Romancing the Genres: Love

Showing posts with label Love. Show all posts

Monday, March 17, 2025

The Things That Always Cheer Me Up . . . . . . by Delsora Lowe

I am lucky, I have many things that give me a lift every day.

Reading…

Whether it is reading a good book or watching a romcom movie or a sitcom that will take me away from the reality and horrors of our world, each gives me a sense of peace and happiness. I can bask in the message being portrayed in that media and lock away my worries for the time it takes me to read or watch an uplifting book or program.

Writing…

I also write romance. So, writing positive content definitely gives me a feel-good vibe. Even when getting the couple together at the end may take a turn for the worst, know that in order to proclaim a book’s place in the romance genre, a happily-ever-after or a happily-for-now is a requirement. So, they always have a feel-good component at the end.

Friends…

Another thing that makes me happy is seeing a friend in person. Yes, these days ZOOM makes it easy to keep up with friends. I also keep up with many over the phone or through email or other forms of social media but getting together with friends in person is the best! There’s nothing like cradling a cup of tea, while looking directly into a friend’s face who is sitting across the table from you. Or slurping down an ice cream cone while walking the boardwalk with friends. That in-person contact makes a huge difference.

More Writing…

Going to my local weekly writing group grounds me every week. We each write a piece that takes 5-minutes or less to read out loud. The writing can be in any genre, which is fun for me, since my “job” is writing romance, whether a 5-minute romance I want to submit to Woman’s World magazine or a romance novella or full-length novel that I will eventually publish. Writing outside of my preferred genre gives me a different prospective on life, my town, my relationships with family, or any other topics, such as the environment, recipes I love to cook, etc. It frees up my brain to be creative in a different way.

What Things Give You a Lift and Make You Feel Happy?

Amazon (also in print)

Books2Read

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns, from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine (most recently, an Easter romance in the April 1, 2024 edition.) The Love Left Behind is a Hartford Estates, R.I. wedding novella with Book 2 on the way. A Christmas novel (The Inn at Gooseneck Lane) and novella (Holiday Hitchhiker – the youngest brother of the Mineral Spring’s ranching family) were the most recent releases. Look for book 3 of the cowboy’s series, as well as book 2 of the Hartford Estates series, to be released in 2025.

Tuesday, January 21, 2025

January: My “go to” Activity When I Want to Relax and Take Time Out of My Real Life ............................. by Delsora Lowe

Hallmark movies and romance stories take me away from the bad world news. They give me a positive, albeit maybe an unrealistic spin on life, versus the craziness, that seems to get crazier every day in our “off-kilter” world.

The movies are educational…as in from the perspective of an author, they help me with writing romance. They "show" versus "tell" me by providing visual examples of style, topics, relationship types (good and bad,) lifestyle, various scenery, and locations, etc.

Watching romantic shows and movies, and reading romance in any form, whether a full novel or a 5-minute short story, are positive reinforcement that show our world has the potential to be able to learn to work together, live in harmony, and help us individually and collectively to see the positive side of life.

They show us how to be polite and thoughtful toward our neighbors, friends, and those who are strangers to us. For example, holding the door for the person entering behind us. Or, letting the mom with the fussy kid go in front of you in the grocery store line.

Simple acts of kindness.

These types of stories and movies let me escape from personal, national, and international woes. It is like burying my head in the sand.

Or like the infamous three monkeys—see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Of course, this scenario is for the pure romance stories.

Suspenseful romance does have a dose of evil, but in the end, all is rosy. Love and positivity reign. All turns out well for the heroes of the story. And the reader is left satisfied that all is well in the world—or at least the world of romantic fiction.

Unrealistic, sometimes? Oh Yeah! Escapism? Absolutely! A chance to feel safe and “normal?” Yes, for those hours you are immersed in a fantasy of the way life should be—ALL THE TIME!

Letting your imagination run with the good things in life, is like a palette cleanser. On a bad day is watching or reading romance like a reset? On a good day, does fictional romance, confirm positivity and your perspective of what life should be—hopeful and kind and full of love?

What more can one ask from a few hours of reading or watching a feel-good movie?

What’s Your Palette Cleanser on a Bad Day?

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY

all about love!

Moonlighting

(e-reader only)

Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/Come-Dance-Me-Serenity-Starlight-ebook/dp/B074N95RGK/

Books2Read

books2read.com/u/bMrQva

Moonlighting

(also e-reader or in paperback as a collection: Starlight Grille)

Amazon

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Moonlighting-Serenity-Harbor-Novella-Starlight-ebook/dp/B075TK7KYS/

Books2Read

Books2Read books2read.com/u/mZ5eop

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns, from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine (most recently, an Easter romance in the April 1, 2024 edition.) The Love Left Behind is a Hartford Estates, R.I. wedding novella with Book 2 on the way. A Christmas novel (The Inn at Gooseneck Lane) and novella (Holiday Hitchhiker – the youngest brother of the Mineral Spring’s ranching family) were the most recent releases. Look for book 3 of the cowboy’s series, as well as book 2 of the Hartford Estates series, to be released in 2025.

Social Media Links:
Facebook Author page: https://www.facebook.com/delsoraloweauthor/community/
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Delsora-Lowe/e/B01M61OM39/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

Books2Read Author page: https://www.books2read.com/ap/8GWm98/Delsora-Lowe

BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/delsora-lowe-93c6987f-129d-483d-9f5a-abe603876518

Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16045986.Delsora_Lowe

Photo Credits:

Cash Register: fee clip art - cash register - Search Images / https://www.vecteezy,com

Ostrich: free clip art - burying head in sand - Search / clipartmax.com

Tuesday, December 17, 2024

‘Tis The Season for Holiday Romances ..... ..... ..... by Debora (Deb) Noone w/a Delsora Lowe

I think I have been doing more reading than writing lately. It didn’t help the writing cause to have my computer in the shop for almost three weeks. Now trying to get back in writing mode with only a week before my daughter and her family arrive for the holidays and “camp out” at my son’s house, about a forty-minute drive away. Presents, menu planning, and reserving time to see family will be priority for the next few weeks. Plus, getting to a few varsity hockey games for my in-state grandson.

Having said that, my Kindle will be my respite.

As usual, I have purchased more holiday books than I can read before 2025 roars in. But I am one to read holiday books all year round – especially in the colder, darker months of January and February. And I love reading holiday books for other holidays through the year.

I also love writing holiday short romances. I was privileged to sell both an Easter and a Thanksgiving story to Woman’s World this year – one of my BIG writing goals for 2024. Fingers crossed... I hope to release a book with short romances (around an 8-minute read for each,) sometime in 2025!

Here’s to Happy Holidays to all! And don’t forget to start thinking about personal and professional goals for 2025.

Books I have read so far:

December 2, 2024

November 25, 2024

November 11, 2024

November 14, 2024

December 16, 2019

November 18, 2024

November 4, 2024

November 1, 2024

Books I plan to read ASAP:
And… I am sure I may spot a few more that I want to send to my e-reader before 2024 ends. As I said, a sucker for holiday romances.

November 5, 2019

November 8, 2022

September 11, 2024

And to help with holiday prep - the 2nd edition cookie cookbook for the Dicken's series - ENJOY!

October 31, 2024

Do you love reading holiday books?

Do you set personal goals at the beginning of each new year? And do you try to stick to them? Or run out of paying attention to goals before the year is out?

In case you are interested in another holiday book or three…

Holiday Hitchhiker

Amazon

Books 2 Read

The Inn on Gooseneck Lane
also in print

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Apple

Come Dance with Me

Amazon

Books2Read

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns, from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

What I Look Forward to As I Age ... by Delsora Lowe

It’s finally September! My favorite time of the year is fall, despite the fact that soon cold weather will descend and with it snow and ice and… Well, you get the picture. I’d much rather enjoy warm sunny days that cool off at night.

I’d rather enjoy colorful leaves and fall flowers and harvesting vegetables and picking apples.

And, my birthday is in the fall, reminding me what one year older can bring. I remember teen years when I couldn’t wait to go away to college, not realizing how fast time flies, the older you get.

I remember summers, when I juggled several jobs while raising kids. I couldn’t wait for autumn to arrive so the kids, now old enough, would be back in school all day, so I wasn’t running from job to nursery school to pick up kids, dropping them at the sitter and back to job number two.

Now, I look back and realize how much I missed as my children grew up way too fast. But now I have grandchildren who are doing the same. One is looking at colleges. The other two sophomores in high school. All busy falling into young love, working hard at studies, and excelling at various sports teams. Of course, they are excelling. They are MY grandsons.

Oldest Grandson - now 17 - My Dad's 90th Birthday - 2009

It seems like yesterday, they were lying on the floor, playing with tiny cars and making zoom, zoom, zoom sounds, learning to count to one-hundred, and excited when they got to nibble on favorite snacks—my youngest grandson loving chunks of cucumber and olives with the holes where the pits were. He would put an olive on each fingertip and methodically eat each olive, one by one. Or the special events like coloring Easter eggs at Grammy’s table. Now they are self-sufficient.

To me, those memories of my own days in high school and college seem so far away, yet just like yesterday.

So, what do I look forward to as I age?

Top of the list? Not feeling as though I am aging. Also…keeping busy, communicating with others, not isolating, learning new things.

This is where writing comes in, as I can accomplish all of the above through writing.

Learning and Hanging with Writer Friends Through Zoom

I belong to four virtual writing groups in Maine, Rhode Island, New England, and New Jersey. Each group of romance writers meets monthly. It used to be in person. Now it is through ZOOM. The cons, I miss seeing my writer friends in person, but there are times in a year, when we meet up at writing conferences. The pros are without ZOOM, I would only see my writer friends once a year at the aforementioned conferences. Now, I see them and hear their voices and have actual conversations monthly. Sure, we don’t get to hug each other or gather around a table and enjoy a cocktail and chatter. There is nothing that compares to face-to-face.

A few years ago, after retiring, I joined a local organization that has programming for both teens and those of us over 55. The organization has a group named Write on Writers. We have anywhere from fifteen to twenty-five who attend weekly. Each of us writes a 5-minute or less piece, whether fiction, non-fiction, or verse of some sort. We then read aloud our work at each session. And we can submit our work to appear in the monthly organization newsletter that gets distributed around town.

The fun of this group is that I get to try different types of writing, than my normal romance novel writing. And every now and then, I will write a 5-minute romance story and submit for publication
. But I can also read those at my local group. And now, I have over sixty 5-minute romances I have written since 2010. Those I am editing and expanding to collect into a short romance anthology...SOMEDAY!

So, what do I look forward to as I age. Meeting weekly with my writing group. Continuing to write both short stories and longer works to release as books, hanging with my grandchildren and trying to figure out a way to stop their growth and aging so I can keep them close forever.

Okay – if anyone has ideas on how to do just that, let me know. Because, if they don’t age, neither will I!

Oh, as you can see, in spite of the slowing down and the need to nap I’m also trying to figure out how I can live forever, because right now, I’m having a ton of fun with this aging business.

No matter our age, we all continue to age on a daily basis. What words of wisdom can you impart when you think about what you have learned over a lifetime?

Amazon (also in print)

https://www.amazon.com/Love-Left-Behind-Hartford-Estate-ebook/dp/B08L5N5DS9/

Books2Read books2read.com/u/mglVqK

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances and contemporary westerns, from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Social Media Links:
Author website: www.delsoralowe.com
Facebook Author page: https://www.facebook.com/delsoraloweauthor/community/
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Delsora-Lowe/e/B01M61OM39/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Books2Read Author page: https://www.books2read.com/ap/8GWm98/Delsora-Lowe
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/delsora-lowe-93c6987f-129d-483d-9f5a-abe603876518
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16045986.Delsora_Lowe
Instagram: #delsoralowe / https://www.instagram.com/delsoralowe/

Photo Credits:
Delsora Lowe

Tuesday, May 21, 2024

Marking May Milestones ..... by Delsora Lowe

May can be a busy month.

We are finally crawling out of April, which in Maine can be early spring or late winter. This year it was both, between two storms, one an ice storm that shut down power all over Maine. My house was out for 2 days. Luckily, we have a small generator that we can use periodically during the power outage to rev up the furnace, juice up the fridge, and power up our electronics.

The second storm less than two weeks later, dumped twelve inches of heavy, wet snow in my yard. Power outages again. But luckily my house was spared. Some were out for three days.

But that was early April.

May means celebrations—school gradations, beginning of wedding season, planning summer vacations and activities. And for me there are milestones to celebrate in May.

The first week in May, I celebrate 55 years out of high school. It seems like yesterday that many of us celebrated our 50^th reunion. This year, I’m not so sure I’ll be able to attend. It’s a long trip from Maine to Washington D.C. But I can’t stand the thought of not going. Afterall, fifty-five years ago, I was my class social committee rep. Each class was in charge of organizing a major school social event. Amazingly—or probably not—years later, many of my job positions required me to organize reunions, talks, fundraising events like auctions, regional alumni events, and one-on-one meetings with donors. So, attending a reunion that I don’t have to plan is like going on vacation. In a way it feels different and sad, since this is the first of my HS reunions I have not had a hand in organizing.

May (and June) is a month that many plan weddings. In another job I was a wedding planner and coordinator.

May is also the month that celebrates mothers. I am a mother and a grandmother, so I take Mother’s Day seriously. I have been a mother for fifty-two years, and a grandmother for seventeen years.

May is also the month of the Maine Romance Writers’ retreat. I helped organize the first one in 2008, and a few after that. I also discovered the brand-new hotel when I attended a grand opening reception. We have now been meeting at that hotel for our retreat ever since 2009—many years.

And, last but not least, May is the 13^th Blog-O-Versary for Romancing the Genres. Happy Birthday to US! To all the bloggers past and present, on this continent and around the world, who have added their bits if wisdom or fun adventures or insight into such topics as writing, skill sets, family, friends, and life in general, thanks for making this a fun part of my monthly routine!

Is there anything special
that you like to celebrate in May?

The Love Left Behind
A HARTFORD ESTATE (wedding venue) Book

Amazon (also available in print)

Books2Read

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet and spicy romances
and contemporary westerns,
from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine (most recently, an Easter romance in the April 1, 2024 edition.) The Love Left Behind is a Hartford Estates, R.I. wedding novella with Book 2 on the way. A Christmas novel (The Inn at Gooseneck Lane) and novella (Holiday Hitchhiker – the youngest brother of the Mineral Spring’s ranching family) were the most recent releases. Look for book 3 of the cowboy’s series, as well as book 2 of the Hartford Estates series, coming soon.

Images:
Celebrating = celebration clipart images - Google Search
#13 = red number 13 clipart - Clip Art Library (clipart-library.com)

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Bragging: Or At Least Talking Myself Up...A Bit - - - - by Delsora Lowe

This month’s theme is bragging, ah, er, I mean, telling all of you the three things that I think are my strengths or things I do well.

That’s a hard one. Because, even though there are certain things I love to do, I never feel as though I am great at any of them. But I have to admit, maybe I am good at some of them. And at the same time, always trying to improve.

The obvious is I am good, getting better, but not a star, at writing. I have practiced a lot since I was a kid. My freshman year at a new high school, my teacher submitted a story I had written from a child’s point-of-view, about his little red wagon. It ended up in the school’s quarterly literary magazine. I wanted to run and hide, because I thought people would think I had a childish mind. I survived the ordeal—which wasn’t the ordeal my imagination thought it would be.

My three grandsons, who are all in high school now!

My first-year college English professor “kicked me out” of the required grammar class, because I already knew “that stuff.” As an aside, for the few weeks I was in his class, he also drilled in the use of the Oxford comma. When I went back to finish my degree fifteen years later after marriage and kids, my professors in various disciplines, asked me where I learned to write. So, I offer many thanks to my high school English classes, that at the time were pure torture. However, I did learn to write.

Here are two other areas that I think I am able to achieve in.

First: Cooking—and by that, I mean, I am able to make anything out of nothing. To me food is not only nourishment, but inspiration. I love recipes, but I never follow them. Oh, I try. But then I say to myself…hmmm, I bet if I add this or that, this recipe will be better. Or I look in the fridge and groan, because I haven’t been to the grocery store lately, and I make up a recipe out of anything that is still useable in the fridge. Or I scan the cupboards. I mix and match and add a tidbit of this and a spoonful of that, and a shake of something else.

I have my maternal grandmother and both my parents to thank for showing me how it's done in the kitchen. Use up leftovers in inventive ways. Never let anything go to waste. And always have enough wine - whoops - channeling my dad. Here's to you, Dad, as I hold up my stemmed glass toward the heavens.

I do the same thing in the grocery store since my list says bread, meat, fish, veggies, salad stuff, soup, etc. I have to feel “in the mood.” Today the butternut squash calls to me. Next time it might be broccoli or turnip or beets or avocado. And then as I wander the isles, or survey the meat and fish displays, or check out cheeses I have never tried, I devise my menus for the next few days. Okay, so I may be one of the few who love to grocery shop, and I especially love to wander the farmers market, where each week the offerings are different, depending on harvest times. My brain snaps into creative cooking mode.

Living in Maine – lobster, a favorite ingredient in a meal

The second other thing I am good at is TALKING. I can hear the groan from the peanut gallery of those who know me well. Yup—she talks ALL THE TIME. I love to talk with friends. But I also chat up the store clerk or cashier, anyone in line with me, or anyone searching for the same item in a store. But that love of chat came in handy in my chosen, and not-so-chosen, careers and jobs in hospitality, retail, event planning, government, non-profits, etc. In those jobs it’s a requirement to speak to strangers.

And out of that type of work, I also became good at being a connector of people.

One example is that during 9/11, I worked in a school in Washington, D.C. It was also my alma mater. We had alumni all over the country, as well as living overseas. I received many calls from people worried about their former classmates in D.C. and N.Y.C. I also heard from many in those affected areas reporting in. I became a conduit between friends.

Part of my job was organizing gatherings for alumni all over the country. That included finding venues and caterers, plus programming for each event. That might include bringing along a beloved professor, or finding an alum in the area who had an interesting career they could speak about, or who had authored a book. I also used to connect alumni from different generations who had things in common—like similar jobs, lived in the same area, or had the same interests. Or those alumni who were looking for jobs and those who might be mentors in that search.

Working in non-profits and alumni relations, connecting like-minded people to resources, job opportunities, or other people who like the same things or are in similar careers, becomes a given. And now, with a network of writers all over the country, it is fun to connect other writers to resources, or authors who write in similar genres, or have areas of expertise needed by that author. And…luckily, they do the same for me. Writing romance is one of my joys in life. And with that goes staying in touch with my good friends, and connecting with authors who may have advice to help me on my journey.

It’s all about the networking, no matter whether it is a job search, connecting with people who have similar interests, jobs, or hobbies, or a simple helpful gesture guiding a lost shopper in the direction of the aisle filled with ice cream. So put on that bright smile and connect. You might be surprised at how much fun it is, even when you know you may never cross paths with that person again.