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I’m slowly starting to get back into the swing of things online again. It’s a slow process though let me tell you. Anyway, I was going through some backlinks here and noticed that there was one from Alison Kent’s blog to a post I did way back in June. Naturally, I had to check it out and since it’s been so long I figured I’d just add my own comments here. First the links. She asks Is this True? in reaction to where I’d said author’s backlists/booklists pages instead of their entire sites were more important to readers than their entire site, at least initially.Read More →

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I’m scheduled for Romancing the Blog next Tuesday and I have no idea what to post. Normally by this time I’d have too many to choose from because I tend to stockpile ideas but what with the way the last month or so has gone. No such luck. So I’m sitting here this afternoon staring at the computer, out the window, bloghopping and still coming up dry. It’s actually more a matter of too many ideas, none of which truly appeal to me at the moment. I mean how many times can one comment on the latest controversy of the moment? For that matter, what isRead More →

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If that sounds a little uncertain, it’s because I’d intended to be back online right after the Fourth of July but didn’t quite make it, so I’m wondering what will happen this time to interfere. Hopefully nothing. ;p Seriously, though, after my father passed away in June, which hit me a lot harder than I’d expected it to, I decided to take a break from blogging until at least after the Fourth and just recharge my mental batteries. Part of that was simply from exhaustion on all levels. Then right about the time I was gearing up to write and post something, my sister decided itRead More →

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The funeral for my father was on Wednesday and I think I’m starting to get caught up on rest. Not finished yet, mind you, but getting there. I had intended to get online Thursday and start catching up with everyone but instead I basically vegetated in front of a video game. I’d convinced my sister to go on home to Missouri the day after the funeral instead of trying to do the last little bit of business related to everything. I figured we were all too exhausted and she needed to get our mother home for some rest anyway. They’d been here for most of the last two weeks straightRead More →

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My father passed away late last night. Not the best Father’s Day news but in one sense I’m glad it didn’t happen today and that he’s finally at peace. And it did happen peacefully with my mother, sister, myself and Kent (my ex who’s been like a son to my parents) at his side at the nursing facility. Daddy had been moved there on Friday after yet another quick trip to the hospital where it was decided by all that it was time to place him on palliative care, i.e. essentially no longer trying to save him but simply making him comfortable, because the doctors feltRead More →

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My father is back in the hospital. He’s currently in intensive care with pneumonia but seems to be responding to the treatment fairly well. It’s still rather touch and go at the moment. Given his age (he just turned 89 in May) and status with the advanced dementia, though, we’re prepared for it to go either way at this point. So far, none of his major organs have failed so that’s a plus in his favor. That’s not what I feel the need to vent about today. Not precisely. But it does lead up to it. As part of the treatment for the pneumonia, the hospitalist put himRead More →

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Holly posted something on Book Binge that caught my interest and as I got ready to comment there, I realized that there was no way I could without getting totally carried away, so I’m posting my response. Hopefully, this is a good thing. Anyway, it’s the first part of her post that fascinated me: I’m just curious..how many of you keep up with the happenings at places like RWA, AAR, RTB, Avon Authors and etc? Personally? I don’t visit them at all. Or rarely, I suppose. If I’m directed there, sure, I’ll check it out, but I don’t make a habit of it. As a reader, I’m much moreRead More →

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Readers don’t care about author’s sites. They care about author’s booklists. Yeah, that’s what I said. And it’s what I believe. Well, okay, I, personally, care more about their booklists than the rest of their sites. First, last and always.Read More →

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Anyway, first to catch up on some other news and then back to business, I took the day off yesterday to rest up after my mother and sister left to go back to Missouri. My father had surgery on Friday to put a feeding tube in and he’s doing really well at present but things were truly touch and go the first part of last week. He’s being released from the hospital today and going back to the nursing home. Hopefully, now that he’s getting the nutrition he needs, maybe the rehab can actually do some good.Read More →

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I just bought a vampire romance from Samhain. Yeah, I know. I’m supposed to hate them. Thing is, I simply love the promo on this book, I weakened: Explosions, car wrecks, assassins, escaped murderers, and a kidnapping…arranged marriages can really take their toll on a vampire. First installment in The Guardians’ League series (stand-alone novels with shared characters that may be read in any order but work best in the correct order). Witness to a brutal murder, Sian Lazuro didn’t count on the killer escaping moments after his conviction. Three years later, she’s learned the hard way there’s only one person she can trust—herself. WhenRead More →

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Well, not me precisely, but I’m sure someone somewhere was thinking about them even if they didn’t say anything. Er, anyhoo, as a way to highlight some good for once, I noticed a great post by Alexis Fleming over on the Samhain Weblog about how authors can respond to reviews and turn lemons into lemonade. Nice stuff. Way to go, Alexis.Read More →

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A while ago I got into a definitely frenzy because I lost a paperback. It wasn’t even a particular favorite. It was simply one I knew I had and suddenly couldn’t locate. It was the third and final book in a trilogy that I had this urge to reread. I couldn’t find it and I hunted this house over trying, let me tell you. The absolute agony. Not mine. Mark’s and Amy’s. Because I drove them nuts there for a day or so accusing them of somehow losing said book within their possessions. Then I forgot about it for another while until I was lyingRead More →

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Really. I’ve just been taking a little vacation from blogging. Mainly just lurking around and only commenting a little here and there as the mood struck. Amazingly it hasn’t struck very often. I haven’t been in a controversy mood, I guess. ;p  In the last few days, though, I’ve been doing some background maintenance on the blog here in preparation for getting back into the swing of things. I think. I did at one point give serious consideration to stopping blogging altogether. Okay, maybe not so seriously but it did cross my mind at least once. Maybe. I mean, I’m not ever going to stop reading soRead More →

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Physical, mental and emotional, I suppose. We admitted my father into nursing facility at least temporarily yesterday and I came home and simply went to bed. Not that I actually slept right away. More just sort of stared at the television and/or read for several hours until my brain and body started working again. Physically, he’s doing better. At least his fever is down but he was still sleeping a lot before he left the hospital and still seems to be having a lot of problems eating. I finally decided that before I attempted to bring him back home, he needed some rehab to figure outRead More →

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I actually wrote this about a month ago after yet another online brouhaha but never got around to posting it. It doesn’t really matter which one since I may start posting this monthly and I’m willing to bet there will always be a recent “event” in mind every time. Anyway, it got me to thinking about creating a list of suggestions for dealing with those bothersome reviews many seem to get into such a dither about. Basically, these are what I’d do if I ran across one of them. Take them to heart or not. If I came across book review/commentary that bothered me becauseRead More →