Tag: blogging

Blog Awards and Reminiscing

On By Stephanie IngramIn Uncategorized4 Comments

Back in my day … watermelon had seeds in it and half the fun of eating it was to spit the seeds on the ground and wonder if they’d grow.

Sound familiar? If you’re my friend on Facebook, it does. I posted this as my status yesterday evening after my son freaked out at dinner because he found a brown seed in his watermelon. He didn’t know what to do with it. Maybe I’m a bad parent, but I found his predicament slightly amusing. After all, to me, watermelon is supposed to be littered with brown seeds. That used to be half the fun.

And again, maybe I am weird.

I also remember when the weather was pleasant enough to spend every day outside. We didn’t get into “the three H’s” (Hazy, Hot, and Humid) until late summer and even then, we weren’t in high 90’s to 100’s *every* day. Today I look out my window to brown grass and July has only just begun. I looked at the current temp and remarked, “OH! It’s only 90 right now.”

Only? I should never have to say “only 90” as if this is a good thing.

Should I keep complaining or are you getting sick of me yet? Hmmmm…

Moving along… Karen Einsel has surprised me with a blog award today – or three, I’m not sure. I got a little confused. I’m easily confused. Cut me some slack, it’s hot, remember? Regardless, I want to offer Karen my sincere gratitude. I’m very flattered! Thank you! Please click HERE to check out Karen’s blog and learn a little more about her. It’s a great read, I promise.

First: The Rules.

1. Include the award logo somewhere in your blog.
2. Answer the 9 questions below
3. Nominate 10 to 12 blogs you enjoy. Or you pick the number.

4. Pay the love forward: Provide your nominee’s link in your post and comment on their blog to let them know they’ve been included and invited to participate.

5. Pay the love back with gratitude and a link to the blogger(s) who nominated you. 

While I am very flattered and happy to participate, doesn’t this sort of thing kind of remind you of chain letters? Back in my day (yes, I’m going there again), chain letters came in an envelope via the mailman. We had to copy them and mail them to X number of our friends. Later, it came by email. I guess nowadays it comes by blog. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind. Gives me something to post if nothing else. I’m just relieved that I’m not promised some version of a horrific fate for not completing the rules exactly, especially since I am breaking the rules a bit. I am not going to nominate others. Not because I don’t know any terrific bloggers. I sure do! I follow many entertaining blogs and I will recommend all of them in a heartbeat. What I don’t want to do is spam people, especially the ones I really like, and that’s kind of what I feel like I’m doing if I list a bunch of people who are obligated to follow these rules.

So… in effect, if YOU are reading this blog and you have a blog of your own, then YOU are nominated! This is doubly true if you also happen to follow MY blog and I follow YOURS. BAM! There you go… that’s easily more than 20. 😉 You know who you are so come on, hop to it. Don’t pretend that I can’t see you hiding in the corner…

Alright then, here are the blog awards:

Wow! Now I really feel special. Thanks, Karen. 🙂

Questions for me to answer from award #1:

What is your favorite colour?

Red!

What’s your favorite animal?

This is a tough one. I love most. I’ve always had a thing for dolphins though.

 What’s your favorite non-alcoholic drink?

Coke

Facebook or Twitter?

Facebook for keeping up with family and old friends. Twitter for  making new friends.

What is your favorite pattern?

Plaid, especially in the form of shirts on a man.

Favorite number?

5

Favorite day of the week?

Saturday. Family time!

Favorite flower?

I love all flowers and my favorite changes all the time.

What is your passion?

Writing!

***

Most Inspiring Blogger Award – Need to share seven things about myself that you don’t already know. This shouldn’t be too tricky since 99.9% of you don’t know me all that well. (yet)…

Hmmm… so what do I share??

1) I hate butter and all its wannabe counterparts such as margarine and the like. I mean, I really, really hate it and I have since I was a kid. People have often thought me strange because I will eat plain toast, plain baked potatoes, and plain corn on the cob. If I go to a restaurant and forget to ask for “no butter” on my pancakes, I can’t touch them. The sight and smell of butter melting over pancakes is enough to make me feel sick to my stomach.

2) As a kid, I was so skinny that my family nicknamed me Pretzel Legs. Once at the pediatrician’s office, the doctor asked me my name and I responded, “Pretzel Legs”. My mum was a tad embarrassed. 😉

3) My favorite sport is ice hockey. (Go Penguins!)

4) I once swore that I’d marry Simon LeBon from Duran Duran. I joined the Duran Duran fan club in Birmingham, England and protested when the band split. I never did marry Simon but I did eventually visit England and met the man that I would marry, a native of Birmingham. We share an interest in music.

5) I am an INFP and an Aries.

6) I still think that Ghostbusters is one of the most amazing movies ever made. I secretly believe that I was put in this world to write screenplays this brilliant and when I overcome my fear of writing one, the rest will fall into place.

7) I am Mom to three boys. Because of #4, my kids will always have citizenship to both the US and the UK. I think that’s pretty cool.

That is probably more about me than you ever wanted to know! If you accept these wonderful awards (and I sure hope you do) then please make sure to send me a note so that I can learn more about YOU too!

Happy Weekend! See you next time for Six Sentence Sunday when I will share a snippet from something new.

Books, Books, Books

On By Stephanie IngramIn WritingLeave a comment

I hadn’t planned on doing a Saturday blog post but under the circumstances, I think it is warranted. Author Christina McKnight has been gracious enough to feature my book on her blog, especially in light of my free promotion running this weekend.Thank you, Christina!

I highly recommend that you check out her blog HERE (it’s pretty nifty) and if you like books of the paranormal variety then make sure you follow. Her book titled “Only in Her Dreams” is scheduled for release this December.

And… if for some reason this is the first you’re hearing of my weekend promotion, check out The Between World on Amazon. You can download it free for a limited time.

Happy Weekend! Join me tomorrow for Six Sentence Sunday when I share another snippet from “Ghosts Don’t Wear Silk Stockings”.

Why I Love Twitter

On By Stephanie IngramIn Writing9 Comments

I love Twitter. This might sound like a really odd way to start a blog post but allow me to explain.

Twitter is a social networking site that is especially top-heavy with writers. Sometimes I scroll through all the many writers that I’m following (or thinking about following) and I feel a bit overwhelmed that there are so many of us in the world. It’s exciting on one hand that so many people dedicate their lives to the thankless, yet creative pursuit, of creating new worlds and stories and helping to bring to life the characters that we love and depressing on the other hand, that we’re so likely to be lost in an endless sea of other creators.

Writing is an amazing form of art. We create something new out of nothing.  A builder is given tools and materials and he approaches this with the experience and skill to create something new, beautiful, and probably useful. But when a writer writes, he isn’t limited by the materials with which he’s given. A builder will never take a couple of sheets of plywood and a few 2×4’s and end up with a house … but a writer, on the other hand, could create an entire empire with his talents. That’s pretty amazing.

So how does this relate to Twitter?

In most professions (including my former incarnation in the banking world), working meant having set hours, going to an office, and being accountable for the work you’re supposed to do. True, that could be said of writing as well, except for maybe the office part. But in most other professions, there is usually social interaction as well. When I worked in an office, I looked forward to seeing my co-workers in the morning. (Maybe I’m just weird.) I looked forward to chatting about our weekends, venting about a tough day, or just sharing a good laugh. When I quit getting up and going to the office every day, those were the things that I missed the most. Those were the things that were the hardest for me to give up.

I never wanted a career in banking and I’m thankful for the opportunity to focus on my writing at this stage in my life so I’m not complaining. I like the fact that I (more or less, depending on the kids) set my own hours and goals. These are super cool things, trust me! But for the first couple of years, I didn’t actually produce much. I didn’t feel accountable to anyone or anything. I longed for social interaction with my co-workers. I felt lonely.

I suppose you could say that Twitter sort of filled that void. Sure, online interactions aren’t quite the same as walking into an office and saying hello face-to-face or chatting around the water cooler, but I’m getting to know fellow writers and making new friends. I enjoy having the opportunity to share knowledge, experience, and in some cases even commiserate when life doesn’t go quite as planned. When I say on Twitter or in this blog that I’m going to complete something, I feel a sense of accountability and an obligation to do it.

Sure, most of you that I interact with on Twitter will never actually read my work. That’s okay.  I don’t actually expect you to and it really isn’t the point. I’m not on Twitter as some sort of fancy marketing plan (although of course, I do hope the extra exposure will ultimately attract readers that may have an interest in the types of books I write).

If you’re still here with me almost 600 words into a boring blog post about why I love Twitter, then thank you! Thank you for indulging me and helping me to feel that I’m not writing in an isolated vacuum where nothing I create makes a difference.

And if you are still reading, and you are interested in my first book , The Between World will be available as a free download on Amazon this weekend. WOO HOO! Don’t miss it..

Happy Friday and Happy Weekend! See you again on Sunday for my six sentence contribution.

Stephanie Ingram: Blogging with Style

On By Stephanie IngramIn Uncategorized1 Comment

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the academy… errr, I mean, Mae Clair, for honoring me with this Stylish Blogger Award! What an unexpected surprise.

Now, how cool is that? I have been asked to share the last time that I dressed up, which admittedly has made me chuckle a bit. After all, I am a stay-at-home mom of three kids and it’s the middle of summer. As I graciously accept this award, I am sitting in the midst of kid chaos in a living room covered completely in toys – Trio blocks, cars, trucks, garages… you name it, it’s probably on my floor. We’re lucky that I took the time to shower this morning, let alone put much thought into what I should wear for the occasion.

I’m struggling to remember the last time I put thought into getting dressed up. After all, even when I do get dressed up, it’s still usually more about comfort than style. Don’t get me wrong, you’ll never find me at Walmart in pajamas, or even sweat pants for that matter. It’s more a case of favoring my jeans and t-shirts over anything else. I’m also completely a bare foot kind of girl. Keep the heels and hand over the flip flops.

Probably the last time I dressed up was for my cousin’s wedding two years ago. Eeks! Has it really been that long? Wow, maybe it’s time to get a babysitter and plan a fancy evening out with the hubby? At any rate, for the wedding I wore a satin black sleeveless dress with white polka dots. It’s one of my favorites so I’ve kept it in the closet hoping for another chance to wear it. I paired the dress with very simple, straight-to-the-point black shoes with low heels.

Now on to more important things. It’s my turn to nominate others for this prestigious Blogging with Style Award. Can I have a drum roll, please? Without further ado, I offer you…

Congratulations, guys! Can’t wait to read your posts…