My Muse was Kidnapped!

I'm not a winter fan. Which is odd since I live in the cold cold snowy Northern Michigan...This was what happen this past Thursday (Thanksgiving for me)....Snow...

 but that didn't keep us away from the beach...oh no! We still played on the sand dunes....just dressed a little differently :-)

But what happens when the Christmas spirit becomes your muse? 

   You write a sweet Christmas romance! I wrote a sweet Christmas romance…

                                No dead bodies

                                                No steamy sex

                                                                No VODKA!!!!

But there is ….

                                A sweet five-year-old

                                                A snowman building contest

                                                                AND animals… lots of animals.

While it doesn't have vodka.... it does have some yummy recipes. These are a holiday favorite at my house and I made them Harper's fav too... well because I'm the author and can do that ;-p 

They are butterscotch pancakes... ohhhh soooo good!

What you need....

·         1 cup all-purpose flour

·         1/2 cup quick-cooking oats

·         2 tablespoons brown sugar

·         1 teaspoon baking powder

·         1/2 teaspoon baking soda

·         1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

·         1/2 tablespoon fine salt

·         1 1/4 cups buttermilk

·         1/4 cup melted butter

·         1 large egg

·         1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, or to taste

·         1/3 cup butterscotch chips

·         cooking spray

What you do....

1.      Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.

2.      Mix buttermilk, butter, egg, and vanilla extract together in a bowl. Add to flour mixture; stir until just combined. Fold butterscotch chips into batter; allow to rest 5 minutes.

3.      Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat; coat with cooking spray. Pour in 1/3 cup batter; spread with the back of a spoon into a circle just over 1/4-inch thick. Cook until edges are set; 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook 1 to 2 minutes more.

AND it has a GREAT AMAZING Cover (thanks to Lia Davis at Glowing Moon Designs PreMade Covers). 

Blurb:

Five years ago, Joleigh Nelson turned her back on the only man she’d ever love to save her father and unborn son’s lives. Now that man may be the only one who can save her home, the New Forks animal reserve.

Spencer Thompkin has spent the last five years in an emotional wasteland.  Unable to let anyone in after Joleigh disappeared without a word.

On a routine foreclosure of an animal reserve, he finds not only Joleigh but a son he never knew about.

Can he get over the feelings of betrayal and help Joleigh save her home – the animal reserve? Or will the heartless lawyer part of him prevail leaving Joleigh homeless and without her son?

A Christmas reunion may not even be enough to save the animal reserve and restore their love.

The Christmas Reunion is available at Amazon
                                                              Other distributors

Have a great weekend!!! And try the pancakes ;-)

Animals and Books

My feelings about books and animals are deeply intertwined. One of the books that made the biggest impact on me as a kid was Black Beauty, and, when very little, Country Cat, City Cat was my go to nighttime read. Oh, and then there were the Clifford books and another favorite, Saucy, about a female dog who had a litter of pups. In my youth, my literary heroes were as likely to be four-legged as human.

I don't read many animal stories these day, but I still love to read stories that feature animals. Animals can be part of the conflict of a story, a trusted companion for a hero or heroine, or simply an indicator of a character's personality. Don't we tend to watch a person's treatment of animals or their own pets as an indicator of their temperament? We even categorize people as "dog people" or "cat people" and assume certain character traits based on that characterization.

Finn and Lucy

I'm not sure where I fit in. My family had dogs and cats during my entire childhood and I loved them dearly, each and every one. As an adult, I have yet to own my own home and have lived, mostly, in apartments. This restricted my ability to own and provide space for pets as I'd prefer, so I've been a cat owner for the last decade or so. I'm not complaining. My two shelter cats, a brother and sister pair, are my pseudo kids. With no kids of my own, they have become an essential and beloved part of my little family unit.

Lady Bertram in
Mansfield Park (1999)

The story I'm working to polish off at the moment, The Worth of a Kiss, features a dowager countess with two pugs, Castor and Pollux. I have to admit that I thought a bit about Lady Bertram and her pug from Jane Austen's Mansfield Park when writing Lady Stamford. I have never been able to get Austen's character out of my head, and her attitude regarding her pugs was a perfect means for Austen to offer moral lessons regarding her character. Austen made it clear she disdained any woman that put her pets above her children, and thankfully my character, Nora, Lady Stamford, has a much more sensible relationship with her twin pugs. 

Do you like stories that feature animals? Do you have a favorite? If so, why does that one stick in your heart and mind?