Little shout out

Just wanted to give a little shout out to someone that I personally think is a great writer, Luther M. Siler. You might not have heard about this particular author but he’s been around for a bit. He writes mostly fiction but, here’s where he’s really great: he writes so fluidly that reading his work is effortless. Plus, and this is a big one for me, he’s funny. There’s a humorous aspect to his writing that makes me keep wanting to read.

Let me give you a little example. Take this book review blog entry. Blog entries are small, humble and basically just provide some information or show a point of view. Book reviews are usually informative. That’s it. They’re not fun to read in themselves. Luther’s is informative (without spoiling the book) but it’s also so fun to read.

I was just snooping around his site when I read this book review. It’s not the type of book I’d read but, his review is simply delicious. I read it twice and had to stop and admire just how well he writes.

He hasn’t asked me to write this and has no idea I’m doing it. I just thought I’d share it because talent is hard to find but when I do find it, it’s just lovely.

So, if you’re on the hunt for a good read, you might want to check out his site.

Doodling

Luther M. Siler’s post inspired me. I think there’s an artist in all of us. And the most important part, for me, is to have fun doing it. So here’s my latest doodle.

Just fun with colours.

If we were having coffee

(credit:Church Designer Magazine)

If we were having coffee, I’d ask for a second one. This week has been crazy. It seems I’m not the only one who’s had a nutty week, Luther M. Siler’s sounds absolutely bonkers.

If you asked what was nuts at my job, I’d tell you, without giving away too many details, that I’ve seen co-workers crying this week, that my job used to include doing Thing-A and has suddenly changed to Thing-B and that there were some late, late hours at work this week. This weekend was a desperately needed necessity.

If we were having coffee, I’d tell you that I’m looking forward to spending tomorrow with my puppies and taking them on a long walk. Today has been all about cleaning up the house (it was a disaster), getting groceries (we had nothing but baking soda and water in the fridge) and recuperating from the week.

Finally, I’d share with you that my lovely hubby has been trying to ‘cure’ my fear of spiders by showing me horrific pictures of said animals.

That’s right ladies, he’s all mine.

Note: Weekend Coffee Share is a meme created by Part Time Monster.

Where I’m confused trying to find a healthy diet

I’m still trying to figure out what’s a healthy, good diet to follow. It seems I’m not alone. Luther M. Siler was pretty honest in his own struggle with weight (which absolutely made me worry about him and, Luther, if you’re reading this, I hope you’re doing better) and the ever-growing visitors to my post on the pros and cons of a plant-based diet made me think there are more of us out there trying to figure out what’s a healthy diet.

Finding an answer seems as easy as finding ears on a snake.

Check out this post: http://discovermagazine.com/2004/oct/inuit-paradox or, if you’re busy, let me summarize. The Inuit of Canada, who survive on basically meat and fat, are incredibly healthy. And they only eat meat and fat.

So what’s a healthy diet? This article by lifehacker tries to explain why it’s just so difficult to find an answer. It seems every type of diet out there promises health, more energy and better sense of wellbeing. They also warn of dire consequences if you ignore their direction. Finding a solution that works seems an exercise in frustration.

So, what will I do? So far, I’m still hesitant to leave my veggies for good. They’ve sort of become my friends. But I’m going to try and start eating some animal protein and see what happens. If I see any amazing results or clear conclusions, I promise to let you know…but don’t hold your breath.

If you have any ideas or thoughts, send them this way!

The Best of 2016

My top 5 posts for 2016 according to you aren’t all from this year. There are some that are from previous years but refuse to fade away.

5. If we were having coffee… Where I ramble about my hubby and his friend making a dog house for our pooches.

4. Sneak Review: The Girl on The Train. Readers couldn’t get enough of this book review.

3. The Lipstick Fiasco. An oldie and a true story that seems to hit the right notes with readers.

2. 5 Worst Things you can do if your Wi-fi is running slow. This was a true story again and one that readers can’t get enough of.

1. The Importance of Tags: for Bloggers. This one has been in the top 5 for several years running and is still there for good reason.

 

But those are only my little top posts, what about others?

(credit: SL Blogger Support)

This is the best bloggers blogging in 2016 according to Island Editions.

Even more for those bloggers out there, ProBlogger has their top 2016 posts on how to find readers and on writing awesome content in their excellent blog.

These are the top books to read from 2016 according to Crystin Goodwind, author and blogger extraordinaire.

These are the top 10 books of 2016 according to Luther M. Siler, another author and blogger extraordinaire.

Finally, one of my favourite sites, All About Romance, chose their top books for 2016 in this post.

Here’s hoping 2016 was an awesome year for you! 😀

Summertime Madness Book Tag

Alas…It already looks like summer is leaving us here in good old Canada. Today, it’s grey, damp and rainy. I won’t complain because we’ve had a lovely summer even if it only lasts two months here. Plus, I got tagged by Melissa Barker-Simpson for this lovely Summertime Book Tag and I can’t wait to share in. (thank you for thinking of me Melissa!)

Here are the questions (and none of them are crazy exam-like questions):

• Show a book with a summery cover.

(credit:goodreads.com)

And yes, I read this one and absolutely loved, loved it. Mary Balogh is amazing.

• Pick one fictional place that would be the perfect destination for a summer vacation!

I would love to visit England for the summer. I’ve been and it’s just beautiful, full of incredible culture and wonderful people. True, my hubby is British, so I’m a little biased. If I had to choose another destination, I’d love to see the East Coast of Canada. Halifax and Nova Scotia. They’re gorgeous places and I’ve never been.

• You’re about to go on a flight to your summer vacation. But you want to read a book that lasts for the whole flight, what novella do you choose?

Depends how long the flight is. If we’re talking only a couple of hours, then I’d reread a book. Right now I’m rereading the Archangel series by Nalini Singh. It’s one of those I keep reading over and over.

If the flight was transatlantic, about 6 or 8 hours, then I’d choose a new book. I’d like to take something I haven’t read yet. Right now I’m reading a Chaos novel by Kristen Ashley. It’s nice and thick, she’s a reliable author and I’d love to have a few hours to just read and read.

On a very long  flight, I’d love to take something out of genre that I would read. I like to read Jodi Picoult…Its not my usual thing but I like the way she writes. Or something completely different for me. Just take a chance and test something off the shelf. You never know what you’ll find!

Okay…one thing is obvious, I sure can ramble! Time to shorten these answers!

• You have a case of summertime sadness what happy book do you pick up to shine a smile on your face?

Anything by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. I just finished one by her and she’s outstanding. Though, for honesty’s sake, I’d have to add that reading anything romance cheers me up.

• You’re sitting at the beach all alone…which fictional character would be your beach babe?

Ah….beach babe?…….Ah…….ahem….let’s see….ah….

• To match your ice cream you want an icy cool sidekick! Which fictional side kick do you pick?

Ah…side kick? I thought these questions were going to be easy!….ah….I’m going to choose my doggies…and thank Callum for the idea!

• Share the Summertime Happiness! Who do you TAG?

Oh…here we are! The end! Hm…who do I tag…hee hee…the power…hee hee. I choose….Infinitefreetime, aka Luther M. Siler. Ha!

 

Posts I loved this week

These are those posts that I adored this week. They moved me and I chose them because they were absolutely wonderful. Posts like this make me glad I’m online and I have a blog to write. They are such a gift!

So true, this post reminded me of what’s important, 7 Things that Shouldn’t Impress us Anymore. A huge thanks to Becoming Minimalist for that awesome post!

Know a new author? Want to help them out? Wise Ink has this great post with 5 ways to do just that.

Help me give Crystin Goodwin a hearty congrats for the snazzy new look!  Like the banner? That’s Winter Bayne’s work. That blog is smoking!

If you’re plotting and need some help, Heather Jackson from Write On Sisters, explains just what a good hook is and the 4 components it needs here.

Just in time for International Women’s Day on March 8th, last year’s Feminist Friday posts have been collected, with easy-to-access links, in an e-book and is available on Amazon for 0.99 cents. For more details, check out this post by Comparative Geeks for all the information or check out this post by Natacha Guyot, who edited the book!

Wanna earn a few good Karma points? If you’d like to help out a talented author and all around good guy, why not leave a review or two at Amazon for Luther M. Siler’s two books? If you haven’t tried them, I couldn’t recommend them more highly. Just check out his blog to understand how funny and talented his writing is.

In an incredibly courageous post, Suzie81 shared that she just quit her DayJob. I read the entry in awe. If you’d like to give her some support, her blog is Suzie81 Speaks.

If you’re looking for editing tools, check out this post from Interesting Literature with the best tools out there just for you. A huge thanks to The Story Reading Ape for finding the post in the first place!

Are you into historical romance? Here are the Royal Residencies of the Georgian Kings then and now. An awesome post from Regency History.

Absolutely uplifting, this post by Natacha Guyot got me smiling and helped make my Wednesday brighter. I loved the positive message and the quotes. A huge thanks to her for that wonderful post…and the adorable kitten!

Another uplifting post, Comparative Geeks lists the positive things we get from having the internet. While I would hate not having it around, I never stopped and thought how many positive things come out of the World Wide Web. What an insightful and positive post!

Looking to do some book marketing? Check out this great post from Darla G. Denton on how to do just that with a timeline and great pictures. A huge thanks to her for that great post!

I always love posts that announce what’s coming up next in a blog. I get to check out their new schedule and see new ideas that I’d love to read about. If you’re like me, read about what’s coming up in Natacha Guyot here. Exciting and fresh ideas along with old favourites!

If you’re wondering why it’s so hard to handle the roughness of a first draft, take a look at this insightful post by Steven Pressfield and hang in there!

Finally, a cute little picture of two readers.

(credit: pinterest.com)

In which I give #WordPress advice

Absolutely so true! Great post, Luther! Let’s hope WordPress listens!

Welcome to infinitefreetime dot com

(Note: I typed this in the old editor, too.)

Dear WordPress:

Let’s talk about your new stats screen for a bit.  I put up a one-sentence post a few hours ago to confirm that other people feel the same way I do, and it’s amassed eighteen comments and twenty likes in that time, so I’m pretty sure I’m not on my own here.  I’ve been actively blogging on your site for about a year and a half, although I’ve had the account for several years longer than that, and I spend a lot of time obsessing about my stats.  An unhealthy amount of time, in fact.

You recently changed your stats page, and by a number of indications you seem to be interested in user feedback on it.  However, using your feedback form really didn’t give me a chance to explain what I actually dislike about it.  It could be…

View original post 634 more words

Pay It Forward Friday: Luther M. Siler

Pay It Forward Fridays came from this post by Emily Guido. The idea is to feature a blogger or author on Fridays and give them a little shoutout. Anyone goes as long as they’re interested.

I’ve received an incredible amount of support from bloggers, authors and people I’ve met on line who didn’t know me and were just very kind, supportive souls. And, when I read that post by Emily Guido, I thought: time to give back.

I loved this quote from Emily’s mother:

“I cast a couple of pieces of bread on the water and the waves bring me back a ham sandwich.”

Karma is a beautiful thing.

Today I’m focusing on Luther M. Siler.

He says of himself:

“Luther Siler was born in 1976 in northern Indiana, where he currently resides along with his wife, three-year-old son, two cats, and two dogs. In his spare time he works at a school helping other people be awesome. His favorite authors include John Scalzi, N.K. Jemisin, Brandon Sanderson, Cherie Priest, Salman Rushdie, Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire, H.P. Lovecraft, Robert Howard, John Irving, Nnedi Okorafor, Saladin Ahmed, Helene Wecker and Stephen King.

He writes about space gnomes and Mars. His novel SKYLIGHTS and his short story novella THE BENEVOLENCE ARCHIVES: VOL. 1 are both available on Amazon now. Another book in the BENEVOLENCE ARCHIVES universe, as yet untitled, is expected early next year.”

Luther has written two books so far:

They’re both available on Amazon. Click on either cover.

But that’s not all. Luther has written a ton of short fiction and is going to be a part of an upcoming collaborative work titled World Unknown Review with a group of other authors.

Personally, I’ve read Luther’s writing and find it highly addictive not only because it’s lively, fun and so easy to read but because his humour is contagious. Rare is the day when I don’t read his blog posts at Infinitefreetime.com. If you’re a fan of science fiction, check out his books at amazon and you’ll see why everyone’s ranting about them.

Posts I loved this week

A very exciting week in posts with everything from news to terrifying content.

I rambled on last week about Sourcerer‘s new contributor (Luther M. Siler) but here’s another reason to check out this awesome blog if you haven’t done so yet, WordPress Tricks. Those are some of the goodies you get from Sourcerer. Awesome, eh? I know! And, by the way, if you’re interested in joining Sourcerer, check out this post. This is a great time to join because they’re growing.

I love funny posts and this one is hilarious. What happens when Just Ponderin’ gets the Christmas catalog with steps on how to run the perfect holiday feast. I laughed out loud.

Okay, I don’t usually link to this type of post but I had to make an exception because the post is brilliant. However, it’s also terrifying. It’s on how to spot if someone is a psychopath by one simple question from I am not the Batman. I won’t lie, I was a shaking mess when I read it. Yikes.

A better post (and happier news) is the new book from Laekan Zea Kemp, The Boy in her Dreams. A huge congrats to Ms. Kemp for this accomplishment!

If you’re doing Nanowrimo, here‘s a post on how to get ready from The Sprint Shack.

Exciting news for everyone who blogs. Just Gene’O is going to undergo a big change. It’s focus is going to be every type of blogger: “geek bloggers, food bloggers, mommy bloggers, diarists, and every other type of blogger you can think of, as well as writers and book lovers.” Everything from passing information to tons of content about blogging to fun features. Just Gene’O is going to be fantastic! I can’t wait.

Steven Pressfield has this great post: The Second Act Belongs to the Villain. I thought it was absolutely superb.

I love nothing more than honesty and sometimes, when people get upset, they’re really honest. This is what got me in this great post by Nina Kaytel. She was upset and wrote this wonderful post about appreciating every kind of book.

The Write Practice has this great post on how to use Scrivener to sketch a setting. If you’re a fan of Scrivener or curious about the program, check it out.

This post by KJ Charles got me thinking in a good way. How do I react to bad reviews? And is it worth reading reviews? KJ has the admirable attitude of not reading reviews. I found that so interesting. I’m totally botching the description, check out the post.

Finally, the cutie, pattotie puppy…Awwww! So squeeshy.

(credit: dreamstime.com)