Oceanscapes
I think this would make a nice texture. I’m going to see if I can do something artistic with this one.
I hope these are all restful to your eyes. I know I need to rest my eyes, after a very long drive.
#Giveaway Monday
This was the juiciest giveaway I found this week. I was Googling around looking for classes for creating book covers. I’ve been learning that you can make good book covers in Word! Anyway, I’m still working hard on an upgrade to a cover, using Photoshop Elements and GIMP, just hacking away. But next time I’m looking forward to using the templates provided for free by Derek Murphy. Here is the link:
He also gives away a lot of information in articles about design and marketing that has helped me already, though I’ve only sampled a bit of it so far.
I took photos while skiing yesterday. I’ll post them tomorrow. I also had another link that has procedures for using Word to create book covers. It was awesome, but I can’t find where I stored that. (I have a bit of a housekeeping issue with my bookmarks.) When I find that link, I will provide it, but I do need to get this posted. What good is a giveaway Monday if it doesn’t post until night time?
Have a great Monday!
Morning light
Seeing the first sun on the mountains roused me from bed this morning.
I decided to drive to Tahoe City to photograph the lake. I parked at Commons Beach. Needless to say, I had the park to myself. It was quite cold, but I bundled up.
Have a great day!
Nicci
Riding the tram at Squaw Valley
This mountain, which we called Granite Chip (though I’m not sure if that is correct and couldn’t confirm), has always been one of my favorites. The contrasts of color in the rocks, snow, sky, and trees are so pretty.
I shot these out the tram window, as you can see, but what a great vantage point for photographing this slot at the top. I used to hike up here in the summer with my dog and look out through that slot down to the valley floor. A tad scary for someone afraid of heights (a little) but I would just stand back a bit. The slot was a natural frame for the beautiful valley floor.
If I love the colors so much, why did I make one monochrome? It’s kind of dramatic this way.
The weather turned really nice today and is going to keep getting warmer. I hope to get some more photos for you. I’m so tempted to take my DSLR out. I saw some trees below one of the lifts with roots hugging the crown of a bluff. I’d have to take my skis off and scramble up over rocks and through snow in my ski boots, so it might not happen. But it would be an interesting twist on skiing to turn the day into a photo shoot!
#Giveaway Monday
When Lighning Strikes, by Brenda Novak. This is a great book, and it’s short.
News flash, Wild Rose Press Hook a Book Lobster Cove Facebook party happening now! #Giveaway
Just wanted you all to know that I’m on for a half hour, and giving away a copy of Love Caters All in a random drawing. Plus a comment gets you into the drawing for the Kindle Fire.
Here’s the link:
https://www.facebook.com/events/928761120475937
Plus all the books in the Lobster Cove series are half off for a limited time! Go here for the books: http://bit.ly/1DbXZ45
Here is the cover for LCA:
Hope to see you at the party.
Nicci
Daisies for Sunday
Where did this day go? I hope you had a nice weekend!
Guest Post: What is Romance?
I thought you all might like to see this blog post for my first book signing. These are really interesting authors and we’re talking about romance for Valentine’s Day.
What is Romance? And How to Choose a Book for Valentine’s Day.
by Nicci Carrera, Adina Senft, and Jasmine Haynes
Nicci Carrera:
Hello, Village House of Books blog readers. I am writing most of this post and inviting my co-book-signers to chip in, so please bear with my long-windedness. This is a topic near and dear to my heart! So I will talk first and then ask one question each of the amazing Adina Senft and Jasmine Haynes.
I am thrilled to be doing my first ever book-signing of my debut spicy romantic comedy at Village House of Books with two remarkable authors whose work I adore on Valentine’s Day, 2015 (3 – 5 p.m.).
If you have not tried reading modern romance novels, I encourage you to try them. Romance is a very broad category. You can find anything you want in the genre, and there is…
View original post 1,176 more words
Book Review, True Blue, by Jules Barnard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I couldn’t put it down. One thing about young love is that you have to remember how messed up we can be about communication. This book handled that so well, showing Tyler slowly waking up to the fact he may have misunderstood some things in the past.
I loved being in Mira’s point of view. She owns up to her mistakes, and it was only through her thinking that I found it possible to forgive Tyler. I don’t want to do a spoiler, so I’ll just say it was the line when she though he even made sure she was fed and hydrated that allowed me to forgive him.
Jules Barnard did an amazing job showing what Mira’s worst fears were. They were so understandable. And then showing Mira overcoming those fears, was brilliantly done.
I loved watching Mira take charge of her life, pay her dues, remain kind to her awful mother, and I loved the ending, the little note. That’s all I’ll say so I don’t give anything away, but it made me feel a lot better for Mira.
Overall, a riveting tale of love, friendship, and family, set in the beautiful Lake Tahoe area.
Nicci Carrera 