Saturday 30 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: Z

Z is for Zeitgeist - noun. The general spirit or mood of a particular period of history.

What a fascinating word. My dictionary didn't indicate the origin but it looks German to me.

If the zeitgeist of the Middle Ages could be described as depressing, would the Renaissance be considered enlightening?


It has been fun learning 26 new words, wasn't it? Until the next A to Z Blog Challenge, keep on learning something new every day!


Friday 29 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: Y

Y is for Yealing - noun. A person who is the same age as oneself.

Another letter of the alphabet that I had to go online to find since my dictionary didn't have a Y word that I didn't already know. I liked yealing, so I picked that one. It is so unknown even my spellchecker didn't recognise it. Maybe because it is Scottish in origin. 
Does that mean that I have to use a Scottish accent to compose a sentence? 🤔


Thursday 28 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: X

X is for Xystus - noun. A long portico in which athletes used to exercise in ancient Greece.

Since my Dictionary didn't have a word starting with X that I didn't know, I went online and learned that there are 120 words in the English language that start with an X.
If you included words that are no longer in use, it amounts to 400 of them. Wow!

Wednesday 27 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: W

W is for Weft (and warp) - noun. The threads that are passed over and under the warp threads to make cloth.


Of course, these things would have names. I actually learned these words from a recent program on television. Don't ask which program or channel. I wasn't paying that much attention. The weft (or woof) goes parallel to the loom (the thread on the shuttles) and the warp are the threads held by the loom. 

Tuesday 26 April 2016

The Friendship Affair

Not all long lasting marriages are happy. But what do you do if divorce is not an option?
University friends, Stephanie and Nick, meet again after twenty years. But life has not been easy or simple for either of them. Will this friendship affair stand a chance against reality? 


CHAPTER 16
Lena still looked the same. Of course, she was older, but there was no mistaking the woman who had borne his children.
She was dressed in some kaftan thing that looked it had paint spilt on it in litres. Her hair was on top of her head but he wouldn't go so far as to call it styling. It just was.
She was focused on something in the basin so he couldn't see the whole of her face, but if he had to guess no make-up.
“Lena.”
She froze. Then stood upright and turned around.
“Nick. I thought you were Angus. He is late with my salt.”
She stopped and turned back to the basin. He wasn't sure he should ask what she was up to.
She stood up again and turned around. Her hands were some awful yellow colour, but she didn't seem to notice.
She frowned for a moment then looked at her hands. “Yes, well. The damn dye is not setting without the salt.”
She glanced at the envelope in his hand. “You brought a pen?”
Before he could reply, she pushed past him and walked down the passage of the cottage.
He blinked. She really hasn't changed a bit.
He heard water run, then it was quiet for few moments, and then she came marching back.
She was alternating shaking her hands and rubbing them on the kaftan.
“There is a table in my studio.”
Again not letting him reply, she marched off. This time, he followed.
The studio used to be the dining room, he would guess. But the rest of the place was also filled with easels and paint brushes, and paintings in various stages of completion.
He might be ignorant about fine art, but as an architect, he had a good eye for composition and design. Lena was truly a gifted artist.
She pushed some brushes to the side and pointed to the table.
He pulled out the papers and took a pen from his breast pocket.
She slowly reached out to take it as if suddenly realising that this was the end of the road.
“It is done?” she asked quietly.
He nodded. “Yes. Tomorrow is her eighteenth birthday, but I will only file the documents with the lawyers on Monday. Then it's over.”
Two men came in and seemed startled by his presence. He knew she lived with two men, but didn't expect them to be the same guys he had met before. So she was capable of a long term relationship, it was the children that caused her to run.
His chest ached for his kids, but it was better this way.
After she initialled and signed in all the right places, she held out his pen.
He put it back in his pocket.
“Do they know? About me?”
“No. You wanted it that way, remember?”
Lena nodded. Then frowned again. “Where is my salt?”
She made to go back to the kitchen but he held her arm for a moment. “Thank you,” he said quietly.
She shrugged. “I might be useless as a mother, but it would have been heartless of me not to help out financially.”
She bit her lip for a second and he could swear he saw a moment of regret, but it vanished when another man walked in. “About time!” She reached out to take a bag. “The kitchen. I need it in the kitchen.”
Then she was gone as if he had made no impression on her daily existence. Perhaps he didn't.
The two men who had been watching in silence nodded to him. “Will everything be okay now?” the taller one asked.
He nodded with a half smile. “I think we are okay already.”
He lifted his hand in a silent greeting and left the cottage, the papers back in the envelope ready to finalise the last point on the divorce agreement between the world famous painter and her unknown husband.

Also follow the story on Wattpad

A to Z Blog Challenge: V

V is for Vaunted - adjective. Praised or boasted about.

Yes, well, this blog post is unlikely to be vaunted about on social media.


I was looking for an antonym and spotted gasconade as another synonym. I stopped looking.

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.

Monday 25 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: U

U is for Ululate - verb. To howl or wail.

Example: We have a dog that ululates at the smallest sign of movement in the street; she drives us crazy.


Ha, the word even sounds like a howl. 

Saturday 23 April 2016

Book Feature: A Piece of My Heart by Cindi Page

Do you believe in fate?
Sometimes, just sometimes, a series of unrelated events leads you to a particular place, out of your usual context, to meet a person that changes your life forever.

Do you believe in love?
When you meet the one, that person is more than just a lover, boyfriend or husband. They are your other. Time, place, age - these things are meaningless to two souls who call each other home.

Do you believe in happily ever after?
Is it possible? What if, when your path crosses with the one, the universe rolls out a red carpet and gives you your happy ending?

That’s how it is when Victoria, a young twenty-four year old teacher from South Africa meets the Turkish businessman, Alkan, who is thirteen years her senior. From the outside, these two should have nothing in common, but from the moment they lay eyes on each other, they both know that they have found their other.

Buy links:   Amazon     Goodreads

Here is an excerpt from Chapter 3:
"You gave me fright!" she blurted out, "Victoria. My name is Victoria."
Her eyes met his at the same time that their hands touched.
Sparks.
Butterflies.
Something resembling a somersault deep inside her.
Vicky knew at once that she was in trouble.
He was smiling at her now and she was sure his dark eyes could see right through her. He pulled his hand away but his eyes stayed fixed to hers. There was an intensity there and Victoria didn’t dare look away. The silence swirled between them, daring the one and then the other to break it with a word.
Eventually Alkan got a hold of himself and sat back, still his eyes refused to leave hers. He willed words from his mouth.
"…you arrived just this morning?" he tried again. An unfamiliar feeling of being out of his depth struck him.
"Yes. I came from Tokyo," Vicky rested her hands on her lap and crossed her ankles. It was the controlled body language she had taught herself when she didn’t want to be read like an open book.
"I will be translating for you this evening?"
Alkan dragged his eyes from hers and looked out of the window on his side of the car. He needed to focus again. Suddenly he was annoyed that Helen would send him this attractive girl of a woman. As if the night wasn't going to be complicated enough he now had to deal with her. He didn’t need a distraction. But, she was all he had, and she would have to get the job done for him. Simple as that.
"Actually no, I don't want a translator in the traditional sense," he looked at her now again, but his gaze was indifferent with none of the open admiration Vicky imagined she had seen before. In response to the change in him, she instinctively brushed off the electrified encounter of a few minutes before and sat a little more upright. She waited for him to continue.
"I need you to act as my date. I don't want you to openly translate at all. In fact, I don't want my clients to know you understand Japanese in the least. I simply want you to tell me what they are saying when they think I don't understand…"

About the Author
Cindi Page is a former law student, turned English teacher, turned editor, turned writer. When she isn't day dreaming about the next story she going to write, she visits the Cape Winelands so that she can blog about wine, food and tourism. "A piece of my heart" (April 2016) is her first full length novel.
You can also follow her:
Twitter: @1stTruLove

A to Z Blog Challenge: T

T is for Tautology - noun. The saying of the same thing twice in different words.


I am sure you have met the masters of tautology, they are the politicians of this world. 

And to ensure that everyone understands, the word also comes in the adjective flavour, tautologous, and the adjective colour, tautological. Got it?

Friday 22 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: S

www.a-to-zchallenge.com
S is for Soupçon - noun. A very small quantity of something.

I am on a special diet and a soupçon of sweets can send my blood sugar off the deep end.

A first glance it looks like a lot of sugar, babe. Better be careful, ya hear?


Thursday 21 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: R

R is for Repine - verb. To be unhappy or anxious.


Sheesh, I must already know all the happy words that these depressing ones are popping up in my search for words that I didn't know. It is enough to make one repine until doomsday.

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.

Wednesday 20 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: Q

Q is for Quotidian - adjective. It means daily, and ordinary or everyday.

Nothing fancy, just your quotidian breakfast will suffice. Hmm...still think I should find a dress for that occasion.


Tuesday 19 April 2016

The Friendship Affair

Not all long lasting marriages are happy. But what do you do if divorce is not an option?
University friends, Stephanie and Nick, meet again after twenty years. But life has not been easy or simple for either of them. Will this friendship affair stand a chance against reality? 

CHAPTER 15

Stephanie folded the towel and put it away. All done.
It was Saturday. The place was spotless, her closet was in perfect order, the groceries were bought and stored, and she was bored to tears.
Having finished the last book on her reading list, even there was no help forthcoming from that quarter.
She never did any work over the weekend, but right now she was tempted to dig out her computer to start working on one of her clients' accounts.
No. Then the week will be too long. Work was for getting through the week.
Her own little business was thriving enough that she could afford to hire help, but she was reluctant to do so. She didn't start the business to employ people, she did it for her own sanity and to generate enough money for her own expenses. She didn't want to touch the money from the sale of the business and the house for herself. All of that was only to look after him.
If he died before the money ran out, the trust was set up in such a way to help other families where the husband couldn't support them because he was suffering from Alzheimers.
She had met one such family and it was heartbreaking to know those children would never get to know their father.
She sighed. Still bored.
Her phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Mrs. Jackson? It is nurse Stephens from St Agatha's. Mr. Jackson is asking if you have a chance to come and visit him today?”
She blinked. “Really? He did?”
The nurse laughed softly. “He did indeed.”
Her voice became serious. “Ma'am, if I may? It would really be a good time to come if you want to see your husband.”
“Of course. I understand. I am on my way.”
She rang off quickly and rushed to find her purse and car keys.
On the way, she wondered why he made the request. Even when he had good days before, he had never specifically asked her to come.

Catch the earlier chapters on Wattpad

A to Z Blog Challenge: P

P is for Polyglot - adjective. Knowing or using several languages.


I live in South Africa, a country with eleven official languages. 

I speak Afrikaans and English and have some knowledge about two of the African languages. Using two or more languages in this country is nothing unique; we are truly a polyglot nation.

Monday 18 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: O

www.a-to-zchallenge.com
O is for Oubliette - noun. A secret dungeon with access only through a trapdoor in its ceiling.

Now the fun really starts. What shall we find upon closer inspection? A gold treasure? A dragon? A secret society of magicians cooking up recipes of orgasmic proportions?


What will we discover behind that green door? 🔐

Saturday 16 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: N


N is for Naevus (spelled nevus by my US friends) - noun. A birthmark or mole on the skin.


Now that is a word that I can use. It is short and sounds way better than a ... you know that thing.

Friday 15 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: M

M is for Miscible - adjective. Able to be mixed together. Applies to liquids.

Sex on the Beach, anyone? Cheers!


Yeah, it was really hard to come up with that one! 😉

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.

Thursday 14 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: L

L is for Lachrymose - adjective. It means tearful.

Just reading the word makes me want to reach for a tissue.

Example: The thought of losing him made her lachrymose. 

Yeah, right. By the time she looked up the word, he would already be gone. 😢

Wednesday 13 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: K

K is for Kaolin - noun. A soft white clay, used for making china and in medicine.


I really hope they don't give it to someone to swallow; might be tough to digest.

Tuesday 12 April 2016

The Friendship Affair

The Friendship Affair by Linzé Brandon, blog serial
Not all long lasting marriages are happy. But what do you do if divorce is not an option?
University friends, Stephanie and Nick, meet again after twenty years. But life has not been easy or simple for either of them. Will this friendship affair stand a chance against reality? 

CHAPTER 14

Early the next morning, he looked in on his daughter, who was still sleeping soundly. She must have gotten in late since he hadn't heard her come in.
Since she was a star student, he didn't impose a strict curfew, but he was still her father.
With a smile, he left a note for her in the kitchen and texted the boys to let them know he was going out of town for the day and to help their sister if she needed anything.
She had still to get her driver's license and he didn't want her to feel she was too isolated with him not being there.
The eldest's reply was almost instantaneous since he too was an early riser.
No problem, Dad, Drive safe.
He smiled at the text. He knew better to say anything, but both his boys would make excellent fathers one day. Their sister was another story, but he thought it was more the feeling of being abandoned by her own mother that scared her, than an actual aversion to having children. But he was not going to decide for her.
After checking that all the doors were locked behind him, he got into his car and put the envelope on the seat next to him.
Taking a deep breath, he put the key in the ignition.
“This is it,” he said aloud as he turned the key.
Three hours later he took the off-ramp from the highway. The commune was located on the outskirts of the town and he drove straight there. Although he had looked up the address, he was surprised that the maps of the GPS had the coordinates already programmed.
Probably because the place was actually well-known even though it was off the beaten track.
At the reception area, he asked to see Lena. Since it was also a tourist attraction, they had added the building, to give their residents some privacy from prying eyes.
“Who?” the young woman asked.
Shit. He rubbed his face. She started using a different name after she left him, and for the life of him he couldn't remember what it was.
An older man came in holding two bags, one over each arm. They looked heavy. The word 'salt' was visible and he wondered why anyone would need salt in such a large quantity.
The young woman looked at him but pointed with her finger towards Nick.
“This man is looking for Lena. He says she lives here, but I don't know any Lena.”
The man put the bags on the counter and peered at him. “You're Nick?”
He nodded. “I am.”
The older man turned to pick up the bags once more.
“Call Starr,” he told the young woman and promptly left again.
Shrugging she lifted the phone and called her.
“She said you can go in. Number seven on the left.”
After thanking her, he returned to his car and drove into the commune. He had been here once before, many years ago. While the cottages still looked much the same, he was surprised to see the gardens well kept and the whole place clean and neat.
“Tourism,” he muttered when he spotted a few people walking towards a large building on his right.
Not much further he spotted Lena's place.
He parked the car, got the envelope and got out.
The front door was open, but he knock in any case.
“I am in the kitchen!”
Accepting the call as an invitation, he stepped into another world.

Follow my blog or Wattpad to get notification of the next chapter in your inbox.

A to Z Blog Challenge: J

J is for Jardinière - noun. An ornamental pot or stand for displaying plants.


Sheesh, these plain old ones I am using would never qualify to be called jardinières. The word alone makes me want to throw mine in the trash.
Then again, a spot of paint might jazz them up enough to make the grade.

Monday 11 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: I

I is for Impecunious - adjective. To have little or no money.


To the rich it may sound cheap, but to the impecunious the sound produces a wealthy state of mind. 🙄

Saturday 9 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: H

H is for Hirsute - adjective. Pronunciation 'her-soot'. It means hairy.

To my surprise, there were not many words under H in my dictionary that I didn't know. I had to scan several pages before this one came up.

My first response, ookaayy. I will, however, be using the word "hairy" in any text, creative or otherwise, that requires the need for such a description. Hirsute sounds like something a woman would wear. Yikes!

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.


Friday 8 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: G

G is for Genitive - noun. The form of a noun, pronoun, or adjective used to show possession.

My examples: Michael's for the noun, theirs for the pronoun, but damn if I can think of an adjective. If I say "They are my blue pyjamas" I can see the pyjamas belongs to me, but does that mean the blue belongs to the pyjamas?

Do you have a better example of a genitive adjective to share with me?


Thursday 7 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: F

F is for Flout - verb. Openly fail to follow a rule, law or custom.

Skip red traffic lights or stop signs much? Yeah, we call them minibus taxi drivers in this country. 👮

Want to know what the other bloggers are writing about? Look here.


Wednesday 6 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: E

E is for Expiate - verb. Do something to make up for having done something wrong.

Hey guys, just in case you were wondering, flowers are not always the answer but it is a good place to start. 💐


Tuesday 5 April 2016

The Friendship Affair

The Friendship Affair by Linzé Brandon, blog serial
Not all long lasting marriages are happy. But what do you do if divorce is not an option?

University friends, Stephanie and Nick, meet again after twenty years. But life has not been easy or simple for either of them. Will this friendship affair stand a chance against reality? 

CHAPTER 13

Nick sighed into the blessed silence of his backyard. It had been a long week and the emotional difficulties of Sunday were still haunting him. Added to that he had come to realise that he was in love with Annie.
Stephanie. Her name reflected the elegant and mature woman she was, but he would always think of her as the carefree Annie of their youth.
Maybe he had always been in love with her and just never realised it until now.
He swirled the whiskey around the ice cubes rapidly melting in the summer heat. Apparently they were going to get some more rain, but when he looked at the empty sky, he wondered if the weather guys saw things.
His mobile phone beeped.
He opened the message. Come tomorrow. Bring the papers with you. L
He took a sip of the whiskey and deleted the message before putting the phone back in his pocket.
He understood Stephanie's situation much better than she knew. He was raised with the idea that one never abandoned one's family, but having been on the receiving end, he understood why she couldn't let her husband go.
But he could and one day when she was ready, they could have a future.
“Hey, Dad.”
He smiled at the cheerful face of his daughter. “Hey, yourself.”
“I am off to study group. I brought some Chinese if you feel hungry. See you later?”
He nodded. “Thanks, sweetie.”
She waved and turned to go back inside.
He called her name.
“Yeah?”
“Break a leg!”
With a shake of her head and laughter still tinkling with youthful cheer, she left him to his thoughts.
Alone in the house, he went to his study and dug out the key to a small safe hidden away in the desk. It contained but one thing and this was the first time in seventeen years that he was going to open it. He only hoped the documents were still intact.
He had to blow out some dust from the lock, making him sneeze twice, but the key still fit and the door opened on the first attempt.
Reaching inside he withdrew the envelope. He pulled a face. Judging by the smell the mothballs have done their job keeping nature away from the documents.
After closing and locking the safe, he returned the key to its hiding place and sat down behind the desk.
Giving his hands a quick wipe on his jeans, he opened the envelope and pulled out the documents.
Due to their dark and sealed storage space, the paper was still white and crisp as the day he had put them in there. Only the smell gave away their age.
Seventeen years. Sometimes it felt like yesterday. Other times it felt as if it had happened to someone else and he was only an observer to the result of that fateful day.
Whatever he had felt back then, was not relevant anymore. It was time to move on.
It was time to finally cut the ties to his wife.

Read the story from the start on Wattpad

A to Z Blog Challenge: D

D is for Decry - verb. Publicly declare something to be wrong or bad.

No need for any examples here, I am sure. But here is one anyway: It is criminal the way that some people treat their children!

I had to add the exclamation point since it is supposed to be an outcry, isn't it?


Monday 4 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: C

C is for Cetacean - noun. The name in zoology for a whale or a dolphin.


There is no more monkeying around on this one for sure!

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.

Sunday 3 April 2016

Linzé's Mischief: 3 April 2016

The A to Z Blog Challenge is underway and judging by the number of bloggers that signed up, it could only be termed a humungous success! I checked the website - 1967 bloggers! Wow! Congratulations to the hosts and all the best with keeping up the good work, because work it is to do this blog challenge on such a large scale.


My humble offerings from this past week:

A > http://www.linzebrandon.blogspot.co.za/2016/04/a-to-z-blog-challenge-a.html
B > http://www.linzebrandon.blogspot.co.za/2016/04/a-to-z-blog-challenge-b.html

Sundays are no-post days, so the challenge resumes tomorrow with the letter C.


Both STORM ebooks are still discounted until 7 April, so hurry to get yours while they are only $0.99 each - lots of reading pleasure for almost nothing.


And don't forget to sign up to win an ebook copy of my latest novel, Michael's Mystery. I will be giving away 5 copies, so hurry and get your entries in. The competition closes on 7 April. The winners are randomly picked.


Now it is back to my word count target for Camp NaNoWriMo.

Happy reading fellow book lovers!


Saturday 2 April 2016

A to Z Blog Challenge: B

B is for Boatswain - noun. An officer in charge of equipment and the crew on a ship.


Hmmm, and I thought it was the captain. Now I know! 👍


Friday 1 April 2016

Spread Some Indie Love Blog Hop - Jordan Rivet



Duel of Fire
Steel and Fire Book 1

Dara Ruminor is a serious young duelist in the mountaintop kingdom of Vertigon, a land of dramatic cliffs and misty peaks where mysterious Fire magic runs through the stones like blood. The secluded kingdom has been peaceful for a hundred years. Swords are used for sport, and successful athletes live like kings as long as the crowds love them.
Eighteen-year-old Dara needs to find a wealthy patron in order to duel professionally and avoid a lifetime working in her parents’ Fire Lantern shop. Her efforts are disrupted when her coach asks her to train with Prince Siv, an infuriating—if handsome—young man who refuses to take the sport as seriously as she does. But the prince’s life may be in danger, and soon Dara will discover that Vertigon isn’t as peaceful as she thought.
As threats emerge from the shadows, Dara will have to raise her sword to protect Siv—if he doesn’t irritate her so much that she decides to run him through herself. 

From the author of the Seabound Chronicles comes a new fantasy series about sword fighting, cur-dragons, molten Fire magic, and one young woman’s effort to prove herself. 

Buy Links >   Amazon

Author Bio
Jordan Rivet is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. Originally from Arizona, she lives in Hong Kong with her husband. She is the author of the post-apocalyptic Seabound Chronicles and the new Steel and Fire fantasy adventure series.

Follow Jordan on Twitter @Jordan_Rivet



❤️ Don't forget to enter my giveaway! Click here to win an ebook by Linzé

Spread Some Indie Love Blog Hop - Amy Bovaird



Synopsis: 
Adventurous international teacher, Amy Bovaird, is diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a hereditary eye disease that will blind her. In spite of that, she manages to continue teaching overseas. Then her father’s final illness brings her back home for good. There, friends and acquaintances begin to notice that she doesn't always recognize them and sometimes stumbles…as if drunk! Insensitive students ridicule her in the classroom. Unwilling to accept that she is truly losing her eyesight, Amy resists when the Bureau of Blindness schedules a mobility specialist to begin training her to use a white cane. How can she, an independent world traveler, use something that screams ‘I am a blind person’? Will her faith prove strong enough to allow her to move forward and accept herself as she is?

Buy links > Amazon

About the Author
Amy Bovaird taught English as a Second Language in Latin America, South East Asia and the Middle East. She is one of one hundred thousand who lives with Usher Syndrome—the leading cause of progressive deafness and blindness. She is an author, educator and inspirational speaker. In her memoir, Mobility Matters, she steps out of denial and into faith as she chronicles her progress in cane training with a completely blind instructor and finds ways to cope with the initial stage of hearing loss. She’s currently penning her new memoir, Cane Confessions: The Lighter Side to Mobility. 

❤️ Don't forget to enter my giveaway! Click here to win an ebook by Linzé

A to Z Blog Challenge: A

A is for Aphorism - noun. A short clever phrase which makes a true point.

My example: The hourglass drops the seconds one grain at a time.

Perhaps not the cleverest. Can you think of a better example?

See what the other bloggers are writing about here.

Theme reveal: My A-to-Z blog challenge 2024

  It's been a while since I have taken part in the blog challenge. The problem is always coming up with new ideas so it isn't boring...