Schedule for April 3 - 7, 2017

SCHEDULE for

April 3 - 7, 2017

Mon., April 3 -  Spring into Romance

 Giveaway Blog Hop 

Tues., April 4 -  FREE Today! BELTERRA 

by Carol Ann Kauffman 

Wed., April 5 - ART - The Art of

David Lloyd Glover

Thurs., April 6 - Reviews for BELTERRA

by Carol Ann Kauffman

Fri., April 7 - ART -Village on the Canal

by Texas Collage Artist Parker Kaufman

How We Fall by Melissa Toppen

How We Fall Cover Reveal

It’s not always about how we fall- it’s about where we end up once we land.

I remember the very first time I laid eyes on Cole Lincoln. It still feels like yesterday when he stumbled into my life with his messy brown hair and dark eyes. Even though I was only ten years old at the time, I knew right then and there that he was going to change everything.

From that point on Cole and I were always together—inseparable—and I naively believed we’d be best friends forever. But forever didn’t last nearly as long as I expected.

We grew up and grew apart, life driving the distance between us, but my love for Cole never faltered. Even long after he moved away, leaving me and our little town behind, I still carried a piece of him with me every single day. Because Cole wasn’t just my childhood best friend- the boy who knew me better than anyone else in the whole world. He was also my first love- a part of my very core.

When a tragic death brings us face to face again after six years, every single memory comes rushing to the surface. Only this is not the boy I fell in love with all those years ago. The man before me is hardened, intimidating, and so damn sexy I practically melt when those dark eyes meet mine for the first time in six years.

And like the first time he walked into my life, I know with complete certainty that everything is about to change.

How We Fall is a STANDALONE Contemporary Romance.

Melissa Toppen is a Reader's Choice Award Winning and Bestselling Romance Author of New Adult, Contemporary, Erotic and Romantic Suspense. She is a lover of books and enjoys nothing more than losing herself in a good novel. She has a soft spot for Romance and focuses her writing in that direction; writing what she loves to read.

Melissa was born and raised in a small town in Ohio and now resides in Cincinnati with her husband and two children, where she writes full time.

In addition to spending time with family and friends, Melissa loves going to concerts and is obsessed with the T.V. shows Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Once Upon a Time and Outlander.

Connect with Melissa Toppen

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The Homecoming, Bayou Shfters One by Tammy Tate

Sydney is half human, half wolf, and has fallen in love with Kyle, a full-fledged shifter who for the last six months has been appearing in her dreams. 

The next full moon, Sydney makes her first shift from human to wolf. The transformation won’t be easy. Thanks to her human genes, it could leave her disfigured. Or, worse. Dead.

Edward knows he can't rush Sydney to the hospital if something goes terribly wrong, so he sends his only daughter to live with his late wife’s wolf clan deep in Louisiana’s alligator infested bayou. Despite holding Edward responsible for her sister’s death, Susan agrees to help. 

Sydney learns Kyle is in Bayou Fontaine. But, for the sake of the pack, the council has already chosen Emily, as his mate. The relentless she-wolf will stop at nothing to claim what is rightfully hers and teams up with Kyle’s twin brother, Justin, who’s hell bent on revenge.

The clock is ticking...

Amazon Link:

https://www.amazon.com/Homecoming-Bayou-Shifters-Book-ebook/dp/B01N4OJD6J/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1489754301&sr=1-1&keywords=tammy+tate+the+homecoming

This review is from: The Homecoming (Bayou Shifters) (Volume 1) (Paperback)

In the Homecoming, Bayou Shifters One, Tammy Tate has created a credible, interesting wolf world isolated in the bayou country, where half-shifter Sidney is sent by her father to train for her first wolf transformation, which is always the hardest and sometimes even a fatal event. The twists and turns keep you guessing as Sidney's path is thwarted with danger and evil intentions. But Kyle, a forbidden love she cannot resist, give her strength and purpose in this novel where their family members are true beasts. Outstanding Plot! I highly recommend. 

Tammy is having a goodreads giveaway right now!

Here is the link to participate: https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/3c13e2d7d4708052

The Dreamy, Ethereal Art of Evgeny Lushpin

The Dreamy, Ethereal Art of 

Evgeny Lushpin

The paintings of Evgeny Lushpin have an ethereal, dreamlike quality that draws the eye of the viewer into the beauty of his photo-like art work.  At first, you think it’s a photo; a really, really great photo, with perfect lighting and balance of hues and tone resonance, a perfect picture of a familiar famous city or landmark scene.  




But upon further examination, one sees it is a painting, a beautiful painting with a golden light emanating from a 

perfectly composed piece.  He not only transport you to that perfect place, but to that perfect time.  One cannot view a Lushpin and not be touched, in my opinion.  I wonder if this is how this amazing Russian painter actually sees the world!

Evgeny Lushpin, a celebrated contemporary artist, was born in a small town outside of Moscow in November of 1966 and was educated in the finest schools in Russia, following the traditional techniques of the Russian Realism School of Art.  

Nothing here is mine. Here are my sources.

Resources:

BLUE LAKE by Carol Ann Kauffman

 Dear Gentle Readers,

BLUE LAKE was the first book I published. I wrote BLUE LAKE and BELTERRA at the same time, so I could never decided which came first. BLUE LAKE was originally titled Belpiccolo but my editor thought it was too ethnic, so we changed it. 

Here is the target audience statement for BLUE LAKE from 2010, when I was sending query letters to the big publishing companies.

Belpiccolo is a love story.  It is a state of mind, as well as a place, uniting two unlikely lovers across years, continents, and the universe.  It’s targeted audience is female over thirty, who have loved and lost, or who are still waiting, still hoping.  This targeted audience is ever-growing.  

This is not the original cover. In fact, BLUE LAKE has had more facelifts than Joan Rivers, may she rest in peace.

    

The first cover photo was from Lago Maggiore in northern Italy in the Lake region. I turn the photo on vacation years ago, and was captivated by it's serene beauty.

I loved the cover. It had the ethereal, timeless quality I was seeking.

However, as technology improved and requirements for online photos became more than my little point-and-shoot camera could deliver, I had to move on to another visual interpretation of BLUE LAKE, this one down the street from me at the time, part of the Girard Lake system.  

Although the cover has changed over the last seven years, BLUE LAKE remains the same, a state of mind as well as a place, uniting two unlikely lovers across years, continents, and the universe. BLUE LAKE is the first in the Time After Time series, that follows a pair of unlikely lovers through their many lifetimes together. 

It's a strange take on reincarnation, I know. And I'm not a believer in the concept. I believe this is no dress rehearsal, sweetie, so get out there and get moving!

Books in the Time After Time series SO FAR are: BLUE LAKE, BELTERRA, a sci-fi post apocalyptic story of opposing clans, BENTLEY SQUARE, rich girl falls for poor boy with problems, THE BASLICATO, a man caught in the wrong time and the wrong body with the right woman, Waiting for Richard, a novella where our lovers are senior citizens feeling as if love has past them by, LORD OF BLAKELEY, where our lovers really were born on other planets, but do visit Chicago in the '60s, and MacKALVEY HOUSE, where a young American girl falls in love with an older British author.

Please note the titles of full-length novels are in all capitals, and shorter stories appear in regular print. There are a few more at different stages of development in the Time After Time series and the last one will reveal who I think this couple really is. They are a famous couple in our culture and literature.

Amazon Link: http://tinyurl.com/nt2ro9j

More to come on BLUE LAKE in the coming weeks.

Hugs,

Carol

Authors in Bloom 10 Days of Daily Giveaways Blog Hop

Happy Spring, Gentle Readers!

Today we are celebrating the 6th AnnualAuthors in Bloom 10 Days of Daily Giveaways Blog Hop.

Here on Vision and Verse you will see some photos of my garden, hints, a garden recipe or two, and my giveaway instructions.

I love my garden. I love to putsy around in the dirt. To the left, my peonies by the waterfalls fell down after a good spring rain. That's okay, they'll perk up again! 
I love that lush greenness of springtime. 


I have a very special recipe for you.  It was my father's "dirt recipe." His flowers were always gorgeous and full of blooms. He used it in his vegetable and flower beds and in his container gardens. If you want to use it in your beds, window boxes, or pots too big to move, it's convenient to mix it in a wheelbarrow, so you can move it around to where you need it. For my deck, I mix it in a large plastic storage container with a lid.



Dad's Dirt Recipe
Equal parts:
   Topsoil
   Vermiculite or Perlite
   Spaghnum Moss

Mix as much or as little as you think you'll need. Now, you MUST mix it with your hands. If you are a fussy girlie-girl type, wear gardening gloves. Thoroughly combine the mixture. It is a good idea not to breathe in when you add the spaghnum moss. 

I make it in big batches, put a lid on it, and keep it on the deck. It's good for houseplants, too. The combination makes a lightweight planting medium that allows rapid root growth and good drainage.

Now, I live in a woodsy, county area and deer and other woodland creatures do find their way into my beautiful gardens. They can be very destructive This recipe will keep them from devouring your beautiful blooms.

This recipe is not my father's. This one comes from a book called Jerry Baker's Terrific Garden Tonics! Jerry has 345 gardening formulas for just about any gardening problem you can think of. It is available at jerrybaker.com.

 All-Purpose Varmint Repellent
1/2 cup Murphy's Oil Soap
1/2 cup lemon-scented dishwashing liquid
1/2 cup castor oil
1/2 cup lemon-scented ammonia
1/2 cup hot pepper sauce (like Frank's)

Mix in a 20-gallon hose-end sprayer.  Spray to the point of run off.  If you apply once a week for a month, the woodland  creatures will cross you off their list of favorite dining spots. 

Wear gloves. Mix it outside. You may have to reapply after several days of hard rain. 

 Sometimes aphids and other little bugs will attack your plants. I know they're disgusting, but they are easy to get rid off if you do it early in the infestation.
How? Soapy water. Water the plant with soapy water. Add a few drops of dishwashing liquid to a watering can and wash away the problem. Do it as soon as you notice the problem, because the insects weaken the plant.

Container gardens are lovely additions to benches and walkways. The key is to group plants together that have the same watering and light needs. Shade plants together, Sun plants together.  Plants like petunias need much watering and need it often, in hot spells every night.  

 I am giving away copy of my romantic adventure novel, BLUE LAKE. It's the first story in the Time After Time series, that follows a pair of lovers through their many lifetimes together. All you need to do to be eligible to win is comment below!! If I get a lot of comments, I give away more. 

I love planting lavender in window boxes. even the slightest breeze will send the wonderful aroma of lavender into your open windows. At the end of the growing season, just plant in the ground. They are perennials and will be ready to go back in your window boxes next spring. 


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Winners will be posted on both the first (Dianne Venetta) and last (BloominThyme) websites. Remember, I will be hosting a Facebook Party, including more garden tips, recipes, fun facts, etc. at facebook.com/DianneVenetta. Feel free to join in, or host one of your own! If you do decide to host a FB or Twitter party for the event, please let me know and I will pass the information along to the other participating authors.

Schedule for March 27 - 31, 2017

Schedule for March 27 - 31, 2017

Mon., Mar. 27 -  Authors in Bloom Blog Hop
10 Days of  Giveaways

Tues., Mar. 28 -  BLUE LAKE 
by Carol Ann Kauffman

Wed., Mar. 29 - The Dreamy Ethereal Art
 of Evgeny Lushpin

Thurs., Mar. 30 - The Homecoming, Bayou Shifter Book One
by Tammy Tate

Fri., Mar. 31 - Cover Reveal
How We Fall by Melissa Toppen