SEA WITCH by Carol Ann Kauffman

Dr. Laura Martin, Chief Extraterrestrial Life Scientist at The Touchstone Institute of Oceanographic Research, noticed troubling but subtle changes in the Atlantic Ocean. Before she could make sense of it all, her longtime assistant abruptly walked out. Laura hired young, handsome Scott Conner to be her personal assistant. Mayhem ensued, mainly because of Zara, the mermaid/siren/monster in the basement of the Touchstone Institute, who eyed on Scott as her possible mate in a plot for total domination of planet Earth.

“The Touchstone Institute of Oceanographic Research is the most fantastic, exhilarating place on the planet to work. It is high energy, exciting, sometimes maddening, often frightening, heart pounding work. It’s not a job. It’s a lifetime commitment. It gets in your blood. It grabs you by the throat and possesses you, body and soul. And it is work. If you’re not prepared to work your ass off day in and day out, weekends, holidays, your birthday, and your mamma’s birthday, leave now.”

Buy Link:  http://tinyurl.com/ljan72s

A Review from Amazon.com

4.0 out of 5 starsMan-eating she-beasts need love too

ByJames Stubbson August 25, 2015

Format: Kindle Edition

If you like romance with science fiction, you're going to really enjoy this. It's kind of like Men in Black but with USOs (Unidentified Submerged Objects) but the main characters aren't government agents, but scientists (but they definitely aren't afraid to use a gun or kill when necessary). I won't go into the plot because that would spoil things but you get some real twists thrown into here with two very human characters, who don't necessarily remain that way. And, yes, the romance is quite good once you get past Scott's immediate and complete infatuation.

The villain of the piece, Zara, even comes across as sympathic... well, as sympathetic as an man-eating alien she-beast can be. If I had one ding against the story it was Zara's wildly shifting emotions. In a lot of ways, it can be explained by the events in the story but it is very obliquely done. Also, even better, there are plenty of seeds in this story for a sequel and I really hope that happens.

Book Review: Miss Demeanor Suspense Series

Interview with Author Dianne Harman

 Dianne Harman

Southern California

Good morning, Dianne, and welcome to Vision and Verse, the Place for Art and Authors. We are delighted to have you with us this morning. For those who aren't already familiar with your work, can you tell us what you've written? 

Suspense series, Coyote Series, and four cozy mystery series: Cedar Bay, Liz Lucas, High Desert, and Midwest.

What is your favorite genre to write? 

Cozy Mystery

And you do it well! Favorite food. 

Prime rib

Tea or coffee?

Coffee

Pizza or ice cream?

Pizza

Wine or beer?

Wine

Where would you like to visit?

Bhutan

Do you listen to music when you write?  What? 

No, I like the quiet.

Me, too. What makes you laugh?

Things that just happen, not jokes.

Favorite work of art or sculpture. 

Anything by Georgia O’Keefe

How old were you when you started writing?

68

Describe your perfect evening. 

A glass of wine, a good dinner, and a book.

Where do you get your inspiration?

Everywhere

What do you do when you get a writer's block?

I’ve never had it.

Who is your favorite author? 

Whoever I’m reading at the moment.

Best book you ever read. 

Couldn’t single one out.

Last book you read. 

Am reading five at the moment.

What would you do for a living if you weren’t a writer?

If I was younger, I’d be a chef or breed dogs.

Who is the one person who has influenced your personal life the most and why? 

My husband because he has supported me over the years no matter what I’ve become involved in.

If you could sit down and have a conversation with ONE person, living or dead, real or fictional, who would it be and why? 

The Dalai Lama. He’s a constant source of inspiration.

He is a true source of inspiration to us all. What advice would you give someone who aspired to be a writer? 

Just do it! You don’t need degrees, critic groups, or workshops.




Do you some links so we can follow you?
Links:
http://ow.ly/s6pN5
Web Site http://www.DianneHarman.com
Blog: http://dianneharman.com/blog/
Twitter: @DianneDHarman
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_8?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=dianne%20harman&sprefix=Dianne%20H%2Cdigital-text%2C407&rh=i%3Adigital-text%2Ck%3Adianne%20harman

Dale Chihuly, Glassmaster

Dear Gentle Readers,
When we were in Las Vegas in 2007, we were lucky enough to view the unusual and breathtaking glass sculpture of one very talented Dale Chihuly at the Bellagio.  Beautiful as a description just doesn't come close.  Once you have seen one of his creations, you are forever changed as to what you think is beautiful and what you believe is possible.  You can recognize one of his pieces wherever you seen it.  I believe Dale Chihuly invented the American Art category of "glass sculpture."

 My mother had a collection of depression glass, so we were aware at a young age the beauty and fragility of colored glass. But Dale Chihuly's work is jaw-dropping.  His pieces are no little footed candy dishes!

Dale Chihuly was born in Tacoma, Washington on September 20, 1941. Reports indicate Dale was not a stellar student. and after graduating Woodrow Wilson High School in 1959, he bounced around a few different colleges, but nothing ignited his fire, so he quit college and went to Florence to study art.
(Lucky for us!!!)

  

 He began glassblowing in 1965 and found his true calling, becoming an internationally recognized glass sculptor.  He worked at the Murano Glass Factory near Venice.  We toured the facility, as that was something I always wanted to do. (Tour, not blow)

Dale's largest permanent collection can be viewed at the Oklahoma city Museum of Art, and visiting it is also on my bucket list.
            

His work and reputation are more prominent in the West.  I was thrilled to see some of his work in Colorado the last time we were there, similar to these beautiful flower pods to the right, with vibrant opalescent two and three-toned contrasting colors.

During a visit to England in 1976, Dale was in a very serious auto accident, leaving him with no sight in his left eye and the loss of depth perception.  (That's why he wears an eye patch.)  He once said this disability caused him to move on to working on projects of a much larger scale.  

Many of Dale's prominent pieces were chandeliers.  His initial pieces, around 1992, were modest and lovely, but soon they blossomed into beautiful flowers, and breasts, and snakes, and  all kinds of wild glass creations one wouldn't expect on a chandelier, and it was fabulous.

 In the 1970s, Dale did a series of glass paintings based on Native American designs, aptly titles his Navajo Blanket series.

The documentary, Chihuly Over Venice, was a truly spectacular event, coordinating glass and color and water and timing.  

None of these photos are mine.  I claim nothing here.  Nothing is mine, except the memories.  I looked him up on Wikipedia and Facebook.  I simply wanted to share my limited knowledge of this fabulous glass artist/glass master so my readers would associate the name, Dale Chihuly with these magnificent glass creations.



Links to learn more about him:
www.chihuly.com/  
www.ocmoa.com
He is on Facebook and Wikipedia.

Schedule for August 22-26, 2016

Schedule

August 22 - 26, 2016

Mon., Aug. 22 - The Art of  Dale Chihuly

Tues., Aug. 23 - Interview with Author Dianne Harman

Wed., Aug. 24 - Book Review Miss Deameanor Suspense Series

Thurs., Aug. 25 - The Art of Hillary Eddy

Fri., Aug. 26 - Sea Witch by Carol Ann Kauffman