Wednesday, May 28, 2008

You can't beat city hall...

But maybe you can haunt it.

An old town hall building in England burned down in 1995. People gathered to watch the fire and one of them took this photo from across the street. It looks like a young girl is standing in the doorway of the burning building and locals believe that girl is Jane Churm.

In 1677 Jane accidentally set fire to the town with a candle and she has reported to haunt the town ever since. The people of Shropshire believe Jane's ghost showed up for the more recent fire because she still feels guilty about the fire she set.

Pass the marshmallows and weinies!

Monday, May 26, 2008

Questions...

The other day Christie Craig posted answers to a list of questions on the Killer Fiction blog. I'm feeling exhausted and blog-lazy today so I did the same list of questions. After you've looked over my answers feel free to answer a couple in the comment section :)

1. What is your occupation? Murderer and/or mystery writer.
2. What color are your socks right now? Not wearing any but, when I do, they’re usually gray.
3. What are you listening to right now? My kids trying to kill each other in the next room. Whoever survives will be grounded by me.
5. Can you drive a stick shift? It’s been a while but, yes.
6. What color would you be, if you were a color? You’re kidding? Well, on a good day I’d probably be yellow but, on most days I’m a little green.
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? A telemarketer who will never, ever, not ever, call here again.
8. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Yes, since I sent it to myself.
9. How old are you today? My kids think I’m older than God
10. Favorite drink? Tall, triple, no-fat latte. Or red wine.
11. What is your favorite sport to watch? My son’s baseball games.
12. Have you ever dyed your hair? No, but every few weeks I naturally have an inch of gray appear in my part. Then it just disappears. Weird.
13. Pets? Hamster, guinea pig and frog … Oh My!
14. Favorite food? Whatever they invent that has zero calories, zero fat, and tastes like ice cream.
15. Last movie you watched? The new Narnia movie.
16. Favorite Day of the year? One when I can sleep later than 8 a.m. It hasn’t happened in 15 years.
17. What do you do to vent anger? Kill people. If I’m in a bad mood it can be the kind of scene where my editor tells me to reduce the gore factor.
19. What is your favorite, fall or spring? The one with the least rain. It’s a toss up here.
20. Cherry or Blueberry? Blueberry - YUM!
22. Living arrangements? Usually in front of my computer screen, legs tucked underneath me while I type. Like now.
23. When was the last time you cried? When my son won the MVP at his ball tournament.
24. Who is the friend you've had the longest that you are sending this to? ?
25. Who is the friend you have had the shortest that you are sending this to? ?
26. What is a place you've never been, that you hope to see someday? Under my covers for 8 hours straight … or else Florence
27. Why? I’m tired. I like Italy.
28. Favorite smell? Newborn babies.
29. Favorite board game? Masterpiece. It’s an old game where you bid on famous paintings. Anyone else play this?
30. First concert that you ever attended? Supertramp Crime of the Century Tour (yes, I’m that old)
31. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? Vegie burger (preferrably by Money's Mushrooms) with cheddar.
32. Favorite Car? 1958 Corvette Roadster *sigh*
33. Favorite cat breed? I’m more of a dog person
34. Number of keys on your key ring? Five, but I only know what 3 are for and I can’t get rid of the other 2 because I’m worried I’ll then remember what they opened.
35. How many years at your current job? Since I could hold a pencil.
36. Favorite day of the week? The day I don’t have to cook or clean I think it’s called vacation day.
37. How many states have you lived in? None. I’m a Canuck. But I've visited every state except Alaska.
38. Favorite alcoholic drink, if any? Wine. Or an icy cold Cosmo. Or beer on a hot day or… I’m just easy to please.
39. If you're old enough to remember, what is a favorite television show from the early 1970s? M*A*S*H* ... not that I'm old enough to remember.
40. What was the last thing that made you laugh? Probably a M*A*S*H* episode in the ’70s
41. If you could be someone else for fifteen minutes, who would it be? Peter Powers. He supposedly holds the record for the longest sleep (8 DAYS!)
42. What’s the strangest food you’ve eaten? My sister cooked some weird stuff when we lived together in the ’80s. There may have been liver involved.

Friday, May 23, 2008

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Another Ghost and My Computer

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately. I've had strange computer woes that have finally *hopefully* resolved!

For this week's ghost, we're going to a Toys R Us in Sunnyvale California. Supposedly, this ghost tosses things off shelves and makes icy cold spots in places in the store. Psychic, Sylvia Brown, had photographers document a seance in the store using a both an infared camera and highspeed film. The above photo was the infared shot taken at the exact moment of a high speed picture. Only the infared picture shows the man leaning in the doorway in the background. The ghost is Johnny, a young man who bled to death in a farming accident long ago near the store's location.

How are things with you? Any ghosts or computer woes in your life?

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Spring Cleaning

I've been working on the copy edits for Devil May Ride. It's going smoothly but it's taken my mind out of Book 3 and put me in total edit mode.
Edit mode is also conducive to cleaning mode.
I don't know why, but when I'm in full writing-new-stuff mode the cleaning just doesn't happen. However, the minute there is editing to be done, my thoughts go to "Edit that page!" then immediately jump to "Get those dust bunnies!"

So between sessions at the computer, I'm trying to clean out closets. I'm not a pack rat but I live with one so it's not as easy as it sounds! Since the seasons are changing on the West Coast and *finally* resembling more summer weather, I've got clothes to go through too. Not just for myself but for the 3 boys (my daughter does her own). I used to take all the real winter stuff and put it in suitcases until the following year. Except lately we've been needing the suitcases too much. Now I've got a stack of those rubber bins to load up but if I stick 'em in the closet they take up too much room and if I put them in the garage they stand the chance of being forgotten in that deep, dark hole.

Does your brain link non-creative tasks with housework? What do you do with your change of season clothes?

Monday, May 12, 2008


The winner of Eileen Cook's Unpredictable is Michelle Lauren! Michelle, email me with your snail mail addy and I'll fire it off to you.

Today I feel bleary eyed and out of sorts. I had a fabulous weekend with my family but time away always makes it hard to get back down to work. I keep expecting my sister's dog, Hans, pictured above to bring me a slobbery squeaky toy while I'm sitting at my computer.

For my Mother's Day weekend I ate too much, laughed a lot and connected with my family. How about you?

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Unpredictable

This past weekend I attended the Write on Vancouver mini-conference where I got to listen to fabulous Lisa Jackson. It was a great way to fill the well. I also got to hook up with some buddies, particularly Eileen Cook. We're pictured above looking exhilerated yet slightly exhausted from a full day. If it looks like I was recovering from a laughing fit it's because I was. Some people just bring out the silly, giggly little girl in me and Eileen happens to be one of those people. She also creates fabulous, fun characters in Unpredictable.

It occurred to me that perhaps some of you unlucky people have not yet had a chance to read Eileen's great, so I got her to sign a copy as a blog give away.

I'm off to Mother's Day Tea at my kids' school today and then off to Winnipeg to visit my own mother so I'll be away from the blog for a few days. Comment about Mother's Day, people who make you giggly or just life in general and I'll enter you to win Eileen's book :)

Monday, May 05, 2008

Ready, Set, Bid!


In addition to being a fabulous author, Brenda Novak is also a kind and generous person. Right now she`s hosting her fourth annual auction to raise money for diabetes. Please visit her site HERE. When you`re done drooling on all the fabulous items, then bid on some!

Want something unique to bid on? The photo above is the package of 2010 Olympic gear that I donated to the auction. A 2010 Vancouver Olympic jacket, stuffed olympic mascot, ball cap and souvenir pin. Here is that DIRECT LINK

Bid lots. Bid often. It`s all for a great cause.