Frost Fiction

I have a cold, so I'm too blurry-eyed and fuzzy-headed to concentrate on much. As such, I'm listening to books on tape. I just tried Diane Mott Davidson for the first time. Sweet Revenge was terrific. (Tammy Jo approves of a caterer/amateur sleuth as a series main character.)

Meanwhile, don't you think we should take a road trip to see this little guy? He's an "aye-aye" and is a new addition to the Denver Zoo. They claim he's a primate, but I'm thinking alien.

My friends pointed out that I did not offer any links yesterday. It turns out that's true.

At Twitter, you'll find me as: FrostFiction

On Facebook, I'm Kimberly Frost. You'll know you've got the right one by my book cover. :)

Quote for the day:

If you're already in a hole, quit digging.

(paraphrased from Roy W. Walters)

Question for the day: Is Houston as hot as the surface of the sun?
Answer: No, but it's pretty darn close.
Someone please pass the Gatorade!

After intense pressure, I have caved in and joined two more social networking sites. FaceBook & Twitter. (I was already here on Blogger (my home blogging site),  LiveJournal (infrequently), and MySpace (sporadically, but enthusiastically.)

Hello, World! 

There has been some beautiful weather lately in Houston. So I was driving along with my convertible top down, listening to music a tad too loudly, and feeling great. Then I stopped at a light and felt sprinkles. I looked up at the clear sky, confused, then got blasted with a bit of cold water. A d#$! corporate sprinkler caught me unawares. It was watering the flowers that were planted on the divider. Now I'm all for flowers and plants, but I don't think the citizens should have to get watered with them! I am not a tulip and I have a shower that works, thanks. ;)

How was your Easter/Passover/weekend?

Hugs,
Kimber

There's a term in writing for when an author interrupts the normal flow of the story to inject something that she wants the reader to know. The intrusion can take many forms, but they're all generally bad because it reminds the reader that she's reading a book (rather than living through an experience with the character.)

Anyway, I wondered if I might be an in-the-flesh author intrusion when I was invited by a wonderful (hugs and kisses to Karla) bookseller from Katy Budget Books to sit in on a paranormal readers' group that was going to discuss Would-Be Witch. How could they have a real discussion about what they thought with me sitting in the circle? Also, what if someone hated the book and wasn't afraid to say so? Would that be awkward?

In true Tammy Jo tradition, I felt bringing chocolate would be a good way to break the ice, so I had mint fudge brownies with me. (The brownies were pretty gooey in the center. I'm not sure what's up with that, but it turns out gooey brownies are as good as fully cooked ones.) Anyway, the ladies had their own supply of snacks and sodas, and I tried Peach Fresca. Amazingly good!

I was asked to talk a bit about how I'd come up with story, which I did. Then I listened to their thoughts. They're quite a savvy group of readers, which is very cool. And it was a relief to hear that they enjoyed the book. Many of them have been incredibly generous to me by telling people about the book. Caribbean pirates probably wouldn't think so, but book buzz/word of mouth recommendations are better than gold!

So it was a terrific experience for me--though because I was a bit nervous, I talked more than I'd intended to. Those who know me will not be surprised to hear that. ;)

Anyway, I hope it was good for them, too, but to learn what they really thought of my being there... intruder v. welcome visitor, I'll have to debrief with Karla this weekend. What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall sometimes...

Every once in a while, I come across a show that I really love. Such was the case with Reaper. Have you guys seen it? Kevin Smith of Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma fame is a show consultant. The premise is that a young guy turns eighteen and gets a visit from the devil, who's got the smile of the Joker and too-tan skin a la George Hamilton. The devil, in fact, fits the stereotype of a used car salesman.

Anyway, the parents of our hero apparently promised their first born to the devil in exchange for him granting them a favor. When Sam, the hero, turns eighteen, he's got to pay up by becoming a bounty hunter for Hell. This means he has to collect escaped souls and return them to Hell, using amazing implements like toasters and dustbusters. The drop-off point for the captured souls is the DMV where a horned demon named Gladys mostly looks bored, but often has a zinger for our boy and his pals.

If you like humor mixed with horror...a la Would-Be Witch and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you should give this show a look. I love it and bet you will, too.

Hugs,
Kimberly

P.S. In between watching episodes of Reaper, I did manage to turn in my copy edits. Hurray! Anyone in Houston, meet me for margaritas... ;)

I click on a lot of news items as I switch sites to check my various e-mail accounts, and a week or two ago, I came across this story from the AP, posted in the Chattanooga Times Free Press

MEMPHIS — Some drunks got out of hand near Beale Street in Memphis, but instead of barflies it was birds intoxicated from eating fermented fruit.

The Health Department investigated this week after receiving calls about dead and floundering birds, cedar waxwings to be exact. The birds were crashing into buildings in the Peabody Place area.

An investigator told The Commercial Appeal he traced the problem to berries from nearby holly trees. Recent freezes ruptured berry cells, allowing the wild yeast to convert sugars into alcohol.

The birds apparently got tipsy from consuming the fermented berries.

Health officials say they don’t how many birds died from flying intoxicated.

(Yikes! Note to self...don't eat wild holly berries after a freeze and then try to fly...)

So I was on the phone with my friend, David, who keeps me informed of things I need to know about like nice reviews and the date my new book will be released (Sept 1st according to Amazon.)

Anyway, so we're chatting about God-knows-what, and he suddenly says, "Someone is selling a collectable Would-Be Witch for more than double the cover price."

I pause, perplexed, and say, "What's collectable about it?" I have visions of someone gilding the lettering in real gold, and I'm just about ready to sign on to buy that fabulous copy myself, when he answers, "You signed it."

This response leads to about five minutes of laughing out loud on my part.

I quite doubt that the seller will find a buyer for the book at that price, but I wish them well and thank them for cracking me up.

Meanwhile, anyone with an unsigned copy who wants to convert it into a collector's item, contact me through my website. I'll happily send you an autographed bookplate to stick inside, and it won't cost you a thing.

I spent last week with a group of writers who were working on elevating their stories to breakout novel status. It was quite inspiring to see artists hard at work. In addition to helping them with their stories, I did some work planning a proposal for Book 3 in the Southern Witch Series.

Pleasanton, California where we stayed was lovely. Main Street has the look and feel of an older era. (I wish I had taken a picture of it to show you. The one above just shows wonderful fall color.) Anyway, I couldn't help but wonder if the creators of the movie Pleasantville (which I loved) had been to Pleasanton for inspiration.

Have a wonderful week!

A reader named Mellisa just contacted me through my website, but the replies I've tried to send keep bouncing.