I was lurking on a writers website today and noticed a daily writing prompt; an ice cream flavor you create. It could be written as a short story, or advertisement.
This is what I came up with:

There's a famous ice cream company that boasts thirty one flavors; but the one they never created is blueberry cheesecake swirl. That's because it is my creation, and quite by accident.
It was the summer of '06, on a hot, humid, no wind what-so-ever kind of day. I had just finished washing my car, letting the hose spray water on my bare feet for a minute before going inside the house.
I opened the fridge and pulled out the blueberry cheese I made earlier. I got the vanilla bean ice cream out of the freezer, and plopped a big scoop onto a plate. I added a slice of the cheesecake on top, headed back out the door to lean against my freshly washed car and enjoy my dessert.

I forgot about the hose laying near the tires where a small mound of soap suds had pooled around it. I slipped in the suds and as I fell, my plate went flying and landed upside down on the trunk of my car, while I landed in the pile of soap suds. I stood up, brushed myself off and went to grab what was left of my dessert.
It was melting and dripping down the side of the trunk. I turned the plate over and shoved what was left back onto the plate. I used my fingers to eat it because the spoon I brought was now under the car . The blueberry cheesecake was mixed with the ice cream and I have to say, it was delicious. A new flavor, and one of my favorites.

This is a work fiction. However, I did find some good recipes for an ice cream like this. =)

It's NanoWrimo time again!

          Just a quick note to let everyone know that I am participating in NanoWrimo! In case you're wondering, it stands for: National Novel Writing Month. I need to write a 50,000 word novel and I have 30 days to do it.
I will be busy all through November working on my novel.

          My story is titled, 'Manny the Guard'. Here is a quick synopsis of my novel...
                                               

           Manny's a guard for Carlos Manafred who is into everything illegal.  Manny ends up with the least likely of jobs; babysitting the drug lords girlfriend, Destina. She is the kindest person Manny has ever known, and the violence she endures at the hands of Carlos weighs heavily on his mind.

 It's during this time that Manny reflects back on his troubled life. Starting with his abusive mother, the tragic death of his younger brother and the years spent living in foster homes and youth authorities. He dwells on his past and the crimes that led him to where he is today.

At the age of forty eight, he's tired of being a mobster. His days are numbered living this lifestyle and he wants out. Being around Destina has shown him that good people really do exist. He decides to take a risk and begin doing what is right. Starting with helping Destina escape and then shutting down Carlos and all his drug operations, but doing so could cost him his life.



Thanks for stopping by, let me know what you think of the synopsis. =)

It all starts with good ink.

          Today I've been researching literary agents online. There's a note pad and several pens next to my laptop so I can write down the agents that may be interested in my work. This way I can review my list later and takes notes on who I've submitted to and who I haven't.
          So far I've gone through five ink pens, the fourth one I threw across the room while I swore at it.
This is not because I'm writing everything down like a mad woman and running out of ink. I'm a mad woman because I bought a pack of generic pens for .99 and they all suck, every single one of them.

 I have scribbled small circles that look like bad spyrograph designs all over the top and sides of my agent list trying to get the stupid pens to write smoothly. I'd get a name halfway written and suddenly the ink quits coming out. I ended up with names that were barely readable.
With a deep breath of frustration, I picked up another pen and shook it violently, hoping this would clear any clogs. Then I pushed it too hard onto the note pad as I began to write. I heard a tiny snap as the point of the ink pen broke, and to give you a better idea of what happened next, take a look at this photo of Ernest.

That saying: 'You get what you pay for,' is ringing true right now.
I'm on my way back to the store, to spend a little extra money on some decent pens. My tip for the day: Go for the good ink, there's a reason why the packs of cheapos are on the clearance aisle.

Dog Days

           Meet my newest beagle. He's a rescue, about six years old, and has seizures. He's on medication to control them. We don't know anything about his past life, but we love him to the moon and back. He seems happy with us, and expresses his gratitude loudly to all the neighbors. We named him Marvin.

Whenever I'm at the table with my laptop, trying to write a few chapters, Marvin and our other beagle, Mollie think it's time to play, or be let outside every ten minutes to pee, or be given a treat. I feel like I'm running a doggie daycare. As I sit here and eat popcorn, they're under the table staring up at me with their big, brown eyes and drooling. They know I'll eventually cave and hand them each a piece. It's hard to say no to a beagle.

           Cadbury pastel chocolate eggs, one of my favorite things about Spring.
The hard candy shelled chocolates are my latest addiction. I can't have just one, more like ten or maybe half the bag. Then, I wonder why I can't lose weight. It's Cadbury's fault, not mine.
Every Easter I look forward to buying them, grateful they're only sold in the springtime and not year round. Otherwise, I'd be in big, big trouble, like Snoopy here with his peeps.


Hard to believe the daffodils are already out and the fruit trees are in bloom. I'm barely over Christmas, and still finding stray tinsel hiding under the couch.

          This month I browsed through several writing forums looking for information. Some people are saying that self publishing is the only way to go anymore. I'm not willing to go that route just yet. I'm still learning the ins and outs, and don't want to rush into something that might not work for me in the long run.
I submitted my query letter to several agents last week, now I'm checking my email every ten minutes waiting for a response.
Here's hoping. =D

          My 1940's Elf on a shelf!
He's sitting on my vintage typewriter, that sits on top of my vintage bookcase, that came all the way from London. I have a love for vintage items and working in an antique store does not help my wallet any. In fact, I'm sure I have spent more than I have made.
(Please don't tell my husband.)

Today I'm critiquing my Synopsis for Southerland Skye again. I've whittled it down from twelve pages to six. Now I'm trying to get it down to three. Not an easy task.
Thankfully, I have a great cup of coffee, blended with frosted sugar cookie creamer, and my elf on a shelf giggling at me from a far. Keeping my fingers crossed that I get this synopsis done today and hoping that you all have a great rest of the week.

I left my heart in.....

          This past weekend I went to one of my favorite places in the world; San Francisco.
My daughter Chaye had a Phlebotomy exam she needed to take, so the two of us drove to Santa Rosa the night before, and stayed with my bestie Catherine. Thankfully, Catherine grew up in the area and knows her way around.
The following morning she drove us into the city by the bay, (Cudos to the band Journey for coining that phrase). San Francisco happens to be one of prettiest, congested, dirty and eccentric places in the country. Let me explain-

           We parked downtown next to Cafe De La Presse, which has the worlds best cappuccino, and is across the street from the China town entrance. After we fed a thousand quarters into the parking meter for a mere thirty minutes of parking time, I stood near the car and looked up at the skyscrapers surrounding me. The detail and architecture of the buildings are breathtaking.
I wondered how old some of them were, and how amazing it was that they survived the earthquakes. I looked at the engravings, brickwork and designs in awe.

          A doorman to one of the elite hotels stood a few feet away from me, smiling and waving. So I waved back and then continued to look back up at the tops of the buildings.
"Excuse Ma'am", He said to me, "Tell your friend to turn her wheels inward towards the sidewalk or she'll get a ticket." I looked over at Catherine's car, we were parked on a steep downward slope and even I knew that the wheels of her car should be turned inward.

          After we fixed the wheels and thanked the doorman, we walked to the building where Chaye was taking her test. She still had an hour before the exam so we decided to walk around China town. The roads are very narrow and even at eight thirty in the morning, people filled the sidewalks.
As we walked back towards Chaye's building, I noticed several bags of trash scattered between the gutters and sidewalks on almost every block we passed.
A homeless man was picking up cigarette butts from the streets and pocketing them for later, another man walked by having a conversation all to himself that included fits of laughter.

The cafes were cooking breakfast, the smell of bacon and garlic mixed with the nauseating sewer steam and transit bus exhaust. It wasn't pleasant, but thankfully a cool breeze from the bay was blowing in fresh air.
After we dropped Chaye off to take her test, Catherine and I drove over and met my son Austin and his girlfriend at the farmers market taking place around the Ferry building.
I bought some fruit, falafels, a bottle of lavendar lemonade and a purple bell pepper from the vendors, then we walked around down town.

          While in Neiman Marcas, I noticed a canary diamond ring that was part of the Ivana Trump line. It was priced at $251,000.
I started to laugh, thinking how I had written almost the exact same thing in my first manuscript 'Southerland Skye'. It's in the chapter where Southie goes to the city with her sister. While they are shopping in an upscale department store, she notices a similar ring and is shocked at the amount on the price tag .

          We picked up Chaye after her test and drove to Sea cliff drive, where multi million dollar homes over look the bay.  After enjoying some time on the beach, we headed to the Haight Ashbury district.
We walked through some of the oddity shops including a store called 'Loved to Death' that has been on several TV shows.
Austin bought us dinner at a bistro and then we decided to leave the city before it got dark. It was Saturday, and the more eccentric and less endearing were venturing out for the evening. Traffic at night is worse than in the daytime. Everyone's going out to eat, drink and do whatever. And, you really have to watch out for the taxi cabs, they'll cut right in front of you without any notice, and they drive like maniacs.

I love San Francisco, it's an amazing place with so much culture, diversity and history, there is something for everyone to enjoy. If you decide to go, let me give you a tip; September and October are the best months to visit. The weather is gorgeous and the temperature ranges in the 70's.

This is a photo taken from Sea Cliff drive with the Golden Gate bridge in the background. To the far left is my son Austin and his girlfriend Nicole. We had a great time, and I can't wait to go back.