Victory!

Finally, I’ve been able to sleep this week. Or when I didn’t, it wasn’t because of noisy birds. The sparrow trap did its job. I’m not sure if we caught Mr. Noisy or not, but he stopped hanging out in the space between our house and the neighbors once we set it out–mainly  because he was hitting on the chicks in the trap. I thought we got him Wednesday, but my husband said the male in the trap didn’t sound like Mr. Noisy. After a few days of that, we stopped putting the trap out, and he seems to have stayed away. I think I heard him a street over while walking the dog–fine with me!

smithsmonthly20What I’ve been reading: Smith’s Monthly #20 by Dean Wesley Smith. This was a short one for me, as the novel in it was one I’d already read in serial form, so I skipped it. But the stories were good as always. It amazes me how he writes this much every month, usually all the stories to fill the magazine plus a novel. And that’s usually not all he writes. He does this on top of being the CFO of a publishing company and owning that plus three retail stores. All this at the age most people think of retirement! His blog is a great learning resource for any writer.

ROW80Logo175ROW80 Update: I’ve had a couple other victories–one is that Time’s Dilemma released this week! If you’ve thought about giving the Saturn Society a try, this is a great one to start with. My publisher decided to call it Book 3, because some of the events overlap with Book 2 and Time’s Best Friend, which they are now calling Book 4, so I guess that makes sense. But this one is not only standalone, it’s about 1/3 the length of the other Saturn Society novels, so not as big a time commitment to try it out. It’s on sale at all retailers for $0.99 through July 7th, and you can get it for $1.00 on Smashwords throughout July. More info and buy links are here.

My other victory is that I got more done on my next WIP than I expected–definitely a win! Which brings us to ROW80. Monday begins Round 3. My primary goal for that is to finish the rough draft of this WIP, which will be Saturn Society Book 5 and returns to Tony and Violet, the characters featured in Book 1 and 2. I have Book 5 about half-written, but finishing will be no easy task, as what I have is a mess. So I’m going back through and fixing what’s there. I’ve gone through 11 scenes so far, and would like to go through another ten this week (yes, this is going to be another long one).

What about you–have you had any victories lately, whether big or small? What have you been reading? If you’re doing ROW80, what are your main goals for the Round? Or heck, even if you’re not participating, what kind of goals are you working toward, whether writing-related or not? Please share in the comments–I’d love to hear from you!

Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.

We Interrupt this Week for a Special Announcement!

Time’s Dilemma is now available in ebook form at all the major retailers!

Did you enjoy Time’s Fugitive, and want to get to know Florie better? What about that strange, good-looking guy who showed up at her House just as all the craziness was going down? Or maybe you enjoyed Time’s Best Friend, and want to know more about what happened in 1939? Well, wonder no more–it’s all here!

And for those who haven’t yet read the other Saturn Society books, this one is a great place to start. My publisher decided to label it Book Three of the series, but it can be read and enjoyed as a standalone story. It’s also shorter than the other books, so it’s a great intro to the Society that won’t require a big investment in your time.

Want to know more? Just click Buy Now below. Time’s Dilemma is available for 99 cents for a limited time, to grab your copy soon!

Buy Now

Buy This Book Online

Find A Local Bookstore

,

Time’s Dilemma

A Saturn Society Short Novel

Never Tell

Time traveler Florie LeBeau follows the laws of the Saturn Society that protect people with her gift, but the handsome stranger who arrives at her Cumberland Gap farmhouse from the eighteenth century defies every one. From his very presence, two hundred years past his time, to the things he knows about her, everything about Zeke Allen breaks the rules–the rules of time travel, and the rules protecting Florie’s heart.

Never Change the Past

Florence might not know Zeke Allen, but he knows her… loves her… and knows she’ll play a key part in the war that will soon involve her United States. But her four-years-older self swore him to secrecy, for Zeke revealing his knowledge could change things—with devastating consequences. 

And Never, Ever Fall in Love

Though drawn to the captivating frontiersman, Florie denies her longing for him, as the Society forbids involvement with those from other times. But Zeke pushes her boundaries, determined to win her love, for he must ensure her visit to his time four years hence, or else it could cost her country their war, Florie her future, and both of their hearts.

Gain entry into the Saturn Society and meet the men and women who can cross time itself to follow their hearts into thrilling adventure and sensual romance today!

 

Available in ebook at major retailers – print coming soon!

This Means War

This has been a good week for me, but a tired one. Not because I’ve had more to do than usual, but because I’ve not gotten enough sleep. And the number one thing to do to treat Adrenal Fatigue is–duh!–get a decent amount of sleep. This is tougher for us than for people with normal, healthy adrenal function, because part of our problem is that we don’t make enough cortisol–and what we do get, comes later in the day than for most people.

That means we’re really, really not morning people. Going to bed early doesn’t help, because we can’t go to sleep early. I also can’t take naps.

So earlier this spring, when the sparrows started congregating near my bedroom window, it became a problem when they’d wake me up at the crack of dawn.

I put some bird spikes on the wires close to the house, and that kept them off of those. But they were still partying in the tree. So I put a plastic owl up beside the bushes beneath my window, and that scared them all away.

Well,  all except for one tenacious, male sparrow. Of course, this little cretin has the loudest, most obnoxious chirp of them all. And once he sits somewhere and gets going, he Never. Shuts. Up.

He even wakes my husband up. “God, I’m going to shoot that thing,” DH said after a week of this. He borrowed a pellet gun from a friend and almost got him once, but otherwise, Mr. Noisy has been elusive.

I tried a different route: a sparrow trap. I found this link with instructions on how to make my own. The hardware mesh cost me about $10 – much less than buying one!

I also read up on sparrows. Turns out gardeners and birders alike really hate these little pests. The House Sparrow (a.k.a. HOSP) is a non-native, invasive species that competes with native bluebirds and purple martins for nest space. Not only are bluebirds and martins appealing to the birders, gardeners love them because they are insectivores.

A Bird Party! All sparrows welcome.

A Bird Party! All sparrows welcome.

Sparrows, OTOH, eat stuff from gardens. And they are the Russian Mafia of birds: if someone’s living in a house they want, they’ll take it by whatever means necessary. They don’t just run off the other birds, they kill them and destroy their eggs.

Which explains why I never see them in my neighborhood, even though they’re indigenous to this area. The place is overrun with sparrows. Both the federal government and all 50 states consider sparrows a nuisance animal (along with pigeons, starlings, coyotes, feral hogs, and Asian carp).

I made my trap and set it out last night with some nice, fluffy bread and a cup of water. In the morning, there were five sparrows inside! Unfortunately, not Mr. Noisy. But now we’re at war. Between my trap and DH’s pellet gun, we should be able to get some decent sleep soon.

What I’ve been reading: I beta-read a science fiction novel for a writer friend and enjoyed it very much. I’ll share more about it once it’s released.

ROW80Logo175ROW80 Update: My main goal for this week was to begin working on my next WIP, which is already half-written, but is a mess. I’ve gone through and fixed three scenes, which was what I hoped to get done. This week, I want to go through five. ROW80 Round Two ended this past Thursday, so it’s also time for a recap on quarterly goals.

My main objective was to do everything I needed to get Time’s Dilemma ready for publication. It releases Tuesday and is already up for preorder, so that’s a goal accomplished! I also wanted to start work on the next WIP, that’s done too (barely).

ROW80 Round Three officially starts on July 4th, so I’ll be back on the 3rd with Third Quarter goals.

What about you–what problem have you tackled lately? Did you know those cute, little sparrows were an introduced species, and a nuisance? How are you doing on whatever goals you might have, whether writing or otherwise? Please share in the comments–I’d love to hear from you!

Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.

Father’s Day Goodies

This has been one of those weeks where I don’t feel like I’ve done much. A life roll hit in my family last Sunday, and took up way too much headspace. It’s not really worth discussing further here, other than to say that everyone’s OK.

One thing the life roll affected was my family’s plan for a Father’s Day cookout. My brother was going to host it, but we decided to not worry about it. Things settled down later in the week, and I decided I didn’t want to skip it, but my brother’s going through a life roll of his own and couldn’t pull it together this quickly. So I volunteered. After all, I want to see my dad on Father’s Day, and yesterday was my mom’s birthday. Don’t want to skip that, either. Thanks to Flylady’s system, I didn’t have much cleaning to do other than her weekly “home blessing,” which I do on Saturday anyway. I made a grocery run yesterday, and everything’s set.

One thing I bought and made was beef rollups. These are a great appetizer to share, and go over well at any kind of carry-in function. They also are a family staple, ever since Grandma Powell used to make them every Christmas eve. My husband apologized last night for already breaking into them. I said that’s OK, since they’re for Father’s Day, and he’s a dad. 🙂 Best of all, they’re super easy to make! Here’s how:

The Best Beef Rollups

  • 1 8-oz. package of cream cheese
  • 3 2-oz. packages of Carl Buddig brand smoked, chipped beef
  • 1 bunch of green onions

Soften the cream cheese. I never remember to put mine out early, so I just put it into the mixing bowl and put in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Chop up onion tops, then mix into the cream cheese. Spread in a line across each piece of beef, fold, and roll up the beef. Chill for a couple of hours until the cheese firms up. Makes 25-30 rollups.

Worth noting is that taking a shortcut and using onion or chive flavored cream cheese isn’t as good, nor are they if you use anything besides Buddig’s beef. Now to see how many more my husband has scarfed… 🙂

What I’ve been reading: I’m currently beta-reading a science fiction novella. I’ll discuss it when it’s finished and released.

ROW80Logo175ROW80 Update: I didn’t do much with my writing this week, but luckily my publisher did. Time’s Dilemma is now available for preorder! It will release on June 28 for a limited-time special price of $0.99. I also still have some ARCs available to anyone willing to give it an honest review. Contact me here, and let me know what format you prefer, if you’d like one! I think this is the last week of ROW80 Round 2, and since my book is finally coming out, my primary goal is met. For next week, I want to dig into my next WIP that’s half-finished, evaluate what’s there, and come up with a rough outline of the rest.

What about you–is there a dish in your family that no one can resist? Have you ever tried anything like the beef rollups I described (I’m sure that recipe is far from unique)? How are you doing on whatever goals you may be working toward, whether writing-related or otherwise? Please share in the comments–I’d love to hear from you!

Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.

When the Work Pays Off

There was an opportunity for some Dog Shaming this week.

There was an opportunity for some Dog Shaming this week.

I didn’t do a whole lot this week besides the usual work and home stuff, and finished looking over my galleys for Time’s Dilemma. It should come out next week, and it’s great to see the work finally pay off.

My husband got a major payoff this week, too. For the past four years, he’s been working on a total restoration of the ’79 TransAm he bought right out of high school. As in, he took every single bolt off that car, completely rebuilt the engine (and modified it quite a bit), and restored and repainted the entire body. The only thing he didn’t touch was the upholstery, which is original but still in amazingly good shape.

Pontiac NationalsThis weekend he went to the Pontiac Nationals in Bowling Green, KY and raced it for the first time. He knew there would be a lot of tuning to do and possibly more work in tweaking things. He did do a bit of that, and finished in time for the main racing events on Saturday. He didn’t expect to make the finals, even though he knew his car was good. He just didn’t know how good, or how well he knew the car (which is really key). He didn’t just make the finals–he won runner up in his class! So proud of him. Four years of work finally paid off, and he had a great time too.

Restoring a car as a hobby isn’t unlike writing. It takes many hours of work that may never pay off. I’m fortunate in that I’ve completed now eight novels, and four are published, soon to be five, which is what I worked toward this week. It’s a great feeling. Even though Time’s Dilemma is 1/3 the length of my other Saturn Society novels, it was still a lot of work. Here’s the scoop:

Buy Now

Buy This Book Online

Find A Local Bookstore

,

Time’s Dilemma

A Saturn Society Short Novel

Never Tell

Time traveler Florie LeBeau follows the laws of the Saturn Society that protect people with her gift, but the handsome stranger who arrives at her Cumberland Gap farmhouse from the eighteenth century defies every one. From his very presence, two hundred years past his time, to the things he knows about her, everything about Zeke Allen breaks the rules–the rules of time travel, and the rules protecting Florie’s heart.

Never Change the Past

Florence might not know Zeke Allen, but he knows her… loves her… and knows she’ll play a key part in the war that will soon involve her United States. But her four-years-older self swore him to secrecy, for Zeke revealing his knowledge could change things—with devastating consequences. 

And Never, Ever Fall in Love

Though drawn to the captivating frontiersman, Florie denies her longing for him, as the Society forbids involvement with those from other times. But Zeke pushes her boundaries, determined to win her love, for he must ensure her visit to his time four years hence, or else it could cost her country their war, Florie her future, and both of their hearts.

Gain entry into the Saturn Society and meet the men and women who can cross time itself to follow their hearts into thrilling adventure and sensual romance today!

 

Available in ebook at major retailers – print coming soon!

Want a free copy in advance? My publisher has given me ten ebooks to send out to anyone who agrees to post an honest review on release (I’ll email you when that time comes). And yes, by honest, I mean it’s totally OK to say this book sucked like bucket of ticks if that’s your honest opinion (but hopefully you won’t think that). Just Contact Me and let me know whether you’d like a Kindle book, or an epub that can be read on Nook, Apple devices, and most other e-readers.

sm19What I’ve been reading: Smith’s Monthly #19 by Dean Wesley Smith. Now I’m only a year behind in these LOL. The novel in this issue is Heaven Painted as a Free Meal, a Ghost of a Chance story. I love these, about an organization of ghosts who help people and occasionally save the world. Some really unique worldbuilding, how the ghost world works in these, like the ghosts still eat, sleep, and do other life-like things but with “ghost” copies that aren’t missed by the living. And there is a lot of good humor in them, and some romance. Definitely recommended if you enjoy paranormal!

ROW80Logo175ROW80 Update: My main goal was to complete my galleys for Time’s Dilemma, and that’s done. I also wanted to finish my re-read of what I have so far on the next book–finished that last night. This week’s goal is to outline the rest of the next book, since what I have needs a lot of work.

What about you–what have you put a lot of work into recently, and have you seen results? Have you read any good books lately? How are you doing on whatever goals you may have, whether writing or otherwise? Please share in the comments–I’d love to hear from you!

Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.