Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Recent Media Enjoyed, Tribute Info, & Countdown

I haven't done one of these posts in a while, so there's quite a bit I've enjoyed since then. I'm going to be more selective than usual for this one, though it's still a long list.

Really quick before I jump in, the paperback of The Business of Short Stories is now available for pre-order from Barnes & Noble!

TV Shows

The Real O'Neals


This show is hysterical on its own, but it's also great to experience with a child on the rainbow. I introduced my daughter to it, and she absolutely loved it. She is always actively seeking positive representation, and this hit the right spot. 

It's about a young man in an Irish Catholic family who comes out, not only to them, but to everybody, including the other students at his Catholic school. While it's a light, humorous look at many aspects of an individual who has come out, particularly in a family where that could be extra problematic, there are many incredibly touching moments and some heavier topics are touched upon. 

The mom is played by Martha Plimpton, who I've been a fan of since Goonies. She's still fantastic in this. (Hulu, I think)

Reservation Dogs


I may have recommended this one before (?). Not sure. But I love it, so I'm recommending it again. If the name Taika Waititi means anything to you, you'll know that his being attached to this show means comedy gold. This is a TV show by indigenous people for everyone. Reservation life isn't easy, but with an eclectic group of folks moving around the rez, it's also never boring. With a fabulous cast of older familiar faces in addition to the young actors the show primarily follows, there are phenomenal moments of humor. All the while, people get a backstage glance at rez life and the challenges therein.

There are mild fantastical elements, basically in the form of a spirit guide who haunts one of the main kids. He never got to fight Custer, because his horse stepped in a gopher hole and rolled over on top of him as he rode down to the battle. Every time he's on the screen, I'm laughing. But maybe there's some wisdom under his comedy, after all. (Hulu)

Samantha, Who?


I know, this is an old one. I've only just discovered it, surprised that there was a Christina Applegate show I'd never watched. It was also fun to discover a younger Melissa McCarthy in this one.

A woman wakes up in the hospital with complete amnesia. As she tries to get back to her life, she discovers she was a horrible person before her accident. The situations she finds herself in, often because of who she used to be, are hilarious, and her parents are ridiculous. Light and entertaining. (Hulu)

Peacemaker


I had no idea until last night that this show existed. Suicide Squad 2 wasn't the best (though I actually liked it), but John Cena's character Peacemaker was one of the better elements. Well, he's got his own spinoff, and it's hilarious. It popped up after we'd finished a movie, and we clicked on it out of curiosity. The opening sequence will make you laugh, which is always a good sign. 

Peacemaker is loyal to the U.S. to a fault. He follows orders and takes things very literally. This shows follows his miraculous recovery after a building fell on him in Suicide Squad 2. He's been hired to kill very bad people. However, he's a bit of an idiot. Fun and mayhem ensues.

Also, he has a pet/sidekick American bald eagle named...Eagly. Seriously. (HBO)

Pivoting


I hadn't heard anything about this, but saw it streaming. Seeing who the actresses were, I figured I'd give it a gander. So glad I did! While the storyline isn't necessarily terribly original, the actresses and writing make it worth it.

Three women face life after one of their friends dies suddenly, just in time for their midlife crises. Maggie Q plays a doctor who decides she needs a change, so applies to work at a grocery store. Eliza Coupe is a mom with questionable momming abilities and an addiction to artificial sweeteners. Ginnifer Goodwin starts considering an affair with her younger personal trainer. Their foibles are unforgettable, and the actresses smash their roles. (Hulu)

Below Deck


It's a reality show, but I had to add it, because my husband and I got hooked on this mindless entertainment for a while. The cameras follow the crew of luxury yachts as they scramble to work the interior and exterior for eccentric, rich clients. Drama, humor, sex, romance, tensions, and fights riddle the ship's crew, but they have to be professional when interacting with the clientele. The staff are global, so if you like accents, you'll be in Heaven. Never worked with a chef? Well, you'll learn they're all crazy. The chief stew is basically mom to the rest of the crew, and they aptly resent her for it. The bosun or First Officer runs the deck crew with varying degrees of success. And, hey, if you've ever doubted sexism is alive and well, you'll see it on a few seasons, especially if you get to the one with the Smashton Bru Crew. (That's not a typo--bru is bro in South Africa). Happily, it's not a constant issue in other seasons, and the captain of one of the fellow shows, set in the Mediterranean, has a female captain.

There are several variations, including Below Deck Sailing Yacht and Below Deck Mediterranean, plus a new show starting in February, Below Deck Down Under. My favorite captain is the one on Sailing Yacht, a laid back, but firm, guy from Canada. (Peacock, Bravo)

Books

We Sold Our Souls, Grady Hendrix


If you like dark, but humorous, Grady Hendrix is your guy. Especially if you also like a clever new view on tropes. While this one isn't my favorite by him, I enjoyed it. The MC gets a blast from the past when the guy who used to be in her band, but tricked his bandmates into selling everything to him shows up on a comeback tour. Her need for revenge quickly becomes a desperate rush to save not only herself and her ex-bandmates, but the world. It turns out those contracts he had them sign involved more than their playlist.

The Winter People, Jennifer McMahon


I'll admit that I wasn't sure I'd like this one at first. It felt too meandering and it was hard to who anyone was or why they had anything to do with the others. However, the writing was beautiful, and I was certain it would tie together eventually, so I persevered until it wasn't about persevering but about not being able to put the book down.

An isolated farmhouse holds more than its share of secrets. From that farmhouse, a single mother goes missing, leaving her teenager daughter suddenly responsible for her little sister while trying to find out what happened to her mom. Hidden caches in the floorboards and a sealed closet door in the master bedroom lead her on a mission that introduces her to crazy and dangerous people and a secret she never saw coming.

Yours Cruelly, Elvira, Cassandra Peterson


It will surprise absolutely no one that I'm an Elvira fan, so when I happened across a signed copy of this at Barnes & Nobles (does that mean I missed the signing?? Sob), I had to get it. Here's the thing, though, her time as Elvira is a relatively small portion of a fascinating life. I found myself enthralled with her adventurous personality and pure bravery in throwing herself into new situations and opportunities. From her days as a groupie and go-go dancer, to being a showgirl in Vegas, to traveling Italy with a band then getting stranded there, penniless, she finds a way out and eventually makes it to Hollywood, making it big, but not in the classic way.

I had a lot of fun reading about the band and club scene in Colorado Springs (yes, she was a local) while it was still coming into its own. In addition, she dishes on some celebrities, some of which you'll appreciate and some of which you'll see for the snakes they are.

Die Trying, Lee Reacher


It's been some time since I read a Reacher novel, though I used to enjoy them. It took me a bit to get past the rampant use of sentence fragments, but once I did, I was sucked in. 

Jack Reacher finds himself held hostage with a female FBI agent, no explanation, and no concrete knowledge on whether they were after him or her. They're dragged across the country to deal with a dangerous group with a fraught ideology and a violent plan.

I felt like Reacher was allowed to be more flawed and human in this one than what I remember from earlier books. He even faces a seriously phobic moment that had me tense, too.


Movies

Matrix: Resurrections


Okay, so this one was more for fans to get a meta revisit than anything else, but it was floofy entertainment for a while. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. The actors who took over as Morpheus and Agent Smith didn't have the charisma of the original actors (close, but just not there), but it was good to see Reeves and Moss back again, as well as Jada Pinkett Smith. I liked Neil Patrick Harris's role, and it felt fitting. I'm glad I didn't actually pay to go see it, though, so I'd recommend waiting until it's back on HBO or renting it when the time comes.

Clearcut


It's not often I get to see angry, militant Graham Greene vs. calm, philosophical, friend-of-the-white-man Graham Greene. You'll also probably recognize Floyd Red Crow, even if you don't know the name. In this film, a white man is fighting to cease deforestation, working with local tribes. But when his efforts in court are a loss, Greene's character overhears him saying he wants to make the men who did this pay, to suffer. Greene takes the MC hostage, along with the head of the logging company, whisks them away to the middle of nowhere, and proceeds to makes things very rough for the logging exec.

There are some problematic areas, including, of course, the Great White Savior trope, but I felt like that was subverted a bit. When I looked up the director, it was, of course, not an indigenous director. However, the director had fled dangerous politics in Poland, and this was his first English-language film. I found it fascinating watching the take of someone who was very much an outsider in all ways. The fact that he'd cottoned to this issue upon fleeing his own country meant it touched him in some way, but also that it was a visible issue at the time.

I'm a Greene fan, so I'll watch anything he's in. I liked seeing him angry for once. I liked seeing him fight back. I'm not going to lie, there was some satisfaction in that. (Shudder)



February 2 will not just be the usual IWSG day, though that will be happening, too, but it will also be an opportunity to pay tribute to a friend the blogging community has lost. Jeremy Hawkins died earlier this month, and Alex J. Cavanaugh is organizing a tribute to him. Click on Alex's name for more information.







T-6 days and counting! I've closed signups for help with the launch, because I've been absolutely overwhelmed by the positive response from you guys. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped and will be helping by spreading the word in the next month, and to those of you who have visited and commented at other blogs. Here's the ongoing schedule:

January 12 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part I of Q&A
January 12 - Jean Davis - Discarded Darlings 
January 13 - diedre Knight - Stream Pebbles - Part I
January 14 - Michael Di Gesu - In Time 
January 17 - Jemi Frasier - Jemi Frasier - Q&A
January 18 - diedre Knight - Pensive Pens - Part II
January 18 - Toi Thomas - The ToiBox of Words
January 18 - Victoria Marie Lees - Victoria Marie Lees
January 19 - J.Q. Rose - Focused on Story by J.Q. Rose - Her Favorite Short Story (I already know which one it is, and it's one of my favorites, too!)
January 19 - Rebecca M. Douglass - Rebecca M. Douglass, Author
January 24 - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Top Five Movies About Writing
January 26 - DeAnna Knippling - Wonderland Press & Writing Craft - Q&A
January 27 - Diane Burton - Diane Burton - Her Favorite Short Story
January 27 - Elizabeth Seckman - Elizabeth Seckman - Her Favorite Short Story
January 31 - Annalisa Crawford - Blogging with My Fountain Pen - Her Favorite Short Story
January 31 - Jemima Pett - Jemima Pett 
February 1 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part II of Q&A
February 2 - Michelle Wallace - Writer-in-Transit - Q&A
February 9 - C. Lee McKenzie - C. Lee McKenzie, Author - Her Favorite Short Story
February 11 - Sandra Cox - Sandra's Place - 3 Quirky Food Facts

And a thank you to Natalie Aguirre, The Faerie Reviewand my brother Alex Kenoyer for individual shoutouts! And to anyone who has shared or helped in any way!

There will also be reviews coming out soon, so I'll share those when I see them. Pre-order available at Amazon in e-book and paperback. Coming to Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and other e-formats after release day.

What have you watched or read lately? Any good podcasts? Did you know Jeremy? Will you be taking part in his tribute? 

May you find your Muse.

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

J.Q. Rose Book Birthday, Book Release Schedule, & Open Submissions

It's J.Q. Rose's book birthday for her memoir, Arranging a Dream, and she's celebrating by offering the book at $.99 through January 16th! Visit this post on her blog and leave a comment to be entered to win a prize.


Arranging a Dream: A Memoir

In 1975, budding entrepreneurs Ted and Janet purchase a floral shop and greenhouses where they plan to grow their dream. Leaving friends and family behind in Illinois and losing the security of two paychecks, they transplant themselves, their one-year-old daughter, and all their belongings to Fremont, Michigan, where they know no one. 

Will the retiring business owners nurture Ted and Janet as they struggle to develop a blooming business, or will they desert the inexperienced young couple to wither and die in their new environment?

Most of all, can Ted and Janet grow together as they cultivate a loving marriage, juggle parenting with work, and root a thriving business?

Follow this couple’s inspiring story, filled with the joy and triumphs and the obstacles and failures experienced as they travel along the turbulent path of turning dreams into reality.

Amazon Buy Link Only 99 cents!

About J.Q. Rose

Whether the story is fiction or non-fiction, J.Q. Rose is “focused on story.”  She offers readers chills, giggles and quirky characters woven within the pages of her mystery novels. Her published mysteries are Deadly Undertaking, Terror on Sunshine Boulevard and Dangerous Sanctuary released by Books We Love Publishing. Using her experience as a journalist, she provides entertainment and information with articles featured in books, magazines, newspapers, and online magazines. 

J.Q. combined her work in freelancing articles and her storytelling skills to pen her memoir, Arranging a Dream: A Memoir, the story of the ups and downs she and her husband experienced in their first year of establishing a floral business.

Blogging, photography, Pegs and Jokers board games and travel are the things that keep her out of trouble. She and her husband spend winters in Florida and summers up north with their two daughters, two sons-in-law,  four grandsons, one granddaughter, two grand dogs, four grand cats, and one great-grand bearded dragon.

J.Q. Rose blog | Facebook | Goodreads 


 

The following folks are wonderful enough to be helping get the word out about my upcoming release! The schedule and links will be updated as we go along. The Business of Short Stories: Writing, Submitting, Publishing, and Marketing releases February 1 in e-book and paperback. It can be pre-ordered in digital format at Amazon.

January 12 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part I of Q&A
January 12 - Jean Davis - Discarded Darlings 
January 13 - diedre Knight - Stream Pebbles - Part I
January 14 - Michael Di Gesu - In Time 
January 17 - Jemi Frasier - Jemi Frasier - Q&A
January 18 - diedre Knight - Pensive Pens - Part II
January 18 - Toi Thomas - The ToiBox of Words
January 18 - Victoria Marie Lees - Victoria Marie Lees
January 19 - J.Q. Rose - Focused on Story by J.Q. Rose - Her Favorite Short Story (I already know which one it is, and it's one of my favorites, too!)
January 19 - Rebecca M. Douglass - Rebecca M. Douglass, Author
January 24 - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Top Five Movies About Writing
January 26 - DeAnna Knippling - Wonderland Press & Writing Craft - Q&A
January 27 - Diane Burton - Diane Burton - Her Favorite Short Story
January 31 - Annalisa Crawford - Blogging with My Fountain Pen - Her Favorite Short Story
January 31 - Jemima Pett - Jemima Pett 
February 1 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part II of Q&A
February 2 - Michelle Wallace - Writer-in-Transit - Q&A
February 9 - C. Lee McKenzie - C. Lee McKenzie, Author - Her Favorite Short Story
TBA - Sandra Cox - Sandra's Place - 3 Quirky Food Facts
January 26 - DeAnna Knippling - Wonderland Press & Writing Craft - Q&A
TBA - Elizabeth Seckman - Elizabeth Seckman - Her Favorite Short Story

And a thank you to Natalie Aguirre and my brother Alex Kenoyer for individual shoutouts!






Now for publications seeking submissions. I'm not endorsing any of these. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Devil's Party Press is seeking literary short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry with a winter theme. Up to 5000 words. Pays $25. Deadline January 30.

Sirens Call Publications is seeking short horror stories with a forest theme for "Deep in the Woods." 4000 to 8000 words. Pays $25. Deadline January 31 (Note: I have worked with them before, and it was a good experience.)

Neon Hemlock is seeking "queer stories of dark speculative fiction across genres featuring mechas and mechs of all stripes." Up to 6000 words. Pays $.08/word. Deadline January 31.

Woodroe Writing Services is seeking horror short stories from marginalized authors for "Horror That Represents You." 1000 to 7000 words. Pays $.11/word. Deadline January 31.

Hydra Publications is seeking epic sword and sorcery fantasy with a grim or bleak feel for "Ghosts of the Old Gods." 6000 to 10,000 words. Pays $35. Deadline January 31.

Gossamer Wings and Other Stories is seeking Weird West Horror short stories for "A Fistful of Demons." Up to 6000 words. Pays $25 per 1000 words. Deadline January 31.

Nothing Without Us Too is seeking stories by and about those with both visible and invisible disabilities and chronic issues. 500 to 3500 words. Pays $.08 CAD/word. Deadline January 31.

Mysterion is seeking speculative fiction stories with a Christian theme. Up to 9000 words. Pays $.08.word. Deadline January 31.

Dark Peninsula Press is seeking dark fiction with the theme forbidden magic for "The Cellar Door." 2000 to 7500 words. Pays $25. Deadline January 31.

Alpennia is seeking short historical stories (before 1900) with a lesbian theme for the 2022 Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast Fiction Series. Up to 5000 words. Pays $.08.word. Deadline January 31.

DMR Books is seeking sword and sorcery stories involving Halloween/Samhain. 4000 to 8000 words. Pays $.01/word. Deadline February 1.

The First Line is seeking short stories starting with the line "Rayna sat in front of the mirror removing her makeup and wondered who she would discover underneath." 300 to 5000 words. Pays between $5 and $50 depending upon submission type. Deadline February 1. 

Escape Artists is seeking speculative fiction stories featuring cats, preferably with some humor, for CatsCast, a podcast. Up to 6000 words. Pays $.08/word. Deadline February 1.

The Last Girls Club is seeking feminist horror with the theme of Active Shooter. Up to 2500 words. Pays $.01/word. Deadline February 1. 

Nonbinary Review is seeking stories based in your favorite fictional worlds, but without any characters from those fictional worlds (example: Alice in Wonderland with none of the characters met in the book). Up to 3000 words. Pays $.01/word. Deadline February 1.

Sci Phi Journal is seeking SF stories with the theme uchronia (alternate histories). Up to 2000 words. Pays 3 Euro cents per word. Deadline February 5.

Decoded is seeking queer speculative fiction. Up to 7500 words. Pays between $25 and $200, depending upon submission type. Deadline February 14.

Julie Bozza is seeking queer weird west tales. 3000 to 10,000 words. Pays $30 to $50. Deadline February 28. 

Cosmic Horror Monthly is seeking cosmic horror. 1000 to 7500 words. Pays $.03/word. Deadline February 28.

Dragon Soul Press is seeking cyberpunk stories for "Surge" and Atlantis retellings for "Beyond Atlantis." 5000 to 15,000 words. Pays in royalties. Deadline February 28.

Stonecrop Review is seeking creative nonfiction, fiction, art, and photography that explores how humans, animals, and plants adapt to life in the city. 500 to 5000 words. Pays $20. Deadline February 28.

Have you read J.Q.'s memoir? Visited her blog to leave a comment? Any of these publications of interest? Have you dealt with any of these publishers before? Are you submitting?

May you find your Muse.


Wednesday, January 5, 2022

IWSG - Good Things on the Horizon & Cover Reveal!

It's January 2022, and therefore time for a new year of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, this monthly blog hop serves to give writers a way to lend and get support for their insecurities. Anyone can join by clicking on Alex's name, then signing up and posting the first Wednesday of each month.


I'm going into this year with a positive attitude. I know there's a lot of caution out there, but my Hell Year was 2019, where within the first half of the year I lost two friends who died suddenly, my dad died earlier than expected from complications from ALS, I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, and I had my gallbladder ripped out after years of infections. I've decided that since bad things come in threes, that covers 2019, 2020, and 2021. That means 2022 has to be a good one. I'm determined to do what it takes on my behalf to make that so, which means I have a lot of plans for my writing. Starting with a new release February 1.

Optional question of the month: What's the one thing about your writing career you regret the most? Were you able to overcome it?

I've said it before, but my biggest regret is still that I didn't publish a novel before my dad died. In terms of overcoming it, I guess? I'm moving forward and not letting it stop me, so in that way I'm working to overcome it.

Co-hosts this month are Erika Beebe, Olga Godim, Sandra Cox, Sarah Foster, and Chemist Ken!



I've got a cover reveal today for my book on the craft of writing and publishing short stories! 


I'm so incredibly excited for this book, and I'm looking for help in getting the word out. Click here to go to my Google sign-up link if you're willing to do a shout-out this month. Any help is appreciated. The Business of Short Stories releases February 1 in print and e-book. The e-book is currently on pre-order at Amazon, with the print book hopefully joining by the end of this week. Thank you to those of you who have already signed up to help! I'll be sending out information this week.

Time for the submission roundup for December. I do this each month to keep myself accountable. This month was slim due to my scrambling to get a book ready for publication, but here we are:

4 submissions

3 rejections

0 acceptances

3 removed as "other" due to not hearing back and no action on the publication websites

15 stories currently on submission

What are your insecurities? How are you looking into the new year: with excitement or trepidation? How did you do with submission in 2021?

May you find your Muse.


*Swoosh blue-md by OCAL, clker.com