Tuesday Photos – Purple Blooms

On By Stephanie IngramIn Photos2 Comments

I live in Southwestern Pennsylvania. If you have never visited the area, I highly recommend it, doubly so if like me, you enjoy all that the outdoors has to offer. Because I love to spend time outside, because I am constantly amazed at how beautiful PA is, and because I have to post something in this blog, I am dedicating Tuesdays to my recent favorite photos.

As my first photo post, it’s hard to choose! After much deliberation, I finally settled on sharing these two. Both were taken in May of this year when the woods were really just starting to bloom. My son and I took a walk through the woods before school and fell in love with all those purple flowers. I love his smile as he poses for the camera amongst them. As it had rained recently, if you look closely, you’ll see rain drops on the close-up photo.

I never get bored looking at these sort of photos … and I hope you don’t either!

Aliens Have Landed

On By Stephanie IngramIn Uncategorized9 Comments

When I was a kid, aliens landed in the field behind my house. They kept themselves well hidden by moving through underground tunnels left behind by abandoned coal mines. No one else noticed the lights that disappeared into the ground. My brother and I did, however, and we set out on a mission to discover what those aliens were doing and to prove their existence to the unbelieving adults around us.

Eventually we realized that the adults in our life may have been right and our quest to find the aliens wouldn’t lead us anywhere. We gave up and moved on to other things. Even still, I look out at the night sky once in a while and wonder “what if?” What if we had discovered something that no one else was aware existed? What if we did uncover the secret plot of aliens as they watched us? What if we just got a little too close one day?

My brother and I weren’t just alien hunters, of course. We were also quite experienced in the paranormal. After all, we had two resident ghosts that kept us occupied as we tried to conjure all the possibilities between who they were and why they set up camp at our house. I don’t think we ever came to any real conclusions but we had a lot of fun talking about them and waiting for something to happen. (And yes, once in while creepy things did happen!)

One could argue that like typical kids, we had some pretty overactive imaginations but I look back on those days fondly. In many ways they are the fuel for the stories that I write today. The inspiration behind my first attempts at writing a full-length novel came from our ghost “experiences”. That novel wasn’t very good, as most first novels aren’t, but the idea still lingers and I keep wondering if perhaps someday I won’t revisit my original ghost story and turn it into something better? That “perfect” ghost story is always in the back of mind … just waiting for the moment to escape into the world.

Just as one day, I will likely uncover the secrets of the alien hideaway as I follow the footsteps of the two crazy kids who dared to get just a little too close…

Six Sentence Sunday

On By Stephanie IngramIn Six Sentence Sunday, Writing6 Comments

This is my first week participating in Six Sentence Sunday, so go easy on me. I’ve decided to start with my current WIP, Ghosts Don’t Wear Silk Stockings. It’s meant to be a lighthearted story about a woman who thinks she’s found the perfect man, only to discover that he isn’t exactly what he seems. As a matter of fact, he isn’t entirely human…

***

Ten minutes ago, she’d have been willing sacrifice her body to his carnal needs. Now she wasn’t so certain and he felt her hesitation against the heat of his bare skin. He kissed her neck and she lost the internal battle.

“Think about it,” he purred in her ear. She wasn’t sure she could think about anything else if she tried.

“We should wait,” she whispered.

***

Choosing six sentences has proven more difficult than I expected. Feel free to share your thoughts.

My Week in Review

On By Stephanie IngramIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Five things I learned this week, which may or may not be of any use to you…

1) It doesn’t hurt to have an inkling of what you’re doing before you actually do it.

2) Hermit crabs will not play fetch.

3) Summer vacation does not mean the end is near for Mom.

4) Two hours of listening to the Limbo song on repeat is sufficient.

5) Kids will always be awake before 6am unless you actually need them to be awake.

Where will life take us next week?

Choose For Me

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The kids are on summer break and I’m expecting to spend more time over the next couple of months reading instead of writing. Only trouble is, I have a lot on my kindle and I can’t decide which one to pick next! Perhaps my first summer read is something completely unexpected? I’m definitely in the mood to try something new.

So that being said, I’m putting the decision in your hands. Choose for me which book will be my first summer read. I’m open to genres. Do you have a special favorite you are excited to share? Post the title and author in the comments and I will randomly select by putting all the choices in a hat and letting one of my kids pick the winner. If you’re an author and you want to suggest one of your own books that I might like, I welcome that as well. If I enjoy it, I’ll be happy to post my thoughts in the form of a review on Amazon and Goodreads.

I am looking forward to the next possibility…