Tulip Mania? but What About Onions? by Karla Stover

 

Click link to purchase Parlor Girls by Karla Stover

https://books2read.com/Parlor-Girls

                

    History tells us that tulips arrrived in Holland in the 16th century, having come from the Ottoman Empire, ie: modern Turkey. At the time, native plants in Holland included Swiss cheese plant, Yorkshire Fog, Bigleaf hydranges, and creeping buttercup. Not the most exciting, so when Tulips showed up, the people went wild. The price of a rare, coveted bulb skyrocketed, sometimes selling for the same price as a house.The Tulip Mania market ran from 1634 to 1637 before collapsing. 

    I already knew the "Tulip" story when I was studying for my stock broker's license and strangely the tulip frenzy was included in the correculum. During my brokerage house years, I worked through a number of these Bubbles, as they're called: The Soybean Bubble, 1972 - 1973 after which the United States government banned soybean exports; The CB Radio Craze, 1974 - 1977 before interest faded; Silver Mania, 1979 - 1980 forcing the commodities market to initiate new trading rules; The Japanese Bubble, 1986 - 1991 which resulted in interest rate hikes, and The CD Rom Multimedia Startups Hype, 1993 - 1996 which was killed  by that new kid on the block, The Internet. There were a bunch of other Manias: Beanie Babies, Ostrich Farming, all-things Thomas Kincade, and the Y2K Survival Goods Panic, for example. However, the I mostly remember the Japanese Bubble because where I worked, if a stock, bond, or mutual fund included anything Japanese, the brokers were all over it.

 What I missed, though, maybe because it was well before my time, and only just learned about, was the Great Onion Manipulation (read scam ) of 1955 - 1956. 

 Here's the story. In late 1955, traders, Sam Siegel and Vincent Kosuga bought so many onions and onion futures they soon controlled 99.8% of all the available onions and onion futures in Chicago which gave them control of 98% ( In stock market parlance, a Future is a financial contract whose value is derived from the performance of an underlying asset ). Then Siegel and Kosuga put the moves on onion farmers by threatening to flood the market, and "persuaded" them to buy their inventory. After that, they began short selling onions. In a short sale, you borrow something and sell it hoping the price will drop when you buy it back. With all 98% of the onions in stashed away in storage, they were able to short sell onions at a high price, then take their onions out of storage and flood the market with them, which drove the price down. They then bought sufficient onions to cover what they'd borrowed and made a butt-load of money. 

And now, sixty-eight years later, thanks to Congress and the Onion Futures Act, you cannot legally trade onions futures contracts in the United States. 

Will there be a Cryptocurrency Mania? I'm waiting.

Comfort Zones and a Writer’s Conference - by Barbara Baker

 

Jillian of Banff XO — BWL Publishing

I’ll be attending the When Words Collide writer’s conference in five days. Yes, I’m on a countdown. Five more sleeps. I’m excited and nervous.

In 2023 I was there with over 780 people. The energy throughout the weekend was palpable. I heard snippets of chatter about best seller details, landing book deals, acquiring agents and contracts – all music to a writer’s ear. Unfortunately, I was hesitant to step into the circle of conversationalists.

I did attend numerous sessions on learning the intricacies of writing a great book and the struggles an author might need to overcome. I also listened to speakers who shared a roadmap of their writing career and sat at the back of the room during discussions about networking and promotional ideas. My notebook was full.

But during the breaks I hightailed it out of the building and went for a walk. Alone.

This year I told myself it’s time to put on the big girl panties, immerse myself in the excitement and energy of the conference and start to network with other writers, authors, agents, publishers, illustrators, educators … the whole spectrum of folks engaged in storytelling. This time, I shake a finger in the air, I promise to be an active participant – an extrovert trait which scares the bejesus out of me.

Don’t get me wrong. The people that attend this conference are engaging and enthusiastic and helpful and clever. I have nothing to be nervous about except myself. None of them bite. It’s just my approach. Or better yet, my lack of approach.

I’m challenging myself to make six significant writerly contacts. Why six and not 10? Because 10 seems unattainable which reduces my drive to attain it. Six is still a stretch for me to achieve even though it’s daunting. As I’ve said before, it can be a scary place inside my head when I process information and act out scenarios.

If you have any tips on how to walk up to another conference attendee and start a delightful exchange that will be memorable, please send them my way. Help me to not stick my size nine foot in my mouth and frighten anyone. At the very least, help me to say something engaging beyond ‘hi’. If it’s my only chance to make a significant impression, I want it to be a good one. And if you’re going to the conference, I hope to see you there.

In five days, away I will go, pushing myself far out of my comfort zone and since I’ve told you all about it, I feel accountable to succeed. Wish me luck.

 

Contact info: bbaker.write@gmail.com

Summer of Lies by Barbara Baker — BWL Publishing

What About Me? by Barbara Baker — BWL Publishing

Shiloh's Excellent Adventure by Naguib Kerba

 

Shiloh’s Excellent Adventure VII

 At Kerba’s Kabin

By Shiloh Kerba

Sunrise

On Maturity and Cottage Life.

September 28, 2024, marked the end of a second lap around the sun. It has been a remarkable journey; I've grown in so many ways. I am no longer the little puppy who is out of control. I am now a much more mature dog, but who is still out of control.

I have developed a public persona. People from all over the globe follow my excellent adventures. People from far and wide reach out for updates. If I must say so myself, I do make a compelling case for people to follow me. People from Greece, Australia, numerous states and provinces have commented on how cute I am.

Dad was at a Tartan Terrors show in Pennsylvania, and one of the people in the audience asked how I was doing. Another time, Dad was at a funeral when a total stranger told him just how funny and sophisticated my writing has become.

As I’ve gotten older, more of my adventures need to be shared so I can appease the insatiable appetite of my followers. My vocabulary is becoming more sophisticated, surpassing a two-year-old’s mastery of the English language. You, see? I have even been using words from other languages at just the right time to maximize the reader’s pleasure. This shows a much more nuanced ability to reach out.

Dog’s Age in years

Most people think that a dog year is equal to seven human years. I have discovered a new way to explain the different ages of a Labrador Retriever. If you remember that, your life will be way easier, and it will explain everything:

·         The puppy stage is from birth to one year in human years – “Puppy stage”

·         One to three-year-old in human years – “Puppy stage”

·         Three- to five-year-old in human years – “Puppy stage”

·         Five to ten years old – “Puppy stage”

·         After ten years of age – “Puppy stage”

Shinrin-yoku, Forest Bathing

The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries conducted several studies during the 1980s. It is proven to reduce stress hormone production, improve feelings of happiness, and free up creativity. It also lowers heart rate and blood pressure, boosts the immune system, and accelerates recovery from illness.

In Dad’s case, he tries to disguise his photo outings as forest bathing. Worse yet, he even says. I'm going out to take Shiloh for a walk. That's why I need to keep him on a leash.

When I use the short leash, it's a walk. When I give him the long leash, he can take the camera and take pictures. He is sneaky these days. He is using the camera on the phone to take photos. He thinks that by not using the big camera, he is fooling me into thinking he’s not out to take pictures. I know otherwise. I’m including some of his phone pictures as evidence.

At times, to make him feel truly independent, we go leash-free. That's a challenging time; I need to be constantly aware of his location.

 

What happens at the cottage stays at the cottage.

Under the guise of making an exploratory trip, Dad invited his friends Bill Green and Bob Pope. Ostensibly, they were going to go around the cottage looking to make a list of potential projects. What started as a small list grew. The fact is, it grew immensely by the end of the four-day analysis. Different tasks, both small and large, were identified. I’m exhausted after just a glance at the list.

There is a silver lining to the endless list. It means Dad will have to go to the cottage many more times. I'll let you know what that means to me. Mom and Dad know that I love the cottage. The guilt of going to the cottage without me is unfathomable. As a result, each cottage trip must include little old “Moi”.

Life at the cottage - at the risk of my telling all. In one word, it’s a “Blast!” Generally, I go up with one or two of Dad’s friends. They are “Putty in my hands.” They have no chance when I look at them and give them my patented “Shiloh grovels stare.” I can get them to provide me with food, play fetch with me, give me a much-needed tummy rub, or just plain cuddle. They are entirely overmatched.

Let me tell you about the family cottage. It is located on the tip of a peninsula at the end of Windy Point Road. The shape of the peninsula is similar to Italy’s, a boot. The cottage is situated between the toes and the heel at the bottom of the boot, featuring two bays on the back side and a lake view in front of the large window and decks.

The family cottage ~ a.k.a. Kerba’s Kabin

The spot is perfect for me. I love the lake and can jump from the dock to fetch sticks. There are oodles and oodles of sticks I can chew on and carry around. I can let Dad walk leash-free so he can take pictures on our walk up the hill, around the bend, and to the stop sign. Once we reach the stop sign, we turn around and return to the cottage. Dad says it is for safety, but I think it’s because he is lazy and doesn't want to go farther.

The laneway from the big bend to the stop sign is one of Dad’s all-time favourite photo spots. He has often said that this stretch of road is the prettiest he has ever photographed. Dad says it never gets old; I say, “I’m getting old watching him take so many pictures of the same place”.

I love being at the cottage; I've seen some of the most fantastic sunrise and sunset reflections over the year. Dad often said that he’d seen both sunrises and sunsets everywhere he had been. He still maintains that the ones at Oxtongue Lake are as good as, if not better! From my limited travel experience, they're the best I have ever seen. I am sharing a bunch below. Also, feel free to look at Dad’s other travel story, called Oxtongue Lake and Algonquin Park.

The return and first visit of 2025

I’ve waited all year to return to the place I love. Our cottage, well, now, it’s another part of my domain, I’m being generous by saying ours, when it’s just another place for me to rule over.

 

My first dip into the water this year was a bit scary at first; I didn’t know there were sharks in Oxtongue Lake. Dad told me not to go too far, or the sharks would be nipping my tail. I was a bit apprehensive at first, then Tara Nadine went swimming with me.

I relaxed completely because I could run faster than her, so if the sharks were coming, I was not going to lose the race out of the water.

The reason we were at the cottage in the first place was that Mom didn’t want Tara to go swimming by herself. I was talking to Chris, and we were unsure how Mom could help Tara if she were in trouble. Maybe she would call 911…

We stopped only a couple of times on the way to the cottage, fewer than the usual 5 or 6 stops. I never know why all those stops happen, because generally, one of them wants to pick up my poop. They call it a poop and scoop mission. I think they like it. I know Dad’s face gets distorted in all sorts of fancy and funny contortions when he is doing his mission.

That means Mom generally goes into the stores. That’s for two reasons: Dad has no idea what Mom wants, what quantity she needs and makes all sorts of mistakes. Thank God for phones, every single time Dad goes shopping with Mom’s detailed list, he has to call her from the store at least two or three times. It’s hilarious because Mom never keeps the phone near her or pretends that she cannot hear it. At times, he takes pictures and sends them home from the store. I get a chuckle when mom finally sees the picture or hears the phone. She sits there and shakes her head.

The other reason is that Dad has a rare illness; he can’t walk past the meat counter if there is a sale. I like it when he finds those sales because he usually buys too much, and I end up helping him eat the big steaks. I’m not sure if you know, but Dad and I pride ourselves on being true-bred carnivores.

The other enjoyable part of the cottage is exploring and taking my promenades (that’s what Mom and Dad call a walk when they don’t want me to understand what they are saying). The funny thing? I know exactly what

they mean because I can understand more French than they know. I can also spell - W.A.L.K. Also, it means walk. At the cottage, I have all sorts of opportunities to get extra cookies.

All I have to do is hide, and then Mom or Dad starts hyperventilating and acting weird. They shout my name and say “cookie”. Don’t they know? I’m safe from the sharks because I’m out of the water. I hide longer to get a bigger cookie.

We also go on Mosquito feeding sessions, which some people consider walks. I take Dad out; he acts as my mosquito repellent. We walk until he can’t stand the bites anymore, and we head back to the cottage.

 

 

 

 

About the author:

Shiloh is our 3-year-old Labrador Retriever. She has been writing about the world from her perspective for just over two years. As one can imagine, these short stories are from her perspective.

 

 

 

You can follow Shiloh’s Excellent Adventures in Naguib Sami Kerba’s blog –

https://www.nkerba.com/blog/shilohs-excellent-adventures-vii

POVs by J. S. Marlo

 

Red in the Snow

Coming September 2025

   

 

  

J. S. Marlo's Books

I would like to talk about the famous, or infamous, POV.

For anyone who isn't familiar with it, POV stands for Point Of View. If you're within someone's POV, you can only see, hear, smell, taste, or feel what that someone sees, hears, smells, tastes, or feels, and you're only privy to that someone's inner thoughts.

What does it mean for a writer? Well, it means every time you write a scene, you need to choose a POV. Will I write the scene in my hero's or my heroine's POV?

Let's say I choose my heroine's POV, let's say a scent draft into the kitchen, let's say it's lilac, and let's say my heroine has never smelled lilac in her life, so...

These are 3 examples of how the scene could go down:

1- If she's alone in the kitchen, she cannot say it's lilac, because she doesn't know what it smells like. She can say she smells something sweet, something floral, a strong fragrance, a delightful fragrance, but the reader will never know it's lilac.

2- If she isn't alone in the kitchen, she can ask whoever is with her (let's say it's her boyfriend) if he smells something. If her boyfriend knows what lilacs smell like, he can say it's lilac and he can provide as much information as the reader needs to know.

3- She's with her boyfriend in the kitchen, but she's nose blind to the scent wafting in. (Remember, we're in her POV, we can know what she thinks but not what her boyfriend smells or thinks unless he mentions it.) If her boyfriend smells it and knows it, he may say something about it, or he may dismiss the scent as unimportant and not say anything, in which case the reader will never know about the lilac scent drafting in.

(I picked lilacs because I have lilacs all around my house and for a week or two in the spring, it smells amazing... I'm digressing here.)

Every scene conveys bits of information that come together to form a story. If that lilac scent is an important bit of information, then the writer has two choices:

1- Stay in her POV, but develop the boyfriend's character in such a way that he's the type of guy who notices different fragrances and likes to comment about them, or...

2- Switch the scene to his POV, that way he can notice the smell (we're in his POV, so we have access to all his senses and are privy to his inner thoughts). He can simply walk in the kitchen where the scent of lilacs lingering in the air reminds him of his grandmother's cottage. No dialogue needed.

A long time ago, when I started writing romance novels, there were all those written and unwritten romance rules about POVs that circulated among different publishers.

- Only two POVs in the story.

- Each scene had to be written in either the hero's POV or the heroine's POV.

- Love scene should be written in the girl's POV, not the guy's. (Don't readers want to know what's going on in the guy's head when... you know)

- Happy endings, meaning hero & heroine end up together, not merrily go their separate ways.

- Some publishers even had POV ratios. 60% her, 40% him.

I wrote for many publishers (not all of them are still in business) and I had many wonderful editors. It happened that at the beginning of my writing career, I had an editor who was a stickler to all romance rules. I had to rewrite many scenes and switch POV even though the information I needed to convey was now in the wrong character's head. And I couldn't get away with writing even one short scene in the antagonist's POV.

I'm not only a writer, but I'm also an avid reader. I like to know how the vilain thinks.

Over the years I added more and more mystery and suspense to my stories. I went from writing romance, to writing romantic suspense, to writing murder mysteries with a dash of romance. Suddenly, these POV rules didn't apply as much as they used to.

I was reading a mystery novel written by a well-known author last month. I very much enjoyed the story but I wouldn't describe the ending as happy in any sense of the word. Now, let me talk about the POVs in his story. (I had just finished a round of edits when I read it so it might explain why they struck me so much). The author didn't have just 2, or 3, or 4 different POVs in the story, he had many more. Not only that, but he often switched POVs within the same scene.

None of the POV rules appeared to apply to his story--or to any other genres but romance.

So, what's my current take on POVs?

- Most of my scenes are in my hero's or heroine's POVs, but I choose the POV that conveys the information the most natural and seamless way possible.

- If there are love scenes, they can be in any POV. It's whatever rocks my boat when I write it.

- I try not to switch POV within a scene, but I write some scenes in other characters' POVs. My vilains have voices, very loud and disturbing voices.

- And I still like a satisfying ending. I want my readers to enjoy the ride and disembark happy--not curse me or throw the book back at me.

Next month I'll give you a taste of Red in the Snow. I know I said that last month, but my excerpt isn't quite ready yet. Besides, it's too hot outside to mention the word snow.

Stay safe! Enjoy the rest of your summer! Hugs!

JS

 

 

J. S. Marlo's Website

They Don't Make Them Like That Anymore by Eileen O'Finlan

 

                               

Whenever I do research for a new historical novel, I always find things that surprise me. Currently, I'm working on the research for the third book in my Children of Ireland series. Like Erin's Children, this one will also be set in Worcester, Massachusetts but a decade later during the American Civil War.

Naturally, I have to research the politics of the time, life in the military and on the home front, as well as the war itself. Equally important is research on everyday life at that time. That is my favorite type of research. I find it fascinating to learn about how people lived, what they wore, what they ate, what they did for work and leisure, and what things they had in their homes.

Recently, I read about some types of furniture that were common in the mid-19th century. I was amazed to learn that patent - that is, convertible, collapsible, or folding furniture - was all the rage in American middle-class homes. These included such items as sofas and lounges that converted to a bed, a bed or a bath tub that converted to a wardrobe, or a bench that doubled as a table.

Wanting to see for myself what some of these furnishings looked like, I did an online search for images of 19th century American patent furniture. My favorite is the Wooton Patent desk. Closed it looks like a intricately carved work of art. Open its double doors to reveal a multitude of drawers and cubby holes, many of them on the inside of the doors, and a pullout platform for writing. It is a masterpiece of a desk.

Another favorite is the metamorphic desk chair. Closed it's a round table, but pull it open and you have a chair with a rounded back attached by a hinge to a half-moon table with a drawer.

These are just a few of the innovative designs of 19th century furniture. I would welcome either as additions in my own home. I'm sure I will find a place for some of these items in my next novel. Meanwhile, I have more research to do. I wonder what else will surprise me.