Horse time

Spring is here, or at least trying to be here. Yesterday was a gorgeous day, and I spent it with my Buddy. I found out later that the world seemed to be falling apart while I was offline, but I can't do anything about it, so I'll go on living my life and enjoying the blessings God gave me.

I gave Buddy the winter off this year. I'd go out to check on him and give him treats and supplements regularly, but mostly let him be a pasture pet. He has good care where he's boarded--good hay and water and a big pasture with other geldings. I don't have to worry. I did get a call once that he had gotten out into a different pen somehow a couple of months ago, but he wasn't injured. Buddy is a pretty durable little guy (if 15 hands can be considered "little" when it's pretty average). He's built like a draft horse but without the feathers (thick fetlock hair) common to draft breeds.

The temps hit 80 F yesterday (but winter tries to come back this week)! I had to take advantage of it. The breeze wasn't an issue at that temp and in fact made the conditions perfect. I thought the barn would be packed, but that wasn't the case. It was like any summer day, a few people spending time with their horses. So, not crowded and somewhat quiet.

I figured it was time to get back on Buddy and get our first ride in after 6-7 months off. He's always been one that I could give him time off (winter) and get right back on where we left off. The only issue is his attitude on any given day, and that's not just time off. It's a Buddy issue. I'm learning that it's much worse when he has a heavy parasite load and now know that his extraordinary spookiness is one of the first signs, aside from the runny poops that come at a later point if I don't deworm him sufficiently.

This time getting back to riding was no different than any other year. He's eleven years old now and we've been together for eight and a half, so we know each other pretty well. He's my God-given life-saver. I bought him when my life was at a bad point with my health issues getting me down. He's a special case horse in personality that I knew would be ruined by most people and he's not registered and not very athletic, which means he'd have no future as a show horse. It was that sense of responsibility to make sure he didn't end up with someone who wouldn't understand his personality or ruin him that kept me hanging on when I hit a low point. That he would have eventually ended up at a kill pen was my fear. He's difficult to deal with because of his normal quirkiness. He's not a dead-head, no matter what desensitization I do with him.

Anyway, that's my Buddy. He's always been a bit unusual, but I've had sensitive horses before, so I can deal with that. Most people can't.

He enjoyed the winter off and wasn't anxious to get back to work. He saw me bring out the saddle, and I swear if he could have rolled his eyes, he would have. The look on his face and in his body said it all--"Not that again." Fat boy needs exercise. He wasn't as fat as I'd feared, however. I could easily get our normal girth on him.

I had given him some calming supplement before I tacked up, along with Platinum's Bio-Sponge in a small amount of beet pulp, since he doesn't like the Bio-Sponge much. It's helped him. I've been giving that to him throughout this past winter every time I'm out. But I wanted to see where his mind was and, after tacking up, gave him some round pen time. He didn't do anything stupid, not even when the stirrups came loose and flapped against his sides. He was looking outside a lot, although with an ear on me, so he was paying attention. He remembered how to round pen and didn't whinny for anyone; that silence is always a good sign. After the manager told me he'd worked up the big arena, we went up there to ride. I led Buddy around it once as a precaution and he seemed calm, so I mounted.

At my age, I take precautions when I'm not sure what his mind is like, especially after so much time off. The warm weather while he still has a winter coat, the calming supplement, and my prep may not have been necessary, but I'm getting too old to take things for granted and know him too well. He was the quietest he's ever been, but he showed signs of his gut being healthy too (always watch the poops). Even when we stopped in the past, he would rarely stand still. Yesterday, we'd stop and he wouldn't move a hoof. We rode and his head was long and low, not a bit of discomfort or tension or worrying about his herd or much else around him. It was a great first ride. He did everything that we've always done, although was a bit stiff in his lateral work and back to his old crookedness, so I had to keep correcting his balance.

It didn't take much for him to sweat through his saddle pad, and we rode pretty lightly, partly because he already had a touch of sweat before I even tacked up. I had counted on that working to my advantage keeping him from wanting to move too much.

Afterwards, I tried to get some pics, but he wouldn't cooperate very well for a selfie--kept looking off at another horse. And I didn't realize until I was home that I had posed him on a hill with his rump higher with his tack on, so I scrapped a full pic in his tack and I'm sharing a pic after I untacked him.

I also gave him a haircut before we rode. His mane was getting long and that gets in the way while riding. I don't like long manes, so I gave him his usual trim. He always looks better trimmed up.

After the ride

We're back in the saddle, and I'm hoping the rest of the summer goes as well as this first ride. Last year was awful. He was flighty stupid and had runny manure, and I didn't know why. Then someone told me they had their horse scoped and discovered how bad the bots were. The dewormer her vet recommended did the trick for Buddy--Quest Plus--and he settled down and his manure returned to normal. I hope bots aren't as bad this year, but at least now I'll know to keep an eye out for the signs in him.

The upcoming week is going to be terrible weather again, so I don't know when we'll get to ride next, but at least we're at the tail end of winter. I look forward to more saddle time with my Buddy again. 🐴

Book 19 cover reveal

I've had to take a break from writing the last week. Something had to be done about the cover before I could go on.

Every cover in the Starfire Angels: Forgotten Worlds series has something from the main location or an event of that book. I use stock images, some with a lot of Photoshopping, like this Book 19 cover (two pictures, actually). I do this for several reasons but mostly I hate the search for an artist whose style would fit the book. I would only include characters if I could find a single artist to design all the books, but with a series stretched out over several years like this, it would be a risk. Getting on their schedules, working with them to get things just right, and hoping I don't lose them and have to start the search over again is more than I care to deal with. I don't have the time and energy to go through all that, and it is a LOT of work. So, I decided at the beginning that I would keep the covers generic/stock and add some touches where I thought it was necessary.

Doing this also means the characters are left to your imaginations and not ruined by an artist or my impressions. I did create the AI characters for fun, but if you don't want to see them, you have to go searching. They aren't always in your face on a cover. You can avoid having your imagination ruined if you want.

Book 19 is something different. I've mentioned how it's high fantasy in my space opera series, but without magic. I envisioned a medieval/renaissance European-ish setting. For this, I wanted something of a castle, but I couldn't find anything quite what I pictured for the castle in the story. I had to compromise on the cover art.

I found two different pictures and had to do a lot of Photoshopping. Fortunately, I have an artistic kid who advised me on colors. She approved of this after telling me what she thought would work for colors. She still doesn't like the depth of the blue sky, but she likes the other touches I added.

The two pictures (https://www.dreamstime.com/beautiful-gothic-medieval-arched-stone-window-magnificent-majestic-view-window-gorgeous-winter-mountain-landscape-alps-image203717885 and https://www.dreamstime.com/three-people-hiking-mountains-winter-landscape-deep-snow-clear-sunny-day-allgau-bavaria-germany-alps-image103810330) work pretty seamlessly together, after the color adjustments to the stonework and other touches to the two images so they didn't quite look like photographs but more like illustrations.

So, here it is, the cover of Book 19, which still leaves a lot to the imagination for the reader to complete. And, of course, I had to add the feathers.

Now that I have the cover, I can relax and finish the story without worrying whether the cover image will match what I write. It doesn't reveal any exact details that might contradict the story. I've adjusted some of the stories to match the image I had found for the covers. In this case, I created the cover to match the story. That's a big weight off my mind.

The only thing that might change is the cover blurb. It's pretty good, but I might reword it before it's final.

Thanks for reading!

New Starfire Angels: Forgotten Worlds series video trailer

Feel free to share the video from Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/931598269?share=copy.

Quick update

I had one of those problems with Book 19 where I get to a point that I realize something is wrong. I was already around 1/3 into the expected final word count. It took only a day or two for the ideas to clarify. I had been so intent on writing the story a certain way that I just ran with that, but I was running into deeper and deeper mud and finally had to stop and turn back. 

I realized that I had gone too fast, missed the scenery, and run off the road, to continue the analogy. In other words, the story was dull and missing something.

Fortunately, what I had written still had a lot of useful material. It provided some good ideas and also showed me some weaknesses. I had 17K words and didn't lose much of that with rewriting so far. I still have some material to rewrite, but it's better already with just a few changes and rearranging some of the early scenes. It definitely has more intrigue and action. Now, it's conforming to what I want from these stories--action and good pacing, not slow.

As I said in my previous post, this one drops Nya, L'Ni, and Zaer into a medieval fantasy setting, although without magic. High fantasy space opera! I'm hoping it works for readers. I've written fantasy before, but I much prefer science fiction. And while I don't like horror, I did my Starfire version of horror in Book 12, MESSAGES, with the derelict Urishan slave ship to do something different. I like the ability to try different forms of storytelling, even mixing genres. This series gives me a lot of freedom to experiment.

That's where I am now.

Thanks for reading.

Book 19 - incredible progress

I made myself wait to write this episode and was going to make it Book 20, but it couldn't wait. And now, I'm having way too much fun writing it. Book 19's working title is ALL THE KING'S MEN, and it is all because of the Feri I created for the series.

Soon after I came up with the name and look of L'Ni's people way back in writing Book 4, I knew I had the perfect alien species. Not only does the name play well with fury (FURIOUS and DRAGON AND FURY), but they look like space elves. I'm having fun with making the Inari and Feri played up a bit as fantasy creatures on a world with humans in a no-tech medieval setting (logical explanation for that amid the high-tech other worlds). I even have a creature that resembles a dragon that is native to the world on which this story takes place, and it existed before humans were transplanted there. There's no magic involved, however; it's all technology and Starfire.

This is going to be too much fun to write.

It has had it's own struggles already, but filling those plot holes was easy.

Plus, I have over 6K words already written in less than a week! (So far--that pace could change.)

I've said in the past that this series lets me write all the stories I could ever want to write but with a common setting and characters. The original Starfire Angels was science fiction with a veneer of YA paranormal. This series is space opera, but this episode has a veneer of high fantasy.

In the meantime, be sure to check out Books 1-16 available now. (Books 17 & 18 forthcoming this year)

T-minus 0.... GHOSTS has been published

It's done! GHOSTS is published.

I'm freaking out now because I'm sure I could find more to edit, but I'll always find something to tweak. At some point, you just have to say it's done. One can only do so much before over-editing takes away from the story, in which case it loses that unique voice.

This story definitely has it's own voice. It's an exploration of Seska's past and things that have been going on behind the scenes of the Paxon front of duty, honor, discipline, and strength. We all wear masks, but some wear several, as the special agents of SecurCom are taught to do. Seska was no different, but she had a special talent.

This is her story and the story of those she made disappear.

Everyone in the Paxon hierarchy wants to know what Special Agent Levat knows, but first they must wake her from her coma. When a SecurCom agent manages to rouse her enough to access her memories, she reveals a location not in any of their assignments. Perplexed by this, they decide to investigate. Others are watching, however, ready to act to protect the secrets locked in Agent Levat's mind.

When a message is received by the Cartegos requesting Ann's presence at Aurelia Station and suggesting that Seska is alive, Zaer changes their course. Knowing the station is run by a tenuous partnership of criminal organizations that hate Ethalians, a plan is formed to keep Ann safe while meeting with those who have information about Seska… 

But nothing ever goes as planned, especially since Paxon Central Command has posted a high bounty for Ann's capture that each of the partners of Aurelia wants for themselves.

-------------------------------------------

The book was just uploaded, so it will take some time to become available for purchase. I'll be sending out my newsletter with links and adding links to my website page for this book as they become available. The announcement email should go out sometime in the next few days, if the process is as quick as in the past. 

You can request to be added to the book announcement list by completing the contact form on my website with the type of emails you'd like to receive from me. For now, I only send out new book announcements.

Next up, I think I'm going to get edits on HOMECOMING done and set that up for pre-order. I don't foresee anything in writing Book 19 that might change it, although I could surprise myself. The series is pretty well established, but I always come up with something that surprises me in each book. If that happens, I'll fix it, but if I can get ahead enough to begin using pre-orders again, I might as well do that. I'm going to start editing ahead now and see how this goes for the rest of the series. It looks like these have been going 5 months between, so I'm estimating into August for a HOMECOMING release date.

Thanks for reading!

----------------------

Edit 3/21/24: Uh, oh! I did it again. Instead of editing Book 17, I jumped into writing Book 19. The creativity slammed me broadside and I couldn't not write (what a wonderful feeling!). It's an episode idea I've had for a while and even influenced something said by a character in Book 17. It looks like I won't be editing Book 17 for a pre-order at this time. Writing is always more fun than editing, but this is like Book 8--I really, really, really, REALLY want to write it! I'm surprised I've been able to hold off this long. In fact, I already have 3,300 words written within only three days.

The Blessed Virgin Mary calls all to her Divine Son, Jesus Christ

In 1531, Our Lady of Guadalupe transformed the world. Because of her appearance to Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill, in ten years, over TEN MILLION Aztecs converted from their blood-thirsty human-sacrifices to the one true living God of mercy and love. Our Lady's request to (Saint) Juan Diego brought about the end of a murderous cult.

She can do it again.

Join Cardinal Raymond Burke's nine-month novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe to bring the world back to Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior. Learn more here--https://novena.cardinalburke.com/--including downloading the novena prayer card... The 9-month novena actually started on March 12 and ends on the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, December 12.

(The website of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe can be found here--https://guadalupeshrine.org/history-of-the-shrine/.)

Novena Prayer (English):

O Virgin Mother of God, we fly to your protection and beg your intercession against the darkness and sin which ever more envelop the world and menace the Church. Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, gave you to us as our mother as He died on the Cross for our salvation. So too, in 1531, when darkness and sin beset us, He sent you, as Our Lady of Guadalupe, on Tepeyac to lead us to Him Who alone is our light and our salvation.

Through your apparitions on Tepeyac and your abiding presence with us on the miraculous mantle of your messenger, Saint Juan Diego, millions of souls converted to faith in your Divine Son. Through this novena and our consecration to you, we humbly implore your intercession for our daily conversion of life to Him and the conversion of millions more who do not yet believe in Him. In our homes and in our nation, lead us to Him Who alone wins the victory over sin and darkness in us and in the world.

Unite our hearts to your Immaculate Heart so that they may find their true and lasting home in the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Ever guide us along the pilgrimage of life to our eternal home with Him. So may our hearts, one with yours, always trust in God's promise of salvation, in His never-failing mercy toward all who turn to Him with a humble and contrite heart. Through this novena and our consecration to you, O Virgin of Guadalupe, lead all souls in America and throughout the world to your Divine Son in Whose name we pray.

Amen.

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If you want to learn more about the apparition and Mary's miraculous transformation of the people of Mexico and the rest of the Americas (she is the patron of the Americas), here are some videos to help you understand the significance of what she did for the world:

Other good videos:

Whee!

New computer arrived. I set it up fresh instead of using the Migration Assistant (which would perpetuate some issues with fonts in Adobe Creative Cloud apps). Then, I put it to the test... The After Effects file that took 2 HOURS to render on the old MacBook Pro (Intel 2.3 MHz i9 processor and 16 GB RAM) and had it running hot took only 20 MINUTES on the new Mac Studio (M2 Max with 64 GB RAM) and that didn't even break a sweat... complete silence at 6 times the speed to render that file. Everything about working in After Effects was much better.

I think I have a winner on my hands. Now to start organizing those character-centric promos I had in mind. 😁

But first, back to edits. I believe this is the last round. So far, nothing major has come up this fourth and, I expect, final round on GHOSTS (Starfire Angels: Forgotten Worlds Book 16).

Very soon, I'll have it done and ready to publish!

Coming Soon!

a story of the horrors of hell

I'm working, I swear, but I keep coming across great videos like this that distract me. The latest round of edits on Book 16 are making great progress, and I expect to finish edits by the end of next week. I had a few more changes I hadn't expected that will require one final copyedit pass.

I can't ignore this but must spread the warning. The warning in this video is chilling. 😱

The only way to avoid hell is in the sacraments of the Catholic Church and eliminating ALL sin (and sin includes writing sex scenes in books or titillation for readers). Lust, envy, gluttony (not just food but lots of needless stuff), greed, wrath, sloth, pride, and every insult to God and his commandments, including cursing others, vulgarities, etc. These and more are offenses against God. Only true contrition and penance through the sacrament of reconciliation in the confessional will repair our relationship with God.

For my writer friends who think God is allowing them to write stories with sex scenes and titillating scenes, glorified violence, etc. that isn't from God but from Satan. He's leading you to sin and using you to lead others to sin. And for that one friend, sex in books between married couples is still sin, because the reader is fantasizing the characters, not their own spouse. Reading a sex scene between fictional characters is no different than peeking in on your neighbors having sex in their bedroom. That is adultery in the mind, a sin of lust. I beg you reconsider the damnation of your soul.

Think of God as discipline and logic, not exciting your feelings; yes, he is joy and love and can even be angry at us (see all the examples in the Old Testament), but he doesn't manipulate our feelings. Rather, unless we truly seek God with all our heart and seek to please Him, there is a veil that blocks us from being close to Him--it's called free will (He will never force himself on us). Satan and his demons feed on feelings and manipulate your feelings, but they can even mislead you with a false light. Learn the sins to avoid and don't listen to feelings. As Fr. Chad Ripperger says, virtue is painful until you reach a certain point of pursuing it. I can attest to this, and God will test you at each level of virtue, stepping back to see how fully you will pursue him. Your writing may suffer to avoid lust/adultery of your readers, but it will save your soul. Isn't your soul worth more than money from leading readers to sin?

The Bible is real history

For many years, I worked for someone who would disparage the Bible and my Christian faith, an avowed atheist. I suspect a part of him knew it was true, but he was mislead by mainstream media (which is anti-Christian (or what could be referred to as coming from Satan)). He was a liberal removed from the faith of his birth by the lies of MSM.

I had no argument then for him, but in the years since his retirement, I've been finding incredible proofs that events in the Bible are REAL HISTORY, although I never had any doubts. I just didn't have anything to support the argument then. I've added those as a section in my Faith Resources tab. (Scroll down to the section Proof that the Bible is real history.)

What he doesn't know is that every time I'd pray for him, the next day he would say something derogatory about faith, religion, and/or the Bible; it wasn't every day, just after I had prayed for him. The real proof to me is that I had never told him I prayed for him... NEVER (unless he reads this post--then he'll know--but he never knew at that time). I could set my watch by it and I knew what was happening. Anyone with any spiritual intelligence will know what that means. The demons knew my efforts to convert him and protect him from eternal damnation in their domain, and they worked overtime to keep him where they want him--believing it's all a lie.

It's because of this person and the lies of Protestantism spouted by a friend led away from the Catholic faith that I've become fascinated with everything I can find about the truth, which has led me closer to God. I thank them for their challenges. Those were what Fr. Ripperger would call signal graces; in these cases, they were graces that I needed to push me to studying my faith, bringing me closer to God, which is where we're meant to be.

If you have any doubt about God being real or think your denomination is superior to the original church founded by Christ on his apostles, I've collected a long list of articles, videos, websites, and channels sorted under the Faith Resources tab. It will take some time, but at least you can start there. I've put in a lot of time and effort to cultivate this list from all that I've watched or read, and I continue to add to it, but there is far more on the internet than one person can consume in a lifetime.

Happy studying!

exciting stuff planned... a few updates

I'm still working on edits for Book 16. I hope to be in the last big round of edits. It's pretty good overall, but needs just a bit more refinement.

The delay is due to a variety of issues. One of them is my age. I'm in that stage of crushing fatigue during the day and sleep disruptions at night. Mornings are good to a point, but without black tea, I'm doomed by noon. Not even a Dr. Pepper can save me, and coffee is way too strong for my tolerance (and disgusting to my tastes). This is part of the sleep disruption-daytime nap cycle I'm in. And forget supplements. Sure, they help my focus and attention, but they contribute to the sleep disruption. Once in a while nothing bothers me, but I can't count on that.

Add that to just having closed out the busiest time of year at work. I'm finally recovering a few days later. Surprisingly, my head is clear for editing. It's just the fatigue/sleep issue. It could be my thyroid, but it's most likely my stage in life, from the research I've done.

I'll find a way to make it work until hormones straighten out.

Another distraction would be book trailers. I want to create more of those, but they take away from writing/editing, so I'll have to balance that. Fortunately, up to this point, my MacBook Pro wasn't powerful enough to do too much of that. After Effects is a resource hog.

But that will be changing. I'm upgrading to a Mac Studio! 😍 

I did some research on what the best configuration would be for what I plan to do and did some budgeting. I have the keyboard and mouse purchased (didn't need that with a laptop). I ordered the monitor (the Samsung ViewFinity UHD monitor on sale from Best Buy currently for $229 was a fraction of the cost of an Apple monitor ($1599)) and ordered Mac Studio with the M2 Max chip (custom configured direct from Apple). I also found a case on Amazon to store the computer, mouse, and keyboard when I'm not using them. I don't have a desk, so I will need to put that away every day; the case will help. Fortunately, I have my iPad Mini for portability.

I'm looking forward one day to trying out the Unreal Engine and maybe creating some animated stories, but that would take an enormous amount of time from writing. I'll find the balance somehow. It sure would be fun to get into scripting my books into animated stories, though! Maybe when I'm finished with the Forgotten Worlds series, I'll dig into animated stories more fully, but that would be at least a couple of years in the future.

The main reason for now to upgrade is book trailers. The MacBook is a 15" with 2.3 MHz Intel Core i9 and only 16 GB RAM and 500 GB hard drive space. I wasn't planning on creating book trailers when I bought it. And when I bought it, my previous MacBook Pro stopped charging on me and I had to make an emergency purchase from what was available locally. (I was working from home at the start of Covid, so it was a true emergency.) After creating a couple of trailers using Ae templates (see below), I found I really like the visual medium. However, I'm running out of hard drive space, and the RAM and processor can't handle After Effects. Premiere Pro isn't a problem, but Ae has the best features, so it's time to upgrade (and Apple financing at 0% for 12 months is too convenient).

It's an investment that will give me the power to create in new ways.

(The 1 minute trailer below took 2 hours to render on my MacBook Pro, and it was running hot!)

Modesty in Speech

Fr. Chad Ripperger has some great lectures, including some that are not focused entirely on religious matters. This is one that we can all apply to our lives.

Amazing true story! the power of prayer

 

updates - books, indoor garden, and cats

I don't have much of a writing update today. I'm still working on edits of Book 16. It's going more slowly than I hoped, which is why I've at least temporarily deactivated my X account (and maybe permanently). So, I thought I'd add something different about what's been happening lately.

First, I've just uploaded a revision of A NEW BEGINNING. It now includes a note about the [ ] and { } indicators of alien languages. That was the only update to the file. I wanted to make sure new readers understand. Most SFF readers should have some familiarity with using such devices for dialogue translations of fictional other languages, if they've read anything from around the 80's. I saw this in books growing up, which is what gave me the idea to use those to encapsulate translations of fictional languages being spoken by characters where I want the reader to understand it.

Second, I have updated the series description on Amazon. I've tweaked it a couple of times now. It had defaulted to the description of the first book and I left that for a long time. Now, I've given it a brief overview of the series, as well as a note about... Well, why not just let you read it. Here's what it now says:

The truth behind the warrior disciples of an ancient religion is no myth. To stop the ancient evil from being released to destroy the universe, a group of strangers joins together to find the scattered Starfire shards, the only weapon known to defeat the creature. 

Take off with Nya and the strangers who will become her friends on a quest across a galaxy of forgotten worlds where the Starfire shards have been hidden for such a time as this. In the course of their adventures, they will discover secrets that her ancestors left behind and revelations that could shatter the lives of many. 

These books are short novels intended to be read in order. Each book is a complete story but leads into the next. Like chapters in an individual book, each book of this series is a "chapter" in the larger series arc of 25 books.

Note: Although there is some romance in the series, there are no sex scenes. Also, no foul language is used.

I wanted those looking for hard science fiction to realize that this probably isn't what they want. It isn't a porno/swearing fest like so much fiction is these days. It's also not all shoot 'em up war/fighting, and it's not full of broken characters. Sure, each character has their traumas, but they don't dwell on them all the time. I like likable characters and action that's balanced between drama and fighting (or pew pew! as some call it 🙃).

idoo hydroponic garden,
available from Amazon

The series was always written with the intent of going back to the 80's and 90's style SF series, when entertainment didn't punch one in the face with an agenda or sex but, rather, focused on telling stories and the sex was fade-to-black or mentioned in passing so that you knew it was there but not front and center. I've learned there's a name coined for stories without an agenda other than telling a good yarn--ironage. It's not because it's medieval or anything but because of the ironage of storytelling, before the woke agenda ruined entertainment by focusing on pushing a narrative instead of focusing on telling a good story.

(Also, in this description, I'm hinting the title of the final book in the series, Book 25 - FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS. I already know that works for what I have outlined. 😉)

Third, I've had to do some pulling of old lettuce and reseeding in my indoor hydroponics garden. I started the lettuce but haven't had an interest in eating many salads, although it is nice to have our own lettuce instead of store-bought with who knows how many chemicals sprayed on it.

I pulled up two of my larger plants that were looking pretty shredded and not fitting under the light anymore and have new sprouts growing. I'll pull up those last two large plants once the new sprouts take off with enough leaves to start using for salads.

The picture is blurry because it was before the sun rose
and zoomed in from a ways back from the glass deck door
so as not to frighten her. She's pretty skittish.

Fourth, we feed feral cats that come around. Last winter, we had Lenny, but he disappeared come summer. We like to keep outdoor cats around as hunters to keep the mice, gophers, and volls under control. Hubby had made a suitable shelter out of a Rubbermaid container, but I think the latest feral, Remy, felt entrapped in it, so I bought this off Etsy for her. It may not be as cozy warm, but she can eat while sheltered on windy, snowy, or rainy days. While she was reluctant to use hubby's shelter, she was in this within two days of us putting it out for her.

It's a small shelter and the roof is hinged like a lid. If you're interested, here's the link: https://www.etsy.com/listing/226068063/all-season-ark-workshop-medium-outdoor?ref=yr_purchases

Fifth, pay attention to your health. My eyes were giving me problems lately and I hadn't thought to connect it to headaches and tiredness. I made an appointment and, just over a year since my last pair of glasses, ended up needing new glasses again. My eyes are healthy, although the psoriasis around them causes minor issues (easily kept under control with Aquaphor); but my vision has changed dramatically. I wear bifocals, and my old close-up prescription is better for distances now. That's how much my vision has changed. I can't wait to get the new glasses, but that's going to be a big adjustment!

Last, Wednesday, February 14th (Valentine's Day), is Ash Wednesday. For those who honor Our Lord during this season with extra mortification, I pray you achieve the change this season is intended to inspire. I've also been adding to my faith resources page and hope you can find some support there for your faith journey. God bless!

Thanks for reading!

Why discipline in life is important

Fr. Ripperger always has good lectures, and you don't have to be Catholic to appreciate many of them. This is one that applies to everyone. He offers great insights into bettering your life.

What is Laziness, Sloth, & Workaholicism & Their Dangers ~ Fr. Ripperger

Cover reveal - SINS OF THE FATHER

There's a good reason for the title, but you'll have to wait to find out. Your suspicions are probably close, however.

I finished the first draft a few days ago and have been enjoying a first read-through. It was a struggle to write, but because of that, I really had to buckle down and think about things. So far, so good when it comes to writing struggles. These tend to be some of the best books (in my opinions).

I had to then create the cover, or at least plug in the title, series number, blurb, and image to my template for this series. Oh, and modify the series title colors to coordinate with the image. Seriously, that's all these are--basically plugging a suitable image into the template I created in Photoshop. There have been times I found a stock image and modified the story to fit it. Other times, I photo-manipulate (multiple covers of this series). And some are good enough as they are when I find them.

Without further ado, I present the cover of Starfire Angels: Forgotten Worlds Book 18:

Now to finish my read-through and then edit Book 16. I hope to publish that by the end of February. If you're not on my mailing list, go ahead and send me an email. You can do this by clicking the Contact me link on the sidebar of this blog, which will take you to the contact page of my website. Or just use this link: https://melanienilles.com/contact/.

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update and a question

SINS OF THE FATHER

It's taken longer than expected, but I only have the final scene to write on Book 18, and can then move on. On the other hand, I might even leave it until after edits on Book 16, like I've done with others. What's left is that stinger outside of the main action of the story. I've had those in most of the books to add a series depth where it wouldn't otherwise fit into the main episodic story.

I'm still discovering little things to tweak of the plot in this too, like last night after laying in bed to go to sleep. I had to pop back up when something struck me. It was brilliant! It didn't take much--probably less than 100 words--but that little bit added a whole new dimension to the story. It was exactly what had been missing.

Presently, Book 18 of Forgotten Worlds is just over 47,000 words, and the final scene (or maybe even two short final scenes) should wrap up the story at around 48,000 words.

So, that's what's going on in writing.

Progress on book 18 - the homestretch

It's so close now to being finished. I had a couple of very good writing days recently and Book 18 is presently about 41,500 words and should be finished around 45K words.

I've had to resolve some small plot holes, but that's always part of the writing process. As things get sorted out, the story gets better and better. I didn't have this planned out the way I should have, but it's turning out better than I could have planned anyway. It's just not what I would have expected. You'd think I'd expect THAT in this series by now, but the individual books still surprise me.

When it comes to writing, you have to be willing to let go of what you expect and let the story become what it needs to be. Once I let go of what I had wanted, the story sorted itself out.

I hope to finish this soon. I'd like to get done and then edit Book 16. I want to publish GHOSTS before the end of February, but it's going to be tight.

A devotion that will change your life

I have a revelation for many who love to hate on the mother of Jesus.

Guess what? The Hail Mary is in the Bible! EVERY. SINGLE. LINE! It is Biblical!

Stop! If you're fuming, tell Satan to take a hike and keep reading. Don't listen to his anger and pride and envy against the Mother of Jesus. Hear me out.

Line 1:

Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee.

"And coming to her, he said, 'Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.'" (Luke 1:28)

Line 2:

Blessed are thou among women, 

"Blessed are you among women" (Luke 1:41)

Line 3:

and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.

"Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said 'Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.'" (Luke 1:42)

Line 4:

Holy Mary, Mother of God,

"How does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 1:43)

(Mary is the mother of Jesus (Lord with capital "L", an honor bestowed only on God). Jesus is the second part of the Holy Trinity aka God. Therefore, Mary is the Mother of God, specifically of the second part of God.)

Line 5:

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

"Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful." (James 5:16)

"And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand." (Revelation 8:4)

Saints are those who have died and live in eternity in heavy. Do you not expect when you die to go to heaven? Will you be dead, nothing... or will your spirit be with God (alive)? What about everyone who has gone before you? If they were followers of Christ, do they not go to heaven? Are they "dead" in heaven? NO! They live. What better saint than the first Christian, the first follower of Christ--his mother who loves Him eternally--to add their love of us to our prayers in petitioning God for mercy?

Think about it.

But don't take my word for it. Look up the the scriptures yourself and see how they've been pulled out of the Bible and put together to create what we know as the Hail, Mary (Ave, Maria) prayer.

Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!

Blessed are you amongst women,

and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God,

pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.