Let’s Get Healthy: Day Fifteen (AKA Sweaty Betty) #romancefit
I wish I could say the sweat was from treadmilling (yes, I got thirty minutes in), or lifting weights, or doing some sort of healthy exercise. But it’s mainly from working in a hot garage while I added to the heat with butane and propane torches.
Yeah, I’m making jewelry. The pendant shown at left, to be specific (although I decided against the silver balls, as they made the top look crowded once the bezels had been soldered on) — fossilized yellow coral set with citrines on an 18 GA sterling silver backplate. After getting everything cleaned up and polished, I put it in the tumbler where it’ll be burnished by steel shot overnight (seriously, this works great. I add about a pound of different shapes of steel shot to water, a cupful of burnishing compound and a couple of drops of Dawn dish detergent, then pop in whatever needs to be burnished, and it comes out gleaming the next morning.
And I hear you saying, “Well, that’s nice, Nic, but did you do any, you know, writing today?” As a matter of fact I did, on both King of Blades (up to 10K and three chapters now) and the holiday novella One Sweet Christmas. Depending on how much work I get done in the next two weeks I may have to bump Blades to an August release, which wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing since it could get included in a NYT list of indie releases in August – October if I do that. We’ll have to see.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Fourteen (AKA Watching The Clock) #romancefit
I don’t know why I’m so tired, but I am. I just want to go to bed, but I know if I do it now (8:47 PM) I’ll be up at 1 AM and whoops, there goes my circadian cycle.
So I’m making myself stay up until 10 PM at least, at which point Grandma here can go to bed. While I’m waiting, I’ll knock out that thirty minutes on the treadmill. Maybe the cardio will help keep me awake. Or I’ll fall over and break something, who knows.
That beings said, this also makes two complete weeks of walking for thirty minutes, give or take, every day, and I’m here to tell you that it really has made a difference. My legs are more toned, as is my butt (the skin on it has gotten the tiniest bit deflated, which makes me happy), it’s easier to bend over, it’s easier to walk around, and I just don’t feel as sick and defeated as I had two weeks ago. And yeah, there’s been some minor weight loss as well, which is nice, but once again that’s not the goal. Nic wants to be able to walk long distances without wanting to be put out of her misery, and this is really the only way to do it. Thank God Ramón bought that treadmill 15 years ago, that’s all I have to say.
I’ve also learned that a 24-hour Claritin every day is a must, not only to dry up my sinuses but to stop my joints from reacting to whatever allergen is freaking them out. Good to know.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Thirteen (AKA The Day Kristine Kathryn Rusch Schooled Me)
I’m now getting to the point where I don’t really break a sweat until I’m somewhere in the 10-20 minute point of walking, so I think that’s a sign that my poor abused endurance is finally making a comeback. I was also able to go food shopping and stand in the kitchen for about 30-40 minutes while making garlic ginger chicken stir fry without becoming drenched in sweat or needing to sit down RIGHT NOW.
So yeah, this whole business of walking thirty minutes a day, every day, does your body good.
In writing news, I got some wordage in on King of Blades and pulled out the Christmas novella that I need to finish in September so that I can have it ready for the holiday season. I’m also extremely pleased that I sold twenty-five copies of Stealing Dmitri through Amazon and three copies through Smashwords. Seeing as it’s a five-year-old re-release, I’m really happy with those numbers and I’m already musing about a sequel.
I’m also musing about business matters, because Kristine Kathryn Rusch delivered a truth bomb today that solidified a lot of things that have been floating in my head about where I am, professionally and financially, as a writer. If you’re a writer of any sort go read her post because it’s informative as hell, but what she said, in short, is that “We are not in the publishing industry. We are in the entertainment industry.” From a business point of view, the published book shouldn’t the be-all and end-all goal of writers — it’s the story that matters, that unique chunk of intellectual property that came flaming out of your head, and there are so many ways you can take that IP and license it throughout the entertainment industry (which is yet another reason why I’m turning To My Muse into a script).
Another way to make your IP work for you is through merchandising, be that games, toys, apps, or apparel. And while I’ve had a half-assed Merchandise page languishing on this site for some time, I’ve decided that it’s time to punch it up and start getting serious about doing something with all of these nifty graphics I’ve been developing for various stories/series.
I mean, come on, wouldn’t you want a cool Mayhew Plants and Nursery t-shirt in your choice of colors? Or maybe a Trickster Tech sticker for your laptop? (I have one, and it’s gotten comments at various coffee shops.) Or an Olympic Cove “Get Wet” mug? Oh, and wait until you see the logo I’m working on for Stealing Dmitri’s spaceship/AI — think pin-up girl in Scottish gear sitting sidesaddle on an old-fashioned rocket as she’s shooting through the stars. It’s going to be AWESOME.
So yeah, I’m feeling rather pumped about the second half of 2019.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Twelve (AKA Learning Curves)
So today has been pretty much spent at my bench working on earring settings (7 AM – 12 PM because it was the only time when the garage was at a bearable temperature), eating lunch and cooling off (12 – 1PM), collapsing into a weird but desperately needed doze (1-5 PM), then getting up and puttering around, watching more episodes of Fleabag, going out and deadheading some of the plants before we got hit with yet another small but powerful storm, making dinner, then wrestling with a store-bought prong setting for some earrings only to find that I’d used jump rings that were too big (5 PM – now). I was able to salvage the other setting and put on smaller rings, and it looks faboo, but now I have to wait until Rio Grande ships me another 10x12mm pre-notched sterling silver setting to finish the earrings.
And let me tell you, I now understand why jewelers prefer to make their own prong settings because trying to shape a one-size-fits-all piece so that it’ll take your stone is a pain in the freaking ass. But at least I now know how to do it, so I’ve got that going for me.
No, I didn’t walk at all. Gonna go do that now, whee.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Eleven (AKA Oh God I Want To Sleep)
I made the huge mistake of not getting a decent night’s sleep last night, which has rendered me semi-comatose all day. Yes, I got my thirty minutes in on the treadmill, but then we went out with my editor for a birthday dinner (she and Ramón were born on the same day) at this great Lebanese place, and between the pita bread, the hummus, and the gyro plate I’ve been hit with a carb bomb that is making me soooooooooo sleepy.
But I don’t WANNA go to bed before 10 PM because if I do I’m just going to wake up around 1 AM and not be able to get back to sleep. So I need to find something that will keep me awake without being physically or mentally exhausting, and I think Season 2 of Fleabag on Amazon Prime is working nicely. Not only is it blackly funny, but I can now see why so many people find Andrew Scott attractive. Mind you, I’m perfectly aware that he’s a handsome man as well as an immensely talented actor, but it was one of those things where I consciously appreciated the man’s aesthetics but they didn’t really light a fire.
Now he’s playing a goofy, charming Catholic priest of all things, and I don’t know if I’m so tired that I’m channeling the main character’s unrequited lust or what, but damn, he’s smokin’ hot. Yeah, yeah, I’m going to hell…
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Ten (AKA Kinda Got Distracted By the Dem Debates)
So today I only got twenty minutes in on the mill due to a combination of this lingering cold and needing to get some work done. While I feel a bit bad about that I know it’s not the end of the world. I still got off my butt and walked for twenty minutes, which is far better than spending the entire day sitting.
In fact, with the improving leg strength and stamina I think I’m going to start back at the gym on Monday and see if I can add some weights in three days a week with the daily cardio. I know I may look like Mrs. Potatohead but I like the way I feel when I lift, so it’s probably time to start throwing iron around.
Oh, and I said I’d check in on any weight loss on Day Ten. Yes, there has been some, not a huge amount but that’s not the goal with all of this. It’s more important to regain strength, stability, and flexibility, and that’s all starting to come back. If I get smaller, too, that’s a nice fringe benefit but I’m not going to obsess about it.
That being said, MAN my calf muscles are starting to shape up nicely.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Nine (AKA It Takes Three Weeks To Form a New Habit)
Yep, still doing thirty minutes a day.
Yep, still listening to Pod is My Copilot while trudging along.
Yep, still entertaining the cats.
Yep, still sweating like Seabiscuit.
Yep, my knees still hurt like a mother.
But. I was able to climb up a ladder today to replace the seasonal decor over the front door without much of a problem (we have a pair of garlands, a front door wreath, and two vases of flowers that get switched out every season. Today I put the Summer flowers up, so the foyer is now a riot of color).
Plus I was able to do two sessions of fifteen minutes each instead of three ten-minute sessions because, well, I wasn’t tired when I hit the first ten minutes so why not just punch out another five minutes? Plus tomorrow I’m going over to my editor’s house to help clean her guest room because her broken ankle requires her to stay off it and not do things like clean her guest room (she has an incoming guest, hence the cleaning), and I’m not dreading this. So it looks like the endurance is starting to come back whether it likes it or not. Now if I could just find a way to get some sleep without wanting to slice out my knees, that would be faboo.
In writing news, I have a draft cover for King of Blades. I’ve wanted to get Matthias on a cover since Book One, and I finally did it, dammit. Mind you, this isn’t the final version — I still need to do some tweaking here and there and smooth his face out just a bit more (not too much, but enough to match the painted style of the other covers in the series), and maybe add a shooting star under the moon because what the hell, why not. Ooh, and birds — birds would also be a good idea.
But at the moment I am very, very happy with this image. As I put it when I posted it on Instagram, “It’s the closest I could get to Iain Glen without actually using a picture of, you know, Iain Glen.” Now I just have to finish the book, and everything is cool.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Eight (AKA Yeah, I Know This Is Today’s Second Post)
It’s called “I was tired yesterday and forgot to post.” Today’s treading involved turfing Jemma the tortie off so that I could get my steps in. She was astounded when the deck started to move slowly and deposited her on the floor at the end.
Yes, it was slow. No, she wasn’t hurt at all, merely boggled. She proceeded to jump onto the pedal sewing machine to watch me sweat while Ramón unboxed a monitor that he’s hoping to hook up to his BBC Micro (he collects old computers and the treadmill is in the dining room, as is the pedal sewing machine. Don’t ask).
In writing news, I made headway on King of Blades and officially moved into the three figure mark for book sales this month, which is a nice return to 2017 levels. Now if I can just keep that up or bump it up even more, that would be faboo.
Oh, also, amusing moment with Ramón tonight — a few weeks ago he started watching a SyFy show about futuristic bounty hunters called Killjoys, which he thought I’d like to watch because of the snappy dialogue and the kickass female lead. And lo, I do find myself enjoying the snappy dialoogue and said kickass female lead, but it’s the hot silver fox quasi-villain who really caught my attention. I do appreciate a morally dubious character with the right amount of grey in his hair and a set of smokin’ blue eyes.
Let’s Get Healthy: Day Seven (AKA Babes With Blades)
When I was a kid, I loved stormy weather. It was great to hang out in a window and watch lightning bolts chase each other across a bruise-purple sky.
These days, I still love the aesthetics, but what wet weather does to my joints is extremely unpleasant and goes to show that growing old isn’t for the weak. Nonetheless, my aching body got on board the treadmill three times and churned out the necessary mileage. Why? Because damn it, I want my endurance back. Plus I figure the pain will subside eventually after my body realizes that no, this isn’t a passing phase and it had better get used to it.
Actually, what I’d really like to get back to is what I was doing in this picture (I’m in the middle). I used to fence with the SFWA Musketeers at SF conventions, as well as with a group of SCA folks here in the clavicle of Texas, and that was an absolute blast. During this time I was also bellydancing, and I think that was the most fit I’ve ever been as an adult. Not to mention flexible — I can still do really good belly rolls and snake arms when my joints play ball.
Wonder if Romancelandia needs a roving band of babes with blades…
Marvelous Monday Reads: Foolin’
Welcome to another edition of Marvelous Monday Reads, darlings! Today I’m featuring Allyson Young and her delicious new Western romance Foolin’, now available from Eevrnight Publishing and other purveyors of fine online romance. Take it away, Allyson!
When Kathleen and Carter meet, it’s intrigue at first sight, and they awaken from emotional exile. A turn of events finds her spontaneously joining him on his working ranch. Despite being really hard work, she’s blissfully happy—and the fringe benefits aren’t too shabby either.
Carter can’t believe his luck. He desperately needed a housekeeper, not that he welcomed this amazing woman into his home for that reason. He can cope with her bond with her daughter, no matter how it forces him to remember his lost young son. And he can’t give her his heart, but what he can give is surely enough.
In love with this amazing man, Kate ignores that Carter withholds, believing he’ll change, and she’s willing to wait. When she inadvertently discovers he was angling for a housekeeper all along, it knocks her blinders off.
She’s done waiting. She deserves more—and so does he.
Story Excerpt
“I think I’m good. I should probably get to bed,” she said. “What time do you get up?”
“Early. And I head out straight away. You stay in bed until you’re ready to face the day. I’ll leave you my cell number, and you text me. I’ll head back.”
“I’m an early riser too.”
“Five o’clock for me tomorrow, Kathleen.”
“Oh, maybe not. I’ll text you.”
He pulled out his cell. “What’s your number?”
With the exchange complete, he lurked in the doorway. “The bathroom is across the hall. Towels in the cabinet.”
“Great, thanks. I’ve got everything I need.”
Did she? So near and yet so far, she hovered there like a wood sprite. When she stooped to slip the strap off her shoe, then the other and stepped out of the heels, he found he’d closed the gap.
“Kathleen.”
She looked up, having lost a slight difference in height, and her eyes flared green, the pupils dilating. A good night kiss, then. A peck. He reached out and with only tacit permission lowered his mouth over hers.
On a startled gasp, her lips parted, and he took advantage, yet maintained control, alert to any distress. It separated him into distinct parts that soon melded when she pressed into him, her arms wreathing around his neck.
He learned her, her taste and texture, reveling in her response, swallowing her tiny moans. When he pulled away to breathe, resting his forehead against hers, she sagged in his arms and he kept her steady.
His heart pounded in tandem with hers, and he was so hard he hurt. She shivered, and he said, “Do I need to apologize? Because it’ll be difficult.”
In a whisper, she said, “No need. I’m just sorry I’m so out of practice.”
“If you’re out of practice, I hope to kiss you when you’re at your best.”
Tipping her head back, she met his eyes before glancing away. “I don’t do this on a first date. I don’t date. Lord.”
He eased his body away from hers, regretting that he’d encroached on her personal space. She tugged him back. “But I want to. I want you. If that makes me a—”
He stopped her with a hard kiss. “Don’t. Don’t make this a bad thing.”
Her lips twitched in a tremulous smile. “I don’t want to overthink it.”
“I’ll take care of you,” he promised.
He lost his Stetson and shrugged out of his jacket, bemoaning any inability to keep a hand on her as she tugged a zipper hidden in a side seam of her dress and let it slither down the length of her body to pool at her feet.
His fingers froze on the snaps of his shirt as he took in the sight of her in scraps of pink lace and honest-to-God thigh-high stockings. With a dry mouth, he wrenched the placket apart and threw the shirt to one side, gathering her to him, nuzzling the hollow at the base of her neck and then down to the tops of her breasts.
“You’re stunning.”
She arched into him, and he fumbled with the clasp and freed those gorgeous mounds that tumbled into his waiting hands. Soft skin tipped with beaded nipples he desperately wanted to get his mouth on. And her sultry scent…
His belt buckle pressed into her belly, and he made one hand abandon its prize and yank open the offending metal, dealing with the button and zipper while he was at it. His cock breathed a sigh of relief—he swore it—as his mouth found its target.
“God, Carter.” She pushed into him, and he sucked harder, gently using his teeth against the tip.
Her hands found his hips and pushed his jeans down, dragging his boxer briefs with them. The sensation of her fingers on his ass made him groan, his pelvis thrusting, his cock against her center. At this rate, he’d disgrace himself.
When she sought him out, he turned with her, hobbled by his own jeans, the ignominy nearly making him smile as he held her against the wall. “Touch me, darlin’, and I’ll lose it all over your sweet hand.”
“Out of practice, too,” she teased, her hair awry and her mouth swollen. “I’m so ready, Carter.”
He worked his hand beneath her panties, staring into her eyes, soaking in the pleasure sparking there when he found her apex, full and wet. “You are.”
Still, he played at her entrance, then feathered over the knot above, making her rise on her toes and whimper. “Please.”
It took some awkward gymnastics to get a hand into his jeans’ pocket and lift his wallet, all while stroking her, but he managed it. Somehow got the condom out and open and smoothed on.
Pushing aside the fabric guarding her pussy, he bent his knees a fraction and set his cock at her opening. With a single thrust, he filled her, freezing in place as they both adjusted. She was wet but so fucking tight. She’d said she didn’t do this, didn’t date. Christ. How long had it been?
“You okay?” he rasped, willing her to open her eyes.
As if on cue, her lashes fluttered open, and he drowned in the depths behind them. Urgent need enticed him, and he responded, easing out and pushing back in. Heated, wet satin sucked at him as he powered toward orgasm, knowing it wouldn’t be long.
But he wasn’t getting there alone. Watching her for any signs, doing his best to ignore the pull at the base of his spine, he found her sweet spot and swiveled his hips to take her there. She responded by working herself against him, her breath increasing in shallow pants as she crested.
With a short cry, she tensed and clamped on him, shuddering, her head grinding against the wall. There was no resisting her, and he followed her over, emptying himself. He set his teeth on the top of her shoulder and muffled his groan, then kissed the spot reverently.
Where to Buy
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Bookstrand | Smashwords | Evernight
About the Author
Allyson Young aka Peri Elizabeth Scott lives in cottage country, Manitoba, Canada where she and her husband pretend to work well together in their seasonal business.
She has always enjoyed the written word, and after reading an erotic romance, quite by mistake, decided to try her hand at penning one. That was followed by a mix of spicy (Ally) and sweet (Peribeth) romances in various genres as well as a post-apocalyptic adventure without a lick of romance by Peribeth.
A bestselling Amazon author, a hybrid, and a coauthor, as of August 2018 she has published seven series and several standalones—all available on Amazon—with others in the works.
Nicola Cameron Writes 