Tuesday, March 5, 2024

Insecure Writers Support Group (IWSG) Blog Post: Now About That AI! #IWSGbloghop

 

Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop
#IWSGbloghop

What is the Insecure Writer's Support Group?
Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, a Facebook and Instagram group, Twitter, and a monthly newsletter. 
To find out more, click this link:  Insecure Writer’s Support Group

The purpose of the group is 
* to share and encourage. 
* Writers can express doubts and concerns 
without fear of appearing foolish or weak. 
* Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. 
*It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! 
You're invited to become a member of this supportive group. 
Click here to sign-up and/or to visit the bloggers this week.

Happy IWSG Day!
Happy Women's History Month!

Celebrating Women's History Month
every year in March

Thank you to our awesome co-hosts for the March 6 posting of the IWSG are Kristina Kelly, Miffie Seideman, Jean Davis, and Liza @ Middle Passages!


QUESTION FOR MARCH 6

Have you "played" with AI to write those nasty synopses, or do you refuse to go that route? How do you feel about AI's impact on creative writing?

Yes, I have used Grammarly for years, and I like the editor that comes with MS Word, but I don't rely on them completely. Human eyes, especially eyes that belong to a new person, catch a lot of errors, even the errors by Grammarly!

I never thought these programs were AI until I submitted my book to Amazon KDP and discovered the content is considered AI-assisted. AI-generated means the content of the book was written by AI. Yesterday I noticed the question offers degrees of using AI in the book. Minimum to All of the book.

I just updated the content in my print book for writing life stories and designed a new book cover. Needless to say, I felt insecure figuring
Your Words, Your Life Story

out the formatting for the KDP book. Thank goodness for the KDP template and the cover calculator. I haven't looked at the book through the KDP preview viewer. Fingers crossed all is well.

I must confess I wrote the book description and used AI to improve it. But when Professor AI returned the results, I almost laughed. It didn't sound like I had written it, not my voice, but I did use one phrase from the AI description. 

I have tried creating images for book covers using Bing's co-pilot AI. It takes a lot of "playing" with it to even get close to what I want. I believe a lot of practice is needed to develop the skill to be happy with what Professor AI suggests.

Whether to use AI for creative writing is up to the individual. From all reports about AI, it is not going away. We can choose if we want to learn how to use it or not. We are entering a new era, just like how the Model A changed the lifestyle of the folks in the early 20th century or how the microwave changed my way of cooking meals! 

It will be interesting to revisit this question in 5 years and see how writers have handled AI. Ya'all come back then. What are your thoughts about using AI as a tool in your author's toolbox? Please leave a comment below. Thank you.

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Read an eBook Week at Smashwords!!



Do you know Smashwords is celebrating Read an eBook Week? March 3-9. My publisher 
BWL Publishing, is participating in the sale. All of the BWL authors' books are half off! My indie-published books are on sale too!! Yes, all of my books are 50% off this week! Grab some great beach reads for the summer.

Are you participating in the sale? You're welcome to drop your link in the comments section.
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Recipes 'n Reads Series
Guest author Rosemary Morris
You're invited to welcome classic historical romance author Rosemary Morris to our Recipes 'n Reads series which is scheduled every third Wednesday of the month. Rosemary writes "characters who are of their time, not men, women and children dressed in costume who behave like 21st-century people."  

On March 20, Rosemary, an English author, will share one of her favorite recipes, Spinach, Peas, and Paneer (Curd Cheese) Curry, and the reason why she chose this particular one. Plus I'll feature one of her books, Far Beyond Rubies. 

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Click here to receive the Rose Courier, 
delivered quarterly to your inbox. 
However, if I am bursting with news I can't wait to share,
 I will send out a Special Edition!
Filled with photos, updates, new book releases and more!


Click here to visit more Insecure Writers Support Group  
members participating in this month's IWSG Blog Hop! 
Scroll down the page to find all the bloggers sites.

Click here to link to my new Substack page. It's FREE.

Click here to be notified when a new article is posted on the J.Q. Rose blog.

Click here to follow me on Facebook at J.Q. Rose, Author.

Thank you for stopping by today! And for clicking around this post!
















Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Recipes and Reads with Author Karla Stover: Recipe for Vinegar Cookies and Tacoma History in A Feather for a Fan

Recipes 'n Reads Series
Guest author Karla Stover

Please welcome talented author Karla Stover to our Recipes 'n Reads series, scheduled every third Wednesday of the month. Karla shares one of her favorite recipes and the reason why she chose this particular one. If you love history, you will love Karla's book, A Feather for a Fan! Read on.

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Welcome, Karla! Thank you for being my guest.

Why did you choose to share the recipe for vinegar cookies? I must admit I have never heard of them...

My great grandmother Elizabeth Grose Cady came to the United State from

Penzance, Cornwall in 1862. She kept a proper English household, something she

passed on to her daughters which include my grandmother, Zenaida. And that

included afternoon tea where we had vinegar cookies among other things. In trying

to research the origin of vinegar cookies, I can only get as far back as far back as

the Victorian era.

Two other things we had but not at tea were Cornish pasties - - - so good and, if we

were sick, Buttery sops. “Sopps” comes from sopp, the Old English word for

“bread soaked in liquid” and it dates back to medieval times. From this we get

“milksop” meaning a weakling, someone who could only take bread soaked in a

little milk.

The Buttery sops we had when we were sick was buttered bread smooshed in

warm milk but there are lots of variations. Some people use meaty broth or wine

instead of milk. Some add legumes, mushrooms, fruits, capon meat, or

cheese. Now days, not many people are familiar with it but Buttery sops seemed

like a good comfort food for my character, Mr. Money, who was undergoing drastic

dental work. This is an excerpt from A Feather for a Fan, and why Mrs. Money

makes Buttery sops for her husband.

“Doctor Spinning retrieved his medical bag from the counter and took out a glass

tube. Then he opened a jar and fished around in it. “You ever see one of these,

young lady?” He held up something black and slimy that moved between his

fingers. Before Hildy could answer, the doctor said, “It’s a Dalmatian blood sucker.

Best kind there is. Now, look here, I’m going to put this little guy in this tube. Mrs.

Money, you’d better help me.

Mrs. Money knelt on the floor nest to her husband and Dr. Spinning handed the

tube. “You just hold this right there on the gums where they’re all red and nasty

looking and the leech will east all that bad tissue away.”

“For how long?” Mrs. Money asked.

“I’d say about twenty, maybe thirty minutes.”


When I wrote both A Feather for a Fan and the sequel, Mr. Singer’s Seamstress, I

read local newspapers of the time and did two things: I wrote my characters into

what was going on in Tacoma and included real people. Both Dr. Spinning and Mr.

and Mrs. Money were Tacoma residents.

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Vinegar Cookies


VINEGAR COOKIES RECIPE

½ cups shortening

1 cup sugar

1 egg

3 TBL vinegar

1 TSP baking soda

1 TSP salt

1 ¾ cups flour (more if dough is too sticky)

Mix the wet ingredients together, add the dry and form into a roll (log)

Chill. Slice and sprinkle on a little sugar, bake at 350’.

🪶🪶🪶🪶


A Feather for a Fan by Karla Stover

BACK OF THE BOOK: A FEATHER FOR A FAN BY KARLA STOVER

Everything about New Tacoma in Washington Territory comes as a shock to Hildy Bacom when she and her family move there in 1876. Cows and pigs roam the muddy streets‚ some people live in lean-tos or hollowed-out tree trunks‚ and her first friend‚ Mrs. Money‚ runs a shop with a parrot on her head. Hildy's new life includes a new best friend and a romance‚ plus a lady of the night‚ Indian and lots of Chinese. Over her first year on the frontier Hildy encounters a skunk‚ a bear‚ and a lost Chinese baby. From fires to landslides to the unexpected appearance of her cousin‚ Elsie‚ Hildy's life in a rough frontier town isn't at all what she expected.

AMAZON BUY LINK

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ABOUT KARLA:

Author Karla Stover

I graduated from the University of Washington with honors in history. I

think I would have full honors but in one of my classes I defended the

British presence in Africa and that unpopular stance pulled my GPA down.

Bummer. Anyway, I started writing when a friend of mine became editor of

a newspaper called Senior Scene and needed someone to write a column on

local history. Then a bank clerk I knew happened to mention The Imperial

Russian Journal ( https://www.romanovs.eu/paul-gilbert ) so I contacted the

editor, Paul Gilbert, and began writing for it. He branched out and started the

European Crown and I also wrote for it. Along the way, I wrote for the

Tacoma Reporter, had a column in Country Pleasures and freelanced to The

[Tacoma] News Tribune, Chronicle of the Old West, and Birds and Blooms.

Last but not least, for many years I had a radio program, first on KISS and

then on KLAY called “Local History With Karla Stover.” 


CONNECT ONLINE WITH KARLA:

Karla writes a blog post for our publisher, BWL Publishing, on the 11th of each month. Click here to read her February article, Winter Walking.

BWL Publishing

Karla's Books on Amazon

Facebook


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The Rose Courier

The Rose Courier
Click here to receive the Rose Courier 
delivered quarterly to your inbox. 
However, if I am bursting with news I can't wait to share,
 I will send out a Special Edition!
Filled with photos, updates, new book releases and more!


Click here to be notified when a new article is posted on the J.Q. Rose blog.

Click here to follow me on Facebook at J.Q. Rose, Author.

Click here to visit my new Substack page with a Focus on Story-- writing and reading fiction and non-fiction, writing life stories, sharing new releases. Storytelling!

Thank you for stopping by today! And for clicking around this post!!

 

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

IWSG Blog Hop: What's Wrong with Author Websites? #IWSGbloghop

 

Insecure Writer's Support Group Blog Hop
First Wednesday of the Month
#IWSGbloghop

Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database, articles and tips, a monthly blog posting, a Facebook and Instagram group, Twitter, and a monthly newsletter. 

The purpose of the group is 
* to share and encourage. 
* Writers can express doubts and concerns 
without fear of appearing foolish or weak. 
* Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. 
*It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! 
You're invited to become a member of this supportive group. 
Click here to sign-up and/or to visit the bloggers this week.

Happy IWSG Day!!
Happy Early Valentine's Day!!


Thank you to our awesome co-hosts for the February 7 posting of the IWSG -- Janet Alcorn, SE White, Victoria Marie Lees, and Cathrina Constantine!


February 7 question: 
What turns you off when visiting an author's website/blog? Lack of information? A drone of negativity? Little mention of author's books? Constant mention of books?  All of the above makes me click out of the website. I leave when it is difficult to navigate to the page I want to see or to figure out where the comment box is located.

💞💞💞💞

FEBRUARY 28 ON THE RECIPE AND READS SERIES, 
KARLA STOVER IS MY GUEST.

Recipes 'n Reads every third Wednesday of the Month


Talented author, Karla Stover, will be my guest on Recipes 'n Reads on February 28. Karla shares one of her favorite recipes and the reasons why she chose this particular one. Please come back to find out about her yummy recipe and 

UPDATES
I joined Substack.com, a new way to connect with readers. I made it through January, posting every Thursday at noon. I find I am gaining more confidence in posting there now. Practice makes perfect and so far, I believe I have just been practicing!  Click here to join me at Substack.

If you are on Substack, please drop the link to your page in the comments so I can follow you. Please let us know what kind of experience you are having. 


If you are a gardener, you might appreciate my updated version of my little guide on growing a vegetable garden. After perusing so many choices, I finally chose this version for a new cover!

Quick Tips on Vegetable Gardening
by J.Q. Rose and Gardener Ted


If you are planning a garden this spring, grab this short eBook for 99 cents and learn more about starting seeds, watering, soil, and using toilet paper as a tool for your garden!!  Click here to check it out and download it to inspire you to try gardening this year. Tomatoes, peppers, and green beans from your backyard are so much tastier than grocery bought.

"Gardening is cheaper than therapy, and you get tomatoes."--Hanna Rion



The Rose Courier

Click here to receive the Rose Courier, 
delivered quarterly to your inbox. 
However, if I am bursting with news I can't wait to share,
 I will send out a Special Edition!
Filled with photos, updates, new book releases and more!


Click here to be notified when a new article is posted on the J.Q. Rose blog.

Click here to visit more Insecure Writers Support Group  
members participating in this month's IWSG Blog Hop!

Click here to follow me on Facebook at J.Q. Rose, Author.

Thank you for stopping by today! And for clicking around this post!








Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Recipes 'n Reads Series: Sherry Ellis' Crepes Recipe and New Book Release: Bubba and Squirt's City of Bones #recipesnreads #newbookrelease

 

Recipes 'n Reads Series
Guest author Sherry Ellis

Please welcome talented YA author and professional musician, Sherry Ellis, to our Recipes 'n Reads series, scheduled every third Wednesday of the month. Sherry shares one of her favorite recipes and the reason why she chose this particular one. We are also celebrating her new release, Bubba and Squirt’s City of Bones.


Crepes

Welcome, Sherry! Please tell us why you chose to share this Crepes recipe.

One of my favorite things to do in Paris is getting warm crepes from a street vendor’s cart. I love watching them being made. And they’re so delicious! Banana with hazelnut spread is simply the best! Naturally, when I wrote Bubba and Squirt’s City of Bones, I had to give the protagonists, Bubba and Squirt, a similar delectable experience while they visited the City of Light. Here’s the recipe if you would like to try making them at home.

Crepes

Ingredients:

3 large eggs

1 ½ cups milk

4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted, divided.

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

½ tsp. salt

  1. In a blender, blend eggs, milk, 2 tablespoons butter, flour, and salt until smooth, scraping down sides of blender. Transfer the batter to a medium bowl; cover and refrigerate at least one hour or up to overnight to allow flour to absorb liquid.
  2. Heat a nonstick 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Brush bottom of skillet lightly with some remaining butter. With a wire whisk, mix batter to blend well. Pour ¼ cup of batter into the skillet; tilt pan to coat bottom completely with batter. Cook crepe until top is set and underside is lightly browned, about 1 ½ minutes.
  3. With a rubber spatula, loosen edge of crepe; turn. Cook until the second side has browned, about 30 seconds. Slip crepe onto waxed paper. Repeat with remaining batter, brushing pan lightly with butter before cooking each crepe and stacking them between layers of waxed paper.
  4. Spread crepes with your choice of fillings: Hazelnut chocolate spread with bananas is good, but you can also try with jam or whipped crème and strawberries.
  5. Roll and fold crepes so the filling doesn’t fall out.
  6. Enjoy! 
Mmmm, I love crepes but have never tried to make them at home. Thanks so much, Sherry, for sharing the recipe with us!

* * * *


Bubba and Squirt's City of Bones

Bubba and Squirt are back for another rousing quest as they travel through the mysterious vortex to Paris, France.

It's another wild adventure as they track down art thieves, encounter terrifying monsters, and discover the whereabouts of their missing father.

Will they make it out alive or join the rest of the skeletons in the City of Bones?


Click the links below to order Bubba and Squirt's City of Bones.
 Amazon 

About Sherry Ellis:

Sherry Ellis is an award-winning author and professional musician who plays and teaches the violin, viola, and piano. When she is not writing or engaged in
Author Sherry Ellis

musical activities, she can be found doing household chores, hiking, or exploring the world. Ellis has previously published Bubba and Squirt's Big Dig to ChinaBubba and Squirt's Mayan AdventureDon't Feed the ElephantTen Zany BirdsThat Baby Woke Me Up, AGAIN; and That Mama is a Grouch. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information about her work, she invites you to visit her website at www.sherryellis.org.  

Connect online with Sherry:
Twitter:  

The Rose Courier

The Rose Courier
Click here to receive the Rose Courier 
delivered quarterly to your inbox. 
However, if I am bursting with news I can't wait to share,
 I will send out a Special Edition!
Filled with photos, updates, new book releases and more!


Click here to be notified when a new article is posted on the J.Q. Rose blog.

Click here to follow me on Facebook at J.Q. Rose, Author.

Click here to visit my new Substack page.

Thank you for stopping by today! And for clicking around this post!!


Insecure Writers Support Group (IWSG) Blog Post: Now About That AI! #IWSGbloghop

  Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop #IWSGbloghop What is the Insecure Writer's Support Group? Founded by author   Alex J. Cavanaug...

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