Wonhundred Word Wednesday: "Flames"

It's Wednesday (already? Where'd the rest of the week go?) which means it's time for me to join with my author friends in our little challenge we call Wonhundred Word Wednesday. Today's prompt is: 

"I stared at the flames that..." 

"Machine Gun Fire" - Herriman, Utah , October 2010

Here's my story: 

I stared at the flames that rolled over the mountain. Hypnotically they danced and swirled with the changing wind. The flames were getting close. Too close.

I dusted the ash off my face and climbed into the car. Gripping the steering wheel, I took one last mental inventory. Legal documents? Check. Family photos? Check. Computer, dog food, change of clothes? Check. Grandma’s cedar chest? Check.

We were prepared – physically at least.

“Mom,” Olivia mumbled from the backseat. “We can always build a new house, right?”

“Yes.”My hands trembled as I started the car. “At least we still have each other.”

**As a side note: this was a very personal exercise for me. We've had to evacuate our home three different times under threat of wild fire. Gratefully we've always had a home to come back to. We've learned some great lessons about being prepared and about what's really important, but lets be honest: It's never easy to drive away from your home, your memories, and your neighborhood with the prospect of losing it all.  

Don't forget to visit these other blogs to read their 100 word take on "I stared at the flames that" ...

Wendy Knight, Author: www.wendyknightauthor.blogspot.com

Kelly Martin, Author: www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com

Alison Woods (Peering Into. . .): http://alisonmillerwoods.wordpress.com/

Jessica Winn, The Distracted Writer:http://thedistractedwriter.com/

R.K. Grow: http://www.rkgtheauthor.com/

Stephanie Worlton's Kreating Krazy blog: http://stephanieworlton.blogspot.com/

Leah Sanders, inklings: http://inklings-leahsanders.blogspot.com/

Laura D. Bastian http://www.lauradbastian.com/

Jaclyn Weist  http://jaclynweist.blogspot.com

Amryn Scott http://wildscottkids.wordpress.com/

K.R. Wilburn  http://www.krwilburn.com/my-blog.html

Lindzee Armstrong/Lydia Winters http://lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com

Kat!e Larson http://katesnovelidea.blogspot.com

Miranda D. Nelson http://www.mirandadnelson.blogspot.com/

Angela Schroeder http://angelaschroederauthor.blogspot.com/

Wonhundred Word Wednesday: "Would you like fries with that?"

Every Wednesday I join with a group of other authors to do a little project called "WonHundred Word Wednesdays." The premise is this: we are assigned a prompt to which we each write a 100 word story, share it, then link to the other authors' blogs so you can read what they came up with.  - I missed out last week because I was out of town so I'm extra excited for today's prompt. "Would you like fries with that?" 

So, without further adieu, 

Here's My Story:  

Mark shifted his eyes across the room. Not much was left after she'd carried out her last box. Ten years drifted into memories almost as quickly as she could say the words.

“Would you like fries with that?” he said, handing over the keys to what used to be their car. Now, like more than half of their accumulated possessions, it was hers.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she scowled. Greedily, she took the keys then scooped her handbag off the counter. 

Mark handed her the salt shaker and opened the front door. “For your fries,” he nodded. She scowled again. 

Don't forget to visit these other blogs to read their 100 word take on "Would you like fries with that?" ...

Wendy Knight, Author: www.wendyknightauthor.blogspot.com

Kelly Martin, Author: www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com

Alison Woods (Peering Into. . .): http://alisonmillerwoods.wordpress.com/

Jessica Winn, The Distracted Writer:http://thedistractedwriter.com/

R.K. Grow: http://www.rkgtheauthor.com/

Stephanie Worlton's Kreating Krazy blog: http://stephanieworlton.blogspot.com/

Leah Sanders, inklings: http://inklings-leahsanders.blogspot.com/

Laura D. Bastian http://www.lauradbastian.com/

Jaclyn Weist  http://jaclynweist.blogspot.com

Amryn Scott http://wildscottkids.wordpress.com/

K.R. Wilburn  http://www.krwilburn.com/my-blog.html

Lindzee Armstrong/Lydia Winters http://lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com

Kat!e Larson http://katesnovelidea.blogspot.com

Miranda D. Nelson http://www.mirandadnelson.blogspot.com/

Angela Schroeder http://angelaschroederauthor.blogspot.com/

Disconnected

Five days without internet or cell service. 

Four very dirty 4-wheeling machines. 

Three smiling children. 

Two relaxed parents. 

One beautiful world.

It's hard to spend time in the mountains without recognizing Heavenly Father's hand in all things. There is beauty and grandeur all around us. From the largest of rock formations to the smallest of flowers, it is all spectacular.

After months of itching to get away, we at long last made our maiden camping trip for the season. I'll admit, I'm a bit of a pansy camper - I don't do cold and snow. Gratefully we had sun, sun, and more sun!

Five days of being disconnected from the busyness of modern life allowed me to connect with nature, with my family, and with good friends. I didn't even pack my laptop! It was heaven! 

We hiked. We rode. We built fires and devoured Dutch Oven desserts. We got sun-kissed. We got dirty.... We got to BREATHE We got to SMILE!

One hundred word story: "That's what happens when you follow your heart."

Every Wednesday I join with a group of other authors to do a little project called "WonHundred Word Wednesdays." The premise is this: we are assigned a prompt to which we each write a 100 word story, share it, then link to the other authors' blogs so you can read what they came up with. 

Today's Prompt: "That's what happens when you follow your heart."

Here's my story: 

“Let’s be sensible here,” Adam melted into serious mode.

"What if I don’t want to be sensible?” she asked. The lump in her throat was suffocating. Or was it the thought of her future?

“Come on Julia. Think with your head not your emotions. All your heart is going to do is get you into trouble.”

“You’re probably right.” She slid the engagement ring off her finger and handed it back to him.

“What are you doing?” his voice was ever calm. “Can we please talk about this?”

“No,” she opened the car door. “It’s time to follow my heart.”

Visit these other blogs to read their 100 word take on "what happens when you follow your heart" ...

Wendy Knight, Author: www.wendyknightauthor.blogspot.com

Kelly Martin, Author: www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com

Alison Woods (Peering Into. . .): http://alisonmillerwoods.wordpress.com/

Jessica Winn, the distracted writer:http://thedistractedwriter.com/

R.K. Grow: http://www.rkgtheauthor.com/

Stephanie Worlton's Kreating Krazy blog: http://stephanieworlton.blogspot.com/

Leah Sanders, inklings: http://inklings-leahsanders.blogspot.com/

Laura D. Bastian http://www.lauradbastian.com/

Jaclyn Weist  http://jaclynweist.blogspot.com

Amryn Scott http://wildscottkids.wordpress.com/

K.R. Wilburn  http://www.krwilburn.com/my-blog.html

Lindzee Armstrong/Lydia Winters http://lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com

Kat!e Larson http://katesnovelidea.blogspot.com

Miranda Nelson http://www.mirandadnelson.blogspot.com/

Cover Reveal: REWIND TO YOU by Laura Johnston

Cover Reveal, About the Author, a Sneak Peek of REWIND TO YOU and Rafflecopter Giveaway

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Author: Laura Johnston

Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.

Genre: Clean Contemporary YA Romance

Release Date: September 15, 2014; Available for PREORDER now

One last summer before college
on beautiful Tybee Island is supposed to help Sienna forget. But how can she?
This is where her family spent every summer before everything changed, before
the world as she knew it was ripped away.

But the past isn’t easily left
behind. Especially when Sienna keeps having episodes that take her back to the
night she wants to forget. Even when she meets the mysterious Austin Dobbs, the
guy with the intense blue eyes, athlete’s body, and weakness for pralines who
scooped her out of trouble when she blacked out on River Street.

When she’s with Austin, Sienna feels a whole new world opening up
to her. Austin has secrets, and she has history. But caught between the past
and the future, Sienna can still choose what happens now…

About the Author:

Laura's Official Website * Facebook Page * Twitter * Goodreads

Laura
Johnston lives in sunny Arizona
with her husband and two children. Growing up in Orem, Utah with five siblings,
a few horses, peach trees, beehives and gardens, she developed an active
imagination and always loved a good story. Laura enjoys running, playing tennis, sewing, dancing (deduced to dancing around the kitchen
while cooking dinner these days), traveling, writing, writing and more writing,
and above all, spending time with her husband and kids. REWIND TO YOU, her
debut novel, was inspired by the loss of her father as a teenager.

A Sneak Peek of REWIND TO YOU:

Giveaway: Signed Copy of REWIND TO YOU and $25 Amazon Gift Card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. The winner, chosen by Rafflecopter, will be announced here on April 29th as well as emailed. The winner will have 5 days to respond at which point a new winner will be chosen. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.

TODAY ONLY - Get a FREE copy of All the Finer Things

Today's the BIG DAY! After much anticipation I get to officially celebrate the release of All the Finer Things. As a thanks to all those who've supported this project along, I've got two FREE copies of All the Finer Things up for grabs.

The contest is going to go like this:

• Answer the following questions. (With correct answers, not the smart aleck ones I know most of my friends are itching to contribute!) 
• Bring the answers to me between 2 and 4pm at the Copper Rim Cafe. 
• The first 2 people to bring me the (correct!) answers will get a FREE copy of All the Finer Things. Shucks, I'll even sign it for you. 
• And, if you're not one of the first 2? Don't fret. Your efforts will still be rewarded with 10% off your choice of one of my (already discounted) books. 
• 
  

Easy enough? I think so. So, here we go. The questions: 

1. In All the Finer Things, one of my favorite characters is Bosco, a 175 pound Bullmastiff. He was inspired by my own Bullmastiff, Lilah. 
• What two breeds were crossed in the 19th century to create this amazing breed? _________________________________________________________________ (hint, check out Wikipedia) 
• What were they bred for? _____________________________________________
2. All the Finer Things is set in a California community that grows apricots and strawberries. Stawberries are one of the top 10 products of California. Name two more: _________________________________________________________ (hint, click here.)
3. Ammon Carter, the hero of our story, holds what volunteer position in his community? ____________________________________(hint: its on the back book cover. Hint #2: my husband Ryan recently got released after 7 consecutive years in this calling.)
4. On the cover of All the Finer Things is a classic truck. What kind of truck is it?__________ Who took the photo? ____________________________ (hint: both answers can be found here.)
5. Some of my most popular features on my blog are my DIARY OF A MISSIONARY MOM posts. What was my latest post about? (I'm going to make you work a little for this one. My last post was only a few days ago so you could scroll through my recent posts to find it. Or, if you're a short-cut taker, there's a link at the top of this blog titled Diary of a Missionary Mom... it might just take you were you need to go *wink* *wink*)  

My beautiful baby girl, Delilah Rose.

Party! Party!

I don't know if I've said this before but I think it warrants being said again: Book Baby #3 is out! Whew hoo! Cause for a celebration? Yes. Absolutely, astonishingly, overwhelmingly, YES!

Throw on your red boots and let's party! 

Wait, you don't have fabulous red boots? Well, neither do I, but we can party anyway. 

Don't miss this chance to pick up copies of my books at discounted prices. All three will be available. 

And, if my books aren't draw enough, come experience the fun atmosphere at "The Rim." They've got lots of yummy food choices (you know, just in case you happen to miss lunch) and when it comes to dessert it doesn't get much better than their frozen yogurt with pretty much any topping you can imagine! Check out their website at  http://copperrimcafe.com/

One hundred word story: The Devil's Name is Fred.

In case you missed it, last week I added a fun new feature to my blog. I've joined with a group of other authors to do a little project called "WonHundred Word Wednesdays." The premise is this: each week we will be assigned a prompt. We will each write a 100 word story based on the prompt, share it, then link to the other authors' blogs so you can read what they came up with. 

Today's prompt is: The Devil's name is Fred. 

Here's my story: 

“Hello beautiful!”

“Hi,” I hesitated. Even after all these years there was something appealing about his eyes. Deep, inviting… compelling.

“You remember me, right?”

His smile constrained me to surrender despite my instinct to run. “Um, yah,” I swallowed the ball in my throat. “Of course I do,” I offered a smile.

His eyes of amber pierced mine again. “You haven’t changed a bit,” he baited. “Just as beautiful as always.”

He gently touched my chin. My knees went weak. “Fred,” his name formulated on my tongue.

He winked. Our catastrophic past suddenly blurred. I must be a slow learner.

Visit these other blogs to read their 100 word take on "FRED" ...

Wendy Knight, Author: www.wendyknightauthor.blogspot.com

Kelly Martin, Author: www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com

Alison Woods (Peering Into. . .): http://alisonmillerwoods.wordpress.com/

Jessica Winn, the distracted writer:http://thedistractedwriter.com/

R.K. Grow: http://www.rkgtheauthor.com/

Stephanie Worlton's Kreating Krazy blog: http://stephanieworlton.blogspot.com/

Leah Sanders, inklings: http://inklings-leahsanders.blogspot.com/

Laura D. Bastian http://www.lauradbastian.com/

Jaclyn Weist  http://jaclynweist.blogspot.com

Amryn Scott http://wildscottkids.wordpress.com/

K.R. Wilburn  http://www.krwilburn.com/my-blog.html

Lindzee Armstrong/Lydia Winters http://lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com

Kat!e Larson http://katesnovelidea.blogspot.com

Miranda Nelson http://www.mirandadnelson.blogspot.com/

Trusted by Krista Wayment

Today I've got author Krista Wayment as a guest on Kreating Krazy. Her debut middle grade fantasy Dragons' Trust Book One: Trusted is now available. 

First, a little about her book... 

Dragons' Trust Book One: Trusted

The legends are true, dragons speak.

Renick, the fifth son of a dragon breeder, crashes into an unexpected adventure that challenges everything he thought he knew about dragons, history, and himself.

Stranded in the massive Helath forest, Renick meets two other passengers: Thane, a noble training to be a dragon knight, and Lainey, the orphaned niece of a healer. Together they survive an attack by vicious wolves, rescue a baby dragon with a broken wing, and escape from a band of dragon hunters as they make a perilous climb into the mountains. What they discover there will change everything.

Available now in Paperback and  Kindle.

I've got some serious dragon and magic lovers at my house. I'm sure my eleven year old is going to eat this story up! I'm interested to know what it is about Dragon's that Krista loves. Here's what she says: 

The breathe fire. Okay, that's not the only reason but you have to admit it is pretty cool. They can also fly. It's really hard to put into words (a funny thing for a writer to say), but dragons just inspire me.

Often dragons are portrayed with a sense of ancient wisdom. I like the idea of creatures that live a very long time and because of that they have all this wisdom that can only be gained from experience.

Other times dragons are the villains--also cool. Slaying a dragon can be immensely difficult so when the hero finally conquers the fiery beast when know he has accomplished something great.

If dragons were real I would want one as a pet or a friend. The things I would most want to do with my dragon pal is go flying. I admit I find that ironic since I hate flying and am terrified of heights. But yes, I would like to fly on the back of a dragon. Also, I would figure out a way to have my dragon help me get my chores done.

Q -  Why did you decide to write for young readers (aka Middle Grade)?

When I was growing up I kind of skipped the whole middle grade section of the library and went straight to adult. Mostly because that is where I found the best Science Fiction and Fantasy books. Later, when I was all grown up I kind of "discovered" middle grade books and fell in love. So I decided to try my hand at writing one and loved that even more.

Q -  What is your favorite book (that you haven't written)?

That's a tough one because I have read so many books that I love. I'll mention just a few. First, The Blue Sword by Robin McKinely and second, The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander. They have both inspired my writing a lot.

Q -  Where do you write?

Where ever my laptop happens to be. My busy and chaotic life demands that I be mobile and flexible. It works for me.

Q -  Other than reading and writing, what else do you do?

I'm a mom and part-time computer programmer. Those are my main "jobs," other than writing. I also really enjoy playing video games (especially Zelda) and crocheting.

Author Website: www.kristawayment.com

Book Website: dragonstrust.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Krista-Wayment-Author/223311651035091?ref=hl

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KristaWayment

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5764548-krista-wayment

Who Get's the 12th Doughnut? - A New Dynamic at Home

In a moment that probably won't earn me any "Mother of the Year" awards, I slid my slippered feet gracefully to the checkout. The accompanying fleece pajamas and oversized hoody seemed all too appropriate for my trip. What could be more fitting for an early morning doughnut run? I mean, come on, people, work with me here.

A dozen round gems in arms, I paid the cashier and made haste back to my car. This is the part of the story where I wish I could say I had enough self control to wait til I was back home to break open that box. Let's get real, they were fresh-baked. Warm! Need I say more? I did manage to keep the sticky glaze off my steering wheel. Small victories, right? *wink*

It didn't take long after getting those babies into the house to realize our problem. As it turns out, donuts come in dozens... and twelve doesn't divide very easily between five people. Quite the quandary we've been faced with. The absence of our 6th member seems to have caused a problem. What to do with the extra 2 donuts?

If I said this was the first time we've run into this problem, I would be a liar. Honestly, it's just part of the new dynamic at our home. From six down to five has been a tough adjustment at times. I can't count the number of times I've pulled six plates from the cupboard or thrown six burgers on the grill. I've even made an extra sandwich or two once or twice.

My thirteen year old and I decided to take one for the team this time around. Hopefully our bellies don't look too round from the extra intake of sugar. We will have to find a better way to address this problem in the future, but for now, know that the 11th and 12th donuts were well loved and enjoyed. :)