Showing posts with label #Cajun #Heroes and Independent Cinderellas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Cajun #Heroes and Independent Cinderellas. Show all posts

Saturday, January 28, 2023

The Best Things to Do on Valentine's Day By Connie Vines #BWLAuthorBlog, #Valentine's Day Ideas, #Romance

 Valentine's Day has always been my favorite holiday. 


Valentine's Day is more than just gifts. Valentine's Day reminds me of pieces of childhood: excitement, handmade gifts, candy hearts in a small box, and fingers and chins sticky with chocolate. Of course, I adore flowers, sentimental/cute cards, chocolates...

I'm aware of the 'dark beginnings' of the holiday, but that can be discussed at another time.

February 14th will be here before you know t!

I may not be Cupid ...but I do write romance 💕💖💘


#1 Visit a Book Store or Brouse for E-Books online

The perfect date for bookworms. Spend the day exploring new reads together, grabbing coffee, and talking about the books you bought. (romance picks should be at the top of your list today!)


# 2 Make a Bucket List of Things you and your Significant Other would Like to do Together.

There are 365 days in a year. Local sites and historical areas are nearby and usually easier on your budget.

Here in the Burbs, my travels have included more than the usual (well-known) SoCal  choices:

The Ocean to Ocean Highway (Holt Boulevard)

Guasti Winery

Graber Olive House

Route 66 (Starts in downtown Chicago and ends at the Santa Monica pier in California).

Stomping grounds of Frank Zappa and the location of  Dr. Sandra Lee's (TLC network) medical office.



                                (copywritten by Connie Vines)

#3 Make Fondue

My personal choice for this year.

Why? It's perfect for two or for a Valentine's Day gathering.

Everyone gets to choose their own "dippable"—strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, or mini pretzels and it's easy to make. Only three ingredients are chocolate, cream, and a pinch of salt.

Flavors may be added to the chocolate: peppermint extract, cinnamon, and chile for a Mexican spin, or Amaretto or Bailey's Irish cream for a grown-up version.

And if it's just the two of you, chocolate fondue is a great way to end a romantic meal at home. The dip-ables can be prepped in advance, and the chocolate sauce comes together in just a few minutes.

For the dipping fondue chocolate:

1 cup (8 ounces) heavy cream

Pinch salt

12 ounces milk or dark chocolate (chips or roughly chopped bar)

For dipping:

Strawberries

Banana pieces cut into 1-inch chunks

Dried apricots

Apple slices

Candied ginger

Squares of pound cake


Heat the cream:

Heat the cream with a pinch of salt over medium heat in a small saucepan until tiny bubbles show and begin to lightly and slowly simmer.

Remove from heat and add the chocolate:

Remove from heat, add the chocolate, and whisk until smooth and fully incorporated.

Serve immediately:

Transfer the chocolate mix to a fondue pot heated at low or low flame, or serve straight from the pot.

Arrange the dip-ables on a platter or plates around the chocolate pot.

Use a fondue fork, bamboo skewer, seafood fork, or salad fork to dip the fruit pieces and other dip-ables into the hot melted chocolate mixture. Eat immediately.

If the fondue begins to feel a little stiff, add a tablespoon of heavy cream and stir.

Enjoy!

Happy Reading 📖📱 and Happy 💗Valentine's Day, too!

Connie Vines

Visit my BWL page:



Find me here:

https://connievines-author.com/  (links/ blog posts, etc. are here :-)






Saturday, May 28, 2022

Romance in Bloom--The Art of Perfuming By Connie Vines #The Art Of Perfuming, #BWL Insider Blog, #Gumbo Ya, Ya, #Cajun Romance

 Romance in Bloom


Fragrance can transform your entire mood. 

And when the mood you want to conjure up is romance, a whiff of the right scent gets you there faster than a binge session with your favorite romance movies. 🎥

From spicy, sensual accords to rose-based floral diaries, I’ve updated rounded 5 of the best fragrances to wear to Announce Spring—or whenever you won't feel like you're living in a fairy-tale! 🏰


Perfumes, like wines, are categorized by notes. As many of my readers know, I was a fragrance consultant at a Perfumery. I love to share my acquired ‘secrets’ in blog posts and novels.

 *Remember, perfumes are a personal preference, and all fragrances lingering scent (bottom note) vary by a person’s PH Level.


Now let the fun begin!


1. Ralph Lauren's ROMANCE

Designed to hit all the feelings associated with falling in deep L-O-V-E, a spritz of this classic and light romantic fragrance treats you to notes like white violet, patchouli, musk, rose, and marigold.


2. Tom Ford’s infamous BLACK ORCHID Fragrance has become a cult icon in the beauty industry.

It is recognizable from just one spritz, but it's also one of the most compliment-inducing smells I've ever come across. Smells like: Warm incense spices, creamy vanilla, and heady patchouli.


3. Lancôme's TRESOR

The diamond-shaped bottle is one of the most popular fragrances out there. The brand evoked the radiance and warmth of love using floral and fruity notes like rose, lilac, peach, and apricot.


4. YSL’s BLACK OPIUM (one of my personal favorites) The fragrance is: Initially sweet with punchy notes of vanilla and coffee but dries down to a musky white floral base.

The creamy notes of coffee and vanilla give a non-sickly sweetness that develops into a dry white floral scent, after which you get the base notes of musk and patchouli. It's unique and oh-so moreish; this one will 100% become the most reached-for in your perfume collection.


5. Jo Malone London's LIME BASIL & MANDARIN COLOGNE. Smells like: Long summer days.

This fresh and zesty scent will have you dreaming of warm summer days with every spritz. Juicy notes of lime and mandarin are balanced with earthy basil and white thyme.


Like so many BWL authors and our readers, I love their gardens!


While my garden is no longer producing the lush harvest of fruits and vegetables of my two son’s elementary school years. I still maintain a PERFUMED GARDEN.


My Perfumed Garden is small because the scent can be overwhelming—robust scents. I try to intersperse my fragrant garden plants with scentless plants that complement their appearance over time.  

Lilacs have a strong scent, but only in late Spring. Therefore, Jasmine is a vine and a plant I utilize where ever possible. And, of course, roses🌹 and herbs.

The garden brings peace to my life, nourishes my soul, and inspires my creative spirit.


This clip has New Orleans Music: 🎤🎹🎵



How do I keep the Romance in Bloom in my stories?


Gumbo Ya Ya—an Anthology for Women who like Cajun Romance, features Persia, a New Orleans perfumer, and Cooper T., a breeder of the Catahoula Leopard Dog and Westminster Dog Show favorite handler in “The Love Potion.”

You will discover that the art of perfuming creates complications for this no-longer-together-couple. But love is, and a happily-ever-after is definitely in the air!


Enjoy the fragrances of Spring and Summer....and the latest releases from BWL Publishing, too!

Happy Reading, everyone,

Connie
XOXO




*copyrights of photos and videos have been granted to the author by Canva.



Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Eccentric (Quirky) Writing Habits? Yes, I Have a list. By Connie Vines #BWLAuthors Blog, #MFRWAUthor, #WritingTips

Most authors, of course, have personal eccentric writing practices. Fueled, no doubt by his or her personal muse. 


Agatha Christie munched on apples in the bathtub while pondering murder plots, 

Flannery O’Connor crunched vanilla wafers.

Vladimir Nabokov fueled his “prefatory glow” with molasses.

Then there was the color-coding of the musesAlexandre Dumas, for decades, he penned all of his fiction on a particular shade of blue paper, his poetry on yellow, and his articles on pink; on one occasion, while traveling in Europe, he ran out of his precious blue paper and was forced to write on a cream-colored pad, which he was convinced made his fiction suffer.

 Charles Dickens was partial to blue ink, but not for superstitious reasons — because it dried faster than other colors, it allowed him to pen his fiction and letters without the drudgery of blotting.

Virginia Woolf used different-colored inks in her pens — greens, blues, and purples. Purple was her favorite, reserved for letters (including her love letters to Vita Sackville-West, diary entries, and manuscript drafts. 

Lewis Carroll also preferred purple ink, but for much more pragmatic reasons: During his years teaching mathematics at Oxford, teachers were expected to use purple ink to correct students’ work — a habit that carried over to Carroll’s fiction.

So how do my little eccentric (or never before mentioned) writing practices measure up?  Is my personal muse quirky, dull, or out of control?

Since my quirks are normal for me, I had to think about this for a bit.


• I always drink coffee that is part of my current ‘setting’.  When my setting is New Orleans I mail-order my coffee from my favorite spot. If I'm writing a story where the season is more than a backdrop, like my current novel, I drink flavored coffee.  At the moment, it is Pumpkin Spice (Starbucks limited blend). 🎃



Café du Monde.  I have my cup and saucer, and a portable mug when I am writing outdoors.   I have a blue coffee pot and matching tin cup when I am writing westerns (yes, the coffee is VERY strong and black).  And of course, a Starbuck cup, Disneyland/ Club 33 mug, or Snoopy (Peanuts) mug when my novels take place in SoCal.

• My music and my menu planning also is linked to my settings.  All within the range of normal.  Though I have more than my fair share of coffee mugs and cups.

• I listen to diction videos on YouTube so that I am not relying on my memory for the sound of a Cajun accent, Texan’s drawl, etc.

• I visit areas on Google Earth and Zillow.  Even if I have lived or vacationed there, I may have forgotten an interesting ‘something’ I can insert into dialogue, or find a way to describe a scene.

• I talk to myself.  Oh, not simple little sentences.  I’m talking about a two-way conversation: “Do you think that might work?”  “No.  Would you do that?” 

 “How about. . .”  This is about the time my husband walks by to find out who’s on the phone, or if I’m asking him a question.  The dog even pokes her head in from the doorway to see what’s going on.  I’m guessing this is not in the  ‘normal range.




• When I write, my workspace is in perfect order.  I have colored folders/pens/notebooks that match and are exclusive to the story I’m working on at the moment.

• I never enroll in an online class when I’m writing—it’s guaranteed writers’ block.  I never talk about my WIP . Why? If I talk about it I think I've added that 'tidbit' to my story.  Then I find myself reading through my draft over and over wondering where the scene went!

• If I'm writing a contemporary story, I only read historicals or fantasy novels. I never read in the same genre I'm writing

💖Whatever story I’m am currently working on is always my favorite.

• I survive on 3 hours of sleep when I am deep in a story.  I know I drink coffee, but I seem to run the story in my mind when I sleep too.

• I also pick up the quirks of my heroines.  I have several friends who are in theater and said it’s a bit like ‘method acting’. 

Fortunately, I’m back to my state of normal a couple of weeks after typing THE END.

I believe all of these little quirks are part of a writer’s voice.  It is what we, as readers, look for in a story.  

Hopefully, it is what my readers, enjoy about the novels, short stories, and novellas that I write too.

To include a bit of personal history: Anton Lada was my granduncle.  (My personal blog, Dishin' It Out, features him in my "Random Thoughts, Scattered About" Monday.

Arkansas Blues by Anton Lada & Spencer Williams for your listening pleasure 🎵🎹🎤


Happy Reading!

Connie


My Places:

Dishin' It Out Blog

.instagram.com/connievines_author/?hl=en

https://bookswelove.net/vines-connie/


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Rodeo Romance Series and Sassy and Fun Fantasy Series
by Connie Vines

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