Fall Is...

Copper Harbor, October 2019.

Fall is a bittersweet time of year for me. For the past eight years, at least one of my chicks has returned to school. It wasn't too bad when the girls were only a couple hours away.

But the man-child? He's EIGHT hours away!

Crazy, right?

Fortunately, I live in Michigan. When we drive from mid-Michigan up to nearly the northern-most point in the contiguous U.S.--we usually go sometime in October--the colors are GORGEOUS!

As matter of fact, they're inspirational.

(Ignore the overcast-ness. My son says they only had three days of sunshine during the 2018-2019 school year, so it's 'normal'.)

Lake Superior, early September 2019.

What's absolutely breathtaking is Lake Superior.

There have been gale-force winds over the past few weeks and THESE IMAGES came across my Facebook timeline. They're beautiful and scary and forceful--all wrapped up in a couple dozen images. The waves crashing against the cliffs sending foamy spray into the pine trees. Waves reaching 20-feet in height are common on the Big Lake.

Mackinaw Bridge, early September 2019.

I spend a lot of the road trip writing. Sometimes, I have a plan. I want to work on this or that. And other times, I let the landscape inspire me.

Are there things in nature that inspire you? What about sights in your state?

Share in the comments!

SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE BOOK TOUR, SCHEDULE & GIVEAWAY #SOF #SoldiersOfFortune #RB4U

Soldiers of Fortune: Volume 1

Genre: Romantic Suspense

with stories by 

Nicole Morgan, Desiree Holt, Krista Ames & Deelylah Mullin

Rhett Fortune settled on the small parcel of land he purchased in 1858 with his wife Clara and founded the beautiful landscape that surrounded his newly built home and what is now known as Fortune, TX. A veteran of the United States Army and as a Colonel who served with honor in the Mexican-American War, Rhett and Clara raised a large family. Sons and daughters, and grandchildren to follow, their clan grew throughout the decades.

Now in the 21st Century, two of their descendants remain at the helm. Chance Fortune, a former member of the Army’s Delta Force and co-founder of Soldiers of Fortune, has an innate duty to serve and protect. Working with his brother, RJ Fortune, a former Navy SEAL and wounded warrior, they take the cases that their government won’t. And vow to protect the civilians that no one else can.

They have quietly put out the word and now, after three years, other former brothers-in-arms have contacted them bringing situations that span not only the country but the globe. On Fortune family land they have built a facility out of the public eye for their office, a helicopter, a gun range, and whatever else they might need.

They are the Soldiers of Fortune… and these are their stories.

Including: 

Rogue's Return by USA Today & Award Winning Author, Desiree Holt

Sacrifice by USA Today & International Bestselling Author, Nicole Morgan

Operation Unknown by International Bestselling Author, Krista Ames

Rage Against the Machine by International Bestselling Author, Deelylah Mullin

**Only 99 cents!! **

Add to Goodreads

Amazon * Romance Books 4 Us

Soldiers of Fortune: Volume 2

with stories by

Nicole Morgan, Krista Ames, Deelylah Mullin, Joanne Jaytanie

Sacrifice: Part 2 by Nicole Morgan

Ever Since she entered the picture, his mission has changed.

Eddie Peterson’s mission had been to take down the nearly untouchable drug lord, Rojas. Years of being underground, with no protection from his country, he is left to fight off the cartel on his own. It was a job he thought he could handle.

With Marissa Rojas nothing is simple. The only daughter of a ruthless drug lord leaves little opportunity for a wholesome upbringing. Her life is complicated and thanks to her bodyguard, Eddie, things are about to get a whole lot tougher.

Now, it is no longer Eddie’s mission that is in jeopardy. It is their very lives.

Operation Undercover by Krista Ames

Don’t get caught under the covers.

Killing Me Softly by Deelylah Mullin

With only gunfire and each other to keep them company, can Jorden and Luke save the innocents without complicating things?

When Jorden Mane met Luke Garrett, there weren’t wedding bells ringing, choirs singing, nor fireworks exploding—unless you consider the gunfire. But, as she got to know the mysterious man behind the stoic facade, she fell for him. Hard.

But, it didn’t matter. They needed to get to find El Capitan—the mastermind behind the decimation of the small villages they’d encountered.

As Luke Garrett used his special ops training to defeat the bad guys, he sensed a familiarity in the attacks—like they were the plans of a previous mission leader or commanding officer.

Which made him shudder at every turn.

It also made him have to think outside-the-box with regard to defensive tactics.

All of it made his head spin, but the constant was Jordan. He didn’t know when or how it happened, but he’d grown to care for her.

Which was a bad, bad thing when they were on the outskirts of the law.

Will Jordan and Luke make it through the next siege? Can they keep their feelings for one another out of the mix? Or will passion fuel the flames of their survival?

Dogs of Fortune by Joanne Jaytanie

The Baker Corp. has recruited Blair Sellick, a nationally known dog trainer with truly phenomenal skills, to provide exceptional training for service dogs. The project would supply highly intelligent animals as partners for victims of PTSD and other disabilities. Or would it?

The answer has disappeared along with Blair, her fellow dog trainers, and all the dogs.

Ex-SEAL and canine handler Zane Kelly is done with war, with dogs, and with the Soldiers of Fortune. Coerced, cajoled, and eventually intrigued, Zane finally capitulates to the Soldiers of Fortune recruiters for just one project, to find Blair Sellick. The mission is clear, the dog trainers are dying, and nobody has heard from Blair for weeks. Zane has failed only one mission, and that failure cost his canine partner Axel his life.

This time Zane has no intention of leaving anyone behind.

**Only 99 cents!! **

Add to Goodreads

Amazon * Romance Books 4 Us

Desiree Holt is an Amazon and USA Today bestselling author who writes exciting love stories at many heat levels. She has been called the Nora Roberts of erotic romance.

https://desireeholt.com

Nicole Morgan is an international and USA Today bestselling author who has been writing since 2009 and is an author of erotic romance novels, which more often than not have a suspenseful back story. Erotic romance mixed with good old-fashioned whodunit.

www.nicolemorganauthor.com

Krista Ames is an international bestselling author of contemporary romances that make you ‘fall in love with happy ever afters’.

www.kristaames.com

Deelylah Mullin is empty-nesting with her hubby, Mr. VampBard. When she’s not reading or writing, she’s likely at the movies or finishing a home improvement project.

https://www.deelylah.com

Joanne Jaytanie writes romantic suspense and paranormal. A transplant from upstate New York, Joanne lives with her husband and Doberman, on the Olympic Peninsula with a panoramic view of the Olympic Mountains. In her prior life Joanne showed dogs and managed her husband’s forensic engineering firm.

https://www.joannejaytanie.com

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BOOK TOUR SCHEDULE

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Sep 20

Books all things paranormal and romance

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Sep 21

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Sep 22

Valerie Ullmer | Romance Author

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Sep 23

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Sep 30

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Word Processor, Romance, Cats, Kids and Creed

Back-to-School

I'm a life-long resident of Michigan. School starts after Labor Day. Well, some school districts in the Great Lakes State are taking a hard look at whether waiting until after the holiday is a good idea.

Michigan has a law on the books to prevent classes from starting until after that first Monday in September to promote tourism as long as possible for seasonal destinations. But, there are ways to get around it legally.

Since my spawn have all graduated from high school--and I've retired from teaching--I don't really care. I just want to take advantage of office supply sales.

And, when I say office supplies, I mean sticky notes, washi tape, good colored pencils, and fine-line markers that won't bleed through my Bullet Journal paper.

As matter of fact, I'm doing my September set-up in my spare moments (read: 10 or 15 minutes here & there, when I'm shifting gears).

September 2019 Bullet Journal Monthly Spread. Fall theme with hand-drawn to-go coffee cup with a little spill, a Mac laptop, vehicle, 'Fall is...', acorn & colored leaves across the bottom. A tree trunk is 'behind' the date boxes.

 I'm finishing up my current lined Bullet Journal and then I'll be switching to a dot-grid format. This is a B5-sized lined book, and it fits a fabric batik-looking cover purchased from a colleague--which increases the number of pockets for stickers!

Bullet Journal from March 2019. Washi tape dividers and stickers to accent. Weekdays (Friday) is a full page and Saturday & Sunday are on one page. 

Back in March, I was using Washi tape like it was the best thing since sliced bread (it is...). But, I learned over the course of the year, that the Washi made my BuJo thicker and the front cover started peeling away. The new dot-grid BuJo is spiral bound, so we should prevent that from happening. And, I'm drawing instead of using Washi as dividers.

Bulled Journal spread. Each day gets its own page because I wear so many hats. 

What I like most about using a Bullet Journal is that I can customize it for me. Any appointments I have for the day go in the top section. The second section (where there's writing) is for my dayjob tasks.  I track editing I need to accomplish for others in the third section. Sometimes--if I don't have any editing projects happening--I use that space for notes about a story I'm working on or other ideas. The fourth section is for my writing tasks. I found stickers on Etsy that have a box for Word Count and I add those daily.

The bottom section is for health tracking. If I have a particularly painful day, I make notes of sleep, eating, exercise, and weather to help track the ups and downs of the rheumatoid arthritis. I'm the first to admit this section doesn't get as much love as it should. I'm working on integrating something more artistic in the upcoming months. 

How do you stay organized?

Looking for Nirvana

Hello, Friends!

I can't believe it's June and my birthday month is almost over! I must say, I've earned every shimmering silver stripe in my hair--and I'm wearing them like a BOSS! 

I periodically do live events--this year, I have two more and I will only be doing local events in 2020 (i.e., day trips). While ticketing is closed for Literary Love Savannah, you can still attend the public signing on Saturday, July 27, 2019. I'll also be live-and-in-person in Bucks County, PA for East Coast Authors Convention the first weekend in October. If you'll be attending any of these, drop me an email and we can make plans for coffee or a drink. 

Which brings me to my topic for this month: anxiety. 

I have social anxiety. I am perfectly happy to hole-up in my office and hold FB live chats or sit behind my monitor and chat with strangers. It doesn't take any effort, on my part. I can just DO it. But, when it comes to a live event, I don't have the familiar sounds or smells or a reliable Puck (one of my cats) to 'help' me through the physical symptoms. 

I'm likely the quiet one, paying attention to the conversation and getting a 'read' on everyone. I don't have a lot to say in a group setting. But, in smaller groups? Totally a different story. And, if you put me in my element--making stuff up, because YEAH! Cards Against Humanity, trivia games, word games, etc.,--it makes the anxiety a little less because I feel like I know what to expect. 

So, why the American Sign Language fingerspelling of LOVE? Watching ASL communication puts me at ease because it's something my daughters and niece do when they're together. I may not understand a lot--hardly any--but the patterns are familiar. 

I like to say that I write to exorcise my own demons, but that isn't 100 percent truthful, either. Writing isn't therapy, either. But, what writing does--when a piece is finished--is make me feel like I'm not alone with my anxiety. At least I have my characters, right?

Now, I realize that there are a lot of readers with anxiety, too. If you're at a book event and I'm there, too, just know I'm as uncomfortable as you are, but I employ the fake-it-to-make-it tactic. And, I've got you. Feel free to hang out with me. We don't have to talk, although I'll probably ask you about what you like to read because I can talk about that for HOURS. 

I turned 51 on my birthday. The field in which my f*cks are grown is barren. I don't have to pretend anymore--I can be my neurotic self. People can like me, not like me--whatever--because I'm not here to make everyone happy. At some point in our lives, we have to realize that making ourselves happy needs to come first. Then, everything else falls into place. 

Much love, 

Deelylah