Nancy C. Johnson Romantic-Suspense Author

Don't get around much anymore

2011-10-25T12:11:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I am embarrassed to see I haven't posted in almost a year. Unfortunately, I've been so busy that blogging hasn't been at the top of my list. But just so you know I'm still alive and kicking, I thought I'd better write something.

Nothing much has changed, and that's really not a bad thing. I had a great weekend, did a bicycle ride on Saturday with the Wolverines (we rode to Detroit and had lunch in Mexican town - Los Galenos) and on Sunday my daughter Angie and I hiked at Maybury State Park. The weekend was gorgeous, so I had fun both days. I allowed myself to take a two-day break, and not write, edit, clean house, or grocery shop. Nothing except have fun!

Angie and I made our annual visit to Greenfield Village this summer, and plan to go again sometime soon to see the Halloween decorations. Hopefully we get a few more warm days for that. Otherwise, we can always go to the museum. We like that too. We also made a cider mill stop in Franklin a few weeks ago, and bought donuts and a gallon of cider. The place was packed! We barely were able to find a parking spot.

Besides working on writing today, I plan to do a few necessary errands, like stop at the bank, buy a new water filter for the kitchen sink, buy birdseed for my outdoor bird feeder, and figure out something for dinner. Not the most exciting day, but I'm fine with it.

Slicky is doing well, and being a good boy. He's sleeping in my chair right now, but he has lots of energy when he's awake. His paper and shoelace are still his favorite toys, plus playing glove attack.

I hope everyone is doing well....

Nancy

Catching up with my blog...

2010-11-07T08:43:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I apologize for not writing for quite a while now. But I've been concentrating on writing chapters for my new book, and neglecting other writing projects. This blog is basically fun for me, and I hope it is a place where anyone who has read HER LAST LETTER and wants to know how things are going with the book and with me, will be able to catch up.

I do have some new news about the book. I have signed with an agent at Trident Media Group in New York City. This was in August. What this means I really can't say, but I'm thrilled! I have a great agent and it is a great agency, one of the best, so I'm hoping for good things in the future. I don't bug my agent about how she goes about doing what she does. She's the expert after all. I just trust her to work the magic. Once I hear any good news I will let you know...

My summer was great. It was hotter than I needed it to be, but I won't complain. I am definitely sorry to see it end. On the upside we've been having some really warm days lately, and the fall colors are nice. I took a beautiful hike at Maybury State Park yesterday with a friend. Autumn leaves were all over the ground, and it felt very private walking through the woods. We started out on the hiking trails, then spotted one of the mountain bike trails and turned onto it. It was hilly, but not bad at all for walking. We only saw one mountain biker, who came up behind us so quietly it surprised me. We walked for about two and a half hours, and got a little lost for a while. It is a big park, and the trails go all over the place. Next time I plan to bring a compass.

My daughter and I finally did get over to Greenfield Village, but it took a while. Angie only has so much free time. One of the places we like to stop for a break is called Cotswold Cottage. That's where we have our peppermint tea and scones, and give crumbs to the hungry birds who hang around our table. Then, of course, later on we have lunch at the Eagle Tavern. It is said to be haunted, by the way, but they must be nice ghosts, because I have the nicest feeling every time I'm there. This time the Eagle Tavern offered rainbow trout, our favorite, and it was yummy. Their breads are wonderful too, and the mashed potatoes, and all the unique side dishes. And we had the mint tea again, but this time hot. We sampled the iced tea at the cottage.

I'll try not to take so long to post in the future. I can always find something to talk about.... Just so you know, Slicky, our cat, is doing fine. He's as feisty as ever, and whines a lot when I don't play with him often enough. Lately he likes me to drag a long shoe lace across the floor, which he pounces on every so often. (I tie two together.) Or if he's feeling lazy, I dangle it up and down while he lies on his back in a chair. He never seems to tire of this.

Hope everyone is doing fine.

Nancy

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

A Great Memorial Weekend

2010-05-30T21:23:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I had an absolutely great day today!

Memorial Day is tomorrow, but the weather could be a little iffy as it's supposed to rain and possibly thunderstorm in the afternoon. I hope the weather prediction is wrong, or that the rain holds off until at least late afternoon.

But today was gorgeous! Actually, my daughter Angie and I were supposed to go to Greenfield Village, as we both love visiting there. We usually walk through most of the old historic homes and shops, then stop for a break and have tea and cookies at tables in a quaint garden setting. After that, it's more walking, then a late lunch at the Eagle Tavern, a wonderful restaurant which was originally a stop for stage coaches... When we actually make our next visit to Greenfield Village, which should be soon, I'll write about this in more detail. But about today...

We changed our mind and decided to stay on the lake since it was so nice out. It was just the four of us: me, my husband Bruce, Angie, and Marty, her husband. And then, of course, Makamae, their cockatoo, and their two cockatiels came also. Slicky, our cat, is afraid of the birds, so he hid in the basement as he usually does when they come by. But it is cool down there, so I'm sure he was comfortable. He still has his winter coat of fur, and it's been much too hot for him lately. No doubt he was annoyed though, and wished they would just stay away.

I decided to cook for everyone, and kept it simple: burgers and hot dogs, cole slaw, cottage cheese, corn on the cob, and baked beans. Angie brought a pasta salad which was excellent, but we ate most of that earlier in the day.

Bruce put the boat in this year, after six years of it sitting in the garage. I was upset last year as it was the first summer I didn't ride in a power boat. No real reason, just never got out there. I used to feel that summer hadn't begun until I'd taken a ride in a boat, usually our boat. So I asked Bruce if he would put the boat in this year, and he did. We went out for a ride twice today. It was wonderful, even though the lake was pretty turbulent. Lots of boats were out on the water cruising around, or pulling water skiers or tubers. We ran into (not literally) a few old friends; some we hadn't seen since winter. The lake is already warming up from all the recent hot weather, and felt pleasantly cool. We passed a bunch of pontoon boats parked in a little cove, swimmers floating alongside them in their rafts. They appeared to be having lots of fun. Next time we are out I think I will bring a raft and float too. I haven't done that in a long time either.

So, I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday weekend!

I personally am looking forward to a long, hot summer and lots of good times with family and friends.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Between Winter and Spring

2010-04-08T10:59:00.000-07:00

Hi,

It 's a gray day today, and feels more like late winter than spring, though my cherry tree shows signs of blossoming soon. It's cold out, maybe forty degrees, though I haven't actually stepped outside to check. It could be a little warmer. The lake has thawed completely, and the grass is green, but I know from years past it could snow any day. Most years we see at least one good snowstorm in April. Not until May can you assume the white stuff is gone. I remember one year it snowed six inches and they opened the local ski area for the day. I didn't go skiing, but I thought about it.

So far, we've been luckier than ususal and have had several sunny days, a few with temperatures reaching all the way up to eighty degrees. The most recent one was Good Friday. I used that opportunity to go on a long bicycle ride with a group I ride with, going all the way to Belle Isle and back, about forty-five miles. I actually rode only forty miles, because I skipped the Belle Isle loop, which is fast and usually windy. (Usually I do the loop, but I talked myself out of it this time.) Instead, I stayed at the coffee shop, a Tim Hortons, and waited while a few of us lazies relaxed and drank some really good coffee and ate blueberry muffins. It was absolutely great to ride in bike shorts and a light jersey so early in the year. This particular ride is normally an easier pace, except for the Belle Isle part, so you can talk to friends without getting winded. It is also flat which makes it a favorite. We'll be doing the hill rides soon enough...

I enjoyed skiing this winter as well, both ski racing at Boyne Mountain and our one week vacation to Vail, Colorado. The snow was great at Boyne this year, not much ice at all, and two weekends had full sun. Our last weekend up there was not only sunny, but warm. No rain, no bald ice, nothing to complain about. The only thing I could complain about was my lack of trophies this year. I came close to a third place once, missed it by less than half a second, but could not make it happen. It's not like I raced badly, just everyone else raced better. My one excuse it that great snow conditions don't usually favor me. The worse the ice, the better I do. Oh well, I did race on Boyne's Nastar course a few times and claimed several gold medals. And one run was just short of a platinum. Next year...

Vail was awesome. We had a great condo at Lion's Head. My daughter Angie and her husband Marty joined us, plus we had two friends in our condo as well. We were only a short five minute walk to the gondola. The snow was a little sparse considering what they normally get, but I didn't notice any rocks, and once we headed to the back bowls we found lots of powder. We skied earlier in the season this year, the first week in February. Temperatures were mild though, early to mid-thirties during the day, colder at night. Vail is one of my favorite ski areas, more terrain than you could possibly ski in a week, or in several weeks. And the food is spectacular, pricey, but it's Vail after all. The restaurants have to pay for all that prime real estate.We did eat all of our breakfasts in the condo, and took turns cooking and cleaning up. Thanks to my husband, we were usually one of the first ones to arrive at the lift, no later than nine o'clock, and sometimes arriving by eight-thirty. This was not a vacation that included any sleeping in time.

But I'm really looking forward to spring and summer. That's the great thing about living in Michigan. Before you lose interest in any one season or sport, it's time to start another.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Movie Marley and Me, and My Cat Slicky

2010-02-12T08:28:00.000-08:00

Hello,

My husband Bruce rented the movie, Marley and Me, last night. He was hoping to please me, and I enjoyed the movie very much, though I cried at the end. (I wasn't in the mood to cry, since I was feeling a little down already. No real reason, or maybe a lot of little reasons, not sure.) Anyway, the movie reminded me of how much I would hate to lose our cat Slicky, and that I haven't played with him as much as I should lately. By the way, the movie is about a dog, a Labrador, not a cat, but a beloved pet just the same.

I believe the movie is based on a true story, though I haven't looked that up to be sure. But I think I read that it was. Marley is a lovable, untrainable, exasperating dog who tears up the furniture when left alone, pees on the carpet, and does just about every unthinkable thing a dog can do. He is not mean though. And he adores his parents. The movie is not just a comedy about Marley; there's a lot more to it. It is also about tradeoffs, the ones we make in life for those we love, trying to do the right thing. It is actually a good movie on several levels....

Anyway, I was wondering the other day if Slicky would be happier if he had friend to play with. I've always owned only one cat at a time, though my girlfriend owned two cats, and they seemed to do well keeping each other company. I don't want to invite problems though, and maybe Slicky likes being the only cat. After all, he gets all of the attention when he does get it.

Slicky is calling to me now. I'll be back in a sec....

Okay, I played with him. He really likes to play with architectural paper, the large sheets. It is very noisy and he likes to hide beneath it and let you poke at him with your foot, while he attacks through the paper. He never seems to tire of it. I can chase him through the house too, or play glove attack. He sits on the high perch Bruce built for him and attacks my gloved hands. He has claws, so without the leather gloves this wouldn't work at all. He also likes to lie on his back on the floor and play with the belt on my robe, which I dangle up and down.

It is much easier to keep an outdoor cat amused, but Slicky wants no part of the outdoors. You could leave the door wide open and he would just stand there. You would definitely have to coax him out, and I've talked to several vets, and all said that considering what a high-strung cat he is, he probably would get hurt. He is scared of everything. The phone rings and he will jump off my lap.

Anyway, he is happy for the most part. I know because he purrs all the time. It will be better when summer comes and he can hear all the birds, and smell the outdoors, and watch everything outside. He is still a middle aged cat, and very healthy as far as I can tell. No reason to worry. I'd be willing to guess he will be around for a long time.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery-romantic suspense novel, Her Last Letter

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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An Old-Fashioned Christmas Tree

2009-12-13T09:49:00.000-08:00

Hello,

Christmas is just around the corner, and I wanted to share with you the nice experience I had with my daughter and son-in-law shopping for a Christmas tree the old-fashioned way.

It's my job these days to assemble our nice looking, but fake Christmas tree. It works for me. It looks good, the needles stay put, and I can burn an evergreen candle if I want a little pine scent. In years past, my husband and I would buy a real tree, pre-cut, at one of the neighborhood lots, but Bruce became less enamored with picking out the tree, bringing it home and setting it up, and cleaning up all the needles.

I finally gave in and we bought the fake, and it is less trouble, but I do sometimes miss getting a real tree. So, I was delighted when my daughter Angie called me and asked if I would like to go to a tree farm and help pick out their tree.

We are not that far from Highland, maybe 10 miles, where a lot of open land still exists and most of the tree farms are located. We visited one of the most popular tree farms first, which featured hay-baled filled wagon rides pulled by a tractor. This was great as it happened to be a beautiful sunny day and only mildly cold. The three of us hopped on the wagon along with a few other people, and headed for the acres of planted pines beyond. It was fun! They dropped us off farther back, and we walked and walked, but couldn't decide between the scotch pine or the blue spruce, plus some of the pre-cut trees they offered looked good also. In the end, we decided to drink some hot cider, then check out another of the tree farms nearby.

Eventually, after more walking, we decided on a blue spruce at the next farm, where many of the trees were nice looking. But as we were ready to leave, the tree tied to the roof, Angie's best friend Darcey and her husband Jim, plus their toddler Andrew arrived. And so we did it all over again, walked through the trees for a third time, to visit with them and to watch while they picked out their tree. I'll admit I was getting tired by this time, also hungry, plus hadn't seen any signs of an available restroom for a while.

It all worked out though. We stopped at a McDonald's for a snack afterwards, then drove back with the sunroof open to make sure the tree stayed securely fastened to the roof.

All in all, I enjoyed myself immensely, and hope to do it again next year.

Enjoy the holidays!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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A Little Disneyland ... My Bird Feeder

2009-12-10T08:28:00.000-08:00

Hi there!

It is cold, cold, cold here in Michigan, especially today. I'm not sure of the temperature, but the winds are fierce. I went out this morning as I usually do and put out seed for the birds and squirrels, and they seemed especially anxious to get to their chow. I have an unusual feeder that my husband built for me. It is shaped somewhat like a cross, about seven feet high, but has three flat boards, one over the other, near the top. I spread the seed on each board, and a variety of birds, squirrels, and chipmunks show up each morning, usually immediately after I spread the seed. When I first started doing this, maybe five years ago, none of them got along. Each squirrel would shoo off the other squirrels and the birds too. Now they seem to know each other, and it's like a little Disneyland out there, birds and squirrels all eating and socializing together.

I originally wanted a bird feeder to amuse my cat Slicky. He gets bored being an indoor cat, and he enjoys watching it all in the morning, though now he is used to it and rarely tries to attack the squirrels that run across the deck. (The feeder is built to one side of the deck so I can reach it easily.) Of course, I really like watching all the action in the morning too. I put out wild bird seed, sunflower seeds, and peanuts. The unsalted peanuts were originally for the squirrels, but the jays usually get most of them. I read that blue jays store food for winter, which surprised me. They are quick, and funny to watch. The peanuts are in the shell, and being greedy, the jays try to stuff more than one in their beak, which doesn't work. After picking up one, then dropping it to get the other one a few times, they settle on just one and fly away to their nest. This repeats for a few minutes until all the peanuts are gone.

I've seen cardinals and woodpeckers, big ones and little ones, and the mourning doves are a large group, plus many smaller birds. I have a bird guide my daughter bought me, so I know most of the ones that come around. I used to see blackbirds and crows, but not recently. I think some birds come by just to see what's going on. One time a duck flew up and sat on the feeder. I tried to get a picture, but something scared it and it flew away. The ducks do walk up from the lake and get seed off the ground in the summer, and they bring their little ducklings. (This makes me glad I have an indoor cat.)

But I wonder how they can stand the cold on days like this, but they do. The squirrels cover their backbone with their long tail, and the birds puff up to capture some body warmth, and their hearts beat much faster than ours, pumping out the heat. Makes me glad I can provide them with some fuel ... and that I can watch them from inside.

Hope you're enjoying the holidays!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Book Signing at Leon & Lulu

2009-11-04T08:13:00.000-08:00

Hi,

A friend of mine, Maureen, was nice enough to tell me about an opportunity to do a book signing at an unusual place. It actually used to be a roller rink, and I'm pretty sure I used to roller skate there as a kid. Leon & Lulu, formerly the Ambassador Roller Rink, is located in Clawson, not far from Rochester, the town I grew up in. My mother used to drop me and my sister off at the rink for the day, and we had great times hanging out with the other kids. The only bad thing about it was we both would come home with blisters on our heels after the many miles of floor we circled.

Now, the former Ambassador is a wonderful furniture and accessories store. You would have to see it to believe it, fifteen-thousand square feet of eye candy for the decorator minded. The floors are still part of the old roller rink, but beautifully refinished, and roller skating employees smoothly maneuver throughout the store helping customers. Leon & Lulu held their first "Books and Authors" event the Sunday before last, and many customers and book lovers turned out to join in the fun and meet the thirty-six authors in attendance. Part of the proceeds went to charity, and I believe they did very well in that regard. Stuff like this is always fun for me as I meet other authors who are inevitably fun to talk to. I always seem to learn something new from them. I had a great space to set up my books, my own little living room near the front of the store. I had a beautiful couch, a chair, coffee table, and art objects surrounding me. I felt like I was part of the display, except I smiled and said hello when people passed by or stopped to chat with me. To my surprise, we were allowed to drink coffee in our area (offered free that day to the authors and customers) and also to eat free muffins and other goodies, and later on, free hot dogs. I had to leave my area to eat the hot dog though. I don't trust myself with mustard around furniture.

I told friends I was going to be there, and my friend Chris showed up to spend time with me, then my friend Maureen, then my sister and her husband, and then my daughter, who took a picture of me holding up my novel. It was a great time and I sold and signed some books too.

It's going to be an annual event, so I'm hoping to be invited back next year also. By then I should have two books to display.

Have a great day!

Visit my website to read FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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A Great Review from Midwest Book Review!!

2009-10-04T09:01:00.000-07:00

I can't tell you how happy I was to discover I'd received a great review from Midwest Book Review on my Amazon page! Not only was it a wonderful review, it was six paragraphs long, written by their senior reviewer Shelley Glodowski.

I sent the book in for a possible review about a year ago, and had given up on ever hearing from them. They do get a lot of books, so my guess was they just weren't that thrilled with mine. I was also aware it is their policy to post a review of a book only if they believe it is worthy of five stars. Otherwise, it is not reviewed, and this is a great policy as far as I'm concerned, because the only thing worse than receiving no review is receiving a bad one. Of course, whether a reviewer or reader likes or does not like a book is very subjective. While I, of course, believe my novel is a well-written and exciting read, not everyone is going to agree. (Though I have to brag a little that readers have written me, or told me, that they absolutely loved my book and could not put it down.)

Around this same time period, I also found that my novel, Her Last Letter, was included on another of Amazon's Listmania! lists. This particular list was compiled by MN Mama (from Minnesota) and titled, "Great Suspense Thrillers and Mysteries."

So, if either happens to read this blog post, I want to thank both Shelley Glodowski and MN Mama for giving my book praise and making me very, very happy!

Here is the review as it reads on my Amazon Page:

***** A great read!!, September 8, 2009
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA)

Nancy C. Johnson has been making up stories since she was a child. She is a complete bookworm and loves to create a romantic world for the reader. She craves excitement, and wants her stories to engage the imagination of the reader.

Set in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, a town in close proximity to Aspen, Nancy's story begins with Gwyn Sanders, recent heiress, discovering a letter from her dead sister hidden in a desk. The letter indicates that her sister slept with the boyfriend of either Gwyn or Linda, the third sister. Gwyn and Linda decide to hire a private detective to conduct a background check on both men. After all, new money and its owner can easily be separated. Unfortunately, this situation puts a strain on both fairly new marriages:

"When I returned home I sought a good hiding place for the report. Later tonight, after Trevor went to bed, I'd read it in depth. I'd decided that my discovery didn't mean a thing, that if anything, having a father in prison had taught Trevor one thing and one thing only. DON'T END UP THERE. Look how diligently he went about his business, about his life. Of course he didn't want his father's mistakes to reflect on him. That's why he'd kept it a secret."

There is no better place to set a mystery than in an exotic place or in the mountains. Nancy Johnson makes excellent use of this backdrop to set the stage for a smashing mystery that is chock full of romance; sexual tension; and true mystery. Her dead sister seems to be speaking to her from the halls of their childhood home, and the reality that follows is just as startling as if her ghost had jumped out at Gwyn.

The idea of new money creating possible targets is also explored in this mystery. Naturally there are "other women," and it all adds up to a spicy and juicy read that is impossible to put down once the first page is read.

Nancy C. Johnson has created a winner with HER LAST LETTER. Hopefully this book is the beginning of a career that is sure to thrill her growing readership for years to come.

A great read!!

Shelley Glodowski
Senior Reviewer

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Battle of the Crabgrass

2009-08-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hi,

Well, all in all life is good. I was not feeling too good several weeks ago, and I have to blame it on one of Mother Nature's peskier weeds.

I've never had an encounter with asthma until recently, and I feel really sorry for anyone who has to deal with it on a regular basis. Not being able to breathe well is awful...

Anyone who reads this blog knows I like to bicycle, in fact I like to bicycle a lot. And breathing hard when needed is certainly a part of that. I don't let myself get too scared about many things, but the asthma episode scared me. I have good lungs, and don't normally worry much about paint fumes and other types of fumes. I know they aren't good for you, but I figure I can deal with them if necessary.

Anyway, for the last six years I've hired a reputable company to kill the weeds in our lawn, and they did a good job on everything except the crabgrass, which was the reason I hired them. I can kill most weeds myself. I have no problem using a lawn spreader. It's not a big job, nor is it particularly expensive. I just can't seem to kill the crabgrass. I've tried the pre-emergents, but never had much luck. I even sprayed the crabgrass with total weed and grass killer, didn't faze it, just left visibly brown patches with little green shoots poking through. One year when I was really mad, crazy mad, I picked every blade of it out of the front lawn. Took me all day and made my back hurt. It was gone for a while, but returned the next year. I'm told it's an annual weed, so where did the new seedlings come from? It never got a chance to seed that year.

I've tried ignoring it, but I swear it laughs at me. It grows for the most part next to the driveway, where I can't help but see it. I thought I had its number this year. I bought spray bottles, big ones, of crabgrass killer. I planned to spray it, and spray it, until it was dead, at least dead for this year. I didn't want to see it. I wanted to see nice lush grass take its place, the kind all my neighbors seem to have.

But whatever grows in my yard is not easily defeated. The first round of spray stopped its advance. The second round a week later stopped me. A couple hours after the application I found I couldn't take a deep breath. It felt as if half my lungs, the bottom half, had shut down. That was on Saturday. I figured it would go away in a few days. I wasn't wheezing yet, just couldn't get a good deep breath. In retrospect I should have seen a doctor right away, but instead I waited until Monday morning.

My doctor gave me a breathing test and I flunked. Allergy induced asthma was the diagnosis. I then had to breathe medicine through a tube to calm the inflammation and open up my lungs. It felt like heaven after the previous two days. I also got a device to use twice daily, and was told that in a couple weeks I would be okay. It actually was over three weeks before I felt normal again. The medication I was prescribed actually didn't help much, and when I read that one of the possible side effects was "death," I decided to just deal with it until I felt better.

So, the crabgrass won again this year, and cost me three weeks of biking fun.

I noticed that the small park near to us has no crabgrass. No one weeds it, or waters it. It does get mowed occasionally. Sometimes the grass goes brown when the rain doesn't fall for weeks and the temperature rises. Mother Nature obviously knows how to keep her pesky weed in check. Maybe I should follow her advice. If so, all I really have to do, is do nothing.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Biking in the Heat...

2009-06-25T07:36:00.000-07:00

Hi,

The weather is hot, hot, hot here in Michigan. It makes it a lot harder to make the effort to go ride my bike, because I know how drained I will feel once I'm finished. And it will show. My face will be red, my body will be gritty with dirt and salt, my hair damp with sweat. I can't shower before I go to dinner with friends (my treat for working out) so I won't exactly look my best. But we all look bad, and we're used to seeing each other that way, so it's no big deal. It's sometimes surprising to see friends I don't see other than when I ride. Usually we see each other just as described, with helmet head, hair flattened on the top, then flaring at the sides, or if short, completely flat. The make-up, if added, disappeared after the first ten miles of sweating. One time, Beth, a biking friend, stopped by the ride to deliver a message after she'd just left work. I had to stare. She was gorgeous, hair done up, lipstick on, fashionable clothes, even heels... I had to compliment her, of course. It was quite a transformation.

You might wonder why someone would ride if it's all sweat and grit, but it's the wonderful feeling while riding that makes it a great experience. It's the closest I feel to being a kid again, only now I can leave the neighborhood. The beautiful scenery we pass is always uplifting, and I love the feeling of camaraderie riding as a group, flying up and down hills, around curving roads, through woods and alongside lakes. We stay off the main roads as much as possible, weaving through the neighborhoods, our ride leader determining the route.

This last Tuesday night was great. We did a long ride, 37 miles. We only stopped once to adjust someone's seat that had come loose. We talked when the pace slowed, kept quiet while going fast. That might be part of it too, the focus needed to make sure the ride goes well. You don't have time to think about bills, or problems. It's all about keeping an eye on the road, and the rider in front of you, and an awareness of everything around you. I ride with people I know, and that helps a lot. You know what to expect of each rider, and trust them to maintain their line and not brake unnecessarily. When riding with a group time flies, and the miles with it. It's fun. It really is.

It helps that I am in shape now. Riding when you are not in shape can be hell. I won't deny that. I had my share of heavy breathing earlier in the season. I lost the group once, and had to find my way back. I trailed them for almost a mile, and could not breathe. No one knew I was back, and I did not yell out. The unwritten rule is, the group will stop for a mechanical problem, but not if you can't keep up. You're supposed to come prepared to ride. Still, if I see someone having difficulty, I will yell, "rider back." Most other riders will too, if they see it. But when the group is going fast, you don't have time to look around. That is what happened to me.

The temperature is supposed to rise to 90 degrees today. It was 92 yesterday with high humidity. I think the hottest weather I've ever ridden in is 95 degrees, so chances are I'll try to ride tonight. My group, the Wolverines, has never canceled a ride because of the heat...

I'll look forward to dinner, and then a nice cool shower. :)

Talk to you soon...

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Chicago

2009-05-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes opportunities just drop into your lap. For instance, I was having dinner with a group of friends when one of them, my friend Sharon, mentioned she was attending a workshop in Chicago. She was excited about the weekend workshop, but had never been to Chicago and was wishing she had someone to go with her. Though the workshop ran all day, she would be able to see a bit of the city in the evening, but only if someone came with her. Otherwise, she would likely spend the evening in the hotel or close to it. Her workshop was in Rosemont, about 16 miles from the city, and though she could easily take a taxi into town, it just wouldn't be that much fun for her alone. I thought about it for a moment, then told her that depending on the date, I would be happy to join her. I had a book signing coming up, but other than that, my weekends were pretty much free.

(On a side note, my husband just called out for me to come outside. Some World War II planes were flying overhead in formation. Today is Memorial Day, so my guess is they were headed to an air show. So cool... )

Anyway, back to my topic. We had a great time. Sharon booked the Doubletree Hotel in Rosemont and got a low rate. Her event was at another hotel, a block and a half away, which she could easily walk to. We drove to Chicago, about a five and a half hour trip, early on a Thursday morning. Since we forgot about the one hour time change from Michigan, we also gained an additional hour. The event didn't start until one o'clock, so we asked the hotel connoisseur if he might suggest a good restaurant for lunch that wasn't too pricey. We went to Maria's, a Mexican restaurant about three blocks away, and they were featuring an all you can eat buffet, really really good ... all types of delicious Mexican dishes, plus fruit: watermelon and grapes, along with a sweet apple tart of some sort. We also each ordered a margarita, very tasty. The buffet was really inexpensive, $7.50, and even including the $7.00 margarita, was a great deal.

The Doubletree Hotel was beautiful, and the rooms large, with a big picture window in our sixth floor room for viewing the surrounding area. We had a flat screen television, large bathroom with a huge walk-in shower and a separate bathtub, two comfortable queen size beds with "Sweet Dreams" sheets to curl up into, and even a desk for your computer plus two more comfortable chairs to sit in if you felt like reading or just relaxing. The hotel had everything you could need, restaurant, business center with computers, a bar lounge connecting to another restaurant, banquet rooms. It was quite the hotel. I was happy to find out about the indoor heated pool and hot tub, plus a small, but adequate exercise room. I especially liked the ice filled water coolers, in both the lobby and exercise room, in which they added fresh lemon and orange slices. Totally refreshing.

Instead of taking a taxi into Chicago, we used the elevated train located only two blocks from the hotel. It was an adventure for us for sure. We had to ask a few questions about obtaining tickets and which stops would take us downtown, but everyone was extremely friendly and helpful. I had not been to Chicago for many many years, and had never used the 'L.' The trip took about twenty minutes, then we followed people out and eventually ended up on the street. After a few more questions and lots more walking we found Michigan Avenue. It was a beautiful night, the tall buildings lit up and thousands of people strolling. The boulevards were lined with tulips, and about every third street corner we would be entertained by musicians with saxophones and violins, or just singing their favorite songs. We stopped by Millennium Park and walked under "The Bean," way cool, then continued down Michigan Avenue as we were getting hungry. My daughter had suggested several restaurants for us to try, and since it wasn't too far and we were getting tired of walking, we decided to try The Cheesecake Factory. People were eating outdoors under tall heat lamps, but we chose the interior of the restaurant instead so we could do some people watching. It was a great restaurant. Sharon chose a delicious salad and I chose a shrimp and angel hair pasta dish. I don't know how they prepared the shrimp, but Sharon and I agreed it was the best we'd ever tasted. The pasta was incredible too. The restaurant was really crowded considering it was a Thursday night, but not hard to believe considering the quality of the food. By the time we returned to the hotel it was almost eleven-thirty, so it was lights out for us. Sharon's workshop resumed at eight-thirty the next morning.

Unfortunately, the next day was cool and rainy and a bit windy, not a good day to walk Chicago again. Instead we visited Navy Pier, and that was active and very crowded on a Friday night. Many were attending the IMAX Theater located there; others like us, were just hanging out. The big Ferris wheel was closed, but Sharon had indicated to me she didn't want to ride it anyway. Rides like that upset her stomach. I might have taken a ride had it been great weather, but it definitely wasn't. We enjoyed walking through all the stores and checking out the restaurants. It's a lot bigger than you might guess considering it is actually built on a pier. I was impressed. We toured the Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows, with huge intricate stained glass pieces donated for the public to view. I've never seen anything like it. You could spend many hours there. After all our sightseeing we decided to have dinner at Riva Chicago, and wow, what a meal. I chose the salmon and Sharon the scallops. The view from the restaurant is awe inspiring, two story windows look out at the boats with the city of Chicago as a backdrop.

I could go on and on about my trip to Chicago, and possibly I'll add some more highlights next time I write. For now, I intend to spend some time out on the deck in this near eighty degree weather...

Enjoy your Memorial Day!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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End of a Great Ski Season - Skiing in Aspen

2009-04-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought winter might be over, but it fooled me. Again we got snow, six to eight inches, on April sixth, a week before Easter. I suppose I could go cross country skiing today, though the snow wouldn't be too great, even in the woods, as there isn't any base. I would bet skiers will be out at the parks though, a few last diehards willing to scar the base of their skis.

I have to say it was a great ski season for me. My new race skis helped me collect two second place trophies in my class, a more difficult class than last year. I placed myself in A Women, instead of my usual Vet A Women, for reasons I won't go into now, but it promised a better slope to race on and more competition. Next year the problems should be resolved and I will be back to my old class with all of my buddies. Actually most of them changed also, for the same reasons I did, but a few were forced to stay on.

I just got back from Aspen, Colorado last Saturday. I was hoping for sun and warm conditions all week, but the powder seems to be following me around lately. And that was fine. The locals were jubilant, having not seen any new snow for many weeks. Snow starting falling on Sunday night (we arrived Saturday) and just kept falling. So much snow fell in the mountains and in the city of Denver that the airport closed on Thursday. Fortunately, by the time we needed to fly out, it reopened. I enjoyed the first day immensely, a forty degree day with hard pack conditions and full sun. We skied that first day at Snowmass, one of my all time favorite areas. My husband, daughter, son-in-law, and the group we flew out with all skied together for the most part. We started the day on The Big Burn, but it was not good at all, very icy, something you rarely see out west, a result of late day thawing and then morning refreezing. We left The Burn and headed to better conditions on the other side. I knew snow was predicted the next day, so soaked up as much sun as possible and skied as late as my legs would let me. We hardly stopped all day, except for a quick lunch on the mountain. I bought a banana and drank a cup of free water. (I think soup was at least ten dollars, and I wasn't hungry enough to justify the cost.) I did buy a great Caesar salad at the end of the day (again at least ten dollars) but by then I was famished. Eighteen dollar pitchers of beer (do you believe that?) were a hot item at our outdoor table at the base of Snowmass, but I stayed away from the alcohol and had a Coke instead.

We skied Ajax (Aspen Mountain) the next day, and it snowed like crazy. The day was continuously gray, but not too cold, and felt a lot like Boyne, except no one would ever confuse Ajax with Boyne Mountain. I loved skiing in the powder, and the steepness of the runs we skied. We stayed away from double black diamond runs, as most had long standing icy moguls covered by fresh snow. It's one thing to ski moguls when you can see them (and I prefer snowy moguls, not icy ones anyway) but another to ski them when they are hidden. One of the guys in our group started out too fast and took a hard fall because he couldn't see, landing on his head and shoulder. He was dazed, but recovered and continued on. Fortunately, he was wearing his helmet. I enjoyed this day as much as the day before, because of all the fresh snow. The only way it could have been better would have been if the sun were out. But oh well...

We had some great dinners in Aspen. Great restaurants are plentiful. We took one day off, and Angie and I used the Aspen Spa, a fun relaxing day, then met the guys and had lunch at La Cantina, a popular Mexican restaurant. This restaurant has been around for a long time. It has reasonable prices and offers delicious food in large quantities, with excellent service. Great food is common in Aspen, reasonable prices are not. The wonderful thing about Aspen is you can find both if you are interested in looking. I love the town of Aspen, and it was as lovely as ever. We stayed in a two bedroom condo at The Gant, a block from town, which boasts one of the best shuttle services around. You can call them, and in a minute or two or less, they are there to take you anywhere you want in town, and then home. I was impressed. Our condo was really lovely too, with high ceilings in the living and kitchen area, but not extremely large, but was selling for one point eight million dollars. Location, location, location... Our balcony overlooked one of the pool and hot tub areas, which included an outdoor fireplace, sauna and exercise room, plus a convenient cabinet filled with hot towels to use once you finished swimming or hot tubbing. Ahhhhhh...

We also skied Aspen Highlands our fourth day in, and that day was the hardest for me. My legs were crying out to me by then. It also is one of my favorite ski areas, more private and less crowded. I actually skied by Melanie Griffith and her husband Antonio Banderas the last time I skied there, maybe six or seven years ago. Melanie looked even better in person (one of my favorite actresses, I've watched Working Girl at least thirty times) and Antonio looked great also. They seemed to be having a lot of fun.

Anyway, I loved my vacation, but was so tired from skiing that by the end of the week I was happy to head home. I hope it won't be the last time I get a chance to visit Aspen. If so, maybe next time I'll get my wish and enjoy seven days of sun...

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Ahhhhh ... Tax Time

2009-03-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

I'm glad someone else does the taxes for us. Although, by the time I get all the receipts together, it feels as if I've done most of the work anyway. Not true, I know. We drove to Dearborn today to get our taxes done, a new CPA lady that my son-in-law recommended. She was very good, fast, and charged a reasonable amount to wrestle with our return. I felt complete relief once we left her office. (I always think the worst, that we will owe tons of money, which rarely happens.)

The best part of it all was the lunch my husband promised me after we were done. He used to work in Dearborn years ago, about an hour drive from the house in rush hour traffic. He liked working there, but hated the drive, but the company paid him well so he stayed with them for over ten years.

I could see he felt as if he was revisiting his younger days. He used to lunch often at Miller's Bar, and hoped they would still be in business considering the rough economic times. Not only were they still in business, they were doing a hellava business on this day, a Saturday. It's one of those places that adhere to that old saying, "keep it simple, stupid." It's not a very large place, and the tables are worn and scarred, and some wobble. (We moved from one table because it wobbled a little too much.) You don't get menus and you pay on the honor system. Orders are easy. You can choose from a burger, fries, or onion rings, possibly chili too (but we're not sure) and of course liquor or pop. Condiments consist of ketchup, mustard, onions and relish. I felt like an outsider asking for mayonnaise, which the waitress politely informed me wasn't available.

I felt right at home after a while, and didn't worry about my cholesterol for a change. It's nice to know that some things stay the same, and are much the better for it. I would go back in a minute, as I'm sure most do, but chances are we won't be in the area again for a while.

So for me, tax day was a good day, a nice little memory to tuck away and pull out when needed.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Escape Artist

2009-02-28T06:14:00.000-08:00

My daughter Angie called me a few evenings ago, very upset.

I know I have mentioned Makamae, my feathered grandchild, in previous posts, but in case he doesn't ring a bell, Maka is Angie's cockatoo, or crested parrot, white with light blue rings around his eyes, and a happy sweet nature. He is adorable, and I love him, and he loves me too. He is over a year old now and very smart. He talks, and has a few favorite phrases, his name, and "I love you" and "Good night" when he wants to go to bed. I would be devastated if anything happened to him.

Maka is not Angie's only bird. She has also since adopted two cockatiels, Little Man and Cocos. I love them too, but this post isn't about them.

Both Angie and her husband Marty work, so during the weekdays the birds are in their cages, where Angie supplies them with lots of new toys to keep them busy. They have large cages. We call Maka's cage a condo, because it is actually two large cages put together. He has lots of room to play and not get into trouble. Little Man and Cocos have a separate large cage they share, placed so all can see each other. This way they keep each other company.

Maka, being a parrot, has incredible dexterity. His bird feet are more like hands, and he can manipulate his large beak extremely well also. He loves to play and pull stuff apart, and needs to do this actually. If unhappy or bored, parrots will resort to pulling out their own feathers if nothing else is available.

About a month ago, Maka managed to get out of his cage. He figured out how to open one of the small doors where his food dish is placed. This is very difficult because he would have to swing open a latch on the outside of the cage while simultaneously pushing open the door.

Besides the damage Maka could accomplish in a small time to the house, he could also kill himself. Angie solved the problem (she thought) by heavily taping the latch to the cage so the latch could not swing. We thought this would be enough.

Two days ago our escape artist managed to remove the tape. (No tape showed on the inside of the cage, so he must have spent hours working it loose.) Marty was the first to discover the crime scene, as he called it. When he walked into the house, Maka was nowhere to be seen. Eventually Marty found Maka upstairs in the computer room. Maka is not allowed to touch the computer, or the expensive computer pen (for obvious reasons). He has coveted the pen for a while now. Fortunately, Angie put the pen away in a drawer, so instead Maka went after the electronic mouse, another costly item.

His path of destruction included removing the extension cord from the television set downstairs, then precisely removing the plug from the cord. He also did some minor damage to the t.v. itself. Again, the t.v. set is an item he is not allowed to play with. He also found the tape gun Angie used to tape the cage shut, and removed all the rubber from the handle. The tape gun will still work, just won't be as comfortable.

And last, but not least, he flew onto the stove and removed one of the knobs that turns on the gas. The angels must have been watching, because he didn't turn on the flames and catch fire, or burn down the house.

So, he managed not to electrocute himself, not to burn himself, and not to burn down the house. I'm sure he had a lot of fun while it lasted, but he won't be getting out again. Marty and Angie spent the evening at the hardware store buying locks and chains that we hope will keep our little Houdini safe.

I stopped over yesterday to check on Maka (just in case) but he was playing with his toys, totally unaware of the scare he gave us all.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Technorati, Social Networking, and Skiing

2009-02-08T08:58:00.001-08:00

I'm trying something new in order to let people know about my novel. I'm not sure how it works, or if it will work for me, but I'm told it will help drive traffic to my blog (and therefore my novel). It's called Technorati, and you basically tag words in your blog that represent the message in your blog, and these words somehow wind up on the net. The site I used also brings news of your blog to social networking sites, which again I know nothing about, but they appear to be widely used and helpful also.

It doesn't take much to do this, so I'll try putting these tags on each of my blogs and see if anything happens. I've already tagged the last three I've written. You'll be able to see my efforts at the end of this blog once I complete it.

On the home front, I've gone skiing up north, and it was incredibly cold the whole time. I didn't race this first race weekend, which upset me a lot, but I was changing health plans and the current one had not verified (at least to my satisfaction) that I was covered. I am normally extremely cautious, and probably shouldn't even have been skiing, but I did. I looked at the odds and decided that since I hadn't hurt myself skiing for many years, the odds were in my favor. I would never advise anyone to do this though.

I used my new race skis, but turned the settings down so they'd release easily if I needed them to. I just had to watch out for out of control skiers so I wouldn't get nailed. The new skis were great. I can always tell if they will work for me in the first few turns. The Fischers I bought were extremely easy to handle, and I liked them immensely. They are a bit heavier than my old skis, but I knew that. With my last pair I tried something different, and bought a youth model ski. They are built as well as an adult ski, I think, but you have to be a lightweight to use them. I just fit the requirement, and it saved me money, but I wasn't sure if I wanted another pair. I'll see how I do in the races this year and that will let me know what to buy in the future.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Hope you're having a decent winter.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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The New Year...

2009-01-19T08:44:00.000-08:00

Well, it's a new year.

I remember thinking when it was still the nineteen hundreds, that it would feel really strange when we hit the year two thousand. Now it's two thousand nine, and though it doesn't feel all that strange (since I've gotten used to it more or less) each year does seem to whip by. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about what's important, especially what activities are really worth my time. Is it important to try to do as much as possible as fast as possible before the inevitable? And should I even be thinking along these lines?

I've never had too many of these thoughts before, but somehow the way it is right now, the country's plight, all of the unemployment, businesses struggling to survive, people losing much of their life savings ... all of the unhappiness floating around out there, it affects you. I wish I could make it all go away, just wave a super magic wand, and poof, everything is fixed.

I suppose the best thing is to keep, if possible, a positive frame of mind. As bad as things are, we are still better off than those who lived through the Great Depression, when there was very little in the way of social assistance. We do have a few safeguards in place.

As far as my own new year, I don't think I look any worse than I looked last year, and physically I feel about the same. The sun is out today, and I spent a few minutes looking out the window at the abundance of glittering snow in the front yard. The snow's been coming down heavily almost daily, and my husband is getting really grumpy about his continuous treks up and down the drive with the snow blower. He's threatening to make me learn how to use it. Not a problem. It certainly would be easier than clearing the drive by hand, and I helped him do that for the many years before we bought the snow blower.

The battery in my car died a few days ago, but I was expecting it. I've had it for several years. I am grateful that it decided to expire in the garage, and not after I drove to the gym or something like that. I threw a sleeping bag in the car recently too, just in case. You never know when you might get stuck somewhere out in the cold, for whatever reason. Not long ago, my girlfriend who I go cross-country skiing with got stuck out on the freeway during the severe cold. She said she was shivering profusely by the time the police arrived. It was one of the most bizarre accidents I've ever heard of, and I'm really glad she wasn't hurt. She was on her way home from work, and out of nowhere a tire comes flying from the opposite side of the freeway and slams onto the hood of her car. It severely damaged her engine, which stopped, and she had to coast her way through several lanes of traffic to the side of the freeway. Fortunately, those behind her saw the tire bouncing wildly away and let her through.

She just got her car back a few days ago after the several weeks it took to repair it. She also decided to add rental insurance to her policy, as she had to pay for a rental car out of pocket. Doesn't seem fair since the accident wasn't her fault, but that's the way the policy was written. I think I will add it to our auto policy too. You just never know...

Hope your new year is going well. :)

Talk to you soon.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered at most bookstores.

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Santa Sighting...

2008-12-16T09:44:00.000-08:00

Well, it's true. He's here, at least in Michigan.

This made me smile when I heard it. My daughter and her husband were on their way to see a Warren Miller movie in Royal Oak, a town not far from here. In case you don't know of him, Warren Miller is famous for his ski movies, and watching one of his flicks really puts you in the mood to ski. I have to say I have a great fondness for his earlier movies, the ones that show beginner skiers getting into funny situations on skis. And I really love Warren Miller's voice. Just hearing it gives me a lift.

Anyway, back to Santa. My daughter Angie was in the passenger seat of their car, and when they slowed coming to the light, she saw a red van in front of them, and on the license it read, "Santa One." Curious, they pulled beside the van, and sure enough there was Santa in full costume. And what was he doing? Well, he had his list, of course, and was checking it out. My daughter was thrilled, as he really looked like Santa, extremely authentic.

We're thinking he reserves the sleigh for Christmas Eve, so he can give his reindeer a good rest before they head out. I'm hoping I get a chance to see Santa too, and I'll sure be watching for that red van. I'll also be watching the skies on Christmas Eve.

Talk to you soon.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery-romantic suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Cross-country skiing

2008-12-09T08:13:00.000-08:00

I can't believe the kind of winter we're having. It reminds me of winters I enjoyed as a kid, lots of snow, cold enough to ice skate or go sledding any time you want. I am actually feeling the Christmas spirit more than usual.

We went to a Christmas party Saturday night, one a friend of ours holds every year. Everyone must bring a dish to pass and a toy to give to charity. At least sixty people or more show up. I know a few of these people since a lot of the guests live in the neighborhood. One good friend I saw there likes to cross-country ski, as I do, and she invited me and a couple other people to go out on Sunday. We are fortunate to have a heavily wooded park not far away, with lots of trails, enough that you can easily get lost in the woods if you're not careful. It couldn't have been a nicer day out, sunny and not too cold. Once we got going I actually worked up a sweat. We saw a few other skiers on the trails, all smiling and mentioning what a great day it was to be outside. Some of the trails are really hilly, as the park is also used a lot by mountain bikers in the summer. We avoided most of those and stuck to the wider less radical trails. We had a little girl with us, three years old, but she rode in a back pack. Tom, her father, is very athletic, but still I worried (as he must have) that he might fall with her. We took some tricky little descents through narrow corners in a few places. Fortunately, he was very steady on his skis and handled it well. Nothing I'd like to see him do again though.

We were only out for about an hour, which was just enough as my daughter and her husband invited us over to watch a world cup ski race on t.v. , then join them for dinner. We arrived right on time.

Enjoy the holidays!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Premature Lover???

2008-10-19T11:40:00.000-07:00

I can't stop laughing... :)

Amazon has done a great job of helping me sell my novel, and I am very grateful. But being that Amazon is such a huge operation, the wires are bound to get crossed from time to time.

I recently ran across my novel in a list of recommended books Amazon posted on the web. Great news, of course! The list included a cover of each novel, plus a short passage detailing the plot. I have to believe the resulting weirdness must have been a computer malfunction of some sort, for how else could the description have become so garbled? I don't think even human error could have produced something this weird or funny!

First, here is the descriptive passage as it was supposed to be written:

In the Colorado mountain town of Glenwood Springs, not far from Aspen, artist/photographer Gwyn Sanders discovers a cryptic letter her sister Kelly left behind. The victim of a deadly hit and run, Kelly reveals she was sexually involved with her sister's boyfriend and is scared for her life. Both Gwyn and her remaining sister Linda have since married their boyfriends, so either of their husbands could be guilty of murder. The sisters received a large inheritance before meeting these men, and know little of either man's background. Worse, both Gwyn and Linda love their husbands deeply, but steps must be taken to find the truth. And the truth is complicated. Is it one of the two men, or another previous lover? Or none of them? Danger abounds and everyone is a suspect as Gwyn tries with the help of a gifted private detective to track a killer....

And here is the new adulterated version, word for word: (PS - My apologies to nuns or anyone else this may offend.)

In the Colorado heaps townsfolk of Glenwood Springs, not interahamwe from Aspen, artist/photographer Gwyn Sanders discovers a inscrutable letter her nun Kelly left-hand ass. The unfortunate of a devilishly touch on and guide, Kelly reveals she was sexually inplicated with her nun's lover and is afraid for her life history. Both Gwyn and her left over nun Linda hurt since matrimonial their boyfriends, systematic either could stay fault of mutilate. Worse, some Gwyn and Linda make love their husbands profoundly, merely steps necessary stay appropriated to line up the truth. The sisters normative a declamatory heritage in front geographical point these men, and secernate diminutive of either man's downplay. And the truth is complex. .. .. Is it unity of the ii men, hospital room other premature lover? Or time of day of them? Danger abounds and everyone is a fishy as Gwyn tries with the amend of a precocious snobbish policeman to selection a somebody

Hmmm, this could lead to a whole new line of plot ideas, I'm sure.... :)

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Not much going on...

2008-09-26T13:01:00.000-07:00

Not much going on today. It's quiet out on the lake, and even though the sun still feels warm and the leaves aren't falling yet, you know it's fall. The shadows hit the lawn a lot earlier in the afternoon, and whereas before I used to open the umbrella out on the deck to protect me from the sun, I don't need to now. I really enjoy these last warm days, even though it's a little too quiet. When the jet skis stop jetting around, and the boats start disappearing from the docks, I feel the urge to spend more time outside. Soon I'll have to close the windows and start thinking about things like furnace filters and changing the timers so the lights go on earlier, and earlier. Even though I like winter for the most part once it's here, I hate to see it grow dark at five in the afternoon.

Anyway, it's Friday and we're heading out to eat tonight. I'm looking forward to that, probably going to an Italian restaurant. There's a couple good ones nearby. I feel like having some shrimp scampi and angel hair pasta with tomatoes and lots of garlic. That sounds good to me, and possibly some really crusty bread. Maybe a little wine would be nice too, though I'll probably end up the designated driver so it will really have to be a little wine.

Okay, well that's about all I have to say. I did do a book signing last weekend that turned out really nice, but I'll save that for another time.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Things happen...

2008-09-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

Hello,
Haven't posted a blog since May. I guess I haven't felt like writing. They say things happen in threes, and I hope they're right, because I wouldn't want to experience more of this.

Three people I cared about have died since May. First, our water skiing buddy, John, went into the hospital with what looked like a curable lung cancer, then died three weeks later. Then our neighbor across the street, Mike, a young man who had been battling leukemia for several years, died also. Then one of our very, very best friends, Eric, had a heart attack while driving home from work. This was in July.

We had just seen him on a Saturday, two days before it happened. Luckily, though he crashed into the back of a truck, no one else was hurt. They took him to the hospital, but it was too late.

So, I hope that's the end of it.

I guess I must be coming out of the doldrums, or I wouldn't be writing now.

I'm sorry to see summer ending, even though it was not the best for me.

Nice day out today. I plan to take a walk.

I'll try to check in soon...

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Amazon's Listmania! lists - A thank you...

2008-05-09T09:56:00.000-07:00

Like I said, I don't know who reads these blogs (wish I did!) but I suppose I should assume at least a few are those who've bought my book. If you happen to be one of that group, I thank you very much, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. As I've mentioned before, I loved writing it, loved being in that exciting make-believe world for a while. But you can't go back, you can only go forward with a new book, a new adventure, but that's always fun too...

I did want to thank those who've helped promote my novel on Amazon, people I've never met, but who were kind enough to add me to their Listmania! lists. For those of you not familiar with this feature on Amazon, it is a list anyone can make who has bought a book there. It can be a list of favorite books in any category: mystery, romance, suspense, any type of fiction or nonfiction. The categories are endless...

I hope I haven't missed anyone, but if I have, I'll edit this and reprint. Thanks to all of you for including my novel, Her Last Letter, on your Listmania! lists. :)

Issy ... In The Mood Romantic Mysteries

Barb White ... Super Reading

John Savoy ... Fiction

Staci Harman ... Shakes and Shivers Mystery Books

Hellen Troy Hollingsworth ... Books You'll Enjoy Reading Many Times!

Anita Mitchell ... I Think You Might Like These

Miami Danger ... Sit, Stay, and Read a good Book!

I really, really do appreciate that you thought to include my book!!!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Me and My Desk Top...

2008-04-30T06:27:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm sitting here writing this blog and looking at my messy desk. I can see only about three square inches of actual desk top. Oddly, I can still find what I need, when I need it, but the look of my desk and therefore my office really bothers me. It's not like I've never cleaned it before; I have, but somehow it always ends up like this. All of the important papers (that I consider important anyway) end up on top of the desk. Certainly, some of this could be tossed.

The rest of my house is not messy. I hate a messy kitchen, and make sure I get all of the dirty dishes in the dishwasher before relaxing in front of the t.v. for the evening. I do have a few books scattered around the living room, but not many, so it's pretty organized too. And my bathrooms are clean, sink shiny, bathtub and toilet pretty decent too. When they start looking in the least grim, I have to grab the cleanser and do something about it. I've often thought it would be great to hire a house cleaner to come in once in a while, since vacuuming is one chore I could do without, but I know I would have to vacuum beforehand anyway (can't let anyone see it with cat fur on the rug or crud in the corners). I would hate to have anyone see my closet too, especially before I've done my spring cleaning and bagged the clothes I inevitably give to one of the charities. I usually have a bag or two and one or two of my daughter's bags. She always offers to let me dig through her stuff before giving it away. She has nice taste, and usually gets tired of her clothes long before they wear out.

So, I don't know why I don't clean up my desk more often. It would probably not take that long to organize. I even bought some new folders just for that purpose, plus I have room in a file drawer. Maybe psychologically it feels as if I am accomplishing something with all these papers in front of me, even when deep down I know I'm not.

Hmm, maybe this dissatifaction with my desk top is actually about a deeper issue. Guess I should make the effort to clean it up and see what happens... But maybe not today.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered thought most bookstores.

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Jackson Hole Skiing - Record Snowfall Year

2008-04-01T14:56:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a vacation in Jackson Hole a couple days ago. Whoa, I've never seen so much snow! Never. One night we got thirty inches, another night sixteen, and on and on. Avalanche guns went off almost every morning ... booming, triggering avalanches so we wouldn't end up in one. I brought the same skis I usually use up at Boyne, knowing I would likely demo skis depending on the conditions. I expected to be renting "all mountain" skis, but decided instead in favor of "powder" skis, the type most of the locals were using. I'd never tried a pair of fats, but was glad I did. My own skis threw me all over the place, and I couldn't bring the skis to a stop easily. It wore me out. The powder skis, on the other hand, seemed to float down the mountain. I used a lot less energy. Unfortunately, by the time I rented the skis, three days in, I was almost too exhausted to enjoy them. But that's me, trying to save a few dollars. Silly. The whole idea is to enjoy the vacation.

I don't consider myself a powder hound. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that in Michigan we don't get much powder. I actually was hoping more for sun and groomed slopes and maybe some soft forgiving moguls. I love to ride chairlifts on a thirty or forty degree day, relaxing and soaking up the warmth. Makes me feel like singing John Denver tunes about Rocky Mountain highs. But it wasn't to be. I knew this, after all it is Jackson Hole, famous for sub zero temps. Fortunately, I was spared the coldest temperatures. For Jackson, it was somewhat balmy, cold in the early morning (I think one or two degrees) but warming up to twenty or thirty most days. The problem was the flat light and sometimes blizzard conditions. At one point I could see about two feet in front of me, and only the pines on either side of the slope kept me on course. On two of the days they closed the chairlifts on the upper parts of the mountain because of dangerously high winds. Since it was also windy on the lower slopes, I didn't venture over there on those days. I have experienced chairlifts during high winds, not fun at all, especially when the lift stops and you're blown horizontal, your feet dangling over the tree tops, the wind sounding a lot like a locomotive.

I did enjoy the vacation though because a lot of my friends were on the trip, and really, how many times do I get a chance to ski that much powder? It was a record snowfall year for Jackson Hole, over five hundred and seventy-five inches, and I was there to see it happen. Think I'll be talking about this trip for a while...

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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More on the Races...

2008-03-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

Goggle is amazing. I wrote a blog yesterday about ski racing up at Boyne Mountain, and mentioned my daughter Angie, who raced this past weekend with me and the rest of the gang. She calls me up about a half hour after I posted the blog, and tells me she just typed in "Angie" and "ski" on Google (she was looking for something related to the races) and my blog came up. Somehow Google grabbed onto those two words and found my blog that easily. I find that truly amazing. I, of course, had to try it myself, and yes, she's right. It did.

I have no idea how many people actually read this blog. I enjoy writing it, and that's enough for me. Hopefully, it brings some enjoyment to others. It does remind me of when I used to keep a journal, and wrote about anything and everything that interested me. Of course, this is the Internet, so I can't be quite as personal as I was then.

But let me finish up about the races. We had three days of racing over the weekend, a slalom race on Friday, a giant slalom race on Saturday, and a race we call the Cantor Cup on Sunday, in honor of Larry Cantor, a former racer and an extremely nice guy. I knew him well. He died during a race. I was gate keeping his course when it happened. He had a heart attack, had a heart condition, and wasn't supposed to be racing at all, but he loved it. He was in his early sixties, I believe. When it happened, the day had been cloudy and ugly, but after he passed, the clouds parted and the sun broke through. A lot of us figured Larry was letting us know he was okay. So his relatives built him a bench that sits on the deck of the race shack, and we honor him each year with a race on the last day.

So, to finish up, we had the three races, and as a result, Angie was a finalist for the year, and won the third place World Cup in her class. Marty, her fiance, won his first race, the Cantor Cup, dual slalom elimination style. He was the last man standing ... literally (very icy course). And Bruce (husband) had good results for the last half of the season, but missed out on a World Cup. Not a problem. He won his class the past four years running, very difficult to do. I had the two trophies from previous weekends, but didn't finish one race this time. I'll be buying some new race skis very soon.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Ski Race Season over for the Year

2008-03-10T11:57:00.000-07:00

Well, the race season is over for another year, but it was fun. I actually managed to get two trophies, a second and a third place, in my Vet A Women class. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that my daughter can watch my races this year. Before, we ran at the same time, but she's moved up to Elite II Women, a step above my class (a big step) and now she can watch my race. It has to be the reason I won something, because my skis are five seasons old; I didn't train, and though I usually work out extensively over the winter, I slacked off there too. But I wanted to ski well for her, and so concentrated very hard on my technique and was extra agressive.

We just got back from Boyne last night. It was really cold all weekend, but the sun stayed out. I will take sun and cold over warm and gloomy any day. The flat light on a cloudy day really takes away from the experience for me. I, like most skiers, like to be able to see the terrain. And on a super cloudy day, even the best goggles don't help much.

But we had three days of sun. The snow squeaked it was so cold, I think a minus one on Friday morning, but no wind. The slopes were perfectly groomed, and easy to ski, except once you stepped into the race course. That was solid ice, so solid even the best racers could not even begin to put a dent in it. I've never seen so many really great skiers slide out, or heard so many complaints. It really tested your ability, and your balance. Every racer out there sharpens and waxes their skis diligently before each race. You could cut yourself on their edges, but it was as if no one had done anything. We stood and watched as one skier after another fell on their behinds. One second they're upright, the next they're not. Like watching bowling pins go down.

I took two runs on the Giant Slalom course, the first not so bad because a little snow remained, the next run I slid out about a quarter of the way down and missed the gate. It was too far to climb back up; I would have interfered with the next racer, so I just skied the rest of the course the best I could. I was okay about it though. I did think seriously of buying new equipment for next year.

More on the races later....

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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A Great Day for a Signing

2008-03-04T08:57:00.000-08:00

I thought you might like to hear how my latest book signing turned out. I have to admit I was nervous about the weather, worrying that the roads would be covered with snow and ice on my drive to Fenton. But it was a beautiful sunny day, the roads clear and dry. The journey didn't take as long as I thought it would, about forty-five minutes, and I tend to be a cautious driver, rarely exceeding the speed limit.

The owner of the Little Professor Book Center stationed all of us at the front of the store. Previously I mentioned six authors would sign, but actually it was eight of us. And I liked everybody! They were all so friendly! Two were children's book authors; the others wrote non-fiction. I bought of few of their books, and they bought a few of mine also. I've read each and thought them wonderfully entertaining!

Normally, a signing would last at most two hours, but this one was scheduled from 11:00 to 4:00, and most of us stayed, enjoying talking to each other when business slowed. I had a great time!

My daughter Angie stopped by and took pictures of us, and brought me something to drink, which was sweet of her. She stayed about a half hour, bought one of the author's books, and chatted with everyone.

All and all, it was a very good day.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Book Signing(s)

2008-02-01T21:24:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to say I have three book signings coming up soon, two scheduled, and one in the works. One is at the "Little Professor Book Center" in Fenton, MI, and scheduled for Mar. 1st. It should be a big event, since I believe it will involve about six authors, one of them me. I'll be the only one with a mystery romantic suspense novel. I think two of the other authors write children's books, and I'm not sure what the other three write. I should be getting an email soon giving me the information. I'll send it to everyone I think might be interested.

The second signing is more informal, at my local chapter meeting for Romance Writers of America. That is on the third Tuesday in February I believe, the 19th. I and others will be signing during the break before they announce the speaker for the evening. I was told to bring about ten to fifteen books.

The last signing will be at a local Barnes & Noble, still waiting on the date for that one. At this point it looks like I will be by myself. Other than any advertising they might do, a mention in their newsletter possibly (I'll have to ask) the rest will be up to me. I plan to make some posters and flyers, and do everything I can to let people know about the event. I did read that the purpose of book signings is not just to sell books, but to get to know the staff and let them know about you and your book so they will be more inclined to mention your novel to book buyers. That makes sense to me. Since I like talking to people that should be a no brainer. I also plan to wear a pin which has a picture of my book cover and my name on it. Angie will design a nice one for me. B&N suggested I do the signing on a Saturday or Sunday, and that's fine except that a few of those weekends are already taken, especially in February, so it could end up taking place in March. That actually wouldn't be so bad as it would give me more time to promote the event.

I am excited about all three signings, and plan to buy a nice oufit to wear. I'm thinking a brown tweedy sort of suit, with a brown turtle neck shirt, brown hose, and nice shoes ... sort of Sherlock Holmes, but feminine. I may not be able to find what I'm looking for, but I'll know it if I see it.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Skiing Soon

2007-12-30T09:42:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas was fun, got what I wanted, a new ski jacket. Actually, I knew about this gift beforehand, so it wasn't a surprise. (I picked it out and tried it on at the ski shop.) But I didn't wear it until Christmas day, so it did seem like a real present. I love it. It is black, with pin stripes on part of it, and looks good, and I've never had a black ski jacket. The one I've been wearing I still like a lot. It's sort of a gray blue, with purplish accents, and so warm.... That is a requirement. I hate being cold. I once had a ski jacket, a red one, that I talked myself into buying because I liked how it fit, but it was not warm. It was actually a shell, with no insulation of its own. For several years I froze wearing that jacket, convinced that if I just put enough sweaters on underneath it, it would be as warm as an insulated jacket. But it wasn't. I think I developed a lot of new blood vessels wearing it though, a result of my body searching for ways to keep me from shivering. I have noticed that when I'm biking now, I wear a lot less clothing than everybody else in the cool weather, and I stay warm. Of course, that could also be because I ski and many of my bicycling friends don't.

So, now I have this great new warm ski jacket to wear when we go up north to ski soon. I'll be ski racing again this winter, amateur stuff, as will my husband and my daughter. Angie is incredibly fast. She has been able to beat me racing since she was ten years old. She started skiing at three, and was really good then. I remember taking her out to our local ski area and lifting her onto the chairlift, holding her so she wouldn't fall, and then helping her off and skiing to the top of a moderately moguled hill. (A mogul is a small to large bump in the snow made by skiers skiing back and forth, pushing the snow into little piles, and also digging ruts around the piles.) By the end of a snowy day some slopes are covered with them. Many skiers find them intimidating because it takes a bit of finesse and experience to ski them well.

Anyway, I remember the two of us waiting at the top of that slope, Angie so tiny and babylike in her tiny skis and cute little ski hat, a number of adults and teenagers standing there with us, hesitating to ski down this heavily moguled slope. Then I gave the signal and my little Angie took off, skiing smoothly around each mogul, all taller than she was, and hearing a collective gasp from the onlookers.... She is and has always been an accomplished skier.

So, we will all be racing again this winter, and it will be fun. I am not as fast as I once was, but I still enjoy it. Shooting across the finish line, hoping my time will at least be competitive, is still a thrill. My daughter's fiance, new to ski racing, will be giving it a try this winter. He skis pretty well, and is athletic, plays hockey, a goalie, and mountain bikes in the summer. He's looking forward to it. It will be fun watching him, giving him tips etc. He also got a new ski jacket for Christmas, a Spyder. It is cool, and I just remembered, black also. Come to think of it, Angie's jacket she bought last season is also black. Guess all of us will match, except my husband, who has a wild looking blue and orange and yellow one. I never have trouble spotting him on the slopes.

Well, got to go. Hope you're enjoying the holidays and happy new year!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Shop 'til you drop...

2007-12-17T21:24:00.000-08:00

Christmas is just around the corner, and of course I'm not finished shopping yet. I have done some of my shopping, and actually I am ahead of schedule considering my usual habits. I usually wait until a week before Christmas to begin, when the panic really starts to set in. I then wander aimlessly around the mall for several days in a row, hoping the perfect choices for gifts will magically appear. They don't. I then drop hints to loved ones to tell me what they want now, or suffer the consequences. They are not surprised. They've seen this before.

Unlike most women, someone forgot to give me the shopping gene. I am like a few men I know in that respect. I wish I could give cash sometimes, or gift cards, but that is so very impersonal. I wouldn't like it, so I can't possibly do it. But if my loved ones aren't going to like what I buy, and must either take it back or not use it, what is the point in buying it? I am happiest when the ordeal is over, and the gifts are under the tree, and I've managed to somehow come up with a few nice surprises. The joy is seeing the looks on their faces.

I did enjoy the mall though this year. I took a day just to look at the lights and the decorations, and sit and enjoy a coffee and biscotti at Starbucks while all the shoppers rushed by. Somehow this relaxed approach helped clear my head, and I actually found some nice presents this way; I think because I didn't go there to shop, just to look around.

But I'm not done, though I am close. And I still have seven days, a lot of time. Like I said, most years I wouldn't even get started until now. I think I feel relieved already.

Hope you enjoy the holidays!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Day before Thanksgiving

2007-11-21T08:16:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting at my computer, as usual, completing some projects. Slicky, my long haired black cat, is sitting just below me on his papers near my feet. He has a fondness for colored tissue paper, the kind you put in gift boxes, and likes to both play with it and lie on it for some reason. Right now he is reclining on light and dark pink paper, plus some white. Seems very content. It's nice to know he likes to hang out with me.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and though we usually go to Julie and Neil's house, my niece and her husband, we won't be this year. Her sister-in-law wants to do Thanksgiving instead this time. That's too bad, because it's fun at my niece's, and my sister and her husband show up, and my daughter and her fiance, and I get to see my niece's children, who are growing up way too fast. But my niece thinks she may have another holiday party possibly, so we can all get together then. But, the way it gets over the holidays, it may not happen. Time just seems to fly during this time.

So tomorrow it is just my husband and I, then the day after Thanksgiving my daughter and her fiance are coming over. He promised to visit his own parents on Thanksgiving, which is fine. He is very good about spending time with both of our families. I am instead making a small ham tomorrow, and keeping it fairly simple. Then the day after Thanksgiving I will roast the large turkey I bought. So, in a way we will have two Thanksgiving dinners. Also, my bicycle group usually does a Thankgiving day ride, which I always miss because of other plans, but I could actually go this time if I want. But I may not, as I like to watch the Thanksgiving parade on t.v., and see Santa Claus show up on his sleigh, doing the HO, HO, HO thing.

I only attended the downtown Thanksgiving parade once (except another time as a student band member when I marched in the parade). My daughter and I rode down in a charter bus that picked people up from the community center near our home. Angie was in high school then, and it was a cold cold day, and we were dressed warm but still freezing. I even brought chemical heater packs for our toes and hands, but it barely helped. When the bus parked, we walked down a little ways, maybe a half a block, and stood and watched it all. Then after Santa passed by, we hurried back smiling to get on the warm bus. But all the smiling quickly stopped as we watched the bus start pulling away. Angie and I just looked at each other and started running. We were downtown after all, thirty miles from home, and no cell phones back then, or even payphones, plus all the stores were closed.

It was awful! We would run, almost catch the bus (moving slowly through traffic) then the light would change from red to green and the bus would start up again. We ran after that bus for two or three blocks, waving and screaming. Finally, just before the bus was about to turn onto the freeway ramp, we came alongside the driver's window and yelled and pointed at ourselves and then at the bus. He did stop then and we got on. The only excuse anyone could give was that it was so cold that everyone got back on the bus long before the parade ended. And no one did a head count. No excuse. Needless to say it was our last parade, but I do still like watching it on t.v. :)

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Something Spooky.... ):0

2007-10-31T13:10:00.000-07:00

Well, in just a few hours the kiddies will be marching up to the door yelling Treat or Tree-eeat!!! It's a nice night for it, mild temperatures and no rain. Should be good. My husband and I drove over to the new Super Walmart today and I went through the candy bins, and got a few good deals, though I didn't know it until check out at the cash register. A large bag of mixed candy was $4.98 (way expensive for last minute shoppers!) but at the register it was marked down to $3.50. Much better. I added another smaller bag of Raisinets, and that was that. I did point at a decent looking pumpkin, but my husband made a face, so we didn't buy one. We usually do, and I might have vetoed the nixed pumpkin, but I don't feel like carving one tonight. In fact, I feel like taking a nap, and I still might.

I had my own Devil's Night yesterday evening coming home from my bike ride. The car broke down in the left hand turning lane of a five lane highway. It wasn't too busy though, so I called AAA, and then waited for the tow truck. It took about twenty minutes, and by that time I'd been honked at a few times even though the hazard lights were on and blinking. I guess they are a mystery to some people. So, I got out of the car and waved people around. Still, a few continued to sit there anyway. No clue I guess. Hard to comprehend....

A police car rolled up after a while, and a guy came to my window, and I told him the tow truck would be there momentarily. He didn't ask for my driver's license at first, then came back and requested it. He may have noticed my weird attire, and bike stuff all over the car, plus the mountain bike in the back. And really, it is their job to make sure you're not a criminal. I had to smile though, since my driving record is so squeaky clean it's embarrassing. I haven't had a moving violation in over thirty years. My insurance company would probably like to clone me.

The police guy asked if I needed a ride home, and though I thought about it, I decided to go with the tow truck. The young tow truck guy and I had a real interesting conversation. (I love riding in tow trucks for some reason. Don't ask me why....) I learned he used to play soccer, and is married with two boys, one three and the other seven, and he and his wife want to have more kids, and are hoping for a girl. I told him about my own daughter, and my feathered grandchild, Makamae (Crested Cockatoo) that I had babysat this past weekend while my daughter was in Florida with her fiance.

Well, just got the call to go pick up my car, more on that later....

Thursday evening, Nov. 1:

Okay, my car is fine. The repairman couldn't find anything wrong with it, drove it around, started and stopped it over the course of a day. Nothing. It did not do anything. Since I said it had stalled, and when I restarted it and pressed on the gas nothing happened, he decided to adjust the choke, but that's all.

Now that is odd. I tried several times to get it going while I sat there waiting for the tow truck, pressed on the gas, nothing, turned it off, restarted it, pressed on the gas, still nothing.... I must have done this four times before I finally gave up. Then, when the tow truck guy arrived, it worked (of course) but I decided to have it towed anyway. Later that night, my husband and I went back to the station to get my bike out of the car, and I tried again to move the car, and again, nothing....

So I drove it yesterday, and again today expecting the worst, but it ran perfectly fine. I have to admit it all seems pretty spooky though. Maybe goblins and ghosts were playing tricks on me.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Night Ride

2007-10-26T08:31:00.000-07:00

Well, the weather is turning colder and it's getting dark earlier and earlier, but as an avid bicyclist, that's not really much of a problem. We just go on NIGHT RIDES! I actually enjoy these rides in some ways more than the the day rides. It's exciting! And around Halloween you can check out all the decorations displayed in the neighborhoods when the pace slows down. It is, of course, necessary to have taillights and superior headlights to do this. I have two headlights I use, a headlamp on my helmet (like a miner) and a set of lights for my bike. The headlamp is sort of necessary because if you have a flat, you must be able to focus light on the tire in order to change it. Fortunately, since I ride with a group, I don't need to do this myself. Guys seem to love to change tires. And that's good! It's messy, greasy, and often frustrating if you haven't done it in a while. And we use moutain bikes to ride at night, so the tires are an especially huge pain to change.

But about the ride. I dressed warm, but ended up unzipping my jacket in a very short time. The pace was a bit brisk, since only five riders showed up, and me the only girl. Usually we get ten to fifteen riders, but this was the first colder ride, and there was a chance of rain. Bad combination. Tends to scare people off. I have an older mountain bike, a good one, a Trek, but very heavy compared to the newer models, and a tank compared to the carbon fiber models available today. And then some riders use cross bikes, much lighter, so for them the ride is a bit easier I suspect. I like my old bike though, very retro, and I get an especially good hill work out.

So we flew through the night, up and down both paved and chuck hole filled dirt roads..... I grew up on a dirt road, before helmets, and shock absorbers, and wide tires, so I tend to be fearless on the downhills. I get into the most arrow position I can and just let it rip. It reminds me of skiing. Of course, it you fall skiing at speed you tend to slide; if you fall biking you tend to break things. So, I hang on tight, and look for eyes in the woods, small animals foolish enough to cross the road, and deer. That could be real bad.

We did only twenty-three miles since our ride leader needed to be home early, but it was long enough. Have to clean my bike though now. Lots of mud.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Great Customer Review on Amazon!

2007-10-07T18:36:00.000-07:00

I am so happy! I got an unexpected surprise when I went over to my Amazon page today, a new customer review!

I must admit I worried at first. I've seen some awful reviews given to authors, even some of the bestselling ones, and that has to hurt! I don't care how talented you are; it's got to be very difficult to write one great, compelling book after the other, hoping to please the majority of your readers ... then get an awful review from one of them.

Every writer I've ever met is sensitive, no matter how successful, no matter how talented. Writing novels is their thing, and their ego is very much tied into how people view their work. The entire world could have loved their last book, but they still worry that it won't happen on the next one.

Yet though sensitive, writers are also tough. The majority of writers I've known have been told no, many many times, over and over again, before they finally made it into print. Rejection just goes with the territory. It's a subjective business, and the only thing writers can do is keep trying, keep hoping, and continue to give it their very best shot.

So when I got this nice review today, I must admit I was ecstatic! Here it is word for word.

Murder Mystery Thriller, October 6, 2007

By Sunny One - NC USA

"Nancy Johnson's first book is definitely a winner! Wow, I honestly could not read it fast enough. There were so many twists and turns in this who dunnit that I wasn't successful at guessing who killed her sister. Keep writing, Ms. Johnson, you are a natural. You will love this book!"

Of course, it's my debut novel, not my first book, but how could she know that? I've written two other books, neither published, and two complete rewrites that took longer to write than the novels themselves. But what a really nice, great thing for her to say! She made my day! Completely made my day!

I thank you, Sunny One. I thank you very, very much. :)

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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A Good Day To Feel Bad

2007-10-05T14:23:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a little down today, and yet the weather is exactly what I would like it to be, warm, almost hot out. And it's supposed to continue, so chances are I'll get out of this funk soon. We're going out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants tonight, so that should take care of it.

I just took a walk around the neighborhood, exchanged courtesies with a squirrel on a telephone phone, he/she letting me know I'd best move on. But instead I ignored him (let's just say it's a him) and stood there, listening to him jabber at me for a while.

Slicky just stuck his head in here. Slicky is my long haired black cat. It must be getting close to dinner time, and he wants his special food. I give him wet food in the evening, along with the dry food available to him all day. The evening meal gives him something to look forward to, since his life isn't all that exciting. (He's an inside cat, mainly because he's let us know he wants nothing to do with the outdoors.) It may be because of the traumatic experience he had as a kitten, or maybe it's just his genetics. He used to have a twitch, kind of a weird twitchy thing on his back, like a nerve acting up, but that has more or less disappeared. It used to act up a lot, and when it did he'd take off like a shot across the room, like he thought someone was messing with him. Funny....

Well, I need to get ready for tonight, make myself look as good as possible considering I badly need a professional haircut. I've been self-trimming, always a bad idea. I never know whether my hair will work for or against me now. I could have done something about it yesterday, today, but I've procrastinated so I'll just have to hope the hair dryer will perform a miracle tonight. Otherwise, just need to avoid the mirrors.

Okay, I'm out of here.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Best Laid Plans

2007-10-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

Huh, funny how you never know how things will go. I thought I was going to be viewing two new pilots for t.v. tonight with my daughter and her fiance, but that's not what happened.

I got four free tickets for this t.v. preview thing (well actually a friend got them and gave them to me.) She and her husband couldn't make it and wondered if I wanted the tickets. I had actually done one of these preview things years ago, and I remembered it being kind of fun, so I thought, okay sure....

Then I forgot about the tickets until my daughter called today and mentioned it was October first, and wasn't that the night of the preview thing? I'd called her before and asked if she wanted to join me, knowing my husband probably wouldn't be interested. And as it turned out, Cliff Hanger was on t.v. so the preview thing was out of the question.

It was raining and a crummy night out anyway, and the event was at the Radisson Hotel and not too far away, so off the three of us went to see the t.v. preview. We were supposed to view two pilot episodes that could possibly end up on national t.v., and I figured we would be asked to fill out a form and rate each, but that would be okay. The program started at 7:30 p.m., so I figured we would be out of there by 9:00 at the lastest.

So we get there, and ask the guy taking tickets how long this event will last, only to be told 10:00 p.m. I say we might not be able to stay quite that long, and without even blinking, he hands back the tickets and says maybe we should sign up for a night when we can actually stay. He also mentions that not only would we be seeing the two half hour pilots, but also a bunch of commercials, and must answer 60 questions. (This is sounding better and better all the time.) I look over and glimpse their idea of refreshments for this two and a half hour sentence ... water, and maybe some ice to go with it.

We leave, and I'm feeling bad that I've wasted my daughter and her fiance's time, but they are okay about it. They are more worried about disappointing me. So, I suggest we at least get some kind of treat, and offer to buy at the nearby Tim Horton's. I love their coffee and cookies. We have fun drinking coffee (decaf) and eating oatmeal raisin and macadamia nut cookies and then head back. Instead, we end up playing games with Makamae, my daughter's baby cockatoo, who is very happy to be let out his cage and not have to go to bed early.

Not the evening we planned, but fun....

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

End of a great summer....

2007-09-20T20:46:00.000-07:00

I'm so happy to see the weather return to summer-like conditions. It was so depresssing a week or so ago to have to put on long pants, full gloves, and a thick vest for my morning Saturday ride. I've been warmer skiing than I was biking.

Anyway, I rode last night over on the east side, Gross Pointe, and it was very enjoyable because it's so flat there. I wouldn't want to do it on a regular basis, but it's a nice treat once in a while. I've improved greatly since June, when I struggled to hang onto the group, and got left on Jefferson riding alone. Last night, I not only kept up, but passed quite a few people, but after about three minutes or so of going 27 to 30 miles an hour, I was done.... But the rest of the ride was a decent pace and then my favorite stop, Starbucks for coffee at the tables outside, before heading back to our starting point.

It was so nice to ride in a sleeveless jersey and shorts again, and it didn't cool down even after the sun set. Then we had dinner at Champs, about eight of us cramped together at a table outside, but that's the way it had to be since the patio was crowded. It appeared everybody else wanted to eat out in the nice weather too.

I am not looking forward to summer ending, and hope that this summery streak continues for a while. For one thing, I'll miss the crickets. They were really loud last night, especially as it grew dark. Guess they were glad to be out in the warm weather again too.

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter,

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

A Good Deed

2007-09-13T13:06:00.000-07:00

Well, I just had to know more about my page partner on Amazon, so I went over to Borders to check her out. I guess I just wanted to see if I thought she was as good of a writer as it appeared she was. And well ... she was. I didn't read the whole book while I stood there, but I read enough to know that she is certainly a very talented writer.

Of course, on the drive over to the bookstore I was still a little miffed, and didn't know how I felt exactly. All I knew was "she" didn't appear to be helping my cause, seated next to me on my Amazon page. But I had visited her website earlier, and read her bio, and saw that it didn't come easy for her either. She had worked hard to get to where she is now.

And so, the softy in me came out, and I straightened her book section (since it was a little messy) and took a damaged copy off the shelf and turned it in to one of the girls who worked there. I felt a whole lot better when I left.

And here's the funny thing, absolutely true I swear. My book sales have risen every day since....

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Not So Sure About This....

2007-09-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've got company on my Amazon page, since about a week ago. At first I thought it was pretty cool, but now I'm not so sure.... I feel like I'm at an author's signing, but I'm seated beside a seasoned bestselling author that everybody knows about, and unfortunately I'm the unknown newby.

Amazon has this program called "Better Together" which I actually considered purchasing to advertise my book, but it turned out to be quite expensive, and with no guarantee of sales. For that much money I figured I could do a lot of other types of advertising that might be more effective. What I didn't consider was that another author might decide on "togetherness" with me. To be honest, I doubt my new seat mate chose me, but Amazon did. This is a real compliment, for sure. Amazon saying that her new bestselling book (and she has several others) is comparable to mine and we should be paired is a good thing. Unless ... yes, unless those who clicked on my book with intentions to buy get distracted by her astounding sales and forget about my worthy well-written book trying to grab a bit of the spotlight.

I keep hoping that readers will do what I think they were supposed to do - buy both of our books. But since she appeared on the scene, my steadily increasing sales figures ... well ....

Hey, but she's a guest, and if nothing else I should at least try to see why Amazon chose to pair her with me. I may even have to buy one of her books, see if I agree. And good grief, she does have over twenty-two pages of listings on Google. (I stopped reading at that point.)

And no, I won't say who she is. You'll have to go on Amazon and check out my book site.... And while you're there, maybe you could buy my book. Or yeah, hers too if you must....

HER LAST LETTER - by Nancy C. Johnson (that's me)

I'm sure she's a very nice person.

P.S. If you would like to guess, her initials are C.G.

Update: I have a new author next to me now, Jan Coffey. And my former page partner was Cindy Gerard. :)

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

About the Free EBooks

2007-08-25T19:09:00.000-07:00

Someone from Edmonton, Alberta downloaded one of my free EBooks today. I have no idea where this person (whose name I will not mention, of course) found out about my free book offer. I know I didn't advertise in Alberta certainly....

When my website was designed, I had no idea I would be as curious as I am now to know details, but I would love to know the chain of events that led this person to find my site and decide to download my book. (If I had known how curious I would be, I would have included an area on the download page for adding this information. Of course, I could still change it.)

Several people (okay, ladies) downloaded my book in India too. I didn't advertise there either. I can only guess that somehow they found me on the web. But I would sure like to know how. Did someone just happen across my website, and then tell a few friends?

And many from the U.S. have downloaded my book ... in the north, south, east, and west. This I can sort of understand, as I did some target advertising in certain cities. But though I advertised in those certain cities, many books were downloaded in states I did not advertise in. Hmmm, how did that happen?

I guess I'll never know, and I guess it doesn't matter. I guess all I can do is keep trying to get the word out, and keep marveling each time someone from a distant city, perhaps on the other side of the world, finds my book....

Of course, if any of you happen to be reading this now, I hope you enjoyed the book!

And please, write and let me know how you found me! Nancy :)

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Already August

2007-08-05T20:38:00.000-07:00

Summer is going by way too fast. Already it is August and I barely remember July. I am enjoying the new table and chairs out on the deck a lot though. I forgot how much I liked sitting there just outside the kitchen. For several years now since we threw out the old wooden table and bench seats (they rotted and fell apart) the deck has been devoid of a place to sit. I did use the set out on the lawn once in a while, but the mosquitoes would get me in the evening, and it was more of a production to go back and forth. With the table on the deck, I can run out for a few minutes and drink my coffee or tea, then run in again to do something else. It's more like an extension of the kitchen itself. It looks nice from the kitchen too ... kind of invites you to go outside and relax for a minute.

The relaxing part of my life seems to have disappeared lately. Now I have to spend time trying to get the word out about my book. Not that I mind that much. It's just new to me. I try to look at it as a challenge. It's just odd trying to promote my own work. Though I am confident that I wrote a good book, it's wierd to always be doing the "buy my book" or "read my book" thing. It feels so self oriented, and of course it is. It would be easier and far preferable to write books and leave the marketing to someone else, but if I want people to read my books, I can't take a backseat and hope someone else will do all the work for me. If I want people to find me, I have to do the uncomfortable thing and promote ... promote ... promote.

Among other things, I am planning to sign up with a company that does a heavy duty email campaign and use an ad I wrote recently. I hope it will encourage people to buy my book or to at least download the free e-book. It doesn't cost much and is "spamless." I won't be annoying a bunch of people who don't want to receive offers in their email. I'll give it a test run and see how it works. Fortunately, it's a month to month thing, so if I don't get results, I can easily cancel.

I have several other ideas too. I might try a few of those as well, if not now, after I see how this email blitz thing goes. I want to be able to know what works and what doesn't.

If anyone has any great marketing ideas for me, my ears are open. If you can't write me here, use the contact link on my website. I would appreciate any help you might offer.

Thanks, Nancy

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

My Website is finally live!

2007-07-19T04:28:00.000-07:00

Actually, my website was live a week ago, on July 11, my birthday. So, I had something to celebrate! It was a nice day for me too, met my sister for lunch in Birmingham at one of my favorite restaurants, and then we sat and talked for a couple hours, always fun. Our waiter was very nice, even gave us a great dessert free. I'm trying to think of the name of it, right on the tip of my tongue, a sort of soft sweet vanilla pudding with a thin crust and delicious strawberries on top of that. It was wonderful, full of calories I'm sure, but hey, it was my birthday. Then I had dinner out with family at another of my favorite restaurants, a chain, but still great. Unfortunately, they took my favorite entree off the menu, and that wasn't cool, but replaced it with a very similar dish, so I wasn't too disappointed.

So ... now if anyone wants my free E-Book or my Paperback or CD, they are easy to access. Someday I would love to offer an audio book too. I love audio books myself, especially if they are well done. I would make sure mine was of great quality when the time comes.

I have lots to do still, but don't feel as frantic as I've felt for the past year, trying to get mine and my daughter's website launched, plus finish my book and get that out. It's nice to slow down a tad, even though I know there is still lots to do. No one will buy my Paperback or download my E-Book if they don't know it exists. My placement on Amazon is pretty good, so I'm hoping people will be able to find me now. And I added "Search Inside the Book" also, so that they could read a bit of it. I always like to do that before I buy a book, read the first few pages, then flip through and read a few more. I also put a free ad on Craig's list yesterday, a local one. Then for fun, I tried to put a similar ad on Craig's list London, UK . It didn't take, but the local one didn't take either until I submitted it a second time, so I'll try to do that again today. It would be so cool if someone in London downloaded my E-Book, or bought my book on Amazon. I can't ship outside the U.S. from my website, too costly at this point, but Amazon can.

Well, I need to get going on my "to do" list for the day. Please take a look at my website and tell me what you think. You can leave comments on my contact page. I think you'll find the home page is especially cool. Nancy

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Sunday afternoon

2007-07-08T12:51:00.001-07:00

It's Sunday afternoon and I plan to spend the rest of the day outside once I finish this post. It's going to be a short one as I don't really have much in the way of news today. I did talk to Ginger who is a great lady who offered to help me promote my new book, Her Last Letter, once my website goes live. She and her husband John floated over on their pontoon boat and stopped by and talked for a little while. The action is crazy out on the lake today, boats flying back and forth, and the water is a perfect temperature, cool but not too cool. I should go jump in the lake, or go float on a raft, or even take the kayak out. That's the great thing about living on a lake, you don't feel the need to head to the public parks, and people like to drop by and keep you company.

There is a nice breeze coming off the water, and we need that as the temps will reach the mid-nineties today. My daughter Angie and her fiance Marty are coming over, and we'll barbecue chicken etc. and just relax and enjoy. I do love summer!

I think my website will be completed this week, just a few little blips keeping it from going live, should be resolved soon. I can't wait! Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Neglecting my riding and writing

2007-06-16T19:38:00.000-07:00

Hello,
I've been neglecting both my bike riding and writing this blog, and actually I should start zeroing in on the topic for my next novel. I do this all the time though, and eventually I hit on an idea that sticks and it becomes my new book. So I'm not going to worry about it, and besides, I need to promote my current novel before moving on to something new. I've been pushing myself hard lately, working on the website particulars and a million other things, and that's why I decided it was time to do a ride with my fellow Wolverines (Michigan bicycle group).

So this morning I drove over to Beverly Hills (Michigan) and did 42 miles with the gang. I haven't been riding much compared to the kind of riding I've done every year for the past 15, so I was a little worried about keeping up. I know I'm not in shape, and that wouldn't be much of a problem except that everybody else is! I've probably done less than two hundred miles since spring, barely anything. Riders talk a lot about miles, how many miles they rode on a given day, how many for the season, how many for the year. Oddly, other riders are actually interested in this stuff, unless the rider in question goes on and on about it. Gives them a chance to mention their miles, for the day, for the season.... You get the idea.

Anyway, the flats were fairly easy and I kidded myself into thinking I was okay. We hit the first set of hills and I struggled, but didn't fall behind ... too much. We usually stop for coffee and a sweet roll midway, and I was fine until we were about two miles from the stop, then I bonked some and lost the group, but knew the rest of the way fortunately so it wasn't a problem.

But on the way back my lack of conditioning really began to show, and when we hit Kirk in the Hills, normally a fun set of ups and downs, I fell apart. I literally almost fell over I was going so slow on one hill. I lost the group again, but fortunately my friend Steve took pity on me (he knows I don't know the way back at all) and led me out. The group stopped and waited around the corner, which was nice of them. Steve and I would have missed them totally, but they yelled out to us and we were able to rejoin them. I plan not to let this happen again, and will keep a better riding schedule. I don't like it when people have to wait for me. Plus it's my fault, not theirs, that I haven't been riding. It's also a lot more fun to ride when you're in shape, less heavy breathing, cramping etc.

But I'm glad I went. I missed everybody, and it hasn't felt normal lately. I love to ride, especially with my group. It was a great day! Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

I finally have High Speed Internet!

2007-06-03T21:26:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,
Yes, I know getting High Speed Internet isn't a really big deal to most people, but it is to me. I don't like to admit this to myself, or to anyone else for that matter, but I tend to make changes very slowly and only after much consideration. I am one of the least compulsive people I know! Dial up was just fine with me, and like those turtle people on t.v., the Slowskis, using a slow connection wasn't much of a problem for me at all. It was a problem for those who wanted to get a hold of me though. Since I'm on the Internet more than usual lately, my phone just rang and rang and rang ... no answering machine ... nothing. I never heard it, of course. Plus, I didn't miss getting any of the telemarketing calls (I mean, who would?) and I got a lot done because I wasn't interrupted. But I couldn't watch videos or listen to audios and it was very frustrating when something interesting presented itself. If you've never had dial up, you wouldn't be aware that audios and videos are impossible to listen to or watch. It's like trying to watch someone with the hiccups trying to talk!

The nice thing is that it isn't going to cost a lot more than we were paying before, and we get better t.v. programming too. We even get an assortment of free movies, some of them pretty decent.

My book, Her Last Letter, is available on Amazon now. And Angie and I uploaded the cover image recently and it looks really good! It's also available at barnesandnoble.com, but the cover image isn't up yet. We're planning to take care of that this weekend. My website is almost complete, just taking care of some shipping and handling details needed by PayPal. It's a lot more work than I thought it would be. I want to offer the most reasonable shipping possible, and also the quickest. I worked a lot on that the last few days, and I think I have it just about under control.

Well, it's late and I'm exhausted. So, I think I'll get to bed. Been on the computer too much tonight. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

My books are here! My books are here!

2007-05-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

Hi,
I guess you can tell I am excited. My books were printed and ready for delivery last Monday. And they turned out spectacular! I am so pleased. The cover looks even better than I thought it would, and the interior turned out beautifully too. I love the color of the interior pages, off white, almost a soft yellow, and I love the feel of them. They are smooth and soft to the touch. So far (cross my fingers) I haven't discovered any errors in the text, which would be my fault, since I had many chances to look it over. As much as I liked reading the manuscript, I like reading the actual book even more. I can't wait to get my books into the hands of readers, whom I can only hope will love them as much as I do! I have all kinds of wonderful ideas for my next book too, but first I would like to receive feedback on HER LAST LETTER before beginning in earnest. That way I have a better chance to learn what readers liked about this one.

It's all so very exciting. I am now a published novelist! Whether I sell one book, or many, nothing can change that fact. It has been a long, long road to this point, but I'm finally here! And the view is awesome! Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Books arrive as soon as Friday!

2007-05-14T21:38:00.000-07:00

Hello,
Well, my books may be ready for delivery as soon as Friday! I can't wait to see them and examine them. Though I already know what the cover will look like, this will be the first time I see the book covers with their beautiful glossy finish. The covers I've seen so far have more of a matt finish. The first thing I'll do is open one up and hope it's as perfect as I think it will be. I've heard horror stories of books printed upside down with missing pages or with globs of ink, etc. I don't think I need to worry about that since a very reputable book printing company is handling the job. I've been very, very pleased with them so far, but I tend to worry about stuff like this. What's that old saying? If anything can go wrong, it will. Let's hope not.

I've been staring at my computer screen too much lately, neglecting to exercise, so I decided to get some air today and took a walk around the neighborhood just before sunset. It was nice to move. I saw a few other people out too. The weather was so pleasant today, started out cold, then warmed up quickly to about seventy-five. I didn't realize it was nice until about three o'clock, when I had to leave to do some errands. I walked out in a sweater and light jacket, only to see people walking around in shorts and sleeveless tanks. That's the funny thing about this time of year in Michigan; people are dressed all kinds of ways, some overdressed, some under. By June everyone seems to have figured it out.

I'm hoping my website will be finished soon. The mockup site does look great, and I like the flash that Lisa has added. My author page, links page, and order page are not ready yet, but it's getting close. Angie's site http://www.angiedesigns.com/ is more complicated than mine, so it's taking a bit more time. I proofread some of her site today and found a few items that needed to be corrected, and will do a little more of that tomorrow. She is so very busy, she just doesn't have time for everything.

Well, it's time for bed. I'll check in soon. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Press Check

2007-05-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Hi there!
No, this doesn't mean the Press is giving me a check, though I wouldn't mind. Press Check means that before my book is printed, I get one final chance to check the cover as it comes off the press. It was sort of fun, but scary. I stood there with the pressman and the guy handling my account, and watched as my cover came rolling out of the press. I was supposed to look at it and see if the color needed small changes or not. It looked great to me, but they both looked at it and decided the girl on my cover had a little bit too much rouge in her checks. They corrected that and ran two more covers, just to check and make sure everything looked right.

I'd already gone through the process of looking over my proof copy of the book, and a proof of the cover, and was very pleased, but still.... The last thing I want is to have errors in the interior of my book or on the cover, but it's amazing what can be missed! As far as I can see all the pages are there and in the right order. The printer was given a file, so if there are mistakes, more than likely they will be my own. It must be devastating for an author to find errors when it's too late to change them. I looked over another author's new book the other day, and found a mistake on the acknowledgment page, right up front before the book even begins! How sad. I can only hope that at least I've caught any big mistakes. I did change one item on page 194, because even though I checked over my manuscript what felt like a thousand times, I'd left the word hor doerves on two separate lines. Hor was at the end of the first line, and doerves at the beginning of the next. How in the world did I miss that?

I'm not sure if I finished this blog last time, because it appears to end here. ??? I just noticed this now. I only signed on to edit a few mistakes I made. Anyway, it will end here now because I have no idea what I may have written before.... Oh, well. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

It's good to be home on my own computer, although....

2007-04-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

Hi,
Well, the library was an interesting way to spend a few hours getting stuff done, but I'd rather write from home. Though I must say that the chairs at the library are way more comfortable than mine, and if I wanted to spend some money I'd definitely invest in a new computer chair. It's also easy to check out free DVDs while you're at the library, then easily return them the next day. I picked out Pride and Prejudice, a book I read and enjoyed a lot as a young girl. Seeing the movie should be really interesting. Plus, going to the library gave me an excuse to get out of my robe and get dressed, something I'm a little slow doing sometimes, especially if the weather looks bad. I also liked hanging out with the people at the library. Everybody keeps pretty much to themselves, but still there's an air of contentment and comeraderie. You feel that if you asked someone a question, they wouldn't ignore you or be rude, they'd just try to help you out, and then drift back into their silent reverie. I saw an older lady sitting reading a book, alone, but not really. You had to figure she could have read the book at home, but felt more comfortable there among her like-minded library friends. I also noticed a man holding a baby, a very good natured baby, who didn't cry and seemed to have picked up on the contented atmosphere of the library as well. The father sat using the Internet for several hours with the baby crooked in his arm.

Well, I'm tired and I guess I should go to bed. I'll get back to you soon. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Internet Down

2007-04-22T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hello!
Well, I'm at the library writing this blog as my Internet at home is down. With any luck it will be up and running soon. Like at least one of the characters in my book, I hate it when things break. Actually, that probably applies to all of them. Who likes it when things break? Repairmen are the only ones I can think of at the moment ... and maybe toddlers. I'm planning to go to the book printing company tomorrow, which reminds me, I need to do a map quest before I leave here. I vaguely remember the directions, but I wasn't driving the last time so I wasn't really paying attention. The printing company is huge, or huge to me; I guess it is considered a medium size book printing company as companies go. It is over 10,000 square feet and a cool looking building inside and out! They put out a quality book product, and were nice enough to give me a tour of the building and an explanation of all the equipment housed there, and how it functions. I understood only a little of it, but it was really interesting. The book interior will be printed in sections called "signatures." At their company, a signature is 8 pages. I guess signatures can be as much as 16 or 32 pages. They will be using off-set printing for my book, a good choice. They also offer web printing, also a great choice and lightening fast I'm told!

So, I'll hand over the hard copy (manuscript) proof of my book tomorrow, and also a copy of the cover. They will use each to check against the proof copy they print, I suspect, in case of errors (mine or theirs). It will be 4-5 weeks before the books are printed and ready for me. That will give me time to work on my marketing plans, already in the works. But more on that later.

By the way, it is finally a beautiful Michigan spring Sunday afternoon, so I am anxious to get back outside! I'll talk to you soon. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

Book going into production soon!

2007-04-16T08:57:00.000-07:00

Hi there!
My mystery/romantic suspense novel, HER LAST LETTER, will be going into production soon. The printing company needs a few things from me first, but I'll take care of that this week. I expect the book will be ready for distribution in a month to two months. I'm very excited about it. I've put a lot of time, effort, and love into my novel, and tried to make it a fun and entertaining read. My aim was always to please a female audience, but it could possibly appeal to a male audience too. Time will tell. The premise for my book is rather unique, or at least I don't remember ever reading a book quite like it. I've included lots of dialogue and action scenes, and the pace of the book increases as more and more of the plot unfolds.

My characters became real for me right from the start, revealing themselves as they acted out their stories. I've been told they also seem real to the women who've read my manuscript. It's fun writing a book, hard work, but fun. In this one endeavor, I have complete control. If I say it rains, it rains. If I say the daffodils are in bloom, they are. Anything can happen and I determine it all. That's exciting for me! Plus, a lot of skill is involved. The words and sentences must have a certain music, a certain rhythm to them, depending on the emotions I hope to invoke. To do this even marginally well takes years of reading good writing and practicing the craft. Still, I feel I have a lot to learn, and am continually looking for ways to improve. I always try to offer the absolute best stories I am capable of writing.

And now I will get off my soap box and get busy fixing dinner. Talk to you soon. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered at most bookstores.

The day after Friday the thirteenth....

2007-04-14T07:29:00.000-07:00

Good morning!
Actually, I've always considered Friday the thirteenth to be lucky ... for me, because my birth date has lucky numbers in it. It's 7/11. Even the year is lucky in that respect, but as a lady, I don't wish to reveal my age. So, for my own reasons, I've decided that Friday the thirteenth is lucky, because good things have always happened to me on that date.

Yesterday my daughter ushered in a new member of the family! But no, it's not a grandchild exactly, more of a feathered grandchild. She brought home Makamae, her baby cockatoo, or "crested parrot" by dictionary definition. He was born a few months ago in Hawaii, and shipped here in the first class section of the airplane. Before his trip he was cared for by the breeder, then a nurse of sort who fed him baby food etc. until he was grown enough to come home. My daughter Angie has already started a baby album, pictures of his egg, of him struggling to crack open his egg, of his wet little bird body, then of him in various stages of growth. They grow fast! Angie adopted a bird because she couldn't have a dog or cat pet because of allergies. I've visited Makamae several times, and will go again to visit him today. He is white, with blue around his eyes, has a gentle nature, and loves to play with his toys. His name in Hawaiian means "cherished or precious." He is already trying to say his name. Maka sounds like the "ma" in mom, and mae sounds like "my."

Though I didn't write anything about writing today, I'll leave you with a quote I found by Ernest Hemingway, another writer I and many others admire.

"My aim is to put down what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way I can tell it."
Ernest Hemingway

I agree with that philosophy! Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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Oh ... the weather outside is ... yuk!

2007-04-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hello,
So this will be my second official post as a blogger. I wonder what the accepted definition of blogger is? Must you write blogs, or only read blogs? Is the word blogger officially listed in the dictionary? I would have to think so, at least in the unabridged version. I will definitely have to go to my online Webster's Dictionary site for this and check it out. I love that site anyway. I mean, the guy (why a guy anyway?) will pronounce the word for you on the computer (look for a tiny red horn and turn up the volume on the speakers) and it's even free! It gives many more words than in the dictionary on my desk, which hasn't put out an updated edition in I don't know how many years.

But about the weather. It's one of those "Why do I live in Michigan?" spring days out there. It's rainy and cold and miserable. I'll have to go out in it because I'm out of bird seed and the squirrels and birds around here depend on me now. I only started feeding them in order to amuse my cat, who doesn't go outside. I would let him go, but he doesn't like it, because of his past.... I'll have to tell you about that someday.

My website (listed above) is under construction as of this date, so no one can get free e-books or excerpts as yet. But the site is looking so cool! Lisa, my designer, is doing a great job. I've never met her. She lives all the way over in California, but I can tell from talking and emailing her that she is super nice, and very talented. Angie (daughter) and I found her by searching Craig's list, or could be she found us, I'm not exactly sure anymore. We checked out her site and were impressed! I'm not sure how much longer it will take to finish our sites. It's all a very detailed process, and Lisa has other clients besides us. She'll have her company name on the site once it's up, so if you'd like a new website yourself, you can check it out there.

Well, time to brave the rain I guess. I'll check in again soon. Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

My first ever, ever, ever ... blog.

2007-04-11T13:43:00.000-07:00

Hi there!
I created this site today and this is first time I've ever written a blog. I've read quite a few, but never felt the urge to write my own. But this blog site is so nice I wanted to have one all to myself.

Since I am a writer you would think writing this would be a piece of cake. Speaking of cake, I think I have a cupcake in the ... but I digress. (This is how writing doesn't get done, getting pulled away from the keyboard to do any number of time-wasting things.) I probably should talk about writing in some respect, since I've already mentioned my new book enough times. You remember, HER LAST LETTER, the mystery/romantic suspense novel I've been telling you about? I remind myself of a new mother. "Oh, look at her/him. Isn't she/he the most adorable, blessed, wonderful creation ever to grace this planet?" I do love my book, but I also love any number of others. Two of my favorite authors of late are Sue Grafton and Mary Higgins Clark. I'm also a long standing fan of Ira Levin, who wrote Rosemary's Baby, and A Kiss Before Dying, and Stepford Wives, among others. Not only were Mr. Levin's novels made into movies, they are written with such craft and simplicity you might not guess the man is a genius! Of course, if I'm really feeling nostalgic, I'll take out my old copy of The Reincarnation of Peter Proud, by Max Ehrlich. Wow! I've read it and reread it countless times. (They made a movie out of this one too, but didn't do it justice. I would love to see what Dreamworks would do with it now.) Well, I've only left out a few hundred other wonderful and deserving authors, but I'll save them for later.

I am hungry, so I think I'll go in search of that cupcake. I'm wondering now, can I delete this before it's too late? Nancy

Update - Website live as of July 11, 2007

Visit my website to read a FREE EXCERPT of my mystery romantic-suspense novel, Her Last Letter.

http://www.nancy-cjohnson.com/

Books are available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and can be ordered through most bookstores.

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