Looking For Heroes In The Library | IWSG

The Insecure Writer's Support Group (IWSG) is a place to share and encourage, where writers can express their doubts and concerns without appearing foolish or weak. It's a great place to mingle with like minded people each month during IWSG day.

Every month there's an optional question which may prompt folks to share advice, insights, a personal experience or story. Some folks answer the question in their IWSG blog post or let it inspire them if they're struggling with what to say.

This month's question prompt is:

"How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?"

Check out how people have answered this month's question, as well as the other insecurities and writing topics they may have shared by visiting the IWSG sign-up list here. 

Before we get to how I answered the question, I wanted to share our new website for >>Hero Lost: Mysteries of Death and Life<<, the IWSG anthology in which my short story, The Silvering, will be published in. You can find it here. Pop by, check it out and follow along. We'll be adding new content to it in the run up to publication on May 2nd and afterwards.

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I was relaxing in the cockpit of our sailboat one afternoon, reading a book on my Kindle and sipping on some iced tea, when I heard a loud thunk. I turned and saw a man wearing a blue spandex outfit standing on the deck. To be honest, it was a pretty unflattering outfit. Not that spandex really looks good on anyone, but a middle-aged man with a beer belly, now that's really not a good look.

He spun dramatically with his red cape swirling around him. Did I forget to mention he was wearing a cape? Yep, there was a cape. He also had the letter "H" emblazoned across his chest in silver sequins.

You have to give him points. He exuded confidence. In fact, I think his outfit gave him confidence. Perhaps I should rethink this whole spandex-cape-sequin thing. Maybe if I wore something like that I'd be more comfortable with public speaking.

He strode towards me and proclaimed loudly, "I am Hugo, your local community hero!"

"Local community hero. Hmm...I didn't know we had one of those," I said. "What exactly do you do? Use your super powers to rescue kittens from trees? Help little old ladies across the street? Bring chocolate chip cookies to those in need?"

"Uh, no. I don't do any of those kind of things," he stammered. "I help people when they're struggling with questions. Like what the population of Ray, North Dakota is and what's written on Carl Jung's tombstone."

"So, you're basically a reference librarian then?"

His shoulders slumped as he wrapped his cape around him with a sigh. "I guess."

"Not that there's anything wrong with reference librarians," I quickly added. "The world needs librarians. Especially those that are such snappy dressers, like you."

"Really? You think I'm a snappy dresser?" He smiled. "Maybe you have a question I can help you with?"

I put my sunglasses on. The sun was bouncing off of his sequins and blinding me. "Sure, I could use your help. Here's my question - how has being a writer changed my experience as a reader?"

"Oh, that's easy peasy. I bet you read more carefully now  and try to dissect how different writers structure their stories."

As he started to pace the deck animatedly, I noticed that he was wearing blue, spandex booties. Who knew you could get shoes made out of spandex?

While I was thinking about getting cowboy boots made out of spandex and sequins, he sat down next to me. "I bet you even look at how different writers explore the same theme."

"You're right!" I said. "How did you know that? That's what I was just doing. Reading a copy of the Hero Lost anthology on my Kindle to see how my co-authors explored the theme of lost heroes. Maybe you do have super powers after all."

"Well, I don't know about super powers, but I do know a thing or two about writers and readers, given my line of work as a superhero reference librarian." He peered over my shoulder at my Kindle. "That sounds like a great book."

"It's right up your alley. Maybe you should make sure the local library orders a copy."

"I'll be happy to do that ma'am." He pointed towards the horizon. "Now, I must be off. There are other people out there in desperate need of information."

"It was nice to meet you, Hugo. Thanks for the help." I watched him walk across the parking lot and get into a beat-up old minivan. I guess folks don't go into the superhero business for the money. I shouted after him, "Come back soon! Next time, I'll have some questions about chocolate chip cookies for you."

What questions would you ask your local superhero reference librarian? What makes someone a shero? Have you ever worn spandex?

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Q&A Time | The Sunshine Blogger Award

 
Viki from Astrolabe Sailing nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award. The Sunshine Blogger Award is given from one blogger to others who are “positive, creative and inspiring." Once you have been nominated you are given a set of questions to answer and then you get to “pass it on” to other bloggers that you admire and find positive, creative and inspiring.

Viki is a really cool sailor from New Zealand who blogs about all things nautical, as well as travel in New Zealand and abroad (check out her Destinations page). Even though I lived in New Zealand for five years, I never got to meet her in person. I really hope our paths will cross on the water one day.

Here are my answers to Viki's questions.

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1 - What is the best part about traveling and/or sailing for you? 

Experiencing new stuff, meeting new people and learning about different ways of life.


2 - What are the most challenging aspects of your adventurous lifestyle? 

I'm not sure our lifestyle is really adventurous as much as it is different from how many people live.

The thing I find most challenging about living on a sailboat are things that scare the crap out of me.

Like when the boat is heeled over so much that I think we're going to tip over and drown even though I know that the laws of physics promise that we won't. Or sailing at night and panicking that we're going to hit something or run aground. Or bad weather. Or running out of chocolate chip cookies.

I've written a number of posts on my sailing fears such as holding my breath underwater, sailing in the dark and feeling tippy, not tipsy.


3 - How do you fund your sailing and travels, and what advice would you give to others wanting to do the same? 

This is probably the #1 question people who are considering becoming full-time cruisers want to know - how do you afford it? For us, it's a combination of having saved up and living frugally. I was lucky enough to have been made redundant from my job in New Zealand and was given a lovely parting gift in the form of a check. That chunk of change pushed us to go for it now, rather than wait until normal retirement age. We moved onto our 26' sailboat in New Zealand for a season and decided to make the cruising lifestyle a permanent one.

Both of us have worked on and off since then to top up the cruising kitty, but our plan is to try to cruise as long as we can off of our savings and meager investments.
 
When we went to buy our next sailboat (Tickety Boo), we looked for an older one that we could afford and try to do as much work on her ourselves to save money.

We document how much we spend each month and things we do to live cheaply on this page.

I wouldn't even try to give advice to others on how to fund their sailing and travels. There's no one right answer and no one answer that fits all. Everyone needs to look at their own financial situation, consider their appetite for risk (in terms of quitting the full-time rat race) and think about what their long-term priorities are.


4 - What is the one off-beaten path location you'd recommend that we visit? 

Ray, North Dakota. Or anyplace in North Dakota really. Scott is from North Dakota and, to be honest, I probably would have never visited the Peace Garden State if it wasn't for him. I joke that I would never move to North Dakota because it's too cold there. Okay, that's probably not a joke. But I have enjoyed visiting there.

When people think about visiting the States, they think of big cities (like New York, Las Vegas or LA) or well know tourist attractions (like the Grand Canyon or Disney World). They don't always visit the heartland of America - places like Ray, North Dakota (population 729), where Scott's family is from and where he spent his early years.

If you happen to find yourself in North Dakota, be sure to make your way to the Northern Unit of the Badlands. The first time I ever went camping in my life was there. It rained 5" in one night and this is a state that gets less than 15" a year. I saw my first rattlesnake up close. I woke one morning to a bison snorting outside of our tent. And we saw about six 10-12 point mule deer bucks one night, followed by a dozen of them the next.


5 - If you have a book you re-read often, what is it? If not, what's your favorite book? 

It's kind of impossible to narrow down to just one book. I do find that the books that I have re-read are those I originally read  when I was younger which really made an impact on me, such as Frank Herbert's Dune, Isaac Asimov's Foundation series and C.S. Lewis' Narnia series. I definitely read them differently as an adult and take away new things from them. I've also re-read all of Octavia Butler's books multiple times, as well as Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. Iain Banks - let's put him on the list too (both mainstream and sci-fi). Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers' mysteries are always fun to re-read too. Okay, that's probably enough.


6 - What is the strangest thing you've eaten or drunk while traveling? 

Dracula's Blood in a tiny bar in Berlin. I don't think it was actual blood, but since I don't speak any German, I can't be sure.


7 - What do you enjoy most about blogging?

I enjoy three things about blogging: (1) documenting our adventures so that we have something to look back at when we're older; (2) using it as a creative outlet; and (3) "meeting" people virtually. I would have never met wonderful people like Viki if it hadn't been for blogging.

I've written a number of posts about blogging on topics such as monetizing your blog, the mistakes I made when I first set up this blog, what makes blog posts popular etc., which you can find on this page.


8 - When did your passion for sailing/traveling start and how did you make it a reality? 

I've always had a passion for travel. I remember reading a book as a little girl about children who lived in other countries. I thought it would be so neat to go visit those far away lands when I grew up. I was always fascinated by different peoples and their cultures (which probably explains why I studied anthropology) and see travel as a way to learn more about the incredible diversity of the human race.

As for sailing, I'm still waiting to develop a passion for it. I see sailing more as a means of travel, kind of like an RV on the water. I do love being on boats, watching dolphins frolic along the bow and sitting at anchor sipping on tropical cocktails while watching the sun go down, but getting excited about the technicalities of sailing and the thrill of racing on a sailboat kind of escapes me.

I've written a number of posts about how I ended up leaving corporate la-la land, getting rid of all of our stuff, moving on to a sailboat and turning our dream of living an alternative lifestyle on the water into reality including 10 Steps to Becoming a Full-Time Cruiser and It's Official - We're Full-Time Cruisers!


9 - What is one item you can't live without when you are sailing/traveling? 

A way to make coffee. A morning without coffee on our boat is a very unpleasant place to be. I drink two cups in the morning. Scott drinks coffee all day long. I can't imagine our life without coffee.


10 - Where are you from and what are some fantastic things to see in that part of the world? 

I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. To be honest, I haven't been back there in a zillion years, so I can't really recommend what you should see now. I do have fond memories of the world-class arts and culture on offer, the Metroparks system which provides green spaces throughout the greater Cleveland area and the zoo.

If you're from Cleveland or have visited there, what would you recommend visitors see?


11 - What's the biggest lesson you've learned from your travels? 

 Have an open mind and expect the unexpected.

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Now the rules state that I'm supposed to nominate 11 other bloggers for The Sunshine Blogger award. I'm a rule breaker, so I'm not going to do that. The biggest reason why is how can I possibly choose just 11 bloggers? There are so many fabulous blogs I follow that I would never be able to narrow down the list.

So, if you want to play along and answer these questions on your own blog, please go for it and let me know so I can check your blog post out.

If you're a rule follower, here are the official rules:

1 - Thank the person who nominated you. {Thanks Viki!}

2 - Answer the questions set by the person who nominated you. {Go ahead and use the questions above, but feel free to tweak them if you like. For example, replace "sailing" and "traveling" with "writing" or whatever else you have a passion for.}

3 - Nominate 11 other people and given them 11 questions to answer. {Oops, broke that rule.}

4 - Notify your nominees. {If you decide to participate, consider yourself nominated.}

5 - List the rules and display the badge in your post. {It's a nice badge. Well done whoever designed it.}


What about you? Care to answer any of the questions above in the comments?

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Flashback Friday | On Sausages, Chemical Packets & Generosity

Today is Flashback Friday. The idea is to republish an old post of yours that maybe didn't get enough attention, or that you're really proud of, or you think is still relevant etc. We started this blog three years ago and have lots more followers now then we did back then (thanks guys!) so many folks may not have seen some of our earlier blog posts. 

We're currently in the process of getting ready to set sail for the Bahamas for the season and I've been putting together a list of what provisions we'll need. Food is super expensive in the Bahamas (understandably as most things have to be shipped over), so we're going to try to bring as much as we can with us. 

As I was trying to figure out exactly how many cans of tomatoes we need to bring with us, I stumbled across this old post that I wrote when we were cruising in New Zealand. It's got a recipe for one of our favorite meals - bangers and mash. Just take some sausages covered in chemical-laden gravy and serve it on equally chemical-laden instant mashed potatoes and you're in heaven.

{This post was originally published in May 2014. You can find it here.}

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Friday & Saturday, 28-29 March 2014

Sausages, chemical packets and generosity. Three things you probably never thought you would see stringed together in the title of a blog post. But they basically sum up our time in Waiheke Island, so there you go.

After anchoring in Man O'War Bay on the eastern side of Waiheke the night before, we headed over to Rocky Bay on the southern side to do a walk in the regional park there. {There will be one of my usual rambling "going for a walk" photo posts coming up. You'll want to check it out if you're into zombie wallabies.} Rocky Bay is a bit exposed and was getting roly-poly so we shifted over to Awaawaroa Bay for the night. The next day, we were back at Rocky Bay for another walk and one of our dinghy misadventures.

Next it was off to Putiki Bay to re-provision at the Countdown in Ostend, where we ran into our former boat neighbor at Westhaven Marina. We've run into him several times this summer and love chatting with him. He is retired and spends a lot of time single-handing his boat around the Hauraki Gulf. And this is where the generosity comes in. Not only does he have every imaginable bit and bob squirreled away on his boat which he'll loan you, he also offered to let me crash on his boat when he heard I was going to need a place to stay in between selling the boat and heading back to the States to buy the next one.

So generous, so sweet! We don't know him that well, yet he was telling us where he keeps the key and where the blankets are stored. You keep hearing stories about the generosity and kindness of sailors and its true. Whether it is having someone give you heaps of scallops or the offer of a place to stay. Lovely. {Not to worry, we didn't take him up on his offer and have something else sorted out for accommodation.}

Well, now on to the other two words...sausages and chemical packets. If that sounds appetizing to you, here is a simple recipe so you can recreate this delicious meal on your boat.

Recipe: Chemical Smothered Sausages & Potatoes
 
Step 1 - Mill around the grocery store saying to each other, "I don't know, what do you think we should have for dinner?" Say this back and forth to each other at least 13 times until finally someone says, "Hey, why don't we have bangers and mash?" {Translation tip: "bangers" mean "sausages" in Americano}

Step 2 - Go over to the meat department and hem and haw over the price of sausages. The cheapest ones are going for NZ$7.49 and it seems like a lot of money just to satisfy your need to eat dead animals. To be fair, there are cheaper ones, but they seem contain more fillers than dead animals in them.

Step 3 - Roam around the store and try to think of something else to make which: (a) is cheaper than sausages; (b) takes into account the cooking facilities aboard your boat and (c) involves dead animals.

Step 4 - Give up and put a packet of lamb sausages in your basket.

Step 5 - Try to figure out how to make mash to go with your bangers. Buying potatoes, boiling them and mashing them seems way too hard. Consider buying a packet of instant mashed potatoes, but decide that would be a step too far. It is tricky balance between not wanting to put any effort into cooking a meal and not wanting to feel like a complete failure by using ready-made products.

Step 6 - Remember that you have a can of potatoes on the boat. Decide to fry them up with some onions in lieu of mash. Problem solved. Overall, this will probably take as much time as making mashed potatoes, but opening a can seems so much easier than peeling a potato.

Step 7 - Talk about how gravy makes everything taste better. But of course, who wants to make their own. Remember, you can't even be bothered to make mashed potatoes! So this is where the chemical packets come in. The grocery store has a wide selection of packets and jars of chemical powder that magically turn into gravy with the addition of water. Brilliant. Buy a packet, being careful not to look to closely at the ingredients list.

Step 8 - Lug your groceries back to the dinghy, head back to the boat and move to a new anchorage on Motutapu Island for the night. Drop the hook. Stare at each other for at least 45 minutes until someone breaks down and agrees to make dinner. It was me.

Step 9 - One of you reclines on the settee and offers really "helpful" advice on how to make chemical smothered sausages and potatoes and then claims that they made dinner. That would be Scott.

Step 10 - Eat. Enjoy. Digest.

Overall

Total nautical miles =30
Number of dinghy misadventures = 1
Number of chemical packets consumed = 1
Cost of chemical packet = NZ$0.89
Cost of lamb sausages = NZ$7.49
Number of happy people after eating sausages & chemicals = 2

What's your favorite comfort food? Do you like bangers and mash?

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Wordless Wednesday | Science Experiments On Board

Wordless Wednesday is supposed to be about posting a photo(s) without any words. But, I'm a rule breaker, so here are a few words:


1 - We're replacing the seals around our Lewmar portlights to try to stop the leaking.

2 - Scott wanted to try to get the old sealant off of the original seals so that we could reuse them rather than buying new ones. 

3 - He asked me if I had a pot he could use for his little science experiment. Hmm...boiling gross rubber seals with chemicals encrusted on them in our cooking pots? No, I don't think so.

4 - He went with Plan B - using a disposable pie tin.
 

What words does this picture(s) bring to your mind when you look at it?

For more Wordless Wednesday fun, click here. 

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Yikes, How Did This Happen? | Hero Lost Cover Reveal

Well, this is scary. Somehow the short story I entered into the Insecure Writer's Support Group (IWSG) anthology contest got picked by the judges. Yikes!

That means that my story is going to be published in early May by Dancing Lemur Press. And not published like the kind of books I used to "publish" as a child which were made out of construction paper and crayons and held together with ribbon, but like real publishing. You know, the kind of book you can buy on Amazon.

I have to say that I'm freaking out a little bit. After all, it's the very first story that I've ever written.

Sure, I write random nonsense on this blog all the time and I've been working on a cozy murder mystery for ages, but I've never typed "THE END" at the bottom of a page and submitted it to be judged, let alone have it be published for all of the world to read. Yes, I know the whole world isn't going to read it, but a few people might. {Gulp}

Many, many thanks to everyone who supported and encouraged me including members of the IWSG community, my family and my wonderful beta readers - Liesbet of Roaming About and fellow IWSG member, Melissa from Little Cunning Plan and Lucy from The Larks of Independence. And many, many thanks to all of you who read this blog. It's due to your kind comments and feedback that I've had the courage to take a stab at writing real stuff and not just silly blog posts.

My co-authors are amazingly talented people and I'm honored to have been selected alongside of them. I'll introduce them to you over the next few months.

In the meantime, this is what the cover is going to look like - pretty cool, huh?

Hero Lost
Mysteries of  Death and Life

An Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology

Can a lost hero find redemption? 

What if Death himself wanted to die? Can deliverance be found on a bloody battlefield? Could the gift of silvering become a prison for those who possessed it? Will an ancient warrior be forever the caretaker of a house of mystery?

Delving into the depths of the tortured hero, twelve authors explore the realms of fantasy in this enthralling and thought-provoking collection. Featuring the talents of Jen Chandler, L. Nahay, Renee Cheung, Roland Yeomans, Elizabeth Seckman, Olga Godim, Yvonne Ventresca, Ellen Jacobson, Sean McLachlan, Erika Beebe, Tyrean Martinson, and Sarah Foster.

Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these twelve tales will take you into the heart of heroes who have fallen from grace. Join the journey and discover a hero’s redemption!
 
Release date: May 2, 2017

Fantasy (FIC009000) Freedom Fox Press
Print ISBN 9781939844361 eBook ISBN 9781939844378

Check out these other cover reveal blog posts by my co-authors and others:

Roland Yeomans | Don't You Hate Cover Reveals? IWSG Anthology Cover Reveal
Sarah Foster | Hero Lost Cover Reveal!! 
Jen Chandler | Drum Roll Please
Renee Cheung | The IWSG Anthology Cover Reveal
Yvonne Ventresca | Cover Reveal for Hero Lost 
Erika Beebe | Reflection on a Query Letter Workshop 
L. Diane Wolfe | Hero Lost: Mysteries of Death and Life & The Remnant Book Tour 
Alex J Cavanaugh | Hero Lost Anthology & More

Have you ever tried something new and put yourself out there to be judged by others? Have you ever had anything published?

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Back From The Brink | Hydrolocking Our Thornycroft Engine

There are certain things you never want to hear. Like when you're wiping crumbs off of your shirt and someone shrieks:

"Who ate the last chocolate chip cookie?"

Or when you hear your mother scream up the stairs using your full name:

"Mary Jane Thomas, get down here right this minute and explain the bruise on your little brother's forehead!"

Or when you start the engine on your sailboat and hear:

"Ka-thunk."

As soon as you hear that sound you feel sick to your stomach. That's because it's the unmistakable sound that occurs when your engine seizes. That can result when you hydrolock your engine. I don't know much about boats, but I do know one thing - hydrolocking your engine is never a good thing.

If you don't know much about boats, hydrolocking your engine means that water has gotten into your engine. If you want to get technical about it, water gets into the cylinders which causes your pistons to not be able to complete their rotation. This causes your engine to stop. It can also cause significant damage such as bent or broken rods, blown head gasket, cracked cylinders or cracked block. That kind of thing.

For those of you who aren't into the technical detail, I'll translate. It means that everything is [insert your favorite naughty word].

After your stomach starts to settle down a bit and you've had a very large gin and tonic to calm your nerves, you start to assess the damage this is going to do to your savings account. We're talking big numbers here, at least they're big numbers to us. Potentially something in the order of $10,000. 

Actually, we're probably talking something like $10,250. The extra $250 is for additional gin and chocolate chip cookies. These will be required if you have to repower your engine.

"Repower" sounds innocuous enough. Kind of like eating an energy bar when your stomach starts growling.

What it really means is that you have to buy a new engine. Not only is that expensive, it would be a huge setback to us in terms of our cruising plans.

Besides, I've kind of grown fond of our Thornycroft engine. Sure, he's a bit rough around the edges and snarls at you when you change his glow plugs, but he's got an eccentric quality to him that's kind of endearing.

[Note: Scott just read this and asked me why our engine is a boy. I told him it's because Thorny smells bad.]

Thorny, our eccentric British engine.

Because we didn't have our engine in gear at the time, we had a small glimmer of hope that there might not have been any damage and that Thorny would continue to be part of our crew.

Turns out that we were lucky, which is why this blog post is entitled "Back from the Brink" and not "Goodbye, Savings Account."

Some of you nerdy boatie people are dying to know how the whole hydrolocking thing happened. You're weird, by the way. Turns out I'm kind of weird too because I'm writing blog posts about hydrolocking engines. How did that happen?

It was our exhaust elbow. It gave up on life and water backed into the engine. Fortunately, a spare exhaust elbow, gasket and end cap had just arrived from the UK the day before, so we were able to change it out.

Brand new exhaust elbow imported from England.

We administered TLC to Thorny by removing the glow plugs and draining the water from the cylinders. Then we ended up changing the oil ten times. Luckily, there was only a bit of water in the oil. Thorny really didn't like all of the oil changes. It's kind of like forcing a five year old boy to take ten baths in a row after he's been playing in the mud all day long. There's a lot of whining and screaming going on.

Finally, we got the oil looking the way oil should look - brown, somewhat clear and quickly turning to black. Not the unpleasant gray quality it had when there was water in it.

After that ordeal, here's the sound you do want to hear as Thorny starts up:

"Purr."

We definitely hope we dodged a big bullet here and that Thorny continues to purr when we head off to the Bahamas.

Have you ever hear a noise that made you feel sick to your stomach? What bullets have you dodged?

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Wordless Wednesday | Manatees, Warm Water & Electricity

Wordless Wednesday is supposed to be about posting a photo(s) without any words. But, I'm a rule breaker, so here are a few words:


1 - Tampa Electric discharges warm water into a canal outside of their power plant at Apollo Beach, Florida.

2 - Manatees love warm water and come hang out here when the water in Tampa Bay is too cold. 

3 - There's a free viewing center where you can watch tons of manatees swimming about.

4 - Manatees come into our marina occasionally. There was a huge one next to our boat the other day. Such gentle giants.
 

What words does this picture(s) bring to your mind when you look at it?

For more Wordless Wednesday fun, click here. 

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