A Mother Learns – 4 Haiku by Neetu
June 26, 2021 by Neetu Malik in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik tagged as baby, growing, Haiku, life, mother, Neetu
A Mother Learns
4 Haiku
- gossamer touch,
mother strokes her newborn–
feathered beginnings
- young buds awaken
sleepy petals shake off dew
silver mist of dawn
- roots grow deep
where we plant seeds of love
becoming evergreens
- each arm a strong branch
holds up against mighty storms–
a mother’s instinct
© Neetu Malik
Some of Neetu’s Books
Story Ideas by Kat Martin
June 24, 2021 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Guest Posts tagged as Best Selling author, Kat Martin, new release, romance, romantic suspense, The Perfect Murder
Story Ideas
People often ask how I come up with ideas for my novels. Sometimes it just seems to pop into my head. In my latest release, THE PERFECT MURDER, once I had told Chase and Brandon Garrett’s story, there was no doubt I would be writing Reese’s story.
Much of the story was determined by the previous novels, THE CONSPIRACY, and THE ULIMATE BETRAYAL. Reese, the middle brother, is CEO of Garrett Resources, a billion-dollar oil and gas corporation owned by the Garrett family. I knew him well by the time I started his story, the last book in the Maximum Security Series.
In THE PERFECT MURDER, Reese is a man with a past who is determined to retain his hard-earned reputation by avoiding an affair with the beautiful woman who works for him, a valued and trusted employee.
When McKenzie Haines is accused of murder, Reese is forced to make a choice—one that could destroy his career or get him killed. It’s a fast-paced, high-stakes action adventure as well as a love story between two smart, determined people who refuse to give up no matter the odds.
I hope you’ll watch for THE PERFECT MURDER and that you enjoy.
Till next time, happy reading and all best wishes,
Kat
New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin, a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara, currently resides in Missoula, Montana with Western-author husband, L. J. Martin. More than seventeen million copies of Kat’s books are in print, and she has been published in twenty foreign countries. Fifteen of her recent novels have taken top-ten spots on the New York Times Bestseller List, and her novel, BEYOND REASON, was recently optioned for a feature film. Kat’s latest novel, THE ULTIMATE BETRAYAL, a Romantic Thriller, was released in paperback December 29th. The final 2 books in her Maximum Security series will be release in June, COME MIDNIGHT, a short story on June 1st, and THE PERFECT MURDER, a novel in hardcover on June 22nd.
Excerpt
The Perfect Murder
Chapter One
Galveston, Texas
Last Day of July
Seconds after the chopper lifted off the pad, Reese felt the odd vibration. Along with the pilot and co-pilot and five members of the crew, the Eurocopter EC135 was headed for the Poseidon offshore drilling platform.
For a moment, the ride leveled out and Reese relaxed against his seat. As CEO of Garrett Resources, the billion-dollar oil and gas company he owned with his brothers, he was always searching for the right investment to expand company holdings, the reason he was flying out to the platform.
For months he’d been working with Sea Titan Drilling, the owner of the offshore rig, to complete the five-hundred-million-dollar purchase, an extremely good value when the average price of a similar rig was around six-fifty.
The vibration returned and with it came a grinding noise that put Reese on alert. The men in the cabin began to glance back and forth and shift nervously in their seats. A sharp jolt, then the chopper seemed to fall out of the sky. It climbed again, began to dip and sway, dropped then climbed as the pilot fought for control.
The pilot’s deep voice rumbled through the headset. “We’ve got a problem. I don’t want you to panic, but we need to find a place to set down.”
There was definitely a problem, Reese thought, as the vibration continued to worsen. The chopper was out of control and the whole cabin was shaking as if it would break apart any minute. His pulse was hammering, his adrenalin pumping.
Along with the men in the crew who rode back and forth from the rig every few weeks, he stared out the window toward the ground. They were no longer above the heliport. Clearly the pilot was looking for an open space big enough to handle the thirty-six-foot blade span. All Reese could see were the rooftops of warehouses and metal commercial buildings.
The chopper kept shaking. The crew was grim-faced but resigned. The pilot did something to take the pitch out of the rotors and the chopper started falling.
“No need to worry,” the pilot said. “We’ll auto-rotate down. I’ve done it a dozen times.”
Auto rotate down. Reese knew the concept, the technique helicopter pilots used to land when the engine failed. The trick was to find a safe place to hit the ground.
Both engines went silent. The blades were flat now, the wind whistling through them, tying his stomach into a knot.
“Brace for impact,” the pilot said. Below them, Reese spotted an open flat slab of asphalt in the yard of a small trucking firm–the only possible landing site anywhere around. Trouble was it didn’t look wide enough to handle the blades.
At the last second, the pilot flared the helicopter in an effort to slow the descent, then the ground rushed up and the chopper hit with a jolt that wracked Reese’s whole body.
For an instant, he thought they were going to make it. Then one of the spinning rotor blades hit the corner of a building and tore free. The Plexiglas bubble shattered as the long metal blades exploded into a hundred deadly pieces, careening like knives through the air, slicing into buildings and the cabin of the helicopter.
Reese didn’t feel the impact. One moment he was conscious, then the world suddenly went black.
The Perfect Murder
Book 4 in the Maximum Security Series
Other Books in the Maximum Security Series
(Click on the cover for more information. Hover on the cover for buy links.)
Mystery in the Midlands
June 23, 2021 by marianne h donley in category Events, Writing Conferences tagged as Debra H Goldstein, Dr. Kath Reichs, Laurie R. King, Lori Rader-Day, Mystery in the Midlands, Paula Gail Benson
Mystery in the Midlands, co-sponsored by the Palmetto Chapter of SinC and the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America
Saturday, June 26, from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm ET with Dr. Kathy Reichs as featured guest.
$5 Registration Required.
SCHEDULE
10:00 am to 10:15 am EST Preparing for the Heat with a Warm Welcome
Dana Kaye (moderator), Paula Gail Benson (Eastern Representative of SEMWA) and Carla Damron (President of Palmetto Chapter SinC)
10:30 am to 11:15 am EST Scorching Short Stories
Dana Kaye (moderator), and Frankie Bailey, Michael Bracken, and Barb Goffman (panelists)
11:30 am to 12:15 pm EST Temperature’s Rising Keynote
Dr. Kathy Reichs interviewed by Debra H. Goldstein, President SEMWA
12:30 pm to 1:15pm EST Hot for Historicals (British mysteries by American authors)
Dana Kaye (moderator), and Laurie R. King, Lori Rader-Day, and Caroline Todd (panelists)
1:30 pm to 2:15 pm EST Searing Suspense
Dana Kaye (moderator), and Yasmin Angoe, Robert Dugoni, and Alex Segura (panelists)
2:30 pm to 2:45 pm EST Final Comments Before Cooling Off in the Pool
Dana Kaye (moderator), Debra Goldstein (President of SEMWA), and Carla Damron (President of Palmetto Chapter SinC)
Here’s the link to register that provides access to the live and recorded program:
Humble Pie by Veronica Jorge
June 22, 2021 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as critique groups, Eiditing, Veronica Jorge
I’ve always hated revisions and editing. It seemed sacrilegious to tamper with someone’s magnum opus. After all, they’ve poured out their whole heart. How dare I touch it? And what would be the fate of my own work in the hands of others? (I tremble, heart pounding). I realized it’s time I eat a slice, a very LARGE slice, of humble pie and drink a cup of trust.
That is how I discovered that in the midst of a faithful critique group, and a skilled editor, magic happens. My eyes open to see the pitfalls I’ve missed. My ears lean into the heart-beat of my thoughts. And with the group’s enthusiastic guidance and encouragement, (that includes you, Marianne H. Donley), I find myself digging deeper into myself and finding treasures I never expected. The result? A work far better than the one I thought was the best.
If I may borrow a line from our own Slice Of Orange, ‘the extra squeeze’ they put me through brought out the best flavor.
Humble pie never tasted so good.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on July 22nd!
Jina Bacarr June Featured Author
June 21, 2021 by Jina Bacarr in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as Boldwood Books, Featured Author of the Month, historical romance, Jina Bacarr, The Resistance Girl
About Jina Bacarr
I discovered early on that I inherited the gift of the gab from my large Irish family when I penned a story about a princess who ran away to Paris with her pet turtle Lulu. I was twelve.
I grew up listening to their wild, outlandish tales and it was those early years of storytelling that led to my love of history and traveling.
I enjoy writing to classical music with a hot cup of java by my side. I adore dark chocolate truffles, vintage anything, the smell of bread baking and rainy days in museums. I’ve always loved walking through history—from Pompeii to Verdun to Old Paris. The voices of the past speak to me through carriages with cracked leather seats, stiff ivory-colored crinolines, and worn satin slippers. I’ve always wondered what it was like to walk in those slippers when they were new.
You can follow Jina on social media:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Pinterest
Goodreads
Bookbub
Jina also has a column here on the 11th of every month: Jina’s Book Chat.
A Few of Jina’s Books
Featured Books
SECRETS OF MOONLIGHT COVE: A Romance Anthology
Moonlight Cove, where everyone has a secret…
More info →
AN ELEMENT OF MYSTERTY: SWEET, FUNNY, AND STRANGE TALES OF INTRIGUE
Dare you read our latest Sweet, Funny, and Strange® Anthology?
More info →
SOLITARY MAN
On a battlefield in Afghanistan, Sgt. Ryder Bronson makes an oath to protect his dying friend’s wife from a rogue cop—and from the passion that will threaten to overwhelm them both.
More info →
A LITTLE CHRISTMAS MAGIC
Christmas in Marietta, with all the trimmings, may be just the ticket.
More info → 
