I’m sure you’re wondering how this has anything to do with Sunday hotties. Well, picture these hotties in a shop window near you. Happy Holidays!

 As authors we create scenarios that feed the imagination. Suppose this year, you decorate your Thanksgiving table with gusto. You pull out the fine china, the sterling silver, and the Waterford crystal. The last thing you decide is whose place card will grace each setting. If you could pick the famous men of your choice to join you for Thanksgiving dinner, who would they be? Would you base your selection on looks, intelligence, or accomplishments?   I decided on a little of all three:) Jon Bon Jovi, because I rocked out to his music then, and now. Jon has stood the test of time, and he’s hot as ever. Matthew McConaughey, because he’s gorgeous, and I love a man who’s motto is, “Just Keep Livin.” Lebron James, because I’m a disgruntled Cavs fan who still needs to know why, especially when he’s still not getting it done with Bosh and Wade on South Beach.   Lee Child, because he’s my favorite male author, and he has a British accent.  Bradley Cooper, because he’s hot as hell, and funny. Kevin James, because he’s the total package, funny, cute, and we share the same appreciation for a good meal.  Happy Thanksgiving! 

Does a tattoo on a well defined bicep send you into a frenzied state? Do you prefer a man with a single tat, or the more the better? Does a tribal tattoo gracing the chest of a hero make your panties spontaneously combust?  Or do you prefer a  man with nothing to obscure the beauty of his well defined musculature?

Whatever your choice, I’m sure we are in agreement, a tattoo can only add more heat to the pages when it comes to description.

Sometimes I close my eyes and envision stepping inside a carriage. I take a seat on the velvet upholstered bench, and look across the small compartment into the eyes of a gentleman wearing a top hat and tails. The midnight blue of his eyes twinkle under the low slung brim of his hat. I reach over and straighten his cravat. His lips twitch at the corners as he leans toward me, and lightly cups my chin in his hand. I feel his breath on my cheek, as he whispers in my ear, “Good evening, my sweet.” 

It doesn’t matter if the arena is a dusty stable, or a crowded ballroom, a hat can make a man.

Have you ever created a hero that wore a hat well?

A naked hottie, with a come hither look on his face.

The sunshine is fast losing it’s appeal. A lady never leaves a willing hottie in distress. It’s a good Samaritan bedroom law. No hottie must go unattended, even on a spring day. No scoffing. Hottie abandonment is a serious offense. Section 9.11 of the  Revenge Hottie Satute clearly says, if one of the men in this blog is left destitute, it is s a disservice to women everywhere.

I will never be accused of slacking in my civic duties. The first hottie on the page is mine.

Dibbs anyone?

I like to write about couples caught in a rain storm. It spices things up a bit if they are arguing. A wet t-shirt clinging to some broad shoulders is a beautiful sight. A shoving match ensues, and the sexual tension builds. The heroine grabs the front of his t-shirt and rips it from neck to tail. The hero looks down with an intense stare, beads of water clinging to his eye lashes and dripping from his bottom lip. She leans close and sucks his bottom lip into her mouth. What follows is an all out, back against the wall, legs around his hips, sexy ride to a steamy climax.  

Yes ladies, in the writing world, good muscles, and a water source is a combination not to be missed.

While on my quest for hottie material for this week; I discovered one of my hottie weaknesses. Men in business or evening attire. There is something to be said about a man in a tailored suit or tuxedo. A suit can often times project an image of a man in control, inside and outside of the boardroom. How many romance novels start with a man in a necktie, and before the chapter is over, the tie is securing a woman’s wrists to a bedpost?

Swoon.

 A suit can be foreplay.  It hides the goodies, and makes a woman undress him with her eyes. It’s a virtual game of cat and mouse, until  Armani is draped across the foot of the bed.

He can bring it, on and off a soccer field.

And sweet Alabama, doesn’t he look good!

Is it me, or is it hot in here?

Morgan Freeman-Invictus

This time every year Hollywood is aflutter with anticipation. Who will receive the golden statue for the leading man in the best actor category? This year the Academy of Performing Arts has once again nominated the best of the best. What I noticed about this years nominees, is the distinguished attraction in a category of talented performers. Just like the heroes in some of my favorite novels, it proves that looks do not always dictate the power of the leading man. George Clooney, Tobey McGuire, and Colin Firth are nothing to sneeze at, but I find the talent of Morgan Freeman and Jeff Bridges to be equally arresting.

JR Ward created a tortured and scarred hero in Zaddist. In Lover Eternal, he displayed as many scars on the outside as the suffering he sheltered in his soul. His scarred appearance endeared his character to thousands of readers. An attractive appearance is just icing on the cake for the most cherished leading men. Heroes are remembered for their actions, and the ability to make you believe them in the role they portray.

Tobey McQuire- Brothers

George Clooney-Up in the Air

Colin Firth-A Single Man

Unfortunately, I haven’t viewed any of the movies nominated. However, I can remember each of these men in unforgettable roles. Most memorable for me would have to be Morgan Freeman in the Shawshank Redemption. At the end, when he strolls down the beach toward Tim Robbins, it makes me want to stand and cheer every time.

In movies as well as novels, the memory etched, is the sucess gained.

Jeff Bridges-Crazy Heart

Who are your favorite-scarred heroes? Whom do you predict to win the Oscar tonight?

This is the time of year that many of us share needed time with loved ones. We often spend hours at the mall looking for the perfect gift for each person on our shopping list. I enjoy giving more than receiving. I count down the days until I can see the joy on my son’s face as he rips into each present. To me, Christmas isn’t just about giving material items; it’s about giving from the heart. Some of the best presents I’ve ever received or given were priceless. They were random acts of kindness that meant far more than any material possession. They opened my eyes to the important things in life that I often take for granted.

I thought about writing this blog as a letter to Santa. We could have shared our favorite things as Oprah does with her viewing audience once a year, but I wanted to make it more real. I wanted to think outside the box about issues that are often beyond our grasp. Those issues we view on the nightly news, and shake our heads at the atrocity. Issues that we feel are out of our control, but in reality, we know that if we took up a cause we couldn’t save the world, but we might make a difference.

So many elderly people need assistance, not just financially but emotionally. The hospitals and extended care facilities are at capacity with elderly individuals who will never see a family member this Christmas. I’ve been fortunate enough to join church functions that reached out to these individuals, and I have never experienced a more wonderful gift than seeing gratitude and a smile for just singing a Christmas carol.

If your children, nieces, or nephews have used books, consider donating them to your local school or library. They could be a vessel that will foster a desire to read. You can clean off shelves in your home for new Christmas toys and provide another child with the gift that keeps on giving.

If you have teenage children plan a holiday party so they can extend an invitation to several friends. In a nation where teen violence in schools is increasing at an alarming rate, every random act of kindness is needed. The invitation might reach a child that has a disappointing family life. We often don’t realize the magnitude of hospitality.

Have you ever considered volunteering your time to help serve a holiday dinner at a local soup kitchen? If you can’t spare the time, consider giving a donation to a favorite charity or food bank. You will provide funds or a meal to those less fortunate, and benefit from income tax relief.

Do you have a garage or attic full of unwanted Christmas decorations? Find a local charity taking donations, maybe that old star that used to perch on top of your Christmas tree could bring the light back into another family’s Christmas.

Christmas is a time of joy, we don’t want to dispel that fuzzy feeling with a startling peek at how the less fortunate live, but when we take much needed time away from the tinsel and glittering lights, a feeling of even greater joy is unearthed.

I’ve missed the crew, and my cyber peeps. Even though I’ve been pulled away from the writing world by my day job, I’ve missed this world and all of you, tremendously. Hugs all around! Peace and joy to all of you this holiday season.

“Last I heard he was heading for the states.” He said.

We all experience stress, just like the characters we create. Maybe not at the epic proportions of the character in the snippet of my story, but I’m sure we all have felt as if we were working under the gun from time to time. In my past writing life, I have usually dealt with stress in my personal life by tapping away the frustration on the computer keyboard. I’ve written some of my best scenes after experiencing a stressful day. Emotion, anger, and heartache give me the right frame of mind to slip under my character’s skin. As we’ve often discussed on the ship, writing can be a cheap form of therapy.

My father passed away 9 years ago. As a form of therapy, I chose to express my grief through a pen on paper. I couldn’t verbally express the raw pain of emotion clawing at my heart. The verbilizations never seemed sufficient to describe the turmoil in my life. I wrote pages upon pages of words, attempting to extinguish the pain the only way I knew how.  I wrote everything I felt, and everything I missed about him. In the end when I finished pouring out my soul, I wrote a letter to him. I told him everything I wanted to say that I didn’t find the opportunity to say before I said goodbye. Most of what I said he already knew, but visulizing it on paper made all the difference in the world. I documented my feelings of loss, followed by a celebration of his life. Through my journey I discovered a love for writing that I left behind in an American Literature  class. It took the darkest moment of my life to discover something that would become one of the biggest anchors in my life.

In recent months, I have experienced an extreme amount of stress in the workplace. The stress has carried over into my writing life. Before, I dealt with stress through writing, now I’m stressed because the stress is not allowing me to write. My workdays are long and exhausting; they leave me both mentally and physically tired. When I find time to sit in front of the keyboard my brain is mush. I have fleeting ideas for storylines, and thoughts for scenes to add to my current WIP, but they all filter away because I don’t have the advantage of stopping a surgical procedure and writing them in my trusty notebook. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been known to have a fellow coworker dictate notes for me from the surgical field. I get some weird looks, but I’m sure you understand how important those fleeting thoughts are to a current WIP.

I’m not writing this blog to illicit cyber hugs, because I’m no different from anyone else who has a stressful job environment. I empathize with those who do, but I know I’m not alone. Even if you don’t have a stressful job, most writers experience stress in their personal life. We all have families, friends, pets, households, and deadlines. At any given time, unexpected crap hits the fan. The car breaks down, grandma falls and breaks a hip, the cat gets a hairball, or the air conditioner ceases to function on the hottest day of the summer. Life is good, but it can be a never-ending snag of complications. Have you ever heard the quote “If life gives you lemons make lemonade?” My life is giving me lemons, but I’m too tired to squeeze.