My Flight to Rabat

Friday, I boarded a plane (and just so you know, Delta is NOT Air France even if they're 'associated') to fly to Morocco.  It's always been an easy trip.  Leave Boston in the early evening, settle down and sleep 'til I arrive in Paris, hang around for a couple of hours and then fly into Rabat.

Not this time.

I figured things were going well because I was in about the only row of 3 seats with only 2 of us seated.  Until we took off.  And the kid in the row behind started crying.  Not just the whimper or whine of ear troubles taking off.  Nope.  This was full-throated, frantic wailing.  That went on.  And on.  She'd stop for about 5 minutes, then start up again.  For anywhere from 15 minutes to half an hour.  Another 5 minute break and back to wailing.  Mind you, this is a 7-8 hour flight.  All plans of arriving rested flew out the window -- so to speak.

Eventually, the kid wore herself out -- or I was even more exhausted and fell asleep in spite of the racket.  In any event, I got a couple of hours sleep, max.

During the layover in Paris, I got more and more nervous as people assembled for the flight to Morocco.  Kids.  Lots of kids.  Lots of little kids.  I groaned inwardly -- and maybe not so silently.  This flight is only a couple of hours long, but I had figured I could at  least get in a nap.

As it turned out, it wasn't bad.  There were a few cries here and there, but the usual fussiness, not the frenzied crying on the previous flight.  So, I was able to get a couple of hours sleep.

When my son and lovely granddaughters ( 4 and 6) greeted me after I got through customs, I gave them big hugs.  My son asked how the trip went.  So I came to a dead stop, knelt down, beckoned the girls over and said:  "Poor Gramma had a baby in the row behind me crying all night.  Then there were kids crying on the flight here.  So, please do me a favor.  Don't cry today or I'll run out of the house and run screaming down the street, tearing my hair out." 

They are the best girls.  Not one whimper or whine out of them for the whole time since I've been here.

More about Morocco later.

Judi

A surprising Brainstorming partner

So, Night of Turmoil really started back in December when  I was visiting No. 1 Son and his family in Morocco.  Shortly before I returned home, we began to hear about protests in Tunisia and even found some news coverage—or at least YouTube uploads.  This was of particular interest since his wife is Tunisian.

Arriving back home, I watched lots of CNN-I (because the US news wasn't covering the protests back then).  The next thing that happened was my publisher, Whispers Publishing, put out a Call for Submission to celebrate some of the less well-known holidays.  One of them was International Peace Day and they were asking for very short stories (under 10 K) set in a place in the world experiencing conflict.  I really wanted to write about the revolution in Tunisia but hesitated, never having been involved in protests—or a revolution.

Most Friday evenings, my son calls.  The next time he called, I mentioned wanting to set a story in Tunisia during the protests but said I couldn't.  I didn't know about protests.  Plus, I was back working on the sequel to Ghost of a Chance, Frank O'Malley and Aerial Bonne's story and didn't want to abandon Frank--again.  The next week when he called, he asked me when I was going to write the Tunisian story.  I repeated the list of excuses and he said he could certainly help with the setting and proceeded to brainstorm the basics of the story.  I didn’t see that coming.  Never would have guessed one of my kids would become a brainstorming partner.  He assured me I wouldn't be abandoning Frank because it was his niece, Chelsea (he picked the name) O'Malley who had come to Tunis to teach adults English as a second language and Malik (No. 1 also chose the name) would be a student of hers.  I immediately saw the conflict, since ESL teachers can't have personal relationships with their students.

And that it how it started.  I e-mailed both son and DIL frequently to get answers to questions.  And watched hours of YouTube videos uploaded from Tunisia.

I wrote the story in three months.  Like it was all there, held back by a dam.  Just goes to show you never know what will inspire a story—or who will help.

Chelsea O'Malley, English as a Second Language teacher in Tunis, Tunisia, is always prudent, never reckless.  Her adult ESL student Malik Bourjamaa, aspires to a career in news journalism, hoping to facilitate change in his country.  While attending a protest march during the uprising in Tunis, Malik is wounded, infuriating Chelsea and causing her to admit she desires to be more than his teacher.  Can she throw caution to the wind and speak truth to a political system out of control?  Night of Turmoil tells the story of one day during the Jasmine Revolution.

Buy:  Whispers,  Kindle

And check out the really cool trailer:  Night of Turmoil

Life has been crazy around here lately.

Between an awesome weekend at Camp Brainstorming

Taking a few minutes to watch the duck at the edge of the lake

                         

and going to the Highland Games in Topsham, Maine.  Here's one of the people demonstrating life in the Highlands

                                          

Check out the marching men in kilts here:   http://tinyurl.com/3l4jscs

and being visited by Hurricane Irene

This is the raked-up debris that fell in my back yard

                                      

Here's a link to the video I made (there's not much else to do when the power's out for 2 days)  It's a bit long (9 minutes) but it's got something for everyone--rain, wind, firemen, hummingbirds and dogs.  http://tinyurl.com/3fm9q53

there hasn't been time for much else.

EXCEPT GETTING MY AWESOME NEW COVER!!

Night of Turmoil (a short, sweet story) releases on September 21.

Looking forward to taking a deep breath and getting back to writing.

Today's my birthday!!

And I'm celebrating.  I love birthdays even though I another year older.  After all, it's my day and I love being a star.

First off, since it's my birthday, I'm going to give away a gift.  Everyone who comments on this blog will be entered into the contest and one person will be randomly chosen to win an electronic copy of Ghost of a Chance.  When you comment, please leave your e-mail so I can contact the winner.

 But even more important, I have a wonderful new toy.

                                             The Magic Machine

It all started when I visited No. 1 son in Morocco last year.  He had an espresso machine and shared a number of cups with me.  I had espresso machine envy.  Figured I might get one when I got home.

One thing led to another and I never got around to ordering one.  But I had a brainstorm a couple of weeks ago.  I knew my kids would be agonizing over the perfect birthday present to get me.  I figured I'd be the helpful mom and provide them with a suggestion. 

So, I e-mailed them, asking for an espresso machine.

Which lead to a hilarious exchange of e-mails concerning better suggestions:  a gun (not for me--I tend to be gun-phobic) and a crossbow apparently suggested by my 2-year-old granddaughter.  Which lead to a warning by that little girl's father reflecting his concern about mixing an over-caffeinated me and crossbows, fearing it might lead to my committing mayhem against commuters driving along the country road I live on.

Which, in turn, triggered a couple of  possible stories which will probably be amplified due to my increased intake of caffeine, thanks to the crew who gave me the Nespresso.

I received my wonderful new toy a couple of days ago, a gift from all the kiddos.

                                                    All of us last year

If you want to see my new magic machine in action, check it out at YouTube:  My New Toy

Okay, I'm off to brew another espresso and plot mayhem for the crossbow wielding hordes.

Judi

Who knew that July was National Ice Cream Month.

Not me until just the other day.  But it's a good thing, given that several days were at or near 100 around here, and there were lots of days in the 80s.  Meaning, I have practically lived on ice cream.

                       Root beer floats in my summer office.  Mmmmm!


Friendly's Fruit SwirlsTM (orange and vanilla) ice cream with crushed OreosTM. Or vanilla with crushed mint Oreos--just to have some variety.

                                                        Yummy.


Today, July 25, my dad would have been 96. So, I'm planning on celebrating with a little piece of cake and a big bowl of ice cream. Below is a picture of my dad, Ned Peabody, and my oldest son, when he was just a little boy.

Go forth and celebrate the little bit left of National Ice Cream Month.

ENJOY!

I finished the d&#n book

So, I finished writing my current work-in-progress the other day, delighted to type those wonderful words, The End. 

And was at loose ends.  Couldn't settle down to do anything, even though there was plenty I could do--inside the house, outside in the yard.  Didn't even check out the books in my TBR pile.  Instead, I wandered around my house thinking, hmmm, I should do this or that.  And didn't.

Fortunately, I had to meet with some of my critique partners that night and now I'm refocused.  I have another story that only has one scene left to write--interrupted that story to write Two Moons Rising that I just sold to Crescent Moon Press.





So, yesterday, to reward myself, I bought a new fancy trellis to hang my hummingbird feeder on, and next year I can plant some flowers to climb it.  Check out the pic.







What do you do to celebrate finishing a manuscript?

It's the first day of summer

June is almost over even though it's the first day of summer.

So, my book, The Love Genie: Barbary Coast comes out Friday, June 24th, and I thought I'd see what else was going on in the month of June. 

Guess what?  It's Aquarium Month.

Now, there's a reason I didn't know this.  When my kids were little, I thought it would be fun to have an aquarium.  I had fond memories of my two goldfish when I was young.  They lived for years.  What could be so hard?

So I bought a big aquarium, got the pump, plants, water testing kid, some very cool fish and food.  All went well for about a week.

The algae and snails thrived.  The fish?  Not so much.





Especially because Tom-Tom, the cat, was fascinated by them.
(This is not an actual picture of Tom-Tom, but you get the idea.)














I gave up after a few months.  Years later, I walked into the local pharmacy and at the checkout lane, they had these mini aquariums in a 6 or 8 inch cube, all set up with fish and everything.  I couldn't resist and got one for my desk at the office.  Those were fish of a different kind.  They were hardy little buggers and I had them for several years.

So what does this have to do with my newest book?  Not much except that the story is set on a fantasy sailing ship.  Although I doubt Chris and Meaghan spare many thoughts about fish.

When Scott Eugene Anderson inherits his aunt's motel in the foothills of the White Mountains, he decides to turn it into a motel for anonymous sexual fantasies and advertises himself as The Love Genie.

Meaghan Rowe, who doesn't wait for anything, has a sexual itch and she turns to The Love Genie to get it scratched.  Chris Baxter has a treasure chest full of lovemaking expertise, but can't do commitment.  The two are matched and separately choose The Barbary Coast fantasy aboard a pirate ship.

Given Chris's expertise and Meaghan's impatience, will this relationship walk the plank or will they sail off into the sunset?

The Love Genie -- sexual fantasies with a touch of magic.

The Love Genie:  Barbary Coast will be available June 24th from Whispers Publishing.

Link to the Whispers Publishing:  http://whispershome.com/ 

Link to my web page:  http://peppergoodrich.com/