 I'm posting another double duty post today. This one is in celebration of the letter "S" for the A - Z Challenge and for a hop called Sweet Saturday Samples. Click on either link above to hop over and read more blog posts about the letter "S" and Sweet Saturday Samples of work. Have a terrific weekend!
 Excerpt from Whisper of Memory:
The conversation occurs between Mia and Regulus during a weapons training session. Mia begins...
“This is too sweet. It’s superhero stuff, in case you didn’t know. No Slip will ever mess with me again.”
“This weapon is mine. I’m only showing you how to use it. It’s too dangerous for you to have one in your possession.” Regulus almost sounded sorry.
“That’s not fair. Why tease me with it?” My shoulders slumped as I looked around for a target.
Regulus took the stunner from my hand. “You may get your own some day. For now, you can use mine in case of emergency.”
“Great. I’m feeling as though I’m five years old. Want to just hand me a pointy stick and hope I can defend myself?” I glanced down. “I do get the knife, right?”
If you are here looking for the A-Z Challenge, this post serves double duty. I am participating in the Showers of Books Giveaway Hop for readers. Please enter to win the prize package below! R Is for Readers has been a post in the A-Z Challenge.  A missing boy, government agents, an interdimensional portal... Mia has one goal for her senior year at Whispering Woods High—find her missing older brother. But when her science project reveals a portal into another dimension, she learns that travelers are moving in and out of her woods in the most alarming way and government agents Regulus and Arizona are policing their immigration. Mia’s drawn to the mysterious, aloof Regulus, but it’s no time for a crush. She needs to find out what they know about her brother, while the agents fight to save the world from viral contamination. But when Regulus reveals that he knows Mia’s secrets, she begins to wonder if there’s more going on than she thought...and if she was wrong to trust him... AUTHOR WEBSITE
 Alexander Lorre gives new meaning to the term “tormented teen.” He’s a newly fallen angel, which means he has the self-control of a three-year-old, the hormones of a teenager and the strength of an angel. When he rescues Gaby Moore from drowning, the chemistry between them is undeniable. With a local demon threatening Gaby’s life, he struggles to find a balance between remaining close enough to protect her but distant enough to control his desires. As danger draws closer, Gaby uncovers shattering secrets that will lead to an ultimate choice. Will she fight alongside her father, an earthbound hunter killing fallen angels and demons, give into the demon blood coursing through her veins and join the demon world, or save the man she loves from both? The first two choices damn her, but the last one could destroy them all. AUTHOR WEBSITE
| They say April Showers Bring May Flowers!This April will find you showered in books during the "Showers of Books" Giveaway Hop! Hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & One A Day Y.A. For more links to participating blogs, click THIS LINK. It's a prize pack of digital books. These are all the first books in a YA series. Good luck! The Waiting Booth by Brinda BerrySlipstream by Michael OffuttRise From Darkness by Ciara Knight  Jordan Pendragon is crazy good at fixing situations that have gone bad. It's a talent prized by his high school ice hockey team. However, when a car accident puts Jordan in the hospital, he wakes up with more than just an amazing slapshot in his toolbox. Jordan can manipulate space-time and in just a few weeks, he'll depend on it to save his life. When earthlings detonated the first atomic bomb in 1945, something incredible happened. The detonation triggered an extinction level event on a parallel world. A computer program saved humanity and became the ruler of this place. However, its brilliant mind fragmented and became insane. Jordan's power strands him in this nightmare universe. To get home, he becomes a professional in a sport where athletes are killed to boost network ratings. To survive, he discovers that the most broken among us can be fixed and that love is unpredictable. Near the end, he also learns a startling truth about his own birth. If he fails to fix the computer’s insanity, both Earth and this sister world are doomed. AUTHOR WEBSITE
| 4/26/12 UPDATE: Rafflecopter chose Shayna G as the winner of the prize package. The winning entry was adding Slipstream to her Goodreads TBR list!
 I love movies. My husband camped with friends last weekend, and they all had to tell their top three movies. They debated the merit of each person's choice. He asked me if I could name his. I immediately said, #1 The Outlaw Josey Wales #2 Lonesome Dove. He was stunned. Hey...we've been married a long time. #3 was Cool Hand Luke. He asked for my three: #1 Dances with Wolves, #2 The Matrix, #3 The Wizard of Oz. Okay...Those were just the top three "off-the-cuff" answers. He was very disappointed with the #2 and #3 answers. It's difficult to choose because I have so many favorites. Here are some of my favorite movies with quotes:ElfWe elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup. ZoolanderI'm pretty sure there's a lot more to life than being really, really, ridiculously good looking. And I plan on finding out what that is. Raising ArizonaSon, you got a panty on your head. The TerminatorI'll be back. Kill BillThat really was a Hattori Hanzo sword. The ProfessionalMathilda: [ about Russian roulette] If I win, you keep me with you for life. Léon: And if you lose? Mathilda : Go shopping alone, like before. The Fifth ElementNow, don't get me wrong, I'm all for conversation, but maybe you could just shut up for a moment? Steel MagnoliasI'd rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special... Shawshank RedemptionThese walls are funny. First you hate 'em, then you get used to 'em. Enough time passes, you get so you depend on them. That's institutionalized Wizard of OzScarecrow: I haven't got a brain... only straw. Dorothy: How can you talk if you haven't got a brain? Scarecrow: I don't know... But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking... don't they? Dorothy: Yes, I guess you're right. What are your favorites?Q Is for Quotes has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants.
 I use Pandora radio. I listen on my desktop, laptop, iPhone, and iPad. Pandora is internet radio that intuitively chooses music that you will probably like. To understand the science of Pandora radio, click here to read about the Music Genome Project. Creating an account for Pandora is free. You can upgrade, but I still use the free version. You can follow other's stations and allow them to follow yours. These are all options in your privacy setting. In the screenshots below, I made a new station by typing in the name of a band I like, Cake. The station then begins adding other bands to the queue that I might like: The Black Keys, Weezer, Foster the People and Sublime. The station will also play a lot of Cake since they were my initial "seed" for the station. If I don't like a song, I can click on the "thumbs down" button to help train the station. I'm a guest at Gloria Richard's blog today with a post called Graphics 102 or Are You Kidding Me? I’m Not a Photographer or Graphic Artist .I'm also at Seeing Night Reviews with a guest post about my writing called Who Are You Calling Quirky? Click here to go and comment at Seeing Night Reviews. Enter it in the Rafflecopter for the Kindle Touch or Nook Simple Touch Giveaway! P Is for Pandora has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants.
 I've always loved libraries. The opportunity to have so many books at your disposal is simply amazing. There is no buyer's remorse because you've tried one you didn't like. It's like having a good friend who trusts you with their prized possession. If you have followed my blog, you know that I embrace technology. This post doesn't mean I have abandoned the brick and mortar libraries. I am cheering for them because they are moving with the times. I don't want libraries to disappear. I need them. Overdrive is a software/app that allows you to borrow digital and audio library books. I use it mostly for borrowing audiobooks. Due to my long daily commute, I consume several audiobooks a month. Overdrive helps me to supplement my purchased audiobooks that I get from Audible.com. I honestly don't check out many ebooks. The selection at the library is limited to your popular authors, and I read so many ebooks that are NOT from well-known authors. Overdrive is hooked up to many library systems, and you can choose between the audio, Kindle, and Nook formats. I have the iPad app, iPhone app, or I can access it from my laptop. I took some screenshots to illustrate the simplicity of checking out an ebook or audiobook. Notice in the last screenshots that the book loan is for 14 days. The book will automatically leave your device at expiration. O Is for Overdrive has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants.I'm at The Book Galaxy today with an interview. Drop in if you get the chance! Leave a comment at The Book Galaxy on the interview post and enter to win the Kindle Touch or Nook Simple Touch.
 After login, you can browse the book format type.  Type in the search term to see books by an author.  I had limited my search to only the available books by Linda Howard. I didn't want to put a hold on a book. Notice that there is only one copy available of each book listed.  Here you are shown the format choices and lending period.
N Is for Nirvana has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants. Kudos to the A-Z Leadership Team: Arlee Bird at Tossing it Out, Alex J. Cavanaugh, Stephen Tremp at Breakthrough Blogs, Jenny Pearson at Pearson Report, Matthew McNish at The QQQE, Tina Downey at Life is Good, Jeremy Hawkins at Retro-Zombie, DL Hammons at Cruising Altitude, Shannon Lawrence at The Warrior Muse, Elizabeth Mueller,Damyanti Biswas at Amlokiblogs, Karen Gowen at Coming Down the Mountain, Konstanz Silverbow at No Thought 2 Small. Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge. | Alternative music, grunge, Seattle, the 90s... Nirvana started a revolution in music. The sound was very different. The bands looked unkempt. They ditched the pyrotechnic shows. They played for us in the same way they played in their garages. I loved the music of the 90s. The first video below is from Nirvana doing a song you may not recognize. It's one of my favorites and is currently on my iPod. The other song is by Soundgarden and it's my favorite. I listened to the four bands listed below non-stop. - Nirvana
- Soundgarden
- Pearl Jam
- Alice in Chains
Do you have a favorite decade for music? | I'm still on my blog tour for my new release, Whisper of Memory. Today's stop is at Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer with a review of the first book in my YA fantasy series and an excerpt from Book 2, Whisper of Memory. Drop by and enter the contest to to win a Kindle Touch or Nook Simple Touch.
 First, I'd like to thank everyone who stops by and comments throughout the A-Z Challenge. There is nothing more thrilling than having comments. My posts this month are all about things that make me happy in life. Technology is one of those subjects. Earlier I told you that I kept all my research in Evernote. Research begins while I am dreaming up the story as well as during the writing stages. For writing my rough draft, I use an app called Manuscript on my iPad. This is where I create chapter outlines, make character cards on virtual index cards, and write rough drafts. I don't mind having these items in separate places, but some will protest that it is inefficient. When I am ready to create a final manuscript of my work and move on to editing, I export from Manuscript. I prefer using Word on my laptop with the markup functionality you have there. I also print out a novel for editing with margin space for written notes. My three writing tools are Evernote, Manuscript, and Word. M Is for Manuscript has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants. I know writers use Scrivener and other novel writing software. What do you use?
I love watching movies almost as much as reading books. Some movies made a great impact on me as a child. This is one of those. It's a movie about race relations and it struck a chord. As a mixed-race child of a Caucasian father (American) and an Asian mother (Korean), I watched the movie and wept for the characters. I wondered if I would experience things that would be difficult and unjust.
I know that my life experiences with racial discrimination pale beside those of different generations and different races. I grew up in a small Southern town. I never felt even one-half Asian until someone snickered and said, "Ching ching chow" or some other ridiculous taunt only meant to point out I was different.
Yes, the movie Imitation of Life has stereotypes and it's sappy, but as a kid it told me to be proud of who I am. I've seen it at least twenty times.  From IMBd.com:
A struggling young actress with a six-year-old daughter sets up housekeeping with a homeless black widow and her light-skinned eight-year-old daughter who rejects her mother by trying to pass for white.
This 1959 version with Lana Turner and Sandra Dee was the remake of an earlier film. The Fannie Hurst novel of the story was published in 1933.
The clip below is 10 minutes and I realize most people won't watch that. If you watch a minute or two, you'll get a taste of it.
Is there a movie from your childhood that made a great impact on you?
 Here's a tip specifically for the writer. Does your critique partner or beta reader have a Kindle? You can format your manuscript (MS) for the Kindle and send it for review. In the Kindle, you can highlight and note things. My sister is my first reader. Originally, she read my MS on her iPhone from email. I sent her a chapter at a time and she would read on her phone while on the treadmill. I don't know how she did it. I would go blind or kill myself by tripping on the treadmill. Now she has a Kindle. I send her a PRC file (the extension for a Kindle file). She reads my manuscript and it displays like any other Kindle book. You can also send PDF files to the Kindle, but they are difficult to read. This will give you just the right amount of text on the screen per page. General Steps:- I downloaded the free software called MobiPocket Creator onto my desktop.
- You take your Word document and format (through a wizard tool in this software) to a PRC file for Kindle.
- To send it to her Kindle device, I can email the PRC file to her Kindle address. Did you know you have a Kindle address? You do. I had to go into her Kindle settings and add MY email as acceptable where she could receive documents from me.
- For the person with an iPad and the Kindle app, you can email it to their regular email addy. When the user clicks on the attachment in the email, it will load it into the Kindle app. It's smart like that.
This is a short post, so I did skim over the details. I might do a longer post after April if anyone seems interested. I have an excerpt post from The Waiting Booth at the RomCon Blog. Leave a comment at the RomCon blog post to enter the drawing for the $5 Amazon gift certificate.I'm also on my Whisper of Memory blog tour and there's an excerpt from it at The Book Galaxy. Leave a comment there or at RomCon and then enter the Kindle Touch Giveaway HERE. The first entry choice on the Rafflecopter widget will ask you where you left your comment. K Is for Kindle and the Beta Reader has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants.
 You don't need an iPod, iPad, or iPhone to enjoy iTunes. You only need a computer and an internet connection — which you must have because you are reading this post. Get it. I enjoy the music, iTunes university, movies, and the podcasts. In this post, I'd like to focus on iTunes podcasts. Look at the choices on the screen capture below. NPR Programs and Stuff You Should Know are two of my favorite podcasts. These podcasts downloads are FREE. Did you hear that? FREE. You can set up subscriptions or choose one at a time. I Is for iTunes Podcasts has been a post in the A-Z Challenge. Click here to read posts written by other participants.
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