ready to boycott the Fox channel and every advertiser who put up ads these next few weeks. I'm glad that, for whatever reason, common decency has prevailed.

Go find your next 15 minutes somewhere else, OJ.




"The only valid censorship of ideas is the right of people not to listen." ~Tommy Smothers

Yesterday, Cowboys. Today...

Ooooh, yeah. Spent yesterday with a snoozin' cowboy. Today it's time for a naughty Native American. Rrrrrowr!




"Too much of a good thing can be wonderful." ~Mae West

Sleepytime Cowboy

I think I've used this pic before, but it's a good one. And I have to say, nothing's finer than a sleepy cowboy... depending on how he got to be so sleepy...




"Cowboy butts drive me nuts!" ~Anonymous

Romance Writers of America

I cannot stress enough how important it is to belong to a group where you get support and the chance to learn and grow as a writer. My RWA membership--especially since my local chapter formed 18 months ago--has been worth much more than the annual dues I pay.

Over this past year, I have held the positions of Co-Editor of the chapter newsletter, PRO Liaison, and Critique Group Coordinator. Bowing to gently applied pressure, I put my name in the hat for the position of President next year. So I will continue to give back to my chapter and try to make sure that all the members have the same opportunities that I've had. (It's up to them to take advantage of the opportunities... to MAKE something happen instead of waiting for something to happen--be proactive instead of reactive.)

At our meeting today, I'll be asking for volunteers to fill several vacancies open in January, including 2 of the positions I hold right now. Here's hoping people will step forward!




"We ourselves must be full of life if we are going to make life fuller for others." ~David Sawyer

Let Me Be...

...your washcloth.

Oh, yeah.

Wait. You missed a spot...





"Save a boyfriend for a rainy day--and another, in case it doesn't rain." ~Mae West

A Writer's Work Is Never Done

I just finished the first draft of my novella, Dragonfire, which I'm submitting to Amber Heat for one of their shapeshifter Paxes. As you can no doubt tell from the title, my particular shapeshifters are dragons. Ger-er-errrrrrrr. I just sent the second half of the novella off to my critique group. I hope to have the edited version in to my editor by the end of the month.

So, this morning after I get home from my dentist appointment (cavity in one of my wisdom teeth and, no, I'm NOT getting it pulled until I have to!), I'm heading back into the second book in my Praetorians series. I already have 15,000 words of Quinn's story written, but that's not quite the halfway mark for this one. I'm shooting for 35-40,000 words on this one, which means the book will be almost twice as long as the first one in the series. But Quinn's so grrrrrr, I have to give him more room!

Then it's on to expanding my novella City of the Dead into an at least 70,000 word novel so I can resubmit it to Kensington (by request). I think that means that by around the first of March I'll be ready to start on something new. As long as my energy doesn't flag. Now that the doc has me on potassium pills (my high blood pressure medication has a diuretic in it, which can make you lose potassium), I've already noticed a difference in my level of tiredness. As in I'm not as tired as I have been--haven't been taking naps in the middle of the day on my days off.

Course, now that it's dark by 5:45 p.m., I'm ready for bed by then anyway. LOL My biological clock says, hmm. Dark means it's bedtime, light means it's time to get up. Which really sucks in the summer when the sun starts climbing over the mountain at 4:45 a.m. Yep. This summer I was awake by 5 a.m. every freakin' morning. There's only so much light I can block out of a room that has skylights in the bathroom area, and no door separating the bathroom from the bedroom (only an archway).

Check in with y'all later!




"The wages of sin are death, but by the time taxes are taken out, it's just sort of a tired feeling." ~Paula Poundstone

It's A Good Day

Yep. Any day I can feast my eyes on somethin' like this...

It's a damned good day!




"To attract men, I wear a fragrance called "New Car Interior"." ~Rita Rudner

First Review For OBSIDIAN'S FLAME

The very first review is in for Obsidian's Flame, and it's just terrific!

5 Hearts!

From Valerie at Love Romances and More:

"Betrayal, hurt, trust, love and lots of emotion make this story a real keeper. This reviewer was captivated and thrilled with this story... An adventure with lots of action in every way, Sherrill Quinn gives more than good value for money! An absolute must read!!"


I love it when I get double (or more!) exclamation points from reviewers. LOL

You can read the entire review here. To read an excerpt or buy, click here.

~ * ~

My friend Kelly Maher also received a 5 Heart review for her Lusty League story, Cimmerean League: Revelation. Way to go, Kelly!




"Adults are always asking little kids what they want to be when they grow up because they're looking for ideas." ~Paula Poundstone

Book Videos

Book videos seem to be the latest, greatest way to market books. All over my various author loops I see messages from writers who've just put one together for their latest baby. Some have music, others don't.

But do they really work? There are several companies now who put these together. The first one to look at this medium was Circle of Seven Productions. When they began, no one else was doing this and so they were able to trademark the term Book Trailer. Other companies have since trademarked "NovelTease", "Expanded Books" and "VidLit".

It comes down to this: Does the impact of imagery carry more impact than words?

According to my latest Romance Writers Report, it very well may.

One of my favorite authors, Christine Feehan, has had a 700% increase in web traffic since she started showing book videos on her site. Yikes!

I'm nowhere near ready to spend the money to make one of these, and I don't have the technical expertise, software or, indeed, the patience to learn to do it on my own. So, for the time being, I'm just gonna sit back and appreciate the book videos my fellow authors are running.

In case you're interested, here are some of the companies that offer book videos:

Circle of Seven Productions
Pizzazzy Productions
VidLit


So, any thoughts to my question? Do videos sell books? If you saw a well-made video by an author unknown to you, would it entice you to buy his/her book?





"Luck? I don't know anything about luck. I've never banked on it and I'm afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work -- and realizing what is opportunity and what isn't." ~Lucille Ball

To All Our Veterans

Veterans Day began as Armistice Day, following World War I. Even though the Treaty of Versailles (signed on June 28, 1919) was the official end to World War I, the actual fighting ended seven months earlier on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. Armistice Day officially became a legal nationwide holiday in 1938, and the name changed to Veterans Day in 1954.

As I researched information about Veterans Day, I came across a list of wars the U.S. has been involved in since our earliest days, starting with our own American Revolution. Then we move on to:

War of 1812
Mexican War
Civil War (or War of Aggression by the Northern States, depending on which side of the Mason-Dixon you grew up on)
Spanish American War
World War I
World War II
Korean War
Vietnam War
Persian Gulf War
War on Terror

I'm not making any sort of political statement here. My grandfather (now deceased) and his son, my uncle, fought in World War II. My dad is a veteran of the Korean War. I have the utmost respect, admiration and appreciation for all those who serve in the armed forces.

Thank you, to you and your families.

And God bless.

"On the battlefield, the military pledges to leave no man behind. As a nation, let it be our pledge that, when they return home, we leave no veteran behind." ~Dan Lipinski

Illegal Aliens

You know, we have a real problem with illegal aliens here in Arizona. Every year we have over a hundred people who die in the desert, trying to get into America illegally to make a better life for themselves. (Or to continue to conduct themselves as criminals, which, can I just say... Y'all can keep your criminals. Stop sending them to us--we have enough of our own!)

Well, I recently discovered that Wal-Mart is contributing to this problem by employing aliens:


LOL!




"It's a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy." ~Lucille Ball

Yay! It's The Day Before Friday

I have to work a full day today and tomorrow--we're in the middle of our benefits open enrollment, plus my boss went off to visit her granddaughter for an extended weekend, so I'm providing HR coverage.

I'm exhausted already. LOL

Before I head out, here's a little somethin' to start off your day...


Yeeeeeehawwwww!



"It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else." ~Erma Bombeck

New Review For THE CLAIMING

4 Hearts!

From Anita at The Romance Studio:

"The Claiming by Sherrill Quinn is a steamy futuristic romance designed to stimulate the imagination. Kassinda was afraid of her lover’s vampiric nature, but she never completely stopped loving him.... Rhys is definitely all alpha male when it comes to dominating the female and delighting the senses beyond belief... For a fiery passionate romance that will stimulate the imagination, I recommend The Claiming by Sherrill Quinn."


Read the full review here.

Read an excerpt or buy.





"A man can be short and dumpy and getting bald, but if he has fire, women will like him." ~Mae West

Proof of Global Warming

I've been doing some research on global warming for my next Praetorians book. And I believe this picture is proof enough:


A picture's worth 1,000 words. Yes, indeedy.

~ * ~

Hey, hey! There are still a few movie quotes no one's guessed yet from Saturday. Scroll down and try your luck.

I'll give you some clues:

#5 is an old Western with John Wayne.
#13 starred John Travolta.
#15 is from the daft mind of Mel Brooks.

Does that help? *G*




"Brevity is the soul of lingerie." ~Dorothy Parker

Tall, Dark and Handsome...Or Not

I confess, I grew up watching the Lawrence Welk show. We never missed it. And my young heart pitter-pattered whenever Tom Netherton came on to sing. Not only did he have a sexy voice, but he was tall (6'5"), handsome, and...blond. Golden blond hair that was shiny and thick, just begging to have feminine hands comb through it. (Hey, come on. At that age, I wasn't thinking of doing anything else!)


So, last night, as I was surfing the 500 or so cable channels (all right, yes, I exaggerate, but you know what I mean!) and finding nothing interesting to watch, I landed on the local PBS station and guess what was on? Lawrence Welk. And just as I tuned in, Tom Netherton came on to sing.

*sigh* Even thirty or so years later, my heart still went pitter-patter. And, of course, I had to look him up on the Internet and see how old he was and if he was still alive. He's almost 60! And looks great, I might add. He's aged pretty well. Take a look:


*another sigh* Why is it that men seem to age better than women? Really. It's just not fair!

All right. Y'all 'fess up. Any Lawrence Welk celebrities you crushed on when you were younger? Or, for those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about cuz you're just babes in arms, who's your biggest celebrity crush?

~ * ~

Oh, and there are still plenty of movie titles for y'all to guess from yesterday's blog...




"I don't know much about being a millionaire, but I'll bet I'd be a darling at it." ~Dorothy Parker

More Name That Movie

I had such a good time with this, I thought I'd do some more. *G*

Below are quotes from some of my favorite movies. Try to guess what movie each quote came from--and no cheating! Don't Google!! Leave your answers in the comment section, and I'll update the blog periodically with the correct answer and the person who guessed it.

Let the games begin!

1. It's all fun and games until someone gets shot in the leg. Armeggedon ~ Jennifer Y
2. It's the karmic credit plan. Buy now, pay forever. Dead Again ~ Maya
3. Children of the night... Shut up! Love At First Bite ~ Jennifer Y
4. Sell crazy someplace else. We're all stocked up here. As Good As It Gets ~ Maya
5. I'm looking at a tin star with a drunk pinned on it.
6. If I give you another face lift, you'll be able to blink your lips. First Wives Club ~ Maya
7. I picked a hell of a day to quit drinkin'. Independence Day ~ Jennifer Y
8. Life's a bitch. Now, so am I. Batman Returns ~ Jenna
9. It's great to be young and insane. Dream Team ~ Sam
10. I don't need a gun, I've got a Donk. Crocodile Dundee II ~ Jenna
11. You said "wet-shirt-don't-break", not "piss-shirt-bend-bars"! Shanghai Noon ~ Sue A.
12. D-E-D. Dead. Robin Hood Men In Tights ~ Jennifer Y
13. If we ever go to war with Utah, we'll really kick ass.
14. Curses only have power when you believe in them, and I don't. Practical Magic ~ Shannon & Maya
15. Yes, we have Nosferatu! We have Nosferatu today!




"I didn't discover curves; I only uncovered them." ~Mae West

Got Milk?

Milk. It does a body good!

Boy-howdy, does it ever...





"I wrote the story myself. It's about a girl who lost her reputation and never missed it." ~Mae West

Cleaning Hunks

OMG, this is too funny. One of the Whiskey Creek Press Torrid authors listed this link on the Torrid Temptations blog the other day and, of course, I had to go see what it was about:

http://www.cleaninghunk.com/

I think there's something wrong with me. I sent one of the hunks, Brian, to clean the bathroom and, instead of admiring his muscles, I'm all "You're not doing a very good job" and "No! Don't wipe the floor and then go over the surface of the tub with the same rag!"

LOLLOL

I even had him dress like a gladiator and he strips down to just his little skirt pretty quickly. And he barely swipes down the bathtub and then he's "Well, I'm done. With time left over," and starts to do pushups. Phffft. Clean the bathroom! That's what I asked you to do.

Okay. So I thought I'd try one of the other guys. I pointed Jason toward the kitchen, and had him dress like a cowboy. He put some pine cleaner directly onto a sponge, wiped up a mess of something on the kitchen island (which was really pretty, by the way), then just kept wiping over the same spot with the same dirty sponge. Yikes! And he got hot and took off his shirt (of course). He asks if it's clean enough for me, and I'm staring at the computer saying, "No! You call that cleaning?!"

I wanna know--did these guys feel like total nimwads while they were shooting these videos? Really. It's funny rather than sexy.

At least, it is to me. Of course, I've already said there might be something wrong with me...

~ * ~

I'm blogging over at Torrid Temptations today--if you want sexy, come over for a sneak peek at Sweet Treats, my contribution to the upcoming Christmas Candy anthology, and stick around for the yummy eye candy.




"Don't marry a man to reform him. That's what reform schools are for." ~Mae West