An extremely rainy summer in New England has given way to a pleasant autumn along the coast of Maine. What a wonderful time for writing and reading books! Crisp leaves stir underfoot, acorns drop from oak trees on sunny afternoons, and the apple harvest at my local pick-your-own orchard has been bountiful.
Apple-peelers are handy devicesCold storage is best for applesMaking Apple Crisp
Leaves, beautiful leaves
A small maple tree spreads its delicate branches in a local forest preserve
Most of the tall oaks still haven’t lost their golden leaves, but the first light snowflakes began to fall about a week ago. Usually the first flakes strike a bit of fear into my heart, because winters are very long in Maine.
But this time I enjoyed the brief wintery spell because it set the mood for the final touches on my upcoming book, a mystery novella that’s set in December: The Ruins of Reverie.
New Book!
Did you know that central France is home to forests, rugged terrain, and geothermal hot springs? Wildcats also live there, interestingly enough.
These are just some of the fascinating features I learned while researching the area for the fourth volume of the Stonehaven Mysteries.
For any of my readers who have been mystified by the origins of the winged Cat, check out this final installment in the series!
It’s June and lupines are blooming along the coast of Maine!
Rainstorms and lingering clouds have kept us relatively free of the wildfire smoke that’s been blanketing New York and other eastern cities with a thick orange haze. Here in Maine, our summer might have been cold and gray so far, but the skies seem to be clearing up at last.
Many species of wildflowers burst into bloom this month and right now the lupines are putting on a fine show.
Wild Strawberries and Rhubarb
Most of the coastline is heavily forested here, but wherever you find a grassy field or pasture, you’ll find wild strawberries too. Rhubarb patches are common around old homesteads.
Wild strawberries are tiny, soft, fragile fruits, so collecting a large quantity of them is impractical, but these little goodies ripen at the same time as rhubarb. Just a handful can pack a burst of flavor.
Wild Strawberries ripening in my back meadow – tiny but bursting with flavor
Rhubarb stalks in a shady patch next to my barn
Easy Recipe for Rhubarb Sauce with Strawberries
You can substitute stalks of purchased rhubarb and finely diced regular strawberries in this recipe.
Fresh rhubarb (enough to make about 2 cups of diced chunks).
Fresh wild strawberries (about 1/4 cup)
Sugar to taste
Rinse fruit. Dice the rhubarb stalks. Place rhubarb chunks and whole wild strawberries in saucepan with 1/4 cup water. Cover and bring to a boil, then quickly lower to a simmer.
Continue to simmer until the fruit is tender, about 5 minutes. Rhubarb is naturally very sour, so you’ll need to sweeten up this sauce with white or brown sugar. (Start with 2 TBS and add more if desired.)
Enjoy warm or chilled.
Recently I came across a great source of recipe ideas from the Maine Cooperative Extension. Many of the recipes feature produce and other staples of Maine. Here’s the link:
When I first started working on Hidden Cove, I never realized that artificial intelligence would spread so quickly and become such a big part of our lives. This summer I’ve been thinking a lot about AI as I draft the follow-up.
As Kiri’s story continues in the sequel to Hidden Cove, she’ll have to come to grips with envy… and with the ancient menace lurking in the waters. And DreamReader’s innovate airborne device won’t be the only technological threat on the horizon.
While I’ve been drafting the sequel, I’ve given a new look to Hidden Cove with a cover that reflects its remote location and suspenseful tone.
It’s April – and it’s snowing again in my New England meadow
The Calendar Says It’s Spring
I can hear the sounds of spring. Birds are chirping and warbling somewhere outside. But what I see is SNOW.
Yes – it’s snowing again! And there are still no leaves on the trees.
This is New England, where it snows even in April. At least the snow melts quickly in this season. On the other hand, when the snow melts there’s LOTS of mud.
The snow melts quickly in April! Downside: then there’s LOTS of mud!
Do I Have Any Choice in Footwear?
The other day I chanced to be in a store where I saw some good-looking footwear on sale. To buy or not to buy? The styles were attractive and the sale prices were tempting. For a moment I wavered – and then I remembered all the mud.
There’s only one real choice in footwear in this season
My practical pair of boots can handle all the mud around these parts. Not very fashionable, but they do the job.
Evergreens and Pink Skies
Without any spring flowers or new leaves there’s not much color. But there’s still some – the needles of evergreens provide a muted green and the sky is often pink with color at sunrise and sunset. Do you like the smell of evergreens? Their scent is supposed to be especially energizing. If you’d like to try an aromatherapy essential oil, check out this link to the folks at PlantTherapy. They carry a wide range of oils including spruce and balsam fir. I’ve used their spruce and fir holiday blend and can vouch for an authentic scent.
Color, fabulous color! The trees don’t have any leaves, but the eastern sky can be a luminous pink at sunrise
More plusses to counter the mud: Around here, the air is always fresh. Your drinking water comes from a well that pumps from a subterranean reserve under your own property.
The coast of New England is also a quiet place to write and think. It’s far away from traffic and the bustle of cities. OK, so the internet’s a little sketchy here – I don’t have any internet service at home, in fact. But that makes it easy to spend time imagining story dialogues and scenes.
Or to imagine the coming of spring leaves and flowers at last!
What’s a romance author to do? It’s not easy writing paranormal romance novels. There’s so much advice, especially from a certain quarter.
The Devil Tells Romance Author: You’ve Got It All Wrong
Do you want your books to sell? Then listen to me. Put in the sleaze, add as many explicit scenes as you can, and don’t skimp on graphic wording. Forget about the plot. Don’t spend time on writing well.
But I have something else in mind that fired my imagination in the first place. The kind of stories I’m envisioning are exciting and romantic and fast-paced – but they’re driven along by emotions, not explicit passages.
You’re wrong about attracting readers, too.
For instance,Victorine Lieske wrote a clean romance thriller that was on the NY Times best-selling ebook list for 6 weeks in 2011. This energetic romance author went on to write more clean romance novels and earn over a quarter of a million dollars.
But it’s a sad fact that there aren’t as many clean romance novels available as explicit ones.
Romance readers should have more choices!
This Romance Author is Naïve About Readers, Scoffs the Devil
Choices for romance readers? You’re making a big mistake!
You’re pitifullynaïve… Romance readers will never turn the pages unless you bait them with explicit passages. Romance readers don’t really think, you see.
The sooner you adapt your methods to their true nature, the
better – for the sake of your own career as a romance author.
Romance readers DO have minds of their own. Just look at all the
reviews and comments posted by legions of readers.
Which brings me to an interesting point: there’s certain kind of comment I keep seeing. I could cite some actual reviews here, but I don’t want to quote anybody without their knowledge, so I’ll just paraphrase some of the comments I’ve read in the last month or so.
There were so many pages to every explicit scene that I had
trouble getting through it all, but the weddings were nice.
The graphic scenes were too long and detailed. I’m an adult,
and I don’t want or need such lengthy treatments.
The long accounts of explicit sex were overdone – been there, done that. Boring. I’m not interested in a how-to manual – I want to be thrilled by what the characters think and feel!
I can’t be the only one who has noticed plenty of comments like these.
Romance readers really do deserve more choices!
The hero of her novel is a vampire? I’d better investigate this!
The Devil’s Parting Shot: But Those Vampires Will Get You Into Trouble!
Well, I’ve got better things to do than waste time with a
stubborn soul like you.
I’ll leave you alone for now. I can’t wait to undermine the confidence of
some other hapless author.
All of you authors are such easy pickings!
But don’t think you’re in the clear yet, Linn. You’re going to get into hot water over those drop-dead gorgeous vampires in your books.
My rival in the Angelic Hosts will be tickled pink over the clean romance angle – but she’s going to
be VERY alarmed about the VAMPIRE HERO in your first book!
I was peeking over your shoulder as you finished drafting that story – and I could see for myself that your hero’s a 200-year-old vampire who will seem sizzlin’ hot to women readers – hotter than Hades – even with all his clothes on.
I’m going to tip off my Angelic adversary right now. What do you have to say to that?
Hotter than Hades or not, the vampire characters need to stay in my series.
Evil spirits like you
won’t like this, but I’ve woven some extra themes into the romance, themes
about conscience and what it means to be human. Having vampires in the
storyline makes everything work so that my themes come alive in a special way.
If your rival in the Angelic Hosts has any questions, I’ll be
happy to answer them.
I live on the coast of New England, where winter brings short days, snow, sleet and ice. How do you beat the winter blues in such a climate?
Tree branches can crack, power lines can go down. Cold viruses can make their way through my kids, picking them off one by one. Do I get sick too? Sure, but I’m already in a state of hibernation, so I don’t really notice.
the woods near my home
Wintertime: dark, cold, long and miserable?
Or – maybe it’s a great opportunity to strike up some special routines.
Forest Bathing in the Cold: Evergreen Heaven
Recently, I went on a refreshing walk on this wintery forest trail. I went with one of my sons, who spearheaded the venture. He’s a hardy soul who loves to spend time in nature, no matter what the season.
This is the quiet path I took through a nearby nature preserve
Ice and snow covered
the trail, so we picked our way over the ground very carefully. The moss was
bright green against the white snow – moss is much better adapted to cold
weather than we humans. Moss can photosynthesize during the winter despite the
freezing cold air.
Our slow walk was really a cold-weather version of Forest Bathing.
Have you heard about Forest Bathing? It seems to be a popular notion these days. Here’s the book I’m reading right now. Click here or on the cover image to see its page on Amazon.
click on cover to see book in Amazon
The author, Dr. Qing Li, is a Japanese scientist. He cites lots of data to support the benefits, but he also brings a poetic enthusiasm to the subject. It’s clear that he absolutely adores trees and forests.
The forest walk I took with my son passed through bare,
deciduous trees (maple and oak) mixed with evergreens, like spruce and fir. The
moss was a bright, happy green, and the fallen leaves and needles were a warm
hue of terra-cotta.
Our walk over the icy trail wasn’t long – maybe 20 minutes –
but we both felt calmer and clearer when we were done.
The benefits of Forest Bathing are more welcome than ever during a cold, dark winter. I decided that it’s worth the effort to bundle up and make it a winter routine!
If you live in a part of the world with a difficult season-
whether it’s winter or some other strain – Forest Bathing could help you too.
Maybe there’s a forest trail, or city park with trees near your own home.
Even 20 minutes spent walking through the trees can revive
your spirits!
Beat the Winter Blues with Printed Books
Cozy and tactile: my current book, a comfy chair and a couple of my handknitted pillows
Maybe you feel the same way I do after reading text on a screen for too long – like a zombie with no brain waves, no personality of my own. One of the Undead.
Reading a printed book is different. The cover and pages have a tactile quality – and a rhythmic motion (that pleasant turning of the pages).
These little perks can help us to remember we’re alive and breathing, not zombies after all.
I’ve also noticed that when I read a printed book, I feel
less like a viewer of a vast network of online media – and more like an owner of something.
I think to myself: “I’m holding an entire work with its body of thoughts, or its fictional story world, all between my two hands.” It’s empowering.
A magical and dizzying thought!
I have the same feelings when I hold library books, even though I don’t really own them. (Good news for the pocketbook!)
In fact, the Forest Bathing book that I’m reading right now comes from a local library.
Have you tried inter-library loans recently? I’m amazed at how well they work. The process of requesting books from other libraries is easy, fast – and free.
Whether you borrow printed books from a library, find them at
book sales, order used books – or buy
them brand-new – it’s a great idea to keep some more printed books around your
home, especially during the winter.
I like both ebooks and printed books… there’s a place for each in our lives.
Printed books take more effort to obtain, but they’re worth it, especially in winter.Having more printed books on hand during the winter months can make you feel empowered and make your reading times cozier and more special.
Beat the Winter Blues – Make Time for Afternoon Tea
I made the tea and blueberry cake, my daughter made the cool pottery
It will be REALLY easy for me to stay faithful to this routine over the course of the winter!
When the sun sinks low and the weak winter light grows dim outside, I make a cup of tea, or even a whole pot if the rest of my family is interested (they always are when they’re home). In fact, I sometimes make 2 pots, one with black tea and one with herbal.
Black tea is my favorite, at least in the afternoon. I often grate some ginger root into the brewing water. Spicy!
Here’s a surprising fact you may not know: even though it’s caffeinated, black tea actually reduces your level of stress because it lowers one of the stress-hormones, cortisol. Here’s a link to a report in Medical News Today: Black tea really reduces cortisol
So, black tea may be caffeinated, but by one of those magic tricks of nature – voila! – it’s actually good for you.
I like that kind of magic!
Now, when sipping tea, it’s important to nibble on something comforting. Junk food doesn’t work, but neither does health food. Store away the super-optimized energy bars for some other time.
Instead, try something that’s not rich, but just a little bit special – like biscotti, or a simple cake, or traditional teatime scones.
Check out my recipe for the Afternoon Blueberry Cakepictured in the photo . It’s a tried-and-true favorite at my house, and it doesn’t take long to make.
What are some of your favorite ways to survive a harsh season, be it hot, cold, windy or always rainy? Leave me your tips by clicking on “comment” above, near the post title – I’d love to hear from you.
You’ll RECIEVE NEWS about my new paranormal romance series, TAKE A PEEKat some of the intriguing real-life locations in the Northeastern United States and Britain that inspired my settings, and BROWSE a sampling of the strange-but-true facts I’ve stumbled upon while writing my books.
